Chapter 229: Surrounded By Me

"You... are surrounded by me!!"

The arrogant voice rang out throughout the forest as a young man walked out from the crowd with a confident smile on his face.

He looked to be around Theodore’s age, maybe a little older. His long black hair was tied behind his back, and he wore a dark green robe with golden threads embroidered around the sleeves. On his chest was the emblem of the Stormwind family, except it had four silver lines running through it.

The symbol of the Four Core Disciples.

Behind him, hundreds of people slowly emerged from the forest.

Some came down from the trees. Others climbed out of the cracks in the rocky hills around them. A few more appeared from behind the giant Platinum-Tier Terra Beasts, all of them wearing similar robes with the Stormwind emblem printed across their chests.

Raiden looked left, then he looked right, then he finally looked behind him.

Everywhere he looked, there were people.

There were Battle Masters holding swords, spears, bows, and strange weapons that Raiden had never seen before. There were people riding on the backs of wolves, tigers, bears, giant lizards, and flying Terra Beasts.

Some of them had their Terra Beasts standing beside them, while others had already released them and were preparing to fight.

And in the middle of it all stood more than a dozen Platinum-Tier Terra Beasts.

A huge black bear with metal-like claws. A giant eagle with wings that covered the sky, a stone-armoured crocodile with teeth longer than Raiden’s arm, a three-headed hyena that kept dripping poisonous saliva on the ground.

Theodore’s expression became serious.

Yesterday, the single Triceratops had already been enough to make him almost collapse. Now there were at least fifteen Platinum-Tier Terra Beasts surrounding them from every direction.

This was not a fight.

This was a damned war.

"Wow." Raiden slowly nodded his head. "You guys really came prepared."

The young man in front gave a proud smile.

"Of course we did. You may have managed to defeat a few useless members from the side branches, but do you really think the Stormwind family would let an outsider walk freely through our private realm after insulting our Clan Head in public?"

"That is a very good question." Raiden scratched his chin. "I also wonder why the Stormwind family would let a trash father become their Clan Head after torturing his own daughter, but I guess some questions don’t have answers."

Hearing his words, the crowd fell silent as the young man’s smile twitched.

Behind Raiden, Aria’s face turned pale. She grabbed onto the hem of her dress tightly, while Theodore’s expression immediately darkened.

"You are quite bold for someone standing in front of this many people." The young man spoke in a cold voice. "Do you know who I am?"

"Nope." Raiden shook his head. "Should I? Are you very important??"

A vein popped on the young man’s forehead.

"I am Darius Stormwind. First Core Disciple of the Stormwind family. The person personally chosen by the clan elders to lead this generation."

"Oh." Raiden nodded thoughtfully. "Congratulations."

Darius stared at him.

"That is it?"

"What else am I supposed to say?" Raiden looked genuinely confused. "Do you want me to clap? I can clap if you want."

"Raiden..." Theodore whispered from the side. "Stop provoking him."

"I am not provoking him," Raiden spoke innocently. "I am being very polite right now."

{Ding!! Shameless Exp +10.}

Raiden’s face twitched.

This stupid system had been way too active lately. He had only spoken the truth. Why was he getting Shameless Experience for everything now?

Darius ignored the strange look on Raiden’s face and slowly raised one hand.

The people behind him immediately became quiet.

"Young Miss Aria." Darius turned toward her, speaking in a much calmer tone. "The elders have instructed us to bring you back safely. There is no need for unnecessary resistance. If you surrender now, we will make sure nobody gets hurt."

Aria’s body stiffened.

Theodore stepped in front of her instantly.

"Bring her back safely?" Theodore laughed coldly. "You people are the ones who have been chasing us since yesterday. You gathered hundreds of Battle Masters and more than ten Platinum-Tier Terra Beasts just to bring one person back safely?"

Darius sighed.

"Young Master Theodore, I respect your talent. You were accepted into Archon Academy, and your future will be bright. There is no reason for you to throw your life away because of someone who has already been discarded by the family."

Theodore’s body started shaking, not from fear but from sheer anger that he felt.

"Say that again." His voice was quiet.

Darius looked at him calmly. "Aria has no future in this family. That is something everybody already knows. The best thing she can do now is cooperate and let the family move forward."

"She is my sister." Theodore raised his head, his eyes filled with coldness. "Before she is a Stormwind, before she is a failed prodigy, before she is somebody the elders want to use, she is my sister. Watch your mouth when you talk about her."

Theodore’s words echoed across the forest.

For a moment, Aria stood there silently as her eyes started becoming a little red.

Raiden glanced at her from the side. He could tell that she was trying very hard not to cry.

