Old Demon asked, “What’s the matter, Lady Yue?”
Seeing a trace of excitement in Xue Yue’s solemn expression, he immediately realized that something was up. He lifted his gaze and looked out of the hall. However, he did not see anything when he followed her gaze. The Nine Peaks were currently under the protection of the Star Master, Xia Ning Chang, so it was impossible for the cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field to barge in.
Xue Yue resisted the excitement in her heart and walked out of the hall. When everybody saw that, they glanced at each other and followed her and soon, a large crowd soon gathered outside.
Meng Wu Ya looked at Old Demon; both of them shook their heads slowly. They did not know what was going on.
All of a sudden, the Nine Peaks hummed and shuddered.
Meng Wu Ya paled, “Someone is coming!”
The rest also looked like they were preparing to face the enemy.
Xue Yue lifted her hand, “No need to be nervous.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, they settled down. They lifted their heads and looked into the distance, watching as the Spirit Array rumbled before splitting open. It wasn’t because an enemy had managed to slip through the defence. Rather, it opened on its own.
The control jade for the array was in Xue Yue’s hands, and Xia Ning Chang was the only other person. Aside from her, who could control it? Since she wasn’t doing anything and the array was being activated on its own, it had to be Xia Ning Chang’s doing.
Before they could understand why Xia Ning Chang did this though, a figure suddenly walked out of the mist. It looked like that person barely made any movement, but they stood in front of the crowd in a few steps. Their speed was so fast that none of them could react.
All eyes turned to that person and everybody was frozen in place as if they had been struck by a Binding Secret Technique. Only Xue Yue watched Yang Kai quietly. Her eyes were gleaming with a complicated mixture of love and hate before they gradually reddened.
Yang Kai smiled at her. With that, her tears began to fall uncontrollably and slide down her cheeks. Although she had not heard from this man for several dozen years, he still appeared in front of her at the most critical moment. It instantly made her rely on him. She wasn’t as anxious as before, and her emotions had calmed down considerably.
“Young Master!” Old Demon was so emotional that his lips trembled.
“Greetings, Holy Master!” Similarly, An Ling’er, Xu Hui, and the others returned to their senses, swiftly stepped forward, and cupped their fists.
“Greetings, Master!” Li Rong and Han Fei of the Ancient Demon Clan also hurriedly bowed.
“Yang Kai…” Hu Jiao’er and her little sister exclaimed, lifting their hands to cover their red lips.
Every single gaze fixed on him was filled with disbelief. Never in their wildest dreams had they imagined that Yang Kai would appear here at this moment. It felt as if they were dreaming.
Zi Wu Ji said in astonishment, “Elder Brother Gu, is he really…”
“En. He’s back. The Master of Shadowed Star!” Gu Jian Xin replied solemnly. He was frowning slightly as he gripped the sword in his arms a little tighter.
At that moment, the simple longsword in his arms was conveying a sense of terror to him, one so strong that he couldn’t even gather any fighting spirit when he glanced at Yang Kai. As a swordsman, something like this was supposed to be impossible. A swordsman’s character was calm and resolute. Generally, their first thought upon meeting a strong opponent was to battle them to temper their Sword Dao; however, his sword was warning him that he was no match for Yang Kai the moment he saw him. [Just how great is his cultivation?! How much stronger is he to be able to make even my Sword Spirit fear him?]
Meanwhile, Zi Wu Ji was startled when he heard those words. [So, it’s him! I can’t believe it’s him!]
Back then, Yang Kai had been rather arrogant on Purple Star’s Home Star. He even killed several Masters while he rampaged. Later, Purple Star confirmed that both Zi Long and his son had both died at Yang Kai’s hands; therefore, their hatred towards Yang Kai was absolutely irreconcilable.
Nevertheless, it was not the first time Zi Wu Ji had met Yang Kai; however, after so long, it was unbelievable for him to suddenly appear now.
The conflict between Yang Kai and his Sect took place decades ago, and right now, Zi Wu Ji needed Xia Ning Chang’s protection to survive. So, how could he possibly show any hostility towards her husband?
Yang Kai walked over to Xue Yue and reached out to wipe away her tears, whispering in a gentle voice, “Don’t cry. I’m back.”
Xue Yue’s tears stopped and turning her head away, she refused to let him touch her. Then, she reached her hand up and rubbed at the corners of her eyes.
He was stunned, but he couldn’t cause a fuss in front of so many people. He waved his hand dismissively and said, “Be at ease.”
Everybody immediately straightened without any resistance.
“Where is Ning Chang?” He glanced at Xue Yue. Despite leading him here, Xia Ning Chang had yet to show herself. That could only mean that something was wrong. Combined with what he had seen prior to this, he couldn’t help feeling very uneasy.
Xue Yue lowered her eyes without saying anything. Thus, he raised his head to look at Meng Wu Ya. In response, Meng Wu Ya sighed and shook his head slowly. That immediately made Yang Kai’s expression crumble. All the expectations he had fell apart, and his heart sank into an endless abyss.
“Come with me,” Xue Yue called out to him as she headed into the inner palace. She might hold a lot of resentment towards him, but when it came down to it, what happened wasn’t his fault, so how could she blame him for it? She was not the kind of woman to find fault with others for no reason. The truth was that she blamed herself for leading her pursuers here, bringing this disaster down on Tong Xuan Realm and Xia Ning Chang. More precisely, her cold attitude towards him wasn’t because of her resentment; it was mostly because she was too ashamed to look at him.
[I am the culprit. It’s my fault if anything happens to her!]
Yang Kai stepped forward to keep up with her. Reaching out, he grabbed her soft hands. Her small hands were ice cold; it almost felt like they had no temperature at all. Despite struggling lightly against him, she couldn’t break free of his hold. After that, she stopped struggling but did not dare to look him in the eye.
The two of them vanished out of sight soon after, but following their departure, a heavy silence remained outside the great hall. The depression and anxiety they had been suffering from for a long time were not relieved by Yang Kai’s arrival in any way. Regardless of how high Yang Kai’s cultivation currently was, even if he could drive the cultivators of Grand Desolation Star Field away, Xia Ning Chang would still not be able to recover from her wounds so easily.
Just then, another small figure suddenly walked over.
Meng Wu Ya made a soft cry of surprise as he looked in that direction and immediately revealed a shocked expression. He discovered that the small figure belonged to a seven or eight year old girl. She was exquisite and adorable, yet gave one a strange feeling when they looked at her. After considering it for a moment, he realized what was so strange about her. She had no expression! There was neither happiness, anger, sorrow, or fear on this little girl’s face. It was like a dried-up well, which was very odd.
A colourful butterfly was fluttering in front of the little girl as she walked over from the foot of the mountain, step by step, unhurriedly. She seemed to be chasing after the butterfly while at the same time, it also seemed as though she was walking down a path she did not want to miss.
…
“She probably doesn’t want to meet you,” Xue Yue stopped outside a certain room in the inner palace, lowering her head as she spoke. Just because Xia Ning Chang said that she did not want to meet Yang Kai did not mean that she really did not want to meet him. She simply did not dare to let him see her haggard appearance. As a woman, Xue Yue could understand her feelings; after all, women always wanted to show their best sides to the man they loved.
Yang Kai held Xue Yue’s hand tightly, “Thank you for everything that you’ve done.”
Her tears gushed out again uncontrollably. All the longing and grievances that she had suffered over the years disappeared with those words. Shaking her head, she said, “Ning Chang had the hardest time out of all of us. You should talk to her, but don’t just force your way in.”
“Good.” He nodded before turning to face the door, lifting his hand and knocking softly. He then called out, “Is anybody in?”
There was no response from inside the room; however, he could clearly detect Xia Ning Chang’s aura inside the room. It was just that her aura was extremely weak. It was like a thin thread that could break at any moment. This discovery broke his heart while at the same time, murderous intent flared up within him. The reason she was in this condition was undoubtedly related to what the cultivators of Grand Desolation Star Field did to Tong Xuan Realm. All of them had to die, not a single one could be allowed to escape!
“If you’re there, can you please open the door?” Yang Kai restrained his murderous intent and kept his voice as gentle as possible.
Still, there was no response.
He continued, “Ning Chang, I’m back. Can’t I at least see you? I’ve missed you so much. I’ve never forgotten you and often thought about you throughout all these years I’ve been away. I finally returned today. How can you have the heart to lock me out?”
He blabbered on and on for some time.
After a while, Xue Yue grabbed Yang Kai’s arm and shook her head slowly. Xia Ning Chang generally had a gentle and obedient demeanour towards Yang Kai, but also had a stubbornness in her that was not to be underestimated.
Yang Kai sighed and slumped, “Good, rest well, Ning Chang. I’ll go get rid of those pests right now. After I obtain justice for you, I’ll come back to see you again.”
Turning around, he shot a look at Xue Yue and she immediately understood his meaning. Thus, she turned around and followed him outside. They had not taken more than several steps when a loud noise sounded from inside the room. Xue Yue and Yang Kai looked at each other, their complexions turning pale in unison.
With a loud bang, they crashed through the door with Yang Kai rushing over to help Xia Ning Chang up from where she lay on the bed. When he supported her in his arms, he realized that she felt very different from how she used to be. At this point, she could not be described as having just lost some weight. She was practically skin and bones now.
For her height, she was now at least a third lighter than she should be to be considered healthy. The bones underneath her frail body pressed against his hands, feeling like they were stabbing into his heart.
Yang Kai was in no mood to pay attention to her physical appearance though because at this moment she was coughing up blood from her mouth. The bedding was stained red and her body was enveloped in a faint black smog. The Black Qi was churning like a living being, but that wasn’t all; there were certain spots where the colour was extremely dark, as if someone had spilled ink on her.
This situation was exactly the same as the scene Yang Kai had observed while observing Tong Xuan Realm’s condition from the Starry Sky. It was just that those ‘black ink stains’ had covered the Star while these ‘black ink stains’ were on Xia Ning Chang’s body. Upon counting those spots, he saw that they were exactly seven of them!
[Grand Desolation Star Field and Netherworld Sect… You court death!]
Although he did not know why such a change had occurred so suddenly, it was obviously related to something the cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field had done. He had just destroyed their Array Core, so for her to suffer such attacks suddenly… It was definitely related to his actions.
The black ink stains slowly expanded. They were not increasing quickly, but the expansion affected Xia Ning Chang’s entire body, and every time they expanded, they devoured some of her vitality and made the Black Qi surrounding her body grow denser. Obviously, the consequences would be disastrous for her once they expanded until they covered her entire body.
“Ning Chang!” Xue Yue was dumbfounded and frozen in place from shock. She never expected that things would turn out like this. She initially thought that it was caused by Xia Ning Chang’s excitement over Yang Kai’s return; however, that did not seem to be the case. This situation was not that simple.
Yang Kai sat sideways on the bed and pulled Xia Ning Chang into his arms so that she was lying in his embrace, he then began sending pure energy into her body.
He had sealed his cultivation and could only draw out power equivalent to an Origin King Realm Master at their peak, but even so, the essence of his Emperor Qi had not changed by much. Emperor Qi was two realms higher compared to Saint Qi; hence, pouring even a small amount into her body had a miraculous effect on her condition.
The speed that the seven black spots were spreading out over her body distinctly slowed down. They even looked to be slightly suppressed. Additionally, the Black Qi on her body that had been churning wildly calmed down too.
Yang Kai kept this up diligently for a quarter of an hour, working carefully and not daring to let his guard down in the slightest. Even so, he could only suppress those seven ‘black ink stains’ to the size of a fist. That was the extent of what he could do.
Besides, he knew that these ‘black ink stains’ on her body were just manifestations of what was actually happening. The damage the cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field were causing to Tong Xuan Realm was the most fundamental reason for these ‘black ink stains’.
If his guess was correct, it was the effects of the Spirit Arrays that were surging with Yin Qi. Xia Ning Chang’s fate was inextricably intertwined with Tong Xuan Realm’s. If one suffered, both suffered. Therefore, to solve her current problem, he had to first deal with the crisis that was affecting Tong Xuan Realm. In other words, these ‘black ink stains’ could not be removed unless the Spirit Array was completely rooted out.
It was not a difficult task to get rid of the Spirit Arrays and he only needed to go out for a while to do so; however, he had to stabilize her vitality first. The Black Qi and ‘black ink stains’ covering her body were continuously devouring both her and Tong Xuan Realm’s vitality. As she already had a weakened constitution, this immediately caused her condition to worsen. Thus, she would be at risk of death if her vitality was not stabilized immediately.
Yang Kai lifted his hand and tossed quite a number of jade bottles to Xue Yue, “Take out those pills and feed them to her.”
Xue Yue took those jade bottles and opened them without any hesitation. Taking out some of the Spirit Pills within, she pinched Xia Ning Chang’s small mouth open and stuffed those pills into Xia Ning Chang’s mouth. Then, she placed one hand on Xia Ning Chang’s chest and poured some Saint Qi in to help her absorb the medicinal effects.
Unfortunately, the results weren’t promising. These Spirit Pills were only Dao Source Grade, which could only bring about a limited result. Although Yang Kai had many Emperor Grade Spirit Pills on him, he couldn’t give Xia Ning Chang any due to her current cultivation. The effects of one such pill would be enough to cause her body to explode from the potency.
All of a sudden, Yang Kai slapped his palm to his forehead and cursed at himself for being a fool.
[How could I forget about that at such a critical moment?!]
He plunged his Soul Avatar into the Sealed World Bead in the next moment and soon after, a green leaf appeared in his hands. There was a drop of milky white sap on that leaf. That white and flawless sap contained an unimaginable amount of vitality in it, as though it was the source of life itself. The same went for the leaf.
