Jihui appeared elderly and stooped, but the moment he moved, it was like a thunderbolt — swift and devastating, lunging forward in a killing strike.

Ye Fan activated his mysterious footwork technique and immediately turned to flee. This old steward was far beyond anything he could match.

Jihui was terrifyingly powerful. In a single stride he ascended high into the sky, then brought one foot stamping down — the heavens themselves shook from the impact. His hunched frame seemed utterly at odds with his might, yet now he was fearsome enough to shake the heart. That enormous foot expanded as it descended, stretching several meters across, and came crashing down with bone-crushing force.

Thud!

Ye Fan’s heart seized. He dove sharply to one side. That foot came down and struck the earth, sending a thunderous shockwave through the ground as fissure after fissure cracked outward in all directions, the entire surface of the earth shattering apart.

“You won’t get away!”

The old steward Jihui swung his palm down from above like a millstone — vast, resounding with a rolling boom as it descended.

“You ungrateful old wolf…” Ye Fan gritted his teeth, changed direction, and burst forward again.

Boom!

That great palm struck the void, sending air currents erupting in every direction with the fury of a thunderstorm. Ye Fan was nearly hurled away by the shockwave.

One could scarcely imagine how terrifying this old steward was — his palm missed and still carried such staggering force.

“I’ll see to your funeral arrangements personally.”

“You nearly-bald old wretch — see to your own funeral.” Ye Fan shot away into the distance. Fast as he was, he found he could not leave this stretch of territory behind.

Some mysterious power was at work, rippling across the earth, its radiance flaring up to seal off his footwork technique. Even when he charged into the upper sky, he was still confined to this one area.

Heaven and earth were like a cage here — sealed, with no way to break through!

“You cannot escape.” The old steward Jihui’s expression was impassive, his body hunched, as he said, “I’ll give you a swift end. Every year I’ll burn some paper offerings for you, and pour out a little wine.”

His fingers pressed together like a blade and swept downward — a great wave of fire erupted from his hand, like a divine flaming sword, blazing with brilliant light, enveloping the entire sky. Sacred fire leaped and danced, searing and relentless.

Ye Fan barely made it out in time, dodging aside from the descending wall of flame.

The scorching heat was immediate and overwhelming. In moments, everything behind him was ablaze — in the blink of an eye the ground was utterly charred, every blade of grass and tree reduced to ash, the red earth burned and fired into gleaming ceramic.

“Repaying kindness with enmity!” Ye Fan seethed at Jihui — yet he despised the Ji Family senior figure Jihui even more. “You heartless, ungrateful old crone — don’t let me escape, or you’ll have something to answer for!”

“Words are useless now. The only fault is that you learned the secret art of the Void Ancient Sutra. The many direct-line descendants of my Ji Family have no opportunity to cultivate it — so a worthless outsider like you certainly cannot.”

Jihui reached out his great hand, five fingers extended like celestial hooks, blazing with blue-violet light. Thunder rang out — crackling arcs of lightning coiled around his fingers like coiling dragons, distorting the very void as they came bearing down in an instant on the crown of Ye Fan’s skull.

Crack!

Several arcs of violet lightning coiled around those five fingers like serpents — twisting, warping the void around them — and were on him in the blink of an eye.

Ye Fan’s heart went cold. He immediately activated the Great Void Art, dissolving into a wisp of black smoke and streaking through this sealed space.

Crack!

That violet lightning was indeed extraordinary. The first bolt struck down and gouged a hole in the earth as wide as a bucket — bottomlessly deep, trailing wisps of blue smoke.

“So you have truly grasped the Great Void Art. You cannot be allowed to live!” A cold gleam passed through Jihui’s eyes. He released every arc of lightning at once, violet light cutting through the void.

Clang!

An ear-splitting metallic ring erupted. A bronze plaque appeared in Ye Fan’s hand, shaking and shuddering violently, absorbing all those arcs of lightning — it was the bronze plaque of the Great Thunder Sound Temple.

This plaque was half-broken and could hardly put forth any real power, but Ye Fan had studied it many times and discovered it could absorb lightning strikes and sonic attacks — a strange and uncanny property.

“This is no solution at all!” Ye Fan put the bronze plaque away, feeling he was far too passive. Jihui’s cultivation was beyond reckoning — there was no possibility of matching him head on.

