Chapter 1188: Chapter 1188: Saint Ant Sect

The Light Ancestor Abyss is an extreme fire land, as well as an extreme daylight land.

Flames roiled in the air, the ground radiated light, and the endless Fusang Tree Forest grew here. This place was perpetually luminous, making the underground as bright as day, without night.

As the forbidden land of the Light Clan, the internal environment of the Light Ancestor Abyss is extremely complicated and perilous, with countless ancient restrictions left to this day. Without the cultivation of a Saint, one simply cannot charge through the abyss with impunity, because who knows which strand of light or wisp of flame might be supreme prohibition disguised, and if one carelessly runs into it, they could be fatally wounded.

Even someone as strong as Ning Fan, upon entering this place, must proceed cautiously, not daring to fly too fast.

He must carefully discern the surrounding restrictions and also keep an eye out for a fearsome creature unique to this place—light ants.

They are ants as large as calves, their bodies transparent, completely composed of light; they possess short wings, capable of crawling and flying.

These light ants often appear in swarms, a single one not highly powerful, yet they excel at fused attacks and cannot be underestimated. Just after flying tens of thousands of miles within the abyss, Ning Fan had already encountered light ant attacks several times, and now more than forty light ants were blocking his way.

Most of the light ants appearing this time only have Void Fragmentation cultivation, but when more than forty Void Fragmentation light ants transform into light and merge, a Human Profound Level light ant appears before Ning Fan.

Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!

The Human Profound light ant spat three times towards Ning Fan, ejecting three light bullets in an attack; if any Human Profound Cultivator were facing such a situation, they would certainly be very fearful, but Ning Fan naturally would not fear these light ants. With just a roll of his sleeve, the oncoming light bullets were silently shattered upon entering his sleeves.

With a casual Calamity Flash, the Human Profound Light Ant let out a wretched cry, exterminated by Ning Fan.

"These light ants seem to be a headache for the Light Clan..."

Ning Fan frowned slightly, as he practically headed straight into the Light Ancestor Abyss upon arriving at the Light Clan. Although he had scattered Yunian, he did not deliberately gather intelligence within the Light Clan. As his spirit sense spread, he did hear bits and pieces of the Light Clan members discussing the light ant issues in the abyss, and now seeing these light ants, he naturally had some guesses.

"Hmm? What is this..."

Ning Fan’s gaze slightly shifted as he saw the shattered light of the Human Profound Light Ant’s fallen body suddenly condense into a ragged light orb.

This type of light orb is called a Light Ant Inner Pill by the Light Clan masters, similar to Dao Fruit, capable of directly enhancing cultivation upon consumption. It seems that the reason masters venture into the abyss is to hunt these inner pills.

Ning Fan had killed numerous light ants along the way, but this was the first time an inner pill was uncovered, indicating the low occurrence rate of these inner pills, similar to Dao Fruit.

This was a Human Profound Inner Pill, but its quality is not solely determined by being marked as Human Profound. Apparently, within the Light Clan, these inner pills have classifications like "Broken Inner Pill" and "Outstanding Inner Pill," specifics which Ning Fan knew little about and had no interest in.

Casually storing the inner pill in his storage pouch, Ning Fan continued forward, attempting to explore deeper into the abyss with Yunian, yet unfortunately, his Yunian could not spread too far.

The internal area of the Light Ancestor Abyss greatly restricts spirit sense and perception, leaving Ning Fan no choice but to rely on the Treasure-searching Compass to sense the location.

According to the Treasure-searching Compass, the abyss comprises twelve layers, each a distinct region in terms of terrain. Ning Fan was currently located within only the first layer, while Bei Xiao Man was in a lower layer.

"Help! Help!"

After traveling for an uncertain length of time, cries for help suddenly came from ahead, causing Ning Fan’s steps to pause slightly.

In front, on the ground, four horses enshrouded in golden flames were frantically pulling a gold chariot in a desperate flight. Chasing the chariot were six to seven hundred calf-sized light ants, with fierce eyes, pursuing the chariot.

Each of these light ants possessed cultivation above Void Fragmentation, five were Fate Immortal light ants, and one was an Enlightenment light ant.

