# Chapter 1156: Making a Grand Show of Force
The Cao Family held immense weight on the Eternal Main Star — a single stomp of their feet would cause tremors in all directions. They were a transcendent great force, arriving with a fleet of mother ships, yet they were driven back in disgrace, covered in dust, by a single person piloting a mech.
Immortal Feather Star was abuzz with noise. Everyone was discussing the matter, and no matter how they tried to rationalize it, it all seemed too dreamlike, too unreal.
"According to reports, he's a bitter cultivator who came from the depths of the starry cosmos. Who would have thought he'd be this powerful? Could he be another immortal fetus following in the footsteps of Wan Qing?"
"The Cao Family absolutely will not let this go. They've lost considerable face this time, humiliated on Immortal Feather Star. They'll most likely send a great army to punish him!"
People marveled, each and every one feeling that this incident was utterly unreal.
This news also reached Heaven, leaving a group of important figures dumbfounded. They further realized that Ye Fan's potential was boundless and his combat talent terrifying.
Fan Xian and some others couldn't help but frown. The Indestructible Golden Body had slipped through their fingers and was now rising to fame on Immortal Feather Star. This would most likely attract the attention of many great forces. Even if the Cao Family went to exterminate him, they would probably fail, because other behemoths might extend olive branches.
"I think we need to make amends..." Fan Zhou muttered to himself, unable to help glancing at his clansmen.
A true first-generation Indestructible Golden Body — not several generations later, but the very first — possessed unimaginable potential that no one could predict.
The Eternal Main Star was a vast ancient planet, with expansive territory and abundant resources, a dense population. Since ancient times, it had given birth to many astonishingly talented individuals, even ancient deities.
The Cao Family dominated one region, with few in the eastern territories able to rival them. But now, several giants were furious. Before that towering heavenly palace, many people were silent as cicadas in winter, not daring to say a word.
This was an ancient palace that had existed for hundreds of thousands of years, floating and sinking above the sky dome. It was the Cao Family's landmark building, surrounded by mother ships, divine islands, and giant mountains that guarded its center.
*Smack!*
An old man in the palace violently smashed a diamond stone table, roaring: "Useless! The Cao Family's face has been utterly disgraced by you all. A mother ship and a large fleet were defeated and driven back by a single Dao Severer. What use are you?"
The people below trembled in fear, but not a single person dared to say anything. This battle result was truly shameful, with nothing to be said in defense.
"Find a way to wash away your disgrace. Don't let the Cao Family become a laughingstock, or I'll feed you all to the dragons!" another giant roared.
On this day, a hurricane swept out from the Cao Family. A group of people departed, wanting to eliminate Ye Fan, employing every means available.
Immortal Feather Star soon received the news. The Cao Family members were burning with rage, deciding to launch a major incursion into Immortal Feather Star to find trouble with Ye Fan. The news spread everywhere, and clouds of war gathered.
These past few days, Ye Fan had kept a low profile. Although his battle had shaken Immortal Feather Star, he didn't dare to be ostentatious. He lay low, visiting various ancient ruins, searching for what he needed.
This was an ancient site called Evergreen Pool — a pool formed from blue stones, with several stone pavilions beside it bearing the marks of weathered ages.
In the pool, clusters of lotus flowers grew, like green jade, flourishing vigorously. For twenty thousand years, they had never withered.
Legend had it that Wan Qing once bathed here, and overnight, divine lotuses sprouted. After such a long span of time, this pool had never dried up, its spirituality still intact.
"Back then, the Green Emperor must have already been extraordinary, reaching a terrifyingly profound realm," Ye Fan muttered to himself. He was now certain that Wan Qing was the Green Emperor.
Whether in the Fan Clan's Heaven or on Immortal Feather Star, he had been diligently searching for traces of predecessors and old acquaintances, because he believed this might be a stop along the Ancient Stellar Path. Otherwise, why would the Green Emperor have appeared here?
