The instant the rune fused with the defensive formation, the entire city shuddered violently.
The cultivators in dark robes turned pale as paper. One after another, they were flung back, coughing up blood.
“My name is Jared. I came here out of respect to speak with your city lord. If anyone tries to stop me, don’t blame me for getting rough!”
Jared’s voice echoed like thunder across the city. The sound waves seemed to tear open cracks in the clouds above.
Reluctantly, the black-robed cultivators stepped aside, their expressions full of resentment.
As Jared and his companions passed through the final gate, they could already see the eaves of the city lord mansion looming ahead.
The scarlet doors slowly swung open, revealing a middle-aged man standing with his hands clasped behind his back. Dressed in a python-patterned robe threaded with gold, favonovel.com was none other than Jovan, the city lord of Winged Tiger City.
His sharp gaze swept over Jared and the two standing beside him. “Who are you three? Why have I never seen you around Rhino City before?”
As they stepped into the courtyard, a documentation device slipped out from Jared’s sleeve and floated forward like a leaf on the wind.
“Lord Jovan, it doesn’t matter who we are. What matters is we’re here to negotiate on behalf of Lord Maceo,” Jared said.
Jovan caught the documentation device, his pupils narrowing sharply. The courtyard went deathly still. Only the wind stirred the fallen leaves, rustling them in eerie circles between the two men.
Of course, Jovan recognized the token. It was Maceo’s identity emblem, and whoever held it had the authority to speak for him.
“In that case, let’s talk…” Jovan handed the scroll back to Jared.
“But can you call the shots around here?” Jared asked.
“Hah! I’m the lord of Winged Tiger City. If I can’t make the calls, who can?” Jovan scoffed.
“Sure, you’re the city lord,” Jared said, his eyes shifting westward, “But the one actually calling the shots might not even be here.”
To the west of the city lord mansion, a mountain range stretched out into the horizon. Scattered along it were over a dozen cities, all within Winged Tiger City’s territory.
Jared had noticed something odd. These cities formed a subtle but precise defensive arcane array. At first glance, they looked like they were built to protect the main city. But Jared saw it differently.
The core of the arcane array wasn’t here. It was high above the range, over a small, seemingly unimportant town that most wouldn’t give a second glance. Yet that was where the energy converged, right at its core.
It doesn’t make sense… Unless Jovan is just a figurehead, and the real authority is hidden in that obscure town…
“What are you blabbering about?” Jovan snapped. “If you don’t want to talk, fine. But just so you know, I have Maceo’s son. I’ve got all the time in the world to wait!”
Seeing the flicker in Jovan’s expression, Jared felt certain his guess had been right.
“We definitely want to talk. Why else would we travel all this way to see you?” Jared replied evenly.
“Fine then. Let’s talk inside,” Jovan muttered, stepping toward the inner chamber.
“Jared, be careful,” Madman warned favonovel.com quietly.
“He’s right. We should tread carefully,” Eason added. “This Jovan is playing games. He even had people test us at the checkpoints…”
“You two stay out here,” Jared instructed. “I’ll go in and scope things out. If anything goes wrong, leave immediately. Don’t worry about me.”
“Jared, what do you take me for?” Madman said firmly. “I’d rather die than let you face danger alone.”
Eason looked at Jared and added, “If I ran off to save myself, how could I face Catina? Go ahead. Worst-case scenario, the three of us take them down together.”
Jared nodded, then followed Jovan inside.
If it had just been Jovan, favonovel.com wouldn’t have been worried. He was confident favonovel.com could handle the other party.
