Grasping Evil

"Eh? Fellow Daoist Zhou doesn't look good. You haven't fully recovered yet?" The two Nascent Soul Realm cultivators showed their concerns.

"No. It's nothing." Ning Fan could not just tell them this directly, "I saw the look of looming death from your faces. Both of you are going to die horribly soon…", could he?

Would they trust him? Of course not. He would end up offending the both of them.

"Hai. I have heard that Commander Zhou Ming suffered severe injuries and had to resign from his position of a commander. I truly feel that it was quite a pity."

"It's not really like that. It's because of my carelessness that I got injured in battle. I hope Fellow Daoists wouldn't laugh at me, would you? Hmm. I am thinking why this teleportation formation has yet to activate. I can't wait to leave Great Jin…" A crease formed between Ning Fan's brows. He sensed the danger that was quickly approaching them, disrupting his calmness.

"Hehe. Fellow Daoist Zhou might not know about this. This teleportation formation would be able to teleport us millions of li away. Since the distance of teleportation is too great, all of us might lose our lives in the Void Realm if something goes wrong with the formation that might disrupt the process of teleportation. Therefore, the formation must go through a thorough check before activating it. This might take us a few days… By the way, I am going to "Zhong Zhou" (Zhong 中 means middle, Zhou 州 means state. It's Middle State in full) to attend the Assembly of Dan. Meanwhile, Fellow Daoist Yang would be going to Xi Chuan, to rescue his sect. What about you? You seem to be in a hurry. I would be very delighted if you happen to go to the same destination as me."

"Haha. I guess I will be disappointing you. I am going to the Endless Sea at the east. I want to break through the bottleneck of my cultivation realm there…"

"What?! The bottleneck of your cultivation realm? Don't tell me Fellow Daoist Zhou is going to break through to the Late Nascent Soul Realm?"

Chen Xiu and Yang Zhu gaped in astonishment. Chen Xiu became even more respectful towards Ning Fan while the latter envied Ning Fan's progress of cultivation.

In Nascent Soul Realm, the difference in power is tremendous for every small realm, ranging from Early Nascent Soul Realm to Peak Nascent Soul Realm. For example, the magic power of a Mid Nascent Soul Realm cultivator is twice that of an Early Nascent Soul Realm cultivator. Meanwhile, the magic power of a Late Nascent Soul Realm cultivator is three times of a Mid Nascent Soul Realm cultivator's. For a Peak Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, the magic power is five times of a Late Nascent Soul Realm cultivator.

In the path of cultivation, the higher the cultivation realm, the bigger the difference in magic power would be, let alone the difference in strength. If Ning Fan was really going to break through to the Late Nascent Soul Realm, the gap between him and the other two Nascent Soul Realm cultivators would be even greater. It's no wonder that they would be surprised and full of envy.

However, they were still unaware that Ning Fan was not a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator at all. Ning Fan was not going to break through to the Late Nascent Soul Realm. He was just going to form his Gold Core.

But even if Ning Fan tells them the truth, they would not believe him.

Chen Xiu was still able to talk and laugh but Yang Zhu's face turned gloomy upon hearing Ning Fan's destination. Even so, there was a similarity between the two of them – they were dying.

Ning Fan's eyebrows knitted tightly together. As his instincts told him that the danger was getting closer, his heart became more anxious.

"Can we enter the formation now?"

"Hai… Why are you so impatient, Fellow Daoist Zhou. You should know that it's going to take a while to examine the formation, right? If there's any mistake during the teleportation, all of us might die…" Chen Xiu replied with a relaxed tone.

"Actually, I do have urgent matters to attend to and needed to leave immediately. Can we request to activate the formation right away?" Ning Fan shook his head faintly. Of course he would be willing to wait for a little longer for safety purposes if there was no incoming threat. Now, all he wanted was to waste no more time waiting and stay away from Great Jin as far as possible.

"Hmmph. Fellow Daoist Zhou. Why are you being so stubborn? It's not only you who have urgent matters to settle since we do too. However, you can't place everyone's life at risk for your own matters." Yang Zhu said in a dissatisfied tone.

