Golden divine light flowed through Ye Fan’s blood — nearly boiling — surging swiftly under the guidance of the Nirvana Sutra, reconnecting severed bones and meridians, repairing the wounded body.
Rumble…
The golden blood flowed. Within his body came the thunderous roar of a crashing sea, deafening and of boundless momentum.
Crack, pop.
His broken bones and torn meridians resonated with sounds like rolling thunder, continuously being repaired and reconnected, growing swiftly.
Hua Yunfei’s expression shifted. He had not anticipated that Ye Fan’s physical body would be this formidable. From such momentum alone, one could imagine how terrifyingly powerful his bloodline force must be.
Ye Fan did not move, sitting quietly in meditation, calmly healing his wounds. He knew full well that his opponent possessed the Phoenix Tribulation Rebirth Art — a rare art in the world, carrying an inconceivable power. His opponent would most likely recover before him.
In this moment, the “All” Secret Art was continuously triggered, merging with the Nirvana Sutra to increase the speed of healing tenfold. The golden blood flowed even faster, rumbling with sound.
Every bone in his body rang softly. His internal organs vibrated in unison. Life force was vigorous and thriving, improving steadily. All kinds of power merged into one, accelerating the repair of his severely damaged body.
Hua Yunfei had calculated carefully. He had determined that the Immortal Ascension Art could shatter the Sacred Physique, and with the Phoenix Tribulation Rebirth Art to support him, he had dared to strike so ferociously, accepting mutual devastation.
Yet he had not expected that Ye Fan could recover this quickly — barely any slower than himself. He understood now: his opponent had certainly mastered a holy technique for healing that surpassed his predictions.
Boom!
The two stood up at almost exactly the same time. Hua Yunfei had restored himself to peak condition, while Ye Fan’s body still bore cracks — his internal organs and bones had not fully healed, and he rose out of necessity.
The Nirvana Sutra was the supreme scripture of the Western Desert’s Buddhism, an awe-inspiring ancient canon for healing. But what Ye Fan had obtained was, after all, only the essential essence of the sutra — not the complete and unabridged ancient canon.
Were it not for the “All” Secret Art’s support, amplifying the Nirvana technique’s effectiveness tenfold, his body would certainly still be in pieces at this moment. As it was, his wounds had healed mostly, but not completely, placing him in an extremely passive position.
Hua Yunfei let out a cold laugh and shot toward him, immediately unleashing the Immortal Ascension Art — terrifyingly fierce, seemingly capable of cleaving everything apart, sweeping away every sacred being across all heavens.
This technique — it was said to be supremely sharp, having been created by the Ruthless Emperor specifically to counter the Battle Art from among the Nine Secrets. One could imagine just how terrifying that made it.
Bang!
Ye Fan countered with the Heaven-Overturning Seal. The two collided catastrophically — divine power surging like a boundless sea. The mountain ranges below were shaken flat in an instant, dozens of peaks collapsing.
The two possessed extraordinarily powerful offensive capabilities. Any other person of the same tier present would have been reduced to ash in a single strike — they simply would not have been in the same class.
This was the first time Ye Fan had ever been so passive. Golden blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. He fought back while simultaneously healing — he had to recover quickly, otherwise he could only retreat in defeat, or might even be killed.
There was no denying it — the Immortal Ascension Art was too terrifyingly powerful. It could sever even the Sacred Physique. Any divine weapon or precious blade that touched it would instantly become powder. For the first time, Ye Fan was deeply apprehensive.
He unleashed every divine technique he had, fighting back with all his strength — yet it was difficult to achieve much effect. Hua Yunfei countered them with the Ten-Thousand Transformations Sacred Art, reducing every miraculous technique to the mundane, returning all to the ordinary.
This was a wondrous and marvelous technique — truly unmatched in the world. It dissolved every enemy secret technique, returning all things to the ordinary, leaving one with power yet unable to fully exert it.
Ye Fan’s heart was grim. At this moment, only the Nine Secrets could be used. Every other secret technique had been dissolved — unable to stop this holy art at all.
Hua Yunfei’s left hand carried the Immortal Ascension Art — its offensive power world-shaking — and his right hand carried the Transformation Art, dissolving every obstruction. The two combined like the harmonious union of dragon and phoenix, routing everything in their path — far surpassing what he had shown before!
