Free Web NovelChapter 1215: Chapter 1215: Will You Forgive Your Senior Brother...
A drop of kindness should be repaid with a torrent, let alone a life-saving grace twice.
Though Emperor Haisha is not a benevolent person, he’s not one to forget favors. He is willing to exhaust his life’s accumulation to repay Ning Fan’s life-saving grace! He plans to use the best sea wine, the fattest spirit fish, and host a ten-day feast to entertain Ning Fan!
Unfortunately, Ning Fan doesn’t have time to linger at the Haisha Sect; he is destined not to attend the entire ten-day feast.
Faced with the warm hospitality of the Haisha Sect, Ning Fan truly feels a bit helpless, yet regardless of the feelings, the sect must be kicked! No matter how grateful and respectful the other party is, he has to be ruthless and kick this Haisha Sect once! There’s no choice; this matter concerns not only the tradition of the Black Demon Sect but also the life of the All-Knowing Elder. You must know, the All-Knowing Elder pressed down a vow for this ridiculous affair! If Ning Fan doesn’t kick each of the sect forces listed on the materials list but instead takes shortcuts to obtain the items, who knows if the All-Knowing Elder will pay a heavy price for the vow!
Weighing both sides, Ning Fan could only apologize to all of Haisha Sect.
The sect, he must kick!
However, there are many ways to kick a sect: for enemies, he will kick heavily; for someone like Emperor Haisha without grievances, he can kick a bit lighter, without smashing Haisha Sect into a state of ruin like the Light Clan.
"I’m really not the good person you speak of... for the last time, I’m here not to save you, but to kick the sect!" Ning Fan hid his helpless smile and pretended to speak coldly.
"Kick the sect? Senior has already mentioned this eight hundred times, but I know, your words are just jokes with me, hehe, Senior really is amusing!" With that, Emperor Haisha turned and instructed the disciples around.
"Children, the senior is telling us a joke, making us happy; everyone, laugh together! Whoever doesn’t laugh is disregarding the senior, disregarding me, Sha Jianglong! Humph! Lux Laoqi, why aren’t you laughing?! Do you look down on the senior’s joke?! Seeking a beating! And you, Xux Sifeng! I know you’re cultivating Cry Zen, a laugh would break your eons of cultivation, but even so, you must laugh! You must give the senior face! You cannot let the senior be embarrassed!"
With Emperor Haisha’s command, the entire Haisha Sect instantly turned into a sea of laughter, though most cultivators found Ning Fan’s cold joke unfunny.
"Enough, I don’t want to explain further..."
Ning Fan waved his hand to halt the banquet. He refused to waste any more words with Emperor Haisha as he must harden his heart and quickly complete the necessary task instead of being forcibly kept for some banquet!
He leaped into the sky, high up in the starry sky, his cold gaze sweeping down on Haisha Sect, his vast mana spreading out, and the Evil Qi locking onto the entire Haisha Sect!
Well, the cold gaze is just a pretense. Even if the matter relates to the All-Knowing Elder’s life, Ning Fan’s nature could never truly be cold toward Haisha Sect.
For others’ respect, he returns with more. The entire Haisha Sect revered him akin to an ancestor; this time kicking the sect, it is he who owes Haisha Sect.
Enough, enough... Once the All-Knowing Elder is saved, in the future, he will make up for the Haisha Sect!
"Fragmentation Cauldron, fall for me..."
Not genuinely wanting to smash Haisha Sect, Ning Fan didn’t use the almighty Ant Lord Tao Mountain to smash Haisha Sect’s portal, only used the less powerful Fragmentation Cauldron.
The Fragmentation Cauldron was the old monster’s magical treasure, long refined by Ning Fan’s Medicine Soul, merged into his Medicine Soul. The Fragmentation Cauldron he summoned now was naturally not a real entity but a transformed illusory Medicine Soul, emitting golden light. Using the Nine Revolutions Golden Medicinal Soul to smash an Immortal Emperor sect causes nearly no damage, thus easing Ning Fan’s guilt.
All Golden Core Alchemists’ Medicine Souls surface is plated with gold. When transformed into a cauldron, it is naturally plated gold as well. But this is not the true color of Ning Fan’s Medicine Soul!
Upon closer inspection, it’s revealed beneath the gold plating lies a five-color change, influenced by the Five-Color Medicine Soul; many butterfly phantoms float on the cauldron, those butterflies are the shape of Ning Fan’s Medicine Soul.
With Ning Fan’s command, the Fragmentation Cauldron smashed towards an uninhabited area of Haisha Sect’s portal, striking thrice!
"Senior, you are... truly kicking the sect!"
