Yang Kai was relieved at the fact that the Black Ink Clan had set up their Warship development site in this Sealed World. This gave him room to carry out his plan.
Just like he had said, there was no Black Ink Nest in this Sealed World, nor was it flooded with Black Ink Strength; therefore, as long as Wu Xing He was careful enough, he wouldn’t risk getting corrupted again.
It wouldn’t have been possible in any other Black Ink Clan territory as they were all practically filled with Black Ink Strength. Even if Yang Kai helped dispel the Black Ink Strength in Wu Xing He’s body using Purifying Light, the latter would soon be corrupted again. When that happened, Yang Kai’s identity would be exposed. How could he carry out his plans in such an environment?
“Senior Brother Wu, I’m from Yin-Yang Pass. On the Army Commanders’ orders, I’ve come here to look for Artifact Refiners like you all who are developing the Warship for the Black Ink Clan and make sure that this project fails. On the other hand, you’re the first breakthrough point I’ve selected. I’ll need you to work with me for the following plan. Qing Lei has just left the Sealed World. Based on past experiences, I believe he’ll return in half a day. That’s the amount of time we have.”
There was a solemn expression on Wu Xing He’s face as he asked, “What’s your plan? What do you want me to do?”
Yang Kai replied, “First of all, I need you to lure Senior Brother Wang and Senior Brother Guan to this place. I’ll make a move and purify the Black Ink Strength in their bodies so that they will regain their senses as Humans. Although they’re Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, they’ve been completely focused on Artifact Refining for centuries now so their fighting instincts have grown dull. If we work together and launch a sneak attack on them, there shouldn’t be a problem. Then, I want the three of you to gather all the Artifact Refiners together. I’ll dispel the Black Ink Strength in their bodies at once so that they can recover their true selves.”
Of all the Artifact Refiners, Wu Xing He and the other two were not only Artifact Refining Grandmasters but also Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. The other Artifact Refiners were much weaker. Other than the fact that they were less competent than the three of them when it came to Artifact Refining, they were mostly in the Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm; therefore, as long as Yang Kai could settle Wu Xing He and the other two, the rest of the Artifact Refiners wouldn’t be an issue.
Wu Xing He nodded gently, “And then? Assuming that everything goes to plan and the Black Ink Clan are not alerted, how are you going to leave this Sealed World? Although Qing Lei is not around, Mei Qiong would never leave the portal. If you can’t defeat him, you’ll never be able to leave this Sealed World. Moreover, you have to bring so many of us with you.”
Yang Kai replied, “Other than the three of you, I can keep the rest of the Artifact Refiners inside my Small Universe. It’s not a problem to bring them with me. However, the three of you are in the same Order as me, so I can’t keep you inside my Small Universe. Therefore, I need you three to sacrifice a part of your Small Universes so you regress to the Sixth Order.”
Upon hearing that, Wu Xing He was astounded, “You want to escape this place on your own?”
With a serious expression, Yang Kai replied, “Other than me, all of you are not able to resist Black Ink Strength. Only by staying inside my Small Universe would you be safe.”
Wu Xing He frowned, “But that will be a huge burden on you.”
These 300 Artifact Refiners were all Open Heaven Realm Masters. If they all entered his Small Universe, it would be a tremendous burden on Yang Kai. As a result, his strength would undoubtedly be affected.
Yang Kai was already less powerful than Mei Qiong to begin with, so if his abilities were further weakened, he wouldn’t have any chance of escaping from Mei Qiong.
Yang Kai said, “I can deal with 300 people staying inside my Small Universe. There will be some negative impact, but it won’t be an issue. On the other hand, it’s indeed difficult to deal with Mei Qiong as he would never leave the portal. There are no other ways apart from trying to force my way out of this Sealed World. Certainly, it would be wonderful if I can fool him into opening the portal for me; however, as soon as I make a move here, the Black Ink Clansmen around us will notice. There’s no way we can do it secretly.”
Wu Xing He nodded, “So, your plan is to bring us all away so that the Black Ink Clan will never be able to finish this Warship.”
“It’s indeed a simple plan, but it’s also the best way to crush their ambitions once and for all.” Yang Kai let out a breath, “Is there a problem with this plan?”
Wu Xing He stared fixedly at him and replied, “There’s a big problem with this plan.”
Certainly, Yang Kai knew that there were all sorts of problems with his plan. Nevertheless, he was on his own in this Sealed World where he was surrounded by enemies. Even the Artifact Refiners could be considered the Black Ink Clan’s allies, so any negligence would cause his plan to be exposed earlier than he had hoped. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a better solution.
Therefore, he wasn’t surprised when Wu Xing He said there was a problem with his plan and he simply asked humbly, “What is it?”
Wu Xing He replied, “Even if you successfully bring all of us away, you still can’t stop the Black Ink Clan from developing a Warship.”
Yang Kai furrowed his brow and asked, “Why is that?”
Wu Xing He explained, “That’s because we’re not the ones leading the development of the Warship. Although Wang Si Bo, Guan Ning, and I are contributing to this project, we’re just assistants. There’s someone else who is in charge of this project.”
Yang Kai was flabbergasted, “Really? Who is it? I thought the three of you are the only Artifact Refining Grandmasters here.”
Wu Xing He let out a sigh, “A person named Nie An. He’s more talented than Wang Si Bo, Guan Ning, and me when it comes to Artifact Refining, and he’s just one step away from becoming a Great Grandmaster.”
Yang Kai was dumbfounded, “Nie An… Why have you all never mentioned him before?”
It had been three years since he arrived at this Sealed World. Although Yang Kai had tried to gather information through his conversations with other Black Ink Disciples, he had never heard of this Nie An before. That led him to believe that Wu Xing He and the other two Grandmasters were the ones who were in charge of this project. If the person in charge of developing the Warship was someone else, Yang Kai’s plan naturally wouldn’t work.
Just like Wu Xing He had said, even if he managed to bring all of the Artifact Refiners here away, he still couldn’t stop the Black Ink Clan from developing a Warship. That was because the key person behind this project was someone he had never met before.
In fact, if Yang Kai hadn’t prepared to carry out his plan on this day, he would never have found out about it.
“He’s not in this Sealed World, so no one would talk about him in front of you.”
Yang Kai’s plan was thoroughly derailed now, but he soon composed himself. That was because he knew that there would always be factors that were beyond his control, so he had to play it by ear. It was just that a variable like Nie An had appeared now.
“What’s his background?” Yang Kai asked curiously.
Wu Xing He, Wang Si Bo, and Guan Ning were on the list given to him by Tang Qiu, but Nie An was not. Where did he come from?
“I know little about his background,” Wu Xing He shook his head, “Although we’ve spent many years together, we don’t really talk to each other. Other than the discussions on Artifact Refining, we rarely come into contact with one another. Moreover, he’s an arrogant person because of his talent in Artifact Refining. He doesn’t even have any regard for me. More importantly, it’s said that he’s the one who initiated the plan to build a Warship for the Black Ink Clan.”
“He was?” Yang Kai said through clenched teeth. However, as a Black Ink Disciple, Nie An was loyal to the Black Ink Clan. Since they were on different sides, it couldn’t be said that Nie An had betrayed the Humans.
“Rumour has it that he doesn’t have an outstanding aptitude. When he was corrupted by Black Ink Strength and became a Black Ink Disciple, he was not valued by the Black Ink Clan at all. He almost lost his life on several occasions when he was brought to the battlefield. Before he became a Black Ink Disciple, he had never come into contact with the Dao of Artifact Refining. When he saw that the Artifact Refiners were valued by the Black Ink Clan, he decided to study the Dao of Artifact Refining. That was when his life changed. Although his aptitude in cultivation is average, he’s extremely gifted in the Dao of Artifact Refining. In a short time, he significantly improved his skills in Artifact Refining and became a Grandmaster. Then, he launched the project of building a Warship, which gained the support of the Black Ink Clan. However, despite being a Grandmaster, he’s still struggling to build a Warship. As you can see, the Warship in the mountain valley is not comparable to true Warships.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Since he’s the one who has proposed building a Warship, where is he? Why have I not seen him over the past three years?”
Wu Xing He replied, “He’s trying to achieve a breakthrough right now. Given his aptitude in Artifact Refining, he could grow to be a Great Grandmaster; however, you’re also aware that it requires both skill in Artifact Refining and powerful cultivation to become a Great Grandmaster. A person has to be in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm to become a Great Grandmaster.”
“He’s trying to break through to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm?” Yang Kai was astonished.
Wu Xing He nodded solemnly, “Indeed. I don’t know whether he’ll succeed. In fact, one year before your arrival, he was already taken away by the Black Ink Clan to prepare to break through to the Eighth Order.”
Although the environment in this Sealed World was terrific, it was still a Sealed World after all. As Nie An wanted to ascend to the Eighth Order, this place was naturally not suitable. That was the reason he had left this place many years ago. This led Yang Kai to believe that Wu Xing He and the other two Grandmasters were the ones in charge of this project.
This kind of misunderstanding could have led to severe consequences had he acted rashly.
It couldn’t be helped though, as no one had mentioned Nie An to Yang Kai before, so how was he supposed to know that this guy was the key person behind this project?
“Senior Brother Wu, you said that Nie An’s aptitude in cultivation wasn’t high?” Yang Kai suddenly thought of something.
“Yes. He was already a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master when he left; however, even that was because he had the help of Black Ink Strength. His original limit was the Sixth Order,” Wu Xing He replied.
Yang Kai was dumbfounded.
Nie An’s original limit was the Sixth-Order. In other words, he had originally broken through to the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm. This kind of aptitude was indeed average among the Cave Heavens and Paradises.
However, Black Ink Strength could help an Open Heaven Realm Master break through their limits. Nie An, whose limit was the Sixth Order, was already a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master when he left this Sealed World and he was now going to attempt breaking through to the Eighth Order.
It was no wonder Wu Xing He said that this guy was an arrogant person. As far as Yang Kai knew, Open Heaven Realm Masters who managed to break through their natural limits with the help of Black Ink Strength would have their temperaments changed drastically, just like Liu Zi An, who was Gui Liao’s Black Ink Disciple.
Moreover, when Black Ink Disciples tried breaking through their limits, they had to face a huge risk and any negligence would cause them to self-destruct.
Yang Kai had witnessed such an incident in the Black Prison many years ago.
Nie An was already lucky enough to have ascended to the Seventh Order, and he was now trying to make it to the Eighth Order. This was no different from committing suicide.
“The Royal Lord takes this matter extremely seriously. Since Nie An is trying to achieve a breakthrough, I believe the Royal Lord will give him all the support he needs. The Royal Lord might even personally assist him. If the Royal Lord makes a move, Nie An might be able to succeed.”
The success of Nie An’s breakthrough was related to the Black Ink Clan’s future, so it was expected that Mu Guang wouldn’t sit on the sidelines.
Yang Kai initially thought that Nie An wouldn’t succeed in ascending to the Eighth Order; however, he wasn’t so sure now if Mu Guang decided to help. No one knew what methods the Royal Lord had.
Regardless, this matter had to be dealt with accordingly; otherwise, even if Yang Kai managed to take all of the Artifact Refiners away from this Sealed World, he still couldn’t stop the Black Ink Clan from carrying out their plan.
This made him fall into a dilemma. He initially intended to execute his plan today, but a variable like Nie An came out of nowhere all of a sudden.
Fortunately, there was still room for manoeuvre. At this moment, Yang Kai was relieved that this Sealed World was not filled with Black Ink Strength; otherwise, his plan would have come to a halt at this point.
Presently, he had to make some changes.
After giving it a thought, he said, “Senior Brother Wu, we have to confirm whether Nie An is dead or alive. It would be great if he lost his life during his breakthrough; however, if he returns safely, that’ll mean he’s successfully become a Great Grandmaster. By then, the Warship will be perfected.”
“What do you want to do?” Wu Xing He asked.
Yang Kai shook his head, “I don’t have a solution right now, we can only wait. After all, it’s not like we can ask the Black Ink Clan about it. During this period of time, you have to be cautious to avoid coming into direct contact with the Black Ink Clan. There’s no ambient Black Ink Strength in this Sealed World, so as long as you don’t get too close to the Black Ink Clansmen, you won’t be corrupted. If you happen to be invaded by Black Ink Strength, you have to immediately inform me and I will purify it for you.”
“Got it.” Wu Xing He nodded, then said, “As for Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning, do you want to dispel their Black Ink Strength only when you’re in the final stages of the plan, or do you want to act in advance?”
Yang Kai asked, “What do you think?”
After pondering on it for a moment, Wu Xing He replied, “The risk will be increased if we act now; after all, even if they regain their Human nature, they’ll still be at risk of getting corrupted again. However, they’re Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and Artifact Refining Grandmasters; what’s more, they frequently come into contact with me. Guan Ning is especially sensitive, so I’m worried that I’ll accidentally expose myself…”
“We’ll act in advance, then.” Yang Kai directly made a decision, “I’ll need you to work closely with me.”
