"And who are you?" asked the Ninefold Palace cultivator.
The others were also curious about this man's identity—what gave him the right to command them to quiet down?
"I am Miles Fenn, Fifth Squad Captain of the Fenn Family," the man said, enunciating each word clearly.
The Ninefold Palace cultivators were shocked, and even the independent wanderers were startled—most of them knew this person. Evan Yang and the Fiend Realm natives, however, had no idea.
So Evan Yang listened curiously to the murmurs around him and finally learned the man's identity: he was ranked fifth among all Fenn Family squad captains. The Fenn Family holds the top position under Ninefold Palace, thanks in large part to these captains—each one is immensely powerful.
No one was surprised to see him here, since the Fenn Family's Tyrant Seal Art allows them to suppress their cultivation. At this moment, everyone saw only Miles Fenn in his suppressed form—even so, his strength was at least Spirit-God Great Perfection. His combat experience far surpassed everyone present; he was, in short, an old monster.
Such an old monster-level figure naturally spoke to the juniors below in a carefree, unrestrained manner.
"So that's how it is," Evan Yang thought to himself. He now locked his attention on Miles Fenn, who was clearly the strongest and most renowned figure here.
At that moment, everyone fell silent—except for the five Fiend Realm natives, who still refused to acknowledge Miles Fenn and kept their eyes on Evan Yang. The surrounding crowd, meanwhile, was clearly starting to retreat.
"So it's Senior Fenn—my apologies." The Ninefold Palace cultivator who had questioned him earlier quickly apologized, sweat breaking out on his face, clearly intimidated by Miles Fenn's reputation.
After all, everyone knew that Miles Fenn could easily destroy them outside, and even here, with his cultivation suppressed, no one dared resist him.
The Fenn Family cultivators all wore smiles, as if they had expected this outcome from the start.
"Kid, you're the one who stole the Yates clan's young miss and injured our Fenn Family people," Miles Fenn said, ignoring the earlier apology and locking his gaze on Evan Yang.
"Stole? You're the ones who tried to steal her," Evan Yang replied with a laugh.
Everyone stared at Evan Yang in shock—this kid was bold! He was only late Soul-Gathering, yet dared to speak like this to someone so high above.
Evan Yang paid no mind to the Fenn Family powerhouse—in this place, even Miles Fenn was capped at Spirit-God Realm, so Evan had a chance to resist.
"Our Third Young Master took a liking to her—that's her fortune," Miles Fenn replied, his expression unchanged.
"Fortune, huh? So let me ask you—does that mean whenever the Fenn Family fancies a woman, you just take her home?" Evan Yang sneered.
Evan Yang's attitude stunned everyone even more. The Fiend Realm natives, however, cared nothing for the Fenn Family's feud with Evan—they were determined to capture him. The young master wanted to learn the secret behind Evan's speed, and General Northcliff was furious with him.
But with this Fenn Family powerhouse here, it would be extremely difficult to snatch Evan Yang away from them.
"Enough talk. Tell me—do you want me to act, or will you come with me to the Fenn estate? The first choice is a dead end; the second, you might survive." Miles Fenn said, unfazed by Evan Yang's sarcasm.
"A dead end and a live one—well said," Evan Yang replied with a cold laugh.
The Fenn Family and Ninefold Palace cultivators stood still, making no move, and the independent wanderers were even less likely to act—they felt as if a monster had appeared here. The five Fiend Realm natives exchanged glances.
"Looks like you're choosing the dead end," Miles Fenn snorted when he saw Evan Yang's attitude.
"My fate is mine, not yours. And you five, plus the Fenn Family and Ninefold Palace—remember this: as long as Evan Yang lives, none of you will have a good day." Evan Yang laughed, then stepped back. With everyone watching, he turned and flew straight out over the lake.
"Trying to run? Not a chance!" Miles Fenn shouted, instantly flashing forward with speed faster than anyone here.
Evan Yang had barely taken a step before Miles Fenn caught up, slamming a heavy palm strike into his body.
A feeling like the world was overturning surged through Evan Yang's entire body—he grunted, barely managing not to spit blood, and, propelled by inertia, plunged straight into the lake.
"Hmph! Courting death!" Miles Fenn stood atop the lake, while everyone on the shore stared at him in shock.
Then Miles Fenn turned and said, "He's dead for sure. Everyone, disperse."
"What if he's not dead?" someone asked suspiciously.
Miles Fenn turned his gaze on the speaker and sneered, "Don't believe me? Go ahead and touch the lake water."
Those who knew what this lake was naturally kept their distance, but some doubters tried their luck. The moment they touched the water, their hands tingled, then went numb—and soon, everyone saw several people who had touched the lake lying motionless on the ground.
Everyone was shocked, including the Fiend Realm natives. They had originally planned to fish out Evan Yang's body, hoping to get their hands on his speed-boosting artifact.
Miles Fenn sneered, "You don't even know about the Dead Lake of Hundred-Change Valley? Ignorant fools."
He then led the Fenn Family cultivators away. The Ninefold Palace people came forward to check the motionless victims and found them unconscious—or even dead. This outcome was beyond anything they had expected.
"So this is the Dead Lake?" someone muttered.
The Fiend Realm natives clearly had no idea what the Dead Lake was, so at the young master's signal, General Northcliff asked a wandering cultivator.
"You mean this lake? It's deadly. In Hundred-Change Valley, it's ranked number one—touch the water and your whole body goes numb, you can't move, then you fall asleep, and finally you die. No one has ever survived it," the wanderer explained to General Northcliff and his group.
After hearing this, General Northcliff and his four companions exchanged uneasy glances, their faces darkening.
Now, even if they had the courage, no one dared touch the lake—they'd just seen several ignorant people try and pay the price.
"Young master, what now?" General Northcliff asked. He had come to the Human World mainly for Evan Yang, but hadn't expected Evan to die so easily.
The young master hadn't expected this either. He was angry, but there was no one to vent it on. He could only snort, "Let's go. What bad luck."
With that, the young master led his four men away. Soon, more and more people began to leave the scene.
As for the people who had died earlier, their bodies were left on the shore, unclaimed. When everyone was gone, a figure emerged—his eyes pitch-black. If Evan Yang were here, he'd recognize him: the Nether Patriarch, who had pursued him from the Fiend Realm. But now, he was nothing more than a living corpse.
The Nether Patriarch squatted beside two bodies, examined them, and smiled. "Dead corpses, living corpses—I want them all."
The Nether Patriarch was controlled by the Corpse-Refiner. He wasn't afraid that Evan Yang was dead, so he planned to fish out Evan's body. But since the lake was so strange and dangerous, he didn't send his own corpse into the water.
Instead, he dragged the bodies aside and cast a spell. After an hour, the dead people revived—not as living beings, but as corpses. Evan Yang had seen hundreds like this before. Not only that, their cultivation advanced: from mid and early Soul-Gathering to early and mid Spirit-God Realm.
"One mid-stage, two early-stage—even if you're still alive, you won't escape!" the Nether Patriarch sneered.
Then the Nether Patriarch ordered the three corpses into the water. Since they were already dead, they felt nothing, didn't stop, and didn't fall unconscious.