Chapter 962: The Mad Nine-Orifice Nascent Soul

Jiang Fan gasped. Was this middle-aged swordsman, whose power was boundless and terrifying, the "ultimate great evil" Yu Peiyuan spoke of? And he had appeared right in front of him? But this man exuded righteousness; why would he be considered a great evil? Ignoring his doubts, Jiang Fan chose to trust Yu Peiyuan, decisively drew his Violet Sword, and thrust it towards the head of the blood-red giant beast.

The middle-aged swordsman, who had already walked quite a distance, suddenly stopped. He slowly turned around, looked at Jiang Fan again, and asked, "Young man, why do you carry a bloody aura? Wait! Some of it belongs to our human race. Have you killed people? Why haven't you paid with your life? A life for a life is only natural! Why are you still alive? To kill is evil, and evil must be punished by justice. You are evil! You are wicked! Heaven and Earth will not tolerate you!" The middle-aged swordsman roared, his state becoming somewhat frantic.

Jiang Fan's expression changed. As he stabbed the blood-red giant beast, he said, "Senior, please let me explain. I have never killed innocents; they all deserved their fate." The middle-aged swordsman became completely unhinged. He ripped open his sword box and roared, "I don't care! I won't listen! Murderers should pay with their lives; that is true justice! You deserve to die!"

Jiang Fan's pupils constricted. How could he resist that terrifying, mysterious sword light? Fortunately, Yu Peiyuan had warned him early, and Jiang Fan had successfully slain the blood-red beast. The space in front of them rapidly twisted. Just as the multi-colored sword light was about to envelop them, the power of space teleported them away.

Thud! The three of them simultaneously collapsed onto the stone steps, their faces as pale as paper. Sweat poured from their bodies. Jiang Fan touched his neck. In the instant the multi-colored sword light enveloped him, he felt as if his entire body was being sliced by a sharp blade! Looking at Yu Peiyuan and Consort Yunxia, their eyes were also filled with lingering fear. Had they been even a breath later, all three would have met the same fate as the blood-red giant beast.

"Senior Sister Yu, what exactly is the deal with this Ancient Path to Heaven?" Jiang Fan asked, still shaken, feeling a deep apprehension about the steps ahead. "Why did such a terrifying person suddenly appear?" However, Yu Peiyuan then uttered words that made Jiang Fan's heart pound. "He is not from the space within the Ancient Path to Heaven. He is Jiang Wuya, the Nine-Orifice Nascent Soul cultivator, the foremost sword cultivator of our Grand Cang Province, known by his Taoist name, Venerable Juzheng!"

Nine-Orifice Nascent Soul? Jiang Fan's heart turned cold. To survive an attack from such an existence was nothing short of a miracle! He asked incredulously, "Then how could he be on the stone steps? Didn't they say Nascent Soul cultivators are forbidden from entering?" Yu Peiyuan gave a wry smile. "It seems he arrived on the Ancient Path to Heaven even before that Venerable One. So, no one knew he was within the space of one of these steps."

That's possible? Jiang Fan recalled the man's strangeness: one moment he considered him a fellow practitioner, even offering sword intent as encouragement upon seeing his righteous actions. The next moment, upon discovering he had killed someone, he was branded as a great evil, and the man attacked to kill him without any distinction of reason. The contrast was too extreme. "What happened to him then?" Jiang Fan asked, bewildered. Yu Peiyuan sighed softly, her expression complex. "He's gone mad."

Jiang Fan's face was filled with surprise, and immense doubt welled up in his heart. "How could such a powerful cultivator go mad?" To cultivate to the Nine-Orifice Nascent Soul stage, one's willpower must be vastly superior to that of ordinary people. What else could drive them mad? The Sky Demon Emperor, despite being subjected to such a massive humiliation that he wanted to self-destruct, didn't go mad. Let alone a Nine-Orifice Nascent Soul cultivator? Yu Peiyuan, however, looked surprised. "Didn't your elders tell you the secret of the late-stage Nascent Soul realm? Oh! Right, your Pavilion Master of the Heavenly Secret Pavilion is only a One-Orifice Nascent Soul himself. He might not know, or even if he does, he might think it's too early to tell you since you haven't successfully passed your tribulation yet. The reason he is like this is because..."

