When Ye Fan had first set out, he had fought his way across ten years of time, passing through many dead zones, enduring dozens upon hundreds of trials and tribulations before at last reaching the Human Race’s ancient path.
Now, the time had finally come to return — yet the stellar coordinates he held were not entirely precise.
The Northern Dipper road was very, very far away. Long ago, the cultivators from the Eternal Star Domain who had campaigned against the Northern Dipper had mapped their course through deduction and groping in the dark, continuously calibrating along the way — without any truly exact coordinates.
Ye Fan had obtained this rough set of coordinates back then. “Though not entirely precise, it should be close enough,” he said.
The group stood upon the divine light platform, gazing silently into the distance. In an instant, the stone platform blazed with light and burst forth with radiant brilliance, wrapping them within it as it tore through the void — and they vanished from that place.
In the final moment, they turned to look back at the ancient path behind them. Everything remained imprinted in their hearts. More than half of their lifetimes had been spent here — fighting bloody battles across the starry river, cutting a path through endless slaughter — leaving memories that could never be erased.
The Holy Body of the Human Race had departed. Word spread across dozens of ancient paths, and many people let out a long breath of relief, feeling as though a massive boulder had been lifted from their hearts.
Of course, no small number of cultivators felt regret — especially the younger generation among the Human Race.
“Alas — Elder Ye has actually left. I thought he would enter the ultimate Heavenly Road and fight all the way to the Emperor’s realm.”
“What do you know? That road is no ordinary thing. Perhaps before the moment of confrontation arrives, there will be a supreme and magnificent final battle of the great age — and all the mightiest figures across the entire cosmos will appear.”
“The golden great age has already begun. The most blazing light is about to erupt, and the most terrifying battles are about to unfold. Let us look forward together to witnessing one incomparable divine battle after another!”
The powerful figures among the Human Race naturally hoped that Ye Fan would shine brilliantly, releasing his invincible power, sweeping across the starry sky, and ascending to the absolute pinnacle.
Ye Fan departed into the distance — and yet the starry sky was filled with many legends of him. Many years later, people still spoke of his fame for sweeping through all races without a single match. His combat record shook every domain.
The Holy Body of the Human Race left behind a brilliant chapter, then drifted away.
The vast starry sky, the radiant stars — how many secrets did they conceal? Since ancient times, one powerful figure after another had gone to explore, and none had walked to its end within a single lifetime.
The darkness of the cosmos split open, and a simple, unadorned stone platform charged out from within. Many figures stood upon it: Ye Fan, Ji Ziyue, Long Ma, and the others arrived on the other shore of the starry sky.
“We have returned?” Ji Ziyue murmured, her voice trembling. After more than a hundred years apart, drawing close to home brought a timid hesitation.
Yet what she saw before her was boundless darkness. The starlight was faint and feeble. This was not a great life-bearing continent — they were still adrift in the cosmos.
“Could we have gotten lost?” Long Ma’s expression changed. This was the thing it feared most.
“Can we not return to the Northern Dipper?” Ji Ziyue’s voice carried a tremor.
“Have no fear. It is not far now,” Ye Fan said, gazing ahead, fixing his eyes upon an expanse of the starry river. From that direction, a mysterious aura drifted toward them.
The divine light platform once again tore through the void, carrying them forward into the boundless depths of the starry sky.
This time, the distance was short. They emerged amidst a field of starlight, and in the distance before them a vast stretch of stars came into view — among them, one particular star emanating a vast and surging life force.
“It truly… we have come back!” Ji Ziyue was overcome with emotion. Tears brimmed in her eyes, ready to fall. After so many years away from home, she missed her parents unbearably, and had often woken from dreams with a start.
“Ha, I am here again, you vast realm — prepare to tremble,” Long Ma boasted shamelessly, wearing an expression of utter arrogance.
“This… is the Emperor Burial Star?!”
Whether it was the Bear Saint or the Golden Lion — all of them held an incomparable longing for this ancient star. They had long wished to see it for themselves. What was this place’s pull? That one Great Emperor after another would choose it as their final resting place, and then predict that the path to immortality would one day open here — and now, at last, they had come to behold it.
The immense star rotated slowly, as though nurturing a colossal divine embryo within, waiting for the right moment to emerge. The life force it radiated was extraordinarily vigorous.
Even from a great distance, one could sense it — inspiring reverence.
“We’re home!” Ye Fan said to Ji Ziyue, knowing she desperately wanted to be with her family.
