"You said you would never abandon me, no matter what!"
Isolde's voice trembled as she reached toward Knox, desperation filling her eyes.
But Knox did not respond.
He did not even look at her.
His gaze remained cold, fixed somewhere beyond her as if she were already irrelevant.
Isolde's delicate body shook violently. A bitter smile appeared on her lips as she laughed at herself.
"I was blind…"
"How could I have trusted such a heartless man…"
She struggled suddenly, mustering all her strength to break free from the two Hale family members holding her.
With a heavy thud, she threw herself to her knees before Alex.
Tears streamed down her face.
"Saint Lord… I knows I was wrong!"
"Please, give me a chance to repent. Do not take away my Seven Orifices Divine Heart!"
Her voice was filled with despair and pleading.
The members of the Hale family immediately tensed.
After all, Isolde had once been the Saint Lord's most beloved.
Moments ago, Alex had been enraged to the extreme because of Knox. Perhaps his decision had been made in anger.
Now Iris had appeared and admitted fault sincerely.
And Isolde looked so pitiful, kneeling and crying.
Maybe…
Just maybe…
The Saint Lord's heart would soften again.
Maybe everything would return to how it had always been.
However, Alex's expression did not change at all.
Cold. Indifferent. Unmoved.
"Heaven has its order, and families have their rules," Alex said calmly.
"You brought a stranger into the Hale family and turned the entire hall upside down."
"And now you think a few tears can earn forgiveness?"
His voice carried no warmth.
"Isolde, you have shown far too little respect for the Hale family's laws."
The words fell like a death sentence.
Isolde's face turned pale.
Her body trembled violently.
She crawled forward on her knees until she reached Alex's feet.
"Saint Lord, I truly know my sins!"
"You… you cannot take my exquisite heart…"
"You still need me. The marriage alliance with the Blackwood family… I must marry the young master…"
"Ha ha ha!"
Alex suddenly laughed.
It was a cold, mocking laugh.
"As if you matter that much," he said lightly.
"The Hale family has many outstanding women. We do not lack another."
"And do you truly think the Blackwood family has no temper?"
His eyes sharpened.
"You and your lover caused a scene at the Blackwood family head's birthday banquet."
"You made Alistair, a Supreme Realm powerhouse, lose face before an entire sage lineage."
"If not for my authority forcing him to give me some face…"
"Do you believe you would have left the Blackwood estate alive?"
Iris's expression changed drastically.
"You… caused trouble at the Blackwood family as well?"
Her gaze shot toward Knox.
Knox hesitated, then nodded reluctantly.
"Yes."
Iris's almond shaped eyes widened in anger.
Her usual calm demeanor shattered.
What kind of disciple had she taken?
He had offended not only the Hale family but also the Blackwood family, two sage lineages that stood at the peak of the continent.
If he continued like this, he might drag the entire Divine Blade Sect into ruin.
Alex looked down at Isolde.
His face remained expressionless.
He lifted his foot and kicked her aside without hesitation.
She fell to the ground, coughing weakly.
"Elder," Alex said coldly. "What are you waiting for?"
"Enforce family rules."
Cedric froze briefly.
Even he had not expected the Saint Lord to be this ruthless.
Only when Alex urged him again did he snap back to reality.
Without hesitation, he raised the black dagger.
A faint hiss echoed as the blade pierced into Isolde's chest.
"Ah!"
Her scream tore through the hall.
It was sharp, heart wrenching, filled with unbearable pain.
She struggled desperately, her body twisting violently.
But under the suppression of Cedric, a Mahayana Realm expert, and the two Void Amalgamation Realm disciples restraining her, she could not escape.
Her cultivation was only at the early Enlightenment Realm.
No matter how sharp her mind or how strong her comprehension, the difference in strength was overwhelming.
Blood flowed slowly from the wound.
Seven streams of light began to emerge from her chest.
Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Cyan, Blue, Purple.
They flickered like fragments of a shattered rainbow.
The dagger in Cedric's hand glowed faintly as the Seven Orifices Divine Heart was gradually separated from her body.
The process was slow.
Cruel.
Painful beyond words.
Isolde's screams echoed endlessly.
Around them, the members of the Hale family watched with excitement.
How many resources had she taken from them in the past?
How many had been mocked or humiliated by her arrogance?
At this moment, all the resentment from the past was released.