Over this long period, he had carefully inquired and probed, and indeed learned some extraordinary news. In history, there had indeed been a group of bitter cultivators who passed through this region.
"To learn more, perhaps I need to go to the Eternal Main Star." Ye Fan believed there should be more "traces" there.
*Plop!*
He dove headfirst into the pool, swimming downward. Streams of spiritual energy rose from the water, colorful and vibrant, making this place extremely suitable for cultivation.
Ye Fan couldn't help but marvel. The ancient Demon Emperor was transcendent and otherworldly, beyond imagination. Twenty thousand years ago, he certainly hadn't become an emperor yet, yet he could leave behind such miraculous traces.
"Oh? Inscriptions!"
Ye Fan was surprised. On a blue stone at the bottom of the pool, he saw a line of text. It wasn't ancient characters or divine script — it was writing from Earth.
"Pang Ye was here!"
Seeing this sentence, Ye Fan's expression immediately turned strange, then his heart pounded violently, and he showed ecstatic joy. Such a mischievous person, this tone, this handwriting — it immediately pointed to one person: Pang Bo!
"He indeed passed through here!" Ye Fan said these words, barely containing his excitement.
Without a doubt, this line of text confirmed his speculation. The Green Emperor had passed through here, and Pang Bo had walked this place. This was a stop along the Ancient Stellar Path.
"Hmm, I need to be even more thorough, searching for their traces. Perhaps some haven't left yet," he murmured softly.
There were no treasures at the bottom of the pool. Ye Fan burst out of the water and continued to the next ruin, following the legends about Wan Qing.
"Hey, the Cao Family has arrived! They've issued a sky-high bounty. Anyone who provides information or captures that bitter cultivator will receive a generous reward!"
This news swept through like a fierce wind, stirring up activity everywhere. The people of Immortal Feather Star were very interested.
The Cao Family had returned in force. Last time they had been covered in dust; this time, their fleet of warships roared like dark clouds pressing down, charging toward this planet with murderous intent.
Ye Fan watched from afar. The silver warships were as dense as a steel forest. Just the mother ships alone numbered three, all for a single person — truly a grand show of force.
"They really think highly of me." Ye Fan was surprised, deeply aware that this could be a great crisis.
The Cao Family descended upon Immortal Feather Star with tremendous fanfare. Over the following half month, they struck out in all directions, searching for his traces, but found nothing.
"Could he have already left?" The Cao Family members were suspicious.
Cao Lin frowned, her enchanting and beautiful face showing a contemplative expression, then she said with certainty: "When we retreated last time, I had someone activate the Stellar Network's power early on to monitor this star region. Any appearance of a Star Gate would be detected. As for flying directly out of the domain, that would be even harder to conceal. He hasn't left this ancient star."
"Increase the bounty!" a middle-aged man said.
Soon after, Immortal Feather Star was in an uproar. The Cao Family was actually willing to offer a supplementary divine essence for refining the strongest physique evolution liquid, all for a bitter cultivator.
"Truly wealthy and powerful. Few other great forces can compare. Is this a battle of pride? Purely to vent their anger?"
"What do you know? I heard that bitter cultivator is an Indestructible Golden Body. Even after a dozen generations, it would still be astonishing. They can extract golden divine blood, worth a fortune. With the Cao Family's heaven-reaching methods, they can definitely put it to great use. Absolutely worth it!"
Many people whispered, causing a huge uproar.
"Excellent. The Cao Family is willing to bleed. I'm happy to oblige and claim that bounty!" On the Qi Family's divine island, Qi Yun laughed coldly.
Not far away, in that quiet bamboo grove, his most beloved youngest son was recovering from injuries. Most of his bones were broken, his vitality severely damaged, filling Qi Yun with rage and fury.
"You, an outsider bitter cultivator, dare to run wild on Immortal Feather Star? I'll make you eat your fill and then some. You'll regret ever being born into this world!" Qi Yun swore fiercely.
He ordered someone to retrieve some secret diagrams from the Ancient Sacred Mech vault and studied them carefully for a long time. These were the blueprints for constructing these war tools, containing great secrets.
