“Hmm? What happened here?” All of a sudden, Yang Kai noticed that something was wrong. A fist-sized ‘black ink stain’ had appeared somewhere on the Star Chart above his Knowledge Sea. This ‘black ink stain’ looked extremely familiar. It reminded him of the scenery he once saw when looking down on Tong Xuan Realm from a high altitude. Now that he was connected to the Star Field Source, he immediately felt a strong malice coming from this ‘black ink stain’.
If he was not mistaken, the location where that ‘black ink stain’ was located should be the place where Grand Desolation Star Field and Heng Luo Star Field were connected.
That was an important location so 10 years ago, Yang Kai had dispatched Li Jiao and his family there to guard the place. Yang Kai thought that his plan was foolproof and it wasn’t until today when he finished refining the Star Chart that he noticed something was wrong.
With a single thought, Yang Kai’s vision seemed to travel across a distance of billions of kilometres and came to the vicinity of the ‘black ink stain’ in an instant. The sight that greeted him shocked him to the core.
An area stretching for tens of million kilometres had turned into a black hole so humongous that it was hard to imagine. Everything that was originally located in this piece of Starry Sky was gone without a trace, including some Dead Stars and many asteroids. That wasn’t the worst of it; the edges of the black hole continued to expand into its surroundings at a steady speed. Everything that stood in the path of that creeping darkness turned into nothingness. From the way things stood, it looked like the darkness was devouring the Star Field.
The sight immediately enraged him! He had refined the Star Field Source and became the Star Field Master just now; in other words, the entire Star Field was his domain. Regardless of what that darkness was, it was encroaching on his territory! How could he tolerate such actions as the Star Field Master!?
[Where is Li Jiao, that bastard!? I sent him here to guard this place back then. Why didn’t he inform me about such a major incident? Even if I’ve been running all over the place for the past few years and have no fixed residence to speak of, I’m sure he could have found a way to locate me if he really wanted to…] Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling a little resentful in his heart and with a slight flicker, it didn’t take him more than a moment to reach the edge of the huge black hole.
Upon a closer look, Yang Kai understood more and more just how horrifying this black hole was. All he could see was darkness and nothing else. It was no less dangerous than a Void Crack for sure though as that darkness slowly crept forward like the tide, expanding into its surroundings and assimilating everything in its way.
Yang Kai could feel that he was losing his territory, bit by bit, so his expression turned grim. Communicating with the Star Chart through his mind, the Star Field Source hummed in response as if it had received some sort of encouragement and began to exude a dazzling light.
The darkness that had been expanding steadily suddenly slowed down considerably. The sight made him raise an eyebrow in response. He had never encountered something like this before; hence, he honestly did not know how to deal with it. He simply wanted to try to prevent the spread of the darkness and had not expected that communicating with the Star Chart would bring about such effects.
Then, Yang Kai immediately understood the situation. Since he was the Star Field Master, his Will was the Will of the Star Field. Every thought and every action of his could make the Star Field resonate with his wishes. With that answer in hand, he no longer hesitated. Communicating with the Star Chart more actively, borrowing the power of the entire Star Field, Yang Kai strove to prevent the darkness from spreading further.
The speed at which the darkness expanded outwards slowed down so much that the changes were visible to the naked eye. In the end, it gradually stopped expanding. Even so, Yang Kai was not satisfied with the situation and shouted, “Get out!”
At the same time, he pushed out explosively with both arms in front of him and an invisible force pressed down from all directions. The boundaries of the darkness instantly shrank back by several thousands of metres and continued shrinking without stopping.
As the darkness receded, everything in its path that it had previously devoured was restored back to normal. Yang Kai watched as a huge asteroid slowly emerged from within the darkness and eventually became fully exposed after a while. The discovery made him extremely happy. He initially thought that everything the darkness swallowed would no longer exist, but that did not seem to be the case. Even though all those places had been devoured, they still existed in perfect condition. It was just that nobody could see them anymore, and the truth could only be revealed by pushing back the darkness.
[What the Hell is this darkness?] Yang Kai wondered as he worked to take back his territory, probing into the emptiness. A short while later, his body stiffened and a shocked expression appeared on his face. He had discovered a World Will in the depths of the darkness! Moreover, it was a World Will that did not belong to Heng Luo Star Field! The World Will was very similar to the one found in Heng Luo Star Field, however. Regardless, it was almost as though this darkness was another world on its own.
[This is incredible! Simply unbelievable! Could it be? That there is another world out there trying to eat away at Heng Luo Star Field? Is it Grand Desolation Star Field? This place is where the two Star Fields are connected after all. It makes sense if Grand Desolation Star Field is the one trying to devour Heng Luo Star Field.]
Yang Kai suddenly felt a little fortunate. If he had not refined the Star Chart and become the Star Field Master, he would have had no way to deal with this situation. The absorption of a world by another world was no longer something that could be solved through cultivation alone. He had to borrow the power of the world he was in to fight back against the absorption. Just then, a sliver of insight came to him. The reason why he managed to refine the Star Chart so easily was probably related to the current situation. Heng Luo Star Field wanted to use his power to fight against this encroachment.
“Spit out whatever you ate that belongs to me!” Yang Kai had just become Heng Luo Star Field’s Master, so he was in high spirits. How could he be afraid of the minor difficulties in front of him?
Directing the power of Heng Luo Star Field, Yang Kai viciously pushed back against the darkness. With no power to resist, the darkness steadily retreated as a result. In the meantime, the Starry Sky that had been swallowed by the darkness gradually returned to normal while the darkness retreated faster and faster with his help. In less than a quarter of an hour, the darkness had receded by more than ten thousand kilometres.
Ten thousand kilometres was nothing compared to the territory it had engulfed, but even so, it was a good start. Yang Kai was certain that the speed at which he regained the lands he lost would increase as time passed, and reality proved that to be the case. The entire Heng Luo Star Field seemed to be aware of his intentions and the Star Field Source cooperated with him unreservedly to give him the power to make it a reality.
A hundred thousand kilometres… Two hundred thousand kilometres… A million kilometres… The darkness had shrunk considerably. At this speed, he would be able to recover everything he lost to the darkness in less than a month.
At that moment, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up without warning as he felt a great sense of crisis enveloping him. Widening his eyes, Yang Kai focused his gaze on the darkness in front of him. It was completely filled with chaos and nothingness. Not only did it not contain any vitality, but it also did not contain any living or dead. Despite that, Yang Kai was certain that the sense of crisis had come from within the darkness.
A ray of light suddenly appeared in his line of vision. It arrived in front of him in the blink of an eye. Lifting his head abruptly, Yang Kai opened his mouth and bit down on the ray of light. The light trembled endlessly as if it was a living thing. Biting down, his sharp fangs turned into indestructible blades.
*Kacha…* The sound of something shattering rang out and the struggling movement in his mouth subsided suddenly.
“Bah!” Yang Kai spat out the thing. Then, he reached out his hand to catch it, his gaze focusing on the item. The item turned out to be an exquisitely shaped flying knife. It had a flawless blade, about a forearm in length. Unfortunately, there was now a row of teeth marks on the blade. It was also covered in a dense spider web of cracks. Yang Kai’s bite had destroyed the flying knife’s spirituality.
“This is…” His eyes nearly fell out of their sockets, “An Emperor Artifact?”
The thing that struck at him from within the darkness turned out to be an Emperor Artifact! Although the spirituality had been destroyed and it was covered in cracks now, Yang Kai was not blind so how could he fail to recognize an Emperor Grade Artifact? Besides, there were still traces of Emperor Qi lingering on the flying knife.
Lifting his head, he stared into the darkness with eyes that burned with raging flames. [Good, good, good! I thought that the absorption between worlds was some kind of natural phenomenon. I can’t believe it turned out to be a man-made disaster instead!]
There was no way an Emperor Artifact had attacked him for no reason, and judging by the lingering Emperor Qi aura left on the blade, that person had clearly tried to kill him from the other world. Moreover, the person who attacked him was definitely in the Emperor Realm.
Launching an attack across a World Barrier was not something that Yang Kai could pull off even now. The wall between worlds was simply too strong. Only a Great Emperor might be able to pull off such a feat. However, Heng Luo Star Field and Grand Desolation Star Field were not completely separated at the moment. The darkness was the place where the two worlds were connected. Thus, it was not difficult for potential enemies to ambush him from across the boundaries of the world. As for the reason… It was undoubtedly due to the fact that he had been hindering Grand Desolation Star Field’s absorption of Heng Luo Star Field.
A bold idea popped up in Yang Kai’s head at that point, and though he was not 100% certain, he was quite confident about it.
“It’s finally getting interesting!” Yang Kai couldn’t help flashing a savage grin as he stared into the darkness as though he could penetrate the barriers between the worlds with his gaze and stare straight at the powerful enemy hiding in the other world!
Ever since he returned to the Star Field, the only enemies Yang Kai encountered had been weaklings. Those enemies could not do anything to him even though he was affected by the rejection of the world. Therefore, the sudden appearance of such a strong enemy immediately roused his long-diminished fighting spirit.
“It’s impolite not to reciprocate the gesture. Take this!” He slapped his hands together and condensed a huge Moon Blade. He did not launch it immediately. Instead, he continued to pour his power into it.
The Moon Blade buzzed and became erratic. It felt as though it might collapse at any time. Even so, it was more stable than ever under Yang Kai’s control.
A long while later, he finally looked up and threw the flying blade with broken spirituality back into the darkness in front of him. Only then did he slash out with the Moon Blade. Both the flying knife and the Moon Blade disappeared into the darkness without a sound.
A great darkness was surging in the endless Starry Sky within Grand Desolation Star Field. The scenery there was similar to the scenery on Yang Kai’s side, and at the edge of the darkness, a middle-aged man with a sallow face frowned as he stared straight ahead.
All of a sudden, a flying knife appeared out of the darkness. He lifted his hand and caught the flying knife in his hand, but before he could study the condition of the flying knife, a pitch-black Moon Blade followed close behind and slashed towards him.
He was not a careless individual, but even so, he did not notice the Moon Blade until it was practically right in front of his eyes. The main reason was that the Moon Blade was extremely stealthy and silent. Moreover, it was very similar to the darkness before him, which made it very hard to detect.
Perceiving the terrifying power of the Moon Blade, the middle-aged man raised his brow and revealed a look of surprise; however, he did not panic. Another flying knife abruptly appeared in his hand, one identical to the one Yang Kai had intercepted before. Raising it high, the flying knife shone brightly and turned into a huge blade before slashing downward without warning.
The Moon Blade shattered suddenly, causing the middle-aged man to frown in response. Then, his heart skipped a beat and he hurriedly backed away. Unfortunately, it was too late. The Moon Blade exploded and the space around him went wild. Consequently, several void cracks appeared. Those cracks were not arranged in a disorderly manner. Rather, they spelled out the words, “Fuck your mother!”
“Space Technique!” The middle-aged man exclaimed in surprise. He looked extremely shocked but didn’t seem bothered by Yang Kai’s insult. The main reason was that the Dao of Space was incredibly esoteric and difficult to cultivate. A person who could utilize a Space Technique to this extent could not be just a random nobody.
“Could it be him!?” The image of a person appeared in the middle-aged man’s mind. If the person on the other side of the Void Corridor matched with the person in his mind, then things would become extremely troublesome. The prestige of the Martial Beast Great Emperor and of Spirit Beast Island could not be ignored. ‘That’ person was the right arm of the Martial Beast Great Emperor, Mo Huang. If it really was him, then things would become very difficult to handle.
[Still… I have never heard of that person being related to a Lower Star Field before… Why would he suddenly appear in Heng Luo Star Field?] He suddenly remembered the family of three who had been dragged into this Star Field three years ago. At first, he had no intention of bothering with them, but now, it would seem that it was time for him to have a talk with them. Perhaps… he could obtain some useful information.
Yang Kai waited intently in front of the darkness, but after a full day and night, he began to feel bored when he did not see any signs of a counterattack. He did not know if his Moon Blade had injured the other party; however, it shouldn’t be possible. The barrier between the two Star Fields might be weak enough for him to send an attack across the World Barrier, but the power behind his attack would be severely worn down in the process. Moreover, the opponent was strong, so how could they be harmed so easily? He simply could not understand why the other party had not made a move.
Yang Kai couldn’t be bothered to think about it though. Since the other party didn’t seem like they were going to make a move, he might as well restore his Star Field with some peace of mind. Hence, the darkness continued to recede, revealing the Starry Sky that had been swallowed previously.
All of a sudden, Yang Kai’s eyes flashed as he grinned, “How bold!”
Stretching out his hand, Yang Kai grabbed at the space in front of him as a figure suddenly leapt out from the endless darkness. However, he frowned and immediately stopped his attack when he saw who it was, instead reaching out and pulling this figure to him.
“Yu Qin?” Yang Kai looked down at the little girl in front of him with a slight frown.
Lu Yu Qin was not injured, but her complexion was extremely pale. She had obviously been deeply frightened by something. The pupils in her eyes were dilated, and she was trembling uncontrollably.
Yang Kai called out her name twice, but she did not react one bit. With no other choice, he circulated his Spiritual Energy to soothe her mind first.
After a while, she finally recovered from her shock. When her eyes gradually focused and she saw his face clearly, she began crying before she could say anything, her tears pouring down her face.
“Why did you appear from the other side? Where are your parents?” A sense of uneasiness bloomed in his heart.
“Senior Yang, please save my father and mother!”
Yang Kai felt his heart sink at those words and he quickly asked, “Are they on the other side?”
“Please! I beg you! Save them!” She grabbed at his arm tightly, crying pitifully.
“Stop crying first, you have to explain the situation to me properly if you want me to act,” he comforted her.
A while later, her emotions finally calmed down enough for her to brokenly recount the events of the past few years.
