Horst Manor...

*Bang*

The door of the study blasted open and Ford walked out in a haste. His body was shaking slightly with worry.

The scream he had just heard was definitely to that perverted bastard and while Ford did not care if he was in danger, he did care about the life of his daughter who was at that Mansion as well.

As he walked, he called out and ordered Fidel to gather the men. He would storm Hal Payne's Mansion and take his daughter away. If anyone tried to stop him, they would pay the price.

It was then he ran into Emily who stood in place with her hands on her waist,

"You can't go" She said.

"Why not? Do you really expect me to endanger my daughter?" Ford said with the tone of a father who believed his daughter was incapable of combat.

He had refused to believe that she would be combative even in the Flame Lotus Sect.

Emily sighed,

"It was naive of you to think everyone was going to be like you and treat her like a princess"

"But they should" He insisted.

Emily shook his head,

"She attends a sect filled with those from powerful families. Those who can put her down and she would be unable to say a thing. Do you know why?

It's because she doesn't have a powerful background of her own"

Ford looked stunned. It was as though he had just been hit with a reality he never thought to consider.

Emily continued,

"Unlike how you see her here and how she gets all she wants by asking, she has to strive to accomplish anything in that sect. She is nobody's little princess and she has already realized how the strong make the rules and are always right.

For others, that would have been a cause for despair but she took it in stride and rose while fighting for herself"

Ford sighed,

"All that's good and dandy but she is still at the early stage of the Cosmic Pearl realm. That is far from enough to stand against the Plebeians"

Emily nodded,

"Very well, we will go there together but you are not to interfere until it is absolutely evident that she can not take care of herself. She decided to stay with Hal and it is high-time she follows through with her choices."

Emily's words might have sounded dispassionate but she was actually quite worried. Amelia had filled her in on tales from her sect and how much adversity she had faced. There was only so much her Master could protect her from.

So Emily knew even more that while Amelia truly was a cultivating genius that was getting even more interested in Combat with each victory, a threat such as this, She had never faced.

If she could, she would have used the influence of her background to help but that would be traversing Duchy jurisdiction and cause more problems than it fixed.

'If anything happens to my daughter, you are dead, Hal Payne' She swore in her mind as she and Ford left the Manor.

It did not take long before they arrived at the Mansion and from atop the roof of a tall building, beheld the mighty thousand Man force the Plebeians had brought to enclose Hal in his home.

Thanks to the Booming volumes San had spoken in, Ford knew what Hal was been accused of and was not quite sure the Plebeian heads knew what they were talking about.

Accusing a teenage boy of perpetrating the death of one of the strongest Plebeian families in the City.

However, he could not help but see that the accusation had credit when he felt the pressure of the invisible energy Hal released and used to form the elastic-looking Veils composed of Astral Runes.

Ford was impressed. From the moment he had arrived, he had not noticed any Panic on the young man's face. Also, he could tell through the creation of those veils that Hal's Runemastering skills were most likely unmatched in the City. Surely the boy was second only to Eugene Swanson.

Both he and Emily had not heard the explanation Hal had given those close to him on how the veils work but he could infer it as soon as those weaker than the Peak stage of the Cosmic Pearl Realm (which he could sense from where he stood) were able to pass through easily.

"Impressive..." He began to say when he saw the ones that stepped forward to face those that passed through.

Unconsciously, Ford took a step forward but Emily thrust her hand to stop his approach,

"For now, just watch" she said as an assailant dashed towards Amelia and she put him down in a few seconds.

In the process of which she revealed, much to the surprise of her father, that she was now at the Late stage of the Cosmic Pearl realm.

Also, was it just his imagination, or was Amelia smiling?

...

Meanwhile,

Marla chuckled at what Amelia just said and an illusionary Dark lady enveloped her form but remained just like an outer shell on her body so that she still retained her size.

And then she attacked.

She was actually a little annoyed that none of the assailants that made their way past the last veil came to face her so, she went after them instead.

