If one were to separate the Guan Tian City’s regions, it would be divided into five towers and twelve small cities. The area had an extremely strict multiple layers of defenses.. After all, it was the main city of the Ghost Eye Clan’s devil country. How could they allow people to enter as they please?
Unfortunately, such strong lines of defenses were useless in front of an intruder like Ning Fan.
Ethereal golden purple mist gently moved through the air leaving not a trace of it behind.
The devil cultivators of the Ghost Eye Clan guarding the five towers and twelve cities were completely unaware that Ning Fan had already sneaked into the Ghost Eye Clan’s most important area where strangers were strictly forbidden to enter.
After getting inside, Ning Fan locked on to a direction and continued travelling non-stop.
When he had set foot in Guan Xin City, he felt an indistinct soul connection.
He had experienced the same feeling before when he met Fen Chi and Feng Xueyan.
Ning Fan clearly knew that there must be a devil concubine from the Ghost Eye Clan hiding somewhere and that connection would lead him to her!
If he could find the devil concubine, the devil statue slate would then be within his grasp.
Inside Wei Yang Tower, there was a beautiful lady who wore a black dress. Her eyes were adorned with long and enchanting eye shadows which gave her eyes a captivating beauty that could draw someone’s soul.
She was a typical lady of the devil race who had a hint of a flirtatious demeanor.
She quietly sat in the attic. The bookshelves in her boudoir were fully occupied with ancient jade slips. The information stored in those jade slips were all about the patterns of devil marks related to skills and techniques that could be displayed using one’s eyes.
She was the devil concubine of the Ghost Eye Clan and her name was Gu Shiniang. She was well-versed in inscribing devil marks related to the eyes. In the Ghost Eye Clan, nearly one-third of the experts there had once sought her help to inscribe devil marks on them.
She was even more skilled at awakening devil marks linked to devil pupils. Many experts had also requested her help to awaken their devil marks.
However, she had never felt happy before. Her eyes were not only filled with loneliness and desolation but also hatred that was hidden deeply. That hatred was aimed at the Ghost Eye Clan. She had a blood feud against the Ghost Eye Clan that would never be resolved unless one of them dies.
There were four of the clan’s female cultivators with deep and heavy qi standing guard outside the window of her boudoir. Each of their cultivation levels were at the Peak Nascent Soul Realm and above.
Despite being the devil concubine of the clan, Gu Shiniang’s freedom was completely nonexistent. In the eyes of the Ghost Eye Clan, her only worth was to inscribe devil marks on the cultivators of their clan.
All of a sudden, she heard a rustling sound from outside her window. Moments later, she heard the sound of her four guards being knocked unconscious.
“Who’s there?!”
Gu Shiniang hurriedly opened the door of her boudoir. She found no sign of activity at the grand formation outside her door but all of the four female guards on duty mysteriously went missing.
She was startled. When she turned around and went back to her room, she then discovered a young man in white robes sitting beside the tea table in her boudoir. She had no idea how and when he got into her room.
“Who are you? What do you want with me?”
Gu Shiniang instinctively felt afraid of this young man in white robes. She knew that a person who had the capability of sneaking into the Ghost Eye Clan’s forbidden area and stealthily get rid of four powerful devil cultivators must have unimaginable strength.
Deep inside her, however, she had an innate feeling of dependence towards Ning Fan. That feeling originated from her blood veins’ submission to him.
“I want to take you away. Of course, I also need the slate that you are keeping.” Ning Fan’s tone was flat. He easily sneaked into the most important forbidden area of the Ghost Eye Clan and effortlessly abducted four female cultivators of the clan to make them his human cauldrons.
His main purpose of coming here was primarily the slate but he could also bring this devil concubine along.
If Gu Shiniang was unwilling to follow Ning Fan, he could make her act against her will through force.