Chen Xiu instantly let out a dry cough to stop Yang Zhu from speaking.

To him, Ning Fan was a cultivator who was going to achieve Late Nascent Soul Realm. He must never offend him.

"Okay. I have an idea. What about we enter the formation and teach the juniors the steps to examine faster. Then, we might be able to save some time. Do you agree with me?"

Chen Xiu chuckled as he suggested his idea. Ning Fan shook his head helplessly.

What he says is quite reasonable… If something's wrong with the formation, we will die in the Void Realm and no one would be able to save us.

"I agree. I guess I have no other options but to wait a little while more…"

All of them were led to different parts of the formation by the cultivators who were guarding it.

This enormous formation was divided into dozens of areas which teleports the cultivators in different destinations. There were just 3 people waiting in the area which were headed to the Endless Sea.

Ning Fan sat down with crossed legs on the floor without letting his guard down. He quickly took out an oracle bone[1] and performed pyromancy. It showed greatly ominous signs.

His expression paled. He sensed that the danger was getting more and more intense. His instincts were telling him that staying in Great Jin for a little longer was absolutely a wrong decision. He must travel across millions of li away to avoid the incoming threat.

"Is something bad going to happen?" Jing Zhuo narrowed his eyes as if he saw through Ning Fan's thoughts.

"Yes. I have a bad feeling."

"Why don't we just make a move to make things faster?" Yin Suqiu understood Ning Fan's feelings by judging his expression. She knew Ning Fan must have seen something coming that she could not.

"You are right…"

Ning Fan nodded his head gently and indifferently asked one of the guards.

"How much longer do we need to wait for the examination to be finished?"

"Senior, we'll need another 2 hours…"

"What?! It's too long. We can't wait any longer. Activate the formation. Now!"

"This…" The guard was baffled by Ning Fan's demand. It was because if something really goes wrong with the formation, they could not bear the responsibility.

As for Yang Zhu, he spoke to Ning Fan discontentedly.

"Fellow Daoist Zhou Ming, why do you insist on doing something that is out of line with established procedures? Don't tell me that you, a Nascent Soul Realm expert, don't have the patience to wait for another 2 hours."

"Aiya. Fellow Daoist Yang. Be careful with your words…" Chen Xiu quickly tried to stop the conversation from getting any worse. He helplessly shook his head towards Yang Zhu. Anyone would know what he was trying to tell Yang Zhu judging by his body language.

"Are you courting death, Fellow Daoist Yang? That Zhou Ming is a ferocious man who could even eliminate a Mid Nascent Soul Realm cultivator. Are you trying to offend him?"

Yang Zhu shot him a loathsome expression. He was always proud and have been revered in his own country. So it would be very hard for him to show humility in front of Ning Fan.

After taking Chen Xiu's advice, he heaved a deep sigh as though he was still unsatisfied with Ning Fan and nodded.

"Fine! Activate the formation now. Are you satisfied, Fellow Daoist Zhou Ming?"

The guards no longer dared to disobey them as Yang Zhu and Chen Xiu agreed to activate the formation.

They went through a brief check and opened the portals for teleportation.

Strands of power from the Void Realm encircled each of the cultivators in the formation and the atmosphere around them rippled violently.

Ning Fan shut his eyes slowly and heaved a sigh of relief.

Finally… Finally, I can go to the Endless Sea! I want to achieve Core Formation, Nascent Formation, Divine Transformation Realm, Void Refinement Realm and lastly, Void Fragmentation Realm! I must obtain more power as fast as possible!

However, Yin Suqiu was a little blue.

After we reach the Endless Sea, are we going to drift apart from each other… Will we even meet each other again in the future?

This journey was truly unforgettable.

Do I still have the chance to play the flute for him?

Just ignore the hidden feelings. We should leave as early as possible since grave danger is fast approaching towards Great Jin.

The heaven and earth trembled as the portals shone with rainbow-colored lights. After a period of a few more breaths, each of them would reach their destinations safely.

Yang Zhu's face was gloomy as he was still displeased that he yielded to Ning Fan earlier.

