Ch. 2431..2435: The Secretly Rich Man Chapter 2431-2435

Chapter 2431

The Secretly or invisible Rich Man Chapter 2431

What followed was an explosive sound as well as clouds of billowing black smoke! Due to the sudden impact, everyone on the truck was knocked to the floor. As for the old man, since his head had collided against the steering wheel, his forehead was now covered in blood.

Even so, Lyndon remained completely unharmed!

When the old man realized that, he wondered whether he had just rammed into a man or a mountain! Before the old man could react, however, he heard Lyndon say, “What a sly one you are… To think that you’d be able to deceive a person who’s lived for hundreds of years!”

After he said that, Lyndon easily got into the truck and within a minute, he had fished out everyone inside! His eyes now widened, the old man couldn’t help but whimper, “Who… Who are you people…? Are you ghosts or something…?!”

“Cut the crap, old man! Or should I say, Marcel?!” growled Lyndon as he grabbed the old man by the collar. “T-there’s no way I could be Chairman Lurvink…! As I said, we still haven’t found him…! You’re making a big mistake! T- the seven mistresses can testify for me…!” yelled the old man.

This prompted the seven women who were all holding onto their wounds to add, “He speaks the truth! He isn’t Chairman Lurvink…!”

“Ohh…? Still refusing to admit it…?” growled Lyndon whose face was already turning red.

“Don’t think we’ll continue getting fooled by your disguise technique!” added Gerald as he appeared together with Darkwind and the professor.

“D-disguise technique…? I… have no idea what you’re talking about…” muttered the old man as he averted his gaze, clearly appearing guilty.

“Ancient witches were experts at raising beasts and planting all sorts of bizarre herbs and flowers. In order to cultivate, they needed to travel frequently since an important ingredient they needed to enhance their powers caused them to make many enemies… And that ingredient was fresh human blood! In order to encounter less enemies, they developed all sorts of disguise techniques.”

“Eventually, they got so good at it that they were able to brew potions that not only changed their appearances, but also their voices! They could pretty much perfectly imitate anyone! Due to that, regardless of how high a person’s cultivation was, they’d never be able to see through a witch’s disguise… Find that text familiar, Chairman Lurvink?” asked Gerald as he approached the old man with his hands against his back.

Now looking at Gerald in utter shock, the old man then gulped before saying, “T-this is the ancestral secret method passed down to Phoebe… But… Apart from us, nobody else should be aware of it…! With that said, how do you know the secrets behind the technique…?”

“I read it in a book. That aside, it appears that you’ve only learned one of the techniques… Didn’t she teach you the rest?” asked Gerald in a cheery tone.

Upon hearing that, the old man went silent for a while.

Eventually, he took a spray bottle out and prayed its contents on his face… This resulted in green smoke suddenly encircling his face and once the smoke cleared, the professor couldn’t help but widen his eyes as he asked, “Ferb…? Is that really you…?”

True enough, it was Ferb Lurvink, his old student! Now that the jig was up, Marcel was prompted to guiltily reply, “I’m sorry for lying to you, professor… Even so, please know that I’ve been placed in a difficult position as well…! I had no choice but to lie…!”

Chapter 2432

The Secretly or invisible Rich Man Chapter 2432

“Still… I never expected you to know Phoebe‘s secret!” added Marcel in a curious tone.

Whatever the case was, Gerald couldn’t help but sigh in relief. After all, Marcel’s response was a clear sign that Phoebe really was a descendant of the ancient witches. That meant that her son was an heir of the witches as well. He remembered Zeman telling him that all witch descendants required the Divine fruit in order to awaken the power in their blood.

Even if awakening their power wasn’t their goal, they still needed the fruit. After all, due to their ancestors tampering so much with medicines, the sequelae in their bodies were passed down to their descendants. With that in mind, failing to get access to the Divine fruit-before their sixteenth birthday would often result in the descendants’ deaths. It was probably why Phoebe was searching for the Divine Fruit tree so desperately.

That aside, Gerald couldn’t help but spot a new issue. Since the ancient witches had mostly died out, Phoebe shouldn’t have that many enemies to deal with. With that in mind, why was she still being so cautious? Aside from that, Marcel didn’t exactly look like a heartless person. With that in mind, why did he abandon his wife and son?

Gerald’s train of thought was cut short when he noticed Marcel looking like he was about to pass out, no doubt from the earlier collision. With that in mind, he quickly injected a stream of healing essential qi into Marcel’s body.