“Alright. I’ll go with you. If you help me do one thing, I will not only give you the devil statue slate but I will also swear the Great Oath of Heart Devil to serve you as my master for the rest of my life and become your devil concubine.”
It was out of Ning Fan’s expectations for Gu Shiniang to be very willing to follow him and leave this place with him.
“Oh? You wish to be my devil concubine? If it were other men who came to abduct you, would you also be willing to become their devil concubine?” Ning Fan asked with a faint smile.
“No, I wouldn’t.”
The reason why Gu Shiniang was willing to follow Ning Fan was because she could tell that he had the capability to help her get her revenge. Secondly, her blood felt a natural friendliness towards Ning Fan.
Ning Fan went quiet for a brief moment and stared deeply into Gu Shiniang’s eyes like he saw through the vengeance hidden in her eyes.
“What help do you need from me for you to yield to me wholeheartedly?” Ning Fan asked indifferently.
“I want you to kill a person. He is the fourth elder of the Ghost Eye Clan and a Void Glimpse Stage expert… He’s the bastard who murdered my father.”
Her eyes had a hint of sadness. She did not talk about her past but Ning Fan could still guess that this lady must have had disputes and conflicts with the Ghost Eye Clan in the past that resulted in her situation today. Perhaps her father was killed by the Ghost Eye Clan because of their disagreements.
“I won’t ask anything about your past. Is the devil statue slate currently in your possession?”
“Yes.” Gu Shiniang nodded. She then took out a devil slate from her storage pouch and passed it to Ning Fan.
Ning Fan briefly examined that slate and identified the devil scripture within it. After that, he secretly memorized them without studying the contents carefully.
Meanwhile, he also took the time to devour the devil qi of this slate. It was his third devil qi. He did not immediately assimilate the devil qi when it went into his devil marks. Instead, he wrapped his arm around Gu Shiniang’s slender waist and summoned his Heaven Deceiving Cloak, turning him and the woman invisible. Both of them then vanished without leaving a single trace.
Gu Shiniang’s expression slightly changed. She was amazed by the invisibility effect of the Heaven Deceiving Cloak. However, she remained obedient without asking any questions about it.
“You will be the one leading the way while I will be the one doing the killing.” Ning Fan’s voice sounded extremely calm. No matter which expert of the Ghost Eye Clan Gu Shiniang wanted him to kill tonight, he was not going to give her any excuse.
“This way…” Gu Shiniang inhaled gently, trying her best to calm herself down. It all happened too quickly. A young man suddenly appeared in her room out of nowhere and was even willing to bring her away from this place and help her get her revenge. She felt very grateful but at the same time, she also felt everything was too unreal, like she was daydreaming.
She had been wishing with all her might to break free from the cage that is the Ghost Eye Clan even when she was dreaming. This place was so suffocating for her.
She clung to Ning Fan’s arm. Even though it was her first time having any physical contact with a man, she did not find it disgusting. It was probably because of the innate feeling of dependence she had on Ning Fan in her blood veins.
The aromatic scent of the perfume and cosmetics she wore could not conceal the delicate fragrance a maiden would have. It was similar to an opium poppy[1] that could entice all men beneath the heavens.
Ning Fan, however, was not affected by the scent on her body. He quietly spread his Eight Black Burning Wings out and dashed towards the direction which Gu Shiniang pointed at blazing speed. In the blink of an eye, they had travelled across half of the Ghost Eye Devil Country and reached a heavily guarded palace on the other side.
Countless guards were stationed outside the palace. Each and every one of them wore a proud and arrogant look. It was clear that those who lived in the palace were not ordinary people.
In the palace’s stone chamber, the fourth elder of the Ghost Eye Clan was in seclusion inside the space of a heavenly dwelling magic treasure[2]. He was trying to get through the bottleneck of the Void Inquiry Stage with all of his focus!
His combat power might be weaker than the Shi Le Country’s country lord, but the gap was not very huge.