“Got it. I’ll inform you when everything is prepared,” Wu Xing He nodded.
“Also, I want to take control of this Sealed World’s portal; that way, it’ll be easier for us to flee when executing the plan.”
Upon hearing that, Wu Xing He shook his head, “That won’t be easy. Mei Qiong has never left the portal over the years. How are you going to take control of it?”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “I have my own methods; however, I’ll have to pass through the portal.”
“Does that mean you have to leave this Sealed World once?” Wu Xing He asked.
Yang Kai nodded, “En. Do you have any idea how we can do it?”
After a moment of deliberation, Wu Xing He replied, “I can have you head to the Royal City to buy some materials for me. I believe the Black Ink Clan won’t turn me down.”
“That sounds good.”
“However, there will be a Black Ink Clansman who will follow you. The two Territory Lords will never leave this Sealed World, so the person who will go with you will most likely be a Feudal Lord.”
“That’s fine. I’ll make sure that the Feudal Lord won’t notice whatever I do.”
Since the other man was so confident, Wu Xing He stopped trying to dissuade him.
After they discussed the matter for a while longer, Yang Kai left and returned to his own house to get some rest.
A few days later, Qing Lei was seated on the platform that was above the mountain valley. As he looked down, he was able to monitor everything that was going on in the mountain valley from his position. No anomalies could be hidden from him.
With that said, nothing major had happened since the day he started guarding this place and the Human Artifact Refiners had always been working hard to perfect the Warship.
Unfortunately, many years had passed, but the thing they created was still not usable.
Just then, a figure shot up from the valley and landed in front of him.
Qing Lei lifted his gaze and realised that this person was one of the Artifact Refining Grandmasters, Wu Xing He.
Wu Xing He saluted him respectfully, “Sir Qing Lei.”
“What’s wrong?” Qing Lei asked impassively.
Wu Xing He replied, “I need some materials that we are running low on in this Sealed World. Will you please allow me to go to the Royal City to buy them?”
Upon hearing that, Qing Lei furrowed his brows, “What materials do you need that have to be purchased in the Royal City?”
Wu Xing He randomly mentioned some materials, which were all quite precious.
Qing Lei replied, “Got it. I’ll tell someone to send them to you.” Although those materials were valuable, there was never a lack of resources in the Black Ink Clan; moreover, this project was related to the Black Ink Clan’s future, so the Royal Lord was fully supportive of it. Regardless of what materials they needed, they just had to make a request, and someone from the Royal City would send them over.
Wu Xing He seemed to have expected this kind of response, so he said, “Sir, the quality of these materials is critical. Someone who is not proficient in Artifact Refining might not be able to fight the appropriate ones. As such, I have to personally head to the Royal City.”
“You want to personally go there?” Qing Lei was surprised. In the past, Wu Xing He had asked for more materials on several occasions, but he only came over and told him what he needed, and the materials would be sent to him. He had never requested to personally head to the Royal City.
Wu Xing He nodded, “I have to go there to make sure that all the materials are up to standard so that the progress won’t be held up. Some of the materials they sent us previously were substandard and could not be used.”
Qing Lei became fidgety, “You and the other two Grandmasters are in charge of this project now. If you’re gone, who will continue developing the Warship?”
After giving it a thought, Wu Xing He suggested by saying, “Why don’t I tell someone to go over there on my behalf?”
Qing Lei asked, “Who is it?”
Wu Xing He replied, “The newcomer, Yang Kai. His aptitude in Artifact Refining is just as good as mine, so he’ll definitely grow to be a Grandmaster one day.”
Qing Lei didn’t understand what aptitude in Artifact Refining had to do with the purchase of materials; however, since Wu Xing He had recommended this person, he decided to stop questioning him. He thus nodded, “He’ll be the one, then. I’ll tell someone to accompany him.”
Saying so, he waved his hand.
The next moment, a Feudal Lord behind him stepped forward.
Qing Lei ordered, “Bring that Human to the Royal City and come back quickly.” Then, he passed a token to the Feudal Lord.
After taking the token, the Feudal Lord flew towards the mountain valley alongside Wu Xing He.
A moment later, Wu Xing He called out to Yang Kai, who was getting some rest in his place. As Yang Kai was told what to do, he nodded.
“You have to come back quickly,” Wu Xing He ordered with a solemn expression.
Yang Kai stared fixedly at him and nodded, “Don’t worry, Senior Brother Wu. I’ll come back as soon as possible.”
He then said to the Feudal Lord on the side, “Please.”
Without saying anything, the Feudal Lord led Yang Kai to fly towards the portal.
When they arrived at the portal, the Feudal Lord passed the token to Mei Qiong, who was guarding this place. Since the token was authentic, they were allowed to leave.
The moment the portal was opened, Yang Kai and the Feudal Lord subsequently dashed out of it.
In the blink of an eye, the Feudal Lord passed through the portal and arrived in the outside void. When he turned his head though, he realised that Yang Kai was nowhere in sight.
This startled him for a moment, for it had never happened before. Supposedly, since they entered the portal at the same time, they should reappear together. Nevertheless, he was the only one there at the moment while Yang Kai was missing.
While he was puzzled, the portal before his eyes contorted slightly. Following that, Yang Kai’s figure came into his sight.
Although he found the incident strange, he didn’t read too much into it and just beckoned to Yang Kai, “Let’s go.”
He then flew towards the Royal City.
The Sealed World wasn’t far away from the Royal City. When Yang Kai was led to the Sealed World from the Royal City back then, it only took them an hour to arrive.
Therefore, one hour later, Yang Kai and the Feudal Lord came to the Royal City. With the Feudal Lord leading the way, they soon reached a street where all sorts of resources were sold.
It took Yang Kai another hour to purchase all the materials that Wu Xing He wanted.
Yang Kai didn’t intend to stay in the Royal City for long, and the Feudal Lord apparently wanted to go back as soon as possible; hence, they soon left the Royal City.
One hour later, before they arrived at the Sealed World’s portal, Yang Kai felt that something was coming from behind. When he turned his head, he saw a large ship charging forward in their direction. In the blink of an eye, the large ship got very close to them.
Yang Kai and the Feudal Lord certainly noticed it. Seeing that the large ship wasn’t going to stop, they quickly moved to the side.
Even so, Yang Kai was almost hit by the large ship.
Upon stabilising himself, he lifted his gaze and saw that the large ship had moved across several hundred kilometres ahead. He frowned at the sight.
Although the large ship had brushed past him quickly, he clearly detected two powerful auras from the vessel. One of them was a Territory Lord while the other was an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
Putting the Territory Lord aside, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master gave off a violent and dangerous aura, as though he would explode at any moment.
Yang Kai was astonished. He had pretended to be a Black Ink Disciple and snuck into the Black Ink Clan’s territory twice, but he had never come across an Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciple before.
Usually, an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master wouldn’t be corrupted by Black Ink Strength unless a Royal Lord personally made a move. However, in every major battle, the Royal Lord would have to deal with an Old Ancestor from the Humans’ side, so they wouldn’t have any spare energy to use their Secret Technique to corrupt Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. If they did so, they would be giving the Old Ancestor a chance to injure them.
Hence, there were some Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples, but Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples were extremely rare.
The direction the large ship was heading suggested that it was going to the Sealed World.
A strange idea suddenly sprang into Yang Kai’s mind.
[Would it be so coincidental?]
The Feudal Lord turned to look at Yang Kai, and upon making sure that the latter was fine, he continued moving forward without saying a word. Yang Kai quickly followed him.
A short while later, they arrived at the Sealed World’s portal. At this moment, a large ship was parked in the void as it was waiting for the portal to open. The large ship was the one that Yang Kai had seen earlier.
By the time Yang Kai and the Feudal Lord reached this place, the Sealed World’s portal was slowly opening.
The two figures on the deck noticed them and turned their heads.
One of them was a Territory Lord while the other was the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master that Yang Kai had detected. Upon closer look, he realised that the Eighth-Order Master had a bloated figure, which made him look like a ball. His head was right above his figure, as though his neck didn’t exist.
Sarcomas could be seen all over his skin, looking like horrible abscesses.
Just by standing there, this bloated person exuded a violent and dangerous aura. Even the Territory Lord beside him wasn’t willing to stand close to him.
The moment Yang Kai saw this person’s appearance, he realised his identity.
This person was none other than the Nie An that Wu Xing He had mentioned.
Although Yang Kai had never seen him before, this person’s appearance suggested that he had broken through his limit with the help of Black Ink Strength and achieved something that couldn’t be achieved through ordinary means; however, his life was also at risk now due to the hidden dangers in his Small Universe.
Nie An only made it to the Fourth Order when he ascended to the Open Heaven Realm, so the Sixth Order was his natural limit. He was already lucky enough to have ascended to the Seventh Order with the help of the Black Ink Strength. Now, he even managed to make it to the Eighth Order, which was simply inconceivable. The Royal Lord must have taken action personally; otherwise, Nie An couldn’t have achieved this.
It could be said that Nie An was in a perilous situation, for he gave off a feeling that he might explode at any moment. However, he was still safe and sound. Perhaps Mu Guang had used an incredible technique to ensure his safety when he ascended to the Eighth Order.
In that case, he would most likely become a Great Grandmaster.
A Great Grandmaster would definitely be able to refine a Warship. Perhaps the Black Ink Clan would have their own Warships in no time and sail them across the battlefield. It wouldn’t be like in the past when their Warships were practically useless.
At that instant, Yang Kai felt a sense of urgency.
Back then, when he heard about the existence of Nie An from Wu Xing He, he had no choice but to change his plans; still, it never crossed his mind that Nie An could break through his limit and ascend to the Eighth Order so soon.
Fortunately, he was certain that Nie An was alive at the very least, and he could act accordingly.
While Yang Kai was in his thoughts, Nie An suddenly asked, “Are you a newcomer?”
Yang Kai promptly cupped his fist, “Greetings, Sir. I’ve been here for three years.”
Upon hearing that, Nie An asked, “Are you the one who was sent here by Hei Yuan?”
“Yes,” Yang Kai had no idea how the other man found out he was Hei Yuan’s Black Ink Disciple. Nevertheless, it went to show that Nie An was able to get his hands on the sensitive information that only the most important Black Ink Clansmen knew. In other words, the Royal Lord truly treasured him.
“Where were you?” Nie An asked.
Yang Kai honestly reported to him. Fortunately, the materials that Wu Xing He asked him to buy were indeed precious. Qing Lei could be easily fooled because he knew nothing about Artifact Refining, but the same trick couldn’t be used on Nie An.
Luckily, Nie An didn’t intend to probe him further and just nodded gently before he stopped talking.
As the portal was opened, the Territory Lord and Nie An dashed inside while the ship remained anchored outside. After they entered, Yang Kai and the Feudal Lord also flew into the Sealed World.
Presently, Mei Qiong was busy handling the Territory Lord and Nie An, so he couldn’t pay a lot of attention to Yang Kai. After asking some questions, he simply let Yang Kai pass.
After leading Yang Kai to the mountain valley, the Feudal Lord left, for he had to report to Qing Lei on the completion of this mission.
Yang Kai sauntered towards Wu Xing He’s residence and gently triggered the restriction. A moment later, a gap appeared in the middle of the restriction, then Yang Kai walked inside.
On the second floor, Wu Xing He was seated with his legs crossed. There was some faint Black Ink Strength lingering around his figure. Presently, he was continuously circulating the power of his Small Universe to resist the Black Ink Strength.
Yang Kai wasn’t surprised at the sight. He walked up to Wu Xing He and clapped his hands. The next instant, a pure and dazzling light engulfed Wu Xing He.
A sizzling noise was heard as the Black Ink Strength inside Wu Xing He’s body soon disintegrated.
Wu Xing He’s clothes were already soaked in sweat as he let out a breath, “You came back pretty quick, Junior Brother.”
Yang Kai replied, “I wouldn’t let you be at risk.”
Before he left the place some time ago, he already realised that Wu Xing He had been invaded by Black Ink Strength. That was the reason he had to come back in a hurry. If he returned any later, Wu Xing He would have been corrupted and become a Black Ink Disciple. When that happened, Yang Kai’s identity would have been exposed.
Of course, Yang Kai reckoned that Wu Xing He would kill himself at the most critical moment to ensure that the secret remained safe.
On the Black Ink Battlefield, Human soldiers had always been willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the greater good.
Wu Xing He was corrupted by Black Ink Strength when he came into contact with Qing Lei. This Sealed World was not filled with Black Ink Strength, so he didn’t have to worry about anything as long as he was cautious enough; however, Wu Xing He was standing too close to Qing Lei at that time. As a Territory Lord, Qing Lei naturally released Black Ink Strength around him. On the other hand, Wu Xing He wouldn’t dare to resist lest his secret was exposed. That was how he was corrupted.
