At the edge of the Demon Marches, black fog hung there all year and never cleared. Wild wind howled past, carrying dark red grit with it. The world there was choked with violent, icy demonic aura. An ordinary cultivator only had to step into that place for a moment before the demonic aura would invade the body and wipe out the spirit on the spot.
And in that dead, barren land, a massive palace stood in silence between heaven and earth. Its whole body had been forged from black dragon bones and blood-colored dark iron, and it looked like some ancient beast that had slept there forever, giving off a pressure that made the chest tighten.
This was the foundation land of the Demon Dragon Lineage: the Demon Dragon Hall. Outside the hall, layers upon layers of wards spread out like a spiderweb. Phantom Demon Dragons flickered in the void, and every single ward held enough terrifying power to kill a Top Level High Immortal Realm expert. Even a True Immortal Realm powerhouse barging in recklessly would end with body and soul destroyed.
And at that moment, three figures ignored every ward in their path. As casually as if they were strolling through a garden, they passed through curtain after curtain of light and landed steadily on the white-jade square before the main entrance of the Demon Dragon Hall.
The one in front wore plain black clothes. His features were sharp, his bearing calm. There wasn’t the slightest ripple of spiritual power around him, and yet he seemed fused with heaven and earth itself, impossible to read.
He was Skylar.
At his side, Josephine’s violet dress moved lightly around her. Her beauty was stunning, her cool bearing like a frost lotus on a snowy peak, and a trace of curiosity sat in her eyes as she quietly studied the palace in front of her—a place steeped in strange, unsettling air. She stayed close beside Skylar. Even in the heart of the Demon Marches, where danger waited everywhere, the person beside her was enough to steady her steps.
And ahead of them, Darian, the Lord of the Demon Dragon Hall, had lowered himself to the extreme. This leader of the Demon Dragon Lineage, who had roamed the Demon Marches for ten thousand years and made countless forces fear his name, now looked like the most loyal of servants, his back bent as he led the way with careful steps. Darian personally stepped forward, raised a hand covered in fine dragon scales, and slowly pushed open the incomparably heavy hall doors.
The instant the doors opened, a thick wave of demonic aura mixed with a lavish, twisted atmosphere rushed straight out.
The door hinges turned with a deep, heavy groan, like the low murmur of some ancient beast waking from sleep. Darian quickly moved aside to clear the path. He bent slightly and spoke in a tone so respectful it was nearly fawning. “Senior, please…”
Skylar gave a faint nod, not bothering with empty courtesy, and stepped into the Demon Dragon Hall. Josephine followed close behind. Her light steps fell softly on the mirror-smooth floor as her eyes moved with quiet curiosity over everything inside the hall.
The scale of the Demon Dragon Hall was far beyond what anyone outside could have imagined. The great hall rose so high it seemed to pierce the clouds, and countless dark red top-grade demon crystals were set into the ceiling, shedding a dim glow that dyed the whole place crimson.
Pillars so thick it would take dozens of people to wrap around one stood throughout the hall. Each one had vivid Demon Dragon reliefs carved into it—all claws and fangs, all glaring eyes. Every scale and every whisker had been carved with perfect clarity.
Under the glow of the demon crystals, the Demon Dragons on those pillars looked almost alive, as if they might break free at any second and devour everything in sight. The floor had been laid with blood-colored jade marrow. It felt smooth and warm underfoot, yet a biting chill still seeped through it.
On both sides of the hall stood seats made from the bones of rare demon beasts. Gems of every color had been set into their backs; all of it was lavish, eerie, and overbearing at once, showing the strength and tyranny of the Demon Dragon Lineage everywhere the eye landed.
Skylar walked slowly to the center of the great hall and stopped there. With his hands behind his back, he let his gaze sweep over the place and said in a calm, flat voice, “This place of yours isn’t bad.”
Darian hurried up at once and stopped three steps to Skylar’s side. Careful, ingratiating smiles piled across his face as he said, “Senior flatters me. My Demon Dragon Hall is nothing but some remote backwater in the Demon Marches, crude and unworthy. It can’t possibly enter Senior’s eyes. I’ve made a fool of myself in front of you.”
The corner of Skylar’s mouth tilted up, and he gave a faint smile without replying. The smile looked gentle, but it only made Darian more uneasy. He couldn’t read this mysterious Senior at all. Darian didn’t dare slow for even a moment.
He immediately lifted a hand in signal, and two Demon Dragon guards in black demonic armor quickly came in from outside carrying over two chairs carved from ten-thousand-year warm jade. They placed them respectfully beside the seat of honor.
“Senior has come a long way and must be weary from the journey. Please, have a seat and rest…” Darian kept his back bent and one hand extended in invitation. Only after Skylar and Josephine slowly sat down did he dare stand off to the side with his hands lowered, not even daring to breathe too loudly, much less seat himself.
Once both of them had settled into their seats, Darian finally opened his mouth, careful with every word and respectful to the point of reverence. “Senior, you’ve come a long way and the road must have worn you down. Why not stay here in the Demon Dragon Hall and rest in peace for a few days?”
“I’ve already sent out all my elites and ordered them to do everything they can to find Jared’s whereabouts. The moment there’s any news, I’ll report it to you at once. When that time comes, I’ll personally accompany you there and won’t delay your business by even a moment.”
Skylar lifted his eyes and gave him a look. Nothing showed in those deep eyes. He only gave a slight nod. “Fine… go make the arrangements.”
With Skylar’s approval, the weight crushing Darian seemed to ease all at once. He hurriedly bowed, then turned and quickly ordered his men to prepare the finest guest room in the Demon Dragon Hall and bring out the hall’s treasured spirit fruit and spirit tea. Everything had to be done at the highest possible level for these mysterious Seniors.
It wasn’t long before several beautiful maidservants hurried in carrying jade trays piled with rare spirit fruit and cups of steaming spirit tea. They set the food and drink down on the jade table in front of Skylar and Josephine with the lightest touch they could manage, not daring to let even the smallest sound slip out.
Skylar picked up the white-jade teacup in front of him and took a small sip of the spirit tea. The rich tea fragrance spread across his mouth with a faint trace of spiritual energy mixed into it. He set the cup back down, and his gaze slowly came to rest on Darian, who was still standing off to the side. His voice stayed flat. “You said just now that Jared is currently in Cloudhaven City?”
Darian’s chest tightened. He immediately stepped half a pace forward and bowed as he answered, “Senior, according to the report from the sharpest scout under my command, Jared did appear in Cloudhaven City a few days ago.
Not only that, he brought the entire Sky Dragon Clan into the city and turned that great city in Centralia into the foundation of the Sky Dragon Clan…”
“But the strange part is this… when my scouts went back over the past few days to keep watching, Jared had vanished without a trace. Only the Sky Dragon Clan’s clansmen were left guarding the city, and no one could find any sign of him at all. I’ve already tripled the number of men watching Cloudhaven City day and night. It shouldn’t be long before we uncover his exact whereabouts.”
When he heard that, Skylar slowly nodded. He said nothing more. His gaze lowered a little, and he sat there in silence. Josephine sat beside him, her beautiful eyes fixed the whole time on the face of the man at her side. She could see his expression looked calm.
Nothing moved in his brow or around his eyes. But deep in those dark eyes, there was something she had never seen before. There was something waiting there—something cold as steel, and something stubborn enough that no clean name fit it.
