[To think a Dao Source Realm cultivator would boast so shamelessly! To tell an Emperor Realm Master he would die to his face, has this guy lost his mind?]
Shi Cang Ying and the others all had strange expressions on their faces.
Only Hua Qing Si knew that Yang Kai was not joking. Even though Yang Kai was not an Emperor Realm Master, he definitely had the strength to fight at that level. Not to mention the others, the Embodiment itself was enough to give Qiu Ze a headache. If Yang Kai were to join the fray as well, then he may be able to fight on equal ground with Qiu Ze.
So, after Yang Kai appeared, Hua Qing Si’s heart was finally put at ease. Even if Yang Kai’s cultivation was a little lower than hers, Hua Qing Si was definitely no match for him!
She had never met a man as radiant as Yang Kai.
[No…] Hua Qing Si suddenly realized that Yang Kai’s cultivation was not lower than hers, but rather, it was on par with her.
[When did he advance to the Third-Order Dao Source Realm?] Hua Qing Si was shocked. [It was not that long ago that he reached the Second-Order Dao Source Realm… To think he actually broke through again in such a short amount of time? Is cultivating as easy as drinking and eating for him?]
Even though she was shocked, she was still mostly elated.
Yang Kai had gotten stronger again, which meant that the situation before him was now even more favourable.
“Heh…” Qiu Ze suddenly scoffed. Even though Yang Kai did not speak too loudly, he heard it loud and clear, and an amused smile emerged on his face. Looking at Yang Kai, he said, “Little brat, it seems you do not know the immensity of Heaven and Earth. You actually dare think of taking this King’s life?”
Luo Jin shouted from the side, “Palace Lord Qiu, that guy is the one who injured your son!”
“He’s Yang Kai?” Qiu Ze’s face turned dark. Even Mu Zheng of White Clouds Tower, and Ruan Hong Bo from Sky Peak Temple were glaring at Yang Kai with angry looks on their faces. Mu Guan of White Clouds Tower and Ke Tian from Sky Peak Temple were both killed by Yang Kai, so he was the reason why the two of them had come to stir trouble with Thousand Leaves Sect. Now that their enemy was right before their eyes, they were naturally seeing red.
“That’s right, he’s the one!” Luo Jin spat with hatred.
That day at the City Lord’s Mansion, Luo Jin suffered the greatest humiliation of his life. It was a day he would never forget. Even though Yang Kai spared his life in the end, his hatred for him was like a lump in his throat. If he did not get revenge, he would not be able to rest easy again.
Even in his dreams, he dreamt of killing Yang Kai and avenging his past shame.
After learning of Yang Kai’s identity, all the Masters of each Sect were looking at Yang Kai as if he were a dead man. However, since Qiu Ze did not move, none of them dared act on their own.
“You’re Yang Kai?” It seemed that Qiu Ze wanted to confirm it and stood there questioning Yang Kai.
Yang Kai sneered disdainfully, “What the hell do you count for, daring to ask for this Young Master’s name!”
His expression could not be any more arrogant, as if Qiu Ze wasn’t worth his time at all, but the latter kept a calm expression. He did not get angry, but instead gently nodded, “Very good. This King heard that you have refined a furnace of Extraordinary Treasure Pills in the Four Seasons Realm?”
Yang Kai raised a brow thoughtfully, “So, you’re after something else, aren’t you? You want an Extraordinary Treasure Pill? I apologize, but they’re all gone.”
Qiu Ze responded, “No matter. This King also did not expect to get an Extraordinary Treasure Pill from you. However, this King has heard that you took one of them yourself. After I capture and boil you down, traces of the Extraordinary Treasure Pill’s medicinal efficacies should still be present.”
As soon as he said this, even the faces of Ruan Hong Bo and the others standing on Qiu Ze’s side changed. They all looked over in unison as if they could not believe that he had just said such a thing.
They had never thought of getting a trace of the medicinal efficacies of the Extraordinary Treasure Pill by boiling a person who had taken it. As expected of Qiu Ze, to be able to think of such an idea. But on second thought, it did seem to make sense.
The effects of the Extraordinary Treasure Pill were strong, and most of the medicinal efficacies would be gathered in the meridians, slowly refined by the cultivator as time went on. So, the sooner one takes the Extraordinary Treasure Pill, the better.
Back then, that girl from Eight Paths Sect had taken the Extraordinary Treasure Pill when she was still in the Second-Order Dao Source Realm. Even though she was forced to take it by Luo Yuan, it perfectly unleashed the efficacy of the Extraordinary Treasure Pill. As long as her aptitude was decent enough and she cultivated hard in the future, reaching the Emperor Realm was inevitable.
Qiu Ze was already in the Emperor Realm, so the Extraordinary Treasure Pill obviously wouldn’t be of use to him. He likely wanted it for Qiu Yu.
But just thinking that he would first have to drink a pot of human meat soup in order to obtain the medicinal efficacies of the Extraordinary Treasure Pill… Ruan Hong Bo and the others instantly paled and their stomachs churned. They inwardly began feeling sympathetic towards Qiu Yu. Who knows what Qiu Yu’s reaction would be if he learned the truth in the future.
“You wish to boil this Young Master?” Yang Kai failed to stifle his laughter and sneered back, “You are the one that does not know the immensity of Heaven and Earth.”
“How presumptuous of you, little brat.” A cold glint flashed past Qiu Ze’s eyes as he snorted, “But if you don’t have the strength to match that attitude, this presumptuousness of yours just seems childish and ridiculous.”
While speaking, he suddenly raised a hand and struck his palm in Yang Kai’s direction.
The wind surged up in an instant. A huge palm formed in the sky and flew over, blanketing a vast area.
Qiu Ze’s palm clearly did not care about the life or death of the others, or even Yang Kai’s survival. To him, it did not matter whether Yang Kai was dead or alive, he just needed to take his corpse back and boil it.
With this sudden strike, the sky darkened.
Ye Hen and Du Xian’s eyes almost bulged out of their sockets as their bodies shook with tension, but they could only watch the scene unfold without any means to help.
A fiery red light suddenly shot out at that moment, and the hot aura instantly diffused. A delicate and small figure rose to the skies and met the palm strike head-on.
The two collided in a flash and Liu Yan groaned as she was slapped down, but as a result of her efforts, the palm print was dispersed and light returned to the sky.
*Xiu…*
A sound of something breaking through the air rang out as a certain figure flickered at the same time. Before the bystanders could see what happened, the figure had already returned to the array base platform.
It was Yang Kai who took the opportunity when Liu Yan acted to retrieve Ye Hen and Du Xian.
He was highly proficient in the Dao of Space, so he caught everyone off guard. By the time Qiu Ze could react, it was already too late to stop Yang Kai, and when he looked over, he saw that all his hostages had already been saved.
Qiu Ze’s face dimmed instantly, frowning at Yang Kai and the little girl whom he had slapped to the ground.
If it was just Yang Kai, then so be it. For a Third-Order Dao Source Realm, he may be fast, but he still wasn’t worth mentioning; however, for this oddly-dressed little girl to be able to sustain a blow from him was a little unbelievable.
He could not feel Liu Yan’s cultivation prior to this, but in their brief confrontation, Qiu Ze clearly perceived that she was at the peak of the Dao Source Realm.
Qiu Ze was not the only one in disbelief. Everyone present was dumbfounded.
They did not expect that Yang Kai would not be the one to take the hit, but rather the eight-year-old looking girl. [How could this little girl survive a blow from an Emperor Realm Master head-on? Can’t you see that she was slammed into the ground by Qiu Ze and even left a little human-shaped hole there?]
[She should be in pieces by now.]
In an instant, everyone was looking at Yang Kai with disdain. Even enemies like Ruan Hong Bo scorned Yang Kai’s actions, thinking that this guy was simply a beast to actually let a little girl like that send herself to death’s embrace.
“That hurts!” The crisp voice of a child mixed with fierce anger emerged from the human-shaped hole in the ground. In the next moment, a little head popped out. Liu Yan’s face was livid with rage as she leapt out of the hole and patted away the dirt from her body.
“She’s still alive?” Luo Jin was stupefied. He didn’t expect a little thing like her would be able to survive taking a hit from Qiu Ze face-first.
Not only did she survive it, but she also didn’t seem injured at all.
[What kind of monster is this?]
Ye Jing Han and Hua Qing Si were also dumbfounded and stared at Liu Yan in shock.
Suddenly, Hua Qing Si’s expression changed and she asked hesitantly, “Little Sister Liu Yan?”
Just now, when Liu Yan moved, Hua Qing Si was able to sense her aura. The two of them had been cultivating in the Sealed World Bead together with Zhang Ruo Xi all this while so they naturally could not be more familiar with each other. Looking at her again now, the attitude and appearance of this little girl clearly looked about seventy to eighty percent similar to Liu Yan. Only, she was now much younger.
She did not pay much attention to this little girl before; after all, they were in a life or death situation so she didn’t have the leisure for such random thoughts; but now, after realizing that this little girl may be Liu Yan, Hua Qing Si could no longer restrain the shock in her heart.
[How… is this possible?]
Liu Yan turned around and shot a sweet smile at Hua Qing Si, “Sister Hua!”
[It’s Liu Yan, no doubt about it! It has to be her!]
Hua Qing Si’s beautiful eyes were round in surprise as she stammered, “How… How did you end up like this?”
Liu Yan responded meekly, “Master said he liked little girls the best, the smaller the better, so I…”
“Ahh?” Hua Qing Si squinted and glared at Yang Kai.
Cold sweat poured down Yang Kai’s forehead like a waterfall. Reaching up to wipe it, he hurriedly shouted, “Don’t listen to her! That’s nonsense!”
This time, even Chi Yue and Ye Jing Han were glaring daggers at Yang Kai.
“Beast!”
“Shameless!”
“Scum!”
The three women chimed in one word after another, each word stabbing into his heart. Even Yang Kai’s face had gone blue.
Hua Qing Si coldly snorted as she called out, “You have to follow me closely in the future. You must never be alone with him! Sister Hua will protect you.”
“Thank you, Sister Hua!” Liu Yan put on an innocent smile.
“Are you alright? Were you hurt just now?” Even though Liu Yan seemed to be in good condition, Hua Qing Si still could not help but ask. She had traded blows with Qiu Ze and knew how powerful he was. Even she was not his opponent, it naturally made her worry to see Liu Yan take a hit from him.
“Couldn’t be better!” Liu Yan smiled. However, that smile didn’t reach her eyes in the slightest. Those eyes were filled with bone-chilling frost, and she even shot a cold glance at Qiu Ze as she spoke.
For some reason, Qiu Ze’s heart jumped when he met her eyes. A kind of uneasy feeling suddenly sprouted in his heart. Shaking off his unease quickly though, he took a decisive step forward and shouted, “This is a touching reunion, but let’s end this here. This King does not wish to start killing here. So, I will only offer you all a choice…”
Then, speaking up to this point, his voice turned cold and the killing intent within it surged like a tidal wave, the wind blowing from the nine hells of purgatory as he declared, “Those who obey me will prosper, those who rebel will die!”
With an imposing expression on his face, Yang Kai also took a step forward and said while withstanding the Emperor Pressure, “Liu Yan, bring them into the Sealed World. I’ll deal with this old man!”
Qiu Ze was a mere Emperor Realm Master who had just broken through recently and had not stabilized his cultivation yet, so Yang Kai wasn’t afraid of him.
In Thousand Leaves Sect’s Sealed World, he had even encountered a Third-Order Emperor Realm Corpse Puppet and battled against it. Even though he had to use up all his cards and also got the help of Embodiment and Liu Yan, at least he had experience against an even stronger opponent than Qiu Ze, so why should he be afraid of someone in the First-Order Emperor Realm?
Now that he had a Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivation, Yang Kai was actually eager to use this opportunity to test his strength.
The heavy Emperor Pressure was dense like a solid mass as it gushed over furiously, giving one the illusion that they were drowning, unable to catch their breath.
Ye Hen and the others were already in bad shape. If Yang Kai had not been in front of them blocking it, then they may have fainted on the spot.
“Master, if you feel confident enough, how about delaying him for a while and leaving the rest to me?” Liu Yan suddenly whispered from behind him.
Yang Kai was stunned. He had no idea where Liu Yan got this confidence from. Even though she survived unscathed after taking a blow from Qiu Ze, and the toughness of a Spirit Puppet’s body was clear to see, there were so many Masters here after all. What’s more, how could an Emperor Realm Master like Qiu Ze be easy to deal with?
Yang Kai himself wasn’t confident he could completely defeat all of them and originally planned to go for their ringleader to crush their fighting spirit. It would be best if he could kill Qiu Ze, but seriously injuring him would work too. As long as he was able to defeat Qiu Ze, then the rest of them would become like a handful of loose sand, nothing to be scared of.
But Liu Yan’s calm and confident tone intrigued Yang Kai.
He wondered what sort of trump card Liu Yan’s Spirit Puppet body came with, for her to have such guts to look down on all these Masters.
But this was clearly not the time to ask that question. Yang Kai could only respond by asking, “How sure are you?”
Liu Yan sneered, “One hundred percent!”
Yang Kai twisted his head around to look at her in astonishment. Only when he realized she wasn’t joking at all did he nod his head, “Fine, then I’ll be waiting and watching!”
“One cup of tea’s time!” While saying that, Liu Yan suddenly sat down cross-legged and shut her eyes tightly.
None of them knew what she was planning to do, and Ye Hen was feeling even more anxious. He kept on signalling to Yang Kai with his eyes to tell him to escape. Seeing this, Hua Qing Si pondered for a moment before assuring him, “Rest assured, Sect Master Ye. Young Master Yang has his own plans, he won’t let anything happen to us.”
