The words made Dominic’s face swell to the color of raw liver. A private conversation? What was that supposed to mean?
He, Dominic, the eldest young master of House of Wagner, a prodigy at High Immortal Realm Level Nine, had actually been eliminated, while this Jared, who had popped up from who-knew-where, was going to have a private talk with Vivian!
At the thought of Jared soon pressing Vivian beneath him, a surge of nameless fury shot straight to Dominic’s head. The man holding Vivian down ought to have been him!
“Wait!” Dominic strode forward, planting himself between Jared and Vivian, his face ashen. Vivian’s brows drew together. “Lord Wagner, what now?”
Dominic drew a long breath, forcing down his anger. In a low voice he said, “Miss Chance, I object!”
“Object?” Vivian arched a brow.
“Indeed!” Dominic said coldly, “I admit my showing in this second trial was poor, but declaring me inferior to him based solely on an illusion is far too hasty.”
He turned to Jared, open hostility blazing in his eyes. “I suspect this assessment was rigged.”
Vivian’s expression chilled. “Lord Wagner, what is that supposed to mean?”
“It’s simple.” Dominic enunciated each word. “I want to fight him! Real weapons, real combat. Strength will decide. Whoever wins is the one qualified to become the Chance family’s son-in-law.”
He faced Jared, a cold smile tugging at his lips. “Jared, do you dare?”
Jared regarded him calmly and said nothing.
Taking Jared’s silence for fear, Dominic’s sneer deepened. “What’s wrong? Scared? Weren’t you all high and mighty on the stage just now? All four pillars lit, one punch shattering the testing column, your Golden Dragon Bloodline stunning the crowd. But now that it’s time to fight, you’re backing down?”
He stepped closer, looking down at Jared from above. “Jared, you’re only peak High Immortal Realm Level One. I, Dominic Wagner, am Level Nine. There’s a full eight ranks between us. Even with a Golden Dragon Bloodline, so what? A gulf in cultivation isn‘t something blood can bridge.”
He paused, his tone growing even more aggressive. “That test earlier was nothing but theory. In an actual fight you wouldn’t survive a single move from me. If you’re smart, leave Chance Manor now and hand Miss Chance over. Otherwise…”
He left the threat unfinished, but its meaning could not have been clearer.
Seeing this, Vivian’s face darkened, she was about. to rebuke him when Jared suddenly laughed. The smile was so faint it was almost invisible.
He lifted his eyes to Dominic, voice still calm. “Lord Wagner, are you finished?”
Hearing that, Dominic blinked.
Jared went on, “All that talk is just to provoke me into fighting you. But why should I?”
Dominic sneered. “What, don’t you dare?”
“It’s not that I don’t dare.” Jared shook his head. “I simply don’t want to.”
He rose, walked over to Vivian, and in one swift motion wrapped an arm around her slender waist. Vivian went rigid, yet she did not try to break free.
Jared looked at Dominic, a playful curve touching his lips. “Dominic, you’ve misunderstood something. I didn’t join this tournament just to cross swords with you, I came to win.”
He tightened his hold on her waist. “Now I’ve won. Miss Chance is my dual-cultivation partner, and you, Dominic Wagner, are already out of the running.”
Dominic’s face turned a ghastly shade of green.
Jared added lazily, “In a moment I’ll be sharing a bed with Miss Chance. Just. imagine such a breathtaking woman pinned beneath me… Delightful, isn’t it?”
Glancing at Dominic, he smiled as if discussing the weather. “So tell me… Why would I waste strength fighting you with something that good waiting?”
Dominic’s complexion shifted from green to purple, then nearly black. He pointed a trembling finger at Jared. “Y-You…”
“Me what?” Jared cut him off. “Dominic, if you like watching, feel free to observe from the side, though I doubt that’s really your thing.”
Dominic nearly coughed up blood from sheer fury. In more than a century of life, he had never suffered such humiliation!
“Jared!” He snarled through clenched teeth, “You’ve gone too far!”
Jared spread his hands. “Too far? I’m stating facts. You’ve been knocked out, and I’m about to share a bed with Miss Chance. Isn’t that plain enough?”
He paused, a look of mock realization dawning. “Oh, I see… You’re jealous. Who wouldn’t be, with someone as gorgeous as Miss Chance? Such a pity…”
Shaking his head in feigned sympathy, he advised, “Dominic, go home and train. Maybe you’ll win the next contest.”
Dominic shook all over with rage. He glared at Jared, eyes practically spitting fire. Yet he had no argument against Jared’s words.
Dominic’s back went ram rod straight. The simple fact pressed in on him, he had lost.
It was no narrow miss, the defeat was absolute and left nothing to debate. Whether it was the earlier testing pillars or the illusion trial itself, every stage had ended with that High Immortal Realm Level One cultivator, Jared, standing above Dominic.
Now Jared’s arm was looped around Vivian’s narrow waist, and Dominic had no footing left to protest. Dominic’s throat worked twice before a strained sound slipped out. “Fine… Fine!”
He drew one long breath, forcing the heat inside him back down, and pronounced each word as though chiseling stone, “Jared, I will remember the shame you dealt me today!”
With that, he pivoted and strode toward the courtyard gate. At the threshold he halted, swung his head around, and shot Jared a glare that burned like acid.
“Don’t forget! The Celestial Palace still has a bounty on you. I’ll report every detail of what happened here, and when they arrive…”
He let the sentence dangle, the threat already sharp enough to slice the air. Finished, he flicked his sleeve and left. the courtyard without another glance.
Jared watched the retreating figure until it vanished beyond the archway. The smile on his lips thinned, yet his gaze stayed steady.
