Although the cultivators here weren’t as numerous as they were back at Bright Thunder Spirit Religion, Yang Kai quickly noticed that the overall strength of each individual cultivator was stronger.
The World Energy aura here was also rich to the point where it was nearly tangible, like a river that flowed through the valley. The moment Yang Kai arrived here and took a deep breath, he immediately felt comfortable and relaxed.
The mountain valley was enormous to the point that Yang Kai, who was floating high up in the air and looking down, couldn’t see the end of it, surprising him greatly.
Instead of calling it a valley, it was more appropriate to describe it as a concave plain.
Around the valley, there were a hundred mountain peaks that towered high into the sky like blades. These mountains were filled with birds, beasts, spirit grasses, and spirit medicines, exuding a rich vitality.
These mountain peaks seem to be randomly scattered around the valley, but upon closer inspection, Yang Kai felt that there was something special about their arrangement. The distant World Energy seemed to be attracted by some kind of invisible force and passed through the surrounding hundred mountain peaks and flowed into the valley, nourishing the cultivators, beasts, and plants that resided within.
Cang Yan and Fei Yu both secretly nodded to each other once more.
Yang Kai being able to so quickly notice the mysteries of this place clearly indicated his vision was extraordinary.
“These hundred peaks are the foundation of my Soaring Heaven Sect,” Cang Yan explained.
“Oh? Do they serve some kind of profound purpose?”
“Indeed they do,” Cang Yan gently nodded, “You should also be aware that the outside World Energy is gathering towards the sect, this is because of the Hundred Peak Spirit Array. The hundred and one peaks here act as nodes for this grand Spirit Arrays! What’s more, only half of these peaks were naturally formed.”
“What about the other half?”
“They were created by Martial Ancestor,” Cang Yan grinned.
Yang Kai’s eyes trembled as he exclaimed in shock, “Your Sect’s Martial Ancestor is incredible.”
“Naturally, when one’s strength and cultivation reaches a certain height, they become capable of boiling seas, raising mountains, and even plucking the stars themselves. Rumour has it that there are supreme masters capable of leaving this realm and traversing the Starry Sky in order to seek out the incredible resources and opportunities scattered amongst the stars.”
“Traversing the Starry Sky?” Yang Kai couldn’t help showing a brilliant look, as if a grand door in front of him was slowly opening, allowing him to spy on a profound mystery he had never even dreamed of before. His eyes flashing a brilliant light, he opened his ears and listened carefully to every word Cang Yan was saying.
“En, traversing the Starry Sky!” Cang Yan nodded repeatedly, “You saw the strange cyan stone in Old Man Du’s hand a few days ago, right? That was a product from the Starry Sky; it doesn’t exist in Tong Xuan Realm. That stone is incredibly valuable, it’s a pity it was ultimately destroyed.”
“The Starry Sky has an innumerable variety of medicinal herbs and ores, many of which actually even exceed Saint Grade; there are also giant beasts with the strength that exceed that of Saint Realm masters, even the smallest of which is bigger than my Soaring Heaven Sect’s entire valley.”
Yang Kai’s jaw dropped slowly, a look of amazement and disbelief appearing on his face.
What Cang Yan had just told him, was simply too incredible.
“Well, this is only what the legends say. As for what the Starry Sky actually looks like, nobody knows! No master has ever managed to successfully travel the vast Starry Sky and return to tell the tale,” Cang Yan rubbed his nose and added.
Yang Kai was stunned for a moment but soon laughed and nodded, “Even so, your Soaring Heaven Sect’s Spirit Array is still amazing. Where I’m from, such a wondrous formation even existing would be inconceivable.”
“Where you’re from?” Cang Yan was intrigued.
“En, I’m from a small, remote backcountry that’s far, far inferior to here,” Yang Kai explained vaguely.
“I see,” Cang Yan nodded slightly. “The Hundred Peak Spirit Array is truly a magnificent accomplishment. Even throughout the entire Tong Xuan Realm, few Spirit Arrays are its equal. This Spirit Array doesn’t just gather the surrounding World Energy, if the Sect ever encounters a great disaster, the Hundred Peak Spirit Array can also play a defensive role; of course, no one dares to invade my Soaring Heaven Sect, so I have never actually seen the Hundred Peak Spirit Array fully open before.”
“Enough idle chatter you two, hurry up,” Fei Yu interrupted the two men’s conversation impatiently.
“En, I’ll finish introducing Little Brother to everything around here later,” Cang Yan said in a friendly manner, he had already decided to build a good relationship with Yang Kai.
Cang Yan no longer spoke about these matters and instead led Yang Kai and Fei Yu down towards the valley.
Perhaps because the World Energy here was so rich, when one looked down at this place from the sky, everything seemed somewhat illusory, like a light fog was enveloping the entire valley, adding a layer of mystery and danger to it.
A moment later, the group of three landed.
As Cang Yan leisurely strolled forward, the Soaring Heaven Sect disciples that met him along the way all bowed and greeted him respectfully. These cultivators were all quite strong, most of them have at least broken through to the Immortal Ascension Boundary. The aura surrounding these disciples was thick and solid, clearly, they were much stronger than average cultivators in the same realm and stage.
Yang Kai silently expressed his admiration.
Each of Soaring Heaven Sect’s disciples had vigorous yet well-restrained auras, their vitality, physique, meridians were all extremely solid while their True Qi was dense and potent, their combat power was obviously not to be underestimated.
After handing over the five disciples they had rescued to some disciples to take care of, Cang Yan led Yang Kai to a relatively remote courtyard and said, “You can stay here for now, after I report to Martial Ancestor, I’ll come and find you.”
“I don’t need to see your respected Martial Ancestor now?” Yang Kai frowned, he had thought he would immediately be meeting Soaring Heaven Sect’s Martial Ancestor.
After all, Yang Kai had many doubts in his heart, so he was quite anxious to meet this Saint Realm master and clear up his own confusion. But from Cang Yan’s words, obviously, he would have to wait for some time.
“When Martial Ancestor summons you, I’ll lead you to see him,” Cang Yan smiled and didn’t say anything more, turning around and departing casually.
Fei Yu turned her eyes to Yang Kai and gently consoled him, “You don’t need to worry yourself, it’s impossible for Martial Ancestor to have any malicious intentions towards a little boy like you, if that were really the case, he wouldn’t have specially sent Cang Yan out to find you. Good, let me give you a gift for you to pass your time with.”
Saying so, she suddenly threw two things to Yang Kai.
Yang Kai instinctually caught them and found that they were actually a pair of shackles made from some unidentifiable stone material.
“What are these?” Yang Kai examined them and, to his surprise, couldn’t discover anything extraordinary about them. They weighed less than half a kilogram each and there was no trace of any Spirit Arrays engraved on them or any kind of energy stored within them. It really seemed like an ordinary toy.
“Try pouring your True Qi into them, remember to pour in as much as possible!” Fei Yu instructed.
Yang Kai nodded unsuspectingly and quickly poured his True Qi into the two stone shackles.
In the next instant, he suddenly felt an incredibly heavy weight pulling down on him, causing him to fall forward and nearly plummeted to the ground.
After tumbling unsteadily through the air, Yang Kai somehow avoided embarrassing himself.
*Hong Hong…*
With two muffled thuds, the two shackles fell to the ground and smashed open two deep pits.
Yang Kai paled slightly, a surprised and shocked look appearing on his face.
Hearing an enchanting burst of laughter to his side, Yang Kai slowing turned his head and saw Fei Yu giggling happily.
“You tricked me?” Yang Kai knit his brow as he stared at this beautiful woman.
Because he felt that this woman had no malicious intentions towards him, Yang Kai naturally hadn’t thought much about things and had thus been successfully pranked by her. These two shackled were obviously not ordinary toys, but instead, valuable tools.
“Elder Sister is just teaching you a lesson, don’t readily believe anyone,” Fei Yu giggled lightly.
Yang Kai took a deep breath and nodded, “I have indeed been taught, aunty is quite a sinister character.”
Fei Yu’s laughter came to an abrupt end and her pair of beautiful eyes immediately flashed a dangerous light as she glared angrily towards Yang Kai.
Suddenly, from a nearby treetop, a burst of laughter rang out.
Fei Yu whipped around and pushed her hand forward, sending out a water dragon towards the man hiding in the tree.
“Just try laughing again and see if I don’t rip your mouth from your face!” Fei Yu stared at the man coldly.
The man shrank his neck, and he didn’t dare to laugh again, pointing his finger out and releasing a burst of light towards Fei Yu’s Water Dragon, smashing it before he too shot off like a bolt of lightning and disappeared, his voice passing over from far away, “Kid, if you want to live a bit longer, stay away from this crazy woman. The farther the better!”
“Li Wan, today is the day of your death!” Fei Yu’s tender body flickered and immediately chased after the retreating figure.
All Yang Kai could do was stare blankly.
[Another Third Order Transcendent master!]
The man who just appeared had been hiding right next to him yet Yang Kai didn’t even notice his presence, his method of concealing his presence was perfect.
Although it was only a glimpse, Yang Kai also saw the face of this man, his build was short and thin, as was his head, atop his mouth was a distinctive mustache that gave his face a particularly nefarious look. In short, he was a master who left quite a memorable impression.
On their way here, Cang Yan had told Yang Kai that Soaring Heaven Sect had four Transcendent Realm Third Order Protectors, of which he and Fei Yu were two of them.
This Li Wan should also be one, and as for the remaining one, Yang Kai had yet to meet him.
However, Yang Kai now faintly realized that these four all had their own fields of expertise.
Cang Yan specialized in fire, Fei Yu in water, and Li Wan’s forte should be either speed or explosiveness. From the explosion the latter created a moment ago, Yang Kai could naturally sense how tyrannical his power was.
Standing there for a while, with no one coming up to disturb him, Yang Kai’s expression became slightly weird.
He arrived at this extremely powerful Sect through a strange series of events that he had no control over, but for some unknown reason, this place made Yang Kai feel somewhat disquieted.
However, now that he was here, he didn’t think too much about it because there was really nothing he could do about it. He could only place his hopes on Soaring Heaven Sect’s Martial Ancestor, hoping the latter could dispel his doubts.
His eyes flashing, Yang Kai turned his attention to the two strange shackles that were currently lying in pits of their own making in front of him, reaching out and picking them up.
The moment he lifted them, Yang Kai was surprised to find that these two shackles no longer possessed that terrifying weight and instead weighed at most half a kilogram now, just as they had when he first received them from Fei Yu.
Of course, the fact that they had weighed a tremendous amount only a short time ago was a fact, the two giant pits being all the proof Yang Kai needed to know he hadn’t imagined it.
Frowning for a moment, Yang Kai slowly poured his True Qi into the shackles.
In the next instant, Yang Kai’s brow relaxed and as he expected, with the addition of True Qi, the two shackles became significantly heavier, causing his arms to tremble lightly from exertion.
As he continued to pour in his True Qi, the weight of the shackles also increased.
Even before Yang Kai fully pushed his True Qi, he found that he was somewhat unable to hold up the two shackles. By now they weighed at least five or six thousand kilograms.
The ground around where Yang Kai was standing suddenly trembled and spider-web like cracks began spreading from his feat. Obviously, the earth here couldn’t withstand the tremendous pressure.
After understanding the function and method of use of these shackles, Yang Kai wore a joyful expression, suddenly feeling that Fei Yu had really thrown him a valuable gift. Not only would these shackles give him something to fiddle with to pass the time, but it would also allow him to exercise his physique.
Soaring Heaven Sect, inside a secluded room.
Cang Yan stood respectfully and reported to his Martial Ancestor about the things that happened after he had found Yang Kai.
After hearing that Yang Kai killed Duan Hai and Xu Qi right before Xia Cheng Yin’s eyes, Soaring Heaven Sect’s Martial Ancestor’s eyes couldn’t help shining, revealing a deep smile.
Later, when Cang Yan reported to his Martial Ancestor about what transpired inside the ancient cave mansion, the latter couldn’t help asking in surprise, “He has a Conflagrated Knowledge Sea?”
Cang Yan’s brow rose slightly as he asked, “Martial ancestor didn’t know?”
“En, I didn’t,” The old man slowly shook his head, “My intuition simply told me that this matter could be resolved by him, so I sent Fei Yu out just as you were returning.”
“Has Martial Ancestor really never met that kid before?”
“En, I’ve never met him, but… he has some connections to this old master!”
Cang Yan looked confused as he apparently couldn’t understand what kind of connection there could be between Yang Kai and his Martial Ancestor.
“Good, besides the two of us, Du Wan, and Xia Cheng Yin, is there anyone else who knows about him having a Conflagrated Knowledge Sea?” Soaring Heaven Sect’s Martial Ancestor asked lightly.
Cang Yan’s expression became solemn as he nodded sternly, “Yes, a little girl from the Alchemist Guild knows and on the way back, Fei Yu also saw it.”
“I understand, you’re dismissed.”
“Disciple will now take his leave!” Cang Yan stepped back, turned around, and left. Once outside the secluded room, Cang Yan unconsciously turned his gaze towards the direction of Bright Thunder Spirit Religion and a cold; callus grin slowly crept onto his face.
…..
Yang Kai stayed in Soaring Heaven Sect for two days. During that time, only Fei Yu came to see him once. As for Cang Yan, Yang Kai had no idea where he had gone, and obviously, no one else came up and called out to him.
Fei Yu had actually delivered him a bottle of Thousand Safflower Wine, saying that it was a thank you gift for his help back in the ancient cave mansion.
This beautiful woman was somewhat unconventional. When she came to see Yang Kai, she was clearly drunk, her face and long slender neck dyed an intoxicated shade of red, giving her a particularly tempting glow.
“Don’t drink too much at once. With your small build, you won’t be able to handle it,” Fei Yu smiled as she put down the bottle of Thousand Safflower Wine before disappearing somewhere.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but smile; he didn’t even have the opportunity to ask her anything about the current situation and could only put the bottle of Thousand Safflower Wine into his Black Book space before continuing to walk around his courtyard slowly.
From a bystander’s perspective, he was just pacing around freely, his speed neither fast nor slow; however, if one looked closely, his muscles were all fully tensed, as if his body was bearing some kind of tremendous pressure.
But what was even stranger was that wherever he stepped, he left no traces behind, everything seemed completely ordinary.
