Chapter 161: Building Foundation Slashes Nascent Soul

Although Li Fan had figured out why he was being hunted, he didn't immediately choose to revert.

Gazing at the burly, red-haired man above him, a dangerous glint flashed in Li Fan's eyes. "I initially thought it would be a Deity Transformation cultivator coming after me. To my surprise, waiting here only yielded a Nascent Soul cultivator. After a hundred years of cultivation, I've never had a formal battle with anyone. Perfect, I'll use you to test my skills."

Seeing Li Fan frozen in place and slow to act, the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator grew impatient. "Hand over the Minor Medicine King Cauldron, and I'll spare your life!" he roared again. Had he not been worried about damaging the storage ring and losing the Minor Medicine King Cauldron by attacking, he likely would have long since smacked this Foundation Establishment cultivator to death.

"Is this the Minor Medicine King Cauldron you're referring to, senior?" Li Fan asked, revealing a fawning smile, then took out a small cauldron from his storage ring and held it in his hand.

The red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator's eyes lit up. "Yes! Yes! That's it! You're a smart one, kid!" he said, nodding in satisfaction as he watched the Minor Medicine King Cauldron fly towards him.

He reached out and grabbed the small cauldron, but before he could even celebrate, a storage ring suddenly emerged from within it. Immediately after, a large cloud of white mist, entangled with golden threads, appeared right next to the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator. "Boom!" Next to the white mist, hundreds of talismans exploded instantly. A massive destructive force erupted fiercely, and the cloud of Soul Devouring White Mist then enveloped the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator.

"Damn you!" With an enraged roar, the Soul Devouring White Mist was instantly dispersed without a trace. The red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator reappeared, having already put away the Minor Medicine King Cauldron. He seemed unharmed, but his slightly trembling hand suggested that Li Fan's recent attack had not been entirely useless.

"You're looking for..." Before he could finish speaking, the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator felt himself instantly enveloped by several spell formations. The circulation of his internal energy stalled, and then he saw the world around him seemingly brighten. A vast, azure ocean suddenly appeared in the sky. A brilliant, deep-blue sword light, carrying an unparalleled aura, flew out from the ocean and slashed towards him.

The moment Li Fan made his move, it was immediately clear he was unleashing his most powerful killing blow: The Congyun Sword Strike.

"An Earthly Wonder?!" the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator exclaimed in surprise, then his gaze towards Li Fan turned greedy.

The ground cracked, and the sky grew dim. A volcano rumbled up, blocking the sword light's path. The volcano was not an illusion like the ocean; it appeared as a physical entity. The surrounding environment grew scorching hot, and molten lava surged from the cracked earth. The blue sword light dimmed slightly but still pierced through the volcano, continuing its strike towards the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator.

A trace of solemnity flickered across the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator's face; he felt this blue sword light was unavoidable. He could only take it head-on. Furthermore, this sword light, unleashed by a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator, actually posed a fatal threat to him. "What kind of sword art was this?"

As his thoughts raced, a layer of fiery light erupted from the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator's body. The fierce flames, like blades, collided head-on with the blue sword light. There was no earth-shattering explosion. In an instant, the blue sword light converged and contracted, forming only a thin, aqua-blue line. The thin line split the flames apart and rapidly coiled around the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator's body.

The red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator was slightly startled, then heard a soft cry from his opponent. "Congyun, Twenty-Eight Swords!"

Within the illusory ocean reflecting the heavens and earth, another twenty-seven sword lights formed and flew forth in an instant. At the same time, all the formations erupted simultaneously. Five-element sword qi assailed his body. Exotic beasts roared, shaking his mind. The red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator even felt a slight fissure appear between his physical body and his Cavern Heaven domain.

Unnoticed by anyone, a blue phantom suddenly appeared, instantly lowering the temperature around the volcano. The blue phantom silently flew to the red-haired cultivator's side and gently pressed its hand in the air. It struck the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator simultaneously with the twenty-seven Congyun sword lights.

From the moment the first Congyun sword flew out until the remaining twenty-seven sword lights struck the Nascent Soul cultivator, only a single instant had passed.