On the chariot were more than ten Northern Heavenly Youths who had come here to train, suddenly being hunted by six to seven hundred light ants. These inexperienced Northern Heavenly Youths were nearly scared to death.

Either from the Eternal Sects as Daoist heirs or direct descendants of Eternal Old Freaks, each had significant backgrounds.

They had come here for training, yet it was completely unexpected that the once-in-a-decade Light Ant Hunting would happen prematurely!

"Brother, are we going to die here! Father clearly said the Light Ant Hunting only happens once every ten thousand years, but now it came six thousand years earlier than expected! Normally, light ants need to slumber, naturally not actively attacking us, and we just need to find small ant nests to hunt some light ants. But this time, we actually encountered the Light Ant Hunting! I don’t want to die, I don’t want to die!"

In the chariot, a young girl inexperienced in the world was frightened to tears by the light ants’ pursuit behind the chariot, clutching her brother’s sleeve tight, shivering.

Her name was Lin Qingyue, a direct heiress of the Bei Tian Lin Family.

The young man she called brother was the direct eldest son of the Lin Family, the big master, and of these Northern Heavenly Youths, he had the highest cultivation, nearing the Human Profound Level. But even with such cultivation, he could only feel powerless against the pursuit of the light ant army.

"Don’t cry! Calm down! The chariot we are riding is a rented Sun Chariot from the Light Clan, powered by light, as long as there’s light around, it can continuously drive. This chariot is very quick, and its defense is strong too. We can keep escaping in this chariot, waiting for the Light Clan people to come rescue us..."

Master Lin forced himself to remain calm, comforting his sister, but the next moment, he found it hard to stay calm.

Boom!

A light bullet with Shedding Void Stage power struck the chariot!

The chariot was attacked by those light ants again!

As they fled, the chariot had been attacked countless times by those Light Ants, but due to the Sun Chariot’s incredibly strong defense, it could nearly ignore all attacks below Late Stage Enlightenment. Previous light missiles hadn’t done much damage to the Sun Chariot.

But this attack was different!

The Sun Chariot was actually punctured!

This time the light missile had the power of the Shedding Void Stage!

"Not good! Those Light Ants have fused! That Enlightenment Light Ant fused with other Light Ants and turned into a Shedding Void Light Ant!"

Young Master Lin’s face finally changed dramatically!

A Shedding Void Light Ant could easily destroy this Sun Chariot; once the chariot is destroyed is when their lives will be in jeopardy!

Ssss!

More light missiles were fired by the Shedding Void Light Ant, and the Sun Chariot was completely shattered. The group of Northern Heavenly Youths fell to the ground, covered in dirt, watching helplessly as the giant Shedding Void Light Ant, as big as high mountains, drooled and approached.

Light Ants during their predatory period most love to eat meat!

They would be eaten!

"Don’t, don’t eat me..."

Lin Qingyue was so scared she wet her pants, collapsed on the ground, unable to stand!

She had never experienced life and death; her family had protected her too well!

She had Void Fragmentation realm, but lacked the courage to match it!

Just as she thought death was certain, a scarlet beam suddenly descended from the sky, striking the mighty Shedding Void Light Ant and turning it into powder with one blow!

How powerful!

Like divine intervention!

Lin Qingyue stared blankly at the sky, where an incredibly handsome young man in white hovered, as dazzling as an unbeatable deity.

"Killed a Shedding Void Light Ant with just one move! This person is at least a Fragmented Thought Senior!" The Northern Heavenly Youths, having survived the crisis, were overjoyed and all bowed to the ground, thanking Ning Fan profusely.

Only Lin Qingyue had not yet recovered from her shock and stood in a daze, forgetting to thank.

"Sister! Quickly thank Senior; you’re being too rude!" Her brother rebuked her quietly.

Lin Qingyue was flustered, only then realizing what had happened, tried to thank Ning Fan, but hearing Ning Fan speak, she naturally dared not interrupt, holding back all her gratitude.

"Do you have a map of the Earth Abyss?" Ning Fan landed on the ground and asked Young Master Lin, not caring whether others thanked him or not.

"I do, the map is here. If Senior needs it, you may take it." Young Master Lin respectfully handed out a map that had been purchased from the Light Clan at great expense.

