"Hopefully, those people will catch those two soon," said Young Master Wei.
"By the way, you said one of them is a Heavenly-Immortal, right?" the elder asked.
"Yes, that's right," replied Young Master Wei.
"How could a Heavenly-Immortal escape from an Immortal-Lord, or even be undefeated?" the elder said suspiciously.
"I bet that guard was just slacking off," Young Master Wei said, displeased.
"Maybe. If it wasn't laziness, then it's just bizarre," the elder replied.
As for Evan Yang and Liam Willow, after leaving the inn, they were preparing to find a time to get a pass for the formation zone—after all, they had money now.
But after just a few steps, Evan noticed some posters around. Glancing at their content, he was puzzled. "Hey, looks like they're serious about this."
"What's wrong?" Liam was still immersed in awe at Evan's astonishing strength.
"Take a look at those posters," Evan said.
Liam took a closer look and was stunned—the posters were about Evan and himself. Luckily, there weren't too many details; otherwise, they would have already been reported.
"The descriptions aren't too detailed, but when you register for a pass, it'll be tricky," Evan said. He could easily change his appearance, but Liam couldn't.
Liam understood what Evan meant and grumbled, "That Wei Family is ridiculous. The artifact was mine, but they insist it's theirs."
"What artifact did they want from you, anyway? Why are they so obsessed?" Evan asked curiously. If the Wei Family could mobilize the guards like this, they had to be influential. Still, it seemed excessive for a sixth-grade Immortal artifact.
"My sixth-grade Immortal artifact, the Purple Ring," Liam replied.
"Purple Ring? What's it do?" Evan asked, puzzled.
"Well, if an Immortal Emperor uses it, the Purple Ring can trap someone and even absorb their Immortal Source, transferring it to the wielder," Liam explained.
"What? That's incredible!" Evan exclaimed. He felt this artifact was definitely more than just a sixth-grade Immortal item.
"Incredible, yeah, but in my hands it's useless. I can't unleash its power at all," Liam said.
"Just cultivate until you reach Immortal Emperor, then you can use it," Evan joked.
"Easier said than done. Without a few million or even tens of millions of years, it's impossible. Besides, I don't even know if I'll live that long," Liam muttered.
"No worries. Hang on to it. One day you'll be strong enough to use it," Evan said.
Liam looked at Evan and said, "Why not just give it to you?"
Evan shook his head. Though the artifact was tempting, it would be valuable for Liam in the future, so Evan refused. "Like I said, you'll need it someday."
Seeing Evan insist, Liam could only reply, "Alright then."
"From now on, don't show this artifact to anyone. It's too tempting. I just don't get why it's only rated as a sixth-grade Immortal item," Evan said.
"After this, I wouldn't dare take it out again," Liam said awkwardly.
"Yeah, to get inside, we'll have to pass the registration. It's no problem for me, but you can't completely change your appearance," Evan said. "So what should we do? Maybe you should go alone," Liam sighed.
"No way. Since we're together, we go together," Evan replied.
"But right now..." Liam really didn't want to hold Evan back.
"It's fine. It's just a few people. I'll help you with some modifications these days," Evan said.
"What kind of modifications?" Liam asked suspiciously.
"Hidden Dragon Pill. It's a pill I refined before. It lasts for a day. As long as you don't release your aura, you'll be fine," Evan said, taking out a box of pills and placing it in front of Liam.
Liam eyed the pill suspiciously and asked, "What happens if I take it?"
"You can change your appearance at will and become just an ordinary person. But you have to control your aura—if you lose control of your aura, the pill's effect will disappear," Evan explained.
"Is it really that amazing?" Liam exclaimed in surprise.
"Come on, let's find an inn and let you practice a bit," Evan said.
Liam looked at Evan excitedly. "Alright!"
So the two of them found an inconspicuous inn, got a room, and then, under Evan's guidance, Liam took the Hidden Dragon Pill.
After taking the Hidden Dragon Pill, Liam found himself just like an ordinary person—and had even turned into a handsome young man.
"That's amazing! How did you do it?" Liam asked, unable to believe it.
