“Why are you crying, Junior Sister?” Senior Brother Lu suddenly turned his head and looked smilingly at his Junior Sister.
The woman shook her head as a glow of resentment radiated from her teary eyes, “You’re not Senior Brother Lu!”
“Silly girl.” Senior Brother Lu put on a smile, “Who could I be if I’m not your Senior Brother Lu?” He then touched the woman’s delicate face, his hand felt as cold as a snake, causing the woman’s heart to freeze over in an instant.
A sword suddenly appeared in her hand as a cold glint radiated from her weapon. She directly thrust her sword into Senior Brother Lu’s chest.
Senior Brother Lu looked down at the weapon in his chest, but he didn’t react in a way that was expected of an injured person. Although his heart had been shredded by the woman’s World Force, he still appeared calm and collected, “People in love can also be the cruellest.”
He then clenched the woman’s neck. His blood squirmed out of the wound in his chest as though it was a living creature, which then turned into blood mist. Regardless of how hard the woman tried, she could not escape his grip. The blood mist soon engulfed her as she disappeared from everyone’s sight.
When the blood mist dissipated, she was nowhere to be seen.
The remaining three disciples from the same Sect were stunned.
Senior Brother Lu turned his head and bellowed, “You’ve been chasing after me for a long time, Yang Kai, but do you really think this Monarch is afraid of you? I have a lot of blood sacrifices now. Let’s see how you can fight with me!”
The strangest part was that as Senior Brother Lu spoke, the more than twenty people who first stepped forward also said the same thing in the same tone.
Over twenty people performed hand seals and shouted, “Raging Blood Sea!”
Following that, all of them exploded and turned into blood mist as they spread out across the void. The same thing happened to the three people previously killed by Yang Kai.
The blood sea took shape and covered a large area as it madly expanded. The Open Heaven Realm Masters, who had stepped forward alongside their fellow disciples, were unable to dodge it and were directly swept into the blood sea. Other than shrieks, the noise of artifacts and Secret Techniques being unleashed was also heard. The place soon descended into chaos.
In just a moment though, the noises died down, and only the weltering blood sea remained.
The onlookers in the distance hurriedly flew backwards upon seeing the turn of events. Those who were agile instantly escaped while the sluggish ones were pulled towards the blood sea by Blood Dragons which had manifested from it.
Inside the blood sea, Yang Kai and Xu Wang pressed their backs against one another as blood weltered around them. They were like two reefs in the sea that protected the only pure land left.
“Junior Brother, if I’m killed here, please bring my corpse back to Bright King Cave Heaven!” Xu Wang shouted.
Yang Kai broke into laughter, “Do you think your corpse will remain if you die here?”
It was then Xu Wang thought of the eerie methods of Blood Crow Divine Monarch. With a dejected expression, he continued, “It’s horrible to die without a complete corpse.”
“En, so you’d better not die,” Yang Kai smiled.
As they spoke, the blood sea in front of them contorted and formed into a curvy figure, the same one Yang Kai had killed with his spear earlier.
The woman’s eyes were filled with hatred as she clenched her own neck. Like the most ferocious ghost, she stared fixedly at Yang Kai while her blood streamed down from her eyes, which looked horrifying, as she screeched, “Your spear hurt!”
“Cheap tricks!” Yang Kai snorted and pushed out his spear before exploding the woman’s head, just like how she was killed some time ago.
However, this time, her head soon grew back into shape as though she was immortal and indestructible. She continued staring resentfully at Yang Kai as she snarled, “So what if I let you kill me 100 or 1,000 times? Can you destroy this Monarch?”
“Just stand there and let me jab my spear into you 1,000 times and we’ll find out!” Yang Kai extended his spear again. On the tip of the spear, a black ball the size of a fist exploded and turned into a black hole before absorbing everything around it.
Several figures consecutively appeared. Most of them were the cultivators that were killed by Blood Crow just now. Yang Kai had never even met these people, but it was apparent that they were killed and refined by Blood Crow.
The powers of these people ranged from the Third Order to the Sixth Order as they emerged from the blood sea. Blood Crow alone could create an army. Yang Kai continued wielding his spear while Xu Wang’s fists turned into countless phantoms as they battled against the tide.
Nevertheless, their efforts were futile. Regardless of how many times these people were killed, they could be swiftly resurrected.
As the intense battle dragged on, Yang Kai furrowed his brows. He initially intended to use his Cow Punch Secret Technique to end this; however, Blood Crow had suffered a setback before, and had apparently learned his lesson. Yang Kai was unable to find any traces of the other party’s aura.
“Junior Brother, it’s not like we can do this forever. Blood Crow obviously wants to deplete our strength. Once he succeeds, we’ll be at a big disadvantage.” Xu Wang suddenly spoke to him secretly.
Yang Kai remained calm despite knowing that what Xu Wang had said was true. Anyone who wasn’t blind could figure out Blood Crow’s intentions here. Outside the Astral Wind Divine Ability back then, Blood Crow used the same trick to deal with Xu Wang. If Yang Kai hadn’t suddenly appeared from the Astral Wind and caught Blood Crow off guard, Xu Wang would’ve been killed.
This time, Blood Crow was using the same trick while both Xu Wang and Yang Kai were unable to get out of the trap. Since the blood sea had taken shape, and the space around them had been sealed off, it was also impossible for Yang Kai to use Instantaneous Movement to escape.
“What’s your plan, Senior Brother Xu?” Yang Kai secretly asked.
“I want you to join forces with me to fight our way out of here, Junior Brother.”
Yang Kai frowned upon hearing that. To him, it wasn’t hard to fight their way out of this place. No one was a match for him unless he was faced with a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master. Although Blood Crow’s moves were indeed strange and mysterious, he was still just a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Despite the fact that he was an Old Monster who had been reborn, and that he had the foundation of a Seventh-Order Master, his strength was still limited to his current realm.
While Blood Crow wanted to deplete their strength, Yang Kai was actually trying to do the same. That was why he engaged in a protracted fight with him in the blood sea.
To him, it was pointless to simply defeat Blood Crow. Only by destroying Blood Crow completely would it be useful. Otherwise, given the guy’s capabilities to flee and save himself, he would recover sooner or later as long as he survived.
Upon realising that Yang Kai didn’t respond to him, Xu Wang spoke to him via Divine Sense again, “Please trust me, Junior Brother!”
Yang Kai’s expression changed, and then he nodded, “Please do your best, Senior Brother. I’ll have your back.”
Xu Wang guffawed, “I definitely will.”
He then roared and fully activated his Immovable Bright King Body. A gigantic golden figure expanded and turned into a 1,000 metres tall colossus. It even showed some signs of materialising.
Yang Kai gazed at the golden figure in amazement.
Given Xu Wang’s heritage, he had definitely reached the threshold of acquiring a Divine Manifestation. If nothing unexpected happened, after he ascended to the Seventh Order, it would only take him some time before he could comprehend his own Divine Manifestation.
It had to be noted that Zuo Quan Hui, a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, didn’t have his own Divine Manifestation, which went to show how difficult this was to achieve. Ti Zheng from Myriad Demons Cave Heaven had showcased his Divine Manifestation once, but he subsequently died for some unknown reason.
The competition between Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters wasn’t just about the heritages of their Small Universes. The possession of Divine Manifestations was also a big factor.
The Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters who could use Divine Manifestations were definitely stronger than those in the same Order who couldn’t.
Xu Wang raised his hand and revealed a long sword, which was not beautiful or delicately made. However, with the sword in his hand, he had become even more imposing.
The cultivators of Bright King Cave Heaven focused on Body Tempering, making their bodies their strongest artifacts. Despite that, it didn’t mean they wouldn’t use artifacts, but when they did, it meant that they were going all out.
Following Xu Wang’s movements, the 1,000 metres tall golden figure shadowed him and unsheathed a huge sword from its waist.
When Xu Wang brought down his sword, the golden figure did the same as he had fully activated his World Force.
A huge gash was then formed in the blood sea upon impact.
Without stopping, Xu Wang charged forward as countless figures came right at him. Nevertheless, he was unfazed while staring fixedly at the front.
Yang Kai wielded his spear and exploded all the figures before they could come near them.
The speed these figures could resurrect was slower than the speed Yang Kai could kill.
In the blink of an eye, they had moved across a 1,000 kilometres distance and reached the end of the gash. Xu Wang brought down his sword and formed another gash.
After three times doing this, he finally formed an opening in the blood sea that had surrounded them. The Heaven Sealing and Earth Locking trap started showing signs of weakening.
Yang Kai grabbed Xu Wang’s shoulders as he was ready to manipulate Space Principles to take them out.
Upon realising Yang Kai’s intention though, Xu Wang grasped and clenched the other man’s arms.
Yang Kai was puzzled, and while he was in a dazed state, the crack in the blood sea had healed, which meant that they had lost the best chance to flee.
Xu Wang had turned pale after making three moves. It was obvious that such a Divine Ability was quite energy-consuming for him. Even the huge golden figure behind him had dimmed noticeably.
He proactively dispelled his Immovable Bright King Body, as though he was ready to entrust his safety to Yang Kai. He then directly sat down with his legs crossed and grinned, “Our goal has been achieved.”
While Yang Kai looked at him doubtfully, Xu Wang fished out something and tossed it into the blood sea.
Yang Kai could clearly see that it was a lid, but he was unable to figure out anything special about it.
However, after Xu Wang threw out the lid, Yang Kai could detect a flustered aura coming from the blood sea. The Blood Slaves, who originally kept appearing, suddenly quieted down.
A ferocious aura suddenly descended on this place from a few million kilometres away. Even surrounded by the blood sea, Yang Kai could feel as though his skin had been jabbed with countless needles. The trap around him seemed ready to tie him down.
On the other hand, Xu Wang grinned, “After I parted ways with you previously, I contacted my Martial Uncle who was stationed in the Shattered Heaven. Back then, two disciples from Bright King Cave Heaven were killed in the Blood Monster Cave Heaven by Blood Crow Divine Monarch; therefore, my Martial Uncle was sent here to hunt Blood Crow down. Still, Blood Crow is truly cunning. Although Martial Uncle personally made a move, he still couldn’t find Blood Crow’s whereabouts, so he has been unable to accomplish his mission thus far.”
“Blood Crow is a cautious person. If he had detected Martial Uncle’s aura, he wouldn’t have easily shown up; therefore, Martial Uncle could only follow my aura from a distance and make a judgement of the best time to make a move. Since my aura has been blocked while we are surrounded by the blood sea, Martial Uncle must have some speculations already.”
Upon hearing his explanation, Yang Kai said, “So, you wanted to break through the blood sea to send out your aura, which would help your Senior identify your location.”
Xu Wang smiled and nodded, “Exactly. In order to achieve the goal, Martial Uncle even split his natal artifact into two and let me keep part of it. While he plays it by ear from a distance, I’ll be assisting him here. Regardless of how powerful Blood Crow is, he won’t be able to flee now.”
Yang Kai gazed at the dissipating blood sea and commented, “He’s doomed, then.”
Inside the blood sea, the lid that was tossed away by Xu Wang expanded rapidly. As they spoke, the lid had expanded by a radius of several hundred kilometres and directly covered the blood sea. Regardless of how the blood sea raged, it was unable to get out of the lid.
Upon realising that something was off, Blood Crow instantly decided to flee as he led the blood sea in a different direction. However, the lid relentlessly followed him and changed its size according to the movements of the blood sea.
A gigantic dark shadow descended from above next. It wasn’t certain what it was, but it soon became one with the lid and trapped the blood sea inside it.
Yang Kai could faintly see a tall figure hovering above the dark shadow. While he performed different hand seals, his World Force surged and revealed a Seventh-Order pressure.
Blood Crow certainly wouldn’t sit still and wait for death as his immense power undulated. There was no doubt that a cornered beast would fight back.
However, there was a massive gap between their Orders, and the other party managed to get the upper hand by trapping Blood Crow inside his artifact right from the start. Regardless of how hard Blood Crow tried, he could not escape.
An incense stick later, the dark shadow contracted. It wasn’t until this moment that Yang Kai realised it was something that looked like a fish basket.
There were gaps around the fish basket through which one could see the weltering blood inside it. What was amazing was that the blood couldn’t seep out through the gaps, as though it had been restricted by a mysterious power.
A person grabbed the fish basket and casually placed it over his shoulder.
The sight caused Yang Kai to be drenched in cold sweat.
Xu Wang took a step forward and cupped his fist, “Fisherman Martial Uncle!”
“Void Land’s Yang Kai greets Senior,” Yang Kai also cupped his fist.
