“Is your daughter aware of this?” Yang Kai asked in a solemn voice.
“It’s enough for this Queen to decide her marital matters for her. What does it matter whether or not she is aware of this matter?”
“What about Protector Tong? Do you think that way too?” Yang Kai turned to look at Tong Yu Quan.
Tong Yu Quan’s expression was gloomy and he said nothing. Looking at the other party’s expression, Yang Kai instantly understood that Tong Yu Quan probably did not have much say in this matter; therefore, he immediately ignored Tong Yu Quan and looked back at Shangguan Long, “If I refuse, are you going to order the people hiding in ambush outside to come in and slaughter me, Madame?”
In such a short period, the auras of many Open Heaven Realm Masters had gathered outside. They had no intention of concealing themselves so it was obvious that it was planned by Shangguan Long.
Shangguan Long knew that Lu Xue, who was in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, would not be much weaker than her. Nevertheless, this was Flying Flower Boat’s ship. Not to mention, they had deployed all their elites for the sake of hunting Mo Yu down. With so many Masters gathered in this place, it would be all but impossible for Yang Kai to escape.
“That’s not necessary. We don’t have any bad blood between us. Why would we need to fight to the death?” Abruptly changing the topic, Shangguan Long continued calmly, “But, the road ahead is long. I’m sure you will have enough time to consider your decision and give this Queen a satisfactory answer before we arrive at Void Land. I can wait!”
“There’s no need for you to wait,” Yang Kai resolutely replied. “You are full of schemes, Madame. You don’t even hesitate to ignore your daughter’s happiness. I’m afraid I don’t agree with such ruthlessness. Although I feel bad for your daughter, I have not made any irreversible mistakes. I will not agree to this matter.” Without giving her a chance to speak, he added, “Please excuse me, Madame. I wish to leave this place.”
Shangguan Long frowned, “Is Yu’er ugly? I can’t believe how unwelcoming you are toward her. Even if you don’t hold any affection for her, you won’t lose anything from marrying her. Why do you have to refuse so decisively?”
Yang Kai shook his head slowly, “Junior Sister Yu is a beauty of the highest order. How could any man find her ugly? However, such matters have nothing to do with one’s appearance, it only depends on one’s heart!”
Shangguan Long stared at him deeply, as though trying to stare into the depths of his Soul. After a while, she gave a heavy sigh, “Good. It’s rare to see a man like you nowadays. This Queen was mistaken. I should not have acted so rashly. Let’s forget about what happened today. I cannot force you if you are unwilling. Let Yu’er go. I will allow you to leave!”
Upon hearing those words, Tong Yu Quan sighed in relief.
Yang Kai said, “Madame, you can’t be so naive to think that I’m easy to bully just because I am young, right? Would I still have a chance to leave this place if I release Junior Sister Yu?”
Tong Yu Quan’s expression changed as he gritted his teeth and said, “What do you mean by that, little brat!?”
Yang Kai glanced at Tong Yu Quan, “My apologies, Protector Tong. You know better than anyone else what kind of woman your wife is. If I really obeyed her instructions and released Junior Sister Yu, I would not live to see another day. I’m afraid Junior Sister Yu will have to suffer for a bit.”
“How dare you!?” Tong Yu Quan was livid and his aura spilled out of his body menacingly.
“I have no other choice!” Yang Kai squeezed Shangguan Yu’s neck. The unconscious Shangguan Yu involuntarily groaned, causing Tong Yu Quan’s expression to change drastically once more. He immediately froze in place and turned to look at Shangguan Long with an incensed expression.
Similarly, Shangguan Long’s expression was very ugly. When she and Tong Yu Quan first rushed into the room to discover Yang Kai holding her daughter back, she had the feeling that the situation had spiralled out of her control.
In her imagination, both she and her husband would be greeted by a lewd scene when they rushed into the room. If that had happened, anything she asked for would not have been too much. Contrary to her expectations, Yang Kai remained clear-headed enough to hold a fluent conversation with her.
She stared at Yang Kai and her expression slowly darkened. She couldn’t help thinking that it was a pity. It had been a spur-of-the-moment idea when she came up with this plan, but now it would seem that she made the right choice. The young man in front of her was countless times better than Wei Wu Shuang. How could he be considered ordinary when he could suppress his desires under those circumstances? He would definitely achieve great things in the future.
If her daughter married him, her daughter would be saved from the repercussions of being kidnapped in the past. That was not all; Flying Flower Boat would also gain a powerful ally. It would be even better if she could absorb Void Land into Flying Flower Boat. Unfortunately, she could not use him as she pleased and might even cause a grudge to form due to this incident.
As their gazes met, Shangguan Long’s expression turned as gloomy as deep water. Meanwhile, Yang Kai increased the force he exerted in his hands. The unconscious Shangguan Yu’s complexion was becoming more and more ugly by the moment.
“Madame, please move aside!” Yang Kai shouted.
Shangguan Long suddenly broke out into a smile, “What if I refuse to move aside? Based on my observations, you are not a ruthless man. I don’t believe that you will actually harm Yu’er in any way. Besides, if you really killed Yu’er, the three of you would never leave this place alive!”
The words had only just left her mouth when she saw Yang Kai reaching out and snatching the cold water longsword from Lu Xue’s hands. Under Shangguan Long’s startled and horrified gaze, the sword pierced into Shangguan Yu’s back and came out of her chest! The sword had stabbed right through her body!
Fresh blood flew everywhere and Shangguan Yu groaned as the colour in her face swiftly drained away.
The pupils of Tong Yu Quan’s eyes immediately contracted to the size of pinpoints. His vision was filled with the redness of the blood and it felt as though his entire world had turned blood-red.
“Madame.” Yang Kai’s cold voice sounded from behind Shangguan Yu, “There is a saying ‘You may know a person’s face, but not their heart’. You and I only met for the first time recently, so how dare you judge my character so arbitrarily? Aren’t you afraid that you might have overplayed your hand?”
Ignoring Shangguan Long’s furious expression, Yang Kai turned to look at Tong Yu Quan, “Don’t worry, this blow is not lethal. I avoided Junior Sister Yu’s vitals, but if you dare make a move to rescue your daughter, Protector Tong, I will not be able to guarantee her safety again.”
Those words were like spirit fixing needles, pinning Tong Yu Quan in place.
“Woman!” Yang Kai glared at Shangguan Long, “I will ask one last time. Stand aside and let us pass!”
Shangguan Long gritted her teeth, her body trembling endlessly. Her beautiful eyes were filled with a difficult struggle. She never imagined that the mild-mannered Yang Kai would turn out to be so ruthless, cruel, and cold-hearted. He actually injured Shangguan Yu so severely just because they were at an impasse in their disagreement. Could it be that his previous politeness was just an act?
“What are you still hesitating for!? Are you really planning to kill Yu’er!?” Tong Yu Quan’s voice exploded in her ears like thunder and lightning.
She turned to look and saw him glaring at her with bloodshot eyes. It was as though he was looking at his greatest nemesis. The gaze was so unfamiliar that it made her heart tremble and she did not doubt that if she did not move aside, the first person to attack her would not be Yang Kai but her beloved who had stayed beside her for hundreds of years! Her heart sank to the bottom of the abyss. Taking a deep breath, she spoke through gritted teeth, “Fine! This Queen will let you leave, but you cannot harm another hair on Yu’er’s head!”
“Rest assured. As long as you don’t do anything foolish, I won’t act again.” Yang Kai agreed.
“Once you leave, you have to return Yu’er!”
“Impossible!” Yang Kai shook his head, “I will release her once I return to Void Land. If you feel uneasy, you can follow behind us from an appropriate distance.”
Shangguan Long’s chest rose and fell heavily, but after some serious consideration, she nodded. She and Tong Yu Quan each stepped to one side and opened the way.
Yang Kai shot a look at Lu Xue and Guo Zi Yan and the two of them escorted him, one leading the way and the other bringing up the rear. In that way, they walked out.
There were indeed many people lying in ambush outside the room. It was just that they were shocked and furious to see that Yang Kai had captured Shangguan Yu. Moreover, Shangguan Yu had a longsword protruding out of her chest. They did not know what had happened. Shangguan Long had tried to set up Yang Kai with her own daughter, so it was only natural that she did not explain the situation clearly. It was only just in case that she mobilised these people.
If everything had gone as she planned, then things would have ended happily. She never imagined that the situation would end up like this. Countless questioning eyes turned towards her, making her expression gloomier than ever before. It was extremely awkward.
It didn’t take long for Yang Kai and the others to exit the Lotus Flower Artifact. Lu Xue summoned her own flight-type artifact and Yang Kai hurriedly rushed inside with Shangguan Yu with Guo Zi Yan following closely behind. Then, Lu Xue glanced vigilantly at the Open Heaven Realm Masters of Flying Flower Boat before entering the artifact and driving it away. The artifact turned into a stream of light that headed into the depths of the void.
The enormous Lotus Flower Artifact followed from behind at a fixed pace. All the Open Heaven Realm Master stood on the flower petals of the lotus, coldly watching the windmill.
…..
Inside the windmill, Yang Kai summoned Lu Xue and pointed at the unconscious Shangguan Yu, “Tend to her wounds.”
Lu Xue nodded. Once he left the room, she immediately began working on her task.
Yang Kai’s attack had seemed decisive, but the truth was that he controlled his strength perfectly. Even though the sword had penetrated right through the body, the wound itself was not really serious. Lu Xue removed Shangguan Yu’s clothes and while using her World Force to apply pressure on the wound, she carefully pulled out the longsword. After she used some healing salve and fed Shangguan Yu a healing pill, she finished her task.
Shangguan Yu was an Emperor Realm cultivator, so she was not weak and would only require a few days of rest to heal completely from such a wound.
Yang Kai returned to check on the situation and was relieved to see that Shangguan Yu was in no danger.
Looking at the sleeping Shangguan Yu, Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling a little guilty. He had no other choice at the time. If he did not display his resolve, Shangguan Long would not have compromised. If it really came down to a fight, leaving aside whether or not he could escape, Lu Xue and Guo Zi Yan would surely be severely injured. They might even end up dying in that situation.
At this moment, Lu Xue’s voice rang out, “Sir, Tong Yu Quan is flying over.”
Yang Kai released his Divine Sense and sure enough, he sensed that Tong Yu Quan was approaching them at a high speed. However, Tong Yu Quan was alone while Flying Flower Boat’s enormous lotus was still several dozen kilometres behind.
Yang Kai pondered for a moment, “Let him come.”
Lu Xue understood and slowed down. A moment later, Tong Yu Quan’s voice sounded, “Little Brother Yang, I wish to check Yu’er’s wounds. Please be accommodating.”
Tong Yu Quan originally thought he would not receive any response, so who could have known that the windmill would actually open up for him? He immediately slipped into the windmill without any hesitation whatsoever.
Upon entering the windmill, Tong Yu Quan immediately came face to face with Yang Kai, who was standing right in front of him. When their eyes met, a trace of anger and murderous intent flashed through the Protector’s eyes before he lowered his gaze and said, “I wish to check on Yu’er’s injury.”
“Protector Tong, please come this way,” Yang Kai gestured to the side.
Tong Yu Quan lowered his head and entered a small room. Shangguan Yu was lying quietly inside. Her breathing was steady even though blood stains remained on her chest while her complexion was slightly pale.
Stepping forward with a sullen expression, Tong Yu Quan sat down next to her and reached out to place his fingers against her wrist. After a quick check of her pulse, he discovered that his daughter’s aura was stable. It was clear that somebody had tended to her injury. Moreover, there was a powerful medicinal efficacy flowing through her meridians and blending into her body to heal her wound.
“I asked Lu Xue to treat her injuries just now. There should not be any problems. She will only need to rest for a few days to recover completely,” Yang Kai’s voice sounded from behind.
Tong Yu Quan coldly snorted and said nothing in response. What happened this time was ultimately a result of Shangguan Long’s greed. Yang Kai had only acted to protect himself. Nevertheless, there was no denying that he caused Shangguan Yu’s injury. Even if Yang Kai was Shangguan Yu’s saviour, Tong Yu Quan could no longer view Yang Kai favourably.
“Junior Sister Yu will probably wake up tomorrow, but it is not convenient for me to explain this situation to her. She might not believe me even if I explained the truth to her, so to avoid any unnecessary disputes, I ask that you leave a jade slip that contains the entire story of what happened behind, Protector Tong. I will hand it to Junior Sister Yu when she regains consciousness. I’m sure she will believe what you say.”
Tong Yu Quan said, “I’ll stay here and explain the situation to Yu’er when she wakes up.”
Yang Kai shook his head, “No. The fact that I allowed you to check on Junior Sister Yu is my greatest display of sincerity. I cannot allow you to remain inside the windmill for so long. You are a Fourth-Order Open Heaven Master after all. If a fight breaks out, I will have a hard time resisting. Please understand, Protector Tong.”
Tong Yu Quan raised his head and glared at Yang Kai, “If I wanted to do that, I would already have done that from the beginning. Why would I waste my time here bickering with you?”
Yang Kai shook his head slowly, “While I also believe that you have no other intentions, Protector Tong, I am taking these precautions just in case. Before boarding Flying Flower Boat’s vessel, I never imagined that what happened today would occur either. Madam Long is a person who can repay kindness with enmity. As her beloved, what is to say that you are not influenced by her, Protector Tong?”
“She is she. I am me. Don’t confuse me with that vile woman,” Tong Yu Quan was furious.
Yang Kai quickly said, “If you insist, Protector Tong, we will end up confronting each other here. I hope you can keep Junior Sister Yu safe during the fight later. She is innocent after all.”
While Yang Kai was speaking, Lu Xue quietly appeared behind him, her beautiful eyes staring at Tong Yu Quan coldly.
The corners of Tong Yu Quan’s brow twitched before his furious expression suddenly collapsed and he nodded, “Fine. I will do as you say. I will leave a message to tell Yu’er what happened, but you have to promise that you won’t hurt a single hair on her head.”
