In the Black Ink Clan, hierarchy was extremely strict in all things. The higher-ranking Black Ink Nests birthed the lower-ranking ones, and there was a one-way symbiotic relationship between them. If the Humans had some suspicions about this, then Black Ink Clan themselves naturally had them too.
However, Ge Chen, an Acquired Territory Lord, had never come in contact with the Mother Nest; thus, he really knew nothing about it.
Furthermore, the Mother Nest was a term that was coined by the Human Race. Even if it did exist, who knew what the Black Ink Clan called it.
Those Innate Territory Lords, such as Che Kong, may know more about these matters because they themselves were bred directly from the High-Rank Black Ink Nests; thus, they had a connection to the Source Domain where the Mother Nest was suspected to exist.
It was a pity that Che Kong was already dead; otherwise, there was still a chance to find out something from him.
Now, Yang Kai understood why some of the Territory Lords were so much more powerful.
Under normal circumstances, a Territory Lord’s strength was less than that of an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master’s; however, in every Theatre, there were always some exceptions.
For example, Che Kong’s strength was at least on par with an Eighth-Order Division Commander. In fact, in a one-on-one fight, there were hardly any Eighth-Order Open Heaven Masters in the Great Evolution Army who were his match. Only Xiang Shan and a few other top elites could take him on.
Che Kong was killed by Yang Kai primarily because he was too careless and allowed himself to be hit by a Soul Rending Thorn.
Innate Territory Lords were directly spawned from High-Rank Black Ink Nests; so naturally, they were more powerful, but this method of birth likely exhausted their potential entirely, so they would never be able to become Royal Lords.
On the contrary, Ge Chen, who was comparatively weaker, had room to grow and a chance of becoming a Royal Lord.
Of course, it was still incredibly difficult for a Black Ink Clan Territory Lord to advance to become a Royal Lord, no less so than for a Human to reach the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm. If this wasn’t the case, there would be a lot more Royal Lords in the Black Ink Clan after so many years, considering their innate advantage in numbers.
There were surely a lot more Innate Territory Lords such as Che Kong long ago, but after countless years of war with the Humans, most of these Innate Territory Lords must have died. Only a few survived.
A rough estimate would say that before the latest war, the top three Territory Lords in all the Theatres were Innate Territory Lords.
“Now, tell me about the Source Domain. How much do you know?” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao asked.
Ge Chen was an Acquired Territory Lord, so perhaps he did not know much about confidential information related to the Black Ink Clan’s origins. From the conversation so far, it appeared that the Innate Territory Lords seemed to ostracize the Acquired Territory Lords.
However, they should know more than the Humans.
Ge Chen thought about it and said, “The Source Domain… is something I only heard about from other Territory Lords. The Source Domain should be the source of the Black Ink Clan.”
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao waited for a moment, but when he did not say anything else, she frowned and asked, “That’s it?”
Ge Chen said helplessly, “No…”
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao almost laughed.
The Source Domain was the source of the Black Ink Clan? That could be inferred from the name alone. Was there a need for him to state the obvious?
“The Black Ink Clansmen who survived are all escaping in this direction. Could it be that you all are heading towards the Source Domain?”
“I think so,” Ge Chen nodded and said, “I don’t know where the Source Domain is, but since I became a Territory Lord, I have become able to faintly sense something that I believe is the Source Domain. Thus, the Source Domain should be in this direction.”
It was because the Source Domain was in this direction that he fled this way. Only by fleeing this way could he hope to survive, but little did he expect that even as a Territory Lord. he would end up being trapped here.
Yang Kai could not help but raise his brow. The Black Ink Clan’s situation was somewhat similar to his Dragon Source.
On Dragon Clan’s side, if an individual’s Dragon Vein and Dragon Bloodline reached a certain degree of purity, they would be able to vaguely sense where Dragon Pool was, because the Dragon Pool was the origin of the Dragon Clan.
Since the Source Domain was the source of the Black Ink Clan, it was not surprising that Ge Chen would be able to sense it.
“If the Source Domain is the origin of Black Ink Clan, there should be a lot of Territory Lords and also, many Royal Lords there. Why don’t they come out? What is preventing them from doing so?”
It was now certain that the 50 Royal Lords encountered in the Black Ink Nest Space previously were all from the Source Domain, or at least somewhere nearby; otherwise, there was no way to explain their origin.
They appeared to be trapped in or around the Source Domain; thus, even though the battles in the Theatres were raging, they were indifferent to them.
