Chapter 686: Entering the Stellar Ancient Path
I am at this end of the starry sky, you are at that end, separated by an immeasurable distance. A brilliant eternity, an endless remoteness, never to meet again.
In the dead of night, I gaze alone at the starry sky, silently blessing you.
These words, accompanied by a radiant smile and crystal tears, bloomed on Ji Ziyue's face. Smiling while crying made one's heart ache.
Ye Fan's heart twitched violently, but he had no other choice. He wanted to go back, but if he missed this chance, there might never be another.
If he didn't miss this chance, then he would miss some people. This was a helplessness. The world was so balanced—when you gained something, you also lost something you could possess.
Ye Fan turned around, not looking back, walking forward step by step. He heard the sound of tears falling behind him, but he never stopped.
"Little Leaf, where are you going?" Li Heishui, Wu Zhongtian, and the others asked.
"Brothers, take care. I'm going on a long journey. My homeland is on the other side of the starry sky. Meeting you all in this life is my greatest gain."
Ye Fan stepped forward, looking at Li Heishui, Wu Zhongtian, Liu Kou, and Jiang Huairen, waving his hand forcefully.
"Why is this?" the Monkey asked, puzzled.
"Brother Monkey, as the only son of the Battle Saint Old Emperor, you hold a supreme status. In the future, the ancient beings will inevitably emerge and bring chaos to the world. I hope you can look after my friends. May you attain the Dao and become an Emperor!" Ye Fan spoke earnestly.
"Rest assured, as long as I am here, no one dares to harm them!" The Monkey was exceptionally decisive and domineering.
Black Emperor said, "Kid, are you crazy? You really want to leave, riding that broken coffin pulled by nine dragons? What a joke! Even ancient sages wouldn't dare to travel so recklessly!"
"Dead dog, live well in the future. Be a bit more grounded. Don't make me verify from some unknown star domain just how unreliable and bastardly you are this time."
"Damn it, kid, how are you talking? To others, you give blessings, encouragement, and remembrance. But when it comes to me, you just scold me?!" The big black dog bared its teeth, thoroughly displeased.
"Because you are so unique, I can only say this to you." Ye Fan sighed softly.
"When I handle things, you can rest assured." The big black dog boasted shamelessly, then added, "By the way, do you really come from the other end of the starry sky? Crossing star domains is extremely dangerous. Don't gamble with your life."
"Live well, raise Nannan, and take care of her." Ye Fan instructed, then patted the little girl's head.
"Big Brother, I won't let you go!" Little Nannan's eyes were already red. She grabbed Ye Fan's pant leg, looking up with tearful eyes, pitifully gazing at him.
"Be good. Big Brother will come to see you later." Ye Fan wanted her to let go.
"How much later?" The little one sensed this might be a final farewell and burst into loud sobs, tears streaming down in pairs as she clung to Ye Fan's leg, refusing to let go.
"Black Emperor, take more care in the future. Don't let her suffer any grievances." Ye Fan flicked his finger, and a clear light flew out, landing Little Nannan on Black Emperor's back.
Then, he strode far away, not looking back, charging deep into the Ancient Forbidden Land.
Little Nannan was heartbroken, wailing loudly, weakly waving her small hands behind him.
"Leaf..." Pang Bo shouted.
"Take care, everyone!" Ye Fan called out loudly.
"Ye Fan..." Li Heishui, Wu Zhongtian, the Monkey, and the others were shaken. A friend beside them came from the other end of the starry sky, and now he was leaving.
"Little Leaf!" Ji Ziyue called softly, tears streaming down her face as she offered a smile and gently waved her arm.
Ye Fan suddenly stopped. Coming to this world for ten years, scenes from morning to night, past events, quickly flashed before his eyes. He truly couldn't bear it, was deeply reluctant, to leave like this.
"Boom!"
From deep within the Ancient Forbidden Land came a loud noise. The Five-Colored Altar radiated brilliant light, the interwoven runes becoming increasingly dazzling, the constructed Eight Trigram gradually clearer.
