My Wife is a Hidden Big Shot-Chapter 234 - 228: The Mysterious Veridian Woman

A crowd of Eastern Highlanders and Chameleons had already gathered. In this place, the strongest was recognized as the boss, and Aurora Sinclair had already won the respect of many of the Eastern Highlanders.

The four captains clutched their chests, forced to swallow their defiance.

"Since you two went out, do you have any news of the Lord?" the bald, one-eyed man challenged again, his face grim.

Alvin Morgan replied in a hoarse voice, "Aurora and I heard something from the Skull Gang. The White Bear Mercenary Corps has put a price on the Lord’s head."

"Impossible! The leader of the White Bears is a friend of the Lord! It has to be the Black Wolves..." the bald, one-eyed man roared, his neck swelling with rage, as if Alvin Morgan had said something utterly treasonous.

Alvin Morgan chuckled, pulling two bounty notices from the black market out of his pocket and unfolding them for everyone to see.

One was a bounty for 50,000 Maso Coins for the heads of the Lord and the Black Wolf Mercenaries, with the Lord’s head valued at 30,000. The drop-off location was listed as 156 Black Alley.

The other offered a 100,000 Maso Coin reward for rescuing the Black Wolf Mercenaries, and 50,000 Maso Coins for capturing the Lord alive. The drop-off location was any territory held by the Black Wolves.

"I took these from the Skull Gang."

The crowd surged forward for a look and immediately erupted in anger.

Black Alley was the black market’s bounty bar. Generally, anyone posting a bounty there wanted to remain anonymous.

One of the head captains said with a grim expression, "The Lord was hit by friendly fire from the White Bears’ artillery. We lost so many of our brothers, and the White Bears never even bothered to apologize. It’s obvious this was premeditated..."

A murderous glint flashed in the bald, one-eyed man’s eye. Staring at Alvin Morgan and Aurora Sinclair, he said, "This needs to be investigated first. After all, we still have a partnership."

***

Because Aurora Sinclair’s strength surpassed that of all the head captains, they were brought into the fortress by Mas Black. According to the rules of the Eastern Highlands, strength decided everything.

The four captains, still uneasy, also moved into the fortress and posted their own men to patrol the grounds.

Ostensibly, for security reasons.

As the moon climbed over the treetops, two figures slipped out of their room like phantoms.

They slipped past the dozing Eastern Highlanders and headed straight for the Lord’s study.

During dinner, a servant in the fortress had quietly slipped them a note. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

It contained a map of the Lord’s quarters.

’Those captains are cunning.’ The Lord’s quarters were in the West District, but they were heavily guarding the East District, creating a diversion.

Alvin Morgan found a keypad next to a seemingly ordinary door.

He scanned the device’s encoding with his watch, which immediately began to crack the password.

In less than five minutes, the door clicked open.

Aurora Sinclair looked at him, amazed.

Alvin Morgan rubbed his nose. "The Morgan Family made this device."

"..."

The two carefully activated the lights on their watches and pushed the door open, slipping inside.

Alvin led the way, with Aurora close behind.

It was a study. Aside from a desk, the room was filled with bookshelves lined with numerous books.

Judging by the script, most of the books were from Veridia.

In front of the books sat many strange totems.

They were shaped like suns, but each had an eye in the center, making them look rather frightening.

"What’s this?" Aurora Sinclair asked, picking up one of the totems.

Alvin Morgan glanced back. "An incarnation of the Sun God from Western mythology. This Lord fancies himself a Son of God."

Aurora stiffened as if recalling something unpleasant, and a flash of malice flickered in her eyes.

"Aurora, place the totem in your hand on the Third Layer, in the third space from the left," Alvin Morgan said calmly, his eyes fixed on a painting on the wall.

The painting on the wall depicted an ancient game board, densely packed with black and white pieces.

From a distance, however, the arrangement of pieces on the board looked like a half-open eye.

Aurora Sinclair placed the totem in the spot Alvin Morgan had indicated.

"Fourth Layer, third from the left, to Third Layer, second from the right," Alvin continued.

Aurora Sinclair paused for a moment, then moved the third totem from the left on the Fourth Layer to the second space from the right on the Third Layer.

Alvin gave several more instructions, and Aurora placed the totems accordingly. After she set the last one in place, the sound of grinding gears filled the room. The bookshelf suddenly moved forward and rotated, revealing a hidden door.

They quickly stepped inside, finding themselves in a dark, hidden passage.

Alvin pressed a button on the side, and the bookshelf behind them slowly closed, returning to its original position.

