Proud, Yin Le Sheng arrogantly laughed, “Yang Kai, do you think you will live after today?”
A Master proficient in the Dao of Space could tear space at will, but now, he was trapped here. Yin Le Sheng was so filled with joy that it couldn’t be described with mere words.
So, even though he knew that he shouldn’t talk to Yang Kai at this moment, Yin Le Sheng couldn’t help but arrogantly taunt.
Hua Fei Chen, on the other hand, didn’t speak a word as he was constantly looking for a chance to attack.
Yang Kai, blocking the next attack, drew back. He put the Myriads Sword horizontally before his chest, taking a defensive stance, before rebuking with a snort, “The frog at the bottom of the well knows nothing of how vast the sky is. Today, this Young Master will open your useless eyes. Just watch how I break this useless Array of yours!”
Saying so, he flipped his hand as a bracelet suddenly appeared. Although bracelets were usually artifacts worn by women, this bracelet didn’t appear to be suitable for women to wear because it was filled with mysterious runes and was surging with Spiritual Energy. One could tell that it was a powerful Emperor Artifact at a glance.
“You still dare to be so arrogant?” Yin Le Sheng was enraged. With the cover of Heavenly Net Absolute Sealing Array, Yin Le Sheng sneaked close to Yang Kai, but just as he raised his hand, preparing to launch a sneak attack, he suddenly heard a buzzing noise ringing next to his ear.
That buzzing sound was extremely strange, as if countless tiny insects were flying over.
“What is this?” Yin Le Sheng raised his brow, and lest he found himself in another troublesome situation, he didn’t dare to make a move and rather pulled back.
“Something that will take your dog life!” Yang Kai sneered, standing on the spot, waving his hands to release countless black insects from the bracelet.
The bracelet was naturally the Insect Enslavement Bracelet, and the black insects were naturally the evolved Soul Devouring Demon Insects.
When he was besieged by the countless Yin Souls in the cave before, Yang Kai suddenly wondered whether his Soul Devouring Insects would have a restraining effect against them.
Soul Devouring Insects fed on Spiritual Energy, and could even swallow Demon Qi.
As for Yin Souls, to a certain extent, they were just a mass of Spiritual Energy.
However, earlier, there were too many eyes on him. If the Soul Devouring Insects did not take a fancy to the Yin Souls, his secret would be exposed with him not being able to kill all the onlookers.
But now, there were only two that were watching, so Yang Kai secretly released a few Soul Devouring Insects earlier while dealing with Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen, waiting for the results.
After giving it a try, it went as he had expected. The Yin Souls were simply delicious dishes laid out for the Soul Devouring Insects. Not only did the Soul Devouring Insects devour the Yin Souls gleefully, they also seemed able to devour the black Qi as well.
They loved this type of energy too.
Now that the result of his experiment was already out, naturally, Yang Kai would no longer be polite to the Netherworld Sect. The next moment, countless Soul Devouring Demon Insects flew out, swarming in every direction. The insects rushed forward like a pack of hungry wolves charging into the flock of sheep, catching each and every Yin Soul wandering around.
In a flash, miserable wails sounded everywhere. Although these Yin Souls were devoid of the sentience they had when they were still alive, they still screamed when they were being eaten, giving jitters to the listeners.
Both Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen were shocked. They had no idea what was going on. All they understood was that their side was taking heavy losses.
With having no idea of what was happening, they didn’t dare to rashly attack anymore, lest what Yang Kai said came true.
“What’s going on?” Helpless, Hua Fei Chen could only ask the twenty or so disciples managing the Array.
Only they knew about the situation inside the Array, because they were the ones who had arranged it. More importantly, the foundation of the Array was made up of their artifacts, so it could even be said that their lives were related to the array, their life and death tied to it.
“It’s very bad, Elder Hua!” A disciple cried in horror, “That guy has suddenly released a swarm of insects.”
“A swarm of insects?” Hua Fei Chen’s eyes widened in shock before he furiously shouted, “Why are you making a fuss about a few insects? Just kill them!”
[What a bunch of wastes! Even an Emperor Realm Master can be killed inside the Heavenly Net Absolute Sealing Array, and you are afraid of a bunch of insects? The disciples taken into the Sect over these past few years have really dropped in standard.]
That disciple added with trepidation, “Elder, these insects can’t be killed. Rather they are devouring the banner’s Yin Souls.”
“What!?”
Hua Fei Chen was taken aback this time. The Yin Souls inside the black ball were the ones from each Netherworld Purgatory Banner and were completely intangible. They were identical to the Yin Souls found in the Ancient Lands Passageway, an accumulation of grievances after a person’s death. They were sinister and treacherous, not good to provoke.
Yet there were actually insects in this world that could swallow Yin Souls stored within the banners?
What kind of insects were they?
Before Hua Fei Chen could ask any further questions, he suddenly felt a chill coming over from the front, rushing straight at him.
Hua Fei Chen was greatly shocked and immediately shouted, “Junior! You dare to sneak attack me!?”
Evidently, this chill was the result of Yang Kai’s sneak attack, and while shouting, Hua Fei Chen hurriedly blocked the oncoming strike. A deafening clap of thunder immediately followed and his eyes bulged in shock so wide that the corners of them almost cracked. Much to Hua Fei Chen’s shock and dismay, he was actually pushed back.
This was the first head-on confrontation between Yang Kai and him as all the previous clashes were just him sneak-attacking, taking advantage of the concealment of the Array. Therefore, he hadn’t expected Yang Kai to be this powerful.
[Is he even human?] Hua Fei Chen couldn’t help but find it surreal, as if he was dreaming.
Yang Kai broke into laughter as he taunted, “If you can do it, why can’t I? What’s so strange about me sneak attacking you? Does Elder Hua think that this Young Master should just stick his neck out and let you cut it off?”
The corners of Hua Fei Chen’s lips twitched, but he couldn’t help but agree with a snort, “That would be best.”
Yang Kai meaningfully grinned and said, “Then it would depend on whether you even have the strength to make me!”
As he spoke, his figure flickered as he attacked him with an earth-shattering momentum. Somehow or the other, he had accurately grasped Hua Fei Chen’s location.
Hua Fei Chen was greatly shocked and hurriedly shouted, “Martial Nephew Yin, help me!”
A Second-Order Emperor Realm Master was attacked by an enemy, who was one Minor Realm below him, inside a Spirit Array his allies controlled, yet he was still calling for his Martial Nephew’s help. Hua Fei Chen felt like he lost all face at this moment.
But compared to his life, his face was simply nothing.
Naturally, Yin Le Sheng wouldn’t let Hua Fei Chen take risks alone and promptly rushed over after hearing this cry for help while fiercely shouted, “Yang Kai! Don’t go too far!”
Martial Nephew and Uncle instantly teamed up, their Emperor Qi surging as they launched one Netherworld Sect Secret Technique after another against Yang Kai, locking him in a fierce struggle.
Deafening claps of thunder rang out one after another as violent energy fluctuations spread outward.
Strange looks appeared on the faces of Old Fu and the girl named Lin’er, who were hovering in the air.
Old Fu furrowed his brow, criticizing, “What the Hell are those from the Netherworld Sect doing?”
“A bunch of wastes!” The girl named Lin’er ground her teeth and cursed.
She had even taken out an Emperor Artifact, the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl, to help, but she hadn’t expected for the Netherworld Sect to be unable to take down Yang Kai even after this. This really caused her to look down on them.
“Young Lady, do you want this Old Master to help them out?” Old Fu inquiringly asked.
Judging by the shockwaves and rumblings, the chances of Hua Fei Chen and Yin Le Sheng being able to defeat Yang Kai anytime soon appeared bleak. At any rate, Old Fu was a First-Order Emperor Realm Master, and if he helped them now, they would definitely be able to suppress Yang Kai.
“No need,” the girl named Lin’er refused, “This Young Lady has already personally given them a hand, which is already giving them a lot of face. Why should you intervene too? If they still can’t win, these guys from the Netherworld Sect are truly useless.”
Old Fu didn’t dare to violate her order, so all he could do was bow his head and agree.
Right then, a cry of shock sounded.
Old Fu’s pupils shrank as he looked toward the source of the cry. The next moment, he saw the twenty or so Netherworld Sect disciples, who were presiding over the Array, stumble as if they were struck by lightning. Their faces were pale as paper and large beads of sweat were rolling down their foreheads while blood could also be seen coming out of the corners of their lips.
They seemed to have suffered serious injuries.
“What happened?” Old Fu stared with widened eyes, unable to understand what was going on.
One of the Netherworld Sect disciples cried for help, “Elder! Please… Save us! The Yin Souls within our banners are about to be completely devoured! Ple-”
The Netherworld Sect disciples’ lives and cultivation were tied to their Netherworld Purgatory Banners, so while their strength might be greatly enhanced with them, if their Netherworld Purgatory Banner was damaged, they would have to bear an extremely serious backlash.
They were just presiding over the array and weren’t directly clashing with Yang Kai.
But the Soul Devouring Insects released by Yang Kai were constantly devouring their banners’ Yin Souls, and at an extremely fast pace at that.
This disciple was rather unlucky, as all the Yin Souls released by him were devoured clean by the Soul Devouring Insects, resulting in serious damage to his Netherworld Purgatory Banner. He even had to bear a tremendous backlash.
Before he could finish talking, a streak of black light suddenly shot over from that enormous black ball.
It was the very same Netherworld Purgatory Banner that was tied to his life and cultivation.
But when this disciple saw his artifact, not only did he not feel the slightest joy, but he appeared as if he had seen something extremely horrifying, hurriedly got up, turned around, and fled.
The approaching Netherworld Purgatory Banner seemed to be sentient as it chased right after him.
In the blink of an eye, the Netherworld Purgatory Banner had already caught up with the Netherworld Sect disciple.
*Hong…*
The Netherworld Purgatory Banner blew up into a cloud of pitch black energy, enveloping the Netherworld Sect disciple.
“Ahhh!!!!…” A heart-rending scream immediately resounded. It sounded extremely miserable, as if the one caught in it was subjected to the most terrifying torture in the world.
The pitch-black energy was like black flames that were attached to this disciple, they couldn’t be put out and were like poisonous vipers that were invading his body through every pore and orifice.
Miserably screaming, the Netherworld Sect disciple kept rolling on the ground, scratching his cheeks with his hands.
He was scratching very hard, clawing his flesh and skin, and in the blink of an eye, his entire face was mangled; even his bones could be seen.
“What… what’s happening to him?” On the other side, the red-robed girl, who was controlling the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl, turned pale and couldn’t help but ask in a trembling voice.
She had never seen such a horrible sight.
If a person wasn’t in such excruciating pain that his mind couldn’t process it, how could he do such a horrible thing to himself?
“Ten Thousand Ghosts Biting Backlash!” Old Fu too nervously gulped as he added in shock, “He is finished.”
The Netherworld Purgatory Banner was greatly damaged, so much so that even its owner had received a horrible backlash. This backlash was even more unbearable than falling into a hot wok filled with oil.
While he was speaking, the black energy on that disciple converged, completely seeping into his body all of a sudden. Right after, he screamed even more miserably, tossing and turning on the ground, clawing off pieces of his own flesh. Very soon, the ground was dyed red.
Within just ten breaths, the Netherworld Sect disciples suddenly made a huge jerk before he ceased breathing, lying still on the ground. No part of his body remained intact; even his intestines had been dug out by himself. It was a horrendous sight.
And the pitch-black energy was still burning around him, as if it would continue burning till the end of time.
*Xiu Xiu Xiu…*
Streaks of black light continued to fly out of the Heavenly Net Absolute Sealing Array, one after another, shooting straight towards the Netherworld Sect disciples.
These disciples were utterly terrified and all turned tail and ran, crying to the Elder to save them.
But, how would Hua Fei Chen have the time to rescue them when he and Yin Le Sheng were still being chased by Yang Kai. They didn’t even have the time to gasp for breath, so despite knowing that these disciples were suffering from the Ten Thousand Ghosts Biting Backlash, they were completely helpless.
However, even if he had the time, he would still not be able to rescue those disciples.
For Netherworld Sect disciples, the Ten Thousand Ghosts Biting Backlash was the cruellest torture and the most unbearable method of death. This was related to their cultivation technique and their artifacts.
But at the end of the day, it was the foundation of the Netherworld Sect, so how could the disciples not cultivate it?
Miserable screams resounded, one after another, but this time, it wasn’t the Yin Souls that were being bitten, but rather the Netherworld Sect disciples who were afflicted with the Ten Thousand Ghosts Biting Backlash.
In just thirty breaths, the number of Netherworld Sect disciples had been reduced by half, all of them having suffered the backlash and died because of their Netherworld Purgatory Banners being damaged.
However, the array was still operating.
The Heavenly Net Absolute Sealing Array was a rather peculiar Spirit Array in that it was quite flexible; five could lay out the Array and ten could too. The same went for twenty…
So, even if so many had died, the Spirit Array still had not stopped.
It was just that the pitch-black ball had faded a lot, and the three figures inside could already be seen flying about rapidly, locked in a fierce battle.
With the sudden death of half of the disciples on their side, the remaining Netherworld Sect disciples were naturally terrified. They knew that if they didn’t run away, they would not fare any better than their departed Brothers. Sooner or later, they would be killed by the backlash.
But Hua Fei Chen didn’t give out any orders to retreat, so how could they dare escape? If they really tried to escape at this point, they would definitely be chased by the entire Netherworld Sect, so they could only grit their teeth and persevere.
“Summon the Ghost King, you fools!” Yin Le Sheng suddenly shouted.
The remaining Netherworld Sect disciples all jolted when they heard this. Immediately after, a resolute look flashed across their faces before they started making hand seals as their Source Qi surged.
Next, they spewed mouthfuls of Blood Essence towards the black ball, one after another.
The red blood splashed through the black ball, vanishing from sight like the rain falling into the sea.
