Tears welled up in Callum's eyes. If Theodore still remembered what happened all those years ago, it was the same for him. For thirteen years, the image of his eldest son's death had haunted his mind daily. That helplessness was the driving force behind his breakthrough to the Innate Realm. Theodore's words tugged at his heartstrings. He knew that his grandson wasn't just doing this for himself—he was doing it for him as well. "Ahh!" A bloodcurdling scream broke the silence.Theodore severed all five fingers of Harold's hand swiftly. In the very next instant, his sword came down again, cutting off Harold's sword-wielding arm. "Theodore, you little brute! How dare you harm my son? I swear the Yardleys will suffer a fate worse than death!" Richard's eyes burned red as he watched his son's agonizing state. His shock was just as great as his fury. He had never imagined that the Boltons would end in defeat today at the cost of his son who was an Innate Grandmaster.In his ey
After Richard and his men had retreated, silence engulfed the Yardleys. Everyone believed that the family would be annihilated today, yet the tides had turned. "Th-they actually left," Austin broke the silence. "Theodore defeated an Innate Grandmaster. We aren't dreaming, right? The Boltons really left!" The crowd snapped back to their senses and looked at Theodore with admiration, as if he were a deity. In their eyes, Innate Realm cultivators were an existence akin to gods. Yet Theodore had slain one when he was still in the Postnatal Realm. On top of that, the Boltons' two remaining Innate Grandmasters were completely intimidated and forced to leave. Richard even abandoned his son's corpse. If word of this got out, no one would believe it. However, one man's joy was another man's sorrow. When Harold was killed by Theodore, Carson, and the other elders, as well as their traitorous family members, all turned deathly pale.Carson wet himself and collapsed to the groun
Callum continued helplessly, "We still lack a solid foundation. We've been growing for the past thirteen years, but so have our enemies." "Grandpa, you will surely get better," Liliana said and held onto his arm while getting teary."Silly child." Callum stroked her hair gently before suddenly turning serious. "What I'm about to say next is very important. Listen carefully—" Theodore cut him off before he could finish, "Grandpa, stop saying such nonsense. I'll make sure you live a long life as long as I'm here." Anthony was momentarily stunned. Aside from Liliana, no one in the entire family had ever dared to interrupt Callum's speech. "I know you want the best for me, Theodore, but I know my body. Some things just can't be forced." Callum sighed. "No, I'm not giving up," Theodore said firmly. At first, Callum thought his grandson was simply trying to comfort him; he didn't expect Theodore to be so adamant. This surprised him greatly, even making him a little a
Theodore told them that aside from serving as a furnace in his thirteen years with the Ashcrofts, he consumed various pills daily and even learned some pill refinement techniques. It wasn't exactly a lie. While he was Vivienne's furnace, he wasn't only given rare medicinal herbs—he also took certain pills that enhanced his physique. However, the purpose of enhancing his physique was merely to cultivate Solarborn energy for Vivienne's use. Since there was a trace of hope, Callum had no choice but to listen to Theodore. He had Liliana take Theodore to the family's secret vault so that he could pick out the necessary materials himself. Once the siblings left, Callum called Anthony to his side and said, "Go and get ready. If the noble families join forces and come after us, take Theodore and Liliana and leave immediately." "Why, Dad? Didn't Theodore say he knows pill refinement?" Anthony was puzzled."Pill refinement?" Callum chuckled and shook his head. "That boy is stubbo
An hour later, Theodore arrived at Philodorah Market with Liliana. "I heard that the Ashcrofts' live-in son-in-law has returned to the Yardleys. They say he’s mastered the Seraphic Swordplay and has even killed Sebastian." "Haha, not just Sebastian. The Boltons sent three Innate Grandmasters to take revenge, but they didn’t expect the Yardleys to be hiding their own Innate Grandmaster." "That Innate Grandmaster is none other than the Yardleys' patriarch. But what really terrified the Boltons was that Ashcrofts' live-in son-in-law. He actually killed an Innate Grandmaster while he was still in the Postnatal Realm!" "No way! How could a Postnatal Realm cultivator kill an Innate Grandmaster? Who did he kill?" "The one who died was the Boltons' eldest son, Harold. He was an Innate Grandmaster. Rumor has it that the live-in son-in-law has mastered the Seraphic Swordplay. Looks like the Ashcrofts have been secretly training him all these years!" In just four hours, news of
The voice belonged to a woman dressed in combat attire with a sword hanging at her waist. Her long hair was tied into a ponytail, giving her a heroic presence.Theodore glanced at her. She looked quite beautiful from the side. However, the woman didn't spare him a look. She crouched down and reached for the rare herb he had set his eyes on. Unfortunately, she wasn't as fast as Theodore. Just as she was about to grab the immortal herb, Theodore snatched it. Having grasped nothing but air, the woman finally turned to look at Theodore angrily. "Are you deaf? I said I want that herb!" She snapped. "Haven't you heard of 'first come, first served'? I saw it first and I was the first to ask. If you want it, you'll have to ask me first," Theodore said. Liliana then tugged at his sleeve, subtly signaling him to take note of the black-clad guards standing behind the woman. All of them had swords hanging at their waists with their hands resting on the hilts. Judging by their presen
