When Old Patriarch Young appeared, Yuna Young's face changed in an instant. Right next to her, Yvonne Young went pale as a ghost.
"Patriarch, it was all because of him before that we managed to wipe out the Ancient-Martial Ma Family."
He helped us get back some of the respect we lost.
And all this time, he never actually did anything to hurt the Young Family.
Yuna Young stood up, her body trembling as she looked at Old Patriarch Young at the courtyard entrance. "Please, Old Patriarch, let this go."
"Let him leave."
Yuna Young's voice shook; seeing Old Patriarch Young before her was like facing some terrifying presence.
Yvonne Young, hearing this, also hurriedly spoke up.
"He really isn't a bad person, and he even gave us pills and pill formulas."
"Please, Patriarch... please show mercy."
Yvonne Young's voice shook as she dropped to her knees, staring at Old Patriarch Young.
Both women pleaded at once.
Evan Lin stayed seated, calm as ever, watching the old man—who now looked nothing like the patriarch they'd known before.
His face hadn't changed much.
What had changed was his aura.
The old patriarch used to be bitter and powerless whenever Master Lin from Seacrest showed up—always forced to back down.
Now, Old Patriarch Young's eyes were full of battle and killing intent. He looked like he could rip Evan apart without breaking a sweat.
He was no longer the same man—now a stranger, completely transformed.
"You poisoned them?"
Evan's tone was indifferent as he locked eyes with Old Patriarch Young, his gaze unwavering and neither humble nor arrogant.
"You could even see through that? No wonder you're Master Lin from Seacrest."
Old Patriarch Young sneered: "After you killed my son—the previous patriarch—I let Yuna Young return and take over the clan."
"But she's just a woman—why should she be allowed to run my Young Family?"
"The poison I gave them is an old Profound Clarity Sect legacy pill, called the Nine-Nether Soul-Seizing Pill."
"Anyone who takes it becomes a puppet. If I tell them to go east, they can't go west. If they disobey, they suffer heart-eating, lung-snatching agony. Isn't that amusing?"
Old Patriarch Young strode into the courtyard, taking Yuna Young's seat. Facing Evan Lin, his smile was especially mocking.
"Before this, I ordered them more than once to lure you here."
"But the two of them would rather endure the soul-seizing torment of the Nine-Nether Soul-Seizing Pill than call you and bring you over. That's honestly surprising."
"Still, lucky for me, you walked right into the trap on your own this time. Maybe it's fate."
Old Patriarch Young's face was flushed, his smile radiant.
He leaned forward, his wrinkled face close to Evan Lin: "I think Master Lin from Seacrest is actually somewhat useful."
"Why not become my dog from now on? When I tell you to bite, you bite; when I tell you to eat bones, you eat bones. If you do that, I'll forgive everything you've done before—even killing my son. How about it?"
He spoke with a smile.
That smile had not a trace of fear—only unrestrained arrogance.
He bared his teeth, completely fearless.
"I'm really curious."
Evan Lin looked at him. "Who gave you the guts to talk to me like this?"
Evan Lin stared at him calmly.
This time—
Wherever his gaze fell, the air was boiling with force.
Explosive sounds filled the air.
With a thunderous crash, Old Patriarch Young was blasted a hundred meters away, slamming into the ground in utter disgrace.
"Don't!"
Seeing this, Yuna Young's expression changed dramatically. She looked at Evan Lin: "You need to leave, now!"
"If Old Patriarch Young gets hurt, that person will come out!"
"Quick, hurry and get out!"
Yuna Young rushed toward Evan Lin, grabbing his wrist and trying to drag him out the back door.
Yvonne Young also got up, stumbling in panic, her face deathly pale and her eyes full of fear.
"Leave?"
Old Patriarch Young, lying a hundred meters away, shakily tried to push himself up off the ground.
One of his hands was broken.
A leg was crippled.
Four ribs in his chest were shattered.
But he seemed to feel no pain at all; his face was full of excitement.
"Our Young Family ancestors have waited here for generations for Profound Clarity Sect's return!"
"All members of the Young Family are disciples of Profound Clarity Sect!"
"Today, as the 103rd clan head, I, Young Zhongting, invite Profound Clarity Sect's grandmaster to manifest, destroy the enemy who shamed our Young Family, and restore the honor of both Young Family and Profound Clarity Sect!"
Old Patriarch Young's voice echoed loudly.
Evan Lin glanced over and saw a red light flickering in Old Patriarch Young's wounded chest.
That streak of red light shot skyward, plunging into the distant mountain of stone.
"This is bad."
Yuna Young saw this and was startled.
"Master Lin from Seacrest, you're truly formidable."
Old Patriarch Young cackled, blood trickling from the corners of his mouth: "The ancestral tablet of Profound Clarity Sect's grandmaster, which my Young Family worships, only manifests in moments of life and death to kill our enemies. Just now, you almost killed me."
"Such power is more than enough to summon the grandmaster's spirit!"
He laughed and coughed, his whole body trembling, but his eyes burned with fanaticism.
In the distance, among the rocks—
There was still unmelted snow there.
At this moment—
Suddenly, a cold wind rose.
The wind swept through the treetops, shaking loose the snow, which fell to the ground. The ground, along with the snow-capped mountain, rumbled deeply.
A massive crack split the mountain in two.
The crack spread across the rock face, breaking off chunks of stone.
Soon enough—
The mountain split open, revealing a hidden, pitch-black path inside.
The path was utterly dark.
Even sunlight couldn't penetrate its darkness.
At that moment—
The world suddenly fell silent.
The wind stopped, the snow ceased.
Not a speck of dust disturbed the scene.
Inside the courtyard—
Yuna Young and Yvonne Young were both pale as ghosts.
Outside the courtyard—
Old Patriarch Young's eyes burned with fanaticism, tears streaming down his face.
In the Young Family's pill refining room, every clan member sensed something and came out to look.
Between heaven and earth—
Finally—
There was a clear sound of footsteps.
The footsteps came slowly, echoing like thunder from the pitch-black path.
It was as if something hidden in the darkness had finally awakened.
That thing from ages past had finally returned.
Evan Lin frowned, looking over.
In his eyes, the mountain was no longer a mountain, and the snow was no longer snow.
Heaven and earth were one, and only that path stood between them.
Soon enough—
The footsteps from the path grew closer and closer.
Old Patriarch Young was so excited he could barely contain himself.
"It's almost here, almost here!"
"That's the grandmaster of Profound Clarity Sect whom our Young Family worships!"
"Master Lin from Seacrest, you're dead, you're dead!"
"I never expected, never expected, that in my lifetime I could really see the grandmaster of Profound Clarity Sect!"
"Just one glance, just one glimpse of the grandmaster's true face, and I could die without regret!"
Old Patriarch Young's face was full of excitement, utterly beside himself.
He stared wide-eyed at the path, trying to pierce the darkness and see the grandmaster of Profound Clarity Sect walking toward him!
But...
Before he could see the grandmaster's true face—
Before the grandmaster could step out from the path—
Evan Lin flicked his finger.
A burst of energy pierced through the air, stabbing straight into his soul.
"Just die already. Enough with the nonsense."
"Go to hell."
Old Patriarch Young's head lolled to the side, dying with his eyes open.