The Crimson Bird Fruit, the Cauldron-Shaped Fruit, and the Eight Trigrams Fruit were flawlessly pure, gleaming like seven-colored glaze — magnificent and dazzling. When refined, they transformed into incomplete Dao diagrams of profound and unfathomable mystery, ceaselessly branded into his body.

Outside Ye Fan’s body, crimson-as-blood small phoenixes danced in flight, an ancient and natural small cauldron rose and fell, and a profound Eight Trigrams diagram rotated — altogether a remarkable sight.

The medicinal power was truly too formidable. Had he not branded the nine ancient characters onto his body, he might very well have been reduced to a small child. If he’d ended up as tiny as Xiao Nannan, that would have been quite the spectacle.

The interior of the bronze coffin was covered in a layer of residue — broken bones, cracked dried skin, and other such things. This sight made his hair stand on end, but it was real — what he had shed himself.

Over this past half month, Ye Fan had been undergoing a true fundamental transformation, but it was an inhuman ordeal. His entire body had cracked apart. His five organs and six viscera had resonated like a celestial symphony. His bones had shattered inch by inch and been reassembled.

In the end, he took two fruits of each of these three varieties, and after nearly twenty days of seclusion, he absorbed every last drop of medicinal power from the six holy fruits.

At this moment his body was flawless and pristine — his entire being luminous, nearly transparent. In his vivid red blood, flickers of pale gold gleamed, with streams of golden light flowing through him.

Ye Fan rose to his feet and pressed down into empty space. Space instantly collapsed inward. His physical form was immaculate and radiant with treasure light, like an undying deity upon a divine altar.

At this moment, he felt that his physical body could rival a holy master’s. If those people did not deploy their overwhelming divine power, and instead matched him purely in physical combat, he could suppress them entirely.

One must understand that the gulf between their levels of cultivation encompassed many great chasms. In terms of cultivation realm, the difference was still vast. But his physical shell surpassed theirs — one could only call it awe-inspiring.

The divine fruit’s power was extraordinary. It had allowed him to undergo a fundamental transformation again. Now he needed no weapons — he could shatter divine weapons and sacred blades with his bare hands. He himself was a powerful human-shaped weapon.

Yet Ye Fan let out a soft sigh, feeling a tinge of regret.

Years ago, when he first consumed holy fruits, the fundamental transformation of his body had also dissolved his bitter sea, allowing the Holy Body to begin cultivation.

The second time he consumed holy fruits, after his physical body underwent transformation, his divine sense had also become tremendously formidable. A small golden lake had formed at his brow — a powerful weapon of lethal force.

But this time, all the extraordinary power had sunk into his Great Dao wound without manifesting outwardly — it was expended in helping him dissolve a death sentence that had seemed unbreakable.

“Damned Great Dao crack!”

But he quickly reconciled himself. The Holy Body had gone uncultivated for tens of thousands of years — how could one truly break its curse without paying an enormous price?

One could say he had spent the equivalent of an entire imperishable divine medicine to contend against the formless Great Dao of heaven and earth. That he had achieved such a result could already be considered a great fortune within misfortune.

A supreme divine king had given everything, nearly sacrificing his very life, and still had ultimately been unable to help him defy the heavens. That so many holy fruits were needed to change what had seemed like certain death was not something outside the bounds of expectation — it had always been destined.

Ye Fan turned his gaze inward to examine his wounds. A faint smile touched his face. Over these many tens of days of nourishment, the Great Dao crack had healed, and the wellspring of his life was crystalline and pure.

“This is…” Suddenly his smile froze. The great crack in his wellspring of life had healed — but there remained one tiny, nearly invisible hairline crack.

Had he not examined himself closely, he would never have noticed it. It was truly too concealed — just the faintest thread of a line. One could call it a hidden wound. If he were to leave the ancient forbidden land in this state, it would likely rupture again after a long period of time.

“Why is this?” Ye Fan could not calm his heart. Every variety of holy fruit had been consumed. He still had some in hand, but the law fragments they contained were redundant — they could offer no great benefit to the Great Dao wound.