"Who says I can't afford it?" The woman asked coldly before saying to the old man, "Sir, I didn't bring that much money with me, but if you can trust me, I can write you an IOU, and you can…"Before she could finish speaking, Theodore cut her off. "Sir, I didn't bring that much money either, but you can follow me to the Yardleys’ estate right now to collect one thousand pieces of gold from the accounts office."The old man was caught in a dilemma, but hearing the murmurs around him and Theodore's assurance, he quickly made up his mind. "I'm sorry, young lady, but I'm just a humble herb gatherer, and Mr. Yardley was the one who asked for this herb first, so…"The woman's expression changed, and she sent a withering glare at Theodore before leaving."Wait!" Theodore suddenly called out.The woman stopped in her tracks, glanced at him, and asked, "What do you want?"Theodore walked over to her with the herb in his hand and asked, "Don't you want it? Here, take it.""Huh?!" The woma
Then, they returned home.Suddenly, Liliana remembered something and asked, "Theodore, what about grandpa? You already gave the herb away!""I have my ways," Theodore smiled, "You go and check on grandpa; leave the rest to me."Once Lilian had left, Theodore immediately took the old herb gatherer to the accounts room and handed him a thousand pieces of gold.The old man had never seen so much money in his life. He kept bowing in gratitude. Theodore asked, "I have something to ask.""Yes, of course. If I know the answer, I'll surely tell you," The old man replied."Where did you find that herb?" Theodore asked.In his opinion, that immortal herb was precious, but its value paled in comparison to the place that could produce it in the first place. The herb itself contained spiritual energy, so the place where it grew definitely wasn't ordinary. That's why Theodore was willing to give it away so easily.The old man hesitated."I understand that this is your livelihood, but with
Once he found out that his grandfather was in seclusion, Theodore immediately rushed to the seclusion chamber. He hadn't even pushed the door open before he heard a violent coughing fit coming from within.Theodore immediately entered the room, and Callum realized what was going on with a bitter smile. "You and Aaron truly are cut from the same cloth…""Well, dad inherited it from you, didn't he?" Theodore asked.Callum couldn't find a word to retaliate. Theodore walked towards him, and said, "Liliana, I have something to talk about with grandpa. Can you come back later?"The young girl immediately left the seclusion chamber and closed the door.Seeing the blood at the corner of Callum's mouth, Theodore took out a bottle of pills and poured out one for him. "Take this, grandpa.""What's this?"Callum hadn't seen any pills made by immortals before, but as an Innate Grandmaster, he could instinctively feel how special it was."Just take it," Theodore said seriously.Without any
However, the battle only lasted a short while before the Stormback Bear began to tire. It turned to flee, but Theodore was not about to let it go. Seizing the opportunity, he thrust his sword forward, piercing it through the exotic beast's chest.Roar!With a final anguished cry, the Stormback Bear collapsed to the ground, struggling briefly before it breathed its last.Theodore breathed a long sigh of relief, and as he was about to withdraw his sword from the bear's chest, something strange happened. The blade started to glow red, and the Stormback Bear's body began to wither and shrivel up at a visible pace. Within moments, there was nothing left but skin and bones.It was as if it had been dead for years.Theodore carefully examined the black sword, watching as it returned to its original state, and when he finally drew it out of the beast's corpse, not a drop of blood seeped out.The Stormback Bear's body was completely dry."What's going on?!"Theodore gripped his black sw
Theodore made his way to the spiritual room which housed many different herbs and plants used for pill refinement. After some thought, he plucked out a few before heading to the other rooms.After seeing that the scripture room and treasure room were empty, he walked out disappointedly and returned to the alchemy room.Watching the fire crackle in the furnace, Theodore sent the herbs that he plucked earlier into the furnace. Using his internal energy, he started to control the flames in the furnace, refining the ingredients within.An hour later, Theodore stopped, returning the strength of the flames to how it once was, before leaving the alchemy room.Then, he returned to the spiritual room, took out a bottle of Energy Cultivating Pills, and swallowed one.The pill melted as soon as it went into his mouth, and a surge of immense medicinal energy flooded his body. Theodore immediately guided the energy through his meridians using his internal energy.After two small circulations,