“Don’t worry, Protector Tong. As long as Flying Flower Boat does not do anything, I promise that not a single hair on your daughter’s head will be harmed!”
“You had better!” Tong Yu Quan gritted his teeth.
A short while later, Tong Yu Quan departed. Just as Yang Kai had requested, he left behind a jade slip that contained a record of the whole story from beginning to end.
Yang Kai carefully checked the jade slip and found that there was nothing wrong with it. Everything described in the jade slip did not contain the slightest fabrication or embellishment. It only lacked the fact that Shangguan Yu had been affected by the Seven Emotions and Six Desires Wine, which caused her to do some rather disrespectful actions as a result.
Yang Kai could understand why Tong Yu Quan wanted to hide this kind of thing, so he said nothing about it. He put the jade slip away carefully in preparation for when Shangguan Yu woke up, so that he could hand it to her.
After Tong Yu Quan returned to the lotus, the enormous artifact gradually slowed down until it was 3,000 kilometres away from the windmill before it continued to follow them. This was one of Yang Kai’s requirements, and now that Shangguan Yu was in his hands, Flying Flower Boat had no choice but to comply.
One day later, the unconscious Shangguan Yu slowly woke up. When she opened her eyes, her eyes were filled with confusion. Her memory had stopped at the point where she had been drinking with Yang Kai.
Just as she was about to get up, a familiar voice entered her ear, “Junior Sister Yu, please don’t be impatient. You were injured, so it’s best if you don’t move around too much.”
“I’ve… been injured?” She was taken aback by those words, but upon a careful check, her beautiful face instantly turned pale. She could sense that she was indeed injured. Moreover, the injury was very close to her vital points. It could almost be said that she had narrowly missed death.
“What happened!? Did you save me, Senior Brother Yang? Where are my parents?” She turned to look to the side.
Yang Kai did not say much and simply handed her the jade slip that Tong Yu Quan left behind.
Shangguan Yu took the jade slip and poured her Divine Sense into it. As she checked the contents, her face turned deathly pale. She was very familiar with Tong Yu Quan’s aura and she deeply trusted every word her father spoke.
According to the information inside the jade slip, Yang Kai had gotten into conflict with Flying Flower Boat. In the end, he took her hostage and escaped the Lotus Flower Artifact; moreover, the injury on her body was caused by him.
Tong Yu Quan also told her not to act rashly. Many Flying Flower Boat Masters were following not far behind and Yang Kai would release her once he arrived at Void Land.
After checking the information inside the jade slip, Shangguan Yu’s mind fell into a chaotic mess. For her, she had simply slept through the day; however, the outside world had already changed drastically. Her saviour had turned against her parents, stabbed her with a sword, and used her as a hostage to escape. Her body involuntarily began trembling as her expression filled with fear and unease.
Yang Kai said, “Junior Sister Yu, please don’t panic. As long as you remain here quietly, I won’t do anything to you either.”
Shangguan Yu pursed her lips and nodded almost imperceptibly.
Her injury was not serious and Lu Xue had personally helped to treat her wounds previously, so she recovered completely after resting for five days.
These five days of recuperation not only allowed her to recover from her injury but also gave her mind some time to calm down. She had been thinking hard about certain things over the past few days. For example, what happened after she got drunk, why Yang Kai and Flying Flower Boat turned against each other, and why Yang Kai stabbed her with a sword…
She had the vague feeling that things were not quite as simple as she had been told. Although she mustered her courage to ask Yang Kai several times, he never answered her questions.
They passed through a Territory Gate half a month later. Then, Lu Xue’s voice rang out, “Sir, we have arrived in Void Territory.”
Yang Kai’s closed eyes slowly opened and he nodded lightly, “Good.”
A short while later, Flying Flower Boat’s Lotus Flower Artifact also passed through the Territory Gate and stepped into Void Territory.
Inside the lotus, Shangguan Long stared gloomily at the windmill 3,000 kilometres ahead of her while secretly gnashing her teeth.
All of a sudden, somebody came to report, “Boat Master, those people from Void Land are not heading towards any Territory Gate but to somewhere in this Great Territory!”
“They are not heading towards a Territory Gate?” She raised her brow at those words, “Check which Great Territory we are in!”
If they were not heading towards a Territory Gate, then it could only mean that they were almost at their destination. In other words, Void Land was most likely located in this Great Territory.
The man immediately took out the Universe Chart and referred to it, “Boat Master, this is Seven Wonder Territory.”
“Seven Wonders Territory?” She pondered for a moment, “If I remember correctly, this should be Seven Wonders Land’s domain.”
Tong Yu Quan had been silent for quite some time now, but he suddenly spoke up, “That’s right. Seven Wonders Land is located in this territory. The Master of Seven Wonders Land, Qi Qiao, is a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. However, Seven Wonders Land has always had a bad reputation and is despised by many people. Qi Qiao is also a petty man who seeks revenge for the slightest grievance.”
Shangguan Long frowned at those words, “I have also heard of Qi Qiao. He is not easy to get along with. If this territory belongs to Seven Wonders Land, then how could that brat dare to establish Void Land here? Are they not afraid of being destroyed to the point where not even their bones are left?”
In general, each Great Territory would only allow one Second-Class great force to exist; after all, how could one allow another tiger to live within one’s own territory? While there were certain Great Territories where two or more Second Class great forces coexisted, they either did so begrudgingly, or there was an immense difference in strength between them.
“Boat Master…” It was the person who spoke earlier. He seemed slightly hesitant and stammered his words, “Judging by the route they are taking, they seem to be heading toward Seven Wonders Land.”
Shangguan Long turned to look at that man, “Are you certain?”
The man hurriedly said, “Please take a look, Boat Master!”
While saying that, he respectfully handed the Universe Chart over to her. She took the Universe Chart from him suspiciously. Upon a careful check, she discovered that it was just as he mentioned. Yang Kai and the others were indeed heading straight towards Seven Wonders Land.
“Why are they heading towards Seven Wonders Land?” She was extremely bewildered.
Tong Yu Quan hesitated, “Are they related to Seven Wonders Land?”
Shangguan Long shook her head slowly. This was something she did not understand either. If that was truly the case, then things would become rather tricky. Seven Wonders Land was comparable to Flying Flower Boat in strength. If Yang Kai was closely connected to Seven Wonders Land, then things would become very troublesome.
For some reason, she had been feeling a sense of unease for a while now. In addition, that uneasy feeling was only growing stronger and stronger with time.
Three days later, a Spirit Province appeared in front of them. The Universe Chart indicated that it was the Seven Wonders Land and looking from afar, they saw that the Spirit Province was faintly emitting thousands of flashes of light. The endless Star Power of the vast universe was pouring into the Spirit Province under the traction of an inexplicable force, making it look magnificent and spectacular. The atmosphere surrounding this Spirit Province was much stronger than the Headquarters of Flying Flower Boat.
Shangguan Long asked suspiciously, “Did Seven Wonders Land have such a deep heritage?”
A group of Flying Flower Boat’s Open Heaven Realm Masters were also a little dumbfounded by the sight. Then, they all showed envious looks. It was their first time coming to the Seven Wonders Land but even so, Seven Wonders Land was not the only Second-Class great force they had ever seen. They had seen many other Headquarters of various Second-Class great forces, but none of them could compare with the present one.
Even without investigating deeply into this place, they could tell that the Seven Wonders Land was covered by an extremely sophisticated and profound Grand Array. Otherwise, it would not be possible for this Spirit Province to present such a wondrous scene.
The heritage of a Land was related to the future of the Land. Compared with the Seven Wonders Land in front of them, it was obvious that Flying Flower Boat was far from satisfactory. It was inevitable that they would feel a sense of discomfort.
“Boat Master, they’ve stopped,” An Elder in the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm suddenly called out.
The others looked up and saw that the windmill artifact had stopped outside Seven Wonders Land without proceeding any further.
“Hmph. Looks like they really are related to the Seven Wonders Land. Did they think that they’ll be safe just because they sought shelter here?” Shangguan Long coldly snorted.
Tong Yu Quan quickly said, “Yu’er’s safety is of the utmost importance. Flying Flower Boat was the one who made a mistake first, so don’t create further trouble.”
“I know!” Shangguan Long snapped angrily.
During their conversation, they saw the windmill artifact being put away. Yang Kai and the others revealed their figures and quietly looked in this direction. Shangguan Yu stood beside Yang Kai. She did not seem to have been treated harshly. Moreover, a slight rosy tint had returned to her cheeks after this period of recuperation.
Tong Yu Quan breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this.
“Let’s go. Come with me to check out the situation.” Shangguan Long stood up and walked out.
Many of Flying Flower Boat’s Masters followed closely behind. It did not take long for them to arrive outside the lotus where Yang Kai smilingly called out to them as soon as they halted in their tracks, “Welcome to Void Land!”
The Open Heaven Realm Masters of Flying Flower Boat couldn’t help looking at each other in surprise when they heard those words. Some even took out the Universe Chart to compare and verify their location.
Shangguan Long frowned, “Void Land? Isn’t this place Seven Wonders Land? How did it become Void Land?”
Yang Kai smiled, “You’re not wrong, Madam Long. It was indeed Seven Wonders Land before. However, it is now Void Land.”
His words shocked everyone! There was no reason for a Second-Class great force to suddenly change its name as a name carried fame and prestige that had been inherited over thousands of years. It was not easy to re-accumulate such fame and prestige, so they would not change their name unless the great force no longer existed.
“What do you mean?” Shangguan Long’s slender eyes narrowed slightly, the anxiety in her heart growing ever stronger.
“I took over Seven Wonders Land. From that moment onward, Seven Wonders Land no longer existed in this world. There is only Void Land!” Yang Kai explained patiently.
The Open Heaven Realm Masters suddenly burst into an uproar. Although they had some speculations in their hearts just now, they still found it hard to believe when they heard what Yang Kai said.
Seven Wonders Land was a Second-Class great force that was comparable to Flying Flower Boat in strength, not the kind of Third-Class great force that sprung up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain. It contained an inheritance that spanned thousands of years, so how could it be taken over so easily? To put things into perspective, it was impossible for Flying Flower Boat to capture Seven Wonders Land even if they mustered all their strength together. Their strength might be on par with each other, but it would require a huge disparity in strength for the one attacking to achieve victory over the one defending. Did Yang Kai have such great ability?
“What about Qi Qiao Heavenly Monarch?” Shangguan Long asked.
“Naturally, he’s dead,” Yang Kai replied with a smile.
She was now completely stunned and did not know if she should believe his words. Logically speaking, since Yang Kai was speaking aloud despite being right outside Seven Wonders Land, it was obvious he had something to rely on. Besides, it would have been impossible for Qi Qiao to turn a blind eye to this disrespect if he were still alive.
Even so, she subconsciously refused to believe those words. She was still entertaining the idea of marrying her daughter to Yang Kai and slowly assimilating Void Land into Flying Flower Boat, but if Yang Kai truly had such abilities, then it was hard to say who would end up devouring whom in the end. Furthermore, she heard him saying that Void Land only had a total of five Open Heaven Realms Masters! How could he take down the entire Seven Wonders Land with just five Open Heaven Realms Masters!?
[What a joke! It’s not as if the Open Heaven Realms Masters of Seven Wonders Land are weak prey. Qi Qiao is a Fifth-Order, not to mention the several Venerable Protectors that are also Fourth-Order! It’s impossible unless… Void Land has an Open Heaven Realm Master above the Fifth Order!] The moment that thought crossed her mind, Shangguan Long’s heart pounded wildly and her gaze shifted behind Yang Kai.
Two figures were speeding out from among the countless flashes of lights. These two people were extremely fast and from the moment they appeared to the time they arrived next to Yang Kai, less than five breaths had passed. One was a beautiful and charming woman while the other was a large fatty.
The fatty was so large that it was outrageous. He was practically a huge, rolling meatball. The fat layers on his face piled up over each other so much that even his eyes were covered under the layers of fat. Although he was extremely large, the aura that he exuded certainly belonged to the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm!
It was one thing if it was just him alone; however, the key was the woman. That woman was in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm!
All eyes from Flying Flower Boat immediately landed on the woman and they all felt as though they were confronting a terrifying enemy. Even Shangguan Long narrowed her phoenix eyes with an expression of shock on her face. [Void Land really does have an Open Heaven Realm Master above the Fifth Order!]
“Greetings, Sir!” In front of everyone, the fatty was the first to give his greetings. There was a flattering smile on his face as though he was not facing an Emperor Realm Junior but a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master, “Sir, your journey must have been tiring. You’ve worked hard.”
“Young Master!” The woman also bent her knees and gave an elegant bow.
Cold sweat dripped from the foreheads of all the Open Heaven Realm Masters from Flying Flower Boat. There was no wind in the Void, but they all felt a chill running from the tops of their heads to the tips of their toes at that moment.
Just the appearance of a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master left them feeling inexplicably shocked; however, that Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master that they all looked up to was now calling Yang Kai ‘Young Master’! [Which family did this boy come from? How could he make a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master act so humble before him!? That is a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master! A powerful existence that could serve as a Deacon or take on other positions of authority in the Cave-Heavens and Paradises!]
[This brat can’t be the illegitimate son of some Cave-Heaven or Paradises’ Leader, right?] Shangguan Long’s expression was extremely ugly. The horror in her heart was washing over her in huge waves. When this woman in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm appeared, she knew that she had made a huge mistake!
Void Land’s heritage was much stronger than she had imagined. It was not something the small Flying Flower Boat could even think of devouring. It was almost ridiculous that she had been scheming all sorts of things before, even going so far as to disregard her daughter’s wishes. If she had known this earlier, she would never have acted so. She would have treated Yang Kai as an honoured guest and provided him with the best hospitality to get closer to him.
