Chapter 293: Divine Source

As Ye Fan peeled away the outer layer and cut into the center of the millstone, tens of thousands of divine rays shot out, like golden needles flying forth, making it impossible to open one's eyes.

It all happened too suddenly. As the multi-layered stone casing fell away, the stone core appeared like a small sun, impossible to look at directly, and tears would involuntarily stream down.

"What kind of treasure is this? Could it be Divine Source?" Grandfather Zhang turned his head away, his eyes slightly swollen and stinging from the divine light.

Had he really cut out Divine Source? This was Ye Fan's first thought as well, and his heart pounded. What he lacked most right now was Source.

He squinted his eyes, carefully observing. It was a very small bead, only the size of a soybean, and luminous, not appearing to be a tangible substance. It seemed like a tiny cluster of the most sacred light.

When the stone core was fully peeled away, this speck of light did not fall but remained suspended in the air, incredibly mysterious. It was like a trace of the origin of heaven and earth, drawing people to it.

Grandfather Zhang dared not look directly, observing it with his peripheral vision. He instinctively reached out his rough, old hand to touch it, all his actions subconscious.

Even the large black dog, which had fallen unconscious and was convulsing on the ground, foamed at the mouth and moved a few inches towards it, as if drawn by an invisible force.

Ye Fan could now confirm that this was a Source formed from the spiritual energy that existed since the beginning of heaven and earth, a rare treasure in this world.

Never falling, possessing the purest and most fundamental essence of heaven and earth, inspiring reverence—these were all characteristics of Divine Source, exactly as described in the Source Heaven Book.

This was Ye Fan's first time touching Divine Source. A holy aura emanated from his fingertips, making him feel completely at ease, like basking in a spring breeze, warm and comfortable, as if his body was undergoing a baptism.

This was Divine Source, possessing incredible miraculous effects. It was a divine object that even sacred lands would vie for, and its appearance always caused immense upheaval.

However, this piece of Divine Source was too small, just this tiny speck. Compared to the massive Divine Source blocks that sealed ancient creatures, it was truly "insignificant."

Nevertheless, it was absolutely a rare treasure. Once word got out, many people would fight tooth and nail to claim it.

Divine Source was categorized into many types, with vastly different effects. Ye Fan did not yet fully understand them, as he had not delved into the most profound Source studies.

"This definitely isn't worth 100,000 jin of Source..."

Even though it was Divine Source, its volume was too small, far from enough. He needed thirty fang of Source to break through to the Fourth Heaven of the Dao Palace. Such a tiny speck of Divine Source wouldn't solve his problem.

"So this is Divine Source. What exactly did our ancestors leave behind?" Grandfather Zhang muttered to himself. After touching the Divine Source, he felt his body become much lighter and his blood vitalized.

Divine Source had a profound effect on ordinary people, unlike the Desolate Ancient Sacred Body, which possessed strong "resistance" to such effects.

"Legend says there are dozens of types of Divine Source, some with incredible effects. I really wish I could see them all," Ye Fan said, looking at the remaining stone tools.

Although he was tempted, he decided not to continue cutting. The true value of these stone tools likely wasn't in small pieces of Divine Source, but possibly in some kind of fleshy fruit.

If he were to cut further now, it might very well be a waste of a heavenly treasure. Without knowing how to properly use it, it would be pure squandering.

It took a long time for Ye Fan and Grandfather Zhang to calm down from their shock. After all, it was a speck of Divine Source, and anyone seeing it for the first time would inevitably react this way.

The Black Emperor was still unconscious; otherwise, it would probably have jumped up to snatch it, as it had always been obsessed with Divine Source.

Grandfather Zhang had heard some things and knew that Ye Fan had a special physique that required large amounts of Source for cultivation, so he told Ye Fan to put the speck of Divine Source away.

Ultimately, Ye Fan did not decline much. He indeed needed a large amount of Source right now, and the favor he owed could only be repaid later.

The pink fruit peeled from the stone tools had potent medicinal properties. The big black dog gradually regained consciousness only after five days of being comatose, but it still couldn't get up and occasionally twitched.

"Damn it, I've had the worst luck imaginable! What kind of cursed stone material is this? The fruit it produced is incredibly poisonous; it could even kill a true dragon!" it cursed, twitching as it spoke.

"Serves you right. Who told you to be so greedy and try to swallow it whole?" Ye Fan retorted.

The big black dog had an urge to kill, but it couldn't stand up. It still occasionally spat out some foam, clearly indicating that it wouldn't recover in less than half a month.

Ye Fan studied the fruit for a long time but couldn't figure out its use, eventually giving up on it.

Finally, he left this picturesque land. He now had only one goal: to find Source and break through as quickly as possible. Even if it meant robbing a sacred land, as long as there was a chance of success, he would not hesitate. He felt a strong sense of urgency.

When Ye Fan arrived in the outside world, he heard many pieces of news. The ancient scroll incident was escalating, with the Peacock King ambushing the Saint Lord of Yaoguang and almost succeeding, creating immense waves that shook the entire Northern Region.

If the Saint Lord of Ji Family and the Saint Lord of Yaoguang hadn't been traveling together, an earth-shattering upheaval would have certainly occurred. Even so, they still paid a heavy price in blood.

Several Grand Elders from the Ji Family and Yaoguang were turned to ash by the Old Daoist Red Dragon, and the Yaoguang Saint Lord was struck by the Peacock King with the Chaotic Treasure Seal, suffering significant injuries.

This incident had a massive impact. Both the reappearance of the Old Daoist Red Dragon and the Peacock King's attempt to kill a sacred land's master caused enormous commotion.

During Ye Fan's seclusion, the Northern Region had been bustling and tumultuous, with unrest daily.