Emperor Haisha’s expression changed, at this moment, the entire Haisha Sect finally began to believe Ning Fan’s intentions.
But what of it?
Emperor Haisha quickly regained a warm smile; he didn’t care if Ning Fan truly wanted to kick the sect, he cared only that Ning Fan indeed saved his life twice!
He firmly believed Ning Fan held no malice toward him or Haisha Sect! If there were malice, given Ning Fan’s profound cultivation, eradicating Haisha Sect would be as effortless as turning a hand, why bother talking so many times! Why use a less powerful cauldron to smash an uninhabited portal area! Clearly, just smashing for fun!
Play?
Yes! How could I not have thought of this! Emperor Haisha immediately reproached himself, sighing towards the sky.
"So that’s it, so that’s it! I thought Senior Zhao Jian’s hobby was telling boring jokes, which is why he strictly ordered disciples to laugh heartily. I didn’t expect that the senior’s hobby wasn’t that at all, his true hobby is kicking a sect for fun! Kicking a sect as a hobby is indeed a bit of an oddity, but I’ve seen even stranger old monsters, this is hardly surprising! The one at fault isn’t the senior, it’s me! It’s me! I said I would generously thank him and invite him to a banquet, yet I didn’t even bother to understand his interests beforehand and hastily arranged a feast. No wonder the senior wasn’t interested in a ten-day feast! Had I known earlier that the senior was interested in kicking a sect, why would the senior need to personally take action? There are always subordinates to do the work! As long as I can entertain the senior, what does a small sect matter? In ancient times, people lit beacons to make beauties smile; I, Sha Jianglong, sacrifice a mere sect for the senior’s smile, what does it matter! Uh, that analogy might be a bit inappropriate, forget it, that’s unimportant! What’s important is the senior, it’s the senior!"
At this moment, Emperor Haisha truly seemed to have become Ning Fan’s fervent follower!
Even if Ning Fan were to destroy the world, he would rationalize it in his mind and find a reason for Ning Fan!
"Children! What are you standing there for, quickly cheer for the senior! Beautiful! That cauldron smashed beautifully, smashed marvelously! Zhao Laowu, why are you still standing there! Quickly comprehend the changes in the Medicine Soul within this cauldron! Aren’t you at a crucial moment of breaking through to the Ninth Revolution Pill Refinement Master? Senior Zhao Jian is using the Nine Revolutions Golden Medicinal Soul! If you can comprehend even a bit from this, it will be greatly beneficial for you! Of course, comprehension is one thing, don’t forget to applaud, understand?"
"Qin Buyan! I told you to cheer for the senior, why aren’t you clapping! Do you dare to disobey orders?! Uh, well, I have been busy lately with seclusion waiting for tribulation, I forgot that a few days ago you lost your hands in the elimination of an Exotic Immortal King invasion and your word spirit ability was sealed, now you can neither clap nor speak... but you can at least squeeze out some happy expression! The senior will only smash happily if he sees you happy, got it?"
"Quick, quick, quick! The senior is about to smash the third cauldron! From the senior’s restrained movements, this strike is the last and most important one! Everyone hold your breath, observe carefully, don’t miss this cauldron! The senior is an ancient great cultivator, even a casual strike contains supreme method, understanding even a trace would bring great fortune... Hiss! What, what’s happening, beneath the sect gate, why is there the roar of a Yunsheng Beast!!!"
Just a moment ago, Emperor Haisha was rallying the disciples to cheer for Ning Fan’s sect-kicking antics.
The next moment, he suddenly showed a look of shock, and amidst the shock, a trace of fear emerged.
It turned out that the location where Ning Fan smashed the Fragmentation Cauldron on the sect gate, the soil suddenly broke open, a myriad of cloud light leaked from beneath, from within which continuous beast roars emerged!
That was the roar of a Yunsheng Beast!
The location Ning Fan smashed in the sect gate unexpectedly concealed a Yunsheng Beast, and coincidentally, Ning Fan’s random smashing of three cauldrons revealed its form, forcing it to show itself! ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
Upon seeing the Yunsheng Beast reveal its form, not only Emperor Haisha but the entire Haisha Sect were all shocked!
It must be known, Yunsheng Beast is not a demonic beast of the Northern Heaven, but a strange beast living in the North Heavenly Realm River, part of the Northern Heaven Exotic Clans!
The Cloud Beast Clan isn’t the strongest among the Northern Heaven Exotic Clans, but they are the best at concealment secret techniques! It is rumored that even though a young Cloud Beast’s cultivation isn’t high, it can hide through cloud light, evading True Immortal Perception; when an adult Cloud Beast deploys cloud technique, it can prevent an Immortal Emperor from detecting its whereabouts; if its cloud technique reaches Transformation Realm, even a Quasi-Saint would find it hard to detect its existence!
