Sebastian stared at the list for a long moment.

Then his finger stopped on one particular number.

A trace of respect appeared in his eyes.

After hesitating briefly, he picked up his phone and dialed.

The line rang several times.

Then the call connected.

A calm and steady voice came from the other end.

"Sebastian?"

"It’s rare for you to contact me."

"What happened?"

The speaker was Alistair Vayne.

Within the Vayne Clan, Alistair was neither a clan elder nor one of the core successors.

Even so, his position was far beyond that of ordinary members.

As an inner-clan member responsible for handling various external affairs, he possessed considerable authority.

To branch families like Sebastian’s, Alistair was already someone who stood high above them.

Sebastian immediately straightened his back.

Even though they were separated by a phone call, his attitude became noticeably respectful.

"Brother Alistair."

"My apologies for disturbing you at this hour."

"I’ve encountered a small problem and hoped you might offer some guidance."

"A problem?"

A hint of curiosity appeared in Alistair’s voice.

"You’ve always handled matters well on your own."

"For you to contact the clan directly..."

"It seems this isn’t an ordinary issue."

Sebastian forced a smile.

"If it were something ordinary, I wouldn’t dare bother you."

Then he began explaining.

From Kai’s conflict at the university...

To Lucas publicly slapping his son...

To the expulsion from school...

And finally, Lucas donating five billion dollars and overturning the entire situation.

He omitted very little.

Several minutes later, Sebastian finally finished.

The other side remained silent.

Alistair appeared to be thinking.

After nearly half a minute, his calm voice sounded again.

"A university student?"

"Yes."

"His name is Lucas Gray."

"And you believe he’s a martial artist?"

Sebastian nodded instinctively before realizing the other party couldn’t see him.

"Yes."

"According to my son’s description, he defeated Jerry with a single kick."

"Who had spent years training in boxing and fighting."

"Yet he couldn’t even withstand one move."

Alistair hummed softly.

The interest in his voice became slightly stronger.

"A single kick..."

"Interesting."

Sebastian continued.

"And his financial situation is also strange."

"Only a few days ago he was completely unknown."

"Then suddenly he appeared with enormous wealth."

"He reportedly earned over ten billion dollars through international investments."

Finally, Alistair spoke.

"Money isn’t important."

"What interests me is his strength."

Sebastian’s expression immediately became serious.

Alistair rarely showed interest in ordinary matters.

The fact that he was paying attention already meant something.

"Brother Alistair..."

"Do you think he could be connected to another clan?"

The question lingered in the air.

A few seconds later, Alistair answered.

"Possibly."

"But unlikely."

"If a major clan were supporting him, there would already be traces."

"Still..."

His tone changed slightly.

"A young martial artist appearing out of nowhere is worth investigating."

Sebastian’s eyes lit up.

"So..."

Before he could finish speaking, Alistair interrupted him.

"I’ll send someone to take a look."

The simple sentence immediately made Sebastian relax.

A smile appeared on his face.

"Thank you, Brother Alistair."

Alistair’s voice remained calm.

"Don’t thank me yet."

"If he’s truly nothing more than an ordinary student, this matter will be easy."

"But if there’s something unusual about him..."

The sentence stopped halfway.

Yet Sebastian instantly understood.

The Vayne Clan had survived for centuries because they were cautious.

They never acted blindly.

Especially when martial artists were involved.

After all, in the hidden world of cultivation and martial arts...

One wrong step could provoke an enemy far more dangerous than expected.

The call ended shortly afterward.

Sebastian slowly lowered the phone.

A cold smile spread across his face.

"Dad, did he agree?"

Sebastian nodded.

"Alistair will arrange for some inner-clan juniors to come."

Upon hearing this, Kai was overjoyed.

Inner-clan disciples!

Those people were completely different from ordinary martial artists.

In his eyes, no matter how capable Lucas was, there was no way he could compete against true disciples of the hidden Vayne Clan.

Far away within the Vayne Clan’s territory, Alistair slowly put down his phone.

A thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

This matter was insignificant to him.

Normally, he would not even bother with such a request.

However, since several young disciples had been clamoring to leave the clan recently, sending them out for a simple task would save him the trouble of finding an excuse.

After ending the call with Sebastian, Alistair remained seated quietly in his study.

The room was illuminated by soft yellow light.

His fingers tapped lightly against the armrest as he considered the information he had just received.

A young martial artist.

A mysterious rise to wealth.