The leaf and sap were both from the Immortal Tree and were incredibly precious. They were treasures that anyone in the Star Boundary would kill to obtain. Nevertheless, Yang Kai took them out without hesitation. If it could resolve the current critical condition that Xia Ning Chang was in, he wouldn’t even mind letting her refine the entire Immortal Tree. Unfortunately, he had yet to find a method of refining the Immortal Tree itself. Besides, one leaf and one drop of sap was the limit; her body could not withstand any more than that.
Opening her mouth, Yang Kai placed the leaf and the sap inside. Then, he gently patted her on the back. Both items slid down her throat and entered her belly. His Emperor Qi circulated as he embraced her gently, like he was holding an exquisite and delicate porcelain vase in his arms; after all, the slightest negligence and carelessness could cause the woman in his arms to suffer.
The leaf and the sap of the Immortal Tree slowly melted, causing the effects of the Spirit Pill she had taken previously to spread out as well. A moment later, her body emitted a faint green light which melted into the Black Qi and diluted it.
Xue Yue cried with joy when she saw that. She did not know what Yang Kai had done or what he had fed Xia Ning Chang, but the scene before her undoubtedly showed that the latter was getting better.
[A family really can’t function perfectly without a man in the house.] There was nothing much she could do to help at the moment, so she continuously called Xia Ning Chang’s name softly in hopes of waking the other party up.
The green light gradually became denser and Xia Ning Chang’s dried-up vitality slowly recovered. At the same time, the Black Qi shrouding her body was restrained by the green light. The two colours intertwined continuously around her body and gradually reached a balance.
The effect of the Immortal Tree was so powerful that if it were any other person, they would already be jumping around energetically by now even if they had been at death’s door just a moment ago. However, Xia Ning Chang’s situation was different. The reason being that the problem she was facing was not an internal one that could be solved solely by treating her.
Xia Ning Chang groaned softly, her eyelashes fluttering. Then, her eyes slowly opened slightly.
Xue Yue exclaimed, “Ning Chang! Ning Chang!”
“Elder… Sister Yue…” Xia Ning Chang’s eyes were still a little dazed. Her thoughts gradually returned to normal when she saw Xue Yue’s face; however, she soon noticed that she was lying in a broad and comfortable pair of arms. Moreover, her nose was filled with a nostalgic scent. Leaning her head back to rest against Yang Kai’s shoulder, she looked at that side profile and smiled bitterly, “Junior Brother!”
[I didn’t want him to see me like this, but in the end, he still saw me in this state. I must look extremely ugly right now.]
“Call me ‘husband’!” Yang Kai lightly touched his forehead against hers.
Her pale face blushed slightly before disappearing a moment later. Lowering her head, she called him again softly.
He laughed in response, “It’s bad enough that Su Yan calls me Junior Brother, but I can’t have everybody calling me that, right? I am the head of the family. How can I hold my head up high in the future?” He turned to look at Xue Yue, “What about you?”
Xue Yue shyly replied, “Save Ning Chang first.”
Xia Ning Chang added, “I’m feeling much better now.” During that short conversation just now, her complexion had truly gotten much better. Even her voice sounded stronger and she no longer felt as lethargic as before. The green light wrapping around her body gave her a warm and comfortable feeling, so much so that she wanted to lie in her man’s arms until they grew old together.
Xue Yue said frustratedly, “Ning Chang, how can you do this to me?!”
Xia Ning Chang smiled.
Then, Xue Yue snapped, “Husband!” She glared at Yang Kai with an expression that seemed to say, ‘are you happy now?’
All of a sudden, a person came into the room. It was Meng Wu Ya, who looked very anxious. He and the others had been waiting outside the great hall just now, so they were unaware of what had happened here. At this moment, he saw Xia Ning Chang lying shyly in Yang Kai’s arms, smiling again. For some reason, that made him calm down as the heavy weight that had been pressing down on his heart for a long time lifted.
Yang Kai and Xue Yue exchanged a glance with each other and immediately came to an understanding. Putting Xia Ning Chang down again, Yang Kai said, “Rest well. I’m going to kill some people and avenge you.”
When he turned around, he felt something pulling on his clothes. Xia Ning Chang, who was lying on the bed, was looking at him with a horrified look. That gaze was extremely distressing to see. She was scared; she was petrified that he might leave and never return, just like last time; she was afraid she might not hear from him for several dozen years again. More than that, she was terrified that what happened just now was nothing more than a dream. If that was the case, she would rather not get revenge. She would rather he stayed by her side forever. She never wanted to let him leave again.
Knowing how she felt, Yang Kai patted her hand gently and comforted, “Don’t worry. I’ll be back soon. Here, why don’t you count to a hundred? I’ll reappear in front of you by the time you reach a hundred.”
“What if you don’t come back?” She asked.
“I will definitely come back!”
Upon hearing those words, she nodded gently, let go of her hand, and closed her eyes.
Yang Kai signalled Xue Yue and Meng Wu Ya with his eyes, and they walked out of the room together. Liu Yan was happily standing outside the door. She looked up at him when he came out. He patted her head, “Stay here and take good care of her.”
She nodded obediently.
Meng Wu Ya frowned slightly, wondering why Yang Kai asked a little girl to guard this place. Furthermore, he could not understand the relationship between those two. [Could she be Yang Kai’s daughter?] He had to admit that Liu Yan’s appearance could easily cause such misunderstanding. [Even if she is Yang Kai’s daughter, she doesn’t seem to have cultivated before. What can she do even if she stays here?]
A short while later, they walked into the outer palace. Meng Wu Ya anxiously spoke up, “Those rats seem to be fleeing from Tong Xuan Realm. Yang Boy, what should we do?”
It was precisely because he had sensed the signs of Grand Desolation Star Field’s cultivators fleeing that he hurriedly approached Yang Kai to discuss countermeasures.
During that conversation, they arrived outside the palace. A group of people were standing there and looking at something in the sky. Following their gazes, Yang Kai saw streams of light flying out in all directions and fleeing into the Starry Sky. Many of those lights were huge Starships. Just as Meng Wu Ya had reported; the cultivators of Grand Desolation Star Field were retreating from Tong Xuan Realm.
The corners of Yang Kai’s mouth lifted into a smirk. [Trying to escape? Where can you run to? I planned to deal with you after meeting with Xia Ning Chang and Xue Yue, but I did not expect you to flee so quickly like frightened rats. Still… Did you really think you’d be able to escape death that easily!? You still need to pay for all the suffering Little Senior Sister went through several hundred times over!]
Everyone looked at Yang Kai, waiting for his orders, as even though he had just returned, the moment he stood there, he became their backbone. He reached out, pointed toward the sky, and ordered in a low voice, “Engage them. There’s no need to fight; just don’t let them escape easily.”
Everybody acknowledged those words as soon as they heard them.
“Wait!” Somebody shouted all of a sudden. Everybody turned to look in the direction of the voice. The speaker was none other than the current Sect Master of Purple Star, Zi Wu Ji.
Yang Kai glanced at him but did not recognize him, so he frowned in response.
“Greetings, Brother Yang. I am…”
He interrupted Zi Wu Ji, “If you have anything to say, hurry up and spit it out.”
A flash of displeasure flitted through Zi Wu Ji’s eyes. He knew that Yang Kai was powerful. Yang Kai had already been in the Second-Order Origin King several dozen years ago and at that time, he had supposedly journeyed to a mysterious place. His cultivation was probably much higher than it had been back then. Even so, Zi Wu Ji was the Sect Master of Purple Star. He might be under the shelter of somebody else at the moment, but his strength wasn’t to be scoffed at. With such a powerful enemy in front of them, every little bit of strength was precious. For that reason, everybody, including Xue Yue, Xia Ning Chang, or Meng Wu Ya, had been rather polite to him for the past few years. It was inevitable that Yang Kai’s forceful attitude rubbed him the wrong way.
Putting such thoughts aside though, he warned, “The cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field greatly outnumber us. As far as I know, there are several Third-Order Origin Kings among them as well. Now, they even have several dozen Starships escorting them. If we charge at them recklessly with our numbers, it wouldn’t be any different from walking into a lion’s den.”
“Besides, they are fleeing. Why bother provoking them at this time? The concept of ‘not pursuing a hard-pressed enemy’ fits this situation perfectly. I hope you can think this over, Brother Yang.”
“Are you done?” Yang Kai looked at Zi Wu Ji.
Zi Wu Ji nodded in response.
Then, Yang Kai stopped paying attention to Zi Wu Ji. Raising his finger to the sky, he shouted, “Engage them!”
“You…” Zi Wu Ji was stunned. He did not expect this person to ignore his advice and be so adamant on doing things their own way.
To some extent, there was nothing wrong with his concerns. There were quite a lot of Masters gathered in Nine Heavens Holy Land, and their respective cultivations were very high, but even so, they would be stretched quite thin compared to the lineup of those from Grand Desolation Star Field. If they really chased after the enemy without care, they might not only fail to kill them, but also risk losing their lives as a result.
Hence, the best way to deal with this situation was to stay put and let the cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field leave. That way, they would have some breathing space to catch their breath; after all, ten years was not too long for a gentleman to have his revenge. There would always be an opportunity in the future as long as one survived.
He had tried so hard to persuade Yang Kai only to realize that he was simply casting pearls before a swine. Thus, he started cursing Yang Kai in his heart. [Hmph. Look at how arrogant you are acting. Let’s see just who is willing to accompany you in your crazy endeavours!]
However, he quickly froze in shock.
That was because Li Rong and Han Fei solemnly acknowledged Yang Kai’s order the moment it was issued. They turned into two streams of black light and shot straight into the sky with all the rest of the Ancient Demon Clan following behind them.
Meng Wu Ya and Old Demon followed closely behind. Similarly, Hu Jiao’er and Hu Mei’er transformed into two rays of light, one purple and one green, and spiralled into the sky.
Everyone took off, one after another, without any hesitation or doubt. In the blink of an eye, only the people of Purple Star and Sword Union were left standing in front of the great hall.
[Are they all crazy?] Zi Wu Ji looked lost.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai bent his knees and leapt up, shattering space and leaping across the Void, disappearing in an instant.
“Brother Zi, let’s go and help them too!” Gu Jian Xin said suddenly.
Zi Wu Ji turned to look at Gu Jian Xin, “Have you gone crazy too, Brother Gu?”
Rushing over right now was tantamount to rushing towards their deaths. Leaving aside the others, what surprised him was that Gu Jian Xin had made the same decision. That puzzled him to no end. He had grown a sense of comradery with Gu Jian Xin over the years due to their similar situations; therefore, he simply could not understand why Gu Jian Xin was so foolish now.
Gu Jian Xin smiled slightly, “You’re not really living if you don’t let loose a little every once in a while.” The simple longsword in his arms trembled, making his blood boil. He couldn’t wait to fight a huge battle and release the Sword Intent accumulated in his body.
As a Sword Master, he had not fought to the death for years and he felt as though his Martial Heart had been growing duller as a result. Although the situation at this moment was not optimistic, Gu Jian Xin burned with an endless fighting spirit. It didn’t matter whether he was being wise or unwise, at this moment, all he could think about was letting loose and fighting to his limits.
Taking out his sword, it thrummed with power and flashed with light. Gu Jian Xin became one with his sword and took off like a flash of lightning. His Sword Servants followed him without saying a word.
The corners of Zi Wu Ji’s brow twitched. He couldn’t remain here alone no matter how shameless he was; thus, he gathered a group of cultivators from Purple Star and joined the attack. He vowed to himself that he was only there for appearances’ sake and refused to fight to the death. If the situation took a turn for the worst, he would escape quickly.
In the blink of an eye, there was no one left in front of the great hall and the entire Nine Heavens Holy Land fell silent.
…
“Many thanks, Little Senior Sister!” Yang Kai laughed as he threw out a punch. A storm of fists then rained down on the enemy party.
He did not intercept the cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field. He had more important things to deal with at the moment; that was to deal with the seven sub-arrays of the Eight Desolation Binding Spirit Array. These seven sub-arrays were like seven malignant tumours growing on Tong Xuan Realm. They eroded away at the vitality of both Xia Ning Chang and this Star. Although he had used the leaf and the sap of the Immortal Tree to stabilize Xia Ning Chang’s condition, getting rid of these seven sub-arrays was the top priority at the moment.
He initially wanted to rush to the place where these seven parts were located as quickly as possible; however, his body suddenly became lighter during the flight and he immediately appeared at his destination, crossing several tens of thousands of kilometres in an instant.
This was clearly Xia Ning Chang’s doing. She was the Star Master of Tong Xuan Realm, so transporting a person around on this land was as easy as snapping her fingers. Even though she was still recuperating in her room, she was obviously aware of his plans; hence, she helped him with the power of a Star Master. It was also a way to help herself.
Below Yang Kai was where one of the seven ‘black ink stains’ was located. According to reason, the situation should have been similar to what he saw at the largest ‘black ink stain’ he destroyed previously; however, the cultivators of the Grand Desolation Star Field had clearly done something to the Array. The ‘black ink stain’ was showing signs of wildly spreading to its surrounding areas. The huge ‘black ink stain’ continuously devoured the surrounding region while at the same time, an extremely uncomfortable aura was being emitted from its depths. It seemed to be connected to the Netherworld and led straight to Purgatory.
An endless rain of punches blasted down on the ‘black ink stain’ from above, and the Black Qi was instantly sent churning. It was like throwing a drop of cold water into a pan of boiling oil, resulting in an unpredictable chain reaction. The ‘black ink stain’ stopped expanding all of a sudden. Then, it exploded without warning, shrouding a thousand-kilometre radius in black light.
Yang Kai stopped punching at that moment. Taking a deep breath, he looked down at the situation below him. The ‘black ink stain’ could no longer maintain its shape, and although it had expanded by a lot, its colour had grown considerably lighter.
