The Tanggu can also be called the Yanggu. In ancient China, it was the subject of many legends — the place where the sun rises, shrouded in mystery.
It stands in opposition to another sacred hidden place, the “Yuanyu,” the place where the sun sets, mentioned in the Classic of Mountains and Seas: The Northern Wilderness.
The Northern Sea was black as ink, great waves shattering the clouds, dark surging tides connecting with the sky, boundless and vast.
Yet the black ocean could not encroach upon Tanggu by even an inch. It was a land of peace and purity. The island teemed with life — ancient medicinal herbs carpeted the ground, their various fragrances drifting over, washing over those present like a baptism, causing their pores to open and relax.
A golden ancient tree rose towering above all, divine radiance swirling around it. The entire tree was covered in brilliant golden leaves, densely layered, swaying gently, like a sky full of stars descending to earth.
The others stood in awe and wonder. They had finally arrived outside Tanggu, beholding the legendary immortal divine tree with their own eyes, and every single person was deeply moved.
The ancient divine Fusang tree was like the elixir of immortality — obtaining it would be enough to allow a Great Emperor to live through two lifetimes, to say nothing of its effect on ordinary people.
“Every Great Emperor has an elixir of immortality. It accompanied the Ancient Solar Emperor throughout his entire life. The human race’s emperor had already passed away into transcendence during the ancient era, yet it still endures in the world to this day.”
The people sighed. No one knew how many years had passed. The ancient divine tree still stood, but the human race’s emperor of old no longer existed.
Nothing can escape the reckoning of time. In the end, all must depart and become a single wave in the river of history. Even if one dazzled the ages and left behind a glorious, fearsome name, they could only be buried in the yellow earth at last.
Ye Fan pondered silently. Were not Tanggu and Fusang the place and divine tree from ancient Chinese legends? How could they appear here?
The Classic of Mountains and Seas: Overseas Eastern Classic recorded: “Below lies the Tanggu. Above the Tanggu stands the Fusang, where the ten suns bathed…”
Another ancient text recorded: The Fusang tree stands thousands of zhang tall with a girth of over a thousand spans. Two trunks share one root, leaning upon each other — hence the name Fusang, meaning “mutually supported.”
However, the Fusang before his eyes had only a single main trunk, and was nowhere near so tall, standing no more than six zhang high. Yet it possessed a grandeur more imposing than any mountain range.
It carried a singular magnificence — golden solar sacred energy flowing through it as though it were opening up an ancient cosmos, evolving the three thousand realms. Misty golden fog spiraled and curled around it, with an air of infinite transformation.
Rumble, rumble!
The sound of wind and thunder rang out. Above the six-zhang golden Fusang divine tree, an ancient palace hall materialized — hazy and indistinct, as though within cloud and mist, or as though existing in another world entirely.
“The Ancient Solar Emperor’s residence!”
Every person present felt their blood surge in that instant. Finding Tanggu would have been enough, yet no one had imagined they would encounter the Ancient Emperor’s traveling palace here!
The crowd erupted in noise. Some powerful cultivators could no longer restrain themselves and charged toward Tanggu, wanting to land on the divine island, seize the immortal tree, and enter the ancient palace hall.
Swish!
Dozens of people had yet to reach the island’s shore when they were struck by a streak of flowing light. They were instantly turned to flying ash, unable to even let out a cry of anguish.
This was the most fundamental power in the universe — Solar Sacred Energy!
This immortal divine tree was truly terrifying. The golden leaves covering its entirety trembled and swayed with a rustling sound, and the golden light released by just a single leaf was enough to destroy so many powerful experts.
“The immortal divine tree — it may be the single most destructive tree in existence. It bears no fruit, grows no sacred medicines, but contains only Solar Sacred Energy!”
Many people felt as though cold water had been poured over their heads. They came to a profound realization of just how terrifying the birthplace of the human race’s Ancient Emperor’s attainment of the Dao was, and no one dared to act rashly any further.
Ye Fan was even more astonished. The void above the Fusang divine tree held an ancient palace hall — this matched certain records far too closely.
The Record of the Ten Continents stated: “The Fusang lies within the jade-green sea. Above it stands the Palace of the Celestial Emperor, where the Supreme Perfected Eastern King resides…”
The Celestial Emperor must have been that human race’s ancient emperor who created the True Scripture of the Sun. This realization left him standing in a daze. The unofficial histories and accounts of the strange that he had read in the past had turned out to be real.
In this moment, Ye Fan felt a sense of temporal and spatial disorientation. Why had things that happened in ancient times on Earth found their original forms here in the Ziwei Ancient Star Domain?
Did the origins of life come from the same place? Or had someone transmitted everything that occurred here to the other end of the starry sky?