The Cloud Beast is naturally a scout!
The Exotic Clans not only invade Northern Heaven by transmitting armies via Ancient Chaos Grand Emperor Demon Gates but secretly dispatched numerous Cloud Beasts to hide in Northern Heaven, spying on Northern Heaven intelligence.
Emperor Haisha couldn’t have anticipated that within his own sect, a Yunsheng Beast was hiding!
No, this isn’t an ordinary Yunsheng Beast, judging by the number of its cloud patterns, this is a cloud technique accomplished Yunsheng Beast, its strength comparable to a Sixth Calamity Immortal Emperor!
Beside the pillow, a Different Race Immortal Emperor lying dormant, and Emperor Haisha hadn’t detected it beforehand, how could he not be shocked!
It must be noted, he was undergoing a Heavenly Tribulation earlier! Ning Fan’s arrival was just an accident, what if Ning Fan hadn’t come?
If Ning Fan hadn’t come, he would hardly have had any hope of successfully crossing tribulation; even if he succeeded by chance, this Immortal Emperor Yunsheng Beast lurking here might have taken advantage of his post-tribulation weakness to ambush him!
So that’s it, so that’s it!
"No wonder Senior Zhao Jian inexplicably wanted to kick the sect, as it turns out, he wasn’t interested in kicking the sect, but in smashing this Yunsheng Beast! He wants to help my Haisha Sect eliminate this enemy! What an open-hearted ancient path sentiment!" Emperor Haisha was deeply moved.
The same was true for the tens of thousands of disciples of Haisha Sect!
They were ashamed!
They were despicable!
They mistakenly believed that Ning Fan kicked people in the Sect for amusement! They judged the noble with the mind of a villain!
"...What’s going on? How is there still an Exotic Immortal Emperor hidden here, and I didn’t detect it beforehand? This beast’s concealment method is truly extraordinary!" Ning Fan felt both speechless and astonished at this moment.
He really just wanted to kick the Sect!
He truly didn’t know that casually smashing the Fragmentation Cauldron would unexpectedly reveal an Exotic Immortal Emperor!
He really... is a villain. But looking at the expressions of the Sea Sand Sect members, they clearly don’t believe him anymore.
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could a character like this appear in the Northern Heaven! This person can see through my Transformation Realm Cloud Technique, does this mean that as Emperor Sea Sand said, he’s an Ancient Great Cultivator?! Otherwise, how could he achieve this?" Amidst the sky filled with cloud light, the form of the Cloud Beast suddenly changed from beast to half-beast, half-human form, speaking human words.
At this moment, this Cloud Beast Immortal Emperor was full of fear; he had been hiding in the Sea Sand Sect for more than a few days. Months ago, a beast tide attacked the vicinity of the Sea Sand Sect, and it was during that event that he used it to teleport from the Northern Boundary River to this place.
His Cloud Technique had reached the Transformation Realm for millions of years, ranking among the top three within his race, and people called him by the alias Yunzhong Beast!
Occasionally, some low-level Cloud Beasts might hide in the Northern Heaven but get discovered, yet Yunzhong Beast had never been detected by anyone, not even Emperor Sea Sand knew!
Low-level Cloud Beasts were sent to the Northern Heaven to scout for information. Yunzhong Beast, as a top-tier Cloud Beast, was different; his task was not to spy but to assassinate! Using his Immortal Emperor cultivation and extraordinary concealment techniques, he sought opportunities to assassinate the North Heaven Immortal Emperor and weaken the Northern Heaven’s power!
Emperor Sea Sand was precisely his first assassination target! According to his plan, if Emperor Sea Sand successfully survived the True Immortal Tribulation, Yunzhong Beast would attack while he was weak; if Sea Sand failed the tribulation, it would be even easier.
Unexpectedly, Ning Fan would suddenly arrive to help Emperor Sea Sand through the Heavenly Tribulation! Yunzhong Beast’s assassination plan was completely ruined, and because Ning Fan hadn’t left yet, he dared not move hastily, worried about being noticed when leaving, thus he continued to hide within the Sea Sand Sect.
He was deeply shocked by the profound Mana Ning Fan displayed when breaking the Heavenly Tribulation, yet he still couldn’t believe Ning Fan was an Ancient Great Cultivator.
Why didn’t he believe it?
Because the Cloud Beast race is not only skilled in concealment but also adept at observing one’s facial features and detecting their bone age.
How could Yunzhong Beast not see Ning Fan’s real bone age? This person’s bone age was not even close to 200,000 years, how could he be an Ancient Great Cultivator!