Just as the portals were ready, a bloody stench of demonic qi enveloped Jiang Zhou City. A cold and malicious laughter reverberated in the entire city.

"The person who killed my partner! There's no escape for you! Finally, I've caught up with you!"

That voice made every cultivator's blood ran cold in the city.

Both Chen Xiu and Yang Zhu underneath the ground lost their composure when they sensed the sudden presence of the demon!

"Divine Transformation Realm demon?! It's impossible! He should be in the Dragon Vision Pond. Why would he come here?!"

Ning Fan's eyes also widened with fright.

He never expected that he still could not keep the Demon General away even though he had been very careful in the entire journey!

It's not wrong. This bloody qi really does belong to the Demon General! It's similar to the virtual shadow of the man with bloody scales when I captured the female demons. My instinct was accurate after all. It was really him that brought me the feeling of danger!

"Demonic Technique, Sea of Blood!"

When his merciless tone dropped, the entire city became shrouded by a blood light. No one could view what was happening inside the city other than hearing loud wails and cries from cultivators. Each of them perished as mists of blood!

Within seconds, the city turned into ruins. The ground that separated the underground formation and the surface crumbled to the power of the bloody light. All of them in the portals were now exposed!

Amidst the sky, a red-haired man with bloody scales all over his body gazed upon the sea of blood below his feet!

He carried an air of indifference and an irresistible might of a Divine Transformation Realm demon!

Apparently, I was a little late. That human is already inside the formation while the portals have already opened. They will vanish in just a few more breaths.

Humans are cunning… After I succeeded in my Dragon Transformation, I quietly left Dragon Vision Pond and sneaked into the lands of humans to find him. It's really beyond my expectations that he would escape from my grasp by using the short-ranged transportation portals in every city. To be frank, I've become a little exhausted in trying to catch him.

If I enter the formation, I might die under the power of the Void Realm. The only option is to kill him using demonic techniques before he successfully teleports away.

His crimson red eyes flashed as the blood light became denser. Ten thousand zhang underneath the ground, each of the guards surrounded by the blood light disappeared into mists of blood within just a single breath!

At the same time, the five Gold Core Realm cultivators in the formation perished too!

Yang Zhu and Chen Xiu quickly fished out their Supreme Grade magical treasures to try and withstand the blood light. However, cracks began to form on their magical treasures as they were exposed to the blood light. Both of them would lose their magical treasures, then their lives.

The blood light found its way towards Ning Fan and his friends!

Cold sweat dripped down Ning Fan's back!

I don't think I can resist this blood light even with my strongest technique! Also, I don't think the trump card – the stored attack of the Demon General could still be used in this situation!

Without hesitating any further, he lifted his finger and drew the power from the earth. Every nearby mountain collapsed and was turned into the strength in his finger!

"Sword Finger, Mountain Crush!"

He pushed his finger which carried a grey sword light towards the blood light. As both of them met, a thunderous sound of mountains collapsing and earth crumbling could be heard.

The blood light that surrounded the formation vanished!

Chen Xiu and Yang Zhu were saved just in time. The man in mid-air was amazed a little by Ning Fan's technique.

"Hmm. It's interesting that a Harmonious Spirit Realm ant can block my technique. But is he still able to block it for a second time?"

With Ning Fan's current cultivation realm, that technique he used was not strong enough to withstand the blood light but still sufficient enough to disperse it. In a blink of an eye, the blood light congealed and came for them once again. The power of the blood light did not weaken at all but Ning Fan had almost expended all of his strength to cast the technique earlier.

Besides, the reason he was able to disperse the blood light was because it had been weakened by the power of the Void Realm emitted from the portal.

So this is the difference between me and a Divine Transformation Realm demon…

Ning Fan wiped off the blood at the corner of his mouth as his eyes radiated coldness.

Just two more breaths and we would be able to teleport away, leaving him unable to catch up on us! I must block the assault of the blood light within these two breaths!

Yang Zhu and Chen Xiu also realized that their lives depended on whether they could hold on until two breaths later.

Yang Zhu was filled with remorse!

