Chapter 13: The Price of a Secret
The assassin lay in the grass, his breath coming in ragged, bloody gasps. He tried to reach for a suicide pill in his tooth, but Carson was already standing over him. The pressure Carson was exerting wasn't physical; it was "Qi-Pressure." It felt like the entire weight of the Cloud-Reach island was pressing down on the man's chest.
"Who sent you?" Carson asked.
"You... you're not a Level 10..." the assassin wheezed, his eyes wide with a terror that transcended physical pain. "That energy... it's Sovereign-tier. It's impossible! No one in this sector has reached that realm in a century!"
"I don't like repeating myself," Carson said. He tapped the Star-Shedder's hilt, and a tiny spark of violet light jumped from the blade to the assassin's shoulder. The man screamed as the energy began to slowly "erase" his shoulder at a molecular level.
"The Syndicate! The Liang Family!" the assassin shrieked. "They know you bought the Luxe-Aether dealership! They think you have the Emerald Blueprint! They've already sent word to the Solaris Hegemony!"
Carson went still. The Liang Family. They were the ones who had bought Uncle Silas's soul years ago.
"The Emerald Blueprint," Carson whispered. "The map to the Sahara."
He looked toward the horizon, where the sun was just beginning to peek over the edge of the world. The time for "playing billionaire" was over. The Liang Family had just signed their own death warrants, but more importantly, they had confirmed that the Hegemony was watching.
"Aura," Carson commanded, turning away as the assassin's body began to dissolve into light, neutralized by the Qi. "Cancel the furniture delivery for the manor. We're leaving for the Sahara in one hour."
"And the Liang Family, Sir?"
"Buy their bank," Carson said coldly. "Then, once they're homeless and in the streets, tell them Carson McCain is coming for the interest on their debt."