Suddenly, a sense of dread welled up in his heart. An immense crisis seemed about to descend. In an instant he activated the Divine Maiden Furnace, and the Four Extremes Secret Scroll’s Eternal Universe Sutra began to circulate.
“Lu Ya, how dare you!” Li Tian cried out.
At that moment, the people of the Golden Crow clan made their move. They actually activated their heirloom sacred weapon and struck at Ye Fan and his companions.
It was a Phoenix-Winged Gilded Halberd — also known as the Crow-Winged Divine Halberd. It resembled a long spear, bearing two phoenix-wing blades at its ears, its entire body shooting golden divine radiance in all directions, matchlessly sharp.
This was a weapon forged by a Grand Saint of the Golden Crow clan, undying through ten thousand tribulations. No one knew how many tens of thousands of years it had been passed down. Within it dwelt a divine spirit that suppressed all living beings.
Now, the Crow-Winged Flowing-Gold Halberd awakened, transforming into a golden crow. It left a trail of brilliant golden light as it charged forward, slashing toward Ye Fan and his companions.
The terrifying aura froze the vast Northern Sea and startled every ancient beast throughout the boundless ocean, causing the cultivators on the scene to tremble.
This was the might of a sacred weapon. Once awakened, it was comparable to a Saint emerging into the world. Although fully unleashing its divine power was exceedingly difficult, it was still more than sufficient to slay any overlord in existence.
Ye Fan activated the Divine Maiden Furnace. In his palm, the fist-sized copper furnace was crystalline and translucent, like a divine maiden reclining. It flew up into the sky, billowing clouds of smoky radiance, intoxicating to behold.
Boom!
Two ancient sacred weapons met, yet they did not collide. They released threads upon threads of divine radiance and locked onto each other like magnets, neither able to gain the upper hand.
Lu Ya’s expression was frigid. His avatar had been cut down, his ninth brother had been killed, and the ancestor of their four sects had been crushed to death by the Divine Maiden Furnace. He had long wished to act and had been holding himself back until now.
Of course, this was also the will of the Golden Crow clan — otherwise, why would they mobilize a heirloom sacred weapon, sending several powerful experts forward to help activate the halberd?
A clear, resounding Golden Crow cry rang out, as if echoing across all nine heavens and ten lands. Golden flames blazed and billowed upward, Solar Sacred Energy decimating all in its path and cascading downward.
Boom!
In this stretch of sea, a massive swath of the black ocean was instantly evaporated dry, exposing the rocky seabed ten thousand zhang below. Several terrifying ancient beasts as large as mountains had been lurking there — they were reduced to ash in an instant.
When two ancient sacred weapons clashed, the terrifying shockwaves affected many people. Quite a few cultivators were struck down like dumplings tossed into a boiling pot, falling one after another, dissolving into blood mist, dying ignoble deaths.
However, those with immortal inheritances had come prepared. They had clearly foreseen all of this, and used sacred weapons as shields, blocking the devastating shockwaves.
Boom!
Suddenly, Yi Qingwu — the most beautiful woman under heaven — made her move. Above her head appeared a magnificent jade palace and tower. This was a heirloom sacred weapon forged from Nine-Heavens Divine Jade, named the Guanghan Que.
She was assisting Lu Ya, pressing down on Ye Fan and his companions from another side to suppress them. The Guanghan Que’s divine might was awe-inspiring. Within it, a celestial figure flickered in and out of visibility as the palace genuinely pressed down.
Li Tian was furious. “Your sacred weapons were all defeated by a stronger hand back in the day — have you forgotten that the Divine Maiden Furnace once swept in your Golden Crow princess and your Guanghan celestials, taking them all in one net? And their fates? You can well imagine.”
This was pure salt in an old wound. In ancient times, both the Golden Crow clan’s princess and the celestials of the Guanghan Palace had once been collected by the Divine Maiden Furnace, falling into the hands of that cultivator who had attained sainthood despite being a disciple expelled from his sect — and their fate could easily be imagined.
“Even if the weapon forged for your ancestors by an ancient Great Emperor is formidable, it still depends on the accomplishments of whoever wields it!” Lu Ya bellowed, activating the Crow-Winged Flowing-Gold Halberd to press down in suppression.
At the same time, Yi Qingwu stood atop the Guanghan Que as it bore down, her divine robes dancing, her bearing graceful as an exiled celestial. A crimson beauty mark at the center of her brow radiated divine radiance, her entire being suffused with boundless spiritual luminescence.
Two sacred weapons came flying in, attacking Ye Fan and his companions simultaneously. While it was not an overwhelming advantage, it was still exceedingly dangerous.
