Yang Kai encountered many similar situations in the Thousand Illusions Dreamworld. In the war between the two races, even if a Demon were to be killed, leaving behind only its Demon Spirit, they would still retain their ability to transform the Barbarian Race into Demons, forcing them to change sides. The aura and Remnant Soul of the Demon Race both had strong corrosive power.
“What should we do now?” Fang Zhuo also asked.
Before Yang Kai had time to speak, the roaring Gong Yue suddenly turned quiet. His head jerked up, revealing a pair of terrifyingly dark eyes without any whites.
“Old… Old Patriarch Gong!” Chen Bing Ru shouted in a trembling voice as if hoping to confirm the identity of the person before her.
But Gong Yue ignored her calls, cocked his head to the side, and observed Yang Kai, showing both a look of bewilderment and curiosity as if he had just woken up from a long dream, not understanding where he was or what he was doing.
Yang Kai held his breath and stayed on guard.
But Gong Yue did not strike him; instead, he just made an odd noise from his throat and began stumbling outside.
Chen Bing Ru, Fang Zhuo, and Hua Yu Lu quickly made way. They didn’t have a shred of fighting strength left in them right now and simply did not dare to obstruct his path.
Gong Yue’s mind had clearly been corroded by the Demon Spirit because he was behaving very differently from before. It was as if a new Soul had seized his body but had yet to fully integrate with it. Even the way it walked was not quite normal.
In the silence, Gong Yue’s footsteps sounded incomparably harsh as he gradually moved away.
After his footsteps could no longer be heard, Hua Yu Lu and the others let out a sigh of relief, as if they’d been saved from a disaster. After watching Gong Yue’s transformation with their own eyes, they no longer had any doubts about what Yang Kai told them earlier about Demon Spirits.
“Has Old Patriarch Gong been possessed?” Fang Zhuo turned to Yang Kai and asked.
If that really were the case, then that would be a big problem. After all, Gong Yue was the former Patriarch of the Gong Family, and he even had a Second-Order Emperor Realm cultivation. If someone like that was allowed to roam freely, there was no saying what sorts of danger he could bring to the Southern Territory.
“I have no idea, but it may be even more serious than that!” Yang Kai looked grim. The only thing he could be sure of now was that Gong Yue had gone through demonification, but there was one thing he couldn’t understand. Even if Gong Yue’s mind was disturbed, he shouldn’t have been invaded so easily by the Demon Spirit. How could he have failed to even temporarily resist it?
Yang Kai couldn’t find a reasonable explanation for what he saw just now with his own eyes.
But then a thought suddenly struck Yang Kai and he shouted, “The Demon Character!”
“What?” Hua Yu Lu turned to look at him.
“That Demon Character!” With a grave expression, Yang Kai looked at the group, “How much of it did you all see?”
Hua Yu Lu frowned slightly before replying, “If you are referring to the Secret Technique that Yang Tai performed earlier, I didn’t see it very clearly.”
Yang Kai looked at the three others and quickly said, “Regardless of how much you saw, you’d best find a way to erase it from your memory. Yang Tai’s demonification and Gong Yue’s corrosion may be related to it.”
“What do you mean?” Fang Zhuo asked curiously. He had deliberately observed Yang Tai when he performed that Secret Technique, so he saw a little more than Hua Yu Lu, so with how serious Yang Kai was putting the matter, he didn’t dare to take it lightly.
Chen Bing Ru also cast a curious gaze at him.
Yang Kai explained, “Yang Tai had already gone through demonification when we came here despite having never had the chance to make contact with that Demon Spirit. There’s a good possibility that this is related to the Ancient Demon Character that he learned. In order to convince Gong Yue, he must have also presented the power of that character to him, and Gong Yue may have studied it during that time. So… Some Demon Essence should also have formed inside of him. That is the reason why he was willing to risk everything to work with Yang Tai to entrap us. Yes, that must be it. Otherwise, how could Gong Yue, as the former Patriarch of the Gong Family, make such a foolish and reckless decision? He must have already been subtly influenced by the Demon Essence hidden inside his body and was no longer thinking rationally. The reason why the Demon Spirit invaded his mind so easily was not because Gong Yue’s protection was ineffective, but because the Demon Essence inside of him was attracting the Demon Spirit, forcing him to give up his resistance unwittingly!”
Half of what Yang Kai said was merely speculation, but the more he spoke, the more that he felt that his guess was correct.
The root of everything was that Ancient Demon Character.
Half a year ago, Hua Yu Lu, Yang Tai, and Wu Kuang Yi discovered this Ancient Cave Mansion. All three of them gained different benefits, but the Ancient Demon Character that Yang Tai learned had been a trap all along. It was a piece of bait set up to entice him into opening the seal and releasing the Demon Spirits behind it.
Anyone who learned that Ancient Demon Character would have made the same choice as Yang Tai.
It was through the true meaning of that Demon Character that Yang Tai was able to establish an inexplicable connection with the Demon Spirit behind that door, and that was how he found out what was inside, and why opening the seal had become his sole mission in life!
Hua Yu Lu’s face turned more and more pale as she listened, her tender body shivering somewhat uncontrollably.
She felt lucky that she had only gotten the Small Flower Drum last time. If she had also studied that Ancient Demon Character like Yang Tai, she would likely have met the same fate as him.
Chen Bing Ru asked uneasily, “Is it possible that we’ll also go through demonification like Yang Tai?”
She also saw the Ancient Demon Character after all.
Yang Kai shook his head, “The true meaning of that Demon Character isn’t so easy to grasp. Yang Tai must have studied it for quite some time to become influenced by it. It shouldn’t matter if you only saw a glimpse of it, but I would advise you to forget about it completely. Nobody knows what sort of dangerous effects that Demon Character may have.”
Everyone else nodded; then, after exchanging glances, they sent their Soul Avatars into their Knowledge Seas, found the memories regarding the Demon Character, and destroyed them.
This way, they would forget what that character looked like, and only remember its existence. Destroying such memories themselves would cause some damage to their Soul, but compared to the risk of going through demonification, it was an acceptable injury.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai was contemplating what to do next.
Only after everyone opened their eyes weakly did Yang Kai say, “There should be more than one Demon Spirit behind this door, perhaps many more. Right now, there are two matters we need to see to!”
Hearing Yang Kai say that there may be more Demon Spirits behind that door, everyone jumped in fright, but thinking about it carefully, it really did seem possible.
That was because the seal of the giant blood-coloured door was not fully broken. Yang Tai’s blood sacrifice was only able to open it by a crack, allowing a single Demon Spirit to escape. This seal was laid down by great Masters from ancient times, and since it was able to close itself again, it meant that there were still other hidden dangers inside.
“What two matters?” Fang Zhuo asked. After the mess that just happened, Yang Kai had unconsciously become the leader of the group, and they had no objection to his decisions.
“The first thing we have to do is to find someone to secure the sealing Spirit Array here just in case someone else accidentally stumbles in and tries to break it again.” Yang Kai raised a finger, “This is a matter concerning the entire Southern Territory, and possibly even the entire Star Boundary. For that reason, we must inform the top Sects and get them to collaborate to find a solution for this problem. En, the Gong Family should also make up for their mistakes. They are good candidates for this job as well.”
Gong Yue made a grave mistake, and he was the one who broke the seal. Repairing the seal should be the Heavenly River Valley’s Gong Family’s responsibility. Not to mention that even without what Gong Yue had done, the Gong Family was still the best choice for this job. In the Southern Territory, other than the Array Grandmasters of the top Sects, they were the ones who knew the most about Spirit Arrays.
Fang Zhuo and the others all nodded in agreement at Yang Kai’s words. Even though exploring the Ancient Cave Mansion was their business, the consequences that came out of it were beyond their ability to bear alone.
Even Gong Yue, who was a Second-Order Emperor, couldn’t resist the Demon Spirit’s encroachment. Chaos was bound to break out in the Southern Territory if things were left as they were, and when that time came, they may become the greatest sinners in history.
“That’s why I need someone to go to the Heavenly River Valley’s Gong Family. Tell them what happened here, and make sure they have their guard up against Gong Yue. If Gong Yue returns to Heavenly River Valley… He may not be that foolish, but it’s still better to take precautions.”
“I’ll go.” Hua Yu Lu volunteered.
Even though her cultivation wasn’t very high, she was at the very least the Palace Master of Hundred Flowers Palace, so her words would surely carry some weight. If she was the one who went to inform the Gong Family, then the Gong Family was sure to take it seriously.
“The three of you should go together!” Yang Kai said seriously.
After some thought, the three of them nodded in unison.
They had no idea where Gong Yue was right now, and there was no saying that he was not outside, waiting for them to throw themselves into his net. If the three of them joined hands though, then they would at least have some power to protect themselves.
“Then who will inform the top Sects?” Fang Zhuo asked. Without the help of those hegemons, nothing was going to happen. Even if they managed to get the Gong Family to come, they may try to cover up this matter, so they had to find a way to contact the Masters of those great forces.
Yang Kai paused for a moment before he spoke, “Allow me to introduce myself again!”
As he said that, he reached up to wipe his face, revealing his original appearance. His face was as pale as a sheet of paper with hardly any rosiness.
“My name is Yang Kai!”
“Yang Kai!” Chen Bing Ru furrowed her brow as she asked with some surprise and suspicion, “I heard that Azure Sun Temple recently conferred a new High-Rank Guest Elder title…”
“It was this Yang,” Yang Kai nodded.
Chen Bing Ru and Fang Zhuo were immediately awed and cupped their fists respectfully, “So it is Elder Yang. We have truly been impolite.”
It was only at this moment that they no longer dared to underestimate Yang Kai. For someone who could become an Elder of a top Sect in the Southern Territory, even if he was ‘just’ a High-Rank Guest Elder, he definitely wasn’t someone who would stand around waiting for things to get done. What’s more, there were rumors going around that Yang Kai had exchanged blows with one of Star Soul Palace’s Elders during that Grand Canonization Ceremony.
Star Soul Palace Elders were peak Masters in the Third-Order Emperor Realm, not an opponent one could casually challenge.
It was only at this point that they realized why Yang Kai’s performance had been so astonishing despite his aura feeling so weak. It turns out he was an Elder of the Azure Sun Temple.
“I will inform the top Sects. I have my own methods of contacting the temple, and they will naturally spread the word to the other Sects once the news reaches them.”
Naturally, the three of them had no objections after hearing this.
“What about the second issue?” Hua Yu Lu asked.
“As for the second issue… Let’s wait until everything is settled here before we work on that. Until then, I will stay here to watch over the seal, just in case Gong Yue decides to come back.”
“Brother Yang’s plans are well made,” Fang Zhuo agreed.
Gong Yue had already gone through demonification, so who knows whether he would come back to try to destroy the seal. The seal on the giant blood-coloured door was old to begin with, and had been damaged by Gong Yue earlier. If he kept at it, he may really be able to break it. For that reason, Yang Kai wanted to stay here as a precaution.
Yang Kai had to be the one to do this too, as only he had such ability.
After some simple discussion, everyone quickly began adjusting their breathing to recuperate.
Even though Hua Yu Lu and the others were not injured, the blood sacrifice they were forced into by the Six Points One Centre Array drained a lot of their energy. They had to recover for a short while before leaving for Heavenly River Valley. Everyone here was an Emperor Realm Master though, so they had brought some precious Spirit Pills for emergencies. Now wasn’t the time to be stingy either, so they all took out their pills and swallowed them without hesitation.
Half a day later, Hua Yu Lu and the others were barely able to restore sixty percent of their strength, but they did not dare to delay further. After bidding farewell to Yang Kai, they all went back the way they came, preparing to leave this Ancient Cave Mansion together.
In just a moment, Yang Kai was the only one left inside the rock cave. The cave was so quiet that even the sound of his breathing was audible. The only other sound present was that of water dripping from the stalactites. This trip to the Ancient Cave Mansion was not as risky as it seemed, but thinking back to the dangerous parts still made Yang Kai’s heart palpitate.
Seven people came, but only four were left alive. Wu Kuang Yi had been used as a blood sacrifice by Yang Tai, the latter sacrificed his own life, and Gong Yue’s mind was invaded by a Demon Spirit. Meanwhile, the remaining four people were exhausted and could even be described as battered.
Now, there was finally a chance to recover, so Yang Kai naturally made use of every last breath of it.
With that, a day passed before he opened his eyes again to check on his current state. Only after verifying his condition did he take out his Jade Elder Token.
This was the token that Wen Zi Shan gave him at the Grand Canonization Ceremony and it not only represented his identity as an Azure Sun Temple Elder, but also had many other useful functions.
Pushing his Emperor Qi, the jade token hovered in the air in front of Yang Kai, and after weaving a few hand seals, the jade token responded with a faint hum. One by one, hidden messages were transmitted through the jade token towards Azure Sun Temple.
This wasn’t a perfect method of communication, since nothing too complicated could be transmitted this way. Moreover, it was limited by distance and could only be used within the same territory; however, it was the only method of long-distance communication available in the Star Boundary now. All big Sects used similar methods to stay in contact.
After finishing this, Yang Kai put away the jade token. He believed that the Azure Sun Temple should have gotten the message, and it wouldn’t be long before someone was sent over to investigate.
He then continued to meditate to recover his energy.