The nine dragon corpses and the ancient bronze coffin were trembling, ready to tear through the void at any moment. Ye Fan had no time left.
He took a deep look at everyone and forcefully spat out two words: "Farewell!" Then, he charged into the depths of the forbidden land, never looking back.
"Is he crazy? Why did he rush into the forbidden land?"
"What's wrong with the Sacred Body? Why is he charging alone into the Forbidden Zone of Life?!"
"What is he trying to do, daring to advance at the risk of death? Is he trying to retrieve the small bronze coffin?"
At the edge of the Forbidden Zone of Life, many were shocked and confused. In their eyes, this was simply suicidal behavior.
Ye Fan moved swiftly, pouring the Life Divine Spring into his mouth, disappearing ahead like a beam of light. Behind him came the reluctant shouts of old friends, but he had no time to respond.
"Clang!"
The Nine Dragons Coffin trembled, the metallic sound piercing the clouds, like thousands of troops and horses, the clash of golden blades and iron swords, cutting across thirty thousand miles of sky.
A strong wind blew, sending countless fallen leaves dancing. The entire Ancient Forbidden Land was filled with a killing aura. Ye Fan rushed through, quickly arriving before the Nine Sacred Mountains.
This place was flooded with hazy light. Even the power of desolation had weakened, unable to strip away Ye Fan's life essence on a large scale. He arrived at extreme speed.
Above that great abyss, the Five-Colored Altar lay horizontally, bearing the dragon corpses and the ancient coffin. Above it, runes formed an Eight Trigram, connecting to the unknown depths of the universe.
"No!"
Ye Fan sensed an anomaly. The runes were incomplete. The formed Eight Trigram was not flawless; it had some defects. Thus, it could never truly open the Stellar Ancient Path.
"So that's it. The Five-Colored Altar is incomplete. The Eight Trigram it formed is also flawed."
Was it going to fail just short of success? About to set sail, only to be stranded by such a problem—how disappointing.
"Boom!"
Suddenly, from the abyss as dark as hell, another aura surged upward. Five-Colored Divine Radiance shot up, and some jade pieces and stone slabs flew out.
"These are the broken jade pieces of the altar!"
Ye Fan was astonished. He hadn't expected the damaged Five-Colored Altar to be able to reassemble, forming an almost intact ancient platform suspended in the sky.
Outside the Forbidden Zone of Life, people were amazed. Many living fossils stared fixedly. Who had shattered the altar back then, causing it to sink into the abyss?
Various jade pieces flew up, joining the ancient platform, restoring it into a whole. This was a very fast process, as if it were alive, reviving itself.
One by one, ancient jade stones floated up, like crystalline petals filling the air.
Ye Fan stared intently at the altar. He noticed that the very center of the ancient platform was missing a crucial piece, leaving a gap through which light passed.
"How could this be? What kind of battle happened here back then, destroying such a divine object? Could a Great Emperor have come?"
"Thud!"
With a final loud sound, the altar was fully assembled, missing only a central jade pillar the size of a millstone. But it no longer affected its ability to open the void.
In the sky, the massive Eight Trigram, as if forged from divine metal, shimmered with a metallic luster. At the same time, space twisted, light blurred, and the Eight Trigram symbols corresponding to Qian, Kun, Xun, Dui, Gen, Zhen, Li, and Kan emitted strange fluctuations, like an ancient code flashing.
Ye Fan knew this was positioning spatial coordinates, a precursor to departure. He had to rush up.
But the Five-Colored Altar was high above the ground, above the abyss, completely out of reach. In this Forbidden Zone of Life, one couldn't use magical power. No matter how great a hero you were, you couldn't fly.
He looked around, then backed away repeatedly, distancing himself from the sacred mountain, preparing to use his extreme speed to run, charge to the mountain peak, and use inertia to leap into the air.
