Grasping Evil

"Stinky Zhou Ming, let go of me. Let go- Mmm…"

Ning Fan held her waist tightly. He also did it in front of so many cultivators. Even though they had some intimate contact before, Bei Xiaoman was still filled with embarrassment and anger.

However, the more she struggled to break free, the more tightly Ning Fan hugged her as if he was bullying her on purpose.

He even secretly moved his fingers and touched the sensitive parts of her waist, causing Bei Xiaoman's body to feel tingly all over. Because of that, she let out a soft moan. But she then felt shy and very angry.

Fortunately, all the cultivators there thought that Bei Xiaoman moaned because of the pain from her injuries and did not know that her sensitive parts were being touched. Otherwise, Bei Xiaoman would definitely go nuts on the spot.

"You're shameless!" Bei Xiaoman could not voice out her complaint. She did not dare to yell in front of so many cultivators that she had been molested by Ning Fan.

Yes, he is the most shameless person in this world.

I hate him. I hate him the most!

But why am I feeling so happy to see him here to save me?

Bei Xiaoman's mind was utterly confused and perturbed. Then, she thought of how powerful Ximen Ye was and her face immediately turned pale.

"S-Stinky Zhou Ming, you have to run now… He's very powerful…"

"I know."

Ning Fan gently let go of Bei Xiaoman and pushed her to his back. He then wiped off the blood on her lips with his fingers. It made her blush again.

Long before he acted, he had sensed that this Ximen Ye was not ordinary.

One part of this Ximen Ye's soul possesses the power of the Half-Step Void Refinement Realm.

Even if this person's main body isn't at the Peak Void Refinement Realm, I suppose he will be at the… Void Fragmentation Realm!

If he was just an ordinary Half-Step Void Refinement Realm expert, Ning Fan was confident to put up a fight with him. But this Ximen Ye had a Void Fragmentation Realm consciousness in combat. As such, his actual combat power might be at the Void Refinement Realm.

Saving Bei Xiaoman was nothing but bringing more trouble to himself. But before he could finish weighing the advantages and disadvantages of saving her, his body acted out of his control and showed up, blocking in front of her when she was in danger.

Perhaps he did that for Yuan Yao's sake.

Perhaps it was his sense of responsibility as a tower lord of the Lost World Tower.

Perhaps it was because of him being a consort in the relationship between him and Bei Xiaoman which arose from a joke.

Perhaps it was because he did not want anyone else other than him to bully Bei Xiaoman.

"With me here, you won't be able to take her away." Ning Fan's tone was flat but his presence emanated an aura which was not inferior to Ximen Ye.

He would never be intimidated by Ximen Ye. Even if the latter had his Void Fragmentation Realm true body, he would still face him with the same attitude.

Anyways, he had already offended quite a number of Void Fragmentation Realm experts!

"With just you?" Ximen Ye reacted as if he had just heard something ridiculous. He gave a meaningful glance to the three Peak Divine Transformation Realm experts beside him and lazily closed his eyes after that, waiting for Ning Fan's blood to splatter everywhere.

Immediately, the three Peak Divine Transformation Realm experts understood his signal. They sneered and turned into three traces of smoke, dashing towards Ning Fan from three different directions.

"Despicable!" Upon seeing Ning Fan being attacked by three Peak Divine Transformation Realm experts, Bei Xiaoman's expression immediately changed.

The Ximen Aristocratic Family was proficient in combined attack techniques. The power of these three Peak Divine Transformation Realm experts combined was almost as strong as that of an ordinary Half-Step Void Refinement Realm expert.

Moreover, they were cultivators of the immortal world. Their techniques were, of course, more powerful than the likes of Revered Flame in the mortal world. Bei Xiaoman could not help but feel worried about Ning Fan being at a disadvantage.

Ximen Ye stood aside with his eyes closed. Clearly, he was confident that his people would bring him victory.

From his perspective, if there was only one Mid Divine Transformation Realm expert, that expert would never be able to withstand the attacks of three of his servants even if that person had combat power that was comparable to that of a Half-Step Void Refinement Realm expert.

"Get lost!"

Ning Fan's eyes turned cold. He made a step forward and a regal sword qi spread across the hall.

