Thud!
A head rolled to the ground.
Kevin Frost, Leonard Frost’s second son, was killed by Chris.
“Master Kevin is dead!”
“Master Kevin is dead!”
“Master Kevin is dead!”
Kevin Frost’s death completely shattered the morale of the Frost family. Their forces finally broke and began to flee in a frenzy.
Chris stood his ground, making no effort to pursue them. For him, killing Kevin Frost was enough.
When news of Kevin’s death reached the Frost family estate, the entire household fell into a stunned silence.
Everyone’s mouths hung open, unable to utter a word. Kevin Frost was dead? How could that be possible?
“Chris! Chris! Chris!”
Leonard Frost screamed the name three times, then suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed unconscious.
Chaos erupted across the Frost family.
No one had anticipated that even with all their forces combined, the Frost family would fail to kill Chris. Not only had they failed, but the cost was catastrophic.
Thousands of their cultivators had fallen in battle, and even Kevin Frost had perished at Chris’s hands. It was a devastating blow to the Frost family.
Meanwhile, at the Sterling family estate…
Hanh Sterling, the family patriarch, sat frozen in his chair.
“What did you just say? Kevin Frost is dead? The Frost family is finished? And all the cultivators we sent were completely wiped out?”
The weight of the news left Hanh Sterling speechless for a long time.
How could this have happened? How could this have possibly happened?
Even with the combined might of the Frost and Sterling families, they couldn’t kill Chris. What kind of monster was he?
Enraged, Hanh Sterling cursed, “The Frost family is utterly useless! Not only did they fail to kill Chris, but they dragged my Sterling family into this disaster. Over a thousand of our cultivators are dead because of them! Damn it! Damn it all!”
As Hanh Sterling fumed, the members of the Sterling family stood with their heads bowed, too scared to utter a word.
Taking a deep breath, Hanh Sterling surveyed the room and announced, “Pass down my orders: the Sterling family will cease all acts of retaliation against Chris! The Frost family is finished, and there’s no reason for us to go down with them! Chris is far too powerful-we cannot afford to make him our enemy!”
The order was quickly disseminated.
The Sterling family officially ended their vendetta against Chris. They had admitted defeat.
—
By the next morning, the news had spread across all of Middleton.
The Frost and Sterling families had joined forces to take on Chris-only to suffer devastating losses. The Frost family had lost thousands of cultivators, and their young master, Kevin Frost, was slain. The Sterling family, after losing over a thousand of their own, had publicly declared they would no longer pursue vengeance.
The entire city was in an uproar.
For both the Frost and Sterling families, this was their worst defeat in a century. The Frost family, in particular, had suffered irreparable damage-not only losing countless members but also the death of Kevin Frost, their future heir.
This left the Frost family’s influence in Middleton severely diminished. Their place among the city’s top ten noble families was now uncertain.
At the same time, Chris’s name reverberated through Middleton once again.
He had become a legend.
The so-called “Four Young Masters of Middleton” were now a laughingstock in comparison to Chris. Two of them had already been crushed by him-one dead, the other gravely injured.
Chris’s fame in Middleton now rivaled that of Caspian, the great marshal who had earned his title through a lifetime of military conquests.
But Chris? He had single-handedly brought the Frost and Sterling families to their knees.
—
As Middleton buzzed with the news, Chris made his way to Middleton’s First Hospital.
He had changed into a fresh set of clothes; his previous outfit was completely soaked in blood.
His eyes were red and weary-he hadn’t slept all night.
Walking into the hospital room, Chris found James sitting alone by Candace’s bedside.
When James saw Chris enter, he immediately stood up and asked urgently, “Chris, you’re here! I heard about what happened last night-you fought both the Frost and Sterling families? What’s going on?”
News of Chris’s battle had already spread across Middleton. As the young master of the Vance family, James was well aware of the events.
Chris ignored James’s question and asked instead, “How is Candace doing?”
To Chris, the Frost and Sterling families were of no importance. Nothing mattered more than Candace’s condition.
James sighed heavily. “This morning, the doctors conducted another evaluation. They concluded that if she doesn’t wake up soon, she may fall into a permanent vegetative state.”
Hearing this, Chris’s heart twisted in pain.
He looked at James, his face full of guilt. “It’s my fault. I’m sorry… If it weren’t for me, Candace wouldn’t be like this. This is all my fault.”
Chris’s eyes began to redden again as he spoke.
James tried to console him. “Chris, don’t blame yourself too much. It’s not entirely your fault. The fact that she shielded you from that bullet proves how much she cares about you. She didn’t want to see you hurt. If she could see you now, she’d feel even worse knowing you’re blaming yourself.”
Hearing this, Chris forced himself to suppress his grief.
It was precisely because of Candace’s sacrifice that Chris felt so indebted to her.
He would have preferred that Light Sin’s bullet had struck him instead. That way, he wouldn’t feel such overwhelming guilt toward Candace.
Grinding his teeth, Chris declared, “No matter what, I will find a way to wake Candace up.”
James looked at him and said, “Chris, you know my cousin has always liked you. But… you already have a wife.”
James trailed off, unable to finish.
He knew Chris would never abandon his wife, Esther, for Candace.
Having feelings for another woman while already married-it was cruel to Candace.
As Candace’s cousin, James felt a deep sadness seeing her in this state.
Chris walked closer to Candace’s bed and stared at her intently. “James,” he said firmly, “I can make you one promise: no matter what happens, whether she wakes up or not, I will take care of Candace for the rest of my life. I won’t let anything hurt her again.”
Though Chris couldn’t promise to marry Candace, this was the greatest vow he could make to her.
James sighed softly. “That’s all we can hope for now.”
He knew it wasn’t realistic to demand that Chris marry Candace.
And besides, in her current condition, marriage was impossible.