"It's a bit early to talk about all that. Let's save the breakthrough talk for later—right now, just getting the Glassfire Crystal is still up in the air. Don't celebrate too soon; most things never go as planned." Evan Chu said.
Luna chuckled, "Well, Evan, you've really grown up—now you're lecturing your big sis. Still, you gambled right this time, and we made it through with just a scare."
After a while, the Earthfire Wraith still hadn't returned. Evan muttered, frustrated, "Is that guy ditching me on purpose? Maybe it found something and is ditching me on purpose?"
"What do you mean 'ditching you'? I've never heard that phrase before. But I'm sure it'll come back. The Earthfire Wraith's intelligence is like a child's—once it sets its mind on something, it'll see it through. Just wait." Luna said.
Evan laughed, "Luna, you don't even know what 'ditching' means? It's when you let a pigeon go and it never comes back—that's 'getting ditched.' Just like the wraith leaving and not returning."
Luna was about to reply when, suddenly, the earth-fire near Evan surged. Scorching heat instantly flooded the cramped space, forcing Evan to frantically channel Chaos Dragon Force to resist the onslaught.
Evan realized the Earthfire Wraith was back—Luna was right. Just thinking about getting the Glassfire Crystal made his heart race. Soon, the wraith emerged from the earth-fire, grinned at Evan, and said, "Kid, I had to go all out to fetch this Glassfire Crystal. After tens of thousands of years, only three have formed. I brought you two—pretty generous, right?"
"Great King, you're unbelievably generous! Evan thanks you! To receive Glassfire Crystals personally from you is truly a fortune across three lifetimes!" Evan said respectfully, though inside he was gloating—tricking this fool was way too easy. 'Great King'? More like an idiot!
"Glad you realize it. You gave me such precious stuff, so of course I have to give you something worthy in return." the Earthfire Wraith replied. In a flash, two fiery red crystals appeared before Evan.
The crystals were slightly translucent and resembled Fire Crystals, but the heat they radiated nearly overwhelmed Evan. He quickly stored both Glassfire Crystals in his storage ring with a thought.
Luna said, "Evan, your luck is off the charts. These two Glassfire Crystals are incredibly rare—even here in the Netherworld, it's unheard of to find ones this big. Normally, a Glassfire Crystal is only about the size of an egg, but the Earthfire Wraith just gave you two that are bigger than goose eggs!
"Just absorb the energy from one Glassfire Crystal and you'll be able to push Fireshift up to the second tier. The other one, if you bring it to the Immortal Realm and auction it, will fetch at least five hundred mid-grade Immortal Stones." Luna added.
Evan grinned, "That valuable, huh? Then I really owe it to him. I was just regretting handing over those supreme-grade Starstones, but now it looks like I got my money's worth. Time to get out of here—this place is hell for humans."
The Earthfire Wraith watched Evan casually stow away the two Glassfire Crystals and was a bit shocked. The temperature of those crystals was far higher than the surrounding earth-fire. Judging by Evan's reaction, his fire-element comprehension ran deep—he hadn't been lying about his affinity after all.
Evan smiled, "Great King, the outside world is gorgeous. Haven't you ever been out? You can't have stayed in this dull place forever. Why not come out with me and see for yourself?" At that moment, he was already scheming how to leave safely.
Of course, Evan didn't dare say straight out that he wanted to leave—if the wraith got angry, all his hard work would go up in smoke. He knew the Earthfire Wraith had never left this place, so he tried to provoke it a little.
Every real powerhouse cares about face, even one as simple-minded as the Earthfire Wraith. That's why it gave Evan the Glassfire Crystals. Evan had spotted this weakness and played right into it.
The Earthfire Wraith puffed up. "Of course I've been out—lots of times! But I don't have any friends out there, so I prefer it here. Are you asking me to go out with you?"
Evan replied respectfully, "Great King, nothing escapes you. For me, staying here is like living through years in a single day—only a powerhouse like you could stand it. I really have to leave, but after receiving your gift, it feels wrong to just walk away. That's why I wanted to invite you out with me."
