"Come with me," the man said to Evan Yang, then led him out of the cave, where Lady Enchantress and Sara Sang were already waiting.
Seeing Evan Yang come out, Lady Enchantress realized the matter was settled and smiled. "Thank you, senior brother."
"It's what he should do. Now, I want him to help me with something," the man said.
"Senior brother, what do you need him to do?" Lady Enchantress asked curiously, wondering what the man wanted from Evan Yang.
The man didn't answer directly, but smiled and said, "Come with me and you'll find out." With that, he led Evan Yang, Sara Sang, and Lady Enchantress to a cliff edge, where only a single withered red tree stood.
Seeing the tree, Evan Yang immediately sensed that it was extraordinary.
"Junior sister, do you know why I choose to live here?" the man asked.
"Of course. You want to wait for the Scarlet Spirit Tree to blossom and bear fruit," Lady Enchantress replied.
"That's right. I've been here for many years, but the Scarlet Spirit Tree hasn't shown any sign of blooming. So I want him to help," the man said.
"You want him to catalyze it?" Lady Enchantress asked in surprise.
The man nodded, "That's right, that's exactly what I mean."
Evan Yang looked at the red tree and asked, "What exactly is this Scarlet Spirit Tree?"
"It's a magical tree. It can blossom and bear fruit, and the fruit has strong medicinal properties. I need it for something," the man explained.
Evan Yang didn’t know what the Scarlet Spirit Tree was, so he looked at the tree and asked, "Should I start now?"
"You can start whenever you like," the man replied.
Evan Yang nodded, placed his hand on the tree, and released Heaven-Cold qi. He expected a reaction, but after a long while nothing happened. He frowned and tried a few more times, finally realizing that his Heaven-Cold qi was too weak. To mature the tree would require a tremendous amount of energy.
The man, thinking Evan Yang might not be able to do it, felt disappointed but still said, "If it doesn't work, just forget it."
Lady Enchantress knew the man had high hopes for Evan Yang. Seeing him struggle, the man was clearly disappointed, and Sara Sang, knowing her master's temper, didn't dare make a sound.
"Senior, it's not that I can't do it. I just need some time," Evan Yang said.
"Oh? You have a way?" the man asked curiously.
"Alright, when it's ready, I'll let you know," Evan Yang said. "Okay, we'll leave for now," the man replied, delighted to hear Evan had a solution.
Lady Enchantress was happy for her senior brother, knowing he desperately needed this medicinal material.
The man instructed Sara Sang to stay here, telling her to assist Evan Yang with anything he needed.
Sara Sang was extremely frustrated at being told to serve Evan Yang, but Evan didn't object and just stayed there working to restore the Scarlet Spirit Tree. As for Sara, she could only pace around helplessly. "Senior brother, if Evan Yang really restores the Scarlet Spirit Tree, what will you do next?" Lady Enchantress asked.
"I'll find her and feed her the fruit, so she can awaken," the man said excitedly.
"Senior brother, you've already offended so many people for her. Are you really going to continue?" Lady Enchantress asked.
The man gave a bitter smile. "So what? Even if I offend the whole world, I'll still go on."
"Senior brother, I support you. That's how it should be—love who you love, no matter what others think," Lady Enchantress said with a smile.
"Thank you. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have met someone as talented as Evan Yang," the man said.
Lady Enchantress smiled, "It was just a lucky accident. I only came here hoping you'd help him."
"I'm curious, why are you so interested in an Immortal Lord? Don't tell me you..." the man said with a smile.
"Senior brother, what are you saying? I didn't mean that at all. Don't overthink it. I just find him interesting, so I helped him," Lady Enchantress replied with a smile.
"Oh, you. So many Demon Lords have fallen for you, yet you choose an Immortal Lord," the man sighed.
"Senior brother, I already said that's not what I meant. If you keep saying that, I'll be upset and take Evan Yang away right now," Lady Enchantress said, feeling a bit exasperated.
"Alright, alright, I was just joking," the man said.
Lady Enchantress said, "Don't joke about that again. Luckily no one heard, or my reputation would be ruined."
"You care about your reputation?" the man laughed.
"Of course," Lady Enchantress replied.
The man was about to continue teasing her when he received some news. After reading it, he smiled and said, "Things are about to get lively."
"What happened?" Lady Enchantress asked, curious about the man's expression.
"You should be getting the news soon too," the man replied.
Lady Enchantress curiously took out her messaging stone. After a moment, she did receive the news. She read it and said, "Demon Mountain has gone mad?"
"They're not crazy. That kid is too much of a threat to them, so they won't let him go. Now they're searching everywhere, and they've even asked us wandering Demon Lords to help," the man explained.
"What about you, senior brother?" Lady Enchantress asked curiously.
"Are you silly? Do you think I'd go out? If I wanted, I'd just hand Evan Yang over—much simpler," the man said.
