Grasping the Evil-Chapter 1003: Refusal to Save

Duolan... Celestial Emperor’s daughter... Holy Mountain Guardians... Three Flame Armor Guards...

Ning Fan’s gaze flickered slightly. From the moment this woman asked for help to when she hid behind him, she uttered only two sentences, but those few words contained a lot of information.

This woman knew he was a Tamu Outsider Cultivator, behind her was the faction of Holy Mountain Guardians, and she seemed to have an Immortal Emperor background...

As for the identity of those black guards, they were the Three Flame Armor Guards. This term was unfamiliar, and it was the first time Ning Fan heard it after entering the Dabei Clan. However, it was not the first time he had encountered the Three Flame Armor Guards; he had met them several times before and had vaguely noticed that these Three Flame Armor Guards harbored deep hostility towards the so-called Holy Mountain Guardians.... If there were no surprises, the Three Flame Armor Guards and the Holy Mountain Guardians were likely enemies!

Initially, Ning Fan did not intend to offend either side when he first entered Dabei, as he was unclear about the specifics of the Holy Mountain and the Three Flame. Even if that red-haired woman had intentions of dragging him into turbulent waters, that would depend on his willingness or not!

Seeing several Three Flame Armor Guards closing in, Ning Fan retreated while avoiding their attacks and calmly explained,

"I am an outsider cultivator from the Tamu Clan, not a Holy Mountain Guardian. I don’t know these two, nor do I have any intention of getting involved in your conflict."

During the retreat, he naturally left Duolan, who was seeking shelter, behind, without the slightest intent to rescue her.

Seeing Ning Fan abandon her and unwilling to help, Duolan was shocked and angry. If she were within the Holy Mountain, her beauty could almost guarantee aid from many men; the man before her was cold, ignoring her beauty!

What a man who doesn’t know how to pity a flower or cherish jade!

At this moment, her mana was nearly exhausted, and even facing Truth-Transcending level attacks posed great danger. Clenching her teeth, she disregarded her warm face meeting a cold shoulder and closely followed Ning Fan in retreat, carefully avoiding being surrounded by the black guards again. Inside, she sneered at Ning Fan, her heart was full of disdain!

This person is unworthy of being the Eternal Immortal Venerable! Even if his cultivations are sealed, he need not fear several Truth-Transcending and Shedding Void, should he not easily save this beauty in distress? But he was unwilling to help; if not due to inadequate ability, then it was extreme timidity! Of course, it’s also possible this person is extremely cautious and unwilling to meddle in Holy Mountain and Three Flame’s disputes lightly. Does this person not know that to stand firm in Dabei as a foreign cultivator, one must choose between these two factions? Neutrality is impossible!

Thinking like this, while hiding behind Ning Fan, Duolan intentionally misled the black guards’ judgment,

"Is my brother still blaming his sister? Why not admit your identity as a Guardian? Or is my brother so afraid of the Three Flame Armor Guards that he’s only thinking about escaping and not saving his sister?"

She made up her mind to drag Ning Fan into these troubled waters! Hmph, wanting neutrality? Let’s see if I’m Duolan agrees!

Upon hearing this, the black guards coldly laughed and ignored Ning Fan’s explanation. With murderous divine skills and magical treasures, they continued to attack Ning Fan.

Ning Fan glared fiercely at Duolan and explained again to the black guards, "I am indeed not a Holy Mountain Guardian. If you don’t believe, you can examine the Punishing Ring within me! Do not kill the wrong person!"

Only one or two black guards slowed their attack, seemingly wanting to verify the Punishing Ring’s authenticity, but most of the black guards became even more aggressive. Some even laughed coldly and said,

"Hmph, just a mere outsider! What if we kill wrongly? It’s no different from wrongly killing cattle, sheep, or pigs! No need for the hassle of verifying your Punishing Ring!"

"This person may not be unrelated to the Holy Mountain Guardians; three words and two sentences aren’t enough to clear ties!"

"Quickly kill this person, and we will make achievements with his head!"

"Even if this person is not a Guardian, he’s likely closely related to Duolan! We absolutely cannot let him go!"

The arrogance in several black guards’ attitudes made Ning Fan’s expression turn cold. Today’s event seemed that no matter how he explained, he would be dragged into this turbulent water!

All because of that woman named Duolan!

"I do not wish to make enemies of you all; must you insist on taking action?" Ning Fan’s tone was somewhat cold.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

His answer was the frenzied attack akin to hyenas from the black guards! These people decided, if they must kill three thousand wrongly today, they would not let Ning Fan escape!

