Hua Yunfei’s severed head flew out, scattering a trail of blood, shocking everyone present — this was undoubtedly a heaven-gifted talent, yet now…
Ever since the great battle began, his performance had astonished people, and all the Sage Children had already grown wary of him — such a figure could look down upon his entire generation.
Everyone had assumed his battle with Ye Fan would continue on, that it would be difficult to determine who was weaker or stronger, who would live or die, in a short time — yet at this moment, a shocking turn of events had occurred.
“Such a talented figure, and yet he’s died just like this?”
“Such powerful strength, such immortal-like grace — how many of the younger generation could compare to him? What a pity, what a shame.”
…
Many cultivators felt regret.
Yet quite a few cultivators remained silent, feeling this could not be so simple — Hua Yunfei surely would not die so easily, for he possessed a supreme sacred technique.
The void erupted in catastrophic collapse, an energy storm raging wildly. That patch of sky turned chaotic, a black hole appearing in the void, nearly swallowing Ye Fan — terrifying beyond measure.
As the dark mist was blown away, everyone who witnessed this scene gasped in shock — an abyss seemed to hang in the sky, pitch-black, swallowing all light.
Ye Fan fought his way out with great difficulty, only narrowly avoiding being swallowed — how dangerous it had truly been!
The instant he burst free, he charged directly toward the head floating in the sky, unwilling to give his opponent any chance to recover, for his opponent possessed the Phoenix Calamity Rebirth Technique.
Moreover, who exactly was the ancient First Ruthless One? He had pioneered the Undying Heavenly Technique, the most difficult of all to extinguish.
The moment Ye Fan burst free, many fragments of flesh and blood surged up together within the black hole, flowing with strange light, and in the distance Hua Yunfei’s head likewise radiated auspicious brilliance.
“BOOM!”
Ye Fan’s golden blood-energy boiled, his entire body as though bathing in golden divine fire, like a sacred spirit emerging from one of the seven great life-forbidden zones!
“PA!”
He swung his golden great hand forward, striking down. The void shattered, black chasm after chasm racing outward in every direction.
Hua Yunfei’s head suddenly turned entirely black, a black vortex appearing there, and with a flash it vanished, disappearing without a trace.
“You think escaping will be that easy!” Ye Fan possessed the Great Void Technique, and was most sensitive to such void-crossing secret arts — he immediately located his opponent’s trajectory.
In an instant he caught up, and that head plunged directly into the same black abyss that had nearly swallowed him moments before, merging with those fragments, radiating flowing light.
“Let’s see how you escape now!” Ye Fan’s golden great hand spread across the sky, pressing down upon the void, covering that place entirely.
“A pity — I was unable to display my full power, or else the outcome would have been different!” This was a divine message Hua Yunfei transmitted, filled with regret.
Suddenly, Ye Fan’s heart turned to ice, a chill spreading through his entire body. He decisively retreated, and at that very instant the void split open where he had just stood, a massive black hand emerging, striking the spot he had just vacated.
A Half-Step Grand Power!
This person was wrapped in mist, a powerful aura surging like an ocean, not much weaker than a Sage Lord-level figure — one more step forward, and he would become a Grand Power capable of dominating the world!
Hua Yunfei’s guardian had appeared. Ye Fan had already anticipated this, for he had fought Hua Yunfei for far too long, and had considered that it might alert this person.
“BOOM!”
The person within the black mist attacked again, seeking to ruthlessly annihilate Ye Fan without mercy, the terrifying shockwave making all onlookers shudder with cold — aside from the Sage Lords, who could contend against such a figure?
Yet Ye Fan laughed. He retreated using a peerless footwork technique, moving like a beam of light, then shouted loudly: “Everyone, the inheritance of the ancient First Ruthless One has appeared!”
This single shout shook Yan Capital, like a thunderclap suddenly striking, shattering the heavens, alerting everyone present.
Many figures rose into the high heavens, none of whom had been among the crowd watching the battle — coming from all directions, all elderly figures with white hair and beards.
Ye Fan’s shout was truly powerful — several sect strongholds and the supreme sects of Zhongzhou had unrivaled figures present here, all for the purpose of entering the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Ground to gather divine herbs, and all were now alerted.
This had been Ye Fan’s plan all along. He was determined to shift the world’s attention — too many people were watching him, and it was time someone else came forward to bear that hostility in his place.
“Who is it?” A weathered voice called out from the distant sky.
“Naturally it is Hua Yunfei of Taixuan. He has already displayed that inheritance moments ago — that black hole that nearly swallowed me hasn’t even dissipated yet. Do you truly believe it looks otherwise?” Ye Fan called back loudly.
