Grasping the Evil-Chapter 968: Ancient Buddha Tree Spirit

"That fleeting golden light, what divine power is it? The master’s ability to stand firm seems closely related to that golden light..."

Wu Laoba’s pea-sized eyes darted around, yet he couldn’t see through the origins of that protective golden light.

He wouldn’t know that the golden light was the radiance emitted by the God-Extinguishing Shield to protect its master.

In fact, after the first sound of the bell resonated through his body, Ning Fan had already sensed something amiss. The sound of the ancient pine bell here contained extremely pure Buddha power, which was inherently incompatible with the ancient demon bloodline within him, as if they were natural enemies.

Others who would hear the bell might at most be repelled; however, Ning Fan was different.

He was an ancient demon, and throughout history, Buddhists and demons have never coexisted peacefully! The barely perceptible bell sound, to him, bore an invisible destructive power, enough to neutralize the cultivation of the ancient demon within him!

If not for the God-Extinguishing Shield autonomously protecting its master with the golden light, Ning Fan wouldn’t have simply been repelled by the bell sound; he might have suffered damage to his ancient demon cultivation!

"Hmm? You little ancient demon, interesting, you can remain unmoved under Grandpa Qi’s Fumo Bell."

Inside the ancient pine, a surprised voice suddenly sounded.

Wu Laoba didn’t know who was speaking, feeling extremely perplexed. Monk Songguo, on the other hand, had knowledge of this ancient pine; upon hearing it speak, he dared not neglect it, hurriedly stood up, clasped his hands into a prayer, and greeted,

"Disciple Songguo, greetings to Uncle Master Qi!"

"This Songguo calls the person within the pine Uncle Master; could it be that this person is a senior brother of Daoist Wood Pine? How come I didn’t know Daoist Wood Pine had a senior brother!" Wu Laoba was shocked internally, standing up in haste, and showed respect to the ancient pine without any trace of negligence. Ning Fan, however, frowned, his eyes flashing with azure light, seeing through the origins of the person within the pine.

The speaker was actually a spirit born from the ancient pine’s years of cultivation!

While speaking, a human face suddenly emerged from the ancient pine, glanced at Monk Songguo and then at Wu Laoba, and frowned, saying,

"Oh? It’s Junior Nephew Songguo. Didn’t your master promise us seven brothers that no outsiders are allowed into the forbidden land of Mu Island? And yet today, two outsiders came, disturbing my dreams, and even made me see an ancient demon, whom I loathe."

Upon saying the words ancient demon, the human face glared fiercely at Ning Fan with a look of disgust.

"These two are not outsiders, but..." Monk Songguo was about to explain when the human face impatiently interrupted,

"Enough, enough! You needn’t have irrelevant talk with me; I know it already. How wouldn’t I know? These two must have some connection with your Mu Island, otherwise how would they be allowed into the forbidden land. Well, this pea-sized-eyed fellow desires to enter the forbidden land to gain insight, which I can tolerate, but that one, being an ancient demon, wishes to comprehend under my tree, that’s a thousand times impossible, a ten thousand times!"

"Ancient demon kid, you have three breaths to quickly retreat a hundred steps away from my ancient pine, or don’t blame me for enhancing the bell’s power to make you embarrassed!"

The human face was extremely rude, wanting to drive away Ning Fan, the ancient demon master.

Monk Songguo immediately showed a troubled expression; he never expected Uncle Master Qi to be so domineering, not allowing Ning Fan to comprehend Dao here in the forbidden land. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

It’s no wonder, after all, these ancient pines of Mu Island’s seven forbidden lands were all personally planted by Daoist Wood Pine, nurtured daily with Buddha power, eventually giving rise to tree spirits.

Seven ancient pines in the forbidden areas, seven tree spirits, their cultivation levels might not be much higher than that of Monk Songguo, but their seniority is extremely high, having witnessed the entire process of Wood Pine Dao’s formation, and even providing insightful assistance, thus being gratefully regarded by Daoist Wood Pine as senior brothers, counting as Uncle Masters to Songguo and other disciples of Mu Island.

What should be done now? The master instructed me to bring Rain Monarch to comprehend in the forbidden land, yet Uncle Master Qi disagrees with Rain Monarch coming here to comprehend...

Just because Rain Monarch is an ancient demon?

In the past, weren’t there pseudo-ancient demons who came to Mu Island for insight, and to those pseudo-ancient demons, weren’t you quite tolerant? Why so harsh on Rain Monarch?