More than ten days passed and everything went by smoothly. Yang Kai’s injuries also gradually improved, and the injury he sustained to his Soul was also slowly recovering. With a bit more time, he felt that he should be able to recover to his peak shape.
But he didn’t let his guard down for a moment. He constantly kept a part of his awareness on the giant blood-coloured door, and even the slightest breeze would not escape his senses.
On that day, a wonderful feeling suddenly welled up within Yang Kai while he was meditating, as if he was gaining some insight into the Martial Dao. He was immediately delighted as this feeling had come inexplicably and without any warning, but was a rare opportunity for any cultivator. So, Yang Kai immediately immersed his mind into it, trying to chase after that deeper insight.
That unexplainable feeling grew clearer and clearer, just like a delicious dish placed right in front of him that was almost within reach, but was separated from him by an invisible barrier, only permitting him to smell the fragrance but not taste it.
However, Yang Kai was in no hurry and simply took things step by step, slowly breaking through the obstacle in front of him.
He had the feeling that if he really managed to comprehend this insight, then he would definitely be able to advance to the Second-Order Emperor Realm.
He had broken through to the Emperor Realm in the Shattered Star Sea, and even though that hadn’t been that long ago, and it would normally be impossible for him to break through again so quickly, with the rich experiences he had gone through these past few days as well as his two years inside the Thousand Illusions Dreamworld, he had long gathered enough capital in order to reach the Second-Order Realm. All he needed was an opportunity.
Right now, the opportunity was right in front of his eyes, so he naturally needed to seize it properly.
Time passed slowly and Yang Kai soon became deluded, unaware of how long he had been in this state. It seemed like only a moment had passed, but at the same time like years had gone by. Finally, at a certain moment, when he felt the obstruction clear up, a whole new world appeared before his eyes.
All kinds of wonderful sensations flooded into his mind from places he’d never known about, giving him an illusion of omnipotence. Yang Kai couldn’t help but want to immerse himself deeper into this feeling, to swim in it, and to peek into the mystery of the Martial Dao’s peak.
At that moment, Yang Kai felt as if he had stepped into a strange new world, like he was standing in the Starry Sky with brilliant points of luminescence shining all around him. Each star was an elusive domain, filled with the Martial Dao’s mysteries. They were his stepping stones towards the ultimate Martial Dao, and it was right within his reach. As long as he harvested these stars, he would be able to achieve greatness that shocked history and amazed the present.
Yang Kai slowly reached out towards the stars.
All of a sudden, a fire broke out within the Starry Sky, drawing a frown from Yang Kai.
But as soon as he laid his eyes on this flame, an extremely hot feeling took over him as if he was being cooked right on top of those fires. The burning feeling became more and more intense, so violent that Yang Kai was almost unable to bear it.
It was at that moment that he felt a sense of coolness as if a pot of cold water had doused his head. It woke Yang Kai up and it made him feel extremely comfortable.
These great fluctuations inside his mind alerted him and he immediately collected his senses and broke out of his deep trance.
A thought flashed through his mind at that moment, and he instantly understood what had just happened to him. That wasn’t an epiphany, it was a trap, a trap from the Demon Spirits behind that giant blood-coloured door! Everything he saw before was merely an illusion!
Not daring to hesitate, he quickly let out a fierce roar.
The stars before him shook violently, all of them glowing in unison before gathering towards a certain spot. In an instant, they came together to form a set of large radiant characters! Those characters were very different from the characters used in today’s Star Boundary and were extremely complicated, but also seemed to contain great mysteries.
“Demon Characters!” Yang Kai was shocked. He didn’t think he would be caught despite being so careful. He looked away, but as if they had their own sentience, the characters emitted an even more piercing light that constantly tried to drill into Yang Kai’s mind, attempting to burn their essence and meaning into his Soul.
At this critical moment, Yang Kai’s mind calmed down like never before and a layer of seven coloured light burst out from his body, enveloping him like a seven coloured robe.
The light from the Demon Characters was blocked off by the seven coloured robe.
Yang Kai sneered and slowly withdrew from the illusion, returning his consciousness to his physical body.
It went surprisingly smoothly and he didn’t meet any obstructions. Or perhaps, the Demon Spirit had no ability to hinder him.
When he opened his eyes, Yang Kai saw a new light in the dark cave. Glancing over, Yang Kai discovered that the giant blood-coloured door was now glowing. However, after he returned to his senses, the light gradually dimmed again before disappearing without a trace.
Yang Kai felt a chill run down his back.
His right eye felt like it was burning, but his mind felt as cool as a bucket of ice water. It was this alternating hot and cold sensation that woke him up and freed him from the grasp of those Demon Characters.
Yang Kai had no idea whether those Demon Characters were the ones that Yang Tai had been exposed to because he hadn’t seen them clearly, and the protection of the Seven Coloured Soul Warming Lotus had blocked off their true meaning, not allowing them to invade his mind at all.
Obviously, the reason why Yang Tai was able to learn the true meaning of those Ancient Demon Characters and possess Demon Essence inside his body was due to the fact that he wasn’t as fortunate as Yang Kai. Yang Tai may have encountered something similar when he first came here, but without a Supreme Treasure like the Seven Coloured Soul Warming Lotus to protect him. So, when Yang Tai learned the true meaning of the Demon Characters, he thought that he had caught onto an opportunity to grasp the Martial Dao’s mysteries, having no idea it was all just a clever bait to lure him into a trap that set in motion a chain of events that ended in a series of tragedies.
To be honest, this encounter was an eye-opener for Yang Kai. In the two years he spent fighting the Demon Race in the Thousand Illusions Dreamworld, he had never encountered a Demon Race with such a strange ability to silently infiltrate his mind and slowly corrupt his Soul. This was simply the first time he had encountered such a tactic.
This was not an attack, but rather a kind of subversion. The victim would think they had chanced upon a Heaven-sent opportunity, but the more they tried to grasp it, the more they would be corrupted, eventually reaching a point where they could no longer turn back.
After this episode, Yang Kai confirmed that the seal on the giant blood-coloured door was indeed damaged and had to be repaired and reinforced. Otherwise, if someone were to find this place again, they might break the seal and let out the Demon Spirits behind the door.
Yang Kai was even more cautious in the following days. No matter what he did, he would always divert a part of his attention to watch the giant blood-coloured door’s changes while at the same time preventing the Demon Spirits from setting any traps for him.
But after one failed attempt, the Demon Spirits behind the door seemed to have realized how difficult Yang Kai was to influence, and nothing unusual happened after that.
Yang Kai’s injuries improved day by day until he finally recovered fully.
After one full month, the Masters of the Southern Territory’s top Sects finally arrived.
After he received a response from the Jade Elder Token, Yang Kai quickly left the cave mansion and went to the stone forest on the surface to meet with them.
At this time, the large island was surrounded by poison mist and was blocked on all sides. It wasn’t time for the Monster Beasts who could merge together to feed yet; however, after receiving Yang Kai’s message, the Masters of the top Sects decided to break through by force to meet up with him as soon as possible.
Yang Kai had no idea how they were planning to accomplish this, but as he stood outside the stone forest, he could hear distinct rumblings from beyond the poison mist. Then, a profound light shot out from the colourful fog. As if it were riding on winds of fire, it broke through the toxic barrier and landed on the large island.
One by one, powerful auras spread out, and when the light dispersed, the figures of more than twenty people were revealed.
Yang Kai looked around and found a few old acquaintances.
With Star Soul Palace’s Elder, Xiao Yu Yang, standing at the forefront, Azure Sun Temple’s Gao Xue Ting, Heavenly Martial Holy Land’s Chen Wen Hao, and Orthodoxy Temple’s Feng Ming were gathered here. Out of them, other than Xiao Yu Yang who was in the Third-Order Emperor Realm, the other three were Second-Order Emperors.
Yang Kai was still in Maplewood City the first time he met these people. During that time, Gao Xue Ting and the others who were still First-Order Emperors, were towering existences to him.
Over the years, Gao Xue Ting advanced from the First-Order Emperor Realm to the Second-Order, so it was only natural that Chen Wen Hao and Feng Ming didn’t fall far behind. They also seemed to have caught up to her cultivation in recent years.
In addition, there was a middle-aged man with a stately appearance. He was wearing a jade belt and a brocade robe, giving off an extraordinary aura. He seemed to be someone in a leading position and with high status, and he had a First-Order Emperor Realm cultivation.
Behind that man stood ten to twenty other cultivators who were all dressed in similar robes. Most of their cultivations were Emperor or Dao Source Realm. Yang Kai could vaguely tell where they were from with just a glance, because he saw a familiar face among them.
Gong Wen Shan!
Yang Kai did not know him well and had only crossed paths with him once in the Four Seasons Realm, but he remembered him for his boldness, even daring to provoke Heavenly Martial Holy Land’s Wu Chang, and remaining unscathed even after being chased down by the latter for many days.
Since Gong Wen Shan was here, then it was clear where this largest group came from.
The Heavenly River Valley’s Gong Family! The First-Order Emperor Realm middle-aged man standing at the front should be the current Gong Family Patriarch, Gong Zhen.
He was the best Array Master in the Southern Territory, and his reputation was no less than Nanmen Da Jun’s in the Northern Territory. It may even be higher in some ways, as Gong Zhen was the head of a family while Nanmen Da Jun was just a solitary man.
Xiao Yu Yang was holding a shuttle-shaped artifact that was glowing radiantly. It was of extraordinary quality and it was clearly with this artifact that he broke through the poison mist with this group. Yang Kai had also learned of the might of the poison mist before this, so how powerful would an artifact be if it was able to break through it with ease?
“Elder Xiao, Elder Chen, Elder Feng…” Yang Kai cupped his fists and greeted all of them. He couldn’t help but feel a little nostalgic. To think he had to maintain respect with these Masters back then and address them as his seniors, but now he could stand on equal footing with them.
The last one he greeted was Gao Xue Ting, who gave him a light nod. They were all one family, so there was no need for them to be so polite with each other.
“You really do… cause trouble everywhere you go,” Xiao Yu Yang had a helpless smile on his face when he saw Yang Kai again, as if the sight of him gave him a headache.
After all, Yang Kai hadn’t left Star Soul Palace for that long. Even in Star Soul Palace, trouble broke out in the Five Coloured Treasure Pagoda. Xiao Yu Yang and the other Elders suspected that Yang Kai had something to do with it, but since the Great Emperor didn’t say anything, they couldn’t pursue the matter either. In any case, the damage to the Five Coloured Treasure Pagoda wasn’t too serious, so they just let the issue drop.
“I’m innocent,” Yang Kai insisted with a straight face. “I’m only here under someone else’s request. Encountering this matter is also… by pure chance.”
“I’m not blaming you,” Xiao Yu Yang waved his hand and his face turned serious, “We heard what happened from Hua Yu Lu and the others, and we all know this matter has nothing to do with you. In fact, we should be thanking you for sparing the Southern Territory from a disaster.”
Yang Kai responded earnestly, “I am also a cultivator from the Southern Territory, so it’s my duty to help whenever a situation arises.”
*Chi…*
Gao Xue Ting sneered at the side. She was obviously thinking about Yang Kai’s identity as High Heaven Palace’s Palace Master in the Northern Territory. She had been brooding over that fact and felt that Yang Kai shouldn’t have founded a Sect in the Northern Territory. He should have just stayed as an Elder in the temple.
Yang Kai pretended not to notice this of course and continued talking with Xiao Yu Yang, “Elder Xiao, since you brought everyone here, what are your plans?”
Xiao Yu Yang told him, “Just as you’re thinking, we’re going to repair and strengthen the seal. In addition, we’re classifying this place as a Restricted Area. No one will be allowed to enter or exit this cave mansion.”
Yang Kai stroked his chin, “That’s a good idea, but there are always curious people in this world who aren’t afraid of losing their lives. The more the place is restricted, the more they’ll want to break into it, as if they’re complaining that they’ve been alive too long…”
Xiao Yu Yang smiled, “That’s why we’ll need to borrow the power of Patriarch Gong.” He pointed to the middle-aged man beside him, “Once that seal is reinforced, this entire island is going to be enveloped by a concealment and barrier Spirit Array. Ordinary people wouldn’t be able to find their way in even if they’re curious.”
“That would be for the best.” Yang Kai turned to the middle-aged man and cupped his fists. “Greetings, Patriarch Gong.”
Gong Zhen returned the greeting with a complicated look on his face, “Elder Yang is too polite. This Gong has long heard of Elder Yang’s name. Sure enough, meeting you today, this Gong can tell that Elder Yang is truly a dragon among men.”
Yang Kai smiled in response, “Patriarch Gong flatters me.”
Gong Zhen continued, “My Family’s Ancestor has caused you trouble, so this Gong hereby apologizes to Elder Yang on behalf of the Gong Family.”
Yang Kai shook his head, “No need to apologize. Patriarch Gong needs only reinforce the seal.”
Gong Zhen nodded lightly, “Even though I have already heard what happened from Palace Master Hua, I still wish to hear it from Elder Yang again, if I may request it.”
The reputation of the Gong Family’s former patriarch was at stake here, so he had to ask for confirmation just in case.
“Naturally.” Yang Kai gestured with his hand, “Let’s talk on the way. The seal is still deeper inside.”
