Gideon shot to his feet furiously as he roared, "Why aren't you trying to outbid me?"Vincent sighed loudly. "It's too expensive. I can't outbid you. I'm simply not as rich as you are. He then said gleefully, "Congratulations on buying the beads for 390 million dollars."As he spoke, he couldn't help the smug grin that was spreading across his face.Gideon suddenly understood what was happening. His deception had been exposed!Then, he turned to the auctioneer and yelled desperately, "No! My bid doesn't count! Vincent can have it for 385 million dollars!"Gideon was about to rip out all of his hair from frustration.390 million dollars… for a fake artifact? He couldn't believe that he had to pay for a fake!As he screeched, he turned to Vincent and growled, "Hindon! Bid 400 million dollars on the bid now! I'll let you have it! Do you know how good these beads are?"Gideon was panicking to the point where he was losing his mind.The other attendees watched him suspiciously.Wh
"Who would've thought that the Tri-Sage Master was a fraud?" Vincent sighed.And to think that he used to worship him as well.The auctioneer finalized the bid, and the beads were officially Gideon's.Sebastian chuckled as he whispered, "Do you want to have some more fun?""What do you mean?" Vincent asked suspiciously."Obviously, we're going to expose their lies."Vincent paused and asked anxiously, "Are you sure you can do it, Dr. Ballard? After all, the Tri-Sage Master is not someone you can afford to offend.""Trust me," Sebastian said confidently.After that, he yelled loudly, "How does it feel to buy a fake artifact for 390 million dollars, Mr. Dankworth."At that, the hall erupted into a cacophony of whispers. Everyone was staring wide-eyed at Sebastian.Rosalie also turned to stare at him worriedly. "This idiot! How could he expose them like that? Does he want to die?" she mumbled anxiously.Phillips frowned but chuckled as he studied Sebastian.Meanwhile, Gideon f
The attendees in the auction hall began to disperse. Gideon was looking for the Tri-Sage Master to redeem his 195 million dollars, but the old man was already gone.Sebastian and Vincent, on the other hand, were preparing to leave. Coincidentally, Sebastian bumped into Rosalie at the exit."Ms. Griffin," Sebastian greeted.Rosalie seemed to walk faster as she ignored Sebastian.Phillips, who was by her side, chuckled. "Aren't you going to talk to him?""We have nothing to talk about! He's a playboy!" Rosalie said angrily as she urged Phillips to leave.Phillips was an experienced observer. He pretended to have a stomachache and said, "Oh, my stomach hurts. I need to use the restroom. Wait for me." Ignoring Rosalie's puzzled expression, he turned and left. As he walked away, he nodded slightly at the approaching Sebastian and whispered, "Make sure to console her."Sebastian, though unfamiliar with Phillips, smiled back and replied, "Thank you." He then approached Rosalie an
"Why wouldn't it look good?" Rosalie rolled her eyes and whispered into Sebastian's ears. "Then, should I drop by your store later? I'm yours tonight."Those words could really make any man go feral. Sebastian was stunned. Then, he let out a breath. He knew he had to make a choice between Rosalie and Whitney."We'll talk about it later." Sebastian didn't promise or reject her.Afterward, they left the club together. It was already late at night. Suddenly, Sebastian noticed a murderous intent, and he frowned. "Is it that Tri-Sage Master?" Sebastian thought to himself with a chuckle.He looked at Rosalie and said, "Rosalie, head back first. I have something to take care of.""What is it? Do you want me to come with you?" Rosalie asked. She didn't want to part from him."It's a private matter.""Alright then, come back soon. I'll be waiting for you at the store," Rosalie replied. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before leaving.Watching Rosalie walk away, Sebastian let
Sebastian chuckled coldly. "Is that so? Well, let's see who comes out on top tonight!""How arrogant!" The Tri-Sage Master snorted, his face twisted with sinister intent. With a wave of his hand and a muttered incantation, he bellowed, "Trap!"In an instant, the protective charms affixed to the surrounding trees stirred without wind, emitting an eerie rustle. Strings of red light swiftly connected like threads, binding toward Sebastian! The spectacle, if witnessed by the average person, would surely challenge their beliefs. Sebastian chuckled lightly. "Mere child's play." With that, he propelled himself off the ground and, like a sword, charged straight at the Tri-Sage Master!Seeing this, the Tri-Sage Master smirked confidently. "You fool, you have no idea of the power of this Corpse Trapping Circle. You're just walking into a trap!"As he spoke, the strings of red light transformed into serpentine forms, swiftly darting toward Sebastian's limbs, attempting to bind him! Wi
The Tri-Sage Master was taken aback. He barely had time to react before he was heavily smashed to the ground by the corpse puppets."Shit!" The Tri-Sage Master cursed while trying to get up. But before he could, five more corpse puppets were kicked into the air and came crashing down on top of him, pinning him down firmly.Then, Sebastian approached with his hands in his pockets, looking down at the Tri-Sage Master struggling to breathe under the weight. He said coldly, "How does it feel to be pinned down like that?""You brat! You're asking for death!" the Tri-Sage Master roared, attempting to conjure a spell with his raised hand.Sebastian frowned and flicked his fingers. Then, several silver needles shot out, piercing the Tri-Sage Master's arm.The next moment, the Tri-Sage Master's hands went numb, and he cried out in agony. "What did you do to me?""Nothing much, just keeping you in check for now," Sebastian replied casually.The Tri-Sage Master felt despair creeping in.
