Evan Yang began detoxifying Lynton Cloud. The people outside stood frozen, not daring to utter a word, unable to leave—terrified of running into the Cloud Parasite.
Once Evan finished, Lynton Cloud stood up and looked at him. "How did you do that?"
"I just know a bit of medicine, that's all," Evan said with a smile.
"That's incredible. Thank you," Lynton Cloud said gratefully.
"No need for thanks now. Let's go find Miss Cloud," Evan said.
Lynton Cloud nodded, then hurriedly led Evan out of the crowd. Evan glanced at the Song clansman and sneered, "You shoved me before—this time, I'm returning the favor."
The Song clansman who once shoved Evan and made him cough blood now trembled, afraid to utter a sound. When Evan waved his hand, the man shot up from the ground, caught fire in midair, and finally landed far away as nothing but ashes.
Everyone watching nearby felt their legs go numb. They suddenly imagined Evan was even more terrifying than the berserk Tina Cloud.
Even Lynton Cloud was stunned. He hadn't expected Evan's strength to be this overwhelming—stronger than he'd ever imagined.
"Let's go," Evan said to Lynton Cloud.
Lynton Cloud nodded and quickly left the underground. Once above, he looked around but had no idea where to start searching.
"Let's ask around nearby. If there are any massacres like this, we might find Miss Cloud," Evan suggested.
Lynton Cloud thought it made sense. If Tina really wasn't in control, she'd be killing everywhere. By tracking her appearances, they could find her whereabouts. Evan and Lynton Cloud went to the nearby city to investigate. When they heard the news, both were shocked—Tina had killed many people in just a few days.
"It's over, it's over..." Lynton Cloud was unusually dejected when he heard the news.
"Patriarch Cloud, what's wrong?" Seeing Lynton Cloud's grim expression, Evan asked curiously.
"So many people died—Cloud's End Palace will definitely hear about it. When that happens, Tina will be in trouble," Lynton Cloud said, worried for her safety.
"Patriarch Cloud, don't worry yet. Let's find Miss Cloud first," Evan said, comforting him. With Evan's reassurance, Lynton Cloud felt a bit better. They headed toward the latest place Tina appeared, based on fresh reports.
On the way, Evan grew curious about one thing: all the reports said Tina only killed notorious villains or bandit gangs. He couldn't help but ask, "Patriarch Cloud, why is Miss Cloud so selective in who she kills?"
Lynton Cloud listened to Evan's question and seemed to remember something, exclaiming, "If you hadn't mentioned it, I would've forgotten."
"Oh? What is it?" Evan felt like there was something he still didn't know.
"Tina Cloud has always hated bandits and thieves the most. When she was young, her wet nurse was assaulted and murdered by a bandit. She was devastated and begged me to teach her cultivation. I finally agreed, and once she grew strong, she hunted down that bandit for revenge. Ever since, she's harbored a deep hatred for bandits—maybe that's why her inner resentment is influencing her now," Lynton Cloud explained.
"I see. Let's hurry over—hopefully no one will mess with her," Evan replied.
The two sped up and soon arrived at Tina's latest location: Linked Chain Gorge, a series of connected valleys infamous for bandits. Few dared pass through, fearing robbery. Outside the gorge, a river flowed blood-red.
Seeing the color, Evan and Lynton Cloud knew a massacre had happened. They followed the blood trail toward the scene.
After a quarter hour, they finally reached the valley floor, where rivers of blood flowed. A woman stood atop a rock, her eyes glowing red as she scanned the surroundings. In five positions around her stood five people, all wearing identical uniforms marked with the character 'Cloud'—not ordinary clothing.
Tina seemed afraid of their uniforms and didn't dare move. Meanwhile, someone hid in a crevice—it was Patriarch Song.
Patriarch Song tried several times to approach Tina, hoping she'd listen, but even after sending her messages, she didn't respond.
When Lynton Cloud arrived, the atmosphere grew even stranger. "Girl, are you awake?" he called out excitedly to Tina standing on the rock.
At this moment, Tina looked like she'd emerged from a pool of blood—her whole body was soaked in it.
One of the five men asked, "May I ask your name?" addressing Lynton Cloud.
Lynton Cloud replied, "I am the Patriarch of the Cloud Family. This is my daughter, Tina Cloud."
"Your daughter? Then do you know how she became infected?" one of them asked again.
"She was forcibly activated. Originally, the Cloud Parasite was sealed and harmless," Lynton Cloud hurried to explain.
