Evan Chu slowly opened his eyes and saw Claire Ouyang gazing at him intently. He smiled and said, "Claire, how are you feeling?"
Though it was just a simple question, Claire felt an indescribable warmth in her heart—this was her man's concern. Smiling, she replied, "Lin Feng, I actually broke through another realm. I’m now at the fifth layer of the Divine Martial Realm. Really, thank you!"
At this moment, Claire looked absolutely stunning to Evan Chu—so beautiful he wanted to pull her into his arms and cherish her. Evan said, "No need for polite words between us. You’re my woman, and that’s all that matters."
Claire then stood up, walked over to Evan, and said, "Let’s just stay quietly in this room for the day. Tomorrow we’ll go see Father and Mother. I’ve already sent word to them, and your friends are settled comfortably in the guest quarters."
Evan looked at Claire in confusion, wondering to himself, "Could it be she’s still not satisfied and wants another round of battle?"
But he said aloud, "Are you feeling unwell somewhere, or just a little embarrassed to meet them?"
Claire’s face flushed red as she whispered, "It still hurts down there, and it’s hard to walk. Who told you to be so fierce and not know how to be gentle?"
Evan broke into a cold sweat—he really hadn’t thought about that. He’d just assumed, since her voice kept getting louder, that she was enjoying it. He never imagined things would end up like this.
"Want me to take a look?" Evan asked, shameless as ever.
"You’re so indecent. Didn’t you look enough last night? By the way, why did you want the Water Spirit Pearl? The water element inside is powerful, but most people can’t use it. Did you already comprehend the water element?" Claire blushed as she changed the subject.
"I wanted the Water Spirit Pearl to boost my own strength. That’s the whole reason I came to the Mermaid Kingdom—never thought I’d end up as your man!" Evan laughed.
Claire said, "Weakwater is terrifying. Even if you get the Goldscale Coat, you still might not be able to obtain it. I really don’t want you to be in danger."
"Don’t worry. As long as I have the Goldscale Coat, I’ll definitely get the Water Spirit Pearl. Your man isn’t destined for a short life, so you can relax." Evan smiled.
Claire hesitated for a moment, then said, "I believe you can do it, since you even managed to remove the extreme Yin poison from my body."
With that, she took off the necklace with a blue gemstone from her neck and said, "Take it—this is the Goldscale Coat. I’ve worn it for years. You’re my man, so I have to support you!"
Evan took it and stared at the necklace in shock. "This is the Goldscale Coat? That’s way too mystical!"
"The Goldscale Coat actually has two main functions. First, with a single thought, it can form an energy shield strong enough to block attacks from ninth-layer Divine Martial experts. Second, it can resist the chill of extreme Yin. That’s the only reason I’ve survived this long.
But whenever the full moon comes, the Goldscale Coat loses its power. That’s why I fall ill on those nights. The so-called Goldscale Coat is actually a necklace, not the armor everyone imagines." Claire explained slowly.
Only now did Evan truly understand. Staring at the necklace in his hand, he said, "I always thought it was something you could wear like armor. By the way, was your extreme Yin poison something you were born with, or did you eat something, or was it inflicted by someone?"
Claire stood up, walked to the window, opened it, and spoke with her back to Evan: "My extreme Yin poison was secretly planted by someone. It grows stronger as I get older."
If I can’t get rid of it within a year, I’ll die from the excess Yin poison in my body."
"Who would dare poison you? You were just a child back then! Could it be one of your father’s enemies? That doesn’t seem possible!" Evan said in shock.
"I don’t know who did it either. My father said the culprit isn’t from the Sea Regions. This kind of extreme Yin poison only exists in a certain sacred place, and there’s a sect there famous for its use of poison," Claire said.
Evan immediately realized Claire meant the Azure Tide Ruins. He couldn’t believe someone would secretly harm a little girl—it was just too strange. There had to be a deeper plot that hadn’t been uncovered yet.
Now that Evan had broken through to the Heaven Martial Realm, he could fully absorb the energy his mother left in the Dragon Scale. He just didn’t know how long it would take, or what kind of bloodline awakening he’d experience. If he turned into a dragon-headed, human-bodied monster, that’d be a real problem—he’d better prepare in advance.
"Claire, staying cooped up in this room all day is stifling. Let’s go out for a walk. They say the Mermaid Kingdom is beautiful—take me to see it. I want to experience what flying feels like too," Evan said.
Though Claire was a little reluctant, she agreed. "Alright, I’ll take you to our most famous spot—Mist-Cloud Lake. They say sometimes you can see a palace above it, shining with gold and jade, tens of thousands of times bigger than the Mermaid Kingdom’s own palace."
Evan was stunned—there was actually such a palace? The Mermaid royal city was already hundreds of li long and wide, but a palace tens of thousands of times bigger was hard to believe.
The two of them left the room. The same two palace maids stood at the door; when they saw Evan and Claire come out, they respectfully greeted them: "Greetings, Princess, Royal Consort!"
Claire wore a veil as she went out—she didn’t want anyone to see her true face. Evan circulated his Chaos Qi, and as he wondered how to make his body rise, he suddenly found himself floating into the air.
This unbelievable event left him momentarily dazed. After breaking through to the Heaven Martial Realm, he could borrow a bit of Heaven-and-Earth power—just a single thought, and his Heaven Star Core could draw on that force.
Of course, Evan didn’t know any of this yet. Claire also rose into the air, looked at him, and smiled. "Let me carry you for now. Once you truly master the secrets of Heaven-and-Earth power, you’ll be able to fly freely—and even comprehend spatial confinement."
Evan took Claire’s jade-like hand, and together they left the Mermaid royal palace at high speed. The wind howled past, and Claire’s flight was incredibly fast. Before long, a vast lake appeared before his eyes...