Grasping the Evil-Chapter 840: The Western Wind, Like the Dao, Annihilates the Demons
This collapsing Ancient God Shadow had an aura clearly comparable to the Peak Crossing Truth Realm, far surpassing Ning Fan. However, under Ning Fan’s grasp, it completely shattered without any resistance.
Many old monsters were secretly shocked, guessing that Ning Fan must have relied on some special technique to easily break the Ancient God Shadow.
No one could discern exactly what technique it was.
Unable to discern... If Ning Fan were still just a One Orifice Ancient God, then some among the many old monsters watching might have detected something when he exerted his Ancient God heart power.
However, the current Ning Fan was already a Three Apertures Ancient God. A Three Apertures Ancient God, with a heart transformed into a source... His Ancient God heart power had become a pool of clear water, with no traces left to be pursued.
Unless they were also a Three Apertures Ancient God, no one could see through Ning Fan’s Ancient God identity!
Chen Xuan’s knuckles crackled loudly, eyes full of unwillingness.
Can’t kill... Why can’t I kill this child! Why can this child, clearly just a Ghost Immortal Realm, withstand the attack talisman I personally refined!
"All of you, attack together!"
Chen Xuan’s gaze was fierce like a beast, throwing the last two Tomb Guardians of the Chen Family directly onto the battle arena.
Using the attack talisman was one thing, but being two against one... Chen Xuan seemed to have fallen into madness, determined to kill Ning Fan even by repeatedly violating the competition’s rules!
Unfortunately, before those two Chen Family Tomb Guardians could steady themselves, Ning Fan already waved his hand, summoning the Memory Severing Dao Sword, its light dreamlike and illusory.
A hundred and eighty thousand Dao Sword rays immediately swept across, forming an array, leaving the two Chen Family Tomb Guardians only enough time to utter a single tragic cry before falling in the heavy shadows of the sword.
Their storage pouches, along with the attack talisman they carried, fell into Ning Fan’s hand.
By now, including Chen Xiao, all five Chen Family Tomb Guardians had perished at Ning Fan’s hand!
"Hateful! Hateful!"
Chen Xuan was almost blinded by hatred, waving his hand to forcibly break through the Luo Family Six Ancestors blocking him, vowing to personally step into the arena and capture Ning Fan.
But before he could take that step, a shadowy figure on the northern high platform flashed lightning in their eyes.
In the next instant, a razor-sharp Dao Thought, like a thunderclap, swept fiercely at Chen Xuan.
Without any possibility of defense, Chen Xuan, in the Initiate Realm of Shekong, was directly sent flying, vomiting blood, crashing heavily and destroying an entire row of jade thrones behind him.
Countless gazes from the four high platforms immediately turned to someone on the northern high platform.
The one who struck was the Eighth Elder Lei Jinshi!
"Eighth Elder... Xiao’er followed your orders to deal with the Luo Family, and now he’s dead. How can you stand by and do nothing! How can..." Before Chen Xuan could finish, Lei Jinshi interrupted with a cold shout.
"Enough! Chen Xuan, show some restraint!"
Lei Jinshi’s expression was extremely grim at this moment, feeling the Chen Family had thoroughly embarrassed him today.
"To kill this child, you can have your chance anytime! But if you break the rules again, I will personally feed you to the lightning spirits!" This was Lei Jinshi’s message to Chen Xuan.
Upon hearing these words, it was as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over Chen Xuan, who shuddered and calmed down.
Remembering his previous actions, he suddenly felt a hint of fear.
Including Chen Xiao, the five Chen Family Tomb Guardians all violated competition rules... This was bound to incite public anger, something even Lei Jinshi could not tolerate...
"In the second round, you’ll have your chances!" Lei Jinshi transmitted again.
At these words, a sly grin curled at the corner of Chen Xuan’s lips.
With narrowed old eyes, he glanced at the battle arena, let out a cold snort, waved his hand to reconstruct the destroyed jade thrones, and sat down again.