The old steward Jihui pressed down toward him, saying with a measured tone, “Young man, why do this to yourself? Struggle is pointless — it only prolongs your suffering. I intend to give you a swift end. Don’t make this harder on yourself.”

Though his words were mild and even, every step he took carried murderous intent. Opening his mouth, he exhaled a cloud of dark energy — the sky erupted with a sound like crashing ocean waves, rumbling thunder filling the air, surging toward Ye Fan.

Ye Fan was alarmed. This old wretch was far too powerful — exhaling a breath like thunder, vast as a sea. He shot upward. “What have you done to this space? How have you sealed it off?”

“I possess a supreme treasure — the Grand Canopy Net of Heaven. Once deployed, it encompasses all of heaven and earth. Someone at your level has no hope of breaking through it.”

“How did you find me?” Ye Fan asked again.

“When Lady Ziyue secretly passed you that jade pendant, we were already aware of it. Did you think erasing the mark would free you from being tracked? I was following you from the very beginning. Your speed is truly too fast, however — it took me until today to find you again.”

“Good, good, good. Now I know your true nature. Jihui, you wretched old crone — Jihui, you craven lackey…”

Jihui moved like a ghost, his voice ominous and cold. “Time is up. You should be on your way!”

Boom!

The sky convulsed. A massive black hand materialized in the air. Dark clouds churned all around it, radiating a pulse that made one’s heart contract — the Ji Family’s Void Great Palm Seal.

Jihui was a steward only in name — nothing more than an old slave. Yet he commanded this secret technique. Clearly his position was anything but ordinary.

The Void Great Palm Seal was supremely domineering, its power unparalleled — pitch-black as ink, blotting out the sky, bearing down on Ye Fan with crushing force!

There was no time to dodge. This was a supreme technique recorded in the Void Ancient Sutra — incomparably terrifying. The black hand covered the heavens, completely sealing Ye Fan in beneath it.

“In your next life, be born into a common family and don’t go looking for this kind of trouble…” The old steward Jihui’s voice was not loud, but it was without feeling, without mercy — echoing through the sky.

Whoosh!

Ye Fan drew out the violet copper eight-trigrams mirror, sending out a beam of radiance like a blazing sun, directed upward at the enormous hand. At the same moment, he brought out the Sky Net Umbrella and braced it above him.

But the radiance from the violet copper eight-trigrams mirror was insufficient to stop the Void Great Palm Seal.

Crack!

The black hand, vast as a canopy, came down full force upon the Sky Net Umbrella. A sharp crackling sound rang out — fissures spread across the surface of the umbrella. Ye Fan’s body was sent tumbling sideways.

Jihui wasted no more words. He summoned the Void Great Palm Seal again, driving it toward Ye Fan.

The great hand moved like a thundercloud, pulsing with a bone-deep vibration, pressing down like a mountain.

Crack!

Mighty as the Sky Net Umbrella was, it was no match for the Void Great Palm Seal. Struck with full force once again, it suddenly shattered into pieces.

The Sky Net Umbrella was destroyed!

Ye Fan coughed up a mouthful of blood and was sent flying backward dozens of meters. He felt a deep despair. The gap in power was too vast. Even a supreme treasure like the Sky Net Umbrella had split apart — what else could he do?

Hum!

The void trembled. The black hand came crashing down again, blotting out the sun above — a vast shadow fell over everything below.

Crack, crack!

The hand had not even truly struck yet, but the earth beneath Ye Fan’s feet was already buckling and fracturing under the pressure — showing just how devastating a weight he was being crushed under.

Ye Fan brought out the violet copper eight-trigrams mirror and rapidly enlarged it — like a massive shield — bracing it above his head.

Clang!

A piercing metallic screech rang out, sharp enough to make every body shudder, as though a deity were hammering iron — ringing through the air like metal and stone shattering.

The violet copper eight-trigrams mirror — another supreme treasure — had also begun to crack. It was on the verge of destruction!

A sharp pang went through Ye Fan’s heart. This had been the weapon of a Ji Family Elder — worthy of being called a genuine treasure. Though it had been damaged in its very foundations in the ancient forbidden land, it was still a powerful artifact. Yet it could not withstand the Void Great Palm Seal.

Clang!

Another piercing shriek rang out. The violet copper eight-trigrams mirror shattered — and then with a loud crack, it exploded apart in the sky.