They spent the night without saying a word.Sebastian woke up the next day and got up from the couch. Well, he wasn't a womanizer. Also, he knew they should take more time to get to know each other more.Rosalie also woke up and freshened herself up. She didn't even have breakfast before she rushed back home."What's wrong?" Sebastian asked."My mom needs me for something related to the company.""Do you need me to accompany you?"Rosalie smiled and replied, "It's just a minor issue. I'll handle it and come back to be with you.""Alright, take your time." Sebastian sighed helplessly. He couldn't stand Rosalie's teasing anymore. She had been flirting with him since last night. Despite his strong self-control, he was on the verge of giving in.Rosalie grinned mischievously as she turned and ran toward Sebastian to plant a kiss on his cheek. "Bye."Sebastian watched her leave with resignation.Once Rosalie was gone, Sebastian remembered the Sky Devouring Bottle he had acquir
Sebastian frowned slightly and asked, "Paramount Group from Sunway? Are they impressive?"He hadn't been closely following the business world at Steinberg in recent years, let alone large corporations in Sunway like Paramount Group.Penelope explained, "Paramount Group is one of the top five conglomerates in Sunway, with a market value of over 60 billion. It's a publicly traded company primarily focused on the nationwide and overseas sales of pharmaceuticals, health products, and skincare products. "Their CEO, George Cowper, wants to discuss a partnership for the nationwide and overseas distribution of Arctic Snow Mask."Sebastian considered it and asked, "What do you think?"Penelope hesitated slightly before responding, "To be honest, Mr. Ballard, Paramount Group is quite strong. The main advantage is their overseas sales channels, which account for half of the national market. Partnering with them shouldn't pose any major issues.""Alright, prepare for it. I'll accompany you
Every Warrior treated the Martial Arts Association like a god. Therefore, that would make the Caelbane Sect even higher than a god!"Are you both not right in the head? I don't owe your sect leader money, yet he's trying to ask me for something? Even beggars aren't this desperate!" Sebastian looked at Titan and Tatum as if they were idiots. "We're not beggars, damn it! I'm telling you, cut both your hands off right now and let us take them. Otherwise, we'll take your life!" Tatum yelled, pointing at Sebastian."What the hell are you looking at? Are you sick of living?" Titan slapped a passing old lady.The old lady had been planning to buy some house protection charms from Sebastian, but Titan slapped her so hard that she fell to the ground, blood trickling out of the corner of her mouth.Titan didn't even look twice at the old lady. He felt that anyone who even glanced their way twice when the Caelbane Sect was conducting their business deserved to die!Slapping her was already
Wensleydale had been overly enthusiastic with them. Not only had he been extremely hospitable, he had even arranged for several young and beautiful women to cater to them.When one went overboard, it would make everything seem insincere.Titan couldn't for the life of him think of any benefit that he could offer Wensleydale. The old man already had one foot in the grave, and the Caelbane Sect would never accept someone of his age. The more he thought about it, the more Titan felt that what Tatum had said made sense."Forget about him. Let's go to Steinberg ourselves tomorrow morning," he said, his eyes narrowing.Even if Wensleydale had tipped Sebastian off, where could the latter escape to in just a single day?He could run, but he couldn't hide. Sebastian also owned the Arctic Snow Group in Steinberg, which was a massive corporation.Besides, according to reliable news from Ethan, Sebastian's ex-wife was also the CEO of Frostwave Corporation. He couldn't possibly pack up all
Sebastian laughed and said nothing. He rubbed the brand new copper coin in his pocket with one hand.Only Lyanna would be capable of doing something like that. The illusion had been cast by her.Without her help, Sebastian would probably be in huge trouble. No matter whether or not he was in the right, there should have been severe consequences for slaughtering more than 100 elite members of the Martial Arts Association.Lyanna had even made the souls of those people her food. It was terrifyingly cruel. "Everything's alright now, everyone. It seems that Mr. Flumen repented after realizing how terrible his crimes were and killed himself," Sebastian said politely, smiling as if nothing had happened."Maybe your character and charisma convinced them, Mr. Ballard." Hans didn't know what to say.Zane swallowed and laughed as he said to Sebastian, "Mr. Ballard, you really… you really are… amazing.""Since you're all here, don't be in such a rush to leave. I'll treat you all to a meal
However, Wensleydale didn't care. He would have killed his own son if it meant that he could live!Without another word, he hacked off Humphrey's arm. Before Humphrey could scream, Wensleydale stabbed him in the heart. He gripped the handle of the knife and twisted it grimly. Humphrey stared at Wensleydale, his eyes bulging, right until the moment he died. He had died a violent death. Wensleydale looked at the corpses scattered all over the ground. Like the man with the dragon-topped cane, they all decayed rapidly and were blown off into the air by a slight breeze, leaving no trace behind. Wensleydale turned slowly and gazed mournfully at Sebastian. He looked into Sebastian's ice-cold gaze and finally realized that the latter wasn't going to forgive him, even though he had hacked off his own arm and killed his apprentice. Instead of dying in great pain like the others, he might as well give himself a quick end! Tears streamed down Wensleydale's face as he held the knife to