Just because he is a true ancient demon and you’re a Buddha cultivator?

"Uncle Master Qi, can this matter have some room for compromise..."

"One breath!"

"Uncle Master Qi, this is the master’s intention, the master wants..."

"Two breaths!"

"Uncle Master Qi..."

"Three breaths! Alright, alright! Good for you, ancient demon kid, aren’t you leaving? If you have the capability, then keep walking forward, let’s see if you can continue to withstand Grandpa Qi’s Fumo Bell!"

The human face seemed to lose all patience, snorted coldly, and returned to the inside of the ancient pine.

Seeing this, Monk Songguo gave a bitter smile, feeling quite helpless, he apologized to Ning Fan positioned eighty-two steps away,

"I’m sorry, I didn’t expect Uncle Master Qi would be so biased against the identity of a Dao friend as an ancient demon; as a result, it seems the Dao friend won’t be able to approach this pine for insight."

The implication was, Rain Monarch, regardless, don’t continue forward, just retreat to a hundred steps distance.

Mind you, if these tree spirit Uncle Masters insist that someone shouldn’t enter the forbidden land, even an Immortal King might not forcibly approach the ancient pine.

"Why should Daoist Songguo apologize? Didn’t your Uncle Master Qi say, allow me to continue forward if I have the capability. I dare say, Ning Fan has some capability, the distance of eighty-two steps isn’t Ning Fan’s limit, how could I retreat."

Ning Fan stood expressionless, gazing at the ancient pine.

While Monk Songguo revered the pine, Ning Fan had no reverence for it whatsoever.

The words of this pine spirit showed disdain towards ancient demons, targeting him maliciously; he could overlook it for the sake of Daoist Wood Pine.

Yet, his insight here had been permitted by Daoist Wood Pine, and a mere tree spirit wanting to expel him was out of the question!

With this thought, Ning Fan’s figure flickered, appearing at the sixty-four-step mark near the ancient pine.

Dong——

Once again, a bell sound rang from nowhere between heaven and earth; this time, the bell sound increased by thirty percent in power compared to the first.

This time, Ning Fan still blocked the bell sound with a flash of golden light and remained unmoved.

On seeing this, the human face emerged once more from the ancient pine, snorted coldly, and said,

"Impressive, ancient demon youth, even the amplified bell sound can’t faze you; if so, I won’t hold back anymore, and if I can’t force you a hundred steps away, hmph, I’ll start writing my name backward! Buddha talisman manifests, Buddha’s Radiance Shines Universally!"

With a scolding from the human face, pine wind suddenly stirred around the ancient pine, amidst which azure light circulated, coalescing into peculiar-looking symbols, swirling continually around the pine.

Ning Fan’s eyes narrowed slightly, sensing that the Buddha talismans swirling around the ancient pine seemed somewhat similar to the Symbol of Devil Raising of the ancient demons.

Unfortunately, these Buddha talismans were blurry and illusory; he couldn’t discern their clear appearance.

The Buddha talismans emitted countless rays of Buddha light, enveloping Ning Fan, causing his mana to feel sluggish, his shoulders burdened as if laden with mountains, resulting in a sense of being unable to move.

His figure flickered forward again, but this time, due to the overwhelming pressure upon him, he only advanced less than ten steps.

Dong——

A bell sound, several folds stronger than before, arrived as expected, echoing through the sky. The sound was so intense it buzzed in Songguo’s and Wu Laoba’s ears, yet Ning Fan still didn’t retreat a step, unafraid of the bell sound.

"Great, you little ancient demon, still not retreating, alright then, I’ll have to show my true skills!"

Dong——

The surrounding pressure intensified continuously, Ning Fan moved forward again, advancing five more steps; the bell sound rang, yet with the protection of the God-Extinguishing Shield, he stayed firm without retreat.

The human face looked even more displeased, "Interesting, truly interesting, let me show you Grandpa Qi’s unrivaled skills!"

Dong——

This time, Ning Fan advanced merely two steps, yet still remained unharmed under the bell sound.

"Your Grandpa Qi doesn’t believe even once he can’t make you retreat!"

Dong——

Ning Fan still proceeded relentlessly.

"Your Grandpa Qi has to bring out his ultimate skills from the bottom of the chest!"

Dong——

Gradually, Ning Fan not only did not retreat, but after adapting to the suppression of the Buddha’s Light, he started advancing more steps.

"Such sin, such sin, this move, with Grandpa Qi’s compassionate heart, I originally didn’t intend to use, but you forced my hand!"

