"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
George's face darkened with displeasure as he angrily retorted, "Who the hell are you? Do you think you have a right to speak here? "Ms. Cain, who is this man? Why did you bring him? Don't you know tonight is a crucial meeting between your company and Paramount Group? "Why did you bring someone so disrespectful? Do you not want to cooperate?"George was furious. Never before had anyone dared to challenge Paramount Group during negotiations. Companies typically begged for their attention, but this audacious young man was questioning and opposing them.Penelope quickly tried to smooth things over with a forced smile. "I'm sorry, Mr. Cowper. He's my assistant. But regarding the terms you mentioned, we find it hard to accept."George sneered coldly. "Ms. Cain, think carefully. Paramount Group controls both domestic and international sales channels. If Arctic Snow Mask wants to achieve greater success, it's difficult to find another company capable of handling its distribution like
Even though Declan had already said that the old man was only in shock and didn't have a cerebral infarction, the middle-aged man still wanted to hear the opinion of a young traditional medicine doctor like Sebastian! He must be either crazy or an idiot!"If he applies that needle, your father's complexion will go from pale to dark at once. When that happens, it'll only be even more dangerous," Sebastian said impassively."Stop talking crap, Sebastian! My grandfather is the elder of the Healer Sect! Are you implying that he's not as good as you are?" Bryce yelled angrily, pointing at Sebastian.He was furious. "Sebastian, are you doubting my skills in medicine? You're a rookie in the medical field. I only complimented you at the dinner table out of politeness. Did it go to your head?" Declan demanded curtly, his expression changing."You're trying to prick the acupuncture points on the base of the patient's neck as well as in the center of his chest so that you can unblock his br
"Wow, it really is Mr. Byrne Senior! Hello, hello!" A slightly pudgy middle-aged man exclaimed. He hurried forward and shook Declan's hand heartily.Declan frowned and looked at him for a long time, but he couldn't remember where he had seen the pudgy man before.There were too many people who tried to flatter Declan every day, and he couldn't possibly remember every single one of them."Who are you?" Declan asked, his brow furrowed as he shook the man's hand. "Mr. Byrne Senior, you're so busy, so of course you won't remember me! I'm Fritz Thomson! I had the pleasure of meeting you two years ago while I was shooting a documentary about traditional medicine," Fritz said courteously.Declan finally nodded. Fritz was either a reporter or a director. It wasn't surprising that Declan had forgotten who he was.Although the Healer Sect was also among the mystic martial arts sects, it was very different from the Nine Sects. The Healer Sect had always had close connections with the sec
Sebastian waved a hand slightly at the middle-aged man and said, "I'm not a genius doctor. I'm just an ordinary traditional medicine doctor. However, that old man is in a very dangerous situation. You must not touch him!"He spoke urgently when he saw that the middle-aged woman was propping the old man up so that he was lying on her lap.The middle-aged woman looked up at the middle-aged man. She was clearly hesitant.They were on the top floor, and the tiled floor was so cold. She didn't think that it would be safe for her to let the old man just lie on the floor. "Listen to Dr. Ballard! You won't go wrong!" the middle-aged man said quickly to her."Dr. Ballard? He's nothing compared to my grandfather!" Bryce exclaimed. He was annoyed to hear the middle-aged man addressing Sebastian so respectfully.After all, Declan was the elder of the Healer Sect. There were even numerous sage doctors who had to treat Declan with respect as their senior in the industry!Who did Sebastian th
Since Declan had coincidentally met Sebastian at the dinner table that day, he had thought of bringing the latter over to his side. That way, Sebastian could work for him. "Sebastian, I'm planning to make an exception and take you as my apprentice. What do you think?" Declan asked again when he saw that Sebastian was ignoring him.Sebastian continued to ignore him. Did he really thought he could be Sebastian's mentor? The old man must be crazy!"Sebastian, you should hurry and kneel to my grandfather! You're lucky to get him as a mentor! My grandfather hasn't accepted any apprentices for 20 years!"Bryce glared at Sebastian, whom he felt was being far too tactless. There were countless people fighting to have Declan as a mentor."Mr. Byrne Senior, I don't wish to have a mentor. Besides, no one is qualified to be one," Sebastian said impassively. "You little—"Declan was furious. Sebastian was far too arrogant! He was already humbling himself by deigning to take Sebastian as an