Fortunately, he was only stained with a small amount of Black Ink Strength; otherwise, he would’ve become a Black Ink Disciple again before Yang Kai returned.
“Is everything prepared?” Wu Xing He asked with concern.
Yang Kai nodded, “Yes.”
Wu Xing He had no idea what move Yang Kai had used to fool the Feudal Lord that had tagged along with him; however, since he had said as much, it meant that the matter was indeed settled.
“Nie An has returned, Senior Brother Wu,” Yang Kai said.
“He’s back?” Wu Xing He was startled.
With a solemn expression, Yang Kai nodded, “I came across him on my way back. He’s now an Eighth-Order Master!”
Upon hearing that, Wu Xing He sported an anxious expression, “That’s terrible news for us.”
What he and Yang Kai hoped was for Nie An to explode and pass away when trying to achieve an ascension so that no one would be able to help the Black Ink Clan finish their Warship. Now that Nie An had returned safely though, it was bad news for them.
After giving it a thought, Wu Xing He asked, “Can Nie An be saved?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “No. His limit is the Sixth-Order, so his Small Universe can only bear the power of the Sixth-Order. The reason he’s alive right now is because of the Black Ink Strength. The moment I dispel the Black Ink Strength in his body, his Small Universe will explode.”
The light in Wu Xing He’s eyes went out, “What a shame.”
If Nie An could be saved, it would be good news for the Humans. After all, Artifact Refining Great Grandmasters were rare. However, Yang Kai made it clear that Nie An could not be saved, which was why Wu Xing He found it to be a shame.
“Yes, it is indeed a shame, but Nie An has to die!” Yang Kai said grimly.
As long as Nie An was killed, the Black Ink Clan’s plan to build a Warship would come to a halt.
Perhaps they would still be able to nurture some Artifact Refiners in the distant future, but those Black Ink Disciples would never grow to be Great Grandmasters.
Now, Humans from different Great Passes had Purifying Light, and Purifying Black Ink Pills had been successfully developed. In other words, no Human soldiers would be corrupted by Black Ink Strength again. How was the Black Ink Clan supposed to nurture Artifact Refiners without any new Black Ink Disciples?
The moment they broke through their limits with Black Ink Strength, people like Nie An and Liu Zi An lost all hope to be saved.
“It’s not easy to kill an Eighth-Order Master. Moreover, there are two Territory Lords in this Sealed World. What’s your plan?”
Yang Kai replied, “I’m certainly no match for a normal Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master; however, Nie An is different. He won’t be able to fully utilise his Eighth-Order might. Furthermore, I don’t have to fight with him directly. I just have to get a chance to dispel the Black Ink Strength in his body. By then, his Small Universe will come apart, and he’ll detonate. As for the two Territory Lords… Mei Qiong has never left the portal over the years, so I don’t have a good solution for him. Nevertheless, Qing Lei will leave this Sealed World every six months. We can make use of that.”
Upon hearing that, Wu Xing He nodded, “Qing Lei only left this Sealed World some time ago, so it will be another six months before he leaves again.”
“We’ll make a move in six months, then.” Yang Kai was determined, “I hope that everything will go well by then; however, before that, I will need you to deal with Senior Brother Wang and Senior Brother Guan.”
Wu Xing He nodded, “I’ll inform you at an opportune time.”
As they spoke, the restriction around the building was triggered. A thought flashed through Wu Xing He’s mind as the restriction was deactivated. A moment later, a Black Ink Disciple walked up the stairs and cupped his fist at them, “Senior Brother Nie wants to see you, Senior Brothers.”
A puzzled Wu Xing He asked, “What happened?”
The Black Ink Disciple shook his head, “I have no idea, but Senior Brother Nie wants everybody to gather together.”
Upon finishing his words, he turned around and left.
After exchanging glances, Yang Kai and Wu Xing He frowned. They had no idea why Nie An wanted them to come together not long after he returned.
“Let’s see what he’s up to,” Wu Xing He said, then left the place with the other man.
A moment later, several hundred Artifact Refiners gathered together in front of the Warship in the mountain valley. Standing in front of them was the bloated Nie An.
Many people were whispering among themselves as they had no idea why Nie An gathered everyone.
When all of the Artifact Refiners were present, Nie An gazed at the huge Warship with narrowed eyes and waved his hand, “Dismantle it.”
Upon hearing that, all of them were astounded.
Guan Ning, who was at the front, stepped forward and said, “Senior Brother Nie, this Warship is about to be completed. Why do you want to dismantle it?”
Nie An replied dispassionately, “What’s the point of keeping this rubbish? Dismantle it.”
“But…”
Just when Guan Ning wanted to continue speaking, Nie An suddenly turned his head and glared at him, “What else do you want to say?”
As he spoke, his Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm pressure swept across the place.
Guan Ning gulped and spoke no further.
Wu Xing He, who was standing beside Yang Kai, frowned. Although Nie An was haughty back then, he had never been so overbearing. It seemed that his temperament had changed after he forcefully ascended to the Eighth Order.
The Artifact Refiners worked together to dismantle the Warship, which was yet to be completed.
Then, Nie An directly gave the order and divided the hundreds of Artifact Refiners into a dozen groups. Each group was given specific tasks according to the fields they were proficient in.
A massive amount of resources were sent to this place by the Black Ink Clan, after which the Artifact Refiners started building a new Warship.
While working hard, Yang Kai secretly observed Nie An and realised that the latter was indeed an Artifact Refining Great Grandmaster now. He had no idea how skilful Nie An was in Artifact Refining before his recent ascension, but from the looks of it, the latter was indeed a more accomplished Artifact Refiner than Wu Xing He and the others.
Perhaps he was still not comparable to Dong Guo An Ping, who was a Great Grandmaster in Blue Sky Pass; however, Dong Guo An Ping had been a Great Grandmaster for thousands of years. As a new Great Grandmaster, Nie An was naturally less experienced; however, as time passed, his achievements might be just as great as those of Dong Guo An Ping.
This person was indeed gifted when it came to Artifact Refining. It was no wonder he could transform into an influential figure from a little-known person.
Although he still wasn’t skilful enough, he was already capable of refining a functional Warship.
As Yang Kai observed with concern as the Warship in the mountain valley started taking shape after just three months. It was not different from the previously dismantled Warship when it came to its appearance, but all the Artifact Refiners in the mountain valley clearly felt that its capabilities were much greater than those of the previous version. Once it was completed, it would be good enough to be deployed on the battlefield.
The Artifact Refiners were elated at the imminent success of the project, so they spent longer hours taking part in the development of the Warship, which further accelerated the refinement process.
Yang Kai remained as Wu Xing He’s assistant.
During this period of time, with Wu Xing He’s cooperation, Yang Kai managed to dispel the Black Ink Strength within Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning.
Although these three Grandmasters were doing their best to delay the process of perfecting the Warship, they had to be cautious to prevent exposing themselves.
Day after day, with the enormous amount of resources pouring in and hundreds of Artifact Refiners working diligently, the Warship was nearing perfection.
It was also closer to the deadline Yang Kai had set almost six months ago.
One day, Yang Kai was helping Wu Xing He as usual to refine an offensive artifact to be installed on the Warship. It had only been six months since Nie An returned, but under his leadership, the hundreds of Artifact Refiners here worked together to perfect the Warship. The Warship was almost complete, but there were still some defects that had to be rectified.
As for the capabilities of this Warship, these Artifact Refiners had their own judgements; however, those could only be verified by deploying the Warship on the battlefield.
Somewhere near the Warship, Nie An was having a chat with Qing Lei, who was responsible for guarding this place.
Qing Lei had always acted aloof and arrogant in front of Wu Xing He and the others, but he was polite to Nie An. He totally regarded him as an equal, which just went to show how important Nie An was to the Black Ink Clan.
This was to be expected though as Nie An was an Eighth-Order Master as well as an Artifact Refining Great Grandmaster. Regardless of whose Black Ink Disciple he previously was, he was now working directly under Mu Guang.
Naturally, the treatment that the Royal Lord’s Black Ink Disciple received was different.
They didn’t seem to have the intention of keeping their conversation secret, so Yang Kai could hear them clearly.
Qing Lei asked, “Brother Nie, is this Warship usable now?”
With his hands behind his back, Nie An replied proudly, “Yes. After a bit of troubleshooting, it can be deployed on the battlefield.”
Upon hearing that, Qing Lei was ecstatic, “You’re indeed incredible.”
Nie An replied impassively, “This Nie certainly wouldn’t disappoint the Royal Lord.”
Qing Lei went on to ask, “How capable is this thing compared to those owned by the Humans?”
Nie An said, “It’s likely slightly inferior; however, this is a prototype. As we refine more Warships, everyone will become familiar with the process. In time, the capabilities of our Warships will improve. Soon, we’ll be able to make ones that are on par with the ones owned by the Humans. With that said, even though this Warship is less capable, it’s also much larger than the ones owned by the Humans as it’s specifically made for the Black Ink Clan. With enough people on board, this Warship will be able to deal a heavy blow to the enemy.”
Qing Lei nodded gently, “I’ll report what you’ve said to the Royal Lord.”
“Please tell the Royal Lord that one Warship will not be useful on the battlefield. It would be better to make a number of them first so that we can catch the Humans off guard.”
Qing Lei grinned, “With you working for the Royal Lord, it’s as great as owning an entire army.”
“Many thanks for your compliment, Brother Qing Lei.”
Qing Lei decided to end their conversation here, “I’ll head to the Royal City now and tell the Royal Lord about this piece of good news. I’m sure the Royal Lord will be pleased. I’ll leave affairs here to you.”
“It’s my duty,” Nie An nodded lightly.
The next instant, Qing Lei shot into the sky and headed towards the portal.
As Yang Kai and Wu Xing He exchanged glances, a glint flashed through their eyes.
A moment later, a faint fluctuation of Space Principles was felt coming from the portal. Apparently, Qing Lei had left this Sealed World.
Upon that confirmation, Yang Kai nodded at Wu Xing He and got up before shuffling forward in a different direction.
When he passed by Wang Si Bo, he secretly said, “The time has come.”
Wang Si Bo halted what he was doing and nodded almost imperceptibly.
Then, Yang Kai brushed past Guan Ning and told him the same thing.
A moment later, Wu Xing He suddenly got up and called out, “Senior Brother Nie!”
Nie An was in a nearby place. Upon hearing that, he turned his head and frowned, “What’s wrong?”
Wu Xing He said, “There’s a slight problem here. I need you to have a look at it.”
Despite being bloated, the unsuspecting Nie An appeared in front of him the next instant, “What’s the problem?”
Wu Xing He pointed at the offensive artifact he was refining, “There seems to be a problem with this artifact. Should I refine a new one?”
Nie An turned to look at the artifact and picked it up before examining it. A moment later, he snapped with a dark expression, “Waste! You’ve basically ruined this artifact! How do you have the nerve to call yourself an Artifact Refining Grandmaster?”
To the side, Wu Xing He didn’t dare to say anything, but in the next instant he caught a glimpse of Yang Kai appearing behind Nie An like a phantom. Yellow and blue light appeared on his palms as energy fluctuated. The moment he clapped his hands, those lights turned into a pure white light and engulfed Nie An.
Seeing that, Wu Xing He did not hesitate to execute the original plan as he dashed towards the defensive array and infused his power into it.
In the meantime, in two different places around the Warship, Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning acted according to Yang Kai’s instructions. The instant they detected the surge of energy, they promptly infused their powers into the defensive arrays.
Three defensive arrays were simultaneously activated by three Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and a huge light barrier instantly covered the entire Warship.
The sudden change happening on the Warship instantly caught the attention of the Black Ink Clansmen nearby. As they turned their heads to look, however, they realised they were unable to see anything clearly as the Warship was engulfed in a solid light barrier which looked like a membrane that prevented anyone from peering through it.
This made all the Black Ink Clansmen feel shocked and doubtful. Having no idea what was going on with the Warship, they began to gather around.
None of them could have expected that a plan that was a long time in the making was unfolding right before their eyes.
While the Black Ink Clansmen were caught off guard, Nie An also hadn’t expected that someone would launch a sneak attack on him.
The moment Yang Kai engulfed him with the Purifying Light, Nie An turned around and felt an instinctive disgust towards the white light. He quickly snapped, “You court death!”
As his Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm power burst forth, he threw out his fist.
A grunt was heard as someone was sent flying away; however, the white light had already covered Nie An completely. In an instant, he wailed in pain as the Black Ink Strength in his body gushed out of his body, as though it was facing its nemesis. The Black Ink Strength was soon dispersed and purified.
Nie An’s expression was transformed by fear and horror. The violent aura around him became even more dangerous and the sarcomas on his skin started bulging as black pus spewed out of them.
