For Chelly, it was a humiliation worse than death!Being already raised in an ivory tower and spoiled by her father and siblings, her family's influence only further encouraged her to treat everyone else as if they were beneath her.She also earnestly believed that her brother Jaden was invincible, and that the Favonis would eventually rise as the Fifth Family in Morhen, even rising as the undisputed rulers of Draconia!As such, she was crumbling inwardly from sheer humiliation, seeing her own sister kowtowing to some unknown man who poisoned her brother in public!"Y-You traitor! Traitor!"Suddenly not remembering every moment her sister protected her, Chelly branded her own sister a traitor.Raising her palm, she aimed her strike at Stella even as she remained kneeling on the floor, ready to kill!"I will protect our family's honor! Die, traitor!"Stella remained on the floor even as she watched Chelly's strike approached, but she did not dodge.Her gaze was determined—she w
Still, Kilian's chuckle soon turned into roaring, gleeful laughter. "Hahaha! I get it now!""What happened to him, Mr. Lionheart?" Troy asked anxiously, since Kilian was too busy laughing to answer his question."Hehe… The brat was trying to be smart, but he ended up screwing himself over!"Kilian smiled even as he watched Frank wheeze. "His vigor collided with Jaden's when he blocked Jaden's blow, and the poison that was already kicking in inside Jaden's body affected him too! The poison you used is tailored against martial elites who wield pure vigor, no?""Yeah, exactly." Troy nodded, still at a loss."Well, that fits the bill." Kilian sneered viciously. "Frank did not realize that he too would be affected if Jaden's poisoned vigor reached him!""Hahaha! That's amazing!" Troy's eyes lit up.He had no idea what Kilian was talking about, but he understood the last part and that was enough too.Frank was poisoned too!"Well, Mr. Lionheart, now's your chance to eliminate him on
"It's the Soulbleeder—a specialty of Hundred Bane Sect available from the black market."Frank looked up, his eyes flashing as he wiped the smudge of blood from the corner of his lips.Kilian's face fell right then—how could Frank have known the name of the poison?!It was a well-kept secret even in the black market, and hardly anyone knew of it. Even Kilian himself found out about it through Troy!"Hehe… blargh!"Frank smirked even as he vomited another mouthful of blood. "Are you surprised why I would know? Well, that's a question you'd have to ask a certain traitor to Hundred Bane Sect whom I had slain. He left behind a copy of the Hundred Bane Anthology, which is why nothing in Hundred Bane Sect's inventory will work against me.""Really?"Kilian sneaked a look around himself and smirked at Frank in turn when he sensed Frank's vigor churning chaotically in his body. "You really wouldn't be hurting that badly if it doesn't work on you.""You're right." Frank nodded. "I've be
"Oof!"Kilian was no longer laughing.He could not feel any hint of pure vigor projecting from Frank's fist—that meant that Frank was using sheer physical strength to destroy his carapace armor, while sending him flying like a ragdoll!"I-Impossible! How could a Birthright rank do this… no, could he have improved? But this shouldn't be happening even if he did—"Even before Kilian came to his senses, he felt a large hand seizing him by the throat, choking him.Across his meridians, his pure vigor stalled in an instant.It hurt terribly, but he could not direct his pure vigor to fight back even if he wanted to.Even as the world started to spin around him, he realized he could not beat Frank in pure physical strength too, as he could not loosen Frank's vice-like grip around his neck at all!And at that very moment, every spectator could see Frank lifting Kilian, who was flailing around like an animal but unable to free himself.Chelly Favoni, who had just regained consciousness
"Did you think that you can stand up to the Lionhearts and Volsung Sect all on your own?!"Kilian Lionheart rasped coolly, "Give up already! The might of Simon Lionheart rules this land, and you will rest in pieces if he personally gets involved!""You have ten seconds," Frank simply muttered, impassive as he wiped the blood off the corner of his lips.However, Kilian was obviously not worried about Frank's threat and continued to persuade him, "You should be kneeling to me, Frank Lawrence! I admit you're outstanding, and I just might forgive your transgressions, even recommend a place for you in Volsung Sect!"Volsung Sect would eventually come to rule Draconia and the rest of the world! The path of martial arts is just the beginning… You have no idea where this path really leads! Now let me down and bow to me, and I'll tell you the greatest secret never told—""Time's up."Frank shook his head in disappointment. "What are you—are you going to kill me, Frank?! Don't you dare!
