Chapter 1010: 万物源鼎

**Chapter 1011: The Cauldron of All Origins**

"Bang!"

When Ye Fan's hand reached into the immortal pond, it was repelled by a strange force, preventing him from reaching the bottom. He quickly looked around and saw some crystalline, thread-like nets on the pond walls. They pulsed with immortal light, resembling the blood vessels of a living creature, even appearing to breathe and respire.

"It's truly alive!"

He couldn't help but be astonished. This pond, originally shaped like a placenta, had been smashed into a pool by the Ruthless Emperor's palm. Yet, even now, it still possessed immense vitality.

Ye Fan did not act rashly. He carefully examined the pond walls, his face showing surprise. Then he looked towards the distant mountains, where the essence emitted by tens of thousands of dragon-headed peaks converged to form this divine pond, intended to nurture an immortal embryo.

"That is..."

When he opened his Heaven's Eyes for a closer look, he was startled. Each dragon head had a crack on its brow, as if it had been pierced through, with mist and light flowing out.

Ye Fan concentrated, his eyes gleaming with strange light. Without exception, all tens of thousands of dragon heads bore a slender palm print on their brows, which had drawn away the essence from within the mountains.

"The Dragon Treasure is gone!"

The so-called Dragon Treasure was the core essence of each dragon-headed peak, a true spirit conceived after descending upon countless ancient stars, an immortal essence accumulated over millions of years.

Divine light flickered in Ye Fan's eyes as he carefully observed the open dragon mouths. Although the liquid flowing from them was divine, its effectiveness had significantly diminished many times over due to the loss of the Dragon Treasure.

"This... was the work of the Ruthless Emperor?"

His gaze shifted continuously, then fixed on the immortal pond. It was undoubtedly a placenta, connected to the tens of thousands of dragon-headed peaks. Nourished by the essence of immortal life, it could indeed defy the laws of creation and should have been able to nurture an immortal embryo.

However, everything was now gone. This place meant to conceive an immortal had been shattered by the Ruthless Emperor's palm. Ye Fan couldn't help but inwardly marvel, "As expected of the Ruthless Emperor, she wants nothing, truly ruthless."

Ye Fan dispersed the immortal light, revealing everything in the pond. He could see that the crystalline "blood vessels" on the pond walls led to the tens of thousands of dragon-headed peaks. The Ruthless Emperor had used this connection to strike down ten thousand true dragons with one blow!

The killing aura was heaven-shaking!

It was regrettable that the ancient Heavenly Court had laid out a grand plan for this, enduring through countless ages, yet it was ultimately ruined by a single palm strike from the Ruthless Emperor, destroying the immortal placenta.

Ye Fan gazed intently, observing that the damaged immortal cauldron at the bottom of the pond had also been affected, clearly struck by the Ruthless Emperor along with the rest.

This was the hope for immortality, but the Ruthless Emperor didn't care about achieving immortality; she left it untouched and didn't take it with her. Ye Fan took a deep breath, activated the Soldier Secret Art, and with a whoosh, fished the immortal cauldron out. Even the strange force could not hinder him. Water splashed, immortal qi steamed, and colorful mists swirled. The area was dazzling with various flowing lights.

"Boom!"

The Dragon Steed made its move—more precisely, it attacked with its hooves. Standing on its hind legs, it brought a pair of hooves, each as large as a human face, down on Ye Fan, intending to forcibly seize the hope of immortality.

Ye Fan was fearless. He pushed horizontally with his right hand, forcefully striking a palm that repelled the steed, preventing it from getting close.

"It seems you're quite restless. If we ever reach the Big Dipper, I'll have to find you some friends to spar with, like the Black Emperor or Duan De."

The divine steed let out a long neigh, a dragon's roar shaking the nine heavens. Its dragon scales shimmered like phoenix-blood crimson gold, and its mane burned like fierce flames, trembling violently.

Ye Fan glanced at it, saw it attacking again, and threw the Cauldron of All Things Mother Qi towards it. Immediately, streams of mother qi descended like a heaven-shaking waterfall, pressing down on the Dragon Steed.