The group followed Yang Kai down, and while they walked, Yang Kai told everyone what happened that day in full detail. At his cultivation, recalling even minor details from a month ago was definitely no problem. Yang Kai spoke quickly, but thoroughly and in complete detail, including all the barriers they encountered on the way, and what sort of reactions the group had to them.
Everyone just listened without asking any questions.
But when Yang Kai mentioned the Demon Characters, the minds of the Emperor Realm Masters clearly shook.
Quite apparently, even they felt that such a tactic was unimaginable. To think an obscure ancient character that contained some sort of true meaning would actually be able to form Demon Essence in a person, even manipulating them into believing their mission in life was to break the seal on the giant blood-coloured door. However, what Yang Tai did clearly proved this matter to be true.
Soon, they arrived at the underground rock cave. Yang Kai waved his hand and cast a Shamanic Spell to illuminate the rock cave before pointing to the front, “That is the door sealing the Demon Spirits.”
Everyone exchanged astonished glances before looking forward.
Yang Tai and Wu Kuang Yi died in front of that door, and the blood and flesh left behind hadn’t been cleaned up yet. It wasn’t Yang Kai being lazy, but him acting on purpose. Only, what everyone else saw now was only dried up body parts on the ground with no traces of any blood.
All the blood had already been absorbed by the door.
“Another thing I must warn everyone about is that when I was meditating here, the Demon Spirit inside the door tried to burn the true meaning of the Demon Characters into my mind. Fortunately, I noticed it early enough and managed to protect myself in time. Otherwise, I’m afraid I would have ended up in the same situation as Yang Tai.”
They were all shocked to hear his words.
Gao Xue Ting quickly asked, “Are you sure you’re fine?” There was a worried and nervous look in her beautiful eyes, showing her overwhelming concern.
“I’m certain,” Yang Kai responded earnestly.
Xiao Yu Yang had a serious expression on his face, “In that case, your previous speculations are undoubtedly correct. There was not only a single Demon Spirit behind this door. I’m afraid there’s likely many more.”
Yang Kai shrugged, “Whether there are or not, this place needs to be sealed up completely.”
“That’s what we’re here for.” Xiao Yu Yang turned to Gong Zhen, “We’ll have to trouble Patriarch Gong for this part.”
Gong Zhen cupped his fists, “It is the Gong Family’s duty-bound responsibility.”
As he spoke, he flew leisurely to the giant door and used his Divine Sense to check the seal’s condition.
Xiao Yu Yang and the others maintained a high level of alertness, ready to take on any unexpected danger.
After a moment, Gong Zhen said, “The situation is not too bad. Even though the seal is old, the ancient Masters must have planned for the worst, so a self-repairing Spirit Array was added. As long as we reinforce it carefully, it should not have any problems.”
Hearing him say so, everyone relaxed.
Gong Zhen continued, “I need a few days to come up with a plan. In the meantime, I must entrust everyone to stand guard.”
Xiao Yu Yang said, “Rest assured, Patriarch Gong. I will be staying here.”
Gong Zhen gently nodded before finding a clean spot to sit down cross-legged. Then, he took out many strange objects from his Space Ring, seemingly getting to work.
Xiao Yu Yang then turned to Yang Kai, “Gong Yue’s mind being invaded by the Demon Spirit and him running away after the demonification is a troublesome matter that has to be resolved thoroughly. Otherwise, countless consequences will haunt us. Do you have any good ideas on how to deal with this?”
Yang Kai grinned, “I can track his location.”
Xiao Yu Yang’s eyes lit up, “Sure enough, it was right for us to seek you out first. Seems like you’re well-prepared.”
Yang Kai responded, “I can only hope he hasn’t noticed it yet.”
As early as when Gong Yue went through demonification and left, Yang Kai had already made plans and secretly left a hidden mark on his body. Gong Yue’s consciousness was still blurry during that moment so he couldn’t have noticed, allowing Yang Kai to act with ease.
At that time, Yang Kai told Hua Yu Lu and the others that there were two matters they had to deal with, and the second matter was to hunt down Gong Yue and eliminate him!
But those three did not have that ability, so Yang Kai didn’t tell them. He could only wait for the Masters from the top Sects to arrive.
“I must stay to watch over matters here, so I’ll leave Gong Yue’s matters to you all,” Xiao Yu Yang said to the other Second-Order Emperor Realm Masters.
Chen Wen Hao nodded, “Rest assured, Elder Xiao. We won’t disappoint you.”
They came together firstly to see the seal on the giant blood-coloured door, and secondly to pursue Gong Yue. They originally intended to get some clues from Yang Kai to begin their search, but they didn’t expect him to actually be able to track Gong Yue’s location, which definitely made things easier.
With three Second-Order Emperor Realm Masters combining their strength, it would be impossible for Gong Yue to match them even if they had the same level of cultivation. Not to mention, Yang Kai had also recovered back to his peak condition, and he alone would be enough to deal with Gong Yue.
“We should not delay things. Go now,” Xiao Yu Yang instructed.
It had been more than a month since the incident, and nobody knew where Gong Yue had gone. If they delayed matters too long, then the mark left behind by Yang Kai may possibly lose its effectiveness or even be discovered.
Without saying anything more, they turned and left.
Gong Zhen, who was working up a plan to the side, suddenly said, “If possible, I hope that you can bring back the old Patriarch’s body.”
He did not ask them to spare Gong Yue’s life because he knew that the latter’s mind had already been invaded by a Demon Spirit. Even if they spared him, he would no longer be Gong Yue. The old Patriarch showed a lifetime of wisdom, but his reputation ended up being destroyed in his old age, even involving the Gong Family in it. Gong Zhen couldn’t help but sigh while thinking so.
It was a bright day. Under the cloudless azure dome of a sky, a streak of light was flying forward. Naturally, it was the light from a flight type artifact. Only, the speed was so fast that it was simply impossible for the ordinary populous to notice.
This artifact was Yang Kai’s Flowing Clouds Shuttle, a flight type Emperor Artifact refined by Hou Yu that performed excellently. Even though its interior was small, fitting four people was no problem.
Yang Kai released the control restrictions so the group of four could take turns controlling it and travelling at full speed towards the fading mark Yang Kai set to track Gong Yue.
Gong Yue was much more difficult to deal with than he had anticipated. The four Emperors had left the Ancient Cave Mansion a month ago, but they still hadn’t caught a single glimpse of him. Worse, Yang Kai’s ability to sense the mark was growing weaker and weaker as time went on. If this continued to drag, then they might really lose Gong Yue’s trail.
This made Yang Kai very anxious. At one point, he suddenly opened his eyes.
Gao Xue Ting, who was controlling the Flowing Clouds Shuttle, seemed to have noticed and turned to him, “It cut off again?”
Yang Kai gently nodded, revealing a helpless expression. For the first half of the month, his connection with the mark, while weak, was at least constant. But during the latter half, the connection would somehow be interrupted from time to time, making him lose track of Gong Yue’s direction.
Even though Gong Yue’s consciousness had been in a chaotic state and he did not detect what Yang Kai did at the time, Yang Kai didn’t dare to be too careless. So, the mark he left on him was not too strong. There was no way for him to sense it if it was too far away; however, thanks to his comprehension of Space Principles, he had managed to persist until now.
“Do you think Gong Yue noticed anything? In the end, he’s still a Second-Order Emperor.” Gao Xue Ting asked with a frown.
Yang Kai responded, “Whether he noticed or not, we should all be thankful he didn’t take advantage of the situation to cause trouble.”
Even though Gong Yue had escaped for two months, he hadn’t done anything to harm anyone else yet. He just kept on going in circles, seemingly looking for something, or perhaps hiding from someone.
No one knew whether Gong Yue was acting on instinct, if he had managed to restore his consciousness, or if his mind was completely taken over by the Demon Spirit.
Nobody knew his current condition, and they would only be able to tell when they saw him face-to-face.
Feng Ming coldly snorted, “Since he has already gone through demonification, though this world is big, there’s nowhere for him to hide. We’ll find him eventually.”
Chen Wen Hao suddenly said, “Do you two still remember the incident in Maplewood City?”
Upon hearing this, both Gao Xue Ting and Feng Ming nodded, “Naturally.”
Chen Wen Hao sighed, “After that incident, this Chen went back to the Holy Land specifically to check through many ancient books, and it turns out that these situations were extremely rare in ancient history. However, they seem to be happening more and more frequently in recent years.”
“So?” Feng Ming wondered why he suddenly brought this up.
“It seems the Demons are stirring,” Chen Wen Hao said in a solemn voice. “Similar situations have happened in the past, and despite there only being vague records, every time they did, it was always a bad sign.”
The other three were slightly stunned by his words.
Feng Ming chuckled, “Even if that’s true, it’s not up to us to worry about it. If the sky falls, those above us will be there to hold it up.”
Gao Xue Ting and Chen Wen Hao had no opinion about his carefree attitude.
Feng Ming changed the topic as he stroked his chin, “By the way, this Old Master is quite curious. What will Gong Yue look like after demonification? Will it be similar to those guys the three of us encountered outside of Maplewood City back then?”
“Back then? There were many suspicious things about what happened back then.” Chen Wen Hao frowned.
Gao Xue Ting nodded in agreement. Back then, the three of them entered into a great battle with a Demon Lord, and as a result, they were inexplicably dragged into a pitch-black environment. By the time they restored their sight, their enemy had disappeared without a trace. They were unharmed, but it was as if the Demon let them off intentionally.
None of them could say for certain what really happened during that time, so the three of them returned to their Sects after carefully examining themselves to make sure they had no issues. Even so, after all these years, memories of that event were still fresh in their minds.
Hearing them mention what happened during that time, Yang Kai silently shut his eyes and tried to track down Gong Yue’s traces while controlling the Flowing Clouds Shuttle.
After another day, Yang Kai suddenly opened his eyes and shouted, “I found him!”
“Where?” Gao Xue Ting and the others opened their eyes at the same time and asked.
Yang Kai pointed in a certain direction, “Three thousand kilometres that way.”
Feng Ming’s eyes lit up at his words, “That close? Let’s see where he can run now!”
For ordinary mortals, three thousand kilometres may be too far to walk even over the course of a lifetime. However, for an Emperor Realm Master, three thousand kilometres was just barely out of arm’s reach.
The group had been tracking Gong Yue for a month, and they had never been this close to him, so when they heard this news, they were all excited.
In just a short while, the Flowing Clouds Shuttle arrived at that place.
The Flowing Clouds Shuttle stopped, and four figures were revealed in the air. They did not try to hide their auras, so the Emperor Pressure that was as vast as the sea filled the void, causing even the ground below to shake.
This was a small mountain peak that was only a thousand metres high. A pavilion stood at the top of it, and even though the scenery was not bad here, the World Energy was not very rich.
Yang Kai swept a glance around and understood that the Earth Vein here wasn’t good, making it impossible for Sects and families with any kind of heritage to pay attention to it. Only those who had no background and cultivated alone would choose to stay here.
But looking at the situation on that peak, it seemed there was actually a small Sect here.
There were about fifty to sixty people gathered there, but the strongest among them only gave off the aura of the Origin King Realm. A small Sect such as this was nothing to look at in the Southern Territory.
This place was very remote, so rarely would any Masters come here.
The strongest cultivator in this small Sect’s disciples was a Third-Order Origin King, so for Yang Kai’s group of four to suddenly appear here was extremely shocking to them.
Today, four Emperor Realm Masters suddenly descended upon their Sect, and each of them was from a top Sect of the Southern Territory. As if the Heavens and Earth had flipped, there was a surge of shock in everyone’s hearts.
They did not have the ability to recognize that these four Masters were all in the legendary Emperor Realm, but the almost suffocating pressure made it clear to them that these four people had the ability to kill them at will.
On that mountain peak, the fifty to sixty cultivators in the houses and forest trails were pale-faced and shivering as they looked up in awe.
They were just like a group of ants with an elephant standing before them, and the elephant had raised its foot. They could only pray that this foot would not step down on them as there was nothing they could do to resist.
Yang Kai and his group took in the situation of these cultivators, and they began to spread out as soon as they showed up, each taking a different direction to block off the mountain.
Feng Ming then said aloud, “This King is Orthodoxy Temple’s Elder Feng Ming. Fellow cultivators, this King has joined hands with his fellow Daoists to chase down an evildoer, and we hold no malice towards your Sect. If you cooperate and do not move about at will, we will make sure your lives are unharmed. Disobey us at your own risk!”
With his status, it was kind enough for him to warn this group of cultivators who had not even reached the Dao Source Realm. So, he did not say anything more after finishing that announcement.
Naturally, the cultivators didn’t dare to move an inch after hearing his words. In fact, they had already stopped moving before Feng Ming said anything. In front of the suffocating Emperor Pressure, it felt like their movements were being restricted by an invisible force, making their bodies feel stiff, and even their thoughts had stopped. The only thing left inside of them was panic and horror.
The four Emperor Realm Masters glanced at each other before each summoning their Emperor Artifacts.
Chen Wen Hao cultivated the Sword Dao and his skill in it was nearly at the point of perfection. With his sword in one hand, the aura he gave off was awe-inspiring. Light flashed brilliantly through his Flowing Water Sword, which had been with Chen Wen Hao for over a thousand years. Man and sword merged as one.
