Immortal Divine Tribulation

Chapter 139: Crushing the Arrogant

Above Tian Fan’s head floated an Ancient Divine Script, emitting a faint golden glow that spread outward. A wave of ancient, desolate aura rolled from it. He had descended from the Holy Mountain and was now sprinting at full speed, completely unobstructed. Using Divine Cloud Steps to their limit, he quickly dashed out of the Holy Mountain’s range. 

Ahead, black mist curled and deathly energy filled the skies—it was that ancient, shadowy Enchanted Forest again.

“Roar…”

Suddenly, the earth trembled and the heavens shook. 

All the wandering spirits wailed in unison, sounding as if they had awakened from hell itself. Gales of dark wind howled across the land, tearing through the ground. 

When Tian Fan activated his divine eye to peer through the haze, a shiver instantly ran down his spine—two terrifying demonic beasts were ripping each other apart in the mist. Black blood splattered everywhere. It was nauseating.

“Jie jie…”

Two bone-chilling, sinister laughs rang out from another direction. Two fearsome ghosts approached, faces pale as death. The only color in their faces came from the flickering ghostly flames in their deep eye sockets. Their black fingernails were longer than chopsticks.

“What the hell…”

Tian Fan rolled his eyes. These things seriously didn’t know the meaning of death, huh? They dared to provoke him now? Was he supposed to be scared? What a joke. He ignored the two ghosts completely and unleashed Divine Cloud Steps, leaving a fading afterimage behind.

“Yaaah—!”

The two ghosts shrieked and lunged toward him, their ghost-fire eyes blazing, claws slashing at the sky like they wanted to tear it apart. They were close to the level of early-stage Unity Realm cultivators.

“Zzzt—!”

But before they could even get near, the Ancient Divine Script trembled slightly. A soft golden radiance washed over them. With a sizzle, twin wisps of green smoke rose, and the two ghosts were instantly reduced to ashes, erased from the world. Tian Fan wasn’t afraid of anything now—especially not with the divine rune overhead. Normally, he wouldn’t dare summon it casually, but since it had appeared on its own, he figured he might as well keep it around until he left this cursed place.

Buzz…

The divine rune trembled again, and several nearby patches of dark mist shattered on the spot. Tian Fan accelerated with Divine Cloud Steps, flying through the skies at breakneck speed. Countless remnants of souls pounced at him, trying to tear him apart and absorb his essence—but every single one met a tragic end. Wherever the golden light touched, all demonic presences scattered.

“Whew…”

He finally emerged from the Enchanted Forest. But as he looked ahead, his pupils shrank. The surrounding mountains and forests had gone pitch black, trembling violently. Even the Holy Mountain at the center had lost all its color. That entire region had fallen into darkness, like a sanctuary for demon kings.

Boom… boom… boom…!

The world began to shake violently, as though it was on the verge of collapse. 

Tian Fan felt a creeping chill. He activated his Divine Celestial Heart Sutra and disappeared in a flash, dashing across blood-red terrain. It was said this land had been stained by the blood of gods and demons—forever dyed red, brimming with deadly energy.

“Is this really the aftermath of a battle between gods and demons? Where did those ancient immortals go?”

He murmured to himself. He felt a massive secret lay buried here, but now wasn’t the time to investigate. He had to leave—he still had to find the other four spirit pearls.

“Uh… how do I get out of here?”

As he returned to the area where he entered, he awkwardly realized he had no idea how to get back. He had indeed come from above, but now the sky above was an endless sea of blood-red clouds—no trace of the silver waterfall-like barrier.

Buzz…

Just as he was fretting over how to escape, the Divine Script above his head pulsed gently, shooting a beam of golden light into the sky. 

In that instant, a silver, transparent wave of light appeared high above.

“There it is!”

Tian Fan exclaimed and cast one last look at the mysterious world before soaring upward and disappearing into the light.

*****

Back in the small village, chaos had erupted. 

The black-armored officer Tian Fan had driven off earlier had returned—this time with a middle-aged man in tow. The newcomer radiated powerful energy and wore an ornate suit of battle armor. Several young men followed behind him, each with an imposing presence that marked them as high-level cultivators.

“Master, this is the place. That little monster from the village injured me—you must avenge me!” the black-armored officer wailed, tears and snot running down his face. His eyes flashed with murderous intent.

