Yang Kai smacked his lips with joy as he stated, “Tsk tsk, it’s tempting but this Young Master has a lot of grievances with your Netherworld Sect, especially with your noble Sect Master’s Legacy Disciple, Yin Le Sheng…”
Wu Yuan Zheng guaranteed, “This King said, as long as you are willing to join our Sect, our past grievances will be written off. As for Martial Nephew Yin, this King will persuade him. I believe that he is not someone who will fail to see the bigger picture.”
“Will everything really be written off?” Yang Kai asked, raising his brow.
“How can this King lie to you after giving his word?”
“Even if Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen have been killed by me?”
Wu Yuan Zheng narrowed his eyes and the smile on his face instantly disappeared as he shouted out loud, “What did you say?”
Yang Kai indifferently reiterated, “Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen have been killed by me!”
Wu Yuan Zheng shouted again, “That’s impossible!”
The reason why he had come here was because he had heard that Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen had taken a team of Netherworld Sect disciples to the Ancient Lands to deal with a personal enemy. Yin Le Sheng was the Legacy Disciple of the current Netherworld Sect Sect Master. Also, he had ascended to the Star Boundary from the lower plane, so his aptitude was extremely good and his future was extremely bright. He was of great value to the Netherworld Sect and the Sect Master also valued him greatly.
Whereas Hua Fei Chen was an Elder of the Netherworld Sect, an extremely high position in the Netherworld Sect.
Wu Yuan Zheng and the Netherworld Sect Master were completely oblivious about the two of them taking so many disciples to the Ancient Lands at first as the two had acted very secretly.
Later, when the Netherworld Sect Master accidentally came to hear about it, he became furious and extremely worried as well. After all, the Ancient Lands were extremely dangerous. He was afraid that something would happen to his Legacy Disciple, so he had asked Wu Yuan Zheng to personally go and search for them.
And so, Wu Yuan Zheng, after coming here, went to the Qi Family Fort right away. At Qi Family Fort, he came to hear about Yin Le Sheng’s grudge with Yang Kai, and about Yang Kai being in possession of the Phoenix True Fire from Qi Hai.
Wu Yuan Zheng was immediately overjoyed and realized that this trip might be a good opportunity for him.
If he could obtain the Phoenix True Fire and refine it, he may be able to become the next Martial Flame Great Emperor! At that time, the Netherworld Sect would be at his beck and call.
He secretly made up his mind to search for Yin Le Sheng while also seizing Yang Kai’s Phoenix True Fire. Therefore, he didn’t hesitate to offer Yang Kai an Elder’s position.
How could a trivial First-Order Emperor Realm brat have something as divine as the Phoenix True Fire? Only a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master like him could subdue a Divine Flame for his own use.
How would he have known that Yang Kai would suddenly deliver him such a terrible surprise?
After returning from the Shattered Star Sea, Yin Le Sheng had advanced to the First-Order Emperor Realm whereas Hua Fei Chen was an established Second-Order Emperor. And now, Yang Kai actually claimed that he had killed both of them.
Wu Yuan Zheng immediately rejected the very notion; after all, Yin Le Shen still had an Emperor Authority Bead gifted to him by the Netherworld Sect Master. That Emperor Authority Bead had the full powered attack of a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master sealed inside of it.
“You killed them? You? Boy, aren’t you afraid of being struck by lightning for making such outrageous claims!?” The Netherworld Sect Elder, who had attacked Qi Hai before, sneered. Obviously, he didn’t believe Yang Kai one bit. With Yang Kai’s current strength, how could he kill Hua Fei Chen, a Second-Order Emperor?
However, as he said this, his eyes suddenly widened as he stared ahead in shock.
Suddenly, a pitch-black thing appeared in Yang Kai’s hand. It was surrounded by dense Yin Qi and ghastly cries and wails could be heard when it flapped along with the wind.
“Netherworld Purgatory Banner!” The Elder couldn’t help but blurt out while Wu Yuan Zheng too couldn’t help but have his facial muscles twitch, staring straight at the Netherworld Purgatory Banner.
“It’s indeed a Netherworld Purgatory Banner…”
“And the rich aura is unlike that of a Dao Source Grade banner, it’s more like an Emperor Grade Netherworld Purgatory Banner!”
“In the Sect, only the Elders, Sect Master, and Vice Sect Master can have an Emperor Grade Netherworld Purgatory Banner… Could it be that he really killed Elder Hua?”
Shocked by this revelation, the Netherworld Sect disciples broke into a lively discussion.
The Netherworld Purgatory Banner was an artifact refined by every disciple of Netherworld Sect; however, which grade of banner they received depended on their individual cultivation.
The banner taken out by Yang Kai was an Emperor Artifact left by Hua Fei Chen after his death. Some disciples were unable to distinguish its aura, but Wu Yuan Zheng and the other Elder could tell that it belonged to Hua Fei Chen at a glance.
In a flash, Wu Yuan Zheng’s face turned ashen.
[If Hua Fei Chen is dead, then Yin Le Sheng’s fate cannot be any better. Sect Master regards Yin Le Sheng as Netherworld Sect’ successor and spared no effort nurturing him. If he is dead, who will calm Sect Master’s anger?]
“You actually killed Elder Hua!?” The Netherworld Sect Elder became furious and roared at the top of his lungs, “Boy, I’ll take your life!”
Having lost his mind to anger, he charged ahead without a moment of hesitation. Dense Black Qi surged around him in a gloomy and terrifying manner. It seemed as if he wanted to kill Yang Kai to avenge Hua Fei Chen. Who knows what his relationship with Hua Fei Chen was?
Wu Yuan Zheng was shocked and hurriedly shouted, “Elder Zhong, come back!”
Although Yang Kai was just a First-Order Emperor Realm, since he could kill Hua Fei Chen, Elder Zhong wasn’t his opponent for sure. At this moment, Elder Zhong had been blinded by rage but he could clearly see this.
But his warning came a little too late.
Yang Kai, seeing Elder Zhong charging at him, wasn’t surprised at all and simply chuckled, “Elder Zhong, don’t worry, this Young Master will send you to reunite with Hua Fei Chen!”
He slowly raised his hand, but just as he was about to make a move, a shapely and slender figure suddenly appeared before him.
Ji Yao’s figure was exuding an extremely cold aura, and standing before Yang Kai, her jade-like hand slightly grasped the void as she summoned a long sword into her grip.
Immediately, a fearsome aura erupted from Ji Yao, as if she had transformed into a giant crystal of eternal ice that would never melt and would freeze anyone who dared to approach her.
“Second-Order Emperor Realm!” Elder Zhong’s face turned pale in shock and horror.
Although he had seen Ji Yao before, because Ji Yao had been standing behind Yang Kai, he thought that this woman was Yang Kai’s entourage or maid.
How strong would a maid accompanying Yang Kai, a First-Order Emperor, be?
Not to mention him, even Wu Yuan Zheng had never paid any importance to Ji Yao from the beginning to the end.
They didn’t realize how wrong they were until Ji Yao had made a move.
To their dismay, the woman calmly standing behind Yang Kai was actually a Second-Order Emperor, significantly higher than Yang Kai in cultivation.
Just as Ji Yao drew her sword, a flash of light flickered accompanied by a metallic cry before an icy domain that could freeze space itself rapidly spread into the surroundings, enveloping Elder Zhong.
Mid-air, Elder Zhong felt his entire body turn stiff. Affected by the Ice Principles, he was unable to circulate his Emperor Qi smoothly and his hair and beard froze in an instant.
[I’m not her opponent!] Elder Zhong’s eyes went wide as he loudly shouted, “Vice Sect Master, save me!”
But how could Wu Yuan Zheng save him? Elder Zhong had attacked without any prior signs and his speed was too fast, so at this moment, he wasn’t that far from Yang Kai, meaning Wu Yuan Zheng would be too late to rescue him even if he tried to.
Before everyone’s eyes, the sword in Ji Yao’s hand flashed before it returned to its original position, as if it had never moved.
However, an ice flower had strangely appeared on Elder Zhong’s chest.
The ice flower had six petals and was crystal clear. It was extremely beautiful, but this epitome of beauty was accompanied by a fearsome murderous intent. With a burst of soft cracking sounds, more ice flowers suddenly spread across Elder Zhong’s body, encasing him from top to bottom.
Through the newly formed wall of transparent ice, a hundred pairs of eyes could clearly see the frozen expression of horror on Elder Zhong’s face.
Frozen, Elder Zhong plummeted from the air. And the moment he touched the ground, the block of ice shattered, and so did Elder Zhong, leaving not even a single drop of blood.
Instant kill!
A First-Order Emperor Realm Elder of the Netherworld Sect was instantly killed by this otherworldly woman! The strong visual impact had shaken everyone’s heart and soul, causing them to be unable to regain their senses for a long time.
“How dare you yell before the Honoured Master! You deserve death!” Ji Yao oppressively shouted as her pair of pretty eyes swept over the audience.
Anyone who met her gaze involuntarily shivered.
Only Wu Yuan Zheng, who was burning with fury and on the verge of erupting like a volcano, coldly said with his hair and clothes dancing despite there being no wind today, “Good good good! It seems that the Sect has been silent for too long that any random whore now dares to kill our Elders!” While speaking, he glared at Yang Kai and shouted, “Yang Kai, even if you hand over the Phoenix True Fire today, you will still die!”
An Elder-level Master had died right before his eyes, so if he didn’t kill the culprit, how would he explain it to the Sect?
Yang Kai sneered, “You want to kill this Young Master? Let’s see if you have the ability!”
“This King will broaden your vision today!” Wu Yuan Zheng stated in an ice-cold voice and grimly smiled, “Don’t worry, this King won’t kill you right away. I will drain every drop of blood from your body! As for the two women by your side… they will know what it means to suffer a fate worse than death!”
“Vice Sect Master, kill them to avenge Elder Zhong!”
“Kill them!”
“The two women are great beauties. Vice Sect Master, this is a blessing! You can enjoy them before killing them!”
“Yes, yes! Heh heh, these two women are blind and ignorant, they have no idea who to follow and who to not. They are actually accompanying this brat, how unfortunate for them!”
After recovering from the shock of Elder Zhong being killed, the Netherworld Sect disciples suddenly became more confident as they had Wu Yuan Zheng with them!
He was the Netherworld Sect’s Vice Sect Master, a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master. His strength was second only to the Sect Master in the Netherworld Sect. Once the Vice Sect Master made his move, this man and these two women would surely be doomed.
“Sir Yang, why not leave them to this Mistress?” Luan Feng, hearing the foul and obscene words of the Netherworld Sect disciples, asked in a cold voice as an icy gleam flashed past her eyes.
Yang Kai meaningfully grinned, “I was just about to ask Lady Feng for your help!”
A Third-Order Emperor Realm Master was far stronger than him, and even if he pulled out all his trump cards, he would have to pay a price to kill this opponent. Yang Kai was only acting so confident and carefree in this situation because Luan Feng was by his side.
Otherwise, he would have escaped with Ji Yao at first notice.
But now, Wu Yuan Zheng’s luck had definitely run out! He thought he could turn Luan Feng’s life into a living hell! Even the Heavens themselves would not be able to save him now.
While Yang Kai was secretly communicating with Luan Feng, Wu Yuan Zheng had already soared into the air and pounced over with a fierce aura, like a falcon on attack, throwing out a palm as he shouted, “Kneel down!”
Hua Fei Chen was dead, Yin Le Sheng was dead, and now Elder Zhong was dead….
The Netherworld Sect could be said to have suffered heavy losses this time.
Wu Yuan Zheng wanted to use Yang Kai and his party to establish the Sect’s prestige. He wanted to let the world know what would be the outcome for people who killed the members of the Netherworld Sect.
As he smacked down a palm strike, a near-tangible might of the Third-Order Emperor Realm poured out like a fountain. Even the surrounding space was frozen in an instant as if it wasn’t a person descending from the sky, but a tall mountain.
The Netherworld Sect disciples excitedly gazed upon this scene in anticipation, waiting for Yang Kai and his group to kneel down and beg for mercy.
The several dozen members of Qi Family Fort looked at them with complicated eyes, especially Qi Hai. He couldn’t help but sigh to himself as he knew that Yang Kai was doomed this time, and once Yang Kai died, all his hopes of borrowing the Phoenix True Fire from him would die with him, no matter whether the Phoenix True Fire was with him or not.
[I’m afraid my wife’s Heavenly Frost Earth Rain Poison will remain untreated forever], for a moment, his heart was filled with remorse. He secretly hated himself for his low strength and for being useless.
In front of everyone’s eyes, Wu Yuan Zheng sneered widely while Yang Kai and the two women appeared as if they were scared and stupefied, simply standing on the spot, completely still.
Just when that palm strike was about to land though, Luan Feng suddenly lifted her arm and pointed a single finger upwards, her movements completely casual as if she was shooing away a fly.
But the might of this finger made Wu Yuan Zheng’s face immediately turn pale.
His tyrannical Third-Order Emperor Realm aura was instantly pierced through by this finger and all his momentum popped like a pricked balloon.
Not only that, a dreadful force shot towards him from the front, like an unstoppable sword, ripping apart the Principle Strength and the defensive Emperor Qi around him like it was smashing through dry weeds and rotten wood, thrusting straight towards his palm.
“Impossible!” Wu Yuan Zheng was completely shocked and his eyes filled with disbelief. At that moment, he desperately poured all of his energy into his palm, trying to resist the invading energy.
