The Charismatic Charlie Wade

As Fiona gestured in a specific direction with his hand, Maria didn’t bother to glance at it. Instead, she swiftly adjusted the
helicopter’s joystick, guiding it precisely towards the destination indicated by Fiona’s finger.
Meanwhile, Zeba, concealed within the gaps between boulders, remained unaware that she had become the target of their
pursuit. Her sole objective was to stay as still as possible, refraining from making even the slightest sound. Once the individuals
aboard the helicopter completed their inspection rounds, she believed she could depart from this place unnoticed. She
possessed absolute certainty that she wouldn’t be discovered.
The helicopter circled the valley multiple times, yet its occupants never descended to search the area. The massive boulder
obstructing Zeba’s view was thick enough to defy any attempt at detection, even with advanced equipment like thermal imaging.
No one could see beyond it to discover her whereabouts.
However, unease began to creep into Zeba’s heart when the helicopter suddenly veered towards her. As it grew closer, her heart
raced with anxiety.
Eventually, the helicopter arrived at the summit of the boulder, situated at the foot of the mountain.
Fiona suddenly announced, “This is it! I can already sense her presence. She is gravely injured!”
With those words, he swung open the helicopter door, preparing to jump straight down from the aircraft.
In a reflexive moment, Maria instinctively clutched the hem of his clothes and blurted out, “My Lord, since Zeba is in such a dire
state, why don’t you wait for me to join you? I wish to meet her alongside you for a brief moment.”
Observing her plea, Fiona relented. Instead of jumping down, he decided they should land the helicopter in an area affected by
the explosion. From there, they could proceed on foot together. Maria nodded in agreement, deftly manipulating the controls to
spin the helicopter around on the spot.
Underneath the boulder, Zeba couldn’t help but exhale a long sigh of relief as she witnessed the helicopter turn around and
depart, its presence no longer looming above her head. Little did she know, Maria had already positioned the helicopter at the
edge of the blast zone.
After bringing it to a halt, she turned to Fiona and disclosed, “Young Master, my family has information about her. Although Zeba,
one of the four esteemed Marshals of the Warriors Den, suffered severe injuries, she has always devoted herself to the path and
seldom acted against principles and morality. Today, Gideon’s self-explosion raises suspicions and it seems there may be more
to it. If you exploit this opportunity, you might be able to persuade Zeba to join our cause.”

Fiona offered a slight nod and replied, “If there is indeed something amiss with Gideon’s self-explosion, no one knows better than
Zeba, aside from Morgana.”
Immediately, both of them leaped off the helicopter and proceeded toward the boulder where Zeba hid.
At that moment, Zeba had finally relaxed and planned to take a brief respite before devising an escape strategy. However, she
was caught off guard when the sound of rustling footsteps reached her ears. Her heart skipped a beat and inwardly, she
exclaimed, “Could it be that the individuals from the helicopter have arrived on foot?”
This thought instantly rekindled her anxieties. She was well aware of her grave injuries and her inability to resist anyone,
regardless of their identity. All she could do now was silently pray that the approaching footsteps wouldn’t lead them to her and
that the person responsible for those footsteps wouldn’t discover her presence. Unfortunately, her prayers seemed to be in vain.
The footsteps drew closer and closer until they eventually halted just a mere ten meters away from her hiding spot.
Zeba’s nervousness reached its peak. She understood that if she was discovered, her chances of survival were practically
nonexistent. The captors would resort to any means necessary, including torture, to extract information about the Warriors Den
and the Lord from her.
Furthermore, the Warriors Den had repeatedly attempted to eliminate the Evan’s family. Falling into their clutches would likely
result in a dire fate, even if she cooperated obediently. Thus, her last flicker of hope rested upon the prospect of remaining
undiscovered.
Just as she held onto that final strand of delusion, Fiona’s voice boomed, breaking the silence. He declared loudly, “Zeba, you
were watching me and Gideon fight in the darkness earlier and now you’re hiding in the shadows. Isn’t that unreasonable?”
Zeba’s mind was jolted by Fiona’s words, much like a thunderclap in her brain.
At that moment, a multitude of thoughts flooded her mind, “This person actually found me? This person... he’s Fiona Wade, the
one who fought Gideon just now? But... How is this possible? I saw him sustain severe injuries during the explosion. He
vanished at an incredible speed. How could he have survived? Moreover, his voice suggests that he isn’t injured at all!”
Countless questions swirled in Zeba’s mind, causing her anxiety to escalate even further.
Although she possessed reiki and was an accomplished martial artist, the foreboding sensation of death filled her entire body,
rendering her both helpless and afraid.

Outside the boulder, Fiona noticed her lack of response. He smiled faintly and remarked, “Zeba, you’ve lost your cultivation and
sustained severe injuries. Without assistance, you may not be able to escape this valley. Your mighty and wise Lord won’t be
able to rush to your aid in such a short time. Instead of resigning yourself to die in despair, why don’t we sit down and have a
conversation? What do you say?”
Fiona’s question caused Zeba to shudder involuntarily. Recalling the tragic demise of Gideon, she felt a mixture of shock and
resentment in her heart. Moreover, the powerful self-destruction formation within her Soul Palace intensified her unease. For her,
she’d rather meet her end in this serene valley than return to her Master and continue being a living weapon.
Furthermore, she had no knowledge of how many activation methods existed for the formation embedded in the Soul Palace of
the Four Marshals. It remained unclear whether the Lord could detonate the formation with a mere thought. Based on Zeba’s
understanding of the Lord, she would undoubtedly leave behind such a contingency plan. As long as she remained within her
detection range, she could obliterate her at any moment.
After contemplating for a moment, Zeba gritted her teeth and weakly replied, “Since Mr. Wade wishes to converse, I have no
objections.”
Her words stemmed from the depths of her heart. Having witnessed Fiona’s superiority during his battle with Gideon, she knew
he surpassed her in strength. Furthermore, his survival of the recent explosion led her to believe his capabilities were
unfathomable. Subconsciously, she considered herself inferior.
Having expressed her consent, Zeba mustered her strength to stand up. Although she had chosen to submit to Rowan, as a
martial artist, she didn’t want him to witness her crawling out from the gap in the boulder.
However, her body had been ravaged by severe injuries. Climbing from the blast zone to her current location had depleted her
energy reserves, leaving her legs trembling like fragile reeds. As she clenched her teeth and attempted to take a step forward, a
sharp pain coursed through her right leg, causing her to collapse uncontrollably.
Observing Zeba falling face-first onto the gravel, perilously close to striking the rough and jagged surface, Fiona reacted swiftly
and thrust his hand forward, redirecting her trajectory and averting the impact.