## Liam''s Perspective


    The First Elder''s terror-filled eyes met mine as I loomed over his kneeling form. His broken legs syed beneath him at unnatural angles.


    "Retribution?" His voice cracked. "You think you scare me?"


    I didn''t answer. Words weren''t necessary anymore.


    My hand shot out, gripping his right arm. One swift movement—a sickening crack echoed through the room.


    His scream tore through the night. The bone jutted through skin, blood pooling on the marble floor.


    "That''s for the Second Elder''s ribs," I said calmly.


    Before he could recover, I seized his left arm. Another crack. Another scream.


    "That''s for betraying your oath to the Guild."


    Sweat poured down his face as he gasped for air. "Kill me! Just kill me already!"


    "No." I circled him slowly. "Death is too merciful."


    I ced my palm against his chest. Golden energy surged through my arm, concentrated in my fingertips. With surgical precision, I sent it directly into his dantian—the core of his cultivation.


    His eyes bulged. "NO! PLEASE!"


    Toote. The energy exploded inside him, shattering his cultivation base. Decades of progress, destroyed in an instant.


    His howl wasn''t human anymore. It was the sound of a man losing everything that defined him.


    "That''s for Mariana."


    He slumped forward, kept upright only by my grip on his cor. "You''ve... crippled me..."


    "I''m just getting started."


    For the next hour, I systematically inflicted countless non-fatal wounds. Each cut precise—deep enough to cause agony, not deep enough to kill. His screams eventually died to whimpers.


    Finally, I gripped his head between my hands. "Look at me."


    His zed eyes struggled to focus.


    "I''m going to destroy your divine sense now. You''ll still be conscious, still feel everything. But your mind will never be the same."


    Terror gave him onest surge of strength. He tried to pull away, but I held firm.


    Golden light pulsed from my hands into his skull. His body convulsed violently.


    When I released him, he copsed to the floor, drooling, eyes vacant but still conscious—aware of every excruciating sensation.


    I stood, wiping blood from my hands. "Tomorrow, you''ll kneel in the za. Everyone will see what happens to those who betray the Pavilion Master."


    His only response was a garbled moan.


    I turned and walked away, leaving the broken wreck of a man who had once been feared throughout the Guild.


    ---


    Morning light streamed across the central za of the Celestial Apothecary Guild. Hundreds of alchemists gathered, whispering in shock at the sight before them. <mark ss="in-imprint-a">The full series lives on My Virtual Library Empire (*).</mark>


    The First Elder knelt in the center, broken and bloodied. His vacant eyes stared straight ahead, his mouth working soundlessly.


    A young alchemist approached him, face twisted with disgust. "You betrayed the Pavilion Master."


    He spat on the First Elder''s face. Others followed, their anger unleashed.


    I watched from the shadows of an archway as the scene unfolded. The Second and Fifth Elders stood beside me, grim satisfaction on their faces.


    "Justice," the Second Elder murmured.


    I shook my head. "Not yet. Not until Mariana is back."


    The Second Elder sighed heavily. "Master Knight, the Saints Order... they''re not likemon enemies. They''re the most powerful organization in the world."


    "I don''t care."


    "The Pavilion Master wouldn''t want you to sacrifice yourself," the Fifth Elder added.


    I stepped forward into the light. The crowd parted instantly, creating a path to the center of the za. Silence fell as I approached the kneeling First Elder.


    "Master Knight!" A voice called out. Others joined in, surrounding me with urgent faces.


    "Is it true? Did the First Elder sell the Pavilion Master?" asked a senior alchemist.


    "Where is she?" demanded another.


    "Can you save her?"


    I raised a hand, and silence fell again.


    "The Pavilion Master is being held by the Veridia City Martial Guild. The First Elder betrayed her, sold her to our enemies."


    Gasps and cries of outrage rippled through the crowd.


    "She protected me," I continued, my voice carrying across the za. "She knew they wereing for me, and she drove them away. She sacrificed herself."


    An older alchemist pushed forward. "Master Knight, you must rescue her! You''re the only one strong enough!"


    More voices joined in, pleading, demanding. Their fear and desperation crashed against me like waves.


    I looked at each face—people who had worked alongside Mariana for years, who owed her everything. Just as I did.


    "I''m leaving for Veridia City immediately," I announced. "The Second and Fifth Elders will manage the Guild in my absence."


    "You can''t go alone!" someone shouted. "The Martial Guild has thousands of warriors!"


    A cold smile touched my lips. "They don''t have enough."


    I turned to leave but paused when the Second Elder caught my arm.


    "Liam," he said quietly, using my first name for once. "You should know... the Pavilion Master endured great harm to protect you. She refused to reveal your whereabouts even under torture."


    Something twisted painfully in my chest. "How do you know?"


    "One of our spies in Veridia City managed to send a message. She... she never broke. Not once."


    My hands clenched into fists, golden energy crackling around them.


    "I''ll bring her back," I promised. "No matter what it takes."


    The Second Elder nodded gravely. "We''ll be ready for your return."


    I strode through the parting crowd, my decision made. The Veridia City Martial Guild had taken someone precious to me. Again. First Isabelle, now Mariana.


    This time, I wouldn''t stop until they understood exactly what they''d provoked.


    ---


    In Veridia City, deep within the underground chambers of the Martial Guild, Corbin Ashworth paced impatiently. The austere room was lit by cold blue spirit stones, casting harsh shadows across the faces of the assembled men.


    "It''s been three days," he snapped. "The woman still refuses to talk."


    Emerson Holmes, Guild Master of the Veridia City Martial Guild, stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Pavilion Master Valerius is notoriously stubborn. We expected resistance."


    "Resistance?" Corbin''s face flushed with anger. "Sheughed at your interrogators! She should be broken by now!"


    Emerson sighed. "Some people cannot be broken through conventional means."


    "Then use unconventional means!" Corbin mmed his fist on the table. "We need to know where Knight is hiding! Every day he lives is another day my n is in jeopardy!"


    "Patience, Lord Ashworth. We have time—"


    "We don''t have time!" Corbin interrupted. "Kill her. Make an example. Show everyone what happens when they harbor our enemies."


    Emerson frowned. "The Saints Order specifically requested she be kept alive for questioning."


    "To hell with the Saints Order! I want results!"


    A nervous knock interrupted their argument. A young guild member entered, face pale.


    "Guild Master, there''s... someone here to see you."


    Emerson straightened. "I left strict orders not to be disturbed."


    "Yes, sir, but this visitor..." The young man swallowed hard. "He just walked past all our guards. They couldn''t stop him."


    Corbin and Emerson exchanged rmed nces.


    "What do you mean they couldn''t stop him?" Emerson demanded.


    Before the messenger could answer, the door swung open. A man in an immacte ck suit walked in, his posture rxed, almost casual.


    Everyone in the room stood abruptly. The air crackled with sudden tension.


    The man smiled, his eyes scanning the room until they locked onto Corbin Ashworth.


    "I believe," he said softly, "you have something that belongs to me."