Chapter 606: Crossing the Tribulation to Obtain the Marrow

Ye Fan stood in silence for a long time, contemplating many things. He thought about how the old Daoist had, in the end, indicated the whereabouts of the Nine Secrets, which might now be discoverable.

The Cai family was a crucial clue that could definitely be traced. Furthermore, before his passing, the old Daoist had walked three times around the small temple, finally looking to the west, clearly implying something.

"Just now drinking in the hall at home, looking back, eight thousand years have passed..."

All these elements, strung together, pointed to a faintly discernible path. As long as he diligently pursued it, he would certainly discover where the Nine Secrets lay.

A sage lay buried there, having died with profound detachment. Every word and action of his held deep wisdom, yet it remained unknown to others. Perhaps this was the mark of a true master.

Ye Fan stayed there for an extended period. Half a month later, he had refined all the dragon marrow, comprehending the fragments of laws within it. A great dragon aura surged from his spine, indicating an imminent breakthrough, its roar shaking the nine heavens.

"No, I can't undergo tribulation here. If the lightning strikes, this small mountain will be obliterated. This place, where the Dao has manifested, could one day help a major sect flourish. It cannot be destroyed by me."

Ye Fan soared into the distant sky, seeking a desolate, uninhabited area where no one would witness his tribulation. Along the way, he traversed endless mountains and vast lands.

Finally, after flying three thousand li, he arrived at an uninhabited region. It was a vast wilderness, replete with lakes and swamps, shrouded in mist.

Like a green dragon, he let out a whistle as he streaked across the sky, entering the desolate wetlands with incredible speed.

"Flying so fast, are you in a hurry to be reborn?!" someone shouted angrily.

"Audacious! What madman dares to offend the Dragon Seeker Elder!"

Vast stretches of swamp and numerous large lakes, shrouded in misty vapor, were originally uninhabited, untouched by human feet for countless years. Today, besides Ye Fan flying over, a group of cultivators was also traveling by wind. Upon seeing Ye Fan leap over their heads, many of them shouted.

"Seize him! How dare he jump over our heads?! He has a death wish!"

Ye Fan was surprised and glanced down. "What arrogance," he said. "If an immortal were to fly past, would you try to blast them down too?"

The people below acted ruthlessly, without further words. They each conjured their magic artifacts, which gleamed as they struck towards the sky.

Ye Fan sneered. He was on the verge of a breakthrough and had no time to get entangled with these people. He transformed into a streak of light and vanished into the horizon, leaving no trace.

The people were stunned. Such speed greatly astonished them; they knew they could never catch up. A hint of worry appeared on all their faces.

"Could that person be coming for the ancestral root? Has the news leaked, and someone is coming to seize the immortal treasure?"

"Not necessarily. It's not yet confirmed whether rare dragon marrow has formed within the underground ancestral root. Perhaps he was just passing by."

"Dragon Seeker Elder, do you think dragon qi here could transform into divine marrow?" someone respectfully asked the person inside a dragon carriage.

Ye Fan flew another five hundred li before stopping in the uninhabited area. He stood among the lakes and marshes, not immediately undergoing tribulation, but first observing the terrain. His tribulation would undoubtedly be earth-shattering, impossible to conceal. It might even attract enemies. He muttered to himself, "I should make some preparations."

He diligently carved forbidden formations using Source Arts onto several divine source blocks, spending a full day and night and exhausting all his energy. Afterward, he carefully inspected the Profound Jade Platform.

"During the tribulation, the God-Beating Whip likely won't be able to conceal heavenly secrets," he mused. "At that time, someone will probably be able to deduce my location."

Ye Fan had considered undergoing tribulation at the Yin-Yang Sect, but after some thought, he decided against it. Acting so conspicuously in the Central Plains might invite a fatal disaster. The lightning tribulation alone probably wouldn't destroy a top-tier sect; it would merely cause chaos. There was certainly more than one type of Heaven-Deceiving Formation left by the Great Emperor Wushi in the world. According to the Black Emperor, there were four similar divine patterns, two of which had already spread and were mastered by many major sects. If the Yin-Yang Sect possessed such a formation, undergoing tribulation there would likely end in tragedy.

