「In the back mountains.」

At this moment, Hua Xiaotian was completely drenched in blood. His body was riddled with wounds from head to toe, his clothes torn to shreds like a beggar’s. Fresh blood gushed ceaselessly from the crisscrossing gashes. Even his face bore a scar no less than ten centimeters long. A mixture of blood and cold sweat dripped relentlessly to the ground. His face was utterly drained of color, and his very footsteps had become unbearably heavy. Facing wave after wave of attacks from the near-Divine Ninjas, it seemed death was only a matter of time.

How could he not be aware of his current situation? His own body told him that if Qin Fan hadn’t patted his shoulder earlier and seemingly infused him with something, he would already be deader than dead. With his meager strength, not even at the Gang Realm, barging into the Jingguo Society’s Worship Room to fight these Guardians to the death was no different from seeking his own demise. If the Guardians of the Jingguo Society’s Worship Room were so weak, they would have been annihilated countless times over. Why would they still be around, waiting for him, Hua Xiaotian, to show up? Given the circumstances, he felt it was a divine act that he had lasted this long—yes, a divine act! A miracle beyond all miracles!

"Damn it! Why won’t he die?"

Another wave of attacks forced Hua Xiaotian to the foot of the mountain. One of the near-Divine Ninjas roared in frustration.

"He’s almost done for! He can’t hold on much longer!" another near-Divine Ninja added with a scowl.

Eight near-Divine Ninjas against a single Huaxia Transformation Realm Great Grandmaster who hadn’t even entered the Gang Realm, yet the battle had dragged on for this long. If word got out, it would be a complete joke.

"Master Qin!!!"

Forced to the foot of the mountain with no path of retreat, Hua Xiaotian suddenly roared at the top of his lungs. The smiling face approaching him was, in that moment, the very picture of a lifeline.

Qin Fan didn’t respond to Hua Xiaotian’s frantic shout, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Casually dragging his captive, Qin Fan flicked the whip handle forward!

WHOOSH!

The bound body of Tanaka Nobuo was instantly hurled through the air, landing right in front of Hua Xiaotian!

BOOM!!!

A dull thud shook the ground, sending dust and dirt billowing into the air!

"Teacher!!!"

The eight near-Divine Ninjas, who had been poised to deliver the final, fatal blow to Hua Xiaotian, froze in their tracks upon seeing the face that was revealed. They suddenly cried out in utter horror.

A Divine Ninja! A legendary name etched into the annals of ninja history, had actually met such a fate? How could their seemingly invincible and powerful teacher have sustained such a grievous, life-threatening injury?

At the abrupt appearance of Tanaka Nobuo, all eight near-Divine Ninjas stood stock-still, their faces filled with disbelief, as if they were trapped in a dream. They couldn’t believe this was real.

"Kill me! Quick, give me a swift death!"

Though his limbs were crippled, the Life Force of a Divine Ninja was notoriously abnormal. Knowing he would likely face the brutal torture known as the Sky Lantern, a quick death became Tanaka Nobuo’s final, desperate plea.

But how could such a plea possibly be granted?

Before the near-Divine Ninjas could even process Tanaka’s words, Qin Fan summoned the Evil Spirit Zen Staff and leaped into action!

With the speed of a lightning bolt, the Evil Spirit Zen Staff, already surging with True Qi infused by Qin Fan, mercilessly smashed down on the head of one near-Divine Ninja!

By the time that ninja reacted, a loud BANG! had already erupted from his skull. His head, wrapped in purple cloth, exploded like a shattered watermelon. Red and white matter splattered everywhere.

There was no last gasp, no final flicker of life.

One strike, one kill. Deader than dead.

But Qin Fan didn’t stop there. He raised the Zen Staff and smashed it down with force once more. Before the next ninja, who had barely managed to react, could mount a defense, the Zen Staff fell!

BANG!

A head burst. Gore and viscera splattered about freely.

"Retreat! Retreat! Retreat!!!" Tanaka Nobuo could no longer contain himself and bellowed, having witnessed two of his disciples’ heads explode in the blink of an eye.

For him, at this moment, being alive was the most painful, most torturous existence imaginable. First, he had witnessed all the Spiritual Tablets in the Worship Room burned to ash. Then, he had to watch his disciples suffer such inhumanly brutal deaths. On top of it all, he knew that what awaited him was the historically horrific Sky Lantern torture.

If he could, Tanaka Nobuo would have chosen suicide without a moment’s hesitation.

But there were no ’ifs.’ Under Qin Fan’s power, he was so pathetic he didn’t even have the right to take his own life.

"Retreat? Trying to use Invisibility again?" Qin Fan sneered.

WHOOSH! The remaining six near-Divine Ninjas vanished without a trace!

But they had only just disappeared when Qin Fan channeled his True Qi, flooding it into his eyes. The Eyes of Golden Flame instantly blazed to life, sweeping across the space above!

SIZZLE!

In the next second, the smell of burning filled the air.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

As their clothes were ignited by the sweep of the Eyes of Golden Flame, the six ninjas were instantly forced out of hiding!

Without another word, Qin Fan shot up from the ground, Evil Spirit Zen Staff in hand. He immediately swung it in a devastating arc!

BONG!!!

A near-Divine Ninja, unable to dodge in time, was caught by the sweep. With a sound like a great bell being struck, the half of his face hit by the Zen Staff completely collapsed. His bones shattered in that instant, and the side of his head was gouged open, revealing a large hole oozing with pulp!

Alive? Not a chance.

This series of events, gruesome enough to drive an ordinary person to madness or even death, was so shocking that even Hua Xiaotian was visibly shaken.

In mid-air, the battle raged on. Qin Fan’s movements were relentless, each strike landing in the flash of an eye. The jingling of the Evil Spirit Zen Staff became the ninjas’ death knell. It was all over in the space of a breath or two.

With not a single strike having missed its mark, the Evil Spirit Zen Staff finally fell still.

All eight near-Divine Ninjas now lay on the ground, completely devoid of life.

Without exception, they all died from having their heads caved in.

Above their necks, there was nothing but a horrifying, grisly mush. Eyes, nose, mouth, ears? Nonexistent.

At this moment, the world fell silent.

Tanaka Nobuo, a man who had lived for over a hundred years, squeezed his eyes shut in utter despair. Even for him, a man with countless souls on his conscience, this scene was too much to bear. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that this Divine Ninja, a man so formidable in the eyes of Japan’s Abnormals, was trembling.

For Hua Xiaotian, however, the shock of their deaths paled in comparison to the renewed demonstration of Qin Fan’s power.

The near-Divine Ninjas who had beaten him to a pulp and pushed him to the brink of death were all slaughtered by Qin Fan in a matter of breaths? Just how powerful was Qin Fan? And how vast was the chasm between them?

PS: Thank you to ’April’s Lady’s Shoes’ for the massive tip!!! Thank you to ’Yu Le’ for the three massive tips and for becoming a Grandmaster!!! Love is boundless, Little Grass loves you all forever!