When power returned to the body, that wonderful feeling was indescribable. It was as if the glaciers of the ancient era melted into the sea, and the land that had been dry for countless ages was once again refreshed.

The killing intent of the Donkey Puppet was originally earth-shattering, but as Ning Fan’s momentum soared, its aura was gradually overshadowed by Ning Fan’s!

Two thousand calamities!

Three thousand calamities!

Five thousand calamities!

Eight thousand calamities!

Ning Fan’s mana rose continually, and in an instant, it soared to the height of fourteen thousand two hundred calamities!

Being closest to Ning Fan, the Donkey Puppet was the most heavily impacted by Ning Fan’s momentum. Caught unprepared, it was directly forced back more than ten steps before it could barely stabilize its stance. Despite the inability to express feelings on its puppet face, its puppet body was trembling slightly, instinctively sensing a great danger from Ning Fan.

Even the old man who spoke incoherently was shocked by Ning Fan’s sudden burst of momentum, surprised beyond measure.

"Fourteen thousand two hundred calamities? To cultivate this much mana at the Immortal King Realm! Not just any spirit could achieve this. It seems this kid is more formidable than I thought... But my Brother Donkey is not to be underestimated! Brother Donkey, use the ’Heaven’s Collapse and Earth’s Shatter Thirteen-Link Death Star Fist’!"

"As you command!" the Donkey Puppet replied respectfully.

Ning Fan was somewhat speechless, naturally with the enemy’s technique name. It never occurred to him that there could be someone in the world even worse at naming than he is...

Unfortunately, Ning Fan had little time to be speechless, as the Donkey Puppet had already launched an extremely dangerous physical attack at the first opportunity!

The four limbs of this Donkey Puppet seemed meticulously modified, with the transformed front hooves into fists flashing with starlight, wielding the power to easily pierce the heavens and the earth.

As the opponent attacked with fists, Ning Fan naturally retaliated with his own, executing the Ancient Demon Mountain-Shattering Strike with full force!

"Foolish! To dare receive Brother Donkey’s Star Fist hard on, even ordinary Quasi-Saints wouldn’t dare, even if you are a spirit, don’t even think... what!"

The old man’s expression changed!

In his astonished gaze, Ning Fan actually used his own fist to withstand the Donkey Puppet’s fist technique!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

In just a brief confrontation, Ning Fan and the Donkey Puppet exchanged dozens of punches, surprisingly resulting in a stalemate!

"How could it be! This child is merely flesh and blood, yet managed to withstand the impact of the stars! Brother Donkey’s left fist was crafted using six Cultivation Stars, and the right fist with seven... Any random punch from Brother Donkey holds the impact of six or even seven stars, yet this child casually blocked such an impact..." The old man seemed unable to believe the scene before his eyes.

Did Ning Fan really easily block the Donkey Puppet’s attack? No, it was not easy.

A casual punch carrying the impact of six to seven Cultivation Stars; what a concept that is! Even though Ning Fan was fighting to a draw with the Donkey Puppet, each punch delivered felt like a bone-cracking pain.

The Donkey Puppet was clearly just a Half-Saint Puppet, yet it seemed... more formidable than many Quasi-Saints of the Decline! Earlier, with just one hoof, it kicked away the Iron General’s Quasi-Saint Puppet, showcasing its strength...

The power of an ancient Half-Saint... Ning Fan’s gaze became serious, knowing he had to exert his full strength.

Cross Halo, open!

Followed by a flurry of Ancient Demon Mountain-Shattering Strike combo attacks, pouring down like a torrential rain!

"What! That’s a Saint’s Ring! No, it’s not! A brilliant idea! Truly a brilliant idea!" The old man’s eyes on Ning Fan became even more fervent!

The full-force Ning Fan was naturally not something a mere Donkey Puppet could withstand. In the initial dozens of punches, the Donkey Puppet could still combat Ning Fan evenly, but as the force of the Ancient Demon Mountain-Shattering Strike grew more fierce, the Donkey Puppet finally began to fall behind.