In this light, Ning Fan was too lazy to argue with these black guards any further.

Though he was mindful of befriending the Dabei Clan, if the opposition pressed him further, it would be another matter entirely. Though he disliked being used as a pawn, seeing the current circumstances, avoiding it was no longer possible!

This place is located in the Fierce Realm, extremely remote. As long as he cleans up the traces and clears cause and effect, who would know he killed the Sanyan Guards? He might not necessarily become enemies with the Dabei Clan.

Several black guards saw Ning Fan did not dare to fight back, their arrogance grew wilder, just as they wanted to attack again, suddenly their expressions changed drastically!

They saw a cold glint in Ning Fan’s eyes, he no longer retreated, nor did he evade, letting the divine power treasures hit his body, instantly engulfed in a dazzling light.

"This person must be crazy, daring to take on our attacks directly..."

A black guard snorted disdainfully, but in the next moment, his disdain turned into shock, then into fear.

Yet they saw a figure slowly emerge from the blinding light, completely ignoring everyone’s attacks, and no attack could break through his physical defense. His physical strength gave several Enlightenment Masters a shocking feeling.

This is the might of the Nine Nirvana Heavenly Demon! Ordinary Enlightenment attacks can hardly break through his physical defense!

Ning Fan’s figure flickered, appearing in front of a black guard, his speed not fully unleashed, but to the eyes of a mere Enlightenment black guard, it already resembled a ghost. That black guard couldn’t even react before Ning Fan’s fist slammed into his chest!

Under the immense force, his protective black armor shattered almost instantly. This collapse wasn’t a simple breakdown, but a destruction on the level of rules! Subsequently, even his body exploded into a mist of blood in an instant, shattered beyond any repair, dead with no way for his Spirit to escape!

"Such a terrifying physique, just a casual punch from him is even more powerful than many Acquired Treasures!"

The other few Enlightenment black guards were greatly shocked, immediately retreating. How could they not know Ning Fan is a hard nut, unbeatable by mere Enlightenment Masters? Unfortunately, now thinking of retreat is a bit too late.

But seeing Ning Fan’s figure flicker and disappear, almost at the same moment, several hastily retreating Enlightenment black guards felt a chill down their spines, a black shadow flashed before their eyes, but no one could see the shadow’s movement clearly, couldn’t even react before they were struck by immense forces, their bodies collapsing one after another, dying violently, their blood splattering the sky! 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

This startling change in events immediately drew the attention of the remaining black guards!

Three black-armored elders at the Peak of the Shedding Void Stage all had solemn faces. In fact, since Ning Fan’s appearance, the three had noticed him, but none had given Ning Fan a second thought. No one expected this seemingly timid and cautious foreign cultivator would truly dare to take action against the Sanyan Guards and commit killings!

"Just an outsider, and yet you dare to kill my Sanyan Guards, you must pay with your life! Thunder Spirit Transforming Bow!"

One of the black-armored elders, furious to the point of laughter, gave a command, leading over ten Sanyan Guards towards Ning Fan. When nearing, they rubbed their hands together, immediately purple light brewed in their palms, transforming into a small lightning bow.

This small bow wasn’t a tangible entity but transformed from the power of the Medicine Soul, a unique divine power of Pill Masters. If a Pill Master excels in battle soul techniques, they could integrate the power of the Medicine Soul into divine powers, which is precisely the specialty of the Dabei Clan cultivators.

"Soul Fusion!"

Over ten Enlightenment black guards behind the black-armored elder shouted in unison, releasing their Medicine Souls, merging them into the elder’s body. Instantly, the elder’s cultivation soared rapidly, barely reaching the early stage of Shattered Thought in a very short time! The lightning bow in his hand was even more radiant by many folds!

"Fire is born from lightning in the air... Sacrificial Thunderbolt Arrow Fire!"

The black-armored elder drew the bow and shot, immediately a crimson flame enveloped the bow, transforming into a fiery arrow shooting forth.

The fiery arrow entwined with electric arcs, bringing with it the vast might of thunder and fire, faintly connecting with the great momentum of heaven and earth, causing the temperature between heaven and earth to rise suddenly. Those Enlightenment black guards couldn’t withstand such power, and after combining their souls, quickly retreated.

The black-armored elder confidently watched the arrow glow in the sky, this technique being his strongest card, once assisting him to severely wound a Shattered Thought early stage with the Peak of the Shedding Void Stage cultivation!

