novelraw Chapter 637: Straw Hat Elder
Chapter 637: Straw Hat Elder
The difficulty of restoring the Ancient Golden Sword far exceeded Ning Fan’s expectations.
Five days passed, and Ning Fan had only managed to preliminarily restore the ancient sword using Ganglv Gold, with no time left to use the Xuan Huang Crystal to enhance the sword’s quality.
The restored ancient sword, while slightly slower than Nieli, was faster than most Void Fragmentation Cultivators.
Enhancing the sword’s quality with the Xuan Huang Crystal is even more challenging, but if successful, the sword’s speed could rival that of an Immortal, which isn’t out of the question.
"Even if I have the Xuan Huang Crystal in hand, I can only wait for a time when I have plenty of time to start refining the ancient sword. The speed at the peak of Void Fragmentation fifth level should suffice."
Ning Fan put away the ancient sword and Xuan Huang Crystal and took out five Superior Treasure of Immortal’s Abode, extracting the power of each to devour them.
With the hundredfold refinement speed of the Xuan Yin Treasure, Ning Fan quickly absorbed the five Superior Treasure powers and integrated them into his Life-bound Cave Heaven.
Within the Life-bound Cave Heaven, out of seventy-two silver lands, eight lands had already been dyed golden.
Ning Fan opened his eyes and stretched out his hand, in his palm, a dazzling silver vortex swirled, slightly tinged with gold.
"To further enhance the power of this technique, I must seek out a large number of Superior Cave Heaven Treasures... it won’t be easy."
Ning Fan rose, standing in the gloomy sky, his spirit sense sweeping back to the thatched cottage behind him.
Inside the thatched cottage, Luo You was slowly absorbing the power of various heavenly materials and earthly treasures, restoring the Spirit.
Ning Fan did not disturb Luo You; with a wave of his hand, he retrieved an item from the Rain Emperor’s storage pouch.
It was a Lower Grade Immortal Void Array Plate.
Ning Fan set up the array plate, pinched a spirit sense, and the plate immediately spun in the sky, laying down a large spiritual formation around the cottage.
This formation could speed up Luo You’s absorption of medicinal power.
In the Rain Emperor’s storage pouch, there were no powerful offensive magical treasures, but there were many life-preserving and cultivation-related items.
An empty Rain Gate jade slip, a Cloud Duel Talisman, a Array Plate to speed up cultivation, a hundred thousand Dao Crystals, and three Royal Immortal Talismans.
The Royal Immortal Talisman is a defensive type of Immortal Talisman. Once activated, it can block one attack from an Immortal, but each talisman can only block one attack.
In case of being pursued by an Immortal, the Rain Emperor could use the Royal Immortal Talisman to block an attack and then quickly escape using the Cloud Duel Talisman.
Unfortunately, he ultimately could not escape the rogue devil’s grasp.
This storage pouch also contained several ancient scriptures, which even Ning Fan did not dare to underestimate.
Among them, the Sovereign Rain Primordial Art is a must-learn cultivation technique for generations of Rain Emperors. Ning Fan had already cultivated it, so he didn’t value it too highly.
What Ning Fan valued greatly were the Crane Riding Scripture, Ascending Clouds Scripture, and Feathering Scripture.
These are three ancient scriptures recording the process of three Immortals comprehending life and death.
The first Immortal secluded himself in the mortal world for a thousand years, calling himself Plum Wife and Crane Children, taking joy in raising cranes. After a thousand years, he comprehended life and death, riding a crane to become immortal.
The second Immortal lived alone in a valley for five hundred years, gazing at the ocean of clouds in the morning and watching the sunset in the evening. After five hundred years, he suddenly realized and ascended through the clouds to become immortal.
The third Immortal introduced life and death into his body, making his physical body dead still while his Spirit continuously lived, and then his body perished, and his Spirit feathered and ascended.
These three ancient scriptures contain the Immortals’ insights into becoming immortal, invaluable treasures for Ning Fan.
"Comprehending life and death, ascending to become immortal..."
Ning Fan put away the three ancient scriptures, his gaze subtly focused.
He had already comprehended reality but had not yet seen through life and death.
The path to becoming immortal is still a distant goal...
Ning Fan’s figure flickered as he returned to the external palace.
At this moment, night had just fallen outside. When daylight breaks, the grand competition will be held.
Ning Fan intended to rest well and maintain his state at its peak.
