Blue-Shade God-Venerable traveled entirely by teleportation on this journey. From the mine to the frontier region Elena Rainveil had described was at least several million li, but he managed to cross it in less than three days—a speed that was simply unimaginable.
"Evan, we've arrived. Come out!" Blue-Shade God-Venerable said after taking out the Timewheel Bracelet. This borderland was truly desolate: Divine Power was thin, and even people were scarce.
Evan Chu had left a portion of his divine sense outside, so he naturally heard Blue-Shade's words. Looking at the sleeping Elena Rainveil, he said, "Elena, just rest here. I'll go find Old Goldwing!"
After gently setting Elena Rainveil down on the grass, Evan prepared to leave. But just then, Elena woke up. Seeing Evan about to depart, she asked, "Evan, where are you going?"
"I'm going to find Old Goldwing. Just wait here for me to come back. Trust me—I can do this!" Evan said seriously.
Elena wanted to say something, but stopped herself. There was so much she wanted to tell Evan, but at this moment she chose not to hold him back—because she knew she couldn't. Watching Evan vanish into thin air, she felt a surge of indescribable emotion.
After emerging from the Timewheel Bracelet, Evan glanced around and said, "Are you sure this is the place, old bro? The environment here is way too barren. Why would Shadow and Old Goldwing choose to cultivate in a place like this?"
"Elena said this was the spot. But this borderland is enormous—finding them won't be easy, so we'd better hurry. Let's get moving!" Blue-Shade God-Venerable replied.
Evan waved his hand, flashed to the top of a nearby mountain, and sat down. Blue-Shade God-Venerable followed, confused about what Evan was planning. Just then, Evan spoke:
"We'll just wait here for them to come. If they're really in this borderland, they'll definitely show up."
After speaking, Evan began slowly circulating the Chaos Divine Power within his body, then activated his soul force as well. He started to use the mysterious power of the Soul Contract, knowing that as long as Old Goldwing and Shadow were anywhere nearby, they'd sense he was looking for them. This was the most direct and effective method.
Time passed slowly. Sweat appeared on Evan's forehead from the heavy soul force consumption. Blue-Shade God-Venerable simply stood quietly by, watching Evan. Everything Evan did always managed to surprise and amaze people.
"Goldwing, I feel like big brother is summoning us. Do you feel it too?" In a fairly decent guardian compound, a handsome youth spoke to a middle-aged man.
"You feel it too? I thought I was imagining things. Looks like boss really is calling us. Judging by the direction of the soul ripple, he's tens of thousands of li away. No time to waste—let's go!" the middle-aged man replied.
Needless to say, these two were Goldwing the Golden Vulture and Shadow the Bloodshadow Berserker Lion. Realizing Evan was summoning them, both were incredibly excited. "No time to waste—let's go!"
Just as the two were about to leave, an old man from the compound walked over. "Where do you two think you're going? The family head is about to travel—you need to go along as escorts."
This elder was late-stage God-Lord realm, with high status in the clan. He'd always looked down on Goldwing and Shadow, often making trouble for them. Goldwing and Shadow had long wanted to teach him a lesson, but never found the chance.
After all, living under someone else's roof meant enduring a lot. But now that Evan was here, they had nothing left to worry about, and their hatred for the old man surged. "Where we go is none of your business. If you've got nothing better to do, go escort the family head yourself," Shadow said.
The elder's face instantly changed. Since when did these 'ants' dare speak to him like that? Was this a rebellion? He stared wide-eyed at Shadow and Goldwing. "Are you talking to me? Did I hear that right? Do you even know who I am? Do you still want to stay here?"
"Old undead, of course we know who we're talking to. Truth is, we've never liked you—we just never bothered with you before. You really think you're something? In my eyes, you're not even worth a fart. You think we're afraid of you?" Shadow sneered.
"You've turned the world upside down! How dare you be so disrespectful to me. Looks like I need to teach you a lesson or you'll really think I can't do anything to you!" the elder roared in fury. He never dreamed these two would dare talk to him like this.
"Oh, we're so scared! Please spare us, we won't dare next time!" Shadow said with mock seriousness, then burst out laughing.
"You dare mock me? Today I'll cripple you both and show you that ants have no right to speak before true experts!" the elder finished, then launched a powerful palm strike at Shadow.
Shadow didn't dodge—instead, he threw a full-force punch. Even though his realm was lower than the elder's, he wasn't afraid. Fist and palm collided with a thunderous boom, shaking the courtyard and stripping the leaves from the trees.
Shadow was knocked back seven or eight steps before steadying himself, while the elder retreated five steps, his face full of shock. He hadn't expected Shadow's strength to be so fierce—he'd really underestimated them.
Goldwing spoke up, "That's enough, Shadow. Boss is still waiting for us—no need to waste time on this guy. Let's go!"
Shadow grinned, "I'll let you off today, old undead. Just remember to watch yourself from now on. I'm in a good mood today, so I'll spare you. Next time we meet, you won't be so lucky."
With that, a burst of red light erupted from Shadow as he transformed into a gigantic lion right in front of the elder. Goldwing also flashed with golden light, turning into a massive golden bird.
The sudden transformation left the elder speechless. He never imagined these two were actually Divine Beasts in disguise, living here for over thirty years without anyone noticing.
He clearly remembered that not long ago, several peerless experts had come to town looking for someone named Shadow and Old Goldwing. Now he realized it was these two all along. For a moment, he felt a chill—anyone sought by such top powerhouses couldn't be ordinary. Cold sweat broke out on his back.
"Let's go! Hope he knows his place, or next time it'll be his death!" Goldwing said.
Shadow instantly shrank down to the size of a little dog, while Goldwing compressed his form as well. Shadow hopped onto Goldwing's back, and with a flash of golden light, they vanished before the elder's eyes.
Even after Goldwing and Shadow left, the elder was still stunned, unable to recover for a long time. Only after half a day did he finally mutter, "This is way too bizarre! I must be dreaming! I must be dreaming!"