Grasping Evil

Jin was a Mid-ranked Cultivation Country that was seven million li big. They also possessed superior Spirit Vein and was rich in Spirit Ores. The ‘Jin Iron’ was very popular amongst the neighbouring cultivators and it had became a means for many sects to rein in profits.

The spirit qi here was almost double in density compared to Yue Country. The cultivators here would at least be thirty percent faster than those in Yue Country in terms of cultivation speed.

The thirty percent might not seem much, but when it is stacked over time, the difference would be enormous. The thousand years a Jin cultivator cultivates  would equate to a thousand and three hundred years for others. An extra three hundred years to cultivate their Dao!

Three hundred years… If Yue Cultivators like Gui Qiaozi were born in Jin, they would’ve formed their Nascent Soul with the extra 300 years of cultivation!

A Mid-ranked Cultivation Country possess a number of experts that a Low-ranked Cultivation Country could not compete with. Any Nascent Soul Realm old monster that goes to a Low-ranked Cultivation Country could easily stomp them to the ground.

The law of the Rain World dictates that 70% of the profit gained from annihilating a country must be given up to the Rain Palace. This was a preventive measure aimed towards those strong old monster to prevent them on simply annihilating a country on a whim.

Foreign cultivators would enter Great Jin to continue their cultivation after they have formed their Gold Cores.

Whereas some experts would stop by at Great Jin to borrow its Ancient Teleportation Formation.

In the recent years however, the demon tide worsened, increasing the danger in cultivating in Jin and causing the Ancient Teleportation Formation to activate only once a year.

The time for the next activation was three months later.

People would only need to pay 10,000 immortal jade to use the teleportation formation in the past. But with the recent decree made by the king, it was changed to 10,000 battle points.

A team of cultivators were entering a cultivator city just hundred of li away from Jin Country’s border led by a Gold Core Realm cultivator of Jin.

The city was named Quwo City and was one of the biggest cities in Jin, where the Han Yi Sect was situated.

Han Yi sect’s leader — Jie Xiu, was an Early Nascent Soul Realm cultivator and he had another identity, which was one of the fourteen commanders under the Ruler of Jin.

The Ruler of Jin was rumoured to be a Late Nascent Soul Realm cultivator. His techniques and skills were extremely powerful. He commanded eleven Nascent Soul Realm cultivators that were both from the Righteous and Demonic Path, and three rogue Nascent Soul Realm cultivators… He also established the Cultivator Guards. This had led the country of Jin to be near impossible to invade by foreign cultivators, under his command.

Ning Fan felt a different vibe in Great Jin. It was something that couldn’t be felt in Wu and Yue.

Even though Yue was called a country, its sects were all independent. Each of those sects ‘shrinked their heads’, not daring to resist when the Heavenly Dao Sect invaded Yue.

On the other hand, Great Jin was qualified to be called a Cultivation Country… The Ruler of Jin would not interfere in the personal squabbles of each sects. But when there’s a big disaster that befalls the country, every sect must work together and abandon all private grudges, and cooperate for the sake of the country!

“Great Jin is a true cultivation ‘Country’… And the Han Yi Sect… Yeah, it’s a good sect…”

Within Quwo City, Ning Fan was travelling alongside a team of cultivators. His gaze swept across the disciples of Han Yi Sect and nodded his head slightly.

Cultivators that wore simple attires and some of them even have patches… patches sewn upon their robes… In the world of cultivation, it’s a rare scene. But common in this place.

To wear such plain outfits and not be lavish on their daily cultivation lifestyle. It’s a type of training one’s mental state, and to have the disciples of Han Yi Sect to be at peace in a plain life… It was the ancestor of the Han Yi Sect ‘Jie Zitui’ that had proposed such cultivation method…

The Seven Apricot Voyage Ship, Bing Ling and the other girls were ‘kept away’ by Ning Fan and Lady Yun Hua was ‘kept’ into the ‘Corpse Bag’ by Jing Zhuo.

