Chapter 65: Mysterious Green Bronze

**Chapter Sixty-Five: The Mysterious Green Copper**

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! The sounds of rushing air filled the ears as streams of divine light surged towards the shattered stone mountain, like a shower of meteors streaking through the sky.

Just moments ago, the Treasure Gathering Basin had made a fleeting appearance. Although it quickly vanished, its brief presence had emitted boundless radiance, attracting all the nearby animated weapons.

“What a stroke of luck!” The fat Daoist priest grinned from ear to ear. He abandoned Ye Fan and agilely shot into the sky, dashing straight into the shower of light.

At the same time, streaks of divine light appeared everywhere as all the cultivators in this area rushed over, charging towards the light shower formed by the animated weapons.

“Ah…”

However, this was no feast. The rapidly flying animated weapons were incredibly fierce; they pierced through more than a dozen people on the spot, passing straight through, leaving behind only bloodstains and a dozen corpses.

The fat Daoist priest screamed repeatedly. He scurried and hopped his way back, a golden short sword stuck in his backside and a blood-red shield firmly gripped in his hand.

Although he was grimacing, he had no actual wounds on his body. After pulling the golden short sword from his backside, no blood flowed out. As if nothing had happened, he said, “These animated weapons are hard to intercept when they don’t stop on their own.”

Comparatively, he was lucky; most of those who had rushed forward were instantly pierced, many dying on the spot.

With a ‘swish,’ the fat Daoist priest chased after them again. Other cultivators also rode their divine rainbows, pursuing relentlessly, hoping to seize spiritual treasures.

Just then, more showers of light flew in. Some of them landed directly on nearby mountain peaks, and many streams of light also fell near Ye Fan. However, upon realizing what these objects were, he immediately lost interest. Most were just rubble that had flown out from the cracked Demon Emperor’s Tomb.

Many cultivators rushed over, searching the mountain peak and occasionally glancing at Ye Fan.

Clang! Just then, another object fell from the sky, hitting the ground directly. As soon as Ye Fan picked it up, he was surrounded by several cultivators. This made him feel very depressed. There would be no gains for him today; even if he were lucky enough to obtain a hundred animated weapons, he wouldn’t be able to keep them.

“Anyone who wants it can take it,” he said, directly throwing the item in his hand onto the ground.

“Who wants a piece of green iron?”

“I thought it was some kind of treasure, but it’s just a piece of scrap copper.”

Although the cultivators said this, they still picked it up and examined it carefully. After confirming it was scrap copper, they threw it back to Ye Fan.

“You keep it.”

“Whose child is this, running around at such a young age? He must have a death wish.”

The cultivators left disappointed, rushing towards other mountain peaks.

Ye Fan picked up the palm-sized copper piece from the ground. He weighed it in his hand a few times, feeling that it was quite heavy. It looked like a fragment broken off from some vessel.

Swish, swish, swish! Another dozen cultivators descended. First, they meticulously searched the mountain peak. Then they took the scrap copper from Ye Fan’s hand, scanned it with their divine sense, and finally threw it back to him before soaring away.

In this manner, more than a dozen groups of cultivators appeared on this mountain peak, one after another. Almost all of them examined the scrap copper in Ye Fan’s hand, only to throw it back to him each time. Ye Fan was truly speechless. These people seemed desperate to find something, searching every inch of the ground; they even examined the green copper in his hand so thoroughly. For him to obtain an animated weapon today would be harder than reaching the heavens.

Finally, the fat Daoist priest flew back, grinning widely. He kept laughing, and it seemed he had gained quite a lot.

“Oh, boy, what are you hiding? Don’t run! Let this Daoist priest see. Have any demons or monsters latched onto you again? This Daoist priest will help you subdue them!”

“I won’t give you this treasure, no matter what.” Ye Fan, pretending to hide it, tucked the scrap copper into his embrace.

Upon hearing this, the fat Daoist priest’s face lit up with a smile. He said, “Indeed, this poor Daoist has a strong affinity with you, my young friend. I can now perform my fourth exorcism for you.”

“Stop it! If you want this treasure, you’ll have to trade something for it.” Ye Fan held out a hand, demanding payment. Although he found the fat Daoist priest immoral and detestable, he didn’t consider him utterly evil or murderous. He wouldn’t turn hostile and kill him on the spot. Therefore, he wasn’t particularly afraid of him.