Besides, he had a Void Inquiry Pill unlike Shi Kun. Using the power of the Void Inquiry Pill, he was already on the verge of breaking through to the Void Inquiry Stage.
Meanwhile, the Fourth Elder had just completed a circulation of his magic power and gently exhaled a mouthful of foul qi.
Then, he fantasized about the shapely figure of the woman who wore a black dress with lustful eyes and licked his lips.
“*Chuckle* Gu Shiniang, you will never be able to escape from me even if you are the devil concubine of the clan!”
“Old Ancestor You Gui already gave me his word. Once I break through to the Void Inquiry Stage, you will then be rightfully mine! In the past, your father stood in my way and deserved death for what he had done. Now, if you still are stubborn and have no idea how to appreciate my kindness, I don’t mind giving my subordinates a chance to have a taste of you after I am done with you.”
The Fourth Elder had always harbored the evil thought of owning Gu Shiniang. However, because of her status as a devil concubine, he did not dare to lay a finger on her impulsively. Up until today, he did not even touch a single finger of hers and could only satisfy his urges through his sexual fantasies.
If he breaks through to the Void Inquiry Stage, his status in the Ghost Eye Clan would surely rise. When that time comes, he would be of great use to the clan and thus would be worthy enough to truly own Gu Shiniang!
However, it never crossed his mind that he would never have the chance to attain the Void Inquiry Stage again for the rest of his life from today onwards, let alone have physical contact with Gu Shiniang.
Within the heavenly dwelling where the Fourth Elder was currently in seclusion, the place trembled lightly signaling an insignificant unknown activity.
The Fourth Elder who had sharp senses was surprised. In a split second, he rose to his feet and sent out a palm imprint at the area where the activity had appeared.
At the start, that palm imprint he delivered was just the size of a palm. Moments later, it grew in the air at a shocking speed and eventually it grew nearly ten thousand zhang* (3.33m per zhang) large. It was a powerful attack that was capable of killing any Divine Transformation Realm cultivator.
“Oh? Your senses are quite sharp, aren’t they?”
Ning Fan spoke with an indifferent voice while holding Gu Shiniang with one of his arms. Both of them showed themselves inside the heavenly dwelling, no longer hiding under the invisibility cloak.
Facing the incoming gigantic palm imprint, Ning Fan’s face was neutral. He just raised one of his fists with a shadow of a black dragon coiling around it and hurled it. Under the force of his punch, the space within the heavenly dwelling treasure trembled so violently that it nearly collapsed!
*Bang*
The palm imprint was instantly destroyed when it met Ning Fan’s punch.
The Fourth Elder’s face was filled with shock. Before he could react, the powerful punch had already landed on his body. Shadows of black dragons surrounded him from all directions, leaving him with no chance to flee.
All the layers of his heavy armor were seemingly brittle like glass as each and every one of them got smashed to pieces on impact of Ning Fan’s punch.
The Fourth Elder felt a heavy and intense pain on his chest after receiving that violent blow. While feeling excruciating pain, he was sent away by the remaining force of Ning Fan’s punch like a kite with a broken string.
With great effort, he managed to gain a firm footing and stopped himself from flying backwards. Even though the injuries he got from the blow were not serious, his condition was not really optimistic.
He wore an expression filled with utter shock. He finally got a clear view of the intruder’s face. He finally recognized the person who went into his training grounds.
“Z-Zhou Ming! We, the Ghost Eye Clan, have never interfered with you at all, just like river water and well water. What’s your objective in sneaking into my clan and intruding my heavenly dwelling magic treasure? Don’t tell me you want to kill me! Aren’t you afraid you will start a blood feud with my clan after doing so?!”
“A blood feud?”
Ning Fan’s eyes flashed with contempt. Holding Gu Shiniang in his arm, he flapped eight of his wings and dashed towards the Fourth Elder at an unimaginable speed. In the blink of an eye, Ning Fan appeared right before him and threw out another punch carrying dragon shadows.
