Chapter 1297

Chapter 1298

A group of powerful creatures charged forward, their primeval aura astonishing, transforming into a roaring torrent that swept through the Divine-Ghost Burial Ground.

"Who dares to come here and seize the ancestral artifact?!"

Amidst a tremendous roar, an eight-armed giant appeared. His tendons, like coiling dragons and snakes, bulged powerfully across his body, strong and robust. Ten zhang tall, he possessed eight arms, his hair was a wild, tangled mess, and his eyes, like brass bells, shot forth chilling beams of light.

With a clear whistle from his mouth, the very sky shattered, and a terrifying blood essence erupted from his crown, surging upward like a rainbow.

This was an exceptionally terrifying giant, one of the elite among ancient Saints. The only comforting fact was that he was not a stone embryo, not a Saint Spirit.

The eight-armed giant strode forward, each of his eight arms wielding a weapon. First, a colossal axe, like a cascading Milky Way, struck down, its blade emitting blinding, vast cold light.

Next, a massive divine spear, a brilliant long saber, and a thunderous purple electric hammer, among others, descended together, launching a fierce assault directly at Ye Fan.

Ye Fan let out a soft cry, uttering the highest Buddhist six-syllable mantra. A wave of Dao power instantly spread out, vast as the sea, surging forward.

"Crack!"

The giant axe, shimmering with cold light, developed cracks, then suddenly exploded, shattering in the sky. The eight-armed giant's movements also froze, having sustained a powerful impact.

Boom!

Ye Fan struck with overwhelming force, holding nothing back at this moment. He lunged forward, as a world-shaking war might be imminent, and he did not want to be trapped in this volatile place.

He transformed into a dragon-shaped curve, unstoppable and destructive. His golden blood energy and physical body were the most terrifying weapons; the dozens of zhang long sharp war spears, brilliant long sabers, and purple electric hammers all shattered inch by inch into dust beneath Ye Fan's physical might.

His body was more resilient than a Saint artifact, imbued with an immortal power. Golden divine light shone brilliantly, making him invincible.

Ye Fan threw a punch, directly piercing through the eight-armed giant's last weapon—the Grand Luo Saint Shield.

With a crack, the golden fist, weighing over a billion jun, penetrated the ancient shield. This Saint artifact rapidly crumbled, falling like dust.

This was a human even "fiercer" than their giant race. Golden blood energy surged, and a fist had already struck, colliding with the giant's palm, piercing through it with a squelch, sending blood splattering everywhere.

"Roar..."

The eight-armed giant roared in pain. Everything happened too quickly; the opponent was overwhelmingly destructive, engaging in a direct, forceful confrontation and tearing through all resistance!

Indeed, even its massive physical body was pierced through. First, its arms shattered, gushing blood, then its torso.

Ye Fan transformed into a dragon-shaped curve. Within his Sea of Suffering, the Taiji Immortal Diagram hummed, and the Primordial Green Lotus merged with his physical body, temporarily detaching from the Dao Diagram.

At this moment, his physical body and the green lotus combined to form a Dao curve, merging into a dragon shape that swept across the sky.

Large splashes of blood rained down. The eight-armed giant groaned and reeled backward, only to suddenly discover his body had been segmented by the golden curve, severed into several pieces.

"Ah..."

He let out an earth-shattering cry. All of this was too terrifying. He was a paragon among Saints, yet so fragile before this human.

With a final soft sound, his massive head exploded, blood staining the sky crimson. His body and spirit were utterly destroyed.

Roar!

Behind the eight-armed giant, there were several other fierce beasts, each powerful, their savage aura soaring.

It could be said that none of them were easy to deal with. These were all Saint Beasts, each formidable, rushing in to attack, their blood energy surging and rising to the heavens from within their bodies.

"Kill!"

Ye Fan roared, leading the Dragon Horse and Nine-Tailed Alligator Dragon to charge forward, launching a decisive attack. The situation was critical; he didn't know what was happening outside, so they had to eliminate these threats immediately.

"Moo..."

A giant ox, covered in blood-red fur, bellowed, shaking the heavens. However, during its fight with Ye Fan, it was struck by dozens of golden fists and ultimately perished, its powerful Saint body shattered.

Next, Ye Fan continued to strike decisively. Five divine swords behind him emerged simultaneously, scattering chaotic sword energy and reducing a nine-headed Saint bird to a bloody pulp.

Feathers flew and blood splattered; the area became an Asura field. The Dragon Horse and Nine-Tailed Alligator Dragon also dealt with their opponents. All the powerful Saint Beasts were killed; not a single one survived.

"Three of these Saint Beasts were powerful experts from this ancient life planet. It's astonishing they all defected to the Saint Spirits. You can imagine how critical the situation is now," the Nine-Tailed Alligator Dragon said.

They wasted no time, rushing out of the Divine-Ghost Burial Ground. As they exited through the giant gate, Ye Fan retrieved the golden divine egg from the altar and put it away.

This was an incredible divine egg, containing the lifetime's Dao fruit of a Great Saint. It had been stolen by the wild fox to open the mythical era's burial ground. It would be truly a pity to waste it here.

"Hmm, the situation doesn't seem as bad as we imagined."

After leaving the burial ground and walking out of the barren Great Moon Slope, they discovered that no massive war had occurred that would destroy the entire star domain.

They crossed vast wildernesses, traversed great marshes, and traveled through many places. Through in-depth inquiry, they learned that the atmosphere had become extremely tense recently, with war liable to break out at any moment.

"The supreme Saint Spirits from beyond this domain have arrived, leading vast armies. No one can escape this star domain now; the entire starry sky has been sealed off!"