Yang Kai was proficient in the Dao of Space, and this was where the Space Array was located. Even if they were defeated, they could still teleport to the Sealed World through the array, so there was nothing for them to be afraid of.
What’s more, she was curious to see what Liu Yan wanted to do.
Hearing her say so, Ye Hen could only compromise with them helplessly and hope for a miracle in his heart.
“Sister Hua, take care of them. If things go sour, then activate the Space Array and enter the Sealed World.” After advising her, Yang Kai’s aura suddenly surged. A clear layer of Principle Strength was lingering around his body, ignoring the suppression of Qiu Ze’s Emperor Pressure as if it was nothing, instantly cutting it apart like a sharp knife.
“You really do have some skills. No wonder you dare to be so arrogant!” Qiu Ze said in surprise.
He had already advanced to the Emperor Realm, so he knew how great the disparity was between the Emperor Realm and Dao Source Realm. His own strength had swelled by more than ten times since advancing, so he was confident he could take care of any Dao Source Realm cultivator within three moves.
He originally thought that nobody would be able to move freely under the suppression of his Emperor Pressure, and everyone would be at his mercy, but he knew he was wrong as soon as he saw Yang Kai move. He could have never imagined a Dao Source Realm cultivator existing in this world that could break through his Emperor Pressure.
The Principle Strength lingering around his body was pure and mysterious, making it hard to ascertain its properties.
Qiu Ze instantly realized that Yang Kai was no ordinary Dao Source Realm. Coupled with Hua Qing Si’s performance earlier, he was even more convinced that the two of them came from some top Sect and had a special heritage no one else had.
As he spoke, Qiu Ze became angry out of shame. He quickly formed hand seals and the might of his Emperor Pressure was further enhanced.
As an Emperor Realm Master, it would be a joke if he needed a Dao Source Realm cultivator like Yang Kai to rush over to him, so he spared no effort as soon as he made the first move.
In fact, his Emperor Pressure proved effective very soon. As he formed his hand seals, Yang Kai’s body was stopped in place and the calm and relaxed expression on his face had become difficult, his movements slowing to a crawl.
Right at that moment, a figure suddenly rose into the air. With fierce rage, Luo Jin held the Jade Sceptre-like artifact in his hands and poured his Source Qi into it, shouting with all his might, “Die, you brat!”
As he said that, he fiercely swung his sceptre down at Yang Kai.
He followed Qiu Ze on this trip in order to seek revenge on Yang Kai and knew he had little chance of killing him with his own skill. At that time, with just a Second-Order Dao Source Realm cultivation, Yang Kai was able to beat him to the point where he could not resist. Now that Yang Kai had reached the Third-Order, the gap between them had certainly grown even larger, making it even more impossible for him to fight him.
If he wanted revenge, Luo Jin would need to borrow Qiu Ze’s power.
Now was, without a doubt, the best time to strike. Yang Kai was being suppressed by Qiu Ze’s Emperor Pressure and was likely unable to bring out even half of his full strength. Once Yang Kai was hit by his artifact, he would surely die.
Qiu Ze did not care whether Yang Kai lived or died anyway. All he needed was his corpse to boil it into medicinal soup. That’s why Luo Jin figured this move would be unlikely to offend him.
At this moment, Luo Jin struck boldly and without hesitation or looking back. The shame and humiliation he suffered by Yang Kai’s hands before this all burst out at this moment.
With a single blow, the air caved in. The Jade Sceptre seemed to contain Heaven destroying and Earth-shattering might, and its destructive aura was rushing straight towards Yang Kai.
The smile on Luo Jin’s face was becoming fiercer and fiercer, and a vague thirst for revenge could also be seen in his eyes, as if he could already see Yang Kai dying from his blow.
Even Qiu Ze was cooperating with Luo Jin’s actions at that moment, concentrating his Emperor Pressure into a binding force to restrict Yang Kai’s movements.
*Hong…*
As the Jade Sceptre fell, a dark hole appeared where Yang Kai was, leaving nothing behind in a ten-meter radius.
Luo Jin landed on the ground and looked at the hole that swallowed up everything in front of him like the open mouth of a beast and couldn’t help but laugh.
“This is bad!” Qiu Ze shouted, his face changing abruptly. He had been binding Yang Kai’s movements with his Emperor Pressure the whole time, but in the instant before Luo Jin’s Jade Sceptre came smashing down, Qiu Ze could sense that Yang Kai had mysteriously disappeared. He had no idea how it happened, but he seemed to have lost all trace of Yang Kai after a moment of oversight.
“There was a path to the Heavens but you refused to take it, and no door to Hell but you just had to throw yourself at it!” An eerie voice suddenly sounded from behind Luo Jin, causing his hair to stand on end, his blood to flow backwards, and his feet to cramp up.
“City Lord Luo, watch out!”
“Behind you!”
Ruan Hong Bo and Mu Zheng shouted in unison, both of them looking behind Luo Jin in horror as if they had seen something unbelievable.
A cold sweat fell along Luo Jin’s forehead. At this moment, Luo Jin’s perception was infinitely amplified and he could clearly feel the cold and murderous intent coming from behind him.
Almost without hesitation, he tried to escape, but before he could do anything, he felt a slight sting on his chest and his whole body froze in place. The blood and Source Qi running through his body completely froze in an instant.
Eyes widening in horror, he looked down at his chest, only to see the broad tip of a sword penetrating through his chest, with red blood coating the blade.
“City Lord Luo did not appreciate it when I spared his life. In that case, die early and reincarnate early!” Yang Kai coldly snorted, the Myriads Sword in his hand shivering as Source Qi poured into it.
Without even a single cry, Luo Jin directly exploded into a mist of blood, spilling onto the ground.
To Yang Kai, Luo Jin was extremely ungrateful. He had allowed him to live because of Luo Bing, but not only did he not know when to stop, he even repaid his kindness with enmity, joining Qiu Ze and the others in the fight against Thousand Leaves Sect. Naturally, Yang Kai would not forgive him again.
Yang Kai reached out and grabbed Luo Jin’s Space Ring and Jade Sceptre-like artifact and shoved them into the Sealed World Bead.
In the biting cold breeze, Yang Kai wielded the Myriads Sword, clothes flowing behind him as his murderous intent flared.
Breaths of cold air being sucked in could be heard. Mu Zheng, Ruan Hong Bo, and the others involuntarily backed away, all of them looking completely horrified and dumbfounded.
If they hadn’t seen it with their own eyes, they wouldn’t have believed that Luo Jin would die just like that.
Luo Jin was a Third-Order Dao Source Realm Master and his strength was equal or slightly greater than theirs. Not one of them was confident they could win against him in a one-on-one fight, but now, he was killed by Yang Kai in just a single blow.
And this had happened under Qiu Ze’s suppression. If he were not suppressed by Qiu Ze, then wouldn’t Luo Jin have died even faster?
[Who is this little brat? He can’t be some Emperor Realm Master hiding his cultivation to toy with us, right?] Mu Zheng and the others all had ugly looks on their faces. They all had the vague thought that perhaps it was not the wisest idea for them to have followed Qiu Ze over to Thousand Leaves Sect to look for trouble.
Yang Kai was able to do this much at just the Third-Order Dao Source Realm. If he rose to the Emperor Realm one day, how were they going to survive? For a moment, the Sect Masters from the local big Sects all began feeling worried and anxious.
On the other hand, Ye Hen was similarly shocked, but even more than that, he was excited.
Even though he had heard of Yang Kai’s strength from Ye Jing Han before, hearing about it and seeing it for himself were two different matters. [The Thousand Leaves Sect… may be saved!]
A faint light of hope was rekindled in Ye Hen’s originally dim eyes. He gently patted Ye Jing Han’s hand and said weakly, “Jing Han, you have good judgment. If this disaster can be avoided, then in the future… You should follow Young Master Yang more often.”
If not for Ye Jing Han and Du Xian being childhood sweethearts that have long grown deeply in love, then he would’ve liked for his daughter to marry Yang Kai.
If such a promising young man could be tied to Thousand Leaves Sect, it would be a great blessing.
“Yes, Father!” Ye Jing Han’s beautiful eyes were also bright and covered in joy. A few days ago, at the City Lord’s Mansion, Yang Kai performed a miracle and suppressed many Masters to the point where they could hardly catch their breaths. He then strutted out of the city with the new bride. But could he still perform another miracle in the Thousand Leaves Sect with an Emperor Realm Master in attendance?
“You dare kill someone in front of this King? Impudence!” Qiu Ze was enraged and grit his teeth as a furious look covered his face.
If word got out that Luo Jin was killed despite him personally suppressing Yang Kai, then everyone would probably think he was only a paper tiger. This was his first battle since advancing to the Emperor Realm, so Qiu Ze had come expressly to show off his might, but he didn’t expect things to go the other way.
Yang Kai killing Luo Jin was equal to slapping him in the face. How could Qiu Ze bear such humiliation?
After he spoke, Qiu Ze flicked his wrist and a blood-red spear appeared in his hand. It could be surmised at a glance from the dense fluctuation of energy coming from the spar that it was a Dao Source Grade High-Rank artifact, and was connected with Qiu Ze’s mind and soul through his own blood.
Qiu Ze had only just advanced to the Emperor Realm and did not have an Emperor Artifact on hand, but if given enough time to refine and nurture this spear, then it was not impossible for it to advance into an Emperor Artifact.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have the time.
It was not very honourable for him to use an artifact against someone in the Dao Source Realm, but Qiu Ze didn’t care about that right now.
With his spear in hand, Qiu Ze’s imposing manner increased once more. The aura of the blood-red spear was closely linked with him, and the two seemed to completely fused into one entity with both mind and soul connected. Qiu Ze shouted and made the first move, trying to save face by killing Yang Kai in a single blow.
*Chi…*
Countless blood-red spears made of light shot out towards Yang Kai like a cloud of locusts. The entire sky had become as red as blood as the murderous intent and violent power spread out, causing horrified looks to arise on everyone’s faces.
Yang Kai waited for the right opportunity to use his Myriads Sword. Sword Intent flashed as a sword made out of light appeared and he shouted, “Myriad Sword Arts, One Man As A Mountain!”
He was right between Qiu Ze and Chi Yue and the others at this moment, so Yang Kai could not dodge Qiu Ze’s attack. If he had moved away, then Chi Yue and the others would definitely be enveloped by the spear shadows.
Not only was Qiu Ze trying to launch a sneak attack, but he was also cleverly using Yang Kai’s concern towards Chi Yue and the others against him, which was a despicable act.
A normal Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator would’ve been powerless to resist and would definitely be crushed to pieces by this move.
But Yang Kai had an Emperor Artifact and the defensive stance he performed was greatly effective in neutralizing Qiu Ze’s power.
*Hong hong hong…*
Spear and Sword Qi clashed mid-air, energy surging turbulently, shaking the Heavens and Earth.
Qiu Ze’s expression changed abruptly as he was forced back a step. With a flourish of his spear, he crushed a Moon Blade hidden inside the Sword Waves made of light into dust.
On the opposite side, Yang Kai did not retreat, but following several slicing sounds, blood splashed out from all over his body. Obviously, he had suffered a small loss during this trade of blows.
Qiu Ze was still an Emperor Realm Master, after all, so being able to exchange blows with him was already enough to prove his strength. If Yang Kai really came out of this unharmed, that would truly be too terrifying.
“Little brat, you dare play tricks against this King? Shameless!” Qiu Ze was shaken inside, but he did not show it on his face. He did not see the true appearance of the Moon Blade earlier because of how hurriedly he had struck. All he knew was that the attack was silent and extremely well hidden.
Yang Kai curled his lip, “Don’t you feel yourself blushing saying things like that, old fart?”
Qiu Ze naturally knew what he meant, but had no intention of arguing with him. Drawing his spear, another powerful move appeared, shattering the skies and shooting straight towards Yang Kai’s face.
Yang Kai was enraged seeing this. This old fart knew he couldn’t dodge at will, so the heavy hits he was constantly throwing at him was so he could force him to engage in a head-on clash. If Chi Yue and the others were not behind him, then of course Yang Kai would dodge rather than fight, but there was simply no way he could put aside their safety.
Yang Kai wasn’t the only one who understood this situation, everyone else saw this clearly too. Ruan Hong Bo and the others had awkward expressions on their faces. They were secretly thinking to themselves that Qiu Ze didn’t have the air of an Emperor Realm Master at all, he was simply as shameless as a scoundrel.
But they were all tied to the same rope now, so they didn’t dare to say anything even if they saw it.
“Give an inch and you want a mile… You shameless old dog!” Yang Kai bellowed at him and poured his Source Qi into his Myriads Sword, meeting him in battle.
As the blade passed, the spears made of light were broken apart, instantly disintegrating.
This time, Qiu Ze’s face greatly changed. He could have never imagined that a Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator could match him in a contest of strength. If he did not have the burden of protecting his companions behind him, then wouldn’t Yang Kai be completely beyond his depth?
After breaking Qiu Ze’s attack, Yang Kai did not dally for even a moment. He flicked his fingers, sending ten Moon Blades whistled over.
Qiu Ze’s pupils shrank. This time, he could clearly feel the rich, fluctuating Space Principles contained within the black blades. This made it impossible for him to grasp the trajectory of the Moon Blades’ attack.
“Space Principles?” Qiu Ze exclaimed, his body shivering. Emperor Pressure burst out and formed a domain spanning ten metres around him.
Within this domain, he could finally identify the trajectory of the Moon Blades’ attack and he moved his spear to break them.
