Chapter 206: Founding a Sect
Ye Fan felt light and airy, as if he were an immortal. Like a gentle breeze, he returned to the Stone Stockade.
Fifth Master Zhang saw him return and pulled him aside to a secluded spot, saying, "Something's happened."
"What is it?" Ye Fan asked.
"Those two kids, Wang Shu and Er Lengzi, have been acting strange ever since they went out with you that day. These past days, their forehead bones have been glowing, and they have incredible strength..." Fifth Master Zhang frowned, looking worried.
"Bloodline awakening?" Ye Fan was surprised. "Take me to see them."
"I haven't dared let them leave the house these days. They're locked up at home. Aside from developing strange powers, nothing bad has happened." Fifth Master Zhang accompanied Ye Fan to Er Lengzi's home.
As soon as he entered the courtyard, Ye Fan felt a vigorous life force. Indeed, it was an endless vitality, as if he had arrived in a lush, verdant place.
"Brother Ye, you're here." Er Lengzi's sister smiled sweetly. She was a very delicate and pretty young girl.
"Is your brother alright?" Fifth Master Zhang asked her to lead the way.
"He's fine. He eats well and sleeps soundly, like a lazy pig sleeping all day long." The Lei family's little girl pouted.
Snoring came from inside the house. Er Lengzi was sprawled out on the earthen bed, sleeping very soundly. His forehead bone was like a precious jade, shimmering with light.
Divine energy!
It was definitely divine energy!
Ye Fan was shocked. Not long ago, Er Lengzi had been an ordinary person, but now he possessed formidable power.
His forehead bone was nearly transparent, and a soft radiance overflowed, flowing to all parts of his body. Er Lengzi's flesh and blood were constantly being purified.
Ye Fan couldn't help but marvel. Different races had different achievements and endowments. This was innate divine power, an inborn strength.
For human cultivators to gain divine power, they had to train arduously to unlock the treasures within their own bodies. But certain long-extinct, powerful races were born with divine power—a height that was difficult to reach.
"Brother... wake up." The Lei family's little girl pinched Er Lengzi's nose, shaking him awake.
"Is it time to eat?" Er Lengzi mumbled, the light on his forehead bone growing even brighter.
"Lei Bo, how do you feel? Is there anything uncomfortable about your body?" Inside the Lei home, Ye Fan called him by his real name, refraining from using his nickname.
"Brother Ye, you're here." Er Lengzi turned over and sat up. "Nothing's uncomfortable. I feel full of strength, like I could split rocks."
Ye Fan nodded. Er Lengzi's current state was far beyond just breaking large stones. His divine power was comparable to a Divine Bridge cultivator; he could probably dig out a mine shaft with his bare hands.
"Why did your body undergo this change?" Ye Fan asked about the process.
"Let's go to my place. I'll make some good dishes, and we can talk while we eat and drink." Fifth Master Zhang spoke. In front of Er Lengzi's family, there were some things that were inconvenient to discuss in detail.
"Great! I love the lamb ribs you make, Fifth Master." Er Lengzi was overjoyed, still as carefree as ever.
Wang Shu had undergone the same change. Ye Fan called him to Fifth Master Zhang's house, and they ate and talked together.
"Did this change happen after you touched those nine stone blocks that day?" Ye Fan asked, not too worried.
Many generations had passed. These two families had long been assimilated as humans, not other races. Occasionally, special children would appear, but aside from being born with divine power, there were no other abnormalities.
"Yes. After returning, it felt like a piece of paper was torn open inside my body. A warm 'water' surged through me, very comfortable."
Ye Fan was speechless. Divine power like water. This was indeed unusually strong. It was the revival of an ancient bloodline, a gift from heaven.
"Prick your finger. Let me take a look."
The Lei and Wang families naturally knew their ancestors had special traits, but they didn't know they weren't human. Without hesitation, both pricked their fingers and let a few drops of blood fall.
"Red with a bright sheen, faint silver glimmers. This kind of talent is admirable and enviable." Ye Fan nodded.
Their blood only had a trace of silver light, far from pure silver blood, yet it already possessed such divine power. One could imagine how powerful their ancestors must have been.
"Probably upper-class among ancient creatures, maybe even royalty," Ye Fan muttered to himself. He couldn't say this out loud.
"Brother Ye, are we alright?" Wang Shu asked suspiciously, a little worried.
"We won't turn into monsters, will we?" Er Lengzi scratched his head. Clearly, they had heard some legends about their ancestors.
"This is a good thing. Don't worry." Ye Fan examined them carefully and found that their forehead bones were very mysterious, connected to the origin within their skulls.
His divine sense was incredibly powerful. He forcibly entered their sea of consciousness and found that they were completely human in nature. He wasn't worried about them turning into ancient creatures.
Compared to this, what truly surprised Ye Fan were the nine stone blocks from the Jade Pool. The things sealed inside had awakened Wang Shu and Lei Bo's divine power, most likely because they were closely related to their bloodline.
