Shrouded Sky

Chapter 350 - Eternal Universe Scripture

Years had passed. Jiang Yichen, once a youth of sixteen or seventeen, had now become a young man of over twenty. Dressed in azure robes, he carried himself with an air of quiet arrogance.

Beneath him sat a strange beast the color of blue jade. It resembled both lion and tiger, with long, clean fur that shimmered like crystal. Upon its head grew a single jade horn, radiant with five-colored divine light.

The five-colored beast walked through the air without touching the snow below, hovering a foot above the ground, magnificent and regal.

Ye Fan, without a word, quietly put away the Godsource he had given to little Tingting, sealing it within his body. That beast outside was no ordinary creature, it bore a celestial jade horn capable of sensing sacred objects.

Years ago, it was because this beast sensed a supreme treasure on him that Jiang Yichen’s greed and murderous intent were aroused, nearly costing Ye Fan his life.

“Let’s drink some wine here,” Jiang Yichen said as he leapt from his mount, pushed open the door, and strode inside, bringing with him a gust of cold wind.

“We wanted to eat here too, but they said they were closed,” one of his followers said, glancing at little Tingting.

“Closed at midday? If you don’t want to do business, why open a tavern at all?” Jiang Yichen said coldly. In just a few years, he had acquired a commanding presence.

“That’s true,” another person added mockingly. “But they said it’s run by the grandfather of one of the family’s young geniuses.”

It was obvious they were fanning the flames.

At that moment, Jiang Yichen looked around the room, glanced at Old Jiang and Ye Fan, and then fixed his gaze on little Tingting. “So it’s you,” he said.

“Brother Yichen,” little Tingting said brightly, looking up with her innocent face.

“Mm.”

Jiang Yichen replied indifferently, not bothering to look at her again. He sat down, picked up a menu, and began ordering dishes without hesitation.

“Brother Yichen, we’re closed today,” Tingting said softly, looking up at him.

Although they shared the same lineage as the God-King Jiang Taixu, Jiang Yichen showed no warmth toward her, only coldness and disregard.

Ye Fan watched silently, sighing inwardly. As expected, this man is cold by nature.

Back when Ye Fan had searched for Old Jiang and his granddaughter in the southern region, Jiang Yifei and Jiang Caixuan had received him with genuine respect and warmth.

But even then, Jiang Yichen had been arrogant and dismissive, looking down on everyone. Clearly, after entering the Jiang Clan, he had not changed.

Jiang Yichen ordered over a dozen dishes before setting the menu down. “That’s it. Go make them,” he said.

“We’re not open today,” Tingting whispered.

“What’s the point of a shop that doesn’t do business?” Jiang Yichen snapped, glancing at her before turning to Old Jiang. “Well? Get moving!”

Ye Fan wanted to slap him. This man was related by blood to Old Jiang and should have called him grandfather, yet he treated him like a servant.

Tingting knew she couldn’t afford to anger Jiang Yichen. His status within the Jiang Clan was high, few among the younger generation dared oppose him.

The Jiang Clan was divided into two major branches. One descended from the current Patriarch, at the peak of power; the other from the God-King Jiang Taixu, whose descendants were all powerful cultivators.

Jiang Yichen was of Jiang Taixu’s line and had a remarkable grandfather. He was also close to the Patriarch’s branch. Among the younger generation, few besides Jiang Yifei could match him.

“Brother Yichen…” Tingting began timidly.

“Don’t call me brother,” Jiang Yichen interrupted icily, glaring at Old Jiang. “Why are you still standing there?”

Blood and family meant nothing to him, only pride and disdain.

“If you open a shop, you do business. Get to it,” someone chimed in.

“Yeah, hurry up and bring the food. We’re giving you money,” another joked.

Still, none of them went too far, they weren’t Jiang Yichen, and if anything went wrong, the family’s punishment would fall on them.

“All right, just wait a moment. I’ll cook,” Old Jiang said, pulling Tingting aside to keep her from saying more. He didn’t want his granddaughter to suffer.

Suddenly, a long howl echoed from outside the town. Jiang Yichen and the others all stood up at once and rushed out.

“Tingting, old sir, let me take you away,” Ye Fan said softly. He had watched everything, and his heart was heavy.

