Chapter 293: Stone Artifacts — Divine Treasury
The Nine Secrets of Li Province originated from a very mysterious place. Ye Fan carefully examined this silk brocade. According to what was recorded, it was very far away, already close to the central region of the Eastern Wasteland.
Sacred Cliff — this was an ancient name, marked on this silk brocade, precisely the place containing the Nine Secrets.
Ye Fan felt this name was somewhat special and couldn't help asking the big black dog, "Black Emperor, have you heard of Sacred Cliff?"
The big black dog's heart immediately jumped. "How do you know that name?"
"I threw the ancient scroll to Duan De and kept this silk brocade. It mentions the Nine Secrets are hidden there." Ye Fan did not conceal this from Black Emperor.
"That place is very unusual. A Great Emperor once went there. Facing the ancient cliff, he was moved and paid his respects there," Black Emperor said.
"What kind of place is it exactly?" Ye Fan became even more curious.
"There are rumors that a Great Accomplishment Primordial Saint Body fell there, his blood dyeing the stone cliff red. The ancient Great Emperors were all invincible and lonely. When they traveled to the ancient cliff, they mostly felt that if that Saint Body were still alive, he would be worth fighting."
"Such an anecdote exists..." Ye Fan stroked his chin. This was no ordinary place. With the Nine Secrets hidden in that region, he had to make a trip.
But he didn't want to leave right now. With the silk brocade in hand, the Nine Secrets couldn't run away. He could follow the map when the time came. What he needed most at present was to improve his cultivation realm, not urgently seek secret techniques.
Over these past days, he had traveled through dozens of cities, continuously buying stone materials, then cutting them open in uninhabited places. Combined with what he already had, he had accumulated over ten thousand jin of Source.
Now, he could break through to the third heaven of the Dao Palace, but he wasn't satisfied. He wanted to advance to the fourth heaven of the Dao Palace.
However, the difficulty was too great. He needed a hundred thousand jin of Source — a dizzying number. Relying solely on stone gambling was somewhat difficult.
"Perhaps I should go to the Holy City..." Ye Fan muttered to himself.
Over half a month, the turmoil in Li Province had not subsided. On the contrary, it grew more intense. The other focal point of that day — Duan De — was even more beleaguered than Ye Fan.
That unscrupulous Taoist was indeed a character. Under those circumstances that day, he still found an opportunity and successfully escaped.
But his days afterward were very difficult. All the Holy Lands hunted him simultaneously. Wu Dao of the Thirteen Great Bandits roared as he pursued, and the Demon Clan also clung to him relentlessly.
Duan De fled for half a month, so exhausted he was nearly coughing blood, almost skinned alive. Finally, he couldn't hold on and flung away the ancient scroll.
Yet even so, he didn't have it easy. Wu Dao of the Thirteen Great Bandits seemed to have locked onto him, pursuing without pause, day and night.
Someone saw that over half a month, Duan De had lost a great deal of weight, his body covered in bloodstains. But the only surprising thing was that he was still bouncing around, showing no signs of collapse.
"This damn fatty has an incredibly tough life. The Holy Lands couldn't kill him, and even Wu Dao personally making a move hasn't caught up to him." Ye Fan was speechless.
According to the latest news, Duan De was being chased by Wu Dao with no way to heaven and no door to earth, fleeing toward the Central Province.
After the unscrupulous Taoist threw away the ancient scroll, the successors of the Holy Lands fought fiercely, shocking even the senior figures. Their combat power was astonishing.
"We need to return to Stone Stockade and move the people away. I estimate that in a while, the struggle over the ancient scroll will have results, and the major Holy Lands will probably sit down to negotiate."
That wasn't the Nine Secrets but a shocking map. Once the major sects understood it, there would be enormous waves. No single family could monopolize it — that place couldn't be conquered by one Holy Land alone.
He didn't want the people of Stone Stockade to be affected. He wanted to relocate them in advance, far from Purple Mountain.
"If the Holy Lands launch a major attack on Purple Mountain, other places will inevitably be empty. Then there might be an excellent opportunity. I need Source!" Ye Fan was filled with desire.
Half a month later, Ye Fan and Black Emperor returned to Stone Stockade. It was still the same as before, without much change.
This place was far from prosperous and beautiful. The stockade formed by reddish-brown stones was very desolate, with few plants. It was merely a small oasis of over ten li.
However, the people here were in good spirits. They made a living mining Source and lived without worry, able to go to distant oases to exchange for daily necessities.
"So it's Young Brother Ye back, and that... Black Emperor." The people of Stone Stockade greeted warmly, almost misnaming the big black dog.
When they learned they had to move away, many elders fell silent. They had lived here for generations. Suddenly leaving was hard for anyone to accept.
"We have to move. This place will no longer be peaceful. A huge storm is coming." Ye Fan explained patiently.
In the end, he had no choice but to invite Fifth Elder Zhang and briefly describe the situation at Purple Mountain.
Hearing that the Holy Lands were coming, Fifth Elder Zhang's face changed color. He sighed, "Our ancestors told us to guard this place. Must we evacuate now?"
Black Emperor poked his massive head over and said, "Leave. Your clan will have great blessings in the future."
Ye Fan had heard that the first ancestor of the Zhang family — that Origin Heavenly Master — had said that guarding this place and revering Purple Mountain would bring great blessings in the future.
