"I thought you had some ability, but now it turns out you're just trash after all."
Amidst the howling wind and snow, that cold, clear voice seemed to descend from the heavens, yet it landed in Rena Luo's ears with startling clarity!
Rena Luo's expression changed drastically, her eyes full of vigilance and fear.
Compared to the distant gigantic Mutant Frost Ape, the man following behind her was the real threat!
"You've been following us all along!"
Rena Luo's voice was low and steady, her eyes fixed dead ahead.
But the man was still a considerable distance away from her.
Rena Luo strained to make out his face, but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't see him clearly.
Besides, Rena Luo didn't believe in coincidences for a second.
To show up at this time and this place, perfectly on cue, there could only be one explanation—the guy behind her had been tailing them like a ghost the whole time.
The most critical point was, with all of them being Vajra Realm experts, not a single one had noticed a thing!
"That move you just used—was it fire? Or do you actually have a Fire Spirit Physique?"
The man behind her completely ignored Rena Luo's question. His cool, crisp voice cut through the air, landing clearly in her ears.
Rena Luo shut her mouth. Anyone who could speak so clearly in these conditions, keeping their voice perfectly focused, was definitely not someone to mess with.
She tensed up completely, ready to fight at any moment.
"But I guess that's not important."
Seeing that Rena Luo had no intention of answering, the man spoke again.
"At least, it's not important today."
Evan Lin let out a sigh.
Compared to the secret of that Bronze Woman Statue...
The life and death of Rena Luo and the secrets they carry—all of it is meaningless in comparison.
Evan Lin kept feeling that the Bronze Woman Statue was somehow connected to Lyria, but something about that hunch still felt off.
Maybe these statues, scattered in different places across the world, are actually hiding the secret to reaching the Immortal Martial Continent.
In front of Rena Luo, after that man's words faded into the storm, there was only silence.
All she could hear was the wind and snow, and the sound of fewer and fewer snow wolves running past.
Her gaze stayed locked in that direction, not relaxing for even a second.
"Who are you?!"
Rena Luo had just barely managed to calm her pounding heart, but now it suddenly started burning up again.
She felt her blood race, a powerful shock surging from her feet to the top of her head!
Inside the ever-thickening blizzard, the figure approaching her suddenly lit up with streaks of blazing red light!
That was fire—searing hot and wild, a force bordering on madness!
The intense flames instantly melted all the snow within ten meters around him into rain!
Raindrops fell with a hiss, piercing through the curtain of wind and snow, splattering onto the ice of Heavenly Lake—only to turn into white steam and rise into the air in an instant!
Evan Lin closed his eyes slightly, every step steady and firm.
"I'm really curious—what exactly is hidden in there?"
"Mo Yang, did you see that woman in there all those years ago?"
Evan Lin muttered softly to himself.
The Fire-Spirit Mortal Body patterns on the Left-Hand Dragon along his arm began to glow even brighter.
Scorching flames erupted from Evan Lin's skin, turning his whole body into a raging blaze.
Everywhere Evan Lin stepped, the ice beneath his feet melted instantly, revealing the boiling water churning below!
"That woman..."
Evan Lin slowly opened his eyes.
In that instant, Evan Lin's black eyes turned red, molten lava swirling in their depths. His black hair also turned completely crimson in a heartbeat.
He looked like someone who had just walked out of magma, every breath feeding the raging flames around him.
Beside him, a snow wolf darted past. Evan Lin stepped onto its back with one foot, shooting forward like a crimson arrow, blazing past the stunned Rena Luo.
A fleeting glimpse!
Rena Luo's face went deathly pale. In that instant, she felt a suffocating pressure that made it impossible to breathe.
She could only catch a faint glimpse of the crimson figure's side profile.
But she couldn't see him clearly at all—she just felt an urge to kneel and worship!
In her eyes, the fiery red figure stood atop the snow wolf, the raging storm parting to make way for him. In that moment, heaven and earth seemed to boil!
Roar!
Over there, the Mutant Frost Ape sensed something was wrong and turned, letting out a furious howl. It swung its massive fist, smashing it toward the direction Evan Lin had come from.
Evan Lin planted his foot and leapt into the air.
In that moment, the whole wolf pack fell silent.
Every snow wolf stopped in its tracks, gazing at Evan Lin from afar.
In Rena Luo's eyes, there was only that figure, completely engulfed in flames!
"Is he insane? He's actually going head-to-head with the Mutant Frost Ape!"
Rena Luo cried out in shock, her voice hoarse.
The instant her voice faded—
The blazing red streak collided head-on with the Mutant Frost Ape's massive fist!
For a second, time seemed to freeze.
One second later—
Boom!
The wild shockwave swept out in all directions!
Instead of being crushed by the Mutant Frost Ape's fist, the crimson streak shot upward, pushing back against the massive blow!
"The ice is melting!"
Rena Luo was blasted far away by the shockwave, crashing to the ground, her eyes wide with terror.
The snow wolves gathered around the Mutant Frost Ape all turned and bolted toward the shore.
The ice covering Heavenly Lake, once solid, was now melting rapidly.
Rena Luo gritted her teeth and forced herself to her feet. Not daring to hesitate, she sprinted toward the shore.
Behind her, the Mutant Frost Ape's furious roars echoed, as if enraged by the challenge to its authority!
"Rena!"
By the time she reached the shore, Rena Luo was nearly spent.
Luo Gang and Luo Qiang, who had been waiting there, rushed forward to support her, keeping her from collapsing.
"Who was that man, anyway?!"
Rena Luo turned back, staring into the distance.
They saw the crazed Mutant Frost Ape in the center of Heavenly Lake slowly sinking.
With the ice gone, it was doomed to sink into the lake, bound by iron chains, unable to break free.
But this time, Rena Luo saw the crimson figure standing atop the Mutant Frost Ape's forehead, sinking into Heavenly Lake along with it!
"No idea, but he was definitely following us all along!" Luo Gang's face was grave. "He tracked us for so long without us noticing, and then fought the Mutant Frost Ape head-on. If he'd wanted to kill us, we'd be dead already!"
"That guy..."
Luo Gang's heart pounded wildly.
Luo Qiang looked somber. He and Luo Gang were too far away—they only saw the man enter Heavenly Lake, then a burst of fire, but had no idea what really happened.
He turned to Rena Luo. "Did you see anything? You must've had a direct encounter with him just now."
"Do you know him?"