But the Third-Order Emperor Realm cultivation that he had always been proud of was like thin paper in front of this inexplicable force, serving no role at all.
*Pu…*
With a soft squashing, blood flew into the air as a gruesome hole as wide as a chopstick appeared on Wu Yuan Zheng’s palm. The fiercely swooping Wu Yuan Zheng felt as if he had been struck by lightning and tumbled awkwardly through the air before crashing to the ground, all the time staring at Luan Feng while violently trembling.
The Netherworld Sect disciples were all stupefied.
The Qi Family Fort disciples were also dumbstruck.
What did they just see?
Wu Yuan Zheng, a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master, actually had his palm pierced by a woman, and it seemed that he was powerless to resist!?
Everyone was terrified as the world seemed to fall so silent that one could hear a pin falling on the ground. Only the sounds of their hearts pounding could be heard.
In this world, who could wound a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master like this?
“Who… who are you?” Wu Yuan Zheng’s face had gone completely pale, but it wasn’t because he was hurt. Although the finger’s energy had pierced through his palm, that was only a minor injury. If he went back and took a pill, his palm would be completely recovered after some days of resting. Compared to his injuries, the experience itself was what shocked him scared.
He was overawed by this woman herself! A woman who could hurt him like this must have an extraordinary identity.
A very shocking notion suddenly rose from the depths of his mind and Wu Yuan Zheng immediately broke into a cold sweat as he asked in a shaking voice, “Are you Lady Flower Shadow?”
Everyone broke into an uproar after hearing this.
Flower Shadow was the name of a person and a title too!
Flower Shadow Great Emperor, one of the Ten Great Emperors.
There was only one female among the Ten Great Emperors, but although she was a woman, she wasn’t any weaker than the other Great Emperors. She supported all the female cultivators of the Star Boundary and was the object of all of their respect and worship.
Unlike Serene Soul Great Emperor, Bright Moon Great Emperor, and a few other Great Emperors, who had founded their own Sects, Flower Shadow Great Emperor lived in seclusion in a place called Myriad Flower Valley, but as to where this Myriad Flower Valley was in the Star Boundary, no ordinary individual could tell for sure.
The Ten Great Emperors each had different temperaments. Some founded Sects to spread their leaves and branches into the mundane world, some roamed alone, free and easy, others lived on some obscure mountain or in some isolated forest in seclusion.
Only the names of each Great Emperor had spread throughout the Star Boundary.
Wu Yuan Zheng speculating Luan Feng was the Flower Shadow Great Emperor was without any basis other than the fact that she was far stronger than him. He was already a Third-Order Emperor, so only a Great Emperor-level figure could so dramatically surpass him.
And Luan Feng was a female, so it was easy to relate her to the Flower Shadow Great Emperor.
“Flower Shadow Great Emperor!”
Everyone exclaimed, one after another while the faces of the Netherworld Sect disciples immediately turned pale and their legs started shaking as if they had seen their dead parents. It was all over! Their Sir Vice Sect Master just had to antagonize a Great Emperor, even commanding her to kneel…
As for themselves, they had just now used obscene language to profane Lady Flower Shadow.
How were they supposed to keep their lives now?
The members of the Qi Family Fort also wore solemn looks on their faces. Although they hadn’t made any offensive comments just now, they were clearly together with the Netherworld Sect, so who knows if Lady Flower Shadow would decide to settle accounts with them.
On the other side, Wu Yuan Zheng was sweating buckets. With a face filled with fear, he apologized in a trembling voice, “Madam, this one had eyes but failed to see. I had no idea that Madam would personally grace us with her presence. I hope that Madam will forgive me…”
Having provoked a Great Emperor, Wu Yuan Zheng’s heart was like dying embers, but what he couldn’t figure out was why a Second-Order Emperor Realm and a Great Emperor were actually standing behind a trivial First-Order Realm Master, Yang Kai.
[Who is this guy? What’s even more hateful is that I was acting so arrogant, but he didn’t reveal anything at all, just keeping his mouth shut while enjoying the show. Such a vicious and sinister bastard!]
“You’re mistaken, this Queen isn’t Flower Shadow!” Luan Feng indifferently stated.
“You’re not Lady Flower Shadow…” Wu Yuan Zheng was dumbfounded, gawking at Luan Feng in a daze. Who knows what was going through his mind, but he couldn’t help but ask, “Then, you are… you are…”
Luan Feng didn’t have any intention to answer him, she just pointed her finger towards Wu Yuan Zheng. This finger strike was different from before. Before it was a simple finger, but now, a jet of pitch-black flame condensed at her fingertip instead.
“World Extinguishing Black Flame… You’re!” Wu Yuan Zheng’s face drastically changed. Obviously, he had realized Luan Feng’s true identity after seeing this, but that wasn’t surprising; after all, they were at the periphery of the Ancient Lands, and there was only one female Divine Spirit in the Ancient Lands.
Seeing her signature World Extinguishing Black Flame, how could he not guess her true identity?
Divine Spirit Luan Feng!
Wu Yuan Zheng was horrified. Had he provoked Flower Shadow Great Emperor, he might still have a chance to survive as the rumours were that the only female Great Emperor had a modest temperament. As long as one didn’t do something that was utterly devoid of conscience, she would not make things difficult for them.
Provoking the Divine Spirit Luan Feng was another matter. Although Luan Feng wasn’t someone who killed innocents, the word ‘merciful’ was not one that could be remotely associated with her.
“Madam, mercy!” Wu Yuan Zheng shouted as hard as he could while at the same time, he pushed his Emperor Qi madly in an attempt to block the oncoming World Extinguishing Black Flame.
But Luan Feng remained indifferent.
*Huala…*
The moment the wisp of fire came in contact with Wu Yuan Zheng, it ignited all of his Emperor Qi, reducing him into a ball of scorching black flames in an instant.
Wu Yuan Zheng started miserably screaming, causing the hearts of all who heard his cries to clench.
“Mercy! Senior, mercy…” Wu Yuan Zheng pushed his Emperor Qi hard, but he was unable to stifle the black fire on his body in the slightest. On the contrary, the harder he pushed his Emperor Qi, the fiercer the flames became, as if his Emperor Qi was nothing but fuel for the fire.
The miserable wails and cries for mercy soon died out, because Wu Yuan Zheng only lasted for less than three breaths under the World Extinguishing Black Flames before he was reduced to ashes. Even his Space Ring was completely melted.
Everyone went completely silent!
Earlier, when Elder Zhong attacked Yang Kai, he was instant-killed by the woman with the cold temperament.
Now, when Wu Yuan Zheng attacked Yang Kai, he was instant-killed by the other woman.
Had they not personally witnessed it with their own eyes, perhaps no one would dare to believe that something like this could ever happen in this world.
“Lady Feng, your flames are too strong,” Yang Kai, seeing Wu Yuan Zheng’s Space Ring melt, couldn’t help but be saddened.
In any case, Wu Yuan Zheng was the Netherworld Sect’s Vice Sect Master, so he must have had many rare and precious treasures on him, but now, all of that had been completely torched by Luan Feng, so how could Yang Kai not be upset?
Luan Feng stated with a smile, “This Queen was negligent. Sir Yang, please forgive this Queen this time for the sake of the many treasures Sir Yang obtained previously!”
Yang Kai’s brow twitched. Since Luan Feng had brought this up, what could he say?
“Madam, forgive us, Madam, mercy!”
The dozen or so Netherworld Sect disciples suddenly knelt down and started begging for mercy aloud.
Now, Elder Zhong was dead, and so was Wu Yuan Zhen, so they had no backers here. If they wanted to survive, they could only abandon their self-esteem and sense of shame.
In a flash, a dozen or so kept kneeling, kowtowing and begging for mercy in succession.
“Shut up! If you make another noise, I’ll kill all of you!” Ji Yao shouted in a sweet and tender voice that felt as cold as glacial ice.
All these cries were giving her a splitting headache.
As expected, the dozen or so people dared not utter another word. They just nervously gazed at Luan Feng, for the fear that she would make them follow their Vice Sect Master’s footsteps in anger.
*Putong…*
Another person knelt down.
Yang Kai glanced over and found that it was none other than Qi Hai.
An ashamed Qi Hai started pleading in a desperate voice, “Brother Yang, this Qi has committed a terrible mistake. I hope that my death will calm your anger, please let Qi Family Fort’s disciples go!”
“Young Fort Lord!” The Qi Family Fort disciples were shocked and appalled.
“Hmph!” Yang Kai just glanced at him before disregarding him altogether. Rather he looked in another direction and coldly stated, “I guess…we will have to take a trip to the Netherworld Sect.”
Luan Feng furrowed her delicate brow and asked, “Does Sir Yang want to settle accounts with the Netherworld Sect?”
Yang Kai agreed, nodding, “Whether I’m going to square things or not, it will depend on their attitude. I need their help with another matter too.” Having finished speaking, he turned to Luan Feng and stated, “Lady Feng, I will have to trouble you to follow me a while longer.”
Luan Feng bitterly smiled after hearing this. She knew that Yang Kai wanted to use her as a bodyguard, but right now, she couldn’t refuse him either. All she could do was agree, nodding, “Sir Yang, you are too polite. That Young Lady wanted me to take good care of you, so this Queen is duty bound not to refuse. Only, this Queen wants Sir Yang to remember that her identity is somewhat delicate and it isn’t appropriate for me to act too presumptuously in a Human Sect, otherwise it will definitely draw the attention of the Great Emperors.”
Although she was a Divine Spirit, she still had to give deference to the Ten Great Emperors.
At her peak, she might have been able to stand on par with one of the ten Great Emperors for a time, but she had recently given birth to a daughter and her foundation still hadn’t completely recovered. If she really acted outrageously in the Human Sect, she would surely be pursued by the Great Emperors. At that time, she would have to say farewell to her peaceful days.
Yang Kai clarified, smiling, “Lady Feng, you are mistaken, I’m not going to the Netherworld Sect intent on killing anyone.”
“Hehe…” Luan Feng smiled, unable to say for sure whether she should believe him or not.
“Let’s go!” Yang Kai beckoned before flying up with Ji Yao.
But Luan Feng didn’t move. Rather she turned around, her eyes flickering with a cold gleam as she stared at the kneeling Netherworld Sect disciples. She then raised her arm and palmed down lightly.
*Peng peng peng…*
A series of muffled explosions echoed as the dozen or so Netherworld Sect disciples exploded into a bloody mist, disappearing from the face of this world.
It wasn’t that Luan Feng enjoyed bullying the weak, but the offensive comments these few had made about her was not an insult she was willing to let slide.
After having finished the remaining Netherworld Sect disciples, Luan Feng finally turned around and flew after Yang Kai.
The several dozen Qi Family Fort disciples stood rooted on their spot, sweating buckets. Only after a long time did they finally come to their senses and realize that they were lucky this time and managed to survive.
“Young Fort Lord, they… have left!” An old man came to Qi Hai and gently reminded him.
Qi Hai was powerlessly kneeling on the ground, his eyes having lost all lustre as a bitter look filled his face.
…..
Luan Feng was extremely familiar with the Eastern Territory. According to her, she had travelled around in the Star Boundary in her human form multiple times in the past, so she was quite familiar with the geography of the Star Boundary.
Under her lead, Yang Kai’s trio arrived at a city called Peaceful Sea City in just one day.
After entering the city, the trio head straight to the City Lord’s Mansion.
The City Lord of Peaceful Sea City was a First-Order Emperor, so when he came to learn that someone had trespassed into the City Lord’s Mansion, he was furious and hurriedly rushed out of his retreat. But before he could ask any questions, Ji Yao, under Yang Kai’s order, released a bit of her cultivation pressure and immediately rooted the City Lord in place. He didn’t dare to make a rash move.
Under everyone’s eyes, Yang Kai’s trio ‘borrowed’ the Space Array at the City Lord’s Mansion and left right away.
After the three had gone, the City Lord heaved a sigh of relief, his back dripping with cold sweat.
Following the same procedure and multiple teleportations, the trio finally arrived at Netherworld City.
“Sir Yang, Netherworld City is the closest city to the Netherworld Sect and was under the direct management of it. From here, it will only take two hours to reach the Netherworld Sect,” Luan Feng explained to Yang Kai after stepping out of the Space Array.
Yang Kai, nodding and beckoned, “I will have to trouble Lady Feng to lead the way.”
Luan Feng agreed, smiling, “Please follow me.”
After having been together with Yang Kai for a few days, Luan Feng realized that Yang Kai had a gentle temperament and was quite polite to her, unlike the arrogant and unyielding attitude he had shown in the Ancient Lands. This had put Luan Feng at ease as she knew that Yang Kai would not commit all matters of evil using her.
After exiting the City Lord’s Mansion, the trio headed straight to Netherworld Sect.
After two hours, a cultivation paradise with tall mountains and great rivers appeared before the trio. On the continuous rising and falling mountain range, there were many beautiful palaces and pavilions with streams of cultivators moving about. It was a place filled with rich World Energy, indicating a High-Rank or even better Earth Vein was located here.
However, this place gave Yang Kai a different feeling from other cultivation paradises he had been to because there was dense Yin Qi in the air. It was probably related to the Secret Arts of Netherworld Sect.
Netherworld Sect disciples all cultivated wicked Secret Arts, and all the artifacts were Yin Attributed. On top of that, there was also that strange Netherworld Pond inside their Sect’s headquarters, so over time, this cultivation paradise had turned into a ghastly place.