In an instant, Qiu Ze was drenched in cold sweat, a shocked expression on his face.
He was not too alarmed when Yang Kai displayed extraordinary combat abilities. Even when they fought to a standstill, he only thought that Yang Kai was a rare talent, but when he realized that Yang Kai was this proficient in the Dao of Space, every fibre of his body was screaming something ominous was about to happen.
The Dao of Space was a rare and esoteric Dao. No need to even mention getting started with it, normal people couldn’t even be able to perceive it in the slightest. This had nothing to do with cultivation aptitude as there were also many Emperor Realm Masters in the Star Boundary, but how many of them actually comprehended the Dao of Space?
But this young man in front of him was able to use Space Principles against his opponent in battle. What did that prove? It meant that his attainments of the Dao of Space had already reached an incredible height. A man like this was certain to have a bright future, and in time, would rise to the peak of the world.
[If his cultivation were to grow any further, wouldn’t I be dead for sure?]
As this thought filled his mind, how could Qiu Ze still care about his face? The only thought in his mind was to cut weeds and pull out the roots. Thinking so, he bellowed, “What are you all waiting for? Attack him together!”
Only with his shout did everyone come to their senses. They had come to provoke the Thousand Leaves Sect, not to watch a show. What’s more, they had killed so many of Thousand Leaves Sect’s disciples already, so if they did not eradicate them here, Thousand Leaves Sect may rise again from the ashes.
“Palace Lord Qiu, I’ll help you!” A loud cry emerged as a figure flew over.
To everyone’s surprise, the first person to answer Qiu Ze’s call was neither Ruan Hong Bo nor Mu Zheng, but Thousand Leaves Sect’s Shi Cang Ying.
He looked like he held a deep grudge against the Thousand Leaves Sect and couldn’t wait to kill Yang Kai and the rest of the Sect right here and now. While speaking, he had already summoned his artifact and his Source Qi was surging wildly as he rushed towards Yang Kai.
Shi Cang Ying had already made his move, so how could Mu Zheng and Ruan Hong Bo just stand to the side and watch? They only hesitated for a moment before gritting their teeth and taking action. In a flash, the auras of a dozen Third-Order Dao Source Realm artifacts and Secret Techniques enveloped Yang Kai, launching towards him.
Even though Yang Kai was powerful and his strength increased even more after reaching the Third-Order, to the point of being able to fight with Qiu Ze without falling to a difficult position, it was only natural that two fists couldn’t block four strikes. He was instantly trapped and was unable to escape. It was a dangerous situation and in just three short breaths, his body was already battered and bloody.
After Yang Kai was trapped, the other cultivators from Sky Illumination Palace, White Clouds Tower, and Sky Peak Temple all joined in the fray and rushed towards Chi Yue and the others.
When she saw this, Hua Qing Si’s pretty face turned cold in an instant and she quickly said, “Sister Ye, bring them into the Sealed World!”
Ye Jing Han asked, “Then what about you?”
Hua Qing Si glanced at Liu Yan who was still sitting cross-legged on the ground and not moving, saying, “I have to stay here.”
No one knew what Liu Yan was doing, but she hadn’t moved since sitting down. Naturally, Hua Qing Si couldn’t just leave her here.
Unexpectedly, Ye Jing Han spoke back against her persuasion, “This concerns the life or death of our Thousand Leaves Sect. How could we possibly run away?”
Ye Hen also nodded, “That’s right. Even as an outsider, Young Master Yang was willing to help solve the problems of our Thousand Leaves Sect. As the Sect Master, how can this Ye just run from here? Even if this Old Master coughs up the last of his blood here, he will definitely not retreat!”
To his words, all the others nodded as well, looking prepared to risk their lives.
“You all are…” Hua Qing Si stomped her feet in anxiety, but once she saw how determined Ye Hen and the others were, she knew it was useless talking them out of this and could only turn to Chi Yue and the others.
Chi Yue smiled, “One more person is one extra source of strength. No need to persuade us, Elder Sister. It was a rare chance that we were able to reunite with Yang Boy. If we separate once more, I worry we will never see him again.”
Hua Qing Si sighed. She knew there was nothing she could say anymore, “Then watch out for yourselves!”
While they were speaking, the area where they were was already densely surrounded by cultivators. Only, they were watching them cautiously instead of rushing at them and they had no idea what these cultivators were scared about.
Right at this moment, a loud roar suddenly came from Yang Kai’s side. Yang Kai seemed to be truly enraged now. Following that roar, a dazzling light shot out from there, engulfing where Yang Kai was in an instant.
More than twenty Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivators and an Emperor Realm Master had joined hands against him. How could Yang Kai hold them off?
During this critical moment, he could only teleport out and appeared in an instant in front of Hua Qing Si and the others.
The way he appeared without warning startled all of the cultivators gathered here, and they all backed away. Yang Kai was able to fight with Qiu Ze and even killed Luo Jin in one blow, so how could they not be afraid?
In an instant, a large area was vacated at the array base platform.
“As expected, the rumours are true. Being proficient in the Dao of Space has great benefits.” Qiu Ze’s slightly jealous tone came from the distance. Following that, the crowd took the initiative to move away. With Qiu Ze in the lead, a dozen Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivators strolled over and stood several tens of metres before Yang Kai and the others.
Yang Kai spat disdainfully, an unruly look on his face.
Even though he could not defeat so many Masters, it was also impossible for these people to kill him. Moreover, after retreating to the Space Array, they could advance or retreat at will. There was nothing to worry about at all. If anything, he could just activate the Space Array and bring Chi Yue and the others to the Sealed World.
Moreover, Yang Kai hadn’t used any of his trump cards yet.
Previously, he was acting cautiously so he wouldn’t hurt any innocents, but now that the situation had developed to this point, there was nothing more to worry about.
“Little brat, with your proficiency in the Dao of Space, this King may indeed be unable to keep you here,” Qiu Ze looked at Yang Kai with a grim face. From their exchange earlier, he could tell that Yang Kai’s strength was not inferior to his, and the latter may even be slightly above him. With his added proficiency in the Dao of Space, Qiu Ze really did not have the confidence to stop him should he choose to escape.
In other words, Yang Kai could leave anytime he wanted to, and Qiu Ze would only be able to watch him do so no matter how displeased he was.
But in fact, Yang Kai did not leave because he still had many friends here, he couldn’t escape alone. So, Qiu Ze did not panic and only smiled sinisterly, “If you leave, this King will not stop you, but these people… Heh heh…”
He did not say too much, but the threats in his voice were clear to see.
“Qiu Ze you old dog, you really are shameless!” Ye Hen roared at him.
Qiu Ze was unmoved by his words and only looked toward Yang Kai, “Little brat, you better think clearly. Consider whether you want to escape by yourselves or stay and suffer with them.”
Even though he said such words, he really was worried that Yang Kai might just abandon these people and run away by himself. If that were to happen, then he may have to live a life on the edge in the future. Yang Kai was this strong at only the Third-Order Dao Source Realm. If he reached the Emperor Realm, then how could Sky Illumination Palace possibly survive against him?
A foe like him must either be left unprovoked or dealt with once and for all, otherwise, there were bound to be deadly consequences.
As long as Yang Kai didn’t escape, then everything else was fine. There were so many Masters gathered here, they did not have to worry about not being able to kill him. Even if he had to pay the price for it, he knew had to kill Yang Kai here today at any cost.
Ruan Hong Bo and the others were probably thinking the same thing as Qiu Ze, so all of them had ugly looks on their faces, but they did not retreat. They just watched Yang Kai, killing intents surging.
Yang Kai stood on top of the Space Array and looked around him as if he wanted to note down the faces of every single person giving him trouble. All the cultivators who were glanced over by him changed their faces and averted their gaze. They were terrified.
“Very well. You forced my hand, so I hope you won’t regret this!” Yang Kai sneered and a bracelet-like artifact suddenly appeared on his hand. Dense energy fluctuations seeped out from the bracelet. That alone was one thing, but the key point was the fact that clear traces of Emperor Aura and Emperor Intent were instantly spreading out from the bracelet.
“An Emperor Artifact!” Qiu Ze’s pupils shrank, a hot glow in his eyes.
The rest all looked wide-eyed in disbelief.
Yang Kai’s Myriads Sword was definitely an Emperor Artifact, that was something they confirmed just now. It was shocking enough for a Dao Source Realm cultivator to possess a single Emperor Artifact, but he actually had another one?
What are the origins of this little brat? Why does he have so many Emperor Artifacts?
Qiu Ze was astonished, and at the same time, his eyes became red. It took him so much effort to advance to the Emperor Realm, but he didn’t even have a single Emperor Artifact. Yet Yang Kai, a Dao Source Realm Junior, was able to pull out two Emperor Artifacts in an instant. How could Qiu Ze not feel envious of this?
At this moment, Qiu Ze couldn’t even be bothered to guess what great force Yang Kai had backing him. As long as he got rid of him quickly, then he could snatch the two Emperor Artifacts from him. With his current cultivation, his strength would definitely soar if he had these two Emperor Artifacts.
“Begin!” Qiu Ze shouted and was the first to rush towards Yang Kai.
Seeing this, the others didn’t dare to hesitate and all followed suit.
The expression of Ye Hen and the others changed dramatically, their faces all turning ashen. It was possible they may not be able to escape this time. Even Hua Qing Si’s pretty face had turned gloomy, but Yang Kai did not tell them to retreat into the Sealed World yet. Hua Qing Si knew Yang Kai definitely had his own plans, so her beautiful eyes fixed on him. She wanted to see what sort of trump card Yang Kai had to be able to withstand the attacks of so many Masters.
She saw Yang Kai grip the bracelet, then, a large black cloud suddenly emerged, buzzing incessantly. It was as if an endless hole had been opened up on the bracelet, releasing a tide of black mist. In the blink of an eye, the area around the Space Array was completely enveloped in the darkness, leaving no gaps.
“Insects?” Hua Qing Si remarked in surprise. She could finally see what sort of thing that black cloud was.
The black cloud was made up of countless little black insects the size of rice grains, forming a cloud that protected them. Moreover, Hua Qing Si could feel an uncomfortable aura coming from these insects.
This aura was very similar to the aura of the Ancient Demon she encountered that day outside Maplewood City.
This discovery caused Hua Qing Si to jump in fright. How could she not know how strange these insects were? No matter what they were, they had the aura of an Ancient Demon, so they were definitely not to be trifled with.
With their buzzing noise surrounding them, the insect cloud appeared to have formed an iron wall around the Space Array. Qiu Ze and the others bombarded the cloud of insects in unison with their Secret Techniques and artifacts, knocking countless of those insects dizzy and causing them to fall to the ground.
In an instant, the heavy look on Qiu Ze’s face eased up. He was still on guard against Yang Kai in case he unleashed some extraordinary technique; however, once he saw that these strange insects were so easy to defeat, he instantly felt relaxed. He figured Yang Kai had probably exhausted his tricks.
Qiu Ze was feeling confident and was just about to unleash another Secret Technique to break the protection of the insect cloud when he instinctively felt that something was wrong.
He quickly looked down at the insects on the ground, only to see that the ones that had fallen were actually completely unharmed. They just fluttered their wings and came back to life. Not only that, but they were all emitting a furious and violent aura, seemingly from getting attacked, and lunged at the cultivators nearby.
[What the hell are these things?] Qiu Ze’s heart jumped, but before he could figure it out, one of the black insects pounced on him. Following that, Qiu Ze suddenly felt a slight pain from his Knowledge Sea as if he had been pricked by something. In just that one instant, he suddenly found that a corner of his Soul was missing.
[That black insect actually devoured my Spiritual Energy?] Qiu Ze was shocked and cold sweat covered his body in an instant.
He could clearly see that the insect had latched onto his arm. That was even separated by several layers of clothing. Even if he were to be bitten, it would’ve been his arm that got injured. So, why was it not his arm hurting, but instead, a chunk of his Divine Sense that went missing?
Just as he slowed down to think, he felt another prick from his Knowledge Sea as another chunk of his Soul disappeared.
[What the hell are these black insects?!]
How could Qiu Ze dare to dally? If this kept going, then wouldn’t his Soul be swallowed up by these black insects? When the time came, he would definitely die. Out of shock, his Qi burst out and directly blasted off the insects nearby.
But what startled him even more was that not only did the insects not die, instead, they persistently tried to swarm him, but were unable to get close since they were blocked by his domain.
“Ah!”
A scream pierced through the sky, after that, many others followed. The screams sounded extremely miserable, as if they were suffering from the cruellest torture in the world.
Qiu Ze looked over and it felt like a pot of cold water had been poured over his heart.
He saw that including the cultivators from his own Sky Illumination Palace, the cultivators from all the other Sects were enveloped by the black insects. The Third-Order Dao Source Realm and Second-Order Dao Source Realm cultivators did not have it as bad since their defences were strong and were in no worry of dying despite their miserable states, but the First-Order Dao Source Realm and Origin King Realm cultivators were clearly in grave danger. They were simply unable to escape the black insects, and many have been enveloped to the point where they could no longer be seen.
In the blink of an eye, the cultivators enveloped by the black insects turned still. Once the black insects scattered away, these cultivators fell to the ground, unmoving.
There didn’t seem to be any injury to their bodies, but from their dull and frightened eyes, it was clear they had suffered something terrifying before dying.
How could Qiu Ze not know that these cultivators had died because their Souls were devoured by the black insects? He himself had suffered the same attack, and if not for his great strength, he would definitely be on the ground by now as well.
Many cultivators fell to the ground, struggling and writhing, but not one of them could escape the fate of death.
In just five short breaths, a large number of the cultivators from the several Sects had died!
