“Is everything ready on our end?” Ye Fan asked. This time the stakes were enormous—one careless move could mean the difference between life and death, and there was no room for sloppiness.

“There shouldn’t be any problems.” Pang Bo said. Everyone had adjusted to their optimal state, waiting only for the entry three days from now.

“What about Old Blind Man and Tu Tian?” Ye Fan asked.

Hearing his words, the others were momentarily stunned, immediately understanding what he intended—did he want to bring the Ultimate Dao Imperial Weapon inside? But that was a serious taboo; every sect had declared it forbidden to use, or else the whole world would unite to destroy the offender.

“It’ll be hard to use it in this place. If we slip up even slightly, we’ll be in serious trouble. I think there will definitely be people who set up sensing formations to detect us when we enter.” Li Heishui said.

“It’s not that I necessarily need to use it. I just feel this place is too extraordinary. I don’t know why, but it gives me a sense of unease.” Ye Fan said, frowning. He felt it would be better to bring the ultimate weapon as a precaution.

“Let this Emperor think for a moment—there must be some way to conceal one’s aura.” Although the Black Emperor was usually unreliable in handling matters, that was only when it concerned others. When it truly involved its own safety, this dog-thing thought things through more carefully than anyone.

“Do you have some kind of premonition?” the Monkey asked. At their level of cultivation, sometimes instinct and intuition were more accurate than powerful predictions.

“No.” Ye Fan shook his head. He merely had a trace of worry, some associations forming in his mind, and said: “Last time I slaughtered so many people at the Heaven-Severing Mountain Range. Could someone be scheming against me in return?”

“You’re worried that the Central Prefecture Ancestral Temple is one giant trap—this… surely not, could someone really want to wipe out all the experts of the world in one sweep? Who would have that much audacity, who would dare do such a thing!?” The others gasped in shock.

“It wouldn’t go that far.” Ye Fan shook his head, then rubbed his chin and said: “I’m just worried that someone might use this ancestral temple, setting up a localized trap specifically targeting me.”

“That makes sense. There really might be someone wanting to imitate what happened at the Heaven-Severing Mountain Range—if that’s the case, it’ll be serious trouble. Bringing the Ultimate Dao Imperial Weapon is the safer bet!” Pang Bo nodded in agreement.

“After much painstaking deliberation, this Emperor has finally recalled every minute detail of a certain formation. It should prove greatly useful—it can conceal all traces of one’s aura, and no formation pattern will be able to detect it.” the Black Emperor said.

It was precisely that Heaven-Deceiving Formation Pattern. Back in the day, Emperor Wushi was frequently struck by lightning, and to avoid implicating those around him, he specially created this bizarre formation pattern, capable of concealing all traces of one’s qi.

In the end, the Heaven-Devouring Demon Jar was perfectly unified as one, its aura concealed by a mysterious formation array from the Black Emperor. Bringing it along would be enough to set one’s mind at ease—even if some earth-shattering incident occurred, there would be nothing to fear.

Duan De frowned and said: “This old Daoist is missing one of the materials—I only managed to find a substitute, and I keep feeling something’s off about it.”

“After all these days you still haven’t gathered a complete set?” Ye Fan was astonished. He had spared no expense, providing a massive amount of Source for him to bid on at various major auction houses.

“I’m still missing a portion of Yama Earth. It’s exceedingly rare in this world, very difficult to obtain.” Duan De said.

“No matter. We still have three days. It wasn’t found in the Eastern Wastes—let’s search the major auction houses across the Central Prefecture.” Ye Fan said.

“There’s no need to go to all that trouble.” Qi Luo spoke up.

At present, the whole world’s currents converged upon the Central Prefecture Ancestral Temple, drawing figures from all walks of life. Just outside the former First Dragon Vein, there was a temporary marketplace where one could trade heavenly materials and earthly treasures, no more than a few dozen li from here.

Outside the First Ancestral Vein, the hills undulated, but any great mountains here had all been sheared off—people could scarcely imagine how terrifying that mysterious night that shook the ages must have been. Among them was a particularly open valley, now teeming with people, cultivators streaming in and out ceaselessly.

The various financial powers and auction houses had come well-prepared—one could say they were quite skilled at business—transporting all manner of rare treasures here, all items needed for exploring the ruins.

An elderly man passed by, brushing shoulders with Qi Luo. The old assassin’s expression instantly turned grave. He had received secret intelligence, and pulling Ye Fan and the others aside, he transmitted his voice through spiritual sense: “This time it’s truly dire. Hell and the mortal realm have both dispatched several old Assassin Kings, determined to eliminate Ye Fan, to avenge their previous great hatred.”