“It’s as easy as lifting my finger to kill you. If no one knows about it, how will your so-called blood feud exist?”
*Bang*
That punch went directly for the Fourth Elder’s chest. The speed of the punch was so fast that he could not evade it at all. All he managed to do was to move his body slightly to the side but all of his efforts were still in vain as Ning Fan’s attack struck his right collarbone.
After only a single punch, the Fourth Elder felt like his right shoulder had been crushed by a ten thousand zhang* (3.33m per zhang) tall gigantic mountain. The pain he felt was indescribable.
His collarbone was instantly pulverized and his entire arm was literally reduced to a mist of blood.
The Fourth Elder felt extreme pain from his physical body but inwardly, he was overcome with fear which made him desperately run away from Ning Fan as far as possible.
He could not understand why. He clearly did not know Ning Fan at all, let alone have bad blood with him. Why did Ning Fan suddenly appear in his personal training grounds and want him to perish from this world?!
His eyes widened when he noticed Gu Shiniang behind Ning Fan.
“How dare you abduct the devil concubine of my clan?! If Old Ancestor You Gui finds out about this, he will certainly shred you to pieces!”
“Ah. Yes. I get it now! The reason why you want to kill me is because of this despicable woman who instigated you to do so! Haha! If you want to kill me, you will have to pay for it! Devil Pupil Art, Concealing Sky!”
The Fourth Elder was not a fool. It only took him a brief moment to figure out that Gu Shiniang’s request was the main motivation for Ning Fan to harbor killing intent against him.
He was fully aware that he could definitely not match Ning Fan. Hence, the only chance he had of escaping from this place alive was to use his most powerful attack to injure Ning Fan.
Once he got out of this heavenly dwelling treasure, he could then ask for help from countless experts of the Ghost Eye Clan. With their help, he would certainly escape this life-threatening calamity. Therefore, he could not afford to reserve any of his strength when delivering his most powerful attack!
Waves of magic power spread out from the Fourth Elder’s body which turned into the sound of strange and mysterious chants of the devil race. His slightly chubby body rapidly shrunk all of a sudden. It was unknown where his blood and flesh went as he was now left with only his skin and bones.
Then, the center of the palm on his remaining hand broke open, forming into a bloody opening. A blood-spattered eyeball grew out from it.
That eyeball shot out a black ray at Ning Fan. That black ray was all-enveloping darkness that could consume all senses. Just as it was fired at Ning Fan, every place the power of that eyeball passed by became pitch-black.
Ning Fan calmly stood under the complete darkness. He knew that the darkness that was surrounding him was a type of illusory technique that could seal off a cultivator’s five senses. Once the victim could no longer rely on their senses, they would not be able to sense any incoming attacks. That being so, cultivators who are in the middle of a battle would doubtlessly be in danger.
This technique was capable of temporarily killing the five senses of any Void Glimpse Stage experts. Even though it was a powerful technique, it obviously took a heavy toll on the Fourth Elder for using it. He had nearly used up all of his blood essence.
Seeing his Concealing Sky Technique successfully impair Ning Fan’s five senses while he stood still at his original spot like a wooden statue, the Fourth Elder thought that it was now his best chance to ambush Ning Fan. However, he gnashed his teeth with reluctance. He did not dare to approach Ning Fan rashly as he was afraid of his various means. Instead of injuring Ning Fan, he immediately turned around with the idea of escaping from this place and calling for help in dealing with Ning Fan after that.
The moment he turned, the darkness surrounding the area suddenly broke into fragments like glass.
Standing amidst the fragments of darkness, Ning Fan activated his left Fu Li Eye, his right Mo Luo Eye and the vertical Human Eye on his glabella.
With all his three eyes activated, he was capable of seeing through all kinds of Void Inquiry Stage illusory techniques. How could this lowly Void Glimpse Stage illusory technique be able to threaten him?!
