Chapter 763: Letting You Meddle

Ren Hong also said, "Ye Banxia, stop wasting time.""Even Senior Sister Wu couldn't obtain the lotus seeds; what chance does Junior Brother Jiang, a new disciple, have?""Since you possess the Dragonheart Blood Lotus, release us quickly!""I admit defeat."

Wu Manyue also said, annoyed, "Ye Banxia, did you hear that?""Stop wasting time!"

Ye Banxia, however, said indifferently, "I don't need you to tell me how to do things.""Besides, this new disciple is quite remarkable.""He nearly escaped my formation, proving far stronger than any of you."

Ren Hong showed a hint of surprise: "Is Junior Brother Jiang's escape technique truly that impressive?""He almost broke free even from a gravity formation."

Wu Manyue snorted, "More than impressive?""Can you believe he, at the second level of the Core Formation Stage, managed to escape from a ninth-level demonic priest?"

Ren Hong was quite surprised: "This Junior Brother Jiang is indeed quite extraordinary."

At this moment, Ye Banxia had already come before Jiang Fan. She looked at the lotus seed in her hand. The lotus seed was very calm. It didn't sense the presence of any other lotus seeds. This made her slightly disappointed: "It seems there truly is only one."

Jiang Fan also secretly sighed in relief and said, "Senior Sister Ye, I just told you.""I'm just a passing new disciple.""How could I possibly have..." He gaped, unable to utter a word.

Wu Manyue's eyes widened gradually. Ren Hong was also stunned on the spot. Even Ye Banxia's typically aloof expression showed a flicker of surprise. Because the silent lotus seed glowed.

"You have a Dragonheart Blood Lotus?" Ren Hong looked bewildered. Where would Jiang Fan get a Dragonheart Blood Lotus? Could he also possess an old lotus seed like Ye Banxia?

Wu Manyue had a bad premonition. She stared intently at the slowly forming numbers on the lotus seed. Soon, the numbers appeared. It was exactly the nine missing from that particular Dragonheart Blood Lotus. Wu Manyue's pupils contracted sharply. She immediately understood and screamed in rage: "You despicable wretch!""I wondered why you were so unusually well-behaved this time!""So, while we were locked in battle with the Blood Ghouls, you snuck in and picked all the lotus seeds, leaving just one!!!""Ye Banxia, let me go!""I'm going to slaughter that bastard!!!" Wu Manyue's chest heaved violently with anger as she screamed frantically.

After Ren Hong had been stunned for a while, he suddenly reacted. He said furiously, "Jiang Fan!""You hid nine lotus seeds yourself, and I just picked up one you didn't want!""Yet you accused me of deceiving you, saying I was shameless?""Who's truly shameless here?""And you had the nerve to ask me how I could have hidden one, how could I be so heartless?""I ask you, while Wu Manyue and I were fighting desperately against the Blood Ghouls, you just went and took advantage.""How could you be so heartless?" He finally understood why Wu Manyue was so wary of Jiang Fan. This guy was truly not human! It was laughable that he had thought Jiang Fan was harmless and a good junior brother who would cause no trouble.

Cough, cough— Jiang Fan coughed heavily twice. His face reddened as he said, "Senior Brother Ren, Senior Sister Wu.""Please listen to my sophistry... I mean, my explanation.""I wasn't stealing the lotus seeds.""I was concerned that your battle with the Blood Ghouls might accidentally harm the Dragonheart Blood Lotus.""So I took protective harvesting measures.""I was going to quietly share them with you once we left the underground world.""Who knew it would lead to such a misunderstanding."

Spit— Two spats of saliva flew in unison. Ye Banxia was stunned for quite a while. He actually conned two senior disciples so thoroughly? Crucially, he managed to keep them completely in the dark. If she hadn't suddenly intervened, this matter might have remained hidden forever.

"You truly are full of surprises," Ye Banxia remarked, looking down at Jiang Fan. She continued, "But, thank you.""For bringing me the remaining nine lotus seeds." She crouched down, about to search Jiang Fan. Jiang Fan quickly said, "Senior Sister Ye, don't search.""Can I take them out myself?" Ye Banxia completely ignored him. She reached directly into his chest, saying calmly: "Don't worry.""I'll only take the lotus seeds.""I'm not interested in your other belongings."