Although not a Great Cultivator, the 17,000 Calamities of Mana couldn’t be fake, causing Yunzhong Beast to speculate and stay put for the time being.
He firmly believed that as long as he patiently hid without exposing his tracks, Ning Fan would definitely not detect his presence; he could wait until Ning Fan left the Sea Sand Sect to quietly leave and seek the next assassination target.
Yet, Yunzhong Beast calculated everything but didn’t foresee that Ning Fan could see through his Transformation Realm Cloud Technique!
One must understand, even among the Ancient Great Cultivators, not everyone can see through the Transformation Realm Cloud Technique! In Yunzhong Beast’s view, Ning Fan, who could see through his technique, must be not only an Ancient Great Cultivator but also one with unparalleled strength among them!
When did the North Heaven produce such a character!
Escape! Must escape! Must send intelligence about this person back to the Northern Boundary River! A formidable figure appearing in the Northern Heaven camp will surely affect the Boundary River’s balance!
"Eight thousand miles of clouds and moon!"
As soon as Yunzhong Beast emerged, he recited an incantation and transformed into a strand of cloud light to flee.
"You, cannot escape!"
Having slain many Exotic Clans in the Eastern Boundary River, how could Ning Fan not recognize Yunzhong Beast’s exotic identity? As an Eastern Celestial Cultivator, technically the North Heaven Exotic Clan conflict doesn’t concern him, but he had long intended to involve himself in this matter. Now that he encountered this unfortunate Immortal Emperor, he certainly wouldn’t let him go!
Moreover, he was equally interested in Yunzhong Beast’s concealment method; it was extremely extraordinary, even he hadn’t detected it beforehand! Had he not persisted in kicking the Sect, he would never have known an Exotic Cloud Beast was hiding here!
Though Ning Fan may not possess the ability to see through Yunzhong Beast’s concealment method, since the latter had exposed himself, he was absolutely not his match!
Does killing a Sixth Calamity Immortal Emperor require much effort? Not at all!
In Ning Fan’s right eye, tree shadows swirled, and with a snap of his Illusory Art, he instantly drew Yunzhong Beast into the Illusion Technique World of Primordial Rainy Night.
In the Illusion Technique World, long years passed.
In the real world, only an instant had gone by.
In this exceedingly brief moment, under the shocked gaze of everyone, including Emperor Sea Sand, Ning Fan effortlessly slaughtered a Sixth Calamity Immortal Emperor!
For Ning Fan, killing an Immortal Emperor isn’t something noteworthy.
But in others’ eyes, it’s an astonishing feat!
What is an Immortal Emperor! An Immortal Emperor is the pinnacle existence in the Era of Decline, the dream of countless cultivators of decline, but this dream couldn’t survive even an instant in Ning Fan’s hands.
This blow is undeniably tremendous!
Should this news spread, the Northern Heaven is bound to be stirred; the fall of an Immortal Emperor is no trivial matter!
"Is this the strength of an Ancient Great Cultivator! Even Immortal Emperors can be destroyed with a lift of the hand!" The disciples of the Sea Sand Sect had mixed expressions; some were struck with despair, while others had fervent gazes, looking at Ning Fan with more reverence and admiration!
Emperor Sea Sand was better off; he was an individual who experienced the chaos of the primitive and wild era and survived under the Yin Mo Ancestor, needing Ning Fan’s rescue to continue living. Immortal Emperors are supreme? He had long discarded such old concepts, thus, he was the first to recover from the shock.
Thud!
Emperor Sea Sand knelt to Ning Fan again!
"Thank you, Senior, for removing the formidable enemy from my Sea Sand Sect! The gratitude of Senior, I have no way to repay, only wish to serve at the Fortune Tower throughout my life, adding a little fortune for Senior!"
Thud, thud, thud!
More Sea Sand Sect disciples knelt together! If not for Ning Fan removing Yunzhong Beast, who knows what kind of slaughter the Exotic Immortal Emperor would have caused in the Sea Sand Sect?
They understood gratitude!
They also understood remorse!
They previously misunderstood Ning Fan as truly wanting to kick the Sect; they were not human, not human at all!
"You don’t need to thank me, this is a misunderstanding... never mind, I won’t bother explaining, as you won’t believe me anyway, think whatever you like. Anyway, the kicks are done; the Sect-kicking ceremony is fulfilled. Now, I want to snatch something from you; half a pound of Taiyin Divine Sand, will you give it or not?" Ning Fan was no longer pretending to appear cold; with a face full of helplessness and a wry smile, he said.
"Taiyin Divine Sand? Such an unworthy trinket, what does Senior want it for?" Emperor Sea sand was slightly taken aback, then teary-eyed, feeling even more moved.
