The winds of five domains converged upon the Central Prefecture. With the ancestral temple’s emergence, the entire world was stirred into a great wave, drawing the eyes of all ten directions, with every corner of the world holding its breath in anticipation.
Countless cultivators were mobilizing, actively making preparations, ready at any moment to march into that divine hall. Although the Four Great Divine Dynasties and the Yao Guang Holy Land were still negotiating with various factions and had yet to open their doors, that day was no longer far off.
“Never fight a battle you aren’t certain of winning.” The Black Emperor had already gathered a vast quantity of precious materials to be used in carving Dao inscription arrays and formations, preparing for whatever might be needed.
Duan De, for his part, was convinced that place must contain something extraordinary. After all, it had once been the foremost dragon vein of the Central Prefecture. Even though it had shattered and collapsed, it surely still held an immense reserve of dragon energy, and who knew what might have been nurtured within it over the ages.
The Black Emperor was less of a concern — when Ye Fan had previously set his trap to slay his enemies en masse, he had already purchased vast quantities of heaven and earth treasures, all procured at astronomical prices according to the Black Emperor’s specific demands. Duan De’s requirements, however, were considerably more troublesome. He needed a collection of rather obscure and unusual items — things like Yama Soil, Death Spirit Flowers, Corpse Bamboo, and Nine Abyssal Fetuses.
“What on earth are all these strange things? Where are we supposed to find any of this?” The group stared in bewilderment. These were genuinely difficult to come by.
“These are all priceless materials. Beyond my own need for them, those who consecrate and refine forbidden weapons also require such things — so it’s not as though they’re completely impossible to find,” Duan De said.
He was not particularly worried, because as far as he was concerned, one of the primary ingredients was already in hand — Yellow Spring Water. Years ago, when they had pursued the Yin soldiers through the Ancient Purgatory beneath Falling Eagle Cliff, they had not only obtained the Netherworld Grass but had also collected an entire pool of Yellow Spring Water.
As things stood, both the Netherworld Grass and the Yellow Spring Water were stored within the cemetery of the Heavenly Village. Nobody wanted to carry such things on their person at all times. Even Ye Fan, with his golden blood energy as vast as a sea, found it deeply unsettling.
When Ye Fan, Duan De, and the others appeared at the Celestial Bazaar, it immediately set off a wave of noise and commotion. Many people couldn’t help but look over. The battle at the Severed Heaven Mountain Range had shaken the world — rivers of blood had flowed, and mountains of bones had piled up. No one was unafraid. Even the ancient clans had been deeply shaken.
Now, there were few who dared to cross blades with Ye Fan. In the present world, he had forged his own unique and formidable presence. His string of extraordinary feats — slaying Yuangu, shooting down a Son of God, razing the primordial ancient noble families — had made the world recognize the dominance of the Human Race’s Sacred Physique.
The Celestial Bazaar was vast, yet even after searching every corner of it, only half of Duan De’s needs were met. The things he required were simply too rare. Many of them were things others had never even heard of.
Whatever they set their eyes on, however, the exchanges went smoothly. Not even the ancient clans wished to earn Ye Fan’s enmity, especially with the Holy Emperor’s Son at his side. These two walking together inspired a kind of reverence in onlookers — an inexplicable sense of overwhelming presence.
Ever since Ye Fan had slain Yuangu, not only the human race but also the various primordial tribes had come to believe that he would, in all likelihood, one day stand unrivaled under heaven, on par with the true sons of ancient emperors.
Yuangu had been the eighth-generation descendant of the lineage of Emperor Yuan. While his bloodline power had weakened somewhat, it was not by much. For Ye Fan to have slain him, his potential should be no lesser than that of an Emperor’s Son.
“So that is the Human Race’s Sacred Physique. I didn’t get to see him last time. The blood of the great enemies he killed at the Severed Heaven Mountain Range soaked the entire mountainside. Seeing him in person now — he truly is exceptional!”
Wherever the group passed, there was a constant murmur of voices low enough to carry to their ears. This was a reputation hard-won through battle. From past disbelief and provocation, to the present fear and reverence — it was a tremendous turning point.
“So that’s the Human Race’s Sacred Physique? He looks like this — not three-headed or six-armed at all. He looks quite refined, actually. Can he truly be that powerful in combat?” Some young women from the ancient clans were watching from a distance, their beautiful eyes flickering with curious light.
The Celestial Bazaar truly drew enormous crowds. All manner of living beings from every faction were present.
“Even the Great Sage Hun Tuo holds him in high regard. Even though he is of the human race and does not stand with us, the Great Sage still admires him.”
It had to be said — Ye Fan, having passed through battle after battle, was now renowned across ten thousand clans. Many kept their eyes on him, and wherever he walked, countless gazes followed.
In the end, they left. Duan De’s required materials had not been fully gathered, and they would need to travel elsewhere to find the rest.
The Ancestral Temple of the Central Prefecture was a singular place. It had been shrouded within a belt of black mist for over two hundred thousand years. In Duan De’s words, it rivaled the most terrifying of great tombs, and had to be taken with the utmost seriousness.
