In the lavishly decorated room, the walls were splattered with blood, and all the lights were on; there wasn’t even a shadow on the floor!

Charlie (brother) really liked this kind of decoration; he enjoyed being surrounded by light, as if he were the embodiment of brightness.

But now, his former elegance was gone, and he was restrained awkwardly in a chair.

He looked disheveled, with dark circles around his eyes, swollen cheeks, lips cracked in several places, and the blood had already dried black.

He hung his head low, appearing devoid of strength.

Two men in suits stood around him, with one more standing right in front of him.

This person seemed to be in his fifties, with a slender build, silver-gray hair, and a few wrinkles on his face.

Those wrinkles made him look very unapproachable, somewhat fierce, as he stood with black gloves and arms crossed in front of Charlie (brother).

Gazing at the man who had already been tormented thoroughly, the tall, thin old man seemed to have no sympathy. He grabbed Charlie (brother)’s hair, forcing him to face upwards.

"Give back..."

"My money!"

"Return it to me!"

He spoke one word at a time, very slowly and clearly, adding immense pressure on Charlie (brother).

The first moment after the silver market crashed, he came knocking, capturing Charlie (brother). Charlie (sister) might have fled early, or she might still be hiding on this private island.

But it doesn’t matter; he believes the other party will definitely show up, so he’s tormenting this man first.

Charlie (brother) forced a painful smile onto his face, "I told you before you invested, any high-return investment comes with equally high risks..."

The tall, thin old man swung his fist at Charlie (brother)’s cheek, causing his head to whip forcefully in the direction of the punch, with a mouthful of bloody saliva splattering out.

His cheeks had long been smashed against his teeth repeatedly, bleeding and stopping, stopping and bleeding, seemingly never-ending.

The tall, thin old man flexed his wrist, "I asked if there was any problem; you told me the money was safe, that there’d be no problem."

"Now it’s gone; I don’t care about anyone else, you must return my money to me!"

He extended his right palm upwards towards the two men beside him, and soon someone handed him a pair of pliers. He tried to pry Charlie (brother)’s mouth open but failed.

Then he swung the pliers at Charlie (brother)’s nasal bridge, and with a sickening crunch, Charlie (brother) instinctively opened his mouth and screamed in agony.

The slightly rusty pliers entered his mouth, found a tooth, and pulled with force!

With a crunch, a bloody half-tooth was pried away and casually tossed to the ground.

"I know you have money, you’re secretly disposing of goods, all of which I know. Now, tell me where the money is, or I’ll kill you and then find your whore-like sister!"

Charlie (brother) had indeed been secretly selling off goods; the silver he hoarded started being sold off as early as when it hit fourteen or fifteen bucks.

This matter might be hidden from some, but not from others, those with immense energy.

Precious metals in physical form are actually easy to trace; they’re either in bank vaults or in private warehouses at International Port designated for storage and trading.

They won’t be elsewhere, especially in huge quantities, and there’s no place to store such things; personal transport isn’t that safe.

As long as these places are watched closely, one could know if Charlie and his sister had disposed of any goods.

Some people can easily find out the news, like this tall, thin old man here.

Charlie (brother) remained silent; he could have fled too, but the other party arrived too quickly, so fast he didn’t have time to board the ship.

He and his sister indeed sold off most of their silver holdings. In fact, even when silver surged to fourteen or fifteen bucks an ounce, he already sensed something ominous.

The forces of intervention were too strong, violating the natural market laws; it was bound to lead to trouble.

But he had been tied down by too much capital, and everyone believed he could achieve what he bragged about, so they forced him to sign various betting agreements.

Now he lost; he cannot admit having money, because if he did, speculators aiming to profit from the betting agreements would soon take it away.

He and his sister had worked hard for so many years; they couldn’t leave without gaining anything!

"Seems you’ve decided to resist to the end.", the tall, thin old man pulled out a few more of his teeth, yet he still didn’t reveal anything valuable.

The old man breathed heavily, took a few steps back, glanced at his wristwatch, then commanded his subordinates, "Saw off his leg..."

It turns out, not everyone can maintain their composure under extreme circumstances, like Charlie (brother).