It wasn’t until this moment that he had time to examine this person, who didn’t have the demeanour of a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master at all. Yang Kai could be considered a worldly person. When he previously met up with those from the Cave Heavens and Paradises while he was in the Star Boundary, he had chatted with some 80 to 100 High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters, so he was not unfamiliar with such people.
While Yu Chang Dao had a sage-like temperament, even Xu Ling Gong, who loved spouting nonsense, was an imposing presence.
However, Yang Kai had never seen a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master who appeared as strange as the person before his eyes.
Xu Wang called him Fisherman Martial Uncle, and true to his title, he looked just like a fisherman. While wearing a bamboo hat and a straw coat, he was barefoot with rolled-up leggings. Presently, there was a fish basket over his shoulder. If he also held a bamboo stick, he would look like a common fisherman in the winter.
Nevertheless, the fish he had caught this time was Blood Crow.
The fisherman raised his hand and lifted the bamboo hat that had slightly blocked his sight. After taking a glance at Yang Kai, he said with a smile, “It’s said that every generation will see a fair share of talented people. This Old Master has heard a lot about you over the years.”
Yang Kai replied humbly, “Many thanks for your compliment, Senior.”
The fisherman slowly continued, “There’s no need to be overly humble. You’ve done a great service with the Star Boundary. All Cave Heavens and Paradises owe you a favour.”
He then took a glance at Xu Wang and asked in a solemn voice, “I detected the auras of several High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters in this place some time ago. What happened?”
Xu Wang then told him what had happened when the portal that led to the Universe Cave Heaven opened. The fisherman was surprised as he looked at the depths of the void where the portal was located, but soon said after a sigh, “Unfortunately, this Old Master has to return to Bright King Cave Heaven; otherwise, I could’ve stayed and watched a good show.”
Xu Wang darted his gaze around before saying, “Please go back with peace of mind, Martial Uncle. I’ll stay here.” He was curious about the Universe Cave Heaven.
The fisherman shook his head, “You have to go back with me.”
Xu Wang then sported a dejected expression.
With a smile, the fisherman went on to say, “You’ve made a contribution by assisting me to capture Blood Crow. Did you forget what reward you’ll get? There’ll be an opportunity in one year. If you don’t come back with me, you’ll have to wait at least a dozen years for the next opportunity.”
Upon hearing that, Xu Wang changed his mind in an instant, “I’ll obey your orders, Martial Uncle.”
As they spoke, the fish basket over the fisherman’s shoulder started shaking violently. It was apparent that Blood Crow was trying to struggle out of it. The fisherman then landed a forceful slap on it, after which no more noises were heard.
Xu Wang said, “Junior Brother Yang has made a significant contribution in helping to capture Blood Crow. If he hadn’t helped me escape previously, I would’ve been killed. After that, he came all the way here to hunt Blood Crow down. It was also thanks to Junior Brother Yang that I was able to send out a signal just now. Doesn’t our Sect have any reward for him?”
The fisherman put on a smile and gazed at Yang Kai, “If you were a disciple from Bright King Cave Heaven, you could have a chance to enter our Small Source World just like Xu Wang. Unfortunately, you are not from our Sect, so we can’t give such a reward to an outsider.”
An opportunity to enter a Small Source World was extremely precious. That was because every time a person received training in a Small Source World, it was akin to gaining some of the heritage of that world. Yang Kai had experienced the Divine Armament World of Yin-Yang Cave Heaven before, so he was fully aware of this.
If he were not a son-in-law of Yin-Yang Cave Heaven, and if Xu Ling Gong hadn’t done his best to make it happen, Yang Kai wouldn’t have gotten the chance to enter the Divine Armament World either.
The Cave Heavens and Paradises all had their own Small Source Worlds, but they would only allow the best disciples of their Sects to enter for life experience.
Since Xu Wang had made a significant contribution, he could enter the Small Source World of Bright King Cave Heaven, but Yang Kai couldn’t get this reward.
“If you have any requests, just speak them. I’ll agree to them if I have the right to do so. If it’s not up to me to make a decision, I’ll inform the higher-ups in the Sect about it and see what they say.”
Yang Kai directly took a glance at the fish basket that confined Blood Crow and asked, “Senior, may I know what will happen to Blood Crow?”
The fisherman shook his head, “I have no idea.”
Although he was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he wasn’t in any place to make a decision on how to deal with Blood Crow, who was an Old Monster that had been reborn by occupying someone else’s body.
Yang Kai nodded gently, “If there’s a chance, I want a copy of the Grand Evolution Immortal Blood Light Scripture.”
“I can’t agree to that right away. If possible, I’ll tell Xu Wang to send the copy to Void Land. If it’s not achievable, you don’t have to keep waiting.” Although the fisherman didn’t reject him directly, Yang Kai could feel that the chance was slim; after all, the Grand Evolution Immortal Blood Light Scripture was truly abstruse, and by giving a copy to someone they might accidentally create another Blood Crow. Therefore, they probably wouldn’t let that happen.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai still expressed his gratitude by saying, “Many thanks, Senior.”
The fisherman nodded while Xu Wang cupped his fist, “Farewell, Junior Brother. I hope that the next time we meet, both of us will already be in the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm.”
“I hope so too, Senior Brother,” Yang Kai replied with a smile.
The fisherman and Xu Wang then left the place together.
Yang Kai remained on the same spot and watched them leave, after which he turned to look at the portal that led to the Universe Cave Heaven.
Earlier, the appearance of Blood Crow caused this place to plunge into chaos. About seventy to eighty out of the hundreds of Open Heaven Realm Masters were instantly killed, which were a lot of casualties. Furthermore, after several High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters showed up, most surviving cultivators stayed away from this place, and they wouldn’t even dare to observe what was going on. Even the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were nowhere to be seen now.
After all, several Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters had shown up. No one would dare snatch food from the tiger’s mouth.
The place was originally bustling with noise, but now Yang Kai was the only one left, which he was glad to see.
Although the portal that led to the Universe Cave Heaven had closed, it had opened up several times before and left behind some traces. Others might not have a way to enter it, but Yang Kai could forcefully open the portal since he was a Master of the Dao of Space. It would just take him some time to do so.
He thus activated his Divine Sense. While restoring his strength, Yang Kai tried to capture the remaining traces in the Void, and an incense stick later, he managed to grasp a lead.
Yang Kai pushed his Space Principles, stabbing them into the portal like a sharp knife as he slowly increased his output to force it open.
After some time, a black hole the size of a fist appeared in front of Yang Kai. The aura of a Universe World wafted through the black hole.
As the black hole expanded, the aura of the Universe World became increasingly conspicuous. Soon, it had become the size of a washbasin.
Suddenly, Yang Kai’s expression changed drastically. A horrifying force burst out of the portal he had forcefully opened. The unsuspecting Yang Kai was hit in the chest by this force and sent flying away as though he had been struck by lightning.
While the vitality in his chest weltered, his vision darkened as though he had been struck by a Divine Ability from someone in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. Even his Small Universe was in turmoil.
Before he could stabilise himself, he felt an even more dangerous aura coming out of the portal.
A terrified Yang Kai turned to look at the opening, which should have disappeared as soon as he stopped holding it open; however, it instead had started expanding uncontrollably, as though it was going to swallow the entire Void.
[What’s going on?] Yang Kai was astounded.
He just wanted to open the portal to take a peek inside the Universe Cave Heaven, so his movements shouldn’t have caused such an incident to happen.
While he was in a daze, he could faintly see a few figures battling against each other through the portal. There was a burly middle-aged man, an old woman with grey hair, a young boy, and a young woman with a curvy figure.
They were all the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters who had previously entered the Universe Cave Heaven.
Yang Kai’s expression instantly darkened. [Are these people out of their minds? How could they engage in an all out battle inside a Universe Cave Heaven?]
Although the Universe Cave Heaven was left behind by a cultivator who was at least in the Eighth Order, it was ancient after all. It could accommodate several High-Rank Masters who came in to explore, but it certainly couldn’t bear the impact of a battle between such Masters.
People who could make it to the High-Rank were not fools, but despite knowing the consequences, they still engaged in an intense struggle.
Yang Kai was curious about the reason that caused these High-Rank Masters, who had been living furtively in the Shattered Heaven all these years, to be so determined to destroy one another.
Without any time to ponder on it, he quickly ran away because, while the black hole was rapidly expanding, a dangerous aura was felt coming from the Universe Cave Heaven.
The next instant, the Void trembled as countless shattered Spirit Provinces of different sizes shot out in all directions.
It looked like a Universe World had exploded all of a sudden.
In fact, that was indeed the case. The Universe Cave Heaven that had remained hidden in the Void for years collapsed due to the fierce battle among these High-Rank Masters.
A violent force swept out and even the High-Rank Masters had to stop fighting as they activated their powers to ward off the impact after the Universe Cave Heaven came apart.
Although Yang Kai had fled as early as possible, he still staggered upon impact. He was like a ship that was navigating across an ocean in a thunderstorm.
A moment seemed to have gone by, but it also felt as though a million years had passed as the terrifying fallout slowly subsided.
However, a huge black hole had appeared in the Void where the portal of the Universe Cave Heaven was located, and a horrifying aura of nihility was felt coming from it.
As soon as Yang Kai stabilised himself, he felt a crawling sensation on his scalp because when he looked up, he saw that the High-Rank Masters had turned into rays of light as they charged towards him. All of them were filled with murderous intent as their auras surged. At this moment, they were still exchanging moves, which caused the surrounding space to descend into chaos.
Although these people were regarded as cowards by Xu Wang, they were still High-Rank Masters in the end. They might not be comparable to Zuo Quan Hui from Thousand Cranes Paradise, but they certainly were not much weaker.
Zuo Quan Hui alone was enough to cause so much trouble to Void Land. Now that five High-Rank Masters were coming at him, Yang Kai wouldn’t dare to remain on the same spot. Given his current strength, if he was dragged into the fight, he would be badly injured, if not killed.
Just when he was preparing to use Instantaneous Movement to flee, he frowned and looked at a certain shattered Spirit Province that was coming right at him.
The shattered Spirit Province was apparently a part of the Universe Cave Heaven that had fallen apart. It seemed to be a small part of a mountain range with several mountains that were connected. However, Yang Kai could detect an amazing aura coming from one of the mountains.
He had no idea what was hidden on the mountain, but he soon realised that he wasn’t so unlucky after all. It was just that he happened to be escaping in the same direction the treasure the High-Rank Masters were fighting over was flying.
Since the High-Rank Masters had their eyes on this treasure, there was no way it was not valuable; therefore, despite not knowing what was hidden on the mountain, it didn’t stop Yang Kai from making a bold move.
Instead of backing down, he shot towards the shattered Spirit Province. After he got close, he directly opened his own Small Universe and stored the Spirit Province inside it.
He didn’t have time to examine it, so he could only act so. Although there might be some potential problems doing this, he reckoned that fortune favoured the bold. The potential problems were the last of his concerns now.
In an instant, the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters, who were originally determined to kill one another in a heated battle, stopped. Both shocked and furious, they stared at Yang Kai and engulfed him with their Divine Senses.
None of them had expected that while they were hacking each other to death, a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm boy that they didn’t have any regard for would come over and snatch their prize.
“Brat! You court death!” The middle-aged man roared.
The others directly sent out ferocious Divine Abilities at Yang Kai.
The Divine Abilities seemed able to destroy the Heavens and shatter the Earth before they even reached their target. Certainly, Yang Kai wouldn’t stand still and wait for death. In fact, the moment he put the shattered Spirit Province inside his Small Universe, he also activated his Space Principles and disappeared from the spot the next instant.
The fierce World Forces arrived and shattered the Void.
Nevertheless, when the High-Rank Masters came over, Yang Kai was already nowhere to be found.
“Space Principles!” The old woman sported a dark expression while the others turned grim.
They initially thought that even though the Sixth-Order brat had snatched their treasure, he couldn’t possibly escape from them. Although the treasure was precious, he would need to stay alive to enjoy it. Since they were making a move together, they thought they could easily subdue a mere Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
However, since the other party was a Master of the Dao of Space, things had become thorny.
The young woman in the Seventh Order fell silent for a moment before she turned to look in a particular direction. She then turned into a ray of light and shot forward.
Seeing that, the others followed her without hesitation.
The High-Rank Masters, who were initially determined to destroy one another, seemed to have tacitly come to an agreement as they put down their grudges and pursued Yang Kai together. Nevertheless, only they knew whether there were any secret exchanges of moves while they were on the road.
In the depths of the Shattered Heaven, Yang Kai was running away at full speed.
The situation he was in seemed oddly familiar to him.
