Deadwillow City, one of the Devil Realm's forbidden zones. After hearing the Demon Sovereigns talk, Evan Yang had a clear sense of himself—at the very least, this place was dangerous. Those Demon Sovereigns with weaker cultivation dared not set foot here.
"The willow forest—what exactly causes the gate between the Devil Realm and Immortal Realm to appear here?" Evan Yang was very curious about how such a place could trigger the early opening of the Immortal–Devil Gates. It puzzled him deeply.
Even as he pondered, Evan Yang was searching for a hint of life here, wanting to see if anyone else was inside.
Normally, Evan Yang's divine sense was strong and could scan a vast area, but here his vision was limited. Whenever he tried to extend his senses farther, it felt as if something blocked him—a mass of mist. Only when he got closer could he see clearly.
"This really is a strange place," Evan Yang muttered to himself, then continued searching the surroundings.
Three days after Evan Yang entered Deadwillow City, he had already wandered here for three whole days. Looking at the scenery around him, he felt helpless—there were only willows, nothing but willows. It gave him a headache, and he had no idea when this would end.
Even the Phantom Spirit Birds he released brought back no information, making Evan Yang feel like he was wandering in a giant maze with no end in sight. The surroundings were eerily calm, as if nothing existed here at all.
Just as Evan Yang was feeling a bit helpless and unsure whether to keep going, a sound came from not far away. The noise grew closer, heading straight for him.
"Someone?" Evan Yang muttered to himself.
Soon, Evan Yang saw the source of the sound—a man leading a hunting-dog-like spirit beast toward him.
The man and his beast both stared at Evan Yang with sharp eyes, while Evan looked back and asked, "Who are you?"
"Who are you, and why have you trespassed into Deadwillow City?" the man said sternly.
"Huh? Deadwillow City is open, isn't it? Why can't I come in?" Evan Yang was confused—was there some rule against entering Deadwillow City?
"Of course not. Deadwillow City is a forbidden ground, and there's a public notice: no one may enter, or they'll never return," the man replied seriously.
Evan Yang thought for a moment, then asked, "Are you from around here?"
"That's right. I'm the hunter who watches over this forest. So you should leave at once, or bear the consequences yourself," the man said.
"I'm looking for something. Leaving is out of the question, so just let me in," Evan Yang said.
"Dream on! If you take another step, I'll kill you," the man said without hesitation.
"Then I'll just have to see why I can't go in," Evan Yang muttered, intending to test the man's strength—after all, to be the master of this forest, he had to be formidable.
As soon as Evan Yang took a step forward, the man snorted coldly and said, "You've crossed the line—now prepare to die."
With that, the man and his hound suddenly vanished.
"Huh? Vanished? Hiding?" Evan Yang wondered, surprised.
"Hiding? You think I'm a coward? I'm just fighting from where you can't see me. Prepare to die." The man snorted. As he spoke, the willow forest around them began moving, trees shifting from place to place.
If Evan Yang wasn't careful, the willow branches passing by him would whip at him like lashes. Judging by their curve and force, these attacks were no weaker than those of Demon Sovereigns or Immortal Sovereigns. Evan was shocked—he'd never seen such attacks before. What surprised him even more was that all the plants around him were now weapons.
So Evan Yang was faced with nowhere to hide—willow branches attacking him from every direction.
The willow branches crackled as they lashed the surrounding space, making it extremely difficult for Evan Yang to even catch his breath.
"Kid, your speed's not bad, but let's see how long you can keep it up," the man sneered.
Even though Evan Yang was fast, he couldn't keep it up forever. The attacks were endless, and he knew that if he slowed down even a little, the consequences would be dire.
This gave Evan Yang a headache—he decided that the only way to break free was to find where the man was hiding. Otherwise, he'd just keep getting attacked and never find a way out.
"Where could he be hiding?" Evan Yang muttered to himself.
Evan Yang knew the power of the willows definitely came from the man. If he could trace the source of that power, he'd find his location. So Evan split his divine sense into countless strands, analyzing the moment each willow attack activated to track its origin.
Eventually, all the traces converged on a single spot. That place seemed transparent—nothing visible—but Evan Yang was sure it was connected to the man's hiding place. Evan blinked, and a blast of Polar Sacred Flame shot straight at that spot.
Sure enough, the moment the attack hit, that area flickered as if something invisible was struck.
The man was shocked—he hadn't expected Evan Yang to find his location, and was even more surprised at how terrifying Evan's eyes were.