When the people brought by this tall, thin old man began preparing for amputation, his mental defenses finally collapsed.

This group of people are lunatics. Not only do they plan to saw off his leg, but also his arm. If he really ends up like that, would his sister still care about him?

He’s uncertain, but he thinks probably not. He knows his sister well enough; she wouldn’t like someone who’s bald and bare.

He’s made so much money and hasn’t had the chance to enjoy the happiness brought by this wealth. He never imagined he would die, and die at this moment!

At this very moment, all resistance has ended.

He revealed everything he knew and told the tall, thin old man that the money was secretly stored in different banks.

To access the money, it’s not a password or signature that’s needed, but a token.

The tall, thin old man pulled open Charlie (brother)’s shirt and saw the necklace around his neck, which had a pendant—a pendant of an Elf.

Twin Elves. This is a widely known story worldwide: it is said that a fruit, kissed and blessed by multiple gods, fell to the ground and gave birth to two elves.

One male, one female, they were naturally a pair...

In fact, many scholars and experts believe this mythology story implies that the gods in the pantheon engaged in "immoral and unethical" group activities, and the fruit actually refers to twins born from such chaotic relationships.

More tragically, these twins also inherited the genes from their unknown father, merging into one.

This is a tragic story. As the brother-sister pair grew up, many "uncles" and "aunts" sought to discover the joy’s secret, among them were even their parents.

Eventually, the brother protected his sister but also completed the merging ritual, and ultimately, they became a "Golden Seed," planted by the gods on Cloud Mountain.

Looking at the Elf Pendant in his hand, it’s evident that there is another half of it.

"On your sister," the tall, thin old man tightly clenched the Elf Pendant in his hand and put it in his pocket.

Charlie (brother) nodded, "You won’t find her, and even if you do, you might not be able to do anything to her."

The tall, thin old man stared straight ahead, without looking at Charlie (brother) positioned lower in front of him, "You better pray your sister doesn’t run around."

The group quickly took Charlie (brother) away from this private island. Before leaving, they set fire to the palatial buildings on the island that had been lavishly renovated, turning them into ashes.

On the other side, Charlie (sister) left ahead of time, and now she fearfully boarded a passenger ship bound for the Federation, using a different identity.

She had arranged to meet her brother at the International Port of this Neutral Country. She’s been waiting for three days, but Charlie (brother) still hasn’t appeared.

This made her realize her brother might be trapped. She didn’t follow the alternate plan she and her brother had agreed on, which was to hide in a reserved place.

Instead, she spent money to buy a fake identity locally and used this identity to buy a ticket to the Federation.

She’s unsure whether going to the reserved location would be safe.

She asked herself if caught, she might not withstand interrogation, weighing her options, she chose "safety."

In the orderly queue, she carried her suitcase, pressing her chest with one hand, under her clothes, there was a delicate Elf Pendant.

She believes as long as she’s alive and not caught, her brother won’t die.

This is the ultimate insurance; without them, the money, the wealth cannot be accessed by anyone!

The slow-moving queue advanced little by little. When boarding the ship, the crew checked her passport.

The crew member stared at her for quite a few seconds, making her hair stand on end, before smiling and handing her passport back, "Have a pleasant trip, madam."

She smiled accepting the passport and boarded the passenger ship...

After finding her room, she let out a complete sigh of relief.

As long as she reaches the Federation, she’ll be safe!

Whether she conceals her identity or reveals it, she’ll be safe.

In June, the temperature gradually returned to normal. After silver prices returned to their reasonable level, gold began to appreciate slowly again.

Its appreciation rate wasn’t fast, much slower compared to the rapid daily rise of silver.

But it’s this slowness that actually brings peace of mind.

The Silver Alliance, within less than a month of establishment, fell into an awkward situation.

Due to the plummeting silver prices, the exchange rates between silver currency and the currencies of various member countries also showed extremely unstable fluctuations. After announcements of some countries withdrawing from the Silver Alliance, quickly the Silver Alliance announced its dissolution.

This organization once posed a certain "threat" to the world structure, but it existed for just over a month!

Yet the "wealth" it left behind will exist for a very long time!

Even upon this "wealth," new alliances, new order, new future will form!