“Don’t speak nonsense!” The Half-Step Grand Power retreated, backing toward that patch of abyss in the sky.
“WHOOSH!”
A flash of light, and Hua Yunfei burst out, unharmed. The Phoenix Calamity Rebirth Technique had restored him to life, but using it twice in a single day had come at an enormous price, harming his very source.
“Say I’m speaking nonsense — then you can all stand there without moving, and wait for the many elder powerhouses to arrive and investigate. The innocent remain innocent, the guilty remain guilty,” Ye Fan said nonchalantly.
“Next time, I will display my supreme divine technique to its fullest, and I will surely kill you.” Hua Yunfei transmitted this through divine message, showing no dejection, only calm and confidence.
“If you truly dare to come seeking death, I will collect you on heaven’s behalf,” Ye Fan responded.
“I never expected you had obtained the ‘All’ secret of Zhuo Peak. My inheritance is not weaker than any technique of ancient or present times — I naturally have methods to resist the ‘All’ secret.” Hua Yunfei’s tone suddenly shifted, saying something else that left people puzzled: “You think you’ve understood everything, but you’ve only guessed half right — the other half, even I do not know.”
He transmitted this through divine message, so naturally no one else could hear it. In truth, before Hua Yunfei departed, he still wished to prove that the Ruthless One’s inheritance had nothing to do with him.
In the distant sky, several elders appeared, coming from the sect strongholds of East Wilderness and the great sects of Zhongzhou, all Sage Lord-level figures, rapidly closing in.
“I will prove my innocence. If I remain here now, I fear someone might secretly seize the chance to silence me for good,” Hua Yunfei said.
He then produced a jade platform of mysterious jade, and the void split open because of it. He and the Half-Step Grand Power crossed through the void and departed.
The entire city erupted in uproar, boiling with commotion — what was happening? Was this heaven-gifted figure, Hua Yunfei, truly the inheritor of the Ruthless One?
Not long ago, a great calamity had struck the Ruthless One’s dojo in the North Region, killing many people and shaking East Wilderness. Was he connected to this?
But he was far away in South Region — how could he have accomplished such things? Did he truly possess such immense power?
This night was destined to be sleepless — the turmoil was simply too great. The Ruthless One’s inheritance had stirred the hearts of too many people. If he were to truly emerge, it would be a catastrophic disaster.
Many elder figures pursued after him, heading straight for Taixuan Sect — whether true or false, as long as there was doubt, they intended to investigate thoroughly, for otherwise no one knew how many would suffer calamity in the future.
“Where has that woman gone?” Someone finally reacted, wanting to seek Li Xiaoman’s whereabouts.
But at this moment, she had vanished without a trace, already gone from the city. Ye Fan too was startled — he had not even noticed how Li Xiaoman had left, never having paid attention.
This night, Yan Capital fell into complete chaos, news spreading wildly, racing across the world, spreading everywhere in an instant.
“Cough…” Ye Fan landed on the ground, coughing up a trace of pale golden blood.
Many people were filled with awe, unconsciously making way for him. Though the Sacred Body had been wounded by the Great Dao and was about to depart this world, he still carried such might, inspiring fear in all who witnessed it.
There were even those who cursed under their breath, wondering how someone so close to death could still be this fierce — leaving many utterly speechless.
People believed that if Ye Fan were to fight with his life on the line, taking a few Sage Children down to hell with him before he died would present no difficulty at all.
The Divine King of the Ji Clan watched Ye Fan calmly, without any ripple of emotion, firmly gripping his little Moonlight of the Ji Clan’s arm, not letting her approach. Ji Ziyue was very worried, tears welling in her eyes.
In the distance, Sage Child Yao Guang’s eyes were deep and unfathomable, no one knowing what he was thinking, sacred light flowing over his body, incomparably holy.
At this moment, Ye Fan had only one thought — to quickly find Xiao Nannan, and then leave South Region. This place was not one to linger in.
“AWOOO…” The next day, a long howl shook Yan Capital, making people think a thousand-year-old wild wolf had broken in.
The Big Black Dog had arrived, and along with him came Pang Bo, Li Heishui, and Tu Fei — though all three had changed their appearances before entering this ancient city.
“How did you all get here?” Ye Fan was very surprised to see them, since they had originally agreed to meet in the central region of East Wilderness.
“Naturally we came to help you fight — the moment we heard the news, we rushed over immediately,” Pang Bo said.
