novelraw Chapter 605: Farewell, Wei Xuan
Chapter 605: Farewell, Wei Xuan
The pursuit of the Vine Emperor took Ning Fan three days.
Though heavily injured, the Vine Emperor’s divine skills were astonishing in his desperation, causing significant injuries to Ning Fan and Nieli.
When the Vine Emperor finally fled, he fragmented his body into over ten streams of light to escape, each of which Ning Fan had to chase down and eliminate, expending great effort.
Three days later, Ning Fan retraced his path along the boundary road, only to find the gate had already closed.
He spent another half month using the divine art of Wind Mist Finger to break open a gap in the boundary road.
Only then did he return to the Eastern Tree Ocean.
This calamity saw endless cultivators fall in the Eastern Tree Ocean. Apart from ten million cultivators turned into living puppets dying tragically, another sixty to seventy million died amidst the chaos.
If Ning Fan hadn’t promptly slain Void Inquiry Stage, turning all living puppets to ashes, the fatalities in Eastern Tree Ocean would have been even higher.
Eastern Bamboo Sea and Western Vine Sea, both suffered devastating losses.
All Void Fragmentation cultivators from the Bamboo Hall perished in this disaster, except for the Bamboo Sovereign. Similarly, every member of the Vine Hall, including the Vine Emperor, died in the calamity.
Even in the Willow Hall, one Void Fragmentation cultivator fell in vain...
More than half a month passed, and Jishui City, destroyed by the turmoil, had long been rebuilt. Many of the Tree Tribe cultivators in the city wore plain white attire, their hearts filled with thoughts of their friends and kin who perished in the calamity.
Ning Fan didn’t return to Jishui riding on the Purple-Eyed Netherfiend. Severely injured, the Purple-Eyed Netherfiend was taken into the Cauldron Furnace realm by Ning Fan to recuperate... It was then that Ning Fan belatedly realized the Purple-Eyed Netherfiend was female...
Clad in white, Ning Fan returned alone to Jishui City. As soon as he entered the city, a Willow Hall Elder of the First Fracture Realm emerged to greet him outside the city.
"Elder Xiu Qin of the Willow Hall welcomes the North Tree Emperor!" Elder Xiu Qin of the Willow Hall respectfully saluted Ning Fan with clasped fists.
"North Tree Emperor? What do you mean by that?" Ning Fan was slightly taken aback, unaware when he acquired such a title.
Seeing Ning Fan’s puzzled expression, Xiu Qin promptly offered an explanation.
It took eighteen days from Ning Fan’s pursuit of the Vine Emperor to his return to the Tree World.
Within the first three days, Ning Fan had already slain the Vine Emperor, and concurrently, the Vine Emperor’s soul plate located in the Tree World shattered.
News of the Vine Emperor’s demise spread like wildfire. The entire Tree World became aware of the Vine Emperor’s fall.
There were tens of thousands of cultivators who witnessed Ning Fan chasing the Vine Emperor into the boundary road. Hence, those interested quickly learned that it was Ning Fan who killed the Vine Emperor.
Ning Fan’s alias in the Tree World was Lu Bei, and the title ’North Tree Emperor’ derived from these two words, Lu Bei.
Ever since Ning Fan chased into the boundary road, Liu Haoyue had been waiting anxiously outside the boundary road for Ning Fan’s safety.
Upon learning of the Vine Emperor’s fall, only then was he convinced that Ning Fan had successfully killed the Vine Emperor and would soon return to the Tree World. His heart felt at ease.
Consequently, he no longer lingered in the Eastern Tree Ocean, leaving only a few Willow Hall Elders to guard it, while he, along with the Bamboo Sovereign and others, proceeded to the Western Tree Ocean to eradicate the Vine Emperor’s forces and take control of the Vine Hall.
With the Vine Emperor dead, the countless generations of the Vine Hall’s inheritance would naturally change hands.
Liu Haoyue and the Bamboo Sovereign specifically left a sound transmission jade slip for Xiu Qin to pass to Ning Fan.
Ning Fan infused his spirit sense into the sound transmission jade slip, and the voices of the Bamboo and Willow Two Emperors immediately resonated in his divine sense.
"If Brother Lu returns, please come swiftly to the Western Tree Ocean. The heavenly treasures of the Vine Hall are numerous... Without Brother Lu’s aid, the two of us would have certainly died at the hands of Teng Gunan. All the treasures stored over hundreds of generations in the Vine Hall should rightfully belong to Brother Lu!"
