The Dao of Space was an esoteric field that very few were able to cultivate and fewer still were able to flexibly use.
It was by utilizing his comprehension of the Dao of Space and his Space Force that Yang Kai was able to take this step past his original limit, and this was far from the end. With his Space Force fusing together with his Shi to resist the ambient Emperor Pressure, Yang Kai felt he could continue climbing higher!
After this successful attempt, Yang Kai had a burst of inspiration and a radical plan came to his mind.
Whether this plan would succeed or not though was something he would need to test now!
Considering all this, Yang Kai’s previous gloom was swept away and an unparalleled excitement replaced it. Constantly urging his Space Force to fuse together with his Shi, Yang Kai continued the ascension he had begun three days ago!
…..
Seven days later, a white light curtain wrapped around Yang Kai as he quickly flew upwards. The white light curtain was naturally the Emperor Jade’s protective halo, and with it, Yang Kai could not feel even the slightest bit of Emperor Pressure, allowing him to rapidly approach the Emperor Garden.
It had been ten days since the Emperor Garden opened, and Yang Kai had been condensing his Shi over this period, reaping incredible gains in the process!
Although this delayed Yang Kai by ten days and many treasures in the Emperor Garden had no doubt been claimed already as a result, Yang Kai didn’t have any regrets. Compared to those treasures, his current harvest made him far more satisfied.
His Shi had now reached a certain limit that could no longer be surmounted by using this Emperor Pressure, so Yang Kai decisively rushed towards the Emperor Garden at full speed!
Soon, he arrived at the Space Array closest to him, a strange disk-like platform. When looking at it from afar, Yang Kai had thought this was a physical object, but inspecting it close up, he discovered that it was actually just a projection formed of pure energy.
On the surface of this disk was a series of complicated glowing lines and symbols that made up the actual Space Array.
Looking up at the Emperor Garden for a moment, Yang Kai could not help but frown as it gave him a feeling of etherealness, like it was half-way between real and illusory.
It seemed to be a physical object floating high up in the sky, but also a projection all at once!
After observing the Emperor Garden for a short time, Yang Kai slowly shook his head, withdrew his gaze, and turned his attention back to the Space Array, a look of understanding soon appearing on his face.
With no reason to linger any longer, Yang Kai waved his hand, sending a few pieces of High-Rank Saint Crystals into the grooves of the Space Array. Immediately after, the Space Array lit up and Yang Kai stepped onto it, disappearing in a flash and leaving behind a now silent, empty sky.
At the same time, Yang Kai’s figure appeared atop an unknown grassland.
As soon as he appeared, Yang Kai immediately summoned his Purple Shield and turned it into a purple light halo around him while releasing his Divine Sense and readying his Shi.
He did not dare act carelessly here; after all, many others had entered this place ten days earlier than him. If he were to appear inside some group’s encirclement, a fight would ensue.
Fortunately, Yang Kai’s worries were superfluous as under his Divine Sense investigation he was unable to detect any life auras within ten kilometres, let alone anyone lying in ambush.
But in the next moment, Yang Kai’s expression filled with doubt as he swept his eyes around, dumbfounded by what he saw.
Was this really the Emperor Garden?
Right now Yang Kai was standing atop a grassland he could not see the end of, with a blue sky over his head and not a cloud in sight for ten thousand kilometres, bright sunlight streaming down from above providing a gentle summer warmth!
How could this be the Emperor Garden?
Others did not know what the interior of the Emperor Garden looked like, but Yang Kai couldn’t be clearer. The last time he went to rescue Qian Tong with Fei Zhi Tu and the others, he had entered the Emperor Garden once and seen its numerous lofts and magnificent palaces, so why was he now seeing an expansive grassland?
However, if someone were to tell him this was not the Emperor Garden, Yang Kai would not believe them; after all, it was essentially impossible for the Space Array he passed through to have sent him to the wrong place.
If that was the case though, what happened? Yang Kai was deeply confused.
At the same time, at a certain position inside this sealed space, a young woman wearing a fiery red dress knit her brow slightly and a look of surprise filled her face. This woman was incredibly beautiful, with an astonishing figure and mesmerizing looks.
Her physical looks however were far surpassed by her aura, one that exuded a kind of overwhelming allure that no Beguiling Technique could compare and as clearly a kind of innate trait.
Every smile, every frown, every move she made radiated ten thousand kinds of charm.
Simply standing there, she was like a brilliant flame that could draw in countless moths regardless of their will.
The glamorous Temple Master of Demon Blood Temple also had a bewitching kind of charm, but compared to this woman, hers was vastly inferior.
At this moment, this woman was surrounded by four Origin Returning Realm masters, one at the Third Order, two at the Second Order, and one at the First Order!
These four men had cornered this woman in an obvious attempt to stop her from escaping, each of them staring towards her with obvious greed and desire.
In all fairness, these four men were not naturally loose and lascivious. Aside from some who had particularly strong desires towards beauties, most masters who had reached the level of strength of these four took the pursuit of the Martial Dao and enhancing their cultivation as their first priority.
But this woman was just too special, and her enchanting style was simply irresistible to any man. The moment these four Origin Realm masters saw this woman’s face, whether they had strong obscene desires or not, they could not suppress their desire to obtain her for themselves.
It was almost as if as long as they could spend the night with this beauty, even death wouldn’t be too great a price.
The woman stood here all alone, and although her body radiated a powerful Third-Order Origin Returning Realm aura, the four men surrounding her showed no fear; after all, they outnumbered this woman and one of them had a cultivation equal to hers.
The beauty’s face flashed a look of confusion suddenly, as if she was trying hard to remember something, but even her slightly wrinkled brow had a unique charm to it, causing the four Origin Returning Realm masters gathered around her to feel their hearts pound wildly, their faces flushing as they unconsciously licked their parched lips.
A moment later though, the woman’s eyes brightened, as if she finally remembered something, a surprised and excited expression appearing on her face as she muttered to herself, “He’s here! He’s really here!”
Her voice was soft but incredibly enchanting, seemingly capable of captivating the minds of any who heard it.
A smile flashed across her charming face in the next instant that made all colour from the world fade away, leaving only her behind. The four Origin Realm masters completely lost their sense of reason when they saw this and immediately attacked.
Although the attacks of these four seemed quite ruthless, they held no trace of murderous intent. They were intent on capturing this beautiful woman then wantonly ravaging her, so how could they be willing to hurt her?
However, these four had dramatically underestimated the strength of this beautiful woman.
Facing this barrage of attacks coming at her from all directions, a trace of displeasure flashed across the eyes of this beautiful woman, as if annoyed that these four had interrupted her contemplation.
Even her angry expression was astonishingly alluring, causing the four men who had just attacked her to feel their hearts tighten and unconsciously reduce the amount of strength they were using, fearing they might inadvertently harm her.
The beautiful woman on the other hand did not intend to show any mercy, twirling her tender body on the spot while releasing a pink mist to surround herself.
*Hong Hong Hong…*
All the attacks directed towards her hit this pink mist barrier but only managed to cause a few ripples in it, completely failing to break through.
The mist dispersed in the next moment, revealing the beautiful woman’s angry face. Flicking her wrist, she next summoned a delicate looking fan into her hand, one that radiated a potent aura. Clearly this fan was a high-grade artifact and its surface was adorned by many lifelike pictures.
There were both men and women, all of whom were naked, posing in various lewd positions, seemingly engaging in sensual revelry.
The images on this fan were filled with eroticism!
An ordinary woman would never use such a shameful artifact, but the beautiful woman didn’t seem to pay it any mind, her jade white hand holding onto the small fan tightly as she gnashed her teeth and softly shouted, “You court death!”
As soon as her voice fell, she waved her fan gently.
The erotic pictures embroidered onto the fan suddenly seemed to come to life, as the numerous naked figures rushed outwards and swiftly dove into the four men’s bodies.
The faces of these four masters changed drastically, but by then it was too late for them to put up any kind of resistance.
A single mistake had doomed them. They had underestimated this beautiful woman’s strength and had held back in their attack just now, opening them up to a counterattack which they were not prepared to defend against.
The scene before these men’s eyes immediately changed, the four of them seemingly falling into a decadent palace filled with sinful laughter, sensual music, exotic delicacies, and countless young women dressed in revealing outfits singing and dancing, all of whom were constantly throwing flirtatious and tempting glances towards the four men, as if they lived only to please them!
The four masters instantly fell into a daze, standing there dumbly as intoxicated smiles filled their faces, immersing in the amorous scene before them, unable to extricate themselves.
The beautiful woman swept her eyes over these four in disgust, but instead of ending their lives, she simply donned a veil over her face, looked towards a certain direction, and quickly flew off.
Although the feeling was quite vague, she knew that the person she had always been searching for had really come to this place!
It had been too long since they had last met, almost twenty or thirty years, so wanting to rely on her original Secret Technique to find him was obviously not possible. She could only rely on the vague sensation and her own instincts while praying she could find the other party before the Emperor Garden closed.
Otherwise, if she missed this opportunity, she may never get another chance to fulfil her wish again.
An incense stick worth of time after the beautiful woman flew off, the four dazed men fell limply to the ground, blood flowing out of their seven orifices, their bodies convulsing violently as their vitality rapidly faded away, dying a miserable death.
Just one move had killed four Origin Returning Realm masters, clearly illustrating just how terrifying the beautiful woman’s strength was.
…..
“Is this really the Emperor Garden?” Yang Kai murmured blankly as he stared out across the grassland.
It had already been about a cup of tea worth of time since he came here, but Yang Kai still could not draw any conclusions.
However, the World Energy was indeed extremely rich here, far richer than on Shadowed Star. Even High Heaven Sect’s and the floating continent’s World Energy auras were dwarfed by this place.
From this point alone, it was clear this was the Emperor Garden.
But Yang Kai remembered that in the Emperor Garden, he was unable to extend his Divine Sense very far from his body at all, much less probe the situation in the surrounding ten-kilometre radius, so inferring from this point, it seemed this place was not the Emperor Garden.
In any case, Yang Kai’s best bet right now was to find someone he could ask about the situation, at the very least, it was necessary for him to gather some intelligence about what had happened. Everyone else had entered ten days earlier than him, so they may know something he didn’t. Taking out two communication artifacts from his Space Ring, Yang Kai poured his Divine Sense into them.
One of these communication artifacts was connected to Yang Yan, while the other was connected to Qian Tong, both were things Yang Kai had acquired in the past and now came in handy.
As long as they weren’t too far apart from each other, Yang Kai would easily be able to contact them.
A while later though, Yang Kai put away these communication artifacts in disappointment. Neither Yang Yan nor Qian Tong had responded. Even if they were inside this space, they were clearly too far away from him to make contact.
It seemed that he would have to rely on himself.
Turning his head to look around, Yang Kai casually picked a direction and flew off.
Even without using a Star Shuttle, Yang Kai’s speed was extremely fast, but as he flew along he did not encounter any living people.
However, Yang Kai did come across many corpses as well as traces of fighting. Some of these corpses belonged to Monster Beasts while others belonged to humans. It seemed a number of battles had taken place on this grassland, and from the dryness of the blood, Yang Kai inferred that these battles occurred not long ago, likely just after the Emperor Garden opened.
There were also many traces of spirit grasses and spirit medicines being harvested, so it seemed that many people reaped great benefits here!
After half a day, Yang Kai suddenly came to a stop and turned to look in a certain direction.
A hundred kilometres away, faint sounds of battle could be heard and Yang Kai sensed a number of powerful energy fluctuations; obviously a heated fight was occurring.
Yang Kai didn’t hesitate, immediately changing direction and flying over. Now that he had broken through to the Origin Realm and had condensed his Shi to a certain level, even if he were to face a Third-Order Origin Returning Realm master, he would still have the ability to fight. He could act boldly because he had faith in his skill.
Yang Kai crossed the hundred kilometres distance in just half a cup of tea’s time, and when he arrived and saw the actual situation, he couldn’t help raising his brow and muttering to himself, “Seven Coloured Elk?”
Yang Kai’s eyes bulged, never having expected to see the famous Seven Coloured Elk here.
He knew about this Monster Beast because of the Ten Thousand Year Incense he had obtained in the sixth layer of the Flowing Flame Sand Field. The primary ingredient for refining Ten Thousand Year Incense was the heart of this Seven Coloured Elk!
Needless to say, the benefits of the Ten Thousand Year Incense were immense to any cultivator as its fragrance could calm one’s mind and help dispel heart demons. The materials required to refine Ten Thousand Year Incense, however, were extremely difficult to find, each one belonging to Tenth-Order Monster Beasts. Among these ingredients though, the Seven Coloured Elk’s heart was the most difficult to obtain.
Because this Monster Beast was a rare ancient beast that was rumoured to have gone extinct long ago. So even if some great Sects possessed the refinement method for Ten Thousand Year Incense, the cleverest woman could not cook a meal without rice.
