Chapter 10: A Cup of Tea

A marriage proposal! Powerhouses from the City Lord's Manor stepped into Balam Manor, coming for one purpose. And who they meant to marry… there was no need to guess. Zane Lafontaine did not come. City Lord Henry Lafontaine arrived in person instead, bringing several experts from the High Levels of the Bitter Sea Realm. With a lineup like that, the Balam family did not dare show the slightest neglect. Every elder of note appeared. All except one. Ever since Seth Santee had helped the other elders achieve a Realm Breakthrough, the Grand Elder of the Balam family had not shown his face again. To the outside world, he claimed he had gone into closed-door cultivation, refusing to rely on outsiders as he attempted to break into the Ninth Level of the Bitter Sea Realm on his own. Seth was there as well. Bianca Balam had specifically called him over. "Greetings, City Lord, and greetings to all seniors." Bianca wore a long gown, her hair ornaments lavish, her appearance formal enough to match the occasion. "I heard Brother Balam was gravely ill, and that all affairs of Balam Manor were decided by my good niece." Henry Lafontaine stroked his beard with a smile. "Seeing you today, I can only say the younger generation truly surpasses the old. You make me feel my age." "City Lord, you're in the prime of your life," Bianca replied with a polite smile. "Ah, calling me 'City Lord' makes us sound like strangers." Henry's smile deepened, as if he meant to draw closer to her. He looked disarmingly approachable. "I've been friends with your father for many years. Just call me 'Uncle Henry.'" "Uncle Henry." Bianca knew exactly why he had come, but she still gave him the courtesy. "That's more like it." Henry nodded, pleased. "Still, good niece, you're a young woman, and you've reached the age to speak of marriage. You should think about your own future. With Brother Balam bedridden, it's inconvenient for him to handle such matters, so I'll speak to you directly. I'm here to propose on behalf of my son, and I hope you'll accept." "City Lo-" Bianca started, the title slipping back out of habit, but Henry lifted a hand and cut her off. "Though the Lafontaine family can't compare to the Warth family of the Imperial City, we do have connections in Skyreach Kingdom." His voice stayed genial, his meaning sharp. "Farwind City is too small. You and Zane can go to the Imperial City together for cultivation. I'll arrange everything. As for the Balam family, I'll see to it as well. No one will be allowed to interfere with your affairs." The smile never left Henry's face. He believed that as long as Bianca was not a fool, she would know which choice to make. The Balam family all turned their eyes to her. Given the current situation in Farwind City, binding the Balam family to the City Lord's Manor through marriage truly did seem like the most suitable path. Even with the Showyer family backed by the Warth family, they still had to give the City Lord's Manor some measure of respect. "My father is gravely ill," Bianca said. "I truly don't have the heart to think about romance." She knew the words would displease Henry, but she said them anyway. Henry's expression darkened at once. Was that… rejection? "Don't have the heart?" Henry's gaze locked onto Seth, and the warmth in his demeanor vanished without a trace. "Or have you already given your heart to someone else? I heard that to protect this boy, you didn't hesitate to go to war with the Showyer family. Don't tell me you've already pledged yourselves to each other." "City Lord, I don't understand what you mean." Bianca's tone stayed steady. "Seth and I are only friends." "Friends?" Henry sneered. "What loyal, life-and-death friends you are." His face turned cold as ice. "So in your eyes, my son, the dignified Young City Lord of Farwind City, is inferior to a traitor from the Showyer family. Inferior to a cripple whose Cultivation Level has been destroyed!" "If City Lord insists on seeing it that way, I have nothing to say." Bianca did not flinch. "But you aren't wrong about one thing. Seth is a dragon among men. In Farwind City, there truly aren't many who can compare to him." The moment her words fell, the air seemed to freeze. The experts from the City Lord's Manor radiated a terrifying chill. Their Young City Lord couldn't compare to Seth Santee, that useless cripple? From the City Lord's Manor, a young man stepped forward, his eyes full of mockery as he stared at Seth. "To receive such praise from Miss Balam… I can't accept it. Seth, please enlighten me." "Sorry." Seth's voice was flat and cold. "Not interested." "That's not up to you!" Trent Lafontaine strode out, killing intent surging! Among the younger generation of the City Lord's Manor, his talent was second only to Zane Lafontaine! If Bianca praised Seth, then Trent would grind that cripple into the dirt in front of everyone. The Golden Punishment Sword flashed as he struck. In the Lafontaine family of the City Lord's Manor, all cultivated the Golden Punishment Sword Arts, as if they wielded punishment on heaven's behalf! Whoosh! Seth did not even rise from his seat. He casually flicked his wrist and tossed a cup of tea. In an