Three hundred strikes!

Five hundred strikes!

Eight hundred strikes!

One thousand five hundred strikes!

Three thousand strikes!

When Ning Fan reached three thousand Ancient Demon Mountain-Shattering Strikes, the Donkey Puppet had been battered to a ragged state, unrecognizable and no longer a match for Ning Fan.

Even though his puppet was beaten to a pulp, the old man wasn’t angry but instead delighted, the green light in his eyes intense enough to devour the world!

"Genius! Absolute genius! The art of consecutive strikes has been around since ancient times, but to use the Ancient Demon Annihilation Dao as its core, while integrating characteristics like the Ancient Demon Critical Strike and Volcano Sect Combo Attack, this is the first time I’ve seen such a physical technique!"

"However, if this child thinks he can defeat Brother Donkey merely by relying on this technique, I’m afraid I must say it’s wishful thinking! Brother Donkey, use the Supreme Star Armor of Ten Lifetimes!"

"As you command!"

The donkey puppet summoned an armor that glittered like starlight, instantly becoming fully armed.

The grade of the armor couldn’t be determined, nor its material, yet it was so unparalleled that it refracted all of Ning Fan’s attacks; not a single punch could hit the donkey puppet!

"What kind of armor is this, that can actually refract my Ancient Demon Mountain-Shattering Strike... There’s no trace of Dao energy flowing; this armor doesn’t achieve this by using Dao as its source. This is a type of magical treasure I’ve never encountered before, and it can’t simply be defined by ordinary treasure grades... This refraction is formidable, but surely it has its limits. If I can unleash an attack this armor cannot withstand, its refraction will break of itself..."

Ning Fan’s eyes flashed with azure light, and within a few fleeting exchanges, he saw through the armor’s weakness.

His fist force became even fiercer!

The number of his consecutive strikes climbed steadily!

Unfortunately, even with eight thousand Ancient Demon Mountain-Shattering Strikes already unleashed, he still couldn’t do anything about this armor!

The defensive capability of this armor — no, its refractive capability — was too extraordinary! As long as the donkey puppet wore this armor, even Second-Grade Quasi-Saints might not be able to handle it!

Wait a moment! Refraction!

Ning Fan suddenly gleamed with brilliance, having a suspicion!

He knew how to break through the donkey puppet’s armor!

Relying solely on brute force wouldn’t work; while the armor was indeed extraordinary, it wasn’t without weaknesses. Its advantage was exactly its weakness!

"It should be light...Whether it is or not, a test will tell..."

The power of Dark Yin Yang was silently activated by Ning Fan!

Ning Fan’s next punch suddenly entwined with the Darkness Law!

Ever since the donkey puppet summoned its armor, the elder was calmly watching the fight, inwardly convinced Ning Fan would be defeated.

But when Ning Fan used the power of darkness, the elder could no longer remain composed, as his jaw nearly dropped.

What surprised him was not Ning Fan’s ability to use the Darkness Law, but...Ning Fan’s ability to see through his armor’s design!

Boom!

On the eight-thousand-and-first punch, Ning Fan successfully hit the donkey puppet, smashing through its armor, piercing through its abdomen, and shattering the puppet’s crystal core.

The donkey puppet’s eyes instantly became dim, losing control and collapsing to the ground, defeated.

"It really was light...The reason this armor could refract attacks was due to the integration of the profound principles of light refraction, which differ from ordinary magical treasure crafting. That’s why I didn’t see through it at first. Against light, darkness is the best choice, but if switched to someone who hasn’t cultivated the Darkness Law, trying to cleverly break this armor would be nearly impossible..."

Though he had defeated the donkey puppet, Ning Fan felt no sense of relief because he was never overly concerned about the donkey puppet.

His concern from start to finish was always about the elder!

Toward this mysterious elder, Ning Fan had no confidence in victory; the only thing he needed to consider was not how to win, but how to escape from the elder.