However, after just entering this strange place, Yang Kai had actually encountered a Seven Coloured Elk!
[No, it’s not an actual Seven Coloured Elk!] Yang Kai frowned deeply as he carefully observed the battlefield up ahead. At first glance, this Monster Beast truly looked like a Seven Coloured Elk, but if one observed closely, they could still see some differences.
It was rumoured that Seven Coloured Elks were born as Eighth-Order Monster Beasts, and when they grew to their peak, they could reach the Tenth-Order, but although this Monster Beast was no doubt a full-grown adult, it was clearly just at the peak of the Ninth-Order, not the Tenth-Order.
Moreover, the Seven Coloured Radiant Light it was emitting was not as powerful as it should be.
The Seven Coloured Radiant Light possessed by real Seven Coloured Elks was an innate Divine Ability that had the magical effect of ignoring all forms of defence. Even if an Origin King were to encounter such a beast, they would have to give way.
If one wanted to kill a real Seven Coloured Elk, they would need to join forces with several other Origin Kings.
There were a total of five people battling this Seven Coloured Elk, three men and two women, each of them Origin Realm masters with two of them even having reached the Third Order. These five were using their artifacts and Martial Skills to the fullest while coordinating with one another.
Even so, these five didn’t dare act carelessly and two of them already looked quite dishevelled. It was obvious that these people had suffered a loss at the hands of this Monster Beast.
Martial Skills and artifact attacks blasted towards this Monster Beast, but the other party simply stood still, its face revealing an almost human-like look of contempt as it continued releasing its Seven Coloured Radiant Light, preventing any harm from befalling it.
After this violent clash, the Monster Beast remained unharmed, and instead, the five attackers seemed to be faltering after consuming so much of their Saint Qi in this drawn-out battle.
Yang Kai didn’t conceal his approach which naturally startled this group of five. What they feared most in this place was orioles stalking mantises who were trying to catch cicadas.
But after using their Divine Senses to sweep Yang Kai and discovering he was just a First-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivator, they all relaxed.
The weakest of their group of five was at this level, and there were multiple Second and Third-Order Origin Realm masters among them, so they naturally didn’t fear Yang Kai. After exchanging a silent glance amongst themselves, they had one middle-aged man divert a portion of his attention to monitor Yang Kai while the rest of them continued to lay siege to the Monster Beast.
Yang Kai was well aware of how this group of five reacted to him but didn’t pay it any mind. If it was him in their place, he would have done the same.
However, Yang Kai’s brows furrowed.
Because he found that he didn’t know anyone among these five people!
Although Yang Kai hadn’t had much contact with the other great forces on Shadowed Star, when the Emperor Garden opened, he had been condensing his Shi outside; in other words, everyone who entered the Emperor Garden had flown past him at some point.
But none of these five people had a familiar face.
What surprised Yang Kai the most though was the robes worn by these five people as they were quite different from those that were commonly worn on Shadowed Star, as if they weren’t from Shadowed Star in the first place.
This thought made Yang Kai even more confused.
However, he had only come here to find someone to inquire about the situation and didn’t have any intention to intervene or disturb their fight, so he simply prepared to wait until this group of five finished their battle before speaking to them.
The battle continued for half an hour before this group of five began showing the intention to retreat. The reason was simple, this Monster Beast, which was similar to a Seven Coloured Elk, was extremely difficult to kill. The Seven Coloured Radiant Light which it released from its body was so solid it couldn’t be broken by these five’s attacks.
Additionally, the occasional counterattacks from this Monster Beast were both sharp and powerful. By the time they decided to withdraw, all five of these cultivators had suffered injuries, the most serious of which was a black-haired old man whose abdomen had been punctured and was leaking blood. Although this injury wasn’t too serious, if he continued to remain here it would only cause his condition to deteriorate and weaken his combat effectiveness.
“Brother Min, how about we fall back temporarily and come up with a new plan?” Another old man with white hair asked with a frown.
All of them had seen that it would be impossible for them to kill this Monster Beast in short order, and with their location being a wide-open plain, there was a high risk a third party could swoop in and steal their prey.
After all, Yang Kai had found them here following the fallout from their battle.
The injured black-haired old man was not a hot-headed individual and quickly nodded, “Yeah, we’ll retreat for now!”
With the two strongest old men having said so, the remaining middle-aged man and the two women with slightly lower strength obviously wouldn’t raise any objections.
All five of them made a feint and quickly withdrew from the melee before turning towards a certain direction and flying off as quick as lightning.
Whether it was intentional or unintentional, the direction these five people fled was actually the direction Yang Kai stood.
It seemed they wanted to use him to tie down this Monster Beast for a moment.
Yang Kai frowned, immediately understanding this group’s plan, but although he was a bit displeased, he didn’t show anything on his face.
“Run away!” One of the five people, a young woman with an exquisite figure who appeared only seventeen or eighteen years old dressed in a black dress yelled out to Yang Kai as she passed by.
Among these five, her cultivation was the lowest, only First-Order Origin Returning Realm, like Yang Kai. However, the Secret Art she cultivated was obviously quite good as her strength wasn’t low, only her appearance remained quite youthful.
With the other party showing goodwill, Yang Kai smiled back and asked, “You don’t want this Monster Beast anymore?”
The woman’s brow wrinkled slightly, but she didn’t have time to answer before she and her group flew several thousand metres out and disappeared across the horizon.
This group of five wanted to escape, but clearly the Monster Beast was not about to just let them go, letting out a fierce cry before stomping its hooves and transforming into a seven-coloured stream of light to chase after them
Its speed was remarkable, almost to the point where it could not be tracked with the naked eye.
As it shot forward though, it sent out a burst of Seven Coloured Radiant Light from its body towards Yang Kai.
Facing such a Monster Beast, Yang Kai didn’t dare act carelessly. Stretching out his hand, he summoned his Purple Shield to intercept this blast of Seven Coloured Radiant Light.
No impact sound resounded, though!
To Yang Kai’s consternation, his Purple Shield failed to defend against this attack as the Seven Coloured Radiant Light actually passed through it directly and struck towards his chest.
Meanwhile, the Purple Shield remained unscathed.
[It really can ignore all forms of defence?] Yang Kai was shocked and even began doubting his eyes, wondering if this Monster Beast was a real Seven Coloured Elk.
But soon, he rejected this idea, because while the Seven Coloured Radiant Light did penetrate his Purple Shield, its power had been greatly reduced, not having the terrifying force it had been released with.
If it was a real Seven Coloured Elk, its Seven Coloured Radiant Light would definitely not have such a reaction!
As such, Yang Kai figured that, even if this Monster Beast wasn’t a true Seven Coloured Elk, it was most likely descended from one and possessed a kind of mutated bloodline.
He had picked up a treasure! Yang Kai didn’t panic and instead rejoiced, his body flickering to avoid the burst of Seven Coloured Radiant Light while at the same time, he waved his hand and sent out a giant Space Blade towards the charging Monster Beast.
The other party didn’t seem to put Yang Kai in its eyes, thinking that one blow would be enough to kill him thus not putting up any kind of protection. It wasn’t until Yang Kai’s Space Blade got close that it finally reacted.
However, by this point, it was too late for it to dodge. The jet black Space Blade sliced down onto the Monster Beast and cut a small notch into the seven-coloured light halo around its body!
The defence which the previous group of five were completely incapable of penetrating had actually been cut into by Yang Kai!
But this wasn’t surprising since Space Blade was one of Yang Kai’s strongest skills, capable of exiling anything it touched to the Void.
Half an hour later, Yang Kai exhaled lightly, stepped forward, arrived beside the fallen Monster Beast’s body, reached into its chest, and pulled out its heart and Monster Core.
A bizarre scent filled the air and, as Yang Kai sniffed it, he felt relaxed and comfortable.
This Monster Beast really did share a blood relationship with the Seven Coloured Elk, and even if it was not a direct descendent, it should be a close hybrid. Although its heart and Monster Core could not be used to refine a treasure like the Ten Thousand Year Incense, they could be used to refine some rare pills useful for resisting heart demons.
Such pills were extremely precious and almost every cultivator would want one on hand when they broke through to a new Great Realm; however, these pills were also incredibly difficult to acquire, even if one had vast financial resources. This heart and Monster Core landing in the hands of an Alchemist like Yang Kai meant it could play a huge role and bring him immense wealth!
For Yang Kai, the previous battle, although not too dangerous, was quite troublesome.
With his Space Blade alone, Yang Kai had no way to kill this Monster Beast as it was simply too fast. On top of that, it had tried to run away immediately after seeing it was at a disadvantage! Yang Kai naturally was not about to let this happen and immediately used the Spectral Cloud Array’s Array Plate, trapping it inside.
With the Spectral Cloud Array preventing this Monster Beast from fleeing, Yang Kai eventually managed to kill it.
The Spectral Cloud Array’s Array Plate was something Yang Kai obtained the last time he came to the Emperor Garden. At that time, after Yang Kai, Fei Zhi Tu and the others fell into it, they had suffered quite a bit. With Yang Kai’s current strength, his Space Blade, and Golden Blood Threads, this Monster Beast did not stand a chance.
The Monster Core and heart were the most precious parts of this Monster Beast, but the body of a peak Ninth-Order Monster Beast couldn’t simply be discarded, so after some thought, Yang Kai took out the Verdant Dragon Bone Sword and poured his Saint Qi into it.
The Dragon Bone Sword immediately transformed into a giant green dragon and proceeded to swallow the Monster Beast’s body into its belly before spitting out its bones after completely absorbing its vital essence.
Yang Kai smiled happily. His Dragon Bone Sword was an artifact that could continue to grow by swallowing the vital essence of enemies, so over time it would become stronger and stronger.
Putting it away with satisfaction, Yang Kai used his Saint Qi to withdraw the Spectral Cloud Array then retrieved the Array Plate. Turning his head in the direction the previous group of five had disappeared, Yang Kai summoned his Wind and Thunder Wings before shooting off, disappearing from this place in the blink of an eye.
At the same time, the five Origin Returning Realm masters who had previously fought with the Monster Beast were resting inside a natural cave about a thousand kilometres away.
This cave was apparently the den of some snake type Monster Beast, but it had clearly been abandoned long ago. Having found a dry, concealed environment, the five masters decided to use it as a temporary resting place.
They had also arranged some simple concealment Spirit Arrays outside.
“That mutant Seven Coloured Elk has not found us yet, probably because that boy managed to lead it away. Good, although that boy’s cultivation was not very high, he should have some kind of profound escaping Secret Technique,” The dark-haired old man who had been releasing his Divine Sense outside to monitor their surroundings said happily.
“But with his low cultivation, I’m afraid it will be difficult for him to escape with his life,” The petite woman with the lowest cultivation showed a trace of sadness on her face, apparently feeling somewhat guilty.
“What does that have to do with us? We believed this trip to the Emperor Garden would be filled with opportunity and pleasant surprises, but it turned out to be one accident after another. The five of us being able to survive this long is already quite lucky, how could we spare any care for a stranger?” The white-haired old man coldly snorted.
The other woman, who seemed middle-aged, added, “Yeah, I didn’t expect that the inside of the Emperor Garden would be filled with so many dangers. There were ten of us, to begin with, but now only five are left. If we had not withdrawn quickly back then, all of us would have most likely died.”
“Exactly!” The black-haired old man sighed and let out a somewhat self-deprecating laugh, “It’s really true that the older one gets the less courage they have. Although there are many crises in this Emperor Garden, there are also many benefits. If this old master was a few hundred years younger, he would certainly be unwilling to draw back, but now I cannot help acting overcautious and indecisive, far different from the recklessness of my youth!”
This sentiment seemed to resonate with the white-haired old man, who nodded in agreement, “En, back then, where did you and I dare not go? Even if it was a Dragon Den or Tiger Cave, we would still charge in, but now…”
He too let out a long sigh.
For a time, the cave fell quiet, with only the sound of the five individuals breathing echoing off the walls.
After about half a cup of tea’s time though, a shout came from outside, “This Yang greets several friends and hopes to ask you a few questions, may I have your permission to enter?”
This voice clearly passed into the ears of the five who were sitting cross-legged inside the cave, making their expression change dramatically, the white-haired old man immediately shouting out, “Who goes there?”
Someone being able to approach so close to them without being detected caused the white-haired old man’s heart to clench as he secretly felt thankful this newcomer had not launched a sneak attack. If this person had any malicious intentions, the five of them would likely have suffered greatly just now.
Outside, a hearty laugh rang out, “We met just moments ago, could it be you don’t remember this one? En, I should first introduce myself I suppose, this one’s name is Yang Kai!”
“Yang Kai?” The group of five all frowned, but when they released their Divine Senses outside, their looks of confusion soon turned to shock.
“It’s that boy from just now!”
“Not only did he not die, he even escaped from that Monster Beast? How is that possible?”
