Grasping the Evil

Chapter 599: Lost Sword Intent, Slaying the Tree Devil!

Ning Fan held the Emperor Xia’s Sword in his hand, closed his eyes slowly after issuing a command.

When he opened them again, there was an extremely fine golden line moving in each of his eyes!

If magnified countless times, one could see clearly that the two golden lines moving in Ning Fan’s eyes were indeed two extremely fine golden swords!

These were the traces of Sword Intent left in the sword by its previous owner, Emperor Xia!

The first time holding the sword, Ning Fan was unable to sense this strand of Sword Intent.

But the second time, Ning Fan had gradually achieved the unity of man and sword, provoking the riot of a trace of residual Sword Intent in the sword.

This Sword Intent was only slight, but the sword’s power it contained seemed even more formidable than the Immortal Entrapping Sword Intent understood by Ning Fan!

In the instant it fused with this Sword Intent, Ning Fan’s divine sense almost felt like collapsing, as it was being eroded by strands of golden Sword Intent!

It must be known that Ning Fan’s divine sense was a Sword Sense, cultivated with the Immortal Execution Order, even swallowing a remnant of the Immortal Slaughter Sword, containing Immortal Entrapping Sword Intent, and reinforced by Teng Xianrou’s Sword Sense.

His Sword Sense vaguely contained the might of three of the Four Heaven Suppressing Swords, yet before the Sword Intent of the Emperor Xia’s Sword, his Sword Sense, sword sense, and Sword Intent seemed utterly insignificant, unable to resist the erosion of the golden Sword Intent!

"What kind of Sword Intent did the former master of this sword cultivate, this sword’s power is so overbearing, much stronger than the might of the Four Heaven Suppressing Swords like Immortal Execution, Immortal Slaughter, Immortal Entrapping, and Immortal Severing!"

"This Sword Intent is very strong, also gives me a very familiar feeling... I see, when I first encountered this sword, the reason I felt a bit of familiarity was actually because I was familiar with this Sword Intent... This Sword Intent feels very much like the sword aura obtained from the Godly Void Pavilion auction back then, yet somewhat different..."

The sword sheath Ning Fan mentioned was the item obtained from the Godly Void Pavilion auction back then, containing a strand of sword aura from the sword ancestor.

With this eon-enduring sword aura, Ning Fan had managed to withstand the attack from the Moksha Emperor with only Harmonious Spirit realm cultivation.

The Sword Intent of the Emperor Xia’s Sword gave Ning Fan a feeling very similar to the Sword Intent of the sword ancestor. But if carefully tasted, the two Sword Intents were as different as clouds and mud, not entirely the same, and their power was not comparable at all...

The Sword Intent of the Emperor Xia’s Sword seemed to be created in imitation of the Sword Intent of the sword ancestor...

"Did the former master of the Emperor Xia’s Sword attempt to understand and imitate the Sword Intent of the sword ancestor? The Sword Intent of the sword ancestor, a Sword Intent more formidable than the Four Heaven Suppressing Swords by countless times..."

Ning Fan dismissed his distracting thoughts, immersing his entire mind into the Emperor Xia’s Sword, gradually calming the riotous Sword Intent within the sword.

He trod upon the expanse of sky, advancing slowly, step by step approaching the Ancestral Bamboo Tree Demon!

At this moment, Teng Xianrou and five heavenly tribulation puppets were engaging the tree demon with all their might under Ning Fan’s orders, creating an opportunity for Ning Fan to slay the tree demon.

The tree demon was a Living Puppet, its true will was unwilling to obey Void Inquiry, unwilling to destroy the Bamboo Hall, unwilling to unseal Nieli.

However, it was a Living Puppet, not under its own control! Its mission was to guard the Bamboo Hall, but since a million years ago, it had already ’gone mad’ and killed many cultivators of the Bamboo Hall... Each kill wracked its heart with immense grief!

This time, it had to obey the orders of Void Inquiry and destroy the Bamboo Hall it had long protected... It was unwilling!

It desired death for relief, wanted to die at the hands of Teng Xianrou and other Void Fragmentation cultivators, but Teng Xianrou and the others lacked the power to slay it...

Its Ancestral Bamboo body was but a shell, its tree spirit was its true form. But Teng Xianrou and the others couldn’t even breach its shell, much less harm its tree spirit within the bamboo...

Time and again it drove back the attacks of Teng Xianrou and others, unable to find death...

In its near despair, Ning Fan took out the Emperor Xia’s Sword!

The tree demon glanced at Ning Fan askance, at this moment Ning Fan gave it an extremely dangerous feeling.

If discerning carefully, it would be found that the source of danger was not Ning Fan himself, but the golden fine sword he wielded!

"This sword, if it approaches my tree spirit, it can slay me with a single sword!"

"Kill me!"

"Kill Void Inquiry!"

"Save the Bamboo Hall!"

