Vital energy surged in all directions. Immortal light blazed and scattered. The landscape collapsed into ruin — every part of that vast region except for the Primordial Magnetic Immortal Cave itself was reduced to smoldering ash and debris.
Boom!
Pure essence surged and roared. Divine magnetic force danced through the air. Every kind of radiance and light spread in all directions, splitting the sky and shattering the earth, as though the end of the world had come.
In the distance, Rui Wei’s expression changed. She knew Ye Fan was in there, pushing herself through danger in pursuit of cultivation — and now this had happened. She rushed forward immediately, determined to see what had become of things.
“What do you think you are doing?” she called out the moment she caught sight of Yan Chifeng and the others, who had deliberately triggered the tempest of primordial magnetic immortal light.
“What does it have to do with you?” one of the group replied, looking down at her with cold indifference.
“Stop!” Rui Wei, though she appeared delicate in frame, was resolute and decisive. She stood ready to face all of them alone, intending to block them long enough to buy Ye Fan some time.
One of the group scoffed. “Knowing your place — some wild cultivator from a remote and savage land dares to get in our way? Step aside immediately, or we will leave you without even a grave to be buried in.”
“We cannot let him go,” another said. “This person has some connection to Ye Fan. Since he has come, we might as well eliminate him too.”
Yan Chifeng had still harbored some hesitation a moment ago — he was worried Ye Fan might suddenly charge out. But now he had grown calm, because the primordial magnetic immortal light had been fully unleashed. No matter who came, it would be useless. There was no escaping the resonance of that field energy. Anyone who tried would be reduced to ash.
“Kill him!” Yan Chifeng said, the faintest hint of contemptuous disdain curling at the corner of his mouth. He pointed toward Rui Wei. At once, the people around him sprang into motion, various precious treasures blazing with divine radiance as they advanced together.
Crack!
A terrifying sound rang out abruptly. Immortal light steamed and surged. The depths of the primordial magnetic cave shook violently — and then a torrent surged outward like a mountain flood or an ocean tide.
A lone rider charged through the dazzling light, shattering the magnetic force, emerging like a battle god.
From the Primordial Magnetic Immortal Cave, it was as though a volcanic sea of blood was flooding outward in every direction. They carried with them a heaven-engulfing divine blaze, the horse’s hooves thundering through the open sky, their momentum vast and overwhelming beyond all measure.
Slash!
Several precious treasures flying toward Rui Wei were swept by a single beam of light and reduced to splinters — not even worth a second glance.
“You wanted to see me off and help me ascend to immortality?” Ye Fan sat upon Long Ma, tall and powerfully built, his black hair streaming behind him. His gaze was cold as lightning. Man and horse together radiated brilliant treasure-light — looking nothing short of divine in their might and grandeur.
“You entered the Primordial Immortal Cave and still did not die…” These people felt a chill run through their bodies from head to toe. What kind of extraordinary fortune must that have taken?
A moment ago they had been full of arrogant swagger and self-satisfaction, convinced that heaven had smiled upon them — that they had used the ancient magnetic cave to put an end to a great enemy. And yet here the man was, having cut his way straight back out.
Whoosh!
A divine needle flew out — silent and without warning, only a faint glimmer of light trailing behind it — aimed directly at the back of Ye Fan’s skull. Someone had launched a sneak attack. Things had come this far — there was no possibility of a peaceful resolution. Better to strike first and gain the advantage.
This group of people all possessed extraordinary divine abilities. United together, they were a fearsome force. Several of them in particular were sons and daughters of major factions within the Second Sacred City of the Human Race — true local powers. Over all these years, they had used their connections to enter the trial ground many times, reaping enormous rewards, and had never once suffered a setback.
A halo of light rose from behind Ye Fan’s head. The divine needle was reduced to ash in an instant. At the same moment, primordial magnetic immortal light flashed in Ye Fan’s eyes and shot outward.
“Aaah—!”
A scream rang out. The body of the sneak attacker dissolved entirely, then became flying ash. Not even the primordial spirit managed to escape — both form and spirit were annihilated.
“He has absorbed and fused the primordial magnetic immortal light?!” Yan Chifeng sucked in a sharp breath. Across all the ages, countless outstanding talents had sought to gather and contain this immortal light — and nearly all of them had perished in the attempt. He called out urgently: “Do not use metal weapons!”
The others changed color. Some opened their mouths and expelled a jade bell. Others sent a stone sword flying out from between their brows — each one a rare and precious secret weapon, formidable in power. Together they launched their assault.
This place became chaos — surging energy and uncontrolled forces shook the heavens and moved the earth, terrifying beyond all description.
Yet Ye Fan swept his right hand in a broad arc, and a curtain of immortal light tore outward — unstoppable as a collapsing mountain. Every single weapon was shattered and crumbled into dust.