The five masters all exchanged dumbfounded looks, all of them very curious about how Yang Kai managed to escape from that terrifying Monster Beast; however, they had serious concerns as well. After all, when the five of them had escaped just now, they had clearly used Yang Kai as bait, so seeing him track them down now, they could not help worrying about his intentions.
“Brother Min…” The black-haired old man looked at the white-haired old man and hesitantly spoke.
“It shouldn’t be a problem; from his tone, it doesn’t seem like he’s here to seek revenge, and with his low cultivation, even if he was here for revenge, would he have the ability? Let him come in.” The white-haired old man said lightly. It wasn’t that this old man was blind, it was just that Yang Kai’s realm was really too low. With that and the fact that he was all alone, the white-haired old man was confident Yang Kai couldn’t stir up any trouble even if he wanted to.
The black-haired old man heard this argument and agreed, waving his hand to open a whole in the Spirit Array which was concealing them before politely calling out, “Little friend, please come in!”
“Many thanks!” Yang Kai smiled lightly, stepped forward, and walked into the cave, not showing any sense of wariness, startling the five inside slightly.
This boy acting so boldly either meant he had problems with his head and didn’t understand how brutal the world truly was, or he had something to depend on which allowed him to not place the five of them in his eyes.
The latter was unlikely, so obviously the former must be the truth!
This was indeed possible as Yang Kai looked quite young but was already an Origin Realm cultivator. So, him being the disciple of some great force who had spent his entire life in retreat inside the Sect, not having contact with the outside world, was probable.
Considering all this, the five people in the cave all calmed down greatly.
Such people were easy to deal with.
The cave was not very large, only a couple dozen metres across, and was pitch black inside. When Yang Kai walked inside, he glanced around lightly before nodding to himself.
Although the actions these five people took when they escaped earlier had made Yang Kai somewhat disgruntled, from what he could tell, they were not truly vile and wicked people. Otherwise, they would definitely have attacked him as soon as he stepped into the cave.
At least, for now, none of them showed any openly hostile intent. The younger woman even nodded lightly to him while the older woman wore a somewhat embarrassed look, seemingly feeling guilty about how they acted when they last separated.
Yang Kai also relaxed at this moment. Up until now, he had still been thinking that if these people did not know how to show some discretion, he would certainly not show them any mercy.
Now it seemed he would not need to trouble himself over this.
“Yang Kai greets several friends,” Yang Kai cupped his fists and chuckled slightly.
“Little Friend Yang is too polite!” The old man with white hair seemed to be the leader of this group and tactfully did not ask how Yang Kai managed to escape from the previous Monster Beast, instead introducing himself in return, “This old master is Vanishing Moon Island’s Island Master Min Sha, and these are this old master’s closest friends.”
He spoke in an easy-going tone, as if nothing had happened before.
“Vanishing Moon Island?” Yang Kai frowned, a black look covering his face.
However, since the other party called himself an Island Master, he was probably from the Limitless Ocean, so it was not surprising Yang Kai had never heard of him. After all, Yang Kai had never travelled to the Limitless Ocean, and the only great force he had any substantial contact with from there was the Sea Heart Sect.
Yang Kai came to his own conclusions to explain his lack of familiarity with these people, but the next words that came out of Min Sha’s mouth caused him to stare dumbfounded.
“En, Vanishing Moon Island is an island force on Azure Tree Star, it’s only natural little friend has never heard of it. May I ask which star Little Friend Yang comes from?” Min Sha asked.
“Azure Tree Star?” Yang Kai’s eyes widened as he stared towards Min Sha and the others in complete shock, his heart pounding violently for a moment.
However, Yang Kai’s mind was sharp, so although Min Sha didn’t say much just now, he was also to pick out some unexpected information and quickly asked, “Does Island Master Min mean that cultivators from more than one star have entered this Emperor Garden?”
As soon as the words came out, all five of the people here laughed.
Yang Kai scratched his head and stood there awkwardly, knowing he must have asked something obvious.
“Is the star Little Friend Yang hails from a remote place?” Min Sha speculated.
“What Island Master Min says is correct, the star this Yang comes from is indeed relatively remote, so…” Yang Kai nodded slightly.
“En, no wonder.” Min Sha said with a look of understanding, “Our Azure Tree Star is the same, its location quite remote with limited contact with the outside world. Originally, this old master and his friends had the same idea as Little Friend Yang, thinking that only Azure Tree Star’s cultivators were able to enter the Emperor Garden. It was not until we actually entered this place that we learned that all of the Star Field’s cultivators could come here. This old master also found someone to inquire about this situation and discovered that the Emperor Garden had appeared on every star in a kind of illusionary state, and as long as one held an Emperor Jade, they would be able to pass through the special Space Array and arrive here.”
“So it’s like this…” Yang Kai murmured before saying casually, “This Yang’s Shadowed Star is probably in a similar situation to Island Master Min’s Azure Tree Star.”
“Shadowed Star?” All five frowned, apparently never having heard of Shadowed Star.
However, it seemed that although Azure Tree Star was indeed quite remote and it was hard for them to communicate with the outside world, it was still far better off than Shadowed Star. Shadowed Star was essentially isolated from the rest of the Star Field, its cultivators unable to reach any other star no matter how hard they tried. Azure Tree Star was not such an extreme case.
The situation here really surprised Yang Kai. He never thought that the Emperor Garden would actually open to the entire Star Field; all along, he had assumed it was only Shadowed Star’s cultivators who would have a chance to enter it.
This accident was nothing less than a calamity to the cultivators from Shadowed Star; after all, the number of competitors had now dramatically increased along with the danger they were facing.
Suddenly thinking of something, Yang Kai hurriedly asked, “Island Master Min, are there Origin King Realm masters here?”
Hearing this question, Min Sha smiled lightly and waved his hand, “Little Friend Yang need not worry about this. There are no Origin Kings here.”
He had the same concerns as Yang Kai before; after all, Azure Tree Star’s World Energy wasn’t too rich, nor were its cultivation resources, so although there was no suppression from its World Principles and Origin Kings could indeed appear, it had been several thousand years since anyone broke through to the Origin King Realm on Azure Tree Star. With his Third-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivation, Min Sha was already a top expert on Azure Tree Star.
This was basically the same as Shadowed Star!
Entering this place with this kind of cultivation, Min Sha had thought he would be able to explore at ease, but when he learned that cultivators from other stars could also enter this place, naturally he feared he would encounter fierce opponents.
However, after some enquiries, Min Sha was overjoyed to learn that, due to some kind of mysterious force inside this place, no Origin Kings could enter it. That is to say, the strongest cultivators currently inside the Emperor Garden were on the same level as he was.
After hearing Min Sha’s explanation, Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling relieved and his expression eased greatly.
Although he had broken through to the Origin Realm now, and was confident he could compete with Third-Order Origin Returning Realm masters, if he was facing an Origin King, he was quite certain he would not be able to fight back. Meeting an Origin King here would lead to dire consequences.
Fortunately, the situation wasn’t that bad…
Yang Kai pondered for a while before suddenly wearing a solemn expression and asking, “Then may I ask, is this place really the Emperor Garden?”
Before Min Sha could answer, the young woman wearing a tight-fitting black combat outfit replied, “Of course this is the Emperor Garden. We all entered here through the Space Array by using an Emperor Jade, if this place wasn’t the Emperor Garden, where would it be?”
She stared towards with an amused look on her face Yang Kai, sizing him up with great interest.
“If this is the Emperor Garden, then why…” Yang Kai frowned.
“Little Friend Yang wants to ask why this place is so different from what he imagined?” Min Sha looked at him with a smile.
Yang Kai nodded lightly.
“In your imagination, as the Great Emperor’s residence, shouldn’t the Emperor Garden be a vast and grand palace?”
“Exactly!”
“En, that’s only natural. There is a palace a hundred thousand kilometres west of here, that should be the real Emperor Garden!” Min Sha said while pointing in a certain direction.
Yang Kai’s eyes lit up.
Min Sha laughed before continuing, “But the Emperor Garden is not only the Great Emperor’s palatial residence, there is actually a vast territory surrounding it. The grassland we are standing on now is part of that territory. Aside from this grassland, there is also a vast swamp, dessert, and ocean in the other three cardinal directions, each of which has its own dangers and opportunities. The cultivators holding Emperor Jades were all sent to random locations inside this place. En, our luck is pretty good actually, the grassland actually has the lowest risk, but it is still not to be underestimated!”
“So that’s how it is!” Yang Kai wore an enlightened expression. If he didn’t find someone to ask about these matters, he really wouldn’t have been able to understand his current situation. In fact, before talking to Min Sha, Yang Kai was still wondering whether this was or was not the Emperor Garden.
“Since the real Emperor Garden is over there, why are Island Master Min and several friends here?” Yang Kai looked around at the five people in amazement, not understanding why they would let go of such an astonishing opportunity to enter the depths of the Emperor Garden in favour of lingering on this grassland.
Min Sha smiled bitterly and replied, “It’s a long story. Suffice it to say that, although the main palace of the Emperor Garden is indeed filled with treasures, there is an equal amount of danger inside. Without even mentioning the ancient barriers, Spirit Arrays, and mechanisms, just the number of powerful masters concentrated inside at this moment is quite terrifying! Originally, this old master’s group numbered ten people, but little friend can see how many of us are left now.”
Listening to his explanation, Yang Kai immediately understood that these five people probably encountered some kind of huge danger inside the Emperor Garden’s main palace and withdrew in fright.
This was not difficult to understand though; after all, everyone only had one life, so although treasures and opportunities were tempting, if one lost their life trying to obtain these benefits, how were they to enjoy them?
It seemed the Emperor Garden was a little different from when Yang Kai last visited it! The degree of danger should also have greatly increased, otherwise, it would not have scared off these five people so easily.
This too was not too surprising though. When Yang Kai came here with Fei Zhi Tu, the Emperor Garden had not truly opened, so many of its defences were likely in an inactive state.
Seeing Yang Kai sink into contemplation, Min Sha didn’t disturb him. After a while though, he smiled heartily and said with enthusiasm, “However, Little Friend Yang should not underestimate this outer perimeter of the Emperor Garden. Whether it is the grassland, swamp, desert, or ocean, each one hides numerous astonishing opportunities.”
“Oh? Why do you say so?” Yang Kai couldn’t help getting excited.
“That palace is truly the residence of the Great Emperor, but Little Friend Yang should understand that the Great Emperor did not live a completely solitary life. There were certainly many people who served him, as well as disciples he cultivated. What cultivation the Great Emperor reached in the past, this old master doesn’t dare to speculate, but even those who served him were surely not weak. Additionally, the Great Emperor’s disciples should not have all lived inside the main palace but instead had their own residences scattered about outside. As such, there are plenty of secluded homes and cave mansions in the Emperor Garden’s surroundings. As long as one can find such a secluded home, heh heh… such a discovery would guarantee that this old master and his friends had not made this trip in vain!” Min Sha said while stroking his long beard, a ruddy glow appearing on his face.
“En, in addition to these hidden secluded homes and cave mansions, there are also many spirit grasses and spirit medicines that have long disappeared from the outside world as well as precious ores and rare Monster Beasts like that Seven Coloured Elk variant. If we could just kill it…” The young woman began speaking but suddenly stopped as she directed an awkward look towards Yang Kai, as if only just remembering that she shouldn’t be mentioning this creature.
Yang Kai simply laughed at this though, not showing any meaning of blame. Not only had he not suffered any loss as a result of that incident, instead he had reaped significant gains, after which he had even obtained a lot of useful information from these five.
Based on this, Yang Kai considered them to be even.
“Has anyone found one of these secluded homes yet?” Yang Kai asked casually.
“Yes!” Min Sha nodded solemnly, a look of envy filling his face, “Just three days ago, someone found a hidden cave mansion somewhere in this grassland and managed to obtain an Origin King Grade artifact and many valuable pills from inside it!”
As he narrated this point, Min Sha’s breathing quickened slightly. The situation on Azure Tree Star was almost the same as that of Shadowed Star, so Origin King Grade artifacts were naturally quite tempting to him.
“Since this news has leaked out, it seems that the person didn’t have a very good end!” Yang Kai’s lips curled upwards slightly.
Min Sha looked at Yang Kai with admiration, “Little Friend Yang understands well, that person was indeed chased down by many people, as for what ultimately happened, this old master isn’t clear, but it’s fairly obvious his fate was quite miserable.”
Yang Kai nodded lightly, not saying anything more.
He had learned what he wanted to learn; knowing that this was indeed the Emperor Garden was enough for Yang Kai. On top of that, he had learned where to find the main palace as well.
Yang Kai wasn’t planning on spending any more time outside. Although he didn’t know when the Emperor Garden would close, there was definitely a time limit, so before then, there were at least two things he needed to do. There were two treasures he had encountered the last time he came to the Emperor Garden, but back then, he had not had enough time or ability to collect them.
Now that his strength had greatly increased, it was only natural for him to try again.
