Yang Kai wasn’t a man who didn’t know how to be satisfied. At this moment, after grabbing a treasure for himself and helping Murong Xiao Xiao obtain the Supreme Divine Water, the best choice would be to withdraw rather than fight for more.
When Murong Xiao Xiao heard this, she raised no objections, immediately catching the jade bottle and taking back her Heavenly Feather Ring before following Yang Kai into the light gate and disappearing.
Just after the pair left, on the high platform, accompanied by Luo Yuan’s furious shout, a burst of Source Qi exploded forth and Kong Qi’s complexion changed greatly as he exclaimed, “You…”
Just as his words fell, he coughed up a mouthful of blood and flew out.
When he landed, shock filled his face.
He didn’t expect that Luo Yuan’s strength was far greater than his own. Despite the two of them both being Third-Order Dao Source Realm Masters, Luo Yuan was able to force him back in a Source Qi competition at the last moment.
Kong Qi was also a favoured son of Heaven and the rising star of Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce. Compared with Luo Yuan, the gap between them should not have been small and should obviously favour Kong Qi.
“Hmph, you were too overconfident!” After Luo Yuan forced Kong Qi back, he made no attempt to finish him off and instead palmed towards the light barrier, smashing it to pieces and obtaining the Emperor Authority Bead which sealed the full-powered blow of an Emperor Realm Master!
Next, he cast his gaze towards the fog bank before letting out a low roar and charging forward.
But at that moment, the billowing fog suddenly exploded outwards, and by the time Luo Yuan rushed over, the thick mist disappeared as if it had just been an illusion.
Only Bian Yu Qing stood there alone, looking around blankly, grinding her teeth!
A figure flashed out at that moment and rushed into the light gate, quickly disappearing.
“The Emperor Aura…” despite some guesses, Luo Yuan still asked Bian Yu Qing in a deep tone.
Bian Yu Qing wore an aggrieved expression and snapped, “I don’t know… I was trapped in that smoke and couldn’t see anything…”
“Waste!” Luo Yuan cursed before turning around and rushing towards the light gate. The figure which just disappeared was no doubt Gong Wen Shan, so the Emperor Aura was definitely on him now.
“How is this my fault!?” Bian Yu Qing snarled.
In the blink of an eye, there were only two people left in the hall, Kong Qi with his pale face and bleeding mouth, and a gloomy Bian Yu Qing.
The latter soon turned to the former, smiled and called out, “Little Brother…”
Kong Qi glanced at her and smiled miserably, “Don’t call out so affectionately. I don’t have anything, so it’s useless to try to talk to me!”
Bian Yu Qing pouted angrily and snapped, “A bunch of bastards bullying this Mistress, hateful!”
Of the rare treasures here, one went to Lan Xun and Xiao Chen who left the field before the battle began, while the rest were divided up amongst the others while she and Kong Qi received nothing. This annoyed Bian Yu Qing to no end.
In terms of cultivation, she wasn’t the lowest amongst those present, and in terms of strength, she also didn’t believe she was the weakest, but she wound up with nothing in the end. Losing such an incredible opportunity was of course unacceptable to her.
…..
Somewhere outside the Flowing Time Temple,, Yang Kai and Murong Xiao Xiao appeared at the same time in a flash of light.
Yang Kai immediately released his Divine Sense, but after checking and confirming there was no danger in the surroundings, he relaxed.
There were no signs of other people appearing nearby, possibly because they were all teleported to other places, but the light gate was indeed a passage to leave the Flowing Time Temple, there was no doubt about that.
Even after waiting for a while, there was still no trace of other people appearing.
Yang Kai immediately understood that unless they passed through the light gate at the same time, the place they appeared in would be different.
Next, Yang Kai turned to Murong Xiao Xiao, who was looking at him gratefully because he had helped her acquire the Supreme Divine Water at the last moment and did not take the opportunity to snatch it from her.
At that time, Yang Kai could have easily snatched the drop of Supreme Divine Water for himself.
Murong Xiao Xiao opened her mouth and was about to say something when suddenly a dramatic change occurred.
Up in the sky, a thunderous rumbling resounded, one that was so loud that cultivators within a hundred kilometres could hear it clearly.
At the same time as the sound rang out, the Flowing Time Temple which was floating up in the sky actually emitted a dazzling light that blinded all who looked at it.
An astonishing pressure suddenly descended in the next moment and rapidly spread out…
*Hong long long…*
The rumblings only grew louder.
“Junior Brother Yang…” Murong Xiao Xiao shouted solemnly.
Yang Kai did not answer and instead just squinted his eyes to observe the changing situation, a short time later sighing as he muttered, “This Temple seems to be concealing itself again. I don’t know what kind of opportunity is needed for its next appearance, let alone when that will be.”
Just as he said, after the dazzling light dissipated, the Flowing Time Temple in the sky really vanished, as if it had never even existed.
However…
In the place where the temple once stood, a small black figure had appeared.
“That’s…” Yang Kai stared intently for a moment before his eyes shrank fiercely.
Up in the sky, an ominous beast had appeared, one that was covered in flames and looked like a tiger and an ox with a pair of giant wings and thick scaled armour, a majestic and terrifying creature to behold.
Its nostrils spewed out flames that seemed capable of melting space and when it stamped its legs, the world itself seemed to shake.
“Qiong Qi!” Yang Kai exclaimed in shock.
Murong Xiao Xiao couldn’t help covering her mouth with her small hands, her beautiful eyes trembling violently.
Having been born in Azure Sun Temple, and as an elite disciple of the Sect, she had naturally heard of the beast, ‘Qiong Qi’.
It was synonymous with extreme wickedness, slaughter, and despair!
Even in ancient times, the Divine Spirit Qiong Qi was a notorious ominous beast and countless creatures had died to its flames. Few Masters could even resist its phenomenal might.
At this moment, it was just standing quietly mid-air, but the cruel and fierce aura it released made it difficult for every living creature within a hundred kilometres to even breathe as they trembled in fright.
Within a hundred-kilometre radius, every cultivator who felt this fierce pressure sank, like a ten thousand ton mountain was pressing down on their shoulders, making them feel like death was imminent and inevitable…
*Huo…*
Qiong Qi roared to the Heavens, its voice containing an extremely complex mix of emotions, like joy, excitement, and sorrow.
Immediately after, it squinted its eyes and glanced around, its burning gaze seemingly piercing through space before it stretched out its claw and directly pierced the Void, opening a crack in space before dove in and disappeared.
Outside the Four Seasons Realm, in the unnamed mountain valley.
This place was no longer filled with World Energy and instead had become extremely barren. The only thing worth noting was the large oval light gate that gently floated just above the ground.
The many cultivators that originally gathered here had also flooded into the Four Seasons Realm a few days ago, so now, only a few Emperor Realm Masters who had been responsible for leading their Sects’ disciples here remained.
Silver Star Envoy Xiao Yu Yang of Star Soul Palace, Gao Xue Ting of Azure Sun Temple, Chen Wen Hao of Heavenly Martial Holy Land, Feng Ming of Orthodoxy Temple, Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce Ceng Yuan, Violet Source Chamber of Commerce Lou Chi…
These Masters had all remained here on the one hand to observe the changes in the entrance of the Four Seasons Realm, so as to avoid any irreparable accidents, and on the other hand to wait for their elite disciples to return.
Since the various Dao Source Realm Juniors had the Four Seasons Realm, these Emperors had each found a place to sit in meditation.
For Masters like them, waiting for thirty-three days was nothing. Perhaps this was enough time to slightly comprehend a Secret Art they were cultivating, or to slightly refine an Emperor Artifact they possessed, so for these thirty-three days, none of them felt bored.
Suddenly, Xiao Yu Yang opened his eyes as he vaguely sensed something amiss, but soon that vague sensation turned into one of pure shock and horror.
In the next moment, all the Emperor Realm Masters present stood up and turned their eyes in the same direction.
There, a Void Crack suddenly appeared, and from it, a terrifying being erupted.
Before everyone’s eyes, a fiery-red flaming beast emerged from the Void.
“Hahahaha… This Sir is finally free!” As soon as this ominous beast appeared, it uttered this roar and laughed wildly, like a prisoner who had been in captivity for countless years that had finally escaped.
“The Divine Spirit… Qiong Qi!” After Xiao Yu Yang observed the strange beast for a moment, he couldn’t help exclaiming and condensing his Qi.
The other Emperors present also trembled as they swiftly flew over to Xiao Yu Yang without any need for explanation.
The Emperors present were well aware of how terrifying Qiong Qi’s strength was, but none of them had ever imagined that in this nameless mountain valley, a Divine Spirit would suddenly appear, and one famed for its cruelty and wickedness at that…
Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce Vice President Ceng Yuan couldn’t stop his legs from trembling as his face turned extremely pale.
“Oh…” Qiong Qi swept his pair of beast pupils down and muttered in a clear voice, “It seems that a delicious snack was just waiting for this Sir to come out…”
As it spoke, a clear line of drool appeared at the corner of its mouth, as if it had been starving for a long time and finally saw a good meal.
*Guulp…*
The gulping sounds that echoed next did not come from Qiong Qi, but rather from the Emperor Realm Masters gathered below.
All of them had been shocked by Qiong Qi’s remarks, and this seemingly light comment was by no means an exaggeration by this Divine Spirit. Any mature Divine Spirit would not be much weaker than a Great Emperor, so if it really wanted to treat the Emperor Realm Masters present like food, not many of them would be able to escape, much less resist.
At the critical moment, Xiao Yu Yang was the first to recover, cupped his fists, and called out, “Star Soul Palace’s Silver Star Envoy, Xiao Yu Yang, greets Sir Qiong Qi! Might I ask what Sir’s…”
“Star Soul Palace?” Qiong Qi heard this and a trace of disdain flashed across its eyes as it snorted, “Never heard of it.”
It did not even know of the Southern Territory’s overlord Sect.
Xiao Yu Yang couldn’t help feeling his heart sink as he realized the situation was turning dire. This was likely a Divine Spirit who had been slumbering for countless years, so it had never even heard of Star Soul Palace before. This meant that using Bright Moon Great Emperor’s name to deter it was also not a valid plan.
“It is an honour for you to become this Sir’s meal. Who shall come up first?” Qiong Qi looked down and asked in a deep voice.
No one dared to answer as each Emperor went pale and trembled, an extreme sense of depression filling their hearts.
“No one wants to volunteer…” Qiong Qi sneered, “If no one steps forward, this Sir will choose one at random. There is no escape, so the only difference is who shall be first and who shall be last. Don’t be afraid…”
“Senior Xiao!” Violet Source Chamber of Commerce’s Vice President Lou Chi couldn’t help calling out to Xiao Yu Yang, seemingly pinning all his hopes on him.
Xiao Yu Yang’s complexion darkened as he realized that if he didn’t act now, it would be too late. Summoning a small mirror-like object into his hand, Xiao Yu Yang snapped it, causing it to burst into tiny specs of light.
As these specs of light flew out, a gentle but solemn pressure descended from the sky and a stalwart figure slowly manifested.
Everyone immediately turned their heads to look at this figure and their expressions couldn’t help filling with respect and worship.
This man wore a crown of gold and jade and seemed to stand as tall as a mountain while releasing a profound aura.
This figure, however, was illusory and ethereal, so obviously it was not a true physical entity but rather a kind of projection. Nonetheless, at this moment, this figure gaze seemed to penetrate space as it stared directly at Qiong Qi.
Even a beast as strong as Qiong Qi couldn’t help becoming slightly more serious as he snorted coldly, “A Great Emperor’s Soul Manifestation?”
From this phantom, he could feel the aura that only a Great Emperor could possess, so he understood who it was that stood before him.
This was clearly the image of an overlord of this world, the Bright Moon Great Emperor!
Just like the two most dazzling lights in the darkness, as Qiong Qi focused all its attention on the Great Emperor, the Great Emperor was also paying close attention to Qiong Qi.
“This King did not know Qiong Qi was still among us on this plane!” Bright Moon suddenly said.
“Hmph,” Qiong Qi coldly snorted, not showing the slightest weakness, “This Sir roamed the world freely before you were even born. How dare you posture in front of this Sir!” Qiong Qi narrowed its giant eyes and sneered disdainfully, “Or what, do you think a trivial Soul Manifestation is enough to subdue this Sir?”
One man and one beast confronted one another across space, causing the surrounding world to shudder. The mere existence of these two caused space to warp and even led to tiny Void Cracks flitting about. Instantly, the nameless mountain valley seemed to teeter on the brink of collapse.