He suddenly recalled that after he ran away from Seven Wonders Land, he arrived at a dying Sun Star where he obtained the carcass of a mature Golden Crow. Following that, he was chased after by several people.
At that time, he was just an Emperor Realm cultivator while the ones running after him were a group of Low-Rank and Mid-Rank Masters, which included the Proprietress.
Eventually, he managed to escape and return to First Inn, though he was in a battered state when he arrived.
Back then, he was ignorant and uninformed as he had never heard of the Universe Transference Law before. He initially thought that he had gotten rid of the Proprietress, but when he saw that she suddenly appeared from First Inn to stop him, he was flabbergasted.
If it weren’t because he had a golden feather given to him by the Divine Spirit Mie Meng, he couldn’t have snuck into First Inn.
Since then, he and the Proprietress had become one family, thinking back on that incident was a pretty embarrassing memory for Yang Kai. First Inn was destroyed, which made him owe the Proprietress a lot of Open Heaven Pills. He had no choice but to become a waiter and debt collector for the Inn to pay off his due.
Although he was weak at that time, he was also carefree.
Regardless of what happened, the Proprietress would solve the problem for him.
After he and Bai Qi made a scene in Wind and Cloud Auction House in Thousand Birds Star City, it was the Proprietress who showed up and settled the issue for them.
Now, he was in a similar situation as when he snatched the Golden Crow carcass from the Open Heaven Realm Masters. He was also being pursued by Masters that he found difficult to deal with.
However, this time, there was no First Inn for him to seek shelter in.
With that said, he was no longer an Emperor Realm Junior who was powerless to deal with Open Heaven Realm Masters.
He could feel Divine Senses coming from behind him, and although he kept manipulating Space Principles, he was unable to shake them off. He couldn’t help but lament that it was truly difficult to deal with High-Rank Masters. If it weren’t because he was an expert in the Dao of Space, he would have no choice but to wait for death.
He wondered what was hidden in the shattered Spirit Province that made these High-Rank Masters covet it so greatly. They were relentlessly pursuing him as though he had snatched their Wives or Daughters.
While running away, he didn’t even have time to examine his reward.
Nevertheless, the High-Rank Masters’ action proved that the treasure was truly valuable, or else they wouldn’t have reacted in such a way.
A few days later, he realised that one of the Divine Senses had disappeared, making him wonder whether the person had given up or was forced to give up somehow.
Several days later, another Divine Sense vanished.
While fleeing, Yang Kai couldn’t help but put on a grin. It was possible that the first High-Rank Master who backed down had given up because there was no hope of catching Yang Kai, but that wouldn’t make sense when the same thing happened to the second person.
Hence, it was obvious that those High-Rank Masters were not united after all. While pursuing Yang Kai, they must have exchanged moves to destroy their opponents.
Therefore, only three out of the initial five High-Rank Masters were left.
Although the number of people had almost halved, that made no difference to Yang Kai.
He couldn’t help but ponder on the possibility of slowing down so that the remaining three would believe that he was on his last legs. In that case, they might kill off one another before getting to him.
However, while he was still contemplating this plan, his expression suddenly changed as he staggered and flipped upside down. He then kept tumbling through the void as he hurtled forward.
The turn of events astounded Yang Kai as the first thing that came to his mind was that he had been struck by someone. Nevertheless, he soon realised that the problem came from his own Small Universe.
Presently, his Small Universe was in chaos. The ground was shaking in a way as though there was an earthquake going on. All the World Force in his Small Universe was also madly streaming towards a certain spot.
Yang Kai turned pale as he tried to stop it, but his efforts were in vain. He could only watch as his World Force was consumed by something.
When he activated his Divine Sense and examined the situation, he was dumbfounded by what he saw.
The thing that caused the disaster in his Small Universe was none other than the shattered Spirit Province he had rashly put inside his Small Universe earlier.
It was easy to identify as the shattered Spirit Province was a part of the Universe Cave Heaven left behind by an Eighth-Order or Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so it still contained its original owner’s aura and World Force.
Right after Yang Kai stored it, he sealed it off inside his Small Universe. If he hadn’t done that, the World Force of someone else would’ve seeped into his Small Universe. Once that happened, it would take him a lot of effort to get rid of the impurities that didn’t belong to him.
He initially intended to settle the issue regarding the shattered Spirit Province after he had escaped to a safe place.
However, there was a change of plan now as the shattered Spirit Province had settled down and merged with his Small Universe for no apparent reason.
The World Force that was originally in the shattered Spirit Province started streaming into Yang Kai’s Small Universe. It was supposed to be the source of power for the owner, but to Yang Kai, it was nothing but impurities that affected his foundation.
It wouldn’t have mattered if that was all though. After Yang Kai killed Zuo Quan Hui in the past, his Small Universe was also filled with impurities from the latter’s Small Universe. It only took him some time to get rid of them.
The crux of the problem was that the World Force in his Small Universe was madly leaving him, which caught him off guard. That was the reason he was all flustered and battered.
As Yang Kai suppressed his weltering vitality, he took a glance at his Small Universe and became stunned.
He could see that there was a spring that had landed in his Small Universe alongside the shattered Spirit Province and settled down. The spring was deep and crystal clear. As his World Force streamed into it, the spring became increasingly fortified.
Following the appearance of this spring, some subtle changes took place in his Small Universe. He could feel a stream of invisible but truly existent aura wafting from the spring and assimilating into his Small Universe.
[What in the world is this?] Yang Kai was both shocked and doubtful.
He initially thought that there was an artifact or a precious treasure hidden in the shattered Spirit Province. It never crossed his mind that it was a spring.
Furthermore, the spring was madly absorbing his World Force in order to integrate into his Small Universe. Although he was taken aback because of that, he had a feeling that it was an invaluable treasure.
Yang Kai could confirm that the spring belonged to the owner of the Universe Cave Heaven, and the reason the High-Rank Masters got into a fight must have been to claim ownership of this thing. It was just that Yang Kai came across it first and snatched it.
Fortunately, even though the turn of events was shocking, the spring didn’t suck all of Yang Kai’s power out. More than ten breaths later, the noise in his Small Universe subsided as he finally managed to stabilize himself.
Three Divine Senses targeted him from behind at that moment as they sent out their Divine Abilities at the same time. Drenched in cold sweat, Yang Kai instantaneously disappeared from the spot.
A moment later, three figures shot past this place. They were the old woman with grey hair, the young woman with a curvy figure, and the middle-aged man with an ordinary face.
Presently, their streams of Divine Sense were entangled with one another. Although they were united in chasing after Yang Kai, that didn’t stop them from secretly exchanging moves. Two people were defeated earlier and were forced to look for a place to recuperate.
If nothing unexpected happened, given Yang Kai’s cultivation and his mastery over the Dao of Space, even thirty Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters wouldn’t be able to capture him, let alone three people.
However, since the day when the spring settled into his Small Universe, it would break out from time to time, and each time it did, Yang Kai’s World Force would madly leave him while his Small Universe fell into turmoil. During these events, he was unable to keep running, He could only stop to adjust his breathing and consume a lot of Open Heaven Pills to replenish his energy.
Fortunately, the breakouts usually wouldn’t last for a long time. Sometimes they’d last more than ten breaths, and sometimes they’d only last for a few breaths. Otherwise, he couldn’t possibly have kept escaping.
However, with this being the case, Yang Kai was never able to fully shake off the three Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters chasing him. Every time he successfully widened the gap between them, the turmoil in his Small Universe would make his effort go down the drain.
Yang Kai was so exasperated that he wanted to curse; however, compared to the displeasure he felt while running away, he was pleasantly surprised by the transformation taking place in his Small Universe. That was because he realised that every time a breakout took place, his Small Universe would become sturdier by a small margin. These changes were intangible, but real.
If the Small Universes of Open Heaven Realm Masters were compared to houses, the Small Universe of a Low-Rank Master was like a dilapidated cottage where water would leak through the ceiling should there be any rainy weather. The Small Universe of a Mid-Rank Master was like a solid wooden house. It was definitely better than the broken cottage, but it wasn’t anything amazing.
On the other hand, the Small Universe of a High-Rank Master was like a finely made stone house. Its foundation wouldn’t be destroyed even if there was a fierce storm. There was no way the house would be shattered unless it was faced with extreme weather.
Yang Kai’s original Small Universe was somewhere between a wooden house and a stone house. It was neither good nor bad; however, as the invisible aura continued streaming out from the spring, Yang Kai’s Small Universe, which was his house, became increasingly fortified.
It was like a barrier was being slowly erected inside his Small Universe, reinforcing its very structure.
Despite not knowing what the spring was, Yang Kai figured out that it was a precious item that was beneficial to a cultivator’s Small Universe just by observing the transformation in his own Small Universe.
The information he had read from the ancient books flashed through his mind as he had a speculation about the thing he had accidentally snatched from the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters.
A World Spring!
One of the Four Universe Pillars!
There were Four Universe Pillars, which were the Profound Fish, World Spring, Starry Night Sea, and Full Sky Cloud. Although they were not the most precious treasures in the expansive universe, they were still extremely rare and valuable, only really inferior to Supreme Treasures.
These Four Universe Pillars didn’t provide help to one’s cultivation or increase their rate of cultivation; however, each of them could fortify the Small Universe of an Open Heaven Realm Master, making it impossible for others to invade or even shake it.
Such an item was useless to any cultivator below the Open Heaven Realm, but it was a sought-after treasure for any Open Heaven Realm Master.
If Yang Kai was faced with an opponent who possessed one of the Four Universe Pillars, his Cow Punch Secret Technique would be useless. That was because he had to follow the traces of their World Force back to his opponent’s Small Universe through his Secret Technique.
With one of the Four Universe Pillars in possession, the opponent’s Small Universe would be void of any imperfections and much sturdier than average. Regardless of how powerful Yang Kai was, he would never be able to harm the other party’s Small Universe, thus rendering his Cow Punch unusable.
The Small Universe of a cultivator who possessed one of the Four Universe Pillars would be extremely sturdy and would essentially never fall into chaos.
When Yang Kai dealt with powerful opponents, sometimes his Small Universe would shake when he was hit hard enough by his opponents’ attacks, which caused his flow of World Force to also become unstable, causing him to be at a deep disadvantage.
This was an inevitable reality for all cultivators and would happen to Yang Kai when he fought High-Rank Masters.
However, with one of the Four Universe Pillars strengthening their Small Universe, an Open Heaven Realm Master wouldn’t have such worries when engaging in a life-and-death battle. When one’s Small Universe was sturdy while the other had destabilised, there was no doubt that the former would get the upper hand given that their heritages were equally matched.
The benefits of the Four Universe Pillars were immense for any Open Heaven Realm Master.
In fact, these four items were not the only treasures in the world that could strengthen the Small Universe, but they were the most effective and powerful, which was why they were called the Four Universe Pillars. With any one of them in possession, a cultivator’s Small Universe would be unshakable.
Besides the Four Great Universe Pillars, there were also the Twelve Minor Universe Pillars. Any one of them was extremely hard to find, and the average person wouldn’t be able to see one in their lifetime.
Yang Kai initially hadn’t realised what the spring was, but as he observed the transformation going on in his Small Universe recently, he could confirm that he had obtained one of the Four Universe Pillars, the World Spring.
It was no wonder that the High-Rank Masters were determined to destroy one another to get this item. It had to be noted that they had always hidden in the depths of the Shattered Heaven and usually wouldn’t show up once in 100 years, but now there were five of them who appeared at once. It wouldn’t have happened if the treasure wasn’t alluring enough.
They must be aware of the situation in the Universe Cave Heaven, so they had been waiting there in advance so that they could be the first to get in and fight for the treasure. However, they eventually caused the Universe Cave Heaven to collapse, and the shattered Spirit Province where the World Spring was located coincidentally flew towards Yang Kai, who decided to snatch it.
Upon confirming that it was the World Spring, Yang Kai felt both pleasantly surprised and helpless. He was pleasantly surprised because he wouldn’t have to be afraid of dealing with opponents who were stronger than he was with this thing in his possession. On the other hand, he felt helpless because the High-Rank Masters would never let him off since he had snatched such a treasure from them.
The World Spring was still in the process of integrating into his Small Universe. During this period of time, it would absorb a lot of the World Force and cause some occasional breakouts, which was why Yang Kai was so flustered.
He also didn’t have time to get rid of the impurities in his body. While running away, he was even forced to choke down a lot of Open Heaven Pills from time to time to restore his energy.
The originally conspicuous streams of Divine Sense behind him had become intermittent. It was apparent that the gap between them had widened, and it was hard for the High-Rank Masters to accurately locate him.
