After returning to High Heaven Pavilion, Yang Kai did not rush to leave and instead waited as he had agreed too.
A few days later, the Dong Family rushed over.
A few days after that, a group of beautiful Ten Thousand Flower Palace women also arrived, dazzling the surrounding people with their charm and allure.
A few days after that, Treasure Instrument Sect came…
Almost every two or three days, a group of people would arrive from different places and joined the migration to Tong Xuan Realm. Yang Kai did not refuse any of them. As long as they were from the same Sects as his friends, he would accept them enthusiastically.
This made all these newcomers very grateful.
The world was in chaos, the Central Capital has fallen, and suddenly there were now masters at something called the Saint Realm appearing. This news had spread like the wind across the entire Great Han Dynasty.
Just when these Sects didn’t know what to do, Yang Kai had shown them a path forward.
So after receiving the news from their disciples who were in the Central Capital, none of these Sects hesitated, all of them quickly packing up their things and rushing over to High Heaven Pavilion to join Yang Kai.
The crowd grew day by day, and soon the original thousand person team snowballed into a massive four or five thousand person crowd.
While waiting, Yang Kai didn’t remain idle, letting Li Rong, Han Fei, and Shi Kun direct everyone’s cultivation while he refined and distributed some simple pills, doing everything possible to help his friends and family improve their strength.
Everyone was ecstatic, Li Rong, Han Fei, and Shi Kun sat in front of countless cultivators day and night, teaching these good students about their own comprehensions of the Heavenly Way and Martial Dao.
The three Saint Realm masters who followed Yang Kai spoke each day until their mouths went dry, but when they looked out and saw the yearning in the eyes of the crowd, so they couldn’t bear to disappoint them.
And so they braced themselves and continued their cultivation lectures.
Among the eager students, the Yang Family Blood Warriors and the Hu Sisters’ growth was the most noticeable. In just a few days, each of them seemed to have experienced subtle changes in their True Qi and cultivation.
Under the shackles of this world, even if they had reached the Transcendent Realm, what they could comprehend of the Heavenly Way was limited.
But after being enlightened by Li Rong and the other Saints, their eyes were immediately opened.
Outside the crowd, Qiu Yi Meng stared at the Transcendent Realm cultivators with some envy before examining her own cultivation and sighing.
These days, she had spoken a lot with Yang Kai and learned about the many wonders of Tong Xuan Realm. She knew that Transcendents were abundant on that side and that such cultivation wasn’t enough to be considered a true master.
On the contrary, as a Peak Immortal Ascension Boundary cultivator, she was already a top-level master here, but on the other side, that really wouldn’t be enough to look at.
Immortal Ascension Boundary cultivators on that side were as common as hairs on an ox.
In her heart, she was secretly anxious.
“Are you envious of their cultivation?” Yang Kai suddenly appeared beside her and asked.
“What use is envy? It just means my aptitude is only such,” Qiu Yi Meng smiled, “Moreover, I am a woman, later in life, I will have to focus on tending the household and raising children, what point will there be in having such high cultivation then?”
“Were you always a woman who could be so easily satisfied?” Yang Kai glanced over at her curiously.
Qiu Yi Meng wore a forced smile, “I’m very easy to satisfy, it’s just that you refuse to.”
“Stop, enough of that crazy talk,” Yang Kai really couldn’t endure it.
Qiu Yi Meng glanced at him faintly before sighing helplessly, “Fine, I envy them, but so what? Why can’t I envy them? Especially those Hu Sisters. You know that in the past, their cultivation was even lower than mine, but since you left, they experienced an astonishing growth period and their strength soared all the way up to the Transcendent Realm, causing everyone’s eyes to go red with envy. Look, can’t you see the red in my eyes too?”
Saying so, she pushed her tender body provocatively onto Yang Kai before ruthlessly pinching his waist, grumbling through clenched teeth, “Tell me honestly, did you give them something good but didn’t give it to me?”
“How could that be?” Yang Kai truly felt wronged, “Didn’t I give you a lot of Myriad Drug Liquid right from the beginning? That spirit liquid should have been enough to greatly improve your aptitude.”
“Then why are they so much fiercer?”
“They have their own opportunities,” Yang Kai didn’t know how to explain.
“Then what about your wife’s little brother?” Qiu Yi Meng looked at him pitifully, “He was even further behind than those two sisters when you left!”
“He also has his own opportunities…” Yang Kai could only brace himself as he repeated.
However, from what Qiu Yi Meng had just said, Yang Kai suddenly discovered that of the younger generation here, only those few people who had obtained benefits from the Inheritance Heaven’s Cave stood out from the crowd. Others, even those on Qiu Yi Meng’s level, had not yet broken through to the Transcendent Realm.
It was clear from this how massively advantageous the benefits from the Inheritance Heaven’s Cave were.
“I believe you!” Qiu Yi Meng saw Yang Kai’s embarrassed appearance and no longer interrogated him, complacently saying, “You’ve always consider those on your side as one family, I know that you wouldn’t treat me poorly.”
Yang Kai nodded, sweeping her with his Divine Sense secretively, suddenly smiling in the next instant, “Just wait until we reach Tong Xuan Realm and I’ll deliver you a pleasant surprise.”
“What kind of surprise?” Qiu Yi Meng’s beautiful eyes brightened.
“When we get to that side, you’ll know. Don’t ask anything more for now, just focus on your cultivation.”
Qiu Yi Meng spat disdainfully, “Playing cheap tricks, what kind of wicked scheme are you up to now?”
Yang Kai just smiled and said nothing more, acting mysterious in the same way Qiu Yi Meng had always hated, causing her to be at her wit’s end yet helpless to change anything.
Qiu Yi Meng’s greatest strength was that she didn’t regard herself as an outsider. Even though she and Yang Kai now had a huge disparity in strength and status, she still dared maintain the same level of intimacy in their relationship and didn’t deliberately humble or alienate herself.
This was something Yang Kai greatly appreciated.
The same was true of Huo Xing Chen.
On the contrary, there are the four girls from Ten Thousand Flower Palace, Chen Xue Shu, and many of the others now acted somewhat restrained when they were facing Yang Kai, no longer interacting as freely as they used to.
The gap in strength and status was something they were conscious of.
As he was happily chatting with Qiu Yi Meng, Yang Kai’s face dramatically changed as he turned his eyes towards the distant horizon.
“Master!” Li Rong and Han Fei, who were even now lecturing others about their cultivation experiences, called out simultaneously.
“Damn!” Yang Kai couldn’t help but swear, his expression becoming incredibly dark and gloomy.
He would rarely swear in front of others, only doing so when his mood was greatly disturbed.
“What happened?” Qiu Yi Meng hurriedly asked, realizing something was terribly wrong from Yang Kai’s unusually stern expression and harsh language; it seemed that there was some kind of huge danger approaching, causing her face to pale slightly.
“Stay alert. If you sense the fallout from a battle from that direction, begin evacuating the people here through the Void Corridor immediately, don’t wait for us!” Yang Kai solemnly replied.
“What exactly is going on?” Qiu Yi Meng anxiously stomped her foot.
“Powerful enemies are coming, several of them,” Yang Kai explained haphazardly before no longer wasting time, signalling to Li Rong and Han Fei, preparing to take them to intercept these newcomers.
He didn’t even need to guess about the identity of the ones approaching, from the shocking Demonic Qi they gave off, it was obvious it was Demon General Meng Ge and Xue Li.
More than a month ago, Yang Kai had driven them away from the Central Capital City and at the time concluded that they would not return to disgrace themselves again, but unexpectedly they had really come back.
On top of that, there was the aura of another master with them this time, and this master was clearly far stronger than Meng Ge or Xue Li, their aura as vast as the sea.
[Another Demon General?]
Facing three Demon Generals, even if Li Rong and Han Fei teamed up, they wouldn’t be able to defeat them quickly nor would they be able to guarantee the safety of the thousands of people here.
Yang Kai planned to seize the initiative and not allow the enemy to approach this place.
But who would have thought that before he could act, from above the thick layer of clouds, a voice would suddenly call out, “This Senior has arrived unsolicited in order to discuss an important matter with Holy Master Yang. I hope Holy Master Yang will not take offence!”
The owner of this voice was still around a hundred kilometres away, but the sound of their voice seemed to resound right beside Yang Kai’s ear, crisp and clear.
The several thousand people gathered nearby all turned and looked up into the sky, quickly seeing the originally bright sun covered in a thick black cloud, blanketing the world around them in darkness. At the same time, this dark cloud seemed to press down upon them, causing everyone present to feel very uncomfortable.
Yang Kai’s brow furrowed and he remained in place.
Li Rong and Han Fei looked to him for instructions, but Yang Kai just slowly shook his head, signaling them to standby.
Before the other party had even arrived, he had taken the initiative to send a message, as if trying to show courtesy. This alone made Yang Kai quite confused, wondering who this individual was and what objective he had.
From the horizon, a pitch-black light swept across the world and rapidly approached, like the herald of disaster, making everyone who saw it pale with fear.
Yang Kai coldly snorted and shouted, “Could Your Excellency withdraw your Demonic Qi? You’re frightening my friends.”
Yang Kai’s voice shot out like an arrow, piercing through the dark clouds of black light, opening a hole in them and allowing the rays of the sun to once again shine down on High Heaven Pavilion.
The oppressive pressure stagnated, allowing everyone to gasp for breath.
Soon, an apologetic voice called out, “Excuse me, Holy Master Yang, this Senior is used to acting freely and had not expected so many people to be present!”
As he spoke, the dark clouds high up in the sky, as if they were brushed aside by a great hand, were scattered and soon melted away.
The world was quickly restored to its former brightness.
Yang Kai’s eyes revealed a deep sense of wariness and even Li Rong’s expression became quite dignified.
They quickly became aware of the tyrannical strength of the man who had come!
Soon, the three figures appeared before the eyes of the crowd, quietly suspended mid-air, as if they had been standing there from the very beginning.
Among the three, the first one was a middle-aged man with a plain appearance, wearing a regal yet somewhat gaudy robe embroidered with images of dragons and phoenixes.
Standing behind this middle-aged man was Demon General Xue Li and Meng Ge, both of them holding their backs up straight with solemn looks upon their faces, a mix of fear and respect flashing across their eyes as whenever they glanced towards the middle-aged man’s back.
Seeing this, Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed as a storm began raging in the depths of his heart.
Before seeing this scene, Yang Kai had thought that Xue Li and Meng Ge were unwilling to let this insult pass and had called another Demon General to assist them, but now could immediately determine that this plain-looking middle-aged man was no Demon General.
Although his heart was calling out in alarm, Yang Kai maintained his tranquil look as he stared deeply at this middle-aged man, dread flashing across the depths of his pupils.
This middle-aged man’s way of dressing was eccentric but his eyes were incredibly sharp, radiating a fierce, piercing light, making others not dare to stare into them. His aura was also vast and immeasurably deep.
Cocking his head to the side, the middle-aged man’s eyes swept over the crowd down below before fixing on Yang Kai and revealing a light smile, “Holy Master Yang?”
This man had never met Yang Kai before, but amongst the thousands of people in front of him, he was able to determine who Yang Kai was at a glance, making it clear how sharp his eyes really were.
Yang Kai gently nodded, responding in a solemn tone, “Demon Commander?”
The middle-aged man raised his brow and laughed loudly, liberally praising, “Holy Master Yang’s vision is quite good, instantly seeing through this Senior’s identity. En, admirable!”
He hadn’t expected Yang Kai to be so perceptive, but what was more impressive to him was the show of indifference on this young boy’s face even after recognizing his true identity. Anyone who recognized him would inevitably reveal a panic-stricken look and either try to escape or immediately launch an attack.
Yang Kai, however, was different; although there was wariness in his eyes, there were no signs of panic, only a kind of tranquillity.
His admiration was genuine.
Yang Kai lightly snorted. Him being able to recognize the identity of this man was because of Xue Li and Meng Ge’s attitudes. These two were Demon Generals, the only one who they would willingly stand behind and show deference towards was the current Demon Commander.
Yang Kai had imagined countless times what kind of person the current Demon Commander was.
Perhaps he was a giant man with overbearing strength.
Perhaps he was a sinister snake that radiated cunning.
Perhaps he was a wanderer, free and unfettered.
But never had Yang Kai thought that the current Demon Commander was actually extremely ordinary. If it weren’t for the gaudy robes he was wearing, this man would be able to perfectly blend into a crowd and disappear from everyone’s vision.
Ordinary people who saw him would only take notice of his strange taste in clothes while completely ignoring the man himself.
[This is the Demon Commander that sealed Meng Wu Ya’s strength?] Yang Kai couldn’t help finding it difficult to believe.
“Holy Master Yang does not need to doubt, this Senior is truly the current Demon Commander, Zhang Yuan! En, this point Xue Li and Meng Ge can attest to for me,” Demon Commander still smiled indifferently as he genially said.
“I don’t doubt you,” Yang Kai gently took a breath, “I just don’t understand. Instead of sitting comfortably in the Demon Land, you actually decided to travel tens of thousands of kilometres to the middle of nowhere. Is there something here that is really worth you visiting in person?”
Perceiving the hostility and rejection of Yang Kai, Zhang Yuan rubbed his nose and grinned, “This Senior already said, I have come here to discuss a certain matter with Holy Master Yang.”
“Is there anything for us to discuss?” Yang Kai frowned.
“There is,” Zhang Yuan insisted, glancing around before asking, “This isn’t an ideal place for this. Can Holy Master Yang arrange a quiet place for us to sit down and talk?”
Saying so, he simply stared at Yang Kai with a smile.
“Master!” Li Rong stood close to Yang Kai and stared fixedly at Zhang Yuan, solemnly whispering, “Be careful not to be deceived by him.”