It didn’t take long for Marcel to feel much better. Understanding that Gerald had helped him, he was then prompted to politely exclaim, “…Thank you, Mr. Crawford…!”

“Though Mr. Crawford looks young, he’s actually an advanced cultivator, Ferb. That aside, he needs Phoebe’s help to bring him to the area where the witches built their formations. If all goes well, he’ll surely repay you generously,” said the professor.

“I can see that… Regardless, though Mr. Crawford doesn’t look like those who came after Phoebe before this… I’m sorry but I can’t tell him! It’s for Phoebe and our son’s sake…!” replied Marcel, looking like he had just been reminded of something horrible.

Now looking concerned, the professor couldn’t help but ask, “…What happened, exactly…?”

After staring at Gerald and the others for a while, Marcel eventually explained, “Due to Phoebe’s identity, she once brought a huge disaster to her family I’m sure you’re aware that Phoebe’s hometown is in Jay City, but did you know that the Willows were a prestigious family who had flourished for over a thousand years? Sadly, something terrible happened to her family around forty years ago. Phoebe was only a child when nearly five hundred Willows were assassinated in one night… In the end, the only survivors were Phoebe and her mother who had helped her escape!”

“That…” muttered the professor whose face had stiffened by this point.

Gerald himself couldn’t help but frown as he asked, “Just how big was that feud for such a mass assassination to take place?”

“All of that happened due to a special fruit… You see, Phoebe is one of the ancient witch descendants who escaped to Jay City and had her name changed to Willow. The Willows themselves never harmed anyone with their witchcraft, and they even made sure to properly run their businesses. That aside, the Willows had a tradition of feeding their children a special fruit when they grew to the age of six. If the

fruit wasn’t consumed, the descendants would most likely die between the ages of twelve and sixteen…”

“The Divine Fruit,” replied Gerald with a nod.

“Exactly. Either way, the assassination took place on the third day after Phoebe and the other children her age consumed the fruits. Phoebe and her mother were only able to escape since they hid inside a well. Even so, the culprit was aware that they were missing, so he immediately began tracking them down…”

“The hunt continued for six years, and throughout that time, Phoebe and her mother had traveled across the desert and lived in the primeval forest. Eventually, however, Phoebe’s mother was unable to bear all that stress and ended up dying from illness! It was sometime later when Phoebe retrieved all the Willow family’s scrolls and took her time studying alone atop a mountain… Once she was done, she made a disguise for herself so that she could study and enter society again,” explained Marcel.

“So… She was a descendant of the ancient witches this entire time… No wonder she was so familiar with herbs. Now that I know her backstory, I don’t blame her for being so withdrawn either…” muttered the professor with a sigh.

 

 

Chapter 2433

The Secretly or invisible Rich Man Chapter 2433

“Indeed… You know, at the start, she swore that she’d never get married till the day she got her revenge. Still… Love isn’t exactly something we can freely control… I’m sure you’re aware that we were in a relationship back when we were still studying, right, professor? Though I love her to bits, had I known that our love would bring this much trouble to our child, I’d have rather died than continue being in that relationship with her!” replied Marcel in a slightly remorseful tone as he recalled his past.

“I’m assuming you said that since you eventually found out that the child would die by the age of ten if she failed to avenge her family and obtain a Divine Fruit? I’m guessing you’re also worried that through her child’s death, Phoebe’s identity could potentially be exposed to her enemies… Did I get that right?” asked Gerald after taking a deep breath.

“Bingo. Truth be told, it wasn’t really a big problem when we found out that she had gotten pregnant back in university. However, once all this was made clear to me, we grew concerned and decided to just drop out of university to start planning for the child’s future,” explained Marcel.

“So that’s why excellent students like you two suddenly decided to drop out!” replied the professor with an understanding nod.

“Indeed… We’re sorry to have disappointed you, professor, but there was no other way. Had we not done that, the child’s safety would’ve been at risk!” muttered Marcel.

“I see… Curious question, but did Phoebe know where the Divine Fruit tree was…?” asked Gerald.

Shaking his head, Marcel then said, “Unfortunately, she remembers little about the fruit. After all, she was very young when she consumed it. The only hint we have is that the tree is located where heavenly fire descends… You see, the Willows only passed down secrets through word of mouth. Since Phoebe’s mother hadn’t been told where the tree was before the mass assassination, the tree’s location is pretty much lost. Though Phoebe’s mother did manage to salvage the Willow’s Hundred Herbs Almanac and two sets of witchcraft books, none of them had any records about the Divine Fruit either!”

