Sea Monster's Deal (Part 1)

Manhattan Island, Gu Tower.

It was a rare clear winter day. Golden sunlight spilled generously over Gu Tower, and the black dragon atop the building gleamed in the sun as its eyes overlooked the crowds coming and going below.

Yet dark clouds hung over Gu Tower, and the atmosphere was tense to the extreme.

The corridors on every floor were packed with bodyguards in black suits, ninjas in skintight outfits, and unknown figures in gray robes. Everyone wore a grim expression. The employees of every department in Gu Group hurried cautiously around them, and no one dared make a sound.

In the conference room on the top floor, a curtain of light descended from the ceiling, displaying Gu Xiechen's appearance in Zurich.

Gu Juechen sat grim-faced in a large chair of black jade at the center of the conference room. Dozens of Gu Group executives sat silently on either side of the conference table before him. The atmosphere in the room was even more murderous than that outside. Everyone narrowed their eyes at Gu Xiechen's image in the light screen.

The gaunt, three-eyed old man coughed softly and said slowly to Gu Juechen, "Patriarch Gu."

Gu Juechen glanced at the old man and nodded. "Elder Wu." Elder Wu forced out a smile and was about to speak when Gu Juechen slammed his palm heavily onto the conference table. "I gave you three days, and you let that little bastard escape Zurich! A month has passed now, and you still haven't even found where he is. Were you raised on shit?"

Elder Wu's face turned livid, and the expressions of the Dizang Temple members standing behind him became equally ugly.

After taking a breath, Gu Juechen pounded the table and cursed the Gu Group executives bloody. Not one word of his tirade was directed at Elder Wu, yet Elder Wu's face grew greener and greener until it was nearly black. Gu Juechen was berating the Gu Group executives for their incompetence, but every word struck Elder Wu right in the heart—he and his people had also joined the hunt for Gu Xiechen, only to come away with nothing.

When Gu Juechen finally tired of cursing and paused to catch his breath, a burly middle-aged man stood up and said in a deep voice, "Father, we could consider hiring a mercenary group."

"Fuck your mother!" Gu Juechen grabbed the teacup before him and smashed it viciously into the middle-aged man's face. The force sent him flying, and the celadon cup shattered into dust against his face. The beaten man did not even dare grunt. He obediently returned to his seat, while several Gu family members beside him wore gloating smiles.

Gu Juechen pointed at the Gu Group executives and roared, "A bunch of pig-brained idiots! Hire mercenaries? Fuck, are you afraid the Gu family hasn't lost enough face? If word gets out, people will say I, Gu Juechen, murdered my own younger brother to monopolize the family fortune. How am I supposed to show my face in the Federation's business world after that?"

The conference room doors were suddenly thrown open, and a man rushed in in panic.

Gu Juechen's expression turned cold again. He was about to order the man dragged out and beaten to death when the man cried frantically, "Patriarch! Patriarch! Look outside the building! Something's happened!"

"Hm?" Gu Juechen and Elder Wu exchanged a glance. The light screen in the conference room flashed rapidly, revealing every detail from the surveillance footage outside Gu Tower.

"What... what is this?" Gu Juechen and Elder Wu both stared blankly at the images on the screen.

A massive formation of beautiful young women in three-piece bikinis cheered and skipped toward Gu Tower in neat ranks. They sang joyfully, their voices graceful and sweet. At a glance, there were at least twenty or thirty thousand bikini-clad beauties. Like a flood, they surged toward Gu Tower and rushed inside.

The building's security guards, the Gu family warriors, Elder Wu's disciples in gray robes, and the ninjas controlled by Dizang Temple—none of them could stop the advance of this force.

Twenty or thirty thousand beautiful young women in bikinis, practically naked, rubbed and groped all over themselves with blazing passion. No matter how mighty a hero you were, you would turn into a boneless worm. These girls possessed no martial cultivation and no special abilities. They could not have concealed even a needle on their bodies. Yet like a tidal surge, they flooded into Gu Tower, effortlessly taking the first floor, the second floor, the third floor... and pressing unwaveringly toward the very top.

Gu Juechen and Elder Wu's jaws nearly dropped. Gu Juechen stared strangely at Elder Wu, who stared back just as strangely and asked in a low voice, "Does... Gu Group offer employee benefits like this?"

"Bullshit!" Gu Juechen was so furious he nearly spat blood. Pointing at the image on the screen, he roared, "Is this how employee benefits are handed out? Am I supposed to give every employee five or six beautiful women?"

After slamming the conference room table, Gu Juechen finally issued what was perhaps the most humiliating order of his life. "Fuck, call the police! Call the police! What the fuck is New York's public security doing?"

The middle-aged man who had just been beaten cautiously said, "Father, why don't we order them to drive these women out?"