However, the banner’s Yin Souls inside the black ball seemed to have been stimulated and started roaring non-stop.
Hua Fei Chen timely flew over, blocking Yang Kai. Yin Le Sheng quickly pulled away, looking at Yang Kai with a glare of hatred. In the next moment, a Netherworld Banner suddenly appeared in his hand.
It was the very same Netherworld Purgatory Banner, the symbol of being a Netherworld Sect disciple.
Holding the Netherworld Purgatory Banner, he opened his mouth and spurted a mouthful of Blood Essence towards his artifact as he fiercely urged it, causing it to rapidly inflate in size.
*Huchi Huchi…*
Suddenly, rhythmic sounds started coming from the Purgatory Banner, like the sound of breathing, making everyone feel unnerved.
And along with this sound, the dense black Qi and the countless Yin Souls inside the black ball gathered towards the Netherworld Purgatory Banner in Yin Le Sheng’s hand, as if they were drawn in by some irresistible force.
In a flash, all the black Qi and Yin Souls had disappeared.
Yang Kai and the two were left standing, their fields of vision bright and clear, only the white light screen of the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl left covering them, sealing them in this space.
Yang Kai’s heart skipped a beat as he instinctively had a dangerous feeling. While fighting with Hua Fei Chen, he found a moment to glance at Yin Le Sheng, whereupon he saw Yin Le Sheng grinning hideously before shouting, “Yang Kai, let’s see how you will remain alive now!”
Just as he said this, the Netherworld Purgatory Banner in his hand suddenly burst into a cloud of black mist, and from that surging cloud of black mist, a pair of scarlet eyes suddenly flickered with a strange gleam, like it could devour everyone’s Soul. No one could keep their eyes away from it.
Immediately afterwards, two enormous ghastly claws stretched out from the black mist.
Amid the tumbling mist, an enormous figure appeared.
The figure was more than five meters tall and was completely black, its appearance completely repulsive. There was a curved horn on his forehead, and a mouth packed with sharp fangs. When the figure appeared, it gave off an oppressive feeling.
The temperature of the surrounding air seemed to have dropped to the freezing point in an instant.
*Huchi…*
A streak of white mist gushed out from the figure’s nostrils, freezing the air.
“Ghost King!” Old Fu’s pupils shrank. He knew that the Netherworld Sect disciples had put their lives on the line now, otherwise they wouldn’t resort to such a Forbidden Technique. Once they had used this technique, they had pushed themselves to an impasse; either their enemy would die, or they would.
This Ghost King was different from the Ghost King found in the Ancient Lands Passageway. The Ghost King in the passage was born naturally and had reached its terrifying cultivation over many years of accumulation. But this Ghost King was formed by the Netherworld Sect disciples through merging the Yin Souls stored within their banners.
Nevertheless, the undeniable fact was that the aura exuded by this Ghost King was terrifying; in fact, it was comparable to a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master. Old Fu, who was spectating the fight from outside, couldn’t help but shiver as the Yin Qi radiating from the Ghost King hit him.
On the contrary, the girl named Lin’er, whose cultivation was lower, remained unaffected; however, a faint aura flashed around her figure at this moment. Apparently, the glow surrounding her had negated the corrosion of the Yin Qi.
“Martial Uncle, help me!” Yin Le Sheng shouted.
Hua Fei Chen made a feint, causing Yang Kai to back away, and then immediately flickered as he retreated to Yin Le Sheng’s side and punched himself right in the chest.
*Pu…*
Blood spurted by Hua Fei Chen landed on the Ghost King, causing its aura to grow stronger still.
The two rapidly formed hand seals and a serious look filled their faces as they seemed to be resonating with something; they had established a connection with the Ghost King.
Yang Kai on the other hand stood in place with a solemn look on his face, his eyes narrowing as he sized up the newly summoned Ghost King.
[Worthy of a top Sect from the Eastern Territory, they actually had such a bizarre Secret Technique!] Yang Kai thought his victory was secured, but he had never expected such a development.
Yin Le Sheng, gritting his teeth, shouted, “Yang Kai, I didn’t anticipate you being so strong, but can you beat this Ghost King? This is the full power of the several dozen disciples of my Netherworld Sect! Your death has now been assured!”
Yang Kai derided with a snort, “You have already said that so many times today, yet this Young Master is still standing here, isn’t he?”
Yin Le Sheng was unable to suppress his anger as he stopped arguing and formed a hand seal, shouting, “Die!”
When the words fell, the Ghost King’s eyes flashed with a red gleam, it rushed toward Yang Kai.
“Devour it!” Yang Kai pointed at it as countless Soul Devouring Demon Insects flew out and crashed into the Ghost King, forming a dark cloud in the sky.
*Honglong…*
The dark cloud of insects suddenly collapsed as countless Soul Devouring Insects were knocked back and fell to the ground; it was difficult to tell whether they were alive or dead.
The Ghost King, on the other hand, was completely safe; its momentum wasn’t diminished in the slightest.
After all, the dark cloud of insects was composed of countless Soul Devouring Insects, so they didn’t form a dense or rigid structure. How could a cloud withstand such a collision? It was natural for it to collapse, giving the impression that it couldn’t take even a single hit.
Yin Le Sheng broke into laughter and sneered, “Who asked you to act so arrogantly and presumptuously? You brought this upon yourself!”
Judging by his words, it seemed as if Yang Kai was in the wrong.
Yang Kai pursed his lips into a sneer, indifferently staring at the oncoming Ghost King, showing no intention of moving away.
Yin Le Sheng’s laughter abruptly came to a stop as he stared ahead with bulging eyes when he noticed pitch-black insects crawling all over the Ghost King at some point, covering it completely. Obviously, they had secretly landed on the Ghost King during the collision.
*Kacha…*
Suddenly, a crisp sound akin to the silkworm biting the mulberry leaves rang out. Immediately, an extremely painful look appeared on the charging Ghost King’s face and it let out a howl as it suddenly slowed down.
“This…” Yin Le Sheng was stunned. He didn’t expect these strange insects would be so powerful that they could even devour the Ghost King.
Hua Fei Chen’s face suddenly brightened and then darkened as a flash of confusion appeared in his eyes. Soon, he seemed to have recalled something as he called out in alarm, “Soul Devouring Insects! These are Soul Devouring Insects!”
As a Second-Order Emperor Realm Master, he had cultivated for many, many years and naturally had an extremely rich breadth of experience and knowledge. It wasn’t surprising for him to know about Soul Devouring Insects.
He didn’t recognize them at first; after all, these Soul Devouring Insects were really different from the records he had seen in the ancient books he had read. Whether it was their size or brutality, these were on a completely different scale compared to the ancient records.
Only now did he come to realize their true nature.
And after having come to know that they were Soul Devouring Insects, Hua Fei Chen was struck with panic.
Yin Le Sheng may not know how powerful these Soul Devouring Insects were, but he knew that the Netherworld Purgatory Banner and Yin Souls were absolutely not opponents of these insects. No wonder so many disciples had so miserably died, it was because of these bugs!
While he was crying out in shock, the Soul Devouring Insects that had been knocked down and fallen on the ground also crawled back up, fluttered their wings, and buzzed towards the Ghost King, biting at it.
Currently, the enormous Ghost King was covered in Soul Devouring Insects, leaving only its faintly discernible scarlet eyes visible.
Being gnawed by the Soul Devouring Insects, the Ghost King was slowly slipping out of Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen’s control, howling and writhing as if in excruciating pain.
Hua Fei Chen knew that things weren’t looking good for them and he hurriedly shouted, “We have to end this quickly!”
Once the Soul Devouring Insects had come into play, they couldn’t delay things any longer. If they continued to drag the situation, the Ghost King would be completely devouring clean. When that happened, he and Yin Le Sheng would also suffer the Ten Thousand Ghosts Biting Backlash.
Over a dozen disciples had miserably died already, and Hua Fei Chen didn’t want to follow in their footsteps.
Yin Le Sheng was also sharp and naturally knew about the fearsome relationship with this Ghost King, so he immediately teamed up with Hua Fei Chen to force the Ghost King to attack.
*Hou…*
The Ghost King let out a deafening roar and its two eyeballs turned redder, as if blood was pouring out from them. It completely disregarded the Soul Devouring Insects gnawing at it and shot straight at Yang Kai, stretching its enormous ghastly claws as a pitch-black sickle suddenly appeared in its hands. Immediately after, it swung it straight towards Yang Kai.
The momentum of the Ghost King’s attack was astonishing, and before it even reached Yang Kai, the resulting wind tore open Yang Kai’s skin.
*Weng…*
The Myriads Sword hummed as Yang Kai swung it diagonally and Emperor Qi surged through it. Immediately after, it bloomed with a dazzling halo.
The next moment, a crisp metallic clang rang out as sparks flew everywhere.
The lunging Ghost King paused for a moment before its enormous figure leaned back a bit, proof in itself how powerful Yang Kai’s blow was. The feedback from the Ghost King made Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen’s pupils simultaneously shrink as looks of disbelief appeared on their faces.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai was knocked back like a rucksack, crashing right onto the white light screen before stopping.
A flash of horror appeared in his eyes as he hadn’t expected Ghost King to be this powerful.
When Yin Le Sheng saw Yang Kai suffer a loss, he couldn’t help but laugh, “After I have teamed up with Martial Uncle Hua, the Ghost King is as powerful as a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master! Yang Kai, how are you going to fight against me now? Quickly come and accept your death!”
While speaking, he controlled the Ghost King to lunge at Yang Kai again. Apparently, he wanted to kill Yang Kai before he could regain his breath.
*Chi Chi Chi…*
The enormous pitch-black sickle struck again with an unstoppable momentum, directly cutting Yang Kai’s figure in half.
Hua Chen Fei raised his brow before speaking without a moment of hesitation. “An afterimage!”
With the two collaborating, their senses had become sharper and they could immediately tell that Yang Kai had already escaped. The only thing that the sickle had split in two was an illusory phantom left by Yang Kai, that’s all.
“Ghost King, come back!” Yin Le Sheng also shouted without hesitation, rapidly forming hand seals. Suddenly, the Ghost King burst into a cloud of black mist before mysteriously disappearing from where it was.
The next moment, Yang Kai’s figure strangely appeared about ten metres away from Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen, his face cold and the Myriads Sword in his hand pulsating, preparing to cut the two down.
Surprisingly, Yin Le Sheng was gazing right into Yang Kai’s eyes, sneering; not a single trace of panic could be found on his face.
Suddenly, a cloud of black mist appeared behind Yang Kai, and the Ghost King’s faint figure loomed inside it. Right then, the enormous sickle swept horizontally towards Yang Kai.
Yang Kai furrowed his brow, sensing the oncoming chill behind him. How could he not know that the Ghost King had already caught up with him?
He hadn’t expected this thing to be so difficult to get rid of; it was like maggots on rotting bones. He had planned to cut off the leader to defeat his subordinates; finish Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen. He didn’t want to confront the Ghost King head-on.
But now, his plan had gone awry.
In a hurry, Yang Kai could only flee from his position. When his figure reappeared again, he was already several tens of metres away.
“What’s the point of jumping around? Yang Kai, if you are still a man, you should fight head-on!” Yin Le Sheng roared in anger. He discovered that even though the space here was sealed, stopping Yang Kai from simply teleporting away to flee, the latter was still at ease and as slippery as a loach. He couldn’t catch Yang Kai at all.
Yang Kai sneered, “You have teamed up with your Martial Uncle, and also have the help of an Array arranged by so many of your fellow Brothers, yet you have the gall to tell me to fight head-on? Is your head messed up?”
Yin Le Sheng looked embarrassed, but nevertheless, he stubbornly continued, “If you have ability, find a Martial Uncle and fellow Brothers and bring them here. This Yin will definitely not object.”
Yang Kai rebuked with a snort, “What lopsided logic!” He then pointed the Myriads Sword at Yin Le Sheng, provocatively continuing, “Yin Le Sheng, I will definitely settle our old and new grudges today. If you are still a man, come and fight this Young Master one-on-one, and see if this Young Master doesn’t beat you to the point that not even your mother will be able to recognize you!”
“My mother is already dead, why are you dragging her into this!?” Yin Le Sheng furiously stated.
Yang Kai sarcastically added, “In any case, you are also the top disciple of the Netherworld Sect and a hegemon of Great Desolation Star Field. What’s wrong? You don’t even have the guts to fight with me one-on-one?”
Yin Le Sheng’s face turned gloomy as he burned with fury. Even the Ghost King he was controlling seemed to flicker with rage.
Whether it was about being the top disciple of Netherworld Sect or the hegemon of Grand Desolation Star Field, Yin Le Sheng was naturally proud of his achievements, and had these words been said by someone else, he would have already slapped him. But he was up against Yang Kai and really didn’t dare to challenge him one-on-one.
He had experienced Yang Kai’s strength and abilities first hand and knew he wasn’t his opponent by any means. Rather, if he were to attack alone now, he would soon be lying in his grave.
“Martial Nephew, he is trying to stall for time!” Hua Fei Chen warned Yin Le Sheng with a cold face as he glanced at the Ghost King.
At this moment, the Soul Devouring Insects were crawling all over the Ghost King’s body while crisp biting sounds could be continuously heard. Obviously, they were devouring the Ghost King’s strength and Hua Fei Chen could already see that it had weakened a lot in this short moment. If they didn’t kill Yang Kai soon, the Ghost King would cease to exist before Yang Kai fell.
And once the Ghost King was destroyed, all the Netherworld Sect members present at the scene would also suffer a backlash, including Yin Le Sheng and himself.
“I know!” Yin Le Sheng replied, grinding his teeth.
“We can’t delay, we must act now!” Hua Fei Chen shouted, rapidly forming hand seals again.
Yin Le Sheng promptly acted in concert, while glancing at Lin’er outside fleetingly.
