"That's more like it." Evan Yang smiled.
Chase Chu always felt a sense of closeness when talking to Evan Yang, though he couldn't say why. Meanwhile, not far behind the crowd, Li Family and Shadow Soul Sect members kept watching.
"Let's see if you all can actually spot me." Evan Yang had already noticed those people long ago, so he secretly laughed to himself.
Everyone was led to the center of the manor, which was spacious. The combat platforms and viewing stands had already been set up.
Evan Yang glanced around and saw guards everywhere. Each one was at least as strong as an Immortal Lord. "This is quite the powerful lineup," he thought.
Besides that, each family and sect was assigned a fixed area, so Evan Yang and the Chu clan were given their own spot.
"Once you enter, you can't leave until the competition ends. It's to prevent cheating," Victor Chu explained to Evan Yang.
Evan Yang scanned the area and saw even more guards posted around the perimeter. If anyone wanted to leave, they'd have to get past them. The whole place felt blocked off, almost like a protective formation.
"Cheating? People actually try to cheat here?" Evan Yang asked in confusion.
"Yeah, there are plenty of ways to cheat. That's why everything is sealed off, and no one can leave until the competition is over. Basically, we'll all be living here together for the next few days," Victor Chu explained.
Evan Yang felt this was a bit over the top.
But Evan Yang didn’t have time to think about it. Off to the side, the seating was different from other areas—according to Victor Chu, those seats belonged to the major powers and ancient sects.
Evan Yang watched curiously as groups of people entered, each group wearing different colored robes.
When he saw the cyan robes, Evan Yang’s eyes showed curiosity—he wondered who was leading the Blue Robe Sect.
The people in front were strangers, but when two people walked out behind them, Evan Yang froze. “Her!”
Those two were Sean Shen and Lora Luo, so Evan Yang froze when he saw Lora. He hadn’t expected her to have such status in the Blue Robe Sect. Normally elders would attend, but here two young people were participating.
So members of other sects and families frowned, especially since the hosts were three people. According to Victor Chu, these three were powerful Emperor Realm experts.
One of the hosts frowned and asked, “Where is your mad cultivator?”
“Senior, my martial uncle had something come up, so he sent the two of us instead,” Sean Shen replied politely.
“Sent as substitutes?” The crowd was clearly displeased, but the Blue Robe Sect was ultimately a hidden powerhouse, so they didn’t say much.
Evan Yang checked the match data and saw there were four groups from first to fourth tier Earth-Immortal, each with more than ten participants. Finishing these four groups would take almost a full day.
So Chase Chu still had time to rest with his eyes closed, ready to fight at any moment.
“The Li Family really is something.” Evan Yang noticed their people were always watching this area. Thinking about Chase Chu’s safety after he left, Evan felt it necessary to deal with the Li Family separately.
“There’s also Shadow Soul Sect over there.” Evan Yang noticed not only the Chu Family, but also members of Shadow Soul Sect watching this area.
Shadow Soul Sect wasn’t a big concern—their only target was Evan Yang. But the Li Family was different; their targets included both Evan and the Chu Family.
That was Evan Yang’s concern—he could ignore Shadow Soul Sect for now, but the Li Family needed attention. So Evan asked Victor Chu, “Patriarch Chu, how strong is the Li Family’s power?”
“About the same as our Chu Family, but they have powerful support behind them, so they’re a little stronger,” Victor Chu replied.
“So if Chase Chu joins a major power or some sect or family, he’ll be protected?” Evan Yang asked in a low voice.
“That’s right. Now everyone in the Li Family knows Chase Chu is connected to you, so they’ll target him too. This time, Chase Chu must succeed—he can’t fail. If he hides in the Chu Family, I’m afraid I won’t have the power to protect him.” Victor Chu explained. He’d known this for a while, which is why he suggested Chase Chu participate; before, he never would have let him come.