“Nothing will happen to me. It’s you all who need to be extra careful.” Ye Fan’s expression remained unchanged. He had long anticipated that this time would inevitably be a bloody battle, and that ascending the Five-Colored Sacrificial Altar would not come easily.

In the valley, jade-green bamboo grew in dense clusters, mountain springs gurgled, and spiritual energy steamed upward—truly extraordinary. Not only were there many powerful figures of the human race present, but also numerous ancient-clan beings.

Although the magical treasures were laid out directly on ground stalls, they were nonetheless priceless, with many being genuine rarities that left people dazzled, unable to take it all in. Many stalls attracted large crowds who stopped to browse.

The Black Emperor kept making purchases, buying up more materials, while Duan De picked and chose meticulously, yet still couldn’t find the Yama Earth he needed—such a thing could only be encountered by chance, not sought after.

“Holy Imperial Son…” An ancient-clan being approached, bowing respectfully to the Monkey before secretly transmitting a message.

“Is that so? I understand. My thanks to your clan—I will repay you generously in the future.” The Monkey nodded.

“What’s going on?” Yan Yixi asked.

“The Heavenly Imperial Son hasn’t forgotten about me either. There are also several other veteran experts from the ancient clans who intend to target Ye Fan—they want to cut him down while inside. Every one of them has a formidable background.” the Monkey said.

Everyone gasped in shock. These days, Ye Fan’s fame shook the world—ordinary people didn’t dare provoke his edge and all sought to avoid him. Anyone willing to make a move against him must have an astonishing background.

The Central Prefecture Ancestral Temple—every step forward held lurking danger. A bloody storm was brewing, one more severe than they had imagined.

“It’s nothing. Just let them come.” Ye Fan said, utterly unconcerned.

Duan De sneered coldly and said: “This bunch really doesn’t know when to quit—wanting to kill people even inside there, having no idea just how terrifying the Ancestral Temple truly is. Wreathed in yin energy for over two hundred thousand years, calling it a sacred temple is a stretch—it’s more like the tomb of an ancient Great Emperor. Once they go in, they’ll be paying tuition in blood.”

Ahead, a commotion arose. Not far off, a crowd had gathered around a ground stall where two factions were bidding against each other, competing to purchase a weapon, drawing a large surrounding crowd.

Ye Fan and the others moved forward to take a look as well. Duan De’s eyes immediately locked onto it, and he quickly squeezed through the crowd, cradling in his palm a magical treasure on the ground that resembled a miniature Yama Hall—wreathed in ominous yin energy, swirling with layers of black mist.

“Daoist friend, we’re in the middle of bidding. Do you also want to jump in?” Someone nearby said coldly.

“Bidding!” Duan De didn’t even look up, transmitting directly to Ye Fan through voice, telling him this was a forbidden weapon forged from Yama Earth.

The stall owner was a middle-aged man of modest cultivation, a weapons-refiner by family trade for generations. This weapon was nothing exceptional by his standards—he’d dug it out of a strange mountain from a peculiar clump of blood-mud. He hadn’t expected it to prove so popular here.

“What a waste of a heavenly treasure—this is Yama Earth. He has no idea of its true value, useful for suppressing evil and much more—it was almost ruined in his hands.” This was Duan De’s assessment.

At the same time, he realized that the world held many extraordinary individuals—he wasn’t the only one who recognized quality goods; others clearly had too, otherwise this bidding war wouldn’t be happening. One side was even from the ancient clans, made up of over a dozen powerful experts, clearly with connoisseurs among them. The other side had no small backing either—they turned out to be from a holy land of the Eastern Wastes, the Wind Clan.

Ye Fan stepped forward and placed a fist-sized chunk of Source on the straw mat, immediately stirring a wave of discussion. No one had imagined that a gloomy, yin-energy-shrouded broken palace could be worth so much Source.

The other two factions realized another connoisseur had joined, and no longer held back, openly declaring this was a treasure they clearly intended to obtain, raising their bids again.

The ancient clan naturally lacked no divine Source, and generously raised the price several-fold, outbidding Ye Fan. He smiled slightly, then took out a small piece of Great Luo Silver Essence and placed it on the ground.

The moment this divine material appeared, it immediately triggered a wave of astonished gasps—this was a genuine rarity, difficult to find anywhere in the world, likely far more valuable than that palm-sized blood-colored palace.

Someone recognized Ye Fan and exclaimed in a hushed voice nearby: “It’s the Human Race Holy Body!” Both the ancient clan and the Wind Clan changed expressions.