“What a bunch of wastes!” Lin’er coldly snorted, “They are fighting one man, and had even laid out this Heavenly Net Absolute Sealing Array, but still, they haven’t killed him yet and are still allowing him to run around all over the place! These Netherworld Sect disciples are truly useless! Had I known this earlier, I wouldn’t have helped them out.”
Now, unable to vent her anger, she was even more pent up than ever before, especially when she saw Yang Kai flaunting his prowess. Lin’er blew her top and wanted to go in and teach him a lesson personally.
It never crossed her mind that she was just a Third-Order Dao Source Realm. How could she have the ability to teach Yang Kai a lesson? She also didn’t notice Hua Fei Chen, Yin Le Sheng, and the others all sweating from the extreme exertion.
“Ao!!” The two Emperors of the Netherworld Sect cast some mysterious Secret Technique at that moment and the Ghost King suddenly let out a roar, facing the sky. The sickle in its hand was giving off powerful energy fluctuations and its enormous figure shot towards Yang Kai in the blink of an eye, ruthlessly sweeping the sickle down at him.
Yang Kai impatiently asked, “You have used this attack over and over again, do you think it will still work against this Young Master?”
He wasn’t able to cut down the ringleader, but as long as he continued to make them consume their energy, it would not take long for the Soul Devouring Insects to finish off the Ghost King. When that happened, he wouldn’t need to make a move as all those from the Netherworld Sect would face a miserable end.
So, while taunting them, Yang Kai prepared to move away from his position to dodge the incoming attack.
But right then, the enormous phantom of a cinnamon flower on the screen of white light that had been enveloping them suddenly moved, one of its branches sweeping towards Yang Kai at lightning-fast speed.
How could Yang Kai expect such a thing to happen?
He didn’t know how this layer of white light was formed, and thought that it was laid out by the Netherworld Sect disciples.
This was a natural assumption as this white light curtain seemed to just be blocking space, so Yang Kai hadn’t put up any defences against it.
Caught off guard, one of his arms was caught by the branch.
He tried to free himself, but wasn’t able to.
And it wasn’t over yet. The illusory phantom of the cinnamon flower shook again as three branches shot out from the light screen, binding Yang Kai’s other arm and his legs with great precision.
In a flash, Yang Kai’s limbs were completely tied and pulled by the branches, forming the ‘大’ character with his figure.
The branches tightened their hold before lifting him up in the air.
Suddenly, Yang Kai turned his head and stared at the red-robed Lin’er. He noticed that her face was pale and she was rapidly forming hand seals, as if she was casting some Secret Technique.
[So, it’s her doing!]
Yang Kai suddenly understood everything and ground his teeth angrily, “Little Girl! You court death!”
He was worried about her background before, so he had given her a small punishment in the desolate city, and he saw her mingling with the Netherworld Sect members, he still hadn’t considered what to do with her. Yang Kai had only planned to get rid of those from the Netherworld Sect and then completely disregarded this girl.
How could he have known that she would have such strange tricks up her sleeve? And having been caught by surprise, Yang Kai finally felt killing intent towards her.
Lin’er was scared by the sight of the fierce, murderous look on Yang Kai’s face, but she gritted her teeth and countered back, “I won’t die if you are dead, will I!?”
Yin Lin Sheng broke into laughter before speaking, “Well done Young Lady Lin’er. I’d like to see how this bastard will escape now!”
Although Hua Fei Chen didn’t say anything, he was trying his best to push his Emperor Qi, controlling the Ghost King with Yin Le Sheng to attack Yang Kai.
As the enormous sickle slashed down, an aura of death caressed Yang Kai’s face.
Yin Le Sheng widened his eyes, as if he wanted to enjoy every moment of Yang Kai’s death.
Hua Fei Chen was also smiling, relieved that things were finally over. If Yang Kai could break loose and escape now, that would be an inconceivable feat.
The attack came instantaneously, and Yang Kai’s pupils immediately shrank to the size of needle tips as he roared, “Dragon Transformation!”
With a deafening roar, a shining Golden Dragon Head suddenly appeared behind Yang Kai. The entire world seemed to tremble with its appearance as Dragon Pressure immediately spread everywhere, causing every living being to submit.
Even the charging Ghost King couldn’t help but momentarily freeze, its sickle strike stagnating for a moment.
Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen had their jaws drop, watching the roaring Dragon Head in a daze, a sense of absurdity rising in their heart.
It became even harder for Lin’er to hold on once this happened. Her cultivation was the lowest here, and under the intense Dragon Pressure, her tender figure stumbled, almost falling over and collapsing. Owing to this, the power of Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl’s restraints also greatly fell.
From the start, she was unable to bring out the full power of this Emperor Artifact and even her current condition couldn’t be maintained for too long. Now, under the Dragon Pressure, the white screen of light was showing signs of collapsing, but through sheer force of will, she hurriedly grit her teeth and held on, not daring to let Yang Kai break free.
The shining illusory phantom of the Dragon Head flickered as it drilled into Yang Kai’s body.
Immediately after, Yang Kai’s hands transformed into Dragon Claws as Dragon Scales mysteriously appeared on his bare body. Even a Dragon Tail formed of golden energy had appeared behind him, sweeping left and right, leaving gullies on the ground as it did. It was a shocking sight.
*Hong…*
The Ghost King’s attack arrived in the next moment, cutting Yang Kai right in the chest.
*Chi Chi Chi…*
A grating sound immediately followed as sparks flew everywhere.
It seemed as if the Ghost King’s attack hadn’t struck a human but the hardest artifact that could possibly be made.
Yang Kai spurted out a mouthful of blood, but what everyone found surprising was that the blood wasn’t red like others, but golden.
And on his chest, a half-metre long gaping wound had appeared, one so deep that even his bones were visible.
Yang Kai had cast the Dragon Transformation Secret Technique, which had greatly improved his physical defences, but nonetheless, he was still hit hard by the Ghost King’s attack.
If the Ghost King’s energy had not been devoured by the Soul Devouring Insects, and had his body not been this strong, this blow would have killed Yang Kai instantly.
Although his life wasn’t in any danger, the injury was shocking. There was dark energy lingering around his wound, corroding his body and preventing Yang Kai from healing his injuries.
This was the Yin Energy of the Ghost King, which was extremely difficult to get rid of.
“He’s still not dead!?” Yin Le Sheng couldn’t help but cry out loud as his eyes bulged in shock, having a hard time believing how sturdy Yang Kai’s body was as well as the strange Secret Technique he just used to cause a Dragon Head and pure Dragon Pressure to manifest.
Was it an actual Divine Spirit?
Considering all this, Yin Le Sheng’s legs trembled.
“I… I can’t hold on anymore,” Lin’er stated in a low voice, gritting her teeth.
It was already a remarkable feat for her to maintain an Emperor Artifact like the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl for so long with her low cultivation. In addition, she had been deterred by the Dragon Pressure just now and her concentration was shaken. At this moment, the Source Qi in her body was of no use and she was unable to hold out any longer.
Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen were greatly shocked after hearing this and didn’t dare to delay any further, pushing their Emperor Qi hard to control the Ghost King to launch another attack.
Finally, with the help of Young Lady Lin’er, Yang Kai was suppressed and had become an easy target. If they couldn’t kill him now, a miserable end was waiting for them.
“All of you are dead!” Yang Kai’s eyes flickered with a cold gleam as he struggled hard to get free.
Crisp cracking sounds immediately followed as Yang Kai broke the branches binding his limbs.
Lin’er let out a tender cry, as if she had suffered a backlash, and the white light screen suddenly converged before turning back into the crystal-clear jade bowl and flying towards her, disappearing into her body right after.
Without the suppression of this strange Emperor Artifact, Yang Kai felt the pressure around him suddenly lighten and immediately felt full of energy.
Only now did he come to understand that the white screen of light was actually an Emperor Artifact.
The Ghost King was fiercely rushing at him, but Yang Kai acted as if he didn’t see it. Rather, a serious look appeared on his face and his Emperor Qi surged like a tide as he rapidly formed a seal with his hands.
“Time Flows on Infinitely, Like a Mighty Stream, Like an Unending Dream!”
Once the Flowing Time Great Emperor’s Divine Ability was brought into play, time seemed to have frozen.
That seal rumbled straight towards Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen, but the pair were completely oblivious to it; they just kept looking ahead with widened eyes.
It seemed like thousands upon thousands of years had passed by in an instant.
When their eyes finally regained clarity, the seal was already upon them.
A terrified look immediately appeared on Yin Le Sheng’s face and his hands rapidly danced as he continuously spurted Blood Essence, shouting, “Martial Uncle, hold on!”
Who knows what Secret Technique Yin Le Sheng had used, but he fled as quickly as a loach. At the same time, his Spiritual Essence was rapidly declining; even his cultivation, the Emperor Realm that he had just recently reached, was also regressing…
This Secret Technique seemed to have brought great harm to himself.
“You…” Hua Fei Chen was filled with grief and anger.
Others might not know what Secret Technique Yin Le Sheng had cast, but he knew it very well.
Obviously, Yin Le Sheng had cut off his own cultivation, thereby giving up the connection with his Netherworld Purgatory Banner. This way, he would not suffer the Ten Thousand Ghost Biting Backlash. But in light of this, it was tantamount to giving up all the cultivation he had achieved in the Netherworld Sect over so many years.
He would have to start everything from scratch, and there was a serious risk that his foundation would suffer serious damage.
Trusting his Martial Nephew, Hua Fei Chen had brought over twenty disciples to help him kill his enemy, but at this critical juncture of life and death, Yin Le Sheng had actually chosen to escape, pushing everything onto Hua Fei Chen.
What could be more depressing than this?
Hua Fei Chen almost spat blood in anger, cursing in his heart that the Netherworld Sect had raised an ungrateful wolf. He blamed himself for not seeing this beforehand. As distance tests a horse’s strength, so does time reveal a person’s heart. If he was given a choice again, he would rather meditate and cultivate in the Sect rather than put his foot into this chaos, and place himself in this precarious situation where there was just a fine line between life and death.
While his mind was filled with a jumble of thoughts, the Time Flies Seal had already struck him.
And thanks to him blocking it, Yin Le Sheng was able to escape.
The next moment, Hua Fei Chen’s skin grew old at a rate visible to the naked eye and his vitality was quickly passing away. Thousands of years seemed to have passed in the blink of an eye for him.
“Ungrateful bastard!” Hua Fei Chen turned his head and cursed, glaring at Yin Le Sheng and grinding his teeth in anger. After which, his head slumped to one side before he fell on the ground, struggling to breathe.
The Flowing Time Force was corroding his body and he was unable to resist it; death was only a matter of time.
And without his control, the Ghost King suddenly went mad, its eyes turning red as if hot charcoals were burning in them. It kept aimlessly swinging the huge sickle in its hand.
“Ahhh…”
Close to a dozen pitiful cries rang out at the same time as the Netherworld Sect disciples, who were on their last legs already, fell down on the ground together. Black energy emerged from their bodies, burning them like flames.
Obviously, they were suffering from severe backlash and had no hope of surviving.
Yang Kai didn’t pay attention to them, nor did he take care of the Ghost King that was out of control, he just coldly glanced in the direction of Lin’er and stated with a cold snort, “I’ll deal with you later!”
Lin’er couldn’t help but shiver when she met with his icy gaze. She was scared, but she still stubbornly glared back at Yang Kai without flinching.
Yang Kai’s figure flickered and he chased after Yin Le Sheng.
“Young Lady, let’s quickly escape!” Old Fu hurriedly and secretly suggested; his forehead was drenched in cold sweat.
[If we don’t escape, we won’t get the chance to escape again! Two Netherworld Sect Emperor Realm Masters had teamed up, and even had the support of over twenty Dao Source disciples, even going so far as to summon a Ghost King, yet they were unable to do anything to this young man. Instead, they were all killed by him, like plucking feathers from a chicken!]
This boy was simply a monster!
His loss in the desolate city was not unjustified. With the strength Yang Kai had just displayed, killing Old Fu would have been no more difficult than stepping on an ant.
“Why should I escape!” Lin’er angrily shouted, “This Young Lady will remain here! I want to see if he dares to attack me!”
She might have retorted in anger just now, but there was also reason backing up her confidence as no one had dared to attack her so far. More importantly, she had grown limp and couldn’t run.
Old Fu became anxious and hurriedly said, “Young Lady, didn’t you see his bloodshot eyes filled with murderous intent? If he accidentally hurt Young Lady’s noble body, how would this Old Master explain it to Sir?”
Lin’er snorted again even louder and declared, “I would like to see if he dares!”
Old Fu simply didn’t know what to say. Yang Kai was cut by the Ghost King because of his Young Lady’s interference and was still bleeding from his wound as they spoke. He would definitely not let his Young Lady go, but Old Fu’s earnest advice was completely useless and he didn’t dare to force Lin’er to obey. He was really as anxious as an ant on a hot wok now.
On another side, Yang Kai had caught up with Yin Le Sheng, who had not been able to escape far.
Yang Kai was proficient in the Dao of Space, so escape and pursuit were his forte. Not to mention, Yin Le Sheng’s strength was plummeting and his aura was constantly declining. At this moment, Yin Le Sheng’s cultivation had already dropped to the peak Dao Source Realm, so how could he escape from Yang Kai?
While running, Yin Le Sheng looked back and noticed Yang Kai hot on his tail like a hungry ghost, and his expression sank so low that a layer of frost could almost be shaved from his face.
While pursuing Yin Le Sheng, Yang Kai teased, “Run! Keep on running, I’d like to see where you can escape!”
Yin Le Sheng knew that he couldn’t flee, so he steeled his heart as something suddenly appeared in his hand. He grit his teeth and turned around, wanting to activate it.
But the moment he turned around, he was taken aback, because Yang Kai was already standing in front of him, coldly staring at the thing in his hand.
Before Yin Le Sheng could trigger it, Yang Kai had already swung the Myriads Sword.
*Shua…*
Yin Le Shen’s arm flew into the air as blood gushed out like a fountain from his shoulder.