"Kid, you've got some tricks—actually found my hiding spot," the man said in surprise.
"Of course. But I didn't expect something was protecting you, so to beat you, I'll just have to use stronger attacks," Evan Yang replied with a smile.
"Oh? Is that so? Then let's see if you can find me again." The man snorted, shifted his position, and Evan Yang used the same method to locate him not far behind.
So Evan Yang pretended to search the area, gradually moving closer to the man's new location. The man thought Evan was either searching for him or being driven back by the willow attacks, not realizing Evan had already detected him.
Just as the man was feeling smug, Evan Yang suddenly spun around, flashed a strange smile, and punched. The space shattered like a mirror—crack! The man and his hound tumbled out right in front of Evan Yang.
At that moment, the man's right shoulder was bleeding—Evan's punch had hit him. The hound was clearly agitated, ready to tear Evan apart to protect its master.
"How did you find me?" The man, now wounded, realized Evan Yang was both powerful and cunning, and asked in shock.
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"That's my own method. Well? Want to keep going?" After Evan's successful attack, the willows clearly stopped moving.
"I've never been tricked like this before—you're the first, kid. I won't let you off. This willow forest is under my control; I can make it do whatever I want, even change the terrain. You'll be trapped here for life, always on guard for my sneak attacks." The man glared at Evan Yang in anger, then vanished again.
After the man and his hound disappeared, Evan Yang didn't feel disappointed. Instead, he smiled and said, "Thanks for showing me the way."
Just now, while the man was talking, Evan Yang had already left a trace of his own aura and a Phantom Spirit Bird on him—to prevent him from escaping. Now, it turned out to be useful.
So Evan Yang followed his own aura and the Phantom Spirit Bird toward the spot where the man had disappeared.
The man was injured and would definitely need to heal. Evan Yang could find his healing spot, while the man had no idea Evan had played tricks on him during his hasty escape.
"Damn brat, I won't let you off. I'll trap you here for a few years, then teach you a lesson once I've recovered," the man snorted.
"Woof woof." The hound beside him seemed to be worried about its master.
The man looked at his hound and said, "Basa, don't worry—soon, you'll get to eat his flesh and drink his blood."
"Woof woof." The hound seemed excited, jumping around and barking.
He stroked his hound, then closed his eyes to rest.
Meanwhile, Evan Yang followed the trail and found a spot with no willows—a mountain surrounded by chaotic stones, where the man and his hound were hiding among the rocks.
Following the aura, Evan Yang quickly located the man and his hound.
He saw the man with his eyes closed, the hound waiting beside him.
As Evan Yang approached, the alert hound instantly opened its eyes, sensing something and growling angrily.
Hearing the hound, the man immediately opened his eyes and frowned, "You mean he's here?"
The hound barked a few times.
"How did this kid find his way here so fast? Looks like I need to move again," the man muttered, thinking Evan Yang was just wandering by chance.
By this point, Evan Yang had already arrived. He looked at the man and his hound and said, "Your dog is pretty sharp."
"You! How did you know I was here?" the man exclaimed in shock.
"You don't need to know that. Just know that I'm here for you," Evan Yang replied.
"Hmph, here for me? You think you can take advantage of my injury and attack? Dream on. Even wounded, I can still deal with you. Just wait." The man snorted, then he and the hound disappeared. The chaotic stones around them suddenly moved, forming a giant formation that trapped Evan Yang inside.
"This is the Stone Formation. Even Immortal Sovereigns or Demon Sovereigns can't escape. It's better than being trapped in the willow forest, but here, your strength will slowly weaken. The longer you stay, the weaker you'll get—until you can't even stand. Then my divine hound will deal with you." The man laughed wildly.
Evan Yang could sense the man's location, but he was outside the formation. To attack him, Evan would first have to break the formation. But this Stone Formation was strange—Evan studied it for a while and couldn't figure it out.
The only thing he noticed was that whenever he broke a stone, another one would rise to take its place. It was as if there were a fixed number of stones—if one was destroyed, another would regenerate, endlessly.
"Your Stone Formation is pretty impressive. I wonder where you learned it," Evan Yang sighed.
"I know plenty. Otherwise, how could I be the master here, controlling Immortal Sovereigns and Demon Sovereigns like you?" the man sneered.
"So all those Immortal Sovereigns and Demon Sovereigns you trapped here never got out?" Evan Yang asked suspiciously.