Grasping Evil

Bai Feiteng was not the only one who’d lost, but also all the old experts.

Half a month had already passed. Every old monster who came to Sinister Sparrow Sect had a look of misery, like their dad had just passed away.

All their Immortal Jades were gone. Those who gambled on Ning Fan losing or to a tie just lost their fortune.

Just like the other old monsters, the beggar also looked glum.

Little Zhi He and Sisi had taken away 200 000 Immortal Jades from him, and at this moment, Zhi He was smiling very sweetly, thinking that she was indeed very smart and ruthless for gambling such a huge amount of jades in her first bet.

On the other hand, when Lan Mei returned and placed the enormous fortune, 100 000 Immortal Jades, in front of Gui Qiaozi , Gui Qiaozi couldn’t help being startled despite his composure as a sect master!

Also, Bai Lu got 10 000 Immortal Jades as reward. She then returned to Dual Cultivation Palace and divided the fortune amongst her sisters. As for the lady of Fire Cloud Ancestor, Yun Hua, her lips couldn’t close due to shock. She was at a loss of what to do with the 100 000 Immortal Jades.

Betting 100 000 Immortal Jades was the order from the old ancestor. This was to create a favorable impression of himself which would aid him later. In Yun Hua’s heart, she knew that she wasn’t a person who would give away wealth so extravagantly, but she hadn’t imagined that such fortune-throwing act had brought her such a huge return.

“Husband… you sure have a sharp eyesight…” Yun Hua praised silently, and immediately, a proud voice echoed in her head.

“Of course, this husband is the Grand Fire Cloud Ancestor.”

Strangely, no one knew what kind of means the Fire Cloud Old Ancestor used to store a trace of his spirit sense in Yun Hua’s body. It was no wonder that he let his wife come out on her own, the ancestor turned out to be watching his wife at every moment.

Not only did the beggar not earn a fortune, but he also couldn’t find the person he was looking for in Sinister Sparrow Sect, which meant that his trip here had been in vain.

He was in a bad mood. He ignored those old monsters who came up to him, attempting to build a rapport with him. He wanted to leave Sinister Sparrow Sect at once to avoid seeing these bothersome flies and bees, however, Ning Fan had yet to go to his stall to claim his 50 000 Immortal Jades winnings.

However, after Ning Fan won the title ‘Revered’, he immediately went into seclusion!

His mental state was now in chaos because he had touched the Heart’s Devil. So, it was necessary for him to suppress his internal demons once more, this place and time wasn’t suitable for him to form his core!

Before he found where the Lost World Palace was at, he should never form his core, or else tremendous time would be wasted.

Ning Fan didn’t show up, and that also meant that the beggar couldn’t leave. Although he was a Second Stage Void Fragmentation old expert and a dignified son of Divine Sovereign, he couldn’t took away the 50 000 Immortal Jades of a junior. He wasn’t that short of money, even if he was a beggar!

The rocky cave in Dual Cultivation Palace was destroyed by Ning Fan during his last seclusion. So this time, he selected the seclusion cave in Dan Palace.

His disciple, Xue Qing, was guarding outside the cave and this startled plenty of old experts—the sharp-eyed Third Revolution Pill Master was paying homage to a junior.

Xue Qing would never give them any explanation as this was an order from Ning Fan. He wasn’t allowed to disclose Ning Fan’s identity as a Fourth Revolution Pill Master.

Presently, Xue Qing’s blazing eyes were staring at the cave. He had chosen to pay homage to Ning Fan because he valued Ning Fan’s concoction technique. But after Ning Fan’s battle with Revered Bai, he was completely astounded by Ning Fan’s combat strength. Although Revered Bai wasn’t considered as an ancestor-level expert and included in the top ten of Yue Country, he should be at least ranked within the first twenty experts in Yue Country.

In spite of that, he was defeated by a juvenile expert. Before the battle, no one had ever expected Ning Fan to win, now all of them were regretting for betting in the wrong person.

At the age of 17, Ning Fan had begun his devil path, and at the age of 18, he was ranked as one of the best experts in Yue Country and gained the title of Revered Ning in Sinister Sparrow Sect!

The only thing that made Xue Qing a little concerned was that his master, Ning Fan, has too many wives.

He forced a smile while looking at each and every anxious-looking girl.

Zhi He, who was naturally elegant and charismatic.

Bai Lu, the number one female devil in Sinister Sparrow Sect.

Lan Mei, the young mistress of Sinister Sparrow Sect.

Sisi… this girl gave Xue Qing the creeps, it’s like confronting this female was more dangerous than facing Gui Qiaozi (Sinister Sparrow).

“These are all master’s wives. I can’t show any neglect to them.”