Before the three Peak Divine Transformation Realm experts could approach Ning Fan, they were jolted by the vigorous force of his sword qi and revealed themselves. All of them felt as if they had been struck in the chest and flew backwards while coughing out blood. Immense surprise filled their eyes.

"The Immortal Entrapping Sword Intent! Aside from that, it's a sword intent that has attained Large Accomplishment!"

The three of them had jointly killed countless Divine Transformation Realm experts. Currently, however, they could not even get close to Ning Fan's body. By just uttering two words and a single step, Ning Fan congealed a sword, hurting the three of them to the point of vomiting blood.

Even Ximen Ye kept his eyes open now. They turned slightly grim. He immediately realized that Ning Fan was not a Mid Divine Transformation Realm expert from the information he got. Instead, he was a Peak Divine Transformation Realm expert through and through.

"A Peak Divine Transformation Realm expert? A Peak Divine Transformation Realm expert with bone age below five hundred years old? Your innate talent is extraordinary. But you have to know that in this world, you can't reach the pinnacle of power with innate talent alone. In my eyes, you're just an ant!"

When one's cultivation base attains a certain level, their innate talent would become less important.

If one doesn't have a powerful backer and countless resources for cultivation, breaking through to the True Immortal Realm, Life Immortal Realm or even Void Fragmentation Realm would just be a fantasy.

In Ximen Ye's eyes, Ning Fan was just a junior who had a passable innate talent.

After all, Ximen Ye was an expert who had already broken through to the Void Fragmentation Realm. In the Four Heavens, he was one of the few significant beings among the geniuses of this era.

As for Ning Fan, he was just a Peak Divine Transformation Realm cultivator. It was still unknown whether he could break through to the Void Refinement Realm, let alone the Void Fragmentation Realm. Innate talent was not everything!

"You. Kill him."

Ximen Ye looked at the silver-robed elderly man beside him. The old man instantly understood him and stepped forward. This elderly man was also an expert with a Half-Step Void Refinement Realm cultivation base.

Sparks of electricity flashed around this silver-robed elderly man which buzzed terrifyingly.

At the moment he unleashed his aura, all the cultivators from the Ximen Family distanced themselves from him except for Ximen Ye. All of their faces were filled with dread upon seeing the arcs of electricity.

"Is Elder Lei1 going to act this time? Elder Lei is a practitioner of thunder techniques. He has nearly no rivals among the experts at the same level as him. Especially his thunderbolt, it's a Sixth Grade Void Thunderbolt. Its power is extraordinary…"

"I heard that there are the so-called 'Seven Venerated of the Internal Endless Sea' in this Endless Sea of the mortal world. I suppose if the so-called 'seven venerated beings' were to be placed in front of Elder Lei, they wouldn't amount to anything!"

Whispers and murmurs began to spread in the crowd. However, their words were unable to stir up any changes in the state of mind of the elderly man even though he had overheard them. Thus, it was enough to show how mentally strong this expert was.

Elder Lei glanced at Bei Xiaoman. As he saw the latter's face which was now slightly pale, he felt a little uneasy.

He owed the four mistresses of the Lost World Palace quite a lot of favors. Today, if he kills Ning Fan, he would definitely make Bei Xiaoman sad.

He let out a sigh inwardly. He currently had no command over himself. Since he was a member of the Ximen Aristocratic Family and was being paid by them, he had to be loyal to them and carry out whatever command they gave him.

His gaze turned to Ning Fan. His eyes revealed a hint of mercy as he spoke coldly.

"Zhou Ming, if you surrender without offering any resistance, I will leave your soul intact for samsara as a sign of respect for the Fourth Mistress!"

"There's no need for that. You aren't my opponent."

"Humph! You will regret boasting without shame!"

Elder Lei's eyes turned merciless. Since he was already an expert who was half a step away from the Void Refinement Realm, how would he be afraid of a Peak Divine Transformation Realm expert?

He was already being merciful to let Ning Fan's soul return to samsara. Since Ning Fan did not know what was good for him, there was no need to show any mercy.

When he stepped forward, silver arcs of electricity flickered around him. He moved his hands to form the shape of a semi-circle in the air. At the next moment, thunderbolts turned into an eight trigrams palm imprint and dashed towards Ning Fan.

"Eight Trigrams Thunderbolt!"

