Grasping Evil

Master Hongzang is a lean old monk. Having not long ascended to the Immortal Venerable Realm, his aura still seems somewhat unstable. However, compared to other Thought-Shattering Cultivators, he is much stronger. His presence on the field is entirely beyond the reach of an ordinary True Immortal; the momentum of eons sweeps across the four corners, with the world’s great forces echoing in response. This scene strikes fear into those who witness it.

Some residents of Liuli City, seeing an Eternal Immortal Venerable for the first time, feel their hearts tremble, only feeling that in the face of such momentum, there is no way to alleviate the oppressive feeling other than to kneel!

"Oh? Has it finally come time for Hongzang to make an appearance? This child is not bad; being able to break through to the Immortal Venerable Realm within five million years counts as exceptional talent. It’s a pity that he’s not adept at body refinement; otherwise, he would likely lead the Crimson Peak Clan to achieve the result of one hundred swords."

At the top of the platform, among the consistently silent Five Emperors of the Central Continent, someone finally spoke, and it was Emperor Bone Spirit who gave an assessment.

"Heh heh, Fellow Bone Spirit, don’t underestimate this Hongzang. As far as I know, he has specially trained in a certain secret technique for this Trial of Strength..."

"Oh? Now I’m curious, what kind of secret technique could enable someone not skilled in body refinement to achieve the result of one hundred swords? Fellow Foqi seems to hold this Hongzang in high regard." Emperor Bone Spirit’s eyes flickered as he asked.

"Heh heh, watch closely, and you’ll understand why I hold him in high regard," Emperor Foqi chuckled strangely, but did not elaborate.

As Emperor Bone Spirit predicted, although the Crimson Peak team had an Immortal Venerable in command, their performance was not extraordinary. By the 44th sword, everyone except Hongzang had already exhausted their strength and withdrawn.

Only Hongzang was left, facing Shen Ershisan.

Indeed, Hongzang was not adept at body refinement. Though he was a strong Immortal Venerable, his physical defense was not as strong as some Thought-Shattering experts. Under Shen Ershisan’s giant sword assault, he seemed left in a predicament.

By the 60th sword, Hongzang began to struggle.

By the 75th sword, he was already panting heavily.

"It seems 75 swords is the limit for this Crimson Peak Clan..." Just as Emperor Bone Spirit finished speaking, suddenly his eyes brightened.

It was because Hongzang suddenly flipped his hand and took out several sinister talismans. With a loud shout, he slapped them onto the ground, and instantly, several eerie circles appeared on the ground out of thin air, from which emerged one ghostly figure after another with hideous visages.

"Is this child’s reliance the Ghost Transformation Technique? To think he has mastered such an ancient Buddhist art, it is indeed remarkable." Emperor Bone Spirit’s tone shifted to admiration.

Even the Three Emperors of Heaven, Baihua, and Lou Tuo cast curious glances at Hongzang.

Only Foqi seemed to have known about this beforehand, chuckling strangely without surprise.

After summoning numerous ghosts, Hongzang suddenly unleashed a divine skill, devouring each ghost alive. Instantly, his previously thin body began to swell, with dark red eerie patterns appearing on his skin, fangs growing from his mouth, and horns protruding from his head. Those unaware might even think Hongzang had transformed into a green-faced, fanged demon.

However, his physical strength received a terrifying boost. Originally, 75 swords were his limit, but now, he caught up to the 104th sword in one go!

"What a pity, this child’s Ghost Transformation Technique is not yet proficient. Otherwise, he would certainly have gained more enhancement from devouring those ghosts, making his performance even more impressive..." Emperor Foqi sighed slightly.

Then he suddenly asked with an eccentric tone towards Emperor Lou Tuo, "Fellow Lou Tuo, what do you think of this child compared to your disciple?"

"This child is not worth mentioning; how could he compare to my disciple, Sha Bailou!" Emperor Lou Tuo sneered with great arrogance.