Xiao Yu Yang and others did not dare to say a word, all of them just standing aside with solemn expressions, silently circulating their Qi to resist the horrifying pressure engulfing them.
“Sir Qiong Qi jests,” As one of the few masters of this world, Bright Moon didn’t mind Qiong Qi’s arrogant attitude and instead smiled lightly, “Bright Moon simply wanted to congratulate you on finally achieving your long-awaited freedom!”
Qiong Qi’s eyes darkened as he shouted, “What do you know?”
Bright Moon replied, “When I was young, I once heard that Sir Flowing Time had a playmate, a Divine Spirit, Qiong Qi. Unfortunately, after Sir Flowing Time disappeared, his companion also went missing. That was tens of thousands of years ago, but I wonder if Sir Qiong Qi still remembers those times fondly?”
“Flowing Time…” Qiong Qi seemed to be stimulated by Bright Moon’s words and the arrogant and violent aura around his body gradually faded, his eyes filling with a kind of fond remembrance.
Bright Moon stood there quietly, not meaning to interrupt, while Xiao Yu Yang and the other Emperors did not dare to move.
After a long time, Bright Moon continued, “I wonder if Sir Qiong Qi would like to come to my Star Soul Palace as a guest. This King has a relic of Sir Flowing Time in his possession that should be transferred to Sir!”
“Hmph, it’s useless trying to bribe this Sir!” Qiong Qi shook his head and snorted, “This Sir is hungry.”
Bright Moon smiled and said, “Then I shall prepare a feast for Sir!”
“So be it!” Qiong Qi said loudly, “Since you have invited this Sir so sincerely, this Sir will give you some face and accept!”
“Bright Moon shall eagerly await Sir’s arrival. This is the location of my Star Soul Palace!” Bright Moon said as he stretched out a finger and sent a ball of white light out to Qiong Qi.
Qiong Qi paused for a moment to contemplate before he turned into a fiery stream of light and disappeared across the horizon.
After Qiong Qi left, Xiao Yu Yang and the others finally breathed a sigh of relief as a gentle breeze blew past them, leaving them with a slight chill on their backs.
The Bright Moon Great Emperor’s projection turned around and glanced at them briefly, then without saying anything, flickered and dissipated.
“Many thanks, Sir!” All the Emperor Realm Masters bowed.
After a while, the six Emperors slowly straightened back up and began exchanging glances, all of them seeing the fear in each other’s eyes. Each of them was a powerful Master who since reaching the Emperor Realm had not experienced such a close brush with death!
“Many thanks for Senior Xiao’s timely intervention, otherwise today…” Cheng Yuan said with some lingering fear on his face.
“En, if it weren’t for Senior Xiao, I’m afraid we would all have been buried here today,” Lou Chi nodded in agreement.
Xiao Yu Yang’s face twitched slightly as he said with a wry smile, “It was Sir Great Emperor who saved us… it had nothing to do with this Xiao. However… Qiong Qi’s suddenly appearing here does not bode well for the Southern Territory’s future stability.”
When everyone heard him say this, their hearts sank.
Qiong Qi was an ominous beast that was literally a living disaster. Its mere presence would definitely set off some unpredictable and extremely vicious incidents. All the Emperors present immediately determined it was necessary to warn their respective Sects as soon as they returned so that precautions could be taken early.
…..
Inside the Four Seasons Realm, Yang Kai flew forward alone, crossing the Two Seasons Mountain Range as he headed towards the Realm of Winter.
Not long ago, when he and Murong Xiao Xiao were standing inside the Two Seasons Mountain Range waiting, the latter had contacted Xiao Bai Yi through the communication artifact Azure Sun Temple disciples all carried and agreed to meet with each other. After their rendezvous, Xiao Bai Yi did not happily greet Yang Kai.
After all, on the battle stage at that time, even though Yang Kai defeated Xiao Bai Yi in an upright manner, it also denied Xiao Bai Yi the opportunity to gain more benefits!
If not for that defeat, Xiao Bai Yi would have occupied at least one spot in the final competition where he would have a chance to snatch up an extraordinary treasure.
Yang Kai knew that Xiao Bai Yi had some resentment in his heart so he did not linger for long, only saying a few words to the pair before heading off to the Realm of Winter alone.
Halfway there, Yang Kai took out the fiery red bead to study it, but whether it was his Divine Sense or Source Qi that he poured into this bead, it produced no response.
Helpless, Yang Kai could only store it into his Space Ring temporarily.
The Two Seasons Mountain Range at this moment was incredibly calm.
Possibly because of the appearance of the Flowing Time Temple not long ago, or because of the appearance of Qiong Qi, as Yang Kai walked along the way, he didn’t encounter a single Monster Beast.
Two days later, he successfully crossed the Two Seasons Mountain Range.
There was a completely different world ahead.
As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but silver and white, heavy snow flying through the air, only a ground that was completely covered in thick ice.
A single step into this place was all it took for the ubiquitous cold to envelop one’s body and for the Ice Energy to flow into one’s pores, chilling blood and Soul alike.
Yang Kai braved the wind and snow as he began exploring this white world.
In the Four Seasons Realm, the natural environment of each realm was completely different. In the Realm of Summer, the sun was scorching and the temperature soared, but in the Realm of Winter, it was the exact opposite.
The Tribulation Fruit only grew in extremely cold environments, so the Realm of Winter was the perfect place for such a spirit fruit to appear.
Yang Kai’s hopes rose, but he also realised just how difficult it was to explore this domain.
As he walked along the way, crossing frozen mountains and rivers in the Realm of Winter, although he occasionally reaped some gains, those gains had only been some somewhat rare herbs and fruits, while no sign of the Tribulation Fruit was to be seen.
The omnipresent cold caused the Source Qi in his body to flow at least twenty percent slower than usual.
With no other resort, Yang Kai could only call out Liu Yan to walk with him.
Liu Yan was a Fire Attribute Artifact Spirit who had swallowed all kinds of strange and unusual flames, so she didn’t fear some trivial cold and was easily able to ward off the cold as she walked beside Yang Kai.
Liu Yan had to stick very close to Yang Kai’s side though and was constantly using her own warmth to dissipate the cold surrounding them.
Unlike in other domains, the Realm of Winter was seldom explored, and even if a cultivator was transported to this place when they first entered the Four Seasons Realm, their first thought was almost always to quickly find a way to leave here.
Unless one had a special purpose like Yang Kai, none would explore the Realm of Winter for any extended length of time.
As such, even after Yang Kai wandered around for several days, he didn’t see even a trace of another person. It was as if he was the only one alive in the entire Realm of Winter.
Three days later, somewhere in the Realm of Winter, Yang Kai looked around with a blank expression.
He was completely lost in this silvery world and couldn’t even figure out which direction to walk.
It was basically impossible for a Master like him to encounter such a situation, but the environment of the Realm of Winter was really too harsh and unique, making it so that even Yang Kai couldn’t walk around here freely while maintaining his sense of bearing.
When he looked back, he also saw that his footprints had been swiftly covered by the snow.
“What happened?” Liu Yan asked with concern.
“Well, it seems I’m lost,” Yang Kai replied calmly.
Liu Yan smiled, “So, such a thing can happen…”
“It’s fine, at worst I can just pick a direction and fly straight to leave here,” Yang Kai couldn’t help but sigh, “But continuing such an aimless search will probably not yield any good results!”
“It’s a pity… I can’t help you.” Liu Yan replied sadly.
Yang Kai grinned, “Staying by my side is the greatest help.”
Liu Yan smiled lightly but in the next moment, she let out a note of surprise.
Yang Kai noticed this and quickly looked towards her.
Liu Yan stood there, her eyes staring in a certain direction, her expression constantly changing until after a long time, she said, “Master, it seems I’ve found something very interesting!”
“Oh? What?” Yang Kai asked.
“Wait a moment, I’ll be right back!” Saying so, Liu Yan transformed into a flame and shot forward, soon after diving into a snowy peak ahead and disappearing.
Amidst the wind and snow, Yang Kai stood in place and waited for three hours before Liu Yan returned from the icy peak.
Seeing her mysterious look, Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling curious and asked, “What did you go there for?”
Liu Yan didn’t answer directly and instead called out, “Come out, don’t be afraid!”
The place she was looking at was empty, however.
Yang Kai was stunned, but he also knew that Liu Yan wouldn’t tease him pointlessly, so he watched carefully in anticipation.
Unfortunately, nothing happened, causing Liu Yan to helplessly sigh, “Master, please wait a moment, it seems to be a little timid, let me talk to it.”
After that, Liu Yan squatted down in the snow and pushed her Divine Sense, as if she was trying to communicate with someone or something.
After a long time without any response, Liu Yan became a little annoyed and her expression sank as she snapped coldly, “If you don’t come out, I’ll melt you!”
When these words fell, a small mound of snow puffed up, as if something was emerging from below.
Yang Kai couldn’t help staring in surprise.
A moment later, in a puff of flying snow, something suddenly shot out from the ground, turning into a stream of light, and began dancing about mid-air.
Although this thing was fast, Yang Kai could still see it clearly.
It actually turned out to be a palm-sized snowflake!
However, this snowflake was completely different from ordinary snowflakes. It seemed to have a certain spirituality and consciousness and it also gave off a kind of faint flame-like glow that disturbed the surrounding air.
“What is this?” Yang Kai’s eyes almost bulged as he asked in shock.
Liu Yan replied, “I can’t really explain it clearly, but it should be something similar to myself!”
As she spoke, she beckoned lightly to the snowflake, causing it to fly over and float gently in front of her, seemingly not daring to get too close.
Yang Kai looked at this snowflake with interest and soon discovered that there were some traces of facial features at its centre. These traces were blurry and undefined, but they were definitely present.
“An Innate World Spirit Treasure?” Yang Kai muttered in a low voice.
This snowflake was probably a kind of strange living creature that had evolved in the Realm of Winter over countless years. With its unique constitution, it was likely that no one else even knew it existed.
“En,” Liu Yan nodded, “But it is also a kind of ice flame! If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have been able to feel its existence.”
Hearing what she said, Yang Kai immediately understood.
Liu Yan herself was an Artifact Spirit who had devoured and refined numerous types of strange flames. This little snowflake seemed to be a type of strange flame itself, so there was a kind of resonance between it and Liu Yan…
However, because of their opposing hot and cold attributes, the little snowflake didn’t dare get too close to Liu Yan and even seemed extremely afraid of her.
“You brought it here… what for?” Yang Kai asked strangely.
Logically speaking, Liu Yan could just swallow this ice flame and be done with it. Although it was clearly an Ice Attribute flame, since its sentience had already formed, it would still have a good effect on Liu Yan’s growth.
However, she didn’t show any intention of swallowing it and instead brought it over to Yang Kai, which meant she didn’t plan on using it to improve her strength.
“It’s very familiar with this place, so it can help us find things!” Liu Yan smiled slightly.
“Oh! Great idea!” Yang Kai’s eyes lit up.
Liu Yan soon frowned, though, and said, “But… its sentience is quite limited and it takes a lot of effort to communicate with it, so I don’t know if it will be much help.”
“It’s better than searching aimlessly like before,” Yang Kai grinned, “As for the effect, we’ll just have to try to know.”
Saying so, he turned a soft gaze to the little snowflake and gently asked, “Is there any good thing here? Can you take me to find it?”
The little snowflake seemed to not hear him and just floated quietly mid-air.
Yang Kai wore a slightly embarrassed look as he turned to ask Liu Yan, “Does it not understand?”
Liu Yan smiled lightly and said, “It has never met any other living creature, so how could it understand human words? You can only rely on Divine Sense to communicate with it.”
Saying so, Liu Yan pushed her Divine Sense towards the little snowflake.
The next moment, the other party seemed to understand something and with a flicker, it took off in a certain direction.
Yang Kai and Liu Yan exchanged a glance before they immediately followed.
Soon after, under the guidance of the little snowflake, Yang Kai and Liu Yan came to a mountain valley. The little snowflake stopped at a certain spot and began circling around.
“There should be something good here!” Liu Yan said.
“I’ll take a look.” Yang Kai already began moving, using his Source Qi to dig up the ice and snow.
After a stick of incense’ time, a huge pit appeared in front of Yang Kai and he jumped inside to search.
A moment later, he jumped out with a joyful smile on his face with a kind of jade-like spirit grass in his hand.