Ning Fan’s eyes also focused slightly, but that was all. The opponent’s soul fusion secret technique was quite strange, capable of amplifying cultivation through the overlay of each other’s Medicine Souls within a short time, quite mysterious. This arrow might indeed have some potential to injure a normal Shattered Thought early stage, but to hurt him, it’s far from enough!

Facing the incoming arrow, Ning Fan directly waved his demonic palm, reaching for the thunderbolt arrow light, completely unafraid of the sharpness of the arrow.

"This brat is courting death!" sneered the black-armored elder.

As if responding to the black-armored elder’s words, the lightning fire caught within Ning Fan’s palm suddenly twitched like a thunder snake, instantly bursting into countless thunder arcs striking Ning Fan’s body.

The sizzling electrical arcs were quite formidable, but given Ning Fan’s strong physique, striking his body only caused a slight numbing pain. To break through his physical defense, it was still insufficient. This was without him using the Tai Su Lightning Star; if he had, there wouldn’t even be slight numbing pain!

Ning Fan’s face bore an emotionless expression; with a blast of palm power, he shattered the lightning fire arrow in his grasp to pieces. As the essence flowed around him, the might of the Ancient Demon was unleashed without reserve, demonic energy as though countless dark clouds pressed down. With the rising demon might reaching its peak, Ning Fan let out a demonic roar, this roar activated the full power of Nine Nirvanas of the Heavenly Demon!

Roar—

The Ancient Demon Roar, is truly a formidable attack technique! This roar, though singular, reverberates through the heavens and earth, multiplying tenfold, then a hundredfold, instantly creating thousands upon thousands of echoes, shaking the heavens!

The roar does not resemble that of humans, but rather a beast, like a mountain collapsing, or the sound of bloodlines of ancient demon heads reversing!

The black-armored elder felt an unbeatable demonic thought blast into his ears, striking him instantly, causing him to spit blood and be sent flying, his ears ringing incessantly, his blood trending towards reversal, almost unable to hold onto the thunderbow, looking at Ning Fan with horror for the first time.

The demon roar swept across, like a drop of black ink on a white canvas of heaven and earth, spreading wildly to the surroundings. Behind the black-armored elder, those with only Truth-Transcending level cultivation in the Sanyan Guards, several had their divine sense shattered by Ning Fan’s roar, screaming and dying! The remaining Truth-Transcending ones, spitting blood wildly, though not dead, had their divine sense heavily damaged and found it difficult to even maintain flight!

In the distance, the giant sword man was struggling among the siege of dozens of black guards, that demon roar appeared unexpectedly, causing both sides of the fight to be caught unawares, each being shocked by that roar, spitting blood, it was practically an indiscriminate attack.

Even the red-haired woman named Duolan couldn’t escape the demon roar strike, her already frail body suffered severe injury under that roar!

The demon roar continued sweeping, creating countless sound waves, crashing into the heaven-sealing earth-locking barrier. A barrier that even peak Shedding Void Stage cultivators couldn’t break, yet it collapsed directly under Ning Fan’s roar!

The seal here is lifted!

"Ancient Demon! And indeed it’s the Heavenly Demon of Ninth Nirvana!"

The black-armored elder holding the thunderbow was utterly shocked; this is the Ancient Demon Roar, unmistakable! Only the Ancient Demon Tribe possesses such tyrannical feral demon roars!

If Ning Fan was just an ancient demon, it wouldn’t be enough to scare him, the key was, Ning Fan’s ancient demon cultivation at least reached the ninth nirvana of the heavenly demon! A heavenly demon of ninth nirvana is not one ordinary Shattered Thought Early Stage cultivator can defeat! The elder with the thunderbow is not truly Shattered Thought Early Stage, only temporarily elevated to this realm using the Soul Fusion secret technique, and the elevation lasted only a moment, now his cultivation slipped back to Peak Shekong, along with a sense of weakness, the after-effect of the Soul Fusion secret technique!

They, the Sanyan Guards, only dispatched three Peak Shedding Void Stage members on this trip, combined they might not be opponents of this Ninth Nirvana Heavenly Demon!

But, even if they couldn’t defeat, they must face him! Killing the Holy Mountain Tomb Guardians is their mission, and failing the mission also means death!

"Kill!"

The three Peak Shedding Void Stage black-armored elders almost simultaneously issued this order, each black-armored guard, fearless of death, ruthlessly ignited their Spirit to fight Ning Fan to the death.

Everyone went to besiege Ning Fan! This is the opportunity for the two Holy Mountain Tomb Guardians!

