A thread of red light appeared along the horizon, the sun straining to break free and climb into the sky, mist swirling through the mountain forest, vapor hanging thick in the air.

At last, the crimson sun broke through, sending a few soft strands of light spilling into the forest, edging the mist with gold, bringing a lively vitality to the scene.

Morning dew rolled across leaves and blossoms, like pearl after pearl, crystal clear and radiant, catching the colors of dawn in a dazzling display of beauty. The scent of earth mingled with the fragrance of grass, giving off a wonderfully fresh feeling.

The mist had not yet dispersed, and dampness still lingered in the forest. The red sun showed only half its face, yet the mountains had already come alive, all manner of birds chirping ceaselessly.

Ye Fan, covered in blood, had stood motionless through half the night, his black hair and blood-soaked robes soaked through with dew.

Nearby, Yan Yixi practiced her breathing exercises facing the dawn, streams of white qi flowing in and out through her nose and mouth like coiling flood dragons, an astonishing sight.

“Sleeping so soundly. I must say, one of you sat like a statue all night without moving, while the other cultivates so diligently—where does that leave me?” Li Tian rinsed his mouth with mountain spring water, splashed his face, and gathered a handful of pine nuts, eating as he walked.

When the sun rose and the mist cleared, the entire mountainside grew bright and radiant. Yan Yixi finished her morning practice and opened her eyes, saying, “Brother Ye, what are you thinking about?”

Li Tian spat out a mouthful of pine nut shells and said, “What does he have to worry about? After yesterday’s battle, his name will surely spread across the world, unstoppable—what an honor, with every beauty under heaven casting admiring glances his way. When will my chance to make a name for myself ever come? Every time, someone steals the spotlight from me.”

“I sense a pressure coming from far away, one that will grow suffocating in the future.” Ye Fan said, gazing toward the Eastern Wastes, his eyes seeming to pierce through vast mountains and rivers beyond counting.

Yan Yixi said, “Huangxu Dao, the Heavenly Emperor’s Son, Yuangu, Huo Qizi, Shencan Daoren, and the rest—this generation of young ancient clansmen truly are terrifying. The road ahead will surely be built of blood and bone.”

Ye Fan said, “These people, terrifying as they are, aren’t quite enough to keep me up at night, to make me feel this suffocated about the future. What worries me are those ancestral kings—should even one of them emerge, it would be a great calamity, a dark upheaval.”

Anyone or any power that clashed with an ancestral king would face a scene of bloodshed and slaughter beyond imagining, for these were sage-level, terrifying creatures, and true human sages were rarely seen in this age.

In the Primordial era there had been myriad races, among which the most terrifying group was called the royal clans—no fewer than ten types, surely, each with its own ancestral king, and not merely a single one at that.

Just thinking about it brought a mountain-like weight pressing down, making it hard to breathe. If full-scale conflict ever broke out, who besides those bearing the inheritance of an extreme-Dao imperial weapon could possibly stand against them?

“Damn it, I’m starting to miss the Purple Micro Star Region. There, at least, holding the Divine Maiden Furnace, as long as I wasn’t surrounded, I could still dominate a region. But coming here, I’ve realized the outlook is far from promising—it feels like I’ve walked straight into trouble.” Li Tian said, full of regret.

The only comfort now was that none of the ancestral kings showed any sign of making a move, nor had anyone heard of one reviving and emerging into the world—but who could say what the future held?

For now, every great sect could only pray that these ancestral kings sought merely to become immortals, harboring no other intentions.

For in recent years, some of the ancient clans had indeed sent out such messages, dispatching envoys to the various great sects, promising there would be no bloody war, needing only a piece of land.

Becoming an immortal was far too intangible a goal—too many talented figures had been buried by the passage of time, and it was hard to place full trust in such promises.

Perhaps for now, only those who possessed the weapons of the ancient emperors still had some measure of confidence, but if a clan lacked even a single sage among its ranks, its future prospects would remain deeply troubling.

“From what we’ve gathered so far, the various Primordial races seem to harbor some apprehension themselves, testing the waters in various places, not daring to run rampant across the world.” Ye Fan said.

“What have you noticed?” Li Tian asked.