“Excellent!” Yang Kai smiled as he looked at the little snowflake approvingly, “This is really much better than blindly searching.”
As if understanding Yang Kai’s praise, the little snowflake flew around Yang Kai a few times quickly before landing on his shoulder, its fuzzy facial features showing a happy expression.
Seeing this situation, Yang Kai immediately understood that the other party’s thinking should be very simple; after all, being born in this Realm of Winter, it had very limited interactions with other creatures. In other words, it was a pure blank slate that had very limited experiences. If this wasn’t the case, how could it possibly be so happy with just a small compliment?
“Work hard, otherwise I’ll melt you!” Liu Yan added a threat at just the right time, her pretty face as cold as ice as she sent out an obvious murderous intent, causing the little snowflake to shiver in fright and hide behind Yang Kai, clinging to him as it only partially exposed itself to stare at Liu Yan timidly.
Yang Kai couldn’t help glancing over at Liu Yan, who spat out her little tongue at him, their eyes meeting as they silently communicated with each other.
After a while, Yang Kai rolled his eyes and said, “Let it help me find the most precious thing here, and if there are any good treasures along the way, inform us about them as well.”
Liu Yan nodded and used her Divine Sense to convey Yang Kai’s meaning.
The little snowflake received this order and rushed out immediately, leading the way.
With this kind of Innate World Spirit Treasure leading the way, Yang Kai really saved a lot of time and obtained many treasures. Now he didn’t need to search this frozen land blindly as in this snowy domain, no precious treasure could escape the detection of the little snowflake. As long as the little snowflake stopped somewhere, Yang Kai knew there was something good buried beneath the snow.
Along the way, Yang Kai added many Ice Attribute spirit grasses and medicines to his Space Ring, most of them Dao Source Grade with a few even reaching the Emperor Grade.
The special environment of the Realm of Winter provided excellent growth conditions for such spirit grasses and medicines, and also kept them concealed all these years until the little snowflake helped Yang Kai find them.
No matter what kind of herb it was that Yang Kai found, it had a medicinal age of at least ten thousand years!
Yang Kai benefited greatly!
And with more and more contact along the way, the little snowflake seemed to have gradually become familiar with Yang Kai and no longer acted as timid as it did in the beginning. It was like a newborn child, full of strong curiosity for creatures like Yang Kai, flying around him from time to time, observing him from every possible angle.
However… because Liu Yan continued to play the menacing character along the way, threatening it from time to time, the little snowflake naturally behaved itself and didn’t dare to approach within ten paces of her.
As a result, Yang Kai and Liu Yan had to separate a certain distance.
Although he had many gains, Yang Kai was a little disappointed that he did not obtain the Tribulation Fruit!
He had actually obtained several things rarer and more precious than the Tribulation Fruit, but he still lacked what he wanted most.
He also knew that this kind of thing couldn’t be rushed and he could only calm himself and continued the search.
A few days later, Yang Kai was greeted by a surprising scene.
Not far in front of him, there was a shimmering lake. This lake was only a couple of kilometres or so in diameter and was surrounded by high mountains, making it an extremely beautiful sight to behold.
What surprised him though was that this lake showed no signs of freezing.
Heavy snow, like goose feathers, still fell from the sky, but they all melted as soon as they touched the surface of the lake, as if the lake had some magical power that ensured it would never freeze over.
The surface of the water was so clear that Yang Kai even saw some strange fish swimming in the water below.
Judging from their big mouths and fangs alone, it seemed these fish weren’t good to provoke.
But once they arrived here, the little snowflake no longer advanced and instead kept flying around Yang Kai, seemingly trying to convey something to him.
After being together for so long, Yang Kai has also become able to interpret the little snowflake’s behaviour, so when he saw this, he asked thoughtfully, “You want to say, the most precious thing here is at the bottom of this lake?”
As soon as Yang Kai spoke these words, the little snowflake floated up and down, as if nodding.
Yang Kai nodded back and declared, “Then I’ll go take a look!”
“Master, be careful!” Liu Yan warned with concern.
Yang Kai nodded before flying up, arriving at the centre of the lake, glancing left and right, then diving into the water.
A cultivator like Yang Kai didn’t have to worry about his clothes getting wet from the lake water, just by pushing his Source Qi slightly, he could protect himself from both the water and the cold.
As the aura of a Dao Source Realm Master spread out, the fish scattered frantically.
Although the fish at the bottom of the lake looked quite terrifying, they didn’t have much real strength, so they didn’t dare to come close.
The little snowflake didn’t follow him, so Yang Kai could only explore on his own to find this so-called ‘most precious treasure’, starting with the centre of the lake before working his way outwards.
On the shore, Liu Yan watched quietly, her beautiful eyes fixed on Yang Kai, ready to support him at the slightest sign of trouble. As for the little snowflake, it floated a dozen meters away from Liu Yan as it too watched Yang Kai, some worry apparent on its fuzzy face as it flitted about uneasily from time to time.
The lake water was cold, but still within a tolerable range, and Yang Kai didn’t face any surprises or danger as he dove down. In fact, the only sound around him was the sound of his own heartbeat.
Suddenly, Yang Kai seemed to sense something and turned in a certain direction.
Over there, the water seemed to move differently.
Peering forward, Yang Kai saw an incredible scene.
At the very centre of the lake, there was a woman who seemed to be bathing. This woman had soft black hair, picturesque eyebrows, a delicate face, and elegant shoulders. The heat from her body seemed to react with the surrounding cold water, creating a faint mist that obscured her figure and gave her an ethereal quality.
The clear water of the lake allowed light from the surface to clearly reflect off this woman, highlighting her features and provoking much thought.
At this moment, the woman was gently washing her pure white skin, seemingly unaware of Yang Kai’s arrival.
However… After Yang Kai cast his gaze towards her, the other party apparently sensed his presence and quickly turned her head to look over.
A pair of beautiful eyes, like shimmering stars that exuded an inviting light that seemed to draw in all who saw them appeared.
When their four eyes suddenly met, Yang Kai’s expression turned blank while the woman only smiled even more enchantingly.
A faint halo that was barely visible to the naked eye pulsed from the woman’s figure and covered Yang Kai.
Yang Kai’s expression became even more sluggish…
The woman grinned seeing this before her smile suddenly turned hideous. Opening her mouth, her delicate lips rapidly expanded into a giant maw that bit towards Yang Kai.
Even from a distance of more than a few dozen metres, this giant mouth was able to swallow Yang Kai whole.
As soon as this huge mouth closed, the image of the bathing woman rapidly distorted. No longer was there any sign of a beautiful woman, and instead all that remained was a strange beast with a peculiarly shaped body that appeared to be chewing something.
This strange beast was indescribable. Spherical in shape, it was at least a couple dozen metres in diameter, had eight or so long tentacles that danced about freely around it, and over a hundred strange eyes dotted across its skin.
On the shore, Liu Yan, who had been watching Yang Kai closely, saw this scene and her pretty face sank, but she didn’t show much worry because she could feel that Yang Kai was fine.
On the contrary, the little snowflake was taken aback and flew out rapidly, as if it wanted to rescue Yang Kai.
“Haha… a Monster Beast proficient in Soul attacks is quite rare!” Yang Kai’s voice suddenly rang out and his figure appeared standing above the strange beast’s head in the next moment, looking completely unscathed.
As soon as the scene of a woman bathing appeared in his vision, Yang Kai knew something was wrong.
In this accursed place, which Sect’s female disciple would suddenly decide to take a bath? The Dao Source Realm cultivators who entered the Four Seasons Realm had no time for such leisure.
At first, he thought that this woman was some kind of Monster Beast, but after being attacked, he suddenly realized that everything was just an illusion created by a Soul attack.
However, this illusion was too realistic, so even Yang Kai wasn’t able to break free from it instantly.
Still, Yang Kai quickly regained his senses and teleported away before the real fatal attack arrived.
As soon as Yang Kai’s voice fell off, the strange beast stopped chewing abruptly and its hundred eyes all turned towards him. Opening its giant mouth, it spat out a jet of water while also releasing an angry howl.
The shockwave from this howl caused visible ripples in the lake that spread out in all directions.
On the surface of Yang Kai’s body, a layer of Source Qi emerged to resist this strange attack.
“Second-Order Dao Source Realm…” Yang Kai Divine Sense swept out and he instantly estimated the strength of this Monster Beast.
As for the strange beast, seeing that its sound attack was actually ineffective, it became enraged and a flash of light shot out from its hundred eyes.
Yang Kai raised his brow seeing this as he muttered, “Soul strength comparable to a peak Dao Source Master!”
His expression turning dignified, Yang Kai pushed his own Spiritual Energy and sent out a pulse of Divine Sense to meet the invisible attack directed at him.
*Hong…*
With a loud bang, Yang Kai’s figure shook and he couldn’t help falling back a few steps as he felt severe pain in his mind.
The strange beast didn’t feel any better though as its chubby body violently convulsed and trembled, its tentacles flailing about as it wailed loudly.
The collision between two Divine Senses was one of the most dangerous and unpredictable kinds of battles. This strange beast had relied on its proficiency in Soul attacks to not put Yang Kai in his eyes, so Yang Kai wasn’t going to show any weakness before the enemy.
He had the unparalleled Soul Warming Lotus, so he was not afraid of a clash of Souls!
In this confrontation, neither man nor beast came out on top.
But Yang Kai had the Soul Warming Lotus to resolve the damage to his Divine Sense, so it only took a moment for him to recover while, on the contrary, the strange beast could only struggle unceasingly, seemingly having suffered great damage in the brief confrontation just now.
When Yang Kai saw this, how could he miss this opportunity? Summoning the Myriads Sword into his hand, Emperor Pressure radiated as he soared forward and slashed out.
*Chi chi chi chi…*
The sword flashed out as thousands of sword lights rained down like a storm onto the strange beast.
Blood splashed out and began dying the lake’s pristine waters red.
Feeling the sharp pain of being cut, the strange beast screamed miserably and its hundred eyes flashed with fear. Immediately, it lashed out with its eight tentacles, intercepting the sword lights.
Unexpectedly, Yang Kai failed to kill it with this blow!
Obviously, this strange Monster Beast only had strength equivalent to a Second-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator, but its Divine Sense was comparable to a peak Dao Source Master. Given that it had such a powerful Soul, its physical body should have been much weaker.
However, this monster’s fat body was actually extremely elastic, so when the many Sword Qi blades hit it, they didn’t manage to penetrate far and only caused superficial damage.
However, its eight dancing tentacles weren’t so fortunate, and facing the constant barrage of Sword Qi blades, they were quickly cut into countless pieces.
At this time, the strange beast looked even more ugly than before, essentially becoming a bloody blob filled with numerous eyes…
As if aware of the crisis it was facing, the strange beast no longer tried to fight with Yang Kai and instead tried to dive into the depths of the lake to escape.
“Hmph!” Yang Kai coldly snorted and dove down after it, bolstered by absolute confidence in his own strength.
A trail of blood was left behind in the clear lake water, so Yang Kai had no trouble chasing after the beast.
Surprisingly, the lake was quite deep and the further down one dove, the less light there was; however, given Yang Kai’s powerful eyesight, he didn’t need to worry about being able to see at all.
After a stick of incense worth of time, Yang Kai followed the trail of blood to the very bottom of the lake, but when he looked around, he couldn’t help raising his brow.
The strange beast was now quietly floating next to a strange altar that was set up at the bottom of the lake, and atop this altar, there was something interesting enshrined.
It was a bead!
This bead was longan-sized and emitted a soft, green light.
When Yang Kai saw this bead, he couldn’t help feeling some suspicions.
Because this bead was indistinguishable from the bead he snatched in the Flowing Time Temple, except this one was green.
“Could it be…”
Suddenly, Yang Kai had a vague guess in his mind, but he was unable to confirm it.
At this moment, the strange beast was floating there quietly, bathing in the green light of the bead. Strangely, under the influence of this green light, the wounds Yang Kai had inflicted on it were rapidly healing, and it wasn’t long before the beast stopped leaking blood altogether.
Of course, the tentacles it had lost had not re-grown, as no matter how strong the vitality of this strange beast was, rapid regeneration of lost limbs was definitely not possible.
“This should be the most precious treasure in the Realm of Winter,” Yang Kai looked at the green beads and muttered to himself.
The little snowflake had brought him here, and in this lake, besides the strange beast, there was only this small bead placed on the altar, and obviously the strange beast was not the most precious treasure in the Realm of Winter.
