The Eighth Ancestor felt a soul-shattering fear. He had ultimately underestimated Yun Fan. He had initially believed that Yun Fan had accidentally obtained the demonic blood of a mighty being, thus transforming into a demonic powerhouse.
Later, one of his imprints revealed that Yun Fan was not so simple. His very soul carried the essence of the demonic path, which could not be attributed solely to demonic blood. While demonic blood was potent, it did not possess such a profound influence. The most straightforward assumption was that Yun Fan was a descendant of that great demonic figure. However, that figure seemed to have left no descendants. Fortunately, Yun Fan's strength was too weak; he was fully capable of controlling the outcome.
He never expected that Yun Fan himself was that mighty being. Back then, their Mysterious Nine Ancestors had joined forces with numerous divine path powerhouses to kill that great demonic figure, the Demonic Ancestor. However, their Mysterious Nine Ancestors had also been afflicted by the Demonic Ancestor's curse, leading to their slumber. He had awakened relatively early, having done so in the ancient era. But even after abandoning his physical body and becoming a mere soul, he could not escape the curse's dominion. He could only suppress the curse deep within his soul, intending to break it once he recovered his peak strength.
Unexpectedly, with the awakening of Yun Fan's core demonic power, the curse had been fully activated.
Yun Fan spoke, "Who I am is not important. What is important is that I will definitely kill you today!"
This statement was merely a simple threat. In the past, the Demonic Ancestor would have scoffed and dismissed it with contempt. But now, it had become a death knell. The curse was burning his soul, and under the curse's guidance, his power was being rapidly absorbed by Yun Fan, leaving him without the strength to retaliate.
"No, no!" the Eighth Ancestor cried out in terror. "Stop absorbing my power! I am willing to surrender!"
At this point, the Eighth Ancestor was truly desperate. He did not want to die so ignominiously. His dream was to one day regain his peak strength and see his ancestral land again. But now, all his dreams had turned to dust. In his eyes, human warriors were pitiable bugs, but in the eyes of demons, was he not also a pitiable bug?
However, no matter how he pleaded, Yun Fan showed no intention of sparing him, continuing to amplify the curse's power. Under the curse's transformation, the mysterious energy receded, becoming power that he could absorb.
At this moment, the Nine Heavens Profound Maiden struggled to her feet, witnessing all this with a fervent expression. She knew that the once most powerful Yun Fan had returned. Although Yun Fan had forgotten everything from his past, what did it matter? A strong person was always a strong person; eventually, they would ascend to the pinnacle of the Nine Heavens once more.
The Eighth Ancestor's life force grew weaker and weaker. He himself would never have imagined that he would be defeated from a position of advantage. Yun Fan vigorously devoured his power. The Eighth Ancestor was left with only a final breath, knowing he was finished. Even the other Mysterious Ancestors would not escape death because Yun Fan had begun his rise, and they were still unaware of the situation. At this moment, he lacked even the strength to self-destruct, unable to drag Yun Fan down with him.
"In the end, we lost!" the Eighth Ancestor said despairingly. "I never thought that even in that desperate situation back then, you could find a sliver of survival amidst the encirclement of the gods!" The encirclement of Yun Fan back then was a world-destroying force, and it occurred when Yun Fan was at his weakest, with a world-ending formation laid out. He never imagined that Yun Fan would ultimately survive and gradually grow in power to this day.
"I don't know about what happened back then, but I want to say that everyone involved will die!" Yun Fan said coldly. Although he couldn't recall past events, a sense of sorrow washed over his mind. But that was no longer important. What mattered was that in this life, he fought for himself, not for anyone else.
At this moment, the Mysterious Eighth Ancestor completely lost his life force. Yun Fan immediately sat down, catching his breath. He too had not expected that turning the tables would be so simple, especially after that moment of utter darkness. As the Mysterious Eighth Ancestor died, before Yun Fan fainted, he released his demonic power to purify the mysterious energy. Then, he directly lost consciousness.
"Junior Brother, Junior Brother!" The Nine Heavens Profound Maiden desperately shook Yun Fan. Seeing that he had merely fainted, she gradually relaxed.
...
"Give up your resistance! You are no match for me!" Emperor Yao said disdainfully. "Stop wasting my time!"
At this moment, Emperor Shun was extremely weak, his body bathed in blood, some his own, some Emperor Yao's. Because he had not relaxed, he had fought Emperor Yao with all his might. Emperor Yao, however, was in his peak state. It wasn't that his strength was significantly greater than Emperor Shun's; in fact, their strength had been equal moments before. His injuries were no less severe than Emperor Shun's, but he had the enhancement of the mysterious energy, allowing him to continuously recover. Over time, Emperor Shun naturally could not compete.
