In the Cadens’ courtyard… A group of people scrutinized an unconscious James. Tobias furrowed his brows and asked, “Who sent him here?” The guard said, “They were wearing a mask, so we couldn’t see their faces clearly. After leaving James in front of the gate, they simply left without a word.” At that moment, Maxine exclaimed in an alarmed voice, “Grandpa, I’ve just received news that the Johnstons are claiming that I went to the Johnstons’ headquarters along with men from the God-King Palace and took James away.” Tobias hissed in irritation, “Looks like someone is trying to pin this incident on the Cadens.” Maxine asked, “What should we do then? Should we save James?” A conflicted look formed on Tobias’ face. Then he responded flatly, “Although he’s no longer a Caden since his grandfather betrayed the family, the fact remains that Caden blood still runs through his veins. In any case, we should take him in for now.” A few guards walked over to James and carried him int
The events at the Johnstons had also reached the ears of Mr. Gabriel. Mr. Gabriel now knew with surety the God-King Palace was affiliated with the Cadens and that Maxine Caden was the one who demanded James’ release. Mr. Gabriel had a similar plan to Mr. Lee’s. He also planned to visit the Cadens and discern Tobias Caden’s thoughts on the recent events. At the Cadens… Tobias had left the room after using his True Energy to treat James’ injuries. Not long after, James slowly regained consciousness. The moment he woke up, all he could feel was excruciating pain throughout his body. He felt as if his heart had been pierced by a thousand swords. James’ face was twisted into an agonized grimace as he tried to bear the pain. To make matters worse, the Gu venom within his body was actively moving around. He was keenly able to feel the sensation of numerous bugs squirming around his body and slowly eating away at him from the inside. “Argh…” His body throbbed and his skin b
Maxine sighed and shook her head exasperatedly. Then, she walked over to James and crouched down. “Go away…” James raised his arm and tried to swat her away. All he did was aggravate his injuries further and ended up coughing out more blood. The door slowly creaked open and Tobias walked into the room dressed in a suit. “Grandpa…” Maxine raised a hand in greeting. Tobias made a small nod of acknowledgment. He took a seat on a nearby chair and regarded James curled up in pain on the floor. James righted himself with no small amount of difficulty and sat limply on the ground. This alone depleted so much of his stamina. A coppery taste lingered in his mouth and his chapped lips were tinged red with blood. When he saw Tobias, James’ face turned black. “Was it you who burned my home to the ground ten years ago?” “Yes,” Tobias made no attempts to deny it. “I’ll kill you…” His nonchalant response only enraged James further. James’ body stiffened as he tried to lunge for To
Now, because of James, they had gotten themselves involved in the turmoil. “Because of you, the Cadens have now been dragged into the fray. It’s not unlikely that you might have been manipulated from the very beginning. Disposing of the Emperor under the Cadens’ name is certainly a surefire way to get the Johnstons and Cadens involved and cause a rift between the two families.” James simply sat there with his mouth agape. He knew that the Capital had been governed by complex dynamics that hung in an intricate balance, but he had not expected things to be this convoluted. The God-King Palace had really made a royal mess of things. “What exactly is the God-King Palace?” Maxine shrugged. “Who knows? We wouldn’t be sitting here doing nothing if we knew who was actually behind this. Tomorrow morning, we’ll likely be receiving a number of guests who are planning to see where my grandfather stands.” “Actually…” Maxine’s mouth snapped shut for a moment before opening once again
James found himself unable to sleep. He had been repeatedly going through the events that had taken place. He no longer had a handle on the situation. He had no idea what the King or the other forces that were backing the Emperor were plotting. The God-King Palace only served to complicate things even further. What were they aiming for? The night passed silently. The next day… The Caden residence bustled with its numerous visitors. Mr. Lee and the King were the first to arrive. They were here with a single objective in mind─to ascertain last night’s events and what the Cadens’ position was on the matter. Opting to not waste any time with useless mental chess, Tobias simply told the truth of what had happened─James was left at the front door of the Cadens. Mr. Lee wrinkled his nose at Tobias’ explanation. He could not tell if Tobias was trying to deceive him or was actually speaking the truth. Shortly after they departed, Mr. Gabriel arrived. Next were the John
Tobias gave James a once over before letting out a pleased huff. “Not bad, your complexion’s improved.” James’ eyes bored into the elderly man before him. Technically, Tobias was James’ grand-uncle. However, he was the farthest thing from family to James whose anger at the events from ten years still burned furiously in his chest. Ignoring the hateful gaze directed at him, Tobias addressed James, “I’m sure you’ve already heard from Maxinne that they’ll seek to destabilize the situation by killing you. Unfortunately, the Cadens can no longer afford to protect you.” Never taking his eyes off Tobias, James said coldly, “I don’t need the Cadens’ protection.” “Oho…?” Tobias exclaimed in amusement. His lips twitched into something resembling a smile. “You’re courageous, I’ll give you that. However, in your current condition, you don’t have a snowball’s chance in hell against them. Even if you had no injuries and were in peak condition, you’ll still get crushed with extreme ease
James had heard of the painting’s origins before. However, he scarcely knew anything about it. He sat motionlessly in the wheelchair and looked at the painting in awe. Tobias, whose gaze was also fixed on the painting, continued, “This painting was passed down by the Prince of Orchid himself. He was a prince who failed to seize power for himself in the midst of a power struggle. In order to make a comeback, he went to great lengths searching for treasures all over the world. Sadly, he went to his grave unable to seize the imperial throne for himself. On his deathbed, he gave each of his four major officials a painting and told them that the paintings held a great secret within.” James asked in response to the revelation, “What kind of secret?” Bobby Caden once told him that the Moonlit Flowers on Cliffside’s Edge possessed the secret to immortality. However, James found it hard to believe his words. Tobias shook his head morosely. “The Prince of Orchid never revealed what i
Perhaps someone else was backing the Emperor apart from Mr. Gabriel. In order to get a clearer understanding of the situation, James would have to return to Cansington and ask the owner of Sovereign Boutique Shop. Although his previous attempt yielded no useful information, James had a feeling that the owner chose not to disclose anything to him. Putting his thoughts aside, he turned to Tobias and asked, “So, why did you bring me here? I’m sure it wasn’t just to regale me with the story of the Ancient Four’s origins along with the Moonlit Flowers on Cliffside’s Edge.” Tobias merely shook his head and pointed at the painting on the wall. “The secret to the ultimate martial arts techniques are concealed within this painting. The key to solving the puzzle is through the 18-meridian diagram. Though I have been researching it for quite some time now, despite my best efforts, I’m still unable to break the painting’s cipher. I believe you are familiar with the 18-meridian diagram?”