Dong——

Unable to halt Ning Fan’s advance!

With endless chimes resonating, the tree spirit named Mu Qi found in his lamentation that his chimes were utterly incapable of stopping Ning Fan’s progress!

"... The previous twelve chimes were given to you by Grandpa Qi, but this thirteenth chime is not allowing it anymore..."

"... The previous thirteen chimes were merely probes, but the fourteenth chime contains the essence of Grandpa Qi’s lifetime of divine skills..."

"... Don’t force me! The fifteenth chime, Grandpa Qi truly means business!"

"The sixteenth..."

"The seventeenth..."

"The eighteenth..."

"Blast it! My Fumo Bell’s chime is strong enough to repel a Triple Calamity Immortal King, yet it cannot repel this little ancient demon! What is this kid’s origin!"

Seeing Ning Fan remain unshakeable, Mu Qi the tree spirit finally couldn’t contain himself, bursting into curses, breaching the precepts of anger.

The bell chimed endlessly across the sky above Mu Island, disturbing all the disciples on the island, who left the Zen courtyard for the first forbidden land to witness Ning Fan’s grand march through the land of hundred steps.

With ten thousand Buddha’s Lights bearing down, Ning Fan’s pace was slow. Each advance triggered bell chimes strong enough to repulse a Triple Calamity Immortal King, yet he never retreated a half-step under the reverberation.

This scene gave everyone on Mu Island a newfound understanding of Ning Fan’s strength.

"This Rain Monarch is quite formidable! Clearly only possessing the cultivation of a First Calamity Immortal Sovereign, yet capable of resisting bell chimes that could repel a three-tiered Immortal King!"

"What divine skill is that golden light? Not ordinary, definitely not ordinary!"

"Perhaps this Rain Monarch has strength comparable to an Immortal King!"

"Seven Master Uncle has exerted all his efforts yet cannot hinder the Rain Monarch’s progress. The reputation of the Rain Immortal Monarch is truly well-deserved!"

Amidst the chorus of praises, Ning Fan finally reached the shade of the old pine, sitting cross-legged. He discovered that the Buddha Light and chimes were not without benefits.

Within the Buddha Light and Buddha Talisman, there seemed to be deeply profound traces of The Great Dao of Wood; each chime, though blocked by the God-Extinguishing Shield, offered some refinement to the Ancient Demon Bloodline within.

His ancient demon cultivation had surged in the Barbarian Wilderness Ancient Domain; because of that, it became somewhat insubstantial, but now, under the endless chiming, it was refined and consolidated continuously. Thus, he not only didn’t blame Mu Qi for ringing the chimes, but should even thank him for tirelessly ringing them, assisting the refinement of his ancient demon cultivation, saving him at least a thousand years of arduous practice.

"Well now, you arrogant little ancient demon, dare to meditate under my tree? You want a good enlightenment, but I won’t allow you to fully grasp it!"

Seeing Ning Fan sitting nonchalantly under the tree in meditation, Mu Qi was so enraged that green smoke puffed from his nostrils, with the chimes now like bursts from a rapid-fire cannon, striking one after another, becoming dense and tight.

Mu Qi just couldn’t believe it, that with such chime reverberation, Ning Fan could still calmly sit cross-legged and meditate!

Within a hundred steps of the old pine, the chimes echoed relentlessly; forget about meditating in this place; even standing within a hundred steps doing nothing was extremely difficult.

Monk Songguo and Wu Laoba had long been shaken beyond a hundred steps by the violent chimes, unable to enter the forbidden region within the hundred steps of the ancient pine.

Even standing beyond a hundred steps, many lower-level disciples couldn’t withstand the chimes and retreated to a two hundred step distance.

Within one hundred steps of the ancient pine, only Ning Fan remained!

He just sat quietly, as if the overwhelming chimes and Buddha Light were nothing, focused solely on his own matters!

Sweat beaded more on Mu Qi’s face; releasing the Buddha Light and ringing the chimes was no easy task for him, yet they couldn’t affect Ning Fan in the slightest.

The truth was in front of Mu Qi; he was reluctant to acknowledge it but had no choice—he had no way to deal with this ancient demon Ning Fan...

"Conceded! Little ancient demon, I yield to you! What conditions do you want to leave within my hundred step range? My lifetime cultivation in Buddhist disciples has not come easily, now crucial in my cultivation bottleneck, cannot be disrupted by ancient demons. If you agree to withdraw a hundred steps, I’ll gift you something—how about it!"