“No, that’s impossible. Leaving the Jiang Clan without permission is a grave crime, we’d be hunted across the land,” Tingting said, shaking her head. “But it’s okay. Aside from Jiang Yichen, Brother Yifei and Sister Caixuan are very kind to me.”

The little girl was cheerful and optimistic, she remembered only those who treated her kindly and ignored the rest.

Ye Fan thought for a moment and nodded. He had many ways to protect them if necessary, if things got truly bad, he could simply contact the ninth warlord, Jiang Yi, the younger brother of Jiang Zhe, Old Jiang’s uncle.

“I don’t think you should stay here,” Ye Fan said. “Didn’t the descendants of Jiang Taixu build a mansion for you in the city?”

“Grandpa says he’s not used to living there. He feels freer here,” Tingting replied.

Ye Fan laughed. “He’s just lonely. That’s easy to fix, invite other elders to live with him. He’ll get used to it.”

After Ye Fan’s persuasion, Old Jiang agreed. Indeed, as Ye Fan said, the elderly dislike isolation.

That very day, Tingting and her grandfather moved to a nearby city, opening their home to other lonely elders and providing them with food and shelter for free.

Naturally, they were happy to stay.

Ye Fan stayed hidden, he didn’t want to bring them trouble.

“Big brother, when will you come see me again?” Tingting asked tearfully, reluctant to part.

“It won’t be long. I’ll visit often,” Ye Fan said, smiling and ruffling her hair.

He handed her the sealed Godsource, then turned and left without entering the mansion.

“Take care, big brother…” Tingting called after him, eyes red, waving her tiny hand.

“Cultivate well, Tingting. I’ll find you the Earth Life Fruit,” Ye Fan said before disappearing.

But he didn’t go far, he stayed within the region, watching.

He sighed softly. Jiang Yichen’s scheming ran deep. He had even placed spies outside the mansion.

When that estate was first built, these men had been stationed there, lying in wait, expecting Ye Fan to appear someday.

Jiang Yichen knew of Ye Fan’s relationship with Old Jiang and Tingting, knew he possessed the Primeval Desolate Sacred Physique. Rather than chase him outside, he had quietly set this trap.

“Jiang Yichen truly hasn’t forgotten me,” Ye Fan sneered. “He thought I’d show up here eventually, but by chance, I met the old man and the girl first.”

Carrying the God-Striking Whip on his back, Ye Fan walked into the icy wilderness. He had learned that Jiang Yifei had a palace outside the city.

Snow fell thick as feathers; the world was a sea of white. Ye Fan stood quietly on the frozen plain for seven days, waiting, not approaching, but guarding the only path forward.

On the ninth day, more than ten riders appeared in the distance, each mounted on a fierce beast, charging through the storm, riding on air.

At their head was Jiang Yichen. All were cultivators, the weakest at the fourth level of the Dao Palace realm, with several in the Four Pillars realm.

Ye Fan revealed his true form, not concealing his face. With the God-Striking Whip on his back, he stood calmly amid the blizzard. His composure was unsettling, given his still youthful face.

“It’s you!” Jiang Yichen exclaimed, his expression changing instantly.

“That’s right, it’s me,” Ye Fan said. For the sake of Old Jiang and Tingting, he had waited here nine full days.

“I see… the man I saw at the tavern that day was you! If not for that unexpected event, we’d have met sooner!” Jiang Yichen snarled, his mind racing.

He was ruthless but also quick-witted, he connected the dots in an instant.

“Kill him!” Jiang Yichen barked. “Take the Motherly Energy Cauldron for me!”

At once, seven figures rushed forward, surrounding Ye Fan. One was at the fourth level of the Dao Palace realm, three at the fifth, and three more at the first level of the Four Pillars realm.

Ye Fan said nothing. He had come here to kill. Hands clasped behind his back, he faced them calmly, his serenity at odds with his youthful appearance.

“Kill!”

Seven treasures burst into the air, sacred lamps, ancient cauldrons, radiance filled the sky, crushing down with terrifying might.

“Roar!”

Ye Fan bellowed, and the world trembled. The entire frozen plain quaked, avalanches roaring down the distant mountains like floods.