“With that in mind, all we could do was slowly watch our son grow till he reached the age of ten… Mind you, he got to that age about ten years ago, yet we still haven’t managed to locate the tree! That aside, about our divorce… You see, someone was interested in creating Yangblood pellets with Phoebe’s help. Fearing that she would be found, both of us agreed to divorce so that Phoebe could escape with the pellets while I remained here as a distraction to confuse those who were hunting her down,” added Marcel.

“Yangblood pellets? Also, you said she hasn’t managed to locate the Divine Fruit tree to this day, correct? With that in mind, your child should be dead. But that doesn’t make any sense! After all, about a year ago, Phoebe secretly sent me a letter asking for my help to search for the tree!” replied the confused professor.

“Ah, I forgot to explain that bit. While it’s true that my child who will soon turn twenty should’ve died years ago, he’s still alive due to the Yangblood pellets,” said Marcel.

This prompted Darkwind to suddenly say, “I’ve heard that Yangblood pellets can only be completed when used together with Yinblood pellets… Once they’re combined, they’ll form a holy medicine known as Yinyang Blood pellets. Regardless, on its own, a Yangblood pellet is capable of stopping a person from growing for fifteen years. Once fifteen years have passed, however, the person must then take a Yinblood pellet to stop the effects of the Yangblood pellet and restore the harmony of life.”

“If a Yinblood pellet isn’t taken to regulate the invasion of Yang energy before then, the person’s brain will rapidly be damaged and they’ll find themselves regressing till the point of death! I know about all this since I had planned to obtain such pellets and hand them to my descendants. Unfortunately…” muttered Darkwind.

“Well, what Saint Darkwind said is true. My child is currently still alive due to the Yangblood pellet. Unfortunately, since we don’t have any Yinblood pellets, my child’s already becoming slightly demented. If this goes on, I fear he’ll die in another five years!” replied Marcel.

“I get it now. So you two split up to simultaneously look for Yinblood pellets and the Divine Fruit tree, correct?” asked the professor with an understanding nod.

“Indeed. You see, Phoebe aside, my son’s the only other heir of the witches left alive! It doesn’t help that due to complications in the Willow family’s bloodline, she’s only able to give birth once. With all that said, we’ve truly been struggling for our child for most of our lives!”

 

Chapter 2434

The Secretly or invisible Rich Man Chapter 2434

After saying that, Marcel cleared his throat before adding, “Speaking of which, you should know that those seven women are actually my close cousins. As for these servants, they’re my mother and aunt! As you may already have guessed, we’ve been pretending that I abandoned my wife and child to dissuade others from causing trouble for Phoebe and me! As for the butler’s corpse that you’ve probably found… He’s the real butler who’s been in my family ever since I was young… Sadly, the Chibas ended up killing him!”

“I see… So you took the chance to disguise yourself as him since you knew that there were still many others looking for you?” replied Gerald with a nod.

“That’s about the gist of it. Truth be told I could already tell that you weren’t ordinary people when you first arrived. What more, since the professor was with you, I had a feeling that you weren’t here to cause us any trouble. Even so, I ended up refraining from exposing who we truly were to you for fear that I was wrong. Though we did manage to get you to leave, my gut simply told me that you’d surely uncover the secret at my base. It’ s the reason I was fleeing earlier…” muttered Marcel with a helpless smile.

His words made Gerald and his party exchange glances among themselves. Honestly, it was completely understandable that a person like Marcel who had been living on the edge for decades would be overly cautious for the sake of survival. How else would he have crafted such intricate plans that even Darkwind and Lyndon ended up getting deceived?

Had it not been for Gerald’s suspicions, they’d have surely left Peaceton by now in search of more clues… Whatever the case was, Gerald then replied, “Well… From all that you’ve said, I’m assuming you know where Ms. Willow is? Naturally, I’m not asking for the information for free. Once I know where she is, I’ll use all the resources I have to help your son!”

Gerald meant every word he said, too. That aside, Gerald was really tempted to ask Marcel who exactly had assassinated all those Willows in cold blood. After all, he had a feeling that Daryl was the culprit. Gerald’s assumption was that Daryl assassinated them since he didn’t want anyone who knew where the formation, to get to Yearning Island, was to remain alive. However, since that was merely his assumption, Gerald ended up holding his tongue.

Regardless, upon hearing Gerald’s question, Marcel replied, “The truth is, I don’t know where she is, either… However, she does still possess the Yangblood pellets. As long as I find any Yinblood pellets, we’ll surely be able to sense each other using them. You know, right before we parted ways ten years ago, we promised each other that if I couldn’t find any Yinblood pellets, we’d never meet again to prevent her from bringing trouble to me… “

“Hmm… Then, after investigating for so long, have you found any clues as to where the Yinblood pellets could be?” asked Saint Darkwind.

