"That's enough for today. We'll talk again next time!" the Demon Lord said.
Evan Chu was left hanging, feeling extremely frustrated but not daring to lose his temper. He could only ask helplessly, "When is next time? You know I'm in a hurry right now."
"I'll tell you once you break through to Third-Layer Divine Martial Realm. If your cultivation is too low, you can't practice it even if you know. Don't rush things," the Demon Lord replied, his voice much weaker now.
Evan Chu glanced at the Frostbane Sword and gave a bitter smile. "Still have to get stronger... This is really unbearable."
With a thought, Evan checked his storage ring and was shocked. Life Essence, green liquid, Starstones, Ice Crystals—every one of these energy items was incredibly rare. But even with all these, his realm improved so slowly. He really was too stupid.
Pulling himself together, Evan calmed his mind. He decided he had to break through to Third-Layer Divine Martial Realm before leaving. If he mastered a martial move from the Frostbane Sword, he'd have more insurance in Azure Tide Ruins.
Then Evan took out several Life Essence crystals and the solidified green liquid, and began absorbing them frantically.
After a month, Evan stopped absorbing. He felt he was on the verge of breaking through. He'd used up most of the Life Essence and green liquid in his storage ring, and absorbed quite a few Starstones too.
The amount of energy needed for a breakthrough was honestly insane. If it were anyone else, they probably couldn't do it at all.
After channeling his Chaos Dragon Force through his Divine Star Core several cycles, a crisp sound echoed from his dantian. Evan knew he had finally broken through.
The Chaos Dragon Force inside him grew even stronger, and the divine dragon on his Divine Star Core became clearer. Evan checked with his inner sight and could actually see the dragon’s scales.
Evan immediately took out the Frostbane Sword and tried to communicate with the Demon Lord. He’d said that once Evan reached Third-Layer Divine Martial Realm, he’d reveal the first sword technique. Now Evan couldn’t wait any longer.
"Your breakthrough was pretty fast, Frostbane. I thought you’d need two months, but this is even better. The faster you grow, the sooner I can be free. Now I’ll tell you what you need to do," the Demon Lord’s voice suddenly appeared.
"Just say it, Demon Lord. If it’s something I can do, I won’t refuse," Evan said urgently.
"You haven’t regained your memories yet, so some things wouldn’t make sense even if I explained. Our agreement from back then can only be fulfilled once you remember. What I want you to promise is actually very simple—it’s something you’d want anyway," the Demon Lord said.
Evan muttered gloomily, "If I’d regained my memories, I wouldn’t need your help. I’d know the Frostbane Sword’s martial arts myself."
But out loud, he said, "Demon Lord, don’t beat around the bush. I, Evan Chu, always act openly. If I promise you, I’ll do it. You don’t need to worry."
"You know Selena is my daughter, right? Her life has been bitter. When I was wounded, she was sealed away, and only released twenty years ago. By age, she’s just a twenty-year-old girl," the Demon Lord said.
"Why did you seal your daughter? What was the reason?" Evan asked. If Selena hadn’t been sealed, maybe she’d already be a Saint Martial expert by now.
"Selena was born with the Demonic Yin Constitution. If she never meets someone with a Pure Yang Constitution, she’s doomed not to live past a hundred. Back then, when I let you imprison a remnant of my soul, it was half for her sake.
You promised me that if you reincarnated, you’d definitely have a Pure Yang Constitution. I hope you’ll take care of her for a lifetime.
I know you’ve always rejected Selena’s identity. Back then, even though we were mortal enemies, in the final battle we both realized everyone had been tricked by Venerable Solus, that monster of the Demon Clan," the Demon Lord said.
"I do care about Selena’s identity. Righteous and demonic can’t coexist—humans and demons are supposed to be enemies. How did you and Frostbane end up making a pact in the end?" Evan asked.
He knew this had to be a world-shaking secret—less than five people in the world knew the truth.
"Everyone thinks Frostbane killed me, but actually I self-detonated my body. When I did, I split off my soul and, for safety, sealed a wisp of it in the Frostbane Sword."
At that time, we’d already uncovered Solus’s plot. He wasn’t as simple as we thought—his power had already surpassed Saint Martial Realm, but for some reason was restricted.
To break free, he had to devour the souls of the strongest. Back then, Frostbane, I, War Emperor Zhan, and Nether Monarch Ming were the four top experts. Solus schemed to make us fight each other so he could reap the benefits.
Frostbane chose reincarnation to keep Solus from absorbing his soul, while I kept a remnant soul for future revival. Solus isn’t really from this world—he’s just an avatar here," the Demon Lord said.
Evan felt like he was hearing a fairy tale, but he couldn’t help believing it. So Frostbane reincarnated for this reason—truly unexpected.
"What about your demon generals? I feel like they’ve betrayed you," Evan said, then described the incident with the shadowy figure in the Mermaid Kingdom.
"Solus’s abilities are beyond your imagination. His identity constantly changes—even Frostbane and I never saw his true body. All we know is he’s also a remnant soul, but an unbelievably powerful one.
If I’m right, my demon generals have all been subdued by him. He has some method to rapidly boost people’s strength, but I don’t know the details. You’ll have to uncover the truth yourself.
Also, War Emperor Zhan and Nether Monarch Ming may have submitted to him too. The whole world could be headed for disaster," the Demon Lord said helplessly.
"Didn’t you say he needs to absorb the souls of the strong? Why would War Emperor Zhan and Nether Monarch Ming become his subordinates? That doesn’t make sense. If that were true, the Azure Tide Ruins would’ve fallen long ago and those powerful sects wouldn’t still stand," Evan said.
"It’s just speculation. If they didn’t submit, then Solus must have killed them. Your priority now is to get stronger. The Frostbane Sword’s martial art is too domineering—it needs a high cultivation level. You can only learn the first form for now. I’ll teach it to you right now!" the Demon Lord said.
Evan’s heart surged with excitement, and strange runes and profound characters appeared in his mind.
After a long time, the runes and characters faded. "I’ve used up too much spiritual power. When you break through to the fifth layer, I’ll teach you the second form!" the Demon Lord said.
Evan knew he would disappear again, but he wasn’t worried about the runes and characters in his mind—he had Luna, the sword spirit, to help. So he immediately called for Luna...
PS: Another year older... how tragic!