Chapter 1449

At this moment, they were unaware that the members of the Gordon family who were abroad had already returned to District Fourteen.

So, they simply regarded lan and his group as irrelevant bystanders or a minor force attached to the Gordon family and didn’t pay them much heed.

Despite hearing the threats, lan remained indifferent, his expression still one of nonchalance.

“Bring it on. I can’t wait to see if the Bartitsu Guild will send someone to rescue you and if they will dare to lay a hand on us.”

“You-”

“Do you know where the one who died was taken?”

He posed a sudden question, causing the expressions of those men to shift several times, yet no one uttered a word.

With a slight smile, lan remained unfazed and casually provided the answer.

“That guy has already been taken to the headquarters of the Bartitsu Guild. He’s lying right at the entrance. I’m curious to see who among you is so eager to go and keep him company right now,” he declared with a hint of sarcasm.

The faces of those few people instantly turned pale, as if grappling with disbelief when they heard that.

“W-What are you talking about? The headquarters of the Bartitsu Guild is not a place where people like you can come and go as you please. Do you really think you’re a big shot?”

lan put down the leg that was folded over his knee, suddenly leaned forward, squinting his eyes a bit closer, maintaining a posture that exuded loftiness and superiority. “So you think that by aligning yourselves with the Bartitsu Guild, you’ve found a solid backing? Ha, looks like this is as far as your vision extends.”

With that, he lost the mood for idle chatter. Abruptly, he retrieved a dagger from his pocket, holding it in his hand and toying with it.

“Speak up. Who made a move? Which hand you used?”

The sudden change in subject left them momentarily stunned.

The man who was making a fuss just now was the first to react, immediately raising his voice in protest.

“What are you trying to do? Intimidate us? I’m warning you. If you dare lay a hand on us, the Bartitsu Guild will make sure you regret it!”

Seemingly irritated, lan dug at his ear in apparent annoyance.

His subordinate, keenly observing the subtle movement, acted without a word and kicked the man out, sending him sprawling to the ground. With a forceful stomp, he stepped on the man’s face.

“Enough with the nonsense! When Mr. Morrison asks you something, you answer right away! Any more nonsense, and I’ll end you right now!”

The man’s face contorted under the force of the step, causing him to shudder in pain. He stuttered, unable to utter a single clear sentence.

11:51 Mon, 4 Dec·

白肉92%書 Ignoring the man’s distress, lan shifted his gaze to the remaining few people and repeated his question, “Speak up. Who exactly made a move? Or did everyone make a move? If no one’s going to talk, then I’ll proceed according to my own rules.”

“Speak up, who exactly made a move? Or did everyone make a move? If no one’s going to talk, then I’ll proceed according to my own rules.”

Still, no one spoke.

At this juncture, lan’s patience wore thin. He nodded, pressing on the armrest of the chair and rising to his feet, slowly advancing toward them.

Before long, a horrifying, heart-wrenching scream pierced the silence of the deep night, emanating from the crack of the warehouse door, casting a layer of chill and terror over the silent surroundings.

Half an hour later, lan casually strolled out, tossing a blood-stained handkerchief to the subordinate trailing behind him. Bathed in moonlight, he admired his now clean hands and curled his lips with satisfaction.

“Don’t sleep tonight; pull an all-nighter. Deal with them as you see fit, but don’t kill them. Come dawn, take them and the one who died earlier, and dump them all at the front door of the Bartitsu Guild’s headquarters.”

The subordinate promptly acknowledged the order. “Yes, sir.”

Meanwhile, news about the Gordon family’s affairs and Neera’s injury began circulating on the internet.

Online discussions were abuzz with netizens unable to resist delving into the unfolding events.

Netizen A: Have you heard? There’s been a huge uproar in the Gordon family! And Neera has been kidnapped!

Netizen B: Have you heard? The Gordon family is in turmoil! Neera’s been kidnapped!

Netizen C: As far as I know, several powerful families seem to hold a grudge against the Gordon family, so they took advantage of the Gordon family’s recent misfortune and spontaneously joined forces to strike against them. Speaking of which, this is all thanks to Neera. Before Neera arrived, the Gordon family didn’t have so many enemies. But now, the Gordon family’s enemies are everywhere, and they’ve even joined forces against them. Tsk tsk, it’s really quite tragic.

Netizen D: Let’s not jump to conclusions. The Gordon family didn’t fare too badly this time. According to witnesses, they were initially at a disadvantage, but a lot of reinforcements arrived, probably from the Gordon family’s affliated forces. Surprisingly, the seemingly insignificant Gordon family has secretly amassed quite a force behind the scenes.

Netizen E: That’s not all! Several members of the Gordon family, who originally went to support the fifth district, have returned. It’s said that Jean was the one who rushed to save Neera!

Netizen F: Jean Beauvort is back? How is Neera doing now?

Netizen G: The details are unclear, but when Jean carried her out, someone saw it. Neera was covered in injuries, likely tortured severely. There’s been no word on whether she’s dead or alive.

Netizen H: Yikes, that gave me goosebumps. But do we know who took Neera away?

Netizen I: Not sure, but this is probably the second-biggest event in the Bartitsu Guild recently, after the Cox family incident. The guild has been anything but peaceful lately.

Netizen J: Well, when has the Bartitsu Guild ever been peaceful? It’s always been like this. The conflicts have never ceased. Besides, the guild doesn’t prohibit it; it’s pretty much the norm. I just wonder how the Gordon family is going to resolve this situation this time….

The Bartitsu Guild, however, was privy to the inside story. At this moment, the headquarters was brightly lit. Matthew, leaning on his cane, was pacing back and forth in the living room, resembling a cat on a hot tin roof.

“What on earth happened? Didn’t I instruct you to intercept them and prohibit anyone from the Gordon family from entering District Fourteen? How did Chad and his people manage to return? And how did you allow someone to rescue Neera? Is this how you do your job?”

With each question, his anger escalated. Suddenly, he seized the ashtray from the coffee table and hurled it at Darren.

Darren, wary of the consequences, didn’t dare to dodge; he stood still, bearing the full brunt of the hit.

Blood immediately began to flow from his forehead, covering half of his face.

Despite the intense pain, he explained in a submissive and humble manner, “Indeed, following your instructions, I deployed a significant number of troops to secure the border of District Fourteen.

However, Chad, Shane, and Jean returned simultaneously. They brought back quite a lot of men with them, and each of them was highly skilled. In the confrontation with our men, they clearly had the upper hand. Our forces were ultimately no match for them and suffered severe losses… As for Neera, in fact, Howard should have taken the opportunity to kill her when they were coming out of the secret passage.

But Phoebe insisted on taking her away. Howard didn’t stop her because she had previously asked us to hand Neera over. But he did tell Phoebe to keep Neera alive for him…”