He was about to return to the couch to meditate when he saw a woman sitting on it, leaning against the bedpost in a light slumber.
This woman was Huayu, a Nascent Soul female cultivator of the Baiyu Clan. Her sleep was light, and Ning Fan’s approach woke her.
"Huayu pays respects to the Ancestor!"
Huayu immediately stood up and knelt in front of Ning Fan.
Today, she was still dressed in feathered robes, but beneath them, she seemed to be wearing little, only thin gauze...
In her eyes was a trace of helplessness, a hint of shyness, and a thread of determination.
"Why have you come to see me in the dead of night?" Ning Fan waved his sleeve, helping Huayu to stand.
"I, I..." Huayu bit her lip, summoning her courage to say, "I am willing to offer myself, asking the Ancestor for pity."
"Offer yourself?"
Ning Fan took a deep look at Huayu.
Though he hadn’t known her long, he knew she wasn’t a frivolous person.
Once, while using the Mind Reading Technique, he discovered a matter hidden in her heart.
The former Divine Transformation Realm old ancestor of the Baiyu Clan had taken a fancy to Huayu, wanting to make her a concubine.
But Huayu preferred isolation for a hundred years, stubbornly refusing the old ancestor’s order.
Even in face of strong authority, this woman had never offered herself.
Yet tonight, she came to him, offering herself...
Ning Fan didn’t narcissistically believe she had feelings for him.
Therefore, her offering must come with a motive.
Activating the Mind Reading Technique, Ning Fan quickly understood her thoughts, letting out a sigh in his heart.
Her reason for offering herself to Ning Fan was grounded.
She knew Ning Fan was powerful but also thought him lecherous by nature.
Once Baimu had shamed countless women in the clan, leading to his expulsion from the clan.
Huayu was grateful to Ning Fan for saving her and the remaining clan members, but feared Ning Fan might violate all the women.
Her idea was simple, to use her body to ensure the safety of the other women.
"Yes, Huayu is willing to submit to the Ancestor, hoping for his pity."
With that, Huayu began to untie her feathered robe, beneath which only thin gauze lay, and beneath that, no other clothing, revealing vague allure...
In her eyes, a hint of self-harm was well hidden.
Soiling herself to save her sisters seemed worthwhile, didn’t it?
Imagining about to be ruthlessly ravaged by Ning Fan, Huayu’s face turned slightly pale.
She extended her slender fingers, about to remove her gauze to reveal her graceful form completely.
"Foolish. Don’t worry, I won’t touch any of the Baiyu Clan’s female cultivators, you can rest easy. Have a good rest here, as for serving me, it’s not necessary."
Ning Fan lifted a finger, and with the faintest hint of Yin Plucking Finger, touched Huayu’s forehead.
Huayu immediately collapsed softly on the couch behind her, falling into a deep sleep.
Ning Fan pulled a thin blanket over her delicate form, then turned and walked out of the room.
He is a selfish person, capable of committing countless killings for personal gain.
But he does not dislike selfless people; at this moment, he suddenly thought of Yin Suqiu, who had already ascended to the southern heavenly gate.
The cultivation world is extremely cruel; only by being selfish can one preserve oneself.
The selfless are undeniably foolish, but they are not wrong, they are simply born at the wrong time.
In this era, the weak are as worthless as grass; truth be told, this is not the kind of era Ning Fan yearns for.
Just like the women on the painting boat on the River Gazing Tower, unable to choose their destinies.
Just like the Baiyu Clan’s women, if Ning Fan hadn’t saved them, they would have long been Cauldron Furnaces for the Xuan He Clan cultivators.
Just like Ning Fan, if he hadn’t fought against fate, he would have died in the desperate night of the All Pleasure Sect.
Ning Fan stood with his hands behind him in the night, slowly walking out of the palace, approaching the brightly lit River Gazing Tower outside.
By the river, Ning Fan stood the whole night.
On the River Gazing Tower, women occasionally played music and sang, their singing voices melodious.
The words were clearly joyous, the singing voice clearly flawless, but Ning Fan found the song profoundly unpleasant.
The tune is joyous, but the people are sorrowful.
The women in the song and dance do not like their fate, only powerless to struggle, powerless to resist.
They live, but their hearts are dead, their thoughts turned to ashes.
"Alive... yet dead at heart... there exists in this the meaning of life and death," Ning Fan murmured to himself.
