Chapter 553: Respect

Liam was the son of the Ancestral Snake, inheritor of its boundless, all-devouring Hatred, ready to swallow the entire world to complete his revenge.

However, Liam was also Liam. He owned that Hatred. He would still swallow the world, but on his own terms. He wouldn’t live as the Ancestral Beasts’ pawn. Such was Crazy Uncle’s warning, and Liam had heeded it.

Besides, the sight had been heartwarming. Liam had witnessed many aspects of the cultivation world, but most had been grim, bloody, and straight-up depressing.

Instead, seeing a mighty high-stage branching expert act like a concerned father had been refreshing. Liam couldn’t help but respect that. He would even smile if it weren’t for the dangerous predicament.

As for what would happen next, Liam would simply deal with it. He had lost his only leverage, but living life how he wanted took priority. If that meant more struggles, he would welcome them.

The woman seemed to spot part of the purity in Liam’s actions. The reality of the situation hadn’t changed, but she could at least confirm his relatively decent character, enabling a more appropriate treatment.

"Shall we change location?" The woman invited, already standing up.

The woman didn’t wait for Liam’s reply, directly heading for the exit. He followed her, traversing the third floor in reverse, eventually reaching a far brighter and furnished area.

The new room was more of a hall, tall columns separating it from a balcony that offered a complete view of the oasis. Liam could see the entire Dark Heaven Tribe from there, even after he took the seat the woman had gestured to.

Rather than pillows or a barren floor, Liam found himself on a low armchair, a table of matching height before him. A thick carpet lay beneath the meeting area, and the woman added a jug and three cups after retrieving them from nearby furniture.

"I know Rachel wasn’t in pain," The woman revealed while pouring wine into two cups. "But my husband has always spoiled her greatly, not that I mind. Though he takes even her most obvious lies extremely seriously."

Liam seized a cup without thinking much about the matter. Rachel had indeed looked mischievous, but he was familiar with that type of woman. He loved one exactly like that.

"I’m Amber, Matriarch of the Dark Heaven Tribe," The woman announced, cupping her fist instead of seizing her cup. "Thank you for sparing my daughter despite the trouble she must have put you through." ℯ

That simple introduction revealed a lot. Amber wasn’t only aware of her daughter’s character. She had also understood that Liam had been ready to kill her.

"She answered when I asked," Liam explained, not going into much detail.

"While the Young Masters from the Invincible Oasis and Red Sandstorm Tribes did not?" Amber wondered, smiling. "It doesn’t surprise me. Like my daughter, they have lived sheltered lives."

Liam couldn’t argue. It had been purely delusional for Chester and Jacob to order him around while he was holding Rachel by her throat. It was as if they had no cognition of danger.

"But still," Amber continued, taking a short sip from her cup. "I admit I’m in a difficult position. I’m unable to show proper hospitality if I can only address you as wanderer."

Liam took a sip to hide his trouble, only for the wine to cause another problem. The drink was genuinely splendid, its taste complex, intense but soft.

Life had taught Liam to maintain a cold face, but he was normally quite expressive, and that trait leaked out as he drank another sip.

"It seems overpaying for this wine was worth it," Amber chuckled softly. "They sold it to me as a luxury of the western region. I figured you wouldn’t have been used to our tastes."

Amber mixed casual statements with concerning ones. In a few words, she had announced her awareness that Liam was a foreigner.

Admittedly, Rachel could have shared that guess with her mother, but Liam mainly focused on what was being discussed.

"Learning my identity won’t do you any good," Liam stated, hoping to cut that topic short.

Truth was, Liam didn’t hold much hope of hiding who he was. His new cultivation stage and location might confuse plenty of forces, but not the Church, at least not for long.

Still, while Liam knew the dangers, those who interacted with him didn’t. The Church had been willing to wipe out entire Guild branches out of fear of its secret being leaked, meaning the Dark Heaven Tribe was already at risk.

Liam couldn’t stop interacting with forces, so ignorance was the only shield he could provide. He wouldn’t care in most situations, but the husband had already won his respect, so he wouldn’t exactly like for him to die or suffer out of that basic interaction.

"Then, I shall not inquire," Amber said, showing understanding, soon proving where her daughter’s character came from. "Wanderer is a bit demeaning. Dark Wanderer is more appropriate for a traveling alchemist of your caliber. Or do you prefer Big Brother, like my daughter so fondly remembers you by?"

Liam blinked at the mischievous smile that filled his vision, and a sense of danger followed. He had obviously felt his arrival, but it had been quite timely. Amber might have even voiced her joke because of that.

The husband stood at the vast room’s entrance, glaring at Liam. He clearly hadn’t enjoyed his wife’s joke. Still, he was calmer, as proven by his following snort. "The toxin is gone."

Amber ignored her husband’s mood, pouring wine into the third cup while he sat at her side. He also seemed used to his wife’s shenanigans since he never once stopped glaring at Liam.

’Is he trapped like me?’ Liam wondered, feeling some kinship with that grumpy expert.

"State your purpose ..." The husband said, looking for words.

"Dark Wanderer," Amber added.

"Dark Wanderer," The husband continued. "What do you seek from the Dark Heaven Tribe?"

"Alchemical ingredients," Liam revealed. "A foothold in the area."

"A foothold!" The husband cried. "Am I supposed to forget the pain inflicted on our daughter?"

Amber didn’t say anything now. Either she didn’t want to contradict her husband in public, or she was waiting to see how Liam would handle the situation.

As for Liam, he knew which phase he was in. He had overcome the initial hurdle, leading to negotiations. A back-and-forth between the two sides was supposed to unfold to reach a common agreement.

Grace basically lived in those phases, but Liam was a very different beast.

"Can we avoid the foreplay?" Liam requested. "If we have to kill each other, let’s get to it. Otherwise, let’s move to making a deal."