Evan Chu wasn't surprised by Princess Ivy's sudden change in attitude. He knew that once a girl truly became a woman, all sorts of unpredictable things could happen—especially with someone as proud and fiery as her.
"Do you hate me now? After what I did to you just now, what are you planning to do next?" Evan asked gently. At moments like this, he knew he had to show his softer side—only then could he truly win her heart and make her follow him wholeheartedly.
"I'm already your woman now, so what else could I possibly do to you? I did want to kill you at first, but not anymore. You're the man fated for me—I want to take you back to Nine-Shade City, introduce you to my father, and hold our wedding there." Princess Ivy said.
"We've both just broken through in cultivation, so I think we should consolidate our realms first before heading back. Breaking through isn’t easy—if we don’t stabilize now, it’ll be much harder to advance again in the future." Evan let go of her and spoke.
With that, the two of them began to consolidate their new cultivation realms. Time slipped by, and they both gradually entered a state of deep meditation. When all was finished, it had taken them half a day.
Evan finished before Princess Ivy, and seeing she was still in trance, he didn’t disturb her. Instead, he started talking to Luna, "Luna, now that I’m at Fourth-Layer Saint Martial Realm, do I have enough strength to kill a Third-Layer Venerable Martial expert?"
"That’s not certain. You’re probably strong enough to go head-to-head with one, but from the Venerable Martial Realm onward, each layer multiplies power. A Third-Layer Venerable can handle ten Second-Layer Venerables at once. Do you really think you’re at that level yet?
That’s only part of it. The Domains of Third-Layer Venerables are even more terrifying. The reason they can take on ten Second-Layer Venerables is precisely because of their Domains. There are all kinds—Ice-Snow, Blazing Fire, Gravity, Time, and more. If you want to defeat an expert like that, you’ll need to find a way to break through their Domain." Luna explained.
Evan felt a little unconvinced. With his current Chaos Dragon Force, he could unleash at least five full-power Star-Cleaves, which should be enough to defeat such experts—yet those Domains still left him frustrated.
"Is there any way to break through a Domain? Right now, I barely understand how Domains work. If I really run into one, won’t I be in serious danger?" Evan said.
"Once you learn to comprehend a Domain, you’ll be able to handle it. Every Domain has a flaw—borrowing the power of heaven and earth is always defying the natural order, and the flaw depends on the strength of the person wielding it. The stronger they are, the smaller the flaw; the weaker, the bigger. Spend more time attuning yourself to the power of heaven and earth. With your current Chaos Dragon Force, your nether power should already rival that of a Third-Layer Venerable." Luna said.
Evan knew that comprehending the power of heaven and earth wasn’t something that happened overnight. It was like when he learned to fly—he only figured it out by chance. But now that he’d reached Fourth-Layer Saint Martial Realm, maybe it was time to start practicing Windshift and Thundershift.
"When should I start practicing Windshift and Thundershift? I’m really curious how much stronger I’ll get after mastering them. Will I be able to help you recover your body then?" Evan asked.
"Wait until you’ve stabilized before you start. Don’t rush things. But after you absorbed her Pure Yin Qi this time, your Five-Element Thunder Crystals have already changed. That pearl in your dantian is no ordinary thing—once you fully master Thundershift, you’ll understand. It’s called the Thunder Pearl, and it’s different from the Thunder Spirit Pearl. The Thunder Pearl is the true source of your lightning; the bigger it gets, the stronger your thunder attacks will be." Luna explained, answering all the doubts in Evan’s heart.
Evan was silent for a long time. When he checked his sea of consciousness, he found his Nascent Soul was actually smiling at him and waving its tiny hand, giving him a strange feeling.
Evan was about to ask when he could absorb the demon core he’d gotten in the Divine Battlefield, but at that moment Princess Ivy woke up. Seeing Evan still beside her, she felt a surge of emotion—if he’d wanted to leave her, he could have gone long ago, but he’d stayed to wait for her.
"How do you feel?" Evan smiled. He still needed to ask her about that jade hairpin, so he had to be polite. As for Princess Ivy truly becoming his woman, Evan hadn’t fully accepted that yet.
"I’ve never felt so refreshed before—my whole body feels full of power. But because you were so rough, some places still ache!" Princess Ivy said, her face flushing red.
Evan naturally knew exactly what places she meant. He’d left plenty of finger marks on her, probably still bruised, and as for the more private spots—those went without saying.
"Don’t worry, a couple days’ rest and you’ll be fine. It’s your own fault for not cooperating! By the way, that jade hairpin you have is really beautiful—the craftsmanship is exquisite. Where did you get it? I doubt Nine-Shade City sells such fine ornaments!" Evan quickly shifted to the real topic.
"You mean that hairpin? Haha, it was a gift from a close sister of mine. She's a rare beauty—if you saw her, you'd definitely be moved. She's gentle, pretty strong, and most importantly, she's human, just like you." Princess Ivy laughed.
"Let me see the hairpin—I feel like I’ve seen it somewhere before," Evan said.
Princess Ivy glanced at Evan, a little confused, but still took it out. Evan looked at it and immediately recognized it as Roxanne Lin's Vermilion Bird hairpin—the emblem carved on it confirmed her identity.
After handing the hairpin back, Evan asked, "You said the owner of this hairpin is your sister, and she’s human—what’s the story there?"
Princess Ivy was in a great mood, so she told Evan the whole story of how she met Roxanne Lin and became sworn sisters. Evan listened, repeatedly shocked—Roxanne Lin actually managed to befriend such a proud princess and turn her into a loyal ally. That was some luck.
"Evan, do you know her? You’re both human, and you seem so familiar with this hairpin," Princess Ivy asked.
"That's right—her name is Roxanne Lin. She's my sister. I came to Nine-Shade City just to find her. I never thought she'd be staying in the City Lord's Mansion—what a surprise." Evan smiled.
"Let’s hurry back then! I want to surprise her—and I’m ready to tell Father about us too. What do you think?" Princess Ivy said, her face lighting up with a genuine smile—the kind that came straight from the heart.
"Alright! I just hope your father won’t oppose us." Evan smiled, though inwardly he was already worrying about how to explain things to Roxanne Lin... and how to handle the mess between him and Princess Ivy.