After shattering the Fourth Elder’s technique with ease, Ning Fan spread his eight wings and disappeared. Seconds later, he appeared behind the Fourth Elder eerily like a ghost.
The Fourth Elder who was forming hand seals using his remaining hand did not expect at all that Ning Fan would be able to break the illusory technique that he was most proud of.
He felt a wave of tearing pain flowing through his only arm. At the next instant, it was literally torn off and destroyed by Ning Fan with a single grab.
“Ah!”
Now, both of the Fourth Elder’s arms had been torn off and destroyed. Aside from that, he had lost a great deal of his blood essence and had severe wounds. When Ning Fan approached him, he no longer had a way to shake him off. To him, Ning Fan was just like a maggot that had burrowed into his bone, clinging stubbornly to his marrows.
He thought of using other methods to escape but Ning Fan left him with no chance for another attempt at it. He pointed a finger at him and a terrifying change happened within the space of the heavenly dwelling treasure. Thousands of mountains collapsed. The black sun and the vast sky fell. The dead bones in the void space were pulverized. All of the forces of those destruction gathered and formed into a ray of dazzling sword light.
Using the power of the Immortal Emperor’s Finger Bone, that ray of sword light shot out through Ning Fan’s finger, transforming into billions of sword shadows. The innumerable sword rays instantly drowned the Fourth Elder.
It was the Third Style of the Heaven Breaking Sword Finger!
Although the Fourth Elder’s physical body was strong, it could not withstand that attack at all and was literally shredded to chunks of meat.
His grievously injured primordial spirit was frantically avoiding the sword rays while muttering in utter terror.
“What magic technique is this?! It has such a terrifying destructive power. It certainly isn’t any weaker than a Void Inquiry Stage attack! Ah!”
While he was evading the sword rays, he let down his guard. At the next moment, he was immobilized by some kind of mysterious power. Then, he got caught by Ning Fan who suddenly appeared behind him.
Ning Fan grabbed the small primordial spirit within his palm. The miniature version of the Fourth Elder was shivering uncontrollably. From Ning Fan’s eyes, he sensed a cold, merciless killing intent.
“D-Don’t kill me…”
“Don’t worry. I won’t kill you for now. Puppet, appear!”
Ning Fan summoned a spiritual puppet. After immobilizing the Fourth Elder’s primordial spirit, he knocked him unconscious and tossed him into the puppet’s mouth.
Once he leaves the Ghost Eye Clan, he would command the spiritual puppet to devour this primordial spirit.
The reason why he did not choose to immediately finish off the Fourth Elder was because he did not want his life plate to break for now. If it breaks, it would certainly alert the whole Ghost Eye Clan.
He had yet to finish the things he wanted to do in the Ghost Eye Clan. He wanted to rob the clan’s storehouses which were full of spiritual herbs and immortal jade and he was also eyeing the dark golden pagoda.
Staying within Ning Fan’s arm, Gu Shiniang’s jaw dropped in amazement.
She had been placed under house arrest for a long period of time and was unaware of Ning Fan’s fearsome reputation.
Although she had asked Ning Fan to kill the Fourth Elder, she did not expect him to help her without any conditions. Moreover, she also did not imagine that he could kill a Void Glimpse Stage cultivator so easily.
“From now onwards, you are my devil concubine.” Ning Fan’s voice was flat but it was like a command that one must never disobey.
Gu Shiniang’s eyes sparkled faintly. Since Ning Fan had helped her get her revenge, she was, of course, willing to follow him.
After everything she had been through, disappointment was the only feeling she had left for her original clan.
“Yes. From now onwards, Shiniang will be Master’s devil concubine and will never abandon you till death do us part.”
Meanwhile, both King Lan Ling and You Guihou had no idea that a great change was already happening.
Their negotiations would soon be ruined by Ning Fan and the dark golden pagoda would certainly change hands.