Evan Chu only smiled when he heard Princess Ivy’s furious shouting. Instantly teleporting to a deserted spot, he sat down—he couldn’t help feeling both excited and expectant about the coming campaign to wipe out the Beast Clan.
Breaking through to the Fifth Layer of the Saint Martial Realm made him even more confident. Of the Five Netherworld Races’ top powers, only the Shade Lord was guaranteed not to oppose him; the other four would have to bow before his martial might. Once he helped the Shade Lord unify the Netherworld, he’d enter that nine-deaths-one-life forbidden zone, obtain the Netherghost Violet Orchid, and return to the Azure Tide Ruins.
By then, his strength would have reached a whole new level. Maybe he wouldn’t even have to fear Venerable Solus anymore—after all, Solus was just a soul-form, whose attack power was obviously much weaker than a physical body.
Thinking it all through, Evan Chu smiled calmly. His mind drifted to Roxanne Lin—her first phoenix nirvana required Divine Parasol Tree Wood, but he’d never even heard of it. Even Frostbane’s memories had nothing about it, so he’d have to ask Luna.
“Big Sis Luna, do you know where to get Divine Parasol Tree Wood? Is there any chance something like that exists in the Netherworld?” Evan Chu asked.
“Looks like you really care about Roxy’s situation, huh? Divine Parasol Tree Wood isn’t from your world—it only exists in the Immortal Realm. You’ll have to wait until you reach the Immortal Realm to get it, and even then, it’s a Phoenix Clan treasure, so obtaining it will be extremely difficult.
But if Roxy goes herself, it might be easier, since she has Vermilion Bird bloodline, which is a branch of the Phoenix Clan. Divine Parasol Tree Wood is just the tree where the Phoenix Clan undergoes nirvana. After nirvana, the tree absorbs a special kind of fire element—the Nirvana Fire—which is different from any other fire. It can even revive the dead. We’ll talk about this later; for now, you should focus on getting yourself back to peak condition!” Luna said.
Evan was surprised by Luna’s words, but thinking about all the weird stuff that had already happened to him, it didn’t seem so strange. He took out a supreme-grade Starstone and started absorbing its power, killing time while waiting for the next day.
Early the next morning, Evan Chu returned, feeling refreshed after a night’s cultivation. The Shade Lord was already waiting in his room. As soon as Evan entered, the Shade Lord said, “Lin Feng, you and your friend should go ahead—I’ll follow soon. Remember, you must lure out the Beast King.”
“Don’t worry, Father-in-law. I’ll definitely get it done. When the time comes, I hope you’ll go all out!” Evan Chu replied.
“Of course. But you need to be careful too—a Fifth-Layer Venerable Martial’s domain is terrifying. Never confront it head-on, or you’ll be in real danger,” the Shade Lord warned.
Meanwhile, in Blackspirit City, the Ghost King was also discussing matters with key Ghost Clan figures in the City Lord’s Mansion. “Everyone, I’ve decided to personally travel to Nine-Shade City. All the evidence points to the Shade Lord’s son-in-law as the culprit who destroyed Grimchart City. Tens of thousands of our Ghost Clan died in Grimchart City, and this debt must be repaid. Otherwise, how could I, the Ghost King, have any face left as clan leader?
This trip will definitely lead to some unpleasantness with the Shade Lord. For safety’s sake, I’ve decided to bring three elders and two Protectors with me to Nine-Shade City. I don’t believe the Shade Lord will dare shield that brat. If he does, I won’t mind bathing Nine-Shade City in blood,” the Ghost King said to the crowd.
“I’ve wanted to kill that brat for ages. Now that the Ghost King has made up his mind, of course we all support it. If the Shade Lord doesn’t know what’s good for him, we’ll just have to fight him. I’m sure he’s smart enough to understand the stakes—he won’t go to war with our Ghost Clan over a lowly human. There’s really no suspense about how this will end,” said a black-robed elder.
“Exactly. The Grand Elder is right—we’ll go to Nine-Shade City and force the Shade Lord to hand over that brat. If he refuses, we’ll wipe out the Shade Clan. We have justice on our side, so the other races shouldn’t interfere,” another black-robed elder said.
The Ghost King glanced at the crowd and said, “Unless it’s absolutely necessary, we shouldn’t go to war with the Shade Clan. That would only let the other races profit. Still, we can’t let the dignity of the Ghost Clan be trampled. We’ll decide what to do when the time comes. Enough talk—let’s move out!”
With that, the Ghost King and his five subordinates flew straight toward Nine-Shade City. Neither the Shade Lord nor Evan Chu had any idea they were coming. At that moment, Evan and Sean Xiao were speeding toward Beast King territory.
“Qing Shuang, didn’t you say the Shade Lord would help us deal with the Beast Clan? Why haven’t we seen him at all? Is he sending us to our deaths on purpose, or did he never really plan to attack the Beast Clan?” Sean Xiao asked on the way.
“Don’t be so suspicious. The Shade Lord is a clan leader—he has his own concerns. As long as we lure out the Beast King, he’ll show up. All you need to do is slaughter those Nether Beasts; don’t overthink it. Just make sure you survive—if you die before we get back to the Azure Tide Ruins, don’t blame me for leaving you behind,” Evan Chu laughed.
“Brat, you should be worrying about yourself—just be glad you don’t need me to protect you. And now you’re worried about me? What a joke!” Sean Xiao scoffed.
Both of them were flying at incredible speed. After Evan Chu mastered the Wind Element, his flight speed was worlds apart from before—now he could keep pace with Sean Xiao, a Fourth-Layer Venerable Martial. That was no small feat, and Sean was quietly astonished. Qing Shuang’s speed was downright freakish, but he had no idea Evan could also teleport. If Evan used instant movement, Sean might be so shocked he’d fall right out of the sky.
The Beast King’s royal city was far from Nine-Shade City, but at their speed, it only took half a day to get there. Soon, they could see the massive city walls looming ahead.
“Qing Shuang, how do you plan to lure out the Beast King? With your current appearance, you’ll definitely blow your cover. If this fails, you’ll end up being hunted across the entire Netherworld. Meanwhile, I can change my appearance just by absorbing a few Netherstones. You’d better think this through,” Sean Xiao said.
Evan Chu just smiled. “Don’t worry—look at me now, can you still recognize me?” As he spoke, thick Ghost qi surged from his body and he instantly transformed into a Ghost Clan youth, leaving Sean Xiao utterly stunned.
“You—you can actually turn into that? How did you do it?” Sean Xiao asked, shocked.
“I’ll explain later. For now, let’s head to the city gate. We’ll cause a scene to stir up the defenders—hopefully we can draw out the Second Prince. That way, I can personally avenge Roxy,” Evan Chu said...