Strength capable of defeating a trained fighter with ease.

None of it was enough to alarm him, but it was enough to warrant a closer look.

After a moment of thought, Alistair picked up another phone.

This one was different from the one he used for external affairs.

Only a handful of people within the clan possessed its number.

He dialed a contact.

The call connected almost immediately.

A lazy young man’s voice came through.

"Brother Alistair?"

"What happened this time?"

"Please don’t tell me it’s another boring training mission."

A faint smile appeared on Alistair’s face.

"Blake."

"Weren’t you complaining yesterday about being bored inside the clan?"

The voice on the other end instantly became energetic.

"Of course I was."

"I’ve been stuck on this mountain almost all my life."

Alistair chuckled.

"Good."

"I’ve found a task for you."

The moment he heard that, Blake immediately sat upright.

"What kind of task?"

"Is it dangerous?"

"Can I finally leave the mountain?"

Alistair shook his head helplessly.

"Nothing major."

"I just need you to take a trip outside."

"Investigate someone for me."

"A young martial artist."

The moment those words were spoken, another voice suddenly exploded from nearby.

"What?!"

"Someone’s leaving the mountain?!"

"I want to go too!"

The voice was clear and energetic.

Before Blake could react, a beautiful young woman suddenly snatched the phone from his hand.

"Brother Alistair!"

"You can’t leave me behind!"

"I’ve been trapped here forever!"

Alistair immediately recognized the owner of the voice.

Jade.

The little princess of the Vayne Clan.

A headache instantly formed.

Among the younger generation, Jade’s talent was considered outstanding.

More importantly, her beauty was famous even within the clan.

Many elders treated her like their own daughter.

Since childhood, countless people had protected her.

Even during training, instructors were careful not to push her too hard.

If a single hair on her head was damaged, half the elders would probably come looking for answers.

Naturally, Alistair had no intention of sending her outside.

"No."

His answer was immediate.

"Absolutely not."

A dissatisfied voice immediately followed.

"Why not?"

"Blake gets to go."

"Everyone gets to go."

"Only I have to stay here."

"It’s not fair!"

Alistair rubbed his forehead.

"Jade."

"This isn’t sightseeing."

"It’s work."

"I’m not sending you out to play."

"Besides, when was the last time you even left the mountain?"

Jade blinked.

Then counted on her fingers.

A few seconds later, her eyes widened.

"Ten years."

The corner of Alistair’s mouth twitched.

Exactly.

Ten years.

The last time she had gone outside, she was still a little girl.

Now she had grown into one of the clan’s most admired young women.

Sending her into the outside world felt like releasing a rare treasure into a den of thieves.

But Jade clearly had no intention of giving up.

"Brother Alistair."

"Please."

"Please."

"I promise I’ll behave."

"I won’t cause trouble."

"I’ll listen to Blake."

Blake immediately shouted from the background.

"Don’t drag me into this!"

Unfortunately, Jade completely ignored him.

Alistair remained silent.

Truthfully, this mission wasn’t dangerous.

According to Sebastian’s report, it was simply a university student who knew some martial arts.

At most, they would investigate his background and test his strength.

Nothing serious should happen.

After several moments of consideration, he finally sighed.

"Fine."

The room on the other side instantly erupted.

"YES!"

Jade practically screamed in excitement.

Even Blake looked surprised.

Alistair immediately added.

"Don’t celebrate yet."

"You’re going because this mission is simple."

"If anything unexpected happens, you return immediately."

"No arguing."

"No acting on your own."

"And absolutely no causing trouble."

Jade nodded so quickly that her long hair bounced behind her.

"I understand!"

"I understand!"

Alistair knew she probably understood nothing.

Still, it was too late to change his mind now.

He continued.

"Blake."

"Take care of her."

Blake immediately looked miserable.

"Brother Alistair..."

"That might be harder than the mission itself."

Jade kicked him from the side.

"Shut up!"

Alistair ignored their bickering.

"I’ll send Sebastian’s address to your phones."

"When you arrive, meet him first."

"Find out everything you can about Lucas."

"Investigate his background."

"If necessary, test his strength."

His voice became slightly more serious.

"Remember."

"The purpose is investigation."

"Not killing."

"Do not use excessive force."

"If he’s just an ordinary martial artist, deal with the situation quickly and come back."

"Understood?"

The two answered simultaneously.

"Understood."

Only then did Alistair end the call.