Looking at the scene beyond the giant stone, Evan Yang said, "Do we go in from here, and then cross that mountain to win?"
"There's snow here, and there's snow behind the mountain too, but it won't be long. It all depends on your ability." Elias Dreamshadow smiled at Evan Yang.
Evan Yang looked at Dreamshadow and said, "I hope you won't go back on your word, senior."
"Just go ahead, kid," Dreamshadow said. After hearing this, Evan Yang stepped in with one foot. Sure enough, the ground was real snow—soft underfoot, but lifting his leg was extremely difficult.
Not only that, but the wind blowing around felt like needles, as if trying to pierce his soul. If he kept walking like this, he’d probably be killed by the wind before reaching the other side. So Evan Yang had Soul-Reaping Water protect his soul, leaving the defense to it. With Soul-Reaping Water’s help, Evan easily passed through the biting wind, though the cold around him was still terrifying. But cold was nothing to Evan—he had Sacred Flame in his body, keeping him warm.
Seeing Evan Yang walking across the snow with no effort, the old man raised his brows. "What level is this guy, anyway?"
Not knowing what was inside Evan Yang, Dreamshadow watched him walk step by step toward the snow mountain. When Evan reached the mountain, he started to climb. His hands were wreathed in flame; with each grab, he melted a groove into the ice, only for his hand to instantly refreeze and anchor there. The other hand reached up, making his arms look like climbing tools.
"This kid—he even came up with that? His control over temperature is impressive. He can melt the ice the instant he touches it, then freeze it again the moment his hand enters." Dreamshadow muttered, watching Evan Yang climb.
Evan Yang quickly climbed over the snow mountain and reached the other side. After walking a bit further, he saw a cave entrance ahead. Dreamshadow was already there, waiting for him.
When Evan Yang walked into the cave, Dreamshadow clapped and laughed. "Not bad, not bad! Impressive—really made me see you in a new light."
"Senior, can you let me go now?" Evan Yang asked.
"Sure. See that tunnel up ahead? That's the exit to the outside. Go ahead, but you'd better walk out on foot—it's good for you." Dreamshadow smiled, then vanished.
Evan Yang saw the tunnel ahead, though he didn't understand why Dreamshadow told him to walk. Curious, he headed to the tunnel entrance and started walking slowly inside.
As he walked, Evan Yang gradually noticed something strange. Looking around, he saw the tunnel walls covered with dense writing. Curious, he stopped to take a look—and was stunned. The writing described a cultivation technique, and it was none other than the Mind-Reading Technique Dreamshadow had used.
"Kid, you’re really lucky—he actually passed his technique to you. Interesting." The Blood Demon laughed when he saw it.
"You mean Dreamshadow gave me his technique?" Evan Yang still found it hard to believe.
"Yeah. I heard it’s one of Dreamshadow’s signature arts, but I didn’t expect him to be so generous after you impressed him." The Blood Demon laughed.
Evan Yang thought about it and realized it was true. Usually, Dreamshadow was the one messing with people—today, he’d been the one tricked, and even lost his flame to Evan.
Seeing these precious writings, Evan Yang wasn’t about to waste the opportunity. He started studying them, and after about two hours, he’d learned the whole Mind-Reading Technique—and understood it much more deeply.
"All done, time to go." Evan Yang said, then continued walking out of the tunnel. Soon he reached the outside, and realized he was now on the far bank of the river he’d crossed—while the ferry and the old man were gone.
But the old man's voice lingered: "Kid, you're definitely not ordinary. Today I passed one of my signature arts to you—don't disgrace it."
"Thank you, senior." Even though he'd been blocked for a moment, Evan Yang was still grateful.
"We'll meet again—your journey is just beginning! Haha!" Dreamshadow laughed, then vanished completely, not a sound left behind.
"Just as the rumors say—what a weirdo." The Blood Demon sighed helplessly.
Evan Yang was speechless too, so he pulled himself together, summoned the Flame Behemoth, and pressed onward—toward Lingku Cave, his next destination.
Not far away, Gavin White saw Evan Yang safely cross the river and finally relaxed. For a Heavenly-Dao expert like her, this river was nothing—she crossed it in a single stride and continued to follow him. She could also feel the tiny life inside her moving.
"I'll tell him when I get the chance, okay?" Gavin White muttered to the life in her belly, while her flying artifact kept secretly trailing Evan Yang.
Evan Yang had no idea that the real Gavin White from his inner illusion was secretly following him. He was still riding the Flame Behemoth, watching for any changes up ahead.
