Ma Tian Yuan asked with a frown, “What do you mean, Junior Brother?”
Yang Kai replied with a faint smile, “You said that the three of them are honoured guests in your Unrivalled Guild, so it’s impossible that you don’t even know their names. You’re a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so you’re supposed to hold an important position in your Sect. The fact that you know nothing about them shows that they’re not in your Sect.”
As he spoke, Yang Kai’s expression darkened, “Since they’re not in your Sect, what are you trying to achieve by luring me to that place?”
Ma Tian Yuan explained, “You misunderstand, Junior Brother. That Madame is indeed a guest in our Sect, but it’s the Three Chiefs who received her, so this Ma doesn’t know her name…”
“Is there still a need to hide anything at this point?” Yang Kai shot him a cold glare, cutting him off.
After a moment of silence, Ma Tian Yuan sighed and said, “Since you’ve already realised it, this Ma will drop the pretence. That’s right. That Madame is not in Unrivalled Guild.”
“Where is she?” Yang Kai demanded.
Ma Tian Yuan shook his head, “I don’t know. Half a year ago, I did meet those three. The Three Chiefs wanted to invite her to join Unrivalled Guild, but she refused and left with her people. I don’t know where she is now. However, I heard that the people from Profound Yang Mountain are trying to hunt them down. Perhaps they’ve been captured by now. There’s also a possibility that they’re dead.”
“Profound Yang Mountain?” Yang Kai arched his brow.
Ma Tian Yuan explained, “There are three great forces in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, Profound Yang Mountain, Unrivalled Guild, and Twin Spirit Island. Each great force has several Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, and we usually don’t interfere in each other’s affairs.”
“Why do those from Profound Yang Mountain want to hunt them down?” Yang Kai asked.
Ma Tian Yuan replied, “There are rarely any newcomers in the Shadowless Cave Heaven. The environment in this place is hostile and it lacks all cultivation resources. Therefore, every newcomer will be asked to join one of the forces, and hand over their cultivation resources.”
Upon hearing his explanation, Yang Kai said, “Is this the reason you want to take me to Unrivalled Guild?”
Ma Tian Yuan nodded frankly, “That’s right. Although you’ve just entered the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, you must have some resources with you. Once you join Unrivalled Guild, your things will be ours. Your friends are pretty powerful, so they should have some good things on them; hence, it is expected that they are being targeted by those from Profound Yang Mountain. Furthermore, the Second Mountain Lord is a lascivious man, and that Madame is quite alluring. It isn’t surprising that he’d lust after her.”
“Profound Yang Mountain…” Yang Kai sneered. The Proprietress was in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, and after many years of accumulation, she had reached its peak. Basically, the only reason she wasn’t breaking through to the Seventh Order was due to her heart demon oath.
On the other hand, Chef and Accountant were newly promoted Fifth-Order Masters. Even though the people from Profound Yang Mountain were powerful, they probably couldn’t harm the Proprietress. Therefore, she should be safe for now. The most important thing for Yang Kai now was to look for them.
Ma Tian Yuan went on to explain, “Junior Brother, I’m inviting you to Unrivalled Guild not entirely for your resources. I’m also doing this for your own good.”
Yang Kai scoffed, “That’s a pretty novel statement.”
Ma Tian Yuan said, “The Shadowless Cave Heaven is a hostile place. If you don’t join one of the three great forces, you won’t be able to survive.”
Yang Kai asked, “Why is that?”
Ma Tian Yuan shook his head, apparently not wanting to explain, “You’ll find out what I mean after you stay here for some time. If you don’t believe me, you can ask them whether this Ma is lying.”
The Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm woman sighed and said, “Senior Brother Ma is right. If you don’t join one of the three great forces, you’ll probably lose your life within a few years. This Mistress suffered a setback when she fell into the Shadowless Cave Heaven. It took me a long time before I recovered.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai snorted. Although the woman appeared sincere and didn’t seem to be lying, these three were from the same Sect in the end. There was no guarantee that they hadn’t come up with a fabricated story beforehand, so Yang Kai wouldn’t readily believe her.
Ma Tian Yuan continued trying to persuade him, “In comparison, joining Unrivalled Guild is the best option because you only have to contribute 60% of your resources, meaning you get to keep 40%. If you join Profound Yang Mountain or Twin Spirit Island, you’ll have to give up 70 to 80%.”
Yang Kai shook his head, “I’m not interested in joining your Unrivalled Guild. The only reason I’ve come all the way here is to look for my friends.”
Ma Tian Yuan said grimly, “What’s the point of you being obstinate, Junior Brother? You’ve just broken through, and your aura isn’t even stable yet, so this Ma doesn’t want to make a move on you. Therefore, you’d better comply.”
Yang Kai shot him a glance, “What if I say no?”
After a sigh, Ma Tian Yuan said, “Resources are scarce in this damned place. In order to cultivate, I have no choice but to offend you even if you say no. Don’t worry, Junior Brother. This Ma isn’t a ruthless person. As long as you’re not too stubborn, I won’t kill you.”
Yang Kai chuckled, “I will spare your life as thanks for your consideration.”
Ma Tian Yuan’s expression darkened, “It seems that you won’t cry until you see your coffin.”
He waved his hand and bellowed, “Make your move then!”
As soon as he finished his words, he pushed his hand out at Yang Kai. A thick World Force blasted out from his palm as though the pressure of an entire world descended upon the latter. Meanwhile, the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm woman and the Third-Order Open Heaven Realm young man used their Secret Techniques at the same time and attacked Yang Kai.
It was apparent that Ma Tian Yuan didn’t have the intention of killing Yang Kai; otherwise, he could’ve directly summoned his artifact. He was originally a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, but due to some unfortunate events in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, his cultivation regressed to the Fifth-Order. Despite that, he was still one of the top cultivators in the same Order.
Faced with a newly promoted Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master like Yang Kai, he didn’t need to go all out.
There was a stark difference between the amount of time they had spent accumulating strength, so their heritages were naturally dissimilar.
Confronted by three powerful Open Heaven Masters, Yang Kai would’ve fled in the past. Although he had killed a number of Low-Rank Open Heaven Masters, he had to exert all his strength and resort to his Divine Manifestation Golden Crow Casts the Sun each time he did so, to say nothing of the fact that he was faced with three Open Heaven Realm Masters at this moment, one of them in the Fifth-Order.
However, things were different now.
Presently, he was also a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Masters, but he was different from others in this realm. After his Small Universe formed in his body, he also merged it with his Small Sealed World.
The Small Sealed World had devoured a lot of the fragments from the Blood Monster Cave Heaven and digested that heritage. In other words, some of the heritage from the Blood Monster Cave Heaven had turned into the capital of Yang Kai’s Small Universe.
Furthermore, Yang Kai wanted to test the limits of his new strength.
Therefore, instead of fearing these three, Yang Kai’s fighting spirit had been ignited as his eyes turned fervent.
Assuming a combat stance, his Small Universe began exuding World Force and with a wave of his arm, two Moon Blades shot out. Both gigantic Moon Blades contained a rich World Force as they clashed with the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm woman and the Third-Order Open Heaven Realm young man.
At that instant, two people were heard screaming as the woman and the young man were sent flying away while spraying blood. The woman was in a better condition as only her clothes were cut open, revealing a patch of her fair skin. On the other hand, the young man was severely injured as he was almost cut in two. However, this kind of injury wasn’t lethal to an Open Heaven Realm Master, so he just needed some time to recuperate.
Yang Kai easily broke through their blockade with a wave of his hand.
Ma Tian Yuan was stunned as he hadn’t expected Yang Kai to still be capable of dispatching his subordinates under his pressure. At that moment, he felt both ashamed and furious as the World Force on his palm thickened.
After turning around, Yang Kai pushed out his palm.
Following a loud boom, both of them staggered backwards. It wasn’t until they moved back nearly 300 metres that they managed to stabilize themselves. Upon trading moves, they realised that they were equally matched.
Across from Yang Kai, Ma Tian Yuan narrowed his eyes and exclaimed, “How is that possible?”
Was the person before his eyes really a new Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master? When their palms came into contact earlier, Ma Tian Yuan could feel that the other party’s World Force was just as rich and powerful as his, and the outcome of the exchange proved that.
But how could that be? He had fallen from the Sixth Order to the Fifth Order, so throughout the entire 3,000 Worlds, there shouldn’t be anyone in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm that was a match for him. However, the young man before his eyes was.
“Did you really just break through to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm?” Ma Tian Yuan asked in horror and disbelief.
“Indeed,” Yang Kai took a deep breath as he was drowned in an indescribable feeling of joy. Was this the power of the Open Heaven Realm? He felt as if he could draw on an infinite power from his Small Universe. It was as though he was able to tear the world apart simply by raising his hand.
Meanwhile, Ma Tian Yuan was still in disbelief. Nevertheless, Yang Kai’s aura fluctuated conspicuously, so it was apparent that he had indeed just achieved an ascension; otherwise, he would be able to control his own aura.
He was already so powerful just after breaking through, so what heights would he achieve in the future if he was given enough time? The notion terrified Ma Tian Yuan.
[How can someone so extraordinary exist in this world?]
“You haven’t fully used your power, right?” Yang Kai grinned at him.
While Ma Tian Yuan sported a solemn expression, Yang Kai went on to say, “What a coincidence. I haven’t fully used all my strength either. You should probably stop holding back; otherwise, you might get hurt.”
Upon finishing his words, Yang Kai shot forward and directly appeared in front of Ma Tian Yuan. The next moment, Ma Tian Yuan felt an immense World Force pressing against him, and when he lifted his gaze, he saw a palm flying at his chest.
An infuriated Ma Tian Yuan roared and no longer dared to hold back, fully mobilizing the strength of his Small Universe, pouring out as much World Force as he could.
*Hong hong hong…*
Explosive sounds were heard as the surrounding space shook. Immense World Force permeated the region as two figures clashed, stirring up a great storm. Sometimes they met in the sky, sometimes on the ground. Mountains collapsed around them as fissures opened in the ground.
“Wonderful! Wonderful!” Yang Kai’s expression was like that of a madman as he cried out in excitement. He thrust out his palms in quick succession in order to vent the joy he felt in his heart.
Ma Tian Yuan was shocked by how crazy Yang Kai appeared, thinking that the young man was some kind of battle maniac who only wished to fight until one of them died. At this moment, he was caught in a dilemma. Faced with the storm of attacks, he had no choice but to fight back with everything he had or he would be seriously wounded.
After trading more than 100 moves, Ma Tian Yuan felt his Small Universe begin to shake. Meanwhile, the World Force coming from the other party increasingly thickened with every move, like there wasn’t an upper limit to his output. Flabbergasted, Ma Tian Yuan didn’t dare to hold back anything.
He began using his Secret Techniques and even summoned his Fifth-Order artifact. Despite that, he realised that he was still no match for the other party.
[Is this guy really Human?]
A horrified Ma Tian Yuan speculated that Yang Kai wasn’t a newly promoted Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master at all. He had never seen any new Fifth-Order Master who possessed such immense power. This young man must have spent hundreds if not a thousand years of accumulation in his current Order. The aura he exposed must have just been a camouflage.
[What a devious man!] Although Ma Tian Yuan was utterly vexed, he had to admit that his opponent was truly incredible.
Despite the fact that he had fallen from the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he had the confidence to defeat or at least match anyone in the Fifth-Order. However, not only had he come across such an opponent on this day, but he was even at a disadvantage. This had never happened to him before.
“Stop!” Ma Tian Yuan bellowed after trading one more move with his opponent. Due to the scarcity of resources in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, unnecessary fights were pointless as it would only increase one’s consumption of power. When the people in this place came across one another, they wouldn’t make a move if there wasn’t a need for it; therefore, upon realising that Yang Kai was so powerful, Ma Tian Yuan decided to stop fighting.
However, Yang Kai ignored him. It was the first time he bumped into an opponent in the same Order since he broke through to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, which was why he wanted to test out his power. In fact, he hadn’t used any Secret Techniques after his initial two Moon Blades and had merely been drawing out the power of his Small Universe to battle against his opponent. He wanted to make use of this battle to familiarise himself with his newfound strength.
While they were locked in an intense battle, the woman and young man watched in horror from the side. They were respectively in the Fourth and Third-Order, but they were easily defeated by their opponent in the opening moments of the battle. Furthermore, they were totally powerless to intervene in the current fight.
Such a fierce battle seemed to have surpassed the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Perhaps it wasn’t far from a battle between Sixth-Order Masters.
All of a sudden, the woman sported a solemn expression and scanned her surroundings, then she yelled at Ma Tuan Yuan, “The wind is coming, Senior Brother Ma!”
