Yvonne Darkmoon was overjoyed when she saw the contents of the note. Although she didn't know who gave it to her, she was aware that an invisible person had been secretly helping her all along—not only saving her father before, but now sending her such a note. Ecstatic, she smiled and said, "Thank you, Senior. Even though you don't wish to show yourself, I'm truly grateful to you."
Evan Yang quietly chuckled to himself, but said nothing. As for Yvonne Darkmoon, she immediately contacted Elder Lewis Lu; now that she had some influence, the only one with enough authority to help was Elder Lewis from the Immortal Realm Alliance.
After receiving Yvonne's urgent message, Elder Lewis Lu rushed over. He didn't know what had happened, but seeing Yvonne so anxious, he thought something must have gone wrong. Upon arriving at the castle, he went straight upstairs and found Yvonne barely able to contain her excitement.
"Miss Yvonne, what's wrong?" Elder Lewis Lu asked curiously when he saw her.
Yvonne's eyes lit up at Elder Lewis's arrival and she exclaimed, "Elder Lewis, look at this!" With that, she handed him the note.
When Elder Lewis Lu read the contents, his expression turned to shock. "So that's it! I never expected those people from Immortal Peak Sect to actually be puppets."
"Elder Lewis, does this mean my father can be saved? Hurry and inform the other sects and clans—let them know the truth!" Yvonne said excitedly.
"Don't be hasty," Elder Lewis said after thinking for a moment.
"Why not? My father is about to be in real trouble!" Yvonne exclaimed, alarmed.
"Your father isn't in immediate danger right now. But if we act rashly, we'll only alert the Devil Realm emissary. Not only will we fail to catch them, but we could even be accused of slandering others. If that happens, saving your father will become much harder," Elder Lewis analyzed.
"Then what should we do? Are we just going to let that Devil Realm emissary control those puppets and harm people everywhere, leaving everyone unsettled?" Yvonne said.
"Miss Yvonne, I understand how you feel. This situation is beyond anything we imagined. We thought it was just an ordinary Devil Realm person, but it turns out to be a Devil Realm emissary. There have been emissaries appearing elsewhere recently, but this one is even more terrifying—they can create puppets. These puppets can't be exposed without a special method; they're no different from the original people, so there's no way to convict them," Elder Lewis explained.
"So what should we do then?" Yvonne asked anxiously.
"I'll report this to the Alliance and trust they'll send someone to help me," Elder Lewis said. He knew he couldn't defeat the emissary alone; he needed someone who could expose the puppets, and such people could only be found through the Immortal Realm Alliance.
"How long will that take? My father almost got hurt today," Yvonne said, frustrated.
"Who tried to hurt your father? Isn't he in the Black Castle?" Elder Lewis asked suspiciously.
Yvonne told Elder Lewis what had happened today. After listening, Elder Lewis snorted coldly, "Unbelievable. I never expected the Eighth Great Power to have people like this. Looks like I need to have a word with them. Stay here, don't go anywhere, and let me know if you hear anything."
"Okay." Yvonne knew being anxious wouldn't help, so she agreed to Elder Lewis's instructions, saw him off, and paced around by herself.
She looked around and wondered, "I wonder if Senior is still here?"
Evan Yang was still there, of course, but he remained silent. However, seeing Elder Lewis Lu from the Immortal Realm Alliance appear here, and realizing their connection, Evan was a little surprised.
Seeing that Evan Yang didn't respond, Yvonne thought he had left and said helplessly, "I don't know when I'll be able to see my father released. And as for Immortal Peak Sect, if they really spread the news, my father will be in even greater danger."
Evan Yang, meanwhile, never expected that a single contest would cause so much trouble. Originally, he came to find the Yang Clan, but aside from Terry Yang, no one else here knew the exact location of the teleportation array. Only Terry could be forced to reveal it, but getting him to talk wouldn't be easy.
So Evan could only wait for the right opportunity to ask Terry Yang about the Yang Clan's teleportation array. If not, he'd have to follow them after the contest ended—that was his worst-case plan.
Elder Lewis Lu sent the message back to the Immortal Realm Alliance. Right now, in a grand hall of the Alliance, many people were seated—any one of them could shake the Immortal Realm if they stepped outside. No one dared to underestimate anyone here.
A young man spoke up, "Elder Lewis has already sent the message back. You've all seen it—what are your thoughts?"
Though this man looked young, he was incredibly powerful. Most external affairs were under his command; he made the decisions while the others offered their advice.
