Evan Chu froze for a moment, feeling a bit foolish—maybe because he cared too much about Luna, the Sword Spirit. "Luna, even if I can't touch you, I'm already happy. Now that we've got the Thunder Spirit Pearl, let's get moving!"
"Heh, you have to call me Sister Luna. Who said you could just call me Luna? I think you're getting a little too cocky lately. Want me to give you a taste of something wonderful?" Luna laughed.
"Better not! I only call you Luna because sooner or later you'll be my woman. Are you really going to choose someone else? Don't forget, I've already seen your body, and I'm pretty sure you're embarrassed about it too." Evan grinned.
"Evan Chu, looks like I've been way too nice to you. How dare you joke about that? If I don't teach you a lesson today, I'm not Luna Xuanyuan!" Luna snapped.
With a flash, a half-silver miniature sword appeared in front of Evan and shot straight into his brow. A wave of excruciating pain exploded in his mind, making Evan scream uncontrollably.
"Mercy, Sister Luna! Mercy, Sister Luna! I won't dare again!" Evan begged helplessly.
"Let's see if you dare talk like that again. You're infuriating! I'll let you off this time, but if you do it again, just wait and see!" Luna said.
The pain in Evan's mind gradually faded. Glancing at the distant sky, he said, "I only said that because I care about you. You were the first woman I ever met, and nobody can compare to your place in my heart."
Luna was secretly moved by his words, and soon appeared outside Evan's brow. "Good, you know what's up. Just remember what I said—don't let it happen again, or you know what'll happen."
Evan didn't say anything more, knowing he'd just make Luna angry again if he kept going. "Let's go check on the Savage Earth Dragon and see how it's recovering. We've already gotten what we needed from the Divine Battlefield, so those other beasts can live a bit longer. I'll deal with them after I get back from the Netherworld."
Evan Chu flashed away from the Thunder Pool, quickly arriving at the spot where he'd killed the Galeclaw Eagle. "Earth Dragon, time to head out! If you don't show yourself, I'm leaving without you!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the massive form of the Savage Earth Dragon burst from the ground, swiftly morphing into human shape. Glancing at Evan and Luna, he said nervously, "Lord Golden Dragon, you're finally out! I was scared to death—the thunder was terrifying! Thank the heavens you're safe!"
Evan grinned. "I'm fine. How's your recovery? I'm about to leave the Divine Battlefield—are you coming with me or staying here?"
"Of course I'm following Lord Golden Dragon! In this life, I only serve you. Even though we haven't signed a Soul Contract, I swear on my beast-soul that I'll follow you forever—through fire and water, no regrets!" the Savage Earth Dragon declared firmly.
"I never said I didn't trust you. Stick with me and you'll never lose out. When I return to the Dragon Shrine, I'll make good on every promise I made to you. Let's go!" Evan said.
By Evan's calculations, the time for the Divine Battlefield to open the way back to Azure Tide Ruins was about up. He didn't know the exact spot, but he was sure the entrance had to be where he'd met Venerable Solus before.
Only by personally entering the Netherworld could Solus hope to open a passage to a higher realm. If Evan got trapped in the Divine Battlefield, he'd never get another shot at leaving.
Even if the portal to Azure Tide Ruins wasn't exactly at Solus's spot, there'd definitely be some kind of sign. Evan wasn't worried about that.
He spread his body out and flew quickly through the air. Sword Spirit Luna's flight speed wasn't very fast—mainly because she was a soul-body—so she'd already returned inside Evan, waiting to come out again once they reached their destination.
After flying for nearly a full day, they finally arrived at the spot where Evan had met Venerable Solus. Evan and Savage Earth Dragon landed, and Luna emerged. "Lord Golden Dragon, are you sure this is the entrance to Azure Tide Ruins?"
"It should be here. Maybe it's not time for the portal to open yet. We'll have to wait patiently and keep our divine senses spread—stay alert for any changes. It should be within the next few days," Evan said.
"Evan, if the entrance opens, there will definitely be an energy fluctuation. While we're waiting, you should consolidate the thunder power you've gained. Once you fully merge it, it'll be a huge help to you. Even though you can't cultivate Thundershift yet, you can already unleash half its power," Sword Spirit Luna advised.
Evan nodded, then told the Savage Earth Dragon, "Earth Dragon, keep an eye on the area. I need to stabilize my strength and cultivation. If anything happens, alert me immediately."
"Don't worry, my divine sense can cover dozens of li around here. If anything moves, I'll let you know!" the Savage Earth Dragon replied.
Evan immediately sat down and started circulating his Chaos Dragon Force. Now, his Chaos Dragon Force was already laced with thunder power—running it was the same as running lightning itself.
Thunder power was different from the five-element forces—it could fully coexist with Chaos Dragon Force in his dantian. Evan's meridians crackled and popped, arcs of lightning dancing along his veins.
He had no idea how long he'd been circulating his thunder power, but the more he ran it, the stronger it got. If you looked closely, multicolored lightning flickered all over his body, making him look almost otherworldly.
When Evan looked inward, he saw something odd in his dantian: besides Chaos Dragon Force, there was a mass of multicolored energy gas. Even the color of his Chaos Dragon Force had changed, constantly flashing with electric light.
He knew that multicolored energy was the fully fused five-element force. But when he checked his sea of consciousness, his Nascent Soul was still weak and dormant, eyes tightly shut as if in deep sleep.
Just then, the Savage Earth Dragon suddenly ran over and said, "Lord Golden Dragon, there's a huge energy fluctuation ten li ahead—it might be the entrance you mentioned."
Evan had already fully stabilized his thunder power. Hearing the Savage Earth Dragon, he quickly opened his eyes and said, "Let's go check it out!"
The two of them immediately flew to the source of the energy fluctuation. Sure enough, at the edge of a cliff, Evan saw an invisible Teleportation Gate—identical to the one they'd used to enter Azure Tide Ruins. But unlike last time, this portal could be sensed in broad daylight, not just under moonlight.
Evan instantly knew it was built by Venerable Solus. He couldn't help but admire Solus's skill at making portals. "Earth Dragon, let's go! With your strength, you'll be a top powerhouse in Azure Tide Ruins—just don't go around bullying people, or I won't let you off!"
"Rest assured, Lord Golden Dragon! I'll behave myself. You know me, I'm always low-key!" the Savage Earth Dragon said with a grin.
With that, the two stepped into the Teleportation Gate. A massive spatial force pulled them in, and they vanished—returning to Azure Tide Ruins as the Divine Battlefield trial arc came to a close.