94: Instant kill

When Allen's feet truly stepped onto the neatly paved stone pier of Star Sea Port, the greedy light in his eyes almost overflowed.

The pier was busy and orderly; porters shouted work chants, the cries of vendors rose and fell, and in the distance, the market was teeming with people. There were even sturdy warehouses and workshops beginning to take shape... All this prosperity far exceeded his expectations, and it made the desire to "replace him" burn even more fiercely in his heart.

"This is my city, my territory!" he roared in his heart, as if he could already see the scene of himself standing on the castle terrace, receiving the worship of the masses.

This intense possessiveness made him become critical and arrogant toward every detail before his eyes.

A port guard captain cautiously stepped forward to verify his identity and ask the purpose of his visit according to procedure.

Allen, however, did not even look at the other party, barking commandingly: "Base thing! Don't you see this is the crest of the House of Earl Alistair? I am your Lord's elder brother, Lord Allen Alistair! Where is Linn? Why hasn't he come to greet me in person? Has he forgotten the etiquette and the hierarchy of Bloodline of the Family just because he just became a Viscount?!"

The guard captain's expression changed slightly, but he was well-trained and simply saluted neither humbly nor arrogantly: "Forgive me, Lord, the Lord is busy with government affairs. He has received the notification and must be on his way. Please wait a moment, we have prepared a place for you to rest." He felt some resentment in his heart, but since the other party was from the Lord's Family, he dared not offend him easily.

Allen became increasingly impatient, feeling that this was Linn deliberately slighting him. Just as he was about to continue his outburst, a calm and unhurried sound of footsteps approached.

Linn, accompanied by a group of people, appeared at the entrance of the pier. Beside him were Clay, Ocean, and the slightly cold-faced Elise.

Linn's expression was calm, even carrying a faint, inscrutable smile, as he walked with steady steps. He had long ago instructed Clay and Ocean to restrain their Aura; at this moment, they looked just like two rather capable ordinary guards, and Ocean had completely reined in that Earth Rank might.

Seeing Linn appear, Allen immediately directed his anger and desire to perform toward the main subject. He looked Linn up and down, jealousy flashing in his eyes. Linn's bearing was far stronger than the silent, forbearing youth in his memories; that composure even made him feel a trace of discomfort. But he immediately suppressed it with even greater arrogance.

"Yo, my dear brother, Linn." Allen drawled, his face wearing a hypocritical smile full of superiority. "Oh, no, should I call you Viscount Linn now? That's incredible, after leaving home for a few years, even a wild pheasant can fly onto a branch?" The sarcasm and humiliation in his words were undisguised, as if it were still the time back in the Earl's castle when he could bully that half-elf brother at will.

Gray Shadow and Blood Blade stood calmly behind Allen, their gazes quickly sweeping over Linn and his entourage. Clay and Ocean had restrained their Aura, so to them, they looked like two guards with decent physiques, nothing to worry about. Although Elise was young and beautiful, her mage robes revealed her identity. In the eyes of Allen and the others, such a young mage had limited strength and was more likely a decoration or a lover. This caused them to misjudge the "feasibility" of Allen's "quick victory" plan.

Facing this familiar humiliation, Linn felt no waves in his heart, even wanting to laugh a little. Once, these words could make him feel stinging pain and humiliation; now, listening to them, he only felt they were childish and ridiculous. He watched Allen's high-and-mighty, self-righteous appearance, as if watching a low-quality farce.

"Allen 'Second Brother,' you've worked hard coming from so far away." Linn's tone was flat, revealing no joy or anger. "Star Sea Territory has complex affairs, so I failed to welcome you from afar. I wonder if Father and the Family are doing well?"

Seeing that Linn seemed to be "submissive," Allen became even more smug, thinking the other party was still that weak brother who could be manipulated at will. He stepped forward, speaking in an almost patronizing tone: "The Family is doing very well, don't bother worrying about it. It's you, Linn, look at this territory of yours. It's not bad to have made something of it, but managing such a big mess, you... well, with your shallow experience, I'm afraid you're not up to the task, right? If you ask me, you'd better just be straightforward and hand over this burden of Viscount, this right to rule the territory, to someone more suitable. Like me. As an elder brother and one of the legitimate heirs of the Family, helping you manage it is justifiable. It's good for the Family, and good for you, so you don't end up unable to hold on one day, causing a scene and embarrassing the Iris Family!"

These words were a naked reveal of his daggers, not even bothering with basic concealment. Clay's eyes instantly turned as cold as knives, Ocean's brows furrowed slightly, and Elise was so angry her cheeks flushed red. However, with an extremely slight glance, Linn stopped their imminent actions. He continued to look at Allen calmly, his eyes so deep that it made Allen inexplicably feel a palpitation.

