Jalen didn't arrive at the Hewitt family estate—his childhood home for fifteen years—with declarations. He simply appeared. Shoulders steady, eyes unreadable.
Jael's arms were locked around his neck. Sion stood beside him, holding the one month and four day old sleeping Shia.
The chamber was mid-meeting. Patriarch Ronald Hewitt and twenty elders of the Hewitt family had gathered for council.
Silver Hewitt stood near the western pillar, arms folded. Ronald had just raised a scroll toward Elder Byron when the presence shifted.
They all turned toward the entrance—and paused.
These were men and women who bent the Vernon Continent beneath their influence, arguably the most powerful individuals across the land. Yet none of them had sensed how Jalen and Sion entered the most secure room in the clan—no ripple in the formation barriers, no trace.
Not only were the elders startled—they were awestruck. After all, those who hadn't witnessed Jalen's power firsthand at the Ruona Continent had heard of it. And now, that legend stood among them.
None questioned why he was there.
Patriarch Ronald was the first to speak. "Jalen… you've returned.
I'll have the servants prepare the finest quarters, food, and drink for your comfort."
Jalen inclined his head slightly. "I appreciate the warm gesture, but I'm not here on vacation. I came to ask a favor."
"Anything for you," Ronald answered.
"This is Shia Hewitt, Sion's daughter," Jalen said, pointing to Sion and the child. "I need her raised in secret. No one beyond this room must know of her existence or identity. Also, no one must know we came here tonight. Do you understand?"
The room tensed. Elders exchanged glances, curious about the child and Jalen's urgency. But Ronald nodded. The elders silently agreed.
Jalen then gestured to Sion to hand over the girl. Sion hesitated—but eventually gave her up. He and Jalen had discussed this. To protect his daughter, he needed to create distance. He would venture out, grow stronger, and one day—with Jalen's help—take down the Moonveil Heart Sect and the Mighty Lightning Sword Sect.
Still, parting was painful.
Just as Jalen was about to leave with Sion and Jael, he and all those present sensed powerful qi surging across the Hewitt territory, destroying all their defensive and offensive formations as if they were nothing. Some people even got injured from the after sparks of the formation destruction; buildings caught on fire.
Jalen was automatically able to gauge the strength of these intruders. One Peak Spirit Fusion cultivator and two early-stage Spirit Fusion cultivators—each radiating enough pressure to suppress the guards of the Hewitt family, who tried their best to stop them from entering the territory. Despite being afraid, many passed out as even these powerful figures auras assaulted them.
They didn't demand anything or state their reason for being there; they just launched attacks from the sky, killing men, women, and children. This was to draw out their target in case he was hiding here, but since he failed to show up, they decided not to waste any more time in this place. They were gearing up for another attack, one that, if it hit, would wipe the Hewitt family and their territory off the face of the map, but seconds before their attacks could land, a fifty-inch-thick barrier of condensed frost qi surrounded the whole Hewitt territory, protecting it from these deadly attacks. This was Jalen's ice technique, Ice Wall.
Then Blizzard Coil was activated.
Three ice cyclones then threatened to surround the three and trapped them, and while they were busy trying to fight it off, Jalen managed to injure the two early spirit fusion realm early-stage cultivators using a mixture of Luminous Veil Step and Luminal Edge. They were now on high alert looking for where these attacks were coming from, but the opponent was moving so fast they could barely think properly before they could inquire who or what was attacking them. The two early-stage spirit fusion realms were beheaded by Luminal Edge, and the Peak spirit fusion realm barely managed to keep his attached. And that's because he had a higher realm and more experiences fighting, but that won't help him here.
Right after he avoided death, the enemy was behind him yet again, and he barely managed to escape being run through by Luminal Edge, only to be run through by it over in another location. Then the peak fusion realm saw who his attacker was; it's the person that they were sent here to kill. But he was supposed to be in the mid-spirit fusion realm, so why is he so strong? Unless… no, that's not possible. If this kid managed to break through to the immortal realm, then his sect is in trouble. He needs to inform his sect about this. He tried to leave the scene, but Jalen wouldn't allow that after what this bastard did.
Silent Spear Manifestation.
Five shadow spears appeared—one pierced each limb, and the fifth drove through his torso. He dropped from the sky like a bird shot mid-flight.
Jalen appeared before him, Jael still hanging onto his shoulder, untouched by the chaos. The frost qi around the boy shimmered faintly, a protective veil that never faltered.
Jalen didn't waste words.
He reached into the man's mind with his spirit sense. The intruder resisted—but he was too injured, and Jalen's spirit sense was far superior.
The barrier collapsed.
Jalen saw everything.
His name and family. The sect he's from, which is the Waveweave Temple.
This top sect from the Reign Continent, along with the others and the ten royal families, has been searching for him all over the Reigned Continent since he escaped from them in the Renin Mountains almost a year ago. And when they weren't paying off, they decided to start searching outside the continent. They managed to find out that Jalen had some ties in the Ruona continent a week ago.
People from the Waveweave Temple and the Dragon Meridian Sect were the first to discover this news and sent their scouts out to the Ruona continent, or rather, the capital city, Ember Pearl. There they met with the Ember Pearl royal family, and though the enemies of the Reign continent don't know Jalen by name, they had an image of him via spirit sense that they gathered from those who witnessed Jalen massacring their sect members and elders that time inside the vault realm located at Renin Mountain.
The royal family, who had a vendetta against Jalen and the Flare family, informed them about people who are connected to Jalen, no doubt for bad reasons. The Flare family was targeted and attacked by the Waveweave Temple and Dragon Meridian Sect forces four days ago, and three peak spirit fusion realms were among the group of ten. Their task was not only to destroy those who affiliate with Jalen but also to wipe him out if he was there. And now tonight it was the Hewitt family's turn to be destroyed.