“Kid, you better stay alive because I’m coming for your life!” Janet’s voice, though she remained unseen, carried a chilling threat.
Leo’s expression soured. He had no intention of letting her escape, but his spiritual energy was depleted. Even with the Gale Talisman, he wasn’t confident in catching Janet, let alone defeating her.
Jennifer, who had only just recovered her cultivation, was now on par with Janet, so she couldn’t catch up either. They had no choice but to let her go for now.
“Leo, are you alright?” Jennifer approached Leo, her voice filled with concern.
“I’m fine; it’s just a shame that old witch got away,” Leo replied regretfully.
Franklin stepped forward and said to Leo, “Mr. Bloomer, I might know where Janet is headed.”
Franklin was eager to capture Janet because he knew that once she escaped, she would come back seeking revenge, and he would be her first target after Leo and Jennifer.
“Where do you think she’s going?” Leo asked.
Franklin answered, “If I’m not mistaken, she might be heading to Master Grant’s place.”
“And where’s this Master Grant located?”
“To the best of my knowledge, he resides on the east side of Hat Mountain, halfway up the cliff. It’s a sheer cliff with no path, and the only way down is by a rope.”
Houses on the edge of cliffs were usually inhabited by formidable people. Leo raised an eyebrow and asked, “What’s Master Grant’s strength like?”
Leo believed that someone called a master should have a higher seniority than Jeff and Janet and should be much more powerful.
Franklin scratched his head and replied, “I’m not entirely sure. I’ve been with the Seven Stars Sword Sect for many years, and I’ve only seen him once.”
Leo turned to Jennifer for more information.
Jennifer, being Jennifer’s elder in the sect, likely knew more about the Elder. She pondered for a moment before saying, “Four years ago, Master Grant reached the lower tier of Grand Martial Master level, and now he’s probably at the middle tier of Grand Martial Master.”
“Middle tier of Grand Martial Master…” Leo’s brow furrowed. Dealing with Jeff, who was already at the upper tier of Martial Master, had been challenging enough. If this Master Grant was indeed at the middle tier of Grand Martial Master, it would be even tougher.
Leo continued, “You probably didn’t have the same views as Master Grant, right?”
Leo was referring to the fact that when the previous leader of the Seven Stars Sword Sect was poisoned, Jennifer should have been considered as a candidate for the sect’s leadership. Yet, Jeff took the position instead. If Jennifer and Master Grant were on the same side, Jennifer should have been chosen.
Jennifer shook her head, saying, “Master Grant, has always pursued higher levels of cultivation and rarely interferes with sect affairs. However, when our master was poisoned, and Jeff took the position of sect leader, Master Grant should have known about it. To this day, I don’t understand why he allowed Jeff to become the sect leader.”
Franklin suddenly remembered something and said to Leo and Jennifer, “Mr. Bloomer, Master Jennifer, I overheard Jeff and Janet arguing some time ago. They mentioned something about Master Grant agreeing to Jeff becoming the sect leader because they obtained some treasure from the secret realm and presented it to him.”
“A treasure? What kind of treasure?” Leo was intrigued.
Franklin shook his head, saying, “I don’t know.”
Jennifer added, “I’ve heard a bit about this. When Jeff and Janet entered the secret realm, it seems they obtained an egg, possibly a spirit beast’s egg.”
“A spirit beast’s egg?” Leo raised an eyebrow, surprised.
Jennifer continued, “I’ve never been to that secret realm, but I’ve heard it contains not only spiritual fruits and herbs but also many formidable spirit beasts. The strength of those spirit beasts is significant, and the snake that injured Janet was one of them.”
“Let’s not worry about the secret realm and the spirit beast’s egg for now. Our priority is finding Janet today; otherwise, we’ll have endless trouble,” Leo declared. Janet was already a mobile poison source, and with Jeff out of the picture, she would surely seek revenge recklessly.
Leo took out his phone and called Curtis, instructing him to bring weapons.
Once Curtis and the others arrived, Leo asked Franklin to lead the way, and they set off for the east side of Hat Mountain.
Although Hat Mountain wasn’t exceptionally tall, the eastern cliff was steep. Franklin pointed to a thick rope anchored to the cliff. It was their way down.
“Mr. Bloomer, this should be the place. Look, there’s the rope leading down,” Franklin said.
Following Franklin’s gesture, Leo saw a thick rope firmly secured by iron spikes on one end, while the other end hung down the cliff.
Franklin stood at the edge of the cliff and pointed down, saying, “Mr. Bloomer, Master Grant should be residing halfway up the cliff.”
Leo peered down and saw that the cliff’s middle section was less steep and had a flat terrain. There was a large pond, and next to it, a small wooden house.
“Clark, Bard, stay up here. The rest of you, come with me,” Leo instructed Curtis and the others.
“Yes, Mr. Bloomer,” Clark and Bard acknowledged.
Leo squatted down, grabbed the rope, and began descending from the cliff. Franklin, Jennifer, Curtis, and the rest followed suit.
Seven or eight minutes later, everyone reached the halfway point of the cliff. Before them lay a forest of pine trees, and beyond it, they could see the pond and the small wooden house.
Standing in front of the wooden house were two people.
One of them appeared elderly, wearing a gray-white robe. He stood with his hands behind his back, his posture straight, and his wise eyes locked onto the uninvited guests on the opposite side of the pond.
The other person was none other than Janet, her face cold as she stared at Leo and the others across the pond.
“Janet, are those people over there coming to kill you?” the elder in the gray-white robe asked.
“Yes, Master Grant. That’s them! Jeff was killed by the guy leading them!” Janet nodded, her voice filled with venom.