After the silver-gray and the gangsters drove away, the atmosphere inside C?u D?ng’s mansion was about to explode — like a bomb storm had just fallen from the sky. The man’s face was flushed purple with fury, his clothes disheveled as he stormed into the living room, his roar thundering like a tempest:

  – “Where’s Th??! Get down here this instant!!! TH?!!!”

  Upstairs, Anh Th? was applying a yogurt face mask when she jolted at the shout. The porcelain bowl slipped from her hands as she rushed down the stairs in a panic.

  – “What’s going on, Dad?! Why are you yelling like that?!”

  C?u D?ng lunged forward, hand raised to deliver a punishing slap to his prodigal daughter — but Anh Tú and Dì T? rushed in just in time to grab his arm.

  – “Dad! Calm down! Let’s talk about this!” Anh Tú barked, trying to restrain him.

  – “You dared to keep it from me?! What the hell have you done that got gangsters to our door demanding 5 billion VND?! Did you borrow money for that damned boyfriend of yours to party around?!”

  M? Linh, who had just recovered somewhat from the bizarre hallucinations earlier, ran down the stairs, her hair still messy and unkempt:

  – “Oh my god! 5 billion?! What did you do to borrow that much money, Th??!”

  Anh Th? burst into tears, the yogurt mask smudging all over her face:

  – “I... I just wanted to win it back... We went to the casino. At first we were winning, but then... then we kept losing... I didn’t mean to...”

  Anh Tú’s voice turned cold as ice:

  – “You gambled?! With that worthless scumbag?! Now you’re 5 billion in debt to gangsters — who’s supposed to pay that?! How are Mom and Dad supposed to live now?!”

  The whole house erupted in chaos — screams, crying, and the crashing of objects echoed all the way out to the front gate.

  ---

  On the rooftop of the Gothic mansion, the night wind howled, and the twinkling lights of Saigon shimmered like a sea of stars. The group lounged comfortably, sipping drinks and watching drama unfold as if they were attending a tea party.

  Din had his legs propped up, munching on a bag of potato chips while staring at the floating holo-screen:

  – “This snack is salty, but not nearly as salty as that drama down there.”

  One little demon chuckled:

  – “5 billion isn't that much, is it? Her dad’s a tycoon — money shouldn’t be a problem.”

  Din raised an eyebrow and sipped his mint milk tea leisurely:

  – “Still gotta be someone willing to pay. And that family’s about to be handled by both Satan and the General.”

  Another little demon chimed in, eyes wide with admiration:

  – “The Count really is something... owner of an intergalactic casino chain, runs an underground banking network, and even controls a galactic auction house... What about the General?”

  Din glanced sideways at Erion, who sat calmly sipping black tea, eyes closed, lips curled slightly:

  – “The General only owns one thing at the moment...”

  All the demons chimed in:

  – “What is it?!”

  Din smirked:

  – “A black diamond mine spanning tens of thousands of hectares... on the Dark Planet.”

  The rooftop froze for a beat. Then jaws dropped, snacks fell to the floor.

  – “Holy hell... how rich can someone even be?!”

  Yin burst into laughter, tapping his soy milk carton:

  – “Don’t forget — he’s the infamous Black Diamond Duke of the galaxy, a veteran of wars across dimensions.”

  Trang folded her arms, gazing coldly toward the chaos at C?u D?ng’s mansion:

  – “They once pushed me to the edge of society... Now they’ve dug their own graves. That whole family will pay for everything.”

  Erion glanced her way without a word. But his gaze lingered — on the fierce, proud face of the girl beside him... a face still bearing scars from battles no one else could see.

  At the Bình Chánh headquarters, the Satan family’s dinner was taking place in the grand dining hall — lined entirely with black Spanish oak and lit by shimmering violet crystal chandeliers that cast a mystical glow over the thirty-seat table. Exquisite dishes like Devil Goose liver, Dragon Beef, and refined White Fin Soup were served in silence. Yet everyone’s eyes remained fixed on the split-screen satellite display: On one side, the chaos unfolding at C?u D?ng’s villa; on the other, the Gothic rooftop filled with boba tea, snacks... and endless drama.

