Chapter 673: Winds and Clouds Gather at the Ji Family
Although he knew the odds of success were slim and the dangers immense, Ye Fan had no choice but to come. He did not want to live with guilt and regret years later, failing his own conscience.
Setting aside the past, just considering the battle at the Qinling Mountains in the Central Province, Ji Ziyue had poured her own power into him without counting the cost, aiding him in a life-and-death struggle, nearly trading her life for his to help him escape danger, suffering severe injuries that brought her to the brink of death. This debt of gratitude had to be repaid.
Now, Ji Ziyue was in trouble, crying that she would not marry, begging for someone to save her, wanting to flee the Ji Family. Leaving everything else aside, just for that bond of friendship from the Qinling Mountains, Ye Fan had to come. Otherwise, he could not face himself.
In the Southern Domain, vegetation was lush, lakes were vast, mist and water blurred the horizon, and the great wilderness stretched endlessly, full of vitality with no barren land.
Ye Fan walked across this land, moving through the primeval wilds, silently contemplating how to respond. Leaving the Northern Domain would severely diminish his combat power, stripping him of his advantages and placing him in a highly unfavorable position.
"Caw"
In the great wilderness, a cyan-colored luan bird swooped down, grabbed an elephant, tore it apart in midair, blood spraying everywhere, and flew toward a distant cliff—its nest, where several chicks awaited feeding.
Ye Fan was lost in thought for a moment, then continued forward. He saw a fire qilin turtle, resembling a black tortoise but with a qilin head covered in scales. It opened its mouth and spat out a massive sheet of flame that turned an entire hill into ash.
From an underground cavern, a golden ape with divine wings shot up, charging at the fire qilin turtle. Its pair of golden wings released a torrent of lightning, crackling loudly, blasting the ground into a chasm and carving out an abyss.
Ten thousand trees shook, leaves scattered and withered, sand and stones flew, the earth collapsed—a terrifying scene like mountains crumbling and seas roaring, destroying everything. This ape was frighteningly powerful.
"Pfft"
But the fire qilin turtle was as huge as a small mountain, having cultivated for who knows how many tens of thousands of years. Some of the qilin blood within its body had even awakened. It opened its mouth and spat out a simple attack, stirring up wind and clouds.
A blaze of qilin purple fire burned fiercely, scorching heaven and earth, turning the ten great mountains of this region into magma, then into dust, and finally into vapor.
Ye Fan watched from afar, not approaching. That was a Saint Lord-rank ferocious beast. His heart tightened. One technique breaking ten thousand methods gave him endless inspiration, suddenly connecting to a lethal trump card.
"Boom"
The qilin purple fire shot into the sky, burning the powerful ape until it screamed in agony, ultimately turning into ashes, leaving behind only a divine pearl, which the mountain-sized fire qilin turtle swallowed.
"Cultivating for several thousand years, possessing supreme combat power, yet burned clean away..." Ye Fan kept his distance and avoided approaching.
He traveled through the great wilderness, which was extremely dangerous. This was the territory of savage beasts. These beast clans had chosen not to take human form, extending their lifespans, and were all incredibly powerful.
Legend had it that in one great wilderness after another, there might still exist divine immortality pills. Occasionally, a ferocious beast would consume one, living for nearly ten thousand years. Such beast lords were terrifying enough to chill one's heart.
"Boom"
In the distance, a deafening sound rang out. Ye Fan's heart jumped. He saw a group of giant tombs that could not possibly belong to a human cemetery.
Each tomb was as huge as a small hill, towering and magnificent. He saw an aged old flood dragon tear open a cliff, carve it into a stone coffin, and bury itself inside.
The stone coffin burned, sinking into the earth, and a massive earthen mound rose up, arranged before him.
"The strongest beast kings of this great wilderness all choose to bury themselves here before death." Ye Fan approached, scanning each giant tomb. No divine pearls remained; they had all turned themselves to ash.
