Chapter 1155: Mobilizing Forces

**Chapter 1156: A Vast Mobilization**

The Cao family, holding significant sway on the Eternal Main Star, could shake the entire region with a mere stomp of their feet. They were a transcendent, powerful force. Yet, after arriving with a fleet of carrier ships, they were utterly defeated and forced to retreat by a single individual piloting a mecha.

Xianyu Star was abuzz with commotion. People discussed the event, finding any explanation to be incredibly dreamlike and unrealistic.

"Rumor has it he's an ascetic from the depths of the cosmic starry sky. I can't believe he's so powerful. Could he be another immortal embryo, following Wanqing?"

"The Cao family will definitely not let this go. They've lost immense face on Xianyu Star. They'll most likely dispatch a large army to quell him!"

People gasped in amazement, finding the entire incident hard to believe.

This news also reached Heaven, leaving several important figures dumbfounded. They further realized Ye Fan's boundless potential and terrifying combat talent.

Vatican Immortal and some others couldn't help but frown. The Immortal Golden Body had slipped through their grasp and was now gaining renown on Xianyu Star. This would likely attract the attention of many major powers. Even if the Cao family launched an attack, it would probably be futile, as other behemoths might extend an olive branch.

"I think it's necessary to make amends..." Vatican Cosmos muttered to himself, looking at his kin.

A true Immortal Golden Body, not one from later generations but the first, possessed unpredictable, terrifying potential.

The Eternal Main Star was a vast, ancient planet, rich in resources and densely populated. Throughout history, it had given birth to many extraordinary individuals, including ancient deities. The Cao family dominated one region, with few rivals in the eastern territories. Now, some of their elders were furious. In front of the towering grand palace, many were silent, not daring to speak.

This ancient palace, existing for tens of thousands of years, floated majestically in the sky. It was a symbolic building of the Cao family, surrounded and protected by carrier ships, divine islands, and colossal mountains.

"Smash!"

An elder inside the palace forcefully shattered a diamond table and roared, "Useless! You've shamed the Cao family! A carrier ship and a large fleet were utterly defeated and sent back by a Dao Slaying cultivator. What good are you?"

Those below trembled, but no one dared to speak. The outcome of the battle was simply too humiliating.

"Find a way to wash away your disgrace! Don't let the Cao family become a laughingstock, or I'll feed all of you to the dragons!" another elder thundered.

On that day, a whirlwind swept out from the Cao family. A group of people departed, determined to eliminate Ye Fan, employing all sorts of methods.

Xianyu Star quickly received the news. The Cao family was enraged and decided to launch a large-scale invasion of Xianyu Star to seek out Ye Fan. The news spread like wildfire, and war clouds gathered over the land.

In the past few days, Ye Fan had kept a low profile. Although his battle had shaken Xianyu Star, he dared not act ostentatiously. He remained hidden, visiting various ruins in search of what he needed.

This was an ancient site called the Evergreen Pool. It was a pool constructed from layers of green stone, with several stone pavilions nearby, bearing the mottled marks of time. In the pool, clusters of lotus flowers bloomed like jade, thriving vigorously and never drying up for the past two hundred thousand years. Legend had it that Wanqing once bathed here, and divine lotuses sprouted overnight. After such a long passage of time, the pool had not dried up, and its spiritual energy remained.

"Wanqing must have already reached an astonishing realm even back then," Ye Fan murmured to himself. He was now convinced that Wanqing was Qingdi.

Whether in the Vatican family's Heaven or on Xianyu Star, he had been diligently searching for traces of his old acquaintances. He believed this might be one of the stops on the Ancient Starry Sky Road; otherwise, why would Qingdi have appeared here? Over this long period, he had meticulously searched and subtly inquired, indeed learning some extraordinary news: historically, a group of ascetics had passed through this region.

"To learn more, perhaps I should go to the Eternal Main Star." Ye Fan believed there would be more "traces" there.

*Splash!*

He dove into the pool and swam downwards. Streams of spiritual energy, colorful and vibrant, ascended through the water, making it extremely suitable for cultivation. Ye Fan couldn't help but marvel. The ancient Demon Emperor was extraordinary and unimaginable. Two hundred thousand years ago, he certainly hadn't become an emperor yet, but he could still leave behind such divine miracles.

"Eh, writing!"

Ye Fan was surprised. On a green stone at the bottom of the pool, he saw a line of characters. They were neither ancient script nor divine runes; they were characters from Earth.

"Lord Pang was here!"

Upon seeing this sentence, Ye Fan's expression instantly became peculiar, and then his heart pounded violently, revealing wild joy. Such a mischievous person, such a tone, such handwriting immediately pointed to one person: Pang Bo!

"He really passed through here!" Ye Fan suppressed his excitement as he spoke.

Undoubtedly, this line of text confirmed his conjecture: Qingdi had passed through here, and Pang Bo had walked this path. This was a stop on the Ancient Starry Sky Road.

"Hmm, I need to be more careful now, searching for their tracks. Perhaps some people haven't left yet," he whispered to himself.

There were no treasures at the bottom of the pool. Ye Fan burst out of the water and continued to the next ruin, following the legends about Wanqing.

"Hey, the Cao family is here! They've issued an exorbitant bounty! Whoever can provide clues or capture that ascetic will receive a generous reward!"

This news swept through like a storm, causing a stir as people on Xianyu Star grew very interested.

The Cao family returned. Having been humiliated last time, their fleet of warships roared this time, like dark clouds pressing down on the planet, radiating killing intent.

Ye Fan observed from afar, seeing the silver warships densely packed like a steel jungle. Three carrier ships alone had come, just for him. It was truly a vast mobilization.