Gao Xue Ting summoned her own Emperor Artifact, the Radiant Sun Mirror. The mirror appeared simple and unadorned, hardly worth noticing, but it was actually the Emperor Artifact she spent her life refining.
Feng Ming held his Flying Thunder Spear in hand. His seemingly old body suddenly looked much taller, and his body gave off a brave and heroic aura that seemed even more imposing than those at the height of their youth.
Yang Kai was holding his Myriads Sword, but compared to Chen Wen Hao’s Flowing Water Sword, the broad longsword was simply not up to par.
However, Chen Wen Hao still took a glance at the Myriads Sword. As another Emperor who cultivated the Sword Dao, Chen Wen Hao could intuitively sense the might of the Myriads Sword.
After the four Emperors got into position, Feng Ming shouted towards the tallest building on the peak below, “Gong Yue, show yourself! There’s nowhere for you to run!”
After arriving here, he had already detected a clear energy fluctuation even without Yang Kai’s reminder, which was closely linked with Yang Kai’s aura. It was clearly the mark that Yang Kai previously placed on Gong Yue.
If the mark was here, then Gong Yue should naturally be here as well.
He shouted loudly, but received no answer.
Feng Ming brandished his spear and sneered, “Since you refuse a toast, you must drink a loss. We originally planned to leave your corpse whole, but since you insist on being stubborn, don’t blame this Old Master for not showing mercy!”
At the end of his sentence, a cold glint flashed and Feng Ming’s spear shot out like a soaring dragon.
There wasn’t too much splendour to this move, Feng Ming’s strike was as simple as it could be. The disciples of this small Sect were unable to grasp much of its mysteries, but the other three Emperor Realm Masters could appreciate Feng Ming’s amazing skill.
He gathered all of his power into one point without the slightest leak.
The spear thrust seemed to leap over space and the mountain peak shook violently as if it was about to collapse while the building atop it began to vaporize.
“Hm?” At that moment, Feng Ming frowned as if he had discovered something.
Yang Kai quickly shouted, “Elder Feng, don’t kill that man!”
Feng Ming’s hand shook, and the power he shot out instantly dispersed by as much as eighty percent. The remaining twenty percent of the power was also directed in elsewhere.
With a rumble, the building fully collapsed, revealing the figure of a stiff elderly man who was shaking like a leaf in a storm. The elderly man had a miserable appearance, his face as pale as a sheet of paper and he stood alone in the ruin, covered in dust.
The cultivation of this old man was not very high, only Third-Order Origin King, so his aptitude clearly wasn’t that good. He had already reached the end of his potential, and he couldn’t progress again in his lifetime.
At this moment, with the building on the mountain peak collapsed, no other person could possibly appear but him.
The four Emperors could all sense that the aura from the mark was actually from this man’s body.
Feng Ming frowned and instantly realized what happened, cursing, “Just like a golden cicada shedding its skin, he escaped!”
Yang Kai also sighed, “We were careless. It seems like Gong Yue is now in good shape.”
The mark he left on Gong Yue’s body had been transferred to this elderly man, luring the four of them in the wrong direction. It was impossible for the mark to have transferred on its own though, so the only explanation was Gong Yue had done it intentionally.
And, for him to have done it without Yang Kai noticing, it was clear that Gong Yue was no longer in a muddled state. He had either restored his consciousness, or it was taken over by the Demon Spirit after it fused perfectly with his body, neither of which was what Yang Kai’s group hoped to see.
One by one, they put away their artifacts.
The elderly man standing in the ruins was scared out of his wits, and he cried out miserably to them, “This humble old man greets these Seniors. Please… Seniors, please…spare my life!”
He had no idea what Yang Kai and the others had come here to do, but he knew that they were not people he could resist, especially the one who made that strike earlier, the one who called himself the Orthodoxy Temple’s Elder Feng Ming.
This old man knew of Orthodoxy Temple as it was one of the top Sects of the Southern Territory. A small Sect like his didn’t even have the right to look upon them, but now one of Orthodoxy Temple’s Elders had come here personally and even attacked him. If Feng Ming had not dispersed his lethal move at the last moment, this old man would have vanished without even a trace of his bones remaining.
The old man could not understand what he had done to provoke Orthodoxy Temple, and to attract the attention of such a powerful Master. Fear and panic obstructed his ability to think and he could only open his mouth to beg for mercy.
“Do not panic, old man.” Yang Kai smiled at the elderly man while using his Divine Sense to apply a kind of calming wave to settle his emotions, “We are not here to make things difficult for you, merely to track down a criminal. We did not expect such a misunderstanding to arise.”
“A criminal…” The old man was much more stable after receiving this pacification and was also no longer in a panic like he was earlier.
“Yes.” Yang Kai looked solemn. Tapping the tips of his fingers in front of him and circulating his Emperor Qi at the same time, an image appeared in front of him, naturally of Gong Yue’s face, “This is the man we’re looking for. Have you seen this person recently?”
Since the mark was transferred to this elderly man, that meant that Gong Yue had at least been here before. Now, without the mark, tracking down Gong Yue was going to be a problem, and this old man may be their only clue. Naturally, Yang Kai wouldn’t let it go so easily.
“Him?” The elderly man looked shocked after seeing Gong Yue’s face.
Yang Kai exclaimed, “You’ve seen him?”
The old man muttered, “I thought that was just a dream! A few days ago, when this old man was cultivating, I may have seen that man, but when I tried to take a closer look, he was gone. I thought…I thought that it was just…an illusion.”
Feng Ming quickly said, “Let me see your memory!”
As soon as he said that, his arm reached out for the elderly man, resulting in the man’s yelp. Involuntarily, he was pulled before Feng Ming.
This old man was terrified. Feng Ming’s attitude hadn’t been particularly friendly when he made that strike at him earlier, so thinking that he was going to meet with some untoward end, he struggled out of panic, but there was nothing an Origin King Realm cultivator like him could do in front of an Emperor Realm Master. He was subdued in an instant and was unable to move even a finger.
Feng Ming pointed a finger at his forehead, quite apparently prying into his memories from yesterday.
Right at that moment, Yang Kai suddenly shouted in alarm, “Elder Feng, watch out!”
Feng Ming was distracted for just a moment when the elderly man he dragged in front of him suddenly swelled up. The power in this old man’s body became chaotic and violent. Clearly, the elderly man had no idea what was happening either, as he was panicking with a look of confusion on his face.
With a loud bang, the elderly man burst apart.
And, from inside his exploded body, a small ball of black light quickly rushed at Feng Ming.
Even though Feng Ming was a Second-Order Emperor, he was still caught off guard by the sudden unexpected change in front of him. He was trying to check the memory of the elderly man, but he didn’t expect the man to suddenly self-destruct right before his eyes, and for this strange thing to fly out of his body as well.
The black light was not big, but Feng Ming’s vision seemed to be filled by it. He could no longer see anything else, and at the same time, there was a faint murmur in his ears that shook his mind, causing him to open the defences of his Knowledge Sea.
“Demon Suppression!”
Yang Kai shouted, and the light of a Shamanic Spell shot off in Feng Ming’s direction, just barely making it between Feng Ming and the black light. As soon as the black light touched the Shamanic Spell, it bounced off and shot towards Gao Xue Ting instead.
The Radiant Sun Mirror appeared behind Gao Xue Ting, emitting a dazzling light just like the blazing sun.
With a serious expression, Gao Xue Ting formed seals with her hands.
A beam of light shot out from her Radiant Sun Mirror, covering the black light.
The beam of light seemed to have a very strong binding force, and the black light crashed left and right within its boundary, but was unable to break free for a while. And, under the power of the Radiant Sun Mirror, there even seemed to be traces of it melting as thin wisps of black Qi could be seen diffusing from it.
“Three Thousand Sword Daos Entwine Like Thread!” Chen Wen Hao pointed his Flowing Water Sword at the black light, and thin silk threads shot out, entering the light and turning into a layer of restraint to wrap around the struggling black light.
With the combined strength of Chen Wen Hao and Gao Xue Ting, they finally subdued the black light.
“This…is the Demon Spirit?” Feng Ming wiped the cold sweat off his forehead, his heart still jumping from the event.
If Yang Kai hadn’t reacted quickly and helped him block that strike with his strange Secret Technique, then his mind would have been invaded by the Demon Spirit. He had no idea whether he had the ability to resist the Demon Spirit or not, but with Gong Yue as an example, he may not be able to break free if the Demon Spirit was really that strong.
The four of them had come out to hunt Gong Yue, but they had actually been fooled by such a small trick and almost suffered a heavy loss, causing Feng Ming to show a terrible expression.
“This isn’t a complete Demon Spirit!” Yang Kai frowned as he carefully observed the imprisoned black light and judged, “It was split from Gong Yue. He knows we’re hunting him, so he planted this trap on purpose!”
“The Demon Spirit can split itself?” Feng Ming was shocked.
Chen Wen Hao and Gao Xue Ting also had grave expressions. If that was true, then the problem was much more serious than they anticipated. They thought that all they had to do was find Gong Yue and kill him, but if the Demon Spirit could divide itself, then it wouldn’t help even if they eliminated Gong Yue.
Because none of them knew how many parts the Demon Spirit could split into, and where else it was hiding.
Only Yang Kai had been in a direct confrontation with the Demon Spirit, so everyone turned their gazes to him to see what his opinion was.
“From the information we have, it seems the Demon Spirit can indeed divide itself.”
Hearing this, the hearts of the other three sank.
“However…” Yang Kai went on, “This ability is likely not unlimited. This is half of the Demon Spirit I saw before, so it’s possible it can only divide into two parts, and there must be a cost to do so.”
“Even so, this is a tricky situation.” Chen Wen Hao frowned.
“Let’s eliminate this Demon Spirit first.” After eating a loss, Feng Ming was more concerned with this thing than anyone else.
Agreeing, Gao Xue Ting planned to increase the might of her Radiant Sun Mirror. No matter how strange this Demon Spirit was, there had to be a way to eliminate it, and this situation proved it. Gao Xue Ting also felt that she would be able to melt the restrained Demon Spirit completely if she put in thirty percent more power.
“Wait,” Yang Kai raised his hand to stop her. “We’ve already lost Gong Yue’s trail. If we want to track him down again, we can only start from this half Demon Spirit. If we destroy it, I’m afraid we may lose him forever.”
Feng Ming nodded, “You’re right. Gong Yue tried to use this little trick to catch us off guard, and maybe even try to demonise one of us, but he must not have expected to leave a clue behind instead. It seems a wise man can truly be ruined by his own wisdom.”
Chen Wen Hao said, “Even so, how are we going to track Gong Yue using this Demon Spirit? Who dares to handle it?”
The Demon Spirit had so many strange tricks that none of these Emperor Realm Masters dared to handle it directly. But if they didn’t, they wouldn’t be able to track Gong Yue’s location.
Yang Kai said, “If you can all trust me, then leave it to me.”
Gao Xue Ting was shocked, “You? What will you do with it?”
Yang Kai smiled, “Don’t worry, Senior Sister Gao. Since I was able to resist the invasion of the Demon Characters in that cave mansion, I can naturally resist the temptation of this meagre half of a Demon Spirit.”
“Can you…truly?”
Gao Xue Ting looked worried. It wasn’t that she didn’t believe in Yang Kai’s strength, but nobody would dare to make any guarantees in this situation. If Yang Kai were to be invaded by the Demon Spirit, then they would be falling right into Gong Yue’s plan.
“Are you confident?” Chen Wen Hao also looked seriously at Yang Kai.
Even though Feng Ming did not say anything, he clearly thought the same.
Yang Kai said, “I’m at least seventy percent sure. What’s more… Don’t I have three Masters standing guard by me?”
Chen Wen Hao nodded, “If there’s a seventy percent chance, then this method is feasible!”
Gao Xue Ting glared at him, “If you think it’s feasible, then why don’t you try it?”
Chen Wen Hao cleared his throat, “I don’t have confidence, so I can’t try it.”
If they wanted to trace Gong Yue through this half of the Demon Spirit, then they would need to have deeper contact with it, and even peer into its inner workings. In doing so, one would be actively opening themselves up to the Demon Spirit, which wasn’t something to joke about.
“We should destroy it!” Gao Xue Ting was about to act as soon as she said that. She wasn’t willing to watch Yang Kai take this risk. Even if Yang Kai said he was seventy percent sure he could do it, what if they fell into the remaining thirty percent instead?
Instead of having Yang Kai take such a risk, they might as well destroy this Demon Spirit as soon as possible. They may have lost track of Gong Yue, but that didn’t mean they wouldn’t be able to trace him. If anything, they could use their Sects to mobilize all the cultivators of the Southern Territory to seek him out, then Gong Yue wouldn’t be able to hide no matter how hard he tried.
Gao Xue Ting was going to destroy that half of the Demon Spirit as soon as she finished speaking, but Yang Kai arrived in front of the Demon Spirit in a flash, reached into the Radiant Sun Mirror’s light and grabbed the Demon Spirit.
“Junior Brother, you…” Gao Xue Ting’s beautiful face paled.
Yang Kai grinned at her, “Rest assured, nothing bad will happen. I’ll have to trouble everyone to stand guard for me!”
