"We can definitely hold out! It's too late to regret now, we just have to tough it out. And look at that Golden Crow—three legs, just like the legends. Freaky." King Victor Zhao exclaimed in surprise.
Evan didn't reply, just stared straight up at the Golden Crow overhead. Judging by the aura pouring off these things, they were at least half‑god level, maybe even true gods. That meant King Victor Zhao and the Beast King were in real danger here—he couldn't help but feel powerless for a moment.
Just then, an ancient voice echoed from the sky: "Who are you, and why have you trespassed into our Golden Crow clan's domain? Do you not know that coming here means no one ever leaves?"
All three of them were startled—none of them expected the Golden Crow to actually speak human words. That made getting out of here in one piece way harder. If a Golden Crow could talk, it meant their intelligence was at least on par with humans—totally different from other fire‑attribute Netherbeasts.
"We wandered in by accident, got lost for a bit, and were just about to leave when you showed up. Judging by your looks, you must be the legendary Golden Crow divine birds—said to be ridiculously strong, right?" Evan said quickly.
Even as he said it, Evan felt a chill down his spine—he couldn't believe those words came out of his mouth. What a joke. King Victor Zhao and the Beast King stared at him in total confusion, having no clue why he'd say something so weird.
"Kid, you sure know how to flatter, but we Golden Crows don't care for it. It's obvious why you're here—you're after our clan's supreme treasure, the Sunstones. Anyone who barges into our domain dies. So today, you die!" one of the Golden Crows snapped.
"Die? Is that how the Golden Crow clan treats its guests? We traveled all this way, and now you want us dead? Isn't that a bit much?" Evan retorted.
"Hahahaha! 'Guests'? We're Golden Crows, not humans. You think we're that easy to fool? Prepare to die!" another Golden Crow sneered.
"Die, my ass! So what if you're Golden Crows? Covered in flames and ugly as hell. Sure, you can talk, but you can't even turn into human form—what's there to be proud of?" Evan shot back furiously. With guys like these, showing weakness was asking to get bullied.
As soon as he finished speaking, the three Golden Crows overhead flashed with red light, instantly transforming into human form and landing on the ground—three old men, which left Evan and the others stunned. Who knew how many centuries these guys had lived?
After changing shape, the scorching heat dropped a lot. Evan's earlier taunt was meant to provoke the Golden Crows into shifting to human form—only then could King Victor Zhao and the Beast King stand a chance. If they stayed in beast form, that black flame, almost as bad as Heavenfire, would fry them before they could even fight back.
Evan spoke up: "Sunstones must be pretty ordinary for you Golden Crows, right? I heard they're made from your eyes—just shed a tear and you get one. So why treat them like divine treasures? Weird, isn't it?"
"Kid, you know nothing. Our Golden Crow clan's tears are incredibly rare. We're pure flame—any tear that appears gets burned away instantly. Getting even one is almost impossible. Since you've come here, you die. Our clan's secrets aren't leaving with you," one Golden Crow elder declared.
"Are you kidding? I've heard 'you're dead' three times already. If you want us dead, then do it—talk is cheap. If the Golden Crow clan is really this unreasonable, maybe it's time you vanished from the Netherworld," Evan shot back.
"What an arrogant brat! How dare you look down on the Golden Crow clan—now you'll see the power of our Samadhi Truefire!" one elder roared.
"Samadhi Truefire? Sounds fancy—probably about as strong as Heavenfire, huh? But I'm not scared. Show me what you've got, I'll play along!" Evan replied, then shot a look at King Victor Zhao and the Beast King, signaling them to strike first.
The two instantly understood what Evan meant, and their weapons appeared in a flash. The heat was brutal, but when your life is on the line, you find strength you never knew you had.
Each picked a target and unleashed a full‑force attack, hoping to take their opponent out in one blow. Evan didn't slack off either—while talking, he was already flooding his right arm with Chaos Immortal Force, stacking on the Unicorn Arm, ready to hit with Divine Cleave. If he could kill one, that'd be a win.
Soon, all six were locked in battle. King Victor Zhao and the Beast King's attacks matched the Golden Crow elders blow for blow. Unless the Golden Crows used Samadhi Truefire, neither side could really hurt the other for now.
But when Evan unleashed Divine Cleave with the Unicorn Arm, it was a whole different story. As the move erupted, the earth and even the space itself shook violently—he was dead set on killing his target, going all out.
A massive sword‑qi, crackling with thunder, crashed into the enemy. The Golden Crow elder was strong, but against Evan's destructive power, he was no match—one blow reduced him to dust, leaving nothing but scattered fire‑element particles in the air.
Energy storms ripped through the air as Evan killed one Golden Crow elder in a single strike—no one saw that coming. That kind of terrifying power stunned the other two Golden Crows mid‑fight.
Evan's dominating attack sent all four combatants flying dozens of meters, and the energy backlash left them seriously injured. But killing a Golden Crow outright left the survivors in shock—even the Golden Crow King might not have that kind of power.
That one strike basically brought disaster—Evan flattened everything for thousands of li around, wrecked half the Golden Crow clan's holy land, and even the fire trees vanished. The air filled with wild fire‑element energy, and the temperature shot up.
King Victor Zhao and the Beast King couldn't take it anymore—they scrambled to throw up energy barriers around themselves. Seeing their struggle, Evan shouted, "Get out of here—leave these two to me!"
Both were quick on the uptake—while the two Golden Crows were distracted, they teleported away from the battlefield, leaving Evan hovering in midair. He wasn't leaving until the job was done.
Meanwhile, inside the Golden Crow clan's great hall, an elder shouted angrily, "What's going on out there? Who dares make trouble in our holy land? Go investigate—now!"
Two Golden Crows shot out from the hall, racing toward Evan's location...