  A white-haired royal operative standing behind Satan leaned in, eyes locked on the image of Erion flicking a snack with casual grace.

  – “My Lord... Erion owns a black diamond mine that spans tens of thousands of hectares... How is he even that rich...”

  The Grand Dowager, sipping her sturgeon egg and abalone soup with the serenity of a spring breeze, replied gently:

  – “Those children still don’t understand... That mine is just a tiny sliver of a planet under our Lord’s reign.”

  – “Lord Satan surpasses that by hundreds —no, thousands — of times. The Dark Planet has at least a few hundred mines: black diamonds, crystal gold, crimson rubies, azure sapphires, eternal metal... an endless vault of treasure, all under His ownership.”

  Satan chuckled softly, voice as dry and chilling as a winter gust:

  – “Let’s not hype it up too much. Their blood pressure might spike.”

  H?ng Nhung and Arian exchanged amused glances. Arian rested his chin on his hand, eyes still locked on the scene of Anh Th? being scolded over her debt.

  – “The parents stole someone else’s inheritance. Now the daughter’s gambling it all away. Poetic justice.”

  Satan set his goblet of red wine down, a deep smile playing on his lips:

  – “Perhaps it’s time for a vacation. Earth’s scenic views and culinary delicacies match our royal tastes...”

  He leaned slightly, his whisper thunderous:

  – “I’ll send a private invitation to Erion... and include my future son-in-law.”

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  ---

  Meanwhile, in the townhouse in District 3, on the second floor, Trúc Di?n and Master V?nh were savoring a quiet tea ceremony in a chamber styled after traditional Chinese aesthetics. The room was steeped in silence, adorned with calligraphy scrolls and ink-wash paintings. The scent of eucalyptus incense wafted through the air. But Trúc Di?n’s eyes burned with a coming storm.

  He placed his teacup down and reached into the air before him. A shimmer of white smoke, like frost crystals, spiraled outward. Then, a circular mirror appeared — its frame carved from solid white jade, etched with intricate serpent-scale patterns, accented by interwoven jadeite knots sculpted into elegant serpents. The mirror surface was pure white quartz.

  He gently touched it, causing rippling swirls to spiral across the glass, as if space itself bent to his will. A vivid image formed: the Th?o ?i?n villa of My’s family, captured from rooftop to parlor in full clarity.

  – “Satan has the Mirror of Velkhanis... but I have this Tranquil Moon Mirror (T?nh Nguy?t B?ch Kính). Its power is no less formidable.”

  His voice dropped low. His eyes glowed with emerald fire, and his pupils morphed vertically—like those of an ancient serpent.

  Master V?nh watched him in thought.

  – “What do you plan to do?”

  Trúc Di?n didn’t answer immediately. He gently turned the jade-glass ring on his index finger:

  – “Continue the hallucination sequence Satan left unfinished... I want them to know that karma... can descend from many dimensions.”

  On the rooftop of the Gothic villa, the night sky above District 2 sparkled with the glow of city lights. The atmosphere felt like a supernatural cosmic festival. Imps arranged snack trays, royal operatives brewed milk tea, and Din casually munched on lemongrass chicken jerky. Yin had a compact laptop open, monitoring satellite data. Soft jazz music drifted from the terrace speakers — until Erion stepped forward toward the arched balcony, his eyes as still as the first frost of winter.

  – “Let me stir up a little wind... to make that family over there even busier.”

  He raised his right hand. A swirl of dark violet smoke burst from his palm, spiraling outward to form a round black mirror. The frame was forged from pure black diamond, glowing faintly with a purple sheen that shimmered like something from the astral void.

  Trang, standing nearby, stepped closer at the sight, eyes wide with recognition:

  – “That... looks a lot like Father’s Velkhanis Mirror. But the aura is different. Din, Yin, have either of you seen one like this before?”