The others were all nervous around the Demon Spirit, but Yang Kai was completely undaunted. His years in the Thousand Illusions Dreamworld made him realize that a trivial Demon Spirit couldn’t do anything to him, because he also had the extremely pure Ancient Demon Qi sealed inside of him. What’s more, he also had an Ancient Demon’s Black Eye. As they say, barefooted people were not afraid of those who wear shoes.
But he couldn’t explain that clearly to everyone, so he could only act first.
Since things had already come to this, Gao Xue Ting had no way of stopping him any longer, so she simply reminded him, “You must be careful. If anything goes wrong, let go immediately!”
“I’ll remember,” Yang Kai nodded his head.
He then sat cross-legged in the air with his eyes closed, using his Divine Sense to communicate with that half of the Demon Spirit so he could search for Gong Yue’s whereabouts.
Chen Wen Hao, Gao Xue Ting, and Feng Ming formed a triangle surrounding him. Gao Xue Ting’s beautiful eyes were fixed on Yang Kai’s body and not moving for even an instant. If she found anything off, she would instantly envelop him with the light of the Radiant Sun Mirror.
Chen Wen Hao and Feng Ming exchanged glances, both of them seeing a trace of admiration in each other’s eyes. This couldn’t be helped; after all, they didn’t have the guts to do the same as Yang Kai when faced with such a strange Demon Spirit, yet this youth took the risk despite being the least powerful one of the group. This was something worthy of respect.
It was also at this moment that they both truly felt that new geniuses emerged into the world in each age. They had cultivated to the Second-Order Emperor Realm, so their aptitudes were naturally among the highest in the Star Boundary. They were also leading figures when they were young, the rising stars of their generation, filled with vigour and determination, just like Yang Kai right now.
Times changed, but what remained the same was the rise of talented people throughout the ages.
There was silence all around, with the several dozen cultivators from that small Sect below still not even daring to move. They were scattered all over the mountain peak, and had watched their Sect Master explode and die inexplicably. Trepidation and fear had already seeped deep into their bones, and they looked upon the four Masters in the sky as if they were looking at Gods without even so much as a thought of taking revenge for their Sect Master.
They had no idea that their Sect Master’s death was unrelated to Yang Kai and his group. They thought that their Sect Master had been killed by the man named Feng Ming and further reinforced their beliefs that these Masters from big Sects were abominable people lacking in humanity.
..…
There was only darkness ahead, as if Yang Kai was walking in the land of nihility. There was no light around, nor any sound. There wasn’t a single thing he could feel. He was using his mind to communicate with that half of the Demon Spirit, hoping to trace back to its source to look for the other half. As long as he could find the other half of the Demon Spirit, he would be able to find Gong Yue.
But progress was slow. It was Yang Kai’s first time attempting such a thing and he was inexperienced, so he had to grope his way through the whole ordeal.
He explored that endless darkness for a long time before changing his strategy, splitting some of his attention to sense the outside world.
Finally, he got some results. In the darkness, Yang Kai could feel that this half of the Demon Spirit had a vague but non-severable connection with something, and he began tracing that weak link.
The darkness slowly changed. Something seemed to appear in his field of vision, but it was too blurry, so he couldn’t see it properly.
Yang Kai pushed his Spiritual Energy and Divine Sense harder and harder, even absorbing the half Demon Spirit into his own Knowledge Sea. Then, he scoured it with his Spiritual Energy, breaking through all its innate defences.
Slowly, his vision began to clear up.
It seemed to be a mountain, a lonely mountain peak with a beautiful view, pleasant landscape, and rich World Energy.
Yang Kai suddenly felt that this mountain peak looked familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before; however, since the image wasn’t too sharp, he didn’t dare to confirm where it was so soon.
This was apparently Gong Yue’s surroundings that Yang Kai was able to observe through the inextricable connection between the two halves of the Demon Spirit. As long as he could confirm the location of this mountain peak, he would be able to determine Gong Yue’s location.
Once again, he increased the intensity of his Spiritual Energy.
This time, Yang Kai saw even more. There was a figure on the mountain peak, and that person looked somewhat similar to Gong Yue. He was standing quietly in a certain spot of the mountain peak, not moving at all, as if he were dead.
Yang Kai’s current situation was very peculiar. It was as if he was inside a dense ball of liquid, blurring his vision to the point that no matter how he tried he couldn’t see clearly, making him feel anxious.
All of a sudden, Yang Kai felt like he heard something. The sound was like a faded echo, muffled and intermittent, making it hard for Yang Kai to grasp onto it.
The sound came again, and this time, Yang Kai could hear it more clearly. It sounded like a dog barking, going ‘wang wang wang’. His vision moved, and Yang Kai saw a small dog-like creature standing not far away from the blurred figure, barking vigorously.
After barking for a while, that little thing actually pounced onto the figure and bit at it.
The figure remained unmoving as if he could not feel anything.
It was at that moment that the man seemed to sense something. He suddenly raised his head and looked in Yang Kai’s direction. His sharp gaze seemed able to break through the many layers of obstacles and meet Yang Kai’s eyes across the endless void.
The blurred view changed at that moment, becoming much clearer all of a sudden.
Yang Kai’s body shook, his eyes snapped open and his jaw dropped.
“Are you alright?” Gao Xue Ting’s hands were covered in sweat. She hadn’t been this nervous since before she broke through to the Emperor Realm. But at this moment, she was speaking with a trembling voice, fearing that Yang Kai’s mind had been corrupted by the Demon Spirit.
Yang Kai shook his head, looking a little dazed.
“Did you find him?” Chen Wen Hao asked.
“Spirit Sword Peak!” Yang Kai stared at Gao Xue Ting and muttered a response.
Gao Xue Ting was stunned at his words, “What?”
“Spirit Sword Peak. Gong Yue is in Azure Sun Temple, on my Spirit Sword Peak!” Yang Kai felt just how ridiculous his words were saying them. He had the constant feeling that what he saw just now wasn’t real, that it was just an illusion, but there was nothing he could find that could prove it.
“Gong Yue is in Azure Sun Temple?” Feng Ming’s eyes also went wide, obviously a little sceptical.
“That’s what I saw,” Yang Kai stood up and cast a spell to force out the Demon Spirit half from his Knowledge Sea before he crushed it with his hand. Since he had already tracked Gong Yue’s whereabouts, this half of the Demon Spirit was no longer of any use to them.
“How did he get to Azure Sun Temple?” Feng Ming asked.
“I don’t know!” Yang Kai shook his head. Not only was Gong Yue at Azure Sun Temple, but he was also at his Spirit Sword Peak!
Spirit Sword Peak was the Spirit Peak that Yang Kai received after becoming an Elder of the temple; it was in a relatively remote location, but whether it be the scenery or the World Energy, it was fantastic, and it was also protected by a powerful Spirit Array.
That was the reason why Yang Kai felt that the peak looked familiar. Even though he had not been staying on Spirit Sword Peak for long, it was his territory after all, so how could it possibly not look familiar to him?
Gong Yue was the former Patriarch of the Gong Family, so he had profound knowledge of Spirit Arrays. The Spirit Array on Spirit Sword Peak could block ordinary Masters, but not necessarily Gong Yue.
If that were all, then Yang Kai would have just thought that what he saw was just an illusion, a trick by Gong Yue to lead them in the wrong direction.
However, that barking confirmed to him that Gong Yue really had gone to Azure Sun Temple and really was on his Spirit Sword Peak.
Because there was indeed a black creature that looked similar to a puppy on Spirit Sword Peak. Even though the creature was a little strange, it had an inexplicable strength. However, Yang Kai had only seen it twice and didn’t pay it too much attention.
“Why would Gong Yue go to the Azure Sun Temple? Is he seeking death?” Chen Wen Hao frowned. With Gong Yue’s strength, he wouldn’t be able to make it out alive if he bumped into the four of them. It was reasonable to say that he should find a place to hide, but of all places, he chose to run towards danger, heading all the way to Azure Sun Temple.
The temple was full of powerful Masters, so how could Gong Yue survive going there?
“I can’t contact them. Junior Brother, can you try?” Gao Xue Ting suddenly spoke after having been silent the whole while. After finding out that Gong Yue had gone to Azure Sun Temple, she immediately took out her own Jade Elder Token and tried to contact her fellow Elders inside the temple.
To her surprise, her Jade Elder Token wouldn’t connect.
Yang Kai quickly took out his Jade Elder Token and immersed his Divine Sense into it.
After a short while, he looked at Gao Xue Ting and shook his head, “There’s no response!”
This place was a little far from Azure Sun Temple, but of course, it wasn’t far enough to be uncontactable. If any Elders in the temple received their message, then they would have given them a response right away; however, neither of them received a response in their attempts.
“Something happened to the temple!” Gao Xue Ting’s face changed.
“Let’s go!” Feng Ming shouted, also realizing the seriousness of the situation.
Yang Kai immediately summoned his Flowing Clouds Shuttle, and the four of them entered it in a line. Then, the Flowing Clouds Shuttle made off like a bolt of lightning, disappearing in the blink of any eye.
After the four people left, the disciples of the small Sect who had been on edge the whole time gradually came back to their senses and fell to the ground, cold sweat covering their backs.
They waited for a few moments to make sure that the senior experts really left far away and were not going to return before the remaining several dozen disciples began fighting each other for the position of Sect Master. Swords clashed as they engaged in a fierce battle for some time.
Inside the Flowing Clouds Shuttle, both Yang Kai and Gao Xue Ting had uneasy looks on their faces.
Chen Wen Hao reassured them, “Even though I have no idea what Gong Yue is trying to do at the temple, he is undoubtedly throwing himself into the net. With Temple Master Wen standing guard at the temple, Gong Yue won’t be able to stir up any waves, so do not fret. Perhaps Gong Yue will already be dead by the time we arrive.”
The worry on Gao Xue Ting’s face did not diminish, but she still responded, “I hope so.”
Looking at the situation, Yang Kai vaguely realized that something wasn’t right and quietly sent a message to Gao Xue Ting, “What’s happening at the temple? Is it something I don’t know?”
Gao Xue Ting glanced at him and answered, “The Temple Master is occupied with something at the moment. If Gong Yue is really causing trouble inside the Sect, then Temple Master won’t be able to do anything.”
“Still, Senior Brother Qiu and the others are there!” Yang Kai said.
Gao Xue Ting wasn’t so sure, “Senior Brother Qiu and the others may be strong, but what I’m worried about is that they might fall for the Demon Spirit’s tricks since they don’t know about them. We can’t get in contact with them now, and we have no idea what the situation is at the temple. You said you saw Gong Yue on Spirit Sword Peak, but why would he be there?”
“I’m curious about that too,” Yang Kai shook his head. Azure Sun Temple had many spirit peaks, but Gong Yue had to choose Spirit Sword Peak among all of them. Yang Kai even suspected that he was purposefully getting revenge on him because he had hindered the resurgence of the Demon Spirits inside the Ancient Cave Mansion.
But that didn’t seem right either. If it was purely for revenge, then Gong Yue couldn’t take such a huge risk.
“Senior Sister, what did you mean when you said that Temple Master was occupied with something?”
Gao Xue Ting was silent for a moment, as if she was deliberating, and only answered after a short pause, “Since you’re already a temple Elder, there’s no reason not to tell you. Do you still remember when you tried to use the Divine Ascension Mirror last time, but I stopped you?”
“Of course I remember. What does that have to do with this though?” Yang Kai didn’t understand.
“It’s Temple Master.” Gao Xue Ting explained, “I told you at the time that someone was using the Divine Ascension Mirror, and that he was not to be disturbed. Do you know who it is?”
This was also something that perplexed Yang Kai when it happened. The Divine Ascension Mirror was considered Azure Sun Temple Sect’s Supreme Artifact, and the core of its heritage and foundation. It was precisely because of the existence of the Divine Ascension Mirror that the Masters in the temple had stronger Soul cultivation than ordinary; however, it wasn’t so easy for one to enter the Divine Ascension Mirror to cultivate. Generally, disciples needed to attain great achievements to obtain a chance to go as a rare reward. Even as an elder, one had to pay 3,000 Elder Contribution Points to enter, and no one was exempt.
Elder Contribution Points were hard to come by, and 3,000 wasn’t a small amount either. Moreover, as a newly conferred Elder, Yang Kai naturally had no such points.
Now though, it seemed Gao Xue Ting did not stop him because his Elder Contribution Points weren’t sufficient, but because someone was using the Divine Ascension Mirror.
Yang Kai was curious who it was back then, but since he wasn’t in a rush, he didn’t pursue the matter.
However, he didn’t expect Gao Xue Ting to bring up this matter at this time.
“Who?” Yang Kai asked with a frown. He had the vague feeling that this person was probably someone very important.
“That person is closely related to Temple Master. It can even be said that he raised Temple Master and trained him personally.” Gao Xue Ting glanced sideways at Yang Kai, not mentioning the person directly by name.
But Yang Kai’s body shook and the image of a person immediately came to mind as he exclaimed in realization, “So it’s him!”
Gao Xue Ting looked curiously at him, “You’re much calmer about this than I expected.”
Yang Kai vaguely realized what was going on and asked, “Did that Sir enter the Divine Ascension World to try to separate their Souls?”
Gao Xue Ting’s tender body trembled as he turned to Yang Kai in astonishment, “How do you know about that?”