Three days later, Cang Yan suddenly appeared beckoned towards Yang Kai, “Martial Ancestor wants to see you.”
Yang Kai smiled happily and quickly walked over.
He had too many questions he wanted to ask, and he also wanted to know what kind of person Soaring Heaven Sect’s Martial Ancestor was.
Before they had gone very far though, Cang Yan stared at him strangely and asked, “Are you nervous?”
“No,” Yang Kai shook his head.
“Then why is your True Qi always surging? And your physique seems to be drawn taut… no wait…” Cang Yan’s expression suddenly changed as he stared at Yang Kai deeply and inquired, “Did Fei Yu give you her Primordial Shackles?”
“So these things are called Primordial Shackles?”
Cang Yan nodded lightly, “The more True Qi you pour into them, the heavier they become, how much weight are you currently carrying?”
“Somewhere between four and five thousand kilograms.”
“Kid, you’re really a strange one,” Cang Yan was shocked, “Have you also practiced body cultivation?”
“En, I have.”
The Unyielding Golden Skeleton’s Tempered Body Record was a Secret Art dedicated to the development of physical strength so now even though he was carrying an additional four or five thousand kilograms, Yang Kai could still move about unhindered. Besides feeling a little unnatural, even if he was walking around casually, he wouldn’t leave any kind of noticeable imprints on the ground.
Cang Yan silently expressed his admiration, he had also tried out Fei Yu’s Primordial Shackles before and understood them well. When he thought about when he was at Yang Kai’s cultivation realm, he couldn’t help thinking he wouldn’t be able to perform as well having to carry so much additional weight.
[But Yang Kai is an Alchemist. Why was his physical strength so intrepid?] Cang Yan thought.
Alchemist are normally immersed in their studies of the Alchemic Way all year round and spend very little time on cultivation, so basically, all Alchemists possess lower than average combat strength. When an ordinary cultivator and an Alchemist in the same cultivation realm fight, the one who suffers defeat is almost always the Alchemist.
However, earlier, Cang Yan had watched as Yang Kai killed Duan Hai and Xu Qi, and dove into the Wind Eye and Thunder Eye to cultivate some mysterious, so the former faintly felt that this kid seemed to be more than just a Spirit Grade Alchemist with a Conflagrated Knowledge Sea. At the very least, he was not a simple character.
Sometime later, Cang Yan came to a small out of the way house and stopped, turning to Yang Kai and saying, “Go in, Martial Ancestor is waiting for you inside.”
Yang Kai nodded slightly, took a deep breath, and strode forward.
Entering the house, he turned a corner and entered into a solitary room deeper inside. The candlelight seemed to be swaying in the faint breeze, as if it could be snuffed out at any time.
The illumination in the room wasn’t bright but that could not conceal an old man with a thin body and snow white hair who was silently sitting cross-legged. This old man gave off no aura and appeared as tranquil as an ancient well, as if he was just an ordinary mortal.
But Yang Kai still stared blankly for a moment for he knew without a doubt that this was Soaring Heaven Sect’s Martial Ancestor; carefully sizing him up, Yang Kai cautiously but firmly stepped forward.
Arriving in front of the old man, he cupped his fists and bowed politely, “Junior Yang, greets Senior!”
The old man slowly opened his eyes and stared at Yang Kai, soon smiling as he commented, “Excellent aptitude, steady will, and a bold and courageous temperament. Good, nowadays, such young people are a rare sight.”
“Senior’s praise is too generous.”
“En, sit down!”
Yang Kai sat cross-legged on the futon in front of him, but upon taking a seat, his expression tightened as he smelled a faint bloody scent lingering in the air.
“I know that you have a lot of questions, but there’s no need to be anxious, first open the package in front of you and have a look,” The old man said with a smile.
Yang Kai looked down and saw a small box in front of him; there were obvious fresh blood stains on it so there was no doubt it was the source of the bloody scent he had just smelt.
Yang Kai frowned slightly, but didn’t hesitate and proceeded to open the package. Upon seeing the contests though, his hand shook slightly before he turned his eyes towards Soaring Heaven Sect’s Martial Ancestor in surprise.
It was a human head!
Moreover, it was actually Bright Thunder Spirit Religion’s Religion Master, Xia Cheng Yin’s head!
“Before you have grown up, no one should reveal the existence of your Conflagrated Knowledge Sea,” The old man smiled and said.
“Many thanks Senior for taking action!” Yang Kai hastily expressed his sincere gratitude.
Originally, Yang Kai had been planning to quickly break through to the Transcendent Realm and then silence this remaining witness, but he had not thought that Soaring Heaven Sect’s Martial Ancestor would actually take the initiative to help him clean up this matter ahead of time. This allowed Yang Kai to put down a great burden that was weighing on his heart.
At that time, Yang Kai really had no other choice but to reveal the secret of his Conflagrated Knowledge Sea, because in his view, information about the Ancient Demon Clan and the Coffin Carrying Man absolutely could not be revealed.
“A minor matter,” The old man just lightly shook his head.
With his strength and means, killing Bright Thunder Spirit Religion’s Religion Master, a mere Third Order Transcendent, was indeed a minor matter. Before Xia Cheng Yin had even responded, his head had already been separated from his body.
“Senior,” Yang Kai sat in a respectful manner and solemnly said, “May I ask, why have you done all this? Why did you send Cang Yan to look for me? Why did Cang Yan take such good care of me? And why are you even willing to kill Bright Thunder’s Religion Master? I don’t believe we’ve ever met, have we?”
“Heh heh,” The old man chuckled, “This old master doing so, naturally there is a reason, en, first of all, this old master is called Chu Ling Xiao. After hearing this, have you understood anything?”
Yang Kai’s expression changed, faintly realizing something as his eyes stared towards the old man, the vigilance in his gaze gradually melting and being replaced with a bright light.
“It seems you have some idea but are still not sure, then let this old master show you some evidence,” Chu Ling Xiao smiled and suddenly stretched out his hand, sending a pulse of energy into Yang Kai’s body.
Before Yang Kai could react, the sound of a clinking chain rang out inside the chamber.
A shining golden chain had suddenly strangely appeared above Yang Kai and flew over to Chu Ling Xiao.
“The Devil Sealing Chain!” Yang Kai called out in surprise.
This was the evil suppressing artifact he had acquired beneath High Heaven Pavilion’s Coiling Dragon Stream. Since he obtained it, Yang Kai had used it twice, the first time being when he killed Demon General Meng Ge’s Soul Clone in the depths of the Evil Cavern.
The second time was beneath the Central Capital, where he used the Devil Sealing Chain to deal with Demon Lord Yang Bai.
After the death of Yang Bai, Yang Kai had taken back the Devil Sealing Chain and not used it since.
But now, the Devil Sealing Chain was summoned out by Soaring Heaven Sect’s Martial Ancestor!
“This thing belongs to this old master!” Chu Ling Xiao smiled as he said to Yang Kai.
The last remnants of confusion in Yang Kai’s eyes faded and he finally understood everything.
Yang Kai scratched his head lightly as asked the old man hesitantly, “Ancestral Founder?”
Chu Ling Xiao nodded lightly, “This old master didn’t expect that after a few hundred years someone from that world would arrive on Tong Xuan Realm. You must have encountered a lot of hardship, you’ve worked hard.”
“I haven’t suffered much hardship, many people have assisted me on my journey here,” Yang Kai’s was subtly excited as he looked at Chu Ling Xiao, feeling a sense of warmth and comfort, as if he had returned home.
“If so then that’s for the best,” Chu Ling Xiao sighed slightly, “A few hundred years ago, this old master also traveled to that side, so I know just how barren that place is, you being able to arrive here is really quite surprising.”
“Then, was High Heaven Pavilion really founded by Senior?” Yang Kai’s eyes flashed brilliantly.
“En,” Chu Ling Xiao nodded, “I established the Sect using my own name. Originally, while I was pursuing a Demon General, I crossed a Void Corridor and arrived at your world. After fighting him there, I finally managed to scatter his Soul but was unable to destroy his physical body, so I could only use the Devil Sealing Chain to bind and seal it in a deep ravine. I then founded High Heaven Pavilion so there would be someone to stand guard over that Demon General’s body. After a couple dozen years had passed, I determined that the last remnants of that Demon General’s Soul had finally dissipated and then I found my way back here,” Chu Ling Xiao explained, asking curiously in the next moment, “Time has passed by so quickly. Are you one of High Heaven Pavilion’s current disciples?”
“Yes.”
“Good, good, you being able to obtain the Devil Sealing Chain means there is some fate between you and I,” Chu Ling Xiao smiled happily, pausing for a moment before asking, “What is the situation like on that side now? Is the Sect still alright?”
“Everything over there is fine now, but a few years ago the Sect was nearly wiped out.”
“Oh? It seems this old master was too irresponsible with the Sect he created. Tell me about it.”
Yang Kai spoke about how he joined High Heaven Pavilion and all the various events and trials, big and small, he and Sect had overcome these past few years. Having not been able to be so open with anyone for so long, Yang Kai did not try to conceal anything. After all, the old man with a gentle temperament and kind smile in front of him was not just Soaring Heaven Sect’s Martial ancestor, he was also the Ancestral Founder of High Heaven Pavilion. Yang Kai naturally did not need to hide anything from him.
Chu Ling Xiao also listened with great interested; seemingly quite concerned with the successors of his legacy he had left over on that side.
When he heard that High Heaven Pavilion’s current Sect Master had become a Second Order Transcendent, Chu Ling Xiao couldn’t help smiling brightly.
He knew just what the conditions of that world were like. Anyone being able to break through to such a realm must have extremely good aptitude and natural talent.
When Chu Ling Xiao departed, he hadn’t left much behind, only a single Universe Bag; the very same one Ling Tai Xu had given Yang Kai and which was currently in Su Yan’s hands.
“It turns out you were from one of the Central Capital’s Eight Great Families. When this old master was over on that side, I had heard much about their strength,” Chu Ling Xiao nodded lightly.
“There’s no comparison between them and this side though,” Yang Kai shook his head, any random force here was stronger than all of the Central Capital’s Eight Great Families combined.
“How did you come to this side?” Chu Ling Xiao asked curiously.
Yang Kai went on to describe how he had found a Void Corridor with Shui Ling and made the subsequent trip here.
“Water Spirit Temple, good, this old master has heard about them, a Sect that specializes in Water Attribute Secret Arts,” Chu Ling Xiao nodded slightly, “You’ve indeed worked hard to be able to arrive at this step.”
“This is just the path this disciple has chosen,” Yang Kai replied righteously.
“What plans do you have for the future?” Chu Ling Xiao kindly asked.
“Nothing for the time being; however, there are two people I want to find.”
“Who are you looking for?”
“My two Senior Sisters, they also crossed over to this side,” Yang Kai replied.
Chu Ling Xiao smiled and nodded, “What characteristics do they have? I can let the Sect’s people help pay attention to any news about them.”
Yang Kai quickly described the features of Su Yan and Xia Ning Chang, adding on after, “Strictly speaking, they are actually four people I am looking for. In addition to my two Senior Sisters, there is also a Devil Lord who possessed the body of the Demon General Ancestral Founder sealed in High Heaven Pavilion all those years ago.”
“A Devil Lord?”
“Ancestral Founder can rest assured, he shouldn’t be a member of the Demon Race, it’s just that his cultivation techniques are somewhat evil. He has helped me a lot and I consider him my friend. He calls himself Old Demon, as for his real name, he’s never mentioned it before.”
“Old Demon? I’ve never heard of him, but I’ll believe in your vision, and the last one?”
“An old foggy name Meng Wu Ya, he’s a very mysterious person.”
“Meng Wu Ya?” Chu Ling Xiao expression changed dramatically, “Did you say Meng Wu Ya?”
“Does Ancestral Founder know him?”
“I do know someone named Meng Wu Ya, but I don’t know if it is the same person, what does he look like?”
Yang Kai quickly described the appearance of Meng Wu Ya. Chu Ling Xiao’s expression became weird as he murmured, “Is it really him? He was supposed to have died already but now it seems that old fox is alive and kicking and also escaped to that side.”
Yang Kai was also quite surprised, “Ancestral Founder seems to be quite familiar with Treasurer Meng…”
“I am indeed familiar with him, I’ve even fought with him several times, but there’s no hatred between us, both of us were just exchanging pointers. That guy… en, he’s a tough character to handle. About two hundred years ago, he and the Demon Commander fought a great battle after which he disappeared. We all thought he was dead.”
“He and Ancestral Founder fought one another?” Yang Kai’s eyes couldn’t help bulging, “What realm had he achieved that he could exchange moves with you?”
“The Saint Realm obviously,” Chu Ling Xiao was surprised by Yang Kai’s reaction, “Why? What’s wrong?”
Yang Kai mouth twitched a few times before he managed to reply, “Several years ago, when I first met him, his cultivation was only at the Peak Immortal Ascension Boundary. When we last separated though, his strength had risen to somewhere around the Second or Third Order Transcendent Realm, but his full strength still seemed to be suppressed by some kind of seal.”
“Ha ha ha ha!” Chu Ling Xiao burst out into laughter, “That old fox got what he deserved, he must have been struck by the Demon Commander’s Profound Heavenly Seal, a powerful three layer seal, and from what you’ve described, it seems he’s already unlocked the first layer of the seal. It’s quite a feat he managed to escape from the Demon Commander with his life in that kind of state. It seems his luck is as good as ever.”
Yang Kai was thoroughly shocked, unable to accept this new information for quite some time.
It was no wonder he always felt that Treasurer Meng was surrounded in mystery, it turns out he was actually a top-level Saint Realm master. Lifting the first layer of the seal binding his cultivation had allowed him to restore his strength to the Transcendent Realm. If he could lift the second layer of restrictions, he will be able to return to the Saint Realm, and if he managed to break through the last layer of the seal, he would definitely return to being an apex master even by Tong Xuan Realm’s standards.
“You’ve brought me some good news,” Chu Ling Xiao said happily, “But it wouldn’t be easy to find him. When he fought with the current Demon Commander, the latter ate a small loss. The Demon Race is quite vengeful, so before that old fogey’s strength is completely restored, he won’t easily show his face; after all, he is also a famous character. Once the Demon Race become aware of his return, it will be difficult for him to escape their pursuit.”
Yang Kai was stunned.