“Don’t agree with his request!” Han Fei also objected.
Yang Kai knit his brow deeply for a moment before shaking his head, “I’ll speak with him. From the looks of things, he doesn’t appear to have come here looking for trouble; rather, it seems there’s something he really wants to talk about.”
If he was here to find fault or seek revenge for Meng Ge and Xue Li, with Zhang Yuan’s strength, there would be no need to speak so much nonsense.
Although he might not have a way to kill or capture Yang Kai, if top-level Third-Order Saint Realm masters were to fight here, the thousands of people gathered at High Heaven Pavilion would definitely suffer.
This would be the best way to retaliate against Yang Kai.
“This way, please!” Yang Kai shouted before gesturing towards the inside of High Heaven Pavilion.
“Thank you for your hospitality,” Zhang Yuan gently nodded before following behind Yang Kai with Meng Ge and Xue Li.
After the six figures gradually disappeared, the several thousand cultivators present finally took a gasp of air; the near tangible pressure just now had made it difficult for them to even breathe.
“Who was that man just now, he seemed to be very powerful.”
“Senior Brother Yang called him Demon Commander… What is a Demon Commander?”
“Senior Shi Kun, how much do you know about this matter?” Ling Tai Xu, Yang Ying Feng, and several other leaders went over to Shi Kun to ask as their understanding of Tong Xuan Realm was simply too shallow.
Shi Kun’s face was deathly pale as he heard the many whispers of the people around him, unable to hold back a bitter laugh, “Ignorance is bliss.”
Demon Commander… Even he had never seen this great figure before, but the people here were casually discussing what a Demon Commander was…
Shi Kun firmly believed that if this title was reported to anyone in Tong Xuan Realm, it would immediately cause great unrest, but here, it has only elicited people’s curiosity.
“The Demon Commander can be said to be one of the strongest masters in all of Tong Xuan Realm. As for how strong he is exactly… En, let’s make an analogy. Do you think I am strong?”
The group of people gathered around Shi Kun nodded.
Half a year ago they didn’t even know about the existence of the Saint Realm, but after having fought against them a few times now, the Blood Warriors of the Yang Family had personally experienced the massive difference in strength between a Saint and a Transcendent.
In front of them, a Saint was an earth-shattering master with unfathomable means, none of which they could resist.
Shi Kun smiled bitterly, “In your eyes, I am truly fierce, but even if there were a hundred of me, the Demon Commander would still be able to crush us like ants.”
Everyone present paled, finally understanding how tyrannical this Demon Commander was.
“Isn’t Kai’er in danger then?” Dong Su Zhu cried out.
Shi Kun scratched his head, “Not necessarily. The Demon Commander didn’t seem to have come here for a fight this time. Moreover, the lady named Li Rong next to Holy Master is also quite fierce. With her by his side, the Demon Commander won’t be able to harm the Holy Master.”
“You mean to say that lady’s strength is on par with that Demon Commander?” The crowd was astonished, only now understanding the depths of Li Rong’s strength.
“I’m also not clear,” Shi Kun shrugged his shoulders, unable to give a definitive answer. For the life of him, he couldn’t understand why the Demon Commander would come to this place and directly ask to speak with the Holy Master.
The two of them had clearly never met before, what matter could they possibly have to discuss?
Inside the main hall of High Heaven Pavilion, Yang Kai and the Demon Commander were seated with Li Rong and Han Fei standing behind Yang Kai, and Xue Li and Meng Ge standing behind the Demon Commander, seemingly staring each other down.
The atmosphere inside the hall was bleak and the air was heavy.
Yang Kai was filled with doubts and didn’t speak, simply staring straight at the Demon Commander, refusing to miss any of his actions.
The Demon Commander, on the other hand, was like a tourist, glancing around at the rather simple hall and commenting, “This is truly a miraculous place, actually able to produce a character like Holy Master Yang. This Senior really wishes he had been born a thousand years later so he could grow up alongside Holy Master Yang as fellow brothers, enjoying wine and travelling the world together!”
Inside the hall, everyone else’s expressions became awkward, none of them understanding what Zhang Yuan was doing.
Hearing such blatant praise and flattery after just sitting down instead made Zhang Yuan seem even more untrustworthy.
“Demon Commander, if you have something to say please speak frankly, this place does not welcome you,” Yang Kai said solemnly, his expression somewhat impatient.
With such a master sitting right in front of himself, even Yang Kai felt a great deal of pressure.
He wasn’t worried about his own safety of course. If a fight broke out, even though he knew he was no match for the Demon Commander, Yang Kai could simply tear space and escape, after which he could summon the Flying Heavens Shuttle and flee. With the Flying Heavens Shuttle’s speed, even the Demon Commander wouldn’t be able to do anything but eat dust behind his butt, unable to catch up for a lifetime.
No, what Yang Kai was worried about was the safety of the thousands of people gathered here; they were his friends, his Sect Brothers and Sisters, his clansmen, his parents and brothers…
He had too many concerns here.
“Impudence!” Meng Ge shouted, “Boy, don’t get too full of yourself, Demon Commander travelling to this place to see you is your honour!”
“He is the one who arrived here unsolicited whereas I am the master of this place, could it be I can’t expel someone from my own house?” Yang Kai sneered.
“Meng Ge, be silent!” Zhang Yuan shouted lowly, forcing Meng Ge to immediately lower his head.
Although both were Third Order Saints, the Demon Commander was far more powerful than any of the Demon Generals, which was why he could sit in his current position.
Zhang Yuan looked back at Yang Kai and said with a smile, “Holy Master Yang seems to be quiet wary of this Senior. Very well, this Senior won’t waste any of your time and get straight to the point.”
Maintaining a friendly expression his face, Zhang Yuan continued, “Actually, Holy Master Yang doesn’t have to be like this, the strength you grasp in your hands currently is not inferior to this Senior’s. The lady behind you may not be as strong as this Senior, but the difference is not great. This Senior has four Demon Generals as subordinates, all of whom are Third Order Saints, but the subordinates of Holy Master Yang are not weak either, if the two of us really have a falling out, neither of us will come out unscathed, correct?”
Yang Kai frowned, his face sullen, refusing to respond.
He didn’t understand why the Demon Commander wanted to point out their respective strengths.
However, the most logical conclusion would be that the Demon Commander really didn’t want to start a fight with Yang Kai. With the strength of both sides almost equal and no one possessing a decisive advantage, it wasn’t an exaggeration to say their respective statuses were also equal.
Zhang Yuan sighed and said, “This Senior has heard that these two short-sighted subordinates of mine have offended Holy Master Yang in the past, so naturally it is the responsibility of this Senior to punish them accordingly. Good, you two, apologize to Holy Master Yang, let us make big things small and make small things nothing so that in the future there are no grudges between our two sides.”
As soon as this statement came out, Meng Ge and Xue Li’s eyes both bulged as they stared dumbfounded at Zhang Yuan.
They had never dreamed they would hear such words from his mouth.
Even Yang Kai’s expression became strange.
If all Zhang Yuan wanted to do was show him some goodwill, this was too much; moreover, with his status, why would he need to show Yang Kai goodwill in the first place?
Yang Kai felt even more strongly that this Zhang Yuan had some kind of hidden intentions; otherwise, he absolutely would not humiliate his own subordinates in such a manner.
Thinking so, Yang Kai’s expression relaxed as he calmly stared at Zhang Yuan, a grin slowly creeping onto his face.
He wanted to see what the current Demon Commander was up to and what exactly it was he wanted from himself.
As long as Zhang Yuan wanted something from him, the initiative lay in Yang Kai’s hands, allowing him to put down most of his worries.
Inside the hall, Yang Kai smiled lightly, as did Demon Commander Zhang Yuan.
Xue Li and Meng Ge standing behind Zhang Yuan, on the other hand, were wide eyed, trembling with shock, a look of disbelief plastered all over their faces.
Did their Demon Commander really just order them to apologize to this abominable human brat?
The two of them could hardly believe their ears and stared at Zhang Yuan questioningly, seemingly wanting to confirm they had heard right but not daring to ask.
Zhang Yuan snorted with displeasure, “What’s wrong? Are the two of you deaf, or mute? Did you not just hear this Senior’s words? Or perhaps you want this Senior to apologize in your stead?”
“We wouldn’t dare!” Meng Ge and Xue Li’s body shivered, noticing the anger in Zhang Yuan’s tone, no longer daring to hesitate, hurriedly cupping their fists and through gritted teeth shouting, “For our many previous offences, we ask Holy Master Yang to be broad-minded!”
This was yet another insult to them; although they apologized to Yang Kai under the pressure of Zhang Yuan, anyone could see that the next time they found an opportunity, they would surely find a way to seek revenge.
The command of Zhang Yuan not only failed to resolve the grievances between the two sides but instead deepened the hatred in the two Demon Generals’ hearts.
Yang Kai remained indifferent, still not saying anything.
Zhang Yuan, however, laughed happily and smiled, “Very good, if one makes a mistake, naturally they have to apologize. En, from now on we should avoid any hostility between us, I also want to become friends with Holy Master Yang.”
“I don’t,” Yang Kai snickered.
Zhang Yuan’s face turned bitter, “Not even giving a hint of face, Holy Master Yang is too unreasonable.”
Although the two were seemingly speaking casually with one another, without the slightest hint of aggression towards one another, the four who were standing between them were completely on edge, fearing that at any moment there would be a falling out and a battle would begin.
However, if an outsider were here, all they would see was two people sitting and smiling at one another, bantering back and forth harmoniously.
The mood of Meng Ge and Xue Li had plunged, an unpleasant taste filling their mouths.
Previously, Xue Li had snuck into Human Territory arbitrarily and had been injured by Chu Ling Xiao, forcing her to flee back to the Demon Land. She hadn’t told anyone about the details of that incident though.
Then, half a month ago, she and Meng Ge had encountered Yang Kai, fought briefly, and then been forced to flee once again.
Originally, she had wanted to conceal things again, but Meng Ge was different from her and was completely loyal to the Demon Commander, so after they returned to the Demon Land, he had report what had transpired in full. When Demon Commander Zhang Yuan heard this report, he had immediately set off from the Demon Capital and rushed to this place saying he wanted to personally meet this Holy Master Yang.
With things having reached this point, Xue Li was also helpless and could only lead the way with Meng Ge.
The two of them had thought that with the Demon Commander setting out personally was all in order to rectify the situation and seek redress for the insult they had suffered. As such, on the road here, the two Demon Generals were secretly quite excited, imagining all the ways they would torment that insufferable human brat once he fell into their hands.
They had never guessed that their solemn Demon Commander would actually display such a genial attitude towards this human boy.
The two Demon Generals suddenly felt like they had been forced to swallow the bitterest of medicines.
“Zhang Yuan, enough nonsense. What is it you’re really after?” Yang Kai smiled faintly, finally asking about the biggest doubt in his heart.
Trying to fight a war of words with this level of master would inevitably end with his loss so Yang Kai decided to go straight to the point.
Zhang Yuan sighed and showed a helpless expression, “It looks like Holy Master Yang has also guessed that this Senior has another purpose in coming here. Good, I indeed have something I wanted to confirm.”
“Oh? And what would that be?” Yang Kai narrowed his eyes and stared at him.
Zhang Yuan maintained his light smile and asked, “I want to know if Holy Master Yang… is Great Demon God’s successor!”
When this statement came out, everyone was startled, with Li Rong and Han Fei’s eyes suddenly becoming icy cold as they locked their gazes onto Zhang Yuan.
Meng Ge and Xue Li’s jaws also dropped with a hint of panic flashing across their faces.
The name Great Demon God carried an unparalleled impact on anyone of the Demon Race.
“Holy Master Yang does not need to deny it,” Before Yang Kai could reply, Zhang Yuan raised his hand and interrupted him, “This Senior had his suspicions and only rushed here to confirm them. After all, if you leave this place and return back to Nine Heavens Holy Land, even this Senior would have no way to infiltrate so far into the Human Territory. But now that I have seen you, it appears Holy Master Yang truly is Great Demon God’s successor. En, there’s no doubt about it.”
Looking at his confident expression, Yang Kai showed neither approval nor disapproval, curling his lips as he asked, “How can you be so certain?”
“Because of the loyalty of the two ladies behind you!” Zhang Yuan turned his eyes towards Li Rong and Han Fei, a faint look of envy flashing across his eyes as he said, “I have many ancient books in my possession which have recorded a number of secrets only this Senior knows. One of these ancient books contains records about the clan that served Great Demon God.”
“They call themselves the Ancient Demon Clan and are close confidants of Great Demon God who had sworn a blood oath that they and their descendants would forever give loyalty to only Great Demon God. But unfortunately, before Great Demon God fell, their clan actually disappeared. The world’s common people speculated that they had been exterminated because they held too much power, saying Great Demon God feared that after he passed away none would be able to control them and thus destroyed them himself.”
“However, I know that those rumours were fake and that Great Demon God actually sealed them away in order to leave this power to his successor! The two ladies behind you are from the Ancient Demon Clan, yet they are willing to pledge loyalty to you, so Holy Master Yang’s identity is apparent at a glance, because it is impossible for members of the Ancient Demon Clan to serve anyone else. Even this Senior is unworthy in their eyes.”
As Demon Commander Zhang Yuan presented his case, Yang Kai just listened quietly and didn’t interrupt.
After he finished, Yang Kai just nodded lightly, “It looks like Senior Demon Commander knows a great many secrets that others do not.”
With such irrefutable evidence, even if Yang Kai tried to deny it, it was useless.
“Indeed,” Zhang Yuan nodded proudly, “I also know why the Great Demon God insisted on sealing away the Ancient Demon Clan in order to leave their power for his successor. Great Demon God left behind a number of clues regarding this and many other issues.”