Their group streaked like dozens of meteors across the heavens, arriving in an instant. They came close before the great star and gazed forward.
“Hmm!” Suddenly, Ye Fan’s heart stirred, and he was startled.
“What is it?” Ji Ziyue blinked her large eyes and looked at him questioningly.
“Do you see it — doesn’t the layout of the continents on this ancient star seem to follow some kind of pattern?” Ye Fan pointed ahead. He had harbored doubts about this before, but had never felt it as keenly as he did today.
The five great continents — the Central Province, the Eastern Wastelands, the Western Desert, the Southern Ridge, and the Northern Plains — fitted together in a configuration that was distinctly unusual. If one were to add a few more strokes and make certain adjustments, it would resemble a Five-Colored Sacrificial Altar very closely.
In truth, each of the five continents had its own distinct color. If one were to strip away the surface layer of trees, soil, and mountain rock, they would indeed correspond to the respective colors of the Five-Colored Sacrificial Altar.
“This…” The more everyone thought about it, the more their hearts trembled. With just a little refinement and deliberate arrangement, the resemblance would be unmistakable.
If true — a Five-Colored Sacrificial Altar of this immense scale… the implications were staggering. What kind of coordinates would be needed to activate it? And where would it lead — could it open directly to the immortal domain?
The Northern Dipper was no ordinary place. This ancient star was extraordinarily immense — and these five great continents very possibly served as the foundational base of a sacrificial altar. The revelation was truly astounding.
“We have been duly humbled. The moment we arrive, we are shown a display of overwhelming power. This truly is the Emperor Burial Star,” the Bear Saint and the others all sighed.
They descended, and as they approached the outer space of this great star, they immediately felt a surging killing intent from somewhere nearby. A fierce battle was underway.
They flew forward. This was the outer battlefield — the stage upon which the Northern Dipper’s great battles had been fought throughout the ages. Broken blades and cracked bells drifted through it, along with many enormous bones.
A group of people was locked in a chaotic melee — all different races: golden crows, flood dragons, human-shaped powerhouses, strange beasts, ancient clans of the Northern Dipper — seventeen or eighteen groups in total, the fighting fierce and intense.
By the standard of years gone by, this would have qualified as a great battle. But Ye Fan had witnessed too much during his time in the starry sky, and by now was nearly numb to such things. And his own cultivation had risen — he regarded all of this with calm detachment.
Boom!
Further away, a terrifying wave erupted — Great Sages were clashing!
By the time Ye Fan and the others rushed over, the outcome had already been decided. One combatant was bleeding, fleeing toward outer space. The other let out a cold laugh and did not give chase — simply vanishing from that spot and descending into the Northern Dipper.
Long Ma sucked in a sharp breath of cold air. A single brief glimpse had already shown it this — and one could only imagine the state of turmoil the Northern Dipper had fallen into, or how many ancient holy figures had arrived here.
They crossed through the outer battlefield, witnessing over a dozen battle clusters — chaotic and bloody, fierce and intense.
The age of warring states had arrived. The Northern Dipper had entered a time of chaos.
Without question, the imminent opening of the path to immortality had set countless hearts racing. The saints from outside the domain had descended, and the clash of interests had given rise to endless bloody conflicts.
“After more than a hundred years away — I have returned,” Ye Fan said to himself.
Back then, it was fair to say he had been driven from his homeland — not only because he had to set out onto the ancient road for tempering, but also because he carried the Green Copper Cauldron, which had drawn the concerted pursuit of many saints.
Now, he was no longer the small cultivator of former days. He had reached a level where he could look down upon all under heaven — even a Great Sage was not something he needed to retreat from.
Forced to leave then, he had returned now — and he was uncommonly calm, his gaze flowing as he swept his eyes across this mysterious ancient star.
“Have those of you ahead seen a Saint-realm silver serpent make its escape?” came a shouting voice from the distance.
A group of people approached, some even bellowing at them to move aside. This was a powerful group of individuals, riding a purple-bronze warship. A Saint King led the force, flanked by four Saints standing in a row, with cultivators filling the ship — impressively imposing.
Ye Fan’s group remained expressionless. They had not released any aura — and they said not a word — standing in place, making no move to step aside.
The several-hundred-zhang warship came to a sudden halt. The Saint King aboard wore a grave expression, sensing a wave of unease — and then cupped his hands and hastily offered apologies: “Forgive us, everyone. We meant nothing by it. Speaking carelessly in a moment of urgency — please do not take offense. We will retreat immediately.”