The disciples guarding the mountain range were just in the Dao Source Realm, so when the trio flew past them, the patrols didn’t even notice them.
Probably, they might not have ever expected that some people in this world would dare to trespass into the Netherworld Sect unannounced.
After entering the Netherworld Sect, the trio flew forward, ostentatiously and leisurely as if no one could stop them. Yang Kai was looking left and right, constantly inspecting the surroundings.
Luan Feng asked, “Sir Yang, are you searching for the Netherworld Sect’s Sect Master, Fu Bo?”
Yang Kai replied with a question of his own, “Mhmm, Lady Feng, do you know where he is?”
Luan Feng shook her head, “This Queen also has no idea as I have never been to the Netherworld Sect before.”
“Then we should just ask someone.”
While the two were chatting, they suddenly heard a shout nearby, “Hey you, stop right there!”
Yang Kai, hearing this shout, turned to look and in the next moment, he saw a streak of light flying over. Only when it arrived closer did the streak of light separated into two, revealing two figures, one of a man, and the other of a woman.
The man appeared to be in his thirties, but his face was a little yellowish and he had a sallow aura while the bridge of his nose had grown somewhat dark. He was only in the First-Order Dao Source Realm, but was wearing extremely luxurious clothes. By the looks of it, his status wasn’t low.
And as for the woman, she had a tender gaze and her cheeks were flushed. Her hair was a little messy and her eyes were bright and intelligent. She was quite beautiful, especially her figure, which appeared extremely ravishing. Her cultivation was also two Minor Realms higher than the man’s, putting her in the Third-Order Dao Source Realm.
As soon as the man and woman came near, an obscene smell wafted from them.
Yang Kai had a lot of experience in this regard, and the moment he smelled it and took a look at the woman’s enchanting appearance, how could he not tell that the man and woman had just been enjoying each other’s company? He secretly smiled in his heart at the fact that these two were in the mood in broad daylight.
Who knows just where they had been and what they were doing?
Luan Feng, on the other hand, furrowed her brow and asked, “What’s this smell?”
Although she had a daughter, she had definitely not become pregnant after consummating with a subordinate Monster King as Yang Kai had thought before. Instead, she had used her own Blood Essence and Vitality to form a fetus and then gave birth. In regards to the matters between men and women, Luan Feng was like a blank piece of paper, so how could she know about the origins of this smell?
But instinctively, she abhorred this smell.
“Well, a true icy beauty!” As soon as the young man arrived before the trio, his eyes were completely glued on the cold-faced beauty, Ji Yao.
Because they cultivated Ice Attribute Secret Arts, many of the disciples of Ice Heart Valley had naturally cold temperaments and expressions, giving them unapproachable auras that seemed to push others away.
After a bath and applying some makeup, Ji Yao had long lost her dirty and messy appearance. Her enchanting appearance and slim figure, coupled with her cold aura, could easily arouse a man’s desire to conquer her.
The young man before them was undoubtedly the kind of person who wallowed in women, otherwise, why would he drag his female companion to do such shameless deeds while the sun still hung high in the sky.
“Scram!” Being stared at by this young man, Ji Yao felt extremely uncomfortable and she immediately shouted in an ice-cold voice.
“Ha, a little feisty! I like it!” The young man clearly had quite thick skin. Ji Yao had bluntly rejected him, but he appeared to be enjoying this as if it was an invitation. His eyes were gleaming with greed and lust. He was despicable to the bone.
Yang Kai pulled Ji Yao behind him and looked at the young man with a smile.
The young man’s face immediately turned cold before asking with a cold snort, “Who are you? If you are Netherworld Sect disciples, why haven’t I seen you before?”
Yang Kai indifferently replied, “You don’t need to worry about who we are. We have come to the Netherworld Sect to settle some accounts. Tell me, where can I find your…”
Before Yang Kai could finish his sentence, the young man looked as if he had found a treasure and his eyes widened as an even greedier gleam appeared in them. Staring at Luan Feng, he smacked his lips and shouted, “What a beauty! Hahaha, this Young Master’s fortune is shining today! En, it’s decided, you will warm my bed for me tonight!”
Compared to glacial beauty Ji Yao, the young man seemed to prefer mature and charming women.
Previously, his gaze was attracted by Ji Yao, so only now did he finally discover Luan Feng’s existence. When he did though, he was so excited that his breathing grew ragged and his eyes gleamed with greed and perversion.
As he spoke, he actually tried to reach out and seize Luan Feng.
By the looks of it, it was apparent that he wanted to forcefully take Luan Feng in his captivity.
“Young Man, you’re so…” Yang Kai was scared and hurriedly stepped aside.
“You court death!” Luan Feng was enraged.
With her identity and status, even if the Netherworld Sect’s Sect Master, Fu Bo, came here in person, he would have to treat her with the utmost respect, but now this ignorant First-Order Dao Source Realm waste actually dared to grab at her. Not only that, he had made obscene remarks at her, even demanding that she warm his bed.
Even a monk could be angered, let alone Divine Spirit, Luan Feng.
While grabbing Luan Feng, the young man shot a glance at Yang Kai, his eyes filled with both contempt and admiration. As if he was saying that Yang Kai was quite an understanding fellow.
Naturally, he saw Yang Kai moving to the side just now and thought Yang Kai was afraid of him. This immediately boosted the young man’s vanity, “Baby, you better not resist! This Young Master’s grandfather is the Netherworld Sect’s Great Elder. You will enjoy inexhaustible benefits from this Young Master in the future!”
Luan Feng made a light snort and smacked out a palm.
The young man didn’t even realize what happened before he was smashed into a blood mist by the palm, leaving not even a single bone behind.
“Ahh!!” The woman who was with the young man, instantly turned pale and she hurriedly covered her mouth as her pretty eyes violently trembled.
Looking at the blood raining down from the air, she froze in disbelief.
The grandson of the Great Elder, to whom she had given herself willingly after she was promised enormous benefits, had died just like that, before she could collect even a single Source Crystal! If he was going to die, he should have given her what he promised first!
As she stared at the gore-filled pool of flesh and blood and remembers that this puddle used to be a man who had committed all kinds of perverted acts to her just moments ago, the woman immediately turned pale and flew to the side, emptying her stomach of all its content, vomiting so hard that everything went black before her eyes for a while.
“Lady Feng, didn’t you say that you can’t act freely in a Human Sect? Then, is it okay to kill the grandson of a Great Elder?” Yang Kai glanced at Luan Feng, whose face was completely cold at the moment.
Luan Feng grit her teeth and justified herself, “He was trying to profane this Queen! Should this Queen have just let him touch me?”
After a pause, she angrily stated, “Sir Yang, you aren’t a good person either!”
“Why…” Yang Kai was speechless, “How is this related to me? He was the one being rude to you, not me.”
Luan Feng glared at him and asked, “Why did you dodge just now?”
Yang Kai could have stopped everything from happening, but he had actually stepped aside, making Luan Feng pretty angry. Had Yang Kai not stepped aside, she would not have killed the opposite party in anger.
“Ah… ahaha…” Yang Kai forced a laugh before hurriedly justifying, “It was an instinctive reaction, an instinctive reaction. He was just a piece of trash, Lady Feng doesn’t need to pay his death any mind.”
Luan Feng maintained the cold look on her face; apparently, she cared about it a little, even suspecting that Yang Kai had acted deliberately just now to drag her into this mess. But what could she do now? She had already killed the Great Elder’s grandson in anger, forming an enmity with the Netherworld Sect.
“Do… do you know who he is?” On the other side, the woman, who had been vomiting all the while, had finally regained her calm and accepted the fact that the Great Elder’s grandson had tragically died before her. Nonetheless, she couldn’t help but stare at the trio in shock.
[These three are too bold! They killed the Great Elder’s grandson as if it was nothing, and not only are they not escaping now, but are instead standing around chatting.]
“I heard him loud and clear when he introduced himself, your Great Elder’s grandson, right?” Yang Kai smilingly looked at the woman.
“You…” The woman was completely stunned. Her sweet and sexy eyes that were filled with spring a moment ago were now filled with shock at this moment. She didn’t know what to say, but one thing she knew for certain was that the Great Elder would not let them go. The Great Elder had few family members and only one grandson in his third generation. Unfortunately, this young man was ignorant and incompetent while his aptitude was trash, resulting in him becoming a wastrel that spent all his time on women and wine.
Many Senior and Junior Sisters in the Sect had fallen prey to his wicked hands. Some had sent themselves into his arms willingly while others had been forced to obey him.
Because he was the Great Elder’s grandson, he had abundant cultivation resources in his hands though, so many Senior and Junior Sisters were interested in him and proactively undressed just to get useful benefits from him. She belonged to this category. As for those who were forced, they couldn’t get their revenge as he was under the Great Elder’s asylum.
However, this grandson was not a complete fool and only targeted girls without strong backgrounds in the Sect, those who have no way to seek justice for themselves. As for those with higher status, he never used force but instead lured them in with benefits.
That was also how she was coaxed into the act.
But how could she have ever thought that after sacrificing her innocence, not only would she not get the slightest benefit, but she would have to watch him die as well?
[Even though his end was guaranteed to be bad eventually, now I have to worry about being implicated…]
Thinking of the Great Elder’s coming anger, the woman couldn’t help but shudder as her face instantly went pale.
“Don’t worry,” Yang Kai gently comforted the girl, “We won’t do anything to you.”
“What do you want then?” The woman asked in a tearful voice.
“Where is your Sect Master, Fu Bo?” Yang Kai asked with a smile, but to that woman, that amiable and harmless smile seemed more terrifying than the devil’s malicious grin itself.
She subconsciously pointed in a direction, blurting, “Sect Master cultivates on that peak.”
“Oh?” Yang Kai looked in the direction she pointed before thanking her with a light nod, “Many thanks!”
Having offered proper respect, he flew towards the peak along with Ji Yao and Luan Feng, leaving the Netherworld Sect woman hopelessly standing there. Only after a long time did this woman come to her senses before heading towards another peak in a hurry.
She had to immediately report what just happened to the Great Elder, otherwise, she would definitely die if he were to investigate things himself.
The peak of the mountain was rich in Yin Qi. Also, there appeared to be an enormous Spirit Array surrounding the peak, preventing the near-tangible Yin Qi from leaking out.
More importantly, faint ghastly cries and wails could be heard coming from inside the dense Yin Qi field, giving the listeners a jittery feeling.
The moment Yang Kai’s trio arrived here, a sudden furious shout came from inside, “Who dares intrude here!?”
“Fu Bo?” Yang Kai asked back, raising his brow.
“Bold Junior! You dare call this King by name!? You court death!” The voice called out again.
“It looks like you are indeed Fu Bo,” Yang Kai pursed his lips into a smile before taking a step forward, directly disappearing into the Yin Qi. Ji Yao and Luan Feng hurriedly followed after him.
The Yin Qi covering the top of the mountain seemed to be only used for cultivation and didn’t have any defensive or offensive properties. Yang Kai thus came all the way in with Ji Yao and Luan Feng before everything cleared up before their eyes.
A palace appeared before the trio.
Yang Kai promptly spread out his Divine Sense and immediately found a fearsome presence inside the palace.
Stepping inside the palace, he saw a stalwart man standing there, his eyes gazing towards them, his expression gloomy and filled with anger.
In any case, his Netherworld Sect was a top Sect in the Eastern Territory. Even considering the entire Star Boundary, it was still among the very strongest, yet today, someone actually intruded into his private cultivation sanctuary. Fu Bo was naturally quite angered.
Scanning Yang Kai with his Divine Sense and discovering that he was just a First-Order Emperor, Fu Bo grew angrier.
But regardless of his personal feelings, he was still a Sect Master and his experience and insight were far better than an ordinary person’s. Seeing Yang Kai remain so calm and composed, without a hint of nervousness, Fu Bo subconsciously felt that Yang Kai wasn’t some insignificant character. Otherwise, how would he dare to call him by his name and even break into this place?
“Who are you? Why did you intrude into my Netherworld Sect?” Fu Bo asked with a cold snort.
Yang Kai glanced around before replying with a slight smile, “This Young Master’s name is Yang Kai, I wonder if Sect Master Fu had ever heard of it?”
“Yang Kai?” Fu Bo furrowed his brow, “It seems familiar…”
After giving it some quick thought, his face changed as he shouted, “Are you that enemy of Le Sheng’s?”
Yin Le Sheng was his Legacy Disciple, one that Fu Bo had very high hopes for. Yin Le Sheng hadn’t hidden anything that had happened in the Shattered Star Sea from him after returning to the Sect, so naturally he had mentioned Yang Kai more than once.
In his opinion, this was just a grudge between two Juniors, so Fu Bo didn’t attach that much importance to it. He only asked Yin Le Sheng to focus on cultivation and avenge himself in the future.
However, Yin Le Sheng was eager to have his revenge as quickly as possible, so after spending some time in the Netherworld Sect to stabilize his new Emperor Realm cultivation, he encouraged Hua Fei Chen to travel to the Ancient Wild Lands with him to deal with Yang Kai. After he learned of this, Fu Bo immediately sent Vice Sect Master, Wu Yuan Zheng, to lead some disciples to pick up Yin Le Sheng and prevent any mishap from befalling him in the dangerous Ancient Lands.
But he didn’t expect the little brat named Yang Kai would actually run over here before his disciple and Vice Sect Master even returned.
