The three stepped out of their room and, sure enough, saw the Shade Lord sitting in a pavilion in the manor, drinking tea with the Second Elder and Sean Xiao. They were chatting and all looked extremely pleased—Evan Chu knew this had to be about the Skyspear City takeover.
Seeing Evan Chu and his crew show up, the Shade Lord grinned and said, "Evan, you're here. How's your recovery coming along? When are we going to check out your handiwork?"
"I'm pretty much back to normal. No point dragging it out—let's go right now and see if those big families in Skyspear City can actually get things done. I hope they don't let me down," Evan said, grinning.
Just then, Doctor Yao appeared in everyone's line of sight. Seeing the group about to leave, he hurriedly asked, "Where are you all going? I heard something huge happened in Skyspear City—do you know about it?"
"Don't know, don't care. What earth-shattering thing could possibly happen in Skyspear City? Where'd you hear that gossip, old man? How come none of us heard a peep?" Evan shot back, clearly enjoying Doctor Yao's surprise.
"Kid, you don't know squat. I heard the City Lord of Skyspear was killed, and now the City Lord's Mansion is decked out with lanterns—looks like the guy who killed the City Lord is about to become the new lord, and even the four great families are supporting him. It's all pretty strange. You folks really shouldn't go out, just in case you run into trouble," Doctor Yao said.
"Oh, that? We already knew. I thought it was something serious! The way you're making a fuss, I really don't know what to say to you. We're about to head to the City Lord's Mansion—want to come watch the excitement?" Evan replied.
The others didn't dare comment on Evan's attitude toward Doctor Yao—when faced with absolute strength, all you can do is endure. Doctor Yao, however, was stunned and stared at the group. "How do you know? Not many people are aware of this—it's really strange."
"Old man, let me lay it out for you—Thomas Jia, the City Lord of Skyspear, was chopped down by yours truly. We're heading to the City Lord's Mansion now, so quit making a fuss. This young master's power isn't something you can even dream of." With that, Evan ignored Doctor Yao's reaction and swaggered off.
Doctor Yao stood there, utterly stunned, as if frozen in place, staring at the Shade Lord, hoping for some kind of explanation—was this kid really telling the truth?
The Shade Lord saw right through Doctor Yao's thoughts and just chuckled, "Don't look so shocked—he's telling the absolute truth. You might as well treat Evan as a walking monster. His strength's even scarier than mine! The Ghost King and Beast King? Both chopped down by him, easy as pie. Don't underestimate him, and unless you want to bring disaster on your own head, you'd best not mess with him."
As the group left, Doctor Yao felt like someone had set off a bomb in his chest, leaving him dizzy, dazed, and shaken to the core. He'd never heard of anyone so heaven-defying—and now he knew for sure, this was one guy he absolutely could not afford to offend.
Skyspear City was still a bustling hive, packed wall-to-wall with people; the death of City Lord Thomas Jia hadn't thrown the place into chaos at all. Instead, crowds were swarming outside the City Lord's Mansion, all buzzing about why the mansion was decked out so festively.
Before long, Evan appeared at the gate of the City Lord's Mansion, but instead of entering, he stood off to the side, listening to the crowd's chatter. His arrival immediately caught the attention of the mansion guards—one of them rushed inside, while another, visibly trembling, approached Evan.
"Young master, you're here! The four family heads are inside, busy with all the things you ordered. Someone's already gone to let them know—just hang tight for a moment." The guard's tone was so respectful it left the crowd scratching their heads.
"Who is this kid, anyway? How come the City Lord's Mansion guards are treating him with such respect? This is really strange."
"Isn't that the guy who killed the four young masters from the big clans at the tavern? And now he dares show up here in broad daylight—this is gonna be a real spectacle!"
"That middle-aged guy who was always with him isn't here now. This brat's probably dead meat. I figured after taking out all those troublemakers in Skyspear City he'd go into hiding for a while, but nope—he's back already. Tsk, what a show..."
The chatter in the crowd only grew louder—more than half of it was about Evan. He pretended not to hear any of it, knowing that the dramatic reversal coming soon would leave these people speechless. That was exactly the outcome he loved to see.
Soon, four middle-aged men emerged from the City Lord's Mansion—the heads of Skyspear City's four great families. Seeing Evan in the crowd, they all walked toward him, and those standing nearby quickly backed away, convinced the boy was about to be executed by the family heads.
Of course, anyone with half a brain kept their distance from danger. But what happened next left the whole crowd gobsmacked—they stared at Evan like he was some kind of freak, faces twisted with disbelief, jaws practically hitting the ground.
Once the four family heads reached Evan, the Yang Family head was the first to speak up: "We didn't realize you'd already arrived at the City Lord's Mansion, young master. Sorry to keep you waiting—if you want to punish us, we won't complain!" He was all respectful now, not a hint of his old bluster left.
Evan just smiled, "No worries, you all did fine—no need to stand on ceremony with me. The new City Lord of Skyspear will be here any minute."
Right as Evan finished talking, the Shade Lord and his crew showed up in front of everyone. Plenty of folks in Skyspear City recognized the Shade Lord, and their jaws dropped—even after hearing Nine-Shade City was destroyed, seeing the Shade Lord here meant something big was going down, and everyone could feel it.
"Greetings, Shade Lord! We didn't know you were coming to Skyspear City—please forgive us!" the four family heads said in unison.
The Shade Lord waved them off and smiled, "No need to be so stiff, family heads. Everyone knows Nine-Shade City was wrecked. Thomas Jia might've been City Lord here, but he was always scheming, dreaming of snatching my throne. That kind of person? Only one ending—dead and buried!"
"From today forward, Skyspear City is the Shade Clan's number one stronghold. From now on, this king is both Skyspear's City Lord and the Shade Clan's king. And since it's a day worth celebrating, I hereby announce: free city entry for a whole year, no taxes for a year, and three days of non-stop banquets! Eat, drink, and be merry!"
The moment the Shade Lord finished, the whole crowd exploded with excitement. Nobody expected the Shade Lord to be the one who killed Thomas Jia—but thinking about it, who else could pull that off? Instantly, all their questions vanished, and Evan faded into the background; now they figured he was just another big shot at the Shade Lord's side, which explained the family heads' attitude.
Evan strolled up to the Shade Lord and called out, "Father-in-law, let's head inside and see if this City Lord's Mansion can compare to Nine-Shade City's palace. We've got a mountain of business to handle, and this isn't the spot for it."
With that, Evan and his crew headed straight into the City Lord's Mansion. Instantly, the crowd put two and two together—the kid was actually the Shade Lord's son-in-law! No wonder his status was sky-high. In a flash, a bunch of people started looking down on him, thinking he was just another pampered clan heir, no different from the rest.