Ryan hid among the dense branches of a large tree, holding his breath as he stared down at the teleportation array.

  Within the blue glow, a pale long leg stepped out first, and just that single glimpse made Ryan's heart skip a beat.

  He instinctively swallowed, eyes locked tightly on the array: judging by the outline, not only was it a woman, but she seemed to be unclothed?

  The next moment, when the figure fully stepped out of the array, Ryan drew in a sharp breath. A wave of heat instantly surged to his nose.

  The woman stood naked on the grass, her hair falling to her waist, skin snow-white, chest curves exaggerated.

  But when he saw her face clearly, his pupils shrank abruptly, and it felt as if all the blood in his body froze instantly. That breathtaking face, cold and piercing, he would never forget, even if he turned to ashes!

  It was Evelyn! The woman who had killed him eight times!

  【Grimoire! Didn't you say she disappeared? What is going on!】 Ryan screamed madly in his mind, his body instinctively recoiling, ready to turn and run.

  【Wait!】 Grimoire's voice sounded.

  【If I wait any longer, she'll kill me!】 Every encounter with Evelyn carried the shadow of death. He did not want to die in this ninth life so soon.

  【She has no magical energy right now!】

  【I can sense it. Her magical energy is almost zero. She is just an ordinary person now! This is the perfect opportunity for you to kill her!】

  【No magical energy?】 Ryan's step froze mid-motion, doubting his own hearing.

  Evelyn clearly heard the movement in the tree and shouted sharply,【Who's there? Show yourself!】

  Panicked, Evelyn raised her hand, and a blue dress materialized around her, quickly covering her body.

  This was undoubtedly the most humiliating moment in tens of thousands of years: not only had someone seen her naked, she could not even cast the most basic magical defenses.

  Ever since her last intense battle with Ryan, her magic core had been severely damaged.

  The chaotic energy had torn apart her magical veins, and the final blood-stained kiss had completely disrupted her elemental refinement.

  About to fall from Grand Magus level, she had no choice but to spend thousands of years arranging a Magical Source Reforging Array.

  It was an extreme magical secret technique, sacrificing existing Grand Magus magic energy and physical strength to compress the Magical Source back to its initial state, then relearn everything from Magic Apprentice.

  With her experience advancing from Magic Apprentice to Grand Magus, Evelyn had absolute confidence.

  She could not only return to Grand Magus faster but also become stronger.

  For safety, she chose the Everfrozen Plains in the northern territories as the reforging location, protected by natural ice magic barriers to block all external interference.

  But no one could have expected that in the final step of the ritual, the void suddenly became unstable, and a terrifying spatial suction erupted.

  Even with the remaining Grand Magus power at the time, she could not resist the force capable of tearing space apart. If pulled in, she could have been trapped in the void stream forever.

  In desperation, she was forced to interrupt the ritual and search for the nearest stable spatial node within the void stream, eventually teleporting in a disheveled state to this unfamiliar forest.

  Evelyn's shout had barely finished when a flurry of rapid sounds came from the tree, as if someone was hopping through the leaves. The noises quickly receded into the forest, leaving Evelyn trembling with anger where she stood.

  "Damn peeping coward!" Evelyn snapped, yanking up the ultimate ice sword. The ultimate ice sword was currently sealed.

  Without magical energy to support her, she could only force the blade with what remained of her will, unable even to activate the most basic enchantment on the sword.

  She gripped the hilt until her teeth clicked together.

  Evelyn drew a deep breath, tamping down her fury. This was not the time to pursue the matter. She had to find a hidden place as soon as possible and recover at least basic magical perception.

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  Just as she turned to leave, a brazen laugh rang out from behind:"I'm back again!"

  Evelyn's expression froze. Instinctively she whirled, the sword flashing as she swung toward the voice. Though drained, her tens of thousands of years of combat experience remained.

  But in the next moment she saw the figure sidestep. That was the effect of a quickstep spell.

  A faint wind magic glow rose beneath Ryan's feet, and he flickered around to her back with a speed that exceeded her expectation.

  Ryan had once been a Grand Magus. Even now, at Ninth tier Magic Apprentice, his control of magical agility far surpassed an ordinary Magic Apprentice.

  He did not even use a weapon. He simply raised his right hand and struck hard at the back of Evelyn's neck.

  "Impossible!" Evelyn's pupils widened, unbelief written across her face. She knew the power of the ultimate ice sword. Even sealed, it could split rock. Yet this opponent not only dodged easily but launched such a swift attack.

  When she teleported here she had used her remaining will to probe the surroundings. This person's strength did not match her detection results.

  Before she could react, a fierce pain erupted at the back of her neck. Darkness rushed in and her body went limp as she collapsed.

  Ryan withdrew his hand, shook his slightly numb wrist, and looked down at the fallen Evelyn with triumphant delight."Grand Magus or not, you still fall into my hands now!"