“Little Friend Yang, from the looks of it, you entered this place alone. If you are willing to trust this old master, how about acting together with us? If we find something good, the six of us will each take an equal share. You won’t suffer any kind of loss.” For some unknown reason, Min Sha actually took the initiative to invite Yang Kai to join their group suddenly.
“This Yang will have to politely decline Island Master Min’s kind intentions,” Yang Kai didn’t even consider it before shaking his head and refusing, “Although I am alone now, I did not enter this place alone, I still have companions waiting for me, I have to find them!”
“Is that so…” A regretful look flashed across Min Sha’s face, but he didn’t press the issue any further, just nodding lightly, “In that case, just pretend this old master didn’t say anything.”
“Thank you. All of you take care, this Yang will take his leave.” Yang Kai cupped his fists before his body flickered and he rushed out of the cave, found the appropriate direction, and flew off.
After Yang Kai left, the dark-haired old man inside the cave directed a puzzled look towards Min Sha, “Brother Min, why did you invite that little brat? He’s so weak!”
The others of this group were also confused, not knowing what Min Sha’s true intentions were.
Min Sha simply chuckled and explained, “Although his strength isn’t worth mentioning, him being able to escape from that Seven Coloured Elk variant proves his speed must be quite astonishing. This old master inviting him to join us was because I wanted to use him as a scout, but since the other party refused, there’s no reason to force things.”
The other four inside the cave showed looks of understanding.
“Enough about this matter, we should focus on figuring out how to kill that Seven Coloured Elk variant. If we can kill it, we can sell its heart and Monster Core for an incredible price!” Min Sha’s face became serious.
The others nodded repeatedly before immediately beginning to plan out their next move, completely unaware that the Seven Coloured Elk variant had already been harvested by Yang Kai, its heart and Monster Core now stored inside his Space Ring.
At this moment, Yang Kai was flying in the direction of Emperor Garden’s main palace.
According to Min Sha, the main palace was a hundred thousand kilometres away from this place, which at Yang Kai’s current speed was a two to three days journey. As such, he wasn’t in too much of a rush.
While he looked calm and indifferent on the surface however, his heart and mind were in a state of chaos as he was filled with anticipation!
Most of all though he felt a deep sense of hope.
He hoped to meet Su Yan here!
Since the Emperor Garden had opened to the entire Star Field, Su Yan would naturally be able to access it as well. However, Yang Kai wasn’t clear what her current cultivation was or whether she had enough qualifications to obtain an Emperor Jade to come here!
Although there were various uncertain factors, and the chances of the two of them meeting here could be said to be very small, that did not stop Yang Kai from hoping.
Because of the Yin-Yang Joyous Unification Art, he and Su Yan had formed a kind of intangible bond and could feel each other’s existence within a certain range, so if she was really here, it shouldn’t be difficult for Yang Kai to find her.
With his head filling with such thoughts, Yang Kai unconsciously wiped the ring on his finger and took out a crystal clear bead that radiated an icy cold aura.
Su Yan’s Ice Soul Bead! As long as she was alive, this bead would remain intact!
This Ice Soul Bead was given to him by Qian Yue, and even though it had been condensed many years ago, the aura which lingered about it still made Yang Kai nostalgic. Feeling the coolness of this bead on the palm of his hand, Yang Kai’s eyes softened gradually and his thoughts quickly became calm.
After storing this bead back into his Space Ring, Yang Kai let out a loud roar, like an awakening dragon, the sound echoing throughout the sky. After venting the last of his rampaging emotions, Yang Kai increased his speed as he shot towards the Emperor Garden’s main palace like lightning.
One day later, Yang Kai was still flying above the grassland, the surrounding scenery not having changed much at all, showing just how expansive this strange place was.
As he flew along, Yang Kai didn’t encounter any kind of danger. Although many cultivators had entered the Emperor Garden, they were scattered about this massive space so it was by no means crowded.
Atop this grassland, there were many strange Monster Beasts; however, they were clearly not affable, most of them either releasing potent Monster Qi to demonstrate their outstanding strength or display their incredible speed, making them all but impossible to catch up to.
Yang Kai did not intend to waste his time on these Monster Beasts, all he wanted to do was find someone to confirm he was going in the right direction.
Flying forward, Yang Kai constantly released his Divine Sense into his surroundings.
Suddenly, Yang Kai’s figure came to a stop and a smile formed on his face. Up ahead, slightly to the left, he could clearly feel the aura of living people, and quite a number of them at that.
Wanting to ask for some directions, Yang Kai quickly changed direction and flew towards this unknown group.
After just a cup of tea worth of time, Yang Kai reached a location where he could see these people and couldn’t help showing a stunned and interested expression as he stared towards a certain spot.
The reason for this was because he noticed traces of a Spirit Array.
Where he was staring, Yang Kai saw a light barrier that was flickering somewhat, as if it was showing flaws after being attacked. The scenery around this light curtain was slightly distorted, not matching with the surrounding terrain.
An Illusion Array!
Yang Kai raised his brow and looked more carefully.
The terrain here was rather special. Although it was still part of the grassland, there was also a ring-shaped hill at this location. To the naked eye, the mountain valley formed inside the ring-shaped mountain appeared perfectly normal, filled with many trees but with no signs of precious spirit grasses.
However, all of this was clearly just camouflage, because when the barrier fluctuated, the scenery inside the mountain valley also changed.
[Could I really be this lucky?]
Yang Kai was amazed. He had heard Min Sha say a day ago that there were many hidden secluded homes on this grassland, but he hadn’t expected to actually encounter one so quickly.
This mountain valley was clearly a hidden secluded home! There was no doubt about this, otherwise, there would be no need to arrange an Illusion Array around it to confuse others’ prying eyes. Despite this though, it was discovered and was now being attacked.
At this moment, two different groups of people were gathered here, four people on one side, three on the other. Both groups were led by a Third-Order Origin Returning Realm master while the rest were First- or Second-Order.
The group closer to the mountain valley was the smaller one, and it was composed entirely of women.
When Yang Kai swept his eyes over these three women, he couldn’t help raising his brow slightly, revealing a thoughtful look. These three women were all wearing the same white robes and were clearly from the same Sect. Each of them was quite beautiful, with even the oldest of them radiating a unique charm. The other two had different styles of beauty, each with their own strong points.
But what Yang Kai took note of was not their appearances, but their temperaments.
Cold, aloof, even somewhat arrogant, seemingly rejecting contact with others with the frigid aura they released from their bodies!
This temperament made Yang Kai feel somewhat nostalgic, as it was very similar to how Su Yan was.
On the other side, the group of four cultivators also seemed to be from the same Sect and were all wearing red robes that seemed to burn like fire! There were three men and one woman in this group and they were all staring at the three women opposite them with clear malicious intent.
Although Yang Kai had only just arrived, it didn’t take more than a glance for him to understand what was going on.
The three women must have discovered this hidden secluded home first, but as they were attacking the barrier here, they were spotted by this group of people who had come over to lay claim to it.
However, because the gap in number and strength of these two groups wasn’t very large, a kind of stalemate had formed, with no one willing to make the first move! Generally, when cultivators encountered situations like this, there were only two possible solutions.
The first option was for them to fight it out, with the victor obtaining all the benefits.
The other was for the two sides to negotiate an agreement and explore this hidden secluded home together before distributing any benefits they found inside.
Other than these, there was no third possibility.
Yang Kai observed this situation and felt that the first option was far more likely, because from the way these two parties glared at each other with obvious hatred in their eyes, it seemed they both knew enough about the other and had some kind of deep-seeded grudge between them.
It was also a mystery to Yang Kai which star these two groups came from.
This situation was quite interesting! Yang Kai couldn’t be happier. If these two groups joined forces, he would not be able to fish for any advantages here. Facing seven opponents, two of which were Third-Order Origin Returning Realm masters, Yang Kai wasn’t arrogant enough to believe he could emerge victoriously. Taking a huge risk for a secret secluded home that may or may not have any substantial benefits inside was obviously not a reasonable choice.
However, if there were enough clear benefits, Yang Kai didn’t mind inserting himself into this situation to pick some advantages.
Although these three women gave Yang Kai a more relatable impression, he had only just arrived here and shared no friendship with them, so he naturally was not about to righteously appear and support them, he simply planned on staying out of things while waiting for these two groups to fight it out with each other.
To Yang Kai’s disappointment though, neither side seemed to have any intention to act, but his arrival actually created a turning point in this delicate situation.
When Yang Kai arrived, the seven people naturally noticed him, but after realizing this newcomer was just a First-Order Origin Realm cultivator, all of them relaxed, the leader of the flaming red-robed group even revealing a disdainful look.
This leader was a burly bald-headed man and looked extremely sturdy. When he saw that Yang Kai didn’t immediately withdraw and instead floated nearby, this bald-headed man could not help snorting coldly and shouting, “Boy, there’s nothing here that concerns you. If you don’t want to die, then scram.”
Hearing this threat, Yang Kai simply curled his lips slightly, not displaying any fear, instead becoming even calmer.
The woman who was leading the other group, however, raised her brow slightly, a hint of joy actually flashing across the depths of her beautiful eyes.
There were only three people on her side, and although her personal strength wasn’t much worse than the bald-headed man leading the other party, her group was still at a disadvantage in numbers. Seeing the burly bald-headed man threaten Yang Kai so bluntly, her thoughts flashed quickly as she considered how to win Yang Kai over to her side.
As long as Yang Kai joined them, the gap between their two groups would be evened out, and she wouldn’t have any more scruples about acting.
Although a First-Order Origin Realm cultivator couldn’t be considered very strong, they were still an Origin Realm cultivator! In this kind of critical moment, this boy could definitely be of some use.
Realizing all this in a flash, the young woman no longer hesitated and directed a cold glare towards the burly bald-headed man, “Kong Wen Dong, you’re far too arrogant! With this Queen here, do you think you can still harm the innocent?”
After saying so, she turned to Yang Kai and gently nodded, saying in a warm tone, “Little brother, don’t be afraid, as long as I am alive, you need not fear him!”
“Haha…” Yang Kai laughed dryly, feeling somewhat speechless.
This young woman’s intention to win him over could not be more obvious, and with his vision, Yang Kai obviously understood what she was planning. She needed his help, otherwise, she would not have spoken up to shelter an irrelevant outsider.
However, judging from the dialogue between the two parties, these people really did know each other and shared a deep enmity.
“Cheap slut!” The burly bald-headed man smiled contemptuously, “Do you have such ability? Actually saying this Kong is too arrogant, I’d say you’re the one who is acting arrogant here!”
Saying so, he turned to glare at Yang Kai and said fiercely, “Boy, I’ll warn you one last time, if you don’t want to die, hurry up and scram! Don’t think that this cheap slut will really protect you, if you dare interfere in my Brilliant Flame Sect and her Ice Heart Valley’s dispute, all that awaits you is a cruel death!”
[Brilliant Flame Sect, Ice Heart Valley…] Yang Kai raised his brow. Although he had not heard of these two great forces, just from their names it was clear they were incompatible.
Naturally, he didn’t put Kong Wen Dong’s threat in his eyes though. With his current strength, if someone wanted to kill him, they’d need to be at least an Origin King; no Origin Realm cultivator had such ability.
The young woman smiled even wider as she brushed her hair back and said carelessly, “Kong Wen Dong, it seems you’ve only grown more cowardly with age, are you only able to bark threats to others now? Little brother, you don’t need to be afraid of him, although his Brilliant Flame Sect isn’t weak, my Ice Heart Valley is not easy to bully either. If you can help this Mistress here, this Mistress can give you some benefits, what do you say?”
Listening to her say this, Kong Wen Dong frowned while Yang Kai showed an interested look. Putting on a look that screamed ‘men die for wealth as birds die for food’, he grinned and asked, “What kind of benefits?”
The young woman smiled brilliantly as she lightly replied, “Some pills and Saint Crystals?”
Yang Kai couldn’t help laughing as he slowly shook his head.
While pills and Saint Crystals may have a lot of appeal to other First-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivators, they meant nothing to Yang Kai.
“What benefit do you want then?” The young woman seemed a little displeased that Yang Kai actually wanted to bargain with her at this time.
Before Yang Kai could answer though, Kong Wen Dong cut in. How could he sit back and watch Yang Kai be drawn over to the young women’s side? With an aggressive look on his face, he loudly shouted, “Boy, this Kong gave you an opportunity! Since you insist on courting death, you can only blame yourself! If this Kong wants to kill a trivial First-Order Origin Realm brat, who here can block me?”
Saying so, Kong Wen Dong pushed his Saint Qi and released a burning aura from his body, causing the surrounding temperature to soar.
He looked like he was about to unleash a killing blow, but he was actually just putting up a front, hoping to make Yang Kai retreat. Since he had offended this Yang Kai the moment he appeared, Kong Wen Dong naturally didn’t want him to remain, but before understanding Yang Kai’s details and background, he didn’t really dare start a fight.
