“Taixu” refers to the nature of the Dao — vast and tranquil in stillness, a general term for the great Dao itself. To dare to take these two characters as one’s name required genuine audacity and ambition. If one also possessed the cultivation to match, others could only hold them in awe.

The five characters “Divine King Jiang Taixu” sliced through the air like a bolt of thunder, shaking the very soul — leaving Ye Fan utterly dumbstruck.

He truly found it difficult to believe: there was a living cultivator in this place, and moreover, a fully achieved Divine King!

“Four thousand years…” He thought of the inscription outside — likely left some four thousand years ago.

According to the ancient texts, once a Divine King achieved full mastery, they could live for thousands of years. Their life force was extraordinarily enduring, and it was very difficult for them to pass away of natural decline.

“Of course — that is how it must be…” Ye Fan immediately understood. This was a fully achieved Divine King — such a person truly had the ability to endure four thousand years.

Once a divine physique had fully developed, it could withstand the passage of vast years. Such a person could protect a family lineage for thousands of years, bringing it to the absolute pinnacle of prosperity.

“I have encountered an Eastern Desolation Divine King…” Ye Fan’s heart was shaken beyond measure. This was a genuinely unparalleled figure of the age.

If the Jiang Family were to learn that a fully achieved Divine King from their clan was here, they would surely go mad — mobilizing every resource at their disposal to mount a rescue.

“This is truly beyond belief…”

From another perspective, it spoke to the terrifying nature of the Purple Mountain: an Eastern Desolation Divine King had been trapped here, enduring in bitter suffering until now, unable to escape.

“You… come here…” The ancient and aged voice was exceedingly feeble, as though the speaker might stop breathing at any instant.

Ye Fan determined the direction and followed the winding and twisting rock cave, advancing over a dozen steps before halting. He said: “Senior, where are you?”

“Ahead of you…” Divine King Jiang Taixu responded weakly.

“Is there anything I can do for you?” Ye Fan stood without moving, transmitting his voice through divine sense within the cave.

Yet from deep within the cave dwelling, there was only silence. A very long time passed with no response whatsoever.

“Senior, what has happened to you?”

Not until half a shichen later did that frail voice return: “I… my oil lamp is nearly spent… I cannot transmit voice continuously.”

Even a mighty Divine King, after being trapped for four thousand years, had reached the limits of what could be endured. Had it been any other cultivator, they would long since have returned to dust, having rotted away thousands of years ago.

“Your… cultivation level… is…” Divine King Jiang Taixu asked.

“The Shore Realm.” Ye Fan considered briefly and answered truthfully.

“You… followed the ancient sages… and cultivated a single Secret Realm?” The Eastern Desolation Divine King pressed further.

“Junior has cultivated for only four years and does not know how to cultivate a single Secret Realm. At present, I am in a normal Shore Realm state.”

A long and heavy sigh followed — as though of boundless despair, as though all remaining strength had been drained from the Divine King. For a long time afterward, he made no further sound.

“Senior, are you all right?” Ye Fan inquired.

Another half a shichen passed. The other party seemed to have gathered enough strength and responded with deep disappointment — his voice desolate and lifeless: “You… are too weak…”

Ye Fan had nothing to say to that. How could anyone compare themselves to a fully achieved Divine King? Throughout all of history, very few could have kept their head raised high.

“Your cultivation is so shallow… how did you enter?” Divine King Jiang Taixu was baffled.

“Junior wore a special stone garment and was fortunate enough to walk in.”

“A thousand years ago… like that other person…”

“Senior, you saw that person — where did he go?” Ye Fan asked immediately. He had come in pursuit of the Ore Heaven Book; he had been about to give up, but now hope stirred once more.

“Died… in the depths of the Demon Mountain.” Jiang Taixu’s words were fragmented and intermittent — any real conversation was extremely difficult. Every sentence required a long wait, and each response was no more than a few brief words.