"It's a recipe I made a long time ago," Evan replied.
"If you sold this stuff, it'd turn the world upside down," Liam said, his eyes shining.
"Better not. One day you might get tricked yourself," Evan shook his head, warning Liam not to get ideas. Liam agreed and put it away for later use.
Next, Evan kept testing Liam to see if he would accidentally reveal himself.
Since he wasn't used to it, Liam kept accidentally letting his aura slip. In the end, Evan had to keep training him. Three days later, when Liam could stay calm no matter what, Evan smiled, "Alright, now you'll be much safer inside."
"What about you?" Liam asked.
"I can freely change my appearance, so I'm fine," Evan said, then shifted into another look.
"You're a real freak," Liam said after watching Evan change appearances again and again.
"Come on, I'm not strong enough to be a monster yet," Evan laughed.
"With your strength, what else could you be but a monster?" The longer Liam spent with Evan, the less he could figure him out.
Evan smiled. "Let's go get a pass. Once we have it, we can freely enter and exit the formation zone—makes everything easier."
"That's true. I've wanted to go in for ages. There must be tons of elites in there, and all the sects and families—it'll be exciting," Liam said.
"Just go in and you'll see," Evan laughed.
Liam nodded and followed Evan. They arrived at the registration area, each paid ten million upper-grade Immortal Source, then entered their information at a special station, which was quickly transmitted into the formation zone.
Once everything was settled, they each received a card. With it, they could freely come and go.
"Seriously, it's annoying—a card like this costs ten million," Liam grumbled after entering the formation zone.
"The Territory War Contest is a rare event. Those major forces need to earn profits somehow. Besides, maintaining such a massive formation costs a fortune every day," Evan said.
"That's true. Now that you mention it, ten million almost feels cheap," Liam said, thinking about how vast the formation was.
"That's more like it. Come on, let's check out what it's really like in here," Evan said.
Liam nodded, and the two wandered inside. They found several zones: a rest area, a competition area, and a living area.
The so-called rest area was where people relaxed after matches. The competition area was for matches, and the living area was where goods were bought and sold.
Besides these three, there was an even more special zone—the Forbidden Area. It was said only the top leaders could enter. The competition area was only open during matches; otherwise, everyone stayed in the rest and living areas.
The living area was further divided: some places for people to live, others for trading.
Evan and Liam looked around—the formation was enormous. Even with their powerful divine sense, they couldn't see the edges. Evan estimated that flying from one side to the other would take at least half an hour.
But the most eye-catching thing was a tower. Evan noticed it looked exactly like the one on Flowcloud Star.
"Liam, does every power have one of these towers—and are there ten in total?" Evan asked.
"That's right. It's thanks to these towers that Flowcloud Star stays stable," Liam replied.
"Oh? Is there anything inside those towers?" Evan asked.
"Anything? Of course not. They're all forbidden zones. No one can get close to the towers, or the Ten Great Powers will hunt them down," Liam replied.
"That serious? Then how do you know there's nothing inside?" Evan thought of the tomb under the tower on Flowcloud Star, and the terrifying presence he'd sensed there. It still made him uneasy.
"That's what everyone says. If you get close to the tower, an invisible force restrains you, and when people notice, you're killed. Even Immortal Emperors can't withstand a justified mob attack," Liam explained.
Evan was skeptical. Back then, he'd entered from underground by accident and hadn't encountered any restrictions like that.
Maybe that tower was different from the others. Evan felt a sudden urge to check if this tower was the same, but recalling what Liam said, he decided to hold back.
"I see. In that case, let's head over to the tower and check out the area around it," Evan said.
"Yeah, let's go. The living area over there looks lively," Liam said.
Evan nodded and walked over. The place was full of people trading goods—mostly rogue cultivators, some self-organized, and a few small sects.
"Did you come here to make a quick buck?" Evan teased.
"I did think about it, but your wine has already made me plenty," Liam chuckled.
"Since there's still time before the contest, let's see if we can find any treasures here," Evan said with a grin.
"Treasure hunting? That's my favorite!" Liam said, delighted.