“He’s the one the Ji Family is searching for, yet he dares to come here and slaughter so openly — truly shocking and surprising!”

“Is this really that young man? With both the Ji Family and Yao Guang hunting him down, he still dares act like this. One can only wonder what he’s relying on.”

……

Atop the Broken Mountain, many people were discussing the matter, all of them deeply astonished.

At this moment, Ye Fan looked no older than fifteen or sixteen, his fair features still carrying a hint of youthful immaturity — it was difficult to connect him to the aura of the fierce battle that had just unfolded in every direction.

Four disciples of Yao Guang sealed off all four sides, preventing him from escaping.

Ji Yunlin nearly ground his teeth to dust. Ye Fan had burned a Supreme Elder of the Ji Family to death and stolen the Great Void Technique — he was the common enemy of the Ji Family’s younger generation.

Hum!

The sky trembled. Ji Yunlin struck in fury, a massive black hand blotting out the heavens, descending upon Ye Fan like a dark stormcloud — oppressive and terrifying.

Hum!

Ye Fan also launched a great hand seal, black as ink, covering the vault of the sky like an enormous dark landmass, pressing down and slamming forward with tremendous force.

Meeting force with equal force!

Bang!

The two pitch-black great hands collided, releasing a heart-shaking surge of energy. Black mist surged in all directions; the destructive force sent many people into a panic.

Atop the Broken Mountain, quite a few cultivators had blood streaming from their ears and noses, struck by the terrible shockwave. Many more toppled to the ground.

Numerous young cultivators took to the air, not daring to remain any longer — all of them retreating far away before stopping.

“Boom!” The two black hands collided once more. This time the sound was far smaller, yet somehow even more terrifying — dark clouds swallowed the sky, as if annihilating all within silence.

Ji Yunlin’s face turned ashen. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and his body was sent flying backward. He had received an orthodox inheritance, yet he could not match his opponent.

Although Ye Fan had only obtained an incomplete fragment of the Void Great Hand Seal, he possessed the Sacred Art of Battle, using it as the source to drive the technique — more than enough to compensate and bring it to perfection.

Swish!

Ye Fan deployed the Great Void Technique and vanished from where he stood, reappearing directly before Ji Yunlin. The black great hand descended like a thunderstroke.

Ji Yunlin was forced onto the defensive, striking out with the Heaven-Severing Finger — the fingertip crystalline and radiant, five dragons soaring skyward, sweeping their heads and tails, carrying a momentum capable of swallowing heaven and earth.

Boom!

The two clashed fiercely. Ji Yunlin roared, his right hand executing the Void Great Hand Seal, his left hand the Heaven-Severing Finger — combining both techniques into one, boosting his power by a considerable degree.

The massive black hand and the silver dragon-blades swept horizontally across the sky, threatening to sever the heavens themselves. The entire surrounding space shook violently.

Ye Fan met it with only the Void Great Hand Seal, carrying a momentum that could overturn mountains and overturn seas. The heavens trembled; dark clouds shrouded the sky.

Meanwhile, both sides frequently unleashed the Great Void Technique, flickering through the void in a manner that left onlookers dazzled and unable to track their movements.

It was almost incomprehensibly fast — two silhouettes ceaselessly flashing, displaying the secret arts of the Ji Family’s ancient scriptures to their fullest potential, punching the surrounding void into dents and depressions on all sides, its shape constantly warping.

Far off in the distance, the onlookers were horrified. A confrontation of this kind was terrifying — they freely admitted they were no match for it. Anyone who stepped in would surely be pounded into mush.

Ye Fan’s heart stirred. The Heaven-Severing Finger combined with the Void Great Hand Seal — both hands working in tandem — was remarkable. His opponent’s power had increased by more than double, barely holding him at bay.

He felt he could replicate this himself and fold it into the Sacred Art of Battle — another great killing technique would then be added to his arsenal.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

A series of massive collisions. Black radiance and silver brilliance scattered in all directions; the sky shuddered. Ji Yunlin’s body shook violently, retreating a dozen steps through the void, a trickle of fresh blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

In the end, he could bear it no longer. He could not withstand Ye Fan’s savage force — his opponent’s divine power never ran dry, and there was simply no way to oppose it.