Even she did not know too much about this secret. It was only because Wen Zi Shan had inadvertently leaked a few words about it in front of her that she was able to guess it. However, she didn’t expect Yang Kai to make this connection in a single go. No one could have such a terrifying deduction ability, unless Yang Kai knew something about it beforehand.
Yang Kai smiled bitterly, “The reason that Sir became like that actually has a little to do with me.”
“With you?” Gao Xue Ting was even more confused and stared at Yang Kai as if she were a tireless student seeking to learn about a domain she had never stepped foot in before.
Yang Kai briefly described what happened in the Shattered Star Sea to her, then he added, “It was by coincidence that I encountered what I did, and luck that I made it out alive, but as a result of many those many twists and turns, that Sir now seems to have a firm connection ‘that’ Sir’s Soul, forcing them to share one body. I didn’t expect him to come back to the temple… no, that’s right, the Divine Ascension Mirror is a world of Souls, and Senior Tian Yan is also there. They may really be able to find a way to separate their Souls in there.”
“So that’s how it is!” Gao Xue Ting was stunned. All the things she couldn’t understand before became clear after receiving Yang Kai’s explanation, but she never thought that this matter would be related to him, and that he had the honour of being involved in a battle between two Great Emperors. Even though both Great Emperors were not at their peak during that fight, it still wasn’t an opportunity that just anyone could encounter.
The most shocking part was that Yang Kai also played a role in it. If not for his efforts, then that Sir’s Soul may have been extinguished and perished along with the enemy. Even though the current situation didn’t look good, at least their lives were retained. As long as they were alive, they were bound to be able to find a way to separate.
It was because of that person’s sensitive identity that Yang Kai was not able to use the Divine Ascension Mirror during that time.
Gao Xue Ting went on, “It seems they haven’t made much progress though, so Temple Master himself went in to help. Right now, Temple Master’s Soul is in the Divine Ascension Mirror and he knows nothing about what’s going on outside. If Gong Yue really silently infiltrated the temple, the others may not have been able to notice at all.”
“So that’s how it is!” Yang Kai nodded, understanding Gao Xue Ting’s worries.
After ending his Divine Sense conversation with Gao Xue Ting, Yang Kai opened his eyes and declared, “I’m going to use my teleportation technique to speed up, please do not resist if you feel any discomfort.”
Chen Wen Hao and Feng Ming gently nodded at his words and looked curiously towards Yang Kai.
Even though they had long heard that Yang Kai was proficient in the Dao of Space, just like that Sir from Spirit Beast Island, they had never seen it with their own eyes. This sort of mysterious power wasn’t something that could be witnessed casually, especially from a Master like Yang Kai.
So, they all looked on with great interest and waited in silence.
Space Principles surged from Yang Kai and enveloped the entire Flowing Clouds Shuttle. If the others had not been warned about it beforehand, then Chen Wen Hao and Feng Ming definitely would have resisted after sensing this change; however, they were informed and knew what Yang Kai was trying to do, so they relaxed and did not interfere with the flow of his Principle Strength.
The Flowing Clouds Shuttle seemed to shake slightly, and in the next moment, a sense of vertigo washed over Chen Wen Hao and Feng Ming, as well as a kind of desolate fear, like they had suddenly fallen into a bottomless abyss where they could neither hear, see, nor touch anything.
But that feeling was very short-lived, disappearing in just the blink of an eye.
At the same time, the Flowing Clouds Shuttle re-emerged a thousand kilometres away.
Chen Wen Hao and Feng Ming exchanged glances, both of them clearly seeing the astonishment in the other’s eyes.
They had heard rumours that cultivators proficient in the Dao of Space were unmatched when it came to escaping, and now it seemed that the rumours were true. They were both Second-Order Emperors, but it was still impossible for them to move a thousand kilometres in an instant. Perhaps with the help of some special artifacts they could achieve a similar feat, but it definitely wouldn’t be as smooth as what Yang Kai just did.
With such a Divine Ability, as long as he wasn’t trapped inside a sealed space, who in the world could stop Yang Kai from coming and going as he pleased?
No wonder Flower Shadow Great Emperor failed to take down that man from Spirit Beast Island despite far exceeding his strength during her pursuit. Masters of the Dao of Space were as slippery as a loach. If the first strike misses, then it would be impossible to catch their tracks after that.
The Flowing Clouds Shuttle constantly shook, vanishing and then reappearing a thousand kilometres into the distance after each tremble.
The three other Masters in the shuttle were increasingly in awe of Yang Kai’s Space Technique.
At the beginning, Yang Kai’s aura was strong and steady, his face calm and collected, but he gradually began to struggle as time went on. The amount of energy drained from him to instantaneously move three Emperor Realm Masters and an Emperor Artifact at the same time was immense.
But they were in an urgent situation right now, so Yang Kai couldn’t care too much about this excessive consumption. His only thought was to rush back to the temple as soon as possible.
Half a day later, he stuffed a handful of Spirit Pills into his mouth before signalling Gao Xue Ting to take over control of the Flowing Clouds Shuttle. Then, he sat down cross-legged to adjust his breathing.
Chen Wen Hao and Feng Ming could see clearly that all of the Spirit Pills Yang Kai stuffed into his mouth were Emperor Pills. Each one of them was worth a fortune, but he chewed them just like candy before swallowing them all down.
Even if the two of them had always been in high positions, seeing this still made their faces twitch as they cursed this black sheep in their hearts.
Their gazes next turned to the Flowing Clouds Shuttle they were riding, which was clearly a flight type Emperor Artifact of immeasurable value. Even they did not possess such a treasure.
They couldn’t figure it out no matter how they racked their brains. How did this boy manage to amass such a huge fortune despite being so young? Compared to him, they were simply no different from poor country bumpkins. Where was their dignity as Second-Order Emperors?
The three people took turns to control the Flower Clouds Shuttle, so the consumption was not too big and they were able to maintain their peak state so that they could deal with any possible dangers.
Once Yang Kai was done recovering and able to use his Space Principles again, their speed once again rapidly increased.
With that, the four of them arrived at Azure Sun Mountain Range after three days.
Sweeping through the mountain range with their Divine Senses, they didn’t find anything unusual. It looked just like usual, with many disciples of the temple doing their jobs around the staggered peaks. There were simply no signs of an attack having been made.
This allowed Yang Kai and Gao Xue Ting, who were anxious the whole time, to finally breathe a sigh of relief.
The Flowing Clouds Shuttle stopped in front of the Sect Defending Array, and the four exited. But instantly, Gao Xue Ting noticed something wrong.
A strange barrier had appeared right outside the Sect Defending Array. The barrier wasn’t very strong, and was very well-hidden, so if not for Gao Xue Ting’s understanding of the Sect’s protective barrier, she may not have been able to tell it was there at all.
And, from the traces of the barrier, she could see that it was clearly set up just a few days ago.
Yang Kai pondered for a moment before taking out his Jade Elder Token and pouring his Divine Sense into it. After some probing, he quickly said, “It was Gong Yue’s doing. It was this barrier that blocked our connection with the temple.”
“That abominable bastard!” Gao Xue Ting gritted her teeth, the Radiant Sun Mirror appearing above her head and releasing a blazing ray of light towards the barrier.
With a bang, the ground began to shake, and the thin and weak barrier was immediately broken.
“Which bastard dares… uh, Elder Gao, Elder Yang?”
A disciple flew out from inside in an aggressive state; however, he immediately shrivelled up as soon as he saw Gao Xue Ting and quickly bowed.
“Has there been anything unusual about the temple these past few days?” Gao Xue Ting asked the disciple.
The disciple didn’t dare to look at her and he had no idea why he was asked this question, but still answered promptly, “Everything is as usual.”
Gao Xue Ting didn’t ask anything more. She knew this disciple knew nothing, so she quickly urged, “To Spirit Sword Peak!”
As she turned around and rushed out, she sent a message into her Jade Elder Token to alert the others.
Spirit Sword Peak was located in a remote location on the outskirts of Azure Sun Temple. Yang Kai chose this location on purpose due to it being more remote, but he didn’t expect it to become a loophole for Gong Yue to exploit.
Halfway there, streams of light flew over from all around Azure Sun Temple, gathering in a group.
Other than those who were outside the Sect or in secluded retreat, all Emperor Realm Elders were there. Vice Temple Master Qiu Ran was also present, and after greeting Chen Wen Hao and Feng Ming, he turned to Gao Xue Ting and asked, “What happened?”
From the atmosphere, he could vaguely guess that something big had taken place. Otherwise, it was impossible for Gao Xue Ting to rush into the temple with the Elders of two other Sects. As far as he knew, they should be in the Southern Swamp right now.
The last time Yang Kai sent them a message, he told them about what happened in the Southern Swamp, so Qiu Ran more or less knew the situation.
“Gong Yue is on Spirit Sword Peak!” Gao Xue Ting answered.
“What?” Qiu Ran was shocked, “Gong Yue? Which Gong Yue?” He simply couldn’t believe her words. He was even wondering whether Gao Xue Ting had made a mistake.
“It’s the Gong Yue that Junior Brother Yang mentioned before. The former patriarch of the Heavenly River Valley’s Gong Family!”
“How could Gong Yue be on Spirit Sword Peak?” Qiu Ran turned to look at You Kun, the one who was responsible for maintaining the Sect’s Spirit Array and safety. If Gong Yue invaded the temple and entered Spirit Sword Peak, then it would have been his fault.
You Kun was covered in cold sweat, “I’m not sure. I didn’t receive any suspicious reports.”
Yang Kai cut in, “Gong Yue is highly proficient in the Dao of Spirit Arrays. If he really wanted to sneak into any Sect, he would definitely be able to find a way. The temple has been safe this whole time, so the Sect Defending Array clearly wasn’t broken. Gong Yue must have exploited some weakness in it, so it’s normal for him to be able to sneak in. Right now, we need to understand why he came to the temple, and why he’s on my Spirit Sword Peak!”
“Yes. Gong Yue’s actions are extremely suspicious, and we have no idea what his situation is right now, so all of you must be careful later.” Chen Wen Hao nodded in agreement.
Qiu Ran nodded lightly as well. Stroking his long beard, he began to ponder.
You Kun looked at Yang Kai in gratitude while he cursed Gong Yue in his heart.
“There is one thing I must tell everyone. The Demon Spirit has many mysterious tricks that are hard to handle, so all of you must guard your minds carefully. Never give the Demon Spirit a chance to take advantage of you,” Gao Xue Ting reminded everyone seriously. The several Elders from Azure Sun Temple all nodded their heads and used their Soul Secret Techniques to strengthen the defences of their Knowledge Seas.
After a half cup of tea’s time, the group finally arrived at Spirit Sword Peak.
Nothing seemed different in Spirit Sword Peak since Yang Kai’s last departure. Other than the fact that the protective array was open, there was only one other anomaly, a figure sitting cross-legged in the open space on top of the mountain, remaining motionless as if he were dead.
There was also a jet-black little beast lying down by his side, looking comfortable. Its short tail would wag around randomly, and when the group of people came over, it raised its eyes to look at them but did not make any moves.
*Shua shua shua…*
The nearly ten Emperor Realm Masters scattered, surrounding Spirit Sword Peak in an airtight formation.
Gong Yue slowly opened his eyes, and his gaze swept around, finally fixing on Yang Kai. His dark eyes were a sight that sent shivers down the backs of all those who were seeing them for the first time. They were just like a bottomless pit that could devour everything.
“You’ve arrived!” Gong Yue spoke softly, sounding quite exhausted, as if he didn’t even have the energy to speak louder.
“Should this Old Master call you Gong Yue, or by another name?” Feng Ming sneered. Just by looking at Gong Yue’s state, he could not figure out whether this man had lost himself or not, and whether or not he had been overtaken by that Demon Spirit.
He didn’t even know if that Demon Spirit had the ability to take over another person.
Even though the current Gong Yue was good study material, there was no way for them to examine him safely now.
“This Old Master is Gong Yue. Gong Yue of the Gong Family,” Gong Yue answered his question.
Feng Ming threw his head back in laughter, “You still have the face to mention the Gong Family? The Gong Family’s reputation will be forever disgraced after this incident, and you will be remembered as the greatest sinner in the Gong Family for ages to come.”
Gong Yue shook his head, “Is the pursuit of power a sin? If so, then all of you here are sinners.”
Feng Ming coldly snorted, “There are innumerable Grand Daos in the world, with paths thin and thick to follow. Yet you chose to traverse the moor. What power do you seek to pursue there?”
Gong Yue responded indifferently, “As long as it fits, everything will fall into place. The Grand Dao is a path, but who are you to say what is a moor and what is not? All Daos lead to the same end.”
“Nonsense!” Feng Ming’s beard curled in anger.
Gong Yue announced proudly, “If there is no path in the moor, then allow this Old Master to tread a road through it!”
“I’m afraid you don’t have that ability.”
Gong Yue smirked, “Naturally, it is impossible for this Gong to do it alone. However, there will be more who follow me.”
Chen Wen Hao sighed, “Brother Gong, you’ve really been taken over by that Demon!”
