Chapter 986: Dark Day

The novel begins: A god was killed by a human. Rain fell in torrents, like a downpour. The god's blood seemed boundless, pouring down relentlessly. A fierce, cold wind howled, stunning everyone into speechless silence.

After an unknown amount of time, wails of lamentation finally erupted. Naturally, there were devout believers present, all grief-stricken and in disbelief.

"The god is dead! How can this be? He was killed by a demon from the Central Plains! What has happened to this world?"

"How could the almighty god die? How could he be defeated? This must all be an illusion!"

In any era, there are always fanatical believers. Their world seemed to collapse, unable to accept or bear this reality.

Most others, however, remained silent and stunned, especially the older cultivators. Even with their faith, they did not weep, for at a certain level, they understood the true origins of so-called gods.

"My heavens, the demon from the Central Plains killed our god! This is a nightmare! Let's all go kill him!"

Some fanatical believers shouted, rushing forward like madmen. However, there were fewer responders than expected, fewer than a hundred, all charging towards Ye Fan.

"Boom!" Ye Fan stomped his foot, like a dark cloud descending. The world instantly dimmed, enveloping the land below. All these people exploded, turning into dozens of blood mists, becoming lonely, wandering spirits.

Even a god had been killed; who could now stop the demon from the Central Plains? This was a terrifying outcome. The god had been slaughtered swiftly and decisively, in front of everyone in the Holy City.

Ye Fan stood on the ground, supremely silent. He was extracting the god's spiritual imprint to examine ancient secrets, but unfortunately, he was disappointed.

This god belonged to an ancient clan left behind in the West. When their ancestors departed long ago, he was still very young and had been forgotten here. He did not know the star coordinates, otherwise he would have left already.

Ye Fan still gleaned some general information. He learned that people from at least three ancient life-bearing planets had visited Earth, the most powerful among them being the Golden Crow clan from the Fire Mulberry Star.

This specific divine race, however, originated from an ancient star named "Tongtian," a birthplace of life located in a primordial starfield, very difficult to find.

"There are at least six or seven ancient life-bearing planets in the entire universe. The ancestral temple of the Feathered Divine Dynasty likely holds the coordinates for some of these life-bearing stars."

When he left, Ye Fan had only managed to secure Earth's coordinates. The remaining ones were shattered and their whereabouts unknown.

"There should still be one or two members of the divine race on Earth, as well as some envoys..." Ye Fan deduced this information after carefully examining the god's spiritual consciousness.

This was mainly because his Sky-Overturning Seal was too powerful; it had shattered the individual's spiritual consciousness, leaving their memories incomplete. Therefore, he couldn't clearly ascertain how many divine race members remained.

Within Jerusalem, mountains and rivers undulated. Known as the West's premier Grotto-heaven and divine land, its existence spanned an unimaginable age, its origins lost to time. Deities had resided there since ancient times.

"If one were to 'sever the path' in this era of dwindling spiritual energy, it would be hard to say who is stronger or weaker," Ye Fan mused. "But someone who only initially severed the path when spiritual energy was abundant, and who hasn't reached mastery after all these years, poses no threat to me."

Ye Fan muttered to himself. The divine race expert was dead, and most of the fanatical believers had also been slain. The remaining people dared not approach, retreating in fear, while he walked step by step deeper into the city.

Everyone was struck with dread, retreating as the demon from the Central Plains arrived in the West, having slain a member of the divine race. This shocked everyone, and an oppressive atmosphere settled over the entire holy city.

At that very moment, news spread rapidly through various means to all corners of Europe, completely electrifying the entire Western cultivation world.

The god was dead!

He had been killed by a Central Plains demon king named Ye Fan, who had fought his way to the West, proclaiming himself Lord of the Heavenly Court. This news, like a colossal wave, shook one ancient lineage after another.

This day became known as the Dark Day, forever etched into the history of Western cultivation. It was a day of profound despair and powerlessness.

"The god is dead, the demon has arrived!"