“Oh, why?” Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling curious, but the moment this question left his lips he realized he had actually fallen into a trap that Zhang Yuan had dug for him, causing him to lose the initiative. This discovery made Yang Kai want to vomit blood in frustration.
Yang Kai had wanted to feign indifference but he had actually be led on by this old ox, making him realize again his own immaturity.
Zhang Yuan laughed lowly and said, “For the coming catastrophe!”
“Catastrophe?” Yang Kai was stunned.
“Indeed, as for what this catastrophe is, I don’t know, but Holy Master Yang can surely unravel it!” Zhang Yuan quickly said.
“How am I supposed to figure out something even you don’t know?” Yang Kai shook his head slowly.
Zhang Yuan’s expression finally turned serious as he said, “In my Demon Capital, there is a secret room left behind by Great Demon God and sealed with a powerful formation. Several generations of Demon Commanders have wanted to unlock it and discover the mysteries inside, but unfortunately, no one has been able to open it.”
“You can’t break the formation?”
Zhang Yuan shook his head as a look of longing appeared on his face, “The means of Great Demon God are simply Heaven defying, not something I can compare to. I’ve always felt that his cultivation had exceeded the Saint Realm and arrived at a higher plane.”
Yang Kai’s body shook, surprised at how consistent his and Zhang Yuan’s thoughts were.
Before, when he and the two Monster Race Great Seniors entered the strange Mysterious Small World and witnessed the various means of Great Demon God, Yang Kai had also had such a conjecture, but somewhat couldn’t bring himself to believe it.
Surprisingly, Zhang Yuan also thought so.
“I can’t open it, but Holy Master Yang should be able to,” Zhang Yuan continued, “I don’t know why Holy Master Yang was selected as Great Demon God’s successor, but since you are, you should have the Demon Mystic Tome in your hands, yes?”
“Demon Mystic Tome?” Meng Ge and Xue Li exclaimed in unison, a frantic and nearly fanatical look appearing on their faces.
It seemed that these three words were enough to make their blood boil.
“Great Demon God somehow managed to obtain a massive piece of soulstone and with it managed to craft the Demon Mystic Tome inside which he hid many of his Divine Abilities and secrets. Whoever could open the Demon Mystic Tome would become his successor. Since Holy Master Yang is said successor, you should have obtained the Demon Mystic Tome, which is the key to unlocking the Spirit Array inside the Demon Capital.”
Yang Kai knit his brow, thinking about it for a moment before summoning the Black Book into his hand, “Are you talking about this?”
All eyes inside the room fixed on the Wordless Black Book, with Meng Ge and Xue Li’s gazes filling with greed. Even Demon Commander Zhang Yuan couldn’t stop his pulse from racing.
Guessing was one thing, but seeing was another matter altogether.
But soon, Zhang Yuan’s look returned to normal, gently inhaling a breath before nodding, “Yes, this is the Demon Mystic Tome. It seems everything is exactly how I had guessed, but the Heavens truly must not have eyes, actually allowing the Demon Mystic Tome to fall into the hands of a human…”
Zhang Yuan wore a look of regret and distress without any disguise, revealing his true feelings.
This was a matter of course though, the inheritor of Great Demon God’s legacy was supposed to be a member of their Demon Race, but the one who ultimately obtained the Demon Mystic Tome was Yang Kai.
This made Zhang Yuan give birth to a feeling of grief and indignation.
“So it’s called the Demon Mystic Tome? I didn’t know, I’ve always just called it the Wordless Black Book,” Yang Kai said lightly before storing the Wordless Black Book back into his body.
Having the object of their desire suddenly disappear, Meng Ge and Xue Li couldn’t help staring towards Yang Kai sharply, seemingly wanting to see where he had hidden the Demon Mystic Tome.
Without even mentioning all the Divine Abilities and secrets of Great Demon God that were hidden inside of it, simply the giant piece of soulstone itself was an immeasurable treasure.
Anyone who saw it would feel tempted.
“I will speak frankly,” Zhang Yuan strived to maintain a stable state of mind as he stared right at Yang Kai, “This Senior coming here personally was to show my sincerity. In truth, the mere status of Great Demon God’s successor is enough to take charge of the entire Demon Land; after all, the Demon Land was created by Great Demon God. This Senior also believes that as long as Holy Master Yang is given enough time, you will grow to the same height as Great Demon God, a height even this Senior could not hope to achieve.”
As soon as these words came out, Meng Ge and Xue Li swallowed hard, a hint of dread flashing across their eyes. Noticing the dangerous glint which appeared in the two Demon Generals’ eyes, Li Rong and Han Fei both began to quietly condense their strength, preparing to take action at a moment’s notice.
Inside the hall, because of Zhang Yuan’s words, the atmosphere suddenly became tense.
As long as there was enough time, Yang Kai could grow to the same height as Great Demon God; the very idea made Meng Ge and Xue Li feel a sense of crisis. Even the Demon Commander admitted that this was a level he couldn’t hope to reach, so what would happen if they allowed Yang Kai to fully mature?
Since Great Demon God was able to sweep away the world’s experts and reign unchallenged, Yang Kai would eventually be able to as well.
At that time, he would be able to decide who lived and who died.
The two Demon General involuntarily gave birth to the thought of killing Yang Kai here and now, lest such a day really come to pass.
“Do not be impolite!” Zhang Yuan snorted, “I said that I wish to become friends with Holy Master Yang, which is why I chose not to conceal anything and speak openly with him. If you two dare release that murderous intent again, this Senior will be the first to cripple you!”
Meng Ge and Xue Li were dismayed, never imaging that Zhang Yuan would again reprimand them for Yang Kai. This made it clear how resolute the Demon Commander’s attitude was, he wasn’t just paying lip service. Realizing this, the two of them quickly admitted their mistake and lowered their heads.
Zhang Yuan nodded in approval before turning back to face Yang Kai, “While I’ve said all this, Holy Master Yang should not expect too much. The Demon Land is currently in the hands of this Senior and it is impossible for me to simply hand it over to a human, regardless of his identity.”
“I have no interest in the Demon Land.”
“That’s for the best,” Zhang Yuan nodded and chuckled, “Actually, the safest method for this Senior would be to kill you and snatch your Demon Mystic Tome, but this Senior knows that even if I were to kill you, I would be unable to obtain Great Demon God’s inheritance; that is something unique and irreplaceable. Since Great Demon God has chosen you, he must certainly have his reasons. All members of the Demon Race are descendants of Great Demon God, so this Senior can only hope that Holy Master Yang will not treat us as enemies in the future. I swear in the name of Great Demon God, I will not act disadvantageously towards you in the future, what does Holy Master Yang say?”
Yang Kai’s expression changed greatly upon hearing these words.
No Demon would dare to swear an oath in the name of Great Demon God lightly, such was the immensity of this name in the hearts of the entire Demon Race, even if it was the current Demon Commander, this still remained true.
Yang Kai profoundly recognized the sincerity of Zhang Yuan at this point, wearing a serious expression on his face as he nodded, “Good!”
Zhang Yuan laughed, a look of satisfaction spreading on his face, “Then that’s settled. Holy Master Yang may be young but is also decisive, very much to this Senior’s liking. Dealing with people like you is enjoyable.”
“You are also quite refreshing to deal with!”
“Then we are friends?” Zhang Yuan looked at Yang Kai with a smile.
“At least we’re not enemies,” Yang Kai smiled back.
“Good enough,” Zhang Yuan stood up, “Since I have said everything I came here today to say, I shall take my leave. When Holy Master Yang has free time, please pay a visit to my Demon Capital and allow this Senior to offer you his hospitality. This Senior is quite interested in the secrets left behind by Sir Great Demon God and hopes to use the Demon Mystic Tome to unlock them. I wonder if Holy Master Yang is willing to cooperate?”
“En, I will go.”
“Many thanks! En, if Holy Master Yang intends to come to my Demon Capital, please do send a notice in advance, that way this Senior can arrange safe passage through the Demon Land for you,” Zhang Yuan nodded lightly before immediately turning around and heading for the exit.
“Li Rong, see them out!” Yang Kai commanded.
Li Rong immediately set out to escort Zhang Yuan and the two Demon Generals out of the hall.
After a while, she returned leisurely and walked over to where Yang Kai and Han Fei were waiting.
“Master, do you really believe what Zhang Yuan just said?”
“What do you think?” Yang Kai answered her question with one of his own.
Li Rong thought about it carefully before replying, “He seems sincere, but we are not familiar with him at all, so it is difficult to believe him completely.”
“I think so too,” Han Fei nodded.
“I think he’s actually honest,” Yang Kai grinned, causing the two women to wear startled expressions.
Yang Kai wasn’t a child, if Zhang Yuan could mislead him with just a few words, he wouldn’t still be alive today. Yang Kai obviously had his own thoughts on Zhang Yuan’s actions and attitude.
“Do you plan on going to the Demon Capital?”
“Naturally I must go,” Yang Kai nodded.
However, this decision was by no means because of Zhang Yuan’s invitation, but rather because he was curious about what secrets Great Demon God had hidden there. If he was right, the secrets left in the Demon Capital were definitely related to the words Great Demon God’s Soul Clone had spoken about in that strange space.
When he rescued Meng Wu Ya and Little Senior Sister, Great Demon God’s Soul Clone had also told Yang Kai that if he had a chance, he should go to the Demon Capital as he would be able to understand everything once he did.
Yang Kai had not had much hope of doing this any time soon, but with Zhang Yuan’s invitation, and opportunity had presented itself.
Because he had destroyed that place, all the world’s Mysterious Small Worlds had opened. On top of that, Great Demon God’s Soul Clone had said that that place was the keystone of the entire world. What hidden secrets were related to that place, Yang Kai completely did not understand, causing him many sleepless nights.
As he was contemplating all this, a group of people came in from outside the main hall, headed by Ling Tai Xu. They rushed over and asked what the Demon Commander had wanted and if there was any danger.
Yang Kai laughed wryly and shook his head as he comforted them repeatedly.
High up in the sky, a few dozen kilometers away from High Heaven Pavilion, Zhang Yuan, Meng Ge, and Xue Li hurried along.
The two Demon General followed behind their Demon Commander while exchanging confused looks. For the life of them, they couldn’t understand why their Demon Commander had not taken the opportunity to kill that despicable human brat but instead gone all out to befriend him.
Such a terrifying person should be strangled early lest he grow up and become a disaster to the entire Demon Land.
Seemingly understanding the doubts in their hearts, Zhang Yuan, while not even looking back, lightly said, “You can’t kill him, don’t even bother trying.”
Meng Ge and Xue Li trembled.
Zhang Yuan continued, “As the chosen successor of Great Demon God, how could that Yang Kai be ordinary? Don’t think of him as just another Third-Order Transcendent youth, if he were to really fight, my guess would be that his strength can rival that of a Second-Order Saint.”
“How is that possible?” Meng Ge and Xue Li exclaimed.
“Why can’t it be possible?” Zhang Yuan laughed, “Sir Great Demon God was famous for being able to fight enemies far above his own realm, with many records telling of his victories against enemies supposedly far stronger than himself. You two are Demon Generals, surely you know this as well.”
Meng Ge and Xue Li were struck speechless; naturally, they were clear about this information, but they had not associated it with Yang Kai.
“That is purely his own strength though; perhaps he has also comprehended some of Great Demon God’s Divine Abilities. We can’t kill him, and attempting to will only cause more hatred between us. If that happens, in the future, when he really grows up, my Demon Land will be finished. That is not a risk worth taking!”
“Furthermore, that woman of the Ancient Demon Clan who is always by his side… This Senior can’t defeat her. As long as she is with Yang Kai, no one in this world can threaten his life.”
The two Demon Generals felt distraught. Although they had personally experienced Li Rong’s terrifying strength and had thought it comparable to the Demon Commander’s, Zhang Yuan personally admitting that he couldn’t beat her still brought great shock to them.
“Then what Senior said today…” Meng Ge started to speak but hesitated.
“I didn’t lie, I really do want to make friends with him. En, if you want to become friends with a person, you must do it while they are still weak, once they’ve become strong, it will be too late. Heed my words, no matter what kind of grudges you had with him before, consider them settled. Do not make any moves against him from now on; I don’t want to see the fragile relationship I worked so hard to establish just now being undermined by you.”
Meng Ge and Xue Li felt a complicated mix of emotions in their hearts and didn’t know what to say, so for now all they could do was nod.
……
Five days later, under the command of Yang Kai, thousands of people began migrating to Tong Xuan Realm through the Void Corridor.
After waiting for so many days, the people who were going to come should have already come while those who hadn’t likely wouldn’t ever, so there was no need to wait any longer.
What made Yang Kai feel gratified was that almost all of the friends he had made in this world were willing to entrust their lives to him and follow him to Tong Xuan Realm.
They all had great confidence in Yang Kai.
Yang Kai had stepped through the Void Corridor in advance together with Li Rong, Han Fei and Shi Kun to clean up the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple cultivators who were still lingering the cultivator that lingering nearby, sweeping clear essentially everyone within a fifty kilometer radius.
Shi Kun looked at Yang Kai with incomprehension and asked, “Holy Master, doing this will definitely bring about a lot of criticism. So long as we vacate a ten kilometer radius of the Void Corridor it should be more than sufficient.”
He didn’t quite understand why Yang Kai insisted on clearing such a large space.
“You’ll understand soon enough,” Yang Kai chuckled, staring at the nearby Void Corridor.
A group of people suddenly began emerging one after another. Naturally the first to come through were the people from the Yang Family, each of them staring around curiously, just like they had arrived in a new world, filled with excitement.
When they realized the richness of World Energy around them, all of them became ecstatic as they greedily breathed in the air, an expression on ecstasy appearing on their faces.