  "Grimoire, explain this to me! Why is she alive? Didn't you say her magical fluctuation had vanished?" he demanded into his mind.

  【There are currently two possibilities】

  【She is not the real Evelyn, only someone who looks like her】

  【Or she chose Magical Source Reforging. Most likely your eighth life battle inflicted such severe damage on her magical veins and body that she was forced to be reborn.】

  "Not Evelyn? How could that be!" Ryan crouched and lightly touched Evelyn's pale cheek with a finger.

  "The cold aura on her and that ultimate ice sword— even if I forget everything, I would not mistake them!"

  He used magical perception.

  【Evelyn】

  【Identity: Grand Magus undergoing Magical Source Reforging】

  【Magic Level: Ordinary person】

  【Magical Weapon: ultimate ice sword (sealed)】

  "Even as a mortal, that face is still so beautiful," Ryan could not help but sigh.

  He had seen Evelyn countless times—cold, angry, focused in battle—but never so utterly unguarded. Her pale cheeks had a faint blush, her murderous aura diminished and replaced by a fragile softness.

  【Then it seems the second possibility is the case.】

  "Her Magical Source is damaged? Then this time you must be done for!" Ryan's eyes flashed with ruthless intent as he picked up the ultimate ice sword from the ground.

  He raised it and drove it toward Evelyn's chest without hesitation.

  A crisp clash of metal rang out. The moment the blade broke skin, it felt as if it struck a hard magical barrier and could not advance another inch.

  Ryan suddenly realized that most of the magical treasures Evelyn had accumulated over tens of thousands of years would follow her in the form of soul bindings.

  And those close-proximity protective magical items could automatically trigger defenses when their owner was in mortal danger, requiring no active control at all.

  "Damn it!" Ryan shouted, throwing the ultimate ice sword forcefully.

  The small amount of magical energy he had infused into the blade was already exhausted. Holding this epic weapon, which was soul-bound to Evelyn, could easily backfire on him.

  After all, this ultimate ice sword had ended his life countless times before; he had no intention of repeating history.

  Looking at Evelyn lying on the ground with no strength to resist, Ryan's eyes flickered with a complicated light—unable to kill her, but too dangerous to leave unchecked.

  Since that was the case, he decided to restrain her first. He bent down and lifted Evelyn onto his back. Her light body pressed against him, carrying a faint scent.

  Ryan gritted his teeth, suppressing distracting thoughts. Now was not the time for that—he had to find a safe place first and figure out how many hidden magical treasures she still carried.

  He had only taken a few steps when the ultimate ice sword lying on the ground began to tremble slightly.

  The blade glowed faintly in the direction of Evelyn, as if trying to return to its master.

  A thought suddenly flashed through Ryan's mind: if he could temporarily control the sword, even if Evelyn later regained her magical energy, he would have a bargaining chip for self-preservation.

  Ryan moved to a spot about two meters away from the ultimate ice sword and shouted at it,"Look, your master is unconscious. I need to take her to a safe place for treatment. Do you want to come along?"

  The moment he spoke, the ultimate ice sword trembled violently, flickering a faint blue light, as if expressing anger.

  It had clearly seen him just now, holding it and nearly piercing its master's heart!

  Seeing this, Ryan deliberately frowned and acted as if he were about to carry Evelyn away."If you don't come, fine. Then I'll have to take your master first. If any magical beasts attack us on the way and something happens to her, don't blame me."

  As expected, the ultimate ice sword immediately stopped trembling. The blade tapped the ground three times lightly, signaling Ryan to come pick it up.

  Ryan sneered inwardly. He wasn't foolish; who knew if the sword would suddenly attack?

  He set Evelyn down in front of the long blade, grasped her soft wrist, and slowly reached toward the hilt.

  Just as Evelyn's fingertips were about to touch the hilt, the ultimate ice sword burst with a blinding blue light. The blade instantly transformed into a stream of ice-blue energy, piercing into Evelyn's body and vanishing without a trace.

  Ryan scanned the surroundings and decided to find a concealed cave first.

  He looked down at his tattered robes, then at Evelyn's exquisite dress, and an idea struck him. He needed to use strips of cloth to bind Evelyn, preventing her from resisting once she woke up.

  He placed Evelyn by a tree and reached to tear her dress.

  The fabric was tough. Ryan struggled to rip off a few strips but realized Evelyn was wearing a thin white slip underneath.

  The sheer slip clung to her body like moonlight woven into fabric, outlining her delicate curves.

  Though most of her skin was covered, it added an ethereal beauty. Ryan's nose tingled, and he quickly wiped it, thankful he hadn't started bleeding.

  He reached to tear the slip, but the moment his fingers touched it, an invisible force repelled his hand.

  This was an automatically defensive magical undergarment!

  Ryan instantly understood why the ultimate ice sword hadn't pierced Evelyn's heart—the sheer slip was the true defensive core.

  It could automatically block physical and magical attacks. The strike from the ultimate ice sword had only hit the barrier it generated.