"They really think highly of me," Ye Fan thought, surprised. He knew this could be a major crisis.

The Cao family's arrival on Xianyu Star was a grand display of power. For the next half-month, they launched attacks in all directions, searching for his trace, but remained unsuccessful.

"Could he have left already?" the Cao family members wondered.

Cao Lin frowned, a thoughtful expression on her alluring and beautiful face. Then she said with certainty, "When we retreated last time, I had people activate the Starry Sky Net's power early to monitor this star region. Any appearance of a stargate would be detected. As for flying directly into outer space, there would be even less to hide. He has not left this ancient planet."

"Increase the bounty!" a middle-aged man ordered.

Soon after, Xianyu Star was in an uproar. The Cao family was willing to offer an auxiliary divine material for refining the strongest physique evolution fluid, all for an ascetic.

"As expected, they are incredibly wealthy, few other major powers can compare. Is this a matter of pride, purely for revenge?"

"What do you know? I heard that ascetic possesses the Immortal Golden Body. Even after more than a dozen generations, it's astonishing, capable of refining golden divine blood, which is priceless. With the Cao family's immense power, it can surely be put to great use. It's definitely worth it!"

Many people whispered, causing a sensation.

"Excellent, the Cao family is willing to bleed. I'm happy to oblige and claim the bounty!" Qi Yun, a warrior from the Qi family's Divine Island, sneered.

Not far away, in a quiet bamboo grove, his most beloved youngest son was recuperating, with most of his bones broken and his vitality severely damaged, which had filled Qi Yun with rage and annoyance.

"You, an outsider ascetic, dare to run wild on Xianyu Star? I'll make sure you regret ever coming into this world!" Qi Yun vowed fiercely.

He ordered his men to retrieve some secret blueprints from the Ancient Saint Mecha Armory and studied them carefully for a long time. These were the schematics for constructing these war tools, containing immense secrets.

"Our clan's Ancient Saint Mecha is not so easily stolen. Now, analyze it thoroughly. I want him to explode along with this war tool!"

A group of elders buried themselves in the blueprints, meticulously observing them. From time to time, Dao runes flickered as they repeatedly conducted various experiments, preparing to decipher the ancient saint runes.

Qi Meng arrived, gracefully, and said, "Uncle Jiu, what are you doing? Elder Uncle told me not to cause trouble. Ye Fan saved our lives. If we make a move now, outsiders will despise us and say we are repaying kindness with enmity."

"My dear niece, what are you thinking? Don't worry, how could your uncle be that kind of person?" Qi Yun smiled, then sent Qi Meng away.

Inside Heaven, the Vatican family received news of the Cao family's large-scale mobilization. Vatican Immortal furrowed her elegant brows and said, "This is not good. If he gets captured, won't the Immortal Golden Body slip through our grasp?"

"Hmm, we could try other methods to lure him here. Do you still remember the ascetics who appeared a few years ago? I somehow feel they came from the same place?" Vatican Brahma spoke with a sinister air, his fiery red hair strikingly vibrant.

"That's right! There really might be a big connection!" Vatican Cosmos's eyes lit up, and he suddenly stood up.

On a divine island of the Qi family on Xianyu Star, Qi Yun sneered, his eyes dark and sinister, staring in a certain direction. "Let the Ancient Saint Mecha explode. If it shatters him to pieces, we'll extract the golden divine blood. If it fails, we can still expose his whereabouts and sell him to the Cao family to claim the divine mineral bounty."

No matter what, he would not suffer a loss. This time, he would gain a great harvest. A mighty procession set out towards a vast wasteland.

"Hmm, he should be deep in the mountain range. Prepare to activate it, to disintegrate and collapse Qi Meng's Ancient Saint War Tool, and blow that so-called Immortal Golden Body to smithereens!"

Qi Yun's expression was sinister. He was willing to sacrifice a Saint artifact to severely injure Ye Fan, tearing his body into pieces.

Deep in the mountain range, Ye Fan felt restless, as if something was about to happen, as if disaster was imminent. This was the instinctive intuition of someone who had reached a certain cultivation realm. After reaching the eighth layer of Dao Slaying, this divine sense became even more extraordinary.

"No, what exactly is going on?" Ye Fan swept his powerful divine sense across all directions, then introspected his body, which was as pure as multicolored divine glass. He held the Green Bronze Cauldron in his hand as a precaution.

"It's... this Ancient Saint Mecha!" Finally, his expression changed. At this critical moment, the war tool underwent a transformation, suddenly becoming dazzlingly bright, as if it was about to explode.

Ye Fan's heart was shaken. He quickly summoned it out, then forcefully suppressed it into the Green Bronze Cauldron, isolating its energy from the outside world. The Green Bronze Cauldron had existed for countless ages. Although damaged, it could not be destroyed by earthly powers and could suppress a Saint-level weapon.

The watery blue light shone brightly, but it was unable to trigger the mecha. Ye Fan observed carefully, noticing something amiss. He sneered and erased the destructive imprint, resolving the crisis.

"That was close. This is a Saint artifact. If it had truly shattered and burned inside me, even I couldn't withstand it. I'd be crippled even if I didn't die. What a ruthless heart!" Ye Fan felt lingering fear.

"This kid has an incredibly tenacious life. The Ancient Saint War Tool didn't explode. How did he manage to resist it?" In the distance, Qi Yun was startled and uncertain, his face grim.

Then, he smiled sinisterly, immediately contacting the Cao family to inform them of Ye Fan's location.

The Cao family's carrier ships were incredibly fast. In no time, they appeared, completely blockading the entire mountain range and concentrating all their strongest firepower forward.