No matter how fast Evan Yang moved, he still couldn't withstand the attacks of Star Lord Orrin, whose strength had already surpassed the Out-of-Body Realm. Soon, Evan's body was covered in wounds.
"Kid, prepare to die." Seeing Evan's speed begin to falter, Star Lord Orrin clenched both hands. The beam of light that had been the size of a finger instantly expanded to the size of a fist.
Evan only saw a flash of light before his eyes. He instinctively shut his eyes, and then his body was struck by a powerful attack. "Ah!"
Evan, nearly knocked senseless, plummeted from the sky into the thicket below.
"He should be dead, right?" Star Lord Orrin locked his gaze on Evan and said.
"Not sure. I'll go down and check." Star Lord Leo Ling replied.
Star Lord Orrin nodded, keeping his hands aimed at Evan at all times.
Evan felt his consciousness growing fuzzy, his entire body suffering severe injuries. Blood was already flowing from his back.
"Damn it, I won't die so easily." Evan struggled to crawl up from the ground.
Seeing Evan get up, Star Lord Orrin was shocked. Star Lord Leo Ling immediately flashed forward, trying to grab Evan.
"I won't let you get away with this!" Evan glared fiercely at the two.
"Let us go? You'll die first!" Star Lord Leo Ling had already reached Evan's side. Just as he was about to grab Evan, a black-clad figure appeared next to Evan.
The black-clad figure swiftly grabbed Evan and, with a flash, whisked him away right before their eyes.
"Damn!" Star Lord Orrin and Star Lord Leo Ling were both shocked.
But the two had already vanished. The black-clad figure's speed was incredible—even while carrying someone.
"Damn it!" Star Lord Orrin shouted angrily as he watched them disappear into the distance.
"Who is that black-clad figure, anyway?" Star Lord Leo Ling exclaimed in shock.
"No idea, but he must be incredibly strong. If he'd wanted to kill us just now, it would have been effortless." Star Lord Orrin said, furious and unwilling to accept it.
"We'd better report this right away—he has powerful help, and that helper is extraordinary." Star Lord Leo Ling said.
"Absolutely." Star Lord Orrin replied angrily. As the two prepared to leave, Star Lord Leo Ling looked at the spot where Evan had fallen and said, "Strange."
"What's wrong?" Star Lord Orrin asked suspiciously.
"Why is there green blood where he was lying just now?" Star Lord Leo Ling wondered aloud.
"Maybe he got it from some savage beast, or maybe we caused it when we attacked him." Star Lord Orrin replied offhandedly.
"Maybe. Let's go." Star Lord Leo Ling nodded, understanding Orrin's meaning.
Evan hadn't expected the matter of his blood would be dismissed as beast blood by the locals.
After all, many savage beasts here had green blood, so cultivators were used to it and naturally wouldn't suspect it came from Evan.
Evan only felt someone had rescued him before he lost consciousness. When he finally regained clarity, it was already nighttime.
Seeing a black-clad figure sitting nearby, Evan instinctively rolled over in alarm, ready to fight. But the figure transmitted a message, "It's me."
"Senior Kong?" Evan immediately recognized the familiar voice.
"You really are something. With so many wounds, you're already almost healed." Reed Kong was amazed to see Evan nearly recovered.
Evan knew it was thanks to the Heaven-Cold Seed that any injury healed quickly. He turned his gaze to Reed Kong. "Why are you dressed like this?"
Seeing Evan fully conscious, Reed Kong smiled, pulled him closer, and recounted everything that had happened. When he learned the Genius Pavilion's current attitude toward Evan, he was both surprised and delighted.
"You really took a huge risk this time, killing so many Ninefold Palace people." Reed Kong said after explaining.
"Senior Kong, did Ninefold Palace really send so many people after me this time?" Evan asked suspiciously.
"Yes, you saw it yourself. The two today had already surpassed the Out-of-Body Realm, crossing the threshold of Out-of-Body great completion. Their strength was much higher, so it's a miracle you survived such heavy injuries." Reed Kong explained.
"Thanks again for saving me. If you hadn't shown up in time, I'd probably be a corpse right now." Evan said awkwardly.
"I want to ask you something. You can choose to answer honestly or stay silent." Reed Kong said, suddenly curious.
"What is it?" Evan asked, puzzled.
"About those people you killed earlier—how long did it take, and was it luck or something else?" Reed Kong had always been curious about this.
Evan knew Reed Kong had risked his life and exposure to save him, and only wanted to know the truth. He had nothing to hide, so he replied, "Within a quarter of an hour, I can kill opponents two minor realms above me—that's Blue Sixth-Tier by Genius Pavilion standards. But please keep this secret. If Ninefold Palace finds out, they'll send even stronger experts after me."
