Chapter 129: Who Dares Become The Family’s Savior

Chapter 129: Chapter 129: Who Dares Become The Family’s Savior

The most unbelievable part of the story was Mira’s confrontation with him.

Before long, the incident had become a major topic of discussion throughout Valemont and the surrounding region, with people arguing about it across the internet.

"An 8th-Level Foundation Establishment Realm martial artist defeated someone at the Star Sea Realm? Seriously? Did I miss April Fool’s Day?" one person posted.

"People will believe anything these days. Do they even understand the difference between those two realms?" another replied.

"Exactly! A Star Sea Realm expert could probably kill a Foundation Establishment Realm martial artist with a single finger. How is this supposed to be believable?"

"Hahaha! This is the most ridiculous story I’ve heard all year. Is Arcadia Academy so desperate for publicity that it has to invent something this absurd?"

"I know Damon Veil. That guy is a nationally wanted criminal, and the authorities have struggled to deal with him. Now we’re supposed to believe that a student from Arcadia Academy defeated him? Who do they think they’re fooling?"

The overwhelming majority of netizens dismissed the story as nonsense.

Their skepticism was not entirely unreasonable.

The gap between the Foundation Establishment Realm and the Star Sea Realm was enormous, spanning two major realms of cultivation.

Ordinarily, a martial artist at Mira’s level would not stand a chance against someone like Damon.

Even the writers of the most outrageous television dramas would hesitate to create such a scenario.

For a while, the online discussion consisted largely of ridicule, disbelief, and accusations that Arcadia Academy was fabricating the entire incident to attract attention.

Then someone uploaded a video.

The footage came from a student who had personally witnessed the battle and regarded Mira as the pride of the academy.

Unable to tolerate the endless mockery, he decided to provide proof.

The recording captured much of Mira’s confrontation with Damon, including the extraordinary moment when she unleashed the purple gold sword aura that illuminated the academy and tore through the ground.

The moment the video appeared online, the discussion exploded.

"Wait! That actually happened?!"

"Is this footage real, or did someone add special effects?"

"Good heavens! I can practically feel the pressure from that sword aura through my screen!"

"Hold on. This doesn’t prove that Mira defeated Damon Veil at all. That sword technique is clearly beyond what a Foundation Establishment Realm martial artist should be able to use!"

"Who recorded this? The quality is terrible! I can barely see what’s happening!"

"Are you stupid? They’re fighting at the level of Star Sea Realm experts. How do you expect an ordinary phone camera to capture their movements clearly?"

As people continued sharing and analyzing the footage, the debate became even more intense.

Some remained convinced that the video had been manipulated. Others believed it was genuine but insisted that Mira must have been concealing her true cultivation.

Still, a growing number of viewers began to reconsider their assumptions.

"If Mira really is only at the 8th-Level of the Foundation Establishment Realm, then every so-called genius on the Prodigy Ranking in Valemont looks like a joke compared with her!"

The video quickly attracted enormous attention, and discussions about Mira spread far beyond the original post.

However, the authorities soon stepped in to contain the controversy.

The online debate was gradually suppressed, and efforts were made to prevent further widespread circulation of the footage.

Victoria and Samuel were behind the intervention.

Both understood that Mira’s extraordinary combat ability would attract unwanted attention if too much information about her became public.

Protecting her was more important than allowing the internet to continue arguing over the incident.

Nevertheless, their efforts came too late to prevent everyone from learning the truth.

In Valemont, many influential families and powerful individuals had already heard enough to understand what had happened at Arcadia Academy.

They knew that Damon Veil had appeared, that Mira had fought him, and that a mysterious powerhouse named Graham Cole had intervened.

And among those who received the news, one family was particularly interested.

The Sinclair family.

"Patriarch! Something incredible has happened!"

At the Sinclair family residence, Adrian Sinclair was practicing his martial arts in the courtyard when a boy of about ten came rushing toward him, shouting so excitedly that his voice nearly cracked.

The boy belonged to one of the family’s collateral branches.

Apart from Adrian’s three direct bloodlines, the Sinclair family had six collateral branches within five degrees of kinship, all of which remained connected to the main household.

Adrian stopped his practice and frowned at the approaching child.

"Nathan, what kind of behavior is this?" he said. "Why are you shouting as though the sky is falling?" He gave the boy a stern look.

"How many times have I told you that members of the Sinclair family must remain composed, regardless of whether something good or bad happens? You cannot ignore your manners simply because you’re excited!"

Despite his questionable character, Adrian took the upbringing of the younger generation seriously.

He had worked hard to secure his position as family patriarch, and he was not about to let the family’s descendants grow up without discipline.

The boy immediately lowered his head.

"I’m sorry, Patriarch. I know I was wrong. I just couldn’t contain my excitement!"

Although he admitted his mistake, the barely concealed enthusiasm on his face made it obvious that whatever he had come to report was still occupying his thoughts.

Adrian sighed.

"Fine. You’re still young, so I’ll let it pass this time. Now, tell me what happened."

The boy’s next words wiped the remaining patience from Adrian’s face and replaced it with utter disbelief.

"Big Sister Mira defeated a Star Sea Realm martial artist!"

"What?!" Adrian nearly thought he had misheard. He stared at the boy, his expression changing dramatically.

"What did you just say?"

"Big Sister Mira defeated a Star Sea Realm expert!" Nathan hurriedly raised the mobile phone he had taken from his mother, eager to show the patriarch the evidence.

