“Pfft!”
A streak of black light flashed past. A young man at the base of a hundred-zhang cliff slowly fell, a trace of blood seeping from the center of his brow. His eyes were without light — dead but unable to close them.
On the other side, a slender-built man walked out. With a touch of his finger, a flame fell — and the corpse on the ground burned into a human-shaped heap of ash, leaving nothing else behind.
He stood before the cliff face, carefully studying the ancient arts recorded there. He then wiped it with his hand, and stone powder scattered down in a shower. Nothing remained.
“Ah…”
In the distance, an even more intense slaughter was unfolding. A group of people were engaged in a life-and-death struggle. In the end, blood mist swirled, bodies fell one after another — and only a few charged into an ancient cave, while all the rest perished.
Such events occurred from time to time; they were no longer isolated incidents, but had become the norm. This primordial ancient world was overwhelmingly dangerous — not only were there terrifying exotic beasts, there were also formidable cultivators devoted to killing people, turning it into a land soaked in blood.
Over more than half a month, Ye Fan had witnessed many deaths. The primordial exotic beast kings were one primary cause, yet the slaughter among the cultivators themselves was even more horrifying.
A single spiritual herb of ten-thousand-year vintage could trigger a bloody massacre. A single cliff face carved with secret arts could become a killing ground where people fought to the death. And that was not even to mention the occasional cave-mansions that appeared — those were certain to become the focal point of contention among all parties. If an ancient treasure emerged, if a secret text was discovered, it would inevitably draw large-scale blood-battles.
At present, within this primordial ancient world, everyone was in constant peril. Every step required careful consideration — one slip could turn a person into someone else’s prey.
“Many major powers have sent people in. It’s safe to say every step is now a killing trap. If you’re careless, you’ll face mortal danger. Damn it all — one must be careful!” someone couldn’t help but curse.
“Enough talk — don’t disturb the divine creature.”
Within a swamp, sparse towering ancient trees grew here and there. A dragon loach barely a foot long, flowing with golden light, was leaping in the muddy water.
Over ten people gathered around and began to close in on the swamp, all of them extremely careful, afraid of startling the divine creature.
Ye Fan witnessed this scene with great astonishment. A dragon loach was a priceless ingredient for alchemy — even the Jade Lake, with all its resources, had no more than three. It was many times more precious than any spiritual herb ten thousand years old, a priceless divine creature — and one had actually appeared in this place.
The dragon loach was barely a foot long, dragon-shaped in form, yet was in truth a type of divine loach — its entire body golden, spirit energy soaring to the sky. Every single drop of essence blood within it was worth a fortune beyond calculation.
Even Ye Fan, who had witnessed the medicine of immortality, was moved by this. He followed from the shadows, seeking an opportunity to capture it — but just then, murderous intent came like a mountain, flooding over in an instant.
Seven or eight middle-aged figures descended from the sky like primordial savage beast kings, saying nothing and striking immediately. Every one of them was at or above the Ninth Transformation of Dragon Ascension, and among them were even two half-step great elites.
“Ah…”
Cries of agony rang out. People died in the field instantly; the rest quickly retreated — yet they could not escape this killing tribulation. One resounding toll of a bell reduced half of them to fine powder, dissolving them into blood mist.
Another half-step great elite struck. An ancient mirror shone its light, and the few cultivators who had fled were also pierced by divine radiance, their corpses tumbling down.
Ye Fan drew a cold breath. Here, human life was as worthless as grass. He had already come to understand a fact: this ancient immortal world had not merely one entrance — it had several, and the most powerful forces of the Central Region could all enter.
Now within this Immortal Mansion world, all manner of people were mixed together. Every variety of killing, treasure-seizure, and assassination was a frequent occurrence. And now he had personally witnessed another such scene.
“Swish!”
These seven or eight middle-aged figures moved together, laying down formation runes on the spot, sealing the entire swamp — hoping to capture that incomparably rare dragon loach.
