“Mr. Chance, from this day on, I’ll follow your lead in everything. I’ll never have divided loyalties…” Luther suddenly threw his arms around Jared and started pouring out his loyalty.
“Alright, enough. You’re a grown man.” Jared shoved Luther off, then looked toward Grace. “Miss Warwick, Luther isn’t much of a talker, but he’s steady where it counts. If he treats you well, then he’ll mean it for real. If you stay with him, you won’t be wronged.”
Grace’s face was still red. She gave a small nod. Off to the side, Evelyn watched the whole thing like it was the best show she’d seen all day, her eyes shining. “Wow, Luther and Grace are so romantic. I want to fall in love too!”
Evelyn had been raised by the Hallowmere Order like a caged piece on a board. What she wanted was something like what Luther and Grace had now—to follow the man she liked and be in love with him.
Jared flicked a calm look at her. “Kids shouldn’t be thinking about that.” He turned back to Luther, curiosity plain in his voice. “That said, when did this even start between you two?”
Luther scratched his head, looking awkward. “It was during those few days when you went to the Luminous Sanctuary. It was during those days when the Celestial Palace was besieging Cloudhaven City. We had just started cultivating in pairs…”
“Those days?” Jared paused, caught off guard. “You were one step from death back then, and you still had the mind to…”
Luther’s face turned even redder. Grace reached over and gave his sleeve a light tug. “There’s nothing here that can’t be said…” She lifted her head and looked at Jared. Her face was red, but her gaze didn’t waver.
“During those days, we were guarding outside the hidden chamber, and we could’ve died at any moment,” Luther said he was probably going to die this time, and the only thing he regretted was that before dying, he’d never known what a woman felt like.
“Good. Good. Good!” Jared said it three times in a row, then slapped Luther hard on the shoulder. “Luther, you’ve got some nerve. At a life-and-death moment like that, you could still do it. That’s what a man is!”
“Jared, the men of the Celestial Palace are all gone. Where do we go next?” Lydia asked.
“The men are gone, but the Celestial Palace’s Sacred Mountains are still there. We need to find the remaining Sacred Mountains. Inside them are the Venerables’ physical bodies of the Ghost Clan,” Jared said.
Lydia’s brows drew together when she heard that. The Venerables of the Ghost Clan were great powers from the elder age. She hadn’t expected those bodies to be in the Celestial Palace’s hands.
“What are you planning to do?” Lydia asked.
Jared looked at her, his gaze steady. “Destroy it.”
Jared went on, “If they succeed in using that Venerable’s body, consequences will be beyond imagining. Instead of leaving trouble behind, it’d be better to destroy it now.” He paused, then looked at Lydia. “You’re the Ghost Clan Princess… If you don’t agree, I won’t force it.”
Lydia stayed quiet for a moment before she finally spoke. “I agree.” She lifted her head. “The Venerable really was one of the great powers of our Ghost Clan when he was alive. He was an ancestor I looked up to… But since he already fell, he should be allowed to rest in peace. Rather than let the Venerable’s body become a tool for the celestials, it’d be better to destroy it and let him be truly free.”
Luther nodded too. “I agree with the princess. The Venerable was a towering figure in his day, a real hero. If he knew the celestials were using him after death, he probably wouldn’t be able to close his eyes.”
Jared looked at the two of them and gave a small nod. “In that case, let’s go.”
Jared led the group out to search for the Celestial Palace’s Sacred Mountain.