Regardless of what the cultivators of Grand Desolation Star Field had done to make the Eight Desolation Binding Spirit Array gain such explosive power before they left, it was still just a Spirit Array. The ‘black ink stain’ would no longer be a threat as long as he destroyed the structure of the array. The World Energy would now repair this region over time and one day, the Black Qi would disappear on its own.
Without giving him time to observe the situation though, Yang Kai felt a floating sensation once more. It felt as though he was being held by an invisible hand, and when that hand moved him around again, he found himself in a new place. Below him was another ‘black ink stain’ that was spreading violently, so he gave it the same treatment as the one from before.
“Another one down!”
“Little Senior Sister, don’t tire yourself out, okay? Don’t force yourself if you feel uncomfortable. My cultivation is very high, so travelling this kind of short distance is no trouble for me.”
“By the way, I forgot to tell you, but Su Yan is fine now. I’ve brought her back with me. She is probably with Luo’er right now.”
“When this matter is resolved, let’s return to Shadowed Star together. We can have a good talk once our whole family is reunited once again.”
Yang Kai attacked again and again. At the same time, he kept up what looked like a monologue to outsiders. Although he did not receive any responses, he knew that Xia Ning Chang was paying close attention to him as she was actively assisting him. The help she gave him undoubtedly saved him a lot of time travelling as while Tong Xuan Realm wasn’t exactly large, it would still take some time for Yang Kai to deal with the seven ‘black ink stains’ in his current condition. Therefore, things went far smoother with the Star Master aiding him. It was just that… This undoubtedly put quite a heavy burden on her body. Her condition had just stabilized, so it was best if she did not use so much strength.
The entire process took approximately a quarter of an hour. In that time, the seven ‘black ink stains’ had been eradicated and the seven sub-arrays had been destroyed.
Yang Kai smiled, “Alright, Little Senior Sister. You should get some rest. Leave the rest to me.”
A gentle breeze blew against his face at that moment and it felt as if something had left his side.
Raising his head, Yang Kai looked up into the sky and his gaze instantly became as sharp as a sword. The tenderness his eyes previously held was gone without a trace.
Blood was being spilled above the clouds high up in the sky. Corpses fell to the ground as figures tangled together in battle. Their violent power flowed and spread out wantonly.
The power gathered in Nine Heavens Holy Land was not weak, but it was not as good as the lineup of those from Grand Desolation Star Field. One after another, they began to fall into a disadvantage as there were four Third-Order Origin Kings from Grand Desolation Star Field present. If Xin Xuan Ming, who was killed by Yang Kai previously, was added to the count, they had a total of five! Most of them might only have been promoted recently, but a Third-Order Origin King was still a Third-Order Origin King, not an easy opponent to face under any circumstances.
Xue Yue was battling alone at the moment against none other than the Third-Elder of Netherworld Sect! Among all the other Masters from Grand Desolation Star Field, he was the strongest.
Both of them were Third-Order Origin Kings. Xue Yue was full of vigour while the Third-Elder was still kicking despite his age. Thus, they were equally matched. Both sides used their Artifacts and Secret Techniques at full power, but neither could gain an advantage.
The strongest was facing the strongest. It was a fruitless move, but it was also the best way to deal with the situation. If the Third-Elder was allowed to roam around freely, nobody from Nine Heavens Holy Land would be able to withstand him.
Meng Wu Ya and Old Demon were each battling a powerful enemy; but unfortunately, they were being beaten badly. In just a short amount of time, both Meng Wu Ya and Old Demon suffered minor injuries. They could only keep a Third-Order Origin King busy through various tricks and didn’t dare to turn the fight into a direct confrontation.
Meanwhile, Hu Jiao’er and her sister merged their strength to confront their opponent. Even though they were both just First-Order Origin Kings, they were in a much better situation compared to the former two. A purple and a green sword-light twisted together to form a large net of swords and wrapped around the final Third-Order Origin King. Caught in the net, their opponent would not be able to break free for some time.
Li Rong, Han Fei, Gu Jian Xin and his two Sword Servants, Xu Hui, as well as An Ling’er… All of them were fighting vigorously. They remembered Yang Kai’s order to hinder the enemy and prevent them from escaping.
“How dare you chase after us!? I’ll kill every last one of you!” The Third Elder forced Xue Yue back with a heavy palm strike; then, laughing wildly, he hurriedly turned and retreated.
Likewise, the other Masters from Grand Desolation Star Field seemed to have received some kind of signal and quickly created some distance between themselves and their opponents. One of them even reached into the net of swords created by Hu Jiao’er and her sister to pull their companion out.
The Third Elder stood there, looking outraged, but soon a sly and triumphant smile appeared on his face. Dozens of Starships lined up behind him, and their Crystal Cannons shone with white light. Their target was everybody from the Nine Heavens Holy Land!
Escaping was just a ruse! Their biggest purpose was to draw the enemy out of their lair, and from the looks of it, they had succeeded in their goal. The Starships had long been prepared and they only needed to fire one volley to reduce these people from Nine Heavens Holy Land to dust.
Victory was within sight; however, the Third Elder still felt his heart pounding in trepidation. He couldn’t help feeling that something was wrong. It made him feel extremely uneasy. Scanning his gaze over the crowd, he could not find any notable yet unfamiliar face.
[Who was it? Who was the one that destroyed the Eight Desolation Binding Spirit Array Core and killed the Vice Sect Master!?]
“Damn it!” Meng Wu Ya cursed, his complexion turning pale. The dozen or so Starships lined up in a row looked like wild beasts that devoured people whole and they gave off an incredible pressure as their Crystal Cannons began to glow, generating a sense of crisis.
Starships had always been used as weapons of conquest; therefore, even a single Crystal Cannon had unbelievable power. With more than ten Starships and hundreds of Crystal Cannons, even the Third Elder of Netherworld Sect could not predict just how great the damage would be. The only thing he could be sure of was that the people of Nine Heavens Holy Land would not be able to defend against this attack.
Even though Xue Yue and the others were unable to defend against an attack of that magnitude, they had no choice but to do so because behind them stood Nine Heavens Holy Land, as well as the Tong Xuan Realm. If they dodged the attack, then Nine Heavens Holy Land and Xia Ning Chang would be the ones to take it instead. Xia Ning Chang’s condition had just stabilized, so if she had to withstand a volley of hundreds of Crystal Cannons all at once, her condition would surely worsen.
Xue Yue’s figure flickered and she once again appeared, her long hair flying in the wind. Subsequently, a group of people gathered around her and formed an impassable defensive barrier.
The Third Elder was both shocked and overjoyed as he sneered, “If you are not going to avoid this attack, then you can all go and die!”
With a grand wave of his hand, he ordered the Starships to open fire.
The light of the Crystal Cannons was extremely dazzling, and the accumulated energy had reached its peak.
Without warning, a loud explosive sound rang out.
It was so loud that the world seemed to tremble in response; however, the expected barrage of Crystal Cannons did not appear. Scenes of carnage and devastation did not materialize either. On the contrary, an aura so powerful that it made one’s heart pound came from behind the crowd and approached them swiftly.
The Third Elder turned his head abruptly and his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. A black-haired young man had appeared out of nowhere and rushed towards where Grand Desolation Star Field’s Starships were all on his own. The difference between the size of the huge Starships and that person’s figure was akin to a firefly and the Moon, giving off an absolutely tragic yet resolute vibe.
Be that as it may, the defences of the Starships might as well have been made of paper when that person slammed into one of their hulls. The Third Elder watched as that young man swung his fists casually, opening a huge hole in the side of a Starship with ease. It was followed by a loud explosion and flames flaring in all directions. At the same time, miserable cries rang out from inside the Starship as lives were extinguished, one after another.
In the blink of an eye, the young man rushed out from the other side of the Starship and flew straight to the second. He was like a meteor falling from the sky, bringing with him an unstoppable destructive force as he smashed through one Origin King Grade Starship after another.
*Hong hong hong…*
A series of explosions rang out from every Starship, and by the time the unknown man made his way out of the last Starship, none of them remained intact. The Crystal Cannons that had been shining with a dazzling light now became extremely unstable.
*Hong long…*
A Starship suddenly exploded and was engulfed in flames. The huge hull of the ship split apart with a creaking sound and slowly fell downward. Another Starship quickly followed suit, then a third, a fourth… In just a few breaths, the dozen or so Starships had all been completely decimated.
All the cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field felt as though their souls had left their bodies. Chills ran down from the tops of their heads to the soles of their feet, freezing them in terror as all of them stared at this young man with eyes full of shock and horror.
[Who the Hell is that!? How was he able to destroy more than ten Starships so easily!? Is he still human!?]
The Third Elder suddenly had an epiphany and shouted, “It’s you!”
He had wondered who destroyed the Eight Desolation Binding Spirit Array Core and killed Vice Sect Master Xin Xuan Ming. It was only at this moment when he saw this earth-shattering sight that he understood.
[It’s him! It’s definitely him! To be able to perform such feats… There can be no other person! He must be the one who destroyed the Eight Desolation Binding Spirit Array Core and killed the Vice Sect Master! But, who is he!? How is he so strong!?]
Xue Yue breathed out softly. She had steeled herself just now. Even if she had to give up her life in this place, she would not let a single one of those Crystal Cannons touch Tong Xuan Realm, but to her surprise, Yang Kai had arrived in the nick of time. His arrival instantly created a sense of relief and reliance in her heart and the churning emotional storm in her was finally able to calm. A proud expression next appeared on her face as she inwardly declared, [This is the man I chose!]
Gu Jian Xin looked shocked as a bitter smile hung at the corner of his lips, [No wonder my sword warned me about him. To what extent has he grown? When I first met him, his cultivation was on par with mine. I’ve always known that he had a limitless future ahead of him, but even so, I can’t believe he managed to increase his strength by so much in just a few dozen years. He has left me so far behind that I can’t even see his shadow anymore. What is his cultivation now? Is it comparable to the legendary Starry Sky Great Emperor? No wonder he only asked us to keep the cultivators of Grand Desolation Star Field occupied. We really only needed to prevent them from escaping as with his current strength, all of them put together aren’t his opponent.]
The situation had changed sharply, and it was all because of the arrival of one man.
Many of the cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field were ashen-faced. They couldn’t even muster the slightest bit of courage to fight when faced with that young man in front of them.
“Die!” Yang Kai spat out a word coldly. He was still standing there when he opened his mouth to speak, but by the time his voice rang out, he had already appeared on the opposite side of the crowd.
The Third Elder only saw a barely visible shadow passing through the ranks of his men, but before they had any time to react, the other party had already walked out of there calmly. He jumped in fright, intuitively feeling as though he had brushed past the gates of death.
*Chi…*
A strange sound rang out as many cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field looked in the direction of the sound only to see a scene that scared them senseless. A headless corpse stood in mid-air, blood spouting from its neck like a fountain. It was spectacular as the corpse still maintained a defensive posture, but its head was nowhere to be seen.
Turning their eyes stiffly, they quickly found the missing head of the corpse. At this moment, it was being held in the hand of the young man who had appeared out of nowhere. The head of the corpse had a confused expression on its face, looking as though it was still clueless about what had happened up until the moment of its death.
That was one of their Third-Order Origin King Realm Masters! That Master had battled with Meng Wu Ya previously and pounded the latter into the ground. To think he had been beheaded by Yang Kai; moreover, nobody had seen how he pulled that off!
“Kill!” Xue Yue shouted. The rage, resentment, and even the guilt she felt that had accumulated over the years burst out at this moment. These emotions fueled a thick murderous intent as she charged toward the cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field.
What else was there to hesitate about? After seeing Yang Kai’s strength, everyone from Heng Luo Star Field immediately understood that there was no possibility of them losing today’s battle. Thus, they swiftly used their Movement Skills and jumped forward.
The battle began raging once more, but the situation was reversed. The cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field were fearful of Yang Kai’s Heaven defying strength and had lost all will to fight. On the other hand, the cultivators of Nine Heavens Holy Land charged forward bravely, fueled by unparalleled fury.
The result of the battle was decided from the beginning.
Yang Kai was not idle either. The torture Xia Ning Chang went through had left him feeling as though he had a fishbone stuck in his throat. He needed to get that feeling of vexation out of his system. Moreover, he intended to make these invaders pay plenty of interest for this blood debt. Like a tiger descending from the mountain, he struck at the Third-Order Origin Kings with both hands. These Third-Order Origin Kings that had always stood at the top of the world quickly exploded into blood mists as they were completely incapable of putting up any resistance whatsoever. All of them died in the blink of an eye, leaving only the Third Elder behind.
The Third Elder looked around in stunned shock. How could he not realize that the war was lost? This young man was so strong that he had never seen another of this calibre in his life. Nobody in the Star Field was a match for this person.
Suddenly, the Third Elder’s vision blurred as he saw the unfathomable young man appear just one step away from him
Before he had the time to get out of the way, he was grabbed by the neck and hoisted into the air. He couldn’t even circulate his Saint Qi as he felt as though his bones were going to be crushed. Only when experiencing it in person did the Third Elder fully understand just how terrifying this man was.
“You sure had a lot of fun while I wasn’t home!” Yang Kai looked at the Third Elder coldly as he tightened his grip on the other party’s neck.
“Wait!” The Third Elder yelled, his face flushing red.
Yang Kai grinned, “If you have any last words, then hurry up and spit them out. You won’t have another chance if you don’t speak now.”
The Third Elder looked hostile instead, “Release me. Otherwise, you will regret it for the rest of your life.”
Yang Kai looked at the Third Elder in surprise, “What did you say? I didn’t hear you clearly. Can you say it again?”
The Third Elder coldly said, “Your Star Master! Aren’t you going to go back to check on her condition? If nothing unexpected happens, she should be dead by now.”