“It seems Sect Master Fu does know about this Young Master,” Yang Kai meaningfully grinned before nodding, “That will make things much easier.”
Fu Bu turned a deaf ear to Yang Kai’s mutterings and slowly asked with a dissatisfied look on his face, “As far as this King knows, Le Sheng has gone looking for you. As you travelled here, did you see this King’s good-for-nothing disciple?”
“I indeed met him,” Yang Kai replied with a smile, “There was also a guy named Hua Fei Chen with him. He seemed to be the Elder of your noble Sect!”
Fu Bo’s heart immediately hit rock bottom after hearing this and he immediately asked sharply, “Where are they?”
Yang Kai replied, pursing his lips into a smile, “Sect Master Fu is an intelligent man. Since they went looking to trouble this Young Master, and this Young Master has now appeared here unscathed, what do you think their ends would be? Sect Master Fu also said that your disciple is a ‘good-for-nothing’. This Young Master showed great compassion and helped clean your house of such trash. No need to thank me!”
Immediately, Fu Bo’s vitality rolled as he shouted in anger, “That’s impossible!”
Yang Kai coldly stated, “Wu Yuan Zheng said the same thing before his death too!”
“What!?” Fu Bo was truly shaken this time, “Vice Sect Master Wu is dead too?”
After a while, Fu Bo calmed down and rebuffed with a light snort, “Brat, you sure know how to spout nonsense; this King was almost fooled by you. With your pitiful cultivation, even Elder Hua could easily finish you off, so how could you have killed Vice Sect Master Wu? Laughable!”
Yang Kai indifferently replied, “Indeed, this Young Master cannot kill Wu Yuan Zheng, but I never said I killed him. The one who killed him was… someone else!”
Fu Bo furrowed his brow, feeling that Yang Kai wasn’t lying. His heart skipped a beat at that moment as he promptly spread his Divine Sense again, scanning the two women by Yang Kai’s side.
[The cultivation of the girl with the cold aura isn’t bad, actually Second-Order Emperor Realm!] Fu Bo was shocked by this revelation.
Just when he wanted to use his Divine Sense to scan Luan Feng though, he suddenly felt a fearsome pressure emanate from her, frightening him so greatly that he actually retreated a few steps before asking in shock, “Who is Your Excellency?”
Only now did he suddenly discover the unfathomable nature of this beautiful woman.
The woman standing there gave him the feeling of facing a Great Emperor!
As the Netherworld Sect’s Sect Master, it wasn’t like Fu Bo had never met a Great Emperor before. The Serene Soul Great Emperor made his base in the Eastern Territory, so Fu Bo had the good fortune to meet him more than once.
Every time Fu Bo had gone to Serene Soul Palace to meet the Great Emperor though, he would feel a similar pressure to the one he was feeling right now. This was a deeply unsettling sensation, like the other party could take his life just by raising his hand.
[This young man is actually accompanied by a Great Emperor!? What is his identity?]
Fu Bo was now even more curious about the identity of the beautiful woman.
Luan Feng just let out a light snort, having no intention of introducing herself.
After all, as a Divine Spirit, she shouldn’t have come to the Human Sect and didn’t want to reveal her identity unless it was absolutely necessary.
“Sect Master Fu believes me now?” Yang Kai looked at Fu Bo, maintaining a calm and composed look.
Fu Bo nervously gulped, staring at Luan Feng in fear. He then looked at Yang Kai and realized that this boy was the one doing all the talking and replied with a nod, “If this Madam took action, Wu Yuan Zheng would not have any chance to survive.”
Wu Yuan Zheng was dead, so Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen couldn’t be alive either.
He was totally unaware that Yin Le Sheng and Hua Fei Chen were killed by Yang Kai and it had nothing to do with Luan Feng.
Sighing, Fu Bo dejectedly asked, “Since my good-for-nothing disciple had eyes but failed to see, provoking Your Excellency, then he is guilty of death! It’s just that… it was a personal feud between Your Excellency and my disciple, and he has already been punished. I wonder why Your Excellency has come to my Netherworld Sect now?”
After Yin Le Sheng took on such a powerful opponent, his death was not the biggest deal, though it was still saddening. However, in this case it was his own fault for being imperceptive, and he had also cost the Netherworld Sect two Emperor Realm Elders and a Vice Sect Master.
This time, the losses suffered by the Netherworld Sect were immense.
Fu Bo was certain that the one who killed these people was Luan Feng, so his attitude softened as he didn’t dare to think of getting revenge. What worried him the most right now was whether Luan Feng would let things go. If she was unwilling, then it would be yet another calamity for the Netherworld Sect.
Having someone whose status was no less than a Great Emperor show up in person was no joke, and the Netherworld Sect could easily be erased from the Star Boundary if anything went wrong!
Yang Kai snorted lightly, “Yin Le Sheng kept pestering me, but I was magnanimous and kindly spared him in the Shattered Star Sea. To think he still had delusions of causing problems for me, this is very troubling indeed…”
[You’ve already killed him, what the heck are you troubled about! The one who really should be troubled is me!] Fu Bo was enraged, but did not dare to retort.
“As the old sayings go, the folly of the son is the fault of the father, and a Master for a day is a Father for a lifetime. Yin Le Sheng may be dead, but you also have quite a large responsibility as his Master. If you taught him well, then he wouldn’t have been so thick-headed and narrow-minded!”
As expected, the Netherworld Sect and Fu Bo were dragged into this matter.
Though he had known this was coming, Fu Bo was still filled with resentment upon hearing Yang Kai’s words. He dearly wished he had never taken Yin Le Sheng as his Disciple, but with the current state of things, he could not possibly escape?
“What does Your Excellency want?” Sighed Fu Bo.
With Luan Feng glaring at him from behind Yang Kai, Fu Bo’s heart was full of anxiety. He was terrified that he would say something to offend Yang Kai, who would then take the opportunity to give him more substantial trouble.
Yang Kai snorted, “The spiritual wounds and psychological trauma your Disciple caused me are indelible. Even today, I am greatly disturbed when I recall what happened, and I have suffered from sleeplessness and a loss of appetite. Those memories are like evil ghosts, they haunt me and cannot be dispelled…”
Fu Bo raised a hand to interrupt him, and said dejectedly, “Please name your price, Your Excellency.”
He finally figured it out. This time, Yang Kai was not here to actually do anything to the Netherworld Sect or Fu Bo; instead, it seemed like he was here for extortion.
And though it was painful to pay up, Fu Bo did heave a sigh of relief. If he could solve this calamity with Source Crystals, that was still acceptable. The only thing was that this cost… was not going to be low.
Yang Kai side-eyed him in anger, “Aren’t you underestimating me a little too much, Sect Master Fu? You think I can be so easily bribed?”
Fu Bo was stunned, wondering if he could possibly have misunderstood and became anxious once more, completely unable to comprehend what Yang Kai had come to the Netherworld Sect to do.
But Yang Kai suddenly changed his tune, “But… if Sect Master Fu is truly sincere,” he said, stroking his chin, “Then perhaps I won’t be unwilling to put things to rest.”
At those words, Fu Bo was so mad he felt like spitting blood. When Yang Kai was speaking so severely just now, Fu Bo almost thought he was someone with principles. Little did he expect to see Yang Kai’s true colours show so easily.
After all that talk, he was still just here for extortion…
“If I may ask, Your Excellency… how large should this ‘sincerity’ be?” Fu Bo asked darkly.
“If I had tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of Source Crystals,” Yang Kai said flippantly, “Then perhaps I could forget about the matter of people from your noble Sect causing me trouble, and I would be able to sleep peacefully from now on.”
“Tens… hundreds… of millions…” Fu Bo wiped the cold sweat from his forehead in shock, and asked, “Mid-Rank Source Crystals?”
“Preposterous!” Yang Kai’s expression turned to rage and he glared at Fu Bo, “It seems like Sect Master Fu’s sincerity is not enough to quell my fury! Lady Feng!”
At his yell, Luan Feng immediately took a step forward, “What are your orders, Young Master Yang?”
“Wait, wait, wait!” Fu Bo jumped, seeing Luan Feng step forward, and hurriedly raised a hand to halt things. He was pouring cold sweat as he cowered and asked weakly, “Could Your Excellency actually mean… High-Rank Source Crystals?”
Yang Kai sneered coldly, “If Sect Master Fu understands, then why play dumb?”
Fu Bo swallowed in spite of himself, finally understanding the extent of Yang Kai’s greed.
While it wasn’t impossible for the Netherworld Sect to provide that many High-Rank Source Crystals, it would be a huge blow to their resources if they did. The Netherworld Sect was a top Sect in the Eastern Territory and it had many Source Crystal lodes under its control that yielded great profits each year; however, with so many disciples in the Sect, its annual consumption rate was also quite astonishing.
If they really were to satisfy Yang Kai’s demands, then for at least the next few years, the disciples’ cultivation resources would be greatly reduced.
Fu Bo was beside himself with rage. The Vice Sect Master of his own Sect, two Elders, and even his Legacy Disciple had been killed, yet not only did the enemy come to extort him, he even demanded the lion’s share of their resources. Such a thing would infuriate anyone, but Fu Bo had no choice when he was so outclassed. It truly was vexing.
Just as Fu Bo was hesitating, a voice was suddenly heard from outside the hall, “Sect Master, Zhong Yong requests to see you!”
“Great Elder?” Fu Bo frowned, wondering why the Great Elder would come here at such a time. He naturally didn’t wish others to see his distressed state when he was floundering, but then again, perhaps having another person there could be helpful too. With the Great Elder there, they might just be able to recoup some of their losses; after all, he was no outsider.
At that thought, Fu Bo answered, “Come in!”
On the other side, Yang Kai cast a glance at Luan Feng, his mouth curling into a faint smile.
Luan Feng looked as cold as ever as she snorted quietly.
When they had just arrived at the Netherworld Sect, Luan Feng had killed a man who was entranced by her beauty and tried to assault her. That young man had declared his identity as the grandson of the Great Elder.
And now, with the Great Elder of the Netherworld Sect suddenly showing up, how could she not know the reason?
It was clear that he came for revenge.
That was indeed the truth. Earlier, the alluring woman who was with the dead young man had gone to see the Great Elder immediately after giving directions to Yang Kai’s group, and reported everything that had happened.
The Great Elder flew into a rage, and upon learning that Yang Kai and Luan Feng were here to find Fu Bo, he rushed over as well.
It was unacceptable that one of his kin was killed within the Sect’s headquarters. Not to mention, that was his only grandchild. Not only was the crime absolutely unforgivable, but the sheer brazenness of the killer was enough cause for the old man to take offence.
Zhong Yong entered the hall with an icy expression, and the murderous intent in his eyes was so strong that it was almost tangible. After bowing to greet Fu Bo, he immediately looked towards the two women standing behind Yang Kai.
He had heard from the Third-Order Dao Source Realm disciple that his grandson’s killer was a woman with mature and noble looks.
Luan Feng and Ji Yao differed greatly in the impressions they gave off, so Zhou Yong quickly identified which of them was the murderer.
At this moment, Fu Bo was frowning deeply as he pondered how to best explain the current situation to the Great Elder, so he could help come up with ideas, completely failing to notice Zhou Yong’s fury and murderous intent.
Before Fu Bo could break out of his reverie though, Zhou Yong suddenly roared, “Lowly wench, are you the one who killed my grandson!?”
“Huh?” Fu Bo nearly jumped out of his skin as he stared at Zhou Yong in alarm, “Great Elder, what are you talking about?”
[Did I just mishear him?? Did Zhou Yong just hurl that kind of insult?]
Zhou Yong reached out his hand and pointed at Luan Feng, who stood behind Yang Kai, his voice full of fury as he shouted, “Sect Master, it was this slut who cruelly murdered Zhou Ji, my only grandchild, inside the Sect!”
“Zhou Ji?” Fu Bo frowned, “That good-for-nothing waste?”
He knew Zhou Ji was Great Elder Zhou’s grandson. If it was any ordinary disciple, he could not possibly remember their name; after all, in his position and with the Sect having some ten thousand disciples, he could not care less about a mere First-Order Dao Source Realm disciple.
But Zhou Ji, being the Great Elder’s grandson, was naturally different.
Fu Bo had heard about him before and knew that he was a waste with no interest in cultivating. All he did was use his status as the grandson of the Great Elder to get away with any trouble he caused.
But still, that little brat had never damaged anything crucial to the Sect or preyed on any female disciples of notable aptitude. Thus, for the sake of the Great Elder’s face, Fu Bo had never been bothered to deal with him.
He could not have expected that the good-for-nothing had actually gotten himself killed. Not only that, but it also happened inside the Sect… and it was done by the formidable Master that even Fu Bo was intimidated by.
Zhou Yong’s face was full of anguish, “While Ji’er may not have been a good disciple, he was still young! With my personal tutelage, he could’ve one day achieved greatness, but now he is dead! This wench killed him, and now the Zhou family line… has been cut off!”
Fu Bo’s face was as black as it could be as he snuck a glance at Luan Feng’s reaction before roaring, “Great Elder, shut your mouth!”
This woman was pretty much equivalent in status to a Great Emperor! How could Zhou Yong be so blind, repeatedly insulting her by calling her a lowly wench? If he really angered her, then the consequences would be more than they could bear.