Seeing Linn silent, Allen thought he had been cowed by his Aura, or was stunned by this "proposal." His gaze turned to Elise, who was outstanding in appearance and unique in temperament beside Linn, and a lecherous and predatory light instantly flashed in his eyes.

"Who is this beautiful Young Miss?" Allen curled his lips into a malicious smile, his gaze scanning Elise unscrupulously. "My brother is quite lucky to find such a beauty on this desolate island. What future does Young Miss have following my brother? Why not come back to the Alistair territory with me? I guarantee to give you a better life and a more noble status..."

"Presumptuous!" Elise was trembling with anger, her mage robes fluttering without wind, and magic power faintly fluctuating.

The last trace of a faint smile on Linn's face vanished. He said nothing, just giving Clay an extremely slight glance.

"Slap!!" A crisp, loud sound of a slap suddenly rang out on the pier, even drowning out the surrounding noise!

No one saw how Clay moved; it was as if a blurred shadow had flashed by, and Allen had already taken a solid slap to the face. The immense force sent him staggering, half of his cheek swelling up at a speed visible to the naked eye, and a trace of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

Allen was stunned, his ears ringing, and the burning pain on his face combined with an unprecedented sense of humiliation made him instantly furious: "You... you dare hit me?! Base dog thing! Gray Shadow! Blood Blade! Kill him for me! Kill this base slave who dared to lay a hand on me!!"

Gray Shadow and Blood Blade were also shocked and angry at the same time. They did not expect that an "ordinary guard" would dare to directly strike at Allen, and with such speed! Both instantly entered combat mode, Killing Intent rising, pouncing on Clay from left and right like ghosts! A poisoned short blade slid out of Gray Shadow's hand, stabbing straight at Clay's vitals, while Blood Blade swung a heavy blood-colored broadsword, hacking toward Clay's head with a shrill whistling sound! The High Gold Rank Dou Qi fluctuations were no longer concealed, erupting instantly!

This sudden turn of events left the other guards on the pier and the people in the distance stunned.

However, facing the deadly combined attack of two High Gold Rank assassins, Clay did not even fully draw his sword.

Because someone was faster than him.

Ocean, who had been standing silently by Linn's side, seemingly just a tall attendant, moved.

There was no earth-shattering Aura explosion, no fancy Moves. He just took a half-step forward seemingly casually, the seemingly ordinary spear in his hand already raised, thrusting forward.

This thrust was faster than vision could capture, simple as if he were just handing over an object.

"Puchi!" A soft sound, like a hot knife cutting into butter.

Blood Blade's burly body, wrapped in violent blood-colored Dou Qi, suddenly froze in mid-air. The grin on his face solidified, his eyes filled with extreme disbelief and confusion. He slowly lowered his head to look at his chest; Ocean's spear tip had pierced through his back at some point, the spear body not even stained with a trace of blood, only the tip dripping with a drop of crimson.

Ocean flicked his wrist, and the spear was withdrawn.

Blood Blade's chest then burst into a spray of blood, the luster in his eyes rapidly fading, his heavy body collapsing softly onto the stone floor of the pier as if all his bones had been removed, making a dull thud. A High Gold Rank powerhouse was actually killed in one hit!

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

All sound on the pier disappeared, only the sea breeze continued to blow.

Gray Shadow's poison blade froze less than three inches from Clay's throat, unable to stab any further. The calm mask he had worn for ten thousand years shattered completely, leaving only boundless shock and fear, his pupils shrinking to the size of needle points. He could feel that the power and Realm contained in that spear thrust were completely beyond his understanding! That was definitely not something a Gold Rank could do!

Allen clutched his face, staring blankly at Blood Blade's corpse on the ground, which was rapidly losing temperature, then looked up at Ocean, who remained expressionless, as if he had just casually swatted a fly, and finally, his gaze fell on the still calm Linn.

Boundless chill instantly shot from the soles of Allen's feet to his crown, freezing all his greed, fanaticism, and arrogance into ice shards. The pain on his face was still there, but what hurt more was the fear that almost tore his Soul apart!

He... what kind of monster had they provoked?!

That unremarkable-looking tall guard... could actually, with a casual spear thrust, just...

And Linn, from beginning to end, didn't even Move a brow!

Cold sweat instantly soaked through Allen's inner garment. His legs went weak, and he was almost about to collapse to the ground. Gray Shadow was also like stone, his hand holding the short blade trembling slightly; even the courage to run away had dissipated completely under that plain yet terrifying spear thrust.

The scene was completely petrified. Only the thick smell of blood and the salty scent of the sea breeze mixed together, permeating over the pier of Star Sea Port.