Activating the seven parts of the Eight Desolation Binding Spirit Array to lure their enemy out of their lair was only one part of the Third Elder’s plan. He had prepared something else too, and the target was Xia Ning Chang! Once the Master of Nine Heavens Holy Land was gone, all the defences in this place would collapse. There was no way his plan could fail as it was his biggest trump card. Unfortunately, all the other Third-Order Origin King Realm Masters, aside from himself, had died before he could reveal this final move.
The Third Elder hated Yang Kai for being so decisive and ruthless. He only wanted to lure his enemies out, but how could he have known that he would bait such a dangerous existence instead?
“Really?” Yang Kai tilted his head to the side.
“You can go and confirm it yourself! The Netherworld Sect is finished, so I won’t ask for anything else. I just want you to let me live, and I will let your Star Master go free.”
“Idiot!” Yang Kai suddenly exerted more strength and the Third Elder’s head immediately separated from his shoulders. Blood splashed everywhere, as that flying head filled with an incredulous expression. It seemed as though he did not understand why Yang Kai had killed him. [I told him the truth. Doesn’t he need to confirm it? He-] His thoughts were cut off partway through, and he plunged into eternal darkness.
Yang Kai stood in mid-air, his gaze sweeping across the crowd. Sneering as he muttered, “As I thought, a thief in the family is the hardest to ward against.”
All of a sudden, he recalled what Long Tian Shang had said to him before losing his last bit of sentience. Those words might have been about the situation today. From the looks of it, Long Tian Shang had learned some secrets before and after being refined into a corpse.
Glancing at Nine Heavens Holy Land below him, Yang Kai raised an eyebrow but eventually shook his head, “Forget it, I’ll go back later.”
He was not worried about Xia Ning Chang’s safety at all. The Third Elder may have had a hidden trump card, but Liu Yan was guarding Xia Ning Chang right now. With Liu Yan there, nobody could harm a single hair on Xia Ning Chang’s head!
Thus, Yang Kai entered the fray again. His figure leapt across space and wherever he passed, Masters from Grand Desolation Star Field fell, one after another. Many people wanted to escape when they saw that the battle had been lost; however, how could Xue Yue or any of the others allow these people to escape so easily? All of them used everything they had to intercept and tie down these invaders.
The number of Masters from Grand Desolation Star Field dwindled as the battle went on, and under these circumstances, it soon turned into a massacre.
The battle ended an hour later, with not a single cultivator from Grand Desolation Star Field surviving. On the other hand, except for some casualties sustained during the initial interception, nobody from Nine Heavens Holy Land had died after Yang Kai came to support them. In fact, not a single one of them had even taken any further injuries.
Everyone was covered in blood, some of it their own, most of it the enemies’. They were breathing heavily as many pairs of eyes were fixed on Yang Kai. The looks were filled with admiration and astonishment. All of them were curious as to how strong he really was as he had seemed so casual in today’s battle, making it obvious that he wasn’t using his full strength…
While everybody from Nine Heavens Holy Land was stuck in a desperate battle against the cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field, a sneaky and suspicious figure suddenly appeared in the empty Nine Heavens Holy Land. That figure was dressed in a purple robe that seemed to signify auspicious omens and unparalleled luxury. That figure was none other than Zi Wu Ji!
He did not follow Gu Jian Xin nor participate in the battle. He only pretended to join for a bit before returning to Nine Heavens Holy Land. Gu Jian Xin and the others were staunchly fighting against the enemy, so how could they notice what he was doing? Besides, the Holy Land had Xia Ning Chang’s protection and should be all but impregnable to invasion from external forces. Unfortunately, Zi Wu Ji was one of their own, and all of those sturdy defences were useless against him; therefore, he returned to the great hall without any problems. He was constantly muttering under his breath with a bitter and resentful expression, as if cursing at something.
Just a moment ago, he received a secret order that was currently troubling him greatly. Even so, he had to choke down his resentment and get it done out of consideration for his life. Not only would his life be spared if he succeeded, but he would also be able to become intimate with the woman of his dreams. That was killing two birds with one stone.
Approaching the inner temple cautiously, he tried to restrain his aura as much as possible. He knew that it was difficult to conceal his whereabouts from a Star Master, especially when they were so close. Still, that only applied if the Star Master was in a good enough condition and had the spare mental capacity to perceive their surroundings.
Unfortunately, that was not the case for Xia Ning Chang. She was in a terrible condition that had been worsening by the day, a fact Zi Wu Ji had confirmed with Gu Jian Xin earlier. For that reason, he was rather confident about succeeding in his mission despite feeling a little nervous.
After passing through the inner palace, Zi Wu Ji soon arrived at a room located not too far away. He rounded the corner and was overjoyed by the sight he was greeted with. The door to the room was wide open, and there were no traces of any Spirit Arrays for defence.
[The Heavens are on my side!]
Before he could dance for joy though, he heard a peal of clear and sweet laughter. The sound shocked him so much that he was stunned in place for some time. That was because the sound of laughter belonged to Xia Ning Chang. Although she sounded weak, she was not in as bad a condition as he had thought.
[What is going on? Isn’t she supposed to be bedridden, so sick that she doesn’t even have the strength to open her eyes? How is she able to laugh now? Also, who is joking with her at this time?] In that instant, he decided to retreat. He might not be able to go against those orders, but he had to reconsider taking action if his life was going to be at stake.
Suddenly, a realization flashed through his mind and he recalled the identity of a person Xia Ning Chang could be talking to. It was that seven- or eight-year-old girl! Among all the people who arrived earlier, she was the only one who did not leave.
Thinking so, he let out a soft breath of relief. [What a false alarm. I don’t have anything to worry about if it’s that little girl. The only thing I have to worry about right now is Xia Ning Chang’s current condition. She has the strength to laugh, so will she also have the strength to mobilize the power of Tong Xuan Realm? If that’s the case, then I’m no match for her…]
While he was hesitating, Xia Ning Chang’s voice suddenly rang out, “Come in and talk if you have something to say. Why are you… cough, cough… skulking around outside?”
[I’ve been discovered!] Zi Wu Ji was surprised at first, but he soon calmed down. Since she was not unconscious, it was only natural for her to notice his presence as he was literally just outside her room. Listening to her voice, he realized that she was indeed extremely weak, so after struggling with himself in his heart, he made his decision and stopped concealing his presence. He hurriedly ran into the room and shouted, “Young Lady Xia, this is bad!” Barging into the room, he promptly revealed an anxious expression.
Xia Ning Chang’s expression immediately changed as she couldn’t help but straighten her body that was leaning against the side of the bed and ask anxiously, “What’s wrong?”
He looked devastated, “Brother Yang, h-he… Haa…” Zi Wu Ji thumped his chest and stomped his feet, deliberately dragging things out.
Even if Xia Ning Chang doubted Zi Wu Ji’s words, she couldn’t help turning pale after hearing them. Swiftly, she released her Divine Sense and turned her attention to the battle above the clouds.
At that moment, Zi Wu Ji struck out. His palms flashed with a purple brilliance as he covered Xia Ning Chang in a layer of light and blurted out, “Please don’t blame me for this, Young Lady Xia. I have no choice; I was forced to do this. But, don’t worry. I won’t take your life…”
His sentence trailed off as at the same time, his expression turned into one of astonishment. Without any warning, a small figure was suddenly standing in front of him. A pair of distinct black eyes calmly watched him without the slightest emotion. Those eyes were looking at him as though looking at a mere pebble or grain of sand and made him extremely uneasy for some reason.
“Scram!” he shouted. [I’ve already shown my hand. At this point, there’s no turning back anymore. This little girl doesn’t know her place, so I’ll dispose of her first!]
He threw out a palm strike towards Liu Yan’s head at the same time, one that made solid contact, but in the next instant, his face filled with astonishment as he gawked stupidly, [She’s unscathed!]
The little girl, who looked like she was carved from the purest jade, was completely unscathed after taking a hit from him at full strength. She simply remained standing there quietly, her body note even flinching from the impact.
A feeling of horror grew in Zi Wu Ji’s heart as he began to wonder, [Did I… make a mistake somewhere?]
Before he could understand the situation, a fire snake wrapped itself around him and bound him up.
When Yang Kai returned after he finished dealing with the cultivator from Grand Desolation Star Field, he was greeted with the sight of a trussed up Zi Wu Ji trembling in a corner. The tongue of the fire snake flicked in and out of its mouth, making it look extremely ferocious. Even so, it was not releasing any heat even though it was literally made of flames. Otherwise, Zi Wu Ji would have been burned to ashes by now.
“As I thought, it was you!” Yang Kai glanced at Zi Wu Ji as if he had expected this outcome. What the Third Elder mentioned earlier had not been very clear, but Yang Kai was shrewd, so how could he fail to guess what that old man was implying? At that time, Yang Kai simply glanced about the battlefield and quickly figured out the meaning behind the Third Elder’s words.
All of a sudden, Liu Yan tugged at his clothes. She pointed to herself to indicate that it was all thanks to her. Then, she put on an expression that seemed to say. ‘Hurry up and praise me.’
Nodding, he rubbed her small head, “Good job.”
She narrowed her eyes in enjoyment.
“Hey! Why did you get up, Little Senior Sister? Lie down quickly!” Walking over to the side of the bed, Yang Kai helped Xia Ning Chang lie back down on the bed.
Xia Ning Chang, however, gave him a small smile and comforted, “I’m fine.”
She had received nourishment from the Immortal Tree, and additionally, Yang Kai had destroyed the seven sub-arrays of the Eight Desolation Binding Spirit Array, curbing the spread of the ‘black ink stains’ they were sustaining. For that reason, she was feeling much better now. Although she should have been recuperating meticulously, she was curious about what he had experienced over the years while he was away; therefore, she had sat up on the bed and asked Liu Yan to chat with her.
Liu Yan also sympathized with Xia Ning Chang’s situation, so she only spoke about all the interesting things that Yang Kai had experienced outside while she avoided mentioning all the dangers he had faced. It was those stories that had made Xia Ning Chang burst into laughter.
“Have you counted to a hundred?” Yang Kai reached out and tapped Xia Ning Chang on the nose.
Xia Ning Chang replied, “Not yet.” [Why would I count to a hundred? I was busy chatting with Liu Yan.]
He laughed, “Good, then it seems that I have not broken my promise.”
While they were talking, Xue Yue walked in from the outside where the sight of Zi Wu Ji sitting there, tied up, caught her by surprise, “What’s this? What happened?”
Zi Wu Ji cried and pleaded, “Young Lady Yue, please save me!”
She frowned, looking at him before looking back at Xia Ning Chang again. Although she did not know the full sequence of the events, she was intelligent and quickly guessed what had happened in this room. Realizing what had transpired here, her pretty face filled with anger as she shouted, “How dare you?!”
There had been no signs at all. It wasn’t that Zi Wu Ji had concealed himself well, it was just that they had both been swamped with internal and external issues. Combined with his identity, nobody could have imagined that he would actually be a traitor that managed to take refuge under those from Grand Desolation Star Field. Now that they thought about it, this person did seem to portray some rather suspicious behaviour over the past few years.
“I didn’t mean to do this! I was forced to! I was helpless too!” He had a bitter expression on his face.
“It’s just a simple seal placed on you!” Yang Kai coldly snorted. He hadn’t bothered investigating Zi Wu Ji before, but when he looked into the matter after something had occurred, he discovered that Zi Wu Ji had a very well-hidden seal on his body. The person who placed the seal was very skilful, and no Master from a Lower Star Field would be able to notice any trace of it without a thorough investigation. Moreover, the seal had been planted for at least seven or eight years by now, so it would seem that it had been applied when Purple Star had been conquered.
Zi Wu Ji asked, “Why would I do something so unjust if I had the choice? Young Lady Xia has protected us for so many years. I’m eternally grateful to her! It’s just that this seal is impossible to remove! I’ve been trying to break it for so many years but to no avail; moreover, I would be tortured if I was discovered trying to break the seal. If…”
A ray of light flashed towards him at that moment, cutting him off mid-sentence. Shocked, he thought that Yang Kai was going to kill him but instead, he felt his body becoming lighter when that beam entered him, as though the chains binding him had been broken.
A thought flashed through his mind before he turned to stare at Yang Kai in horror. The seal placed on him by a Master from Grand Desolation Star Field had vanished! That should have been an extremely gratifying event; however, he could not bring himself to feel happy at all. A deep wave of regret washed over him. If he had simply told Yang Kai about his situation… he could have gotten his life and freedom back, but now…
Zi Wu Ji’s lips moved but no sound came out as only the strong taste of bitterness remained on his tongue.
“Kill him!” Yang Kai said coldly.
“No! Have mercy!” Zi Wu Ji yelled in horror.
In the meantime, Liu Yan’s thoughts flashed, causing the fire snake wrapped around him immediately came back to life and began to emit a scorching aura.
“Wait!” Yang Kai suddenly shouted, shooting a look at Liu Yan before saying, “Kill him outside. Don’t dirty this place.”
Liu Yan nodded and controlled the Fire Snake to fly off with Zi Wu Ji in its grasp. A short while later, a scream came from far away.
Xue Yue shook her head and sighed. [He really brought ruin upon himself. The overall situation had been decided, but he chose to walk into a dead end.]
Starting from several dozen years back, Purple Star had been wrought with various conflicts in quick succession and probably would not recover from this incident anytime soon. Heng Luo Chamber of Commerce might not be in good shape, but its foundation was still in place. There was a chance of making a comeback as long as they could recover their lost Cultivation Stars.
“Little Senior Sister, you should rest now!” Yang Kai held Xia Ning Chang’s soft hands and made her lie down, all while refusing to accept any objections.
Although Xia Ning Chang looked helpless, she obeyed him. Even so, her cold hands grabbed onto his and refused to let go. She felt as though he would disappear as soon as she let go of his hands, so her red lips parted to object. However, Yang Kai spoke before she could say anything, “I’ll stay here with you. I won’t go anywhere.”