“I’ll let the Sect’s people pay attention to news about the movements of your two Senior Sisters. If we learn anything, I’ll let you know. You are also a disciple of my Soaring Heaven Sect. From now on, you can stay here with peace of mind, no need to feel restrained, just treat this place as your own home.”
“Disciple understands,” Yang Kai took a deep breath and nodded firmly.
After learning that this old man was the Ancestral Founder of High Heaven Pavilion, Yang Kai truly didn’t feel he was an outsider.
Fortunately, Chu Ling Xiao had sensed the faint presence of the Devil Sealing Chain and thus found him, otherwise, Yang Kai would still be a homeless wanderer.
“Cang Yan,” Chu Ling Xiao called out.
Cang Yan, who had been waiting outside the door, immediately came in, “Disciple greets Martial Ancestor.”
“En, take care of your new Martial Nephew.”
“Disciple understands.”
“Right, Ancestral Founder, disciple has something to request,” Yang Kai suddenly spoke.
“Oh, if you have something to ask, feel free to speak.”
“For certain reasons, I need to quickly improve my proficiency in Alchemy, so I would like to ask the Sect to provide me with some herbs to concoct pills.”
“Let Cang Yan arrange it, this is also a good deed for my Soaring Heaven Sect!” Chu Ling Xiao smiled and nodded.
Yang Kai volunteering to perform Alchemy for the Sect was something Chu Ling Xiao was more than happy to see.
After bidding farewell to Chu Ling Xiao, Yang Kai and Cang Yan left the secluded house and Cang Yan gave Yang Kai a curious look, “Are you from that other realm?”
“Yes.”
“No wonder I’ve never heard of you before. I always wondered how such an outstanding young talent like you could be completely unknown, but now I understand. Good, from now on we are all one family. Martial Uncle will definitely take care of you, if anyone dares to mess with you, Martial Uncle will help you to exterminate his whole family,” Cang Yan grinned.
Yang Kai’s face went a little black at this terrifying comment which was made in such an offhanded manner.
When he returned to his temporary courtyard, Yang Kai discovered a red-faced Fei Yu lying down lazily on a bench in the corridor, her exquisite curves and tall peaks clearly outlined by her thin, messy robes, simulate one’s fantasies.
She had a bottle of wine in her hands and was drinking happily.
“Drinking again,” Cang Yan slowly shook his head and whispered to Yang Kai, “Your Martial Aunt here doesn’t behave like a woman at all, all she does is drink all year round, and I bet no one will want her for her entire life.”
Before he had finished voicing his thoughts, Fei Yu’s wine bottle flew over towards him. Cang Yan caught it, sniffed, and muttered in dissatisfaction, “Not your Thousand Safflower Wine?”
“Hmph,” Fei Yu got up and squinted at Cang Yan, “There’s no share of my Thousand Safflower Wine for a jerk who enjoys slandering me behind my back.”
“But you promised me before,” Cang Yan grumbled.
“I already gave that bottle of Thousand Safflower Wine to this little brother.”
“Gave it to him?” Cang Yan stared blankly at Yang Kai before breaking out into a flattering smile, “Martial Nephew, you see… Martial Uncle worked hard for two months searching for you, shouldn’t you offer me some thanks as a show on sincerity?”
Yang Kai grinned meaningfully, “I want to keep good things for myself.”
Cang Yan blinked for a moment, apparently not having thought Yang Kai would actually flat out refuse him.
Fei Yu, on the other hand, frowned slightly as she asked suspiciously, “How did it suddenly become Martial Nephew? Did this little brother join our Soaring Heaven Sect?”
“Strictly speaking, he has always been a disciple of our Soaring Heaven Sect.”
“Oh, what happened?” Fei Yu was quite surprised as she stared curiously at Yang Kai.
Cang Yan gave a brief explanation of what had just happened, causing Fei Yu to suddenly rejoice, “So that means I’m also this boy’s Martial Aunt?”
“En,” Cang Yan nodded.
“Haha, it seems we’ve picked up another Martial Nephew,” Li Wan said, seemingly appearing out of nowhere, his head not even reaching past Yang Kai’s shoulders as he crossed his arms and examined the latter from top to bottom like a wise old soul, his eyes fill with bright light as he nodded slightly, “Not bad.”
“Greetings, Martial Uncles, Martial Aunt,” Yang Kai cupped his fists.
The three people glanced at each other and laughed, Fei Yu smiling even more brilliantly than before, obviously feeling very happy.
All of a sudden, Li Wan declared, “Good, I think we should celebrate Martial Nephew’s recognition of his ancestors and return to his roots.”
“Good idea!” Cang Yan nodded in agreement, continuing, “I think Serene Resplendent Peak would be the perfect place to hold a celebration.”
“No!” Fei Yu’s complexion changed rapidly as she hurriedly tried to object.
However, Cang Yan had already used his movement skill to fly away, his voice travelling back from afar, “I’m going to hunt for some fresh meat.”
Li Wan had similarly disappeared as he said, “I’ll go find Fei Jian. We can’t let him miss out on the celebration.”
In the blink of an eye, only Fei Yu and Yang Kai were left behind.
The beautiful woman bit her lip as she stared off in the direction Cang Yan and Li Wan disappeared, cursing under her breath, “You bastards!”
After scolding them for a while, she smiled helplessly and shook her head, “They just want to get their greedy hands on my Thousand Safflower Wine, a group of shameless men.”
Sighing, she then turned to look at Yang Kai and said, “Let’s go, if I don’t give them what they want this time, they’ll just squat on my Serene Resplendent Peak and bother me until I give in such a headache.”
“Am I going too?” Yang Kai was still a little dumbstruck.
“They’re taking advantage of your name to do all this, of course, you have to go,” Fei Yu nodded, swiftly reaching out and grabbing Yang Kai’s collar before flying off with him towards a mountain in the distance.
As soon as she flew up though, Fei Yu suddenly felt an intense weight dragging her down, her pretty face cramping up as she quickly increased her strength to compensate.
Shooting a glance towards Yang Kai, Fei Yu knit her brow and asked, “Are you wearing my Primordial Shackles on your body?”
“En,” Yang Kai nodded.
“Stop injecting your True Qi into them, it’s too difficult to fly like this,” Fei Yu gave him a dirty look. Just now, she had almost embarrassed herself.
Yang Kai silently chuckled and took back his True Qi, the speed of the pair suddenly increasing a lot.
After a brief flight, the two arrived atop a beautiful mountain peak.
This mountain peak was exceptionally beautiful, with crystal clear streams that flowed towards towering waterfalls that cascaded down into the valley down below. The mist which scattered about shimmered in the sunlight like bright stars in the night. Everything here exuded a feeling of natural harmony.
Fei Yu brought Yang Kai past the lower streams and stopped just below one of the great waterfalls, landing atop a wide plateau in front of a cave halfway up the mountain.
Yang Kai took a deep breath in and felt his body and mind relaxing before quickly discovering that there was actually no one else around at all.
“This is Serene Resplendent Peak, the place where I live. Each of us four Protectors have our own peak. Their places are always lively but I prefer peace and quiet, so I live here alone. Come with me.” Saying so, she led Yang Kai towards the cave.
The interior of this cave was spacious and clean. Inside the belly of the mountain, a number of stones rooms were excavated and all the walls were lined with brilliant stones that gave off a gentle light.
Here, there was not even a whiff of foul odor, instead; there was a just a touch of alluring fragrance.
Yang Kai gazed around in appreciation and surprise. He had thought a woman like Fei Yu who was so addicted to alcohol would definitely not have a dwelling that could be described as ‘feminine’, but the truth was her home was actually filled with elegance and refinement.
“Little Martial Nephew, if you’d like, afterwards you can live here with me. Martial Aunt has grown somewhat bored with the constant loneliness,” Fei Yu commented suddenly, perhaps cracking a joke, or perhaps not, Yang Kai wasn’t sure.
“Me, live here?”
“En, I arranged a place for you in the valley before because I didn’t know your origins, but now, since you’re my Soaring Heaven Sect’s disciple, you are free to choose a mountain peak to live on, and since you will be often studying Alchemy, you will need a quiet and comfortable environment, right? My place is perfect then; Cang Yan and their side is crowded every day so there will definitely be more people there disturbing you.”
“The conditions here really are excellent,” Yang Kai nodded earnestly.
“Think about it, Martial Aunt’s offer is serious,” Fei Yu smiled with a healthy glow upon her face like that of a fully ripe fruit.
After touring around the mountainside for a while, Fei Yu led Yang Kai to a large open space.
Fei Yu had been grumbling earlier that Cang Yan, Li Wan, and Fei Jian were just a group of bastards after her Thousand Safflower Wine, but the moment she arrived here she still began enthusiastically arranging tables and chairs before taking out a few bottles of her specially brewed Thousand Safflower Wine as well as some fragrant spirit fruits.
Just after she finished setting the table, there was a rush of footsteps approaching from afar. In the next moment, Cang Yan, Li Wan and another man with a tall, thin build, appeared.
“I seem to smell some delicious wine!” Li Wan’s two thick eyebrows bounced in a wretched manner as he sniffed the air in an exaggerated manner.
Cang Yan beside him carried some Monster Beast Yang Kai had never seen or heard of before on his back with a valiant expression.
After seeing the bottles on the table, both of them showed an understanding smile as they licked their lips and complimented, “Fei Yu is truly a generous lady.”
Fei Yu’s complexion became cold as she snorted loudly, “One bottle per person, quickly drink it down then get the hell out!”
“Enough, enough!” Li Wan nodded quickly before reaching out and grabbing the bottle, apparently quite reluctant to let it go.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai was quietly taking a look at the third newcomer. This man should be the last of the four Protectors of Soaring Heaven Sect, which meant he should also be a Third Order Transcendent powerhouse. Yang Kai quickly became aware that the aura this person gave off was quite different from Cang Yan’s oppressiveness, Fei Yu’s softness, and Li Wan’s insidiousness; this person seemed to give off a feeling of sharpness.
The opposite party also seemed to be observing him and after a moment, suddenly grinned, “Is this our newly arrived little Martial Nephew?”
When he grinned, Yang Kai almost couldn’t stop himself from laughing.
Because this person’s smile was actually so crooked.
Originally, Yang Kai had felt that Li Wan had a wicked enough appearance, but compared to this person, even Li Wan’s looks seemed somewhat soft.
These two masters from Soaring Heaven Sect were seriously distinctive.
“Junior Yang Kai greets Martial Uncle!” Yang Kai cupped his fists respectfully.
Fei Jian nodded lightly before suddenly assuming a posture of nocking an arrow and drawing a bow.
*Weng…*
The world seems to shiver as the surrounding World Energy suddenly stagnated.
Yang Kai eyes instinctively shrank; at that moment, he suddenly felt a sense of crisis, like he was being stared at by a poisonous snakes, unable to dodge or evade the coming strike.
Cang Yan, Fei Yu, and Li Wan all remained silent, just watching Yang Kai with interested smiles.
Fei Jian’s index finger twitched and suddenly, an invisible attack shot straight out towards Yang Kai.
Yang Kai’s eyes bulged as he frantically pushed his True Qi and sent out a punch towards the incoming strike.
*Hong…*
A burst of energy erupted as waves of True Qi rippled through the air, but Yang Kai still stood tall, not falling back a single step.
The four Protectors all smiled brightly.
Fei Jian grinned and nodded, “En, not bad, Cang Yan told me that your strength was much stronger than an average Peak Immortal Ascension cultivator, but I didn’t believe him at the time. It seems I was mistake, my Soaring Heaven Sect has indeed added an outstanding talent.”
“Does Martial Uncle specialize in archery?” Yang Kai’s eyes flashed.
Fei Jian nodded frankly, “Yes.”
Fei Yu came over and whispered into Yang Kai’s ear, “This guy is a real sinister fellow, he never fights people from the front but instead hides in the dark. No one can hide from his arrows. If you want to learn the ways of sneak attacking and assassinating your opponents, you should ask him for advice.”
Yang Kai nodded. He understood that Fei Jian’s attack just now was only a test and had no hostility or malice behind it; however, even then, his strike had almost been beyond Yang Kai’s ability to resist.
Each of Soaring Heaven Sect’s four Protectors was not to be underestimated.
“It’s a matter of one’s heart,” Fei Yu suddenly smiled and said with profound meaning.
“Hey, stop spreading nonsense,” Li Wan muttered unhappily.
“Alright alright, enough. I’ve waiting for this Thousand Safflower Wine for fifty years, so let’s drink already,” Cang Yan stepped forward and picked up a bottle, popping it open and taking a big swig, his face instantly blushing red as he praised loudly, “Good wine.”
Seeing Cang Yan’s ardent reaction, Li Wan and Fei Jian couldn’t help rushing over and joining him.
Yang Kai also sat down and picked up a spirit fruit, slowly eating it while he watched these four masters straightforward and unrestrained behaviour, suddenly feeling a touch of warmth inside.
These four Martial Seniors were clearly a close knit group, and their occasional disputes only seemed to serve as catalysts to enhance their bonds as brothers and sisters.
After three rounds of wine, no one was able to keep up appearances anymore, all four of them not showing any of the majesty Transcendent Realm masters should have.
Fei Yu, whose skin was now a dyed a health shade of red, suddenly shot Yang Kai and drunken look and threw him the bottle of wine she had been drinking and grinned, “Little Martial Nephew, you have a drink too.”
Yang Kai took it, glanced over at her suspiciously, but still didn’t hesitate to gulp down a mouthful.
Oddly, there was no strong taste of alcohol, instead only a rich yet mellow fragrance lingered on his tongue, but before Yang Kai had time to offer his praises for this concoction, a burning sensation erupted from the pit of his stomach and began spreading like a raging fire.
Yang Kai expression changed dramatically as he suddenly felt like his entire physique and all of his meridians were trembling, like a fierce, invisible torrent was flooding through every part of his body. In an instant, Yang Kai could no longer control himself, his body going stiff before he keeled over onto his back and passed out.
Fei Yu’s had moved faster than the eye could see and snatched the bottle from Yang Kai before it hit the ground.
The four Third Order Transcendent masters all exchanged glances before suddenly bursting into laughter together.
After a good laugh, the four of them began drinking again, none of them paying any attention to Yang Kai anymore.
…..
