In the lobby, Yuri stood tall and proud, with his spine straight and his hands behind his back. Behind him were a few of the Thompsons' best warriors and an old man dressed in green. This old man was one of the Thompsons' strongest fighters, a member of the Almighty Warriors! Knowing that the Hiltons were one of the most powerful influences in the Southern region, Yuri did not dare to show up at their territory without backup. Therefore, he specially made a detour back home to pick up this Almighty Warrior, which was why he took so long to arrive at Hiltons Corporation's office. All of a sudden, frantic footsteps rang out as Joel, followed by two of his guards, stormed into the lobby and came face-to-face with Yuri. "To what do I owe this pleasure, Mister Thompson?" Joel asked calmly. Although he already knew what Yuri was here for, he did not dare to reveal anything further about his involvement in this. "What do you think? Joel, let's cut to the chase—I'm here on beh
"Thud!" With a deafening slam, Joel was propelled backward from the impact of Yuri's fist and landed on the ground in a crumpled heap. Thankfully, he was already at the Semi Emperor State, and since he managed to dodge Yuri's attack in time, he did not suffer many injuries at all. Despite that, however, he still felt something rise in his chest, and his mouth was tinged with a metallic taste, but he swallowed it back! "Take this!" Yuri let out another grunt as he stepped forward, unleashing another surge of energy straight toward Joel! "Oh no!" An expression of horror crossed Joel's face. He was already weakened from Yuri's initial attack, and as much as he wanted to dodge this second one, he knew there was no way he could pull it off. There was nothing he could do except watch in despair as Yuri's attack surged straight toward him. "Master, we'll help fend him off! Run while you can!" with lightning-quick reflexes, his two guards stepped forward and retaliated, sending p
At the same time, Yuri already caught up to an escaping Joel and struck a blow right across his retreating! "Thud!" with a deafening slam, Joel's entire body was propelled backward like a kite that lost its string and landed on the ground a few feet away. He spat out two mouthfuls of blood from the impact and slumped on the ground feebly. It was clear that he suffered a serious injury from this. Thankfully, in consideration of the Hiltons' background, Yuri did not have the intent to kill him and thus eased up a little on his attack. If not, Joel would have suffered an even more dire fate by now! "What's wrong, Joel? Are you okay?" the middle-aged man panicked at this sight and quickly sprinted forward to help him up. It was clear that this middle-aged man was none other than Joel's father, the president of Hiltons Corporation—Sebastian Hiltons. "I'm fine, Father. Just suffered some internal injuries. However, you must avenge me—Yuri Thompson has not only barged into our t
"Joel is right! Yuri, you have no right to interfere in our business, regardless of what it is we do! You have not only trespassed on our territory but even harmed my son. Are you trying to start a war between the Thompsons and us Hiltons?" Sebastian snapped with a steely look. He knew full well that it was wrong of Joel to even sabotage Elegante Group in the first place, but the Thompsons had no right to serve them justice like that. They were just another major family in the Southern region, not the nation's peace holder, after all! As wrong as Joel was to do this, there was no right of Yuri to punish him like that! "What do you mean, this has nothing to do with the Thompsons? I'm not afraid to let you know that the Thompsons are one of Elegante Group's shareholders, and so we have as much right as anyone to protect Elegante Group!" Yuri sneered. "What?" both Sebastian and Joel were stunned to hear this. They all initially thought that Yuri was acting out of line, and no matt
"Mister Thompson, I apologize for my son's behavior. He had no idea of your connection to Elegante Group, and he didn't mean to offend you. I apologize on behalf of the Hiltons and hope that you will consider forgiving us," Sebastian took in a deep breath and forced himself to apologize to Yuri. His arrogance and haughty attitude had long since disappeared! After all, the Thompsons were the most powerful family in the Southern region and possessed even more extensive forces than even the Hiltons! Not only that, but Yuri had the perfect reason to teach Joel a lesson for sabotaging Elegante Group, and thus there was no choice but for him to apologize on behalf of the Hiltons! "President Hiltons, your son has caused a significant loss to Elegante Group—your apology cannot even begin to make up for what we have lost! Do you honestly think just apologizing will be able to turn things around?" Yuri sneered. "What do you want us to do then?" Sebastian asked rather reluctantly. "I
"Um," Sebastian's face was ashen when faced with Yuri's determined attitude. Yuri threaded carefully and never once committed anything that was out of line, so there was nothing he could say or do to retaliate! Besides, after their brief encounter, he could tell that Yuri came prepared—he brought one of the Thompsons' Almighty Warriors with him, and even if he were to use violence, there was no way the Hiltons would be able to get away unscathed! In conclusion, Yuri was in perfect reason to make this request, whereas he and Joel were at a significant disadvantage and had no choice but to relent! "Alright, alright, we'll do as you say! Joel will draft an apology to Elegante Group and announce it in three days, and on top of that, we shall compensate every penny of Elegante Group's loss!" Sebastian finally came to a decision. Although Joel's public apology would no doubt tarnish their reputation, it was still better than the other option. Yuri was far too powerful compared to J