This was simply a massacre, a one-sided massacre!
Not to mention Ruan Hong Bo and the others, even Yang Kai, the culprit, had a terrified look on his face after seeing this scene.
Since he had fully brought the Soul Devouring Insects under his control, it was the first time he used them against his enemies. He knew that the Soul Devouring Insects could play a significant role in group battles, but he never thought that they would actually become so powerful after their recent evolution.
The situation before him caused him to freeze in place as Soul Devouring Insects continued to fly out from the Insect Enslavement Bracelet.
After the last Soul Devouring Insect flew out from the Insect Enslavement Bracelet, there were more than a million of them inside the mountain valley. The black cloud of insects were all gathered around the cultivators who were still struggling desperately, waiting for an opportunity to bite onto them as well.
No matter what defensive artifacts these cultivators summoned, they could not stop the Soul Devouring Insects from attacking them. Even the Source Qi in the cultivators’ bodies could not shield them from these tyrannical insects.
More and more cultivators fell dead.
The cultivators at Origin King Realm and First-Order Dao Source Realm had already been wiped out long ago. Under the attack of the cloud of Soul Devouring Insects, these weaker cultivators had no power to fight back at all.
Gradually, the cultivators at Second-Order Dao Source Realm couldn’t hold on anymore either. With the Source Qi penetrated, their Spiritual Energy was rapidly gnawed away by the Soul Devouring Insects. Even though there were no marks on their bodies, they still could not escape the fate of death.
Even using their full strength, they were unable to kill even a single Soul Devouring Insect. The evolved Soul Devouring Insects seemed to have become extremely resilient. Even though they were occasionally knocked out by the cultivators, they were able to recover quickly and join the fight again.
Ye Hen and the others were dumbfounded.
Hua Qing Si and the others were also dumbfounded.
Each of them stood around the Space Array, watching this inhumane massacre, their mood extremely complex. Even though these people were throwing their weight around earlier, they didn’t expect them to turn into cold corpses in just an instant. How could anyone describe this?
Since Yang Kai summoned the Insect Enslavement Bracelet and released the Soul Devouring Insects, it didn’t take more than thirty breaths of time before as many as seventy percent of the cultivators from the various Sects that came fell. There were even several Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivators who were unable to escape the disaster.
Yang Kai did not expect that his Soul Devouring Insects would be this strong. It could be imagined that with more time, even an Emperor Realm Master like Qiu Ze would be done in by the Soul Devouring Insects.
Ruan Hong Bo and the others were already scared out of the wits. They had come with Qiu Ze this time in order to avenge the deaths of Ke Tian and the others, but instead of getting their revenge, they were unexpectedly forced to suffer heavy losses.
This ordeal had greatly damaged the foundation of Sky Peak Temple as the men Ruan Hong Bo brought here were all elites of the Sect.
The same went for the other Sects as well. Everyone suffered grievous losses.
During this moment, Ruan Hong Bo felt deep regret about coming to Thousand Leaves Sect. This tragedy would have never happened if he had not come. He would have been holding his two beautiful female disciples, enjoying a romantic moment while sipping on fine wine.
As he watched his subordinates fall dead in front of him one by one, with Qiu Ze being unable to help, Ruan Hong Bo couldn’t hold on anymore. If they stayed any longer, the only thing left for them would be death. He tried his best to push his Source Qi to shake off the Soul Devouring Insects surrounding him while shouting, “Retreat!”
With these words, he had already begun rushing out of the mountain valley ahead of all the others.
None of the others dared to be slow and all used their Movement Skills to fly out.
“Now you want to leave? It’s too late. All of you must stay!” A clear and melodious voice suddenly shouted out. The shut-eyed, unmoving beauty, Liu Yan suddenly opened her eyes, cold murderous intent pulsing from her tiny figure.
Since the start of the battle, Liu Yan had been sitting there cross-legged and unmoving. No one knew what she was doing, not even Yang Kai. Now, when they saw her suddenly moving, they naturally looked over in curiosity.
Liu Yan formed a seal with her little hands and shouted, “Azure Dragon!”
After the seal was formed, she shot it towards a nearby mountain peak. The shape of the peak was extremely odd, looking as if an actual dragon was lying there.
The mountain peak rumbled, and immediately, a powerful aura poured out from within. At the same time, as if the mountain peak, which had remained silent for ten thousand years, had suddenly been given life, the grass began to sway and rocks were broken apart.
Two humongous eyes opened at the dragon’s head, and peerless Dragon Pressure erupted.
*Hong long long…*
The peak rose to the sky at once, accompanied by the constant falling of broken stones; an azure giant spanning a thousand meters stretched across the sky. The huge behemoth swinging its head and tail, its magnificent aura spreading out, causing everyone to freeze in shock.
Under the Dragon Pressure, everyone felt insignificant. They felt as if they were as small as an ant in front of this Azure Dragon.
“A True Dragon?” Hua Qing Si’s beautiful pupils shrank as she stared at the scene before her in disbelief. She could not believe that a True Dragon could actually be hidden under a mountain peak in Thousand Leaves Sect.
But very soon, she realized something wasn’t right. This Dragon did not have any hint of vitality in it at all. Even though the Dragon Pressure it exerted was vivid, it was definitely not living.
“Heaven-Grade puppet!” Ye Hen was completely dumbfounded and his eyes went wide in astonishment as he stared up at the Azure Dragon in the sky. Suddenly, tears ran down his face and he spread his arms out towards the sky as if he wanted to hold the Azure Dragon in his hands. Choking up, he cried out, “It’s one of our Heaven-Grade puppets!”
“Father, you are saying… This is a Heaven-Grade puppet from our Thousand Leaves Sect?” Ye Jing Han instantly understood Ye Hen’s meaning and was shocked.
The Thousand Leaves Sect had many Secret Arts and Secret Techniques that were lost for ten thousand years, and their knowledge of the Dao of Puppetry had already massively declined. Without mentioning Heaven-Grade puppets, even the Earth Grade puppets at the square could not be used anymore.
As for the Heaven-Grade puppets, even Ye Jing Han had no idea where they were hidden. This was something Ye Hen never told her.
It just so happened the Heaven-Grade puppets had been hiding under her nose all this while!
Ye Jing Han looked around at the strange shapes of the peaks far and near and of all different sizes…
It turned out that all these mountains were the hiding grounds of the Heaven-Grade puppets. Under the accumulated cover of ten thousand years of wind, sun, and dust, they were completely hidden, turning into sleeping mountain peaks.
Now, after ten thousand years, a Heaven-Grade puppet had finally been awakened, soaring into the clouds and revealing its magnificence.
This was an incredible matter. Moreover, the one to spur on the Heaven-Grade puppet was not someone from Thousand Leaves Sect, but rather a girl looking to be about seven or eight that they had never seen before.
Ye Hen looked at the Azure Dragon in the sky, then at Liu Yan, his old eyes were filled with flames of hope. He had no idea why this little girl was able to move the Heaven-Grade puppet, but he knew that she was with Yang Kai.
In other words, Yang Kai must have found the lost Secret Arts and Secret Techniques of Thousand Leaves Sect!
Thousand Leaves Sect was truly saved!
Yang Kai’s brow rose curiously, but after thinking for a moment, he vaguely understood why Liu Yan was able to control this Heaven-Grade puppet. This was likely related to her being a Spirit Grade puppet. Perhaps the body contained the secrets to controlling the Heaven-Grade puppets to begin with.
No wonder she asked him to buy her time and leave the rest to her.
Liu Yan could even control a Heaven-Grade puppet. With that, she was in fact able to sweep this entire place. Even though this Heaven-Grade puppet had been sleeping for countless years, Yang Kai could feel that it definitely had Emperor level strength, and not just any ordinary Emperor at that!
The powerful aura emanating from the Azure Dragon Heaven-Grade puppet was no less powerful than the Corpse Puppet inside Thousand Leaves Sect’s Sealed World.
The disciples of Thousand Leaves Sect who were hiding or injured all cheered, their shouts spreading over the Sect. Even if nobody told them, they were able to perceive it as a Heaven-Grade puppet of their Sect!
The disciples were proud of their Sect, and for them, this was a moment of glory! For a Heaven-Grade puppet to reappear after ten thousand years was a sign of prosperity for Thousand Leaves Sect. Every disciple of the Sect was excited and could hardly contain themselves.
On the other hand, Shi Cang Ying who was fleeing in haste was dumbfounded. Deep inside, a sense of regret welled up that almost caused him to cough up blood.
He was the leader of the progressive faction of Thousand Leaves Sect and always thought that the Sect should abandon the Dao of Puppetry left behind by their ancestors and should instead learn other Secret Arts and Secret Techniques in order to strengthen the Thousand Leaves Sect.
So, his relationship with Ye Hen had always been sour. This time, when Qiu Ze brought his men over to stir trouble for the Thousand Leaves Sect and showed off his Emperor Realm cultivation, Shi Cang Ying immediately turned against his Sect. Not only did he attack and injure Ye Hen, he even opened the Sect Defending Array. If he had not done so, Thousand Leaves Sect would not have suffered so greatly.
After all, the Thousand Leaves Sect’s Sect Defending Array could not be easily destroyed.
Shi Cang Ying thought that he would become the new Sect Master of Thousand Leaves Sect after today’s incident, taking charge and carrying out his long-held philosophies. But to his disappointment, a single man, Yang Kai, was able to destroy those dreams.
And now, even a Heaven-Grade puppet had reappeared.
Shi Cang Ying’s stomach was churning with regret. If he had known the Heaven-Grade puppet would reawaken today, then would he have needed this insidious plot? Wasn’t it good enough for him to stay obediently as the Vice Sect Master? He may even get his hands on a Heaven-Grade puppet to play with. When that happened, even Qiu Ze would have to bow down before him.
But there was no such thing as a pill for regret in this world.
However, an even more depressing scene appeared for Shi Cang Ying.
After waking up the Azure Dragon Heaven-Grade puppet, Liu Yan proceeded to form a different hand seal and thrust it towards a different mountain range.
The mountains were also shaped like a Monster Beast, a flying Monster Beast. However, no one knew exactly what it was due to the passing of time. But, now, its form was fully exposed!
“Vermillion Bird!”
The mountains rumbled, followed by a crisp cry. Then, a fiery-red Heaven-Grade puppet Vermillion Bird rose to the sky. The grass and stones covering its body for ten thousand years all clattered down to reveal its beautiful and powerful figure.
“White Tiger!” Liu Yan formed another seal.
The sound of a tiger’s roar came from the mountain forest, and a third mountain peak cracked open. A huge snow-white tiger leapt out from it, fangs shining with a cold glint that made everyone shudder.
“Black Tortoise!”
A fourth peak shattered and a gigantic Black Tortoise Heaven-Grade puppet slowly climbed out from the rubble. Its strong back was so wide and spacious that it seemed it could even carry a city.
Ye Hen’s entire body was quivering and his eyes were so wide in excitement that they could almost fall out. He was looking at this scene before him in disbelief.
He never would have expected to see the Heaven-Grade puppets come to life in his lifetime. Not only that, but four of them were awakened at once. Hot blood was surging in his heart as Ye Hen felt that he would have no regrets even if he died at this moment.
“Since you dare hit me, I’ll make sure you’ll die without a burial!” Liu Yan glared at Qiu Ze, her face filled with murderous intent. She was obviously holding a grudge after being slapped into the ground by Qiu Ze.
As she finished speaking, she thrust both palms forward and an imperceptible intention suddenly surged out.
In the next moment, the four Heaven-Grade puppets sprang into action, each occupying a corner and sealing off the area.
“Four Divine Beasts Attack!”
An invisible link connected the four Heaven-Grade puppets, and the fierce power pouring out from their bodies filled the blocked space, forming a killing force that seemed able to destroy both Heaven and Earth.
Qiu Ze was the first to bear the brunt of that power, his entire person feeling as if it was locked up in an ice cellar causing him to tremble with unease.
In front of this complex power, his newly-achieved Emperor Realm strength felt as vulnerable as paper.
*Chi…*
The invisible force felt just like sharp blades cutting across Qiu Ze’s body. In the blink of an eye, his entire body was drenched in blood, bones peeking out from the wounds, his screams only adding to the miserable sight.
He was begging loudly for mercy, but Liu Yan was completely unmoved. Instead, she made more hand seals, spurring the Heaven-Grade puppets to be fiercer and fiercer.
In just ten breaths, Qiu Ze’s entire body was ground into paste, leaving behind a white skeleton that fell to the ground.
Before Qiu Ze died, the cultivators of the several large Sects were also torn apart by the killing force of the Four Divine Beasts.
This Four Divine Beasts Attack seemed to be a kind of Formation, a Killing Array that used the four Heaven-Grade puppets as its base. Even Qiu Ze could not hold out for more than ten breaths, so how could the others survive?
Ruan Hong Bo and the others all burst into a bloody mist with no bones left.
The stench of blood rose into the air. The area that was sealed off had practically turned into hell on earth.
Nobody knew what sort of secret trick Shi Cang Ying used to be able to go into hiding, but he surprisingly did not die immediately. His Blood Essence was burning madly, constantly keeping him from dying, but the aura of death swirled around him and he could only cry and beg, “Sect Master, I was wrong! Please spare my life! I will repent of my mistakes!”
When things came to this, he finally understood he had been standing on the wrong side. If he had known the Heaven-Grade puppets left behind by their Ancestors would be this strong, he would have never sought to abandon this path. He might have even been more assertive than Ye Hen when it came to studying the Secret Techniques of how to command the Heaven-Grade puppets.