As he pushed the palm imprint towards Ning Fan, eight arcs of lightning appeared at the cardinal directions as well as the inter-cardinal directions. They took the form of a snake which was as thick as a large bowl. When they charged at Ning Fan, they buzzed instead of hissing.

This palm imprint was not an attack that damaged a large area. Instead, the user of this technique had to condense his entire power on his palm in order to display it. Since it was the silver-robed elderly man who displayed this technique with his Half-Step Void Refinement Realm, each of the lightning snakes was strong enough to eliminate a Peak Divine Transformation Realm cultivator easily.

"Your thunderbolt is not bad. It will be mine!"

Ning Fan suddenly placed his finger on his glabella and took out one of his Peak Grade Spirit Treasures – Spirit Crushing Whip. He then lashed each of the eight lightning snakes one after another.

Although his opponent's thunderbolt was a Sixth Grade Void Thunderbolt, Ning Fan's was the thunderbolt of the Heavenly Tribulation.

Eight shadows of his whip which seemed to have turned into eight blood-red dragons flashing with lightning collided against the silver thunderbolts. Upon collision, a blinding light illuminated the entire hall.

After seeing the immense power of their thunderbolts, Lu Qing and Stone Warrior hurriedly activated the defensive formation of the southern tower in order to prevent the power of their fight from bringing destruction to the outside world.

If the power of the blinding light spread outside of the tower, perhaps the entire Xuan Wu City would be razed to the ground.

*Rumble*

As their thunderbolts met, Elder Lei's expression instantly changed. He had sensed that his Sixth Grade Silver Thunderbolt was actually showing signs of fear and did not dare to resist the blood-red thunderbolt.

After Ning Fan made eight strikes with his whip, the light snakes disintegrated and their lightning power was devoured by his blood-red lightning.

Right in front of everyone's eyes, he used his Spirit Crushing Whip to devour all of Elder Lei's spiritual thunderbolts, upgrading his weapon to a Half-Step Void Treasure!

"The Blood Thunderbolt of the Heavenly Tribulation! Among the seven cultivation realms in the cultivation world, this thunderbolt is basically the strongest type!"

Elder Lei's expression was solemn. He finally realized that even though Ning Fan was a Peak Divine Transformation Realm cultivator, his means were definitely not weak. It would be very difficult to win against him!

Elder Lei glanced over his shoulders and saw Ximen Ye was looking at him gloomily. All of a sudden, Elder Lei figured that it was not a good sign. If he fails to take Ning Fan's life, then Ximen Ye would definitely take his.

"I have to go all-out! Thunder Dividing Swords, appear!"

Elder Lei flicked his sleeve and eight silver swords appeared in the air.

Each of the swords was Peak Grade Spirit Treasure. When the eight of them combine into one, its might would certainly not be any weaker than a genuine Void Treasure!

"Look! They are the Thunder Dividing Swords! It's Elder Lei's most famous weapon. Countless Divine Transformation Realm experts have died under that sword!"

"Humph! That Zhou Ming is certainly dead. Although his blood-red whip is strong and can restrain thunderbolts, it is still a Half-Step Void Treasure after all. It can't withstand the might of these Thunder Dividing Swords!"

Even though Ning Fan had the upper hand in the fight, the cultivators of the Ximen Family believed that Elder Lei was more likely to win.

As Elder Lei formed a hand seal, the eight swords shone brightly like meteors and gave out an ear-piercing screech. Suddenly, all of them disappeared without a trace. In the next second, each of them flickered to half a zhang* (3.33 m per zhang) away from Ning Fan. They shot out their sword qi, forming eight lightning swords which swept towards him.

When these eight lightning swords combine into one, it could even kill a Half-Step Void Refinement Realm expert.

As he saw the eight lightning swords coming towards him, Ning Fan's eyes narrowed coldly. He made a step forward and swung the blood-red whip in his hand so fast that countless afterimages were formed. In an instant, he made one hundred lashes in total.

As the one hundred times of whip attacks struck the eight swords, they seemed to have been struck by a massive thunderbolt and disintegrated from the middle of their bodies.

As for the eight traces of sword lightning, they were also wiped out by his Spirit Crushing Whip.

