Free Web NovelChapter 10: Autumn Rain and Rising Fortune
Autumn Rain and Rising Fortune
The moment that thought crossed his mind, even someone as calm and indifferent as Victor couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement. freewёbnoνel.com
A Saint-Grade cultivation technique.
What kind of concept was that?
The Salvatore Family had once been one of the Three Great Families of Aurelia City, yet their ancestral cultivation technique, the Crimson Sunset Scripture, was merely a Profound Rank technique.
If news of an Earth Rank technique were ever leaked, countless great sects, sacred lands, imperial forces, and ancient clans would descend upon it like starving wolves scenting fresh blood.
As for Heaven Rank techniques, they existed only in legends.
Even the slightest rumor of one appearing would be enough to shake the entire Celestial Dawn Empire.
Countless unimaginable powers would descend upon the land.
Ancient cultivators hidden for centuries would emerge.
Entire kingdoms would collapse overnight.
Corpses would pile into mountains.
Blood would flow like rivers.
If obtaining a Heaven Rank technique required slaughtering the entire Azure Sovereign Kingdom and sacrificing billions of lives, many peak experts would not hesitate for even a moment.
And Saint Rank techniques stood above even Heaven Rank techniques.
They were treasures spoken of only in myths.
Treasures capable of changing the fate of entire worlds.
Yet now, the Autumn Sovereign Heavenfall Scripture and the Four Seasons Hidden Spring Scripture in Victor’s possession might very well be fragments of a Saint Rank cultivation technique.
Because of that, even Victor found himself unable to suppress the excitement stirring within his heart.
His golden eyes flickered.
The Eternal Legacy System had given him far more than a chance to save the Salvatore Family.
It had given him a path toward heights even his previous self had never dared imagine.
Meanwhile, the members of the Salvatore Family looked at the bizarre deaths of the Blackwood Family Guardians without the slightest fear.
On the contrary, their eyes were filled with fanatical admiration as they gazed at Victor.
Rainwater dripped from their clothes.
Blood mixed with mud beneath their boots.
Yet their spirits had never been higher.
"Just how powerful is the Patriarch?"
A young disciple muttered.
"This is our Salvatore Family Patriarch! Those people weren’t even worthy of making him raise a hand!"
"Hmph! Anyone who provokes the Salvatore Family deserves to have their heads shaken apart!"
Laughter immediately erupted among the surrounding disciples.
After years of humiliation, the Salvatore Family finally felt proud once again.
Outside the Blackwood Family estate, a strange autumn rain had begun falling.
The sky was dark.
Clouds covered the heavens.
The rain wasn’t particularly heavy, yet it carried a coldness that seemed to seep directly into one’s bones.
Droplets struck the blood-soaked ground.
The crimson rivers flowing through the estate slowly diluted.
The rain washed away blood.
But it could not wash away the message Victor had sent to the entire city.
The Blackwood Family had fallen.
Once they had thoroughly confirmed that not a single treasure had been overlooked, they began carrying chest after chest overflowing with gold, silver, jewels, property deeds, and land contracts.
The massive procession immediately attracted attention throughout Aurelia City.
The rain continued falling as hundreds of curious eyes watched.
"Aren’t those people from the Salvatore Family? I know that young man—that’s Damon from the Salvatore Family!"
"They just came out of the Blackwood Family estate?"
"Are all those treasures from the Blackwood Family?"
"No way. Didn’t the Salvatore Family decline? I heard they were about to lose their position among the Three Great Families."
"Keep your voice down!"
"Can’t you see the blood on them?"
"I told you the Salvatore Family wouldn’t collapse so easily!"
"That’s wonderful. Aurelia City is finally going to be under the Salvatore Family’s management again."
"Life will be easier for us from now on."
The citizens whispered among themselves.
Many ordinary people held tremendous goodwill toward the Salvatore Family.
The Salvatore Family disciples even greeted familiar townspeople warmly as they passed.
Ever since Victor took charge of the family, the Salvatore Family had followed a single principle:
Be proud before the powerful, but never bully the weak.
Against rival families, the Salvatore Family had always been overwhelmingly domineering.
Toward ordinary people, however, they remained remarkably approachable.
Many policies introduced during Victor’s era had benefited merchants, farmers, craftsmen, and common laborers alike.
Because of that, the family enjoyed genuine support among the people.
Even during the family’s decline, many citizens had secretly helped whenever possible.
Then someone suddenly pointed toward the center of the procession.
"Look!"
"That’s... Victor!"
"The Patriarch of the Salvatore Family!"
Instantly, the crowd exploded into an uproar.
Many immediately recognized the legendary figure who had once dominated all of Aurelia City.
"My heavens!"
"Hasn’t he been missing for ten years?"
"The Salvatore Family suffered so much and he never appeared. I thought he was dead!"
"Victor is actually alive..."