Frank turned toward Chelly, who was hanging her head, and Stella, who was giving him an earnest pleading look.Pausing, he shook his head and announced, "This entire conflict between us was incited by the Bearsons!"With that, he left the stage even as he coughed blood, ending the high noon duel in Zamri Square with an extraordinary plot twist.The crowd was certainly dissatisfied with the mediocre ending, especially after the fight was hyped up with such pompous publicity!It was not a fight between martial elites, but a bizarre stage production.However, said production still brought upon terrible consequences.For the Favonis, Jaden remained unconscious, his fate unknown as his sister Stella and the others carted him back to Norsedam.While he still retained his place as Skyrank's second, his reputation had taken a nosedive, just as many others became disappointed in the Favonis' actions.On the other hand, Frank's reputation was skyrocketing. The Lane family gathered favora
Winter grumpily sat down beside Frank after he explained himself, and she folded her arms before her chest as she waited to see who the arriving beauty was."Greetings, Mr. Lawrence."A lady dressed primly in a conservative dress entered, greeting Frank with a brow.Frank zoned out a little—her face was gorgeous, her mannerisms were mild and elegant, and there was a birthmark on her face that altogether made her appear picturesque.On top of her soft appearance, no man could tear their eyes away from her pronounced cleavage."Wow… you're so beautiful…" Even Winter was gaping and gasping in awe despite her jealousy earlier."Hehe. Thank you." The woman nodded before turning toward Frank. "Mr. Lawrence, I'm Sienna Noirot, second elder of the Hall of Flowers, a denomination of Cloudnine Sect. Having heard of your recent feats, I've come to visit and witness your splendor.""Cloudnine Sect?" Frank searched his mind, and quickly remembered—were they not one of the major sects in
If anything, Sienna seemed to have expected that response from Frank, and she smiled. "In that case, I shall excuse myself.""Yeah."Frank watched as Sienna left, pensive since she reminded Frank of plenty of matters.There were plenty of dangers lurking in Draconia, and he would have drawn considerable attention after he killed Kilian Lionheart.And Sienna was even hinting that the major players were ready to move against him.While Frank was not afraid, he was still worried that they would move against those around him.Even as the thought crossed his mind, his phone started ringing.He answered it to Kat Yego yelling, "Master Lawrence! This is terrible… My dad and Madam Zims have been kidnapped!" "What?!"Beside her, Winter leapt to her feet in panic, as Madam Zims was her adopted mother, Carol.They were aware that Carol and Kat's father Nash Yego had grown close recently. One was a widow and the other a widower, and with not much of an age difference between them, it wa
Frank's words left the white-clad geezer sweating down his back.Even he had to admit that the brat projected a menacing presence that intimidated even him! "Are you really going to do this?!" he snarled through his teeth nonetheless.He certainly would not have caused trouble if he had known that he would run into someone as powerful as Frank in this place.And now, forget revenge—they had nowhere to run.But as if bothered that the white-clad geezer was not dead already, his entourage kept adding fuel to the fire."What's the problem, sir?""It's obvious that he wouldn't win against you. Why are you getting cold feet?'At this sage, the white-clad geezer had nothing to hide and bellowed, "All you know is revenge! Do you even know your level compared to his?!"Forget you lot—no martial artist would ever win against that man! "Let me put it to you this way—there aren't more than a hundred individuals who could defeat me in this country. Not only is he among that hundred, bu
However, Frank was already prepared.He silently sent a tremor of the same frequency down under, nullifying the white-clad geezer's tremor with ease.Hence, before anyone realized what had happened, the white-clad geezer already realized that he would not win against Frank! Unlike her niece, the white-clad geezer had been traveling all his life. He understood that while earthbending was amazing, it was hardly invincible.A technique was just a technique, and nothing more. It came with its deficiencies, depending on the way it was wielded, and prodigies were completely on a different level compared to them—in fact, the white-clad geezer was recently beaten by another youth.Even if it rarely happened in a small town like Shagan, it happened all the time among martial artists and the like. Youth surpassed all—was there any martial artist worth their salt who did not understand that the kids would eventually surpass them?"Let's go!"Without hesitation, the white-clad geezer was
As it turned out, the white-clad geezer did not return for revenge.People change as they age, along with their mindset, and develop a longing for their hometown.In fact, the white-clad geezer had returned to make peace with his family, and died in their company.Naturally, he was furious to hear that someone was using his name to bluff their way out and abduct his niece, the hag.And so he came with the rest of them, looking for Frank.After all, if Frank was not sent by the white-clad geezer, the only other person would be…-Back at the present, the white-clad geezer growled icily, "Where is my niece?"Frank smirked. "She paid the price for her crimes. What, do you want revenge?""A life for a life," the white-clad geezer growled. "That's the one rule that has never changed since olden times!"His entourage roared in approval. "Don't get so full of yourself, brat! He is different from the rest of us, and he can kill you anytime!""Really?" Frank simply snorted nonchalant