The secret passage wasn’t long. After five or six meters, a set of stairs appeared, leading down.

The stairs were pressure-sensitive; with each step they descended, the adjacent lights activated.

The sudden light made them squint.

The stairs ahead formed a long, spiral staircase. It took them seven or eight full turns to reach the bottom.

Suddenly, bright white lights flared to life, illuminating the entire area. Aurora leaned over the railing and saw that it was a small laboratory.

It was similar to the underground lab they had seen before, but the equipment here was less advanced.

Aurora Sinclair and Alvin Morgan walked slowly forward. At the far end of the lab, they found a Nutrition Repair Chamber and two computers.

A green light on the Nutrition Repair Chamber indicated it was running. The screen of an adjacent computer displayed the vitals and condition of the person inside.

They hurried over. Inside lay a woman who appeared to be from Veridia. She looked to be in her sixties or seventies, emaciated and frail with graying hair and shriveled skin, as if she were at death’s door.

Her limbs were bound in four iron shackles, as if to prevent any chance of escape.

Suddenly, the woman opened her eyes. The sight of her vacant pupils was startling.

They were silver.

With a trembling hand, she slowly reached up and pressed a button overhead. The glass door of the Nutrition Repair Chamber slid open.

The woman slowly sat up from inside.

"What took you so long to come back?" A raspy voice emerged from her lips, as dry and hoarse as a shovel scraping tree bark.

The woman’s eyes seemed unable to see. Her fingers fumbled at her side as she slowly got up, still muttering, "I thought you had died out there. If you had, there would be no one to collect my body."

She was speaking perfect Veridian, which surprised both of them.

"Hm? Why aren’t you talking?" Her face turned toward Aurora, and her ears seemed to twitch. Suddenly, her ancient face broke into a loud cackle, her bark-like skin stretching so taut it looked ready to split. It was a gruesome sight.

Her voice was thrilled, and her laughter came in ragged gasps, as if she were about to stop breathing.

"To think an outsider actually got in."

Aurora tensed.

She had been holding her breath, yet this woman could still sense her presence.

The iron chains on the woman’s body clanked as she shifted, seeming to try and climb out of the Nutrition Repair Chamber.

"Two people, a man and a woman, and both so young..." the woman muttered in Veridian.

Alvin Morgan glanced at the nearby computer, then suddenly asked, "Are you from Veridia?"

The woman froze, then her expression turned to one of ecstasy. "You’re from Veridia... HAHAHA..."

She laughed with a crazed edge that made one’s brow furrow.

"It’s been decades... I’ve finally heard another Veridian’s voice. The heavens haven’t forsaken me..."

After venting, the woman faced Alvin Morgan, her expression turning savage. "Get me out of here, and I’ll tell you the secret to becoming a god. You didn’t just stumble in here by accident, did you?"

Her tone was firm, and her unfocused silver pupils were wide.

Alvin was shocked. ’This is a classic sign of atavism, but why hasn’t she lost her mind?’

He replied calmly, "Are you talking about God’s Blessing?"

The woman scoffed at the mention of it. "How can that garbage drug compare to what I know? I’m talking about becoming a true god, not some mindless beast."

The woman’s voice suddenly dropped, laced with mystery and temptation.

"You really don’t lose your mind?" Aurora Sinclair asked suddenly.

The woman’s gaze shifted back to Aurora, a strange smile playing on her lips.

"It seems you’ve lost control before. Little girl, you should take less of that drug from the outside. Take too much, and it’ll shorten your life..."

Aurora Sinclair shook her head. "I’ve never taken any drug."

"You haven’t?" The woman sounded astonished.

Though she was blind, her other senses had long surpassed those of a normal person.

She could sense the faint energy fluctuations in a human body, especially the "Power" within a Martial Artist. The girl nearby possessed an immense Strength, one that was hidden within her, even stronger than the Lord’s.

To have such capability at such a young age... her talent could only be described as monstrous.

"How can you not lose control?" Aurora Sinclair asked again.

Before the woman could answer, Alvin Morgan suddenly clicked the computer mouse.

"The answer seems to be right here..."

The sound from the computer made the woman’s expression change instantly. She took frantic steps toward Alvin Morgan. "Don’t touch the computer—"

’The lab computers are all heavily encrypted! They have a self-destruct program. If anyone but the Lord himself operates them, the files are automatically destroyed.’

But her limbs were bound by iron chains, and she was brought up short after only seven or eight steps.

"Are you talking about the self-destruct program?"

With a few taps on the keyboard, a mechanical voice announced from the computer, "Activation successful..."