"Well, here's what happened," Joel then proceeded to explain everything to his father, including how he came up with the plan to sabotage Elegante Group's name and how he managed to steal most of Elegante Group's secret recipe, save for the most crucial ingredient. "I see what you did now!" Sebastian gasped in realization. Although Joel's plan was foiled, he had to admit that the plan was flawless! Unfortunately, all of them severely underestimated Leon—not only did he manage to see right through Joel's scheme, but he even managed to heal Lacey within just minutes, which was what ultimately led to Joel's downfall in the first place! Thankfully, Joel's efforts were not in vain—at least he managed to steal most of Elegante Group's secret recipe, save for the final and most important ingredient! This was the best thing that came out of this series of unfortunate events! "Father, not only did Yuri attack me, but now he even forced me to apologize publicly to Elegante Group. This
"Father, I have an idea! As omnipotent as Leon seems to be, he's all by himself and does not have much influence here in the Southern region. In my opinion, we should send out a few of our men to kidnap him and keep him hostage until he tells us the secret recipe! What do you think of this idea?" this was what Joel came up with after some contemplation. The last time he sent Seth to buy out Elegante Group, he could already tell that Elegante Group's defenses were poor, to the point where it did not take them long to overcome the security and barge into its premises! This was undoubtedly Elegante Group—and Leon's—biggest weakness! The Hiltons, on the other hand, had a strong foundation and plenty of master martial artists at their disposal. They could easily send a few men to capture Leon and get their hands on the secret recipe that way! "No! Leon has the Thompsons on his side, and if we were to capture him like that, they could easily figure out that it was us, even if we lea
"Miss Morrison, I would like to thank you for saving my life," Iris said as she approached Renee's bed. She meant to thank Renee for having saved her so narrowly from death during their encounter with one of Brahma's clones, which was why she lingered in Renee's room even after everyone left. "Miss Young, if you would truly like to return the favor, there is something you can do for me," Renee said, biting her lip as though what she was about to say was an excruciatingly difficult decision to make."What is it?" Iris asked, although she felt like she already knew what was the answer. "I would like to join you in being Leon's companions," Renee said with an expectant look. She harbored feelings toward Leon for some time now but refrained from competing against Iris and Cynthia, knowing there was no way she could win. However, she had an epiphany after her narrow escape from death and realized that there was so much more to life than competing with other women over a man. Therefor
"Nothing is impossible! It's high time you accept your fate, you old git! Take this! The Phoenix Sky Fist!" Leon merely scoffed at him. The next moment, he directed one last attack at Wulfric in the form of his most powerful move—the Phoenix Sky Fist, a sage technique belonging to the Heavenly Class!A cloud of pulsating energy charged straight toward Wulfric, without any mercy toward his cries of horror!Its sole intent was to destroy him and put an end to this battle!"No—" Wulfric let out a bloodcurdling scream as he watched, defenseless, as the Phoenix Sky Fist soared toward him. His first instinct was to leap out of harm's way, but Leon was far too powerful for him and anticipated this beforehand. Not to mention the Phoenix Sky Fist was one of the most powerful moves belonging to the Heavenly Class, and there was no possible way he could escape from its wrath.Wulfric's limp body only left a few feet off the ground when the Phoenix Sky Fist crashed into him, rendering his body
"Haha! I've finally attained the Saint State! Now it's time for you to die, you old git!" A glimmer of malice flashed through Leon's eyes. When he fixated his gaze on Wulfric's face, it sent a shudder down Wulfric's entire body, for Leon's eyes were like two pits of deep, dark, sinister hatred. "How cocky of you to say that, you twat! So what if you attained the Saint State? You haven't even got time to harness your powers yet, so you're no match for me! Take this!" Wulfric scoffed, taking no notice of Leon's threats at all. Then, without another moment's hesitation, he sent a powerful surge of energy pummeling Leon's way, intending to destroy Leon while his defenses were low!"He's right. So what if he's attained the Saint State? He can't even control his powers properly," the rest of the Chanters all agreed, and felt rather relieved by this. The glimmer of hope that ignited briefly within Pierre, Zach, and the rest was immediately doused after hearing the Chanters' words. Wulf