Evan Yang finally understood why Victor Chu was so eager to send Chase Chu here. Besides his cultivation, the main reason was fear of being framed.
As Evan Yang, he felt deeply apologetic—if not for him, the Li Family wouldn’t have targeted Chase Chu. So he awkwardly said, “Patriarch Chu, don’t worry. Chase Chu will definitely join a major power or ancient sect or family.”
“I hope so. If that happens, even if the Chu and Li Families have trouble in the future, I won’t have to worry about him anymore.” Victor Chu’s fatherly love shone through again.
To outsiders, Victor Chu just wanted his son to succeed, but they didn’t know he’d long sensed the crisis, which is why he let Chase Chu participate.
Evan Yang was determined to help Chase Chu join a major power or family sect. Otherwise, he couldn’t stay and protect Chase Chu forever, nor could Chase Chu follow him around—those weren’t realistic. Only by finding a stable environment could Chase Chu cultivate safely, instead of running everywhere with Evan.
On this matter, Evan Yang agreed with Victor Chu—sending Chase Chu into a major power or ancient sect or family would allow him to cultivate and receive protection.
The Li Family had no idea what Evan Yang and the others were thinking; they kept sending people to watch the Chu Family, checking if Evan Yang would appear.
“Patriarch, it’s been days—how come that kid seems to have vanished?” The white-clothed man asked Patrick Li.
“I’d like to know what’s going on too,” Patrick Li said, frowning.
“What if the kid is hiding because he’s afraid of being caught by Shadow Soul Sect?” Leonard Li worried that if Evan Yang kept avoiding them, there’d be no way to catch and interrogate him.
Patrick Li felt the same. He snorted coldly: “If the kid leaves, we’ll grab the little one.”
“You mean that Chu Family youngster?” Leonard Li asked suspiciously.
“That’s right. Didn’t you say he learned some of the kid’s cultivation arts? Then he must know something. If we capture him, maybe we can force out some answers,” Patrick Li said.
“But if we do that, we’ll completely fall out with the Chu Family. Then the two families will be irreconcilable,” Leonard Li said, frowning.
“Why are you so dense? Wait until the Chu Family kid is alone, then send someone to grab him. If the Chu Family has no evidence, what can they do to us?” Patrick Li said.
“That makes sense. I’ll follow your lead, Patriarch.” Leonard Li nodded in agreement.
The Li Family was fine—without Evan Yang as a target, they could focus on Chase Chu. But Shadow Soul Sect stubbornly kept watching for Evan Yang, determined to catch him.
“Elder Hubert Hu, that kid still hasn’t shown up,” Miles Ming said to Elder Hu.
Elder Hubert Hu nodded. “Got it. He’s probably hiding, too scared to come out.”
“So what do we do now? The competition will end soon and we’ll have to leave.” Miles Ming said.
“Go investigate Evan Yang’s relationship with the Chu Family,” Elder Hubert Hu said.
“You mean, Elder?” Miles Ming asked suspiciously.
“See who’s close to Evan Yang. After the competition ends, capture them and use the Yin Spirit Grand Art. I don’t believe they haven’t communicated in private,” Elder Hubert Hu snorted.
“But there are so many of them!” Miles Ming knew this wasn’t their territory, and if they really targeted the Chu Family, it would be difficult.
“Did I say to act when there are many people? Wait until someone from the Chu Family is alone, then capture them. I don’t believe they’ll stick together all the time,” Elder Hubert Hu said, glaring.
“Understood. I’ll go investigate now,” Miles Ming said.
Elder Hubert Hu glanced at Miles Ming, muttering to himself, “Yin Spirit Grand Art—why isn’t that kid afraid of it?”
With Elder Hubert Hu’s strength, using the Yin Spirit Grand Art against a first-tier Earth-Immortal would never fail. Ever since Evan Yang evaded it, Elder Hu couldn’t forget—especially since memories of Evan kept surfacing in his mind. He felt uneasy about returning to the sect without capturing Evan.