Even so, it was not as though there was no room for recovery. She might have schemed against Yang Kai, but she had no intention of actually causing him harm. To put it bluntly, she only tried to seduce him with a beauty, though in the end, her plans had resulted in her daughter being stabbed with a sword.
She secretly rejoiced that she had not engaged in an all-out conflict with Yang Kai; otherwise, Flying Flower Boat would have suffered greatly. The Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master alone was not something that Flying Flower Boat could deal with.
“Is that… Chen Tian Fei?” A voice suddenly came from behind.
Shangguan Long didn’t even need to look back to know that it was the voice of the Left Protector, Qin Wu Sheng, so she frowned slightly and muttered, “Chen Tian Fei? I seem to have heard that name before.”
Qin Wu Sheng explained, “Boat Master, have you forgotten? I was ordered to go out to purchase a batch of resources 30 years ago. At the time, I went to an underground part of a certain Star City and dealt with Chen Tian Fei. I bought a lot of things from him back then. You even mentioned that the quality of those resources was excellent.”
Realisation spread across her face and she nodded lightly, “I remember it now. When you came back, you even told me that the Second Manager of Scarlet Star was extremely talented. You claimed that it would be difficult to find another person like him in this world. Is that him?”
“Exactly!” He nodded.
“But… wasn’t that person the Second Manager of Scarlet Star? Why would he appear here? Not to mention his attitude towards Yang Kai,” She was puzzled.
Qin Wu Sheng replied, “Please give me some time, Boat Master. I will investigate this matter.”
While saying that, he took out a communication bead and poured his Divine Sense into it. This communication bead was something he exchanged with Chen Tian Fei back then. It was supposed to make contacting each other easier if they had any other transactions with each other in the future; however, 30 years had passed and he never returned to Scarlet Star’s Star City. If he had not seen Chen Tian Fei here today, he would not have recalled that incident back then.
Sure enough, Chen Tian Fei suddenly looked up and glanced over in Qin Wu Sheng’s direction after he sent a message.
Qin Wu Sheng nodded and smiled at Chen Tian Fei while cupping his fists in that direction.
Chen Tian Fei nodded lightly and used his own communication bead to speak with Qin Wu Sheng.
After some time, Qin Wu Sheng’s expression became more and more solemn. It even reached a point where he was sweating profusely!
“What’s wrong?” Shangguan Long noticed that something was wrong and asked, “Did you find out why he, as the Second Manager of Scarlet Star, is here and not in their Star City instead? What does Void Land have to do with Scarlet Star?”
Qin Wu Sheng swallowed nervously and replied astringently, “Boat Master, I’ve finished asking about that matter. Scarlet Star is gone.”
“Scarlet Star is gone?” She was surprised, “If I remember correctly, Scarlet Star is also a Second-Class great force, right? They have several Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters. How can Scarlet Star be gone?”
“Yes. Scarlet Star is a Second-Class great force. Not only that, there were two other Second-Class great forces in that Star City, Sword Pavilion and Thunder Lightning. These three great forces used to occupy a single somewhat chaotic Star City, but…” His expression twitched, “They are all gone now.”
“What happened!?” She was stunned. [All three Second-Class great forces are gone!? What the Hell happened in that Star City!?]
“Thunder Light and Scarlet Star were wiped out by Yang Kai! Chen Tian Fei further claimed that the destruction of Sword Pavilion was also related to him.”
“What!?” Everyone from Flying Flower Boat was shocked. [Three Second-Class great forces were destroyed just like that!? How cruel and ruthless could Yang Kai be!? How much hidden strength does he have!? Not to mention, Flying Flower Boat has also offended Yang Kai…]
For a moment, everybody felt their limbs going cold. It felt as though they had glimpsed the future of Flying Flower Boat.
Qin Wu Sheng’s expression was stiff, almost as though he had eaten an entire basket of bitter gourds. His smile was extremely bitter as he continued to report, “Chen Tian Fei told me that he is just Yang Kai’s servant now. The name ‘Scarlet Star Second Manager’ should never be mentioned again.”
*Gudong…*
The sound of people gulping nervously came out. A Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was, by no means, weak in the 3,000 Worlds. Even so, he was willing to humble himself and admit to being someone else’s servant. That was not just a matter of suppression of strength.
[What kind of power does this Yang Kai have to subordinate a character like Chen Tian Fei? Furthermore, that Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master calls Yang Kai ‘Young Master’! Flying Flower Boat… seems to have provoked someone who should never be provoked!]
Instantly, everybody else’s eyes turned to Shangguan Long. Although nobody said any words of rebuke, Shangguan Long still felt her face burning with shame. She was in no mood to get annoyed though as she knew that if she did not handle the situation well, then what happened to Seven Wonders Land, Scarlet Star, and Thunder Light would most likely become Flying Flower Boat’s future!
“Void Land has such a grand atmosphere and heritage even though it is newly established. It has really opened this Queen’s eyes. Flying Flower Boat can only sigh and admit its inferiority.” Shangguan Long forced out a smile and looked at Yang Kai, “It’s true that there are talented people all over the world. When my cultivation was in the Emperor Realm like you, Little Brother Yang, I was struggling over various unremarkable cultivation resources. However, you have already occupied an entire Spirit Province. There are also many capable subordinates serving under you. Your future ahead will be limitless.”
Listening to her exaggerated flattery, Yang Kai smiled faintly, “Madam Long, you are too polite.”
She then added, “Flying Flower Boat is extremely grateful to you for saving my daughter’s life, Little Brother Yang. We specially prepared some gifts to show our appreciation and sincerity. I hope you won’t refuse.”
After saying that, she curled her finger and flicked out a Space Ring towards him.
Yang Kai reached out his hand and caught the Space Ring. Scanning through the contents with his Divine Sense, he lifted his head and glanced at her with interest. There were a lot of items inside the Space Ring, far exceeding the scope of thank-you gifts. Even for a Second-Class great force, this kind of gift would be a huge expenditure.
Back when she first invited him to board the Lotus Flower Artifact, Shangguan Long had mentioned wanting to prepare a thank-you gift for him for saving Shangguan Yu. It was just that she failed to fulfil her promise over the next few days, and then there was that disturbance afterwards. For her to throw out this Space Ring at this time clearly indicated her conciliatory intentions. There might not have been so many items inside this Space Ring at the start. It was most likely that she added a portion of these items in at the last moment.
As they looked at each other, Yang Kai’s gaze was filled with aggression. Although Shangguan Long’s expression revealed her nervousness, her eyes contained a hidden determination in their depths.
She was the one who made a mistake in the first place. She initially thought nothing of Void Land, but she immediately understood that all her scheming from before was delusional when confronted with Void Land’s powerful heritage. Since she was at fault, she could accept suffering a little pain to calm the other party. However, if he refused to back down, then she would show him that the elites of Flying Flower Boat were not pushovers either!
The void almost seemed as if it would freeze into solid ice.
Yue He and Chen Tian Fei were clueless about the situation, but they could sense that the atmosphere was not right. They both turned their gazes towards Shangguan Long at the same time, firmly locking onto her! The moment she made any strange movements, she would definitely receive a storm of attacks from the both of them.
All of a sudden, Yang Kai smiled, “Many thanks, Madam Long. Purging evil is simply what one should do. Saving Junior Sister Yu was just a coincidence.”
Shangguan Long let out a breath of relief and broke out into a smile, “Regardless of the circumstances, Flying Flower Boat owes you a favour. If Void Land ever needs our help, please feel free to speak. Flying Flower Boat will not refuse as long as it is within our abilities!”
“Madam Long is righteous indeed. Since you have said so, then I won’t hold myself back. It just so happens that I would like to ask you for something, Madam Long. I wonder if you can give it to me.”
Shangguan Long groaned in her heart as she thought to herself, [Smelly Brat, don’t reach out for a yard after taking an inch!]
She was tempted to confront the other party right here and now, but she was helpless. Her daughter was still in their hands; thus, she could only force herself to smile and ask, “What did you take a liking to, Little Brother Yang?”
Yang Kai lifted a hand and pointed behind her, “I’ve taken a great liking to Flying Flower Boat’s Lotus Flower Artifact. Void Land is newly established, so there is a shortage of people and resources. We lack everything you can think of, not to mention such a large flight-type artifact. It would be great if you were willing to give it to me, Madam Long. It’s no big deal if you are reluctant, you can just pretend I never said anything.”
Left Protector Qin Wu Sheng immediately glared at Yang Kai, “Brat, how dare you try to take the lion’s share!? Do you know just how valuable our Falling Lotus is!?”
Likewise, all the other Open Heaven Realm Masters of Flying Flower Boat glared at Yang Kai furiously!
An artifact like the Falling Lotus was not just a simple flight-type artifact. It was an all-rounded artifact that integrated both defensive and offensive abilities. Such a vessel was often the manifestation of a great force’s heritage. Moreover, not every great force could afford something like that. Refining such an artifact would consume an unimaginable number of resources. There was only one Falling Lotus in the entire Flying Flower Boat, so how could they not be furious when Yang Kai was openly coveting it?
However, Qin Wu Sheng had only just finished speaking when he felt a strong gust of wind blowing towards him. He hurriedly surged his World Force and raised his arms to guard himself.
*Hong…*
His body swayed unsteadily as blood trickled out the corner of his mouth while both his arms fell limply to his sides. He looked up and stared at Yue He in shock and horror as the attack just now came from her.
“If you dare speak impolitely towards Young Master again, you will die!” Yue He’s beautiful eyes were filled with fury as she glared at Qin Wu Sheng coldly, causing him to flush with anger but not dare to say a word.
He was only in the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm while she was in the Sixth-Order. There was a difference of two whole Orders between them; hence, he instantly felt the horror of this woman from that blow alone. It was not just him, all of Flying Flower Boat put together would not be her opponent.
Yang Kai lazily said, “Just forget it if you are reluctant to part with it, Madam Long. I was just asking casually.”
Shangguan Long’s expression was dark as she clenched her fists tightly and her chest heaved violently. It was clear that her emotions were not stable, but a short while later, she gritted her teeth and smiled lightly, “Since you’ve taken a fancy to the Falling Lotus, this Queen will give it to you, Little Brother Yang.”
Yang Kai lifted a brow and chuckled happily, “Many thanks, Madam.”
She replied, “I’m glad you like it.” Then, she turned to look at Shangguan Yu, “Yu’er, come here.”
Shangguan Yu turned her head to glance at Yang Kai and seeing that he was smiling at her with no intention of stopping her, she finally moved her body and ran over to Shangguan Long. She reached her mother’s side in an instant and lightly let out a breath of relief.
Then, Yang Kai enthusiastically offered, “You have all come a long way. It must have been tiring to travel so far. Why don’t you come in and have a rest inside? That way, I can fully show you some proper hospitality.”
“No need,” Shangguan Long rejected his offer without any hesitation. She was afraid that she would explode in anger if she remained here any longer. Thus, she decisively said, “It has been two years since we first left Flying Flower Boat. It is time for us to return. If we get another chance, we will definitely come to visit you!”
“Is that so…” Yang Kai revealed a regretful look, “In that case, I won’t keep you here any longer. I’m very grateful for your hard work in escorting me all the way back. I hope we meet again in the future.”
Shangguan Long gave him a deep look before pulling her daughter by the hand, activating her power, and flying off into the depths of the void. The hundred or so people from Flying Flower Boat gradually flew out of the Falling Lotus to follow closely behind her. Some of them even turned back to stare at the Falling Lotus with reluctant gazes before they left.
It wasn’t until they flew far away that a burst of terrifying undulations erupted out of Shangguan Long’s body. She had suppressed her rage up until this moment but could not do so anymore. She had to vent her anger; otherwise, her rage would damage her heart and injure her.
“How outrageous!” She gashed her teeth. This incident was nothing short of a huge humiliation. Flying Flower Boat had stood strong in the 3,000 Worlds for thousands of years, but it had never been humiliated so terribly before. Moreover, all of this was caused by a mere Emperor Realm brat! It was difficult for her to dispel her depression.
“Boat Master, are we really just going to give him the Falling Lotus?” Qin Wu Sheng looked angry. He had suffered a loss at Yue He’s hands just now. Unfortunately, his strength was lacking and he did not dare to fight back. Even so, it was a given that he would hold a grudge over the incident.
“What else could we have done otherwise!?” She gashed her teeth, “That little bastard specifically asked for the Falling Lotus. It would have come down to a battle if I refused! Who can stop that Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master!? What’s more, Yu’er was still in their hands!”
Just thinking about the power of that woman in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, everybody felt a resonating sense of sympathy.
Tong Yu Quan scowled, “What’s gone is gone. At least all of us came out of this incident alive. Besides, Flying Flower Boat was in the wrong. Just think of it as a monetary loss in exchange to avoid disaster.”
“What did this Queen do wrong!? He should be honoured that this Queen took a liking to him, but that stinking brat did not appreciate my kindness. Void Land… Just you wait! One day, this Queen will definitely make you pay for this humiliation with interest!”
Tong Yu Quan turned to look at his wife of many years, but when he saw her face that was distorted by hatred, he couldn’t help sighing heavily.
…..
Outside Void Land, Yue He stared into the void suspiciously, “Young Master, what happened between you and that group of people?”
Although she could tell that Yang Kai and Flying Flower Boat were not on friendly terms, she did not know what had happened between them. It was only because she received a message from Yang Kai just now that she and Chen Tian Fei hurriedly flew out to receive him.
“It’s a long story,” Yang Kai slowly shook his head. He did not wish to explain further in detail; after all, this incident would also affect Shangguan Yu’s reputation. Looking Yue He up and down, he asked, “When did you come out of retreat? Were there any dangers in your breakthrough?”
When Yue He saw how concerned he was over her, a feeling of sweetness that was sweeter than honey welled up in her heart. She broke into a huge smile as she reported, “I came out of retreat about a month ago, but my cultivation has not stabilised completely yet. I will need some time to consolidate it. My breakthrough was also very smooth and there were no dangers. Please rest assured, Young Master.”
