Ye Fan moved with effortless grace, light as a floating immortal, drifting like a gentle breeze as he returned to the stone village.

Upon seeing him return, Elder Zhang Wu pulled him aside to a secluded spot and said, “Something’s happened.”

“What is it?” Ye Fan asked.

“Wang Shu and Er Lengzi — those two children — ever since they went out with you that time, something’s been off about them when they came back. These past few days their foreheads have been glowing, and they’ve had extraordinary strength…” Elder Zhang Wu furrowed his brow, his expression filled with worry.

“Bloodline awakening?” Ye Fan was inwardly surprised. “Take me to see them.”

“I haven’t dared let them go outside these past few days — kept them at home. Apart from this strange power that’s emerged, nothing bad has actually happened.” Elder Zhang Wu accompanied Ye Fan to Er Lengzi’s home.

The moment they entered the courtyard, Ye Fan sensed a surge of vibrant life energy — yes, vitality in abundance, as though they had arrived in a place lush with vegetation and thriving growth.

“Brother Ye, you’re here!” Er Lengzi’s little sister greeted them with a sweet smile. She was a very pretty young girl.

“Is your brother all right?” Elder Zhang Wu asked her to lead the way.

“He’s fine — eating well, sleeping soundly, snoring away like a lazy pig every day.” The Lei family girl pouted as she spoke.

Snoring sounds came from inside the room. Er Lengzi lay sprawled out on his back across the clay sleeping platform, sleeping deeply and contentedly. His forehead bones glowed like precious jade, shimmering with soft radiance.

Divine ability!

Absolutely divine ability!

Ye Fan was inwardly startled. Not long ago, Er Lengzi had been an ordinary person — yet now he possessed formidable power.

His forehead bones were nearly translucent, soft luminescence spilling out and flowing throughout his body, continuously tempering Er Lengzi’s flesh and blood.

Ye Fan couldn’t help but marvel: different races have different achievements and starting points — this was innate divine ability, power that came with birth.

Human cultivators who wished to possess divine power had to cultivate bitterly before they could open the doors to their own hidden treasures. But certain powerful ancient races that had long since vanished were born with divine ability — an incomparably high starting point that was difficult to match.

“Brother… wake up.” The Lei family girl pinched Er Lengzi’s nose and shook him awake.

“Is it time to eat?” Er Lengzi was groggy and disoriented, the radiance from his forehead bones growing even brighter.

“Lei Bo, how are you feeling? Is anything uncomfortable?” Inside the Lei family home, Ye Fan addressed him by his real name, as calling him by his nickname would have been inappropriate.

“Brother Ye, you’re here.” Er Lengzi rolled over and sat up. “Nothing’s uncomfortable at all. I feel full of power — I could crack open an ore chunk.”

Ye Fan nodded. Er Lengzi’s current state went far beyond merely cracking stones — his divine power was comparable to that of a Divine Bridge cultivator. Cleaving open an entire mine shaft would have posed no problem for him.

“Why has your body undergone such a change?” Ye Fan asked him to recount what had happened.

“Come, let’s go to my place. I’ll cook a few good dishes, and we can talk over food and drink.” Elder Zhang Wu spoke up — with Er Lengzi’s family present, certain things were inconvenient to discuss openly.

“Gladly! I love Elder Zhang’s tender lamb ribs most of all.” Er Lengzi was overjoyed, as carefree and unbothered as ever.

Wang Shu had undergone the same change. Ye Fan summoned him to Elder Zhang Wu’s home, and the group talked while eating.

“Was it because you touched those nine stone pieces that day that this change occurred?” Ye Fan asked, not particularly worried.

Many generations had passed — these two families had long since been assimilated into humanity, rather than belonging to any other race. It was simply that occasionally, exceptional children would appear, who possessed nothing unusual beyond their innate divine ability.

“Yes. After we came back, it was as if a piece of paper inside our bodies had been torn open. A warm ‘water’ surged through us — it felt very comfortable.”

Ye Fan laughed wryly to himself. Divine power flowing like water — this was no ordinary surge of strength. It was the awakening of an ancient bloodline, a gift bestowed by heaven.

“Bite your finger. Let me take a look.”

