The Wailing Skull screamed without sound — and the monsters froze.
The moment Evan raised it, both the Vampire and the Ghoul froze.
A Second?Tier Relic’s psychic blast couldn’t kill Chrysalis?tier evolutionists like them, but it could stun them for a heartbeat — and a heartbeat was all Evan needed.
Their steps faltered. Their eyes glazed over.
But these two monsters were strong even among their tier.
Everyone knew: the more twisted the mind, the stronger the psyche.
They shook off the mental shock almost instantly — just in time to hear a shout echo through the corridor:
“Prison break!”
Evan’s voice.
“You little bastard! I’ll peel your skin off and make a puzzle out of it!”
Both men were consumed with hatred. They wanted Evan dead more than they wanted freedom.
But when they looked up, Evan was already gone — his speed exploding as he bolted toward the exit.
As he fled, he tossed a small glass vial behind him.
It shattered on the metal floor.
A cloud of yellow gas burst outward.
The compressed toxin he’d taken from Liam Zhao’s corpse.
Everything happened in a blink.
By the time Evan shouted and sprinted out of the detention block, the guard captain finally reacted. His face drained of color as he slammed the heavy alloy door shut with all his strength.
The Vampire and the Ghoul watched the half?open door swing closed — the moonlight shrinking, their hope dying with it.
They roared and charged.
For a moment, they moved faster than they ever had in their lives.
There’s still a chance!
Their eyes burned with desperate fire — drowning men reaching for the last straw.
But the instant they entered the yellow gas, their bodies convulsed.
Their faces flushed red.
Breaths turned ragged.
Their skin shriveled like punctured balloons.
They collapsed.
Their skin turned a sickly purple?blue, veins writhing beneath the surface like tangled worms.
Even then, their eyes stayed locked on the closing door.
Only when the final sliver of moonlight vanished behind the metal gate did the fire in their eyes die — along with their lives.
The guard captain sealed the door and exhaled in relief.
Through the window, he saw only swirling yellow smoke. He couldn’t tell what had happened to the two inmates — and frankly, he didn’t want to.
Stolen novel; please report.
The gate was airtight.
The toxin wouldn’t leak.
Then a thought struck him.
He spun around, searching for the Zhao family visitor.
He knew the escape attempt had everything to do with that man.
But Evan was already long gone.
He had sprinted out of the detention block and was racing toward Ironhold’s main gate.
He knew the guards wouldn’t let anyone leave after such chaos.
He also knew the Zhao family would never send Liam alone.
There had to be backup.
He needed that backup to survive.
From the moment he planned the escape, Evan had also planned what came after.
Unlike the Vampire and the Ghoul, escaping the prison wasn’t enough for him.
He needed a legal identity.
He needed a future.
As Liam Zhao, he was a criminal.
As a clone, he was illegal.
Either way, he couldn’t live openly.
Without a legal identity or power, he’d be hunted the moment he stepped outside.
Escaping Ironhold would only drop him into a bigger prison — the world itself.
Only the Zhao family could protect him.
Which meant he had to kill Liam Zhao…
and become Liam Zhao.
Just as Evan reached the main gate, the guard captain caught up — Chrysalis?tier speed overwhelming.
He was about to grab Evan when he suddenly froze.
A massive silhouette stood outside the gate.
A man built like a steel tower.
“Butterfly?tier…”
A three?time evolved powerhouse.
Just standing there radiated crushing pressure.
“Stand down,” the giant said calmly.
The guard captain clenched his jaw but didn’t dare argue.
He stepped back and watched helplessly as the man took Evan away.
“If the warden were here, I wouldn’t have to fear him…” the captain muttered bitterly.
Normally, Ironhold’s warden lived on?site.
But last night, he’d attended a banquet hosted by Elias Zhao — conveniently close to his home — and decided to sleep there afterward.
Looking back, it was obvious:
Elias Zhao had arranged everything.
——
“Uncle Iron,” Evan said, imitating Liam’s tone as he removed the damaged mask.
The towering man was Fante Zhang, a Butterfly?tier evolutionist and the Zhao family’s strongest fighter.
As a gifted but impoverished youth, he’d been recruited by Elias Zhao, trained, and elevated.
He’d repaid that kindness with unwavering loyalty.
Even Liam Zhao had to call him “Uncle Iron.”
“Something went wrong?” Zhang asked, expression unreadable.
Evan nodded.
“There was an accident. But I was prepared. The imposter is dead.”
“You’re not injured?”
“No.”
Zhang gave a slight nod and led Evan to a low?profile black sedan parked by the roadside.
“Get in. The Minister is waiting.”
Evan slid into the back seat.
Zhang took the wheel and drove away from Ironhold.
It was around 2 a.m.
The prison was in the outskirts — the roads empty, the night silent.
Zhang drove fast and steady.
Evan watched Ironhold fade into the darkness, a wave of relief washing over him.
The escape had gone perfectly.
Everything had unfolded exactly as he’d hoped.
Just as he’d told Liam earlier —
the innocent deserved salvation,
the guilty deserved punishment.
Now, three guilty men lay dead in that iron coffin.
And the innocent man had walked free.
He had never intended to let the Vampire or the Ghoul escape.
He wasn’t a saint, but he wasn’t about to unleash two monsters on the world.
If not for Liam’s toxin, he might have escaped alone — but killing them both would’ve been nearly impossible.
The yellow gas…
Evan shivered.
If Liam had used it on him from the start, he would’ve died instantly.
He recognized the toxin the moment he saw it — likely harvested from a third?tier beast.
Yellow corresponded to the third evolution tier.
A third?tier beast’s venom could kill Chrysalis?tier evolutionists.
Then—
The iron gate had closed behind him, but Evan knew the real prison was the identity he’d just stolen — and the men waiting on the other side.