After seeing his eight swords being crushed in an instant, Elder Lei's eyes were filled with disbelief. He had never thought that the Spirit Crushing Whip would be such a powerful magical treasure.

However, what happened next surprised him even more. At the moment his eight swords were destroyed, one hundred rays of blood-red lightning appeared within his dantian, brutally blasting at his primordial spirit.

*Puke*

Blood drained from Elder Lei's face. He was already in terrible shape. Besides, he could feel that if Ning Fan had not been merciful to him, his primordial spirit would have been destroyed immediately and he would have died under the blood-red lightning!

"Retreat! Otherwise, I will not show any mercy anymore!"

Ning Fan held the blood-red lightning whip in his hand. His eyes were cold like a devil's as his hair danced wildly in the wind.

If Elder Lei did not offer his kind intention earlier to keep Ning Fan's soul intact for samsara, Ning Fan would have definitely not spared him.

However, if Elder Lei still insists on fighting him, he would not spare him again… The only way he would deal with Elder Lei was to finish him off!

*Hiss*

A cold blast of air rushed towards the cultivators of the Ximen Family.

Despite having powerful means like the Sixth Grade Void Thunderbolt and Thunder Dividing Swords, Elder Lei was nearly killed by Ning Fan after just exchanging two moves.

Anyone with a discerning eye would notice that Elder Lei would have died if Ning Fan had not shown him mercy!

This Zhou Ming is powerful! He might not be as strong as Ximen Ye, but he could be considered as a genius who could terrorize a domain in the Northern Heaven.

Under Ning Fan's cold piercing eyes, the Ximen Family's Divine Transformation Realm experts who were initially haughty and disdainful avoided direct eye contact with him. No one there actually dared to look him in the eye at all.

"Ximen Ye, I told you. If I'm here, you won't be able to take her away!"

*Boom*

Ximen Ye's face darkened. Ning Fan's words were no different than a slap on his face.

He then swung one of his palms forward without any hesitation. Elder Lei's physical body which was already grievously injured instantly turned into a cloud of blood mist, leaving only his primordial spirit intact.

"Trash! I will deal with you once I finish this man off!"

Elder Lei's primordial spirit was terrified. He did not even have the guts to resist Ximen Ye, much less the capabilities to do so.

Ximen Ye was too strong. Crushing him to death would only take a single second.

Ximen Ye's gaze fell upon Ning Fan. He had already realized that Ning Fan was indeed not ordinary. At least, among the cultivators below the Void Refinement Realm, there was nearly no one who could defeat him.

He was unbeatable. However, that fact only applied to cultivators below the Void Refinement Realm.

Ximen Ye's incarnation might just have a Half-Step Void Refinement Realm cultivation base, but his original self was a genuine First Heavenly Layer of the Void Fragmentation Realm expert!

"Do you like Bei Xiaoman?"

"…" Ning Fan did not reply.

"Humph! I am a person who doesn't like deceiving others. If you are able to win against me by just half a move, Bei Xiaoman will be yours!"

*Chi*

Ximen Ye waved his hand in the air. Immediately, the air in front of him was split into two by the force of his palm, revealing a new heavenly dwelling space.

"Creating a heavenly dwelling space with a wave of his hand!"

Ning Fan was slightly stunned. Only Void Fragmentation Realm old monsters were capable of doing that. With Ning Fan's eyesight, he could tell that this man had exceedingly profound means even though the heavenly dwelling space that he had casually created was just ten thousand li* (500m per li) wide.

In addition to that, this Ximen Ye seemed to be quite self-conceited. He disdained defeating Ning Fan inside Xuan Wu City. After all, the aftereffects of their battle would affect other cultivators if they fight in the Xuan Wu City which would distract Ning Fan.

Ximen Ye wanted to bring Ning Fan down to his feet in a legitimate and fair manner!

"Come inside this heavenly dwelling space and fight me. If you win against me by half a move, you can then have Bei Xiaoman! If you lose, you're dead!"

Ximen Ye stepped forward and entered the space without any delay.

As for Ning Fan, he paused and pondered for a bit.

With my Wind Mist Finger, it will be a piece of cake to erode a mere heavenly dwelling space. If there are any changes, I can get out of it anytime. Besides, this space has just been created. It's impossible for it to have any formations for an ambush aimed at me.