Under the guidance of Yang Kai, these first arriving Yang Family members flew up into the air and looked for an empty spot to wait while the rest of their fellow migrants came through.
A pretty figure was mixed in with the Yang Family and after walking out of the Void Corridor and looking around, she flew straight over to Yang Kai, a big smile upon her face as she landed in front of him.
“Your Qiu Family was supposed to be in the fourth group, how come you, their Matriarch, came here all on your own?” Yang Kai stared blankly at Qiu Yi Meng.
Qiu Yi Meng extended a hand to Yang Kai and bluntly stated, “I came for my gift.”
“What gift?”
“Didn’t you say it yourself? A couple days ago, you said that after we crossed over to this side, you’d deliver me a special present!” As she spoke, her beautiful eyes began to dim as she faintly said, “What’s wrong? You didn’t forget did you?”
“Oh, that gift!” Yang Kai suddenly comprehended, slapping his forehead before nodding, “Naturally I remember, I’ve already prepared it for you.”
Qiu Yi Meng’s mood immediately improved as she excitedly said, “Then give it to me quickly, if whatever it is doesn’t satisfy me though, I’ll make you regret it.”
“You’ll definitely be satisfied,” Yang Kai smiled and casually tapped Qiu Yi Meng’s shoulder.
“What are you doing?” Qiu Yi Meng looked at Yang Kai suspiciously before glancing over at the spot he had tapped, failing to notice anything out of the ordinary.
“I just consumed a great deal of my energy to help you break through your current realm,” Yang Kai said to her seriously, “Carefully examine yourself. Don’t you feel anything special?”
Qiu Yi Meng stared at him only half convinced, apparently quite wary of his words, but when she began examining herself, a stunned look appeared on her pretty face as she muttered, “Oh… It really seems like I’m about to break through.”
“Go and find a place to comprehend the mysteries of the next realm. The surrounding fifty-kilometre region has been cleared up and is perfectly safe,” Yang Kai waved his hand.
Qiu Yi Meng didn’t dare to delay and quickly flew off.
“Too easy,” Yang Kai sighed softly.
Li Rong and Han Fei both giggled nearby.
It took a full three days of work but finally, everyone arrived safely through the Void Corridor in Tong Xuan Realm.
Within a radius of fifty kilometres, many cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty had found suitable places, sat down cross-legged, and immersed themselves in the Heavenly Law and Martial Dao, shaking off the shackles which had chained them and breaking through to the next realm.
Because of the differences between the World Principles, all the cultivators arriving in Tong Xuan Realm were able to obtain a certain promotion in their strength.
The cultivators who were on the verge of a breakthrough could naturally take advantage of this opportunity to advance in one fell swoop.
This was also the case when Yang Kai first set foot in this world.
When the Ancient Demon Clan was brought out of the Mysterious Small World by Yang Kai, they too had experienced such a phenomenon.
Now, it was the turn of these cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty. Yang Kai was well aware that this would happen so he had cleared out the surrounding fifty-kilometre radius to ensure all his friends and family would have a safe environment to break through.
Of the several thousand people who had come to Tong Xuan Realm, at least one-third of them immediately achieved a breakthrough, and while the others weren’t as lucky as them, they were still quite satisfied as their own cultivation having experienced some improvements, scattering themselves about to stand guard for their companions who were in the midst of their breakthroughs.
Qiu Yi Meng flew over from a spot about ten kilometers away, grinding her teeth as she muttered under her breath, seemingly cursing something or someone.
Quickly arriving in front of Yang Kai, she leaned in and stared deeply at him, “Is this the ‘big present’ you prepared for me?”
“Not satisfied?” Yang Kai grinned.
“I’ve very satisfied with it, but what does it have to do with you? Open your eyes and look around for yourself. So many people are breaking through…” Qiu Yi Meng swept her hand around at the countless cultivators sitting cross-legged on the ground and inhaling the rich World Energy.
“Since you’re satisfied then you shouldn’t have anything to complain about, right?”
“Mark my words, I’ll make you regret disappointing this woman!” Qiu Yi Meng stamped her foot bitterly and no longer had enough patience to deal with Yang Kai, stomping off to where the Qiu Family had gathered.
Yang Kai scratched his head and wore a helpless look.
“Holy Master!” At that time, Shi Kun suddenly appeared and hurriedly said, “There is a large group of people approaching here and their demeanor is quite imposing.”
“Who are they?” Yang Kai frowned.
“Subordinate has not had enough time to investigate, but the other party is led by a Saint Realm master.”
“I’ll take a look,” Yang Kai said in a disgruntled tone. The only big force nearby was Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple, but after losing so many masters here, Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple seemed to have vanished. Before beginning the migration, Yang Kai had even let Li Rong go to the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple to survey the situation, but upon her return, she actually reported that the Sect was deserted.
Yang Kai couldn’t help wondering which group of ignorant people had now decided to run over.
Before he could go far, Yang Kai spotted some small black spots on the horizon that were rapidly approaching. As time passed, the figures among this group became clearer and clearer.
Sweeping this group of newcomers with his Divine Sense, Yang Kai’s expression suddenly became strange.
Among these people, he found that there was only a single First Order Saint Realm expert, the rest were just Transcendents and Immortal Ascension Boundary cultivators.
What he found strange though was not the strength of these people, but that there were many familiar auras among them.
After carefully examining them, Yang Kai suddenly burst into wry laughter.
The group of cultivators who were approaching had obviously also determined the situation here and stopped a kilometre or so out, their leader calling out, “May I ask, are several friends members of Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple? This humble one is Dragon Phoenix Palace’s Palace Master, Chen Zhou. I would like to consult with you about a certain matter.”
“Dragon Phoenix Palace?” Li Rong, who stood behind Yang Kai, wrinkled her brow, not having any impression of this Sect.
“They’re our own people,” Yang Kai said casually before shouting back, “Is Sun Yu with you?”
As soon as this question came out, the Dragon Phoenix Palace cultivators all frowned deeply and Palace Master Chen Zhou swiftly moved his body to cover a young man inside the crowd, preventing Yang Kai from seeing him.
“Disciple, someone is calling for you. Do you have a friend in Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple?” Ling Jian turned a suspicious look towards Sun Yu who was being protected on all sides.
As his master, Ling Jian knew best the life experiences of this disciple of his.
Sun Yu had been picked up by Ling Jian at a very young age and brought to the Dragon Phoenix Palace to cultivate. In all these years, Sun Yu had never left Dragon Phoenix Palace, in fact, if he had not strongly insisted on coming here now, how could Ling Jian dare bring him out so easily?
Now, Sun Yu was the hope of all of Dragon Phoenix Palace, he absolutely couldn’t have any accidents.
As a young man who had never left Dragon Phoenix Palace, how could Sun Yu have made an acquaintance in Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple? Ling Jian was genuinely confused.
Palace Master Chen Zhou also turned his attention to Sun Yu and asked, “Do you know the person who just shouted?”
Sun Yu, however, was so ecstatic he didn’t even respond to his Master or Palace Master Chen and instead stepped out from the crowd with a look of awe on his face and shouted, “Is that you, Senior Yang?”
Yang Kai smiled and nodded, “Yes!”
“It really is Senior Yang!” Sun Yu was overjoyed and couldn’t help rushing forward, leaving his fellow disciples and Elders behind as he flew over towards Yang Kai.
The masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace were shocked by this sudden development and quickly chased after him.
“Elder Ling, what background does this Senior Yang Sun Yu speaks of posses? Why does he seem so enthusiastic to meet him?” As they sped along, Chen Zhou asked curiously.
“This old master doesn’t know either,” Ling Jian was also confused.
As the spoke, everyone arrived in front of Yang Kai, Sun Yu looking more excited with every breath, respectfully cupping his fists, “Greetings Senior Yang. It turns out you already arrived here.”
Yang Kai nodded lightly, lifting his eyes from Sun Yu and staring at the crowd behind him.
Almost every master from Dragon Phoenix Palace had come out and were even now carefully guarding Sun Yu, directing vigilant looks all around in case someone here was harbouring ill intentions.
“Right, let me introduce you,” Sun Yu said spiritedly as he pointed to Yang Kai, “This is Senior Yang.”
He then pointed to the people from Dragon Phoenix Palace and said, “This is our Palace Master, Chen Zhou, this is my Master, Ling Jian, this is Elder Xiao Ling, this is…
As he introduced everyone one by one, Yang Kai nodded and said hello.
“What qualifications does this young man have to be called Senior?” Chen Zhou asked somewhat unhappily.
Sun Yu was now the Dragon Emperor of his Dragon Phoenix Palace, his true status far more important than even his own as Palace Master, yet now, meeting this youth, Sun Yu had actually enthusiastically called him Senior, making Chen Zhou feel very uncomfortable, as if doing so was a disgrace to Sun Yu’s identity as Dragon Emperor.
If Yang Kai had been a middle-aged man, Chen Zhou wouldn’t have paid it much mind, but the young man in front of him was clearly less than thirty years old.
“Palace Master, Senior Yang has a great graciousness to me, you must not speak disrespectfully to him,” Sun Yu snorted.
Chen Zhou stunned, his face becoming somewhat awkward as he cupped his fists and said, “I hope this friend will not take offence, this Chen’s mouth is simply a bit frank, I meant no disrespect.”
“Palace Master Chen is too serious,” Yang Kai didn’t care. Seeing Chen Zhou immediately compromise because of a few words from Sun Yu, Yang Kai fully comprehended how much importance Chen Zhou attached to him.
Nearby, Dragon Phoenix Palace’s Elder Xiao Ling was starring at Shi Kun and after hesitating for a moment, asked, “Dare I ask if Your Excellency is Elder Shi Kun of Nine Heavens Holy Land?”
“It is this Shi, have we met before?” Shi Kun looked at him curiously.
Xiao Ling smiled widely and called out in a fluster, “No wonder Your Excellency looked familiar. Six months ago, this Xiao once travelled to Nine Heavens Holy Land to seek the assistance of your Sect’s honoured Alchemy Grandmaster. At that time, Elder Shi Kun was sitting outside the nine peaks inside the stone pavilion so this Xiao had seen your face, but Elder Shi Kun probably does not have any impression of me.”
“Is that so…” Shi Kun nodded, every time he was on duty outside the nine peaks, he would see and greet dozens of people, how could remember all of them?
“Your Dragon Phoenix Palace came to request Alchemy services?” Yang Kai turned to Sun Yu and asked.
“En, Elder Xiao came back and said that there were many people waiting in line so he had to wait for a month before it was his turn,” Sun Yu laughed foolishly.
“Later if you need pills just ask me directly, you don’t have to wait in line,” Yang Kai declared.
In an instant, the look all the Dragon Phoenix Palace masters were directing at Yang Kai changed greatly.
Chen Zhou stammered as he hesitantly asked, “May I ask what relationship you have with Yang Kai, the Holy Master of Nine Heavens Holy Land?”
With the Holy Land Elder Shi Kun standing respectfully behind Yang Kai, it was clear who had the higher status.
Sun Yu had also called him Senior Yang.
Chen Zhou had a sharp mind and was quickly able to put together these clues, arriving at a certain possibility.
“This is my Holy Land’s Holy Master!” Shi Kun solemn replied.
Everyone from Dragon Phoenix Palace was shocked as they stared at Yang Kai in disbelief.
Chen Zhou’s expression became quite awkward as he cupped his fists and bowed, “So it is Holy Master Yang, a moment ago this Chen acted impolitely and offensively, I humbly request Holy Master Yang forgive my indiscretion.”
When he first saw him, Chen Zhou was unaware of Yang Kai’s identity and had even questioned him; how could he have known that this young man was actually one of the most prominent figures in the world?
The gulf in strength between Dragon Phoenix Palace and Nine Heavens Holy Land was enormous, if his boorish actions just now really angered Yang Kai, Dragon Phoenix Palace would definitely suffer a terrible end.
Realizing this, Chen Zhou couldn’t help feeling afraid as a chill shot up his spine.
“Palace Master Chen does not need to worry, I am a friends with Sun Yu, naturally I won’t care about such trivial things,” Yang Kai smiled faintly.
“Friends…” The masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace were all dumbfounded once again, each and every one of them showing an excited look, as if being friends with Yang Kai was a great honour.
Turning their gazes back to Sun Yu, their eyes filled with even greater worship.
Each of them was thinking in their hearts that the Dragon Emperor really was worthy of his title, even able to make friends with this grade of character.
He was still so young and weak yet he had won the favour of Nine Heavens Holy Land’s Holy Master. It also seemed like this Holy Master Yang was a man of great vision and had seen through Sun Yu’s extraordinariness.
As the masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace indulged in their flights of fancy and smiled happily to themselves, Yang Kai looked to Sun Yu and asked, “How come you are here?”
Sun Yu scratched his head, “Previously, Senior Yang asked me to inquire about a certain piece of news so when the Sect finally got word of a Mysterious Small World that seemed related to Senior Yang’s request, I requested to come investigate it personally. I didn’t think that Senior Yang would also be here though.”
“En, I also heard about it recently and came to investigate.”
“Then these people are…” Sun Yu swept his eyes around and soon discovered that there were some four or five thousand people gathered nearby, astonishing him greatly.
The strength of these several thousand cultivators was not high, only the couple dozen or so who had reached the Transcendent Realm were worthy of a little attention, while the rest were only at the Immortal Ascension and True Element Boundary.
This caused Sun Yu and the masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace to be quite curious, wondering where all these people had come from and what kind of relationship they had with Yang Kai.
“They’re all my friends and family,” Yang Kai explained casually before his expression turned serious, “In any case; I must offer you my thanks for this time.”
