Chapter 1005: Immortal Treasure

The Dragon Horse exhaled two streams of white mist, resembling flood dragons. It felt a deep reverence for this place, not daring to act wildly, and uncharacteristically calmed down, no longer vying with Ye Fan.

Ye Fan circled the area cautiously, not daring to make any rash moves. Tens of thousands of dragon-head peaks harbored deadly traps at every turn, and without the final piece of the terrain map, he couldn't enter.

Little Pine chirped, almost unable to move its feet. It had spotted numerous ancient elixirs in the "Place of Immortality" ahead, each plant translucent, sparkling, and emitting a fragrant aroma.

Over countless ages, few had managed to penetrate this place. Nurtured by dragon qi and immortal light for such an extended period, this area had become sentient, and every herb growing there was priceless.

All tens of thousands of peaks were shaped like dragon heads, each one lifelike and exuding a formidable dragon's might. They were all naturally formed, a true marvel of creation.

Each dragon-head peak harbored precious elixirs, seemingly carved from coral and pearls, dazzlingly bright. Not only Little Pine, but even the Dragon Horse's eyes glazed over slightly, and it swallowed hard.

These tens of thousands of dragon-head peaks were all ultimate treasures. Their mountain bodies could serve as divine materials for refining weapons, to say nothing of the elixirs growing on them.

Ye Fan couldn't help but sigh. Forcing the exhaustion of numerous ancient life-bearing stars to birth such a "Place of Immortals" truly usurped the very creation of heaven and earth, leaving him deeply shaken.

In that brief moment, he had already spotted dozens, even hundreds, of "Medicine Kings," wreathed in immortal qi and glittering with precious light, captivating the soul.

Medicine Kings are exceedingly difficult to cultivate; they require constant irrigation with Earth Spirit Milk and must grow for over eighty thousand years to be truly designated as such.

Who could possibly wait that long? Eighty to ninety thousand years—even the lifespan of an ancient Great Emperor would have long ended, making such cultivation virtually impossible.

Only a place like this, capable of absorbing the life essence of an entire ancient star and nurturing it over vast ages, could give birth to so many.

Ye Fan observed carefully. This terrain formation was extraordinarily profound, almost defying natural law. Even with his most advanced Origin Arts, he couldn't find the slightest trace of human intervention.

Yet, he had a premonition, an instinctive intuition as an Origin Master, that even an extraordinary place shouldn't reach this level of profundity.

Vaguely, he sensed that someone had, in the distant past, nurtured all this with heaven-defying methods. After millions of years of cleansing and baptism by the river of time, it had finally become indistinguishable from a natural creation.

He searched for a weakness. Without the ninth piece of the terrain map, there was no way to enter, but he was incredibly unwilling to give up and wanted to crack it with his own Divine Origin Arts.

Little Pine, carrying its small medicine basket, kept looking back with every step as it circled the Dragon Mountains, distracted. The little creature desperately wanted to leap in immediately and happily gather the ancient elixirs.

The Dragon Horse, too, exhaled dragon qi from its mouth and nostrils, temporarily refraining from "bothering" Ye Fan. Its pair of dragon eyes were wide open, flickering ceaselessly as it silently calculated if it could use its great divine abilities to extract some "fodder."

As they circled to the other side, Ye Fan was startled. He saw another "divine trace": not far ahead lay a small, dazzlingly bright starfield.

This divine trace was not located within the tens of thousands of dragon-head peaks but still within the safe zone. Embedded in a massive boulder were dozens of fist-sized stars, emitting a soft glow.

Ye Fan believed these were actual stars, refined and miniaturized by someone, for he sensed a colossal aura that was nearly suffocating.

What kind of heaven-defying technique was this? His blood ran cold. To transform dozens of stars into adornments here, guarding the boulder, was utterly terrifying and made one gasp in awe.

The moment Ye Fan and his companions drew near, dozens of stars floated up, forming a small, brilliant starfield. The boulder within suddenly appeared infinitely distant, as if standing at the other end of the universe.

This was a power capable of traversing heaven and earth, leaving one only to marvel. They retreated, fearing unnecessary trouble, and studied the words carved into the stone wall from a distance.

"I'm dying. Who... can help me look after my sister?"

The carver seemed to be running out of life force; the etchings were rough and crude, some parts blurry, conveying a sense of despair and unfinished business.

"The Ruthless Emperor's brother, he truly came here," Ye Fan murmured to himself.

As the stars rotated, a scene appeared, like a historical replay, brought forth into the human world by the power of the stars.

A blurry figure appeared, muttering to himself, seemingly unable to let go of the other side of the starry sky. His hand caressed a ghost mask, and he looked incredibly forlorn.

"The blood of gods, demons, and Buddhas has all been poured onto it. It's my turn soon. Death is not important, but who can help me look after my sister? She's still so young; I can't rest easy."

The blurry figure pleaded with those nearby, asking them, if they could return to the other side of the starry sky, to please not forget to help raise his sister.

Ye Fan fell silent. This must have been the Ruthless Emperor, who, after achieving her Dao, found this place and, with her eternally astonishing divine abilities, recreated this scene from the past. Such a sight must have broken her heart.

Ultimately, she plucked stars and seized the moon, refining a small starfield to protect these final words and memories, leaving this massive boulder here forever, to endure eternally with the world.

Circling past this place, Ye Fan walked around the central "Place of Immortals" for a full circuit, pondering deeply. He began to draw on the ground, calculating with his Origin Arts.

