Eilistraea had come to the Southern Territory mainly because she suspected that everything happening there was related to Evan or to be more precise, Azroth.

And just as she had expected, the moment she arrived near the accident site, she saw him standing amid the devastated land, hovering silently in the air.

A strange, tiny creature floated beside him, resembling some kind of worm.

The instant Eilistraea saw him, the first thing that came to her mind was Anastasia’s behavior when she had come to visit her some time ago.

At first, Eilistraea had genuinely wondered whether that woman had lost her mind and kidnapped some random person while believing he was Azroth.

She had assumed this because she simply couldn’t imagine Azroth behaving the way Anastasia described him.

’That guy has completely changed from who he used to be. He can’t let me out of his sight even for a second. Before I came here, he was clinging to me as if I were water and he was a fish. No matter where I go or what I do, he is always there, clinging to me like a needy puppy.’

The words Anastasia had spoken about Evan echoed in her mind. (Chap—1297)

’Does he really act like this now?’ This genuine curiosity was nearly killing her, and she desperately wanted answers.

In fact, the main reason she had come here was to confirm whether Anastasia had truly been telling the truth or not.

If everything Anastasia said was real, then Eilistraea was absolutely going to record Azroth acting in such a clingy and embarrassing manner.

And after obtaining the recording, she would mock him for the rest of his life.

Not only that, she was even planning to spread the recording all across Utopia and give him a complete social death.

Just imagining Azroth’s expression when he discovered that the entirety of Utopia knew about his dark secret filled her with immense excitement.

The more she thought about the possibility of exposing him, the brighter the smile on her face became.

As such, the instant she saw him, she completely ignored Baphomet and Elora, who were fighting nearby, and flew straight towards him.

Alistair also noticed Evan at the same time Eilistraea did, but unlike her, his expression turned serious.

He could feel that Evan was far weaker than he used to be in his memories, where merely standing before him created pressure so overwhelming that it shattered one’s nerves.

But despite the weaker aura surrounding him, Alistair did not believe Evan was truly weaker.

If he really had become weak, then Eldraker’s disappearance earlier, which clearly meant he had died would never have happened.

Of course, there was another reason why Alistair’s expression was so serious.

He thought about Anderson’s death (the Rank Six vampire who had been killed by Evan and the others) as well as all the strange events that had happened recently.

’I knew someone was pulling the strings behind the scenes to make the Bloodmoon Empire fight against the demons alongside the dragons...’ Alistair’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

’Is he the one behind all of this?’

That thought actually confused Alistair more than it frightened him.

The reason for it was simple.

He simply couldn’t understand why Azroth would go through so much trouble.

From everything Alistair knew about him, Azroth was someone who dealt with things directly.

If he wanted to kill someone, he would kill them openly without caring about the forces behind them or any possible consequences.

He would never resort to these kinds of shady schemes.

The best example of this was the Eternal Night incident.

That day, Azroth had marched into the Frozen Monarchy Empire with absolute swagger and annihilated the entire Frost Wraith race along with their kingdom without caring about anything else.

Not even Winterclaw could do anything against him and could only watch helplessly as the entire kingdom under his rule was slaughtered.

All of this brought countless questions to Alistair’s mind.

’Was it really Azroth pulling the strings from behind the scenes, or is there someone else?’

’If it really is Azroth, then why would he do this?’

’Is it because he has lost his powers and become weaker than before, or is there another reason entirely?’

Alistair’s mind was filled with questions, and there was only one person who could answer them.

As such, just like Eilistraea, he also ignored the battle between Baphomet and Elora and flew directly towards Evan.

Baphomet, who had been inwardly delighted when he saw Eilistraea and Alistair arriving, froze when they completely ignored him and the monstrous creature he was fighting against.

Seeing they had no intention of helping him, he nearly coughed out blood in anger.

’Those bastards... Didn’t they come here to stop this monster that is destroying Utopia?’

Baphomet’s expression turned ugly because the other Rank Six Core Evolvers were still quite far away from reaching him, as they were much slower than Alistair and Eilistraea.

’If it weren’t because we are currently in the Southern Territory and it falls under my rule, I wouldn’t have bothered fighting this abomination at all.’

Baphomet continued trying to stop Elora from causing mass destruction while waiting for the other Rank Six Core Evolvers to arrive.

He could have actually asked Eilistraea and Alistair to help him suppress Elora, but his pride refused to allow him to seek help from them.

’I can afford to wait until the other Rank Six Core Evolvers arrive...’ He thought as he once again blocked another devastating attack from Elora.

When both Eilistraea and Alistair drew closer to Evan, Draven immediately blinked away, taking Evan with him.

Evan instantly appeared on the opposite side of the battlefield, completely focused on the drop of Origin Essence that had just condensed inside his Core World.

Compared to the drop of Origin Essence he had seen before, the one condensed inside his Core World was completely different.

The drop radiated a colorful halo, with an immense amount of energy concentrated within it.

Just by looking at the eyeball-sized drop, Evan could sense energy far greater than that possessed by a peak Rank Four Core Evolver.

’This drop of Origin Essence looks even more powerful than the one I obtained from the Will of Earth...’ Evan thought inwardly, wondering whether the difference was caused by the Heart of the World.

He wasn’t sure what level of treasure the Heart of the World was, but the fact that it was something even the spirit of the Universal Tree refused to hand over so easily indicated that it was definitely a treasure beyond ordinary comprehension.

Or rather, calling it merely a treasure might itself be an understatement.

After all, anything capable of making the spirit of the Universal Tree act so cautiously was undoubtedly something that could shake the entire origin universe.

Evan observed the drop of Origin Essence for only a second before throwing the damaged Halberd of Destruction into his Core World, right beside the drop of Origin Essence.

’I hope this works...’ He prayed while glancing toward the crimson beast rampaging in the distance.

The view before Evan’s eyes suddenly shifted as Draven once again teleported away together with him, making Eilistraea and Alistair, who were just about to catch him frustrated.

Evan ignored everything happening around him and focused solely on the halberd inside his Core World.

"Why are you running away?"

Even when Eilistraea called out in frustration because she couldn’t catch up to Draven, Evan didn’t bother shifting his attention toward her as his top priority right now was returning Elora to normal.

As soon as the Halberd of Destruction came near the drop of Origin Essence, it trembled slightly.

Evan didn’t even need to do anything as the halberd moved on its own, slowly approaching the Origin Essence.

The tip of the halberd touched the eyeball-sized drop, and in an instant, the entire drop of Origin Essence was absorbed into it.

Woosh!

A brilliant golden aura burst forth from the halberd, and the cracks covering it began repairing themselves at a rapid speed.

Evan’s eyes lit up when he saw this, and he immediately shifted his attention back toward Elora, who was still fighting against Baphomet.

ROAR!

The crimson beast suddenly let out a deafening roar and, with a swing of its claw, blasted Baphomet far into the distance.

With eyes overflowing with fury, the beast turned its head toward Evan and, as if sensing something, released another enraged roar before shooting directly toward him.

Evan merely stared at the crimson beast rushing toward him, and just before it could reach him, Draven teleported away with him once again.

ROAR!

The beast became even more furious when it saw this, but suddenly, its terrifying aura began to decline, and the power of END emanating from it started weakening.

Just when Evan thought everything was finally about to end, he suddenly sensed something, and his body stiffened instantly.

’Oh, come on! Give me a fu*king break already.’

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(A/N: I am attending my cousin’s wedding, so there will only be one Chapter today. I will make up for it another day.)