The cultivation master

Tian Village was located in one of the poorest provinces, untouched by progress. Most people still used mules and carts, and many traditional groups, from Murim to smaller communities, were settled among the wild valleys and remote peaks of this area.

Fang Yuan was crouched in the meadow as usual, waiting for the fisherman to get distracted so he could snatch the worms from his basket. He had become very skilled at this. He held his breath and pressed his ear to the ground. Small tremors echoed—stronger than usual—but to Fang Yuan, stronger tremors meant more worms.

A silly smile spread across his face, and his cheeks flushed. Fang Yuan was waiting for an opportunity when the sound of someone running caught his attention. He stepped back a bit. Now he was several steps away from the road. His small figure was barely visible in the afternoon light.

Someone dashed into the meadow at full speed and suddenly locked eyes with Fang Yuan. It was Old Wang, the village tanner. Fang Yuan expected Old Wang to scold him, but he said nothing and looked at Fang Yuan with fear, signaling for him to get away from there.

Fang Yuan stepped back further. The grass rustled. Old Wang remained still. When he was sure Fang Yuan was far enough, he ran in the opposite direction. In an instant, an arrow pierced his throat, and he fell in the middle of the road. Fang Yuan gasped. Stunned and terrified, he looked toward the village.

Black smoke began to rise from the wooden roofs.

Fang Yuan glanced back at Old Wang. Clutching a small box tightly, he distanced himself further with frightened eyes. A flock of crows appeared in the sky. They descended on the old man's corpse for a feast.

Fang Yuan couldn't bear it. It was too much for someone like him. He was trembling, and yet there was nothing he could do but witness that horrible scene.

His anger manifested in countless ways. He hated the worms and fled from the sunset. His heart broke. Death, once an unfamiliar word, struck him like lightning.

What if he had spent his time doing something better instead of playing with worms? Would anything have changed if he had warned the villagers before the attack? Why hadn't he seen them coming?

It didn't matter what he thought; it was too late. A wolf howled on the hill, and Fang Yuan ran through the golden wheat field. At first, he didn't see it, but then a loud scream shattered the silence, and an arrow targeted Fang Yuan's heart.

The reflection of the arrowhead flickered in his trembling eyes. In the span of a breath, the scream of the arrow was silenced, blood splattered on the golden stalks, and Fang Yuan fell to the ground.

****************

Zhu Fan quickly leaped out of the bushes. After crushing the neck of one of the attackers, he jumped onto a tree branch. His power had become so uncontrollable that it pulverized the man's head. He needed time, and to gain time, he had to sacrifice his lifespan. He added another fifty years to his curse.

A defiant aura emanated from him, a light gray hue that resembled scattered silver dust in the air. Immediately, it covered the entire mountain with a powerful barrier. He had created a domain where anyone entering would be suppressed by his will.

In a single breath, all the attackers were mutilated.

Zhu Fan found the boy. Fang Yuan was lying on the ground with an injured arm. Apparently, the arrow shot at him in the wheat field had missed, but its aura had left a terrible wound on his arm.

Zhu Fan placed a healing Gu and two other Gu in Fang Yuan's pocket. At that moment, his gaze met Xiao's eyes. The fox was sitting very calmly on the ground. There wasn't much time left. Using magic, he sealed Xiao's mind and transferred some of his remaining cultivation to him. He then opened a portal to a safe location and sent them through. This was the best possible choice.

He had a plan, but he couldn't proceed with those two around. Fang Yuan had finally found a Gu worm. Whether he would enter the path of cultivation was entirely up to him.

Zhu Fan sacrificed another eighty years. then, he appeared to be two hundred years old. His grey hair danced in the air. His face was deeply wrinkled, his back was hunched, and his muscles had withered.

Seven low-ranking gods appeared above the mountain. Zhu Fan gritted his teeth. Why were the gods after him? He was sure the answer was sealed within his memory.

Ammonia had also arrived, this time sending not just an aura but a part of her soul. She wanted to humiliate Zhu Fan, and if that was indeed her goal, she had succeeded completely.

Zuo Fan knew he would be defeated in an instant and would not survive. He hadn't been trying to survive since the beginning. He had another plan in mind.

Ammonia's laughter shattered the dreadful silence of the mountain.

