Now that Evan Chu had officially become the Prince Consort, he explained his purpose to the Second Elder. Without saying much, the Second Elder led Evan straight to the Shade Lord’s personal cultivation chamber.
"Prince Consort, this is the Shade Lord’s cultivation chamber. Only his key can open it. If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave—there are still many matters to handle after the Princess’s wedding." The Second Elder said.
"Go ahead, Second Elder. I need to enter seclusion for a while—the Nether Monarch’s palm left me badly injured, so I must recover as soon as possible. Please don’t disturb me unless it’s urgent," Evan Chu replied.
After the Second Elder left, Evan Chu used the Shade Lord’s key to unlock the chamber door. As soon as he stepped inside, the door closed automatically behind him. The chamber was filled with dense nether-qi, almost as thick as in the Starforge Chamber, but here the nether-qi had no effect on him.
The chamber was spacious and fully furnished—stone tables, stone chairs, everything in place. There were even scrolls lying around. Evan picked one up and flipped through it; it turned out to be a high-grade martial manual. Any of these techniques would cause a sensation if revealed outside.
But Evan Chu had no interest in these martial manuals. His own arts were far superior—there was no need to waste time on these. He sat down on the stone bed, ready to begin his cultivation.
He spent a long time thinking about what to practice. Windshift? Thundershift? Trying to comprehend a spatial domain? Or should he raise his Nascent Soul’s realm? For a moment, he couldn’t decide.
"Evan, your top priority right now is to elevate your Nascent Soul’s realm. Only then can you truly grasp a spatial domain. Once you’ve broken through, you can learn Windshift and Thundershift. You don’t have much time left—work hard!" Luna’s voice sounded.
Evan Chu hesitated. "Luna, if I haven’t mastered Thundershift yet, how can I comprehend a spatial domain? Isn’t that impossible?"
"Comprehending and executing are two different things—don’t mix them up. All right, start cultivating. Release Jade Chu and Tom Chu; this nether-qi won’t help you, but it’s excellent for them." Luna instructed.
With a thought, Jade Chu and Tom Chu appeared in the chamber. Seeing the abundance of nether-qi, they exclaimed, "Big Brother, what is this place? There's so much nether-qi here—it's amazing!"
Evan Chu smiled, "What does nether-qi do for you two? You look thrilled—tell Big Brother."
Jade Chu explained, "Nether-qi can transform our bodies and make us stronger. Normally, we can't stay outside for long because our cultivation is too low. But if we absorb enough nether-qi, we can overcome that. Did you bring us here to absorb it, Big Brother?"
"Of course. Absorb as much as you can—I’m going to cultivate, so don’t disturb me." As Evan Chu finished speaking, a demon core appeared in his hand.
The demon core was packed with powerful energy, but Evan Chu had no idea how to absorb it. He stared at it for a long time, feeling helpless.
"Evan, the energy in that demon core isn’t meant for you to absorb directly. Try communicating with your Nascent Soul—let it absorb the energy itself. Only then can you break through." Luna advised.
Evan Chu felt deeply grateful to Luna. Every time he faced trouble, she was there to help. He owed her too much—he honestly didn’t know how he’d ever repay her.
Calming his mind, Evan Chu tried to communicate with his Nascent Soul. His was unique—a fusion of human and dragon souls—which made the process especially difficult.
The Nascent Soul opened its eyes and simply watched Evan Chu approach. No matter what Evan said or did, it just smiled faintly and didn’t respond, silently staring at him as if he were an idiot. Evan was so frustrated he almost coughed blood.
After nearly a whole day, the Nascent Soul finally moved—or rather, its mouth did. "Are you getting impatient? Remember, you are me and I am you. One day, you’ll understand completely. The soul force in that demon core is excellent—it can help me break through. If you get the chance, collect more of them. The stronger I become, the stronger you’ll be."
Evan Chu was dumbfounded. He hadn’t expected his Nascent Soul to be so eccentric—silent for a whole day without speaking or blinking. Still, at least it was finally willing to absorb the demon core’s energy. His efforts hadn’t been wasted.
Suddenly, Evan Chu felt faint energy ripples in his meridians. He knew it was his Nascent Soul absorbing the demon core’s power.
The demon core in his palm slowly shrank. Though the process was slow, Evan Chu could monitor it with his current strength. After about a week, the Nascent Soul had absorbed the entire demon core.
"Do you need to absorb another? I have one more," Evan Chu asked.
"Yes. If I absorb this one, I’ll be able to break through—and help you as well," the Nascent Soul replied.
Evan Chu only half understood how his Nascent Soul would help him, but he handed over another demon core. This time, the Nascent Soul absorbed it much faster—just three days for the entire core.
Checking inward, Evan Chu saw his Nascent Soul now shrouded in blazing golden light, radiating a powerful aura.
"Evan, your Nascent Soul has finally broken through. It’s now at the Late Grand Ascension Stage. That’s no small feat! For someone at Fourth-Layer Saint Martial Realm to possess such a powerful Nascent Soul—is truly unheard of," Luna said.
Evan Chu was a bit lost. "Is that impressive? Spell it out for me, Luna—I'm confused."
"Right now, you’re at Fourth-Layer Saint Martial Realm—about the Out-of-Body Stage in terms of power. Your attack strength is already at early Grand Ascension, and your defense rivals an Earth Immortal. But that’s not the main point. The key is your Nascent Soul—the higher its level, the faster you’ll break through in the future."
"Even though you’re only at Saint Martial Realm now, in another world, you’d be the target of every great sect’s recruitment—or maybe even their assassination. Your talent is simply too heaven-defying," Luna added.
Evan Chu chuckled, "Who am I? I’m Evan Chu! Without this kind of talent, how could I make you fall for me? One day, I’ll stride right into Solarion Palace and make your parents accept me as their son-in-law."
"Such a smooth talker—who’s fallen for you? With your current strength, you couldn’t even reach Solarion Palace. Enough nonsense, hurry up and comprehend a spatial domain. Your Nascent Soul will help you," Luna teased.