Ye Fan spent three days preparing thoroughly, ensuring everything was foolproof. Then, he flew high into the sky, chose the only mountain range in the swamp, stood on its precarious peak, and began his tribulation to break through.

"Boom!"

Ten thousand-zhang lightning bolts descended from beyond the sky, quickly submerging the area and transforming it into an ocean of lightning, covering the entire mountain range below. The vast heavenly tribulation, though not as exaggerated as breaking through a Great Secret Realm with eighty-one heavenly dragons descending, was still extremely terrifying. Chaotic lightning bolts struck down intermittently.

Ye Fan unleashed the Myriad Things Mother Qi Cauldron, allowing it to absorb the lightning sea's attacks and engrave the imprints of the Great Dao. It was now beginning to evolve the laws of heaven and earth. At the same time, a golden figure emerged from the golden lake in his brow, opening its mouth to swallow and exhale lightning, refining his powerful spiritual consciousness.

Few dared to do this; using powerful heavenly tribulation to temper one's spiritual consciousness could easily lead to eternal damnation. Spiritual consciousness was the very foundation of one's existence, and even slight damage could be fatal. Physical injuries could be healed, but if spiritual consciousness shattered, it could mean losing memories or parts of one's personality, which was extremely deadly. However, Ye Fan was not afraid. Having gone through this several times before, he already had some experience. He proceeded gradually, not attempting to challenge the entire lightning sea at once.

At this moment, he stood in the void, with an endless sea of electricity surging around him. His body, the cauldron, and his spiritual consciousness moved in unison, all undergoing the baptism and attracting an infinite stream of lightning. The endless, deafening lightning, enveloped in chaotic qi, churned around the Myriad Things Mother Qi Cauldron. The cauldron, at the center of the tribulation, was battered back and forth, inscribing lines and patterns of heaven and earth onto itself.

Ye Fan's physical body was likewise bathed in the most terrifying tribulation lightning. Every inch of his flesh became translucent as the heavenly tribulation struck his crown, piercing through him and exiting from the soles of his feet. It was a terrifying sight: countless lightning bolts, each capable of splitting a mountain, all converged on a single point. Ye Fan had become a blazing sun. It was impossible to tell how many blinding lightning bolts disappeared into his crown, while the lightning surging from his feet was like an ocean, leveling the mountain range below.

The golden figure, originally seated in his brow, now soared tens of thousands of feet high, reaching the most intense part of the heavenly tribulation. It opened its mouth to swallow and exhale, drawing in even more powerful lightning. All kinds of electric light surged into its mouth, submerging it. The golden figure, formed from spiritual consciousness, continuously tempered itself, transforming into an indestructible divine thought.

Ye Fan let out a long howl, and two divine lights, several li long, shot from his eyes, piercing through the lightning and shaking mountains and rivers. The Myriad Things Mother Qi Cauldron resonated with him, together shattering the heavenly tribulation. It floated and sank in the sky, imprinted with intricate Dao marks, becoming even more mysterious. And the golden figure formed from spiritual consciousness also let out a long roar, more intense than the sonic waves from his physical body, collapsing the void and causing the lightning sea to boil!

He successfully broke through, finally entering the Fourth Transformation of Dragon Ascension. His strength greatly increased; he stretched his arms and legs, feeling powerfully vigorous, capable of shattering a mountain with a single punch.

"Fourth Transformation of Dragon Ascension! I feel this immense power!"

Ye Fan inhaled, drawing the cauldron back. The golden figure also automatically flew back, settling into his brow. The three became one, undergoing the final tempering with the lightning.

The mountain range below had vanished, and even the earth had been sunken by hundreds of zhang, forming a terrifying, vast, and boundless great canyon.

"Cough... What happened?"