If one were to cultivate in a regular manner, it would take at least several hundred years of accumulation to break through from the Fifth Order to the Sixth Order; however, a single Mid-Rank World Fruit had allowed her to advance by an entire Order in a matter of months. That was not all. Yue He originally could only be expected to reach the Seventh Order, but she now had hope of reaching the Eighth Order because she consumed the World Fruit! The World Fruit enhanced not only her current Order but also increased the limits of her future growth.
On the other hand, Chen Tian Fei was staring at Lu Xue and Guo Zi Yan in dumbfounded amazement. His eyes pushed apart the fat and widened to the size of eggs.
He was not particularly bothered by the strange occurrence earlier. Rather, he discovered something that shocked him greatly when the people from Flying Flower Boat left. Lu Xue had advanced into the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm! Even Guo Zi Yan had advanced into the Third-Order Open Heaven Realm!
He could accept Guo Zi Yan’s breakthrough as the other party’s starting point was lower, so breaking through was also easier. However, Lu Xue’s breakthrough completely baffled him!
Previously, Lu Xue and he were in the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm so their strength was on par with each other and nobody was inferior to the other. Now, however, Lu Xue had leapt over him after this trip. It was rather difficult for him to accept.
Not to mention, if he recalled correctly, Lu Xue became an Open Heaven Realm Master several dozen years after him! In other words, he should have been the first to advance into the next Order! Lu Xue should not have beaten him to it!
[It makes no sense for these two to suddenly advance into the next Realm after going on a trip with Yang Kai. Just… what kind of mysterious and wonderful opportunity did they encounter?]
For a while, Chen Tian Fei was filled with both envy and jealousy. Rubbing his fat hands together, he came to Yang Kai’s side and gave a flattering smile, “Sir, can you bring this humble subordinate with you the next time you head out?”
Inside Void Land, Yang Kai closed his eyes and carefully perceived his surroundings. He had not left this place for long, at most only around a year or so. Even so, Earth-shaking changes had occurred. Nothing could be seen from the surface, but careful probing would reveal the impenetrable fortress hidden around Void Land now.
Under Grandmaster Wu Liang’s supervision, the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array was gradually becoming more and more perfect. It was also gradually showing its power.
The entire Grand Array had cost Yang Kai countless resources. Almost 80% of the various precious treasures he brought back from the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary had been invested into the Grand Array, so it could be perceived just how terrifyingly powerful the Grand Array would be once fully activated.
It was hard to say whether a Grand Array of this scale could be comparable to those of the Cave-Heavens and Paradises, but it was definitely not something a Second-Class great force would ever have. It was said that the Second-Class great forces had inheritances that were accumulated for tens of thousands of years or even longer. They also had large businesses and a powerful heritage. Nonetheless, they had many disciples under them. Cultivation required massive amounts of resources, so where would they find the extra resources and energy to arrange a Grand Array of this level?
If not for that, the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array would not have fallen into Yang Kai’s hands.
Grandmaster Wu Liang had helped many great forces arrange Grand Arrays, and he preached the various benefits of this particular one to many Leaders of various great forces.
How could those Leaders fail to understand the strength of the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array? On the contrary, they almost immediately recognized this point. It was just that they did not have the budget to arrange something like that. They had many disciples under them to take care of, so if they poured such a large amount of resources into a single Grand Array, then what would they do about their disciples’ cultivation?
That was why nobody had given Grandmaster Wu Liang the chance to realize his ambitions so far despite how hard he persuaded the other party.
Only an extremely rich man like Yang Kai, who suddenly acquired a massive amount of terrifying resources and inexplicably acquired a Spirit Province out of nowhere, could let Grandmaster Wu Liang go so wild.
When Yang Kai left Void Land, the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array was only half-completed, but by the time he returned, the Grand Array was more or less completed. It was only missing a few more key Array Cores. According to Grandmaster Wu Liang’s estimate, the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array would be perfected in two more months at the most. When that time came, the Grand Array would officially start operating. Yang Kai could not wait for that day to come.
He slowly opened his eyes and let out a long breath. Looking back, he saw that the 600,000 people he brought from the Star Boundary were continuously coming out of the entrance to the Small Sealed World. There might be many of them, but their movements were orderly.
Regardless of who they were, anyone would be amazed after suddenly coming to a new world. Even the Great Emperors were looking around their surroundings curiously.
Mo Huang said, “Kid, is this the Void Land you mentioned previously?”
Yang Kai nodded, “Yes, this is Void Land.”
Duan Hong Chen carefully perceived his surroundings and said, “As I expected, it is slightly different from the Star Boundary. Improvement is certainly possible if we cultivate here.”
In the Star Boundary, the Great Emperors’ cultivation had already reached the limits of the Universe World so no matter how hard they cultivated, they could not improve any further. However, the unseen restraints that bound them vanished when they arrived at this place. They couldn’t help the feeling as though their world had expanded. Even their hearts and minds seemed to become wider.
This was also the reason why many Great Emperors of various Universe Worlds chose to jump out into the Outer Universe and shake off the shackles of their Universe World when their cultivation reached its limits. It was just that the Star Boundary was located in a rather isolated and remote area and they had never heard of the Open Heaven Realm before the arrival of Great Demon God, so they did not know anything about it.
Yang Kai laughed, “Those in the Emperor Realm and above require a large number of resources to cultivate. Please don’t rush. It’s not too late to start cultivating once you’ve gotten more familiar with this place.”
While they were conversing, Yue He watched quietly from the side. At this moment, she stepped forward and gave an elegant bow, “Yue He greets several Sirs. Please do not hesitate to ask me if you have any questions regarding your cultivation in the future. I will definitely help you to the best of my abilities.”
All the Great Emperors turned to look at her. She had been standing by Yang Kai’s side all this while. Moreover, her aura was not very obvious, so they had not paid much attention to her at the beginning. When they heard what she said, they couldn’t help releasing their Divine Sense to check her more carefully. However, their Divine Senses felt like raindrops sinking into the sea. There was no reaction whatsoever, so their expressions became strange.
Zhan Wu Hen secretly tugged at Yang Kai’s sleeve and asked in a whisper, “What is this lady’s cultivation?”
Yang Kai made a number ‘6’ gesture.
Flower Shadow asked, “How does she compare to the Great Demon God?”
“How should I put this…” Yang Kai scratched his face. The Great Emperors had only just arrived in the Outer Universe, so their understanding of the Open Heaven Realm was vague and he had no way to give them a detailed explanation in such a short time. So after some thought, he replied, “She could probably vaporize Great Demon God with a wave of her hand.”
Back when Great Demon God caused such chaos throughout the Star Boundary, he had only exerted the strength of a Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master at most. It certainly would not take much effort for a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master like Yue He to erase a Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master.
Flower Shadow stared at him with horror in her beautiful eyes. Despite using up all their strength near the end of the war, they were still nearly wiped out in that battle. The strength of Great Demon God was still fresh in her memory, but as strong as Great Demon God was, he still couldn’t take a single blow from this woman…
Many of the Great Emperors’ expressions became solemn. They cupped their fists in unison while Zhan Wu Hen said, “You are far too polite, Madam. We will surely disturb you a lot in the future. Allow us to thank you in advance.”
Yue He pursed her lips and smiled, “Sir is being too stiff. I am the Young Master’s maidservant. It is part of my duties to share the burdens of the Young Master.”
Hearing her call herself a maidservant, he did not know how to respond. He simply glanced at Yang Kai with a meaningful look before putting his hands behind his back and studying his surroundings.
The gazes of Yu Ru Meng and the others felt like leeches, however, biting firmly into Yang Kai’s body with a deep sense of scrutiny.
Yang Kai sweated profusely as he chuckled awkwardly and introduced, “Yue He, these are my wives.”
Yue He bent her knees and bowed, “This servant greets the Young Madams!”
Yu Ru Meng and the others had strange expressions on their faces. It was their first time hearing the title ‘Young Madam”, so they couldn’t help being a little uncomfortable.
However, Yu Ru Meng was not just any ordinary person. As a Charm Demon Demon Saint, she used to be one of the greatest Masters in the Demon Realm; therefore, she showed no restraint even when faced with a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master like Yue He. Naturally, the main reason was that she had also slaughtered a so-called Open Heaven Realm Master back in the Demon Realm, giving her more confidence.
She directly walked up, took Yue He’s small hand, and smiled brightly, “Such a pretty young lady. How can that bastard be so hard-hearted as to make you his maidservant? Did he bully you? Tell me; I will punish him for you!”
Yang Kai looked down to the ground, feeling cold sweat dripping down his back like a waterfall.
Yue He shook her head and replied gently, “No. I am following and serving the Young Master of my own volition.”
“Is that so?” Yu Ru Meng smiled sweetly “If he bullies you, you have to let me know. This man has a way with women. Look at us; we sisters were all tricked by him and boarded this pirate’s ship before we even knew it. At this point, we can’t even get off if we wanted to!”
Yue He said, “Young Master is a little strict, but he is a good man.”
Yu Ru Meng suddenly exclaimed, “Little Sister, your hands are so smooth.”
Yue He seemed shy, “Young Madam, your skin is also very smooth.”
“I got so carried away while talking to you that I forgot to introduce you to the others,” While saying that, Yu Ru Meng dragged Yue He along with her and began to introduce Su Yan and the others.
Yue He greeted every one of them and discovered that Su Yan and the others were each great beauties in their own right. They were either charming and seductive, cold and noble, sweet and adorable, naive and innocent, or heroic and valiant. They all had different temperaments and charms so she couldn’t help feeling secretly speechless. It was her first time learning that the Young Master she served had so many lovers. Thus, she couldn’t help turning to glance at him.
However, she saw Yang Kai standing there with a solemn expression. He was speaking to the Great Emperors in a low voice. After listening to their conversation, she heard him say, “Since it’s your first time here, why don’t I show you around? It will help you familiarise yourself with the surroundings.”
Zhan Wu Hen waved his hand dismissively, “No need. You can do your own things. The four of us will just stroll around casually.”
After saying that, he stepped forward and slipped outside.
Mo Huang said, “I’m going to take a look around too.”
He strode forward, heading towards a different direction.
Yang Kai turned to look at Duan Hong Chen, but Bustling World Great Emperor chased after Zhan Wu Hen while shouting, “Old Ghost Zhan, wait for me!”
*Shua shua shua…*
One after another, the Great Emperors scattered in different directions. Before leaving, Flower Shadow glared at Yang Kai. Her expression indicated that she was taking pleasure in his misfortune as she snickered, “You get what you deserve!”
At this moment, somebody suddenly rushed over to Yang Kai and excitedly said, “Adoptive Father, have we arrived at Void Land!?”
Yang Kai’s eyes brightened as he grabbed Yang Xiao and nodded repeatedly. “That’s right, Xiao’er. This place is Void Land. In the future, you will be cultivating here. Let me tell you; Void Land has the Seven Lands of the Yin, Yang, Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water Elements. It’s very mysterious. Why don’t I show you around?!”
Yang Xiao waved his hand swiftly though, “No need. Father can attend to his own matters. I’ll go and take a stroll with Little Aunt and Great Aunt.”
After saying that, he broke free of Yang Kai’s grip and called out to Yang Xue and Liu Yan before he turned into a stream of light and vanished out of sight.
Qiong Qi chased after them, “Young Masters, wait for me!”
Yang Kai was about to spit blood at this point. While he was feeling speechless, his gaze swept over somebody all of a sudden and he immediately shouted excitedly, “Second Manager!”
Among the crowd of people that had just walked out of the Small Sealed World’s entrance was Bian Yu Qing. Before she could even look around at her surroundings though, she immediately came over and cupped her fists, “How may I help you, Palace Master?”
“Has everybody come out?” Yang Kai asked solemnly with his hands behind his back, trying to look authoritative.
Bian Yu Qing just glanced at him strangely though. The Sealed World Bead was Yang Kai’s artifact, so he could tell how many people were still inside with a single thought. Why would he need to ask her? Even so, she answered his question honestly, “They’ve all come out, Palace Master. I was the last person to leave.”
“Good, good. You served as the Second Manager at High Heaven Palace. During all those years when I was gone, you and Head Manager handled all the affairs of the Palace and managed the place very well. Now that we are in Void Land and Head Manager did not come with us, I can only rely on you.”
She solemnly replied, “I will do my best so as not to disappoint you, Palace Master.”
“Let me introduce somebody to you.” Yang Kai turned to the side and shouted, “Yue He, come here.”
Yue He was talking to Yu Ru Meng and the other women, but when she heard Yang Kai’s call, she immediately excused herself and came over. She looked relieved as she did. Shooting him with a grateful expression, she asked, “How can I help you, Young Master?”
Yang Kai introduced Bian Yu Qing and the two women greeted each other.
“In the future, the two of you can discuss matters of Void Land between yourselves and act as you see fit. There’s no need to ask me,” he said.
“Yes!” The two women responded respectfully.
Yang Kai was used to leaving matters to others. He had a free and unrestrained temperament. Expanding his domain territory and conquering his enemies were nothing to him. On the contrary, asking him to remain in one place and manage the development of the land was difficult.
That was why he was adamant about bringing Hua Qing Si and Bian Yu Qing with him.
It was just that Hua Qing Si had not followed him and chose to remain at High Heaven Palace; therefore, there was no choice but to put most of the burden on Bian Yu Qing. The 600,000 people he brought with him this time were all from the Star Boundary, so Bian Yu Qing was familiar with their origins and could easily make arrangements for them. It was just that Void Land was in the Outer Universe, after all, a place she did not know much about. If she worked with Yue He, they could complement each other’s strengths and cover each other’s weaknesses.
With the two of them managing Void Land, Yang Kai would no longer need to worry.
Aside from the Great Emperors, Yang Xiao, Yang Xue, and several others who left to investigate, the remaining people among the 600,000 quietly stood in place. Although they were looking at their surroundings in amazement, they were like a well-disciplined army and did not make any unnecessary noises.