"Xiaoman is not an object."

Ning Fan turned his head and darted a glance at Bei Xiaoman. He gave her a calm smile and then moved forward, entering the heavenly dwelling space. After his disappearance, the entrance leading to the space closed up.

*Thump*

His words made Bei Xiaoman's heart pound hard, as if a tiny rock had fallen into the lake of her heart.

Not an object… He said that I'm not an object…

Be it my mother or my sisters, all of them saw my marriage contract with that man as a bargaining chip to establish a friendly tie with the Ximen Aristocratic Family. They treated me just like an object. But he… He said that I'm not an object.

Bei Xiaoman had always thought that Ning Fan was very detestable.

Every time she saw him smiling at her, she would get angry for no reason.

This time, however, she felt that his smile was especially charming, so charming that it made her heart feel sad.

He clearly knew how strong Ximen Ye is but he still insists on fighting him.

Doesn't he like to bully me the most? Why is he willing to stand up for me?

"Don't go…"

Bei Xiaoman's heart was suddenly filled with fear. She knew Ximen Ye's capabilities very well. She tried to persuade Ning Fan to stay but he had already entered the heavenly dwelling space.

She wanted to enter too. However, Ximen Ye was the one who created the heavenly dwelling space. Other than Void Fragmentation Realm experts, who else could enter with ease?

*Rumble*

Without giving too much time for Bei Xiaoman to think, an earthshaking wave of force spread out from within the moment Ning Fan entered the heavenly dwelling space… When both of them engaged each other, they would be going all-out!

The impact of their fight had nearly caused the heavenly swelling space to collapse!

*Chi*

A spurt of fresh blood shot out from a crevice of the entrance, splashing on Bei Xiaoman's face.

Bei Xiaoman gently touched the blood. How could she not recognize the qi of the blood?

It was Ning Fan's blood…

What exactly was going on inside?

Why would Ning Fan's blood spurt out from within as soon as the fight began?

"Please, don't die! You must not die!"

Bei Xiaoman could no longer hold back her tears. Ning Fan stepped up and fought for her but she did not even know whether he was alive or not right now.

Then, she finally realized that her heart could already not let go of him, not knowing when it had started...

In the heavenly dwelling space, Ning Fan was covered in his own blood from head to toe. His eyes were cold and brutal. Ximen Ye who was in front of him was no better. His fists and bones were crushed and his expression was filled with astonishment.

His current incarnation possessed the Peak Level of Jade Life Body Refining Realm while Ning Fan was just at the Third Level of Jade Life Body Refining Realm.

However, after exchanging hundreds of blows, although Ning Fan was bathed in blood, he did not seem to be a lot weaker than Ximen Ye.

As for the latter, he did not seem to have truly grasped victory over this fight as the bones of his fists were crushed by Ning Fan.

"You are strong. But your strength is only unrivalled among Divine Transformation Realm cultivators. I am an expert who has attained the Void Fragmentation Realm and I have seen far too many geniuses. To be honest with you, the strength of my current incarnation is a complete copy of my strength when I was at the Divine Transformation Realm. You aren't my opponent!"

"Is that so? Then why are the bones of your fists broken?" Ning Fan wiped off the blood on the corners of his lips and his battle intent grew stronger.

It was his first time meeting such a strong opponent of the same generation as him. Moreover, this person was so strong that he felt instinctively nervous and his hands even trembled due to his intense emotion.

In the past, he had become a little proud of himself after defeating some geniuses.

However, people like Han Nietian and Ximen Ye who had broken through to the Void Fragmentation Realm were also those of the same generation as him!

"I will not lose!" Ning Fan said with determination.

"Humph! You will regret being shamelessly boastful. I am not going to show any more mercy when I display this move. Soul Extraction!"

Ximen Ye extended his fingers into the shape of a claw and sliced the soul of the vast land within the heavenly dwelling space.

Ning Fan's lips formed into a cold smirk and did the same thing, snatching away the soul of the vast land before Ximen Ye could.

The land only had a single soul. After Ning Fan snatched its soul, Ximen Ye would have no other soul to extract.

"You also know the Soul Extraction Technique? Apart from that you are even more proficient in it than me? This is not possible!"

