novelraw Chapter 571: Bitter Struggle to Return to Origin
Chapter 571: Bitter Struggle to Return to Origin
The Ax-wielding Tree King flipped his right hand, and a black copper lamp appeared in his grasp.
At this moment, he was severely injured, making it inadvisable to directly clash with Ning Fan, lest his injuries worsen, hence he aimed to kill Ning Fan with a magical treasure.
The lamp body was shaped like a tree, with its branches holding seven copper lamp saucers.
Out of the seven lamp saucers, only four had a few drops of lamp oil; the other three were completely empty.
The Ax-wielding Tree King urged his mana, igniting a dark red flame on the wick of the first saucer with lamp oil.
"First lamp, Red Lamp, ignite!"
Ning Fan’s gaze fell upon the dark red flame, his face instantly turning grave.
At the moment the copper lamp was lit, a feeling of threat arose unpredictably in Ning Fan’s heart.
Without hesitation, he retreated a hundred steps, his black robes fluttering like a hastily flying black butterfly under the moonlight.
Just as he withdrew, a massive crack suddenly split open where he had stood!
Hidden beneath the crack was none other than the Immortal Abode’s Magical Treasure inherent to the copper lamp!
From the fissure, pairs of gigantic hands suddenly stretched out, violently tearing it open.
The breach grew larger, and booming ghostly figures with heights of several thousand zhang emerged from the crack.
One head, two heads... twenty-four heads.
A total of twenty-four giant ghosts, each possessing Void Glimpse Stage cultivations, lined up in the night sky, emanating an eerie and terrifying ghostly aura!
"This is... the Ghost Reflection Technique!"
Ning Fan’s eyes sharpened as he saw through the essence of the copper lamp. Having cultivated the Yin Yang Transformation for years, he had heard about many Demonic Secret Arts, including the Ghost Reflection Technique, but had never witnessed it firsthand.
The giant ghosts before him were not real ghosts but shadows cast by the lamp’s illumination!
The seven lamp saucers of the copper lamp each secretly housed an Immortal Abode’s Magical Space, containing numerous ghostly shadows.
These ghostly shadows were refined using secret techniques, requiring the slaughter of countless Masters to craft each one.
Once refined, the ghostly shadows were stored in the lamp saucers, and when the wick was lit, they would be projected as wandering ghostly shadows.
The lamp oil burning in the saucers was derived from human body fats... every drop of lamp oil required the slaughter of countless Masters to extract the deceased’s fats and refine them into lamp oil.
These ghostly shadows, each with powerful cultivations, lacked physical forms and existed merely as lamp-cast shadows. As long as the lamp flame burned, the ghostly shadows would not perish...
Only four saucers held lamp oil, and the first saucer, when lit, revealed 24 Void Glimpse Stage ghostly shadows.
Should the Ax-wielding Tree King continue igniting the lamps, more ghostly shadows would undoubtedly be revealed...
Ning Fan’s gaze darkened, quickly raising his right hand, pointing to the 24 giant ghostly shadows in the night sky.
Though it was just a finger, it contained unimaginable sword brilliance, precisely the Minor Void Sword Technique.
In the dark night sky, suddenly a million void sword lights appeared, swept across the night like a stunning rainbow.
A million sword lights rushed toward the ghostly shadows, with the power to shatter the void!
At this moment, Ning Fan unleashed his full power, his cultivation nearing Return to Origin Grand Void Realm, wielding the Minor Void Swords capable of exterminating ordinary Void Refinement Realm experts!
The 24 giant ghostly shadows, each possessing Void Glimpse Stage cultivations, in the eyes of Void Refinement Realm cultivators, could be exterminated with a mere gesture!
Swish! Swish! Swish!
The Void Glimpse Stage giant ghosts were shattered by the Minor Void Swords, scattered to extinction without leaving any traces of flesh.
As the sword light dispersed, thick ghostly aura permeated the night sky, creating an extremely eerie atmosphere.
The Ax-wielding Tree King’s eyes widened with shock, then revealed a cold smile, "What formidable void sword technique, but alas, this sword technique’s power is still insufficient to annihilate my ghost shadows! This treasure of mine is called the Seven-Life Lamp, the most important treasure of my Ghost Wood Clan, with Divine Skills far beyond your imagination! Condense!"
The Ax-wielding Tree King cast a spell on the copper lamp in his palm, causing the flame in the first lamp saucer to grow brighter, instantly condensing the ghostly aura in the night sky into the same Void Glimpse Stage giant ghosts.