  Yin shook his head slowly, eyes fixed and unblinking:

  – “Never. This one... the glass is refined obsidian — completely pitch black. It doesn’t reflect... it absorbs your gaze.”

  Erion’s deep voice rumbled like thunder from the abyss:

  – “This is the Black Crystal. Like Velkhanis, but forged by my own hand — linked directly to the Thousand-Layer Illusion Field on the Dark Planet. I use it to punish those who mock others with false virtue.”

  He gently touched the surface with his index finger. A ripple of swirling black-violet waves spread outward, revealing a clear image of My’s family villa in Th?o ?i?n — the entire living room in full view.

  Just as Erion prepared to cast an illusionary barrier, the mirror trembled slightly, the hue shifting to a brighter violet.

  Din furrowed his brows:

  – “Hold on... another energy source just interfered with the dimensional field...”

  Yin narrowed his focus:

  – “It’s Trúc Di?n. Ancient divine beast energy... unmistakable.”

  Trang stepped even closer to Erion, her blood-red eyes staring deep into the mirror’s shifting surface:

  – “So... he’s acting — not to protect, but to strike at My’s family...”

  Din nodded, enunciating clearly:

  – “From what we’ve observed via satellite, Master V?nh and Trúc Di?n have started digging into the car crash from years ago. Seems they’ve realized they backed the wrong side...”

  Trang clenched her fists, gaze unwavering:

  – “Then we’re all... heading in the same direction.”

  Yin closed his laptop and tilted his head toward the moon:

  – “My assistant, Chen, is cross-checking the remaining data. There should be residuals stored deep within the server... we’ll have results soon.”

  Erion turned his gaze to Trang, a subtle frown forming. In his eyes, something shifted — a flicker of emotion foreign to him. Could it be that the heart that had frozen for a thousand years... was finally beating again? A strange, unnamed feeling stirring in the depths of a being forged in solitude.

  The night sky over District 2 still shimmered with starlight, while a gentle breeze whispered through the Gothic villa’s arched rooftops. While Erion continued to operate his obsidian mirror, Trang’s right hand suddenly began to glow.

  Brilliant crimson veins lit up across her skin, spiraling into a timewheel — etched with twelve Roman numerals — that rotated counterclockwise around her wrist. From the center of her palm, a burst of temporal-spatial energy surged forth.

  – “The Time Ring...” Din murmured.

  From the very core of the vortex, a new mirror emerged — its light ancient and commanding. It was the second version of the Velkhanis Mirror, more powerful and sacred than the original, personally gifted to Trang by Satan himself.

  Its frame was carved from solid wood harvested from a ten-thousand-year-old tree, grown in the White Bone Forest on the Dark Planet — a realm where only the immortal dared tread. Its border bore intricate phoenix engravings, but most mesmerizing was the surface: a slab of flawless white diamond, so pure it reflected not just the physical, but the soul’s very frequency.

  An imp nearby blurted out, half in awe, half in comedy:

  – “Wait wait… The mirror’s made from a single white diamond?! Bro, is everyone here rich enough to be priced in planets or what!?”

  The group chuckled quietly — everyone except Trang, who stood like a frozen blade beside Erion, her blood-red eyes slicing through the night:

  – “Let Trúc Di?n deal with My... I’m focusing on M? Linh.”

  Erion didn’t look at her, but his lips curled into a knowing smirk:

  – “Then I shall handle Anh ?ào, and I’ll make sure D?ng watches his wife and daughter writhe through karmic illusions — like insects trapped on a burning skillet, with no way out.”

  In that instant, Din, Yin, the royal operatives, and the nearby imps all narrowed their eyes, their gazes sharp as enchanted katana blades, each paired with a trademark half-smile only cosmic-level mischief-makers could master.

  Yin gently rotated his T? Nham prayer beads, fingering each one as if silently counting the fates of each corrupted tycoon. Din chomped another chip — but his gaze never left D?ng’s cursed villa.

  Trang placed her palm against the white diamond mirror. Light refracted across her forehead, linking her essence to divine law—as if the gods themselves nodded in solemn judgment.

