From the fake emperor to the concubine

"Ten years of arduous training?" Zhang Yunfan was overjoyed.

The strength of a cultivator's spiritual sense directly affects their combat power and cultivation speed. A significant improvement in spiritual sense will greatly benefit their future cultivation.

"Take it quickly," Elder Li said. "Refining pills here is the safest thing to do."

Without hesitation, Zhang Yunfan immediately took the Mind-Concentrating Pill.

The pill melted instantly upon entering his mouth, and a cool sensation spread throughout his body in an instant. Zhang Yunfan felt his mind become clearer than ever before, and his spiritual sense was also rapidly increasing.

About an hour later, the effects of the elixir were fully absorbed.

Zhang Yunfan opened his eyes and was pleasantly surprised to find that his spiritual strength had at least doubled!
"How are you feeling?" Senior Li asked.

"This is amazing!" Zhang Yunfan exclaimed excitedly. "Now I can clearly sense all movements within a ten-mile radius!"

"Then congratulations," Senior Li said with satisfaction. "The enhancement of divine sense is the most precious thing for a cultivator, more valuable than any magical treasure."

"Thank you for the medicine, senior!" Zhang Yunfan bowed again.

"This is your well-deserved reward," Elder Li said. "Now you can choose to leave the Refining Heart Tower, or you can continue to challenge the second level. However, I suggest you leave first, digest the gains from the first level, and challenge the second level again after your strength has improved further."

Zhang Yunfan considered it for a moment and felt that his senior's advice made a lot of sense.

The first level of the trial is already so difficult; the second level will likely be even more dangerous. With his current strength, attempting it rashly would probably result in failure.

“Senior is right. This disciple has decided to leave first and return after my strength has improved,” Zhang Yunfan said.

"A wise choice," Senior Li praised. "Remember, cultivation is a gradual process; one cannot be impatient."

"This disciple understands."

"Then you may leave. When you return, I will be waiting for you on the second floor."

As soon as he finished speaking, a portal of light appeared in the stone chamber.

Zhang Yunfan gave a final bow to Elder Li, then walked towards the gate of light.

The moment he passed through the portal, he felt a wave of dizziness.

When the dizziness subsided, Zhang Yunfan found himself standing outside the Refining Heart Tower.

Looking back at the giant tower behind him, Zhang Yunfan was filled with gratitude.

This trial not only improved his strength, but more importantly, it gave him a deeper understanding of his own Dao heart.

"Master, I have not let you down!" Zhang Yunfan gripped the communication jade pendant tightly, secretly vowing, "Next time I come, I will definitely be able to pass even more levels of trials!"

After leaving the Refining Heart Tower, Zhang Yunfan embarked on his journey back to the oasis.

"My divine sense has improved so much, and my perception range has expanded to ten miles." Zhang Yunfan said as he walked, sensing the changes in his body. "Moreover, my thinking has become sharper, and my perception of the surrounding environment is much more detailed."

With the help of his powerful divine sense, his speed of movement in the desert increased significantly. Dangerous areas that he used to have to explore with great care could now be detected and bypassed in advance.

The demonic beasts hidden in the sand dunes were locked onto by his divine sense before they could even get close. And the natural traps and restrictions were also exposed to his enhanced perception.

"At this rate, we should be back at the oasis in two days at most," Zhang Yunfan calculated in his mind. "Then we can start preparing the rescue plan."

Thinking of the kind residents of the oasis, especially Xiaoyue's expectant eyes, Zhang Yunfan quickened his pace.

However, on the evening of the second day, when Zhang Yunfan was about fifty miles away from the oasis, his divine sense suddenly detected something unusual.

In the distant sky, a large amount of demonic energy was converging towards the oasis. This demonic energy was quite powerful, with the weakest being at the Foundation Establishment stage, and even a few possessing the powerful aura of the Golden Core stage.

"How could so many monsters be gathering at the oasis?" Zhang Yunfan was startled and immediately sped up to head in that direction.

As the distance shortened, the demonic aura grew stronger, and Zhang Yunfan's heart sank deeper and deeper.

When he crossed the last sand dune and the oasis came into view, what he saw was a shocking sight.

The entire oasis was surrounded by swarms of monsters!

These monsters are diverse, including giant lizards crawling on the ground, fierce eagles circling in the air, and enormous desert wolves. A conservative estimate puts their numbers at least in the hundreds.

Even more terrifying, these monsters were frantically attacking the oasis's protective array.

The once sturdy pale golden light barrier was now teetering on the brink of collapse, its surface riddled with cracks. Clearly, under the relentless attacks of the demonic beast horde, the protective array could not hold for much longer.