But what was the use of thinking about this now? These four Heaven-Grade puppets hardly did anything since coming out, only forming a Killing Array, and that alone was able to wipe out an entire army. How could Shi Cang Ying survive?
He could only plead with Ye Hen, hoping that he would spare his life in consideration of their friendship built from their cooperation over the years.
Liu Yan turned to look at Ye Hen, asking for his opinion.
Ye Hen calmly declared, “The moment you ambushed me and opened the Sect Defending Array, you were no longer part of Thousand Leaves Sect.”
Blood drained from Shi Cang Ying’s face and he yelled, “Sect Master, this Shi has been loyal to the Sect all these years. Even if this Shi offered no merits, this Shi has still worked hard for the benefit of the Sect! Please, spare my life, Sect Master!”
Ye Hen shook his head slowly, “Please continue, little girl, I don’t want to hear him speak again.”
If Shi Cang Ying had only been at odds with him and had conflicting ideologies, Ye Hen would not have killed him; after all, Shi Cang Ying was just thinking of the Sect’s future and was seeking a way out for them. It was normal for him to be a little selfish. At the same time, Ye Hen was also hesitating and wondering whether supporting the Dao of Puppetry the whole way through was the right choice.
But he never should have opened the Sect Defending Array and let their Sect disciples be slaughtered.
If Shi Cang Ying was spared today, how could the thousands of disciples who died as a result rest in peace?
Thus, Shi Cang Ying must die for his sins!
Liu Yan gently nodded. Giving the command with her Divine Sense, the peerless killing force of the Four Divine Beasts Attack pressed down on Shi Cang Ying.
At a rate visible to the naked eye, Shi Cang Ying’s entire body could be seen swelling up like a balloon before bursting into a bloody mist, leaving no bones behind.
At this point, not a single one of the cultivators invading Thousand Leaves Sect was left, they had all been wiped out in this mountain valley.
As Liu Yan continued forming hand seals, the Four Divine Beasts Heaven-Grade puppets slowly withdrew their power and landed in place, ceasing their movements.
The smell of blood was incredibly strong and the mountain valley had become quiet. Turning his head and looking around, even though Ye Hen felt relieved, there was still a sorrowful look on his face.
The Thousand Leaves Sect had lost a lot during this event, and if Yang Kai had not appeared at the last moment to turn the tide, then even the foundation of the Sect would have been destroyed. The only thing that made Ye Hen feel somewhat relieved was the fact that Yang Kai had returned safely from the Sealed World and even brought back the Secret Technique to activate the Heaven-Grade puppets.
“Father…” Ye Jing Han called out and supported her old father. Seeing his aged appearance, her eyes couldn’t help but redden.
Ye Hen waved his hand and cupped his fists to Yang Kai with a serious face, “Young Master Yang, we owe you our deepest gratitude. Ye Hen and the Thousand Leaves Sect will never forget this great favour…”
Yang Kai smiled, “No need to be polite, Sect Master Ye. I didn’t put in too much effort either. It was thanks to your noble Sect’s Heaven-Grade puppets that we were able to defeat such strong enemies in one fell swoop.”
While speaking, he glanced at the Four Divine Beast Heaven-Grade puppets, thinking about how nice it would be to keep these Heaven-Grade puppets with him. He had seen the might of these Heaven-Grade puppets, and even though it was a little overboard to use them on Qiu Ze and the others, Yang Kai was certain that these Heaven-Grade puppets did not even use ten percent of their full power during that fight.
If the might of these Heaven-Grade puppets were fully unleashed then who knows what that would be like.
After a pause, Yang Kai once again spoke, “After such a huge fight, Sect Master Ye must have many things to deal with, so I will not bother you any longer. We can talk again once Sect Master Ye has settled the Sect’s business.”
Naturally, Ye Hen understood his meaning and knew that this was not the best time to hold a discussion. He immediately nodded, “Yes, yes. Jing Han, bring Young Master Yang and our other friends to rest. I will take care of some of the Sect’s matters before visiting them again.”
…..
Ye Jing Han led Yang Kai and the others back to the main hall of the Sect’s Main Peak, then turned around and left.
Right now, there was much to do in the Thousand Leaves Sect. Not only did they have to repair the Sect Defending Array, but there were also many injured disciples to take care of. Naturally, Ye Jing Han couldn’t stay here.
Only after she left did Chi Yue and the others look towards Yang Kai, an inquiring gaze in all their eyes.
Everything happened so suddenly today that there was a lot they found hard to process.
Yang Kai said, “Let’s talk in the room.”
A few moments later, all of them arrived at Yang Kai’s room. Only then did Yang Kai smile and introduce Hua Qing Si to everyone.
Previously, he told Hua Qing Si to protect Chi Yue and the others, but Hua Qing Si had never shown her face in front of them until Shi Cang Ying sent people over to capture them, and it was then that she suddenly showed up and disabled the attackers.
However, she never introduced herself, only telling Chi Yue and the others that she was a friend of Yang Kai’s.
Now, after hearing Yang Kai’s explanation, they all finally learned that Hua Qing Si’s actions were all at Yang Kai’s behest.
“Then… Who is this little girl?” Chi Yue looked confused at Liu Yan. She had the feeling that Liu Yan was quite strange, but it wasn’t a dangerous feeling. Instead, Liu Yan’s aura was simply different somehow.
Moreover, it was a little unbelievable that a little girl who only looked seven or eight years old would have the power of a Third-Order Dao Source Realm, to begin with.
Compared to Liu Yan, Chi Yue and the others felt like they were simply too weak.
Yang Kai did not know how to explain his relationship with Liu Yan either, but it was Liu Yan who stood up directly, bowed elegantly to everyone, and said in a melodious voice, “Liu Yan is the Master’s servant. Greeting Sirs and Madam!”
“Master? Servant?” Chi Yue stared oddly at Yang Kai with her beautiful eyes and snorted coldly, “I never knew you had strange hobbies like this.”
Ai Ou also looked at Yang Kai with a derisive expression, “Do Xue Yue and the others know that you are doing something like this?”
These two, one was his mother-in-law and the other was his father-in-law. Even though they could not be perfectly described as Yang Kai’s family, they were still Yang Kai’s Elders and would likely look at things from Shan Qin Luo and Xue Yue’s perspectives. They were worried that Yang Kai would forget about his companions back home, in their native Star Field, after coming to the wondrous Star Boundary and having a change of heart, so they didn’t hesitate to speak to him in harsh tones to remind him of his obligations.
Yang Kai wiped the cold sweat off his brow, “Liu Yan, the link between our Souls has already been broken so you are free now, there’s no need to call me that anymore.”
Liu Yan wrinkled her nose, “Master doesn’t want me anymore?”
Yang Kai responded, “Of course that’s not what I mean! What I’m saying is that since you’re free, then you can do whatever you want in the future. Naturally, it couldn’t be better if you were willing to stay by my side from now on, but if you wish to go your own way, it is also your choice to make.”
After Liu Yan obtained her Spirit Puppet body, the connection between her and Yang Kai’s Soul was broken; as such, Liu Yan was indeed a free person now with her own mind and physical body. She could be described as a living being now, only that the structure of her body was different from ordinary people.
Hearing this, Liu Yan thought seriously about it for a while before smiling, “In that case, then I choose to follow Master all the way! So please, Master, don’t drive me away.”
Hua Qing Si squinted and snorted, “See if he dares!”
“When did I say I would drive her away?” Yang Kai looked wronged. After some thought, he quickly changed the topic, “By the way, Liu Yan. Those Heaven-Grade puppets…”
Seemingly knowing what Yang Kai was thinking, Liu Yan responded seriously before he even finished his sentence, “Controlling the Heaven-Grade puppets consumes too much energy. It’s not my energy that is consumed, but rather the Heaven-Grade puppets’ themselves. Whenever they move they need a source of power to move. For the short time just now, I estimate that the number of Source Crystals consumed totalled at least a million.”
“A million Source Crystals?” Yang Kai was speechless.
Liu Yan nodded, “That’s right. Large amounts of Source Crystals are kept within the bodies of the Heaven-Grade puppets, that was why I was able to control them. Moreover, they have to be High-Rank Source Crystals.”
Yang Kai drew a sharp breath.
Previously, the Four Divine Beast Heaven-Grade puppets definitely did not move for more than thirty breaths of time and merely formed the Four Divine Beasts Attack Formation, not actually doing much, but even with just that, a million High-Rank Source Crystals were consumed, which translated to a hundred million Low-Rank Source Crystals. What did that entail?
“The Heaven-Grade puppets are certainly powerful, but also require a lot of capital to use,” Liu Yan summarized.
“In that case, these Heaven-Grade puppets are no more than mere decorations in the current Thousand Leaves Sect.” Yang Kai estimated that Thousand Leaves Sect definitely did not have enough Source Crystals to allow the Heaven-Grade puppets to move again, so even if the Secret Arts and Secret Techniques were given back to them, there was still no way to strengthen the Thousand Leaves Sect directly.
“Not so!” Liu Yan shook her head and explained, “There are two possible sources of energy for the Thousand Leaves Sect’s Heaven-Grade puppets. One is the Source Crystals kept inside their bodies, and the other is the Sect’s Earth Vein.”
Yang Kai’s expression changed, “You mean the Earth Vein inside the Sealed World?”
Liu Yan nodded, “That’s right. Previously, you only repaired the Space Array of the Sealed World, but the entrance was not completely opened, so the Earth Vein’s power could not be borrowed; however, if the corridor was fully opened, then the Heaven-Grade puppets will be able to move with the power of the Earth Vein. In that case, the number of Source Crystals consumed by them would be greatly reduced. Thousand Leaves Sect should be able to afford that.” After a pause, she went on, “But Master, if you wish to borrow one or two of them to play with, then you can only use Source Crystals to get them to move.”
“Understood,” Yang Kai gently nodded.
If he wished to bring the Heaven-Grade puppets away from here, then he would definitely not be able to borrow the Earth Vein’s power; however… he had Earth Vein Crystals buried beneath his medicine garden. Moreover, he also had a good amount of Source Crystals.
So, even if it was very expensive, Yang Kai still wanted to obtain one or two of these puppets to take with him. These things were able to unleash the power of an Emperor Realm Master, so they were definitely wonderful treasures.
After an hour, all of them left Yang Kai’s room and returned to their own rooms to cultivate.
The fight today had given Chi Yue and the others the realization that their strength was insufficient.
In their native Star Field, they were all domineering existences that could shake any Cultivation Star they set foot on, but after arriving in the Star Boundary, their strength was insignificant.
Because of that, they desperately wanted to increase their strength.
Inside his room, Yang Kai entered the Insect Enslavement Bracelet with his Divine Sense to check on his Soul Devouring Insects.
The Soul Devouring Insects performed exceptionally during today’s battle, and even exceeded his expectations.
These insects were definitely a strong weapon for group battles! Even Third-Order Dao Source Realm Masters could not resist their siege. If he continued to nurture them and allowed them to evolve again, even an Emperor Realm Master may be helpless against them.
But it took a long time to nurture the Soul Devouring Insects, and the cost was definitely high. Yang Kai had to buy a lot of spirit grass, tossing it into the Insect Enslavement Bracelet and have the Emperor Artifact transform the medicinal efficacies into suitable nutrients for the Soul Devouring Insects.
Such a process could not be rushed.
Soul Devouring Insects were ranked very highly in the Exotic Insect Record, and was listed as high as number eleven on the Heaven List. There were also other Exotic Insects in his Insect Enslavement Bracelet. Even if they were not ranked as highly as the Soul Devouring Insects, they should still be of some significant use.
Yang Kai thought to himself that if he had spare time in the future, he should study the Exotic Insects sealed inside the Insect Enslavement Bracelet. Maybe, he would be able to make them work wonders at some point.
During today’s fight, the Soul Devouring Insects devoured the Spiritual Energy and Source Qi of many cultivators and seemed to have grown a little; however, this growth wasn’t obvious.
But the fact that the Soul Devouring Insects could devour even Source Qi now was a pleasant surprise to Yang Kai. Previously, the Soul Devouring Insects were only able to devour Spiritual Energy. It seemed they really had grown quite a lot.
Three days later, Ye Hen came to visit.
Yang Kai naturally greeted him with enthusiasm.
Things had now settled down in Thousand Leaves Sect and both the dead and wounded disciples had been taken care of. Even though Thousand Leaves Sect suffered heavy losses this time, it may not be all bad. The members of the progressive faction led by Shi Cang Ying had all been wiped out, and the Elders left behind were all extremely loyal to the Sect. With the Heaven-Grade Puppets also at their disposal, they would be able to restore their past glory in time.
Ye Hen had yet to recover from his wounds. That battle from a few days ago had taken a heavy toll on his body, so when Yang Kai saw him again, Ye Hen’s face was still pale and his aura was unstable, forcing Ye Jing Han to accompany him the whole time.
Yang Kai also knew what he had sought him out for, so after taking a seat, he cut straight to the chase and handed him the Space Ring that Ye Chong passed to him.
Ye Hen took it with trembling hands and looked expectantly at Yang Kai, hoping to hear the answer he wanted.
Yang Kai smiled, “This is the Space Ring that Senior Ye Chong passed to me. Most of the Secret Art and Secret Technique inheritances of your noble Sect are likely contained inside.”
Upon hearing this, Ye Hen’s body trembled and he burst into tears.
The wishes of his Ancestors from ten thousand years ago were finally realized in his generation. But very soon, he realized that something was wrong, “Young Master Yang, you said that Old Ancestor Ye Chong was the one who handed you this ring? Does that mean…”
Yang Kai waved his hand, “Senior Ye Chong died long ago. I merely communicated with a small Remnant Soul he left behind, and he instructed me to pass this ring to you.”
