Chapter 154: Casually destroying a kingdom

The elders spilled out of the main gate like men running from a burning building. Leading the group was Elder Thomas, his robes disheveled and his brow drenched in cold sweat. Behind him, five other elders fell in line, their eyes wide with a mixture of terror and reverence.

When their eyes finally landed on the young man standing near the entrance, every single one of them stopped dead in their tracks.

There were no massive energy fluctuations. No grand displays of cosmic power. Victor simply stood there with his hands behind his back, looking at the familiar stone arches of the Walker estate. Yet, to the elders, his mere existence felt like an endless ocean standing before a few grains of sand. The weight of his presence, made the surrounding atmosphere feel impossibly heavy.

Thump.

Elder Thomas was the first to fall. He dropped to his knees, pressing his forehead directly against the cold stone floor.

"We... we pay our respects to Your Highness!" Thomas’s voice trembled so violently it was almost unrecognizable.

Behind him, the rest of the elders hastily dropped to their knees, bowing so low that not a single one dared to raise their eyes. The memory of how they had treated this young man years ago flashed through their minds like a terrifying nightmare. Back then, they had viewed him as a useless trash.

Now, with a single word, he could erase their entire line from the face of Earth.

Victor looked down at the bowing elders. There was no anger in his eyes, nor was there any sign of malice. To his current self, the pettiness of the Walker Family’s past actions was like the squabbling of ants, completely meaningless.

"Stand up," Victor said softly.

His voice wasn’t loud, but it resonated clearly within the minds of everyone present.

The elders hesitated for a moment before slowly rising to their feet, their heads still bowed low. Elder Thomas wiped the sweat from his forehead with a trembling sleeve, trying desperately to regain his composure.

"Your Highness... we did not know you would grace our humble estate with your presence," Thomas stammered. "If we had known, we would have prepared a proper welcome..."

"There is no need for grand ceremonies," Victor interrupted calmly. He swept his gaze across the faces of the elders until he realized someone was missing. "Where is Elder Joseph?"

Hearing that name, the elders visibly relaxed, though a hint of confusion crossed their faces.

"Elder Joseph is currently in the rear courtyard, Your Highness," Thomas answered quickly. "He has spent most of his time in seclusion lately, tending to the family’s herb gardens."

Victor nodded faintly. "Take me to him."

"Right away! Please, right this way, Your Highness!"

Thomas immediately stepped forward to lead the way, while the other elders backed away to open a wide path. As Victor walked through the inner estate, news of his arrival spread through the Walker Family like wildfire. Guards, servants, and junior members lined the corridors, peeking through windows and doors just to catch a glimpse of the legendary ruler of Earth. Many of the younger generation who had once ignored Victor now looked at him with eyes full of absolute adoration and awe.

Victor paid no attention to the onlookers. He followed Thomas through several winding corridors until they reached a quiet, isolated courtyard filled with the faint scent of medicinal herbs.

In the center of the garden, an old man with white hair and a slightly bent back was carefully trimming the leaves of a low-grade spirit plant. He moved slowly, his hands scarred from decades of refining basic pills.

This was Joseph Walker. The only person in this family who had ever extended a warm hand to Victor when he had nothing.

"Elder Joseph," Thomas called out, his voice unusually respectful. "Someone has come to see you."

Joseph paused his work and wiped his hands on a rag. He turned around with a tired smile, but the moment his eyes landed on Victor, the shears in his hand slipped and fell to the ground with a sharp clang.

"Victor...?" Joseph murmured, his old eyes widening in disbelief.

Victor smiled. The cold, aloof demeanor he held before the rest of the world melted away, replaced by genuine warmth. He stepped forward, closing the distance between them, and bowed slightly toward the old man.

"Elder Joseph. It has been a long time."

Joseph stood frozen for several seconds before quickly trying to bow. "Your Highness! You shouldn’t... I cannot accept such a bow from—"

Before Joseph could bend his knees, an invisible, gentle force held him upright. Victor gently shook his head.

"You are an elder who gave me a chance when everyone else looked down on me," Victor said, his tone sincere. "A single body-strengthening pill may have meant very little to the family back then, but to the me of that time, it was the foundation that allowed me to survive."

Joseph’s eyes reddened slightly. He remembered that day clearly. He had simply felt pity for him, so he had handed him a spare pill from his pocket. He had never expected that tiny act of kindness to be remembered by a man who now stood at the apex of the universe.

"I... I only did what any decent elder should have done," Joseph said softly, his voice thick with emotion. "I never imagined you would achieve such height, Victor."

"A debt of kindness must be repaid, no matter how much time has passed," Victor replied.