She nodded at his words and finally closed her eyes. Afterwards, he turned around and glanced at Xue Yue. Smiling at her, he spread his other arm out invitingly. Xue Yue glared at him before sassily walking over and leaning into his embrace.
Liu Yan pouted when she saw this and walked out with an unhappy expression. Nevertheless, she closed the door behind her gently.
First, Yang Kai ran into Su Yan in the Ancestral Domain by accident. Then, he returned to Shadowed Star to calm the war. After that, he went to Monster Emperor Star to help Shan Qing Luo. And now, the conflict in Tong Xuan Realm had been settled.
All those who were close to him were safe and sound. That was the greatest happiness he could ever ask for. Everything else could be dealt with slowly.
Xia Ning Chang had suffered greatly over the years. Not only did she have to maintain the protection over Nine Heavens Holy Land, but she also diverted her attention to take care of Xue Yue and the others whenever they went out on occasion and got into a skirmish with the cultivators of Grand Desolation Star Field; therefore, she had not had a real break in years.
Now that her worries were gone and Yang Kai was back, she snuggled against him and soon fell into a deep sleep. She no longer needed to use sleep to supplement her bodily needs at her current cultivation, but even so, she fell into a deep slumber like any ordinary mortal. Her expression was calm as she curled up next to Yang Kai and she seemed to be dreaming about something and smiled.
Meanwhile, Xue Yue lay on the other side of Yang Kai. They quietly used their Divine Sense to communicate, telling each other about their lives and the experiences they went through over the years.
The fragrance from her body lingered in his nose, and although he was not consumed by desire, he couldn’t resist the urge to kiss her on her red lips.
Xue Yue reached out and covered his lips with her hand though before he could and whispered, “Don’t even think about touching me until you solve Ning Chang’s problem!”
The situation in Tong Xuan Realm had calmed down and the cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field who invaded this place had been eliminated; however, the wounds Xia Ning Chang suffered could not be so easily erased. Even though Yang Kai had used the Immortal Tree to restore her vitality and had destroyed the Eight Desolation Binding Spirit Array, she would not be healthy again as long as Tong Xuan Realm had not fully recovered.
Yang Kai scratched his head, “That will take several hundreds of years. Can you wait that long?”
Xue Yue snorted, “I’m fine with that. I’m more afraid you won’t be able to wait that long.”
“You’re looking down on me too much!” He spat disdainfully. Many years had passed since he went to Star Boundary, and if he had not gotten intimate with Zhu Qing, he would have remained celibate up until today. He was not some sort of gentleman and would of course still be moved by beauties; however, he refused to go against his principles and cheat on his wives.
She added, “You are not allowed to touch Elder Sister and Luo’er either!”
Yang Kai’s expression immediately sank into despair, “Why must you go that far?”
[There truly is nothing more poisonous than a woman’s heart! What fun is there in life if I have four women by my side but I can’t even touch a single one of them!? Traversing the Martial Dao is about more than just cultivating! If Xue Yue colludes with Su Yan and Shan Qing Luo, she might actually be able to convince them. No, she will definitely convince them!]
Xue Yue arched her body against his arms and said softly, “I’m to blame for what happened to Ning Chang. As long as her problems aren’t solved, I won’t be able to rest at ease. Husband, I’m begging you, please think of a way to help Ning Chang recover as soon as possible.”
Reaching out her hand, he pinched her nose and said firmly, “If you blame yourself again like that, I will devour you right here and right now.”
She made a contemptuous snort in response.
He used his hand to lift her face up by her chin, “Ning Chang won’t blame you, so you should stop blaming yourself too. If she were in your shoes, she would have made the same decision. You also wouldn’t blame her for making that choice either.”
“But…”
“There are no buts.” He smiled and scratched his head again, “Still, you’ve given me quite a difficult challenge.”
Solving Xia Ning Chang’s issue wasn’t going to be easy; however, Yang Kai had planned to do something about it even if Xue Yue had not said anything. Several hundreds of years was too long, so whether it was for him or Xua Ning Chang, he could not afford to wait that long, and neither could she.
“Husband, are you at a loss for what to do too?” Xue Yue looked sad.
“I’m thinking…” He pondered in silence, “En, I’ve thought of something.”
Xue Yue was pleasantly surprised by those words as she looked up at him.
“If I succeed, will I get a reward?” He looked at her with a big grin.
She blushed slightly at those words and lowering her head, she murmured, “Why is your head always thinking about such obscene things? Ning Chang is your wife, so why are you asking me for a reward? How illogical.” She pouted, but still asked, “What do you want as a reward?”
He reached out and touched her cherry lips.
Despite glaring at him, she voluntarily stood up, leaned down, and pressed her lips against his. They kissed for a short while, and their breathing became uneven. Then, she grabbed his large hands that were shamelessly groping her under her clothes and slowly shook her head. Xia Ning Chang was sleeping right next to them, so how could she bring herself to act so shamelessly?
Yang Kai didn’t force the issue. Besides, he knew that she wasn’t in the mood right now. Removing his hand from her clothes, he pulled her into his arms and enjoyed the peaceful moment together.
Once Xia Ning Chang fell asleep, she remained so for five days straight. It wasn’t until five days later that she slowly opened her eyes and saw that Yang Kai was sitting next to her in the same position he had been in before she fell asleep. It looked as if he had not taken a single step away in the past few days. She couldn’t help feeling bad for him and blaming herself for making him uncomfortable.
After resting for five days, her condition had somewhat improved; unfortunately, the problem was not solved. The two auras in her body, one black and one green, were entangled with each other, but the green aura clearly had the upper hand. She only needed to wait for some time and the Black Qi would disappear completely; hence, there was no need to worry about her own body. The only thing that needed to be considered was Tong Xuan Realm.
On the contrary, Yang Kai had already considered many issues during this time and a plan had formed in his head. The reason he had not taken action immediately was that he wanted to wait until Xia Ning Chang woke up. He was afraid that she might be disappointed if she opened her eyes and did not see him there.
Yang Kai stayed with Xia Ning Chang for a while before he asked Xue Yue to take good care of her then got up and walked out.
A group of people was gathered inside the main hall at this moment.
They had eliminated the enemies that invaded their land during the battle a few days ago, and the excitement continued to bubble within them to this day.
When Yang Kai appeared, Meng Wu Ya and Old Demon greeted him immediately, with the former immediately asking, “How is Ning Chang?”
“Don’t worry. Little Senior Sister’s situation has stabilized and she will recover over time.”
Upon hearing those words, Meng Wu Ya heaved a sigh of relief.
Yang Kai glanced about his surroundings, letting his gaze roam across every familiar and unfamiliar face in the room before cupping his fists and speaking solemnly, “Many thanks for all the help you’ve given me over the years.”
Meng Wu Ya laughed and scolded, “You smelly brat! Why are you being so reserved around us?”
Yang Kai sternly replied, “The troubles in Tong Xuan Realm might be resolved, but the situation of the Star Field as a whole is not optimistic. There will be many aspects which you will need to contribute to in the future. Once we eliminate all the enemies across Heng Luo Star Field, I will prepare a huge celebratory feast for all of you.”
As soon as his words rang out, everybody fell into deep contemplation. They had been stuck inside Tong Xuan Realm for many years, so they did not know much about the outside world. Clearly, the situation outside was not much better than their own had been.
“So… For now I ask all of you to cultivate diligently. We must begin preparing for the next battle immediately.” Saying so, he tossed a Space Ring to Meng Wu Ya.
Meng Wu Ya accepted the Space Ring and swept its contents with his Divine Sense, his expression swiftly turning to one of shock. The Space Ring was filled with all kinds of cultivation resources; moreover, he could tell that those items were extremely valuable at first glance, some of them he had not even heard of nor seen before.
He did not check the contents thoroughly, but such a large number of materials was enough for thousands of people to use for several years.
[With these, everybody will surely undergo explosive growth within a short period of time!]
“I will leave these things to you, Treasurer Meng. You will be in charge of distributing them to the others. Next, I will open up a communication channel between this place and the outside world. Once that’s finished, you will be able to reach Water Moon Star, Monster Emperor Star, and Shadowed Star. One month. After one month, please join me in battle again!
…..
Nine Heavens Holy Land had the Space Array that Yang Kai had arranged back then, and working together with Liu Yan, he was able to quickly upgrade it so it could connect to the more distant Stars.
Yang Kai instructed Liu Yan to stay behind after they were finished before he mounted the Array and activated it. A bright light flashed for a moment and his figure vanished. After that, Yang Kai appeared in the palace of Water Moon Star where he saw a young girl sitting cross-legged by the side. There were a lot of Source Crystals piled up beside her and she seemed to be cultivating.
The young girl sensed something and hurriedly opened her eyes. Lifting her head, she exclaimed in surprise, “Senior Yang!”
“Yu Qin. Are you alone?” He smiled at her.
This young girl was Lu San Niang’s daughter, Lu Yu Qin. Although her cultivation was nothing special in the Star Boundary, it was considered rather uncommon and extraordinary in the Star Field considering her young age. Leaving her to guard this Space Array was a great idea as there was really no need to worry about people attacking or intruding.
Lu Yu Qin was clearly much more cheerful than before and her small face blushed slightly as she nodded, “Mother said that this Array is very important to you, Senior Yang, so she asked me to guard this place to prevent anybody from getting close.”
“Where are your parents now?” Yang Kai asked.
Pouting slightly, Lu Yu Qin muttered, “In the city. They’re ignoring me.”
Seeing this, Yang Kai laughed, “They finally reunited after a long time, so it’s inevitable that they want some time together by themselves.”
She snorted, “They are stuck together all day long. I hate it!”
Despite saying that, she did not look like she was holding it against them. All she and Lu San Niang had on Dragon Island was each other; moreover, they were constantly bullied there. Now, they had Li Jiao by their side and he took very good care of both of them. Even Lu Yu Qin was glad about the change so how could she reproach them for their behaviour?
“Alright. Focus on cultivating. I’m going to look for your parents,” Yang Kai said before he used his Divine Sense to check his surroundings and locate Li Jiao and the others.
Li Jiao, Lu San Niang, Ruan Bi Ting, and He Yun Xiang were gathered together inside one of the palaces in the city right now. In addition, there were many unknown faces gathered around them. These people were all Origin Kings whose eyes were filled with admiration and respect as they gazed upon these four, Li Jiao in particular. There were as many as a dozen such individuals.
They seemed to be discussing something. Li Jiao sat at the head of the table, feeling bored and absent-minded. He was a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master, so being left here by Yang Kai to recover Water Moon Star was simply overkill. After separating from Lu San Niang and the others, the task only took less than a month to complete. It was just that Li Jiao had no choice but to manage the place after regaining control since he had no idea how important Water Moon Star was to Yang Kai.
Unfortunately, this place and its issues were completely meaningless to him so he felt it was better if he went sightseeing with Lu San Niang instead.
As for the other cultivators in the Origin King Realm gathered in this palace, they were subordinates he took in during the process of recovering Water Moon Star. They were originally local Masters or subordinates of Heng Luo Chamber of Commerce who had been living in hiding from the Netherworld Sect all these years, but all of them had joined the crusade after witnessing the strength of these four strangers.
The door was pushed open suddenly and somebody in the palace stood up and shouted, “Who goes there!?”
They were discussing important issues at the moment, so just who would dare to act so presumptuously and barge into this place without prior notification? Everyone lifted their gazes to look in that direction and the sight of a young man walking into the room entered their vision. He looked familiar at first glance, as if they had seen him somewhere before, but they couldn’t quite recall where.
While many of the Origin Kings were still feeling confused, a gust of wind blew past them and Li Jiao greeted the young man in surprise, “Brother Yang!”
Similarly, Lu San Niang, Ruan Bi Ting, and He Yun Xiang all stood up and bowed too.
After seeing that, the Origin Kings no longer dared to look down on Yang Kai. Over the past month, all of them had witnessed how powerful Li Jiao and the others here were. He Yun Xiang seemed to be a Third-Order Origin King, which meant that while she was strong, it was still within their ability to understand. On the other hand, the strength of the other three, whether Li Jiao, Lu San Niang, or Ruan Bi Ting, was unfathomable. An Origin King Realm Master was nothing more than a child in front of them, one that they could kill on a whim; therefore, somebody who could receive such respectful treatment from these Masters could not be any ordinary person.
Upon a closer look, some people gave an exclamation of surprise and astonishment. They finally realized that this young man was Yang Kai, the same Yang Kai who had visited Water Moon Star back then and met many people during his trip here. Although more than several dozen years had passed, the memory was still vivid in their minds. Xue Yue’s husband; the handsome son-in-law of Heng Luo Chamber of Commerce; the Star Master of Shadowed Star. Any of these names were enough to attract their attention. Even so, they were astonished to see that he was acquainted with such powerful people. Moreover, looking at the way these influential Masters were treating him, it seemed as though they… respected and even felt grateful towards him.
All of a sudden, they recalled what Li Jiao casually mentioned before. He said that the reason why the four of them had purged their enemies and were helping the weak was that they were asked to do so by a certain person. From the looks of things, the person in question seemed to be none other than Yang Kai. For a moment, the Origin Kings were overwhelmed by their emotions.
“Brother Yang, we have taken back control of this Cultivation Star as you asked. We also got rid of all the remaining rats.”
Yang Kai smiled, “Many thanks for your hard work. En… I actually came here today to ask for a favour.”
Li Jiao laughed, “Just tell us what you need, Brother Yang. There’s no need to be so polite.”
Yang Kai rubbed his two fingers together and asked, “Lend me some money.”
“Huh?” Li Jiao was stunned.
“Source Crystals. Lend me everything you have. I will pay you back when we get back to the Star Boundary.”