At the moment he crushed the donkey puppet, Ning Fan swept his sleeve, retrieving the Black Evil Sect, Aflo, and Destroying Path Thunder Infant back to the Xuan Yin Treasure, and turned to leave.

Seeing Ning Fan defeat the donkey puppet in one strike and then flee, the elder was momentarily stunned, then burst into laughter.

"Got played! I, the All-Knowing Elder, actually got deceived by an Immortal King junior! Hahaha! What a cunning child, interesting, I like it! It seems he realized from the moment I appeared that I fly slowly, which is why he didn’t choose to escape immediately but instead crushed my transport brother, then fled..."

"Wise choice! As an Nascent Soul cultivator, I indeed fly slowly, but you think, with my status, that I only have Brother Donkey as transport? The prey I set my sights on has never escaped! Brother Donkey, come back and rest! Brother Eagle, it’s your turn!"

The elder emitted a ray of light, retrieved the injured donkey puppet, and then summoned a golden eagle puppet.

This golden eagle puppet had only Sixth Calamity Immortal Emperor cultivation, its combat power nowhere near the donkey puppet’s. Of course, this puppet wasn’t meant for combat...

"Brother Eagle, if you perform well, I’ll give you five Puppet Crystals this month!"

"Screech!"

...

Ning Fan dashed through the desert, almost flying at extreme speed!

"Did I guess correctly, or was I mistaken... Perhaps that old guy truly isn’t adept at flying, or maybe it’s just my illusion... Not good!"

Boom!

While fleeing with all his might, Ning Fan unfortunately collided with some ancient prohibition lingering between heaven and earth, narrowly escaping death.

Luckily, Ning Fan has always reacted fast enough; at the last moment, he dodged the majority of the prohibition’s attack and didn’t perish.

Unfortunately, he was still severely injured by the prohibition, covered in blood, and even his Divine Spirit Body was useless, unable to withstand such a level of attack!

"Trouble... In this Light Ancestor Abyss, one truly can’t fly recklessly. If I flee linearly, the probability of hitting a prohibition here is very high. But if I switch to point teleportation, the probability should be very low. Yet, the interference here is too strong, even disrupting the teleportation path of the Six Paths Portal. Using the portal under such interference can easily lead to teleportation failure; one careless mistake, and I risk the same fate as when I teleported to North Heaven..."

Ning Fan swallowed several expensive pills, not even having time to chew them before continuing his flight.

He hadn’t flown far when he collided with another ancient prohibition. With the previous experience, Ning Fan’s reaction was quicker this time, dodging more promptly before the prohibition’s attack landed, yet he was still hit by a few attacks.

"This place restricts perception; here, I can’t predict the locations of ancient prohibitions in advance. The only thing I can rely on is the body instinct honed from countless life-and-death experiences. With instinct, during the interval between prohibition’s trigger and attack, I must dodge... This is the second time. If I encounter several more ancient prohibitions, I will definitely truly understand the triggering mechanisms of the prohibitions here, allowing my body to memorize the timing of the triggers. In this way, I can achieve a perfect dodge in the brief interval before the prohibition attack lands! The only trouble is that this adaptation requires several collisions with prohibitions, resulting in severe injuries. Like the Six Paths Portal, it has its downsides..."

Ning Fan swallowed a few more expensive pills, suppressing his injuries to advance forcibly.

The third, fourth, fifth time... After this, he consecutively collided with five more ancient prohibitions, with each subsequent injury being lighter than the last.

By the sixth collision with an ancient prohibition, he actually relied entirely on his body instinct to dodge the prohibition’s attack in that brief trigger moment!

This is not something an ordinary person can achieve! This speed of body reflexes is unrelated to cultivation; only those who have experienced life and death can hone this ability, which lifelong practitioners in peace cannot possess!

"Terrifying, truly terrifying! This kid knows nothing about the distribution of prohibitions here and still dares to fly so fast! Is he planning to risk it all with me! I just want to catch you for some research, not harm your life, why don’t you understand!"

