The giant ape looked utterly innocent, its expression honest and simple. It scratched its head and said, “Everyone in the world knows this — is there something wrong with that?”

This answer left them speechless. Could it really be that the nine-layered coffin from the age of myth and the Tree of Life were truly common knowledge to everyone here? They could only stare blankly for a moment.

“Exactly where is the Tree of Life?” Long Ma pressed, eager to learn the location of the ancient tree at once — far too many people had descended upon this world; among the great sages and various Young Supremes of every path, who among them was easily dealt with?

“Not far from here — go straight ahead, and you’ll reach it within ten thousand miles. It lies in the Back Garden of the Gods,” the giant ape answered.

“The Back Garden of the Gods — what kind of place is that?” Pang Bo asked earnestly.

“It could be called the dwelling place of the gods as well, a part of the Immortal Domain, though under ordinary circumstances the gods do not descend there, and rarely visit.” The giant ape pointed ahead, telling the group that ten thousand miles would bring them there.

Such a distance meant nothing at all to this group — with cultivation at the Sage realm, one could turn the horizon into a single step, covering sun, moon, mountains, and rivers in a single stride.

The Immortal Domain, the Back Garden of the Gods, a place not often inhabited, where a Tree of Life grew… Piecing all this together was enough to astonish even outsiders like them.

Everyone wore an expression of bewilderment. Before arriving here, they had all assumed the journey would be perilous, that the far shore of the gods would be filled with danger, that they might have to fight their way through mountains of bones.

Yet who could have expected that a single giant ape would reveal almost everything they wanted to know, without the slightest effort on their part.

Long Ma and the Golden Lion questioned it carefully, gathering enough information, then grew impatient to act at once — the distance was only just over ten thousand miles, easily reached in no time.

Ye Fan’s expression turned strange. He opened his Heavenly Eye and stared intently at the giant ape, confirming it truly was a creature of the Dragon Transformation secret realm, not some ancient relic in disguise.

Mountains and rivers flew past in a blur as the group tore through the void like streaking comets, and before long they had covered the ten thousand miles.

Upon arriving, everyone’s heart gave a sudden jolt. This place was mysterious — chaotic mist surged and roiled, blocking the way ahead, as though it formed a world unto itself.

Clearly, this was no ordinary place. The moment they drew close, their hearts leapt within them; the mountains within the mist were all etched with symbols of the great Dao, inspiring awe and reverence.

“That giant ape wasn’t lying — this truly is an extraordinary, secluded place!” The Twelve Saints, having weathered countless storms over the years, recognized at a glance that this location possessed an extraordinary structure, radiating a grandeur rarely seen even across the ages.

The peaks stood like divine statues, ancient and eternal. The ridges coiled like sleeping dragons, stretching from east to west. The cliffs soared like golden rocs spreading their wings, rising into the clouds above the sea. The hills crouched like the Black Tortoise, steady and deeply grounded.

“Indeed, I examined that giant ape’s divine sense earlier — it wasn’t lying to us,” Long Ma said. Though doing so wasn’t entirely proper, it was better to be cautious, having only just arrived in this place.

“So this really is the Back Garden of the Gods, part of the Immortal Domain — how utterly incredible. Does arriving at the far shore of the gods mean we’re on the verge of ascending to godhood?” Pang Bo was filled with doubt.

There was no question this place held some deep significance — merely standing outside it was enough to stir every heart, making them long to step inside and uncover its mysteries.

“Something’s not right,” Ye Fan said.

“What’s wrong — is this place dangerous?” Nine-tailed Crocodile Dragon asked.

“Nothing apparent so far.” Ye Fan shook his head. In truth, this place resembled an immortal cave dwelling, so extraordinary that every corner felt like a sacred realm, enough to leave one entranced.

“What seems off, then?” Azure Luan asked.

“That giant ape — something’s wrong with it. Let’s go back and check,” Ye Fan said, turning around and rushing back toward the distance.

Everyone exchanged glances before following after him. Yet the land stretched vast and boundless, towering trees and ancient forests all around — there was no trace of the giant ape anywhere.

“These are the footprints it left behind — they end right here,” Ye Fan said.

The hundred-foot-tall giant ape had left one massive, deep footprint after another across the land, but at this spot they simply stopped, as though it had vanished into thin air.

“I clearly searched through its sea of consciousness — how could there still be a problem?” Long Ma gritted his teeth in frustration.