Gu Juechen was so angry he nearly cried. "Drive them out? Tomorrow, Gu Group will become the Federation's laughingstock! Send out family warriors to beat up a bunch of inexplicable women? Heavens!" Gu Juechen felt as though his head had swelled three sizes. How could such bizarre things keep happening?

The Gu Group executives exchanged helpless, amused looks. At this rate, Gu Group would soon be making tomorrow's headlines.

Just when they were at a complete loss, all the alluring girls vanished at once. Their bodies disintegrated in midair, and faint streams of silver light shot out from where they had disappeared. Such streams floated through the ceilings on every floor, charging straight toward the top of the tower before finally merging into the body of a silver-haired man who had appeared at the conference room entrance at some unknown moment.

Elder Wu's pupils shrank to pinpoints as he shouted in a deep voice, "A Realm Master? You are... who?"

The effeminate Siren slowly entered the conference room. He bowed leisurely toward Gu Juechen, whose mouth was twitching. "Gu Group's defensive strength was too formidable. I could only use this little trick to get in. I hope I haven't caused Patriarch Gu too much trouble." Straightening up, Siren chuckled. "Allow me to introduce myself. Siren, the 'Sea Monster' Siren. I officially registered with the Federal Special Management Committee fifteen days ago."

Gu Juechen nodded slowly. "A new Realm Master? No wonder. Your ability is interesting. And terrifying."

Siren smiled with pursed lips. "Yes. The Federation's power rests in men's hands, while all men are controlled by women. My domain can control many beautiful and adorable women, so I can control far more than many people imagine."

Elder Wu stared coldly at Siren. "You're that newly emerged Realm Master? Heh. I heard a while ago that an old zombie wanted to settle accounts with you."

Siren shrugged and gave an unconcerned laugh. "Lord Corpse Emperor, the First Dao Master of Nine Nether Dao? This little misunderstanding will be easy to resolve."

The bloody glow faintly swirling within the fleshy tumor on Elder Wu's forehead gradually intensified, and a sinister power that ensnared the soul slowly emerged from it. Elder Wu stared fixedly at Siren with hostile eyes, his gaze flickering as though he were plotting something. Siren's heart sank slightly. He nodded and smiled at Elder Wu. "I hold the Three Witch Sect in great respect as well. We should be friends, not enemies." Siren's gaze fixed on the tumor in Elder Wu's forehead for a moment, and a cold glint flashed through his beautiful silver eyes.

After pondering for a while, Elder Wu forced out a smile and slowly nodded.

Gu Juechen asked dryly, "Then, Mr. Siren, you did not come to Gu Group simply to play a joke on us, did you?"

Siren pulled a document from the large pocket of his robe and smiled. "No, it is not a joke. I merely have some matters that require Patriarch Gu's assistance. This is an order for weapons and military equipment that our Holy Unicorn Mercenary Group wishes to place with Gu Group. As Sacred Unicorn's newly appointed first deputy commander, I had no choice but to make the trip myself."

"Sacred Unicorn is a major client. You had no need to visit us in such a manner." Gu Juechen frowned.

With a light flick of his finger, the twenty-page document slid steadily toward Gu Juechen as though supported by invisible hands. Siren smiled. "It was merely a small demonstration of my personal strength, so that Patriarch Gu might have some confidence in it. Well, please look over our requirements first."

Gu Juechen silently picked up the document and read through it. Siren stood at the conference room entrance, smiling as he surveyed the room's furnishings. After a while, he walked to the floor-to-ceiling window and gazed at the sea beyond through the thick bulletproof glass. About ten minutes later, when he estimated Gu Juechen had finished reading the document, he sighed softly. "The view here is excellent. It is just too convenient for certain people to jump from the building and escape into the sea."

Elder Wu's gaunt, dark face reddened slightly, and he glared furiously at Siren.

Gu Juechen's face was as still as a deep well. He coldly tossed down the document in his hand. "Mr. Siren, Sacred Unicorn's demands are far too excessive. The transport aircraft and small escort ships you ordered barely meet the Federation military's upper control limits in terms of specifications, but their armor, radar-absorbing coatings, fire-control systems, energy systems, spacecraft engines, and all kinds of other equipment are all military-grade goods! Moreover, they are strictly controlled A-plus military products. This is an illegal transaction."

Siren shrugged. "What else?"

Gu Juechen tapped the document repeatedly with the fingers of his right hand and sneered. "There are also various light armored vehicles, mining vehicles, individual combat suits, and high-energy personal weapons. Many of their specifications exceed civilian standards. That is also an illegal transaction." After a pause, Gu Juechen added, "Of course, I am not saying Gu Group cannot supply Sacred Unicorn with these goods. But you want far too much!"

Gu Juechen slammed his palm against the conference table and shouted, "The quantity you want is enough to arm two reinforced Federation Class A divisions! And the price you offered is thirty percent below even our cost. We cannot make this deal!"

With a sweep of his hand, the document on the table sliced through the air with a shrill whistle, flying straight at Siren's neck.