After listening to Yang Kai’s account of what happened after entering the Sealed World, Ye Hen’s face was shocked, “To think Old Ancestor Ye Chong dabbled in Corpse Puppetry. This…”
If Yang Kai was not the one telling him this, then he simply would not have believed it. The Corpse Puppet arts was explicitly forbidden in Thousand Leaves Sect, so how could Ye Chong have studied it? And he actually tried to refine himself into a Corpse Puppet! But Yang Kai obviously had no reason to deceive him. The fact that he brought Ye Chong’s Space Ring to him had already explained everything.
After being lost in thought for a long time, Ye Hen finally stood up and bowed, “Ye Hen will never forget this great virtue of Young Master Yang. Please, accept Ye Hen’s bow!”
Ye Jing Han also quickly bowed down.
Yang Kai helped him up and said, “You give me too much credit, Sect Master Ye. It was just a simple matter.”
But Ye Hen knew it wasn’t actually that simple. Yang Kai entered the Sealed World, encountered Ye Chong’s Corpse Puppet, and surely experienced an Earth-shaking battle. However, Yang Kai did not describe it in detail, so Ye Hen didn’t know how dangerous it truly was.
“From this day forward, Young Master Yang will always be our Thousand Leaves Sect’s closest friend. If Young Master Yang ever needs anything from us, the Thousand Leaves Sect will never decline!” Ye Hen announced seriously.
Yang Kai smiled, “Sect Master Ye, you’d best check the ring first to see if it is what you’re expecting.”
“Yes!” Ye Hen was also feeling impatient to find out whether the lost Secret Arts and Secret Techniques were really in the Space Ring, so he began to crack open the seal right away without hiding anything.
Ye Jing Han was standing beside her father, watching both with anticipation and apprehension.
The Space Ring required the Blood Essence of the Ye Family to open, and if it were to be forced open any other way, it would immediately be destroyed.
In less than ten breaths, a stream of light passed over the archaic Space Ring. Yang Kai immediately knew that the seal had been unlocked.
Ye Hen swept the ring with his Divine Sense, his expression fluctuating constantly.
Ye Hen only withdrew his Divine Sense after a long time and sighed heavily.
“Father…” Seeing his reaction, Ye Jing Yan thought that the contents of the Space Ring disappointed him, and her pretty face paled in an instant.
But Ye Hen waved his hand, “All of our lost inheritance is inside.”
“Then why did father sigh?” Ye Jing Han looked at Ye Hen with a confused look on her face. It should be a good thing that the lost Secret Arts and Secret Techniques were found. It meant that the Thousand Leaves Sect now had the power to become stronger and would no longer be helpless when attacked by others in the future.
Ye Hen smiled bitterly, “It’s nothing. Jing Han, you should go first. I have something to speak to Young Master Yang about in private.”
Ye Jing Han hesitated for a moment, but she still nodded, “Alright…”
Then, she nodded to Yang Kai and slowly left.
Only once Ye Jing Han left did Ye Hen show a troubled look to Yang Kai, as if he had some difficulty expressing himself.
“Sect Master Ye, if there is anything you wish to say, please speak freely,” Yang Kai smiled.
Ye Hen said, “Please forgive this Ye for this offence… dare this Ye ask what Young Master Yang thinks of his daughter, Jing Han?”
When he heard this, Yang Kai immediately had a bad feeling,but he still replied honestly, “Sister Ye is a strong woman with a kind heart.”
After getting to know Ye Jing Han for some time, even though Yang Kai did not understand her too deeply, the impression he had of her was good.
“What does Young Master Yang think of her appearance then?” Ye Hen then asked.
Yang Kai thought to himself, [Is this old man serious?] After some thought, he answered, “Naturally, those who love her will think her as beautiful as a goddess. I’m afraid Sect Master Ye will not be able to get an answer from me. Why not ask Brother Du Xian?”
Hearing Yang Kai’s answer, Ye Hen also did not bother beating around the bush anymore, directly cupping his fists and declaring, “Young Master Yang, this Ye implores you to please marry his daughter and lead Thousand Leaves Sect forward! This Ye has heard that Young Master Yang belongs to no Sect, so this Old Master is willing to…”
But before he could finish, Yang Kai raised a hand to interrupt him, “Sect Master Ye, I am unable to become the cane that breaks a couple’s relationship, and I have no intention of joining Thousand Leaves Sect.”
Ye Hen smiled bitterly, “Young Master Yang must think that this Ye is a selfish person willing to sacrifice his daughter’s happiness for his own desires… But this Old Master does not have much longer to live, and right now, no one can take over the position of Sect Master for Thousand Leaves Sect. If this Old Master passes away, then what will become of the Sect?”
Yang Kai frowned, “Du Xian is a good successor.”
Ye Hen sighed, “Du Xian is a good child, but his cultivation is not enough!”
Yang Kai smiled, “Du Xian is a Second-Order Dao Source Realm. Dare I ask how high Sect Master Ye’s cultivation was when he took over as Sect Master?”
Ye Hen was dumbfounded as he recalled only being a First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator when he assumed the position of Sect Master back then. Du Xian’s cultivation now was already a Minor Realm higher than himself back then.
Yang Kai continued, “What’s more, your noble Sect’s Heaven-Grade Puppets can now be used again, and there are no longer any Masters within a hundred-thousand-kilometre radius from here who would dare challenge your Sect, so what is Sect Master Ye worried for?”
Ye Hen’s eyes gradually brightened up as he nodded, “Young Master Yang is right. The Heaven-Grade Puppets can be used once more, so what is there for this Old Master to be afraid of? The only pity is that this Old Master does not have much longer to live. If this Old Master could have just ten more years, then this Old Master has confidence he could reach the Emperor Realm. When that time came, the Thousand Leaves Sect would truly have nothing left to fear.”
Yang Kai’s expression changed as he asked, “Sect Master Ye believes that ten years is enough time to break through to the Emperor Realm?”
Ye Hen smiled, “This Old Master’s Secret Art was flawed to begin with, but now having Old Ancestor Ye Chong’s inheritance, would this Old Master not have wasted his life cultivating if he were unable to advance to the Emperor Realm within ten years?”
The fact that he could reach the Third-Order Dao Source Realm with a flawed Secret Art really put into perspective how high Ye Hen’s aptitude was. His only problem was his less than ideal background. Now that he had obtained the lost inheritance of the Sect, it was enough to make up for those flaws.
Ten years may really be enough for him to break through to the Emperor Realm.
“It truly is a pity… This Old Master does not have even that much time in life,” Ye Hen sighed heavily, feeling sad for his own miserable fate. It was because time was running out that he came up with this terrible idea of getting Yang Kai to take Ye Jing Han as his wife, but now that Yang Kai had enlightened him, his mind cleared up and he no longer dwelled on that thought.
After he finished speaking, Ye Hen got up, “This Old Master has disturbed Young Master Yang. This Old Master wishes to go to the Sealed World to take a look, so this Old Master will take his leave.”
Yang Kai responded, “In that case, then please take care, Sect Master Ye.”
After a pause, he seemed to have thought of something, “Sect Master Ye, I may have to trouble you with something in a few days.”
Ye Hen smiled, “It is the honour of this Old Master and Thousand Leaves Sect that Young Master Yang has something to ask of us. Whatever it is, please ask freely.”
“Then I will thank Sect Master Ye in advance.”
Ye Hen came here because he wanted to ask whether Yang Kai had obtained the lost Secret Arts and Secret Techniques, which he was already satisfied with. Secondly, it was to talk about Ye Jing Han’s future; however, he was unfortunately rejected by Yang Kai.
But after receiving his rejection, Ye Hen didn’t feel disappointed and was instead relieved.
He had always been watching over Ye Jing Han and Du Xian, knowing that the two were deeply in love. If Yang Kai had agreed to marry Ye Jing Han, then Ye Hen may no longer be able to face his daughter and disciple in the future. The two of them would surely carry a deep grievance with him for a lifetime.
It was just that Ye Hen believed he had no choice but to make that suggestion for the sake of the Sect.
Right now, he was clearly just seeking any medicine at death’s door. He never asked about Liu Yan from start to finish, as if he had not seen Liu Yan controlling the Heaven-Grade Puppets. Ye Hen also never asked about Liu Yan’s background or why she would come out of the Sealed World with Yang Kai.
After sending off Ye Hen, Yang Kai informed Chi Yue and the others before going into retreat.
The cultivation of Chi Yue and the others was still too low. If they wished to cultivate, then pills would be indispensable. Yang Kai was going into retreat this time so he could refine some Spirit Pills for them. The number of spirit grasses and spirit medicines he obtained this time was quite high and was enough to refine Spirit Pills for Chi Yue and the others up to the Emperor Realm.
The room was quiet and silent, with only the flickering of the flames in the furnace emerging from time to time. Yang Kai was fully immersed in his Alchemy.
Yang Kai’s attainments in the Alchemic Dao had always kept up with his cultivation, so cultivating up to this point, he rarely had to buy Spirit Pills for his own use as he could refine whatever he needed himself.
This trip to Thousand Leaves Sect’s Sealed World allowed him to reach the Third-Order Dao Source Realm, which improved his strength considerably. Even his Alchemy skills improved noticeably.
After going into retreat for a month, Yang Kai still needed to pay attention to his control while he was refining pills, the Spirit Array engraving, and also the timing to add specific herbs. But as time passed, refining Dao Source Grade Spirit Pills became as easy as eating and drinking for him. It had become a completely subconscious action that did not require much thought, and during the moments he was free while refining pills, he even had time to cultivate.
Furnace after furnace of Spirit Pills came out, and Yang Kai’s Alchemy level shot straight up. At the same time, his newly attained Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivation was gradually being consolidated.
With the passing of the second month, he had already used up all of his Dao Source spirit grass and herbs, refining a mountain of Dao Source Grade Spirit Pills.
By the third month, he was already refining Emperor Grade herbs.
After testing over a dozen furnaces of herbs, he finally managed to refine a furnace of Emperor Grade Low-Rank Spirit Pills. The success of this furnace of Spirit Pills represented the fact that Yang Kai’s Alchemy level had reached the Emperor Grade!
However, he wasn’t too skilled at this level of Alchemy and still required a lot of spirit grass in order to practice.
Even so, an Emperor Grade Alchemist was still a rare and valuable existence even considering the entire Star Boundary. If Yang Kai were to release news of this, then there would be no Sect out there that would not be in a rush to recruit him to their side.
Naturally, Yang Kai would not reveal the secret that he was an Emperor Grade Alchemist. From the very beginning, he learned Alchemy in order to supplement his own cultivation and had never thought of going far in the Alchemic Dao. Being able to grow to this level was only a coincidence of opportunities.
If he was really pulled in by those great forces, then he wouldn’t have the time to cultivate in the future. He would have to deal with herbs all day and refine Spirit Pills for those Sects.
But thinking back now, the incident back on Heng Luo Chamber of Commerce’s Home Star was the fundamental reason for him being able to become an Emperor Grade Alchemist. Without the Grand Alchemic Dao Tone, he would never have been able to grow to this level.
That Grand Alchemic Dao Tone was a manifestation of the Heavenly Way and had taught him the ultimate mysteries of the Alchemic Dao directly from the World itself. His current Pill Condensing Technique — the Nine Heavens Profound Pill Method, was derived precisely because of that opportunity.
After advancing to the Emperor Grade Alchemist level, Yang Kai began refining a special batch of herbs into Spirit Pills.
This special batch of herbs was the very same batch he obtained in the Thousand Leaves Sect’s Sealed World’s Emperor Heaven Valley. The amount was great, but since these herbs grew in Emperor Heaven Valley, each one had absorbed the Emperor Intent and Emperor Aura from Emperor Heaven Valley.
The Spirit Pills refined from this batch of spirit grasses and spirit fruits would definitely inherit this Emperor Intent and Emperor Aura perfectly.
In other words, if one were to take one of these Spirit Pills, they would be able to completely absorb the mysteries of Emperor Intent and the secrets of Emperor Aura within them, a benefit any Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator would dream of as they attempted to comprehend the mysteries of the Emperor Realm. The efficacies of the pills themselves had become a secondary concern.
Both he and Hua Qing Si were Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivators, so they were both very much eager for such special Spirit Pills.
Yang Kai spent half a month in order to completely refine the batch of spirit grass and spirit fruit into Spirit Pills, then he separated them into several portions, leaving some to himself and apportioning the rest for Hua Qing Si and the others.
For him to retreat for four months to refine Spirit Pills was a first for Yang Kai. He had always gone into retreat in order to cultivate, with simple pill refining never taking this long.
After exiting, Yang Kai swept his Divine Sense out and quickly discovered that Hua Qing Si and the others were nowhere to be found, leaving him with no idea where they had gone.
But the rich World Energy in the air lifted his spirits.
Compared to four months ago, the concentration of World Energy in the Thousand Leaves Sect had definitely risen considerably. Even though it was not comparable to his Sealed World Bead or Thousand Leaves Sect’s Sealed World, it was certainly much better than before.
Yang Kai guessed that this was because the entrance to the Sealed World was completely opened.
Ye Jing Han told him that the Sealed World was the source of Thousand Leaves Sect’s World Energy, so the reason why the World Energy in the Sect was lacking was because of the sealed Space Array, causing the cultivation speed of the disciples to suffer before. Now that Yang Kai had repaired the Space Array though, Ye Hen naturally opened it as soon as he could, allowing the rich World Energy to flow into the Sect.
And this was the change after just a few months. If the Thousand Leaves Sect was given enough time, then the World Energy would certainly become even denser. When that time came, the disciples would be able to receive twice the result with half the effort when they cultivated.
