The vast hall, spanning several hundred zhang in every direction like an open plaza, was dim and desolate. A solitary skeleton lay there in silence, its body riddled with horrifying finger-sized holes.
Not far away, on the purple rocky ground, lay scattered fragments of stone garments — tattered and ruined, long since unrecognizable.
“Zhang Jiye!”
Ye Fan strode forward. There was no mistake — the stone garment fragments on the ground were made of the same material as the one he wore, both fashioned from the old skin of a divine source. The skeleton had fractures in multiple places. That someone could endure injuries this severe and still make it this far spoke to an extraordinary will to live.
Beside the remains lay a silver book, clearly forged from metal, roughly a hundred pages thick, and unusually heavy in hand. Three ancient characters were engraved upon its cover: Source Heaven Scripture.
The characters were etched with sweeping, iron-brushed strokes — bold, weighty, and composed, like three ancient dragons lying in repose.
“It truly is the Source Heaven Scripture!”
Ye Fan’s heart surged with excitement. He had entered the Purple Mountain for this very purpose, and had nearly abandoned all hope — yet at this critical moment, he had actually obtained it.
In the Northern Region, over countless thousands of years, excessive source extraction had nearly depleted the source veins, making source ever more precious.
Ye Fan’s constitution was extraordinary — he required immense quantities of source. In the past, that had posed a formidable challenge. But now things were different. With this scripture in hand, if he could cultivate to become a Source Heaven Master, finding ordinary source in abundance would be no problem — even discovering divine source would not be out of the question.
“Ha ha…” He could not suppress a burst of laughter.
Every step forward he took required ten times the source of the last. Even the first realm of the Dao Palace was already beyond what a small sect could sustain — the astronomical figures required beyond that were enough to suffocate a person.
“Everything will have a solution now…”
Ye Fan opened the Source Heaven Scripture. Streams of silver radiance burst forth, shimmering and resplendent, like countless diamonds catching the light.
This was truly a priceless treasure. Setting aside its contents entirely, even its material was extraordinarily rare in the world — indestructible, similar in quality to the golden pages upon which the Dao Scripture was recorded.
“This is a secret treasure. No wonder it could breach the Purple Mountain — even those without profound cultivation can wield it.”
Within its pages, each ancient character glowed like a star in the heavens, brilliant and luminous. Anyone who laid eyes on this silver scripture would find themselves unable to put it down.
The opening passage made its purpose clear: this was not merely a sacred text for locating source — it expounded upon the relationship between heaven, earth, and humanity, explaining how one could draw close to the Dao through source, with the ultimate goal of achieving unity between man and heaven.
“Look up to observe the patterns of heaven; look down to study the laws of earth; observe the markings of birds and beasts, and the fitness of the land…”
“Inner breath stirs and grows; outer breath takes form and shape; inner and outer multiply upon one another…”
“Breath scattered by wind disperses; breath bound by water halts. The ancients gathered it so it would not scatter; they guided it so it would come to rest…”
Ye Fan turned the pages one after another, encountering passage after passage of such writings. This was truly a vast and profound field of learning.
As he read further, the silver metallic pages radiated extraordinary brilliance, and his expression grew increasingly solemn. This was worthy of being called a wondrous scripture — the arts within it bordered on the Dao itself.
It did not speak of cultivation methods in the conventional sense, yet it approached the laws of the Dao from another angle — its scope was sweeping, examining the formations of mountains and rivers, the structure of terrain and landforms, the transformations of celestial phenomena, encompassing the theory of Yin, Yang, and the Five Elements, and even the methods of resonance between humanity and heaven. It was profound and abstruse, difficult to decipher.
“Above, it corresponds to the stars; below, it maps the earth. Heaven and earth give birth to all things; the hexagrams move and settle into place…” Ye Fan read to the end and fell into silence for a long while. It was far too intricate — a scripture of immense depth, touching upon far too many subjects.
“No wonder that since ancient times, only five Source Heaven Masters have ever emerged. The Zhang Family possesses such a wondrous scripture, and yet only the founding ancestor ever mastered it.”
Ye Fan sighed. Becoming a Source Heaven Master was extraordinarily difficult. The hundred pages of the Source Heaven Scripture were filled with knowledge of staggering complexity — it would require enormous effort and deep contemplation to unravel, and could not possibly be accomplished in one swift effort.