He understood, understood again!
Ning Fan has a great favor towards the Sea Sand Sect yet only asks for half a pound of sand as repayment, not seeking the reward itself but to sever the cause and effect!
He didn’t wish to have any ties with the Sea Sand Sect!
The cause and effect of an Ancient Great Cultivator is not a debt to owe so easily!
To owe Ning Fan cause and effect, who knows if in the future when Ning Fan gets involved in certain dangers, whether the Sea Sand Sect would get implicated by Heaven’s prediction and be wiped out along with it.
But if the cause and effect are severed, it would be different; in the future, bridges would stay bridges, roads would stay roads, if Ning Fan faces difficulties, the Sea Sand Sect would not be implicate by the Heavenly Dao.
"Senior is afraid of future troubles, causing us to be implicated, hence personally requested half a pound of sand, to protect our lives. Senior! Senior! What tremendous kindness you have shown, even considering future cause and effect, what qualifications do we have for such care from you! We are full of remorse, full of remorse!"
The Sea Sand Emperor, an old man with white hair and beard, was now crying like a child.
How many years has it been! He hasn’t felt the warmth of human affection in a long time! Apart from his mortal parents, he hasn’t felt care or love for too many years.
His heart, already numbed and selfish due to the cultivation blood sea, now felt a hint of warmth, a warmth given by Ning Fan, a warmth that only humans can feel!
He had originally avoided the Eternal Seventh Calamity like it was snake venom, but now he suddenly felt a pang of emotion!
Up the mountain to become immortal, down the mountain to be human, perhaps his current mindset was close to the Dao, and he actually felt a slight chance to break through the Eternal Seventh Calamity in this lifetime!
So, even the slight hope of breaking through the Eternal Seventh Calamity in this life was given by Ning Fan, wasn’t it! Shouldn’t he repay Ning Fan a hundred or thousand times!
But Ning Fan did not need his repayment!
Ning Fan only wanted... half a pound of sand, what an act of nobility!
"Why are you crying now? Could it be that this Taiyin Divine Sand is so precious to you?" Ning Fan felt a bit troubled.
Although he cared about the life of the all-knowing senior, he did not wish to cause too much harm to the Sea Sand Emperor because of this. What should he do now...
While he was thinking about it, the Sea Sand Emperor had already ordered several hundred loads of Taiyin Divine Sand to be brought up.
"..." Ning Fan realized he had overthought it, the Taiyin Divine Sand wasn’t actually that valuable, after all, the Sea Sand Emperor could easily bring out hundreds of loads...
"I only need half a pound of sand..." Ning Fan indicated for the Sea Sand Emperor to take back the excess Taiyin Divine Sand.
The Sea Sand Emperor was moved and insisted that Ning Fan take all the sand, otherwise his spirit sense would suffer remorse.
"...Forget it, I’ll just take them all, so you won’t blame me later if your spirit sense leaves a shadow."
"The senior clearly doesn’t want to take more, yet for our feelings, acts against his own will, what an act of nobility, what a..."
Before the Sea Sand Emperor could say more praises, Ning Fan had already taken his leave. If he didn’t leave now, he would really be driven crazy by the Sea Sand Emperor and others.
Such a group of fools! Talking with fools is so exhausting!
But he unexpectedly didn’t dislike these fools. Perhaps because more and more fools are gathering around him...
"Next, which sect should I ’kick’? Let me see..."
Ning Fan paused slightly in the starry sky, took out a material list and looked at it, then sped away again.
Half a day later, many old monsters from the Northern Heaven arrived at the Sea Sand Sect via various cross-domain teleportation formations, wanting to witness the grandeur of Zhao Jian, the ancient great cultivator. Unfortunately, when they arrived one after another, Ning Fan had already left, missing the chance to meet.
Not meeting face-to-face, that’s what this is about.
If said so, Ning Fan actually had affinity with the Sea Sand Emperor, otherwise, how could it be that he happened to stumble upon the other during his tribulation crossing. It’s absolutely impossible that there wasn’t some influence of cause and effect.
Even if it’s not the cause and effect of this life, it might be of the previous.
Even if it’s not the cause and effect of this reincarnation, it could be from another reincarnation.
The Heavenly Dao is vast and cause and effect are complicated, the more one thinks they understand, the less they actually do, the more confused they feel, yet paradoxically, they’re closer to the source.
Ning Fan considers himself one of those who doesn’t understand, because he doesn’t understand, he’s too lazy to ponder deeply, since even deep thinking might not be correct.
Perhaps Ning Fan’s good name has spread throughout the Northern Heaven, and his sect-kicking actions went surprisingly smoothly.
...