Ye Fan and the others all trusted in his abilities and therefore spared no effort to satisfy his needs. They would not enter unless every preparation was complete. They could already foresee that this time, a great many people would die.
“There are still over a dozen materials I’m missing. I’m worried there may be entities like those malevolent spirits lurking in there. Going in without complete preparation is unsettling,” Duan De said.
“No matter. We have an abundance of source stones. We’ll bid for them at auction houses across the entire world!” Ye Fan replied. He began mobilizing every connection at his disposal to hunt down these materials.
Afterward, he and Pang Bo began paying visits to acquaintances from all walks of life — the Crimson Dragon Daoist, the Peacock King, the Saint Wei Yi of the Celestial Pivot Stone Pavilion, the Jiang Family, the Ji Family, the Wind Clan, the Jade Pool, the Thirteen Great Bandits, the reclusive Li Ruoyu of the Clumsy Peak, the Demon Palace of the Heavens, the Barbarian Tribe, and many others. Every day was packed full, crossing the void without pause.
Perhaps stepping into that ancestral temple would mean setting foot upon the Five-Colored Sacrificial Altar and crossing over. They did not want to leave any regrets behind. Every old friend and familiar face they could think of, they sought out to meet one last time.
“I should make a trip to the Western Desert — but it is far too remote, and there’s no certainty I’d be able to find her.” Ye Fan murmured to himself, and then decided he would first tend to a few pressing matters at hand.
In the days that followed, Ye Fan began distributing his treasures. He hung many weapons across the stone cliff, letting Tong Tong, Little Sparrow, and the two spirit children choose freely. He was about to leave, and he left behind a great many spiritual objects.
“What extravagance!” Even Duan De and the Black Emperor were green-eyed with envy, very nearly joining the children in scrambling for them. Even Qi Luo drew a sharp breath in disbelief.
Not a single item Ye Fan left behind was of inferior quality. Every last one was a priceless treasure. If such things were to fall into the outside world, they would inevitably spark a storm of blood and carnage.
Take, for instance, a small black carriage — barely an inch and a half in length, yet crystalline and translucent, flowing with divine radiance. It was a Royal War Chariot, seized from Wang Teng’s younger brother.
The spirit children siblings, Gu Fei and Gu Lin, had sharp eyes indeed. They channeled a surge of spiritual energy, and the small black carriage released ten thousand streams of auspicious brilliance and rapidly enlarged. They climbed aboard, brimming with excitement.
The Mysterious Magnetic Mountain — this was something Ye Fan had brought back from the Ziwei Ancient Star Domain. It was a peak of highly malleable divine iron, capable of continuous growth and evolution. Most remarkable of all was the Mysterious Magnetic Divine Light contained within it, a rarity almost unheard of in the world. This treasure was claimed by little Tong Tong, who held it in her hands and refused to let go.
Beyond that, there was the Ten Thousand Laments Bow, the Diamond Cutter of the Eight Scenic Palace, and a whole series of other magical instruments — all exceedingly rare and precious items — every one of which Ye Fan left behind. He then retrieved a shattered holy weapon, a violet-gold hammer, and passed it to Li Heishui and the others.
“What a kind soul — a living treasury, scattering wealth freely! That green-bronze piece right there…” Duan De rubbed his hands eagerly.
“Go cool off somewhere else!” Ye Fan kept the Myriad Object Mother-Qi Cauldron and a number of other items. He couldn’t possibly give everything away, as he had no intention of abandoning his own cultivation path.
He also gave some of his trump cards to these old friends. He left behind all eighty-one small black flags in their entirety — personally consecrated and refined by the Deathless Heavenly Emperor himself. Just how formidable they truly were was something no one could say with certainty. After Qi Luo and the Black Emperor analyzed and calculated, they concluded that, unleashed in a single all-out strike, they could very likely level an entire holy land.
Pang Bo had few rare treasures to speak of — nothing much worth leaving behind. Even his Nine Divine Soldiers had been looted by Ye Fan from Duan De’s stores for him, a fact that made the unscrupulous Daoist gnash his teeth in resentment every time it crossed his mind. There were also several stone nails — truly fashioned from divine materials, relics used by the Deathless Heavenly Emperor to nail down coffins, capable of piercing anything, their true grade impossible to determine. And an Ancient Imperial Talisman from the Primordial Chaos Era, likewise given by Ye Fan to preserve his life. Then there was a blood-dripping Hell Divine Sword — a shattered holy weapon — recently seized from the Assassin Divine Dynasty when Ye Fan had lured a crowd of enemies to their deaths in a trap.
Ye Fan retrieved the Immortal Treasure Map, obtained from within the Chaotic Dragon’s Lair. He had intended to give it to the monkey, for it had once fallen into the hands of the Battle-Sage Emperor in the primordial years, and perhaps the monkey could glean some insight from it.
The monkey refused, however, saying that in this world there was room enough to cultivate and any wonder could be sought out here, while the far shore of the starry sky was very likely an inhospitable place for cultivators. He told Ye Fan to keep it for himself.