But as soon as she reached in, she recoiled as if shocked. Her index finger was bitten by something, and crimson blood welled up. Ye Banxia frowned, instinctively stepping back: "What's in your chest?""Is it poisonous?" Jiang Fan subtly observed the direction of her retreat. When he saw she was less than a zhang away from a nondescript patch of earth, he suddenly let out a low cry: "Detonate!" Bang— The Corpse Incense Pellet buried beneath suddenly exploded! A powerful shockwave partially destroyed the formation runes etched into the ground. This caused the formation to instantly fail. Jiang Fan and the others immediately regained their mobility.

But the effect of the Corpse Incense Pellet was far more than just that. The exploding red mist instantly rushed towards Ye Banxia, who was not far away. Who could have guarded against Jiang Fan having prepared a trick even before entering? Ye Banxia was caught off guard. Although she dodged in time, she still inhaled a small amount of the red mist. Immediately, she felt dizzy and disoriented. Her vision blurred, seeing double. Realizing something was wrong, she stumbled towards the jade phoenix chair. She cried out imperiously, "How dare you ambush me!""You just wait..." She didn't finish her sentence. Suddenly, her vision went black. Jiang Fan pulled out a bludgeon, five or six zhang long, and smashed it hard onto her head. Bang— Already dizzy, Ye Banxia couldn't withstand such an impact. Her vision went black on the spot, and she fell to the ground. Before losing consciousness, she said unwillingly, "You... just... wait..." Her response was another hit from the bludgeon, knocking her out completely.

Jiang Fan was still not satisfied. With a darkened face, he went up and kicked her in the stomach: "That's for being nosy!" He could have handled the Dragonheart Blood Lotus discreetly, without anyone knowing. But this woman's interference directly exposed him, making him provoke both Wu Manyue and Ren Hong simultaneously. The former was a familiar adversary, thus less concerning. But the latter was one of the four legendary prodigies of the Heavenly Machine Pavilion; he was not someone easily offended.

Having knocked out Ye Banxia, Jiang Fan decisively put away his bludgeon, jumped onto the jade phoenix chair without looking back. He directly collected the jade chair, scoffing: "Consider that your compensation!" Immediately, not daring to look at the murderous eyes of Ren Hong and Wu Manyue, he activated Cloud Shadow, disappearing from their sight.

"You scoundrel!!""I'm going to fight you to the death!!" Wu Manyue scrambled up frantically. Disregarding her messy hair and skirt, she wildly chased after the lingering traces of lightning.

Ren Hong was also so furious his chest felt like it would explode. "Damn it!""A senior disciple, being played around by a newcomer!""This is outrageous!" He retrieved the Dragonheart Blood Lotus from Ye Banxia's hand and decisively chased after him.

Meanwhile, Jiang Fan instantly teleported to the spatial array leading to the next level down. He directly entered the ninth layer. As soon as he stepped inside, a dense wave of Yin energy washed over him, significantly thicker than that of the eighth layer. Staying here for too long would cause harm to the body. No wonder the Heavenly Machine Pavilion set time limits for each expedition. This place was not suitable for long-term human habitation.

Suddenly, he noticed a significant fluctuation at the edge of his vision. Immediately, a thought came to him. He activated his movement technique and rushed over. Only upon getting closer did he realize: a group of people was vigorously attacking an ink-black sphere. A large amount of Yin energy surged out from the sphere. They were trying to force the Yin energy back into the sphere through their attacks, but the effect was minimal. The sphere grew larger and larger, releasing more and more Yin energy. Only then did Jiang Fan realize this sphere was a spatial rift! And those attacking the Yin energy were none other than Shang Shiqiu, Jian Linyuan, and Leng Qingzhu. Leading them was a simply dressed, slender woman in her thirties. She should be their master, and also Jiang Fan's casual master, Manager Yunyang, whom he had never met before.