Chapter 233: Buying Crystals, Deadly Encounter

[Chapter 233: Buying Crystals, Deadly Encounter]

There was an infused quartz market on 5th Avenue, where people could buy all kinds of crystals for metaphysical or industrial purposes.

The place was crowded and chaotic, filled with a colorful mix of merchants, collectors, and shady characters. Given the notoriously spotty security in the area, Linton decided not to bring Vivian Chow and Michelle Reis along. It wasn't just about safety — he also didn't want too many people to know what he was buying.

More importantly, they needed to avoid attracting paparazzi. For him, it wouldn't be a big deal. But Vivian's image, carefully curated as pure and graceful, couldn't afford the risk. Michelle was more flexible, but still, reputations mattered in this business.

"Vivian baby, Michelle baby, I've got something to handle this morning," Linton said.

"Should we come with you?"

"No, you two go shopping at the mall with Meena. Use up the credit you didn't spend yesterday."

Time had been tight the day before. After buying uniforms and props, they'd barely made it to lunch. Each of them had a $100,000 spending cap, most of which went unused. They were more than happy to get a second round.

"Good luck with your work. Come back soon and let's have lunch together," they said cheerfully.

"Have fun too!"

They kissed him on the cheek and trotted off with Meena, eager for round two of retail warfare.

---

Linton took his two bodyguards, Danny and Carter, and hailed a taxi straight to 5th Avenue.

He didn't have demanding standards for the quartz quality in his containment array. He found a batch of smoky quartz that met the baseline criteria at $3 per gram. For full installation across the estate, he estimated at least two tons would be needed. Since he was new to this kind of system work and expected some mistakes, he decided to buy four tons upfront.

Before buying raw bulk, he checked out some shops selling pendants. Once his stabilization serum was complete, he planned to engrave runes into these pendants — functions like mental clarity, body nourishment, and basic energy shielding. They'd become priceless heirlooms for his inner circle.

After visiting several shops, he found a batch of top-grade white quartz pendants that were smooth, dense, and ideal for engraving. 

After some negotiation, Linton purchased 30 pendants for $15,000, a single piece cost $500.

He then moved on to the raw materials section, hitting multiple large vendors and quietly casting Soul Induction to identify who offered the best price. Eventually, he secured four tons of crystal at $6 million and signed contracts with several merchants.

The vendors arranged transport to the airport for airfreight.

To ensure safety, Carter rode in the truck with the shipment, while Linton and Danny followed by taxi.

---

Linton had heard Hong Kong's underworld was chaotic, but he didn't expect trouble over something as niche as infused quartz crystals. With the amount of cargo being modest and not flashy, he figured they'd be ignored. But clearly, someone had gotten greedy.

The 17-mile drive to the airport usually took around 40 minutes by truck. But barely ten minutes into the trip, Linton noticed a cluster of motorcycles tailing them.

Four bikes. Aggressively maneuvering through traffic. Definitely not casual riders.

Traffic thickened downtown, but the bikes kept formation behind the taxi. Then, just before the highway on-ramp, the riders accelerated — two moving in front, two on either side.

Each drew machetes and started shouting for the taxi to stop.

They clearly took him for a fat foreign buyer — loaded with cash and ready for kidnapping.

Linton sighed. It was his fault for being careless. Now he had to clean up someone else's mess.

...

The driver, visibly terrified, slammed the brakes and ducked behind the wheel, frozen in panic.

Linton opened the door calmly and stepped out. Four bikes boxed them in. Two riders dismounted and approached with blades drawn, arrogance in their stride.

Linton reached into his pocket and drew four coins. With a flick of his thumb and a touch of power, he sent them whistling through the air — each one arcing with unnatural grace.

In an instant, all four attackers dropped, clutching their throats, their eyes wide in shock before collapsing.

Danny stared, mouth agape.

They waited for another half minute, just in case more were coming. But it seemed these four were acting alone.

Linton had half-hoped for something tougher — he was itching for a real fight. But if this was the level of opposition, they weren't worth the effort.

As for whoever sent them, if they dared show themselves again, he'd deal with them without mercy.

They returned to the taxi and roused the trembling driver from his fake faint.

The man didn't say a word — just started the engine and followed the cargo truck straight to the airport.

The rest of the trip went smoothly. The goods were checked in, the flight scheduled, and by afternoon, Linton was back at the Peninsula Hotel with everything in order.

*****

https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.