Without question, this was premeditated. Lu Ya used the Golden Crow clan’s sacred weapon to pin down the Divine Maiden Furnace while Yi Qingwu used the Guanghan Que to crush the others — the intent was to eliminate them in one stroke.
“What are the rest of you standing there for?! They come from the Carnal Desire Sect and wield the infamous Divine Maiden Furnace — join hands and wipe them out!” Lu Ya called out. Behind him, the Golden Crow clan’s experts all moved together, helping him activate the weapon.
Ye Fan and his companions were positioned at the periphery, having long prepared for all of this. They knew that once they reached their destination, things would not end peacefully, and so they had not fallen into the encirclement.
The Divine Maiden Furnace trembled. Its divine power was truly heaven-defying. It was on the verge of breaking free of the Crow-Winged Flowing-Gold Halberd and shattering the void to escape.
“Think you can still leave?!” At that very moment, the Divine Son of the Lunar Yin made his move. With the assistance of several powerful experts, he brought out a sacred weapon and used it to suppress the crystalline Divine Maiden Furnace.
Yi Qingwu offered a gentle smile and parted her crimson lips — like large and small pearls falling upon a jade plate, her voice was extraordinarily pleasant. She said: “Please step inside the Guanghan Que for a conversation.”
Her divine robes billowed around her. Her figure was slender and graceful, her oval face as flawlessly white as jade, her eyes filled with spiritual brilliance. She activated the Guanghan Que to draw the group inside.
“What of it that you have many sacred weapons — do you think you can truly hold us?” Ye Fan was fearless. As he activated the Divine Maiden Furnace, he abruptly deployed the Soldier-Word Secret Art.
Boom!
The Divine Maiden Furnace released a mysterious brilliance and surged out a peculiar wave. The sacred weapons of the Lunar Yin Sect and the Golden Crow clan could no longer grip the furnace and were now shaken off.
The Soldier-Word Secret Art cycled again. The peculiar waves from the Divine Maiden Furnace grew even more violent, interfering with the others’ control over their sacred weapons. Lu Ya’s body was displaced; the Divine Son of the Lunar Yin also stumbled backward — their weapons nearly slipped out of their control.
“Impressive! Impressive! Impressive!” Seeing this, even Yan Yixi exclaimed in admiration.
Ye Fan felt a jolt in his heart. This was not entirely his own doing. He had been cultivating the Soldier-Word Secret Art for too short a time — it would be impossible for him to interfere with supreme weapons the way that ailing old man could.
While the interference had been effective, it also relied on the might of the Divine Maiden Furnace itself. Within it were actually imperial runes! Although it was not an ultimate emperor’s weapon, it had been created by an ancient Great Emperor’s hand and possessed profoundly ineffable divine power.
Ye Fan, Li Tian, and Yan Yixi jointly activated the Divine Maiden Furnace together, riding it as it soared into the sky like a trail of cloud and mist, ramming into the Guanghan Que.
Crash!
It was a violent, massive collision. The Guanghan Que flew off like a streak of flowing light, and Yi Qingwu’s celestial robes fluttered wildly — she nearly tumbled off the sacred weapon.
It had to be said that the Divine Maiden Furnace was remarkably powerful. Even with three sacred weapons restraining it, it did not fall to a disadvantage — though of course, Ye Fan’s use of the Soldier-Word Secret Art to interfere had played a part as well.
Boom!
At that very moment, others made their move as well. Another heirloom sacred weapon came pressing down, striking at the Divine Maiden Furnace.
“This furnace has carried its infamy for over a hundred thousand years. What happened in the past is a shame and disgrace to our ancestors. Let us destroy it together!”
As these words spread out, more sacred weapons joined the assault, placing Ye Fan and his companions under extreme pressure. The weapons had yet to arrive, but the aura of Saints already blotted out the sky and covered the earth.
“I have to say, this Divine Maiden Furnace draws an awful lot of hatred — why does everyone want to beat it down, like a rat crossing the street?” Ye Fan was struggling under the strain, driving the furnace to charge and break through in all directions.
“There’s nothing to be done. That expelled disciple ancestor of our sect committed great sins, but it shouldn’t be charged to our account,” Yan Yixi said helplessly.
“Damn it all, you mangy-feathered Three-Deficiency Daoren — did your sect even have any female disciples in ancient times? What business do you have joining in?!” Li Tian roared furiously.
The people from the Ancient Long-Life Monastery had now made their move as well, advancing to suppress them.
In this moment, no fewer than five sacred weapons were pressing in. Nearly every sacred weapon that could enter the fight had already done so. No matter how powerful the Divine Maiden Furnace was, it could not possibly hold off so many.