"Moreover, with the Western Tree Ocean now without an emperor and the North Tree Ocean without an overseeing Tree Emperor, if Brother Lu is willing, from this day forth, you can become the Tree Emperor of both the Western and Northern Tree Oceans. Since the name ’North’ resonates in Brother Lu’s name, it seems fit to bestow you the title ’North Tree Emperor’. What do you think?"
Ning Fan, after reading the jade slip, put it away without further words.
Xiu Qin, having other affairs to manage, took his leave after delivering the jade slip.
Ning Fan entered the city alone, his thoughts swirling, feeling a slight sense of melancholy,
When he first entered Jishui City, the cultivators in the city were as numerous as clouds, and the streets were bustling with cultivators coming and going.
At this moment, nine out of ten Jishui cultivators had perished, leaving the streets desolate.
Two distinct atmospheres held within them distinctly different Dao charms.
"This is... the Dao charm of life and death... Life and death, life and death; once you break through life and death, you are eligible to tread the immortal path, to seek eternal life..."
"What is life, what is death... I once thought, as long as life isn’t exhausted, it is life; once exhausted, it is death. But as I see now, this viewpoint is not correct."
"Immortals have no lifespan. Using lifespan to judge life and death is evidently one-sided."
"Life and death, life and death... When the streets are bustling with pedestrians, these streets are alive; when the people leave and the buildings are empty, the streets are dead. For the streets, death is not the end of life but relates to the bustling foot traffic. The true meaning of life and death within this, I do not know..."
Ning Fan’s heart churned with enlightenment. This great calamity in the Eastern Tree Ocean, witnessing countless lives and deaths from the sidelines, was different from the feeling of personally taking lives in the past, giving him new insights into life and death.
Understanding the Dao of life and death is crucial to becoming an immortal. It was not surprising that Ning Fan couldn’t see through life and death yet.
Comprehending the Dao of life and death was something a Void Fragmentation cultivator would need to consider.
Ning Fan was still just a Void Refinement cultivator; what he needed to comprehend at present was how to shatter the void...
His understanding of the void had progressed step by step from Void Glimpse, Void Inquiry, and Void Refinement to complete perfection. However, after reaching perfection, he needed to shatter this circle and jump out of this void.
"Shatter the void, shatter the void... In the void, there is inherently nothing. How to shatter it... how to break the void!"
Ning Fan sighed with a sense of longing; he was still quite a distance away from the Void Fragmentation realm.
He had a feeling that the higher one’s realm, the more one felt ignorant.
When he was at the Vein Opening stage, he received the Heavenly Dao’s first cycle inheritance from the Chaotic Ancient Land, and he thought he could surpass Void Fragmentation cultivators.
Looking back now, Ning Fan felt that he was somewhat arrogant back then.
He slowly stopped his pace, waved his sleeve, and a piece of white paper appeared slowly in his palm.
With inkless fingertips, he drew on the white paper, sketching down a dark circle.
The Great Dao was like white paper, and cultivators were like circles on this paper.
The smaller the circle, the fewer places its edge touched.
The larger the circle, the more places its edge touched.
The lower one’s cultivation, the more superficial the Dao they saw.
The higher one’s cultivation, the deeper the Dao they comprehended, making them feel all the more ignorant.
Knowing one’s ignorance was far wiser than believing oneself omniscient.
Looking at the circle on the paper, Ning Fan knew that if he wanted to break the void, what needed to be shattered was that circle, that void...
With a finger pointing out, the white paper turned to flying ash and dissipated, as if it never existed.
Ning Fan watched the paper ash scatter, feeling as if he had gained some insight, yet he could not fully understand it.
He no longer pondered over these Dao enlightenment issues but instead reflected on this journey to the Tree World.
Entering the Tree World this time, he had gained considerable benefits.
The first-grade Rain Intent was imminent; he cultivated the physique of a Minor Five Elements Constitution, and if he devoured the Ancestral Bamboo, his Wood Element Physique could likely be completely perfected.
His cultivation had broken through to the Void Fragmentation Realm, and if he could empty out the century-old accumulations of the Vine Palace, using the countless treasures within to enhance his cultivation, his power would surely soar once more.
He had cultivated the Ancient God Bloodline of the Royal Clan and opened the first heart aperture of the Ancient God, greatly increasing his future cultivation speed.
During this visit to the Tree World, Ning Fan also completed Mu Luo’s request, found the Min Luo Race, and avenged them by slaying Wan Changkong. If he could bring the Min Luo Race and Youhuang’s remnants back to the Rain Immortal World, it would be a good deed.