"Two days ago, terrifying stone embryo Saint images manifested in the heavens and earth, intimidating all human experts and suffocating the common people with their oppressive might. A great calamity has descended."

Ye Fan's heart sank upon hearing such news from several powerful individuals. Disaster was brewing and would soon sweep across this ancient star domain.

The only good news was that the human race's Dao Protector seemed to have also arrived and was confronting the supreme Saint Spirits in the starry sky.

This was also the fundamental reason the invincible Saint Spirits had not immediately launched an attack. In recent days, the human race had not been idle; the Dao Protector had arrived long ago and was now manifesting to counter the Saint Spirits.

In the following days, Ye Fan could not enter the starry sky to undergo tribulation; otherwise, he would likely encounter the armies led by the Saint Spirits and face certain death.

The Dragon Horse said, "We can only bide our time. The star domain must be riddled with ambushes. War is on the verge of breaking out, and who knows how brutal it will become."

Ye Fan nodded, then turned to the Nine-Tailed Alligator Dragon and asked, "Is there any news about the people I asked you to find?"

Along the way, he had been discreetly gathering information about Pang Bo, Ji Ziyue, Nan Yao, and others. He couldn't search openly, only silently, because he feared bringing trouble upon them.

News of the Desolate Holy Body from Buried Emperor Star had spread along the ancient starry road. He hoped his old acquaintances would hear of it. He didn't mind being exposed and becoming a target of attention. However, he couldn't allow his old friends to become the focus of scrutiny; that would be extremely dangerous.

The Nine-Tailed Alligator Dragon shook its head and said, "So many years have passed; who can remember everyone who has been here? I've asked many ancient beasts, but they have no recollection."

Human cultivators generally kept to themselves, avoiding conflict with Saint Beasts. During trials, both sides would intentionally steer clear of each other, and major clashes were rare.

Ye Fan remained silent. In previous cities, he had secretly learned that Pang Bo, Ji Ziyue, Nan Yao, and others must have traveled this path and thought they might have stayed here for a few years.

Now, however, it seemed his conjecture was incorrect; their trail was faint, and those individuals had left no significant clues.

"Perhaps one elder might know something," the Nine-Tailed Alligator Dragon said, leading Ye Fan to a swampy area next to a cluster of lakes.

This place was shrouded in mist, and the swamp was very quiet. No fierce birds or beasts dared approach, seemingly filled with reverence for the area.

The Nine-Tailed Alligator Dragon whispered, "An elder lives here, rumored to be not much younger than the late Great Saint-level Tyrannical Dragon Lord, having lived for an incredibly long time."

"That's incredible! Lives even longer than a Great Saint?!" the Dragon Horse exclaimed, surprised.

"The greatest strength of this race is that they live far longer than other races," the Nine-Tailed Alligator Dragon explained.

A turtle clan member, over seven thousand years old, lived here in seclusion. While its individual strength might not be supreme, its lifespan made even the Tyrannical Dragon Great Saint bow in admiration.

This venerable turtle elder was rather unrefined, living in a muddy swamp cave that was filled with miasma, dark, and damp, yet it seemed to prefer it.

Everything proceeded smoothly. The Nine-Tailed Alligator Dragon requested an audience, and the elder summoned them inside, showing no arrogance regarding its status or any racial prejudice.

"Half of my life has been spent in slumber; that's why I've lived so long. You'll likely be disappointed by asking me," the old turtle said weakly.

It lay quietly in the depths of the muddy cave like a stone mountain, having not moved for many years. Its shell was covered in moss, and in some places, even weeds had grown.

Ye Fan sighed, bowed to it, and prepared to leave. This outcome was not unexpected.

"Oh, I seem to have seen this girl," the old turtle suddenly spoke, pointing at Ji Ziyue's image in the void, then looking at her elder brother, Ji Haoyue.

Ye Fan was greatly surprised, saying, "What? Please, elder, tell me more."

The old turtle said, "That time, when my spirit roamed the void, I saw these two chasing an ancient coffin. But it was only a fleeting glimpse, and then they were gone."

Both Ye Fan and the Nine-Tailed Alligator Dragon believed that the old turtle must be a master; otherwise, how could it dare to roam the void with its spirit?

For one's spirit to leave the body and embark on a long journey through the cosmos is extremely dangerous, something only those close to or at the Great Saint realm would dare to attempt.

After all, the depths of the universe are full of too many uncertainties; any accident could lead to the destruction of one's spirit.

"That was a coffin buried above the Nine Heavens from the mythical era; it was terrifying. I believe a Great Emperor must be interred there. From a great distance, I tried to explore it and was almost swallowed, nearly resulting in the destruction of my spirit," the old turtle said with lingering fear.

During that experience, it saw a pair of young man and woman desperately chasing the ancient coffin. In that fleeting glance, it only caught fragments of their words before its spirit was damaged, forcing it to end its spiritual journey through the void.

"What did they say?" Ye Fan asked.

"Void... Ancestor... We follow the ancient path; perhaps we will encounter the ancient coffin again," the old turtle replied.

Upon hearing this, Ye Fan couldn't help but ponder: Ji Ziyue and Ji Haoyue had embarked on the ancient road and unexpectedly encountered the Void Great Emperor's coffin!

This was an astonishing revelation that deeply moved him.

Ye Fan still remembered the astonishing sight he had witnessed in space during the expedition from the Eternal Main Star: so many warships, chaining an ancient coffin, yet all had collapsed and shattered.

He had not expected that the "Big Moon" and "Little Moon" of the Ji family would also encounter the Void Great Emperor's coffin in the starry sky, thus meeting their ancestor.

"On the ancient starry road..." the old turtle stated.