Evan Yang and Lydia Quinn were both startled by the scene before them, but Evan quickly calmed down. He knew this couldn't be a good thing—he was just an outsider, and the city’s overlord had no reason to do such a thing for him.
"Steward Lewis, you really surprised me with this," Evan said, knowing the steward was called Steward Lewis, and gave him a friendly smile.
"What’s the big deal? You’re a hero—the one who drove away Drakehorn. That’s no small feat, so this treatment is well deserved," Steward Lewis said with a smile.
"Makes me feel a bit guilty," Evan replied with a laugh.
"No need for that—this is what you deserve," Steward Lewis said.
As they spoke, they arrived at the Luo Clan’s main hall, where two people—a man and a woman—were seated.
The man and woman sized Evan up as soon as they saw him. The man, Victor Luo, stepped forward with a cheerful smile and said, "You’re the one who drove away Drakehorn?"
"That’s me. And you are?" Evan asked, curious about the man’s strength, which was clearly not ordinary.
"I’m the head of the Luo Clan—you can just call me Patriarch Luo," Victor Luo said.
Evan was taken aback, and Lydia was too. Neither expected the Luo Clan’s patriarch himself to appear, which surprised her even more.
"Patriarch Luo, I wonder what this grand welcome is for?" Evan asked straightforwardly.
Damon Luo was even more shocked—he never expected the patriarch to treat Evan like this. The honor was too high.
"First, I wanted to see what kind of hero you really are. Second, there's something else I want to discuss with you, so I invited you here," Victor Luo said with a smile.
"Oh? What is it? Is it about Drakehorn?" Evan asked directly, since that was his main reason for coming.
"That's right, it's exactly about that," Victor Luo replied with a smile.
"Then please, Patriarch Luo, tell me where Drakehorn is. I'm looking for him," Evan said.
"Let's discuss this in detail. Come, let's go to my study," Victor Luo said.
"I'd like my friend to come along," Evan said to Victor Luo, indicating Lydia. If anything happened, Evan could react.
Victor Luo thought for a moment, worried Evan might become suspicious, so he smiled, "Alright, you both come with me."
Victor Luo and Elise Ling led the way up front, with Evan and Lydia following behind. Steward Lewis went to prepare a wine banquet.
"Steward Lewis, what's going on? Why is the patriarch doing this?" Damon Luo asked, still puzzled.
"Of course, the patriarch values his abilities. Just think—what kind of strength does it take to drive Drakehorn away?" Steward Lewis said with a smile.
"So what if he's strong? Is the patriarch really going to curry favor with him?" Damon Luo pressed, still confused.
"Don't ask so much. You'll understand soon enough," Steward Lewis replied.
Since Steward Lewis wouldn't explain, Damon Luo could only look suspicious. The last thing he wanted was for the patriarch to treat Evan as an honored guest—that would be more humiliating than being scolded by Evan himself.
Meanwhile, Evan and Lydia arrived at a refined study. Elise Ling waited outside the door, while Evan and Lydia followed Victor Luo inside.
Inside, Victor Luo let them sit down and smiled, "Welcome."
"Patriarch Luo, let's get straight to the point—where is Drakehorn?" Evan asked.
"Don't rush. Before I tell you about Drakehorn, let's discuss something else," Victor Luo said with a smile.
"What is it?" Evan asked, curious about Patriarch Luo's real purpose.
"Drakehorn is a powerful ancient beast—if it could be controlled, imagine how wonderful that would be," Victor Luo began, describing the advantages of controlling Drakehorn.
"If such an ancient beast could be controlled, it wouldn't have been sealed," Evan said, still unsure what Victor Luo meant.
"It couldn't be controlled before, but now things are different. You've injured it, and its body and head are separated. If we can control the head, then the body, it'll be ours," Victor Luo said with a smile.
"I doubt it's that simple. You might control it for a while, but not forever. It'll only get stronger," Evan replied.
"Don't worry. I've developed a method, but it requires a special stone—the Intimidation Stone you have. With that, combined with my strength, my wife's, and yours, the three of us can control it and make it our tool," Victor Luo explained.
Evan finally understood—the real reason he was invited was for that stone. He didn't know exactly what it did, but being invited in such a way showed how important it was to them.