He believed that he would be able to get rid of them in a few days.
Three days later, all of the Divine Senses had disappeared. It was then Yang Kai let out a long breath. It was the first time he was chased after by so many High-Rank Masters, and it was extremely difficult to shake them off.
Without stopping, he made a detour and kept flying for a few days before landing on a shattered Spirit Province.
There were countless shattered Spirit Provinces of different sizes in the Shattered Heaven. After witnessing the sight of the Universe Cave Heaven getting destroyed, Yang Kai finally realised how these shattered Spirit Provinces came to be.
They were either the broken pieces of Universe Cave Heavens and Universe Paradises, or the things left behind the Universe Worlds of ancient times.
This place was desolate and void of people, so Yang Kai found a hidden place and concealed his aura before sitting down with his legs crossed.
After some calculations, he believed that it was about time for the World Spring to absorb his World Force again. Yang Kai had no idea when this kind of torture would end. He had only read some information about the Four Universe Pillars from some ancient books, but he had never expected that one would go through so much trouble by putting one of them inside their Small Universe.
It was no wonder that while the High-Rank Masters were killing each other, none of them attempted to put the World Spring in their Small Universe. Yang Kai initially thought that they didn’t have the energy to do so, but it now seemed that it was just one of the reasons. The most important reason was that they were aware of what would happen after they stored the World Spring. Therefore, before getting rid of all other opponents, none of them would foolishly take it, or else they would be creating a chance for the opponents to destroy them.
Not long after Yang Kai settled down, his Small Universe descended into chaos again. As expected, the World Spring broke out again as his World Force started streaming into it.
This made him feel bitter as he had no idea when this kind of torture would end. He could only empty his mind while consuming Open Heaven Pills to replenish his loss.
A moment later, his Small Universe finally calmed down. He only got to his feet after getting some rest.
Although this place looked safe, he couldn’t stay here for a long time. The World Spring was deathly attractive to those High-Rank Masters, so they wouldn’t easily give up. They would find this place sooner or later.
Yang Kai had already obtained a huge reward in the Shattered Heaven since the World Spring was now in his possession, so he decided to return home.
After leaving his hiding place, he tried to identify the right direction, but just when he was about to leave, he suddenly froze and turned his head, only to see a curvy figure with a pair of alluring eyes who was staring at him like he was a ghost. As their eyes met, the young woman who looked like she was twenty-eight years flashed an innocent smile.
Yang Kai felt a chill running down his spine.
Although he had slightly put his guard down due to the turmoil in his Small Universe, he had never stopped monitoring the surroundings. However, he had no idea when the young woman arrived at this place.
Since the young woman was here, what about the old woman with grey hair and the middle-aged man?
An alarmed Yang Kai looked around as he secretly activated his World Force.
If all three High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters were there to ambush him, he would not survive even though he was a Master of the Dao of Space.
He was unable to figure out why they could find him so soon since he believed he had gotten rid of them.
Just then, the young woman uttered in a clear voice, “Don’t panic, I’ve parted ways with them. It seems that I’m just lucky enough to be the first to find you.”
It was then that Yang Kai put on a smile, “So, you’re on your own. You should’ve said so sooner. I was terrified there for a moment.”
The young woman gazed at him with a tilted head, “You’re pretty interesting. Am I not enough to capture you alone?”
Yang Kai didn’t remark on that as he attempted to persuade her by saying, “Elder Sister, there are no grudges between us, nor do we know each other. Why don’t you just let me go?”
The woman directly nodded her head, “Good. I don’t intend to kill you anyway. Just give me the thing you’ve snatched, and I’ll leave.”
“You’re indeed a straightforward person, Elder Sister!” Yang Kai gave her a thumbs-up. As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly charged towards her as their faces almost came into contact. His World Force undulated around his Azure Dragon Spear as he thrust his weapon out.
He would’ve been wary of this young woman if he came across her before his life-and-death battles with Zuo Quan Hui; however, after several fights with Zuo Quan Hui, he had gained some valuable experiences in battling against a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
Since he was weaker than the woman, he had no choice but to make a move first.
There was a tinge of shock on the woman’s beautiful face as she had never expected that Yang Kai was such a reckless person. Despite knowing that she was a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master, he still had the guts to make the first move.
Although she didn’t seem to be moving at all, the Azure Dragon Spear eerily brushed past her and jabbed into the Void. She then raised her palm and extended it towards Yang Kai.
After Yang Kai launched an attack, he sported an expression that was as astounded as that of the young woman. That was because he realised that it was now harder for him to draw on the World Force in his Small Universe. As a result, he could only exert about 60% of his full strength.
This realisation stunned him as it was more shocking than when he saw the young woman just now.
Since it was harder for him to activate his World Force, it meant that he couldn’t fully use his power. He was unable to figure out the reason behind it.
He didn’t have time to ponder on it as the woman soon landed a palm on his chest.
Her attack was fueled by her rage, and although she hadn’t fully used her power, it was still about 80% of it.
The average Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master would see his Small Universe plunging into chaos or even exploding into nothingness upon getting struck by such an attack.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai was not at risk of losing his life. As soon as he realised that something was off, he sprayed out a mouthful of Golden Blood, which turned into a blood mist and covered the woman’s face. At the same time, he rapidly moved backwards as Space Principles undulated.
There seemed to be an invisible wall in front of the young woman’s face that blocked the blood mist. In amazement, she stared at Yang Kai, who was still alive and kicking. She was surprised by how sturdy Yang Kai’s physique was as he wasn’t really harmed after getting struck by her palm. She then performed a hand seal and bellowed, “Rise!”
Rays of golden light suddenly appeared in all directions and covered the entire shattered Spirit Province. Since the space around them had been sealed off, Yang Kai suddenly stopped in his tracks as though he had been held down by an invisible hand.
Blood streamed out from the corner of his mouth while he was holding the Azure Dragon Spear. Yang Kai stared at the young woman who was approaching him while feeling bitter.
He had practically been defeated. His strength had been suppressed for no reason, which barred him from using Instantaneous Movement. Trapped in such a cage while he had to face a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master, there was no way he could flee.
“Since I’m aware that you’re an expert in the Dao of Space, why wouldn’t I be prepared?” The woman smiled faintly. There were two dimples on her face. One of them looked smiling while the other contained murderous intent.
Yang Kai jabbed the Azure Dragon Spear into the ground and appeared to be completely frank, “It’s said that the winner is the King while the loser is the villain. Just tell me what you want. I won’t turn you down if it’s acceptable. I just hope that you won’t cross the line so that we’ll be able to meet again without any enmity between us.”
Upon seeing that he appeared to be resigned to fate, the young woman suddenly stopped in her tracks and furrowed her brows that looked like willow leaves. For some reason, she caught a whiff of a dangerous aura.
She then sneered, “Why didn’t you think about not crossing the line when you tried to stab your spear into me?”
Yang Kai suddenly looked away while appearing bashful, “I was just shocked by your sudden appearance. I would never have the heart to kill an alluring woman like you.”
All of a sudden, the woman’s voice was filled with fury as she said, “Have you refined that thing?”
Pretending to be clueless, Yang Kai asked, “What do you mean?”
The woman said through clenched teeth, “If you hadn’t refined that thing, you wouldn’t have found it hard to activate your World Force just now. Although the World Spring can help strengthen the Small Universe and prevent any external intrusion, the Small Universe would be suppressed by it before it’s fully refined. That’s why you now find it hard to circulate your World Force smoothly!”
Yang Kai was dumbfounded and almost cursed out loud.
He already had a speculation when he realised that something was off just now. He reckoned that it might have something to do with the World Spring. Upon hearing the young woman’s explanation, he realised that it was indeed the case.
The World Spring would suppress the Small Universe. After it was fully refined, it would be immensely beneficial; however, before that, it would negatively impact the cultivator’s power.
While he was fleeing some time ago, he had been manipulating Space Principles and occasionally utilising his World Force, but it wouldn’t consume a lot of energy doing so; therefore, he was unable to notice this. If he hadn’t launched a sneak attack on the woman just now, he still wouldn’t have realised it.
Now, he had practically no way to defend himself, which was why he felt bitter.
However, he knew little about the World Spring at that time, and he didn’t think twice before putting it inside his Small Universe. It never crossed his mind that the World Spring would try to merge with his Small Universe all on its own.
He was all battered while fleeing some time ago, and now this young woman directly captured him.
Yang Kai secretly tried to circulate his strength and realised that just like the woman had said, his Small Universe had been suppressed by the World Spring, so he was still unable to run his World Force smoothly.
After putting the Azure Dragon Spear away, he put on an embarrassed but polite smile, “Elder Sister, I didn’t want this to happen either. I can give you the thing you want, but please give me some time as the thing has settled down in my Small Universe. It’s not easy for me to take it out.”
The woman stared coldly at him and didn’t conceal her murderous intent. The emotions behind her gaze kept changing as though she was weighing the pros and cons of something. A moment later, she asked, “What was your Order when you broke through to the Open Heaven Realm?”
Yang Kai had no idea why she suddenly asked about it, but he wouldn’t mind stalling for time, so he answered honestly, “Fifth Order.”
The woman let out a breath as though she had just heard some wonderful news, “Fifth-Order… It means that you’ll have a chance to make it to the Seventh Order.”
Yang Kai fawned over her by saying, “That’s right. You’re indeed intelligent, Elder Sister.”
Apparently, the young woman didn’t like this kind of flattery as she stared dispassionately at Yang Kai, “Consider yourself lucky that I’m young enough to have time to wait. If the other two old farts were here, you would’ve lost your life by now.”
Yang Kai hurriedly cupped his fist, “Many thanks for not killing me, Elder Sister. If there’s a chance in the future, I’ll do anything to repay your favour.”
The woman snorted, “Stop the smooth-talking, or else I’ll cut off your tongue.”
Yang Kai raised his hand and zipped his mouth as though he was determined not to speak again.
The woman scoffed, “Don’t move if you want to live; otherwise, I don’t mind gambling.” She then used a different hand seal and yelled, “Bind!”
Just then, the rays of light that had sealed off the entire shattered Spirit Province turned into silver threads and wrapped around Yang Kai.
Yang Kai instinctively wanted to resist, but he wouldn’t dare to take the risk as he could sense the woman’s faint murderous intent still lingering on him. He had no choice but to allow the silver threads to penetrate his body. The next moment, he grunted as he could feel something assimilating into his physique. Although he didn’t feel any discomfort, he knew that he couldn’t activate his Space Principles to flee before the silver threads were resolved. If he really did that, the young woman could easily make him stay by controlling the silver threads.
It felt terrible to have his life under someone else’s control; however, he was certain that if he really resisted just now, the young woman wouldn’t have spared his life. Given the state he was in, Yang Kai had no right to provoke a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
Only by yielding to her demands would he stand a chance to survive.
He had never been humiliated in such a way since he started cultivating the Dao of Space. Although there were many times when he had to flee in embarrassment as he was chased after by more powerful cultivators, it had never come to such a point where he was disgraced in such a manner.
It was said that if one often walked by the riverside, there was no way he could always keep his shoes dry. Now, not only were his shoes wet, but he had actually been soaked in the river.
The young woman suddenly asked, “What’s your name?”
Yang Kai honestly told her his name, then added, “I’m a disciple from Bright King Cave Heaven!”
Clearly unperturbed, the young woman sneered.
It was then Yang Kai knew that he had done something pointless. He initially wanted to bring up Bright King Cave Heaven so that this Seventh-Order woman would be wary of it and wouldn’t outright kill him. However, it seemed that she didn’t care whether he was a disciple from Bright King Cave Heaven or not.
Just like Xu Wang had said, a noble background was pointless in the Shattered Heaven as the cultivators here only cared about strength. Some of the Open Heaven Realm Masters from the Cave Heavens and Paradises had lost their lives in the Shattered Heaven, but the murderers were still at large.
Upon that realisation, Yang Kai decided to keep his mouth shut so that he wouldn’t say anything useless again.
The young woman’s expression suddenly changed as she turned to look in a particular direction, then said through clenched teeth, “That old hag found us pretty quickly.”
As soon as she finished speaking, she grabbed Yang Kai’s shoulder and surged her World Force in an attempt to run away with him.
Nevertheless, a ferocious force came right at her the next instant. The young woman gritted her teeth and tossed Yang Kai away. As her curvy figure whirled around, she pushed out her palm to parry the attack.
The shattered Spirit Province could not bear the fallout of the exchange of moves between two High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters, so it exploded the next moment.
When Yang Kai came to his senses, he realised that the young woman was already standing beside him as she stared vigilantly ahead. Following her gaze, he saw an old woman with a hunched back hovering in the void as she looked greedily at him.