Lady Enchantress laughed, "That's true. Besides, I'm not interested in Demon Mountain's methods. Let them do what they want. As for the great Demon-Immortal Realm war, it has nothing to do with me."
"The Demon-Immortal Realm war kills so many every time. I don't know what Demon Mountain's people are after, why they keep attacking the Immortal Realm," the man sighed helplessly.
"Who knows? Maybe that Overwhelming Demon Lord is just too ambitious," Lady Enchantress said.
"Whatever. Let them do what they want; I'll just keep doing my own thing. We're on different paths," the man said.
Lady Enchantress nodded. And so, several years passed like this. One day, Evan Yang opened his eyes and looked at the results of his years of effort, feeling a bit helpless. But he knew that as long as he kept at it for a few more decades, he could finish the task.
"You're finally awake. Is this all you can do? After so many years, that's all the progress you've made? I wasted all these years keeping you company. If there's nothing else, I'm leaving. Call me if you need anything," Sara Sang said when she saw Evan Yang wake up.
"Don't rush. Just wait a little longer," Evan Yang said with a smile.
"You've said that so many times. Please, can you come up with a new excuse?" Sara Sang complained.
"Oh? Then forget it. If it works, I won't tell you. Just leave," Evan Yang said.
Sara Sang grumbled, "You're cheating!"
"Do you have a better way?" Evan Yang smiled. "You! So annoying, you rascal!" Sara Sang fumed, not expecting him to joke about this.
Evan Yang chuckled and ignored her, continuing his work to catalyze the tree. Another few years passed like this, with Sara Sang cursing him daily, but Evan refused to let her leave, driving her nearly mad.
Until one day, the Scarlet Spirit Tree blossomed with flowers of all colors. Seeing the flowers, Sara Sang exclaimed, "Wow, it really bloomed!"
"Aren't you going to tell your master the good news?" Evan Yang said with a smile.
Sara Sang glared at him, "Like I need you to say that." Then she hurried to report the news to her master. After a while, the man and Lady Enchantress appeared. Seeing the colorful flowers, they were overjoyed. "Wonderful, it finally bloomed!" the man said excitedly.
Evan Yang hadn't expected the tree to be so important to the man, or to see him so excited.
"It may take some time for the fruit to form. I'll try again," Evan Yang said.
"Alright. Thank you. If you need anything, just ask Sara Sang," the man said with a smile.
Evan Yang nodded. Then he glanced at Sara Sang, whose face was about to change color with frustration. She cursed inwardly, "This is revenge, pure revenge. Damn it, how many more years will it take for the fruit to form?"
Before leaving, Lady Enchantress showed Evan Yang a message, then left with the man.
After reading the message, Evan Yang smiled, "The people from Demon Mountain really are getting anxious."
"Anxious about what?" Sara Sang asked curiously.
"You don't need to know. Just stay here quietly," Evan Yang said.
"You! So annoying," Sara Sang snorted.
Evan Yang ignored her and continued catalyzing the tree. Decades passed like this, and Sara Sang was nearly driven mad. Until one day, the tree bore many fruits. Sara Sang excitedly called her master over.
When the man saw the fruits, he was so excited he picked one and wrapped it up, saying, "Thank you so much. If you ever need anything, just ask—even if it costs me my life, I'll give it to you."
Evan Yang hadn't expected the man to value the fruit even more than his own life.
Evan Yang was at a loss for words, but after regaining his composure, he smiled and said, "Senior, you flatter me."
"I won't keep you any longer. Junior sister, I'll leave him to you. I have something to do," the man said, still excited as he left with the fruit. Before Sara Sang could speak, the man was already gone.
"So, what now?" Evan Yang wondered, since the host had left and there was no reason for him to stay.
"My senior brother can't wait to use the fruit to save someone, so don't mind him," Lady Enchantress said with a smile.
Evan Yang smiled, "Senior, you exaggerate."
"It's fine. I'll escort you out. With your abilities, you can avoid Demon Mountain's pursuit," Lady Enchantress said with a smile.
"Alright," Evan Yang replied.
Seeing Evan Yang leave, Sara Sang was eager to leave as well, so she asked, "Aunt, can you take me out too?"
"No way. Last time you went out, it was chaos. If you go out again, your master will definitely scold you," Lady Enchantress said.
"Aunt, who knows when master will be back? Am I supposed to stay here alone forever? I'll go crazy," Sara Sang complained.
"No matter what, you should stay here. Your master might need you for something," Lady Enchantress said after thinking for a moment.
"Aunt, how can you be so stingy? Just take me out. Maybe I can help," Sara Sang pleaded.
"I'm not going out to fight. What help could you possibly give? I'd be lucky if you didn't cause trouble," Lady Enchantress said, shaking her head helplessly.