So many people suddenly arrived at Void Land all at once, so it was safe to say that the top priority at the moment was to assign lodgings to them. Fortunately, Void Land was not small. There were a total of seven Spirit Provinces, so it was not hard to accommodate these people.
Yue He and Bian Yu Qing immediately gathered together and discussed this matter.
The 600,000 people were soon separated into seven groups and were then led away by some people, splitting up to head to one of the seven Spirit Provinces. These people leading the way used to belong to Yue He’s Small Orchid Palace. After Small Orchid Palace was disbanded and destroyed, they followed Yue He to Void Land. It could be said that they were the first batch of immigrants. By now, they were already a part of Void Land. Having arrived earlier, they were a little more familiar with Void Land. If nothing else, leading the way was not a problem for them.
While these people were busy working, Yang Kai suddenly heard a cry coming from the depths of Earth Spirit Land. It was followed by a furious roar. Immediately afterwards, the ground shook and the World Energy became chaotic. It felt like there were people fighting in the depths of Earth Spirit Land.
Yang Kai was stupefied, but when he detected a certain flitting aura, he quickly turned to look in that direction and shouted, “Shit!”
As soon as the words left his mouth, he shifted his body and rushed over in that direction. Similarly, the expressions of Yu Ru Meng and the others changed slightly and they hurriedly followed after Yang Kai.
While flying over, Bian Yu Qing asked, “Lady Yue He, are there any unvanquished enemies left in Void Land?”
Yue He shook her head, “It’s not an enemy. It’s just… This person’s existence is a little special. I can’t explain it well, but you will understand once you’ve seen yourself.”
Bian Yu Qing gently nodded in response.
A short while later, a group of people gathered in the middle of Earth Spirit Land where the central Main Hall was located.
A ferocious Monster was lying on the ground over there, his entire body exuding the aura of a Divine Spirit. Who else could it be but Qiong Qi? It was just that Old Qiong had revealed his true appearance at this moment. He was also restrained on the ground, completely unable to move. What bound his movements were numerous fine filaments that emitted a bright white light. The harder he struggled, the tighter those filaments dug into his skin. It didn’t take long for his entire body to be covered in blood.
On the other side, Liu Yan had transformed into a Fire Phoenix. Her body was soaring in mid-air, but her mouth was also bound by identical threads. She was unable to utter a single sound.
Outside the Main Hall stood a beautiful woman with an enchanting figure and a pair of cold eyes. She was holding Yang Xiao in one hand and Yang Xue in the other. There was no aura coming from her body. Nevertheless, Yang Xiao, who was usually a fearless little bastard, was currently quivering in fright. His complexion was pale and he couldn’t even muster the courage to fight back. Yang Xue pursed her red lips lightly as her complexion was also pale.
Yang Kai’s face twitched at the sight.
This woman was Zhu Jiu Yin, who had been healing in retreat all this while. Ever since they took over and established Void Land, she had been in seclusion and never showed herself at all. In the entire Void Land, nobody else knew about her existence aside from the people who followed Yang Kai out of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary.
Calculating the time, it had been nearly a year since they came out of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, and although her injuries were not completely healed, they should be much better by now.
Yang Kai felt a huge headache as he had no idea what this little brat had done to anger Zhu Jiu Yin.
*Shua shua shua…*
Countless figures came rushing over, one after another. They were the Great Emperors who came to check out the situation after they noticed the commotion. When they saw Qiong Qi, Liu Yan, Yang Xiao, and Yang Xue in such a state, they were shocked.
It had to be said that the combat power of these four was quite remarkable, especially Qiong Qi. As Flowing Time Great Emperor’s mount, he had lived for tens of thousands of years and his strength outside the Star Boundary was not inferior to a Great Emperor’s. However, all four of them had been completely subdued even though only a short time had passed since the commotion began.
On the other hand, the woman was calm and unruffled. She was definitely an Open Heaven Realm Master!
[We definitely can’t afford to offend her!]
The next to arrive on scene were the two Elders of the Dragon Clan, Fu Zhun dan Zhu Yan.
Fu Zhun looked over and saw her son being held up in the air by an unknown woman and immediately lost her temper as she shouted, “Who are you!? Put Xiao’er down immediately!”
“Dragon Clan?” Zhu Jiu Yin tilted her head to the side and glanced at the two Great Elders of the Dragon Clan. She did not think much of them though and instead looked over at Yang Kai with great interest. Her beautiful eyes were elegant, sparkling with a strange light.
Yang Kai frowned, “Senior, I don’t know what my Adopted Son and my Little Sister have done to upset you, but please be merciful.”
To which Zhu Jiu Yin coldly snorted, “If this Queen had not been merciful, do you think they would still be alive? This Queen was recuperating from her injuries in peace when they suddenly barged in. If this had happened in the past, I would have killed them on the spot.”
Feeling speechless, Yang Kai glared fiercely at Yang Xiao. [This brat sure does not know the immensity of Heaven and Earth, accidentally offending Zhu Jiu Yin.]
“Many thanks, Senior. They only just arrived here, so they do not know of your greatness. I will discipline them thoroughly later.”
Zhu Jiu Yin’s eyes flashed before she casually tossed Yang Xiao and Yang Xue on the ground.
Only then did Yang Kai let out a breath of relief. Although this woman had made an oath on her Source to become his Protector and swore never to harm him, that oath only applied to him and not the people around him. If she refused to let go of this matter, it would also give him some trouble.
There was a whooshing sound suddenly and Yang Kai’s vision blurred for a moment. Then, he found that Zhu Jiu Yin had appeared right in front of him. She was so close that their faces nearly touched. Thus, he jumped back in fright and asked, “What is it, Senior?”
“Move aside!” She pushed him away and studied the person standing behind him with great interest.
As their gazes met, Shan Qing Luo looked at the woman in front of her with a strange expression. For some reason, she felt an inexplicable sense of affinity towards this person. It felt as though this woman in front of her was a long-lost relative.
“What is your name?” Zhu Jiu Yin asked with a smile.
“Shan Qing Luo!”
She nodded and lifted a hand to grab Shan Qing Luo’s jade-white hand. In front of everybody’s eyes, she placed one of Shan Qing Luo’s fingers in her mouth and bit down gently.
Shan Qing Luo furrowed her brow in response, clearly feeling that her skin had been broken.
Zhu Jiu Yin drew a drop of blood and tasted it on her tongue before spitting it out with a look of disgust, “Why is your bloodline so thin?”
“Senior, you…” Shan Qing Luo seemed to understand something at that moment and her beautiful eyes lit up with a mixture of shock and delight.
Zhu Jiu Yin grabbed Shan Qing Luo’s hand without allowing for objections and headed towards the Grand Hall behind her, “Come with me.”
Shan Qing Luo followed, glancing back at Yang Kai with a mixture of excitement and unease.
Yang Kai opened his mouth but did not know what to say.
Zhu Jiu Yin halted abruptly and turned back to look at him, “From now on, this girl belongs to me. Do you have any objections?”
“None!” Yang Kai hurriedly replied.
“Lucky you know what’s good for you!” Zhu Jiu Yin coldly snorted and continued onward.
Yang Kai quickly shot a look at Shan Qing Luo that seemed to say, “Don’t worry.”
The door to the Grand Hall slammed shut with a loud bang, blocking out everybody’s line of sight. Everybody then turned their gaze to Yang Kai instead as Zhan Wu Hen frowned and asked, “Who is that woman?”
Su Yan was also a little worried and asked, “Husband, she took Luo’er away. Will she be okay?”
Yang Kai smiled, “It’s fine. This is a great opportunity for Luo’er.”
Zhu Jiu Yin was a Heavenly Moon Demon Spider. Yang Kai had learned about the Divine Spirit known as the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider from Shan Qing Luo a long time ago. This couldn’t be helped; after all, Shan Qing Luo also possessed a Heavenly Moon Demon Spider’s Source.
Just now, Zhu Jiu Yin had ignored everyone else and only showed interest in Shan Qing Luo, clearly aware of the bloodline within the latter. Now that she had taken Shan Qing Luo away with her, Shan Qing Luo’s cultivation would gain an overwhelming advantage over everybody else with the personal guidance of a Great Senior like her.
Yang Kai had cooperated with Zhu Jiu Yin in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary firstly because had no other choice, but secondly to create a path for Shan Qing Luo in the future. Otherwise, he could very well have gone and cooperated with Jin Wu instead.
It was extremely difficult to chance upon another Divine Spirit of the same Race. The 3,000 Worlds might be vast, but there were precious few Divine Spirits like the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider left. If he missed Zhu Jiu Yin, only the Heavens knew when he would come across another Heavenly Moon Demon Spider.
After Yang Kai revealed Zhu Jiu Yin’s identity to the others, Yang Xiao and Yang Xue were filled with a sense of dread. They never imagined that they would accidentally provoke such a terrifying existence. Likewise, Fu Zhun and Zhu Yan also felt some lingering fears. If a Master of that level had truly intended to kill Yang Xiao, nobody could have stopped her even with so many people present.
Even so, they also felt a sense of excitement in addition to their fear.
That was because they witnessed the terrifying heights a Divine Spirit could grow to. They were part of the Dragon Clan after all. Among all the Divine Spirits, the Dragons and Phoenixes were considered rulers as they were the strongest. If a Heavenly Moon Demon Spider could grow to such terrifying heights, then what would members of the Dragon Clan be like if they were to develop and mature?
It was just that they had not known how to continue refining their bloodline. Over countless years, they had remained stagnant and unable to progress further; however, they were now in the Outer Universe so their situation might just improve!
Regardless of whether it was the Dragon Clan’s Elders, Qiong Qi, or Liu Yan, they seemed to have found a sliver of hope in the darkness. As long as they followed this trace of hope, there would come a day when they escape the darkness surrounding them to see the real light beyond.
Three months went by in the blink of an eye.
During these three months, the 600,000 people from the Star Boundary gradually became familiar with Void Land. Under the proper management of Yue He and Bian Yu Qing, these 600,000 were settled in the various Spirit Provinces and were now performing their respective duties.
Under Bian Yu Qing’s suggestion, Void Land established several ‘Halls’. They were Pill Hall, Artifact Hall, Array Hall, Scripture Hall, Martial Hall, and Divine Spirit Hall.
Among them, the Wondrous Pill Great Emperor served as the Hall Master of the Pill Hall. He cultivated the Alchemic Dao and used that to condense his Dao Seal. His achievements in Alchemy had long since reached the limits of the Star Boundary; therefore, his Alchemy skills were so superb that he stood at the peak of all those present.
If Void Land wanted to develop further, it could not afford to sit around and do nothing while the resources were depleted. Most of the resources that Yang Kai obtained from the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary had been spent on the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array. Even if there was some surplus, they could not be considered abundant. In addition, what they found in the secret storehouse of Seven Wonders Land and the compensation from Flying Flower Boat would not last long. The Great Emperors had reached the limits of their cultivation, so they were eager to improve themselves, but if they were to start cultivating, they would surely require materials of the Fifth Order and above, right?
The price for any Fifth-Order material was calculated by the millions of Open Heaven Pills, and that was only for Fifth-Order materials. It might be that the Great Emperors would need more than Fifth-Order materials. They might require Sixth-Order materials or even higher! If so, the costs would be even greater and more terrifying! Therefore, Void Land required a means of generating income.
It was just that Void Land was newly established, so with neither connections nor contacts, how could it have a means of generating revenue? It was truly fortunate that Seven Wonders Land had left behind an amazing heritage. The seven Orchards were currently Void Land’s greatest wealth. The seven types of spirit fruit were the primary ingredients to refine Open Heaven Pills, so if they could get their hands on the pill recipe, refining Open Heaven Pills would not be a problem with Wondrous Pill Great Emperor’s heritage in the Alchemic Dao. That was why Void Land’s highest priority at the moment was to develop the Pill Hall. It was also the key to Void Land’s rise to greatness in the future.
On the other hand, Hou Yu served as the Hall Master of the Artifact Hall. Her cultivation could not be considered high as she was only in the Second-Order Emperor Realm. Nevertheless, nobody in Void Land could surpass her when it came to Artifact Refining. Back in the Star Boundary, the name ‘Monkey Grandmaster’ had become famous throughout the land. Many cultivators had taken pride in owning the artifacts she personally refined. If not for Nanmen Da Jun’s introduction, Yang Kai would not have been able to get her under his command.
Hou Yu had refined countless amazing artifacts for High Heaven Palace back in the Star Boundary, and those artifacts played a huge role in the war between the two worlds.
Meanwhile, Nanmen Da Jun naturally served as the Hall Master of the Array Hall. He hardly had a moment to rest since he arrived in Void Land as he had been studying under Grandmaster Wu Liang. Nanmen Da Jun was practically obsessed with Arrays but the Universe World known as the Star Boundary had bound his hands and feet; therefore, he had been unable to pull himself away after seeing the mystery of the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array upon his arrival at Void Land.
He had an extremely rich heritage in the Dao of Spirit Arrays and a high sense of comprehension. Otherwise, he would not have achieved the success he enjoyed today.
Over the past three months, he had been working under Grandmaster Wu Liang and proclaiming himself to be a Disciple. He was hard-working and conscientious to the point where he neglected to even eat and sleep.
Grandmaster Wu Liang originally despised Array Masters who originated from lower Universe Worlds; however, he quickly discovered that Nanmen Da Jun had a unique sense and comprehension in the Dao of Spirit Arrays. While Nanmen Da Jun’s achievements in the Dao of Spirit Arrays could not be compared to his, that was simply because their environment for growth was too different. He had to admit that he might not have reached the level of achievement that Nanmen Da Jun had if he was placed in a lower Universe World instead. Combined with his gratitude towards Yang Kai for providing him with the means to arrange the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array and fulfil his long-cherished wish, the Grandmaster did not conceal his knowledge and fully intended to teach Nanmen Da Jun.