As the geezer spoke, he opened the rosewood box and put an ashtray in it. "I actually don't have any abilities—everything I make is produced from this box. With its help, I can imbue any object with an enchantment beyond human comprehension. See for yourself!"He closed the box and held it by its sides as the box glowed in a rainbow gradient.Frank felt a sense of familiarity as he watched, as the energy signature resembled the spiritron vein, but one different from the meteor.So what the heck was going on?While Frank was left surprised, the geezer stopped and opened the box, handing Frank the ashtray.As Frank held the ashtray, he saw that it really was altered—it could carry more now!The geezer then passed him a yellowed old book. "This is how you can use it!"Frank frowned. "Why are you giving it to me? I can't take it, or people would just say that I stole it from you when they find out."The geezer smiled in wry amusement. "It's yours either way, kid! And after you've d
To be honest, the hag really had not considered that question and was just playing along to her own whims, never once considering why she was such a philanderer.Frank then pressed his advantage. "Your so-called love is but a manifestation of your lust. It seems noble, but it has no warmth or color, and the world has no way of determining if it exists."If I want it, I can do what you do too. Heck, I'm sure that's the same for everyone else—they're just kind people who know that they shouldn't hog the limited resources of mental asylums.""Insolence!"The hag lunged at Frank as she realized that he was mocking her, but Frank was already prepared and pinned her to the floor with his telekinesis."Alright, you can quit hollering now. The more you do, the more you're just proving that you've lost!"Crouching in front of the hag, Frank growled coolly. "Did you think I'd only rely on brute strength to force your compliance? You're kidding—I don't even need to do that with someone like
It was just as the geezer had said—the hag had been pampered for so long that she could not tell right from wrong.In fact, in her mind, everything she did was never wrong and was even reasonable!That was what frustrated the geezer the most, and he simply stopped arguing and started whipping her with his belt.Pain really clears the mind, and the hag was no exception. In fact, she thought for a split second that she might have made a mistake.However, it only lasted for that split second—a little whipping was never really going to correct a lifetime of distorted beliefs!"I don't get it!" she cried. "Why do you treat my love with such disdain?! You don't have to love me, but you have to respect me!" The geezer laughed coolly and continued to whip her as he snapped, "That's true! But now, what I say goes—that's all there is to it!"That was when Frank suddenly reached out and caught the belt.It stunned the geezer, who quickly checked Frank's hand, and sighed after seeing that
It had been so long since he had seen his enemy, that the geezer almost fell out of his lounger.If he were to be honest, he really did not hold out much hope since it had been years, and no one lasted more than twenty strikes against the hag.However, while he was convinced that his revenge was futile in this life, Frank suddenly appeared.While he looked like he had nothing but his looks going for him, he brought the hag like she was some harmless hatchling."H-How did you do it?" the geezer exclaimed, presuming that Frank must have pulled some cunning trick.However, the geezer was once again reminded of the hag's conceit as she snorted. "How, you asked? With just a wave of his hand, and I lost!"Turning to Frank, she snapped, "There, he had his justice. Can you tell my uncle to show his face now?"Frank rolled his eyes. "I don't know your uncle. I only brought you here because of him!""No… That's impossible!" The truth was starting to dawn on the hag, but she still refus
"H-How did you do that?!"While the cabal was left flabbergasted, the hag was much calmer for some reason.After all, her father had told her about an uncle of hers, who had left the family because they kept abusing their earthbending ability.It was rumored that the uncle eventually cultivated a superior ability, fusing things that would otherwise not be just like what Frank just did.As such, she told her cabal as much, but Frank shook his head. "I learned your technique by directly observing you when you used it. And by doing so, I found a fatal flaw, which I adjusted for."He certainly did not have anything to do with the hag's uncle—he was just that quick a learner and that gifted to wield earthbending in an instant.Naturally, the hag was not about to believe that.No matter how gifted a person could be, there was no way anyone could learn earthbending instantly and even perfect it. In the end, someone must have taught him!As such, she was starting to get impatient with
Before the cabal could react, molehills appeared beneath their feet and sent them flying.Most passed out when they hit the ground, while the rest were barely holding on."W-Who the hell are you?!" The cabal had grown conceited since they did not have many rivals in a remote corner such as this one, and they therefore presumed that no one could challenge them.And now, they could not win with numbers against Frank, let alone one against one.Could anyone bear the shame?"What a bunch of mooks. I told you kids to stay on your training, but none of you listened. And now you're acting surprised?"A hunched hag appeared on a nearby alley, looking very much affable.Surprised, the cabal exclaimed, "What are you doing here, ma'am?""Do you think I'd miss the tremors?" the hag snapped coolly before wheeling on Frank. "Impressive physique! I certainly didn't expect you to hurt those boys."The cabal quickly warned her, "This isn't the time, ma'am. He knows earthbending, and he could