Ning Fan swept it with his spirit sense, instantly making a copy of the map, returned the original to Young Master Lin, and started to leave.

But after walking a few steps, Ning Fan suddenly paused, looking at Lin Qingyue with a peculiar gaze, feeling something.

A very strange feeling.

This girl gave him an indescribable feeling, similar to when he encountered Si Yingyue and Su Manyue.

"What’s your name..." Ning Fan frowned and asked.

"I, I’m Lin Qingyue..." Being asked her name by a stranger made Lin Qingyue’s face blush instantly.

"Lin Qingyue? Why are you named this..." Ning Fan frowned deeper.

"According to Senior, my mother gave me this name. She said people have joys and sorrows, the moon has shadows and light, full and waning; shadow is separation, light is reunion, full is gathering, waning is farewell..." The girl clearly answered off-topic.

Ning Fan wasn’t asking why she was given this name.

Ning Fan was asking something else.

Si Yingyue, Su Manyue, and now meeting Lin Qingyue...

Ning Fan seemed to sense a certain extremely familiar connection from Lin Qingyue, but it also seemed... just a delusion.

"I’m going to draw a circle on the ground. Stay within the circle, and you will be safe. Someone will come to rescue you shortly."

This journey was to rescue Bei Xiao Man, so Ning Fan didn’t want to pay much attention to the girl named Lin Qingyue, and he certainly couldn’t stay to protect these people. Just like with Si Yingyue and Su Manyue, Ning Fan quietly left a wisp of spirit sense within Lin Qingyue’s body, and then, using the power of the Rain Yin Yang, he drew a rain circle on the ground, encircling the young Northern Heavenly Youths within it.

Then, he departed.

Seeing Ning Fan leave, Lin Qingyue’s beautiful eyes dimmed with an inexplicable sense of loss, as if a reunion awaited across countless cycles of reincarnation, only to just brush past each other...

On the other hand, some of the Northern Heavenly Youths led by a young master of the Lin Family visibly heaved a sigh of relief upon Ning Fan’s departure; staying before Ning Fan was too much pressure.

"Does anyone know who this senior is?"

"He even asked Brother Lin for a map, so it seems he’s not from the Light Clan, but rather a Master who rushed over from the outside."

"He should be sent by the Four Oceans Sect to handle the matter of the Light Ants..."

"Terrifying, absolutely terrifying! I initially thought this senior was a Thought-Shattering Cultivator, but he’s not! Look at this circle! It’s definitely drawn with the power of someone close to Control Positions. While we stay within this circle, even a Shattered Thought Light Ant can’t easily break through to harm us!"

"Near Control Positions! Could this senior be some North Heaven Great Emperor who has not shown himself? Too powerful!"

The youths were extremely excited, staying within the circle, their admiration for this mysterious senior Ning Fan was overflowing.

...

Ning Fan entered the Earth Abyss rather hastily. Though he was confident in his Ice Rain Technique, he realized upon entering that he still needed a map.

With a map, he could choose the fastest route to the place where Bei Xiao Man was located. As for rescuing other Northern Heavenly Youths here for training, what did that have to do with him? If he encountered them, it was fate, and saving them was no problem; if not, that was destiny. Since they dared to train here, they needed to be responsible for their actions and be prepared to face possible death.

"Hmm? So that’s how it is... this Light Ancestor Abyss is the origin of the Light Clan, the Earth Abyss has twelve layers, each layer once housed an ancient Immortal Kingdom, and each is named after its kingdom. In ancient times, twelve Immortal Kingdoms formed an alliance and together established a clan, leading to the formation of the Light Clan. The first layer where I currently am is the ruins of the Light Tree Country; there are seven entrances to the second level here, the nearest one to this place is located at the ruins of the Light Tree Country’s capital. Generally, people heading to the second level wouldn’t take this entrance; they’d rather take a longer route because this entrance is extremely dangerous..."

Dangerous, indeed very dangerous.

If the Treasure-searching Compass is correct, in the direction of the ruins of the Light Tree Country’s capital, there lies a Half-Saint aura in slumber.