The Lei and Wang families naturally knew their ancestors had something special about them, though they didn’t know it meant they weren’t of the human race. Neither of the two hesitated — both pricked their fingers and let a few drops of fresh blood fall.

“Red with a luminous sheen, with a faint silver glow flickering within — this kind of gift fills one with admiration and envy.” Ye Fan nodded.

Their blood carried only the faintest silver shimmer, far removed from pure silver blood — and yet they already possessed such divine ability. One could only imagine how extraordinarily powerful their ancestors must have been.

Likely high-ranking beings among the ancient creatures — perhaps even royalty. Ye Fan thought to himself. These were words he couldn’t say aloud.

“Are we all right, Brother Ye?” Wang Shu asked with a puzzled look, more than a little concerned.

“We won’t turn into monsters, will we?” Er Lengzi scratched his head — clearly they had heard some legends about their ancestry.

“This is a good thing. You need not worry.” Ye Fan examined them carefully and found their forehead bones to be deeply mysterious, connected to the primal source within their skulls.

His spiritual sense was exceptionally powerful. He pressed it forcibly into their sea of consciousness and found it to be entirely human in character — he had no concern they would transform into primordial creatures.

More than anything else, what truly shocked Ye Fan were those nine stone pieces from the Jade Pool. Whatever was sealed inside had activated Wang Shu and Lei Bo’s divine ability — it was most likely connected to their bloodlines.

“Is it really a good thing? Does this mean we can fly through the sky someday?” Both of their eyes shone with hopeful light.

Ye Fan smiled and nodded. “If you’re willing, you can do so right now.”

“Really — how?” The two of them forgot all about their food, urging Ye Fan to teach them.

“This…” Beside them, Elder Zhang Wu’s expression filled with worry.

“You may set your mind at ease, Elder. This truly is a good thing.” Ye Fan sent the two of them out to the courtyard, then said to Elder Zhang Wu, “They have long since been assimilated into the human race — it is simply their innate gift awakening. There is nothing to worry about. In time, they will be more than capable of protecting the stone village.”

The forehead bones of Wang Shu and Er Lengzi acted like gateways connecting them to a mysterious primal source. With divine power nourishing their bodies, they were no different from cultivators at the Divine Bridge realm.

Ye Fan taught them the method of circulating divine power. The two quickly rose off the ground, silver mist wrapping around them as they swayed and wobbled, lifting into the air.

Thud! Thud!

The two of them plummeted from the sky. Ye Fan rushed over and caught them both. With strength comparable to Divine Bridge cultivators — if they were to die from a fall like this, it would be too absurd. They might well be recorded in cultivation history as a cautionary tale.

“Don’t fly so high. Practice at three feet off the ground. Once you have full control, I’ll teach you other techniques.”

From that day on, the people of the stone village saw the two of them day after day, whooping and hollering as they flew back and forth in the surrounding area.

From that day forward, no one called Er Lengzi by his nickname any longer — they all began using his real name, Lei Bo.

Half a month passed in the blink of an eye. Ye Fan spent his time both consolidating the Heart Divine Treasury and studying the Scripture of the Source of Heaven, having made initial progress in mastering the Great Law of Changing Heaven and Earth — though for now, it was limited to altering his own appearance and bearing.

Reshaping the landscape of mountains and rivers lay far beyond his current reach. Such high-level source arts would require cultivation well into the later stages before they could be wielded.

During this period, he had been keeping close watch on the movements of the Jade Pool Saintess. Just as Tu Fei had said, she was moving through various cities of the Northern Region.

It seems she will not be returning to the Jade Pool for some time. Ye Fan decided to advance another realm and simultaneously cultivate the Great Law of Changing Heaven and Earth to a deeper level — otherwise, if he revealed himself, it would be a life-or-death catastrophe.

By now, he had fully comprehended the opening section of the Scripture of the Source of Heaven, and he decided to go “sweeping for source.” A thousand catties of source was a very large sum — prying it out of the various source-gambling establishments in Pingyan City would be no easy task.

Still, it should be possible to gather that amount. His source arts had been advancing rapidly, and at the lower-level source-gambling establishments, he shouldn’t fail.

“Trouble…” Suddenly, a villager came rushing to find Ye Fan in a state of panic.