instant, the tea drenched Trent from head to toe, snuffing out his momentum like a candle in rain. His sword halted in midair. He stared at his own soaked, miserable state, and his fury erupted. "I'll poke ten holes through you!" But in the next breath, Trent realized something was wrong. Wherever the tea had splashed him, his skin began to darken. "Ah!" He screamed, as if his very life force was being devoured, bite by bite. Everyone froze. From start to finish, Seth had only sat there and splashed a cup of tea, yet he had turned a genius of the City Lord's Manor into this pathetic wreck. "Bring the antidote!" a powerhouse from the City Lord's Manor roared. "For such a tiny poison, the City Lord's Manor can't cure it?" Seth shot back. Henry Lafontaine snorted. "The City Lord's Manor will remember this. We're leaving. Take Trent back." With his status as City Lord, even after suffering a loss, he refused to lower himself by attacking Seth personally. He would not hand others an excuse to gossip. Yet the moment Henry turned, more figures stepped out from the City Lord's Manor-three experts at the Ninth Level of the Bitter Sea Realm! "The City Lord is magnanimous, but we subordinates cannot stand by and watch the City Lord's Manor be humiliated by a junior!" "If you want to bully the younger generation, just say so. Don't hide behind excuses!" Three elders from the Balam family stepped forward and met them head-on. Boom! At first, the City Lord's Manor experts were shocked by the Balam family's backbone. As the battle unfolded, their shock deepened into disbelief. These three elders were in the same realm as them, and not weaker in the slightest! After a fierce clash, neither side could gain the upper hand. The City Lord's Manor experts had no choice but to retreat in frustration. It steadied the hearts of everyone in the Balam family. "The City Lord's Manor won't let this go," Colin Balam said, worry heavy in his voice. "They still have to consider their reputation," Peter Balam replied, sounding far more composed than before. "They won't strike at us openly. What happened earlier was likely meant as a warning, but they didn't expect the Balam family to have more than one expert at the Ninth Level of the Bitter Sea Realm." "Evelyn Showyer awakened an Innate Dao Body," Bianca said quietly. "Farwind City's balance was bound to shatter. Where it goes from here is no longer something we can predict. All we can do is push ourselves to grow stronger." Everyone nodded. In the end, only one thing mattered: strength. Seth had just returned to the courtyard when footsteps reached his ears. His brows drew together. Four figures, all masked, followed him and vaulted into the yard. "Kill!" The instant they saw Seth, they did not hesitate. They lunged straight for his life. They meant to take advantage of the Balam family's attention being drawn away by the City Lord's Manor and erase Seth in one clean strike. "The Showyer family, or the City Lord's Manor?" Seth's eyes flickered. These men moved fast, sharp, and efficient. They clearly intended to give him no chance to use Poison Arts. Thud! Seth stepped forward. The aura of the Fifth Level of the Bitter Sea Realm burst out, and the masked figures' eyes tightened as their attacks slowed for a heartbeat. "So your cultivation wasn't crippled!" The first attacker arrived in a rush, both palms striking out together. True Essence formed roaring palm seals, the air shrieking as if even Primal Energy were being torn apart. "Energy Repelling Palm." Seth's gaze sharpened. "You're from the Showyer family!" He drove a furious punch forward. Battle Light seemed to coil around him, his fist wrapped in terrifying runes, its power overwhelming. Boom! The True Essence palm seal shattered. Seth's punch carried on without losing force, slamming into the masked man's chest. The crack of breaking bone rang out, and the man flew backward with a scream that shook the courtyard. The other three stiffened. That man had been at the Seventh Level of the Bitter Sea Realm… and he had been crushed by a single punch? "Not crippled, and you can still fight across realms?" They did not understand, but they did not stop. One of them swung a long spear and charged in. The spear looked unstoppable, its blazing tip spitting spear-light that seemed ready to pierce anything in its path. "The Showyer family's ancestral spear art." Seth let out a cold laugh. He reached out and clenched his hand. In his eyes, the lightning-fast thrust slowed to something almost laughable. He seized the spearhead, halting it dead, unable to advance even an inch. Crack! Seth snapped the spearhead off and flicked it away. It shot forward with perfect accuracy, piercing the first man's throat and killing him on the spot. The second attacker was still stunned. Before he could recover, Seth's palm chopped down like a blade, cleaving him and ending his life. The last two exchanged a glance and attacked from left and right at the same time. They moved as if they had cultivated the same sword art, their coordination seamless, sealing off Seth's escape on both sides. Seth's eyes hardened. "This isn't the Showyer family's Divine Power." Other forces were involved.