At that moment, Fu Bo’s regret was immense. If he had only known this would happen, he would never have let Zhou Yong in. Now, not only was Zhou Yong no help at all, but he was also adding to the trouble.
“Sect Master,” Zhou Yong said, enraged, “Even if they are your guests, I must have my revenge for the death of my grandson!”
He thought that Yang Kai’s group was here, invited by Fu Bo.
But even if they were Fu Bo’s guests, he was unfazed. As he was not only a Third-Order Emperor Ream Master, but also the Great Elder of the Netherworld Sect, his position was of extreme significance. Zhou Yong was sure that the Sect Master would take his side.
However, things were turning out quite contrary to his expectations. Fu Bo instead glared at him and snapped, “Great Elder, I ask you to think of the bigger picture!”
“The bigger picture?” Zhou Yong sneered, “My lineage has ended, what bigger picture is left!? Sect Master, if you allow me to have my revenge, that is all I could ask for, but if you don’t, then I must kill these people even if I have to leave the Netherworld Sect!”
Fu Bo shuddered as he asked in a dark tone of voice, realizing that he was in deep trouble now, “What nonsense are you talking about?”
With the Vice Sect Master and two Elders dead, if the Great Elder chose to leave the Sect as well, then the Netherworld Sect’s power would absolutely plummet. If that happened, then it would be impossible to keep things running even for a Third-Order Emperor Realm Sect Master like himself.
“Please accede to my wishes!” Zhou Yong said with solemn determination, cupping his fists.
He had only said those words as a bluff, and did not really wish to leave the Netherworld Sect; after all, he had committed his life to the Sect and sacrificed greatly for it. How could he cut ties with it so easily?
Zhou Yong was certain that if he just showed his resolve, then the Sect Master was sure to agree with him; after all, he had toiled for the Sect for so many years, and all that hard work had to count for something.
“Great Elder Zhou, was it?” Yang Kai spoke up with a light laugh, looking towards him with great amusement, “Why don’t you tell Sect Master Fu just why your grandson was killed?”
Fu Bo jolted and realized that he was right. Zhou Yong was quick to accuse someone who had strength equal to a Great Emperor of murdering his grandson, but why would someone with such lofty status randomly decide to attack a First-Order Dao Source Realm Junior? Under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t even spare such a person a glance, much less attack him.
Zhou Yong snorted coldly, “No matter what wrong Ji’er may have committed, you still shouldn’t have killed him!”
Yang Kai was stunned speechless. After a long pause he finally gave an approving nod and declared, “The Great Elder is bold indeed!”
Zhou Yong continued angrily, “Ji’er is my grandson, and any small mistakes he makes is understandable. And yet you people cruelly used lethal force against him! I have come here today because I must take your lives as revenge for my Ji’er!”
“Small mistake!?” Yang Kai couldn’t help but laugh as he turned to Fu Bo, “Sect Master Fu, Zhou Ji was blinded by lust for Lady Feng you see by my side. Without any care for anything at all, he tried to abduct her and force her to warm his bed. What do you think of that, Sect Master Fu?”
“Abduct!? Warm his bed?!” Fu Bo was horrified and cold sweat began pouring down like buckets from his entire figure. The whole world around him seemed to be spinning and he felt certain that there was no hope left.
Even Fu Bo had to be on his best behaviour in front of Lady Feng, but Zhou Ji had the guts to try and abduct her? Not only that, he wanted her to serve him in his bed? He was simply courting death!
Only at this moment did he finally understand why someone like her would attack a First-Order Dao Source Ream cultivator.
But according to what he knew of Zhou Ji, that good-for-nothing really was capable of doing such a thing.
Yang Kai smiled as he looked at Zhou Yong, “Today, I have witnessed the grand posture of the Great Elder. It has been quite eye-opening to see how someone from a top Sect has a completely different tone from the rest! You are quite right… if your grandson was still alive, and had your personal tutelage, then he would certainly achieve greatness some day! After all, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree!”
“Anything you say now is useless!” Zhong Yong stared coldly at Yang Kai, his eyes full of murderous intent, “Only by taking your lives can I quell the rage in my heart!”
He turned to look at Fu Bo, and quickly repeated, “Please accede to my wishes, Sect Master!”
Fu Bo’s face was as black as the abyss as he silently cursed the Great Elder for being so blind. He was just about to secretly convey to him just how powerful Luan Feng was, when Yang Kai suddenly spoke, “Sect Master Fu, since this Great Elder is willing to leave your noble Sect in order to kill us, why don’t you give him what he wants? If you keep trying to stop him, then it may upset all parties involved.”
Upon hearing this, Fu Bo perfectly understood what Yang Kai meant. He sighed deeply and closed his eyes, making it clear that he was not getting involved.
“Many thanks, Sect Master!” Zhou Yong spun around, ecstatic. Emperor Qi surged up within his body and he launched a heavy palm strike towards Yang Kai’s group.
It seemed from his manner that he wanted to kill them all in one blow.
“A mere firefly dares to challenge the light of the moon?” Luan Feng snorted coldly. She barely seemed to move before she suddenly appeared in front of Yang Kai and raised her hand, sending out a burst of pitch-black flames towards Zhou Yong.
The black flames gave off an aura capable of eliminating all of existence.
The power behind Zhou Yong’s palm strike completely collapsed as he shuddered, his stance falling apart as he panicked.
“What!?” Zhou Yong’s whole expression changed as his eyes were instantly filled with horror. He screamed as the deathly aura surged towards him, “Sect Master, save me!”
He finally realised that he had kicked an unbendable iron plate. This elegant and beautiful woman was so far above him in power that he was entirely outmatched.
Fu Bo’s tightly-shut eyes opened immediately, but before he could say anything, Yang Kai coldly spoke, “Sect Master Fu, you’d best not get involved, lest you be burnt!”
Fu Bo’s heart jumped as he swallowed back the words he had been about to say.
“Ahh!” A horrible scream was heard as the World Extinguishing Black Flames turned Zhou Yong into a black fireball and started to incinerate him.
Just like Wu Yuan Zheng before his death, the more Zhou Yong tried to channel his Emperor Qi to defend himself, the more furiously the flames on his body burned. It was as though all his Emperor Qi had turned into fuel.
“Sect Master…” Zhou Yong was still screaming piteously, begging for help in the most miserable of voices.
Even though Fu Bo pitied him, he didn’t dare to intercede. All he could do was gloomily look on.
After a whole ten breaths had passed, Zhou Yong was reduced to a pile of ash. With a careless wave of her hand, Luan Feng called back her World Extinguishing Black Flames that had still not diminished in strength.
The Great Elder of the Netherworld Sect was now dead.
Luan Feng still seemed to hold some lingering anger after giving vent to her feelings and she cast a glare at Yang Kai, “I do apologize, Young Master Yang. I once again forgot about his Space Ring.”
She had clearly not forgotten, but had done it on purpose. She knew that even if she killed Zhou Yong, it was impossible for his Space Ring to fall into her hands, so she decided to simply burn everything down instead.
After all, Yang Kai was greatly responsible for what happened today. Luan Feng was clearly still annoyed at Yang Kai for ducking aside earlier when that good-for-nothing grabbed at her, leading to her instinctually killing him.
If Yang Kai hadn’t dodged to the side, then perhaps they wouldn’t have so much trouble now.
Yang Kai wiped the cold sweat on his forehead and said awkwardly, “It’s no issue, no issue at all!”
Luan Feng’s anger was greatly reduced after seeing Yang Kai’s manner. On second thought, she really shouldn’t be giving attitude to the man who had the protection of that Heaven’s Order descendant. Now that Luan Feng saw that he wasn’t at all annoyed by her actions, she felt that he was actually not that bad after all.
Yang Kai turned to Fu Bo next, “Sect Master Fu, Lady Feng has killed your noble Sect’s Great Elder. I hope you have no problem with that?”
No problem with it? He had one hell of a problem! He was the only one left amongst the Sect’s three Third-Order Emperor Realm Masters! How could he have no problem with that? But even so, what could he do about it?
Fu Bo had seen Luan Feng’s attack with his own eyes and recognized the origin of those pitch-black flames. Coupled with Yang Kai addressing her as Lady Feng repeatedly, he had a pretty good idea of who she was.
Divine Spirit Luan Feng! One of the Four Great Divine Venerables of the Ancient Wild Lands. Her subordinates included eight Monster Kings, none of whom were weaker than him.
Though not a Great Emperor, she could be compared to one. Either way, he couldn’t afford to offend her. If he did enrage her, she could easily send a few Monster Kings over and exterminate the Netherworld Sect without breaking a sweat.
Fu Bo forced a smile despite the bitterness in his heart, “Zhou Yong had already left my Sect, so he doesn’t count as one of our members. Whether he lived or died after that has nothing to do with us!”
While he said all this, Fu Bo was filled with curiosity. How could Divine Spirit Luan Feng be willing to follow a human Junior? She even seemed like she was being ordered around by him.
Just what kind of background did this Yang Kai have?
Yang Kai gave Fu Bo a meaningful look and smiled, “Sect Master Fu is a flexible man of great understanding. In that case, let us resume the earlier discussion of compensation.”
“There’s no need,” Fu Bo smiled bitterly, “I will definitely ensure that Your Excellency is satisfied.”
He had wanted to bargain earlier when Yang Kai demanded the lion’s share of goods, but now, all he wanted was to quickly send these three calamity-bringers on their way. After a disciple of his own Sect had lusted after Luan Feng and even tried to abduct her, it was already a blessing that she hadn’t burnt everyone in his Sect to ashes. He did not dare to argue anymore.
Saying so, Fu Bo retrieved a communication artifact from his Space Ring and channelled his Divine Sense into it. He was evidently conversing with someone.
After he put the artifact away, Fu Bo forced a smile and said, “Please wait for a moment.”
“Good,” Yang Kai nodded, then suddenly turned serious, “Sect Master Fu, I’ve actually come to the Netherworld Sect for two matters. The first matter has been dealt with now, but I still need to talk to you about the second.”
Fu Bo’s heart jumped. He was extremely nervous, not knowing what other nasty surprises Yang Kai had for him, “May I know what else Your Excellency would like from me?” he asked carefully.
Yang Kai smiled, “Don’t be so tense, Sect Master Fu. This second matter is just a trivial favour. I’d like to borrow the Space Array of your noble Sect.”
“Borrow our Space Array?” Relief washed over Fu Bo, and he felt like he had just been brought out of Hell straight into Heaven, “No problem, no problem at all.”
He had just been on tenterhooks over what the second matter would be, but it turned out to be a simple request to borrow their Space Array.
“Where would Your Excellency like to go?” Fu Bo asked tentatively.
“To the Northern Territory!” said Yang Kai.
“The Northern Territory is quite far …” Fu Bo frowned a little, “Though our Sect’s Space Array is quite powerful, it still isn’t able to transport you to the Northern Territory directly. If you wish to go there, you’ll have to use a Cross-Territory Space Array. As far as I know, only Serene Soul Palace has such a Space Array in the Eastern Territory, a relic from the ancient past.”
“Serene Soul Palace has a Cross-Territory Space Array?” Yang Kai raised his brow, evidently surprised.
“I have only heard rumours of it, but not seen it myself.”
Yang Kai nodded.
Though Fu Bo had only heard about it, even if Serene Soul Palace really did have a Cross-Territory Space Array, it would be impossible for Yang Kai to borrow it. That place was overseen by the Serene Soul Great Emperor, and people could not simply go there and do as they pleased.
In addition, Yang Kai had clashed with the Serene Soul Great Emperor’s daughter Yao Lin. The Serene Soul Great Emperor had even been forced to appear to resolve the situation via a Soul Descend, but who knew what would happen if Yang Kai went right up to their front door.
“Since I can’t cross territories, then help me get to the place closest to the Northern Territory,” said Yang Kai.
“Of course. I will personally arrange this for Your Excellency in a moment,” Fu Bo quickly promised.
“Young Master Yang wishes to go to the Northern Territory?” Luan Feng finally asked, after listening to them for a while.
“En,” Yang Kai nodded and cast a glance at Ji Yao.
Ji Yao’s current condition was unstable, and while she was still well behaved because she thought he was Senior Bing Yun, who knew when her consciousness would become confused once more?
The reason he wanted to go to the Northern Territory was that he wished to send Ji Yao back to Ice Heart Valley. With Bing Yun personally looking after Ji Yao, perhaps she could finally recover.
As this was an urgent matter, Yang Kai had to deal with it first.
Yang Kai turned his head and said with a smile, “Why not come along, Lady Feng? The scenery of the Northern Territory is incredibly beautiful. It’s got lovely mountains and clear springs, and is the home of many outstanding people. Wouldn’t it be nice to go take a look around?”
“Absolutely not!” Luan Feng glared at him.
How outrageous of him to try and drag her along to be his free bodyguard again. She was supposed to be done after escorting him out of the Ancient Lands, and only continued to accompany him to the Netherworld Sect because she didn’t really have a choice. There was no way she would now follow him to the Northern Territory as well.
“Alright, alright, no need to get angry,” said Yang Kai, rubbing his nose.
Fu Bo was quite terrified as he observed them. He could not figure out just who Yang Kai really was or how he could be so close with Divine Spirit Luan Feng. There was only one thing he did know, which was that he must absolutely not get on this young man’s bad side.
After less than an hour had passed, a woman’s voice was heard outside the hall, “Sect Master, your subordinate requests an audience!”
