Ambushed

Demon King Valley, as the name suggests, was a valley, but it was astonishingly vast.

Chen Fan could no longer recognize what this valley had looked like hundreds of years ago in its original form.

Ever since the demon beasts descended upon Earth, this valley had been occupied by them, and thus lay abandoned for centuries. Now, as Chen Fan stood at the entrance of Demon King Valley, he could still faintly make out some dilapidated houses—so ruined that only a few walls or half a roof remained.

Several cultivators were sitting at the entrance of Demon King Valley. When they saw Chen Fan entering the valley alone, their expressions shifted slightly. After detecting that Chen Fan was only at Qi Refining Layer 4, they shook their heads repeatedly.

"This is the second one to come seeking death. That little girl at Qi Refining Layer 6 earlier might have been a fearless newborn calf—if she's lucky and sticks to the outskirts of Demon King Valley, she might survive. But this brat at Qi Refining Layer 4? He's probably just here to end his own life," an old man analyzed to his grandson.

"Then why would he want to end his life?" The child, only eight or nine years old, held a stick of candied hawthorn in his hand and asked with wide eyes.

"Maybe he got hurt in love, or maybe he lost his drive to live. Back in the day, your grandpa here also went through a painful heartbreak, but I pulled through," the old man said with a regretful expression.

"Grandpa, what's a heartbreak?"

"Hmm... it's like you really love eating this candied hawthorn, but one day the candied hawthorn doesn't like you anymore and won't let you eat it. How would you feel?"

"Grandpa, I get it now. That big brother went in to end his life because the candied hawthorn didn't like him."

Chen Fan had already stepped into Demon King Valley. The conversation between the old man and his grandson at the entrance reached his ears clearly. The child's innocent, unfiltered words and his half-understanding stirred something in Chen Fan's heart, but he couldn't grasp that feeling.

He knew this might be a moment of insight into some deeper meaning, but unfortunately, the timing wasn't right. With his current cultivation level, he couldn't comprehend it.

Chen Fan shook his head, didn't force that thread of meaning, and continued forward.

"Roar!" "Howl!" "Screech!"

As Chen Fan ventured deeper into the valley, the calls of various demon beasts grew clearer.

"The spiritual energy here seems denser than outside. It must be because of the abundant spiritual herbs growing in this place," Chen Fan muttered to himself after taking a breath.

"Moo~"

Just then, a demon beast charged out from behind a large tree, roaring as it rushed toward Chen Fan.

This was a Giant Bull Beast comparable to Qi Refining Layer 4. Its two horns were hard and sharp. If an ordinary cultivator encountered it, a moment of carelessness could lead to their death.

But Chen Fan's footwork shifted. He suddenly flashed to its side, and before the Giant Bull Beast could react, his sharp sword left its sheath. Infused with Blazing Heaven Sword Qi, the blade turned into a streak of white light that pierced through the Giant Bull Beast's head.

In an instant, the giant bull's head and body were severed. The head, still bearing its sharp horns, and the torso slammed heavily onto the ground. Due to inertia, the entire corpse slid forward several meters, blood painting a crimson trail.

Chen Fan didn't linger. The bull's blood would soon attract other demon beasts from the surroundings. This Giant Bull Beast was only at Qi Refining Layer 4 and hadn't refined a Demon Core. The only thing of value was its pair of sharp horns, worth a few dozen taels of silver.

But Chen Fan wasn't interested. His purpose here was to train, to push his physical body to its peak, and to find high-level demon beast cores or spiritual herbs.

"Cultivators often come here seeking fortune. If someone had drawn a complete map, it would be much more convenient," Chen Fan said as he walked forward. In truth, maps had been drawn before, but they were held by a select few. They weren't sold in the open market. What could circulate was usually just maps of the outer areas, but such maps held no appeal for Chen Fan.

Just then, a loud crash suddenly came from a small forest ahead. Chen Fan narrowed his eyes and looked. Someone was using fireball-type Talismans in the grove. It seemed two factions were fighting over something, unwilling to back down, and had escalated into a full-blown battle.

"A commotion of this scale will definitely draw the attention of nearby demon beasts," Chen Fan shook his head slightly and continued deeper.

Since he had come to train, he wouldn't shy away from trouble. Only if he encountered something he truly couldn't match would he need to avoid it.

The two factions battling in the small forest hadn't taken up too much space. Chen Fan wasn't bored enough to cut through their war zone; he chose to pass by from the side.

But just as he walked past the rear of one group, his expression suddenly changed. He leaped backward, and at the same time, the longsword at his waist left its sheath, turning into a flash of silver light that streaked across like a thunderbolt.

"Clang!"

A small flying dagger infused with true qi struck his sword, producing a harsh clash, then fell to the ground.

Chen Fan's expression turned cold. Someone had attacked him.

"Swoosh!"

He had barely stopped his retreat when another sharp sound of something cutting through the air came.

A second small flying dagger appeared from his left front. This time, the true qi imbued in it and its force were far greater than the first.

Chen Fan's mind sharpened. This was a martial cultivator similar to a sword cultivator, but this person likely specialized in flying daggers and hidden weapons. In this terrain, they had a huge advantage.

As he thought, Chen Fan moved without delay. A flash of sword light slashed straight down.

"Clang!"

This time, the flying dagger snapped in two, the halves falling to the ground. Chen Fan stamped his foot and shot forward like a swift leopard, charging into the forest.

His eyes narrowed, his expression icy. As he ran, he seemed to be waiting for something.

"Swoosh!"

The sharp sound of air being cut came again.

"Found you." Chen Fan let out a cold snort. His entire figure suddenly blurred, turning into a ghostly afterimage as he surged toward a large tree not far away. The flying dagger grazed past his earlobe.

This person had attacked him without reason, and every strike aimed for a fatal spot. This stirred killing intent within Chen Fan.

Just as he rushed toward the tree, a blue figure shot out from behind it.

"Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!"

Three consecutive sounds of air being cut almost merged into one. Three dagger shadows flew like shooting stars chasing the moon, all aimed at three vital points on Chen Fan's body.

Chen Fan's eyesight was extraordinary—he could clearly make out the trajectory of the three flying daggers, and saw that each blade had a yellow talisman paper pasted onto it.

A cold glint flashed through Chen Fan's eyes. He stepped into the Formless Step, his body turning into an intangible phantom, and abruptly flung a talisman from his hand.

"Hummm!"

At the same time, his long sword vibrated at an inconceivable frequency, letting out a crisp sword hum. Chen Fan gave a sharp shout, swept the sword forward, and summoned the Blazing Heaven Sword Qi. A towering circular sword light suddenly materialized before him.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

Three crisp sounds rang out in succession. The three flying daggers were snapped cleanly in two, and the three talismans attached to them were likewise torn apart by the Blazing Heaven Sword Qi, with no chance to activate.

The blue-robed man's expression shifted drastically. He was about to retreat when a thick black mist exploded in midair, hurtling toward him with a shrill shriek. A vast, overwhelming suction force yanked him off balance.

"Swish."

A streak of sword light flashed by in an instant.

Chen Fan's figure slowly emerged from behind the blue-robed man, his long sword angled toward the ground, his expression calm.

"Thud!"

A fine bloodstain gradually appeared on the blue-robed man's neck. He crashed heavily to the ground, completely lifeless.