This time in the Tree World, Ning Fan subdued a Purple-Eyed Netherfiend at the Fifth Heavenly Layer of the Void Fragmentation Realm, conquered 600 Void Inquiry puppets, increased his heavenly tribulation puppets to five, and acquired Teng Xianrou, a Void Fragmentation combatant...
Now, Ning Fan’s combat strength was likely stronger than the entire Rain Palace.
Moreover, after slaying Wan Changkong, he obtained the Mourning Ancient Heaven-Piercing Jade, which sealed a Puppet String of the Ancestor Mourning in the ancient jade.
If he could refine a rogue devil into a living puppet using this Puppet String, he would gain a combatant at the Shattered Void Eighth Layer!
"With my current assets, fighting the Moksha Emperor wouldn’t be difficult! Once the hundred-year period arrives and the Heavenly Court opens, the Moksha Emperor will surely die!"
Entering the Tree World, Ning Fan gained great opportunities, but also provoked strong enemies.
He killed Du Yu, offending the Vine Palace, which is now extinguished, but the Three Realms Sect behind it surely hates him!
"The Sect Master of the Three Realms Sect is an old monster at the Shattered Void Eighth Layer. If I can successfully control a rogue devil, I can fight this person and no longer fear the Three Realms Sect! If I cannot, I won’t be able to contend with the Three Realms Sect..."
"With my current Void Refinement Realm, even with a Puppet String from the Ancestor Mourning, the odds of refining a rogue devil into a living puppet are less than fifty percent. If my cultivation could advance a step further to the Return to Origin Realm, the odds of subduing the rogue devil would be at least ninety percent!"
"Achieving Return to Origin isn’t difficult! I won’t stay long in the Tree World; I don’t need the title of North Tree Emperor, nor have I considered ruling the Western Sea or Northern Forest Sea. But I must take away the century-old accumulations of the Vine Palace. With a century’s accumulation from the Vine Palace, I will pave the way to the Return to Origin Realm for myself, and subsequently subdue the rogue devil, rendering the Three Realms Sect insignificant!"
"Let’s set aside the matter of the Three Realms Sect for now; the Rain Immortal World there is troublesome... and as for the Demon World, I’m not sure what actions the Moksha Emperor might take upon hearing of my slaying of the Vine Emperor..."
Ning Fan sighed; from the moment he subdued Nielí and appeared over Jishui, he was destined not to hide his identity in the Tree World anymore.
Subduing the Purple-Eyed Netherfiend at the Fifth Heavenly Layer was enough to make him famous across the nine worlds, attracting attention from cultivators everywhere.
The matter of slaying the Vine Emperor cannot be hidden from the world’s cultivators. The fall of a Divine Emperor in the nine worlds is a major event; even if it’s from the Three Lower Worlds, it will draw attention from many cultivators in the nine worlds.
Now, surely the entire nine worlds has spread the news of the Vine Emperor’s demise.
And as the orchestrator of the Vine Emperor’s death—Ning Fan—they are sure to have exposed him to the world’s eyes.
Some insightful individuals may have already discovered that Ning Fan is not Lu Bei, but the White Marquis of the Rain Immortal World.
If the Rain World Emperor learns of Ning Fan’s astonishing feats, who knows what thoughts he might have. Will he fear Ning Fan and build a friendship, or resent him and become hostile instead...
This battle in the Tree World was too grand, directly thrusting Ning Fan into the spotlight.
From this day forth, I don’t know how many troubles will follow...
Unknowingly, Ning Fan had already walked to the outside of the Fusang Clan’s residence.
He halted his steps, his escape light flashed, and he appeared directly inside the residence, in the main hall.
Tang Xiong, the clan leader of Fusang, was discussing matters with several other elders of the clan, each bearing a look of concern.
Seeing Ning Fan suddenly arrive, everyone immediately stood up to greet him, not daring to show the slightest neglect.
Ning Fan had slain the Vine Emperor and Wan Changkong, and in the recent Jishui battle, he had killed countless Void Fragmentation cultivators. His reputation as the ’North Tree Emperor’ had already spread throughout the Tree World and even reached other realms.
Although Ning Fan was merely a Void Refinement cultivator, in the eyes of the Fusang clan members, Ning Fan was no different from a Divine Emperor of the Fifth Heavenly Layer of the Void Fragmentation Realm.
"We, the Fusang people, greet the North Tree Emperor. We do not know what brings the North Tree Emperor here today!" Tang Xiong said respectfully.
"I owe a debt to Senior Fusang. I have come today to return Senior Fusang’s bone ashes, and nothing more..."
