Advancement in Cultivation

When Yang Fan returned to Liu's residence, he found Fatty Li still locked in fierce battle with the pockmarked ugly woman. Judging by the situation, even if they continued for several more hours, it seemed Fatty Li would have no problem keeping up.

Lin Zhong, standing at the doorway, saw Yang Fan approach and whispered, "Did you kill Hu Banxian?"

Yang Fan nodded. "His power runs deep, and he had an array of tricks at his disposal. He was far stronger than others at his level. But what made him most dangerous was his cunning and vigilance. It took me quite a bit of effort to bring him down."

Lin Zhong looked somewhat surprised. "Your prowess is truly unmatched, young master. If it were me, I wouldn't have feared him, but to achieve victory would have been incredibly difficult. Now that you've eliminated him, dealing with Fatty Li will be easy. We just need to keep a watchful eye on him."

"What are your plans for him?" Lin Zhong asked, his curiosity piqued.

"I intend to make this night unforgettable for him," Yang Fan replied, his lips curling into a sinister smile. He stepped into the house and retrieved a flowerpot from a dark corner. In it grew a striking violet plant, bearing lustrous purple fruits that emitted a faint, almost imperceptible fragrance, which stirred the blood, igniting a fire of lust that was impossible to resist.

"This plant induces a heightened state of desire, driving Fatty Li into an uncontrollable frenzy. The woman in that room with him is a servant of the Liu household—ugly beyond measure, but broad and muscular, stronger than most men. She's never married and is starved for affection. Earlier, I only gave her half of the antidote..." 

Yang Fan spoke slowly, his tone unhurried, unconcerned about whether Fatty Li, currently lost in a delirious haze, could hear him.

"I see now," Lin Zhong remarked, standing at the door, realizing just how devious Yang Fan's methods truly were. He could hardly imagine the psychological torment awaiting Fatty Li. Upon regaining consciousness and discovering the true nature of the woman with whom he had spent the night, the horror would likely scar him for life.

The damage to Fatty Li's mind would far surpass any physical pain.

"I want to leave him with an indelible shadow over his soul, a fear of women that will haunt him forever," Yang Fan declared coldly, administering the other half of the antidote to Fatty Li before nodding to Lin Zhong. Both of them left the room and closed the door behind them.

Soon after, the sound of low groans and painful whimpers came from within. Fatty Li's mind was gradually regaining clarity, and in his dazed state, he saw before him a grotesquely large woman, her face marred with pockmarks, a large black mole near her lips, and teeth stained yellow. She was hungrily kissing his body.

"Ah!" A scream echoed in his consciousness, but his body, driven by primal urges, responded to her. His mind, however, recoiled in disgust.

Struggling with all his might, Fatty Li tried to escape her grasp, but the woman was frighteningly strong, pinning him down with her massive frame. Despite his mental revulsion, his body betrayed him, succumbing to waves of unwanted passion.

Yang Fan stood outside, his face expressionless but his eyes full of malice. 

Lin Zhong shuddered at the thought, unable to imagine the horror if he had been in Fatty Li's place. 

"We've done our part. The rest I'll leave for Liu Degui to handle," Yang Fan said casually, leaving the Liu residence with Lin Zhong.

Throughout the night, muffled moans continued to sound from the house, followed at one point by the sharp crack of a bed collapsing under the weight of the struggle.

…

The next evening, a hunched and staggering figure, Fatty Li, left the village of Wuliu, his face ashen and his body weak. For the next few months, he was haunted by nightmares, waking in the middle of the night drenched in cold sweat. At the mere sight of women, his heart would race with fear. It wasn't until half a year later that he returned to some semblance of normalcy, but Wuliu Village became a taboo subject for him, never to be spoken of again.

From that night on, peace once again settled over Wuliu Village.