Now I know why Zhou Ming was in such a rush. He knew the Demon General was coming after this city!

If I've known this earlier, I wouldn't have argued with him and activated the formation!

When he was still spending his time regretting his previous actions, the second wave of blood light gushed towards them!

Yang Zhu was distracted and he took out the wrong magical treasure which caused him to be engulfed by the blood light. (It was his fault to end up dead. He could have avoided this if he took Ning Fan's advice)

As for Chen Xiu, his magical treasure broke apart, causing his physical body to be exposed to the blood light. Fortunately, his Nascent Soul escaped in time and hid behind Ning Fan!

Middle State… Assembly of Dan… Nothing is more important than my own life!

He could now only depend on Ning Fan to stay alive since Jing Zhuo and Yin Suqiu did not suffer any injuries under his protection during the first wave of the blood light!

"Fellow Daoist Zhou. Please save me! I will give you everything I have!"

The miniature body of Chen Xiu was trembling in fear behind Ning Fan.

Ning Fan did not refuse. He did not mind if one more person came under his protection. The only concern he had was how to survive the second wave of blood light!

"Sense Defense Art!"

Dark sword sense emerged and formed a black cocoon which enveloped all of them within.

Sense Defense Art is a technique which forms a barrier of defense using the spirit sense of the caster. With Ning Fan's current spirit sense, he could only cast the technique once per day. It was a strong defensive technique that could even block a Mid Nascent Soul Realm cultivator's technique!

When the blood light fell upon them, the cocoon melted almost immediately, causing severe damage on his Sea of Consciousness. Blood kept gushing out from the seven apertures of his head.

However, his eyes turned even more ferocious. He gritted his teeth and summoned the dark sword sense. The sword sense landed on the blood light and minced the remaining blood light into nothing!

Using the power of his sword sense brought even more damage to his Sea of Consciousness!

Luckily, the second wave of blood light was already over!

However, there was a period of a single breath left before they could teleport!

Li Ban was now wholefully surprised by Ning Fan who managed to block the two waves of blood light. Judging by the situation, he might lose the chance to eliminate Ning Fan if he continued using the demonic technique.

It seems that I need to finish you off with other means! Hahaha. Don't worry. I still have countless means to kill you!

"I've told you. Your death is inevitable! Behold my Dragon Whip!"

Li Ban pressed on his glabella and took out a silver whip emanating lightning rays.

It was the whip that he created by condensing the lightning rays from the Tribulation of Lightning when he succeeded the Dragon Transformation.

As such, this whip was already comparable to Supreme Grade magical treasures without the need of refinement. Moreover, it possessed many different abilities.

For example, ordinary magical treasures could never penetrate through the power of the Void Realm and hit Ning Fan who was already inside the formation. However, this Dragon Whip was able to do just that!

"Die!"

He lashed at Ning Fan with the whip bringing thousands of lightning rays along with it. As the whip landed on the ground, the earth separated into two, destroying half of the formations eyes. Without enough formation eyes, they might be killed by the power of the Void Realm during teleportation.

Another whip attack went towards Ning Fan, seemingly unavoidable. If he was hit by the whip, he would certainly die and everything in his storage pouch would be taken by the Demon General.

Eastern Ocean Bell. The Offering Vessel of Ancient Demons. This is the item that ignited Li Ban's interest!

All of a sudden, Ning Fan slapped his storage pouch and took out the bell. He mustered all his strength and struck the small golden bell with his punch!

"See you again, Li Ban!"

He fused his magic power and demon power in his punch. That punch consisted of the might of a Mid Gold Core Realm technique. When the punch landed on the bell, only one fifth of the magical treasure's power was activated!

The sound emitted by the bell transformed into circles of golden light, spreading in all directions. When the golden circles passed through the Demon General, his Dragon Whip became immobilized and trembled on its own as if it was afraid of the sound of the golden bell.

"What was that?!" Li Ban's eyes widened with surprise. He knew Ning Fan had an Offering Vessel of Ancient Demons. He thought it was only a mere Supreme Grade magical treasure, so he did not really pay much attention to it. Now, he was literally stupefied by the ability of the treasure.

