Mateo lay on the hospital bed at Riverville Hospital. He glared at his arm, which was now cast in plaster.The doctors had told him that the bones in his hand had been shattered.In other words, one of his hands was disabled."Goddamnit! Fuck!" Mateo howled.A while later, Penelope walked in. She took off her sunglasses and stared coldly at Mateo. "Where is the wild truffle?" she demanded.Mateo sighed before replying, "I didn't manage to get it. The Blacksmith, a martial arts Grandmaster, was killed by Sebastian as well.""He killed a Grandmaster?" Penelope asked in disbelief. "So you're saying that Sebastian shouldn't be underestimated?"Mateo frowned but nodded. "Yeah.""Alright, I understand. I'll handle the rest. Get well soon, Mr. Cortez. I'll send for a genius doctor to cure your injury soon," Penelope said. She put on her sunglasses and left.Mateo waited until she was well out of earshot before he howled in anger again.He couldn't stand it!It was the first time
She never would've expected that she would bump into Sebastian and Rosalie in Riverville.They also looked close, like they were a lovesick couple. Frankly, it made Whitney feel sick.Sebastian frowned when he saw Whitney. He tried to pull his hand away from Rosalie, but she held on tightly to his. As such, he had no other option but to allow her to cling to him.However, to Whitney, it seemed as if Sebastian and Rosalie were closer than ever.She couldn't hold her tongue anymore and asked with a frown, "Why are you here? When did you arrive?""We're here for fun and we arrived yesterday afternoon," Sebastian answered naturally.Whitney's eyes flashed at that.They arrived last afternoon? That meant that he was with Rosalie last night. They must've shared a room too!At that thought, Whitney's expression soured even further, and she huffed. Her gaze became one of utter distaste as she glared at Sebastian.Sebastian hadn't even known Rosalie for that long, yet they were already
Sebastian's expression was calm as he replied, "Yes.""Cocky bastard! Take him away!" the leader, Charlie Sand, ordered coldly.Three of his men immediately stalked toward Sebastian, their gazes menacing. "What do you think you're doing?" Rosalie demanded."Oh? What a beauty! I guess I'm in luck today!" Charlie leered at the sight of her. "Baby, sit quietly if you don't want any trouble. I'll play with you in a while," he purred with a salacious smile.He then motioned to his men and growled, "Get rid of this asshole. Make sure no one disturbs my meal with this beautiful lady.""Yes, sir!" his men shouted and rushed at Sebastian.However, before they could do anything, Whitney rose to her feet and yelled, "What are you doing? Are you really going to attack someone in broad daylight?" Charlie's expression twisted at her words. He turned to yell angrily, "Motherfucker! Do you want to die?"However, when he saw how beautiful Whitney was, his angry expression was immediately r
As he spoke, he dragged Whitney toward the door.Whitney kicked and flailed as he screeched, "Let me go! Help! Help!"Fergus was still dizzy from getting hit. He dared not get up even after hearing Whitney's desolate wails. All he could do was pretend that he had been hit so hard that he couldn't move anymore.Sebastian frowned. He grabbed a fork from the table and flung it right at Charlie.With a whoosh, the fork flew at the speed of light and impaled Charlie's arm. Blood spurted out from his wound, and Charlie clutched at his injured arm with a howl.Whitney took this opportunity to run away from Charlie. She stood in a corner as she shivered.Charlie whipped his head around and locked eyes with Sebastian. "You bastard!" he roared.He turned to his men and yelled, "Kill him!"His men all rushed toward Sebastian. Being well-trained warriors, they were not to be underestimated.However, against Sebastian, they were nothing more than ants.Sebastian watched cooly as the men c
Charlie coughed, blood dripping down his chin. He glared at Sebastian."You've got balls, kid! The Riverville Warrior League will never let this slide!" he threatened.Meanwhile, Fergus had finally gotten to his feet. The blood was drained from his face when he heard these men were from the Riverville Warrior League.He dashed to Whitney's side as he exclaimed anxiously, "Winnie! Let's go! These men are from the Riverville Warrior League! We can't afford to offend them!""The Riverville Warrior League?" Whitney asked in confusion.Fergus nodded. "They are one of the largest organizations of martial artists in Riverville. All the members are strong and can't be underestimated." "That idiot, Sebastian, is a dead man walking now that he has beaten up people from the Riverville Warrior League! Let's just go…" Fergus explained as he dragged Whitney away.However, Whitney dug her heels in and refused to move."What is it?" Fergus asked worriedly."I can't do this. I can't just leav
