Three Thousand Flame Movement

The rest of the Zhao family members were equally filled with righteous indignation.

That Zhao Yan'er...

She was an absolute anomaly within the family. While she was undoubtedly a Zhao by blood, her actions constantly opposed them, and now she was openly shielding Ning Fan!

This was something no one in the Zhao family could tolerate.

Thump, thump—

The old woman raised her hand and struck her dragon-headed staff heavily against the ground, instantly silencing the clamoring Zhao disciples.

"Regarding this matter, we shall wait and see."

"We will discuss it another day."

"What-"

Hearing the Ancestor's decree, the surrounding disciples widened their eyes in utter bewilderment. Just two days ago, the Ancestor had been resolute about executing Ning Fan, yet now she was actually allowing a Zhao family disciple to entangle herself with him?

It was truly bizarre.

However, no one dared to question Zhao Wuqing's decision, and they all lowered their heads to acknowledge her words.

"..."

Zhao Wuqing sat at the head of the hall, maintaining a calm, unreadable expression as she gathered her thoughts. Over the past few days, she had been quietly observing Ning Fan. Based on her judgment, he did not seem to be a bloodthirsty maniac.

As for the death of Zhao Qishuang...

The evidence was simply too perfect.

Almost every clue pointed directly to Ning Fan.

But that was precisely why a shred of suspicion had taken root in Zhao Wuqing's heart.

She would wait and see.

She wanted to understand this young man just a little better.

""

Meanwhile, back at the disciple quarters, Ning Fan was curling his lips in annoyance. After a moment of consideration, he saw right through Zhao Yan'er's little scheme. She was intentionally putting him on blast so that the entire sect would know about their wager. By doing so, she was leaving him no room to back out, forcing him to willingly become her concubine.

Fine then.

Ning Fan didn't really mind. He was confident he could defeat her in ten days anyway, so having the wager publicized was actually a development he was glad to see.

"Time to go."

Ning Fan muttered to himself.

Staying at the disciple residences would only draw a crowd of onlookers. It was better to head over to the Martial Skills Pavilion quickly, where the disciples might not have seen the announcements yet.

With that, he set off.

The Martial Skills Pavilion of Yin Yang Peak was predictably extravagant, far grander than the one on Qihua Peak, and the martial techniques stored within were bound to be much rarer.

After presenting his personal disciple token, Ning Fan entered without any hindrance.

Flashing the token once more, he bypassed the lower levels and went straight up to the fourth floor!

The volume of manuals on the fourth floor was significantly sparser than he had anticipated, but a quick realization struck him.

It was a matter of rank.

The third floor mostly contained Low Grade and Middle Grade Profound rank techniques, with only the occasional High Grade Profound rank manual.

But the fourth floor was entirely different.

The lowest tier here began at Middle Grade Profound rank, with the vast majority being High Grade Profound rank, several Top Grade Profound rank, and even a few Half-Step Earth rank treasures.

Whether it was magical treasures, martial skills, or spiritual herbs, everything followed the same fundamental law-

Once a grade increased by even a minor realm, its rarity multiplied exponentially.

Though the collection on the fourth floor was small, any single manual here could easily rival the absolute rarest treasures found on the floor below.

"..."

Ning Fan began browsing through the selection. Even if he didn't intend to cultivate them himself, memorizing the general concepts of these techniques would give him valuable experience should he ever face them in combat.

When it came to martial skills, Ning Fan was quite discerning.

One could easily have too much of a good thing; learning an excessive number of techniques didn't inherently make a cultivator stronger, as one's reservoir of spiritual energy was ultimately limited.

True mastery and expertise were what mattered most.

After a cursory look, the standard Middle and High Grade Profound rank techniques failed to catch his eye. He did examine the Top Grade Profound rank manuals with a bit more focus, but compared to his Wushi Seal, they still fell vastly short.

"Oh?"

Suddenly, Ning Fan paused in front of a crystalline display case, a look of surprise crossing his face.

