Chapter 1663: Breaking the Shackles
This was a quasi-emperor-level fluctuation, startling the Eight Wastelands, causing all experts to tremble. Someone was rapidly approaching, unwilling to give Ye Fan the chance to truly grow strong and rise!
"Boom!"
Divine thunder annihilated the world. The vast star domain was submerged by thunderous light. In this place, stars could no longer be seen; all had been shattered by the lightning. It was hard to imagine how immense this tribulation lightning was.
Ye Fan distanced himself from living realms, entering a barren, dead star system. Otherwise, no living being would have survived; all would have turned to ash.
Lightning interwove, each bolt like a river of stars, silver radiance stretching long, streaking across the dark universe, dazzling to the point of awe.
Unprecedented in the world, people had never seen such a vast, far-reaching sea of thunder. It was about to cross star domains, inconceivable.
It could be said to defy common sense. A single bolt of lightning shot through the void, and after leaving this region, it still destroyed one great star after another, like blooming flowers, brilliant and beautiful.
This sight left people speechless—too intense, too terrifying, too powerful. Was this still a quasi-emperor tribulation?
People almost suspected it was a Great Emperor undergoing tribulation!
Of course, no one had ever seen an emperor tribulation; this was merely speculation, because no current quasi-emperor seemed to have caused such a commotion.
Ye Fan roared, sinking and floating in the sea of thunder. He had encountered great trouble, fighting for life and death, battling to survive.
"So this is the complete quasi-emperor tribulation!"
Compared to the last time, it was worlds apart—terrifyingly so. Even Ye Fan himself was startled, the dangers he faced exceeding his expectations.
"Nine deaths and one life" was an understatement; it was like facing a dead end.
Several days passed. He had hidden in a desolate, dead star system. It should have ended long ago, but because of the multitude of trials, his heavenly punishment was unique. Even now, thunderous light still exploded, exposing him to the outside world.
The thunderstorm was like an ocean, and Ye Fan was like a small boat, tossed and rising and falling, at any moment about to be capsized and buried amidst this vast sea of thunder.
At this moment, he was drenched in blood, fighting against Great Emperors, dueling Ancient Emperors—one supreme being after another, peerless and unrivaled.
Last time, these people had not appeared because the quasi-emperor tribulation was incomplete and flawed. Today, they all erupted, waves striking the heavens, shattering the starry sky.
Armageddon was no more than this!
Ye Fan fought fiercely. He didn't know how many he had battled. His body was crippled, white bone fragments flying, golden blood igniting the thunder sea, red blood filled with Dao runes flickering, covering the sky.
The golden little man in his brow had also rushed out, shattered several times, but always recombined, slaughtering and resisting those imperial shadows.
"Kill!"
Ye Fan fought for days and nights, utterly exhausted, but he still roared, tenacious and unyielding, refusing to give up. He knew that once he retreated, once he closed his eyes, he would sleep forever, never to revive.
"Hum!"
Opposite him, a man wielding a battle axe charged, like a great demon king. His eyes were golden, blazing fiercely, his killing intent terrifyingly vast.
"Luan Gu!"
Ye Fan was weary but had to rouse himself. Another young Great Emperor had arrived, one axe strike destroying heaven and earth, the axe radiance like an ocean.
Facing the first strike, he did not dodge but endured it, using the young emperor's rules to bombard his own shackles, thereby breaking the fetters and escaping the cage.
Pfft!
Ye Fan caught the battle axe between his hands. The cold, gleaming edge directly penetrated into his body, shattering his bones, causing his flesh to convulse, his body nearly exploding.
This was nearly self-mutilation, but it was necessary!
Because over the past three hundred-plus years, the residual Dao traces of Stone Emperor, Lord of Divine Ruins, Venerable of Light and Dark, Lord of Reincarnation, and others had interwoven within his body, forming a cocoon—more like a cage—burying his methods and Dao.
Now, Ye Fan bathed in the quasi-emperor tribulation, using the Dao methods of ancient Great Emperors to temper himself, breaking free. It was like sharp war swords piercing the cage, helping him shed his restraints.
Of course, doing so also harmed him—a price that had to be paid.
For days, he had endured this pain. The reason the thunder punishment did not end was this: he struggled in the thunder sea. Whenever he was about to sink, he would roar, thinking of the past, present, and future, letting the obsession in his heart become a flame, burning his soul, keeping him clear-minded.
Painful struggle, prolonged tribulation—for Ye Fan, this was an unimaginable ordeal, but also an opportunity. Break through, and the sky would be vast; fail, and he would fall forever into hell.
One Great Emperor after another appeared, one Ancient Emperor after another stood, waiting to be fought, to be battled. Ye Fan shed too much blood, his bones shattered.
Fortunately, his recovery power was astonishing, and the thunder tribulation had torn open his flesh, briefly breaking the cage of laws, allowing his methods and Dao to become active. Using the Presence Secret to heal, otherwise, even with ten lives, he would have died.
"What a terrifying heavenly punishment! Never seen before! This surpasses all limits! Don't give him this chance!"
A cold, trembling voice came. A giant bronze coffin floated, engraved with the netherworld map of the Underworld. Ghostly wails echoed, ghostly qi drowning heaven and earth.
A person sat up inside, not a quasi-emperor, but extremely dangerous. A chilling, cold and gloomy aura covered everything, originating from a scroll painting in his hand.
"The Netherworld Map, passed down generation after generation, finally consumed today. But using it on the Sacred Body is worth it!"