He flipped his palm, and a simple, unadorned wooden box appeared in his hand. The moment the box manifested, a dense, intoxicating medicinal fragrance leaked through the tiny crevices of the wood. The mere scent alone caused Elder Thomas, who was standing a few paces behind them, to feel his dormant cultivation bottleneck tremble.

Thomas’s eyes went wide. What kind of divine treasure is inside that box?!

Victor handed the wooden box to Joseph. "This is a Divine Longevity Pill, refined from cosmic-grade herbs. It will cleanse your mana circuit, extend your lifespan by ten thousand years, and allow your cultivation to reach the Elemental Sovereign Realm without any bottlenecks."

It was a casual pill he got from the resource tower, not worth much to him.

Ten thousand years?! Sovereign Realm?!

Behind them, Thomas almost fainted on the spot. A single pill was capable of raising an ordinary old man directly into one of the most powerful beings on Earth! Such a reward was beyond anything the Walker Family could even dream of in their wildest fantasies.

Joseph looked at the box in shock, his hands trembling so much he didn’t dare take it. "Victor... this is far too precious. I cannot—"

"Take it," Victor said gently, pressing the box into the old man’s hands. "You earned it years ago."

Reluctantly, Joseph accepted the box, holding it as if it were the fragile core of the world itself. Tears blurred his vision as he looked at the young man before him.

Having settled his personal debt, Victor turned his attention back to Elder Thomas. The change in his aura was immediate; the warm young man instantly vanished, replaced once again by the majestic ruler of Earth.

Thomas immediately straightened his back, trembling under Victor’s gaze.

"I overheard your discussion in the main hall earlier," Victor said coldly. "Something about the Falmuth Kingdom blocking your trade routes?"

Thomas swallowed hard and dropped to his knees once more. "Y-Yes, Your Highness! The Falmuth Kingdom recently acquired an Epic Rank powerhouse, and they have grown extremely arrogant. But... but we would never dare to trouble Your Highness with such trivial family matters!"

Victor gave a faint, indifferent scoff.

"Earth is about to enter a new era. In a few days, envoys from the Cosmic Human Alliance and the Elven Race will arrive to establish formal diplomatic relations with humanity. At a time like this, small factions are still fighting over scraps and bullying my bloodline’s territory?"

Victor raised his right hand, pointing his index finger toward the northern horizon, the exact direction where the Falmuth Kingdom’s capital was located thousands of miles away.

He didn’t circulate his energy, nor did he cast a complex spell. He simply flicked his finger lightly into the empty air.

Buzz—

A silent wave of space distortion rippled outward from his fingertips, disappearing into the sky at a speed that bypassed the laws of physics entirely.

Thousands of miles away, above the royal palace of the Falmuth Kingdom, the sky suddenly cracked open. A massive, translucent finger woven from pure mana descended from the heavens, crushing the palace’s protective grand barrier like eggshells and instantly vaporizing the kingdom’s foundation, along with their prized Epic Rank warrior’s mana circuit, turning him into a complete cripple in a fraction of a second. The entire kingdom was left intact, but their martial power was completely erased in the blink of an eye.

Back in the Walker Family courtyard, Victor lowered his hand as if he had merely swept away a speck of dust.

"The Falmuth Kingdom’s high-level combatants no longer exist," Victor said nonchalantly. "Send your men to take over their territories tomorrow."

Thomas and the other elders stood frozen, their minds completely blank. They hadn’t even felt a surge of mana, yet a powerful kingdom that had pressured them for months had just been dismantled with a flick of a finger!

"T-Thank you, Your Highness! We will execute your orders immediately!" Thomas slammed his head against the ground in absolute reverence.

"Remember," Victor added, his voice turning cold and sharp as ice. "The Walker Family receives this standing because of Elder Joseph’s kindness, not because of your past actions. If I ever hear of anyone in this family using my name to act tyrannically or abuse ordinary people... the Falmuth Kingdom will be the least of your concerns."

"We dare not! We swear upon our souls to strictly enforce family discipline!" the elders shouted in unison, cold sweat soaking their clothes.

Victor paid them no further attention. He turned back to Joseph and gave the old man a warm, respectful nod.

"Take care of yourself, Elder Joseph. The universe is vast, and Earth will soon see changes you cannot yet imagine. Live well and witness it all."

Before Joseph could speak, space around Victor folded softly inward. With a quiet shift of reality, his figure dissolved into the air, vanishing without leaving behind a single trace of energy.

The courtyard returned to absolute silence.

Elder Joseph stood holding the wooden box, looking at the spot where the young man had been standing just moments ago. Long after Victor had left, Elder Thomas slowly stood up, looking at Joseph with eyes filled with newfound envy, respect, and awe.