Because of a few words from Yang Kai, Sun Yu had actually done his best to have Dragon Phoenix Palace seek out news of his homeland and after obtaining a lead, had personally led a team of masters here.
This alone made Yang Kai very grateful.
At that time, Yang Kai had exhausted all his personal connections in the faint hope that they would discover something.
Yang Kai could just imagine what it was like when Sun Yu insisted on going out this time. The masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace must have vehemently objected but he still had not hesitated to come.
This young man had a character of gold!
“Shi Kun, after we return, speak with Great Elder and let him announce that from now on, our Holy Land will be close friends with Dragon Phoenix Palace,” Yang Kai said seemingly thoughtlessly.
“Yes!” Shi Kun quickly responded.
“This…” Chen Zhou wrung his hands nervously as a smile blossomed on his face, at somewhat of a loss for words, finally managing to stammer out, “I don’t know what to say.”
Dragon Phoenix Palace was not at all formidable now yet Nine Heavens Holy Land’s was among the most powerful and famous Sects in the world and had a profound and mysterious Alchemy Grandmaster within its ranks; which Sect did not want to establish ties with Nine Heavens Holy Land? Once they were able to forge such a relationship, the benefits they would receive would be enormous, at the very least; they would never have to worry about obtaining Saint Pills in the future.
Chen Zhou had never expected that this Holy Master Yang would be so congenial, causing his heart to shake and his thoughts to spin.
His face blushing bright red with excitement, Chen Zhou hastily said, “This Chen sincerely thanks Holy Master Yang for his kind intentions, just as you said, Dragon Phoenix Palace will advance and retreat together with Nine Heavens Holy Land in the future!”
Chen Zhou was not an inexperienced character and had seen his fair share of great storms, but his heart was still thrown into chaos because of these few words from Yang Kai.
“Palace Master Chen is too polite. Right, since you’ve come, I have a favour to ask of you,” Yang Kai suddenly thought of something.
“Please speak it, Holy Master Yang,” Chen Zhou replied sincerely.
“As Palace Master Chen has surely seen, the cultivations of my friends and family are not very high and the distance from here to Nine Heavens Holy Land is quite far. Perhaps there will be accidents on the road like this. If it is convenient, could I request Chen Palace Master to help me escort them home?” Yang Kai smiled and said, “Of course, when we arrive at the Holy Land, I will provide a generous reward.”
Hearing these last words, the eyes of all the Dragon Phoenix Palace masters lit up.
Sun Yu quickly waved his hand, “Senior Yang need not be so polite with us, whatever matter it is you need our assistance with, please feel free to speak it and we will surely comply. As for a reward, there is no need for such a thing.”
Chen Zhou hurriedly composed himself and nodded, “Indeed, Holy Master Yang does not need to treat my Dragon Phoenix Palace as outsiders.”
Yang Kai gently nodded, “Then… I’ll have to trouble you all for a time.”
Sun Yu smiled happily, “Very good, it seems I’ll have another chance to learn from Senior Yang.”
The people from Dragon Phoenix Palace immediately dispersed under the arrangements of Chen Zhou to patrol the surrounding area.
They hadn’t brought a lot of people here, only about thirty or forty in total, but most of them were Transcendent, so with such a group of masters joining them, the caravan would definitely be safer. After all, these masters were natives of Tong Xuan Realm and were very familiar with how things worked here, unlike the Great Han Dynasty cultivators who essentially knew nothing about this place.
Ling Jian quietly pulled Sun Yu aside and whispered, “Little disciple, when did you become acquainted with Holy Master Yang? From how you spoke just now, it was almost as if you had studied with him for a time? Why don’t I, your Master, know anything about that?”
Sun Yu didn’t dare speak the truth so he just left Ling Jian guessing.
Two days later, everything was ready and the several thousand people convey set out for Nine Heavens Holy Land.
These cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty were filled with excitement, all of them staring around curiously, pointing out various new and interesting things from time to time, gathering together in small groups and whispering amongst themselves.
The people from Dragon Phoenix Palace had also become incredibly popular with each of them constantly being surrounded by countless cultivators, all of them asking questions about Tong Xuan Realm.
The Dragon Phoenix Palace’s masters did not dare to neglect these relatives and friends of Yang Kai, answering anything they were asked all day long, their moods somewhat confused, not knowing whether to laugh or cry about this group of country bumpkins.
They had found that these people were ignorant of even the most basic common sense things.
Many of them were curious what kind of backwater Mysterious Small World these people used to line in.
At the back of the caravan, Yang Kai and Sun Yu walked side by side. Sun Yu would ask questions about the Martial Dao from time to time, and Yang Kai would happily teach him.
Not far away, Dragon Phoenix Palace’s Palace Master Chen Zhou actually had his gaze fixed on two pretty figures who were walking slightly ahead of him, a pensive look upon his face.
Perceiving this, a thought came to Yang Kai and he took the initiative to ask, “Has Palace Master Chen discovered something interesting?”
Chen Zhou smiled and said, “It’s not a big deal, I just found it strange how similar those two girls in front are. Not only do they share identical appearances, but even their life auras and True Qi fluctuations are exactly the same. The only difference between them is their temperaments. If Holy Master Yang had not said they had just come to Tong Xuan Realm, I would have thought they came from a certain Sect.”
Yang Kai raised his brow and shouted, “Jiao’er, Mei’er!”
The Hu Sisters, who were walking not far ahead, heard this shouts and hurriedly turned around. After approaching Yang Kai, Hu Jiao’er asked, “What is it?”
Yang Kai ignored her and instead turned to look at Chen Zhou, “Which Sect did Palace Master Chen think they came from?”
Chen Zhou stared at them for a moment before replying, “Twin Spirit Pavilion, I don’t know if Holy Master Yang has heard of it.”
[Just as I thought.]
Yang Kai nodded, “Naturally I have heard of it, I also heard that this Twin Spirit Pavilion and your honoured Sect have been on good terms for a long time.”
“En, the relationship between our two Sects truly is quite good, but there are many complicated reasons for that,” Chen Zhou smiled bitterly and said.
These two Sects had been close for many generations going back thousands of years.
Just as Yang Kai had suspected, Dragon Phoenix Palace and Twin Spirit Pavilion had both once been extremely powerful Sects, standing at the peak of the Human Territory, comparable to today’s Nine Heavens Holy Land.
But for some unknown reason, the top masters of Twin Spirit Pavilion had at some point disappeared along with the Dragon Emperor and Phoenix Empress, causing their core inheritances to become lost and their Sects to decline.
The two Sects had originally been close, and after suffering similar hardships, had only grown more intimate over the years.
“Our Dragon Phoenix Palace is still better off though thanks to Sun Yu successfully obtaining the Dragon Emperor’s inheritance. Now, so long as he can find an appropriate Phoenix Empress candidate, my Dragon Phoenix Palace will surely be able to reproduce the glory of its past. But Twin Spirit Pavilion… haa… there is still no word on the location of their core inheritance,” Chen Zhou said with a complicated expression, somewhat happy yet somewhat sad.
Sun Yu, who was nearby, lowered his head, not daring to say anything.
“Twin Spirit Pavilion?” Hu Jiao Er, who had been listening up until now, suddenly showed some reaction, a slightly excited look appearing on her face as she asked, “What kind of Sect is this Twin Spirit Pavilion?”
Chen Zhou chuckled, “It is a very special Sect because they only recruit twin brothers or sisters. As such, all this force’s disciples form pairs, en, actually this point is quite similar to our Dragon Phoenix Palace, but they cultivate a shared life Secret Art while we specialize in a life partner dual cultivation art.”
“A force that only recruits twins?” The Hu Sisters’ beautiful eyes lit up.
“Yes, on top of that, all their disciple pairs give off a feeling that they are the same person, quite similar to the two of you. After cultivating their Secret Art, each pair of twin brothers or sisters have their True Qi fluctuations and life auras gradually become the same, allowing the two to join forces and multiply their respective strengths; however, the two of you seem to be even fiercer than them. I have also travelled to the Twin Spirit Pavilion many times and met many of their disciples, but none of them were comparable to you two.”
“Senior, do you know what the name of the Secret Art they cultivate is?” Hu Jiao Er hurriedly asked, a look of expectation flashing across her beautiful eyes.
Yang Kai glanced over at her, knowing what she was suspecting.
“Their Secret Art seems to be called the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art… but it is now incomplete. Although after so many generations the section which was lost has been made up, somewhat through their own efforts, they have still been unable to reproduce the glory of their ancestors,” Chen Zhou said casually; a Sect’s cultivation technique should not be leaked out, but having its name be known wasn’t a big deal.
“It really is!” Hu Jiao’er’s tender body trembled as her beautiful eyes practically glittered with brilliance.
“Elder Sister…” Hu Mei’er also covered her mouth and whispered incredulously, “Isn’t that the name of the Secret Art we obtained?”
“You managed to obtain it?” Chen Zhou called out in alarm as he stared at the Hu Sisters with great shock.
Hu Jiao’er sincerely nodded, “The name of our two sisters’ cultivation technique is the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art, and it could be related to Twin Spirit Pavilion?”
“How could it not be related?” Chen Zhou said excitedly, “Surely that was the lost inheritance of Twin Spirit Pavilion. I never expected it would be obtained by you two; no wonder your auras are so consistent!”
Saying so, Chen Zhou suddenly burst into laughter, “If Wu Fa and Wu Tian learned of this matter, I’m afraid they would be too excited to even sleep.”
“Wu Fa and Wu Tian?” Yang Kai asked.
“En, the two Sect Masters of Twin Spirit Pavilion are called Wu Fa and Wu Tian, they are twin brothers,” Chen Zhou explained quickly.
“Such names… Yang Kai was secretly amazed and couldn’t help chuckling to himself. These two names were far too arrogant and could easily provoke hatred. If some short-tempered master was to bump into them and they announced themselves, it would surely lead to a fight.
“Originally that Secret Art came from that Twin Spirit Pavilion,” Hu Jiao’er wore a complicated look.
Since she and her sister obtained the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art, their destiny had undergone a great change. The rate at which the two of them improved their strengths was now many times greater than an average cultivator, allowing them in just over a decade to break through to the Transcendent Realm, becoming some of the strongest masters in the entire Great Han Dynasty.
The two of them were naturally very grateful to this profound Secret Art and to the Senior who had left it behind for them to discover.
Now that they knew the source of this Secret Art, both of them couldn’t help thinking about paying Twin Spirit Pavilion a visit to take a look at the Sect from which it originated as well as to see other twin brothers and sisters who cultivated the same Secret Art as them.
Yang Kai naturally did not miss what the Hu Sisters were thinking.
Moreover, Yang Kai had long ago planned for such a possibility.
Just because they mistakenly believed Sun Yu was the Dragon Emperor, Chen Zhou and the other masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace treated him like the most precious of treasures. If the Hu Sisters were to return the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art to Twin Spirit Pavilion, they would obviously receive similar treatment.
They would surely become the rising stars and future hope of the Twin Spirit Pavilion!
Because what they had obtained was the most orthodox version of the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art, not one that had been cobbled together by Twin Spirit Pavilion’s descendants.
What was of even more importance though was that Twin Spirit Pavilion might have information the Hu Sisters needed. Over the years, the two sisters had been struggling all on their own, and although their cultivations had reached the Transcendent Realm, such strength was insignificant in Tong Xuan Realm.
The cultivators of Twin Spirit Pavilion who had immersed themselves in the study of the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art for centuries undoubtedly had a deeper understanding of it than them and would be able to teach them their insight and experiences, greatly increasing the rate of the Hu Sisters’ progress.
“Yang Kai, we’d like to…” Hu Jiao’er turned to Yang Kai hesitantly, but he simply lifted his hand to interrupt her next words.
“Palace Master Chen, what is the temperament of Twin Spirit Pavilion’s Sect Masters?” Yang Kai asked. He understood the Hu Sisters’ thoughts, but that alone was not enough for him to feel relieved sending them to Twin Spirit Pavilion.
“Regarding their demeanour, Holy Master Yang may feel at ease. I have been dealing with them for many years and they are upright people. Twin Spirit Pavilion has very few disciples, only about a thousand people in total, so they always act prudently and never do anything that would bring disrepute upon themselves. Although there are only about a thousand of them, the position of the Twin Spirit Pavilion in Tong Xuan Realm is not worse than that of my Dragon Phoenix Palace. Both Wu Fa and Wu Tian are First Order Saints, the same as this Chen, but when they collaborate, they are capable of defeating most Second-Order Saints,” Chen Zhou explained happily.
“Then there should be no issues,” Yang Kai nodded.
Chen Zhou’s eyes flashed, “If these two young ladies can bring the complete Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art to Twin Spirit Pavilion, Wu Fa and Wu Tian will certainly be ecstatic!”
“There’s no rush, Jiao’er and Mei’er will first return back to Nine Heavens Holy Land with me. It won’t be too late for them to make a decision once we arrive,” Yang Kai chuckled.
“En,” The Hu Sisters did not hesitate to agree.
“Then… can this Chen send a message to Wu Fa and Wu Tian to inform them of the good news?” Chen Zhou asked cautiously as he observed Yang Kai’s expression.
“En, I shall trouble Palace Master Chen to do so,” Yang Kai nodded.
“Many thanks,” Chen Zhou replied gratefully before quickly summoning over Elder Xiao Ling of Dragon Phoenix Palace and letting him quickly travel to Twin Spirit Pavilion to convey the word of the Hu Sisters to Wu Fa and Wu Tian.
