When he awoke, the sky was already bright and the new sun was rising. Caleb Carter saw that his outer garment had been dampened by dew, so he took it off, wrapped it up casually, avoided the road, found a tree, and placed it on a branch. Only then did he return to the main road and head toward the city gate.

Caleb Carter entered the walled city and discovered a crowd gathered inside the gate arch, noisily demanding to leave the city. A squad of fully armed soldiers stood firm with swords drawn, blocking all who approached. Caleb Carter then realized that, at present, the situation in Jiangjin City was loose on the outside but tight within—entry was permitted, but no one was allowed to leave.

He was startled, but had no time to delay, and walked straight into the city. Most of the pedestrians in the city hurried along with anxious expressions, refusing to speak of last night’s events. When Caleb Carter inquired, they quickly avoided him, suspicion in their eyes. Not until noon did an elderly man with white hair and beard tell him that the Governor’s Office had issued a gag order regarding last night’s incident.

In front of the Governor’s Office, squads of soldiers clad in full armor stood on either side, long halberds pointed skyward, the blades glinting coldly. At the gate stood a young officer in blue armor, who seemed to glance casually at the passersby on the street. The officer was about twenty-eight or twenty-nine, with a chiseled face, long brows reaching his temples, and eyes full of spirit.

When Caleb Carter met his gaze, he immediately felt as if he’d been seen through, and hurriedly ducked into the Dongli Teahouse.

The tea server bustled over to greet him: “Little Caleb, you’re here. Your master is in the back. The usual—two baskets of soup dumplings and two bowls of eight-treasure porridge?” Seeing that Caleb Carter had no objections, he shouted toward the inner hall, “Two baskets of soup dumplings, two bowls of eight-treasure!” and left before the echo faded.

Caleb Carter went up to the second floor and chose a seat by the window overlooking the street. He kept an eye on the activity in front of the Governor’s Office while listening in on the conversations among the teahouse patrons.

Those who frequented Dongli Teahouse were either wealthy or noble, and those who had come at this time were clearly here to gather information. Although the Governor’s Office had issued a gag order, they paid it no heed, whispering and exchanging news. Caleb Carter secretly congratulated himself for coming to the right place.

“Peter Reed really lucked out. All the top generals in Jiangjin City have been sent to Zhongliu’s army. John Bolton always looked down on him, but who would have thought that such a vast family estate would end up in his hands.”

“Hmph, a vast estate. He still needs the ability to hold onto it. Even if Samuel Harris in Yixing and Baishi won’t act independently, how could the Li family of Qinghe and the Fu family of Nanyang let him have his way? The Zhang clan still has forty thousand elite troops under Zhongliu City—hardly easy to deal with. If he can keep Jiangjin, that’s no small feat.”

“Exactly. Isn’t everyone in Jiangjin City on edge right now?”

“Peter Reed has always had a good reputation. If the people of Jiangjin can make a living under his rule, it would be a blessing.”

“I feel the same, but in this world, it’s always strength that speaks. Without overwhelming force, how can one possess Jiangjin, one of the four great cities?”

“I disagree with you there. Didn’t you see the man standing in front of the Governor’s Office?”

“Oh?”

“You must not know—he’s Peter Reed’s second son, one of the top young experts of his generation, known as the ‘Dragon-Sealing Sword’ Brian Reed. His eldest son, Adam Reed, is skilled at managing the family business and has good relations with the Donglin Society. The third daughter married into the Li family of Qinghe. The Li family won’t submit to the Yi family, but they won’t make things difficult either—perhaps the two families have already formed an alliance. The youngest son, Grace Reed, though not well-known to outsiders, has been famed as a prodigy since childhood and will surely make his mark in the future. Most importantly, Peter Reed was not favored by John Bolton, and you all assume he’s incompetent, but that’s a big mistake. In truth, it’s because Peter Reed and John Bolton didn’t get along—he often contradicted John Bolton to his face and was not liked by him, that’s all.”

“But that Henry Walker is formidable as well. John Bolton sent all the best men of his clan to hunt him down for a long time, yet he still managed to sneak into the city and kill him. When the two fought, their inner energy burst forth, light flashing. As John Bolton dispersed his power, he even summoned lightning to strike—rumor has it that many buildings inside the Governor’s Office collapsed. Ordinary people thought it was the work of gods or ghosts, not realizing it was a duel between two of the world’s top masters. Who would have thought John Bolton’s martial arts were so formidable? If not for Henry Walker, who else in the world could have killed him?”

“Among the top ten martial artists in the world today, aside from the three grandmasters, there’s one from the East Sea, three from the four great clans, one from Chengyu, one from the old dynasty in Nanping, John Bolton was a latecomer, and Henry Walker rose even later, forcing John Bolton to disperse his power and die. Henry Walker once wreaked havoc in Yixing and Baishi, but now he’s eliminated a great scourge for Yongning—truly, the ways of the world are unpredictable.” Henry Walker had once discussed the current world rankings with Caleb Carter, but only laughed it off, saying it was just the work of idle gossipers; aside from the three grandmasters, there were many hidden masters in the world. Of course, hearing that his foster father could be compared to the three grandmasters made him very happy. However, the conversation that followed made his heart sink to the bottom.

“News from inside says that after Henry Walker killed John Bolton, he didn’t immediately flee. Facing Peter Reed, who arrived upon hearing the commotion, he said: ‘I have wronged Yixing and Baishi greatly. If you can take John Bolton’s place, I hope you will treat them well.’ Before he finished speaking, the long spear in his hand split in two and he stabbed it into his own chest. At first, everyone thought Henry Walker had broken the spear, but it turned out the spear was made of two sections that could be unscrewed in the middle. Isn’t that amazing?”