One was willing to learn and the other was willing to teach; hence, Nanmen Da Jun madly absorbed the mysteries of the Outer Universe’s Dao of Spirit Arrays during these three months and experienced a huge leap in growth.
The existence of the Scripture Hall was to store various Secret Techniques and ancient books. Be it in the Star Boundary or the Outer Universe, Yang Kai had killed many, especially in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. He obtained many spoils of war, among which contained many Secret Techniques and Secret Arts. These were almost all useless to him, but he kept them anyway. These resources were now stored in the Scripture Hall so that the disciples could study and cultivate them.
Yang Kai entrusted the position of Hall Master of the Martial Hall to Lu Xue. She was a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master after all, so it was a given that she had the qualifications. On this point, even the Great Emperors had nothing to say.
It was just that most of the 600,000 people who came from the Star Boundary had relatively shallow foundations; therefore, on the basis of understanding the common sense of the Martial Dao in the Outer Universe, the Great Emperors and Pseudo-Great Emperors would occasionally preach the Dao to the disciples regarding the important points to take note of during their cultivation and some cultivation tricks.
In the Star Boundary, it was practically impossible to receive a chance to listen to the teachings of a Great Emperor. None of the Great Emperors had that much time to do such things. They would only take in a few disciples to carefully teach and nurture at most; however, they put aside their status after coming to the Outer Universe and contributed to the development of Void Land.
How precious and valuable were the Great Emperors’ cultivation experiences? It was exactly what these 600,000 people needed. For that reason, the lectures would be bursting at the seams with people every time the Great Emperors held a class. Countless cultivators broke free of their own shackles during these three months and their strength increased sharply.
As for the Divine Spirit Hall, it was a very special hall. There was no helping it. Many Divine Spirits had been brought over from the Star Boundary. Leaving aside the fact that dozens of pure-blooded members of the Dragon Clan from Dragon Island were here, there were also several hundred Dragonborn with the Dragon Clan bloodlines. Not to mention, Luan Feng, Fan Wu, Cang Gou, and the countless Monster Kings from the Ancient Wild Lands.
These Monster Kings originally had faint Divine Spirit bloodlines flowing in them but could not really be considered Divine Spirits. The Blood Gate had remained open after Zhang Ruo Xi came out of retreat though. Consequently, many members of the Monster Race had entered the Blood Gate over the years and received their ancestor’s Sources.
Take Ying Fei for example. He received the Flaming Eagle’s Source from within the Blood Gate, allowing him to become a Divine Spirit now. As such, almost half of the thirty-two Monster Kings had become Divine Spirits.
There were also the Stone Spirit Clan, Xiao Xiao, the Wood Spirit Clan, Liu Yan, Qiong Qi, and Spirit Beast Island’s Jiu Feng who served under Martial Beast Great Emperor Mo Huang.
It was very rare for so many Divine Spirits to gather in one place, even in the 3,000 Worlds. Divine Spirits were extremely prideful existences and generally acted alone. Only a unique environment like Void Land could make them coexist so peacefully.
The Divine Spirits mainly cultivated by improving their Bloodline Power and Purity while developing their Source. It was very different from ordinary cultivators. In this regard, nobody could help them except themselves.
However, if these Divine Spirits managed to grow and become powerful, even the Thirty-Six Cave-Heavens and Seventy-Two Paradises would not be able to challenge Void Land easily.
The many halls carried out their respective duties, and while there were some flaws, Void Land was a newly-established entity after all. It was only natural that there were many arrangements that had yet to be perfected. The many disciples were also free to join the respective halls in order to cultivate according to their interests and specialties.
In addition to these many halls, the current Void Land was also divided into two types of disciples: the Outer Disciples and the Inner Disciples. The Outer Disciples consisted of the cultivators below the Emperor Realm, and there were many of them, consisting of practically 99% of the population. On the other hand, the Inner Disciples were those in the Emperor Realm, of which there were about 1,000 at the moment. These people not only included the Emperor Realm cultivators from the Star Boundary but also those who originally belonged to Small Orchid Palace.
Once somebody advanced into the Open Heaven Realm, they would automatically leave the Inner Disciples and be promoted to the status of a Deacon. It was just that the number of Open Heaven Realm Masters in Void Land were so few at the moment that they could only look forward to future development.
In just three months, Void Land had already formed a preliminary outline and organizational structure. Everything was right on track.
At this moment, Yang Kai was standing in the sky above Void Land. He was holding the Void Land’s Array Jade in his hand and feeling the mysteries of the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array.
Grandmaster Wu Liang was standing next to Yang Kai. Compared to the first time they met, the Spirit Array Grandmaster had lost a lot of weight and appeared quite haggard; however, his expression was extremely animated. He was explaining the various benefits and aspects of the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array to Yang Kai.
“True Monarch, I’m sure you have some understanding of this Old Master’s Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array already but let me explain again. The Grand Array can be divided into nine layers that integrate various functions into one. Moreover, these functions are linked together. It is so wonderful that it cannot be described in words.” His eyes were bloodshot, but he was in high spirits. His entire being was filled with vigour as he pointed forward and continued, “The first three layers of the Grand Array are the basic foundations of the Grand Array. When in operation, they will draw Star Power from the outside and pour the energy into the Grand Array to keep it running smoothly. The excess energy will be stored for emergencies. That is not all. The first three layers of the Grand Array are also capable of self-restoration. As long as the damage is not too serious, they will be able to repair most damage by themselves.”
Yang Kai was mentally connected to the Array Jade, so when he studied the first three layers of the Grand Array, he discovered that Grandmaster Wu Liang had not exaggerated his words. Thus, he nodded lightly. Grandmaster Wu Liang had already explained these functions to Yang Kai before setting up the Nine Heavenly Layers after all.
Grandmaster Wu Liang continued, “The three middle layers are Defensive Arrays. The first function is for concealment. If you wish, True Monarch, you can activate the Spirit Array to hide Void Land completely so that it cannot be seen from the outside. Of course, you can also lure the enemy deeper into your trap if you wish with this method. This Concealment Spirit Array does not only work to conceal but also to create illusions. The second function is to bewilder one’s enemies. Those who enter this Spirit Array will experience all sorts of hallucinations. They will not be able to distinguish North from East, West, or South. Naturally, you can also increase the power of this Spirit Array if you have a suitable artifact to act as its Array Core. This Old Master has already reserved a spot for this Array Core in advance. When that time comes, you can decide for yourself whether to use it or not!
“The third function is for pure defence. I have already set the Heavenly Net Umbrella you brought back previously into the Array Core. I have no idea who created the Heavenly Net Umbrella, but it is very powerful. If you use this as the Array Core to activate the Defensive Grand Array… This Old Master does not dare to say that Void Land will be impenetrable, but it would take at least ten Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters working together for three days and three nights to break through it.”
Yang Kai raised his brow at those words and happily expressed his thanks, “Many thanks, Grandmaster.”
Grandmaster Wu Liang waved his hand dismissively, “You don’t need to thank this Old Master; in fact, it is I who should be the one thanking you instead. The cost of the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array is truly enormous. This Old Master conceived this Spirit Array several hundred years ago but has never had the chance to arrange it. With your support, I was finally able to see my grand idea come alive. It can be said that this Old Master’s lifelong wish has been fulfilled.”
Changing the topic of conversation, Grandmaster Wu Liang continued, “Let me tell you about the last three layers of the Grand Array. These last three layers of the Grand Array are Offensive Spirit Arrays. Most of the Star Power gathered by the first three layers of the Grand Array will be stored in the last three layers of the Grand Array. These three Spirit Arrays are capable of transforming flexibly. Moreover, each layer is stronger than the last. If anyone were to fall prey to this Grand Array, even a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master will not escape unscathed!
“This Old Master has already placed suitable artifacts in the Array Cores of the first two Offensive Spirit Arrays. The Heavenly Executioner’s Sword that True Monarch gave me earlier has been placed in the second Spirit Array. If you activate the power of the Heavenly Executioner’s Sword with the power of the Grand Array, most Open Heaven Realm Masters will be unable to block a single blow!
“As for the last one… this Old Master did as you instructed, True Monarch. The position for the Array Core has been reserved in advance. I might not know what you have prepared, but please do not forget that the last layer of the Grand Array uses a person as its foundation. It is best not to activate it for no reason before you amass enough strength; otherwise, you will risk a powerful backlash.”
Yang Kai nodded solemnly, “I will remember that. Many thanks, Grandmaster!”
Grandmaster Wu Liang exhaled a long breath and stared down at Void Land. His gaze seemed to penetrate the numerous layers to take in the entire Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array. There was a look of satisfaction in the depths of his eyes.
“Grandmaster, this is the promised reward. Please accept it.” Yang Kai took out a Space Ring and handed it over. He had asked Grandmaster Wu Liang to help set up this Grand Array, so it was only natural that he could not allow the other party to work for free. Besides, the remuneration had been agreed upon earlier. Now that the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array had been completed, it was only right to deliver the payment.
Grandmaster Wu Liang sighed and accepted the Space Ring silently as he said sadly, “This Grand Array is probably the greatest achievement that this Old Master will achieve in this life. There will be no more chances to surpass this pinnacle in the future. Please treat this Grand Array kindly, True Monarch.”
For a Spirit Array Grandmaster like him, the Nine Heavenly Layers that he worked so hard to set up was not just the crystallisation and culmination of his entire lifetime’s cultivation, it was also a child he had given birth to in a sense; thus, he was a little reluctant to part ways with it.
A sudden idea came to Yang Kai seeing this kind of sentiment and he smiled, “Grandmaster, if you can’t help worrying about the Grand Array, why don’t you remain in Void Land? I’m sure it will be able to operate for a very long time if you take care of it yourself.”
Grandmaster Wu Liang shook his head, “True Monarch, please don’t try to win over this Old Master. This Old Master is used to the freedom of living alone. I can’t bear to be restrained by anything. If this Old Master had really wanted to join a great force, I would have done so a long time ago and not have waited until today.”
Although Yang Kai knew that the possibility was very slim, he couldn’t help feeling slightly disappointed when he was rejected by Grandmaster Wu Liang so decisively. It would have been a great help to the future development of Void Land if a Spirit Array Grandmaster like Grandmaster Wu Liang could remain in Void Land. Unfortunately, a forcefully picked melon was not sweet, so there was nothing he could do since the other party was unwilling.
“Please rest assured, True Monarch. Now that the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array has been arranged in Void Land, this Old Master will be tight-lipped about the various mysteries behind it and will never leak a single word to outsiders. If this Old Master lets even the slightest information slip, may my Small Universe collapse and death come for me on the spot!” Grandmaster Wu Liang was clearly making a sworn oath on his Small Universe.
Yang Kai replied solemnly, “There’s no need for such extremes, Grandmaster. Proprietress herself invited you to set up this Grand Array for me. It’s only natural that I trust you.”
Grandmaster Wu Liang laughed, “That little one called Nanmen Da Jun under your command has extremely high attainments and understanding in the Dao of Spirit Arrays. Although he is still lacking at the moment, I have great expectations of his growth in the future. Handing the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array Hand over to him will also put my mind at ease.”
After saying that, he cupped his fists, “True Monarch, this Old Master is leaving. I hope to see you again in the future!”
Yang Kai was startled, “Are you leaving right now, Grandmaster?”
Grandmaster Wu Liang responded with a smile, “Thanks to you, True Monarch, this Old Master was able to make full use of and display all his talents. Arranging this Grand Array recently has greatly inspired this Old Master, which in turn gave birth to many insights. The bottleneck that has been troubling this Old Master for many years has shown signs of loosening and I’m afraid I’m not too far from my next breakthrough. This Old Master has to go back and enter retreat.”
“Oh?” Yang Kai was surprised before he cupped his fists with a smile and said, “In that case, I should be congratulating you, Grandmaster.”
Even now, Yang Kai had yet to figure out what Order in the Open Heaven Realm Grandmaster Wu Liang was in; after all, they had very few opportunities to come into contact with each other. Looking at the other party’s aura, Grandmaster Wu Liang seemed to be in the Fourth or Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm. For a Spirit Array Grandmaster, such a level of cultivation was not weak at all.
Knowing that Grandmaster Wu Liang wanted to return to enter retreat and advance into the next Order, Yang Kai did not keep the other party for much longer. He politely saw Grandmaster Wu Liang off outside Void Land. It wasn’t until Grandmaster Wu Liang’s artifact vanished out of his sight that Yang Kai turned around and returned to Void Land.
Yue He came out to meet him and glanced behind him suspiciously, “Has Grandmaster Wu Liang left?”
Yang Kai nodded, “The Grandmaster realised the opportunity for a breakthrough and hurried back to enter retreat.”
Yue He was stunned for a moment before her expression became slightly gloomy as she informed him, “Young Master, we don’t have many resources left.”
Yang Kai was a bit surprised and asked curiously, “Weren’t there still some surpluses from before?”
It had indeed cost a lot to arrange the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array and he even had to give Grandmaster Wu Liang a hefty payment at the end. Even so, Yang Kai was certain they still had some resources left over from before.
To which she replied, “The several Sirs you brought back with you have all begun to enter retreat to cultivate. Each of them also needs Sixth-Order materials. There are also several at the peak of the Emperor Realm who have taken away a lot of the Fifth-Order materials. We can just barely manage to get by for some time, but once more people begin to condense their Dao Seals, the demand for materials will only increase.”
Yue He was in charge of finances for all of Void Land and Yang Kai had previously told her to accommodate the cultivation needs of the cultivators from the Star Boundary without limit. Those in the Third-Order Emperor Realm and below were not hard to deal with and their cultivation requirements did not worry her. However, the Great Emperors were existences that had long ago condensed their Dao Seals. They had remained at the level of a Great Emperor for tens of thousands of years each, so they all had extremely solid foundations. After familiarising themselves with the environment for a bit, they settled down and began to cultivate in retreat.