Ye Fan could use the Soldier-Word Secret Art to interfere and find a way to retreat, but he was extremely unwilling. The Fusang golden divine tree was right ahead, and the Ancient Solar Emperor’s palace hall where he had attained the Dao hung above it — there was surely a divine treasury within.
“Let’s enter Tanggu!” Li Tian said. He too wanted to gamble on a bold attempt, and Yan Yixi agreed.
“Good!” Ye Fan nodded. The three of them jointly activated the Divine Maiden Furnace, transforming into a trail of cloud and mist, flying straight into Tanggu.
The instant they entered, an inexhaustible surge of Solar Sacred Energy rushed in from all sides — yet all of it was blocked by the sacred weapon, unable to come near them in the short term.
Seeing this, the others also activated their heirloom sacred weapons and flew in pursuit, unwilling to fall behind. Everyone wanted to obtain the divine artifacts left behind by the ancient human emperor.
“Everyone — the Divine Maiden Furnace was a great threat in the past and remains one now. We must join forces and suppress it together.” Yi Qingwu spoke up.
Upon entering Tanggu, people initially still chose to attack Ye Fan and his companions rather than immediately contending for the golden divine tree and the Great Emperor’s ancient palace hall.
Sacred weapon clashes erupted, waged across the island. Streaks of flowing light flew in all directions. It was fortunate that this was the legendary Tanggu — the place where the sun rises — otherwise, a single strike would have reduced everything to dust with nothing left.
“That wretched little Yi Qingwu — she’s infuriatingly cunning. I never imagined their Guanghan Que would be this formidable. No wonder the Divine Maiden Furnace had some trouble dealing with them back in the day,” Li Tian cursed.
The people clashed fiercely. Sacred weapon might blanketed the sky and covered the earth. Above Tanggu, wave after wave of divine radiance appeared, nearly seething with intensity!
The Guanghan Que was exceedingly sharp and fierce. It caused Ye Fan and his companions great trouble on several occasions as Yi Qingwu joined forces with others in relentless assault.
Fortunately, some people, in their desire to contend for the Fusang ancient tree, were not giving their full effort, and had begun breaking from the alliance to charge toward the ancient palace hall.
The Divine Maiden Furnace shot out a five-colored divine radiance — beautiful and dazzling — descending toward the Fusang divine tree. Ye Fan felt a surge of vigorous life energy; he ran the Ancient Solar Scripture and refined it frantically, his entire body feeling supremely comfortable.
This is the most primordial Solar Sacred Energy. Even the ancient holy emperor of old attained the Dao right here. If I could absorb and refine it, I would certainly be able to keep breaking through.
Ye Fan was stirred. In just this brief moment of proximity, he had already gained considerable benefit. He longed to embrace the golden Fusang divine tree and cultivate right there.
“Who can bury me in my homeland…”
Suddenly, an abrupt voice rang out. A one-armed elderly man cradling a small pagoda appeared at Ye Fan’s side. A strange force surged forth and in an instant knocked Ye Fan away from the Divine Maiden Furnace, sending him plummeting toward the Fusang divine tree.
The green-robed elderly man, filled with confusion, fell together with Ye Fan. His body overflowed with light as both of them tumbled down close to the immortal tree, enveloped by endless Solar Sacred Energy on all sides.
Ye Fan was thoroughly shocked. The divine spirit who had said he would bestow upon him a stroke of fortune had appeared inexplicably at this moment, leaving him completely baffled.
At the same time, he cried out inwardly that things were bad. Leaving the Divine Maiden Furnace’s side would be extremely dangerous — for up in the sky there were several sacred weapons putting pressure on everything below.
Boom!
Sure enough, Yi Qingwu let out a sweet laugh. Her full head of dark hair danced wildly. Her ivory-white, crystalline body glowed brilliantly. She activated the Guanghan Que and it bore down — without any suspense, it swept him inside.
At that very moment, Li Tian wore a face full of wicked intent. He was already making his move, lifting the lid of the Divine Maiden Furnace to reveal the small sacrificial altar inside. Upon it, the three characters of “Yi Qingwu” gleamed brilliantly.
“What?!” Yi Qingwu’s expression changed. Her body moved involuntarily, flying toward the Divine Maiden Furnace.
In this critical moment, she activated the Guanghan Que to protect herself, suspending it above her head. She and Ye Fan entered the furnace in nearly the same breath.
“You are using forbidden power!” Yan Yixi stared at Li Tian with a solemn expression.
“At a time like this, who can worry about any of that,” Li Tian said with a wicked grin, pleased with himself. The Divine Maiden Furnace actually swallowed the Guanghan Que — but in the very next moment he erupted in furious outrage and cried: “Yi Qingwu was collected inside, but that bastard Ye Fan went in too — I… God, I’m livid!”