He said contemptuously, "See! This is my Great Dao. Before my Great Dao, how weak you are!" Emperor Shun looked coldly at Emperor Yao. At this moment, he made a bold decision in his heart: to shatter the imprint and take Emperor Yao away. He absolutely could not allow Emperor Yao to become a burden to Yun Fan and must create an opportunity for Yun Fan to win.
Thus, he began to gather his strength, preparing to shatter the imprint. But just then, the mysterious energy began to weaken. It even departed from Emperor Yao's body. Emperor Yao, who had been so arrogant, instantly changed color, unable to control the outflow of mysterious energy.
"What is happening?" Emperor Yao was shocked. The mysterious energy he prided himself on was dissipating. Previously, with the help of the ghost image, his injuries had been suppressed. But with the mysterious energy gone, his injuries worsened, even more severely than Emperor Shun's.
Upon seeing this, Emperor Shun became extremely excited. With the mysterious energy gone, he knew Yun Fan had succeeded. This news of the mysterious energy's dissipation spread outside, and the many warriors still fighting also showed signs of elation. They never expected that a war that had lasted for thousands of years would be resolved by Yun Fan; it was impossible for them not to be happy.
"Young Master, I knew you could do it!" Han Yan, who had just dealt with a mysterious Emperor-level powerhouse, was overjoyed. She knew Yun Fan had accomplished a feat that no one had achieved since the era of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. This era would be overshadowed by Yun Fan. Thus, she supported her injured body and charged towards these Emperor-level powerhouses who were no longer augmented by mysterious energy.
Everyone else followed suit. With the mysterious energy's augmentation, the opponents had been so arrogant. Now, without it, these individuals were no longer as terrifying in their eyes. Several Pseudo-Emperors even fell from the Emperor realm and were easily dealt with by them. The ghost image legions scattered like leaves in the wind, but the Kunlun Alliance offered them no chance to escape or surrender, suppressing them with force.
At this moment, Emperor Shun said to Emperor Yao, "Your dream is shattered because the young friend has succeeded. Without the augmentation of mysterious energy, you are nothing!" Upon hearing this, Emperor Yao became furious. But he also knew that the tide had turned. Without the Eighth Ancestor, what were they, mere puppets, worth? To save his life, he now appealed to Emperor Shun's emotions. "I am your master! Are you going to betray your master?" It was precisely because of the mysterious energy's augmentation that he could become a peak Emperor-level powerhouse. Without it, he was far inferior to Emperor Shun.
Emperor Shun said coldly, "I told you, I am no longer your disciple. There is no need to say more. I will kill you today!" Emperor Yao became enraged. He never expected that Emperor Shun would not fall for his ploy. At this point, he directly burned his life force to escape. However, Emperor Shun struck first, his move hitting Emperor Yao.
"Puff!" Emperor Yao spat out a mouthful of blood, tasting defeat. Before he could linger in the mortal world, he was killed by Emperor Shun's strike. His death was quite tragic, but it was also his just desserts, considering the vast number of evil deeds he had committed. He should have died a violent death long ago.
...
A month later, Yun Fan had completely recovered from his core injuries and had refined the mysterious energy from the Eighth Ancestor. Furthermore, under the purification of his demonic power, the mysterious energy in the Kunlun world had receded. At this moment, Emperor Shun arrived. After his battle with Emperor Yao, he was severely injured and had not yet recovered.
"Alliance Leader, why the hurry? What business do you have with me?" Yun Fan asked, puzzled.
Emperor Shun smiled and then said to Yun Fan, "Young friend, the Kunlun world is now pacified. Therefore, I intend to travel to the mortal realm. After all, I have been fighting here for thousands of years!" He was undoubtedly weary. From the ancient era until now, any normal person would have gone mad, or even defected to the mysterious forces. But due to his inner conviction and sense of responsibility, he had persevered.
Yun Fan said, "Alliance Leader, go. Although this is the Age of Dharma's End, the mortal realm is far more beautiful than you imagine!"
"I have come today for another important matter," he told Yun Fan. "After our discussions, we wish for you to become the Master of Kunlun!"
"What?" Yun Fan had not expected Emperor Shun to say this. But he had no interest in the so-called Master of Kunlun. For him, the Kunlun world was merely a transient stop. If he hadn't accidentally arrived here, he wouldn't have even known such a world existed.
"Alliance Leader, I'm afraid I cannot agree!" Yun Fan quickly refused.
But Emperor Shun said to Yun Fan, "Young friend, although the Eighth Ancestor is dead, the path to confronting the mysterious forces continues. The mysterious forces in the future will only grow stronger. Although you already stand at the pinnacle of the human path, it is not enough. Only by breaking through to the divine path is true mastery. By becoming the Master of Kunlun, with the divine power of the Kunlun world augmenting you, perhaps you can break the curse of inability to ascend to godhood in this Age of Dharma's End!"