This was a supreme treasure of heaven and earth; every wisp of mother qi was heavier than a mountain. Back then, Ye Fan could only absorb it into his body thanks to the success of the green copper, which adsorbed these substances before they could be refined for his use. Otherwise, the sheer weight of this primordial source of all things would have been enough to crush him; few could withstand it.

The Dragon Steed struggled and kicked but couldn't break free at all. The cauldron had been refined by Ye Fan thousands of times and was now his Dao treasure, unbreakable, combining offense and defense, truly a divine rarity in the world.

Little Song whined and grumbled, greatly displeased by the Dragon Steed's attack on Ye Fan. It rolled its eyes at the steed and vigorously waved its small medicinal hoe.

Ye Fan carefully examined the cauldron. Some crystalline threads were still attached to it, which were repairing the cauldron. The more he looked, the more surprised he became; they truly had life. The cauldron was severely damaged. Its three legs and bottom had originally been separated, with clear cracks visible. Now, however, they had healed and rejoined.

"Return to the Origin!"

Ye Fan softly chanted. He moved his hands, unleashing an astonishing divine ability. This was a manifestation of his Dao fruit after entering the Immortal Three realm. He wanted to see what had happened to the immortal pond back then. This was a heaven-defying divine art, extremely draining on his essence, energy, and spirit, as it aimed to reconstruct the last moments before the immortal pond shattered. Such an act of "observing the ancient past" was generally forbidden by heaven and earth.

"Boom!"

Ye Fan ultimately succeeded, but the vision was quite blurry, just a momentary sensation, revealing a sliver of heavenly secret from over two hundred thousand years ago. He saw a placenta shatter, and an immortal cauldron sink to the bottom of the pond. Its existing cracks widened, and then the cauldron pieces separated, lying still there.

Ye Fan remained silent for a long time. The Ruthless Emperor was indeed formidable; she cared for nothing, not even the hope of immortality, directly shattering it with a palm strike, showing no desire for it.

Of course, he did not see the slender hand itself. Since it involved an ancient Great Emperor, he dared not use the reverse-ancient art to pry, lest there be unimaginable, dreadful consequences. However, the scene of the placenta and cauldron shattering was fixed in his mind, repeatedly replaying, allowing him to see it clearly. The immortal cauldron originally had cracks that had healed, but after suffering a world-shattering blow, the cracks widened, and it split apart again. The divine placenta was destroyed, and its restorative effects were far inferior to before. Thus, it took another two hundred thousand years for the cauldron's three legs and bottom to finally rejoin.

Ye Fan gently peeled off the crystalline, transparent threads, revealing the immortal cauldron. At the same time, tens of thousands of dragon-headed peaks emitted a dragon's roar.

A supremely powerful and sacred aura permeated the air, soaring above the nine heavens. At that moment, the hearts of all cultivators on Earth trembled, more distinctly for the stronger ones, who even heard the dragon's roar.

"I actually obtained it."

Ye Fan felt as if he were dreaming, a sense of unreality washing over him. This was something countless heroes throughout history had gone mad for, originating from the Heavenly Court. Even ancient Saint Emperors and Great Emperors had fought for it, and some Great Saints and Quasi-Emperors had even sacrificed their lives for it.

The green cauldron had many mottled marks of time, but each engraving was faint due to its immense age, giving it a return-to-purity, subtle, natural, and authentic appearance. Ye Fan ran his hand over it. No ultimate Dao aura emanated from it, yet it made him feel extremely solemn. Even in its damaged state, wielding it could sweep across all realms.

Before entering the Kunlun Immortal Vein, he had exhausted his energy to retrieve two old copper pieces from within his body. Along the way, these green copper pieces had shown no fluctuations in aura. It was only when Ye Fan tried to fit them onto the cauldron that they emitted a radiant light that startled him. The mottled copper pieces, which had been as inert as an old master since their extraction from the phosphorus guide, now rumbled like thunder.

The bottom of the cauldron had a large hole. When the two copper pieces were placed upon it, they fit perfectly, sealing it tightly. Immortal light flowed, and they appeared to stick together.

"Did it just mend like that?"

When the light faded and the green cauldron dimmed, Ye Fan, exerting all his strength and sweating profusely, with a *crack*, pulled the two old copper pieces off again. They hadn't truly healed.