Faced with the stare, Yang Kai was having goosebumps all over his body.
The young woman bellowed, “You court death, Old Witch!”
The old woman’s wrinkled face creased together as she put on a withered smile, “Xia Lin Lang, stop being so haughty. Since both of us are in the Seventh Order, can you even kill me?”
The young woman named Xia Lin Lang snorted, “Even if I can’t kill you today, it doesn’t mean I won’t be able to do so in the future. Don’t forget that while you’re old and frail, I’m still young and strong. You’ll definitely pass away before I do.”
The old woman replied, “Yes, your youth is your greatest asset; however, you might not have the guts to risk your life while I care little for mine. I’m willing to die if it means I take you down with me. Do you have the gall to do it?”
Xia Lin Lang frowned, “I found him first, so the World Spring belongs to me. If you’re willing to back down, I’m willing to give you some compensation on behalf of Lin Lang Palace.”
The old woman sneered, “If it belongs to you just because you found him first, we wouldn’t have tried to hack each other to death a while ago. As for the compensation, just like you’ve said, I’m old and frail, so what’s the point for me to have it?”
Xia Lin Lang said through clenched teeth, “In that case, what’s the point of you getting the World Spring?”
“As for how I’ll use it, it’s none of your business.”
“It seems that you’re determined to lose your life here,” Xia Lin Lang’s murderous intent surged. Since they couldn’t come to any agreement, fighting was the only option.
The old woman shook her head, “Stop trying to intimidate me. Each of us will have a 50% chance of winning if we get into a battle. If others find out about it and butt in, both of us will get nothing in the end.”
Upon hearing that, Xia Lin Lang immediately looked around with vigilance. After making sure that no one else was around, she snorted, “Stop pulling cheap tricks with me.”
The old woman added, “Don’t worry, I found this place by chance. That guy went in a completely different direction, and he won’t pay attention to this place for a while.” Even though she was speaking to Xia Lin Lang, her turbid eyes had never moved away from Yang Kai. All of a sudden, she furrowed her brows, “Wait. Given your temperament, why would you still keep this brat alive? Could it be…”
Her expression suddenly changed as she glared at Yang Kai, “Brat, have you put the World Spring inside your Small Universe?”
Without responding to her, Yang Kai took a glance at Xia Lin Lang as though he would only obey her orders.
Just then, the old woman started guffawing, “Consider yourself lucky, brat. It’s no wonder that this snake woman didn’t kill you. Do you think it’s because she’s kind-hearted?”
In fact, Yang Kai hadn’t figured out the reason Xia Lin Lang didn’t just kill him. He had been vigilant while she was trying to plant a restriction in his body earlier and it never crossed his mind that this woman didn’t want to kill him at all.
“You’re wrong. The reason she didn’t kill you is that you’ve put the World Spring inside your Small Universe. You’re just a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master now, so if you pass away, your Small Universe will completely disintegrate, and the World Spring might also be gone for good. There’s no way she’d take such a risk. Did she ask you whether you’d have a chance to make it to the High-Rank?”
Before Yang Kai replied to her, the old woman continued, “En, you should have a chance to ascend to the High-Rank; otherwise, you’d be dead by now. However, on the day you make it to the High-Rank, you’ll still die. The Small Universe of a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master has materialised, so even if you die, the World Spring will remain.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai finally understood the reason he was still alive.
It was no wonder Xia Lin Lang said she didn’t mind gambling. He was a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master now, so supposedly, if he was killed, the World Spring might vanish alongside his Small Universe. Therefore, she had to keep him alive like she was rearing a farm animal. She would only make a move when he ascended to the Seventh Order.
Instead of getting furious though, Yang Kai felt his back drenched in cold sweat.
Although he was a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, his Small Universe had actually materialised. In other words, even if he passed away, it wouldn’t affect the World Spring that had settled down in his Small Universe.
Hence, he decided that he would never reveal the secret about his Small Universe; otherwise, he wouldn’t have a chance to survive.
While the old woman spoke, Xia Lin Lang didn’t intend to interrupt her. It was apparent that she didn’t mind Yang Kai finding out about her plan.
With what passed for an amicable expression, the old woman stared at Yang Kai and said, “Little one, although the woman beside you appears to be beautiful and innocent, her heart is as venomous as a viper. You’ll end up in a horrible state one day.”
Yang Kai put on a grin, “Well, it is said that dying on a bed of flowers is the best way to go.”
Xia Lin Lang shot him a glare while the old woman was lost for words.
After a moment of silence, the old woman said, “It’s inevitable that young men are enchanted by beautiful women. Why don’t you come with me instead? I’m not as devious as she is, and I can assure you that after you ascend to the Seventh Order, you’ll just have to cut off a small part of your Small Universe to remove the World Spring. I swear not to kill you. Although it might harm your foundation by doing so, it’s better than losing your life.”
Yang Kai pulled a long face, “You don’t look like a good person. I don’t trust you.”
The old woman laughed in a hoarse voice, “You don’t trust me, but you trust that devious woman?”
After a sigh, Yang Kai said, “Both of you are senior experts, so I can’t afford to offend either of you. Why don’t you have a life-and-death battle here first? I’ll follow the person who survives.”
The old woman snorted, “Cunning brat!”
Xia Lin Lang had run out of patience as she snapped, “Old Witch, if you’re determined to decide life and death here with me, I don’t mind sending you to the Yellow Springs. However, if you want to spend the rest of your life peacefully, scram!”
The old woman appeared furious, but it was apparent that unlike what she had said before, she wasn’t willing to take the risk of dying just to drag Xia Lin Lang down with her.
With a sneer, Xia Lin Lang grabbed Yang Kai’s shoulder and turned into a ray of light before shooting into the distance. Yang Kai could clearly feel a sense of murderous intent surging from the old woman as she stared fixedly at him from behind; however, even after they moved out of range of the old woman’s Divine Sense, she still didn’t make a move.
It was obvious that she didn’t have the confidence to make Xia Lin Lang stay. They would be evenly matched even if they got into a fight, so in the end, she decided to hold her fury in.
Watching as Xia Lin Lang and Yang Kai left, the old woman muttered resentfully, “Where do you think you can go anyway?”
“Are you disappointed that that Old Witch and I didn’t kill each other?” Xia Lin Lang suddenly shot him a glare.
Yang Kai patted his chest, “If you two got into a fight, I’d definitely help you.”
“Really?” Xia Lin Lang put on an inscrutable smile.
Yang Kai changed the topic by saying, “In fact, if you want the World Spring, you don’t have to wait for me to ascend to the Seventh Order. After the dust settles, I’ll try to force the World Spring out of my Small Universe.”
With a smile, Xia Lin Lang replied, “You can give it a try. If you succeed, it’ll be good for both of us.”
Yang Kai grunted in a sulky voice as he never intended to flee.
As though trying to placate him, Xia Lin Lang said, “Although the Old Witch is ill-intentioned, she’s right about one thing. I initially intended to kill you and get the World Spring after you made it to the Seventh Order. Since it’s been exposed, and you’ve been obliging, I won’t do anything that crosses the line.”
“What’s your plan now, Elder Sister?” Yang Kai asked.
“After you make it to the Seventh Order, you can keep your life if you’re willing to cut off a small part of your Small Universe and bring the World Spring out. However, by doing so, your cultivation will likely fall back to the Sixth Order, and it might cause your foundation to become unstable. By then, you won’t be able to deal with average Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, and you’ll only be slightly stronger than the Fifth Order.”
“It’s decided, then,” Yang Kai hurriedly replied.
A shocked Xia Lin Lang gazed at him, “Don’t you want to sleep on it?”
Yang Kai put on a hollow laugh, “I’d rather live miserably than die horribly. Since you’re completely frank with me, I won’t beat around the bush and pull any tricks with you.”
A part of Xia Lin Lang’s heart seemed to have been touched as she sighed, “You’re right. It’s better to live miserably than die horribly.”
As they moved forward at full speed, she never allowed Yang Kai to use Space Principles, for she was wary of this strange ability of his. After all, if Yang Kai secretly pulled a trick while using Space Principles, she might not be able to notice it even though she was more powerful.
On the other hand, Yang Kai was tactful enough to not inquire about the woman’s background. Since she wasn’t willing to show up in the outside world by hiding in the depths of the Shattered Heaven, she must have some secrets that must not be exposed.
Half a month later, they arrived at a place in the void where no one was around. Xia Lin Lang finally stopped in her tracks.
Yang Kai looked around but didn’t discover anything of interest.
On the other hand, Xia Lin Lang performed different hand seals, then gently stuck two fingers out and pointed forward.
A ripple spread across the void, whereupon Yang Kai could see a picture scroll emerging into existence.
Inside the picture scroll, a beautiful view of mountains could be seen while some exotic beasts were roaming around. There were also some houses and gazebos on the mountains that made the place look like a paradise.
There was no doubt that the existence of a picture scroll in the void was shocking, but it would be completely normal if it was just a portal.
While grabbing Yang Kai, Xia Lin Lang plunged into the picture scroll without hesitation and disappeared the next moment.
The picture scroll that had abruptly appeared also vanished into thin air and left no traces behind.
Ample World Energy was felt coming right at their faces while they were surrounded by the thick aura of this World. When Yang Kai came to his senses, he realised that he was already in a place that was full of greenery, which looked just like a paradise.
He then looked around and became amazed.
Given his eyesight and experience now, he instantly realised that this place was different from the average Universe World. It was a Universe Cave Heaven that was left behind by a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master after his death, and it was very well preserved. The World Principles were complete, the world itself was stable, and the Dao Essence was ample. The Universe Cave Heaven that shattered following the exchange of moves between several Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters was not comparable to this one.
Moreover, he could clearly feel that the Dao Essence in this Universe Cave Heaven was compatible with him.
It was then he realised that the owner of this Universe Cave Heaven was an expert in the Spear Dao before his death. Therefore, the Spear Dao Essence in his Small Universe was abundant. By cultivating in such an environment, one could better comprehend the Spear Dao with half the effort.
When he entered the Blood Monster Cave Heaven in the past, the traces of Blood Principles were conspicuous; however, Yang Kai didn’t cultivate the Dao of Blood, so he didn’t feel anything while he was there. As for the Shadowless Cave Heaven, everything had been swept away by the Astral Wind, so the place was nothing more than a hollow shell.
In Yang Kai’s Small Universe, the most abundant Dao Essence was definitely the Space Dao Essence. After all, he condensed his Dao Seal through the Dao of Space. The rest was the Dao of Time, Alchemic Dao, and Spear Dao. If anyone managed to enter Yang Kai’s Small Universe, they would have a chance to comprehend his insights in these four Daos.
There were all sorts of Grand Daos in the 3,000 Worlds, but they all led to the same destination.
Even though Yang Kai’s mastery of the Spear Dao was inferior to that of the Dao of Space, it was still at the Third Level, Taking the Initial Steps; therefore, as soon as he entered this Universe Cave Heaven, he was moved by the thick Dao Essence.
This was indeed a wonderful place. If he could cultivate here for a long time, it would help improve his Spear Dao significantly. Although it was of no help to his cultivation, it could increase his combat strength.
While he was lost in his thoughts, Yang Kai suddenly looked down at a particular place.
Beneath him, there was a market located in a city that was bustling with noise as people streamed through the streets.
[There are so many people in this place!] Yang Kai was stunned.
He initially thought that the place Xia Lin Lang resided must be totally serene, but the sight before his eyes was different from what he had imagined.
As though knowing what was on his mind, Xia Lin Lang said, “This Universe Cave Heaven already looked like this when I found it in the past. The previous owner must have been in the Eighth Order at the very least. It wasn’t surprising that he raised some living beings in his body in order to generate Auspicious Spirit Essence and increase his World Force. Many High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters in ancient times would do this, much unlike the current generation of High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help but think about the Blood Monster Cave Heaven where there were many living creatures as well. The ancestors of Mo Mei and the others from Abundance City were living beings raised by Blood Monster Divine Monarch in his Small Universe.
However, Blood Monster Divine Monarch was a cruel and narrow-minded person, so the living creatures in his body were planted with a Blood Principles Restriction. Other than stopping them from comprehending the Heavenly Way and Martial Dao, the restriction would also ensure they couldn’t condense their Dao Seals. Additionally, there was no way they could flee from the Blood Monster Cave Heaven.
Without the nourishment of the aura in the Blood Monster Cave Heaven, those who had been planted with the Blood Principles Restriction would explode and die.