Dragon Phoenix Palace and Twin Spirit Pavilion had always had a good relationship, and Chen Zhou, Wu Fa and Wu Tian were also on good terms. When Sun Yu had obtained the Dragon Emperor’s Inheritance, allowing the Dragon Emperor’s prestige to reappear after thousands of years, Chen Zhou had felt somewhat regretful for Twin Spirit Pavilion even though he was happy for his own sect. Now that Chen Zhou saw hope in the Hu Sisters, he wanted to let his two friends know as soon as possible so they too could rejoice.
Yang Kai soon left to join the rest of the caravan, walking alongside and chatting with Ling Tai Xu.
It was difficult for Hu Jiao’er and Hu Mei’er to hide their excitement, each of them taking a spot next to Chen Zhou and constantly asking him about Twin Spirit Pavilion’s current situation.
Chen Zhou did not conceal anything and happily answered the two you girls’ questions.
“Holy Master Yang is quite considerate of you two,” Chen Zhou suddenly smiled mysteriously.
“What does Senior mean?” Hu Jiao’er asked, confused.
Chen Zhou explained, “Holy Master Yang insisted that you two first go to Nine Heavens Holy Land with him while allowing me to send a message to Twin Spirit Pavilion. Now, if Wu Fa and Wu Tian wish to meet with you, they must first travel to Nine Heavens Holy Land! Knowing you have a close relationship with Holy Master Yang, Wu Fa and Wu Tian will certainly not mistreat you in the future. On the contrary, they will regard you as their Sect’s future hope. If both of you had instead gone directly to Twin Spirit Pavilion, the situation may not be the same.”
Hu Jiao’er thought about it for a moment and felt that this was reasonable, her beautiful eyes glancing over towards Yang Kai who was walking in front of them and pouting slightly, “He’s always up to something.”
“He acted so for your own well being,” Chen Zhou nodded with an ambiguous smile, seemingly having noticed something.
……
After three long months of travelling, the several thousand person caravan was finally approaching their destination. When this news spread out, everyone felt very excited.
After so long, these cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty were all thoroughly exhausted, their initially vibrant curiosity giving way to the desire to find a quiet place and quickly begin enjoying the rich World Energy aura of Tong Xuan Realm.
This world was many times better in terms of cultivation environment compared to the Great Han Dynasty, causing all of these cultivators to secretly anticipate what kind of development they would achieve in the future.
From Nine Heavens Holy Land a few hundred kilometres away, a group of figures flew out.
Upon arriving, each of these people cupped their fists and greeted, “Holy Master!”
All of the Holy Land’s Elders had rushed out to welcome this caravan, their eyes curiously sweeping over these several thousand people.
Yang Kai gently nodded and asked, “Is everything ready?”
Great Elder Xu Hui nodded, “Everything has been prepared. When Elder Shi Kun arrived a few days ago, we immediately began tidying up War Spirit Temple’s old site. Although there are still some places in need of repair, we can begin moving people in at any time.”
“Not a problem,” Yang Kai nodded and expressed his satisfaction.
There were roughly three thousand disciples of Nine Heavens Holy Land, and now Yang Kai had brought back four or five thousand people with him. The nine peaks did not have enough space to comfortably place all of these people, and even if they squished everyone in, the supply of World Energy wouldn’t be sufficient to supply so many cultivators.
Therefore, Yang Kai had long ago decided to place his friends and family in a different location.
The old sites of Shattering Mystical Palace and War Spirit Temple were both good choices.
These two Sects had originally been set up in locations with rich World Energy and beautiful scenery, so they were quite suitable for long-term residence. The most important thing was that there were many buildings already in place.
However, Shattering Mystical Palace now had a constantly open entrance to the Starry Sky, so Yang Kai didn’t feel comfortable settling the Great Han Dynasty cultivators there and decided to use War Spirit Temple’s site instead.
Yang Kai had sent Shi Kun ahead a month ago to convey his instructions to Nine Heavens Holy Land.
Now it appeared that all the arrangements on that side had been completed.
All that was left was for the people brought over by Yang Kai to move in.
War Spirit Temple was not far from Nine Heavens Holy Land and was actually located right between the Holy Land and Netherworld Sect, so if anyone ever wanted to act against them, they would first have to pass through Nine Heavens Holy Land or Netherworld. Sect.
This was the strongest guarantee of the Great Han Dynasty cultivators’ safety.
Yang Kai had informed everyone about these things on their way here and the various leaders like Yang Zhao, Qiu Yi Meng, and Huo Xing Chen had said that there were no problems with his arrangements.
Living in the former site of War Spirit Temple would be convenient for them if they ever needed to look for Yang Kai or visit Nine Heavens Holy Land in the future as the two were only half an hour apart.
As the huge caravan walked forward, Yang Kai introduced the Elders of the Holy Land to the various leaders of the forces from the Great Han Dynasty, allowing them to mingle with each other.
Towards these people brought by Yang Kai, Xu Hui and others showed great humbleness, causing many of the young leaders to feel quite flattered.
All of them were quite clear that with their pitiful cultivation, if they were not close friends of Yang Kai, these Saint Realm masters may not even deem them worthy to look at.
But now, all these powerful masters who had lived for hundreds of years treated them with politeness and courtesy.
For a moment, these leaders felt a subtle sense of excitement and were once again profoundly taught about how extraordinary Yang Kai’s status in this world was.
“Holy Master Yang, since we have arrived, we shall take our leave,” Chen Zhou suddenly came up to Yang Kai and said.
They had been away from Dragon Phoenix Palace for several months now so it was high time for them to go back.
“Palace Master Chen must be tired after such a long journey, please stay in my Holy Land for a few days and allow me to offer you my hospitality,” Yang Kai sincerely said. Along the road, there were indeed many incidents they had helped to resolve.
With thousands of people slowly walking together, there were always a few fellows without eyes who came to stir up trouble, and if they had not been handled properly by the masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace, Yang Kai might have killed them all.
Chen Zhou and the others had escorted them all the way to the doorsteps of the Holy Land so Yang Kai was not about to just let them leave like this.
“This…” Chen Zhou hesitated.
“Since Senior Yang has invited us, we should not refuse,” Sun Yu interjected.
Chen Zhou smiled bitterly, “You kid…”
Relenting, Chen Zhou nodded and cupped his fists, “Then we shall be imposing on you.”
Yang Kai smiled with satisfaction.
Sun Yu quietly arrived beside Yang Kai and whispered, “Senior Yang, when can I tell Palace Master and the others the truth of this matter? Every time I see them acting so respectful towards me, I feel a deep sense of guilt.”
“After this time’s matter has been processed, I will go find someone and then bring them to your Dragon Phoenix Palace to explain everything.”
“Really?” Sun Yu asked excitedly.
“En.”
“Is the one Senior Yang is going to look for the Phoenix Empress?” Sun Yu casually guessed.
But to his surprise, Yang Kai readily admitted, “Yes!”
It was about time for him to seek out Su Yan and bring her back. She had been in Ice Sect for more than a decade now and it had been seven years since Yang Kai had last met with her. Now that everyone from High Heaven Pavilion had come to Tong Xuan Realm, he should allow her to return home.
After bringing her back and allowing her to obtain the Phoenix Empress’ Inheritance, presumably her cultivation would soar upwards!
Yang Kai was quite looking forward to it.
After an hour, the huge convoy passed by the nine peaks and, under the orders of Yang Kai, Xu Hui invited the group of masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace into Nine Heavens Holy Land and personally entertained them.
Meanwhile, the others moved on towards the old site of War Spirit Temple.
Yang Kai has already instructed Xu Hui to deliver some pills to Dragon Phoenix Palace as thanks for their efforts. Xu Hui would have no trouble handling this.
Another hour later, everyone finally arrived at the former site of War Spirit Temple.
From far away, Wu Jie of Netherworld Sect flew over, cupped his fists and bowed, “Holy Master Yang, long time no see.”
“Sect Master Wu, why are you here?” Yang Kai was surprised.
Wu Jie chuckled lightly, “Things have been quiet in the Sect lately so I brought some of my disciples here to lend a helping hand. Are these the people from Holy Master Yang’s hometown? There are a lot of them.”
As he spoke, Wu Jie glanced behind Yang Kai and was secretly surprised.
“En, they will live here from now on and will be neighbours to your Netherworld Sect, so I will have to trouble Sect Master Wu to look after them every now and then.”
“Rest assured, as long as my Netherworld Sect exists, no one will cross its defences and trouble this place,” Wu Jie struck his chest proudly and promised.
Inside the former site of War Spirit Temple, the various cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty began settling in and after ten days of discussion, each force had its own place.
War Spirit Temple originally had several thousand disciples, so even though there were many cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty, it was not a problem to fit them all in.
With new homes in a new environment, everyone felt a sense of prosperity.
Yang Kai summoned the leaders of the various forces and warned them about several things, especially the passage to the Starry Sky gate inside Shattering Mystical Palace, making sure none of them allowed their people to enter it at will.
That was a place where even if Saints went in, they were almost guaranteed to die, let alone this group of people from the Great Han Dynasty.
“This world is very different from the Great Han Dynasty, here you cannot act the same as before. All of you must regard one another as one whole family. Although you may need years, or even tens of years to fully integrate into this world, and the road ahead will be challenging, the room for development here is also far greater compared to the other side,” Yang Kai said as he looked out across the crowd.
The leaders of the various forces all nodded. Since they were willing to follow Yang Kai here, they were naturally prepared for all this.
If they wanted to develop and thrive here, they would need to put aside their differences and band together, abandoning their previous Sect and Family identities to become one cohesive force.
There was no need for Yang Kai to mention such matters, this was something they all understood.
Fortunately, at present, the leaders of each force basically came from the younger generation, so their mindsets were more flexible.
The Holy Land sent over a large number of cultivation materials and evenly distributed them to everyone here, so the Great Han Dynasty cultivators had no need to worry about securing resources and could instead focus on improving their own cultivation realms.
The Holy Land could now easily collect this amount of cultivation materials as the five Grandmasters and Xia Ning Chang were constantly receiving requests for Alchemy services. With the storm of the Mysterious Small Worlds dying down, the number of people coming to the Holy Land for pills was gradually increasing again.
The Holy Land’s daily income was now enough to support ten Holy Lands, so naturally there was no issue supplying resources to the Great Han cultivators.
During these ten days, Xia Ning Chang had also come over and stayed awhile, spending time greeting everyone from High Heaven Pavilion, but because there were so many people requesting Alchemy services from the Holy Land, after a few days she had to return.
Another ten days passed by and everything had finally settled down.
In a corner of the former War Spirit Temple grounds, Yang Kai came across Ling Tai Xu standing atop of mountain peak, quietly gazing out across the world, and called out, “Grand Master!”
Ling Tai Xu looked back and nodded with a smile, “Have you grow tired after all these days of hard work?”
“Not at all,” Yang Kai smiled, “It was my greatest wish since I first came to this world to bring my family and friends here.”
Ling Tai Xu revealed a look of approval as he nodded, “This time, you have splendidly dealt with all possible issues, I believe everyone who has come here is deeply thankful to you.”
Yang Kai gently inhaled, revealing a worried look, “The only thing I worry about now is if there will be any contradictions in the future.”
Ling Tai Xu however just laughed, “There will definitely be contradiction; after all, the people who came here come from far too many forces, but you don’t have to worry about that, no one here is unreasonable, so even if contradictions arise, they will be able to find solutions on their own. As long as they have the heart to come together, after one or two generations have passed, they will truly become one family. Everything is just a matter of time.”
“I hope so,” Yang Kai nodded.
He had done what he should do, the rest would be up to the efforts of the cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty.
“Kai’er, that Soaring Heaven Sect you mentioned on the way here… Ling Tai Xu suddenly changed the subject, “Is it true that the Ancestral Founder for my High Heaven Pavilion is there?”
“En,” Yang Kai nodded sincerely, “It’s absolutely true. When disciple first came to this world, I received much care from the Ancestral Founder as well as my Martial Uncles and Martial Aunt.”
On the journey to the Holy Land, Yang Kai had spoken about the relationship between High Heaven Pavilion and Soaring Heaven Sect. At that time, the Ling Tai Xu was very interested and excited; now that he was suddenly bringing it up again, it was obvious what he was planning.
“Ancestral Founder is still alive…” Ling Tai Xu’s face showed a fascinated look, “His strength is probably quite profound, yes?”
“Among the highest level in this world!” Yang Kai quickly said.
Ling Tai Xu took a deep breath, “I wish to greet him!”
He was the former Sect Master of High Heaven Pavilion, but compared with Chu Ling Xiao, he was still several generations lower. Now that Ling Tai Xu knew that the Sect’s Ancestral Founder was still alive, naturally he wanted to meet him.
“I’ll take you,” Yang Kai said immediately.
“There’s no need for that, you have many things to attend to, just find someone who knows the way there and have them show me the way,” Ling Tai Xu waved his hand.
Yang Kai smiled meaningfully, “If I let someone else take Grand Master there, it will be at least a four-month round trip, but if disciple takes you, it will only take a few days to go back and forth.”
“Oh?” Ling Tai Xu’s brow rose, “Do you have the means to travel so quickly?”
“Grand Master will have to experience it to understand,” Yang Kai chuckled, thinking for a moment before saying, “Let’s also bring Su Mu along.”
Ling Tai Xu pondered for a bit before nodding, “Good, regardless of anything else, he is now the Sect Master of High Heaven Pavilion. Coming with me to meet Ancestral Founder is only appropriate.”
Yang Kai immediately released his Divine Sense to search for Su Mu.
An incense stick worth of time later, Su Mu rushed over, “Brother-in-law, Former Sect Master, why did you suddenly summon me?”
“To lead you to see the Sect’s Ancestral Founder!” Yang Kai grinned and summoned the Flying Heavens Shuttle, leaping aboard before beckoning to Su Mu and Ling Tai Xu.
