Grasping Evil

Black ice!

Yan Zhongze's eyes narrowed. The ice made him feel uneasy. Almost instantly, Ning Fan released a torrent of punches towards the falling golden palm from above!

*Rat-a-tat*!

As the punches infused with ice power came into contact with the cloud, a strange, deep sound echoed in the skies!

He threw a total of twenty-seven punches with each of them making him retreat back a step, as if his body could not withstand the recoil of his punches.

Every step he made would leave a deep footprint on the silver stage.

When he threw the twenty-seventh punch, Ning Fan abruptly lifted his head and laughed sarcastically!

"What a good technique – Soft Cloud Quake… But to make me yield with only that palm is barely enough!"

His aura condensed and the cold ice shattered. The black snow around him scattered as if he just summoned a windstorm and that invisible force dashed directly into the sky! The force of the twenty-seven punches combined into one and clashed with the golden cloud, making it tremble! Cracks appeared and eventually the cloud dispersed into golden light!

The Jade Life Realm attack! He, Ning Fan, completely took it on himself!

At the disappearance of the golden cloud, a strong gust of wind blew across the entire area. Wherever it blows, the grass and trees would break or snap into half.

"He actually endured a full attack from Yan Zhongze!"

A purple light flashed within Zhuo Tong's eyes. He, the old ancestor of the Purple Charm Gate, was inwardly astonished by Ning Fan.

Amongst all the thirteen Divine Transformation Realm experts of the External Endless Sea, only Yan Zhongze and Xu Rushan attained the Jade Life Body Refining Realm. That is to say, none of them would be able to directly take on Yan Zhongze's full-powered attack, other than Xu Rushan!

To him, this kid had just done something of the impossible!

He is truly exceptional! Although he has yet to attain the Divine Transformation Realm, even Divine Transformation Realm experts would find it hard to defeat him, with all the techniques he currently possesses… Apparently, my decision was right in not hunting him down because of a Peak Nascent Soul Realm expert from my sect who died in his hands!

Yan Zhongze's eye fixed on Ning Fan for a while but he burst into laughter after that.

"What a wild and arrogant kid! I like you!"

He could see that Ning Fan was just a Nascent Soul Realm expert, despite his Half-Step Jade Life Body Refining Realm. However, Ning Fan was already the strongest person below the Divine Transformation Realm and even dared to challenge him to take his attacks head-on.

He is already this strong before attaining the Divine Transformation Realm. I suppose that if he really achieves the Divine Transformation Realm, he would overpower everyone in the Internal Endless Sea other than the Seven Venerated!

Xu Rushan felt an excitement within his heart but he refused to expose it on his face.

Ning Fan's punch was more than enough to instantly kill a Fake Wild Beast!

With such power and all the help I can give him, it won't be surprising at all for him to kill 150 Fake Wild Beasts in the Secret Realm of the Broken World!

Moreover, Xu Rushan also realized that the more Ning Fan showed his power, the more he could not see through him.

On the day I first met him, I could feel the danger of death when I was ten zhang* away from him. It was not his body refining technique… This kid must still be holding something back!

*Sucks in a cold breath*

"This Zhou Ming has still yet to reveal all his capabilities even though he faced a Divine Transformation Realm expert!"

"Without the use of the Primordial Magnetic Force, this old man is still able to withstand Yan Zhongze's 'Seven Palms in One'. If this kid is able to withstand Yan Zhongze's five palms, his combat power will be comparable to that of a Divine Transformation Realm expert!"

All the thoughts that everyone had, Ning Fan did not intend to guess. He shut his eyes, reflecting the twenty-seven punches he threw earlier.

No! It's not correct!

It shouldn't be in that manner!

I might be able to offset Yan Zhongze's one full strike, but I had to throw twenty-seven punches for it. In other words, unconsciously, I am admitting defeat; I am admitting that my punch can't match Yan Zhongze's palm!

This isn't the unyielding spirit that I should have. It's clear that I am surrendering even before I threw my punch!

To others, he might appear victorious but to him, he felt that he had lost…

"It's not enough!"

He raised his head and glared at Yan Zhongze.

The dark starry vortex in his right eye became even more gloomy.

"Good! Good! Good! This young kid can really cope with my appetite. I seem to have belittled you. Therefore, let this old man give you some enlightenment. This is my self-created technique –'Combined Palms Techniques'!

Yan Zhongze let out a shout, putting his palms together. The aura emanated from his eyes changed.

All of a sudden, a loud bang could be heard from the Sparrow Ascending Stage and it collapsed. The two of them stood on the ground, directly facing each other.

Yan Zhongze's aura rapidly rose. When it reached its peak, two rays of golden light shot out from his palms, piercing through the sky and transformed into another golden print of a palm.

Two palms combined together but the power of the palm that formed in the sky was four times stronger than his previous attack!