“You and I have met repeatedly; it seems we truly are fated. How about this: I’ll give you a legendary supreme treasure.” As the fat Daoist priest spoke, he reached into his robe.

“Who’s fated with you? I hope we never meet again in this lifetime!” When Ye Fan saw the jade pendant the fat Daoist priest offered, he became even more indignant. The jade pendant was dull and lackluster; to call it jade was a stretch. It was no different from a broken stone. To make matters worse, a corner of it was chipped off.

Ye Fan immediately wanted to throw it away, but the fat Daoist priest stopped him, forcibly stuffing it into his embrace. He said, “Keep it. This is a good item. It might even save your life one day.” As he finished speaking, the fat Daoist priest deftly took the scrap copper from him.

“Damn it all! Is *this* what you call a treasure? It’s just a piece of rotten copper!” The fat Daoist priest shot Ye Fan a sidelong glance, but showed no carelessness at all. He turned it over and over, meticulously examining it. He scrutinized it for a full quarter of an hour. Finally, he even extended his divine sense to observe it repeatedly.

Clunk! Finally, the fat Daoist priest threw the copper piece onto the ground. His face filled with disappointment. He said, “It seems I was overthinking it. You can keep this treasure yourself.”

Ye Fan deeply despised this unscrupulous Daoist. He had never seen anyone so greedy, to study a rusted copper plate for such a long time.

“A bright pearl covered in dust, unrecognized by others. Since that’s the case, I’ll keep it myself.” Ye Fan casually picked up the copper piece. So many cultivators had repeatedly examined the scrap copper; he didn’t believe it was any kind of treasure. He was just trying to annoy the unscrupulous Daoist.

At that moment, he had no desire to remain in the ruins any longer. He wanted to leave.

The unscrupulous Daoist did not stop him. He kept muttering, “Where is the ultimate treasure of the Eastern Wasteland’s human race…” He walked back and forth on the mountain with his hands behind his back.

Before long, Ye Fan had moved far away from the area. There were no longer any cultivators in sight. He began to circulate the profound techniques recorded in the Dao Scripture, rushing rapidly out of the ruins.

Streaks of golden threads overflowed from his golden Sea of Bitterness, flowing throughout his entire body, nourishing his flesh, organs, and bones, making him feel utterly invigorated, and his running speed became extremely fast.

“Huh!” Just then, Ye Fan was greatly startled. When he looked down, he noticed that the scrap copper had undergone a strange transformation. Much of its rust had flaked off, and surprisingly, it had become ancient and grand.

Indeed, at first glance, it still appeared ordinary, like a fragment broken off from some vessel. However, upon closer inspection, it now exuded an indescribable charm, giving off a feeling of endless antiquity and majestic solemnity.

Ye Fan activated the profound techniques of the Dao Scripture, sending wisps of golden threads from his fingertips towards the copper piece. However, no matter how much golden Sea of Bitterness divine power he channeled, the green copper showed no change at all. It remained profoundly ancient and utterly silent.

“This item seems extraordinary…” Ye Fan put the green copper into his embrace and stopped probing it. He continued running. Meanwhile, his golden Sea of Bitterness continued to overflow with golden threads, providing him with an endless supply of vital energy, which made his running speed faster and faster.

Gasp! Just then, Ye Fan was startled. He felt a sudden chill below his navel, followed by a sensation that something had appeared in his Sea of Bitterness. He immediately stopped. The green copper in his embrace had vanished. He instantly thought of something and quickly looked inward.

“This…” The green copper had actually appeared in his Sea of Bitterness. It rested there quietly, motionless, like an eternal boulder, steadfast and grand.

The pea-sized golden Sea of Bitterness hung in the darkness like a brilliant moon. Inside, apart from an extremely tiny golden page, there was now also a piece of ancient green copper. It lay in the center, astonishingly pushing the golden page to one side.

Although the golden page radiated divine brilliance and emitted dazzling, starlike light, it was unable to budge the green copper even slightly. It could only remain squeezed at the edge of the golden Sea of Bitterness.

“What exactly is this green copper…” Ye Fan was extremely shocked. He carefully observed his golden Sea of Bitterness inwardly and discovered that many mysterious ‘Dao patterns’ had appeared on the ancient green copper.