Ning Fan’s cultivation did not take too long; with Aflo’s robust physique, she recovered her health in just a few days.

Perceiving this, Ning Fan once again entered the Xuan Yin Treasure, seeking Merfolk Tears from Aflo.

Of course, Aflo was unwilling to give them, but this time, when facing Ning Fan, she no longer insulted him, and the hostility on her face had lessened somewhat.

"I don’t know where you learned Shui Clan’s language and Sky-hook Jade Divine Skills, but since you have learned these, you must already know our true identity as the Shui Clan. I am a Ziwei Immortal Cultivator, and we have an irreconcilable enmity with you, the Purple Dou Immortal Sovereign. Our clan’s glory doesn’t allow me to give precious Merfolk Tears to the enemy," Aflo insisted stubbornly.

"So, you’re saying, you still plan to let me take the tears myself this time, is that it?"

"Hmph! Even if you humiliate me again this time, I won’t shed tears. Last time, I was careless; this time, I will be cautious!"

"Oh, is that so? In that case, don’t blame me for being rude to you! But before I humiliate you again, you have to take these expensive pills."

"What are these expensive pills! I won’t take them! These pills surely have problems; you’re definitely trying to harm me with them!" Aflo said angrily.

Ning Fan’s countless humiliations were enough, but now he even brought out expensive pills to plot against her; how could she endure such a grievance!

"..."

Ning Fan couldn’t be bothered to explain the benefits of expensive pills to the suspicious human shark.

These pills were all for strengthening and boosting vitality, to prevent Aflo from becoming weak and injured after her tears were taken.

But if Aflo was determined to view his intentions maliciously, he didn’t bother to explain, using a small Spirit hand to pry open Aflo’s jaw, and another hand to forcibly feed the pills into her mouth.

"Mmm... mmm... mmm..." Aflo wanted to struggle, to resist, yet was forced by Ning Fan to swallow the pills.

In an instant, Aflo felt a great humiliation, closed her eyes in pain, and awaited the effects of the pills.

She didn’t know whether these pills were poison or mind-altering, or had some other vile effect specifically to control women.

At the moment, her spirit sense was locked by Ning Fan’s bewitching technique, making her unable to perceive anything. The thought that these pills, once dissolved, might make her officially become Ning Fan’s slave, made her deeply pained.

It wasn’t until the medicinal effects unfolded in her body that Aflo was surprised to find these pills were not harmful, but rather beneficial supplements.

"You, why did you... So! You wish to win my heart! You think by being kind to me, I would yield? I tell you, that’s impossible! A noble Merfolk yields neither to enemy coercion nor to temptation!" Aflo declared proudly.

Yet that pride soon turned into delicate, fragmented moans under Ning Fan’s caresses.

After half an hour, Ning Fan once again, with his fingers and lips, brought Aflo to cloud nine, and Aflo again shed Lovers’ Tears. Perhaps having adapted to Ning Fan’s teasing this time, she felt even more comfortable and shed five tears, more than last time.

Because Ning Fan had fed Aflo the Peiyuan Dan Medicine in advance, Aflo wasn’t overly weakened after shedding tears, just mildly limp as a normal woman would be after reaching a peak.

"Why, why do I still shed tears even though I’ve controlled it..." Aflo, while enjoying the lingering delight, felt unwilling, gasping gently.

Ning Fan didn’t answer Aflo’s question; he had no obligation to teach this woman physiology.

"Little fish lady, rest well. In five days, I will return."

"You’re the little fish lady! I am a Merfolk, a Merfolk!" Aflo angrily scolded Ning Fan’s departing figure.

And once she thought of Ning Fan returning in five days, she felt humiliated again.

When would this damned imprisonment end!

...

With Aflo’s Merfolk Tears as aid, Ning Fan advanced swiftly.

Five days later, the number of Sky-hook Jades Ning Fan had reached 236.

He entered the Xuan Yin Treasure again; no one knew what he did with Aflo in there, but this time, he brought out six drops of Merfolk Tears.

Time slipped away little by little, and in a twinkling, two months passed. The number of Sky-hook Jades Ning Fan had cultivated again reached a bottleneck, reaching a terrifying one thousand!

The third volume of the Tiancong Scrolls was finally completed.

"In just over two months, this child has actually completed the third volume that I couldn’t finish in millions of years!"

Within Elder Yu’s heart arose a deep sense of defeat, but more than that, excitement!

As long as he killed Ning Fan and seized his cultivation achievements, the ultimate winner would only be him, not the ’Void Fragmentation’ Ning Fan!

"I thought that without the rare Spiritual Medicine I provide, this child would need a century to complete the third volume, never expecting it to be so fast. It’s truly a pity that I only have the first three volumes of the Tiancong Scrolls’ cultivation techniques, and not the fourth. Otherwise, I could have given him the fourth volume, let him continue cultivating, and then dealt with him..."