When Yang Kai woke up again, his surroundings were quiet, Cang Yan and the others had already left, leaving behind only a mess of dishes and bottles. As for Fei Yu, she was lying sloppily on a chair nearby, her head resting comfortably atop her jade arm as she stared at Yang Kai with a drunken look.
“You’re up?” Fei Yu smiled lightly.
Yang Kai’s face was still dyed red but he managed to nod slightly.
He hadn’t expected the so-called Thousand Safflower Wine to be so overbearing, he had only drank a mouthful but the energy it contained was still massive.
“How do you feel?”
“Very good, apparently,” Yang Kai examined himself quickly and soon discovered that his True Qi was now flowing faster and smoother than before and that his physique and meridians had become tougher and more resilient.
“That’s good. That bottle of Thousand Safflower Wine I gave you earlier, you can only drink a mouthful of it three times a month, if you drink any more, it’ll do more harm than good. I’m going to sleep for a while, feel free to make yourself at home,” Fei Yu said, still maintaining her gorgeous smile, pausing for a moment before adding, “Right, I told Cang Yan and those two that you’ll be living here on Serene Resplendent Peak. Later, they’ll send you some spirit herbs for you to practice Alchemy.”
“Got it,” Yang Kai responded lightly.
The next moment, Fei Yu closed her beautiful eyes and her breathing became slow and even. Apparently she had spent quite a bit of energy guarding Yang Kai while he was passed out.
After meditating for a while to completely absorb the residual medicinal efficacies left in his body, Yang Kai got up and began cleaning up the surrounding mess.
Two hours later, Fei Yu gradually woke up and without caring about her image, bent and stretched herself freely in front of Yang Kai, yawning as she inadvertently showed off her lithe body and exquisite curves.
“Follow me, I’ll take you to a place you can cultivate,” Fei Yu beckoned to Yang Kai before turning around and walking off.
The deeper the two proceeded into the mountain, the denser Yang Kai felt the World Energy became.
Not long after, a stone chamber illuminated by brilliant light crystals appeared in front of Yang Kai.
This stone room’s walls, floor, and even ceiling were completely inlaid with Crystal Stones. These Crystal Stones seemed to be arranged in the form of some kind of Spirit Array which caused the surrounding World Energy to continuously gather towards the stone room. Yang Kai felt particularly comfortable in this environment and even without consciously circulating his Secret Art, he could feel World Energy pouring into his body through his pores.
This was, quite simply, a cultivation Holy Land.
Yang Kai released his Divine Sense and soon found that this stone room did not just have a single layer of Crystal Stones, but at least a dozen or so, making each node of this Spirit Array at least half a meter thick.
Using so many Crystal Stones to create such a stone room, this expenditure was nothing less than astonishing.
Looking around the stone room in front of him, Yang Kai was thoroughly shocked.
“What do you think?” Fei Yu asked.
“Is this the place where you usually cultivate?” Yang Kai noticed some certain traces throughout the stone room. These traces were naturally left behind by someone who regularly sat here in meditation year after year. “If I use this place, what about you?”
“I have no use for this place temporarily,” Fei Yu smiled and said, “Perhaps when I can realize the mysteries of the Saint Realm I’ll have need of it again.”
Fei Yu and the other three Protectors had all reached the peak of the Third Order Transcendent Realm but were stuck comprehending the mysteries of the Saint Realm. Before they reached a high enough level of understanding and overcame this mental barrier, they would be unable to break through to the Saint Realm.
If all four of the Protectors could break through to the Saint Realm, the strength of Soaring Heaven Sect would increase dramatically!
“You don’t need to have any psychological burden, this stone room is idle in any case,” Fei Yu smiled and said.
Yang Kai nodded, “Then I won’t polite.”
“Here, you don’t have to worry about anything, just cultivate in peace. If you feel bored, you can come out and look for me, I’m usually around Serene Resplendent Peak. If you can’t find me, you can go seek out one of those three, they should be able to teach you many things,” Fei Yu urged him gently before quickly disappearing.
Cang Yan sent a large number of herbs to Yang Kai the following day and the latter immediately began diligently performing Alchemy.
When he grew tired from Alchemy, Yang Kai would meditate and rest for a while, restoring his spirit before once again continuing to refine pills.
Serene Resplendent Peak was truly a quiet place. There was only Yang Kai and Fei Yu on this entire mountain, and while Yang Kai was performing Alchemy or cultivating, Fei Yu would never bother him, allowing him to completely relax and immerse himself in his efforts.
All three meals Yang Kai ate each day were prepared from rare Monster Beast meat and medicinal herbs, providing him with massive nutritional supplements, although with Yang Kai’s current cultivation, he could go months or even a year without eating anything, Fei Yu still insisted on sending him this food every day.
These meals would be placed in front of his door every day and if Yang Kai needed it, all he had to do was take it.
Occasionally, when Yang Kai left the stone chamber, the four Protectors would get together and share with him their own insights and understanding of the Heavenly Way and Martial Dao.
Here, Yang Kai felt a deep and meticulous care he had not previously experienced.
Soaring Heaven Sect provided him with the best possible environment for both cultivation and Alchemy.
For all of this, Yang Kai was incredibly grateful; although he knew that part of this was due to his own aptitude and his identity as an Alchemist, it was still the truth that his four Martial Seniors really were good to him.
Several months later, Yang Kai’s Alchemy skill had once again improved and he had even successfully refined a Saint Grade Low-Rank pill without the help of a supplementary Spirit Array!
This brought him one step closer to his goal.
During these past few months, Yang Kai had spared no effort to refine a large number of pills for Soaring Heaven Sect. The sheer number, quality, and grade of these pills shocked his four Martial Seniors greatly.
Originally, they had only know Yang Kai was certified as a Spirit Grade Low-Rank Alchemist by the Alchemist Guild and hadn’t thought much about it, so one could imagine their surprise when he continuously refined Spirit Grade Mid-Rank and Spirit Grade Top-Rank pills.
On top of that, many of the pills Yang Kai refined even had Pill Veins!
The four Protectors quickly realized the seriousness of this situation and after some simple deliberations, Yang Kai’s existence and abilities were quickly listed as one of Soaring Heaven Sect’s highest level secrets. Soon after, Fei Yu almost became Yang Kai’s exclusive bodyguard and atop Serene Resplendent Peak, she was never far from his side.
Yang Kai only met with Fei Yu several times over this period, but every time he did, this beautiful woman would inevitably be drunk, as if her greatest love in life was drinking. Every time she drank, she would display none of the style a Martial Aunt should have and would often entangle Yang Kai in her revelries, making the latter not know whether to laugh or cry.
Afterwards, when Fei Yu woke up from her drunk stupor, she wouldn’t remember a thing about her embarrassing performance, so Yang Kai was helpless to stop the cycle from repeating itself.
Occasionally, when he went out to relax, Yang Kai would visit Chu Ling Xiao and listen to his teachings.
Since he began cultivating, Yang Kai had always been forging his own path and never received formal instruction from anyone. There was a great difference between having someone enlighten him about the Martial Dao and groping around on his own was.
Fortunately, Yang Kai had acquired the Demon Eye of Annihilation which allowed him to absorb the insights and comprehensions of the Martial Dao and Heavenly Way of the masters he killed, benefiting his understanding greatly.
The only thing that made Yang Kai feel somewhat depressed about was that although Chu Ling Xiao had asked people to inquire about Su Yan and Xia Ning Chang, there had thus far been no news about them.
Tong Xuan Realm was incredibly vast; searching for two people amongst this sea of people was undoubtedly more difficult than looking for a needle in a haystack.
One day a few months after his arrival, while Yang Kai was practicing his Alchemy, he suddenly heard a set of soft footstep outside his door.
Naturally it was Fei Yu.
She had never bothered Yang Kai while he was performing Alchemy but now she had deliberately made some noise to alert him to her presence so it was obvious she had something important to discuss with him.
Yang Kai did not pause the movements of his hands, focusing on the task he was performing, and an incense worth of time later, he took a Spirit Grade Top-Rank pill out of his furnace.
Storing the pill into a jade bottle, Yang Kai stood up and opened the door to the stone room; looking at Fei Yu who was waiting out, he quickly asked, “Does Martial Aunt have a matter to discuss with me?”
“Did I disturb you?”
Yang Kai shook his head.
“That’s good,” Fei Yu let out a light sigh of relief before continuing, “Cang Yan is looking for you, he’s outside.”
“I’ll go greet him then,” Yang Kai said and hastily walked out.
A moment later, Yang Kai saw his Martial Uncle. This time though, not only was Cang Yan present, but so too were Li Wan and Fei Jian, the expressions on each of their faces somewhat dignified.
Yang Kai glanced around at them curiously, wondering what had happened to cause these three to suddenly seek him out with such stern faces.
“Martial Nephew.” Seeing Yang Kai appear, Cang Yan greeted him.
“I heard that Martial Uncles were looking for me?”
“Have a seat first,” Cang Yan waved.
Once everyone took a seat, Yang Kai waited quietly for his Seniors to speak.
After a brief silence, Cang Yan asked, “Martial Nephew, not that your Martial Uncle is suspicious of you, but I must ask you to confirm, what grade of Alchemist are you now?”
From Old Man Du, Cang Yan knew that Yang Kai was a Spirit Grade Low-Rank Alchemist.
However, his performance during his brief stay in Soaring Heaven Sect far exceeded that of a mere Spirit Grade Low-Rank Alchemist. Refining Spirit Grade Mid-Rank and Top-Rank pills constantly indicated that Yang Kai’s true ability was far greater than Spirit Grade Low-Rank.
Old Man Du would not lie to Cang Yan, so the only possibility the latter could think of was that Yang Kai had hidden his true abilities when he took the Alchemist Guild’s test.
Fei Yu’s beautiful eyes flashed suddenly as she stared towards Yang Kai and let slip, “A few days ago, I remember you even successfully refined a Saint Pill!”
Hearing this, Cang Yan’s complexion changed greatly as he unconsciously asked, “Is that true?”
“En,” Yang Kai took that Saint Grade pill out and replied, “My luck was good; the pill was refined successfully.”
Cang Yan took it quickly and examined it carefully, unable to help himself from feeling somewhat excited, “Can you even refine Saint Grade pills now?”
“I should be able to,” Yang Kai nodded. When he refined that Saint Pill he did not use a supplementary Spirit Array or the Myriad Drug Milk and only relied on his own skill.
Spirit Arrays could increase the success rate of Alchemy and the Myriad Drug Milk could improve the quality of a pill.
If both of these boosts were also counted, Yang Kai could easily refine Saint Grade Low-Rank pills.
“Doesn’t that mean you’re a Saint Grade Alchemist now?” Li Wan exclaimed.
Everyone else also wore astonished expressions.
“Reluctantly so. But I still mostly consider myself to still be a High-Rank Spirit Grade Alchemist,” Yang Kai replied modestly.
The four Protectors all sucked in a deep breath as the glanced around at each other, Fei Jian flashing his crooked teeth in a grim smile as she shouted, “We may have hope yet!”
“Indeed!” Cang Yan also nodded repeatedly.
“Do Martial Uncles and Martial aunt want me to help you refine a pill?” Yang Kai asked.
“In a manner of speaking,” Cang Yan replied, “First of all, Martial Nephew, have you heard of the Thousand Year Demon Flower?”
Yang Kai shook his head.
Wrinkling his brow for a moment, Cang Yan suddenly smiled awkwardly, “Right, I forgot that you came from that world so you not having heard of it is completely normal. Regarding Tong Xuan Realm’s current situation, you should know that the Human, Demon, and Monster races form a delicate three-way balance, yes?”
“En, I know at least that much,” Yang Kai nodded lightly.
“Human Territory, Demon Land, and Monster Domain, these are the names given to each of the regions occupied by the three races, with the Human Territory being the largest and most widely occupied, followed by the Demon Land, and then the Monster Domain. There is also a neutral zone which stands in the middle of all three of these territories.”
Yang Kai had heard about this from Shui Ling when he first arrived on Tong Xuan Realm.
“In the neutral zone, there is a place called Ascending Heaven Cliff! It is an incredibly tall mountain atop which the only Thousand Year Demon Flower resides. This special flower only blooms once every thousand years, and even then only for two hours of time before it begins to wither.”
“What profound use does the Thousand Year Demon Flower possess?” Yang Kai keenly grasped the key to the problem and asked.
“For you, nothing. In fact, for most people in this world, it has no use at all, but for the four of us, it is incredibly precious.”
“It can help us understand the mysteries of the Saint Realm. With the assistance of the Thousand Year Demon Flower, we will have a good chance of breaking through our current bottleneck and ascending to the Saint Realm,” Fei Yu said with some excitement.
Yang Kai couldn’t help showing a shocked expression.
“However, because of the special nature of the Thousand Year Demon Flower, a skilled Alchemist is required to condense its medicinal liquid when it blooms. The minimum grade of Alchemist required is Spirit Grade Top-Rank.”
“So you need my help for this?”
“Exactly!”
“The Sect should have Alchemist more skilled than me thought, right?” Yang Kai asked, slightly confused.
Soaring Heaven Sect was an incredibly powerful Sect and possibly had a true Saint Grade Alchemist in its employ. But even if the Sect did not have a dedicated Saint Grade Alchemist, there would definitely be a few Spirit Grade Top-Rank Alchemists. These Alchemists were no doubt much more experienced than Yang Kai.
“That might be the case, but those people are all Honoured Guests of the Sect and this trip will be very dangerous, so they won’t necessarily agree to accompany us. On top of that, even if their Alchemy techniques are superior to yours, their combat prowess is definitely worse.”
“I understand,” Yang Kai nodded, “What Martial Uncle means to say is that there will be many people after the Thousand Year Demon Flower, right?”
“More than you can imagine!” Cang Yan’s expression became solemn as he sighed slightly, “As this opportunity only comes about every thousand years, people will naturally be paying attention to the Thousand Year Demon Flower’s situations. Since we can receive news that it is about to bloom, others naturally can as well. As long as one hopes to break through to the Saint Realm, they will definitely fight for this chance.”
“Martial Nephew, this time will really be quite dangerous, if you don’t want to go, we won’t force you,” Fei Yu looked towards Yang Kai and said sincerely.
“I’ll go!” Yang Kai smiled and replied immediately, “If it can help Martial Uncles and Martial Aunt break through to the Saint Realm, no matter what kind of dragon’s den or tiger’s cave it is, I definitely have to go!”