At this moment, only a few Truth-Transcending black guards were entangled with the giant sword man. Giant sword man, despite being besieged for days, his body weak, under a strong rush, still barely broke through a few Truth-Transcending black guards’ blockade, escaped by riding on escape light.

Duolan, who had been hiding not far behind Ning Fan, also seized the chance to escape.

Especially Duolan, after Ning Fan’s indiscriminate demon roar, she had a clearer understanding of Ning Fan’s cold ruthlessness. Had her cultivation been weaker, she would have been just like some unlucky Sanyan Guards, directly killed by the demon roar! From this point, it is clear Ning Fan never intended to save them, he remained indifferent to her previous plea for help, otherwise, he could have used other divine skills to harm enemies instead of using such indiscriminate demon roar divine skills!

No, it wasn’t indiscriminate; Ning Fan considered all the cultivators here his enemies! Sanyan Guards wanted to kill him, thus were enemies; and Duolan, for scheming him, forcibly dragging him into muddy waters, was also considered an enemy by him!

Duolan suddenly understood this!

So laughable, truly laughable! With her beauty, her status and position, going to seek help from a mere foreign cultivator, not only did she not receive help but was considered an enemy!

"This person was schemed by me first, thus views me as an enemy! Now that he is attacking the Sanyan Guards, he might also attack us Tomb Guardians..." Thinking of this, Duolan dared not linger here any longer, fleeing hastily with the giant sword man.

"Forty-one Sanyan Guards, two Holy Mountain Tomb Guardians..."

Seeing Duolan and the giant sword man escape, Ning Fan squinted his eyes slightly but didn’t plan to pursue for now. Facing the fierce assault of the black guards, Ning Fan showed no expression, stepped onto the sky, his entire body instantly turning into golden light, disappearing from where he stood, appearing instantly near one black guard after another.

The Truth-Transcending cultivation level black guards couldn’t even bear a punch or kick from him, within just over ten breaths, only three Peak Shedding Void Stage black-armored elders remained alive here.

Another twenty breaths passed, even those three black-armored elders perished at Ning Fan’s hands.

Killing these black guards didn’t bring Ning Fan a sense of achievement, yet he was surprised by the indomitable fighting spirit of these Sanyan Guards, even fighting to the last person, even being captured by his Ancient Demon Ancestral Blood aura, they had no intention of retreating or pleading for mercy until every last one fought to their death...

Even against enemies daring to fight to the death, Ning Fan wasn’t stingy in his praise, yet an enemy remains an enemy, on the life-and-death cultivation road, he naturally showed no mercy. After searching the memories of the three black-armored elders, Ning Fan finally gained a deeper understanding of the Dabei Clan’s affairs.

It turns out the entire Dabei Clan is divided into three sections!

The various tribal cultivators of the Dabei Clan are descendants of the Medicine Slave of the Herb-gathering Sage.

The Holy Mountain Tomb Guardians are offspring of the disciples of the Herb-gathering Sage’s benevolent corpse.

The Sanyan Guards are descendants of the disciples of the Herb-gathering Sage’s malevolent corpse.

In terms of status, all tribal cultivators of the Dabei Clan are merely servants, whereas the tomb guardians and Sanyan Guards are the true masters within the Inner Sanctum of the Holy Domain!

"Previously, I thought that forging alliances with the Dabei Clan meant forming ties with those tribes. Now it seems that I was mistaken... The true decision-makers in the Dabei Clan are not those tribal leaders or the Central Continent Five Emperors, but the two major forces of Holy Mountain and Sanyan. Holy Mountain is the sacred site on the Dabei Grassland, transformed from the relic thoughts of the Sage after death; Sanyan refers to the three Tenth-grade Fierce Realm Continents, which, within the Dabei Clan, are solely the territories of the Sanyan Guards..."

"Sanyan and Holy Mountain have been adversaries since ancient times! Any outsider entering the Dabei must choose to join one of the two; this is the rule of the Dabei, or else both will be foes..."

"The vast majority of tribes within the Dabei Clan are affiliated with Holy Mountain. The Tamu Clan I belong to is similarly a Holy Mountain affiliate, thus my act of joining the Tamu Clan is tantamount to choosing the Holy Mountain faction, a choice that cannot be altered post-joining the Tamu Clan... Killing the Sanyan Guards is not hard to cover up, as lives are even cheaper than grass in Sanyan, with an overwhelming number, thus few inquire after death. The activities of the Sanyan Guards are confined to the Fierce Domain and they never venture out, so offending Sanyan is not significant; however, the number of Holy Mountain cultivators is few, and even the death of one would provoke countless Holy Mountain experts to pursue the matter..."

