Lance Quinn watched Prince Terrence Valen of Lyndaria’s furious expression and didn’t follow his lead. Terrence was deeply suspicious by nature—if you spoke too absolutely, he’d only doubt you more.
Lance spoke calmly, "I can’t say for sure it’s Skyvault Palace Sect, but they’re definitely involved. A year ago, a mysterious man approached me, offering a hundred thousand taels of gold and news about the map in your hands, Crown Prince Terrence. He wanted me to steal it and promised another hundred thousand taels once the job was done."
As a martial-world man, Lance always played by those rules. He took the gold up front and kept tracking Crown Prince Terrence, waiting for a chance to snatch the map. Once he got it, Lance delivered it to the mysterious employer as agreed—but the man tried to kill him to silence the trail.
By sheer luck, Lance escaped and began investigating the mysterious man. Not long ago, he learned that Skyvault Palace Sect’s master now possessed a Former-Dynasty treasure map. Whether it’s the same map Crown Prince Terrence lost, Lance can’t say for sure—but in the martial world, there aren’t many who could kill him." Mixing truth with lies didn’t matter; what mattered was that Skyvault Palace Sect had the Nine Provinces Map. Lance was confident that alone would tempt Terrence into cooperating.
"You think just this much evidence means Skyvault Palace Sect did it, and now you want revenge?" Terrence didn’t fully believe Lance, but he couldn’t help being tempted. Nobody understood the value of a Former-Dynasty treasure map better than him—losing it made him want to kill Lance on the spot.
"That’s why I said I’m not certain, but Skyvault Palace Sect is the prime suspect. If someone dares to come for me, I’d rather kill the wrong person than let them go. Besides, this is the perfect opportunity—I’m not about to miss it." Lance showed his arrogance and wildness again, making Terrence believe that only huge profits or things that truly interested him could move a man like Lance.
He had to dispel Terrence’s doubts. If Terrence thought Lance was connected to Ninth Royal Uncle, no matter how great the profit, Terrence wouldn’t cooperate—and might even sabotage things.
Still, Lance was sure Terrence would agree—if he really were one of Ninth Royal Uncle’s men, why would he approach Terrence for an alliance? Nolan would be a much better choice for that.
"So in the end, this is just your personal feud with Skyvault Palace Sect. What does it have to do with me?" Terrence was wavering. What attracted him, of course, was the treasure map, but he wouldn’t admit it yet—he still needed to verify Lance’s intel.
If the information checked out, what was a little risk? As Lance said, making a move now wouldn’t cost him much in manpower or resources—he just needed to let Ninth Royal Uncle take the lead.
Lance Quinn picked up a cup and set it down with a thud in front of Prince Terrence. "Skyvault Palace Sect’s territory is closest to Lyndaria. If Lyndaria annexed that land, wouldn’t that be a major achievement for you, Crown Prince Terrence?"
This was the final straw—no matter how risky, Terrence would gamble for it. The temptation was at least as great as the treasure map itself.
Even if Terrence didn’t show it, Lance was ninety percent sure he was tempted. With Skyvault Palace Sect’s territory, Lyndaria would gain a new shield. Terrence was ambitious—there was no way he wouldn’t be moved.
Terrence’s breathing grew heavier, his eyes locked onto the cup as if it were Skyvault Palace Sect’s land itself. He was tempted, but he didn’t plan to let Lance know. Terrence pulled his gaze away and said coolly, "The risk is too high."
"If there’s no risk, it’s not worth anything. If you don’t strike while Skyvault Palace Sect is focused on fighting Ninth Royal Uncle, the risk will only grow. If you think it’s too dangerous, you can always find someone to share the burden. I love gold, but I take it honestly—once Skyvault Palace Sect falls, all I want is a hundred thousand taels and the mysterious man’s head." That only made Terrence believe even more that Lance was in it for revenge.
Terrence considered himself to know Lance fairly well—he was clear-cut about grudges, full of martial-world spirit, and loyal to his own code. He believed in handling martial-world matters with martial-world methods. Hearing Lance’s proposal, Terrence already had the perfect candidate in mind.
Prince Damien of Southlyn—the Southern Lyn Third Prince—was desperate for money lately. If Terrence handed him all of Skyvault Palace Sect’s wealth, Damien would be eager to send troops. After all, Skyvault’s accumulated riches over generations were at least equal to any royal treasury. Even after paying Lance his hundred thousand taels, there’d be enough left to fund two more wars for Damien.
Terrence silently weighed the pros and cons of the operation. Honestly, the benefits far outweighed the risks. The only real downside to destroying Skyvault Palace Sect was that it would solve a major problem for Ninth Royal Uncle—but without Nolan’s forces up front, Terrence’s side would take heavy losses.
He was not happy about it!
Terrence really hated the idea of solving one of Ninth Royal Uncle’s problems for him, but if he missed this chance, he might never get another as good.
Terrence gritted his teeth, already having made up his mind—but outwardly, he kept his composure: "I need to think it over." He couldn’t just trust Lance’s word alone.
"Fine. Three days. I’ll wait three days for your answer, Crown Prince Terrence. If you don’t reply, I’ll find someone else—there are plenty who’d be interested." Lance gave a mysterious smile, rose with a flourish, and leapt straight out the window...
The guards heard the commotion and moved to act, but Terrence stopped them: "Let him go!"
That was Terrence’s signal of intent—the deal was as good as done.
Lance smirked in the shadows, shot Terrence’s direction a long, meaningful look, then turned and sprinted off the other way.
Less than five seconds after Lance left, Terrence followed—but he didn’t even catch a glimpse of Lance’s shadow. He cursed Lance’s cunning, returned to his room, and summoned his advisors to discuss Skyvault Palace Sect.
After leaving Terrence, Lance circled the city several times to make sure he wasn’t being followed, then headed for Sutton Manor.
Inside a secret room at Sutton Manor, Vincent Su was sorting confidential reports. Despite the bitter cold, sweat beaded on his brow—he was so absorbed in work that he didn’t even notice Lance enter.
"Ahem..." Lance cleared his throat. Vincent looked up, dazed and confused. When he recognized Lance, he jumped up from his chair. "Lance, what are you doing here?"
He stood up too quickly, and after days of sleepless work, Vincent suddenly blacked out, collapsing face-first onto the table with a thud.
At first, Lance didn’t think much of it—he’d often gotten dizzy after long hours himself. But when Vincent didn’t get up for a long time, Lance realized something was wrong. He hurried over and found Vincent’s face covered in blood, already unconscious...
At the same moment, in Duke Zhen’s estate, a black-clad figure slipped into the duke’s bedroom. The duke lay fast asleep as the intruder struck several hidden acupoints.
Duke Zhen suddenly bolted upright, his eyes bulging wide. He opened his mouth but couldn’t speak, then collapsed back onto the bed with a thud. Other than his now-still chest, he looked exactly the same as before...