"Damn it!" Zhang Yunfan was burning with rage. "Where did these monsters come from? Why are they attacking the oasis?"

He carefully observed the composition of the monster horde and discovered that it was definitely not a naturally formed beast tide.

Although these demonic beasts were of different species, their actions were extremely orderly, clearly under some unified command. Moreover, the way they attacked the formation also showed a clear tactical coordination.

“Someone is directing these monsters from behind the scenes!” Zhang Yunfan quickly came to this conclusion.

Sure enough, he saw three figures behind the horde of monsters.

They were three cultivators dressed in black robes, each emanating a chilling aura. Judging from the intensity of their auras, all three were at the Golden Core stage, and it seemed they all practiced unorthodox cultivation techniques.

"Heretical cultivator?" Zhang Yunfan frowned.

Evil cultivators are the most detestable beings in the cultivation world. In order to quickly increase their strength, they resort to any means to cultivate various evil techniques. This kind of cultivation not only distorts the cultivator's mind, making them cruel and bloodthirsty, but also causes enormous harm to other living beings.

"Why are these evil cultivators attacking the oasis?" Zhang Yunfan wondered, but now was not the time to think about such things.

The protective array could collapse at any moment, and the residents of the oasis are in extreme danger. He must act immediately to stop this massacre.

The problem is, the enemy is too strong.

Three Golden Core stage evil cultivators, plus hundreds of demonic beasts—such a lineup would be difficult for even an ordinary sect to handle, let alone a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator like him.

"If we fight head-on, I'm no match for them," Zhang Yunfan calmly analyzed the situation. "We must find a way to outsmart them."

He carefully observed the distribution of the monster horde, searching for a breakthrough.

He quickly found a place he could use.

Although there were quite a few flying monsters in the air, their attention was focused on attacking the main formation, and they were relatively lax in their vigilance of the surrounding environment. If they could take advantage of this opportunity, they might be able to break through the encirclement from the air and enter the oasis.

"As long as we can enter the oasis, we can join forces with Senior Sha Wuchen," Zhang Yunfan planned in his heart. "Two people are always better than one."

With this in mind, Zhang Yunfan immediately took action.

He quietly circled around to the side of the monster horde, then used his movement technique to leap into the air.

"Piercing Void Sword Technique - Flying on a Sword!"

Riding on the Void-Breaking Sword, Zhang Yunfan shot into the sky like a meteor.

His enhanced divine sense allowed him to precisely avoid the sight of those flying monsters and weave through the gaps between them.

But just as he was about to reach the edge of the oasis, a giant desert eagle suddenly spotted him.

"Bah!"

A sharp eagle's cry echoed through the sky, instantly attracting the attention of the other monsters.

"We've been discovered!" Zhang Yunfan's heart sank, but there was no turning back now.

"Since that's the case, then let's fight our way out!" A resolute glint flashed in Zhang Yunfan's eyes. "Piercing Void Sword Technique - Myriad Swords Return to Origin!"

Countless sword shadows appeared in the air, shooting out in all directions like celestial maidens scattering flowers.

The attacking flying monsters had no time to dodge and were all pierced by the sword shadows, falling from the sky.

However, killing these monsters also revealed Zhang Yunfan's exact location, and more monsters began to swarm towards him.

"Hey kid, who are you? How dare you ruin our plans!"

A sinister voice came from below; it was one of the black-robed evil cultivators.

“You dare to be an enemy of my Blood Fiend Sect? Are you tired of living?” another evil cultivator threatened.

"Blood Fiend Sect?" Zhang Yunfan's heart skipped a beat.

He had heard of this heretical cultivation organization, which was said to be one of the most notorious evil cultivation forces in the Western Wilderness. The members of this organization specialized in cultivating evil arts by slaughtering ordinary people, and their methods were extremely cruel.

"So you're the beasts of the Blood Fiend Sect!" Zhang Yunfan roared angrily. "Why did you evil cultivators slaughter innocent civilians?"

"Innocent?" the leading black-robed evil cultivator sneered. "In our eyes, these ant-like mortals are merely materials for cultivation. They should feel honored to contribute to our cultivation!"

"You beast!" Zhang Yunfan was furious.

These heretical cultivators' words thoroughly enraged him. During the trials of the Heart Refining Tower, he had already clarified his Daoist heart—to protect the good and punish the evil.

These heretical cultivators before him were the evil he had to eliminate!

"Piercing Void Sword Technique - Sword Qi Like a Rainbow!"

A dazzling sword light ripped through the sky, pointing directly at the evil cultivator who had spoken.

