Evan Yang recognized the voices immediately. The one coming from inside the cave belonged to Summer Lu, while those standing outside were the elders.
With a single sweep, Evan saw that the strongest present was Elder Lance Shaw at late-stage Soul-Forming Realm. For him, there was no suspense—he knocked down several low-level elders as soon as he appeared, then sealed them unconscious.
“Who’s there?” Suddenly, Elder Lance Shaw and the other elders, sensing a powerful presence behind them, turned around. They were stunned by the scene: several elders lay unconscious at Evan’s feet while he stood there, smiling at them.
“It’s you!” Elder Lance Shaw snorted coldly.
“Long time no see, everyone,” Evan Yang said with a smile.
“You dare to come back? Perfect, we’ll capture you and let Ancestor Colin Pineson pass judgment!” Elder Lance Shaw sneered, seeing Evan’s reckless attitude.
“Is that so? Let’s see if you have the ability!” Evan Yang replied with a grin.
“We’ll find out soon enough.” Elder Lance Shaw exchanged glances with several mid-stage Soul-Forming experts nearby, and they all stepped forward to surround Evan.
But Evan Yang, now at late-stage Soul-Forming, easily dealt with them—sealing them as well.
Elder Lance Shaw stared at Evan Yang in shock. "You’ve reached late-stage Soul-Forming?" he asked in disbelief.
“Sorry to make you laugh,” Evan Yang said with a smile.
“Impossible! It’s only been two years!” Elder Lance Shaw, who had tracked Evan Yang and Mad Wolf, knew Evan’s strength was only at early-stage Soul-Forming before. Now he’d reached late-stage—how could that not shock him?
The elders lying on the ground stared in disbelief. After just two years, an early-stage Soul-Forming cultivator had become late-stage.
“Nothing’s impossible. So, are you going to handle this yourself, or should I do it?” Evan Yang asked with a smile.
Elder Lance Shaw didn’t have time to hesitate—he quickly looked for a way to escape. But the cliff ahead was blocked; to get past, he’d have to go through Evan Yang.
Evan Yang saw through his intentions and naturally wouldn’t let him get away. Elder Lance Shaw refused to be taken so easily, so he drew his Life-Bound Weapon and fought Evan fiercely. The two late-stage Soul-Forming cultivators clashed, and Evan used the battle to test his own new strength.
But Elder Lance Shaw kept searching for ways to escape.
“Damn it, when did this kid become so terrifying?” Elder Lance Shaw hadn’t expected Evan Yang to reach such frightening strength. He’d been late-stage Soul-Forming for years and should have been stronger, but Evan’s every attack was powerful and his footwork in the air was fast—whenever Lance tried to strike, Evan dodged with ease.
Forced to fight Evan Yang while searching for an escape, Elder Lance Shaw secretly took out his Transmission Stone and sent a message.
Deep within Snowpoint Sect, someone opened their eyes, glanced at the Transmission Stone’s message, and muttered, “He went to Heavensnow Mountain?”
Then another message arrived, shocking him: “Late-stage Soul-Forming in just two years—did he get help from Mad Wolf?”
“Perfect, I’ll take this chance to deal with that Heavensnow Sect guy.” The person stood up, sent messages via Transmission Stone to several others, then headed toward Heavensnow Mountain.
Back at Evan Yang’s location, Elder Lance Shaw burned through his spiritual power faster than Evan, and Evan’s attacks were fierce. Soon, Evan sealed Lance Shaw completely.
Not only that, Elder Lance Shaw was covered in wounds, battered by Evan’s attacks. He still couldn’t believe Evan’s final strike—he felt as if hundreds of forces hit him at once, like being attacked by a crowd.
Evan Yang ignored their stunned expressions and went straight to the cave entrance, calling out, “Come out.”
“Who’s there?” Those inside had heard the fighting outside, thinking it was staged, so no one bothered to check. They carried on as usual. When they heard Evan’s voice, Summer Lu felt it sounded familiar.
“It’s me, Evan Yang,” he said.
“Evan Yang?” Summer Lu was startled. She hurried out of the cave, and when she confirmed it was him, exclaimed, “Why are you here?”
“Don’t you want me to come?” Evan Yang replied, speechless.
“No, it’s just—we’re under attack by Snowpoint Sect.” Summer Lu shook her head.
“You mean them?” Evan Yang pointed to the group of elders he’d already dealt with.
Summer Lu looked over curiously. When she saw all the elders lying on the ground, motionless, she exclaimed, “Who did this?”
“Let’s talk inside.” Right now, Evan Yang just wanted to see Livia Liu as soon as possible.
Summer Lu checked the elders to make sure they wouldn’t cause trouble, then led Evan Yang into the cave. The cave’s structure was complex—outsiders would have a hard time reaching the innermost chambers.
On the way, Summer Lu explained what had happened over the years. After Evan Yang left, Snowpoint Sect often sent elder squads to harass them. In recent months, even more came, and finally the formation protecting Heavensnow Mountain was broken. The person behind Heavensnow Mountain had business and didn’t come out.
So, in the end, Winter Lu led everyone to this stronghold in Heavensnow Mountain.
“Where’s Livia Liu?” Evan Yang urgently wanted to know her situation.