“According to the Southern Demon, they’ve appeared near the resting places and burial grounds of the various great emperors, exercising extreme caution.”

“That’s it—this is an ancient star where even a human great emperor is destined to descend. There must be some secret here, and they’re afraid.” Li Tian said.

In this world, if there was one thing the ancestral kings of the Primordial Race still feared, it was naturally the ancient emperors of the human race—afraid of what fearsome countermeasures they might still hold.

Every human great emperor had been a figure of astonishing brilliance, shaking the ages past and present—their deeds were too numerous to count, enough to make every race tremble.

Even in their slumber, there were those among their successive generations who had awakened and continued to watch over the world.

“That’s right, I’ve thought the same. Perhaps that’s the one advantage we can still make use of—making them even more afraid, so they never dare emerge.” Ye Fan said.

“What do you plan to do?” Yan Yixi asked.

“I’ve thought it over all night, and I have an idea—perhaps something that could suppress the various Primordial kings, keep them from daring to emerge for a time.” Ye Fan said.

“You think you could suppress them?” Li Tian was shocked. Even wielding an emperor’s weapon, if one’s own strength was insufficient, it wouldn’t necessarily be enough to make an ancestral king retreat.

“Throughout history, every dark upheaval has seen a human great emperor emerge, and this present age surpasses all those that came before, an unprecedented great era in all of eternity. I suspect they too fear the emergence of the strongest great emperor the human race has ever produced.”

“Go on, tell me.” Li Tian said.

“If I truly attempt this, it will be a gamble with my life on the line, nine deaths and one chance at survival. I only hope it proves effective, enough to strike fear into them.” Ye Fan said.

…

The world trembled; all five regions were shaken!

On this day, cultivators across every land were utterly astonished, their eyes fixed on Nanling, all finding it hard to believe, thinking it inconceivable.

Twelve years since he had left this ancient star, and now the Sacred Body of old had appeared once more—returned, reappearing in this mortal world.

By day, he had slain the head of an ancient formidable clan along with eight other formidable figures; by night, he had killed a hundred heroes of the ancient Divine Spirit Valley clan, formidable figures lying dead at his feet, his iron sword soaked in blood—a single battle that shook the entire world.

Cultivators across all five regions could not help but feel a chill—all of this had happened so suddenly, this record of battle simply too terrifying, this news feeling almost unreal.

“How has he returned—why has he reappeared in this world? Crossing through the void of the stars is something even ancient sages could not always survive.”

“This is simply unbelievable—a single person cutting down so many formidable figures. Twelve years unseen, and he’s grown this powerful?”

“He’s killed Wang Teng’s father—how bold. This means war to the death with the Northern Emperor, a final ultimate confrontation twelve years in the making.”

“The Sacred Body—he’s really come back, unbelievable, truly terrifying, this powerful and this fearsome, enough to inspire awe!”

…

On this day, cultivators everywhere were discussing it, Ye Fan becoming the focal point of every conversation, everyone utterly shaken.

A single battle had shocked the entire world, sending a great wave sweeping across the vast skies. Ye Fan’s return had left every region unsettled.

“In my view, the Sacred Body has already achieved minor success—hard to find a match for him even at the second heavenly tier of the Immortal Platform, able now to look down upon the entire world.” This was the assessment of an old sect leader from the Central Continent.

“The Central Emperor hasn’t made a move in years—who knows how strong he’s grown. With Hua Yunfei and the Sage Son Yao Guang rising, I wonder who would prove stronger in a contest against the Sacred Body.” Some, fearing the world wasn’t chaotic enough already, hoped for just such a clash.

“The Sacred Body has returned—perhaps he could produce the most dazzling sparks clashing with terrifying ancient clansmen like Huangxu Dao and Yuangu!” This was the hope of a formidable wandering cultivator.

“Some of the ancient clans’ supreme young formidable figures, coursing with Primordial imperial blood, each hold a status equivalent to the human Sacred Body. Contending with them would surely mean nine deaths and one chance at survival—there must be someone capable of overpowering even the human Sacred Body.”

“Only through true collision can we know who is strongest—this is an age surpassing all before it, and it will surely be a world painted in blood. Who will prove the Dao, who will become emperor, remains uncertain for now, but whoever emerges victorious will surely walk a path built upon the blood and bones of countless dazzling talents through the ages.”