"You're courting death!" The evil cultivator sneered and waved his hand, releasing a cloud of black mist.

The sword light collided with the black mist, producing a violent explosion.

The black mist was torn apart by the sword light, but the power of the sword light was also greatly weakened, ultimately leaving only a shallow mark on the evil cultivator's protective spiritual power.

"A Foundation Establishment stage brat dares to challenge a Golden Core stage expert?" the evil cultivator said disdainfully. "Since you're so eager to die, I'll grant your wish!"

"Bloodthirsty Demon Claws!"

The evil cultivator's hands suddenly turned pitch black, and his ten fingers stretched several times their normal length, making him look extremely terrifying. He suddenly grabbed at Zhang Yunfan, bringing with him a gust of foul wind.

Zhang Yunfan dared not be careless and immediately used his movement technique to dodge.

However, the evil cultivator's attacks were extremely fast and covered a wide area. Although Zhang Yunfan dodged the fatal attack, he was still grazed on the shoulder by the demonic claws.

"laugh!"

His clothes were torn, and five deep bloody gashes appeared on his shoulders. Even more terrifying, a cold, malevolent energy was seeping into his body from the wounds.

"Hahaha! Once struck by my Blood Fiend Claw, your blood will soon be tainted by evil energy!" The evil cultivator laughed triumphantly. "Then you will become my blood slave, obediently serving me!"

Zhang Yunfan felt the evil energy eroding his body, and his heart tightened involuntarily.

But at that moment, the Void-Breaking Sword Intent within his body suddenly began to operate spontaneously, and that pure sword intent instantly dispelled the invading evil energy.

"What?!" the evil cultivator exclaimed in shock. "How can you possess such pure sword intent within you?"

"Because I cultivate righteous techniques!" Zhang Yunfan replied coldly, "and you evil cultivators will ultimately be slain by the sword of justice!"

With that, he launched another attack.

"The Ultimate Technique of the Void-Piercing Swordplay: The Void-Piercing Slash!"

This is the strongest move of the Void-Breaking Sword Technique, and also the strongest attack that Zhang Yunfan can currently unleash.

Having undergone the trials of the Heart Refining Tower and with a significant improvement in his divine sense, this move is more than twice as powerful as before.

A terrifying sword intent soared into the sky, as if it would cleave the sky in two.

The evil cultivator sensed the power of the sword strike, and his expression instantly turned serious.

"Blood Fiend Shield!"

He formed a hand seal, and a shield made of blood mist immediately appeared in front of him.

The sword light collided with the blood shield, producing a deafening roar.

The blood shield trembled under the impact of the sword light, and countless cracks appeared on its surface.

"How is this possible? This kid is only at the Foundation Establishment stage, how can he unleash such a powerful attack?" The evil cultivator looked at everything in front of him in disbelief.

In the end, the blood shield couldn't hold on any longer and shattered completely.

The sword light, its momentum undiminished, slashed directly at the evil cultivator's chest.

"what!"

The evil cultivator screamed in agony as a deep sword wound appeared on his chest, and blood gushed out like a spring.

Although he wasn't killed by a single sword strike, he was seriously injured, greatly reducing his combat effectiveness.

"Damn brat!" The other two evil cultivators immediately surrounded and attacked Zhang Yunfan when they saw their companion was injured.

"Bloodthirsty Gale!"

"A death curse!"

The two evil cultivators launched their attacks simultaneously, one using wind-based evil magic and the other unleashing a curse spell.

A black, raging wind, carrying the wails of countless vengeful spirits, swept towards Zhang Yunfan.

Faced with the combined attack of two evil cultivators at the Golden Core stage, Zhang Yunfan felt immense pressure.

But he did not back down; instead, his fighting spirit became even stronger.

"Well done!" Zhang Yunfan shouted. "Let me show you what the sword of justice really is!"

"Piercing Void Sword Technique - Sword Heart Clarity!"

This is a new move he learned while fighting the Bull Demon General, which allows him to see through all the flaws in the enemy's attacks.

In his state of sword clarity, the attacks of the two evil cultivators became crystal clear to Zhang Yunfan. The trajectory of every gust of wind, the point of every curse, were all laid bare.

Zhang Yunfan moved like a ghost through the attacks, narrowly dodging all the fatal blows.

At the same time, he also found an opportunity to fight back.

"Piercing Void Sword Technique - Twin Dragons Emerging from the Sea!"

Two dazzling sword lights soared into the sky like twin dragons, attacking the two evil cultivators respectively.

The two evil cultivators were caught off guard, not expecting Zhang Yunfan to be able to counterattack against their combined attack. (End of Chapter)