“Come in!” Fu Bo hurriedly answered. After waiting there for an hour with Yang Kai and Luan Feng, Fu Bo had turned into a bundle of taut nerves, and looked extremely happy to see someone who could ‘save’ him from this situation.
Footsteps were heard as a woman in an elegant dress entered the hall.
This woman was quite refined in appearance, dressed in a noble and dignified manner. Her cultivation had reached the Second-Order Emperor Realm, and it looked like she held quite a high position within the Netherworld Sect.
As she entered, the woman cast a curious glance at Yang Kai’s group. She wondered what kind of people they must be, to be entertained in the Sect Master’s private retreat. As far as she knew, this place did not allow just anybody inside. Even the Elders usually couldn’t step in here unless they were summoned.
“Did you bring what I asked for?” Fu Bo asked the beautiful woman.
“Yes,” she quickly answered.
As she spoke, she passed the Space Ring she was holding to Fu Bo.
Fu Bo took it from her, then winced slightly as he checked it with his Divine Sense. He quickly calmed down and waved his hand at the woman, “You may go.”
“Sect Master!” The woman did not immediately leave, looking at Fu Bo with curiosity, “Why do you need a hundred million High-Rank Source Crystals all of a sudden, and so urgently?”
This beautiful woman was the Netherworld Sect’s general manager, in charge of the Sect storehouse and all resources used for cultivation. Though she did retrieve these hundred million High-Rank Source Crystals from the storehouse as ordered, it was such a large sum that she had to ask what they were to be used for. Without these hundred million High-Rank Source Crystals, the cultivation resources of all their disciples would be greatly reduced for the next few years.
And when the disciples complained about it, all their criticism would be directed at her.
“Cultivation!” Fu Bo answered calmly, without even batting an eye.
The woman stopped for a moment, then suddenly asked with great delight, “Sect Master, could you be…”
Fu Bo waved his hand, “Don’t ask so much.”
“Yes!” The woman hurriedly answered, cupping her fists, but even so, there was a look of joy on her face that could not be concealed.
She thought that the Sect Master wanted all these Source Crystals because he could possibly achieve a breakthrough. Fu Bo was already a Third-Order Emperor Realm cultivator, if he had another breakthrough, then he would reach the Great Emperor Realm, and if he really became a Great Emperor, then the Netherworld Sect would greatly rise in status as well.
Compared to the Sect Master’s cultivation taking a step further, a hundred million High-Rank Source Crystals was a triviality. The woman was instantly relieved.
“I will take my leave, Sir!” The woman bowed respectfully, and was about to leave.
“Oh, and go prepare the Space Array,” Fu Bo instructed, “I will be escorting these guests away shortly.”
The woman left happily with her orders.
After she left, a look of awkwardness came over Fu Bo’s face, and he tossed the Space Ring to Yang Kai.
As the current Sect Master of the Netherworld Sect, it was really quite embarrassing to have to lie to his subordinate in front of Yang Kai and the others, but what else could he do but lie? He could not possibly tell his subordinate that he was actually being extorted.
That would really be too embarrassing to say out loud.
Yang Kai took the Space Ring and checked it with his Divine Sense, then put it away without doing a precise count.
He was sure that Fu Bo would not short-change him. If he promised a hundred million High-Rank Source Crystals, then he would deliver a hundred million.
Yang Kai was in quite a good mood after suddenly attaining such a fortune. If he totalled up this stash with what he had gained last time in the Ancient Wild Lands, then he had somewhere between seven to eight hundred million High-Rank Source Crystals on hand.
It was a terrifying sum.
“Sect Master Fu is sincere indeed!” Yang Kai said, laughing, “Since you are so sincere, then my conflict with the Netherworld Sect is now resolved. From now on, let us each go our separate ways and not bother the other. What do you think of this, Sect Master Fu?”
“Good, I could not have asked for more!” Fu Bo would not possibly dare to say no.
Yang Kai went on, “I do still need to borrow your noble Sect’s power for the second matter.”
“En, please follow me!” Fu Bo did not hesitate further, and hurriedly led the way.
The four of them exited the hall and quickly flew towards a certain direction.
After they arrived at a small mountain, Fu Bo led Yang Kai and the others to stop at an area of flat ground on the mountaintop. A grand palace stood here, and Yang Kai could sense swirling Space Principles even without going inside.
Naturally, these were the Space Principles associated with the Space Array.
It seemed like the beautiful woman from earlier had already made preparations.
After entering the palace, the Netherworld Sect disciples guarding the Space Array immediately bowed respectfully to them. The woman who had brought the Space Ring earlier also hurried forth to greet them, cupping her fists as she spoke, “Sect Master, everything is now prepared. May I know what your destination is?”
“Black Armour City!” Said Fu Bo.
The woman nodded and gestured to the disciples standing by the Space Array, who immediately began making adjustments.
In no time at all, the preparations were complete and the Space Array was ready.
Fu Bo smiled and gestured ahead “Please go ahead!”
Yang Kai led Ji Yao forward to stand in the centre of the Space Array, then looked towards Luan Feng with a smile, “Lady Feng, are you sure you don’t want to come take a look with me?”
“Have a smooth journey, Sir Yang!” Luan Feng answered, her face expressionless.
Yang Kai chuckled, “In that case, many thanks to Lady Feng for escorting us. If I have the free time someday, I will certainly visit again to give my thanks.”
Luan Feng’s mouth twitched, but she still managed to force a slight smile without saying a word. It was folly to say too much at such a time, and thus, silence was her response.
Yang Kai turned his head to the Netherworld Sect disciples, “Begin!”
They glanced at Fu Bo and waited for him to nod his head, then fully activated the Space Array’s power.
With a flash of bright light, the High-Rank Source Crystals placed on the Space Array were instantly drained of their power and reduced to a pile of dust.
When the light faded, Yang Kai and Ji Yao had also vanished.
*Hu…*
Luan Feng heaved a light sigh, thinking to herself that this troublesome fellow was finally gone. Her mood was lifted by this, and she smiled.
Without bothering to bid Fu Bo farewell she turned around and walked straight out of the palace, then flew away.
Fu Bo led the Netherworld Sect disciples outside the palace gates to see her off, respectfully cupping his fists in salute.
“Sect Master…” The beautiful woman looked quite bewildered to see her Sect Master treat this unknown woman with such awe and respect. He even personally came outside to see her off even though she ignored him completely.
“That lady from earlier… Who is she?” The woman could not help but ask.
Before Fu Bo could answer, they heard the distant sound of a clear and melodious cry that seemed to pierce through the clouds.
They could also vaguely see the form of some gigantic being as it flew amongst the clouds, before quickly vanishing.
[As I thought…]
Fu Bo couldn’t help but squint as the fear of what had just taken place fully dawned on him. Though he had more or less guessed Luan Feng’s identity already, he was never able to fully confirm it. Now, after hearing that cry, and seeing the gigantic being flying amongst the clouds with his own two eyes, there was absolutely no doubt that his guess had been correct.
That person really was a Divine Venerable from the Ancient Wild Lands!
Most cultivators did not know much about the situation inside the Ancient Lands, but those who had reached Fu Bo’s level were always able to learn of some little-known secrets via various means. One of these secrets was the distribution of forces within the Ancient Wild Lands!
The Ancient Wild Lands was like a massive trove of treasures, and if it wasn’t for the Four Great Divine Venerables and thirty-two Monster Kings who maintained order in the Ancient Lands, that place would’ve been completely taken over by all the great forces of Star Boundary already.
“Don’t ask too much, just do your job!” Fu Bo replied calmly.
“Yes!” The beautiful woman replied respectfully, then suddenly asked, “Sect Master, I heard from a disciple earlier that Great Elder went to your place earlier. Why didn’t I see him at all?”
Fu Bo’s brow spasmed before he heaved a heavy sigh, “Zhou Yong… is dead.”
“What?” The woman was aghast, “Great Elder Zhou is dead? Who killed him?”
“He offended someone he shouldn’t have,” Fu Bo explained quietly, glancing at the woman, “Elder Zhuo, your curiosity is too strong.”
As he finished speaking, he turned into a flash of light and disappeared, going back to his place of retreat.
The woman by the surname of Zhuo remained standing in place, completely stunned and still trying to process the news that the Great Elder was dead. Her face was full of shock, and who knew what she would think if she knew that even the Vice Sect Master had also died?
……
Black Armour City stood near the border of the Eastern Territory, only about fifty thousand kilometres away from the Northern Territory.
Inside the city, Yang Kai and Ji Yao appeared on the Space Array.
Even before they could steady themselves, a palm strike and a rush of wind came towards them, along with someone’s shout of laughter, “This one is mine!”
“Huh?” Yang Kai was bewildered and turned to see a big bearded man flying towards them, a heavy palm strike aimed right at his chest.
He had no idea what kind of grudge or enmity he had with the man, but Yang Kai was certain that he had never seen this person before.
“Sha Yong, if that man is yours, then the woman is mine! Whew… this is a pretty one, I’m in luck!” Another voice was heard as a second person appeared, going straight for Ji Yao. His face bore an expression of lustful evil, as though he wanted to snatch Ji Yao away right then and there to ‘dote’ on her.
The bearded man named Sha Yong hadn’t paid much attention to Ji Yao before, but now he hurriedly checked her out as well. He saw that she was indeed a great beauty, especially with that cold and distant aura that only made him want to conquer her even more.
Sha Yong turned and dashed towards Ji Yao as well, hollering as he went, “Change, change! You got a woman last time Gu Peng, this time it’s my turn!”
As they spoke, Sha Yong and Gu Peng had both dashed in front of Ji Yao, each of them reaching out a hand to grab her.
Ji Yao’s expression abruptly turned ice-cold. There was a loud clang, a flash of the blade, and then blood sprayed.
Two horrible yells rang out as the two who had dashed at her jumped back, their faces terribly pale.
*Pa pa…*
Two severed arms fell to the ground.
“My arm!” Sha Yong screamed in shock, staring at the severed limb on the ground as though he had only just realised what had happened to him. Meanwhile, Gu Peng’s expression was not much better, either.
“Bold! With such low cultivation, you still dare to come and court death?” Yang Kai looked at the two men with great astonishment, unable to comprehend their actions.
When those two fellows had come charging forth so aggressively, one for the man and the other for the woman, Yang Kai had thought that they would be quite powerful, but now, upon checking them with his Divine Sense, he realised that they were merely Third-Order Dao Source Realms.
“You…” Gu Peng stared at Yang Kai and Ji Yao, appalled, “How could you have recovered so quickly?”
Yang Kai’s brow furrowed, as he didn’t quite understand what Gu Peng meant. He thought about it for a moment, then it all became clear as he smiled, “You thought that we would suffer side-effects from teleporting here?
Teleporting via a Space Array was always accompanied by a bout of dizziness, regardless of distance travelled, leaving all cultivators somewhat disoriented upon their arrival. Under such circumstances, the cultivator’s senses and reflexes would both be heavily dulled, making this the likeliest time for sneak attacks to succeed.
Thus, under normal circumstances, Space Arrays of large cities would be guarded by cultivators from the City Lord’s Mansion. They were not only responsible for protecting the Space Array from being damaged, but also for protecting the incoming cultivators from being ambushed.
But the Space Array in this Black Armour City seemed to be different. It sat right in the centre of the city, and did not have anyone nearby to guard it. Instead, there were a few people nearby looking to commit theft and make a quick profit.
Sha Yong and Gu Peng were two such opportunists, and they had intended to ambush Yang Kai and Ji Yao while they were disoriented, but instead, they had the tables turned on them.
Yang Kai, having cultivated the Dao of Space, had manipulated the Space Principles to protect Ji Yao and himself back when he was starting the teleportation from the Netherworld Sect. A mere short distance teleportation like this could not possibly affect him.
“How can this be?” Sha Yong was completely befuddled, his face aghast.
“Because this Young Master is strong!” Yang Kai grinned, but his expression struck terror and anxiety into Sha Yong and Gu Peng’s hearts.
“Sir, please spare us!” The bearded man Sha Yong immediately started begging for mercy.
A look flashed across Gu Peng’s face and he turned to flee.
“Hmph!” Ji Yao coldly snorted, turning the sword in her hand. She thrust it forward as she dashed towards Gu Peng, catching up to him in an instant and piercing him straight through the heart. He fell to the ground and was dead instantly.
As a Second-Order Emperor Realm Master against a Third-Order Dao Source Ream cultivator, Ji Yao didn’t need to use any of her true power at all.
As Sha Yong saw this, his face grew paler and his legs trembled. With a look of misery he pleaded, “I beg you, please spare my wretched life.”
Yang Kai looked at him impassively, and coldly said, “You two seem to have done quite a lot of these thefts and robberies.”
“No, no, this is my first time, it really is!” Sha Yong said piteously, looking up at him.
“One that walks frequently by the river cannot keep his shoes dry,” Yang Kai explained, “Since you’ve entered this profession, then you should have the corresponding awareness. You’re too young, don’t do such acts again in your next life.”
“Next life…” Sha Yong jolted, his eyes full of terror, but before he could do anything else, Ji Yao had already struck out with her palm, turning him into meat paste.
The cultivators nearby all shuddered. They stared at the icy woman, who possessed peerless beauty but killed humans like they were nothing but flies. Every one of them was terrified, fearing that she was in the mood for murder and would wreak havoc upon the place.