Hollow Thunder Sect.
Ning Fan just arrived at this sect, and the master of the Hollow Thunder Sect was delighted beyond words, speaking out Ning Fan’s intention.
"Are you the senior Zhao Jian?"
"...Yes."
"Indeed, it’s truly the righteous Zhao Jian senior coming in person! Is senior here to ’kick’ the sect?" The master of the Hollow Thunder Sect asked joyfully.
"...Yes." Ning Fan was puzzled. He came to ’kick’ the sect, why was the other so happy?
"Heavens have mercy! Senior is willing to come to my sect even to ’kick’ it, I’m truly blessed! May, may I make a small request before senior kicks the sect?" The master of the Hollow Thunder Sect suddenly knelt down.
"...I’m here to ’kick’ the sect, not to help people." Ning Fan felt the other misunderstood.
"Yes, yes, the senior is here to ’kick’ the sect, I understand, I understand. To be honest, I was hurt by an enemy’s secret treasure and the residual poison in my body is hard to clear. It requires the power of an Immortal Emperor to save me. Although it’s not life-threatening, the poison soul suffers daily. Please have mercy and use your mighty power to save me. When the task is accomplished, I’ll also offer the Fortune Tower as a tribute and present ten carts of Heavenly Jade and a hundred Jade Crystals as a token of gratitude... By the way, I haven’t yet asked what senior is here to ’snatch’, but whatever you need, I’ll gladly offer it up..." The master of the Hollow Thunder Sect said, kowtowing continuously. Clearly, he claimed to understand but deep down, he didn’t understand at all.
But who called him respectful and polite to Ning Fan...
Ning Fan just happens to be one who takes the soft and not the hard...
Thus, the development of the matter completely slipped from Ning Fan’s control...
Besides ’kicking’ the sect, Ning Fan inadvertently helped the master of the Hollow Thunder Sect alleviate the sufferings of the poison soul, which was a simple task even for an Immortal Emperor. With his vast mana, it took less than a hundred breaths to help the master of the Hollow Thunder Sect.
Then, amidst the gratitude of tens of thousands of disciples from the Hollow Thunder Sect, he casually smashed the Hollow Thunder Sect three times.
After finishing ’kicking’ the sect, he not only obtained the items required for ’kicking’ the sect but also received a large batch of gifts...
...
Blessed Offspring Sect.
Just as Ning Fan opened his mouth to say he was here to ’kick’ the sect, the Sect Leader of Blessed Offspring Sect immediately burst into tears, knelt down, and begged Ning Fan to help him complete a sacrifice, wishing to request a son, a sect heir from the heavens.
What’s going on! How could asking for a son end up with him!
But as it happens, this is merely a simple task, and the other party performed three prostrations and nine bows...
...
Ancestral Light Sect!
As soon as Ning Fan unexpectedly arrived, the Sect Master of Ancestral Light Sect knelt down without getting up, sobbing and pleading for Ning Fan’s help to locate the tomb of his ancestor...
Fine, Ning Fan’s divination skills aren’t too bad, and his Rain Technique Perception is top-notch. Finding a deserted tomb in the vast Northern Heaven isn’t difficult.
But the problem is... why is looking for a dragon’s lair coming to him! He’s here to ’kick’ the sect, ’kick’ the sect!
...
Half a month later.
Ning Fan finally finished confronting all the Northern Heavenly Sects.
Contrary to expectations of offending the entire Northern Heaven, he did not gain a legendary notorious reputation, but rather... a renowned and widespread good name.
Of course, the fame that spread was not under the name ’Ning Fan’, but rather the name of the Ancient Great Cultivator, Zhao Jian. Previously, although the name Zhao Jian was deeply revered by the Northern Heavenly Immortal Emperors, it was just an illusion, not all of them truly understood Zhao Jian’s ’noble character’.
But this time, the entire Northern Heaven recognized the noble personality of Senior Zhao Jian!
Whether it be the Mortal Star or the Cultivation Star, everywhere sung of Ning Fan’s touching deeds. It turns out, fanatics akin to Emperor Haisha under the influence of Zhao Jian were growing ever more in number, eager to spread Ning Fan’s touching stories throughout the entire Northern Heaven.
As a result, when Ning Fan returned to the All-Knowing Elder, having completed all the sect-kicking tasks, his face was nonetheless dark.
He didn’t care about his reputation, but he resented cheating the world for fame, even if it happened to himself and was beneficial without harm, he felt quite uncomfortable.
