Evan Yang was already furious at being ambushed like this. He sneered, "I bought the item fair and square, and you sneak up on me from the side? Now you want me to hand it over, too? Are you brain-dead?"
The woman hadn't expected Evan's reaction to be so intense. Her tight blue robe, paired with fair skin, made her look quite seductive. She glared at Evan and said, "You—hand it over."
The shopkeeper was stunned. He never imagined a worthless item could make Blue Robe Sect disciples fight so fiercely. Evan had no intention of giving in—if he hadn't dodged just now, he'd have been hit by that sword. He snorted coldly, "Keep dreaming."
"You little punk, let's see how I deal with you!" the woman said angrily, waving her hand. Her sword flew back into her grasp.
Evan glanced around—there were still many poor people nearby, and he didn't want anyone else to get hurt. He sneered, "If you've got guts, let's take this somewhere else."
With that, Evan flashed over to the nearest teleportation array. The woman was shocked and hurried after him, while someone behind shouted, "Senior sister, wait for me!"
Evan purposely waited by the teleportation array, and when the others arrived, he smiled, "If you've got guts, follow me."
After saying this, Evan had already left the teleportation array and arrived on another planet. Outside the city there, few people could be seen, so Evan quickly rushed out of town to the outskirts.
The woman followed closely behind. Seeing Evan stop, she shouted, "You brat, how dare you toy with me? Today, I'll take your life!"
"Blue Robe Sect people? Are you all so aggressive?" Evan sneered.
"It's not your place to talk. Watch how I deal with you!" the woman said angrily.
"Arrogant. You think you can take me down as a mere first-tier Xuan-Immortal? Ridiculous." Evan smiled. He didn't want to fight on Emerald Cloud Star, afraid someone would discover his real identity. Out here in the wilderness, no one would connect him to Evan Yang.
"You—watch my sword!" The woman angrily controlled her sword. The blade had a hint of spiritual energy, and with Blue Robe Sect's sword-controlling techniques, it struck fast and accurately.
Evan relied on his superior speed to dodge, laughing, "Well? Want to keep going?"
After several exchanges, the woman realized Evan was treating the fight like a game. Furious, she shouted, "You!"
"Getting angry won't help. Isn't your Blue Robe Sect's sword art supposed to be amazing? Let's see if your sword is faster, or I am." Evan laughed.
"Don't insult the Blue Robe Sect's sword art! Take this!" the woman roared. With that, her sword split into ten, all targeting Evan.
"Split into ten? That's all?" Evan flashed forward, quickly subduing all ten swords. Only one was real; the rest vanished at a touch.
Looking at the woman's sword, Evan held it in his hand and laughed, "It's a good sword, but it's got a pretty bad-tempered owner."
"Mind your own business! Give it back!" The woman was furious when she realized her prized weapon had been taken by Evan.
"Give it back? So you can kill me next? Dream on. Now that I've got it, I'll keep it. Besides, there's a faint fragrance on the blade—I wonder how you maintain it. Do you sleep with it in your arms every night?" Evan sniffed the sword and couldn't help but comment.
"You! Pervert! I won't forgive you!" The woman blushed angrily at Evan's words.
"I never laid a finger on you—why call me a pervert? Is it that modern girls just cry 'pervert' when they lose a fight?" Evan laughed.
"You! Give it back!" The woman was both embarrassed and furious after Evan's teasing.
"I told you, I'm keeping it. Goodbye." Evan smiled, then flashed away.
He moved so fast the woman couldn't keep up. Furious and angry, she stomped her foot and shouted, "You brat, I won't let you off!"
The woman left angrily. Meanwhile, in an inn on Emerald Cloud Star, a group of people in blue robes were chatting.
Just then, a hurried young man in a blue robe rushed in, shouting, "Senior brother! Senior brother!"
Among the group in the inn, a blue-robed man looked at the flustered newcomer and asked, "Cai, what's going on? Why so panicked?" "Senior brother, bad news! Senior sister chased someone and hasn't come back yet." The one called Cai was the junior brother who had followed the woman earlier.
The blue-robed man addressed as senior brother was named Sean Shen. He frowned and asked, "You didn't go after her?"
"Senior sister and that guy were too fast—I couldn't keep up," Cai said awkwardly.
"Useless! I'll try to contact her now," Sean said, worried. He activated the Transmission Stone, but got no response.
That made him even more anxious. "Why isn't she responding?"
Just then, an angry woman walked in—it was the woman who had chased after Evan, named Lora Luo.
"Lora Luo, finally you're back. Why didn't you answer my messages?" Sean hurried forward to ask.
Lora Luo was still angry and ignored him. "Senior brother, do you have the Sword-Tracing Compass with you?"
