Ember Yang, realizing her mother has been tricked, cried out in alarm, "What about my mom? Isn't she in great danger?"
"Let's find your mother first, quickly," Evan Yang said. The Phoenix Patriarch also ordered the Fire Phoenixes of the clan, "Hurry, search together."
Everyone immediately began searching.
Evan Yang teamed up with Ember Yang and Brocade, and Evan followed the route where he had last parted ways with April Lei, splitting up to search bit by bit. Finally, not far away, he saw what had happened to April Lei.
At this moment, April Lei was barely clinging to life—any later and she would have died. Evan Yang flashed over and rescued her. April Moon, seeing Evan suddenly appear, exclaimed in shock, "Damn it, didn't you leave?"
"Left? I came back. You sure have guts, daring to go against your Patriarch's orders!" Evan Yang snorted coldly.
April Moon frowned, "You've met the Patriarch?"
Evan Yang had no time for nonsense and turned directly to April Lei, asking, "How are you holding up?"
April Lei opened her eyes and gave a bitter smile, "Sorry to embarrass you."
"Good thing I got here in time. You're safe now," Evan Yang said.
"What about Ember Yang? How is she? Didn't you go look for her?" April Lei asked Evan Yang.
Evan Yang comforted her, "She's fine. She's contacting your Patriarch now and will be here soon."
April Lei gave a bitter smile, "The Patriarch—he's really come out?"
Evan Yang nodded with a smile, "He really has."
"That's good," April Lei said, smiling.
Hearing this, April Moon snorted coldly, "Before the Patriarch gets here, I'll kill you both first."
"You're not my match, and you still want to fight me?" Evan Yang sneered.
April Moon snorted, then ordered everyone to step back. Evan Yang was curious what she was planning, when suddenly April Moon took out a bottle and threw it at Evan and April Lei.
Evan Yang immediately sensed a powerful poison. April Lei's arm instantly withered and lost all vitality—she cried out in shock, "Ah!"
Seeing this, Evan Yang was startled and quickly infused her with Heaven-Cold qi, expelling the toxin from her body.
Seeing April Lei injured but Evan unharmed, April Moon frowned, "Strange, how is he unscathed?"
After a short while, April Lei recovered and the gas dispersed. Evan Yang snorted coldly, "You're truly vicious."
"How are you unharmed?!" April Moon said in disbelief.
"Because I'm lucky!" Evan Yang snorted coldly, making April Moon furious and want to leave, but by then many Phoenix Mountain experts had arrived.
Leading the group was the Phoenix Patriarch, who eyed April Moon suspiciously. On seeing April Lei, his face darkened with anger: "April Moon, didn't I tell you to bring her to see me?"
April Moon hadn't expected the Patriarch to arrive so quickly. She said, "That was my plan, but she wouldn't listen."
"You don't blush when you lie? She clearly followed you." Evan Yang sneered.
April Moon gritted her teeth. "She didn't want to come."
The Patriarch grew angrier. "Now? You still tell me this?"
April Moon knew she couldn't keep up the act, so she snorted. "Patriarch, you've always been biased. Even after all these years, you're still the same. Let me tell you, today you'll never catch me."
With that, April Moon vanished in a blaze of black flames. The Patriarch frowned, "What...?"
Evan Yang watched the black smoke fade with curiosity. "How does she have such a bizarre technique?"
April Lei was equally shocked. "What...?"
The surrounding Fire Phoenix clan members were terrified and knelt, begging the Patriarch for mercy.
The Patriarch asked, "You've known April Moon for years. Do you know who she's been associating with?"
"We don't know," the clan members shook their heads.
The Patriarch said, "Go back and focus on your cultivation!" The clan members hurried away, and the Patriarch approached April Lei. "Sorry to keep you waiting."
April Lei smiled bitterly. "It's fine, Patriarch. I'm just glad you came."
The Patriarch smiled. "I sent you on a mission years ago. How did it go?"
Sorry to disappoint you, Patriarch. When I went to that place, the Holy Relic vanished after arriving. So I returned here to find the Skycry Bird, hoping it could help us.
The Patriarch sighed, "It's good you're safe. If the Holy Relic vanished, that's just fate."
"Patriarch, I've already found the Skycry Bird," April Lei said with a smile.
The Patriarch was curious, "Oh? Where is it?"
Evan Yang said, "It's with me." He brought out the Skycry Bird, and the Patriarch smiled, "Good, good! With it, finding the Holy Relic will be much easier."