Just moments later, all the Black Ink Strength in his Small Universe was dispelled by the Purifying Light, and without its support, he was unable to bear his own Eighth-Order cultivation.
He widened his eyes as the veins on his forehead throbbed. While he looked horrible, his already bloated figure started expanding rapidly like a balloon.
He shook a little as he extended his hands in an attempt to grab something, but he was unable to do anything in the end.
Following a loud boom, he exploded and turned into hashed meat and blood.
Just like Yang Kai had said to Wu Xing He before, he didn’t need to directly deal with Nie An in order to kill him. Nie An acquired his Eighth-Order cultivation through the help of Black Ink Strength; hence, without the Black Ink Strength’s support, his own cultivation would kill him.
Yang Kai didn’t even need to fight with him; just by activating Purifying Light to dispel the Black Ink Strength in his body, he could easily dispatch Nie An.
Having said that, Nie An was still an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. If they really got into a fight, Yang Kai might not be a match for him.
The moment the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master detonated, a violent force spread across the Warship and caused the people on the deck to fall to the ground. The Artifact Refiners closest to Nie An had all collapsed while the bow of the Warship was destroyed upon impact. Even the light barrier around the Warship bulged.
As Yang Kai coughed, he struggled out of the wreckage with a flushing face.
Nie An’s last desperate strike managed to hurt him, but that was inevitable, for they were basically at arm’s length from each other at that time. Despite being a Master in the Dao of Space, Yang Kai couldn’t dodge the final strike of an Eighth-Order Master before his death.
Fortunately, everything was going according to plan.
Since Nie An was dead, the Black Ink Clan’s plan would come to a halt. Other than this new Great Grandmaster, no one else could help them build Warships that would be used against the Humans.
It could be said that Yang Kai had completed half of his task just by killing Nie An. Even if he was unable to escape now, he would die with no regrets.
Strictly speaking, Yang Kai’s plan was a crude one with many factors that were beyond his control. For example, he wasn’t certain whether Qing Lei would leave at the appropriate time. And, how was he going to escape from the Sealed World when a Territory Lord was guarding the portal? Even if he managed to flee from the Sealed World, how would he shake off the Black Ink Clan’s pursuit?
He didn’t have time to ponder on all these issues though, nor was it useful for him to do so.
Since the plan was crude, it meant that there were too many variables he could not account for. The only thing he could do was to launch a sneak attack and kill Nie An.
Under Nie An’s leadership, the Warship was about to be completed, and Qing Lei had left at this point. Regardless of how crude the plan was, it had to be executed immediately.
Since Nie An was dead, the Black Ink Clan’s plan would come to a halt. As for whether Yang Kai could bring the other Artifact Refiners to flee from this Sealed World, and how he would get rid of the Black Ink Clan’s pursuit after that, he could only leave it up to the Heavens.
Upon confirming that Nie An was dead, Yang Kai was relieved. Then, he madly absorbed the powers of Yellow and Blue Crystals in his Small Universe and activated Purifying Light.
There were several hundred Artifact Refiners on the Warship now. Over the past six months, under Nie An’s leadership, everyone was constantly building the Warship, so no one had time to rest. All of them had gathered together, which gave Yang Kai a chance to deal with them all at once.
Other than Wu Xing He and the other two Grandmasters, whose Black Ink Strength had been dispelled some time ago, these hundreds of Artifact Refiners were still Black Ink Disciples.
In order to make these Black Ink Disciples work with him, Yang Kai had to restore their true natures first.
With Yang Kai as the centre, Purifying Light exploded outwards and soon engulfed the entire Warship as well as all the Artifact Refiners.
Sizzling noises were heard coming from everywhere as Black Ink Strength leaked from these Artifact Refiners before fading into nothingness under the intense white light.
Just a moment later, all the Artifact Refiners regained their senses as Humans. The turn of events startled them as they had no idea what was going on.
With that said, they still remembered what had happened over the years and instantly felt ashamed and vexed that they had actually built a Warship for the Black Ink Clan.
With no time to waste, Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning quickly told them what was going on in loud voices and calmed them down.
Following a temporary commotion and puzzlement, these Artifact Refiners followed the instructions of Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning as they took charge of the arrays and infused their powers into them.
Outside of the Warship, the Black Ink Clansmen were perplexed as they had no idea what was going on within the light barrier. They reckoned that something had gone wrong and many of the Feudal Lords were now shouting. Some of them even started attacking the light barrier in order to find out what was going on inside.
Right then, a humming sound was heard as the Warship rose into the air. Following that, violent attacks were shot from its weapons.
Many of the unprepared Black Ink Clansmen suffered injuries or were killed in this initial bombardment. Even some of the Feudal Lords were badly injured.
Although Nie An’s return was terrible news to Yang Kai, the Warship built under his leadership was of great help now.
The capabilities of this Warship were not comparable to those of the Warships owned by the Humans, but it was already good enough to be deployed in battle. Moreover, with hundreds of Artifact Refiners present, they were able to unleash the Warship’s full power; after all, they were the ones who built it, so they were the ones most familiar with its capabilities.
Nothing was more enjoyable in the world than using the Warship they had crafted to deal with the Black Ink Clan. These Artifact Refiners madly channelled their World Force to vent out their grievances of becoming the Black Ink Clan’s lackeys.
As the Warship roared to life, all the offensive arrays were fully activated. The consumption of energy did not bother the people on the vessel. Faced with this barrage of attacks, the surrounding Black Ink Clansmen had no choice but to flee.
The Black Ink Clansmen would counterattack from time to time, but they wouldn’t dare to use all of their powers, and the light barrier around the Warship could easily fend off such tepid attacks.
Before the Black Ink Clansmen were certain what was going on with the Warship, they wouldn’t dare to destroy it. They had been staying in this Sealed World for a long time, so they knew that these Artifact Refiners were valuable assets as well as talented people that the Royal Lord had high hopes for. Hence, no one would dare to deal a lethal blow to them. If they accidentally killed some of these precious Artifact Refiners, they would surely be executed as well.
Since they were concerned about accidentally killing the Artifact Refiners, the Warship only became more unstoppable.
One of the Feudal Lords came to his senses soon and shouted, “Inform Sir Mei Qiong about this, now!”
In fact, Mei Qiong was already gazing in their direction while feeling shocked and doubtful, a solemn expression on his face.
The energy fluctuations coming from the Warship were violent, and as a Territory Lord, he had certainly detected them. However, he was tasked with guarding the portal, so he couldn’t leave as he pleased. Therefore, despite realising the anomaly, he didn’t immediately go over and look into the matter right away.
After all, he had felt energy fluctuations coming from the Warship in the past when the Artifact Refiners were experimenting with its offensive and defensive artifacts.
Nevertheless, this time seemed to be different. After hesitating for a bit, Mei Qiong said to one of his subordinates, “Go over there and find out what’s going on.”
Upon receiving the order, the Feudal Lord quickly left to investigate.
At this moment, Yang Kai was moving around the Warship. Although the Humans managed to gain the upper hand by leveraging the Warship’s power and making a move first, the Black Ink Clansmen would soon react accordingly.
Although Qing Lei was not around, it was not easy to deal with Mei Qiong. Once the Territory Lord arrived, the Humans wouldn’t be able to fight against him despite having the Warship; after all, this vessel was not complete to begin with, and many of the arrays were damaged after Nie An exploded.
Yang Kai had to transfer these Artifact Refiners inside his Small Universe before Mei Qiong realised what was going on so that they would stand a better chance of fleeing; otherwise, with so many people around, they couldn’t possibly flee.
Other than Wu Xing He and the two Grandmasters, the rest of the 300 or so Artifact Refiners were below the Seventh Order; therefore, Yang Kai could easily keep them inside his Small Universe.
Wherever he went, the Artifact Refiners would disappear as they were stuffed into his Small Universe.
Without these Artifact Refiners powering it, the Warship was weakening rapidly.
After just 10 breaths of time, only Yang Kai and the three Grandmasters were left on the Warship. The Warship instantly became powerless, which startled the Black Ink Clansmen around it.
Yang Kai quickly shouted, “Please cut your cultivations, Senior Brothers!”
Wu Xing He and the others were in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, which was the same Order as Yang Kai. Usually, Yang Kai wouldn’t be able to keep them inside his Small Universe; however, if they were willing to give up a part of their Small Universes and force their Order to regress, there wouldn’t be a problem.
This was part of Yang Kai’s plan, so Wu Xing He and the others were aware of it.
Therefore, at this moment, they did not hesitate to sacrifice parts of their Small Universes. In order to save time, they ferociously sliced off large chunks of their Small Universe to quickly weaken themselves.
Just moments later, their Orders all fell from the Seventh Order to the Sixth Order. Their faces were pale, and the Soul-wrenching pain caused them to tremble uncontrollably.
Yang Kai had gone through the pain of sacrificing a part of his Small Universe before, so he understood how they felt; however, their Orders regressing was a small price to pay to escape with their lives. After all, when they returned to the Humans’ side safely, they could consume Profound Yin Spirit Fruits to repair their Small Universes. If they lost their lives, nothing else would matter.
Soon, Wu Xing He and the others were also put inside Yang Kai’s Small Universe.
Any other Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master wouldn’t be able to keep these 300 Open Heaven Realm Masters in their Small Universes; after all, there was a limit to the capacity of a Seventh-Order Master’s Small Universe. By keeping too many Open Heaven Realm Masters, they would find it hard to utilise their World Force, and their strength would plunge.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai wasn’t affected one bit. He wasn’t certain if it was because his heritage was ample or for some other reason.
With that said, this was undoubtedly good news to him.
However, without Wu Xing He and the other Grandmasters taking charge, the light barrier around the Warship instantly disappeared. It wasn’t until this moment that the Black Ink Clansmen saw what was going on.
The sight before their eyes astounded them.
Presently, the several hundred Artifact Refiners had gone missing from the Warship, leaving only one person behind. Besides that, the Warship seemed to have been impacted by a violent explosion and many places were evidently damaged.
[What happened?]
All the Black Ink Clansmen were perplexed.
Standing on the deck, Yang Kai ignored the clamour coming from the Black Ink Clansmen and instead stared intently at the portal.
He could sense that Mei Qiong’s aura was approaching quickly, obviously having detected the abnormal situation over here.
After letting out a breath, Yang Kai channelled as much strength as he could into the defensive array beneath his feet. The next moment, the light barrier reappeared around the Warship. However, this time, it could only serve as a shield and could no longer prevent others from looking through it.
Following that, he turned the Warship in a different direction and drove it towards the portal.
From afar, he could see a dark light approaching the vessel. It was none other than Mei Qiong, who was responsible for guarding the portal, followed by a large number of Feudal Lords.
At this moment, Mei Qiong was both shocked and furious.
Although he had already detected the anomaly taking place in the mountain valley earlier, he didn’t immediately come over to have a look considering that the Humans had been experimenting with the powers of the artifacts recently. Therefore, he only told a subordinate to look into the matter; however, he was astonished by the news he received.
For some reason, the Warship started attacking the Black Ink Clansmen in the mountain valley and caused a lot of casualties.
This was simply intolerable!
Were the Human Artifact Refiners out of their minds? How did they have the guts to make a move on the Black Ink Clan? What prompted them to do so?
Before Qing Lei left, he told Mei Qiong that the Warship was almost complete, so he had to head to the Royal City and share this good news with the Royal Lord.
Nevertheless, such an incident happened not long after he left. As the only Territory Lord in this place now, how was Mei Qiong supposed to take responsibility? If the Royal Lord blamed this debacle on him, he would be severely punished despite being a Territory Lord.
Like a rumbling volcano, the fury in Mei Qiong’s chest was about to erupt.
From afar, he saw that the Warship built by the Human Artifact Refiners was coming at him at full speed, and standing on the deck was one person whose expression was cold and indifferent.
He was the Artifact Refiner sent to this place by Hei Yuan!
[Why is he the only one here? Where are the others?]
Seeing that the Warship was coming at him at full speed without showing signs of decelerating, Mei Qiong barked, “Stop!”
Yang Kai, who was standing on the deck, curved his lips into a smile. Instead of stopping, he infused even more energy into the Warship’s arrays, which caused the Warship to accelerate further.
[Something is wrong with him. He’s not a Black Ink Disciple!] An idea flashed through Mei Qiong’s mind.
If he was really a Black Ink Disciple, regardless of who his Master was, he wouldn’t dare to be impudent in front of a Territory Lord; however, instead of obeying Mei Qiong’s order, this person became even more brazen.
Mei Qiong didn’t have time to ponder on this issue though as the Warship was about to hit him. Roaring, he surged his rich Black Ink Strength, which turned into a huge Black Ink Cloud and engulfed the Warship. At the same time, he pushed out his palms.