Three years ago, the Void Corridor connecting Heng Luo Star Field and Grand Desolation Star Field suddenly went out of control. The darkness had swept across the land and devoured their family of three. When they recovered from their shock, they discovered that they had arrived at another Star Field. It was only later that they learned that the Star Field they were in was none other than Grand Desolation Star Field.
Fortunately, Li Jiao and Lu San Niang were existences that had surpassed the limits of the Star Field; hence, they did not encounter any danger. However, they seemed to be sealed in a certain space and couldn’t find their way back.
One day ago, a middle-aged man suddenly came to them and chatted with Li Jiao for a long time. Lu Yu Qin did not know what they discussed at the time. In the end, that middle-aged man had grabbed her, dragged her to the edge of the darkness, and threw her in.
“What was that guy called?” Yang Kai was aware that there was somebody on the other side of the darkness and he felt that this person was behind the encroachment upon his Star Field. And now, his guess had been confirmed by Lu Yu Qin’s story.
She shook her head in response. She had never seen that man before yesterday. All she knew was that her parents were no match for him. They had tried to stop him when he grabbed her, but they couldn’t even touch the hems of his clothes.
“What did he say?” Yang Kai asked. That man clearly wanted her to pass on a message since he returned her to this place.
Lu Yu Qin said, “He asked me to tell you… If you want them to live, then hand over the Star Field Source!”
“Hah?!” Yang Kai’s eyebrow twitched in response, “Is he crazy?”
Although he got along fairly well with Li Jiao, they were not close enough to be used as a bargaining chip for something so valuable. Yang Kai might have stopped to consider it if Su Yan or one his other close relations had been kidnapped instead, but the other party might not keep his word to release the hostages even if he handed over the Star Field Source. Instead, he would no longer have the ability to fight against the other party without the Star Field Source. In the end, Heng Luo Star Field would not be able to escape from being completely devoured.
[Is that person deliberately trying to annoy me by asking Lu Yu Qin to come back and pass this message to me?]
“Senior Yang…” She looked at him pleadingly.
“I’ll send you somewhere safe first. Don’t worry. I will rescue your parents.” He patted her on the shoulder. He divided part of his attention to continue suppressing the darkness before his figure flickered slightly and he headed towards Shadowed Star.
The Star Field was vast, so anybody would need to spend a lot of time travelling across it from one Star to another; however, Yang Kai was now Heng Luo Star Field’s Master, so it was only natural that he enjoyed certain conveniences that nobody else could have. One such advantage was that he could cover a lot of distance with just a thought.
After several leaps, Shadowed Star appeared in the distance. With another leap, they appeared inside High Heaven Sect. A stream of light flew out from a certain Spirit Peak at that moment. It was Su Yan, who had sensed his return. Under her lead, all the Masters in High Heaven Sect swarmed over. It didn’t take long for all the Elders and Masters to gather together.
Ye Xi Yun stepped forward and spoke first, “Sect Master, there is something I need to inform you about.” While speaking, she glanced at Lu Yu Qin, who was leaning in Yang Kai’s embrace, with some measure of surprise. The matter she wanted to report about was related to the disappearance of Li Jiao and his family.
“You don’t need to tell me. I already know about it.” Yang Kai handed the sleeping Lu Yu Qin over to Su Yan, “Please take care of her!”
Their gazes met, and although nothing more was said, they understood each other; thus, Su Yan gently nodded and carried Lu Yu Qin back to her Spirit Peak.
Afterwards, Yang Kai took a seat in the main hall while the rest gathered around him. Sweeping his gaze over them, he spoke, “You have worked hard over the years. I have seen the results of your hard work with my own eyes. Although I did not participate in the endeavour, I am thankful for all your contributions.”
Ye Xi Yun said, “It’s what we should do, but, what do you know about the expanding black hole, Sect Master?”
Yang Kai replied, “I just found out about it not too long ago, but don’t worry, I will deal with this matter myself.”
Upon hearing what he said, she calmed down. What she had been worrying about for the past few years finally disappeared. Although Yang Kai was somebody who rarely showed his face and usually left all the work to her, he was reliable when he became serious.
“Husband, what is that black hole? How is it able to devour the Star Field?” Shan Qing Luo asked puzzledly.
To which he answered, “It’s the power of Grand Desolation Star Field.”
“It’s the doing of Grand Desolation Star Field again!?” A group of people suddenly exclaimed with righteous indignation.
Ever since the war ended three years ago, the entire Star Field had entered a stage of recuperation. They thought that they could finally live in peace for a time but they did not expect Grand Desolation Star Field to reappear and stir up a storm again so soon. Moreover, it was worse this time around as that Star Field actually started to eat away at their Star Field, leaving them at a loss for what to do.
Ye Xi Yun frowned, “Sect Master, how is Grand Desolation Star Field able to devour this Star Field? Could it be that Grand Desolation Star Field is a higher plane than ours?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “That’s not it. There are no major differences between the two Star Fields. The reason something like that happened is that somebody is pulling strings from the shadows.”
“Somebody?”
“Who!?”
“Could it be…”
He nodded and said solemnly, “It’s the Master of Grand Desolation Star Field!”
The person who had exchanged blows with him was no ordinary person. Besides, only one person could direct the refinement and assimilation of another Star Field, and that was the Star Field Master of Grand Desolation Star Field! That person was just like Yang Kai; they were both Star Field Masters!
A gasp rang out among the crowd. Then, they quickly remembered that Yang Kai was also a Star Field Master, so there was no reason for them to be so fearful. It was just that… What would happen if the two Star Field Masters started a fight with each other? How would their battle affect their respective Star Fields? Their battle would not be done in person nor with their strength alone after all, they would be fighting with the power of their respective Star Fields as their support. That was bound to cause great disturbances in both Star Fields.
“Sect Master, who is stronger between the two of you?” Ye Xi Yun raised the question that everyone was most anxious to know.
“He is not my opponent at the moment,” Yang Kai replied calmly. The places swallowed up by the darkness had originally been part of his territory, so Yang Kai still had a certain advantage despite it having been taken over by the other party. In essence, it was not difficult for Yang Kai to drive the foreign enemy out.
“At the moment?” Ye Xi Yun keenly grasped the key points in his words, “What about in the future?”
Yang Kai laughed, “Who can say what the future will bring? We simply do what we can to conform with the Heavenly Way.”
She looked like she still had more to ask, but he raised his hand to stop her before smiling meaningfully, “There’s an insect here.”
While speaking, he suddenly stretched out his hand and grabbed at something in front of him. His movements were neither hurried nor unhurried. In response, the space in front of him became chaotic. Plunging his large hand into this warped space, Yang Kai seemed to grab hold of something far away, and when he withdrew his hand, an old man with an all-white beard appeared in the great hall.
The old man looked shocked and bewildered. He had a stooped figure, and his entire body was trembling. He looked rather unsteady on his feet; moreover, the aura around him was not that strong, only in the Origin Returning Realm.
Everybody in the great hall looked at each other in confusion, wondering why Yang Kai had captured this old man. They didn’t even know where Yang Kai had brought this old man from. After becoming the Star Field’s Master, Yang Kai’s strength had become more and more difficult for them to understand.
In the meantime, that old man with the stooped figure glanced about his surroundings and seemed to be frightened. The people around him might not know who he was, but he knew many of their faces, so panic flashed through his eyes for a moment before he quickly feigned ignorance and haltingly asked, “Where… am I?”
Inside the great hall, Yang Kai looked at the old man with a smile. Meanwhile, everybody else looked surprised and puzzled.
The old man asked, “Excuse me, Sirs… Who are you?”
“Stop playing dumb!”
“This old man really doesn’t know what you are talking about, Little Brother.”
Yang Kai looked the old man up and down. Then, he grinned and said, “Look at you; the Corpse Qi around you is so strong. You must be proficient in Corpse Refinement. What position do you hold in the Netherworld Sect?”
“Netherworld Sect!?” The expression of Ye Xi Yun and the others changed drastically at the name. They glared at the old man fiercely as although they could not tell what was so special about him, there could be no mistake since Yang Kai had said so.
All the cultivators in the Star Field held a deep hatred for the name ‘Netherworld Sect’. They thought that the dust had settled after they cleaned up the Star Field three years ago, so they never expected that a rat could have slipped through their fingers. Moreover, that rat was hiding right under their noses.
“Little Brother, I’m afraid you must have made a mistake. I’m not part of the Netherworld…”
“What were you trying to do by coming to Shadowed Star? What are you looking for?”
The old man shook his head, “I don’t understand what you mean.”
Yang Kai raised his hand and enveloped the old man in a thick murderous intent. In response, the old man’s stooped figure straightened immediately and his aura burst out without warning.
Ye Xi Yun and the others were dumbfounded. Only then did they realize that the old man in front of them was no Origin Returning Realm cultivator. He clearly stood at the peak of the Origin King Realm. Moreover, his aura was slightly stronger than all the other Origin King Realm Masters they had met before. It was as though he could break through the shackles of the Origin King Realm at any moment. They did not know what kind of Secret Technique he had used to conceal his cultivation so well, but if not for Yang Kai’s sharp vision, everybody else would not have seen through his disguise.
The attack the old man expected did not come, however, as Yang Kai simply put down the hand he raised. How could the old man not know that he had been played for a fool? No longer trying to conceal anything, he coldly snorted, “You were the ones who forced my hand.”
He had indeed infiltrated Shadowed Star to look for something, but he had no intention of facing High Heaven Sect so quickly. Unfortunately, the Heavens did not act according to his wishes. Now that things had come to this, he could only fight his way out. Saying so, he summoned a large banner to his hand. The banner was unfurled as rich Blood Qi surged, dyeing the whole hall a bright red colour.
Inside the hall, everybody from High Heaven Sect instantly felt as though they had fallen into a turbulent Blood River. The Blood Qi in their surroundings carried a strong corrosive aura that made it hard for them to breathe and rendered their Saint Qi useless.
One after another, they paled in response. They knew about the Blood Sea Banner. After fighting with Netherworld Sect’s cultivators for all these years, every one of them had some experience facing this kind of artifact. Even so, they had never seen such a terrifying Blood Sea Banner before! It seemed that even a Third-Order Origin King Realm Master would be helpless once this Blood Sea Banner was summoned.
“You could have taken the easy way out, but you just had to choose the difficult path. Today, I will turn every one of you into…” The old man bit his tongue mid-way through his sentence, because a small figure was strolling towards him in the middle of the Blood Sea. That small figure raised its head and looked up at him with an innocent expression. Although no aura fluctuations were coming from this small figure, it was strangely unaffected by the Blood Sea Banner. At that moment, that small and petite figure felt like a huge mountain towering over him, making him feel as though he needed to look up at it.
“How is this possible!?” The old man was shocked and horrified. This artifact of his had long since surpassed the limits of what this Star Field could withstand. It was something that had been given to him from ‘that place’, and it was by relying on the power of this Artifact that he still remained calm and confident even after his identity was exposed. That was because it was impossible for anybody in this Star Field to escape from the imprisonment and corrosion of his Blood Sea Banner. Those who fell prey to it would die without a doubt. However, there was now a seven- or eight-year-old little girl who was completely unaffected by the power of his Blood Sea Banner standing in front of him.
The little girl blinked once before lifting her hand and seemingly grabbing at something. The old man took several steps back as though he had been struck by lightning at that moment and his face paled slightly as his horror grew. The connection between him and his Blood Sea Banner… Had been cut off!
When he looked up again, the blood-coloured aura that was covering the hall had disappeared. Meanwhile, the little girl held the Blood Sea Banner in her hands and casually stuffed it into her Space Ring. After that, she turned around and walked back without even sparing him a single glance.
The old man felt as if his throat had gone dry and vigorously tried to swallow. The greatest card he relied on had been taken away from him so easily that even his mental state had suffered a backlash from the incident. He had acted so high and mighty just now, but now he was like a venomous snake with his fangs pulled out. His aura withered, and his arrogance from before was gone.
Compared to the injury he received from having his artifact forcefully taken away from him, he felt more mentally traumatised. The feeling that little girl gave him… She was in no way weaker than ‘that’ person.
[Why is there such a powerful existence in this Star Field!? No wonder everybody from Grand Desolation Star Field had been massacred mercilessly. How can the invasion succeed with somebody like that guarding this place!?]
“Who is the one who helped you upgrade this Artifact?” Yang Kai sat boldly and unrestrained on an elevated platform inside the hall, resting his cheek on his hand as he looked at the old man calmly.
The old man trembled. Throwing himself to the ground, he respectfully said, “Senior, I will tell you everything you want to know, just please have mercy on me.”
Now that the tables had been turned on him, he immediately became much more well-behaved.
“I don’t think you have the right to negotiate with me.”
The old man lowered his head, “I implore you to have mercy on this old man. I have never done anything to harm this Star Field before!”
Yang Kai thought about it seriously and nodded his agreement, “Good. I promise I won’t kill you?”
“Senior, can your words be trusted?”
Yang Kai grinned slightly, “Most of the time, when I speak such words, I’m not being sincere…”
The old man instantly turned deathly pale at those words.
“But…” Yang Kai added in the same breath, “This time around, I will keep my word. I won’t kill you.”
“Many thanks, Senior!” The old man burst into tears of gratitude, “What do you wish to know, Senior?”
“You are the Sect Master of Netherworld Sect, right?” Yang Kai asked.
The old man smiled bitterly, “Senior has good eyes. Although I am incompetent, I am the 345th generation Sect Master of Netherworld Sect.”
“What!?”
“He is the Sect Master of Netherworld Sect!?”
A commotion rose up inside the great hall. Everybody glared at the old man furiously. Netherworld Sect was the culprit behind Grand Desolation Star Field’s invasion. Even though they had killed many people from the Netherworld Sect, including several Vice Sect Masters and Elders, they had never found their true Sect Master. Furthermore, none of the Elders and Vice Sect Masters knew where this Sect Master was. The only information they could glean was that the Sect Master had separated from the rest after arriving in Heng Luo Star Field. Nobody knew where he went or what he was up to.