Ye Fan’s mind shook violently. He continuously retreated. The Immortal Ascension Art could wound even his Sacred Physique, and now with his body not yet fully recovered, the strain was immense.
The golden blood aura throughout his entire body was fully mobilized, circulating with the Nirvana Sutra, rumbling as it healed him. But because of this, he was unable to project phenomena outside himself, and his situation grew ever more urgent — it was very difficult to withstand his opponent, and he was hovering at death’s door.
Since he had set out on his path, Ye Fan had always been incomparably dominant, especially in battle — advancing relentlessly the whole way. This was the first time he had ever been in a position of weakness, pressed down by another’s force.
“What a formidable Immortal Ascension Art — it can even wound my physical body. Truly worthy of being called a technique carrying the power of an ascending immortal! The Ten-Thousand Transformations Art is equally matchless — everything except the Nine Secrets has been dissolved.” His heart was grim, yet he did not use the Movement Secret Art to flee. Instead, he composed himself, seeking a way forward in this life-or-death crisis.
Until the final moment, he did not wish to flee. He was here to comprehend — even in this mortal danger. Very few people would dare have such a thought — to find themselves in such a predicament and still think of how to comprehend the Dao, to create their own art.
“The Nine Secrets — only by evolving through them can I prevail!”
While healing, Ye Fan gradually grew calm within his mind. His hands slowly pushed forward. The Tai Chi divine diagram emerged — he began deriving through the Battle Secret Art.
Among the Nine Secrets, the Battle Secret Art was the fundamental art of combat, possessing supreme and profound meaning. He concentrated his mind and spirit to comprehend it, combining it with the Tai Chi diagram, evolving it step by step.
In that moment, his bearing changed — like a gentle breeze caressing a great mountain, like soft water dripping through stone. He began to strike the strong with the weak, opposing the Immortal Ascension Art.
“It’s useless. The Immortal Ascension Art is unrivaled in the world — what do you have to withstand it with?” Hua Yunfei was like a banished immortal — elegant and transcendent — yet his offensive power was terrifying.
Boom!
The Immortal Ascension Art was unleashed. Ten thousand rays of rosy light filled the world, truly as though someone was ascending to immortality through the clouds — this power transcended the limits of the human body.
Spit!
Ye Fan formed hand seal after hand seal, yet could not block it at all. He spat up golden blood from his mouth, his arm was shattered, and his body was sent flying backward. Below, forty-nine great mountains became dust under the immortal-ascending power!
The Ruthless Emperor — dazzling through past, present, and future — had created the Immortal Ascension Art capable of destroying every enemy, its offensive power beyond anyone’s ability to challenge!
Once, that figure had used this peerless divine art at the Fire Demon Ridge — with but a single strike — and a supreme sacred being comparable to a Great Emperor had been reduced to powder.
An ancient great emperor represented the highest achievement of the human race, possessing the power of the utmost Dao. Yet the creation of the Immortal Ascension Art surpassed even the limits of the human body, manifesting immortal-ascending power — truly invincible through all ages!
This art could shatter the Sacred Physique. Ye Fan’s heart trembled. The Nirvana Sutra circulated faster. Both arms crackled and popped as they rapidly reconnected. His entire body was golden blood aura.
Hum!
A tremendous sound rang out. Below, seventy-two more great mountains turned to flying ash under the Immortal Ascension Art — merely grazed by the immortal-ascending power. Its terrifyingly peerless attack made hearts and courage shatter.
Hua Yunfei’s left hand carried the Immortal Ascension Art with matchless offensive power; his right hand carried the Ten-Thousand Transformations Art dissolving every secret technique. The two combined like the union of heaven and earth, the harmonious song of dragon and phoenix — nothing in the world could compare.
Ye Fan retreated again and again, using the Movement Secret Art to maneuver. He had encountered the most treacherous battle of his life — every step a crisis, death possible at any moment.
“These are too powerful — the Immortal Ascension Art and the Ten-Thousand Transformations Art were both created by the Ruthless Emperor specifically to counter the Nine Secrets. They are truly formidable.”