The giant Warship hummed as every part of it creaked upon impact. Mei Qiong was forced to move backwards, but he soon stabilised himself after more than ten steps. He successfully stopped the Warship.
Given his power as a Territory Lord, such a Warship with only a single person in charge couldn’t cause any damage to him. If he wanted, he could have destroyed this Warship.
However, this was the treasure that the Royal Lord had high hopes of. They had spent countless amounts of time, resources, and manpower to build it. This ship was the key to securing the Black Ink Clan’s future. That was why he wouldn’t dare to destroy it.
Left with no other choice, he could only stop the Warship in such a way. By stopping the vessel so easily, it went to show how powerful he truly was.
Separated by only a light barrier, Yang Kai and Mei Qiong stared at one another. One of them was unfazed while the other was infuriated.
Mei Qiong said through clenched teeth, “Bastard, you’re dead!”
Yang Kai grinned at him as he madly channelled his power into the Warship like a torrent.
The next instant, a dangerous aura could be felt coming from every part of the Warship.
With widened eyes, Mei Qiong roared, “You dare?!”
As he spoke, he extended his hand towards Yang Kai. The thin light barrier around the Warship couldn’t possibly fend off the powerful attack from a Territory Lord and lasted for only one breath before it shattered.
As he was about to capture Yang Kai though, a dazzling light suddenly exploded from the Warship. A horrifying force spread out as the entire Warship was engulfed in a ball of raging flames.
Mei Qiong missed his target and failed in his attempt to capture the insolent Human. At the most critical moment, the Human seemed to have vanished into thin air.
On the other hand, the Warship’s explosion caused his arm to be injured and he was also forced to move backwards upon impact.
The Warship was destroyed!
Mei Qiong stared at the burning Warship. Despite the heat, he felt as though a basin of cold water had been poured onto his heart.
He could almost envision how infuriated the Royal Lord would be upon learning what had happened. He probably would have to bear all the responsibility. Despite being a Territory Lord, he wouldn’t be able to bear what was to come.
Up until this moment, he still had no idea what was going on. How did things go so wrong all of a sudden? After all, not long ago, Qing Lei told him that the Warship was almost completed, so he had to head to the Royal City and inform the Royal Lord about it.
Mei Qiong thought that he would not have to stay here much longer. In the future, he could stand on a Warship and look down condescendingly at his enemies on the battlefield.
Barely two hours later, his dream burst like a bubble. It was expected that he was enraged.
[That Human!]
As long as he could capture that Human, he would find out the truth.
He suddenly turned his head and gazed at the portal before yelling, “Cordon off the portal! Make sure no one can leave this place!”
Although the Human disappeared as the Warship exploded, Mei Qiong didn’t think he was dead. The Human must have pulled a trick and avoided his detection by using the explosion to cover his tracks.
In that case, the Human’s target would undoubtedly be the portal, for he had to leave this Sealed World as quickly as possible.
Upon giving the order, Mei Qiong turned around to return to the portal.
As soon as he started moving though, he heard the sound of battle coming from the portal. Following that, the portal in mid-air opened rapidly.
The Human that had escaped from Mei Qiong had really headed to the portal. The instant the portal was opened, he dashed past it and disappeared.
After that, the portal closed abruptly and vanished.
A furious Mei Qiong turned into a dark streak of light and reached the portal in just a few breaths’ time. Lifting his gaze, he realised that seven or eight Feudal Lords had collapsed, all badly injured. The most severely wounded one had a large hole in his figure as his body was penetrated by some kind of weapon earlier. Black blood was splattered all over the place.
[That Human is so strong!] Mei Qiong was startled.
As far as he knew, the Black Ink Disciple sent to this place by Hei Yuan was just a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Usually, a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was more powerful than a Feudal Lord, but even if one Feudal Lord was no match for him, how was it possible that so many Feudal Lords were defeated at the same time?
Moreover, only a few breaths of time had passed since the Human escaped from Mei Qiong. How did he disable seven or eight Feudal Lords in such a short time?
Mei Qiong didn’t have time to ponder on this issue. While gritting his teeth, he ordered, “Open the portal!”
Since the Human had fled, he naturally had to chase after him. Only by capturing the Human could he make up for his mistake and find out what had happened.
It wasn’t necessary for Mei Qiong to give the order. In fact, after Yang Kai fled, a Feudal Lord, who was usually responsible for opening the portal, had been trying his best to do just that; however, the portal that could be opened with ease normally showed no reaction on this day.
After several attempts, he still got the same outcome.
The Feudal Lord’s forehead was covered with sweat, possibly because of pain, anxiety, or both. Still, he turned to look at Mei Qiong and reported, “Sir, I can’t open it!”
“Waste!” Mei Qiong directly kicked the Feudal Lord away and snatched the token. He then infused his power into the token and waved it at the portal.
As usual, a dark light shot into the Void, but no reaction was seen. The portal, which should’ve been opened by now, was nowhere in sight.
Mei Qiong widened his eyes and made one more attempt, but the outcome was the same.
A Feudal Lord came over and said in a hushed voice, “Sir, the portal’s restriction was set up by the Black Ink Disciples. They must have tampered with it somehow.”
Certainly, Mei Qiong realised this as well; otherwise, he couldn’t explain what was going on. He directly exerted more force with his hand and turned the token into dust before demanding, “Break it open!”
As he spoke, he made a move first by launching an attack on the portal. Seeing that, the Feudal Lords followed suit.
In the void, Yang Kai manipulated Space Principles and repeatedly used Instantaneous Movement. He was trying to get as far away from the Royal City as possible.
Previously, when he was led to the Royal City to purchase materials, he left behind a trick in the Sealed World’s portal. Given his mastery in the Dao of Space, no one else could possibly notice it. Now that he had to flee from this Sealed World, he activated the trick.
However, he knew that this little measure couldn’t hold Mei Qiong up for long. Mei Qiong just had to forcefully break through the portal, which would take no more than a cup of tea’s time. After that, a large number of Black Ink Clansmen would relentlessly pursue him.
Therefore, he only had a cup of tea’s time to flee. Given such a short time, regardless of how proficient he was at the Dao of Space, Yang Kai couldn’t possibly escape from the Black Ink Clan; therefore, he could only get as far away from the Royal City as possible.
Given his strength, he might be able to escape from a Territory Lord; however, if the Royal Lord made a move, there was nothing else he could do but to wait for death.
Nie An was dead, and the only completed Warship was destroyed. It could be said that the Black Ink Clan’s plan was as good as dead.
Everything would be perfect if Yang Kai could bring the remaining 300 Artifact Refiners in his Small Universe back to the Humans’ side.
Nevertheless, the road ahead of him was paved with danger. He wasn’t certain if he could get away. Presently, he could only do his best to run for his life. If he succeeded, everything would be fine. If he failed, he had more than 300 friends to accompany him on the road to the Yellow Springs, so he wouldn’t feel lonely.
As he fully activated Space Principles, his figure flickered like a phantom.
Fortunately, Yang Kai didn’t run into any real danger while navigating through the void.
Even though he would sometimes come across some Black Ink Clansmen who were heading to the Royal City, he would disappear from their sight the next instant. Many of the Black Ink Clansmen even thought that they saw an illusion.
Suddenly, there came a moment when Yang Kai felt all his hair standing on end. There seemed to be a pair of eyes that were opening and staring at him from a faraway place behind him.
Mu Guang Royal Lord!
After making some calculations, Yang Kai realised that Mei Qiong should have broken through the portal and informed the Royal Lord about what had happened in the Sealed World by now.
Even from such a great distance, the Royal Lord could still accurately locate him, astonishing Yang Kai.
One had to know that he had never stopped using Instantaneous Movement since he left the Sealed World and presently, he was very far away from the Royal City.
The Royal Lords were really astounding, and their powers were beyond Yang Kai’s imagination.
He wasn’t certain whether Mu Guang could really find his exact whereabouts, but he wouldn’t dare to stop fleeing. However, after he was targeted by that gaze, he felt that something had been wrapped around his figure, which made him feel a constant sense of discomfort and left him slightly muddle-headed.
It was obviously because of the Royal Lord’s aura that had locked onto him.
With a solemn expression, Yang Kai continued charging forward without worrying about his consumption of energy. Regardless of whether Mu Guang had really discovered his whereabouts, he still had a chance to flee; after all, Mu Guang was still far away from him, so it wouldn’t be easy for the Royal Lord to catch up.
Half a day after Yang Kai escaped from the Sealed World, he finally came across a Black Ink Clan army that was there to stop him.
It wasn’t appropriate to call them an army really, as their scale suggested that they were just a Feudal Lord’s private force. There were only a small number of Feudal Lords, and the rest were High-Rank and Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen, numbering about 300 people.
This private force was right in front of Yang Kai, as though they had been waiting for him for a long time. The moment Yang Kai’s figure appeared, the Feudal Lord at the front shouted, “He’s that Human! Capture him and the Royal Lord will reward you handsomely!”
Yang Kai wasn’t surprised at the fact that this Black Ink Clan Army could quickly find out what was going on and even intercept him here. In fact, he had already expected it.
Compared to the Humans, the transmission of information between the Black Ink Clansmen was far quicker.
In Zha Gu’s territory, Yang Kai learned about some of the Black Ink Nest’s secrets. With the Black Ink Nests of different sizes as the foundation, a colossal information network could be built. Through the information network, everything that happened in the Black Ink Clan’s territory could spread around quickly.
Since Mu Guang had found out about what had happened in the Sealed World, the Royal Lord could make use of the Black Ink Nests and spread the word across the entire Yin-Yang Theatre, allowing the Black Ink Clan to promptly respond.
Certainly, given Yang Kai’s current strength, he wouldn’t have any regard for a mere Feudal Lords’ force. If he wanted, he could easily kill these mixed soldiers with only a few Feudal Lords in charge.
However, he didn’t have the intention of fighting with them. Mu Guang’s aura had locked onto him from afar, so he wouldn’t dare to waste any time or energy. If possible, he wouldn’t want to battle against any Black Ink Clansmen so that he would have a better chance of fleeing.
Hence, before the private force could even approach him, he manipulated Space Principles and disappeared.
Several hundred Black Ink Clansmen were left dumbfounded.
However, this was just the beginning. In the following half a day, Yang Kai would come across a number of private forces trying to block his path. Nevertheless, he was determined not to deal with those Black Ink Clansmen, and since he was bent on fleeing, those Black Ink Clansmen couldn’t do anything to him either.
They couldn’t capture him unless they could cordon off a stretch of space and seal it. Unfortunately for them, the void was expansive, so even if they knew where he was heading, they couldn’t set up a trap in advance.
It was a thrilling escape.
In fact, Yang Kai was familiar with this kind of escape as, throughout the years, he had been in this exact situation a number of times. He managed to get away every time with the help of his mastery of Space Principles.
He couldn’t remember when the last time such an incident took place, but every time he ran into this kind of situation, he was facing an opponent he couldn’t hope to defeat.
As time passed, all the Black Ink Clansmen in Mu Guang’s territory seemed to have been mobilised. After experiencing several setbacks, the Black Ink Clansmen began using a different tactic. Instead of gathering together, they separated into small teams and scattered around the void as they awaited Yang Kai’s appearance.
That way, regardless of how reluctant Yang Kai was, he inevitably had to fight at least some of the Black Ink Clansman he happened to bump into. After all, when manipulating Space Principles, he couldn’t be certain whether there would be a Black Ink Clansman waiting for him in his next location.
Fortunately, he never came across a lot of Black Ink Clansmen, and most of his enemies were weak, so it took him little effort to kill them all.
This kind of delay wouldn’t ordinarily pose a problem, but it was lethal at this moment as he was being pursued by a Royal Lord.
As time passed, he could feel that Mu Guang was getting closer. Although he had no idea about Mu Guang’s exact location, Yang Kai realised that the aura that had locked onto him became heavier. He felt a kind of pressure, as though he was held down by something, making it more difficult to manipulate Space Principles. The entire Void felt viscous to him.
Despite his calm expression, Yang Kai felt helpless in his heart.
As expected, he was unable to escape from a being like a Royal Lord. The huge gap between their powers couldn’t be made up for with Space Principles alone.
While fleeing, he turned his hand around as an ancient coin appeared in his palm.
This coin was given to him by the little girl who wandered around the Marketplace in Yin-Yang Pass all the time. According to her, she acquired this thing from the Old Ancestor and it might save his life if he cast it out at the critical moment.
Certainly, Yang Kai wouldn’t expect the little girl, who knew nothing but how to eat all the time, to help him in any way; however, this thing came from the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass, so it must have some special power.
As the Old Ancestor, she must be fully aware of everything that was going on in Yin-Yang Pass. Yang Kai didn’t think a little girl, who had never cultivated before, could steal anything from the Old Ancestor.
In other words, the Old Ancestor must be aware that the little girl had given this ancient coin to him. Perhaps she had even instructed the little girl to do so.