Having killed all of the Chen Family Tomb Guardians, the cold gleam in Ning Fan’s eyes slightly diminished. He scanned the two attack talismans in his hand with spirit sense, paused for a moment, then flicked his fingers to transform them into streams of light, which he swallowed.
The presiding Zhao Mengde ordered the battlefield cleared of remains and repaired, then took out the roster again and announced,
"Luo Family Tomb Guardian Ning Fan, defeating five Chen Family Tomb Guardians and achieving five victories. Five more victories will advance you to the second round."
"Tomb Guardians of the Qianshan Sect, step forward!"
Upon Zhao Mengde’s command, two Escape Rainbows instantly flew to the edge of the battle arena from the western high platform.
The Qianshan Sect is a seventh-level sect, having only two tomb guardian quotas.
These two tomb guardians were one Ghost Profound Late Stage and one Ghost Profound Peak-Stage.
The two stood outside the arena, hesitant to step forward, casting a respectful glance at Ning Fan, heaving a long sigh, they cupped their fists to Zhao Mengde and said,
"He Ming and He Fang of the Qianshan Sect, knowing we’re no match for Daoist Ning, willingly admit defeat!"
Finishing these words, the two figures flickered and flew back to their seats.
"Admit defeat, then... Luo Family’s Ning Fan, seven victories! Tomb Guardians of the Dao Law Sect, step forward!" Zhao Mengde frowned slightly.
The Dao Law Sect was also a seventh-level sect, having only two tomb guardians.
Both guardians were only Human Profound Peak; they swallowed nervously, conceding defeat even before stepping into the arena.
Without suspense, Ning Fan secured his ninth victory.
With just one more victory, Ning Fan would qualify for the second round.
"It seems this Millennium Demon Monarch is destined to advance to the second round. He may have relied on some trick to break through the Chen Family’s Ancient God Shadow, but his palm strike that killed Chen Xiao was absolute strength. With just that palm, he possessed the power to contend against Mid Stage Enlightenment; another win to advance shouldn’t be hard!"
Many old monsters had just concluded this, only for their expressions to change slightly the next moment.
For they hadn’t expected that the next to enter the arena would be the Binding Shadow Sect.
"Binding Shadow Sect Tomb Guardians, step forward!"
As soon as Zhao Mengde’s words fell, numerous old monsters on the surrounding high platforms immediately became invigorated.
On the southern high platform, six shadows flew out and landed on the outskirts of the battle arena; they were the six Tomb Guardians of the Binding Shadow Sect.
Originally, the Binding Shadow Sect was only an eighth-level sect with merely four slots, but on the eve of the tomb duel, the Sect Master of Binding Shadow Sect broke through the shackles of the Peak of Shekong, advancing to the Shattered Thought Realm, thereby elevating the sect to a ninth-level sect.
The six Tomb Guardians of the Binding Shadow Sect all exuded strong auras; four were at the Ghost Profound Peak, and the remaining two were at the Enlightenment Stage, famously known as the Qin Family Twin Heroes from the Dongming Star Domain.
The younger brother, Qin Hong, was at the Initial Stage of Enlightenment and had met Ning Fan once on Tianmu Star. His physical body was once destroyed by Jun Changdong, and after seizing and re-cultivating, his cultivation had regressed significantly.
The elder brother, Qin Kong, was the fourth-ranked expert in the last tomb duel ranking, now at the Mid Stage of Enlightenment, and had claimed the title of ’Immortal Monarch of Shadow.’
Qin Hong and the other five Tomb Guardians of the Binding Shadow Sect remained still, with none taking the stage.
Only Qin Kong’s figure flickered, landing in the center of the battle arena, his eyes aflame with the will to battle as he gazed at Ning Fan.
Ning Fan’s tenth tomb battle was against Qin Kong, at the Mid Stage of Enlightenment!
Those old monsters, who were certain of Ning Fan’s victory, suddenly became unsure.
To slay Chen Xiao with a palm strike; Qin Kong could also achieve this. The battle between Ning Fan and Qin Kong might not easily determine a winner.
"It’s him..."