As he turned to the latter half, his astonishment grew with each page — moving mountains and seas, resonating with star constellations, the union of man and heaven…
“No wonder a Source Heaven Master could contend with the unrivaled powerhouses of the Holy Lands.”
When he reached the final few pages, Ye Fan suddenly noticed that beneath each line of text, there was a row of smaller characters — written in a script different from the main body of the Source Heaven Scripture, as though added by a later hand.
“The valley at its center holds no valley — formless and shadowless, moving against nothing, yielding to nothing; dwelling in the low without stirring, keeping to stillness without diminishing. The valley is formed through this, yet its form is never seen…”
This was a cultivation method — unmistakably outside the original text of the Source Heaven Scripture. He was greatly surprised. This was the technique of the Five Divinities — the mental cultivation method for the Dao Palace, the secret art of nourishing life.
When Ye Fan had first set out on the path of cultivation, the elderly Wu Qingfeng had spoken to him of this: that beyond the Far Shore, many people sought cultivation for the sake of longevity.
Later, he came to understand that cultivating the Dao Palace and nurturing the Five Divine Spirits was the secret method of extending one’s lifespan — and the very foundation of cultivating Dao power.
“This is clearly a life-nourishing art…” Ye Fan murmured to himself. The text spread across several pages was written in broad strokes, but it was sufficient for greatly increasing one’s lifespan.
The more he read, the more astonished he became. By the time he finished those pages, he found himself utterly captivated.
“This is truly the mental cultivation method of the Dao Palace’s secret realm — though it is incomplete, it seems to be a highly condensed summary and distillation. But it is extraordinarily profound. If one cultivates according to it, remarkable achievements should follow…”
What kind of mysterious technique was this? Its profundity was no less than that of the Dao Scripture itself. One glance was enough to tell it was a supreme and peerless secret manual.
Suddenly, a hazy thought arose in his mind — could this perhaps be an incomplete mental cultivation method from the Jade Pool? He felt there was a real possibility.
In those distant days, the Jade Pool’s Holy Maiden had been the beloved companion of Source Heaven Master Zhang Lin. Upon learning of his disappearance in his later years, she had disregarded her own life and safety and entered the Demon Mountain to search for him — which spoke plainly enough to the extraordinary bond between them.
“Perhaps that is indeed what happened — the Jade Pool’s Holy Maiden gave him part of her mental cultivation method to nourish his life and extend his lifespan…”
The silver celestial scripture was truly a secret treasure. When Ye Fan absorbed it into his body, it came to rest alongside the golden pages of the Dao Scripture, floating side by side — one gold, one silver — flickering with metallic luster, a striking sight to behold.
He dug a pit in the ground, laid Zhang Jiye’s remains inside, set up a stone marker beside the grave, and bowed deeply. “Rest here in peace,” he said.
The vast, empty hall held nothing else. Ye Fan searched for a considerable time but found no trace of the supreme weapon — the bell.
“It seems a great emperor’s weapon is not so easily obtained. It may well have been left here to suppress something.” He shook his head and gave up the search.
He had already obtained the Source Heaven Scripture — he had no other wishes. It was time to leave.
Yet the moment he stepped out of the hall, he would almost certainly encounter those primordial creatures again. The way back had already been cut off.
“What now?” Ye Fan furrowed his brow. The Purple Mountain was anything but a benign place. The longer he remained, the more unpredictable things would become. Even the immensely powerful Divine King of the Eastern Desolation had been trapped here for four thousand years and was on the verge of crumbling to dust — if he could not find a way out, he certainly would not last more than a few years.
Ye Fan summoned the cauldron, letting it hover above his head with threads of primordial yellow-black qi streaming down to shield his physical body, then made his way out of the hall, step by careful step.
But he had barely gone any distance before a piercing shriek rang out. Seven or eight primordial creatures appeared simultaneously, each one grotesque and unlike the others, converging on him from all sides.
Some resembled birds; others looked like crocodiles; a few even had vaguely human forms. Their howls and roars shook one ancient mine after another.
Even the six-armed creature was not among the most powerful — there were beings far more terrifying still, advancing in great strides, each step causing the void itself to buckle and cave inward.