Fei Yu’s beautiful eyes shimmered as she smiled towards him gratefully.
Cang Yan and the others were also moved.
“Good kid, Martial Uncle has not cared for you in vain!” Li Wan laughed.
“Then you prepare yourself, we’ll leave five days from now, we still have plenty of time so there’s no need to feel rushed,” Cang Yan declared.
Yang Kai quickly nodded.
The three men quickly left. In order to cope with the upcoming journey, they had their own preparations to make.
“This time, whether or not we succeed, I must thank you,” Fei Yu said softly.
“Martial Uncles and Martial Aunt have looked after me a lot, this is something I should naturally do,” Yang Kai shook his head.
Fei Yu stared at him calmly, seemingly wanting to see thought his true intentions, smiling brightly after a long silence, “I’m going to take a bath, do you want to join me?”
Yang Kai’s face immediately became black, “Have you been drinking again?”
“Hmph, no fun at all!” Fei Yu curled her lips mischievously, her tender body flickering before she quickly disappeared.
Yang Kai could only shake his head. His Marital Aunt’s unrestrained behaviour was very difficult to deal with, and she would often say some astonishing things that would leave him at a loss for words.
Over the next five days, Yang Kai didn’t make any special preparations and was instead continuing his usual routine of pill refining as always.
Five days later, after putting everything in order, Yang Kai walked out of the stone room and met Fei Yu who was waiting outside. Seeing him appear, she smiled warmly and gently beckoned to him.
“What about Cang Yan Martial Uncle and the others?” Yang Kai asked.
“They’re all waiting outside.”
Leaving the cave, Yang Kai saw Cang Yan, Li Wan, and Fei Jian standing under the waterfall, staring up at it somewhat excitedly.
Seeing Yang Kai appear, Cang Yan and the others didn’t waste any time, nodding briefly before immediately setting off.
The four Transcendents all soared up into the sky, flying ahead at a relaxed pace with Yang Kai quickly following behind them.
Sweeping Yang Kai with their Divine Senses, Soaring Heaven Sect’s four Protectors all couldn’t help feeling a bit surprised.
This was because they found that Yang Kai had still not taken off the Primordial Shackles Fei Yu had given to him a few months ago; even at this moment he was still wearing them while burdening himself with several thousand extra kilograms of weight
On top of that, he even seemed to have completely adapted to this situation and showed not the slightest bit of disturbance on his face, as if he was in his natural state.
[This kid’s physical body is really more akin to a monster. He is likely to be even stronger than those of the Demon Race!] All four of them involuntarily thought.
Not long after their departure, Cang Yan suddenly came to a halt and turned his eyes towards a certain spot down below. At the same time, Yang Kai also heard a pair of voices calling out to them from the ground. Looking down, there was a white-haired old man stroking his beard while staring up at them while next to him was a young woman who was waving her arms towards them.
“It’s Old Man Du!” Cang Yan looked surprised and waved, “Let’s go down.”
As he landed on the ground, Yang Kai once again saw the Alchemist Guild’s Old Man Du and Mi Na. After seeing Yang Kai, Mi Na immediately rushed up and started complaining, “You bastard, didn’t you say when you had free time you’d come to Grand Boulder City to see me? Why have I not seen you for so many months now then?”
“Ah… Er, I was a little busy and forgot,” Yang Kai replied awkwardly.
“Really? Or did you perhaps think my Alchemy skills weren’t as good as yours and so you disdained to meet with me?” Mi Na narrowed her eyes, crossed her arms, and asked in an accusatory tone.
“Nothing of the sort!” Yang Kai quickly waved his hand, “I really was just busy with things.”
“You better be telling me the truth. If I find out you’re later that your lying to me, I’ll teach you a lesson you’ll never forget!” Mi Na snorted before saying proudly, “I’ll have you know I’m also a Spirit Grade Low-Rank Alchemist now just like you! So don’t be too proud, if you’re not careful I’ll overtake you before you know it.”
Old Man Du smiled as he watched this scene play out, his eyes flashing suddenly as he gently said, “Mi Na, Little Friend Yang is different from you.”
“What? Different how?” Mi Na asked, somewhat puzzled.
“Little friend Yang must be at least a Spirit Grade Top-Rank Alchemist now, right?” Old Man Du stared at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai scratched his head awkwardly before cupping his fists and replying, “Sorry Old Man Du, I wasn’t completely honest with you back at the Alchemist Guild. Actually, I was a Spirit Grade Top-Rank Alchemist a few months ago.”
The look on Old Man Du’s face changed slightly as he looked at Yang Kai with a bit of shock. Mi Na on the other hand couldn’t help covering her mouth in surprise, an absent minded look appearing on her face as if she had become somewhat dazed.
“So it’s like that,” Old Man Du chuckled and nodded, “It seems this old master underestimated you. Little friend Yang does not need to pay it any mind, you being able to honestly tell this old master now makes me very pleased.”
“How did Old Man Du know that I am now a Spirit Grade Top-Rank Alchemist?” Yang Kai asked.
“Cang Yan and them are traveling with you to Floating Clouds City, yes? Alchemist traveling there now must at least be Spirit Grade Top-Rank,” Old Man Du smiled.
Cang Yan expression changed hearing this, “Is Old Man Du also headed there?”
“Indeed, this old master was actually waiting for you here. The road is long so this old master wanted to find a few bodyguards to accompany him,” Old Man Du said half-jokingly half seriously, “But you can rest assured, this old master going there is not for the upcoming blossoming of the Thousand Year Demon Flower, I just want to take Mi Na out for some life experience to broaden her horizons. This little girl doesn’t know the immensity of Heaven and Earth and thinks her aptitude in Alchemy is first under the sun, I believe this trip outside will benefit her greatly.”
“Old Man Du, I don’t think like that at all,” Mi Na objected in a somewhat wronged tone.
Before she met Yang Kai, Mi Na really did have eyes atop her head. She was quite young but still qualified as a Mysterious Grade Top-Rank Alchemist a few months ago, and Old Man Du and her master Ye Xiong had great expectations for her, cultivating her as the heir to the Grand Boulder City’s Alchemist Guild branch.
However, when she met Yang Kai, Mi Na suffered a hard blow and redoubled her efforts, but now, a few months later, Yang Kai had already become a Spirit Grade Top-Rank Alchemist, yet she had actually dared to brag to him about her small breakthrough.
Thinking about all of this, Mi Na’s pretty face blushed bright red and she couldn’t wait to find a hole to crawl into to avoid the eyes of these people she had just embarrassed herself in front of.
Old Man Du just laughed though, “The Thousand Year Demon Flower is about to bloom, so I believe there will be a lot of powerful Alchemists traveling to Floating Clouds City. This is a rare, once in a millennium event, this old master doesn’t want to miss it. If you don’t mind, how about we travel together?”
“Old Man Du is too polite,” Cang Yan waved his hand, “Since we are all going to Floating Clouds City, we may as well all go together, that way each of us can take care of the others.”
Old Man Du smiled and nodded gently.
After some quick discussions, the four Soaring Heaven Sect Protectors pushed their True Qi, wrapped up Old Man Du and Mi Na, and flew off together with them.
Seeing Mi Na’s somewhat listless appearance, Yang Kai also felt a bit guilty, quickly calling out to her, “Are you alright?”
“No! You’re too much!” Mi Na pursed her lips and shot him a glare.
“I’m too much?” Yang Kai was taken aback by her sharp response.
Mi Na nodded repeatedly before suddenly wearing a stern look and declaring, “But don’t get too full of yourself. As Old Man Du said, as long as I can keep working hard, I’ll catch up to and surpass you one day.”
“Do I look full of myself?” Yang Kai asked helplessly.
“Although you don’t show it on your face, you’re actually quite proud of yourself in your heart.”
Yang Kai stared at her blankly for a moment before shaking his head and sighing, “Your thoughts are quite dark.”
The others in their group of people saw these two juniors noisily arguing with each other and couldn’t help smiling; it seems this long journey wouldn’t be so dull after all.
Soaring Heaven Sect was quite far from their destination, Floating Clouds City; even with Cang Yan and the other’s great strength, they would have to spend at least a month on the road.
And that was only the case if they travelled at full speed.
Fortunately, there was still a lot of time before the Thousand Year Demon Flower was expected to bloom, so Cang Yan and others weren’t flustered.
Alternating flying and resting, Yang Kai finally had an opportunity to experience just how vast and prosperous Tong Xuan Realm was. On this continent, there were countless large and small forces, and every day, many of these forces were destroyed, yet like spring bamboo shoots after the rain, no matter how many were cut down, new ones would spring up to take their place.
Moreover, as they hurried along, their group encountered several other batches of Transcendent Realm masters heading towards Floating Clouds City. These teams of Transcendent Realm masters, without exception, would have an Alchemist amongst them.
Originally, when they met such a group, everyone would become vigilant and hastily avoid one another.
As time passed, and they got closer and closer to Floating Clouds City, the smell of danger in the air grew stronger. Cang Yan, Fei Yu, Li Wan, and Fei Jian were now constantly on alert, always paying attention to the safety of Yang Kai, Old Man Du, and Mi Na.
Twenty days after they set out, Yang Kai’s group witnessed a battle between Transcendent Realm masters.
The two parties were almost equal in terms of number and strength, so the battle was quite intense with dazzling Martial Skills and artifact attacks streaking across the sky.
The result of this battle was not witnessed by Cang Yan and the other as they didn’t have so much free time to intervene in other people’s disputes. The four Protectors simply took Yang Kai, Old Man Du, and Mi Na around the battlefield and avoided getting involved.
After this first battle, Yang Kai and his group witnessed an increasingly frequent number of fights between Transcendent Realm masters until almost every day they would see traces left behind of great battles that had been fought.
According to Cang Yan, these masters who were rushing to Floating Clouds City were already fighting like this to eliminate potential opponents.
Yang Kai’s blood ran cold as he gradually understood just how great the temptation of the Thousand Year Demon Flower was to these Second and Third Order Transcendents.
However, what puzzled Yang Kai was that even though this was a grand event that attracted the attention of Human, Demon, and Monster race powerhouses alike, he had yet to see a single Saint Realm master.
When he asked Cang Yan about this, the latter smiled and said, “Saint Realm masters won’t be interfering in this matter. It is an unwritten rule. The Thousand Year Demon Flower is only useful to Transcendents who are trying to break through to the Saint Realm. Whether they are Human, Demon, or Monster, if one wants the Thousand Year Demon Flower, they can only fight for it with their own ability.”
“That’s only one of the reasons,” Old Man Du suddenly interrupted, “There’s another, more important one.”
“Oh? Please enlighten us,” Cang Yan seemed surprised, obviously he wasn’t aware that there was a deeper reason behind this unwritten rule.
Yang Kai and Mi Na were also eager to hear about this and listened attentively. Such secrets were always very attractive to young people.
“The Thousand Year Demon Flower apparently isn’t native to Tong Xuan Realm,” Old Man Du quickly said.
Fei Yu’s thoughts revolved quick as she called out in amazement, “Is it from the Starry Sky?”
“Good, it is said to be so,” Du Wan nodded lightly, “It is said that a great many years ago, a seed fell from the Starry Sky onto Ascending Heaven Cliff. Afterwards, a plant that no one had ever seen before slowly grew there and after an entire millennium, it blossomed and was inadvertently obtained by a common man, after which the entire world came to know of its magical effect. Once the news spread, it set of a great stir among all three great clans. Saint Realm masters who were rarely seen all travelled to the Thousand Year Demon Flower to help their Third Order Transcendent juniors break through to the Saint Realm. After the second millennium, many Saint Realm masters participated in the contest for the Thousand Year Demon Flower and ultimately a Human Race master emerged victorious and boarded the Ascending Heaven Cliff, but surprisingly, when that master reached the summit, the Thousand Year Demon Flower withered the instant after it blossomed.”
“Why is that?” Everyone in the crowd couldn’t help revealing a puzzled expression.
“Nobody knows why exactly, but since then, there have never been any Saint Realm masters intervening in the battle for the Thousand Year Demon Flower. Once the aura of a Saint appeared, the Thousand Year Demon Flower will not bloom, so those who go to Ascending Heaven Cliff now are basically all Transcendents.”
“Is something so strange really true?” Li Wan muttered.
“The products of the Starry Sky cannot be explained by common sense,” Old Man Du slowly shook his head.
“Old Man Du, has anyone really travelled the Starry Sky?” Cang Yan knit his brow and asked, “Although I’ve heard many stories about the Starry Sky, it’s as if no one can actually confirm what kind of place the Starry Sky really is.”
“This old master isn’t clear either,” Old Man Du smiled faintly, “According to the Demon Race, the Great Demon God, their greatest ancient master, successfully entered the Starry Sky. Even among the Human Race and Monster Race such rumours exist, but whether or not it’s true, no one knows.”
Yang Kai’s eyes flashed but he did not interject.
Although he knew that Great Demon God had not broken through the Starry Sky and was already dead, he knew such things shouldn’t be discussed easily. Between the Human, Demon, and Monster Races there seemed to be a completely irreconcilable hatred where each of them couldn’t wait to exterminate the other two, so obviously no one was willing to admit someone from a different race had succeeded where theirs had not.
Soaring Heaven Sect and Old Man Du were both quite good to Yang Kai, but if they knew he had a relationship with the Ancient Demon Clan, they would most likely try to convince him to betray if not exterminate them!
Yang Kai didn’t wish to see such a scene.
During his stay in Demon God Citadel, Yang Kai had received much care from Li Rong and Han Fei and he felt that the Ancient Demon Clan was worth his trust and respect.
After their chat, everyone rested.
Late that night, as their dying campfire was providing only some scattered light in the wilderness.
Mi Na snuck over to Yang Kai’s tent and woke him from his meditation. Yang Kai slowly opened his eyes and looked at her suspiciously.
“Follow me,” Mi Na whispered before walking off towards the dark forest nearby.
Yang Kai got up and followed her.
A thousand meters or so out, beneath a big tree, Mi Na sat down, her back to the trunk, patting the spot next to her, signaling Yang Kai to also sit down.
“What’s the matter?” Yang Kai asked curiously.
“Nothing much, I just wanted to chat with you. If we talk over there we’ll disturb them,” Mi Na smiled and said.
“What do you want to talk about?” Yang Kai plucked up a long stalk of grass and rolled it about his fingertips casually.