Everyone gathered and discussed what exactly it was. After Qi Luo, Duan De, and the Black Emperor — three seasoned old hands — analyzed and deduced extensively, they speculated that it was very likely an ancient star-path chart of the stellar void, authored by an emperor-level figure.
“You must safeguard this carefully. One day, you may be able to use it to find the way back,” everyone said, a hint of sorrow in their voices.
As for the Qilin Divine Medicine Seed, Ye Fan had no intention of beating around the bush. He stated plainly that he would be taking it with him. The Earth’s vitality was likely depleted, making it a poor environment for cultivators to survive in, and he might one day need the life essence it exhaled to sustain himself.
For this reason, over these past days he had traversed the Northern Region far and wide, digging up an immense quantity of divine source stones — all of it preparation for the Qilin Seed, so that it could one day take root and grow, surrounded by a suitable and nourishing land of purity.
Beyond that, he had purchased large quantities of ancient medicines, spiritual herbs, and the like, all of which he planned to plant within piles of source stones so they could breathe out their spiritual energy and cultivate an environment conducive to practice.
Ye Fan brought out the last of his divine medicines — the three remaining sacred fruits plucked from the forbidden land of antiquity — and left them all for the monkey, Li Heishui, and Li Tian. They were to be used as life-saving measures: as long as there was even a single breath left in a person, these fruits could bring them back.
Beyond that, he kept four drops of the True Dragon Divine Medicine liquid for himself, leaving the remainder for these old friends. The four drops he kept were intended for his and Pang Bo’s parents and family elders — if they were aged and white-haired with little lifespan remaining, one or two drops would be more than enough.
Of course, because there were also the parents of Zhang Wenchang, Liu Yiyi, and the others, he had specially gone out and purchased vast quantities of precious medicines to take back with him for their use.
At the Treasure-Distributing Cliff, Tong Tong and the two spirit children all selected the rare treasures they fancied. Only Little Sparrow blinked her big eyes, clutching her milk bottle and wrinkling her small nose, picking left and right without satisfaction, finding nothing that caught her fancy.
In the end, the little one fixed her eyes on the bell around the Black Emperor’s neck. She found it the most adorable thing, and the way it rang as she walked its path — ding-ling-ling — made her stretch out her small hands, reaching for it.
The big black dog’s already black face grew even darker. The bell instantly vanished from sight. There was absolutely no chance it would ever give that away — to it, that object held a very particular significance.
“If you want a bell, say no more. I happen to have some old scores to settle with someone. I’ll go and claim the foremost divine bell beneath the holy weapons rank and bring it back for you.” Ye Fan ruffled her hair with doting affection.
Not long after, the group crossed the void to the Northern Plains and sought out the Golden Family, coming to collect on old debts. Before departing, Ye Fan went straight to their door.
In the past, Jin Chixiao and his elder brother had both moved against him. Though he had slain both of them, he had done so reactively — defending himself while under attack.
“Fellow Daoist Ye, what happened in those days was all a misunderstanding. My son was spoiled and acted rashly. I beg your forgiveness for any offense.” The patriarch of the Golden Clan appeared. At the sight of Ye Fan and the monkey arriving to settle scores, he felt his heart seize with a sudden spasm.
Now that the Human Race’s Sacred Physique had made his name known across the world, if he truly set his heart on making an enemy of a particular great clan, even one as mighty as theirs would suffer immeasurably.
The battle at the Severed Heaven Mountain Range had sent every major power across the five domains into a cold sweat. Too many strong experts had died there. Since then, no one dared provoke his fury.
Ye Fan had no desire to truly start a war. After the opposing side offered an apology, the Nine Heavens Jade Void Divine Bell was presented to him, and they withdrew. This bell was reputed to be the foremost divine bell beneath the rank of holy weapons — a relic left behind by the Jade Void King of the Central Prefecture in ancient times. It had once been fouled with blood, but was later purchased at auction by the Golden Family of the Northern Plains and cleansed with the Great Earth Divine Marrow, restoring it to its original state.
Sure enough, when Little Sparrow saw the emerald green little bell, she was so delighted that she immediately tossed aside her milk bottle and clasped the fist-sized bell to her chest with both hands.
“Somehow I get the feeling that nothing we have is ever going to be enough. Let’s just buy every spiritual object we come across. Going back to Earth, we might find nothing there at all.” Pang Bo remarked. In the days that followed, he and Ye Fan launched into a frenzied sweep, purchasing everything they might need.
During this time, Ye Fan mobilized every resource at his disposal to search for Xiao Nannan, hoping to find the little girl and ensure she was safe before they left.
“I hope to find her before we go. Let there be no accidents.”
At last, Ye Fan stepped onto the grand formation platform the Black Emperor had carved for him and departed for the Western Desert. Before this final farewell, he wanted to see An Miaoyi one more time. He did not want it to be rushed, like it had been twelve years ago.
The monkey set out with him. He wanted to visit Mount Sumeru and see his uncle. When they had last been at the forbidden land of antiquity, things had been far too hurried, and many matters had been left unasked.