It's truly a unique treasure. Fear rose within me just by hearing the sound of the bell.

It wasn't the ability of Body Seal. In actual fact, it was a powerful demon might that made me succumb to it and caused the Dragon Whip to tremble!

That bell… What kind of demon aura is the bell carrying?!

Something that enraged Li Ban even more happened when he was still dumbfounded by the golden bell!

A shadow of a sword flew out from Ning Fan's glabella and slashed directly at the Dragon Whip!

The Dragon Whip was a weapon that was forged using the condensed power of lightning of the Immemorial Lightning Dragon. Therefore, it was intangible. Since it did not have a physical body, it was impossible to break. It was the reason why the Demon General would use it to strike Ning Fan.

However, when the sword slashed at the Dragon Whip, the bodiless whip was cut in half!

The Demon General hurriedly pulled back his whip with a startled expression. Unfortunately, there was only half of the whip left.

The other half was in Ning Fan's hands!

The Dragon Whip should have been intangible making it unable to be damaged or destroyed using normal means. But there were exceptions for Immemorial Divine Weapons!

That sword which had cut my whip is undeniably an Immemorial Divine Weapon! Besides, I could sense that the sword consists of a massive amount of Immemorial Stars!

Li Ban's eyes were filled with murderous intent. He now realized that the Immemorial Star that he lost after the death of the Lion Demon was all merged into the sword!

And my Dragon Whip… It was cut by my own Immemorial Star!

"You! You must die!"

He glared at Ning Fan but shockingly, Ning Fan did not back off. He, too, glared at the Demon General without a trace fear in his eyes!

Then, the portal blinked and Ning Fan vanished with his group of people. There were only corpses and blood stains left in the ruins. It was a complete mess!

However, Ning Fan's words reverberated in the air! This time, his voice revealed his pent-up killing intent that stopped the Demon General from leaving!

"Li Ban! Today, you struck me with you Dragon Whip so I cut it into half! If we ever meet again in the future, death will be your only fate!"

Li Ban's eyes widened with his eye balls almost popping out from their sockets.

He could not believe it. A mere Harmonious Spirit ant blocked his technique twice, cut his whip into half and successfully escaped. Moreover, he never expected a person like Ning Fan would dare spit out harsh words at him.

"This human is too detestable! However, I've destroyed many of the formation eyes. I guess they will lose the protection from the formation during teleportation and die in the Void Realm… It's such a pity that the Offering Vessel of Ancient Demons would be trapped within the Void Realm… As for my Dragon Whip, it would take at least hundreds of years to refine!"

Li Ban clenched his fists with extreme hatred as if his pent up anger could not be vented.

Although the human would die in the Void Realm, I could never imagine that I would suffer such losses facing against a Harmonious Spirit Realm cultivator. It was really not worth it.

Anyway, he is going to die in the Void Realm. This could at least reduce the hatred within my heart a little.

Li Ban shifted his gaze to his back and saw countless cultivators travelling to his direction. One of them was Revered Snow who made him feel a little agitated.

"The human Divine Transformation Realm cultivator… He's really troublesome… Fine. Since I've completed the Dragon Transformation, I shall stop the demon tide. I shall head to the Demon World. The Emperors of the Demon World should be waiting to welcome my arrival. I should prioritize the mission assigned by the Demon Marshal…"

His crimson red hair floated in the air and teleported away in a blood light while letting out an evil cackle.

He no longer thought about his partners or the remaining demons in Great Jin.

That was how cruel he was.

But he was doomed to be disappointed by his earlier judgement.

One day later, Ning Fan and his friends finally reached Ying Country.

The power of the Void Realm?! Was it that terrifying?!

After all, Ning Fan possessed the Eastern Ocean Bell that could resist the power of the Void Realm!

It's really difficult to leave Great Jin in one piece.

<strong>Note:</strong>

1. According to Wikipedia, Oracle bones are pieces of ox scapula or turtle plastron, which were used for pyromancy - a form of divination in ancient China. Click here for picture.

<strong>Translator Team:</strong>

G-Team [Tommy (TL), Roel (Editor)]