On the eleventh floor of the lightning tower, the skies were filled with dark clouds. Cold wind blew and rain fell constantly. Lightning flashed and thunder clapped from time to time.
At the foot of the Zhong Mountain, a group of nearly two hundred undead spirits were rushing to the valley of the mountain through day and night. There was where the palace of Zhu Feng, the lightning lord of the eleventh floor, located.
The cultivation base of all the members in that group of two hundred cultivators was at Divine Transformation Realm and above. Besides, six of them were at the Void Refinement Realm!
However, the leader of this group of cultivators was not an expert at the Void Refinement Realm. Instead, he was just a Divine Transformation Realm young man who dressed in white robes.
“It’s near…”
Ning Fan’s eyes were calm and composed. Even though he was about to battle against the strongest being of the eleventh floor, he did not have the slightest concern.
His physical body had broken through to the Peak Level of the Jade Life Realm. With his corpse devil body, he could directly resist a body cultivator with the First Level of Golden Body Realm or have a physical confrontation against Void Glimpse Stage old monsters.
After digesting the Immortal Emperor’s Finger Bone, Ning Fan was aware that if he displays the sword finger now, its destructive power would probably be absolutely different from before.
After consuming that single drop of Mo Luo’s blood which he had yet to completely assimilate, he could go into the demonized state with the power of that devil blood and turn into his devil form with the symbolic features of Mo Luo’s four slaves. Within that short period of time after his transformation, he could even combat against a Void Inquiry Stage expert!
However, because he had yet to completely assimilate Mo Luo’s blood, there was a drawback in recklessly using the power of this blood to go into the demonized state.
Each time Ning Fan demonized himself, he would feel that his primordial spirit would turn black bit by bit.
The longer and more frequent he went into the demonized state, the greater the intensity of the darkness would be.
That black color was a symbol of devilishness. It would not be a big deal if the devilishness in him was less. However, if he accumulates too much of devilishness, he probably would lose his mind and act emotionlessly.
Even though he would not turn into a cold-blooded and heartless being like the black primordial spirit, he never liked any external things messing with his mind.
Hence, if he could choose not to use the demonization technique, he would refrain from using it, unless he completely assimilates Mo Luo’s blood and his body refinement realm breaks through to the Golden Body Realm.
When that time comes, Ning Fan could demonize himself and turn into a giant without worries.
“Kill!”
At the end of the valley, a hidden formation light flashed in the dark. Several ten thousand cultivators suddenly appeared and each of them held a lightning bow. Without hesitation, they fired tens of thousands of deadly lightning arrows at Ning Fan’s direction.
The volley of lightning arrows poured upon them like rain. As they mixed with the rain and lightning in the skies, they flew even faster than usual.
Each of the lightning arrows was enough to kill a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator. In the face of tens of thousands of lightning arrows, even a Divine Transformation Realm cultivator would also certainly be killed instantly.
However, such an amount of lightning arrows could not make a group of two hundred cultivators slow down their advancement.
Ning Fan’s eyes looked indifferent. He flicked his sleeve. Even though it was clearly just a wave of his hand, he gave out an unimaginable amount of force which was strong enough to shake mountains and rivers. That action was already comparable to the full-powered strike of a Void Glimpse Stage expert!
When he exerted the force, mountains and rivers cracked. All of the incoming lightning arrows were shattered to pieces. The several ten thousand enemies who were hiding in the dark were wiped out in a single attack. Only seven panic-stricken figures survived by luck. All of them had Half-Step Void Refinement Realm cultivation base. After witnessing their armies being eliminated in an instant, they were overwhelmed with fear and they immediately fled for their lives, returning to their base.
“Retreat at once. We have to report to the lightning lord that Zhou Ming has already breached the line of defense at foot of the Zhong Mountain. Of all the seventeen lines of defense, none of them could stop his footsteps. The three Void Glimpse Stage commanders have already died in his hands!”
“Do you think you can run away…?”
Ning Fan’s tone was cold. When he raised one of his palms, an icy sword light which was as thin as the wings of a cicada flashed past them and disappeared without a trace.
At the next second, the dantian of the seven enemies who were in the middle of escaping were pierced through by a sword light.