Then, he tried to recall the runes he had just seen earlier. According to his ancestor's memories, even the person who created the array would have to go through the correct path in order to enter the place hidden by the array."Those runes are placed in the positions of stars, so a normal approach will only lead to being trapped!" Theodore closed his eyes and pondered, while silently reciting, "Dubhe is heaven, vast and grand, Merak is the earth on which we stand. Phecda is man, Megrez is time, and Alioth sings a song, divine. Mizar is law, firm and true, and Alkaid the star, lighting paths anew…"As he chanted, he opened his eyes and started walking according to the positions of the stars.Unfortunately, he failed the first time, but he memorized his path and continued trying. Each time, he took exactly seven steps, each in a different direction.Finally, on his tenth attempt, the fog in front of him split open to reveal a path, and Theodore stepped forward immediately, finding h
Theodore breathed out a long breath and stepped into the valley.Gripping the black sword tightly, he remained vigilant of his surroundings. His exit was blocked by the Stormback Bear, and if he couldn't find the herb to use in pill refinement, he'd either starve to death in the valley or become fodder for the beast waiting for him outside.His ancestor was a Lord, after all, so if he found out that his descendant had died in such a miserable way, he would probably be so angry that he would come back from the dead."If spiritual herbs can grow here, there is definitely spiritual energy!"The old man didn't know that he actually picked a spiritual herb even though its spiritual essence was not particularly rich.As Theodore stepped into the valley, he became increasingly aware of how eerie it was. The valley was dark and damp, with its top shaped like the mouth of a bottle, leaving the sides mostly in the shadow. Only in the central area did the vegetation grow abundantly.The val
Just as Theodore was about to retreat the way he came from, the dark figure's head suddenly twisted in his direction; a pair of blood-red eyes were staring at him under the moonlight.Roar!With a loud roar that shook the ravine, the dark figure immediately pounced toward Theodore, splashing the water in the ravine as it did.What was it, if not the Stormback Bear?Theodore was nervous. While it was true that he had decades worth of memories from his ancestor, it was the first time he'd actually met an exotic beast like this in the flesh. It felt completely different.Humans could still be bargained with and tricked, but beasts would neither listen to reason nor fall for clever tricks.Swoosh!Theodore unsheathed the black sword that hung on his belt, not choosing to retreat now that the bear was already pouncing toward him.The Stormback Bear pounced in front of him and stood up on its hindlegs, practically a giant in comparison to Theodore, who looked like a single stalk of b
Philodorah was surrounded by mountains, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.The largest of these mountains was the Azure Dragon Peak. According to the legends, this place was once overrun with demonic beasts, feasting on the flesh and blood of humans. Later on, the human race managed to rise up, and various immortal sects worked together to eradicate the demonic beasts on that mountain for good.However, deep in the recesses of Azure Dragon Peak, many exotic beasts with the bloodline of those demonic creatures still roamed, possessing bodies far stronger than ordinary animals.And so, no ordinary person dared venture into its depths.With the map obtained from the herb gatherer, Theodore made his way to Azure Dragon Peak, traversing a small path that led deep into the mountains.Every herb gatherer had their own secret route, which was also their livelihood. If Theodore hadn't offered a thousand pieces of gold to the old man, he would have never divulged it.Followi
After the chief steward finished speaking, he promptly left the Clayton family's grand hall without saying another word. It wasn't until he disappeared that the people inside snapped back to their senses, completely bewildered."What's going on?" Joseph looked at Richard."Ashcroft, that scheming old coot! He planned this all along!" Richard cursed angrily. "He's been secretly cultivating Theodore so that the agreement from thirteen years ago would be overturned! Now, we're bound to fight the Yardleys to the death whereas the Ashcrofts reap all the benefits!"Joseph immediately understood the situation, and he gritted his teeth angrily. "The Ashcrofts are far too greedy… What do we do now?""The only solution for us now is to destroy the Yardleys and show the Ashcrofts where we stand on this matter. We've all seen how strong the Seraphic Swordplay is, so if we can get our hands on it, we might be able to hold up against the Ashcrofts if we work together," Richard said, "Although Vi
Then, they returned home.Suddenly, Liliana remembered something and asked, "Theodore, what about grandpa? You already gave the herb away!""I have my ways," Theodore smiled, "You go and check on grandpa; leave the rest to me."Once Lilian had left, Theodore immediately took the old herb gatherer to the accounts room and handed him a thousand pieces of gold.The old man had never seen so much money in his life. He kept bowing in gratitude. Theodore asked, "I have something to ask.""Yes, of course. If I know the answer, I'll surely tell you," The old man replied."Where did you find that herb?" Theodore asked.In his opinion, that immortal herb was precious, but its value paled in comparison to the place that could produce it in the first place. The herb itself contained spiritual energy, so the place where it grew definitely wasn't ordinary. That's why Theodore was willing to give it away so easily.The old man hesitated."I understand that this is your livelihood, but with