All of this had happened in the span of a single spark of lightning. Ye Fan had fought at the edge of death and slain two powerful enemies.

He wanted to use the ten great experts as a whetstone to hone himself — but the prerequisite was that his life not be genuinely threatened. The situation just now had been precarious, and he had been forced to go all out.

The Diamond Ring came flying through the air — its surface lustrous, Dao inscriptions natural, as though carrying the divine might of all the heavens — the red earth trembling because of it.

Ye Fan’s mind stirred. He wanted to test just how hard this ring truly was. He sent the Myriad Things Primal Energy Cauldron above his head outward to meet it — a sacred object, and though it had not yet woven together the “Dao” and “Principle,” it was indestructible and imperishable — impossible to be shattered.

Clang!

The two collided. The reddish-brown earth rumbled, sand and rocks surging like a flooding river, sweeping out in every direction.

Between them, the earth appeared to have transformed into a vast ocean — layer upon layer of sand and soil, like waves crashing one after another.

The void was like a scroll of painting, as though seized by someone and shaken with full force — this entire world violently shuddering.

The Diamond Ring was truly fearsome — carrying immense power — even the Myriad Things Primal Energy Cauldron could not shatter it. Ye Fan was inwardly alarmed, thinking: “Could this truly be the sacred object from the other side of the starry sky?”

In a flash, he became a phantom — vanishing from his original position, retreating several hundred zhang — the Myriad Things Primal Energy Cauldron flying back to hover above him.

With a crash, the Diamond Ring arrived, demonstrating its mountain-splitting, sky-rending power — collapsing the earth beneath his feet, sweeping him off as well.

After this strike, the Yao Guang expert finally came to a halt. He stood holding the gleaming treasure, fixing Ye Fan with a cold stare. “We underestimated you. For the Desolate Holy Body at the fourth level of the Dao Palace to possess such combat power — killing my Yao Guang experts one after another…”

“One character of ‘Ye’ — ten lives — you ten came out together, all for me. Those who wish to kill me must be prepared to be killed.” Ye Fan replied.

“One character of ‘Ye’ — ten lives — what grand arrogance. You think you can kill all ten of us alone? Do you think this is the ancient era?!” Yang Yi’s expression was ugly. He took the Diamond Ring in hand.

“Whether the ancient era or the present day — it makes no difference to me. Five have already been killed. Are the remaining five far behind?” Ye Fan was perfectly calm.

“What — you have killed five in total? Then before we arrived, it was not only Gu Li Tian who had fallen?” Yang Yi was somewhat taken aback.

“Correct. Three had already been struck down before that. You will be the sixth.”

“Truly beyond my expectations. The Desolate Holy Body may have declined, yet it is still remarkable.” Yang Yi’s expression grew even colder.

Ye Fan said: “There is one thing I do not understand. I would like to ask you about it.”

“What is it?” Yang Yi asked coldly.

“Your Diamond Ring — where did it come from? What is its origin?” Ye Fan fixed him with his gaze.

“What do you want to know that for?” Yang Yi stood there, the Diamond Ring in his hand shimmering with dreamlike light.

Ye Fan said: “Only some curiosity. A weapon like this is rarely seen in this world — this is the first time I’ve encountered one today, and my cauldron could not crush it.”

“Hmph!”

Yang Yi let out a cold snort and said mockingly: “Don’t assume that having a sacred object means you can overcome any weapon under heaven. Without weaving your own heaven and earth patterns into it, even Myriad Things Primal Energy amounts to nothing special.”

The blood-red sunset had faded entirely. Night descended. Stars dotted the sky. The night wind swept across this devastated landscape, sending mournful howls through the air.

“Then you’re saying this Diamond Ring truly has an extraordinary origin?” Ye Fan asked.

“Naturally. This is my master’s master’s secret treasure — specially bestowed upon me when I was sent to capture and kill you!” Yang Yi’s voice was icy.

