Ethan did not step out of the car immediately after parking, instead remaining seated as the screen of his phone stayed lit with the last message he had sent.
There was no reply from the other side, and that silence did not feel like an ending but more like a pause before the next move.
He already understood that the previous exchange had only been a test, meant to measure both his reaction speed and his limits.
Now, it was his turn.
Without waiting any longer, Ethan picked up his phone and made a call, asking for the full list of channels that had just been pulled.
His tone remained calm, and although the person on the other end hesitated for a moment, the request was fulfilled quickly.
Within a minute, the list appeared on his screen.
Ethan glanced through it without lingering, because the channels themselves were not the real focus.
What mattered was who controlled them.
At that moment, the system interface appeared again, unfolding silently without the usual notification sound.
"Target identification complete."
"Linked nodes: channel controllers."
"Available action: reverse influence."
Ethan's gaze paused briefly on those words.
He did not question the mechanics behind it, because by now he no longer needed to.
"Expand," he said quietly.
The interface shifted, revealing a clearer path that did not revolve around replacing or bypassing but instead focused on directly entering the control chain itself.
A faint smile appeared on Ethan's face as he immediately made another call.
"Forget restoring those channels," he said.
"Acquire them."
The person on the other end was clearly surprised.
"All of them?"
"Any that can be taken, take them," Ethan replied without hesitation.
The tone on the other side changed instantly.
"Understood."
After the call ended, Ethan leaned back slightly, showing no urgency as he waited.
This kind of move would not produce immediate results, but once it started, it would not stop easily.
A few minutes later, the first message came in.
"One channel is already negotiating."
Another followed.
"They're open to equity discussion."
Then a third.
"Others are reviewing offers."
The momentum had shifted.
This was no longer suppression but hesitation on the other side.
Ethan read the updates and continued issuing instructions, increasing the offer and prioritizing control rather than partial cooperation.
Meanwhile, in another part of the city, the atmosphere inside Victor Zhou's office had begun to tighten.
His assistant reported that several channels were being approached by a new source of capital, and the pricing was far above normal levels.
When the name Ethan Cole was mentioned, the room fell silent.
Victor did not react immediately, instead watching the screen as he reassessed the situation.
From resisting pressure to pushing back, and now directly targeting the structure behind it, this was no longer defense.
It was a shift in the rules.
A faint smile appeared on his face, though it lacked the ease from before.
"Bold," he said quietly before making his own call.
"Lock every partner channel."
"Anyone who moves gets cut off."
Back on Ethan's side, new updates arrived almost immediately, indicating that several channels had refused due to existing pressure.
He showed no surprise, because this was expected once the opponent stopped testing and started acting seriously.
At that moment, the system refreshed again.
"Escalation detected."
"Strategy updating…"
A new directive appeared shortly after.
"Recommendation: upgrade control level and replace cooperation chain directly."
Ethan understood the difference instantly.
This was no longer about acquisition but replacement.
Without hesitation, he made another call.
"Prepare new channels."
"Don't wait for their response."
"Replace them."
There was a brief silence before the answer came.
"Understood."
Ethan ended the call and looked ahead as the rain continued to fall steadily outside.