As Blaze City was just a small southern city in Redridge Province, reaching the Skycloud Sect where the Drakes' true backing lied, took a fair amount of time.
The envoy dispatched by the Drake Clan, despite being at the Blood Cleansing Realm, would require ten full days of travel at maximum speed just to reach the sect. A round trip would consume no less than half a month.
Still, now that the decision had been made to request aid from Gavin Drake, the clan's upper echelon was content to wait that time.
But what they didn't know was—
Gavin Drake had already entered secluded cultivation in Skycloud Sect's inner sanctum over half a month ago, personally brought there by Grand Elder Tianyun.
As the bearer of the Skybreaker Physique, one of the highest-ranked innate constitutions. Gavin was considered a guaranteed future Soul Stage cultivator if everything went smoothly for him.
And if his potential could be fully unlocked, he might even touch the edge of the legendary Nirvana Realm, a realm only dreamt by the people of Redridge Province.
Naturally, from the moment he entered the sect, Gavin was granted extraordinary importance. He was frequently escorted into the sect's forbidden grounds for specialized cultivation under Elder Tianyun's personal supervision.
—
"What? Young Master Gavin is in seclusion? And he won't come out for half a year?!"
The Drake envoy stood dumbstruck.
He had just spent ten days traveling without rest, hoping Gavin would read Brandon Drake's sealed letter and immediately dispatch experts to return with him thus, allowing them to launch their plan to seize control of Blaze City.
Now he was being told Gavin was… unavailable?
For six whole months?
A wave of helplessness washed over him.
With his face pale, the envoy turned to leave the reception hall and prepare for the long road back.
"Wait, friend," a voice came from his back as the sect attendant who had delivered the news stopped him and said. "Did you say you're from the same Drake Clan as Gavin, our Young Sect Master?"
"Young Sect Master?" the envoy blinked in confusion.
He had only received word that Gavin had become Grand Elder Tianyun's personal disciple but he hadn't heard anything about a title like that.
Could it be…?
A glimmer of hope returned to his eyes.
"You guessed right," the attendant said with a smile. "Just three days ago, the sect elders formally approved Gavin Drake as Skycloud's future Young Sect Master. Of course, since he's still new and hasn't reached the Blood Realm yet, which is why the announcement hasn't gone public. Once he breaks through, the title will be officially confirmed."
The attendant Warden Wang smiled politely to the envoy, inside his head he understood what this meant. With Gavin's talent and the Skybreaker Physique, his future status was all but guaranteed. Within a few years, once Gavin entered Blood realm, even low-tier elders would struggle to gain an audience with him.
But now? Extending goodwill to the Drake Clan could be a wise investment that might pay off handsomely down the line.
"So, brother from the Drake, what brings you here seeking the Young Sect Master? Perhaps I can assist you with something in his place?"
Warden Wang was no ordinary figure as he was a cultivator at the Fourth Transcendent Realm and had taken the time to study Blaze City's local power structure.
What he found had been almost laughable as there were scarcely any clans with strength above the Core Break Realm.
If the Drakes were truly struggling, lending them support would be a trivial matter. And assisting the Young Sect Master's family now… could open doors for his own advancement.
"Senior, if you're willing to lend a hand, that would be a great blessing," the envoy said respectfully. "Here's the situation..."
Though the envoy was only a Blood realm cultivator, his status in the clan was high enough to be entrusted with full authority. Without hesitation, he laid out the entire plan: to suppress the Leonhart Clan and unify Blaze City under the Drake banner.
Warden Wang listened carefully to his words. By the time the explanation ended, his enthusiasm had dimmed slightly.
"So… it's not a matter of life and death."
If it had been an urgent crisis like the Drake clan being in serious threat, he could have played the role of a savior which saved the entire clan. That kind of scenario would've earned him deep gratitude from Gavin's family.
But a local turf war? It was not something that interested him as this would not make the Drake clan be indebted to him.
Still, he showed no disappointment on his face.
"Are you certain," he asked, "that aside from the Leonhart Clan, there are no other Core Break Realm experts in Blaze City?"
"Absolutely," the envoy said with confidence. "If not for that wretched Ancestor Leo, we would've taken over long ago."
"Very well," Warden Wang replied, his tone casual now. "I won't go personally. Instead, take this with you."
He retrieved a spirit-etched jade token and infused it with his spiritual imprint, along with a brief recorded message.
"Deliver this to the Wang Clan of Tianxin Prefecture. They'll dispatch a Grade-3 Alchemist and two peak Core Break Realm cultivators to aid you."
Then, he paused as he thought about something, his voice instantly turned stern:
"But remember, do not initiate combat unless absolutely necessary. The Imperial Capital frowns on open violence."
The warning hung in the air as he handed the token to the envoy.
Skycloud Sect was one of the top ten sects in the Dusk Empire, but even it operated under the Empire's jurisdiction. Their cultivators might be powerful, but their political authority had limits.
The Empire allowed sects and clans to grow, but always within boundaries that have set themselves to always keep the sects in control.
And among those boundaries was one inviolable law:
No violent monopolization.
Wiping out rival clans to seize control of a city without imperial sanction or a decree was strictly forbidden.
Those who crossed that line will be vanished with their entire families erased from history by unseen hands.
There was precedent.
The Empire didn't care how powerful you became - as long as you remained obedient and not cause trouble for them.
But if you rose too quickly, seized too much from others, and claimed dominance through bloodshed?
Then you were no longer just ambitious. You were a threat to the Empire and their rule.
And the Empire crushed threats like those without hesitation.
Warden Wang's final words, though politely spoken, rang with unmistakable weight in the Drake clan envoy's ear.