Gale Foster listened, half-believing, and sent someone to investigate. During the investigation, Mason Liu kept offering all sorts of explanations.
Besides Sevenmile Peak folks searching for the Elder Liu impersonator, the Fenn Family was also busy hunting a few people. To them, there were three main targets: the brewer, the brewer's buddy, and the guy who knew the Tyrant Seal Art.
They had no idea that Evan Yang was behind it all, so the Fenn Family focused their efforts on these people. Only Third Young Master Feng remained frustrated, still searching for Evan's whereabouts.
In his eyes, Evan Yang had stolen his fiancée and repeatedly caused trouble in the Fenn Family. Evan was the person he hated most, so no matter what, he was determined to find him and make him suffer.
Evan Yang had no idea that all this chaos was caused by his actions, leading to open hostility between the Fenn Family and Sevenmile Peak, who occasionally clashed in secret.
Ever since the Fenn Family sent Evan Yang flying, there had been no trace of him, leaving everyone anxious and unsure whether Evan was alive or dead.
As for Evan, he didn't even know if he was dead or alive. He'd been out cold for ages, but his body was still warm, pretty much intact. The wounds from the attack had healed up thanks to the Heaven-Cold Seed, but his soul felt a bit shaky.
At this moment, Evan Yang was wrapped in a layer of light, his whole body drifting in a boundless place.
Suddenly, with a thunderous crash, Evan Yang fell onto what looked like a stone, but as soon as he landed, it turned to powder.
Evan Yang lay silently in the glowing dust, his whole body radiating a faint light.
He had no idea how many years had passed—he had been unconscious the entire time.
One day, he finally came to, feeling groggy, and realized he was lying among scattered stones. He struggled to his feet, looked around, and blurted out, "Wait, I'm not dead?"
He examined himself, and when he saw his current state, he was terrified—he was now a soul, while his physical body lay motionless nearby.
"No way I'm dead, right?" Evan freaked out, quickly lying back down and trying to call his body, but it didn't react at all—like it was totally out of it.
"Can someone please explain what's going on?" Evan yelled, panicking. He tried calling his artifacts, but nothing worked; right now, he was just a soul.
Just as he was at a loss, Soul-Reaping Water stirred. The water emerged from within Evan's soul, and he could see its spirit form. It spoke, "You're finally awake."
Hearing this voice, Evan confirmed it was Soul-Reaping Water. He felt secretly relieved—at least he had Soul-Reaping Water, which understood souls.
Sacred Flame, Ice-fire Sacred Flame, and lightning—all correct, as per glossary. Revised for clarity: 'Sacred Flame, Ice-fire Sacred Flame, and lightning.'
Soul-Reaping Water explained how Evan was injured and everything that happened afterward. When Evan finished listening, he was stunned.
It turned out he really was on the verge of soul-destruction. His soul only became whole and conscious again after entering this place.
"How long was I unconscious?" Evan asked in shock.
"Almost a year. At first, your soul was shattered into four or five pieces, pretty much a dead soul. But in this place, your soul healed up. It's a miracle," said Soul-Reaping Water.
"I really have to thank Mad Elder. If not for him, I wouldn't be alive right now." Evan felt grateful that the crazy old man had saved him and brought him here.
Soul-Reaping Water also knew how powerful Mad Elder was, so it had stayed hidden, afraid of being seen as an anomaly and wiped out.
Seeing Soul-Reaping Water fall silent, Evan snapped back and asked, "Why can't I return to my body? It feels completely unresponsive."
"You're currently in a state where your soul has left your body—not a living soul, but not a dead soul either," Soul-Reaping Water replied calmly.
"Not alive? Not dead? Then what am I?" Evan was confused.
"A living soul can freely return to its body within a certain timeframe. A dead soul can never go back, and soon either disperses, reincarnates, or loses its nature. But you are neither. You can't return to your body, nor will you reincarnate or lose your sense of self," Soul-Reaping Water explained, being an expert on souls.
Evan felt dizzy hearing this and immediately asked, "So how do I get back to being alive?"
"For that, you might need to leave this place," said Soul-Reaping Water.
"Could this place be causing my condition?" Evan asked suspiciously.
"You were already a soul that was neither alive nor dead. According to Mad Elder, you fit this place, so your soul recovered, but you can't return to your original state. It's probably related to this place, though I'm only guessing," said Soul-Reaping Water.
