General Ross's Divine Spirit began releasing spiritual power—this is the sustaining force that keeps a Divine Spirit outside the body. Unexpectedly, Ross transferred this power to General Chiba, causing Chiba's speed to soar.
General Chiba hadn't expected Ross to give him this power; it's the most precious thing for any Divine Spirit. With it, they can survive for years, even decades, while restoring their physical bodies.
"Quick, head to the nearest city! Find reinforcements!" Ross said as he infused Chiba with that power.
Chiba's speed surged, gradually leaving Evan Yang far behind.
As for Evan Yang, he slowed to a stop. Once Chiba entered the city, Evan flickered and vanished into the void.
Chiba brought Ross's Divine Spirit to the nearest city. Seeing Evan Yang hadn't followed, he used teleportation arrays to take Ross back to Fiend Palace.
"Are we really doing this?" By now, Ross had gained nothing, lost his physical body, and even his last reserves of power were fading. Only vast energy resources could restore him, but seeing Chiba return to Fiend Palace and prepare to report the incident, Ross hesitated.
"Of course. You saw it yourself—we couldn't handle him at all. And now, unless you have a hundred years, there's no way you'll recover to your peak. By then, who knows where he'll be? So I'm reporting this. If need be, we can forget about his treasures." Chiba wouldn't have made it back without Ross's power, so his hatred for Evan Yang runs deep. He'd rather lose out on Evan's treasures than let him escape the Fiend Realm unscathed.
Ross hates Evan Yang even more than Chiba does, but Evan's treasures are too tempting. For now, he can only follow Chiba's lead.
Chiba and Ross found a man in red armor—their direct superior, General Northcliff, a Sixth-Rank General.
"What happened to you two?" General Northcliff frowned when he saw that only Ross's Divine Spirit remained.
Chiba and Ross recounted the events, but shifted all the blame onto Evan Yang, claiming he killed Fiend Realm people and then turned on them.
"Outrageous! What cultivation does this Human World brat have?" Northcliff demanded after hearing them out.
"Late Soul-Gathering Realm," Chiba replied.
"Just late Soul-Gathering? Are you sure?" Northcliff's anger shifted to curiosity.
Chiba and Ross then described how abnormal Evan Yang was. When Northcliff finished listening, he snorted, "So what if he has treasures? I want to see just how strong he really is."
With that, he ordered Chiba to lead the way, while Ross stayed behind to recuperate.
Evan Yang had no idea where Chiba had gone. He was now near the city he'd just arrived at, and saw that the entrance was surrounded by many people. If he wanted to leave, he'd have to dash through the crowd at full speed.
"If I go all out, I should be able to get away," Evan Yang thought, eyeing the crowd. But instead of leaving immediately, he turned and walked away.
Instead, he returned to the Nether Family and released the Nether Patriarch. "Alright, you're free now," he said.
The Nether Patriarch was overjoyed to see he was finally home, but when he realized his spiritual power was still sealed, he said awkwardly, "My spiritual power is still..."
"It's still sealed. Don't worry, it'll be lifted in a few years," Evan Yang replied.
"A few years? Why?" The Nether Patriarch was shocked.
"The Corpse-Refiner is too twisted. To keep you from going to him during this time, you'll have to wait a few years before the seal is lifted. And don't even think about getting him to kill me—if I die, your seal will never be undone." Evan Yang grinned. In truth, the last part was just to scare him; even if Evan died, the seal would automatically dissolve after a few years.
The Nether Patriarch was terrified. After experiencing one hundred fifty years of that kind of life, he never wanted to go through it again. Even if he thought about seeking out the Corpse-Refiner, he would wait until his seal was lifted first.
"I won't," the Nether Patriarch hurriedly promised.
"Glad to hear it. Go on being the patriarch for now," Evan Yang said with a smile, then flickered away.
"Patriarch? I just hope no one finds out my cultivation is sealed, or I'll be done for." Once Evan Yang left, the Nether Patriarch relaxed a bit, hurried to his secret chamber, and used seclusion as an excuse to wait out the next few years.
But things never go as planned. The very next day after moving into his chamber, a voice suddenly echoed in the Nether Patriarch's mind: "Come to me, or face the consequences."
"That voice? It can't be..." The Nether Patriarch was stunned. Even in this state, he never expected to hear that voice again. He could hardly believe it.
But without spiritual power, there was nothing he could do. He muttered to himself, "Senior, it's not that I don't want to go. Without spiritual power, I can't even fly."
"What's going on here?" The voice echoed again in the Nether Patriarch's mind.
After the Nether Patriarch explained everything, the other party snorted, "That brat, so he has tricks like this."
"Senior, I really can't get there right now. Just let me wait a few years—once my spiritual power returns, I'll come." The Nether Patriarch said, frustrated.