It seems there is a Light Ant with Semi-Saint Cultivation there; most people avoid this path because it could potentially disturb the slumber of this Half-Saint Light Ant, provoking a Half-Saint attack.

But Ning Fan is different.

Ning Fan doesn’t like detours!

In this Light Ancestor Abyss, everywhere is filled with killing prohibitions, limiting his flying speed. If he wants to reach Bei Xiao Man as quickly as possible, he needs to take the shortcut!

Having chosen his direction, Ning Fan sped all the way, and within the time it takes an incense stick to burn, he arrived at the ancient ruins.

Here, once stood a capital built in the forest.

The capital was not small in scale, accommodating millions of Masters, now only ruins remain. The entrance to the second level lies in the central region of the capital.

Shhh!

Sensing Ning Fan’s approach, countless Light Ants crawled out continuously from the abandoned buildings, millions of Light Ants vibrating their short wings and flying into the air, spewing light bullets at Ning Fan!

"Really troublesome... Little Kitten, don’t you like fighting? Come out and join the battle."

Ning Fan released Little Kitten, also releasing Aflo, and furthermore summoned the Netherworld Ghost Flower!

Thus, Ning Fan didn’t even have to personally take action; within less than half an incense stick’s time, his legion wiped out millions of Light Ants completely.

Hundreds of Inner Pills burst out, its formation rate much lower than the same level Dao Fruits.

The exploded Inner Pills were all collected by Ning Fan into his storage pouch. But Ning Fan’s large-scale massacre of Light Ants incensed the seven mighty Light Ants slumbering underground.

The ground of the Light Tree Country ruins suddenly cracked open, and seven gigantic Light Ants crawled out from the ground!

Six Immortal Emperor Light Ants, one Half-Saint Light Ant!

The Immortal Emperor Light Ants, just like ordinary Light Ants, were golden in color, shiny and bright.

Only the Half-Saint Light Ant, surprisingly, transformed into a human form, becoming a burly man clad in green armor.

"Meat... eat meat..." Faced with Ning Fan and others’ delicious blood and flesh, all six Immortal Emperor Light Ants drooled with highly acidic saliva.

Unlike the low-rank Light Ants, the Immortal Emperor level Light Ants could actually utter simple words. Unfortunately, their spirit awareness was still too low! Normally, an Immortal Emperor seeing the Quasi-Saint-level Soul-Devouring Tree Man summoned by Ning Fan would certainly be terrified, but they were not afraid.

However, the burly man in green armor was extremely wary of Ning Fan and his team!

His spirit awareness was not lacking at all! Ning Fan awakened him, and though he was initially full of rage, at this moment, he was struck by and wary of Ning Fan and his team’s formation. With a strange howl, he restrained the greedy Immortal Emperor Light Ants, preventing them from attacking Ning Fan.

"You all don’t seem like people of the Light Clan, nor the Four Oceans Sect. Are you meddling in the affairs of my Saint Ant Sect?" the burly man in green armor questioned.

As he spoke, he directly fused the six Immortal Emperor Light Ants around him into his body.

Although he was a Half-Saint, he wasn’t too far from a Quasi-Saint, so after fusing with the six Immortal Emperor Light Ants, his cultivation astonishingly rose to the First Order Quasi-Saint level!

Seeing this scene, Ning Fan immediately frowned.

If this man were just a Half-Saint, he wouldn’t mind using an Illusory Art to finish him quickly. But if the opponent could exert Quasi-Saint power, he wouldn’t be easy to deal with. Once a fight started, it would waste a lot of time and might not guarantee victory.

Ning Fan could see that the Light Ants’ fusion wasn’t permanent; after some time, they would separate. Even with this flaw, such fusion could be considered defying the heavens.

No wonder the existence of Light Ants could cause a massive force like the Light Clan such headaches.

A Half-Saint Light Ant could exert First Order Quasi-Saint power through merging with its kind.

A First Order Quasi-Saint could probably exert Second Rank Quasi-Saint power through fusion.

To eliminate such Half-Saint and Quasi-Saint Light Ants wasn’t an easy task. Ning Fan was eager to find Bei Xiao Man and didn’t want to cause more trouble.

Moreover, it seemed there was more than one Quasi-Saint Light Ant here... Ning Fan glanced thoughtfully in a certain direction.

