A mere two days after the news of Ye Fan's promotion and Elder Hu's rise in power had settled, a ripple of unease began to spread through the righteous sects. Whispers, initially faint and isolated, coalesced into a booming storm of rumors that threatened to engulf Ye Fan's carefully cultivated heroic persona.
These rumors painted a diametrically opposed picture of the celebrated hero. Tales of Ye Fan's depravity, his obsession with ensnaring beautiful women, and his secret dealings with demonic forces spread like wildfire across the land. Accusations of theft, deceit, and even the cold-blooded murder of innocent cultivators fueled the firestorm.
However, the initial public reaction surprised even the perpetrators. Instead of blind acceptance, a wave of skepticism met these accusations. The public, accustomed to tales of Ye Fan's heroism, viewed these rumors with a healthy dose of doubt. They dismissed them as scurrilous falsehoods, the work of jealous rivals seeking to tarnish his reputation.
This unexpected reaction sent shivers down the spine of Song Jingyan, the Matriarch of the Song Family. She had orchestrated this elaborate rumor campaign, due to the orders from her dear lover Wang Li. Now, her carefully laid plans seemed to be crumbling before her eyes.
Clutching a communication talisman, a small jade disc imbued with the power to transmit messages across vast distances, Song Jingyan anxiously poured her worry into a recorded message. "Wang Li," her voice crackled with urgency, "your plan seems to be backfiring! The public isn't buying these rumors. They're branding the spreaders as liars. Soon, they might trace it back to me and the Song Family!"
Across the land, in a secluded chamber far from the hustle and bustle of the cultivation world, Wang Li received Song Jingyan's message. A hint of amusement flickered across his eyes, hidden beneath the white eagle mask. He had anticipated this very reaction. The rumors, while potent, were just the first step in his larger plan.
A brief pause followed before a reply arrived, stark and concise. "Patience, Matriarch," it read. "The most impactful blow is yet to come."
Song Jingyan found a sliver of solace in Wang Li's cryptic message. He wouldn't steer them wrong. She calmed her nerves, instructing her family to lie low and avoid drawing suspicion.
Then, as if a dam had broken, the cultivation world witnessed an unprecedented phenomenon. Edited recordings, captured through Vision Recording Stones, flooded every corner of the land. From bustling markets to secluded sects, from grand cities to remote villages, these recordings became the sole focus of attention.
The graphic content of these recordings left no room for doubt. They depicted a horrifying truth - Ye Fan, the celebrated hero, brutally violating Zeng Liuli and the other former Stone Mountain Sect disciples. The shock and revulsion that washed over the public was palpable.
But that wasn't all. Zeng Liuli's recordings, captured during the joint attack by the righteous sects on the White Bone Sect, revealed even more damning secrets. The world watched in disbelief as scenes unfolded, exposing Ye Fan's true motives.
Time and again, Ye Fan exhibited callous indifference towards the disciples of the Golden Bell Temple and the Crimson Rock Sect, allowing them to fall to demonic attacks. The reason? They were predominantly male.
However, when the same perilous situation occurred to the disciples of the Jade Lotus Palace and the Emerald Sea Palace, who were graced with a majority of female cultivators, they were readily saved by Ye Fan.
The motive, according to Zeng Liuli's recording, was his perverse fascination with beauty.
But the venom went deeper. The recordings revealed a clandestine meeting between Ye Fan and high-ranking elders of the Iron Hammer Sect, a demonic powerhouse.
A deal was struck - Ye Fan, in exchange for unknown treasures, eliminated three White Bone Sect elders who had a longstanding animosity with the Iron Hammer Sect.
He was shown trading vital information and resources with the demonic entity, which is a stark betrayal to the righteous sects.
The public was aghast.
Their hero, the one they had trusted and relied upon, had revealed himself to be a monstrous deceiver. Fury and betrayal simmered in every heart.
The whispers that had been dismissed as mere rumors now had irrefutable visionary proof - Ye Fan was a villain, a predator, and a traitor to humanity.
Within the Song Family Manor, Matriarch Song Jingyan watched the public reaction unfold with a grim satisfaction.
Wang Li's strategy, audacious yet meticulous, had been a masterstroke.