Ji Yunlin’s expression was grim. Being suppressed by his own Ji Family’s supreme arts was a profound humiliation.

“The true heroes of my Ji Family are not here today. Otherwise, even nine lives would not be enough to save you!”

“Are you referring to the Ji Family’s few moons? Once I enter the Four Extremities Secret Realm, I will naturally go and experience them for myself.” Ye Fan pressed forward.

The people of Yao Guang Holy Land hurried to intervene — if Ji Yunlin died here as well, they would have no way to explain it to the Ji Family.

“People of Yao Guang Holy Land — do I have any grievance with you? Why do you involve yourselves?” Ye Fan demanded coldly.

“You have committed many wrongs. We assist the Ji Family — what fault is there in that?” A female disciple of Yao Guang deflected the question and changed the subject.

“I rescued one of the Ji Family’s little moons, and she passed me a secret art. In return, the Ji Family repaid kindness with enmity and hunted me across ten thousand li — and that is me committing wrongs?” Ye Fan laughed coldly.

“You colluded with the demon clan and burned to death a venerable elder of the Ji Family — is that not enough?” the female disciple of Yao Guang said icily. She was a woman of striking beauty, with a face like flowers and a complexion like the moon.

“You really know how to twist the truth.” Ye Fan laughed coldly, utterly unintimidated, striding forward. “There’s no point in saying more. Since you’ve come, I don’t mind — I’ll simply keep you all here.”

These people had gathered specifically to deal with him; he had no reason to show mercy.

“Do you truly think you can slaughter freely here?” The female disciple of Yao Guang laughed coldly. She called out to the cultivators nearby: “Everyone, please lend your strength and help us capture this villain!”

Ye Fan snorted, moved with the speed of lightning, and struck at the female disciple of Yao Guang.

Yao Guang had sent two men and two women in total — combined with Ji Yunlin, they formed an exceptionally formidable fighting force. All five young powerhouses stood at the peak of the third level of the Dao Palace, with one foot already stepping into the fourth.

Ye Fan was extraordinarily gifted and could “cultivate in reverse against immortals,” fighting third-level Dao Palace powerhouses while himself at the second level. But facing five opponents at once made survival genuinely difficult to predict — each of them was an entire cultivation level above him. An ordinary person in his position would have been crushed instantly.

Nevertheless, he felt no panic. Rather than retreating, he charged forward. His brow blazed with radiance as his divine consciousness took form, manifesting as a tiny golden sword no longer than an inch — yet deadly beyond measure.

This was a powerful divine consciousness attack. The female Yao Guang disciple screamed in agony, clutching her head in pain, losing all capacity to fight. Her ear-splitting wail tore through the sky.

Ye Fan deployed the Mad Elder’s footwork and charged straight through, his palm like a blade. With one light, clean stroke — “splat” — that beautiful head went flying sideways.

Blood blossomed outward. The expression on that severed head was one of utter bewilderment, her hair soaked with crimson. The sight was utterly shocking.

A number of young cultivators from Qu Province had been rushing forward, but seeing this, they all fell back. Even an heir of a Holy Land had her head severed in a single exchange — if they stepped in, wouldn’t that be seeking death? Wanting to draw closer to a Holy Land’s disciples was one thing, but staking their lives on it was another matter entirely.

Swish!

The Great Void Technique unfurled. Ye Fan tore through the air and appeared abruptly before a male disciple of Yao Guang, unleashing his powerful divine consciousness once more.

“Splat!”

This time it was even more direct. The inch-long golden sword pierced straight through the man’s forehead bone, and the corpse plummeted from the sky.

“Do not approach him! Sense the fluctuations in the void — beware being slain by his divine consciousness!” Ji Yunlin bellowed.

The remaining Yao Guang disciples — one man and one woman — wore expressions of utter horror. Their fellow disciples had been killed instantly; they were both terrified and enraged.

Boom!

Ye Fan clashed with Ji Yunlin using his black great hand while simultaneously resisting the remaining Yao Guang man and woman with the Mountain-Embracing Seal.