What he had with Gong Yue could be described in some way as friendship, so before coming here, he thought about whether or not he could find the opportunity to help Gong Yue. However, after seeing him with his own eyes Chen Wen Hao knew it was impossible. Gong Yue’s body was not taken over, in other words, the Demon Spirit didn’t have the ability to seize someone’s body.
However, Gong Yue had gone through demonification. His mind had been warped under the influence of the Demon Spirit, changing him into an unrecognizable shadow of his former self. Such a man was extremely dangerous as no one knew what he was capable of.
Inside, Chen Wen Hao gave up on wanting to help him.
“Demonification?” Gong Yue smiled, “I’ve just found a suitable Dao for myself.”
“That’s not your own Dao!” Yang Kai quickly said.
Gong Yue looked at him, “And what about you? Are all of you walking your own Daos? The paths you are all walking on are paths opened up by others before you. And who can prove that the Dao you’re following is the right one? In my opinion, you’re only picking up the scraps of others.”
Yang Kai said solemnly, “We may be following the Daos of our predecessors, but we all strive hard to better ourselves and advance that path. But you, Old Patriarch Gong, your path has deviated from the Grand Dao. You’ll never reach the end. You’ll just become a slave to the Demon Spirit.”
It was not known which of his words stimulated Gong Yue, but his expression suddenly turned dark, and a cold glint flashed past his eyes, “Nonsense! This Old Master has never felt stronger, who can enslave this Old Master!?”
Yang Kai thought about it for a moment but decided not to dwell on the issue. Instead, he asked, “May I ask Old Patriarch Gong why you took great risks to come to Azure Sun Temple’s Spirit Sword Peak? What about this place attracted you?”
Gong Yue smiled but did not speak, appearing quite mysterious.
Yang Kai continued, “It seems like there’s something about this place that drew you here. Is something related to the Demon Race here? Could there be another Ancient Demon’s relic here?”
“Oh?” Gong Yue looked at Yang Kai with some surprise, “You actually know about the Ancient Demons?”
Yang Kai sneered, “I probably know much more than you do.”
“No wonder!” Gong Yue looked at Yang Kai with interest, as if he’d discovered something, “No wonder you felt different to me. It turns out you are the same as this Old Master.”
Yang Kai said, “You’re wrong. We pursue different paths.”
“Words can deceive, but your body can’t. I can sense it. It’s inside you.” Gong Yue’s expression suddenly became spirited, and he couldn’t help but laugh, “Interesting! Why remain so stubborn?”
Yang Kai shook his head, not arguing with him anymore. Gong Yue had already been corrupted by the Demon Spirit, so his thoughts and ideas were now different from normal people. There was no sense in arguing with him.
However, Chen Wen Hao and the others were now looking at Yang Kai suspiciously. They had no idea what Gong Yue meant by his words, and whatever it was he mentioned inside of Yang Kai’s body made them extremely concerned.
Gong Yue laughed, “One day you will discover that the Dao this Old Master chose is the correct one. This Old Master wishes that day will come soon enough.”
“Whether that day comes or not, I’m afraid you won’t have the opportunity to see it.” Feng Ming scoffed. Reaching his hand out towards the air and gripping down, his Flying Thunder Spear appeared, brimming with a cold light. Brandishing his spear, he thrust the tip towards Gong Yue while shouting, “This Old Master will tell you now which Dao is the true one!”
His strike was just like a Flood Dragon going out to sea, majestic and indomitable.
His spear that brought together all the power in Feng Ming’s body dazzled the First-Order Emperor Realm Elders of the Azure Sun Temple. It felt like everything in the world could turn to dust under the tip of his spear.
Faced with Feng Ming’s stunning blow, Gong Yue did not try to dodge, but instead smiled, “Even though this Old Master knows that his time is running out, there’s no way he will possibly surrender without a fight. If you want to take this Old Master’s life, then all of you will have to bring out some real skill.”
While speaking, Gong Yue grabbed the little puppy by his side and threw it towards Feng Ming.
The little puppy was clearly a little confused at the sudden situation and it barked a few times, probably overwhelmed by fright. Both its round eyes were filled with panic as its limbs wiggled mid-air.
Feng Ming frowned, having no idea what Gong Yue intended to do. He could not perceive any threat from this dog-like little beast at all. For an existence as weak and insignificant as this Monster Beast, Feng Ming could easily make it die a violent death just by snorting at it.
For that reason, Feng Ming did not withdraw. The only target in his eyes was Gong Yue. As for the little puppy that had been thrown out, it would probably be smashed into a blood mist from the pressure of his spear alone.
Gong Yue’s hands suddenly weaved a series of complicated seals as he aimed in the little puppy’s direction.
Suddenly, as if the wild nature buried deep inside its bones had been awakened, the panic disappeared instantly from the little puppy’s eyes, replaced by a look of indescribable ferocity. Its eyes were filled with a destructive light, as if it wanted to destroy the entire world.
It stopped barking meaninglessly and instead opened its mouth wide at Feng Ming.
The puppy was not very big to begin with, at most a third of a metre long, so at the very most it could barely fit a fist into its open mouth.
But that mouth suddenly stretched apart, becoming as big as a house, completely overshadowing the little puppy’s body, as if it was the only thing left of it.
It was a very strange sight.
Everyone had their attention on Gong Yue the whole time, and even though they saw the little puppy when they arrived, they didn’t pay too much attention to it.
It wasn’t until now that they all realized that this little puppy was not as harmless as it appeared.
Everyone was somewhat stunned.
The group of Emperors which had been on guard the whole time all unleashed their Divine Abilities at that moment, sending a blast of attacks towards the giant mouth together.
The scene of nearly ten Emperor Realm Masters joining forces, including several Second-Order Emperors, was spectacular. The light from all the Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities was dazzling, and the might of their Emperor Artifacts were unbridled, throwing the surrounding World Energy into chaos.
Feng Ming also reacted in time and a light burst forth from his Flying Thunder Spear, exploding directly in front of him.
All of their attacks poured into that huge mouth, but it was just like a stone sinking into the sea, causing no reaction at all.
Mouth closing, the little puppy swallowed Feng Ming into its belly.
*Si…*
There were sounds of people gasping, and everyone could feel their scalp tingling as they looked at the little beast with shocked faces. Their eyes had gone so wide that they were nearly coming out of their heads.
Yang Kai was also stunned.
He had seen that little puppy twice before. The first time was when all the Elders of Azure Sun Temple had gotten drunk, and the second was while he was arranging his hidden Space Array. Other than the fact that the Demon Qi inside his dantian moved a little the second time he saw it, there was nothing else special about this puppy.
But now, he realized he was clearly mistaken.
This little puppy had likely inherited the bloodline of some exotic ancient beast. Otherwise, it couldn’t have such a strange ability. It managed to swallow a Second-Order Emperor Realm Master in one gulp, and even if Feng Ming had underestimated his opponent and been caught off guard, this was still a shocking development.
After swallowing Feng Ming, that gigantic mouth disappeared, and the little puppy went back to its original size; however, it still retained a violent and aggressive stance.
With what happened to Feng Ming as a precedent, how could the others dare to step forward so easily? Every Emperor present fell back while using their long-range Divine Abilities to attack.
The giant mouth appeared again, swallowing the attacks of the many Emperor Realm Masters. The giant mouth was just like a bottomless pit swallowing up everything cleanly no matter how many things were thrown into it.
Gong Yue remained hiding behind the black puppy, constantly forming seals with his hands, seemingly commanding the beast to fight with his enemies. Despite facing off against so many Masters, Gong Yue didn’t fall into a disadvantage in the slightest.
There were several times when Yang Kai thought of teleporting to Gong Yue’s position and catching him that way, but Gong Yue seemed to have anticipated his plans in advance and stopped him.
The Divine Sense of all the Emperor Realm Masters surged, but even after some quick exchanges, nobody was able to figure out what sort of bloodline this little black puppy had inherited. Its ability to devour everything was unheard of, and nobody dared to take any risks on an untrodden path lest they end up in the same situation as Feng Ming.
There indeed existed many powerful beasts in ancient times, among them many Divine Spirits who were the strongest of all. Each of these Divine Spirits had the ability to move mountains and overturn the seas, but no one here had heard of an ability as strange as the one this black puppy presented.
During the midst of the battle, a thought flashed across Yang Kai’s mind as he muttered, “A Demon Beast?”
Gong Yue, who had been sitting behind the black puppy and using it as a shield, smirked, “You really are different from the rest. You know quite a lot. Indeed, this little beast carries a faint bloodline of the Abyssal Returner. It’s neither pure nor rich, but it is still an astonishing coincidence. If you wish to kill this Old Master, then you must pass it first.”
“Abyssal Returner?”
The Emperor Realm Masters were all somewhat taken aback as none of them had ever heard of such a beast before. Even Elder Chen Qian, who was most familiar with the history books, came up empty.
But undeniably, this black puppy with its trace of Abyssal Returner bloodline was Heaven-defyingly strong. Under Gong Yue’s command, it was able to literally take a bite out of the Void each time it snapped its jaws. The entire world was just like a delicious cake in front of it, and each bite left a mark that was unable to heal even after a long time.
After several attempts to fight the puppy, Spirit Sword Peak was filled with Void Tears. Everywhere you looked, it was as if numerous inkblots were accidentally spilled over a beautiful landscape painting. Each one of those holes exuded a chaotic aura of nothingness which, while seemingly empty, held a great deal of lethality, so everyone had to mind their surroundings so as not to fall into danger.
Only Yang Kai moved freely like a fish swimming in water. Through the field of Void Tears, he leapt about while looking for opportunities to get by the Abyssal Returner and attack Gong Yue directly. There were several times where he nearly succeeded, but the Abyssal Returner would always snap right back at him, forcing him to temporarily retreat.
“We can’t delay this any longer. I’m worried Brother Feng won’t hold out.” Chen Wen Hao shouted and declared with a solemn expression, “The moon waxes only to wane, and the water surges only to overflow! Everyone, please lend me your power!”
At the end of his sentence, a dazzling light suddenly emitted from his Flowing Water Sword. As his Emperor Pressure spread out, it was as if his whole person had become an all-conquering sword, radiating a stinging Sword Intent.
The World Energy within a radius of a few dozen kilometres all began to gather towards the Flowing Water Sword.
Everyone’s eyes lit up at his words, and prepared their own skills.
Gong Yue’s brow wrinkled slightly, but his hands kept moving.
With nearly ten Emperor Realm Masters exerting their full strength, it was as if the entire Azure Sun Temple was thrown into turmoil. With Spirit Sword Peak as its centre, it felt like a huge vortex had appeared in the area, drawing in all the World Energy within a thousand kilometres radius. All sorts of fierce and surging Divine Abilities were brewing and taking shape.
“Endless Sword Dao!” Chen Wen Hao was the first to strike. As his Flowing Water Sword cut towards the front, it brought with it a storm of World Energy that was visible to the naked eye. Within that huge wave, countless sword lights were constantly devouring and spitting out everything in its path, seemingly able to destroy all in its way.
“Life or Death Seal, One Seal to Discern Life or Death!”
“Nine Sun’s Radiant Shine!”
“Yin Yang Inversion, Shatter the Universe!”
“Time Flows on Infinitely, Like a Mighty Stream, Like an Unending Dream!”
…
Many Divine Abilities shot out together, causing the sky to shatter and the world to invert, speeding forward in a rumble. With so many Emperor Realm Masters working together, even a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master would have their corpse ripped into ten thousand pieces if they tried to obstruct them.
Gong Yue’s expression turned solemn as the seals on his hands changed even faster.
There was a roar that shook the world. The Abyssal Returner’s body remained unchanged, but its mouth suddenly opened larger than all the previous times. It now seemed big enough to swallow half a mountain, and the darkness it displayed seemed as if it was connected to another world.
When their powerful attacks landed in its mouth, a ripple that was visible to the naked eye splashed out, but those soon disappeared.
In just three breaths, the Abyssal Returner swallowed up all of their attacks and closed its mouth at once. Its third-of-a-metre long body was now swaying in mid-air as if it were drunk, and its body was giving off an unstable glow.
The hearts of the nearly ten Emperor Realm Masters sank dramatically as all their faces turned ugly. Even Chen Wen Hao’s confidence was very shaken.
He asked everyone to join hands in hopes that he could use this method to swell the Abyssal Returner to bursting, but just as he said, the moon waxes only to wane, and the water surges only to overflow. Even though the Abyssal Returner’s ability to seemingly devour all creation was profound and mysterious, there had to be a limit. As long as it reached that limit, they would be able to defeat it.
But this time, even under their joint efforts, they failed to do anything to it, which was far from his expectations.
“Again! It can’t hold out any longer!” Yang Kai’s shout suddenly rang out in everyone’s ears.
As if they had all found their courage, the Masters once again raised their spirits and sent out their Divine Abilities.
A few moments later, there was a rumble. The Abyssal Returner opened its mouth wide again, but things were a little different this time. The Abyssal Returner seemed to be showing an extremely pained expression, a discovery that excited everyone. They felt that they were not far away from victory.
And as expected, when the Abyssal Returner opened its mouth this time, it was unable to swallow all the attacks. After absorbing half of them, it suddenly shut its mouth, and the rest of the attacks brushed past its body, the furious force of it cutting it into a bloody mess and leaving not a single part unharmed.
Its physical body did not seem to be that strong. It was only its special Innate Divine Ability that was tricky to deal with.