“Nothing in particular,” Mi Na stretched out her arms and legs, assuming a relaxed posture before she turned and asked, “Who did you learn Alchemy from? Why is it that you’re even younger than me yet already a Spirit Grade Top-Rank Alchemist?”
“If I told you that I learned everything through self-study, would you believe me?” Yang Kai smiled faintly.
Mi Na snickered lightly, apparently not believing his explanation.
“Then I can’t help you,” Yang Kai shrugged his shoulders.
“Old Man Du said that the master who taught you must be a top-level Alchemist, one much more skilled than even he is.”
“Fair enough.” Yang Kai nodded lightly.
Yang Kai’s True Alchemic Way was something left behind by the Great Demon God. It could be said that Alchemy really was something he had learned through self-study, but it was also fair to say he had inherited his knowledge from the Great Demon God.
“Regarding that person, Old Man Du very much wants to meet him,” Mi Na said hurriedly after hearing Yang Kai’s words, “But Old Man Du also understands that such masters don’t show themselves easily, much less provide guidance to outsiders.”
“Heh heh…” Yang Kai chuckled. Old Man Du wanting to see this imagined masters of his was understandable to Yang Kai, most likely the former’s Alchemy skills had reached a bottleneck. As such, he wanted to receive some pointers from a higher ranked master in hopes that it would spark some kind of epiphany which would allow him to break through his current bottleneck.
Old Man Du’s trip to Floating Clouds City this time probably also had such a purpose; after all, there would be a great many powerful Alchemists gathered there.
“If there is an opportunity, can you introduce Old Man Du to your master?” Mi Na turned towards Yang Kai and asked sincerely.
Yang Kai fell silent and did not speak for quite some time.
This request, he really had no way to fulfill it.
“Is it not possible?” Mi Na saw him fall silent and subconsciously thought her request was a bit too excessive, becoming confused as to what to do now.
“En, the person who taught me Alchemy, is already dead.”
“Ah…” Mi Na covered her small mouth and quickly apologized, “I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”
“It’s alright…” Yang Kai shook his head.
At that moment, the pair’s faces both changed dramatically as they focused their attention on a spot in the night sky. A mass of Spiritual Energy that radiated a thick malicious intent was rapidly approaching them and in the blink of an eye arrived in front of Yang Kai and Mi Na.
Facing this critical situation, Mi Na hurriedly summoned a number of artifacts to protect herself.
Her combat experience was incredibly thin, but her response was still quite fast. Although she was in something of a panic, she still managed to fully protect herself in an instant.
Yang Kai glanced over at her frantic behaviour strangely before turning his gaze back towards the void, his eyes gradually becoming cold.
He felt that this mass of Spiritual Energy was a bit strange and seemed to be different from a Divine Sense attack one would normally release.
As he thought about it though, this mass of Spiritual Energy actually swept past Yang Kai and Mi Na and in the next moment rushed into Yang Kai’s Knowledge Sea and disappeared.
”Yang Kai!” Mi Na’s beautiful face paled as she called out in shock.
Yang Kai’s pupils became blurry as he sat in place, not moving.
*Shua Shua Shua…*
Attracted by the burst of noise, Cang Yan quickly rushed over and asked worriedly, “What happened?”
Just a moment ago, he also felt a burst of Spiritual Energy an immediately rushed over after hearing Mi Na’s cry, but upon arriving he found nothing.
Mi Na was badly frightened and quickly said what had happened.
“Seizing a body?” Li Wan’s face changed, suddenly becoming aware of the truth of the matter.
Obviously a master had suffered a mortal wound somewhere nearby and then abandoned his body. That master’s unbound Soul must have coincidentally come across Yang Kai and was now attempting to take over the latter’s body for his own use.
“Seizing one’s body, is it…” Fei Yu pursed her lips and giggled, “In that case there’s nothing to worry about.”
Cang Yan also relaxed and nodded lightly.
Li Wan and Fei Jian both just snickered.
“You… how come none of you seem worried at all?” Mi Na was so anxious she could barely keep herself from crying; she too understood this was a case of body seizing and what the consequences of this could be. If things went poorly, Yang Kai’s very Soul may be destroyed.
However, the four masters from Soaring Heaven Sect not only didn’t seem worried, they were even grinning mockingly, like they were taking pleasure in someone else’s misfortune, which greatly confused Mi Na.
Old Man Du smiled faintly and comforted, “Mi Na! Just be patient.”
“But Old Man Du, they…” Mi Na stamped her foot angrily.
“Little friend Yang’s body won’t be seized, did you forget about his special trait?” Old Man Du said meaningfully as he lightly tapped his head.
Mi Na thought about it for a moment before suddenly understanding, “That’s right, this bastard’s Knowledge Sea is…”
Old Man Du nodded slightly, “As long as it wasn’t a Saint Realm master’s Soul, little friend Yang will be able to easily handle it, all we have to do is wait.”
“This poor guy really has bad luck, of all the people he could choose, he just had to pick little Martial Nephew. If it was me, I would have chosen this tender, soft skinned little girl instead,” Li Wan smiled dreadfully.
Mi Na glanced at him and snorted angrily, “So old yet so rude!”
“Hey, I’m still very young!” Li Wan immediately became disgruntled.
Inside his Knowledge Sea, Yang Kai’s Soul avatar’s mouth curled into a thin smile as he stared at the Soul that had become trapped and helpless the moment it invaded.
This guy had wanted to devour Yang Kai’s Soul and seize his body, but the instant he broke into this scalding how Knowledge Sea, he realized something was wrong.
It was as if he just stepped out of purgatory straight into the depths of hell!
All around him was a burning sea of fire. The scorching aura made him scream out in pain as his Soul was slowly roasted, it was a type of suffering he had never even dreamed possible before now.
“If you don’t want to die, show yourself right now,” Yang Kai said indifferently.
The mass of Spiritual Energy shook slightly and soon a clear Soul avatar appeared in front of Yang Kai, it’s face twisted in agony as it grit its teeth and stared at Yang Kai in fear and terror.
This person seemed to be fifty or sixty years old, but his Soul strength was only at the level of a Second Order Transcendent. In other words, when he was alive, he should have been quite a powerful master.
“You have really bad luck,” Yang Kai shook his head and snickered sarcastically.
Perceiving Yang Kai’s hostility, the man endured his pain and let out an awkward laugh, “Little brother, this is all a misunderstanding; it’s not at all what you think.”
“Oh really?” Yang Kai grinned, his Knowledge Sea becoming more turbulent as the intensity of the flames increased.
“Please allow me to explain,” The man screamed.
Yang Kai turned a deaf ear to his pleas though, since this person wanted to seize his body, naturally Yang Kai had no reason to be polite.
Inside his Knowledge Sea, Yang Kai’s Conflagrated Knowledge Sea rushed towards the invader’s Soul, wanting to incinerate it in one fell swoop.
“Wait, wait, if you let me live, I can tell you a secret.”
“Not interested,” Yang Kai shook his head, his expression as cold and ruthless as ever.
“It’s related to your safety!” The man shouted desperately.
Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed slightly, calming his turbulent Knowledge Sea somewhat as he stared at this person’s Soul avatar deeply, a moment later saying, “If you’re just stalling for time, or if you lying to me, I won’t just kill you, I’ll let you suffer a fate worse than death.”
“I wouldn’t dare!” Seeing that Yang Kai did not immediately try to kill him, the man couldn’t help calming down slightly, quickly continuing, “Are you also going to Floating Clouds City?”
“What of it?”
“If so, you’d better go turn around right now, there’s a large group of masters up ahead who are hunting those traveling to Floating Clouds City. Several groups have already been wiped out by them, including my own. We were all on our way to Floating Clouds City, but now all of us dead, only my Soul managed to escape…”
“How many people do they have?”
“A dozen or so, and a number of them are Third Order Transcendents, moreover each one of them is extremely brutal and vicious.”
“Not a small number,” Yang Kai muttered to himself.
“It’s like that, so… little brother, you see… I told you the truth, can you…” The man pleaded miserably but in the depths of his eyes there was still a smoldering vigilance; if Yang Kai still decided to attack him, he would immediately go all out and try to drag him down with him.
This kind of threatening gaze was normally enough to scare most people off, and he believed that Yang Kai, whose realm was much lower than his own, would certainly not make things difficult for him.
Yang Kai however just showed a faint smile and stared at him.
The man’s heart suddenly jumped and he was about to launch a last desperate struggle when suddenly, a burst of golden light struck him.
In an instant, this person’s Soul was completely purified.
After absorbing the energy from this Soul remnant, Yang Kai slowly opened his eyes.
Glancing around, Yang Kai noticed that everyone in his group was currently staring at him curiously.
“It’s him alright,” Li Wan slapped his thigh and laughed, “That guy really has bad luck.”
“Are you alright?” Fei Yu asked kindly.
“I’m fine, but it seems we have a small problem,” Yang Kai shook his head and told them about the information he had just acquired.
“A dozen?” Cang Yan raised his brow, “There certainly are a lot of them.”
“En, if you didn’t accidentally obtain this information, we would have walked right into their trap. That might have been a little troublesome,” Fei Yu nodded lightly.
“So, do we take a detour?” Mi Na asked faintly.
“Why should we make a detour?” Li Wan grinned menacingly.
“Ah… Then how are we supposed to get passed them?”
“Let’s rest up first and then continue on our way. If they don’t come to provoke us, we won’t bother with them, but if they dare attack…” Cang Yan’s aura suddenly changed, his eyes becoming sharp like a sword, his whole body radiating an ice cold killing intent.
He knew no fear!
He was even quite looking forward to it!
Li Wan and Fei Jian were the same, and even Fei Yu, who was a woman, was no exception.
Yang Kai’s eyes flashed as he secretly thought that his four Marital Seniors from Soaring Heaven Sect were really a group of fighting madmen.
NinjaScans is trying to resume posting the manga one chapter per day. For those who are concern about the release rate.
In the quiet wilderness, a small group walked forward silently.
Cang Yan led the way, Li Wan and Fei Yu brought up the rear, and Yang Kai, Mi Na, and Old Man Du were sandwiched in the middle.
With the exception of Mi Na, everyone else looked calm and indifferent, as if they were oblivious to the danger they were approaching.
As they continued walking, Yang Kai’s eyes suddenly flashed.
He was surprised to discover that Fei Jian had disappeared without a trace. This Third Order Transcendent master had managed to vanish without Yang Kai even noticing despite being only a few steps apart.
The night wind blew, the towering trees swayed back and forth, and the leaves rustled eerily, as if there were ghost and demons brushing past them in the darkness.
Mi Na was so scared her pretty face had completely paled and she unconsciously moved towards Yang Kai and leaned against him, looking for a sense of security, her pair of beautiful eyes darting back and forth nervously.
Sensing her uneasiness, Yang Kai firmly grasped her hand, allowing Mi Na to relax a lot; however, she made no attempt to distance herself from him either.
Cang Yan’s mouth slowly curled into a subtle grin, seemingly enjoying this thrilling situation. Li Wan and Fei Yu, who were at the back of the team, also wore aggressive expressions as they scanned the area, as if they couldn’t wait to start something.
Old Man Du, as an experienced Alchemist, maintained his usual calm, unflustered appearance.
Obviously he had great faith in the strength of the four masters from Soaring Heaven Sect.
Suddenly, a burst of strange laughter came from all around, like the howling of a ghost, gloomy and dreadful. At that moment, the night wind seemed to become stronger and colder.
Soon, several more laughing voices began ringing in their ears, trying to disrupt their hearts and weaken their concentration.
However, the three masters from Soaring Heaven Sect were completely unperturbed and continued walking forward without any pause.
Half an hour later, the wicked laughter gradually faded. The other party seemed to have noticed that this little trick wasn’t enough to cause Cang Yan and the others to panic, so they had stopped wasting their time.
“Not even daring to show your faces, just a bunch of cowards,” Cang Yan muttered discontentedly, he thought there would be a big battle when he first entered this region and his blood was boiling in anticipation, but the opposite party didn’t seem to have any intention of immediately attacking and were instead playing tricks on them and probing their reactions.
This made him quite disgruntled.
“Li Wan, go take a look,” Cang Yan said.
Li Wan grinned fiendishly and his small body suddenly disappeared into the darkness.
A short while later, a sad and shrill scream rang out from the forest, giving people a creepy feeling.
These screams didn’t last long, obviously this poor soul had been killed before he had time to react.
The next moment, another scream could be heard from a different direction.
Yang Kai’s eyes flashed. He could tell that these screams came from two different locations at least a few thousand meters apart. In such a short period of time, accurately finding the hiding places of these two people and killing them, Li Wan’s great strength was obvious.
After a brief silence, Li Wan calmly returned and shrugged his shoulders to Cang Yan, “Two First Order Transcendent trash, not even enough to fill the gaps between my teeth.”
Saying so, he licked his lips and showed a not satisfied expression.
Hearing this, Mi Na’s eyes rolled back and she fainted directly.
“This little girl… isn’t her courage a bit too small?” Li Wan was struck speechless.
Yang Kai shook his head and gently held Mi Na against his shoulder.
Fei Yu smiled tenderly and explained while trying to hold back her laughter, “She thinks you actually ate them.”
Li Wan’s face went black and realized how his ambiguous words could be misconstrued. He wanted to defend himself but the one with the misunderstanding was already out cold so he could do nothing but grumble in annoyance.
The team continued to move forward, but probably because Li Wan had just killed two of their group a moment ago, the enemy party became more vigilant.
After two more hours, nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
However, Yang Kai could still sense a vague hostility in the air, indicating their opponents had yet to give up.
Once their group relaxed their guard, the other party would not hesitate to kill them all.
After waiting so long though, Cang Yan had finally lost patience and suddenly stopped, staring around with a cold glare as he shouted, “Since you’ve all already decided to kill us and seize our treasures, you should just come out and fight with us. If you want to keep hiding like timid rats we’ll just take our leave.”
All around it was quiet though, no one answered.
Cang Yan slowly shook his head and looked disappointed before taking out a long sword and waving it, leaving a cut several tens of meters long on the ground beside him.
Yang Kai’s eyes shrank as he instantly recognized this long sword. It was one of the artifacts that Cang Yan and Fei Yu acquired back in the ancient secluded cave mansion.