As such, the only possibility was that this green bead was the treasure Yang Kai sought.
Yang Kai’s arrival also seemed to have alarmed the strange beast that was trying to heal its wounds.
It didn’t need to turn its head as some of its hundred eyes had already discovered Yang Kai’s appearance. It opened its giant mouth and sent out constant threatening roars, but unfortunately for it, having lost its tentacles, it was unable to actually launch any kind of effective physical attack.
It could only focus the power of its Soul again and send out a shockwave towards Yang Kai from its hundred eyes!
“Courting death!” Yang Kai’s complexion darkened as he summoned his Demon Eye of Annihilation. From the golden pupil, a lotus bud appeared and shot out towards its target in a flash.
The next moment, the strange beast froze in place, as if it had been suddenly paralysed.
In the strange beast’s eyes, all it could see now was a blossoming lotus that was rapidly draining away its Spiritual Energy…
Although its Soul was powerful, it had already suffered an injury from its clash with Yang Kai before, so now that it was struck by his Blossoming Lotus Secret Technique, its fate was sealed.
A short while later, with a faint bang, all one hundred of the strange beast’s eyes popped, as if a great pressure inside of them had suddenly erupted.
Yang Kai wielded his Myriads Sword as his figure flickered and he disappeared from where he stood.
When he reappeared, he was already standing behind the beast.
A huge hole now appeared in the round body of the beast, exposing its five viscera and six organs.
Yang Kai palmed backwards as he moved the surrounding Space Principles and shouted, “Exile!”
The pitch-black hole appeared and swallowed up the remnants of the strange beast like a giant mouth. When the black hole disappeared a moment later, only Yang Kai remained.
Opening his palm, there was a dark red Monster Core in his hand!
This was a Second-Order Dao Source Realm Monster Beast Monster Core, and it belonged to a Monster Beast with an extremely powerful Soul, so it was the best raw material to refine a Spirit Pill for enhancing Soul cultivation.
Yang Kai stuffed it into his Space Ring before swimming over to the altar.
Above the altar, there was no trace of any barrier or Spirit Array, only the green bead placed on top of it.
Yang Kai spent some time confirming there were no hidden traps before he reached out carefully and snatched the bead, everything going unexpectedly smoothly.
After using both his Divine Sense and Source Qi to probe and stimulate the bead, Yang Kai observed no reaction at all, exactly like the red bead he acquired earlier!
He really didn’t understand how the strange beast managed to draw energy from this green bead to heal itself.
Immediately afterwards, Yang Kai took out the fiery red bead to compare the two side by side, quickly determining that aside from their different colours, these two beads were identical.
After observing for a long time, he slowly shook his head.
He couldn’t infer the purpose of these two beads at all, so he had no choice but to put them away for now.
Just after Yang Kai stored the green bead into his Space Ring though, a sudden change occurred.
Although the lake was cold before, there were no sign of it freezing, but now, a kind of crackling sound came from all directions and a piercing chill began to fill the water as it began to condense into ice.
Yang Kai’s face changed as he quickly flew upwards.
Bursting through the surface of the lake, Yang Kai came to a halt a couple dozen metres up and turned back just in time to see the entire lake freeze over, blending in with the rest of the silvery white scenery perfectly.
“It seems that it was all thanks to the green bead that this lake was able to avoid freezing,” Yang Kai muttered to himself, wondering just what kind of secret power the green bead held that could actually hold back such an intrusive and severe cold.
After pondering for a moment, Yang Kai turned and flew towards the shore.
Upon his return, Liu Yan just rushed to him and nodded lightly, not saying much, while the little snowflake seemed extremely happy and danced around Yang Kai non-stop.
“Let’s move on,” Yang Kai said to the little snowflake, and the other party seemed to understand his meaning and flew off in a certain direction.
Over the next few days. Yang Kai toured around the Realm of Winter.
With the guidance of the little snowflake, as long as there was any precious treasure nearby, it would smoothly enter Yang Kai’s Space Ring.
Yang Kai’s thinking was quite simple. Since the Bustling World Great Emperor specified that Qin Zhao Yang should come to the Four Seasons Realm to find the Tribulation Fruit, it should not be a pointless endeavour. In other words, this Four Seasons Realm definitely had this special spirit fruit, it was just that he had yet to find it.
However, as long as Yang Kai persevered, he would eventually find what he was looking for, especially now that he had the assistance of the little snowflake, which had a unique advantage in this environment.
Thinking so, Yang Kai made up his mind to not leave the Realm of Winter unless he found the Tribulation Fruit, otherwise, once he left the Four Seasons Realm, he would have no way to explain himself to Qin Zhao Yang.
What disappointed Yang Kai though was that despite gaining many rare and precious Ice Attribute herbs, there was no sign of the Tribulation Fruit anywhere. What’s more, Yang Kai had killed a large number of Monster Beasts during this time, but aside from some Monster Cores, he didn’t obtain another Star Seal.
As time passed, Yang Kai couldn’t help secretly becoming anxious.
On this day, atop an ice glacier, Yang Kai stood with an ugly expression on his face as he stared at a crystal-like fruit tree in front of him.
This fruit tree was only about two metres tall and its leaves seemed to be formed from pure ice that exuded a frigid chill.
On this fruit tree, there was nothing of value; however, at a certain spot on one of its branches, there was a clear trace of something being plucked.
“What a miscalculation, I was a step too late!” Yang Kai muttered in annoyance.
This fruit tree was none other than the Tribulation Fruit Tree. Under the leadership of little snowflake, a ten day exhaustive search had led Yang Kai to this Tribulation Fruit Tree.
However, the Tribulation Fruit which should have existed here had clearly been taken away!
Judging from the traces left on the tree, the fruit should have been harvested only a few days ago.
“Master, you did your best. There’s no need to blame yourself…” Liu Yan quickly comforted when she saw Yang Kai’s expression turn sour.
“I just want to know… who actually took the spirit fruit,” Yang Kai frowned.
Although the Tribulation Fruit was precious and rare, it was not a widely known product, and even if it was taken away, there were very few uses for it. If Yang Kai could figure out who took this spirit fruit, he could likely exchange it for a correspondingly valuable treasure.
As long as the other party wasn’t too unreasonable, they should be happy to make such a transaction, and it wasn’t a big deal for Yang Kai to offer up something in exchange.
But the current situation was that Yang Kai had no idea who this Tribulation Fruit had been obtained by! As such, it was impossible for him to implement this method.
“Is there another fruit tree like this in the Realm of Winter?” Yang Kai turned his head and asked the little snowflake expectantly.
The little snowflake’s fuzzy facial features appeared to furrow before it shook itself side to side.
Yang Kai’s last hope was shattered.
Sighing lightly, Yang Kai grumbled unhappily to himself.
After the Four Seasons Realm opened, the cultivators that entered could only remain inside for thirty-three days. When the time limit came, they would have to already be at a specific location in order to leave the Four Seasons Realm, otherwise they would be trapped inside until the next opening.
Counting the days, it had been about twenty days since Yang Kai entered the Four Seasons Realm, and he had spent more than half that time in the Realm of Winter.
Starting from here, it would take him a few days to rush to the location of the exit, so there was not much time left.
What’s more, he had almost explored the entire Realm of Winter and most of the spirit grasses and medicines that grew here had entered his Space Ring. Now that the Tribulation Fruit had been picked by someone else, there was no point in continuing to remain here.
It would be better to first rush to the exit, then wait for the return of the disciples from the major Sects so he could find a chance to inquire about the whereabouts of the Tribulation Fruit. There was still a chance for success!
Thinking so, Yang Kai made a decision and turned his head to the little snowflake, “Show us the way out!”
“Is Master planning on leaving?” Liu Yan asked as her beautiful eyes flashed.
“En,” Yang Kai nodded.
Liu Yan naturally had no objections, but the little snowflake seemed to be a little sad. These past few days this lonely little creature had experienced so much fun that now it was a little reluctant to be left behind.
Yang Kai grinned and said, “If you want, you can come with me!”
Hearing this, the little snowflake’s wrinkled facial features suddenly unfolded and it beamed with joy, but soon, it once again slumped and shook its head helplessly.
Liu Yan whispered, “It can’t leave the Realm of Winter… It is different from me. This land was where it was born, and its source is here, if it leaves, it will soon wither and die.”
“How can that be?” Yang Kai was stunned.
Liu Yan sighed, “If it leaves here, it would be similar to me abandoning my vessel… rootless wood and sourceless water cannot be sustained for long, unless…”
“Unless what?” Yang Kai asked.
“Unless there was a similar environment in the Sealed World Bead, then it could continue to survive,” Liu Yan replied.
Yang Kai heard this and immediately understood that his recruitment plan was hopeless. He originally thought he could take the little snowflake into his Small Sealed World, but apparently he was too naive.
Understanding this, Yang Kai stretched out his hand, held up the little snowflake, and placed it on his shoulder as he smiled and said, “Don’t be so sad, if there’s a chance, I’ll return here to see you! Just wait for me, next time, I’ll be sure to find a way to take you away!”
Though he said so, Yang Kai also knew that the chances of this were basically next to none, as it would be several hundred years before the Four Seasons Realm opened again at the earliest, and by then, he would likely not be able to enter.
After all, by then, he should have reached the Emperor Realm…
However, the little snowflake was too innocent to understand this, so this simple coddling immediately allowed its mood to improve and become joyful again.
Watching it dance about happily, Yang Kai felt quite some pain in his heart…
Starting from the glacier, it took a full four days before Yang Kai reached the Two Seasons Mountain Range, and although there were some gains along the way, there weren’t many.
At this point, the little snowflake didn’t move forward anymore.
Yang Kai and Liu Yan bid farewell to it here before flying off.
Once he passed through the Two Seasons Mountain Range, Yang Kai flew straight towards the exit.
Before entering the Four Seasons Realm, each Sect Elder had informed the disciples of their Sect that they must arrive at the exit before the closure date.
As for the location of this exit, it was at the centre of the Four Seasons Realm!
As such, Yang Kai didn’t need to worry about going in the wrong direction.
After three days of travel, Yang Kai arrived at a flat plain and soon spotted the exit of the Four Seasons Realm on the horizon.
The exit, like the entrance in the unnamed mountain valley, was a giant oval light door that quietly floated mid-air.
Cultivators who entered the Four Seasons Realm could leave the Four Seasons Realm at any time through this light gate.
However, the time limit had not been reached yet, so obviously no cultivator would leave early.
The situation here was just as Yang Kai had expected, empty, with no one else around.
Counting the days, there were still five or six days until the time limit was reached.
Yang Kai didn’t intend to explore the Four Seasons Realm anymore and just planned to wait here; after all, there was no guarantee that the person who obtained the Tribulation Fruit wouldn’t arrive here early and leave.
While waiting, Yang Kai began to think about what he would exchange with others if he really found the one who obtained the Tribulation Fruit.
There were countless valuables in his hands, but many of them could not be brought out to trade, such as his five Emperor Artifacts.
He had a few Dao Source Pills left over from his recent breakthrough, but these were only useful for peak Origin Kings. Most Dao Source Realm cultivators wouldn’t be interested in these.
He also had a lot of gains in the Four Seasons Realm that he could bring out, but whether the one who had the Tribulation Fruit would be interested in any of these items was uncertain.
After thinking it over, Yang Kai decided that his best bet was to offer up the drop of Immortal Source Liquid he still had, as it was a chip that no one would refuse.
Soul Cleansing Divine Water, Immortal Source Liquid, and Life Revitalizing Jade Cream were the Three Great Divine Waters.
Among them, the formation of Soul Cleansing Divine Water was related mainly to coincidence. It required the fall of a Master whose Soul was incredibly powerful, at least reaching the Third-Order Origin King Realm, in a land where rich World Energy gathered. After many centuries, and with good luck, a pool of Soul Cleansing Divine Water would be produced. Although it was a rare and precious treasure, it could still be found every now and then.
The remaining two, however, were extremely hard to come by.
Life Revitalizing Jade Cream may exist in some hidden corner of the Star Boundary, but that itself was a mystery.
As for Immortal Source Liquid… it could not be found no matter how hard one looked for it.
Because Immortal Source Liquid was a by-product of the Immortal Tree! It was the congealed essence of the Immortal Tree!
A drop of Immortal Source Liquid was enough to bring a person at the gates of death back to life, an extraordinary, Heaven defying effect.