The tree demon’s heart was filled with pleas, but the towering Ancestral Bamboo tree body stamped along the golden ground, filled with killing intent as it charged fiercely toward Ning Fan.

"Void Technique, Empty Mind!"

The gigantic bamboo body of the tree demon suddenly split open a massive black hole.

In that black hole, boundless suction arose, violently drawing Ning Fan’s position within tens of thousands of miles of sky into its body!

This technique was a formidable innate Divine Skill of the Ancestral Bamboo, with the center of the bamboo empty, refined by the Ancestral Bamboo into a deadly space.

Formerly when the Ancestral Bamboo guarded the Bamboo Hall, it would often use this technique to swallow invading enemies, refining them in its internal space.

However, this technique had only ever been used for killing lower-level cultivators, if a Void Fragmentation level cultivator were swallowed into its internal space, it could instead break through its internal space and attack the Ancestral Bamboo’s vitals from within, thereby slaying the Ancestral Bamboo.

The Ancestral Bamboo used this technique to attack Ning Fan, not with the intention to kill, but to bring Ning Fan into its body, giving him the opportunity to attack the tree spirit within!

It could not defy Void Inquiry’s command, hence had to launch an attack on Ning Fan.

Desiring not to harm the Bamboo Hall, it willingly drew Ning Fan inside, giving Ning Fan an opportunity to slay it, seeking relief in death!

Ning Fan was swallowed by the Ancestral Bamboo, appearing in its internal space, silently assessing, his mind racing.

He actually had the means to fend off this technique and not be engulfed by the Ancestral Bamboo.

But Ning Fan saw through the Ancestral Bamboo’s true intentions, saw through its desire for death, saw that the Ancestral Bamboo actually intended to lure him inside, giving him the opportunity to strike the tree spirit...

"Kill me! Kill me! Kill me!!!"

"If you kill me, I’ll let you devour me, aiding you in acquiring first-grade Rain Intent!"

"If you kill me, I’ll let you devour me, aiding in greatly enhancing your constitution!"

Ning Fan stood within the bamboo space, seemingly hearing the Ancestral Bamboo’s pitiful pleas by his ear.

This space seemed to possess a Divine Skill, capable of gradually melting the physical body and dispersing the Spirit of those drawn into the space!

Over a hundred sectioned Fierce Beasts resided within this space, each possessing Void Glimpse cultivation!

At the forefront of all the fierce beasts stood an old man with green hair, this man was the Ancestral Bamboo Tree Spirit, possessing the Fourth Heavenly Layer of the Void Fragmentation Realm.

The green-haired old man stood with a cold and bloodthirsty gaze, yet his heart yearned for death.

His figure was like a specter, taking a step and disappearing instantly, while behind Ning Fan, his hair stood on end with cold sweat.

This sword, if it closes in on my tree spirit, it can sever me in one strike!"

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Although at the Shattered Three Realm, his escape speed is even faster than some Fifth Heavenly Layer of the Void Fragmentation Realm Masters!

"Die!"

Before Ning Fan could dodge, the blue-haired elder appeared behind him and pointed a finger!

As soon as this finger pointed, twelve golden bamboo swords immediately pierced through Ning Fan’s back, penetrating him!

Bang!

Penetrated by the twelve bamboo swords, Ning Fan’s physical defense quickly shattered, turning into a shadow that dispersed.

When his body recondensed, his black robe was stained with blood, and blood seeped from his mouth.

He tried to use the dispersion of his clone to avoid the blue-haired elder’s slash, but unfortunately, even as a formless clone, he couldn’t entirely avoid all the damage, and he was ultimately injured!

"This Tree Spirit, being a Fourth Heavenly Layer of the Void Fragmentation Realm Master, is indeed strong! Even when activating the Void Ignition Technique to the Butterfly Fire Fifth Fan, it can’t harm this person! If he hadn’t willingly let me enter his body, I would have had no chance to get close to his Tree Spirit, let alone kill him..."

"I’m no match for him; under normal circumstances, unless I advance to the Void Fragmentation, I have no chance of winning against him!"

"But now, holding the Emperor Xia’s Sword, I have this feeling... that in this world, nothing cannot be cut! No enemy cannot be destroyed!"

"All the gods and demons are mere ants; if I break my sword, there would be no martial arts in the world..."

Ning Fan faintly recalls the scene where the sword ancestor woman slayed all the gods and demons.

He no longer resisted the invasion of the golden Sword Intent, allowing it to enter his divine sense.

Within the Sword Sense, a faint golden layer began to appear, that very gold being all of the Sword Intent from the Emperor Xia’s Sword.

This Sword Intent was too domineering; once it invaded Ning Fan’s divine sense, it immediately swallowed all the Immortal Entrapping Sword Intent he had cultivated, using it to strengthen the golden Sword Intent!

A loss, a gain.

He lost an entire sea of Immortal Entrapping Sword Intent but gained a spring of Emperor Xia’s Sword Intent.

The quantity of Sword Intent decreased, but its power increased unbelievably!