"Mr. Ballard! I was wrong! Please, have mercy on me…""Mr. Ballard, we'll never do it again. I don't want to die.""Mr. Ballard, I have an 80-year-old mother at home. Please have mercy!" There was a series of thumps as more than 100 people fell to their knees. They were genuinely afraid. What Lyanna had said had made their last defenses crumble completely. The moment they knelt, the corpse of the man with the dragon-topped cane began to decay rapidly right in front of their eyes. In the end, only pale white bones remained. A slight breeze swept over them from out of nowhere. With a gentle gust, the skeleton disappeared. It was as if the man with the dragon-topped cane had never existed."Mr. Ballard, you mustn't show any compassion at all to these hypocrites," Rose said. She slowly pulled out her short sword and tossed her sheath away. Sebastian closed his eyes and nodded slightly. There was a series of squelching noises as over a dozen heads fell to the ground. More dark
Wensleydale's expression changed at once. He had made the call to the police because he had been planning on maiming or even killing Sebastian in front of everyone in the Martial Arts Association.However, things had turned out very differently from what he had expected. He had dug a huge hole for himself and had jumped in without a thought. "Mr. Ballard, you and I are both martial arts practitioners, and we prize the idea of righteousness," he began. "Why don't you kill me and let them go?"Wensleydale wasn't really that generous. He was a shrewd man who always did what benefited him more. Even his apprentice, Humphrey, was shocked to hear him say something so selfless. Had he really chosen to do good in the face of imminent death? However, Sebastian saw through his little trick immediately. Wensleydale hadn't escaped because he was too afraid to do so. Whoever ran out of the black fog would become a bloody puddle of water. If Sebastian agreed to let them go, he would remo
Sebastian pointed at the hundreds of Martial Arts Association members gathered at the door and said, "Since you all dared to come here and accuse me, then you must be prepared to die here! I am pleased to inform all of you that you have succeeded in provoking me to anger!" The crowd was immediately incensed. "You wouldn't dare!""There are so many of us! Even Larys wouldn't dare to do anything to us, let alone you!" "Sebastian, who do you think you are? We've got more than 100 people here today. Would you dare to kill us all?" Accusatory and defiant questions piped up all around Sebastian, but he only smiled faintly. "Why wouldn't I dare to do so?" he said and shot Lyanna a pointed look. Lyanna chuckled and invited Hans and the rest back into the convenience store. "Please come and sit inside. What's about to happen next may be too gory."Zane quickly turned to walk inside. Sebastian always did what he said he would do. Without a doubt, what was about to happen would be a b
Sebastian finished speaking and took a step toward Leon. Leon had been almost 40 feet away from him. However, Sebastian moved so fast that he left a trail of shadowy afterimages behind him. In an instant, Sebastian was back in his original spot, while Leon hurtled backward like a cannonball. His massive frame crashed into the members of the Martial Arts Association behind him, sending them sprawling. Leon landed heavily on the ground. When the crowd rushed over to check on him, they were horrified to see that his chest had caved in. Fragments of his crushed internal organs were scattered across the ground.Leon was dead. A wave of shock rippled through the crowd. They were aghast. Even Wensleydale hadn't seen how Sebastian had killed Leon. All he had felt was that Sebastian's figure had seemed insubstantial for a second. A heartbeat later, his apprentice had been sent flying, meeting a brutal end right before his eyes. "Sebastian! How dare you commit murder in public?" Wen
Sebastian's expression turned slightly colder. He stepped forward and was beside Zane in an instant. He pulled Zane behind him."You were the ones who hit him, weren't you?" Sebastian asked, looking at Wensleydale and Humphrey.Wensleydale's lip curled. "So what if I did? I hit him! What are you going to do to me?"Humphrey said disdainfully, "Ballard, he should be honored to be hit by my mentor! I don't mind telling you that my mentor represents the entire ancient martial arts community of Steinberg! I can cut out your tongue for that attitude!"Sebastian turned and comforted Zane. He told someone to help Zane back to the door.Then he turned to Wensleydale and Humphrey and said, "Cut off the hand that you used to hit him with, and I won't pursue this further. Otherwise, I'll make you wish you were dead." Sebastian's voice was clear and forceful.The members of the Martial Arts Association were surprised. Even Wensleydale was secretly shocked. Had Sebastian gone mad? How dare