Chapter 126 126: Challenge

Atlan wanted to be free from this hell so bad, but everyone was so careful, he had no opportunity.

He was kept in a weakened condition, and on top of that, there were the chains that were covered in spells cast by thousands of Mages. In his weakened state, it was impossible for him to break those chains. In fact, even if he weren't weakened, it would've been harder for him to break those chains.

He was kept in a cell that was reinforced with thick steel walls, and each of the walls had multiple formations on them.

There was no source of light in this dark cell. Not even an opening for fresh air to come in. Only when the door was opened did some air rush in.

The main door of the cell was ten inches thick, made of iron. The door slowly opened toward the outdoor. The sound of footsteps echoed in the surroundings.

Atlan raised his head at the sound of the footsteps, not opening his eyes.

"Zhang, I suppose. Are you here to torture me? Go ahead. But just remember, I won't forget these favors. The day I'm free, I'll return each favor with interest."

"How did you know it was me?" Zhang asked, slightly curious. Atlan hadn't even opened his eyes to see who it was, yet he knew exactly who it was.

"It's definitely not because of my scent.

"You're right. You have no scent, possibly because of some spell," Atlan responded.

His fists were still clenched tightly as he felt the pain of the poison taking hold on his body, yet he didn't let it show on his face.

"Your men just left after feeding me this poison. Who else could come next but you?" Atlan inquired, smiling. "Let me guess. You were scared of being alone with me, so had them poison and weakened me before meeting me?"

"You certainly have a sharp tongue." Zhang stepped closer. "However, you got one thing wrong."

Smack~

A kick landed on Atlan's face, making him fall to the ground.

"Do you really think I'll need to weaken you to thrash you? You think too much of yourself. I'm not like my father or my Ancestors! I'm stronger than them. Way stronger than you can imagine. Even if you were at your peak, you couldn't do anything."

"Even in this poisoned state, why don't you free my hands, and we can see? Certainly, you won't be scared of a little weakened Vampire, will you?" Atlan smirked, finally opening his deep yet fierce eyes.

"You think you can?" Zhang sat on his knees. "Fine. I will give you an opportunity. Not only will I give you an opportunity to fight me, but I'll also make sure you aren't at your weakest when you fight me. It's the promise of a Warlord. If you answer my questions honestly, I'll free you of these chains and let you fight me in the open."

"None of my men will interfere in that battle. If you win, you can even kill me, and they won't interfere. You'll also be free to leave. And if you lose, you'll be back to this cell. So do you want this opportunity? If you're really that confident that you can utilize this opportunity, then answer my questions honestly."

"What questions? Let me guess. You'll ask the same question that Razil did, like how Progenitors came to be, our weaknesses, and the location of others?"

Atlan had over a hundred years of experience of going through such questions. He knew exactly what they could ask.

Unfortunately, that didn't seem to be the case here as Zhang shook his head.

"Don't compare me with Razil. That guy is an idiot. He even made me lose the opportunity of catching Castiel. It's alright though. You should be enough for now."

"Opportunity of catching Castiel?" Atlan smiled. "You really think you can catch Castiel, don't you? If only you knew him like we do. That man... Even we three couldn't catch him, let alone you. In fact, I would say that you're lucky if you met him and still came out alive. I'm surprised at your luck."

"Just because you three Progenitors were not able to catch him doesn't mean I can. You are weak; I'm not." Zhang chuckled. "You should've seen his face when I had Lilith's throat in my arms. He was so close to surrendering. If that idiot hadn't interfered, Castiel would've been begging me to capture him!"

"It doesn't cost to dream," Atlan smiled. "I hate praising that bastard, but he does deserve it sometimes. You needed an entire force of witches and Werewolves to catch me. Just think how much force you'd have needed if you had gone to catch me, Ramiel, and Lucius? And then comes catching Castiel..."

"Though I'm really curious. You hurt Lilith, and you're still alive? I suppose I know why he let you live..."

"Why? Isn't it because he was scared?" Zhang rolled his eyes.

"Don't worry. You will find out soon why he let you live at the time."

"He didn't let me live. I let him live, and not for long. Before long, he'll be here, in the cell didn't next to yours. He doesn't have long to roam freely."

"Maybe you're right." Atlan smiled. He didn't speak much.

Amongst the four Progenitors, Atlan was the one who was known as the strategist. He was really good at understanding plans and coming up with strategies accordingly. It didn't take him long to understand the reasoning behind Atlas not fighting Zhang. He didn't even consider the possibility of Atlas being afraid of Zhang.

That left only one possibility. He did it because he wanted something from Zhang. As for what that something was, he understood that it was him.

When he was in the cell at the Werewolf Clan, he had noticed some movement near his cell. Someone was definitely attempting to get close to him, but something stopped them. If he were in place of Castiel, he would've changed the plan to make things a bit easier for him.

He would've left Zhang alive so Zhang could take him from the Clan of Wolves to this place which was much easier to infiltrate for Lilith.

He was entirely sure that Castiel was after him. That's why he came to that Kingdom, and that's why he let Zhang live. If that was the case, then he was sure that it wasn't going to be long before Atlas would come here for him... Soon, he was going to be face to face with Castiel…