The three of them followed the Gold Core Realm cultivators of Jin into Quwo City from the border. All for the purpose of obtaining permission to temporarily join the Cultivator Guard.

To enter the Ancient Teleportation Formation, each person had to pay ten thousand battle points and thirty thousand points was required for three.

Since the next activation of the formation was set to be only three months later, they would need to wait another year if this opportunity was missed.

Thirty thousand battle points… He was slightly worried as he did not know about the ways on how to acquire battle points.

Ning Fan’s brows furrowed and Suqiu immediately saw it. She consoled him and said.

“Our esteemed ‘Old Ancestor Zhou Ming’ gets worried too?”

“Worried, extremely worried, worried that Yun Kuang would steal away this Zhou’s ‘Dao Companion’, and that’ll be troublesome…” Ning Fan teasingly said, and Suqiu’s cheeks immediately flushed, turning on her back while feeling embarrassed.

As for Jing Zhuo, it was his first time coming here to Great Jin.

But in regards to Quwo City’s Old Ancestor Jie Xiu, he and the other Gold Core Realm companions were the same, wanting to give him a visit.

Nascent Soul Realm Old Monsters were existences where simple conversations could lead to possible increase in the comprehension of the Dao.

All thirteen Gold Core Realm cultivators that were denied entry by the border’s old monster decided in the end to join the Cultivator Guards to help Jin to exterminate demons after much consideration.

After they settled down in the inn, the Gold Core Realm cultivator of Jin said that they would be escorted by a Han Yi Sect cultivator to meet Jie Xiu three days later.

Each Gold Core Realm cultivators’ firm hearts slightly trembled after hearing that they could meet Old Ancestor  Jie Xiu.

It was because common Gold Core Realm cultivators would not be personally greeted by Han Yi Sect’s Nascent Soul Realm Sect Master when they join the Cultivator Guards.

To personally be welcomed by a Nascent Soul Realm Old Ancestor… Each Gold Core Realm cultivators understood that all of this was because ‘Zhou Ming’ was amongst them…

This person may also be Nascent Soul Realm Old Ancestor!

Not in vain, totally not in vain! Being able to meet two Nascent Soul Realm cultivators for this trip, if we do not seek guidance, wouldn’t that be… such a great waste of opportunity!

Ning Fan decided to keep the act of his other identity, ‘Old Ancestor Zhou Ming’.

He already exposed himself after offending Yun Kuang… Plus, his feat in Wei Country was so well-known that it spread until the borders of Great Jin. As such, it was nearly impossible to hide his identity.

And Ning Fan was not planning on hiding it too… A cultivation level of the Gold Core Realm was required to join the Cultivator Guard. And they’ll probably be picky on who gets to use the Teleportation Formation… It would be too troublesome to work with his real Half-Step Gold Core cultivation. Casting the Falsifying Art and masking his qi into those of a Nascent Soul Realm expert would make things easier for him.

After mastering Teleportation, his spirit sense reached the Early Nascent Soul Realm and he had also consumed the Spirit Refining Grass that was obtained from the demonesses. Hence, under the masking effect of the Falsifying Art, he would not be exposed by Mid Nascent Soul Realm cultivators. Unless he meets a Late Nascent Soul Realm cultivator!

Currently, the Falsifying Art increased by a small level!

Acting as a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator would allow him to join the Cultivation Guard and obtain difficult missions that would reward him with much more battle points.

Ning Fan collected some information from the cultivators in the inn. He found out that the Jin Cultivation Guard was separated into two units — ‘Combat Unit’ and ‘Defense Unit’.

The Combat Unit was tasked with eliminating demons and only those that are Late Gold Core Realm and above were allowed to join. Meanwhile, the Defense Unit was tasked with defending the frontline cultivation cities and the average Gold Core Realm cultivators could join.