"I also think this child is not as good as Sha Bailou." Emperor Foqi laughed out loud and said no more, continuing to watch the next trial.

After the Crimson Peak team, several more rounds passed before it came to another dark horse team of this Tomb Seizing Battle—the Sea Witch Sect.

The witch Wuxx Yan from the Sea Witch Sect was similarly not adept at body refinement but was somewhat stronger than Hongzang, as her performance in this round exceeded the Crimson Peak Clan by 1 sword.

swords...

"What a pity, as far as I know, this girl is quite skilled in poison techniques, and though many poison techniques have substantial side effects, they can augment physical defense. If she had used them, achieving a higher score wouldn’t have been difficult." Emperor Bone Spirit shook his head and sighed.

"Hmph, Fellow Bone Spirit seems to have forgotten that Wuxx Yan is not aiming for first place and did not plan to exert too much effort in this initial stage. She has already decided to preserve her strength to compete for third place. She is no match for Shidang and is even less a match for my disciple Sha Bailou. But as long as she surpasses Hongzang of the Crimson Peak Clan, she can steadily secure third place, putting the South Sea Spring Water in her grasp, hehe, quite a cunning plan. I think it was Daoist Baihua’s advice to her..."

It was Emperor Lou Tuo who spoke, casting a cold glance towards Emperor Baihua.

Clearly, Emperor Lou Tuo was aware of Wuxx Yan’s secret assistance to Emperor Baihua.

"So what if I instructed her? There’s no rule against it in the Tomb Seizing Battle." Emperor Baihua responded straightforwardly, admitting it directly with a cold, piercing look in return to Emperor Lou Tuo.

The atmosphere between the two became immediately tense. Fortunately, Emperor Foqi quickly intervened to change the mood, telling a few extremely mundane and uninteresting jokes that failed to amuse anyone. After the awkward moment, he suddenly, with a strange laugh, asked Emperor Lou Tuo,

"Do you truly believe, Fellow Lou Tuo, that this Wuxx Yan is inferior to your disciple?"

"Naturally! What is this Wuxx Yan compared to my disciple!" Emperor Lou Tuo stated arrogantly.

"Haha, I also think Wuxx Yan is not as good as your disciple, but she would make a suitable spouse for him!"

Emperor Foqi’s words seemed like a joke, but Emperor Lou Tuo’s expression instantly turned dark, having caught the hidden mockery in Emperor Foqi’s words.

Emperor Foqi was implying that his disciple had no wife!

Where is Sha Bailou’s wife?

Heh, was killed by Sha Bailou.

His disciple is a wolf, a crazed, relentless wolf that recognizes no family ties, cultivating an extremely cruel and ruthless path of familial murder!

This Sha Bailou was born into the Lou Family of Liuli City, yet he was ostracized within his own family because of this. Although Sha Bailou is formidable, his formidability was achieved through a series of insane acts such as killing his father, mother, brother, sister, wife, and children.

Furthermore, Sha Bailou even contemplated... killing his master! And this is precisely the important reason why Emperor Lou Tuo harbors a deep dislike for Sha Bailou.

Currently, Sha Bailou is only held back by insufficient strength. However, if one day this disciple’s fortune is adequate and he breaks through to the Immortal Emperor Realm, he will likely turn around and brandish his Slaughter Blade against him!

At this moment, Emperor Foqi made a sarcastic remark about this matter, naturally causing Emperor Lou Tuo’s expression to turn displeased. He gave a cold snort and did not engage in further conversation.

The trial continued. Following the Sea Witch Sect were some unremarkable teams, and then, it was the Shiren (Stone Man) Sect’s turn to compete!

The Immortal Lord Shidang of the Shiren Sect was highly favored to win; his appearance naturally drew the attention of countless people.

After taking the stage, Shidang seemed to glance towards Sha Bailou. However, upon seeing the other party sitting with eyes closed and meditating, not caring about his own trial performance, he couldn’t help but laugh angrily.