This was the most frequent saying among cultivators. It was an event of immense magnitude, and people finally understood the profound power of the ancient sages' warnings: the rise of a demon from the Central Plains was no mere casual remark.

The Vatican, another Grotto-heaven and blessed land of Western orthodoxy, received the news. A group of important figures nearly overturned their tables in fury and urgently summoned the Holy Knights.

On the same day, the fearless Crusaders marched towards Jerusalem. Recently formed, they were all hand-picked powerhouses. This time, without waiting for orders, they set out to battle on their own initiative.

Ye Fan walked on foot through the Holy City of Jerusalem, slowly ascending to a divine temple built for a god, a place no one dared to enter on ordinary days.

The magnificent temple glowed with sacred light. Auspicious spiritual birds fluttered about, and ancient vines covered its sides, creating an atmosphere of tranquility and nature.

Along this path, immense stone steps ascended higher and higher. Ye Fan walked slowly, step by step, entering the most majestic ancient hall, situated at the peak of the mountain.

This was the god's dwelling, forbidden to others, not to be desecrated. Ye Fan, however, was there to find ancestral artifacts, so he naturally had no reservations. Having killed a god, what else was there to fear?

"Master, are there truly no other masters in this Holy City? Why do I feel a little nervous?" asked Zhang Qingyang, a young Celestial Master of Taoism who understood divination and prophecy.

"Yes!" Ye Fan's brows furrowed. He felt something strange about this Holy City, as if some supremely powerful entity existed, but why had it not manifested?

"I've heard something about it," Long Yuxuan said. "Legend has it that Jerusalem suppresses ancient figures. Master, have you sensed such an aura?"

Ye Fan paused, then stood silently for a long time, sensing carefully. His powerful divine consciousness swept over every inch of the land. He couldn't help but nod, saying, "That must be it. This ancient city cannot be damaged, or it could cause major trouble."

"Master, there's a significant discovery here! Several ancestral artifacts lost from the Central Plains over a hundred years ago are here!"

Several ancient objects lay on a stone platform, including fragments of the Fuxi Dragon Tablet and pieces from the Ten Tripods cast by Yu the Great. Some of these artifacts were powerful magical implements, while others were simply pure relics from ancient ancestors.

Their power was not the point; rather, it was their extraordinary significance as ancestral artifacts. Their display in the West was an insult.

"There are too many ancient artifacts from the Central Plains displayed in various museums; it truly is a great disgrace," he said. "But these few items are the most important and must be recovered. Displaying them here is like exposing our ancestors' bones for all to see."

They collected everything from the stone platform.

"Master, there are foundation stones from Mount Tai's altars here," they discovered. Soon, they found a fragmented altar in an important part of the main hall.

"There should be more than just these; some are still missing. This so-called divine race expert didn't collect much," Ye Fan mused, his brows furrowed. "These items must be recovered; not a single piece can be left behind, as they will all be of great use to me."

"The foundation stones that record the ancient Heavenly Scriptures are not here; we haven't found any clues," Yan Xiaoyu said.

"This means they must be in another Grotto-heaven and divine land in the West. We'll have to make another trip." They thoroughly cleared out everything here. In addition, the group found many powerful magical artifacts, some Western, some Eastern. Naturally, they didn't hesitate to take them all.

"There even seem to be some king-level weapons among them!"

The disciples were overjoyed and couldn't help but rub their hands together. With a wave of his hand, Brother Ye distributed them equally among them, prompting a burst of cheers.

Outside the magnificent hall, below the massive stone steps, many people stared up at the temple in a daze. The demon from the Central Plains had plundered such a sacred place—this was truly an irreversible catastrophe.

Jerusalem was the holy city for three major religions, with more than one temple and ancient shrine. The other two religions felt apprehensive and fearful, worried that Ye Fan, in his demonic fervor, would plunder them as well.

"Master, the other two religions might also possess foundation stones from ancient altars. Should we go take a look?" Yan Xiaoyu asked softly, as this matter was of great importance.