Ye Fan's carefully constructed image had crumbled to dust, replaced by a horrifying truth.
The consequences of Ye Fan's crimes were far-reaching. The once respected hero was now a hunted fugitive. The righteous sects, united in their fury, vowed to bring him to justice.
~~
Chaos erupted within the Azure Peak Sect.
As the elders rushed to subdue Ye Fan, their faces contorted in a mix of betrayal and fury. They unleashed the sect's boundary array formations, weaving a web of suppression to contain his movements. But Ye Fan, cornered and desperate, unleashed a power that left them reeling back in shock.
Black veins snaked across his skin, a malevolent energy crackling around him. This wasn't the Ye Fan they knew - this was a being fueled by demonic cultivation!
With a burst of terrifying power, he ripped through the array formations, shattering their confinement. Then, with a snarl defying capture, he bolted into the night, leaving the elders flabbergasted and helpless.
Their hero, the righteous cultivator, had unveiled himself as a monster practicing the forbidden Demonic Body Cultivation Technique.
This revelation sent shockwaves throughout the cultivation world.
News of "Demon Ye Fan" spread like wildfire, igniting a frenzy of hate and fear.
Wang Li, ever the opportunist, seized on this momentum.
Through the unsuspecting Liu Xue, a Core Disciple of the Jade Lotus Palace, he orchestrated a masterful manipulation of public opinion.
"Through my investigation," she declared, her voice ringing across the land, "I have uncovered the truth behind the Wang Family's destruction. The accusations against them, of colluding with demonic forces, were nothing but a malicious lie by none other than Ye Fan!"
A collective gasp rippled through the crowd.
"The Wang Family," Liu Xue continued, her eyes blazing with indignation, "has a long and illustrious history of defending the righteous path. They have borne the brunt of countless demonic incursions, suffering immense losses in their unwavering commitment to good!
Yet, Ye Fan, consumed by a petty vendetta over his rejected marriage proposal to Wang Xiangyi, the heiress of the Wang Family, spun a web of deceit."
"He spread these baseless accusations to grab the support of other cultivation families to incite the destruction of the Wang Family, and enslave their female members for his own perverted desires like turning Wang Xiangyi into his personal maid and treating her as a slave to get his revenge!"
A wave of outrage surged through the public. The revelation that Ye Fan lusted after the heiress and used such means to destroy her family further fueled their disgust.
"The Wang Family, in particular, Wang Li and Wang Xiangyi, are victims of Ye Fan's cruelty," Liu Xue concluded firmly. "They are exemplary cultivators who have been wrongfully persecuted by a jealous and vindictive man like Ye Fan!"
The Xia Family and Song Family, eager to capitalize on the growing animosity towards Ye Fan, readily echoed Liu Xue's pronouncements.
The public, already primed to believe the worst about Ye Fan, readily accepted these new revelations.
The tide of public opinion continued to shift against Ye Fan as Mao Caiwei, an Outer Disciple of the Jade Lotus Palace, stepped into the spotlight.
Her voice trembled with suppressed rage as she addressed the throng of cultivators.
"Prior to joining the Jade Lotus Palace sect as an Outer Sect Disciple, I was initially an Inner Sect Disciple of the Stone Mountain Sect. And today, I wish to inform all of you about one truth. The murderer of Sect Master Huang and the elders of my sect," she choked out, "was none other than Demon Ye Fan!"
Tears welled up in her eyes as she continued, "He brought my comrade sisters to the Azure Peak Sect after the destruction of my former sect, promising refuge to them. And then, he sexually violated my fellow comrade sisters like Zeng Liuli and many others!"
A collective groan of disgust resonated from the crowd. This new piece of information confirmed their worst fears.
Ye Fan, the supposed protector, had been a brutal predator in disguise.
The public outcry against him reached a fever pitch.
As rumors of Ye Fan's monstrous deeds continued to proliferate, his image was irrevocably shattered.
Wang Li, the architect of this meticulous campaign, watched with a satisfied smirk as the public's hatred for Demon Ye Fan reached a boiling point.
Now, Ye Fan was a hunted fugitive, forever branded as a demon. His once-loyal supporters turned their backs on him, and the righteous sects vowed to bring him to justice. The world he had once sought to save now abhorred him.