Chapter 1039
There was always the risk of a media leak, which could easily turn into a permanent stain on their future careers.
Besides, Mishka and her father were dead. The news hadn’t been made public yet, but the sharpest players in the industry already knew.
A lot of people were eyeing their remaining empire, and a crowd only increased the risk of exposure.
Focusing back on the task at hand, Master Ellis, Mira, and Owen studied the six buttons on the wall.
They had to be incredibly careful. One wrong move, and at best, the door would seal permanently, locking the treasure inside forever.
The only way in would be if the original owner used a failsafe.
At worst, the mechanism was rigged with lethal traps, ready to unleash a barrage of projectiles with nowhere to hide.
Dozens of intricate locking mechanisms flashed through Master Ellis’s mind. Yet, staring at the six buttons, he found no discernable pattern or sequence to open it.
Mira and Owen kept their eyes locked on the mechanism, racking their brains for a solution.
“Master Ellis,” Mira said, “don’t those six buttons look like they form a Yin-Yang symbol p>
The thought had just struck her out of nowhere.
“She has a point,” Owen agreed.
He had been studying the panel in silence for the past two minutes.
“Look here. This black button and this white button act as the two center eyes of the
crest, while these two map out the outer edges p>
Owen broke down his observation piece by piece.
“You’re right p>
Master Ellis nodded after a moment of consideration.
“The three buttons on this side are pure white, and the three on the opposite side are pitch black… I’m betting the others are just decoys. The only real triggers are the two eyes in the center p>
He quickly zeroed in on the core of the puzzle.
“Which means the trick to opening the door is likely twisting both of those center buttons at the exact same time p>
After he finished speaking, Master Ellis looked over at Mira. It wasn’t a lack of confidence in his own skills, nor did he think she knew more than him—she just had terrifyingly accurate intuition.
Owen turned his gaze to her as well.
Mira thought it over for a second. “Let’s do it your way, Master Ellis p>
Master Ellis insisted on triggering the mechanism himself.
He waved Mira, Owen, and the bodyguards back. “Everyone, step away p>
Knowing there was no point in arguing with him, Owen and Mira immediately backed up.
As the older man turned the buttons, the concrete wall ahead slowly slid open, revealing a hidden staircase leading down into the darkness.
Master Ellis paused at the top of the steps. Once he confirmed there were no immediate threats, he sprayed a specialized neutralizing agent into the air just in case of poison.
Then, he motioned for the rest of the group to follow.
Without a second thought, they fell in line behind him and descended.
Reaching the bottom of the stairs, they were greeted by the sight of a massive underground vault packed wall-to-wall with crates.
The Iron Wolves did a quick headcount. “Over five hundred crates p>
They cracked one open to find it brimming with solid gold bars. The second crate held the same, and the third p>
After a random sampling, they realized that over four hundred of the smaller chests contained nothing but pure gold.
The remaining hundred or so larger crates were stuffed with rare jade treasures.
Balkana was globally renowned for its jade, standing as the only nation to produce gem-quality stones. And the collection hoarded by this cartel boss con of the absolute
highest tier of flawless artifacts.
There were ten extra-large crates left over. When they pried the lids off, they found
bizarre, paper-thin sheets layered inside, cut into grotesque shapes.
“What the hell is this p>
Jax Weaver frowned, reaching out to touch one, but Silas Vane immediately slapped
his hand away.
“Don’t touch it. It could be laced with something p>
Master Ellis took one look and grimaced. “Preserved human skin p>
“What? Why would he keep a stockpile of this p>
Mira was horrified. This was supposed to be a vault for his greatest treasures.
“You’d be surprised. High-quality skin is far more valuable on the black market than gold or jade. It’s used for all sorts of things-custom disguises, full-body prosthetics p>
“But wearing the flesh of a dead person? Doesn’t that make them sick p>
A sickening shiver ran down Mira’s spine.
“These people murder for a living. You think a little skin scares them? That hospital
we destroyed earlier was basically a slaughterhouse p>
Owen pointed out the grim reality.