Why would the Old Ancestor give him this ancient coin, though? After giving it a thought, Yang Kai reckoned this coin was some kind of life-saving tool; after all, he was asked to come to this place by those from Yin-Yang Pass. Moreover, he could be considered a half-disciple of Yin-Yang Cave Heaven, so it was expected that the Old Ancestor in Yin-Yang Pass would give him something to protect himself.
Otherwise, it wouldn’t explain why the Old Ancestor had never shown up even though he had been staying in Yin-Yang Pass for quite some time. The fact that the Black Ink Clan were building a Warship was a critical matter, so it was impossible that the Old Ancestor wasn’t concerned about it. The reason she never showed up was that she must have made a special arrangement.
This ancient coin could very well be the Old Ancestor’s arrangement.
Yang Kai had inspected this ancient coin before, but couldn’t find out the secrets inside it.
Given the situation he was in, he could only pin his hope on this ancient coin. He secretly prayed that this thing had better be useful; otherwise, he and 300 Artifact Refiners would perish today.
The aura behind him was getting closer and Yang Kai could feel the grand Will that was unique to Royal Lords. It wasn’t the first time he sensed this kind of Will. He had the same experience in the Black Prison and outside of Blue Sky Pass.
However, those experiences were not as profound as what he was going through at this moment.
After all, the Royal Lord in the Black Prison had been sealed off since ancient times, so she was already weak and frail. On the other hand, the one outside of Blue Sky Pass was badly injured and not really paying much attention to him.
However, Mu Guang, who was behind him, was at full strength and was completely focused on him, which was different from the two Royal Lords he had encountered before.
The pressure coming from this Will alone had almost devastated him. Yang Kai felt as if he was carrying a huge mountain on his back, which made it extremely difficult for him to take even a step forward and he could no longer manipulate Space Principles with ease.
After fleeing with difficulty for a bit, he suddenly froze on the spot and became immovable.
First of all, he had consumed too much energy by madly manipulating Space Principles for a prolonged time. Secondly, a pressure had engulfed the entire Void and cordoned off the space around him.
He didn’t even have the strength to turn around.
In the void, a figure slowly stepped out of the darkness.
Lifting his gaze, Yang Kai saw that there was an elegant-looking, curvy woman standing in the void in front of him. The woman was in an imperial dress, which was a form of clothing commonly worn by Humans. The imperial dress perfectly outlined her hourglass figure.
Yang Kai almost thought that he was having a hallucination.
Upon closer look though, he realised that the person indeed looked perfectly Human; however, her grand Will, indescribably authoritative demeanour, and overwhelming Black Ink Strength, suggested that she wasn’t just any Black Ink Clansman. She was the Royal Lord!
Mu Guang!
Yang Kai had heard of the Royal Lord’s name on several occasions from the mouths of the Humans in Yin-Yang Pass as well as the Black Ink Clansmen; however, it wasn’t until this moment that he realised this was what Mu Guang looked like.
It was the first time he came across a Black Ink Clansman that looked entirely Human. Most of the Black Ink Clansmen were burly, and came in various different forms. Yang Kai had been living in the Black Ink Clan’s territory for quite a long time, and he had seen all sorts of Black Ink Clansmen, but he had never seen someone like her before.
This was an eye-opener.
If Mu Guang never revealed her Black Ink Strength, no one would have thought that she was a Black Ink Clansman.
Although the woman was stepping forward in a leisurely manner, her expression was as cold as a frigid winter’s day and she spoke dispassionately, “Despite being weak, you’re pretty audacious.”
Apparently, she had heard from Mei Qiong about what happened in the Sealed World. She knew that not only had all the Artifact Refiners gone missing at the same time, but the Warship that was almost completed had also been destroyed.
It could be said that her centuries-long plan, which could potentially change the status quo and secure the Black Ink Clan’s ultimate victory, was ruined right before it succeeded.
It was expected that she wasn’t pleased with what had happened.
Yang Kai’s figure was stiff as he remained silent. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to retort, but rather that he didn’t even have the strength to speak in front of Mu Guang.
Mu Guang stopped in a place that was just 100 metres away from Yang Kai and asked grimly, “Where is Nie An?”
To her, Nie An was key to the success of her plan. They could build a new Warship and nurture a new batch of Artifact Refiners, but there was only one Nie An. Without this Great Grandmaster, they would never be able to construct a functional Warship.
It had to be noted that the Black Ink Clansmen had been waiting for countless years before they finally had a Great Grandmaster like Nie An. That was the result they had achieved with the Royal Lord’s full support; otherwise, Nie An couldn’t have safely ascended to the Eighth Order on his own, let alone become a Great Grandmaster.
As she spoke, Mu Guang slightly retracted her pressure.
Yang Kai was finally able to speak; still, his voice was hoarse, as though he hadn’t drunk anything for several days, “Nie An is dead!”
“Impudence!” Mu Guang roared. Impacted by the invisible pressure, Yang Kai sprayed out a mouthful of blood, and he instantly looked dispirited.
Her eyes were burning with fury as she glowered at Yang Kai, “I’ll give you one more chance. Tell me where Nie An is, and I’ll spare your life!”
Yang Kai guffawed, “Nie An’s natural limit was only the Sixth Order, so he couldn’t bear his Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm cultivation. Why would I lie to you about him being dead? Moreover, he exploded right in front of me. What? Are you going to kill me to avenge his death?”
Mu Guang was enraged, but she soon thought of something and calmed herself down. She sneered, “You want to die? It won’t be so easy. I heard that you’re pretty talented in Artifact Refining. With proper training, you might be the next Nie An.”
After she finished speaking, her eyes filled with an endless darkness all of a sudden.
Yang Kai felt a force trying to break into his Small Universe, but it soon dissipated. Upon coming to his senses, he exclaimed, “Royal Lord Secret Technique!”
When he was in the Black Prison back then, some of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters who fought alongside him were struck by the Royal Lord’s Secret Technique and instantly became Black Ink Disciples. Yang Kai still vividly recalled the incident, and coupled with his own experience, he came to realise what the woman before his eyes had done just now.
Apparently, Mu Guang had used her Royal Lord Secret Technique on Yang Kai.
The Royal Lord Secret Technique was a technique that was, naturally, unique to Royal Lords, and they wouldn’t use it unless it was absolutely necessary. That was because even though this Secret Technique was powerful, as even Eighth-Order Masters were powerless to resist it and easily transformed into Black Ink Disciples, it would take the Royal Lord a lot of strength to cast it.
Therefore, on the battlefield, with a Human Old Ancestor around, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters didn’t have to worry about getting struck by the Royal Lord Secret Technique and becoming Black Ink Disciples. If the Royal Lord really did so, it would give the Old Ancestor a chance to land a heavy blow on them. However, without the Old Ancestor’s deterrence, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters could only rely on themselves if they came across a Royal Lord.
As expected, after using the Royal Lord Secret Technique, Mu Guang flushed slightly. The pressure that made it difficult for Yang Kai to breathe since her appearance had also weakened.
Despite that, the woman before Yang Kai’s eyes was still a powerful being he could not hope to defeat.
“You indeed have one of the Four Universe Pillars. That smelly girl in Yin-Yang Pass is pretty generous.” Seeing that Yang Kai was still fine, the woman wasn’t one bit surprised. Instead, she seemed to have expected this outcome.
After all, there had to be an explanation for why a Black Ink Disciple had suddenly betrayed them. Only a Human who possessed one of the Four Universe Pillars wouldn’t have to worry about Black Ink Strength or the Royal Lord Secret Technique. It also enabled them to pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple and sneak into the Black Ink Clan to kick up a storm.
However, the cultivators who possessed the Four Universe Pillars that they had come across before were all Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters; none of them was a Seventh-Order Master. Moreover, when Hei Yuan corrupted this Human, he saw him giving up a part of his Small Universe twice. The Human even appeared powerless to turn things around and was determined to sacrifice his life to avoid capture.
Both Hei Yuan and the Royal Lord were fooled. They had never expected that the Humans would be audacious enough to let a Seventh-Order Master own one of the Four Universe Pillars and pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple. Furthermore, he almost succeeded.
Yang Kai had no idea who the ‘smelly girl from Yin-Yang Pass’ that the Royal Lord had mentioned was, but before he could ponder on it, he felt his entire figure stiffen on the spot.
The woman extended her slender hand and said impassively, “Do you think I have no way to deal with you just because you have one of the Four Universe Pillars? Since Nie An is dead, you’ll replace him from now on!”
As soon as she finished speaking, she pushed out her palm.
Endless darkness shaded his vision, and a great sense of danger engulfed his entire figure; however, Yang Kai was powerless to resist. Faced with the Royal Lord’s attack, he was unable to even move.
Right then, he felt a warm stream of energy gathering in his forehead. Following that, something broke out from his figure. At that instant, he broke free from the horrifying pressure and regained his freedom.
On the other hand, Mu Guang let out a cry of surprise.
As a dazzling light expanded, Yang Kai could see a wisp flying out of his forehead and shooting towards Mu Guang. The wisp of light soon turned into a Human form.
It was an old man whose hair and beard were grey with age. Clad in an ordinary robe, he stood there barefooted. His entire figure was covered in a gentle white light, which made him look a bit ethereal and immaterial.
Yang Kai was flabbergasted and unconsciously muttered, “Old Ancestor?”
The old man, who looked surreal as he was engulfed in a white halo, was the Old Ancestor from Blue Sky Pass.
Yang Kai wouldn’t be mistaken, for he had met the Old Ancestor once when he was in Blue Sky Pass.
[Why is Old Ancestor here?] Yang Kai was puzzled.
But soon, he realised that it wasn’t the Old Ancestor’s true form. It was more like a projection or an Avatar.
That was because the figure that was engulfed in the white light didn’t look like it had a physical body.
In an instant, Yang Kai figured out everything. Previously, he was asked to see the Blue Sky Old Ancestor. Just when he was ready to leave after the meeting ended, the Old Ancestor told him that both the dead and the living were contributors to the Human race. After that, he poked a finger on Yang Kai’s forehead and told him to leave.
Yang Kai had no idea why the Old Ancestor did that. He had even inspected himself but did not find anything of note.
He reckoned that the Old Ancestor must have given him something to help save himself; after all, he possessed the Purifying Light, which was important to the Human race. Therefore, it was expected that the Old Ancestor would treat him differently. The technique was hidden most of the time, but it would be triggered when Yang Kai’s life was at stake.
However, when he and Bai Yi snuck into Zhu Feng’s hideout and fought with the latter, Yang Kai almost lost his life on several occasions. At the most critical moment, he even spat out his own Dragon Bead and engaged in a life-and-death clash with Zhu Feng. Yang Kai eventually managed to kill Zhu Feng. He was in a perilous situation at that time, but the Old Ancestor’s technique didn’t activate.
Hence, Yang Kai thought that his speculation was wrong. The Old Ancestor’s technique was probably not a way to save his life; instead, it might have other uses. It just wasn’t triggered because the right time hadn’t come yet.
As time passed, Yang Kai almost forgot about that incident, but just when he was in danger this time, the technique was triggered and the Old Ancestor’s Avatar appeared!
Yang Kai was elated. It seemed that his speculation was right. The Old Ancestor had really given him a life-saving charm, but that technique would only be triggered when he was facing a Royal Lord and not on lesser occasions.
After a moment of thought, Yang Kai figured out everything. As the Old Ancestor’s Avatar was facing off against Mu Guang, Yang Kai heard him say, “I can only delay her temporarily. Run!”
The next instant, the Old Ancestor’s Avatar clashed with Mu Guang and blocked her violent attack. As their ferocious powers clashed, a ring of light expanded. Space trembled, and the entire universe seemed to be cracking apart.
Struck by the fallout, Yang Kai was sent tumbling away.
With determination written all over his face, he forcefully cast out the ancient coin in his hand. Usually, the ancient coin looked just like any other coin, but at that moment, it spun rapidly and enlarged. Despite being a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master as well as a Grand Dragon, Yang Kai was still dumbstruck after the two powerful Masters clashed. However, the ancient coin wasn’t affected one bit.
In the blink of an eye, the ancient coin expanded to the size of a house. There was a square hole in the middle of the ancient coin and at this moment, violent Space Principle fluctuations could be felt coming from it, causing the local space to ripple and warp.
A slender figure stepped out from the hole in the coin in the next instant. She looked like she was a young woman in her early twenties. With a smile on her face, she called out to Yang Kai and asked, “Are you alright?”
A dumbfounded Yang Kai gazed at her and replied, “You…”
Although he hoped that the ancient coin could save him, he hadn’t expected to see such a sight. He initially thought that the ancient coin was a powerful artifact that could be used to injure the Royal Lord, but it turned out that the ancient coin was actually a kind of artifact that could be used to build a Void Corridor that led to somewhere.
