James Lone ate over a dozen skewers, feeling only half full. His stamina, however, showed no signs of recovery. His body still felt drained, as if he had just gone through a grueling, sleepless battle.

"Strange. Why is the stamina consumed by the Refinement ability so hard to recover?"

Unable to figure it out, he decided to return to his bedroom and get some rest.

Just as he lay down, there was a knock at the door.

Annoyed, James Lone asked, "Who is it?"

From outside came April Jones's timid voice: "Master, there's something I think you should know."

"Come in," James Lone said, still lying on the bed.

April Jones entered, looking aggrieved, and said in a soft, complaining voice: "Well, since we just got here, I opened a portal and went out for a little walk to get familiar with the area. But I found bad people in the building next door! They almost caught me! Look, my clothes were even cut by a flying knife! It was so scary!"

"Hm?" James Lone immediately sat up, narrowing his eyes. "Which building?"

April Jones pointed to a building not far from the New York Pearl Tower.

James Lone's expression darkened. "How many people?"

No matter what, these people had seen April Jones's portal ability, which meant they couldn't be allowed to live.

April Jones pouted and answered, "Two men—super ugly! I think they had a few underlings too, but I didn't get into their room before they spotted me."

On the roof of a 45-story building, a man with rotting teeth held a pair of binoculars, his eyes lighting up as he gazed at the New York Pearl Tower. "Damn! Pete was right—there really are beauties in there!"

Pete, standing beside him, smirked smugly. "Told you I wasn't wrong! That space pod has at least three women, and they're all gorgeous! The one who ran away earlier is one of them!"

The man with rotting teeth let out a lecherous laugh. "No men in there?"

Pete snickered. "Doesn't look like it. Otherwise, what man would let such a pretty girl wander around alone? What if she ran off? I'm guessing the other two women got up there using that little beauty's portal ability."

"Makes sense."

"Damn, a woman with a portal ability!" Pete exclaimed enviously. "What a waste! If I had that ability, there'd be nowhere I couldn't go!"

The rotting-tooth man squinted, a sinister smile spreading across his face. "No worries. If that woman has it, then we have it too! Once we catch her and have our fun, we'll chop off her arms and legs and force her to teleport us wherever we want. If she can teleport those other women up there, she can teleport us too. If she refuses, we'll strip her naked and throw her outside. Let's see if she dares disobey!"

"Heh heh heh! You're a genius, Pete!"

The two men shared a sinister laugh.

"Let's wait until tonight when they're all asleep to act!"

"These dumb women think they're safe just because they're high up? Hahaha! Climbing's what I do best!"

The two returned to the living room.

In the living room, seven or eight thuggish men were sitting around, eating greedily.

Four women were tied up tightly, like bundles of straw, unable to move.

Nearby, the corpses of several men lay on the floor, their bodies covered in wounds. Judging by the injuries, the men had been tortured before being killed. Their bodies were discarded carelessly.

The thugs paid no attention to the corpses, focusing entirely on their food and drink.

The four women whimpered in fear when they saw Pete and the rotting-tooth man enter.

Pete sneered. "What are you crying for? You'll have your fun soon! Tonight, I'll send you off to meet your maker!"

Hearing this, the women burst into muffled sobs.

The rotting-tooth man cursed. "Damn it, you idiot! Get rid of those corpses. If they attract rats or cockroaches, we're screwed! Chen Si, Big Head—get to it!"

Two reluctant thugs stood up, one of them protesting, "Damn it, boss! Why is it always me?"

"Because you two are the strongest, you idiots!"

"Damn it! Just because I'm strong doesn't mean I should do all the work!"

"Stop whining and get moving!"

Grumbling, the two thugs hauled the corpses to the balcony and threw them off the building.

The women cried even harder.

The dead men had been their family members.

They had survived together until now, only for their loved ones to be brutally killed. Their own lives were about to end too.

After eating and drinking their fill, the thugs dragged out some sheets and threw them on the floor, indulging their base desires.

The room echoed with the women's screams and the men's excited shouts.

Half an hour later, the women's voices faded away, leaving only the men's raucous laughter.

An hour later, the rotting-tooth man stood up and barked, "That's enough! We're done for today! We've got work to do tonight, so save your strength!"

The thugs grumbled in dissatisfaction: "Come on, it's been three days since we had any fun!" "Damn it, get up already! That one's already dead!" "She's still warm—close enough!" "Disgusting! Get lost!"

The rotting-tooth man kicked a coffee table, shattering it, and roared, "I said, stop!"

The thugs finally quieted down, too scared to argue further.

Pete smirked. "You fools! Don't worry. The New York Pearl Tower has three beauties. Tonight, I'll lead you all up there, and everyone gets a turn! They're way better than these scraps!"

The thugs' eyes lit up. "Really? Better than these?" "Of course! When have I ever lied to you?"

The thugs' breathing quickened, filled with anticipation.

The rotting-tooth man began laying out the plan, which was incredibly simple.

"Pete will set up the ladder. I'll lead the charge, and you all follow me! There are only three women up there. If anyone chickens out, I'll kill them myself!"

The group roared in agreement: "You're the boss!" "Kill them!" "Idiot! If you kill them, what's left to play with?!" "Yeah, yeah, just capture them! Heh heh heh!"

Suddenly, something fell from the ceiling.

Thud. Clink, clink, clink.

Everyone looked down—it was a grenade.

Panic erupted instantly.

"Damn it!" "We've got enemies!" "Run!"

BOOM!

The stun grenade went off with a deafening blast, leaving the thugs disoriented and staggering. Several passed out on the spot.

Before they could recover, an automatic rifle extended down through the ceiling.

Bang, bang, bang, bang!

Gunfire filled the room.

"Help!" "Ahhh!" "Run!"

After just a few seconds, the room fell silent.

James Lone dropped through the ceiling and landed in the room.

These men included ability users, so James hadn't bothered taking any risks or figuring out their powers. It was safer and easier to kill them all.

James Lone scanned the room coldly.

Everyone was dead, their bodies dull and lifeless.

Except for one.

One thug, glowing with a bright red aura, was lying motionless on the floor, pretending to be dead. His hand, hidden under his stomach, gripped a knife, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

The man thought his act was flawless, but to James Lone's perception, he was glaringly obvious.

James Lone casually walked over, activating his Corpse ability in preparation.

CRACK!

He stomped hard on the man's neck and twisted his foot.

Snap!

The thug's spine broke.

Now, the pretender was a real corpse.

The rotting-tooth man died with his eyes wide open, never understanding how he had been discovered.

The room fell into absolute silence.

James Lone picked up a pair of binoculars and walked to the balcony, looking toward the New York Pearl Tower. What he saw made him frown.

"Of course, it's completely visible."

Shirley Inr Won and April Jones were peeking out from the windows of the space pod, clearly visible.

James Lone sighed in frustration.

This was just one building near the New York Pearl Tower. Within a kilometer, there were at least a dozen more that stood above the violet mist.

From these rooftops, anyone with binoculars could easily observe the pod.

A group of women was bound to draw attention.

"This is going to be a problem."

James Lone scowled.

He had chosen the New York Pearl Tower for its safety, but now he realized it was also far too conspicuous.

As the tallest structure in New York, it was a natural target.

Frowning, James Lone muttered to himself, "I'll need to set up more traps below."