Many people gathered around—fame spreads like a tree casting its shadow, and now Ye Fan’s reputation shook the world, astonishing many. Not everyone had seen him in person, and all wanted to catch a glimpse of what he looked like.

“Is that the one who led tens of thousands of iron cavalry to trample the Ancient Wasteland Great Clans of the Northern Plains?” Many people gasped.

“It’s him—slew a Holy Son, killed Yuan Gu, beheaded a Divine Son. The battle at Heaven-Severing Mountain Range even soaked the black mountains through with blood!” Beside them, many people involuntarily stepped back, filled with awe.

Nearby, the more than a dozen ancient-clan experts wore grave expressions—among them were connoisseurs similar to Duan De, clearly people of considerable standing, yet even they now furrowed their brows.

On the other side, a woman emerged from the Wind Clan, wearing a five-colored mask, her figure graceful and lovely, possessing peerless charm, like a goddess given form.

Yet at this moment, an extraordinarily complex light flickered in her eyes—this was none other than the Wind Clan Princess, Feng Huang. Only after cultivating to this point did she understand just how naive her words from back then had been.

In years past, her pride had reached the heavens; she had refused a marriage alliance, not even placing in her eyes someone who could someday grow into a Great Accomplishment Holy Body. Thinking back on it now, she could only sigh.

Though she possessed astonishing natural talent and her cultivation had advanced by leaps and bounds, having cultivated to this stage she had come to deeply understand just how difficult this path truly was. Even the Golden-Winged Little Peng King had perished along the way—her words back then had been far too arrogant.

All these years, her ears had been filled with news of Ye Fan, impossible to avoid hearing it no matter how she tried. The Holy Body Ye Fan had grown step by step, from being treated with hostility on all sides to battle after battle shaking the world, building an invincible legend—leaving her filled with bitterness.

In the present world, when discussing the younger generation, when discussing those who might achieve the Dao—who could avoid mentioning Ye Fan? Who would dare overlook him?

Back then, she had rejected the face of the Peerless Divine King, rejected the face of her own grandfather, the Wind Clan’s ruler, holding her proud head high, showing utter disdain for Ye Fan, whose future had then seemed uncertain.

More than a decade had passed. Ye Fan had advanced step by step, moving forward with unwavering resolve, forging a resounding reputation through battle after battle, stirring the whole world’s currents, now the focus of all eyes, having written his own unbeaten legend.

Looking back now, she could only sigh. Back then she had been too proud, not knowing how cruel the path of emperors truly was. Now, thinking back, whatever she wanted to say, she found it hard to voice.

“Forget it, we don’t need this Yama Earth anymore.” The more than a dozen formidable ancient-clan experts turned and left. They couldn’t possibly produce Great Luo Silver Essence—they felt it wasn’t worth the cost, and not everyone was a Source Master capable of locating divine materials.

“Those are experts from several great royal clans, a truly terrifying group of people—and they’re just giving up like that?” Someone recognized their identities, utterly astonished.

Everyone else who heard this gasped as well. There had recently been rumors that more than a dozen extremely powerful royal clans and great clans had each dispatched an expert to form a group coming here—no one had expected it would be them.

“Even people of that caliber wouldn’t dare confront the Holy Body directly—this is truly… a reputation that resounds through all races.” Someone sighed with admiration.

Nearby, Feng Huang stood silently, wreathed head to toe in five-colored divine light, motionless, listening to everyone’s words.

“Clan Master!” Just then, the Wind Clan’s leader appeared, and the clan members present all bowed together in salute.

Ye Fan also heard this, standing up and looking out toward the crowd. He first saw Feng Huang, then saw a middle-aged man radiating majestic authority.

“Greetings, Senior.” The Wind Clan Master had shown him kindness before. Regardless of what happened later, he wouldn’t forget this man’s assistance when he broke through the Holy Body’s curse during his breakthrough.

“Seeing you again, I truly realize I’ve grown old. After this trip to the Central Prefecture, I intend to retire.” The Wind Clan’s Holy Master sighed with emotion.

Back then, Ye Fan had only just been at the Four Extremes Secret Realm, and now he had advanced all the way to this point, sufficient to stand as an equal with various Holy Masters—leaving him unable to help but sigh at how time flies, how glory fades, one generation of new talents replacing the old.

“Huang’er, come over here. Why haven’t you greeted him?” The Wind Clan’s Holy Master looked toward the Wind Clan’s proud heavenly talent, the divine maiden Feng Huang.