Ning Fan furrowed his brows; these ghost shadows proved more challenging to annihilate than he had imagined.
Suddenly, the Ax-wielding Tree King’s complexion turned rapidly ashen, his vitality continuously waning, his body seemingly on the brink of decay, yet his momentum grew increasingly astonishing.
It was an ancient and profound mana aura, like eons of years flowing within his body.
This mana aura was by no means comparable to sixty-year Jiazi magic power...
It was yuan magic power! One yuan magic power span is 127,000 years, equals to 2184 Jiazi!
The aura of yuan magic power was far denser than Jiazi magic power, and the spells cast were far superior in power to Jiazi magic power compares.
Ning Fan, though having faced Void Fragmentation in the past, had never experienced such a clear sensation of yuan magic power due to limitations in cultivation.
To consolidate Jiazi magic power, one can then challenge the Void Fragmentation bottleneck!
Yuan magic power and Jiazi magic power differ not in quantity but in essence!
"Second lamp, Green Lamp, ignite!"
The Ax-wielding Tree King’s entire mana was channeled into the second lamp saucer, where the wick instantly ignited with a green flame.
At that instant, a second massive crack appeared in the night sky, with 12 giant ghostly shadows crawling out of the fissure.
These 12 giant ghosts, each possessing Void Inquiry Stage cultivations!
"Kill him!"
With the command from the Ax-wielding Tree King, 24 Void Glimpse Stage Giant Ghosts and 12 Void Inquiry Stage Giant Ghosts shattered the sky, surrounding Ning Fan.
Ning Fan raised a finger to unleash the Minor Void Sword, sweeping across with millions of sword lights, slaying all 36 Giant Ghosts.
But as the lamplight flickered, the shadows of the 36 Giant Ghosts reformed, instantly reappearing and launching their fist lights to attack Ning Fan once more.
Ning Fan was surrounded by the void sword light, waving his hand to unleash millions of sword glows. Although he could easily shatter the ghost shadows, he couldn’t completely obliterate them.
Though the ghost shadows couldn’t be annihilated, they weren’t strong enough to cause serious harm to Ning Fan.
The Ax-wielding Tree King frowned, his gaze revealing a few shades of somberness.
His black hair turned white, and his face began to age. Once appearing as a robust man, he suddenly became an old man.
He paid a considerable price, all for igniting the third lamp cup!
The Ghost Wood Clan’s Seven-Life Lamp, each with seven lamp cups: the Red Lamp is the first, and the Green Lamp is the second, with each subsequent lamp’s light summoning more powerful shadows.
With the cultivation of the Ax-wielding Tree King, he could ignite up to the fourth lamp, and starting from the third lamp, each ignition required a considerable price.
"The third lamp, the Golden Lamp, ignite!"
As the third lamp cup was lit, a third dimensional rift tore open in the night sky, from which seven Void Refinement Realm Giant Ghosts emerged.
With the addition of the seven Void Refinement Realm Giant Ghosts, Ning Fan’s pressure increased dramatically.
Faced with 36 Void Glimpse and Void Inquiry Giant Ghosts, Ning Fan could still manage with ease.
Though he couldn’t annihilate these ghost shadows, in the clash of fists and swords, he remained unscathed.
But once the seven Void Refinement Realm Giant Ghosts joined the siege, the situation began to change.
Ning Fan was ultimately just one person, while the opposition comprised 43 indestructible giant ghosts.
Each time he struck, he could only unleash millions of void sword lights, unable to kill all the ghostly beings, and had to retain some strength to fend off the giant ghosts’ attacks.
The 36 Void Glimpse and Void Inquiry Giant Ghosts used their bodies as meat shields, enduring all of Ning Fan’s sword glows.
The seven Void Refinement Realm Giant Ghosts stepped on the remains of the group ghosts, punching together at Ning Fan’s chest.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Given the strength of Ning Fan’s physical body, he would inevitably suffer some injuries if he endured seven Void Refinement Realm strikes head-on.
Fortunately, at the moment of impact on his chest, Ning Fan’s body transformed into a scattered ink shadow, dispersing and coalescing to avoid the seven Void Refinement punches.
Ning Fan’s gaze darkened. This Ghost Eye Clan’s Seven-Life Lamp was indeed troublesome.
They had just lit the third lamp cup yet summoned indestructible Void Refinement ghost shadows.
By extension, the fourth lamp might summon Great Void Ghosts...
It seemed that the Ax-wielding Tree King couldn’t ignite the fifth, sixth, and seventh lamps.