"If I rashly demanded the fourth volume from the three Immortal Venerables within the clan, it would definitely attract their attention, and at that time, I wouldn’t be able to keep the child to myself..."

An entire night, Elder Yu weighed the matter.

After several days of deliberation, he finally made up his mind to slaughter Ning Fan, no longer intending to nurture him.

"Someone, bring 4926 to the Elders’ Court!"

As soon as this order was issued, the attendants of the Elders’ Court understood that Elder Yu was going to take action against Ning Fan.

No one would sympathize with Ning Fan here; this was the Shui Clan world of the strong preying on the weak. The weak deserved to be eaten by the strong!

Soon, the attendants led Ning Fan to the Elders’ Court and withdrew.

In the vast water hall, only Elder Yu sat in the superior position, below was Ning Fan, transformed into a fish form with a smile on his face.

Seeing that Ning Fan could still smile in the face of impending doom, Elder Yu felt a slight ominous sensation, as if something was beyond his control...

No, impossible, he must be overthinking it. The other party was merely a small first-step Void Fragmentation, while he was ranked fourth among the top experts of the Tiancong Fish Clan, a rightful presence at the Shattered Thought Peak! This child could not escape his control!

"You should have heard of my infamous reputation," Elder Yu stated bluntly.

"Indeed, I have heard."

"You should also know that the reason I summoned you today is to use a Secret Technique to consume you." Upon speaking, Elder Yu’s fierce gleam was revealed.

"I do know."

"Do not blame me for being ruthless. Our ancestors of the Ziwei World lived in a place where only the strong survive. Strong hunting the weak is a tradition of the ancestors. Since you are weak, you deserve to be consumed by me. If you were stronger than me, I would willingly let you consume me. I must consume you today, hope you cooperate a bit, if you resist, I will gain less benefit. You will die either way, so why not give up resistance, fulfill me, and let me gain maximum benefit? If you cooperate, I can let your souls enter reincarnation again; if you resist, I will make your souls scatter without hope of reincarnation forever!"

After saying all this, Elder Yu merely wanted to force Ning Fan to voluntarily be consumed.

Ning Fan disregarded Elder Yu’s long soliloquy, he merely looked at Elder Yu calmly, making Elder Yu’s scalp tingle, somewhat uneasy, yet not knowing why.

After a long time, Ning Fan finally spoke again, "If I am stronger than you, and can consume you, is that right?"

"Correct! Our clan’s Sky-hook Jade, allows one to elevate realms through mutual consumption, even bloodline purity can slightly increase through mutual consumption. If you have the capability, naturally you can consume me too, but you don’t have that capability! You are just a small Void Fragmentation, while I am a lofty Shattered Thought, you..."

"Who told you, that I am merely a Void Fragmentation!"

The might of heaven and earth suddenly fell under Ning Fan’s control, sealing off all space within the Elders’ Court, no aura could leak out.

Then, under Elder Yu’s terrified gaze, Ning Fan, bathed in a glow, transformed from a large fish into a graceful young man in white clothes.

He stood there, and it felt as if he was the sky!

The overwhelming Evil Qi exuded from him nearly stopped Elder Yu’s breathing, in a second, from arrogance to trembling like a sieve, looking at Ning Fan as though he was facing a world-shattering beast.

"H-human shape cultivation, you are not a cultivator of my clan, you are an Eastern Celestial Cultivator! You actually deceived and infiltrated my clan, secretly learning our ultimate skill!"

"You are the Eternal Immortal Venerable! No, this level of Evil Qi, is of someone who has killed countless Immortal Emperors. Such an exceptional Celestial Venerable of Eastern Heaven, I have only heard of one! You are the White-Clad Yama who recently captured seven Dragon-Horse Immortal Emperors, and captured Lord Aflo alive!"

The White-Clad Yama was a title given to Ning Fan by the eleven water territories after he committed a series of notorious crimes. This title spread throughout the Eleven Water Territories, with rumors that the White-Clad Yama mastered a Cross Halo, which could kill Immortal Emperors once unleashed; also said was that the White-Clad Yama had many Innate Treasures, including three Innate Mid-grade Treasures, and if any Water Clan Immortal Emperor were to encounter him alone or in small groups, they must flee and not contest with him, otherwise, it would be a fatal disaster!

Of course, Elder Yu had heard of Ning Fan’s fearsome reputation, but never in his wildest dreams did he expect the formidable Yama King to appear so horrifyingly before him.

This feeling, like a dream long fancied, suddenly morphs into the most terrifying nightmare...