However, Ye Fan was deeply moved. He muttered to himself, "Perhaps I can try. If successful, I'll have another powerful trump card!"
Walking through this great wilderness, inspired, he thought of two killing moves and prepared to master them to confront the Wang Family.
"The Sacred Body has come to the Southern Domain." In the Ji Family's honored guest palace, a Great Power from the Wang Family spoke, having learned from a great sect in the Northern Domain that Ye Fan had borrowed their path to cross the void.
"He's come to die after all. Young man, you're still too green. With a little trick from me, you have no choice but to come and die!" Wang Chengkun said, hands clasped behind his back.
"Leaving the Northern Domain, unable to use Source Arts, even a dragon must coil, even a tiger must lie low, stretching his neck for the blade—no chance at all!" One of Wang Teng's uncles laughed.
In the palace, several Great Powers studied a scroll with the coordinate array patterns from Ye Fan's void crossing, deducing where in the Southern Domain he would appear.
The Sacred Body had come to the Southern Domain. This news could not remain a secret. Many learned of it, and everyone was shocked, all discussing it.
People felt that Ye Fan was too impulsive. Coming to the Southern Domain for a decisive battle stripped him of all advantages, making it a near-certain death sentence. He would likely stain the Southern Domain with his blood.
Many sighed. The Sacred Body, the only one to break the curse since the Primordial Era, might have shone brilliantly in the future, but now he had walked into a dead end with almost no chance of victory.
He was indeed powerful, but he had not yet grown to the point of defying all Holy Lands. Without the support of Source Arts, how could he contend with supreme Saint Lords?
In five days, the Northern Emperor would be betrothed to Ji Ziyue. No one knew who spread this news, but it immediately caused an uproar.
Was it truly confirmed, or was it a ploy to force the Sacred Body to show himself quickly?
Now, if Ye Fan wanted to exert any effort to help Ji Ziyue, he had no time left to plan. With such a short deadline, how could he resist?
Outside, everyone was pessimistic about the Sacred Body. They believed he would likely fall in the Southern Domain. Since he had come, he could not avoid acting, yet he had no chance of victory.
The Ji Family possessed an Extreme Imperial Weapon. What could he use to counter it? Facing an ancient aristocratic clan, his individual strength was pitifully insignificant. He could never rescue Ji Ziyue. Going there meant certain death!
In the Ji Family's honored guest palace, Wang Chengkun's lips curled into a cold smile. "We don't need to act. If he dares to cause trouble at the Ji Family, their Eighth Elder will crush him to death."
Years ago, Ye Fan had struck in the Southern Domain, killing many Ji Family experts. The key figure behind it all was the old woman Ji Hui.
And Ji Hui was a descendant doted on by the Ji Family's Eighth Elder. He had never let it go and had always sought an opportunity to eliminate Ye Fan and avenge Ji Hui.
Soon, news spread that Ye Fan might storm the Ji Family in the coming days, shaking the Southern Domain and drawing the world's attention. All eyes turned toward it.
How many years had it been? No one remembered how long since such a thing had happened—daring to assault an ancient aristocratic clan. From ancient times to the present, it had occurred only a few times.
Especially the Ji Family. No matter how great a hero you were, you would turn to ash under the Void Mirror. There was no way past this obstacle!
Even now, if the Battle Victory Buddha from Mount Sumeru came east, or the Old Madman of the Eastern Wasteland appeared, they would have to think it over carefully. No one in the world was not wary.
Moreover, who could fathom the Ji Family's true depths? Their current Great Powers were also very strong. Which major force dared to clash head-on?
"The heir of the Eastern Wasteland Demon Clan, Great Demon Pang Bo, requests an audience!" That day, several figures appeared before the Ji Family's magnificent palace, their voices booming like thunder.
Pang Bo had come, not as a junior seeking an audience with the Ji Family's strong, but invoking his identity as the heir of the Demon Emperor, elevating this visit to the level of relations between the Demon Clan and the Human Clan.