If he could, just the Seven-Life Lamp alone might be enough to summon Void Fragmentation ghost shadows...
"No time to delay... If this opponent lights the fourth lamp, and Great Void Ghosts appear, even I would have to retreat... To extinguish these ghost shadows might require the Void Ignition Technique, but the flame of the Butterfly Fire’s Third Fan may still not suffice..."
Ning Fan’s thoughts raced, quickly transforming into scattered ink shadows to evade the encircling ghost shadows, flying towards the Ax-wielding Tree King.
The Ax-wielding Tree King was slightly startled; Ning Fan, in his scattered ink shadow form, gave him a sense of impending danger.
He secretly guessed that amidst Ning Fan’s transformations, he was about to unleash some powerful Divine Skills. With a cold glint in his eyes, he abruptly bit his tongue, spraying several mouthfuls of essence blood onto the Seven-Life Lamp.
After expelling several mouthfuls of essence blood, the heavily injured Tree King’s aura became even weaker.
The essence blood sprayed onto the Seven-Life Lamp, merging into its structure.
In an instant, the fourth lamp cup was ignited, a black flame rising.
"The fourth lamp, the Black Lamp, ignite!"
At the instant the fourth lamp was lit, a fourth dimensional rift tore open in front of the Ax-wielding Tree King, from which emerged four Great Void Giant Ghosts.
At the moment they appeared, the four Giant Ghosts immediately swung their fists at the scattered ink shadows descending from the sky.
The combined power of four Great Void strikes was not inferior to a Return to Origin strike.
Even in ink shadow form, Ning Fan didn’t dare to withstand the fists of the four ghosts head-on. Quickly condensing the ink shadows, he resumed his appearance as a black-clad young man, evading the four fist attacks, unable to approach the Ax-wielding Tree King.
The Ax-wielding Tree King sneered, having lit four lamp cups, summoning so many ghost shadows.
Void Glimpse, 12 Void Inquiry, 7 Void Refinement, 4 Great Void.
A total of 47 Void Refinement ghost shadows, and these ghost shadows couldn’t be annihilated. Any Return to Origin Grand Void Realm expert besieged by so many ghost shadows would face certain death!
At this moment, the Ax-wielding Tree King had no doubt that the group of ghosts could kill Ning Fan.
His only fear was that Ning Fan, seeing the prowess of the ghostly beings, might become fearful and attempt to flee.
He discreetly spread Mana, casting the Creating a heavenly dwelling space with a wave of his hand technique, sealing the entire sky for tens of thousands of miles, offering Ning Fan no chance to escape.
"This child’s skills aren’t small, but he can’t handle the ghost shadows of my Ghost Wood Clan; he’s destined to die without doubt!"
"Ghosts, heed the command. Kill him!"
The 47 giant ghosts roared like thunder in response to the command.
Four Void Refinement ghosts occupied the four directions, launching attacks from all sides.
Thirty-six Void Glimpse and Void Inquiry ghosts recklessly approached, creating gaps for seven Void Refinement ghosts to attack Ning Fan.
Under the siege of the ghosts, Ning Fan’s shadow repeatedly shattered and reformed.
After the four Void Refinement ghosts joined the fray, merely shattering the shadow was not enough to ward off all the damage, and Ning Fan’s body began to suffer injuries.
He summoned the Primordial Lightning Armor, relying on its formidable defense to barely withstand the siege of the ghosts.
Although the Primordial Lightning Armor was at the peak level of golden armor, capable of defending against the attacks of Return to Origin Void, it gradually showed cracks under the assault of the ghosts.
The sky was locked in four directions, making escape impossible.
Four Void Refinement experts guarded the four sides, preventing him from breaking out of the ghost’s encirclement.
Ning Fan took a deep breath, knowing that without showcasing some powerful means to truly annihilate these ghost shadows, he couldn’t defeat the Ax-wielding Tree King.
The Weapon-Flame Finger Technique and the Sun Moon Monument Technique were powerful, but not the divine skills necessary to slay ghost shadows.
The Minor Void Sword could cut through the void, but its application of void was clearly inferior to the Void Ignition Technique.
In the end, he would have to resort to the Void Ignition Technique...
Ning Fan raised his finger and pointed, sending out a million void sword shadows, slightly pushing back the group of ghosts. Suddenly, he steadied his stance, and a black flame flickered in his eyes.
A massive black fire formation diagram suddenly emerged beneath his feet, while countless black fire butterflies appeared in the night sky.
"The Third Fan is not enough to destroy the ghost shadows... The Fourth Fan, I’m not sure if I can unleash it..."
