Chapter 82: Enzo Dawnwick

Chapter 82 - Enzo Dawnwick In the Wraithbone Residence Villa, the air hung thick with the tang of blood. The disciples of the Wraithbone Bloodline exchanged uneasy glances in surprise, but did dare not to defy or refute, they bowed in agreement. They scurried off to carry out Bloodline Lord's edict. Moments later, a young cultivator in a crisp white robe burst into the chamber, his breath sharp with urgency. "Your Honor! Word's spreading—you're sending men to butcher the Payne Clan in Deerspring Town?" His voice cut through the stillness, bold yet edged with deference. Miu Tyanh, slumped in his grand seat, wounds still seeping beneath the bondage, lifted his gaze. "Dawnwick," he acknowledged with a slight nod, voice gravelly but steady. "That's right." Enzo Dawnwick fixed him with a respectful stare, then flicked his wrist—a shimmering privacy ward flared to life, sealing the room in a faint, rippling glow. His tone dropped, firm and unyielding. "Your Honor, forgive my bluntness—this clan slaughter edict is a mistake. You shouldn't do it." Miu Tyanh's brow furrowed, not with anger but curiosity, his lips tightening. "A mistake? Explain yourself, Dawnwick. The Deerspring is nothing important, and the Payne Manor there is a merely flea—wiping it out's a flick of the wrist, a trivial chore." He paused, then leaned forward, voice dipping into a sly, measured drawl. "Sure, Payne Manor's Clan Heir Hugo Payne's a useless lump of a cultivator—but Lordi Payne? That fresh-faced bastard got talent, and he's latched onto Kinson Wexford's bloodline like a leech." Miu Tyanh smirked, eyes glinting with cold calculation. "Slaughtering the entire Payne Clan now? It'll crack this motherfucker's Dao Heart wide open—rattle him waste before he's even settled in the holy sect. That's my gift to Sect Successor Chou's faction party." His tone hardened, a hint of smug triumph creeping in. "Even if Lordi Payne runs crying to Successor Lith for vengeance, hmph, Successor Chou's got our back—Wraithbone won't feel the heat. So tell me, what's the problem with slaughtering that manor to dust?" Enzo Dawnwick leaned closer, his white robe stark against the gloom. His voice dropped to a hushed, urgent murmur: "Bloodline Lord, look—Lordi Payne's a gifted runt, sure, but he's just an Outer Sect nobody, barely wet behind the ears. You, my lord? Advanced-Phase Foundation Stage, Lord of Wraithbone. You went after him yourself, came back battered and empty-handed. If this leaks—our bloodline might shrug it off, but Successor Chou? What's her highness going to think?" Miu Tyanh's eyes narrowed, a spark of unease flaring beneath his scowl, but Enzo pressed on, voice steady and cutting. "Fairy Chou, her highness, backs us because you've kept Kinson Wexford under your boot since the Outer Sect days. That's our leverage. But if she hears you took a hit from some lowlife disciple—doesn't matter how it went down—will she still bet on Wraithbone? Or will she see us as a pack of dogs that can't bite?" Miu Tyanh jolted, his face darkening as he opened his mouth to retort: "I didn't lose to him—it was—" The Inner Demon Oaths clamped down, a spectral gag choking his words. Lady Joanie's shadow loomed in his mind, her hollow gaze a silent shackle. He faltered, just as he was thinking about how to explain the situation without mention the Inner Demon Oath detail, when Enzo stamped his foot, urgency sharpening his tone. "Your Honor, it's not about losing! Lordi Payne's leagues below you—cultivation, status, everything. Even if he scrambles away like a whipped cur, he'll be the talk of the sect—'the Outer Sect kid who survived Miu Tyanh.' Even you kill him with more than one punch, this will make him a legend. However, you haven't even killed him yet!" Enzo's voice dipped lower, a fierce whisper. "You've got to bury this—hide that you hunted him in the Gworm Abyss. And the Payne Manor? Don't touch it. It's too low status like fleas, meaningless—but slaughtering