In this world, the only Immortal Tree was planted in Yang Kai’s small medicine garden, so there was no way for others to obtain Immortal Source Liquid.
He also had a drop of Immortal Source Liquid in his possession, which he had obtained from the Immortal Tree many years ago, but so far he had been unwilling to use it!
With such a Heaven-defying treasure, if Yang Kai brought it out to exchange for a Tribulation Fruit, no one would refuse.
However, Yang Kai had to worry about whether the appearance of a drop of Immortal Source Liquid would cause other troubles.
However, for the Tribulation Fruit, he couldn’t hesitate. If someone asked, he could simply play dumb. If he denied it, no one would think he possessed a supreme treasure like the Immortal Tree.
And so, Yang Kai sat down cross-legged and began to wait quietly.
There were still about five or six days left before the Four Seasons Realm closed, and the cultivators inside were obviously not in a rush to leave as there were still many opportunities to be sought, so the vicinity of the entrance was extremely quiet.
Time passed by, and one day later, the entrance was still empty, with just Yang Kai sitting around waiting.
At a certain point though, Yang Kai frowned as his eyes opened and turned in a certain direction.
At that moment, he actually felt a strange energy fluctuation, one that disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared!
But when he looked in the direction the fluctuations originated from, Yang Kai didn’t notice anything, which inevitably made him a little suspicious as he wondered if he had just imagined it.
Just as he was pondering, from a very far away position, a halo of light suddenly appeared.
This halo seemed tangible and spread outwards in all directions like ripples in a pond.
Yang Kai stood up suddenly and squinted his eyes.
In the direction he was gazing, about a hundred kilometres away, atop a hill, the light halo continued to flash. At first, this halo was only a single colour, but as time passed, more and more colours began to appear in it.
Not only that, but the ambient World Energy seemed to be surging as the sky above the mountain filled with multi-coloured clouds, making for a strange but dazzling scene.
“A Heavenly Manifestation!” Yang Kai whispered, “Is some precious treasure about to be born?”
Although he didn’t know exactly what was happening, from the current situation, Yang Kai judged that some kind of treasure was about to be born, and an extraordinary one at that, otherwise its birth would not have resulted in such an obvious phenomenon.
“Why… at this time…” Yang Kai frowned, his face turning extremely gloomy.
Right now, the exit to the Four Seasons Realm was open, but it would close in just four or five days, so all the disciples from the major Sects inside would undoubtedly be returning here soon.
The exit was only about a hundred kilometres from where the treasure was being born.
In other words, this Heavenly Manifestation resulting from the birth of a precious treasure was very likely to attract many people, and as time passed, more and more would come! At that time, it will inevitably cause a mad scramble which would result in rivers of blood flowing!
When that happened, Yang Kai’s plan to exchange the drop of Immortal Source Liquid for the Tribulation Fruit would definitely be disrupted.
So when he saw the Heavenly Manifestation, Yang Kai’s first thought was not excitement, but annoyance as the timing couldn’t be worse for him.
But even though he was cursing in his heart, the Heavenly Manifestation was so pronounced that his curiosity was still piqued!
Considering all this, Yang Kai directly summoned his flying boat, stepped onto it, and pushed his Source Qi, turning it into a stream that flew over.
The speed of the wooden boat was quite quick, arriving a hundred kilometres away at Yang Kai’s destination just ten breaths later. As he approached, Yang Kai actually smelled a strange fragrance in the air, one that was not just refreshing and relaxing, but even made him feel as if he was experiencing a kind of enlightenment…
“It must be some kind of rare herb…” Yang Kai muttered thoughtfully, immediately identifying whatever treasure was about to be born as a rare herb that would be of great help to a cultivator’s cultivation. He made this judgement so quickly because the moment the fragrance entered his nose, Yang Kai actually faintly felt that his bottleneck at the peak of First-Order Dao Source Realm had slightly loosened!
He had not broken through to the Dao Source Realm that long ago, and although he had spent his days fighting and cultivating assiduously, even obtaining some opportunities from the Flowing Time Steps, there should still be some time before he could break through to the Second-Order Dao Source Realm. But now, the distance he felt from his next breakthrough had shrunk noticeably, showing how Heaven-defying this miraculous medicine must be.
Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling excited as right now, in this place, there was no one else but him, so perhaps he would be able to monopolize this precious treasure!
It was a lucky coincidence stumbling across this kind of good fortune; after all, Yang Kai had rushed to the exit far ahead of time, intending to inquire about the whereabouts of the Tribulation Fruit, nothing more.
As these thoughts flashed across his mind, Yang Kai arrived atop the mountain and brought his wooden boat to a halt as he looked down.
At a certain spot atop the mountain, amidst some scattered stones, a single flower bud had quietly appeared.
From the looks of it, this flower was some kind of lotus, and even in its budding stage, its folded petals were white and spotless. A dazzling aura gently flowed from this lotus as a charming fragrance diffused around it. This lotus bud was so pristine that it almost didn’t look real but instead like an enchanting illusion.
Looking closer, Yang Kai made out some tiny, mysterious runes that flickered across the lotus’ petals. These flowing runes seemed to contain some kind of profound meaning that, if comprehended, would yield infinite benefits.
Yang Kai’s heart shook wildly as he couldn’t help gasping, “This is…”
As he spoke, he flipped his hand and took out a jade slip from his Space Ring, closing his eyes and immersing his mind into it to search for a certain record.
This jade slip was Gong Sun Mu’s inheritance, and Yang Kai had already memorized everything recorded in it, but the scene before him was so shocking that he needed to compare it with these written records in order to be certain of his judgement.
Soon after, Yang Kai found the record he was looking for in the jade slip and after going over it three times to confirm, he opened his eyes as a near-fanatical light flashed across them. Staring at the budding lotus in front of him, Yang Kai couldn’t help calling out in a joyous voice, “Extraordinary Treasure Lotus!”
There was a note in Gong Sun Mu’s jade slip about the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus’s birth strictly adhering to the Heavenly Way. This lotus would absorb only the purest essence of the Sun and Moon, and on the day it bloomed, it would be filled with an extraordinary Emperor Intent. If one could swallow and refine an Extraordinary Treasure Lotus, their chances of breaking through to the Emperor Realm in the future would be significantly improved, and if it could be refined into a pill, the effects would be even better!
In other words, this was a Heaven defying treasure that could increase the chances of one becoming an Emperor!
The Emperor Realm was the pinnacle of the Star Boundary’s cultivation hierarchy.
Besides a few nearly extinct treasures, there was nothing that could help a cultivator improve their chances of reaching this realm.
But the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus was one of them.
Moreover, the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus was completely different from ordinary spirit grasses and medicines as consuming it would fundamentally improve a cultivator’s ability to comprehend the Heavenly Way and Martial Dao and had an incomparable effect of increasing a cultivator’s ability to condense and manifest their own Emperor Intent.
The value of this Extraordinary Treasure Lotus could be imagined! If a master like Xia Sheng or Wu Chang obtained this Extraordinary Treasure Lotus, they would be able to break through to the Emperor Realm within five years with absolutely no possibility of failure.
Emperors were the pillars that supported every large Sect and were an absolute measure of that Sect’s power. The rise of even a single Emperor was enough to significantly increase the strength of a Sect.
If one thought about it this way, the value of this Extraordinary Treasure Lotus simply couldn’t be measured…
Yang Kai’s blood began to boil, but soon, gloom covered his face.
Because the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus in front of him… had not fully bloomed yet, so he could not collect it. If he rashly tried to pick it now, its medicinal efficacies would all but disappear.
And even if it bloomed completely, it would either need to be swallowed immediately or refined into a pill within an extremely short time, otherwise, its medicinal efficacies would also pass away cleanly.
The Heavens were fair in all things, and every opportunity that existed came with appropriate drawbacks.
The Extraordinary Treasure Lotus had truly Heaven-defying effects, so there were reasons it was rarely seen in history.
Within just three hours after this flower blossomed, its efficacies would begin to pass and it would soon after wither away, leaving behind only its legendary reputation.
As a result, even if somewhere in the vast Star Boundary, an Extraordinary Treasure Lotus was born and blossomed, if no one found it within three hours, it would simply wither and cease to exist…
“I need to find a way to cover up this Heavenly Manifestation. From the looks of it… it probably won’t bloom for a while, and if this continues, it will only attract more and more people. This will be very difficult,” Yang Kai muttered to himself, but when he looked up at the enormous vision in the sky, he quickly felt powerless.
If he was proficient in arranging Spirit Arrays, he may have been able to do something about this, but Yang Kai’s understanding of Spirit Arrays was only on the level of breaking them with brute force, so that was not an option here.
It was also impossible to collect the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus into his Sealed World Bead as that would be the same as picking it prematurely, leading to it withering directly.
As an Alchemist, such an act was absolutely unconscionable to Yang Kai.
For a moment, he could only scratch his head awkwardly.
Just as he was feeling anxious, the sound of something cutting through the air reached his ears and Yang Kai saw several figures rush over from different directions to land nearby.
There were three men and one woman, among them, one man and the woman seemed to be companions with the other two men, having arrived individually.
As soon as these four appeared, all of their gazes fixed on the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus as looks of surprise and shock filled their faces.
Only the young woman spared Yang Kai a casual glance, but after discovering that he was just a First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator, she didn’t pay attention to him anymore.
These four people were obviously nearby and were attracted by the phenomena of the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus’ birth.
One of them has a burly figure with a cold, indifferent expression and a Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivation. The other lone man had short hair and thief-like eyes, like he was constantly scheming something. This man’s cultivation was neither high nor low, just Second-Order Dao Source Realm. The last two, a young man and woman, seemed to be companions. The woman was petite and delicate looking while the man appeared suave. At first glance, it was clear that this Senior Brother and Junior Sister had a close relationship. Both of them had Second-Order Dao Source Realm cultivations.
At this moment, all four of them showed looks of surprise as they stared towards the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus, greed quickly welling up in their eyes.
Seeing this situation, Yang Kai couldn’t help but sigh.
Although he had been mentally prepared for this to happen as he knew the Heavenly Manifestation triggered by the maturation of the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus would definitely attract many cultivators, he hadn’t expected someone to appear so soon.
And four of them at once…
It seemed that there was a small number of cultivators active nearby, otherwise, they wouldn’t have arrived here so quickly.
“Senior Brother He… what kind of herb is that?” After observing for a moment, the young woman asked the man next to her, because she didn’t recognize this strange spirit flower in front of her, only that it must be rare and precious.
Senior Brother He heard her question but slowly shook his head and replied, “I don’t know either.”
As he spoke, he unconsciously licked his dry lips with an expression that seemed like he was ready to pounce, but he remained where he was, likely out of fear of the burly man. This was only natural as the burly man had the highest cultivation here and was the biggest obstacle to snatching this spirit flower.
“Brother Cheng Tai, do you recognize what this spirit flower is?” At that moment, the shifty-eyed young man suddenly asked the burly man. Apparently, the two were familiar with one another.
“I don’t know,” The man called Cheng Tai replied curtly, glancing over at the thief-like young man and asking, “Does Brother Bao not recognize it?”
Bao Peng smiled and replied, “How could this Bao recognize something that even Brother Cheng Tai doesn’t recognize? You think too highly of me.”
“Hmph,” Cheng Tai snorted coldly before turning to the other man and woman and asking aloud. “You two from Flowing Shadow Sword Sect, do you recognize this thing?”
Senior Brother He frowned hearing this question and shook his head slowly, as did the young woman.
Cheng Tai turned his gaze to Yang Kai last and yelled, “Boy, you seem to have gotten here first, what is this spirit flower? Speak.”
“I… I don’t know,” Yang Kai spoke haltingly, putting on a bewildered look as he explained, “I was just attracted by this vision…”
“Wastes!” Cheng Tai couldn’t help cursing before Yang Kai even finished speaking, “You don’t even recognize what this is but you still ran over here?!”
With this sentence, he scolded everyone present.
Senior Brother He of Flowing Shadow Sword Sect and the young woman beside him heard this and frowned unhappily, while Bao Peng, who seemed familiar with Cheng Tai’s temper, didn’t seem to care.
Next, Cheng Tai shouted, “No matter what this spirit flower is, this Cheng wants it. If you want to live, scram quickly, otherwise, don’t blame this Cheng for being ruthless?”
Bao Peng heard this and his brow twitched, but he still managed to say with a smile, “Brother Cheng, this… is this appropriate?”