There had been practically no information on this person, so who could have imagined that he had infiltrated Shadowed Star at some unknown point in time? It wasn’t until today that he was discovered by Yang Kai. That was probably the result of being too clever for his own good. He had thought that the most dangerous place would be the safest place to hide. Unbeknownst to this old man, Yang Kai’s perception of Shadowed Star had become even more acute after becoming the Star Field Master. How could Yang Kai fail to notice an existence with such an obvious aura that practically screamed Netherworld Sect? If he had been hiding on another Star, Yang Kai might not have bothered to go looking for him, and he could have remained hidden for a few more years.
“That artifact of yours… Did that person help you upgrade it?” Yang Kai repeated the question again.
“That person? I don’t know who you are referring to…” The old man looked at Yang Kai suspiciously.
“That guy from Grand Desolation Star Field.”
“Have you met the person before?” The old man was shocked.
Yang Kai shook his head, “I have never met him.” He paused before continuing, “We simply exchanged a few blows in secret.”
The old man was dumbfounded when he heard those words. He first thought that the young man in front of him was bluffing as no matter how high his cultivation is, how could he possibly survive an exchange of blows with that person? Then, the old man suddenly recalled the strange occurrences that he had felt a few days ago and exclaimed in alarm, “Are you the Master of this Star Field!?”
“Yes.”
“No wonder! No wonder!” The old man murmured to himself. [No wonder the Star Field felt so abnormal several days ago. No wonder he can exchange blows with that person. It turned out that he is the Master of this Star Field. Only by becoming a Star Field Master could he be qualified to fight against another Star Field Master after all.]
Yang Kai observed the old man’s words and actions. All of a sudden, his eyebrows twitched and he asked, “You’ve been hiding and acting alone for so many years. Could it be that you were looking for the Star Field Source of Heng Luo Star Field?”
The old man’s expression changed slightly. Seeing that Yang Kai had seen through him, he no longer concealed anything and nodded, “I was simply following orders.”
Yang Kai coldly snorted, “That guy sure has a voracious appetite!”
*Kacha…*
Thunder rumbled and lightning flashed. Strong winds blew and storms stirred in the skies. At the same time, dark and oppressive clouds formed without warning, covering the sky like a thick quilt. Looming overhead, they gave off a stifling feeling. Now that he was this Star Field’s Master, Yang Kai’s very mood, be it happiness, sadness, or anger, could affect the entire Star Field.
Upon seeing this, the old man no longer doubted. He was fully convinced that this young man was the Master of Heng Luo Star Field.
Yang Kai sneered, “He is trying to devour Heng Luo Star Field in one bite.”
Judging by the current situation, it was not accurate to say that the Netherworld Sect was the culprit behind Grand Desolation Star Field’s invasion. It would seem that the Netherworld Sect was just another pawn, and the person behind the scenes was the Master of Grand Desolation Star Field.
Making use of the war between the two Star Fields’ cultivators to create chaos and weaken Heng Luo Star Field was the only way to make the Star Field Source reveal itself. Subsequently, this old man simply needed to locate the Star Field Source and that person on the other side of the darkness would be able to absorb and refine it.
Once that person successfully refined the Heng Luo Star Field’s Source, the two Star Fields would be merged together into one. In that way, that person would become the Master of two Star Fields, and his strength would rise like the tide. His methods were not the most ingenious, but were highly effective.
If Yang Kai had not returned to the Star Field in time, that person would already have succeeded with his plans and Heng Luo Star Field would definitely have ended up as a vassal of Grand Desolation Star Field.
“I do not know what that person’s goal is,” Netherworld Sect’s Sect Master lowered his gaze.
“Is that so?” Yang Kai gave the old man a deep and meaningful smile, making the old man’s heart skip in fear.
“Forget it. Come with me.” After saying that, Yang Kai stood up and grabbed the old man by the collar. He strode forward, and they appeared in the Starry Sky in just a few steps.
“Senior! Please have mercy on me!” The old man yelled, looking quite panicked. The feeling that he could not win through force bloomed in him when he looked at the strange little girl earlier; however, he found that he couldn’t even muster the courage to fight back after meeting Yang Kai.
[This is the power of a Star Field Master!] He did not believe that Yang Kai’s strength was much higher than his own. Thus, the only reason Yang Kai could handle him so easily was because he obtained the recognition of the Star Field Source.
[If only I had the opportunity…]
“Why are you raising such a fuss?” Yang Kai slapped the old man on the back of the head.
The Sect Master of the Netherworld Sect immediately calmed down after being smacked by Yang Kai. The scenery flashed by quickly as they brushed past large Stars that soon were left behind as no more than specks of lights in the distance. In just a short while, the two of them had travelled across billions of kilometres.
Stopping all of a sudden, Yang Kai tossed the old man to the side. The old man immediately caught his balance and looked around. His pupils contracted at the sight, “This is…”
There was a gigantic black hole in front of him, heaving and writhing like the mouth of a giant beast. It seemed to be gnawing at this world, trying to swallow it all up.
“Grand Desolation Star Field is on the other side of that darkness!” Yang Kai pointed at the area where the darkness was the densest.
The old man’s eyes lit up at those words.
“Do you want to go back?”
He nodded repeatedly to that.
“Good. I’ll let you go back. But, you have to help me pass on a message.”
He cautiously asked, “What message?”
“Tell that bastard to wash his neck and wait for my arrival! I’ll be there to claim his head soon enough!”
“Uh…”
“Scram!” Yang Kai lifted the old man by the collar again and threw him into the darkness without any explanation. The old man screamed in horror and tried to resist, but he couldn’t even gather his Saint Qi. In the end, he could only plunge headfirst into the darkness and his figure disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes as he glanced into the darkness and let out a soft whistle.
Three figures stood on the other side of the darkness at this moment. Aside from the sallow-faced man, the other two were people that Yang Kai was familiar with. They were Li Jiao and Lu San Niang!
Both their auras were still intact. They had suffered neither torture nor injury, but they had no intention of escaping either. That was because neither Li Jiao nor Lu San Niang could exert their full strength in this place, while on the contrary, this middle-aged man in front of them could.
Capturing them was a simple task for this man. Neither Li Jiao nor Lu San Niang could put up any resistance against him.
“No matter who you are, you will pay the price for this!” Li Jiao gazed at the middle-aged man with a vicious expression on his face. This man had thrown Lu Yu Qin into the darkness right in front of them and they did not even know whether she was still alive at this point. It was only natural that Li Jiao was furious. He hated himself for being helpless. If he had been in the Star Boundary, he would have fought this man to the death. Even if he wound up not being this man’s opponent, it would still be better than simmering with this rage.
The middle-aged man turned a deaf ear to those words and simply said calmly, “How are you so confident?”
Li Jiao smiled coldly, “Because you don’t know who you provoked.”
The middle-aged man finally turned his head to look at Li Jiao. Studying Li Jiao for a moment, he said, “I’m afraid you don’t have that ability.”
Li Jiao said, “If I had the ability, I would have twisted your head off a long time ago.”
“Are you pinning your hopes on that person named Yang Kai?” The middle-aged man raised his eyebrows at Li Jiao, secretly feeling amused.
He had never even heard of the name ‘Yang Kai’ before. So, how strong could this person be? Even if he was lucky enough to become the Star Field Master, he wouldn’t last long. He only learned of Yang Kai’s existence after talking to Li Jiao for some time. It wasn’t that Li Jiao wanted to sell Yang Kai out. He simply had no choice but to answer the questions since Lu Yu Qin and Lu San Niang were behind him.
“Just you wait. You will come to regret this.” Li Jiao sneered and said no more. It didn’t matter where the person in front of him came from or how high that person’s cultivation was, he believed that Yang Kai could get rid of them as long as they were not a Great Emperor. Yang Kai was a person who even dared to barge into a place like Dragon Island after all, so what else could trouble him in this world?
“I hope he is as capable as you say. Otherwise, this will be too boring!” The middle-aged man smiled slightly. All of a sudden, he sensed something and turned to look into the darkness. Ripples spread across the surface of the darkness. Immediately after that, a figure flew out from the depths of the darkness. Flailing about wildly, a deep look of shock still etched on their face.
The middle-aged man stretched out his hand and caught the figure. Meanwhile, the old man continued to yell without stopping. It took the middle-aged man shouting at him for him to calm down.
“S-Sir!” The old man exclaimed when his vision cleared and he saw who was standing in front of him. His eyes flashed with a sense of euphoria at having escaped the clutches of death. He had thought that he was a goner when Yang Kai threw him into the darkness. Who could have known that Yang Kai had kept his promise and let him live? Moreover, Yang Kai even sent him back to Grand Desolation Star Field!
“Why did you appear here from the other side?” The middle-aged man looked at the old man rather curiously and slowly released him from his grip.
The old man hurriedly replied, “Sir, I had to endure great humiliation in return for my life. That was how I survived and came back here to report to you.”
“Did that person send you back?” The middle-aged man frowned slightly, hitting the nail on the head with his statement.
Netherworld Sect’s Sect Master wore a stern expression. Even so, he could only nod affirmatively, “Yes. He sent me here to pass a message to you.”
“What message?”
“That little brat who doesn’t know his place claimed that he will be coming for you soon, Sir.” The old man considered his words carefully, not daring to repeat the exact words that Yang Kai had used.
“Is that all?” The middle-aged man frowned slightly. He seemed astonished by the message and turned to glance at Li Jiao and Lu San Niang.
[Doesn’t that person care about the lives of these two?]
“That’s all.” Netherworld Sect Master lowered his head.
The middle-aged man mulled over it for a moment. Then, he raised his hand and reached out towards Netherworld Sect Master’s head, an action that startled the old man greatly. He instinctively wanted to resist even though he knew that it was useless to, but in that moment of hesitation, the large hand covered his forehead and he stiffened in response, even his thoughts freezing in place.
“I’ll see for myself,” the middle-aged man said faintly. He then released his Divine Sense and poured it into the old man’s Knowledge Sea, forcefully scanning his memories. This method could easily cause irreversible damage to the old man; however, it was clear that the middle-aged man was not too concerned about that.
The old man’s Knowledge Sea churned violently all of a sudden, and a ray of light burst out from within the waters. That light flickered with an aura that did not belong to him before it transformed into an incredibly sharp attack that lashed out at the middle-aged man’s Divine Sense.
It turned out that Yang Kai had planted a lethal attack in the old man’s Knowledge Sea without the old man noticing, then he simply waited for the middle-aged man to walk right into his trap.
“Hmph!” The middle-aged man coldly snorted. Although he was surprised, he did not panic. His Divine Sense fluctuated and a wave of pure Spiritual Energy surged forward to take on the attack.
A loud crash rang out as the water in the old man’s Knowledge Sea boiled. The two Divine Senses collided together before dissipating, with the middle-aged man slightly surprised to find that the other party’s Spiritual Energy was no weaker than his. But, from what he heard from Li Jiao, this Yang Kai was only a First-Order Emperor! How can he have such a powerful Divine Sense?
When the two Divine Senses collided, neither side could do anything to the other. Unfortunately, Netherworld Sect Master suffered from their little exchange as he was caught off guard. The aftermath of the clash sent ripples back into the Star Field Master’s own Knowledge Sea, shaking his Soul slightly. On the other hand, the old man’s Knowledge Sea collapsed under the impact of this clash and his aura was extinguished. In the end, he was simply collateral damage in their confrontation. Yang Kai had not killed him and even allowed him to return, but Yang Kai’s trap caused him to lose his life instantly.
It was no longer realistic to investigate anything else, but just as the middle-aged man was about to withdraw his consciousness from the collapsed Knowledge Sea, a great sense of crisis descended from the sky.
He forced his eyes open and looked up to see a vortex had appeared within the darkness in front of him and a young man grinned at him from within as he leapt across the World Boundaries and lunged at him.
“Bold!” The middle-aged man’s expression finally changed as he exclaimed to himself. Grand Desolation Star Field was located on this side of the darkness and it was his territory! Anybody who entered this place would be suppressed by his power.
Even when he made plans to devour Heng Luo Star Field, he had to take his time and slowly make progress, one step at a time. He also had to send people over to search for Heng Luo Star Field’s Source on his behalf.
[How can this boy just rush into this place like this!? Isn’t he afraid he won’t leave this place alive!?]
Despite all the thoughts running through his head, the middle-aged man swiftly composed himself and grinned happily. He would have been helpless to do anything if Yang Kai had fought him while remaining hidden in Heng Luo Star Field. Both of them were Star Field Masters with control of their respective Star Fields, which also meant that they held a distinct advantage over the other in their respective territories.
But this place was his territory! A hint of pride flashed in the middle-aged man’s eyes as he looked at the fist slamming towards him, communicating with his own Star Field Source as he threw out a punch of his own.
“Dragon Transformation!” A shout suddenly rang out as Yang Kai’s body suddenly swelled, transforming into his 200-metre-long Half-Dragon Form in the blink of an eye, his fist suddenly becoming the size of a house.
The middle-aged man was startled by this change and before he could react, their fists collided. From an outsider’s perspective, the middle-aged man was not even the size of Yang Kai’s finger and it gave rise to an inexplicable feeling that the middle-aged man had overestimated his abilities, like an ant trying to shake a tree. Even so, the aura of both parties was not inferior to one another, both as tall and imposing as giants.
When their fists connected, Yang Kai’s huge fist visibly dented. The sound of bones breaking subsequently rang out and that sound travelled upwards, from his arms to his shoulders. His arm immediately went as limp as a wet noodle.
With just one punch, his arm had been rendered useless. He had suffered such a serious injury despite his Dragon Transformation which went to show just how powerful the middle-aged man was.
Although Yang Kai suffered great damage though, the other party was no better off.
The middle-aged man originally thought that with the advantage of being in his own territory, being able to fully mobilize the power of his Star Field, he could defeat Yang Kai without breaking a sweat; however, he realized how wrong he was the moment their fists connected.