"Hahaha! This ends here—once and for all!" Wulfric broke out into a manic cackle of laughter upon seeing Pierre's defeat. The defeat of Pierre, Zach, and his two lackeys had no doubt instilled a newfound triumph in him, for the four of them combined were his greatest opponents thus far, and now that he rendered them powerless, there was no longer anyone in his way!Not even Leon, Percival, Alastair, or the rest of their comrades could defeat him! He and the Chanters would go on, unstopped, to dominate the world!One could only imagine his ecstasy at finally fulfilling his dream at long last!"All hail Master Chanter!""All hail Master Chanter!""All hail Master Chanter!" Aiken and the rest of the Chanters erupted into thunderous applause and cheers of sheer elation. "Oh no!""We can't possibly stand a chance!" Percival, Alastair, and the rest on the good side felt their hearts sink at the thought of their impending doom. Although they outnumbered the Chanters by a significant m
Gulp!Taking advantage of the moment, Leon decisively took out a Holy Spirit Pill and swallowed it. Initially, he intended to use an Essential Detox Pill to help Pierre, Zach, and the other two Semi-Saint State fighters counteract the poison. However, with Pierre injured by Wulfric and Zach along with the other two severely wounded and out of combat, even if he cured them, their side was still doomed to defeat.In this desperate situation, he could only take a gamble. He hoped that, with the breakthrough signs he felt in his martial arts bottleneck, the Holy Spirit Pill would help him break through the sage arts barrier or raise his power level to the Great Crossing Phase. This might be their only chance at victory."Mister Wolf, as long as there's life, there's hope. I'll try my best to hold off Wulfric. You must escape now and find a way to avenge us later."Pierre, enduring his injuries and the poison, stood up with a determined look on his face. He knew that their side was alre
"You're courting death!"Wulfric, enraged by Leon's fierce attack and the slaying of Central Boss, had no choice but to halt his assault on Pierre and the other three momentarily. He turned and unleashed a powerful palm strike, its overwhelming force aimed squarely at Leon's Phoenix Sky Fist.Boom!The collision between Leon's Phoenix Sky Fist and Wulfric's attack was explosive. In an instant, Wulfric's strike shattered Leon's Phoenix Sky Fist, and its residual force hurtled toward Leon."Not good!"Leon’s expression changed drastically as he rapidly tried to evade. However, with Wulfric's Saint State power level, evading was futile. No matter where he ran, he was unable to get out of the attack range. The residual force of Wulfric's true energy struck Leon, sending him flying and crashing heavily to the ground.Cough! Cough!As Leon hit the ground, a wave of intense pain surged through his chest, causing him to cough up two mouthfuls of blood. It was clear he suffered significa
Whoosh!Compared to Percival and Alastair's heavy hearts, Leon remained relatively calm. In the past, he killed Poisonwielder and specifically crafted a potent antidote, the Essential Detox Pill, to counteract Reaper's Breath.He happened to have a few dozen of these pills on him. Though Pierre and the others were poisoned by Reaper's Breath, as long as Leon could get the antidote to them in time, they still stood a chance to win.With this in mind, Leon did not waste any time. He stopped fighting with Central Boss, leaped up, and quickly rushed toward Pierre and the others to deliver the antidote."Leon, are you planning to run away? Well, do you think it's going to be that easy?" Central Boss misunderstood Leon's actions, thinking he intended to escape. Given how much he hated Leon, he was not going to let Leon get away so easily.Without a second thought, Central Boss dashed forward, resolutely blocking Leon once again. With Wulfric having reversed the situation and forcing Pie
"Pierre, you have pushed me to this! Since that's the case, don't blame me for what I'm going to do next! You all can go to hell!" Wulfric's expression turned grim when he saw the Chanter fighters in a dire and dangerous situation. He knew he had to end this battle quickly to avoid significant casualties among the Chanter descendants.Thus, he decided not to hold back. He waved his two hands, releasing two clouds of white mist that surged forward, engulfing Pierre, Zach, and the other two. The white mist transformed into a flurry of powder, like a shower of flowers, enveloping the four of them."What's this?""This is bad, it's poison!"Realizing the unusual nature of the white powder, Pierre and Zach were alarmed.Immediately, the four of them held their breath and swiftly retreated, trying to escape the range of the white mist and powder. Unfortunately, it was too late! The white powder and mist seeped everywhere, and being too close to Wulfric, they already inhaled a signific
"How dare a loser like you be so arrogant? I'll teach you to be humble!"Leon sneered contemptuously. Central Boss clashed with him twice before, each time ending with Central Boss being injured and fleeing. Thus, Leon did not take his attack seriously at all.Without hesitation, he pointed a finger and unleashed the Advanced Earth Class sage technique, Earthly Plunder. Sharp and fierce energy condensed at his fingertip, roaring as it met Central Boss's attack head-on!Bang!Leon's Earthly Plunder clashed solidly with Central Boss's Soul-Piercing Claw in a violent collision. However, unlike previous encounters, this time Leon's technique did not break through Central Boss's attack; instead, it was shattered by it!Not only that! The Dragon Pill he recently took did not fully manifest itself yet, so not only did Central Boss's Soul-Piercing Claw shatter Leon's Earthly Plunder but also sent him staggering back.Leon struggled to regain his footing, retreating three or four steps be