Ning Fan glanced briefly outside the arena at Qin Hong, his brows slightly furrowing.
On that day at the Commercial Pavilion on Tianmu Star, Qin Hong attempted to use Ning Fan’s body but was once deterred by him.
He swept his gaze once more at Qin Kong on the battle arena, and Ning Fan’s eyes took on a slight seriousness.
Qin Kong and Qin Hong looked very similar, both emaciated like zombies, with the same bloodless pale face, both dressed in black robes.
The only difference was a teardrop mole below Qin Kong’s left eye, his gaze more delicate and strange.
This person was a Mid Stage Enlightenment cultivator, a level not easily dispatched with a single move from the Zhi Tian Yin.
Moreover, the person was always enveloped by a cold aura that gave Ning Fan a slight sense of crisis.
"I heard about you from Qin Hong. Seeing you today with my own eyes confirms he wasn’t lying—indeed, you have the strength that catches Jun Changdong’s eye... However, you are not my match!"
Qin Kong smiled broadly, revealing white teeth, a hint of pride in his eyes.
Ning Fan slightly narrowed his eyes and responded indifferently, "Whether I’m a match, we’ll find out in battle!"
"Heh, I’ll have you thoroughly convinced of your loss. Binding Art, Chaotic Shadow Technique!"
Qin Kong’s eyes flashed coldly; as he stomped his foot on the ground, the entire battle arena’s ground began to tremble bizarrely.
In the next instant, countless jet-black chains shot out from the ground beneath Ning Fan, sealing all routes of retreat, and fiercely binding towards the center where Ning Fan stood.
Those chains were all formed by shadow techniques, impervious to Five Elements Divine Skills, unaffected by slashes.
Ning Fan waved his hand, and the Memory Severing Dao Sword appeared in his hand. With a lift of his hand, one hundred and eight thousand phantom sword shadows slashed outward in all directions.
The sword light cleaved the chains, only to pass directly through, unable to halt the advance of the shadow chains.
In the next moment, several shadow chains reached him, instantly binding Ning Fan like a captive.
The remaining shadow chains wrapped around like a silkworm cocoon, forming a huge shadow cocoon encircling Ning Fan within.
"You, have lost!"
Qin Kong’s lips curled up, and from the four high platforms, voices of exclamation resonated.
"Millennium Demon Monarch has been trapped in the shadow cocoon, undeniably defeated..."
The Shadow Sect’s Chaotic Shadow Technique, once binding a cultivator, would instantly form a seal, suppressing all mana flow of the trapped cultivator.
This technique is formless yet manifests shadows, only restraining mana. If the cultivator’s physical body is strong, it cannot be restrained.
"Unless Ning Fan has a sufficiently strong physical body, otherwise..." Qin Kong’s self-murmuring was interrupted, his eyes suddenly widened.
From within the shadow cocoon, waves of explosive essence surged.
In the next instant, a destructive explosion erupted within the shadow cocoon, shattering the cocoon formed by tens of thousands of shadow chains into countless remnants.
Amidst the scattered shadows, Ning Fan stepped forward, surrounded by countless Demon Rune Patterns dancing around him.
On him, an overwhelming imposing aura of Ancient Chaos Grand Emperor emanated.
Qin Kong’s expression changed; as he stomped the ground once more, thousands of shadow chains flew out again.
Yet, Ning Fan let out a mighty roar, forming storms that spread in all directions, shattering every shadow chain.
From the four high platforms, numerous old monsters exclaimed in shock.
"Turns out to be a Heavenly Demon! Among Pseudo-Ancient Demon Cultivators, few can hone their bodies to the Heavenly Demon Realm."
"Heavenly Demon! Since this lad is a Heavenly Demon, he cannot be treated as being at the Ghost Profound level... A Heavenly Demon and Enlightenment are equals!"
Qin Kong’s eyes trembled; he didn’t expect Ning Fan’s physical body to be so formidable.
Seeing Ning Fan again, his gaze turned graver, raising his hand abruptly, pointing skyward, "Shadow Demon Spear, manifest!"