He forced another smile while greeting the girls. The simple-minded Zhi He instantly got a good impression of this respectful old man. As for Si Wuxie, she only nodded slightly. She would only put away her coldness and turn into a pure-hearted girl when she is in front of Ning Fan, but this pureness was reducing over time.

Lan Mei and Bai Lu found it difficult to accept Xue Qing’s smile. Being the Young Mistress of the sect, although Xue Qing used to smile at her in the past, he had never been so respectful. Xue Qing had the pride of an alchemist master. He wouldn’t lower himself even if he was facing experts who were on par with her father.

Today, Xue Qing was being so reverent. The way he treated Lan Mei was just like she was his senior and this made her feel a little uncomfortable. Indistinctly, she could already imagine that these were all related to Ning Fan.

The one who felt the most uncomfortable was Bai Lu. Being the substitute elder of Dual Cultivation Palace, she often came to Pill Palace to collect pills needed in cultivation by the other female disciples. Xue Qing had never glanced at her once and he had even disdained her.

But today, Xue Qing was extremely respectful to Bai Lu, he had heard that this girl before his eyes had already been subdued by Ning Fan.

“This-this is also a mistress. I can’t neglect her…”

Xue Qing’s face was brimming with a smile, but his heart was full of bitterness. An expression like this was too awkward and hard for him.

However, he discovered that when he replaced his pride with the mental state of a junior, his stagnated cultivation began to loosen a little.

In the rocky cave, Ning Fan was clueless about the situation outside. Ever since the Purple Loathe Ice Frost was obtained, the mysterious girl fell into a deep sleep once more. Ning Fan could vaguely feel that some kind of changes were happening in the mysterious girl, but he was unable to find out what it was.

He had yet to come out of the cave even after his chaotic mental state settled down. He was comprehending the insights he obtained from the previous battle.

Breaking Illusion Bead, Four Marks Natal Immortal Cloud, Fourth Grade Cold Qi, Myriad Soul Streamer, Hornless Dragon Ice Sword and Seven Swords Art… Bai Feiteng’s techniques weren’t weak. Such fruitful battle experience had given Ning Fan great enlightenment.

The difference in combat strength between cultivators that were molded through fiery bloodshed and those that were shaped by a conducive environment was like day and night.

In order to break the Gold Core, he had to go to the Lost World Palace. He needed to borrow the strength of the lost world to shorten the time taken to form his core. The mysterious girl had yet to tell him its location and she was now in deep slumber.

The Lost World Palace was akin to the Godly Void Pavilion. It could be found everywhere in Rain Immortal World, but regretfully, there was no Lost World Palace in Yue Country and the neighboring countries such as Wu Country and Chu Country.

The nearest he could think of required him to travel across a dozen cultivation countries. After arriving in Ocean Country, he would have to take the Fleeing Heavenly Boat to venture into the Endless Sea.

The Endless Sea was situated at the far east of Rain Immortal World. The journey would undoubtedly be far. Apart from the cultivators who were living there, there were also many other existences, like the Monster Race, Ghost Clan, and the Giant Demon Clan…

Given Ning Fan’s current travelling speed, going to the Lost World Palace through the Endless Sea would take him a few years of time. In this situation, it seemed like the loss outweighed the gains.

So it was still a question whether to go there or not…

He had plenty of enemies in Yue Country. It was still unknown if his Three Divine Armies could defend Ning City and Seven Apricot City. Would everything be fine if he left Yue Country now?

There was a saying in the cultivation world that the Cultivation of Dao wasn’t about eternal life, but freedom. If one’s heart was fettered, one wouldn’t be able to advance further in Cultivating the Dao.

At this moment, Ning Fan finally understood that fetters had too many troubles, but at the same time, he also felt the bliss of having these fetters.

“I suppose I haven’t basked in the sun for a long time…” He sighed as he recalled the Old Monster’s words, and stood up. He closed his eyes, began to think of Ning Gu who was at another region of the country, Extreme Yin Gate, Bone Sovereign, Moksha Sovereign and every scene of the massacre. In more than a year in the Devil path, his hands were stained with too much blood and he had committed too many sins.

Therefore, Ning Fan needed to bask in the sun, this was the technique imparted by the Old Monster to suppress the Heart’s Devil.

Ning Fan came out of his seclusion!

He gently pushed open the rocky door and saw the four girls and Xue Qing. The earnestness of these people produced firmness in his eyes.

“I won’t slash away my sentiment!”

When Bai Lu saw Ning Fan, her brows knitted together, and she turned and left with a harrumph without saying another word, but looking from her back, her shoulders were shaky and didn’t seem as calm as the surface.