Lingku Cave had already appeared in Evan Yang’s sight. He stopped outside the cave and looked it over—it was as tall as five or six people stacked up, and three or four people wide. Such a massive cave, Evan had never seen before, and the walls here were strange.
Up close, it looked like a giant sleeping mountain standing in the Chaos World, and the cave entrance was its mouth.
"No idea what’s inside, or if I’ll really find the Divine Pill Chapter," Evan Yang muttered. He had the Flame Behemoth carry him inside.
The first thing he felt inside was how quiet it was—so quiet it was scary. Not a sound, except for the Flame Behemoth’s footsteps and breathing.
"Be careful," Evan Yang warned the Flame Behemoth, which cautiously moved forward. Evan’s Night Eyes were already open. Suddenly, a giant round stone appeared ahead, rolling toward Evan. He said, "Step back, I’ll smash this stone."
Evan Yang reached out and struck the stone hard, but it didn’t break—instead, it rolled right at him and the Flame Behemoth.
"How can there be such a hard stone?" Evan Yang exclaimed. As he wondered, the boulder was already close—so he hurriedly had the Flame Behemoth retreat, but as they turned back, the path behind them vanished.
"The road disappeared too? What a bizarre place," Evan Yang frowned. He had no idea what to do—he could only keep running forward, with the giant stone still chasing them.
They ran for quite a while, but the stone never disappeared. Evan Yang frowned, "What kind of stone is this, and where does this road even lead?"
The Flame Behemoth didn’t know either, so it just kept moving forward with Evan Yang. They finally reached a dead end—and another stone appeared behind them.
"Now there’s really no way out," Evan Yang said, feeling a headache coming on.
Facing this dead end, Evan Yang took out the Infinity Spear, then lengthened it. When the stone arrived, he laid the spear horizontally, wedging one end against the stone and the other against the wall, creating a narrow gap in the middle for himself and the Flame Behemoth.
"How is it that the stone fits so perfectly, leaving just a tiny gap with the wall?" Evan Yang muttered.
Not only that, but Evan Yang sensed a force behind the stone pushing it—otherwise, he’d be able to move it. Now all he could do was stare at the stone, with the Infinity Spear braced in the middle.
The well-traveled Blood Demon spoke up: "This Lingku Cave really isn’t simple."
"Senior Blood Demon, do you know what this is?" Evan Yang asked curiously.
"This is Blood Black Stone—extremely hard. Without Heavenly-Dao level strength, you can’t break it," the Blood Demon replied.
"No wonder I couldn’t break it," Evan Yang sighed.
"That’s just part of it. Someone managed to get such a huge piece of Blood Black Stone—that’s rare! It’s a great material for crafting magical treasures. Even a little bit makes a treasure incredibly tough," the Blood Demon said.
"Senior, who did this? Was it man-made?" Evan Yang muttered as he looked at the stone.
"Of course. Otherwise, why would you be trapped here for no reason? If I’m not wrong, you’ll have new trouble soon," the Blood Demon said.
Evan Yang frowned—sure enough, just as the Blood Demon finished speaking, the ground beneath Evan suddenly gave way. Shocked, he quickly withdrew the Infinity Spear. At that moment, the stone above pressed down like a giant boulder from the sky, smashing toward the spot where Evan was falling.
In midair, Evan Yang couldn’t fight the stone. He quickly searched for a landing spot and used the Infinity Spear to brace himself.
Evan felt his heart race—he had no idea who was attacking him, and he was in a strange place. He’d barely stood for a moment before the ground disappeared. He’d never encountered such a bizarre place before.
Just as Evan was startled, his feet landed on the ground. He quickly spun around and found himself in another tunnel, so he dashed through it—with the stone still chasing him.
"What kind of stone is this? It just won’t give up," Evan Yang muttered. He’d only run a few steps when a cliff appeared ahead.
"Damn, a cliff!" Evan Yang stopped in his tracks. There was a cliff ahead, and on the other side was a completely different scene. With the stone behind him and the unknown ahead, Evan had no choice but to leap across.
After reaching the other side, Evan Yang wanted to see what the stone would do.
Unexpectedly, the stone stopped at the edge of the cliff. Then something strange happened—a hole appeared in the ten-meter-tall stone, and a voice came from inside: "Who are you, daring to come here?"
Evan Yang was stunned. So that’s why he couldn’t move the stone—there was something hidden inside. And the owner of that voice sounded downright creepy.