Ning Fan barely moved his gaze, yet Elder Yu believed Ning Fan was about to make a move to kill him, instantly panicked, hurriedly striking out.

```

"Sky-hook Jade!"

In an instant, Elder Yu unleashed all his cultivations, manifesting hundreds of jade light talismans, a lifetime’s work, and fired them explosively towards Ning Fan.

These jade light talismans possessed considerable power, hitting Ning Fan densely, but were unable to shake Ning Fan’s physical defense in the slightest. Indeed, Ning Fan’s physical defense was too formidable to be harmed by such jade attacks.

Seeing this, Elder Yu realized the vast difference between himself and Ning Fan. He couldn’t even injure Ning Fan a bit. With no more hesitation, and no wishful thinking, he directly broke through the door, trying to escape the Elders’ Court, but it was too late, blocked by layers of overwhelming ripples, unable to escape.

"Spare, spare my life..." With no way out, Elder Yu opted for submission, kneeling straight before Ning Fan, unlike those low-tier Tiancong fish who were defiant unto death, displaying considerable flexibility.

Ning Fan furrowed his brows.

Perhaps having spent too much time with the unyielding Aflo recently, he found himself rather displeased to see this fish submit to him so easily.

All the same, he didn’t mind seizing the opportunity to recruit Elder Yu as his confidant. With this person’s help, he could cultivate more conveniently in Gouyu City, why not?

But that came with a crucial prerequisite!

Since Aflo hadn’t crossed this line, Ning Fan remained polite toward Aflo despite the hostility.

But he didn’t know if this Elder Yu had crossed that line.

"Have you ever eaten human flesh? Isn’t it very hard to eat..." Ning Fan suddenly said.

"No, no, no, it’s not hard to eat, it’s very delicious! Those travelers from the past are simply heaven-sent delicacies. Does the master want to eat human flesh? In my storage, there’s still some jerky made from human flesh, I’ve kept it and haven’t dared to eat..." Elder Yu, for the sake of survival, was willing to offer the treasured jerky from years past to Ning Fan. Before he could finish speaking, he saw the killing intent in Ning Fan’s eyes.

There was no chance to finish the remaining words.

With a flash of cold light, Elder Yu’s massive fish head was cut off by the Reverse Sea Sword, embedded with a thousand Sky-hook Jades, in one swift motion. The sword’s breeze carried the salty stench of the ocean.

Even as the Reverse Sea Sword cut through, the power of Sky-hook Jade rampaged within Elder Yu, directly extinguishing his Demon Soul within.

With one swift stroke, his Demon Soul’s every chance was extinguished!

With the power of the Reverse Sea Sword, killing someone at the Shattered Thought Peak wasn’t remarkable, yet Ning Fan keenly sensed something different with this strike compared to previous ones.

The Reverse Sea Sword, embedded with a thousand Sky-hook Jades, was over twice as powerful as before. The difference might not be obvious in killing someone at the Shattered Thought Peak, but in duels at the Immortal Emperor level, the effects would be extremely significant.

"I might have been inclined to spare your life, but you ate those travelers crossing the Boundary River. If I spare you, I can’t give my fallen subordinates at the Boundary River closure. That’s my bottom line, and you crossed it, so you might as well die."

After killing Elder Yu, Ning Fan used the Tiancong Scroll’s Secret Technique to absorb the hundreds of Sky-hook Jades Elder Yu had cultivated.

Tiancong Fish swallowing their kin’s Sky-hook Jades doesn’t benefit them one-to-one. If someone with low jade accomplishment swallows someone with high accomplishment, the benefits are slightly greater; swallowing the other’s hundreds of Sky-hook Jades would generally generate around one to two hundred of his own.

However, if someone of high accomplishment swallows someone of lower accomplishment, the benefits are significantly less. Ning Fan, having swallowed Elder Yu’s hundreds of Sky-hook Jades, only managed to increase his count to 1022 Jades.

Indeed, devouring is merely a minor art; cultivation is the essence. To quickly increase the number of Sky-hook Jades, one must cultivate diligently with the proper Cultivation Technique.

Elder Yu was the fourth-ranked strongman among the Tiancong Fish, and his death naturally couldn’t be concealed.

Ning Fan didn’t intend to hide Elder Yu’s death either. He reverted to his fish form, removed the overwhelming blockade surrounding the Elders’ Court, swam out, and saw countless huge black fish crowded outside, all skilled Tiancong Fish that sensed Elder Yu’s death and came over.

Among them, there were even three Eternal Immortal Venerables of the Tiancong Fish Clan!

Within the Tiancong Fish Clan, Eternal Immortal Venerables were rare, with very high status. It must be clan-wide upheaval to warrant three Immortal Venerables moving together.

Seeing Ning Fan emerge alive from the Elders’ Court, one of the three Immortal Venerables, a large white fish, asked in a deep voice.

"Why did you kill Elder Yu? Do you know this is a grave offense within the clan!"

The Tiancong Fish Clan doesn’t prohibit infighting among kin, but are strict with insubordination.

