The chairs blocking the door were flung side and the door almost ripped off its hinges by the brute force.
Micha walked in huffing and puffing glancing around until he saw Hao Xuan standing calmly in front of the bed. With narrowed eyes, he examined the room further even going as far as pulling off the bedsheets before glaring towards Hao Xuan.
"Who were you talking to? I heard voices."
"Do you see anyone else here?"
If looks could kill Hao Xuan would be in deep trouble right now but all Micha could do was menacingly stare at him for a few seconds until a guard came and whispered something in his ear.
Hao Xuan's ears perked up and he listened in.
"It's time, my lord. The preparations are complete." .
A faint smile appeared on his face before it was replaced by a disdainful smug. Micha nodded towards the guard and turned around, "Follow me. It is time."
He sounded a little too happy saying that which made Hao Xuan even more suspicious. He made an indistinct motion with his hands and tried to release a very small portion of his territory.
*zzzz*
The air buzzed for a second before calming down again.
'Good, I can still use my law in here.'
All the prime letters were already inscribed on his bones so he could open the gateway and pass through it at the faintest sign of trouble. Well, as long as it was done within the next 25 minutes because after that his bones would start to heal all the way through.
He was well aware of his position here and with the Abysswalker present, he was not willing to take any chances whatsoever.
Micha and a squad of twelve guards escorted Hao Xuan through the numerous halls and stairways somewhere towards the roof. The loud cheering followed by a cacophony of sounds could be heard clearly as they neared their destination.
Hao Xuan could feel the vibrations through the soles of his feet, continuously getting louder and more pronounced. And then all of a sudden came the blaring music which felt like it was sounding right next to his ears.
It was a celebration of thousands, perhaps even tens of thousands from the sound of it.
The sunlight which Hao Xuan hadn't seen in this world for a very long time bled through the open columns to his left. For some reason, he couldn't help but get a little anxious. The air felt heavy and an invisible pressure slowly settled on his shoulders.
It wasn't from someone or something outside but rather his own supernatural intuition that was screaming at him to be prepared. One way or another there was going to be blood, in fact he could smell it already.
"Hmm?"
He sniffed lightly to confirm and it was indeed the iconic stench of iron disseminating through the air.
The surroundings started to change as they came in front of the last set of stairs. Bright banners, flags, and numerous other decorations hung from the walls and the sides painting the whole scene in shades of radiant jubilation.
The guards stayed behind while Micha continued on with Hao Xuan a few steps behind him. As they stepped onto the white marble floor the sounds got louder and even more clearer, enough for him to easily understand what they were saying.
"WAAAH! YOU CAN DO IT!"
"GO GO GO!"
"KIL THEM ALL!"
A gust of cold air blew past Hao Xuan as he turned around and saw what was happening. He was standing at the lowest point of a domed hall.
It was held up by 18 great pillars but open from all other sides. At the highest point there were two rows of seats almost all of them occupied.
The top row had four seats only, three of which were filled by Dai Zhi, Tian Zheng, Dima. Meaning only the first protectors from each of the three powers were there.
Right below each of them was the second row with two six seats, five of which were filled. Hao Xuan was obviously going to be seated there next to Feng Huang who was the 3rd protector of the Academy.
In front of each seat were numerous dishes, drinks, and plates filled with all manner of foods.
Much further down were several other rows located just outside the boundary of this domed hall. Close to 400 people sat there mainly divided into two sides. The one on the left had more than half the people among which there was a four-armed giant.
This was the first time Hao Xuan had seen Monk in a while. Opposite to them were a little over 100 people. Ensis was among this group, neatly tucked away to the side.
When he felt Hao Xuan looking in his direction Ensis looked up for a moment, glanced towards the back of the domed hall, and closed his eyes.
Hao Xuan followed his line of sight and finally noticed another person. He was sitting even above the protectors on a golden throne, the Abysswalker. For some reason Hao Xuan hadn't noticed him at all the first time but now he could see him clearly.
He was in fact looking right at him, smiling leisurely while cradling a glass of burgundy wine. As if waiting for this moment his gaze shifted to the front, prompting Hao Xuan to follow suit.