Countless black rays formed a vortex in the sky, from which a ghostly hundred-zhang shadow demon spear abruptly emerged, fiercely thrusting toward Ning Fan.
This spear was Qin Kong’s Dao Weapon!
Ning Fan slightly retreated, avoiding the surprise attack of the gun’s light, allowing the demon spear to pierce into the ground.
Layers of earth immediately crumbled, and from the collapse, an extremely eerie black shadow flame ignited.
"Shadow Split!"
With a change in Qin Kong’s hand seal, the demon spear instantly split into two, then four, with four spear shadows immediately stabbing towards Ning Fan from all directions.
"It’s quite a decent Dao Weapon..."
Ning Fan’s gaze focused, raising the Memory Severing Dao Sword, with a nudge of the sword light, the originally black-gold sword body unexpectedly emitted a faint purple Qi.
As his sword seal moved, four purple sword beams immediately shot out from the sword body, fiercely colliding with the four spear shadows.
The power of Dao Weapons is directly tied to the cultivations of the Master.
In terms of pure mana, Ning Fan was inferior to Qin Kong; hence, the ordinary sword beams of the Memory Severing Dao Sword should be just slightly less than the spear shadows.
But these four purple sword beams were exceptions!
In the instant of the gun-sword clash, the four spear shadows were immediately shattered by the sword beams, Qin Kong’s Dao Weapon was directly broken by Ning Fan head-on!
The four purple sword beams relentless in their momentum, followed up by slashing towards Qin Kong.
Qin Kong stared incredulously at those four purple sword beams, his figure flickered, disappearing from the original spot.
Yet, those four purple sword beams also flickered and vanished along with Qin Kong, the next moment, a certain unmanned area in the sky suddenly saw space collapsing, sword light exploding.
And Qin Kong’s figure fell from that space, with four shocking sword wounds on his body.
Qin Kong, at Mid Stage Enlightenment, had his Dao Weapon broken by Ning Fan and furthermore was injured by Ning Fan’s single sword!
"Heavenly Dao Purple Qi! No doubt! Those four purple sword beams were nurtured by the Heavenly Dao Purple Qi!"
"If this old man didn’t see it wrong, this Millennium Demon Monarch actually took four strands of Purple Qi to nurture Dao Weapons!"
Exclaims of surprise surged from the surrounding high platforms, even the Fragmented Thought Elders in Shekong were all showing passionate gazes, looking at the Dao Weapon in Ning Fan’s hand.
Using four strands of Purple Qi to nurture Dao Weapons, such a grand gesture stunned and envied countless old monsters present.
On the seats of the Guibing Sect, the Guibing Ancestral Master felt a pang, as the Heavenly Dao Purple Qi used by Ning Fan to nurture his Dao Weapon was taken from his own hands...
Yet, thinking of Ning Fan’s vast background, the Guibing Ancestral Master felt relieved; befriending a secret clan big shot was worth the pain.
Li Xiaoxiao’s hands were trembling, almost unable to hold the Eight Treasures Cake.
She knew that one strand of Heavenly Dao Purple Qi was worth three trillion Dao Crystals and was often priceless.
Four strands of Purple Qi, that’s, that’s... ah, she couldn’t calculate it, so much money!
As for Ning Fan, seeing that his single sword bypassed ranks to injure Qin Kong at Mid Stage Enlightenment, he immediately smiled in satisfaction.
It was worth consuming the Heavenly Dao Purple Qi to nurture the Dao Weapon before coming to the tomb competition.
"Heavenly Demon Physical Body, Purple Qi Dao Weapon..."
Qin Kong stood firm in the sky, staring intently at the Memory Severing Dao Sword in Ning Fan’s hand.
From this Dao Weapon, he felt an immense sense of crisis.
With a wave of his hand, the demon spear reappeared, Qin Kong holding the demon spear upside down, his gaze focused, suddenly urging a certain secret technique of the Binding Shadow Sect.
Countless strange shadow technique runes immediately appeared on the demon spear, causing the power of the Dao Weapon to slightly increase by about half a percent.
