Chapter 139: Alone

"Don’t worry... I won’t just kill you," the old man said, his voice echoing in the pitch-black room. "This life won’t be wasted. I will give you a proper lesson first."

Terrence couldn’t help but shake his head in the dark. Whatever speech the old man was preparing, he had zero interest in hearing it.

"A lesson from you? Oh, please... I can’t wait to watch you disappear."

The old man simply smirked, unable to believe that Terrence could be this arrogant despite having no real life experience. The boy possessed barely a fraction of the decades he had spent mastering combat.

"Alright then... let’s start."

The old man didn’t rush. Instead, he walked slowly across the dark space toward Terrence, believing his grand-nephew was standing there completely blind and helpless.

Having extinguished all the candles, the old elder was convinced he held the absolute upper hand.

"Where are you...?" Terrence called out, faking a slight tremor in his voice as a fake chill rushed through his skin.

He hated playing dumb, but seeing how careless the old man was acting—behaving as if the victory was already in his pocket—Terrence forced himself to hold back his attack until the perfect moment.

The old man then floated off the ground, completely erasing his physical presence once more. To anyone else, he would have vanished into thin air, but Terrence could see him with absolute clarity through Noir’s vision. Only the old man’s aura had faded, not his physical body.

’Not that I need to sense your aura anyway...’ Terrence thought coldly.

The old man drifted silently until he stopped directly in front of Terrence. He raised his right index finger, condensing a lethal point of energy at the tip. He pointed it straight at Terrence’s throat, aiming to end the boy’s life in a single strike.

’In this world, there is no such thing as guaranteed success,’ the old man thought, feeling a faint trace of pity. ’Even if you have grown remarkably stronger, there are always people far stronger than you.’

The old elder let out a soft sigh and released the condensed energy blast.

SWISH!

In the split second before the ray pierced his skin, Terrence tilted his head just an inch to the side, letting the beam scorch past his ear. Before the old man could even register the dodge, Terrence reached out and clamped his hand tightly around the old elder’s raised finger.

Catching him completely off guard, Terrence thrust his opposite arm forward like a spear. The materialized Dark Slash wrapped around his arm like a lethal blade, plunging straight into the old man’s chest.

PUCHI!

The old man coughed violently, a spray of hot blood bursting from his mouth as he felt the dark energy tear through his flesh and bone.

The counterattack was so sudden and horrific that he couldn’t form a single word. His eyes bulged in absolute disbelief.

Terrence ripped his arm back out, leaving a gaping, fatal hole in the chest of the grandfather he had never once considered family.

Every member of this clan was identical in their cold ruthless nature, and because of that, Terrence felt not a single shred of remorse executing his plan.

He was going to end the Lee Family today, no matter the cost.

"H-How..." the old man gasped out, his knees buckling.

Terrence completely ignored the raspy, dying whisper, shoving the old elder’s chest away. The body collapsed hard onto the marble, pooling in its own blood as Terrence stepped over it and pressed forward.

If no other elders were guarding the Grand Hall, then the only person left to face was sitting in the Patriarch’s chamber.

Terrence’s eyes felt incredibly heavy and exhausted. He desperately wanted to bring this bloodbath to an end. The physical and mental toll of fighting Nerissa, the Five Generals, and now a high elder was crashing down on him all at once. He hadn’t even fully recovered from his earlier life-or-death duel with Irad.

This entire day had been packed with non-stop combat and near-death experiences.

However, he didn’t regret a single step he had taken.

Passing through the dark hall of the Elder Council, Terrence stepped into a massive, grand chamber stretching over fifty meters toward a high throne at the far end.

It was his very first time standing in this place. Giant stone columns lined the sides of the hall, adorned with golden decorations gathered from across the world.

Terrence ignored the unfamiliar luxury, his boots tapping softly against the long red carpet as he marched toward the end of the hall, where a single person sat waiting for him.

"Are you Terrence?"

A young man who appeared to be roughly the exact same age as Terrence spoke up. However, the vibe he radiated was entirely different from anyone Terrence had ever encountered.

The young man looked remarkably sleek, his dark hair neatly combed back. He wore high-tech tactical gear with a shortened collar, crafted from dark, expensive leather harvested from high-tier beasts.

He possessed an overwhelming, magnetic charisma, but underneath his youthful appearance, his power level felt ancient and absurdly high.

Terrence could feel the oppressive aura crushing the air around them, and his instincts warned him that this pressure was dangerously real.

"Are you the family head?" Terrence asked, stopping a few paces before the wide staircase leading up to the throne platform.

Sitting with one leg crossed casually over the other, the young man leaned to the side, resting his elbow on the thick armrest of the grandiose dark-and-gold throne. His eyes locked onto Terrence lazily.

"I certainly am. So, are you here to fight me?"

Terrence smirked faintly, trying his best to shake off the unsettling sensation in his chest. For the first time since entering the estate, he felt a genuine flicker of fear—not fear for his life, but a deep dread of the unknown.

This was his first time seeing the Patriarch in person, and he had never expected him to look like a teenager. The current patriarch hadn’t been replaced in decades; Terrence was positive of that fact.

’Why does he look so young?’ Terrence thought rapidly, his mind racing. ’The Patriarch has been ruling this family for almost twenty years. It makes zero sense for him to look like he’s eighteen.’

"Are you really the patriarch?" Terrence demanded, his voice hardening.

The young man on the throne scoffed softly.

"For someone who barged in here with such blatant hostility toward me and my family, you certainly want to double-check my identity."

The young man’s chilling voice echoed through the hall. He reached up with his left hand, pulling down the high collar of his tactical jacket just a fraction.

Engraved directly onto his collarbone was a glowing Fire Symbol insignia, radiating a brilliant, intense red light.

It was the Spell of Affirmation—the absolute, unforgeable proof that he was the true Patriarch of the Lee Family.

Terrence bit his lip, a storm of complex emotions swirling inside him. He drew a deep, steadying breath and raised his stance.

"I have come here to kill you," Terrence declared coldly.

With a series of bright flashes, one beast after another materialized out of his Beast Sanctuary, filling the grand chamber with their dangerous, violent auras.