An explosive and shocking power struck him from the front, and as a result, he was thrown backwards like a meteor and his figure vanished in the blink of an eye.
“What happened!?” The middle-aged man’s eyes widened as large as saucers. He had a look of disbelief on his face, but nevertheless, he soon figured out how Yang Kai had managed to do it. Logically speaking, Yang Kai would not be able to cause any harm to him in his own Star Field, no matter how high Yang Kai’s strength was. That punch was clearly not an ordinary attack. It was an attack that was mixed with the power of the enemy’s Star Field. That was the only explanation for how Yang Kai could produce such great force.
“Brother Yang!” Li Jiao was pleasantly surprised.
“Hurry up and escape!” Yang Kai stretched out his other intact hand towards Li Jiao and Lu San Niang, grabbed them in his palm, and plunged into the darkness behind him without any hesitation whatsoever. A punch like that could only be thrown once. He couldn’t do it again. Fortunately, his attack had caught the other party off guard. If he waited until that person recovered from his shock; forget letting Li Jiao and Lu San Niang escape, he himself would not be able to leave this Star Field alive either.
“You won’t escape!” A furious voice rang out from behind them as space around them seemed to solidify. Yang Kai was halfway through the motion of leaping into the darkness, but his body came to an abrupt stop at that moment. He was stuck in place with the darkness only several metres away from him, escape literally at his fingertips.
Turning his head, Yang Kai saw that the figure of the middle-aged man he had blown away just now was flickering and rushing towards them urgently. Yang Kai had always used his Space Techniques to inhibit his opponents’ movements and never expected he would one day be imprisoned in place by somebody else.
The middle-aged man had not mastered the Dao of Space, but he could mobilize all the Principles and powers of the Star Field as its Master.
[Fighting him in this place is very disadvantageous indeed.]
After suffering a loss once, the middle-aged man’s expression was extremely ugly; however, his eyes were also filled with excitement. It seemed as though he planned to keep Yang Kai here, once and for all. This was truly a godsend opportunity. If he missed this chance, he would never be able to take over Heng Luo Star Field again.
“Go!” Yang Kai threw Li Jiao and Lu San Niang, who were in his clutches, into the darkness, using both brute force and Space Principles at the same time to break through the restraints around him.
*Kacha…* Small cracks appeared in the surrounding space like little fish swimming about, and his imprisoned body finally regained a sliver of freedom. Clenching his intact fist, Yang Kai stealthily grasped something in the palm of his hand while praying in his heart that his guess was correct. Otherwise, a disastrous end would await him.
“I praise you for your righteousness, Your Excellency, but doing this was utter idiocy on your part.” The middle-aged man could not restrain the joy in his heart and quickly rushed over to Yang Kai in just several steps. Although the power behind Yang Kai’s punch just now was not weak, it had not caused any substantial harm to him.
As the Master of this Star Field, he had countless ways to disperse the power of that punch when he stood within his own domain. Therefore, he only suffered some slight discomfort. On the other hand, Yang Kai had lost the use of an arm and was now lashing out with his other one. The middle-aged man lifted his fist in response, preparing to render that arm useless too.
When their fists connected again, the smile on the middle-aged man’s face stiffened suddenly. He was, once again, blown away like a shooting star with a loud ‘whooshing’ sound. His eyes were filled with confusion, and he was completely incapable of understanding what had just happened. There was only one question repeating over and over in his heart.
[How is this possible!?]
Failing to receive the first punch earlier could be explained away by him underestimating his enemy and by the opponent still being able to utilize the power of their Star Field to a certain extent since they had just leapt across the World Barrier.
Be that as it may, it should have been impossible for the second punch to have such an effect! The middle-aged man had confined his opponent in this space and isolated him from Heng Luo Star Field on the other side! This boy couldn’t use the power of his Star Field again! Even so, the middle-aged man could clearly feel the power of a whole world rushing towards him from that punch. It was different from the first punch yet very similar at the same time.
“Hahahaha!” Yang Kai laughed wildly.
When the laughter reached the middle-aged man’s ears, it immediately filled him with rage. It felt as though he, an adult, was fighting with a child and being thrown to the ground, over and over again. It was extremely frustrating and humiliating. That wasn’t to say that Yang Kai was a child. It was just that Yang Kai should be no different from a defenceless child in this Star Field.
A voice that irritated him even more sounded in his head at that moment, “Just you wait! Sooner or later, I’ll beat your face in so badly that even your mother won’t recognize you!”
After leaving those vicious words behind, Yang Kai turned and stepped into the darkness.
By the time the middle-aged man lunged toward Yang Kai again, the latter was gone.
Clenching his fists furiously, he roared bitterly, “Yang Kai!”
There had been no grievances between Yang Kai and him before this, simply some friction over the assimilation of Heng Luo Star Field. However, there had not been a Star Field Master in Heng Luo Star Field when this middle-aged man first made his plans to take it over. What he wanted to devour had simply been an unowned Star Field at the time. In the end, those plans were ruined by Yang Kai. In other words, Yang Kai was the one who destroyed everything.
After being played for a fool over and over again though, the middle-aged man ended up embarrassing himself greatly. Therefore, the flames of rage were burning high in him and he already considered Yang Kai to be an enemy.
[If I ever get the chance, I will definitely kill him!]
Yang Kai appeared in Heng Luo Star Field and reverted back to his human appearance. Meanwhile, Li Jiao and Lu San Niang both stood there and watched the darkness anxiously. They were overjoyed to see Yang Kai emerge and immediately came forward in concern. Then, they saw that both his arms were hanging limply by his sides like strands of noodles, so how could they not realize that he had suffered a great loss?
“Brother Yang…” Li Jiao’s eyes were a little moist. After being captured by that middle-aged man, he had not held any hope that Yang Kai would come and rescue him. That was because he knew that, although he had some standing in Yang Kai’s heart, it was impossible to compare it to a whole Star Field; after all, this Star Field contained Yang Kai’s friends, family, and Sect. How could he sacrifice the entire Star Field for the sake of one newly made friend?
For that reason, Li Jiao had planned for the worst. Who could have known that Yang Kai would take such a huge risk to infiltrate a Star Field controlled by the enemy just to save him, though! Moreover, he succeeded! It was not an exaggeration to say that Li Jiao would never be able to repay such a great kindness even if he gave his life!
Yang Kai looked at Li Jiao in disgust and said, “My arm hurts very much right now. And, the way you look right now is making my head hurt too.”
Li Jiao blushed at those words.
Then, Yang Kai continued, “I only did that as an experiment. It would have been your fate if I failed to rescue you at that time. Of course, I would have avenged your deaths.”
Li Jiao said, “I understand. In any case, I am still very grateful.”
Lu San Niang seemed like she was hesitating to speak, but Yang Kai added, “Yu Qin is safe. She is currently at High Heaven Sect. You guys should go too.”
“What about you?” Li Jiao asked in concern.
Yang Kai said, “I will stay here to monitor the situation. Besides, I have to recuperate from my injuries.” Pausing for a moment, he continued, “By the way, do you know who that person is? At least, his name?”
Li Jiao replied, “That person calls himself ‘Wu Heng’!”
“Another one surnamed ‘Wu’?” Yang Kai frowned, and his expression became a little strange. All those with the surname Wu he met seemed to be scum. Even the greatest villain in history was surnamed Wu.
Li Jiao clearly knew what Yang Kai was thinking about, but shaking his head, he explained, “This person probably has nothing to do with ‘that’ person. They just happen to have the same surname.”
“It would be best if they are completely unrelated to each other.” Yang Kai nodded. If Wu Heng turned out to be related to Wu Kuang, then it would turn into an extremely troublesome matter. Another Heaven Devouring Great Emperor could not be allowed to exist in this world; after all, the original was still alive and kicking.
They talked for a bit more, but Li Jiao did not know much about Wu Heng’s background either, so Yang Kai soon sent the couple back to Shadowed Star.
Sitting cross-legged in the void, Yang Kai circulated his strength to restore his arms, both of which had been shattered. Although his actions had disgraced Wu Heng just now, they were not without cost. Various Principles flowed inside his arms, wantonly destroying his body and veins. The injuries were so severe that if it had been anybody else in this condition, their arms would have been completely crippled as a result.
Fortunately, Yang Kai had a strong physique and vitality, and now that he was back in his territory, he could borrow the power of the Star Field to easily draw out the Principles in his body and dissipate them into the void. Not only did he not suffer much from doing that, but he also added some energy to the Star Field, even though it was an insignificant amount.
A long while later, Yang Kai could finally slightly raise his arms. The potential dangers had been removed and the rest would simply heal slowly. It probably wouldn’t take long before they were completely restored. Then, he took out some healing pills and stuffed them into his mouth to further shorten the recovery period.
The palm of his right hand had been tightly clenched all this while. He had not loosened his grip at all since earlier. It wasn’t until this moment that Yang Kai unclenched his fist and spread out his palm.
A longan sized bead was lying quietly on the palm of his hand. It was the Sealed World Bead!
His first punch managed to blast Wu Heng back because he had been betting on catching Wu Heng off guard. Besides, he had just crossed over from his own Star Field so he could still mobilize some of the Star Field’s power when he stood at the border between both worlds.
However, Yang Kai did not rely on the power of the Star Field for the second punch. It was by borrowing the power of the Sealed World Bead that he managed to succeed!
If a Star Field was said to be its own world, then the Sealed World Bead was also its own world. The only difference was their sizes. Comparing the sizes of the worlds within the Sealed World Bead and the entire Star Field was like comparing a child to a full-grown adult. Even so, one thing was the same; they both contained their own World Force.
As the owner of the Sealed World Bead, it was only natural that Yang Kai could mobilize the power of the Sealed World. He had previously used the World Force within the Sealed World Bead to defend himself against a World Energy Baptism. Consequently, the Small Sealed World within had been heavily damaged, its World Principles suffering gravely.
Yang Kai had later entered the Five Coloured Treasure Pagoda of Star Soul Palace and used the Sealed World Bead to absorb a lot of Source Strength from it. It was only then that he finally managed to repair the Sealed World Bead and evolve it into a complete world.
Repeating that old trick was his last resort. Fortunately, the results did not disappoint him. He would not have been able to force Wu Heng back without the Sealed World Bead, regardless of how powerful his second punch was.
“May the Heavens bless you!” Yang Kai held the Sealed World Bead in both hands and chanted those words several times before his expression became resolute. Immersing his Divine Sense into the Sealed World Bead, he probed the condition within and his face immediately twitched in response. His expression fluctuated endlessly, it was only after a long time that a miserable howl resounded through the Starry Sky.
As he expected, the insides of the Small Sealed World were a mess. The world that had been repaired and perfected when he entered the Five Coloured Treasure Pagoda had fallen apart again. The World Principles were chaotic, the mountains were upside down, the rivers flowed in reverse, and multiple Void Cracks spread across the Small Sealed World like great scars.
At first glance, the world was in such a dilapidated condition that it looked like it might collapse at any moment.
Yang Kai was heartbroken. Saving Li Jiao this time around had bled him dry. Luckily, he had managed to save those two at the very least. Furthermore, the one silver lining among the rest of the misfortunes was that there was no damage near the medicine garden. After all, the medicine garden was the real core of the Small Sealed World.
One reason for this stroke of fortune was that Yang Kai had deliberately protected that place. The other reason was that the Immortal Tree and Firmament Tree were planted inside the medicine garden.
Be it the Immortal Tree or the Firmament Tree, there was only one of their kind in the world. Their existences in itself were difficult to destroy, so it was only natural that the place where they were located would be practically untouchable too.
Sometime later, Yang Kai withdrew his consciousness from the Sealed World Bead and calmed his rampaging emotions.
Although the Sealed World Bead was severely damaged, it was not destroyed. That meant that there was always a chance to repair it again.
[I will have to see if I can get another chance to enter the Five Coloured Treasure Pagoda.]
However, he suddenly recalled what had happened when he left Star Soul Palace back then and instantly dismissed the idea.
[I caused a lot of trouble for Star Soul Palace when I last entered the Five Coloured Treasure Pagoda, so I’m afraid Bright Moon Great Emperor will never let me enter it ever again.]
Putting the Sealed World Bead away, Yang Kai cast his gaze into the darkness before him.
Right now, taking care of what was in front of him came first.
When Heng Luo Star Field had been without a Master, no one could stop Wu Heng, a thief, from rushing in and looting the place as he pleased. Now that Yang Kai had become the Star Field Master though, how could he continue to allow Wu Heng to run wild in his territory?
Just as he was no match for Wu Heng in Grand Desolation Star Field, the same also applied vice versa.
Communicating with the Star Chart in his Knowledge Sea, Yang Kai faced the vast darkness, took a deep breath, spread his arms wide open, and pushed forward violently while assuming an aggressive stance. In response, the churning darkness rolled backwards like the ebbing tides of the sea. It retreated nearly a thousand kilometres in an instant. Moreover, it continued to shrink backwards. In the places where the darkness had retreated, the originally Starry Sky reappeared again.
Yang Kai had not been joking when he first said ‘Spit out whatever you ate that belongs to me!’ He fully intended to take action to get back what was originally his.
All of a sudden, the withdrawing darkness slowed down, as if some sort of power was blocking its retreat on the other side.
“How dare you resist!?” Yang Kai raised his brow and grinned savagely. How could he not know this was Wu Heng’s doing? Unable to forget the humiliation from the other day, Wu Heng was determined to make things difficult for Yang Kai.
Yang Kai was forcing the darkness that was devouring Heng Luo Star Field to retreat. On the contrary, Wu Heng was deliberately exerting force on the other side to hinder Yang Kai’s actions. Unfortunately, Wu Heng’s actions were meaningless. Even though the speed had slowed down by a lot, the darkness continued to recede under Yang Kai’s continuous efforts.
Three years ago, the darkness here had begun to devour everything. It took Wu Heng three years to engulf a few millions of kilometres of this Star Field. The speed of absorption was not that fast compared to the length of time it had taken to do so. On the other hand, the speed of recovery was much faster.