"This old man once killed three Peak Nascent Soul Realm experts with this technique. I heard that you killed the three former tower masters who were Peak Nascent Soul Realm experts by yourself too. In spite of that, I don't think you are able to withstand this attack!"

"Oh really…"

Ning Fan's mind was unwavering. His heart was like an enormous black mountain that would not be intimidated even when it faces Mount Tai, let alone the words from Yan Zhongze's mouth.

Unyielding, unyielding, what is unyielding… What should I do to so that I don't have to submit…

When the sky overturns and the earth sinks, cultivators are like ants. What should I do to not submit…

Ning Fan was struggling within, as if there was a thin but impenetrable veil to the right answer.

His bones were already in silver form but he still could not advance into the Jade Life Realm.

The golden palm print was falling down from the sky at an incredible speed, leaving Ning Fan with no time to contemplate!

The only thing he could do was to follow his body's instincts.

Without any hesitation, he delivered 21 punches at the direction of the incoming attack!

For the 21 punches, he used the same amount of force he used to throw each of them as the 27 punches previously. Clearly, the strength he used was not as much as earlier, but after they combined into one large fist with an aura that was a few times stronger than the previous one!

The number of punches had reduced but its aura and power intensified!

When his punch met the descending palm, both of them disappeared and gave out another gust of wind. Ning Fan retreated tens of steps before he could regain his balance. This time, his eyes brightened!

"I understand now!"

Meanwhile, a speck of jade color gradually appeared in his soul…

As for his body refining realm, it was gradually advancing into the Jade Life Realm!

*Gasps*

Yan Zhongze and the other two Divine Transformation Realm experts sucked in cold breaths together.

The attack he combined from two palms was four times stronger than the first one. In their eyes, unless Ning Fan hurled 108 punches consecutively, there was no way for him to neutralize it!

Moreover, they thought that with Ning Fan's current body refining realm, it would be difficult for him to hurl 108 punches in a brief amount of time and combined them into one attack!

None of them would expect him to succeed!

Furthermore, Ning Fan only used 21 punches to receive the attack which was four times stronger than before!

How is this possible?

Yan Zhongze's eyes were solemn. During the first clash, he was able to perceive Ning Fan's means. But in the second confrontation, he could not comprehend why the latter only needed 21 punches.

"Interesting! If you can take this old man's following attack which is the combination of three palms, I will surely assist you in persuading Xu Rushan to give you the Profound Heart of Mother Earth!"

"Fine!" This time, Xu Rushan was not stubborn with his earlier request and promised Yan Zhongze.

The more he looked at Ning Fan, the more he could not understand him. However, now he was more certain of one thing – if Ning Fan promises to help him, his trouble would no longer exist.

"…"

Ning Fan did not reply. He awaited the third attack from Yan Zhongze with more resolution in his eyes, as if he had figured out the right way to counter it.

Yan Zhongze performed a hand seal, transforming himself into a 500 zhang* tall giant!

"For this attack, this old man has to use my avatar to use it. Otherwise, I would suffer a heavy backlash from it, making my body crumble. Little friend, get ready!"

The giant let out a thunderous roar.

Ning Fan stood still, intending to receive the attack without transforming into a giant.

Three rays of golden light radiated from Yan Zhongze's palms and lightning flashed in the sky, congealing into a gigantic golden palm!

This time, its power was nine times stronger than the first attack. It once grievously injured the Divine Transformation Realm expert from the Ying State, the weakest Divine Transformation Realm expert among the thirteen of the External Endless Sea, forcing him to enter into seclusion in order to heal himself for ten years!

If Ning Fan could take this attack, it would simply prove that his combat power was at the same level as the weakest Divine Transformation Realm expert!

However, there was doubt in the giant's eyes.

He wondered how Ning Fan's punches would be able to withstand this attack…

In his mind, he guessed that it would be lesser than 21.

But why…

Facing the falling giant palm, the Nascent Soul within Ning Fan's dantian felt like breaking apart. But no matter how strong the pressure of the palm exerting on his body was, he did not yield!

The Earth Controlling Star in his right eye grew darker. This time, Ning Fan moved back seven steps, with only seven punches being thrown at the direction of the palm!

The strength he used to throw the punches were insignificant compared to the previous two attacks. However, when they combined into one, a shadow of a mountain emerged in the sky!

The power of his punch rose to an unimaginable level!

After throwing punches without rest, Ning Fan had almost depleted all his strength!

But the seven punches were like seven rays of starlight, penetrating through the golden palm!

He managed to block the attack combined from three palms!

Ning Fan coughed up a mouthful of blood as his dantian was wounded just now by the pressure from the gigantic palm above the sky. Even so, his eyes were filled with excitement.

My assumption is true!