Ma Tian Yuan, who was already exhausted from dealing with Yang Kai, appeared horrified upon hearing that. Hurriedly, he made a feint in an attempt to withdraw from the battlefield. Certainly, Yang Kai wouldn’t grant his wish. Such an intense battle was able to help him rapidly stabilise his cultivation, which was greatly beneficial to him.
Upon seeing that Yang Kai was relentless, a shocked and furious Ma Tian Yuan bellowed, “The wind is coming. Stop right now!”
A puzzled Yang Kai asked, “What wind?”
Judging from Ma Tian Yuan’s tone and the woman’s expression, Yang Kai reckoned that this ‘wind’ must be unusual. That was because the three of them sported terrified expressions as though they were truly afraid of what was coming.
However, Yang Kai was a newcomer to the Shadowless Cave Heaven, so he had no idea what this wind was.
Ma Tian Yuan was resentful of him, so he wasn’t willing to explain anything to him and simply said through clenched teeth, “You’ll soon experience what kind of wind it is!”
After he finished his words, the artifact in his hand suddenly shone brightly. As he infused all of his power into the artifact, he attempted to smash it down on Yang Kai’s head.
There was no doubt that Ma Tian Yuan had exerted all of his force with this attack, so Yang Kai wouldn’t dare to meet it head-on and quickly dodged to the side.
Seizing the chance, Ma Tian Yuan leaped away and yelled, “Run!”
Following this, he rushed in a particular direction. The woman took a long glance at Yang Kai before she supported the young man’s weight and fled in the same direction.
Yang Kai frowned and looked at their retreating figures without any intention to pursue them.
Then, he looked down at his hands and slowly balled up his fists. If he had this kind of power back then, he wouldn’t have to hide and only make use of Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array to fend off his enemies, which was all he could do when the Hundred Sects Alliance attacked Void Land. If he had this kind of power at that time, he wouldn’t have been powerless to counterattack when he was besieged by Shen Liang and Jiang Yun Shan from Heavenly Sword Union just outside of Void Territory.
Presently, he finally had power of his own. In the 3,000 Worlds, a person would never be regarded as important if they weren’t even an Open Heaven Realm Master.
The starting point of the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm was a letdown as he had spent many years trying to directly become a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master; however, instead of endlessly waiting for a dream that might not even come true, the power in his hands now was far more real. Therefore, Yang Kai didn’t regret the decision he had made.
If the battle earlier went on, Yang Kai had the confidence to kill Ma Tian Yuan even though he would be slightly injured as a cost. Nevertheless, there was no blood feud between them, so it wasn’t necessary for Yang Kai to be so merciless. However, after the battle, he had a more direct understanding of his current strength.
Just then, he felt a breeze whisking across his face like an invisible hand fiddling with his hair.
Wind was indeed blowing. Yang Kai carefully inspected the wind but didn’t find anything strange about it, so he wondered why Ma Tian Yuan and the others appeared terrified just now. At the mention of the wind, all of their expressions changed drastically, and Ma Tian Yuan had chosen to trade injuries with him to create an opening to withdraw.
As Yang Kai shook his head, he identified a direction and stepped forward.
Ma Tian Yuan had met the Proprietress and the others, but he had no idea where they were now. On the other hand, the people from Profound Yang Mountain were hunting them down.
Yang Kai had a feeling that he could find some clues by heading to Profound Yang Mountain and asking them about it.
Nevertheless, he had no idea where Profound Yang Mountain was. At that moment, he regretted that he hadn’t asked Ma Tian Yuan and the others about its location first.
The wind was rapidly intensifying. It was still a breeze just a moment ago, but now, a gale lifted all the sand into the air, which made it impossible for Yang Kai to see clearly.
It was then he realised why the Shadowless Cave Heaven was so desolate. Given such a hostile environment, it would be strange if this place was fertile.
It wouldn’t have mattered if it was just a regular storm, but the problem was that the wind was extremely strange as it was able to sneak into a person’s flesh, which made him feel an excruciating pain all over his body, as though he had been repeatedly cut with countless knives. Besides that, the wind could even penetrate his Small Universe.
It was only as Yang Kai checked on his Small Universe that his expression changed as he realised that the wind had caused the place to descend into chaos. Even the foundation of his Small Universe was being damaged by this gale.
At that instant, he was dumbfounded as he couldn’t believe there was such horrifying wind in this world. Then, he recalled that the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm woman had mentioned that Ma Tian Yuan was originally a Sixth-Order Master, but due to some unfortunate events, he regressed to the Fifth-Order. It seemed that the incidents must have something to do with this strange wind.
Not only was this wind excruciatingly painful, but it was also able to grind down an Open Heaven Realm Master’s Small Universe, draining their World Force and damaging their foundation.
It wouldn’t matter if this only happened once or twice, but if a person had to endure this repeatedly, the heritage of their Small Universe would be permanently weakened, and their Order would drop. That should be how Ma Tian Yuan fell to the Fifth Order.
Moreover, this was just the beginning. As time passed, the gale intensified to the point where Yang Kai wouldn’t dare to be negligent. Quickly summoning his Azure Dragon Spear, he dug a deep hole in an attempt to seek refuge underground.
However, it was futile. Even though he dove several thousand metres below the surface, the wind seemed almost immaterial and penetrated the earth, infiltrating his Small Universe in the process. It seemed that there was nowhere in the Shadowless Cave Heaven that was safe from this wind.
Of course, there must be places in the Shadowless Cave Heaven where one could evade the wind; otherwise, all the Open Heaven Realm Masters in this place would’ve been killed following the collapse of their Small Universes.
At the very least, the places where the three great forces were based must be safe zones.
The gale didn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon. Even though Yang Kai was trying his best to resist underground, his efforts proved useless. He could only bear this unspeakable pain while praying that the eerie wind would soon pass.
The wind disappeared as abruptly as it came, vanishing an hour later.
When Yang Kai climbed out of the hole he had dug, he was completely battered. Not only was his hair a mess, but his skin was also covered in cuts. These flesh wounds didn’t matter as he could recover quickly given the resilience of his physique; however, the loss of heritage in his Small Universe pained his heart.
The environment in the Small Universe didn’t change as the Sun and the Moon still moved cyclically; nevertheless, Yang Kai could detect that the heritage in his Small Universe had been reduced by about 10%.
In other words, if he came across the same kind of wind ten times, his Small Universe would destabilise and collapse, killing him. The immense loss pained him more than the injuries on his body.
It would take him a very long time before he could restore this 10%; in other words, the gale had wiped away years of hard cultivation.
[What was that wind? Why was it so strange?]
After stuffing a handful of Open Heaven Pills into his mouth, Yang Kai carefully examined his Small Universe.
It was the first time he refined Open Heaven Pills since he ascended to the Open Heaven Realm. As the pills dissolved in his stomach, the medicinal efficacies streamed into all his organs and turned into World Force, which was used to replenish the heritage of his Small Universe.
A handful of pills were fully refined after just a few breaths, which astounded Yang Kai.
It was no wonder that Open Heaven Realm Masters required a lot of cultivation resources. Given this rate, he was able to refine more than 10,000 Open Heaven Pills in a day, several hundred thousand pills in a month, and three to four million pills in a year.
The calculation made was based on the fact that he was in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm. How many pills would he need when he ascended to the Sixth Order or the Seventh Order? How long would it take before he could achieve an ascension if he merely relied on refining Open Heaven Pills? How many pills would be used in the process? Yang Kai didn’t dare to keep thinking about it as that number must be astronomical.
Yang Kai initially thought that the Open Heaven Pills he had accumulated in Void Land were sufficient, but now it seemed that he was very wrong; after all, when the Great Emperors and the cultivators from the Star Boundary ascended to the Open Heaven Realm, they would need massive amounts of Open Heaven Pills to keep cultivating.
It was no wonder that Open Heaven Realm Masters had a thirst for cultivation resources as it was just too slow to refine Open Heaven Pills. It would be much faster to refine cultivation resources of different Orders, but that would require a lot of money as well.
However, if a person was wealthy, they probably wouldn’t mind this. In comparison, it was much better to strengthen the heritage of one’s Small Universe by refining cultivation resources than Open Heaven Pills.
Yang Kai refined Open Heaven Pills while examining his Small Universe. The eerie gale had caused his Small Universe to descend into chaos.
All of a sudden, he became startled for a moment before he zoomed in on a particular place in his Small Universe. That was the place where the Manifestation of his Towering Evergreen Divine Manifestation was located. It was a gigantic ancient tree.
The area around the gargantuan tree that was covered by the tree crown was totally undamaged. Yang Kai couldn’t see any traces left behind by the gale. It was as though the eerie wind was blocked by something around this area.
Yang Kai frowned and carefully examined other areas in his Small Universe. He could confirm that all other places were damaged by the wind except for this place.
That discovery made his gaze brighten as he thought that his Towering Evergreen might be able to fend off the effects of the wind, which was why this area was completely undamaged. Unfortunately, he didn’t pay attention to this area when the gale was torturing him; otherwise, he could’ve intently observed it.
He could only wait for the wind to strike again before he could test his speculation. If his theory was correct, he would have a way to protect himself in the Shadowless Cave Heaven. At the very least, he didn’t have to worry about his Small Universe being damaged when the wind struck.
After pulling himself together, Yang Kai set off.
He had no idea where Profound Yang Mountain was, but he reckoned that he would find out about it if he came across others. Ma Tian Yuan had said that there were three main great forces in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, and all cultivators belonged to one of them. That was because a cultivator wouldn’t be able to survive if he or she refused to join one of the great forces.
Perhaps everyone had gone into hiding due to the wind just now, because as Yang Kai moved forward, he didn’t bump into anyone.
Half a day later, he finally saw two figures passing by from the corner of his eye. Hurriedly, Yang Kai charged forward and raced after them.
When the two people detected Yang Kai’s presence, they immediately stopped in their tracks and turned around with vigilance, preparing for a fight.
Yang Kai landed on a spot in front of them and sized them up before discovering that both of them were in the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm. One of them looked rough while the other was tall.
As soon as they sensed Yang Kai’s Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm aura, they put up their guard and the rough-looking man bellowed, “Who are you? Why did you run after us?”
“Don’t panic. I don’t have any ill intentions. I just want to ask for directions,” Yang Kai cupped his fist with a smile.
The two of them traded glances, then the rough-looking man asked with an awkward expression, “Where do you want to go?”
Yang Kai asked, “Where is Profound Yang Mountain?”
The rough-looking man appeared to be in disbelief, “You don’t know where Profound Yang Mountain is?”
The other man seemed cleverer as he figured out something and secretly spoke to his companion. It was only then that the rough-looking man realised something and asked, “Have you just arrived in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, Senior Brother?”
Only newcomers would be clueless about the location of Profound Yang Mountain.
“That’s right.” Yang Kai nodded, “I accidentally fell into this place and heard that there are three great forces. There’s no doubt that Profound Yang Mountain is the strongest, so I’d like to join it, but I don’t know where it’s located. That’s why I want to ask you about it. I’m sorry if I’ve offended you in any way.”
Upon hearing that, the rough-looking man guffawed, “I see, I see. I thought you were going to rob us. You’re right. Of the three great forces in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, Profound Yang Mountain is the best. We have Four Great Mountain Lords, all of whom are Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. The First Mountain Lord is even just one step away from the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. Unrivalled Guild only has three Sixth-Orders while Twin Spirit Island has two. They’re not even worth comparing to our Profound Yang Mountain.”
Yang Kai’s gaze brightened when he heard that, “Are you two from Profound Yang Mountain?” He had never expected that the first people he bumped into would be from Profound Yang Mountain. After giving it a thought though, he realised that it wasn’t so surprising. There were only three great forces in the Shadowless Cave Heaven. Since he had met the people from Unrivalled Guild, it was expected that he’d also chance upon people from Profound Yang Mountain.
The rough-looking man sported a modest smile, “That’s right.”
An elated Yang Kai said, “What a coincidence. Would it be alright for you to lead me to Profound Yang Mountain? Of course, if it’s not convenient for you, you can just tell me the directions and I’ll go over there myself.”
The rough-looking man exchanged glances with his companion and secretly communicated with him before nodding, “We don’t have any important tasks to attend to anyway. Since Senior Brother is willing to join Profound Yang Mountain, I believe that the Mountain Lords will welcome you. We’ll lead you to the headquarters now.”
A Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was considered fairly powerful in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, so any great force would welcome him. Moreover, a newcomer would have to hand over a large portion of his resources. When that happened, they would get some rewards for bringing Yang Kai to the Sect.
That was also the reason Ma Tian Yuan wanted to lure Yang Kai to Unrivalled Guild.