It was not that they did not care about the battles, but rather that they simply could not intervene.
Ge Chen shook his head and said, “I don’t know.”
“You said that the Royal Lords came out of the Source Domain and brought their own Black Ink Nests with them. How did they leave the Source Domain?”
“I don’t know.”
“How far is this place from the Source Domain?” The Old Ancestor asked.
“I don’t know.”
“What was your Black Ink Clan fighting against in the olden days? How did this stretch of void behind the Royal Cities form?” This time after the Old Ancestor finished her question, she mercilessly warned, “If you dare to say you don’t know, you will die.”
Ge Chen’s expression became more and more bitter. He did not know the answers to these questions. Although he was a Territory Lord, he was just an Acquired Territory Lord, and a low ranked one in the Great Evolution Theatre at that. So, how could he know anything too confidential?
Whatever Mo Zhao discussed with the Innate Territory Lords was never shared with him.
That was why he was willing to answer Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao’s questions. For so many years, Acquired Territory Lords like him had felt excluded from the core of the Black Ink Clan. He knew very little about the inner workings of the clan and he did not want to die unnecessarily.
“Although it is not clear, it should be related to you Humans. The feud between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clans goes back to ancient times. This void should be the original battlefield left behind by the Human Race Masters during that war.”
This point was the same as what they had speculated.
It was not surprising to think that the only ones in this world who could compete with the Black Ink Clan was the Human Race.
The Divine Spirit, although strong, were too small in number, so it was difficult for them to wage a war across such a wide battlefield.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao nodded and asked a few more questions, all of which were answered honestly by Ge Chen.
“Is there anything else you feel that you should tell us?” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao finally asked.
Ge Chen’s expression suddenly tensed up, shook his head guiltily, and said, “I don’t know much…”
“In that case…” She turned her head to look at Yang Kai and said coldly, “Kill him.”
Ge Chen’s expression changed dramatically as he protested, “We had an agreement! You swore to let me go if I answer your questions truthfully!”
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao looked at him and asked mercilessly, “You trust the word of a woman?”
She never planned to let Ge Chen go. Although a Territory Lord was not a threat to her, he must have killed many Human soldiers over the years; how could she let an enemy like him live?
Yang Kai grinned and extended his hand, “Old Ancestor indeed swore she would not kill you, but I never did.”
Space Principles surged, stirring the Void, and in a flash, countless Void Cracks appeared. They then surged towards Ge Chen as Yang Kai manipulated them.
Ge Chen grit his teeth and rushed out with determination against the countless cracks. His Black Ink Strength surging as he roared, “You will die a horrible death!”
The Void Cracks sliced through him and black blood splattered everywhere. Just before the cracks hit Ge Chen, he managed to launch an intense blow towards Yang Kai, which hit him and flung him a distance back.
By the time Yang Kai steadied himself, Ge Chen had already been sliced into countless pieces by the Void Cracks.
Yang Kai looked at Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao and the Eighth-Order Division Commander in disbelief and asked, “You just stood there, watching?”
He thought that these two would act at the critical moment, which was why he did not defend himself at all. Due to their inaction, he almost suffered serious injuries.
That Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master grinned and said, “Well, aren’t you still fine?”
“Wouldn’t it be too late to ask if I wasn’t?” Yang Kai was indignant, but he knew in his heart that the Old Ancestor would ensure that he would not be hurt. Most likely, she did not intercede because she knew that the blow from Ge Chen would not hurt him.
“The Source Domain…” The Old Ancestor murmured, “It seems that there is a reason why there is only one High-Rank Black Ink Nest in each Theatre.”
Yang Kai shook off the pain he felt, pondered a little, and understood what Old Ancestor meant.
Ge Chen said earlier that the original Royal Lords who came out of the Source Domain brought their Black Ink Nests with them.
The information they received from the other Theatres showed that there was only one High-Rank Black Ink Nest in each Royal City. Furthermore, there was only one Royal City in each Theatre, regardless of how many Royal Lords were present.
Since the High-Rank Black Ink Nests were brought out from the Source Domain by the first Royal Lords, they must have been spawned by the Mother Nest.
Thus, when a Territory Lord became a Royal Lord, they did not have their own Black Ink Nest and could only share one with the previous Royal Lord.