"Our clan's Ancient Sacred Mech isn't so easy to take. Now analyze it carefully. I want him to explode together with this war tool!"
A group of old men buried their heads before the diagrams, observing intently. Dao runes flickered from time to time as they repeatedly conducted various experiments, preparing to decipher the ancient saint runes.
Qi Meng came to visit, her figure graceful and lithe. "Ninth Uncle, what are you doing? Big Uncle told me to tell you not to act recklessly. Ye Fan saved our lives. If you make a move now, outsiders will despise us, saying we repay kindness with enmity."
"Good niece, where are your thoughts wandering? Rest assured, how could your uncle be that kind of person?" Qi Yun smiled warmly as he sent Qi Meng away.
Within Heaven, the Fan Clan received news of the Cao Family's major mobilization. Fan Xian furrowed her delicate brows. "This is somewhat unfavorable. If he gets captured, won't the Indestructible Golden Body slip through our fingers?"
"Hmm, we could try other methods to lure him over. Do you still remember those bitter cultivators who appeared a few years ago? I feel they might come from the same place." Fan Tian spoke with a sinister tone, his fiery red hair dazzling and eye-catching.
"Not bad. There really might be a significant connection!" Fan Clan giant Fan Zhou's eyes lit up, and he stood up abruptly.
On Immortal Feather Star, on the Qi Family's divine island, Qi Yun laughed coldly, his eyes sinister as he stared in a certain direction. "Let the Ancient Sacred Mech explode. If it blows him to pieces, we'll extract the golden divine blood. If it fails, it will expose his location, and we can sell him to the Cao Family to claim the divine mineral bounty."
Either way, he wouldn't lose. This time, he would reap great rewards. A group of people set out with great fanfare toward a vast wilderness.
"Hmm, he should be deep in the mountains. Prepare to activate it. Let Qi Meng's Ancient Sacred War Tool disintegrate and collapse. Blow this so-called Indestructible Golden Body to pieces!"
Qi Yun's expression was vicious. He didn't hesitate to destroy a sacred artifact, using it to severely wound Ye Fan and shatter his physical body into pieces.
Deep in the mountains, Ye Fan felt uneasy. He sensed that something was about to happen, that great disaster was imminent. This was an instinctive intuition that came after reaching a certain level of cultivation. After ascending to the eighth level of Dao Severing, this divine sense had become increasingly extraordinary.
"Something's wrong. What's happening?" Ye Fan swept his powerful divine consciousness in all directions, then examined his own body, which was like pure seven-colored divine glass, and held the Green Copper Cauldron in his hand, preparing for any eventuality.
"It's... this Ancient Sacred Mech!" Finally, his expression changed. At this last moment, this war tool underwent a transformation, suddenly becoming dazzlingly bright — it was about to explode.
Ye Fan's mind shook violently. He quickly summoned it, then fiercely suppressed it into the Green Copper Cauldron, isolating it from all external qi.
The Green Copper Cauldron had flowed through endless ages. Though damaged, it was not something that worldly power could destroy. It could suppress even an Ancient Sacred-level weapon.
Water-blue light blazed fiercely, but it couldn't trigger the mech. Ye Fan observed carefully, saw the problem, laughed coldly, erased the destructive imprint, and resolved the crisis.
"That was close. This was a sacred artifact. If it had exploded and burned inside my body, even I couldn't have withstood it. I'd be crippled at best, if not dead. Such a vicious heart!" Ye Fan shuddered at the thought.
"That kid has incredible luck. The Ancient Sacred War Tool didn't explode. What method did he use to withstand it?" In the distance, Qi Yun was suspicious and uncertain, his face dark and gloomy.
Then, he laughed sinisterly and immediately contacted the Cao Family, telling them Ye Fan was here.
The Cao Family's mother ships were incredibly fast. In no time, they appeared, completely sealing off the entire mountain range, concentrating all their strongest firepower forward.