This was a quasi-emperor forbidden artifact. In a sense, it was even more terrifying than a quasi-emperor weapon, because it was a one-time burst. After use, the artifact would be ruined, its divine energy astonishing!
"Hum!"
The ancient map spanned the sky, like a sea of stars flickering. Inside, one star river after another swirled around a deathly netherworld realm. At this moment, it erupted.
Clearly, the newcomer had prepared thoroughly. The forbidden artifact broke through the thunder light, plunging directly inside without being destroyed prematurely. And netherworld qi surged, shaking this star region.
"Hmm, these are tribulation-crossing patterns, temporarily avoiding heaven's reckoning, dissolving the thunder tribulation, forging a passage. Wasn't this supreme array pattern long lost? It has appeared again."
"This was the tribulation-crossing array pattern created by the Tribulation-Crossing Heavenly Venerable back then. I never thought it would fall into the Underworld's hands!"
Clearly, there was more than one person coming, all watching closely, their eyes flickering with merciless, cold light.
Ye Fan was very weak, his strength nearly gone. After battling Luan Gu, he faced the Divine Silkworm Emperor. Now, an ancient map tore through the sky, entering the tribulation to crush him.
"Underworld!"
Ye Fan saw the star rivers in the map, also the ghostly qi and the myriad halls at its center. His brows shot up. He bit his tongue, spat out a mouthful of Dao blood, forcing himself to stay alert.
"Boom!"
The Weapon Art took effect. He wanted to seize control of the forbidden artifact, using it to blast toward the Divine Emperor, making them collide.
Unfortunately, he did not succeed. The forbidden artifact pierced heaven and earth. In his weakened state, he could not grasp it. The netherworld map was as stable as a rock, unwaveringly pressing toward him to kill.
"Then come! I already have enough residual traces of supreme beings on me. What's one more?"
Ye Fan's body clanged. One after another, order divine chains as thick as arms flew out. He was like a thousand-armed demon god, the law chains turning into giant hands, grabbing toward that map.
"Boom!"
The Netherworld Map collapsed, transforming into a wave surging toward Ye Fan. This was a treasure map capable of killing quasi-emperors and exterminating peerless experts. At this moment, its power finally manifested.
Brilliant light flickered. Ye Fan self-destructed, the supreme Dao patterns contained in his blood all rushing forward, colliding with the vast, ocean-like forbidden artifact's rules and order.
His flesh and Dao bones were burning. This was a mutually destructive battle, enduring with his own body.
However, during this time, his primordial spirit was not contaminated by the Underworld's qi, taken into the Primordial Qi Cauldron, tightly protected.
A shocking collision. Brilliant radiance shone, dimming even the heavenly tribulation light. The Divine Emperor stood aside, not intervening, watching coldly, as if truly possessing a consciousness within that body.
Ye Fan was shattered to pieces. Blood burned, bones cracked, nearly turning into a flame. The residual divine chains of ancient supreme beings within his body exploded simultaneously with that map.
This almost drove him to self-destruction!
"Is it over?" A cold and stern snort came. The person in the bronze coffin smiled, as if appreciating a rain of petals blooming and scattering.
"I am immortal!"
From the vast sea of thunder, Ye Fan's cold, awe-inspiring divine thought voice came. The burning flesh extinguished, the shattered bones recombined, his body barely reappeared.
This killing strike had broken through the seal of the supreme beings' residual traces, allowing him to use more of his methods and Dao with ease.
Ye Fan's primordial spirit did not immediately return to his body. After rushing out of the cauldron, his hands moved, summoning the vast ghostly qi and the netherworld dark fire, tempering his primordial spirit.
His physical body had already undergone this; he wanted his primordial spirit to have a similar experience.
Everyone drew in cold air. This was practically defying heaven!
They would not have imagined that the residual traces of ancient supreme beings were so terrifying, sealed within Ye Fan for over three hundred years, coexisting. Their attacks were equivalent to helping Ye Fan break his cage.
"What other tricks do you have?!"
Ye Fan roared, taking a step. The Stride Art reached its peak. Time stopped, or seemed to reverse. In an instant, he arrived before the bronze coffin, holding up the heavenly tribulation, preventing it from falling.
"You..."
The expression of the person in the coffin froze on his face, his heart trembling. Ye Fan's speed was too fast, leaving him unable to react.
Looking at the thunderous upheaval above, the rolling quasi-emperor tribulation, his face turned pale. Even if Ye Fan didn't act, he would surely die. The thunder would fall, and he would turn to ash.
"Why?" His heart trembled, filled with confusion. That forbidden artifact could definitely kill a quasi-emperor, one of the Underworld's most precious immortal treasures, stored for endless ages, only brought out today. Yet it was ineffective, the result defying common sense.
Ye Fan grabbed him, lifting him up, looking at him coldly. Then, with a pfft, he directly tore him apart. Blood splattered, and then he tossed him into the thunder sea.
Pfft!
Only a wisp of green smoke rose, along with the bronze coffin, turning to dust.
Ye Fan let out a long roar. Thunder light upheaved, the entire star region boomed and shook. Stars were long gone, only empty sky and chaotic lightning.
"He's about to succeed! The tribulation is at its final stage!"
It could be seen that the figures of the Great Emperors standing in the void were fading. The thunder tribulation that had lasted for days was about to end, signaling that Ye Fan would break the shackles of his methods and Dao, truly rising.
This sight, this thunder punishment—ask the world, how many could withstand it?