The darkness receded, shrinking towards a centre point, little by little. The black hole that had covered a vast area within the Star Field gradually disappeared and the Starry Sky was restored to its original state.
The entire process took about a month in total before all the darkness had been driven away, leaving behind only the original Void Corridor in its place. Back then, Li Jiao had been assigned to guard this Void Corridor and prevent both the reinforcement and escape of Grand Desolation Star Field’s cultivators.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai and Wu Heng had been battling each other from across Worlds over the course of the last month. The end result was as expected. It was Yang Kai’s overwhelming victory.
The gears in Yang Kai’s head began to turn as he stared at the entrance of that pitch-black Void Corridor.
The reason why this Void Corridor had appeared was mainly that he had taken the Source of Heng Luo Star Field away with him when he left for Star Boundary; thus, the World Barrier between the two Star Fields had weakened. It might have been accidental or it might have been Wu Heng’s plot all along, but the weakest point had transformed into an interconnecting Void Corridor between the two Star Fields.
Now that Yang Kai had brought the Source back and successfully refined the Star Chart to become Heng Luo Star Field’s Master, he was fully capable of closing up the Void Corridor. It wouldn’t take much time or effort for Yang Kai to accomplish this with his current strength. It was just that the connection between the two Star Fields would be completely cut off once the Void Corridor was closed.
How could Yang Kai end things so cleanly when he had yet to exact his revenge? Hence, he left the Void Corridor there as it was. Not only did he not repair it, he even began putting together a nefarious plot.
[The best way to deal out revenge is to return an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Since Wu Heng tried to devour Heng Luo Star Field, I will return the favour and take a bite out of Grand Desolation Star Field to show him what it feels like to be robbed! But, I need to think up a good plan before doing that; otherwise, I’ll simply fail like Wu Heng did here.]
The Void Corridor fell silent, but although Yang Kai couldn’t see anything across it, he was certain that Wu Heng was also watching him from the other side. Grinning, he stretched his hand out and began drawing something.
A light flowed out, and in the next moment, a mysterious pattern appeared in front of the corridor. This pattern was none other than the pattern of the Cross-Territory Space Array. With the Void as its base and the power of the Stars as its materials, Yang Kai arranged a giant Space Array with just a few gestures, demonstrating the great power of a Star Field Master.
The Embodiment right now was sitting cross-legged in High Heaven Sect, far away on Shadowed Star, absorbing World Energy to cultivate. All of a sudden, light flashed behind it and an identical array appeared at its back. It turned to look behind it when it felt something; then, it got up and stepped into the array.
In an instant, it passed through a distance of billions of kilometres and appeared in front of Yang Kai. Looking around, it understood everything even though nothing was said. It quietly walked over to Yang Kai and pressed its hand against his head before sending a vast sea of information into the latter’s Knowledge Sea.
To some extent, the Embodiment was an extension of Yang Kai’s body. It was just that it had the body of a Stone Spirit with Yang Kai’s Soul Clone occupying it.
It was capable of communicating with Yang Kai via words to express different opinions and ideas; however, when it was needed, it could also communicate without using words at all. Yang Kai could understand its various thoughts, as well as share his own with it.
The information the Embodiment was currently sending to Yang Kai was none other than the most powerful and most evil Secret Art in the world, the Heaven Devouring Battle Law!
The Heaven Devouring Battle Law was created by Wu Kuang and was a Secret Art that could swallow and refine everything in the world. Back then, Wu Kuang had used this Secret Art to devour countless Star Fields. Several Great Emperors had died in order to kill him in a great battle; however, Wu Kuang had seized another person’s body and consciousness, coming back to life again after tens of thousands of years. If those fallen Great Emperors learned of this, they might roll over in their graves or come back to life out of rage.
Even though the Heaven Devouring Battle Law was powerful, Yang Kai had not cultivated it because he always felt that there were significant drawbacks to this Secret Art. His belief had been strengthened even more after the Embodiment cultivated it. The Secret Art contained several critical flaws. Being able to devour and refine everything in existence might sound amazing, but it would only end in disaster if there was no corresponding way to process what was devoured.
That was because there would inevitably be all kinds of energies, Principles, and Attributes, along with innumerable impurities taken in when swallowing and refining raw materials, resources, and energy. In turn, these impurities were bound to produce some complications. Once these complications accumulated to a certain level, they would cause great harm to a cultivator and even lead to the regression of their cultivation due to cultivation dissonance.
Wu Kuang naturally had a method of resolving those issues, which was why he was capable of using his Heaven Devouring Battle Law so wantonly.
As for Yang Kai though, he did not have the means to do so. However, his Embodiment did. The Stone Spirit Clan had a unique physique wherein they could eat all kinds of stones and minerals that contained all kinds of Principles and energies. Then, they simply refined those ores and discard any kind of impurity from their bodies innately.
Strictly speaking, there was no other race in this world that was more suitable for cultivating the Heaven Devouring Battle Law than the Stone Spirit Clan. That was probably something Wu Kuang had never thought of nor foreseen either.
After obtaining the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, the Embodiment had been cultivating it for many years but it had yet to encounter any problems regarding impurities or mismatched energies during that time. It even managed to devour Shi Huo’s Source. When it came to understanding and comprehending the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, the Embodiment was the only one in this world, aside from Wu Kuang, that held any authority on the subject.
Yang Kai slowly digested the huge amount of information pouring into his mind. He had studied it before, but now, with Embodiment’s notes and key insights as well as things he learnt from Wu Kuang, Yang Kai quickly realized that this Secret Art was far more profound and mysterious than he had originally imagined. If Wu Kuang had not been evil, he would have been a glorified genius.
Half a day later, the Embodiment withdrew its hand and glanced at the black hole not too far away, standing guard next to Yang Kai in case of unexpected accidents.
Time passed by slowly as Yang Kai was completely immersed in comprehending the Heaven Devouring Battle Law. He could not extricate himself from it and the more he learned, the more he was tempted to cultivate this Secret Art.
[This Secret Art is incredibly powerful. Wu Meng Chuan must have been pretty stupid to fail to break through to the Emperor Realm despite cultivating this Secret Art for so many years.]
Fortunately, Yang Kai had been travelling all over the world for many years and had a firm mental disposition from all those experiences, so he managed to curb his greed at this moment.
Exactly one month later, Yang Kai slowly opened his eyes, eyes that shone with clarity. He stood up and stretched, loosening his muscles and joints. His entire body rang out with cracking noises. Shaking his hands, he discovered that they were as good as new. His injuries were fully healed after one month of recovery.
Staring at the Void Corridor, Yang Kai grinned and muttered, “Let the revenge begin!”
He connected to the Star Chart within his Knowledge Sea and activated the power of the Star Field. Rushing towards the Void Corridor, he next circulated the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, demonstrating his skills as he started working.
Upon learning about the pros and cons of the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, Yang Kai refused to cultivate it himself. At this moment, he was using the entire Star Field as a foundation to activate this powerful Secret Art. It was as though Heng Luo Star Field was the one using the Heaven Devouring Battle Law. In other words, the one cultivating the Secret Art wasn’t Yang Kai but Heng Luo Star Field itself. Regardless of how many different kinds of Principles or energies the Star Field devoured, it could digest and absorb them easily. The Star Field had the natural ability to do so. This powerful technique was something only a Star Field Master could pull off.
On the other side of the Void Corridor, Wu Heng had a grim expression. He had stood guard in this place for a month and was growing increasingly bored. He initially wanted to cultivate by devouring another Star Field, but those plans ended up being destroyed. Moreover, Yang Kai had broken into his home and punched him twice. He instinctively knew that Yang Kai was not to be trifled with. So, he could not just charge into Heng Luo Star Field and attack, lest he be retaliated against and bring trouble down upon himself.
Who could have known that one month would pass by so peacefully? Nothing happened during this period. [It looks like that Yang Kai knows that he can’t do anything to me and has given up.]
The Void Corridor stood there, but Wu Heng kept his distance, as if afraid Yang Kai would launch another sneak attack. How could he embarrass himself in such a manner? In truth, it would be the best outcome for him if things ended as they were right now. Engulfing an entire Star Field was no small matter after all. It was only because he could sense that the other Star Field had no Master that he started having such ideas in the first place. Wu Heng would not have attempted what he did if Heng Luo Star Field had a Master from the beginning.
Wu Heng was willing to overlook this matter and let bygones be bygones. However, Yang Kai was not. He wanted an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
In Yang Kai’s mind, he felt Grand Desolation Star Field’s invasion had caused many families to be separated and Sects to be destroyed. Even Tong Xuan Realm was almost poisoned to death, and Little Senior Sister nearly died as a result. There was no point in cultivating if he couldn’t even vent his anger after such an insult!
An abnormal movement came from the Void Corridor all of a sudden. Wu Heng abruptly lifted his head to look in that direction but his expression soon sank as he gritted his teeth, “Bastard boy! I even gave you a way out of this!”
He felt that he was already making a huge concession in his willingness to overlook Yang Kai’s previous transgressions. Who could have known that Yang Kai would refuse to rest until he got what he wanted?
[I can’t believe he is trying to devour my Star Field instead! I’m going to make sure he learns a painful lesson! Otherwise, that brat will never know his place!]
Darkness poured out of the Void Corridor like a tide. It was as if a thick layer of ink was spreading into the surroundings at a rapid pace. Everything the darkness touched turned into nothingness, leaving a chaotic black hole in its wake.
Wu Heng ignored the darkness and simply kept backing away from it. It wasn’t the right time to launch his counterattack. He could suppress the darkness if he made a move now, but it would definitely lead to an endless tug of war with Yang Kai. Therefore, he calmly waited for his chance to end things in one fell swoop.
So, it would be Yang Kai knowing about it but he is learning from Embodiment and Wu Kuang insights as well.
Wu Heng had no intention of obstructing the darkness since the darkness’ speed of engulfment was not as fast as he had imagined. Instead, he sneered at the sight. Although they were both Star Field Masters, the time they had spent as Star Field Masters was too different. It was only natural for differences in their abilities to appear. It had not been long since Yang Kai became a Star Field Master, so there was no way he could unleash the true power of a Star Field right away. That was also why the speed of devouring was so slow.
Wu Heng slowly retreated, bit by bit. He watched the situation coldly without doing anything as he waited for the moment to launch his counterattack.
Yang Kai stood in Heng Luo Star Field with his eyes closed tightly. His current state was rather strange. His Divine Sense pulsed erratically, as though it permeated the entire Star Field and was gnawing on something with a giant mouth.
A piece of the Starry Sky that clearly did not belong to Heng Luo Star Field had appeared next to the Void Corridor. Not only were there meteors of all sizes drifting about, but slightly varying World Principles could also be felt within this region. More importantly, it was having some minor incompatibilities with Heng Luo Star Field.
Although both Grand Desolation Star Field and Heng Luo Star Field were Star Fields with roughly the same World Principles, they still had their differences. It was similar to the differences between the Principles of Cultivation Stars formed in the same Star Field. These differences were not obvious on the surface, but the more powerful the Cultivation Star, the more apparent the differences became.
The Heaven Devouring Battle Law operated with the Heng Luo Star Field as its base. It had a piece of the Starry Sky as its stomach and was digesting the space it had just devoured.
Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling amazed. Despite using the entire Star Field as his foundation to activate the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, everything was still governed by his will. He could clearly perceive all the details of the process as the Star Field slowly digested the space it had devoured.
The World Principles of that piece of Starry Sky that originally belonged to Grand Desolation Star Field quickly collapsed and were gradually assimilated and influenced by the Principles of Heng Luo Star Field. Both sides merged together and slowly became one.
[I can’t believe that there’s no obstruction. Where is Wu Heng?] Logically speaking, the absorption process should not be going so smoothly. Yang Kai was certain that Wu Heng had safeguards in place, but he had yet to notice anything getting in his way. Thus, it was puzzling him greatly.
Strange though it may be, his movements were not the slightest bit hindered. Yang Kai controlled the power of the Star Field, transforming it into a kind of invisible power that engulfed the other Star Field’s Starry Sky. At the same time, he had the Star Field itself operate the Heaven Devouring Battle Law to digest whatever was being devoured immediately after.
Yang Kai did not know how long had passed when a strong force of resistance suddenly came from the opposite side and the space he had devoured was quickly snatched back from his grasp.
That wasn’t all though as an extremely terrifying force also swept through the dense darkness and tried to consume his mind in return.
[Is he finally making his move?] Yang Kai had long been waiting for this moment, so he was not flustered. He didn’t even bother to defend against this attack and simply allowed the force to slip through the darkness and rush toward him.
On the other side of the darkness, Wu Heng was laughing coldly. His eyes were full of mockery. [It’s true that a newborn calf isn’t afraid of tigers. I would have let all those incidents pass without a fuss if this Yang Kai had been willing to leave things be. Instead, he turned around and tried to devour my Star Field! How can I swallow this humiliation if I don’t teach him a lesson or two!?]
The wider the darkness spread, the larger the area of engulfment. Accordingly, the more mental capacity Yang Kai had to use to maintain the process.
When Wu Heng was certain that Yang Kai couldn’t withdraw his mind immediately, he boldly made his move and prepared to strike a heavy blow at him using the power of his Star Field.
Just like what happened in Heng Luo Star Field before, the darkness receded from Grand Desolation Star Field like an ebbing tide to reveal the Starry Sky that had been devoured previously. It wouldn’t take long for everything to return back to normal if nothing unexpected occurred.
All of a sudden, Wu Heng’s smile stiffened as he noticed something off. His eyes widened to the size of saucers as the power he had sent through the darkness had encountered an invisible barrier. Forget about taking the opportunity to cause harm to his opponent, he couldn’t even proceed any further than that. Moreover, the place where the barrier was located was within the Starry Sky that belonged to him!