“Many thanks,” Yang Kai cupped his fists with gratitude.
The rough-looking man laughed and said, “Don’t mention it, Senior Brother. If you join Profound Yang Mountain, we’ll be one family. Both of us are weak, so you have to take care of us in the future.”
“Good, good,” Yang Kai replied with a smile.
Then, they identified the direction and headed straight to Profound Yang Mountain.
As a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, Yang Kai seemed pretty easy-going, so the two men wanted to befriend him. Therefore, they had a pleasant chat on the way to their destination. The two of them were biological brothers whose surname was Wei.
As they spoke, they implicitly asked about Yang Kai’s background. Yang Kai was being frank as he mentioned that he was from Void Land. While treasure hunting in the Shattered Heaven, he accidentally fell into the Shadowless Cave Heaven.
Void Land was a very new great force while these people had lived in the Shadowless Cave Heaven for years, so they knew nothing about the place Yang Kai was from. As such, they were unable to figure out whether Yang Kai was speaking the truth.
However, regardless of one’s background, it was useless in the Shadowless Cave Heaven. There was once a disciple from one of the Cave Heavens who fell into this place and thought himself superior to others, but he ended up in a miserable state. Perhaps he was secretly killed by one of the top cultivators here.
Yang Kai’s aura suggested that he was a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master while the Wei Brothers were only in the Fourth Order, which was why they were polite to him.
There came a moment when Yang Kai thought that it was the right time to ask about the wind, “By the way, I came across a strange gale in this damned place half a day ago. What was that? Why was I still unable to avoid it even though I dove several thousand metres below ground?”
At the mention of the eerie wind, the Wei Brothers couldn’t help but shudder. The older Brother Wei gazed at him with an awkward expression and asked, “You snuck into the ground in order to avoid the wind, Senior Brother Yang?”
“Yes.”
The Wei Brothers exchanged glances and seemed to take a stroll down memory lane. Then, the older Brother Wei burst into laughter, “That was what we did in the past, but it was totally useless. The wind is unavoidable. Not only can it reach underground, but it also blows into our Small Universes. We suffered immense losses because of that.”
Yang Kai repeatedly nodded, “That was what happened to me. My Small Universe is in a mess now.”
The younger Brother Wei added, “Since you’re a newcomer, it’s expected that you know nothing about it. We call that strange wind Shadowless Astral Wind, but no one knows what it actually is. The wind is able to penetrate essentially any kind of barrier to reach every point in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, only a few special spots are safe from it. You can’t avoid the wind anywhere else.”
The older Brother Wei said, “These places are the Headquarters of the three great forces in the Shadowless Cave Heaven. The location of Profound Yang Mountain is the biggest one. Whenever the Shadowless Astral Wind comes, all of us have to avoid it; otherwise, we suffer big losses.”
Upon that realization, Yang Kai nodded, “It’s no wonder that the person I came across earlier told me that we’re unable to survive in the Shadowless Cave Heaven if we don’t join one of the three great forces.”
The older Brother Wei nodded repeatedly, “True. Without shelter, a person will lose all the heritage in his or her Small Universe due to the wind, and once their Small Universe collapses, they’ll die.”
A worried Yang Kai asked, “Are only the Headquarters of the three great forces safe from the wind in the Shadowless Cave Heaven?” In that case, the Proprietress and the others were probably in a terrible state right now. It had been one year since they fell into the Shadowless Cave Heaven, so they must have experienced the Astral Wind many times, which would certainly have a negative impact on their Small Universes.
The younger Brother Wei shook his head, “Not exactly. There are some smaller places where one can take refuge from the wind, but they can’t accommodate a lot of people.”
The older Brother Wei followed up, “To be honest with you, even the Headquarters of the three great forces are not completely immune to the Shadowless Astral Wind, it’s just that the impact is less severe when we hide inside those places. Even though there are other shelters, none of them are as good as the Headquarters of the three great forces.”
To the side, the younger Brother Wei nodded in agreement.
Yang Kai arched his brow, “It seems that we’re really unable to survive if we don’t join one of the three great forces.”
“That’s right.”
Yang Kai looked away and asked, “Has no one survived over the years while not being in one of the three great forces?”
“There are none. You had a taste of Shadowless Astral Wind earlier, Senior Brother Yang. Even though you’re a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, how many times do you think you can endure it?”
The younger Brother Wei muttered, “En, I remember that there are three people who are outside of the three great forces now. I wonder how they’re doing.”
“Three people?” Yang Kai appeared shocked, “Who are they? Why are they not part of the three great forces?”
The younger Brother Wei took a glance at his older Brother, not knowing whether he should talk about it.
After a moment of hesitation, the older Brother Wei reasoned, “Senior Brother Yang is going to join Profound Yang Mountain, so there’s no reason we can’t tell him.”
It was then the younger Brother Wei continued, “Senior Brother Yang, you said you want to join Profound Yang Mountain, but do you know our rules?”
“Please tell me about them.”
“If you join Profound Yang Mountain, you can stay in the great force when the wind comes to prevent being harmed. However, cultivation resources in the Shadowless Cave Heaven are very scarce, so every newcomer has to hand over 80% of their cultivation resources upon joining.”
“I did hear something like that,” Yang Kai nodded.
It was then the younger Brother Wei breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that other great forces must have attempted to lure Yang Kai to join them, but he had turned them down. It wasn’t until he had a taste of Shadowless Astral Wind that he decided to join Profound Yang Mountain.
In fact, the same thing happened to the Wei Brothers in the past; after all, no one was willing to hand over a large part of their own resources to someone else.
However, once a newcomer had a taste of the Shadowless Astral Wind, they would be eager to join one of the three great forces without anyone luring them; otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to survive in the Shadowless Cave Heaven.
As the Wei Brothers recalled the past, they put on bitter smiles.
After pulling himself together, the younger Brother Wei continued, “There were two men and one woman. All of them are fairly powerful. The woman was in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm while the men were in the Fifth-Order. When they arrived in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, they happened to land on a place just outside of Profound Yang Mountain. The Mountain Lords noticed them and attempted to make them join our great force. The Second Mountain Lord even promised the woman that she would become the Fifth Mountain Lord; however, she turned down the offer.”
“The Fifth Mountain Lord? Why did the woman turn down such a good offer?” Yang Kai asked in puzzlement.
The younger Brother Wei explained with a helpless smile, “In fact, our Second Mountain Lord has a problem. It’s that he’s very lascivious. The woman is alluring, and she’s as powerful as the Second Mountain Lord. Therefore, he declared that the woman needed to be his partner before she could become the Fifth Mountain Lord in Profound Yang Mountain. Perhaps the woman was from a powerful background, so she was rather hot-tempered. After an argument, she got into a fight with the Second Mountain Lord.”
“What happened next?” Yang Kai asked.
“Although the woman was powerful, she was unable to fight against so many people on her own. There are four Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in Profound Yang Mountain, so it was expected that she was no match for them. The Mountain Lords joined forces and injured her, but she managed to flee in the end. The Second Mountain Lord was so furious that he hunted them down for a while but to no avail.”
Even though Yang Kai was furious, he pretended to be nonchalant.
The older Brother Wei continued, “They won’t let that woman off. Although she was powerful, the Mountain Lords could’ve prevented her from fleeing if they went all out. However, the Shadowless Cave Heaven is different from the outside world as resources are scarce here. No one is willing to make a move unless it’s absolutely necessary. That’s because fighting consumes a lot of power. If the Mountain Lords wanted to make the woman stay at that time, they would’ve had to pay a hefty price. That was why they let her go.”
The younger Brother Wei nodded his head, “A long time has passed since that incident. I guess the Second Mountain Lord is about to make a move. Even if those three were able to find a shelter, their strength must have been weakened by now as they had to constantly resist the Shadowless Astral Wind. Certainly, the Second Mountain Lord will be able to easily defeat them now.”
Yang Kai asked, “Do you know where the three of them are now?”
The older Brother Wei gave him a weird look, “Why are you asking this question, Senior Brother Yang?”
Yang Kai put on a faint smile, “Just curious.”
The unsuspecting older Brother Wei shook his head and replied, “We don’t know where they are now, but the Second Mountain Lord should be aware of it.”
Then, he pointed at the front, “Profound Yang Mountain is over there. It’s the Second Mountain Lord who is in charge this month so I’ll bring you to meet him first. After you join Profound Yang Mountain, we can have a proper chat.”
“Many thanks,” Yang Kai nodded.
There were more than ten mountains in Profound Yang Mountain. Looking from afar, one could see many palaces scattered around the mountains, and quite a number of cultivators were seen moving about. The people who could enter the Shadowless Cave Heaven were all Open Heaven Realm Masters. On the way to their destination, some people would greet the Wei Brothers and inquire about Yang Kai’s background.
The Wei Brothers were completely honest with them, and upon hearing their explanation, these people appeared envious.
That was because Yang Kai was brought to Profound Yang Mountain by the Wei Brothers. After he handed over eighty percent of his resources, the Wei Brothers would also get a handsome reward. Certainly, these people were envious of them for getting such benefits.
Soon, they reached a peak where there was a majestic Grand Hall. One could even hear some flirtatious and playful voices coming from inside.
Upon reaching the entrance, one of the Wei Brothers spoke up, “Please wait for me here, Senior Brother Yang. I’ll inform the Second Mountain Lord about your visit.”
Yang Kai nodded and waited patiently.
The older Brother Wei entered the Grand Hall, and just a moment later, he stepped out and said to Yang Kai, “The Second Mountain Lord is ready to meet you. Please come with me, Senior Brother Yang.”
As soon as Yang Kai followed the Wei Brothers into the Grand Hall, he caught a whiff of a pleasant fragrance and felt a rather decadent aura.
Looking up, he saw a lot of women’s clothes scattered around on the ground, which also included some undergarments.
At the other end of the Grand Hall, there was a rather soft-looking man lying on a huge chair, surrounded by seven or eight women in revealing clothes.
These women were wearing different styles of clothing, and they were each beautiful in their own unique way. There was a woman who squatted in front of him and helped him massage his calves. There was also a woman who let the man lie on her thighs and rubbed his temples. Another woman was seen sipping some wine into her mouth and then passing it into the man’s mouth.
The sight was extremely licentious. These women were barely covered as a large part of their skin was exposed.
When the Wei Brothers and Yang Kai stepped into the place, the women turned to look at them with their alluring eyes.
Be it Ma Tian Yuan or the Wei Brothers, they all said that the Second Mountain Lord from Profound Yang Mountain was a lascivious man. It seemed that it was indeed the case.
The women around him were all Open Heaven Realm Masters ranging from the Third Order to the Fifth Order.
After the Wei Brothers entered the Grand Hall, they hung their heads low and stared at their feet while Yang Kai looked fixedly at the man.
As their eyes met, the soft-looking man curved his lips into a wicked smile. While he remained lying on the chair, he wandered his hand around one of the women, which caused her to moan incessantly.
“You want to join Profound Yang Mountain?” The man asked impassively.
“Are you the Second Mountain Lord of Profound Yang Mountain?” Yang Kai questioned him instead.
The man put on a faint smile, “En. This King is Second Mountain Lord of Profound Yang Mountain, Yun Fei Bai.”
“Half a year ago, a woman and two men arrived at this place. Were you the one who injured that woman?” Yang Kai asked.
Yun Fei Bai narrowed his eyes and shot Yang Kai a meaningful glance.
To the side, the Wei Brothers realised that something was off as they turned to gaze at Yang Kai. The older Brother Wei pulled Yang Kai’s sleeve and secretly spoke to him, “Why are you asking this question, Senior Brother Yang?”
An unfazed Yang Kai stared fixedly at Yun Fei Bai, “Is it true?”
Yun Fei Bai retracted his hand and slowly sat up before glaring at the Wei Brothers. Faced with the stern stare, the brothers were immediately drenched in cold sweat as they felt a crawling sensation on their scalps.
Then, Yun Fei Bai turned to look at Yang Kai and replied smilingly, “En, she was hurt by this King. She should feel honoured that I was interested in her, but she couldn’t appreciate my kindness. This King had no choice but to harm her a little. What’s wrong? Do you know her?”
“Yes.” Yang Kai nodded, “She’s my Proprietress.”
Yun Fei Bai said, “In that case, you’re not here to join Profound Yang Mountain. What’s the purpose of your visit?”
Yang Kai flashed a grin at him, “Since you’ve hurt Proprietress, I’m here to return the favour.”
Yun Fei Bai became startled for a moment before he pressed his palms together and guffawed, “You? Retaliate against me?” Then, he sized Yang Kai up, “You’ve just entered the Fifth Order, right? Why are you making a scene here in Profound Yang Mountain instead of strengthening your own cultivation? Are you sick of living?”