them now, while Lordi Payne walks free? That screams you're powerless against this bastard Lordi Payne, and you could only lash out at his clan kin like a cornered beast. That'll tarnish your fame and hoist him up as some untouchable star." Miu Tyanh's jaw clenched, fury simmering, but Enzo Dawnwick didn't relent. "Remember Kinson Wexford's duel provoke taunt—when he came sniffing around, you said you were in seclusion. Stick to that my lord. You never left this villa, never chased Lordi Payne. These wounds? A cultivation mishap—minor, you'll heal in days. Anyone whispering about the Gworm Abyss hunt is a liar framing Wraithbone. Think about it your honor. If we don't keep low profile now, once we lose the favor from Successor Chou, where is we Wraithbone Bloodline's path to go in the future?" Enzo Dawnwick paced, logic cold and relentless. "Fairy Lith's faction party will definitely not accept us—Kinson Wexford's their favorite hound dog. Successor Zeus, his highness won't dive into the Holy Saintess Clash mess either. Thus, Fairy Chou's faction party is our only lifeline. If her highness thinks we can't handle a mere Outer Sect brat, what's she left to believe in? That we're weak? Useless?" Miu Tyanh's face twisted—rage warring with dawning dread, his fists trembling. The chamber seemed to close in, the shadows deepening as Enzo's words sank claws into his pride. Finally, he exhaled, a ragged, bitter sound, his voice low and grudging: "Dawnwick... you're right. I got hot-headed. Pull the edict—call them back. Now." Enzo Dawnwick exhaled, relief softening his stance as Miu Tyanh grudgingly nodded to his counsel. He pressed closer, voice low and soothing yet edged with sly intent: "Your Honor, take heart—you'll heal, and we'll play this smart. If you want to shatter Lordi Payne's Dao Heart, we don't even need to lift a finger ourselves. Look, I've invested into his past—Payne Manor's a fractured nest to him. His kin mother's long dead, stepmother's a viper who oppressed him underfoot, and even his kin father barely spares him a glance." He leaned in, eyes glinting. "That stepmother's obsessed with her own son, Twu Payne—wants him to outshine Lordi Payne at every turn. But Twu Payne's a laughingstock in Deerspring Town, while Lordi Payne stumbled into the Holy Sect. She's a jealous, petty hag—gnashing her teeth over his rise. Give her a chance, and she'll crave Lordi Payne's ruin more than we ever could." Miu Tyanh's scowl softened, curiosity flickering as Enzo continued, voice smooth and sharp. "Then there's Hugo Payne—the clan's golden heir, pinned their hopes on him for years. He's clung to Kinson Wexford's coattails, but what's he got to show until now? Scraps. Meanwhile, Lordi Payne's been here just a few weeks and already Kinson Wexford's grooming him like a prize colt. If Hugo Payne hears that, you think he'll swallow it with a smile?" Miu Tyanh tilted his head, cutting in. "Hugo Payne's a washout—gutless. Even if he's sour, he's got no teeth to bite Lordi Payne with." Enzo's lips curled into a sly, knowing grin, his tone dipping into a conspiratorial hush. "True, Your Honor—he's weak, a loser through and through. But that Outer Sect gold-digger girl he's mooning over? She's no ordinary catch." Miu Tyanh's eyes met Enzo's, the storm of rage and unease in his chest easing into a cold, calculating gleam. —— Meanwhile, in the Withered Orchid Villa, the air hummed faintly with the scent of charred herbs and the quiet sound of running stream. A Dao puppet waiter, its joints clicking softly, tidied Lordi Payne's suite with mechanical precision before stepping out, sealing the door with a muted thud. Alone, Lordi Payne popped the healing elixir pills from Kinson Wexford, their warmth spreading through him, knitting his wounds near-whole. He triple-checked the alchemy setup—herbs, raw materials, the new Dao furnace—all pristine, nothing amiss. Satisfied, he summoned the AllFullOS system in his mind, voice steady. "System, let's get