"Did the sky collapse and the earth crack? How could this happen? We were almost buried alive!"

Underground, someone was exasperated, coughing and roaring in anger. "Damn it, what's going on? Someone... is undergoing tribulation!"

"Damn it, the heavenly tribulation shattered this mountain range and caused the earth to sink. We were searching for dragon marrow and suffered an undeserved calamity."

The group was furious, having suffered such a disaster for no reason. It was incomprehensible.

Ye Fan was surprised, sensing all this amidst the endless lightning. He was immediately amused; it was the same group of people he had seen three days prior, who had then threatened to take his life.

"It's him..."

Someone recognized Ye Fan, who had flown over their heads three days ago. Now, he was even more audacious, undergoing tribulation directly above them.

"Quickly, leave the lightning sea! Get the Dragon Seeker Elder out of here! Don't get caught in the heavenly punishment!" someone shouted, transmitting a message to everyone.

They hid deep underground, not daring to come up, fearing that if they touched the lightning and joined the tribulation, they would likely have no chance of survival.

"Are you searching for dragon marrow?" Ye Fan's heart stirred. Carrying infinite lightning, he descended.

"Damn it, run!"

The crowd was terrified. The ground instantly sank, and the rift valley collapsed once more, utterly unable to withstand the lightning sea's bombardment, turning to ash in an instant. These people quickly fled, escaping along the underground veins into the distance, as if avoiding a devil.

"Who are you, daring to oppose the Earth Master lineage and steal the dragon marrow we discovered?"

"I, the old Dragon Seeker Elder, will remember this grudge."

"First, you offended us, and now you're stealing the divine marrow mine we discovered. In the future, you will surely pay with your life!"

Those people were extremely indignant as they escaped through the underground passages, scattering in all directions.

"Noisy," Ye Fan said, descending. "You boasted about killing me earlier; now you're just repaying karma."

The lightning sea plunged underground, automatically clearing a path for him. Ye Fan followed along the mining tunnel they had dug, reaching deep into the earth.

"This kind of terrain is similar to a dragon vein containing divine source," he thought. "They are connected and can be compared."

Ye Fan was surprised, realizing that the unique arts mastered by the marrow seekers in the Central Plains likely had commonalities with the Source Arts of the Eastern Wasteland. Ahead, the path ended. They had only dug this far and had not yet found any rare or unusual marrow.

"If I infer using Source Arts, there should be a divine object here, but it's also a dangerous place, with unknown creatures!" Ye Fan was startled. However, he did not retreat. With the heavenly tribulation still upon him, he could perfectly utilize it to excavate this marrow mine and obtain the rare treasure.

"Boom!"

Ten thousand-zhang lightning bolts continued to strike. Although they were about to cease, being only the final aftershocks of the tribulation, they were still terrifying, constantly causing the underground veins to collapse.

After advancing another thousand zhang, deep within the underground vein, a pair of gigantic stone gates blocked the path, standing across the way.

"Huh, there are such ancient gates underground? This clearly means there are living beings here."

Ye Fan did not stop. Carrying infinite lightning, he arrived before the stone gates. In moments, dust billowed as the ancient stone gates shattered after being struck by the heavenly tribulation over a hundred times.

This was an ancient mine, visited by humans tens of thousands of years ago, with numerous withered bones in the cave. Ye Fan followed the ancient cavern for several hundred zhang until he finally reached its end.

"Treasure Marrow!"

Ahead was a marrow pool, barely a meter square, from which endless dragon qi surged forth. Within it were thirty-six drops of crystal-clear liquid, shimmering as if containing tiny dragons swimming back and forth, dazzling and emitting a fragrance that was almost intoxicating.

"Owoo..."

A scalp-tingling howl echoed, and three silver creatures appeared beside the marrow pool. Sacred light pulsed around them; like three holy spirits, they stared intently at Ye Fan.

Ancient, headless divine corpses abandoned their divine positions to seal demons across all heavens.