However, at that moment, his heart tightened. Several ancient figures appeared on the mountain peak, wearing clothes from untold ages past, as if walking from ancient times.
"The Celestial Pivot Holy Maiden—that flawless, peerlessly beautiful woman was the number one beauty of the Eastern Wasteland six thousand years ago!" someone at the edge of the forbidden zone exclaimed.
"She and Old Madman are from the same sect. I never thought she became a Desolate Slave!"
"Look quickly! The others are dressed in even more ancient clothes. They are at least tens of thousands of years old—all peerless experts!"
"What?! That is... a peerless Divine King from my Ji Family!" A living fossil from the Ji Family lost his voice. He saw a white-haired old man, identical to the portrait of the missing old king from their clan.
Above the abyss, the two yin-yang fish within the Eight Trigram had opened like a gate, leading to the ancient universe, with starlight flickering inside.
This was a strange and shocking scene. It was the ancient path reaching the other end of the starry sky, already revealing the boundless, vast starry sky there!
"No time left. I must break through!"
Ye Fan began to accelerate, then grabbed the Primordial Qi Cauldron in his hand. If danger arose, he wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice that ancient sage. He was determined to board the bronze coffin and not miss this chance.
"Ah..."
He let out a great roar, shaking mountains and rivers. Ten thousand trees trembled, countless fallen leaves drifted, sweeping like a heavenly tribulation outside the forbidden zone.
"The Sacred Body has gone mad!" This was the thought of many.
Although Ye Fan couldn't use magical power, his physical body was unmatched in the world. His speed grew faster and faster, until his body seemed to ignite.
He rushed to the mountain peak like a beam of light. Above, several figures from ancient times stood, expressionlessly watching him.
"Up!"
Ye Fan dodged them, kicked off the cliff, and leaped into the void!
This was an extremely risky attempt. If he couldn't reach the Five-Colored Altar, he would surely fall into the bottomless abyss.
Remember, from ancient times to the present, no one had ever been known to successfully enter the Primordial Abyss and come out alive. Even climbing the sacred mountain would turn one to ashes, let alone that place.
Fortunately, the ancient figures did not attack. He leaped into the air without being intercepted.
But at that moment, the Nine Dragons Coffin moved, slowly sinking into the dark and mysterious passage formed by the Taiji Eight Trigram, coexisting with endless starlight.
Ye Fan was only one zhang short, unable to touch the altar, unable to board it, and began to fall toward the Primordial Abyss.
"Heavens! Is that still a human? Without using magical power, relying solely on speed, leaping to such a height... it's terrifying!"
In the distance, people were stunned. Ye Fan's leap was too high, exceeding the limits of the physical body, like a celestial roc.
"He's falling... about to drop into the abyss..." Everyone watched in shock.
Ji Ziyue, Pang Bo, Li Heishui, and the others were heartbroken. If he fell, he would surely die. Even Old Madman had gone mad back then!
"Little Leaf!"
"Ah!"
Ye Fan threw out an iron chain, hooking it onto the Five-Colored Altar. Then, with a forceful swing, he leaped again, like a Kunpeng spreading its wings, charging onto the ancient platform.
The nine massive dragon corpses had all entered the Stellar Ancient Path, and even the bronze coffin was mostly inside, with only the tail end remaining.
Ye Fan leaped, landing with a clang on the coffin, gripping the rusted, mottled ancient patterns.
He looked back one last time, gazing at his old friends, as scenes of the past surfaced.
A monkey wielding a black iron staff sweeping through all enemies, dominating the scene; Li Heishui with his dark face; the innocent, obedient, and adorable Little Nannan; the unreliable, somewhat bastardly Black Emperor; and Ji Ziyue in purple, gazing at the starry sky...
Farewell. Hard to see again!
"Boom!"
The Nine Dragons Coffin vanished into the Stellar Ancient Path, and Ye Fan disappeared with it, gone from this world!
Alright, he's left. What will happen next? Asking for monthly votes. The double vote period has started, and everyone is asking. It's too intense.