"Slay the evil, vanquish the demons, and the righteous path shall forever prosper!" A low roar emanated from the stone steps below them. Jiang Fan's expression changed drastically. He decisively swept the two of them and leaped into the next stone step, entering its space.

Not long after, Jiang Wuya, with his sword box on his back, burst out of the space. His dark hair billowed, his eyes rolled with madness, and he looked down at his surroundings. "Evil heretics, Heaven and Earth shall vanquish you!" He leaped, chasing into the next stone step.

Jiang Fan looked at the several blood-red beasts in front of him and no longer held back, swiftly slaying them at all costs. He sensed an unparalleled sword qi furiously approaching him. Fortunately, the stone steps teleported different groups of people to different locations. This gave Jiang Fan a slight time advantage. Otherwise, if they were all teleported to the same place, Jiang Wuya could have instantly slain him, the "great evil." Now, he was just frantically chasing him.

"Jiang Lang, perhaps I should also intervene," Consort Yunxia said, frowning. Being pursued by a Nine-Orifice Nascent Soul cultivator meant they couldn't afford a single mistake. Jiang Fan shook his head. "No need!" He handed Yu Peiyuan a Rejuvenation Pill and said, "Senior Sister Yu, it's up to you!" Yu Peiyuan said nothing more, swallowed the pill, and immediately began assisting in the slaying.

Soon after, the space twisted, and they were teleported away, just as Jiang Wuya arrived, bringing his sword qi. He looked up at the sky, waved a finger, and the mysterious sword light actually shattered the space, creating a rift, through which he then leaped and entered! The rules of the stone steps had absolutely no effect on him! Jiang Fan, who had entered the next step, soon sensed that Jiang Wuya had also entered. His heart pounded, and he swiftly slew the blood-red beast. Then he decisively departed. This continued repeatedly, through an unknown number of steps, yet Jiang Wuya still relentlessly pursued Jiang Fan. Fortunately, Jiang Wuya was in a state of madness at this moment, not calm. Otherwise, after entering, he could have first shattered the space to exit, then waited like a hunter for Jiang Fan to emerge, and killed him with a single sword stroke. Now, he was just frantically chasing him.

The 9,999th step. Feng Yuanzong, a disciple of the Great Yin Sect, emerged covered in blood, looked at the final step before him, and let out a long cry to the heavens. "Hahaha! First place is mine!" His gaze went beyond the final ten thousand steps, and he saw the legendary colossal alchemy furnace, taller than the heavens, emitting multicolored pill mist, and saw ancient, immortal corpses. He also saw an old man sitting atop a cloud peak at the end of the steps. Behind him, a golden divine halo was strikingly prominent. A divine halo was the mark of a God Transformation Venerable! He, Feng Yuanzong, was about to reach the summit! To become the disciple of this God Transformation Venerable!

Just then, a powerful aura emanated from behind him. He turned his head and saw three people looking flustered. He recognized one, a female disciple from the Sky's End Sea Pavilion, whose name he couldn't remember because she wasn't pretty. The other two were complete strangers. After they leaped onto the 9,999th step, they immediately entered the space within.

Feng Yuanzong's face was filled with disbelief. "Which sect's hidden prodigies are these, to have actually caught up behind me?" Hua Wuying from the Myriad Tribulation Holy Palace was clearly in second place. As he pondered, a terrifying sword qi ripped through the stone steps, and a powerful, peerless figure shot up into the sky. Feng Yuanzong took one look and gasped! "Jiang Wuya? Ah!" He shrieked, then jumped onto the 10,000th step, quickly being taken inside.

Jiang Wuya noticed him, his eyes filled with righteous indignation. "Full of negative energy, another crooked demon!" He immediately casually struck out with a beam of sword light. Feng Yuanzong's miserable shriek came from within the stone steps, lamenting: "I was just joining in on the fun..."