“This Diamond Ring could be an ancestor-level figure’s treasure?!” Ye Fan’s heart stirred. The Yao Guang Holy Land was indeed not at peace — with the Holy Son vanished, every faction hoped to advance their own disciples, not hesitating to bestow great treasures.

“This is one of Yao Guang’s great sacred objects — forged from the Dragon Pattern Cauldron, the extreme Dao weapon, and cast from Great Luo Silver Essence.”

Ye Fan’s heart leapt. Great Luo Silver Essence — what was that? It was an absolutely supreme material for weapon refining — beloved by great holy masters everywhere, indestructible and everlasting.

Back in the fire domain, the raven-cloaked Daoist he had encountered used white mutton-fat jade divine iron for refining — which was of the same grade as Great Luo Silver Essence, equally precious.

This Diamond Ring was not much larger than a bracelet, so the material used was limited — yet even so it was a staggering extravagance. Supreme materials of this grade were exceptionally rare in all under heaven.

“Then your master’s master is quite a remarkable figure.”

What struck Ye Fan most was that this object had been refined within the Dragon Pattern Cauldron — an extreme Dao weapon — and so was not the Diamond Ring from the legends of the other side of the starry sky.

On reflection, it made perfect sense. How could one keep encountering such coincidences? It was impossible to keep running into relics of the pre-Qin era cultivators.

Moreover, the Diamond Ring of ancient legend on the other side of the starry sky was of unparalleled destructive power — capable of moving all of heaven, capable of shattering the world.

A supreme divine weapon of that caliber could not have fallen into the hands of a Four Extremes disciple.

Even so, Ye Fan was still moved. This object had been forged within the extreme Dao weapon Dragon Pattern Cauldron — it must be a great treasure even within the Yao Guang Holy Land.

“I’ve heard that Yao Guang’s extreme Dao weapon — the Dragon Pattern Cauldron — rarely appears in the world, serving as a suppressor of Yao Guang’s foundations. What exactly does it suppress?”

Yang Yi let out a heavy snort. “You know quite a lot!”

If there was one extreme Dao weapon Ye Fan was most curious about, without any doubt it was the Dragon Pattern Cauldron — not only because Yao Guang had made the same choice as he had in casting a cauldron as their weapon.

But also because Yao Guang had never produced a Great Emperor, and yet had succeeded in forging an extreme Dao weapon — an absolute anomaly.

From ancient times to now, there had only been this one example under heaven: producing an extreme Dao weapon without producing a Great Emperor. No one had ever replicated this miracle.

Yet one could not say it was merely Yao Guang’s good fortune — ultimately, it still came down to strength.

Before the age of antiquity, though this lineage had never produced a Great Emperor, they had produced twenty-eight successive sages — and in that era, every generation had its outstanding figures. Twenty-eight sages one after another — one generation of old sages passing, the next generation’s sages taking their place — over five full cycles of ten thousand years, the sacred object Dragon Pattern Black Gold was refined.

This was the result of the combined efforts of twenty-eight sages, along with countless holy masters and Grand Elder Sovereigns. Every old sage, before passing on, would carve the insights of their entire lifetime into Dao inscriptions and brand them into the Dragon Pattern Cauldron.

Over fifty thousand years — all that vast passage of time — before it became an extreme Dao weapon. The Dragon Pattern Black Gold was placed upon Yao Guang’s sacred mountain and never moved. It endured wind and rain and lightning, absorbed the essence of sun and moon and the power of all the stars, etching into itself the Dao resonances of heaven and earth. During this era, countless disciples prayed and worshipped before it.

And ultimately, on a night of lightning and thunder, it wove together the supreme principles of heaven and earth — transforming into an extreme Dao weapon, becoming one of the supreme treasures of the Eastern Wilderness.

This also illustrated from another angle just how terrifying an extreme Dao weapon truly was. Without a Great Emperor it could not be forged — Yao Guang was the single exception. Twenty-eight ancient sages poured their hearts and blood into it, countless holy masters and elders and disciples poured their youth into it, the full strength of the entire holy land was devoted — and after fifty thousand years, the Dragon Pattern Cauldron was produced.