"Ye Fan is the protector of our Demon Clan's Dao. Whoever kills him is against the Demon Clan!" Pang Bo was truly desperate. The Southern Domain was a dragon's pool and tiger's den. He feared Ye Fan would act and stain this land with blood, so he went all out, using his sensitive identity to intervene.
This statement caused another wave of astonishment in the Southern Domain. The Demon Clan had gotten involved. This storm was destined to be huge.
This time, the Crane King and the Bat King accompanied him, brought out by Pang Bo using his personal connections, supporting his identity as the Green Emperor's heir to pressure the Ji Family.
"Unfortunately, after the Qinling Mountains battle, Red Dragon King and the others went into seclusion. Otherwise, it would be more effective!" Pang Bo sighed softly.
Even so, the Ji Family did not slight them. A Great Power came out to welcome them in. Although they did not commit to anything, they did not want to offend them either.
"The Demon Clan and the Green Emperor's heir..." One of Wang Teng's uncles paused, instinctively sensing a variable upon hearing the news.
"Investigate whether the Demon Clan's Imperial Weapon and the Thirteen Great Bandits' Devouring Demon Jar have been lent to the Sacred Body." Wang Chengkun's face was expressionless.
Soon, reliable news arrived. After the Qinling Mountains battle, Old Blind Man, Peacock King, and the others had all gone into seclusion, using the Imperial Weapons to protect their cultivation. They could not be lent out.
"Sacred Body, how will you survive?" Wang Teng's father, Wang Chengkun, sneered. "Without an Imperial Weapon, if you barge into the Ji Family, you'll die even without us lifting a finger!"
The next day, Li Heishui accompanied several of the Thirteen Great Bandits from the Northern Domain to the Ji Family in the Southern Domain, clearly intending to protect Ye Fan and ensure he came to no harm.
Many cultivators in the Eastern Wasteland were alarmed. Both the Demon Clan and the Thirteen Great Bandits had sent people. This was a formidable force that even Holy Lands had to regard with some caution.
Before half a day had passed, Red Dragon Daoist appeared, personally emerging from seclusion. Although he had not brought an Extreme Weapon, his true form arrived, further tightening the atmosphere in the Southern Domain.
Red Dragon King was someone who could roam the Eastern Wasteland unchallenged. In this era, aside from Saint-level figures, who could kill him? That he came personally for Ye Fan's sake made many draw in cold breaths.
"Boom"
On the third day, a loud crash echoed. A monkey covered in golden light appeared, holding a thick black iron staff, planted before the Ji Family's palace, sending dust and smoke into the sky.
"Wang Teng, get the hell out here!" The Battle Saint Ape had arrived, crossing the void to the Eastern Wasteland specifically for Ye Fan, wielding his great staff to beat down the Northern Emperor.
The Ten Thousand Primeval Clans were about to emerge, and the Holy Prince had also come. This identity was far too sensitive, even more distinguished than the Divine Spirit Valley's young master Zi Tian, whom Wang Teng had befriended!
Many major powers were cautious.
"Northern Emperor, who gave you that title? Just because you want to attain the Dao and become an emperor? With me here, get as far away as you can. From now on, put it away!" The monkey was extremely arrogant, standing with his staff, looking down at the scene before him.
His voice carried for hundreds of li, rumbling through the void.
The main figure, Ye Fan, had not yet appeared, but before the Ji Family's gates, the winds and clouds were already churning. Everyone was shocked, sensing that this incident was blowing up.
"No matter. As long as there's no Extreme Imperial Weapon, no matter how many come, it's useless. The Sacred Body will surely stain the Ji Family with his blood and cannot survive! He will become a stepping stone for my son's path to the Dao. With all kings rising, Teng'er will take him down first!" Wang Chengkun was indifferent, completely unconcerned.
"Wang Family, since you're too cowardly to come to the Northern Domain, I, Ye Fan, will come to the Southern Domain to kill you!" Finally, Ye Fan's voice rang out, shaking the entire Southern Domain.