The red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator's face was filled with shock. Cracks appeared all over his body. His shattered body grew stiff and cold. A gentle breeze swept by. Then, like a broken ice sculpture, he disintegrated into countless tiny fragments that fell to the ground. The Nascent Soul cultivator's physical body had been utterly pulverized.

Yet, there was no trace of victorious joy on Li Fan's face. This was because the volcano, which had been opposing the Congyun Sea, still remained. It had even grown more agitated.

"Good! Very good! To destroy my physical body with a Foundation Establishment cultivation! You have every right to be proud! What a pity, a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator like you fundamentally cannot comprehend the terror of the Nascent Soul realm!" The red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator's voice rang out again. Beneath his calm tone, boundless rage seethed. "As long as my Cavern Heaven exists, I cannot die!"

Behind the volcano, the phantom of an infant slowly emerged. Like a parasite, it arched its tiny body and clung to the volcano. "And you, don't think you'll die easily! I will torment you with the most cruel methods; only then can I vent the hatred in my heart!"

Amidst the infant's resentful voice, the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator's original destroyed body surprisingly showed faint signs of reappearing. Li Fan saw that the volcano's energy was slowly being absorbed by the infant. Then, pulsating flesh appeared out of nowhere on the infant's body. It was as if a cloak was being woven. A human body was slowly taking shape.

"'As long as the Cavern Heaven exists, a cultivator cannot die.'" Li Fan mused, watching the scene before him. Even with all his methods unleashed and catching the opponent off guard, he had only managed to destroy one of the opponent's physical bodies. Once the opponent recovered, it would be Li Fan's turn to die. "Indeed, challenging someone beyond one's cultivation realm is no easy feat. However..."

Li Fan's gaze sharpened. His aura suddenly erupted; Li Fan was now holding nothing back. "I have one last move! Senior, please enlighten me!"

The Explosive Law Shocking Spirit Formation operated at its maximum, on the verge of collapse at any moment. Bearing energy far beyond his capacity, Li Fan's body was disintegrating inch by inch. His lower body gradually vanished, leaving only the remnants of his upper torso.

Fearless of life or death at this moment, Li Fan unleashed the Overturning Sea Palm he had comprehended from an ancient Dao-rhyme artifact. He swung his right hand, seemingly without any remarkable power. In the split second before the Overturning Sea Palm fully materialized, Li Fan, teetering on the brink of life and death, suddenly achieved enlightenment.

Both Xiao Heng and Su Xiaomei, when observing the Overturning Sea Palm, had each gained their own insights. Xiao Heng's palm technique was ethereal and elusive. Su Xiaomei's palm technique, however, was incomparably overbearing, suppressing all things. Yet, Li Fan had only ever grasped its form, unable to forge his own true meaning. He was always just a hair's breadth away. For several years, he had made no progress.

But now, with his Foundation Establishment cultivation, facing a Nascent Soul cultivator, Li Fan, unafraid of life or death, undaunted by the disparity in realms, decisively unleashed the Overturning Sea Palm, and in that very moment, suddenly comprehended his own true meaning of the palm technique. That meaning was... Defiance!

So what if he's a Nascent Soul cultivator? I've reincarnated twice, cultivated for a hundred years, and possess countless secrets. I've even used several prodigies as pawns to deduce divine abilities and cultivation methods. If ancient prodigies could kill enemies two realms above them, why can't I?

As Li Fan's body dissipated in the wind, his eyes grew even brighter. He laughed aloud, "Today, with your life, you shall help me achieve divine ability!"

The red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator, enraged, laughed in return. "What arrogance..." Before he could finish, he found his head unexpectedly shrouded by dark clouds.

"Seemingly 'Overturning Sea'. But in truth... It's 'Overturning Heaven'!"

A gigantic hand, whose full form could not be seen, descended from the sky, pressing down directly upon him. "Boom!" The volcano, along with the Nascent Soul attached to it, was instantly reduced to dust.

High in the sky, an anomaly signifying the fall of a Nascent Soul cultivator suddenly appeared. But Li Fan had no time to spare a thought for it. His body had disintegrated, leaving only half of his head. Just before his consciousness faded, Li Fan silently recited in his mind, "Revert!"