Yang Kai stretched his hand out, catching the thing in his hand, glancing at it and muttering with a cold snort, “An Emperor Authority Bead! I knew it!”
In the past, he had suffered a big loss at the hands of the Young Sect Master of the Seeking Passion Sect, Feng Xi, inside the Shattered Star Sea. Yang Kai knew that the most outstanding disciples of a Sect, like the Netherworld Sect, would be bestowed with defensive treasures by their Elders.
And the Emperor Authority Bead was the most powerful of such treasures.
Although it wasn’t easy to create and was a one-time consumable object, if one had it, he or she could turn the tides at a critical moment.
Feng Xi had almost killed Yang Kai using the Emperor Authority Bead given to him by his father.
As the old saying goes, ‘once bitten, twice shy’, so how could Yang Kai not prepare against this action by Yin Le Sheng?
He had not allowed Yin Le Sheng to use the Emperor Authority Bead, and had directly chopped off his arm.
“Ahhh…”
Yin Le Sheng only just realized that his arm had been chopped off after staring at his severed limb in a daze before miserably screaming. He staggered back and fell to the ground, his face completely pale.
*Zheng…*
A cold gleam flashed before his eyes as the Myriads Sword in Yang Kai’s hand appeared right before him as the latter condescendingly looked down at him. The sword tip was pointing right at his nose, and the gleaming sword aura was like a poisonous snake hissing at him.
Yin Le Sheng’s cries came to an abrupt halt as he couldn’t help but nervously gulp with a look of horror on his face.
He knew that he had lost, and his defeat was thorough and complete. Even if Yang Kai let him go now, he would not be able to cultivate anymore as he had used a forbidden technique to sever his cultivation to escape with his life. His foundation was damaged and he had already regressed to the Saint King Realm, his strength still continuously declining.
“In truth, there is no deep grudge between us,” Yang Kai gazed at Yin Le Sheng, blood dripping down his chest and onto the ground as he continued with a stoic look on his face, “You brought this upon yourself!”
If Yin Le Sheng had stayed honestly in the Netherworld Sect, consolidating his cultivation, putting aside his grievance with Yang Kai, he may be able to take over his Honoured Master’s mantle and might even take charge of the Netherworld Sect in the future, but he just had to bring people to intercept Yang Kai.
One wrong step, led to another, and then another!
Yin Le Sheng grimly smiled and stated, “Who can tell what path is right or wrong on the Grand Dao. I might have lost today, but it’s not definitive that you will reach the peak in the future. What are you feeling proud about!?”
“Perhaps you are right,” Yang Kai nodded in agreement before adding, “But I can go farther and see more than you.”
The corner of Yin Le Sheng’s lips twitched. He was rendered speechless.
“Do you have any last words? Let’s hear them,” Yang Kai indifferently asked.
Yin Le Sheng grit his teeth and stated, “I’ll be waiting for you on the road to the Yellow Springs…”
“You’re still reluctant to admit your faults!” Yang Kai let out a cold snort before pushing the tip of his sword forward a bit, “Do you believe I won’t pull out your Soul and refine it instead of killing you?”
Yin Le Sheng immediately shut his mouth, not daring to act presumptuously.
Yang Kai tilted his head and said with a smile, looking at him, “I lied.”
Saying so, he thrust the Myriads Sword ahead, slowly stabbing into Yin Le Sheng.
Yin Le Sheng’s eyes widened in an instant. He could hear the Myriads Sword slowly piercing his body and stabbing his heart loud and clear. That slow and terrifying feeling instantly filled his heart and Soul.
“My Netherworld Sect… Will not spare you!”
A murmur-like voice came from nearby. Yang Kai turned his head and looked towards the source. He noticed Hua Fei Chen, who was hanging by a breath, lying on the ground, staring in his direction with wide-open eyes that were grey and devoid of any lustre, like those of a fish that had been dead for many days.
After having said his piece, his head slumped to one side as his vitality completely disappeared.
It was already a pretty impressive feat that he had remained alive till now after having been struck by the Time Flies Seal.
Naturally, Yang Kai didn’t attach importance to a threat from the dead, simply reaching out and taking Yin Le Sheng’s ring before throwing it into his pocket.
He was the top disciple of the Netherworld Sect, so he definitely had many treasures on him. How could Yang Kai miss such a prize?
Before he could turn and deal with Hua Fei Chen, Yang Kai’s expression drastically changed and he hurriedly threw away the Emperor Authority Bead in Yin Le Sheng’s hand.
*Peng…*
With a deafening clap, the Emperor Authority Bead suddenly exploded, reducing into dust before scattering in the air.
Yang Kai’s expression rapidly changed as his good mood suddenly turned bad, gritting his teeth as he murmured, “So, there was a restriction!”
He had no idea what restriction was placed on the Emperor Authority Bead, but it must have been related to Yin Le Sheng’s life; after all, it was a treasure bestowed to Yin Le Sheng by the Netherworld Sect’s Sect Master. Such a restriction must have been set to trigger upon Yin Le Sheng’s death, rendering the Emperor Authority Bead useless.
Yang Kai was saddened, but now that it had already happened, it was pointless to brood over it; all he could do was collect himself then walk over to Hua Fei Chen and take his Space Ring as well.
As for the out-of-control Ghost King, Yang Kai was totally unconcerned about it. Countless Soul Devouring Insects were gnawing on it, treating it as a delicious meal, so presumably, it would not be long before it would be completely devoured.
With over twenty fresh corpses lying around, there was a pungent bloody smell lingering in the air.
Yang Kai was injured as well. The wound caused by Ghost King’s slash hadn’t healed even now and pitch-black energy was lingering around the edge of the wound, continuously corroding his flesh and skin.
Yang Kai stretched his hand out and made a gesture, immediately drawing a small swarm of Soul Devouring Insects towards him and directing them to his wound.
Since the Soul Devouring Insects could devour a being like the Ghost King, it shouldn’t be a problem for them to deal with its Yin Qi. Yang Kai had summoned them to deal with his injury, and as he expected, just as the Soul Devouring Insects landed on his wound, they started devouring the lingering energy.
In just a few moments, that pitch-black energy was devoured clean and without the corrosion and interference of the Yin Qi, the strong restorative properties of Yang Kai’s Golden Blood came into play. His flesh and skin started squirming, and Yang Kai estimated that his wound would fully heal in just a few days.
Only now did Yang Kai finally turn his head, looking at the red-robed girl.
As soon as their eyes met, Lin’er couldn’t help but nervously gulp. She might have put up a brave front, but she was still scared to death in her heart. She had never seen someone as fierce as Yang Kai, who could kill all his opponents even when he was so heavily outnumbered. Furthermore, he didn’t murder ordinary people, but two Emperor Realm Masters from the Netherworld Sect plus a group of Dao Source Realm Masters who had laid out the Heavenly Net Absolute Sealing Array.
The huge wound on Yang Kai’s chest gave him an even more ferocious appearance.
Seeing Yang Kai looking in her direction, it would be a lie if she said that she wasn’t in a panic. Lin’er was currently regretting a little. Had she known, she would have escaped with Old Fu earlier. What could she even do by putting up a brave front and remaining here?
It never crossed her mind that with Yang Kai’s skill, she wouldn’t have been able to escape even if she wanted to. Unless she and Old Fu escaped back to the Ancient Lands Passageway where they could throw Yang Kai off with the help of the strange fog.
*Sha Sha Sha…*
Yang Kai walked towards her, step by step, his eyes completely cold, putting a lot of pressure onto Lin’er.
Old Fu earnestly tried to protect Lin’er, his figure flickering and standing before her, a wary look on his face.
“You are pretty obedient!” Yang Kai stood just ten metres away from them and coldly stated, pointing his sword at them, “For your honesty and compliance, this Young Master will give you a quick and painless death. Tell me, how do you want to die?”
Old Fu grew anxious upon hearing this. Was he serious? There were only a few people in this world who would dare to point their swords at his Young Lady and ask how she wanted to die, and judging by the murderous look on this young man’s face, he really was not planning to let the two of them go.
This was only natural, however, as his Young Lady had used an Emperor Artifact to bind him in a life and death fight, almost causing him to die at the hands of the Netherworld Sect’s people. Anyone would be enraged if they were in his place.
But how could he let his Young Lady die? If she died, the entire world would be thrown into chaos.
Old Fu quickly intervened, “Young Master, enmity should be resolved rather than settled. We were in the wrong today, please show mercy on us this time. In any case, nothing happened today, yes?”
“Nothing happened!?” Yang Kai, who was burning with fury, looked sidelong at him as he snorted as he rebuked, “Do you think this Young Master is faking his injuries? How can you say nothing happened?”
His wound had still not healed and his bones could be seen quite clearly. How could it be treated as nothing?
Old Fu’s face sank as he justified, “This Old Master is also doing this for your own good. If you refuse to realize your errors, you will be facing a huge disaster.”
Yang Kai laughed in anger and stated, “This Young Master knows that you have strong backing and there is someone big behind you, but so what? Since you have fallen in this Young Master’s hand, your life or death is for me to decide. Losers should act like losers, yet you still dare to shamelessly boast like this! Do you really believe I won’t run you through with my sword!”
While speaking, Yang Kai thrust his sword, resting it straight on Old Fu’s chest and with a flick of his wrist, he tore Old Fu’s shirt apart, scaring him to the point that he hurriedly backed away. His bold front instantly vanished in a puff of smoke and his puffed up chest shrivelled like a wilted eggplant.
He was utterly afraid that Yang Kai would stab him in a rage. If his Young Lady died, this young man would suffer a deadly crisis, but if he was killed, no one would stand up for him.
In the end, he was just a guard, responsible for protecting his Young Lady. But how was he supposed to protect her if he couldn’t even protect himself now?
They had really run into a true madman!
Old Fu was filled with hatred, but he knew very well how strong Yang Kai was now. Had he known that the Netherworld Sect disciples were such wastes, why would he have gone to look for them and actively cooperate with them, provoking Yang Kai with his Young Lady time and time again?
But then again, how could he have known that a mere First-Order Emperor Realm Master could be so overwhelmingly powerful?
“Th-then what do you want?” Old Fu softened his stance and weakly asked.
At present, he was the fish on the chopping block, facing Yang Kai’s blade. He had no choice but to lower his head, throw his pride and humiliation aside, and look for a way to survive this. Ten years wasn’t too late for a gentleman to take his revenge.
Yang Kai’s face sank as he stated, “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. This Young Master can let things go once or twice, but certainly not thrice. Your Young Lady obstinately insists on her foolish actions and will cause a catastrophe sooner or later. Why doesn’t this Young Master clean up your Sect on behalf of the Sir behind you and save him from future worries?”
Old Fu was greatly shocked, feeling like he was trying to make a clever speech to a cow. Yang Kai’s murderous intent hadn’t been reduced at all and he seemed dead set on his Young Lady. What was he supposed to do?
He didn’t dare to hesitate anymore and hurriedly added, “Do you know who we are? Who my Young Lady is? She is…”
“Shut up!” Yang Kai kicked him before he could finish.
Old Fu was caught unprepared and helplessly watched himself get kicked right in the face, letting out a miserable scream as he was sent flying. His nose was broken from this kick and he crashed to the ground, not getting up no matter how much time passed.
After kicking away Old Fu, Yang Kai finally turned his gaze at the red-robed girl and quickly said, “Girl, this Young Master let you go back in that desolate city, and instead of feeling grateful and seeking ways to repay me, you actually joined forces with the Netherworld Sect to try to attack this Young Master. Today, this Young Master will take your life to let you know that there are some people in this world you cannot provoke!”
Lin’er was greatly shocked and her pretty face turned pale as she cried, “How dare you!?”
She had not even finished her words though when Yang Kai lifted his sword and swung it at her.
In a flash, Lin’er pretty face went as pale as paper as the aura of death enveloped her. She broke into a cold sweat and her hands and feet froze up.
She had never experienced something like this. She had been completely spoiled since birth, with everyone at her beck and call. Wherever she went, no one would dare disobey her every command, much less dare to kill her.
But now, she had encountered someone who wanted to take her life, and he wasn’t just trying to intimidate her, he meant what he said and was actually trying to do it.
She was just a Third-Order Dao Source Realm, who was exhausted from using her Emperor Artifact. Now, she couldn’t even smoothly walk, much less defend herself from a blow like this.
[So, this is what death feels like!]
[He really intends to kill me!?] Lin’er stood in a daze, as if a petrification spell had been cast on her.
Emperor Qi surged as the Myriads Sword horizontally slashed at her. Yang Kai hadn’t held himself back at all. Even Old Fu would be cut into two by this slash, not to mention a tender girl like Lin’er.
But just when the Myriads Sword was about to cut her, a black pendant on Lin’er neck suddenly cracked and turned into a black barrier, covering her completely.
*Hong…*
A crisp and reverberating clang immediately rang out. The Myriads Sword struck the barrier, but it couldn’t damage it even a bit. Instead, Yang Kai retreated a few steps from the recoil.
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes, but he didn’t look surprised at all. It appeared as if he had expected this and just stared at the black barrier while letting out a cold snort.
After protecting Lin’er, the black barrier turned into a streak of black light as it shot out and sank into Old Fu, who was still lying on the ground.
*Weng…*
The surrounding world suddenly trembled as an unimaginable pressure spread into the surroundings, a pressure which clearly originated from Old Fu.
*Hualala…*
The birds and beasts within a hundred kilometres fled, as if they had sensed the approaching danger.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but nervously gulp as he raised his vigilance.
He couldn’t be any more familiar with the phenomena before him. This was clearly a powerful Master’s Soul Descent.
Feng Xi had also resorted to this technique back in the Shattered Star Sea, so the experience was still fresh in Yang Kai’s memories.
The elites of top Sects seemed to have many tricks up their sleeves, with Emperor Authority Beads being the most common. The Soul Descent was undoubtedly an even stronger form of protection as a wisp of a true Master was able to manifest itself through it. Although this Master was unable to bring out their full strength in a borrowed body, it still wasn’t something an ordinary person could deal with.