His plan was quite good, and his reasoning was sound, but the young woman opposing him was also no fool. How could she let Yang Kai just leave now? Without waiting for Kong Wen Dong to even finish what he was saying, she shouted, “If you think you have the skill just try it!”
A chill radiating from her tender body as she glared towards Kong Wen Dong without fear.
Yang Kai frowned as he shot a gloomy look towards this beautiful woman.
Just listening to this young woman’s words, she didn’t seem to be saying anything wrong, even showing some intentions to shelter him, but if Yang Kai wasn’t wrong, it seemed she didn’t have such pure intentions.
On the contrary, this woman seemed eager for Kong Wen Dong to attack him!
If this burly bald-headed man really attacked him, Yang Kai would inevitably be pushed towards the three women’s side! At that time, whether he wanted to or not, in order to survive, he would have to join forces with them!
This woman… wasn’t clear as ice or pure as jade as she seemed, instead she was quite manipulative. This greatly reduced Yang Kai’s impression of her.
The key now was whether or not Kong Wen Dong would act on her provocations! With things reaching this point, Yang Kai could only look towards the burly bald-headed man again and sigh to himself.
Since this man declared himself to be from Brilliant Flame Sect, obviously he must cultivate a Fire Attribute Secret Art. Most cultivators that cultivated this attribute of Secret Art had short tempers, irritable personalities, and aggressive impulses. This had nothing to do with their personalities but rather was connected to the innate qualities of their Secret Arts.
The young woman’s few words truly provoked Kong Wen Dong Shi, and with him already being prone to violence, how could he hesitate? What’s more, he really didn’t put a trivial First-Order Origin Returning Realm boy in his eyes, otherwise, he wouldn’t have tried to expel Yang Kai with no trace of politeness when he just arrived.
Grinning, Kong Wen Dong snorted, “Boy, don’t blame father here, when you arrive in the nether world, blame this cheap slut for forcing my hand!”
Saying so, he stretched out his hand and made a grasping motion towards Yang Kai.
Fire Attribute energy in the surroundings immediately began gathering together above Yang Kai’s head, condensing into a blazing palm in the next instant, then slammed down towards Yang Kai without a hint of mercy.
Seeing this scene, the women on the other side all narrowed their eyes as they showed dignified looks on their faces. Although they had fought with Brilliant Flame Sect’s cultivators for many years, this was the first time they had witnessed such an imposing attack. Kong Wen Dong had clearly achieved a high degree of mastery of his Fire Attribute strength!
While slightly fearful, witnessing this attack, the leading young woman was not about to let this rare opportunity pass!
Just as Kong Wen Dong attacked Yang Kai, and almost everyone’s attention had been attracted, this young woman suddenly formed a seal with her hands while condensing an ice-cold strength from her body to form a pure white spear. With a soft shout, this ice spear shot out at tremendous speed towards the Brilliant Flame Sect’s weakest cultivator.
The cultivation realm of this cultivator was the same as Yang Kai’s First-Order Origin Returning Realm, the weakest existence among these seven people.
Better to cripple a weak enemy than merely weaken a strong one. This young woman appeared gentle but was actually ruthless and merciless.
The pitiful scream rang out as the cultivator targeted by the young woman coughed up blood. Although they had instinctually dodged at the last moment, avoiding instant death, they still had an ice spear penetrate straight through their lower abdomen, suffering a critical blow!
This wasn’t surprising though as he was sneak-attacked by a cultivator two Minor Realms above him. It was lucky for him to even be alive at this moment. Even so, most of his combat strength had been lost, so if a fight broke out, the role he could play would not be big.
With her attacking going well, the young woman’s beautiful face showed a satisfied smile.
After a moment of shock, Kong Wen Dong’s face suddenly distorted with rage as he cursed, “Cheap slut, this was your plan all along!”
He had underestimated the viciousness of this young woman. He thought that after he attacked, this young woman would show goodwill by rescuing Yang Kai, thus drawing him over to her side and turning the situation into a four versus four.
But instead, this woman had not paid any attention to whether Yang Kai lived or died, not even attempting to rescue him and instead taking advantage of the situation to cause heavy losses to one of Kong Wen Dong’s allies.
Exchanging the life of an unknown, unrelated boy for the fighting strength of an enemy, Ice Heart Valley had made a huge profit on this sale!
Kong Wen Dong’s face became extremely ugly, as if he had just been forced to eat a fly.
The young woman, on the other hand, smiled radiantly as she said leisurely, “Kong Wen Dong, if you know your limits, hurry up and leave, otherwise don’t blame this Queen for acting ruthlessly.”
“Bitch!” Kong Wen Dong cursed, “You think you can not place father here in your eyes? You don’t know the immensity of Heaven and Earth!”
“Hmph, take a look at what this is!” The young woman didn’t pay any mind to the other party’s insults, instead waving her hand and summoning an exquisite looking drum into her palm, one that gave off astonishing energy fluctuations.
“Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum!” The burly bald-headed man’s eyes shrank when he saw this and was nearly stunned silent. Seemingly recognizing this artifact and finding it impossible to believe it was in this young woman’s hands, he cried out in disbelief, “How could you have this thing!?”
The young woman simply giggled lightly, “Since we planned to enter the Emperor Garden, we would naturally bring some good artifacts to protect ourselves. What? Don’t you have an Origin King Grade artifact?”
These few words almost caused Kong Wen Dong to choke. He and this young woman had similar cultivations, and their status in their respective Sects was almost the same, but now, she had an Origin King Grade artifact while he did not. Comparing himself to her, Kong Wen Dong suddenly felt somewhat poor and unvalued.
How he felt though, wasn’t of any consequence, the key was the power of this artifact. Since it was an Origin King Grade artifact, it certainly possessed great lethality, and understanding the peculiarities of this Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum, Kong Wen Dong couldn’t help showing a look of fear on his face.
But soon, he let out a snide laugh, as if he had just figured out something, and taunted “Slut, don’t try to pretend in front of Father. If you could use the full power of this Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum, why didn’t you just take it out from the start? You haven’t fully refined that thing, have you?”
This time, it was the young woman’s face that turned gloomy.
It was indeed as Kong Wen Dong said, this Origin King Grade artifact had been specially given to her by her Sect’s Elders for this trip to the Emperor Garden; after this expedition was over, she would need to return it. Having only received it a short time ago, naturally, she had yet to fully refine it, so at most she could exert half of this artifact’s power. If this wasn’t the case, she wouldn’t have wasted so much time with Kong Wen Dong and instead used it directly to repel him.
Seeing the young woman’s face changed slightly, Kong Wen Dong immediately knew he was right and laughed even harder, “Taking out an artifact you haven’t refined to scare this Kong? Bitch, you think this Kong Mou is so easily fooled?”
“So what? An Origin King Grade artifact is still an Origin King Grade artifact. If you want to try its might, I’d be happy to accommodate you. If you don’t have the courage, then hurry up and scram!” The young woman coldly declared.
Kong Wen Dong frowned and fell silent for a moment, not knowing what decision to make.
On the one hand, he very much wanted whatever treasures were hidden inside this secluded home, but on the other hand, he was wary of the Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum. He really didn’t want to test its power, so his expression became hesitant.
“Hey, are you guys going to fight or not? If you aren’t, I have other things to do,” An exasperated voice suddenly called out from nearby, instantly drawing everyone’s attention, causing them to stare dumbfounded towards a certain spot.
At the spot where all of them were staring was a whirl of flame, the very one that Kong Wen Dong had condensed from the surrounding Fire Attribute energy a moment ago. But before everyone’s eyes, the roaring flames were quickly dispersed, revealing a figure hiding within them.
“How is that possible?” Kong Wen Dong almost bit his tongue, unable to believe his eyes.
There, the First-Order Origin Returning Realm boy who he attacked was standing calmly; not only had this brat not died, he actually seemed completely unscathed.
How could that be?
Kong Wen Dong was well aware of the power of his attack just now. Forget about a First-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivator, even if it was a Third-Order Origin Realm master they shouldn’t have been able to simply shrug off this blow. As for this First Order boy, he should have been instantly burnt to ash.
The other party hadn’t summoned any kind of defensive artifact at all, nor did he seem to use his Saint Qi to shield himself, so how was he able to remain unhurt?
Kong Wen Dong almost thought he was dreaming.
Not only was he shocked, but the three young women from Ice Heart Valley were thoroughly stunned as well, their eyes filled with surprise.
Yang Kai, on the other hand, wore a helpless expression. Originally, after being attacked by Kong Wen Dong, he had concealed his aura and was planning on sitting atop the mountain while watching the tigers fight. But now it seemed that this idea was somewhat unrealistic. The strength of these two parties was now essentially equal, so their stalemate was likely to drag on for quite some time unless something happened to tip the balance again.
With no other options, Yang Kai could only reveal himself.
Now, however, not only was Kong Wen Dong’s expression quite ugly, the lead young woman’s expression was also somewhat bitter.
When Yang Kai had been attacked just now, instead of trying to help him she had used him as bait to launch a sneak attack on her enemy. While the words she spoke were righteous, when Yang Kai actually faced danger she had stood by and done nothing, so she was naturally feeling somewhat embarrassed.
However, compared to Kong Wen Dong, the young woman still occupied some advantage; after all, she had only used Yang Kai rather than directly attacking him, so after quickly adjusting her expression, she called out sweetly, “Sure enough, little brother is truly fierce. This Mistress knew you would be fine.”
She spoke as if she had predicted this outcome.
Yang Kai simply chuckled before striding forward and saying, “Enough idle chatter. Sister, is the offer you made just now still valid?”
The young woman was stunned for a moment before immediately becoming overjoyed, quickly nodding, “Naturally!”
“Good!” Yang Kai nodded with satisfaction, “In that case, after this matter is settled, I want half of whatever is inside this secluded home. If Sister agrees, I will immediately help you. If you don’t agree, I’ll be on my way.”
“Half?” The young woman gawked at Yang Kai, a displeased look soon filling her face as she snorted, “Little brother, don’t you think this proposal is a little unfair?”
“How is it unfair?” Yang Kai looked at her with a grin.
“You are all alone and only have a First-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivation, but my Ice Heart Valley has three people. Even if we split everything evenly between us, you should receive a quarter of the benefits inside this place, as for taking half… Hehe, aren’t you simply asking for the lion’s share?”
“I don’t think so!” Yang Kai shook his head earnestly, “If I don’t intervene here, you won’t get anything, which means that in order to obtain anything you need to secure my cooperation, so our two sides each taking half the benefits here is truly a fair proposal.”
“Nonsense!” The young woman shook her head vigorously and said firmly, “I can’t agree to this proposal, I can at most give you a fifth of what’s inside; if you can’t agree, then forget the whole matter.”
“Is that so?” Yang Kai grinned even wider as he looked her over with interest, “Even if they have their own reinforcements on the way, you won’t agree?”
“What did you say?” The young woman’s complexion changed.
“Why don’t you take a look for yourself?” Yang Kai replied casually.
The young woman was no fool and swiftly turned her head to look at the four Brilliant Flame Sect cultivators opposing her, her eyes narrowing coldly a moment later. The reason was simple, the First-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivator she had wounded heavily was now secretly pouring his Divine Sense into a communication artifact, seemingly trying to call for help, but whether he had succeeded yet was impossible to tell.
Seeing this scene, the lead young woman immediately knew that this matter could no longer be delayed, grit her teeth, and nodded, “Good, half it is. As long as we can obtain the treasures inside this mountain valley, this Mistress will definitely not go back on her word!”
“I certainly hope you mean what you say!” Yang Kai gave her a meaningful stare, causing the young woman’s heart to clench up, for some reason feeling a little uneasy.
But soon, she swept such thoughts aside. Right now, what was most important was to drag this little brat into this muddy water. As for how to distribute the benefits inside this mountain valley, that wasn’t for him to decide. As long as she gave him a tenth or so, it should be fine.
As for giving him half… it was just pure nonsense. Even if she didn’t plan on completely burning bridges after crossing them, if this little brat didn’t know his limits, it wouldn’t be too late to put him in his place when the time came.
“You may rest assured.” Thinking so, the young woman smiled lightly.
While Yang Kai was negotiating with the young woman, Kong Wen Dong didn’t try to interrupt. He knew that he had formed an irresolvable grudge with Yang Kai, so no matter what he said now, it wouldn’t matter. After Yang Kai and the young woman finished though, he grinned fiercely and asked, “Boy, you must think highly of yourself, don’t you?”
“Whether that’s the case or not, you’ll soon understand,” Yang Kai grinned but didn’t go to find trouble with Kong Wen Dong; after all, of the four Brilliant Flame Sect cultivators, this burly, bald-headed man was the strongest and would certainly be a bit troublesome to deal with. Instead, Yang Kai targeted an elderly man at the Second-Order Origin Returning Realm who was wearing black robes and had his beard tied up in three braids, giving him an almost sage-like appearance despite his skin looking quite soft and supple.
