Chapter 1692: A Period of Time

A life truly extraordinary, truly magnificent.

Ye Fan was unwilling, unable to accept this reality. How could he forget those years—the brothers with whom he had faced life and death, their blood and sweat shed, fighting side by side across the Big Dipper, ascending the Celestial Road? Those with whom he had shared life and death to found the Heavenly Court were now all gone, one by one, separated by ten thousand years.

How could he let go of Little Zi, who hadn't even grown up? She was so adorable, so young and delicate, yet she had withered so prematurely. And Zi Yue, for whom he had failed too much. At the moment of her death, all he had seen was a corner of her clothes and a few drops of blood, buried in the ruins.

So many lives that shouldn't have withered, so many vibrant faces, simply vanished, disappeared!

Beams of light, like two sharp swords, shot from Ye Fan's eyes. His fighting spirit burned like a raging fire; he wanted to make the heavens collapse, the earth shatter, and demand answers from the sky on the path to immortality!

"I will shatter immortality, reverse ancient and modern, become the very fabric of the cosmos, and overturn everything!"

Although he had grown old and felt his vital energy waning, this belief remained unshaken. He had already reached this pinnacle; one more step, one more ascent, and he would command everything.

Ye Fan quelled all internal turmoil, suppressing his sorrowful emotions. He became calm, resolute, and filled with renewed fighting spirit.

"Who dares to fight me?"

He strode through the starry sky, stepping into the cosmos, seeking an opponent. He yearned to fully sublimate and blossom in battle, to pursue immortality. This era was eerily silent. He saw no past masters, no path back. There was no one to answer his challenge; the heaven-defying talents of old had all withered away, everyone had died.

Ye Fan advanced alone, treading over ancient stars like Big Dipper, Ziwei, Amitabha, Yuhua, Tongtian, and Huosang. All were shattered, everything reduced to historical dust. Even Earth itself was long gone, reduced to ash by catastrophe.

Ye Fan ascended the Celestial Road, reaching the Emperor's Pass. He stepped through, only to find even this place in ruins. All the grand halls were mere outlines; the Woodcutter Elder and the Dao Palace had been annihilated beneath the vast sky of history.

The entire world was desolate; he couldn't find a single opponent!

What was once an era of prosperity had now become desolation, stripped of all its glory, reduced to the dust of history. The great powers of the past were all gone, completely scorched. This left him helpless, with nothing but a long sigh.

"Can it be that I can't even find an opponent?"

Just as he had predicted, the Divine Organization was also gone. Ten thousand years—what a vast expanse of time, it had changed so much! For those who enjoyed mythical tales, it might not seem long, but in reality, it was truly an immense span of time. Both the Underworld and the Divine Organization, which had existed since ancient times, were annihilated. What a period of fierce upheaval this was, both awe-inspiring and terrifying.

"Who will fight me?" Ye Fan roared. In this desolate universe, where only a few life-sustaining stars remained, he couldn't even find a single opponent. An era of prosperity had ended, surprisingly, in such utter desolation.

He recalled those years. What a golden age that was! Stars glittered brightly, heroes vied for supremacy, and the Emperor's Sons and Ancient Emperor's Descendants shone together. Ancient Supremes held sway in the restricted areas. What a magnificent era that was, simply to imagine it made one tremble. Yet, for the strong, it was even more exhilarating, a fortunate birth into the most brilliant age of all time. It was the most ideal period for engaging in the most glorious battles of one's life.

Names like Yaoguang, Taichu, Zhang Bainren, Emperor, Dao Yi, Huo Qilinzi, Saint Emperor Son... But all of them were gone; he couldn't find a single one!

Ye Fan felt he had reached the absolute peak of power, yet he could find no opponent. He couldn't even gauge how terrifying his current combat prowess truly was. If he continued to have no opponents, he might soon grow old and frail. The Sacred Body could live for over ten thousand years, but he was nearing the end of that span. Even if he had consumed divine medicines and sacred fruits, they wouldn't extend his life much longer, as most of their effects had already been used to counteract the erosion of Dao injuries and the years spent in the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land, with little truly contributing to his lifespan.

"I am growing old, yet I have no opponent."

This was not the glory of invincibility, but an immeasurable desolation. He finally understood this torment, sensing the profound emotions of the ancient Great Emperors. From being an enemy to the entire world, to becoming invincible both above and below the heavens, and then to a world of utter silence—what a cruel fate. Everyone from his era was gone, leaving him utterly alone, enduring boundless solitude. In this vast world, he couldn't even find an enemy.

"When someone turns their back on all living beings, what were they thinking then?""And Little Nannan, who voluntarily transformed herself – why did she make such a decision then?"

Ye Fan muttered to himself, gazing silently at the sky. "I am simply myself, regardless of others. In this life, I must be invincible. Since there are no longer any opponents in the mortal realm, I will fight myself, shatter the Immortal Road, and challenge the heavens."

After his great sorrow, Ye Fan had walked alone for a century. Now, he shed his melancholy, emerging like a resonating sword drawn from its sheath, radiating the most dazzling brilliance, his aura piercing through the nine heavens. He transformed into an invincible War God, looking down upon the sun, moon, mountains, and rivers. With a single thought, he could stir the Eight Desolations; the universe, its stars, and all things within were under his control!

"If there are no enemies, then I am my own enemy. I will fight myself!"

Ye Fan's conviction was so powerful that the entire universe and its galaxies trembled. If he roared, the entire starry sky would rip apart—a truly terrifying sight. His aura, his combat prowess, his will, and his invincible conviction—all had reached the absolute zenith since his emergence into the world!

