The mythological battlefield had been torn apart. Never before in any era had things been so brutal as this — so many powerhouses engaged in battle, and in one fell moment, four Supremes were dead, their blood-drenched bones laid out in the open.
Ye Fan was cold and domineering, standing tall in the vault of heaven, overlooking the ten thousand ancient skies. His black hair flew wild and loose. He was like a peerless demon god — looking down upon all the world with contempt.
This battle had been brutal. He had personally killed Sovereigns with his own hands, dominant to the very extreme, leaving an indelible impression upon every supreme powerhouse present.
To say nothing of the rest — based on his power alone, he could absolutely pose a threat to the existences within the life Forbidden Zones.
Never before — only in this one era — had so many heroes and champions of an entire generation appeared together. And yet he remained blazing with radiance, an anomaly among all of them: the strongest Sacred Body in all of history!
The battle had been brutal. The former sovereigns of the primordial age bled and died, ending in desolation.
Ye Fan was cold, but not without feeling. This battle had happened only because of differing stances. Otherwise, why would he have opened such a killing field?
The scene was quiet. No one spoke. Many present were moved — for those had been sovereigns of the primordial age. Every one of them had possessed an utterly magnificent past, suppressing the universe, awe-inspiring across the nine heavens and ten earths, unrivaled above and below!
Every last one of them had been so outstanding. They had been young once. They had burned with passion once. They had once protected all living things, their brilliance shining across all of antiquity and all the future to come, without equal under heaven.
Yet in the end, it had all passed away. They had stumbled through the ages, struggling on the road to eternal life — and in the end… they had changed. Declining in the twilight, they ended their lives in ruin.
When one truly thought about it, every single one of them was pitiable. Once so brilliant — having crossed through the sea of blood and battle of the emperor’s road, becoming the mightiest in all the ages — and yet in the end, this was their fate.
“Time, like a blade, cuts down heaven’s favorites. On the road to eternal life, one sighs at ephemeral beauty. A canvas opening in blood and bone — a life’s great sorrow, painted in a single sigh!” Ye Fan murmured softly.
These words rang out, and all present felt a resonance in their hearts. The passing of emperors and sovereigns — a blood-stained and mottled canvas. How much bitterness, how much suffering, how much brilliance, how much glory — all buried within this single sigh.
The great army advanced. Ye Fan’s expression was composed and still. He led the group onward toward the Northern Dipper star region. They were truly setting out to level the Forbidden Zones — not empty words.
All hearts trembled. What a vast and boundless courage this was. Since antiquity, no madman like this had ever existed — one who wanted to end the myth of the Forbidden Zones and uproot those forbidden lands of antiquity.
“Kill!” The Black Emperor barked and howled wildly. Ever since it had been driven away from the Northern Dipper star region in those years gone by, it had only returned once or twice, a knot forever tied in its heart.
“In this lifetime, I will fight until the end — to clear away all troubles for those who come after!” A roar shook the heavens.
The Celestial Court’s forces were truly formidable — comparable to the mythological era, with all manner of powerful beings existing together in one lifetime. Now they had assembled and were marching toward the Northern Dipper star region, heading for the life Forbidden Zones.
Along the way, every clan in the universe trembled. What a terrifying army this was — who had ever dared do such a thing in all of history?
The seven great life Forbidden Zones — like lofty gods on high, demanding sacrifice and reverence. Who dared show disrespect? Who could prevail against them?
All under heaven was in an uproar. In this moment, people were tense and frightened. There was anticipation — and there was terror — as all eyes fixed on Ye Fan and his company.
“Truly a variable in this era. This lifetime may see the rise of the mightiest figure in all of history!”
The sovereign aura of the Northern Dipper surged vast and mighty. Killing intent stirred through the ten thousand eons. Above the ancient Forbidden Zone, there hung a bronze immortal palace, its auspicious vapors drifting, immortal light cascading down. Standing within it was a woman whose beauty outshone all the ages.
The great hole in the bronze palace had long since been repaired and consecrated.
And the Primordial Ancient Mine, the Heavenly Burial Sky Island, the Immortal Mausoleum, the Divine Ruins — all four Forbidden Zones — were also releasing powerful auras outward, forming a terrifying standoff.
