What Evan saw were corpses that had long since decayed—bone-white skeletons, stripped of flesh, scrambling out of the Ghost-Soul Well one after another.
They lifted their heads, their hollow eye sockets brimming with a hunger for slaughter.
Evan glanced at the well mouth. With a thought, the peach-wood swords swirling in the air, laced with countless flames, instantly plunged into the well. The raging fire and peach-wood swords covered the entire mouth, and the sound of snapping bones mingled with shrill, miserable screams.
The bone-white skeletons seemed endless and fearless—even with the well mouth flooded by peach-wood swords and blazing fire, nothing could stop their relentless surge outward.
"It's useless. So what if you're Master Lin from Seacrest?"
Evan shot him a glance, voice cool and dismissive: "It's just a little magic artifact. Does it really matter if this well gets busted or not?"
As he spoke, Raymond subtly shook his staff. "But I've advanced from Mystic Arts Adept to Life-and-Death Mage. Real spellcraft is way out of your league, kid."
"Just this Ghost-Soul Well alone is more than you can handle! The endless sea of corpses inside—eventually, it'll grind you down and kill you!"
Raymond Cold burst out laughing.
Evan shot him a glance, his tone flat: "It's just a little magic artifact. Whether this well breaks or not—what difference does it make?"
The moment Evan finished speaking, Raymond Cold's eyes narrowed. Instinctively, he retreated a step and yanked Leo Li in front of him as a human shield.
Almost at the same instant, Evan—who'd been two or three steps away—was suddenly right in front of Raymond. With a casual backhand, he slapped Leo Li, sending him flying across the courtyard.
Raymond Cold felt a chill run down his spine as he retreated, his gaze growing even more serious.
"That was insanely fast!"
Everyone who saw that scene felt their hearts skip a beat.
None of them actually saw how Evan moved. Even just standing there, he radiated an overwhelming sense of pressure.
"Once I break your magic artifact, this well will lose its power."
Evan let out a mocking laugh. In the next instant, he reached out with one hand, flames swirling in the air. Just as his palm was about to strike Raymond Cold, black mist swirled up in front of Raymond, instantly forming a solid barrier.
But under Evan's hand, the barrier was as thin as paper—instantly shredded and destroyed.
Bang!
Sensing danger, Raymond Cold gripped his staff and hastily conjured five more layers of shields in front of himself. But with a single booming strike, Evan's palm sent Raymond flying through the air, blood spurting from his mouth.
"Master!"
Old Master Keene's face changed, startled by the sudden turn.
Faye Zheng's gaze locked onto Evan, unable to look away, her mind still buzzing from the shock.
Old Master Zhu's face was etched with regret, his sigh lingering in the air.
Yvonne Zhu's beautiful eyes stayed fixed on Evan as he strode toward Raymond Cold.
Hovering in midair, Raymond Cold looked down at Evan standing in the doorway, his face twisted with ferocity. "If you could defeat Morgan Yang, then show me some real skill!"
He swung his staff, conjuring a massive black ghost face. The moment it appeared, the sky darkened and clouds rolled in.
You think you can just slap me to death with your bare hands? You arrogant brat—don't you know who you're dealing with?
Raymond Cold roared in anger.
Ever since I joined the Keene family, I've been treated like royalty—everyone bows and worships me!
But this Evan Lin, every move he makes feels like child's play—slapping me around with one hand, again and again, like it's some kind of game!
If I want to slap you, I'll slap you. If you can't handle it, tough luck.
Raymond Cold had barely finished speaking when Evan stomped his foot, summoning a pillar of fire beneath him that shot straight into the sky.
In the next instant, Evan burst through the ghost face, appeared before Raymond Cold, and slammed him straight down to the ground with a single palm strike.
Raymond's body twisted as he hit the ground. Evan descended from above, planting his foot on the earth—ready to crush Raymond's skull to paste with a single stomp.
If I want to slap you, I'll slap you. If you can't handle it, tough luck.
Raymond Cold had barely finished speaking when Evan stomped his foot, summoning a pillar of fire beneath him that shot straight into the sky.
In the next instant, Evan burst through the ghost face, appeared before Raymond Cold, and slammed him straight down to the ground with a single palm strike.
Raymond's body twisted as he hit the ground. Evan descended from above, planting his foot on the earth—ready to crush Raymond's skull to paste with a single stomp.
But just as Evan's foot was about to come down, Raymond Cold twisted his head, shooting Evan a venomous glare. Suddenly, he grinned. "Master Lin from Seacrest? Let's see who's stronger—you, or the million corpses in my Ghost-Soul Well!"
He burst out laughing. In the blink of an eye, just as Evan's stomp was about to land, Raymond's entire body erupted in black mist and transformed into a sinister, pitch-black well mouth.
But just as Evan's foot was about to come down, Raymond Cold twisted his head, shooting Evan a venomous glare. Suddenly, he grinned. "Master Lin from Seacrest? Let's see who's stronger—you, or the million corpses in my Ghost-Soul Well!"
He burst out laughing. In the blink of an eye, just as Evan's stomp was about to land, Raymond's entire body erupted in black mist and transformed into a sinister, pitch-black well mouth.
Inside the hall, the flames and peach-wood swords covering the Ghost-Soul Well scattered in all directions. No one even noticed when the well itself had shifted position.
"Watch out!"
Yvonne Zhu's expression changed and she shouted a warning.
But it was too late. Evan's foot had already reached the well mouth. In an instant, more than a dozen bony hands shot out, grabbed his ankle, and yanked him straight into the Ghost-Soul Well.
"Now that you're in my Ghost-Soul Well, let's see how long you can last!"
"Even if your inner strength is unmatched and you defeated Morgan Yang, you'll run out of power eventually. Once you're dead and gone, I'll refine your bones—then you'll be my strongest trump card!"
Not far away, looking a bit disheveled, Raymond Cold glanced at the Ghost-Soul Well and burst into wild laughter.
"Evan!"
Seeing Evan dragged into the Ghost-Soul Well and vanish, Zheng Jiayun's face turned ashen.
Dominic Ding's face darkened; he was about to order his disciples to kill Raymond Cold on the spot.
Warren Wu stared wide-eyed, still unable to believe what he'd just seen.
Faye Zheng clenched her fists, Yvonne Zhu's eyes were full of worry, and Old Master Zhu kept shaking his head, sighing in regret.
"Your Young Lord is dead. The rest of you are just a bunch of stray cats and dogs. What can you possibly do now?"
Raymond Cold turned and grinned at the Southriver Sword Sect crowd.
"Much obliged, Master!"
Old Master Keene was overjoyed at the scene, thanked Raymond, and then turned to Zheng Jiayun with a vicious sneer: "Zheng Jiayun, you ruined my family's marriage alliance more than ten years ago and disgraced my son Henry!"
"Now, after all these years, your son killed my Henry! Unforgivable! Today you—"
He hadn't even finished his sentence.
Raymond Cold, who'd been about to deal with the Southriver Sword Sect, suddenly sensed something off. He turned to look at the Ghost-Soul Well, his face full of shock and suspicion.
Suddenly, golden divine light burst forth from the previously calm Ghost-Soul Well.
An incomparably vast aura began to boil up from within the well.