Evan Yang hadn’t expected the other party to see through him at a glance. He was genuinely impressed, and already treated him as an Immortal-class senior.
"Senior, I owe everything to your Heaven-Cold Seed. Without it, I never would have gotten this far," Evan said humbly.
"Your bloodline combined with the Heaven-Cold Seed brings out its full potential. You’ll understand more in the future. Right now, you haven’t reached the Immortal level, so everything you’ve achieved is thanks to your own hard work," the Ice-Block Senior said with a smile.
Evan was curious about what changes the Heaven-Cold Seed and his bloodline might bring in the future, so he asked, "Then what changes will there be later on?"
"You don’t need to know that yet. You’ll understand when the time comes," the Ice-Block Senior replied, making his intentions clear without giving a direct answer.
Seeing that he wouldn’t explain, Evan didn’t press further. Instead, he asked, "Then, Senior, when will you be able to leave this place?"
"I can’t say for sure. I’ll have to wait until my injuries are healed. But you—at your current pace, you should reach the Pseudo-Immortal Stage soon. Once you do, you can look for a chance to enter the Immortal Realm," the Ice-Block Senior said.
"Senior, the Immortal Gate entrance needs six map fragments. Only four have appeared so far, so it looks like there’s still some time," Evan said with a frown.
"Four already? That fast? Looks like the fifth and sixth fragments will gather soon. You’d better hurry," the Ice-Block Senior said suspiciously.
"Don’t worry. The fourth fragment is in my hands. As long as I don’t want to, they won’t be able to find it," Evan said with a smile.
"You’re mistaken. If any four fragments come together, the other two will automatically fly to join them. In other words, if someone controls four and brings them together, an abnormal change will occur," the Ice-Block Senior explained.
Evan was shocked, not expecting things to work this way. His plans had to change again. "So that’s how it is. But right now, the fourth fragment is still with me, and the other two haven’t appeared yet."
"Good, then you need to reach the Pseudo-Immortal Stage as soon as possible. The Immortal Gate only stays open for a hundred years, and during that time you’ll also need to find the proper authority token," the Ice-Block Senior said, sounding a bit worried.
"Don’t worry, Senior. Look." Evan opened his palm, revealing an authority token.
The Ice-Block Senior was astonished. "Your luck is incredible. You not only have the map, but also the token. As long as you reach the Pseudo-Immortal Stage, entering the Immortal Realm won’t be a problem."
"I got it by chance," Evan said with a smile.
"Then I wish you an early entry into the Immortal Realm. But I need to remind you—once you enter, keep a low profile. Don’t let anyone know about your bloodline or the Heaven-Cold Seed. There are plenty of people in the Immortal Realm who know what those mean. If your bloodline and the Heaven-Cold Seed are exposed, it’ll bring you huge trouble," the Ice-Block Senior warned.
"I understand, Senior," Evan replied. He wasn’t foolish—he knew the Immortal Realm would be even harsher, so he wouldn’t be stupid enough to reveal anything.
"Good. Become a true Immortal Realm cultivator soon—that’s where your real life begins," the Ice-Block Senior said with a smile.
"The start of my life?" Evan wasn’t sure what he meant by that.
"I hope that by the time I finally leave, you’ll already be famous in the Immortal Realm," the Ice-Block Senior replied.
"I won’t let you down, Senior," Evan said with a smile. He chatted with the Ice-Block Senior for a while longer, then finally took his leave.
"A prodigy—looks like there’ll be a good show in the Immortal Realm," the Ice-Block Senior mused.
Evan didn’t really understand what the Ice-Block Senior meant. Right now, he was at the Rising Sun Sect, looking at the places he’d been before, remembering what it was like when he first joined the sect.
"Dad, Mom, I’ll come find you in the Immortal Realm soon. Wait for me," Evan thought, his heart surging with excitement. It felt like he’d gotten one step closer to his parents.
Before, he wasn’t sure Immortals really existed. Later he heard about the Immortal Realm, and after the Immortal-Gate Entrance Map appeared, he learned more about it. Gradually, his whole mood became more hopeful than ever.
He longed for that unknown entrance to the Immortal Realm. "Soon, I’ll step into the Immortal Realm," Evan muttered, then flashed away.
"There’s still time to visit the Shadowhand Guild," Evan thought after clearing his mind and checking the time.
He mounted his Firebird and headed for the Shadowhand Guild. At the foot of the mountain, he stopped and put the Firebird away.
Evan concealed his aura and walked up the mountain, opening his divine sense to search for traces of Old Venom.
"So quiet—everyone’s really gone," Evan muttered. The most obvious change was that the once lush trees had become dry, some even blackened.
"If an ordinary person touched these trees, they’d probably die instantly. That guy really isn’t simple," Evan murmured.
Evan knew the enemy was wounded—now was the perfect time. With his strength, he could eliminate him and prevent future threats to his planet. So he continued searching for the source of the poison, hoping to find Old Venom.
At last, outside a pocket space belonging to the Shadowhand Guild, Evan spotted black gas all around.
"Looks like he ran into that space," Evan muttered. That place was originally where the Shadowhand Guild kept their beasts for disciple training.
But now Old Venom had taken it over, hiding inside to recover from his injuries.
Evan stepped inside. Black gas surged toward him, but he wasn’t bothered—even if it was poisonous, his Heaven-Cold Seed could purify toxins in his body.
He followed the direction of the black gas, and along the way, he saw no sign of the beasts that used to be there. The few he did see were barely alive, poisoned by the gas.
"That’s some potent poison," Evan sighed as he saw the many corpses, but he continued searching.
Finally, he found the source of the black gas—a cave, which had become the burial place of the Shadowhand Guild’s sect leaders.