Back then, Yang Kai made a deal with Black Crow and obtained a technique that could disperse the Blood Principles Restriction. That was how he managed to bring Mo Mei and the others back to Void Land; otherwise, they would’ve been destroyed the moment Blood Monster Cave Heaven fell apart.
Xia Lin Lang was right to say that many High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters in ancient times would raise some living creatures in their Small Universes.
Nevertheless, things were different now. Yang Kai had never heard of any High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters from the Cave Heavens and Paradises who had this hobby. At least the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters he had come across didn’t have it, though he wasn’t sure about the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters.
There were many benefits to be gained by raising living beings in one’s Small Universe. The reproduction of these living beings would provide a continuous supply of Auspicious Spirit Essence. In that case, the World Force of the owner’s Small Universe would continue to increase without the need for him or her to actively cultivate.
This kind of increase was negligible in the short term for High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters, who needed thousands to tens of thousands of years to make it to the next Order. Nevertheless, it could not be underestimated in the long term since many grains of sand would eventually build a mountain. It might help the owner shorten the time they had to cultivate significantly in the long term.
However, it wasn’t good news for the living beings who were raised in the Small Universe.
Usually, their daily life wouldn’t be affected, but if the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master got into a fight, and their Small Universe was shaken, a calamity would befall them. Worse, if the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master was killed, which resulted in their Small Universe collapsing, those living inside would die along with them. To those living inside, their fate was closely tied to the Small Universe’s owner. If anything happened to the owner, they would share the same terrible fate.
Yang Kai gently grunted as a realisation dawned upon him.
Xia Lin Lang shot him a weird look, “What’s wrong?”
Yang Kai straightened his face and replied dispassionately, “Nothing. It’s just that I’ve figured out something.”
Xia Lin Lang didn’t intend to keep asking. Since Yang Kai had been brought into this place, he was no different from a beast in a cage despite his mastery of the Dao of Space. Therefore, she wouldn’t do anything to him as long as he didn’t cross her bottom line.
On the other hand, Yang Kai finally figured out why the Four Universe Pillars were so popular and why several High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters were willing to kill each other in order to obtain one.
Naturally, the World Spring could help perfect a Small Universe and prevent any external influence from affecting it, which would be immensely beneficial when the owner is in battle. However, its biggest use was to allow one to safely raise living beings in their Small Universe.
With one of the Four Universe Pillars residing in their Small Universe, it wouldn’t fall into chaos as long as it wasn’t struck by deadly force, thus allowing those living inside one’s Small Universe to continue their lives peacefully.
In other words, with one of the Four Universe Pillars in possession, an Open Heaven Realm Master could start raising living beings in their body without any worries as they wouldn’t be affected even if they fought an intense battle.
Considering all this, Yang Kai couldn’t help having a bold idea.
Since the World Spring was now in his possession, he should probably start planning how to take advantage of it. Now, he was in the Sixth Order, which was still far away from his limit, the Eighth Order. It wasn’t certain how many years it would take him to make it to the Eighth Order, but if he could raise some living beings in his Small Universe, he could shorten the time needed to reach his limit.
However, he was nothing more than a captive now, so his first priority was to escape.
The reason he had been obliging until now was that he wasn’t willing to test Xia Lin Lang’s patience. If he hadn’t heard what the old woman had said, he would still have been very nervous about Xia Lin Lang killing him at any moment; however, upon learning the secrets of the World Spring, he now wasn’t worried that she would do anything to him. At the very least, Xi Lin Lang wouldn’t take the risk before he made it to the Seventh Order.
He would only be forced to deal with her when he ascended to the Seventh Order.
In truth, he never believed what she had said even though she appeared sincere.
Just then, a reflective lake came into his sight. There was an island in the middle of the lake where a bamboo forest swayed gently with the wind.
Xia Lin Lang led Yang Kai to land on the island and said impassively, “You’ll start cultivating here from now on. If you want to regain your freedom, you’d better ascend to the Seventh Order soon. When the time comes, I’ll fulfil the agreement we’ve come to.”
Yang Kai nodded, “I’ll try my best, but it’ll definitely take time.”
“Pass me your Space Ring,” Xia Lin Lang extended her hand.
Yang Kai batted his eyes as the sight was familiar to him. He then recalled that he had said the same thing to Luan Bai Feng in a matter-of-factly manner. It seemed that karma had finally come for him.
If Luan Bai Feng were here, she would’ve convulsed with laughter.
With a morose expression, he took off his Space Ring and tossed it at Xia Lin Lang in silence.
After taking it, Xia Lin Lang had a look at it and frowned, “Why are you so poor when you’re a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master?”
In fact, Yang Kai wasn’t poor at all. He had brought an enormous amount of resources with him when he left the Star Boundary; otherwise, the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors couldn’t have been refined. However, most of his things were placed in his Small Universe.
He already had such a habit when he still had the Sealed World Bead. All the valuable items were put in the Sealed World Bead while the miscellaneous items were in his Space Ring.
That was because if he came across any powerful cultivators and got robbed, he would still have his most precious items stashed away somewhere else.
Faced with her pitiful gaze that was tinged with disdain, Yang Kai put on a meek smile, “Although I’m not wealthy, I don’t think I’m considered poor either. These resources are enough for me to cultivate.”
Xia Lin Lang curled up her lips, “Didn’t you say you’re a disciple from Bright King Cave Heaven? You’re a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master from one of the 36 Cave Heavens. Aren’t you worried that your poverty will embarrass your Sect?”
With a cold expression, Yang Kai snapped, “I don’t mind you mocking me, but please stop exposing my weaknesses. What’s the point of putting me in a tight spot while you’re fully aware of my shortcomings?”
Xia Lin Lang pursed her lips, “Stop the pretence, will you?”
She then tossed the Space Ring back at him, “Alright, just cultivate with such rubbish for now. I’ll tell someone to send you some resources later.”
Yang Kai nodded and put on his ring before saying, “By the way, please dispel the restriction in my body; otherwise, it’ll affect my cultivation.”
Xia Lin Lang looked playfully at him. She was fully aware of whether the restriction she had planted would affect his cultivation or not; however, since Yang Kai was like a caged beast now, the restriction was no longer important.
Not willing to waste any time on this issue, she put on a sweet smile and parted her lips, “Just stay here and cultivate. If I catch you running away, I’ll break your legs. If you do it again, I’ll end your life.”
Yang Kai instantly turned pale with horror and hung his head low, “I would never dare to!”
Xia Lin Lang crooked her finger, whereupon silver threads flew out of Yang Kai’s body and turned into a silver light in her hand before disappearing.
Xia Lin Lang was gone, but it wasn’t certain where she headed to. It seemed that she was not worried that Yang Kai would run away at all.
In fact, Yang Kai didn’t have the intention to flee.
Since the World Spring hadn’t been fully refined, his World Force would be sucked into it from time to time, which would cause his Small Universe to descend into chaos. Furthermore, when he took in the shattered Spirit Province where the World Spring was located previously, many impurities had also snuck into his Small Universe. Before he resolved these two major issues, he would never be able to flee from a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master regardless of how swift he was.
Although the island in the middle of the lake was not large, its view was magnificent. As the bamboo forest swayed with the breeze, the koi fish that came in different colours were seen swimming in the lake. It was truly a stunning sight to behold.
It took Yang Kai two days to build a bamboo hut to shelter himself from the wind and rain. Following that, he set up a simple barrier around the hut to prevent anyone from spying on him before he started cultivating.
He could refine the World Spring at a later time, as the most important task for him now was to purge the impurities from his Small Universe.
While these impurities were inside his Small Universe, he had to spend some effort to suppress them; otherwise, once they assimilated into his Small Universe completely, his foundation would be affected.
Fortunately, it wasn’t the first time such a thing happened to him, so he was already familiar with how to deal with it.
It took him about half a month to restore his Small Universe to its original state.
After settling the problem in his Small Universe, Yang Kai started refining the World Spring. This thing had started settling in on its own since it landed in his Small Universe, so he was just trying to accelerate the process by actively refining it.
Yang Kai hadn’t paid any attention to the World Spring since he was running for his life some time ago. Now that the dust had settled, he realised that as the World Spring absorbed his World Force and became fixed in place, there was an invisible aura that permeated his entire Small Universe which originated from it.
The existence of this aura had fortified and perfected his Small Universe. Even his heritage had been strengthened.
Yang Kai made some calculations and believed that given his current state, it would take him one to two months of hard work before he could fully refine the World Spring. During this process, the amount of World Force that would be consumed would be incalculable.
Although he had chugged down a lot of Open Heaven Pills to replenish his World Force, he still couldn’t make up for the losses.
Following a continuous infusion of World Force for the next two months, the World Spring, which caused Yang Kai’s Small Universe to descend into turmoil from time to time, finally merged with his it.
He instantly felt as ecstatic as a dead tree that had been resurrected. The pressure that had burdened him for months was finally gone for good. He clenched his fists and activated his World Force and confirmed that there were no longer any obstacles that stopped him from circulating his power smoothly.
The World Spring suppressed his Small Universe before being fully refined; otherwise, he could’ve at least counterattacked when dealing with Xia Lin Lang.
After all, he had engaged in life-and-death battles with Zuo Quan Hui before. Regardless of how powerful Xia Lin Lang was, she would not be stronger than Zuo Quan Hui.
Now that he had fully refined the World Spring, it wouldn’t obstruct his World Force and would instead reinforce his Small Universe, making it extremely sturdy and resistant to outside shocks and influence. Unless it was struck with enough force to crack it, his Small Universe wouldn’t fall into chaos again.
While he focused on examining the transformation in his Small Universe, the barrier around the bamboo hut was suddenly triggered. With a frown, Yang Kai looked out intently and realised a tan-skinned young man was standing outside the hut with a gloomy expression on his face. It wasn’t certain why he was so angry, but when he pushed out his fist, Yang Kai’s hastily arranged barrier and bamboo hut fell apart in an instant.
The barrier only served as a cover, and it wasn’t solid enough to ward off any attacks. Although the tan-skinned young man was irritable, he was surprisingly a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so it was only natural that the thin barrier couldn’t bear his attack.
[There are Open Heaven Realm Masters in this place other than Xia Lin Lang?] Yang Kai furrowed his brow. After giving it a thought though, he relaxed. Although Xia Lin Lang resided in this place, it wasn’t surprising that she had some subordinates as she was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
The moment the bamboo hut came apart, Yang Kai calmly landed on the ground.
As they exchanged glances, the young man examined Yang Kai with a furious expression, “Are you Yang Kai?”
Yang Kai nodded, “Yes.”
The young man snorted as he held a Space Ring in his hand and showed it to the other man, “Palace Master has asked me to pass this thing to you.”
Yang Kai took a look at the demolished bamboo hut and replied with a smile, “Did your Palace Master also ask you to destroy my hut?”
Without directly answering his question, the young man snapped, “I don’t care who you are, but we’ve all risked our lives to obtain the resources in this ring. Every one of them was not easy to come by. I, Qin Fen, wouldn’t disobey the Palace Master since she wants to give you these resources; however, you’ll have to prove your worth before you can get them!”
Finally understanding why the young man named Qin Fen was furious, Yang Kai put on a faint smile.
In order to help him ascend to the Seventh Order sooner, Xia Lin Lang would certainly give him some resources. That was the reason she took a look at his Space Ring some time ago. Nevertheless, it wasn’t easy to collect resources in the Shattered Heaven. As a disciple from Lin Lang Palace, Qin Fen definitely wouldn’t dare to disobey Xia Lin Lang, the Palace Master; however, he was also reluctant to give away resources, which he had exerted himself to find, to a stranger for free.
Since he had nowhere else to vent his anger, Yang Kai’s bamboo hut became the target.
“How do you want to find out whether I’m worthy?” Yang Kai gazed at the young man.
Qin Fen put away the Space Ring and extended his hand before summoning a spear with green and purple lights swirling around it. As his World Force surged, he pushed out the spear towards Yang Kai and bellowed, “Of course we’d have to fight. You’ll get the ring if you’re able to win the battle, but you’ll be killed if you’re defeated.”
Faced with the sudden attack, Yang Kai remained unmoved. However, as his clothes swayed with the wind, his figure started moving backwards like a phantom.
He had retreated several thousand metres in the blink of an eye while the tip of the spear remained seven metres away from his face. The light on the tip of the spear flickered as though it was the tongue of a snake.
Explosions occurred wherever they went, which went to show how powerful Qin Fen’s attack was.
However, regardless of how much force Qin Fen exerted, Yang Kai remained calm and collected, like a senior expert teaching his foolish student a lesson. Yang Kai looked teasingly at him, as though the latter was a child who was throwing a tantrum.