At the moment the runes attached to the demon spear, Qin Kong charged down fiercely, sweeping the demon spear horizontally to engage with Ning Fan.
In the clash between spear and sword, this time, the demon spear wasn’t much weaker than the Memory Severing Dao Sword, though it was still slightly inferior.
After more than ten rounds of exchange, the demon spear bore countless cracks, eventually collapsing once more.
This time, as the demon spear collapsed, there were many sword wounds on Qin Kong’s chest from four directions. From the current situation, his chances of winning were slim, being almost overpowered by Ning Fan.
"Originally, I planned to reserve my trump card for the last, to compete with Jun Changdong, but now it seems, I have no choice but to use it here."
A chilling aura suddenly emerged from Qin Kong’s fingertips.
Ning Fan’s gaze suddenly sharpened; it was this chill that gave him a slight sense of danger.
With a change in Qin Kong’s hand seal, at the edge of the battle arena, the earth in eight directions suddenly cracked, eight giant shadow doors rising from them.
"Opening Gate, Rest Gate, Life Gate... Open!"
With Qin Kong’s hand seal change, three of the giant doors immediately swung open, from which three shadow demons, each ten zhang tall, emerged.
Each shadow demon had a cultivation at the Initial Stage of Crossing Truth Realm.
"Sealed Gate, View Gate... Open!"
Two more giant doors opened, this time two shadow demons emerged, each with the cultivation of Mid Stage Enlightenment.
"It’s actually the long-lost Eight Gates Demon Shadow Technique of the Binding Shadow Sect! Qin Kong has actually succeeded in cultivating it!"
"Too bad he can only open five gates; if he could open the last three fierce gates, with his cultivation, he would be able to summon shadow demons at Late Stage Enlightenment to battle!"
Voices of discussion rose all around, yet the two on the battlefield paid no heed.
Qin Kong forcing five gates open was already his limit; he had no energy to spare.
With a gesture pointing forward, the five shadow demons immediately surrounded Ning Fan to attack.
He himself, however, held the Shadow Demon Spear inverted and joined the ranks besieging Ning Fan.
With three at the Initial Stage of Crossing Truth and another three at the Mid Stage Enlightenment besieging Ning Fan, unless Ning Fan’s power matched the Late Stage Enlightenment, normally, there’s little chance he wouldn’t lose.
"This boy is about to lose... Although his previous hand seal was strong, it is clearly insufficient to fend off the siege of six crossing truths simultaneously. After all, among these six, three are at the mid-stage... Unless he unleashes the Divine Blast Technique, it would be hard to win! Alas, the tomb rules prohibit using such divine skills, he can only rely on his own strength... If he can’t use the Divine Blast Technique, then he is certainly doomed."
Beside the little demoness, Elder Luxx shook his head slightly, seeming to already believe that Ning Fan would lose.
But the little demoness squinted her smiling eyes and said nonchalantly, "He hasn’t exerted all his strength yet, why is Elder Luxx so sure he will lose?"
"Not exerted all his strength? Hehe, miss must be joking. That hand seal divine skill, doesn’t it count as full strength? The Heavenly Demon body, the Purple Qi Dao Weapon, don’t they count as full power?"
"They don’t! He’s not the type to exhaust all his cards at the start. In this battle, he won’t lose, his eyes are still very composed." The little demoness asserted confidently.
"Hehe, miss, how about a wager with this old man? If this boy can really defeat Qin Kong, this old man is willing to leave for ten days, granting you ten days of freedom. If he loses, you must willingly go to the Ancestral Pavilion with this old man, consume the Void Fruit again, cultivate to the limits of the Void Poison, no more delays..."
"You want me to consume the Void Fruit again..." The little demoness smiled bitterly.
"It’s your destiny; you cannot defy it. The Void Fruit can greatly enhance your cultivation technique and purify your sacrificial body. Even if you don’t wager with this old man today, within ten years, you must consume the Void Fruit again..."