This woman apparently stepped out of the other end of the Void Corridor.
For some reason, Yang Kai found this young woman familiar, as though he had seen her before. Nevertheless, he was certain he had never come across her in his life.
That was because the aura exuding from this woman suggested that she was an Old Ancestor.
The woman waved her hand in front of Yang Kai’s and with a frown, she asked worriedly, “Did you injure your head or something?”
An anxious Yang Kai quickly cupped his fist, “Junior Yang Kai greets Old Ancestor!”
He had certainly figured out the woman’s identity by now. She was none other than the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass. He was somewhat surprised at the fact that the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass was a woman, and such a young and beautiful one at that.
However, the age of an Old Ancestor would naturally not show on her face. Despite looking like she was in her early twenties, she must be an old monster that had lived for at least 10,000 years.
The woman laughed happily, “You don’t have to be overly polite with me.”
Then, she turned her head and said, “Didn’t I tell you to use that ancient coin when you were in mortal danger? Fortunately, that old man left a Secret Technique in your body; otherwise, you wouldn’t have even had a chance to use the ancient coin.”
A sheepish Yang Kai lowered his head, but he was secretly cursing in his heart. He couldn’t help thinking that the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass was somewhat unreliable. Since the ancient coin was so important, she should have explained its uses clearly to him. Instead, she actually had a little girl pass it to him, which made him think that those from Yin-Yang Pass never provided any help for him. He even thought that if he couldn’t turn things around, he would perish today along with 300 Artifact Refiners.
As they spoke, the fight between the Old Ancestor’s Avatar from Blue Sky Pass and Mu Guang was already in its final stage; after all, it was just an Avatar. Although it had the power of an Old Ancestor, it couldn’t last for long.
As the violent forces dissipated, the two figures separated. Mu Guang stared fixedly at the woman and said through clenched teeth, “It’s you, little bitch!”
The woman refuted, “Mind your language, old hag, or I’ll skin you alive!”
She then gazed at the Old Ancestor’s Avatar from Blue Sky Pass. Presently, the Avatar was dim and flickering, as though it would disappear at any moment.
Noticing the woman’s gaze, the Avatar turned his head and nodded gently, “I’ll leave the rest to you.”
With a solemn expression, the woman replied, “Rest in peace, old man. I’ll certainly avenge you.”
Yang Kai’s brow twitched as he found the whole conversation awkward. The Old Ancestor’s Avatar was indeed going to disappear, but it wasn’t like he was really dying.
With that said, even though it was just an Avatar, its destruction would undoubtedly cause a serious loss to the Old Ancestor. If not for the fact that Yang Kai had made a huge contribution to the Human Race and was of incredible importance, the Old Ancestor wouldn’t have left an Avatar with him.
The Avatar took a glance at Yang Kai, then turned into countless motes of light and dissipated.
“I’ll hold her here!” The Yin-Yang Pass Old Ancestor suddenly yelled. Yang Kai turned his head and saw that she had deliberately folded her arms, as though she was gripping something. With her left hand remaining still, she extended her right hand, like she was drawing out an invisible sword.
As she did that, she really unsheathed a sharp-looking sword!
Mu Guang’s expression turned solemn as the Black Ink Strength around her surged.
“Yang Boy, head in the direction of Yin-Yang Pass. The Army has sortied from the Inner Sanctum. Join up with them!” The Old Ancestor ordered as she raised her sword.
“Yes!” Yang Kai replied and turned around to leave.
Mu Guang couldn’t help looking in that direction.
“What are you looking at, old hag?” The woman yelled. Only half of her sword was unsheathed at this point, but the next instant, she forcefully drew it and disappeared from the spot. When she reappeared, she was right above Mu Guang as she slashed down with her weapon.
Mu Guang roared and lifted both of her hands, blocking the attack with her rich Black Ink Strength.
Yang Kai couldn’t possibly intervene in the battle between the Old Ancestor and the Royal Lord. What’s more, both of them had been fighting against each other for many years. Be it the Old Ancestor from Yin-Yang Pass or Mu Guang Royal Lord, the two of them knew practically everything about their opponent, so the outcome of the battle was basically predetermined.
It would either come to a draw or be a mutual loss. There wasn’t a third possibility.
Mu Guang had the advantage in that this was her territory, but it wouldn’t be realistic for her to think that she could make the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass stay behind.
If the Old Ancestor was bent on fleeing, the Royal Lord wouldn’t have a way to stop her. It was just like what happened outside of Blue Sky Pass back then. When the badly injured Royal Lord wanted to flee, the Old Ancestor from Blue Sky Pass was unable to stop him.
The repercussions of the battle spread across the void, and even though Yang Kai had immediately manipulated Space Principles to escape the battlefield, he could still feel the violent impacts behind him.
A sense of longing overwhelmed him as he wondered when he would be able to make it to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
With that said, he knew that he was far from that goal; after all, he only directly ascended to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm back then. Although he had consumed a Mid-Rank World Fruit and made it to the Sixth Order, his limit would be the Eighth Order. In order to ascend to the Ninth Order, he would have to find the Innate Open Heaven Pills formed in the Universe Furnace.
That wouldn’t be easy, for the Universe Furnace was elusive and mysterious. No one knew when it would appear.
Casting his wild thoughts away, Yang Kai dashed toward Yin-Yang Pass.
The Old Ancestor said that the Army had deployed. If he wanted to survive, he had to join up with them and fight against the Black Ink Clan alongside them. However, the road ahead would surely be paved with danger, so Yang Kai wasn’t sure if he would successfully join the Yin-Yang Pass’ Army.
Fortunately, the Old Ancestor was there to deal with Mu Guang. Without the Royal Lord pursuing him, he stood a greater chance of fleeing.
He fished out some Spirit Pills from his Small Universe and stuffed them into his mouth. As he moved forward, he tried to restore his strength.
As he repeatedly manipulated Space Principles, his figure kept flickering across the void.
Whenever he bumped into Black Ink Clansmen, he wouldn’t deal with them. Only when he was left with no choice would he fight.
By doing so, he moved across billions of kilometres in one day. Presently, he was soaked in blood. The blood was his own as well as the Black Ink Clan’s. After escaping for such a long time, he was quite battered, but he was still far from Yin-Yang Pass.
After all, his starting point was basically the Royal City. Even though he had the help of Space Principles, it would still take him a long time to return to Yin-Yang Pass.
Despite being exhausted, Yang Kai didn’t dare to stop and rest. Wherever he went, there would be Black Ink Clansmen waiting for him. With the help of the Black Ink Nests, the Black Ink Clan was able to relay information rapidly. Whatever happened in any given place, the news would be soon spread to all the Black Ink Nests in the region.
Fortunately, he didn’t come across any Territory Lords while escaping, which gave him some room for manoeuvre. If he really bumped into a Territory Lord, he wouldn’t be able to shake them off given the state he was in.
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai realised that this wasn’t so surprising. Just like Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, Territory Lords were rare. Furthermore, the Army had left Yin-Yang Pass, so the Territory Lords had to deal with the enemy. They wouldn’t have time to hunt him down.
Half a day later, Yang Kai flickered and appeared somewhere in the void; however, before he could stabilise himself to scan the surroundings, he felt a gust of wind coming at him as several auras locked onto him.
A shocked Yang Kai knew that he was unlucky as he happened to bump into Black Ink Clansmen who were lying in wait for him here.
Nevertheless, he had encountered similar incidents during his escape, so he wasn’t flustered. He easily dodged the initial attacks and took some distance from his opponent.
Lifting his gaze, Yang Kai realised there were indeed a lot of Black Ink Clansmen who had surrounded him. Many of them looked pleasantly surprised or perplexed. Apparently, his sudden appearance startled them.
Yang Kai silently cursed and thought that he had run out of luck as he was surrounded by so many enemies. He reckoned that he had to fight his way out of here.
“I knew there was something wrong with you from the start, and now it seems I was right!” A stern voice, which sounded familiar to Yang Kai, was heard speaking from the side.
Yang Kai turned his head and saw a Black Ink Disciple with a hunched back who was glowering at him. This person was the one who launched a sneak attack on him just now.
“Liu Zi An!” Yang Kai arched his brow with surprise.
He had never expected to bump into Liu Zi An here. Initially, he thought that after leaving Hei Yuan’s territory, he would never see Liu Zi An again. Who would have thought they would see each other again? After scanning his surroundings, Yang Kai couldn’t help but stare at the Feudal Lord who was apparently in charge. As expected, wherever Liu Zi An was, Gui Liao would also be there; after all, Liu Zi An was Gui Liao’s Black Ink Disciple.
Of the other Black Ink Clansmen, Yang Kai also found another Feudal Lord he was familiar with. It seemed that he had seen him before.
These were obviously the Black Ink Clansmen who were Hei Yuan’s subordinates.
Yang Kai soon figured out what was going on. While he was fleeing in Yin-Yang Pass’ direction, he unknowingly returned to Hei Yuan’s territory.
Hei Yuan wasn’t around as Yang Kai couldn’t detect his aura, which made him feel relieved.
“Surrender now. You can’t escape!” Liu Zi An barked.
Ignoring him, Yang Kai extended his hand and summoned his Azure Dragon Spear.
Liu Zi An snapped, “Since you refuse a toast, you must drink a loss!”
As he spoke, he summoned a sabre and surged his strength. A glint flashed across the blade as he took a step forward and wielded the weapon at Yang Kai.
Gui Liao, who was not far away from them, ordered, “Don’t kill him! We have to capture him alive!”
Upon finishing his words, he circulated his Black Ink Strength and charged towards Yang Kai. At the same time, the Black Ink Clansmen around Yang Kai dashed towards him.
Liu Zi An grinned, “Don’t worry, Master. He’s strong, so I might not be a match for him.”
As soon as he brought his weapon down, he cut Yang Kai in half. However, he didn’t feel ecstatic for killing his opponent; instead, his expression changed drastically. That was because he didn’t feel he had hacked into blood and flesh. It was apparently an afterimage.
He promptly whirled around and brandished his sabre. Although he seemed to have hit something, a horrifying impulse was felt coming at him through the blade, one that forced him to step backwards.
Before he could stabilise himself, the tip of a spear rapidly magnified before his eyes as he was engulfed in a great sense of danger.
A flabbergasted Liu Zi An madly pushed his strength in an attempt to dodge, but the spear seemed to have affected the space around him, which made it impossible for him to evade the attack.
“Master! Save…” Liu Zi An exclaimed in horror, but before he could finish his words, the Azure Dragon Spear pierced right into his eye. The violent force from the spear exploded and turned his head into mist.
Liu Zi An was fully aware of his inferiority. He had fought with Yang Kai back then when the latter’s Small Universe was damaged, and he was defeated in the end. Certainly, he wouldn’t be a match for Yang Kai now as the latter’s Small Universe had healed, and his power had increased.
Therefore, he knew that he couldn’t defeat Yang Kai, nor did he hope that he would deal a heavy blow to him; however, they were in a one-on-one fight back then, but he had many Black Ink Clansmen with him now. Liu Zi An thought that regardless of how powerful Yang Kai was, there had to be a limit; after all, Yang Kai was just a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so he couldn’t possibly defeat so many Black Ink Clansmen on his own.
Nevertheless, it never crossed Liu Zi An’s mind that he would lose his life after just two exchanges.
His demise astounded the Black Ink Clansmen around him. They couldn’t even clearly see what was going on when the Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciple was killed by the enemy.
They had a feeling that Liu Zi An hadn’t stood a chance to even resist in front of Yang Kai.
It wasn’t until this moment that Gui Liao reached Yang Kai and tried to attack him. Liu Zi An’s death shocked him as well, so he was affected despite being determined to capture the opponent. This led to him uncontrollably retracting half of his force to defend himself.
When he summoned Zha Gu back then, the latter told him about what happened before Yang Kai was eventually captured by Hei Yuan. Zha Gu’s descriptions of Yang Kai’s capabilities were vivid, but Gui Liao had a feeling that he was exaggerating.
It wasn’t like he had never dealt with Seventh-Order Humans before, and they were nothing special in his opinion. Although Yang Kai was indeed unusually powerful, he couldn’t possibly be as invincible as Zha Gu described him to be.
Gui Liao figured Zha Gu must have suffered a loss at Yang Kai’s hands, who was then personally corrupted by the Territory Lord and became his Black Ink Disciple. That was the reason Zha Gu overstated Yang Kai’s strength.
Upon seeing that Yang Kai easily killed Liu Zi An though, Gui Liao realised that perhaps Zha Gu wasn’t exaggerating. Yang Kai was just as powerful as Zha Gu’s descriptions of him.
It was no wonder that the Territory Lord decided to personally corrupt him; he was indeed significantly stronger than other Seventh-Order Humans. It was expected that Hei Yuan would be tempted.