The first unlucky fellow made to run past her and go after Amelia who was already facing more than Five opponents on her own.

The moment the assailant was in front of her, Marla stretched her first and punched his forearm...

*Crack*

...it broke his bones and the force of it propelled him towards the veil but knowing that once he went through he would not be able to return, Marla went ahead of him at a speed that rendered her as a swift Dark figure and materialized in his path...

*Bam!*

...to kick him into the ground.

The assailant began to roll on the ground as he struggled to stand when Marla stood over him...

"Please...don't..." He pleaded.

For a split second, Marla paused and it seemed as though she might let him go or at the very least, not end his life when,

"Ahhhhh" another one stabbed at her back with a small dagger on which, green runes glowed.

The dagger's blade was about to make contact with her back when Marla suddenly twisted her body, grabbed his arm and pulled it down to plunge it into the midsection of the one who lay on the ground and rejoiced at being let go.

"Ack" he groaned and died seconds later.

"As expected. It can kill a Cultivator" Marla said with a dispassionate voice and wrenched the dagger from the assailant's chest to stab it into his heart.

The only reason she had paused was not that the first one had pleaded for his life but because she felt an energy moving towards her. She spared the dagger a glance before she thrust it into her Spatial pouch.

She was actually a little disgusted. Here she was trying to kill these bastards with just her fists and physique and they pull out weapons for sneak attacks.

They really deserved to die.

And they would too.

She defeated even more of them and chanced a glimpse at Amelia who was doing quite fine, except that she had also seized a Rune Dagger as well.

Those Bastards! Marla groaned and let out her Dark mist which enveloped all those close to her.

*Bam* *Crack* *Bang*

Multiple sounds rang out and when the mist dispersed, all that was left of them were bodies.

Hal watched their impressive forms and could not help but frown because he knew such a load was taxing on them.

Meanwhile, San watched more Men fall to the tyranny of the two ladies whose very presence dominated the scene. All others in Hal's party had not made a single move. It was almost as though they were saying ' two teenage girls are more than enough'.

It was quite upsetting and the stronger Cultivators tried their best to force their way through the Sieving Veils which could not be circumvented or scaled unless they could fly.

Those at Cosmic Armament Realm had taken to unleashing their Armament to strike at the Veil but it remained strong and continued to glow with thick Royal Blue Astral Energy.

"Damn it" San snarled.

"What do we do now, San?" Bale asked but it was clear that it was only to antagonize the Fidwud Family head.

San took a deep breath,

"They can't hold out forever. It won't take long before they are overwhelmed" He promised and sure enough,

The number Marla and Amelia each had to fend off began to increase and did not decrease. The overwhelming did not look far off.

*Clap*

The sound attracted the attention of those not battling as Hal said,

"That's enough exercise. I think you've gotten enough hands-on experience now"

Marla's Dark lady Avatar swelled to 15 feet in height as she faced Hal with a disapproving expression,

"No, I can still go on"

"Me too"

Amelia piped and unleashed a Cosmic Attack that pushed her surrounders back and to the ground, even though they began to get up and move closer having properly defended themselves.

"Sure you can" Hal smiled but the two of them knew he was not going to bulge.

And Hal wasn't.

The last thing he wanted was for them to get hurt. These idiots were not worth it.

He stretched his hands and multiple runes of the same function (pierce) appeared in front of him in the shape of arrows and struck all of those who had made it through the veil i.e all those who were weaker than the Peak stage of the Cosmic Pearl realm.

They attempted to defend themselves but it was of no consequence and in a matter of seconds, they were dead!

Silence...

All those behind the second veil i.e those at the Peak stage of the Cosmic Pearl realm were now thinking the same thoughts which were;

Did this mean that from the start, Hal could have killed all of them on his own?

Did this mean they had no chance?

None at all?

And...

From what monstrous realm did this monster emerge from exactly?