Terry Jiang shot Evan Lin a sideways glance—this kid wasn’t just talentless, he was a real idiot. Death was staring him in the face and he still had the nerve to ask questions. “The method’s simple: you don’t have to go to the mines. Dead men don’t dig crystals, you know? I bet your storage ring is stuffed with treasures—otherwise, you wouldn’t be so desperate to get moving. Am I right, kid?”
Evan Lin put on a look of shock and blurted, "You want to kill me here? Rob my storage ring?"
"Guess you’re not as dumb as you look—you finally get what this young master means. So, are you handing it over, or do I have to get my hands dirty? If I do, you’re dead meat." Terry Jiang sneered, acting like Evan was already in the palm of his hand.
"If I give you my storage ring, you’ll let me go?" Evan Lin asked right away, still putting on a scared and anxious face.
"You sure talk a lot of crap. Trying to stall for time, huh? But look around—there’s not a soul here. Quit your tricks." Terry Jiang snorted.
"Fine, I’ll give it to you. Just don’t kill me, alright? I finally made it to the Immortal Realm—dying now would be a real tragedy." Evan Lin said, forcing a fake smile, then pulled a high-grade Immortal Stone out of his storage ring.
"This stone’s pretty nice. Why don’t I just give you this one? Doesn’t do me much good anyway."
Terry Jiang’s eyes nearly popped out when he saw the high-grade Immortal Stone in Evan’s hand. He’d never expected to see one up close. Delighted, he barked, "Where’d you get this stone? Spill it, or I’ll make you wish you were dead!"
"Oh, that stone? Picked it up back in the lower realm. I’ve got plenty—nothing rare. Not good enough? Let me get you something better." Evan Lin said, then pulled out a supreme-grade Immortal Stone gleaming with purple light.
That was when Terry Jiang totally lost his cool. He could practically see Evan Lin’s storage ring overflowing with Immortal Stones. Laughing to himself, he thought, "I really hit the jackpot. Never figured this kid was a walking gold mine. Looks like my lucky days are here."
"Hand over your storage ring. This is your last chance—don’t push your luck." Terry Jiang snapped.
"Oh, too bad—I can’t give you my storage ring. Giving loot to a dead man’s just a waste, don’t you think?" Evan Lin said with a cold smile.
Terry Jiang didn’t get it at first, but then it clicked. "You dare mess with this young master? You’re dead today, no two ways about it!" He lunged for Evan, sure that a mere rookie Immortal was no threat at all.
Evan Lin’s face twisted in pure contempt. "Don’t overestimate yourself!" he spat, instantly dropping his self-imposed suppression. His power exploded—if a real expert were watching, they’d be floored to see Evan’s cultivation rocket straight to the peak of the Earth Immortal Realm, just a hair away from Heavenly Immortal.
Evan Lin threw out a punch, meeting Terry Jiang’s palm head-on. There was a crisp crack of shattering bone, and Terry howled like a pig getting slaughtered.
The blow sent Terry Jiang flying for hundreds of meters before he finally crashed to a stop. His face went deathly pale as he stared at Evan in horror, unable to fathom how this punk’s strength had shot up to the Earth Immortal Realm.
Evan Lin flashed right up to him and grinned, "Weren’t you after my storage ring? What’s wrong, not feeling gutsy now? Did this young master’s power scare you off?"
"Who the hell are you? How can a fresh ascendee have this kind of strength?" Terry Jiang stammered, clearly sensing Evan was stronger than him.
"You’re not even qualified to know who I am. All you need to know is, you die today. You think I’d let you walk after learning my identity? You want my Immortal Stones? You think you’re worthy?" Evan Lin retorted, Frostbane Sword flashing into his hand.
He vanished forward, unleashing Star-Cleave. With nobody around, he could finish this clown and leave—no point grilling him for Immortal Realm info anymore.
Star-Cleave ripped space apart, the shockwaves warping everything around them. Terry Jiang wasn’t much weaker than Evan Lin, but his hand was busted from that last hit, and now Evan’s ambush left him totally off guard. All he could do was scramble to defend himself.
Evan’s sword-qi tore through Terry’s guard, slamming into him and carving several deep, bone-baring wounds straight through his body.
"How’s that taste? Regretting your life choices yet? Not that you’ll get the chance." Evan Lin sneered, swinging again. He hated scum like Terry Jiang—people like that deserved to die.
Terry Jiang shrieked, "You can’t kill me! If you do, my big brother will know and you’ll have the whole world hunting you down. Just let me go—I swear I won’t say a word!"
"Swear? You think I’m dumb enough to buy that? Thanks for the tip—after I finish you, I’ll just go back and slice up your big bro too. That way, nobody’ll ever know." Evan Lin grinned coldly.
Terry Jiang never dreamed his own words would doom his brother. Too late to regret it now. He yanked out something that looked like a gourd from his storage ring and yelled, "You really think you can kill me? Time for you to see what a real Immortal artifact can do!"
"Immortal artifact? What’s that? This young master’s never even seen one before." Evan Lin chuckled, hearing the word for only the second time.
The first time was back in the Death-Tower Grounds, when he met Serena Frost and heard her Tri-Mystic Tower was her life-bound Immortal artifact. Hearing it again now, he was genuinely curious—these things clearly packed real power.
He laughed, "Showing off with a busted gourd? If that’s really your artifact, let this young master see what it can do."
Evan was already ready—if the gourd’s power was serious, he’d have Tom Chu (the Illusion Sprite) shield him for a second. With Tom’s defense, that’d be plenty of time to finish Terry off.
"Today you’ll see what my artifact can really do!" Terry Jiang bellowed, sending the black gourd shooting into the air and flashing rapid hand seals. The gourd burst with white light, and a powerful suction force tore toward Evan—