"Activated? You mean she was born with it?" the man asked, surprised.
"Yes. Someone wanted to use her, so they forcibly activated it, causing all this. I hope you can show mercy and let her recover," Lynton Cloud pleaded.
"That's just your side of the story. Who knows if it's true? Besides, her condition is already dangerous. If we don't act now, she'll become even more terrifying," the man said.
Lynton Cloud grew anxious. Just then, a scream came from a crevice, and someone crawled out, their rear on fire—it was the Song clansman. Evan had already sensed him and now forced him out.
When everyone saw Patriarch Song, the five hunters had assumed he was just a survivor from the valley. Lynton Cloud pointed angrily at him, "That's him—Patriarch Song! To turn my daughter into a killing tool, he forcibly activated her!"
After putting out the fire, Patriarch Song glared at Evan, furious. But Evan had already warned him: confess, or die.
Patriarch Song knew admitting guilt meant he'd be taken away, so he quickly said, "It's not true! They plotted against me, made me the scapegoat. Please, investigate thoroughly!"
"Stubborn fool." Before the others could speak, Evan snorted coldly and waved his hand, setting Patriarch Song's rear on fire again.
The five hunters were shocked—someone dared make a move right under their noses! One of them, furious, said, "Unbelievable. This is too much."
With a flash, the man appeared before Evan and threw a palm strike. Evan looked at him and sneered, "Are you looking for death?"
Seeing Evan's terrifying gaze, the man didn't even have time to retract his hand before Evan pushed him, sending him flying into the valley wall, blood spilling from his mouth.
Evan's strength left everyone stunned. Patriarch Song hadn't expected Evan to be so terrifying; realizing even the five hunters couldn't protect him, he began to regret implicating Evan.
Just then, one of the remaining four hunters shouted angrily, "How dare you act so arrogantly! Let me teach you a lesson."
"What? All of you want to fight? Aren't you here to listen to explanations?" Evan laughed.
"You already attacked—what's there left to explain?" the man retorted angrily.
"Her name is Tina Cloud. He's Patriarch Song. To turn her into a killing tool, he did this to her. Whether you believe it or not is up to you. But today, I'm taking her away. As for Patriarch Song, deal with him as you wish. Just don't believe his words, or you'll regret it—don't say I didn't warn you." With that, Evan walked up to Tina.
He looked at Lynton Cloud and said, "Patriarch, let's go." Then he grabbed Tina. Her eyes red, she tried to attack Evan, but he sealed her instantly—so fast she couldn't even make a move before being subdued.
Everyone was completely stunned to see Tina Cloud just sitting there, totally immobilized by Evan Yang.
It wasn't until Evan left with Tina and Lynton Cloud that the crowd finally snapped out of it and started cursing up a storm.
The four angry hunters checked on their injured teammate, then all five turned to glare at Patriarch Song.
Patriarch Song was sweating bullets, barely holding it together.
"Come with us," one of the men said. Patriarch Song knew exactly how weak he was—if he resisted, he'd be dead for sure. He wasn't anywhere near as terrifying as Evan Yang.
Left with no choice, Patriarch Song let the five hunters drag him away. As for Tina Cloud, they all knew that with Evan Yang around, there was no way they could take her down. They headed back to Cloud's End Palace to report what happened.
Meanwhile, Tina Cloud sat frozen on a stone, while Lynton Cloud stood to the side, glancing over and asking, "How did you pull that off?"
"I know a few sealing techniques," Evan Yang explained. "They can keep someone from moving. Even if she's possessed right now, I can still keep her in check." He figured Tina's power wasn't overwhelming yet, so he could handle it.
Lynton Cloud felt a huge wave of relief after Evan's explanation. At least Tina wouldn't suddenly run off or attack him, leaving him helpless to fight back.
"You know some healing, right? Can you check if there's any way to bring her back?" Lynton Cloud knew the odds were slim—Cloud Parasites were infamous for being impossible to cure—but he pinned his hopes on this outsider.
Evan Yang said, "I'm not sure yet. Let me take a look first."
Lynton Cloud nodded. Evan reached out and examined Tina's body, channeling Heaven-Cold qi. But it barely did anything—there was almost no reaction. Evan frowned and said, "Looks like there's nothing I can do right now."
"What? Is she really done for?" Lynton Cloud knew if Tina couldn't recover, there were only two options: let the Cloud Parasite take over, or let others kill her. Either way, he couldn't stand it.