After the two also boarded, the Flying Heavens Shuttle immediately transformed into a blue streak of light and disappeared.
Feeling the terrifying speed of the Flying Heavens Shuttle, Ling Tai Xu and Su Mu both paled.
Su Mu exclaimed, “Brother-in-law, what is this artifact? Isn’t its speed too incredible?”
He was also now a Transcendent, yet when he released his Divine Sense into the surroundings, he was unable to capture the flow of scenery around him, which meant that the Flying Heavens Shuttle could fly at least several times faster than he could expand his Divine Sense.
“It’s called the Flying Heavens Shuttle, a flight type artifact,” Yang Kai explained casually.
“This thing is amazing. At such a speed, if I ever wanted to visit Nine Heavens Holy Land in the future, I’m afraid the trip would only take the blink of an eye,” Su Mu shouted excitedly, “Brother-in-law, make one for me too!”
Yang Kai’s face went black.
Ling Tai Xu saw this and smiled, “You should give up such wishful thinking, I’m afraid this artifact is not easy to acquire.”
“En, in all the world, this is the only one,” Yang Kai nodded.
Su Mu was inevitably disappointed upon realizing just how precious and rare the Flying Heavens Shuttle was, “Brother-in-law, you being able to obtain a unique treasure like this is really the good fortunes of Heaven… Right, a moment ago you mentioned something about bringing me to see the Ancestral Founder? What Ancestral Founder?”
Yang Kai quickly explained about Chu Ling Xiao and Soaring Heaven Sect.
After listening to him, Su Mu couldn’t help looking forward to this meeting.
Along the way, Yang Kai took advantage of this opportunity to teach some knowledge about Tong Xuan Realm to Su Mu and Ling Tai Xu.
Two days later, they arrived at Soaring Heaven Sect.
Yang Kai rushed directly into Serene Resplendent Peak.
Before he could enter the mountain cave though, a tender shout reached his ears, “Little Martial Nephew!”
Turning his head towards the source of the voice, Yang Kai saw his Martial Aunt Fei Yu standing not far away, apparently having already noticed his arrival. Beside her was Cang Yan, Li Wan and Fei Jian.
Yang Kai smiled happily and rushed over with Ling Tai Xu and Su Mu.
“I was just wondering which blind bastard dared to break into my Serene Resplendent Peak, but it turns out it’s just you returning,” Fei Yu said full of enthusiasm, her beautiful eyes sweeping over Yang Kai as she angrily said, “You never send word in advance and always just appear and disappear so mysteriously.”
“I just arrived,” Yang Kai laughed, “In any case, it’s not like we’re strangers.”
“The only one who dares to come and go freely from my Serene Resplendent Peak is you. If Li Wan or the rest dared to do this, I would knock all their teeth out without question,” Fei Yu snorted.
Li Wan made a pitiful face as he complained, “Why are you pulling me into this? I’ve never come in and out of this place without letting you know.”
“These two are…” Cang Yan cast his eyes curiously towards Ling Tai Xu and Su Mu, not knowing why Yang Kai would bring these two people to Soaring Heaven Sect.
“This is my Grand Master Ling Tai Xu that I mentioned to you before, and this is my Junior Brother Su Mu, en, he is now the Sect Master of the High Heaven Pavilion.”
“High Heaven Pavilion!” The four of them were quite shocked as they asked, “The Sect Martial Ancestor created in that other world?”
“En.”
“High Heaven Pavilion’s Ling Tai Xu greets Senior Brothers and Senior Sister!” Ling Tai Xu is a cupped his fists and politely bowed. Although his appearance made him look much older than Cang Yan and the others, Ling Tai Xu knew that in terms of true age each of the four before him was much older than himself, so it was only a matter of course to call them Senior Brothers and Senior Sister.
“Su Mu greets Martial Uncles and Martial Aunt!” Su Mu also hurriedly saluted.
“Good good good!” Cang Yan laughed as he and the other three returned the courtesy, “So Junior Brother and Martial Nephew are here to recognize your ancestors and return to your homeland. Good, Martial Ancestor will be very happy when he learns of this.”
“What about the others from High Heaven Pavilion?” Fei Yu kindly inquired.
“I have settled them in a place near Nine Heavens Holy Land. The journey from there to here is too far and they have only just arrived in Tong Xuan Realm so I have not led them here today.”
“That’s fine, if there is a chance in the future, you can bring them here,” Cang Yan nodded, “Come, let me take you to see Martial Ancestor. We just so happen to have something to discuss with him as well.”
“Then I’ll trouble Senior Brother to lead the way,” Ling Tai Xu’s heart pounded with excitement.
Inside Chu Ling Xiao’s secluded room, the group of people looked for a place and sat down cross-legged; after learning about Ling Tai Xu and Su Mu’s origins, Chu Ling Xiao also felt some rising emotions.
After a moment of silence, Chu Ling Xiao said, “In the past, I founded High Heaven Pavilion as a temporary plan. I could not remain forever to watch over that Demon General’s body so I casually found some disciples and taught them a few things, but I hadn’t thought that after leaving, those few disciples would continue to carry forward High Heaven Pavilion for so long. En, I was somewhat negligent in my responsibilities. If I had known things would turn out this way, I would have left some better Secret Arts and Martial Skills there. These years must have been hard for you.”
“Ancestral Founder is too serious,” Ling Tai Xu hurriedly said, “It was all thanks to Ancestral Founder that disciple can have today’s achievements. Disciple now being able to greet Ancestral Founder in this lifetime is already the greatest blessing of High Heaven Pavilion’s ancestors. If they were to learn of this in the afterlife, I’m sure they would smile happily.”
“Good,” Chu Ling Xiao gently nodded, a look of gratitude appearing on his face.
Chu Ling Xiao was quite concerned about the current situation of High Heaven Pavilion and Ling Tai Xu also had many things he wished to talk about with the Ancestral Founder. Seeing that they would not be finished any time soon, Fei Yu beckoned to Yang Kai while quietly withdrawing.
Yang Kai excused himself and followed after her.
Outside the secret room, following Yang Kai, Cang Yan and the others also came out.
They had come here to report something to Chu Ling Xiao, but seeing him immersed in his discussion with Ling Tai Xu, they decided their matter could wait.
“Little Martial Nephew, I heard that your Nine Heavens Holy Land is developing quite well, yes?” Fei Yu asked Yang Kai with a smile.
“Things are alright,” Yang Kai chuckled.
“I also heard that your Nine Heavens Holy Land Saintesses are completely obedient to the Holy Master. Is that really the case? Little Martial Nephew, have you found a few Saintesses already?” Li Wan’s eyes glanced around, a false look of concern appearing on his face as he said, “Although you’re still young and strong, everything should be done in moderation lest you hurt yourself.”
Yang Kai’s face cramped up, not knowing how he should respond, instead choosing to forcefully change the subject, “Martial Uncles, Martial Aunt, did you all just come back from the outside?”
“En,” Cang Yan nodded, “We were out investigating the Snow Mountain Range’s situation.”
“Oh? Why? What happened?” Yang Kai asked curiously.
The four looked at each other, with Fei Yu eventually saying, “Little Martial Nephew is not an outsider, is there any need to conceal things?”
Cang Yan nodded, “We should discuss it, it will also be good to inform Little Martial Nephew so he can let Nine Heavens Holy Land pay attention.”
Seeing their expression become dignified, Yang Kai immediately realized that the situation was more complicated than he anticipated, otherwise how could four Saint Realm masters treat it so seriously?
“Come with us,” Fei Yu waved her hand and led Yang Kai together with the other three towards a certain direction.
“About half a year ago, the world’s Mysterious Small World all opened on their own, Little Martial Nephew should know about this, yes?” Cang Yan asked as they walked.
“Naturally,” Yang Kai gently nodded. Not only did he know about it, but he was also quite suspicious about whether these Mysterious Small Worlds opening on their own had something to do with him destroying the space which was guarded by Great Demon God’s Soul Clone.
Although he had no definitive evidence, the timing was quite consistent, with all the entrances to the various Mysterious Small Worlds appearing just after he destroyed that space.
“We don’t know if the two situations are related to one another, but after the entrances to all the Mysterious Small Worlds opened, an incident inside the Snow Mountain Range occurred.”
“What kind of incident?” Yang Kai asked.
“A top-level master strangely appeared,” Cang Yan replied in a low tone.
“Top-level master?”
“A Third Order Saint!”
Yang Kai wore a look of shock.
There were only a handful of Third Order Saints across the world, with the total number among all three races adding up to no more than twenty.
Yang Kai knew that there were only five such masters amongst the Demon Race. Besides the Demon Commander Zhang Yuan, there were the four Demon General.
On the Monster Race’s side, only the three Great Seniors had arrived at such a cultivation, namely Scarlet Flame Thunder Dragon, Divine Ox, and Ice Jade Python.
The number amongst the Human Race was slightly more, but not by a wide margin.
Such a master inexplicably appearing in the Snow Mountain Range was naturally an incident worthy of note.
“What race is he from?” Yang Kai hurriedly asked.
When he did so though, the expressions of his four Martial Seniors suddenly became strange, Cang Yan only responding after a brief silence, “It was because we were uncertain of what race he belonged to that we were concerned. When we get to the place, you will understand.”
Yang Kai was stunned and no longer asked any questions and simply followed along.
Listening to what they had just said though, it seemed like this Third Order Saint was actually imprisoned somewhere inside Soaring Heaven Sect at the moment, making Yang Kai feel quite confused.
Wanting to capture a Third Order Saint was no simple matter.
Although he was curious about how they accomplished this, Yang Kai refrained from asking.
Following the four through Soaring Heaven Sect, it took a moment before they arrived at a certain mountain peak at the bottom of which was a hidden entrance that led down into its depths.
Along the downward ramp were bright torches that gave off a thick Yin Qi.
Feeling a certain pressure on his body, Yang Kai’s expression grew serious.
Fei Yu took the initiative to explain, “There is a powerful Spirit Array set up here that has the effect of suppressing one’s strength. This place is where my Soaring Heaven Sect imprisons powerful enemies, but it has been empty for quite some time, that is, until a few months ago.”
“That unknown master is being held here?”
“En, the situation is very strange, we don’t know how to explain it, it’s best if you see it with your own eyes,” Cang Yan nodded.
As they descended, Yang Kai felt that the pressure fettering him seemed to be growing stronger and stronger, giving him the illusion that the entire mountain was pressing down on him, making it difficult to breathe.
This was obviously the overflow effect of the Spirit Array. Although it was not specifically targeting Yang Kai, it still gave him great pressure. If they were to be the focus of this suppression, Yang Kai didn’t know what kind of master would be able to withstand it.
After descending around three thousand meters or so, the group finally arrived at a dimly lit stone room. Inside this stone room, there were a number of faintly glowing lines that were arranged in a complicated pattern. At the centre of this pattern was a bound human figure.
Chu Ling Xiao’s Demon Sealing Chain was firmly wrapped around this humanoid form, constantly releasing a scalding hot aura that was burning this figure while its hands and feet were also bound by a series of artifacts Yang Kai had never seen before.
Even so, a shocking malevolent aura still filled this room.
“That’s him,” Cang Yan pointed to the front, “Little Martial Nephew, look carefully, if your Nine Heavens Holy Land encounters such a creature in the future, you must act prudently, we are still unable to determine which race he belongs to.”
As Yang Kai looked towards the human form, his eyes suddenly filled with shock as he called out unconsciously, “Bone Race?”
“What?” His four Martial Seniors simultaneously stared towards him.
Yang Kai frowned deeply and quickly walked towards the human form, carefully examining it and confirming his initial suspicions.
The one tied up here was actually a Bone Race!
“Little Martial Nephew, do you know this race?” Cang Yan asked urgently.
“I’ve seen one before!” Yang Kai nodded solemnly.
“Where?”
“Seven or eight years ago, when I went to find my Senior Sister, in a place at the northern edge of the endless sea covered in glaciers,” Yang Kai explained quickly.
When he had gone to find Su Yan, he had blended Souls with her inside Ice Sect, allowing their Souls to assume the forms of a Golden Dragon and Ice Phoenix. In that form, the two of them flew across the glacial word and inadvertently destroyed a certain iceberg. Inside that iceberg was where Yang Kai had found a frozen skeleton.
That frozen skeleton was exactly the same as the humanoid one in front them, without any flesh and blood, only consisting of bones and meridians, a frightening sight to behold.
At the time, Yang Kai didn’t know what it was and thought it was perhaps the remains of an Ice Sect disciple that had accidentally died, so out of good-will he brought it back.
Ice Sect’s Master, Qing Ya, along with Ice Sect’s Elders, however, knew who this skeleton was and informed Yang Kai about him.
They said that a long time ago, a strange race which called themselves the Bone Race had mysterious appeared in Tong Xuan Realm. They appeared as nothing but skeletons, but each one of them was extremely powerful and long-lived.
The decline of Ice Sect was deeply tied to the appearance of the Bone Race.
Qing Ya finally instructed Yang Kai to incinerate the skeleton, and during that process, the frozen bones which he had thought was nothing more than a corpse, actually revealed a powerful life aura.
This frightening incident had left a great impression on Yang Kai.
Now seeing this shackled skeleton, Yang Kai naturally recognized its origins at first glance.
After listening to Yang Kai’s explanation, his Martial Uncles and Martial Aunt all wore extremely solemn expressions.
“You mean… he has lived for several thousand years?” Cang Yan asked somewhat incredulously.
“Most likely,” Yang Kai nodded.
“Martial Ancestor also said that this person seemed to have no vitality but was somehow still alive… However, it seemed like he had only just awoken from a very long sleep, so his strength was nowhere near its peak, allowing Martial Ancestor to easily capture him and bring him back to the Sect.”