[How can this be!? How can my own Starry Sky put up such strong resistance against me?] Wu Heng felt his heart sinking, and an uneasy feeling grew in his heart. Concurrently, the darkness stopped receding, and no matter how hard he tried, he could not make it retreat any further than this.
When Wu Heng lifted his eyes to look in that direction, his jaw fell open in astonishment and his eyes were filled with disbelief. A black hole sporting a diameter of several hundred kilometres entered his vision. The inside of the black hole was a chaotic piece of nothingness. It looked like the world did not exist yet, and it gave off a terrifying feeling.
The heart of the black hole should have been where the Void Corridor was located, but was the Void Corridor originally this large? It has expanded by more than 100 times at least! [What is going on? Has my Star Field been refined by him?]
That was the only explanation as to why the Void Corridor had expanded into a black hole with a diameter of several hundred kilometres. That was because the Starry Sky where the black hole was located no longer belonged to Grand Desolation Star Field. The loss of this region of Starry Sky was due to it being completely refined, leaving only a black hole filled with nothingness behind.
[How in the world did he do it!?]
Wu Heng even suspected that there was a problem with his eyes. He had spent the last three years devouring a large portion of Heng Luo Star Field’s Starry Sky; however, he had simply swallowed it up and not digested it yet. If he had, Yang Kai would not have been able to snatch it back so easily.
Devouring and refining were two different things, similar to a mortal eating a meal. Eating a bowl of rice was different from digesting a bowl of rice. Something that had been eaten could be thrown up again, but something that had been digested truly belonged to that person.
His three years of hard work had only been ‘eating’. On the other hand, Yang Kai had ‘digested’ a portion of his Starry Sky.
Wu Heng’s original plan also included this step of ‘digestion’. Unfortunately, that part of his plan had to wait until he had completely engulfed Heng Luo Star Field and refined the Source of Heng Luo Star Field before it could begin. That process might take hundreds of years, or maybe even thousands of years. Even so, that time spent was worth it in terms of improving his strength.
‘Digesting’ a Star Field was not something that could be done in a short period of time. Wu Heng had been convinced of that fact prior to this; however, he felt as though his common sense had been greatly impacted after witnessing the scene in front of him.
The entire process had only taken a day, from the time Yang Kai began devouring the Star Field to the time Wu Heng had moved to stop Yang Kai. In short, Yang Kai had managed to ‘digest’ an area covering several hundreds of kilometres wide in just one day!
Wu Heng did not believe that Yang Kai had that sort of ability.
[Don’t tell me… Is it possible that the Heng Luo Star Field is of a higher level compared to the Grand Desolation Star Field? If not, how can such a bizarre thing happen?]
“This is bad!” The moment Wu Heng became distracted, his expression changed drastically and he immediately connected with Grand Desolation Star Field’s Source and suppressed the black hole with all his might.
[I have to get rid of that black hole as soon as possible! Otherwise, the more time passes, I won’t just be losing this small amount of territory. It could very well end up in the millions of kilometres!]
Now, more than ever, he deeply regretted not closing the Void Corridor earlier. He had allowed Yang Kai to fight back; whereas if he had not been stubborn and closed the Void Corridor right away, the connection between the two Star Fields would have been cut off and this tragedy would never have occurred.
In any case, it was useless to regret now so he could only make up for his mistake and pray it wasn’t too late.
The Source Strength of Grand Desolation Star Field flashed a dazzling light inside Wu Heng’s Knowledge Sea. It had clearly been pushed to the limits as a pressing force enveloped the black hole from all directions. Even so, the force couldn’t get any further than the edges of the black hole. The moment it came into contact, even the ubiquitous Source Strength showed signs of being swallowed and digested.
Wu Heng’s complexion became flushed after trying hard for some time while his gaze was fixed intently on the black hole. Rage brewed in his chest, causing his entire being to resemble a volcano that was about to erupt. The aura around him was very dangerous.
“Yang Kai!” He yelled up to the sky, feeling extremely unwilling. Regardless of how unwilling he was to admit the truth, as of this moment, he had completely fallen into a disadvantage in his fight against Yang Kai. The black hole was no longer under his control. The patch of Starry Sky where the black hole was located had fallen into Yang Kai’s hands completely and was now part of the latter’s territory. Thus, Wu Heng was unable to close the Void Corridor no matter how much of the Star Field Source Strength he used. As long as the black hole existed, the connection between the two Star Fields could not be cut off unless Yang Kai took the initiative to retreat!
Yang Kai was obviously not going to retreat. At the moment, he was experiencing a feeling of joy spreading in his heart. He couldn’t wait to swallow up the entire Grand Desolation Star Field. Why would he worry about Wu Heng’s feelings?
The Heaven Devouring Battle Law was certainly worthy of being the most powerful Secret Art ever created. To sum up its essence in a single word, it would be ‘plunder’! It did not matter if the other party was willing or not. It plundered every single useful thing it came across without exception.
Cultivating the Heaven Devouring Battle Law as an individual would have brought about terrifying consequences; however, Yang Kai was using the entire Star Field as a sort of proxy to activate this Secret Art, which instantly gave birth to something majestic that could engulf the entire world. He was extremely certain that devouring and absorbing the entire Grand Desolation Star Field would not be a problem given enough time.
The progress in the beginning could not be considered fast. Nevertheless, Yang Kai became more and more proficient in the application of the Heaven Devouring Battle Law as time passed. In turn, the speed of devouring and absorbing increased significantly.
In less than a month, the black hole in Grand Desolation Star Field that initially started out with a radius of only several hundreds of metres had expanded to several tens of thousands of kilometres.
That pitch-black hole stretched out across the Starry Sky of Grand Desolation Star Field and looked extremely horrifying. Moreover, the black hole was still expanding continuously and showed no signs of stopping whatsoever.
Meanwhile, the speed of expansion was also increasing imperceptibly.
Wu Heng’s expression was so sorrowful that he looked like his parents had just been killed and his wife had been stolen away. Grand Desolation Star Field was damaged, and the most obvious change was a black spot that had appeared in a certain part of the Star Chart in his Knowledge Sea.
The black spot wasn’t that large relative to the size of the entire Star Chart; however, it was as though a drop of ink had been dripped onto a beautiful painting. It had destroyed the overall harmony and beauty of the picture. What was even more depressing though was that the ink was slowly spreading out into its surroundings. Sooner or later, the entire painting would be dyed black. When that time came, Grand Desolation Star Field would change its surname to ‘Yang’.
It wasn’t that Wu Heng did not resist. He had been in a constant war against Yang Kai for the past month, but nothing he did was able to stop his opponent from devouring his Star Field.
[How does a fledgling Star Field Master, who just refined the Star Field Source not too long ago, have such power? If I had such power, I would have turned Heng Luo Star Field into my backyard a long time ago!] It wasn’t until this moment that Wu Heng realized how bad his situation was.
If this matter was not handled well, forget about increasing his cultivation, he might lose everything instead.
Yang Kai wasn’t the only one happy about the process of engulfment, the entire Heng Luo Star Field also seemed to be experiencing some sort of joyous feeling. Seeing as the world had a Will of its own as well, it was only natural that it could detect how beneficial Yang Kai’s actions were to it.
As time passed, the speed of engulfment became faster and faster. Even though Wu Heng tried his best to push back, his efforts were useless. All he could do was watch while grieving as his territory slowly slipped out of his grasp.
At a certain moment, an idea suddenly came to Yang Kai. He considered the feasibility of this idea while maintaining the engulfment of Grand Desolation Star Field, and the more he thought about it, the more confident he felt it would work. He even had the urge to praise himself for his ingenuity.
Opening his eyes, he glanced at the Embodiment, who had been standing guard next to him while he was busy with the process of devouring and refining the enemy Star Field. When their eyes met, it immediately understood what crazy idea Yang Kai was thinking about; thus, it nodded lightly and spread its palm out towards him.
Controlling the Star Field Source, Yang Kai forced it out of his Knowledge Sea. The resplendent Star Chart that had shrunken by countless times appeared in the palm of his hand, shining with a dazzling light.
The Embodiment took it from Yang Kai and swallowed it in one bite before sitting down cross-legged in the Starry Sky. A short time later, it opened its eyes and nodded at Yang Kai to indicate that everything was prepared.
As of this moment, it had temporarily replaced Yang Kai as the Master of Heng Luo Star Field. It would have been impossible for anyone else to do this as they would have died from the backlash as soon as they swallowed the Star Chart.
Strictly speaking, the Embodiment’s consciousness was formed from Yang Kai’s Soul Clone, both of which originated from the same source. Their auras overlapped perfectly, and as a result, the Star Field Source did not reject this exchange too strongly. In addition, the process of devouring and refining during this period had also given the Star Field Source a taste of the benefits, which made it more willing to accept the Embodiment as a temporary replacement as its Master.
Besides, the Embodiment had been cultivating the Heaven Devouring Battle Law for many years and his comprehension and skill with this Secret Art was far above Yang Kai’s. It didn’t take a genius to know that the efficiency of letting him take control of the Star Field Source, as well as the process of devouring and refining Grand Desolation Star Field, would be much higher compared to what Yang Kai could do.
Freed from the responsibility of controlling the Star Field Source, Yang Kai turned to look at the darkness and grinned as he muttered, “I’m coming, Wu Heng!”
Although swallowing and refining the opponent’s Star Field had given Yang Kai the revenge he had been looking for, he had not actually caused any harm to Wu Heng. He probably needed to wait until the entire Grand Desolation Star Field was thoroughly refined before he could truly cause the other party some grief.
[I don’t have that much time to play with him, but I promised that I would beat him up so badly that even his mother won’t be able to recognize him, and that’s what I’m going to do! Besides, fighting across the boundaries of two Star Fields like this doesn’t give me a sense of satisfaction even though I’m holding the upper hand in battle. Nothing ventured, nothing gained! Let’s visit the lion’s den again!] Only this time was going to be different. The last time Yang Kai crossed the World Boundary, it was to rescue Li Jiao and Lu San Niang and he had retreated immediately after succeeding. But this time, he was going there to turn the entire Grand Desolation Star Field upside down!
Needless to say, part of the reason was that he needed to find a way to repair the Sealed World Bead. As the saying went, ‘there is no such thing as a free lunch’. The Sealed World Bead had been damaged because of Wu Heng, so it was only natural for the latter to compensate for this. Besides, there was no shortage of materials for repairing the Sealed World Bead in Grand Desolation Star Field.
After making up his mind, Yang Kai boldly plunged headfirst into the darkness without hesitation.
The black hole had spread as far as several tens of thousands of kilometres within the Starry Sky of Grand Desolation Star Field, and even a couple of small nearby Dead Stars had been swallowed up without a trace.
Meanwhile, Wu Heng continued to retreat, using all his energy to resist the black hole’s advance, but his efforts could only slow the speed of the engulfment, not stop it.
For an instant just now, the devouring came to an abrupt stop; however, it started up again before Wu Heng could even begin to rejoice and seemed to have gotten much stronger than before. He was unaware that Yang Kai and the Embodiment had switched roles. Moreover, the horrifying power of the Heaven Devouring Battle Law had increased significantly now that the Embodiment was controlling it.
While Wu Heng was reeling in surprise, a figure suddenly flashed out of the enormous black hole. Glancing in that direction, Wu Heng’s vision instantaneously turned red and through gritted teeth he roared, “Bastard, how dare you come here!?”
Who else could that person be if not Yang Kai? Wu Heng couldn’t believe this boy dared to come waltzing back into his domain! Did he not know how to write the word ‘death’?
However, Wu Heng quickly realized something, if Yang Kai was here, then why did the engulfment not stop and instead become faster?
Logically speaking, there was no way a Star Field Master could make the Star Field continue this kind of engulfment process if they were not in their own Star Field; however, it was also true that Yang Kai had crossed the World Boundary and appeared in front of him.
[Could it be that he isn’t the Star Field Master? Have I been mistaken all this time? No! The last time we fought, he definitely used the power of the Star Field. Otherwise, I would not have been blown away by a single punch.]
Wu Heng’s eyes blazed with hatred upon meeting his enemy. There was no time for him to think so deeply as he fiercely roared, “Since you are here, prepare to die!”
He had previously been humiliated by Yang Kai twice, so how could he dare to let his guard down now? Wu Heng immediately attacked with full force, his large hand stretching out towards Yang Kai and suddenly squeezing hard.
Yang Kai felt his entire body becoming imprisoned. Cracking sounds rang out from all the bones in his body and he spit out a mouthful of Golden Blood. It was only to be expected that he would suffer for angering somebody else in their territory; even so, he did not panic and simply grinned at Wu Heng.
That smile was ill-intentioned and full of mockery, causing Wu Heng’s heart to clench up. He had the feeling that Yang Kai was about to carry out some sort of evil plan, and in the next moment, his expression changed drastically.
Wu Heng had switched his focus to dealing with Yang Kai just now, taking his attention and the power of the Star Field away from dealing with the encroachment of the black hole. As a result though, the shift in momentum between the two Star Fields was dramatic. Although Wu Heng had not been a match for the opposing Star Field prior to this, he could, at the very least, curb the speed of the engulfment; however, the rate of devouring immediately went wild the moment he became distracted and expanded by a thousand kilometres in an instant. The previous speed of engulfment was practically as slow as a turtle compared to its current speed.
Wu Heng wasn’t standing too far from the black hole since he had been trying to contain the devouring to the greatest extent possible; thus, the rapid expansion of the endless darkness nearly swallowed him up too. Shocked, he hurriedly backed away and put a few thousand kilometres between him and the darkness all at once.
Wu Heng did not dare to delay and immediately communicated with his Star Field Source to suppress the darkness again.
The speed of engulfment slowed down once more, but Yang Kai took the opportunity to free himself from Wu Heng’s suppression. After that, he simply crossed his arms in front of his chest and stood there with no intention of escaping.
Calmly looking down at Wu Heng with a mischievous expression, he quipped, “Having fun?”
