The chubby thug suddenly noticed that the man holding the calligraphy piece seemed a bit off in the head. He grinned maliciously and said, “Kid, I agree to your request. I’ll release your wife and Dad. You give me the calligraphy piece intact.”
The chubby thug was no fool. He knew very well that this priceless treasure was still at risk in Leo’s hands. If Leo went insane and tore up it, it would all be for nothing. So, the most crucial thing now was to keep Leo’s emotions in check. As for Leo’s woman, he would figure out a way to get her after obtaining the calligraphy.
The chubby thug waved the steel pipe in his hand and shouted, “Move the Jeep and make way for them!”
Immediately, one of his underlings moved the Jeep aside, clearing the path for the Mercedes-Benz.
Sophia grabbed Leo’s hand, her voice filled with worry. “Leo, what are you planning? Don’t you care about your life?”
Leo’s face still bore a faint smile. “Dear, trust me. Take Dad and leave. I’ll handle this situation.”
“No, we’re not leaving without you!” Sophia refused to abandon Leo.
Sophia’s reaction warmed Leo’s heart. He held Sophia’s hand and whispered, “Trust me.”
These simple words struck a chord in Sophia’s heart. Looking at Leo’s determined eyes, she had a strong intuition that Leo could resolve this situation without putting himself in danger.
“Enough of the lovey-dovey stuff! If you don’t leave now, I might change my mind!” the chubby thug impatiently interrupted.
Sophia’s beautiful eyes locked onto Leo’s. She murmured, “Don’t be too stubborn. Take care of yourself. Dad and I will leave immediately and call the police.”
Sophia and Martin got into the car, and as soon as it started, Martin rolled down the window, stuck his head out, and said to Leo, “Leo, you can give up the calligraphy piece, but you must ensure it comes back to me intact!”
This statement surprised Leo. It seemed that his father-in-law wasn’t completely indifferent to him after all.
After the Mercedes-Benz drove away, the chubby thug turned to Leo and extended his hand, saying, “Now, you can give me the calligraphy.”
“Of course…” Leo swiftly grabbed the chubby thug’s wrist and then squeezed it hard. “not.”
A crisp sound followed as the chubby thug’s wrist seemed to be crushed by Leo, and a pig-like howl burst from his mouth.
Leo kicked the chubby thug’s chest, sending his bulky body flying through the air in a parabolic arc before tumbling to the ground.
Seeing their boss motionless on the ground, the other thugs were left in shock.
Leo seemed a bit apologetic. “Seems like I used a bit too much force. My apologies.”
Several henchmen rushed to the chubby thug. “Boss, how are you, boss…”
The intense pain brought the chubby thug back from unconsciousness. Blood oozed from his mouth, and he raised his head, his face contorted with malevolence. Hoarsely, he said, “Attack him together, kill him!”
Those henchmen didn’t care about their boss lying on the ground. They wielded their weapons and rushed toward Leo in a frenzy.
What followed was the sound of blows striking like firecrackers.
One by one, the henchmen fell to the ground, just like their boss.
In less than thirty seconds, Leo had incapacitated over ten of them.
Trembling on the ground, the chubby thug was horrified. This guy’s speed and strength were beyond human!
But it wasn’t over yet. Leo picked up a steel pipe from the ground and walked to one of the fallen thugs. He squatted down and brought the steel pipe down on the thug’s thigh.
A cry of excruciating pain echoed through the area.
Leo repeated this with another thug, smashing the steel pipe onto his thigh.
When Leo finally reached the chubby thug, his body was trembling like a sieve. “Please… spare my life…”
Leo squatted down beside the chubby thug, his face bearing a grim smile as he said in a cold tone, “Tell the shop owner that if he ever thinks of stealing calligraphy pieces again, I won’t hesitate to put him in a wheelchair permanently. As for you, if you dare to appear in front of me again, I’ll kill you!”
“I won’t dare… I won’t dare anymore…” The chubby thug trembled as he spoke, his forehead covered in cold sweat. He was genuinely terrified by Leo’s brutality.
Leo had initially thought he would leave after delivering the message, but he saw a glint of coldness in the chubby thug’s eyes. That was when he realized that the man might have a hidden agenda.
“Ah…” In a cry of unbearable pain, Leo let go of the steel pipe and turned away.
Not far away, at a junction, he spotted the Mercedes-Benz.
Sophia stood beside the car, anxiously waiting.
When Leo approached, she hurried over and asked, “Are you okay? Did you get hurt?”
“I’m fine.” Leo gestured towards the calligraphy piece in his hand. “I delayed them for a bit, and when the police arrived, they all ran away.”
Sophia breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s a relief. Let’s go home.”
Back in the car, Leo handed the calligraphy piece to Martin. This delighted Martin, and he couldn’t stop praising what Leo had done today.
The next day, after dropping Sophia off at work, Leo made a visit to the Wilde Jewelry Group. He had brought the uncut jade he had obtained from the antique street to the Fly Building’s underground storage on the negative second floor.
Now, as the Chief Gemstone Appraiser at the Wilde Jewelry Group, he had monthly work tasks to complete on time.
After leaving Wilde Jewelry Group, Leo headed straight to Cloud Dream Mountain. He climbed to the top of the Heaven’s Extreme Stone, preparing to break through to the next level of Spiritualist today.
Sitting cross-legged on the Heaven’s Extreme Stone with a jade tiger in front of him, Leo closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths of the fresh mountain air. Gradually, he calmed his mind.
Feeling the surrounding spiritual energy, Leo gently closed his eyes, meditating to harness the power of the Nine Heavens Star Chart.
As the Nine Heavens Star Chart activated, Leo’s body seemed to turn into a vortex, rapidly absorbing the surrounding spiritual energy and converting it into spiritual power, which settled in his body.
With this kind of practice, three hours passed unconsciously.
Leo could clearly sense that the spiritual power in his body had reached the limit that an upper-level Spiritualist could contain. One more step, and his body would expand, allowing him to enter the next realm of Spiritual Master!
But that one step seemed insurmountable for Leo.
The surrounding spiritual power had become scarce, and even if he practiced for another twenty-four hours, he probably wouldn’t be able to break through.
Leo slowly opened his eyes and directed his gaze towards the jade tiger in front of him.
The reason he had brought this item with him was that it contained the most abundant spiritual energy compared to all the other jades in the warehouse. Whether he could break through to the next level of Spiritual Master in a single stroke depended on this jade tiger.