Evan's expression turned suspicious. He sensed something inside him was faintly connected, and that thing was releasing a strange aura through his blood.
"Ancestor of Ten Thousand Insects!" Evan realized the source of the aura—it was the Ancestor of Ten Thousand Insects.
Knowing the insects only feared him because of the Ancestor, Evan relaxed. "That’s a relief."
He hadn’t expected that something he rarely used could play such a crucial role at a key moment.
Feeling reassured, Evan walked deeper inside. The insects all avoided him, until he sensed a faint aura not far ahead.
When he reached the spot, he was shocked to see a stone figure emitting a faint glow, with insects gnawing at it but unable to make a dent.
It was obvious how tough the stone was. Evan walked over curiously and found it was actually a person.
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"Senior? Are you awake?" Evan asked curiously.
The stone figure seemed to hear something and replied slowly, "Who’s there?"
"Me, Evan Yang," Evan answered.
"You? Here for training?" came the voice from within the stone.
"Yes, that's right. Senior, may I ask why you're here?" Evan asked curiously.
"Strange, why aren’t those insects attacking you?" The stone figure didn’t answer immediately, but instead asked Evan out of curiosity.
"I’m not sure. Maybe they’re just afraid of me," Evan replied.
"You really are lucky. I’m not so fortunate—if I undo my shell, they’ll swarm me and devour me," the voice said.
"Do you need help?" Evan asked. "Of course. I’ve been trapped here for years, never expected to get stuck. If you could move me outside, that would be wonderful," the person said.
Evan nodded, hoisted the stone figure, and started back the way he came. On the way, Evan asked, "Senior, why did you come here?"
"Looking for something," the person replied.
"Looking for something? Are you the senior who possesses the Earth-Rock Aegis technique?" Evan asked suspiciously.
"You know me?" the person asked in surprise.
"I’ve heard about you, and I also heard you came here searching for something," Evan said.
"I didn’t expect so many people to know my story. Unfortunately, I’m just someone trapped here. Otherwise, I’d have found what I was looking for and left long ago," the person said with an embarrassed laugh.
Evan said, "Those insects really are terrifying. If I wasn’t immune to them, I’d probably be worse off than you—wouldn’t even have a chance to survive."
"Kid, you really know how to talk. All right, put me down here. We’ve left their territory, so there won’t be any insects," the person said with a smile.
Evan set the stone figure down, and it gradually transformed into a white-bearded old man. He smiled at Evan and said, "Thank you."
"Senior, aren’t you proficient in Earth-Rock Aegis? Why didn’t you use it to walk out?" Evan asked curiously.
"Earth-Rock Aegis? If I’d mastered it to the highest level, I wouldn’t be afraid. Sadly, I haven’t reached the peak," the old man sighed.
"Senior, why did you come here?" Evan asked again, curious.
"I’m searching for something. I heard it’s inside this tower, but I’m already at the fifth floor. If I go higher, I don’t know if it’s there," the old man sighed.
"Then let’s go up together, Senior. I want to see what’s really here," Evan said.
"Oh? Sure, it’ll be nice to have company," the old man said with a smile.
The two climbed the stairs. Evan didn’t need to defend himself at all, but the old man had to use earth power just like Evan had before. This made him curious, so he asked, "Why are you completely unaffected?"
"Maybe it’s just my constitution," Evan replied with a smile.
"You really are a strange one," the old man said, staring at Evan in amazement—not only was he immune to the insects, but even these stairs didn’t affect him.
"Senior, what’s your name?" Evan asked curiously.
"Everyone calls me Stone—hard and smelly like a rock," he said with a laugh.
"Senior, you really know how to joke. Who has a name like that?" Evan said, speechless.
"That’s just the nickname everyone gave me. Back when I took the technique, people cursed me, sent many to hunt me down. But I disappeared here, and they never expected you’d be the one to rescue me," Stone replied.
"Senior, why did you take that technique?" Evan asked curiously.
"Do you really want to know?" Stone smiled, then his expression grew serious.
Evan looked at Stone with curiosity, and Stone began, "Actually, here’s how it happened."
Stone explained to Evan: he wasn’t really called Stone; his true name was Victor Stone, a cultivator from the Earth Temple. He’d been ordered to learn Earth-Rock Aegis, which showed his status in the Earth Temple. However, Victor Stone offended powerful people, was framed, and in anger stole the technique and vanished. He entered the Twenty Layers, and after the Earth Temple learned he was there, they sent many to hunt him, but none succeeded. After Victor Stone was trapped here, he disappeared from all news until Evan rescued him.