Yet in the end, they came away with nothing. Beneath the swamp ran an underground river leading to who knew where, and the dragon loach had long since slipped away.
“Just a dragon loach — and it was this slippery, with so many of us making a move, it still got away,” one middle-aged man said, laughing at himself.
“This is no ordinary creature — there are no more than twenty of them across all the lands. It is an indispensable primary ingredient for refining divine pills, and nothing else under the sky is more precious than it,” another shook his head.
When those people had gone, Ye Fan reappeared. What he had just witnessed was merely a single snapshot of what was unfolding in this Immortal Mansion world — danger lurking in every shadow.
“This place is an immortal burial ground. There are far too many things of value here — every manner of person has come!” Ye Fan reflected.
Here there were not only many divine beasts but also all manner of heavenly materials and earthly treasures — all of them priceless, long extinct in the outside world, incapable of leaving any major power unmoved.
Beyond that, the occasional cliffs, ancient caves, and other such places discovered here also held fragmentary legacies whose value could not be measured. And divine creatures like the dragon loach made their presence known here as well.
Ye Fan, like the others, moved about seeking immortal fortune, flying toward distant places, spotting many terrifying primordial exotic beasts and giving them wide berth.
“Roar…”
He arrived in a new area, and an enraged howl reached him — somewhere a fierce battle was raging. His heart stirred as he sensed a familiar energy signature.
“Sea of Moonrise!”
Ye Fan was astonished and transformed into a stream of light, flying rapidly forward. This phenomenon — he had only ever seen one person use it, and that was the Eastern Desolation Divine King: Ji Haoyue.
The Ji siblings had fallen into a terrifying ambush — surrounded and being hunted down. Over ten people encircled them, bringing out all manner of ancient treasures in continuous attack against the two.
“Boom!”
The sea was without bounds. Behind Ji Haoyue, ten thousand waves surged to the sky, sweeping one enemy down — struck by his palm into a pulp, dissolved into a mist of blood.
How long they had already been fighting, no one could say. Among the mountains, corpses lay one after another, drenched in blood. Ji Haoyue, with hair disheveled, was like a god of slaughter — his eyes as wild as a beast, killing without restraint — utterly different from his usual bearing.
Ji Ziyue sat within the phenomenon of the Sea of Moonrise, radiance flowing from her entire being, pure and sacred as an immortal spirit. No attack could reach her. Without moving an inch, she steadily emitted immortal light, replenishing divine power for her elder brother.
“Pfft!”
Ji Haoyue took one step forward; the entire mountain range shuddered. He shattered several ancient treasures and, taking three blows in exchange, spat out several large mouthfuls of blood — charging forward to tear apart a powerful figure in the Eighth Transformation of Dragon Ascension.
“This is his true strength?!” Ye Fan was startled.
The Eastern Desolation Divine King — truly worthy of the name. Surrounded and attacked on all sides, he could still fight and kill an enemy in the Eighth Transformation of Dragon Ascension. If this became known, it would certainly shake all young cultivators across the Five Great Domains.
At this moment, his bearing was utterly different from usual — cold and merciless, even carrying a trace of wild savagery. Purple robes stained with blood, black hair in disarray — he looked like a demon god.
Yet Ji Haoyue was also spent. However long the battle had lasted, his entire body had been stained red with blood. His steps were unsteady and growing weaker.
“Brother…” Ji Ziyue’s eyes filled with tears, the radiance all over her body blazing brighter, the divine power she emitted growing more abundant as it flowed toward her elder brother.
“Ziyue, don’t worry about me — leave first. I can fight my way out!” Ji Haoyue was full of self-assurance, his gaze growing ever colder — yet he couldn’t help spitting out a mouthful of blood, his body swaying.
“Brother… hold on. The supreme elders will come,” Ji Ziyue said, tears brimming in her bright eyes.
“You mean those three old men? I personally watched them get swallowed by a primordial beast-king-level divine hound. Don’t hold out any hope,” one from that group said with a cold laugh.