Oh, Sha Bailou! Do you think I’m still the First Calamity Immortal Sovereign of yesteryears? Now I’ve reached the Second Calamity, and I’m here for this Tomb Snatching Battle, not to claim first place, but to seek revenge against you!

The humiliation you gave me in the past, I will repay in full today!

"All of you stand down. He’s participating in the competition alone, and I don’t need your help to undergo the Trial of Strength!"

Shidang was so confident that he dismissed all the other strong individuals of the Shiren Sect standing behind him, choosing to face Shen Ershisan alone.

"Give me... a gift... or I’ll... kill you..."

Shen Ershisan still demanded in his nearly dull manner.

"Gift? I don’t have one! Old me isn’t in the habit of randomly spitting everywhere! If you want a fight, let’s fight!"

Shidang shouted directly.

This instantly enraged Shen Ershisan. Not giving him a gift was an insult, a deeply held belief from his memory. Shidang was truly vile!

Boom!

Shen Ershisan slashed down with his Giant Sword, and Shidang actually laughed heartily, reaching out with his bare hand to catch the Giant Sword.

His physical defense was as tough as the underground stone ground of the Middle State. With Shen Ershisan’s restricted cultivation wielding a severely rusted blunt sword, he naturally could not cut through Shidang’s physical defense. Shidang used his long-honed body to withstand the Giant Sword, not out of arrogance but born of sheer strength.

One sword, two swords, three swords... In just a hundred breaths, Shidang had already withstood 200 sword strikes before he began to pant slightly.

At the 349th sword, he finally ran out of strength, secretly noting how formidable Shen Ershisan was. Even with his cultivation sealed, he was this terrifying. In full strength, who knew what realm he belonged to? It’s just a pity that his spirit awareness was too low. Otherwise, he would surely have used connections in Holy Mountain to bring this immensely powerful Shen character Corpse Demon back to the Shiren Sect as a Clan Protecting Corpse Demon...

swords amounted to a total of 34,900 points. Such a performance was truly astonishing. In past iterations when scores weren’t high, this score could directly win the first round without even competing in the second!

"How does Shidang compare to your disciple?" Emperor Foqi jested again.

"Naturally, he cannot!" Emperor Lou Tuo replied impatiently, wondering why Emperor Foqi kept asking this.

"Haha, I thought so too!"

Then why ask! Are you making fun of me?

Emperor Lou Tuo was increasingly displeased, but given that his power was not on par with Emperor Foqi, he swallowed his irritation.

The entire square was submerged in cheers for Shidang. Some quietly lamented that Shidang hadn’t spat at Shen Ershisan, depriving them of some amusement. However, many believed Shidang had done it intentionally to anger the test Corpse Demon. For him to achieve such terrifying results under its wrath, Shidang was indeed a hot favorite for winning the second round of this Tomb Snatching Battle!

"Next, it’s likely your turn! I recall that aside from my Shiren Sect, the remaining teams include you and the External Practitioner of the Tamu Clan."

As Shidang left the stage, he purposefully approached Sha Bailou to proclaim boastfully.

The previously meditative Sha Bailou then slightly opened his eyes, looking at Shidang with nothing but derision.

"Such petty scores and you want to boast around me? Do you know why I’ve never participated in the Tomb Snatching Battle... Because there are too many like you, utterly unable to pique my interest. The only one who could interest me is him." Sha Bailou coldly laughed, pointing towards Ning Fan.

Shidang’s expression immediately turned gloomy.

He had been called trash by Sha Bailou! Detestable, detestable! Come the Trial of Illusion, he vowed to make Sha Bailou taste his wrath!

As for Ning Fan, whom Sha Bailou held in high regard, Shidang didn’t take him seriously at all. Ning Fan was just a foreign cultivator with limited strength. Perhaps if he was at full strength, he’d show interest, but with the Punishing Ring limitation, he was insignificant.

