The Exile from the Three Realms

The crimson hellfire was terrifying, yet it also possessed an eerie, sacred beauty.

Its purpose was to burn away all sin!

“AHHH!”

Ji Ning, hovering in midair, went completely bug-eyed. He clutched his head and plummeted straight down from the sky.

At that moment, in the quiet meditation chamber of the aquatic manor.

The black-robed Ji Ning, his Primaltwin, had been sitting cross-legged on the Netherwater Jade bed. Now, he too was ablaze with crimson hellfire. The black-robed Ji Ning knelt on the bed, letting out a piercing, agonized roar. Writhing in pain, he crawled and fell off the Netherwater Jade bed.

“No… no…” The black-robed Ji Ning let out a pained howl.

…

Outside, Ji Ning fell from the sky. As he dropped, he clutched his head and let out a terrifying, maddened roar.

“He’s actually still alive?” The Shaoyin Ancestor was astonished. Riding on the flying shuttle, the other six Celestial Immortals all emerged as well. They stared in delighted shock at the sight before them, then grew surprised. “He wasn’t burned to a crisp instantly?”

“Hahaha…”

In the distance, the Scourgewind Fiend-Demon hovered in midair, letting out a heart-shaking laugh as the hellfire scorched him. His face was twisted, his eyes blood-red, his entire body convulsing in agony, yet he still laughed madly, “This… this is really… really more exciting than a hundred million years of Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations! Hahaha, ahhh…”

The Scourgewind Fiend-Demon was also trapped in the agony of the hellfire’s burning.

“The Scourgewind’s Dao-heart is as strong as mine,” the Adoration Celestial Immortal could not help but say. “If even the Scourgewind is in such pain, it’s absolutely unbelievable that Ji Ning, who has cultivated for less than a hundred years, wasn’t instantly killed by the hellfire.”

“Mm. He’s cultivated for less than a century, and his Dao-heart is actually this powerful.”

“The hellfire descends in layers of punishment, and this is just the beginning,” the Shaoyin Ancestor said darkly. “I refuse to believe that Ji Ning can endure it.”

Hellfire…

It was the holy flame of sin, representing the ultimate extreme of karmic evil.

This was a flame of nothingness. It burned the soul. It burned the heart!

It had no effect on the physical body, for Heaven always left a sliver of hope. If hellfire could burn the body, Fiendgod Body Refiners would have a massive advantage, while Ki Refiners would be at too great a disadvantage.

Though it did no physical damage, the burning of the soul was far more terrifying! Even a cultivator like Ji Ning, who had trained in the Eight-Nine Arcane Art, had no advantage whatsoever. Facing the hellfire, all cultivators were equal. What it tested now was the Dao-heart. Could the Dao-heart remain intact under the hellfire’s assault?

Once the Dao-heart collapsed, the soul would be unguarded. In an instant, the soul would turn to ash, and one’s spirit would be scattered.

Fortunately, Ji Ning had just created the tenth stance of the Three-Foot Sword, instilling in his Dao-heart a resolve that was absolute. It was this profound determination within his Dao-heart that allowed him to withstand the first layer of hellfire’s punishment: the Pain.

“He’s… still… alive… not dead yet… a monster!” the Scourgewind Fiend-Demon said, his body trembling in pain as he stared down at Ji Ning falling below.

The Scourgewind Fiend-Demon had a very powerful Dao-heart.

He had lived for a million years. The Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations came every three hundred years. In a million years, he had endured countless of them. Under this constant pressure, his Dao-heart had evolved to be incredibly strong. Even a million years of tribulations were easy for him, indicating that his Dao-heart was far stronger than the Northern Journey Immortal’s.

Compared to many Celestial Immortals, he was probably considered quite outstanding.

Under the first layer of hellfire’s punishment, Pain, though it was agonizing, he could still maintain some of his rationality. He could even open his mouth to speak with difficulty, showing he was in a far better state than Ji Ning.

…

Within the ten-thousand-li formation, the Whitewater Hound, little Qing, and Mu Northson were all stunned.

They had seen the blood-red sky and the blood-red hellfire that had appeared on Ji Ning’s body! The instant they saw the hellfire, they understood everything. When they saw Ji Ning fall from the sky in agony, letting out heart-rending screams, despair filled their hearts.

“Hellfire. How could hellfire descend upon Master?” little Qing cried out in terror.

“How could this be? Senior apprentice-brother, Senior Apprentice-Brother Ji Ning…” Mu Northson was trembling with anxiety. “Senior apprentice-brother, it was all because of me, all because of me… no, don’t…”

The Whitewater Hound just stared at Ji Ning as he fell from the sky, at Ji Ning being scorched by the hellfire. Instantly, two streams of tears flowed down its face. “Ning’er, Ning’er…”

Despair!

They were cultivators as well. They knew how terrifying the hellfire was, and they understood that once it descended, no one else could help. Surviving the hellfire was far, far too difficult. Only true, powerful existences with indomitable Dao-hearts could survive it.

But Ji Ning had only cultivated for less than a hundred years! Though he was renowned as a peerless Sword Immortal talent with a firm Dao-heart and a powerful sword-heart, the fact remained that he had simply not been cultivating for very long.

The hellfire’s punishments came one wave after another, each growing more terrifying.

“Ning’er, you have to hold on. You have to hold on,” the Whitewater Hound said, watching Ji Ning. “I promised Brother that I would take care of you, that I would watch over you.”

…

On the long shuttle, the Shaoyin Ancestor and the six Celestial Immortals watched Ji Ning fall into the distance.