He paused for a moment, “Good. This King was preparing to deal with that slut in a few days. Since you’ve come all the way here, I’ll capture you and then look for her. I believe that she’s important to you, which is why you’re so concerned about her. You should make a good bargaining chip.”
“You want to capture me? Let’s see if you’re capable of doing that!”
As soon as Yang Kai finished speaking, he unleashed his Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm aura and like a Flood Dragon leaving the ocean, he charged at Yun Fei Bai.
The Wei Brothers beside him were forced to stagger back from the impact while Yun Fei Bai remained seated while giving Yang Kai a disdainful look.
“You dare?!” One of the women who leaned against the man yelled and raised her hand before pushing her palm towards Yang Kai. The woman was a fairly powerful cultivator in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Clad in very thin clothing, her precious places were exposed while she made a move. Any man who saw this would feel their blood boiling.
“Scram!” Yang Kai bellowed and pushed out his fist.
Following a loud boom, the woman shrieked and sprayed out a mouthful of blood while she was sent flying away. Her tender body crashed into the wall and then fell into the debris.
Yun Fei Bai’s expression changed drastically as he stood straight up and roared, “Impudence!”
He didn’t make a move just now because he didn’t think there was a need to. There was no way a newly promoted Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master could possess much strength, so the women around him should be able to deal with him.
However, it never crossed Yun Fei Bai’s mind that his strongest woman would be sent flying after just one exchange of blows.
The other women were dumbfounded, but they soon came to their senses and shouted as they used their Secret Techniques on Yang Kai.
These women were not just Yun Fei Bai’s playthings; after all, they were all Open Heaven Realm Masters who were strong in their own right, though their Orders varied quite a bit.
Presently, they were making a move at the same time, so the sight was both alluring and imposing.
An unafraid Yang Kai threw out his fists in quick succession, unleashing a barrage of fist shadows as he attacked the women in all directions.
Explosive sounds were continuously heard as his World Force blew out the surrounding walls. These women clad in skimpy outfits were all sent flying in different directions.
Amidst the weltering dust, Yang Kai shot into the sky and looked around before knitting his brows, “So weak. None of them can fight!”
Besides the first woman who traded moves with him, there was also another Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master among these women while the rest were Third and Fourth-Order.
However, these two Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were totally incomparable to Ma Tian Yuan. After the battle against Ma Tian Yuan, Yang Kai had a better understanding of his own strength. He thought that all Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters would be about as strong as Ma Tian Yuan, but after this battle, he realised that he had overestimated others while underestimating himself.
After giving it a thought, he realised that it wasn’t surprising. Ma Tian Yuan fell from the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm to his current strength, so he was at the very peak of the Fifth-Order. These two women were naturally much weaker than him.
The place was a mess, but although the women were injured by Yang Kai, they were still alive.
Outside the ruins, the Wei Brothers were dumbfounded at the turn of events as they shuddered in fear.
“You court death!” Yun Fei Bai roared. He would be completely humiliated if word got out that his women were hurt in his own room.
Initially, he intended to capture Yang Kai and then deal with the woman named Lan You Ruo; however, his mind was now filled with murderous intent.
As his Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm aura permeated the air, he raised his hand and then brought down his palm.
A gigantic green palm was immediately formed above Yang Kai’s head, made from the purest World Force.
The attack was like an entire Small Universe pressing against Yang Kai. Moreover, it was the Small Universe of a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
At that instant, Yang Kai felt tremendously pressured. Although he’d had a good fight with Ma Tian Yuan after he had just ascended to the Open Heaven Realm, he hadn’t been forced into going all out. However, as he was faced with a furious Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master now, any slight negligence would cost him his life.
His fighting spirit had been ignited as he boldly shot into the sky and met the palm head-on.
A sense of ruthlessness flashed through Yun Fei Bai’s eyes as he clenched his fist, whereupon the gigantic palm also closed and turned into a cage as it grasped Yang Kai’s small figure.
The next instant, however, Yun Fei Bai’s expression changed drastically.
As World Force undulated, rays of light shot out in all directions. The gigantic hand exploded as a figure shot out and charged towards Yun Fei Bai as swift as lightning.
Upon seeing that, Yun Fei Bai snorted. Although he didn’t seem to be moving, he abruptly appeared in front of Yang Kai. As his clothes flapped in the wind, powerful but inconspicuous attacks bombarded Yang Kai. Every attack contained an extremely horrifying World Force.
Yang Kai continuously fended off the attacks as his figure shook and stepped backwards upon impact.
He reflected as he fought, realizing that a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was truly powerful. Although he was pretty strong as a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, there was still a difference of one Order between them. Therefore, there was a clear disparity between their might.
Yang Kai knew he had to settle this fight as soon as possible; after all, they were in Profound Yang Mountain where there were four Sixth-Order Mountain Lords. If the battle dragged on, the other Mountain Lords and the powerful Masters from Profound Yang Mountain would take notice of the commotion. By then, Yang Kai would fall into a perilous situation. He wasn’t arrogant or ignorant enough to believe he could deal with several Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters all at once.
“You’re really something, brat!” Although Yun Fei Bai was incensed, he still couldn’t help but praise Yang Kai upon seeing that the latter was able to ward off his attacks.
Even though there was only a difference of one Order between the Fifth-Order and the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, the disparity in strength was as great as the distance between the Heavens and the Earth.
If Yun Fei Bai was dealing with any other Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he was confident that he would be able to take down the other party in ten moves. However, Yang Kai had already fended off 100 blows and aside from looking a bit awkward was perfectly fine.
He couldn’t help but wonder whether Yang Kai really was a new Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, [Is he just playing the pig? If he isn’t a new Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, what’s going on with that unstable aura of his?]
While Yun Fei Bai was still lost in his thoughts, Yang Kai, who was forced to continuously step backwards, suddenly stopped in his tracks.
At that instant, Yun Fei Bai felt his chest tightening as a sense of crisis suddenly befell him.
The next moment, Yang Kai reached out his hand and summoned a long spear into his grip.
The entire world seemed to shake the moment the spear appeared.
A mighty Dragon Roar resounded as a majestic Dragon Pressure permeated the air.
Yang Kai’s demeanour changed completely as he held the spear in his grip. He let out a breath and wielded the spear. Without any wasted movements or hesitation, he unleashed the full power of his Supreme Limitless Spear technique.
Yun Fei Bai’s expression changed drastically when he saw the spear approaching him. In his eyes, he could see a terrifying Great Dragon charging at him. As the Dragon swam through the air, seemingly determined to swallow him down in one fell swoop. Faced with this terrifying monster, he felt as insignificant as an ant.
He immediately bit his tongue to compose himself. Resisting the Dragon Pressure, Yun Fei Bai roared as he summoned a scroll, on which some illegible characters were written. Despite that, every stroke of the characters looked like a uniquely-shaped sword.
The terrifying Sword Qi spread out.
After he infused his World Force into the scroll, the characters came apart and turned into beams of very pure Sword Qi. As they slashed across the void, the sounds of breaking through the air were heard.
This was a complete humiliation!
As a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, Yun Fei Bai was forced to use his artifact when dealing with a mere Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. This was totally inconceivable to him. Prior to this, it never crossed his mind that such a formidable Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master existed in this world.
Comparing himself, back when he was still a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, to this young man, Yun Fei Bai felt he wasn’t even worthy of carrying the latter’s shoes.
To the side, the Wei Brothers were dumbstruck and shuddered violently.
They were not on the battlefield, so they were not able to experience how powerful Yang Kai was directly; however, upon seeing that the Second Mountain Lord had summoned his artifact, they knew that the latter had no other means to deal with the opponent. That was why they appeared horrified.
Yang Kai wielded the Azure Dragon Spear with complete freedom, unrestrained by anything. The spear was like an extension of himself, and he could manipulate it in any way he imagined. The scroll glowed wildly as the beams of Sword Qi criss-crossed one another. However, they were all warded off by Yang Kai.
It had been many years since Giant Spirit God Ah Da had given this spear to Yang Kai, and Yang Kai had used the Azure Dragon Spear and killed many enemies already.
Nevertheless, it wasn’t until this moment that he had a real taste of the spear’s true might. This was an artifact that only an Open Heaven Realm Master could truly wield.
Although he was able to bring out a fraction of the spear’s power in the past, it was only because he possessed a Dragon Source. Since he was weak, he was unable to fully display the spear’s might.
However, this time was different. With the weapon in his hand, Yang Kai could clearly feel fluctuations that resembled joy coming from the spear. Holding it, he felt as though he could challenge all 36 Cave Heavens and 72 Paradises alone.
Like a thunderstorm, Yang Kai repeatedly thrust out his spear in rapid succession.
The attacks didn’t only contain the power of the Azure Dragon Spear, but also Yang Kai’s understanding of the Dao of Space and Dao of Time.
In Yun Fei Bai’s eyes, Yang Kai’s spear and figure were blurry and elusive, making it almost impossible for him to follow his movements or identify his position. On top of that, his own thoughts seemed to be disturbed, like there was a disconnect between his mind, body, and the surrounding world.
The power of the scroll had been fully activated, and all the characters had left its surface, transforming into colourful blades of Sword Qi that repeatedly slashed through the air.
A long time seemed to have passed, but it was also as if only an instant had gone by.
When Yang Kai’s figure completely disappeared from Yun Fei Bai’s sight for an instant and he suddenly felt a tremendous sense of danger engulfing him.
As a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he had experienced countless life-and-death moments; therefore, he was extremely sensitive to danger, and he was able to react appropriately.
All the Sword Qi returned and formed into a dazzling sword wave in front of him before he pushed it forward.
The next moment, Yang Kai abruptly appeared before him, as though he was throwing himself into the sword wave.
He didn’t seem to have the intention of backing down as his eyes were filled with determination and murderous intent. As Yang Kai stared fixedly at his opponent, he unleashed a grand thrust with his Azure Dragon Spear and bellowed, “Die!”
Blood splattered everywhere.
Yun Fei Bai’s chest had been penetrated by Azure Dragon Spear while Yang Kai’s neck was slashed across by the sword wave. The flesh around the wound rolled up as he was almost decapitated.
Upon impact, both of them were forced to step back as their blood splattered out.
It had to be said that at that moment of crisis, Yun Fei Bai had reacted in the best possible manner. If he hadn’t harmed Yang Kai with that sword wave, forcing his spear thrust off course ever so slightly, the attack could’ve killed him.
After they separated, Yang Kai held the spear in one hand while covering the wound on his neck with his other. He seemed determined to continue attacking; however, before he could make a move, he suddenly looked in a particular direction and snorted, “This isn’t over. When I see you again, I’ll definitely kill you!”
Upon declaring so, Yang Kai shot away from Profound Yang Mountain.
He wanted to kill Yun Fei Bai, but the intense battle just now had alerted the top Masters from Profound Yang Mountain and he could detect that those Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Mountain Lords were approaching. If he stayed there any longer, he would’ve been besieged by them.
“Kill him for me! Kill him!” An extremely pale Yun Fei Bai stomped hard and his roar reverberated across the entire Profound Yang Mountain.
The figures who were coming to Yun Fei Bai immediately turned around and chased after Yang Kai, including the Third and Fourth Mountain Lords of Profound Yang Mountain.
There was only one person who landed in front of the ruined Grand Hall. It was a fair-skinned and gentle-looking person who looked like an innocent young man; however, the shrewdness behind his eyes suggested that he was older than he appeared.
“Head Mountain Lord!” The Wei Brothers hurriedly lowered their heads.
This young-looking man was actually the First Mountain Lord of Profound Yang Mountain, Mao Zhe.
The Four Great Mountain Lords of Profound Yang Mountain were all in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, but he was the undisputed leader because he was just one step away from the Seventh-Order. In this regard, the other three Mountain Lords as well as the Three Chiefs of Unrivalled Guild and the two Island Masters of Twin Spirit Island were incomparable to him.
In the Shadowless Cave Heaven, cultivators were still able to break through to the next realm; however, due to the scarcity of resources and the existence of the Shadowless Astral Wind, cultivators who had fallen into this place considered themselves lucky if they could maintain their current Order. No one dared hope to achieve a breakthrough here.
It took a substantial amount of resources for a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master to ascend to the Seventh-Order; therefore, even though Mao Zhe had remained in his current Order for over 10,000 years, he was still unable to take the leap to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm.
However, everyone believed that if he hadn’t fallen into the Shadowless Cave Heaven, he would’ve reached that realm in the outside world long ago.
“Second Brother, what happened?” Mao Zhe looked around and asked.