Ximen Ye's countenance changed for the first time.

He only managed to comprehend the Soul Extraction Technique after he broke through to the Void Fragmentation Realm and he had yet to be proficient in using it. Originally, he planned on using that technique to boost his power to the Void Refinement Realm and finish off Ning Fan with a single move. However, he did not expect that Ning Fan would seize the soul of the land first.

When the soul entered Ning Fan's body, his magic power skyrocketed. All of a sudden, his power rose to the Half-Step Void Refinement Realm. He was now on par with Ximen Ye.

As he moved his body, his bones gave off loud and violent popping noises. His eyes were sharp like lightning as he stared Ximen Ye straight in the eye. Then, he condensed two layers of palm imprint within the center of his palm and pushed it towards his opponent.

At the next moment, a rolling mass of black flames turned into a fiery palm that was two thousand zhang* (3.33m per zhang) tall which fell upon Ximen Ye from above.

"A Mortal Void Realm magical technique? But so what if he has this technique?! Great Void Palm!"

As Ximen Ye swung his palm, a void power which was black like the starless sky turned into a black palm imprint which was also two thousand zhang* (3.33m per zhang) tall and collided against the fiery palm.

*Bang*

Both of the fiery and black palm imprints dispersed. Waves of force swept across the battleground, nearly causing the heavenly dwelling space to crumble.

Ning Fan retreated for more than ten steps while Ximen Ye only moved backwards for nine steps continuously before the both of them regained their balance.

Ximen Ye was inwardly shocked.

My Great Void Palm which I displayed with all my strength was actually parried by him.

What made him even more incredulous was that nearly at the same moment Ning Fan regained his footing, he stretched out his purple Fu Li Wings and held a sword in each of his hands. One of them glowed in shining starlight while the other emanated the vigorous blood qi of a dragon.

He did not seem to have wavered from the destruction of his fiery palm. Instead, he held two sharp swords and charged at Ximen Ye fearlessly, as if death did not matter to him.

"I will not lose!"

This time, Ximen Ye really felt the auras within Ning Fan's swords to the core.

His eyes widened with surprise.

This man is certainly the most powerful of all the Divine Transformation Realm cultivators I have ever met.

"But you are still a Divine Transformation Realm cultivator after all… Void Congealing Sword!"

When Ximen Ye casually swung one of his hands, the void power condensed a jet-black sword which was nearly as powerful as a Void Treasure!

He wielded his black sword and pointed it towards Ning Fan who was charging at him with two swords. As their sword light clashed, the heavenly dwelling space began to collapse.

After slashing and parrying for more than ten times, Ximen Ye helplessly realized that he could not even get the upper hand against Ning Fan.

Moreover, in regards to swordsmanship, Ning Fan was far more skillful than him.

"A mortal ant actually beat me in the Dao of Swords?!"

A strong sense of displeasure rose within Ximen Ye's heart.

He held his sword with one of his hands and forcefully slammed the other on Ning Fan's Separation Slayer Sword.

The impact pulverized the crook of Ning Fan's thumb and blood gushed out in torrents. However, he did not flinch and his eyes remained aggressive as usual. He sliced Ximen Ye's neck with all his might using the Blood Dragon Demon Sword, not concerned about his injuries at all.

Ximen Ye was slightly stunned. This kind of fight where one fought with their lives gave him a huge sense of dread.

He hurriedly moved backwards to dodge the slash but he still could not avoid being struck by Ning Fan's sword on his neck. A bloody line which was half an inch long appeared on his neck.

At the moment the Blood Dragon Demon Sword cut through his skin, there was a tearing force from the sword which drained away much of Ximen Ye's blood essence. Because of his carelessness, he suffered a loss greater than Ning Fan suffered.

"What kind of demon sword is this?!" Ximen Ye burst into anger. He could not allow himself being hurt by a mortal ant.

"I've won by half a move." Ning Fan teased.

"Shut up!" Ximen Ye seemed to have lost his sanity.

The promise he made earlier had been cast aside.

The only thought he had right now was to kill Ning Fan!

<strong>Translated by Tommy, edited by Roel</strong>

<strong>Note: </strong>

1. Elder Lei (雷长老)

The word 'Lei' is 雷 (léi) in Chinese which carries the meaning of thunder.