"..." Ning Fan couldn’t be bothered with this Tiancong Fish Immortal Venerable’s nonsense.

He already knew that killing Elder Yu would cause some trouble, but so what? What grave offense? Would it constrain him? Would he obediently accept the punishment from these Immortal Venerables of Tiancong Fish?

If his opponents knew better, then fine. Otherwise, he wouldn’t mind letting these three Tiancong Fish Immortal Venerables follow Elder Yu into death.

By the time he has slaughtered the leading figures of the Tiancong Fish Clan, he might as well seize the opportunity to occupy a high position and become master of the Tiancong Fish Clan.

Hmm, that is indeed a good idea. Becoming the leader of the Tiancong Fish would certainly make things much easier for him in this place, and it would assist his plans to procure the eight hundred million years of Gloomy Wood here.

The three Immortal Venerables among the Tiancong Fish naturally are unaware; in their eyes, the little fish who commands a bit of trepidation, Ning Fan, has already stirred the intent to kill them.

Another red Immortal Venerable Big Fish spoke, "This guy can kill Elder Yu; though he is inferior to us, he is somewhat talented. If we follow the clan rules and kill him right away, life for life, it seems too wasteful. Brothers, have we forgotten? Don’t we have a better way to punish this boy?"

Another black Immortal Venerable Big Fish said, "Indeed, killing him directly is a waste, but this guy is too fierce. Even with us, there’s a kind of panic in facing him. Leaving him alive is always a threat; if he becomes stronger, wouldn’t he dare try to strike at us? Here’s the plan: confine him to the underground veins and subject him to the ’Wood Dragon Punishment’ for a hundred thousand years, how about it?"

"Good, good, good, this idea is excellent! The Wood Dragon Punishment can perfectly strip someone of their bloodline, cultivation, divine skills. When punishing criminals, it even brings benefits to us, though it does take a long time... never mind, just a mere hundred thousand years, we can afford to wait. By then, his bloodline and Sky-hook Jade shall all return to us. We three brothers must evenly divide these benefits!"

These three Immortal Venerables calculated Ning Fan without a care, completely unafraid of any resentment he may harbor.

Behind the three Venerables, countless big fishes burst into laughter upon hearing Ning Fan was about to be confined in the underground veins to undergo the Wood Dragon Punishment.

Laughing at Ning Fan’s miserable fate!

Those subjected to Wood Dragon Punishment have never returned alive — certain death awaits them, and post-death their cultivation and divine skills shall be stripped, devoured by others.

Laughter echoed throughout Gouyu City; those unaware could mistake it for a celebratory event.

Ning Fan was slightly stunned.

Did he hear correctly?

These foolish Immortal Venerable Tiancong Fish plan to confine him within the Gloomy Wood underground veins of Gouyu City?

Wait, could this be an excellent chance to obtain Gloomy Wood underground without issue...

If that’s the case, then he must carefully consider. Should he overthrow the three Immortal Venerable Tiancong Fish and seize power, or obediently accept the punishment, sparing the hassle...

"4926, do you have any objections to our decision to have you undergo the Wood Dragon Punishment?"

"None."

"None? Haha, this boy apparently doesn’t know the horror of the Wood Dragon Punishment, having no objections. Well, that’s great! Then obediently let us confine you in the underground veins!"

"Someone, open the underground entrance, confine this boy in the Wood Dragon Mine Prison!"

"Yes."

Breaking through the iron shoes with no place to search, obtaining everything effortlessly.

Ning Fan never acted upon the Gloomy Wood here, since the underground veins of Gloomy Wood boasted restrictions laid down by the Quasi-Saint of Boundary River. That restriction’s activation follows no man’s orders, except the Quasi-Saint’s command who planted it; even the Eternal Immortal Venerable of Tiancong Fish Clan lacks the qualifications to freely activate these restrictions and enter the underground veins.

If Ning Fan tried to destroy those restrictions by force, the Boundary River Quasi-Saint who laid them down would immediately know. If this matter summoned the enemy Quasi-Saint, consequences would be dire.

But presently, there’s no concern for that.

The Tiancong Fish Clan surprisingly gave offerings, obtaining permission from the Quasi-Saint to open the restriction entrance to the underground veins.

Afterwards, Ning Fan was confined alone underground, without a single guard around.

Ridiculous!

Which Tiancong Fish Cultivator would be willing to die underground with Ning Fan? Naturally, nobody would want to guard him.

No one believed Ning Fan could break the Quasi-Saint’s restrictions and escape, hence forced to die underground, perish under the Wood Dragon Punishment.

Yet none knew, Ning Fan being confined underground played right into his wish.

Finally, he could go about the Gloomy Wood underground unnoticed.

So what must he do next to both take the eight hundred million years of Gloomy Wood and remain undetected by the Boundary River Quasi-Saint...