Nourished by divine fruits in this primordial stretch of heaven and earth, and still unable to heal completely — what else could be done?

Suddenly he raised his head, as though something had occurred to him all at once. He murmured to himself: “Of course — it must be this.”

The nine sacred mountains together bore nine varieties of divine roots. Although they had produced a considerable number of holy fruits with world-shaking medicinal power, they were ultimately not a true imperishable medicine. The law fragments of heaven and earth they contained were incomplete.

“There is in truth only one imperishable divine medicine here. What I obtained is a fragmented and incomplete version.” Ye Fan came to this realization.

The nine varieties of divine roots, reunited into one, would be the original single imperishable divine medicine. Only in that form would the laws of heaven and earth they contained be complete — only then could the Great Dao wound within his body be fully repaired.

Over these many tens of days, he had refined seven varieties of holy fruit in succession. He was missing only two — both of which he had consumed himself years ago. Was this the will of heaven?

“Only by uniting all nine varieties of divine fruits can the Great Dao wound be soothed — or by finding a truly mature imperishable divine medicine, not these mutated fruits grown from divided offshoots…”

Ye Fan looked at the Qilin Seed in his hand. This was not a mature specimen. Even if planted on the sacred mountain, who knew how many years would pass before it could be harvested.

He thought it over carefully. A light appeared in his eyes. Once again he hoisted the small bronze coffin onto his back and began to climb the mountain, striving to break through his hopeless situation once and for all.

His physical body was now more fearsome than a holy master’s. Carrying the bronze coffin was no longer as taxing. He arrived at a sacred mountain fairly quickly — the very place where, several years ago, he had first harvested holy fruits.

He set the bronze coffin on the ground, entered the Life Spring Pool, and carefully dug around the base of a small tree, cutting off a small length of root stem.

Since these were nine divine roots divided from the main root of an imperishable divine medicine, their root stems were absolutely the most essential and refined part. He wanted to use them to make up for what was lacking.

Ye Fan did not want to be completely destructive. Each of the thirteen small trees had only a short side root cut from it. He also harvested some branches and leaves, then descended the mountain.

Seven days later, Ye Fan opened his eyes inside the great bronze coffin, and a faint look of satisfaction crossed his face. Everything had unfolded as he had anticipated. The divine roots contained fragments of the Great Dao. Dao diagrams emerged and were branded into his body. The hairline crack in his wellspring of life had nearly vanished entirely.

Naturally, he wanted everything to be perfect — he did not want to leave behind even the slightest aftereffect. Once more he hoisted the small bronze coffin up the mountain, going to the second variety of divine medicine he had harvested years ago, to dig up its divine roots.

More than ten days later, Ye Fan sat cross-legged in the great coffin and carefully examined himself. The wellspring of his life was flawlessly crystalline and pure, without blemish. The Great Dao wound had entirely disappeared, leaving not so much as a trace.

At this point, in this stretch of heaven and earth preserving primordial laws, Ye Fan’s wounds had fully healed. Not a single hidden concern remained. He let out a long breath. He had at last truly broken the curse and defied the heavens — reclaiming what had been the severed road of the Holy Body.

Yet this price had been tremendous. If the laws of heaven and earth outside had not changed, it would be nearly impossible for another Holy Body like his to appear again. No one could endure this kind of cost.

This journey had been a complete success. He had broken through what had seemed an inescapable doom.

“The imperishable divine medicine truly defies the heavens. No wonder every Great Emperor cultivated one. Not only can it bring life to the dead and restore flesh upon bare bones — it also contains the laws of the Great Dao!” Ye Fan sighed with deep feeling.

Imperishable divine medicine — even in the most ancient of ages, there had been only a handful. They were the most precious sacred objects in all of heaven and earth, a celestial rarity, beyond compare in all the world.

As for the present day — to say nothing of it. All imperishable divine medicines had flown into the seven great life-forbidden zones and could no longer be found. They had become legend.

The holy fruits of the ancient forbidden land were not true imperishable medicine, yet they contained boundless and extraordinary power. Each variety alone was sufficient to grant Ye Fan a fundamental transformation — from which one could imagine how inconceivable a truly primordial divine medicine would be.