Gui Liao could feel that Yang Kai wasn’t at his peak and he seemed to be injured, which wasn’t a surprise since he must have gotten into quite a number of fights as he fled from the Royal City to here.
Despite that, he was still able to showcase such terrifying strength. How formidable would he be if he was in top condition?
Nevertheless, this realisation came too late.
After killing Liu Zi An, an overbearing Yang Kai turned his Azure Dragon Spear into countless phantoms and engulfed Gui Liao with them.
In an instant, Gui Liao felt immensely pressured. He madly pushed his Black Ink Strength and cast several Secret Techniques in an attempt to save his own life.
The Black Ink Clan no longer hesitated to launch their attacks on Yang Kai. As a result, Yang Kai staggered while his blood spurted out of his wounds, but he remained unperturbed.
Gui Liao was feeling both helpless and frustrated at the moment.
He had no idea why Yang Kai only targeted him even though there were many Black Ink Clansmen around. In fact, there were Black Ink Clansmen who were closer to him, but Yang Kai ignored them and seemed determined to kill Gui Liao.
Could it be that Yang Kai still hadn’t gotten over the unfair treatment he had received in the castle? If that was really the case, Gui Liao felt that he was being unfairly blamed.
However, he had no idea that the reason Yang Kai only targeted him was that he was the most powerful and authoritative figure among the Black Ink Clansmen at the scene.
Gui Liao was Hei Yuan’s confidant, so killing Gui Liao would be akin to weakening Hei Yuan’s power. Besides that, Gui Liao was indeed more powerful than other Feudal Lords. As far as Yang Kai was concerned, it wouldn’t be long before Gui Liao would ascend to become a Territory Lord.
When that happened, the Humans would have a new formidable opponent on the battlefield. It would be like nipping a potential problem in the bud by killing Gui Liao here.
With that consideration in mind, and as the chance was rare, it was expected that Yang Kai wouldn’t let Gui Liao off.
Faced with the aggressive onslaught, Gui Liao was forced back repeatedly. On the other hand, Yang Kai thrust out his spear in rapid succession. Gui Liao realised that he could only ward off the opponent’s attacks, but not counterattack.
This made him feel shocked and infuriated.
He had never expected that such a Seventh-Order Human existed in this world. Over the years, he had frequently followed Hei Yuan to the battlefield and fought with many Seventh-Order Masters; however, none had ever made him feel that he couldn’t defeat them.
At this moment, a sense of despair overwhelmed him as he was dealing with Yang Kai.
Gui Liao used all the Secret Techniques he knew, but every strike Yang Kai made was overwhelming. In every exchange of blows, his Black Ink Strength would be blasted apart on impact. Furthermore, Yang Kai’s mobility was simply astonishing. Although the surrounding Black Ink Clansmen managed to hit him from time to time, they were unable to seriously injure him. They only managed to cause some flesh wounds, which wouldn’t change anything.
[I’ll die!] That was the thought that flashed through Gui Liao’s mind as a sense of anxiety gripped him. He had never expected that such a feeling would rise within him when he was facing a Human in the same relative Realm. This made him feel both ashamed and unresigned.
He still had a bright future ahead of him, and he was about to attempt to ascend to become a Territory Lord. That was why he wasn’t willing to lose his life here.
Before Hei Yuan sent Yang Kai to the Royal City, he told Gui Liao that he would let him enter the main Black Ink Nest and make a breakthrough to the Territory Lord Realm upon his return. Gui Liao had been looking forward to it.
However, several Territory Lords had recuperated in the Black Ink Nest recently, so it was running low on energy; therefore, Hei Yuan didn’t immediately let Gui Liao enter the Black Ink Nest upon his return. Instead, he spent a massive amount of resources trying to replenish the Black Ink Nest’s spent energy.
Over the past few years, the Black Ink Nest had almost restored all its energy and it would only take another six months before Gui Liao could attempt a breakthrough. When he succeeded, he would be a new Territory Lord, which would put him on par with Hei Yuan.
Nevertheless, before his dream could become a reality, it was crushed by Yang Kai’s spear.
Presently, Gui Liao was soaked in blood, and facing the Azure Dragon Spear, he felt his aura weakening by the breath.
Regardless of how hard he tried, he was unable to resist Yang Kai’s bombardment. The attacks were both sharp and unpredictable, with the spear always coming at him from the most unexpected angle, making it impossible to counterattack. Every strike also brought with it a strange power that sealed off the space around him. Just a short while later, Gui Liao was left with more than ten serious wounds on his figure. The most severe injury was on his abdomen, which now had a hole the size of a fist in it.
Just when Gui Liao felt he was about to lose his life, a formidable aura suddenly appeared in the distance.
Yang Kai and Gui Liao, who were locked in battle, detected this familiar aura at the same time. The former turned solemn while the latter was elated.
This couldn’t be helped, as the newcomer was none other than Hei Yuan.
This place was Hei Yuan’s territory, and his Feudal Lords had scattered around to intercept Yang Kai. The moment Gui Liao and the Black Ink Clansmen got into a fight with Yang Kai, Hei Yuan naturally detected it and hurriedly came over.
Hei Yuan could move swiftly, so not long after Yang Kai detected his aura, he caught a glimpse of Hei Yuan approaching.
Gui Liao promptly exclaimed, “Sir Territory Lord, save me!”
Yang Kai fell into a dilemma as he hesitated between fleeing immediately and killing Gui Liao. The next moment though, he summoned all of his strength and thrust out his spear.
At the same time, Gui Liao’s figure was reflected in Yang Kai’s right eye. The reflection slightly contorted, and at that instant, Gui Liao, who was attentively resisting Yang Kai’s attack, seemed to be struck by an immense pressure. There seemed to be a mysterious force that was contorting his body. His figure stiffened while he was overwhelmed by an excruciating pain.
This moment of sluggishness cost him dearly. The Azure Dragon Spear directly pierced through his chest, and as the violent force exploded, his figure split in half. Black blood and Black Ink Strength scattered across the void.
A hint of disbelief flashed through Gui Liao’s eyes. Although he hadn’t lost his life yet, his death was inevitable given his injuries.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but close his right eye as blood dripped down from it.
Myriad Demons Heaven’s Eye Secret Techniques were indeed incredible; however, Yang Kai had yet to fully master them, and he had already consumed a lot of energy prior to this battle. Forcefully activating this Eye Secret Technique caused a huge burden on him.
Fortunately, he managed to kill Gui Liao with the help of this Eye Secret Technique, cutting off a potential crisis for the Human race. It could be said that his efforts were worth it.
Since Hei Yuan was about to reach him, Yang Kai naturally wouldn’t want to stay here and he quickly pushed his Space Principles in an attempt to flee.
Nevertheless, the Black Ink Clan’s bombardment of attacks caused the surrounding Void to become unstable, so he was unable to leave immediately. On the other hand, Gui Liao, who was cut in two, turned ferocious as his half-figure came right at Yang Kai. He spread his arms in an attempt to detain Yang Kai as he yelled, “Don’t even think about escaping!”
Yang Kai hadn’t expected this guy to be so savage. Just when he was almost captured by Gui Liao, Yang Kai hurriedly pushed out his spear and turned Gui Liao’s top half into mist.
Unfortunately, thanks to this moment of delay, Hei Yuan finally reached him.
Black Ink Strength surged around Hei Yuan as he sported a furious expression and he directly extended his hand towards Yang Kai.
At this critical moment, Yang Kai wouldn’t dare to be negligent. All of a sudden, a gigantic ancient tree appeared behind him. The tree crown seemed able to cover the entire sky. Its low-hanging branches turned into the strongest defence for Yang Kai.
Hei Yuan struck the tree crown with all his might.
The branches rustled upon impact as points of green light flew out everywhere. Towering Evergreen was instantly broken through, and as if struck by a huge hammer, Yang Kai was sent flying away while he sprayed out a mouthful of blood.
It was expected that Yang Kai couldn’t resist a Territory Lord’s all-out attack. If not for his Towering Evergreen’s fantastic defensive power, he would have lost his life then and there.
It could be said that Hei Yuan was completely enraged; after all, he was the one who turned Yang Kai into a Black Ink Disciple and recommended him to the Royal Lord to take part in the plan. In the end, the Black Ink Clan’s grand plan was destroyed because of Yang Kai, and even the critical person in charge of the project, Nie An, was dead.
This was a huge failure that even a Territory Lord like him couldn’t bear.
It was imaginable that the Royal Lord was mad with rage, and her fury would surely be vented out on him. All of this was Yang Kai’s fault, so it was expected that Hei Yuan would be furious.
Honestly speaking, when he received the news from the Royal City, Hei Yuan couldn’t believe what he was hearing and suspected that the other side was mistaken.
After all, before he captured Yang Kai back then, he saw the latter going all out to resist and even give up a part of his Small Universe twice, which almost caused his Order to regress. Since he was unable to turn things around, he even decided to commit suicide. It was only then that Hei Yuan made a move and corrupted him.
Was everything he saw that day nothing more than an act? Were those the lengths this Human was willing to go to in order to sneak into the Black Ink Clan’s territory? If that was true, he was truly a cunning and devious person.
Despite knowing that the Humans were sly, Hei Yuan hadn’t expected them to be so deceitful. He regretted not examining Yang Kai’s Small Universe after capturing him back then. If he had done so, none of this would have happened.
At that time, he firmly believed that he had successfully corrupted Yang Kai. In his defence, the Humans never granted one of the Four Universe Pillars to Seventh-Order Masters, so it never crossed Hei Yuan’s mind that Yang Kai would be capable of resisting his Black Ink Strength. The Human was even audacious enough to pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple and follow him to his territory.
After several inquiries, Hei Yuan finally confirmed that the news from the Royal City was true.
It was only then that he realised he had been played by the Humans all along. While he was recuperating, Yang Kai tactfully revealed his talent in Artifact Refining, which must have been part of the Humans’ plans from the beginning.
Everything that had happened made Hei Yuan feel humiliated. As a result, he was burning with endless fury, which ensured that he did not hold back when sending out his last strike.
However, he regretted it the instant he made a move, because the Royal Lord had ordered that Yang Kai be captured alive!
It seemed that the Royal Lord had the intention of replacing Nie An with Yang Kai, who would be tasked to continue building Warships.
Fortunately, Yang Kai was unusually strong and had used some kind of Secret Technique to save himself. Seeing that Yang Kai was still alive, Hei Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.
If he had accidentally killed Yang Kai, he wouldn’t be able to explain himself to the Royal Lord. Now, he could still make up for his mistake.
Presently, Yang Kai was overwhelmed by a great sense of discomfort.
He had already suffered a setback in front of Mu Guang, and then he consumed a lot of energy and became injured while escaping. Now that he was struck by Hei Yuan’s attack, it was expected that he would be in a terrible state.
It had to be noted that Hei Yuan was one of the top five Territory Lords who served Mu Guang, meaning he was significantly stronger than the average Territory Lord.
If not for the great defensive power of his Towering Evergreen Divine Manifestation, and that Yang Kai had thick skin and strong flesh due to his Dragon Vein, he would’ve lost his life after being struck.
Even so, he was still feeling dizzy and seeing stars at this moment. Many of his bones were also fractured.
Steadying himself with difficulty and lifting his gaze, Yang Kai saw Hei Yuan standing not far away from him, while he was surrounded by a lot of Black Ink Clansmen.
As their eyes met, Hei Yuan suppressed his fury and said grimly, “You’re really something.”
Yang Kai spat out a mouthful of blood and grinned, “Many thanks for your compliment, Sir. I never expected that I’d come across you again. It seems that we share some common destiny, don’t we?”
Hei Yuan replied impassively, “Since it all started because of me, I’m sure the Royal Lord will be pleased if this matter is ended by me. Surrender without a fight. You’re important to the Royal Lord, so I don’t want to keep damaging you.”
Upon realising what the other party meant, Yang Kai arched his brow, “Does the Royal Lord want you to capture me alive?”
“An Artifact Refiner is only valuable if he’s alive.”
Yang Kai replied, “It seems that Mu Guang intends to keep building Warships.”
Hei Yuan looked sympathetically at him, “It’s pointless to stall for time. Your Old Ancestor is still in a fight with the Royal Lord while the Human Army is far away from here. You don’t stand a chance to flee. The Humans have a saying, do not refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit. Resisting will only make you suffer.”
“Who says I’m going to flee?” Yang Kai lifted his Azure Dragon Spear and pointed it at Hei Yuan. With his chin raised, he appeared condescending, “It’s not like I’ve never killed a Territory Lord before. I don’t mind killing one more.”
Hei Yuan was slightly surprised, “You’ve killed a Territory Lord before?” However, he soon cast the doubt away as he strode towards Yang Kai, “Whatever. I can explain myself to the Royal Lord as long as you’re not killed.”
As he stepped closer, his Territory Lord’s pressure swept over Yang Kai.