Yang Kai reached out and took the two Space Rings, without looking to see what was within. The Space Rings of two Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivators were nothing to him; after all, he was quite wealthy now. He then turned to Ji Yao and said impassively, “Let’s go.”
Ji Yao nodded, and the two of them flew away.
As they left Black Armour City, Yang Kai pointed in a direction and said, “Yao’er, the Northern Territory should be that way. Do you know the way back to Ice Heart Valley?
Ji Yao nodded her head, “I do.”
“Then you lead the way, I need to cultivate for a while,” Yang Kai instructed. He tossed out his ship artifact and landed upon it, calling Ji Yao to join him.
However, Ji Yao eyed the ship and said rather apologetically, “Honoured Master, let’s use my flight type artifact instead. Yours is… not suitable.”
Yang Kai grimaced.
This ship was a casual gift from Jiu Feng years ago, and it was a Dao Source Grade High-Rank artifact. Yang Kai used to think it was pretty good to use, but now that his cultivation had reached the Emperor Realm, it was rather unfitting of his status.
Ji Yao had clearly noticed the quality of the ship, which was why she had said those words.
Since she had a better one, Yang Kai didn’t object and put away his ship with a nod, not wanting to be embarrassed.
Ji Yao smiled, as though she had perceived Yang Kai’s thoughts. She waved her hand, and a small, elegant ship appeared before Yang Kai.
This ship was not large, only about ten metres in length, but it was exquisitely built. One could tell with one glance that it was made by a Master, and the ship emanated dense waves of Spirit Qi. It was undoubtedly an impressive Emperor Artifact!
Yang Kai had not expected that, with Ji Yao being so unhinged with her wealth all these years, she could still possess such a treasure.
“Please go ahead, Honoured Master!” Ji Yao gestured towards it.
Yang Kai cleared his throat solemnly, then stepped upon the ship.
“Honoured Master, please find a room to rest, and leave the rest of the journey to Yao’er”, Ji Yao offered.
“Very well,” Yang Kai nodded, striding into the cabin with his hands behind his back. He found a room and entered, and before he could even sit down, he felt the ship shake slightly and start flying off as swift as the wind.
The speed far outclassed that of his wooden boat.
Speed was one thing, but more importantly, this ship was very comfortable inside, nothing like his own flight type artifact. When Yang Kai sat on his ship, if he didn’t activate the protective barrier, then the force of the wind in his face would practically blow it out of shape.
It seemed like he really did need to find a better flight type artifact, or he wouldn’t even have anything to travel with in the future.
Yang Kai gathered his thoughts and entered the Sealed World Bead to look around.
His Embodiment had been in a deep sleep ever since he was forcibly stuffed with Shi Huo’s Source by Ruo Xi. It sat there, cross-legged and unmoving. Who knew how long it would be before he could truly assimilate Shi Huo’s Source.
Yang Kai went over to look at the medicine garden next and found that the spirit medicines in the garden were all growing well and the medicinal efficacy of the thousands of Emperor Grade spirit medicines was no longer being lost.
The entire Small Sealed World was so quiet that it made Yang Kai rather despondent.
When he came here in the past, he would find Ruo Xi, Liu Yan, Sister Hua…
But now there was only the Embodiment, all alone and in a deep slumber, with no one to even welcome his arrival.
Yang Kai shook his head with a sigh, then exited the Sealed World Bead.
Sitting upright in the cabin, Yang Kai took out a large amount of High-Rank Source Crystals, then he took out and consumed some of the Emperor Grade Spirit Pills he had refined last time to supplement his cultivation. He silently channelled his Secret Art and began cultivating.
The experiences he had in the Ancient Land, especially the powerlessness he had felt against Divine Spirit Shi Huo, made Yang Kai’s desire for power grow far stronger.
Now that he finally had a bit of spare time, he was naturally eager to go into retreat and cultivate.
In just a moment, Spirit Qi so dense that it was almost tangible filled up the whole cabin room, and it could even be seen with the naked eye that Yang Kai was absorbing it into his body.
Even though the Spirit Qi stored within High-Rank Source Crystals was tremendous, the amount which Yang Kai used up was terrifyingly huge.
Piles and piles of Source Crystals were reduced to dust, and numerous Emperor Grade Spirit Pills were consumed as the power within Yang Kai’s body kept increasing.
Sometime later, the ship suddenly shuddered, and even came to a stop.
Yang Kai was jolted out of his cultivation by the disturbance and frowned, not knowing what was going on.
Before he could extend his Divine Sense to investigate, he heard Ji Yao’s icy voice coming from outside, “Make way!”
Just as she spoke those words, the voice of an old man sounded, “Young Lady, we’d like to ask a favour. Young Lady Xue Man seems to really like your ship, can I persuade you to part with it? Of course, the price we offer will not disappoint you.”
“Move!” Ji Yao replied coldly, ignoring the request.
The old man’s tone became a little angry, “Young lady, is there a need to be so standoffish? Young Lady Xue Man wanting your boat is also for your own good. The Northern Territory has not been peaceful these past few years, and if you ostentatiously steer such a beautiful ship through the city, I’m afraid you will easily attract unwanted attention. If you were to encounter any evildoers, your fate would be most worrying indeed.”
“That’s right, young lady. You’d be doing us a favour as well as yourself. We’ll definitely offer a price that won’t disappoint you.” A younger voice spoke this time.
“What’s going on?” Yang Kai asked as he stepped out of the cabin and onto the deck, standing by Ji Yao’s side.
Looking up, he saw their path blocked by a group of three.
A man, a woman, and an old man.
The man and woman appeared to be a couple, as they seemed quite close. The man was handsome and the woman was pretty, making them quite an attractive pair. It was only the expressions in their eyes that ruined the impression they gave off.
The man was looking at Ji Yao as though he thought he’d laid eyes upon a goddess, and his gaze was absolutely glued to her as he spoke. It was clear that he was struck by her beauty.
The woman’s gaze, on the other hand, bore a trace of jealousy as her wide eyes looked Ji Yao up and down. She found that no matter how she tried to compare them, her looks were vastly inferior to the other’s, turning her mood even sourer.
Noticing the smitten expression on her partner’s face, the woman gave him a hard pinch and a twist, drawing a yelp of pain from his lips.
Yang Kai turned to Ji Yao and asked, “What happened?”
“Honoured Master, these three people have stopped us for some reason, and they’re blocking the path forward,” Ji Yao answered.
“Honoured Master?” The three people before them all looked utterly astonished to hear this; after all, Yang Kai and Ji Yao looked to be about the same age, yet this man was the icy woman’s Honoured Master?
As the ship was guarded by a protective barrier, even the old man could not check Yang Kai and Ji Yao’s cultivations.
Even so, since the young man was good enough to be someone’s Honoured Master, his cultivation must be quite high. The old man guessed that Yang Kai had to be an Emperor Realm Master at least. After all, the exquisitely built ship was an Emperor Artifact, something that would be impossible for an ordinary Dao Source Realm cultivator to obtain.
At that thought, the old man smiled slightly at Yang Kai and said, “Now then, young man, there’s no need to be nervous. We bear no ill will.”
“Oh, do I appear nervous?” Yang Kai smiled, thinking to himself that the old man had quite the level of confidence. He had gone through the Ancient Wild Lands, and caused quite a stir in front of the Four Great Divine Venerables and thirty-two Monster Kings. He had come face-to-face with more than one Great Emperor before that. In this world, it could be said that few could make Yang Kai nervous anymore.
The old man acted as though he had not heard this comment though and continued, “It’s just that this ship has caught the eye of Young Lady Xue Man, so I would like to negotiate with you regarding it. Could you perhaps be persuaded to part with your ship? I will pay a handsome sum for it.”
After a pause, the old man added, “I forgot to introduce myself. I am Yan Qing of Profound Thunder Pavilion. This is the Pavilion’s Young Master Bai Lu, and this is the daughter of Serenity City’s City Lord, Young Lady Yan Xue Man.”
After the old man made the introduction, he and the two people with him all looked very proud of themselves, as though Profound Thunder Pavilion and Serenity City were great forces to be reckoned with.
Young Pavilion Master Bai Lu smiled courteously, cupping his fists as he asked, “May I know your name, fair Lady?”
He seemed uninterested in Yang Kai and immediately started asking for Ji Yao’s name, clearly smitten with her beauty. Though the City Lord’s Daughter, Yan Xue Man, was quite attractive, her looks still fell far behind Ji Yao’s.
Bai Lu’s question caused him to receive a hard kick from Yan Xue Man beside him. She glared at him and huffed, “Why are you asking her that? Are you interested in her? You bastard! You already have me! Why are you still going after other women!? You want me to beat you up!”
As she spoke, she started pummelling Bai Lu with kicks and punches, but her fists and feet were dainty and light. Not only did she not hurt him at all, but it was more like she was just throwing a coquettish tantrum, causing Bai Lu to laugh. He reached out and pulled her into his arms, looking like he thought of himself as the ultimate winner in life.
Yan Qing did not even glance at the two as he said, “Young Master and Young Lady Xue Man are accustomed to such mischief, please do not mind.”
Ji Yao answered coldly, “Your matters have nothing to do with us. My Honoured Master and I need to be on our way, now make way!”
“Young Lady,” Yan Qing repeated, “This Old Master only wishes to purchase your ship.”
“I already said that I wasn’t selling it!” Ji Yao’s expression grew colder.
Bai Lu smiled pleasantly, “Now, Young Lady, don’t be so cold. As the saying goes, the more friends one has, the more paths open up. It’s only a ship, just name your price and I’ll pay up!”
“Sure!” Yang Kai stood forward, smiling as he spoke to Bai Lu, “I like people like Young Master Bai, who have both wealth and ability. Such people are refined, generous, and high-class! Since Young Master Bai is so ready to make his offer, then we’ll sell this ship. What do you think, Yao’er?”
A frown appeared on Ji Yao’s forehead, but she nodded, “If Honoured Master wishes to sell it, then it’s fine.”
“Many thanks to the Young Lady,” said Bai Lu, cupping his fists.
He had only spoken to Ji Yao from start to finish, as though he had not seen Yang Kai at all, but now he turned to look at Yang Kai, “May I know what your asking price is, Your Excellency?”
“One hundred million!” Yang Kai said lightly, “If Young Master Bai can pay a hundred million, then this ship will be yours.”
Bai Lu’s expression did not even change as he nodded lightly, “One hundred million… for a flight type Emperor Artifact, it isn’t costly.”
Not only that, but it was extremely cheap. He thought Yang Kai had the intent of showing goodwill in order to befriend him; after all, not just anybody could become the friend of the Young Pavilion Master of Profound Thunder Pavilion, which was a significant power in the Northern Territory. He smiled slightly, “Old Yan. Pay them!”
“Yes!” Yan Qing nodded, and after some rummaging, tossed a Space Ring to Yang Kai.
Yang Kai caught it, checked it with his Divine Sense, and smiled faintly. As he put the Space Ring away, he said, “Young Master Bai, the amount of Source Crystals doesn’t seem quite right.”
“How so?” Bai Lu frowned, and turned to look at Yan Qing, “Old Yan, did you count carefully?”
“There were exactly one hundred million Source Crystals,” Yan Qing answered, “I could not possibly have miscounted.”
“Indeed, it does have one hundred million Source Crystals…” Yang Kai said, nodding, but then his tone suddenly changed, “But, these are only Low-Rank Source Crystals…”
Yan Qing’s expression changed, “Didn’t you want Low-Rank Source Crystals? Or did you actually mean… Mid-Rank?”
“What!?” Bai Lu was similarly shocked. One hundred million Mid-Rank Source Crystals, that was the same as ten billion Low-Rank Source Crystals! It was an outrageous demand!
“No no no!” Yang Kai waved a finger at them, “Not one hundred million Mid-Rank Source Crystals… what I want is one hundred million High-Rank Source Crystals!”
“You… you’re insane!” Bai Lu’s entire body shook.
One hundred million High-Rank Source Crystals was a sum Bai Lu did not even dare think about. He had no idea how this person could bring up such a preposterous demand.
Though Profound Thunder Pavilion was a first-class Sect, they could never afford so many High-Rank Source Crystals even if they piled together everything they owned. An Emperor Grade ship may be rare, but it could not possibly be worth this much.
A murderous light flashed across Old Yan’s eyes.
Yang Kai smiled, “Young Master Bai, you just said that you would pay any price, but are you now trying to back out? A man’s word should be as firm as metal. It seems like Young Master Bai’s not very trustworthy.”
Beside him, Ji Yao smiled.
She was not very willing when Yang Kai agreed to sell the ship earlier, but she had to obey her Honoured Master. Only now did she realise that Yang Kai had no actual intention of selling her ship, and was simply teasing these people.
[When did Honoured Master gain such a sense of humour…]
In her recollections, her Honoured Master was always cold and calm, only showing warmth when alone with her and her sisters. She had never acted like she was doing right now.
As she thought further, Ji Yao began to feel that something was not quite right, and a frown appeared on her brow as she looked at Yang Kai in extreme confusion.
This sturdy figure seemed rather… different from the one in her memories.
“Little brat, you dare mock me!” Bai Lu flew into a rage.
Yang Kai coldly snorted, “Now, why would you say that, Young Master Bai? You three unreasonably barred the way of my disciple and I and insisted on buying Yao’er’s ship. I am merely letting you have your way out of goodwill. I’ll excuse your lack of gratitude, but why speak to us in such a way? Unless Young Master Bai really thinks he can bully us with impunity?”
