Chapter 653: Real Traitors
Calix and Danny were rendered speechless. "We are not responsible for their current condition."
Lana chuckled. "Oh? Then can you tell me exactly what happened?"
Both Calix and Danny immediately fell silent. Their expressions became slightly uncomfortable, and neither seemed willing to provide an explanation.
Lana did not continue pressing them. Instead, she focused on Gabriel and Raphael.
She quickly administered medicine to both of them before channeling her healing energy into their bodies. A soft glow surrounded them as the healing energy slowly entered their damaged meridians and organs.
After some time, their breathing gradually became steadier. Finally, both of them opened their eyes.
The moment they saw Lana and Sophia, their expressions changed. They immediately became alert and instinctively moved backward, their bodies tense despite their injuries.
Lana raised an eyebrow.
"I was expecting some kind of warm response, such as ’thank you’ or ’where am I?’ Instead, this is the attitude I am receiving. I am deeply disappointed."
She looked directly at Gabriel. "Gabriel, can you tell me what is going on?"
Gabriel paused. His eyes remained wary as he stared at Lana.
"You were the one who ordered your people to harm us, and now you are acting as though you do not know what happened to us."
Lana chuckled softly. She turned her gaze toward Calix and Danny.
The two were standing slightly behind her, deliberately lowering their presence as though they hoped to disappear into the background.
Lana shook her head and looked toward Calix and Danny with undisguised disgust.
"Truly, what a disgusting pair of pieces of trash."
She then turned toward Gabriel.
"For context, I have no idea what kind of orders you are talking about, considering that I never gave them any such order. However, if you explain everything in a little more detail, we can help you get justice."
Hearing those words, Gabriel’s gaze shifted downward. He suddenly noticed the medical kit lying near Lana’s feet. Although Lana had already withdrawn her healing energy, he could still feel a faint trace of its warmth lingering in the air.
His eyes slowly widened, and disbelief flashed across his face. ’Could we really have been deceived?’
After a moment, his expression became complicated as he began speaking. "Just yesterday evening, Raphael and I came here to hunt that ghost."
Lana nodded.
Gabriel continued, "Raphael was responsible for distracting it while I was supposed to attack it. However, before I could do anything, someone attacked me from behind. The attack was extremely precise and struck a location that could cause immediate unconsciousness. I lost consciousness before I could even see who had attacked me."
Lana nodded again. Raphael then continued, "After that, I saw both of these two."
He pointed toward Calix and Danny.
"They told us that they had come here under your orders and Sophia’s orders. According to them, they had lost some kind of bet and were forced to become servants of you and Sophia. They also told us that you were the one who had ordered them to deal with us because you wanted to take care of the Ghost King yourself."
Lana’s gaze immediately turned cold. She slowly looked toward Calix and Danny.
The next second, she suddenly pulled out a knife and slashed toward herself.
Calix and Danny’s expressions changed drastically. "Lana!"
They immediately rushed toward her, desperately trying to stop her.
However, Lana moved faster.
The knife struck their hands several times, leaving four or five shallow cuts across their palms and fingers before they finally managed to grab her wrist and stop her.
Calix and Danny, having bound with contract, had deep gashes on their hands too.
Blood slowly trickled down their hands, staining their clothes. Gabriel and Raphael stared at the scene in stunned silence.
At that moment, both of them finally understood that they had definitely been misled.
’If Lana truly wanted us dead, why would she hurt herself just to stop them from attacking us?’
Gabriel slowly stood up and patted the dust from his knees. He looked toward Lana with a complicated expression before speaking.
"Your teacher may have been a traitor, but I never thought you would be this self-righteous. Either your teacher is the problematic one, or you are simply doing an excellent job pretending to be innocent."
Lana paused. Then, a faint smile appeared on her face.
"My teacher is not merely my teacher. He is also my uncle. So please show some respect when you speak about him."
Everyone immediately froze. None of them had expected Lana’s coach to be her uncle.
For a moment, the only sound was the faint wind sweeping across the desolate surroundings. Lana then changed the subject.
"What about that black lump near the river? I think you already obtained the Ghost King’s essence."
Gabriel fell silent. Lana narrowed her eyes. The silence itself was enough to answer her question. ’So it really is true.’
She chuckled. "If that is the case, then the two of you can leave. However, do not forget to transfer the money to my account for saving you."
A strange silence followed. Gabriel finally looked at her.
"We will not pay anything. After all, you cannot deny that it was your dogs who caused this trouble in the first place."
Lana chuckled.
"That is a good way to wiggle out of your debt. If you refuse to pay, then I will simply confront your coach about this. If that is what you want."
Gabriel’s expression immediately changed.
He remained silent for several seconds, seemingly weighing his options, before finally sighing.
"I will pay."
Lana’s lips curled upward. "Good boy."
She then turned toward Raphael. Raphael immediately raised his hands.
"I will pay as well."
Seeing this, Lana finally released a small sigh of relief before turning toward Calix and Danny.
"Now it is your turn."
In the end, Calix and Danny had no choice but to sign a contract stating that each of them would pay two hundred million dollars to Raphael and Gabriel, as well as to Lana and Sophia.
However, Lana was not satisfied with that amount.
The figure was eventually increased from two hundred million dollars to five hundred million dollars each.
They initially refused to accept the increased amount, but Lana merely chuckled and proudly raised her recording talisman.
"I have recorded everything."
Silence immediately descended upon the group. Raphael looked at her in disbelief. "How? Phones are not allowed inside."
Lana chuckled and waved the recording talisman in her hand. "I do not need a phone. I already have a talisman."
Raphael frowned. "That is a violation of the rules. You cannot use a talisman."
Lana smiled. "I am a talisman practitioner. I made this with my own hands."
Raphael fell silent. He stared at Lana for several seconds before finally asking, "Are you dumb? You just revealed your trump card."
Lana chuckled. "You do not even know what my true trump card is."
With that, she turned around and began walking away. Everyone remained silent as they watched her leave.
Previously, they had thought Lana would be the easiest target because her cultivation level was far below theirs. However, after everything that had happened, none of them dared to look at her that way anymore.
Lana and Sophia eventually arrived at the Nether River and decided to camp there. The reason was quite simple.
They knew another ghost would eventually arrive in that area.
Sure enough, by nightfall, they noticed another enormous lump slowly moving toward the northern region.
Lana stared at the approaching figure from the edge of the camp and chuckled. "I was hoping for this."
She immediately stood up and looked toward Sophia. Sophia had been waiting for this moment as well.
Both of them stretched their bodies before simultaneously launching their mystical attacks.
Even Calix and Danny were forced to join the battle. Dealing with a seven-thousand-year-old ghost was not easy, especially when it was the same ghost they had encountered before.
Lana had been able to determine its age because Gabriel and Raphael had already obtained a Ghost King’s essence, although theirs belonged to only a five-thousand-year-old ghost.
Now, Lana, Sophia, Mr. Crow, Calix, and Danny attacked simultaneously.
The seven-thousand-year-old ghost struggled desperately against the combined assault. Its enormous body twisted violently as waves of dark energy spread through the surroundings.
However, it could not withstand the overwhelming attacks. Its form gradually began to disperse.
Finally, its body completely collapsed, leaving behind only the Ghost King’s essence.
Lana quickly reached out and grabbed it.