That sword light was too fast. It was even faster than the travelling speed of a Void Glimpse Stage expert. Other than experts at the Void Inquiry Stage, who else could defend against such a fast-moving sword light?!
The sharpness of the sword light nearly disregarded all kinds of defenses of the Void Glimpse Stage.
Just as the sword light went through their bodies, there were one hundred million sword threads penetrating outwardly from the dantian of the seven cultivators. In just a matter of seconds, the seven of them were shredded to pieces by sword threads and reduced to blood mist.
Ning Fan’s expression remained unaffected. He had already performed such brutal killings for 16 times while he was on the way to the lightning palace on the Zhong Mountain. This was his 17th time.
There were already 400 Divine Transformation Realm undead spirits and 3 Void Glimpse Stage experts that had died in his hands!
He devoured each and every trace of primordial lightning into his abdomen to assimilate them. As for the lightning jades, he gathered them into his hands and tossed them to Lei Shiyi who was following behind him.
Ning Fan’s actions were smooth and swift. Killing others and seizing their treasures were a normal activity to him in the first place.
However, the six Void Refinement Realm experts who were following behind him, including Lei Shiyi, were already so astonished that their expressions froze.
“This young man’s is really ruthless in his means! Slaughtering nearly all the members on the first ten floors of the lightning tower… Even a Void Pierce Stage old monster won’t be bold enough to do such a thing as it will certainly enrage everyone in this tower. He, however, is daring to do so… Judging from his momentum, he not only wants to get to the Zhong Mountain and eliminate Zhu Feng, but also kill his way up to the twenty-fourth floor and get rid of King Ying Long!”
Mo Feiyun’s heart was filled with utter astonishment. He could proudly say that he had met a lot of heroic and strong beings in his entire lifetime. Among them, Lei Shiyi was the person whom he admired and respected the most. As for the person whom he was afraid of the most, it was none other than Ning Fan that was standing before him.
I’m really ashamed of myself… How silly and bold I am to belittle and tease this young man before this… From what I’ve seen today, it’s certainly as easy as flipping his hands for him to kill me with his strength. Regarding him as a Void Pierce Stage expert is definitely not overrating… When he wielded his sword, coldness spread and his enemies died under his sword threads… I suppose his cultivation in the Dao of Swords is certainly very profound as well.”
Chu Nanfeng muttered to himself.
Amazement filled Lei Shiyi’s eyes time after time. In the past, he knew that Ning Fan was very strong. However, he had also noticed that the latter was not as strong as today when he met him three days back.
The feeling that the previous Ning Fan gave Lei Shiyi was a natural restraint. That feeling actually originated from the Tai Su Lightning Star.
As for the current Ning Fan, there were two types of completely different aura force in him. Each of them was able to strike fear into Lei Shiyi’s heart.
“That kind of aura force makes me feel suffocating… Even a Void Fragmentation Realm old monster won’t possess such a level of aura force… What had happened to this young man exactly in the past three days?!” Lei Shiyi thought to himself.
Along their journey, Ning Fan took care of almost all the killings.
After witnessing Ning Fan take the lives of three Void Glimpse Stage experts with his own hands, there was no longer anyone who doubted his strength in eliminating Zhu Feng or resisting King Ying Long.
The lightning palace of the Zhong Mountain which was located at one million li* (500m per li) away was already within their sight!
Inside the lightning palace, Zhu Feng, the lightning lord who was clad in a set of black armors, was sitting on his throne while looking at each piece of information that was given to him. His expression was grim.
Outside the Zhong Mountain, the seventeen lines of defense which were made up of hundreds of thousands of experts were all wiped out within just half a day!
The group of people who had done this was really beyond Zhu Feng’s expectation. They were actually Ning Fan and the members of the Myriad Treasure Pavilion!
“Humph! Unexpectedly, that Zhou Ming who is being pursued by King Ying Long still dares to come to my lightning palace. What a foolish and audacious person! Doesn’t he know that he is walking right into the trap?1 Don’t tell me that he really thinks that he could put up a fight against me, a dignified Void Inquiry Stage expert, with his lowly Half-Step Void Refinement Realm strength! It’s utterly ridiculous!”
