"Grandpa, I—""That's enough. Remember what I say. If you dare provoke the Lucoxes again, you can take full responsibility for it. Don't drag the family down with you!" Clayton cut off Jace's protests and hung up right after that.The handsome man sitting opposite Jace watched as he sat there in a daze, still holding his phone up to his ear. He frowned and asked, "What's the matter, Mr. Beckard? It's not going to affect our plan, is it?"Jace shook his head vigorously, as if he had just woken abruptly from a dream. He looked rather awkward as he laughed and said, "N-Nothing."Although he was acting as if nothing was wrong, he was inwardly worried.Belinda had probably found out about everything! Jace knew very well that Belinda had given Sebastian the two sacred weapons, but he had still laid a trap for Sebastian in secret. It had been a reckless move!Luckily, Belinda hadn't come straight to him. Otherwise, he might not even be able to leave Steinberg alive."Mr. Beckard, why
"Since you've come back to your hometown in glory, you'll need a good car to keep up appearances," Jace said.He added, "I'll also move Brandon back to Steinberg. He'll be managing the affairs of Bashmore Group in Steinberg. He'll introduce a skilled expert to you to be your personal bodyguard. "If anything unexpected happens, he'll be able to protect you. He can deal with anything, from an average thug to a famous assassin." The expert Jace was referring to was Elton.Jace wasn't about to give up on Elton so easily. If he could let Elton stay with Ryder, he could protect the latter's safety while also being able to kill him at any time!As for Brandon, he had also once been classmates with Ryder and Jace. After returning to the country, he started working for Jace, and he was extremely loyal.Jace was planning to leave him in Steinberg to help Ryder, but also as a precaution.Jace and Ryder continued their discussions for a while until Jace finally clapped a few times. Befo
When Whitney heard what Crystal had said, she suddenly stopped and turned back to her, saying, "For my own good?"Don't you know that Sebastian secretly solved every challenge Frostwave Corporation has met over the past few years? Fergus, whom you think so highly of, was just coveting the Sutton family fortune!"Not only that, Mabel was bribed by Fergus to change the medicine that Sebastian left for me. The two of them almost killed me twice."Even the kidnapping that happened a few days ago was related to Fergus. If he hadn't given my phone number to the people who belong to the Killers, would I have been deceived into going to Westfore Street?"Is that how you do things for my good?" Whitney's words seemed to pierce Crystal's heart like a sharp sword. If she hadn't said it herself, Crystal would never have believed, even in her wildest dreams, that Fergus was such a despicable person.She would never have believed that Fergus and Mabel would almost kill Whitney.Whitney was t
"It costs less than 30 million. It can't compare to my love for you, Grandma!" Ryder said, smiling.Everyone took in a sharp breath. If he could afford to give a gift that cost so much, Ryder must really have made his fortune overseas!"Good, good. My grandson is someone who really shows his gratitude and love. Come in and let me look at you properly!"With her left hand now adorned with the bracelet, Edna reached out to take Ryder's hand to walk inside. Ryder smiled and stopped her. "Grandma, wait. Let me introduce you to these esteemed guests!" He turned and pointed at the two young men behind him. "This is Brandon Cullen, the person in charge of the Steinberg branch for Bashmore Group. And this is Jayden Stallone, the heir of the Stallones. He's from the most prestigious family in Sunway."Brandon alone would be enough to astonish Edna. She would never have expected the heir of the Sunway Stallones to come to Sutton Manor. She stood there in shock, unsure of what to say.Th
"Grandma, is this Whitney?" Ryder asked, looking Whitney up and down.Edna nodded and said to Whitney, "Whitney, come and meet your cousin. Greet him properly."Edna showed off the diamond bracelet on her wrist as she spoke, looking proud. For the past three years, Frostwave Corporation's business had improved under the management of Sebastian and Whitney, but they had never bought Edna such an expensive gift.It was clearly a rebuke on Edna's part, as well as a challenge for Whitney.Before Ryder's return to the Suttons, Whitney had been their only hope. Now, things were different. Ryder was a star in the business world, and his connections were far better than Whitney's. Edna was no longer bothering to hide the fact that she preferred to have a male in charge."My cousin?" Whitney said lightly as she looked at Ryder with cold, impassive eyes. She asked, "Grandma, why don't I remember having a cousin?"Edna's expression turned dark at once. She said reproachfully, "Whitney,
As soon as Brandon and Jayden finished speaking, Whitney began looking grim.She had been cautious in developing the company over the past few years, and she was very careful with every single penny of the company's money that she spent. As a result, the rest of the Suttons hadn't benefited at all from the company, apart from a meager sum of dividends that they received each year.In the face of a collaborative agreement that was worth several hundred million, none of the Suttons would stand up for Whitney. In fact, they could even oppose her.Ryder had obviously come prepared, and the two contracts were enough to make the rest of the Suttons stand on his side, including Edna.It was just as Whitney expected. Before Edna could speak, a middle-aged man named Morty Sutton, who was from a branch of the Sutton family, stood up in a hurry. "Don't worry, gentlemen. Whitney may be the current CEO of Frostwave Corporation, but Madam Edna will make the final decision. Isn't that right?"