For many people, completely moving away was a sorrowful process. Ye Fan didn't rush them because there was still ample time.
Even if the ancient scroll fell into the hands of the Holy Lands, it would be difficult to produce results in a short time. All parties would negotiate, requiring constant compromise and redistribution of interests.
However, at this moment, the big black dog made a discovery. When it went to observe Purple Mountain, it actually saw a figure — someone had already arrived!
"Are you sure?" Ye Fan was startled. This was too fast.
"That person is extremely terrifying. I only saw a blurry shadow, and then it vanished in a flash." The big black dog said solemnly.
Black Emperor had only vaguely seen that the person was wearing a Daoist robe, standing atop Purple Mountain, disappearing in an instant, giving it a big scare.
"Wearing a Daoist robe... Could it be that damn fatty? But wasn't he being chased toward the Central Province?" Ye Fan was puzzled.
"It's definitely not that fatty. He couldn't be that fast. I remember clearly anyone I've bitten. This person is quite terrifying. In the blink of an eye, he was gone."
Ye Fan felt they needed to leave quickly. This place was no longer calm. The storm was coming faster than he had imagined.
"Hurry them up to pack. I'll go out for a look." He left Stone Stockade and went to Pingyan City to gather information. He learned that the Holy Lands hadn't acted yet — the ancient scroll turmoil hadn't subsided.
"What's going on? The Holy Lands haven't come, but someone arrived first. It must be a top-tier expert." Ye Fan speculated secretly. This person must have already seen the ancient scroll.
When Ye Fan returned, he saw the big black dog several dozen li from Stone Stockade. "What are you doing here?" he asked curiously.
"A Daoist priest came and entered the stockade. I can't see through him, and I'm afraid he might harm me."
"So you ran away?" Ye Fan was shocked. He was worried about the people of Stone Stockade.
"Don't worry. With his level of cultivation, he definitely won't trouble mortals. I just don't know why he entered the stockade."
"You say this Daoist — is he the one you saw atop Purple Mountain?"
"Most likely that Daoist priest. Otherwise, how could two top experts appear in the same area?" The big black dog pondered for a while. "Go see what he's doing."
Ye Fan thought for a moment, changed his appearance to look like Wang Shu, even making his origin aura nearly identical.
Since they were about to leave this place, Wang Shu wasn't in the stockade but was purchasing supplies in Pingyan City.
He returned to Stone Stockade in Wang Shu's guise. As soon as he arrived, he saw many people gathered in the stockade, all discussing something.
"What's going on?" Ye Fan asked.
"An old Daoist came. Very strange. He took a liking to Fifth Elder Zhang's stone roller and also fancied Er Lengzi's millstone. He's planning to buy them."
"This old Daoist has terrible eyesight. Even I can tell that roller and millstone definitely don't have Source. He wants to buy them at a high price. I don't know what he's thinking."
Ye Fan's heart immediately jumped. He quickly walked forward. Inside the crowd was an old Daoist, wearing an ancient Daoist robe that looked quite old, washed somewhat white.
"Such clothing is different from today's..." Ye Fan's mind stirred. The style of the robe was very archaic.
His expression was calm, but his heart was filled with terror. For an instant, his spiritual sense made him feel as if he were facing a sleeping ancient wild dragon.
But the sensation flashed and quickly disappeared. He remained unruffled, showing no abnormality.
This was an old Daoist with white hair draped over his shoulders, looking about sixty or seventy years old, spirited and vigorous, carefully examining Er Lengzi's stone millstone.
"I'll give you ten jin of Source. I want this millstone." The old Daoist spoke to Er Lengzi's parents.
"Ten jin?!" Everyone around was astonished.
Even Ye Fan was puzzled. He also carefully examined the millstone but detected nothing unusual.
In the end, the old Daoist bought the millstone and began cutting it open in front of everyone.
Stone chips flew everywhere. He was very careful, as if afraid of damaging some precious treasure. He peeled it layer by layer, without any bold hacking.
But in the end, the millstone turned into a pile of stone chips without yielding anything. The old Daoist frowned, stood up, and pointed at the stone roller in front of Fifth Elder Zhang's door. "This roller — I'll offer twenty jin of Source."
"This..." The people of Stone Stockade were quite shocked.
"Fifth Elder, do these stone rollers and millstones have any origin?" Ye Fan quietly asked Fifth Elder Zhang.
"I've never heard of any origin..." Fifth Elder Zhang frowned, thinking for a long time. "Our ancestors used them for generations. Nothing special. I can't see any Source inside them."
Suddenly, Fifth Elder Zhang's expression shifted. He exchanged a glance with Ye Fan. They both thought of the same possibility — could these millstones and rollers have been deliberately left by their ancestors?
After all, the Zhang family's ancestors were no ordinary people — they were a generation of extraordinary figures.
If the ancestors had deliberately left them, they must be extraordinary. With their eyesight, they couldn't see anything special at all.
"Are there many such stone artifacts in the stockade?" Ye Fan asked.
"Specifically... I haven't counted." Fifth Elder Zhang's fingers trembled slightly.
Could the things that extraordinary figure left for his descendants all be ordinary stone blocks, millstones, and rollers? Ye Fan's heart shook.