"Seriously?" Evan grumbled, feeling frustrated.
"Guess that's just how things are right now," Soul-Reaping Water said.
Evan was speechless. He never thought things would turn out like this. He stared at his body and all his stuff—none of it moved, and he could only chat with Soul-Reaping Water. All those treasures he'd refined? Totally out of reach.
"My body can't be used, nor can my artifacts. I wonder if those few powers can still work." Evan planned to leave this place, so he needed some means of self-defense. After all, this was a place forbidden to both living and dead souls—just hearing that sounded terrifying.
After thinking it over, Evan began to call out. Fortunately, those powers still responded.
They were Sacred Flame, Ice-fire Sacred Flame, and lightning. Seeing them merge into his soul, Evan could feel their presence—just a thought, and they'd show up.
"Thank goodness," Evan sighed to himself, then said, "Guess I need to hide my body. If I ever find a way out, I'll take it with me."
Soul-Reaping Water agreed.
"Although I can't move my body, I still have my memories. If only I had materials, I could set up a large formation. For now, I can only use a simple one," Evan sighed.
Evan searched the area, gathered a few items, and arranged a simple illusion formation to hide his body inside, preventing others from finding it.
"Don't worry, Mad Elder also added a protective membrane to your body. Ordinary people won't be able to break it," Soul-Reaping Water said.
"Alright, what about you?" Evan wondered how to bring Soul-Reaping Water along.
"Same as them," replied Soul-Reaping Water, and with a flash, it merged back into Evan's soul.
At this moment, Evan looked like a person, but was actually a soul. For some reason, in this place, his soul felt as solid as a body, not translucent at all.
"Alright, let's go." Evan was grateful that this realm had healed his soul. Its strange properties made him feel almost normal—though he was a soul, it was no different from having a body.
Besides all that, what really bugged Evan was that as a soul, he had zero spiritual power—couldn't gather any at all. He'd have to rely on Sacred Flame, Ice-fire Sacred Flame, lightning, and Soul-Reaping Water's powers.
With these thoughts, Evan memorized his landing spot and, following Soul-Reaping Water's directions, started back the way he came.
According to Soul-Reaping Water, he had been thrown in and flew for half an hour before landing. Now, Evan couldn't fly or use spiritual power, so he had to walk. What took half an hour before would now take days, maybe even months.
Fortunately, his soul-body didn't get hungry—it was a solid, tangible soul state.
"Man, walking is so slow compared to flying," Evan muttered, trudging through this weird place.
Thankfully, his spiritual sense still worked, so he could see everything clearly within a certain range. But the sad part was, even if he saw something, it would take him a whole day to reach it.
Walking and flying were worlds apart—Evan now truly understood the importance of speed.
In this way, Evan walked for over two months. During that time, he didn't see a single living creature. He thought he'd reach the exit soon and be able to leave this realm.
But there was no exit—he felt he'd reached the end, but still couldn't get out.
"What's going on?" After walking for over two months and hitting a dead end, Evan felt like there was an invisible wall ahead. No matter what power he used, he couldn't break through.
"That's strange. You flew in from here, so why can't you get out?" Soul-Reaping Water wondered as well.
Evan knew Soul-Reaping Water wouldn't lie, and now he was troubled. "What should I do if I can't get out?"
That question kept bugging Evan until he finally gritted his teeth. "Guess getting out of here is impossible—unless I find someone who actually knows what's up."
Soul-Reaping Water had no objections and followed Evan's lead.
Evan needed Soul-Reaping Water ready at all times in case anything happened. He could only rely on Soul-Reaping Water and his powers.
After thinking it over, Evan headed back toward his body's location, planning to try another direction to see if he could find any living beings.
It took another two months for Evan to return to his body. After checking again and finding no response, he reluctantly moved on.
On the road, he saw no creatures and no buildings. Evan persisted for over a year, and finally, after more than a year, he discovered some buildings.
Seeing those buildings, Evan couldn't help shouting, "Finally, some buildings!"
Overjoyed, Evan spent a day reaching the cluster of buildings.
The buildings were inhabited by "people"—though not truly human, as Evan couldn't sense any aura from them. They were like souls, just like him.
When Evan appeared, the "people" all stared at him, as if seeing an outsider.
They were all jabbering in a language Evan couldn't make sense of, which gave him a headache. He shouted, "Hey, does anyone here understand me?"