A robed figure glided from the darkness. Even Dioz felt his heart jolt under the figure’s aura pouring from that hood, where only twin blood-red eyes burned.
“Mr. Atkinson!” Dioz and others nearby bowed, their reverence filling the glen.
Quentin Atkinson, the branch leader of Malevolent Path Hall, lifted his head. From beneath the hood, the scarlet gaze swept the crowd. “Jared is intriguing. Every cultivator of this hall will march with Mr. Lester. Whoever brings me Jared’s head earns one high-grade spiritual tool.”
A roar exploded across the altar. Black silhouettes poured from cliff ledges and shadowed trails, flooding outward, streaming toward Swordmaster City.
Within Swordmaster City, unease thickened with each breath.
Since Lester’s departure, all factions observed the situation, and wandering cultivators prowled the Sword Sect compound like wolves scenting open gates.
Jared knew the hush was only the eye of the hurricane. Lester’s revenge would arrive soon.
Ararat appeared in Jared’s courtyard as silently as falling ash, a device in his fingers. “Mr. Chance, this is the latest intelligence.”
Jared lifted the device. He activated the device with his spiritual sense. Later, his expression changed. “Celestial Palace’s Sixth Hall? A branch of the Malevolent Path Hall? Lester has rallied those bastards!”
The message was recorded clearly. Lester had allied with the Celestial Palace’s Sixth Hall, Darkwind Gorge’s Malevolent Path Hall, and a few reclusive sects in level five. His army was more than a thousand people. There were at least fifty cultivators at the seventh level of the Earthly Immortal Realm.
Ararat’s voice grew heavy. “Drystan nursed an old grudge against me. This invasion is about more than you. The Malevolent Path Hall is notorious for their black magic. It’s hard to detect them.”
The courtyard doors banged open, Flaxseed barreling through in a swirl of dusty robes. “Jared, rumors outside say Lester plans to bathe Swordmaster City in blood. Should we bolt before the tide arrives?”
Leaning on a weathered cane, Corin stepped from the shadows. Deathly pale yet unshakably calm, he met every eye. “The Sword Sect has endured a millennium. Even if one last disciple remains standing, we will not retreat.”
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: The King Of Warriors novel (Jared Chance)