“Even my Origin Heavenly Eye nearly failed — this giant ape is no ordinary creature!” Ye Fan’s eyes flashed with cold light as he scanned the surroundings, searching for any trace.

At last, in a patch of grass some distance away, he picked up a single strand of golden fur — not very long, noticeably shorter than the fur of the giant ape they had just seen, and far too radiant.

“A single strand of monkey fur — what does this mean?” Pang Bo asked.

Ye Fan said in a grave voice, “That giant ape we just spoke with was transformed from a single strand of monkey fur. It nearly deceived every one of us. There is a divine ape out there who has mastered the art of transformation to a degree that, while perhaps not entirely unmatched in the world, comes very close.”

“Somehow this feels familiar,” Azure Luan said, eyes sharp.

“Indeed, it does seem familiar,” Scorpion Saint agreed gravely.

“It’s him!” Pang Bo suddenly shivered. Deep within the Ancient Celestial Venerable’s Life Spring, there had been an ancient cave dwelling housing a Six-eared Macaque who had passed away in meditation — the aura felt remarkably similar; this was likely the very same being.

“Surely not — that old macaque had achieved mastery over the very forces of creation, but hundreds of thousands of years have passed. How could it still be alive?” the Golden Lion voiced his doubts.

“I understand now — it’s the young one!” Black Bear Saint gritted his teeth, filled with boundless resentment.

One of his ancestral forebears, a great sage of tremendous magical power, had once encountered a Six-eared Macaque of overwhelming divine might while it was in the process of relocating. Merely for unintentionally blocking its path, that ancestor had been slapped into a pulp with a single blow.

“At the time, there was also a young macaque, sitting upon the shoulder of that world-shaking powerhouse. I believe… it may well have survived!” Black Bear Saint’s expression turned grim.

Everyone was stunned. The Six-eared Macaque had built its dwelling within the Ancient Celestial Venerable’s very Life Spring — a truly staggering feat, its power beyond doubt.

Given its strength, locating the Divine Source and sealing away its offspring within this great world would have posed no difficulty at all.

The divine bridge constructed from the Ancient Celestial Venerable’s Bitter Sea, spanning directly to the far shore, meant this place was practically within arm’s reach — once the bridge appeared, reaching here would take no more than a single step.

“Legend has it that the Six-eared Macaque possesses one of the strongest bloodlines in the entire universe, capable of perceiving all truths, understanding all things. Above all, its six ears can hear every sound under heaven, allowing it to learn any technique — its mastery of transformation is unfathomable, undetectable by anyone,” Nine-tailed Crocodile Dragon said solemnly, then fell silent, scanning their surroundings as though fearing the divine macaque might overhear.

“They say the Six-eared Macaque race went extinct, and this world lost one of its most terrifying bloodlines as a result — yet who would have thought a single lineage still survives here on the far shore of the gods.”

Everyone sensed that something was amiss. This macaque’s abilities reached to the heavens; if it had truly set its sights on them, a fierce battle would surely be unavoidable.

That it had nearly deceived every single one of them with just a single transformed strand of fur was proof enough that no ordinary powerhouse could have managed such a feat.

Ye Fan’s expression remained calm. “No matter,” he said. “If it truly possessed god-like might, it would have already made its move against us.”

Though he spoke this way, the Twelve Saints remained on high alert, for this bloodline was simply too powerful to risk letting their guard down. Black Bear Saint in particular wore an iron expression, for this was the enemy of his own clan.

Ye Fan and the others searched extensively but found nothing further. Since the transformed strand of the Six-eared Macaque’s fur existed in this world, its true form was likely present as well — perhaps they would cross paths with it again someday.

“Damned monkey — how vicious, trying to lure us in there to be annihilated in body and spirit,” Long Ma cursed through gritted teeth.

They learned from other creatures that the mountain range was indeed connected to the ancient gods, but it was by no means any “back garden” — rather, it was a forbidden zone that had existed since ancient times, untouched since the age of myth.

Even the gods of this era could not necessarily enter it now; for anyone else, entering meant certain death with no chance of return, for it was a great killing formation laid down by an ancient Emperor, still active to this day, never fully destroyed.

“You wretched monkey, we’ll settle this score another day!” Pang Bo added.