Resting inside the case was a cultivation manual.

"Three Thousand Flame Movement?" Ning Fan murmured.

What caught his attention wasn't the striking name of the technique, but its classification: a movement skill.

In this world, martial skills were divided into various categories, and movement techniques were among the most vital. They could drastically boost a cultivator's speed, and certain profound movement skills even granted unique, mystical traits. Since Ning Fan currently lacked any specialized movement techniques, even a basic Yellow rank skill would give him a noticeable boost.

"..."

Ning Fan shifted his gaze down to the description of the technique, and his heart gave a sudden, violent thud.

"Top Grade Profound rank?!"

It was actually a Top Grade Profound rank movement skill!

This grade was exceptionally high.

Ning Fan could hardly conceive just how massive an advantage a Top Grade Profound rank movement skill would grant him in battle.

"..."

Just as he was about to retrieve his disciple token to unseal the crystalline barrier, a startled exclamation cut through the quiet air behind him.

"Ning... Ning Fan? What are you doing here?!"

Ning Fan turned around and found a familiar face.

It was Zou Yu.

He was the very Talent Scout from Yin Yang Peak who had taken an unwelcome 'interest' in Yun Qingyao back then. Ning Fan hadn't expected that this guy would also have the clearance to enter the fourth floor.

Zou Yu was every bit as shocked to see Ning Fan, and a sudden wave of apprehension washed over him. After all, Ning Fan had defeated Zhao Qi in a direct confrontation; crushing someone of Zou Yu's level would be effortless.

But then he caught himself.

This was Yin Yang Peak-his own home turf! It was entirely unclear how Ning Fan had even sneaked in here, so what was there to fear?

"Ning Fan, by what right do you stand in this place?"

"Wait a minute..."

"Could it be that the person who plundered the Martial Skills Pavilion of Qihua Peak was truly you?!"

"Have you come to our Yin Yang Peak to rob our Martial Skills Pavilion as well?!"

"..."

Ning Fan's mouth twitched slightly before he rolled his eyes in sheer exasperation.

This Zou Yu possessed quite the wild imagination. Remarkably, he had actually stumbled onto a partial truth, though his subsequent accusation was absolute nonsense.

Plunder Yin Yang Peak?

It was the middle of the day. Who in their right mind would attempt a blatant robbery in broad daylight?

Furthermore, there were plenty of other disciples present on the fourth floor right now. Did Zou Yu honestly believe Ning Fan was some kind of transcendent immortal who could make massive shelves of manuals vanish into thin air with a single blink?

Ning Fan couldn't be bothered to waste his breath on him, but Zou Yu refused to let it drop.

Taking an aggressive step forward, Zou Yu's expression grew hostile, looking as though he was fully prepared to initiate a fight.

Yet, just as Zou Yu was about to close the distance, Ning Fan calmly raised his hand, dangling a particular token right in front of the man's face.

Upon recognizing the item in Ning Fan's grasp, Zou Yu's eyes nearly popped out of his head.

"A p-personal disciple token?!"

"H-how can this be?!"

"..."

Ning Fan had only just entered Changming Peak; how could he possibly hold a personal disciple token belonging to Yin Yang Peak?

And yet, the structural authenticity of the token was absolute and impossible to forge.

It was utterly incomprehensible.

Ning Fan arched an eyebrow, a highly amused glint playing in his eyes.

Zou Yu's face turned completely grim. Despite the intense reluctance burning in his chest, the rigid hierarchy of the sect left him no choice. He bent forward, delivering a deep, formal bow.

"Greetings... Senior Brother."

"Rise, rise. No need for such formality," Ning Fan replied, waving his hand with casual dismissiveness.

"..."

Zou Yu straightened his posture, his expression dark as coal as he glared at Ning Fan through gritted teeth. However, as his eyes tracked downward and noticed the specific manual Ning Fan had been eyeing, his face suddenly froze.

Then, a look of profound mockery slowly spread across his features.

88.181.249.5

ns88.181.249.5da2