With a pair of eyes that seemed able to spit fire, Yun Fei Bai said through clenched teeth, “I was caught off guard by some brat.”
Mao Zhe looked in the direction Yang Kai had left with a slightly furrowed brow, “If I’m not mistaken, that person is only in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, right?”
Yun Fei Bai flushed and said, “I was just careless!”
“He’s really something as he’s able to harm you when he’s just a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.” Mao Zhe nodded, “Where does he come from?”
Yun Fei Bai glared at the Wei Brothers, “They have some explaining to do!”
Mao Zhe turned to look at the Wei Brothers, who turned pale instantly as they were soaked in a cold sweat. Not daring to hide anything, they hurriedly narrated their encounter with Yang Kai.
Upon hearing that, Mao Zhe fell into his thoughts for a moment before saying, “He came all the way here for Lan You Ruo.”
Yun Fei Bai was severely injured as his chest had been penetrated by the Azure Dragon Spear, and his clothes were covered in blood. Given the fact that he was a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, it would take him one to two months before he could fully recover. However, he wasn’t at risk of losing his life at the very least. While Mao Zhe spoke to the Wei Brothers, he was already seated with his legs crossed and adjusting his breathing to prevent his injury from worsening.
The Wei Brothers darted their gazes between Yun Fei Bai and Mao Zhe as they were completely apprehensive. Even though they had no idea that Yang Kai was audacious enough to make a scene in Profound Yang Mountain, they were the ones who brought him to this place after all; hence, they could not stay clear of this matter. Now that Yun Fei Bai was severely injured, they would probably get some harsh punishments.
They couldn’t help but secretly curse at Yang Kai for dragging them into this. They felt that they had been unfairly victimised.
A while later, two figures descended from the sky.
They were the Third Mountain Lord and the Fourth Mountain Lord of Profound Yang Mountain.
Mao Zhe turned to look at them, whereupon the Third Mountain Lord Geng Qing shook his head, “He escaped.”
Mao Zhe arched his brow, “Oh? He managed to flee with you two personally chasing after him? Wasn’t that boy injured by Second Brother?”
The Fourth Mountain Lord was the only woman among the Four Great Mountain Lords of Profound Yang Mountain. Apart from her alluring face and curvy figure, her watery eyes seemed able to suck a man’s soul into them at any moment. Upon hearing Mao Zhe’s words, she replied, “That boy seems to be adept in the Dao of Space. He teleported away while Third Brother and I were chasing him, vanishing into thin air.”
Mao Zhe’s gaze brightened, “He’s adept in the Dao of Space?”
Geng Qing dipped his head, “I believe so.”
Mao Zhe immediately closed his eyes and scanned his surroundings. A moment later, he nodded, “It’s true. There are some residual fluctuations of Space Principles here. No wonder he had the guts to make a scene in Profound Yang Mountain. I heard that Masters of the Dao of Space are unrivalled when it comes to chasing and escaping. Unless we’re able to seal the Heavens and lock the Earth, we won’t be able to restrict his freedom. It seems the rumours are true.”
After pondering on it for a moment, he went on to say, “Since that boy has come all the way here for Lan You Ruo, he’ll definitely look for her. Third Brother, Fourth Sister, please go over and capture that boy. I don’t care about the others, but that boy has to be brought back to me alive.”
Geng Qing and the Fourth Mountain Lord Zhou Ya exchanged glances, then the former asked doubtfully, “It seems that you have a high regard for that boy, Big Brother.”
Mao Zhe gently rubbed his fingers together and asked, “How many years have you been in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, Third Brother?”
After giving it a thought, Geng Qing replied, “I can’t remember the exact length of time, but I suppose it’s been 3,000 years.”
“What about you, Fourth Sister?”
Zhou Ya replied, “I’m sure it’s been more than 1,000 years.”
Then, Mao Zhe took a glance at Yun Fei Bai, who was trying to heal his wound, and said, “Second Brother came earlier than you two. He’s been around for 6,000 years while I’ve been stuck in this place for more than 10,000 years. The Shadowless Cave Heaven is neither big nor small. Over the years, we’ve searched all the places we could, but we’re still unable to find an exit.”
All of them appeared dejected at the mention of this. Besides Profound Yang Mountain, those from Unrivalled Guild, and Twin Spirit Island had constantly been looking for a way out as well; however, they were unable to find any clue regardless of how hard they tried.
“It’s been so many years. Don’t you want to go out and see the outside world again? Do you want to remain stuck in this damned place forever?”
Geng Qing replied, “Of course we want to leave.”
Zhou Ya appeared to be in her thoughts, “Big Brother, you mean…”
Mao Zhe nodded, “That boy is a Master of the Dao of Space, so he’s much more sensitive to Space Principle fluctuations than us. Perhaps… he’ll be able to find the way out.”
The gazes of Geng Qing and Zhou Ya brightened when they heard that. Although they were unable to find the exit after so many years, it didn’t mean that the Shadowless Cave Heaven had no exit. It was just that they hadn’t found it. If they could make use of this boy who was proficient in the Dao of Space, perhaps they would have a pleasant surprise.
An excited Geng Qing said, “En, don’t worry, Big Brother. Fourth Sister and I will call the roll and capture that boy immediately.”
Just when Mao Zhe was about to speak, Yun Fei Bai suddenly opened his eyes and shouted, “Wait a moment!”
Geng Qing gazed at him, “Is there anything you want to say, Second Brother?”
Yun Fei Bai said through gritted teeth, “Please leave this matter to me, Big Brother. It’s utterly humiliating that I was injured by that brat. If I don’t get my revenge, I’ll never have a good night’s rest again.”
Upon hearing that, Mao Zhe frowned.
Zhou Ya said, “Second Brother, your wound… How are you going to make a move? Don’t forget that Lan You Ruo is also a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Although her power might have weakened during this period of time, it’s still not easy to deal with her if she’s pushed into a corner.”
Yun Fei Bai replied, “This kind of injury will heal in two… No, it’ll heal in one month. We’ve been waiting for years, so why can’t we wait another month?” Then, he gazed at Mao Zhe and sported a solemn expression, “Please give me one month’s time, Big Brother.”
Mao Zhe closed his eyes and fell silent. A moment later, he nodded gently and said, “Since you’re so determined, we’ll wait for your recovery, and then you’ll lead the operation.”
An ecstatic Yun Fei Bai replied, “Many thanks, Big Brother!”
Following that, Mao Zhe moved and abruptly disappeared.
Geng Qing and Zhou Ya exchanged glances, then they told Yun Fei Bai to take a rest and dispersed.
After the other three Mountain Lords were gone, the women who were injured by Yang Kai earlier appeared and came over to help Yun Fei Bai up before they headed to another mountain.
The Wei Brothers traded glances and shuddered before fleeing from that place, feeling as though they had just escaped from death’s door.
Meanwhile, a battered figure landed on a barren mountain. He was none other than Yang Kai, who was running for his life just moments before.
Yun Fei Bai’s attack almost beheaded him. The long wound on his neck was hideous, and all his clothes were soaked in blood. However, he had a strong physique, so even as he ran for his life earlier, his wound was starting to heal. The flesh around his wound was seen squirming and reconnecting already.
Now, the most important thing for him was to get rid of Yun Fei Bai’s World Force; otherwise, his wound would never heal.
Upon making sure that no one was pursuing him, Yang Kai dug a hole in the mountain and snuck into it.
Then, he stuffed a handful of pills into his mouth and pushed his World Force to suppress and expel the power left behind by Yun Fei Bai in his neck wound.
Although Yun Fei Bai was one Order above him, his residual power wasn’t a living thing; therefore, it wasn’t difficult for Yang Kai to disperse it as he just needed some time.
Half a day later, Yang Kai’s expression changed as he opened his eyes and released his Divine Sense. Soon, he realised that there was a woman pacing around outside the barren mountain.
Yang Kai initially decided to ignore her; after all, he had to recuperate as soon as possible, but the woman kept pacing around for a long time as though she had discovered something.
His heart sank as he had no choice but to leave his hideout.
The woman was only in the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm, so given Yang Kai’s current strength, he could kill her as he pleased. Therefore, even though he was wounded, he wasn’t afraid of her.
The woman was just looking around when she sensed something and looked up, only to see Yang Kai staring coldly at her.
She was shocked as she subconsciously took a few steps back. All of a sudden, something flashed through her eyes as Yang Kai abruptly appeared before her and clenched her neck with his iron-like hand. The force coming from his palm felt as lethal as a python’s bite.
At that instant, the woman was horrified as she coughed and pleaded with the man with her eyes.
Yang Kai stared dispassionately at her for a moment before frowning, “You’re one of Yun Fei Bai’s women?”
The woman looked familiar to Yang Kai. She was one of the women who surrounded Yun Fei Bai earlier. If he wasn’t mistaken, she was the one who massaged Yun Fei Bai’s calves. Presently, she was clad only in a thin layer of clothing, leaving her curvy figure faintly visible to the eyes.
Moments ago, Yang Kai fought with those women and sent them all flying away, this woman included.
The woman wanted to nod, but she was unable to move a muscle, so she could only bat her eyes.
“How did you find me?” Yang Kai asked coldly. He had even shaken off two Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, so how did this weak woman find his whereabouts?
As he spoke, he slightly loosened his grip.
The woman hurriedly explained, “I’m sensitive to smells, and Sir’s blood is different from others.”
Yang Kai frowned, not knowing whether he should believe her. As he expanded his Divine Sense, he realised that there was no one else besides them in this place.
He had the intention of killing her, but faced with a much weaker woman who didn’t have a blood feud with him, Yang Kai didn’t have the heart to cross that line.
After glaring for a while, he snorted and released her, “Since you’re able to find me, why have you come to look for me on your own instead of telling the leaders of Profound Yang Mountain to come here? Aren’t you worried that I’ll kill you?”
The woman pressed her lips together. Without replying to him, she fished out a jade slip from her Space Ring and passed it to him.
“What is this?”
The woman didn’t explain anything, and upon seeing that Yang Kai wasn’t taking it, she gently put the jade slip down on the ground and stepped backwards as she said, “I’ll owe you a favour if you can kill Yun Fei Bai.”
Yang Kai furrowed his brows while the woman turned around and left, leaving behind a rather pleasant fragrance in the air.
After taking a look at the jade slip, Yang Kai balled up his fist and grasped it in his hand. Upon examining it, he arched his brow.
That was because the jade slip contained a detailed map of the Shadowless Cave Heaven and the Proprietress’ location.
As he recalled the woman’s words before she left, Yang Kai fell into contemplation.
It seemed that the woman wasn’t willing to become Yun Fei Bai’s plaything. She was forced into such a state.
Unfortunately, she was too weak to resist. The fact that Yang Kai barged into Profound Yang Mountain and wounded Yun Fei Bai allowed her to see a glimmer of hope, so she came all the way here to look for him and give him some information.
After storing the jade slip, Yang Kai turned around and left.
He hadn’t fully recovered yet, and he wasn’t certain whether the woman was telling him the truth. It’d be terrible if Yang Kai’s opponents found him because she was leading him into a trap. Therefore, he decided to change hiding spots.
A while later, he found a cave on another barren mountain and snuck into it to recuperate.
The wound on his neck was hideous; however, it was nothing more than a flesh wound after Yun Fei Bai’s residual power was expelled, so it wasn’t difficult to heal it. Given his intrepid physique, it would only take him three to five days to recover.
A few days later, Yang Kai fished out the jade slip and identified his current position. After going through the information in the jade slip, he turned into a beam of light and headed in a particular direction.
Half a day later, he landed on a huge caldera. Looking down, he realised that the caldera was basically bottomless. Horrifying red magma weltered inside the basin while dark smoke was seen billowing from it. There were countless such calderas in the surrounding 1,000-kilometres radius and from time to time, the magma would burst out and form red rivers.
The environment here was more hostile than most places, but according to the information in the jade slip given to Yang Kai by that woman, the Proprietress, Chef, and Accountant were currently hiding here.
In the entire Shadowless Cave Heaven, there were only a small number of places that were safe from the Shadowless Astral Wind. Besides the Headquarters of the three great forces, this caldera was one such place. However, it was less effective compared to the Headquarters of the three great forces.
Yang Kai rubbed his nose as he felt a lump in his throat. The Proprietress was a beautiful woman, but she was also a peak Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. In order to look for a cultivation resource for him, she fell into the Shadowless Cave Heaven, and eventually, she had to hide in this kind of terrible place. He couldn’t help but blame himself.
In the past, he was determined to become a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master and didn’t listen to anyone’s dissuasion. Perhaps he had been too willful back then.