"A few years? That brat has already been here for five years. Who knows when he'll leave? No, you must find a way to get here or at least stop him from leaving, until you can move freely." The voice said impatiently.
"Senior, I really can't. I'm just like an ordinary person now—can't even fly out of the clan, let alone reach the nearest city." The Nether Patriarch complained.
"Useless fool. Wait here. I'll open a spatial array before you—there will only be a few breaths. You must step through before it disappears." The voice said after a pause.
The Nether Patriarch was frustrated. He didn't want to go, but the other party had such abilities. Soon, a void tunnel appeared before him.
"Get in, now."
The Nether Patriarch gritted his teeth and stepped through. The tunnel vanished moments later.
When the Nether Patriarch reappeared, he was already in the Corpse-Refiner's cave. Seeing the white powder everywhere, he pleaded, "Senior, I'm useless. Punish me if you must."
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"Punish you? Would that help catch him?" The Corpse-Refiner snorted. If he hadn't placed a mark on the Nether Patriarch, who knows when he'd have seen him again.
"Uh..." The Nether Patriarch hung his head in embarrassment.
"Where did he lock you up? Why couldn't I reach you?" The Corpse-Refiner had been frustrated since losing contact with the Nether Patriarch.
"It was some kind of treasure space of his. I was locked up for over one hundred fifty years—just released yesterday." The Nether Patriarch complained.
"One hundred fifty years? Impossible. You were only gone for about three years." The Corpse-Refiner was shocked when he heard Evan Yang had locked up the Nether Patriarch for over one hundred fifty years.
The Nether Patriarch was confused too. He was sure he'd spent over a hundred years inside.
The two discussed it carefully and concluded that Evan Yang's treasure space was extraordinary—time inside was dozens of times faster than outside.
"Good kid, no wonder he improves so fast. Turns out his treasure speeds up time by dozens of times. I never expected that." The Corpse-Refiner was extremely excited by this discovery, even more than seeing Evan Yang as living corpse material.
The Nether Patriarch never expected Evan Yang's treasure to be so powerful. Every time he saw Evan, there was a new change. He assumed Evan spent all his time inside that space, and he was tempted by the possibilities.
"This time, you must help me catch him," said the Corpse-Refiner, seeing the look in the Nether Patriarch's eyes.
"Senior, you can see for yourself—I have no spiritual power at all." The Nether Patriarch hesitated, especially remembering Evan Yang's warning that if Evan died, his seal would never be undone.
"Let me check." The Corpse-Refiner examined him but couldn't find the cause. "Even without spiritual power, I can give you a different kind of strength."
"What kind of strength?" the Nether Patriarch asked suspiciously.
"A living corpse," the Corpse-Refiner sneered.
"What? Senior, please let me go!" The Nether Patriarch's legs went weak and he begged for mercy.
"Relax. My technique is good—I won't destroy your soul, and I can raise your strength to late Divine Spirit Realm, a whole major realm higher. You'll be strong enough to take him on." The Corpse-Refiner chuckled.
"Senior, I really can't... please let me go." The Nether Patriarch was tempted by the power, but the idea of becoming a living corpse frightened him—he couldn't imagine the side effects.
Of course, the Corpse-Refiner wouldn't let him go. He knocked the powerless Nether Patriarch out, sneering, "I'm giving you power, and you still make excuses."
At that moment, the Nether Patriarch was unconscious, completely unaware of what the Corpse-Refiner was doing to him.
Evan Yang had no idea the Corpse-Refiner would summon the Nether Patriarch and turn him into a living corpse. Meanwhile, Evan himself led Derek to some mountain ranges.
"There's a mountain range here. I wonder if there are any Fiend Star Souls." Evan Yang muttered as he looked over the ore vein.
"There are a lot of people over there," Derek said.
"Yeah, I see them. Probably miners from some clan. It doesn't matter—just find a deserted spot and see if you can attract Fiend Star Souls. I may need to leave soon; those tailing us will show up quickly. I'll come back for you in a day." Evan Yang instructed Derek.
Derek nodded. Though Evan Yang was uneasy about Derek's first solo mission, he had no choice—he didn't want Derek to get caught up in his troubles.
So Evan Yang quickly left after marking the location, making it easier to return later.
Derek felt especially close to the miners, since they reminded him of his parents. But Evan Yang had told him not to greet them, to avoid trouble. So Derek just scanned the area with his divine sense, then went to the deepest part of the mountain, found a hidden spot, and dug a cave.
He then went inside and sealed the entrance.
"I wonder if there are any here," Derek muttered as he entered the cave.
Just then, something wrapped around him. At first he was startled, but then realized it was a Fiend Star Soul. "Scared me, but at least there's one here," he said.
With some experience now, Derek sat down and slowly absorbed the Fiend Star Soul.