Whitney quickly left the restaurant with Fergus.Sebastian frowned when he noticed them leaving, but he let out a sigh of relief as well. It was for the best. There was less pressure for him now that they were gone.Charlie was furious as he shouted again, "Little shit! You'll die a painful death for messing with the Riverville Warrior League!"Sebastian stomped on Charlie's chest once again, making him wail."What a load of bullshit. Take me to your leader if you don't want to die," Sebastian said coldly."Fine!" Charlie snapped. His knees wobbled as he got to his feet and left the restaurant with Sebastian.Just as Sebastian was about to get into the car, Rosalie rushed over worriedly, "Sebastian, are you really going with them?""We have to settle this eventually," Sebastian explained. "Stay here. I'll be back soon."With that, Sebastian got into the car with Charlie.Rosalie remained rooted to the spot. However, her anxiety had reached its peak. She fished for her phon
Sebastian showed no signs of fear as he replied calmly, "That's me."Marco sneered coldly and said, "Huh, you've got guts to come here alone. Diego, break his legs. He can speak on his knees.""Yes, Mr. Rivera."Diego, a tanned, lean man standing next to Marco, immediately stepped forward. He gave Sebastian a chilling glare and said, "Get on your knees now and I'll get it over with quickly."Sebastian stood still with his head held high. With a small smile, he asked, "Is this how the Riverville Warrior League treats its guests?""What do you mean?" Diego frowned, offended. Sebastian shook his head and sneered, "Well, I thought the Riverville Warrior League was a law-abiding organization. I thought you guys would be reasonable."However, I see it now. You guys are just a bunch of thugs acting up because you know a pinch of martial arts. You're just a shady organization.""Hey, you brat! How dare you smear our name? You're asking for it!"Riled up, Diego pounced on Sebastian li
Sebastian smirked at Diego's words. He made a sudden move, striking at Diego's chest.Sebastian was lightning fast. Diego was struck before he could realize. Then, he felt the force of the attack rushing within his body.He spat out blood and fell backward, crushing the table and chairs on the side. Collapsing to the ground, he clutched his chest as he continued to spit blood."W-Who are you, really?" Diego was shell-shocked, staring at Sebastian with his face flushed. The man was way more powerful than he expected.Sebastian smiled and said, "I'm Sebastian Ballard from Steinberg."Marco's expression as he sat on his throne immediately darkened. He glanced at Diego, who was limp on the floor, and ordered coldly, "Sergio, get him!""Yes, Mr. Rivera!"Sergio, another lean man dressed in black, glanced at Sebastian arrogantly. He declared coldly, "You should give up and surrender. Otherwise, you've got a horrific death coming.""Oh, really? Try me." Sebastian chuckled.Sergio huf
From how pale Sebastian was, Bryson deduced that he must be very sick or extremely weak. He even felt that fighting against Sebastian would be an insult.Although he wasn't the top fighter in the Lynch family, he was still one of the best ones. There was no honor in winning against a sick person."I'm going to give you the same words," Sebastian said, smiling widely."Mr. Lynch, he's actually very powerful. I don't think that Bryson will be a match for him. Why don't you let them attack together?"Jayden had seen Sebastian fight before. Although he could see that Sebastian looked unwell, he was still an expert. It would be better to be more wary. Colton rolled his eyes at Jayden. He knew Bryson's skill level. How could an expert who was at the eighth level of the Energy Refining Technique lose against a sick man?Sebastian looked so frail that he was sure to be knocked out as soon as they started fighting. Plus, the number of people in the whole of Acorn City who could last more
Colton nodded slightly and patted Cliff on the shoulder. He turned and said to Sebastian, "You heard him. He's one of our men. Therefore, you can't take that with you, but you won't make too much of a loss. Here's a check for 500 thousand dollars. Hand that emerald buckle over!"Colton was clearly not going to give Sebastian a choice in the matter. He was used to doing whatever he pleased by relying on his family's influence. Besides, they were also on very good terms with the local Martial Arts Court. He couldn't use his family's connections for the grudge between Jayden and Sebastian, but he would have ample reason to use the Lynches' influence for a priceless emerald buckle.There always had to be a legitimate reason. Clearly, Colton was smarter than Jayden. "I'm not interested in your check, and I'm not going to give it to you either!" Sebastian answered coldly without even glancing at the check.Colton looked thoughtfully at Sebastian and clasped his hands behind his back.