When he took a deep breath, the pungent smell seemed to have turned into needles and jabbed into his lungs. Looking down at the caldera, he yelled, “Anyone home?”
There was a passageway under the magma that had been set up with a barrier to serve as a shelter.
Chef suddenly opened his eyes and listened attentively for a moment before poking Accountant with his elbow. Then, he asked in a small voice, “Do you hear anything?”
Accountant opened his listless eyes and shot him a glance, “What do you mean?”
Chef scratched his head, “I think I heard Yang Kai’s voice.”
Accountant hurriedly took a glance at the Proprietress, which revealed more of the white parts of his eyes, before glaring at Chef, “Stop spouting nonsense. That brat is just an Emperor Realm cultivator, how is he supposed to enter the Shadowless Cave Heaven? You must have heard it wrong.”
Chef nodded, “You’re right… Wait… Listen…”
Accountant sported an awkward expression because while speaking to Chef, he could indeed hear a familiar voice calling out to them. Due to the weltering magma, the voice was only faintly audible. If Chef hadn’t pointed it out, he wouldn’t have noticed it.
In a nearby spot, the Proprietress opened her eyes, which were filled with doubt and puzzlement.
A moment later, she became furious and snarled through clenched teeth, “That damned brat!”
Then, she stood straight up, and as the hem of her dress flapped in the air, she shot out of the passageway.
After exchanging glances, Chef and Accountant hurriedly followed her.
Atop the caldera, Yang Kai had called out to them several times but no one responded to him. He thought that the woman might have lied to him as the Proprietress and the others might not be hiding in this place.
However, there wasn’t a need for that woman to take the risk to do such a thing; after all, what if Yang Kai was determined to end her life?
Just when he was about to dive into the volcano to have a look, his expression changed as he stared fixedly at the magma.
A moment later, the magma formed into a huge swirl as though it had been stirred by an invisible force. Just then, a figure shot out through the centre of the swirl. Her snowy white imperial dress was conspicuous in this hostile red and black environment. Like a lotus on a snowy mountain, she was pure and immaculate.
Before she even arrived, her familiar aura came right at Yang Kai, who smiled like a fool, waved, and called out enthusiastically, “Proprietress!”
As he spoke, he flew forward and spread his arms to tackle Proprietress in a bear hug.
Proprietress’ expression was so cold that it was as though one could scrape a layer of frost off her face. Before she could even say a word though, she was stunned by the sudden hug.
When Chef and Accountant dashed out of the vortex and saw what was going on, they were dumbfounded.
Chef opened his mouth so wide that it was as though a fish could be stuffed into it. He snapped out of his dazed state a moment later and poked Accountant, “Am I seeing a hallucination? Is Proprietress in his embrace right now?”
Accountant was equally astounded, but upon coming to his senses, he furiously summoned his abacus and shook it noisily. With his eyes filled with murderous intent, he was ready to charge forward, “Proprietress is being taken advantage of! Let’s kill him together!”
Chef immediately pulled him back, “Don’t panic. It’s not easy to take advantage of Proprietress, and she doesn’t need us to make a move on her behalf.”
Accountant shot him a glance and fell silent for a moment before nodding, “You have a point.”
Then, he put away the abacus and silently waited for the good show to start.
Nearby, the Proprietress was so stiff that it was as though she had been bound to the spot. As she felt the immense force, which contained a deep sense of longing, coming from the young man’s arms, her fury significantly subsided.
Just then, Yang Kai was heard saying, “I’m truly happy that you’re fine, Proprietress.”
She sighed, and then Yang Kai looked up at Chef and Accountant before grinning at them, “You guys look energetic as well.”
While Chef chuckled, there was a perfunctory smile on Accountant’s face.
The moment he finished speaking, Yang Kai found his head being lifted up forcefully. Releasing the woman in front of him, he asked hesitantly, “What are you doing, Proprietress?”
She was grabbing his hair and pulling him backward. The coldness behind her eyes weltered as she said through gritted teeth, “What am I doing? I should be the one asking you that!”
Upon finishing her words, she landed a kick on his shoulder.
Although she was a woman, she was also a powerful Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. She had exerted a lot of force with her kick, and Yang Kai didn’t dare to resist. After a grunt, he was sent flying away like a sack and crashed into the nearby cliff, forming a Human-shaped hole in it.
As the broken rocks tumbled down, Yang Kai felt the world spinning around him. Before he could pull himself together, Proprietress pounced on him and grasped his ankle before she spun around several times and hurled him into the magma.
Yang Kai plunged into the magma with a splash and disappeared below.
Following that, Proprietress shot downwards as though she was determined to kill.
Chef and Accountant both had their faces twitch as they watched.
A moment later, violent movements were felt coming from the magma. Following that, a pitiful shriek broke through the sky as Yang Kai was blasted out of the magma while flailing his limbs in the air. Proprietress followed him closely and repeatedly assaulted him in a ruthless manner.
Faced with the storm of attacks, Yang Kai groaned in pain and covered his head. His nose had even started bleeding.
“You dare dodge? Try dodging one more time and see what happens!” Proprietress beat him up while verbally threatening him.
Under the pressure, Yang Kai didn’t dare to resist in any way. Helpless, he could only lie on the ground and curl up into a ball, covering his head to protect his vitals while he let the Proprietress vent out all her anger on him.
“Stop hitting me, Proprietress! I can see what’s under your skirt!” Yang Kai suddenly exclaimed.
Proprietress was already incensed to begin with, so upon hearing such loathsome words, she exerted even more strength into her kicks.
Unable to take it anymore, Chef and Accountant immediately went over to pull her back.
Proprietress’ chest heaved heavily as her figure trembled with fury. She said through clenched teeth, “Let go! I must kill this infuriating boy today!”
“Please calm down, Proprietress. You don’t have to do this kind of dirty work yourself. We’ll do it for you!” As Chef spoke, he sent a signal to Accountant with his eyes, whereupon they pushed Proprietress away and pounced on Yang Kai, who had curled up on the ground, before they beat him up in a merciless manner.
Although Proprietress’ attacks were hurtful, Yang Kai wouldn’t have any grudges against her.
She must be aware that he had ascended to the Open Heaven Realm, so it was only natural she felt various kinds of disappointment and grief in her heart.
However, Yang Kai wasn’t about to put up with Chef and Accountant beating him up. Therefore, he shot them a glare to mean that he would settle the score with them for assaulting him today.
“You dare you glare at them!?” Proprietress bellowed while placing her palms on her hips.
“I don’t dare to! Forgive me!” Yang Kai covered his head again.
With Proprietress’ backing, Chef and Accountant became increasingly ruthless.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai silently counted the number of attacks they landed on him.
A moment later, Proprietress suddenly spoke up, “Alright, stop. Do you two really want to kill him?” She didn’t mean it when she said she wanted to kill Yang Kai.
Simultaneously, Chef and Accountant leapt away and retracted their powers since they were done with their job.
Yang Kai, who was still lying on the ground, slightly parted his fingers and examined Proprietress through the gap. Upon seeing that she was still furiously gritting her teeth, he quickly flashed a fawning smile at her.
However, his swollen face made him look both funny and abominable.
Upon seeing that Proprietress took a step forward, Yang Kai shuddered and quickly covered his head again.
She bent over and clenched the man’s collar before hoisting him up to her face. Glaring at him with a pair of slightly reddened eyes, she questioned solemnly, “You broke through to the Open Heaven Realm, didn’t you?”
“Yes…” Yang Kai bashfully nodded his head as he wouldn’t dare to look her in the eyes.
“Fifth-Order?” The Proprietress asked again.
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai forced a fawning smile.
“Why must you infuriate me so?!” The Proprietress stomped her foot so hard the ground shook.
“The Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm still makes me an Open Heaven Realm Master.” Yang Kai rubbed his nose.
The Proprietress glared at him with reddened eyes and gritted her teeth as though she wanted to skin him alive.
The moment she heard Yang Kai’s voice just now, she knew that he must have entered the Open Heaven Realm; otherwise, he couldn’t possibly have entered the Shadowless Cave Heaven. That was because only Open Heaven Realm Masters could enter this damned place.
However, given his situation, it was extremely difficult for him to obtain a High-Rank Yin Element treasure. For a moment, she prayed that he had come into this place as a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master.
Nevertheless, as soon as she saw him, she knew that he didn’t manage to directly advance to the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm.
In that case, it would give her some solace if he at least was a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Unfortunately, the Fifth Order was all he could achieve.
She was fully aware that Yang Kai had built an incredibly solid foundation, and that was the reason she was heartbroken. He had the potential to become a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master directly, but he ended up breaking through to the Fifth Order instead. It could be said that his Martial Dao was ruined and his future was bleak.
To the side, Accountant and Chef fell silent as they looked sympathetically but admiringly at Yang Kai. They finally acknowledged him as one of their own.
Yang Kai must have come all the way here to save the Proprietress. Although they had no idea what had transpired for him to eventually advance to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, they could venture a guess. While Yang Kai was unable to find a High-Rank Yin Element treasure, he was too concerned about the Proprietress’ safety, which was why he quickly directly advanced to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm and entered this place.
The Proprietress sighed. She had accidentally fallen into the Shadowless Cave Heaven when she was looking for a High-Rank Yin Element treasure for Yang Kai, but he decided to ruin his own future and become a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in the end in order to save her. Everything had gone wrong.
However, the fact that he had done all this for her proved that he was a righteous and loyal person.
“Don’t cry, Proprietress,” Yang Kai suddenly said as he stared dazedly at the tears sliding down her face. He raised his hand in an attempt to brush the tears away, but the woman turned around and disappeared into the magma.
Yang Kai pressed his lips together and scratched his head.
His impression of the Proprietress was that she was a resolute and astute woman. It was as though she was able to support the sky’s weight with her slender arms even as it came crashing down on top of her. It never crossed his mind that he would see such a woman cry one day.
“I’m doomed!” Yang Kai was apprehensive as he gazed pleadingly at Chef and Accountant, “She must be so mad that she started crying. What should I do?”
Chef heaved a sigh and went over to pat his shoulder, “She isn’t crying because she’s mad.”
“What do you mean?” Yang Kai was startled, “What is the reason, then?”
“She’s blaming herself,” Accountant spoke up. “She must be thinking that if she hadn’t fallen into the Shadowless Cave Heaven, you wouldn’t have forcefully broken through to look for her. She believes that you’ve fallen into such a state because of her. You’re supposed to be able to make it to the Seventh Order directly, but you only ended up in the Fifth Order. She’s crying because she’s heartbroken and is deep in self-blame.”
Yang Kai furrowed his brow, “Ascending to the Open Heaven Realm is my own decision. It has nothing to do with her.”
Chef shot him a glance, “Do you even believe what you’ve just said?”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai became startled and fell silent.
Chef went on to say, “Regardless, what is done is done. Let’s go in first. Since you’ve come all the way here to look for us, you’ll also be my good brother from now on. In the past, only Old Bai and the Accountant were my good brothers, and now, you’re also included.”
As he spoke, he went over to hoist the battered Yang Kai.
With a serious expression, Accountant nodded, “You’re also my good brother.” Then, he dashed forward and helped Yang Kai up alongside Chef.
Yang Kai suddenly muttered, “Chef, you punched me 38 times and kicked me 13 times just now. As for you, you punched me 27 times and kicked me 16 times.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Chef and Accountant released him at the same time, which caused him to fall on his butt. While Yang Kai was in a dazed state, the two of them turned into rays of light and plunged into the magma. A furious Yang Kai said through clenched teeth, “You two really are my ‘good’ friends, huh!?”
Then, he got to his feet and rubbed his backside before chasing after them.
There was a cave below the caldera that was separated from the magma using a Spirit Array. Although the environment wasn’t pleasant, it wasn’t unbearable at the very least. It was a cave about the size of several houses, and since the restriction had opened up, Yang Kai was able to enter easily.
Presently, the Proprietress was seated motionlessly on a rock chair as she faced away from the entrance.
Chef and Accountant, who had come into this place earlier, were just standing behind her. Chef turned his head to take a glance and said in a small voice, “He’s here, Proprietress. Do you want us to chase him away? Or do we let him stay?”
The Proprietress didn’t respond to him, as though she hadn’t heard anything at all.
Accountant followed up, “What’s the point of asking this question? Proprietress is obviously mad. Chase him away and let him perish on his own outside!”
Chef grunted in a deep voice, “Good.”
Following that, they were ready to make a move as they rolled up their sleeves.
Unable to take it anymore, the Proprietress said coldly, “Do you two want to anger me as well?”
Upon hearing that, Chef stiffened as he put on a fawning smile, “We wouldn’t dare. Please don’t be mad at us, Proprietress. We won’t chase him away.”