This stupid family had made her believe for years that she was useless. They had taken her bloodline, thrown her away, and now they were standing here acting as if they were giving her some kind of mercy.

He really wanted to punch every single one of them.

"Woolie," Raiden spoke softly.

"Woolie Woo?" The little sheep turned his head up.

"Stay next to Aria. No matter what happens, don’t leave her side."

Woolie’s eyes widened.

"Woolie Woo!!" Don’t worry, human!! Emperor Woolie will protect Big Sister Aria with his life!!

He immediately moved toward Aria and stood in front of her, puffing out his chest with a serious expression.

Aria looked down at the small sheep standing protectively in front of her.

A tiny smile appeared on her face.

"Thank you, Woolie."

"Woolie..." Woolie looked away, pretending that he had not heard the praise.

Raiden turned back toward Darius.

"Let me get this straight." He spoke with a lazy smile. "You brought hundreds of people, a bunch of Platinum-Tier Terra Beasts, and enough angry animals to start your own zoo. All of you came here just to stop us?"

Darius’s lips curled upward.

"Not just stop you."

He raised his hand again.

The people behind him began taking out small metal objects from their storage rings.

They looked like badges at first glance, but the moment they appeared, Rose suddenly raised her head from Raiden’s shoulder.

"Hiss..."

Her golden eyes narrowed.

"What is it, Rose?" Raiden asked.

"Hiss Hiss..." Blood smell. Bad blood smell.

The badges began glowing one after another.

A storm-blue light spread through the entire battlefield as thin threads of wind connected the badges to the Terra Beasts around them. The threads wrapped around the beasts’ necks, legs, horns, wings, and tails.

The Terra Beasts started roaring, their bodies started swelling, and their auras climbed higher and higher. Even the weaker Gold-Tier Terra Beasts began releasing pressure close to Platinum Tier.

"What the hell are those?" Theodore asked, his expression turning grave.

Darius smiled proudly.

"Wind-Binding Crests. They were personally created by the Clan Head. As long as the crests remain active, our Terra Beasts can share their power, coordinate their attacks, and fight without fear."

Rose’s body went stiff around Raiden’s neck.

"Hiss..." There is blood inside them, Rai Rai~. The blood inside them is crying.

Raiden’s expression changed.

He looked toward Aria, who had gone completely pale.

"Those crests..." Her voice trembled. "They have part of my bloodline inside them."

Theodore’s eyes widened.

"What?"

"I can feel it." Aria held her chest, taking a shaky breath. "It is faint, but it is there. They used the bloodline they took from me... to make those things." A heavy silence fell over the group as Aria finished her words.

Raiden’s smile completely disappeared from his face as his gaze moved slowly toward Darius.

The young man had no shame on his face at all. He looked almost proud of it.

"This is what you call family?" Raiden asked quietly.

Darius frowned.

"You outsiders would not understand. The Stormwind family has survived for thousands of years because we make difficult decisions. One person’s sacrifice is nothing compared to the future of the entire clan."

Raiden nodded slowly.

"Okay."

He stretched his arms and rolled his shoulders.

"That makes things easier."

Darius narrowed his eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"It means I don’t need to feel bad about beating the shit out of you people anymore."

Theodore almost laughed, and even Aria, despite how frightened she was, could not stop the small smile that escaped her lips.

Darius’s face turned cold.

"Do it."

The moment his hand dropped, the forest exploded into movement.

The flying Terra Beasts in the sky swooped down first. Earth-Tier beasts slammed their feet into the ground, creating giant walls of stone around the clearing. Wind-type Terra Beasts flew toward the edges of the battlefield, creating a spinning barrier that blocked every escape route.

The humans behind them began moving in formation. Archers raised their bows. Spear users moved toward the front. The Platinum-Tier beasts lowered their heads and roared.

Theodore stood in the forefront as his body started shining with Golden Light.

Garuda appeared above him with an angry screech, while Lily vanished into thin air the moment she arrived.

Neva jumped from Raiden’s shoulder and landed beside Rose.

"Sha Sha!!" There are so many bad people!!

"Hiss Hiss..." Rose’s little tongue flicked out. "Can Rose drink them now?"

"No," Raiden answered immediately.

"Hiss..."

Rose looked deeply disappointed.

Raiden turned toward Theodore.

"Can you handle the left side?"

Theodore took a deep breath. He looked at the hundreds of enemies around them, then he looked at Aria standing behind him.

The fear in his eyes slowly disappeared.

"Yeah." A determined expression appeared on his face. "I can handle it."

Raiden nodded.

"Alright, then Let’s Roll!!"