“As for the Myriad Treasure Pavilion, they seemed to have really been clouded by their boldness and rashness. Lei Shiyi! This man has lost to me eleven times. Originally, I thought that he would know what’s good for him, behave accordingly ever since his last defeat and obediently hand over the emperor bone. Unexpectedly, this sinful creature still dares to challenge me again! If he is bold enough to come to my lightning palace, I will certainly make him regret it for his entire life!”
Zhu Feng’s wrathful roar reverberated inside the lightning palace for a long period of time.
His Void Inquiry Stage aura force was huge like mountains and vast like the sea. When it spread across the atmosphere, it caused the air inside the great hall to become abnormally heavy. Countless Nascent Soul Realm and Divine Transformation Realm undead spirits fell to the ground as they could not endure the intense pressure.
Only nine Void Glimpse Stage old monsters there could remain calm after blocking Zhu Feng’s aura force.
“Rest assured, Lightning Lord! Inside this lightning palace, there are us, a group of ten Void Refinement Realm experts in total standing guard. Even if Zhou Ming or the Myriad Treasure Pavilion has three heads and six arms, when they come to this place, it will still be equivalent to digging their own graves…”
An old man with whiskers like that of a mouse spoke derisively. His name was Ma Renwang and his eyes which were as tiny as mung beans flashed with ferocity as he spoke.
He did not place Ning Fan and his group in his eyes. The other eight Void Glimpse Stage experts also did the same. Hence, all of them absolutely agreed with the words of the rat-whiskered elderly man.
“Exactly! Fellow Daoist Ma is totally right. If that Zhou Ming comes to the lightning palace, he will die without a doubt. Even though he breaches all the lines of defense along the path and comes with a great momentum, he probably just depends on the forces of the Myriad Treasure Pavilion and his three Void Glimpse Stage spiritual puppets. At the end of the day, he is just a Half-Step Void Refinement Realm cultivator. There is never a Half-Step Void Refinement Realm cultivator who can overcome the gap in cultivation base and kill a Void Glimpse Stage expert. It’s fine if that young man does not enter the lightning palace. However, if he really steps into this palace, I, Li Gui, will be the first one to eliminate him!”
Another Void Glimpse Stage expert who was much taller and bigger spoke in assent.
All of a sudden, the great hall was filled with mocking laughter and teasing remarks about Ning Fan and his group.
At this moment, a bone-chilling voice which was as cold as a ten-thousand-year-old glacier suddenly resounded in the whole lightning palace on the Zhong Mountain.
It carried the aura force which was as heavy as one thousand mountains and the lofty air which looked down upon all things. The voice blasted in the ears of the group of cultivators in the lightning palace like the thunderclap that comes after one hundred million rays of lightning flash. At the next moment, the cultivators below the Void Refinement Realm had blood flowing out from the eardrums and all of them felt a sharp pain in their Sea of Consciousness.
As for the Void Refinement Realm old monsters including Zhu Feng, their qi became stagnant and heavy and they felt a huge weight pressing against their chests. Their expressions changed instantly.
“Who said that I, Zhou Ming, won’t dare to come forth?!”
That trace of voice carried a terrifying ferocious might!
Not to mention how strong Ning Fan’s cultivation base was, the ferocious aura force in his voice alone was enough to suppress ordinary Divine Transformation Realm cultivators!
Suddenly, an atmosphere of fear and panic had surrounded the whole lightning palace.
At the next moment, the earth moved and mountains shook, causing a huge tremor over the range of mountains connecting to the Zhong Mountain at this stormy night!
Countless undead spirits flew out of the lightning palace and looked at the surroundings. Then, all of them sucked in a cold breath.
They saw that a group of only two hundred cultivators were beginning a large-scale massacre on the Zhong Mountain. All of the two hundred cultivators were at Divine Transformation Realm and above.
In front of the group of Divine Transformation Realm cultivators, there were even six Void Refinement Realm experts including Lei Shiyi and three Void Glimpse Stage spiritual puppets. The group was advancing unstoppably and killing every enemy on sight!