“Ziyue, you have a secret treasure protecting you — break through and leave immediately!” Ji Haoyue roared. His full head of hair whipped in wild disorder as he urged his younger sister to leave.
“Boom!”
Another person stepped forward, bringing out a bronze pagoda to suppress him. Ji Haoyue was struck and tumbled backward, coughing up blood in succession. This was merely a cultivator in the Fifth Transformation of Dragon Ascension — yet a single blow had taken effect.
Just before, the Eastern Desolation Divine King had torn apart a powerful figure in the Eighth Transformation with his bare hands — yet it had drained the last of his strength. Now his divine power was nearly exhausted; he truly had no more strength left.
“Brother, I cannot watch you die…” Ji Ziyue wept loudly, continuously bringing forth immortal light, desperately channeling divine power to Ji Haoyue.
“Leave!”
The Eastern Desolation Divine King blazed with radiance across his entire body, fighting desperately, divine power surging, eyes inverted in fury. He charged forward once more, his bare hands crushing the bronze pagoda — and seized that man, tearing him apart alive.
“Pfft!”
Blood sprayed, spattering him everywhere, soaking his hair red as well.
“Neither of you siblings is going anywhere — you’ll both stay here. Heaven itself is ending your lives — not one of you will survive!”
“Those three old ones are dead — heaven wills your destruction!”
The others also let out cold laughs and charged forward for the kill, intending to finish both in one stroke. This was a once-in-ten-thousand-year opportunity — once the Eastern Desolation Divine King recovered his divine power, it would cost them dearly.
“Brother, I’ll give you all my divine power!” Ji Ziyue’s face was streaked with tears. Radiance blazed all over her body; she sat cross-legged in the void, intending to sacrifice herself to save her elder brother, letting him break through.
“Ziyue, if I tell you to go — go. Don’t concern yourself with me!” The Eastern Desolation Divine King roared. Hair and clothes in disarray, though his divine power was nearly exhausted, he still erupted with a dazzling burst of radiance.
“Boom!”
With one palm he severed the divine power flowing through the void, then raised a great hand to the sky and flung Ji Ziyue — who was within the Sea of Moonrise phenomenon — outward, bellowing, “Leave at once!”
Ji Haoyue prepared to fight to the death, allowing his younger sister to break through. Wild as a beast, he went into a frenzy and activated the Divine King Regeneration Art, burning his life force as he charged at the crowd — refusing to let them pursue Ji Ziyue.
“Brother…”
“Go — quickly, go!” Ji Haoyue roared.
“Too late. Neither of you is going anywhere — I’ve already sealed this place!” the enemy’s leader said with a cold laugh. Dozens of great banners had long since been planted in the earth, trapping everything within.
By this point, these people were also exhausted to the bone — but they held sufficient advantage: their numbers were greater, their individual strength was high, and their divine power had not yet run dry.
“Ziyue, I’ll break open a path to life for you — there’s no need to worry!” Ji Haoyue roared. His body blazed with divine power, his radiance growing even greater. In that moment he was fighting with everything he had, determined to protect his younger sister.
“Brother, stop this — give all your divine power to me. As long as you can escape, that’s enough!” Ji Ziyue, tears streaming like rain, wept loudly. Her bright eyes had grown blurry. She gave everything she could, channeling divine power outward with all her strength.
“Just take the road to death together — heaven wills you gone, and not one will survive!” The enemies let out continuous cold laughs.
“Clang!”
Suddenly came a tremendous shudder. The entire mountain range shook, rocks rolling, fallen leaves dancing.
Ye Fan stepped in through the formation in a single stride, reached out, and pulled up one of the great banner poles — then shook it and flung it outward.
“Ah…”
A cry of agony — one man was pierced through by the pole on the spot, sent flying over a hundred zhang before slamming into an ancient tree with a thud, nailed through it in death.
“Who are you?!” These people changed color, all of them shouting at once.
“The one who’s going to kill you,” Ye Fan said, stepping forward in large strides. His gaze was deep and dark, his black hair in disarray, his bearing like a mountain range.