Read Novel Full Chapter 540: Broken Dawn’s Arrival
Chapter 540: Broken Dawn’s Arrival
The Longsword leader’s expression changed the moment Liang appeared.
The rough smile on his face did not vanish completely, but it became stiff. His shoulders tightened, and the martial artists behind him also quieted down at once. They could act proud before outsiders, but before Liang, that pride clearly had limits.
Liang was stronger than him.
Everyone from Tianlan knew that.
Liang looked at him for another second before speaking.
"This mission was arranged by Tianlan. If you have complaints, bring them to the Martial Palace after we return. Until then, keep your pride under control."
The Longsword leader’s expression turned dark, but he did not speak back immediately. His fingers curled once near the hilt at his waist, yet he clearly had no intention of drawing his weapon here.
Evelyn stood beside Liang with a calm face, her eyes moving over the Longsword group once before settling back on the gathered guests.
Liang did not waste more time on them. He turned toward the rest of the forces and gave a light nod.
"Welcome to Tianlan," he said. "Martial Palace will be your host during this mission. The route, resting place, and final preparations have already been arranged. Until we move toward the Buried God’s Tomb, I ask that every group keeps their members under control."
His voice was not loud, but it carried clearly.
The station remained quiet while he spoke. Even Olympus listened without interrupting. The Holy Church remained still, and IceQueen watched Liang with a thoughtful gaze.
Liang’s eyes moved across the gathered forces slowly.
For a moment, his gaze paused on ChaosKnight and the white masked figure standing slightly behind them, but he did not linger. After that, his eyes shifted again, as if searching for someone.
A faint crease appeared between his brows.
He turned slightly toward Evelyn. "Did you truly give Gabriel the invitation?"
Evelyn nodded without hesitation. "Yes. I gave it directly to Lady Sophie."
Liang’s gaze moved back across the crowd. "I do not see him."
The moment he said that, a few people reacted.
ChaosCleric clenched his fist. "Damn, that psycho is coming too? And here I thought we could finally get the spotlight."
IceQueen’s eyes remained calm, but her hand tightened faintly at her side. Gabriel stood silently behind the mask, showing no reaction at all.
Before anyone could answer, a series of heavy engine sounds came from the road leading toward the station.
Several large armored vehicles rolled in from the distance. Their bodies were dark and reinforced, moving in a clean formation toward the gathering area. The sound drew almost every eye at once.
Gabriel recognized them immediately when he saw the trucks.
The vehicles stopped near the edge of the station, and the doors opened one after another.
Sophie stepped out first. Her veil covered her face as usual, and her posture remained elegant. Behind her came Ragnarok99, Cassie, Bunny, SniperBowLegend, Samantha, and several other selected core members. Their arrival changed the atmosphere again.
The Holy Church members turned toward them almost instantly.
The hostility in their eyes was not hidden well. Some of the priests whispered among themselves, and one of the High Cardinals looked over with a cold gaze that lasted a little too long.
ChaosKnight’s reaction was not much better.
A few of their members stiffened when they saw Broken Dawn. Even ChaosCleric’s face twitched slightly because he could already tell that inside the tomb there would be a lot of chaos, even with someone as powerful as White Phantom on their side.
Meanwhile, Jack Arefield’s gaze sharpened slightly, while Aria looked at Sophie and the others with quiet interest. Ares Dunhold turned his head fully toward Broken Dawn, his eyes settling on their group for a moment longer than necessary.
Ares had tried to absorb Broken Dawn before, and Gabriel had refused. Someone with that kind of status would not forget such a thing easily. It might not be enough to make him act now, but the slight pressure in his gaze said enough.
Sophie ignored the looks.
She walked forward calmly with the token in hand, and the Broken Dawn members followed behind her. Some of them glanced at the gathered forces, clearly aware of the tension, but none showed fear.
Liang’s expression softened slightly when he saw them.
He walked forward to receive them personally.
"Lady Sophie, you made it," he greeted with a nod.
Sophie returned the greeting with the same calm manner. "Vice Leader Liang, thank you for the invitation."
Liang glanced behind her, scanning the group once. "Is Gabriel not with you?"
Sophie did not answer too quickly.
That question was expected, but it was still not easy to handle in front of this many eyes. She kept her fingers lightly around the token and replied without letting anything show.
"He said he would join us here."
Liang looked at her for a second, then nodded. "I see."
His expression did not change much, but Gabriel could tell he was slightly disappointed. The message Evelyn carried about sparring had not been casual. Liang had truly wanted Gabriel to appear personally.
From where he stood with ChaosKnight, Gabriel looked over Broken Dawn quietly.
Sarah was not with them, and neither was Arnold, which was understandable.
After a brief thought, he understood the arrangement. Seraphina must have stayed behind to watch New Dawn with Arnold. That was the safer choice. Someone had to remain at the base, and if Seraphina stayed there, any unexpected trouble that arose would be handled easily.
Sophie’s gaze moved across the station for a moment.
For some reason, her eyes paused briefly near ChaosKnight’s side. Gabriel remained still, his mask hiding his face and his aura concealed as best as he could.
Right then, Liang stepped back and turned toward all the groups again.
"Now that everyone is here, we will head into the city first. You will be given rooms and time to prepare. After that, Martial Palace will brief you on the route to the mission site."
The Longsword leader said nothing this time.
His earlier arrogance had clearly been buried under Liang’s arrival, though the unwilling look in his eyes had not fully disappeared.
Liang raised one hand slightly, and the Martial Palace members behind him moved at once, opening the path toward Tianlan City.
"Follow me," Liang said. "The Buried God’s Tomb is not a place anyone should enter unprepared."