Lord Ridge didn't know whether Morgana Dreamhaven's words were intentional or not, but he just smiled and said, "It's only a friendly spar, there's no need to be so formal."
"What you say is quite true," Morgana Dreamhaven replied.
As for Lan Wind, he was actually hiding a great deal of power at this moment. To be precise, this body made him very stiff—after all, he was using someone else’s body now, and the strength he could display was limited. He had originally thought that with this much power, he could teach Evan Yang a lesson, maybe even injure or defeat him. But the result wasn’t so easy.
Evan Yang secretly laughed to himself, "Still not exposing yourself? You’re hiding pretty deep."
Seeing that he couldn’t defeat Evan Yang, Lan Wind took the initiative to say, "Let’s stop here."
Evan Yang halted his attack, and Lan Wind smiled, "You really are impressive. I didn’t expect an Emperor to have such strength—truly admirable."
"That’s only because you don’t dare to unleash large-scale attacks. Right now, you’re just using a borrowed body." Evan Yang didn’t call him out directly, but smiled as he spoke. He did this to prevent the other party from simply abandoning this body and attacking him outright.
Lan Wind looked at Evan Yang suspiciously, feeling as if Evan had seen through his identity, but maybe not. So he smiled, "I’ve been in closed-door cultivation for a while and haven’t stretched my legs in a long time—guess I am a bit stiff. See you in the tournament."
After speaking, he turned and left. Lord Ridge also departed with another person, while Morgana Dreamhaven watched their backs and curiously asked Evan Yang, "I couldn’t understand several things you said just now."
"Senior Dreamhaven, what do you think of Lan Wind just now?" Evan Yang asked.
"He should have used earth attributes, but instead he used fire. And his fighting was very stiff, like a puppet." Morgana Dreamhaven replied.
"Exactly. Looks like there’s a good show coming up," Evan Yang said with a smile.
"What do you mean?" Morgana Dreamhaven asked, puzzled.
"Palace Lord Ignace is about to show up again—but in a new way," Evan Yang replied.
"Palace Lord Ignace? That monster bug? Where is he?" Morgana Dreamhaven exclaimed.
"He just left," Evan Yang said with a smile, without naming names directly.
Morgana Dreamhaven glanced at Evan Yang, then thought of Lan Wind just now and exclaimed, "You mean—?"
"That’s right. It’s him. I wouldn’t mistake it. It’s just that he’s using a new body now, so his reaction speed is much weaker. But in a few days, once he fuses more, he might be very strong again," Evan Yang said.
"Damn, if that’s true, I need to report to Palace Lord Rowan and Elder Woodspirit right away," Morgana Dreamhaven said.
"Yeah, it’s always best to be prepared," Evan Yang said. After hearing this, Morgana Dreamhaven immediately left.
Miss Cloud and Palace Lord Yuna exchanged glances, their curiosity obvious. Palace Lord Yuna leaned in, her tone full of concern: "What did you just say to Master? Why did her face turn so strange?"
"Oh, nothing important. Just some trivial stuff," Evan Yang replied with a gentle smile, trying to brush it off.
"Trivial? If it was really trivial, why would Master react like that? You must be hiding something from us," Palace Lord Yuna pressed, her suspicion clear. Miss Cloud chimed in, "Exactly!"
Evan Yang just smiled, sidestepping the question. "I can't tell you. You'll have to figure it out yourselves." He meant well—if they knew too much, it might bring them trouble.
Meanwhile, Lan Wind, who had left earlier, was now walking with Lord Ridge among the trees.
Lan Wind asked, "Lord Ridge, do you think Evan Yang has figured something out? Why does he always talk like he's hiding something?"
"I can't say for sure. Honestly, none of us can see through things like this—so how could he?" Lord Ridge replied, sounding doubtful.
"That's true. Maybe he's just bluffing. But these next few days, I really need to get used to this new body. Otherwise, I won't even stand a chance against him," Lan Wind said, determination in his voice.
"Yeah, I never expected Evan Yang to become so dangerous," Lord Ridge admitted, a hint of unease in his voice.
Lan Wind nodded, then focused on merging with his new body, determined to master it as soon as possible.
At Dreamhaven, Morgana found Palace Lord Rowan. Seeing Rowan seek her out, Morgana thought he wanted to arrange another sparring match, but instead Rowan explained what had just happened. After hearing the story, Palace Lord Rowan was shocked. "What? Are you serious? He really infiltrated here?"
"Yes, just now he fought Yang Han using a new body. But he was pretty stiff—though if he gets more time, who knows what will happen," Morgana said.
"Who? Which palace is he from?" asked Palace Lord Rowan.
"From the Earth Temple—a man named Lan Wind. I think you should tell Elder Woodspirit right away so he can make arrangements," Morgana said.
"Understood. I'll go now. You must all be careful, especially regarding Yang Han's safety—make sure nothing happens to him," Palace Lord Rowan instructed.