Even though the specifics on obtaining battle points was not known,  it was told that the Combat Unit’s battle point rewards were ten times higher than that of the Defense Unit…

So it would be much more convenient to join the Combat Unit under the guise of a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, compared to having a Harmonious Spirit Realm cultivation that has the strength of a Nascent Soul Realm, which may cause unnecessary trouble.

The three days of waiting was ‘just nice’ for them to replenish themselves from the journey.

Jing Zhuo and Suqiu have not gone out at all and were both meditating in their rooms. As for Ning Fan, he wanted to tour the city but was visited by the thirteen Gold Core Realm cultivators that were in the team.

Old Ancestor Jie Xiu was a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator. Old Ancestor Zhou Ming was also a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator!

There was a chance for a Gold Core Realm cultivator to learn something from just having a chat with a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator. It’s possible for them to save several years to dozens of years of continuous and bitter cultivation!

There was a saying that ‘it’s wrong to deny people that smile’ so Ning Fan couldn’t send them off as they had brought him gifts.

A pot of tea and a chatting session about the Dao was enough to satisfy these Gold Core Realm cultivators.

Within the three days of exchange in Dao, Ning Fan would give hints during their exchange which would more or less increase their comprehension in the Dao.

When questions in regards to the bottlenecks they faced were raised, he would slightly think about it and give them an excellent answer that would make them jump in joy.

Three of them even left quickly in the middle of their exchange in the Dao… They found out that their bottlenecks were loosening. If they do not breakthrough right now, they would have missed their chance.

Three days of Dao exchange had made all the Gold Core Realm cultivators to not doubt his Nascent Soul Realm identity. Other than Nascent Soul Realm old monsters, who else could point out the solutions in the bottlenecks of Gold Core Realm cultivators with just a few words?

Ning Fan, too, was rewarded in these exchanges. The time spent on his Dao cultivation was too short, relying too much on the Yin Yang Locket and the Immortal Emperor’s memory.

He gained quite a lot in terms of comprehension in the Dao after his exchange with those old monsters. Plus, these old monsters came from different countries and they answered him when he asked them about their country’s news and culture.

In terms of general knowledge, Ning Fan now had a slight grasp on the neighbouring eight countries around Wei.

Also, during their exchange in the Dao, Ning Fan could feel a spirit sense of an Early Nascent Soul Realm cultivator spying on him.

That Nascent Soul Realm cultivator kept his vigilance towards him for the full three days.

Ning Fan guessed that the reason they were not immediately accepted into the Cultivation Guard after entering Quwo was because of this person… This person must’ve been wary of him and wanted to investigate him.

However, Ning Fan did not expose him.

Only after all the Gold Core Realm old monsters had left on the third evening, did Ning Fan faintly smiled while he leisurely enjoyed his tea saying:

“Fellow Daoist Jie Xiu, you already observed me for three days straight, isn’t enough?”

That inquisitive spirit sense was slightly startled after hearing what Ning Fan said and a ‘hehe’ laugh could be heard.

“Fellow Daoist Zhou Ming’s spirit sense is slightly stronger than this old Daoist. Pardon for my rudeness… However if Fellow Daoist Zhou Ming thinks that being slightly stronger than this old Daoist would be enough for you to repeat what happened in Wei… This old Daoist will not allow it to happen and the Ruler of Jin will not also turn a blind eye to this! ”

“Daoist Jie must be joking… This Zhou only came here to Great Jin to use the Teleportation Formation and joining the Cultivation Guard was also just to obtain battle points. There is certainly no scheme that I’m brewing in Great Jin, so Daoist Jie can just relax…”

“Hehe, that would be for the best… This old daoist will wait for fellow daoist in Liang Bao Palace. If fellow daoist certainly has no malicious schemes in mind, this old daoist will gladly recommend your excellency to our Great Jin’s Cultivation Guard to assist us on eliminating the demon tide.” That voice had no emotion and the spirit sense dispersed instantly like a cold fire that left no traces.

Ning Fan’s gaze sharpened.

This Jie Xiu possesses a strange spirit sense technique… he’s not to be underestimated.