They had already eliminated the god of one religion, and the other two might still have gods. If a battle broke out, the consequences would be unpredictable.

"Any altar left by the ancient people of the Central Plains must be recovered," Ye Fan stated firmly.

However, he did not wish for excessive slaughter. Stepping out of the magnificent hall, he looked down at the dense crowd below, then gazed towards the important strongholds of the other two religions. After a long moment, he sat down cross-legged.

Ye Fan began to chant the "Scripture of Salvation for Humans." He had obtained the complete scripture from the Lingbao Sect; this scripture possessed endless wondrous uses and could also convert living people.

There were many hostile individuals below. Ye Fan opened his divine consciousness, unreservedly displaying his cultivation and empowering the profound principles of the scripture. He began to save and convert the multitude within the Holy City.

This was a wondrous technique. Before long, some fanatical believers were reduced to ordinary followers, and some Crusaders were almost converted to follow him.

"Demonic scripture! This is a demonic scripture! Everyone, don't listen! Flee quickly!"

Eventually, as Ye Fan preached and chanted scriptures, some people fled, while many others became entranced and immersed. He quickly gained much important information from the devout thoughts of these people. Activating the "Soldier" character secret, he transported some incomplete altars from the temples of the other two religions and retrieved them directly, without taking any lives.

Soon after, peace settled over the Holy City. Half the people fled to the temples of various religions, seeking divine protection, while the other half were almost entirely converted, devoutly sitting cross-legged on the ground, listening intently to the chanting and his sermon. This place had become a realm of ultimate bliss.

In the distance, powerful divine energy fluctuations could be felt. Two divine race experts emerged from a mysterious land in the West, met with the Crusaders arriving from the Vatican, and led them to attack the Holy City.

"Who dares to profane the deities?!" A vast heavenly might, deafeningly loud, rumbled forth from the distance.

These were two sacred lights, soaring straight into the sky. At the center of the light sources stood two awe-inspiring figures of divine power, wearing crowns, appearing like ancient emperors—invincible, with boundless holiness and majesty.

"Are these the last two divine race experts?" Ye Fan's eyes flickered as he watched. Auspicious songs resounded in the sky, sacred light shone everywhere, and divine clouds permeated the air, as if deities were descending.

These two were somewhat stronger than the deceased divine race member. They were both kings who had "severed the path," at the middle stage of this realm. They seemed to possess some secret treasures, radiating a very dangerous aura.

Behind them was a group of Crusaders. Though fewer in number than the previous contingent, they were stronger, their battle aura surging, ready to die without regret.

Ye Fan said nothing more. He directly took out two black arrows, caressed them gently, then strung them on his bow and shot them straight into the sky!

"Whoosh..." The sky and earth cracked, ghosts wailed and gods howled, as if a demonic god had emerged. The sky shattered, and the Holy City itself would have been destroyed if not for the protection of ancient magic arrays, because the power of the black arrows was immense.

Ye Fan shot them with all his might. They were like two suns exploding, carrying immense divine power that shattered the heavens and collapsed the void, leaving nothing behind but surging wisps of chaotic mist.

"Pffft!" One black arrow pierced through clouds and tore through the sun, striking a divine race expert and causing him to explode on the spot. Blood rained down, staining the firmament red.

"Ah..." Another scream rang out. The other divine race expert also could not escape the catastrophe; he was directly shot dead, transforming into a large spray of blood that poured down like a torrential rain.

Ye Fan's direct use of the black arrows to kill two divine race experts shocked everyone present. The Crusaders who had marched from afar were utterly stunned, a scene they would never forget.

This day was destined to be a dark day. All three divine race experts were dead, forever removed from existence. No more miracles could appear.

Ye Fan stood up, gazed into the distance, and said, "It's time to go to another Grotto-heaven and blessed land of Western orthodoxy to retrieve the ancestral artifacts and divine objects of the Central Plains."