Ye Fan did not depart. He continued to cultivate here. Perhaps this primordial stretch of heaven and earth could help accelerate his cultivation — hiding inside the ancient coffin meant having no fear of the desolate power’s erosion.

After entering the Four Extremes Secret Realm, all cultivation required comprehension rather than being driven by divine ore and other external things. This Ye Fan had long understood — and the absorption of the holy fruits this time was the clearest example.

His physical body had transformed and grown formidably powerful — enough to contend with a holy master, and even to overpower one in might. Yet his divine power and cultivation realm had not broken through into a new level.

“The Four Extremes Secret Realm requires entrusting oneself to the void, branding upon oneself the indifferent Great Dao, and comprehending the laws of heaven and earth before one can advance. What is being cultivated is not only the physical body — it is the true ‘Dao’ itself!”

Ye Fan went into seclusion. He sat cross-legged in the ancient coffin without moving. His heart was a field of peace — serene and clear as emptiness. He quieted his mind in contemplation, and his entire being grew indistinct, branded into the void.

One day, two days, three days… ten days…

Ye Fan’s heart was clear and luminous. At times it shimmered with flowing light; at times it fell into utter emptiness. He was like an eternal deity — unaware of the passage of time, letting the mortal world drift and turn, cultivating his own imperishable self.

One of his arms seemed to suddenly vanish — it sank into the void, reaching toward the furthest extremes of heaven and earth.

The human body has four extremes, through which one can reach the four extremes of heaven and earth — drawing upon the Great Dao of all the heavens. His left arm was branded into the void, becoming a Dao diagram, becoming eternal.

Ye Fan operated the mysterious technique recorded in the Hengyu Scripture, comprehending the Great Dao of heaven and earth, allowing his “First Extreme” to become a manifestation of the Dao. The wondrous sounds of heaven and earth arrived simultaneously from all directions.

Even in this cursed forbidden land, nothing could impede it. All manner of natural markings descended like crystalline flower petals drifting and scattering, sinking into the interior of the ancient coffin.

One Dao diagram after another emerged, surrounding Ye Fan. He was like an undying deity, wreathed in chaotic energy, as though seated at the very beginning of creation, enveloped in all manner of Dao markings.

The celestial sound of the Great Dao resounded through the clouds. He was without sorrow and without joy. His expression was serene — like a deity who smiles while holding a flower petal — bearing a calmness and confidence of one fully united with heaven and earth.

In this recent period, he had experienced too many things — always wandering between life and death. Long since had the “sense of the Dao” been nurtured in his heart. This time, seated in seclusion in the ancient coffin within the forbidden land, it came as naturally as water finding its course. In one fell stroke, he broke through the barrier.

Ye Fan’s left arm sank into heaven and earth and became eternal, a manifestation of the Dao. His right arm too flickered on the threshold of existence and non-existence, encircled by one Dao diagram after another. He advanced to the Second Layer of the Four Extremes Secret Realm.

He sat motionless. The divine sound of the Great Dao within his body rang unceasingly, drawing upon the Great Dao of all the heavens — as though an ancient deity from primordial times were reciting scripture.

Three months after entering the ancient forbidden land, Ye Fan at last opened his eyes. His gaze held a field of peace. His inner heart was even more profoundly still. He was now only a single step away from the Third Layer of the Four Extremes Secret Realm.

He rose to his feet and gazed out toward the world beyond the ancient forbidden land. He murmured to himself: “It is time to leave.”

Ye Fan’s mind was filled with thoughts. He could not remain sitting here any longer. If he wished to break through further, he would need a moment of opportunity — it could not be resolved by sitting endlessly in still meditation.

He thought of little Tingting, and thought of Jiang Shenwang. He could delay no longer. The flames of life of those two could be extinguished at any moment. He needed to find them quickly, bringing the holy fruits.

This was also the main reason his Dao-heart was unsettled — preventing him from breaking through further.

“I have vanished from the mortal world for three months. Perhaps many people already believe I have died…” Ye Fan stood and gazed outward toward the world beyond the ancient forbidden land.