Chapter 54: The Grand Duke, Albert Vorah.

Strax felt his entire body burn with power. His veins heated up as he felt all his mana being pumped alongside his heart, as if his strength had doubled with a simple advancement of ten points in all his stats. Strax became immensely stronger, to the point of feeling something...

"This is mana," he said, seeing small currents of mana flowing through the wind. He had discovered something...

[You have discovered one of the abilities of your physique. The Dragon Eyes have been passively unlocked. Continue ascending the ranks to perfect them.]

A message appeared, and his eyes slightly changed color to a brighter red. His perception of himself increased, and his entire body entered a new stage of strength. He hadn't advanced, but it was obvious that his evolution was much greater than normal.

"Description," Strax said, thinking of the passive ability he had just gained, but...

[Unlock the Physique to access the descriptions of your abilities derived from the Demonic Dragon.]

"Tsk, a poor man's joy is short-lived... I need to evolve more," Strax said, seeing the gates still open. Now, however...

The mana he saw concentrated in that place was so immense that he didn't know what was happening there. It was as if a huge ball of concentrated energy was present, but it wasn't just that. There was something else that seemed to call him from afar, right in the place he hated the most.

"The Garden of Swords," he said, looking in a direction. He couldn't feel what it was or see what was there, but something clearly called him in an extremely brutal way. "I'll go there later..." he thought. Still focused on the apocalypse, he entered through the gates, following the path leading directly to the main mansion.

Strax completely changed his demeanor. His previously somewhat cheerful face now gave way to a cold and emotionless man, with a stern and unyielding expression. "I won't be humiliated this time," he said to himself while following Apocalypse. "Girl, don't let anyone touch you. Anyone who tries to touch you can be killed." Upon hearing this, the horse neighed in agreement.

He gave a slight smile and finally approached the entrance. He saw some gardeners tending to the plants.

The mansion grounds were truly vast, with numerous staff taking care of the exterior of the buildings. There were various gardens and pathways, like small roads paved with carved bricks.

"Tsk, I hate all of you," he thought as he felt something familiar. "I hope I can hold myself back..." he muttered as he approached the entrance arch of the mansion. The facade was truly imposing, with a mix of limestone, red bricks, and carved wood. "This damn place hasn't changed at all," he commented, approaching the entrance door. He sighed deeply...

She had rosy hair and blood-red eyes, around her forties but appeared almost twenty-five, a testament to the remarkable nature of cultivators. The Demonic Rose of Two Blades, that was her cultivator name. At least, that's what other cultivators called her.

"Yes, Grand Duchess," he nodded, bowing his head slightly. "Did you have a good trip?" Albert's deep, strong voice resonated across the table. All of his siblings trembled, but... Strax didn't even flinch.

"If you're wondering how many groups attacked me, it was two, and a mountain guardian bear," he stated without hesitation. "I see," Albert said. 'This boy... he's very different.' Albert felt something coming from the table, it was Dominic's mana trying to reach Strax. He let him try to do something; it would be a good test, but...

The mana was completely severed as it approached Strax, as if... "Intimidating the weaker makes you even weaker, Brother," Strax said, looking seriously at Dominic, who trembled. The aura Strax emitted... it was pure killing intent. "Stop looking at me like that, you disgusting lot," he said, picking up his fork to eat the food on his plate. After all, he hadn't eaten in a long time.

He tasted the food and immediately spat it out. The taste? It was rotten. "Putrid," he remarked, surprising even the Duchess herself. "Ah, seriously..." Strax sighed. "May I speak?" Strax said, feeling the Patriarch's gaze in agreement.

"Tsk, you're only agreeing with me because Xenovia asked," he murmured, standing up.

"I'm not here to fight over this ridiculous patriarchal nonsense. I couldn't care less about all of you and this entire family. I'm only here because Xenovia asked. Not for you and your petty squabbles," Strax said, summoning an ice sword into his hand and making a cut. [Brutal Cut – Concentrated] The blow hit Dominic's hand, which was immediately severed.

Then he turned his hand towards Virgil in front of him and launched another attack. "BOOM!" A fire explosion hit Virgil's face, sending him flying backward.

"What do you think you're doing!" one of the sisters shouted, it was Hinna. "Attacking your brothers in the middle of a meeting?" another questioned, Vine. "Shut your mouths, or you'll be next," Strax said firmly, and they trembled.

"You!" Virgil recovered from the explosion and was about to attack him, but... "Stop," Albert's voice echoed through the room, making everyone pause, except for Strax, who looked directly into his eyes. "Explain yourself."

"Having the strength to intimidate the weaker doesn't make you strong, it makes you a failure. My dear brothers like to be the biggest failures, so I merely gave him a punishment," Strax said with a macabre smile on his face, which frightened Hinna and Vine. They had never seen that happen before; they could hardly recognize their brother.

"Was it necessary?" Albert questioned; he wanted to see how far Strax would go.

"Is your family made up of failures?" Strax countered this time. "No," Albert replied. Strax looked at him and said, "Then you're turning a blind eye to your family; it's already full of failures." Strax continued.

"Are you questioning how I manage the family?" he said seriously, and Strax responded, "Yes, you're a terrible patriarch for allowing two disgusting beings like these two to have any kind of bond greater than slaves. They're the ones tarnishing the Vorah Name, not me, as you all like to say," he said, leaving everyone incredulous with what they had just heard.