“What is it?” Ye Fan emerged from his meditative state. Before the villager could say a word, he had already sensed that something was wrong outside the village.

“Quick, go save Elder Zhang Wu — he’s about to be beaten to death!” The messenger’s face was urgent, hurried and flustered.

Ye Fan leaped to his feet and stepped forward, vanishing in an instant, reappearing outside the village in the blink of an eye.

Elder Zhang Wu’s hair was disheveled, his cheeks swollen, and clear blue-green fingerprints were visible across his face. The corners of his mouth and the front of his chest were covered in blood — he had obviously been slapped repeatedly.

“How can you do this?!” All the young men from the village had drawn their curved blades and stood in confrontation with the figures ahead, shouting harsh questions.

“So what if we do?” Several young men stood before them, utterly nonchalant, not giving the people of the stone village even a second glance.

“What gives you the right to beat someone?!”

“This old fool refused a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit. The Azure Mist Sect invited him to help locate source ore, and he dared to make excuses and decline — his head must have gone empty.” One of the young men in the center spoke with complete indifference, a cold sneer on his face.

Not far away stood several elderly people — all with familiar faces — clearly rounded up from nearby villages.

“This old wretch does have some real standing. He only got a few slaps, yet you’re all willing to throw your lives away for him. What would you do if we beat him to death?” The young men mocked and taunted.

“You…!” The young men of the village were furious. Blades raised, they stepped forward. “You’ve gone too far!”

“What are you going to do — you think you can stir up trouble with us? If you want to die, come on ahead.” The young men swept their gazes across everyone, expressions dripping with contempt. One of them raised his palm high, bringing it down toward Elder Zhang Wu’s silver-haired head.

Crack!

A resoundingly sharp slap — but not on Elder Zhang Wu’s face. It landed on the young man’s own face.

Ye Fan had arrived. His expression was cold. He helped Elder Zhang Wu to his feet and circulated his Life Essence, stabilizing the elder’s injuries and slowly beginning to heal them.

“You… who are you?!” The Azure Mist disciple who had been slapped shook off his daze and bellowed, “You’re looking for death!”

Crack!

Ye Fan struck him with a backhand slap, sending him flying once more.

“Someone’s come looking for trouble — we’re back!” Wang Shu and Lei Bo shouted as they came flying back from the horizon.

Over the past half month, Ye Fan had taught them the method of flight and some simple combat techniques. The two had been training hard — and with the foundation they had, their gifts having just awakened while already comparable to Divine Bridge cultivators, with abundant divine power flowing through them, everything came naturally.

“Kill them all — don’t let a single one escape!” Ye Fan instructed the two of them. “Cultivation alone isn’t enough. You always need to be tested by life-and-death situations and by blood.”

He had grown thoroughly fed up with this sect. First they had supported Chen Dahu in his plundering, then Liu Cheng’en and Liu Chengwang had ambushed and tried to kill him, and now they had the audacity to come here and throw their weight around.

Lei Bo’s eyes went red at once. Among these men he spotted a familiar face — someone who had appeared alongside Chen Dahu before.

“You murdering scoundrels — so they really were backed by the Azure Mist Sect! I’ll fight you to the death — give me back my sister’s life…!” He howled as he lunged forward like a wild beast.

Wang Shu, afraid he might come to harm, followed alongside him, charging into the fight together.

“You two dirt-footed bumpkins — you dare oppose the Azure Mist Sect?!” The young men put on a fierce front, all too aware of Ye Fan’s strength — they saw it clearly — and at this moment they were trying to intimidate by invoking their sect’s name.

“The Azure Mist Sect…” Ye Fan stared at the handprints on Elder Zhang Wu’s face, then abruptly turned around. “This sect has no reason to continue existing.”

“You… arrogant fool!” One of them sneered. “If you dare move against us, every cultivator within five hundred li will hunt you down!”

Pop!

Ye Fan flicked his finger lightly, and the man’s skull shattered outright. The corpse toppled to the ground — this had been the only Divine Bridge realm cultivator among them; the rest were merely Life Spring realm.

“Kill them all — don’t let a single one get away.” The rest were completely within Wang Shu and Lei Bo’s ability to handle. Even if their techniques were limited and they had no skill with spirit weapons, their divine power surged enough that a direct, overwhelming charge was more than sufficient to overwhelm these men.

