The Nether Patriarch took the ring, checked inside, and nodded once he confirmed Elder Lewis was unconscious. "Good. You may go now."
The man nodded, turned to leave, but before he could take a single step, he was struck from behind.
"You..." the man said, disbelief written all over his face.
"Only this way is truly safe." The Nether Patriarch grabbed the fleeing soul, sneering as he spoke.
He then tossed the body aside, took the soul and the ring, and withdrew from the scene.
Arriving at Corpse-Refiner Mountain, the Corpse-Refiner glanced at the unconscious Elder Lewis and sneered, "Old friend, don't blame me. You're better off now—living is worse than dying for you anyway. Let me help you out: I can wake you up, and even boost your strength."
With that, he began working on Elder Lewis. About three years later, the Corpse-Refiner finally smiled—he had managed to wake Elder Lewis, whose strength had greatly increased. Not only that, Elder Lewis could now be used as his own pawn.
"Master." Elder Lewis said respectfully.
"Lewis Yan, I saved you and boosted your cultivation—you're now far stronger than before. I know you've always hated Evan Yang, so you must help me capture him." The Corpse-Refiner grinned.
Hearing the name Evan Yang, Elder Lewis's face twisted, as if struck by a curse. He harbored deep hatred for that name, and Evan's image flashed vividly in his mind.
"I'll definitely take him down," Elder Lewis said.
"Good, go." The Corpse-Refiner smiled.
Elder Lewis left Corpse-Refiner Mountain. The Nether Patriarch asked, "Will the Palace Lord discover him?"
"So what if he does? With his current strength, even if he can't beat the Palace Lord, he can still escape. And dealing with Evan Yang shouldn't be a problem." The Corpse-Refiner laughed.
The Nether Patriarch nodded. "Also, keep an eye on him in secret. If needed, lend him a hand." The Corpse-Refiner instructed the Nether Patriarch.
Receiving his orders, the Nether Patriarch departed. The Corpse-Refiner muttered, "Too bad Lewis Yan isn't a living corpse—otherwise, I wouldn't need anyone to monitor him."
At this point, Lewis Yan was basically half a puppet—less intelligent than before, but not a fool. That's why the Corpse-Refiner felt he wasn't as good as a true living corpse.
After all, Elder Lewis had been affected by Fiend Abyss, compounded by his old injuries and the Corpse-Refiner's special methods. That's how he ended up as he was now—a killing machine.
Relying on his memories, Elder Lewis thought for a moment and decided not to go to Fiend Palace, but to seek out his former subordinates instead.
When those hidden subordinates saw a stranger appear, they tried to seize him—fortunately, Elder Lewis produced a special token.
When they realized it was Elder Lewis, and after he explained the situation, they understood what was going on. The group once again fell under Elder Lewis's control.
Elder Lewis then used these men to search for Evan Yang and his friends.
In Elder Lewis's memory, he only knew Derek was Evan Yang's friend—after all, the Lewis Family once hunted Derek for his unique physique.
So Elder Lewis locked onto Evan Yang—and onto Derek as well.
Evan Yang was inside Fiend Palace, oblivious to what was happening outside. Derek was also focused on cultivation, equally unaware.
A few more years passed. Elder Lewis's men still had no news of those two, but they brought him something else—something that piqued his interest.
"Are you sure she's from Fiend Palace?" Elder Lewis asked, staring at one of the five women.
"Elder Lewis, have you forgotten? She's the Palace Lord's sister—the very one who caused your body to be destroyed and made Fiend Palace hunt you down." someone explained, feeling that Elder Lewis's mind was a bit off, though he still recognized his token and other details perfectly.
Elder Lewis stared at the woman again, then as if recalling something, ordered, "Take them all. Fiend Palace owes me."
Everyone obeyed and hurried to carry out the order. Worried they weren't strong enough, Elder Lewis went along too.
For years, Faye Gale and her four companions had roamed the Fiend Realm. Their reputation spread far and wide—no one dared provoke them.
But now, a group had finally appeared to challenge them.
Just as the five of them were about to head to another city, a crowd surrounded them.
Faye Gale sized up their strength, saw they weren’t particularly powerful, and laughed, "You’ve got guts, daring to block our way."
"Miss, do you know who we are?" the leader asked, grinning.
"No idea, who are you?" Faye Gale asked, curious.
"We’re Elder Lewis’s men. Today, we’ll take you down." The man smiled, and the others confidently declared they’d capture Faye Gale.
Hearing they were Elder Lewis’s remnants, Faye Gale snorted, "You survivors dare show yourselves? Today I’ll wipe you out!"
With that, Faye Gale and Ye Chen attacked together, while Winter stayed back to protect the less powerful Xin Jiang and Tara Chu.
Xin Jiang and Tara Chu watched, feeling embarrassed and useless—they still needed protection. They secretly vowed not to drag others down; once this was over, they’d devote themselves to training.
But little did they know, misfortune was about to hit them.