The manifestation of a Master’s Soul not only put tremendous pressure on the opposite party, but also deterred the enemy with prestige and reputation.
There were only so many top Masters in the world, but once one of their Souls appeared, who would dare to disregard them?
Since even Feng Xi had a Soul Descent of his father placed on him in the Shattered Star Sea, of course this Young Lady Lin’er could have a similar technique protecting her.
Yang Kai had already expected this, so he didn’t expect to be able to really kill Lin’er at all. Still, being unable to vent his anger vexed him greatly.
The mysterious Master, who chose to Soul Descend in Old Fu’s body, might have his own considerations. First, Lin’er was a girl, making it a little inconvenient, and second, Old Fu was much stronger than Lin’er. The mysterious Master would be able to use a few more moves by manifesting his Soul in Old Fu’s body. Furthermore, he didn’t have to worry about damaging Old Fu afterwards.
Also, it would be a bigger burden on the person with a weaker body when a Master’s Soul manifested in their body.
Under Yang Kai’s watchful gaze, Old Fu, who was lying on the ground, stood up straight, his grey hair dancing as if in the wind despite there not being any blowing. His eyes were now as deep as the sea, giving off an awe-inspiring impression.
In the blink of an eye, Old Fu’s temperament had drastically changed, and the look in his gaze was now one of a superior being, who considered everyone beneath him, like the ruler of the world.
Old Fu glanced around, his gaze momentarily stopping on Yang Kai, before turning to Lin’er’s direction. His face remained stoic, making it hard to tell whether he was happy or angry.
At this point, Lin’er finally showed a response. She reached out to her neck and touched the area where the pendant was originally hanging, then she glanced at Old Fu. After noticing a familiar gaze, she couldn’t help but shrink her neck again, already realizing what had just happened.
“Father…” She called out in a mosquito-like voice. Rather than being happy that her father’s Soul had appeared, it looked more like she was scared.
“Hmph!” Old Fu let out a cold snort before indifferently speaking, “Why are you outside? You should be behind closed doors, reflecting on your mistakes.”
Lin’er was rendered speechless after hearing this, flinching as she looked away, not daring to meet her father’s gaze.
Yang Kai’s brow twitched upon hearing this. It turned out that this Young Lady had secretly run away from home! No wonder she looked afraid when her father had used a Soul Descent. Why did all these little girls like to do this? Mo Xiao Qi also often sneaked out of Spirit Beast Island, now there was this girl too.
All of them were so spoiled! Yang Kai coldly snorted in his heart.
“What did you do now?” Old Fu asked.
Lin’er didn’t answer and instead began glancing left and right, as if she was looking for a way to escape.
“I’ve asked you a question. Why aren’t you answering?” Old Fu suddenly shouted.
Lin’er trembled before blurting out in a conditional reflex, “Your dear daughter was bullied…”
While she replied, tears rolled down her white cheeks before dripping down on the ground. She appeared as pitiful and as sad as could be. Her previous arrogance and domineering bearing were nowhere to be found. Her current performance was completely opposite from before.
Yang Kai was flabbergasted, thinking in heart, [This Young Lady’s acting skills are pretty good. I guess she does this quite often.]
Her tears started pouring out as soon as she started speaking and they kept rolling down like there was no end to them. Her cries sounded extremely miserable and pitiful, as if someone had really bullied her intolerably. Next, she pointed at Yang Kai and shouted, “It was him! He wanted to kill me! Father, you must uphold justice for me!”
Old Fu, maintaining a stoic look, stated, “Is there anyone who would dare to bully you? It’s always you who has been bullying others and causing trouble everywhere you go, but this time you were taught a harsh lesson, am I right?”
He seemed to know his daughter very well and didn’t believe her story at all, hitting the nail on the head in just a few sentences.
Lin’er’s cries came to an abrupt stop as she looked at Old Fu, mouth agape.
“Sir is really wise!” Yang Kai praised, hurriedly cupping his fists, a grin on his face.
Old Fu turned and indifferently looked at Yang Kai, “This King is talking to his daughter. You have no right to interrupt us.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help but disdainfully snort, finding the whole situation tiresome and frustrating.
Old Fu then asked, “Aren’t you surprised to see this King?”
Yang Kai replied with a snort, “What’s there to be surprised about? Had you not been spoiling and protecting her, with your daughter’s temper and ability to cause trouble, how could she survive till today? Without such sheltering, you wouldn’t even know how she died.”
Since the opposite party wasn’t polite towards him, Yang Kai didn’t bother to give him face. In any case, he was in the right now, so Yang Kai didn’t believe that the opposite party could bully him.
Feng Xi’s father, Feng Xuan might forcefully stand up for his son, paying no attention to his face, but the opposite party couldn’t do this as he still had to have qualms regarding his identity. And precisely because of this, Yang Kai wasn’t afraid at all.
Lin’er glanced at Yang Kai in astonishment. She had never thought that Yang Kai would have such guts that he could say such things right in her father’s face. Not just anyone could do this.
[Why did I provoke this kind of crazy person?] Lin’er was deeply regretting it now.
Old Fu’s face turned grim as he doubtfully asked, “Little brat, are you accusing this King of being too lax in his discipline?”
Yang Kai snorted and ignored him. What was the point of asking this when he clearly knew the answer already?
Seeing his indifferent appearance, Old Fu was also taken aback and immediately asked, “Aren’t you afraid of this King?”
Yang Kai gave him a sidelong glance and stated, “Why should I be afraid?”
Had it been before his trip to the Shattered Star Sea, Yang Kai might have still been frightened, but he was far more experienced now and had even met the Bustling World Great Emperor and the Heaven Devouring Great Emperor. He already had an extremely rich experience.
“Do you know who this King is?” Old Fu asked again.
Yang Kai remained indifferent for a while before he cupped his fists and greeted, “Junior Yang Kai greets Senior Serene Soul!”
He didn’t greet him out of fear, but rather he was showing his respect towards a Master.
Old Fu was really shocked by this, but that couldn’t be helped as Yang Kai had actually known his identity. It was quite evident that Yang Kai knew who he was dealing with and what his status was.
As Yang Kai had just said, the Soul Manifestation before him belonged to one of the Ten Great Emperors of the Star Boundary, the Serene Soul Great Emperor; the hegemon of the Eastern Territory and founder of the Serene Soul Palace.
The Soul Contracts that widely circulated throughout the Star Boundary were this Master’s personal creation.
Yang Kai could guess all this because of the attitude the Netherworld Sect disciples had towards Lin’er. The Netherworld Sect was a top Sect of the Eastern Territory, so if Lin’er’s status wasn’t nobler than theirs, why would they treat her so politely?
Who could have a higher status than a top disciple and Elder from the Netherworld Sect?
It wasn’t that strange to make the connections.
“How did you know?” Old Fu furrowed his brow.
Yang Kai grinned meaningfully and stated, “I made a guess.”
Old Fu’s eyes glimmered but he didn’t pursue it, pondering for a moment before asking, “Since you know about Lin’er’s background, how dare you try to kill her? Could it be… That your purpose was to draw this King out?”
[Seems this old man does have some brains at least…]
After having his intentions revealed, Yang Kai didn’t bother playing dumb and cupped his fists and stated, “Sir’s vision is truly sharp. Junior did have such intentions.”
Of course, if he didn’t show up, Yang Kai would have really silenced all the witnesses. Lin’er had provoked him many times already. More importantly, her interference had almost gotten him killed, so Yang Kai couldn’t assume that this had never happened.
Old Fu curiously asked, “What do you get by drawing out this King?”
Yang Kai sighed and replied with a pained look on his face, “Sir, Junior had no choice as well. I was forced by your daughter.”
“How is this related to me!?” Lin’er was now calmer than before. With her father here now, she wasn’t worried for her life. What she was rather worried about was how long she would be grounded for this time.
Yang Kai glanced at her and angrily responded, “If you didn’t have an astonishing background, do you think you would still be alive to be able to speak right now?”
Lin’er let out a snort. She was too lazy to argue with him, but when she recalled how Yang Kai slashed at her without a shred of hesitation, she was gripped with lingering fear and knew that Yang Kai was right. Without her father’s protection, she would indeed be dead.
Yang Kai cupped his fists and continued, wearing a sad face, “Senior Serene Soul, your daughter has made things difficult for me over and over again. This Junior had no intention of haggling over such matters though, as with this little girl’s background, a little mischief is justified. Junior let her indiscretion pass several times, but not only did she not appreciate it, she colluded with the Netherworld Sect to set an ambush for me, an unforgivable act! With no other choice, Junior was forced to slaughter twenty Netherworld Sect members right here…”
Old Fu raised his brow and looked around. He had already noticed the corpses littered on the ground before, but he hadn’t expected these guys to be from the Netherworld Sect.
[Is this brat really so impressive? He is just a First-Order Emperor, how did he kill so many by himself?]
Yang Kai continued, “The death of the Netherworld Sect’s members isn’t worth pitying, but this Junior doesn’t dare to make rash moves against your daughter!”
“You… You are lying!” Lin’er angrily pointed at Yang Kai and shouted, “You clearly wanted to kill me!”
Yang Kai sneered and stated, “If I didn’t threaten your life, how would I draw Sir out!?”
Old Fu asked, looking at Yang Kai with narrowed eyes, “What do you want by drawing out this King?”
Yang Kai was taken aback but still promptly responded, “Sir, I don’t dare to kill your daughter, but I have to vent my anger one way or another, don’t I? Naturally, I can only ask you to settle it. Who asked my fists to not be bigger than yours?”
Old Fu softly sneered.
[So, you think that it’s okay for me to be bullied, right?] Yang Kai’s heart burned with fury and immediately continued, “Sir, I almost lost my life because of your daughter. Look at this wound, it burns even now.”
Old Fu gazed down at the half-meter long scar on Yang Kai’s chest and was indeed shaken a little.
[This brat really is one of a kind, speaking so boldly with me even after suffering such a serious wound while maintaining a straight face! Isn’t he afraid that I will crush him into nothing with just a wave of my hand?]
“This King understands! How do you want this King to settle this?” Old Fu gazed at Yang Kai, maintaining a calm and composed look, “Since I am here now. Just say what’s in your mind. If you don’t say it right now, you won’t get another chance again.”
Yang Kai’s face sank as he asked, “Sir, are you thinking of silencing me? Sir, if a man of your status does something like this, how will you keep your face if the word ever got out?”
Old Fu replied, “Whatever your motive was, it is a fact that you wanted to kill this King’s daughter. What does it matter if this King kills you?”
Yang Kai immediately blew his top and lashed out in anger, “Sir, are you really going to do this? Relying on your own status and strength to bully me?”
This old fart was simply too shameless! As one of the Ten Great Emperors, he was someone of great prestige. How could he do something so deplorable?
Lin’er, on the other hand, was excited and immediately shouted, “Father, there is no need to talk nonsense with him. Quickly kill him!”
Old Fu coldly smiled and asked, gazing at Yang Kai, “Are you afraid now?”
Yang Kai grit his teeth and stated, “What have I to be afraid of? This Young Master has fought shoulder to shoulder with the Bustling World Great Emperor, it’s not like I have never seen the power of a Great Emperor! This Young Master is also an experienced person. What’s there to be afraid of?”
Once he mentioned this, a strange look immediately appeared on Old Fu’s face as he asked, “You have fought shoulder to shoulder with Old Hong Chen?”
“That’s right!” Yang Kai snorted before continuing, “Sir, if you really came in person, this Junior would naturally flee right away, but with just a wisp of Sir’s Soul having manifested here, how much of your strength can you display? Forgive this Junior for being blunt, but if forced to, this Junior can drag your daughter down with me before he dies! I wonder if Sir cares about your daughter’s life or not!?”
A ferocious look appeared on Yang Kai’s face. He would really do it. He wasn’t just making an idle threat.
“Despicable!” Lin’er’s face turned pale. [This bastard still wants to kill me! He has been harbouring impure motives from the start. You better not fall into this Young Lady’s hand, otherwise, I will definitely take good care of you!]
“Sir, if you don’t believe me, you are welcome to give it a try!” Yang Kai waved the Myriads Sword, taking a posture that he was ready to die along with the enemy.
Old Fu maintained the same stoic look as he rebuked in a low voice, “You fought shoulder to shoulder with the Bustling World Great Emperor? Brat, haven’t you gone overboard with your bragging? Aren’t you afraid of getting exposed?”
Yang Kai replied, “This Junior only states facts, he never brags.”
“Is that so…” Old Fu meaningfully laughed before he paused and stated, “Wait a moment!”
“Wait for what?” Yang Kai stared at him in amazement, his brow slightly furrowing. He had no idea what the opposite party was planning on doing now, but he knew that he was clearly not the opposite party’s opponent; therefore, he didn’t dare to take things lightly.
The opposite party couldn’t be compared with the likes of Feng Xuan. Even though it was just a Soul Manifestation here, Yang Kai didn’t have much confidence in being his enemy; however, he still had some confidence in escaping. If it weren’t for this, how could he dare to stay here and confidently talk with the opposite party, maintaining a straight face?
Meanwhile, Old Fu’s gaze lowered a little as he stood completely still. Yang Kai immediately became suspicious. But he still didn’t dare to make a rash move, lest he provoked the other party’s anger.
…
Somewhere among a towering, snow-capped mountain range, buildings of all shapes and sizes stood erect. From time to time, cultivators would fly over from the sky. The buildings below were filled with people, painting an extremely lively picture.
Senior Brothers of the same Sect were exchanging pointers with each other or playing games of chess. Teams of maids passed by, moving in a hurry without speaking or smiling.
Plum blossoms were blooming everywhere as their sweet fragrance lingered in the air. Many tamed, rare, and exotic animals were roaming in the mountains and forests, where rays of morning sunlight were shining through the clouds and the leaves of trees.