Li Jiao finally ascertained that he had not heard wrongly. Failing to stifle his laughter, he hurriedly took off his Space Ring, fiddled with it slightly, and transferred all the Source Crystals within it to another before handing that second Space Ring to Yang Kai, “I only have these.”
He might be the Palace Master of Fire Dragon Palace, but he couldn’t possibly bring massive amounts of Source Crystals everywhere with him. Fire Dragon Palace needed funds to operate and develop after all. The disciples also needed to spend a lot of Source Crystals for their cultivation. The Sect would not be able to function if he took all the Source Crystals away with him. Besides, Fire Dragon Palace still owed High Heaven Palace a huge sum of money, so more than 90% of the reserves in the palace had been used to repay that debt.
Therefore, Li Jiao had no more than several tens of thousands of High-Rank Source Crystals in his Space Ring. He had slightly more Mid-Rank Source Crystals and Low-Rank Source Crystals, but unfortunately, these did not match with his status as a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master. In short, he had been living on a tight budget for the past two years.
“I have some as well,” Lu San Niang walked over and took out all the Source Crystals she had. Yang Kai was not offended by the amount and accepted them all. Meanwhile, Ruan Bi Ting and He Yun Xiang were helpless in this matter.
Yang Kai had been working hard in the Star Boundary over the years, so the number of Source Crystals he had amassed during this period was simply uncountable. Unfortunately, he left almost all of that wealth back in High Heaven Palace. He had quite a lot of Source Crystals in his possession, but for the next step of his plan, the more Source Crystals he could get, the better. It wouldn’t be enough no matter how many of them he had.
“Brother Li, can I ask you a question? How much do you know about Spirit Arrays?” Yang Kai asked after putting the Source Crystals away
Li Jiao replied, “I’m no expert, but I know a thing or two.”
“Good. Come with me.” Yang Kai reached out, grabbed Li Jiao’s arm, and walked outside.
Li Jiao was speechless. He did not know why Yang Kai was in such a hurry, but he didn’t resist. He simply gave Lu San Niang a look and asked her to wait there; afterwards, Yang Kai and Li Jiao returned to Nine Heavens Holy Land together via the Space Array.
“Come!” Yang Kai flew up into the air while Li Jiao followed closely behind. It didn’t take long for the two of them to reach a height of several thousands of kilometres, at which point Yang Kai pointed downward and said, “Brother Li, take a look.”
Upon hearing those words, Li Jiao looked down and subconsciously frowned. Everywhere he looked, Tong Xuan Realm seemed to be wrapped in a frail aura. Furthermore, the surface of this Cultivation Star had many obvious traces of being poisoned.
“What do you want me to do, Brother Yang?” Li Jiao had a vague idea as to what Yang Kai was planning now.
Yang Kai asked, “Are there any Spirit Arrays that allow this Cultivation Star to quickly recover its World Energy and vitality?”
Li Jiao pondered for a moment, “I know a Spirit Array called the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array. It might be of some help to you, Brother Yang.”
Yang Kai lifted his brow at that and said, “In that case, please help me arrange this Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array, Brother Li.”
Li Jiao explained, “The Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array can be divided into several types. They are the 18 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array, 36 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array, 72 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array, and the highest rank being the 108 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array. Every type requires different kinds of materials to arrange, and the difficulty of arranging it increases with each rank. In exchange, the effects will get better and better. I could easily set up the 108 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array if we were in Star Boundary, but here…”
“I can help.”
Li Jiao laughed, “Brother Yang, as you know, these Lower Star Fields will reject any power that exceeds the limits of its Principles. I need to suppress my cultivation to be able to move about freely here just as you do, so the same limitation applies to Spirit Arrays as well. The very existence of the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array surpasses what this Star’s World Principles can handle, so I’m afraid that arranging such a Spirit Array won’t make much of a difference.”
“What if we have the help of the Star Master?”
“This Star has a Star Master?” Li Jiao asked in surprise. This Cultivation Star was in a dilapidated state and its World Energy was clearly exhausted. Even if there was a Star Master, that person would likely be dying by now. That was why his thoughts had not gone in that direction before. However, Li Jiao abruptly realized something after listening to what Yang Kai said. The reason Yang Kai wanted him to arrange such a Spirit Array to help this Cultivation Star recover its World Energy was not for the sake of the Cultivation Star, but for its Star Master!
Now that he understood the situation, Li Jiao nodded, “If we can get the Star Master’s help, we’ll have some hope in this matter.”
The Star Master was the ruler of this place, so even if the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array was rejected by the Star Field, the Star Master could circumvent the rejection enough to activate the Spirit Array.
“Which type of Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array do you want me to arrange here, Brother Yang?”
“Naturally, I want you to prepare the best.”
Hesitating, Li Jiao cautioned, “The materials required will be quite substantial.”
Even for Fire Dragon Palace, the 108 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array was not something they could arrange at will without a valid reason. Doing so for a Cultivation Star of a Lower Plane was simply not worth it.
Yang Kai resolutely declared, “The cost is of no concern.”
While speaking, he took off the Space Ring on his finger and tossed it to Li Jiao to check.
Li Jiao used his Divine Sense to sweep this Space Ring, and what he found inside immediately made him dizzy. Source Crystals were piled up like mountains in practically impossible to count numbers. Moreover, there were various cultivation resources and rare materials of all sorts of shapes and sizes. Even though he was a Palace Master himself, looking at these items made him envious. In comparison, the Source Crystals he lent to Yang Kai just now were not even a fraction of what was inside this Space Ring.
The initial shock was quickly followed by astonishment as Li Jiao recalled that it wasn’t that long ago that Yang Kai established High Heaven Palace. Besides, High Heaven Palace did not own any businesses or industries to generate regular income or collect materials. Yang Kai couldn’t have earned so many Source Crystals in such a short time, so the only other explanation was he gained all this treasure through fighting and looting others. In other words, this mountain of Source Crystals and every single artifact and material in this Space Ring represented the number of enemies Yang Kai killed and the Sects he destroyed.
A drop of cold sweat dripped down Li Jiao’s forehead as he sincerely thought to himself, [I’m so glad I didn’t cause a falling out with Yang Kai back then. Otherwise, things would not have ended well for Fire Dragon Palace!]
“Are these enough?” Yang Kai asked, “I still have a Source Crystal Lode tucked away if it’s not enough.”
“It’s enough.” Li Jiao nodded repeatedly, [It would be inexcusable if this amount still wasn’t enough…]
“Then, I’ll have to trouble you with this, Brother Li. Please let me know if there’s anything I can help with.”
“Of course. Uh… I also need you to inform the Star Master that I need their cooperation, Brother Yang.”
“Good!”
Next, Li Jiao took out several blank jade slips and using his Divine Sense began engraving them with all the essential information about the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array before he handed them over to Yang Kai.
Afterwards, Yang Kai returned to Nine Heavens Holy Land and informed Xia Ning Chang of the matter. On the other hand, Li Jiao flew around Tong Xuan Realm and carefully inspected the environment to determine the optimal way to arrange the Spirit Array.
The Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array wasn’t considered a profound or complex Spirit Array in the Star Boundary. It was just that there were many different types. With Xia Ning Chang’s insight, it was not difficult for her to comprehend the mystery of this Spirit Array, and with Yang Kai assisting her, she gained a comprehensive understanding of the subject within a few days.
One day, Xia Ning Chang suddenly felt something and smiled, “That person is here.” While speaking, she gently waved her hand.
At the moment, Li Jiao was wandering around outside Nine Heavens Holy Land while thinking about how to get in.
[Maybe I should call Yang Kai and ask him to pick me up?] While he was considering his options, the thick fog in front of him suddenly split apart to reveal a passage into which he immediately walked.
Yang Kai was waiting inside the great hall, and when he saw Li Jiao arriving, covered in dust and tired from travelling, he asked anxiously, “How did your investigation go, Brother Li?”
Li Jiao replied, “It’s going to be time-consuming, but it shouldn’t be a problem.”
Yang Kai was overjoyed, “Very good!”
“Let me tell you where to arrange the Spirit Array. There is some preparatory work that needs to be done in advance, which I will leave to you, Brother Yang. We can start arranging things once the refining of the base and flags is completed,” Li Jiao said. While speaking, he took out a jade slip and tapped on it.
A sphere projection then appeared from the jade slip with a flash of light. Most of the sphere was covered in blue or yellow. Moreover, the distribution of the two colours were uneven. Yang Kai glanced at the projection and immediately realized that it was a projection of Tong Xuan Realm with yellow representing land and blue representing water.
It seemed that Li Jiao had been working very hard over the past few days. Not only did he circle the entire Tong Xuan Realm, but he also carefully drew such a map. Although he did not dare to say that it was 100% accurate, it was certainly pretty close. Studying it for a moment, Li Jiao pointed to a certain spot, “Brother Yang, please look at this. This place is where we are right now.”
Yang Kai nodded, recognizing that it was the location of Nine Heavens Holy Land on Tong Xuan Realm.
“The World Energy here is the densest across the entire Star. The Principles are the most perfect too. It can be used as the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array Core.” Li Jiao gave a wave of his hand and a red spot immediately appeared where Nine Heavens Holy Land was located on the projection as if he had marked it.
The cultivators from Grand Desolation Star Field had wantonly done whatever they wanted to Tong Xuan Realm for several years, so at this point, the only place left undamaged was Nine Heavens Holy Land. With Xia Ning Chang overseeing this place, it was the most suitable for the Array Core to be situated.
Yang Kai nodded slightly, indicating that he understood.
Then, Li Jiao waved his hand again. Eight small black spots immediately appeared on the projection of Tong Xuan Realm. These spots coincided with the positions of the sub-arrays of the Eight Desolation Binding Spirit Array that Yang Kai had destroyed previously. Li Jiao continued, “The poison is the worst in these eight areas. If I am correct, somebody set up Spirit Arrays in these eight spots before. If you want this Star to recover its World Energy, we must deal with these eight spots with utmost priority.”
“What you say makes sense, Brother Li.”
Lifting his hand again, many red spots appeared on the sphere, one after the other, “I travelled this land for several days and surveyed many places. As a result, I have chosen a total of 108 spots to situate sub-arrays. Aside from the Array Core and the eight black spots, there are still 99 more places to go. I need you to bury an adequate amount of Source Crystals in each of those places; then, once the Spirit Array is activated, those Source Crystals will be transformed into World Energy by the Spirit Array to nourish this Star.”
“Wonderful!” Yang Kai applauded. He had been studying the 108 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array with Xia Ning Chang over the past few days and had gotten a basic understanding of how it worked and how to arrange it. After listening to Li Jiao’s explanation, Yang Kai was confident that this plan would work.
Xia Ning Chang had to rely on Tong Xuan Realm to recover if she wanted to restore her own vitality as soon as possible. Or, she could undergo the same experience Yang Kai had gone through on Shadowed Star. If she could perform a Star Master’s returning nurture to the Star, she could guide Starlight Strength to Tong Xuan Realm from the Star Field itself. There was no need for the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array anymore if she could do this.
Unfortunately, her cultivation was not sufficient. She could not achieve what Yang Kai had accomplished as returning nurture to the Star was too far out of her grasp. The only reason Yang Kai could achieve it so easily was because his own cultivation had far surpassed the limits of Shadowed Star.
“Brother Yang, if you don’t have any objections to the plan, I will start working on it immediately.”
“Many thanks, Brother Li.”
Li Jiao gently nodded. After a pause, he added, “There is one more thing. I need Liu Yan’s help with this.”
Yang Kai grinned, “Go ahead and use her as you please.”
Li Jiao needed to refine all kinds of things for the Spirit Array, and it just so happened that Liu Yan could help in that aspect. It would also prevent her from being bored all day long.
The two of them immediately divided the materials between them with Yang Kai taking the Source Crystals while handing everything else to Li Jiao. Those were the materials that Li Jiao needed to refine for the Core of the array.
After that, Yang Kai did not linger and immediately went back and found a suitable spot in Nine Heavens Holy Land. Tapping his foot against the ground, he lifted his head with a smile, “Please help me, Little Senior Sister.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, the solid ground under his foot suddenly turned into quicksand and he instantly began to slide downwards without the slightest resistance. Even so, he remained motionless and was not the least bit panicked. Rather, he quietly calculated his position in his heart and halted his descent a few moments later. At this point, he was several hundred kilometres below the surface.
Taking out a large number of Source Crystals, he scattered them about so that they would flood to underground depths here. This spot in Nine Heavens Holy Land was going to be the Array Core of the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array, so the need for Source Crystals was extraordinarily high.
Although Yang Kai didn’t keep an accurate count, he scattered an estimate of several million High-Rank Source Crystals in this area before he was satisfied and stopped. Several million High-Rank Source Crystals was considered a huge sum even in the Star Boundary, let alone a Lower Star Field where Saint Crystals were the only currency in circulation. Even Peak-Rank Saint Crystals were incomparable to Low-Rank Source Crystals.
If the World Energy contained within these millions of Source Crystals could be channelled into the Star, it would instantly transform Nine Heavens Holy Land into a place that could rival any Cave Heaven or Paradise of the Star Boundary.
After setting up the Array Core, Yang Kai immediately flew up and headed towards the next area.
A quarter of an hour later, Yang Kai checked the information in the jade slip he was holding and stopped on the spot. This was close to the periphery of a city. Unfortunately, the city that was supposed to be bustling at this time was uninhabited and dilapidated. It was clear that it had been deserted for some time.
Yang Kai called out to Xia Ning Chang again and just like before, the process of burying a large amount of Source Crystals was carried out.
Over the following days, Yang Kai circled around Tong Xuan Realm and completed the preparatory work for arranging the Array according to the instructions written in the jade slip given to him by Li Jiao. His busy figure could be seen everywhere, including in the deserts, below the sea, in the jungles, and out on the plains.