Bryce saw the anger in Declan's face, so he said reluctantly to Larys, "I'm sorry, Mr. Compton. I've acted impulsively."Acted impulsively? It would have been better if Bryce hadn't apologized at all. His apology had made Larys even angrier. He clearly had no respect for Larys at all if he could slap him just out of a moment's impulse. Larys was the mayor of Steinberg. How could he just let things go just because Bryce had said that he had been impulsive? "Mr. Compton, my grandson is young and ignorant. Please don't hold it against him." Declan had no choice but to speak up and apologize to Larys on Bryce's behalf. Larys could only nod. He smiled slightly and said, "Forget about it. Make sure that it doesn't happen again."Once everyone was seated once more, Bryce continued staring viciously at Sebastian. It was all Sebastian's fault that he had been slapped twice by Declan!He couldn't just let him go, but he didn't dare to cause any more trouble at the dinner table. Howeve
"People always say that you can see what a person is like from looking at their family. I can see that it's true," Sebastian said impassively.That was a harsh insult to Declan. It implied that Bryce's rude behavior was a reflection of Declan's lack of good character, and that their family didn't have good manners.Declan turned purple with rage. Ever since he had become one of the esteemed members of the Healer Sect, everyone in the martial arts community always spoke respectfully to him, especially those of the traditional medicine community. All of them were polite whenever they met him.However, Sebastian had insulted him thrice in a row, and each insult was worse than the last. Rosalie couldn't help but laugh. She leaned on Sebastian's shoulder and turned her head away, her slender figure trembling with the effort of not laughing out loud."You're terrible! You've insulted them so slyly!" Rosalie whispered in Sebastian's ear.Sebastian reached out to put an arm around her t
Sebastian's expression turned cold at once. What was so important about an elder of the Healer Sect? Was there any reason for him to make so many people wait?Besides, the banquet had been set at 9:00 pm, and both he and Rosalie had arrived on time. Why should Declan be treated differently?Sebastian had never had any patience with people who used their age as an excuse to do whatever they wanted to."Forget it. Calm down, both of you, and let's both refrain from saying anything else."Larys stood up quickly to smooth things over. Both Sebastian and Julian remained silent out of respect for him. However, they both exchanged icy looks.Now that the conflict had subsided, Larys leaned closer to Sebastian and whispered, "Mr. Ballard, I'll be honest with you. I can't afford to offend either you or Mr. Byrne. Please help me out and refrain from pursuing this matter further."Larys was being sincere. He was in awe of Sebastian's allies, but Declan had equally powerful allies supporting
Upon hearing Rosalie's words, Sebastian laughed wryly and shook his head.The Nine Sects wouldn't dare to say a thing to the Ballard Estate, who in turn thought nothing of the Healer Sect.Andreas snorted in laughter and said, "If you had said so 100 years ago, even I would have had to concede. However, times have changed now.""What do you mean?" Rosalie looked curiously at Andreas. It seemed that Sebastian's cousin was very familiar with the Healer Sect. "About 12 years ago, they went on the wrong path. If you check thoroughly, you'll probably find that the development of many new medicines was related to the Healer Sect. However, they are not the refiners!"Rosalie seemed to be deep in thoughts. Her brow darkened as she said thoughtfully, "Do you mean to say that the Healer Sect has abandoned the art of medicine and has decided to go in the direction of the art of pill refining instead?"This made Andreas see Rosalie in a different light.Medicine and pill refining were very
"Are you talking about your cousin? He doesn't look like a businessman at all, though. He looks more like…"Rosalie put her chin in her hands, her brow tightly furrowed. However, she couldn't find an appropriate way to describe Andreas.He felt very strange to Rosalie. There was a kind of energy he had that was difficult to express in words. "It doesn't matter whether he's a businessman or not. He just has to have money. Why don't we discuss it with him tomorrow? I think he'll probably support you unconditionally," Sebastian said confidently."Really? But if we develop a similar medicine, won't we be going against the Croydons? That doesn't seem right."Lorcan was a friend of Oliver's, after all. That meant that he was a friend of the Griffins. Rosalie didn't want to make such an important family their enemy in business. "With that contract, we have to show the Croydons that they shouldn't become ungrateful, nor should they use their force against us!" Sebastian exclaimed in a