The beautiful sights painted the picture of a paradise on earth that was extremely rich in World Energy.
This was the hegemon Sect of the Eastern Territory, Serene Soul Palace.
Those who had never been to Serene Soul Palace couldn’t even imagine this scenery inside this Sect. Its name containing ‘Soul’ alone gave the impression of a mysterious and ethereal place. There was a vast difference between imagination and reality.
On the highest mountain covered in snow, there was a palace that stood on a vast piece of land. The palace was cold and deserted, seemingly not having been inhabited by anyone for a long time.
Also, not a single person could be seen within a hundred kilometres of this mountain. Not even the birds and beasts wandering in the mountains dared to approach this place.
It couldn’t be helped as this was the Restricted Area of Serene Soul Palace, where the Serene Soul Great Emperor cultivated in secluded retreat.
Serene Soul was one of the Ten Great Emperors and stood at the apex of the Star Boundary. It was quite common for his retreats to last several dozen years to over a century. Unless one was summoned, no one dared to disturb him at all. Even his children needed to ask for his permission before they could set foot here.
Even the Young Palace Master of Serene Soul Palace, Yao Si, hadn’t seen his father for three years. He only knew that his father was comprehending some Secret Technique and could not be disturbed.
At this moment, under the swaying lights inside the palace, two figures were sitting cross-legged opposite each other.
One was a person with black hair and wearing a black robe. He had an indifferent look on his face, but there was a natural aura of majesty and superiority to him, giving a daunting impression. He was none other than the Serene Soul Palace’s Master, one of the Ten Great Emperors, Serene Soul Great Emperor himself.
And the other person sitting opposite him was an elderly man. This elderly man seemingly didn’t know how to sit or stand properly and was literally just slumped on the ground, looking left and right with a bored look on his face, as if he wanted to see what this damned place had to offer. Apparently, he was preparing to take advantage of the moment the Serene Soul Great Emperor wasn’t paying attention.
His appearance, the sneaky look on his face, perfectly matched his movements.
If Yao Si saw this scene, he would be completely surprised.
Because only his father and a few of his most trusted confidants had ever set foot in this place; no outsider had ever entered it, but at this moment, an elderly man of unknown origins was sitting face to face with his father, and his great Father was completely unguarded against him…
If Yang Kai saw this scene, he too would be greatly shocked.
Because this elderly man wasn’t a stranger, he was none other than Duan Hong Chen, who had just parted ways with him in the Purple Mountain Range.
Who knew why Duan Hong Chen had come here and went directly to the Serene Soul Great Emperor.
Only the crackling sound coming from the wicks of the lamps could be heard in the silent palace. Right then, the Serene Soul Great Emperor slowly opened his eyes, scaring Duan Hong Chen, who immediately straightened his back and eagerly asked, “Are you done?”
“Not yet,” the Serene Soul Great Emperor shook his head.
Duan Hong Chen was at a loss and asked in amazement, “Why did you open your eyes when you aren’t done yet? Hurry up and finish whatever it is quickly, this Old Master still has other things which require your help.”
He showed not the slightest politeness, as if he was very familiar with the Serene Soul Great Emperor.
The Serene Soul Great Emperor smiled and stated, “Your business isn’t that pressing, but I have something to ask you.”
Duan Hong Chen curiously asked, “Ask me? What do you need to ask me about?”
The Serene Soul Great Emperor replied, laughing, “There is a little brat who doesn’t know the immensity of Heaven and Earth and says that he fought shoulder to shoulder with you, is it true or false?”
Yang Kai had just boasted so shamelessly, so the Serene Soul Great Emperor had come back to ask Duan Hong Chen right away. Who knows how Yang Kai would feel if he came to know about this strange coincidence.
Duan Hong Chen sneered before replying, “What nonsense is that? Would you believe anything anyone says? When has this Old Master fought side by side with others? Whoever it is must have tried to scare you using the Old Master’s name. Send him away right away, this Old Master’s business is more pressing.”
Serene Soul agreed with a nod, “I also thought so…”
He also felt that Yang Kai was just uttering nonsense; after all, who was Duan Hong Chen? Even if he cut his own cultivation and his strength had sharply dropped, he didn’t need to team up with others to fight his enemies, and since Duan Hong Chen happened to be in his Serene Soul Palace, it didn’t cost him much to casually ask him.
“Wait!” Duan Hong Chen suddenly shouted, a strange look appearing on his face as he asked further, “What does this brat look like?”
He suddenly remembered that there was indeed a guy who had fought alongside him just recently.
The Serene Soul Great Emperor didn’t reply in words and instead waved his hand, causing the space between the two to ripple. A clear picture immediately entered Duan Hong Chen’s eyes. It was the scene of Yang Kai standing at the entrance of the Ancient Lands Passageway with the Myriads Sword, surrounded by corpses everywhere.
The corners of Duan Hong Chen’s lips twitched after just a glance before speaking, “Why is it this brat…”
The Serene Soul Great Emperor was stunned and immediately asked, “Do you know him?”
Duan Hong Chen’s face suddenly grimaced as he began grinding his teeth, “This King will recognize that brat even if he is reduced to ashes! Quickly kill him! If you help this King vent his anger, this King will definitely owe you one!”
The Serene Soul Great Emperor heaved a sigh before responding, “Heaven Devourer, if you come out and talk nonsense again, this King will not be polite to you. This King’s Serene Soul Finger isn’t something to be trifled with.”
He could easily tell at a glance that it wasn’t Duan Hong Chen speaking, but the Heavenly Devouring Great Emperor, Wu Kuang, who was sharing bodies with Duan Hong Chen.
Duan Hong Chen gave a weird smile, retorting, “Oh! How gutsy of you! You actually dare to use this kind of tone with this King! I didn’t see you having such guts back then.”
The Serene Soul Great Emperor repeated with a smile, “This King’s Serene Soul Finger isn’t to be trifled with…”
He kept silent about what happened back then. Apparently, he had suffered a huge loss at the hands of Heaven Devourer.
Duan Hong Chen’s face turned gloomy as he retorted, “Can’t you change the line you keep using? Is it that interesting to threaten this King with the same line, over and over again?”
The Serene Soul Great Emperor remained unaffected and kept smiling, “This King’s Serene Soul Finger…”
“You are sick!”
The Heaven Devouring Great Emperor didn’t have a good temperament to begin with, so at this moment, he couldn’t help but lash out.
At that moment, Duan Hong Chen’s suddenly jolted before the vicious look on his face suddenly disappeared, replaced by an angry look.
If somebody was speaking but someone took over his body suddenly, anyone would be annoyed, but Heaven Devourer and he couldn’t do anything to each other right now.
“Do you really know this brat?” Serene Soul asked after seeing that Heaven Devourer was suppressed.
“Yes…” Duan Hong Chen smacked his lips and said, “He is that boy I just told you about.”
Serene Soul raised his brow and asked, “Did both of you attack Heaven Devourer together, and ruin Heaven Devourer’s plans?”
“That’s right! But it’s more complicated than you think. I can’t explain it to you in just a few words. In any case, you have seen the final result,” Duan Hong Chen helplessly replied.
The Serene Soul Great Emperor slightly nodded before confirming, “So to say, he really isn’t just idly boasting, right?”
“What do you want to do to him?” Duan Hong Chen worriedly glanced at Yang Kai in the light screen before him.
He knew that the Serene Soul Great Emperor had used a Soul Descent somewhere. Apparently, his spoiled daughter had encountered some danger. The Soul Descent of a Great Emperor wasn’t a joke. It was like some treasured sword that couldn’t be drawn from the sheath, but once it was drawn, it needed to drink blood.
If the Great Emperor returned without killing someone after using Soul Descent, it would damage his reputation.
[It’s fine if it’s someone else, but if it’s Yang Kai…] Duan Hong Chen really didn’t want him to die at the hands of the Serene Soul Great Emperor; after all, he had indeed helped him a lot in the Shattered Star Sea.
Serene Soul asked, glancing at him, “Do you want me to let him go?”
Both of them were old monsters who had lived and cultivated for countless millennia, so Serene Soul could easily tell what was going through Duan Hong Chen’s mind even without any tell-tale signs and thought, [This is perfect. I can make this old thing owe me one.]
Serene Soul secretly made up his mind.
“I have nothing to do with him. Whether he lives or dies has nothing to do with me. You can do what you want. You don’t need to ask me,” Duan Hong Chen flicked his sleeve, wearing a disinterested look as though such matters were of no concern to him.
If Serene Soul could guess what was on his mind, why couldn’t he guess what Serene Soul’s plan was? He already owed him one, so if he owed him another, he might have to serve Serene Soul for a lifetime. This was a huge loss to him. He wouldn’t do it!
“Alright then, this King will kill him!” Serene Soul nodded, “Although it would be wilful, I can’t let anyone bully my daughter.”
“Heh,” Duan Hong Chen slyly laughed and stated. “If you want your daughter to die along with him, you are welcome to make a move.”
Serene Soul’s face sank as he snarled, “Duan Hong Chen, aren’t you looking down on this King too much? Although just a wisp of this King’s Soul has manifested on the other side, it will only take a wave of my hand to kill a First-Order Emperor.”
Duan Hong Chen explained, shaking his head, “If it was a normal First-Order Emperor, he would naturally not be your opponent. But this kid… Haa… Isn’t that simple. If you want to take him down, you might have to sweat a little.”
Serene Soul angrily lashed out, “Duan Hong Chen, enough is enough!”
[He isn’t looking favourably on that brat but rather looking down on me!] Serene Soul immediately blew his top.
Duan Hong Chen indifferently stated, “He is proficient in the Dao of Space!”
“Is that so?” Serene Soul was slightly shocked, but since Duan Hong Chen said this boy was proficient in the Dao of Space, then he really must be so. Such a person would really be hard to kill.
“He has also mastered the Time Flies Seal!”
“What!? Time Flies Seal!?” Serene Soul was really shocked this time. Time Flies Seal was the Divine Ability of the Flowing Time Great Emperor, the only Divine Ability related to the Dao of Time in this world. Even Serene Soul himself had not been able to get a glimpse of its secrets. Once the Time Flies Seal was used, his daughter really might be buried along with him.
“By the way, he also has the Mountains and Rivers Bell!” Duan Hong Chen threw out information in bits and pieces, each time giving Serene Soul a bigger shock than the last, making his expression change even more drastically than before. Giving it another thought, even Duan Hong Chen felt uncomfortable.
He didn’t have an idea about any of this; after all, Yang Kai hadn’t revealed much information in the Shattered Star Sea back then.
The Serene Soul Great Emperor was flabbergasted and in a daze, the corners of his lips were constantly twitching.
After a long time, he confirmed in a grim voice, “Yuan Ding’s Mountains and Rivers Bell?”
Duan Hong Chen raised his brow before rebuking, “Apart from that Mountains and Rivers Bell, are there any other Mountains and Rivers Bell you know of?”
Serene Soul’s facial muscles twitched even more fiercely.
Although he was one of the Ten Great Emperors and had no shortage of Emperor Artifacts, he couldn’t help but covet an artifact like the Mountains and Rivers Bell, an Ancient Exotic Artifact. In the past, when Heaven Devourer was besieged, he killed Yuan Ding first at the cost of serious injuries all because of the fear of the suppressive capabilities of the Mountains and Rivers Bell.
How could Serene Soul not desire something that even Heavenly Devourer was afraid of?
[Dao of Space, Time Flies, Mountains and Rivers Bell…]
[This brat’s luck is simply too good. How could he gather all these treasures for himself? It’s already a blessing if an ordinary cultivator can obtain one! Is he simply that loved by the Heavens?]
[Those who are not blessed will not encounter such fortuitous opportunities. The blessings of this brat are too Heaven defying.]
After a while of silence, Serene Soul stated with a snort, “What’s the point in telling me this? How boring!”
Duan Hong Chen replied, chuckling, “I’m just making small talk…”
He knew that Serene Soul wouldn’t attempt to kill Yang Kai anymore, because he wasn’t confident that he could behead Yang Kai with just his Soul Descent. Duan Hong Chen wouldn’t have revealed all this if that wasn’t his objective.
While speaking, Duan Hong Chen impatiently urged again, “You should quickly settle the things there. This Old Master is waiting for you to separate me from Heaven Devourer. Ever since this old dog has occupied this Old Master’s body, it has become inconvenient for this Old Master to visit the brothel!”
The Serene Soul Great Emperor was titled Serene Soul naturally because he was proficient in Souls and Spiritual Energy. He had done the most thorough research on the topics related to Spiritual Energy and Souls among the Ten Great Emperors. Therefore, Duan Hong Chen had come to Serene Soul Palace and asked the Serene Soul Great Emperor for help. He wanted to check whether Serene Soul could strip Heaven Devourer’s Soul from his body.
If even Serene Soul couldn’t help him, then he could only temporarily maintain this state while trying to find other solutions. When he contemplated the future, Duan Hong Chen couldn’t help but shudder.
Speaking of proper business, Serene Soul’s face also turned serious as he replied, “Hong Chen, I won’t hide it from you. Your situation is a bit tricky. I may not be able to help.”
“Whether you can help or not, it’s fine. Just give it a try,” Duan Hong Chen replied in a grim voice.
Serene Soul nodded before closing his eyes again.
Outside the Ancient Lands Passageway, Yang Kai was keeping an eye on Old Fu while holding the Myriads Sword, not daring to let down his guard.
The Soul Manifestation of the Serene Soul Great Emperor spoke a sentence to him before he stopped moving, leaving Yang Kai puzzled. He couldn’t comprehend what Serene Soul wanted to do.
[Should I take advantage of this situation and run away?]
[But if the matter here isn’t resolved, I might be targeted by the Serene Soul Palace. The Serene Soul Palace and the Netherworld Sect are on completely different levels. Being targeted by those from the Serene Soul Palace will definitely be troublesome.]
Thinking about it, an even bolder idea flashed in his mind.
[How about I be the ruthless one and kill these two first? Their deaths would end all my troubles.]