With that, the warship promptly turned around. The Saint King powerhouse, offering his apologies, drove the vessel backward at full speed to give way.
“Why did the ancestor react like that? We represent the Gouch’en Ancient Star — if a conflict really broke out, would those people truly not fear us, the forces of the Gouchen Star?”
“Be quiet. What do you know? Those were a group of Saint Kings — not even a single ordinary Saint among them!”
…
Ye Fan and the others descended, crossing paths with eight warships in succession. It had to be said — now that a time of chaos had descended, a number of the ships’ passengers were overtly hostile, and nearly came to blows.
The ninth warship passed them by. Its occupants were a group of ancient clan powerhouses who, awed by Ye Fan and the others’ bearing, did not make a move — but those on the ship could not help glancing over for a moment.
Among them, a middle-aged man with three heads and six arms — godlike and demon-like in bearing, extraordinarily imposing — was a rising powerhouse who had made a name for himself among the ancient clans in recent years. He looked, and looked again, and then his expression suddenly changed dramatically.
“I… am I not mistaken?” He wanted to keep looking, to identify the figure more carefully — but he had already lost sight of Ye Fan and could only furrow his brow in deep puzzlement.
“Mu Ni, what is wrong?” an ancestral king asked. He was quite pleased with this disciple of his: setting aside those from outside the domain, Mu Ni was one of the top ten rising powerhouses among the ancient clans in recent years.
“The back of that person just now looked very familiar — like someone from years ago,” Mu Ni said with a deeply grave expression.
“Who?” the elder asked.
“The Holy Body of the Human Race — the one who nearly tore through the heavens back in those days,” Mu Ni replied.
“What?!” The elder was utterly shocked. “Are you certain you are not mistaken?”
“I only caught a side profile and a back view — I cannot be sure. After all, I only ever glimpsed him from a distance once, and to those of our generation, he was simply far too fearsome a presence,” Mu Ni said.
Back then, Ye Fan had swept across the seas, fighting the world, clashing with the ancient clans in battle after battle. Even before becoming a Saint, he had shattered Sacred Domain barriers and begun slaying Saints!
For the young generation of the ancient clans, he was like a mountain — pressing down on all of their hearts, leaving them breathless. He was the most fearsome rival they had set in their minds. The brilliant feats of cutting down Yuangu and slaying the Heavenly Emperor’s Son were enough to shake the ages, filling the young generation with despair. Not even the sons of ancient Emperors could stand against him — who else could possibly compete? One could only imagine the pressure bearing down upon their generation.
“It should not be him. He had already set foot upon the ancient path — and even if he did not die in combat out there in the outer domains, he could not return until reaching the Great Sage level. Given how short a time has passed, it would be impossible,” the elder said, brow furrowed.
“He really did look like him,” Mu Ni said.
“All of you in this generation have truly been undone by him — the weight of his presence has been too heavy on you all, leaving shadows in your hearts. That is not a good thing,” the ancestral king shook his head.
“I genuinely believe it is him,” Mu Ni insisted.
The ancestral king, hearing his tone grow ever more certain, could not help but turn grave himself. “If it truly is him, then a storm of blood and carnage is coming once again. The Holy Body of the Human Race will most certainly stir up heaven-shaking waves.”
“Should we inform the other clans?” Mu Ni asked.
“What business is that of theirs? This has nothing to do with us. We observe — no, lock down the mountain gates immediately. No matter how blood-soaked the outside world becomes, let none of our clan members venture out.” The ancestral king gave an absolute command, and immediately ordered the ship to turn around and race back toward their clan’s territory. He felt the situation was deeply serious.
Ye Fan descended upon the land of the Eastern Wastelands, gazing at this magnificent expanse of mountains and rivers. A thousand thoughts surged through him — he had come back once more. What awaited him here, he did not yet know.
This place was not too far from the life-forbidden zone of the Uncivilized Ancient Land. A quick glance in that direction revealed many cave dwellings nestled among the peaks outside this life-forbidden zone — speculation was rife that the path to immortality might open here — and a group of Saints of considerable power stood vigil there.
Ye Fan looked for a moment, then did not linger. The group moved on toward the distance.
“Wait — who was that? And that horse… Good heavens, could it be that the Holy Body of the Human Race has returned?!” One of the young ancient clan members murmured to himself, his face filled with stunned disbelief.
“Is it really… him?” The person beside him stared at the vanishing silhouette on the distant horizon — standing motionless, in a daze — then composed himself and said with firm resolve: “This has nothing to do with us!”