“You’ve got guts, you peasants. Daring to bully my junior brother? In the Sun Empire, no one dares disrespect Soaring Martial Villa. Yet you dare…”

One of the young men behind the middle-aged man sneered mockingly. His eyes were sharp like an eagle’s—definitely not a good person.

“Senior brother, you’re right. I don’t care what they did to me, but insulting junior brother is the same as disrespecting Soaring Martial Villa—disrespecting Master himself! I can’t let this slide!”

The black-armored officer quickly echoed. Hearing this, the middle-aged man’s eyes turned cold, and a chilling killing intent began to leak from his body. The officer felt smug—he knew exactly how strong these people were. Even in the Northern Region, they were considered elite.

“You’re lying! You tried to assault my sister! You’re the bad guy! Big Brother Tian Fan is a good person, not some monster!”

He Ying’s younger brother stepped out, furious, and scolded the officer. The villagers were incensed as well. Everyone glared at them. These outsiders had gone too far—they’d smashed up their boats and nets the moment they arrived.

“What, you still refuse to obey?” another young man behind the middle-aged man stepped forward, looking down on the villagers with arrogant eyes.

“Bring that brat out now. We won’t trouble the rest of you. Otherwise…”

The middle-aged man finally spoke, voice heavy with pressure. The two young men behind him activated their divine energy and summoned their magical treasures.

“Gods! Are they immortals? What do we do now?”

“Tian Fan won’t be a match for them… Thank goodness he already left…”

The villagers were visibly shaken by the two men’s display of power. In their simple worldview, anyone who could control objects like that had to be a god. They trembled with fear.

“We don’t know where he is, and even if we did, we wouldn’t tell you!”

These people had come because of Tian Fan, but he had only acted in their defense. The villagers were grateful—so much so that even facing what they thought were “immortals,” they refused to betray him.

“You all want to die? Speak, or that dog over there will be your fate!”

The hawk-eyed young man behind the middle-aged man drew his long blade and, with a flash, sliced a large yellow dog clean in half. Blood gushed from the body.

“Ah Huang! You monsters!”

An old man stepped forward, trembling, tears streaming down his face as he cradled the dead dog. His hands were stained red. That dog had been his only companion for nearly a decade. It was like family. He passed out from grief.

“Uncle Li! Wake up, Uncle Li!”

A young man rushed over and pinched the old man’s philtrum until he came to. But the old man remained weak and mournful, staring at the dog’s body in despair.

“You b*stards! How could you be so cruel?”

The villagers were furious, but none dared step forward. These people were far too powerful—completely beyond what they could handle.

“You lowlifes still won’t talk? If my senior brother gets really angry, it won’t just be a dog that dies!”

The officer sneered. With his master and two senior brothers backing him, he had nothing to fear. He was hoping Tian Fan would show up so he could thoroughly humiliate him.

“You—!”

The village elder stepped out and growled, “You’ve gone too far. This is outrageous!”

“Old man, you must be the village chief. I suggest you tell us where that little monster went. Otherwise, after today, there might not be a village anymore.”

Another young man stepped up, sneering menacingly.

“We don’t know where he is, and even if you ask a thousand times, the answer will stay the same!”

“D*mn old coot! Don’t know what’s good for you. I’ll start with you and kill one by one until someone talks!”

The young man sneered from atop a large rock. Though he wasn’t that old, he was crazily arrogant. He looked down at the villagers like they were toys. The villagers’ faces filled with fear and anger. The middle-aged man watched coldly, clearly not planning to stop anything.

“You’ve got some nerve!”

A thunderous voice suddenly rang out from the sky like an explosion. The void trembled as a giant golden foot—over ten feet long—stomped down from above.

Boom!

Dust flew and the earth quaked. The arrogant youth screamed and tried to defend himself, but there was no escape. The golden foot slammed him into the ground.

Tian Fan appeared, sneering. He had just returned from that mysterious world and happened to witness the scene. From afar, he had unleashed his divine technique. 

A massive golden avatar stood like a god of war—ten stories tall and awe-inspiring.

Everyone was stunned. They couldn’t believe their eyes.

“Tian Fan!”

He Ying’s little brother cried out, barely believing what he was seeing. 

The villagers’ jaws dropped. 

After days of disappearance, the boy they had admired had returned—crushing their so-called “immortals” underfoot.