Chapter 686: Thousand-Handed Divine Demon

The ancient bronze ship was dim, covered in rust, dilapidated and old. In its central ancient cabin lay forty-three divine sources, all depleted of their essence.

"Are all the ancient kings dead?" Ye Fan's heart churned. Each ancient king possessed boundless magic, capable of summoning wind and rain, omnipotent. Even one of their weapons could shake the world.

Without reaching the realm of an ancient saint, one could not compete with an ancient king. If these divine sources sealed dozens of ancient weapons, the mere thought was terrifying.

Ye Fan observed carefully. The creatures within the divine sources were vastly different: some had dragon heads, some had nine eyes, some resembled a divine phoenix, while others were indistinguishable from humans.

They all exuded a terrifying aura. Although motionless and their life essence dried up, the imposing presence of a king, even in death, remained incredibly formidable.

Furthermore, despite their varied forms, they shared one common trait: they were all shriveled, like dry wood, skin and bones, their vital energy completely depleted.

Moreover, they were all incredibly aged, their skin wrinkled beyond recognition, like ancient specters who had lived for countless generations without dying, appearing extremely eerie.

"Every king not only depleted two or three source blocks but also consumed themselves to the point of exhaustion. What did they go through?"

Ye Fan was perplexed. Even an ancient king, having lived for tens or even millions of years, shouldn't have completely exhausted divine source blocks.

Could it be that these ancient kings lived in a far more distant era? When considered in detail, this was truly unsettling. How ancient was the origin of life?

However, Ye Fan also considered another possibility: travel in the star fields was extremely dangerous. Some ancient stars were mysteriously profound, capable of stripping away energy.

Perhaps these ancient kings had passed through terrifying places, exhausting their divine source blocks. Without divine essence, they would naturally age and die.

So many ancient kings, a whole ship full of powerful beings—something must have happened during the most glorious period of the Primordial Race, leading them to perish together.

"I must go. Traveling in the universe consumes energy. I have some divine source blocks on me, and once they're depleted, I'll follow in their footsteps," Ye Fan warned himself.

The desolate universe contained nothing but darkness and cold, not even air to breathe. Without source blocks or similar provisions, one could only deplete their own vital energy, which would eventually run out.

In the universe, one could only draw vital energy when approaching large stars; most of the time was spent in darkness, merely expending energy.

In this world, only those who reached the Saint realm could forcibly extract the universe's primal power in the desolate cosmos for their own use. This was the fundamental reason why only ancient Saints could travel through star fields.

Ordinary people couldn't perceive the free-floating energy in the universe, let alone utilize it; there was no possibility.

"The divine sources I possess can sustain my travels for many years; there's no need to worry at the moment."

Ye Fan stared at the divine source blocks, pondering for a long time, then decided to try breaking one open to extract the ancient king's body and their weapons.

Any single treasure from these beings would be a heaven-defying item. Heaven knew how so many came to be gathered here!

"Crack!"

A light sound was heard. He cut a slit in the divine source shell of an ancient creature that had an ancestral dragon head and a human body.

Not all ancient kings necessarily evolved to be identical to humans; some were conservative and retained their unique characteristics.

This corpse was exceptionally heavy, and the divine source block was difficult to move. Such was an ancient king that even a fingernail felt heavier than a mountain. As soon as a crack appeared in the divine source block, a terrifying aura flowed out. Although the ancestral dragon head was shriveled, it was still horrifying, making one's body feel as if it would split apart.

Ye Fan was primarily interested in a pair of dragon horns. If he could get them off, they could definitely be refined into a pair of sacred artifacts. They showed no sign of decay from the passage of time; their oppressive aura felt like a blade striking.

"Crack!"

Suddenly, another cracking sound occurred. Ye Fan was stunned. He hadn't continued cutting the source, so how did it make a sound on its own?

Instantly, he was horrified. Was something trying to come out on its own?

At this moment, a chill ran through his entire body. Could it be that so many ancient kings hadn't completely died yet?!

The thought sent shivers down Ye Fan's spine, making his scalp tingle. Space travel was indeed terrifying; one could encounter all sorts of bizarre things.

"Crack!"

This time he heard it clearly. The sound came from ahead, not too far away. He immediately stood up, clutching his black gourd, and moved closer. At this point, it was best to strike first.

Deeper within this ancient cabin, there was another treasure hall. Inside, three divine source blocks stood on a high platform like statues.

One of them was cracking open, revealing an evil god-like entity sealed within. It had blood-red hair and surprisingly dry, shriveled buttocks, seated cross-legged like a thousand-armed Buddha!

Of course, its appearance was far from that of Buddhist figures. Its body was black, and apart from its red hair, every inch of its skin shimmered with dark light.

"Is this also a powerful ancient king?"

At first glance, Ye Fan's heart sank. These three figures in the ancient hall were very eerie, seemingly even more powerful!

And this thousand-armed demon-god-like entity actually emitted a wisp of aura, automatically shattering the divine source block. Nothing could be more terrifying than this.

"Buzz!"

A strange sound, like a phoenix's cry or a roc spreading its wings, sent terrifying vibrations. A divine thought force drilled into Ye Fan's head, attempting to tear him apart.

The Mother Qi Cauldron of All Things vibrated violently, as if struck by a hammer weighing billions of jins. It almost flew out into the cosmos, carrying Ye Fan for hundreds of feet before crashing into the bronze ship's hull.

Had it not been for the cauldron's special material, a sacred artifact exclusive to ancient Great Emperors, and thus incredibly durable, any other weapon would have shattered along with Ye Fan.

One ancient king was still alive!

An ancestral ancient king! He actually still had life, not having died of old age. How terrifying was this!

"Boom!"