Ye Fan was nearly driven into the earth by the force. A trickle of blood ran from the corner of his mouth. He looked up at the sky. “You rotten deathless old thing…”

Two supreme treasures destroyed. Even if he were to bring out the jade purifying vase, the result would be the same.

Crack!

Jihui reached out and struck — not the Void Great Palm Seal this time, yet still matchlessly powerful — Ye Fan was sent spinning away by the blow. Had he not cultivated the Sacred Body, his flesh and bones would have been obliterated. Even so, he rolled dozens of meters across the ground.

Thud!

Another palm came bearing down at Ye Fan. He couldn’t dodge in time. The strike nearly shattered his body, and it was a long moment before he managed to struggle upright.

Jihui stood hunched over, looking down from above, his face expressionless, his voice without feeling. “Compared to the Ji Family, you are utterly insignificant. This struggle is pointless — what does it accomplish? Laying a hand on you is no different from wringing the neck of a chicken or butchering a dog.”

“You rotten deathless creature — you’re nothing but someone else’s kept dog. Don’t put on that lofty, superior air. Even that old crone Jihui herself isn’t worthy of it when she comes here.”

Not a trace of anger crossed Jihui’s weathered face — still as stagnant water in a deep well. He looked down from above like a man watching ants. “Like a speck of dust, weak as a crawling insect — by rights, you and the transcendent Ji Family should never have had any dealings at all. Unfortunately for you, your fate was not good enough. The Great Void Art is not something someone like you can lay a hand on.”

Jihui moved with the slow deliberation of extreme age, surveying Ye Fan as one might regard vermin — without a flicker of feeling.

“You old lackey…”

Just then, the old steward Jihui descended, stepping forward to close in. “Before I eliminate you, I need to learn a few things. I will extract your soul.”

Against pure fighting strength, Ye Fan had no chance at all. Realm separated them like a wall between heaven and earth, and on top of that, he had no idea just how deep this old man’s cultivation truly ran.

Ye Fan was waiting for his moment — preparing to use his final trump card.

When Jihui drew close enough, he decided the time had come.

In that instant, a small golden lake rose from the space between Ye Fan’s brows — like a small golden sun fixed in place.

The small lake trembled. Divine light blazed. A blinding beam of light shot directly outward, taking the form of a golden sword — a blade that seemed capable of cutting through the very heavens!

This was a powerful spiritual sense attack. After consuming the golden sacred fruit, Ye Fan’s spiritual sense had reached a level of unimaginable intensity, refined to its absolute limit — taking solid form from pure thought!

He had spent over a full year developing this spiritual sense attack into a fearsome killing strike, directed specifically at the mind and spirit!

“Ah…”

Jihui cried out, clutching his head and falling backward to the ground.

One blow from the powerful spiritual sense strike — and it landed!

Moments before, the old steward Jihui had been cold and detached beyond measure, without a single ripple on his face. Now his features were twisted and contorted, howling and writhing in agony.

Ye Fan’s entire skeleton was trembling. His body shone crystalline. Divine power surged. His golden fist swung forward and struck.

Thud!

That fist connected squarely with the old steward’s jaw — with a sharp crack, the jawbone shattered.

“You old lackey — weren’t you so high and mighty just now? I’ll beat you down through all eighteen layers of hell!”

The blow caught Jihui under the chin and sent him rocketing into the sky.

Ye Fan twisted sideways, wound up, and swung his leg like an iron whip.

Crack!

Ye Fan’s right leg came down across Jihui’s chest with crushing force, driving him from mid-air straight down into the earth.

No matter how immeasurable Jihui’s cultivation was, his physical body was simply no match for the Sacred Body. His sternum snapped and caved inward.

“You old lackey — weren’t you looking down on me like I was a worm just now?” Ye Fan threw out another kick. Jihui’s shoulder pulverized, and he was sent flying.

Ye Fan did not wait for him to hit the ground. In seven steps he had closed the distance, then brought his foot stamping down with his full weight.

Thud!

He drove Jihui into the earth with one stomp.

“So what if it’s an ancient aristocratic family? One day I will pay the Ji Family a visit in person — I’ll walk into that Sacred Ground you think is beyond all reach! And that wretched old crone — she had better stay alive for a very, very long time…”

Thud!

Ye Fan sent Jihui, still rolling on the ground, rocketing into the air with a kick.