“This is a Saint Grade artifact. To be honest, I haven’t had time to refine it yet, don’t you want it for your own? If you can kill me, this artifact is yours, act fast, Saint Grade artifacts are rare after all,” Cang Yan said lightly.
“I also have one,” Fei Yu, apparently fearing the world would not be chaotic, quickly added, also summoning out a Saint Grade artifact.
After two yet-to-be-refined Saint Grade artifacts suddenly beings summoned out, in the next instant, countless Divine Senses flooded over like locust to probe them.
At that moment, Yang Kai swore he could hear heavy breathing and feel greedy stares all around him.
“Hey, when did the two of you manage to get Saint Grade artifacts?” Li Wan squinted his eyes enviously, “How come I never knew?”
“A few months ago,” Fei Yu smiled, turning her eyes to Yang Kai, “We got them on our way back after picking up Martial Nephew.”
“The Heavens are blind, why didn’t I have a share?” Li Wan cursed and yelled.
“There were only two, so Fei Yu and I each took one; however, Fei Yu also got a Spirit Grade Top-Rank artifact.”
“Give it to me!” Li Wan quickly ran over to Fei Yu and stretched out his hand.
“What about Fei Jian?” Fei Yu frowned, appearing somewhat awkward.
“No need to bother with him, he only uses bows anyways.”
“How about we do this, I’ll give that artifact to whoever kills the most enemies,” Fei Yu smiled and proposed.
Li Wan clapped his hands and nodded, “Great idea, I’ve already killed two.”
At that moment, from all around, numerous figures shot out like lightning, all of them trying to snatch the two Saint Grade artifacts.
With the three masters on this side all noisily discussing some irrelevant nonsense, the surrounding enemies apparently thought now would be the opportune moment to strike.
A sharp light flashed past Cang Yan’s eyes as the corners of his mouth rose slightly.
Each of the approaching figures was emitting the powerful aura of a Transcendent and moved with extreme speed; in the blink of an eye, all of them had arrived in front of the two Saint Grade artifacts.
Countless hands reached out to grab for the artifact.
*Xiu xiu xiu…*
Several whooshing sounds rang out in the dark and Yang Kai faintly saw a number of golden streaks flash through the night sky out of the corner of his eye.
Blood spattered, and all the cultivators who had rushed forward to seize the Saint Grade artifacts flew out from the resulting impact, each of their bodies having a new fist-sized hole that pierced from back to front.
On top of that, these holes, without exception, were where their hearts once were.
Before these cultivators hit the ground, their life auras had already disappeared.
One shot, one kill!
These Transcendants never even knew where this sharp attack came from.
Li Wan expression changed dramatically as he rushed over, shouting angrily, “Fei Jian, you sinister bastard, if you have the ability, stop sneaking around and fight up front like a man instead of shooting people in the back!”
Fei Jian did not respond, instead just sending out more arrows filled with destructive energy from various dead angles, reaping his opponent’s lives before they even had a chance to respond.
Yang Kai quickly released his Divine Sense towards the direction the arrows had originated from in an attempt to find Fei Jian’s hidden position, but discovered nothing.
A look of shock filled his face as he suddenly realized just how strong this Martial Uncle is.
The battle was over before it even began. After ten breaths of time, Li Wan managed to kill another enemy master before the scene suddenly became quiet again.
Only a thick smell of blood filling the air remained, filling everyone’s nose with the scent of iron.
The only noise around was the sound of swishing clothes as a number of enemies who had still been hiding up until now were hurriedly escaping.
They also understood that these four from Soaring Heaven Sect were not targets they could handle.
From beginning to end, only two people had attacked yet they were able to all but wipe them out, if all four of these masters had taken action, the consequences would have been even steeper.
A massive amount of Spiritual Energy gathered towards Yang Kai’s head and after a quick examination he discovered that these dead enemies were all First or Second Order Transcendents with not even a single Third Order.
Seeing this, Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling a bit regretful. A Third Order Transcendent would already have some insights into how to break through to the Saint Realm.
These insights were something Yang Kai wanted.
His understanding and sentiments regarding the Heavenly Way and Martial Dao were all concentrated on the period before breaking through to the Saint Realm, so until he reached that height he would encounter no bottlenecks. But as to how to break through to the Saint Realm, he was currently clueless.
Although back in the Ancient Demon Clan’s Mysterious Small World, he had killed Chu Jian and obtained his Second Order Saint Realm insights, Yang Kai’s understanding of the Saint Realm was still quite shallow.
Yang Kai needed to absorb the sentiments from the Souls of many masters in order to gain a true understanding of the path ahead.
Meanwhile, Cang Yan and Fei Yu took back their artifacts.
“Idiots, how could I not have already refined this Saint Grade artifact?” Cang Yan sneered and took the artifact back into his body.
Li Wan walked back with a look of frustration on his face, sighing heavily as he grumbled under his breath.
Fei Jian also reappeared finally, like a ghost, showing a big crooked smile as he held out his hand towards Fei Yu, “Give it to me.”
Fei Yu smiled and placed the Spirit Grade Top-Rank artifact she had previously acquired into Fei Jian’s hand.
From start to finish, Li Wan had only killed three people while Fei Jian had taken out six, the winner of this match was undoubtedly Fei Jian.
Yang Kai also let out a long sigh. Although this time’s battle looked very relaxed, he also knew that only masters as strong as these four from Soaring Heaven Sect could accomplish such a feet.
Perhaps if it were other Third Order Transcendent’s victory wouldn’t have been so easily obtained.
Moreover, Yang Kai even more felt the massive gap in strength between each Order of the Transcendent Realm. Before the Transcendent Realm, each Great Realm was divided into Nine Stages, and the gap between each Stage was quite small.
But the Transcendent Realm was different. First Order, Second Order, Third Order, each step forward represented a massive leap in strength.
This group of hidden enemies had failed to recognize the gap in strength between themselves and the four Soaring Heaven Sect Protectors and had become blinded by greed due to the Saint Grade artifacts.
After this battle, the road seemed to become quite peaceful and as they traveled farther, fights became less common. These masters’ objective in coming here was ultimately the Thousand Year Demon Flower, so after eliminating the weak, no one was willing to stir up conflict with the strong before the Thousand Year Demon Flower had even blossomed.
Everyone understood that fights between true masters would only lead to others reaping the fisherman’s profits.
A whole month after they left Soaring Heaven Sect, Yang Kai’s group finally set foot on the neutral territory at the heart of Tong Xuan Realm.
The so-called neutral territory was an area where the Human, Demon, and Monster Races coexisted, a sight that could not be seen anywhere else.
As soon as he set foot on this piece of land, Yang Kai noticed a few unusual energies flowing through the air.
Here he could sense clear traces of Demonic Qi which he was already familiar with as well as another type of Qi he had never encountered before, it should be Monster Qi. Demonic Qi and Monster Qi could not be absorbed by Human Race Masters, but they were the powerful energies that the Demon Race and Monster Race needed in order to cultivate.
After arriving here, Cang Yan and the others became more vigilant.
The neutral territory was, in a way, more chaotic than anywhere else in Tong Xuan Realm. The slightest carelessness could lead to catastrophe.
Traveling forward a few more days, everyone finally came across a towering mountain peak that ascended above the clouds.
A dozen or so kilometers outside this mountain lay the destination of their group’s trip: Floating Clouds City!
Cang Yan’s pace picked up a lot as he led the group forward, and after half a day, everyone arrived at Floating Clouds City.
After paying enough Crystal Stones, the group of people finally entered the city.
The moment they stepped into the city, Yang Kai clearly felt Cang Yan and the others relax.
Du Wan smiled slightly and explained, “Once one enters the city, they will be safe from danger. Floating Clouds City is jointly administered by all three Great Races and the City Lord is always a Saint Realm master, so no one dares act recklessly here.”
“Which race does the City Lord belong to?” Yang Kai asked curiously.
“This old master isn’t clear; Floating Clouds City changes its City Lord every three years. The master from the Human, Demon, and Monster Races decide who will hold the post of City Lord though a Martial Arts competition. It is because they select the City Lord this way that the tranquility of the city can be guaranteed. If one race was always held the position of City Lord, the other two races would certainly object.”
Cang Yan smiled and added, “As far as I know, the current City Lord is a master from the Demon Race, but don’t worry, because it’s related to the stability of the Three Clans, he won’t act unreasonably, that would throw the whole realm into chaos.”
“This old man and Mi Na are going to head to the Alchemist Guild here. Cang Yan, what about you?” Du Wan asked, “Would you like to come with us?”
“No thank you,” Cang Yan shook his head. Alchemists were a group of guys with eyes atop their heads, they didn’t care one bit that they were from Soaring Heaven Sect. If they were to enter the Alchemist Guild, they would no doubt suffer many disdainful looks and sneers. Worse, given Cang Yan’s hot temper, he may cause a falling out between them. If that really happened, even Old Man Du would be hard pressed to resolve things amicably.
Glancing over at Yang Kai, Cang Yan said, “Little Martial Nephew, if you want to go, you can follow Old Man Du. When the time comes, I’ll come find you.”
Mi Na also chimed in, “That’s right, you’re also an Alchemist, and it won’t be a problem if you come with us.”
She obviously wanted to stay with Yang Kai and continue learning Alchemy from him.
“You’re quite direct, little girl; do you perhaps like my little Martial Nephew?” Fei Yu grinned and teased.
Mi Na’s face went red, “Don’t talk nonsense, I wouldn’t like this bastard.”
Yang Kai was dumbfounded by this exchange and couldn’t stop himself from laughing lightly, eventually shaking his head, “No thank you, I’ll be staying with Martial Uncles and Martial Aunt for now.”
Du Wan gently nodded, “Then this old man won’t insist. Little Friend Yang, come here for a moment,” Saying so, he gently beckoned to Yang Kai.
Yang Kai walked over hesitantly, “What instructions does Old Man Du have for me?”
Du Wan smiled faintly before reaching into his Universe Bag and pulling out a small box with a mirror on top, “This is something I obtained many years ago; it should be of some use to you this time. En, it’s probably best you use it as soon as possible.”
“What is it?” Yang Kai looked curiously at the small box.
“You’ll understood when you see it,” Old Man Du smiled mysteriously before leading Mi Na towards the Alchemist Guild.
After Old Man Du and Mi Na left, Cang Yan turned around and said, “Let’s also go, we need to find an inn to stay at.”
Fei Yu snuck over to Yang Kai and whispered, “What did Old Man Du give you?”
“I don’t know.” Yang Kai shook his head.
Inside a certain inn, Cang Yan booked two rooms. Floating Clouds City’s inns were packed full of guests due to the upcoming blossoming of the Thousand Year Demon Flower, so managing to get two rooms in a single inn was quite difficult.
After some brief deliberations, it was decided that Fei Yu would stay with Yang Kai while the other three took the other room.
Yang Kai had no objections. In any case, he was used to living with Fei Yu. Although Fei Yu was a woman, there was a big generation gap between them, so Yang Kai naturally didn’t feel bothered by this.
After all the hurrying about, everyone finally had a chance to settle down.
Yang Kai sat down and took out the mirror box Old Man Du had given him, a somewhat confused expression upon his face.
He hadn’t expected that the moment they entered Floating Clouds City, Old Man Du would give him such a gift.
“Open it and take a look. I’m also quite curious what Old Man Du sent you,” Fei Yu smiled lightly.
Yang Kai nodded and was about to open it when he suddenly smiled wryly and said, “If you’re curious you might as well come take a look.”
In the next room, Li Wan and Fei Jian, who were listening in, suddenly wore awkward expression. Li Wan snorted and walked out, muttering indignantly, “This little Martial Nephew doesn’t know how to preserve his Martial Uncles’ face. I need to teach him a lesson in manners.”
Fei Jian didn’t say anything and simply hurried to keep up.
Cang Yan just shook his head, a hint of helplessness on his face, and followed behind his fellow brothers.
Inside the room, after everyone gathered, all of them stared towards the mirror box in Yang Kai’s hand, obviously wanting to know what was inside.
Under their gazes, Yang Kai opened the mirror box and found a thin as a cicada’s wings sheet.
This sheet was made from some material Yang Kai had never seen before and was slightly cold to the touch. There were some places on it that had holes cut out and at first glance, it resembled the peeled skin from a person’s face, a somewhat gruesome image.
“So that’s it!” Cang Yan expression changed, “Old Man Du’s insight is truly sharp.”
“Is this thing used to disguise one’s appearance?” Yang Kai also understood the function of this thing.
“Put it on and have a look,” Fei Yu urged.
Yang Kai nodded and covered his face with the thin mask. The next moment, he felt something stretch across his face and penetrate into his skin while giving off a cool sensation.
He didn’t know what his current appearance was, but from the changes in the expressions of his Martial Seniors in front of him, it was obvious that his current face was definitely quite different from before.
“This…” Li Wan’s jaw dropped, a look of disbelief appearing on his face.
Fei Jian’s eyes also bulged.
“Is the change really that big?” Yang Kai smiled helplessly.
“See for yourself!” Fei Yu waved her hand and condensed a mirror out of water in front of Yang Kai. Looking into that mirror, Yang Kai was instantly startled.
The face in the mirror was that of a complete stranger, moreover, it had a completely different style from his own. To put it bluntly, this face was pretty, with skin as white and flawless as a woman’s.
“Who is this gigolo?” Yang Kai expression dimmed, stretching out his hand and pinching his face, the image in the mirror perfectly responding to his actions.
“Impressive!” Cang Yan couldn’t help complementing, “This artifact is really a treasure, not only can it modify your appearance, even your life aura has changed!”
“With this, we don’t need to worry about you exposing your identity,” Fei Yu smiled, “We really need to thank Old Man Du, he’s solved a big headache for us.”
Since Yang Kai was going to Ascending Heaven Cliff to condense the Thousand Year Demon Flower’s medicinal liquid, it would be difficult for him not to be noticed by others, and if his performance was too outstanding, it would definitely draw unwanted attention.
Fortunately, this artifact that Old Man Du gave him solved this problem perfectly.
With a simple disguising technique, Cang Yan and the others would be able to change Yang Kai’s face as well, but such a disguising technique would still easily be seen through by masters on their level, and it would not be able to camouflage Yang Kai’s life aura.
But now, they didn’t have to worry about any of this.
Even if Yang Kai’s performance was incredibly eye-catching, he would have to worry about being stared at afterwards because the one the world would be searching for would not be Yang Kai’s original appearance.