"Why do you need it?" Sean asked suspiciously. The Sword-Tracing Compass was one of Blue Robe Sect's prized treasures, not for casual use. As an elite disciple, Sean was carrying it for emergencies this time.
"My Silver-Spirit Sword was stolen," Lora Luo said, frustrated.
Sean frowned. "What happened?"
Lora Luo angrily explained the situation to Sean. When he finished listening, he shouted, "Damn it, I have to catch that brat—how dare he tease my junior sister!" "Enough, senior brother, just lend me the compass," Lora Luo said.
"Junior sister, you know only I can use the Sword-Tracing Compass. Let me handle it," Sean said.
"No need. I'll do it myself. I refuse to believe I can't catch that brat with my own ability," Lora Luo replied.
"That's not happening unless I go with you. Otherwise, I'm not handing it over," Sean said immediately.
Lora Luo frowned, "Senior brother, why are you so stubborn? Hurry up and lend it to me!"
"Promise, or forget it," Sean said through gritted teeth.
"Then I'll go search myself. You can sit here hugging the compass and rest," Lora Luo snorted.
Seeing Lora Luo angry, Sean finally couldn't hold back. "Fine, fine, I'll lend it to you."
"That's more like it." Lora Luo only wanted to catch Evan and teach him a lesson, completely forgetting her original purpose for coming here.
"Come upstairs with me," Sean sighed. He turned and led Lora Luo upstairs to a room, where he took out a compass-like item with a small sword fixed to it.
"I'll show you how to use it," Sean sighed, then explained the method to Lora Luo. After listening, she put away the treasure and said, "Thanks, senior brother."
"You really don't want to go together?" Sean asked.
"No need," Lora Luo replied.
"Then, junior sister, can you promise me something?" Sean asked after thinking for a moment.
"Go ahead," Lora Luo said, eager to find Evan and not caring what Sean wanted.
"This time we're here for two reasons: to see this Immortal Realm with our uncles, and to recruit talented people. Do you remember?" Sean said.
"Yeah, I remember. What's your point?" Lora Luo didn't understand why Sean brought it up.
"Actually, there's a third reason," Sean said, smiling.
"What reason?" Lora Luo sensed something was off.
"Your master and mine have already agreed—when we return, we'll cultivate the dual sword technique together," Sean said with a smile.
Hearing 'dual sword technique,' Lora Luo was stunned. She had heard about it before coming, only remembering her master saying that after returning, she'd cultivate with a senior brother.
But she hadn't realized that the person she'd be cultivating with was actually Sean.
So Lora Luo was stunned. "So it was you," she said.
"Your master told you?" Sean smiled.
"Yeah, she did. But I'm still considering it," Lora Luo suddenly said, dampening Sean's mood.
"What do you mean by that, junior sister?" Sean said, displeased.
"Back in the sect, everything was arranged by our masters. But now that I've come here, I've realized a lot of things are wonderful, and sometimes you can make your own choices. As for that sword technique, I'll discuss it with my master when I return," Lora Luo said.
Sean was even more displeased by Lora's words. "Junior sister, I lent you my treasure, and our masters have already agreed. You're not planning to ditch me, are you?"
"Senior brother, what's with you? Didn't I say I'm still considering it? Anyway, I'm leaving." With that, Lora Luo walked out, leaving Sean behind to grumble, "Damn it, what's wrong with me? I'm the most outstanding and handsome in the sect—no idea what she's thinking."
As for Lora Luo, holding the compass, she muttered to herself on the road, "Master really is something. Sure, Senior Brother Sean is handsome and outstanding, and plenty of girls in the sect want to cultivate that technique with him—but why me?"
The more she thought about it, the less she wanted to bother. She simply said, "Forget it. Let Master arrange for another senior or junior sister instead."
After muttering to herself, Lora Luo took out the treasure, followed Sean's instructions, and infused it with immortal energy. Then she used her subtle connection with the Silver-Spirit Sword to activate the compass.
The compass pointed in a direction—toward the east side of the city. Lora Luo hurried off that way.
Since the city on Emerald Cloud Star was so large, Lora Luo could only go partway, then check again.
Meanwhile, Evan had no idea Lora Luo had such a treasure. He was sitting in an inn, tasting wine and examining the Silver-Spirit Sword in his hand.
"This sword carries a trace of coldness. If I'm right, it should be able to release a chilling aura," Evan muttered as he handled the Silver-Spirit Sword.
He also thought about the rusty item he'd acquired earlier. Evan found it hard to refine—something seemed to protect it from the outside, making it impossible to refine. He had no idea what was inside the rusty sword.
So Evan put the item away, planning to study it carefully when he had more time.
Just then, the blue-robed woman walked into the inn and saw Evan there, drinking and admiring her sword.