"Mabel!" Whitney turned an icy gaze on her and said in a frosty voice, "You're no longer a staff of Frostwave Corporation. You have no right to speak here!"Mabel laughed coldly and walked over to Ryder. She said triumphantly, "I'm sorry, Ms. Sutton! I'm Mr. Sutton's assistant now, and I represent him, not Frostwave Corporation!""Mabel, we've always treated you well. How could you turn on us at this time?" Crystal shrieked, looking agitated. "Treat me well?" Mabel tucked her silky hair behind her ear and crossed her arms as she scoffed, "How could you have the audacity to say that?"Your daughter was deceived by Fergus, but instead of reflecting on herself, she pushed all the responsibility to me and kicked me out of Frostwave Corporation. Is that what you call treating me well?"If it wasn't for the fact that Mr. Sutton acknowledged me, I would probably be out begging on the streets right now!" Mabel said. She recounted how Fergus had schemed against Whitney and how he had ta
"Ryder, how dare you say that to Winnie? I'll beat you up!"Dante was furious to see Whitney barely hanging on to life. Even if he couldn't replace her as the CEO of Frostwave Corporation, he didn't want Ryder to take everything that Whitney had worked so hard for over the past three years.Dante shot up and raised his fist to punch Ryder in the face.Before Dante's fist could reach Ryder, a figure suddenly stood in front of him. There was a thump as he landed a punch on Dante's chest.Dante felt as if he had been run over by a speeding train. He flew backward helplessly and fell to the ground with a heavy thump.He struggled to get up, and he spat out blood.Crystal burst into tears when she saw that Whitney had been triggered into a flare-up while Dante had been beaten up so badly that he was coughing up blood.She went to help Dante up while staring hatefully at Edna. She said, "Edna, what crime has our family committed? Why are you doing this to us? If anything happens to my
Sebastian threw his head back in laughter. He strode forward, standing in the center of the hall, and said coldly. "Ungrateful? How could you have the audacity to say such a thing?"Even if I'm surrounded by enemies, you Ballards can forget about making me submit! It's just death, after all. If I even blink, then I won't call myself a man!"Everyone there stared at Sebastian."How dare that brat be so cocky? If he's not punished, it'll be a disgrace to our family rules!""He should be given the death penalty!""It'll be a disaster if we just let him be, and it'll only bring trouble for our family. Please give the order, and we'll kill him at once!"The entire hall was in an uproar. Even Preston, who had been speaking up for Sebastian and Samson, sighed in resignation.Since Sebastian had already made his stance clear, Preston couldn't help even if he wanted to.Sebastian had roused the anger of everyone there, and Arnaud had closed his eyes and wasn't saying anything. He was cl
Sebastian was just about to step forward when Samson hastily waved a hand at him and said, "Sebastian, the grudges of the Ballard family from over ten years ago have nothing to do with you. Don't get involved!""But—"Sebastian's gaze sharpened as he turned to look at Milton. There was an icy glint in his eyes. Samson shook his head slightly at Sebastian. The Ballard Estate had at least ten experts at the eighth level of the Eldoria realm. At Sebastian's current level, trying to fight them would only bring him big trouble."Sebastian, one must learn how to adapt to the situation," Samson whispered into his ear using voice projection. "Today, I will exchange my legs for your and Whitney's freedom. Think of it as a payment for what I owe you and your mother."Sebastian clenched his fists tightly. He hated himself for being too weak. He couldn't even protect his own family in a place like the Ballard Estate, where many experts were gathered.However, he would never allow anyone to
"Do you accept it, Samson?" Arnaud asked harshly when he saw that Preston hadn't said anything else. He turned to look directly at Samson.Samson smiled bitterly and turned to look at Sebastian before raising his head to look at Arnaud, who was sitting high above them. He said, "Uncle Arnaud, I was the reason for everything that happened. I wish to ask you not to trouble Sebastian.""What are you talking about?" Preston was agitated. He stood up again and yelled, "There must still be an investigation about who was right and who was wrong. Why should they break your legs?"As he spoke, his eyes blazed with fury. He looked at the thin old man and said furiously, "Milton, you old bastard! How can you be so shameless at your age? Tell me! Did you embellish the story to Arnaud?""Uncle Preston!" Samson stopped him quickly and sighed slightly. "Forget it. It's my fault for bringing such huge trouble upon our family back then."I admit that I have let our family down. Since imprisoning m