The Earthfire Wraith nodded, "Ah, I forgot you're human—naturally you can't stay here long. I've still got things to handle, but once I'm done I'll come find you, how's that?"
Hearing that, Evan was secretly delighted, but his face showed only helplessness. "Great King, you've treated me so generously—I'm truly grateful. If you ever need anything, just come find me. I'm currently cultivating in a tower ten thousand li from here—if you ever miss me, that's where I'll be."
"Alright, I got it! I'll definitely come visit you. Go ahead—I've got things to handle, so I won't keep you." The Earthfire Wraith said.
"Then I'll take my leave, Great King—don't forget to come!" Evan said, then started moving upward. He couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed at his own shameless flattery. If only he were strong enough, he wouldn't have to play these games.
Not long after, Evan reached the surface of the yellow sand, let out a heavy breath, and muttered, "Finally out. If I'd stayed any longer, I'd have suffocated. At least I got the Glassfire Crystals—it was worth all that suffering."
By now, the killer Glasswind had vanished. Evan got his bearings and kept moving forward, using Shifting Position at full speed. The oppressive heat was gone, and he felt completely refreshed.
After about a day, Evan noticed the environment changing—patches of real soil appeared among the yellow sand. He realized he'd left the pure desert behind, and the Death-Tower couldn't be far now.
Evan released Jade Chu and Tom Chu from his storage ring, checked them over, and asked, "You two really weren't hurt? I didn't expect the Earthfire Wraith's attack to be so strong—it could even break your energy barriers. That's terrifying."
Jade Chu answered, "Big Brother, normally even ten Earthfire Wraiths couldn't break our energy barriers. But the earth-fire temperature there was so high, we had to use most of our energy just to resist it, so we couldn't block the wraith's attack as well. Good thing we managed—otherwise you'd have been in real trouble."
Evan asked, "Jade, can you check how far we are from the three towers? Are we almost there?"
Jade Chu quickly replied, "Just a few thousand li left. At your current speed, Big Brother, you'll reach them in about half a day!"
"Alright, you two go back into the storage ring. Once we get there, I'll let you out again," Evan said, and the two spirits returned to the ring. He continued onward, chaining Windshift and Shifting Position, leaving afterimages as he raced ahead.
Meanwhile, back in Shadowlin City, Princess Ivy, Roxanne Lin, and Faye Knox were fuming in Evan's room, all wearing matching scowls.
Princess Ivy complained, "That jerk Evan didn't even say a word before sneaking off—what does he take us for? So infuriating!"
Roxanne Lin said, "Evan really went too far this time. Even if the Death-Tower is dangerous, he should've at least discussed it with us. Sneaking off like this just makes us worry more!"
Faye Knox added, "Don't blame him—he's already gone, just hope he comes back safe. No wonder he refused to let us stay in his room; he must've planned this all along. We were too careless."
Princess Ivy huffed, "When he gets back, we have to teach him a lesson—otherwise he'll think he can get away with anything!"
Far away, Evan suddenly sneezed and joked to himself, "No way, those three are already badmouthing me behind my back? That's harsh!"
Half a day later, Evan finally saw the three towers Lillian Zhang had mentioned. This place was like paradise—lush and green, nothing like the harsh landscape at the entrance.
Evan approached the first tower but stopped when he spotted an old white-haired man meditating in the grass. The elder felt unfathomable—Evan couldn't sense his strength at all.
Not wanting to disturb the elder, Evan quietly circled past, intending to check out the first tower. Suddenly, the old man spoke: "Stop, boy—the Death-Tower isn't something just anyone can approach."
Evan froze. Lillian Zhang hadn't mentioned anything like this—she'd only said there were lots of experts inside training on the first three floors, all aiming for the fourth. Why was this elder stopping him?
"Why can't I approach? Please enlighten me, senior," Evan asked, keeping his tone steady. He thought to himself, I'm not timid—playing along with the Earthfire Wraith was just a survival move. Here, with Jade Chu and Tom Chu, nobody should be able to hurt me.
The elder flashed in front of Evan, moving as fast as Shifting Position. He studied Evan and asked, "Did you just enter the Death-Tower Grounds?"