A Golden Blood Thread flew out towards the old man in yellow robes, showering him in a storm of swift, cutting attacks.
Seeing Yang Kai take action so decisively, without any intention of holding back or delaying, even choosing an opponent a Minor Realm above himself, the three women from Ice Heart Valley all reacted joyfully. The leading young woman also let out a shout and met Kong Wen Dong head-on while the remaining two women each engaged their own opponent.
From Ice Heart Valley’s side, besides the lead young woman who was a Third-Order Origin Returning Realm master, one was at the Second-Order while the last was at the First-Order.
The remaining Brilliant Flame Sect cultivators had identical cultivations.
However, Brilliant Flame Sect’s First-Order Origin Realm cultivator had taken a serious blow from Ice Heart Valley’s leader, so the First-Order Origin Realm woman from Ice Heart Valley would obviously not need to spend much time dispatching him. Once she won that battle, she would be able to assist the others.
One by one, a rolling snowball effect would be created, and Brilliant Flame Sect’s group would eventually suffer defeat!
The lead young woman instantly predicted how the battle would proceed and secretly celebrated, but couldn’t help glancing over at Yang Kai with some concern; after all, her predictions were all based on Yang Kai’s ability to entangle the yellow-robed old man.
If Yang Kai was quickly killed by this yellow-robed old man from Brilliant Flame Sect, her predictions would not be true.
The young women could only hope Yang Kai would be able to hold out.
She believed that Yang Kai would be caught in a one-sided battle, constantly on the defensive, barely able to support himself; after all, his opponent was a Minor Realm above him in cultivation.
But when she glanced over, the young woman was shocked!
The battle was indeed one-sided, but not the way she had imagined, it was actually the Second-Order Origin Realm old man in yellow robes who was beset with difficulties and was barely managing to support himself.
The old man’s figure was constantly being attacked by threads of golden light that seemed capable of slicing through space itself. Every time these golden lights flickered, the old man would have to put all his strength into defending himself, simply not having enough spare capacity to counterattack.
The young woman leader from Ice Heart Valley almost felt her eyes pop out of their sockets!
In that moment of distraction, she was nearly injured by Kong Wen Dong though, and in a panic, she quickly calmed her mind and focused on her own fight, no longer paying any attention to Yang Kai.
At the same time, on Yang Kai’s side, the old man in yellow robes had gone pale, never having expected that this First-Order Origin Returning Realm young man to be so difficult to deal with.
The golden threads attacking him had unparalleled sharpness. He couldn’t tell what kind of Secret Technique these golden threads were, but every time they slashed towards him they easily managed to slice apart the Saint Qi he condensed to protect himself.
The yellow-robed old man was quickly forced to summon his Artifact Armour, but even after doing so, he was having difficulties simply protecting himself.
This wasn’t the worst part of it for the old man though; what was the most unbearable for him was that he had no way to suppress his opponent with his Shi. When Origin Realm masters fought, the strength of their respective Shi could sometimes become the decisive factor.
Once one managed to overwhelm their opponent’s Shi with their own, they could thoroughly suppress their enemy, making them far easier to deal with.
The yellow-robed old man hadn’t put Yang Kai in his eyes at the start of their battle, thinking he could use his superior Shi to suppress this young man. But the moment he released his Shi, it was actually cut apart by the strange golden threads, unable to even form a cohesive field much less cover Yang Kai.
[These golden threads are actually able to cut apart Shi!] The old man was thoroughly shocked by this and didn’t dare underestimate Yang Kai again. Letting out a fierce roar, he waved his hands and condensed a washbasin sized fireball before fiercely pushing it out towards Yang Kai.
Halfway to its target, the giant fireball exploded, separating into countless smaller fireballs that blotted out the sky and surged forward with imposing force.
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes slightly before flicking his wrist and sending out a stream of Demonic Flame fireballs to meet his opponents.
“You want to play with fire?” The old man in yellow robes saw this and couldn’t help wearing a smile of ridicule. He was an expert in controlling flames; after all, he was a master from Brilliant Flame Sect and had spent his entire life cultivating Fire Attribute Secret Arts and Secret Techniques. As such, even if this young man had a strange technique which allowed him to eliminate Shi, the old man was confident that in a competition of Fire Attribute Secret Techniques, he would come out on top.
Thinking so, he prepared himself to watch a good show.
But in the next moment, his smiling face stiffened before it was quickly replaced with an expression of shock.
The black fireballs the young man released actually began giving off a frigid aura, one even stronger than the Ice Attribute Secret Techniques Ice Heart Valley cultivators used. Still, they seemed ordinary when they were first shot out, but soon after these cold fireballs twisted and morphed into tiny flying birds that while seemingly scattered and disorderly, flew out with extreme precision towards his own fireballs.
“Yuan Control Mastery!” The old man in yellow robes’ eyes shrank as his face filled with shock.
Although Yuan Control Mastery was technically achievable by those at the Origin Returning Realm, not everyone was capable of using it. The yellow-robed old man had also spent time cultivating Yuan Control Mastery and even had some small accomplishments in it, but he was unable to use the kind of precise Saint Qi control that Yang Kai clearly could.
Being able to have such profound Yuan Control Mastery was not achievable simply through comprehension and practice, it also required incredibly powerful Spiritual Energy!
This boy was obviously just a First-Order Origin Realm cultivator, so how did he possess this kind of ability? The old man couldn’t help silently calling out in alarm as he realized he was at a disadvantage.
Although they were both using flames, his opponent’s attack was obviously much sharper and stronger thanks to his superb Yuan Control Mastery.
Sure enough, when the black birds met his fireballs, the red hot flames were immediately frozen and annihilated while the little birds received only minor damage. They then gathered together to condense a giant black firebird and proceeded to strike out towards him.
“Have a taste of my flames!” Yang Kai grinned and transformed his ice-cold Demonic Flames into a scorching inferno with a single thought.
Yang Kai’s Demonic Flames could be hot or cold, and he only needed to will it so in order to change their nature, making these black flames incredibly difficult to counter.
The old man in yellow robes failed to notice this mutation right away and suffered a big loss as a result.
The change from cold to hot was too fast, catching him off guard and unprepared, only able to hurriedly summon a shield-like defensive artifact, which transformed into a light curtain around his body just before he was enveloped by Yang Kai’s Demonic Flame.
Thinking his strike had gone well, Yang Kai was about to step forward and deal the finishing blow when his brow suddenly furrowed and he immediately leapt backwards.
*Hong…*
With a loud bang, the light curtain guarding the yellow-robed old man suddenly exploded. Using the force of his artifact exploding, the old man was able to escape the Demonic Flames while simultaneously retreating several dozen metres to relative safety.
From the looks of it, the yellow-robed old man didn’t suffer much damage and only looked slightly dishevelled.
For the cost of a defensive artifact, this old man had managed to escape from the Demonic Flames, illustrating how decisive he was.
Yang Kai was secretly surprised and had to admit that he had somewhat underestimated his opponent. Anyone who could reach the Second-Order Origin Returning Realm clearly had a wealth of combat experience!
“Boy! This old master must skin you alive to dispel his hatred!” After the yellow-robed old man narrowly escaped disaster, not only did he not give in, but he ground his teeth and glared towards Yang Kai threateningly instead.
As soon as his words fell, this old man drew in a sharp breath, his expression becoming strained, as if he was about to execute some kind of powerful Secret Technique.
Naturally, Yang Kai was not going to sit back and wait for this old man to act. Although he didn’t know what kind of card his opponent was going to play, the tide of battle could shift in the blink of an eye; perhaps this yellow-robed old man really had some kind of killing blow that could reverse his current disadvantage.
Considering this, Yang Kai flicked his wrist again and sent his Golden Blood Thread piercing forward like a spear towards the old man’s head.
The Golden Blood Thread’s sharpness was unrivalled, and after being warmed and nourished by Yang Kai for such a long time, its power was truly immense. Furthermore, Yang Kai could control this Golden Blood Thread as if it was an extension of his body. After the yellow-robed old man self-destructed his defensive artifact, it was clear that he only had the Artifact Armour he was wearing to protect himself, so Yang Kai could use his Golden Blood Thread to pierce him where his guard was weakest.
Yang Kai had full confidence to kill or severely injure his opponent with this blow.
What shocked Yang Kai though was that, facing his Golden Blood Thread, the old man did not show any intention to dodge, simply standing in place and spitting out a fiery red wave of energy from his mouth.
In the blink of an eye, a crimson red mass appeared in front of the old man, radiating a power so imposing that even Yang Kai could not help feeling shocked!
This red mass was clearly still composed of Fire Attribute energy, but its energy fluctuations were on a completely different level compared to the flames the old man had released previously and obviously contained profound mystery.
Just after this fiery red mass took shape, the Golden Blood Thread pierced into it.
The moment it did, however, Yang Kai’s complexion changed slightly, and he immediately withdrew his Golden Blood Thread. With a frown, Yang Kai saw that the leading section of his Golden Blood Thread showed signs of melting.
If Yang Kai had not swiftly pulled his Golden Blood Thread back, the forward section of it would surely have evaporated, causing a certain amount of backlash against him.
Yang Kai could not help narrowing his eyes slightly, not having anticipated that his opponent’s Secret Technique would be so powerful.
On the other hand, the old man’s original ruddy face had gone slightly pale, most likely because of the heavy burden using this Secret Technique had on him. Even so, he laughed wildly, “Boy, have a taste of this old master’s Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire’s might!”
Saying so, the old man pushed his hands forward and madly poured his Saint Qi into the fiery red haze. With this infusion of Saint Qi, the fiery red haze swelled up suddenly and began releasing a heat that caused the space around it to distort. In the next instant, this heat mass transformed into a kind of ferocious-looking monster that rippled with intense flames.
As soon as this monster took shape, it pounced towards Yang Kai, seemingly melting the air around it as it moved forward, the sand and gravel down below turning into molten glass, making for a shocking scene.
This monster wasn’t just composed of extremely high-temperature flames though, as there were obvious streaks of jet black lightning swimming about its form, crackling violently, adding to its ominous prestige.
However, Yang Kai was not the least bit afraid facing this strange creature, only wearing a somewhat puzzled look on his face, seemingly lost in thought.
But soon, he regained his calm, and with a quick thought, a sharp bird cry rang out and a strange-looking Firebird leapt from his body, spreading its several dozen metre wide wings as it released a dazzling light into the surrounding space.
Firebird Artifact Spirit!
After being released by Yang Kai, the Artifact Spirit’s eyes flashed with excitement as it stared at the monster rushing towards Yang Kai. It was like it saw a delicious feast.
The moment the Artifact Spirit appeared, the strange thunder fires monster’s imposing manner stagnated for a moment and its eyes even flashed a look of dread, seemingly terrified of the Firebird before it. At the same time, the speed at which it was charging dramatically decreased.
The self-satisfied look on the yellow-robed old man’s face instantly cramped up, as if someone had just slapped him across the face, causing his jaw to drop as he stared at the Firebird Artifact Spirit Firebird in amazement.
He had never imagined that Yang Kai could use a method similar to his.
However, worrying now was useless. He did not believe that this boy’s methods could compare to the Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire he had cultivated for most of his life and had absolute confidence in.
In his moment of absent-mindedness, the Firebird Artifact Spirit and strange thunder fire monster collided and a bizarre scene of two different flames battling each other suddenly emerged. Monstrous howls and sharp bird cries constantly rang out as the two fought one another for dominance.
The yellow-robed old man secretly began to sweat while he watched; although he felt that his means were superior, saying he was not concerned at all would be a lie.
On the other hand, Yang Kai was extremely indifferent. His Firebird Artifact Spirit had even absorbed many wisps of Sun’s True Fire, and although he did not know what this Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire was, Yang Kai was certain it wasn’t on the same level as the Sun’s True Essence.
His Firebird Artifact Spirit should not have any difficulty dealing with it.
Taking advantage of this brief pause in hostilities, Yang Kai quickly probed the situation on the other battlefields.
Kong Wen Dong and the lead young woman’s battle need not be mentioned. With the two of them both having the same cultivation, without using the Origin King Grade Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum artifact, neither could gain the upper hand on the other.
The same was true for the battle between the two Second-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivators nearby.
The battle between the two First-Order Origin Realm cultivators, on the contrary, was completely lopsided, with the woman from Ice Heart Valley holding a distinct advantage. This was not a surprise though as her opponent had suffered a heavy blow from Ice Heart Valley’s leader before the battle began and was thus unable to display much of his strength at the moment. He could only clench his teeth and struggle desperately.
Even so, it was obvious this man was not far from being defeated.
As long as Ice Heart Valley’s side won a single battle, the momentum would shift dramatically in their favour and obtaining victory would only be a matter of time.