Iron Blood, Bustling World, Marital Beast, Serene Soul, Heavens Revelations, Wondrous Pill, Flower Shadow, and Ice Feather. All Eight Great Emperors would consume eight Sixth-Order materials all at once, and that was only the beginning. The follow-up demand would only be greater and greater.
Yue He was truly baffled by this. She simply could not understand why these people had such powerful heritage and great aptitude that all of them had chosen to refine Sixth-Order materials. She had seen many Great Emperors from other Universe Worlds in the past, but those Great Emperors had a mixture of both strong and weak aptitudes.
In general, a Great Emperor of a Universe World could at minimum withstand the strain of Fourth-Order Open Heaven materials. Nevertheless, those people had not been as exaggerated as the Great Emperors of the Star Boundary.
The reason for this discrepancy was that the Great Emperors had an extremely solid foundation. Their Dao Seals were firm and could withstand stronger impacts. They had remained at the level of a Great Emperor for much longer than normal after all. On the contrary, the Great Emperors of other Universe Worlds would generally begin to condense their Yin, Yang, and Five Elements shortly after arriving at their current realm. They did not spend time refining and stabilising their foundations for thousands of years, so their Dao Seals naturally could not compare to Zhan Wu Hen and the others.
Aside from the eight Great Emperors, others such as Tian Yan, Sheng Yu Zhu, Li Wu Yi, and Yang Yan had already condensed their own Dao Seals within these past few months and began their own cultivation. Further down the line, Wen Zi Shan, Li Jiao, and the others were still in the process of condensing their Dao Seals.
There were also the 30 people whom Yang Kai brought back with him from the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, such as Lang Qing Shan and the shaved-headed man. They were also consuming materials from different Orders.
At present, the most abundant resource in the entire Void Land was Open Heaven Pills. There were as many as 7 or 8 eight billion Open Heaven Pills! That was because there were not many Open Heaven Realm Masters in Void Land, so the consumption of Open Heaven Pills was minimal. Aside from the cost of purchasing the materials to set up the Grand Array, there had not been much consumption of the Open Heaven Pills.
While 7 or 8 billion Open Heaven Pills might sound like a lot, how many cultivation resources could they actually be exchanged with? A full set of 7 Sixth-Order materials cost at least 100 million Open Heaven Pills; therefore, one billion could only purchase 10 portions, and that would only be under the most ideal of circumstances. After all, Sixth-Order materials were not exactly common resources that could be found everywhere and would often be sold for much higher prices.
In the long run, Void Land’s finances were a huge unsolved problem, so it was no wonder that Yue He was looking so gloomy.
“What about the gourd vine? Didn’t I ask you to harvest materials from those Little Bottle Gourds?” Yang Kai asked.
Yue He replied, “We have already started the process. It’s just that… Although the Little Bottle Gourd can produce a full set of Fifth-Order Element treasures, the number of times they can be harvested is limited. We can only harvest them about once a month.”
The gourd vine could be said to be one of the biggest gains that Yang Kai obtained from the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. The value of the gourd vine was the highest among the three Divine Medicines. Compared to the healing power of Pu Bai Xiong and the hallucinogenic effects of Little Mushroom, the gourd vine not only allowed Yang Kai to unleash a terrifying force equivalent to the attack of a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master at a critical moment, but it could also become one of the financial foundations of Void Land.
There were seven small bottle gourds growing naturally on the gourd vine, each of which corresponded to the Powers of Yin, Yang, and the Five Elements. The Powers were usually hidden within the bottle gourds and their energy was not obvious; however, that Power could burst out at critical moments. If it could explode, naturally it could also be harvested.
After returning from his trip to the Star Boundary, Yang Kai immediately planted the gourd vine in Void Land. Every time the Little Bottle Gourds had accumulated enough energy, he would ask Yue He to harvest it. Every time the energy was harvested, it could supply one cultivator with a set of Yin, Yang, and Five Element materials they needed for their cultivation. Moreover, it was a Fifth-Order Element Power!
It was conceivable that countless cultivators in Void Land would benefit from the existence of the gourd vine over time. If the disciples needed Fifth-Order materials, they were perfectly capable of being self-sufficient!
Under the current circumstances where Void Lands was unable to refine Open Heaven Pills, this gourd vine had become the greatest financial resource of Void Land and could help to alleviate the current crisis to some extent. The price was that Yang Kai had to give up one of his trump cards. It was definitely worth the sacrifice in the long run but it was not an immediate solution to their current problem.
“But, Young Master, those Little Bottle Gourds have become somewhat unruly and grumpy. They have been clamouring to relocate.” Yue He looked exasperated when the gourd vine was mentioned.
“Don’t worry about them. Ask Chen Tian Fatty to monitor them closely in my place. If anything goes wrong, make him take responsibility.”
“Yes!”
Yang Kai rubbed his forehead and sighed, “Still, we need to solve the problem regarding the pill recipe for Open Heaven Pills.”
Void Land currently had an abundance of Alchemy ingredients and many Alchemists, but there was no pill recipe for Open Heaven Pills. It made the situation rather awkward as a result.
It was certain that Qi Qiao Heavenly Monarch had the pill recipe. Unfortunately, his Space Ring had been taken away by Yu Xiu Shan after he was killed by Zhao Bai Chuan and Yu Xiu Shan. Even if he had the pill recipe, it had fallen into the hands of Yu Xiu Shan.
Yue He followed up, “There are quite a few pill recipes for Open Heaven Pills in the 3,000 Worlds. Each one of them may be a little different, but few of them are spread around. Perhaps you should visit a Star City, Young Master. Who knows if you might find one there?”
“A Star City might not necessarily have it either.” Yang Kai shook his head. He once stayed in a Star City for a while and even dealt with many of the shopkeepers of prominent stores there. Even so, he had never heard of anybody selling the pill recipe for Open Heaven Pills before. That undoubtedly meant that the pill recipe for Open Heaven Pills was a rare item. While speaking, his eyes suddenly lit up, “I know who to look for!”
Yue He smilingly asked, “Are you thinking of Big Sister Lan?”
Yang Kai nodded, “Proprietress will surely have the pill recipe.”
Besides, he already planned to look for the Proprietress once the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array was successfully completed. This couldn’t be helped. His cultivation had also fallen into an awkward state as there were no suitable Yin, Yang, or Metal Element materials. Even the cleverest woman could not cook a meal without rice. The Proprietress had been in First Inn for a very long time and controlled a lot of rare information, so it might be possible to ask her about where to find what he needed.
Now that the Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array was completed and Zhu Jiu Yin had regained some of her strength, Void Land had secured very powerful defences. There was nothing to worry about even if he left on a journey; therefore, Yang Kai did not bother to delay any longer. Three days after Grandmaster Wu Liang departed, Yang Kai quietly made arrangements for many of Void Land’s affairs and set off on a journey.
This trip was different from his previous one. On the last trip, Yang Kai only brought Lu Xue and Guo Zi Yan with him; this time, however, he brought quite a few people with him. The Falling Lotus that was ‘gifted’ to him by Flying Flower Boat was a large flight-type artifact that required many people working together to control it.
Most of the cultivators he brought from the Star Boundary were in the middle of cultivating; hence, Yang Kai decided to bring Lang Qing Shan and the group of people that followed him out of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. Yue He and Guo Zi Yan came along too. With a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master like Yue He around, nobody would dare to pull the tiger’s whiskers by causing trouble for them.
Inside Void Land, Lu Xue, Chen Tian Fei, and Bian Yu Qing stood in a row and respectfully said, “Have a safe trip, True Monarch.”
Lu Xue and Bian Yu Qing were understanding; however, Yang Kai did not understand why Chen Tian Fei looked extremely disgruntled, almost like an abandoned resentful widow. Chen Tian Fei had volunteered to come along with Yang Kai when the decision to visit Proprietress was first made. Unfortunately, Yang Kai refused the request after taking the fact that Chen Tian Fei was needed to take care of the gourd vine into consideration. The expression on Chen Tian Fei’s fat face immediately became bitter after that.
Ignoring that resentful glare, Yang Kai nodded and plunged headfirst into the enormous lotus. The others quickly followed after him and a short while later, the enormous flower petals of the lotus slowly spread open under Yue He’s control. Spinning slightly, the lotus transformed into a stream of light that sped off towards the outside.
The Grand Array rumbled and cracked open by a gap through which the lotus rushed out and soon vanished out of sight.
“Haaaa!” Staring into the void, Chen Tian Fei let out a heavy sigh.
The last time Guo Zi Yan and Lu Xue had gone out on a trip with Yang Kai, they had both experienced a breakthrough. He later tried to ask them about what kind of opportunity they encountered, but both Guo Zi Yan and Lu Xue were very tight-lipped. They did not tell him the details and only claimed that it was Yang Kai’s gift that allowed them to enjoy their success.
Fatty Chen had been stuck in the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm for many years; even so, it would take another several dozen to a couple hundred years of intense cultivation and accumulation before he could experience a breakthrough. If he could achieve a breakthrough just by following Yang Kai on a trip, then how could he not grasp at the chance? It was a pity that Yang Kai had refused him so he couldn’t help but sigh and mope as a result.
Reluctantly withdrawing his gaze, he turned to look at Bian Yu Qing and chuckled, “Second Manager, now that True Monarch is gone and Lady Yue He has accompanied him, all of Void Land’s affairs will depend on you.”
Bian Yu Qing politely replied, “I will be relying on the two of you to help me.”
He said, “Of course. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to give me the order, Second Manager. I, Chen Tian Fei, am loyal to the True Monarch. I will not refuse as long as it is within my capabilities.”
“In that case, allow this Mistress to thank you in advance.”
He enthusiastically added, “Second Manager, if you have any questions regarding your cultivation, you can also come to this Old Chen. This Old Chen will be forthcoming.”
Lu Xue glanced at him warily and said lightly, “I will explain to Second Manager myself regarding matters of cultivation.”
Chen Tian Fei opened his mouth but said nothing. Then, he gave another heavy sigh. He could only head towards the place where the gourd vine was to carry out his duties. When he arrived there though, he discovered that the gourd vine was nowhere to be seen. There was only a large hole in the spot where the gourd vine used to be. His complexion immediately turned pale as he shouted, “My Little Ancestors, where did you run off to!?”
He frantically began searching. Fortunately, the Grand Array had not been opened since it was completed, so the entire Void Land was a sealed space. Therefore, the gourd vine could not escape Void Land even if it wished to.
…..
The Falling Lotus was extremely fast and it only took a day’s time to arrive at the Star City in Void Territory.
Every Great Territory that wasn’t entirely desolate had its own Star City. It was just that the scale of the Star City was directly related to the heritage of the Great Territory. If there were many powerful great forces in a Great Territory, then the Star City would be very lively. If not, it would be rather desolate.
The heritage of Void Territory was not that great as Seven Wonders Land was the only Second-Class great force present and it was at best average in terms of strength. For that reason, the Star City in this place was not very large and the goods that flowed through the city were not very valuable either.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai not only intended to ask for the Open Heaven Pills’ pill recipe from the Proprietress and inquire about information about materials for his cultivation, he also planned to purchase other cultivation resources during this trip. He still had some 8 billion Open Heaven Pills in his possession and at the moment, Open Heaven Pills were not urgently needed in Void Land. What they urgently needed were cultivation resources of various Orders. That was why it would be best if he could exchange Open Heaven Pills for materials of various Orders. Since he was already in a Star City, it was a given that he could not let this opportunity slip him by.
It was also Yang Kai’s first time coming to the Star City in Void Territory. The Falling Lotus stopped outside Star City and Guo Zi Yan remained behind to guard it while Yang Kai led Yue He and Lang Qing Shan into the city.
Half a day went by before they returned from the Star City. In half a day, Yang Kai spent almost a billion Open Heaven Pills to purchase Third-Order and Fourth-Order materials.
There was no need to expect to find Sixth-Order materials in a Star City of this scale because nobody else in the entire Void Territory had the ability to consume such high Order materials aside from Yang Kai and his people.
As for Fifth-Order materials, Yang Kai had no plans to buy them. There was enough since Void Land had the gourd vine. The gourd vine could be harvested once a month; moreover, each harvest was enough to provide a full set of Yin, Yang, and Five Element materials for a cultivator. Accumulated over the years, there would always be enough to use.
That was why he only bought Third-Order and Fourth-Order materials.
One Fourth-Order material was only 150,000 Open Heaven Pills and one Third-Order material was just 15,000 Open Heaven Pills. Spending more than 1 billion Open Heaven Pills, Yang Kai practically cleaned out all the Third and Fourth-Order cultivation materials from the entire Star City. In all the years since the Star City in Void Territory had been established, it had never dealt with such a large transaction before. Every shop in the city practically regarded Yang Kai as a God of Fortune and treated him reverently.
Yang Kai did not buy any materials below the Third Order though as all 600,000 people from the Star Boundary had very solid starting points. In addition, they had the entire Void Land backing them up so they would either fail to achieve the Open Heaven Realm or succeed to become a Third-Order Open Heaven Realm Master at the very least!
Besides, the people Yang Kai brought over from the Star Boundary were elites who underwent rigorous selection. Becoming a Third-Order Open Heaven Realm Master would not be a problem for them. Naturally, the prerequisite was that they could condense their own Dao Seal.
There were countless Emperor Realm Masters who underwent intense cultivation but were unable to gain insight into their Grand Dao and failed to condense their own Dao Seal. In that case, their cultivation journey would stop there. In the end, how many of these 600,000 people could reach the Open Heaven Realm? It might be 10% or it might be 5%. Even so, they were part of Void Land’s future foundation so it was worth investing in them.
A few days later, Yang Kai and the others arrived at the Star City of another Great Territory. This Great Territory was called Flying Smoke Territory on the Universe Chart. It was the Great Territory where Flying Smoke Temple was located.