"Sha Bailou, just wait, in the Trial of Illusion, I’ll take your life!" Shidang spat viciously, then retreated to his group.

The majority of the audience was more looking forward to the subsequent Trial of Illusion. It wasn’t just the impending duel between Sha Bailou and the foreign Ning Fan; Shidang and Sha Bailou’s old and new grievances also awaited a resolution.

After the Shiren Sect, among those who have not yet undergone the trial, only Sha Bailou and Ning Fan remain.

According to the tradition of the Tomb Siege Battle, a solo participant is often left for last, as they tend to provide the most excitement and serve as the grand finale.

Sha Bailou’s scorecard lit up before Ning Fan’s, and with a slight smirk, he glanced in Ning Fan’s direction, then in a flash of bloodlight, he flew directly to Shen Ershisan’s side.

This action caused everyone to look up; being able to use Escape Technique in a forbidden space such as the Middle State, Sha Bailou is indeed remarkable!

As soon as he entered the field, he seemed impatient, unwilling to waste any time, and before Shen Ershisan could speak, he disdainfully spat a mouthful of saliva onto him.

"You, then... be aware... let’s... begin..."

Shen Ershisan nodded with satisfaction, and the Giant Sword slashed down at Sha Bailou, who did not use any weapon but instead relied on his physical defense to receive the blow.

strikes, 20 strikes, 30 strikes...

strikes, 200 strikes, 300 strikes...

Only at the 448th sword did Sha Bailou finally begin to show some signs of exhaustion.

By the 594th sword, Sha Bailou was out of breath, withdrew backward, and without wasting any words with Shen Ershisan, he directly exited the field.

Afterward, the whole square erupted with cheers, louder even than those for Shidang.

Countless people who had staunchly believed Shidang would win instantly switched allegiance to Sha Bailou!

Some began to silently lament the rivalry between Sha Bailou and Ning Fan. Those unfamiliar with Sha Bailou’s fearsome presence might have thought the showdown between these two worth watching, but looking again now, it’s clear that Sha Bailou is the sky, and Ning Fan can only be the earth, destined to be easily crushed underfoot by Sha Bailou.

"The Illusion Trial may well be the burial ground for that Ning-named foreign cultivator..." some secretly believe.

For the last participant, Ning Fan, no one held much expectation.

What cultivation does Ning Fan possess? He might have done well fully powered, but as an external practitioner suffering from the Punishment Ring Seal, his strength trial score can’t possibly be high.

This person should just hurry onto the field, finish the strength trial, and proceed to the next segment of the Illusion Trial!

Under the heavy lack of expectation, Ning Fan’s scorecard emitted golden light; upon tapping it, the light faded, and Ning Fan proceeded toward Shen Ershisan.

With some compassion in his heart for Shen Ershisan, Ning Fan never sympathizes with the weak but has always admired those who died without surrender.

Shen Ershisan, standing firm in life and humiliated in death, is truly pitiful...

If possible, Ning Fan would grant Shen Ershisan true liberation—ashes scattered and free from mockery.

But he couldn’t do that, unwilling to stir trouble, while admitting he lacked the strength to liberate the formidable Shen Ershisan.

Yet, inexplicably, as he drew closer to Shen Ershisan, Ning Fan increasingly felt the desolation exuding from his corpse.

It’s not an illusion but genuinely present; even as the souls had dissipated, the body mourned in resentment! Resenting being made a puppet, resenting serving a group of ancient Buddhas... he resented it!

Approaching further, Ning Fan seemingly heard Shen Ershisan’s rage from deep within his soul!

It was an indescribable feeling—a connection between Ancient Chaos Grand Emperor and Ancient Chaos Grand Emperor!

A plea expressed from the depths of one’s bloodline!

"Same clan... give me... liberation..."

"I... with fragmented corpse and blood... return your karma..."

"Give me... liberation..."

"I, Purple Dou Immortal Cultivator... will not be enslaved..."