"Madman, truly a madman! Are repeated collisions with ancient prohibitions intentional? Is it really possible to dodge them instinctively by memorizing their triggers?"

"Impossible! He’s been attacked by prohibitions, yet each injury is lighter than the previous!"

"Six times! Only six times to perfectly dodge the prohibition attack here! This is the prohibition left by me when I suppressed [Ant Lord] years ago; even if time has passed and its power diminished, it shouldn’t be avoided by body instinct! It’s absurd! He’s just a little Immortal King, not a Saint! How can he achieve this?"

"Damn it! This kid’s full-speed flight is actually this fast! Even my Brother Eagle couldn’t catch up! Not good! This kid took the wrong path! He can’t go further! Ahead is the [new lair] of [that monster]!"

...

Ning Fan felt a headache; at this sixth layer, even though his perception was restricted, he could still feel a spirit sense behind him, constantly locking onto him.

The old man’s spirit sense wasn’t restricted!

The old man’s spirit sense was still locked onto him, still chasing him!

Even though he was at full speed, he still couldn’t shake off the old man’s pursuit!

"Should I risk opening the Six Paths Portal to directly teleport out of the abyss? Under the interference here, this is risky, but if successful, it could instantly shake off this old madman... But Mistress Xiao Man is still here, and I haven’t found her location yet. Leaving like this would mean abandoning Mistress Xiao Man in this dangerous place..."

"Indeed, I should first find Mistress Xiao Man and leave together!"

Despite the mysterious old man’s pursuit, Ning Fan dared to search for Bei Xiao Man within this sixth layer, showing supreme boldness.

Seeing the old man getting closer, Ning Fan felt even more uneasy. He flew haphazardly over the desert and inadvertently reached a gigantic ground hole.

This ground hole wasn’t the entrance to the seventh layer.

It was actually a light ant nest!

In this nest, there were billions of light ant eggs yet to hatch. The nest also contained hundreds of thousands of newly hatched light ants, but all with very low cultivation, causing no trouble for Ning Fan.

Ning Fan wasn’t interested in such a light ant nest and was preparing to fly directly over when suddenly, a mutation arose!

Something deep in the nest seemed to sense Ning Fan’s passing and suddenly shot out hundreds or thousands of tendrils, attempting to entangle him.

Those tendrils attacked at a speed even faster than the ancient prohibitions’ attacks here. Ning Fan, relying on his body instinct, only managed to dodge a few tendrils’ attacks while most managed to entangle him.

He had no idea what creature emitted these tendrils; Ning Fan, even at full cultivation, couldn’t break free from the tendrils! As he sensed more, Ning Fan grew more shocked, as he could feel extremely dense... Third Step Aura from those tendrils!

Third Step Aura, Saint’s Tendrils! In the Era of Decline, there are no Saints, yet the tendrils’ difficulty absolutely surpassed the Second Step!

"Predatory light ants, suspected old madman Ancient Great Cultivator, and these unknown tendrils suspected of a Saint’s attack... This Light Ancestor Abyss is too perilous; no wonder even the illustrious Light Clan can’t handle this place... So after I find Mistress Xiao Man this time, I must educate her well: don’t venture into dangerous places recklessly!"

Boom!

A subtle Power of Reincarnation suddenly erupted around Ning Fan, and relying on this power, he forcibly broke the tendrils entangling him.

Only the power of the Third Step can confront the power of the Third Step. Though the Power of Reincarnation within Ning Fan is limited, the mysterious tendrils here are not truly terrifying in might, so Ning Fan is not incapable of striking back against these tendrils.

Ssss!

More tendrils shot out from deep within the nest, although not enough to once again bind Ning Fan, yet they blocked Ning Fan’s path, trapping him in the aerial space of this place, unable to swiftly depart.

It was for this reason that Ning Fan was caught up by the mysterious elder riding the Golden Eagle Puppet for the first time!

"Troubling, only the Six Paths Portal can be risked now..."

Ning Fan’s gaze sharpened, intending to open the Six Paths Portal to teleport out of this area, but the elder acted first.