With a single stride, all ten directions trembled — it moved like an emperor!
The creature bore a striking resemblance to a human male, save that it possessed three heads and nine arms. It wore armor, and its violet hair whipped and thrashed through the air, actually cleaving apart the void with each lash.
“This creature doesn’t even come from the supreme divine source — how can it already be this terrifyingly powerful!”
Ye Fan was deeply shaken. Such an existence was entirely beyond estimation. Were it to be unleashed upon the mortal world, very few among humanity’s greatest powerhouses would be able to suppress it.
He did not hesitate. He plunged into the cauldron and hurtled backward through the air.
A frigid, bone-chilling snort rang out. The violet-haired figure descended like a god from the heavens, landing just outside the hall. Its eyes were deep and unfathomable as an ocean, enough to disturb the heart and soul.
All three heads and all nine arms moved at once, unleashing a suffocating surge of energy. The ancient mines around it crumbled without a sound. The other primordial creatures all trembled with fear, retreating in haste — several even dropped directly to their knees in prostration.
Without question, the violet-haired figure was a being of supreme rank among the primordial creatures. The void around it had cracked open, and nine massive hands reached into the hall — manifesting like the image of an Immovable Wisdom King, binding all things in place.
Ye Fan felt his cauldron being dragged backward. The creature was actually trying to pull him out. That terrifying pressure made him feel as though his very soul might shatter.
From within the cauldron he cried out, activating the mental cultivation method of the Dao Scripture. He deployed the Nine Secrets, his body trembling like a war deity, divine power surging throughout him, resisting the retreat of the cauldron of primal qi.
“Clang!”
A deep, resonant toll rang out. The three-headed, nine-armed violet-haired figure let out a muffled groan, cast one reluctant glance back into the hall, then stepped away and vanished in the blink of an eye.
The terrifying, heart-stopping shockwave receded like a tide. The other primordial creatures vanished in an instant as well, completely gone.
Ye Fan’s heart remained cold. That violet-haired figure was far too terrifying — its divine might capable of shaking the world. If it were ever released, it would surely bring boundless catastrophe.
“Three heads, nine arms… why does it remind me so much of certain divine figures…” The thought surfaced in his mind.
But there was no time to dwell on it. Finding a way to escape was what mattered most.
“This bell sound… this hall…”
Ye Fan realized with a start that the entire hall was very likely the great bell itself from ancient times — the supreme weapon of the great emperor who had lived some hundred thousand years ago.
“It’s enormous — how could I ever contain it…” Ye Fan attempted it, but it was like a mayfly trying to shake a great tree. The most powerful restrictions imaginable had clearly been laid here. The great emperor was long gone, yet the bell’s power remained supremely formidable, as though some vast divine force still circulated within it.
“You… why are you wandering around like this…” Suddenly, the voice of Divine King Jiang Taixu reached him — still faint and feeble to the extreme.
“Senior, you’re alright — what a relief!” Ye Fan heard his transmission and felt a surge of joy.
“They have… awakened. You cannot leave now.” Jiang Taixu’s divine sense was even weaker than before, yet the fact that he could locate Ye Fan within the Purple Mountain was itself a testament to the Divine King’s terrifying power.
“Senior, if we join forces we can surely break through together. I have divine spring water here — it can help you recover your divine power.”
“If you had come ten years earlier, perhaps… I might have had a sliver of hope.”
Divine King Jiang spoke in fragmented bursts, saying that his lamp had burned down to its last drops of oil. There was no way for him to break free from the place where he was trapped. Even if Ye Fan were to pluck sacred fruit and bring it to him, it would be useless — he could no longer reach for it.
At the same time, Ye Fan received a piece of very troubling news.
Even without the primordial creatures, once one entered the Purple Mountain, it was nearly impossible to leave. This was a place of absolute confinement — the great emperor who had lived some hundred thousand years ago possessed means that defied heaven and earth, fashioning this place into its own separate realm. There was entry, but no exit.
“One of the Nine Secrets… I have already transmitted it… No matter what… it will not perish with me…”
Jiang Taixu spoke these words with great difficulty, barely clinging to consciousness. Ye Fan immediately understood his intent. This supreme secret art was known, beneath all of heaven, to him alone. It was not an ancient scripture of the Jiang Family. He had wanted to find someone to pass it down to — to settle one final wish of his heart.