“This Bone Race member was captured by Ancestral Founder?” Yang Kai turned to look at the four.
“En, on the same day that the Mysterious Small World entrances all opened, Martial Ancestor suddenly detected an unusual aura deep inside the Snow Mountain Range. Unable to feel relieved, he went to investigate and a few days later, brought this skeleton back… we all thought he was already dead.”
“Fortunately, Martial Ancestor had the foresight to imprison him here!” Li Wan said fearfully.
This Bone Race master’s energy fluctuations revealed to be a Third Order Saint Realm, and although it was faint, there was no doubt about his strength. If they had allowed him to recover, even Chu Ling Xiao may not have been able to defeat him.
“Wait, when we came here a few days ago, his meridians were all dried up but now they seem to be quite full, the life aura from his body has also become stronger,” Fei Yu noticed something and quickly reminded them.
“He’s restoring himself?!” Cang Yan’s expression dropped.
Did he really possess such amazing vitality? After being frozen in the Snow Mountain Range for thousands of years, he was still able to awaken and restore himself, the very concept was shocking.
“Why have we never heard of such a race before?” The four Saints all glanced around at each other in confusion.
“The world is big and filled with many unknowns. There’s nothing strange about there being things we know nothing about. Li Wan, go inform Martial Ancestor, we should let him decide what we do next,” Cang Yan declared.
“Good,” Li Wan immediately disappeared.
They had originally brought Yang Kai here to warn him about this strange entity, but instead they had actually gained information about it from Yang Kai, information that was of great concern to Cang Yan and the others.
A moment later, Chu Ling Xiao swiftly appeared.
“I’ve heard about the situation from Li Wan. Yang Kai, how much do you know about this Bone Race?” Chu Ling Xiao asked seriously.
“Not much,” Yang Kai shook his head, “I only know that if you want to completely destroy him, burning his skeleton to ash is the best way, otherwise once he fully recovers, he will be difficult to deal with.”
“Such a strange race… This old master has never heard of it before, but I know a bit about the Ice Sect. I hadn’t expected that their lineage was still continuing,” Chu Ling Xiao took a deep breath.
“Martial Ancestor knows about Ice Sect?” Yang Kai was quite surprised.
“Naturally, this endless Snow Mountain Range was once the exclusive domain of Ice Sect.”
Yang Kai was stunned.
However, that would also explain why a Bone Race master would appear here. If the fall of Ice Sect was inextricably linked to the Bone Race, they must have fought here a long time ago, ultimately losing and being chased out by the Bone Race, forced to retreat to that glacial world where they remained even now.
Soaring Heaven Sect, deep inside the depths of the prison mountain, Yang Kai pushed his True Yang Yuan Qi fiercely and engulfed the Bone Race skeleton in it, burning it down.
Chu Ling Xiao and the others all stood by close and watched quietly.
Yang Kai’s True Yang Yuan Qi was not an ordinary flame, it was the crystallization of his cultivation, an incredibly pure and dense form of energy, there was nothing it could not incinerate.
The Bone Race master, bound by the Demon Sealing Chain and various artifacts, seemed to be dead.
But the malevolent aura which emanated from his body was actually becoming more and more intense.
*Chi chi chi…*
Inside the dimly lit room, a harsh, grating sound resounded as cracks spread throughout the Bone Race’s skeleton, his meridians and bones slowly reducing to ash.
Suddenly, the two deep green lights appeared in the eye sockets of the Bone Race master, just like a pair of gloomy eyes which flickered erratically.
The malevolent aura suddenly exploded out.
*Hou…* An angry roar suddenly burst forth from the Bone Race’s head, his Spiritual Energy penetrating into the Knowledge Seas of everyone nearby, allowing them to clearly sense his violent unwillingness. This scream also contained a potent yet mysterious Divine Sense attack which caused the Souls of everyone except Chu Ling Xiao to tremble.
Everyone paled at this sight and Yang Kai hastily increased the output of his True Qi.
*Kacha…*
Under the intense heat, the skeleton gradually disintegrated.
The green glowing eyes of the Bone Race master also quickly dimmed and eventually lost all light.
After the time it would take to burn a stick on incense, only a black powder remained.
Everyone stared at this sight for a moment, unable to speak.
“He really hadn’t died… such tenacious vitality!” Fei Yu wore a frightened look.
“All that was left was his skeleton, how could he have survived?” Cang Yan also couldn’t understand.
“Perhaps, he was originally just a skeleton, with no flesh or blood at all, or perhaps his skeleton was the core of his life essence…” Yang Kai spoke thoughtfully.
“What Little Martial Nephew means to say is that as long as his skeleton remains, he won’t die?”
“En,” Yang Kai nodded, “In any case, this race is completely different from the others in this world, and is extremely dangerous. If any of us encounter them again in the future, we mustn’t take them lightly.”
“Rest assured, if I ever bump into these creatures again, I’ll definitely smash their bones,” Li Wan said firmly.
“Is there really such a strange race in this world?” Chu Ling Xiao’s brow wrinkled. Even with all his knowledge and experience, if Yang Kai hadn’t arrived today, he wouldn’t have been able to figure out the identity of the Bone Race master he had captured.
When he had entered the Snow Mountain Range to investigate all those months ago, following the shocking evil aura he had sensed, all Chu Ling Xiao had found was a skeleton buried a thousand meters beneath the ice. It was only because he realized there was something strange about it that he brought it back.
Fortunately, he had the foresight to seal and suppress it.
“For some time now, this old master has felt that this world has become subtly different,” Chu Ling Xiao solemnly said.
“The meaning of Ancestral Founder is…” Yang Kai turned a curious look towards him.
Chu Ling Xiao hesitated for a moment before finally saying, “Your realm is not high enough, so you probably have not noticed yet, but I believe that all the Third Order Saints around the world have the same feeling as this old master. This world seems to have somehow been released from something, and the stars in the night sky are also much clearer and more numerous than before.”
Yang Kai’s look changed.
“This old master doesn’t know why, but it’s as if some great change is approaching,” Chu Ling Xiao sighed.
The four other Saints present shivered, finally understand why since the day he had brought back the Bone Race skeleton, their Martial Ancestor had often left his cultivation room at night to stare up at the night sky.
They didn’t know why their Marital Ancestor had suddenly begun taking such a strange action, they had only thought that Chu Ling Xiao had obtained some kind of enlightenment, but listening to his words just now, they now know that he had actually discovered something unusual.
After spending two days in Soaring Heaven Sect, Yang Kai returned to Nine Heavens Holy Land with Ling Tai Xu and Su Mu.
When they left, Chu Ling Xiao had sternly cautioned them and repeated insisted that if they encountered another Bone Race master again, they must let him know.
Yang Kai readily agreed.
Along the way, Yang Kai remained silent, lost in thought.
Ling Tai Xu did not miss his absent-mindedness and asked, “Is there something wrong?”
Yang Kai nodded and told him about the Bone Race matter, causing Ling Tai Xu to pale slightly. Unfortunately, there was nothing Ling Tai Xu could contribute to the discussion; after all, he had just arrived in Tong Xuan Realm and was unfamiliar with even the common sense of this world, let alone something as out of the ordinary as the Bone Race.
In the past, back in the Great Han Dynasty, he hadn’t even known about the existence of the Demon and Monster Races.
He had thought that under the Heavens, the only race capable of rational thought was the Human Race.
It was only after arriving in Tong Xuan Realm that Ling Tai Xu realized his own naivety.
“Grand Master doesn’t need to worry about this matter, if the sky collapses, the world’s giants will be there to hold it up,” Yang Kai laughed, relaxing his expression greatly before turning to look at Su Mu and asking with a smile, “What good things did you obtain that you can’t stop grinning?”
Su Mu chuckled and took out a Universe Bag, “Look, this is a gift from Ancestral Founder.”
“A Universe Bag!” Yang Kai nodded, “Do you know how to use it?”
“Of course I do, the Ancestral Founder, Martial Uncles, and Martial Aunt all gave me many artifacts, Martial Skills, Secret Arts, ancient books, and other treasures,” Su Mu held the Universe Bag to his chest and gently patted it.
“You must make good use of all the treasures you received, do not disappoint the expectations of Ancestral Founder and your Martial Seniors,” Ling Tai Xu said sincerely.
“Disciple knows,” Su Mu nodded before suddenly asking, “Brother-in-law, when are you going to bring Elder Sister back? Our entire Sect has migrated here, I think it’s a good time for her to return.”
“En, after sending the two of you back, I plan to go look for Su Yan,” Yang Kai responded.
Even if Su Mu did not remind him, Yang Kai had been planning to do so. After nearly eight years apart, Yang Kai had grown quite anxious to see his beloved again.
Now that Xia Ning Chang was also in Nine Heavens Holy Land, he only needed to find Su Yan so that they could all reunite.
Yang Kai very much yearned for such a day!
Two days later, the three returned to the old War Spirit Temple site.
Just after returning to this place, Xu Hui, who heard the news, flew over and reported, “Holy Master, two guests arrived at the Holy Land two days ago and requested to see you.”
“Who are they?” Yang Kai asked.
“They announced themselves as the Sect Masters of Twin Spirit Pavilion, Wu Fa and Wu Tian!” Xu Hui reported with a wry smile, unable to stop himself, apparently thinking that their names were far too rampant.
“Oh? They came personally?” Yang Kai raised his brow.
On the way to the Nine Heavens Holy Land with the Great Han Dynasty cultivators, Palace Master Chen Zhou of Dragon Phoenix Palace had sent Xiao Ling, one of his Sect’s Elders, to Twin Spirit Pavilion to deliver a message. Now, only a few months later, Twin Spirit Pavilion had taken swift action.
The two Sect Masters travelling all this way to seek an audience with Yang Kai explained just how much importance they placed on the Hu Sisters.
This made Yang Kai very satisfied; at least they had shown enough sincerity.
“Holy Master, do you wish to see them?” Xu Hui asked.
“Of course I must see them. Where are they now?”
“They are waiting inside the Holy Land!”
“Good, continue to entertain them and tell them I will return shortly.”
Xu Hui acknowledged the command and quickly departed.
After he left, Yang Kai spread out his Divine Sense to search the former War Spirit Temple site, soon finding the location of the Hu Sisters and rushing over to see them.
War Spirit Temple’s grounds covered a large area and the Blood Battle Gang was situated in the northwest corner where a number of splendid residences had previously been constructed.
The Hu Sisters and Sect Master Hu Man were currently working with the gang’s disciples to repair these broken houses and clean up the surrounding area, keeping themselves occupied.
Seeing Yang Kai appear, Hu Man smiled and walked over, cupping his fists as he said, “Nephew Yang, you’ve come.”
The Hu Sisters’ beautiful eyes brightened as well as they smiled happily.
Yang Kai nodded slightly and asked, “How are things here, is there anything you’re unsatisfied with?”
Hu Man quickly waved his hand, “How could there be anything we’re unsatisfied with? Nephew Yang has already arranged everything and provided so many cultivation resources, all we need to do is cultivate diligently. As for the environment, we weren’t picky in the first place so we couldn’t be happier.”
“That’s good. En, if you have anything you need, just inform my Holy Land’s Elders and they will do everything they can to accommodate you.”
“We have no additional needs,” Hu Man laughed before smoothly changing the subject, “The only request I could think of would be for Nephew Yang to find some free time to help teach my two daughters. If you could, this Hu would be most grateful. En, personal guidance at night would be the best, it would greatly ease this Hu’s worries, heh heh heh!”
“Father, if you continue speaking, someday, you might turn mute!” Hu Jiao’er turned red and glared at her father.
Since coming here, Hu Man had constantly been mentioning how much he appreciated Yang Kai to his two daughters. What their father was thinking, the sisters knew, but now that he was all but spelling it out to them, what’s more right in front of Yang Kai, Hu Jiao’er suddenly couldn’t take it anymore.
What this so called father of theirs’ plan was, was clearly written on his face.
“I’ll leave you three to talk!” Hu Man let out a hollow laugh and quickly slipped away.
“Don’t pay any attention to him,” Hu Jiao’er quickly walked over to Yang Kai, the blush on her face still not faded as she faintly whispered, “He’s just spouting nonsense.”
“Why did you suddenly come to see us?” Hu Mei’er asked.
“Guests from Twin Spirit Pavilion have come,” Yang Kai replied frankly.
The two Hu Sisters trembled lightly as they directed glowing gazes towards Yang Kai.
“The ones who have come are the two Sect Masters of Twin Spirit Pavilion, their purpose is obvious and they’ve displayed their sincerity. All that’s left is for you two to decide how you want to proceed.”
The two sisters exchanged a glance, seemingly a bit hesitant about what choice to make. After a brief silence, Hu Jiao’er said, “Whatever you decide, we’ll go along with.”
They entrusted the decision to Yang Kai.
“Do you want to go?” Yang Kai asked with a smile.
The sisters nodded simultaneously, Hu Jiao’er saying, “Naturally, I want to see what kind of Sect it is.”
Yang Kai could understand their mood because he was the same. When Yang Kai discovered that Dragon Phoenix Palace had some relation with the inheritance he and Su Yan obtained, his first thought was also to check this Sect out.
Of course, right now, it was partially because it was a huge opportunity for Sun Yu that Yang Kai had striven to build a good relationship with Dragon Phoenix Palace.
“Since you want to go, then let’s go! Perhaps you’ll be able to find others with valuable experiences you can study; on top of that, there will certainly be gains if you go.”
Chen Zhou had guaranteed the character of Wu Fa and Wu Tian, and with the additional layer of protection their status as Yang Kai’s friends provided, the Hu Sisters would not be mistreated if they went to Twin Spirit Pavilion.
On the contrary, Wu Fa and Wu Tian would regard them as precious treasures and treat them as such.