"As expected, it won't work. It needs to be nurtured within the immortal placenta."

Where exactly was the secret to immortality? Ye Fan opened his Heaven's Eyes, leaving no inch unexamined, inspecting the cauldron's interior and exterior with utmost clarity and precision. The ancient marks on it truly spoke of eons of vicissitude, having endured an unknown span of time. They depicted flowers, birds, fish, insects, sun, moon, and stars, and even primeval ancestors and gods from before ancient times!

"This cauldron is extraordinary. The one who cast it had too grand a scheme, but unfortunately, they couldn't wait for that moment."

Ye Fan's expression grew serious. The markings engraved on this cauldron all held extraordinary significance. The beginning of heaven and earth, the genesis of all things, could be found depicted upon it. This was the Cauldron of All Origins; everything could be encompassed within it!

He stared at the gods from before primeval times, his eyes unblinking, wanting to see through them. He murmured to himself, "Is there a secret to immortality here?"

Countless ages ago, there were gods in heaven and earth, but it was unknown if they could achieve eternal life. The Monkey had once revealed that his father, the Battling Saint Emperor, had said that divine wars were the most terrifying. "Where is the opportunity for immortality?" Ye Fan shifted his gaze from the divine markings to the primeval ancestors, then observed the sun, moon, stars, wind, rain, thunder, lightning, flowers, birds, and insects depicted on it.

"Cauldron of All Origins, where exactly does the secret to immortality lie?" He sat down, embracing the cauldron in thought.

For a full half month, Ye Fan remained motionless, like an immovable rock, his mind completely absorbed in the cauldron, comprehending its ancient immortal mysteries.

Little Song dutifully guarded him, protecting him, primarily to prevent the Dragon Steed from breaking free. The small purple creature was dedicated, its large eyes sparkling brightly.

Ye Fan finally opened his eyes. The cauldron depicted all things, and each element represented a trace of the Dao, vast and profound; it would likely be impossible to fully comprehend them all in a lifetime. As for the cauldron's interior, it contained incomprehensible laws and patterns, interwoven to form the supreme... Dao!

Ye Fan stood up, silent for a moment, gazing at the sky. He said, "If I want to fully grasp the method of immortality, I need to enter the starry sky and seek guidance from the ancient sages. Perhaps then I can understand the cauldron's secrets."

Perhaps the myriad primeval races knew something; otherwise, why would they have contended for the immortal cauldron? There might also be records in the ancestral temple of the Feathered Divine Dynasty, but on this side of the starry sky, he could only guess, finding it difficult to fully comprehend.

"The immortal cauldron is shattered; it might as well be refined into my Cauldron of All Things Mother Qi," Ye Fan said, a thought stirring in his mind.

Strictly speaking, the two were very similar: one was the Cauldron of All Origins, and the other was the Cauldron of All Things Mother Qi. They could be said to be naturally compatible.

Ultimately, he did not act on the impulse. This cauldron was of immense significance, and he could not tamper with it recklessly for now. Even if he wanted to recast it, he had no hope with his current cultivation level. Given his Dao cultivation, not to mention melting the green copper, even a slight attack might result in him being counter-shocked to death!

"In ancient China, cauldrons were divine artifacts, imbued with great significance. Perhaps this immortal cauldron is the origin of all that."

Ye Fan's cauldron and this cauldron had the same shape: a round cauldron with three legs and two ears. One cauldron, two ears, three legs—a tangible form of the Dao. This corresponded to the saying, "The Dao gives birth to One, One gives birth to Two, Two gives birth to Three, and Three gives birth to all things..."

"Friends on the other side of the starry sky, how are you?" Ye Fan murmured to himself.

Now, he had obtained the immortal cauldron. Even though it was less than a third complete, he believed it could allow him to stand proudly in any region and contend against ultimate Dao artifacts! If he could one day return to the Big Dipper Star Domain, he would fear nothing, whether it was the Holy Son of Yaoguang attacking with a dragon-patterned black gold imperial weapon, or Huang Xudao and others arriving with ancient emperor weapons.

"There must be many fragments of the immortal cauldron scattered in various places. I hope I can gather them all in the future."