The elder did not attack Ning Fan.

The elder merely attacked the countless tendrils entangling Ning Fan, as well as a certain presence deep within the cave.

"Boy, let this elder hold them off for you, quickly leave! If this guy goes berserk, it isn’t something you can handle, even your inept Chaotic Ancient Master isn’t its match, let alone you! I’ve suppressed this beast for ten cycles of reincarnation, no one understands it better than I, in this Era of Decline, only I can cleverly restrain it!"

The mysterious elder was actually shielding Ning Fan’s retreat!

Ning Fan furrowed his brow; with his skill, he could escape using the Six Paths Portal, although it would involve some risk...

If he was covered by the elder, he would inevitably owe a causal debt, a troublesome debt owed to the old monsters...

"Humph! Not willing to leave, are you avoiding the causal debt from this elder? I really misjudged you, unexpected to find you a mediocre person, always having those damned two words, ’causal debt,’ on your lips! Fine, you’re afraid of causal debt, are you, this elder is not afraid! Come on, come on, let this elder owe you once, stop running away, stay to help me slay that Ant Lord! Take this item! Later, when this elder says slay, you slay!"

The elder impatiently took out an item and tossed it to Ning Fan.

Ning Fan was slightly startled; the item turned out to be an Innate Superior Treasure!

[Two-Yi Protective Sword - Yang Sword - Kindness Not Punishment]!

Possessing the means for Communication with All Things, Ning Fan instantly knew the name of this sword!

However... what a silly name, he was truly at a loss for words!

The only certainty was that this sword was exceedingly powerful, extremely strong! Merely holding this sword, Ning Fan felt his Mana increase by twenty percent, seemingly due to an unknown reason, the sword’s high compatibility with his Yin Yang Transformation and Chaos Ring Art augmented Ning Fan’s cultivations!

Ning Fan could further sense the colossal might contained within the sword! In this Era of Decline, it’s a rare Innate Superior Treasure! With possession of this sword, Ning Fan was even confident about defeating figures of the Pure Yang Ancestral Master level!

"A treasure like this, to be given just like that, doesn’t this old man fear I’ll take the treasure and run? Does he underestimate me, trust me, or is he indifferent..." Ning Fan furrowed his brows even deeper.

The thought of seizing the treasure wasn’t absent, but considering the gap between his and the elder’s power, he soon abandoned the notion.

Then, how should he decide...

Should he stay and help the elder deal with whatever nonsense [Ant Lord], or return the sword to the elder and leave on his own, or perhaps seize the sword and leave...

[Zhou Ming, Zhou Ming, longing for you, longing for you...]

Ning Fan suddenly heard a certain voice, floating out from deep within the Light Ant Nest!

That voice, that voice... belonged to Bei Xiao Man! It was a call that only Bei Xiao Man would use!

Zhou Ming!

Dammit, could it be this crazy girl is trapped inside this nest! What is she thinking? How can she casually come to such a place!

The body’s reaction outpaced Ning Fan’s rising anger!

Ning Fan, with fury spanning ages, charged forth like a supreme demon god, wielding the Two-Yi Protective Sword, descending ferociously into the Light Ant Nest below!

At this moment, no longer considering the old madman or any Ant Lord!

His sole desire now was to retrieve Bei Xiao Man from that damned Light Ant Nest, then find an isolated place and spank her bottom fiercely!

Comparing persuasive education, Ning Fan indeed favored corporal punishment more!

"Wha-what! Are you truly crazy, boy! You dare to rush straight into the Ant Lord’s nest! You, you, you, are you intending to be digested by the Ant Lord! With Chaotic Ancient’s nagging nature, to accept such a lawless disciple, how, how... perfectly to this elder’s appetite! Brother Evil, it’s decided, you too! We shall charge in!"

[Two-Yi Protective Sword - Yin Sword - Evil Shall Be Cut]!

The elder drew another Innate Superior Sword, following Ning Fan into the Light Ant Nest...