He did not allow Xia Ning Chang to intervene during his travels as although she could instantaneously move him from one point to another in Tong Xuan Realm with just a single thought, it would also consume quite a bit of her strength to do so; therefore, he only asked her to help him a little when burying the Source Crystals.
In this manner, he spent countless Source Crystals along his journey. Yang Kai ended up using more than 90% of the Source Crystals in his possession. It wasn’t that he was wasting his financial resources, but rather that this matter was related to Xia Ning Chang’s future, so he refused to hold back in any way.
By the time he was done setting up all 108 locations, several days had passed. Yang Kai scratched his head and communicated with Xia Ning Chang, who had been watching him the entire time. Then, he plunged himself towards the ground. In response, the ground opened up a passage for him and let him pass through unobstructed.
Soon, Yang Kai arrived at the centre of the Star. This place was where the Source of Tong Xuan Realm came into being. It was also the place where Xia Ning Chang had refined the Star Source back then and could be said to be the heart of Tong Xuan Realm.
Scorching lava flowed around Yang Kai, seeming to burn everything in its path. Arriving here, Yang Kai lifted his hand and pulled out a magnificent Source Crystal Lode from the Small Sealed World before dropping it into the core. The Lode sank into the lava soon after.
This was the only Source Crystal Lode in his possession, and he had obtained it just outside of Maplewood City many years ago. It had always been left inside the Sealed World Bead to be used by his Embodiment for cultivation, so a large portion of it had already been consumed. That said, it was still a huge expenditure for the current Tong Xuan Realm.
It wasn’t hard to imagine that with the help of so many Source Crystals from Yang Kai, Tong Xuan Realm’s dismal situation would immediately become much better once the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array was up and running. Although it would still take some time to recover completely, it would reduce that time from several hundred years many times over. In other words, Xia Ning Chang’s recovery period would be shortened. She could be back to normal within a decade.
That wasn’t all. As long as the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array continued to operate, Tong Xuan Realm’s situation would continuously improve. The World Energy would become denser, richer and, in time, this Cultivation Star would grow to be on par with Shadowed Star and Water Moon Star. It would no longer be like how it was before, where the cultivation limit was the Saint Realm at best. It would be able to produce cultivators in the Saint King Realm, the Origin Returning Realm, and the Origin King Realm, ultimately reaching the peak of the Star Field’s Martial Dao.
The better Tong Xuan Realm became, the more beneficial it would be for Xia Ning Chang.
Yang Kai returned to Nine Heavens Holy Land with a beautiful dream for the future. Meanwhile, Li Jiao and Liu Yan were refining the base of the Spirit Array. Even with Liu Yan’s help, the process was taking a lot out of Li Jiao. He looked haggard and worn out, and if not for the numerous Spirit Pills he was consuming, he would have collapsed a long time ago.
Seeing this, Yang Kai assisted from the side.
Two months passed by in a hurry, and on this particular day, Li Jiao handed the last item to Yang Kai with a slightly dazed expression and dull eyes, “I’ve done what you asked.”
The refining of 108 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Columns was completed. With that, Li Jiao had completed his task. During the process, he had made several mistakes and wasted quite a bit of material, but Yang Kai was well prepared, so some wastage was no big deal.
Yang Kai stretched out his hand to take the item with a word of thanks. Then, he lifted his hand and transferred Li Jiao to the Small Sealed World so that he could rest inside and recover from his fatigue.
Fiddling with the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Column in his hand that was about a meter tall, Yang Kai raised his eyes to look in the direction of Nine Heavens Holy Land’s Array Core and smiled before asking, “Are you ready?”
A refreshing breeze blew against his face like an invisible hand stroking his cheek. That was Xia Ning Chang’s response to his question.
“Then, let’s begin!” He shifted his body slightly and immediately arrived at the place where he had buried the Source Crystals previously. Taking a deep breath, Yang Kai circulated his Emperor Qi and tossed the Profound Spirit Column into the air in front of him. At the same time, he swiftly formed a series of hand seals.
Following that, several beams of light entered the Spirit Column and disappeared.
As the Profound Spirit Column slowly fell downward, it seemed to become more and more energetic while also expanding in size rapidly.
The Profound Spirit Column had only been a meter tall before, but it turned into a towering pillar that was a few thousand meters high in the blink of an eye. Even if several people tried to wrap their arms around it, they wouldn’t be able to encircle it fully. The complex patterns on the Profound Spirit Column flickered and flashed before it fell straight down into the ground as if held by an invisible large hand.
In response, countless people in Nine Heavens Holy Land looked up with shocked expressions. The Profound Spirit Column was not an artifact, it was simply a Spirit Array base; however, it was emitting an imposing aura at the moment. If an ordinary cultivator from the Star Field were to come into contact with an existence like this, they would be turned to ashes in an instant.
Then, the ground formed a whirlpool, revealing a path that guided the Profound Spirit Column deeper into the ground.
Yang Kai quickly shouted, “Bury the Array Core 2 kilometres deep while leaving a kilometre exposed. Little Senior Sister, please pay attention to the details.”
The Profound Spirit Column silently continued to bury itself deeper into the ground before stopping all of a sudden when it reached a certain level. Afterwards, the ground hardened again to bind the Profound Spirit Column tightly in its embrace. It was now buried exactly 2 kilometres into the ground, not one bit more nor one bit less.
Inspecting the Profound Spirit Column, Yang Kai confirmed that there were no errors in the placement before swiftly heading in another direction with Li Yan following close behind him.
The Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array was formed based on the 108 Profound Spirit Columns. The requirements for the location and the depth of placement for every Profound Spirit Column was very particular and the slightest error would make a huge difference.
Fortunately, Li Jiao was quite familiar with this Spirit Array, although the one he was familiar with was the 72 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array and not the 108 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array. The fundamentals were basically the same despite the difference in numbers; therefore, the information he supplied was pretty much accurate.
Li Jiao had worked together with Liu Yan to refine all these Profound Spirit Columns, so the Array should activate smoothly as long as everything was arranged appropriately.
Over the next few days, Yang Kai revisited all the places he had been to previously and buried one Profound Spirit Column above each buried pile of Source Crystals. It took him a whole seven days to finish burying all 108 Profound Spirit Columns before he ran around with Liu Yan, cross-checking his handiwork. Only when he was satisfied that everything was in order did he return to Nine Heavens Holy Land.
Yang Kai stood in the sky inside Nine Heavens Holy Land, his black hair flying around him and his robes dancing wildly. His expression was solemn as he held a small Array Jade in his hand. That was the Array Jade to control the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array. It was something that he, Li Jiao, and Liu Yan jointly made together with a lot of effort.
Everything was in place, except for the most crucial part of it all. Closing his eyes, Yang Kai concentrated for a moment; then, he lightly touched the Array Jade and slowly poured some Emperor Qi into it so that it flashed with light.
Next, he opened his eyes abruptly and began forming a set of hand seals. Rays of light entered the Array Jade and he shouted, “Initialize!”
The Array Jade shone brightly!
A low humming sound came from deep underground. At the same time, an earthquake shook the entire Nine Heavens Holy Land. The changes startled countless cultivators who were cultivating in meditation, causing them to come out of retreat to investigate the situation. Upon seeing the figure standing in the sky though, they understood that the changes were his doing and not another enemy invasion; thus, they felt relieved.
Inside Nine Heavens Holy Land, the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Column located at the Array Core suddenly underwent an unusual change. The complex patterns on the surface of the pillar flickered and shone. Simultaneously, an invisible pulse spread out. With the Profound Spirit Column as its centre, it spread out tens of thousands of kilometres, covering Tong Xuan Realm.
One by one, the Profound Spirit Columns lit up in succession across the land. Under the influence of their energy fluctuations and invisible energy waves, they resonated with each other and the patterns on their surfaces shone brightly. If one were to look down from the Starry Sky, one could see the 108 lights flashing brightly across the entire Star. Everywhere the waves passed, the lights became extremely dazzling.
The speed of Yang Kai’s hand seals increased, becoming more and more rapid while his expression remained extremely solemn. Although his cultivation was extremely high, he was currently in a state of self-suppression, so he did not dare to be careless or negligent while maintaining this Grand Spirit Array. This matter was related to Xia Ning Chang’s well-being, so he had to take it very seriously.
Soon, sweat was dripping down his face.
A quarter-hour later, the Profound Spirit Column in Nine Heavens Holy Land emitted an invisible wave once again and the previous phenomenon repeated. That column was like a beating heart, pulsing rhythmically. Every time it beat, the other 107 Profound Spirit Columns would produce a subtle resonance with each other. As the number of beasts increased, the resonance would connect from end to end and could no longer be separated from one another. Over time, all 108 Profound Spirit Columns synchronized and covered the entire Tong Xuan Realm as a result.
The invisible wave spread out again and again. Similarly, the 108 Profound Spirit Columns flashed in rhythm. The cycle repeated continuously; however, the frequency of the cycle slowly accelerated as time passed.
One day later, the time between each wave had been halved from the initial quarter-hour. Another day later, the time halved again. In another three days, the Profound Spirit Column at the Array Core pulsed every few breaths. The remaining 107 Profound Spirit Columns were the same. Moreover, if one were to observe it closely, they would discover that the flashing lights of the Profound Spirit Columns no longer lit up sequentially but in sync.
Yang Kai controlled the Array Jade with great focus, maintaining the Array without even knowing how much time was passing. Finally, the frequency of the flashing lights of the Profound Spirit Columns seemed to have reached a certain limit. Following that, an invisible aura spread like a fierce beast from ancient times that had awakened suddenly.
Yang Kai looked tired, but his eyes were shining so brightly that it was scary. The moment he had been waiting for was finally here! He no longer hesitated. Changing his hand seals, he threw the Array Jade high into the air as a ray of light hit it and he shouted, “Activate!”
The Array hummed. At that moment, the 108 lights that had been flashing continuously died out completely. They no longer contained any light in them; however, the extinguished lights were rekindled again in the next moment. There was neither sequence nor individuality to the rekindling of the lights. They had completely become one and 108 vibration waves undulated all at once. Every one of the Profound Spirit Columns shot out 107 rays of light in all directions. These lights cut through the sky and weaved a gigantic net that covered the skies above all of Tong Xuan Realm.
At that moment, all living creatures in Tong Xuan Realm looked up into the sky. The criss-crossing rays of light looked like meteors falling from above, converging to form a shower raining across the entire Star. The sight was shocking to see; however, nobody felt any fear or trepidation. Instead, many had the urge to worship the phenomenon instead.
*Hong hong hong…*
Rumbling sounds rang out continuously as every Profound Spirit Column was closely connected with the other 107 Profound Spirit Columns.
*Kacha…* As if a key had slid into the lock, the 108 Profound Spirit Columns came to life at the same instant and began to release a world-shattering force.
Immediately after that, the sky sparkled, the clouds gathered, and Principle Strength swirled. The world was beginning to reject the Spirit Array that exceeded its tolerance limit.
All of a sudden, a fair and flawless jade-white hand swept through the air. Wherever the jade-white hand passed, the clouds dissipated and the skies calmed. Soon, everything returned to normal.
Without Xia Ning Chang using her Star Master’s power to protect the Spirit Array and interfere with the World Principles, the 108 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array would not have been able to function properly.
Li Jiao was right, those in the Emperor Realm were unable to exist in this world safely with their cultivations unsealed, so how could the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array that came from the Star Boundary be any different?
If it were a slightly weaker Spirit Array, it might not have been a problem; unfortunately, the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array was an Emperor Grade Spirit Array that far exceeded the limits that this world could withstand. Fortunately, Xia Ning Chang’s power had allowed the Array to continue existing within Tong Xuan Realm.
It wasn’t just Nine Heavens Holy Land that was facing constant tremors though; in fact, the entire world shook as the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array took effect.
The net of light covering the entire world gradually disappeared, but the 108 Profound Spirit Columns were now connected together as one. At the same time, the Array began to truly operate. Firstly, the Source Crystals that Yang Kai buried in advance finally came into play. Guided by the Profound Spirit Columns, countless Source Crystals transformed into pure World Energy, which was extracted by the Profound Spirit Columns and circulated into the world.
“What rich World Energy!” A burst of exclamations rang out from Nine Heavens Holy Land.
At this moment, the World Energy that had always been rather special in the Holy Land climbed to new heights. More importantly, it had yet to reach its limits and continued to rise rapidly. Nine Heavens Holy Land was soon covered in a layer of fog, one that took only the blink of an eye to become so thick that one couldn’t see anything in front of them. The fog made a person feel as though they were floating in a sea of World Energy, a very pleasant and joy-inducing sensation.
Nobody had ever experienced such dense World Energy before. Although Nine Heavens Holy Land was the Cultivation Paradise of Tong Xuan Realm and, it was still worse off compared to many other places in the Star Field. The reason being that Tong Xuan Realm’s World Energy had been in decline for thousands of years and was now quite depleted. That was why it couldn’t produce any strong cultivators. Even when Nine Heavens Holy Land was at its peak, it could not compare to any of the ordinary mountains on Shadowed Star or Water Moon Star. The differences between them were like night and day.
However, it was different now. Changes were occurring everywhere on Tong Xuan Realm and all the cultivators who survived the previous war happily cheered and ran around spreading the news.
The sun was shining in the sky, but raindrops still began to fall. The cheering cultivators suddenly seemed to freeze in place when this happened and looked up into the sky stupidly, reached out their hands to catch the raindrops or using their tongues to lick them. When they did, they were shocked to the core.
It was Spirit Rain! It wasn’t just any ordinary rain as every single drop of rain was brimming with World Energy. It was practically the manifestation of pure, condensed World Energy.
