Empress Myra has fused with that monstrous scorpion fiend and now possesses God-tier strength. Her speed is clearly faster than before, but Yang Han has also made significant progress. The empress tries to strike Yang Han with her venomous tail, but he keeps dodging her attacks.
When the Great General and his men arrive, they witness Yang Han and Empress Myra locked in fierce combat. Not far away, a young man watches Yang Han's every move. "This kid isn't bad—he can withstand a God's attacks for this long."
Seeing that Yang Han is as slippery as a loach, Empress Myra shouts, then unfolds a small world around them, enveloping Yang Han within it. This is the kind of personal domain only Gods can create, while Great Gods can construct completed worlds.
Normally, a God's small world is used in battle to trap opponents—it's essentially a kind of barrier.
Noticing the shifting scenery around him, Yang Han laughs, "You really think your small world can trap me?"
"At the very least, I can slow you down. That way, I can deal with you properly." Empress Myra flashes inside her small world, watching Yang Han.
Yang Han smiles, "Careful, your small world might get broken too."
"You really think you're so impressive? In my world, every move you make is crystal clear to me." Empress Myra sneers.
Yang Han knows that in a small world, the entire space is connected to Empress Myra—of course, she can observe his every move closely.
"Trying to dodge? No chance." Empress Myra's tail instantly lengthens, aiming straight for Yang Han. As Yang Han dodges to a new position, her tail quickly locks onto him and appears right in front of his eyes.
Yang Han immediately pulls out the Limitless Spear and jams it against her tail.
"Trying to compete with me in brute strength? You're way out of your league." Seeing the Limitless Spear blocking her tail, Empress Myra snorts coldly.
"Is that so? Then I'd like to test myself against you, Empress Myra, now that you've stepped into the God realm." Yang Han smiles. At first, the empress thinks Yang Han is overestimating himself, but after a prolonged stalemate, she realizes she can't overpower him.
Frustrated, Empress Myra suddenly makes a fine needle appear at the tip of her tail. The needle instantly transforms and pierces Yang Han's hand gripping the Limitless Spear, injecting a stream of liquid into him.
"Ha! You're done for now. My poison's in you—without my antidote, let's see how long you last." Empress Myra laughs, pleased with herself.
Yang Han had been focused on resisting her power, not expecting her tail to have this trick. But he quickly calms down—at least that venom can't harm him, since his Heaven-Cold Seed has already neutralized it.
Thinking Yang Han is poisoned, Empress Myra keeps mocking him. But as the expected time passes and Yang Han remains unaffected, she mutters to herself, "Could it be that his body is special and needs more time?"
Seeing Empress Myra's laughter fade, Yang Han grins, "What's wrong? Not going to keep laughing?"
"How are you still fine?" Empress Myra says in disbelief.
"What, do you wish I wasn't?" Yang Han smiles.
"My poison isn't ordinary. Even if you were a God, it would leave you powerless for at least a quarter of an hour. You're not even a God—just an Immortal Sovereign—so your body should've collapsed by now." Empress Myra frowns.
"Don't overestimate your poison. Honestly, I doubt you can do anything to me today. If I could, I'd destroy you, but I'm not confident enough yet." Yang Han smiles. In truth, he's wary of that young man—if he joins in, things could get tricky. That's why Yang Han isn't going all out yet; he just wants to figure some things out first.
"You—damn it! I refuse to believe I can't handle you." Empress Myra gets angry. Since her poison has no effect, she unleashes a massive dose: suddenly, she grows more than ten tails, which instantly surround Yang Han.
Yang Han laughs, "You really think I'm dumb enough to let you sting me again? You're dreaming." He then wraps himself in Sacred Flame, protecting his whole body.
The Sacred Flame shields Yang Han, and Empress Myra's tails don't dare approach. She's furious. "You—"
"Empress Myra, I want to know—who are you really, and how do you know about the Fire Phoenix?" Yang Han asks.
"Want to know? Dream on—unless you kill me. But that's impossible, so you'll never catch me." Empress Myra sneers.
"If that's how it is, then we'll just keep fighting. You haven't beaten me, and right now I don't want to go all out against you." Yang Han says.
"Hmph! I'll find a way to restrain you eventually. If you have guts, don't run!" Empress Myra snorts.
"Here's my proposal: I'm waiting for the Bloodfiend Ground to open. If you haven't defeated me by then, before we enter, you'll tell me your origins. Fair, right? Otherwise, I'll leave whenever I want, and you'll have to hunt me down." Yang Han says.
Seeing Yang Han threaten her, Empress Myra says, "Fine, we'll do it your way. But you better not try anything—if you run..."
"I always keep my word. To make sure neither of us breaks our promise, let's swear on our souls," Yang Han says with a smile.