However, the moment this idea appeared in his mind, it was quashed by Yang Kai. If he really did this, he would completely offend the Serene Soul Great Emperor.
[Let’s look at how things proceed first.] Yang Kai decided to act depending on the situation. If the Serene Soul Great Emperor really tried to attack him, it would not be too late to react. Considering all this, he glanced at Lin’er and coincidentally, she too was looking at him.
As their gazes met, Yang Kai pursed his lips into an evil grin, one that made him look extremely ferocious.
Lin’er was frightened and hurriedly looked away, questioning what her Father was doing. [Things won’t end even with the death of this brat… I was bullied and can’t lift my head anymore… How depressing…]
At this moment, Old Fu, who had been standing still, suddenly raised his head and looked at Yang Kai as if he had regained his senses.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but nervously gulp before speaking in a stiff voice, “Sir, what advice do you have for me?”
Old Fu slightly narrowed his eyes as he sized up Yang Kai. Then, he turned his gaze to the corpses of the twenty or so Netherworld Sect disciples. He knew that these people had unjustly died. How could they be an opponent of someone who had fought together with the Bustling World Great Emperor to deal with Heaven Devourer?
[Mountains and Rivers Bell! After this Ancient Exotic Artifact was brought out of this place by Yuan Ding tens of thousands of years ago… To think it would return to this place again…]
“I understand the gist of what has happened here,” Old Fu indifferently stated, “My daughter was in the wrong in this matter and deliberately made trouble for you. You did nothing wrong.”
“Haha, Sir’s vision is truly sharp,” Yang Kai relaxed after hearing this as he knew that he wasn’t in danger. In any case, Serene Soul was a Great Emperor, and since he had given such a judgement, he would definitely not make trouble for Yang Kai any longer.
On the contrary, Lin’er pouted in anger upon hearing this, her face filled with dissatisfaction.
Old Fu added with a nod, “The Ancient Lands are a dangerous place, take good care of yourself.”
Having said so, he stretched his hand toward Lin’er and wrapped her up in his Emperor Qi before turning to leave.
“Wait!” Yang Kai hurriedly shouted seeing his stance.
“You have something more to say?” Old Fu turned his head, looking at Yang Kai with some impatience.
The corner of Yang Kai’s mouth twitched as he asked, “Sir, you are not thinking of leaving just like that right?”
[Are you kidding me? I was injured because of this stubborn girl, and now you want to leave without so much as a word of apology?] Even if Heavens’ retribution came down now, Yang Kai wouldn’t agree to this.
Old Fu was stunned and a strange look appeared on his face as he asked, “What do you want?”
Yang Kai grimaced in pain and stated, pointing at the gaping wound on his chest, “Sir, this Junior’s injuries are a result of your daughter’s interference, even my bones have been crushed and I’m afraid I won’t be able to recover from this for at least a half year…”
Old Fu turned his gaze down, looking at the squirming muscles near Yang Kai’s wound, and immediately, his face couldn’t help but twitch a little.
Did this brat think he was blind? Although he couldn’t see what Body Tempering Secret Art Yang Kai had cultivated, such an injury was clearly just a superficial wound to him and would fully recover in a few days, yet he dared to claim it would take half a year of rest to recover from? How outrageous!
Yang Kai didn’t seem to have noticed his expression and continued, “Sir also said that the Ancient Lands are dangerous. This Junior must continue to venture forth because of some personal matters. If Junior was to die here because of this wound, your dear daughter would not be able to escape blame. If this matter were to be spread out, Sir’s prestige would truly be affected. Others will definitely say that Sir schemed together with his daughter to commit murder. Tsk tsk… Sir’s also has a reputation to maintain, right?”
[Is he really trying to threaten me!?] Old Fu slightly raised his brow, his expression turning gloomy as he bluntly asked, “What do you want?”
Yang Kai put away his sword and replied in a trembling voice, “This Junior is confident in his strength, but isn’t sure that he can charge straight into the Ancient Lands unscathed. Sir, if you could casually offer me a defensive artifact, at least to protect myself due to my wounds, that would be the best.”
Angered, Old Fu broke into laughter before asking, “What defensive artifact do you want? Let’s hear it.”
Yang Kai replied with a stern face, “The bowl in your daughter’s hand… I think it’s pretty good…”
Lin’er was greatly taken aback and she furiously rebuked, “You ruffian! You dare to have eyes for my treasure!?”
Yang Kai snorted and countered, glaring, “When adults are speaking, children should keep quiet!”
Old Fu looked at Yang Kai, smiling, and asked, “Do you want the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl?”
“So, it’s called the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl…” Yang Kai raised his brow before continuing, grinning, “If Sir can bestow it to me, it would naturally be best. To tell you the truth, this Junior has been wandering alone in the Star Boundary and is currently quite poor. Although I have reached the Emperor Realm, I haven’t been able to find a good artifact. I have had truly bitter days!”
[You have the Mountains and Rivers Bell in your possession, and you still dare to call yourself poor? Only ghosts would believe you!] Old Fu snorted in his heart.
“Sir is a respectable Great Emperor and has no shortage of Emperor Artifacts, right?” Yang Kai continued to pester. He really wanted the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl as it clearly had exceptional defensive abilities and he just happened to lack a defensive artifact. It was indeed a reckless waste of such a good treasure to be placed in the hands of Lin’er, so if Yang Kai could get his hands on it, it would just be like adding wings to a tiger.
“My Father is my Father, and I’m me! Why are you eyeing my treasure!?” Lin’er screamed. This man was truly loathsome! He kept making such unreasonable demands. If she could beat him up, she would have long ago taught him a lesson!
“Isn’t everything because of you? Just look at my wound!” Yang Kai puffed up his chest, his hideous wound immediately scaring Lin’er as she quickly turned her head away.
He might have been bringing up his wound at every turn, making for a dull argument, but it was indeed quite frightening.
Old Fu remained indifferent for a while before he agreed, nodding, “That also makes sense. It’s not impossible to give you the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl!”
Yang Kai burst with joy after hearing this. He was just trying his luck; after all, the Serene Soul Great Emperor had a reputation to uphold and needed to keep some face. Even if he didn’t give Yang Kai the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl, he would give something else. Otherwise, his enmity with Lin’er would remain unresolved!
But Yang Kai had never even imagined that the Serene Soul Great Emperor would be so easy to talk to. By the looks of it, the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl would be given to him.
Yang Kai smacked his lips and stretched his hand out towards Lin’er, asking, “Give it!”
Mouth agape, Lin’er looked at Old Fu and grievously pleaded, “Father!”
Old Fu remained unmoved and indifferently stated, “I can give you the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl, but I can’t give it for free. This King wants something in exchange from you. If you agree, the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl is yours.”
Yang Kai suddenly became vigilant, “What is it?”
[There are conditions? What’s the meaning of this!?]
[I don’t think I’ve something on me that someone like the Serene Soul Great Emperor would be interested in, do I?]
[The Myriads Sword? Impossible…]
[Although the Myriads Sword is good, it can’t possibly enter Serene Soul’s eyes. As a Great Emperor, he has all kinds of Emperor Artifacts. Why would he be interested in a mere Myriads Sword?]
[Then, what does he want me to use to exchange?] Yang Kai thought about it over and over again but he couldn’t understand what Serene Soul meant.
“Sir, you wouldn’t happen to be thinking of wanting… This Junior’s life, do you?” Yang Kai laughed awkwardly.
Old Fu sneered as he rebuked, “What use is your life to this King?”
Yang Kai’s face turned ashen. Although he didn’t think that his life was worth much, it was natural to be unhappy when someone said it right in his face that his life was worthless. Had he not cared about the identity of the other party, he would have attacked Serene Soul already.
“Just say whether you agree or not,” Old Fu gazed at Yang Kai in a calm and composed manner, a smile of mockery hanging on his lips.
[How can I agree when you aren’t even speaking clearly? Do you think that this Young Master’s intelligence is like your daughter’s?] After a cold snort, Yang Kai replied, “Sir, since you haven’t made things clear, forgive this Junior for being unable to accept.”
Yang Kai didn’t dare to agree to anything in front of an old monster like him who had lived for who knows how long, so as not to fall into his trap. By then, he would be at others’ mercy.
Old Fu calmly stated, “It’s nothing much, this King just wants to exchange it for your bell!”
As soon as he said this, Yang Kai was greatly shaken and immediately put up his guard.
Exchange it for his bell? Which bell? What other bell did he have apart from the Mountains and Rivers Bell?
[How does he know about it?] Yang Kai had never used the Mountains and Rivers Bell in today’s battle, and the enemies who had seen the Mountains and Rivers Bell were already dead. So, how did the Serene Soul Great Emperor know about it?
Could he sense it? That’s unlikely. The Mountains and Rivers Bell had already been refined by Yang Kai and no one would be able to sense it unless he took it out to deal with them.
But this old fogey spoke so confidently, as if he was certain that Yang Kai had that bell. It really made Yang Kai wonder whether Serene Soul was really bluffing him or was really truly confident.
[He isn’t thinking of killing me and snatching it, is he?] Yang Kai secretly gnashed his teeth. If the Serene Soul Great Emperor was planning this, maintaining his life would indeed become really difficult.
“What bell? What does Sir mean?” Many thoughts flashed through Yang Kai’s mind but there was no change in his expression. Rather, he showed a puzzled look.
Old Fu mockingly looked at him before rebuking with a sneer, “Do you really not know, or are you pretending to not know about it?”
Yang Kai naturally didn’t dare to reveal any flaws, gritting his teeth as he replied, “I ask Sir to make himself clear. This Junior is confused and has no idea what you are talking about.”
Yang Kai had secretly come to a ruthless decision. If this old fogey mentioned the bell again, he would make him watch his daughter die first!
Old Fu, however, just stated, “If that’s the case, this King will not force you.”
Saying so, Emperor Qi wrapped Lin’er before the pair shot towards the outside. In the blink of an eye, they had disappeared into the Ancient Lands Passageway.
He said he was leaving and left. He did it in such a quick and straightforward manner that he didn’t leave Yang Kai any chance to react at all.
“Damn it! You didn’t need to give me the Taiyi Cinnamon Bowl, but you could have given me some Source Crystals at least! This Young Master was thrashed for no reason…” After a while, Yang Kai finally reacted, cursing loudly in anger.
He had suffered a great loss this time. Lin’er had made things difficult for him again and again, and even put his life in danger by teaming up with the Netherworld Sect. He was then forced to confront the Soul Descent of the Serene Soul Great Emperor… and when all was said and done, he didn’t reap a single benefit…
But soon, Yang Kai felt a cold and moist feeling on his back.
When Serene Soul mentioned the bell, it had really terrified him.
Yang Kai looked left and right warily, not daring to stay in this place anymore. He walked to the dead Netherworld Sect disciples and took away their Space Rings before hurriedly rushing deeper into the Ancient Lands.
After exiting the passage, he could be considered to have officially stepped into the Ancient Wild Lands.
This was a domain that had never been developed and was one of the most dangerous places in the entire Star Boundary. Even when an Emperor Realm Master entered it, he couldn’t guarantee his safety.
In the Ancient Lands, there were countless dangers that were difficult to resist. There were many natural restrictions and ancient relics here, all of them dangerous to anyone who triggered them.
There were even rumours that Divine Spirits were living inside the Ancient Lands, though no one knew whether it was true or false.
After venturing about a hundred kilometres deeper, Yang Kai finally noticed the strangeness of the Ancient Lands.
There was an unknown energy in the air, one that seemed to suppress the strength of cultivators. And the deeper one ventured in, the more obvious this effect was.
The towering old trees soared straight into the clouds, while on the ground, there were many strange flowers and plants that Yang Kai had never seen or heard of before. An ancient and desolate smell constantly blew in his face.
[Wild Force!]
The entire Ancient Wild Lands were filled with this peculiar Wild Force. Naturally, it was derived from primitive energy when the world was first created, and every living being would feel small and insignificant before it. Under the suppression of this energy, any cultivator who had ventured into this land would not be able to exert their full strength!
However, Yang Kai immersed himself in this place for a while and concluded that this Wild Force had no effect on him.
The corrosion spreading into his body was like a breeze blowing on his face; he could ignore it.
With an Ancient Exotic Artifact like the Mountains and Rivers Bell on him, all the Wild Force that invaded his body was actively resolved by it. Realizing this, Yang Kai’s confidence grew.
He had already noticed this somewhat when he drank the Wild Wine. Although he had made some conjectures back then, it wasn’t confirmed until now.
It seemed he occupied a huge advantage in the Ancient Wild Lands with the Mountains and Rivers Bell. Yang Kai was beaming with joy in his heart as he felt fortunate for that particular opportunity in the Shattered Star Sea. If not for him being able to collect the Mountains and Rivers Bell, things would not be so easy for him here.
While walking, he took out a jade slip and compared the surrounding terrain with the map inside. This was the jade slip given to him by Pi San, and it had all the known topography of the Ancient Wild Lands as well as the position of the more dangerous Monster Beasts. Only, the information in the jade slip was incomplete as no one knew how big the entire Ancient Lands was. So far, the cultivators figured they had explored less than a tenth of the Ancient Lands at the cost of countless lives.
But with this jade slip, Yang Kai was still spared from a lot of trouble.
After an hour, he had completely entered the Ancient Lands, where he found a cave and ventured inside.
Who knows which Monster Beast’s lair this was originally, but the cave was dry and spacious, with no owner to be seen. It was unclear whether it had gone out to hunt or was killed by someone or something.
Yang Kai estimated that the latter was far more likely as it was not far from the entrance. The cultivators coming in from the entrance could easily find this place, so generally, Monster Beasts would not be able to survive in places like this.
With a wave of his hand, Yang Kai let out Zhang Ruo Xi and ordered, “I want to heal, stand guard for me. Focus on resisting the Wild Force in the air and call me if there is any movement or if you can’t hold on.”
