Legacy of Hatred

From the outside, Liam couldn’t look more out of place. He was the only rooting expert at the table, but the representatives’ reactions said otherwise.

Grace obtained quite a few looks, especially from the woman who carried the colors she had once worn. However, Liam had her beat there, being at the center of multicolored attention.

The cloaked man from the Assassins Guild looked wary of Liam. The old woman from the Messengers Guild kept staring at him, her eyebrows occasionally arcing, be it in surprise or confusion.

The man from the Mercenary Guild showed open hostility instead, looking daggers at Liam. As for the bald man from the Church, he just smiled at him, but his interest was evident.

The general attention was so blatant that Felix joined it, seemingly conflicted between admonishment and helplessness when inspecting Liam. As for why, Liam was well aware.

From what Liam could sense, everyone at the table was a low-stage branching expert, with seemingly wide power differences even there. For example, the representatives from the Messengers Guild and Merchants Guild felt weaker than Jessica.

Nevertheless, that didn’t change the fact that there were six potentially enemy branching experts at the table, which alerted every survival instinct in Liam’s brain.

To make things worse, Liam wasn’t on edge. He didn’t let that suffocating attention suppress him. He matched every stare with the calm of a predator ready to lash out. That wasn’t a battle he could win, but there wasn’t the slightest ripple in his stance.

Liam had seen cultivators claim offense for far less, so he understood why the atmosphere worsened with each passing second. It was actually surprising that no one had shouted at him yet, but he couldn’t help himself.

It wasn’t about the fact that Liam could go toe to toe with branching experts, now more than ever. He was stronger than he had been against Jessica, more prepared, and with greater mastery over the Demoness’ technique.

It wasn’t even just about Liam’s new stance on life. Killing would be his default option, but he would just run there, using the fan to the best of its power before getting revenge later.

The main reason behind Liam’s stance was the woman leaning against him. The tense situation made his urge to protect stronger than ever. If he didn’t need both hands in the instance that things went rough, he would already be shielding her under his arm.

As for Grace, she looked to be the most relaxed among the group, smiling softly at the guests, as if clueless about the danger. Of course, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Her stance told Liam as much.

While Grace was indeed leaning against Liam, she didn’t engage in her usual rubbing of his thigh. She didn’t even hinder his arm, applying almost no weight at all.

Things relaxed when foundation experts in silver armor entered the third floor, delivering refreshments. Red braziers lit up all over the balconies, fending off the night’s darkness, creating quite an enchanting environment.

Once the foundation experts left, the meeting was ready to start, and Felix took the lead.

"The Enforcement Guild thanks you all for coming here on such short notice," Felix announced. "I, Black Hound, Chief Enforcer, will act as mediator. Is anyone opposed?"

The man from the Mercenary Guild uttered another snort, but no one said anything otherwise. Either Felix was a respected individual in the area, or everyone was making the best of the cards they had drawn.

"Very well," Felix stated. "The issue involves the Daoists before us, Master Black Qi and Lady Grace. Are the representatives in need of introductions?"

There was no snort this time. Everyone remained silent, albeit Liam spotted different looks, mainly involving the Church’s representative and the yellow woman. It seemed some wondered whether they had the full picture but would probably leave it to the meeting to uncover.

"Very well," Felix repeated, stern as always. "After probing Master Black Qi and Lady Grace, I’ve concluded that they want to establish themselves in the area in a manner that is respectful to us all. Is anyone opposed?"

Everyone looked at the Church’s representative, but he remained silent, smiling gently, not even bothering to shake his head to announce his intentions.

That seemed to be the end of the matter, but a snort resounded before Felix could resume speaking.

"Red Boar," Felix called. "Do you wish to speak before Master Black Qi and Lady Grace have made their case?"

"I do wish to speak," The overweight man from the Mercenary Guild declared, pointing his arm at the couple. "Why is all this necessary? They are criminals who have caused untold mayhem. The Enforcement Guild is supposed to dispose of such threats."

Liam ignored Red Boar’s words, instead staring at Felix, ready, only for no enmity to come from his side.

"Due process is mandatory," Felix responded even more sternly than before. "And I’ve come into possession of information that might justify some of Master Black Qi and Lady Grace’s actions."

"Will the information be revealed?" The old woman from the Messengers Guild questioned.

"If you wish so, Whispering Wind," Felix replied, "You shall have your opportunity to ask."

The old woman simply smiled, but looks from the other representatives fell on the branching expert from the Church.

Despite not following everything, Liam saw that intricate politics were at play. The Guilds were far from united, after all. Even their branches were in conflict at times.

Felix might be serious about his job, but the due process he had mentioned likely had two sources. One was the couple’s power, while the other came from those forces’ interests in Liam and Grace.

That was also why Liam was staying silent, not wanting to ruin Grace’s playing field. He knew he was out of his depth there, and his stance on life didn’t mean stupidity or recklessness.

Attacking one representative now would be disrespectful toward the Guilds, making an enemy out of all of them for no reason. Felix was also somewhat defending the couple, so Liam would let the cultivators do the talking they seemed to like so much.

At least, that was the plan.

"Justify?!" Red Boar cried, glaring at the couple. "These demons robbed one of my Guild’s branches. Nothing can justify-"

Red Boar couldn’t finish his line since the long table crumbled, a hulking piece of dark metal lying among its splinters and whatever else it had crushed.

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