“Yes, actually… It’s the reason why I keep refusing to leave this place even though there are so many enemies after my head!” replied Marcel.

Momentarily taken aback, Gerald eventually said, “Are you implying that the Yinblood pellets are in Peaceton…?”

 

Chapter 2435

The Secretly or invisible Rich Man Chapter 2435

“I am! I learned that it was here through the news!” replied Marcel.

“The news? Then, the pills have already been taken…?” asked the professor, his eyes now widened.

“Not exactly… For context, there’s a large family here that goes by the surname of Zandt. About two months ago, Freyr, the patriarch of the Zandt family, suddenly fell sick and the media reported his symptoms. Symptoms that were identical to what one would experience from a Yinblood pellet infestation! Though others say he’s poisoned, I know for a fact that he just doesn’t have access to Yangblood pellets!” explained Marcel.

“Either way, after finding out about that, I began doing some investigating and eventually discovered that he and his family had entered the tomb of a general sometime back. There, he had come across a headless general, and many Zandts were seriously injured by it. Since they were so keen on defeating it, I’m assuming they were after Yinblood pellets that were hidden within the headless general’s body!” added Marcel.

“Are… You absolutely sure…?” asked the professor rather skeptically.

“Well, I did use smoke poison to force one of that family’s butlers to tell me what he had overheard from a conversation among the Zandt family’s seniors, so there’s that,” replied Marcel.

“I see… Do you know where the tomb is?” asked Gerald.

“No, though it’s my current goal to locate it. The problem is, even after going through all the records about ancient tombs in Peaceton and there are a lot of ancient tombs here, I haven’t been able to identify which one the Zandts had entered. Speaking of records, you should know that my butler was assassinated on his way back to send me these documents…” muttered Marcel as he shook his head.

“It really doesn’t help that the Zandt family’s patriarch is so powerful. What’s more, his daughter is also very

close to Master Trilight of the Trilight Church… It’s the only reason why I haven’t pried any further into their family. After all, if I get caught, I’ll surely die tragically!” added Marcel.

“Hold on… You said… Zandt? Is there a second young lady by the name of Fae?” asked Gerald with a slight frown.

“There is! Since her sister and father are always backing her up, she’s grown to be ruthless and arrogant!” replied Marcel.

“Huh… So we’ve already met the Zandts…” mutter Gerald with a slight chuckle.

“Now that we know all this, should we rush over and capture that old man to force him to reveal the tomb’s location?” asked Darkwind.

“Unfortunately, Mr. Darkwind, Freyr is a very stubborn and cautious man… Knowing him, Freyr wouldn’t be against committing suicide if he’s threatened! Should that happen, it’ll become even harder for us to obtain the Yinblood pellets! Before my butler passed away, he told me that all the experts had to be blindfolded when he brought them into the Zandt residence…” muttered Marcel in a dissuasive tone.

As the saying went, those who were fearless were usually the most fearsome. When it came to such people, Darkwind and Lyndon were truly brick-walled… Regardless, after a brief pause, Gerald was prompted to say,

“There’s really no need to act all hastily. For one, we haven’t fully figured out the story behind the young mistress cultivating demonic essential qi. Adding that to the fact that she is allies with the Trilight Church that Marcel mentioned earlier, things could get nasty really quickly if we aren’t careful. With that said, I suggest you guys stay here for a few days. In the meantime, I’ll be disguising myself and entering the Zandt household to do some investigating of my own.”

“Why don’t I come with you?” proposed Darkwind, to which Gerald shook his head.

“I’m only going there to spy on them. In all honesty, I’m worried that if you go with me, you may not be able to control yourself and eventually start a fight. Our plan would fall to pieces by that point! With that said, you three stay here, and that’s that,” replied Gerald with a helpless chuckle.

It was late at night when Gerald made his move. From what he had been told, the Zandt manor was located near the mountains, and it covered at least eight hundred acres, making it far more magnificent than the Momingstar manor.

Either way, once he got close to the manor, Gerald immediately noticed a protective formation surrounding it. When commoners walked past this formation, the Zandts would surely be notified. Gerald, however, was no commoner.

“You’re no regular family, that’s for sure,” scoffed Gerald with a smirk. Following that, he expertly and easily evaded the formation before continuing to sneak into the manor.