This murmuring was suddenly met with a voice of agreement beside him, startling Ning Fan.
"What you say is very true, young friend. Though these songwomen live, their hearts are dead. The song itself embodies the essence of life and death. I listen here to this tune, precisely for this essence... The Yuan Emperor created these songwomen to forge connections with the old monsters in Tianyuan City and garner their allegiance. I do not approve of his methods!"
The speaker was a skinny old man wearing a straw hat and rain cape. He held a fishing rod, fishing by the River Gazing, devoid of any sign of magical power.
The old man seemed like an ordinary mortal, yet Ning Fan knew well that no mortals could exist in Tianyuan City.
When did this old man appear next to Ning Fan? Ning Fan was completely unaware.
No, it should be said that the old man had always been fishing here, and Ning Fan simply had not seen him until now.
It wasn’t until he spoke that Ning Fan noticed the old man beside him!
His method of concealing his presence was truly defying the heavens!
Even characters such as the Rain Emperor or Moksha Emperor could not hide from Ning Fan and remain undiscovered beside him.
Though this old man showed no sign of magical power, his strength far exceeded the Moksha Emperor, stronger than the Cloud Lions, stronger than the Tri-Realm Sect Master!
Ning Fan spread out his spirit sense slightly to probe the old man’s details, only to find his aura deep and immeasurable like the ocean.
"Rogue devil!"
In almost an instant, Ning Fan determined that the old man fishing was a rogue devil!
The Demon World had three great rogue devil old monsters, each sequestered in their own territory, meditating in an attempt to break through to the Fate Immortal Realm.
The rogue devil who would leisurely appear in Tianyuan City was likely the terrifying old monster seated in the Earth Yuan Palace.
The Old Yuan Emperor, Tan Tianyan!
Ning Fan was quite sure, viewing the old man before him, that this was indeed Tan Tianyan.
However, the old man gave him a strange feeling, although a rogue devil, his aura was somewhat off, as if he was injured.
The straw hat elder naturally knew Ning Fan was investigating him, yet didn’t care at all.
He actually held some goodwill towards Ning Fan.
He had fished here for years, yet no one could see him.
As the elder sat long here, his gaze dim, he watched as the current Yuan Emperor sacrificed songwomen to befriend countless old monsters.
He knew naturally why the current Yuan Emperor acted thus.
Inside the elder, the yin and yang of the demon soul had separated, death was near. His death would surely trigger turmoil in the Earth Yuan Palace.
The current Yuan Emperor needed to forge numerous alliances to stabilize the Earth Yuan Palace’s position.
The elder understood these reasons, hence did not stop the Yuan Emperor’s actions.
However, he disapproved of the Yuan Emperor’s methods, as Tan Tianyan had always despised tyranny, never killing an innocent weakling.
He also never used women to secure alliances.
Though he was a Master, he had once befriended a mortal emperor.
That mortal emperor was long deceased, but lived by certain principles throughout his life, the same principles as Tan Tianyan’s in both conduct and mindset.
No marriage alliances, no reparations, no land cessions, no tributes; the emperor guards the frontier, the king dies defending the land.
This was a form of integrity and perseverance.
Tan Tianyan held his principles firmly. When he saw a Fourth Heavenly Layer of the Void Fragmentation Realm monster killing in Tianyuan City solely for amusement, he unhesitatingly struck him down!
On the path of cultivation, there is no wrong in killing, for this path cannot avoid conflict.
But to kill for pleasure is to bring shame to a Master.
The straw hat elder sat there exuding a natural Dao resonance.
His heart held steadfast persistence, and his own Dao.
He had seen many people here, many old monsters had come to the River Gazing selecting women to indulge in debauchery in their palaces.
Only Ning Fan’s gaze upon the beautiful songwomen was as clear as water.
Only a clear spirit sense could discern the essence of life and death within the song.
The straw hat elder faced away from Ning Fan, never once looking at him, yet it seemed he had seen through Ning Fan countless times.
He had perceived that Ning Fan had taken a pill to hide his aura, the rank of which was extraordinarily high, concealing Ning Fan’s true cultivation to the extent that only after using a secret technique could he glimpse Ning Fan’s details.
A bone age of a thousand years, a Void Fragmentation cultivator!
Ning Fan’s exceptional talent was something the straw hat elder had never seen in his life.