"What, the ancestor’s bone ashes! This, this..."
Tang Xiong and the Fusang clan members all revealed expressions of grief and excitement.
The sadness stemmed from memories of the ancestor’s passing; the excitement was due to reclaiming the ancestor’s bone ashes, ensuring his remains would not drift away.
Ning Fan extended a finger, and a delicate jade box immediately appeared on the bamboo table in the center of the hall.
Inside the jade box were the bone ashes of the Fusang Old Demon, faintly emanating the aura of the Fusang Old Demon...
"Ancestor!"
Tang Xiong and several elders, their eyes moist, knelt before the jade box.
"Farewell!"
Ning Fan sighed softly, turned, and left. By returning the bone ashes of the Fusang Old Demon, he and the Fusang Clan were now even.
He had previously agreed to Tang Xiong’s request to take care of Tang Yuan, as Tang Xiong would likely die in the calamity.
Now, due to his intervention, Tang Xiong survived, and the Fusang was not destroyed, so he had no obligation to take Tang Yuan as a concubine.
"North Tree Emperor, please stay..." Tang Xiong wished to stop Ning Fan, but Ning Fan walked further away, soon disappearing from sight.
Tang Xiong sighed slightly, truthfully, he was reluctant to give his daughter to Ning Fan as a concubine since he was still alive.
Ning Fan’s refusal to take Tang Yuan as a concubine made him both happy and regretful.
He was happy because he could find another suitable Dao companion for his daughter.
He regretted losing the opportunity to form a marital alliance with Ning Fan. To the declining Fusang clan, Ning Fan’s reputation could be considered a protective shield...
"Enough, enough, enough, Yuan’er, come out. Since you are not destined with the North Tree Emperor, in the future, Father will find you another suitable Dao companion." Tang Xiong said towards the direction of the inner hall.
"No! I don’t want a Dao companion, I won’t marry anyone!" Behind the beaded curtain of the inner hall, a girl in a red dress stomped angrily, then turned and ran away.
She was Tang Yuan, the young princess of the Fusang clan who repeatedly and foolishly provoked Ning Fan.
Not having to be given to Ning Fan as a concubine by her father was clearly a good thing.
She clearly disliked Ning Fan and did not want to marry him, yet at this moment, stealing a glance at Ning Fan’s departing figure, she suddenly felt a bit sad.
She had a feeling that Ning Fan’s departure marked the end of his ties with the Fusang Clan, never to return.
A farewell without a date, a missed encounter...
"He never liked me... if I had been more sensible before, would he not have disliked me so much..."
Tang Yuan sat in her boudoir, feeling terribly stifled inside.
A day later, the Fusang Clan buried the ancestor’s ashes in the imperial tomb of Muye Kingdom.
The place had interred the ceremonial tombs of past Bamboo Emperors and Void Fragmentation of Bamboo Hall but never the ashes of a cultivator.
Tang Yuan knelt before the tomb of the Fusang Old Demon, her eyes red from crying.
After all the Fusang people had finished paying their respects, they left the imperial tomb, waiting outside, leaving only Tang Yuan who refused to leave.
The Fusang Old Demon was her grandfather, who always pampered her, shaping her spoiled and willful character.
From now on, there would be no more grandfather’s indulgence. She needed to gradually learn to be sensible, to no longer be willful, and to take on the responsibilities the family bestowed upon her.
At some point, a young man in white suddenly appeared in the tomb, in front of the Fusang Old Demon’s grave.
When Tang Yuan noticed and turned around, seeing the young man’s face, she was immediately startled and exclaimed in shame and annoyance, "Do you want to die! Sneaking up behind someone to scare them is fun?"
"I have never heard of a Nascent Soul cultivator being scared to death. If Miss Tang Yuan can be frightened to death by me, it would probably be enough to become an anecdote in the cultivation world, worthy of leaving a mark in history." Ning Fan teased.
"Hmph, slick talker, not a good person!" Tang Yuan muttered under her breath, but in her heart, she was secretly delighted, never expecting to see Ning Fan again.
"Oh? Miss Tang Yuan hasn’t learned her lesson yet and still dares to scold me? Aren’t you afraid I’ll throw you into the lair of the ferocious beasts of Half-Step Void Refinement Realm?"
"No, no, please! Master, my dear master, let’s talk things through, no need for violence! Gentlemen use words, not fists; great people don’t mind little grievances! Please, don’t take it personally with me, don’t throw me into the beast’s lair..." Tang Yuan immediately backed down, utterly lacking in dignity.