“Do you have an objection?” Cheng Tai looked at Bao Peng with a grim expression and coldly snorted, “If you have an objection, say it boldly at your own risk!”
The latter quickly raised his hands and after taking a few steps back, he followed up, “Brother Cheng Tai misunderstands, if you want this thing, how could this Bao have any objections? It’s just that these two from Flowing Shadow Sword Sect may not be so agreeable, yes? When a rare spirit flower appears, in the end, the one who seizes it is the one who owns it…”
Hearing what he said, Senior Brother He nodded and said, “Yes, treasures belong to those who can keep them, if Friend wants it, he needs to use his own ability to snatch it!”
Although Cheng Tai was a Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator, Senior Brother He was together with his Junior Sister, so he wasn’t afraid of the other party. What’s more, with a rare treasure appearing right before his eyes, how could he just give up on it without trying?
“You two want to oppose me?” Cheng Tai heard this and grinned maliciously, “I’ve heard that Flowing Shadow Sword Sect’s Flowing Shadow Sword Art is exquisite and unpredictable, I wonder if that’s true… Good, since there is an opportunity today, this Cheng will have to ask you two for a demonstration.”
Saying so, Cheng Tai’s Source Qi surged and his already burly figure seemed to bulk up further, causing a sense of coercion to suddenly spread.
Having prepared himself, he shouted, “You two, don’t disappoint this Cheng!”
Stamping the ground, Cheng Tai shot off and crashed towards the pair from Flowing Shadow Sword Sect like a falling meteor.
He actually attacked directly!
“Be careful!” Senior Brother He shouted as his figure flickered and he retreated backwards together with his Junior Sister several dozen meters.
*Ceng ceng…*
Two slicing sounds rang out as two cold lights flashed.
When the swords were drawn, a piercing murderous intent filled the air.
Senior Brother He and his Junior Sister both held their swords in one hand while they formed a series of seals with their other one, assuming a strange stance as their Sword Qi began surging outwards.
“There should be a limit to looking down on others!” Senior Brother He shouted. Chang Tai suddenly attacking had caused Senior Brother He to be quite angered and his eyes quickly filled with murderous intent as he shouted to the young woman beside him, “Junior Sister, begin. don’t show any mercy!”
“Rest assured, Junior Sister will let him feel the power of our Flowing Shadow Sword Art!” The young woman shouted in response as she swung her sword, releasing a dazzling sword light that slashed towards Cheng Tai.
At the same time, Senior Brother He used a similar skill to coordinate with his Junior Sister.
Cheng Tai was a Third-Order Dao Source Realm master, so facing this coordinated assault, he did not back down. Sending out a series of palms, he caused the surrounding World Energy to turn chaotic as he fought two against one without losing any ground.
In an instant, three people had become locked in a melee, fighting atop this mountain as Sword Qi and palm prints kicked up rock and sand on the turbulent battlefield.
Meanwhile, the initiator of all this, Bao Peng, stood quietly and watched, without any intention of intervening, from time to time showing a thoughtful look as if he was gaining some enlightenment from observing this battle.
“Ha…” Suddenly, Yang Kai sighed as he turned to look in a certain direction before saying, “This spirit flower doesn’t seem to be mature yet, so collecting it right now… is probably a bad idea as it may ruin it…”
The place he was looking towards oddly didn’t have anyone standing there.
The three people who were fighting heard Yang Kai and were all shocked, quickly withdrawing from their fight as they turned to stare at him suspiciously.
Cheng Tai also glanced over at Bao Peng who was standing not far away and frowned.
“I’ve just said it cannot be picked rashly… Does this friend not understand simple words?” Yang Kai shouted forcefully this time as he punched out.
As Yang Kai’s fist pressure flew out, a figure suddenly appeared where before there was none, showing a shocked look on his face. At this moment, he was only ten steps away from the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus and from his posture, it was clear he was attempting to steal it while everyone else was distracted.
“Bao Peng!” After seeing this person’s face, Cheng Tai couldn’t help snapping.
At that moment, the other Bao Peng, who had been standing in place watching the battle, suddenly turned into a speck of light and disappeared!
It was actually just a very lifelike afterimage…
The real Bao Peng had clearly used some kind of Secret Technique to secretly approach the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus.
“You…” Bao Peng was exposed by Yang Kai’s punch, ruining his good deed, so he was furious and viciously shouted, “Boy, you court death!”
In his opinion, if not for Yang Kai interfering, he would have snatched this strange spirit flower and escaped.
Annoyed, he flew into a rage!
“Sorry…” Yang Kai scratched his head helplessly, “If possible, I didn’t want to expose you, but your behaviour… it was simply too despicable!”
He spurned.
The others present might have taken this comment as an insult, but Yang Kai really had no other meaning, he was simply exasperated that this Bao Peng was about to ruin the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus.
The Extraordinary Treasure Lotus was still not mature, so how could Yang Kai allow it to be picked rashly? He had pretended to be ignorant and weak, hoping to buy some more time, but now it seemed that this plan would not work.
“Indeed!” Cheng Tai yelled loudly, “I haven’t seen you for a few years, Bao Peng, but it seems you’re as shameless as ever! Even though this Cheng had been paying attention all this time, he was still almost cheated by you!”
Although he had been fighting with the pair from Flowing Shadow Sword Sect before, Cheng Tai had not gone all out and had intentionally split his attention to monitor Bao Peng. However, from Cheng Tia’s perspective, Bao Peng had simply been standing there watching, so he was able to focus more on his fight.
Cheng Tai never thought that the Bao Peng standing there was just a mirage!
The faces of the two Flowing Shadow Sword Sect disciples were also quite ugly at the moment, but they also felt quite curious because of everyone present, no one had seen through Bao Peng’s trick except for the Yang Kai…
If they hadn’t clearly sensed that Yang Kai’s cultivation was only First-Order Dao Source Realm, all of them would have thought he was hiding something.
“Brother Cheng, calm down…” Bao Peng also cast a flattering look towards Cheng Tai at this time and said, “It’s not like I managed to succeed…”
“That’s only because your luck was bad!” Cheng Tai coldly snorted, “If your luck had been good enough, wouldn’t you have run off with this spirit flower already?”
“It’s not a question of luck…” Bao Peng stared at Yang Kai with deep gaze before saying coldly, “What this Bao just displayed is his Five Aggregate Sects’ Golden Cicada Shell Shedding, a masterpiece which should have no flaws in it. It is an excellent Secret Technique for preserving one’s life and escaping undetected…”
“So it was the Golden Cicada Shell Shedding Secret Technique!” Cheng Tai muttered, apparently familiar with this Secret Technique, his eyes narrowing slightly as he commented, “Unexpectedly, Sect Master Qin was willing to teach you this Secret Technique!”
“That’s not important right now,” Bao Peng stared straight at Yang Kai as he spoke coldly. “This Bao is more concerned about how a trivial First-Order Dao Source Realm trash was able to see through it…”
Since entering the Four Seasons Realm, Yang Kai had been called trash by others more than once…
This wasn’t surprising though as his robes were plain and lacked any kind of emblem identifying him as being part of any Sect. Most importantly though, his cultivation was only First-Order Dao Source Realm, so the elite disciples from major Sects and families naturally looked down on him!
A First-Order Dao Source Realm in the Four Seasons Realm was really the lowest level of existence! Unless it was someone who had extraordinary status like Lan Xun, no one would even bother casting such a weak individual a second glance.
Bao Peng naturally didn’t put Yang Kai in his eyes.
Facing his question, Yang Kai just tilted his head for a moment and said, “My luck… is good?”
“I said this isn’t a matter of luck. It seems you really are courting death!” Bao Peng grinned menacingly, his expression extremely unkind. His good deed had been disturbed by Yang Kai, so he had a stomach full of grievances at the moment and wanted to rip Yang Kai’s corpse into ten thousand pieces to solve the hatred in his heart.
“Handle your affairs by yourself, this Cheng will be taking away that spirit flower first!” At that moment, Cheng Tai suddenly shouted as he rushed towards the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus.
The two Flowing Shadow Sword Sect disciples were startled by this and immediately grit their teeth as they chased after Cheng Tai, trying to block him.
Bao Peng obviously didn’t want to waste his time with Yang Kai either so he too dashed towards the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus.
Everyone simply wanted to snatch this spirit flower as soon as possible.
A brilliant light flashed suddenly as Yang Kai’s figure mysteriously appeared in front of the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus, blocking the four people’s way as he helplessly glanced around and said, “Everyone, this spirit flower has yet to mature, so it is not the best time to pick it. If you touch it rashly now, you may end up destroying it in vain. Why don’t we all just sit down and have a good chat and wait for this spirit flower to bloom first?”
“Huh? What kind of nonsense are you spewing, make way now!” Cheng Tai remained unmoved and shouted in a deep voice.
“Please cooperate!” Yang Kai looked at him sincerely.
“And if I refuse…”
By now, Cheng Tai had rushed close to where Yang Kai stood and swung his fist wrapped in a violent aura towards him. From his motions and posture, it was obvious Cheng Tai was not holding back and planned to kill Yang Kai in one blow.
Sneering disdainfully, he spat, “Since you don’t know how to measure your own weight, don’t blame me if you die!”
“Seems there’s really no other way…” Yang Kai muttered in a low voice, his peaceful and calm aura suddenly transforming into one filled with savagery as a malicious grin appeared on his lips. With a terrible pressure suddenly bursting from his form, Yang Kai sternly declared, “Since you refuse to listen to reason, I’ll just have to make you listen some other way.”
As he spoke, a light flashed from his palm and an Emperor Artifact appeared.
Emperor Pressure filled the air as Yang Kai swept his sword around and shouted, “Myriad Sword Arts, One Man As A Mountain!”
*Chi chi chi chi…*
Sword Qi flooded out with Yang Kai at its centre. This invincible Sword Qi quickly formed into a fan-shaped wave that was filled with terrifying pressure and deadly aura that seemed to keep everything before Yang Kai.
“What!” Cheng Tai’s face changed drastically as the disdainful look on his face abruptly changed to one filled with shock. His eyes bulged as he stared straight ahead.
“Emperor Pressure… this is Emperor Pressure… it’s an Emperor Artifact!” Bao Peng also called out in alarm as he quickly formed a seal and used his Five Aggregate Sect’s Golden Cicada Shell Shedding again, leaving behind a life-like afterimage as he rapidly withdrew, narrowly avoiding being hit.
The two Flowing Shadow Sword Sect disciples also couldn’t believe their eyes when the Myriads Sword Emperor Artifact appeared, but the Dao Source Grade swords they held in their hands trembling in fear and horror told them that what they were witnessing was undoubtedly real.
When Bao Peng’s words rang out, the faces of these two quickly turned pale…
However, the two of them belonged to the same Sect and had lived and fought together for many years, so their innate bond was strong. In a flash, they formed a set of seals with their free hands while slashing out with their Dao Source Grade Swords to dispel the terrible blow directed towards them.
*Xiu xiu xiu xiu…*
Sword Qi clashed mid-air as the surrounding World Energy churned.
After a brilliant flash, the four who had charged towards the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus, trying to seize it, were forced back into their original three positions, all of them pale as a look of lingering fear filled with faces.
Bao Peng showed no signs of injury, but he could not hide the look of shock on his face.
As for the two Flowing Shadow Sword Sect disciples, they appeared unhurt, but the hands they used to hold their swords were clearly trembling.
Cheng Tai was not so lucky though as he was the closest at the time and thus bore the biggest impact. Even if he fought back desperately at the moment of crisis, he still failed to completely resolve the terrifying blow of the Emperor Artifact and at this moment, there were at least seven or eight wounds on his body that were leaking blood, making him look extremely miserable.
“Now… Can we talk?” Yang Kai shouldered the Myriads Sword as he swept his eyes around and grinned.
Cheng Tai and the others now had profound looks on their faces as they stared at Yang Kai in fear.
The one they thought was mere trash had suddenly taken out an Emperor Artifact that anyone would covet and displayed a terrifying skill that severely wounded the supposedly strongest cultivator present. If this kind of thing had not been witnessed with their own eyes, they would not have believed it possible.
“Who is… Your Excellency?” Cheng Tai tried to endure the pain he was feeling as he turned a solemn look towards Yang Kai and asked.
