Though Grandpa Sleepy kept his eyes closed, he chuckled, "You'd best head back now."
"You—" Seeing Grandpa Sleepy remain silent, Yvonne Darkmoon grew furious.
"Come on, I'll walk you out." Grandpa Sleepy smiled, then opened his eyes and escorted Yvonne Darkmoon away.
When they reached the entrance of the black castle, Grandpa Sleepy said to Yvonne, "Alright, head home now."
"I'm not playing with you anymore!" Yvonne Darkmoon said angrily, then stormed off. Watching her leave, Grandpa Sleepy smiled, then also left the black castle and went to a cave. Inside, he said, "You can show yourself now, can't you?"
"Senior." Evan Yang appeared, looking at Grandpa Sleepy with a smile.
"Truly bizarre. If not for my senses, no one would notice you." Grandpa Sleepy praised.
"You're too kind, Senior." Evan Yang replied.
"Alright, enough about that. Did you memorize what I just transmitted to you?" Grandpa Sleepy smiled.
"Yes, I've memorized it." Evan Yang answered.
“That’s right. From now on, it’s up to you. This Sleep Cultivation Art—even while you’re sleeping, you can unleash strength equal to or even greater than your waking state, and you’ll be able to sense all the changes in your surroundings. Sometimes it’s incredibly useful, especially for stealth and awareness. That’s exactly how I detected you.” Grandpa Sleepy explained, his tone casual but carrying an authoritative weight.
“I see. Does this Sleep Cultivation Art also let you cultivate faster?” Evan Yang asked, his eyes lighting up with curiosity.
“Yes, you’re cultivating all the time, so your progress is much faster than ordinary methods.” Grandpa Sleepy replied with a smile.
“Thank you for teaching me, Senior.” Evan Yang said gratefully, bowing with respect.
“No need to thank me. Consider it a reward for helping Yvonne Darkmoon. As for whether you want to stay and play, that’s your own decision.” Grandpa Sleepy said with a hearty laugh.
Curious, Evan Yang asked, “What do you mean by ‘play,’ Senior?”
“Well, I’ll figure that out next time. I still need to keep an eye on the castle, so I’ll head back for now. We can chat again when there’s time. Also, be sure to study the cultivation art I gave you—it won’t do you any harm.” Grandpa Sleepy said with a smile, then slipped away.
Evan Yang stayed in the cave, pondering Grandpa Sleepy’s cultivation art. He found the technique truly strange and mysterious.
To better understand it, Evan Yang began practicing the cultivation art.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he started, Evan Yang collapsed to the ground, feeling as if he had fallen asleep.
When Evan Yang woke up, half a day had already passed, and he felt completely refreshed.
"I still can’t tell just how powerful this technique is, but the effects are pretty impressive," Evan muttered. He got up and decided to check out the situation outside.
The first thing he did was contact Liam Willow. When Liam heard Evan was back, he was overjoyed and quickly found him. "You finally decided to show up! Where have you been these past few days?" Liam laughed.
"I’ve been cultivating these past few days. I didn’t realize so much time had passed," Evan Yang sighed.
"Too bad, you missed a lot of excitement these days," Liam Willow grinned.
"You mean Lord Damien Darkmoon getting detained?" Evan asked.
"You know about that? That’s only part of it—lots of people died, too," Liam Willow replied.
"A lot of people died? What happened?" Evan Yang asked, puzzled.
"After a few days of matches, people started dying one after another, and the numbers kept going up. Some contestants were way too ruthless. In the end, Lord Damien explained that the killer was a Devil Realm infiltrator, but most people didn’t believe him, so they forced him to step down," Liam Willow explained.
"That many people died? The Devil Realm?" Evan Yang asked, suspicious.
"Surprising, right? Watching the contestants die one after another, I’m convinced something’s wrong. There’s no way this many people should die compared to past years," Liam Willow said.
"So you think Lord Damien Darkmoon is innocent, and there really are Devil Realm infiltrators among the contestants?" Evan asked.
"Yeah, that’s what us loose cultivators think. But the ones blinded by hatred and glory still blame the Eighth Great Power for meddling," Liam Willow replied.
"Seems like things are even worse than I thought," Evan Yang muttered.
Liam Willow nodded. "Exactly. But now that Lord Damien’s been taken into custody, who knows what will happen next."
"I need to figure out what’s really going on. By the way, who first accused Lord Damien Darkmoon of detaining and killing people?" Evan asked.
"I heard it was Drake Long, the sect master of Immortal Peak Sect," Liam Willow replied.
"Got it. I’ll get in touch if I need anything," Evan Yang said.
Liam Willow asked curiously, "Where are you off to now?"
"I’m going to find out what’s really happening," Evan Yang replied.
"Oh," Liam Willow replied.
"Be careful," Evan Yang said.
"Mm," Liam Willow answered.
Evan Yang patted Liam Willow on the shoulder, then slipped away.