This time, the three opponents redoubled their caution, all engaging from range. Having discerned the pattern of the Great Void Technique, they gave him no opportunity to strike with his divine consciousness.

The male Yao Guang disciple brought forth a cluster of starlight — a full thirty-six star-spheres the size of fists flew out, each one refined from Purple River Celestial Sand.

Every sphere was crystalline and brilliant, emanating a hazy violet mist. This was a precious treasure, refined by an elder of Yao Guang and bestowed as a gift.

The thirty-six violet stars gleamed, forming a shimmering curtain of purple-misted light suspended in the sky. Each one fired blinding sword auras downward.

It had to be said — this was a formidable treasure. It could gather celestial force, draw in the essence of heaven and earth, and even absorb the sunlight pouring from the sun itself.

The sword auras streaked like rainbows, dazzling and brilliant, capable of cutting through anything — even the void was nearly rent apart!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Ye Fan struck out with his bare hands against the sword energy. Powerful as his flesh was, he still felt repeated waves of numbness — this secret treasure was terrifying, able to accumulate the force of heaven and earth, placing him at a distinct disadvantage.

A brilliant crimson glow flared — the female Yao Guang disciple brought forth a great red net. Red mist spread in all directions; every strand of the net was crystalline, sealing off the surrounding sky and attempting to trap Ye Fan inside.

The scarlet great net blazed with intense flames, trying to refine him alive within it. This too was a formidable treasure of considerable power.

“What are you all waiting for? Come together and refine him to ashes!” the female Yao Guang disciple shouted at the crowd.

At last, a dozen or so people charged forward. Seeing Ye Fan hemmed in by two precious treasures, they wanted to pile on and add to his trouble.

Ye Fan laughed coldly. He opened his mouth and exhaled a small cauldron — barely an inch tall, radiating no divine energy, emitting no light. It appeared simple and natural, as though it had always existed.

“One vessel shatters all techniques!” he roared, and brought the cauldron forth.

The Dao Sutra’s Wheel-Sea scroll recorded the art of the single vessel that shatters all techniques — said to be like a flower blooming that slays all other flowers. However, it required the cultivator to reach a certain level before its power could truly manifest.

When Ye Fan was in the Wheel-Sea Secret Realm, he had forged only this single cauldron. Even after entering the Dao Palace Secret Realm, it remained the same — he placed the cauldron among the five great divine repositories and continuously tempered it.

At each great secret realm, one could forge several vessels. Others possessed numerous weapons, yet he had only this one, striving to evolve from it the essence of “Dao” and “Principle.”

The three-legged, two-eared round cauldron expanded to over nine meters in height. A hazy, primordial yellow-black energy seeped from it, making it look even more ancient and majestic — filled with an incomparable, boundless power.

Boom!

The cauldron shook once in midair, and instantly the primordial yellow-black energy erupted. All thirty-six violet stars were shattered at once. The male Yao Guang disciple immediately vomited blood and was sent flying.

The primordial energy of the Ten Thousand Things — the source of all creation — cascaded down in fine, thread-like streams. The crowd was astonished. This was a supreme treasure of heaven and earth, capable of being refined into the most transcendent of weapons — comparable to the Phoenix-Blood Crimson Gold, an object exclusively belonging to Great Emperors.

“Heavens — that is primordial yellow-black energy!”

“To be precise — that is the Primordial Source Root of All Things!”

Everyone was left utterly dumbstruck.

Ye Fan brought the cauldron forth. The nine-meter tall vessel rose upward, shaking continuously as the ancient primordial aura poured outward — shattering that great scarlet net into dust as well.

“Suppress!”

Ye Fan roared, and the nine-meter cauldron descended from above the female Yao Guang disciple, pinning her in place. She could not escape — could not move a single inch. Even with more than ten meters still between them, her body was already beginning to crack and split.

It was difficult to imagine how immeasurably heavy this cauldron was. The fine streams of energy it poured forth were more than anyone could endure.

Clang!

Ji Yunlin launched the Void Great Hand Seal, his massive black hand slamming hard against the nine-meter ancient cauldron — but it could not move it at all. The strike produced only a single thunderous sound.