Ye Fan’s destructive power was immense. He had cultivated primordial magnetic immortal light — not traditional electromagnetic force — and it could shatter non-metal objects just as easily.
“Kill!”
Someone shouted the command, yet turned and fled at full speed in the same breath. The ones at the front immediately went pale. Their own companions had run — so how were they supposed to keep fighting?
Slash!
Ye Fan raised his hand and released a wave of light — rippling outward like rings on water, moving with extreme speed. Those who had fled disintegrated on the spot, dissolving into a mist of blood.
“Since you were all so generous as to want to see me off, there is no need to rush away like this,” Ye Fan said. “I would like to give you all a proper send-off first.” He stood there like a god of slaughter, a lone rider sealing off every path of escape.
“Brother Ye, I am glad you are all right,” Rui Wei called out.
Ye Fan expressed his gratitude, then turned his attention back to the group and moved to strike. Without a shred of mercy, he pressed his attack.
The primordial magnetic immortal light surged in wave upon wave. Four more people cried out in succession as their primordial souls were ejected from their bodies, dissolved into field energy, and scattered into the heaven and earth. Their physical forms then crumbled to ash.
This was a killing technique of absolute finality — striking directly at the soul. Of the more than ten people present, nearly half were gone in the blink of an eye. Those who remained were profoundly shaken. Even Yan Chifeng’s expression had changed — after emerging from the immortal cave, their opponent had gained something enormous. He was already able to drive this kind of force.
“Do we have any choice?” someone shouted. “We all attack together and kill him — or we are dead! Trying to run now will definitely be too late. This executioner will not let a single one of us go!”
Ye Fan pointed one finger forward. Every one of the people who charged at him had their bodies collapse and break apart, the primordial magnetic immortal light reducing them to splinters inch by inch. Their primordial souls were shaken free and dissolved in an instant — destroyed even faster than their physical forms.
The few who remained were chilled from head to toe. This secret art was too terrifying — it was as though a divine king were on patrol, gazing down upon the common mortals of the mortal world below.
Yan Chifeng let out a faint sigh. When it came down to it, these people were simply too far outmatched by Ye Fan — what other outcome could there have been? They had gravely underestimated him.
Now that he thought about it, Guan Cheng and the Second Leader of the Thirteen Riders of Tianhuang had deliberately belittled and understated Ye Fan’s true combat strength — clearly just using them to stir up trouble. And neither of them had followed them in. Truly infuriating.
“I will leave these to you,” Ye Fan said, releasing the remaining individuals to Long Ma. He himself turned to face Yan Chifeng.
On all four sides, sacred beasts drew close, watching intently — yet none dared to interfere, sensing the extraordinary power of these human beings.
“This seat will send you all on your way!” Long Ma declared, transforming into a beam of primordial magnetic immortal light and charging forward. Its basin-sized hooves slammed and cleaved — and screams rang out as flesh and splintered bone sprayed through the air.
Ye Fan and Yan Chifeng clashed fiercely. Divine light blazed in every direction. Wondrous techniques poured forth without end. Yan Chifeng had cultivated for many long years and endured in silence for just as long, believing he had accumulated enough. He had thought himself ready to step out onto the ancient stellar path — and yet he could not have imagined that his very first encounter would bring him face to face with such a formidable enemy.
They fought with ferocious intensity, each staking everything without holding back. Yan Chifeng was genuinely formidable — a rare expert, surpassing even the Ruler of the Mountain of Sovereign Might. He wielded a divine warrior’s whip, and each time he cracked it, it produced the sound of thunder and wind. Mountain ranges in the distance collapsed one after another. He fought until his eyes went red.
He was powerful — truly an uncommon master — but when matched against Ye Fan, he was ultimately destined to taste nothing but bitter defeat.
The forbidden weapons on Yan Chifeng’s body detonated one after another — treasures left behind by his mysterious great-ancestor as lifesaving measures. Some of them were even capable of dealing grievous wounds to Sage Kings. And yet not one of them was able to land a hit on Ye Fan.
In the end, Ye Fan swept a bronze sword through the air. In a single stroke, Yan Chifeng’s upper body was sent flying — cut clean in two at the waist.
Yan Chifeng let out a great cry. From his mouth he spat out a tiny figure identical to himself, which rushed to meet the pursuing Ye Fan head-on. In a blaze of light and fire, his primordial spirit vanished — and his physical body was reduced to dust.
“The Substitute Death Technique,” Ye Fan said, his expression ice-cold.
On the other side, Long Ma also finished its battle. Those few individuals had all been crushed beneath its hooves — not one had escaped.
“Yan Chifeng has some backing behind him,” Ye Fan murmured to himself. “If someone who does not follow the rules goes back to the city and starts talking, that could become troublesome.” A sense of urgency came over him. He needed to find an ancient land to break through his cultivation.