Ning Fan wasn’t confident about executing the Fourth Fan.
When he fought against Yun Daoku, he hadn’t yet reached the Void Glimpse stage, thus unable to perform the Fourth Fan of the Butterfly Fire.
When he battled the white-boned devil, having just reached Void Glimpse, he still couldn’t execute the Fourth Fan of the Butterfly Fire.
Now, having reached the Void Inquiry stage, his understanding of the void was much deeper, and after executing the great divine skills of creation and soul extraction, his cultivation was infinitely close to Return to Origin Grand Void.
With such cultivation, performing the Fourth Fan of the Butterfly Fire shouldn’t result in him being turned to ash by the backlash, though he would likely sustain severe injuries...
"Return to Origin Void, indeed formidable... With my divine skills, only by going all out, risking serious injury, can I kill a Return to Origin Void..."
Ning Fan’s gaze turned resolute, and he snapped into a finger gesture.
In that moment, the million black fire butterflies ignited their wings, converging into one gigantic fire butterfly.
The fire butterfly was enormous, with its black fire wings enough to cover the entire night sky!
As soon as this fire butterfly appeared, the Ax-wielding Tree King began to tremble uncontrollably all over!
"What... is this spell! Why do I feel such a powerful sense of crisis!"
After all, he was a Return to Origin Void expert, unmatched beneath the Fragmentation Stage.
He had been attacked by a Fragmentation Stage old monster, yet even then, he never felt such a massive sense of crisis.
He had returned to origin, and the gap with the Void Fragmentation cultivators was no longer of essence but merely in mana’s level.
But the awareness with this black fire butterfly was indeed one of essence, a difference of realms!
Though the Void Ignition Technique had flaws and wasn’t perfect, it was already infinitely close to an Immortal Technique!
Facing the Void Ignition Technique, even Yun Daoku felt fear, let alone the mere Return to Origin Void expert, the Ax-wielding Tree King!
"Kill him! Don’t let him perform this technique! Even if it means destroying the ghost shadows, kill him!" Ordered the Ax-wielding Tree King nervously.
Destroying the ghost shadows meant having them self-detonate, using the explosion’s power to severely injure Ning Fan.
Ghost shadows couldn’t be exterminated through ordinary means, but they could indeed die if they self-destructed.
If the Ax-wielding Tree King wanted to use the Seven-Life Lamp again in the future, he would need to kill and refine ghosts anew.
The Ax-wielding Tree King felt a deadly sense of crisis from the fire butterfly, willing to stop Ning Fan from performing the spell at all costs!
A dozen Void Glimpse Giant Ghosts stepped forward, suddenly self-immolating their ghost shadows and exploding in front of Ning Fan.
Six Void Inquiry Giant Ghosts charged towards Ning Fan, fearlessly self-destructing.
Three Void Refinement Giant Ghosts, bodies ablaze with ghost fire, detonated in front of Ning Fan. Even a Void Refinement cultivator wouldn’t dare withstand the self-detonation of three Void Refinement ghosts!
Two Void Refinement Giant Ghosts, faces stoic, abruptly performed their gestures beside Ning Fan, self-destructing their ghost shadows; even a Return to Origin Void expert would be heavily wounded by two Void Refinement self-detonations!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
In the center of the explosions, Ning Fan’s shadow was blown apart by the ghosts’ self-detonations.
Reforming his shadow, Ning Fan’s injuries were severe and his breath faint, yet his gaze remained cold as stone, unwavering by anything.
If he decided to burn his wings to ash, he would not allow anyone to extinguish his flames!
"Void Ignition..."
He softly uttered the words, his finger gesture shifted abruptly, and the colossal fire butterfly covering the night sky fiercely flapped its wings towards the Ax-wielding Tree King!
With the first fan, the remaining twelve Void Glimpse Giant Ghosts turned to ash!
Second fan, the remaining 6 Void Inquiry giant ghosts turned to ashes!
Third fan, the 4 Void Refinement Realm giant ghosts turned to ashes!
Fourth fan!
Ning Fan felt his body was about to collapse, about to be consumed by the butterfly fire.
The level of the Void Ignition Technique was too high, infinitely close to Immortal Techniques. With his current cultivations, he was still not able to perfectly execute the fourth fan of the butterfly fire.
But he was no longer what he used to be. With his increased cultivations, enhanced comprehension of the void, and training in the Minor Five Elements Constitution, he had some defense against fire techniques.