“You court death!” The veins on Wu Hen’s forehead bulged and twitched wildly as his murderous intent overflowed from him in waves.
Yang Kai chuckled and wiped at the blood at the corners of his mouth, “Why don’t you hurry up and kill me then?”
The corner of Wu Heng’s eyes twitched fiercely in response.
Having seen Yang Kai’s power before, he knew that Yang Kai seemed to be carrying the Dragon Clan’s bloodline. He didn’t know what consequences he would face if he killed someone like him. Even putting that aside, Wu Heng didn’t have the confidence to say he could kill Yang Kai in a short period of time.
The force of his attack just now had not been low, but even so, Yang Kai had gotten off with just some slight injuries. It could be seen that his opponent’s defences and abilities were far beyond Wu Heng’s imagination. [But, if I can’t kill him quickly… The opposing Star Field’s devouring speed will surely increase in an explosive burst the moment I stop focusing on it. Not only will that bring danger to my Star Field, but I may also sustain grave injuries.]
The rage and resentment piled up like a mountain weighing down on Wu Heng’s heart. He was barely able to breathe because of it. He had never imagined that he would suffer such a huge loss in his own Star Field! Just where did this bastard come from!? Why had he never heard of his name before? If he is just a rising star, then this strength was simply too unbelievable!
“Looks like you are all talk and no substance.” Yang Kai seemed oblivious to Wu Heng’s murderous intent and continued to add fuel to the fire. It was as though he wouldn’t be satisfied unless he made Wu Heng cough up blood from irritation. His actions were similar to walking a tightrope on a cliff though, so even Wu Heng had to admire him for his courage.
“Too bad for you, but I’m not in a joking mood,” shaking his head slowly, Yang Kai stared at Wu Heng coldly and continued unhurriedly, “Just you wait. I’ll be back for your life later.”
Saying so, he swiped his finger across his neck as though his finger was a knife. After saying that, he turned and left!
“Stop!” Wu Heng shouted as a thought flashed through his head, and the space around Yang Kai turned into a cage, confining the latter inside. However, that moment of distraction caused the expansion of the black hole to accelerate again. It expanded to Wu Heng’s side in the blink of an eye, causing him to panic and struggle to cope with it.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai turned his head and glanced sideways at Wu Heng, “If you have something to say, spit it out!”
Wu Heng’s temper flared at those words. [How dare he be so disrespectful to me!?] Ever since he became the Star Field Master in this place, he felt as though he controlled the world. All the people who had disrespected him had died at his hands. Naturally, he wanted Yang Kai dead too. Although he might be able to pull this off in his own territory, the price he would have to pay was so great that even he could not afford it.
[I’m in a desperate situation!] Those words suddenly popped up in Wu Heng’s mind, so taking a deep breath, he suppressed the anger in his heart and quickly spoke, “As the saying goes, ‘It’s better to have more friends than enemies’. I only tried to devour the Heng Luo Star Field because I could sense that it was a Star Field without a Master. I won’t attempt this anymore now that you have become the Star Field Master. Why not put down arms and make peace instead? If we continue to fight, it will only cause all living beings in both Star Fields to suffer.”
Yang Kai widened his eyes and looked at Wu Heng in astonishment, “Are you begging for mercy?”
Wu Heng replied in a low voice, “I was just proposing a solution to our problem.”
[Beg for mercy!? Is he joking!? The victor isn’t set in stone; we don’t know who will win once I start fighting seriously! I just don’t want to contend with a strong enemy if possible.]
“Oh… It’s just a suggestion then…” Yang Kai looked disappointed. Then, he shook his head exaggeratedly and said, “Then, that’s not a good solution.”
“What’s wrong with it? Making peace is beneficial for both you and me,” Wu Heng questioned patiently.
Yang Kai retorted, “You commanded the people of Grand Desolation Star Field to run amok in my territory. Countless of my people died or suffered grievous injuries because of that. Don’t you think I got the worst end of the deal if I stop now?”
Wu Heng didn’t think so. Even so, he nodded agreeably on the surface and tried to negotiate, “That’s reasonable. If you find it unfair, then I can give you some compensation.”
“What can you compensate me with?”
Wu Heng replied, “You can have the Starry Sky that you have engulfed so far.”
Yang Kai laughed, “That already belongs to me. Can you even snatch it back?”
The Starry Sky that the Heaven Devouring Battle Law digested had long been fused with Heng Luo Star Field, so regardless of how powerful Wu Heng was, he had no means to separate the two from each other.
Thus Wu Heng asked grimly, “Then, what do you want!?”
Yang Kai rubbed his chin for a moment, “Since you are asking so sincerely, I’ll give you a chance.”
Wu Heng hated Yang Kai so badly that his teeth hurt from gritting them so hard. Even so, he could only continue to choke down his anger and reply, “I wish to hear the details.”
Yang Kai spread his arms open, “I want half of this Star Field!” His words were so casual that one might think he was asking for half of a cake.
The veins in Wu Heng’s forehead bulged and he enunciated each word carefully, “In your dreams!”
Leaving aside the fact that his pride and self-esteem would never allow him to accede to such harsh conditions; if he really were to hand over half of the Star Field to Yang Kai, then he would completely lose control over Grand Desolation Star Field. [If that happens, I’ll be vulnerable to his every whim! There’s no way I’ll do something as stupid as to dig my own grave.]
Yang Kai’s gaze dropped and quickly added, “The opportunity is right in front of you. You won’t get another chance if you let it slip away now.”
Wu Heng suppressed the rage in his heart and shook his head, “I can’t do that. Friend, you should make a different proposal.”
Yang Kai shrugged lightly, “In that case, there’s nothing else to discuss.” Then, he turned to leave.
Wu Heng hurriedly said, “I can give you a Cultivation Star as a sign of my sincerity. Please consider it as compensation for your losses.”
[I can’t give him half of the Star Field, but it won’t hurt if it’s just one Cultivation Star. There are many Cultivation Stars in Grand Desolation Star Field, it doesn’t matter if I have one less.]
Yang Kai stopped mid-stride and looked back at Wu Heng, “Really?”
Wu Heng was slightly surprised to hear those words. He nodded affirmatively, “That’s right.”
Yang Kai replied, “Then, I want the Cultivation Star where the Netherworld Sect is located.”
Wu Heng didn’t even stop to consider his answer, “Good!”
Pausing for a moment, he continued, “From today onward, the Netherworld Star belongs to you.”
The Netherworld Sect had basically been wiped out, and even if there were survivors, they were cultivators that were too inferior to be the public face of the Sect. There was nobody who could object to Wu Heng making this decision as Grand Desolation Star Field’s Master. Besides, it wasn’t like Yang Kai could just take away a Star because Wu Heng gave it to him. Wu Heng had simply offered that suggestion offhandedly, never really expecting the other party to actually agree to it.
Yang Kai smiled, “Then, point the way, Brother Wu. I’d like to check out my new territory.”
While speaking, he secretly communicated with the Embodiment so that it slowed down the speed of the engulfment.
It was obvious that Wu Heng had sensed the change too and stared at Yang Kai meaningfully. Although he did not know how Yang Kai did it, it was clear that Yang Kai was able to control Heng Luo Star Field’s Star Source despite being in Grand Desolation Star Field.
[This is just too strange! We are both Star Field Masters, but I don’t have the same ability as he does. If I were to enter Heng Luo Star Field, communicating with Grand Desolation Star Field’s Source would be nearly impossible, forget about trying to control it.]
When the pressure from the black hole decreased abruptly, the idea of taking this opportunity to kill Yang Kai on the spot immediately came to Wu Heng’s mind; however, he only entertained the idea for a moment before pushing it aside. He had a better plan.
“Please rein in some of your strength. Otherwise, I won’t be able to divide my attention enough to send you there,” he said while looking at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai nodded at those words and communicated with Embodiment once more and just like that, the pressure coming from Heng Luo Star Field significantly reduced again.
Yang Kai’s expression suddenly turned vigilant as he asked, “You won’t take this opportunity to attack me, right?”
Wu Heng’s expression was calm, “Your Excellency, there’s nothing I can say if you don’t trust me.”
Yang Kai dramatically waved his hands about in response, “Forget it, it’s nothing. Why don’t you send me there for now?”
“As you wish.” Wu Heng nodded lightly and stretched out his hand and a Void Corridor immediately appeared behind Yang Kai, leading to his destination located in the depths of the Star Field.
Yang Kai swivelled his head and looked into the tunnel for a moment before shaking his head repeatedly, “I have an ominous premonition! A greatly ominous premonition!”
The corners of Wu Heng’s eyes twitched at those words, “Do you still refuse to trust me, Your Excellency!?” Although it was true that Wu Heng did not harbour any good intentions towards Yang Kai, it wasn’t as if he could reveal those thoughts at this time.
Yang Kai solemnly replied, “You’re mistaken about something.”
“What am I mistaken about?” Wu Heng asked with a grim expression.
“The ominous premonition I mentioned is for you, Brother Wu. If you don’t believe me, you can just look behind you.”
There was no need for Wu Heng to look back though as the moment Yang Kai spoke those words, Wu Heng distinctly felt the pressure coming from Heng Luo Star Field increasing all of a sudden. Panicking, he hurriedly used all his strength to resist, but even so, he could not stop the darkness from spreading.
There was an abnormal movement behind him at that time and glancing back, Wu Heng saw that Yang Kai had put one foot into the Void Corridor. Yang Kai paused just like that, looked back, and gave him a warm smile while loudly saying, “Many thanks for your good intentions, Brother Wu. Let’s meet again another day!”
“Bastard!” Wu Heng cursed and a thought flashed across his mind, causing the Void Corridor to immediately collapse. He had tried to murder Yang Kai within the Void Corridor, but he was obviously one step too late. A moment later, his expression changed again as he shouted, “How is that possible!?”
Yang Kai had passed through the Void Corridor and arrived at Netherworld Star, which was located hundreds of millions of kilometres away.
[Why is the pressure coming from Heng Luo Star Field not showing any signs of weakening!?] Wu Heng previously thought that Yang Kai was only able to control Heng Luo Star Field’s Source because he was close enough.
Therefore, he thought of an idea, which was to send Yang Kai further away from Heng Luo Star Field. At that time, he was smirking in his heart. As long as he sent Yang Kai deep into Grand Desolation Star Field, his connection with Heng Luo Star Field’s Source would definitely weaken, possibly even get cut. At that time, Wu Heng would be able to free up a hand to get rid of him!
It wasn’t until this moment that he understood why Yang Kai was so calm and confident, it was because Heng Luo Star Field’s devouring showed no signs of stopping regardless of the distance between Yang Kai and the Star Field. Rather, it seemed to be even stronger than before so now Wu Heng had to concentrate all his attention on defending.
Where would he find the energy to deal with Yang Kai under these circumstances?
[Could it be that he isn’t the Master of Heng Luo Star Field after all?] A wave of uneasiness spread across Wu Heng’s heart. He did not know whether sending Yang Kai to Netherworld Star had been the right decision and he couldn’t help feeling as though he had thrown a torch into his backyard, one that could start a raging fire and burn everything down at any time.
…
Netherworld Star was the peak Cultivation Star in Grand Desolation Star Field. It was the Home Star of the Netherworld Sect after all so it was not inferior compared to the Water Moon Star of Heng Luo Star Field. The World Energy was extremely dense and it also contained many beautiful mountains and rivers, as well as plentiful cultivation paradises. Moreover, the ruler of this Cultivation Star was none other than Netherworld Sect.
Unfortunately, the last Star Field invasion had caused a heavy loss to Netherworld Sect. There were only insignificant members left within the Sect at this moment and the number of Origin Kings left was quite pitiful.
Stepping out of the Void Corridor, Yang Kai stood above Netherworld Star, glanced around, and examined the surroundings carefully.
He was extremely satisfied with what he saw and was in no hurry to put his plan into motion.
He flew around the Netherworld Star several times before slowly landing on top of a certain mountain.
The mountain was incredibly tall and the World Energy aura here was abundant. It was very impressive at first glance with countless birds and beasts living among its stones. There were several secluded homes belonging to cultivators here too, all of which were guarded by defensive Arrays. It was clear that people came here to cultivate in retreat. Yang Kai just did not know if they belonged to the Netherworld Sect or some other force.
Nevertheless, he couldn’t be bothered to pay attention to these details. He went straight to the highest peak and stretched out his hand. A longan-sized bead immediately appeared on his upturned palm.
It was the Sealed World Bead!
This was something he obtained back in his time on Shadowed Star. If one were to trace it back to its origins, then it was an artifact that Yang Yan had brought with her from the Star Boundary. According to Yang Yan, it was a complete world that was refined by a friend of hers. Since he was similar to that friend in the sense that they both cultivated the Dao of Space, she had left it in his care.
Over the years, the Sealed World Bead had left many indelible marks on Yang Kai’s growth. It had been a huge help to him many times, and more importantly, they were united in their hearts and minds.
It was one of his most important trump cards.
The plan Yang Kai devised this time was very simple. He was going to use the Heaven Devouring Battle Law to devour a Cultivation Star and repair the broken Small Sealed World. The plan had come to him on a whim. He wasn’t even sure whether his idea could be realized. Nevertheless, with Heng Luo Star Field’s devouring as a precedent, he was certain that the feasibility of this plan was very high.
Heng Luo Star Field could be regarded as a complete world, and since it could act as a medium to execute the Heaven Devouring Battle Law from and engulf another complete world, it was only natural that the Sealed World Bead could do something similar. After all, the Sealed World Bead was also a complete world. Fundamentally speaking, it was not much different from Heng Luo Star Field aside from being vastly smaller.
If one were to describe the Sealed World Bead as a Small World, then Heng Luo Star Field was a Medium World while Star Boundary was a Great World. And, devouring was possible between worlds.
Similarly, the Cultivation Stars in the Star Field were Small Worlds too. Netherworld Star was one such Small World among countless Small Worlds. It was also the target Yang Kai intended to devour using the Sealed World Bead. If his attempt succeeded, then it was highly likely that the Sealed World Bead would be completely repaired. It might even become better than before.