"Patriarch, you brought April Moon to the Phoenix Clan years ago. I want to know, what is her true identity?" April Lei asked curiously.
The Patriarch shook his head. "She was wandering outside, and I saw she was a Phoenix, so I took her in. I never expected things to become so complicated."
Evan Yang asked, "Why does she have black flames?"
"That's the Dark Phoenix lineage, also called the Evil Phoenix. Such phoenixes haven't appeared in ages, but when they do, it always shakes the divine beast world," the Patriarch explained.
Evan Yang nodded, "I see."
"Let's return to Phoenix Mountain first. We'll discuss April Moon's situation later," the Patriarch said to April Lei, then led Evan Yang and the others back to Phoenix Mountain.
April Moon returned to the pool, entered below, and reported to the statue, "Master, that human isn't afraid of the poison. In fact, he can help others cleanse it."
The statue was shocked. "What? Is that possible?"
April Moon nodded, "Yes, it's true."
"Impossible! My poison never fails," the statue said, refusing to believe it.
"It's true, absolutely true," April Moon replied.
"Understood. This human needs to be taken seriously. Here, take this authority token. Find the divine beasts listed on it and work together to kill him. Remember, you have three days. If you fail, come back with your head," the statue snorted coldly.
April Moon replied, "Yes." She took the authority token, glanced at the names, and left.
Meanwhile, at Phoenix Mountain, the Patriarch and others continued discussing April Moon.
"Patriarch, I don't think this is simple. We must be careful," April Lei said. If it was jealousy before, now it seems April Moon has other motives.
The Patriarch said, "Yes, I didn't pay much attention before, but now we must be vigilant."
"April Moon's power isn't that strong; I'm just worried she has support behind her," Evan Yang said.
Evan Yang's words struck a chord with the Patriarch and April Lei. They exchanged glances, and the Patriarch said, "We need a plan to capture her."
"Dark Phoenixes are hard to deal with, Patriarch," April Lei said.
"I know, but we have no choice. We have to try," the Patriarch said.
"April Moon will definitely come for us again. When she does, let's pretend to be captured and see what she does. Maybe we'll find out who's backing her," Evan Yang said to the Patriarch and April Lei.
"That's a good idea," April Lei said with a smile.
The Patriarch agreed, and the three decided: if April Moon appeared again, whoever she targeted would pretend to lose, so they could find her backer.
April Moon had no idea the trio suspected she had support. She moved among five divine beasts, and when the time came, they gathered together.
That night, Evan Yang, April Lei, and the others split up and wandered outside, pretending to be out for a stroll to lure April Moon.
April Moon, planning how to draw out Evan Yang, muttered, "Daring to go out alone? Courting death!"
April Moon and the five divine beasts gathered, waiting for Evan Yang to appear.
Evan Yang, walking along a path, sensed April Moon and the others nearby.
Evan Yang muttered to himself, "They really showed up."
Not knowing Evan Yang was luring them, April Moon sent a message to the other five: "Be ready."
Suddenly, Evan Yang sensed six auras attacking him. He pretended to be terrified, "Who?!"
He fled, seemingly fast but deliberately slowing down, so the six divine beasts quickly caught up.
Evan Yang noticed the divine beasts were from different places, even including a dragon from the Dragon Clan.
"Who are you?" Evan Yang pretended to let one beast hit him, then asked in fear.
"Ha! I thought you were strong, but you're not so tough after all," April Moon laughed.
"Damn it, you're ganging up on me," Evan Yang said with a cold snort.
April Moon laughed, "Why worry about that now? Everyone, attack and block him!"
The five used a special technique to create a small barrier, trapping Evan Yang inside and shrinking it to a tiny space.
"Done! You all did well this time. I'll tell our master about your performance," April Moon laughed.
The five laughed and left. April Moon took the barrier and departed. Evan Yang muttered, "Let's see if you can resist this trick."
On the other side, Yang Huo had found Evan Yang's whereabouts and said to the Patriarch and others, "Found him. He's moving west."
"Let's go, everyone!" the Patriarch said, eager to set out.
The group set out, following Evan Yang at a distance.
Ahead, April Moon, unaware of the situation, led Evan Yang into the pool. Under the water, she saw the statue and said, "Master, I've returned."
"How did it go? Did you catch him?" the statue appeared and asked.
April Moon replied, "I've trapped him in the barrier. He can't escape."
The statue nodded, "Good. Bring him here."
April Moon led Evan Yang toward the statue. Evan Yang pretended to be weak, stumbling along.
The statue sneered, "You thought you could escape? Now you'll pay the price."