Naturally, Empress Myra doesn't want Yang Han to leave—otherwise, where would she find him again? So she swears as well. Afterward, Yang Han laughs, "You're welcome to come find me."
"Just you wait." Empress Myra snorts, withdraws her world, then turns to the Great General and his men: "Let's go."
The Great General is confused—how did the fight just stop? The young man is also curious. Meanwhile, Yang Han returns to his room and lets Lynn Lin and the others out of the Strange Spiral Shell.
"Why are we still here? Where's Empress Myra?" Lynn Lin asks curiously.
"She's out of the way for now. But soon you'll need to head back into the Strange Spiral Shell—her people are still in the city and could pose a threat anytime," Yang Han says.
"She's still in the city? What's going on?" Ember Yang asks, curious.
Yang Han explains his agreement with Empress Myra. When they finish listening, the three are shocked—aren't they just waiting for her to find new ways to torment him?
But after Evan Yang explained his plan, everyone agreed it wasn't a bad idea, though it still felt risky. Since Evan had already committed, there was no point in backing out. They could only return to the Strange Spiral Shell.
Evan continued monitoring Empress Myra’s movements and saw her lead her people to Prince Leng. Whatever they discussed was hidden behind a barrier and couldn’t be overheard.
Inside the barrier, Empress Myra looked frustrated. No matter what she tried, she couldn’t subdue Evan Yang. Prince Leng asked curiously, “Why did you let him go, Your Majesty?”
“It wasn’t my choice to let him go. His strength is bizarre, and he’s immune to my poison. I can’t think of any way to restrain him right now, so I let him go. But he agreed not to leave this place and will accept my challenge at any time,” Empress Myra replied.
Prince Leng snorted, “He’s pretty gutsy, agreeing to face your challenge whenever. Still, he must be strong to withstand your attacks, but it’s a bit foolish not to run.”
Empress Myra snapped, “What do you know? He’s only staying to make a wager with me.”
“A wager? What are you betting on?” Prince Leng asked, skeptical.
Empress Myra explained the bet. After hearing it, Prince Leng chuckled, “That’s actually pretty interesting. Now I want to know your origins, too.”
“That’s none of your business. Just help me figure out how to deal with him,” Empress Myra said impatiently.
Prince Leng grinned, “Then it comes down to artifacts. If there’s a treasure that can injure him, it’ll be easy.”
Empress Myra said, “I’ve thought about that, but my high-grade artifacts aren’t with me right now.”
“Not with you? You don’t carry your treasures?” Prince Leng frowned.
“My artifacts have their own uses. You don’t need to worry about that. What about you? Do you have anything that can restrain him? Lend it to me,” Empress Myra demanded.
Prince Leng laughed, “My artifacts are pretty ordinary. They won’t help you, and might even cause trouble. Better not.”
Empress Myra grumbled, “This is a headache. Oh right, your Desert Tribes have Holy Scorpions. Lend me some. Don’t tell me that’s impossible, too?”
Prince Leng cursed inwardly—she knew about that. But he quickly calmed down. “We do have Holy Scorpions, but I’m not sure they’ll work against him.”
“Don’t try to fool me. I know better,” Empress Myra said. She was an expert at controlling insects, and even though her body wasn’t her original one, she still had her memories. She knew the Desert Tribes’ Holy Scorpions were terrifying—even Gods feared them. That’s why she brought it up.
Prince Leng reluctantly took out a small box. “There are ten Holy Scorpions here. Hope they help you, Your Majesty.”
“That’s more like it. Thanks. Once I take him down, I’ll thank you properly,” Empress Myra smiled.
“Just so you know, Holy Scorpions need a few days to get used to a new master. Otherwise, they won’t obey,” Prince Leng reminded.
“Oh? That’s how it works? Fine, I’ll get familiar with them first. You guys do your thing,” Empress Myra said, then retreated into her own small world, leaving Prince Leng, the Meyor Great General, and the others exchanging glances.
“Ten Holy Scorpions... who knows how many years it takes to raise them. Hope I can use them to capture Evan Yang,” Empress Myra muttered. She knew raising Holy Scorpions was extremely difficult.
These Holy Scorpions were the nemesis of many insects. Back when Empress Myra ruled Meyor, she always wanted the Desert Tribes’ help to learn how to cultivate Holy Scorpions. That’s why she formed their alliance.
Empress Myra set the box down and began to familiarize herself with the Holy Scorpions, slowly refining them.
Evan Yang had no idea Empress Myra had gotten those strange insects from Prince Leng. Prince Leng went back to his own business—same as before, harvesting blood qi and collecting it.
“What is he planning with all this?” Evan Yang wondered. He was curious about Prince Leng’s true intentions, and if he got the chance, he’d definitely interrogate him.
Evan had expected Empress Myra to cause trouble right away, but three days passed without incident. On the fourth morning, while he was cultivating in his room, he detected something off inside.