Screams of agony rang out.

“A misunderstanding — this is a complete misunderstanding! That rotten scoundrel just now was a descendant of the sect leader, spoiled rotten since birth — this has nothing to do with us.”

But the pleas for mercy came too late. Lei Bo’s eyes were bloodshot. Thinking of his sister, he had nearly gone mad.

These men couldn’t escape even if they tried. Wang Shu and Lei Bo gritted their teeth and struck out, finishing them all before long.

“These were Azure Mist Sect members. If they retaliate, our stone village will have no way to withstand it.” Someone in the village expressed concern.

“It doesn’t matter — this sect will no longer exist.” Ye Fan said it calmly. He had long since gathered information: the Azure Mist Sect was only a minor sect, its highest-ranking members having entered no further than the Secret Realm of the Dao Palace — at most having cultivated one or two divine manifestations.

“Bring these people into the village first. Once the Azure Mist Sect has been dealt with, we’ll release them.” Ye Fan gestured toward the few elderly people from the nearby villages.

The Azure Mist Sect was a true malignant growth — and Ye Fan had decided to cut it out.

With a sect like this, they must have a thousand catties of source. If I take them down, I could advance another level on the spot… Ye Fan laughed wryly to himself. With a decision like this, he was clearly walking the same road as the Thirteen Great Bandits.

I don’t plunder ordinary people. I only cut out malignant growths — this counts as no wrongdoing.

He didn’t even have to take action first. Barely a day had passed before Azure Mist’s people came looking for him.

The next morning, he had barely stepped out of the stone village when he was ambushed. A Farther Shore realm cultivator led nine Divine Bridge realm cultivators who brought their weapons to bear, attacking with intent to kill.

“Your noses are quite sharp — you tracked me down this quickly.”

“So you’re saying — our Azure Mist Sect’s missing members were killed by you?” One of them barked.

“So you didn’t actually know. Then why did you make a move against me?”

“Your movements were suspicious — you don’t look like someone from the stone village, yet you have uncommon cultivation. Naturally, we would detain and question you.”

“Big words indeed — is that reason enough to attack someone on a whim?!” Ye Fan shook his head. “You truly don’t know what you’re walking into.”

“You dare raise a hand against the Azure Mist Sect — who’s the one walking into trouble!” The Farther Shore realm cultivator ordered the nine Divine Bridge cultivators to surround and kill Ye Fan.

“Why make this so complicated? Let me send you all on your way!” Ye Fan swept his wide sleeve, and in an instant absorbed all nine Divine Bridge cultivators within it, drifting as if transcendent.

“You…” The Farther Shore realm cultivator was thunderstruck.

“You as well — on your way.” Ye Fan reached out his great hand, pressing down like the Five-Finger Mountain itself.

Every weapon the Farther Shore cultivator had brought to bear was crushed to nothing by his descending palm, and the cultivator himself was caught within that great hand.

Behind them, Wang Shu and Lei Bo stood dumbstruck, struggling to believe what they had witnessed.

“This is nothing — this is merely the movement of Dao power. Enter the Secret Realm of the Dao Palace, and this can be done with ease.”

Of course, no one else wielding such power could possibly have matched his might.

“We go to the Azure Mist Sect.”

“Are we really going to take down the sect?” Wang Shu stared blankly.

“Only the wicked ringleaders will be executed — the others will be spared. I have decided — I’m going to found a sect here. The Azure Mist Sect is a ready-made foundation.” Ye Fan took the two of them and shot into the sky.

“Becoming a sect founder?” Lei Bo muttered.

“What’s the point of founding a sect?” Wang Shu asked, not understanding.

“There’s good reason for it.”

Before long, Ye Fan arrived at the Azure Mist Sect, situated within an oasis.

“Who dares trespass into Azure Mist territory?!” A shout rang out from ahead.

Green mountains, blue waters — a rare sight in the desolate Northern Region. That the Azure Mist Sect had such a sacred spot was indeed something remarkable.

“Go tell your sect leader that I wish to found a sect here and would like him to relocate.”

The mountain gate guards all stared blankly — then shouted, “You… have you lost your mind?!”