"How can you restore your body?" Evan Chu asked at this moment.
"Once you return to the Dragon Clan, I'll naturally be able to recover my body. In the Dragon Shrine, there are Divine Dragons who specialize in rebuilding bodies for remnant souls—so you don’t need to worry about that. But getting back to the Dragon Clan is extremely difficult," said the Fire Dragon King.
Evan Chu finally had a clue about the Dragon Shrine. Although he couldn’t go there yet, just knowing the way was enough—once his strength grew, he’d definitely head there.
"Why is it so difficult? Did you forget the way to the Dragon Shrine, or is there some powerful barrier cutting it off?" Evan asked immediately.
"There used to be teleportation arrays that led straight to the Dragon Shrine, but ever since the Divine Battlefield war, all of them were destroyed. Now, to get back to the Dragon Shrine, you have to pass through Vermilion Bird Valley—but that valley seems to have vanished from the world. For ten thousand years, I haven’t seen a single Phoenix Clan member show up in the Azure Tide Ruins," said the Fire Dragon King.
Evan Chu almost wanted to blurt out that his own woman was the Phoenix Clan’s Saintess. Right now, the Phoenix Clan was probably in seclusion, recuperating. Clearly, the Fire Dragon King had only ever been to a handful of places while sealed inside the Flame Dragon Sword—there were plenty of things he didn’t know, and that was normal.
"Don’t worry, if I get the chance, I’ll definitely bring you back to the Dragon Shrine. At this auction, I’ll see if I can buy any soul-repairing medicines to help you recover faster," Evan Chu said.
"Qing Shuang, your strength is still weak right now. The Azure Tide Ruins are packed with powerful experts—besides the Nine Great Sects, there are several hidden families, and their strength is terrifying. Without the Netherghost Violet Orchid, breaking through to the Saint Martial Realm is basically impossible. If you run into a Saint Martial expert, don’t act tough. My only hope of returning to the Dragon Clan rests on you.
But don’t worry—if you’re up against an ordinary Saint Martial Realm expert and use the Flame Dragon Sword, I can boost your attack power by two realms. Considering you’ve already killed an Eighth-Layer Divine Martial cultivator, you shouldn’t be in any real danger," said the Fire Dragon King.
Evan Chu was delighted when he heard this. If it was really true, then he wouldn’t be in much danger in the Azure Tide Ruins. Ordinary Saint Martial experts rarely showed themselves, and the strongest people outside were usually Ninth-Layer Divine Martial. With his speed and strength, he really didn’t have much to fear.
"Fire Dragon King, if I run into trouble, I’ll ask for your help. For now, just wait patiently inside the Flame Dragon Sword!" Evan Chu said.
He then withdrew his divine sense and put the Flame Dragon Sword back into his storage ring. Opening the window, he looked up at the sky—stars filled the heavens. Thinking back to his days atop Flowing Cloud Mountain, absorbing Stellar Power, he felt a wave of nostalgia.
Unable to sleep, Evan Chu simply left his room. With a leap, he soared into the night sky—wanting to see how Golden Ram City looked at night. He had no idea that, just as he flew up, Lynne Nie happened to spot him. She’d been planning a late-night chat with Serena Dream, but her stomach felt strange, so she’d gone to the bathroom.
On her way back, she happened to see Evan Chu flying up into the sky. She turned to Serena Dream and said, "Serena, I just saw Young Lord Peak fly up alone into the night. Do you think he’s going out to handle something? Should we follow and check it out?"
"Really? He’s sneaking out alone in the middle of the night instead of sleeping—could he actually be with the Dark God Cult, now that he’s figured things out and is ready to report?" Serena Dream said.
"The Nine Great Sects should all send representatives to this auction. My sect sent me as its delegate. I think we should be careful—maybe we ought to discuss this with Young Lord Ethan and the others?" Lynne Nie asked.
"No need. The two of us together are more than enough. With our strength, are you really worried about him?" Serena Dream replied.
The two of them quickly changed into night clothes and quietly slipped out of their room. Meanwhile, Evan Chu was floating above Golden Ram City, slowly taking in the night view. Most places had already put out their lights—it was peaceful and silent.
After a while, he sped off into the distance. He’d noticed a big river not far from Golden Ram City when he arrived, and now he planned to go sit by the riverside.
"See? I told you he was up to something. Now he’s heading for the river—he’s definitely meeting someone. We need to keep a close eye," Lynne Nie said.
The two women immediately took off after him, tailing Evan Chu without his knowledge. When he arrived at the riverside, he picked a big boulder and sat down.
Listening to the gentle sound of flowing water, Evan felt totally at ease. Suddenly, a thought popped into his head—he flew straight into the river and leapt right in.
The two women watching from afar found this bizarre. Was he nuts, jumping into the river at this hour? If he was bathing, shouldn’t he at least take off his clothes? Was he trying to kill himself or just couldn’t handle something?
A bunch of wild guesses flashed through their minds, but they quickly dismissed them. Young Lord Peak was way too sharp to do something stupid—so they hid themselves and patiently waited for him to reappear.
As Evan jumped into the river, he activated Watershift, merging completely into the water. Within moments, he caught two big fish and flew out, landing back on the boulder where he’d been sitting.
"It’s been ages since I’ve had grilled fish. Tonight, I’ll try making some with my own hands," Evan Chu muttered to himself.
He pulled out the Azure Gale Sword and started gutting the fish. Off in the distance, Serena Dream and Lynne Nie watched him, both puzzled.
"What’s he doing—catching fish in the middle of the night just for fun?" Serena Dream said, genuinely confused.
"Let’s keep watching. Who knows what he’ll come up with next," Lynne Nie replied.
Soon, Evan cleaned out the fish guts. With a thought, he sprayed water from his palm to rinse off the blood.
Then he took some spices from his storage ring and set them on the rock. A burst of flame appeared in his palm, and he started grilling the fish over it.
The fire in his palm was way too hot—the fish burned after just a few seconds. Evan looked at the mess, feeling a bit annoyed. "Guess I need to dial down the flames," he muttered.
He tossed the burnt fish aside and started grilling the other one. This time, the flames in his palm were much weaker, and he held the fish further away, turning it slowly. No more burning—the fish cooked just right.
When the fish was nearly done, he put out the flame, sprinkled some salt and spices on top, then started grilling again.
A gust of wind swept across the river, carrying the delicious aroma of grilled fish toward where Serena Dream and Lynne Nie were hiding.
"Wow, that smells amazing!" Lynne Nie couldn’t help but blurt out when she caught a whiff.
Her voice was quiet, but in the stillness of night, Evan Chu heard it. He was startled at first, then grinned and called out, "Saintess, no need to hide—come try my grilled fish!"