“Actually, we should have arrived long ago — it’s all this dead dog’s fault. When crossing the void, it said the margin of error wouldn’t exceed three thousand li, but it ended up off by a full three million li!” Tu Fei cursed.
“It was three million three hundred thousand li!” Li Heishui added.
“That was merely an occasional lapse,” the Big Black Dog bared its teeth.
Ye Fan finally understood — last time it had been off by one million five hundred thousand li, which was already considered fortunate!
The moment the Black Emperor appeared in Yan Capital, many people’s faces darkened upon seeing it — it had caused quite a commotion in North Region, chickens flying and dogs jumping, shouting everywhere to collect human pets. Many people wanted to skin it alive.
But the elder figures disdained to bother with a dog, while the younger generation feared that the End-of-Days Sacred Body would step forward to fight for it — being killed in such a cause would be far too unworthy.
The Big Black Dog had not a shred of self-awareness, greeting everyone it saw, acting overly familiar, as though it were truly welcomed by everyone.
“Long time no see, we’ve met again.”
Others ignored it, but it remained entirely unaware, still very enthusiastic.
“I say, little lady, this majesty is speaking to you — why won’t you respond? Don’t you feel this is a beautiful encounter?”
“I’ll kill you…”
“Woof, this majesty refuses to fight with women!”
…
They arrived at Ye Fan’s residence, learning the details of his experiences, and all were astonished.
“Excellent! The Great Dao injury has finally been resolved!” Pang Bo was extremely excited.
“From now on, the sea is vast enough for fish to leap, the sky high enough for birds to soar!” Tu Fei laughed heartily.
“Right, now we absolutely must not let word of this leak out — let the world continue to believe you have little time left to live,” Li Heishui said.
“Sacred fruit…” The Big Black Dog’s saliva flowed freely, its tongue nearly dropping out.
“You’ll get your share too — now hurry and tell me everything about the Ruthless One,” Ye Fan gave it a knock to wake it up.
Emperor Ruthless One looked down upon all ages, past and present. He contended with heaven, with earth, with himself. He was not gifted with extraordinary talent, but relying on his own strength alone, he slew countless kings, ultimately reaching the very pinnacle as a mortal body.
The divine technique he created was unrivaled in the world. First, using the Heaven-Devouring Demonic Technique, he defied heaven and altered his fate, achieving the position of the Immortal Emperor, reigning over all under heaven, looking down upon all living beings.
Then, exhausting his life’s effort, he created the Undying Heavenly Technique, breaking through the Demon Body, erasing all future troubles related to Heavenly Harmony, giving birth to a divine embryo, conquering himself.
There was a legend that he might be the longest-living of all the Emperors — the truth about him remained a mystery, with very few in this world able to explain it clearly.
“A Single Thought Blooms into Flowers, Reigning Over All Under Heaven — truly a peerless sacred technique. Add to that the unrivaled Myriad Transformations Sacred Technique, and it’s simply unsolvable — how in the world did you break it, kid?!” Upon learning that Ye Fan had suppressed such a sacred technique, the Big Black Dog’s eyes nearly bulged out, saying: “Even with the Battle Warfare Sacred Method alone, facing such a combined sacred technique, I wouldn’t have thought it possible.”
Ye Fan described the course of this battle in detail. The Black Emperor gritted its teeth and said: “This kid obtained the Ruthless One’s inheritance — does he hold the lid of the ancient Heaven-Devouring Demon Cauldron in his hand?”
“Hard to say!” Ye Fan shook his head, for he had thought of many things, then continued asking.
The Black Emperor said: “That Ruthless One who shook the ages past and present created not only those two supreme sacred techniques, but also others, such as the ‘I Alone Reign Supreme Sacred Technique.’ Based on what you’ve described, he indeed hadn’t had time to display it yet. Moreover, this is only the sacred technique corresponding to the Heaven-Devouring Demonic Technique…”
Ye Fan’s heart jolted, and he said: “What do you mean?”
“There’s also the Undying Heavenly Technique, the extraordinary art the Ruthless One created in his later years. Exactly what sacred technique corresponds to it, no one knows,” the Black Emperor said.
“Is the Ruthless One truly this formidable?” Pang Bo was also greatly astonished.
“Of course he’s formidable — otherwise, why would this majesty want to dig up his grave…” the Big Black Dog muttered.
“You said you suspected Sage Child Yao Guang might also be involved — the night before last he came to test you. Now that we’re all here, why don’t we go kill him tonight!” Li Heishui said.
“Exactly, let’s strike first!” Tu Fei agreed as well.