The next day, when the Demon Clan Martial Artists arrived, they found only two mummified corpses. Ye Fan, who had also come to the scene, said, "Indeed, these are the bodies of the Absolute Cold God Monarch and the Undying Phoenix. There’s no mistaking it. It seems their power was stolen by someone else."
"The Crownless God Monarch!" the Seven-Colored Demon Empress and the Evil You Ancestor said in unison.
Ye Fan nodded. "That’s right. It must be the Crownless God Monarch. It seems this fellow is far more terrifying than I imagined!"
"Should we continue the pursuit?" the Evil You Ancestor asked.
Ye Fan shook his head. "If he wants to hide, we’ll have a hard time finding him. That’s fine. I’ll just use him as my whetstone. I will personally slaughter him!"
"Be careful of his sinister Cultivation Technique!" the Seven-Colored Demon Empress warned.
Ye Fan just laughed. "I’m actually looking forward to him trying to absorb my power. I’ll let him know that compared to my Cultivation Technique, his sinister one is a complete joke!"
The two of them recoiled, looking at Ye Fan with disdain. They knew that once he revealed this despicable side of himself, an even more contemptible one would follow. They didn’t want to be associated with him, as they couldn’t afford such a loss of face. Ye Fan felt helpless. He had originally thought the Evil You Ancestor and the Seven-Colored Demon Empress would be his confidants, but now he realized he didn’t have a single one. He finally understood the saying: "When drinking with a true friend, a thousand cups are too few; without one, a single cup is too many."
Then again, no Divine Monarch or stronger expert would ever act as shamelessly as he did. No, not a single one. After all, Ye Fan’s motto was: When it comes to being shameless, I am the strongest.
「The next day」
The Seven-Colored Demon Empress once again took charge of the Demon Clan. Her return swept away the gloomy and chaotic atmosphere. Many Demon Kings came forward to plead for forgiveness for their wrongdoings, but at this critical juncture, the Seven-Colored Demon Empress chose to forgive them. Her reasoning was simple: the Demon Clan had already endured enough turmoil. Any more strife would only further weaken the already faltering clan.
That day, the Evil You Ancestor came to bid Ye Fan farewell.
"Senior, where are you headed?" Ye Fan asked curiously.
"I’m going to search for my people!" the Evil You Ancestor replied. "My clan was scattered across many places due to the Holy Clan’s persecution. Now that I have revived, it’s time to find them."
The Evil You Ancestor had once fallen into absolute despair, becoming utterly dejected and hopeless. Now, however, the flame of hope had been rekindled. He said to Ye Fan, "We will meet again. Someday, we will meet in the Great Thousand World, and by then, I’m sure you will have become even stronger."
"Our Evil Clan will also wholeheartedly follow you!"
That was the Evil You Ancestor’s resolve.
Ye Fan nodded. "Senior, there is actually one more thing I’d like to ask you about!"
"What is it?" The Evil You Ancestor assumed Ye Fan was going to ask about the Great Thousand World.
But Ye Fan said, "I want to take you somewhere."
The Evil You Ancestor followed Ye Fan into an incredibly spacious cave dwelling, where a skeleton lay. It was the remains of the Divine Dragon, who had entered its eternal slumber long ago. The cause of the Divine Dragon’s death had always been a mystery—a mystery Ye Fan was about to unveil.
The Evil You Ancestor remarked, "Judging from its lingering aura, its strength in life was likely no less than mine. To think such a powerful expert is now nothing but a pile of bones! How fate toys with us!"
He sighed. The fall of a mighty expert is always a source of some regret. This principle is the same, whether in the Divine Domain or the Great Thousand World.
Ye Fan shook his head. "Senior, I brought you here not to look at his remains, but to show you the true cause of his death. I believe you are very familiar with this aura!"
He led the Evil You Ancestor to the Divine Dragon’s head, where a ghastly hole had been pierced through it. The Evil You Ancestor was stunned, his shock laced with dread.
"I initially thought this was the aura of the Evil Clan," Ye Fan said. "But upon closer inspection, I realized it’s not their aura at all!"
The Evil You Ancestor reached out and touched the dense force of karma clinging to the wound. His expression turned grave.
"I know where this aura comes from," he said grimly.
"Where?" Ye Fan asked.
"It comes from a clan whose power, at their peak, was comparable to my Evil Clan at our zenith," the Evil You Ancestor explained. "Like us, they relish slaughter and walk in darkness. This clan is the Netherworld Ghost Clan."
"Hmm?" Ye Fan had never heard of them.
"This clan and my Evil You Clan are known as the two great Outer Realm Evil Clans. They use yin energy to advance their cultivation, twisting themselves into something neither human nor ghost. That’s why they call themselves the Ghost Clan. However, their methods are even more brutal than those of my Evil Clan. Our two clans reside on adjacent continents.
"The Netherworld Ghost Clan and my Evil Clan are sworn archenemies. I originally thought they would have settled down, especially since our continents are far from the Divine Domain and my Evil Clan was massacred by the Holy Clan. I never expected to find their tracks here in the Divine Domain, let alone discover they had slain a Subcestor-level expert!"
That Subcestor expert was the Divine Dragon.
Ye Fan asked, "Senior, does that mean the one who killed the Divine Dragon was an Ancestor Realm expert?"
"Impossible! The Netherworld Ghost Emperor never leaves the Netherworld Ghost Clan, and their strongest is the Ancestor of Netherworld. The one who killed the Divine Dragon must be an expert on the same level as me. The only difference is that I am no longer at my peak, while he is at his."
The Evil You Ancestor examined the wound again. "The Divine Dragon’s head was pierced through, along with its soul and vital spring. In the Netherworld Ghost Clan, aside from the Ancestor of Netherworld, there is only one person capable of this."
"Who is he?" Ye Fan asked.
The Evil You Ancestor stated grimly, "The Gun God!"
"Hmm?"
"The Gun God is the Great Protector of the Netherworld Ghost Clan, and his strength is heaven-defying. He forged a long spear from one hundred thousand resentful souls, a weapon steeped in the power of karma.
"Anyone pierced by that spear, unless they are in the Ancestor Realm, will die. Even a Subcestor is no exception. For him to have pierced the Divine Dragon’s skull with such precision, his strength must surpass mine even at my peak. He penetrated the Divine Dragon’s skull but didn’t invade the Divine Domain. I suspect it was due to the Divine Dragon’s dying counterattack."
As the Evil You Ancestor explained everything, Ye Fan found his analysis to be quite reasonable.
He then asked, "Senior, what purpose could they have for coming to the Divine Domain?"
"I don’t know their purpose yet, but I believe that one day, he will invade the Divine Domain again!"
"What?" Ye Fan gasped.
The Evil You Ancestor continued, "If he were merely a traveler passing through the Divine Domain, there would be no reason for him to kill the Divine Dragon and become mortally wounded in the process. I think he came to the Divine Domain primarily to hunt my Evil Clan!"
"But even if they are your clan’s mortal enemies, would they really come this far just to hunt you down?" Ye Fan reasoned.
What incredible hatred... To not let go even after a clan’s destruction... Ye Fan felt there had to be more to this matter.
"Actually, it’s not hard to explain," the Evil You Ancestor said. "There’s a reason they’re hunting us."
"What reason?" Ye Fan asked again.
The Evil You Ancestor replied, "The answer lies with you."