A one-armed man said, "Last time, the Alliance envoy tried to control ten ancient sects, but this time, they're even more brazen—going straight to the Territory War Contest. Although only cultivators below Emperor Realm fight in that contest, even if they're wiped out, it won't shake the foundation of our Immortal Realm. But those are all elite disciples chosen by the major sects. If something happens to them, or they're controlled, it would be a major blow to the sects and clans."
A one-eyed man, his remaining eye seemingly able to devour people, agreed, "Exactly. That's why we must capture the Devil Realm emissary at the Territory War Contest and eliminate all those controlled puppets."
The others nodded in agreement.
Seeing everyone was of one mind, the young man said, "Since we're all agreed, I'll make the arrangements. Sister Serenity, you've inherited the Demon-Purging Enlightenment Seal from your predecessor. You're the best person for this task."
A beautiful, flower-like nun stood there—clearly no ordinary monastic. She said softly, "Very well, let me go and awaken those puppets."
"To ensure your safety, Dagger Lee will accompany you. His flying knives are formidable. With him at your side, you'll be safer," the young man continued.
In the corner stood a cold, silent man. He replied icily, "Understood."
Sister Serenity also replied, "Understood."
"Then set out at once. When you arrive, contact Elder Lewis Lu and follow his arrangements," said the young man.
The two nodded, then vanished in a flash, leaving the others behind. The young man continued, "There's still some time before the next Immortal Realm–Devil Realm opening, but don't get complacent. Many Devil Realm emissaries have entered our realm through special means and are starting to control people. Stay alert for any unusual news from various places—handle it as needed, and report major incidents to me immediately."
"Understood," the others said with authority. As the young man gave instructions, everyone went about their tasks, leaving him to sigh, "Immortal Realm and Devil Realm—looks like another storm of blood is coming."
The next day, the Darkmoon incident became a minor episode, but many sects and clans began to distrust the Eighth Great Power. All of this was thanks to the Devil Realm emissary's secret machinations.
Now, as soon as the contest began, attacks broke out everywhere. Occasionally, someone would ask the Eighth Great Power how to deal with the Darkmoon incident, but all such inquiries were suppressed. Unfortunately, this only fueled further resentment.
The next day, the death toll in the arena rose. Even when the Eighth Great Power stepped in to maintain order and criticized those who had killed repeatedly, no one listened. Instead, more people began to curse and shout.
Some hot-blooded individuals even argued with the Eighth Great Power's people. The rift only widened—some Eighth Great Power members were injured by sect disciples, and some sect disciples were injured in turn.
This directly led to the contest being halted. Even so, no one left. Many groups banded together, preparing to attack the Eighth Great Power, while others who had killed their rivals also joined in—not only to hunt down enemies, but to challenge the Eighth Great Power. Realizing things were getting out of control, the Eighth Great Power quickly convened an emergency meeting, joined by the other nine powers.
Inside a castle, someone slammed the table and cursed, "Damn it, these people are killing without restraint!"
In a corner, General Leon Long said coolly, "If they'd dealt with the Darkmoon incident earlier, like I suggested, none of this would have happened."
"Everyone knows what kind of person Damien Darkmoon is. Would he really do such things? And what benefit would it bring him?" Elder Lewis Lu knew General Leon Long was trying to frame Damien, so he spoke up.
His words sparked both agreement and opposition.
General Leon Long sneered, "I don't know what he's thinking, but I do know that all these problems started with him. Solve him, give everyone an explanation, and this will all blow over."
"What if I told you the Devil Realm emissary is working behind the scenes, controlling many puppets—would you believe me?" Elder Lewis Lu knew things had reached a critical point and had to speak up.
His words shocked many—after all, Elder Lewis Lu was from the Immortal Realm Alliance. If this was true, then the Devil Realm was behind everything.
General Leon Long only knew Elder Lewis Lu was protecting Damien Darkmoon. He hated Damien and didn't care about the Devil Realm. He snorted, "Elder Lewis, Damien says this, and now you say this—do you take us for fools?"
"General Leon Long, I know you have a bias against Damien. To be honest, it was I who asked Damien to make the arrest, and I was the one who said he was a demon. If you really want to deal with Damien, you'll have to get past me first," Elder Lewis Lu snorted.
Elder Lewis Lu's words caused a stir. Everyone wanted to know why Damien Darkmoon had acted as he did. Based on what they knew of him, he wasn't that kind of person—yet it turned out Elder Lewis Lu was behind it all.
General Leon Long was stunned, but he was unwilling to accept it. He never expected Damien Darkmoon would be protected by the Immortal Realm Alliance—something he truly didn't want to see.