Ghost Billionaire
Chapter 85: The Man In Blue

Chapter 85: The Man In Blue

"Just what the heck is going on here?!"

The ghost girl looked around again. "It’s like a pocket dimension. It masks everything from normal humans. Time doesn’t move here. People outside can’t see anything, and any damage done here won’t show up in the real world."

Matthew looked back at the spirits. They hadn’t moved. Some looked blurry, others fully formed, but all of them stared in the same direction.

Then a loud impact thudded from behind a nearby building, as if a wrecking ball had slammed into concrete.

"Someone’s fighting," the ghost girl said, drifting higher to see. "Two Nexians. And one of them... isn’t holding back."

Matthew reached for the car door and stepped out. The moment his foot hit the ground, the difference became more noticeable, the pressure in the air, the lack of wind, the way everything seemed slightly off.

He took a few steps forward, eyes scanning the area. A streetlamp flickered unnaturally above him, even though there was no wind or movement.

"Can we get out of this field?" he asked when the ghost girl floated next to him.

"Not unless the user ends it," the ghost said. "Or unless someone strong enough breaks it from the inside."

Another crash echoed from the same direction. This time, debris flew into the air—slow. It was as if he was watching a video but in slow motion.

Matthew kept moving. If Nexians were fighting this close to the black market, then it wasn’t random and it definitely wasn’t good.

"We need to get out of here..." the ghost girl said, her form flickering.

He frowned, wondering if she might disappear on him. She’d done this once before, left him in the middle of danger. As if sensing his thoughts, she added,

"Only Nexians can sense these fields! Only Nexians can get sucked into a field like this," she said as she glanced around in every direction. "We shouldn’t be here. We need to stay away. Now."

Matthew frowned. He followed her, and the two crouched behind the car. His eyes swept the street as he lowered his voice. "Does that mean the humans outside this field can’t see us now?"

Then he realized something. Why was she crouching, too? It’s not like she had a physical body. Did this mean whatever was inside the field could affect her as well?

"Yes, you’re right," the ghost girl nodded, hovering low. "They can’t see us. But there shouldn’t be something like this here. Only Veined Nexians could create this kind of Isolation Field."

She floated closer to the edge of the vehicle. "There are only about a thousand Veined Nexians in this country—maybe less—and they’re not supposed to be active here."

Matthew narrowed his eyes.

"The timing couldn’t be worse for us," she said, snapping her head to the side. "You’re too weak right now. If you get caught in the crossfire, you won’t make it."

He glanced at her but didn’t answer immediately. Then he said, "Don’t panic."

She whipped around. "What do you mean, ’don’t panic’? Do you even understand what this means?" Her form flickered for a moment, unstable. "Veined Nexians are dangerous. Especially the ones who—"

She froze.

Just as she opened her mouth again, a wave of heat rolled across the pavement. Then—

Boom.

A deafening explosion erupted from a block away. The sky above them lit up for a second. Then flames shot into the air, flickering against the Isolation Field’s veil.

The ghost girl stared at it, motionless. "Elements!" she said.

Matthew stood up slowly, eyes fixed on the fire. "You told me Nexians can’t do that," he said. She’d said Nexians couldn’t fly, either. So... what was going on here?

"This isn’t the time for that. You have to find another place. Right the edge of the field. Find it," the ghost girl urged.

Matthew took one step forward. Another tremor shook the ground beneath them. A nearby vehicle tilted from the shockwave, and bits of broken pavement rolled to the side.

"We can’t get caught in this," she finally said.

But Matthew didn’t move back. He kept watching the flames. "How could someone be this powerful?" he mumbled to himself.

The ghost girl hovered closer. "That’s what I’m trying to figure out. Powerful people won’t come in a barren place like this!"

Another crash followed—closer this time. Concrete split somewhere nearby. The ghost girl darted to the side, her eyes locked on that direction.

"How do we find the edge of the field?" Matthew asked.

Another blast cracked the air. Shards of asphalt sailed past, glowing at the edges.

"The edge of the field is the weakest point. I can feel it. You should, too, this place is built from spiritual energy," she said.

Matthew narrowed his eyes. The way she hovered told him she couldn’t cross that boundary herself. Later, he would ask why. Right now, survival mattered more.

He ducked behind the trunk, shut his eyes, and let the world go quiet. Instead of sound, he searched for pressure—ripples in the still air. Then a faint tug brushed his skin, like static near a live wire. West!

But out of nowhere, the ground fell silent and still, the heavy thrum in the air vanishing all at once.

"That’s bad," the ghost girl whispered. "The fight’s over—they’ll start sweeping for strays. We have to run."

Matthew angled toward the nearest alley, ready to bolt.

"Over there," a calm male voice called.

A tall silhouette emerged between parked cars, moving too smoothly to be human. A thin corona of bluish light rippled along his arms, like heat mirage in reverse.

"Move," the ghost urged in a tight hiss.

Matthew sprinted. Broken glass crackled under heavy boots behind him.

"Found you," the same voice said, now much closer.

Matthew ignored it. He ducked behind a delivery van, but a wave of scorching air skimmed the metal. "What the— "

"Fifteen meters," the ghost breathed beside his ear. "If you hit the seam, the field will toss you out. Hurry!"

A deeper, impatient voice barked across the street. "Seal the area."

Lines of light laced the roadway, snapping shut like a cage.

Matthew pushed harder, each stride sticky in the thickened air. At ten meters the pull grew stronger; at five, it felt like an open doorway just ahead.

Then a sudden blast roared. Heat and debris peppered his back, and he dove forward—

—straight into a solid chest.

A man in a cobalt-blue suit blocked the exit, his neat hair unruffled, his expression amused. "A fledgling," he said, eyes flicking over Matthew. "So fragile."

Matthew tried to sidestep, but the man blurred and reappeared in front of him, fingers clamping around his throat. His grip was iron. Matthew clawed at the wrist while cold numbness crept up his jaw.

"Can’t even crack the shell of this field," the man murmured. "Pathetic."

"Enough," a smooth voice cut through the gloom.

The hand around Matthew’s neck loosened, but the man in blue didn’t release him. Still, Matthew noticed the change. Every muscle in the blue-suited man went rigid.

"I said let you."

"Why should I?" the man in blue asked.

"Will you really kill my people inside my own field?" the newcomer countered.

The man in blue froze.