The King Of Warriors novel (Jared Chance) novel Chapter 6020

Julian let his voice roll across the stone walls. "Gentlemen," he said, the single word sharp as a bell.

He told them Jared would stay contained in Grace Pavilion—watched, unharmed. Then he shifted. A colder current settled in his tone. There was something more urgent on the table.

He paused, a cold glint in his eyes. "The celestial envoy will arrive in three days, as usual, to collect this season’s tribute and soul crystals."

At the mention of soul crystals, a faint unease pinched every elder’s face.

They all knew what those crystals were, and exactly where they came from.

Quentin and the Turner brothers had done the dirty work, but the seal on the order bore Julian’s own hand. None of them were blind.

The treasury elder wetted his lips. "Manor Lord, about the soul crystals…" His voice faded.

That newest Soul-Refining Crystal, the A11-73 Box, still sat locked inside the secret vault—untouched, waiting.

Julian’s eyes narrowed, a cool gleam surfacing.

After a pause he said, "Treat the envoy with our highest honors."

"As for the soul crystals, tell him the formation faltered after the last harvest, so their quality is unstable. We need a short delay to refine them."

Delay? The single word hung in the lantern smoke.

Elders traded uneasy looks. Nothing like this had ever happened.

The celestials kept strict clocks and stricter standards. Asking for time was the same as poking their rules with a knife.

The thought sliced through the chamber: the celestial envoy would never simply let it slide.

Julian felt the weight of that certainty settle between his ribs, cold as unfinished steel.

"Manor Lord, this… it could anger the envoy." The elder’s voice quavered despite his effort to steady it.

Sweat glimmered at the man’s temples, the scent of nervous salt leaking into the still air.

"Infuriate them?" Julian let the question hang, a thin layer of frost on every syllable.

A dry laugh slipped from his throat. "For nearly a century, has Jade Immortal Manor ever shorted them a single shard of soul crystal?"

"One unexpected delay," he continued, voice low but sharp, "a proper explanation, a token compensation—would they really burn my manor to the ground for that?"

"It gives us the perfect chance to feel out their limits, to see how they twitch when pressed."

He paused, letting the silence tighten.

His gaze slid across the elders. "Pass the word. When the envoy arrives in three days, the guards around Grace Pavilion can relax a touch. Especially the hidden patrol routes leading toward the treasury district—adjust their timing."

The words hit like cold water.

Several elders blinked, blank for a heartbeat, then realization struck, draining color from their faces.

They understood: the Manor Lord meant to hand Jared a doorway straight to the celestial envoy.

Maybe more than a doorway—maybe tacit permission for violence.

Playing with fire, nothing less.

No—dancing on the cliff’s edge.

If the celestials sensed Jade Immortal Manor was colluding against their envoy, annihilation would follow.

"Manor Lord, think twice!" several elders blurted, almost in unison.

"My mind is set."

Julian flicked his sleeve, cutting their protests short.

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