“Can I reach that place?” Ye Fan pressed.

“Unknown.” The Eastern Desolation Divine King was reluctant to say more. Every word consumed a portion of his vital energy, and every response was kept to the absolute minimum.

Throughout this exchange, Ye Fan appeared calm on the surface, yet his heart was churning with turbulent waves.

The Ore Heaven Book was undoubtedly a priceless and rare treasure — yet the Divine King of the Jiang Family before him was a living ancient scripture, one who possessed countless supreme and peerless techniques.

“Four years… to reach the Shore Realm… neither fast nor slow…” Divine King Jiang Taixu murmured to himself.

Ye Fan’s heart stirred. He said: “In truth, had I been able to cultivate the most powerful cultivation method, the time could have been greatly shortened.”

The weakened Divine King gave no response, seemingly having fallen into a deep slumber with no further sound.

This time, a full three shichen passed before Jiang Taixu’s voice returned: “Come closer… I will teach you…”

Those six words seemed to drain him of his last remaining strength. After speaking them, he fell silent once more. Under normal circumstances, no one could endure this — it would be very easy to exhaust one’s patience, with so much time passing between single sentences.

Ye Fan, however, remained perfectly composed and waited with an untroubled heart. He hesitated slightly, then strode forward with bold steps.

The purple rock, with its faint flowing points of radiance, made the interior of the Purple Mountain not pitch-black — though it could not be called bright either, suffused in an indistinct and hazy atmosphere.

The ground was pitted and uneven, very rough underfoot. Ye Fan followed the winding passage, moving from one abandoned cave into another ancient mine.

On the rock walls of the ancient mine, many stone fossils were dimly visible — startling to behold. Yes — the fossilized remains of many primordial ancient creatures had fused with the very substance of the Purple Mountain.

Ye Fan walked a hundred zhang through the ancient mine and reached its end. A purple wall ahead was perfectly smooth — like crystalline jade, bright enough to reflect one’s image.

This area was completely open and empty, utterly silent. He stood here alone.

“Senior, are you here?” Ye Fan searched, yet found nothing.

The purple jade wall ahead was clear and lustrous, reflecting his image with perfect clarity. Yet in that very instant, he felt a chill run through his entire body, making his hair stand on end.

In the purple jade wall, not only his image was reflected — there was also another shadow, tall and grotesque. It had a single horn growing from its brow, six arms extending from its shoulders, wings upon its back, and scales covering its body.

Ye Fan felt the hair on his scalp rise with cold, and he rapidly dodged aside. He then turned to look — yet behind him, there was nothing.

“Under normal circumstances… you cannot see it…” The Divine King’s aged voice came from within the rock wall.

Ye Fan turned to look at the purple jade wall again. The humanoid creature there was extraordinarily grim and monstrous — wide-mouthed with protruding fangs — yet it remained standing behind him.

“An invisible malevolent spirit… only the jade wall… can reflect it…” Jiang Taixu forced out the words with great effort.

It took him a long time to complete those dozen or so characters, giving Ye Fan a basic understanding.

This was an invisible malevolent spirit — emitted by a creature of the primordial age. It could automatically lock onto living beings. The only fortunate thing was that the creature had not yet awakened.

Ye Fan felt a chill in his heart. He was not unfamiliar with this type of creature — before entering the Purple Mountain, he had seen its image among those stone engravings: kneeling devoutly beside the divine ore, yet fierce and powerful whenever it encountered humans.

“Senior, where are you?”

“In the rock.”

Beside the purple jade wall at the end of the ancient mine was a section of rough stone wall — from within it, Jiang Taixu’s voice came.

“I will teach you one technique — let us see your comprehension…” The Eastern Desolation Divine King’s voice grew ever more feeble.

Ye Fan calmed his mind and focused his thoughts, standing for a full two shichen. Then suddenly, a withered figure appeared within the rock wall — projected through the coarse stone, casting a shadow that delineated a clear outline. Each bone was visible, barely any better than a skeleton.