"Pu'ai Medical Hall" quickly rose to prominence, becoming the town's leading medical establishment. Hu Banxian's "Xianren Medicine Hall" was soon after shut down. Under the subtle manipulation of Yang Fan and Liu Degui, Xianren Medicine Hall was absorbed by Pu'ai Medical Hall. As for Hu Banxian, he was labeled a villain who poisoned the town chief's daughter and deceived the public. He fled, his whereabouts unknown.

As time passed, both Hu Banxian and his hall gradually faded from the townspeople's memory. 

Meanwhile, Pu'ai Medical Hall's business thrived, earning widespread fame, even gaining recognition among the local sects of cultivators. After the Rain Mist Villa incident, more and more cultivators came to Pu'ai Medical Hall for treatment. Whenever this happened, Yang Fan would personally attend to them, seizing every opportunity to further hone his skills and advance his cultivation.

For the cultivators who sought his help, Yang Fan charged only symbolic fees, never extorting them. While spirit stones were valuable, he valued reputation and trust more, knowing that only by establishing a solid reputation could he attract more and more cultivators.

Finally, two months later, while treating a Qi Refining stage cultivator, Yang Fan's own cultivation broke through to the later stages of the Qi Refining realm. 

Upon reaching this milestone, Yang Fan immediately resumed his study of the *Nine Nether Demon Codex*. As expected, his demonic powers advanced smoothly, reaching the equivalent of his current Qi Refining stage.

A few days later, however, he encountered a new bottleneck in his demonic cultivation.

Despite this, Yang Fan was overjoyed. It meant that as long as he continued advancing his cultivation through the *Xianhong Art*, his demonic cultivation would follow suit without hindrance. Such a rare blessing was enough to make anyone envious!

The sheer depth and complexity of the *Nine Nether Demon Codex* would challenge even the most gifted cultivators, but for Yang Fan, mastering these demonic arts seemed almost effortless.

Now that he had reached the late stages of Qi Refining, Yang Fan spent less time cultivating, focusing instead on refining his medical skills and alchemy to fortify his foundation. After all, he had switched to the path of medicine midway through his training, leaving many gaps in his knowledge. 

In addition, he made sure to continue practicing the toxic art "Withering Fields," a technique that extinguished life force and defied the natural order. Every time he practiced it, Yang Fan would retreat into a secret chamber, where the technique's deadly effects would drain all life from the area. Not even ants or vermin could survive within its reach.

With his cultivation firmly established in the later stages of Qi Refining, Yang Fan began delving into the arcane abilities hidden within the *Nine Nether Demon Codex*. However, this time, progress was different. While he could advance effortlessly in terms of cultivation, mastering the codex's supernatural techniques proved far more difficult.

One of the most powerful abilities described in the *Nine Nether Demon Codex* was the "Netherworld Demon Flame," a technique of immense destructive power. The flame had nine distinct levels, each more devastating than the last, known as the "First Nether," "Second Nether," and so on.

If one could master all nine levels and produce the full *Nine Nether Demon Flame*, they would be unstoppable in the mortal world.

Yang Fan devoted himself day and night to mastering this technique, to the point where he missed the opportunity to treat a visiting cultivator. Despite his efforts, though he grasped the essential principles of the flame, he failed to summon it.

The codex's notes mentioned that cultivating demonic arts in areas rich with demonic energy would yield twice the results with half the effort. 

This gave Yang Fan pause. If he wished to master the Netherworld Demon Flame, he would need to find a place with an abundance of demonic energy. 

"The Wuming Gloomforest…" Yang Fan's thoughts immediately turned to that terrifying place. But could he really venture there?

A chill ran down his spine. The Wuming Gloomforest was notorious, a place beyond the reach of a mere Qi Refining cultivator like himself.

Time passed swiftly, and the three-month deadline for his meeting at Ghost Corpse Mountain was approaching. Yang Fan's medical skills had vastly improved, and his demonic cultivation had reached the peak of Qi Refining, just one step away from perfection.

It was at this moment that a message arrived from Yangjiabao, summoning him home.