Chapter 96 - Falling Off the Cliff

After the Blood Ignition Pill had burned all the blood inside someone, they wouldn’t die immediately; instead, they would suffer indescribable pain for a while. Only after enduring the aftereffect of the pill could they embrace death.

Suffering the aftereffects felt harrowing.

Chen Fan wanted to scream out loud but couldn’t produce any sound.

Not only had all his blood combusted, but even his soul had also received damage. His vision became blurry, and he felt like heaven was beckoning him.

“Am I about to die? How can I just die like this? I haven’t killed Wang Fuchen, and I have yet to reach the peak of martial arts. How can I die?”

Chen Fan’s heart burned with an intense desire to survive.

His desire was so strong that his blurry vision and woozy mind momentarily gained clarity. Everything looked brilliant now.

However, Chen Fan knew that he was just experiencing terminal lucidity.

And that meant that he was about to die!

He failed to kill Wang Fuchen.

He failed to reach the peak of martial arts.

He failed to reach a fitting end.

He was unwilling!

Very unwilling!

Gaining the heavenly opportunity to practice an unparalleled divine art and form the Heaven Seizing Furnace’s embryo hadn’t come easy. A bright future waved its hands at him; if he could hold on to it, he would reach the peak of martial arts in the future.

However, everything was about to come to an abrupt end.

“No... I don’t want this!” Chen Fan collected the last bits of his strength and roared hoarsely.

Wang Fuchen smiled viciously. “You’re unwilling? So what? You will still die! Plenty of people do things they don’t want to—you aren’t special.

“And if you ask me, you have no right to say that. All you should feel is regret. Regret the fact that you offended our Floating Cloud Sword Sect and offended me, Wang Fuchen!”

“You became destined to die at my hands the second you took that Realm Breaking Pill and injured Wang Tengfei. I will kill you with my hands before everyone. I will use your life and blood to hammer a single lesson into everyone’s mind: I, Wang Fuchen, can never be humiliated, and my Floating Cloud Sword Sect even more so!”

“Whoever humiliates us shall die!”

Wang Fuchen was resolute.

“Haha—Ah... Wang Fuchen, even if I have to die... It won’t be by your hands.”

Chen Fan felt a burst of strength rising out of nowhere. With a jolt, he broke free from Wang Fuchen’s hands and leaped, jumping off the cliff.

As he fell, he turned with a sneer hanging on the corners of his lips. “Wang Fuchen, even if I die, it will be on my own terms. But I won’t die. Just wait. Wait for my revenge!”

Chen Fan plummeted straight toward the bottom of the cliff.

“Xiaofan!” A mournful scream rang from the cliff.

Qin Yao suddenly jumped up, seemingly having broken free of Wang Fuchen’s shackles, and rushed toward the crimson cliff.

She watched as Chen Fan plummeted into a seemingly bottomless abyss.

Two trails of bloody tears streamed down Qin Yao’s face.

Within moments, her countenance changed. She promptly jumped off the cliff with stubborn determination, following Chen Fan.

This scene shocked not only Wang Fuchen but also the onlookers.

None had imagined this.

After all, jumping into that abyss was the same as jumping into the maws of death.

Despite being a Yuanfu realm expert, even Wang Fuchen wouldn’t dare to make that jump.

“What a devoted woman.”

The eyes of many in the nearby crowd narrowed, disappointment welling in their hearts as if they had lost something precious. Sighs rippled through the gathering.

“Chen Fan risked everything to save her, even fighting with Wang Fuchen. Ultimately, he chose to leap off the cliff, embracing death on his own terms rather than falling into Wang Fuchen’s clutches. She, too, decided to jump off the cliff. It speaks volumes of her strong character and sentiments, willing to face life and death alongside him.”

“Wang Fuchen's methods are truly detestable. It should earn him nothing but contempt.”

“......”

Wang Fuchen’s expression soured as he overheard the murmurs.

He hadn't anticipated Qin Yao's drastic decision.

In her act of sentimentality, his despicable and shameless nature was laid bare before everyone. It only ignited a seething rage within him, though.

“Let’s go quickly! Will he target us next?”

Sensing the chilling aura emanating from Wang Fuchen, disciples from the three other great sects recoiled, their eyes shrinking as they hastily averted their gaze.

......

“Xiaofan, Yaoyao!”

On Dragon Mountain Peak, Qin Changkong watched it all happen through the primeval mirror.

His aura surged uncontrollably, transforming into a fierce, violent wind that swept out, carrying an earth-shaking killing intent.

“Sect Master Zhuo, one is responsible for their own life and death in Dragon Mountain Blessed Land. I trust your Spring Autumn Sect won’t stoop to seeking revenge afterward, correct?” Leng Feng’s cold voice rang out.

Qin Yao was Qin Changkong’s daughter, and Chen Fan was like a son to him. Chen Fan had consumed the Blood Ignition Pill and was sure to die. Qin Yao had jumped off the cliff, so there was no way she would survive.

Sensing the frigid killing intent directed at Wang Fuchen emanating from Qin Changkong, Leng Feng felt compelled to caution Zhuo Bufan. He needed to ensure that his sect elders were restrained and didn't escalate matters by seeking revenge.

Although his words were directed at Zhuo Bufan, they were meant for Qin Changkong.

“Elder Qin!” Zhuo Bufan naturally understood this and immediately shouted.

Qin Changkong's display of open hostility toward Wang Fuchen could lead to severe consequences afterward. Any repercussions that followed could jeopardize the delicate balance among the four great sects.

The relationship between these sects was already strained. The Burning Incense Valley and Mountain River Sect would seize any opportunity to instigate a major conflict between the Spring Autumn Sect and the Floating Cloud Sword Sect.

With two trails of tears rolling down his cheeks, Qin Changkong suppressed his killing intent and clenched his hands tightly in anguish.

Chen Fan was dead.

His daughter was also dead.

And he couldn’t avenge them.

His appearance didn’t show it, but if one noticed his trembling fists, they could get a hint of what he was feeling inside.

Chen Fan was truly gone.

Despite his initial reputation as a martial trash, he had soared to prominence like a rocket in just a few short months. The news of his untimely demise left an unerasable mark of disbelief.

How was that possible?

How could this be?

On a distant mountain peak, the Pavilion Guard Elder also witnessed it all through a primeval mirror, disregarding the spatial distance.

Afterward, he sighed to the skies, feeling an incomparable pity.

He had held high hopes for Chen Fan, intending to nurture him further and make him strong enough to rival Duan Jingtian.

The internal conflicts within the Spring Autumn Sect were escalating, and the struggle for leadership was intense. Duan Jingtian had undeniable talent but didn’t belong to the Pavilion Guard Elder’s faction.

Anticipating Duan Jingtian's eventual rise to Sect Leader, the Pavilion Guard Elder foresaw a purge within the sect.

Those aligned with factions opposing Duan Jingtian would suffer. They had no choice but to find a decent seedling to nurture that could stand against Duan Jingtian.

Chen Fan had emerged as that hope.

Now, that hope lay shattered.

Everything seemed impossible now.

“Haaa...”

A heavy sigh dispersed into the wind on the mountain peak.