Yang Xi and the others felt their hearts trembling. The Empress was magnificent, ancient, and presently supreme. She was ready to launch a strike at any moment. Her body had already transcended the mortal world. Astonishingly, she carried an aura of immortality and undying permanence.
Her face could not be seen. Her immortal countenance remained hidden. But in this moment, Duan De — who had followed the procession here — couldn’t help but shudder. For above his head, the demon cauldron that could swallow the heavens was glowing of its own accord, life essence flowing from within.
The Black Emperor and the unscrupulous Daoist looked at one another, and quickly averted their eyes. They clamped their mouths shut and said not a single word.
“Sacred Body Ye Fan, you are insufferably aggressive — this is an outrage!” A great shout came.
“It is not I who is aggressive. It is you who do not know restraint. This universe is not your breeding ground. In this Golden Great Era, you can no longer do as you please!” Ye Fan thundered.
He was incomparably imposing — truly as though a Heavenly Emperor had descended. Even Ye Tong, Yang Xi, and the rest of his disciples felt a terrifying pressure standing before him.
To say nothing of others — all the supreme powerhouses who had followed to the Northern Dipper or were watching this great upheaval felt their hearts shaking in awe. Ye Fan’s great momentum had fully taken shape. Under heaven, no one could stop him any longer.
“When we were sovereign lords, guarding this universe, your ancestors were still on their knees worshipping us — and now you would rebel?” Another voice came, furious and reproachful.
“I respected you in your first lifetimes. But through the years of your twilight, through generation after generation of dark upheavals, you swallowed how many living beings, and made heaven and earth weep for your sake!” Ye Fan’s expression was calm, but his voice was cold. He thought of Ji Zi, Gai Jiuyou, the White-Clad God King — whenever he thought of them, a kind of pain came over him, full of regret. “After living through blood-stained storms of heaven and earth, I made a vow — that I hoped within my lifetime I could level the Forbidden Zones, so that dark upheavals would never come again!”
“Arrogance!”
“The great emperors of the past have already laid a solid foundation. How many Supremes can remain? In this lifetime, I will fight with my blood until death for the sake of leveling the life Forbidden Zones!” Ye Fan’s voice resounded through the great universe. This vow left everyone astonished and stirred to their cores.
In this moment his voice echoed across every great star region. His invincible will aligned with the heart of heaven. The great universe itself rumbled and rang — trembling for him.
“Kill!”
Ye Fan made his move. The life Forbidden Zone he chose was the Divine Ruins — a place of ancient markings, bearing the relics of the mythological era’s Celestial Court: towers, halls, and palaces. Some of the architecture bore formation inscriptions carved by the Exalted Emperor himself.
In the ancient days, when the old Celestial Court shattered — torn apart in divine warfare — many of its sacred grounds scattered and fell into the vast reaches of the universe. This was the most significant among them.
Boom!
Heaven and earth trembled. Ye Fan extended one great hand and uprooted the Divine Ruins entire, setting it adrift within the star river of the great universe.
The divine might of this was world-shaking. Ignoring the Supreme within, he seized the mountains and rivers by raw force — wrenching the place free, shaking heaven and earth.
Those inside struck out — yet they could not change this fact. Unable to stop any of it. A great hand thrust outward to kill him, and Ye Fan drove it back.
“Kill!”
The monkey roared. Wielding his immortal iron staff, his bearing fierce and powerful, golden fur standing on end all over his body, he was first to charge inside — for within this place were the ancient peach trees of his clan that bore the legendary divine medicine.
This immortal herb had drifted through many hands before being seized by the people of the Divine Ruins. Now he had come to take it back.
At the same moment, the Battle Saint Buddha also struck. Old as he was, his power was no less fierce. One divine ape fist crashed down, shaking heaven and earth.
For the sake of leveling a Forbidden Zone, no one held anything back. The young Old Madman, Xiao Song, and all the rest plunged in to attack — driving deep into the Divine Ruins, striking with their mightiest techniques.