Seven Wonders Land and Flying Smoke Temple were originally neighbours and had a lot of friction between them. If not for Flying Smoke Temple’s all-out effort to attack Seven Wonders Land back then, Seven Wonders Land would not have fallen into Yang Kai’s hands through a stroke of luck. In a way, it was Flying Smoke Temple that contributed most to Yang Kai taking over Void Land.
The Star City in this Great Territory was not that different from the previous Star City, so after anchoring at the Star City’s Starry Sky Dock, Yang Kai, Yue He, and Lang Qing Shan stepped into Star City. Another half a day later, Yang Kai strode away as all the shopkeepers of the Star City’s main shops saw him off with huge, flattering smiles on their faces.
And so, they continued on their journey, making purchases along the way.
Three Star Cities later, Yang Kai now had less than 4 billion Open Heaven Pills remaining. The Open Heaven Pills he spent had been exchanged for several thousand Fourth-Order materials and tens of thousands of Third-Order materials. This amount was absolutely terrifying.
Another half a month passed by and the lotus entered a place known as Shocking Swan Great Territory. Referring to the Universe Chart and searching for the Star City’s direction, the Falling Lotus headed straight over under Yue He’s control.
Yang Kai estimated that they should have enough resources to cover Void Land’s current needs after he finished purchasing the Third-Order and Fourth-Order materials of this Star City.
As for the remaining Open Heaven Pills, he wanted to see if he could purchase some Sixth-Order materials. It was just that Sixth-Order materials were extremely rare and had always been priceless items not often seen on the market. Ordinary cultivators would never have the chance to even come across such resources. If Sixth-Order materials were to appear for sale, they would usually lead to a fierce competition that might even come to blows.
[Perhaps I should head to the Star City where the First Inn is located. That particular Star City is quite large and I might be able to find some Sixth-Order materials there. Besides, I have to keep some Open Heaven Pills in reserve. Although Void Land currently does not have many Open Heaven Realm Masters, they will need Open Heaven Pills when they are cultivating. In particular, the needs of a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master like Yue He are very large. She alone will consume thousands to tens of thousands of Open Heaven Pills in a single day.]
Yang Kai was deep in thought inside the lotus but when he raised his head, he suddenly noticed Guo Zi Yan looking at him hesitantly. Guo Zi Yan immediately looked away the moment their gazes met.
Yang Kai laughed, “Commander Guo, do you have something to say? Don’t hesitate to speak if you do.”
Guo Zi Yan scratched his head awkwardly and hesitantly said, “Sir, this subordinate would like to take a few days off.”
“Take a few days off?” Yang Kai glanced at Guo Zi Yan strangely, “Where are you going?”
Likewise, Yue He turned to look over in this direction.
Guo Zi Yan’s aged face blushed furiously, “Sir, do you remember this subordinate telling you that he has a daughter?”
Yang Kai was taken aback, but after carefully thinking about it, he nodded, “I remember. You mentioned that you sent her somewhere to study under a Teacher who was a friend of yours.”
This was something Guo Zi Yan mentioned back when they were in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. At the time, Yang Kai was giving out rewards for their meritorious deeds. Lang Qing Shan and the shaved-headed man had chosen cultivation resources suitable for their use while only Guo Zi Yan, who was already in the Open Heaven Realm, had not made any requests.
Guo Zi Yan had only been in the Second-Order Open Heaven Realm at the time, but he was very loyal to Yang Kai in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. It stood to reason that Yang Kai would deal with things justly so there was no reason for him to reward one person but not the others.
Guo Zi Yan later mentioned that he had a daughter and asked for some resources for her, to which Yang Kai agreed on the spot.
Yang Kai could still recall the proud expression on Guo Zi Yan’s face at the time. Guo Zi Yan had talked about how his daughter’s aptitude was several times better than his own. In terms of aptitude, his daughter had hopes of achieving the Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm!
It was just that he was a Great Commander of Scarlet Star so both his status and cultivation were neither high nor low. He also risked his life every single day, so his future was always uncertain. There was no saying when he would die at the hands of his enemies; therefore, he did not allow his daughter to remain in Scarlet Star and sent her away to another great force to cultivate.
After considering all this, a sudden thought struck Yang Kai, “Is the place where your daughter is cultivating located somewhere in Shocking Swan Territory?”
Guo Zi Yan smiled lightly, “That’s right, Sir. Blood Swan Continent is located in the Shocking Swan Territory and this subordinate is an old acquaintance of one of the Elders of that force, Gu Zhi Xin. I entrusted my daughter to Elder Gu’s care not long after she was born.”
When speaking of his daughter, Guo Zi Yan became infinitely proud. He cupped his fists and added, “Sir, this subordinate would like to take my daughter and bring her back to Void Land to teach her personally. Please forgive my selfishness.”
Yang Kai laughed, “I’ve already promised you this long ago. Why would I forbid it now?”
While saying so, he checked the Universe Chart and discovered that Blood Swan Continent was located not far from the Star City. With Guo Zi Yan’s current speed, it would only take him three or four days for a round trip.
Yang Kai thus waved his hand, “Go. Bring your daughter back. This King dares not promise the Heavens, but he can promise that she will be provided with the best cultivation resources within her ability to refine.”
“This subordinate thanks Sir!” Guo Zi Yan solemnly said before turning around to leave.
“Wait!” Yang Kai stopped Guo Zi Yan.
“Is there anything else, Sir?” Guo Zi Yan turned back only to see Yang Kai tossing a Space Ring to him. A sweep of his Divine Sense told him that the Space Ring contained a few hundred thousand Open Heaven Pills and he couldn’t help being surprised, “Sir, this is…”
Yang Kai smiled, “You left your daughter in the care of others for so many years. Now that you want to take her away, you should give your thanks to Blood Swan Continent. Take these with you as a thank you gift. In any case, you and your daughter are now part of Void Land. Don’t sully Void Land’s reputation.”
Guo Zi Yan squeezed the Space Ring tightly and gratefully said, “Many thanks for your generosity, Sir.”
“Go swiftly and return quickly. We will be waiting for you in the Star City!” Yang Kai waved goodbye.
Guo Zi Yan nodded and rushed out of the Falling Lotus, heading towards the direction of Blood Swan Continent.
Once Guo Zi Yan departed, the Falling Lotus finally continued towards the Star City.
It didn’t take long for the Falling Lotus to arrive at Star City’s dock, which was bustling with people that came and went without pause. After searching for a place to anchor the Falling Lotus, Yang Kai led Yue He out into the city, immediately drawing a lot of attention from the surrounding people.
Compared to the other artifacts, the Falling Lotus was quite extraordinary. Its shape was also very unique. It was built by a Second Class great force like Flying Flower Boat at the cost of a lot of resources after all. It was not something an ordinary great force could compare with. The Third Class great forces did not have the money while on the other hand, there was only one Second Class great force in Shocking Swan Territory, known as the Shocking Swan Pavilion. Even Shocking Swan Pavilion might not be able to bring out an artifact of similar quality to the Falling Lotus.
Countless pairs of eyes turned in their direction, and when they saw that Yang Kai was only an Emperor Realm cultivator, they couldn’t help becoming astonished.
The dock was managed by a Shocking Swan Pavilion disciple to whom Yang Kai and Yue He had to pay a fee before they could successfully enter the city. In general, every Star City was similar. The strongest great force in the Great Territory where the Star City was located would control the Star City and manage its traffic. They would charge fees to those who entered the Star City and in addition, the shops in the Star City would have to pay a fixed rent to the great force in question on a regular basis.
Needless to say, the great force also had to guarantee the safety of the Star City whilst enjoying the benefits of controlling it. There were many Star Beasts in the void and the great force would have to provide the manpower for defence if the Star City was attacked.
In the past, Void Territory’s Star City was managed by Seven Wonders Land. By doing so, Seven Wonders Land would obtain income from the Star City. However, the Star City had been left ungoverned since Yang Kai occupied Seven Wonders Land.
It was not that Yang Kai could not see the huge benefits of controlling the Star City, but rather that he was strong in will but weak in strength. If he wanted to send somebody to manage the Star City, they had to be a Mid-Rank Open Heaven at minimum to maintain order. He would also need to send many disciples there to patrol and resolve disputes that might arise in the Star City.
How many Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters did Void Land have at present? There was Yue He, Chen Tian Fei, and Lu Xue. Even if Yang Kai included Hei He, who was at the Star Boundary, that was still only four in total.
It was impossible for him to send Yue He. As a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, she was Void Land’s biggest guarantee. Sending her to manage the Star City was not just overkill, it was simply not possible.
Lu Xue was the Hall Master of the Martial Hall. She now had the heavy responsibility of guiding the disciples in their cultivation.
On the other hand, Chen Tian Fei was needed to take care of the gourd vine. The gourd vine could produce Fifth-Order Element materials on a regular basis. It would be difficult for anybody who was not in the Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm to tend to the gourd vine.
Lastly, there was no need to expect anything from Hei He!
Among these people, the only one who could be dispatched was Chen Tian Fei. Even if Chen Tian Fei could be dispatched though, there were no other Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters to assist him, so it would be tough for him to succeed at this task alone.
Even though Yang Kai knew that controlling the Star City would bring a steady stream of income, he could only yearn helplessly. He could only do something about Void Land’s Star City when the cultivators in Void Land had grown stronger.
Fortunately, several people among Lang Qing Shan’s group that had followed Yang Kai for so many years were about to advance to the Open Heaven Realm. It would greatly ease the awkward situation caused by the lack of Open Heaven Realm Masters in Void Land once that happened.
Upon entering the Star City, Yang Kai swept through the shops, one by one, and bought large amounts of resources like before. All the shopkeepers were extremely attentive towards him, so much so that they were practically worshipping him as the God of Fortune.
What surprised and delighted Yang Kai was that he actually managed to purchase a Sixth-Order material in this Star City. This Sixth-Order material came from a shop that was not too large and it seemed that the shopkeeper had only just gotten his hands on it recently. He was planning to send this material to a larger Star City for auction, but decided to try selling it to Yang Kai when he saw how deep the latter’s pockets were. Yang Kai immediately expressed his intention to purchase the material and after some bargaining, he finally bought it for 17 million Open Heaven Pills.
When Yang Kai first entered Seven Wonders Land, Dié You explained the value of the cultivation materials of various Orders. At the time, Dié You mentioned that Sixth-Order materials were worth approximately 15 million; however, that was only under the most ideal circumstances!
The real situation was that Sixth-Order materials were extremely rare and precious, so the price would generally be much more expensive. Even so, it would not be overly expensive either. That was because there were not many cultivators who could use Sixth-Order materials in the first place as the requirements towards one’s foundation and Dao Seal were extremely high.
17 million Open Heaven Pills was a fair price. The shopkeeper would also save on the risk of travelling long distances and the fees from the auction house; hence, he was quite happy.
For an ordinary cultivator, even one Sixth-Order material was extremely precious. However, for Yang Kai and Void Land, one Sixth-Order material was not enough to fill the gaps between their teeth. That was because all eight Great Emperors needed Sixth-Order materials!
After cleaning out the entire Star City, Yang Kai and Yue He did not rush to leave. It would take Guo Zi Yan a few more days to return, so they decided to stay at an inn and search for the pill recipe for Open Heaven Pills whilst enjoying the different scenery and culture.
Around three days later, Yang Kai and Yue He had just ordered several dishes and a bottle of wine at the dining hall of the inn and sat down to share a meal together.
Although Yue He was in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm and her cultivation was extremely profound, she could not win against the strength of the alcohol. Her small face flushed red after only two or three glasses. Her skin had always been fair, but it was now tinged with a rosy hue. It looked like one could squeeze out water with a casual pinch. Thus, many cultivators in the hall secretly admired her from afar while drooling slightly. That annoyed her greatly and she secretly gnashed her teeth in anger, but her actions only served to make her look even more charming.
After several bottles of wine, Yang Kai’s expression suddenly changed and he cocked his ears to listen attentively.
One of the cultivators sitting at a table nearby was gossiping, “Yun Xing Hua has been in retreat for more than 10 years, but he finally exited half a year ago. It seems he successfully advanced into the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm. How enviable!”
Another scrawny cultivator commented, “He has been accumulating for close to 50 years in the Third-Order Open Heaven Realm. What’s so strange about him advancing into the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm?” He suddenly lowered his voice and continued, “Besides, I heard that Yun Xing Hua’s original aptitude was extraordinary. He was expected to advance directly into the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm but was forced to advance to the Third-Order Open Heaven Realm after Shocking Swan Pavilion interfered.”
The person who spoke first just now nodded at those words, “I heard about that too. Looking at the current situation, it would seem that those rumours were not groundless.”
The second man snorted coldly, “Shocking Swan Pavilion controls this Great Territory and while the Old Pavilion Master might be in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he is quite old and has grown weaker. I’m afraid he won’t live for much longer. However, Shocking Swan Pavilion doesn’t even have a single Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master under him. If Yun Xing Hua really did advance directly into the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm, who in the Shocking Swan Pavilion could stop him once the Old Pavilion Master passed on? Once Yun Xing Hua became stronger, Shocking Swan Pavilion would end up being devoured by Blood Swan Continent. If that happened, Shocking Swan Territory would need to change its name to Blood Swan Territory instead!”
“Your words make sense, Brother Sun. As the Leader of the Blood Swan Continent, Yun Xing Hua is a rare talent indeed. It’s unfortunate that he was born at the wrong time in the wrong place. How sad!”
“But, now that Yun Xing Hua has advanced to the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm, I wonder what attitude Shocking Swan Pavilion will have towards him. Will they try to win him over? Or, suppress him?”
“What do other people’s affairs have to do with us? Come, let’s drink!”
“Hahaha! That’s true. Brother Liu, I heard you received a new batch of beautiful women recently. Is that true?”
“I can’t hide anything from you, Brother Sun. If you’d like, you can come with me later. You can take any that you fancy.”
“I’ll have to thank you in advance then, Brother Liu.”
The conversation between those two ended there as they drank and laughed with each other.