At the Immortal Peak Sect’s station, Drake Long was deep in discussion with the Devil Realm Emissary.
"So, Damien Darkmoon has been detained?" the Devil Realm Emissary asked with a smile.
"Yes, the Eighth Great Power took him in to calm everyone down," Drake Long replied.
"Understood. But there’s another person you need to watch out for," said the Devil Realm Emissary.
"Who is it?" Drake Long asked, eager to know.
"An Elder named Lewis Lu. He and Damien Darkmoon worked together to detain a Skybow Sect disciple, so they’re likely after the same thing—and both suspect Devil Realm infiltration," the Devil Realm Emissary explained.
Drake Long was shocked. He knew Elder Lewis Lu’s status in the Immortal Realm Alliance and worried if they intervened, their fifteen devil-branded contestants would be exposed.
"What’s wrong?" the Devil Realm Emissary asked, curious.
"He’s an elder of the Immortal Realm Alliance, and very powerful. If he gets involved, I’m afraid our fifteen people will be exposed—and then I’ll be implicated too," Drake Long said, growing anxious.
"Don’t worry. Outsiders can’t tell who those fifteen are, and the only Skybow disciple who could see through them has already been killed. No one will target you. In fact, you should keep guiding the crowd to spread rumors about Damien Darkmoon. The more chaotic things get, the better it is for you," the Devil Realm Emissary reassured.
"Got it. I’ll get to work," Drake Long replied.
"Go ahead," said the Devil Realm Emissary.
After Drake Long left, the Devil Realm Emissary stood alone, laughing. "Damien Darkmoon of the Eighth Great Power, you’re quite something. Now everything will unfold just as I want."
Soon, loud laughter echoed from the Devil Realm Emissary.
After leaving the room, Drake Long paced the hall, thinking about how to release the news.
If he kept searching for Skybow Sect members, the Eighth Great Power would inevitably suspect him—after all, he was the one who started the trouble. If they really investigated, they'd begin with him.
Thinking this through, Drake Long decided not to foolishly spread anything about Skybow Sect.
After some thought, he summoned an Immortal Lord, a representative of Immortal Peak Sect's Immortal Lord group.
"Sect Master Drake, what can I do for you?" the man asked, curious.
"Since no one else is here, I can speak freely," Drake Long said.
"Go ahead, Sect Master," the man replied, intrigued by Drake’s secrecy.
"Emperor Damien Darkmoon has been detained, which benefits us for now. But in the long run, we need to stay low-profile. Otherwise, we’ll be the target. Besides, since I exposed him, the Eighth Great Power will definitely send people to monitor me. So, I can’t go spread rumors myself—this task falls to you. You know your status, you’re also a Devil Realm Emissary puppet," Drake Long explained.
The man hesitated, reluctant to be labeled a Devil Realm Emissary puppet, but had no choice and accepted Drake Long’s arrangement.
"Just tell me what you need, Sect Master. I’ll do my best," he said.
"I assume you know disciples from other sects, right?" Drake Long asked.
"I know quite a few, but they’re all in different teams," the man replied, not sure why Drake was asking.
"That’s even better. Listen closely to every word I say," Drake Long instructed.
"Go ahead, Sect Master," the man said, suspicious of Drake’s intent.
"Try to guide your friends—tell them the Eighth Great Power is targeting me and even sending people to monitor me. Spread rumors that they aren’t dealing with Damien Darkmoon properly. Make up the details as needed, but don’t implicate yourself. Use your friends to gradually spread the narrative. That’s all," Drake Long instructed.
The man was shocked by the scheme, realizing it would pressure the Eighth Great Power to punish Damien and convince everyone the contest was tainted—so even if disaster struck, blame wouldn’t fall on Immortal Peak Sect’s fifteen devil-marked contestants.
"Do you understand?" Drake Long asked, seeing the man stunned.
"Yes, I understand," the man replied, nodding.
"Good, go ahead," Drake Long said.
The man left nervously after receiving the order. Drake Long sat there muttering to himself, but Evan Yang, hidden in the shadows, was stunned—especially when he heard talk of Devil Realm Emissaries and puppets.
"Puppets? Devil Realm Emissaries? I need to get this news out," Evan Yang thought, then quietly withdrew.
At the Darkmoon estate, Yvonne Darkmoon paced gloomily, her mood worsening as she recalled the Dragon General’s actions against her father and the mysterious person who intervened to help. Even Grandpa Sleepy refused to reveal the benefactor’s identity.
"Could Elder Lewis Lu have sent them? But that doesn’t make sense—if he did, it should’ve been someone really powerful," Yvonne Darkmoon wondered aloud.
Just then, something struck her on the head. Furious, she shouted, "Who’s there?" She looked around, but the room was empty. Feeling as if she’d encountered something supernatural, she accidentally stepped on the object—a folded slip of paper.
When Yvonne Darkmoon opened the note and read its contents, her expression changed from shock to delight. "My father can be saved!" she exclaimed.