"Interesting. From today onward, cultivate well. Break through to the Divinity Transformation and Void Refinement early. Next time I come to the Eastern Tree Ocean, I might really throw you into the lair of the ferocious beast of Void Refinement Realm. Without the Void Refinement cultivation, you’ll have no ability to protect yourself."
Ning Fan’s lips curled slightly upwards as he turned to leave.
He realized Tang Yuan wasn’t completely without merit, at least she was a filial daughter.
The word ’filial’ wasn’t common among cultivators, very few understood how to be filial to their elders...
Though this girl was stubborn, she was much better than many cultivators; at the very least, she was a ’human.’
Being a person down the mountain, becoming an immortal up the mountain, she had a greater chance on the path to immortality than many cultivators, didn’t she?
Ning Fan left Jishui City, left the Muye Kingdom, and sped all the way towards the Western Tree Ocean.
Tang Yuan watched Ning Fan’s escape light vanish into the horizon with a slight feeling of loss mixed with anticipation.
"He told me to cultivate diligently... He said there will be a next time we meet, and he’ll throw me into the lair of ferocious beasts of Void Refinement Realm..."
Suddenly, Tang Yuan felt it wouldn’t be so bad to be thrown into the beast’s lair, as she could meet Ning Fan once more, couldn’t she?
"Alright, from today onwards, I’ll become a diligent cultivator, so that next time we meet, you’ll be amazed!"
"Master, you just wait! This little girl won’t disappoint you!"
...
Ning Fan sped through, from the Eastern Tree Ocean to the Southern Tree Ocean, then from the Southern Tree Ocean to the Western Tree Ocean.
By the time he reached the Western Tree Ocean, more than a month had passed.
After another seven days, he finally arrived at Vine King City in the Western Tree Ocean.
Before he even entered the city, Liu Haoyue was there to welcome him outside the city.
"Brother Lu, you came a bit late. I’ve already inspected the Vine King City four days ago, and the century-long accumulations of the Vine Hall are now stored in the Cauldron Ring of the Vine King Hall. Would Brother Lu like to take a look?"
Having said this, Liu Haoyue’s gaze suddenly turned cold, and he sent a message to Ning Fan, "There are two Four Deacons in the Vine King Hall, investigating the death of the Vine Emperor. They want to see you specifically; they may not come with goodwill, so be cautious in your dealings!"
"Four Deacons?!"
Ning Fan’s gaze also darkened.
Killing a Divine Emperor of the lower realms, as long as it was done secretly, nobody would intervene.
If a cultivator from this realm killed another without it relating to a conflict between the realms, nobody would care.
But if a cultivator from a different realm infiltrated another, slaying a Divine Emperor, without a satisfactory explanation to the Four Deacons, it wouldn’t be dismissed and would definitely be pursued for responsibility!
If the Four Deacons didn’t oversee the lower realms, wouldn’t the strong of the Upper Three Worlds be able to enter the Three Lower Worlds at will, slaughtering Divine Emperors with impunity?
The presence of the Four Deacons exists to patrol the lower realms, maintaining their stability.
The first is to catch cultivators who descend unauthorized, the second is to prevent strong realms from bullying weaker ones.
The involvement of the Tri-Realm Sect in the conflicts of the Tree World is something they need to investigate.
Ning Fan’s killing of the Vine Emperor is also a matter they need to investigate.
If these two Four Deacons find out that Ning Fan is a cultivator from the Rain Immortal World, they would likely use the decrees of the Four Heavens to apprehend and punish him.
For a cultivator from the Rain Immortal World to infiltrate the Tree World and kill its Vine Emperor, it is undoubtedly a severe crime.
However, if there’s a special reason, such as a vendetta that can only end with one of them dead, maybe Ning Fan wouldn’t be held guilty for killing the Vine Emperor.
"Brother Lu, do you have confidence in dealing with these two Four Deacons? If necessary, I’ll think of a way to help Brother Lu settle this!" Liu Haoyue sent a message to inquire.
"I have a bit of confidence, but not much..." Ning Fan gently shook his head, suddenly focusing his gaze towards the Vine King Hall.
From the Vine King Hall, he detected a very familiar presence.
One of the two Four Deacons currently in the Vine King Hall, he recognized!
"It’s actually Senior Wei Xuan!"
Wei Xuan is the brother of the Old Monster!
With Wei Xuan covering for him, this incident might not become problematic...
"It’s just uncertain whether the other Deacon is friend or foe..." Ning Fan frowned. (To be continued. If you like this work, feel free to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users should go to m.qidian.com to read.)