It staggered with its mouth tightly closed. Its stomach was constantly squirming as if something was brewing inside of it.
“It would be impolite if I did not reciprocate, so you should take this Old Master’s moves too!” Gong Yue said with a profound smile on his face. Then, he extended his right hand in front of his chest. Interlocking his thumb and ring finger, his other three fingers pointing up. As he spoke, he moved his wrist forward.
Everyone was greatly alarmed as an aura of death had inexplicably enveloped them. This type of feeling sent chills through many of them, making their hands and feet go cold.
The Abyssal Returner suddenly opened its mouth, and a dazzling light spewed out from its maw with a familiar aura.
“This…” Chen Wen Hao exclaimed with a stunned expression of horror.
What the Abyssal Returner spat out turned out to be the Divine Abilities that they cast before. Only this time, the target was not the enemy, but them.
Nobody expected the Abyssal Returner to have such a strange ability. Not only could it swallow a person’s attacks, but it could also spit them back out intact.
The group was instantly thrown into misfortune.
For the sake of ending the battle quickly, the Emperors had used their most powerful Divine Abilities, unleashing them without reservation. All of a sudden, though, their attacks had become a sharp weapon in the enemy’s hands, and the sudden change in the situation put everyone at a loss.
The swarm of attacks came so suddenly that nobody could react. All of them could only hastily gather their Emperor Qi to protect themselves.
At the critical moment, Yang Kai flew forward and instantly arrived above the group, Space Principles fluctuating as he slammed down a palm.
Without any warning, he and the other Emperor Realm Masters suddenly disappeared without a trace.
The powerful Divine Abilities hit nothing but air, collapsing space as they flew forward before crashing into the big and small mountain peaks in the distance. The entire Azure Sun Temple was shaken by the impact and everyone began to panic. Countless disciples were looking in worry towards the collapsed peaks, not knowing what had happened.
They had never encountered anything like this since the founding of the temple.
Thousands of metres away, some figures suddenly appeared from the Void. It was Yang Kai and the others, each of them with a look of lingering fear on their faces. Yang Kai was also pale-faced and trembling violently.
The amount of energy consumed when he tried to forcibly use his Space Principles on the others without their cooperation was immense, especially with this many Masters. This single move emptied his reserves entirely.
Currently, it took all his energy to even stand.
“Instantaneous movement!” Gong Yue’s gaze turned dark. He turned his head towards the distance and his face was twitching slightly, hatred filling his eyes.
He was obviously blaming Yang Kai for ruining his good deed. If Yang Kai had not interfered just now, then that sudden attack would have been enough to kill or injure at least half of the Emperor Realm Masters present.
But due to Yang Kai’s presence, that group was able to escape this crisis unscathed.
Gao Xue Ting reached out to hold Yang Kai’s arm and support him to prevent him from falling, and Yang Kai nodded in thanks. He quickly caught his breath in order to calm the roiling blood in his chest.
Suddenly, there was a whimper. The Abyssal Returner that looked just like a puppy actually uttered a sad cry, seemingly enduring incredible pain.
At the moment, its appearance looked miserable. They had no idea what method Gong Yue used before in order to stimulate the power of its bloodline and allow it to take on so many Emperor Realm Masters by itself for such a long amount of time; however, it was no longer any threat after reaching its limit. After being swept up by so many Divine Abilities, its body lay bloodied and covered in terrible injuries that were hard to look at.
Gong Yue glanced at it and clearly sensed something. Smiling, he said, “Well, it’s just about time anyway.”
None of them knew what he meant by that, but at the end of his sentence, the Abyssal Returner suddenly heaved a few times before its mouth burst open, transforming into that monstrously big mouth from before in an instant.
A cold aura emerged from that huge mouth, and a man and spear seemed to have been released from the abyss and spiralled out from within.
The moment he saw light again, Feng Ming was clearly dumbfounded. He had been swallowed and surrounded by boundless darkness with no light or sound. Fortunately, he did not suffer any harm. It seemed like he was just sucked into a strange world.
He would occasionally find a glimmer of light appearing in that world, and he tried his best to follow it until he finally broke free.
Sweeping a glance over the scene, Feng Ming made a determination to kick the Abyssal Returner who was still retching beside him and sent it flying out of sight. Then, like a dragon, his spear was thrust towards Gong Yue who was sitting at the side.
Gong Yue did not dodge this life or death crisis. He didn’t even have the slightest intention to resist. His aura had been very weak this whole time and he had been depending on that Abyssal Returner’s strange ability in order to hold off so many Emperor Realm Masters, but now that the Abyssal Returner was no longer useful, he wouldn’t be able to defeat the enraged Feng Ming even if he tried to resist.
He faced the call of death with a calm expression, as if he had already seen through the meaning of life.
With a piercing noise, the tip of the spear thrust through Gong Yue’s chest, leaving a hole where his squirming five viscera and six organs could be seen.
However, Gong Yue just laughed, “Killing me alone is useless. Time will prove that I made the right choice, and that you’ve all chosen wrong!”
“Foolish nonsense!” Feng Ming coldly snorted. Emperor Qi surging, the roar of a beast was released from his Flying Thunder Spear, followed by Gong Yue’s body bursting apart into a mist of blood, leaving no bones behind.
A small black light flew out at that moment, but Feng Ming reacted quickly and thrust his spear over, popping it directly. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief and turned to the group, “Are you all alright?”
Chen Wen Hao’s complexion did not look good, but he shook his head, “We’re unharmed, all thanks to Elder Yang. What about you, Brother Feng? How are you feeling?”
Feng Ming shook his head, “I am also unharmed, but I must check my condition carefully. That thing was truly too strange.”
“What did Gong Yue mean just now?” Gao Xue Ting’s eyebrows were furrowed. She kept on thinking about Gong Yue’s words, but she couldn’t figure out what they meant. Still, they filled her with anxiety, as if something bad was going to happen in the future.
Nobody knew the meaning of Gong Yue’s last words.
Just as the group was lost in thought, a rumbling sound suddenly came from the distance. Both the ground and the mountain peaks began to shake and stir, as if something had been cracked apart. Then, one after another, black lights suddenly rose up from somewhere on Spirit Sword Peak, turning into streams of light that flew out in all directions.
“Demon Spirits… How could there be so many Demon Spirits?” Looking up, Gao Xue Ting’s beautiful face lost all colour in an instant.
The black lights were clearly the same as the ones that corrupted Gong Yue’s mind. They were the remnant Demon Spirits, but their numbers were in the hundreds, possibly reaching a thousand in total. Like fireworks exploding in the sky, they shot off towards the horizon.
“How can this be!” Chen Wen Hao was also dumbfounded at the sight.
Qiu Ran and the others were seeing Demon Spirits for the first time, but even though they had no idea how powerful they were, they could still sense that these things were tough to deal with, and each one of them had serious looks on their faces.
“Spirit Sword Peak… is an ancient Demon Sealing Ground!” Yang Kai coughed, appearing extremely weak, “The reason Gong Yue came here was so that he could break the seal and release the other Demon Spirits!”
Gao Xue Ting was shocked at his words and turned over to look at him, “Junior Brother, you mean to say that this place is the same as the Southern Swamp?”
Yang Kai answered, “There’s no other explanation besides that.”
Everyone’s attention was drawn to the Ancient Cave Mansion in the Southern Swamp, but no one expected that Demons would be sealed under Azure Sun Temple’s Spirit Sword Peak as well. Since Gong Yue’s mind had been invaded by a Demon Spirit, he obviously knew this. That’s why he went around the sun to reach the moon, coming straight here in order to break the seal with the help of his Spirit Array attainments to release even more Demon Spirits.
The reason he did not resist in the face of death was first because he could not resist, and secondly because there was no need to. Because even if he died, his mission had already been completed. Just as he said before, many more would now follow in his footsteps.
“Damn it!” Gao Xue Ting gritted her teeth.
“Open the Sect Defending Array! These things must be stopped as soon as possible. If they’re allowed to escape…” Yang Kai spoke urgently, but he had only spoken halfway before a sudden change occurred. Another rumble rang out, followed by a loud laugh that reached everyone’s ears.
Yang Kai’s words came to an abrupt halt as he looked towards the direction of that voice with utmost shock.
He could already tell who that voice belonged to.
Initially, the laughter was somewhat restrained, as if the person was stunned, but as time passed, it became more and more unrestrained and savage.
A stream of light came from the distance, and the laughter was rapidly approaching.
In the blink of an eye, a scraggly old man with an all-white beard appeared not far in front of them and an indescribable pressure suddenly descended from the sky, as if a mountain was pressed down on each person’s heart. Even breathing was becoming difficult for many of the Emperor Realm Masters present. Yang Kai had been in a bad state to begin with, so this sudden pressure caused fresh blood to spill from the corners of his mouth.
The old man stood mid-air and stopped his laughter before his gaze swept over the crowd lightly, his eyes soon fixing on Yang Kai as he grinned, “Oh? Little brat, you’re here too! Truly, there is nowhere that we do not meet in life.”
Yang Kai frowned. He had the constant feeling that something wasn’t quite right. The old man in front of him was not different from the one in his memories, but his temperament was very different. In his memory, the elderly man was wise and carefree, but the man in front of him now was covered in a malevolent aura.
Gao Xue Ting’s expression turned solemn and she quickly said, “Greetings, Great Emperor!”
Qiu Ran also quickly saluted him.
Everyone else was shocked, including the other Elders of the temple. They knew nothing about this man, but Qiu Ran and Gao Xue Ting actually called him a Great Emperor. There were only a few Great Emperors in this world, so which venerated figure was this man?
Feng Ming and Chen Wen Hao looked at each other and could both see the shock in each other’s eyes.
Gao Xue Ting explained, “This is Senior Hong Chen!”
“What?” The two men were shocked, but they didn’t dare to delay, both of them cupping their fists respectfully, “Greetings Senior Hong Chen!”
Among the Ten Great Emperors, other than the few who founded their own Sects, the rest were hidden dragons who show their tails but never their face, of which Bustling World Great Emperor was the most mysterious. That was because he cultivated the Bustling World Dao, and to do so, he would assume a thousand disguises and travel through the bustling world in them, experiencing all kinds of lives. Among the beggars on the streets, the woodcutters in the mountains, the pimps in the brothels, and the dignitaries in the court, his figure may perhaps be seen. Only, nobody could recognize him. They may brush shoulders with him or even share a drink and a song with him, but nobody really recognized his identity.
Feng Ming and Chen Wen Hao had never met the Bustling World Great Emperor before, but they were convinced of Gao Xue Ting’s words.
Because rumor had it that Azure Sun Temple was very close with the Bustling World Great Emperor, especially the Temple Master, Wen Zi Shan, who was known to be like a son to him. Otherwise, how could Azure Sun Temple become one of the Southern Territory’s top Sects in just a short few years? It had to be known that other than the Azure Sun Temple, the other top Sects all had inheritances passed down for many generations, with Heavenly Martial Holy Land being able to trace its lineage back tens of thousands of years.
Duan Hong Chen received their greeting with a mere smile, but it was as if he did not hear them. His eyes fixed on Yang Kai with interest the whole time.
Gao Xue Ting followed up, “Sir, the Demon Spirits have resurfaced and the temple is in crisis. Please lend us your aid!”
Yang Kai gently patted Gao Xue Ting’s arm and shook his head, “Stop, he’s not Senior Hong Chen.”
“Huh?” Gao Xue Ting was stunned. Then, as if remembering something, her tender body trembled and she looked at ‘Duan Hong Chen’ with great fear.
Both Feng Ming and Chen Wen Hao were bewildered. They were completely confused when they heard Yang Kai’s words. Gao Xue Ting said that the man in front of them was the Bustling World Great Emperor, but Yang Kai disagreed. Yet, the old man did not try to refute anything, leaving the two outsiders a little puzzled.
“Wu Kuang, how did you get out? What did you do with Senior Hong Chen?” Yang Kai asked in a grim voice, his gaze icy cold.
‘Duan Hong Chen’ smiled and pointed his finger to his head and said, “Since this King has come out, what do you think happened to that old fart, Hong Chen? He has already been devoured by this King! Hahahaha!”
“Impossible!” Yang Kai shouted.
Wu Kuang’s laughter stopped abruptly, and his voice turned cold, “You little brat, how long have you lived? What do you know of this King’s Divine Ability? What a joke that Hong Chen thought he could imprison this King in a mere mirror. Instead, he made this King whole! Truly, his foolishness is laughable! Under this King’s Heaven Devouring Battle Law, how could he resist? How could anyone resist?”
“Heaven Devouring Battle Law?” Both Feng Ming and Chen Wen Hao looked shocked, and they both took a few steps back. They had naturally heard of this infamous Secret Art before. This was the most powerful and most evil Secret Art in the history of the Star Boundary. It was the cause of the Battle of Great Emperors and gave rise to the Shattered Star Sea. Even now, tens of thousands of years later, the name of this Secret Art was still familiar to all Masters.
Chen Wen Hao frowned and asked hesitantly, “Your Excellency couldn’t be…”
He dared not continue his sentence as fear of that mighty name had not diminished even tens of thousands of years after his supposed death.
Wu Kuang proudly announced, “That’s right! This King is the Heaven Devourer!”