Now, Purple Mountain was no longer a secret. Many powerful figures were aware of it, but no one dared to act rashly. Nine dragons guarding one mountain, involving a Great Emperor—even the most formidable experts felt apprehension. Of course, many cultivators were more tempted, hoping to find opportunities there, but they were all waiting for the right moment, unwilling to make the first move.

Several years ago, the Demon Emperor's Tomb had been too terrifying—a mountain of bones and a sea of blood. Several major sacred lands had taken turns attacking, and the dark abyss was filled with corpses, yet they still failed to conquer the Yin Tomb, allowing it to sink underground and vanish.

With such a bloody lesson preceding them, the experts of the Eastern Barren naturally wouldn't be as impulsive as last time. Many sacred lands had gathered in the Northern Region to discuss the Purple Mountain issue, and an alliance was now inevitable.

The Jade Lake Grand Gathering was postponed indefinitely. Purple Mountain's influence was too great, and now everyone's attention was focused there.

Purple Mountain, not yet opened, was already stirring up storms, with even Saint Lords suffering injuries because of it. One could imagine the scale of turmoil this time.

After learning all this, Ye Fan stroked his chin. All of it was somewhat related to him. After he had managed to send out the ancient scroll, it had indeed caused a huge stir.

"How much is one speck of Divine Source worth?" Ye Fan couldn't estimate. The 20,000 jin of Source Tu Fei was going to lend him wouldn't be enough; he would have to figure out how to acquire the rest, which was a huge amount.

"Perhaps I really should go to the Holy City..." These days, he had been diligently studying the Source Heaven Book, preparing for a full-fledged attempt.

Fire Cloud State was as red as fire, with Fire Cloud Trees everywhere. This was a unique and peculiar species of tree, exclusive to the state.

Fire Cloud Trees not only had leaves as red as fire all over, but even their trunks were reddish-brown. From a distance, they looked like a sea of fire, or even a sunset glow, perfectly fitting their name.

Since entering the state, these trees were the most common plants seen along the way. Red far outnumbered green; it could be described as a single spot of green amidst a sea of red.

This state was not far from the Holy City, at most another eleven or twelve days' journey. Ye Fan traveled on, his destination clear: he was headed for Fire Cloud City, the central city of the state, where he planned to gamble on stones. The city walls were magnificent, stretching like the Great Wall, vast and ancient—a highly renowned city.

Legend had it that in ancient times, a powerful Desolate Ancient Family resided here, dominating the Eastern Barren and lasting for over a hundred thousand years. Unfortunately, tens of thousands of years ago, it turned to dust and vanished under the starry sky of history.

It epitomized the idea that there are no immortal inheritances, no eternal families; everything has its day of reckoning.

Just as he reached the majestic city gate tower, Ye Fan saw two portraits, both depicting him. They were arrest warrants issued by the Yaoguang and Ji Families.

Both great inheritances offered astronomical rewards: anyone providing relevant clues could claim 10,000 jin of Source, and if one could pinpoint Ye Fan's exact location, they could claim thirty fang of Source—a total of 100,000 jin of Source, truly an exorbitant price.

Such bounties were posted in the central cities of all major oases. Ye Fan found it utterly sickening to see; who would want to be a wanted man, hunted down?

"Truly worthy of being sacred lands, casually offering tens of thousands of jin of Source..."

He knew why he was so valuable. Besides the grievances between them, the more crucial reason was that they desired the Mother Qi of All Things from him. If they could obtain it, even a million jin of Source wouldn't deter them.

"They want my cauldron and my life for merely 100,000 jin of Source—quite a clever scheme they have," Ye Fan sneered, standing before the city gate.

On the horizon outside Fire Cloud City, dozens of riders approached. Their exotic beasts didn't touch the ground, soaring through the air, and the knights, clad in gleaming iron armor, were clearly from the Ji Family.

"Damn it, there's hardly any valuable information. I wonder when we'll finally drag that brat Ye out. If he dares to show up, I'll crush him with one hand," a young Ji Family knight said coldly.

"Hmph," the leading young man snorted, glancing at him. "Ji Yunteng, don't underestimate him. Even those at the Fourth Heaven of the Dao Palace might not be able to suppress him."

Ji Yunteng sneered, "He's just an outdated Waste Body, what's so great about him? Even if someone of the same rank can't defeat him, I don't believe that I, being at the Fourth Heaven of the Dao Palace, can't swat a person at the Second Heaven of the Dao Palace to death. It's despicable that this waste is hiding. If he dares to come out, I'll crush him with one foot."

"Don't be arrogant. The Yaoguang Saint Son was so strong, and the Golden-winged Little Peng King so arrogant, yet weren't they both subdued by him?" the leading young man, very composed, admonished the other young experts.

Ji Yunteng was unconvinced and said, "That was because the Chaotic Stone immobilized everyone present. Otherwise, how could a mere Waste Body like him subdue top young experts from the Four Extremities Secret Realm?"

"If he really dares to show his face, I'll kill him with a single poke of my finger!" another young expert from the Ji Family declared, full of fire.

They were responsible for searching Fire Cloud State, and these past days had filled them with fury and resentment. They wished they could immediately drag Ye Fan out.

"This brat makes us endure all kinds of hardships, searching for his clues every day. I truly wish I could slap him into dust!"

"That kid surnamed Ye is just a Waste Body, yet he's stirred up such a huge commotion. Don't let me catch him, or I'll crush him like an insect!"

These young experts, filled with great resentment, rode their mounts into the city.

A cold smile played on Ye Fan's lips. "Tens of thousands of jin in bounty," he murmured, "why don't I claim it myself?"

Using his enemies' Source to fill his bottomless pit was the most ideal scenario. With a flick of his sleeve, he flashed into Fire Cloud City.