It only took Yang Kai a moment to use his Divine Sense to determine the situation around himself, but immediately after he learned what he wanted to, a mournful beast roar suddenly rang out from in front of him.
Yang Kai raised his brow and looked over just in time to see his Firebird Artifact Spirit Firebird completely suppress the strange thunder fire monster beast, wrapping itself around it completely.
Although the two creatures were both composed purely of flame, they both had their own unique advantages and disadvantages.
Yang Kai’s Artifact Spirit had long ago obtained sentience and had been nourished by the Earth’s Lung Fire Pond for over ten thousand years. Even in its original form, the Firebird was not a creature ordinary flames could compete with, and after swallowing several wisps of Sun’s True Fire, it had only become stronger. The monster transformed from the yellow-robed old man’s Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire was simply incomparable to it.
As such, moments after the fight began, the strange thunder fire monster fell into a disadvantage and, judging from the Firebird Artifact Spirit’s current behaviour, it seemed it wanted to swallow this thunder fire beast entirely.
Realizing this, the yellow-robed old man immediately became angry and anxious. He had spent a huge amount of his strength to use his trump card, but now it was obviously unable to play any role, so how could he not feel like coughing up blood?
Continuously pushing his Divine Sense, the old man attempted to recall his Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire monster from the Firebird Artifact Spirit’s suppression, but his efforts were to no avail.
“Old dog, look here!” Yang Kai suddenly grinned towards the old man and called out to him.
The yellow-robed old man could not help turning his head to look towards Yang Kai, wary that this boy would try to use this opportunity to attack him if he didn’t.
But the moment his eyes met Yang Kai’s; he was no longer able to look away.
In Yang Kai’s left eye, a strange lotus-bud strangely appeared before swiftly taking root in the old man’s Knowledge Sea, its beautiful petals slowly beginning to blossom in the next instant.
What horrified the yellow-robed old man though was that as this lotus blossomed, his Spiritual Energy began gathering towards it, as if it was being absorbed by it regardless of how he tried to stop it!
It was almost like this lotus was using his Spiritual Energy as nourishment to make itself bloom.
In the blink of an eye, almost a tenth of his Spiritual Energy had been drained and the rate of consumption was only increasing. At this rate, the old man estimated it would be less than ten breaths of time before his entire Knowledge Sea was dried up.
Once this happened, his Soul would suffer a devastating blow, one that would be extremely difficult to recover from.
The yellow-robed old man was thoroughly terrified and could not spare any of his attention to urge his Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire, quickly pushing all of his Spiritual Energy towards the strange blooming lotus to submerge it.
*Hong…*
A silent explosion occurred in the old man’s Knowledge Sea, instantly filling it with great waves and storms.
*Pu…*
The old man immediately coughed up a large blood mist, as if he suffered a serious injury.
Although he had used his Divine Sense to forcibly dispel Yang Kai’s Blossoming Lotus Secret Technique, he had still suffered a severe blow as a result.
As the saying goes, however, good fortune never came in pairs while misfortunes never occurred alone. Just as the old man escaped this crisis, without his conscious control, his Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire was swallowed by the Firebird Artifact Spirit.
The Firebird once again revealed its original form, but the strange thunder fire monster transformed from the old man’s Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire was nowhere to be seen. However, if one looked carefully, they could spot a few streaks of black lightning swimming about the Artifact Spirit’s belly.
There was no doubt it was the Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire!
*Pu…*
Another blood mist spurted from the yellow-robed old man’s mouth. His Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire was connected to his Soul, but now that the Firebird had swallowed it and forcibly cut this connection, it was inevitable for the old man to suffer backlash.
These successive blows had caused the yellow-robed old man’s momentum and aura to drastically weaken and his face was as pale as paper. Nothing remained of this Second-Order Origin Returning Realm’s former arrogance, and now he simply looked like a frail old man who was in danger of being toppled by a strong breeze.
One wrong move had led to his complete loss. This yellow-robed old man had never anticipated that a trivial First-Order Origin Returning Realm boy could force him to this extent.
Before the old man could even stabilize his turbulent Saint Qi though, a streak of golden flashed towards him.
Yang Kai’s Golden Blood Thread!
Taking advantage of an opponent’s moment of weakness to finish them was something Yang Kai had long ago learnt through his many years of wandering and innumerable battles.
The yellow-robed old man was already an arrow at the end of its flight, so despite knowing the approaching Golden Blood Thread was a life-threatening attack, he was simply unable to avoid or resist it. He was only able to hurriedly push his Saint Qi to protect himself and pray it would be enough for him to survive.
With a slicing noise, however, the old man’s Saint Qi protection was pierced through like paper and his head was swiftly penetrated by the sharp Golden Blood Thread.
The yellow-robed old man’s lips squirmed as he stared towards Yang Kai in disbelief, seemingly wanting to say something but unable to form any words; soon after his vitality drained from his eyes.
When Yang Kai withdrew his Golden Blood Thread, the old man’s body crumpled to the ground.
Since Yang Kai first rushed his opponent, only half a cup of tea’s worth of time had passed yet the result had already been decided with the yellow-robed old man, who supposedly had higher strength, being the one who fell.
The briefness of this battle and the unexpected end result thoroughly shocked everyone present.
In truth, Yang Kai was also quite surprised. Although Yang Kai didn’t fear a mere Second-Order Origin Realm cultivator and was even confident he could kill one with his current means, from the beginning of this fight until its conclusion, he had not even exerted all his strength; mainly using his Golden Blood Thread and Firebird Artifact Spirit and momentarily activating his Blossoming Lotus Secret Technique once.
It was not that he was trying to conserve or conceal his strength, it was simply that he didn’t need to show any more of his methods.
The Firebird Artifact Spirit was a significant factor in why the yellow-robed old man fell so quickly, however; if it hadn’t devoured the old man’s Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire, causing him heavy losses, it would have been impossible for Yang Kai to have won so easily.
Although the others present were all engaged in their own battles, everyone was still paying attention to the changes in their surroundings, so the death of the old man naturally was not missed by them.
Seeing Yang Kai kill the yellow-robed old man so easily, the burly bald man, Kong Wen Dong, could not help becoming furious while also showing an extremely ugly expression. Even the beautiful young female leader from Ice Heart Valley had a look of dread flash across her face.
She had thought that Yang Kai was not strong, so although she had deliberately tried to win him over, she had not counted on him providing much help, nor had she taken the conditions he previously proposed seriously, but how could she have known that this young man was not only ruthless but also extremely powerful?
However, considering everything, the young woman was far happier than depressed; after all, with a cultivator from Brilliant Flame Sect dead, she was now certain her group would win this battle.
Thinking so, she immediately yelled to Yang Kai, “Little brother, please hurry to assist this Mistress’ sisters!”
“Sure!” Yang Kai nodded casually before turning his eyes to the First-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivator who had been hit by the woman’s sneak attack earlier.
This man was seriously injured and was being thoroughly suppressed by his opponent from Ice Heart Valley. He was already unable to fight back and was barely able to defend himself, so after seeing the yellow-robed old man die and noticing Yang Kai eyeing him menacingly, how could this man not begin to panic?
With his state of mind thrown into chaos, his strength fell once more, and faced with the fierce assault of his Ice Heart Valley opponent, he actually allowed himself to suffer a hit in order to withdraw from the battle and attempt to escape.
The woman from Ice Heart Valley definitely would not allow her opponent’s plan to succeed and took this opportunity to land a heavy blow with her artifact, opening a giant gash on the fleeing man’s back and causing him to cough up blood and crash to the ground.
This young woman had a beautiful continence and seemed gentle and temperate, but she understood the concept of beating a snake to death to avoid future calamity and immediately stepped forward to deliver a final blow; ending her opponent’s life.
After winning this battle, she and Yang Kai exchanged a glance before both of them flew towards another battlefield.
These two chose was the one where the two Second-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivators were fighting. Originally, this battle had been an even fight, but with Yang Kai and the other First-Order Ice Heart Valley woman joining in, the situation immediately changed.
With the situation becoming a three on one, the female cultivator from Brilliant Flame Sect had no chance of running away, persisting only thirty breaths of time before she was killed by the two women from Ice Heart Valley.
Yang Kai only played a containment role, but his contribution was no less significant!
The state of this battle had changed far faster than anyone expected and Ice Heart Valley grained the absolute upper hand with Yang Kai serving as a lynchpin. Currently, only Kong Wen Dong left of the original group of four from Brilliant Flame Sect.
Seeing that the situation had become hopeless, hatred flashed across the depths of Kong Wen Dong’s eyes as he shouted out fiercely, “Cheap slut, Father will make you pay for this one day!”
Saying so, he made a feint and escaped from the range of the young woman he was fighting, condensed a mighty flame around his body, and shot off towards the distance at incredible speed.
It was impossible to tell what kind of escaping Secret Technique had been used.
In a moment of distraction, the young woman actually allowed Kong Wen Dong to flee several kilometres before her beautiful face darkened.
The last thing she wanted was to allow Kong Wen Dong to escape and call for help, the situation might turn against her again, so she quickly shouted, “Stop him!”
Hearing her cry, the other two Ice Heart Valley women naturally flew off, but Yang Kai simply frowned and stood in place without moving.
Whether Kong Wen Dong lived or died was none of his concern. Yang Kai didn’t know what star Brilliant Flame Sect was based on, so even if he allowed Kong Wen Dong to flee, no harm would come to him. What Yang Kai cared about now was the benefits inside this hidden secluded home. As long as he could break through the barrier protecting this place and obtain the treasures inside, he could just calmly depart.
He had no interest in inserting himself in the grudge between Brilliant Flame Sect and Ice Heart Valley.
Seeing Yang Kai not moving, clearly showing no intention to help, the young woman leader from Ice Heart Sect could not help becoming somewhat flurried, but she quickly thought of something and said, “Kong Wen Dong also has a Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire on him, killing him will allow your Spirit Fire to obtain more benefits!”
Her mind really was quite sharp as it only took her one sentence to arouse Yang Kai’s interest!
“Really?” Yang Kai looked at her suspiciously; after all, that Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire had looked quite powerful so his first thought was that the yellow-robed old man had obtained it through some kind of rare opportunity, therefore, he found it difficult to believe that Kong Wen Dong had one as well.
“How could this Mistress deceive you? I can explain the specific reasons for this later, but believe me when I say Kong Wen Dong definitely has a Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire on him!” Seeing Yang Kai’s look of interest, the young woman immediately knew she had made the right bet and quickly offered her assurances.
“If that’s the case, we really can’t let him run away!” Yang Kai’s eyes flashed before his figure flickered and he suddenly disappeared.
When he reappeared, he was already a few kilometres away.
The young female leader’s eyes shrank when she saw this and her sense of dread increased once more. Even with her cultivation, she was unable to see what kind of miraculous Movement Skill Yang Kai had used to achieve such speed.
This wasn’t surprising since the Space Force Yang Kai cultivated was something very few people could recognize, and even fewer could cultivate to any practical degree. Only if someone like Heaven Battling Union’s Great Elder Mo Xiao Sheng, who also cultivated Space Force, was here would they be able to see through the method Yang Kai had just used.
By applying a small amount of his Space Force, Yang Kai was able to almost instantly cross over a few hundred metres in an instant. Although this method could not compare to tearing space in terms of distance travelled, it was by no means a trivial method as it required very fine control over Space Force. Furthermore, this method was far more subtle than tearing space as it did not create such an obvious disturbance in the surroundings.
Kong Wen Dong’s speed was indeed quite quick, but no matter how fast he was, he still couldn’t compare to Yang Kai who was literally leaping across space.
In just a few dozen breaths, Yang Kai came to a stop in front of Kong Wen Dong and with a wave of his hand sent out a flock of Demonic Flame birds towards him.
“Out of my way, boy!” Kong Wen Dong didn’t even try to hide his anger as he plunged headfirst into Yang Kai’s attack while summoning a large sword artifact into his hand, pouring his Saint Qi into it, and slashing out.
A massive hundred-metre long sword wave shot forward with astonishing momentum.
The Demonic Flame birds were blown away in an instant. Facing such a blow, Yang Kai didn’t dare act carelessly; after all, his opponent’s strength wasn’t by any means weak. Without any hesitation, Yang Kai summoned his Purple Shield and activated its sandstorm ability to protect himself.
A loud noise rang out as the wind and sand were scattered about as the massive sword wave was dispersed, leaving behind a gap in the sandstorm the Purple Shield had created, nearly exposing Yang Kai’s figure.
“An Origin Grade High-Rank defensive artifact?” Kong Wen Dong’s eyes shrank as he exclaimed.
His vision was good so he had no trouble identifying the grade of the Purple Shield.
“For the sins you’ve committed, the Heavens will pass their own judgement, but today, Kong Wen Dong, this will be your burial place!” From behind, a soft shout rang out from the lead Ice Heart Valley woman who had chased after Kong Wen Dong Heart.
