Chapter 189: Dark Boundless Realm 44
Valeri’s brother is named Yefim. Initially, the freelance car dealership was opened by Valeri and his brother together, affiliated with a local small gang, paying protection fees on time every month.
As their business grew, the small gang they were associated with became envious of their success and plotted against the brothers. However, Valeri and Yefim acted first, executing a black-on-black operation that led them to become the leaders of that small gang.
Valeri did not possess the clever mind like his brother. He focused solely on the dealership business and rarely participated in gang affairs.
Some well-meaning speculators suggested that the brothers had fallen into discord over power and profit, leading Yefim to prevent Valeri from involving himself in gang matters.
Yefim, being smart and quick-witted, seized every opportunity to rise through the ranks, spending over a decade building his own faction step by step to reach his current position.
Their gang is named “Narwhal.”
It is quite characteristic for the largest gang in White Whale City to be called Narwhal.
“Another casino,” Kui Xin scoffed, “It seems gangs have a soft spot for casinos, treating them as their strongholds. Any notable organization is bound to have a casino, nightclub, and bar under its wing.”
“Because these places are chaotic and really profitable,” Adam said. “The casinos are filled with decaying souls, rich and poor alike, packed in like sardines in a can. Those places symbolize wealth and power; they are treasure troves for amassing wealth and tombs for harboring rotten souls.”
“That’s true,” Kui Xin said with disdain. “The moment I stepped into this building, I was hit by the mixed scent of cheap perfume and disgusting sweat, making me want to vomit. If casinos are graveyards, then these smells are definitely the stench of corpses in coffins.”
She followed Valeri into the casino managed by Yefim, as Yefim was entertaining guests there tonight.
As Valeri entered, Kui Xin used Shadow Transition to hide in a bathroom stall on the first floor.
Valeri was equipped with a locator and pinhole camera that Kui Xin had prepared for him, which were meant to help her locate Yefim. She needed to see what was going on inside the casino. Yefim was indeed a cunning gang leader; even though he was right there and had notified his brother Valeri to meet him, Kui Xin could not find him in any of the surveillance footage after invading the monitoring system.
He was hiding, concealing himself in a place without surveillance cameras.
In unfamiliar locations, Kui Xin remained on high alert, never reckless. She mirrored this caution when dealing with unfamiliar adversaries, only striking when she was fully confident of a swift kill.
Her goal was to capture Yefim alive, ideally using Hypnotic Sound to control him. Narwhal was a gang with hundreds of members, and many smaller gangs were affiliated with it. Kui Xin did not want to dismantle such a large gang all at once; she needed someone to help her.
Valeri entered the building through a designated passage at the back of the casino. While entering, he passed through several metal detectors that beeped in alarm upon scanning the items on him.
However, to the members of the Narwhal gang, Valeri was a familiar face, the brother of their boss, who they could not offend. Thus, the checks were quite lax; they allowed him in without thorough verification, thinking the alarm was triggered by Valeri’s metal belt and studded boots.
Valeri smoothly made his way to the top floor of the casino, stopping in front of an oak door. The camera above the door scanned Valeri’s face, then a micro-projector installed on the door displayed a floating screen with the face of Yefim’s assistant appearing on it.
With a professional smile, he said, “Welcome, Mr. Valeri. Please come in; the boss is already waiting for you in the private room.”
The oak door clicked open, and Valeri pushed the door inside.
What greeted him was a grand vintage wooden desk, behind which was a large floor-to-ceiling window. The red velvet drapes above the window were drawn aside, revealing the night view of White Whale City. The glass was specially treated to be one-way visible and was the strongest bulletproof glass.
Yefim seemed to have a strong affinity for vintage wooden furniture, as his bookshelves and sofas were all made of wood. Due to pollution and other factors, most wooden furniture on the market today is artificially manufactured, while naturally made wooden furniture is prohibitively expensive. Even a single wooden ornament here could fetch a sky-high price in the outside market.
To the side of the office was a reception room where Yefim was seated with a glass of red wine, waiting for Valeri.
Upon seeing Valeri enter, Yefim opened his arms and said, “Valeri, my brother! It’s been a while since I last saw you. How have you been?”
The assistant entered with a tray of wine glasses and began pouring wine for Valeri and Yefim.
The two brothers were identical twins, looking so much alike that it was nearly impossible to distinguish between them when sitting face to face.
Valeri recited the lines that Kui Xin had instructed him, saying, “I have something very important to discuss with you privately.”
Yefim looked puzzled for a moment and nodded to his assistant, who obediently exited and closed the door behind him.
“What’s on your mind? Share it with me,” Yefim prompted.
But Valeri lowered his head, falling into a long silence, not saying a word.
“Valeri?” Yefim called out.
He didn’t notice a mass of black mist passing through the bookshelf in the reception room, solidifying into a human shape behind him.
Kui Xin scanned the area, performing an “electromagnetic detection” check and, once confirmed that there were no extra surveillance or listening devices, felt at ease. Her Investigative Eye revealed that Yefim, like his brother, was an ordinary person without extraordinary abilities.
“Don’t move, don’t make a sound,” Kui Xin said, pulling out a gun, her lips behind the mask murmuring that single sentence.