Then, he sent a signal to Yang Kai with his eyes. Yang Kai got the message and took a seat in the opposite corner of the cave.
After that, the two of them said to the Proprietress in a subservient manner, “Please get some rest.”
As they exchanged glances, they carefully moved away and approached Yang Kai. One of them looked condescendingly at him while the other crouched down and stared at him.
Chef tutted, “Is a swollen face the trend these days, Yang Boy?”
“How do you even have the face to ask such a thing?” Yang Kai glared at him. Right after he was beaten up by the Proprietress, these two guys mercilessly assaulted him. If it weren’t because he had a strong physique, his face would’ve been deformed by now.
Chef grinned meaningfully, “These flesh wounds don’t matter. I have a blood staunching paste with me. Come on, I’ll help you apply it.”
Upon finishing his words, he fished out a slimy paste from his Space Ring and scooped up a bit of it with his fingers before applying it on Yang Kai’s face.
Yang Kai looked away to dodge him, thinking that he wouldn’t need any blood-staunching paste for these flesh wounds; however, he saw the Chef subtly signalling with his eyes in the Proprietress’ direction.
Yang Kai’s expression changed as he figured out what he was trying to do; therefore, he stopped avoiding him and let him do it. Nevertheless, he soon screamed at the top of his lungs, “Ouch! It hurts! Can’t you be a bit gentler?”
Snorting, Chef replied, “I’m a cook, this is how I deal with the meat and the fish every day!”
Yang Kai snapped, “Do you think I’m some kind of meat to be tenderized? You just said I’m your good brother!”
Chef refuted, “This and that are separate issues. How can you confuse them?”
Accountant, who was standing in front of them with his hands behind his back, grew impatient and said, “Alright, stop arguing. Yang Kai, how did you find out we’re here? Did Old Bai tell you about it?”
Yang Kai nodded, “En. Old Bai came to Void Land and told me what had happened. That’s why I rushed over here.”
“How is he now?”
Yang Kai replied, “He’s fine, so don’t worry about him. He should be in Void Land now. He initially wanted to follow me into this place, but I had no idea what was going on here or whether I would be able to leave or not, so I shook him off and snuck into this place on my own.”
Accountant nodded gently, “That’s good.”
Then, he took a glance at the Proprietress, and upon seeing that she had straightened up to listen attentively, he secretly found it funny. After that, he asked, “There’s one thing I don’t understand. You’d built up such a solid foundation, but why did you end up in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm? You could’ve ascended to the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm at the very least. Weren’t you only lacking a suitable Yin Element treasure?”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai smiled helplessly, “It’s a long story.”
Before coming to the Shattered Heaven, he wasn’t aware that only Open Heaven Realm Masters could enter the Shadowless Cave Heaven. If he knew, he would’ve gotten a Sixth-Order Yin Element treasure ready just in case of emergencies.
However, it was too late as he only found out about it after arriving at this place. Sixth-Order materials were already highly sought after in Void Land to begin with, to say nothing of the fact that Yin Element materials were even rarer.
As soon as any Sixth-Order materials appeared in the Star City, those from Void Land would buy them up.
In the end, when Yang Kai needed such a resource, he realised that he didn’t even have one with him. Even Ti Zheng and the others didn’t possess one.
Left with no choice, he could only ascend to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Upon hearing that, Accountant snorted, “I knew that something was off about it. Now, it seems that some people were really behind this.” After falling into the Shadowless Cave Heaven, he had some suspicions but he didn’t have any evidence to prove it. After hearing Yang Kai’s story though, he realised that his speculations were right.
They hadn’t accidentally fallen into the Shadowless Cave Heaven; rather, it was a trap they had been caught up in.
After the Proprietress was trapped, they released Bai Qi to let him inform Yang Kai about it; then, they set up a siege just outside the Shadowless Cave Heaven.
It would be best if they could kill Yang Kai, thus settling this issue for good. Even if they couldn’t kill him, they could force him to ascend to the Open Heaven Realm as that was the only way to enter the Shadowless Cave Heaven.
In the end, their plot was successful as Yang Kai had no choice but to ascend to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
However, they had never expected that Black Crow Divine Monarch would lead a group of people and launch a sneak attack on them at the critical moment, which resulted in them suffering immense losses. Furthermore, in order to make Yang Kai willingly ascend to the Fifth Order, the Space Rings of all four High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters were confiscated. It could be said that their losses were almost unbearable.
In any case, they had finally settled the issue regarding Yang Kai. This kind of outcome was still acceptable, and while no one was happy, they were at least satisfied. As for their grudges with Black Crow, they would have to settle the score with him in the future.
“You had the potential to become a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, but you ended up in the Fifth-Order. Don’t you regret it?” Accountant asked in a grim voice. If he were the one who had to go through this, he couldn’t have remained calm and collected.
“It’s a shame that I’m unable to achieve my goal, but I don’t regret my decision.” Yang Kai shook his head, “Given the situation I was in, I probably won’t be able to get a High-Rank Yin Element treasure even if I waited for 1,000 years. Rather than wasting so much time waiting for something that might not even come to be, I believe I should have a power I can call my own.”
“You’re pretty poised about all this,” Accountant said admiringly.
Yang Kai shrugged while replying, “There’s nothing else I can do about it, so I think I should be optimistic.”
Just then, a rustling sound was heard. Proprietress rose from the chair and approached the three of them, who turned their heads to look at her.
When she reached them, she extended her hand towards Chef, who promptly passed her the blood-staunching paste and took a rock chair from a nearby spot before placing it behind her.
As the Proprietress took a seat, she gazed at Yang Kai with a conflicted look and scooped up some blood-staunching paste before applying it to the bruises on his face.
In response, Yang Kai beamed at her.
A frustrated Proprietress snapped, “Why are you smiling like a fool?” Then, she exerted more force with her hand, which caused him to wail in pain.
After a sigh, she rubbed the paste on his skin and said, “Since you’ve ascended to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, there’s no going back. The Small Universe in your body has formed, so it’ll be useless even if you regret it in the future.”
“I won’t regret it.” Yang Kai shook his head, “When I arrived in the Outer Universe, it was you who took care of me like a caring Senior. Now that you’re in trouble, there’s no way I can sit back and do nothing. I’m even willing to barge into the 36 Cave Heavens and 72 Paradises for you, let alone a mere Shadowless Cave Heaven.”
“Stop boasting!” The Proprietress shot him a glare and ground her teeth, “A Senior? Am I that old to you?”
In an instant, Yang Kai was soaked in cold sweat, “Proprietress is still in the spring of her youth, the word ‘old’ can in no way be associated with you. I was wrong!”
After a snort, the Proprietress gently continued, “Since you’ve ascended to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, your limit will be the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. Given your heritage and foundation, it won’t be difficult for you to make it to the Seventh-Order as long as you have enough resources. If you want to go further than that, it’ll depend on whether you’ll come across the right opportunities, so you’d better brace yourself for it.”
“I understand.” Yang Kai nodded. By refining Open Heaven Pills and resources of various Elements, a cultivator could only rise two Orders from the one they initially broke through to. This was a universal truth that had been proven by countless cultivators since time immemorial. No one had managed to overcome this law. That was because there was a limit for growth regardless of whether one refined Open Heaven Pills or other resources.
However, if one could find Innate Open Heaven Pills formed in the Universe Furnace, they could break through this limit.
Unfortunately, such pills were incredibly rare. Whenever the Universe Furnace appeared, it would cause an upheaval in the 3,000 Worlds and lead to a reign of terror and bloodshed.
Even the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, who rarely stepped out of the Cave Heavens and Paradises, would make a move upon getting wind of its appearance. In that kind of situation, even the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were unable to interfere as they could be easily killed if they were the slightest bit careless.
Whenever the Universe Furnace appeared, it was normal for hundreds, if not thousands of Open Heaven Realm Masters to lose their lives, all of them at the Mid-Rank at minimum. Even many Seventh-Order and Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters would die in this struggle.
“There’s no rush to cultivate as you have to stabilize your foundation first. When a person reaches the Open Heaven Realm, all they have to do is accumulate more power in order to advance.” While the Proprietress was giving Yang Kai a valuable lesson, she suddenly glanced at his neck and pinched his chin before turning his head slightly. With narrowed eyes, she asked, “How did you get this wound?”
Although the wound on his neck caused by Yun Fei Bai had basically healed, there was still a mark left. Upon realising that it was a cut that almost beheaded Yang Kai, the Proprietress was shocked.
“Who hurt you?” She asked in a grim voice.
Yang Kai batted his eyes and scratched his nose, “Before coming to this place, I went over to Profound Yang Mountain.”
“Yun Fei Bai?” The Proprietress’ eyes turned cold.
Yang Kai explained, “I had no idea where you were, but I heard that Yun Fei Bai from Profound Yang Mountain was hunting for you, so I decided to go over and get some information from them. Don’t worry. Although I’ve suffered a setback, he isn’t in any better condition. I left a hole through his chest, which can be considered a little interest for what he owes you.”
Upon hearing that, Chef and Accountant exchanged astounded glances.
It was only now that they understood how Yang Kai was able to find them in the caldera. It turned out he gathered some information from those in Profound Yang Mountain. They secretly admired him for his audacity.
They were aware of how powerful those from Profound Yang Mountain were, and Yun Fei Bai was in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm. It was inconceivable that Yang Kai was able to wound Yun Fei Bai and even escape from that place.
The fact that he had pulled off this feat was beyond their ability to imagine.
When they took a look at the wound on Yang Kai’s neck, they confirmed that it was a cut that almost decapitated him. He was so close to losing his life.
“Are you sick of living!? How could a mere Fifth-Order like you barge into Profound Yang Mountain?” The Proprietress gazed at him in astonishment as she still couldn’t believe what she had just heard.
Yang Kai just laughed like a fool while feeling warm in his heart.
The Proprietress ground her teeth as though she was ready to reproach him, but upon recalling that he had done all this for her, she didn’t have the heart to be harsh. Therefore, she said in a caring manner, “You mustn’t act on a whim again in the future.”
Yang Kai nodded repeatedly, “I’ll remember it.”
With her eyes filled with a sense of self-blame, the Proprietress heaved a sigh. If she had been careful enough back then, she probably wouldn’t have fallen into the Shadowless Cave Heaven, which led to Yang Kai getting forced to ascend to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
“Just treat your wounds first. You’ve just ascended to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, so you have to immediately consolidate your cultivation. You should cultivate in seclusion for a period of time. Although this place isn’t particularly safe, we can’t find a better location,” the Proprietress ordered, “Moreover, you’ve just arrived in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, so you’re not aware of the dangers here yet. I’ll tell you about it at a later time.”
“There’s no rush…”
Before Yang Kai was able to finish his words, the Proprietress shot him a glare, “Go now!”
Yang Kai immediately jumped up and complied, “Yes!”
Then, he walked into a secret room in the cave and sat down with his legs crossed. The Proprietress set up a number of barriers outside the room before stopping.
Left with no choice, Yang Kai could only start cultivating in seclusion.
The wounds inflicted on him in the previous battle had healed, and the assault from the Proprietress, Chef, and Accountant had only resulted in some bruises, which could be ignored. The reason he screamed at the top of his lungs just now was to arouse the Proprietress’ sympathy, which proved to be effective.
Now, he closed his eyes and checked on his Small Universe.
His Small Universe was newly formed as he had just ascended to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Anyone else would have to cultivate in seclusion for three to five years to stabilise their foundation; however, Yang Kai’s Small Universe had inherited the heritage of the Small Sealed World as he had merged the two, so he was able to stabilise it much quicker than normal.
Furthermore, the previous two battles with Ma Tian Yuan and Yun Fei Bai respectively had helped him quickly consolidate his cultivation, even though the battles didn’t last long.
His battle against Yun Fei Bai was especially intense as he was constantly at risk of dying. This kind of immense pressure was more effective than cultivating in seclusion, which was dull and tedious.
Now, instead of fortifying his Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm cultivation, Yang Kai had to hurriedly ascend to the Sixth-Order.
The Shadowless Cave Heaven was obviously not a hospitable place. Those from Profound Yang Mountain, who had four Sixth-Order Mountain Lords with them, had formed grudges with the Proprietress and Yang Kai. Even in the 3,000 Worlds, Profound Yang Mountain could be considered a top Second Class great force.
Without its two Divine Spirits, Void Land would be incomparable to Profound Yang Mountain.
Since Yang Kai had injured Yun Fei Bai, those from Profound Yang Mountain would never let him off, so it was expected that they would make a move sooner or later. Given his Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm cultivation, he couldn’t survive when dealing with such a behemoth even though he had the Proprietress with him. Therefore, Yang Kai would only gain the qualifications to struggle against them by reaching the Sixth Order.