One figure burst outward. In the sky he exploded a massive fragment of immortal source and — forced by desperation — pushed to the ultimate limit of ascension to fight here!
He cried out: “Fellow Daoists! If you will not act now, when will you? Will you truly wait to be picked off one by one?”
Within the Divine Ruins, apparently, only he remained — contrary to what everyone had expected. But it was not contrary to Ye Fan’s — this was precisely why he had chosen this place as his first battlefield.
At this moment the aura of heaven and earth grew disordered. The Primordial Ancient Mine, the Heavenly Burial Sky Island, and the Immortal Mausoleum all shuddered violently. Several powerful auras shot skyward — someone was about to emerge.
Yet with a resonant boom, a great bronze immortal palace took flight, illuminating all of antiquity, the present, and the future. In an instant it sealed the Divine Ruins off from the outside world.
“An immortal artifact!”
In that moment, within the Primordial Ancient Mine, the Heavenly Burial Sky Island, and the Immortal Mausoleum, voices cried out in disbelief, all staring at the bronze immortal palace atop which stood a woman whose bearing was supremely magnificent.
“A true immortal artifact!”
These words made people tremble. The three great Forbidden Zones fell into silence. They were each struck by a flood of thoughts all at once.
“This campaign — I will destroy only the Divine Ruins!” Ye Fan thundered.
The human heart is ever thus. The three Forbidden Zones hesitated for just a moment, seeming to weigh their options — for the cost of emerging was far too great.
Boom!
Ye Fan moved without hesitation. Like a dragon-leopard — agile and swift — he cut across the sky and joined the battle. He came from above and landed one kick that dominated heaven and earth, unstoppable by anyone.
He physically shattered every formation inscription in the sky. His foot came down upon the fist the Supreme of the Divine Ruins had driven upward into the heavens.
The two collided like the meeting of heaven and earth. At first an auspicious energy shook the skies — but then blood erupted in all directions. Both Ye Fan and the Divine Ruins Supreme had poured in their utmost power, compressing hundreds upon hundreds of exchanges into this one supreme strike!
Pu!
The Divine Ruins Supreme’s fist burst apart — flesh and blood shredded. He stumbled backward in disarray.
“Kill!”
Ye Fan roared and struck again. The two clashed like divine dragons intertwining in combat. The exchange was violent and thunderous. Blood flew from time to time, staining the universe’s blue vault of heaven crimson.
Boom!
With one final thunderous impact, Ye Fan sent him flying with a single palm, then seized the killing sword of Numinous Treasure Heavenly Lord and swept it in a horizontal arc — blood-red light flooding out for ten billion miles, cutting the Supreme in two at the waist.
After that, he struck no more. He rose into the sky, coming to rest beside the bronze immortal palace, and together with the Empress faced the three remaining life Forbidden Zones in wordless standoff.
Behind him, the monkey, the Human Demon, and the rest all converged, overwhelming the already-gravely-wounded Divine Ruins Supreme. The Golden Crow Great Emperor’s divine bell came down — clang — and the Supreme’s severed body cracked further apart.
The battle drew to its close. The last Supreme of the Divine Ruins was slain. The great universe resonated and rang. His Dao scattered away. His spirit became ash. All lands in every direction trembled with shock.
Yet another Supreme had come to the end of his life — the first half radiant with glory, the second half defined by savagery. Accompanied by tragic struggle, in his final instant, only desolation remained — and that one startling stroke of blood.
“Time, like a blade, cuts down heaven’s favorites…” Ye Fan murmured softly, gazing toward the last several Forbidden Zones — the Primordial Ancient Mine, the Immortal Mausoleum, the Heavenly Burial Sky Island.
A glorious opening, a blood-stained canvas, a desolate ending — the supreme sovereigns of the Forbidden Zones fell into silence, their hearts full of too many feelings.
They thought of many things. Once revered by every people and clan, once without equal beneath heaven, once proudly unbending with iron bones — yet what remained now?
Was it truly so — time, like a blade, cuts down heaven’s favorites? Ye Fan looked toward the supremely beautiful figure atop the bronze immortal palace. This Empress seemed to have transcended — she was unlike all the rest.