Especially Ning Fan’s spirit sense and Dao Enlightenment, which intrigued the straw hat elder immensely.
The straw hat elder also saw that Ning Fan had a steadfast heart, unyielding.
Though he was a rogue devil, to the Ten Emperors of the Demon World, he was a senior.
Yet he addressed Ning Fan as a young friend, naturally regarding Ning Fan as a peer.
"You are not a Master of the Demon World, are you? The aura of a cultivator from the Nine Worlds has subtle differences..." the straw hat elder stated calmly.
Ning Fan’s heart was secretly taken aback, this man’s divine skills were truly vast to instantly deduce he was not from the Demon World.
"Your hidden identity entering the Demon World to partake in the Dragon Fishing Conference, I will not question your motives, but Tianyuan City has its own rules, and you must not kill wantonly within the city," the straw hat elder also noticed Ning Fan’s shocking Evil Qi, a powerful demon owl dominating a region, hence the reminder.
"What if others provoke me first?" Ning Fan’s gaze slightly hardened, asking in return.
"Kill!" The straw hat elder’s eyes suddenly flashed with a blood-red glow, formed by condensed Evil Qi.
His Evil Qi was no weaker than Ning Fan’s.
The blood on his hands from past killings would not be less than Ning Fan’s.
"I guarantee not to kill wantonly in Tianyuan City, but if anyone provokes me, I will hold back no longer," Ning Fan cupped his fist respectfully to the elder.
"That will suffice. I’ve only had one friend in my life, a mere mortal, long deceased. Pity! Meeting you today, young friend, we seem to connect quite well. The Ascension Tower will hold a grand competition after daybreak; surely, you will participate?"
"Yes."
"If that’s the case, let me share a secret with you. The Ascension Tower earned its name because within it lies a great secret of life and death, aiding in ascension. Upon the stone walls of its five hundred chambers lie the Dao Enlightenment of life and death from my ’Yuan Wing Clan’s’ ancestors throughout history. Those who hold this jade of the Yuan Emperor may comprehend these walls and cultivate Life and Death Qi. The Dao Enlightenment on the walls of the first twenty chambers belonged to Immortals. This jade, you may borrow!"
Without seeing the elder’s movement, a golden ancient jade suddenly flew through the air.
Engraved on the golden ancient jade was a pattern of a large golden bird, an ancient demonic beast known as the Yuan Wing, said to have feasted on dragons in ancient times.
The ancient jade carried an unstoppable might, one that even a Third Heavenly Layer Void Fragmentation cultivator might not withstand.
As Ning Fan retreated, he flicked his fingers rapidly, directing Yin Plucking Finger at the jade, dispersing its momentum.
After flicking several dozen times, he finally removed the ancient jade’s momentum, capturing it steadily in his hand.
When he looked again, the elder was nowhere to be found.
His spirit sense scanned the ancient jade, finding nothing amiss.
The elder hadn’t mentioned when to return the jade, but presumably, he would retrieve it when necessary.
Ning Fan’s eyes glinted slightly, though the elder seemed injured, his strength was slightly superior to a rogue devil...
Once healed, this person should easily defeat a rogue devil.
"So this is the strength of the Old Yuan Emperor... it’s unexpected, receiving such an opportunity from him. Acting on impulse, perhaps..."
"If the five hundred chambers in the Ascension Tower all hold Dao Enlightenment of life and death, then once I enter the tower, I should examine the walls of various chambers... Dao Enlightenment of life and death, huh.
Ning Fan put away the ancient jade, his gaze steeling.
Opportunities to comprehend the profound Dao of life and death are rare. This is an opportunity, a crucial one for ascension, not to be missed.
The night wanes as day breaks.
On the northern edge of Tianyuan City, outside the Ascension Tower, countless cultivators were arriving.
Today, within the Ascension Tower, there would be a competition; following the battles, five hundred strong contenders would be chosen to participate in the Dragon Fishing Conference!
The Clan Leader of the Xuan He Clan was also utilizing an ancient teleportation array, summoning friends from afar to gather in Tianyuan City!
He was a Void Refinement Realm expert, accompanied by three helpers, each with Void Refinement cultivation.
"Baimu! I will make sure you die within the Ascension Tower!" the Clan Leader of the Xuan He Clan sneered inwardly. (To be continued. If you enjoyed this work, you are welcome to vote for it on Qidian (qidian.com) with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read it at m.qidian.com.)