Alexandre Leite had been relentlessly pursuing Elias Dorneles, but his efforts were like a one-sided love-passionate yet unreciprocated.
Today, a rare opportunity to impress Elias presented itself, and Alexandre wasn’t about to let it slip by.
“Heh!” Chris sneered coldly. “You expect me to kneel and apologize? Dream on! And this so-called ‘Holy Maiden’? To someone who doesn’t know better, she might as well be a prostitute.”
“Impudent!”
Alexandre was instantly enraged.
To him, Chris’s words were not merely an insult to Elias Dorneles but a desecration of the goddess he held in his heart.
Elias, too, was furious. As the Holy Maiden of the Flower Clan, she had always been regarded as an untouchable figure, pursued by countless admirers.
But today, Chris dared to demean her like this, igniting a fury she could no longer contain.
Seeing Elias’s anger, Alexandre, as her self-appointed protector, felt it was his duty to respond.
“You insolent fool! How dare you insult the Holy Maiden? You deserve death!”
With a shout, Alexandre drew his sword and lunged at Chris with a fierce strike.
Alexandre moved with blinding speed, appearing in front of Chris in the blink of an eye.
Realizing the ferocity of the attack, Chris quickly dodged.
Thud!
Chris wasn’t fast enough. Alexandre’s sword pierced his shoulder.
If not for Chris’s swift reaction, the blade would have gone straight through his throat.
Clutching his injured shoulder, Chris looked up, his expression grim.
He hadn’t anticipated Alexandre’s strength to be so overwhelming.
At his current Crescendence level, he was no match for this opponent.
Was this the true power of an Aetherbinding cultivator?
Alexandre, seeing Chris survive his strike, raised an eyebrow in mild surprise.
“I didn’t expect a mere cultivator like you to dodge my attack. It seems I underestimated you. But for daring to insult my goddess, you must die today!”
As he finished speaking, a chilling killing intent emanated from Alexandre.
Once more, he lunged at Chris, his sword moving even faster than before.
The speed was beyond what Chris could evade.
Just as Alexandre’s blade was about to pierce Chris’s throat, a sudden shout rang out.
“Alexandre Leite, stop!”
Hearing this, Alexandre froze mid-strike.
He turned, puzzled, to look at Elias Dorneles.
To Alexandre, Chris’s desecration of Elias warranted death. Why would she stop him at such a critical moment?
Elias took a deep breath and said, “Alexandre, remember, this is the Jefferson family’s territory. Killing someone here will provoke their ire.”
Alexandre frowned.
He was wary of the Jefferson family, Amerosia’s most powerful clan. Though their influence had waned in recent years, they were still a force to be reckoned with.
If Alexandre killed Chris here, it would undoubtedly offend the Jefferson family.
For a mere cultivator, it wasn’t worth risking their wrath.
Reluctantly, Alexandre withdrew his sword and sneered at Chris.
“You’re lucky today, boy. I’ll spare you for now. But if I see you again, I won’t hold back!”
Elias spoke coldly, “Let’s go, Alexandre. There’s no need to waste time on a useless Soulseed like him.”
With that, Elias and Alexandre turned and walked away.
Chris watched their retreating figures, his face dark with rage.
As a Primus, this was the first time he had ever suffered such humiliation.
Gritting his teeth, he muttered to himself, “Elias Dorneles, Alexandre Leite-I’ll remember this. Don’t think your status as Aetherbinding cultivators makes you untouchable. One day, I’ll make you kneel at my feet and repay today’s humiliation a hundredfold!”
As he spoke, a terrifying killing intent radiated from him.
The humiliation Chris endured today was unprecedented.
For the first time, he felt powerless in the face of Elias and Alexandre.
So this was the strength of Aetherbinding cultivators. Compared to them, his abilities were like those of an ant.
But Chris was not one to yield.
Clenching his fists, he silently vowed to himself that he would grow stronger-stronger than any Aetherbinding cultivator.
Esther approached him, her face filled with concern. “Are you alright, my love?”
Chris shook his head. “I’m fine, Esther.”
Seeing him suffer such humiliation, Esther’s eyes reddened, and tears began to fall.
She regretted coming to the Jefferson family. If they hadn’t come here, Chris wouldn’t have been humiliated like this.
Before long, news of the confrontation between Chris, Elias, and Alexandre spread throughout the Jefferson family.
In the grand hall of the Jefferson estate, Rafael Jefferson sat in his chair, his face dark with anger.
“Who is this Chris? How dare he offend Alexandre Leite and Elias Dorneles? Does he have a death wish?”
To Rafael, Chris was nothing more than a useless Soulseed-a complete waste of space.
In contrast, Alexandre and Elias were esteemed guests of the Jefferson family.
For a mere nobody to offend such prominent figures was utterly foolish.
With a furious shout, Rafael commanded, “Guards! Throw Chris into the death prison and execute him publicly!”
“Wait!”
A voice interrupted. It was Brian Jefferson.
Rafael turned to him, puzzled. “Why wait? Are you telling me we can’t kill Chris? He’s just a branch family son-in-law-he doesn’t even carry the Jefferson bloodline. Killing him would mean nothing.”
Brian’s expression was grave. “We can’t kill him.”
Rafael frowned. “Why not? He’s a useless Soulseed. What’s stopping us?”
To Rafael, a Soulseed was no different from trash. Killing Chris would be as insignificant as squashing an insect.
Brian sighed bitterly. “Chris is Archer Wintersong’s disciple.”
“What?”
Rafael’s face twisted in shock.
“Chris is Archer Wintersong’s disciple?”
The name Archer Wintersong sent a chill down Rafael’s spine.
For the Jefferson family, Archer Wintersong was a nightmare.
Years ago, a direct descendant of the Jefferson family had offended Archer Wintersong. The result? Archer Wintersong hunted them down relentlessly, even storming the Jefferson estate.
Despite Rafael and Brian joining forces to stop him, they were powerless against Archer Wintersong.
In the end, Archer killed the Jefferson descendant and left unscathed.
That incident remained one of the Jefferson family’s greatest shames.
Brian looked at Rafael and said solemnly, “Master Moonstone, you know Archer Wintersong’s temperament. If we kill Chris, Archer will come for us. When that happens, he’ll turn the entire Jefferson family upside down.”
Rafael took a deep breath and nodded grimly. “You’re right. Chris cannot be killed. Not only must we spare him, but we also have to protect him. If anything happens to him here, we won’t be able to withstand Archer Wintersong’s wrath.”