"Today, the Bloodshadow Cult Master attacked Arcadia Academy, but Big Sister Mira fought him and defeated him! Everyone is talking about it online. There’s even a video! She’s amazing!"

The child’s face glowed with admiration as he spoke.

Only then did Adrian begin to understand what he was hearing.

Nevertheless, his first reaction was disbelief.

Mira was only at the 8th-Level of the Foundation Establishment Realm. How could someone at that level possibly defeat the leader of the Bloodshadow Cult, a powerful martial artist who had reached the Star Sea Realm?

It sounded utterly ridiculous.

But after watching the footage on Nathan’s phone, Adrian could no longer dismiss the story as a child’s exaggeration.

He immediately contacted several acquaintances to verify the news. The answers he received were consistent.

It was true. Mira had genuinely fought Damon Veil and demonstrated terrifying combat strength despite the enormous difference in their cultivation levels.

As Adrian replayed the footage, his attention became fixed on the magnificent purple gold sword aura that had torn through the battlefield.

The power displayed in that single strike was enough to make his heart tremble.

For the first time in a long while, he experienced a profound sense of helplessness. And beneath that fear lay a bitter regret.

He knew very well how he had treated Mira and her mother, Helena, in the past.

He had repeatedly persecuted them, believing that he could suppress them without facing any consequences.

Now, Mira had grown into someone whose strength could no longer be ignored. Sooner or later, she might come looking for justice.

Unfortunately, the Sinclair family’s current circumstances were already disastrous.

The two elders who had once supported the family had been crippled.

His son, in whom he had placed so much hope, was imprisoned.

His younger brother, Franklin Sinclair, had long since died and been buried.

And the powerful young master he had desperately tried to please, Collins Lindsay, was dead as well.

Worse still, Adrian had no idea whether the Lindsay family would blame him for what had happened and decide to settle old scores.

The thought made him feel as though the ground beneath his feet had disappeared.

Yet his regret was not limited to the consequences he now faced.

He also could not stop thinking about how differently things might have turned out if he had handled Mira’s situation another way.

If only I hadn’t treated her so cruelly back then.

Perhaps he could have maintained a relationship with her and benefited from her rise.

Then again, another, darker thought crossed his mind.

If I had been ruthless enough to eliminate her before she became a threat, none of this would have happened.

He quickly realized how useless such thoughts were. It was too late to change the past.

Mira had survived his persecution, and now she possessed the strength to make him pay for it.

"Patriarch?" Nathan’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

The boy looked up at him with innocent anticipation.

"When are we going to bring Big Sister Mira back to the family?" he asked.

He knew nothing about the bitter history between Mira and the Sinclair family’s main household.

To him, she was simply a beautiful, powerful older sister who belonged to his family, and he wanted to meet her.

Adrian opened his mouth. But no words came out. He could only stare into the distance, an ominous feeling settling over his heart.

The Sinclair family’s peaceful days might soon be over.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Lindsay family’s ancestral residence in Ironcrest, the atmosphere was equally tense.

Damon Veil’s attack on Arcadia Academy had been set in motion following a call from Reginald Lindsay, the head of the Lindsay family.

Naturally, the family’s senior members had been paying close attention to the incident.

As soon as news of the battle emerged, they obtained reports about what had happened.

Under Reginald’s instructions, the senior members of the family’s various branches were quickly summoned for another meeting. The moment everyone gathered, the discussion began.

"You’re telling me Damon Veil is dead?" one elder asked.

"And before he died, Mira actually fought him head on and forced him into a desperate situation?" another said.

"Are you serious? How is that even possible?"

At first, the news seemed too absurd to accept. But after the authenticity of the reports was confirmed, the room fell into an uneasy silence.

One of the elders drew a sharp breath.

"This is terrifying," he said.

"Has anything like this ever happened during the past century of the new calendar? A Foundation Establishment Realm martial artist defeating a Star Sea Realm expert directly? I can’t recall a single example!"

"How did that girl become so powerful?" another asked.

"If she continues developing at this rate, she’ll become a serious threat to the Lindsay family!"

"We must eliminate her before she grows any stronger. Someone needs to inform the Ancestor immediately!"

The meeting quickly descended into heated discussion. Most of the senior members shared the same concern. They had all played a part in the attempts to eliminate Mira.

Some had even personally supported the decision to have her hunted down.

If she was already capable of challenging a Star Sea Realm powerhouse while still at the Foundation Establishment Realm, what would happen when she advanced further?

Allowing her to grow unchecked was a risk none of them wanted to take.

For that reason, most of the elders agreed that Mira needed to be eliminated as soon as possible.

"Enough!" Reginald slammed his palm against the table.

The sharp impact silenced the room.

As the current head of the Lindsay family and Collins Lindsay’s father, Reginald understood the danger Mira posed better than anyone.

If anything, his desire to see her dead was stronger than that of the other elders.

But wanting someone dead and having the ability to kill them were two entirely different matters.

If eliminating Mira were so easy, he would not have bothered calling this meeting.

He fixed his gaze on the assembled elders.

"I’ve received reliable information that Victoria Quill intends to bring Mira into the Extraordinary Division and keep her under her direct protection," he said, pausing to allow his words to sink in.

"Now tell me, which one of you believes he can kill Mira while Victoria is standing right beside her?"