"Since the senior is known as all-knowing, naturally there is nothing you don’t know. I initially thought that the senior sending me to the Northern Heaven to confront the sects was a mad act and was once worried it might endanger the senior’s life if unsuccessful. Now it seems it was a plot the whole time, making me famous on purpose. It was only until now I learned that the materials you needed were all things of no worth! According to your resources, even if these things aren’t possible to have entirely, they aren’t likely missing either, and many could be bought at larger marketplaces or trading stars in the Northern Heaven. Yet you just had to make me kick the sects, wasting effort, were you not trying to prank me!" Ning Fan said with half anger, half laughter upon seeing the All-Knowing Elder.
He was really exasperated into laughter!
How could one not be angry being plotted, deceived; but the All-Knowing Elder had no ill intentions, which was truly laughable.
"Hehe, silly junior brother finally guessed right, I was really pranking you! Our Liangyi Sect traditions aren’t all virtuous traditions; spoiling the disciples is a good tradition, bullying newcomers is a bad tradition. Bringing disciples to confront the sects is a master’s task! Bullying junior brothers is a senior brother’s task! Junior brother, you still have a lot to learn!" The All-Knowing Elder said smugly as soon as he saw Ning Fan’s anger, exuding a provoking expression, clearly revealing the past insanity when making Ning Fan confront the sects was mere pretense.
"...Farewell!" Ning Fan became disinclined to continue speaking with the All-Knowing Elder, putting down his things, lightly clasping his fists, he turned away to leave.
This time, it was the All-Knowing Elder’s turn to become anxious!
Pranking junior brothers might be amusing, but if the prank drove his junior brother away, it wouldn’t be good!
"Stay, stay junior brother! Senior brother was wrong, senior brother won’t dare prank you anymore! Huh, wait, why do you have the scent of the Yunsheng Beast, strange, strange... uh, junior brother stay, why are you walking further away, junior brother!"
Seeing Ning Fan walking farther and farther away, the All-Knowing Elder realized he might have pushed it too far and really infuriated Ning Fan.
Could he not be angry!
Ning Fan genuinely regarded the All-Knowing Elder as family, which was why he was concerned about the elder’s life, why he willingly risked the world’s displeasure at the worst possible time to go confront the Northern Heaven sects.
Confront the sects? Of what monetary benefit would that be to Ning Fan! For the All-Knowing Elder’s sake, he was even ready in his heart to offend the entire Northern Heaven.
Only to find out in the end, it was all just a prank by the All-Knowing Elder. To be deceived by others would be one thing, but to be deceived by family is the hardest to accept.
Especially with the All-Knowing Elder’s previous smug face, it’s infuriating, if not for being unable to defeat him, Ning Fan would have gladly beaten this annoying old man. Haha, truly an annoying old man... A senior brother? If there’s such an annoying senior brother, he might just end up fighting with him all the time.
"Strangely enough, by nature, even being deceived, I wouldn’t get so angry; even if I was, I wouldn’t show it so outwardly... yet in front of Senior All-Knowing, I act so out of character. No, rather than calling it out of character, it seems to be a kind of freedom, acting at will, without having to hide my temper. Because it’s family, all the banter and quarrels are forgivable, and reconciliation follows after the fight... A senior brother, perhaps in some other cycle, we truly had a fellow disciple bond..."
Ning Fan’s footsteps did not stop, but his mind continued to ponder over these strange thoughts.
On the other side, seeing Ning Fan not turning around no matter how he called, the All-Knowing Elder truly panicked, truly regretted it. The price he paid for transforming into a crane to wreak havoc in the Twelfth Layer of the Earth Abyss hadn’t been light, and in the heat of urgency, he succumbed to a sudden attack, coughing out blood and fell.
Seeing the All-Knowing Elder was coughing blood from anxiety, how could Ning Fan afford to worry him more, instantly turning back.
Seeing Ning Fan finally return, the All-Knowing Elder heaved a sigh of relief, but was currently busy suppressing his injury, unable to speak much more with Ning Fan.
He merely sat cross-legged on the ground healing his wounds, while Ning Fan stood by with a complex expression, watched his healing process, and only upon seeing his wound stabilized did he silently feel relieved.
"Junior brother is not angry anymore?" After a long time, with his breaths even, the All-Knowing Elder gingerly asked, as if he had done something wrong.
"...I don’t dare to be angry anymore." Ning Fan smiled bitterly. He really couldn’t do anything about this smelly old man, the All-Knowing Elder. He had long forgotten the minor grievances. Being taken advantage of wasn’t a big deal since it didn’t involve any real harm. He had made a fool of himself before, so it was like amusing this old man.
"Junior Brother... I was wrong... But I still don’t understand why you are so angry. You’ve never been so mad before..." The All-Knowing Elder said in confusion, as if he remembered something from the past, or perhaps he didn’t.