"Say no more, I’ll take the wager! I believe he won’t lose. Gaining ten days of freedom for nothing is quite beneficial indeed."
With that said, the little demoness spoke no more, merely smiled as she watched the battle arena, trusting that Ning Fan would win; from his gaze, she could tell how much effort Ning Fan exerted.
Unconsciously, her knowledge of Ning Fan seemed to have long rooted deeply within her.
Elder Luxx, however, did not believe Ning Fan would win. Reaching this point, not many believed Ning Fan had a chance of victory.
At this moment, Ning Fan had activated the first transformation of the War God Art, enhancing the Heavenly Demon body, refining his techniques, yet could only barely protect himself amid the siege of six crossing truths.
Ultimately, he wasn’t at the Late Stage Enlightenment, lacking the skill to fight six alone.
Once more repelled by Qin Kong’s long spear, Ning Fan finally sighed.
He had to admit, with his current realm, he couldn’t defeat Qin Kong without using his trump cards.
His eyes suddenly showed a calm, Dao-like expression, and a cool autumn breeze silently arose.
Ning Fan retreated half a step, stabilizing his figure, then finally pointed a finger towards Qin Kong.
In that instant the finger pointed, a strange scene of ten thousand leaves fluttering down appeared in the sky.
A sense of solitude and bleak Dao rhythm swept over the entire battlefield in an instant!
Autumn wind, is Ning Fan’s Dao thoughts transformed.
Fallen leaves, are Ning Fan’s demonic thoughts transformed.
Dao rises, demon scatters.
Wind rises, leaves perish!
In an instant, the world seemed devoid of all sound, leaving only the sound of the wind.
A power of Daoist thought transmitted vast and wide; under the ten thousand leaves in the sky, they continuously fell into dust!
"West wind as the Dao, cultivation’s death as leaves. I see all of you, as leaves... The wind rises, the leaves fall!"
Ning Fan’s voice suddenly accompanied the autumn wind, spreading throughout the world.
The autumn wind fused with Daoist thought, raising the ashes of the fallen leaves in one swoop, transforming it somber, desolate, and fierce.
In just a moment, the autumn wind swept through the entire battle arena, an invisible power of Daoist thought. Upon a quake towards Qin Kong and the Shadow Demons, they retreated a hundred feet abruptly.
When the autumn wind touched, a nearing death feeling immediately arose in Qin Kong’s heart, startling his soul.
He suddenly had the illusion, in Ning Fan’s eyes, he seemed about to wither like falling leaves, to dust, to ashes!
"No... impossible to resist!"
Without hesitation, Qin Kong’s body shattered to shadow, escaping the battlefield in a frenzy.
Ning Fan only cast a brief glance at Qin Kong, not pursuing him relentlessly.
As Ning Fan’s Dao thought shifted, the five Shadow Demons on the field began to turn into ash one by one.
The first to turn to ash were the three Initial Stage Crossing Truth Shadow Demons; they could only withstand half a breath in the autumn wind before perishing directly!
The two Mid Stage Crossing Truth Shadow Demons managed three breaths in the autumn wind before turning to ash.
A single stroke of the West Wind Technique directly obliterated five crossing truths, including two at the mid-stage!
Activating the West Wind Technique to this potency, Ning Fan’s mana was immediately drained by over ninety percent!
Yet the intense Evil Qi surged from his body, sweeping towards the towering platform sides suddenly!
Countless Old Monsters stood abruptly, staring incredulously at Ning Fan, who was now standing at the battlefield’s center!
Even the Fragmented Thought Elders showed shock, disbelief coloring their faces as they looked at Ning Fan.
Chen Xuan’s eyes widened, staring intently at the arena, unable to believe the scene before him.
His breathing grew rapid, moments later, he gritted his teeth and uttered,
"It’s actually a Dao Thought Technique! How, is it possible!"
A Dao Thought Technique, isn’t it something only Fragmented Thought Elders can perform! How can this boy perform it!
(1/2) (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations, monthly tickets, your support is the greatest motivation for me. Mobile readers, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