As the man in the black robe yelled, the entire hall fell silent at once. The thin old man threw the black-robed old man a disgruntled look, but he returned obediently to his seat.Once the noise had died down, Preston stepped forward and swept an icy gaze over the crowd who were present. "You call yourself the elders of the family?"The monument of our ancestral dragon is right in front of you. How could you bully two young members of the family in front of it? Don't you feel any shame?"Besides, how dare you speak before Arnaud does?"After the harsh scolding they received from Preston, no one in the crowd dared to protest. Sebastian nodded involuntarily. It appeared that Preston did have influence in the Ballard family. At least no one had interrupted his scolding, including Arnaud and the man in the black robe.Preston huffed angrily and bowed to Arnaud, who sat in the middle. "Arnaud, I've brought Samson and Sebastian!"Preston went over to the chair next to the black-robe
"Sebastian, I won't be going in. Remember, don't say anything without being spoken to, and don't be impulsive!" Andreas said softly in Sebastian's ear when they reached the door to the hall. He then walked over to the crowd, which was packed on both sides of the hall.Samson and Preston walked into the hall without any change in expression. Sebastian hesitated for a moment before hurrying to catch up.When they reached the entrance, the two old men reached out to stop them and said to Preston, who was in the lead, "Preston, I'm afraid that it wouldn't be a good idea for you to go in. Everyone knows that you're biased toward Samson's family. If you get into an argument with Arnaud, then—""Nonsense!" Preston yelled furiously. He spoke in a menacing tone to the two old men. "Don't try those tricks with me. Today, I'm going to be the voice of reason. Who among you can do anything to me?"With that, he pushed them aside and strode into the hall.The two old men gazed after his ret
The Ballard Estate's resources were unfathomable as it was. Could Isabella's family be even more powerful than theirs?Sebastian clearly remembered that both he and Samson were under the Sacred Medicine Society. They even had the same mentor.The Sacred Medicine Society was above all the other mystic martial arts sects. Even the sect leaders of the Nine Sects were very respectful toward his mentor.If Samson really was from the same sect as Sebastian, then his mentor had clearly been unable to save him. Wouldn't that mean that the Sacred Medicine Society was no match for the Ballards?Wouldn't that mean that Isabella's family was an even greater entity?"If my mother's family is really that powerful, why couldn't they rescue my father? There would also be no reason to let me join the Sacred Medicine Society either, right?" Sebastian asked probingly. It seemed as if Andreas had never even thought about such questions. He smiled and shook his head. "You probably don't know about a
As they stepped out of the courtyard gate, Samson suddenly turned and lowered his voice as he said to Sebastian, "I didn't treat you and your mother well. Please don't hold it against me."Sebastian felt even more conflicted. After everything he had been through, he knew very well that there were times when one really had no choice. When Samson saw that Sebastian was looking at him with a conflicted expression, he patted him on the shoulder and gave him a warm smile. Then he took a token from Preston and walked out of the yard.They followed Preston as he walked toward the east, where there was a majestic-looking building."Why are you helping me?" Sebastian suddenly turned and asked Andreas in a low voice. Andreas glanced at him and gave him a long, cryptic smile. "Do you think I'm helping you? I'm helping myself while doing so!""Oh?" Sebastian looked at Andreas in confusion, his brow knitted. Even Rexton had mentioned that Andreas was in Arnaud's favor. Why would he need t
When Rexton and the others had gone, Preston turned to look at Samson and said irritatedly, "You little rascal. Would I ever hurt you?"Besides, you've been here in isolation for ten years. Why hasn't your temper changed at all? Couldn't you show me some respect in front of all those people?"Samson glanced at Preston but didn't answer.Preston huffed and ignored him. He turned and looked Sebastian up and down instead."Hey, kiddo. Over ten years have passed in just the blink of an eye. You've probably forgotten me. I even gave you candy back then! Come over here and call me Great Uncle Preston!"Sebastian looked at him in surprise. It was true that he didn't have much of an impression of what had happened over ten years ago. However, he could tell from what Preston had said and done that his attitude toward Sebastian's family was completely different from Rexton and the others.Beside Sebastian, Andreas kept shooting him meaningful looks. Sebastian finally smiled and said, "Hell
Although the old man looked as if he was over 60 years old, his expression was sharp and lively, and his skin was smooth as a baby's. It gave him a youthful air.Even the severely injured apprentices all scrambled up from the ground when they saw him. They hastily bowed and said, "Greetings, Great Uncle Preston!"Even Rexton had no choice but to suppress his anger. He bowed sullenly to the old man and said, "Greetings, Uncle Preston."Preston Ballard glanced at Rexton and turned to shout angrily at the apprentices, "If I hadn't come, were you planning to tear the Ballard Estate apart? Look at all of you! Get out of here right now!"Despite the scolding they had been subjected to, none of them dared to protest. They all lowered their heads and slunk out of the yard. Preston glared angrily at them as they went and snorted. "What an embarrassment to the family!"Then he smiled slightly and looked at Samson and Sebastian as he asked, "Samson, do you have anything to say?"Samson lo