Lan Mei acted dignified, Sisi was full of joy and Zhi He threw self into Ning Fan’s embrace.

“Brother Fan! We’ve got rich!”

Her first words wasn’t about how much she missed him. How could she be so heartless?

Ning Fan released her hug and patted Zhi He’s hair while his eyes were staring at a direction outside the rocky cave.

“Sorry for the wait, two seniors.”

The two that Ning Fan was referring to were Lady Yun Hua and the impatient-looking beggar.

On both sides of the valley, two figures emerged. One walked with graceful steps while the other had furious eyebrows.

“Damn! If you still didn’t come out of that cave, I would have smashed it. These are the 50,000 Immortal Jades that you’ve won.” The beggar sounded impatient. He tossed the storage pouch that contained 100,000 Immortal Jades to Ning Fan.

“I will definitely support you in the next turn of gamble.” Ning Fan cupped his fists at the beggar. he would certainly be an idiot if he throw away an opportunity to profit.

“You better not. This old man don’t want to ever see you again… Right, have you ever seen a blue-colored jade…?” asked the beggar mysteriously all of a sudden. Perhaps, this was his original intention of waiting for Ning Fan.

“Blue-colored jade?” Ning Fan looked mystified.

“Is that so…? just treat it as if I’ve never asked.” The beggar stopped inquiring further after looking at Ning Fan’s confused look.

What the beggar said was inexplicable, but Ning Fan somehow noticed the profundity within it. Ning Fan’s eyes twitched. This beggar wasn’t looking for the piece of jade, but for someone.

This beggar was a Void Fragmentation expert of Rain Palace. Eight hundred cultivation countries must have known about this search.

However, it was still unknown who they were looking for…

That person has to be related to the blue jade!

These pieces of information allowed him to form a conclusion, but he put the thought aside and immediately contemplated; how could he be related to this search.

“Alright… alright. Goodbye…” The beggar’s face overflowed with impatience. He cupped his fists at Ning Fan and left hurriedly.

Ning Fan turned his gaze to Lady Yun Hua and revealed an unexplainable smile.

“Is lady looking for me?”

“Uh? How does Revered Ning know?”

“If you weren’t here for me, why would you stake so much fortune on me…? Do you need a private place for talking?”

“Please lead the way, Revered Ning…”

Something deep was hidden within their conversation and Lan Mei could vaguely guess it. The situation wouldn’t be as simple as a romantic date, but the naïve and silly girl, Zhi He, naturally didn’t come to the same conclusion. She immediately stomped resentfully and frowned at that woman.

“Silly girl, wait for me here…”

Ning Fan glanced at the girls, then ordered Xue Qing to open a high level concoction room so that he could have a private conversation with Lady Yun Hua inside.

The concoction room was concealed by a Nascent level Grand Formation. It could even defend the stealthy spirit sense, which made it the best place for secret talks. It was just that not even Gui Qiaozi (Sinister Sparrow) had the privilege to open a concoction room for discussion, because Xue Qing wouldn’t allow it! How could a concoction room be used for other activities besides concoction?!

However, Ning Fan was Xue Qing’s master, a Fourth Revolution Pill Master and also Revered Ning. His importance in Xue Qing’s heart was even greater compared to the sect master. Xue Qing wouldn’t dare disobey Ning Fan’s order.

The high-level concoction room was opened with only Ning Fan and Yun Hua inside.

At this moment, Ning Fan put away his smile and said plainly:

“Old Ancestor Fire Cloud, you sure have the mood to enjoy hiding inside your lady’s body. Do you really think I can’t sense it?”

“Hehe! You are really worthy of being called Black Devil Ning and Fourth Revolution Pill Master. Your spirit sense is even stronger than mine!”

A flame came out of Lady Yun Hua’s body and turned into an illusory flaming figure.

This man was no doubt the Old Ancestor of Fire Cloud Sect, half-step Nascent Soul realm named Jing Zhuo!

He had a red hair, a pair of fiery-red eyes and wore a big red robe. His smile even radiated hot air.

When Ning Fan saw the appearance of the man and heard what he said, he narrowed his eyes at once and spoke coldly:

“I don’t quite understand what you are talking about.”

Helplessness filled his heart. It seemed like his identity as Black Devil Ning would be exposed in the end.

There were many people who were good at divination, so he wouldn’t be too surprised if they find out what his true identity was.

However, this could also be just a test from Jing Zhuo and Ning Fan wasn’t foolish enough to admit it.

“Don’t worry my friend. This old man has no malicious intention, but someone has already planned to exterminate you. Did you know that the Old Monster, Purple Yin of Extreme Yin Gate has already joined forces with the experts of the Heavenly Dao Sect of Wu Country to attack your city?!”