"I stand at the absolute pinnacle of this life. I will fight myself and forge a path that belongs only to me!"

This resounding declaration shook the star-filled cosmos. Ye Fan, stepping towards the most glorious pinnacle of his life, appeared, shattering all obstacles in his path. On the path ahead of him, nothing could stand in his way. Wherever his gaze fell, that place would collapse, transforming into a brilliant void, then exploding into chaos, giving rise to scenes of creation itself.

Boom!

At this moment, a blazing bolt of lightning shot forth from his Immortal Platform, tearing through the cosmos, shattering this world, and illuminating eternity with a light so blinding it seared the eyes. Ye Fan closed his eyes, allowing the blinding immortal light to illuminate the universe. He remained motionless for a long time, deeply experiencing that unique sensation.

After a very long time, he opened his eyes. The blazing light gradually faded. Before him lay a golden divine sea, vast and undulating, where suns, moons, and stars occasionally fell. The universe was vast, its galaxies splendid, neither broken nor damaged, still as it had been yesterday.

Ye Fan sat cross-legged there, unmoving, silently gazing at the starry sky. It was a long time before he finally murmured to himself, "I saw a glimpse of the future." What he had experienced was not an illusion, but the future.

Even now, looking back, his heart still ached, his spirit still wounded; it was a period of indelible cruelty. Ye Fan let out a long cry, rising to his feet, determined to seize the future and prevent such sorrow from truly unfolding. A fire burned within Ye Fan's heart—a determination to stop all of it! The most important people in his life were right beside him, right before his eyes. He absolutely could not wait until he lost them and felt that pain again. Everything he had experienced felt real, and his will was as firm as iron; he would protect everyone and not wait for it to truly happen.

At the same time, Ye Fan understood why this had happened. A piece of divine wood in his hand, scorching hot, had now turned to ash. This was the "Foreseeing Secret" technique, obtained from the Chaotic Ancient lineage in the Big Dipper, which he had now mastered. For so long, he had allowed everyone in the Heavenly Court to try and comprehend it, yet not a single person had succeeded. It required a unique celestial destiny, and even he hadn't grasped its essence; to him, it had merely been a piece of wood. Now, unexpectedly, he had mastered it, with a profound segment of its truth imprinted directly into his mind. This was a supreme secret art, an ultimate scripture for cultivating the primordial spirit. Once mastered and perfected, it could occasionally grant glimpses of the future.

Moreover, he found that his "Movement Secret" technique had advanced by leaps and bounds. It seemed that during his enlightenment, he had interfered with time itself. The combination of these two supreme secret arts had caused the terrible experience he had just endured.

"And this sea..." Ye Fan stared at the golden Sea of Bitterness, silent for a long time.

He didn't know how much time had passed, but his gaze grew firm. The segment of time he had experienced would be the most precious treasure of his life.

"A span of years, a lifetime—my Dao was forged by it, a priceless treasure!" Ye Fan grew even more resolute, beams of light shooting from his eyes, startling the heavens. That was the future. Though not fixed and potentially subject to complete change, the desolation of ten millennia, the solitary pursuit spanning centuries, the despair and grief, and the profound understanding and enlightenment of life itself—these were indelible. To experience a segment of time and comprehend a portion of the future—this was a lifetime of ten thousand years condensed, far surpassing the value of acquiring several ancient scriptures. This was perhaps the greatest treasure he had ever gained on his path of cultivation!

"Invincible in this era!"

Ye Fan's conviction was unshakeable; he became incredibly resolute, his gaze like two bolts of golden lightning as he stepped forward. His hair was snow-white, but his face bore no wrinkles. He was still young, still had time; everything was still possible. Ye Fan began to evolve his own Dao and techniques. That experience was too significant. It filled him with sorrow, bitterness, and desolation, and even now, the memory brought a pang of heartache. Yet, it also granted him a profound understanding, an endless wellspring of enlightenment.

The Heavenly Tribulation struck, an ocean of lightning submerging the area. Ye Fan felt no fear. Having endured such a ten-thousand-year tribulation, what else in life could be frightening? He was alive, his family and friends were alive—that was enough. He surged skyward, unleashing a punch that blasted upwards, his power piercing through three layers of the tribulation sea, creating a vacuum!

Ye Fan faced not just one tribulation, but a triple Quasi-Emperor Tribulation arriving simultaneously. Although his cultivation period hadn't been exceptionally long, his accumulation was so profound that it was as if he had truly weathered ten millennia of trials. He broke through from the third layer of the Quasi-Emperor realm all the way to the sixth, unmatched in this era. Endless lightning crackled, and a vast Immortal Domain descended, suppressing and encircling him.

"It's nothing significant," he declared. "Everyone is still alive. What does it matter if three tribulations converge? I will certainly break through!"

Ye Fan's conviction was stronger than ever before. Having experienced that real future, he had been profoundly moved. His will was like iron; he did not regard the triple tribulation as a difficulty. In fact, a triple Quasi-Emperor Tribulation was exceedingly rare, almost unprecedented in ancient times. At this level, how could one possibly undergo successive tribulations? Under normal circumstances, a Quasi-Emperor Tribulation required cultivators to painstakingly endure each layer, one after another. The further one progressed, the more difficult it became, with each layer capable of trapping a cultivator for many years, even until death.

Yet Ye Fan was so formidable that these three layers of tribulation could not stop him. He surged upward, piercing through all the seas of thunder and shattering the vast world of the Immortal Domain. His cauldron danced with him. What he sought was more than just this; the future he had seen could not be allowed to unfold. He needed to become even stronger!