When the Spirit Rain first appeared, it was only a light drizzle; however, it soon became a pouring rain that covered the entire Star with not a single spot left out. Green sprouts emerged in the withered wilderness; young grass sprung up from the dry ground; sickly cows mooed and stood up again; the dying elderly abruptly opened their dull eyes as they began shining with life. Their grieving families, who were about to cry in mourning, were dumbstruck by the phenomenon.
When the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array was in operation, it not only increased the World Energy of the Star but also improved the ethereal vitality of Tong Xuan Realm that was difficult to sense.
Yang Kai remained standing in the sky, holding the Array Jade of the 108 Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array in his hand as he spread his Divine Sense out like a tide and investigated the situation in every corner of the world. Upon seeing the status, a satisfied look surfaced on his face.
He was only able to solve Tong Xuan Realm’s worries this time around thanks to Li Jiao’s help. Yang Kai neither knew much about Spirit Arrays nor had he heard of the Absolute Profound Heaven Spirit Array before. If not for Li Jiao’s efforts over the past two months, he would not have been able to arrange this Array. And now, the effects were greater than Yang Kai could have expected. He couldn’t help feeling extremely grateful toward Li Jiao.
[En… Let’s just write off the debt that Fire Dragon Palace owes me. At any rate, Li Jiao and I have gone through more than one life or death experience together and he has also provided his assistance to me… though not always willingly. In any case, it would be too embarrassing to try and collect that debt from him after this. Besides, those debts are nothing to the current High Heaven Palace. Why should I make others tighten their belts just to pay me money I don’t care about?] Secretly making up his mind, Yang Kai glanced out of the corner of his eye and immediately flew off in a certain direction.
“Little Senior Sister, why did you come out?” He appeared next to two women and supported Xia Ning Chang by the arm with one hand. He was extremely anxious, “Why aren’t you lying down? Why did you run out instead? Walk slowly! Slowly! Stop, stop. It’s raining outside. You shouldn’t go past this point.
Xue Yue glanced sideways at him and complained, “If I didn’t know better, I’d have thought that Ning Chang was pregnant.”
Xia Ning Chang’s face reddened upon hearing this.
On the other hand, he touched his chin and considered it seriously, “That’s not a bad idea.”
Xia Ning Chang quickly changed the topic, “I just came out to take a look as I felt much better all of a sudden just now.”
It wasn’t just ‘much better’. Prior to this, she remained extremely weak and pale-faced despite receiving Yang Kai’s help to stabilize her vitality and prevent it from being drained. In contrast, her face now had a rosy glow. It wasn’t just because she was feeling shy after being teased by Xue Yue, it was mainly due to the effects of the Spirit Array.
Even though she was the Star Master and could grasp the situation of the entire Star with just a single thought, seeing with her own eyes was a habit and a more intuitive experience overall.
“This Spirit Array is truly amazing. Junior Brother, please thank Sir Li for me.” Xia Ning Chang was watching the Spirit Rain pouring down outside, and if not for Yang Kai’s presence, she would have rushed out to dance in the rain to express the joy she was feeling inside.
“Of course,” Yang Kai nodded. Although Li Jiao and him were now close enough that there was no need for thanks between them anymore, it was only natural that he agreed to this task since Xia Ning Chang had spoken up about it.
“10 years!” Xia Ning Chang suddenly said.
“What?”
She smiled, “Tong Xuan Realm will fully recover within 10 years.”
The cultivators of Grand Desolation Star Field only took a few years to cause such severe poisoning. In contrast, it would take 10 years to recover from the damage even with Yang Kai spending a huge amount of Source Crystals. Destruction was often easier than recovery.
“Are you satisfied with just that?” He glanced at her with a grin.
She blinked, “What else is there to want?”
He replied, “Tong Xuan Realm is inferior to the other Stars. In the first place, its grade is on the lower side. Just restoring it to its original state is no good. Moreover, 10 years… That’s far too long.”
The wheels in Xia Ning Chang’s head spun quickly as she asked, “Husband, are you saying you have a way to make the Star even better?”
“It all depends,” He laughed heartily. He had some plans in his heart, but he did not know if they could succeed; therefore, he did not dare to promise them anything, lest he could not achieve what he promised. That would be extremely embarrassing.
However, Xue Yue seemed to have seen through his intentions and smirked, “If you can make Tong Xuan Realm better, then I will…”
“You will what?” He glanced at her with a scorching gaze.
She blushed slightly but remained steadfast, “I will let you do whatever you want with me.”
His eyes gleamed, “I want us to sleep together!”
“Hmph!” She scoffed at him.
Then, he slipped between Xue Yue and Xia Ning Chang. Hugging both women in his arms, one on each side, he boldly declared, “You can’t make a horse work without feeding it. Let’s all sleep together, come come!”
“Pervert!” Xue Yue glared at him fiercely, her alluring and graceful looks nearly charming his very soul out of his body. Then, she lowered her head shyly and murmured, “You have to convince Ning Chang first.”
Xia Ning Chang’s face blushed beet red, “How did this topic even come up?”
Yang Kai then said with a serious expression, “The convergence of Yin and Yang is the Heavenly Way. En, it’s decided then.”
“Who agreed to that!?” Xia Ning Chang was anxious. She couldn’t even imagine doing something like that; however, Yang Kai quickly lowered his head and took a little taste by pecking her on the lips. In response, she became frozen stiff as if she had been struck by lightning. She had never been so intimate with him in front of others before.
Xue Yue had been watching them with a smile and was caught off-guard when he turned around and stole her red lips too. Similarly, it was just a peck and he did not go too far. It wasn’t that he wasn’t tempted, but that he still remembered what Xue Yue said before. He was not allowed to touch her until Xia Ning Chang was fully recovered. Although he could win them over with persistence at this moment, how could that win against the expectation of having both of them at once in his heart?
[Heh heh… These two innocent women… Did you think that it’s just the two of you? When that time comes, neither Qing Luo nor Su Yan will escape!] Laughing riotously, he flew off.
Behind him, Xue Yue touched her cherry lips for a moment before she stomped her foot and shouted, “Scoundrel!”
Yang Kai stood under the Spirit Rain with his hands on his waist, energetically and passionately declaring, “Everyone, Grand Desolation Star Field has invaded our lands for more than 10 years, massacred our fellow cultivators, snatched our women, and looted the riches from our Star Field! Billions have lost their homes, and billions more have had their lives destroyed! Now is the time for us to fight back!”
The heavy rain was noisy, but it couldn’t drown out his voice so everyone heard him clearly.
“Join me now and we will make them pay! An eye for an eye! Blood for blood!” Yang Kai lifted his fist towards the Starry Sky.
“Blood for blood!” Voices roared to the sky. The grievances accumulated over the past few years had not disappeared with the recovery of Tong Xuan Realm. Instead, the thirst for revenge had only grown stronger with time.
…..
Yang Kai sat on the peak of a barren mountain on a certain Dead Star in the endless Star Field. He propped his cheek on one hand and closed his eyes in deep contemplation. His Divine Sense dived into his Knowledge Sea, navigating through the vast Star Chart there.
This Star Chart depicted the entire Heng Luo Star Field and was something Yang Kai obtained by accident when he first left Tong Xuan Realm in the past. At first, he had not paid much attention to it and simply used it as a navigation tool to not lose his way in the Star Field.
Over time though, he discovered that this Star Chart was different from the Star Charts drawn by ordinary Star Chart Masters. It seemed to be changing constantly, corresponding to every corner of the entire Star Field. It was just that the Star Chart was too large and the Star Field was too vast, so these minor changes would not have been noticeable without careful observation.
Yang Kai later learned that the Star Chart he had accidentally obtained was actually the Source of the entire Star Field. It was precisely because of this Star Chart that he managed to sense a faint connection with Heng Luo Star Field in the Ancestral Domain and eventually return to this place.
Wu Kuang mentioned that, in the past, every time he travelled to a new Star Field, he would search for the Star Field Source and devour it. With that, he could become the Master of that Star Field and would no longer be rejected by its World Principles.
A Star Field Source did not have a fixed form, and compared to the Star Source of a Cultivation Star, the Star Field Source could almost be considered a mythical existence, practically impossible to find.
For Yang Kai to obtain one could be said to be a great stroke of good fortune. Unfortunately, he could not harness the power of the Star Field Source because he had never bothered to refine it. Only by successfully refining this Star Field Source could he truly become the Master of Heng Luo Star Field. At that time, he wouldn’t even need to lift a single finger to purge all the cultivators of Grand Desolation Star Field as he could do so with just a single thought.
It had been half a year since he left Tong Xuan Realm, and throughout this time Yang Kai had been trying to refine the Star Field Source, but he had yet to make any progress. Even if his cultivation was in the Emperor Realm, the Star Field was too vast and it contained countless Stars within it. To refine the Star Field Source was equivalent to trying to control all of these Stars; it was more difficult than trying to ascend to the Heavens.
[I must be doing something wrong.] Even Wu Kuang had to suppress his cultivation when he arrived in the Lower Star Fields and could only start unscrupulously doing as he pleased after consuming the Star Field Source.
[If Wu Kuang can do this, then there’s no reason why I can’t.] Yang Kai was secretly annoyed with himself for not asking more about this matter at the time. [Even if I go to the Ancestral Domain right now… Putting aside the issue of whether I can manage to locate him, even if I did manage to, that guy might not tell me anything either.]
Yang Kai secretly rejoiced over the fact that he had not boasted about anything in front of Xue Yue and Xia Ning Chang; otherwise, he would be too embarrassed to meet them now. At the time, he only had a vague plan in mind; that was to refine the Star Chart and become the Master of this Star Field. Then, he would be able to control the power of the entire Star Field to provide some extra nurturing to Tong Xuan Realm. Upgrading it to be the same level as Shadowed Star and Water Moon Star would be nothing but child’s play at that time; but now, it would seem that his thoughts had been too naïve.
“Still not working?” A crisp voice rang out next to him, one that was sweet and pleasant to the ear.
Upon hearing her, Yang Kai opened his eyes and pulled Liu Yan into his arms. He continued to prop his cheeks on his hand and sighed, “I have an idea, but I don’t know if it will work.”
Liu Yan raised her head to look up at him. Reaching out her hand, she touched the hard stubble on his chin and gently murmured, “If you have an idea, then go ahead and try it out. There’s no loss in trying, right?”
“I was thinking so too.” He nodded and stood up, “How much longer before they gather here?”
“There are about ten more days until the agreed time.”
“Ten days is enough. Can you keep watch? Tell me immediately if you receive any news. I’m going to give my idea a try.”
“En.” She nodded.
Afterwards, Yang Kai kicked off the ground and rushed straight into the sky like a flying arrow, soon vanishing from sight. Plunging into the Starry Sky, he flew about aimlessly at a speed that was neither fast nor slow. As he flew, Yang Kai pushed his Emperor Qi gently, leaving a trail of his aura behind him. At the same time, he observed his path with the Star Chart in his Knowledge Sea and delineated an area that was neither large nor small.
With the Star Chart as a cross-reference, he was not worried about getting his position wrong. And so, he continuously flew around this area as if drawing a circle. All the aura he had left behind was within the circle.
Five days later, he came to the centre of the circle and abruptly stopped before closing his eyes. His Divine Sense dived into his Knowledge Sea as he quietly studied the Star Chart. All of a sudden, his figure stiffened. A look of pleasant surprise soon appeared on his face as he clearly felt a special area within the Star Chart in his Knowledge Sea. That area was none other than the place where he had spent the past few days marking with his aura.
[Interesting! Perhaps the method I’ve been trying for the past six months has been wrong all along. If this method works, then it means that refining the Star Field Source and a Star Source are two completely different things.] He had been trying to refine the Star Field Source with the method he used to refine Star Sources before. He had worked directly on the Star Chart in his Knowledge Sea, but his efforts had been to no avail. From what he could see right now though, it was apparent he needed to start from the basics before going deeper. [Tackling this from the ground up is the way! But, what method should I use to refine it? There’s no other Secret Art to use aside from the Star Refining Art.]
Upon making his decision, he no longer hesitated. He immediately activated the Star Refining Art and immersed his mind in that special area within the Star Chart. All of a sudden, he felt a strange sensation. It felt as if his thoughts were spreading and expanding, flooding across the places he had passed through during the past five days, and firmly connecting the path made of aura he had left behind. He could now sense the movement of every object in that region without even opening his eyes. Everything was as clear as could be.
The Star Refining Art continued to circulate slowly, branding a certain area within the Star Chart with his aura, as if gradually changing the colour of that region. There were no ripples nor fluctuations that accompanied this process; everything seemed so peaceful and natural.
Without warning, Yang Kai suddenly opened his eyes and laughed loudly. [I can’t believe a sudden whim pointed me in the right direction.]
The ‘colour’ of that particular area in the Star Chart inside his Knowledge Sea seemed slightly different from the other places now. Correspondingly, he could feel that special area within the Starry Sky too.
Yang Kai did not use any kind of power. He simply changed what he was thinking about. Following that, his figure kept flickering throughout the area, leaving behind afterimages as if countless versions of him existed at the same time.
This was a special piece of the Starry Sky, a piece that only belonged to him! He was the Master of everything within this region, just like on Shadowed Star.
His figure stopped abruptly, and an eager light flashed in his eyes. [If I am safe after doing this, then it proves my theory is correct! If so, then all I need to refine the Star Chart is time and I can become the Master of Heng Luo Star Field!]
Taking a deep breath, Yang Kai roared. A strange sound rang out from the depths of his heart as the seal on his cultivation broke open. Immediately after that, his cultivation soared. First-Order Dao Source Realm… Second-Order Dao Source Realm… Third-Order Dao Source Realm… Emperor Realm!
Despite lifting the seal on his cultivation though, he remained safe and sound. The world was not rejecting him nor revealing any hostile intent towards him.
[I did it!]