Although her speed was slower than that of Yang Kai’s, with the latter having blocked Kong Wen Dong’s way, it wasn’t difficult for her to catch up. Seeing the current situation, the young female leader was overjoyed. She quickly summoned her Origin King Grade Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum artifact, and used her jade white hand to gently rap it.
An invisible wave spread out from the drum in the next instant, carrying with it a resonant sound. Although this sound was quite faint, when it reached one’s ears, it caused their vitality to tumble, making it incredibly uncomfortable to listen to.
This wasn’t the end though as the young woman’s jade white hand continued to beat this drum slowly, her face becoming paler with each strike, seemingly having to pay a huge price each time she beat this drum. The drumbeat from the Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum grew louder and louder until it became absolutely deafening, as if it was being struck inside one’s ears, completely impossible to guard against.
Not only did this drum sound effect Kong Wen Dong though, but even Yang Kai was not spared.
As the pounding drum beat entered his ears, Yang Kai’s eyes were gradually turned bloodshot and his face crimson, all the blood in his body seemingly rushing to his head. Sensing this, Yang Kai shot a cold glare towards the approaching young woman.
Even separated by a few thousand metres, this icy glare caused the young woman’s tender body to shiver and she involuntarily paused her assault. When she resumed beating her drum a moment later, the sound in Yang Kai’s ear weakened dramatically, almost to the point where he could ignore it altogether.
Conversely, the pressure Kong Wen Dong was feeling in front of Yang Kai greatly increased. The power of an Origin King Grade artifact was not to be underestimated, and although the young woman had not fully refined the Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum and could only exert half of its strength, Kong Wen Dong still found it extremely difficult to resist.
Before he even realized it, blood began leaking from Kong Wen Dong’s seven orifices and his aura became disordered, seemingly suffering from unbearable pain; even his well-built body began to tremble violently.
With the young female leader’s Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum suppressing Kong Wen Dong, Yang Kai was able to act without any scruples, sending out his Golden Blood Thread as well as a few Space Blades concealed inside his Demonic Flames.
At the same time, the Firebird Artifact Spirit was also directed by Yang Kai to rush towards Kong Wen Dong.
Kong Wen Dong perished without any suspense. Although his cultivation wasn’t any worse than the lead young woman from Ice Heart Valley, in a four on one, with the lead young woman able to calmly display the power of the Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum and Yang Kai attacking from nearby, there was no way Kong Wen Dong could escape no matter how strong he was.
After struggling desperately for about an incense stick worth of time, Kong Wen Dong fell to his four attackers’ coordinated assault.
What the young female leader from Ice Heart Valley said was true; Kong Wen Dong had a Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire in his body, one that was exactly the same as the yellow-robed old man’s, a dark crimson flame with black lightning arcs flickering about it.
After Kong Wen Dong died, this Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire was naturally swallowed by the Firebird Artifact Spirit.
Once the battle ended, it was time to divide the spoils. The Space Rings of these four enemies couldn’t be let off. Yang Kai acted with no trace of politeness, taking away Kong Wen Dong’s Space Ring while casually leaving the other three for the trio from Ice Heart Valley to collect.
Regarding this, although the lead young woman wore a somewhat displeased expression, she didn’t say anything; after all, if not for Yang Kai’s assistance, they would have gained nothing and might not even have been able to preserve their lives. At the very least, her weakest sister would definitely have been in a dangerous situation.
The Firebird Artifact Spirit continued hovering above Yang Kai’s head, calling out happily, seeming to be in a good mood after devouring two Heaven Scorching Thunder Fires.
When she looked at the Firebird Artifact Spirit, the lead young woman’s beautiful eyes could not help flashing a look of dread. While she had been unable to observe much of Yang Kai’s true abilities, just the fluctuations coming from this Firebird Artifact Spirit were incredibly worrisome.
[This Artifact Spirit can no doubt compete with a Third-Order Origin Returning Realm master!] The young woman secretly judged.
“Little brother, this Mistress offers her sincere thanks. If not for little brother taking action to uphold justice here, this Mistress might not have been able to kill these Brilliant Flame Sect villains.” A bright smile appeared on the young woman’s face as she thanked Yang Kai.
Yang Kai smiled lightly and replied modestly, “Sister is too serious, I only acted according to my own needs. What’s more, they were the ones who attacked me first.”
Although this young woman had shrouded him with the Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum just now, Yang Kai wasn’t planning on tearing face with her over it, whether it was intentional or not.
However, it was necessary to put up a show of deterrence lest this woman decide to burn bridges after crossing them. The Profound Yin Heart Shattering Drum she was carrying was very powerful and quite troublesome to deal with, so as long as it wasn’t necessary, Yang Kai didn’t want to stir up conflict with these three from Ice Heart Valley. Now, he just wanted to finish up his business here and head to the main palace of the Emperor Garden.
As such, Yang Kai made no attempt to take back his Artifact Spirit and instead used it to indirectly pressure this young woman so she wouldn’t get any ideas.
“Right, Sister, would you mind explaining to me why both those Brilliant Flame Sect cultivators were able to cultivate that Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire Secret Technique?” Yang Kai asked curiously.
“Hehe, so Little Brother was still wondering about this issue,” the young woman smiled and didn’t try to conceal anything, simply stating, “In fact, there are many cultivators in Brilliant Flame Sect who have cultivated this Secret Technique, not just the two of them. Most of their stronger masters and have cultivated the Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire, but the strength of each individual’s thunder fire varies dramatically.”
“Oh? How do they accomplish this?” Yang Kai was very interested. The Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire was of great benefit to his Artifact Spirit, but unfortunately, of the four Brilliant Flame Sect masters here, only Kong Wen Dong and the yellow-robed old man seemed to have cultivated this Secret Technique. After listening to this young woman’s words, Yang Kai naturally had to investigate further.
“It’s actually quite simple: they have a Heavenly Thunder Fire in Brilliant Flame Sect that also serves as the foundation of their Sect. Relying on this Heavenly Thunder Fire, coupled with a special Secret Technique, most of the high-level cultivators from Brilliant Flame Sect can cultivate the Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire which has many profound uses in combat,” The young woman explained lightly before asking casually, “Since little brother asked this, does it mean you are not from Scarlet Wave Star?”
“En, I’m indeed not from Scarlet Wave Star,” Yang Kai didn’t try to deny it but also did not explain his origins, simply nodding and continuing, “So that’s how it is, about that Heavenly Thunder Fire…”
Although its name was only slightly different from the Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire, it was, after all, the foundation of Brilliant Flame Sect, as well as the foundation upon which Kong Wen Dong and the yellow-robed old man cultivated their own Heaven Scorching Thunder Fire. If his Artifact Spirit could devour the original Heavenly Thunder Fire, what kind of benefits would it obtain?
Of course, this thought only briefly passed across Yang Kai’s mind.
After all, the Scarlet Wave Star was in this vast Star Field, it was impossible for Yang Kai to simply take a trip to it for no reason at all. What’s more, there was no way for him alone to challenge all of Brilliant Flame Sect as he could infer from Kong Wen Dong’s cultivation that this Sect very likely had an Origin King master commanding it!
“Never mind, let’s not talk about this now,” Yang Kai grinned before changing the subject, “Sister, shouldn’t we enter that secluded home now? There’s bound to be many good things inside!”
“Hehe, that’s right,” The young woman’s brow twitched slightly. Although she was filled with reluctance, she could not simply renege on her previous agreement with Yang Kai now.
When she first tried to win him over, she had not put Yang Kai’s strength in her eyes and felt that she could arbitrarily decide the distribution of benefits once everything was over, but following this battle, she realized that her original thoughts were little more than wishful thinking.
This boy was not some weakling she could casually bully and he obviously had some vigilance towards her now. Otherwise, he would not have continued to have his strange Firebird hover above them all this time.
With things having reached this point, the young woman could only sigh lightly. Unwilling to deal with any more trouble, she simply turned around and flew back to the hidden mountain valley.
The other two women followed closely.
A moment later, the group of four arrived at the barrier concealing the mountain valley again.
This barrier was still maintaining its previous appearance, flickering slightly while projecting a somewhat distorted image. These were clear traces of it having been attacked before but it was still a fair distance from completely breaking.
“Is little brother proficient in cracking Spirit Arrays by any chance?” The young female leader of Ice Heart Valley turned to Yang Kai and asked.
“No!” Yang Kai shook his head decisively. If it were Yang Yan here instead of him, this barrier would likely take her less than ten breaths to crack, but Yang Kai was not Yang Yan.
The young woman failed to stifle her laughter hearing this before shaking her head and declaring, “Then there’s no other way, this Mistress and her sisters also have not studied Spirit Arrays, so we’ll just have to break it by force.”
Saying so, she took the lead by summoning a long crystal sword into her hand that looked like it was refined from the purest of ice jade, pouring her Saint Qi into it, then slashing towards the barrier. The other two young women from Ice Heart Valley quickly followed suit.
Naturally Yang Kai wasn’t idle either, the only difference was he didn’t use any kind of artifact, not because he didn’t want to, but because the only offensive artifact he had on him was the Verdant Dragon Bone Sword, which was not something he could easily show others.
As such, he could only use his Demonic Flame to attack the barrier. Even so, that didn’t make his momentum any weaker, especially as his Demonic Flames fluctuated rapidly between hot and cold, causing severe damage to the barrier.
Ultimately, Yang Kai’s attack power wasn’t any weaker than those of the three women.
For a time, the group of four simply stood before the mountain valley, shelling its protective barrier together.
Regardless of how strong this barrier was, it could not withstand such indiscriminate bombings, not to mention that this barrier had been left unattended for over ten thousand years. Even if it was originally incredibly solid, after so many years of neglect, its power had obviously waned.
Even so, the group of four spent half a day attacking this barrier before it finally broke!
During this period, the three women from Ice Heart Valley were obviously on edge, seemingly afraid that another strong enemy would come to investigate, so after successfully breaking the barrier undisturbed, they couldn’t help flashing happy looks. After exchanging a quick glance, the lead young woman dove in first.
Yang Kai released his Divine Sense, found there wasn’t any danger inside, and quickly followed.
The interior was a gourd-shaped mountain valley with a narrow entrance that expanded the deeper one went.
Passing through a several-kilometre-long mountain trail, the group of four arrived at the heart of the valley and were greeted by a stunning scene.
Before their eyes was a vast Medicine Garden filled with exotic flowers and spirit herbs planted in neat rows. Even after countless years with no one tending to them, many of these spirit grasses were still alive and well.
At a glance, there were at least a thousand precious herbs in this place.
The entire mountain valley was filled with a rich medicinal fragrance.
It turned out this mountain valley was actually a hidden Medicine Garden!
Yang Kai could not help showing a look of joy and excitement on his face, and the appearance of the three women from Ice Heart Valley was not any better, each of them breathing somewhat rapidly as their eyes flashed brilliantly.
This could not be helped though as this place had not seen any visitors in at least ten thousand years, which meant that even if the herbs here were of lower grade, their medicinal ages would be at least ten thousand years!
With such high medicinal ages, even ordinary herbs would become priceless treasures, so it was only natural that all of them were so excited.
This harvest alone had made their trip to the Emperor Garden worthwhile.
However, the leading young woman didn’t allow herself to become blinded by the riches in front of her, quickly turning to Yang Kai first to ask, “Little Brother, this…”
“En, let’s collect everything first then figure out how to distribute it afterwards,” Yang Kai smiled carefreely.
“Good!” The young woman nodded lightly, shot a glance towards the other two women, then immediately got to work picking these herbs.
Although collecting precious herbs like these required some special procedures since any negligence could lead to a great reduction in their value, everyone here was an Origin Realm cultivator, so they naturally had enough experience with this kind of task. As such, Yang Kai didn’t need to remind the three women about anything in particular.
As for these three trying to secretly harbour these herbs, it probably wouldn’t happen as Yang Kai was constantly releasing his Divine Sense, unabashed. Even if these three women had such thoughts, they would likely be too embarrassed to try to act on them with Yang Kai so obviously watching them.
While these three were collecting herbs, Yang Kai also got to work, meticulously collecting the various herbs from the Medicine Garden at a rate much faster than the trio from Ice Heart Valley.
For an Alchemist like Yang Kai, he couldn’t be more familiar with this kind of work.
The more Yang Kai collected though, the more excited he became, because in this hidden Medicine Garden, he not only saw many long-extinct spirit grasses and spirit medicines, he even found many herbs he could not recognize.
Such herbs were undoubtedly extremely valuable.
The grades of these herbs varied somewhat, from Saint King Grade all the way to Origin King Grade; however, likely because they couldn’t withstand the passing of time, there was nothing lower than Saint King Grade. Even so, the Saint King Grade herbs here could still be used to produce excellent pills.
Yang Kai was extremely happy. During his last retreat, his Alchemy skill had reached the Origin Grade High-Rank, but if he wanted to go a step further, he needed to practice a great deal with Origin King Grade herbs.