Mu Qi’s tone already bordered on pleading, pitifully. It turned out this was the fundamental reason for his eagerness to drive Ning Fan away.

Ning Fan’s gaze flickered, smiling, "Oh? What gift?"

"Take it!"

Mu Qi, straightforwardly enough, spat from his mouth, swiftly emitting a blue light orb that landed in Ning Fan’s palm.

"This is..."

Ning Fan’s gaze instantly became serious.

Contained within the blue light orb were incredibly pure traces of the Dao Principle of Wood; solely judging purity level, it almost equaled the highest Heavenly Grade Fierce Origin Crystal!

This was excellent material for cultivating Wood Yin-Yang!

Though one point left Ning Fan a bit disappointed—the wood traces quantity within the light orb was too little; if only this, it would have limited use.

"Just this much..." Ning Fan smiled innocently, extorting more from Mu Qi.

While Mu Qi rang bells to suppress him, though the results were good in aiding the refinement of his ancient demon cultivation, the motivation was somewhat malevolent.

Ning Fan was not one to suffer losses; this spirit dared to suppress him with chimes, a penalty needed—he wouldn’t be Ning Fan without extracting a hefty price, nor the disciple of the old monster, nor the legacy bearer of the Black Evil Sect!

"Just this little bit! Really just this little bit! Fine, little ancient demon, after accepting the thing, don’t you move swiftly?" Mu Qi spoke, feeling guilty.

"If it’s only this little bit... I won’t leave..."

Speaking, Ning Fan flipped the blue light orb into his hand, then continued to endure the Buddha Light and chimes, closing his eyes, perceiving the wood traces within.

Given his experience, from Mu Qi’s expression alone, it could be judged there must be many of these; if he could take more, it would greatly benefit cultivating Wood Yin-Yang.

"Oh, so no wonder you’re an ancient demon, greedy to such an extent! Do you want more of Jianmu’s Essence? Fine, as you wish! Grandpa Qi will see if you have the capability to take these!"

Mu Qi, amused by Ning Fan’s greed, laughed, opened his mouth, and spewed dozens of blue light orbs. Once afloat, they emitted an enormous blue light, painting the entire sky blue.

Above the blue sky, a massive Buddha Talisman was etched stroke by stroke.

A colossal pressure descended from the sky, causing not just Monk Songguo and Wu Laoba but fellow practitioners to change their expressions, struggling to bear that level of pressure.

This time’s Buddha Talisman was incredibly clear, so clear that everyone could witness the complete process of its creation!

Monk Songguo and others had at least seen Seven Master Uncle release the complete Buddha Talisman, shocked only briefly, yet Wu Laoba was deeply moved.

"Anciently, Buddha cultivators defied the ancient demon path, practicing the Ancient Buddha’s Dao. Ancient demons cultivate the Symbol of Devil Raising, Buddha cultivators practice Buddha Talisman. The more strokes in the seal script, the stronger the talisman! Over a hundred strokes make an ancestral talisman; this spirit’s Buddha Talisman seems to belong to the Wood Buddha Lineage, and has seventy-two strokes, though not ancestral level, rare in this era!"

"And if I am not mistaken, all these blue light orbs are diluted Jianmu’s Essence! This tree spirit’s attack unexpectedly utilized the Jianmu’s Essence power, this pressure nearly reaching the Triple Calamity Peak Immortal King’s strike! Master, Master, can you withstand this strike!"

Wu Laoba began to worry about Ning Fan’s safety.

How could he not worry? His soul is under Ning Fan’s control; if Ning Fan met missfortune, his soul couldn’t be guaranteed undamaged...

"Little ancient demon, if you can withstand this chimes’ reverberation, these essences will be yours—why not! Unfortunately, you can’t withstand it! This time, I’m truly playing seriously—not deceiving!"

Dong——Dong——Dong——

This time, three chimes resonated together, bell sounds like waves, one higher than the last; within a hundred steps, the space quivered, suddenly emitting cracking sounds. The twelve Immortal Sovereign clay figures lurking underground were similarly shaken, emerging from the earth, fleeing beyond a hundred steps, fear etched on their faces.

The originally cross-legged, eye-closed Ning Fan was rattled by the chimes; his body’s golden light showed signs of scattering!

Seeing this, Mu Qi’s confidence surged, assuring himself that this strike could drive the pestering ancient demon away from the forbidden region.

The gratified smile on his face grew even wider...(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, feel free to visit at Qidian (qidian.com) for recommendation votes and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)