Ning Fan’s thoughts spun swiftly.

His original intent was to kill Duolan and the giant sword man together, but now it seems such a move might be inappropriate, likely triggering even greater turmoil.

Indeed, the death of an ordinary Holy Mountain Tomb Guardian prompts many investigations, let alone the woman named Duolan... In the memories of the Sanyan Guards, Duolan holds a somewhat special status on Holy Mountain...

"These two cannot be killed outright, but neither can they be easily let go; one way or another, those who plot against me must pay a price."

Ning Fan released Black Dragon evil fire, destroying the corpses of the Sanyan Guards, then cast a spell to disrupt the karmic consequences of the killings, and pursued Duolan and the man. Despite the general lack of follow-up after the death of Sanyan Guards, he decided to be cautious...

...

A man named Pi Xiong, wielding a giant sword, now desperately fled alongside the Saintess Duolan.

"Junior sister, do we need to flee in such haste? Though the outsider surnamed Ning is strong, he is ultimately restricted by the Punishing Ring and not necessarily able to swiftly kill all the Sanyan Guards, nor may he dare continue pursuit after killing, targeting the two of us. He emerged from the mine’s space, surely having found some Six-Star Nie Mother Stones, given that we are Holy Mountain Tomb Guardians, should we forcibly demand, I doubt he dares refuse, even saving the task rewards! Unless, of course, he wishes to offend the Holy Mountain cultivators..." Pi Xiong scoffed lightly, not believing an outsider would have the guts to challenge Holy Mountain, his sights set on the Six-Star Nie Mother Stones.

"Senior brother, you are wrong! This outsider named Ning is not weak in character, but rather extremely formidable. Initially showing weakness to the Sanyan Guards, he must have had a significant purpose to enter the Dabei, hence cautiously avoiding offending either faction of the Dabei. Upon realizing explanations failed, he promptly acted aggressively against the Sanyan Guards, without the slightest hesitation! Such decisiveness in slaughter reveals unwillingness to consider the name of Holy Mountain! If this person decides to act, he will certainly leave no Sanyan Guard alive! Such individuals are ruthless and cautious, likely aiming to completely cover this matter, possibly even silencing us alongside! Now I only seek escape from his clutches, yet you still covet those Six-Star Nie Mother Stones! You are truly..." Duolan laughed in exasperation.

This senior brother is too naive; if not for decent cultivation aptitude, he absolutely wouldn’t qualify as a Holy Mountain Tomb Guardian.

How can he still long for those Six-Star Nie Mother Stones at such a time! Does he not care for his life!

"...This outsider surnamed Ning’s cultivation is limited, but he is nonetheless an Eternal Immortal Venerable; killing a few Enlightenment or Shedding Void cultivators will not take long! We have little time left! We must quickly escape this place to be safe! If he catches us, it will be too late to regret!" Duolan added.

At this moment, regret filled her heart.

Had she known Ning Fan’s forceful nature earlier, she wouldn’t have resorted to manipulative tactics, directly pushing Ning Fan to oppose the Sanyan Guards... Such petty schemes likely angered this outsider Immortal Venerable; but no matter, borrowing this person’s strength to escape alive, it is time to swiftly leave the Fierce Domain!

"Do not blame the senior brother for speaking too much; junior sister, you overreact to everything. This outsider surnamed Ning, no matter how audacious, wouldn’t dare act against the two of us. Indeed, this outsider surnamed Ning is abhorrent. You have humbly pleaded for his help, yet not only did he refuse, he unleashed a Demonic roar, indiscriminately attacking friend and foe, worsening our injuries! Hmph, if not for the current closed tomb period, given my status, Pi Xiong, I could easily summon a large number of Holy Mountain cultivators, giving this person a lesson!" Pi Xiong said dismissively.

Just as his words fell, a sudden thunderous sound erupted ahead, a bolt of golden light streaked across the sky, and within that golden light emerged a solitary figure, blocking Pi Xiong and Duolan’s path.

"Not good!"

Duolan’s pretty face turned ghastly pale.

Catching up with them was Ning Fan, full of Evil Qi and a face devoid of compassion!

"You wish to teach Ning a lesson, eh? Ning gives you an opportunity; you can teach me right now! Strike!"

An overwhelming Ancient Demon Roar transformed into monstrous Demonic clouds, crashing down with a roar, causing Pi Xiong to vomit blood, fear filling his once arrogant eyes...