Captain Lee glared and said, "Of course I know. That thing has been guarding some place in Fiend Palace for years. I have no idea where exactly, but it's definitely terrifying."
"No kidding. They say even top experts might not be able to take it down," Captain Ling added.
"Yeah, looks like it's a good thing we ran away fast." Captain Lee said with relief. Captain Ling felt the same way. Meanwhile, Evan Yang had already followed the Shafiend Ape to a patch full of Etherleaf Grass.
Evan absorbed most of the essence one by one. Only after the Heaven-Cold Seed was saturated did he restore their medicinal power, then harvested and took them away.
After about half a day, Evan Yang reappeared in Fiend Palace. As for the Shafiend Ape, he didn’t let it out—instead, he kept it hidden in the Sky-Piercing Tower.
When everyone first saw it, it was just like Evan had picked up a pet. The little ape could only let them mess with it, but thanks to Evan’s instructions, it behaved obediently, never transformed, and looked just like a regular monkey.
"Etherleaf Grass—leave some for cultivation, the rest can be traded," Evan thought to himself.
He quickly arrived at Merit Hall, just in time to see Captain Lee and Captain Ling about to leave.
The two captains froze the moment they saw Evan Yang, as if witnessing something impossible. They rubbed their eyes hard to make sure it was really him. Captain Lee spoke up, “Didn’t expect you to make it out alive.”
"You guys aren’t so bad either," Evan replied with a cold laugh, ignoring them as he walked into Merit Hall.
"What happened?" Captain Ling exclaimed in shock.
"No idea. Looks like he’s got some crazy luck," Captain Lee said angrily, staring at Evan Yang’s back and watching his every move.
"So what do we do now?" Captain Ling asked.
"If even that didn’t kill him, what else could?" Captain Lee was out of ideas. At least this accident couldn’t be repeated, and they’d already lost a man.
Evan Yang didn’t know what the two were whispering about, but he was sure they were discussing how he managed to come back safe.
"You’re really lucky, bringing back five stalks of Etherleaf Grass," the clerk said with a smile, registering fifty thousand contribution points for Evan. With that, Evan now had fifty-three thousand points.
Evan Yang smiled. "Nearly lost my life, though. Those savage beasts in there are no joke."
"That’s true, and you need some luck on your side," the clerk laughed.
"Thanks. If there’s a next time, I’ll be back," Evan said with a grin.
"Mm." The clerk nodded.
Evan Yang had already finished his own ten thousand contribution points, so there was no need to waste more time. He decided to check on his squad’s progress.
As he passed those two, Evan flashed them a strange smile, then left Merit Hall.
The two could only glare angrily at Evan’s back, grinding their teeth.
For three months, Evan just waited—after all, he’d finished ahead of schedule. He spent most days in his room, leaving the monthly squad checks to Owen Bing, while he rested with his eyes closed.
Three months passed quickly. Evan got up and left his room. "One blink and it’s over—time really flies," he muttered.
He headed toward Merit Hall, keeping his divine sense locked onto the changes around him.
When he arrived, his forty-nine men were already waiting. With a sweep of his gaze, Evan noticed every one of them had changed—each carried a new air of maturity.
"Captain Mu," Owen Bing called out as soon as he saw Evan.
Evan nodded. "How’d it go?"
"All forty-nine have surpassed ten thousand contribution points," Owen Bing reported.
"Oh?" Evan hadn’t expected all forty-nine to hit the target. It was even better than he’d hoped.
"Good, nice work. Follow me," Evan nodded, then led the forty-nine out of Merit Hall.
A Fourth-Rank General leading so many through Fiend Palace was rare—unless on a special mission. Naturally, it drew a lot of attention.
In the flower grove, the black-skirted young woman also noticed Evan Yang with his crowd of followers.
"What’s he up to, bringing so many people?" the woman wondered aloud.
"Miss, what are you looking at?" her maid asked curiously, walking up from behind.
"Look, there’s someone over there leading a whole group. What are they up to?" the woman asked, intrigued.
The maid glanced at Evan and his men, but couldn’t figure out what they were planning either.
"What’s that kid doing?" Captain Ling spotted Evan leading so many people and asked Captain Lee suspiciously.
"No idea, but it’s definitely something. Let’s go check it out," Captain Lee replied after a moment’s thought.