At this point, how could he not believe that Yang Kai had some kind of extraordinary background? If that wasn’t the case, how could a trivial First-Order Dao Source cultivator possess an Emperor Artifact? Just thinking so, Cheng Tai couldn’t help feeling extremely wary…
Before considering if he could defeat Yang Kai in battle now, even if he did win, he would have to worry about retaliation from the great force behind him. The Clouded Heavens Sect he belonged to was only comparable to Flying Saint Palace, so how could Cheng Tai dare provoke a genius from some superpower?
“Friend, this is all just a misunderstanding, I hope this friend… does not take offence!” Bao Peng suddenly showed a flattering expression and said with a smile.
“Since it is a misunderstanding, there’s no need to explain anything,” Yang Kai glanced over at him and said with a smile.
As if receiving amnesty, Bao Peng cupped his fists and said, “Many thanks, friend. This Bao has important matters to attend to so he will not bother you further. Farewell!”
Saying so, he actually turned around and left directly at an extremely fast pace.
Looking at his disappearing back, Yang Kai showed a thoughtful look as he secretly felt that as long as this person didn’t die prematurely, he would definitely become a big deal in the future. It could be seen from Bao Peng’s decisiveness alone that his instincts and ability to judge situations were top notch.
Since he felt that he would not gain any benefits if he stayed, and instead might provoke danger, he had left immediately.
Compared with Bao Peng, Cheng Tai and Flowing Shadow Sword Sect pair seemed a little indecisive.
Because after seeing Yang Kai’s methods, these three people still didn’t intend to leave. They seemed to be holding on to a faint hope that they could still snatch the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus.
Cheng Tai had already been hit hard and was extremely wary of the great force behind Yang Kai, so he was showing a posture of wanting to leave, but was still somewhat reluctant to go.
As for Senior Brother He of Flowing Shadow Sword Sect, his greed was showing clearly.
However… The target of his greed was not the blossoming spirit flower, but rather the Myriads Sword in Yang Kai’s hand!
After all, compared to the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus that he did not know anything about, the Myriads Sword was a genuine Emperor Artifact, and a sword-shaped Emperor Artifact at that!
Flowing Shadow Sword Sect was originally a Sect well-known for its swordsmanship, and all of its disciples cultivated the Sword Dao, so if he could obtain this Myriads Sword, Senior Brother He’s strength would greatly increase.
This made him inevitably have many thoughts about this situation…
“Well now… are you leaving or not?” Yang Kai looked at the others with a smile.
Cheng Tai pursed his parched lips as he stood there, not moving or showing any hostility, instead just silently pushing his Source Qi to suppress his injuries.
On the contrary, when the Senior Brother He heard this, he suddenly turned his head and glanced at the young woman beside him. A single glance was all these two needed to understand each other’s intent.
Suddenly, a strong aura permeated from each of these two, this aura blending and gathering together as their Second-Order Dao Source Realm fluctuations rapidly inflated.
Even with no wind, their black hair flew out and their robes fluttered, fighting intent seemingly pulsing from their forms.
Senior Brother He stretched out a hand and the young woman instantly took it.
The moment their two hands met, their already powerful auras climbed to new heights and a visible halo of energy shrouded their figures.
At that moment, the two no longer seemed like separate individuals, but rather like one person!
“Absolute Resonance Secret Art!” Seeing this scene, Cheng Tai suddenly shouted in a low voice, his face turning solemn.
Hearing what he said, Yang Kai immediately understood that this Absolute Resonance Secret Art was some kind of technique that Flowing Shadow Sword Sect possessed and was similar to a Dual Cultivation Art. After displaying it, it seemed to connect the aura of a man and women together, merging their strengths and greatly improving their combat capabilities for a short time!
After performing this Secret Technique, the temperament of Senior Brother He changed greatly, seemingly becoming extremely confident and arrogant.
Lifting his sword, he began drawing a half-circle in Yang Kai’s direction and coldly declared, “Hand over the Emperor Artifact and I’ll spare your life!”
As he spoke, his Junior Sister made the same gesture.
When the two swords finished drawing their semi-circles and merged as one, a flash of light occurred and a powerful Sword Qi manifested in place.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Yang Kai remained unmoved, just standing there staring at the pair calmly.
“Enough nonsense!” Senior Brother He gave an impatient cry.
“And what if I refuse?”
“Then you can die!” Senior Brother He snorted coldly before he pushed his sword forward slightly, his movements seemingly carefree and leisurely.
However, as he pushed his sword forward, the circle of Sword Qi which he had drawn together with his Junior Sister, shot out.
Halfway to its target, this Sword Qi circle was divided into two, then into four, then into eight…
Soon, circular blades of Sword Qi filled the sky, giving off an imposing aura that made it seem like evading was impossible.
The barrage of circular Sword Qi blades slashed towards Yang Kai’s position, slicing through the air with a sharp, whistling noise.
Cheng Tai’s face changed slightly…
Only now did he realize that this pair from Flowing Shadow Sword Sect had not been using their full strength when they fought with him before. If they had performed such a Secret Technique before, it would have been quite difficult for him to withstand them.
Seeing this blow, even though it was not directed at him, gave Cheng Tai a sense of fear and unease, as if the countless blades had all been pointed at him.
Widening his eyes, he wanted to see how Yang Kai would defend against this move.
At any rate, this unknown kid had an Emperor Artifact, so his origins should not be low and he should also know some extremely profound skills. Such a blow was indeed quite powerful, but it shouldn’t be able to take this kid’s life… Or at least, that was what Cheng Tai assumed.
However, what he saw before him was far beyond his expectation.
When the barrage of circular Sword Qi blades struck, Yang Kai simply stood in place stupidly, as if he was unable to respond, not even taking any defensive actions until the last moment.
But by then, it was too late…
*Chi chi chi chi…*
The muffled sound of something being cut rang out as Yang Kai’s whole figure was submerged in countless Sword Qi blades and cut into pieces.
“Huh?” Cheng Tai exclaimed as he stared forward with an incredulous expression, “Did he… die?”
This strange kid who seemed so unreadable and deadly was actually killed easily with a single blow. This scene was simply beyond Cheng Tai’s ability to accept!
But soon, he relaxed…
He secretly felt that the reason why Yang Kai’s blow just now had been so powerful was simply because of the Emperor Artifact, and that Yang Kai’s personal strength was only on par with an ordinary First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator. Thinking about it this way, everything made sense.
“Overconfidence!” Senior Brother He also sneered as he flicked his sword lightly, an extremely excited light flashing across his eyes as they turned towards the Myriads Sword in Yang Kai’s hand.
At that moment though, Yang Kai’s corpse, which had been cut into countless pieces, suddenly distorted and faded into nothing.
Senior Brother He’s expression went stiff as he called out, “An afterimage!”
It wasn’t until this time that he understood why he was still feeling anxious despite having won the fight. This kind of ominous feeling was something that could not be explained, but also could not be ignored.
The scene before him made everything clear. The body which had been shredded just now was obviously not a real one, but just a mirage.
“Senior Brother, look out!” The young woman suddenly called out as her beautiful face paled.
At that exact moment, a brilliant light flashed across Senior Brother He’s neck and passed clean through it.
Senior Brother He’s complexion changed drastically as he tried to turn around and see what just happened, but no matter how he tried, he was unable to rotate his head. Not only that, he felt a slight pain coming from his neck the harder he tried to move it. A moment later, his vision turned upside down as his view seemed to fall.
“I… died?” A strange thought flashed across Senior Brother He’s mind as his vision gradually filled with darkness. The last scene reflected in his eyes was Yang Kai holding the Myriads Sword and standing quietly not far behind him. On the broadsword, there was some fresh red blood running down the blade, dripping off it lightly.
*Pu…*
The death of Senior Brother He seemed to set off a chain reaction as his Junior Sister, who was connected to him at the moment, turned pale, and spat out blood, her vitality rapidly draining as her face aged countless years in an instant.
She seemed incapable of controlling her body and quickly fell from the sky, fluttering mid-air, unable to stabilize her figure.
A moment later, she hit the ground with a splat!
“Some kind of backlash?” Yang Kai frowned thoughtfully.
Although this Absolute Resonance Secret Art was extremely powerful, it seemed to have severe drawbacks as well… Yang Kai had just killed that Senior Brother He, but now it seemed that alone was enough to send this young woman to her death as well!
Suddenly, two radiances flew out from the bodies of Senior Brother He and his Junior Sister and soared up into the air.
Yang Kai moved swiftly and seized these two flowing lights.
The back of his hand went slightly hot as soon as he caught these two lights, and when Yang Kai looked down, he saw two more Star Seals had appeared!
These two Star Seals obviously belonged to the two disciples of the Flowing Shadow Sword Sect, but after their deaths, the Star Seals became ownerless and were easily claimed.
The grades of these two Star Seals weren’t very high, just triangular and diamond-shaped, like the Star Seal Yang Kai had obtained before!
Now, Yang Kai had collected three Star Seals from this Four Seasons Realm!
Star Seals seemed to be quite difficult to obtain. Yang Kai had stayed in this Sealed World for more than twenty days and apart from the one he obtained by coincidence, he hadn’t obtained another, showing how rare they were.
But right now, he actually obtained two more.
As Yang Kai observed his newly acquired Star Seals, Cheng Tai, who was watching from the side, shivered uncontrollably!
Everything had happened so fast that he had failed to even see how Yang Kai moved. What he did know was that the pair from Flowing Shadow Sword Sect had been cut down in one move, allowing Cheng Tai to realize he had seriously underestimated Yang Kai’s ability!
Although this kid looked like just a First-Order Dao Source cultivator, his true combat power could not be judged on that alone! This kid was definitely an elite among elite who could easily defeat others above his own realm!
Thinking so, how could Cheng Tai dare to remain? He was now secretly cursing himself for not leaving sooner as now he couldn’t even be sure he could leave.
But doing nothing was not an option, so Cheng Tai grit his teeth and cupped his fists, “This Cheng apologizes for his prior offence and hopes this friend will be forgiving! This Cheng will now take his leave…”
“Stand right there!” Yang Kai glanced at him coldly and faintly as he shouted.
“Friend… what advice do you have?” Cheng Tai’s face twitched as fright filled his heart, only wishing to be as far away from here as possible, but not daring to act rashly.
“Just wait a moment!” Yang Kai didn’t show any killing intent and instead flew down to the two fresh corpses of the Flowing Shadow Sword Sect disciples. Taking down their Space Rings, Yang Kai swept them with his Divine Sense as he seemed to search for something.
Even with Yang Kai’s back turned to him, Cheng Tai stood obediently in place. He knew that in his current state, he was not Yang Kai’s opponent at all, and if he angered this strange young man, there would soon be a third corpse on the ground!
“Nothing but junk!” Yang Kai muttered with some dissatisfaction after inspecting the two Space Rings.
Of course, this wasn’t the case.
The Senior Brother and Junior Sister pair were both Second-Order Dao Source Realm cultivators so naturally there were many good things in their Space Rings. Whether it was Source Crystals, pills, or artifacts, the value of their property wasn’t bad, but they were lacking what Yang Kai was looking for.
After muttering so, Yang Kai turned to Cheng Tai and flew over before pondering for a moment and asking, “If it’s convenient, can Brother Cheng give me your Space Ring?”
Hearing this, Cheng Tai’s face turned pale, but people under the eaves had to bow their heads, so with a forced smile he nodded, “Naturally that’s not a problem.”
Saying so, he took off his Space Ring with a pained expression on his face before tossing it over to Yang Kai. Finished, he hurriedly asked, “If friend is satisfied, this Cheng will now leave and not disturb you…”
“What’s the hurry?” Yang Kai glanced at him, “You don’t want your Space Ring?”
“Huh?” Cheng Tai wore a stunned expression, really not understanding why Yang Kai would say this.
“Did you think I was trying to rob you?” Yang Kai curled his lips, “Do you think I would engage in such a despicable act?”
The expression on Cheng Tai’s face constantly fluctuated, really not knowing what to say.
“Haha… something useful!” At that moment, Yang Kai suddenly laughed and with a flick of his Divine Sense, he took out something from Cheng Tai’s Space Ring.
Cheng Tai glanced over and saw that the thing was a charcoal black spirit grass.
In all honesty, Cheng Tai didn’t know exactly what this spirit grass was or what its purpose was, he simply felt it was high-grade and valuable, so he collected it from the Realm of Autumn while he was exploring.
He didn’t expect Yang Kai would suddenly take this particular herb out at this moment.
Cheng Tai was completely at a loss…
He was obviously clearer about the content of his Space Ring than anyone, and knew that in terms of value, there were many other things far more precious than this spirit grass, but this strange boy had actually chosen this and nothing else.