During the first time, he had combined 27 punches into one large fist. Without a single doubt, throwing that many punches used a lot of his strength. However, it was influenced by the thought of submitting unbeknownst to him, making his first attack be lacking of unyielding spirit.

On the second time, he only displayed 21 punches. Despite the notable reduction in the strength used to throw the punches which fused into one, the aura and power were much stronger than the previous one!

During the third time, seven punches had merged into one, increasing the might of his attack to an incredible level!

The force he used to throw each of the punches remained unchanged throughout the three exchanges. But the aura of his attack rose and so did its power!

If he were to throw just seven punches at the beginning, the effect would not be as great as his third attack and would have not possessed such aura.

When his strength reached its limit, it turned into aura. When the aura reached its maximum point, his intent was born!

Nascent Soul Realm experts comprehended the primordial energy of heaven and earth and the grand momentum of nature. The deeper their comprehension in the grand momentum, the easier it would be for them to congeal their Divine Intent once they attain the Divine Transformation Realm.

Divine Intent was actually the way to control the grand momentum. In other words, it was a deep comprehension about the laws of nature.

Therefore, even though the last 7 punches were not as forceful as the previous attacks, a newly found Divine Intent which had yet to take its complete shape brought more power to his punch!

A sudden thought struck his heart. If he could receive one of Yan Zhongze's palms with just a punch, his aura would then rise to its peak, enabling him to finally congeal his second Divine Intent! Besides, he could also use this chance to advance into the Jade Life Realm!

"I want to achieve the Jade Life Realm!"

At this moment, Ning Fan's eyes were filled with absolute determination, just like what was on his face when he formed his Nascent Soul.

Yan Zhongze, who was standing on the ruins of the Sparrow Ascending Stage, as well as Xu Rushan and Zhuo Tong who were watching the battle in the night sky, were all deeply amazed.

Because they could feel a Divine Intent gradually materializing from Ning Fan's body.

To their surprise, the Divine Intent lacked divinity as it was too ferocious, domineering and violent. Rather than calling it as a "Divine Intent", it would be more appropriate to call it "Devil Intent"!

Devil Intent, the intent that devil cultivators had to congeal when they attain the Divine Transformation Realm!

It was only then did they realize the reason why the power of Ning Fan's punch grew stronger while the number of punches he threw diminished. It was because he had now developed a new Devil Intent!

"Devil Intent… It can't be wrong… Individuals who can form their Devil Intent must first possess Immemorial Devil Veins and secondly, they must be a devil cultivator who chose the Path of Defiance… All of us had misjudged him. He is actually a truly frightening devil cultivator… Devil Intent. Even in the Internal Endless Sea, there are only a handful of them who were able to congeal it…" Zhuo Tong heaved a deep sigh.

As the Devil Intent in Ning Fan's eyes continued to surge, Zhuo Tong could feel a trace of danger from Ning Fan.

"This Devil Intent seems to have a high grade. It seems to be at the Seventh Grade but it looks like it is now advancing to the Sixth… The Sixth Grade… In our small Rain World, a Sixth Grade Intent would be considered legendary, though it is very common in the Four Heavens…" Yan Zhongze muttered to himself.

"Fine. Luckily we have sealed this place down. There should be no one who could spy on Zhou Ming when he was congealing his Devil Intent just now… I will relinquish my request of having him endure five palms. Having the ability to withstand three of your palms is enough proof of his worthiness and I would definitely want to befriend this man at all cost. In my perspective, this person's cultivation level would never just be limited at the Divine Transformation Realm in his life… If he manages to achieve Void Fragmentation Realm, I'm afraid he's going to be the next ruler of the entire Rain World judging by his character and his will to dominate! Perhaps, he would be the second… Thunder Emperor Bu Zhou!"

Xu Rushan let out a deep sigh. He had already made up his mind. Now, he would wait for Ning Fan to completely congeal his Devil Intent and then, he would offer Ning Fan anything, including all the resources of the Pleasure Devil Sea if the latter needs it!

But just as he finished speaking, Ning Fan shook his head.

He lifted his gaze and looked into the sky. Three glittering stars could be seen from his face!

The Lightning Divine Star, the Earth Controlling Devil Star and the Palm Wood Demon Star!

"I want to take on the five palms!"

His tone was indifferent and cold. However, when the three stars twinkled together, it formed an inexplicable grandness, making the three respected Divine Transformation Realm experts to exchange glances of awe.

He has three stars?! How is it possible?!

Moreover, the attributes of each of the stars are widely different…

Zhuo Tong and Yan Zhongze had no clue. Even Xu Rushan who had a half-formed Divine Star on his forehead could not understand it.

As a matter of fact, it would be rare to encounter anyone in the Nine Worlds that was able to see through the abstrusity of the three stars!