"What do you think?" Victor Luo asked, seeing Evan lost in thought.
"I have no interest in controlling such a dangerous ancient beast. If it ever goes berserk, it could devour us," Evan said, knowing Drakehorn's nature.
"You're overthinking it. My method will definitely work," Victor Luo replied.
"Patriarch Luo, did you invite me here just for my stone?" Evan asked bluntly.
"That's right. I also wanted to see if your friend would be willing to cooperate," Victor Luo said with a smile.
"Of course not," Evan replied bluntly.
Hearing this, Lydia realized something was wrong. She now understood that Patriarch Luo wanted to control Drakehorn.
Victor Luo smiled at Evan, but said nothing. After a while, he spoke, "Won't you reconsider?" "No need. If Patriarch Luo wants to be friends, just tell me where Drakehorn is. If not, then forget it," Evan replied.
Victor Luo stared at Evan, who stared back. After a moment, Victor Luo laughed, "If you don't want to cooperate, I won't force you. Since you want to know Drakehorn's whereabouts, here's some news: in Birdchill City, many corpses have appeared—probably related to Drakehorn. You should check it out."
"Thanks," Evan said, then left with Lydia.
Evan and Lydia retraced their steps, passing many who had welcomed Evan earlier. Seeing him leave, they looked puzzled. Steward Lewis watched Evan's departing figure and muttered, "Looks like it failed."
"What failed?" Damon Luo asked, confused.
"I'm not sure, but it failed. No need to prepare the banquet—cancel it," Steward Lewis said, and the empty banquet ended.
In Victor Luo's study, he sat motionless, his face grim. Elise Ling finally asked, "Why didn't you stop him?"
"His strength is strange—he managed to drive Drakehorn away. That's why I didn't act rashly," Victor Luo explained.
"So, you told him where Drakehorn appeared for what reason?" Elise Ling asked curiously.
"Of course—it's to make them clash. They'll both be weakened, and then we'll step in, take the stone, and control Drakehorn," Victor Luo said.
"That's a good plan, though a bit ruthless," Elise Ling remarked.
"It doesn't matter. Today, our Luo Clan put on a grand show to welcome him, but he showed no respect—came and left right away. Who knows what people outside will think of us?" Victor Luo said angrily.
"We'll settle the score with him next time," Elise Ling consoled.
"Yes, let's get ready and head to Birdchill City," Victor Luo said.
Elise Ling nodded, and the two disappeared from the Luo Clan. Steward Lewis was about to ask something when he found everyone gone. "Where did the patriarch go? What happened?" he muttered, puzzled.
Not only was the steward confused, Damon Luo still couldn't figure it out.
As for Evan and Lydia, on the road Lydia said, "You were really bold just now—I thought you'd agree."
"I could never agree to something like that. Our goal is to eliminate Drakehorn, not control it," Evan replied. "Still, if both of them had attacked together, it would've been trouble," Lydia said.
"They wouldn't dare," Evan replied.
"Why not?" Lydia asked curiously.
"They know I drove Drakehorn away, so they're afraid to try. If I really have that much power, they'd only suffer. That's why they told me where Drakehorn appeared—they want us to fight and both get hurt, then they'll swoop in for the benefits," Evan explained.
"So that's how it is—you're really clever," Lydia exclaimed.
"It's just my guess. But that patriarch has a strong desire for control—not only over a city, but now an ancient beast. Just because he didn't attack doesn't mean he doesn't have plans. When we get to Birdchill City, we must be careful—they're both Immortal Lords," Evan said.
Lydia nodded. She never expected Evan to be such a young guy.
Evan was plotting in his mind—he had to force them to show themselves, or else he'd fight Drakehorn alone and they'd reap the benefits.
On the road, Evan also asked about Birdchill City.
Birdchill City is a mysterious place—no people live there, only flocks of strange birds and beasts. Hearing this, Evan frowned, "Is Drakehorn devouring those beasts?"
"Probably so. He's clever—he knows eating people would draw attention, but didn't expect the Luo Clan to notice," Lydia replied.
"I wonder how much Drakehorn has recovered this time," Evan muttered.
"No matter what, we must kill him—or the consequences will be dire," Lydia was ready for a life-or-death battle with Drakehorn, and Evan was eager to resolve things and leave.