Tens of thousands of li away, several elderly men were flying through the air — the subordinates of Imperial Heaven, who had somehow managed to sneak inside.
“Hmm — so the so-called trial ground is not so terribly difficult to enter after all. Whether by intention or by accident, the divine materials they sent us left behind a gap that can be entered and exited.”
“Be careful — that Grand Commander is no ordinary person.”
The several elderly men were all far from common. They were members of foreign races that Imperial Heaven had subdued during his time deep within the ancient stellar paths — each one of them possessed of profound and formidable power. After entering, they immediately began searching for Ye Fan.
“The Source of the Dao can only realize its true value in the hands of the Imperial Heaven Young Master. As for that leaf — thinking it can walk its own path? He is about to understand what reality looks like.”
These individuals were on the hunt for Ye Fan, pushing forward without rest, conducting a thorough search of the entire area.
At this moment, Ye Fan was facing an extremely serious problem. Having comprehended the Dao throughout this trial ground and then cultivated within the Primordial Magnetic Immortal Cave, his cultivation realm had become truly impossible to suppress any longer.
He stood alone on a piece of ancient earth, driving fierce and powerful fist force outward, punching through the sky, destroying vast swaths of the void, releasing a torrent of matchless and incomparable power.
He was releasing the excessive vital energy and battle force accumulating within him. Otherwise, he feared that in the space of the next quarter hour, he would break through his current stage and achieve sainthood — not that he was unwilling to do so, but he felt this ancient land was not the place he had in mind.
Boom!
The Combat Saint Art, the Unity of Phenomena, the Six Paths Reincarnation Fist, the Five Elements Divine Light, the Golden Divine Treasury, the Primordial Magnetic Immortal Light — in this single moment, Ye Fan unleashed every secret art at his command, elevating his total battle power to its absolute peak.
And then he triggered the divine prohibition — the All Word Secret also came into effect. The power was heaven-shaking in its ferocity. It was actually enough to punch through the restrictions of this sealed place. A rift was torn through the heavens — and the vast expanse of the stellar cosmos was revealed beyond it.
“The aura of an ancient Great Emperor!” Ye Fan’s spirit trembled, and an expression of disbelief crossed his face. He sensed that somewhere beyond lay a mighty ancient star that seemed perfectly suited to him — the ideal place to break through and achieve sainthood.
At the same moment, many people throughout the Primordial Dao Ground were shaken. The savage and domineering energy that had just erupted — devouring mountains and rivers, seemingly capable of shattering the entire cosmos — had triggered a resonance in the hearts of no small number of people.
“It is extraordinarily powerful,” someone murmured. “It felt as though the entire ancient ground was being torn apart.” People began moving toward the source of the disturbance.
Yet in the brief instant when Ye Fan’s attention was momentarily fixed elsewhere, the restrictive formations repaired themselves. The stellar cosmos vanished. The rift in the heavens healed. Everything was gone.
He was not troubled by this. He had managed to break through once — he could break through again. He had a direction now.
“Hmm — Friend Ye, we meet again. Truly, one never knows when paths will cross.” The several elderly men had finally tracked him down.
“How did you get in here?” Ye Fan asked coolly. In that instant, he thought of Grand Commander Yu Han. It was becoming clear that the Second Sacred City of the Human Race was deeply complicated — there were no good people to be found anywhere within it.
One of the elderly men stepped forward. “We admire your talent and would rather not waste it. The Imperial Heaven Young Master carries the great ambition to devour the ancient and boundless cosmos. In the future he builds, there will be a place for you at his side. Would you be willing to offer up the Source of the Dao and pledge your loyalty?”
“You few members of a foreign race have broken into the trial ground of the human race,” Ye Fan said, his voice low and heavy. “You have already committed an offense punishable by death — and still you speak such shameless, arrogant words.”
“Rules exist to be broken,” one of the foreign races replied with cool indifference. “Whether or not you can accept that, reality is what it is.”
Ye Fan’s black hair swirled in all directions. His eyes were cold as lightning as he faced them directly, killing intent rising and falling like ocean waves.
One of the group let out a cold snort. “You are not recognized by heaven and earth — you are destined to be a supporting player in this great age. And still you dream of attaining the Dao? You do not know your own place. Becoming an Emperor is a hope you will never see fulfilled.”
“Becoming an Emperor — and I still need someone else’s recognition for that?” Ye Fan said, his voice unhurried and calm. “As for the Source of the Dao — in my eyes, it is nothing at all. My path is something you do not understand, and something you will never live to see.”
“How could we not see it clearly?” the other replied. “You are on the verge of achieving sainthood — and your combat strength is genuinely terrifying. You have the capacity to slay saints and cut down countless heroes. Yet today, with us here, you have no hope. You will not achieve sainthood. Let us help you see reality for what it is.” The several foreign races closed in, surrounding him from all sides.