"As expected, Elder Mu's guess was right—you have Blue Sixth-Tier potential. That's incredible! I never thought I'd discover a genius of this level. But don't worry, I won't tell anyone about this, not even Elder Mu." Reed Kong said, overjoyed.
"Sorry, if I were officially Blue Sixth-Tier, you'd get a thousand merit points." Evan said with an embarrassed smile.
"What are you talking about? Your safety matters far more than a thousand points." Reed Kong came to help Evan out of conscience, not because of his potential.
From Reed Kong's earlier account and his actions now, Evan gained a deeper understanding of him and sincerely thanked him. "Thank you."
"No need to thank me. So, what are your plans now?" Reed Kong asked.
"I want to continue secluded cultivation until my strength grows. But before that, I want to ask you, Senior Kong: what's the realm above Out-of-Body, what are its traits, and how do you deal with cultivation problems?" Evan had no master or strong friends, so he could only ask Reed Kong.
Reed Kong asked, "You don't have a master?"
"You caught me." Evan replied with an embarrassed smile, though he felt frustrated—he technically had masters, but they were always absent.
"No master, yet you've come this far—you're truly a genius. In that case, I'll organize my own cultivation insights for you. Whenever you have questions, you can consult them." Reed Kong said.
Evan was deeply grateful. He'd always had to figure things out on his own, especially now at mid-stage Out-of-Body. Even Strange Fiend was only at mid-stage, so asking him about later stages was impossible. Hearing Reed Kong offer his insights, Evan felt a surge of gratitude.
Reed Kong carefully described the difficulties he had encountered in cultivation and his insights for each realm, handing them all to Evan.
Then he handed the notes to Evan. "Here, with this, you won't take as many wrong turns."
"Thank you, Senior Kong. I really don't know how to thank you enough." Evan said with a smile.
"I believe in you. Just stay alive!" Reed Kong said to Evan.
Evan nodded. "Don't worry—even if the Three Palaces fall, I'll still be alive."
"You sure talk big." Reed Kong was both surprised and amused by Evan's words.
Evan smiled and put away Reed Kong's cultivation notes.
Seeing Evan put away the notes, Reed Kong said, "Let's go. I'll take you out of here."
"No need. I'll stay here. Outside is all Three Palace territory—it's better here, at least this is Genius Pavilion's domain." Evan shook his head. He really didn't want to leave, since here he could find savage beasts as opponents and maybe some Three Palace cultivators for life-and-death trials.
Reed Kong didn't know what Evan was really thinking; he just assumed Evan felt safer here under the Genius Pavilion.
"Alright, if you ever need help, just find me." Reed Kong sighed.
"Okay, you should go now, before anyone discovers you." Evan nodded to Reed Kong.
Reed Kong nodded, said goodbye to Evan, and before leaving, reminded him to stay hidden until he was strong enough.
Evan understood Reed Kong's concern, so he agreed immediately. But only Evan knew what he would actually do.
After Reed Kong left, Evan found a hidden spot and entered the Tower. With the Sky-Piercing Tower in a concealed place, even if powerful cultivators swept the area with divine sense, they'd never know there was a tower hidden in a crevice, and that inside was Evan's training ground.
Once inside the Tower, Evan read through Reed Kong's insights on later stages and great completion, then closed his eyes and began death-seclusion. He wouldn't come out until he broke through.
Outside, Evan's escape from two Star Lords shocked Ninefold Palace. They increased the merit reward and ordered Star Lords and Ninefold Palace cultivators to conduct a carpet search of Genius Star.
But even after searching the whole planet, Evan was nowhere to be found. Half a year later, Ninefold Palace guessed Evan had left Genius Star and withdrew, leaving only a few to stay and cultivate.
From then on, a wanted poster for Evan appeared throughout the Ninefold Star System—on fifth- and fourth-class stars, almost everywhere under Ninefold Palace's control.
But the Star Lords of third-, second-, and first-class stars didn't care. In their eyes, what trouble could an Out-of-Body cultivator cause? At most, he could kill some fifth-class Star Lords, but he was far beneath their level.
It was like using a cannon on a thief—overkill. So while the Star Lords issued orders, their subordinates saw Evan's mid-stage Out-of-Body realm and dismissed him as a minor nuisance, just a game for the youngsters.
Evan had no idea these people were so arrogant, which would actually make it easier for him to move around Ninefold Star in the future.
Aside from Ninefold Palace, the Black Hand Syndicate was also searching everywhere for Evan. Their contract lasted only ten years—if they failed, their reputation would suffer. Throughout history, they rarely took such jobs, and they didn't want their reputation ruined by failing to kill a mere mid-stage Out-of-Body cultivator.