The most frightening part of all, however, was certainly not these Void Refinement Realm experts but a young man in white robes instead.
The young man marched forward with his hands clasped behind his back. Each step he made seemed gentle and light but the force of his step was comparable to that of a cultivator with Golden Body Refining Realm. A single step could move mountains and rivers!
It was none other than him who caused the rumbling tremor of the earth and mountains!
That cold voice which had suppressed countless cultivators in the lightning palace also belonged to him!
He was Ning Fan!
“Kill him!”
Several ten thousand Nascent Soul Realm undead spirits with low spiritual intelligence charged at Ning Fan from behind desperately.
At this moment, Ning Fan suddenly turned around and coldly stared at them. His stare was like a cold electricity that flashed past the night sky. When the innumerable Nascent Soul Realm undead spirits with low spiritual intelligence met his gaze, all of them felt their souls shivered with fear. None of them could resist this feeling.
What a fearsome stare!
What kind of bloody battle this absolute devil has been through?!
Even though these undead spirits were without spiritual intelligence at all, they would also be afraid of Ning Fan’s gaze, much less they had low level of spiritual intelligence!
“Get lost!”
Ning Fan roared. Under the amplification of the enormous force that was comparable to the Golden Body Realm, the sound waves of his roar carried the might which was even more terrifying than any kinds of Divine Transformation Realm devil sound!
As soon as the black sound waves came out from Ning Fan’s mouth, the physical bodies of the several ten thousand Nascent Soul Realm undead spirits instantly collapsed. All of them died with a miserable shriek.
Ning Fan was unable to withstand Mo Luo’s stare.
Likewise, these Nascent Soul Realm undead spirits could not resist a single roar from Ning Fan.
Ning Fan was nowhere near a strong being like Mo Luo. But these Nascent Soul Realm undead spirits were too weak.
“Who said that I will certainly die once I step into the lightning palace?!”
Ning Fan’s gaze shifted to the lightning place at the next second. He then made a step onto the ground!
The gigantic force spread. The vast skies broke. The lightning palace which occupied one hundred li* (500m per li) collapsed into rubble.
Each of the Divine Transformation Realm cultivators and Void Refinement Realm experts showed themselves. However, the ones whom Ning Fan was staring at among this group of cultivators were only Ma Renwang and Li Gui.
In the face of Ning Fan’s piercing gaze, the two dignified Void Glimpse Stage old monsters felt a chill running down their spine. An immense sense of danger rose within their hearts.
Without giving them any time to think, Ning Fan draped the Heaven Deceiving Cloak around him and vanished without a trace.
At the next moment, an abnormally presence travelled towards the group of cultivators from the lightning palace and suddenly appeared in front of the two individuals.
An icy sword light pierced through Ma Renwang’s dantian.
A forceful punch landed on Li Gui’s chest.
Upon impact, Li Gui’s chest armor was completely shattered and he was already grievously injured. His eyes were filled with shock and confusion. He could not see through how Ning Fan concealed himself and how he got near to them. What he found even more incomprehensible was why the force of Ning Fan’s punch was even greater than his full-powered strike?!
When his sword light went through Ma Renwang, countless sword threads cut through from within. Without giving Ma Renwang time to contemplate, the sword threads had already shredded his primordial spirit apart.
In just an instant, Ning Fan directly sneak-attacked two Void Glimpse Stage experts. One of them died instantly while the other was severely injured!
“Zhu Feng, come forward and fight me!”
Ning Fan made a step forward. Under the pressure of his aura force, countless enemies did not dare to confront him and they retreated like tidal water.
Even Zhu Feng was deterred by Ning Fan’s strength in hurting two of his subordinates. He actually fell back half a step, feeling not daring to resist Ning Fan.
His expression changed greatly. It was impossible for the Ning Fan in the rumors to have such strength of instantly hurting and killing Void Glimpse Stage old monsters!
“This young man is different from the description of the information I get. Why is he so strong?! It’s totally impossible!”
Zhu Feng’s eyes widened with bewilderment. It was his first time feeling a life-threatening danger form a Half-Step Void Refinement Realm cultivator!
Translated by Tommy, edited by Roel