He was already able to injure Yun Fei Bei while he was in the Fifth Order, so it shouldn’t be hard to kill him after he made it to the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm. By then, he could join forces with the Proprietress to oppose the entire Profound Yang Mountain.
Anyone else would have to wait for a painfully long time if they wanted to go from the Fifth Order to the Sixth Order, refining countless Open Heaven Pills and cultivation resources to strengthen the heritage of their Small Universe. If this process could be completed in hundreds to a thousand of years, it would be considered fast. Those who had less aptitude and resources could take thousands to over ten thousand years to do this, if they managed to at all.
However, Yang Kai was different. He was supremely talented, and his foundation was incredibly solid, so he was able to refine Open Heaven Pills and cultivation resources at a much quicker pace than average.
Furthermore, he still had a Mid-Rank World Fruit.
In the Primordial Land of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, Yang Kai repeatedly entered worlds in the fruits and obtained a number of World Fruits, which included two Mid-Rank ones and thirteen Low-Rank ones. He also managed to obtain a root from the World Fruit Tree. After that, Meng Hong from Great Moon Province gave him a Mid-Rank World Fruit, so he ended up with three Mid-Rank ones in his possession.
World Fruits were Heaven-defying treasures that could allow an Open Heaven Realm Master to directly ascend to the next Order. The limit of Low-Rank World Fruits was reaching the Third-Order, while the limit of Mid-Rank World Fruits was the Sixth-Order. There was no doubt that these fruits were invaluable.
When Yang Kai was on the way to the Star Boundary, he was besieged by Hei He and forced to let Guo Zi Yan and Lu Xue respectively consume a World Fruit to turn the situation around.
Guo Zi Yan was originally a Second-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so he directly rose to the Third-Order after taking a Low-Rank World Fruit. On the other hand, Lu Xue was a Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so she became a Fifth-Order one after consuming a Mid-Rank World Fruit.
Furthermore, Yue He had consumed a Mid-Rank World Fruit, allowing her to reach the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Hence, Yang Kai still had one last Mid-Rank World Fruit with him. That was the reason he was willing to ascend to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm at that time. With such a Heaven-defying fruit, it could be said that it made no difference whether he ascended to the Fifth Order or the Sixth Order. The only issue was that he had to consume the last fruit.
However, he managed to make up for this loss somewhat by taking the Space Rings of the four High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters who had ambushed him.
The most valuable aspect of a World Fruit wasn’t its ability to make a cultivator directly reach the next Order, but rather its ability to increase the limit of a cultivator’s Martial Dao. Such an opportunity could never be purchased with money.
Yang Kai had ascended to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, so theoretically, the best he could achieve in the future was the Seventh-Order; however, after taking a World Fruit, he would reach the Sixth-Order directly, and his limit would increase to the Eighth-Order.
When Yang Kai was forced to ascend to the Open Heaven Realm outside of the Shadowless Cave Heaven, he had already considered that. Ti Zheng and the others thought that his future was ruined, but they were not aware of his intentions. The reason Yang Kai even agreed to break through was that he had a Mid-Rank World Fruit with him.
Inside the secret room, Yang Kai fished out a box from his Space Ring and carefully opened it, whereupon a translucent spirit fruit the size of a fist came into his sight. It was the last Mid-Rank World Fruit he had.
Lights were seen swirling around the fruit’s surface, giving it a rather entrancing look.
After taking out the spirit fruit, Yang Kai took a bite without hesitation. As the fruit peel broke apart, the fragrant juice flowed into his mouth. He arched his brow as he hadn’t expected the taste to be so pleasant.
Then, he wolfed down the World Fruit, including the fruit pit, and licked his lips with a joyful expression. The next moment, Yang Kai’s face turned solemn as he quickly focused on his Small Universe.
The World Fruit’s medicinal efficacies dissolved in his stomach and turned into the purest World Force imaginable that streamed into all his organs. The force wasn’t intense, so it was still bearable for Yang Kai, what was special was that there didn’t seem to be an end to this stream of World Force.
Yang Kai’s Small Universe opened wide and accepted this World Force. He didn’t even need to spend any effort to refine it as the World Force quickly assimilated into the Small Universe, adding to his heritage and foundation without any obstruction.
Yang Kai was stunned. It was no wonder that the World Fruits were extremely precious and were called Heaven-defying.
When an Open Heaven Realm Master consumed Open Heaven Pills and cultivation resources, there was a refinement process. However, the World Force streaming out of the World Fruit didn’t require any effort to assimilate, they just had to open their Small Universe and accept it.
This fact alone made World Fruits a unique treasure.
As time passed, Yang Kai could clearly feel that the heritage of his Small Universe was increasing in a rapid and steady manner as it marched towards the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Outside the secret room, the Proprietress had to leave the cave from time to time while Chef and Accountant stayed there to stand guard for Yang Kai so that he wouldn’t be disturbed.
The reason the Proprietress went out was that she had to look for a way to leave this damned place. She had been doing that since before Yang Kai’s arrival. Unfortunately, she hadn’t gotten any clues so far.
The Shadowless Cave Heaven was neither big nor small, so over the years, the three great forces had gained a footing and searched everywhere they could. If there was really an exit, they would’ve discovered it by now.
It had only been one year since the Proprietress and the others arrived here, so their efforts weren’t comparable to the thousands of years the three great forces had invested.
One day, while keeping guard in the cave, Chef and Accountant realised that the barrier had been triggered. Looking up, they saw the Proprietress returning from outside as the magma roiled behind her. She used her power to open up a passageway and plunged into the caldera.
After looking around, she stared at Yang Kai’s secret room and frowned, “Hasn’t he come out yet?”
Chef shook his head, “Not yet. It’s been a month, but it seems that his injuries are pretty serious, which is why it’s taking him such a long time to recuperate. Do we need to check on him, Proprietress?”
She rejected his idea by shaking her head, “There’s no need for that. It’d be terrible if we happen to disturb him during a critical moment.”
Accountant spoke worriedly, “The Astral Wind is due to blow again in a few days. Although this place can fend it off somewhat, we can’t totally avoid its influence. By then, Yang Kai will be disturbed.”
That was indeed a serious problem. The place they resided could ward off some of the Astral Wind’s effects, but it wasn’t as good as the Headquarters of the three great forces. If it weren’t for this place, they couldn’t have made it to this day as all their cultivations would’ve been ground down by the eerie wind.
Despite that, they had suffered quite some losses to their Small Universes after a year. The Proprietress was in a better state as she was able to persevere given her strong and solid cultivation; however, it had only been a short time since Chef and Accountant ascended to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, so their heritages were not solid to begin with. The brutality of the wind had repeatedly destabilised their Small Universes.
After the Astral Wind struck each time, they would have to use up a lot of resources to simply stabilize their cultivations, and even more to try to make up for the losses.
Upon pondering on it for a moment, the Proprietress said, “We’ll play it by ear. Don’t disturb him for now; however, we have to be wary of those from Profound Yang Mountain. I took a stroll around that place some time ago and realised that they’re gathering quite a few people together. It seems that they’re preparing to make a move on us.”
Chef was shocked when he heard that, “Does it mean that we have to escape somewhere else?”
Those from Profound Yang Mountain had a lot of people on their side, including many powerful Masters. If the two parties fought, the Proprietress would definitely not be a match for them. The reason they had been safe for such a long time was that the Proprietress, a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, was intimidating enough.
The people from Profound Yang Mountain reckoned that even if they could take down the three of them in the end, they would have to pay a hefty price. That was the reason they backed down and allowed the three of them to hide in this place.
However, after such a long time, the Proprietress’ strength must have decreased under the influence of the Astral Wind. Although Chef and Accountant were in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, they were unable to affect the overall situation.
Previously, Yang Kai had made a scene in Profound Yang Mountain, which must have infuriated them, so it was expected that they wanted to retaliate against them.
The Proprietress shook her head, “Where else can we go? The Shadowless Cave Heaven is only so big. The only options left for us are Unrivalled Guild and Twin Spirit Island.” She paused for a moment, “Which do you think we should join?”
In the past, she had never considered joining one of the three great forces. That was because all of these great forces had established themselves in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, so they would be restricted in many ways if they joined one of them, not to mention that they had to hand over a large part of their resources.
Nevertheless, things were different now and it was time they made a choice. If they remained stubborn, they wouldn’t possibly be able to survive in the Shadowless Cave Heaven.
After exchanging glances, Chef and Accountant said in unison, “Twin Spirit Island.”
The Proprietress nodded in agreement, “I share the same sentiment.” Among the three great forces in the Shadowless Cave Heaven, Twin Spirit Island was the weakest because they only had two Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. Unrivalled Guild had three while Profound Yang Mountain had four. What’s more, the Head Mountain Lord was just one step away from the Seventh Order.
As a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, if the Proprietress joined Twin Spirit Island, it would allow them to be on par with Unrivalled Guild, which was a chance for Twin Spirit Island to strengthen its position.
Furthermore, the Proprietress had headed to Twin Spirit Island some time ago and was greeted hospitably by the two Island Masters. They had a joyous chat during the encounter, and the Island Masters were obviously trying to persuade her to join them. There was no doubt that they were more polite than those from Profound Yang Mountain.
After a moment of silence, the Proprietress spoke up, “Let’s talk about it after the Astral Wind is gone.”
Without any objections, Chef and Accountant nodded. Then, they started setting up some arrays in the cave. The Astral Wind was able to penetrate everything, including the Small Universes of Open Heaven Realm Masters. Although their arrays were not highly effective, it was better than nothing at all.
The Proprietress didn’t leave again, and three days later, the Astral Wind struck just as expected. Initially, it was just a light breeze, but it soon turned into a gale and caused a sandstorm outside of the cave.
Despite the fact that they were hiding inside the lava cave below the volcano, the Astral Wind was still able to sneak into the place and grind away the World Force in their Small Universes.
Obviously, it wasn’t the first time the Proprietress and the others faced such a predicament, and after so many experiences, they had developed some methods to resist. The strange wind in this damned place would strike once a month for one to two hours with a margin of error of three days. In the entire Shadowless Cave Heaven, besides safe places like the Headquarters of the three great forces, only a few places like the area around this caldera were able to weaken the strange wind.
They had been looking for the reason behind it but to no avail. Even the three great forces couldn’t figure it out as they speculated that it had something to do with the deceased Shadowless Divine Monarch; after all, it was a Universe Cave Heaven left behind by him after his death, so any strange events could be traced back to him.
Fortunately, the three of them had prepared a lot of cultivation resources. Since the Proprietress’ return to the cave, she had been refining them non-stop. Presently, she was working harder to replenish the loss of her strength.
Suddenly, an extremely pure Wood Element Power exploded from the depths of the cave. The Proprietress and the others were stunned as they opened their eyes and fell into a dazed state.
An emerald green ancient tree had abruptly appeared before their eyes, one with a gigantic crown that covered the entire cave. A soft green light descended from the tree, containing an astonishing vitality that cast a green glow on their figures and made them feel completely at ease.
“What is this?” Chef was astounded.
“Is it a Divine Manifestation?” Accountant exclaimed.
The Proprietress nodded her head, “It should be so.”
She had sharp vision and vast experience, so she could tell that it was a Divine Manifestation the moment she saw it. Following that, she turned to look at Yang Kai’s secret room and realised that it was where the roots of the tree were located. Apparently, the Wood Element Divine Manifestation was Yang Kai’s doing.
The Proprietress couldn’t help but wonder about the Order of Wood Element Power Yang Kai had condensed, which allowed him to use such an incredible Divine Manifestation.
The moment she found out that Yang Kai had condensed the Golden Crow’s True Fire, she knew that he must have condensed a High-Rank Wood Element Power as well; otherwise, he couldn’t have suppressed the burning power of the Golden Crow’s True Fire.
However, High-Rank Wood Element treasures could still be classified into different Orders. The Proprietress had never probed Yang Kai about his background, but now it seemed that the Wood Element treasure he had refined was truly extraordinary. Otherwise, such a Wood Element Divine Manifestation couldn’t have been derived from it.
Resting under the gigantic tree, they not only felt warm and comfortable, but also clear-headed, like their thoughts had been accelerated. They had also discovered that they were able to restore their strength at a quicker pace.
All of a sudden, Chef exclaimed, “This Divine Manifestation seems able to ward off the wind, Proprietress.”
Certainly, the Proprietress was aware of that as well. The moment the Divine Manifestation exploded out, the Astral Wind in the cave disappeared, kept off entirely by the green aura around them.