"I, Purple Dou Immortal Cultivator... will not bow..."

Purple Dou Immortal Cultivator!

Could it be that this Ancient Chaos Grand Emperor, in life, was a prominent figure from the Zi Dou Immortal Domain?

The vast majority of Purple Dou Immortal Cultivators died defending the Zi Dou Immortal Domain, could this person be one of them...

If previously Ning Fan found Shen Ershisan pitiful and pathetic, now he felt a deep respect for him.

Purple Dou Immortal Cultivator, what fear in battle, what hesitation in battle, life and death all for Purple Dou Immortals!

The remains of the Purple Dou Immortal Cultivator should not conclude in such desolate fate!

"Since you seek liberation, I shall, send you one death!"

Ning Fan’s earnest words drowned in the wind and rain, unheard by anyone.

The rain, drizzling, began anew as Ning Fan activated the Rain Dao Principle.

The protective golden light of the God-Extinguishing Shield, being a defensive divine skill, can’t be utilized...

Under his limited cultivation, without using the body-protecting golden light, attempting to endure more slashes than Sha Bailou seems nearly impossible.

His plan at the moment, however, was not to endure more slashes than Sha Bailou!

He intended to destroy the sword of this Purple Astral Martyr before him!

He aimed to destroy his shackles!

Destroy his golden circlet!

Destroy his corpse!

Destroy everything!

Send him a complete dispersal!

Send you... one death!

"Strange, it was just sunny a moment ago, how could it suddenly be raining..." Residents of Liuli City found it peculiar.

Yet those with sharp eyes noticed the changes in Ning Fan, shock overtaking them.

That external practitioner actually comprehended the Rain Dao Principle, and had integrated its power into his body to enhance his physical attack power!

On the high stage, Emperor Foqi’s eyes brightened, again asking Emperor Lou Tuo.

"Fellow Lou Tuo, what do you think of this Ning-named external practitioner in comparison to your disciple?"

"Inferior, certainly inferior! This boy is but an ant, how could he compare with my disciple! Surely Fellow Foqi agrees..."

"No, I don’t share that view. I find this boy slightly more formidable than your disciple..."

"Hahaha! Fellow Foqi loves to jest, but this joke is unamusing!"

"Don’t believe me, how about we make a wager?"

On the high stage, Emperor Foqi sought to bet with Emperor Lou Tuo.

Below the stage, Shen Ershisan, like a fool, demanded a gift from Ning Fan.

"Give me... a gift... or I’ll... kill you..."

"If you’re able, then come and kill me! Can you, bound by captivity, achieve this!"

"You... courting death!"

Infuriated by Ning Fan, Shen Ershisan increased the force of the Giant Sword, delivering a strike powerful enough to cut through the Great Void Sect, slashing towards Ning Fan.

The sword, over a dozen feet large, made Ning Fan appear even smaller in comparison.

Gales intensified, rain rushed on, in the storm’s midst, Ning Fan raised his left hand, and rolling black mist surged out.

Before anyone could discern what the black mist was, they were already shocked to discover Ning Fan’s left hand rapidly soaring like lightning onto the sword edge, his five fingers piercing the Giant Sword forged from the Immemorial Star, leaving five vicious holes!

"This external practitioner actually damaged the exam Corpse’s weapon!"

"That is a Primordial Demon Soldier crafted from the Immemorial Star; even with diminished spirituality from ages, it shouldn’t be so easily destroyed, didn’t you see neither Shidang nor Sha Bailou managed that!"

"How did this guy manage to do it!"

"Wait, that’s not a hand, it’s a claw!"

With the black mist around Ning Fan’s left hand dissipating, the sharp, gleaming, blade-like fingernails of a Demonic Mount appeared before everyone’s eyes.

Upon seeing this at that moment, the disguised Emperor Butcher slightly startled.

This little brat external practitioner truly dares to use this spirit equipment!