At that time, he would have his Embodiment control Heng Luo Star Field from the outside while he used the Small Sealed World to stir up trouble on the inside. Grand Desolation Star Field would be faced with trouble from both inside and out, and Wu Heng would have to struggle to cope with them. After some time, killing Wu Heng would be nothing.
Yang Kai calmed his mind and considered the feasibility of his plan, and after a long while, his expression became serious. Flicking his wrist, he tossed the Sealed World Bead out. At the same time, he sat down cross-legged and communicated with the Sealed World Bead through his mind. At this moment, he had basically become the Will of the Small Sealed World.
All of a sudden, Yang Kai’s vision changed. It was as though he had become the Sealed World Bead itself. This feeling was not unfamiliar as he experienced the same sensation when communicating with Heng Luo Star Field’s Source. It felt as though his entire being had merged with the world, and he could control it as he pleased.
With the Sealed World Bead as the intermediary, Yang Kai executed the Heaven Devouring Battle Law without delay. He did everything with practised ease since he had had similar experiences just recently, so his actions were neither slow nor sloppy.
The Sealed World Bead that was falling downward was immediately filled with a peculiar aura. It was an aura that could devour everything in the world! Wherever the Sealed World Bead passed, space collapsed and dissolved to reveal a pitch-black Void Crack. It looked like somebody had cut out a long and narrow slice of the cake that was the world.
[It works!] Yang Kai was overjoyed at the sight and immediately understood that his previous conjecture had been correct. It was obvious that the original space where the new Void Crack stood now had been devoured by the Sealed World Bead because he could distinctly sense something extra in the Small Sealed World.
Yang Kai did not know who Yang Yan’s friend was, but that person must have been incredibly powerful to refine a complete world and form the Sealed World Bead. However, what Yang Kai was doing at the moment had surpassed what that person had done.
For a long time, the role of the Sealed World Bead was for him to harbour people, plant all sorts of exotic Spirit Herbs, or hide from his pursuers. The biggest role it played was to drag his enemies into the Small Sealed World, where he could control their life or death. Although Yang Kai had the ability to drag his enemy into the Sealed World Bead and crush them with World Force, he could win most fights with his own abilities alone; therefore, that function seemed a little tasteless.
But starting today, the Sealed World Bead might have an even bigger and more astonishing purpose! Yang Kai couldn’t wait to see the final results!
A jet-black light appeared on the surface of the Sealed World Bead that had become an intermediary for the Heaven Devouring Battle Law. It was as though the entire bead had turned into a black hole. Moreover, the black hole was no longer longan-sized as it had been when it first appeared. Instead, it was expanding rapidly while falling downward. By the time it landed on the ground, it had a diameter of approximately one kilometre. That was the limit Yang Kai could bring out. It could just barely pass as a Devouring Domain created from the Small Sealed World.
Without anybody noticing, a huge part of the ground was swept away, leaving behind an enormous pit. Everything had been devoured by the Small Sealed World, but it wasn’t until the pit was several kilometres deep that Yang Kai suddenly had an idea.
With a single thought, the Sealed World Bead leisurely rose from the pit and hovered above the ground before flying off into the distance while grazing against the ground.
At a glance, it seemed as though a black hole with a diameter of one kilometre was wandering around the Star like a living creature with everything in its path disappearing as it passed.
It only took an instant for a long and narrow valley to form at the bottom of the Spirit Peak. When the black hole encountered the middle of a mountain not far away, it immediately tunnelled through it, opening up a gaping hole through which one could see the scenery on the other side of the mountain.
The peak rumbled and shook. Following that, a dishevelled figure flew out from the belly of the mountain and shouted, “Who goes there!? Show yourselves!”
This person had been cultivating in his cave mansion just now when he was awakened by the commotion from the engulfment. Thinking that he was being attacked by a formidable enemy, he immediately rushed out to check out the situation. His cultivation was not that high, only Second-Order Origin Returning Realm; however, such cultivation was considered fairly outstanding on Netherworld Star nowadays, so he rarely met anybody who could rival his strength, causing him to speak with a lot of confidence.
In the next moment though, he widened his eyes and stared at the black hole wandering across the ground in stupefied amazement. He felt a chill running down his back all the way to his toes at the sight and couldn’t help shuddering.
[What the Hell is that!? How can it have such terrifying strength!?] He watched as the black hole turned everything in its path into nothingness, like space itself was being devoured cleanly.
One by one, other figures flew out from the various surrounding Spirit Peaks. They had all been rudely awoken from their cultivation just like this person and soon noticed the presence of the Sealed World Bead.
Staring at it in dumbfounded amazement, they shared a conversation through their Divine Senses, but nobody could explain the situation. Even though they had been cultivating for some time now and their experiences were not lacking, what was happening in front of them right now was beyond their comprehension.
“There’s someone over there. Does anybody recognize him?” The cultivator who first appeared suddenly noticed Yang Kai’s presence and pointed him out while asking such a question.
Everybody glanced at Yang Kai and shook their heads in response.
“Could he be the one wreaking havoc here!?”
“Who is he? He doesn’t look familiar.”
“Is he one of the Elders of Netherworld Sect?”
“Should we go up to him and ask?”
“Go if you want to. That guy looks dangerous.”
Everybody made excuses and pushed the responsibility around for a bit, so in the end, the cultivator who first appeared took up the task of communicating with Yang Kai. Cautiously flying over, this man cupped his fists from afar to Yang Kai and asked, “Wu Zi Min greets Sir. May I ask how to address you?”
Yang Kai looked up and glanced at Wu Zi Min, “What do you want?”
Wu Zi Min felt apprehensive, but he put up a brave front despite being terrified as he asked, “Sir, may I know if I have offended you in any way?”
Yang Kai put his hands on his cheeks and leisurely replied, “No.”
Wu Zi Min looked troubled, “If I have not offended you in any way, then why are you doing this?”
“To what are you referring?”
Wu Zi Min continued, “The secluded homes of my friends and I are located in this place. What you are doing right now will endanger our cave mansions, Sir, if this continues, the Spirit Mountain itself will collapse.”
Before Wu Zi Min finished speaking, he heard an anguished howl coming from the group of people. One of their secluded homes had been swallowed up. Their expression was extremely bitter when even the mountain on which their cave mansion once was began to collapse.
Yang Kai spat disdainfully, “What does that have to do with me?”
Wu Zi Min pleaded, “Sir, please quickly stop using your Divine Ability.”
Yang Kai shook his head in response, “No can do! I’m not just devouring this mountain; I’m devouring all of Netherworld Star!”
“Huh!?” Wu Zi Min’s jaw fell open in shock as he wore a dumbstruck expression on his face.
“If there’s nothing else, hurry up and leave. I don’t feel like killing anybody at the moment.” Yang Kai waved his hand dismissively as though he was chasing away a fly.
Wu Zi Min’s complexion turned flushed and he hesitated slightly before asking, “Sir, are you not from the Netherworld Sect?”
“You are the one from Netherworld Sect! Your whole family is from the Netherworld Sect! Do I look like I’m from the Netherworld Sect!?”
The man replied, “Sir, don’t you know that this Star is called Netherworld Star? Do you know how powerful the Netherworld Sect is?”
He was hoping to use the Netherworld Sect’s prestige to intimidate Yang Kai so that he would retreat in the face of danger.
Yang Kai burst out laughing, “Netherworld Sect has already been obliterated by me.”
“That’s impossible!”
“Shoo shoo! You’re beginning to bother me!” Yang Kai waved his hand again, but this time around, Wu Zi Min felt a strong blast of wind on his face, one so fierce that lost his footing and was thrown out more than a thousand metres.
*Hong long long…*
Another mountain collapsed as it lost its foundation and support after being devoured by the black hole.
Wu Zi Min shifted his gaze in that direction and felt heartbroken. That mountain was where his secluded home was located. Now that the mountain had collapsed, his secluded home was gone too, causing him to turn back and glare at Yang Kai. Unfortunately, all he could do was glare as he did not dare to raise any complaints.
“What do we do now?” These other cultivators present had never seen anything like this before and lost all ability to make decisions as a result.
Wu Zi Min pondered in silence for a moment before decisively declaring, “He is too strong. We are no match for him. Let’s hurry to the Netherworld Sect to report about this matter.”
As the saying went, ‘Even if the sky collapses, somebody taller would hold it up’. The Netherworld Sect was the highest authority that existed on the Netherworld Star so this was their responsibility.
Everybody felt that Wu Zi Min’s suggestion was reasonable, so they immediately set off with him and headed in the direction of Netherworld Sect.
After chasing away those annoying flies, Yang Kai continued to control the Sealed World Bead’s devouring. Regardless of where the black hole went, it left a path of destruction in its wake. There was no stopping it and less than a day later, the mountain range in this region had been devoured cleanly, leaving behind a large, empty basin. One would have a hard time believing their eyes even if they saw what happened.
Cultivators could move mountains and shape the seas to a certain extent when their cultivation reached a certain level; however, even that required the use of extremely powerful Divine Abilities to just barely pull it off. Who would have the ability to make an entire mountain range vanish silently in a day?
After devouring the Spirit Peaks, Yang Kai could sense that the black hole that the Small Sealed World had transformed into had expanded slightly. In other words, its Devouring Domain had gotten larger. The increase in the size of its Devouring Domain meant that the efficiency of its engulfment had improved also!
One full day of experimenting had allowed Yang Kai to verify his conjectures, and he no longer hesitated in this matter. Shifting slightly, he flew off into the distance. In the meantime, the black hole formed by the Small Sealed World rolled about the ground like a black ball. It ploughed the ground and turned it into deep canyons. The lands of Netherworld Star were not the only things that were missing inside those canyons, the Principles and the World Energy were gone too. A canyon like this could never be restored to normal ever again.
…..
A Starship arrived above the wilderness at some point, one with a striking skull symbol on its hull, indicating it belonged to Netherworld Sect. It was just that this was not a Starship of particularly high quality, only reaching the Origin Grade.
It could be said that Netherworld Sect had all but emptied its nest in order to invade Heng Luo Star Field. From the Sect Master to the disciples, more than 90% of its members had joined the crusade. Only a few had remained on Netherworld Star to guard the Sect.
Wu Zi Min and the others had gone to the Netherworld Sect a few days back and had taken a while to finally meet somebody in charge after going through a lot of trouble and reported what they witnessed. To their chagrin, the person in charge had not taken them seriously at all and didn’t even bother to report it to the higher-ups.
It wasn’t until recently, when more and more people arrived at Netherworld Sect to report the appearance of a terrifying man destroying everything in his path that the Netherworld Sect realized that the situation was both real and critical. The reports claimed that that man controlled a black ball and devoured all that stood before him. The places where he passed, regardless of whether they were wastelands, mountains, deserts, snowfields, cities, or even Sects, would be devoured cleanly by the black ball. Everything ceased to exist in its wake. Thus, the Elder who had stayed behind began to gather people to deal with this invader who was raising such havoc.
The Starship had only flown a few thousand kilometres from the Netherworld Sect before a rumbling sound came from the front. It sounded as though thunder was rolling across the ground.
“What’s going on!?” Inside the Starship, an elderly man asked. This elderly man was none other than the Elder who had remained to guard the Netherworld Sect.
A disciple immediately used an array to display the external images inside the Starship. A terrifying scene immediately entered all of their visions. A young man was speeding towards them from the horizon with an enormous black ball rolling several thousand metres below him. The black ball ran across the ground, leaving an indelible scar in its wake. It was impossible to determine how far that scar spread, but it looked as if an unhealable wound had appeared on the ground.
“It’s him!” Wu Zi Min cried out in horror. It had only been a few days since the incident, so how could he forget this person’s face so quickly? It wasn’t until now that he understood something though. Clearly, when this man claimed that he was ‘going to devour the entire Netherworld Star’, it wasn’t an idle boast. He really meant every word he uttered.
“Is that the black ball that is devouring everything!?” The Elder’s eyes widened at the sight. Although he had received many reports on this matter over the past few days, it was hard for him to imagine that something so strange could exist in the world without seeing it with his own eyes. The information he received was perfectly accurate. That black ball was terrifying indeed. Everything and everywhere that was touched by that darkness was devoured cleanly in an instant.
“This is bad! He is coming towards us!” One of the disciples cried out in horror.
“Hurry up and evade!” The Elder shouted. Although he had yet to exchange blows with Yang Kai and had only caught a glimpse of him from afar, he was certain that he was no match for this young man. Putting aside the differences in their cultivation, just the black ball alone gave the Elder a dreadful feeling. [I’m afraid even I won’t be spared if that black ball touches me. I’ll be devoured by it too!]
“It’s too fast! We won’t avoid it in time!” The disciple was close to tears. While that disciple was speaking, a figure swept past the Starship as swiftly as the wind. That young man didn’t even bother glancing at the Starship, as though it was so insignificant to him that it wasn’t worth his time.
Meanwhile, the black ball rolled underneath the Starship. Before anyone had a chance to rejoice, they heard a rumbling earthquake coming from behind them. It sounded as though something had collapsed.
Looking back, the Elder yelled out sorrowfully, “No!”
This place was only a thousand kilometres away from the Netherworld Sect, so while the Starship might not have been devoured by the black ball, the Netherworld Sect located behind them obviously could not avoid this calamity. Thus, the black ball rolled over the Netherworld Sect, immediately dividing it in two, cutting a huge swath out of it. The so-called Sect Defending Array couldn’t even stop the black ball for a single moment before collapsing.
“Hmm? Was that the Netherworld Sect?” Yang Kai glanced backwards, “Then, I have to take good care of it.”
Afterwards, everybody aboard the Starship witnessed an even more horrifying scene. The black ball suddenly turned around, returned to the Netherworld Sect, and rolled around several more times.
In just a few moments, the entire Netherworld Sect… was gone!