"Forget it, it’s all trivial. I just don’t like being deceived by someone close. Perhaps for you, pranking your junior brother is just a common thing because you’ve experienced too much, and it’s a habit; but for me... it’s the first time I’ve been tricked by someone close." Ning Fan sighed.
Senior brother, huh...
Ning Fan had also called someone senior brother before. No, to be precise, he called a sword senior brother.
According to the tradition of the Slaughter Hall, every generation of Slaughter Emperor viewed each other as senior brothers, hence the Sacred Slayer Sword of the Desolate Heavens, being the First-Generation Slaughter Emperor, once made Ning Fan call it senior brother.
What was the situation back then?
Ning Fan remembered the kindness of the Seventh Generation Slaughter Emperor, which made him naturally feel some affection for the Slaughter Hall, and through it, a bit of affection for the Sacred Slayer Sword of the Desolate Heavens. He was willing to respect it as senior brother.
But for the Sacred Slayer Sword of the Desolate Heavens, although he called it senior brother, he didn’t truly feel any kinship in his heart. The term "senior brother" was more of a formality.
When the Seventh Generation Slaughter Emperor was in trouble, the Sacred Slayer Sword, as the senior brother, didn’t rescue him. It wasn’t unwillingness or lack of pain, but simply because it had an important mission to guard the Big Dipper Descendants, so it was beyond its control.
When Ning Fan initially provoked the Dark Clan and various enemies from Eastern Heaven, the Sacred Slayer Sword likewise didn’t help him. Of course, after Ning Fan became the Eighth Generation Slaughter Emperor, the sword treated him quite well, even willing to help him train five sword spirit little girls, but that was also within its capabilities, many actions likewise beyond control.
This kindness indeed came from sincerity, but Ning Fan always felt something was missing, indescribable...
He didn’t know what was lacking between him and the Sacred Slayer Sword until he learned that the All-Knowing Elder, in order to save him, was furious and crazy to the core. Only then did he faintly realize the true weight of being a senior brother.
If the All-Knowing Elder were in the position of the Sacred Slayer Sword, seeing Ning Fan in trouble, he wouldn’t care about the life or death of the Big Dipper Descendants, wouldn’t care about righteousness, wouldn’t care about himself, wouldn’t care about Eastern Heaven’s survival! He would undoubtedly storm into the Dark Clan like a madman, into the Eastern Boundary River, massacre anyone who dared harm him, going to the extreme in bloodiness and cruelty, using every conceivable method...
Thinking of this, Ning Fan didn’t know why but felt an inexplicable sense of sadness.
"Junior Brother, if Senior Brother truly admitted his mistake, would you forgive him..." The All-Knowing Elder asked nervously. After the tension, he returned to confusion, unaware of the source of these nervous feelings, silently shedding tears of regret, not knowing why.
"It’s just trivial matters, no need to talk about forgiveness..." Ning Fan exclaimed in disbelief. How come this old man cried again while talking?
"As long as Junior Brother isn’t angry anymore, it’s fine, it’s fine..." The All-Knowing Elder said it was fine, but internally, there was an unspeakable regret and remorse. It seemed what he truly wanted to hear from Ning Fan was not this sentence, but... true forgiveness... But where these emotions came from, he didn’t know either.
He only knew one thing!
That is, in the future, when teasing the junior brother, it must be done secretly, leaving no trace, so Ning Fan wouldn’t detect it. Otherwise, if Ning Fan discovered it again, wouldn’t he have to apologize repeatedly and employ the tactic of inflicting pain on himself!
It turned out, even until now, the All-Knowing Elder still didn’t understand what was wrong with senior brother bullying junior brother! A senior brother is naturally born to bully the junior brother!
Under the heavens, only I can bully the junior brother, apart from me, no one else can! Dare to bully my junior brother, I’ll slaughter your entire family!
But who exactly is the junior brother... The All-Knowing Elder felt a pain in his divine sense, followed by a daze, and when he looked at Ning Fan again, he didn’t recognize him.
"Hmph! My little friend promised to let me experiment, yet why did you leave without a word, gone for half a month! Tell me, where have you been in these fortnight, and why did you leave and return! Wait, who threw all this trash here! Yin Light Stone, Taiyin Divine Sand, Desert Western Sunflower... Hey, little friend, would you do me a favor and throw all this trash away, and then I won’t hold a grudge against you for leaving without notice! How about it!" The All-Knowing Elder looked at Ning Fan with an expression of "I’m magnanimously forgiving you."
"..."
Ning Fan’s face went dark instantly!
I’m not taking the blame for leaving without notice!
This pile of trash was what I risked the wrath of the whole world to snatch back for you. If you want it thrown, you do it yourself!