  Her voice, steady and low, like an executor of cosmic justice:

  – “It’s time... for all debts... to be paid.”

  At the Th?o ?i?n villa, the atmosphere after dinner was deceptively calm. Guests leisurely sampled a platter of tropical fruits — Hoà L?c mangoes, Cái M?n durians, mangosteens, and southern longans.

  Mr. Quy, Mrs. Lan, businessman Ti?n, and Deep chatted idly while Tu?n gently fed fruit to My, his gaze full of warmth and care.

  Mr. Quy asked,

  – “I saw something online — D?ng’s villa was completely frozen over. Is that true or just internet rumors?”

  Ti?n unlocked his phone and pulled up an image of the frozen estate:

  – “It’s real, sir. This was taken by a neighbor. No editing at all. The whole estate area’s fine — except for that one villa completely iced over.”

  Mrs. Lan frowned,

  – “Tomorrow, we should stop by and see for ourselves.”

  But before anyone could respond, a blood-curdling scream echoed across the room.

  My clutched her head, her eyes wide with terror. In her mind, voices whispered — faint yet crystal clear, as if from the void itself:

  – “Look closely… the worms are crawling out from her flawless face…”

  – “There they go… dropping onto the fruit plate. Delicious, aren’t they? Hee hee…”

  – “So many holes… tiny, grotesque holes… each with a worm squirming inside...”

  She trembled violently, eyes darting around the room. The portraits on the walls seemed to turn their heads in unison, painted eyes boring into her, painted mouths sneering with silent contempt.

  – “Shut up!!! SHUT UP, YOU DAMN PAINTINGS! Who gave you permission to mock me?!” she screamed, clutching her ears.

  Tu?n dropped his fork, startled.

  – “My? What are you talking about? No one said anything.”

  Deep, frozen mid-bite, stared at her:

  – “Who… who are you talking to, My?”

  She pointed at the portraits.

  – “Them! They’re laughing at me! Threatening me!”

  Ti?n, halfway through chewing a slice of pineapple, choked.

  – “Wait… You mean the paintings are threatening you? What are you talking about?”

  Mrs. Lan turned pale and grabbed Mr. Quy’s arm:

  – “Oh no… Don’t tell me… it’s happening again. She was just getting better these past few days…”

  My was drenched in cold sweat. Her tear-filled eyes locked on the fruit platter — mangos, mangosteens, durians... All of them seemed to crack open, teeming with white, wriggling maggots in her mind.

  She shrieked and stumbled backward, knocking over her chair. Tu?n rushed to steady her, but she jerked away violently, panic-stricken:

  – “Don’t touch me! You’re… you’re all worms in disguise! Crawling all over my face!!”

  Tu?n gently cupped her cheeks:

  – “My, look at me. Your face is still beautiful—there’s nothing there. Please, don’t scare yourself like this.”

  ---

  At that same moment, on the second floor of a shophouse in District 3, the tea room was steeped in tranquil golden light.

  Trúc Di?n sat beside Master V?nh, one hand lifting a porcelain cup of Thái Nguyên jasmine tea, the other resting lightly atop the Tranquil Moon Mirror (T?nh Nguy?t B?ch Kính) —a sacred round mirror glowing like a full moon. Its white jade frame encircled a pure quartz surface, still and reflective, currently displaying My’s living room with eerie clarity.

  The screams. The spinning portraits. The fruit swarming with insects. Everything unfolded in real time within the mirror.

  Trúc Di?n smirked:

  – “How fitting… These so-called honest entrepreneurs — just wolves in sheep’s clothing.”

  Master V?nh said nothing. He simply nodded, his gaze distant — contemplating the consequences of decades of karmic debt finally coming to term.

  Trúc Di?n narrowed his glowing green eyes, pupils elongated like a serpent's:

  – “I sense… other forces are moving. Who else is involved?”

  V?nh frowned slightly:

  – “Check the energies. I have a feeling… we’ve crossed paths with them before.”