Sure enough, the heritage of Thousand Leaves Sect was excellent. If not for the lost ten-thousand-year period, they would definitely be comparable to top Sects like Azure Sun Temple.
Right at that moment, a stream of light suddenly came into Yang Kai’s eyes, and gradually approached from a distance.
The light was so fast that it had appeared before him just as he noticed it.
Once the light flashed down and revealed a figure hidden underneath it, Yang Kai could not help but widen his eyes and look over in astonishment.
There stood a snow-white tiger that was tall, mighty, and awe-inspiring, with its fierce aura exposed, making Yang Kai feel a little nervous. Pouncing in front of him, the White Tiger let out a light growl.
“A Heaven-Grade puppet?” Yang Kai raised his brow.
If he had never seen the Thousand Leaves Sect’s Heaven-Grade puppets before, then Yang Kai may have mistaken it as a Twelfth-Order Monster Beast, but at this moment, he knew that this White Tiger was not a living being, but a Heaven-Grade puppet.
Liu Yan’s little head peeked out from behind the White Tiger’s wide back and stared at him, eyes wide in pleasant surprise, “Master! You’ve come out?”
Yang Kai stared at her and asked sternly, “Why are you riding on this White Tiger?”
Liu Yan pouted, “Xiao Bai belongs to me now, it’s my choice to ride him wherever I want.”
“Yours?” Yang Kai’s eyes widened in surprise, but he quickly understood Liu Yan’s meaning and his eyes were instantly glowing with delight, “Good job!”
Previously, he had been wondering how he was going to ask Ye Hen about bringing one or two Heaven-Grade puppets from Thousand Leaves Sect out with him, but he didn’t expect Ye Hen to be so virtuous as to give Liu Yan one before he even asked.
Since it belonged to Liu Yan, didn’t it also belong to him?
[But this name… Why was it Xiao Bai again?]
Yang Kai suddenly remembered Mo Xiao Qi. That little girl had a bunch of pets, all named Xiao Bai, Xiao Hei, Xiao Hong, Xiao Lan, Xiao Huang, etc… She never gave any of her pets a serious name, who knows how those pets felt inside their hearts.
[Were all girls like this?]
Liu Yan leapt off the back of the White Tiger and landed nimbly on the ground. When she saw Yang Kai staring at her own pet beast with glowing eyes, she instantly poured cold water over him, “This isn’t that White Tiger. It’s a different one.”
“Huh?” When Yang Kai heard that, he was instantly disappointed, “Why didn’t you ask for that White Tiger?”
Even though he had no idea what the rank of the White Tiger he saw last time was, Yang Kai estimated that it was definitely one of their best puppets in Thousand Leaves Sect. Though similar in form, the one in front of him now definitely wasn’t as good as that one.
Liu Yan said, “The Four Divine Beast Heaven-Grade Puppets are the Sect Protecting Heaven-Grade Puppets. They can’t be taken away.”
Yang Kai asked, “Then how strong is this Xiao Bai in battle?”
“Around the First-Order Emperor Realm? At its limit,” Liu Yan answered without even thinking.
Yang Kai’s mouth twitched, “Aren’t there any better ones?”
Liu Yan thought about it and answered, “There are.” After a pause, she said matter-of-factly, “But they don’t look as good as this one. They look all strange… I don’t like them.”
“What’s the point of looking good?!” Yang Kai could almost die of anger, “Strength is king!”
Liu Yan’s face sank, “If I had a scarred face full of pockmarks and accompanied you every day, how would you feel?”
Yang Kai was stunned for a moment, and couldn’t find anything to talk back to her with after a long time. He suddenly had the thought that… Liu Yan’s words made sense.
“Forget it. A First-Order Emperor Realm puppet is better than nothing.” Yang Kai sighed and felt that a great opportunity had been put in front of them, but Liu Yan missed it.
It was obviously unrealistic to go to Ye Hen and ask for another one now. Even Yang Kai couldn’t bring himself to be that shameless.
It was generous enough of Ye Hen to take the initiative to give the puppet to Liu Yan.
Liu Yan said, “Don’t look down on it, Xiao Bai can run very fast. You never know, it may even be able to save your life someday!”
Yang Kai smiled, “Rather than that, I’d like to know why Ye Hen would give this to you.”
“Because I explained many things about the Dao of Puppetry to him.” Liu Yan smiled. Naturally, she could control all of the puppets in the Thousand Leaves Sect instinctively with her new body, so she was more than qualified to teach Ye Hen in this regard, saving Ye Hen many years of hard work.
Ye Hen was extremely grateful, so he naturally gave Liu Yan one of the Heaven-Grade Puppets.
“What about the others?”
“They’ll be back soon. They’ve been helping Thousand Leaves Sect rebuild this whole time.”
While they were speaking, Yang Kai could already see Chi Yue and the others flying over to them.
A few moments later, they all landed one by one, and they were all overjoyed to see Yang Kai. All of them came up to ask him about how he was doing during his retreat.
Yang Kai responded to them one by one and found that Chai Hu had fully restored his cultivation, going from Origin King Realm to the Dao Source Realm. It seemed that the toxins in his body had been completely cleared.
Inside the room, Yang Kai, Chi Yue, and the others gathered around to discuss the events that happened to them these past few months.
Actually, there wasn’t much to say. Ever since Qiu Ze brought people over to Thousand Leaves Sect to cause trouble and was subsequently wiped out, the news of the shocking incident had spread like wildfire. The Sects that had suffered huge losses of their elites were all terrified, and a few days later, those Sects sent representatives over to beg for peace, shifting all the blame to the deceased, saying they and the others had no knowledge of the events that took place.
Of course, that was all nonsense. Not even a fool would believe that.
But the Sects all brought abundant supplies in order to make up for the losses incurred by Thousand Leaves Sect during the fight, and they also expressed their intentions to attach themselves to Thousand Leaves Sect. Therefore, Ye Hen did not have them killed.
If this was before, then Thousand Leaves Sect would not have had the ability nor the confidence to force these Sects to submit to them, but now, as the Heaven Grade puppets had resurfaced, making it equivalent to many Emperor Realm Masters keeping watch over the Sect, who within a hundred thousand kilometres would dare challenge them?
Ye Hen agreed to their requests to affiliate themselves with Thousand Leaves Sect and then sent them back.
In other words, Thousand Leaves Sect had become the overlord in the surrounding hundred thousand kilometre radius! One could only imagine how rapidly the Thousand Leaves Sect’s development would be now that it controlled such a vast stretch of territory.
“Did those people from Sky Illumination Palace come too?” Yang Kai asked suspiciously.
Chi Yue answered, “They did. The Third Elder of Sky Illumination Palace came personally, and he brought the most generous tribute of all, obviously worried Sect Master Ye would try to settle accounts with them otherwise.”
Yang Kai smiled, “How about Qiu Yu? Qiu Ze was his father, so Qiu Yu wouldn’t just let the fact rest that Qiu Ze died here in the Thousand Leaves Sect, right?”
Gui Zu snickered, “What else could he do? In order to curry favor with Thousand Leaves Sect, Qiu Yu has already been expelled from Sky Illumination Palace and his cultivation was crippled. Right now, he is no longer the Young Palace Master of Sky Illumination Palace, he’s just a man waiting to die.”
Yang Kai sneered, “The Third Elder of Sky Illumination Palace is quite a ruthless man!”
Yang Kai had no idea who this Third Elder was, but he guessed that this man was worried that Qiu Yu would seek revenge with him in the future, so he directly crippled his cultivation and banished him from Sky Illumination Palace.
He couldn’t be faulted for doing so either. If he wanted to keep Sky Illumination Palace intact, then he had to show fealty to Thousand Leaves Sect. Qiu Yu was Qiu Ze’s only son and his father died here. Naturally, Qiu Yu would want to avenge his death.
Thinking about a few months ago, Qiu Yu was still living a prosperous and proud life, but in just a few months, he became like a dog who had been cast away. Yang Kai couldn’t help but sigh a little. On the path of cultivation, one wrong move would lead to the end of one’s life!
If Qiu Ze and the others had not been so overbearing, then would their Sects have ended up like this?
“Yang Boy, there is something we wish to discuss with you,” Ai Ou suddenly said.
“What is it?” Yang Kai looked at them in confusion.
Chi Yue and the others exchanged glances before Gu Cang Yun spoke, “Big Brother, why don’t you say it?”
Gui Zu nodded, “It’s like this. We briefly discussed amongst each other and decided to join the Thousand Leaves Sect. We were wondering what the Sect Master thinks.”
“You wish to join the Thousand Leaves Sect?” Yang Kai raised his brow.
Gui Zu answered, “That’s right. Sect Master Ye also brought this up to us before, but you were in retreat so we didn’t give them an answer. We wanted to ask for your opinion first.”
Yang Kai turned his head to look at them and asked, “Do you truly wish to join them?”
Chi Yue smiled wryly, “Since coming to the Star Boundary, we’ve experienced both warm and cold moments. We also thought about joining a Sect before, but we didn’t have the ability or the connections. There was no way we could get into any good Sect like that. Now that Sect Master Ye has personally invited us, we don’t want to miss this opportunity.”
Gu Cang Yun followed up, “Sect Master Yang, you haven’t joined a Sect either, so you should know the difficulties of cultivating alone.”
“I do.” Yang Kai nodded. Even though things had gone smoothly for him all the way till now, it was true he did not have the same conveniences as a Sect disciple. It was not a bad thing that Chi Yue and the others wished to join Thousand Leaves Sect. After a moment of silence, he agreed, “This is a good thing. For Sect Master Ye to invite you personally is enough to show his sincerity. If you are interested, then just stay.”
Earlier, he was still thinking about how he was going to settle Gui Ze and the others in the future.
He was originally thinking of bringing them back to Azure Sun Temple, but he wasn’t an important character in the Sect, so it wasn’t right for him to ask Wen Zi Shan to take them in.
Even though he knew that Wen Zi Shan would not refuse if he asked, if they joined the Azure Sun Temple through a back door, they would definitely be looked down on. Azure Sun Temple was not a small Sect after all.
Ye Hen’s invitation came as a pleasant surprise.
There were many things to be done in Thousand Leaves Sect, so they were in need of people right now, and the future ahead was bright for them. It may be a good thing for Chi Yue and the others to stay here.
With Yang Kai’s merit of restoring the entrance to the Sealed World and bringing back the lost Secret Arts and Secret Techniques of Thousand Leaves Sect, Ye Hen would definitely not treat his friends badly in the future.
“You agree?” Chi Yue asked.
Yang Kai smiled, “This is your matter, Seniors, what is there for me not to agree with?”
“What about you? Where will you go?” Ai Ou looked at him and asked.
Yang Kai pondered for a moment, “I’d like to look for Xiao Xiao.”
Among his companions who came with him from the Star Field, besides Wu Dao, all the rest had already reunited. Only Xiao Xiao’s fate remained unknown. Yang Kai was very worried, and he couldn’t feel at ease with each passing day that he did not find him.
“How will you find him?” Chi Yue frowned slightly.
“I don’t know. I may have to look for Yin Le Sheng in the Netherworld Sect. He may have some clues.”
When they came out of the Starlight Corridor, Yang Kai and Liu Xian Yun from the Grand Desolation Star Field landed nearby Blue Feather Sect, after which the two of them were forced to join the Sect together. Meanwhile, Chi Yue and the others landed near Sky Crane City. In that case, Xiao Xiao may be with Yin Le Sheng who was similarly from the Grand Desolation Star Field.
If he could find Yin Le Sheng, he may be able to find a clue about Xiao Xiao.
He still remembered Yin Le Sheng telling him that he was a Netherworld Sect disciple. There was a Netherworld Sect in the Grand Desolation Star Field, and in the Star Boundary. As for where the one in the Star Boundary was, Yang Kai wasn’t sure, so he would have to investigate.
“You must be careful. Qing Luo is still waiting for you!” Chi Yue reminded him with a serious expression. They had met with Yin Le Sheng before and knew that the Netherworld Sect must be a rather big Sect in the Star Boundary. Yang Kai and Yin Le Sheng formed a grudge with one another in the Starlight Corridor, so if they met again, the other side definitely would not let things go. What’s more, Yin Le Sheng also knew that Yang Kai was a Star Master and wanted to steal his Star Source.
Star Sources were a rare item in the Star Boundary that were able to help a cultivator obtain insight into Principle Strength, so everyone wanted to get their hands on one.
“I know,” Yang Kai smiled. “For their sake, I will never put my life in danger.”
After that, Yang Kai took out the Spirit Pills he refined and passed them to Chi Yue and the others. He also left them a huge amount of Source Crystals.
These were all things Chi Yue and the others badly needed. Even though they knew that Yang Kai must be living a pretty good life, seeing him take out so many Spirit Pills and Source Crystals at once was still shocking to them.
Thinking back, in order to afford Source Condensing Pills, they had to put themselves in great danger, killing Monster Beasts in exchange for Source Crystals and then using them to buy Source Condensing Pills… Even so, they would never be able to afford more than several dozen each time.
Those several dozen Source Condensing Pills would have to be split among them, and they would receive less than ten pills each, which would be used up in just a few days. Then, they would have to hunt Monster Beasts again, and the cycle would continue!
But now, Yang Kai had just taken out thousands of different Spirit Pills for them.
Such a large amount of Spirit Pills was more than enough for them to use for years to come.
Many of the Spirit Pills had even formed Pill Veins.
Chai Hu was thoroughly shocked. Only now did he realize how high Yang Kai’s Alchemy proficiency was.