Suddenly, Ye Fan felt a tremendous aura of danger — a very ill premonition rising in his heart.

He turned into a bolt of lightning and retreated, dodging with all possible speed.

“Too late. You should never — ever — have given me this much time to prepare. You wanted to hear Yao Guang’s secrets? No problem — I can keep telling you more. The only question is whether you’ll be alive to hear it!”

Yang Yi’s cold laughter rang out without pause. He had been delighted to stall for time, channeling divine power into the Diamond Ring all the while.

With a thunderous crash, he raised his hand and sent the gleaming ring hurtling forward — like a bolt of silver lightning, as though it could shatter the very heavens.

Silver light blazed brilliantly, rumbling and resonating, the black sky shuddering violently, as though it would shake all the stars scattered across the heavens loose.

The red earth shattered directly — the cracks spreading and spreading, rock flying through the air.

The Diamond Ring pursued Ye Fan — expanding to the size of a millstone, not enormously large, yet bone-chillingly terrifying, carrying power beyond measure.

Clang!

Silver light fell like snow — a blinding spectacle. The Diamond Ring slammed down on the Myriad Things Primal Energy Cauldron with a thunderous roar, deafening, the earth collapsing, surging like a vast ocean.

Countless massive rocks and endless sand were blasted hundreds of meters into the sky — a vision of apocalyptic devastation.

Under this heaven-shaking blow, Ye Fan was sent flying three or four li, the Myriad Things Primal Energy Cauldron above his head ringing and resonating — and he himself felt his blood and energy rolling within him.

“This weapon is too terrifying — it must be something that has woven together ‘Dao’ and ‘Principle’!” Ice ran through Ye Fan’s heart.

Thinking further that this ring was cast from Great Luo Silver Essence and forged within an extreme Dao weapon — his unease deepened even further.

With another earth-shattering crash, the second blow arrived. Within a thousand zhang in every direction, waves raged like a furious sea — every stone and clod of earth was blasted away — and in the sky turned to ash.

On the ground appeared a bottomless pit spanning a full thousand zhang — a black abyss — extraordinarily terrifying.

One blow — such terrible power. Ye Fan’s breath was taken away. This was truly chilling.

The cauldron was sent flying into the sky by the blow, separating from him — it was primal power beyond measure that sent it flying, and he could not control it.

In that moment, he recognized the gravity of the situation. The Diamond Ring’s terror exceeded anything he had anticipated. He triggered the “All” secret among the Nine Secrets — his speed increased tenfold — dodging the third blow, shooting toward the sky.

Finally, before the Diamond Ring could catch up again, he regained control of the cauldron.

“This cannot go on…” He swung the God-Punishing Whip, lashing at the snow-white silver light in the sky.

Clang!

An earth-shaking impact sent his eardrums nearly bursting, his arms going numb again and again — the Diamond Ring’s power was immense, and its composition was unique. Even the God-Punishing Whip could not shatter it.

“I’m truly starting to wonder — is this actually the Diamond Ring from the other side of the starry sky…” Once again Ye Fan was sent flying several li.

Terrifying divine power like this could kill a cultivator at the first level of the Four Extremes with effortless ease. If not for Ye Fan’s exceptional physical constitution, that last blow would not merely have left his arms numb — it would have shattered him utterly.

He hurriedly inspected the God-Punishing Whip, afraid it had been damaged. Fortunately, it remained simple and unadorned, without any abnormality.

“Dammit — did your master’s master mistake me for a Holy Son of some holy land, giving you a weapon this terrifying?!” Ye Fan was full of grievances.

Yang Yi paid no heed — once more channeling power into the Diamond Ring, sending a blinding burst of silver light crashing down.

With another tremendous crash, the earth shattered again — rocks flying through the air. Within a thousand zhang in every direction, the land was ruined and devastated, every pit bottomless and deep!