The Old Immortal Sage's eyes were pitch black, with no trace of white visible.
His aged hand held up a deep-black jade, a treasure that, at first glance, sent a chilling sensation through anyone who saw it.
"Wanhe Ancient Jade!" The Fire Elder's eyes burned as he stared at the jade in the Old Immortal Sage's hand. "Hand over the jade! I might spare your life!"
"Spare my life? Do you really think Medicine King Valley can defy the heavens?" The Old Immortal Sage sneered. "I don't care if you're a Mystic Arts Adept—once you've stepped into my gate, do you really think you can walk out alive?"
As soon as the Old Immortal Sage finished speaking, he lifted the ancient jade in his hand, his eyes flashing with cold light. With a sudden shout, countless streams of black mist poured out from his mouth.
The mist seemed to come alive, surging toward the courtyard. At the same time, the ground around the yard began to crack inch by inch, the earth rolling outward. In no time, tombstones erupted from beneath the surface.
"Is this a formation?"
The Fire Elder's face changed slightly. Evan Lin watched the scene unfold, growing more certain of his suspicions.
That woman the guy guarding the Four Spirit Blood Array at Thornridge Mountain was waiting for—she was probably the very one being worshipped by the Old Immortal Sage on this altar.
"Killing you is like killing a dog! Even a mere elder from Medicine King Valley dares to act so arrogant?" the Old Immortal Sage roared, and the ancient jade in his hand shone with an even fiercer black light.
In no time, the entire courtyard was filled with tombstones jutting up from the earth.
Above the courtyard, thick black clouds gathered. From within the clouds, the face of a hideously ugly woman emerged—her ghostly body had four arms and six legs, and her gaping mouth flashed with razor-sharp fangs.
Harvey Xie turned deathly pale the moment he saw that ghost hovering in the air.
The Fire Elder had already begun casting spells, summoning countless flames to his hands. At the center of his chest, it looked as if a blazing inferno was burning!
There, the fire burned blood-red.
"No wonder—so you have a fire-attribute magic artifact. But inside my formation, you'd better get ready to die!" The Old Immortal Sage's face twisted with rage as he roared.
The ghostly figure in midair instantly solidified and lunged straight at the Fire Elder.
"That's... that's the fierce ghost the Old Immortal Sage was rumored to have tamed! How can it be this powerful?" Uncle Victor Li looked up, his face frozen in shock and his voice trembling.
Melissa Mu stood beside him, stunned as she watched the Fire Elder unleash a torrent of raging flames from his hands, meeting the ugly female ghost head-on.
In a split second, fire and ghost collided!
"Interesting. Looks like today won't be a wasted trip," Evan Lin squinted, his gaze shifting from the sky to the Fire Elder's chest.
"There's actually a fluctuation of spiritual qi there. If that's really a fire-attribute magic artifact, maybe I could use it for alchemy."
As Evan pondered this, the ugly female ghost in midair let out a series of piercing shrieks, but in the end, she still broke straight through the wall of fire!
"Master, watch out!" Harvey Xie shouted, seeing the ghost break through the wall of fire and charge at the Fire Elder.
The Fire Elder saw this but didn't panic at all. He opened his mouth wide, and a tongue of fire shot out like a blazing ribbon, slicing through the air and burning the ugly female ghost cleanly in two!
Orange-red flames lit up the entire sky. The ugly ghost wailed, and soon, she was reduced to a puff of smoke, vanishing from the world.
"The immortal master really is incredible!" Uncle Victor Li coughed, then—with Melissa Mu's help—managed to stand up and spoke respectfully.
"Immortal master! Help me kill that kid—I'll pay ten million for it!" Melissa Mu snapped back to her senses, thrusting out a finger at Evan Lin, her face full of desperate pleading.
Half her face was so swollen it was hard to look at; all her usual icy pride was gone.
Now, her face was twisted with rage—the fury in her heart had completely consumed her.
"Relax! In a bit, I'll personally make sure he gets what's coming to him. Miss Mu, you'll get your answer." Harvey Xie burst out laughing, still looking at Evan Lin like he was already dead.
"Before you start dreaming about teaching me a lesson, you'd better pray your master can survive," Evan Lin replied, his tone full of disdain.
"What did you just say?" Harvey Xie shot Evan a look like he was staring at an idiot.
"The immortal master has already slain that evil ghost. The Old Immortal Sage's strongest move was just that ghost. You don't know a thing, yet you dare spout nonsense here! The immortal master's reputation is far beyond your understanding!" Uncle Victor Li spat as he sang the Fire Elder's praises.
Evan Lin gave him a cool glance, but before he could speak, the ghost that had been burned to ashes suddenly reappeared behind the Fire Elder!
"Watch out!"
Everyone gasped in shock at the sudden turn of events.
The Fire Elder reacted, ready to counter, but the ghost was too quick—she sank her fangs into his arm.
"Damn you!"
The Fire Elder roared in fury, flames swirling around him as he tried to incinerate the evil ghost. But no matter how fiercely the fire burned, the ghost—though shrieking in pain—remained as fierce as ever.
"It's useless! Inside my formation, the tombstones suppress souls—she's immortal! Even if your Medicine King Valley master showed up, what could he do? I'll kill you first, then grind to dust anyone who dares kill my disciple!" The Old Immortal Sage shrieked, his face twisted with rage, looking nothing like the calm immortal he once was.
"Who killed your disciple? It wasn't me!" Harvey Xie stammered, his face pale with fear. The Fire Elder was barely hanging on—his flames couldn't hurt the ghost at all. Instead, he was getting battered, and in just a few breaths, he was covered in wounds.
Harvey Xie blurted out his denial, terrified the ghost would come for him next.
Uncle Victor Li was struck dumb by what he saw, unable to utter a single word for a long moment.
Melissa Mu was shaking all over. She'd pinned her hopes on the Fire Elder, but now he was about to die himself!
Her mind raced—then, suddenly, she spotted Evan Lin standing off to the side. She nervously shouted at the Old Immortal Sage, "It was him! He's the one who killed your disciple! If you're looking for someone, go after him!"
Melissa Mu instantly regretted her outburst. The Old Immortal Sage was terrifying—his disciple was probably no weakling, and the real killer was most likely Harvey Xie. If she'd said the wrong thing and angered the Old Immortal Sage, she'd be dead meat.
"Yeah, I killed him. And I wiped out that little ghost too."
"You let your disciple bring a ghost down the mountain to try and kill me. That's one crime."
"You failed to recognize true power, didn't kneel or beg for mercy when you saw me, and tried to kill me with this pathetic formation. That's two crimes."
"Old fraud, do you accept my judgment or not?"
Evan Lin spoke calmly—instantly, everyone in the courtyard was shocked to the core.