“Senior, do not worry. If I escape from this place, I will notify the Jiang Family to come and rescue you!”
“No!” Jiang Taixu’s response was sharp with urgency. “I am on the verge of perishing. There is no need for anyone to come and throw their lives away. This place… do not tell them.”
“What exactly is this place?” Ye Fan asked.
But after those words, Jiang Taixu fell silent and was heard no more.
This place was shrouded in mystery. Primordial creatures had taken dominion over the nine dragon veins, guarding the Purple Mountain — each vein concealing a supreme divine source. What had the Purple Mountain been in the time before antiquity?
The great emperor who had lived some hundred thousand years ago had come here as a later arrival. What had he done in this place?
Ye Fan let out a long sigh. To understand all of this, it seemed the only path was to fully unravel the secrets of the Source Heaven Scripture.
With the way back sealed off and no path leading outward, Ye Fan steeled himself and pressed deeper into the Purple Mountain.
He had barely left the hall when he sensed a malevolent, demonic force calling out to him — so powerful that he nearly left the ground and began drifting toward its source involuntarily.
“No wonder even the Divine King was trapped and perished here. This demonic force…” Ye Fan’s body trembled. His control over himself had completely slipped away — even his soul felt as though it wished to leave his body.
One could only imagine: in those ancient days, a generation’s Divine King, sovereign over the Eastern Desolation, born with an unbending spirit — he must have gone to investigate the source of this power. And in the end, he could not resist it…
“Could it be a creature from within the nine pieces of divine source?”
Unable to endure the pull of this force, Ye Fan began retreating. And then, suddenly, he spotted something with a start — roughly one li away stood an enormous stone scripture.
Yes — the space ahead was wide open, visible in a single glance. A stone scripture stood upright upon the ground, more than ten meters tall and one to two meters thick.
Something on his body began emitting a dazzling radiance — the jade pendant. The Emperor’s Jade he had obtained from the old man with the great beard.
“What is this…”
Ye Fan moved forward step by step, enduring the danger of having his soul torn asunder, slowly drawing closer to the stone scripture.
Less than one li — yet it took Ye Fan three full hours to traverse. Deep footprints trailed behind him in the earth. Sweat soaked the ground beneath him. Every bone in his body felt on the verge of splitting.
His ears roared with a constant hum, his mind growing hazy and dim. The demonic pull had grown almost beyond bearing — yet he finally arrived before the stone scripture at last.
Here, things were somewhat better. The demonic force was weakened, and his mind cleared noticeably.
“Hss!”
He drew a sharp breath. Behind the stone scripture, creeping vines blanketed the earth in lush abundance. The ancient mines were overgrown with plant life — the demonic force was emanating directly through them.
“A few more li, and I’d reach the very heart of the Purple Mountain,” he muttered to himself.
Just then, he noticed that the Emperor’s Jade upon him was growing brighter and brighter, while the thick stone scripture also began emitting a soft, gentle radiance.
Ye Fan stepped forward, brushed away the dust of ages, and on its surface read three large characters: Scripture of Wushi!
“This is…” His heart trembled. Any text daring to be called a “scripture” was almost certainly a supreme divine tome.
He naturally thought at once of the great emperor who had lived some hundred thousand years ago — this was in all likelihood the ancient scripture he had left behind.
Ye Fan could not contain the shock in his heart. The Eastern Desolation held only a handful of ancient scriptures in total — and here was one supreme canon that had never seen the light of the world. How could he not be moved?
“Why won’t it open?!” He strained to turn the pages, but found them utterly immovable — the stone scripture was heavier than a mountain.
The Scripture of Wushi was like the very root of heaven and earth — it could not be shaken, could not be opened.
He tried passing the jade pendant across its surface, drawing upon it — but to no avail. The scripture merely grew faintly luminous, with not the faintest hint of opening.
“Of course — this jade pendant is incomplete…” Ye Fan was filled with regret. If the ancient jade were whole, he might have been able to obtain an ancient scripture that would shake both past and present ages.
“The Scripture of Wushi — just hearing its name unsettles my heart. What a pity I cannot obtain it…” He sat atop the stone scripture, trying everything he could, all of it futile.