Qin Fen growled, “Stop using cheap tricks and face me directly if you have the guts!” He madly surged his World Force as his spear moved forward two more metres.
Following that, Yang Kai suddenly pushed out his fist.
Qin Fen widened his eyes in disbelief, for he felt an immense force coming right at him. The force whisked across his spear and came at his chest like it was a mountain. The green and purple lights around his spear madly flickered.
A horrified Qin Fen instantly moved backwards, but his chest was still struck by the attack. Upon impact, he tumbled across the surface of the lake as the waves surged. When he finally managed to stabilise himself and looked up, he saw that Yang Kai remained calm and collected while standing in front of the demolished bamboo hut and gazing impassively at him. It was as though he had never moved a muscle.
Upon standing with difficulty, Qin Fen hovered above the lake as a myriad of expressions came over his face. He was overwhelmed by a sense of shock and disbelief.
Both of them were in the Sixth Order, so he didn’t understand why there was such a huge gap between this man named Yang Kai and himself. He was easily defeated by the other party with only one move.
Just now, he felt as though he was facing a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master like the Palace Master instead of a Sixth-Order one.
[Where did this guy come from?] The emotions in Qin Fen’s heart undulated. He only found out some time ago that the Palace Master had brought a stranger back to this place. He initially intended to ignore that man, but the Palace Master had asked him to send some resources to that person. After taking a look at the Space Ring, he realised that there were a lot of resources in it, which was why he was vexed. He wanted to teach the other party a lesson, but in the end, he was the one who suffered a setback instead.
Suppressing the roiling vitality in his chest, Qin Fen stared at the other man with a conflicted gaze. After a snort, he put away his spear and tossed the Space Ring at him, “Since you’ve proved your worth, this thing belongs to you now.”
The ring clanged to the ground. Yang Kai didn’t even bother to take a glance at it.
Qin Fen glared at him, “What do you mean by this?”
With a harmless smile, Yang Kai replied, “Nothing.”
Qin Fen had the urge to ask Yang Kai what the latter meant by nothing, but he knew that he would be humiliated if he really did so. Furthermore, Yang Kai had already made his stance clear. As he darted his gaze between Yang Kai and the Space Ring, he grimly said, “You may kill me, but you may never humiliate me!”
Yang Kai chuckled in response.
At that instant, Qin Fen fell into a dilemma. He was reluctant to pick up the ring and pass it to Yang Kai, but he wouldn’t dare to disobey the Palace Master’s order either, so he had to make sure that his task was completed. Initially, he just wanted to teach Yang Kai a lesson and dropped the ring in front of him like the latter was a beggar. However, he was the one who was embarrassed instead.
Just when Qin Fen didn’t know what to do, Xia Lin Lang suddenly spoke from a distance, “Don’t cross the line, Yang Kai.”
Seeing that Yang Kai remained silent, she went on to say, “Qin Fen, since you’ve destroyed his bamboo hut, you should rebuild it for him.”
Qin Fen respectfully cupped his fist, “Yes, Palace Master!”
Yang Kai pressed his lips into a line, but he still cupped his fist and said “Since you’ve said so, this Yang will obey.”
He would probably suffer horribly if he offended this Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. It still wasn’t the right time to confront her. Since she had made a fair judgement, he decided to make a concession.
Then, he extended his hand and grabbed the Space Ring. Upon infusing his Divine Sense into the ring, he realised there were really a lot of resources inside. Besides Open Heaven Pills, there were more than twenty complete sets of Fifth-Order materials.
There were no Sixth-Order materials. It wasn’t that Xia Lin Lang didn’t want to give him Sixth-Order materials, but be it in the 3,000 Worlds or the Shattered Heaven, all Open Heaven Realm Masters faced the same issue. Yin and Yang Element Materials in the Sixth Order and above were extremely rare while it was easier to find materials of the Five Elements. However, when one cultivated, there couldn’t be a lack of Yin and Yang Element Materials while just refining Five Elements materials, for doing so would disrupt the balance of power in their Small Universe.
As such, when an Open Heaven Realm Master refined cultivation materials, they had to prepare a complete set of Yin, Yang, and the Five Elements.
Other than an opportunity such as entering a Small Source World, the quickest and most effective way for Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters like Yang Kai to cultivate was to refine Sixth-Order materials; however, Sixth-Order Yin and Yang Element materials were hard to come by, so most had to settle for the second-best materials, the Fifth-Order ones.
It was the case for Yang Kai and even for the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters from the Cave Heavens and Paradises. No one would waste Sixth-Order materials.
More than twenty sets of Fifth-Order materials and thirty million Open Heaven Pills could only last Yang Kai for about half a year.
Since Xia Lin Lang had given the order, Qin Fen wouldn’t dare to disobey her; therefore, for the next few days, he had been building a bamboo hut for Yang Kai. He initially intended to build a sloppy one, but what made him furious was that Yang Kai had been instructing him like a supervisor the whole time.
Qin Fen had a strong urge to kill this guy with his spear.
A few days later, the bamboo hut was finally completed. Qin Fen instantly left the place without sparing Yang Kai a glance, for he was worried he wouldn’t be able to contain his fury.
Nothing major happened in the days that followed.
No one would bother Yang Kai while he stayed on the island in the middle of the lake, so he could focus on cultivating.
Since he ascended to the Open Heaven Realm, he had rarely had any chance to sit and cultivate in peace. In the past, he was forced to ascend to the Fifth Order outside the Shadowless Cave Heaven. After entering it, he consumed a World Fruit and made it to the Sixth Order. Following that, he had to travel to many places and deal with a lot of issues. Sometimes he would have some free time, but he would soon have to get to work again.
Although he was forcefully brought to this place by Xia Lin Lang, it could also be considered an opportunity for him as he could seize this chance to strengthen his cultivation. After ascending to the Open Heaven Realm, a cultivator had to carefully manage their Small Universe, a process that couldn’t be rushed as it took years of accumulation.
What was more important was that he was given free resources. Although he didn’t really care about it since he was pretty wealthy now, no one would turn down free resources.
Half a year later, Yang Kai had used up all the resources Qin Fen had sent him.
He didn’t ask for more resources from Xia Lin Lang though, because normally, so many resources could last a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master two or three years.
Fortunately, he still had a lot of resources in his Small Universe, so he wouldn’t have to stop cultivating.
This way of cultivating was extremely dreary, but it was inescapable for all Open Heaven Realm Masters. As time passed, Yang Kai managed to calm himself and slowly understand his own deficiencies.
The reason he made it to the Sixth Order from the Fifth Order was that he had consumed a Mid-Rank World Fruit. After that, due to various opportunities, his cultivation had increased significantly. Although there were many benefits in the short term since his power had risen quickly, there were some barely noticeable dangers that would snowball into something serious in the long term if not addressed.
These hidden concerns wouldn’t break out so soon, but as his cultivation increased, it would slowly affect his foundation, and once that happened, the situation would become very serious.
Hence, now was the perfect chance for Yang Kai to rectify these problems since he could focus on cultivating in peace right now.
On the other hand, this Universe Cave Heaven was indeed rich in Spear Dao Essence. Qin Fen, who had provoked Yang Kai some time ago, also used a spear, and his mastery of Spear Dao was actually better than Yang Kai’s. However, since there was a huge gap between their strength, he was defeated by Yang Kai with only one move.
If their heritages were the same, and they both used spears to battle, Yang Kai might not be able to defeat Qin Fen despite having the Supreme Limitless Spear Art.
While cultivating, he also never forgot to improve his comprehension of the Spear Dao using the Dao Essence filling this Universe Cave Heaven.
Time passed by quickly and Yang Kai never stepped out of the bamboo hut. All he did was cultivate with his legs crossed.
New resources would be sent to him every three years, but it was no longer Qin Fen who did so. Since he was defeated by Yang Kai before, he wouldn’t have the face to come to this island again. The person who was responsible for sending him resources was a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, but they never even spoke. After arriving at the island in the middle of the lake, he would hurriedly pass a ring to Yang Kai and leave.
For the past ten years, Yang Kai had not seen Xia Lin Lang again, making him wonder what she had been doing.
Ten years was neither a short nor long time, and it certainly was not enough for Yang Kai to significantly increase the heritage of his Small Universe. However, it was enough for him to achieve greater heights in his Spear Dao.
Originally, his mastery over the Spear Dao was only in the Third Level, Taking the Initial Steps. Nevertheless, after ten years of study and comprehension, he had reached the Fifth Level, Attaining Mastery Through Comprehensive Understanding.
There were four Daos that Yang Kai had significant attainments in. His Dao of Space was at the Eighth Level, Summiting the Peak, while his Dao of Time had reached the Sixth Level, Exceeding the Ordinary to Reach the Extraordinary. Additionally, his Spear Dao was now on the level of Attaining Mastery Through Comprehensive Understanding.
On the other hand, he had all but given up on the Alchemic Dao. If nothing unexpected happened, he probably wouldn’t spend any time and energy to improve it again.
One day, while cultivating, Yang Kai opened his eyes and looked up. He could sense Xia Lin Lang’s aura appearing in a particular direction as she turned into a ray of light. Soon, she left this Universe Cave Heaven and disappeared into the distance.
Yang Kai became startled for a moment, before putting on a grin, “Today is the day. The chance has finally come!”
Without hesitation, he stood up and dashed out of the bamboo hut. After taking a look into the distance, he disappeared from the spot the next instant.
There was a palace in the place where Xia Lin Lang’s aura appeared just now. It was also her foundation, Lin Lang Palace.
A moment later, Yang Kai revealed his figure in front of a magnificent palace. While looking up, he muttered, “Just as I suspected!”
Just like the Heavenly Sword Palace, the palace in front of him named Lin Lang Palace was also a flying palace artifact.
In fact, Heavenly Sword Palace wasn’t the first mobile palace artifact Yang Kai had seen, the Flowing Time Temple was. Blood Monster Divine Palace in the Blood Monster Cave Heaven was also such a palace artifact.
However, the Flowing Time Temple was a product of the Star Boundary. Although it belonged to Flowing Time Great Emperor when he was alive, it was inferior to the other mobile palaces Yang Kai had seen. The Flowing Time Temple was invincible in a battle between cultivators below the Open Heaven Realm; nevertheless, in a fight between Open Heaven Realm Masters, it was practically useless.
Strictly speaking, the Blood Monster Divine Palace was the first true mobile palace artifact Yang Kai had come across.
Unfortunately, when the Blood Monster Cave Heaven collapsed, the Blood Monster Divine Palace was also destroyed.
Meanwhile, Lin Lang Palace was also a palace artifact. Just like the status of Blood Monster Divine Palace in Blood Monster Cave Heaven, Lin Lang Palace was the centre of this Universe Cave Heaven. It was very important as it was just like the Array Core of a Grand Array.
The one who obtained Lin Lang Palace would be able to control this Universe Cave Heaven.
Presently, Lin Lang Palace had been left with Xia Lin Lang’s Imprint, so she was its owner.
Yang Kai had been cultivating in seclusion for the past ten years because, first, he indeed needed to calm down and cultivate, and secondly, he couldn’t confront Xia Lin Lang since he was no match for her in this Universe Cave Heaven where she held all the advantages.
However, he would certainly want to counterattack when there was a chance. Yang Kai wouldn’t risk his life for the magnanimity of a woman he was at odds with.
As soon as Yang Kai showed up, a figure shot out of Lin Lang Palace. It was Qin Fen, who was defeated by Yang Kai before. While glaring at him, he demanded, “What are you doing here?”
Before the Palace Master left, she told him to keep an eye on Yang Kai. It never crossed his mind though that right after the Palace Master left, this guy would show up here. It was obvious that this bastard had some ill intentions.
Yang Kai retracted his gaze from the palace and took a glance at Qin Fen before smiling and declaring, “Those who stand in my way will die!”
An unperturbed Qin Fen snapped with a cold expression, “You can give it a try!”
Certainly, Yang Kai was going to try. He turned into a beam of light and shot towards Qin Fen. As though recalling the defeat ten years ago, Qin Fen couldn’t help but take a few steps back; however, before Yang Kai even got close to him, a light barrier appeared around Lin Lang Palace. Yang Kai crashed into the light barrier, causing the entire palace to shake. Although the light became dented, it wasn’t broken in any way.
Yang Kai flew back 300 metres before standing still in a calm manner.
Qin Fen sneered, “Palace Master knew that you’d create trouble after she left, so she had made some preparations. You’d better leave now; otherwise, no one can save you when Palace Master returns.”