"Is it really a good thing? Can we fly in the sky from now on?" Both of their eyes shone with hope.
Ye Fan smiled and nodded. "If you want, you can do it now."
"Really? How?" They forgot about eating and begged Ye Fan to teach them.
"This..." Fifth Master Zhang looked worried.
"Elder, rest assured. This is truly a good thing." Ye Fan sent the two to the courtyard and said to Fifth Master Zhang, "They've long been assimilated as humans. This is just an awakening of talent. Don't worry. They'll be able to protect the Stone Stockade in the future."
Wang Shu and Er Lengzi's forehead bones were like a gateway, connected to a mysterious origin. Divine energy nourished their bodies, making them no different from cultivators at the Divine Bridge realm.
Ye Fan taught them how to channel their divine energy. Soon, they lifted off the ground, wrapped in silver mist, wobbling as they flew into the air.
"Thump," "Thump"
They fell from the sky. Ye Fan rushed over and caught them. With strength comparable to Divine Bridge cultivators, if they died from a fall like that, it would be a huge joke—probably recorded in cultivation history as a cautionary tale.
"Don't fly so high. Practice three feet off the ground. Once you've fully mastered it, I'll teach you other skills."
From that day on, the people of the Stone Stockade saw the two shouting and flying around the area every day.
From that day on, no one called Er Lengzi by his nickname anymore. They started using his real name, Lei Bo.
Half a month passed. Ye Fan spent his time consolidating his Heart Divine Treasury while studying the "Source Heaven Scroll." He had initially mastered the Heaven-Shifting Earth-Transforming Art, though it was limited to changing his own appearance and aura.
He was still far from being able to alter the landscape of mountains and rivers. Such great Source Arts required cultivation at a later stage to grasp.
During this time, he kept an eye on the Holy Maiden of Yao Chi's movements. As Tu Fei had said, she was traveling through the cities of the Northern Domain.
"It seems she won't be returning to the Jade Pool anytime soon." Ye Fan decided to advance another realm and also cultivate the Heaven-Shifting Earth-Transforming Art to a deeper level. Otherwise, if he slipped up, it would be a life-or-death problem.
Now that he had fully comprehended the first part of the Source Heaven Scroll, he decided to go "source sweeping." A thousand catties of Source was a considerable amount. Getting it from the various gambling stone shops in Pingyan City would be difficult.
But he thought he could manage. His Source Art had advanced by leaps and bounds, and he shouldn't fail in these low-level stone shops.
"Something's wrong..." Suddenly, a villager came to find Ye Fan in a panic.
"What is it?" Ye Fan woke from his meditation. Before the villager could say anything, he sensed trouble outside the village.
"Go save Fifth Master Zhang! He's about to be beaten to death!" The messenger was frantic and flustered.
Ye Fan stood up instantly. With one step, he vanished and appeared outside the village in the blink of an eye.
Fifth Master Zhang had disheveled hair and a swollen face with clear, blue finger marks. Blood stained his mouth and chest. He had clearly been slapped.
"How can you do this?!" The young men of the village all drew their curved knives, confronting the people in front, shouting angrily.
"So what?" A few young men stood in front, looking indifferent, not taking the people of the Stone Stockade seriously at all.
"What right do you have to hit people?"
"This old man refuses a toast only to drink a forfeit. The Green Cloud Sect invited him to find Source mines, and he dared to make excuses to refuse. I think he's lost his mind." One of the young men said nonchalantly, a cold smile on his face.
Not far away were some old men, all familiar faces. They had clearly been kidnapped from nearby villages.
"This old thing does have some prestige. A few slaps, and you're ready to fight for him. What if we beat him to death? What would you do then?" The young men taunted.
"You..." The village youths were furious, stepping forward with their long knives. "You're going too far!"
"What, you think you can make waves? If you want to die, come on up." The young men scanned the crowd, all showing disdain. One of them raised his hand high, aiming to slap Fifth Master Zhang's white-haired head.
"Slap"
A very loud slap, but it wasn't on Fifth Master Zhang's face. It landed on his own.
Ye Fan arrived, his face cold. He helped Fifth Master Zhang up, channeling life essence to stabilize his injuries and slowly heal them.
"You... who are you?!" The Green Cloud disciple who had been slapped was stunned, then roared, "You're asking for death!"
"Slap"
Ye Fan backhanded him, sending him flying again.
"Who's causing trouble here? We're back!" Wang Shu and Lei Bo shouted, flying back from the horizon.
Over the past half month, Ye Fan had taught them flight techniques and some simple combat skills. They had been training hard. With their foundation—newly awakened talent comparable to Divine Bridge cultivators and abundant divine power—everything came naturally.
"Kill them all. Don't let a single one escape." Ye Fan ordered the two. "Training alone isn't enough. You need to experience life-and-death trials and the test of blood."
He was thoroughly disgusted with this sect. First, they supported Chen Dahuzi in his raids, then Liu Cheng'en and Liu Chengwang ambushed him, and now they came to his doorstep acting tyrannically.