Before long, he was drenched in sweat, his heart growing cold. The Origin Arts of this place surpassed his comprehension, even exceeding that of a grand Origin Master. It was a profound principle so perfectly integrated it seemed natural, every part of the terrain meticulously arranged as if laid out by heaven itself.

However, he knew that the deadly traps were man-made.

While the perilous terrain was one challenge, what truly vexed him was the Great Emperor's Killing Array. This place undeniably housed a complete and intact Emperor Array; triggering it would lead to certain death, rendering anyone in the current era powerless.

Ye Fan pondered for a long time, realizing he couldn't take a single step. While he could deduce some aspects with his Divine Origin Arts, the Great Emperor's Killing Array was utterly insurmountable. Having come this far, turning back was too frustrating. He lingered for a long time, still without a solution.

Over the next half-month, he contemplated, taking out everything he possessed to see if any item could assist in breaking the array.

Finally, Ye Fan's gaze fixed on an item, and his heart stirred. It was left by the Ruthless Emperor and had also been wielded by the Battle Saint Emperor—undoubtedly a priceless treasure.

The Immortal Treasure Map. Ever since Ye Fan obtained it, it had never been useful. Later, he consulted a Saint who surmised it might be a starfield map, as when activated with great power, stars appeared upon it.

Ye Fan couldn't decipher it, having studied the map for countless nights without any breakthrough.

However, at this moment, the map underwent a wondrous change. It began to emit wisps of immortal light, enveloping his entire being.

"Oh, this is..."

Ye Fan was greatly astonished. The Immortal Treasure Map, originally crystal clear as if forged from starlight, was now even more extraordinary. The front showed no change; even when activated with great power, only scattered stars appeared, which remained incomprehensible. However, the back had changed.

Little Pine's large eyes rolled, and it too scurried closer, gazing incessantly with curiosity, almost diving in headfirst.

Ye Fan quickly flipped the ancient scroll over, his heart pounding violently, for he saw a complete terrain map!

This map coincided with the "Map to Immortality" pieced together from bone fragments. The sole difference was the presence of an additional piece, making this one complete.

Ye Fan's heart was racing with excitement. He gripped the Immortal Treasure Scroll tightly, as if afraid it might fly away, his blood boiling within him.

In ancient times, the secret map that Quasi-Emperors and Great Sages contended for was not, after all, lost or incomplete. There was still a complete one, offering hope of entering the "Place of Immortality."

"To think such a world-shaking secret is contained within this ancient scroll, preserved for eons—it's truly unexpected!"

Ye Fan's mind raced. In that moment, he thought of many things. If his guess was correct, the nine bone fragments must have been copies of the patterns from this ancient scroll; this was the true original.

"So, the complete secret map has been by my side all along," he mused with great emotion.

In recent years, he had exhausted all his efforts, seeking help from Central Lands Daoist sects, inquiring with Buddhism, and traveling far to ancient sanctuaries in India, Egypt, and other places, collecting bone fragments. Yet, in the end, he had never been able to assemble the complete map.

And now, there was such an unexpected turn of events, truly surprising him, much like the feeling of suddenly looking back and finding the person you sought standing in the dim light.

At the same time, Ye Fan keenly noticed that the terrain map occupied only one-third of the ancient scroll's back, as if other important ancient maps were yet to be revealed.

"What do the other two areas record? Are they even more important than this Place of Immortality?" he wondered, astonished.

He observed carefully, confirming there were three distinct areas on the back, and the other two were unrelated to this terrain map.

"This is truly precious!" Ye Fan felt as heavy as if he were cradling an ancient star.

The back alone contained three areas, and one of them had its mystery unveiled today, revealing its immense value as the "Place of Immortality!"

And what about the front? What kind of value could it possibly hold? It was truly unimaginable.

"Of course..." Ye Fan thought of many things.

This was undoubtedly something left behind by the Ancient Heavenly Court, its legacy spanning untold ages. Some ancient Emperors had even obtained and diligently studied it.

The Monkey King had once said that in the late Archaic era, this map belonged to his father, the Battle Saint Emperor, who often studied it late at night while gazing at the starry sky.

Later, after vast ages, this ancient scroll must have fallen into the hands of the Feathered God Dynasty. They used it to trace patterns onto bone fragments, hoping to restore the path to immortality.

Subsequently, the Feathered God Dynasty crumbled into ashes overnight, and the map fell into the hands of the Ruthless Great Emperor, leading to its appearance floating within the Myriad Dragon Nest of Chaos.

All of this connected. Ye Fan's mind wandered, reflecting that over the long ages, other Sacred Kings and Great Emperors must have also obtained this ancient scroll, though it remained unknown.

"This map is heavier than Mount Tai. Perhaps even the Undying Heavenly Sovereign studied it."

The Heavenly Sovereign Prince once said that his father had also intended to establish a Heavenly Court back then, but for some unknown reason, it never came to fruition.

By now, Ye Fan was certain that this item was an immortal treasure passed down from the now-disintegrated Ancient Heavenly Court, a priceless gem, heavier than heaven itself.

"It's fine for now, but if a Great Emperor-level figure from ancient times were to appear, this map would certainly not remain safe. Only such individuals would know its immense importance."

Ye Fan observed carefully, meticulously comparing, and found a complex yet viable path that could lead to the deepest part of the "Place of Immortality!"