"I don’t know of the Saint Ant Sect, nor do I wish to meddle in your affairs. I’m here to rescue someone and need to use the entrance here to enter the second level. Would you make it convenient for me?" Ning Fan said, allowing no refusal.

If the other party didn’t make it convenient, even if he couldn’t kill this ant quickly, he would fight his way to the second level!

"Hmm? You, a mere junior, are actually the leader of this group?"

Ning Fan’s tone was almost commanding and excessively arrogant, which greatly displeased the burly man in green armor. If not for the Quasi-Saint bodyguard by Ning Fan’s side, his fierce nature would definitely make Ning Fan pay the price.

But now is the crucial moment of the Ant Queen selection; it’s inappropriate to cause more trouble...

"Hmph! Very well, you may borrow the entrance to the second level, but if you dare to disrupt my Saint Ant Sect’s significant affairs, my Twelve Ant Generals will never let you leave the Earth Abyss alive!"

With those words, the burly man in green armor burrowed back into the ground, but his spirit sense was locked onto Ning Fan, clearly ready to counterattack at any suspicious movement by Ning Fan.

Ning Fan said nothing more and withdrew the Netherworld Ghost Flower—the Eternal Ghost Soldier summoned by the Netherworld Ghost Flower couldn’t advance with them.

However, Aflo, Little Kitten, and the Eternal Thunder Infant remained by his side as guards.

At the moment of entering the second level, Ning Fan transmitted his voice to Aflo and Little Kitten.

"The Saint Ant Sect, a sect I’ve never heard of... have you heard of it?"

"No..." Aflo shook his head.

"Sounds a bit familiar, but can’t recall..." Although he said he couldn’t remember, Little Kitten, who had transformed into human form, was drooling uncontrollably, finding the name ’Saint Ant Sect’ peculiarly appetizing...

"If we don’t know, then it’s fine. We need to be cautious not to get involved in the Saint Ant Sect’s disputes, just rescue the person. If the Saint Ant Sect managed to evade total annihilation by the Light Clan for countless years, they are certainly no ordinary faction. The chaos in the Earth Abyss this time is likely greatly related to them..." Ning Fan said gravely.

...

Long after Ning Fan left, the burly man in green armor surprisingly reemerged from the ground, voluntarily ending the fusion and releasing the six Immortal Emperor Light Ants from his body.

As he unfused, a flash of light suddenly revealed a stunning woman in fiery battle armor standing to the side.

"Hmph! Princess Huahuo, why did you stop me from killing him? He only has one Quasi-Saint with him. If you and I join forces, wouldn’t it be wonderful to kill him and devour his flesh and blood? Your chances in the Ant Queen selection would surely improve!" the green-armored man expressed dissatisfaction, implying he refrained from attacking Ning Fan out of deference to this red-armored woman’s secret orders.

"Hehe, I’ve only just broken through to Quasi-Saint using my mother’s inner core fragments; my realm has yet to stabilize. You barely reached this level by borrowing power and cannot maintain it for long. With just the two of us, it wouldn’t be easy to kill that boy." The red-armored woman named Huahuo spoke meaningfully.

Even though she was a Quasi-Saint, Ning Fan had instantly seen through her hiding! There’s no mistake; Ning Fan’s glance definitely discovered her! This boy certainly has secrets, likely more troubling than that Quasi-Saint tree spirit!

"Your Highness overestimates that boy. If you could block the Quasi-Saint tree spirit, I alone could eliminate everyone else, including that boy!" the green-armored man boasted.

"Ke Bixiong, you’re too cocky; this arrogance will surely cost you in the future." The red-armored woman rebuked.

"As Your Highness reprimands, I will certainly correct this fault." Although he said so, the green-armored man’s expression showed no intention of changing, his gaze boldly roaming over the red-armored woman with greed.

The red-armored woman’s face turned cold, "Mind your status!"

"Yes!" The green-armored man furrowed his brow, corrected his gaze, but deep within his eyes was a trace of disdain.

’Vile woman, you won’t stay proud for long! When the Ant Queen selection begins, even if you don’t want to follow me, you’ll have no choice! I will have you eventually! Your inner core, your body, everything!’