“The hellfire descended but he’s still not dead,” the Profound Calculated Celestial Immortal quickly said. “Ancestor, the hellfire’s punishments come one layer after another. But just in case a miracle really does happen and this kid survives, we should suppress him first. He is completely helpless to resist right now, making this the perfect opportunity to suppress him.”

“Right,” the Adoration Celestial Immortal agreed. “Though I don’t believe Ji Ning can endure it, if a miracle does occur, it would be best to suppress him in advance.”

“Suppress him.”

“It’s a pity that Goldenbell died and his Godbell was taken by Ji Ning.”

“I naturally have other treasures for suppression. Though they aren’t as powerful as the Godbell, they are still Pure Yang mid-grade treasures. Once he’s suppressed, he won’t be able to escape,” the Shaoyin Ancestor said. A pair of brass cymbals suddenly appeared in his hand, and he tossed them into the air. The cymbals grew with the wind, transforming into a pair of hundred-zhang-wide cymbals.

The pair of cymbals split apart. One moved to cover Ji Ning from above, while the other rose to meet him from below. Once the cymbals closed together… Ji Ning would have no way to escape.

Ji Ning’s eyes were bloodshot with pain. His face was twisted as he let out an involuntary howl.

But his Dao-heart had not dispersed!

He still maintained a sliver of rationality. He could see everything around him, though the scenes before his eyes were distorted from excessive blood congestion. If it grew any worse, he might go blind. When the two enormous cymbals descended upon him, Ji Ning immediately lashed out with his hands. Boom! Boom! He immediately sent the two cymbals flying.

“He can still perceive the outside world?” the Shaoyin Ancestor said in surprise.

“Even if he can perceive the outside world, his rationality is probably extremely low,” the Adoration Celestial Immortal said. “He’s like a wild beast now, simply knocking away any threats that come near. He doesn’t even know to flee. He could easily use his escape technique to run away, but he hasn’t done so. This clearly shows his rationality has dropped to an extremely low level.”

“Let’s all make a move and see if we can trap him.”

“Let’s give it a try.”

All six Celestial Immortals acted.

Black chains flew through the air. A ten-thousand-zhang-long horsetail whisk coiled around him. Countless vines attempted to bind him.

Boom! Boom! Boom! …

Ji Ning saw a mass of things surging toward him through the distorted vision. He waved his hands frantically. With the Starseizing Hand, he sent all those treasures flying. The vines were torn apart as well, unable to get close to Ji Ning. After all, these Celestial Immortals were all badly injured. The treasures they drove were no match for Ji Ning’s hands.

Even when the six Celestial Immortals tried to combine their formations, in their heavily wounded state, they were still no match for Ji Ning’s Starseizing Hand.

“Mm. He truly is like a wild beast, madly striking down everything that approaches,” the Shaoyin Ancestor said, nodding lightly. “I have thought of a method that could send him to his death.”

“Oh?” They all looked at the Shaoyin Ancestor.

“Could it be the Realm-Refining Tower?” the Adoration Celestial Immortal suddenly asked.

“Adoration truly understands my thoughts,” the Shaoyin Ancestor said, nodding lightly. “Fortunately, I left seclusion this time. Xuanji and the others all came, so no one was guarding the tower. I brought this Realm-Refining Tower with me.”

Whoosh.

A small tower appeared in the Shaoyin Ancestor’s palm. It was the ancient tower that the Profound Calculated Celestial Immortal and the others had previously sat in. This tower… was the Shaoyin clan’s most important treasure. For the Shaoyin clan, the most important things were their Ancestor, the powerful and multi-incarnated ‘Poisonous Ugly Immortal’, followed by this Realm-Refining Tower.

The Realm-Refining Tower was a treasure discovered during the era when the ancient Pangu’s World shattered. The Poisonous Ugly Immortal had numerous clones scattered everywhere. One of them, by chance, discovered a tower flying through the air. He took it and fled.

This was an Innate Spirit treasure, the greatest treasure the Poisonous Ugly Immortal had acquired in his endless years.

“Whoosh.”

The small tower in the Shaoyin Ancestor’s palm immediately flew out, transforming into a ten-thousand-zhang tall tower. It hovered high in the air, overlooking Ji Ning. It hung there about a thousand zhang above him. The Shaoyin Ancestor and the others had noted during their earlier attempts that the thousand-zhang mark was a boundary. Once they crossed it and continued attacking Ji Ning, he would strike down anything that came close.

“Ji Ning, let me send you on your way,” the Shaoyin Ancestor said softly.

“Whoosh~~~” The entire tower suddenly began to glow. Especially the base of the tower, where a dark vortex appeared. The vortex frantically spread downward and soon encompassed a full hundred-li radius, naturally including Ji Ning.

He was completely within its range.

If Ji Ning had been normal, he would have immediately sensed something was wrong. He would have quickly fled this area. But now, he was clutching his head in agony. The hellfire was furiously burning, its power growing stronger and stronger. It had even begun the second layer of punishment. The only sliver of rationality he had left was to keep any treasures or spells from getting near him. How would he notice something so subtle?

“Humm~~~”

The tower grew more and more dazzling.

Then, whoosh!

The tip of the tower flashed brightly. Shua! A beam of light shot straight into the sky, as if piercing through layer after layer of space. Then, it vanished. The original hundred-li area that had been covered by the dark vortex was now completely empty. The Ji Ning who had been there was gone. He had vanished from the Grand Xia World, even vanished from the Three Realms, and had been sent to a place outside the Three Realms…

(End of this volume)