Hearing those words, Bai Lu’s heart was filled with fury, and it burnt within him like a volcano.
The other man was clearly playing him for a fool, and yet he still claimed to be in the right. This put Bai Lu in quite a fit of rage and he yelled, “Old Yan, kill this bastard!”
Yan Qing was already in the mood to kill, and he did not hesitate upon hearing Bai Lu’s orders, immediately charging forward.
Bai Lu hurriedly added, “But don’t hurt the girl!”
Even at such a time, he still had Ji Yao’s beauty in mind. Evidently, there were some situations in which women held a unique advantage.
Old Yan came flying at them, Emperor Qi coursing through his body. His First-Order Emperor Realm cultivation was fully unleashed, and he struck down at the ship with his palm.
The ship’s protection broke apart with a boom under such power, not putting up any defence at all.
Yang Kai was stunned and realised that something was wrong. This ship was an Emperor Artifact after all, so its defensive power could not possibly be so weak. He then looked at Ji Yao but saw that she was staring blankly at him, her beautiful eyes full of confusion.
“Oh crap!” Yang Kai was alarmed. He did not know what had gone wrong, but Ji Yao was clearly suffering a relapse.
Ji Yao had been calm and stable all this time as she stayed by his side, so he had not expected a problem to occur at such a time.
It was clear that the ship’s defence was extremely weak because its owner was suffering from turbulent emotions.
“Boy, you dare to mock my pavilion’s Young Master? Today, you die!” Old Yan’s confidence was greatly boosted after breaking apart the ship’s protective barrier and threw another palm strike towards Yang Kai. His palm carried waves of Emperor Qi and Principles, clearly intent on turning Yang Kai into paste.
Yang Kai reached out and pulled the bewildered Ji Yao into his arms, channelling Emperor Qi to shield her as he matched the palm strike, “Scram!”
He was greatly worried that something had suddenly gone wrong with Ji Yao and no longer had any mood to mess with these people. His attack was fuelled by rage and was far beyond what Yan Qing could withstand. Though Yang Kai and Yan Qing were both First-Order Emperor Realm cultivators, killing enemies above his level was commonplace for Yang Kai.
Yan Qing was only an ordinary First-Order Emperor, while Yang Kai would not even fear fighting those in the Third-Order.
*Hong…*
A huge noise was heard along with an explosion of wind.
As their Emperor Qi collided, Yan Qing grunted and seemed as though he had been struck by lightning. His Emperor Qi and Principles were broken apart by an enormous force, as though they had been made from ordinary paper. That gigantic power surged up his arm, exploding it into shreds of flesh that scattered all around.
With a cry, blood sprayed from Yan Qing’s mouth as he was sent flying.
Yang Kai remained in place, unmoving as he protected Ji Yao. He was like a divine being as he stood there, firm as a mountain and still as an ocean.
“This…” Bai Lu watched, astounded as Old Yan was sent flying back with blood spraying into the air. His body suddenly started shaking violently.
Yan Xue Man’s pretty face also turned incredibly pale as her teeth chattered.
The two of them now realised that they had aggravated a powerful foe. They had thought that taking down the young man would be child’s play with an Emperor Realm cultivator like Old Yan protecting them, but instead, things had turned out opposite to their expectations, leaving them at a complete loss about how to react.
Yang Kai’s gaze fell coldly upon the couple.
Bai Lu was sweating profusely, and his voice trembled as he said, “What do you want? I am the Young Master of Profound Thunder Pavilion! If something happens to me, you’ll be doomed!”
He was clearly aware that he was no match for Yang Kai, so all he could do was bring up his identity in the hopes that Yang Kai would take it into account before attacking him.
“Scram!” Was all Yang Kai said.
Bai Lu jolted and looked greatly relieved. He turned and ran, even forgetting Yan Xue Man as he fled, causing her to stomp her foot angrily before chasing after him.
A short distance away, the pale-faced Yan Qing pushed himself up from the ground. He cast a fearful gaze in Yang Kai’s direction, then with a leap, he hurriedly chased after Bai Lu as well. Though he had lost an arm, he still had his Emperor Realm cultivation and his life was not in danger. But now, he was disabled for life.
“Yao’er!” Yang Kai turned to her, calling her name softly.
The sound of her name was so simple, yet like a sharp blade it pierced through and dispelled the cloud of confusion in Ji Yao’s gaze.
Ji Yao’s delicate frame trembled, and she suddenly regained her senses, “Honoured Master?”
Yang Kai couldn’t help but sigh in relief, and asked cautiously, “Just now… What happened to you?”
Ji Yao frowned a little, “Just now? What happened just now?”
She seemed to have no recollection of what had just happened and looked around, then exclaimed in surprise, “Where are those three annoying people?”
Yang Kai smiled and said, “I beat them and sent them running, they’re long gone!”
Ji Yao glanced at the fresh blood on the ground, and knew that Yang Kai had indeed done so, “You should’ve killed them. I already said I wasn’t selling the ship, yet they wouldn’t leave me alone. Who knows how many times they’ve coerced people to buy or sell things.”
“Yes, yes, I should have killed them,” Yang Kai didn’t dare say too much, so he just went along with her, then asked anxiously. “Yao’er, how are you feeling right now?”
Ji Yao looked at him curiously, “Why? I’m feeling fine. You should go inside and rest, Honoured Master, we’ll be able to return to the valley in just a few more days.”
“I think you should put away the ship for now,” said Yang Kai, “We’ll look for a place to rest first.”
Ji Yao just had a sudden relapse, and Yang Kai was unsure if this was because she had been using her power a lot recently. He didn’t dare to let her steer the ship again. If she fell into confusion again, then there would be trouble.
It would probably be good to let her rest.
Ji Yao naturally obeyed Yang Kai’s instructions and immediately retrieved the ship. She then flew forward alongside Yang Kai.
After half a day had passed, a city appeared before them. They landed, walked up to the city gates, and successfully entered the city after paying a small sum of Source Crystals.
It was a flourishing city, with streams of people busily coming and going. The street was extremely wide, with shops selling a vast array of exquisite products lining its sides.
The two found an inn and entered.
The innkeeper behind the counter looked at Yang Kai and Ji Yao, and asked with a smile, “Looking for accommodations?”
Yang Kai snorted, “Why else would we be here?”
The innkeeper’s smile became strained, “Then, would you like one room or two rooms?”
Yang Kai frowned and cast Ji Yao a glance, then said, “One premium room.”
He did not quite dare to let Ji Yao out of his sight right now, as it would also be easier to observe her if they stayed together. He did not have other intentions in mind.
Ji Yao naturally had no objections either. To her, it was only natural that she would stay in the same room as her Honoured Master.
The innkeeper, however, cast a meaningful look at Yang Kai and gave him a knowing smile. He took out a room tag and handed it over respectfully, saying, “Fifth floor, room A3. Please rest assured, dear guest, that this humble inn has had great Masters place Spirit Arrays in every room, to guarantee that your privacy would be protected. No matter what kind of noise is made, it cannot be heard from outside.”
As he said the last part, his eyebrows waggled, and he looked salacious!
“Haha…” Yang Kai gave him a fake smile as he took the room tag, “Price?”
“Ten thousand Low-Rank Source Crystals!” The innkeeper answered smilingly.
Yang Kai retrieved the sum with a wave of the hand and tossed them onto the counter, then led Ji Yao upstairs.
They reached the fifth floor and found room A3, opened the seal on the room with the room tag, then entered.
At a brief glance, though the room was not very spacious, it had all the necessary furnishings. The large red rug on the floor and the bedspread made from golden threads gave off a feeling of luxury.
For ten thousand Low-Rank Source Crystals, it was a good deal.
Yang Kai sat down after looking around a little, and Ji Yao retrieved a tea set from her Space Ring with the ease of long practice. She started brewing the tea, and in a short time the rich fragrance permeated the room.
After extinguishing the flame, adding in the hot water, and then pouring the tea, Ji Yao respectfully handed a cup to Yang Kai, “Honoured Master, please enjoy.”
“Mm,” Yang Kai casually took it, and sipped the tea slowly.
Only after a long pause did he suddenly realise what he was doing, and said, “You should sit too.”
“Disciple is fine standing,” Ji Yao’s gaze was fixed on Yang Kai. It was as though watching her Honoured Master drink the tea she had personally brewed was the most blissful thing ever, and her face was lit by a sweet smile.
“I’m asking you to sit, so sit.” Yang Kai’s attitude was firm.
“Yes!” Since Ji Yao could not change his mind, she obeyed and sat down.
Yang Kai was silent for a while, then suddenly spoke, “Yao’er.”
“I am here, Honoured Master,” Ji Yao quickly answered.
Yang Kai raised his hand to his mouth and cleared his throat, then said rather awkwardly, “If one day… You discover that I have concealed some things from you, or even deceived you, I hope you understand my intentions.”
“Conceal and deceive?” Ji Yao frowned, and she asked curiously, “What would Honoured Master have to conceal from me or deceive me about?”
Yang Kai forced a smile, “Well, I’m just saying. But if that day really comes, please don’t be upset about it. You may rest assured that I wouldn’t let you down on anything, nor would I hurt you.”
They were only a few days away from Ice Heart Valley, and Yang Kai did not know what kind of reaction Ji Yao would have when she arrived back there and saw Bing Yun. The best-case scenario was that she would suddenly come to her senses and realise that Yang Kai was just an imposter.
If that did happen, then Ji Yao would certainly recall that they had shared a room during this time.
This was not a big issue, as he had done so to help keep her stable, and he believed that she would understand. The problem was that in Luan Feng’s palace, he had caught a glimpse of her naked form.
Though it was just a glimpse, it was still a matter related to Ji Yao’s innocence and honour.
Yang Kai was not sure if she would try to kill him…
That said, even if Ji Yao could fully recover someday, he felt that she would forgive him.
“I trust you, Honoured Master,” Ji Yao said solemnly. “My Senior Sisters and I are all orphans, and you raised and educated us out of the kindness of your heart. It is all thanks to Honoured Master that I am who I am today. So, even if you wanted to kill me, that would be fine.”
Yang Kai sweated profusely, thinking of how relieved he would be if she didn’t try to kill him in the future.
Still, her little speech made him realise just how important Bing Yun was to her Disciples.
“Honoured Master…” Ji Yao called softly, “Honoured Master, is something troubling you? Do you need my help?”
“There’s nothing. No need for you to worry!” Yang Kai smiled slightly.
Ji Yao rose and walked slowly towards him, emanating a fragrant scent as she said, “Since I am unable to help, then please allow me to at least massage your shoulders, Honoured Master.”
“Huh?” Yang Kai was stunned, and before he could react, Ji Yao was already standing behind him and starting her light massage.
Yang Kai’s whole body froze, and he felt he was definitely in trouble.
Ever since he had arrived from the Star Field, he had kept his mind clear and without desire, entirely focusing on growing stronger, but he was still a man and naturally had desires.
Last time, he nearly had a nosebleed when he accidentally saw Ji Yao’s body. Now, they were alone together in one room, and Ji Yao was even voluntarily giving him a shoulder rub.
Not only that, but the warmth of her body leaning against his back and the light fragrance that wafted from her body were making Yang Kai extremely flustered and his throat dry.
Ji Yao laughed lightly behind him, “Honoured Master, your shoulders are so stiff. Have you been working too hard lately?”
[How can the body of a man like me compare to Bing Yun’s soft and delicate body? Of course they would feel different!] Thought Yang Kai.
Though he wanted to stop Ji Yao, he was worried that she would overthink things, which would also affect her current situation. In order to maintain the charade, he answered, “Yes, a little.”
Ji Yao laughed, “Just relax, Honoured Master. I have not served you for many years, I wonder if my skills have deteriorated.”
From those words, Yang Kai realised that Ji Yao used to do this often for Bing Yun when they were in Ice Heart Valley, which was why she was so skilled.
Since Yang Kai could not stop her nor turn her down, all he could do was to calm himself and enjoy the process, his body gradually relaxing. As Ji Yao’s jade-white hands applied varying amounts of force, it was such a heavenly comfort that he groaned.
Ji Yao blushed to her ears upon hearing that, wondering why her Honoured Master would make such strange noises, but feeling too embarrassed to ask.
After the shoulders were done, she moved on to the arms, then the head, and even the thighs.
After that service, Yang Kai was greatly relaxed. He had many words of praise for Ji Yao’s skills, which made her smile in delight.
The only problem was that the sight of Ji Yao kneeling before him, massaging his thighs, was too thrilling and alluring.
After the painful enjoyment was over, Yang Kai’s face fell again. He realised that when Ji Yao fully regained her senses, she would find yet another offence he had committed against her. The thought filled him with sadness and regret.
The night was tranquil as Yang Kai and Ji Yao meditated and slept separately, on the bed and the floor.
Ji Yao did not show any chaotic signs, which made Yang Kai feel much more at ease.
Only at noon the next day did they leave the room, and head down to the counter on the first floor to check out.
Seeing Yang Kai look fresh as a spring breeze, the innkeeper was incredibly envious. Still, he wore a knowing smile as he asked, “Dear guests, did you rest well last night?”
“Very well!” Yang Kai nodded. How could he not know what perverted thoughts were going through that fellow’s head? But he did not say any more, as he could not be bothered.
“Since you had such a good rest, do visit us again the next time you come to Serenity City,” the shopkeeper nodded and bowed to Yang Kai and Ji Yao as they left.