Furthermore, it would be even more rare to find anyone other than the True Immortals who could bear the solemnity of the three stars!

"Do it as promised. Five Palms!"

Although there was nothing unusual about the words he spoke, to Yan Zhongze, it was more like an order that he dared not to go against.

"This is… Spirit Speech? No. It's not. But what exactly is this solemnity that restricted me from disobeying it…"

Yan Zhongze gulped and for the first time, he felt a heartfelt respect for Ning Fan.

He did not know that a cultivator who can possess three stars at a time is not a divine cultivator, devil cultivator or a demon cultivator but… a cultivator who practices the Path of the Immortal Sovereign!

Immortal Sovereign! That was a realm that was unreachable by many True Immortals in their entire lives!

Anyhow, Yan Zhongze did not have a clue about it. His body reacted naturally to Ning Fan's order, gritted his teeth and swallowed a secret medicine, making the blue veins on his body stand out even more obvious.

"Little friend Zhou Ming, the combined attack of the five palms is this old man's strongest technique that doesn't need me to hurt myself. If you are able to withstand it, your power would be on par with a Divine Transformation Realm expert who ranks 10th out of the 13 in the External Endless Sea! Combined Five Palms, Soft Cloud Quake, Gold Cloud Smash!"

This time, five rays of golden light shot out into the sky and transformed into a golden sea of clouds which stretched for over a thousand li*. Each and every piece of the clouds did not take the shape of a palm as their force was absorbed into a large mass of clouds which was above all of them.

The Cloud Intent was adaptable.

No sign was shown when the palm took its shape.

Some of the nearby cities were affected by this massive golden cloud which almost caused the buildings to collapse!

The giant then slammed his hand into the ground. The thousand li of golden clouds fell with a screech as if the entire sky collapsed!

This kind of aura was capable of striking fear into the hearts of ordinary Peak Nascent Soul Ream experts. Ning Fan, however, did not have the slightest fear in his eyes. Instead, they were as peaceful as a cold pond.

"Clouds. No matter how strong they are, it does not change the fact that they are still clouds…"

He muttered to himself. In Ning Fan's eyes, there was nothing to fear on the thousand zhang golden clouds.

No matter how strong or powerful the clouds might be, they were still clouds and there wasn't any kind of cloud that could shake a mountain!

He felt a sharp pain from his back as the devil marks became boiling hot.

He could also feel a burning sensation from the Earth Controlling Star on his right eye.

His skin was torn apart; his muscles were broken; his bones were fractured.

He was badly mutilated, and looked tattered with blood all over his body, but the pair of eyes on his face remained as calm as usual.

All of a sudden, a vast and boundless devil prestige surged, surrounding Ning Fan's body!

When it reached its peak, an immense Divine Intent rushed to the skies in the form of black mist, taking the shape of an enormous mountain!

Its summit was so sharp that it could pierce through the heavens while its bottom was so huge that it could suppress the abyss of devils!

The deep and immense devil qi from the black mist made the hearts of Yan Zhongze and the other two experts tremble in shock.

That Zhou Ming has successfully congealed his Divine Intent!

But what mountain is this?!

What kind of Divine Intent has he congealed?!

The Divine Intent of Mountain? No! That is only an Eighth Grade Divine Intent and it's known for giving the people around a heavy feeling. But this Divine Intent…wait... this Devil Intent is solely formed with a fierce unyielding spirit!

In Yan Zhongze's entire life, he had never seen such a cultivator who could form an image of a mountain from just his Divine Intent.

Though he did not know what Divine Intent it was, he could tell that it was a Sixth Grade Divine Intent!

Because of the grade of Ning Fan's Divine Intent, his Divine Intent of Cloud began to give way!

"I am a mountain!" Ning Fan shouted.

He threw a punch which carried a massive devil might to the sky. The next moment, the heavens broke apart and the clouds dispersed!

The dot of jade color on his soul floated around him, turning his entire soul into the color of jade!

At that same instance, he stomped onto the ground, breaking through the thin veil to the Jade Life Realm!

The combined attack of the Five Palms was twenty-five times stronger than the first attack.

However, this time, Ning Fan was as steady as a mountain when he received the attack without retreating a step backwards.

With just one punch, the golden clouds disappeared. Yan Zhongze felt a blow on his chest, causing him to spurt out a mouthful of blood as he fell down from the sky.

In his mind, as he reflected about the confrontation earlier, he felt that he could not withstand the punch without using all of his means!

As for Xu Rushan, he wore both surprised and bewildered expressions.

It was because he had a feeling that he had seen that image before.

If he did not see wrongly, that mountain, it was probably the totem that was enshrined and worshipped by Venerated Giant!

"Don't tell me this kid is the one whom Venerated Giant is waiting for…"

<strong>Note:</strong>

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<strong>Translator Team:</strong>

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