Hair longer than the body itself trailed behind a gaunt and emaciated frame. He struck only a single strange pose, then fell backward with his head raised.

Ye Fan’s heart seized in astonishment. The other party had projected a shadow through the wall — not his true form — yet even so, Ye Fan felt a quality of the Dao realm in it. Simultaneously, an extremely brief and cryptic formula transmitted itself into his heart — profoundly abstruse and difficult to grasp.

The withered shadow within the rock wall had already vanished. That surface was nothing but rough and uneven stone once more.

Ye Fan retreated several dozen zhang, gripped his Bodhi Seed, and silently contemplated this strange posture, then earnestly studied and began to practice it.

In just a short time, Ye Fan’s mind and spirit were completely captivated. This was an extraordinarily terrifying offensive technique — of immense power.

Not limited to fists and fingers, not limited to leg techniques — the entire body could attack from every point, and every inch of skin could unleash fearsome power.

“What secret technique is this?” Ye Fan was greatly astonished. The method was exceedingly strange, yet absolutely terrifying.

His physical body was already solid as divine iron — if he were to further cultivate this technique, he would surely become even more fearsome. This offensive approach was perfectly suited to him.

However, this appeared to be only an opening stance — it was incomplete. Even so, Ye Fan had already glimpsed its mysteries. Its subsequent development would surely be enough to shake heaven and earth and move the spirits.

“Even the opening stance is already this terrifying…” Ye Fan’s heart was awe-struck. He felt this must certainly be a supreme secret technique of the highest order.

Over the following days, he cultivated without rest, silently contemplating it, and felt increasingly that it was profoundly abstruse beyond measure.

“Could this be a treasured secret technique recorded in the Jiang Family’s ancient scriptures?” Ye Fan felt that this arcane art must have an extraordinary origin.

He was severely lacking in offensive techniques. Though he had cultivated three supreme arcane arts — one of the Nine Secrets, the Old Madman’s footwork technique, and the Great Void Technique — none were primarily offensive in nature. This technique was precisely what was needed to fill that gap.

As for the Void Great Hand Seal, he had obtained only a fragmentary incomplete form and could not unleash its true power.

While comprehending this technique’s opening stance, Ye Fan discovered in astonishment that another arcane art within his body had begun operating on its own.

“This is…” He was overjoyed.

The one among the Nine Secrets he had obtained at Taixuan Zhuo Peak — which could multiply combat strength anywhere from several times to tenfold — was now operating on its own accord.

He immediately made the connection: Divine King Jiang Taixu had not taught him a technique from the Jiang Family’s ancient scriptures at all — but rather one of the Nine Secrets!

It was said that when these nine arcane arts were used together, they would mutually promote one another, flowing ever more smoothly together, with power that multiplied dramatically.

“He taught me only the opening stance — if I could obtain the complete technique, how powerful would the offensive capability be?”

The Nine Secrets were profoundly mysterious and powerful. Each of the nine arts could shake heaven and earth and move the spirits. In the legend, they were envied by heaven, separated in the primordial past and scattered to all corners of the world, never having been gathered together since — and some had been completely lost.

“For Divine King Jiang Taixu to have possessed one of them — and an offensive technique at that…” Ye Fan’s heart blazed with excitement.

Though the formula was abstruse, it was also quite brief. Gripping his Bodhi Seed, Ye Fan contemplated for seven continuous days and had basically mastered the opening stance.

Yet the Eastern Desolation Divine King seemed as though he had passed into nirvana — no sound whatsoever came from him. Despite Ye Fan’s repeated attempts to transmit his voice, he received no response.

Over those days, Ye Fan faintly sensed growing unease. The demonic calling from the depths of the Purple Mountain had grown ever more intense — his physical body felt as though it no longer belonged to him, yearning irresistibly to respond to the call and go.