An hour later, Sovereign Jiemie emerged from the secret chamber, his face as dark as storm clouds.
Sovereign Panlong was the first to approach him. "Brother Dao, how did it go? Did he talk?"
Sovereign Jiemie gave a slight nod, but his expression was terrible, his tone a tangle of complicated emotions. "He talked. With my interrogation methods, he had no choice but to open his mouth."
"Who is he? What's his background?" Sovereign Panlong pressed urgently.
Sovereign Jiemie's gaze grew complicated as he looked toward Jiang Chen. "Young Master Zhen, friend Panlong — this fellow… he was actually sent by Danfire City!"
"What?" The revelation stunned both Jiang Chen and Sovereign Panlong.
"Danfire City?" Jiang Chen's face was full of astonishment. "Sovereign Jiemie, he truly said he came from Danfire City?"
"That's right. He claimed he was from Danfire City, and I could tell he wasn't lying. This is my exclusive interrogation technique — if he'd spoken any falsehood, I would have seen through it at once."
"Danfire City…" Jiang Chen's expression grew complicated as well, then his brow suddenly shot upward. "Did he mention Sovereign Shura at all?"
Sovereign Jiemie sighed softly and shook his head. "He didn't mention Sovereign Shura. He only said that his superiors had dispatched him to the Glazed Glass City to carry out a mission. The ones who gave him the order were high-ranking officials in Danfire City. As for anyone else, he knew nothing. Whether he had any connection to people within our Glazed Glass City — he had no idea whatsoever."
"This… this… could it really be that he has nothing to do with Sovereign Shura?" Sovereign Panlong sounded uncertain now.
Both of them turned their gaze to Jiang Chen, their expressions deeply conflicted.
Troubles from within, threats from without — the current state of the Glazed Glass City could only be described as beset on all sides.
If the problem were merely Sovereign Shura's factional infighting, they could still find ways to cope. But if Danfire City took advantage of the chaos to stir up trouble, they would have no way to guard against every angle.
And if Sovereign Shura had colluded with Danfire City, that would be far harder still to defend against. A thousand guards could keep enemies out, but a traitor within was impossible to stop.
Yet this captive claimed he had no connection to Sovereign Shura whatsoever.
Was this matter truly unrelated to Sovereign Shura? Or had Danfire City's leadership simply given him his orders without letting him in on the deeper picture?
Both possibilities were on the table.
If it was the first, things would be more manageable.
If it was the second, then they were in serious trouble. Throughout history, the most dangerous kind of internal strife was the kind that invited external powers into the picture. This would be a threat of monstrous proportions — one that could cause the Glazed Glass City to crumble and fall apart in an instant.
Danfire City was wildly ambitious. They had always styled themselves the preeminent force of the Upper Eight Regions and had always insisted they held dominion over the Glazed Glass City. Now, if they launched a full-scale infiltration while the city was torn by internal conflict — especially with Sovereign Shura playing the role of the one who let the wolf through the door — it would be nothing short of a catastrophe for the Glazed Glass City. With Danfire City's appetite, they would swallow the Glazed Glass City in a single gulp and seize control without hesitation.
Regardless of whether this was connected to Sovereign Shura, the moment Danfire City was involved, Jiang Chen was determined to get to the bottom of it.
"Your Excellencies, I must ask you both to shoulder more of the burden regarding the city's current situation. The Lords' Convention cannot be stopped at this point, so we can only meet it head-on. As for this matter, I will find a way to handle it myself."
At the end of the day, Jiang Chen did not fear Sovereign Shura.
The only reason he had avoided openly confronting the Shura faction was that he didn't want the Glazed Glass City dragged into civil war.
But now that Sovereign Shura had grown ambitious and was actively provoking conflict, it no longer made sense for Jiang Chen to hold back.
"Good!" Sovereign Panlong broke into a grin. "Brother Jiemie, I don't know why, but seeing Young Master Zhen this composed gives me a lot more confidence."
Compared to Sovereign Jiemie, Sovereign Panlong had a closer relationship with Jiang Chen and far more interaction with him. In truth, his very life had been saved by Jiang Chen. His support for the young man came from the depths of his heart.
Sovereign Jiemie smiled as well. "These years, Young Master Dan has created one miracle after another in the Glazed Glass City. This time will be no exception!"
They were all seasoned veterans of the highest caliber. Now that they had made up their minds, there was no need to keep wearing long faces.
At this point, the worst-case scenario was simply a battle. The forces of Peacock Sacred Mountain, combined with those of the two Sovereigns, might not be enough to defeat Sovereign Shura outright, but they certainly wouldn't be steamrolled either.
A true man stands tall between heaven and earth — what was there to fear in a fight?
After the two Sovereigns departed, Jiang Chen did not rush to show himself. Instead, he spent several days cultivating in the Young Master's residence, deliberately paying no attention to the situation unfolding outside.
His recent trip to the Crimson Cauldron Middle Region had yielded the rescue of Wei Xing'er, but the far more significant gain was the Earth Treasury Origin Pearl.
Jiang Chen had already learned the origins of the Earth Treasury Origin Pearl from Sovereign Chongxiao. It was the supreme treasure of the Earth Treasury Sect — the number-one formation sect of the ancient era.
After refining the Earth Treasury Origin Pearl, Jiang Chen could distinctly feel that his cultivation of the earth-attribute arts had taken a dramatic leap forward, giving every impression of a dark horse surging ahead of the pack.