I was utterly shocked. Friend, isn’t that John Chou? Earlier, on the rooftop, John Chou also said he was friends with the Ghost Syndicate’s boss. But why would he destroy the Ghost Syndicate?
"Brother, there’s no time for questions. Let’s go, quickly."
By now, the ghosts below had vanished. John Chou and I climbed down from the tree and continued toward the Old City.
"By the way, is it chaotic outside?"
I asked, and John Chou nodded.
"Redmond, Basil Bertram, and Lord Shenyan—those three are searching the city for you."
I let out a surprised sound and looked at John Chou.
"So why didn’t you tell them?"
"Why would I tell those three? Brother, have you forgotten? Maybe you’re friends with them, but I..."
John Chou stood where he was, a fierce glint in his eyes as he started to laugh.
"We're their rivals. Have you forgotten? When Redmond first showed up, what was he really after?"
I thought back carefully. Redmond, a Ghost Sovereign, had used that scar-faced ghost and the Taoist Tang Cai to make contact, helping Wang Li and his son, all to work against us—and he even planned to torment me.
"Heh, that guy just wanted to use you to lure me out, to humiliate me and prove he was the strongest Ghost Sovereign around."
John Chou explained, and I understood why Redmond acted like that—he could be childish at times.
"Now he really has done it. After all these years, he's the most successful of the seven of us. He built his own empire in the living world and even earned recognition from the underworld."
I nodded and sighed. Just thinking about Redmond saying I owed him a century of work made cold sweat break out—he wasn't as carefree as he seemed. Deep down, he was still a vicious ghost.
"What about the Nether Syndicate? Why haven't their people shown up lately?"
"You'll understand soon enough, brother. Old Tom isn't as simple as he looks, heh."
I didn't know what John Chou meant. Old Tom, the founder of the Nether Syndicate, had always stepped in to settle disputes. My impression of him was just a kind, charitable old man. I didn't ask further—we could already see the Old City ahead.
John Chou laughed, his eyes gleaming, and his pace quickened.