"Hahaha! Cyrus! There might be an escape from death, but there is no escape from time."

The memory Gu was restless, and Zhu Fan couldn't suppress it. He couldn't think of another way; all doors were closed to him. Zhu Fan had to pay for his choice. So, he sacrificed all the Gu he had with him and gained twenty thousand years of lifespan.

He then cursed the gained lifespan to acquire a power beyond human comprehension.

It was unexpected for Zhu Fan to do such a thing. However, even with those twenty thousand years, he still couldn't match the gods. Zhu Fan knew he could add several more thousand years to his life, but he had saved them for a crucial moment.

The gods looked at Zhu Fan with contempt. Among them, only Ammonia spoke to him.

"You saw a prophecy even though I couldn't see; tell me what it was, and I will give you a painless death and send you into the cycle of reincarnation."

Zhu Fan sneered, "There's no need to prolong this. Both you and I know well that there is no reincarnation. Negotiating with you brings me no benefit."

Ammonia shouted, "Years of living as a mortal have made you insane and blinded your vision!!"

Zhu Fan had nothing more to say; he immediately reduced the range of his domain and prepared for his next move.

One of the gods, with an unmistakable arrogance in his voice, said, "From the beginning, ants were not worth our time."

In an instant, he disappeared and reappeared beside Zhu Fan. With just one punch, he slammed Zhu Fan into the mountain. The force of the blow uprooted numerous trees. Zhu Fan felt excruciating pain. He wondered, "Is this how moments before death pass?"

Ammonia stood arrogantly behind all the gods. Zhu Fan glanced at her, but at the same time, the other gods rushed at him.

A massive battle ensued between them. The sky turned red. Dust covered the battlefield. Zhu Fan was under the most intense attacks. Despite his appearance, he had an incredibly powerful body. Suddenly, he teleported through his domain and appeared behind Ammonia. With one punch, he shattered her chest and absorbed part of her soul essence.

The deceived gods roared furiously. The goddess of time was an important figure. She was the one who kept the gods alive, and now a part of her soul was fused with Zhu Fan.

Zhu Fan had been waiting for this moment to finish the job. First, he had to neutralize ammonia and then deal with the others. That was the plan.

He was sure Ammonia would come to witness his destruction.

Now that Zhu Fan had obtained the power to control time, he activated the hidden structure. His power was insufficient, but he still had one trump card. When the gods entered Zhu Fan's domain, a smirk appeared on his lips.

Zhu Fan cursed another seven thousand years. His body couldn't withstand that level of energy. His soul was damaged, and powerful enemies surrounded him. Two of the gods carried Ammonia's half-dead body away, and five remained to destroy Zhu Fan.

With the power of time, he had managed to maintain his physical form a bit longer, but there was no need to delay the ceremony any further. He had taken his revenge on Ammonia. Now that the gods had entered his domain, it was time to execute the final stage.

"I hope they made it safely through the gate."

This thought made him smile. But it was too late to regret. Zhu Fan glanced at the gods and shouted, "You bastards from the Realm of Meaning!!!! Today you will pay for your foolishness!!!"

He unleashed the sealed memories. A psychological trigger was needed to start the ceremony. His eyes turned white, and his body cracked. Energy haloed out from the cracks. He had become like a bomb. Suddenly, he raised his hand and tore open his chest.

"What is that bastard thinking???"

Zhu Fan shouted, "I sacrificed this heart for you!!!!"

An invisible wall surrounded the domain. A black dome formed above, and thousands of calamities descended from it. The gods took a battle stance, but thousands of demons encircled them.

Zhu Fan lost consciousness, but the dark structure still fed off his body. One of the gods approached to destroy his body, but when he reached Zhu Fan, his desiccated skin twitched slightly.

"Bastard, you're fossilized but still alive??"

But he was wrong. The moment Zhu fan uttered the spell and surrendered his heart, his soul had left his body.

Suddenly, Zhu Fan's corpse exploded, obliterating everything within the range of his domain. The mountain disintegrated into the borders of Zhu Fan's domain, forming a massive crater at the site of the battle. The gods lost their power and turned to stone. A massive fountain erupted from the ground, filling the crater with water. The petrified gods fell into a deep sleep, buried in the depths of the turbulent waters.