For hundreds of thousands of years, no one had seen a Primeval Desolate Sacred Physique reach the fifth level of the Dao Palace realm. Now, that godpower shook heaven and earth. His body was a living furnace, his blood like burning suns.

“Pffft!”

The cultivator at the fourth level exploded instantly, his body and soul destroyed. The three at the fifth level were blown from the sky, faces pale as death.

Ye Fan turned into a streak of golden light, his fist, golden and unstoppable, smashed through all obstacles. Every treasure before him shattered.

“Pffft! Pffft! Pffft!”

The three Dao Palace fifth-level cultivators were crushed by three punches, bodies shattered, turned to mist and blood, annihilated.

Then Ye Fan ascended, charging the three Four Pillars realm cultivators. He didn’t even draw the God-Striking Whip; his bare hands were enough to tear his enemies apart.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The collisions thundered like gods clashing. Ye Fan’s golden fists tore through everything.

Crack! Crack!

Their treasures shattered to dust, their bodies torn apart, fragments vanishing into the snow.

“You…” Jiang Yichen and his remaining men stared in horror, disbelief on their faces.

“A fifth stage Dao Palace realm Primeval Desolate Sacred Physique, only a holy land could nurture such a being! For hundreds of thousands of years, no Primeval Desolate Sacred Physique has ever reached this level on its own!”

Ye Fan was calm, his steps shaking the ice plain with each movement. The might of the Primeval Desolate Sacred Physique pressed down like a mountain, suffocating all who stood before him.

“You three, attack together!” Jiang Yichen yelled to his remaining men, all in the second level of the Four Pillars realm.

Even as they prepared to move, Jiang Yichen leapt onto his beast, fleeing as a streak of blue light into the sky, abandoning them without hesitation.

The three others were shocked but too slow to react.

“Hum!”

The void trembled. Ye Fan’s Dao Palace erupted with light as a massive cauldron burst forth, radiating layers of primal yellow energy. It grew to eighteen meters tall, descended, and smashed Jiang Yichen from the sky, pinning him to the frozen earth.

The three surviving cultivators turned pale and fled in three different directions.

“Boom!”

Ye Fan threw the Diamond Bracelet. The divine weapon, interwoven with the laws of Dao, crashed down, obliterating everything. The ground collapsed, the ice melted, the red earth below shattering, nothing survived.

The one who fled that way didn’t even have time to scream before turning to dust.

“Hiss!”

Ye Fan unleashed the Dragon-Rune Black-Gold Paragon Sword. A streak of black light split heaven and earth, forming a roaring dragon that shot forward.

“Pffft!”

The sword pierced through the next man’s defenses, his treasures and spells useless before it. A small black sword drilled through his brow, then burst into hundreds of sword rays that tore him apart.

“Bang!”

His body exploded midair, nothing left but drifting mist.

Ye Fan turned and shot toward the last one, a streak of golden lightning through the storm.

That cultivator was fierce, summoning all his strength. Eight god-spirits roared around him, wielding over a dozen weapons, the sky trembling under their power.

Snow spiraled upward, storms reversing direction, but it was futile. Against a fifth stage Dao Palace Primeval Desolate Sacred Physique, all resistance was meaningless.

Ye Fan raised the God-Striking Whip. The sacred weapon shattered everything before it, god-spirits, weapons, all were obliterated.

“Ahhh!”

The man screamed as his divine sense collapsed, hair disheveled, voice fading into the storm.

“Pffft!”

A single whip strike ended him. Silence fell. Only wind and snow remained.

Such was the might of the Primeval Desolate Sacred Physique. At the fifth level of the Dao Palace realm, his power was unmatched, unless a young Grand Emperor himself appeared, none could rival him.

The Diamond Bracelet and the Dragon-Rune Sword returned to Ye Fan’s body. The Motherly Energy Cauldron vibrated, drawing Jiang Yichen out and slamming him to the ground.

“You dare ambush me in the Jiang Clan’s territory…?!” Jiang Yichen said, eyes wide with fear.

Ye Fan smiled brightly. “I’ve already offended two great holy lands. Killing a bug like you, what’s that to me? Is there anything left I wouldn’t dare do?”