Ye Fan didn't hesitate. Even if a Great Emperor had arrived, he would have acted. He activated the black gourd, unleashing an endless torrent of raging flames.

The nine-colored mist of flames melted the ancient cabin into a purple liquid, stripping away the divine patterns within and incinerating everything.

It must be said, the sacred flames from the Ninth Layer of the Fire Domain were astonishingly powerful, with unparalleled thermal energy. They reduced the demon god's divine source shell to ashes and directly engulfed it.

With a muffled groan, the thousand-armed ancient king was engulfed in flames. After all, it was already at the end of its vitality. Even with immense divine power, it couldn't fully exert it.

It was instantly sealed by fire, undergoing a fiery tribulation!

However, this was, after all, an incredible existence. Not even time had been able to eradicate it. After long ages, it still clung to a breath of life.

It opened its mouth and, astonishingly, absorbed all the divine flames. Its burning body extinguished, and it emanated an terrifying and peerless aura.

"What?!" Ye Fan was horrified. The nine-colored mist could incinerate everything in the world, yet it proved ineffective against an ancient king whose body was shriveled and on the verge of decay.

How terrifying was this existence? With the black gourd, Ye Fan could almost incinerate all enemies in the human world, but it failed against an ancient creature that was almost completely dead.

Even more terrifying, the thousand-armed demon god opened its eyes and began to refine the divine energy from the flames, intending to absorb it for its own use and replenish its withered body.

In this boundless universe, it had drifted for unknown years. Its divine source was exhausted, and its body was ancient and decrepit. It could no longer absorb ambient energy; only at such close proximity could it capture it.

At the same time, its nearly shattered primordial spirit forcibly split off a wisp of divine thought, launching another attack on Ye Fan, aiming to crush him and seize everything he possessed.

"Break!"

Ye Fan roared. He inverted the Mother Qi Cauldron of All Things, revealing the aura of an ancient saint. It was incredibly frightening, threatening to collapse the entire ancient hall. The thousand-armed demon god seemed startled. Its dim eyes, almost reduced to dust, shot out two beams of light as it quickly retracted its divine thought, sensing danger.

In its past, it was invincible throughout heaven and earth, but now it was on the verge of decay, unable to exert even a ten-thousandth of its power. It was utterly impossible for it to contend with an ancient saint.

"Precious object, please turn around! Gourd, transform into a Dao Sword!"

Just then, Ye Fan shouted. The black gourd vibrated unusually, spitting out a concentrated ancient universe. Endless stars condensed, star fields shimmered, and it transformed into an immortal sword that flew out.

"Pffft!"

The immortal sword instantly severed the ancient king's head, rushing past it with incredible speed.

Ye Fan hadn't expected that after the last time, a casual shout would succeed a second time. The divine chain that flew out of the black gourd was indeed indestructible.

"Clatter!"

The ancient ancestral king's head landed, but then it spun, flew back up, and reattached itself. There was no blood from the wound.

Ye Fan's heart tightened. This ancient king, already akin to a withered corpse, almost unable to move, still possessed such divine power. It was truly chilling.

In its prime, it must have been invincible throughout heaven and earth!

Ye Fan decisively retreated. This black gourd could only be used once; a second summons would be completely useless. He used the ancient saint's aura as a deterrent and pulled back.

The ancient king on the boat stared intently at the black gourd, its gaze unreadable. It slowly moved its withered body, stepping out one by one.

Before leaving, Ye Fan gritted his teeth and lifted the ancient creature with the ancestral dragon head and human body from the outer hall, ready to hurl it at any moment.

Thus, one retreated, and one pursued. They exited the bronze ancient ship, and Ye Fan leaped back onto the Nine Dragons Coffin.

The dying ancient king seemed utterly shocked, standing on the ancient ship and staring intently at the nine dragon corpses and the bronze coffin. But in the end, it stopped, not pursuing further.

A divine chain shot from Ye Fan's palm, striking the bronze warship. The two immediately separated and moved apart.

Slowly, it moved away, gradually disappearing. In the dark universe, only a skeletal figure stood on the ancient ship, still gazing in that direction.

"Ancient Ziwei Star..."

Ye Fan murmured to himself. The ancient ship was originally sailing towards the ancient Ziwei Starfield. After separating, it corrected its course and continued forward.

Having boarded the ancient ship, he gained a great deal. He obtained a crescent moon pendant, containing the secrets of the Taiyin, and also carried back a divine source shell sealing an ancient king. Though a corpse, its entire being was a treasure.

"Where am I going?" The bronze ancient ship was far away, and in this vast cosmos, he didn't know where his path led.

He only knew that he wasn't very far from the Beidou Starfield at the moment; beyond that, he knew nothing.

Of course, "not very far" was relative to the boundless universe. If he were to fly back on his own, it might take him a lifetime.

Ye Fan corrected his direction several times, but found that it would soon revert. The Nine Dragons Coffin was not drifting aimlessly; though slow, it consistently moved in one direction.

He stopped trying to change its course and instead sat cross-legged on the bronze coffin, beginning his secluded cultivation.

Time flew by. For three whole years, he remained motionless. During this period, heavenly tribulations descended, with lightning and thunder, appearing incredibly terrifying in the desolate universe.

For most of the time, he was in a state of self-oblivion, unaware of the year or his location, almost forgetting himself entirely.

Most recently, Ye Fan had been in a deep sleep for half a year, completely unaware of the outside world, indistinguishable from someone who had passed away.

Suddenly, he awoke from his deep meditative state, feeling a violent collision that sent him flying.

"What, a medium star!"

Ye Fan was surprised to find that the Nine Dragons Coffin had fallen onto an ancient star. It was the impact with the ground that had thrown him off.