Sebastian had just walked out of the antiques street and had held out his hand to flag down a cab when a middle-aged man in black training clothes walked over to him. The man held out a hand to block Sebastian and Unus' path."Stop!" Sebastian glanced at the middle-aged man and asked, "And what can I do for you?""Mr. Lynch wants to see you. Come with me!" the middle-aged man said icily."Mr. Lynch? Who the hell is that?" Sebastian asked sardonically, sneering. "It's Colton Lynch, and you better remember it!"Sebastian heard a clear, crisp voice. Two young men walked over to him, one walking slightly in front of the other.There was a young man in a branded suit next to the first one. Sebastian couldn't help laughing out loud when he saw the young man next to Colton. It was Jayden, his old friend from Sartvale.Sebastian had never expected to meet Jayden Acorn City. Now that he thought about it, Jayden still owed him a life. If Sebastian hadn't shown mercy to him, the flowers
The old man nodded slightly and said, "That's right. My name is Solomon Jackman. If you think things through, you can come to Townsend Clinic. We can discuss the price!"Solomon bowed to Sebastian before squeezing out of the crowd. Cliff's eyes reddened as he watched Solomon leave. Solomon was a prominent figure in Acorn City. Not only did he have exceptional medical skills, he was also skilled in martial arts. However, neither of those were Solomon's true specialty. What he was most skilled at was antique appraisal! Any antique that Solomon appraised was sure to be a treasure among treasures.Noticing Sebastian and Unus turning to walk away, Cliff immediately became agitated. "Stop!" he shouted.Sebastian turned to glance at him and said, "A deal's a deal. No returns or refunds. You said that yourself. It's the rule of the antique industry!"Cliff ignored all of that. He came out from behind his stall and grabbed Sebastian's sleeve. "I'm not going to sell that emerald pendan
"I don't think that you've seen the original form of this emerald pendant, either," Sebastian said, smiling coldly at Cliff. Cliff looked disdainfully at him. He felt that Sebastian was just unhappy about being tricked and was trying to provoke him. "Stop putting on that mysterious act. Why wouldn't I know about something that belongs to me?" Cliff demanded with a scoff. "You might really not know," Sebastian replied. He closed his palm slightly and exerted a slight force. The layer of stone on top of the emerald pendant peeled off. While everyone looked on, dumbstruck, Sebastian opened his palm once more. The crowd gasped.There were two clouds of energy on the emerald pendant, chasing each other like a pair of fish. One was black, while the other was red. The emerald pendant had been square-shaped originally, but it had now become a round emerald buckle. In the middle of it, a pale yellow energy was rising slowly. Everyone cried out in shock. It was clearly a rare trea
Some people just didn't know what was good for them. Even if Cliff had wanted to laugh, he should have waited for Sebastian to leave before doing so. How could he call a buyer a fool while they were still there?"It may be a little crude, my young friend, but it doesn't change the fact that you were hoodwinked!" Cliff said, guffawing gleefully.Since Sebastian had already paid, he could no longer take it back. After all, it was a rule never to accept returns or refunds. When Cliff thought of how he had charged Sebastian more than ten thousand for something that had only cost him about 300 to 400 dollars, he became even more smug. "You'll just have to bear with it, my young friend. Not regretting your purchase is the rule of the antique industry. Even if you've now found out that you were deceived, you can't get your money back!""That's right. The work on the emerald pendant that you're holding is so shoddy that it was clearly just done last week. It's a new item!" "Watch out
Sebastian laughed at the reluctant expression on the stall owner's face. He weighed the emerald pendant in his hand and asked, "Mister, are you sure that this emerald pendant is worth 210 thousand?"With that, he tossed it onto the counter and turned to leave."Huh?"The stall owner immediately ran around to the front of the stall when he saw that Sebastian was about to leave. He grabbed him and said, "Don't be in such a rush to leave, my young friend. Let's negotiate. If you're sincere about buying it, I'll sell it to you at 150 thousand, and I'll be making a loss. Let this be the start of a friendship between us!"Sebastian smiled slightly and said, "Mister, even a layman can tell that this emerald pendant is a fake. I just like the patterns on it because it's quite trendy. That's why I asked about it on a whim."Describing the patterns on the antique as trendy only served to show how obvious it was that it was a fake.The stall owner turned beet red, then white. He cursed hi
However, the more famous something was, the more imitations there would be. Antiques were no exception. In Boren, streets filled with antique stores were abundant. From Klane City to the smallest town, they were omnipresent.There were stores and stalls of various kinds that had everything, but all of them had one thing in common. All the antiques and trinkets that they sold were a mixed bag of authentic and fake. Buyers had to rely on their own judgment. There was also an unspoken rule there. Once a deal was made, no returns were allowed. If a buyer had paid for an item before realizing that something was wrong or recognizing that it was a fake, they would have no choice but to accept it. There was a saying about how the golden age of antiques was during times of chaos. Although they were now in times of peace, many members of the upper class were still very interested in them. Both experts and laymen liked to have a few collector's items in their homes. There were plenty of we
"Watch him closely! If you lose him, I'll have your head!" Anton said before hanging up. A malicious grin spread across his face.As the son of the head director of Boren Martial Arts Court, many were eager to curry favor with him. If it came to dealing with Sebastian, there were plenty of people willing to do the dirty work for him. Acorn City was the second largest city in Boren after Klane City, and Anton knew just who to call. About two weeks ago, the Lynch family of Acorn City had sent gifts to him. However, as the Lynches were a third-rate elite martial arts family, Anton had dismissed them. That was why, despite searching frantically, he couldn't find Colton Lynch's name card."Damn it! Where did that asshole's name card get to?"It was the first time Anton had been so anxious about finding the name card of an heir from a third-rate family. After rummaging around for a while, Anton had a sudden flash of inspiration. It was in the trash can!He suddenly remembered that