While Cheng Tai was stunned, Yang Kai tossed his Space Ring back to him as he played with the spirit grass in his hand, a happy expression filling his face.
“This friend, do you really not want anything else…” Cheng Tai asked cautiously.
“I just said I’m not robbing you!” Yang Kai glanced at him sideways before shouting in a low tone, “Scram!”
“Yes, yes, yes!” Cheng Tai felt like was being pardoned, quickly grabbed his Space Ring, and fled, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
After Cheng Tai disappeared, Yang Kai landed leisurely next to the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus as he looked at the dark spirit grass in his hand and muttered to himself, “With this Black Dragon Grass, I only need three more ingredients to refine this lotus into the Extraordinary Treasure Pill… En, I have all the others but these last three will be somewhat difficult to find, I hope someone else will have them.”
As he spoke, Yang Kai glanced around and now began hoping more people would be attracted by the emergence of this Extraordinary Treasure Lotus so he could ‘borrow’ the necessary materials from them to refine the Spirit Pill he was hoping to.
With the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus as the main ingredient, a Heaven-defying Spirit Pill called the Extraordinary Treasure Pill could be refined. This Spirit Pill had an even more powerful effect than swallowing the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus raw.
One Extraordinary Treasure Pill would be enough to raise a cultivator’s chances of becoming an Emperor by ten percent!
If possible, Yang Kai hoped to refine this Extraordinary Treasure Lotus into pills when it matured! This way, not only could it be preserved for a long time, but it could also bring out the full efficacies of the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus. However… accomplishing this would not be easy, especially since he was currently lacking some of the necessary materials for the refinement.
Atop a certain mountain, with clouds swirling about in the surging winds, a grand vision filled the sky with a myriad of wondrous colours.
The Extraordinary Treasure Lotus was slowly blossoming into a flawless white flower, with traces of the Heavenly Way itself lightly dancing around it as a fragrance that refreshed and relaxed all who smelt it wafted outwards.
Yang Kai sat cross-legged not far from this spirit flower, his mind free of any distracting thoughts and his eyes closed, like a silent guardian, blocking all access to any who approached.
Three hundred kilometres away, a number of silhouettes quickly approached while looking up ahead in the direction of the mountain, the vast Heavenly Manifestation having caught their eyes some time ago, surprising them greatly and eliciting a great deal of curiosity.
However, this group of people seemed to belong to a variety of different great forces and were only travelling together by chance as they had apparently noticed this strange phenomenon at the same time.
The strength of this group was mixed, from First-Order Dao Source Realm to Third-Order Dao Source Realm.
As they flew, one man suddenly turned to the side and asked, “Brother Jing, can you tell what’s happening up ahead?”
The person he asked was Jing Li, a disciple of the Benevolent Martial Sect, and one of the people Yang Kai had met at the Flowing Time Temple. Although this person’s cultivation was also Third-Order Dao Source Realm, he had humbled himself when facing Wu Chang’s questioning, but at this moment, he seemed to have restored his previous confidence.
Hearing this question, Jing Li pondered for a moment before saying, “This Heavenly Manifestation is either related to the birth of some rare treasure or a precious spirit medicine reaching maturity… And judging from the fragrance in the air, it’s most likely the latter.”
“Oh?” The questioner’s eyes lit up as he said happily, “Brother Jing thinks so too?” He had apparently not been asking due to ignorance, but rather as a way of confirmation. “I don’t know if Brother Jing can see what type of spirit medicine is reaching maturity?”
“How should I know?” Jing Li rolled her eyes, “There are countless precious spirit medicines out there; however, anything that can cause such a big disturbance must be extraordinary.”
“Heh heh heh…” Suddenly, another man in the group let out a low laugh as he licked his lips, “Perhaps, the opportunity I’ve been waiting for has come.”
As soon as this remark came out, everyone paused.
Jing Li quickly followed up, “With the opportunity before us, the rest will be up to luck. If this opportunity is obtained by this Jing, you should not be too jealous, hahahahaha!”
He let out a long laugh, as if whatever treasure laid ahead was already in his grasp…
“Bah, you want to snatch up this opportunity too?” A spurning voice came from the crowd.
“Does Brother Zhou Huai have some kind of objection to this Jing?” Jing Li looked towards the speaker coldly as he put on a provocative expression. While Jing Li did not dare breathe loudly when facing Wu Chang, lest he incur Wu Chang’s notorious wrath, Jing Li was still a Third-Order Dao Source Realm master, so how could he not have any arrogance?
“I have no objection to anyone obtaining an opportunity except you!” Zhou Huai did not back down either. It seemed that there was some kind of grievance between these two, so they did not try to hide their bickering.
Jing Li’s expression sank, and when he was about to retort, when one of the group suddenly shouted, “Look, someone arrived before us.”
As soon as this remark came out, everyone’s heart sank as they looked forward and saw that atop the mountain there was a figure sitting cross-legged quietly next to a half-blossomed white flower that was exuding a dazzling light and a peculiar yet entrancing aura.
*Xiu xiu xiu…*
Immediately, Jing Li’s group accelerated and in the blink of an eye, they arrived near the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus, greed filling their faces as they stared at it.
Jing Li glanced at Yang Kai, secretly feeling that this person was somewhat familiar, like he had met him somewhere before, but upon noticing the other party’s cultivation, he couldn’t help grinning mockingly, “And I was wondering who it was… turns out it’s just a First-Order Dao Source Realm trash.”
After understanding this, he stopped paying attention to Yang Kai.
The same was true for the others.
Realizing that someone had reached this strange spirit flower first, all of them had been a little flustered, but when they saw that Yang Kai’s cultivation was so weak, they immediately relaxed.
After this group landed, their gazes crossed Yang Kai and fixed on the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus in anticipation.
Although they didn’t know what kind of spirit flower this was, since it had given rise to a Heavenly Manifestation upon its maturation, it was easy to imagine how precious it was!
“Brother Pang Hai, if this Jing recalls correctly, you’ve studied Alchemy quite extensively, yes?” Jing Li suddenly turned to look at a fat man in the crowd.
The fat man heard this and smiled lightly, “This Pang has dabbled in the Alchemic Dao, but his technique is lacking, only reaching the Origin King Grade, nothing worth mentioning!”
Although he spoke humble words, there was an extremely arrogant expression on his face, which seemed to say that this was anything but a trivial matter.
In truth, he had reason to be proud.
Alchemists were rare, and High-Grade Alchemists were even rarer. Alchemists also enjoyed a lofty status in the cultivation world, so a man like this Pang Hai, who was both a Dao Source Realm cultivator and an Origin King Grade Alchemist could be considered a rare talent.
Ordinary Alchemists focused all their efforts into Alchemy while their cultivation came second. These Alchemists would often not have enough time to cultivate while they improved their Alchemy skills, leading to most Alchemists having lower cultivation.
As such, most Origin King Grade Alchemists were either Origin Returning Realm cultivators or Origins.
But Pang Hai was already a Second-Order Dao Source Realm Master!
He had good attainments in both the Martial Dao and Alchemic Dao, standing amidst an elite few in both fields, so it was only natural for him to be proud of himself.
“Origin King Grade…” Jing Li was also a man who knew how to judge the value of a person, so hearing this, he exclaimed with sincere admiration, “Brother Pang Hai is truly amazing, this Jing is thoroughly impressed!”
Although the others did not speak, they all showed respectful expressions.
Pang Hai was obviously used to such scenes so with a smile on his chubby face he hypocritically waved his hand and said, “Brother Jing is too polite. In fact, if it weren’t for my pursuit of the Alchemic Dao delaying my cultivation, this Pang would have long ago broken through to the Third-Order Dao Source Realm!”
The implication he was making was that his aptitude in the Martial Dao was not worse than the others, but rather that he was distracted by Alchemy, as if without pursuing such a side-profession he would have the capital to compete with Xia Sheng, Wu Chang and the other young geniuses of the Southern Territory!
“Brother Pang Hai, since you are an Origin King Grade Alchemist, do you recognize this spirit flower?” Jing Li asked.
The others also looked at Pang Hai and waited anxiously for his answers.
Pang Hai heard this, took a moment to stare at the Extraordinary Treasure Lotus, pondered for a moment after, then said, “If this Pang is not mistaken, this should be the legendary…”
He paused momentarily here to raise the tension.
Yang Kai also opened his eyes curiously, wondering what his fellow Alchemist would say.
Pang Hai boldly declared next, “Legendary Profound Frost Sacred Lotus!”
*Pu…*
In that instant, Yang Kai couldn’t stop himself from laughing, though he quickly suppressed his outburst.
Pang Hai immediately gave him a vicious look.
On the contrary, Jing Li and the others went wide-eyed and began asking in hushed voices, “Is this really the Profound Frost Sacred Lotus? The very Profound Frost Sacred Lotus that is rumoured to help one sublimate one’s Knowledge Sea and greatly enhance the power of their Divine Sense?”
Jing Li had obviously heard of the Profound Frost Sacred Lotus so his eyes couldn’t help shining brightly when he heard this unknown budding flower might just be it.
The reactions of the others were similar, and greed could practically be seen oozing from their expressions.
“Indeed!” Pang Hai nodded heavily, “This is definitely the Profound Frost Sacred Lotus!”
“I trust Brother Pang Hai!” Jing Li gulped.
“I too believe Brother Pang Hai, but from the way this boy reacted just now, it seems he has a slightly different opinion…” Zhou Huai turned to look at Yang Kai thoughtfully, “And he was the first to arrive here, so why don’t we ask him as well?”
Although he said so, he didn’t try to solicit the opinions of the others in his group and instead directly shouted at Yang Kai, “Boy, this Zhou has some questions to ask you, answer them all, otherwise… Hmph!”
He spoke with a threatening expression full of malice.
“En, go ahead,” Yang Kai nodded at him indifferently.
“How long have you been here?” Zhou Huai asked.
“About an hour,” Yang Kai replied.
“So, this Heavenly Manifestation began an hour ago?” Zhou Huai’s expression changed as he began looking around vigilantly before asking suspiciously, “Why hasn’t anyone else come here?”
Although he felt it strange, he didn’t delve too deeply into it, figuring that no one else was around to notice this Heavenly Manifestation, or that others were on their way and simply hadn’t made it here yet. Assuming so, he then asked, “When Brother Pang Hai said this was the Profound Frost Sacred Lotus, you seemed to disagree… Do you know what spirit flower this is?”
“I don’t!” Yang Kai shook his head into a rattle.
“Since you don’t know anything, why show such an expression? Laughable!” Pang Hai snorted coldly.
Yang Kai shook his head and said, “Although I don’t know what this is, I know it is not the Profound Frost Sacred Lotus!”
At this point, Yang Kai’s expression suddenly became solemn as he began to utter seriously, “The Profound Frost Sacred Lotus is only born in extremely cold environments. It has seven petals, deep roots, a long stem, and releases an enchanting fragrance that is quite similar to the spirit flower here. However, the most important thing is…” His tone suddenly became low as a grin appeared on his face and he said, “When the Profound Frost Sacred Lotus blooms, no one can approach within a hundred kilometres of it as its fragrance is potent enough to affect even Emperor Realm Masters, disrupting the Soul of any who come close and plunging them into an illusion they cannot extricate themselves from. Once that happens, if one is not rescued promptly, they will forever be trapped in a prison of their own mind!”
Spreading his hands, Yang Kai shrugged, “Since none of you are affected at all at this moment, nor are any of you seeing any kind of hallucination, how could this possibly be the Profound Frost Sacred Lotus?”
After he finished his explanation, everyone who was listening was stunned while Pang Hai blushed bright red…
He didn’t actually recognize what this spirit flower was, but he also didn’t expect anyone else to know either, so he had casually said it was the Profound Frost Sacred Lotus thinking no one would contradict him, giving him an edge and the initiative.
Once he seized the initiative, he could compile a tale that would be beneficial to him, which would facilitate his next actions.
But he didn’t expect that the moment he opened his mouth, Yang Kai would expose his lie, and… this boy’s words were so thorough and full of conviction that it was clear that everyone favoured his opinion, causing Pang Hai to become angry out of shame!
“What friend says… makes sense!” Zhou Huai’s eyes lit up as he turned to look at Pang Hai, “Brother Pang Hai, what do you think?”
[Your eighteen generations of Ancestors must have all been bastards…] Pang Hai cursed in his heart.