Er Lengzi's eyes turned red. He recognized one of these people—someone who had appeared with Chen Dahuzi before.
"Damned bandits! It really was the Green Cloud Sect backing them! I'll fight you to the death! Give me back my sister's life..." He roared, charging forward like a wild beast.
Wang Shu, afraid he might get hurt, followed closely and attacked alongside him.
"You two country bumpkins dare to oppose the Green Cloud Sect?!" The young men were outwardly tough but inwardly weak. They could see Ye Fan's strength and now tried to intimidate him by invoking their sect.
"Green Cloud Sect..." Ye Fan looked at the slap marks on Fifth Master Zhang's face, then turned sharply. "This sect doesn't need to exist anymore!"
"You... arrogant!" One of them sneered. "If you harm us, every cultivator within five hundred miles will hunt you down!"
"Pfft"
Ye Fan flicked his finger, and that person's head exploded. His corpse fell to the ground. He was the only Divine Bridge realm cultivator; the rest were only at the Life Spring realm.
"Kill them all. Don't let anyone go." The remaining ones were no match for Wang Shu and Lei Bo. Even though their techniques were limited and they couldn't control artifacts, their surging divine power and brute force were more than enough.
Screams rang out.
"Misunderstanding! It's all a misunderstanding! That bastard was the sect leader's grandson, always arrogant. It has nothing to do with us."
Unfortunately, their pleas came too late. Er Lengzi's eyes were bloodshot. Thinking of his sister, he was nearly insane.
They couldn't even escape. Wang Shu and Er Lengzi gritted their teeth and struck, quickly killing them all.
"They're from the Green Cloud Sect. If they retaliate, our Stone Stockade can't withstand it." Some villagers were worried.
"Don't worry. There won't be such a sect anymore." Ye Fan said calmly. He already knew that the Green Cloud Sect was a small sect. The highest cultivator there had only reached the Dao Palace Secret Realm, having cultivated at most one or two divine spirits.
"Take these people into the stockade first. Let them go after we deal with the Green Cloud Sect." Ye Fan pointed to a few old men from other villages.
The Green Cloud Sect was a true tumor. Ye Fan decided to remove it.
"A sect like that probably has a thousand catties of Source. If I take it down, I can immediately advance another level..." Ye Fan chuckled to himself. With this decision, he was starting to resemble the Thirteen Great Bandits.
"I don't rob ordinary people. I only remove tumors. That's not an evil act."
Before Ye Fan could act, just one day later, the Green Cloud Sect came looking for him.
The next day, as soon as he stepped out of the Stone Stockade, he was ambushed. A cultivator at the Other Shore realm led nine Divine Bridge cultivators in launching weapons at him.
"Your noses are quite sharp. You found me so quickly."
"So, the missing members of our Green Cloud Sect were killed by you?" One of them demanded.
"You didn't know that? Then why did you attack me?"
"You look suspicious. You're not from the Stone Stockade, yet you have considerable cultivation. Naturally, we had to capture you for questioning."
"Such arrogance. So you can just attack anyone?" Ye Fan shook his head. "You don't know when to die."
"Daring to strike against our Green Cloud Sect—who doesn't know when to die?!" The Other Shore realm cultivator ordered the nine Divine Bridge cultivators to surround Ye Fan.
"Why bother with all this trouble? I'll send you all on your way!" Ye Fan waved his sleeve, sweeping all nine Divine Bridge cultivators inside. He drifted like an immortal.
"You..." The Other Shore realm cultivator was shocked.
"You too, get going." Ye Fan reached out his hand, pressing down like the Five Finger Mountain.
All the weapons the Other Shore realm cultivator had launched were crushed by his palm. The cultivator himself fell into that giant hand.
Behind him, Wang Shu and Er Lengzi were dumbfounded, finding it unbelievable.
"This is nothing. It's just the operation of Dao power. Once you enter the Dao Palace Secret Realm, you can easily display it."
Of course, others wouldn't have the same level of power.
"Let's go to the Green Cloud Sect."
"We're really going to wipe out this sect?" Wang Shu was stunned.
"We'll only kill the chief culprits. The rest will be spared. I've decided to establish a sect, and the Green Cloud Sect is a ready-made foundation." Ye Fan took the two and soared into the sky.
"Founding a sect?" Er Lengzi muttered.
"What's the use of founding a sect?" Wang Shu asked, puzzled.
"Naturally, it will be useful."
Soon, Ye Fan arrived at the Green Cloud Sect, located in an oasis.
"Who dares trespass into the Green Cloud Sect?!" A loud shout came from ahead.
Green mountains and clear waters were rare in this desolate Northern Domain. For the Green Cloud Sect to have such a spiritual land was indeed extraordinary.
"Go tell your sect leader that I want to establish a sect here and would like him to move elsewhere."
The guardians of the mountain gate were all stunned, then shouted, "You... have you eaten a bear's heart and a leopard's gall?!"