Morgana was puzzled—why was Palace Lord Rowan also so concerned about Yang Han? She couldn't figure it out. After Rowan left, Morgana returned to her residence, while Rowan went to a wooden hut outside, standing respectfully. "Elder Woodspirit, I have new information."
"Oh? Speak," came a voice from inside.
"Just received word—the strange bug that escaped last time has infiltrated here and is hiding inside someone. He's even going to participate in the tournament. What should we do?" Rowan asked.
"I was just about to ask you about this. Why is there such a strange, evil aura in the Wood Temple? Turns out that creature really did come. That's fine, but with your current strength, fully destroying him might be difficult. Hurting him is possible, though. So before the tournament, don't provoke or expose him—just let him stay as he is," the voice inside replied.
"But if that's the case, then anyone who faces him in the tournament..." Rowan said.
"Don't worry. Since he hasn't dared to act recklessly, it means his body hasn't fully fused yet. He won't take risks or kill randomly in the arena. From what I see, he's here for Yang Han. So you must ensure Yang Han's safety. As for the bug, leave it to Yang Han to handle," the voice inside said after thinking for a moment.
"Let him handle it? But his strength is only..." Rowan couldn't believe Elder Woodspirit would let Yang Han face the bug alone.
SKIP
"If he wants to become a great figure, this is the only way to test his true ability. If he can't beat it, then all my arrangements would be pointless," the voice inside said.
Palace Lord Rowan nodded in understanding, then withdrew. Walking along the road, he muttered, "So we're just supposed to act like nothing happened?"
After thinking it over, he could only follow Elder Woodspirit's instructions—act as if nothing happened, but make sure Yang Han is safe.
Soon, the days of sparring passed. When everyone gathered in the main hall again, Zeke Wood and Cole Wood looked at Yang Han oddly, especially Zeke Wood, who felt a sense of provocation but lacked the strength to do anything—so he could only resent Yang Han in secret.
Lan Wind was full of energy, as if he had a powerful force about to burst out. Besides these people, there were others present. Yang Han, as usual, stood there, keeping an eye on everything around him.
Once everyone had arrived, Palace Lord Rowan said, "Now that everyone's here, I won't say much more. Five people will compete in the Void bracket, and five in the Half-Void bracket. Each palace has explained the rules, so I won't repeat them."
Everyone felt prepared. Once they were ready, Palace Lord Rowan said, "Each group of five, draw lots."
A box for drawing lots was soon brought out. The box couldn't be scanned with divine sense—only by reaching in could you draw a number. The Void bracket numbers were one to five, the Half-Void bracket numbers six to ten.
Yang Han quickly drew number three, Palace Lord Yuna drew six.
They were in different groups. Lan Wind drew number one.
Zeke Wood drew five, Cole Wood drew eight. Once everyone had their numbers, the tournament was about to begin.
The match order was: one versus two, three versus four, and the fifth contestant was relatively lucky—he would face whichever winner emerged from one or two. The other group was the same, so the fifth contestant skipped a round.
Yang Han wasn't particularly excited about the tournament. He just wanted to know what the final outcome would be. If it meant meeting Elder Woodspirit, he was willing to fight hard to see what kind of person Elder Woodspirit really was.
The tournament began quickly. Yang Han's opponent was a Wind Temple disciple, whose speed was naturally greater than most others. But for Yang Han, as long as he didn't let the opponent get close, he could counter speed with other advantages.
Zeke Wood wasn't scheduled to fight, so he stared at Yang Han, muttering to himself, "This Yang Han is so annoying. If only someone could defeat him, that would be great. I really hope someone crushes him."
While the Wood Temple tournament was heating up, a strange change was unfolding in the Demon-Beast Realm. In a certain space, a fissure grew larger and larger until it stopped in midair, pitch black.
From behind the darkness, a swarm of winged creatures resembling Shard Bugs buzzed out. Tens of thousands of insects emerged, gnawing at the surrounding space and leaving it riddled with holes.
After the swarm appeared, a figure wearing a black cloak stood with both hands behind his back. On closer inspection, his hands had only four thick green fingers.
It looked strange. He lifted his head slightly, revealing blood-red eyes that surveyed the surroundings, a crescent smile on his lips.
He then said, "Great Lord, as long as I control this Demon-Beast Realm and let my children invade their bodies, the Demon-Beast Realm will become your people. When the Devil Realm and Immortal Realm cooperate, those gods will never have a chance to revive—they will forever be your servants."
After muttering, he calmly continued, "I wonder how Fire Evil is doing in the Immortal Realm. How are things progressing there?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a tiny bug appeared at his side, about the size of a mosquito. If you looked closely, you could clearly see its face.
"Contact Fire Evil. Tell me the latest situation in the Immortal Realm, and make sure he takes control within one hundred thousand years to prepare for our Great Lord's arrival," the voice inside the cloak commanded sternly.