“Old Man Du really has a lot of good things,” Cang Yan sighed, last time Du Wan had taken out a cyan stone that could only be acquired from the Starry Sky and this time he had easily put out a high grade disguising artifact, Alchemists were really a group with amazing levels of wealth.
Especially high-level Alchemists; most times, if they wanted anything, they didn’t even have to act personally, as long as they put out a message, many powerhouses who wanted the request Alchemy services from them would do their best to fulfil this request.
Whether it was the former cyan stone or this disguising artifact, they should have been rewards Old Man Du received in exchange for performing Alchemy over the years.
“Little Martial Nephew’s new look is really pleasing to the eye,” Fei Yu smiled tenderly, “Martial Aunt really likes this kind of face.”
Although Yang Kai’s former appearance wasn’t ugly, it wasn’t flawless like his current one. Years of fighting and strenuous hard work had given him a fierce and valiant look, one appropriate for a seasoned warrior, wild and heroic.
But now, he was incredibly handsome to the point where it was world shaking, this kind of flawless visage was the type that could win the favour of any woman in the world.
Yang Kai’s expression was indifferent though, and after thinking about it for a moment, he quickly circulated his True Qi and focused on his face. In the next moment, his appearance squirmed slightly and the mask he was wearing took on a slightly different look.
“En, perfect,” Looking in the mirror, Yang Kai nodded with satisfaction.
“Why did you change it? You looked so handsome before. This isn’t bad either, but it’s not as good as the previous one,” Fei Yu pursed her lips and complained.
“Not having the slightest flaw is the biggest flaw,” Yang Kai shook his head. “This appearance is more natural.”
Listening to him saw this, Fei Yu thought about it and nodded after a moment, agreeing with Yang Kai’s point of view.
“Good, we really need to thank Old Man Du for this one day, with this artifact in hand, we can really let loose,” Cang Yan said, taking a deep breath before continuing, “Tomorrow, I’ll go to Ascending Heaven with Li Wan and Fei Jian to check out the situation. It shouldn’t be long now so I think there will be many people making such a choice. Having the lay of the land in advance will allow us to make better preparations. Fei Yu, you stay here in the city with little Martial Nephew and pay attention to his safety. Although Floating Clouds City is relatively peaceful, it doesn’t mean it’s completely safe.”
“I know.” Fei Yu nodded sternly.
After a brief discussion, everyone went back to their own rooms.
Yang Kai didn’t remove the disguising artifact from his face, but instead kept it on in order to familiarize himself with it.
When the night fell, in the sky over Floating Clouds City, one old and one young man suddenly appeared. The old man was somewhat hoary-haired and plain clothed while the young man next to him was at most in his early twenties; however, the latter’s eyes were nimble and smart, curiously glancing around the noisy Floating Clouds City.
The old man also stood mid-air and swept his gaze around, a faint glow appearing in his aged eyes after a while, seemingly silently recalling some long lost memories of this place.
“Master, is this Floating Clouds City?” The young man asked as he sized up the crowds down below with great enthusiasm.
“En, the name of this city hasn’t changed, but it seems many of the people have. After a thousand years, as I had expected, there are so many changes” The old man sighed.
“Then the mountain over there is Ascending Heaven Cliff, yes?” The young man shifted his gaze towards the towering mountain peaks nearby.
“Indeed, the Thousand Year Demon Flower blooms atop that peak,” The old man nodded lightly, “Yao’er, this time I’ve brought you here mainly for the blooming of the Thousand Year Demon Flower. You have been following me since you were just a baby, cultivating diligently among the mountains and streams, so you are somewhat ignorant of how to behave in society. When we enter the city, make sure not to cause troubles and beware of sinister intent from those around you.”
“Disciple understands,” The young man nodded respectfully. “Teacher, you also once condensed the medicinal liquid of the Thousand Year Demon Flower. Can you tell me more about what the situation was like back there? I’m very curious to learn about it.”
The old man showed a faint smile, “I can’t describe it clearly to you, but you will understand once you experience it. Good, let’s pay a visit to the City Lord here; I recall that the current City Lord should be the descendent of one of this old man’s old friends.”
“Walk slowly, Master,” The young man who was called Yao’er diligently supported the old man as the pair stepped forward through the air.
Many people in the city look up curiously as this old and young pair, but none of them paid them much attention in the end. After all, there were too many cultivators coming and going from Floating Clouds City. The old man looked old and withered, as if he would die at any moment, but simultaneously he exuded the aura of a true master.
Inside the City Lord’s Mansion, one master from each of the Human, Demon, and Monster Race sat.
City Lord Ao Gu was a master from the Demon Race, while Vice City Lords Zhou Liang and Jin Jiao belonged to the Human Race and Monster Race respectively; all three of them were Saint Realm powerhouses.
Every three years, one master from each of the Three Clans would compete and the winner would become the new City Lord while the other two would hold Vice City Lord positions. Together, they would be in charge of Floating Clouds City.
At this moment, the Three Clans masters were discussing an important matter. The Thousand Year Demon Flower was about to bloom, and Floating Clouds City was becoming overcrowded, so they needed to deploy more security personal to guard against any chaos which might occur, lest it bring trouble to Floating Clouds City’s peace.
Moreover, during this critical period, they had to ensure there were no Saint Realm masters within a hundred kilometer radius of Floating Clouds City.
The Thousand Year Demon Flower was the symbol of Floating Clouds City and the foundation of its prosperity. Every thousand years, as the time of the Demon Flower’s blossoming approached; many people would come to pay homage to Ascending Heaven Cliff. This influx of people brought many benefits to the city.
Because of this, these three were treating the situation very seriously. Making sure that when the time came for the Demon Flower to bloom, it would not be disturbed by the aura of any Saint Realm master.
As they were talking though, a Monster Race guard hurried in and cupped his fists respectfully, “City Lord Ao Gu, there is an old man outside the mansion who requests to see you!”
“An old man?” Ao Gu frowned and waved his hand impatiently, “I won’t see him, ask him to leave.”
The guard however didn’t immediately depart, hesitating for a moment before saying, “But Sir, he said that he knows Senior Ao Si, and said that I must hand this to you.”
Ao Gu’s expression changed dramatically as he quickly stood up and said, “He knows my grandfather?”
Furrowing his brow, Ao Gu asked, “What is this thing? Give it to me.”
The guard hastily offered a small token which Ao Gu quickly snatched after only a single glance, his expression undergoing another earth-shaking change, his brow wrinkling deeply as he was trying hard to recall something, a moment later putting the token away and turning to Zhou Liang and Jin Jiao, “Brothers, pardon me for ending things here for today, it seems I must meet this individual.”
“City Lord need not be so polite,” Zhou Liang nodded lightly.
After Ao Gu left, Jin Jiao stared at the door thoughtfully, a moment later saying, “Brother Li, since this old man is acquainted with Ao Gu’s grandfather, doesn’t that mean he must be around a thousand years old?”
Zhou Liang gave him a curious glance, “In this world, aren’t there a number of old monsters around that age?”
Jin Jiao grinned meaningfully and continued, “There are indeed many, but masters who have relationships with Ao Gu’s family aren’t many. I don’t know if Brother Li noticed that what the guard took out was Ao Gu’s family’s highest level token. Only those who have made huge contributions to his family are eligible to hold them. As far as I can remember, Ao Gu’s family to date has only issued three such tokens, two to Demon Race masters who now belong to their family, and one to a Human Race master.”
“The one who has come is from the Human Race!” Zhou Liang concluded as he did not feel a strong Demonic Qi from outside the mansion.
“This issue is quite big then,” Jin Jiao’s expression deepened.
“What do you mean?”
“Do you know of any Human Race master that could possess Ao Gu’s family’s highest level token?”
Zhou Liang thought for a moment before quickly replying, “To be able to receive such a token from Ao Gu’s family, this Human master must be truly extraordinary.”
The Human, Demon, and Monster Race’s divisions ran quite deep; the Three Clans basically did not interact with each other except for in the neutral territory. Ao Gu’s family was also not a small force. Any Human Race master that could make a huge contribution to such a family must possess a supreme status and identity.
“Brother Jin, I happen to know some rumors regarding this, if you are unaware, how about I inform you?”
Jin Jiao glanced around before moving slightly closer to Zhou Liang and whispered a few words.
Hearing these few words though, Zhou Liang’s expression changed dramatically, “Are you serious?”
“Indeed,” Jin Jiao nodded firmly.
“If it is really him…” Zhou Liang and Jin Jiao only exchanged a single glance before neither of them could sit still anymore, both of them quickly standing up and chasing after Ao Gu.
Outside the City Lord’s Mansion, Ao Gu hurriedly rushed over. After seeing the old man in front of him, he was dumbstruck and only recovered after quite some time. Hastily cupping his fists and bowing, he respectfully said, “Junior Ao Gu did not expect that it was truly old Sir who had come and was thus negligent in welcoming old Sir. Please forgive this Junior.”
The several guards outside the mansion almost had their eyes pop out of their sockets.
The Demon Race was known for the savageness and no master from the Demon Race would ever bow to others easily, this was a well-known matter, but now, Ao Gu had completely acted outside their expectations. None of the guards present had ever seen their City Lord greet any powerhouse so humbly and respectfully.
Moreover, this master was Human!
Just what kind of status did this old man have that could allow their City Lord to willingly assume the position of a junior and bow his head?
All of the guards instantly found themselves at a loss.
The old man however just smiled lightly, “I have not seen you for many years, the young man from back then has really grown up, it’s quite commendable that you still even remember my appearance. En, good, how is Ao Si now?”
Ao Gu’s expression sank somewhat as he replied low-spiritedly, “My grandfather died nearly a hundred years ago.”
Hearing this, the old man sighed slightly, “My old friends have already departed, leaving behind only my old bones, haa…”
“Senior is too modest; Senior’s continued existence is the good fortune to the Human, Demon, and Monster Races.”
“Heh heh, growing old isn’t always a blessing,” The old man slowly shook his head.
“This little brother is…” Ao Gu’s gaze landed on the young man beside the old man suspiciously.
“Junior Di Yao greets Senior, I am Master’s disciple!” The young man respectfully performed a Junior’s greeting as he reported his identity.
Ao Gu’s eyes immediately lit up as his expression became excited, “Has Senior accepted a disciple?”
The old man nodded, “My time is quickly approaching, so I decided to find someone to pass down my legacy to. This child’s aptitude is good, so I kept him by my side in order to teach him.”
“Young man, you are very lucky, being able to worship a character like Senior as your Master, I’m afraid that no one in this world would not envy you,” Ao Gu replied solemnly.
After a quick examination, Ao Gu also noticed that this young man named Di Yao was actually not human, but was instead from the Monster Race!
It was just that the Monster Qi inside this youth’s body was perfectly hidden, if the gap in their strength wasn’t so massive Ao Gu would not have been able to tell.
Ao Gu secretly nodded in praise, thinking that this Senior’s heart was truly open-minded; born a Human, yet actually receiving a Monster Race youth as his legacy disciple, this would be impossible for almost anyone else. Perhaps, in this Senior’s mind, there was no difference between Human, Demon, or Monster in the first place, they were all simply living beings of this world.
It was also because of this Senior’s unique viewpoint that he could gain the respect of the entire world.
At this moment, Ao Gu felt a profound sense of respect.
As they spoke, Zhou Liang and Jin Jiao also rushed out of the City Lord’s Mansion and arrived in front of the old man, cupping their fists and bowing, “Greetings, Senior.”
“You two should be Vice City Lords Zhou Liang and Jin Jiao of Floating Clouds City, yes?” The old man smiled slightly.
“Senior’s eyes are indeed sharp,” Zhou Liang and Jin Jiao straightened their backs and replied heartily, seemingly quite flattered that such an important master actually recognized them.
“En, very good,” The old man nodded repeatedly, “Under your three’s jurisdiction, Floating Clouds City is very prosperous, it seems that you have put in a lot of effort. If there were more people like you in this world, able to abandon the barriers which separate the Three Clans, it would truly be good. A time when the whole world can live as one family, this old master doesn’t know whether he will be able to see such a scene in his lifetime.”
“Junior will definitely work hard towards such a future,” Zhou Liang and Jin Jiao quickly stated, “Although we do not dare say anything about the outside world, but in this Floating Clouds City, Senior can definitely witness such a scene.”
“Hoho, then this old master looks forward to it,” The old man smiled lightly.
“Senior, let us talk inside,” Ao Gu hastily invited the old man into the City Lord’s Mansion, as if he wasn’t willing to let Zhou Liang and Jin Jiao continue monopolizing the conversation with this profound master.
The old man nodded slightly and strode forward with the help of the young man named Di Yao.
Zhou Liang and Jin Jiao also hurriedly kept up, thinking about whether or not to take this opportunity to ask this Senior to refine them some Saint Pills.
Inside the mansion, Ao Gu threw a banquet for the old man and Di Yao, serving many fine wines and rare spirit fruits along with numerous other delicacies.
The old man only tasted a few spirit fruits before stopping while on the other hand, Di Yao gorged himself as if his belly was a bottomless pit.
Zhou Liang and Jin Jiao also put down their status and identities and frequently toasted with Di Yao.
After three rounds of wine, Ao Gu asked, “Senior, have you come this time for the Thousand Year Demon Flower?”
“En,” The old man nodded lightly, “But you can rest assured that I will not break the existing tradition or harm everyone’s interests. My most important reason for coming this time is to allow this youngster to see more of the world.”
“We naturally trust Senior’s character,” Ao Gu nodded repeatedly.
Given this old man’s present status, if he really needed the Thousand Year Demon Flower’s medicinal essence, he only needed to say a few words and no one else would compete with him over it. At that time, the Thousand Year Demon Flower on Ascending Heaven Cliff would undoubtedly land in his hands.
“My coming here today is not for much, I just wish to ensure the safety of my disciple. This old master doesn’t want to worry about finding another legacy successor.”
“Senior can rest assured that in Floating Clouds City, Junior swears upon his life that no one will harm little brother Di Yao!” Ao Gu replied firmly.
“Then I shall be troubling you. En, in exchange, I can help you three people each refine a Saint Pill.”
As soon as this statement came out, the faces of Ao Gu and the others lit up, each of them exchanging a joyous glance before hurriedly making their request.