"Tsk, tsk."
"With that domineering and protective personality of his, Aurelia City is about to undergo a massive upheaval."
Victor paid no attention to the discussions around him.
The cold autumn rain landed upon his black robes.
Yet strangely enough, not a single drop touched his body.
The raindrops seemed to instinctively avoid him.
Combined with his handsome appearance and golden eyes, he looked less like a mortal and more like an immortal walking through the world.
Many young women in the crowd stared blankly.
Their hearts raced uncontrollably.
Some forgot to breathe.
Others forgot to blink.
Meanwhile, some of the bolder residents couldn’t resist their curiosity and headed toward the Blackwood Family estate.
The moment they arrived, however, they froze.
Blood flowed through the streets like winding streams.
The Blackwood Family—
Had been exterminated down to the last member.
Exactly as Nux had once declared in the Salvatore Family hall.
Every member of the Blackwood Family had died.
Their heads hung above the estate gates.
The blood-soaked heads swayed gently beneath the autumn rain.
As though regretting the day they had chosen to provoke the Salvatore Family.
The news spread through Aurelia City like a hurricane.
Everyone learned the same truth.
The man who had once forced the entire city to lower its head—
Victor Salvatore—
Had returned.
Inside the Sterling Family estate, one of Aurelia City’s lesser noble families, chaos erupted.
Upon hearing of the Blackwood Family’s destruction and learning that Victor had emerged from seclusion, the Sterling Family Patriarch nearly died on the spot from shock.
His face turned pale.
His breath caught in his chest.
He almost collapsed immediately.
Just as his dutiful son was secretly celebrating and preparing to inherit the family fortune, the old patriarch suddenly recovered.
The first thing he did after standing up was slap his son across the face.
Smack!
The sound echoed throughout the hall.
The young man spun twice before crashing into a table.
Then the old patriarch immediately issued orders.
"Return every single Salvatore Family property we swallowed!"
"And in addition..."
"Prepare compensation!"
"One-fifth of our family assets—"
His expression changed.
"No!"
"One-third!"
"Send one-third of our family fortune to the Salvatore Family as an apology!"
"You useless son of mine! Deliver it immediately!"
Then he paused.
As if realizing something.
"No!"
"I’ll go personally!"
Similar scenes unfolded throughout Aurelia City.
Family after family entered a state of panic.
Some prepared gifts.
Others gathered compensation.
Many began secretly cursing the Blackwood Family.
But all of these reactions had already been anticipated by Victor.
After returning to the Salvatore Family estate, Victor’s first action was to reward the clan members according to their contributions.
The rain still fell outside.
Inside the grand hall, however, warmth returned for the first time in years.
Based on their performance during the battle, cultivation resources seized from the Blackwood Family were distributed accordingly.
Some received Marrow Cleansing Pills capable of improving their physiques.
Others received Vitalis Tempering Elixirs that increased the likelihood of breaking through cultivation bottlenecks.
Every reward was tailored specifically to its recipient.
The clan members were naturally ecstatic.
The rewards themselves were valuable.
But what truly moved them was something else.
The fact that every person received the reward most suited to them meant that the Patriarch had remembered every single clan member.
Every talent.
Every strength.
Every weakness.
How could they not be excited?
A system notification sounded.
[Ding! The Salvatore Family’s morale has soared. Their fighting spirit is at an all-time high.]
[Family Fortune +100!]
Hearing the notification, Victor sighed softly.
During the years of his absence, the Salvatore Family had survived on little more than sheer determination.
Now that he had returned, there was no way he would mistreat his clansmen.
A family was different from a sect.
There existed a bond that could never be severed.
Blood.
Naturally, Victor would never be stingy toward his own family.
After distributing rewards and dismissing the others, only a few people remained.
Max sat in a chair, smiling happily.
He had almost forgotten how long it had been since he had last smiled sincerely.
Three years?
Five years?
Ever since his cultivation had been crippled and the family had begun declining, genuine happiness had vanished from his life.
Resources.
Strength.
Connections.
The family’s daily expenses.
The disappearance of Rias.
The deaths of the clan elders.
Each burden had weighed upon him like a mountain.
He had been completely overwhelmed.
Yet every one of those seemingly impossible problems had been effortlessly resolved by Victor.
In Max’s eyes, his elder brother remained the same as always.
The man who could do anything.
"Second Brother."
"You’ve suffered these past years."
Victor turned and looked at him.
His golden eyes remained calm.
Steady.
Unshakable.
Then, without warning, a mysterious pill appeared in his palm.
The moment it appeared—
A strange phenomenon manifested throughout the hall.
Numerous phantoms materialized in the air.
Some sat cross-legged in meditation.
Some practiced martial arts.
Others swayed gently as though comprehending the mysteries of the Principle of World.
Their movements differed from one another.
Yet every single phantom radiated profound intent.