“…” Ning Fan kept his silence. He couldn’t tell if Jing Zhuo was just probing some details.

“Hehe! My friend is really very vigilant. It’s good to have such vigilance. This indicates you’re a man who does great things. There’s no need to hide anymore my friend. This old man has a friend who happened to obtain news in Wu Country. That’s why I know about your true identity. Does my friend know that that the old bastard Purple Yin has spent 10 000 Immortal Jades in Wu Country to hire a divination old man to calculate your true identity…? this old man is willing to pledge with my Heart’s Devil that anything I said is the truth. So my friend, you don’t have to pretend in front of this old man anymore.”

Old Ancestor Jing Zhuo showed a sincere expression.

After hearing what Jing Zhuo said, Ning Fan only believed 70% of it. He believed that Jing Zhuo knew his true identity, but he didn’t believe how Jing Zhuo discovered his identity as Black Devil Ning.

Because a friend had told him? How ridiculous!

This Jing Zhuo must’ve been like Old Monster Purple Yin, spending huge amount of fortune to hire a divination old man to calculate Ning Fan’s true identity!

However, Jing Zhuo had an apparent difference from Purple Yin. Despite knowing Ning Fan’s identity, he didn’t do anything to harm him or his city.

Perhaps it was because the Fire Cloud Sect was the first sect that would get the Nascent Formation Pill. Therefore, it wasn’t necessary for them to go to war with Ning Fan. As long as they kept the current situation as it was, they would certainly get the first Nascent Formation Pill.

And Jing Zhuo would most probably be the first Nascent Soul expert in Yue Country! as he would be the first one to obtain the pill.

It was a totally different case for Purple Yin. His sect, Extreme Yin Gate, was scheduled ten years later after the first. Plus, there were numerous conflicts between Ning Fan and Purple Yin. As such, Purple Yin couldn’t wait anymore! He only wanted to rob!

“Old Ancestor Jing Zhuo, good calculation… not bad, I’m indeed Ning Fan and also Black Devil Ning. Do you feel satisfied now? Please state your purpose of coming here, or else I’m going to regard you as my enemy!”

Killing intent radiated from Ning Fan’s eyes. The killing intent of an Immortal Emperor made even Jing Zhuo lose his calm. As for Lady Yun Hua, her face was already deathly pale.

Sure enough, he is Black Devil Ning!

Sure enough, he has an extremely terrifying trump card in hand!

This kid had a very profound thinking. He was able to tell that Jing Zhuo hired the help of a divination old man at first glance!

However, Ning Fan didn’t know the difference between Jing Zhuo and Purple Yin. Jing Zhuo had paid for two calculations.

The first calculation was to calculate the identity of Black Devil Ning.

The second was to calculate his chances of victory if he rob Black Devil Ning. And the answer from the divination old man was death!

It was because of the second calculation that Jing Zhuo perished all of his hostile thoughts against Ning Fan. He was afraid that he was the only one across the entire Yue Coutnry who knew about Ning Fan’s scariness.

This was a calculation that Purple Yin missed, and because of this, they were already doomed to destruction.

“Fellow friend has overpraised this old man. Being an expert in the cultivation world, this is something this old man has to do. However, this old man isn’t here to start a war with Revered Ning today. This old man is still waiting for Revered Ning’s Nascent Transformation Pill to break through to the Nascent Soul realm. So how could this old man dare to make Revered Ning his enemy…?”

Jing Zhuo made a few hollow laughs. When he noticed that Ning Fan’s killing intent hadn’t reduced by a bit, he put away his smile and spoke solemnly: “Very well… this old man will tell you my purpose now… I want to form an alliance with Revered Ning and destroy the Extreme Yin Gate together!”

“An alliance? Why?” Ning Fan’s stern eyes relaxed a little, and his killing intent was replaced by astonishment.

Why would this top expert want to form an alliance with him? And why would he want to exterminate Extreme Yin Gate?

Although he had scores to settle with Extreme Yin Gate, does this ancestor had as well?

A hint of sadness and hatred flashed past Jing Zhuo’s eyes when he saw Ning Fan’s doubtful look. He then pointed to Yun Hua and smiled miserably.

“To be honest, Revered Ning, there’s an enmity between this old man and Purple Yin after he killed my wife. Take a look at Yun Hua and tell me if she’s a living person.”

“So that’s how it is. This explains why I sensed something’s not right about Lady Yun Hua’s Qi.”

Ning Fan turned to the elegant lady who was standing upright and concluded.

When he first saw Yun Hua, he knew that this female was a Corpse Refinement, a unique Corpse Refinement!

…