“My master took her away, saying there’s a way to wake her quickly—and maybe even help her cultivation soar,” Summer Lu said. “Really?” Evan was surprised to hear Livia Liu was taken by Heavensnow Mountain’s expert.
“Yeah, my senior sister will explain it to you later.” After speaking, Summer Lu led Evan Yang deeper into the cave. They finally reached a spacious area where many Heavensnow Mountain disciples were meditating.
With Evan Yang’s arrival, everyone looked at him curiously, then closed their eyes again.
Summer Lu led him down another tunnel, which brought them to Winter Lu’s cultivation area.
As soon as Evan Yang and Summer Lu entered, Winter Lu opened her eyes. Seeing Evan, she asked in surprise, “You’re here?”
Evan Yang nodded, and Summer Lu eagerly stepped forward to explain what had happened outside. When Winter Lu finished listening, she was surprised: “What happened to those people?”
“We fought them for a bit, but they were too weak—so I just left them at the entrance,” Evan Yang said with a smile.
“Too weak? But Elder Lance Shaw is already late-stage Soul-Forming. You—” Winter Lu was skeptical.
Evan Yang knew she wouldn’t believe him, so he released a powerful aura. As soon as it appeared, Summer Lu’s face flushed red, nearly unable to bear it, while Winter Lu exclaimed, “You’ve reached late-stage Soul-Forming?”
“Yeah.” Evan Yang withdrew his aura as he answered.
Hearing Evan Yang had reached late-stage Soul-Forming, Summer Lu stared at him in disbelief, while Winter Lu asked curiously, “What did you do these two years? How did you suddenly reach late-stage Soul-Forming?”
“I spent the last two years in seclusion. When I woke up, I was just like this—I don’t really understand it myself,” Evan Yang said, still puzzled.
“Seclusion? Two years and you’re already like this?” Winter Lu and Summer Lu exchanged glances, admiring Evan Yang.
But this kind of thing is just luck—a personal opportunity, not something you can force. Winter Lu said, “Looks like Snowpoint Sect’s Ancestor will be here soon.”
“What?” Summer Lu exclaimed. Evan Yang was curious why Winter Lu said that.
“Someone just sent me a message, saying you left with Mad Wolf. Their Ancestor has already contacted other Nascent Soul experts and is preparing to come capture you. Honestly, it’s not hard to guess what he’s really planning,” Winter Lu said.
Evan Yang frowned, realizing his arrival had actually given Snowpoint Sect an excuse.
“My master isn’t here, so it won’t be easy for Snowpoint Sect to find her. But you—let Summer Lu take you away now,” Winter Lu told Evan Yang.
Evan Yang knew Winter Lu wouldn’t joke about this. If a Nascent Soul expert from Snowpoint Sect came for him, he’d have no way to escape. So he said his farewells to Winter Lu and Summer Lu and left the cave—but headed in another direction.
After thinking for a moment, Winter Lu also got up and walked to the cave entrance, where she saw the Snowpoint Sect elders lying on the ground.
Just then, several shadowy figures arrived—projections of Nascent Soul experts.
The leader was Pine Cang from Snowpoint Sect. He walked over to the elders lying on the ground, looked them over, and asked Winter Lu, “What happened here?”
"Winter Lu of Heavensnow Mountain greets the honored seniors!" Winter Lu cupped her hands respectfully.
The others had no grudge with Heavensnow Mountain, so they nodded. Ancestor Colin Pineson stared at Winter Lu and said, "I’m asking you a question!"
"They tried to attack our Heavensnow Sect, so someone subdued them," Winter Lu replied.
The other Spirit-Wandering experts looked curiously at the Snowpoint Sect members, then at Colin Pineson's reaction, and closed their eyes, pretending not to notice. After all, it was their private matter; they had only come here for Evan Yang.
Colin Pineson saw the expressions of the Spirit-Wandering experts, then looked at the elders—none could move, only showing pleading eyes, unable to speak.
"Damn!" Colin Pineson hadn’t expected things to turn out like this, and he was furious. He then questioned Winter Lu, "Bring Evan Yang out!"
"Evan Yang?" Winter Lu didn’t recognize the name; she only knew him as Evan Yang, but at this moment, she certainly wouldn’t admit to knowing him.
"That beggar, the one with Mad Wolf." As a Spirit-Wandering expert, Colin Pineson saw a junior acting crazy, so he waved his hand—Winter Lu was slammed against the cave entrance, coughing up a few drops of blood.
"I don’t know him! But you, senior—coming here and attacking me right away, you must think highly of me!" Winter Lu retorted sarcastically.
Colin Pineson heard this, and another Spirit-Wandering expert spoke up, "Friend Colin, she’s only the temporary manager of Heavensnow Mountain. You should leave this to your subordinates. Acting like this isn’t proper."
Colin Pineson felt frustrated. He had planned to have Elder Lance Shaw testify, but now Lance Shaw couldn’t speak, so how could he prove Evan Yang had been here?
"I don’t believe it!" Colin Pineson snorted coldly, then prepared to rush into the cave.
Winter Lu hurried forward to block him, "Senior, this is a restricted area of Heavensnow Mountain."