Even though he forced himself to use the fourth fan of butterfly fire, he wouldn’t be countered to the extent of turning to ashes.
His internal organs were all ignited, his veins burned with pain, and his spirit was in flames!
Ning Fan’s injuries deepened, his face extremely pale, yet his gaze was ruthless!
"Void Ignition!"
At this moment, Ning Fan’s entire body burst into black flames!
He used the butterfly fire to burn the enemy, and he too was trapped in the flames!
At this moment, the gigantic butterfly flapped its wings for the fourth time, an unimaginable force of void fire transformed into black fiery smoke, sweeping towards the Ax-wielding Tree King!
The two Taixu giant ghosts protecting him in front were directly fanned into ashes by the butterfly fire!
The Ax-wielding Tree King of Guiyuan Cultivation level, under the fourth fan of the butterfly fire, couldn’t even escape in time; his aging body turned to ashes in an instant!
If he were at his peak state, he might have been able to fight his way through severe injuries and escape the attack of the butterfly fire.
However, he was heavily injured by the Weapon-Flame Finger Technique and had suffered backlash from forcefully igniting four lamps, making it impossible to withstand the power of the butterfly fire.
Amidst screams, the Ax-wielding Tree King’s spirit was filled with terror, snatching the Seven-Life Lamp, he desperately fled.
Though he belonged to the Ghost Wood Clan, he was not a dryad but a Human wood element demoness, cultivating tree devil arts.
At this moment, he was terrified!
Theoretically speaking, no Void Inquiry Master could defeat a Return to Origin Grand Void Realm expert, as just one Jiazi in the Return to Origin Realm was an insurmountable chasm.
But Ning Fan couldn’t be understood with common sense; the Ax-wielding Tree King was petrified by the Void Ignition Technique. He had already seen that this technique was a Divine Skill infinitely close to Immortal Techniques!
"This technique is infinitely close to Immortal Techniques. If this kid can fully execute this technique, even an Immortal could be fought!"
"This child cannot be opposed. This king is not his match, escape is necessary!"
Fleeing in panic, Ning Fan raised his hand and pointed from afar.
With just one point, blood threads scattered throughout the Tree King’s spirit, pinning him alive in the night sky.
"You, can’t escape!"
Ning Fan raised his hand and captured the Tree King’s spirit, planting dense prohibitions within, sealing it along with the Seven-Life Lamp temporarily into the storage pouch.
In the distant night sky, five Sword Spirits wielded sword threads, escorting a weakened spirit back.
That spirit was indeed the Flute-playing Tree King!
The five Sword Spirits, working together, had also extinguished the Flute-playing Tree King, but the battle was not easy.
Four Sword Spirits sustained slight injuries, while the Fifth Sword Spirit was covered in blood, her Sword Spirit body extremely illusory, almost on the verge of vanishing...
"Little Fan Fan, save Tong Tong quickly! Tong Tong’s injuries are too severe, she’s about to die!"
The four Sword Spirit little girls imploringly looked at Ning Fan.
Especially the First Sword Spirit Jing Jing, who tearily looked at Ning Fan, with none of her former arrogance.
Logically, the combined strength of the five Sword Spirits should have surpassed that of the Flute-playing Tree King.
But the five little girls were too proud and underestimated their opponent, especially Jing Jing, who as the eldest sister was even more self-assured.
She did not take the Tree King seriously and was caught off guard, nearly perishing to the Tree King’s plot.
If not for the crucial moment when the Fifth Sword Spirit Tong Tong shielded her from a strike, the severely injured would certainly not be Tong Tong, but herself.
"Tong Tong, I’m sorry... Don’t die..." Jing Jing’s teary eyes were like Lightning Water, and the other three little girls were also crying like rain.
Tong Tong’s little face was very pale, tears could not be stopped from flowing; her body was in pain everywhere, she was terrified of dying, she didn’t want to die...
Ning Fan took over the spirit of the Flute-playing Tree King, casually sealed it, and stored it in the storage pouch.
Raising his palm, he carefully held the severely injured Tong Tong in his palm, sighing lightly.
"Don’t worry, you are my Sword Spirits, I will not let you die."
Ning Fan’s injuries were also severe, but at this moment, he decided to first tend to the Fifth Sword Spirit’s wounds.
No matter how severe his injuries, he had the Black Star Technique to self-heal, but the body of the Fifth Sword Spirit was very fragile.
If he didn’t help this little girl heal, it wouldn’t be long before her spirit dissipated...
(First update) (To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to vote for it on Qidian (qidian.com) with your recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)