“Yes!” Zhang Ruo Xi obediently responded. Seeing the horrifying injury on Yang Kai’s chest, her heart inexplicably trembled.
Without any further question, she went and sat at the entrance of the cave, cross-legged.
Inside the cave, Yang Kai took out a bunch of healing pills and threw them into his mouth before he closed his eyes and started refining them.
In fact, his injury wasn’t that serious, and even if he didn’t actively deal with it, it would have only taken him a few days to recover; however, Yang Kai didn’t dare to be careless in this place as even the smell of blood might draw some unnecessary trouble. It really wasn’t worth the risk.
So, he thought about healing his wounds first before rushing to find Xiao Xiao.
Around the wound, his flesh and skin kept squirming, continuing to fill the gap, an eerie sight. Yang Kai’s recuperative ability was already pretty good, so with the assistance of good healing pills, it would only take him one or two days to fully recover.
Outside the cave, Zhang Ruo Xi, following Yang Kai’s instruction, prompted her Source Qi to defend herself.
In the beginning, she was a little worried about the so-called Wild Force; after all, Yang Kai had already mentioned its strange properties before. She knew that all the cultivators inside the Ancient Lands would be suppressed by the Wild Force, and the lower one’s cultivation was, the stronger the suppression was.
Although her cultivation was Third-Order Dao Source Realm, she couldn’t provide any help to Yang Kai on this journey at all. She was even sent inside the Sealed World Bead by Yang Kai during the last part of the Ancient Lands Passageway.
Zhang Ruo Xi hated her weakness, which made it impossible for her to share Yang Kai’s woes and foes, even making her a burden at times. [Sir had such a big wound on his chest. He must have bled a lot; he must be in a lot of pain; he must have been in a lot of danger at that time…]
[Everything I have today was given to me by Sir. Without Sir, I would have long been abducted and dirtied by those ungrateful wolves of the Lu Family. A small family like the Zhang Family would have not been able to gain a foothold in Maplewood City.]
[Not only has Sir saved me, but also the entire Zhang Family. Sir gave me countless cultivation resources, allowing me to have my current achievements.]
[I don’t know why Sir brought me out of the Zhang Family back then, but now I have been travelling with Sir here and there over many years.]
[When will I be able to ward off calamities and danger for Sir? I can’t always be protected by Sir like this, can I? Even if Sir had asked me to take care of his daily life, or tidy up his bed…]
[I haven’t done much of that either…]
Zhang Ruo Xi lightly nibbled her red lips. She felt her chest tighten and a desire to become stronger prompted her to circulate the Secret Arts to cultivate.
This was an unconscious action.
But soon, Zhang Ruo Xi was taken aback and quickly stopped.
She had no other choice as she suddenly remembered that she was in the Ancient Wild Lands and the World Energy here was filled with Wild Force. This place wasn’t suitable for cultivation, and if she absorbed too much Wild Force, not only would she be unable to assimilate it, it would also be detrimental to her cultivation.
Realizing this, Zhang Ruo Xi’s face immediately paled as she quickly checked on her condition.
But she found nothing serious, leaving Zhang Ruo Xi rather confused by her own situation.
Because she found that although she had inadvertently absorbed some Wild Force, it didn’t appear to be harmful to her. Rather, it spread around her body before it assimilated with her own strength.
And during this short round of cultivation, the efficiency of cultivation was almost twice that of before!
[What’s going on?]
Zhang Ruo Xi looked surprised and a little puzzled. She wanted to ask Yang Kai what was happening; after all, he knew many more things than her, but he was recuperating at the moment and she didn’t want to bother him.
Zhang Ruo Xi kept her silence for a long while before she summoned up her courage and started circulating her Secret Art again.
This time, Zhang Ruo Xi could clearly feel it. She wasn’t just absorbing the World Energy by cultivating here, she was also absorbing the Wild Force, yet strangely enough, both of those energies were beneficial to her, especially the latter. She almost couldn’t get enough of it and couldn’t stop absorbing it, nor did she want to.
[What’s happening? What’s wrong with my body? This is Wild Force… Right?]
Zhang Ruo Xi suddenly got a little afraid and didn’t dare to continue cultivating, stopping the circulation of her Secret Art and just sitting there in silence with a confused look on her face.
She couldn’t find any explanation for this other than her bloodline. [Sir had said once that I had a strange bloodline power with many unknown abilities.]
She was pretty bewildered by this, as she wasn’t cultivating the Secret Art taught by the Zhang family, but rather the one comprehended and invented by her. She had grasped it on her first cultivation attempt, as if it was engraved in the depths of her mind.
As she sat there in a daze, nothing unusual occurred, with the surroundings as quiet and peaceful as ever.
Zhang Ruo Xi mulled this over for a moment then took out the Space Spirit Jade from her Space Ring. Yang Kai had handed over the Space Spirit Jade to her before entering this land and he asked her to study it more deeply, insinuating that it likely contained the way to unseal her bloodline power.
At this moment, after Zhang Ruo Xi had taken out the Space Spirit Jade, her body shivered and she raised her head to look in a certain direction.
She got that strange feeling once again!
She faintly felt that the Space Spirit Jade in her hand was resonating with something far off in the distance, and whatever it was, it was summoning her. Zhang Ruo Xi’s blood felt as if it was set afire, circulating faster and faster.
She had gotten a similar feeling in the past and could affirm that it wasn’t just a product of her imagination.
But, it was still a fleeting feeling, and it had quickly disappeared before she could observe it more carefully.
As all kinds of spectacular scenery flashed past the Space Spirit Jade, Zhang Ruo Xi held it in her hand and started studying it for a long while, yet couldn’t find any clues. She couldn’t understand the function nor the meaning of those scenes.
…..
In a thick and dense forest in the depths of the Ancient Lands.
It was the true depths of the Ancient Wild Lands, a region never before tread upon by mankind, with only a myriad of Monster Beasts and Monster Race living and reproducing here since the dawn of its existence.
This was like a whole new world, completely different from the Star Boundary’s Four Territories.
On a towering mountain, a luminous oval object was shining brightly with blood-red radiance. This object was wholly blood-red, as if it was formed from fresh blood, but it emitted a sweet and enchanting fragrance.
The Blood Gate!
All Monster Race Masters living in the Ancient Wild Lands knew of the existence of the Blood Gate, but none had managed to enter it, nor did they know what kind of secrets were hidden within it.
However, some rumours about the gate had spread across the Ancient Lands. It was said that the Blood Gate hid behind it the secrets for allowing beings of the Ancient Lands to evolve into Divine Spirits.
The inhabitants of the Ancient Lands had all inherited a varying degree of one or another Ancient Divine Spirit’s bloodline. Even the lineage of the most ordinary-looking snake could be traced back to the Dragon Clan of ancient times.
Once the dormant primordial bloodline of the Ancient Lands’ beings was stimulated and awakened, then they would possess power rivalling their ancestors, the Divine Spirits, but since ancient times, the number of the Ancient Lands’ inhabitants that had successfully unearthed their bloodline power and transformed into Divine Spirits could be counted on one’s fingers and toes.
Yet, it was rumoured among the myriad races of the Ancient Lands that the Blood Gate possessed a mystical power, which would completely unearth the bloodline power of those Monster Race Masters. If they could fully stimulate their bloodlines, then they would get a great chance to relive their ancestors’ glory as Divine Spirits.
The Blood Gate’s location had turned into a sacred land for all races of the Ancient Wild Lands because of these rumours. Many living beings confident in their strength or luck would rush over one after the other to cross the Blood Gate in hopes of stimulating their bloodline, yet none of them had succeeded up to this day.
None could even approach the Blood Gate. Most who entered within a perimetre of ten kilometres around the Blood Gate would suffer a miserable death and turn into a pool of blood and flesh.
There was once a powerful Monster King at the peak of the Twelfth-Order who arrived near the end of his lifespan and decided to make one last struggle. He didn’t have much lifespan left, and if he couldn’t come up with a way to prolong his life, he would shortly die of old age, so he took the gamble.
The Blood Gate was his last hope!
A Monster King at the peak of the Twelfth-Order was tantamount to a Human Race’s Third-Order Emperor Realm Master. Only a few people in the whole of Star Boundary could reach this realm.
The Monster King used all his strength and techniques without restraint, yet he couldn’t get closer than three kilometres from the Blood Gate. In the end, he persevered for three days and nights there only to perish, melting down into a pool of blood.
Since then, no one in the Ancient Lands dared to approach the Blood Gate. Even a Monster King at the peak of the Twelfth-Order couldn’t enter the Blood Gate and awaken their bloodlines, so what hope did others have?
The Blood Gate had become the Ancient Lands’ forbidden area and no being dared to approach it again, out of fear of the death awaiting them there.
This was a custom that stood since ancient times, but fortunately, the creatures of the Ancient Lands were all endowed with a long lifespan. Moreover, a lot of Monster Kings ruling over large territories had witnessed the miserable death of the Monster King at the peak of the Twelfth-Order with their own eyes. Afterwards, they had all admonished their subordinates to stay away from the Blood Gate.
At this moment, the Blood Gate atop the towering mountain that didn’t go through any changes for innumerable years suddenly let out a blazing scarlet light. The scarlet light formed a large column that broke through the clouds, leaving a large hole in them.
But, this light column quickly disappeared, leaving only specks of red light behind that gradually disappeared into the air.
A hundred kilometres from the Blood Gate, a pitch-black python strangled its prey with its large body then opened its gaping mouth and devoured it.
At that moment, it had been facing the Blood Gate’s direction and it had clearly seen the red column of light that flashed past there.
The black python widened its eyes and stared intensely in the Blood Gate’s direction with clear fright.
The python’s fears were well-grounded, as the legends of the Blood Gate were all fairly intimidating. It had been standing there for innumerable years without going through any changes, yet it suddenly let out such a light. So, who wouldn’t tremble in fear in the face of this?
But, this abrupt incident had ended quickly and didn’t affect it, so the python quickly calmed down.
The python waited for a long while, not daring to make a rash move, and only after ascertaining that the Blood Gate had no other peculiarities did it twist its body, making its bones let out a crackling noise. The five-metre-long body of the large python started going through drastic changes.
But, those changes didn’t take more than an instant. The black python instantly turned into a dark-skinned middle-aged man with a treacherous gaze clad in a black robe.
The man’s mouth was still wide open, exposing its numerous large fangs, and it was still chewing on its prey, a pretty scary sight!
Along with a gulping noise, the black python that had turned into a middle-aged man swallowed down his prey, blowing it up, as if he was a woman pregnant for ten months. But, as he patted his large belly, it quickly shrank down to its usual size.
“This is a major incident, I must hurry up and report it to Sir!”
After the middle-aged man muttered to himself with his hesitation apparent on his face, his Monster Qi started surging and he turned into a ray of light that flew off in a certain direction.
The energy fluctuations emitted by the man reached the Eleventh-Order, which was more or less equivalent to a Dao Source Realm Cultivator.
After two hours, the black ray stopped outside of a gate in front of a large mountain.
The two Monsters standing guard there became alert as one of them took out a bone hammer while the other raised the two bone spears in his hands; glaring intensely at the black ray of light.
“Who goes there?” The Monster with the bone hammer let out a shout, placing his weapon in front of him as he continued, “This is the palace of Monster King Xi Lei. If you don’t identify yourself immediately, we will mercilessly slay you.”
“Indeed!” The Monster with bone spears also shouted imposingly.
The black ray stopped near the gate and showed itself. It was none other than the black python that had turned into a middle-aged man.
“I’m one of you, I’m one of you. Brothers, I’m also one of Xi Lei’s subordinates and I have something important to report to him. Please notify him!” The middle-aged man cupped his fists and spoke.
The two Monsters at the gate exchanged a glance then started sizing up the man doubtfully. One couldn’t blame those two guards for nor recognizing him as a lot of Monsters lived in this area and Monster King Xi Lei had more than a hundred thousand subordinates scattered in an area of several hundred thousand kilometres. They couldn’t recognize anyone other than the ones seen regularly.
Moreover, not just anyone could obtain an audience with Monster King Xi Lei whenever he wanted.
The Monster with bone spears in his hands let out a sneer, “You’re claiming that you’re one of us, aren’t you? Do you have any proof?”
It looked like the middle-aged man had already expected this and he quickly took out an object from his Space Ring and handed it over to the guards respectfully.
The Monster Race obviously couldn’t craft Space Rings, but a lot of Humans had come here to seek death, so these Monsters had obviously gotten their hands on a number of Space Rings left by the Humans over the years.
The middle-aged man had also once killed a Human cultivator, obtaining his Space Ring for himself. He usually put all of his possessions in it and he found it pretty convenient.
The Humans were pretty good at using their brains and could make a lot of good things such as artifacts and Spirit Pills. It was really a pity that none in the Monster Race could craft such exquisite things.
The Monster with the bone hammer accepted the object handed to him and he discovered that it was a token made out of bone with a design of a galloping rhinoceros depicted on it, as well as a large ‘Lei (雷)’ character on it.
This was the token crafted by Monster King Xi Lei. It was pretty crudely made, but not just anyone could imitate it because they were all made from the bones of the same Monster Beast.
The two Monsters standing guard at the gate had seen a lot of tokens and they could recognize with a glance that it was a genuine one.
Only a few Monster Race Masters could obtain this token. Among more than a hundred thousand Monsters, only around two thousand had one, and it was a sort of status symbol.
So, upon seeing the middle-aged man take out the bone token, the expressions of the two Monsters standing guard at the gate turned for the better. The one holding a bone hammer spoke, “Even though you’re one of his subordinates, we still can’t let you in. Sir has asked to not bother him for any little and trifling matter. If you have something to tell him, then just tell us and we’ll pass your message to him.”
The middle-aged man said anxiously, “This is not something trivial or insignificant; I must speak to Sir in person!”
This might be a great contribution to Sir Xi Lei, so how could the middle-aged man employ any other middle-man to act on his behalf?