“The limitations on the Mother Nest must be due to some restrictions placed on the Black Ink Clan!” The Old Ancestor looked off into the void and continued, “Otherwise, when they found themselves losing the battles in the Theatres this time, the Royal Lords at the Mother Nest should have come out to offer support! That restriction… is most likely the other party had helped us get out of the trap the last time we were there.”
However, this restriction was clearly not complete; or perhaps, there was some interference which made it incomplete. Otherwise, the Royal Lords could not have taken Black Ink Nests out of the Source Domain.
Was there a higher realm of Martial Dao above the Ninth-Order? At that time, Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao and others saw the big jade hand coming from the outside of the Black Ink Nest Space, which tore open a crack for them to escape through.
Although there could be some other reason, there was no denying that the power of that hand was immense.
The jade white hand gave them a feeling as if it had surpassed the might of the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, and at the same time, it seemed that it had not. It was extremely odd.
What happened during ancient times?
What secrets were hidden at the birthplace of the Black Ink Clan?
No one knew, so no one could give them an answer.
However, the crusade by the Human Race continued. Although the road ahead was still dangerous, as long as the Human Race could destroy the Source Domain, there was a chance to completely solve the issue called the Black Ink Clan.
Nonetheless, it was a long way to go!
“What Ge Chen said should not be taken at face value. Don’t trust this information too much.” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao warned.
Although Ge Chen seemed to be very cooperative, who knew what he really thought. They could not verify any of the information he provided, whether it was true or false.
Furthermore, some of the information he gave could easily be figured out by the Humans, so it wasn’t all that useful.
His words had to be taken with a pinch of salt. Some might be true while others, false.
It would be foolish to believe him verbatim.
The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master nodded and said, “Yes.”
“Continue to scout out the road ahead,” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao ordered, turned around, and returned to Great Evolution Pass.
Yang Kai nodded lightly to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master before flying back to Dawning Light.
He did not say anything more to Feng Ying and the others, but the urgency in his heart became increasingly obvious.
All the Theatres and the Great Passes set off from the Royal Cities without a clear goal, but today, they had a destination.
The Source Domain!
The Source Domain was the source of the Black Ink Clan, where the Mother Nest was, along with a gathering of many Royal Lords!
Not only were there Royal Lords, there must be many Territory Lords and soldiers as well.
Furthermore, there were not just Acquired Territory Lords like Ge Chen, many of the Territory Lords there were probably Innate Territory Lords.
The Great Evolution Army now had less than 30,000 soldiers, 45 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, and one Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
Such an army was considerable in size and strength.
The other Great Passes likely had fewer forces than Great Evolution Pass, but there were 106 of them on this crusade. When all the Armies converge into one, by then, the Human Army would exceed 2 million.
This was a full 2 million Masters at or above the Fifth-Order! It was also the heritage accumulated over the ages by the Cave Heavens and Paradises.
Such a force was extremely powerful, but could it defeat the Black Ink Clan in the Source Domain?
Yang Kai was not sure, and neither were the Old Ancestors.
Even though the Human race was strong now, who could guarantee that they would win this battle?
What if they lost?
Also, what was the power that limited the Black Ink Clan in the Source Domain.
Who did that jade white hand that Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao and the others saw previously belong to? Would this unknown force aid them in battle?
The road ahead was full of uncertainty, but they had to forge ahead.
The Great Evolution Army continued to march forward. The reconnaissance Squads were always out front to check the situation. Inevitably, they encountered a lot of dangers and unintentionally triggered many restrictions which caused them to suffer some casualties.
Even Dawn, led by Yang Kai, nearly met its demise.
Fortunately, Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao had arrived in time to save them at the critical moment.
The deeper they went, the more dangerous the void became. Yang Kai wondered if Ge Chen could have returned to the Source Domain safely even if they had let him go.
He might if he was lucky; however, he was likely to encounter a lot of dangerous traps along the way.
Considering that even after countless years, the leftovers from the ancient war were still so dangerous, it was hard to imagine what kind of violent clashes had taken place in ancient days.
As time passed, years had gone by.
It had now been a full three years since the crusade to the Source Domain began. The road was fraught with dangers, but there was still no sign of the Source Domain. This made some wonder if they were going in the wrong direction.
However, with more than 100 Armies continuing to march forward, sweeping across such a vast swath of the void, there was bound to be one of them who was advancing directly at the Source Domain.
All the Great Passes kept in touch with each other regularly; however, many Great Passes would occasionally lose contact because of the chaotic energy in the void. Fortunately, communications were always restored after a while.