to work. I want to practice. Select the skill. Select Alchemy Skill: Bone Tempering Pill!" ~ Ding! *System Notification Chime* The system chimed softly in response, and Lordi Payne felt a familiar surge of force as the AllFullOS took control. [AllFullOS: Version 1.0.0] > All-Smart Full-Host Cultivation SystemTM is at your service! > One-click-cultivation, worry-free-ascension! + [Features] - Intelligent upgrades tailored to your cultivation needs! - Fully automated cultivation: Sit back, relax, and let the system do the work! ... > Cultivation hosting: Initializing... - Friendly reminder: During cultivation, the host will lose control of his/her body. - Do not panic. This is a normal system function. > Initializing body control override... ... Lordi Payne leaned back, savoring his rare moment of ease. Within the secure walls of Withered Orchid Villa, with Senior Brother Kinson Wexford watching his back, he could finally breathe. And Lordi Payne had reached the sixth layer of Qi Refinement Stage, plus he got the eighth-tier Dao Flame fused into his body for alchemy. And Lordi Payne had reached the sixth layer of Qi Refinement Stage, plus he got the eighth-tier Dao Flame fused into his body for alchemy. And Lordi Payne had reached the sixth layer of Qi Refinement Stage, plus he got the eighth-tier Dao Flame fused into his body for alchemy. "This time, my spirit energy could support me to craft at least ten alchemy attempts!" "Let's say each alchemy attempt will obtain me twelve Bone Tempering Pills. One Bone Tempering Pills pill can be sold at 55 D$t. That's a total of 6,600 D$t!" "After deducting the cost of raw materials and the protection fee to Kinson Wexford, that will be..." While Lordi Payne was still pondering about the profit, his face suddenly changed. A familiar, creeping exhaustion clawed at his core. "What?! Why is this Ice Pith Fire consumed so much my spirit energy?!" The Ice Pith Fire was devouring his spirit energy tenfold as fast as he'd estimated. Half his reserves—gone before the first alchemy attempt even finished. The AllFullOS system, as ever indifferent to his doubts, methodically processed each raw material in sequence. The difference was immediately apparent—with the far better Dao Flame now integrated in the alchemy process, the AllFullOS system operated with markedly improved precision. Each herb and materials was refined more thoroughly, producing a purer medicinal essence that flowed seamlessly into the Dao furnace. Despite his efforts of calling system inwardly, the rapid drain on his blood Qi and spirit energy showed no sign of slowing. Panic coiled in Lordi Payne's gut, sharp and insistent. This isn't just difficult—it's consuming me faster than I ever expected. If this keeps up... By the time the first alchemy attempt of pills was complete, his forehead gleamed with sweat, his breaths coming in shallow gasps. No mere physical labor had ever left him this drained—not even close. "Worse than my first attempt with this damn AwfulOS system. What the hell is happening?" ~ Ding! *System Notification Chime* At this moment, the system chimed and stopped the process. [AllFullOS: Version 1.0.0] > Detected severe depletion of host's Spirit Energy. > Skill Practice: TERMINATED > Host control: RESTORED > Thank you for using the All-Smart Full-Host Cultivation SystemTM (AllFullOS v1.0.0) > One-click-cultivation, worry-free-ascension! > Feedback request: - We value your opinion! (No, really, we do.) - If you are satisfied with our service, please give us a five-star rating. > Tap to Rate: [☆☆☆☆☆] As Lordi Payne regained control of his body, a wave of dizziness slammed into him. His vision swam, and his knees buckled—only by bracing himself against the Dao furnace did he stop from collapsing face-first onto the ground. The severe depletion of spirit energy left him disoriented. Ignoring everything else, he lurched forward and yanked open the Dao furnace lid. His breath caught. Only two Bone Tempering Pills lay inside.