"Kill!"

A green flash zipped by, and the blue-haired elder once again appeared ghost-like behind Ning Fan, raising a finger.

Twelve rays of bamboo sword light sliced towards Ning Fan’s back, but at this moment, Ning Fan neither dodged nor defended.

He didn’t even turn his head, only coldly uttered, "Scram!"

At this utterance, a strand of Emperor Xia’s Sword Intent autonomously protected his body, and none of the twelve sword rays could slash at Ning Fan. When they were three inches from Ning Fan’s back, they shattered into two segments, disintegrating!

The sword broke, solely because of fear!

The sword broke, solely because of dread!

This Emperor Xia’s Sword Intent was created by the Loose Immortal Sword Cultivator who once wielded this sword, imitating the Sword Intent of the Sword Ancestor.

Though this Sword Intent is far inferior to the Sword Ancestor’s, it still contains a trace of the Sword Ancestor’s might!

What sword in the world dares to slash at the Sword Ancestor!

Perhaps a pure sword-cultivating Void Fragmentation Sword Cultivator could ignore this faint Sword Ancestor might, using the sword to harm Ning Fan.

But the blue-haired elder is not a pure Sword Cultivator; swordsmanship is not his strength, intending to sneak attack Ning Fan with this technique, no chance!

After missing his attack, the blue-haired elder flickered and had already retreated tens of thousands of miles away.

Ning Fan turned around, gazing afar at the blue-haired elder.

This blue-haired elder willingly let him into his body, only using divine skills he’s not adept at to battle him.

While he received assistance from the five rays of sword light and controlled the Emperor Xia’s Sword, furthermore exchanging the Immortal Entrapping Sword Intent for the Emperor Xia’s Sword Intent.

If still unable to slay the Tree Spirit under such circumstances, then dying at the hands of the Tree Spirit is truly fate!

"Kill!"

The blue-haired elder took a step forward, and his silhouette vanished once again.

At the next moment, around Ning Fan, suddenly appeared hundreds of blue-haired elders, transforming one into a hundred!

All the blue-haired elders raised their hands, pointing down at Ning Fan.

Countless bamboo sword lights slashed down, yet Ning Fan remained unperturbed.

This was the blue-haired elder purposely yielding; he only sought death, deliberately attacking Ning Fan with divine skills incapable of harming him!

Gold light from Ning Fan’s eyes surged; with just a glance, all the bamboo swords crumbled!

Simultaneously, he raised his hand, summoning the Emperor Xia’s Sword, and with a spirit sense incantation, the sword immediately split into a hundred golden sword rays, slashing at the hundreds of blue-haired elders!

The golden sword rays spanned countless distances in just an instant, cutting through the bodies of those blue-haired elders.

Gold overpowers wood, this attack was a division of the Emperor Xia’s Sword’s shadow; with one strike, the hundreds of blue-haired elders simultaneously burst into blood in the sky, annihilated by sword shadows!

Ning Fan stood in the void, having drained all his Mana.

Three zhang away from him, green light condensed into an illusory figure of the blue-haired elder, gravely injured and dying, it was the Tree Spirit.

"...Kill... me..." The elder pleaded.

"As you wish!"

Ning Fan raised his hand, slicing the blue-haired elder into two.

Dense Evil Qi wrapped around Ning Fan.

"Thank you..."

The blue-haired elder’s final words of gratitude slowly faded, never to be heard again.

In front of Ning Fan, a dark cyan fruit gradually formed!

That fruit wasn’t a Dao Fruit but one formed from the Tree Spirit’s spirit power, producing a fruit as a token of gratitude for Ning Fan delivering death!

This fruit was extremely similar to the Tree Spirit Fruit but the energy it contained far surpassed the Tree Spirit Fruit.

It also wasn’t a Tree Ancestor Fruit... the energy within this fruit equaled a thousand Tree Ancestor Fruits!

Ning Fan’s gaze turned fiery. If he devoured this fruit, his Divine Intent of Rain could breakthrough to the first-grade realm in one step!

He waved his sleeve to put away the fruit, raised his hand, and with one sword strike, shattered the void, escaping the Tree Demon’s body.

Gazing at the massive shell of the Ancestral Bamboo, his eyes once again burned.

If he devoured the entire Ancestral Bamboo, his Minor Five Elements Constitution could greatly improve!

"You... you actually single-handedly killed the Shattered Three Realm Tree Demon?!"

Teng Xianrou was extremely shocked upon seeing Ning Fan escape and witnessing the Ancestral Bamboo withering and dying as well as the fresh Evil Qi lingering around Ning Fan.

She had always speculated that Ning Fan was powerful, but had never imagined he possessed the strength to kill a Shattered Three Tree Demon!

How could he be so powerful!

Could it be that his true cultivation isn’t the Third Heavenly Layer of the Void Fragmentation Realm, but the Fourth or Fifth Heavenly Layer...

(1/3) (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian.com to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)