Inside the Jill family's reception hall, Haldo treated Hudson with the utmost respect. He personally invited him to take the main seat, behaving almost like a servant attending to an honored guest.Hudson didn't bother with formalities and simply took the seat offered to him. Once he was settled, he glanced at Reilan with a hint of surprise.“You revealed your identity?”Even before Brandon had taken him away, Hudson had already been curious about Haldo's intentions. The two families had no previous relationship with him, yet Haldo had willingly stepped forward and offered to take their side. There had to be a reason behind his unusual behavior.Now that he had seen how respectfully Haldo treated him, Hudson had a pretty good idea what had happened. Reilan must have revealed some of her strength, allowing Haldo to recognize that she was a Grandmaster. That would explain why the head of the Jill family was treating them so politely.Reilan shook her head and gave him a wry smile. “He r

"Sir, may I come with you?"While Haldo was arranging the car, Werren showed him a video that had been spreading rapidly online. After learning that the location was in California and not too far away, Haldo immediately became interested and wanted to accompany Hudson.Part of him was simply curious, but another part had begun to suspect something. Based on the map Hudson had drawn, Haldo guessed that their trip to California was specifically meant to take them to a place called Lake Tahoe. It seemed as though Hudson already knew what was hidden there.If he went alone, Haldo knew he wouldn't stand to gain much. With his current strength, facing the countless martial artists who would undoubtedly gather at the lake would be far too risky. However, things would be different if Hudson and Reilan were with him.Swallowing his pride, he decided to ask anyway. At the very least, he could satisfy his curiosity. And even if he couldn't claim any of the treasure for himself, perhaps he could

Just as the footage reached its most critical moment, the screen suddenly went black.Hudson and Reilan immediately suspected that Alben had deliberately stopped the video.Under their questioning gazes, Alben felt his scalp prickle. However, he quickly understood the reason behind their suspicion and hurriedly explained, "Sir, the camera only managed to record up to that point. We're already more than 650 feet underwater, and the equipment couldn't withstand the pressure. It broke down. I wasn't deliberately hiding anything from you!"Reilan and Hudson realized they had misunderstood him, though neither showed any embarrassment. Instead, Hudson calmly asked, "So there's really no more footage?""Unfortunately, no. Our new equipment, which is designed to withstand greater water pressure, hasn't arrived yet. It should be here by tomorrow morning. Once it does, we'll continue the investigation."After a brief pause, Alben added, "If you don't mind, sir, you can stay here for the night.

"Escape?"Hudson looked amused by Lance's words. A faint smile crossed his face as he replied, "Why would I need to escape?"He looked directly at the Sect Master and continued, "Do you even know why I'm here?"Everyone who had gathered at Lake Tahoe was there because of the strange phenomenon beneath the water. Lance was about to respond, but he stopped himself. He knew Hudson wouldn't bring up the subject without a reason.As he considered the young man's words, a possibility suddenly occurred to him. His pupils narrowed slightly as he began connecting the pieces.The strange phenomenon at Lake Tahoe hadn't happened sooner or later. It had appeared while Hudson was in the area. Could the two events somehow be connected? Was it possible that Hudson had something to do with what was happening beneath the lake?If it had been anyone else, Lance might not have given the idea much thought. But Hudson was different. As the Divine Sect's number one enemy, he was someone Lance had been keep

Dangie made his position perfectly clear. The only reason they had agreed to cooperate was because Hudson was supposed to provide information that they didn't already have. Simply telling them that the place was connected to the Martial God wasn't enough. There was no way to determine whether that claim was true, after all. Anyone could make up an excuse like that just to gain their trust.If Hudson intended to keep everything else to himself, then there was no point in continuing their cooperation.Under Dangie's watchful gaze, Hudson remained calm and thoughtful. "Have all your men retreat at least a kilometer away.""And you?" Dangie asked.Hudson knew there was no way to investigate the place discreetly anymore. Without taking out the wooden carving, he wouldn't be able to make any progress. However, he couldn't risk having it stolen, so he needed everyone from the Divine Sect to clear the area first."Do you have a way to break through the barrier?" Dangie asked, his eyes lightin