An hour later, Yang Kai went to visit Ye Hen.
Ye Hen seemed to be in retreat, but knowing that Yang Kai was visiting, he was still happy to greet him.
After the two sat down, Ye Hen quickly said, “This Ye should have been the one to visit Young Master Yang, this Ye never expected Young Master Yang to come himself. This Ye apologizes.”
Yang Kai smiled, “Sect Master Ye is too polite.”
After asking someone to serve tea, Ye Hen asked, “This Ye wonders what instructions Young Master Yang needs this Ye to carry out today?”
Even though Thousand Leaves Sect had become the overlord of this region, and Ye Hen’s status had also risen dramatically, he didn’t get carried away with himself and still stayed humble in front of Yang Kai.
Seeing him like this, Yang Kai knew that Ye Hen wasn’t an ungrateful man, so he could feel at ease with Chi Yue and the others having chosen to stay.
“I wouldn’t dare give instructions. Only, my Seniors have informed me that they wish to stay in Thousand Leaves Sect, so I came today to ask Sect Master Ye to take care of them in the future, “Yang Kai said genially.
Ye Hen laughed, “Please don’t treat this Ye as an outsider, Young Master Yang. The reason Thousand Leaves Sect is even able to continue on is all thanks to Young Master Yang turning the tides with his strength. Not to mention taking care of them, even if Young Master Yang asks for this Ye’s position as Sect Master, this Ye would not frown.”
[Is this old man still thinking of recruiting me into his family?]
Yang Kai thought to himself as he waved his hand, “I won’t be staying. I still have things to do.”
Ye Hen did not react too much upon hearing this. Perhaps that just now was his final probe so he smiled brightly, “Then this Ye will not bring it up any longer. This Ye only hopes that if Young Master Yang is free in the future, he will come be a guest in Thousand Leaves Sect. Thousand Leaves Sect will always welcome Young Master Yang.”
Since Chi Yue and the others would be staying here, there was no way Yang Kai wouldn’t come to visit. Yang Kai had great potential, so it was definitely the right choice to be on good terms with him.
Even though Ye Hen was old, he still had a sharp eye and understood this very well.
“Naturally.” Yang Kai smiled and changed the topic, “Last time I heard Sect Master Ye say that you would be able to reach the Emperor Realm if given ten more years?”
Upon hearing this, Ye Hen’s expression turned grave, “This Ye had spoken mistakenly last time.”
“Huh?” Yang Kai was confused.
Ye Hen announced proudly, “Five years, this Ye only needs five years to be able to break through to the Emperor Realm! The Secret Arts and Secret Techniques left behind by Old Ancestor Ye Chong are of great benefit to this Ye and the more this Ye studies them, the greater the harvest. Only…” Speaking up to this point, he sighed, “This Ye does now know how long his old body can hold out for.”
While Ye Hen was reaching his end like a lamp running out of oil, the last battle worsened his physical condition substantially, so his words were no lie. If he could make a breakthrough before his death and advance to the Emperor Realm, then the concerns over reaching the end of his rope would be gone as his life expectancy would also be increased; but if he failed to advance, then he could only return to the Earth.
The only pity was that time would not wait for him!
But this matter could not be blamed on anyone either, only on his own miserable luck. If he had met Yang Kai a few years earlier, then he may have reached the Emperor Realm by now.
Yang Kai flipped his hand over and took out a jade box, slowly pushing it in front of Ye Hen, “This Spirit Pill should be of some help to Sect Master Ye.”
“This is…” Ye Hen looked puzzled at Yang Kai, unsure of why he was handing him this pill. However, he obviously knew that Yang Kai was an Alchemist, so he didn’t dare dally and quickly opened the box.
There inside the box, a longan-sized Spirit Pill with a mysterious glow was imprinted into his eyes, and a fragrance lingered around his nose. Sniffing this pill fragrance, Ye Hen was stunned as he inexplicably felt as if he had grown considerably younger.
He asked, lost in surprise, “Young Master Yang, what sort of pill is this?”
Even though he had never seen a Spirit Pill like this before, he could tell from the feeling that that smell alone gave him that this was no ordinary pill. Moreover, Yang Kai could refine even a Heaven-defying pill like the Extraordinary Treasure Pill, so his work could not be short of amazing.
“I wonder if Sect Master Ye has heard of the Flowing Time Pill?” Yang Kai asked nonchalantly.
“Flowing Time Pill?” Ye Hen raised his brow in confusion for a moment before his body began to tremble and he exclaimed, “This is the Flowing Time Pill?”
Seeing his reaction, it was clear Ye Hen knew about the Flowing Time Pill.
Within the Star Boundary, there were many treasures available to prolong one’s life; however, not one of them was not an extinct treasure from legend. Not to mention a Third-Order Dao Source Realm like Ye Hen, even those Emperor Realm Masters could not get their hands on them.
Ye Hen knew that his own end was near, and he also thought about looking for these elixirs to prolong his life, but not only did he have no clue where to find them, even if he did, it would be next to impossible to obtain them; after all, many Emperor Realm Masters would already be fighting over such a prize.
So, Ye Hen had resigned himself to his fate. All this while, he had been in retreat and looking over the recently found Secret Arts and Secret Techniques, just hoping he could break through his shackles and advance to the Emperor Realm before his death. Even if he failed, he still wanted to leave behind his own insights to Ye Jing Han, so she could avoid some of the twists and turns in her future path.
But right at this moment, there just so happened to be a Flowing Time Pill placed right in front of his face.
He had learned in detail what sorts of elixirs existed in the Star Boundary that could prolong one’s life, and naturally knew of the Flowing Time Pill’s effects.
Strictly speaking, the Flowing Time Pill could not prolong one’s life, because it could not increase a person’s life span, instead, it worked by returning one’s physical state to what it was several dozen years before.
In other words, if Ye Hen were to take the Flowing Time Pill, then the state of his body would go back to several dozen years ago, which is considered a form of life extension. Of course, this effect had a major limitation. It was impossible to eliminate any injuries suffered by the person taking it. If the Flowing Time Pill could even turn back injuries by several dozen years and eliminate them, then that would truly be too Heaven-defying.
Nonetheless, the Flowing Time Pill that Yang Kai took out would be able to restore at least fifty years of life to Ye Hen!
Ye Hen simply could not believe that he could come across such a wonderful thing. He was complaining that time didn’t wait for him, and while his ambitions were only limited by the time he had left, Yang Kai was here to give him a Flowing Time Pill. He was so excited for a moment that he couldn’t contain himself.
He did not doubt Yang Kai because he knew that Yang Kai had gone to the Four Seasons Realm before, and had visited the Flowing Time Temple. The main ingredient of the Flowing Time Pill was the Flowing Time Fruit, which could only be obtained in the Flowing Time Temple.
Yang Kai had obviously obtained the Flowing Time Fruit, which was why he was able to refine this Spirit Pill.
Even though the Flowing Time Pill’s effects only spanned several dozen years, to Ye Hen, it was the best pill in the world right now, and he would be willing to buy it even if he had to give away everything he had.
Yet, Yang Kai had gifted it directly to him. Wasn’t this like what people say, delivering charcoal in a frigid winter?
With this Flowing Time Pill, what else did Ye Hen have to worry about? All he had to do was retreat for a few years and then break through to the Emperor Realm. With this Spirit Pill, he was certain that he could succeed. His bright future was unfolding before him just like a scroll, and he seemed to envision himself leading the Thousand Leaves Sect and restoring it to its past glory.
Ye Hen was overtaken by emotion for quite a while before he was slowly able to calm down. After recovering, he bowed deeply to Yang Kai, “Ye Hen has repeatedly received Young Master Yang’s kindness and has nothing to repay him with. Thus, Ye Hen hereby swears that Young Master Yang will become the greatest benefactor to this Ye and Thousand Leaves Sect. If Young Master Yang has any needs in the future, we will never refuse, and if this oath was to be broken, then Ye Hen and the Ye Family’s descendants will all be possessed by heart demons and be burned to death.”
Ye Hen made his oath firmly and quickly without the slightest hesitation, and he was already done before Yang Kai could react to the situation.
In the next moment, an invisible force seemed to surge into Ye Hen’s body and left an invisible mark on his Soul.
Yang Kai was stunned and smiled bitterly, “Sect Master Ye, there was no need for this…”
He knew very clearly what Ye Hen had just done. That was a Heart Demon oath, made with Ye Hen’s own Soul as the base. There was no possibility for him to regret this in the future. If he were ever to breach the oath, then a heart demon would really possess his body and he would be burned to death.
Moreover, this Heart Demon oath not only affected him, but also Ye Jing Han and any future descendants the Ye Family may have.
The reason why Yang Kai took out the Flowing Time Pill for Ye Hen was mainly that Chi Yue and the others would be staying here. Even though the Sect’s Heaven Grade puppets could be used now, there was no actual Emperor Realm Master to guard the Sect, which would inevitably cause them to be looked down upon.
For the sake of Chi Yue and the others, Yang Kai also hoped that Ye Hen would be able to reach the Emperor Realm and shelter them. That was why Yang Kai refined the Flowing Time Pill out of the Flowing Time Fruit and decided to give it to Ye Hen.
He had no idea that he would get this in return from Ye Hen.
Ye Hen shook his head, “Young Master Yang has revived our Ye Family and the Thousand Leaves Sect, what is the harm of this Ye making this trivial oath? Rest assured, Young Master Yang, this Old Master will take care of Chi Yue and your friends, not allowing even a single strand of their hair to be harmed so long as he lives.”
“Then I will thank Sect Master Ye in advance.” With Ye Hen’s Heart Demon oath, Yang Kai could now also be completely at ease. He knew that, unless the Thousand Leaves Sect was destroyed, Chi Yue and the others would not meet with any danger.
With the capital that Thousand Leaves Sect now possessed, unless some top Sect were to take action personally, no one could destroy them.
“By the way, Sect Master Ye. There is something I want to ask you about.” Yang Kai changed the topic.
Ye Hen responded, “Whatever it may be, please do not hesitate to ask, Young Master Yang.”
“I wonder how much does Sect Master Ye know about a Sect called Netherworld Sect?”
…..
Three days later, Yang Kai departed from the Thousand Leaves Sect. After obtaining the Flowing Time Pill, Ye Hen immediately went into retreat. He probably couldn’t wait to refine the medicinal efficacies of the pill and then continue studying the lost Secret Arts and Secret Techniques.
Ye Jing Han and Chi Yue sent him on his way, following him for a thousand kilometres.
Naturally, Chi Yue and the group were reluctant to part with Yang Kai; after all, they had just been reunited in the Star Boundary, and now Yang Kai was leaving again. However, they knew that Yang Kai was worried about Xiao Xiao, so none of them attempted to stop him, only telling him to take care on his journey.
Yang Kai naturally kept that in mind.
Out on the beaten path, Yang Kai stopped and looked at the group, “You should go back now. I will come back to visit another day.”
Gui Ze grinned meaningfully, “Sect Master has to stay well. We will be waiting for you to establish the Sect once more in the Star Boundary, and we will all be there to support you when that happens.”
Yang Kai nodded, “That day will come eventually.”
Then, he turned to Chai Hu and said with a complicated expression, “Senior Chai Hu, will you do it, or should I?”
It was a vague question but nobody was surprised. They seemed to have understood what he meant. Chai Hu let out a soft sigh, “Let me do it. Please have a safe trip, Sect Master Yang.”
“Then, let us part here, everyone. We will definitely meet again in the future.” Yang Kai cupped his fists and summoned his boat artifact before speeding off into the distance.
Right at that moment, a stream of light suddenly shot out from behind a small outcropping to the side, a stream of light that contained a delicate body, clearly that of a young woman’s. As soon as she got close, she brandished her long sword and stabbed it towards Yang Kai, shouting, “I’ll kill you!”
Yang Kai glanced indifferently at her and sighed in his heart, having no intention of making a move against her.
The person who ambushed him in order to try and take him by surprise was none other than Luo Bing!
They had not seen each other for just a few months, but Luo Bing had already lost the beauty and innocence that she once had. Now, she looked haggard and her beautiful eyes were dull. Her aura was unstable and even the clothes on her body were no longer vibrant. From her dirty appearance, it could be seen how bad her life had been the past few months.
She was Luo Jin’s daughter, and Luo Jin had done a lot of horrendous things when he was City Lord of Sky Crane City. Now that Luo Jin was dead, those who had suffered his oppression in Sky Crane City naturally wanted to take revenge against him.
Since Luo Jin was dead, they naturally targeted Luo Bing.
Fortunately, despite her spoiled nature, Luo Bing was a decent person at heart, so some of the guards at the City Lord’s Mansion had some loyalty towards her. They protected her and allowed her to flee Sky Crane City. She had been hiding this whole time and had not been able to live a single day at ease since. Thinking that she had been the Little Princess of Sky Crane City before and was used to being pampered, her life had suddenly gone from Heaven to Hell, which was simply overwhelming for her.
No one knew where she got the news that her father died at Yang Kai’s hand, but she now ambushed him here in order to avenge Luo Jin.
But her cultivation was merely at the Third-Order Origin Returning Realm. Yang Kai and his whole group were all Dao Source Realm cultivators, and they were able to sense her aura as soon as they arrived here. The only reason why nobody outed her was that they knew her identity.
The sword light was bright, but Luo Bing did not slash towards him with any murderous intent at all. Her beautiful eyes were extremely dim. She clearly knew that it was unrealistic for her to try and kill Yang Kai with her strength.
Ambushing him here was probably just a request for death, hoping that Yang Kai would kill her in a fit of rage.
But she never would have expected that Yang Kai would just glance at her and then completely ignore her.