Yefim seemed dazed for a second before suddenly becoming terrified and freezing in place. “Who are you, and what do you want?”
Kui Xin raised an eyebrow in surprise, but her actions remained precise as she pressed the gun muzzle to the back of Yefim’s head.
“That’s surprising…” she muttered to herself.
Yefim’s mind must have been implanted with mental coordinates and mental barriers by the Resistance Army. Besides aiding members in mental communication, those things also functioned to resist brainwashing. Kui Xin had reason to suspect that it could also resist mental intrusion to a certain extent, which explained why Yefim did not react to her Hypnotic Sound… If one could call it a reaction, at least he was dazed for a few seconds.
Yefim’s fingers quietly moved, attempting to press down on the red gem ring on his finger. This ring was an alarm; as soon as he pressed it, the bodyguards outside would rush in to rescue him.
However, as soon as his fingers moved, Kui Xin swiftly drew a dagger from the strap on her thigh, cutting off the hand that held the ring.
Blood gushed out, and Yefim’s eyes bulged in shock. Just as he was about to scream, Kui Xin quickly choked his throat, preventing any sound from escaping.
She swung the gun butt down, and Yefim’s eyes rolled back as he collapsed to the ground, unconscious. She rummaged through her waist bag and extracted a powerful sedative, injecting it into Yefim.
With the upgrade to Shadow Transition, she could carry more items now. Her waist bag was filled with assorted small gadgets, and she was equipped with many useful tools, unlike before when she would go out feeling restricted and hesitant to bring anything along.
The Resistance Army could likely determine the life and death of their members through mental coordinates; however, using these coordinates for mental communication has limitations, at least not being able to communicate at will.
If Yefim was a member of the Resistance Army, he could not be allowed to die just yet, or the Resistance would notice something amiss. So, Kui Xin had to keep him in a state of deep sleep for now.
She looked at Valeri, who was fully under her control, thinking of a plan.
In the office was a wardrobe filled with Yefim’s freshly pressed formal wear. Kui Xin pulled out a suit, commanding Valeri to change into it.
This way, it would be harder to tell the brothers apart; the only difference was the beard, which Valeri had longer.
Kui Xin scrutinized their faces carefully, nodding in satisfaction as she asked Adam, “Can facial recognition systems identify identical twins?”
“Facial recognition can’t, but iris recognition can,” Adam replied.
“Okay, that’s enough,” Kui Xin said. “We’ll kidnap a black market doctor another day and have them swap Valeri’s and Yefim’s eyes. From now on, Valeri will be Yefim.”
“Unable to control Yefim, so you control Valeri to replace him?” Adam said, “Brilliant idea. But I must remind you, the casual disappearance of either brother will draw attention.”
“We’ll drag it out for a few days, so others don’t notice them missing. Ultimately, the one who goes missing can be Valeri, but not Yefim. There can be plenty of reasons for Valeri’s disappearance, like wanting to travel, striving on his own, or falling out with his brother…” Kui Xin said. “As long as Yefim is fine, that’s what matters. I need Yefim.”
“And if your replacement plan fails?” Adam asked.
“Then I’ll have to abandon the Narwhal’s operations and eliminate them all,” Kui Xin said. “It would be quite painful to think about, so I’ll be as careful as possible, ensuring success and taking what comes easily rather than fighting for it.”
She mentally reviewed her plan, turned to Valeri, and said, “You, put your clothes back on and leave the casino normally. After leaving, wait in Alley 368.”
Valeri blankly changed back into his clothes and left.
Through the surveillance cameras, she watched as Valeri left the casino under the respectful gaze of the Narwhal gang members, with the locator displaying his real-time location.
Fifteen minutes later, Valeri arrived at the concealed location Kui Xin had designated, waiting.
Kui Xin snapped her fingers, opening the Spatial Vortex, causing Valeri to tumble out. She brought him back to the casino.
She then said, “Change into Yefim’s clothes.”
After Valeri got up from the floor and changed into the outfit, Kui Xin raised a sharp dagger and trimmed his beard to match Yefim’s length. Now, the two brothers’ faces looked identical.
Kui Xin nodded in satisfaction, sheathing the dagger and taking the red gem ring off the severed hand on the floor, tossing it to Valeri for him to wear.
“Bring the assistant in,” she commanded.
Valeri pressed a button on the armrest of the sofa.
In the next moment, the assistant pushed open the door to the reception room. Before he could register the surprising scene in the room, Kui Xin directed, “Quiet.”
The assistant instantly shut his mouth, his expression obedient.
“Bandage your boss and clean up the blood on the floor,” Kui Xin instructed.
The assistant quickly walked over and began to follow her orders.
As for Valeri… Kui Xin said to him, “You sit in the middle of the office, and assume the demeanor of a big shot.”
Valeri straightened his tie like a true boss, walked out with a straight back, and sat behind the grand wooden desk, the luxurious red gem ring sparkling, adding to his commanding presence.
“Everyone saw Valeri leave; no one will suspect that he has replaced Yefim,” Kui Xin remarked with a smile as she turned around in the opulent office. “This place is mine now.”
Now, only one thing remained—reading Yefim’s memories.