Ye Fan spoke internally while simultaneously ascending into a state of empty clarity, continuously deriving the Battle Secret Art, comprehending his own Dao and art.
In that moment, his movements grew ever more fluid. Though he was striking the strong with the weak, a divine quality of nature following the Dao emerged — he was evolving his own great Dao.
Watching clouds roll and unfurl, gazing at wild geese flying south, allowing a hundred flowers to wither and fall — his inner world was utterly tranquil. Each move and each strike was a life-or-death gambit, yet he had achieved a mental state transcending the battlefield.
Ye Fan seemed to have broken free. A kind of heavenly unity, a Dao-body naturally at one with things — ethereal and self-forgetting amidst life and death — emerged. He moved with unrestrained ease, the Dao and self as one.
The Tai Chi divine diagram turned. Ye Fan’s torso transformed into a Dao marking, becoming the yin-yang dividing line within the diagram. Simultaneously, his two hands transformed into true Yin and true Yang, becoming the two points of yin and yang.
All along, the dragon-shaped curve formed by his torso had been his most powerful aspect. Now his two hands also began to transform, becoming the two points of supreme Yin and supreme Yang.
Ye Fan opposed Hua Yunfei — striking the strong with the weak — his body moving with ever greater profundity. Though he was retreating, he was no longer in a step-by-step crisis.
Ascending to the ultimate sublimation, he perceived a most profound and abstruse Dao, one that harmonized with his own being. He silently derived it. His movements were like flowing clouds and running water — entirely natural — yet also like an antelope hanging by its horns, leaving no trace to follow.
Boom!
Suddenly his body gave a great shake. His wounds finally finished healing. Golden blood aura surged skyward. In that moment, a flash of spiritual insight lit within Ye Fan’s mind. He transformed the golden blood aura covering his entire body into a circle, enveloping himself from head to foot within it.
Boom!
In that instant, heaven and earth moved together. The Dao resonated in harmony. He ascended into a wondrous state, experiencing a naturalness and power unlike anything he had ever felt before.
The Sacred Physique’s golden blood aura formed the Tai Chi circle. His torso became the dragon-shaped yin-yang dividing line. His hands became the yin-yang points. He himself had become a living Tai Chi divine diagram.
“Hua Yunfei — meet your end!” Ye Fan bellowed. He finally began his fierce assault. Having made himself into a human Dao diagram, he flew forward.
Boom!
Hua Yunfei was cold and impassive. He unleashed the Immortal Ascension Art. The immortal-ascending power within it could break every divine being across all heavens — yet when it struck that golden circle, it could not penetrate even an inch.
Flash!
He swept down with the Ten-Thousand Transformations Art — capable of dissolving every divine technique in the world, returning all to the ordinary — yet it too could not break down the golden circle, could not dissolve it.
Hua Yunfei’s heart shook violently. He understood: Ye Fan had evolved a heaven-shaking holy technique. The golden Tai Chi circle was nearly impenetrable!
In that moment, Ye Fan was untouched by all techniques. Every attack was blocked by the golden circle. He advanced like a deity walking forward step by step.
Bang!
Now he struck with force. The dragon-shaped curve, together with the yin-yang points formed by both hands, vibrated together. He unleashed a breath of energy that made one’s blood run cold.
Spit!
Hua Yunfei could not block it. He spat up a mouthful of fresh blood and was sent flying, shock written on his face.
He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. His right hand reached out, unleashing the Ten-Thousand Transformations Art. Over a dozen mountain ranges below were compressed to less than a foot each — like a dozen little dragons flying toward Ye Fan.
This was a crushing weight of hundreds of millions of tons — transforming all things between heaven and earth into weapons, pressing forward to suppress.
Bang!
Yet before the golden Tai Chi circle, all of this was useless. Everything was blocked, shattered into dust, falling crumbling down as soil and stone scattered through the sky below.
Boom!
Hua Yunfei’s left hand immediately followed with the Immortal Ascension Art. In the same instant the dozen little dragons vanished, it arrived before him and struck the Tai Chi circle. Yet again it could not penetrate even an inch.
Bang!
With a light shout from Ye Fan, the dragon-shaped curve vibrated — gravely wounding Hua Yunfei, nearly cleaving him in two. Hua Yunfei went flying in a spray of coughed blood.