“After the utmost prosperity, after the stars have shone their brightest, there must come the fall of kings, the desolate withering of talents in the ages after—there will surely be a magnificent, blood-stained tapestry unfolding.”

…

Ye Fan’s return drew the eyes of the entire world, countless gazes converging on Nanling, everyone watching closely, many undying great powers sending people specifically to learn what was happening.

Reactions varied everywhere. When the people of the Central Continent’s Yin-Yang Sect heard that Ye Fan had reappeared, the sect leader of the present age slammed his teacup down hard onto the floor of the great hall.

He then ordered his many disciples not to set foot in Nanling, and to stop even outside the Eastern Wastes, quickly conferring in secret with the elder statesmen—clearly this had shaken them deeply.

The two great ancient assassin god-dynasties of the Eastern Wastes had noticeably taken on far fewer killing commissions of late; people speculated they were mobilizing their forces, preparing to move against Ye Fan.

The world shuddered at the thought—these two ancient dynasties, having lain dormant for over a hundred thousand years, now dared to reappear in this world, fearless of encirclement by every sect combined—this alone spoke volumes.

Thinking of those terrifying legends—the ancient halls built from the skulls of kings, the carpets woven from the skin of sages—these thoughts left people utterly chilled to the bone.

The two dynasties’ strongest divine sons and daughters had been born for the sole purpose of slaying kings—the most mysterious young formidable figures in the world today.

People knew that they would dearly wish to collect the Sacred Body’s skull as well—perhaps this would spark the most terrifying clash of all, for many believed they possessed the strength to slay every king that existed.

In the Eastern Wastes, in the Southern Region, at the Ji Family—

Ji Ziyue, radiant and captivating, her hair dancing lightly in the breeze, her slender figure graceful, her entire being luminous and wise.

For all these years, the small dimples that only appeared when she smiled had rarely shown themselves, her whole bearing as transcendent and untouched by worldly dust as a goddess from the Moon Palace.

At this moment, the jade cup in her hand fell to the ground, though she paid it no mind, staring in shock at Ji Haoyue, saying, “Is it true? Little Ye has come back?”

“Yes.”

“He’s on the other shore, we’re at this end of the starry expanse, separated by an endless distance, and he… he’s come back…” Ji Ziyue murmured, and then broke into a joyful smile, small, adorable, mischievous dimples appearing on her cheeks.

At this moment, though she tried her best to conceal it, a faint mist had clearly gathered in her eyes.

Within an ancient cave of the Ji Family, inside a massive block of frost, a man covered in wounds, his injuries corroded by dark light, lay sealed within. At this moment, a pulse of divine thought emanated from him, saying, “Little Ye has come back. Good, good, good. Kill every enemy, avenge us—I never imagined I would live to see him again.”

“Brother Heishui, take good care of your injuries. You’ll surely survive.” Ji Ziyue comforted him.

“Tell little Ye—kill Li Xiaoman, kill Yuangu. Otherwise, some of our brothers will never rest in peace!” Li Heishui cried out excitedly, shouting the words.

At the Northern Plains Wang Family, a tall, powerfully built young man, his black hair flowing like a waterfall, his gaze sharp and fierce, stood upon a golden ancient war chariot. Around him, true dragons sang in harmony with divine phoenixes, white tigers and black tortoises radiant against the sky.

He stood upon the golden ancient war chariot like the Central Heavenly Emperor himself, golden sacred light engulfing heaven and earth, nine true dragons, nine divine phoenixes, nine white tigers, and nine black tortoises merging together in unison, letting out a thunderous roar that shook heaven and earth.

“Ahh…”

Wang Teng let out a great roar, and every mountain range surrounding his place of seclusion collapsed entirely, earth and stone rising like a tsunami tens of thousands of feet high, scattering the clouds across the heavens.

In the Northern Region, an eternal black mountain stood like a wall dividing the demonic realm, cutting across three thousand realms, towering and unshakable.

Atop it, a figure stood alone, hands folded behind his back, gazing toward Nanling, saying, “The human race’s Sacred Body—interesting. Worth killing.”

…

In countless other places, countless other people, all gazed toward Nanling!