The mountain concealed extraordinary things — every ten steps revealed a new sight, every five steps a divine talisman, seizing the creative power of heaven and earth itself. Yet it was, in truth, a great killing formation laid by an ancient Emperor — even the gods themselves would perish if they entered.

Skirting around this ancient land, they entered the true, vast expanse where the many powerful factions vied for supremacy, and one after another encountered several massive ancient cities, each guarded by a peerless expert.

“The homeland of eternal life is not called the Immortal Domain, but rather the Divine Domain — the dwelling place of the gods.”

This was the accurate information they gathered after truly arriving in this world — the giant ape’s account had been slightly mistaken, but not entirely false; simply replace “Immortal Domain” with “Divine Domain,” and it held true.

“One of the human race’s guardians has died, and two other great sages from other races have died as well — what is happening?!” They received a shocking piece of news.

On the towering wall of a magnificent city, a notice had been posted, alongside three blood-soaked severed heads, declaring that these individuals had attempted to defile the gods and had been suppressed as a warning to others.

They had arrived in this world only a single night ago, and already three great sages had died — a fact that shook them deeply. Ye Fan and the others all felt a chill in their hearts; this world truly was a fearsome place.

This was the fifth great city along their path, its walls towering and immense, as though cast from black molten iron, gleaming with a cold, metallic sheen.

Three blood-soaked heads had been placed within a bamboo cage, hung from the magnificent city gate tower, a sight that struck fear into the heart.

Ye Fan and the others entered the city and encountered all manner of races they had never heard of before — some with bird bodies and wolf heads, some no more than a mass of light with no fixed form, some possessing only a massive head with neither arms nor body.

The races were varied and diverse, many of them formed from cultivated objects — a divine blade walked through the city with two legs and two arms grown from its blade-body, while an ancient pagoda floated and drifted, flying through the city streets.

Long Ma nearly moved to strike, intending to plunder these weapons, but Ye Fan stopped him, sternly warning him not to act rashly.

These were all races native to this world, many of them formed from cultivated non-human objects. Sacred weapons that had achieved sentience, becoming a distinct kind of being, moved about freely and openly here, entirely within the bounds of the law, with no one to interfere.

It was said that many of them had emerged from the cave dwellings of famous mountains and great rivers across this land.

“This is truly bizarre — what kind of place is this?” The Twelve Saints kept muttering among themselves in disbelief.

Fortunately, they also encountered a good number of humanoid beings. Ye Fan, Pang Bo, and the others did not stand out too much among them, as some of these humanoid creatures were human, while others were transformed from other formidable beings — all of them powerful in their own right.

“These massive, ancient cities have stood since time immemorial, said to guard the dwelling place of the gods.” This was the information they gathered.

Beyond the great cities lay the approach to the Divine Domain. The human race’s guardian and the two great sages from other races had all been killed while attempting to explore the Divine Domain, their heads hung upon the city walls as a warning.

“A great sage — killed just like that? Could these truly be actual gods?!” This news left them deeply unsettled.

Ye Fan and the others passed through the city without acting rashly, gathering information from many sources. They learned that around the Divine Domain stood a total of eight similar great cities, guarding all eight directions.

They asked many creatures, but none could clearly explain what the so-called gods actually were, for no one could truly say for certain.

The Divine Domain could not be disturbed. Braving the risk of provoking trouble, they went to inquire further about the nine-layered coffin from the age of myth, and once again confirmed some of what the giant ape had told them — it truly was known to most, though not located in the Immortal Domain after all, but rather in a desolate, forbidden zone.

Crossing the land, they lost count of how many hundreds of thousands of miles they traveled before arriving at an ancient site that had existed since the legendary age of myth, gazing toward its deepest reaches.

“A single stone coffin, lying at the heart of this forbidden zone — is this an omen of great calamity?”

Everyone stood suspended in the sky, gazing out toward the forbidden zone ahead — noxious mist swirling, ancient trees dense and forbidding, utterly silent, still as death.

Amid a range of massive mountains stood an enormous stone coffin, towering and immense, like an entire mountain lying across the land, radiating an air of ancient, weathered grandeur.

This was a coffin that had descended from beyond this domain. For decades, no one had dared to approach it, for this forbidden zone had left behind far too many terrifying legends — to draw near meant certain death.

“This… could this truly be the ancient coffin of Emperor Void? But how has it grown so enormous?” Doubt and unease stirred within Ye Fan’s heart.