Yang Kai extended his hand and summoned out his Azure Dragon Spear before uttering impassively, “If Xia Lin Lang was still inside Lin Lang Palace, I naturally wouldn’t dare to make a scene; however, since you’re the one who is in charge now, what’s the percentage of the palace’s power that you can use?”
Qin Fen snorted, “More than enough to deal with you!”
Yang Kai grinned, “The biggest mistake Xia Lin Lang made is regarding me as an average Sixth-Order Master. Let’s find out how many of my attacks this barrier can bear, shall we?”
After he finished speaking, Yang Kai pushed his World Force and infused it into his spear before thrusting out his weapon.
Qin Fen wanted to mock him, but when the spear came into contact with the light barrier, it actually flickered noticeably. Although Xia Lin Lang had given him some temporary powers, Qin Fen was still stunned by the attack.
A flabbergasted Qin Fen hurriedly fished out a jade and performed a hand seal. By activating the power of the jade, he could control the Grand Array.
Just like Yang Kai had said though, Lin Lang Palace belonged to Xia Lin Lang. Even though she had given Qin Fen temporary authority to control the Grand Array before she left, he couldn’t fully use its power.
Yang Kai’s attacks continuously rained down on the light barrier of the Grand Array.
In the past, Yang Kai couldn’t have achieved this even though his spear technique was already fairly powerful; however, after ten years of cultivation in seclusion, while he hadn’t improved the heritage of his Small Universe much, he had gained quite a bit of insight into the Spear Dao.
As he wielded his spear, the Spear Principles in the Universe Cave Heaven seemed to have been stimulated, which helped empower Yang Kai.
Qin Fen staggered while he kept performing different hand seals, but he couldn’t stop the light barrier from dimming. Impacted by the turmoil in Lin Lang Palace, his Small Universe had also become unsteady.
After about 100 attacks from Yang Kai, the barrier around Lin Lang Palace broke into pieces like a shattered mirror. Qin Fen fell on his backside as blood streamed out of his mouth and nose.
With his spear in hand, Yang Kai sauntered up the stairs as though no one else was around.
Seeing this, Qin Fen gritted his teeth and roared. He then summoned his cyan spear and fearlessly attacked Yang Kai.
Yang Kai lightly swung his Azure Dragon Spear, and as the spears brushed past each other, his spear jabbed into Qin Fen’s shoulder, drawing a spurt of blood from the latter. He then lifted Qin Fen off his feet with his spear.
On the other hand, the tip of Qin Fen’s spear was just a palm’s length from Yang Kai’s chest, flashing with ample World Force. However, even a palm’s length was like the difference between life and death in this situation.
After his defeat on the island in the middle of the lake, Qin Fen knew that there was a gap between Yang Kai and him, but what horrified him was that the gap was so wide.
He could use the excuse of being negligent for his previous defeat, but in the life-and-death battle just now, he was still overpowered by the other party with ease.
The outcome gave Qin Feng a crawling sensation on his scalp.
He had never seen or heard of such a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master before. The Palace Master had left, and the Grand Array around Lin Lang Palace was unable to stop this person’s steps. Who else in this place could be a match for him?
He didn’t blame Yang Kai for being ruthless; he just hated the fact that he was unable to protect the palace while the Palace Master was gone.
As blood spurted, Yang Kai tossed Qin Fen away from his spear and activated his Cow Punch Secret Technique. Instantly, Qin Fen felt dizzy as his Small Universe shook violently. He was unable to come to his senses for a long time.
Just then, a few figures shot out of Lin Lang Palace. The person who always sent the resources to Yang Kai over the years was among them. There were also several Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters he had never seen before.
They rushed over to have a look the moment they heard the noises that were coming from Lin Lang Palace, but it was too late. When they saw that Qin Fen’s shoulder was covered in blood while he was seated on the ground, they were astonished.
They then glared at the culprit Yang Kai as their murderous intent surged.
“Stop embarrassing yourselves. Even together, all of you are no match for him!” Qin Fen shouted with difficulty. In Lin Lang Palace, he was the strongest apart from Xia Lin Lang, but he was defeated by Yang Kai in just one move. If it weren’t because Yang Kai didn’t have the intention to kill, he would’ve lost his life already.
Although there were some Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters among those people, they wouldn’t be able to deal with Yang Kai.
Qin Fen’s words were effective in stopping them from making any rash moves. Those people appeared furious and eager to fight, but they still held their anger in and did not make a move. One woman circumvented Yang Kai and walked up to Qin Fen before helping him up with a worried expression.
Qin Fen waved his hand to show that he was fine, though the upheaval in his Small Universe didn’t seem like it would settle any time soon. An invisible force had permeated his Small Universe and thrown it into absolute chaos.
He then wiped the blood from his mouth and stared coldly at Yang Kai, “So, what if we’re no match for you? In Lin Lang Palace, you’re unable to flee without the Palace Master’s permission. I suggest you retreat now; otherwise, you’ll be killed when the Palace Master returns.”
Yang Kai snorted, “Retreat, why should I retreat?”
Although Lin Lang Palace was a Universe Cave Heaven left behind by a High-Rank Master with a closed portal, it was still possible for Yang Kai to flee if he wanted to. As an expert in the Dao of Space, he just had to head to the portal and forcefully open it. Once he ran away from this place, Xia Lin Lang wouldn’t be able to harm him despite being a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
With that said, Yang Kai never had any intentions of fleeing. He had waited for ten years before Xia Lin Lang finally left, because he decided to do something big.
Qin Fen suddenly paled as he gazed at Yang Kai’s right hand, “What are you trying to do?”
At this moment, Yang Kai was holding a jade in his right hand as he fiddled with it.
The jade was given to Qin Fen by Xia Lin Lang before she left. It was the jade that was used to control Lin Lang Palace.
Qin Fen had no idea when Yang Kai had snatched the jade from him. It was probably during the time he was in a dazed state due to the turmoil in his Small Universe.
Upon realising Yang Kai’s plan, Qin Fen was instantly drenched in cold sweat. He already felt guilty that he couldn’t stop Yang Kai from barging into Lin Lang Palace, but if Yang Kai managed to refine the palace as well, Qin Fen would never forgive himself.
“This thing is pretty easy to refine.” Yang Kai put on a smile. As he waved his hand, Lin Lang Palace shook a little while an invisible force swept out. Qin Fen and the other Open Heaven Realm Masters were sent flying away by this force. When they landed on the ground, they were already outside of the palace.
The light barrier, which Yang Kai had shattered earlier, reappeared and blocked them out.
Of course, a jade that was used to control a palace artifact couldn’t be refined easily. In fact, Yang Kai had only refined a little of it and there was still a lot to do.
Since Xia Lin Lang decided to pass this jade to Qin Fen so that he could protect Lin Lang Palace, she naturally had to get rid of her own Imprint from it in advance.
Therefore, only Qin Fen’s aura was now left in the jade, which was why Yang Kai could easily dispel it. It wouldn’t have been easy if Xia Lin Lang’s aura were still inside it.
In fact, Xia Lin Lang hadn’t made any mistakes in her arrangements. Qin Fen and Yang Kai were both in the Sixth Order, and although Qin Fen appeared to be weaker than Yang Kai in the battle on the island previously, he should have been able to deal with an opponent in the same Order with the help of Lin Lang Palace. Furthermore, there were other Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in the palace to assist if something went wrong.
Xia Lin Lang believed that with such arrangements in place, Yang Kai wouldn’t be able to carry out any scheme he had even though she had left.
Unfortunately, she had greatly underestimated Yang Kai’s strength.
Qin Fen had only temporarily taken over Lin Lang Palace, so he was unable draw out its full power. On the other hand, Yang Kai was overwhelming and acted resolute in every move he made. After breaking the Grand Array around the palace, he directly snatched the jade from Qin Fen.
That was the reason Yang Kai said that Xia Lin Lang had made a mistake by regarding him to be an average Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. It wasn’t that Xia Lin Lang was careless, but a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master like Yang Kai was too unique. Common sense was not applicable to a monster like him.
After they were pushed out of the palace, one of the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters became furious and wanted to make a move, but Qin Fen raised his hand to stop him, “Stop wasting your energy. The Grand Array of Lin Lang Palace has been activated. You won’t be able to break it.”
As he spoke, a renewed sense of horror came over him. Yang Kai managed to break the Grand Array around Lin Lang Palace with a burst of about 100 attacks. It indeed had something to do with the fact that the Grand Array’s power had been weakened under Qin Fen’s control, but the major issue was that there was a huge gap between his strength and Yang Kai’s.
He initially thought that he could shorten this gap if he cultivated hard, but now it seemed that even if he reached the peak of the Sixth Order, he still wouldn’t be able to defeat Yang Kai. At that instant, he felt extremely bitter in his heart.
It was expected that he was haughty since he was able to make it to the Sixth Order, but the experience on this day was like a slap in the face for him, making him realise that there were always people beyond people out there.
“Do we just watch and do nothing then?” The Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was impolite as he blamed Qin Fen for losing the jade of Lin Lang Palace.
Following a sigh, Qin Fen replied, “The portal in this place is sealed, so he can’t flee anyway. He’ll only suffer miserably when Palace Master returns.”
Upon hearing that, all of them were lost for words.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai shuffled towards the centre of Lin Lang Palace.
In just a while, he arrived at a spacious Grand Hall with nothing in it. However, the abstruse patterns of a Grand Array were carved on the ground and walls. Amazing aura was seen weltering within the Grand Array, and it was clearly closely connected to the Universe Cave Heaven.
This was apparently the place where the central Grand Array of Lin Lang Palace was located. This Grand Array was linked to the jade in his hand.
Yang Kai then walked up to the middle of the Grand Array and sat down with his legs crossed. Following that, he crossed his fingers and placed his hands on his lap, the Array Jade nestled between his palms.
As he activated his World Force, Yang Kai infused his power into the jade and refined it.
He wasn’t considered powerful since he was just a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, but he was definitely not weak either. As a result, it was easy for him to refine a basically ownerless Array Jade.
He wasn’t certain why Xia Lin Lang had left or when she would return, so he didn’t dare to be negligent.
Presently, he was still not a match for a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Lin Lang Palace would be the key if he wanted to go up against Xia Lin Lang; otherwise, he would’ve forcefully opened the portal and fled instead of wasting time here.
Xia Lin Lang thought that there wouldn’t be a problem with Qin Fen in charge of the palace, which went to show that she still underestimated Yang Kai.
It was easy to refine the jade in the initial stage, but it became increasingly difficult as he progressed further.
It took Yang Kai half a month before he fully refined the jade.
As he slowly opened his eyes though, he became dumbfounded. Soon, he snapped out of the dazed state and snarled, “That woman is so sly! I’ve never seen a more cunning person than her!”
He appeared incensed as he was in a terrible mood.
This couldn’t be helped, as he realised that he could only control half of Lin Lang Palace’s power through this jade even after he fully refined it.
In other words, this Array Jade wasn’t complete, with its other part still in Xia Lin Lang’s hands.
This was quite embarrassing. The main reason Yang Kai had taken the risk to stay was to refine Lin Lang Palace. As long as he could occupy this palace, he would no longer be afraid of Xia Lin Lang since he would be able to control the entire Universe Cave Heaven through the palace and make use of the World Force in this place to deal with her. This was a Universe Cave Heaven left behind by a cultivator who was at least in the Eighth Order. If Yang Kai managed to succeed, Xia Lin Lang wouldn’t be able to harm him despite being a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
However, after he spent so much effort refining the jade, he realised that Xia Lin Lang had pulled a trick.
In that case, he was the half-owner of Lin Lang Palace, the same as Xia Lin Lang. No one was at an advantage in this regard.
Yang Kai had no idea whether Xia Lin Lang was being careful or that there were originally two parts of the Array Jade, but his plan was now impossible to complete.
Fortunately, there was still a benefit to his actions to be excited about.
Outside Lin Lang Palace, even though Qin Fen was still slightly pale, he was actually fine as the wound on his shoulder was almost healed. Even if a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master had never practised Body Tempering before, their physique would still be pretty sturdy. Although Yang Kai was decisive in his moves, he didn’t have the intention to kill, so it took just half a month for Qin Fen to fully recover.
During this period of time, he and his companions had been staying outside Lin Lang Palace with grim expressions. In the meantime, they prayed that their Palace Master would return sooner to teach that reckless bastard a hard lesson.
Just then, Qin Fen sensed something and looked up at the sky. The next instant, his expression changed drastically as he stood straight up and glared at Lin Lang Palace.
Besides him, the two other Open Heaven Realm Masters, who were respectively in the Sixth Order and the Fifth Order, did the same.
The remaining three people had no idea why Qin Fen and the others had reacted in such a way.