Just as Ye Chen and Faye Gale started fighting and took down many enemies, someone appeared before the five of them. All were shocked—it was Elder Lewis.
Faye Gale couldn’t believe it. "Weren’t you thrown into Fiend Abyss?"
"I got lucky and escaped. Today I’ll take you all down—as interest for Fiend Palace’s debt." Elder Lewis sneered.
"You!" Faye Gale knew Elder Lewis was no ordinary foe and didn’t dare act rashly. She sent a voice transmission to Ye Chen and the others: "He’s very strong. I’ll hold him off—hurry back to Fiend Palace!"
"You can’t do it alone. I’ll stay with you!" Ye Chen replied, then told Winter and the others to head for Fiend Palace.
Seeing Ye Chen insist, Faye Gale had no choice but to join her. Winter turned to Xin Jiang and Tara Chu, "Go, now!"
"Them!" Xin Jiang had grown as close as sisters with the others over the years; leaving two behind was almost unbearable.
"We have to be safe to get word to him!" Winter said calmly. She understood Ye Chen and Faye Gale’s intention—if they didn’t escape, their sacrifice would be wasted.
Tara Chu gritted her teeth, "Let’s go."
So the three reluctantly retreated, leaving Ye Chen and Faye Gale to tangle with Elder Lewis.
Elder Lewis roared, "Go after those three!"
His men obeyed, quickly closing in. Because Xin Jiang and Tara Chu were weak, they were soon caught up to. Xin Jiang cursed, "Damn it—if only I were stronger!"
Tara Chu sighed, "Looks like everyone out here is a powerhouse."
Winter frowned—if she didn’t stop these pursuers, it would be hard to escape with the two. She took out a green bug.
That bug, originally the size of a finger, suddenly grew huge—towering like a building, glowing green all over.
"Go—let Sprig handle them," Winter said, then led Xin Jiang and Tara Chu away.
Sprig obeyed Winter’s command, opened its mouth, and sprayed green crystal. Anyone hit was instantly frozen, unable to move, and soon covered in green crystal until they died.
"Damn it—everyone, chop it up!" the leader snapped.
The crowd surrounded Sprig.
"Will it be in danger?" Xin Jiang asked anxiously as they flew ahead.
Tara Chu worried about the pet too, but Winter said, "Don’t worry, those guys aren’t strong enough to finish it off in one blow. With a thought, I can call Sprig back to me."
"Are you sure?" Xin Jiang asked.
"Yeah. Let’s hurry." Winter feared Sprig wouldn’t last long, so she urged them on and kept flying.
Back with Ye Chen and Faye Gale, they fought Elder Lewis, but in his eyes, the two were no match at all.
He snorted, "You’re just asking to die!"
"We’ll see if you’ve got what it takes!" Faye Gale retorted.
"Then let’s see some moves." Elder Lewis finally unleashed his true power—almost at the Nine Tribulations level. Faye Gale and Ye Chen felt immense pressure, until both were badly injured.
Elder Lewis sneered, "Just the two of you? Dream on!" With that, he tossed their wounded bodies into a Space Ring.
He then chased after the others. Seeing a massive creature attacking his men, Elder Lewis frowned, "What kind of monster is that?"
Sprig sprayed at him, but Elder Lewis dodged. Sprig, furious, unleashed even more green crystal breath.
The green darts shot out like hidden weapons—anyone struck turned to green crystal.
Elder Lewis had to rely on his powerful cultivation to fight Sprig, until he seized an opening and used Flash Step to sneak attack from behind.
Sprig let out a pained cry. Far away, Winter sensed the change and panicked, quickly using her bond to call Sprig back. Sprig appeared before them, bleeding green.
Winter was shocked, tears in her eyes. "It’s all my fault."
Sprig shrank back into a tiny caterpillar, crawled onto Winter’s hand, and finally melted into her body.
"How is it?" Xin Jiang asked anxiously—the scene had been terrifying, as if a person were gravely wounded.
"It’s badly hurt and needs rest. Its life isn’t in danger, but its aura is very weak," Winter said, worried.
"Hopefully he can help—let’s go." Xin Jiang knew Evan Yang’s medical skills were superb, and Winter’s too, so she snapped out of her grief and hurried off with Tara Chu.
Just as they reached Fiend Palace’s gate, Elder Lewis caught up. At that moment, four First-Rank Generals guarding Fiend Palace appeared. Seeing the situation, they recognized Faye Gale’s companions—she’d brought them to Fiend Palace many times, so they were well known.
When the four generals appeared, Winter said, "He escaped."
The four saw Elder Lewis had escaped and was far stronger than before, and were shocked. One told the three women, "Get inside Fiend Palace—leave this to us."
Winter, Xin Jiang, and Tara Chu hurried inside. The four generals surrounded Elder Lewis, who sneered, "Just four First-Rank Generals? Not enough!"
He unleashed his power, and the generals fought back. But Elder Lewis was too strong; after a brief clash, he broke through and charged into Fiend Palace.