There were no enemies along the way, though the hidden Arrays and residual Divine Abilities still made the void treacherous.
One day, Yang Kai was exploring the hidden dangers ahead when he suddenly sensed something unusual.
When he focused his senses on it though, he found nothing.
A short while later, he flashed back to Dawning Light and greeted Feng Ying, “Stand guard for me.”
Feng Ying nodded her head and acknowledged Yang Kai’s words.
Yang Kai then formed a set of hand seals, causing his World Force to undulate as a mysterious Grand Array suddenly appeared under his feet.
The troops aboard Dawn were puzzled, not knowing why Yang Kai had activated the Universe Transference Law.
The Universe Transference Law allowed one to teleport across vast distances to a Universe Array. Ever since Yang Kai installed Universe Arrays in the Purifying Black Ink Battleships, many soldiers had begun using the Universe Transference Law to save their lives during the battle with the Black Ink Clan.
However, Yang Kai rarely used the Universe Transference Law because he was proficient in the Dao of Space, making him faster than any Territory Lord or Eighth-Order Master. The only ones he could not escape from on his own were the Royal Lords.
Although Dawn was scouting ahead of Great Evolution Pass, they were not far from each other. If Yang Kai wanted to return to Great Evolution Pass, he could just travel there on his own using Instantaneous Movement and did not need to activate the Universe Transference Law.
The members of Dawn were puzzled, but Yang Kai appeared truly shocked.
He was following a hunch just now, but did not expect to find anything.
He did not intend to return to Great Evolution Pass, but wanted to use the Universe Transference Law to investigate something else.
The Universe Arrays in all the Purifying Black Ink Battleships were personally arranged by Yang Kai; thus, his Imprint was left on every single Purifying Black Ink Battleship. As long as the distance allowed, he could travel to any Purifying Black Ink Battleship with the Universe Transference Law.
Others could only return to the Purifying Black Ink Battleships they had left their Imprints on.
At this moment, Yang Kai could sense the location of all the closest Purifying Black Ink Battleships with the Universe Transference Law, but apart from the four ships around Great Evolution Pass, he was able to faintly sense four more to his left, and another four to the right.
There were now 12 Purifying Black Ink Battleships within range of the Universe Transference Law.
Of course, there were many more, in extremely distant locations, which all felt so faint that even Yang Kai could not reach them.
However, he could clearly perceive the 12 ships closest to him were within the range he could teleport to.
This was a very abnormal situation.
The distance between each Great Pass was at least a year’s journey for the average Warship. When the Great Evolution East-West Army set off from Wind and Cloud Pass, it indeed took them a year to reach Great Evolution Pass.
A year’s travel by Warship was much too far for even someone skilled in the Dao of Space like Yang Kai to cross using the Universe Transference Law.
However, he could now!
What did this mean?
It meant that the distance between the Great Passes had shortened to the point where he could use the Universe Transference Law.
How could this have happened?
Yang Kai was at a loss, so he hurriedly dispersed the Universe Transference Law and shot towards the Pass, yelling from afar, “Continue to explore the path ahead!”
Soon, Yang Kai arrived at the middle of Great Evolution Pass where Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao sat with her legs crossed. Opening her eyes, she looked up at him curiously and asked, “What happened?”
Over the past three years, Yang Kai had been out leading Dawn to scout the road ahead, never once returning to Great Evolution Pass until today. Yang Kai quickly explained, “We are getting closer to Wind and Cloud Pass and Azure Void Pass. We’re now just three months away by Warship.”
The two Great Passes closest to Great Evolution Pass were Wind and Cloud Pass and Azure Void Pass. Yang Kai could sense the other eight Purifying Black Ink Battleships that belonged to these two Great Passes were now a three-month journey away, which was the extreme limit that he could traverse via the Universe Transference Law.
Ordinary Seventh-Order Masters could not travel such a large distance using the Universe Transference Law. Not to mention a 3-month journey, even a single month’s distance would undoubtedly be fatal for them as transferring that far was basically the limit of an Eighth-Order Master via the Universe Transference Law.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao was stunned by what he said and asked, “How can you tell?”
Yang Kai explained what he had just experienced.
She pondered deeply for a moment before saying, “Come with me.”
Dashing off, the two of them quickly arrived at the Hyper Space Array.
The Seventh-Order Open Heaven Master, who was guarding this place, saw Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao and rushed to greet her.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao waved her hand and asked, “Is there anything unusual on this side of the Space Array?”
The Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master did not know what the Old Ancestor was referring to and replied honestly, “There is nothing unusual.”
“Nothing has changed from before?”
The Seventh-Order thought about it and replied, “If we talk about changes… I am not sure if it’s anything noteworthy, but recently, when we sent out some jade slips to the other Great Passes, the energy required seemed to have decreased, but the reduction was not obvious.”
It was because the reduction in consumption was not obvious that he did not report it; after all, the transmission of a jade slip did not consume much energy in the first place, much unlike the transfer of a cultivator, which required an enormous amount of resources.
When Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao heard his response, she immediately determined that what Yang Kai said was likely true. Other Great Passes may not have detected anything yet, but with Yang Kai’s unique circumstances, he was able to notice this anomaly. Great Evolution Pass was indeed getting closer to Azure Void Pass and Wind and Cloud Pass, much closer in fact.
The distance between the Great Passes was originally about a year’s journey; however, they were now just three months apart. This resulted in the reduced consumption for the transmission of jade slips through the Space Arrays.
“Activate the Array,” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao ordered. Whether the distance was truly shortened, they would know once they tried it.
That Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master hastily told his many co-workers and they began to work.
“Head to Wind and Cloud Pass,” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao said to Yang Kai, who nodded and replied, “Understood.”
Soon after, the Grand Array was ready. Wind and Cloud Pass was set as the target destination, and Yang Kai stepped onto the Space Array. The array buzzed, and when the light dissipated, Yang Kai was gone.
After Yang Kai disappeared, several Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters immediately checked the consumption of energy and were all flabbergasted.
“How does it compare to before?” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao asked.
Yang Kai had been to Wind and Cloud Pass before through the Hyper Space Array. Since those assigned to watch and operate the Space Array had been here for years, they should know the usual consumption required.
The Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master replied, “The consumption is much less than before, less than 30% of the last time!”
The ones on duty here were thoroughly shocked.
The consumption required to teleport through the Hyper Space Array increased according to distance; thus, teleportation was only done between neighbouring Great Passes. If the destination was too far, they would have to transit through several Great Passes to arrive there as that was the most economical method.
Now, the consumption of teleportation was less than 30% of the last time. Since Yang Kai’s strength had not changed significantly, and the Hyper Space Array had not been enhanced, the only factor that could be different was the distance between the destinations…
Was the distance between Great Evolution Pass and Wind and Cloud Pass getting shorter? This thought came to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master’s mind.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao narrowed her eyes slightly. It seemed that what Yang Kai said was true. Although she also did not doubt him, what happened before her eyes served as firm proof of his words.
Great Evolution Pass was only just three months away from Wind and Cloud Pass now!
Why was this?
All the Great Passes were advancing in tandem towards the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield, so logically speaking, the distance separating them should not change much. Now however, they were somehow approaching one another.
This was true for Great Evolution Pass and Wind and Cloud Pass, as well as Azure Void Pass, so what about the other Great Passes?
Were they all getting closer?
If that was true, then in time, more than 100 Great Passes would converge in one place!
What was the mysterious place that they were converging to?
Was it the Source Domain of the Black Ink Clan?
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao’s expression changed a bit. The distances between the Great Passes were getting shorter, which was actually good news for the Human Race.
The Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master had considered that if any Great Passes found the Black Ink Clan Source Domain, the other Great Passes would have to rush over to support them; however, if they all gathered in one place, at the same time, it would save them a lot of trouble. When the Human Race gathered all their might, they were confident they could decimate even the Black Ink Clan’s Source Domain, no matter how powerful it was!
Meanwhile, Yang Kai appeared above Wind and Cloud Pass’ Space Array.
The Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master there was an old acquaintance and was surprised to see Yang Kai, so he asked, “Brother Yang, why are you here? Is there some urgent information from the Great Evolution Army?”
These days, there was basically no direct interaction between the Great Passes; all information was passed in the form of jade slips.
For Yang Kai to suddenly appear in person, something important must have happened.
“There’s nothing urgent. This is just an experiment,” Yang Kai said. He then turned his head towards the Space Array that had not completely closed and disappeared.
The few Open Heaven Realm Masters were bewildered.
“Did someone teleport here?” Wind and Cloud Pass’ Eastern Army Commander, Yuan Xing Ge, stepped into the hall and asked.
He obviously noticed the commotion and came over to check the situation; however, he was a step too late.
The Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master on guard duty rushed forward to report, “Yang Kai from Great Evolution Pass just came by, but went back almost immediately. He said that he was conducting an experiment.”
“An Experiment?” Yuan Xing Ge frowned and barked, “What is he trying to do?”
Each time a teleportation was conducted, it required a large amount of resources. Though the Great Passes were no longer starved for resources now, they should not waste them in such a manner.
When the Grand Array lit up once again, the fluctuations generated were much subtler than before; thus, everyone knew that it was a jade slip rather than a person being sent.
Sure enough, when the glow waned, a jade slip was lying quietly on the Hyper Space Array.
The Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master went forward to pick up the jade slip and injected his Divine Sense, his expression soon changing as he frantically said, “Sir, Great Evolution Pass has discovered something!”
As he said so, he offered the jade slip to the Army Commander.
Yuan Xing Ge took it, and after checking it out, his expression also changed.
“Great Evolution Pass and Wind and Cloud Pass are now only three months apart?”
This was very surprising news. How could there be only a three months’ journey separating them? The jade slip that was transmitted from Great Evolution Pass also speculated that not only had the distance between Great Evolution Pass and Wind and Cloud Pass been reduced, the distances between all other Great Passes had also been shortened. The jade slip instructed them to spread the news and at the same time seek confirmation of this.
Yuan Xing Ge did not dare to delay. He quickly continued to spread the word while arranging men to go to the neighbouring Great Passes through the Space Arrays.
In less than half a day, jade slips from all the Great Passes were collected in Great Evolution Pass’s Space Array Hall.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao checked the jade slips before tossing them to Yang Kai, nodding at him as she said, “It’s confirmed. The distances between all the Great Passes have shrunk.”
Yang Kai took a look at the messages, frowned, and asked, “What is causing this?”
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao shook her head and said, “I don’t know. Whatever the case, it means that all the Human Great Passes will eventually converge in one place.”
This was a good thing for the Human Race. If all the Great Passes gathered in one place, then their power would not be scattered and they would not need to fight separately as before.
With more than 2 million Open Heaven Realm Masters, more than 100 Ninth-Order Old Ancestors and thousands of Eighth-Order Masters, such a force would be enough to take on any enemy.
Even if the Source Domain was really that dangerous, the Human Army could still overcome it.
“You have an advantage in your ability to sense the Purifying Black Ink Battleships. Pay more attention to the position of the other Great Passes’ Purifying Black Ink Battleships and judge the distances between them.” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao instructed.
“Yes!”
…..
As they ventured deeper into void, they not only encountered remnants of war between the Ancients and the Black Ink Clan, but also a number of vivid Celestial Phenomenon, naturally formed by the Universe itself.
Each of the Celestial Phenomenon was extremely magnificent, occupying massive regions of the void, hiding unimaginable dangers beneath their beautiful appearances.
Even the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors could feel a sense of danger coming from these Celestial Phenomenon, making them aware that falling into them would be disastrous.
According to Feng Ying, there were many similar Celestial Phenomenon in the 3,000 Worlds during ancient times; however, as the number of Human Race Masters increased and their activities became more frequent, the Celestial Phenomenon in the 3,000 Worlds gradually faded away.
However, in the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield, these Celestial Phenomenon remained unchanged throughout the ages.
Technically speaking, the Chaotic Dead Territory was also a type of Celestial Phenomenon; however, it was not naturally formed but rather the result of the collision of Big Brother Huang and Big Sister Lan’s powers.
The Chaotic Dead Territory was so dangerous that even the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters could not enter for long. Only the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters could move about for a short period in such a place.
Yang Kai had experienced the dangers of the Chaotic Dead Territory first-hand. If Giant Spirit God Ah Er had not protected him at that time, he would never have survived.
Many of the Celestial Phenomena in the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield felt even more dangerous than the Chaotic Dead Territory.
The Celestial Phenomena were so dangerous that even Great Evolution Pass needed to go around them.
A year later, Wind and Cloud Pass and Azure Void Pass were now less than a month’s journey away from Great Evolution Pass, and this distance continued to shrink.
This was the same for all the other Great Passes as well, with the two furthest Great Passes now only two months apart.
If this persisted, the Great Passes would converge in another year’s time.
Even though Yang Kai was scouting ahead of the Army, he could clearly sense the tense atmosphere within Great Evolution Pass. The Great Evolution Army had begun to sharpen its swords.
Although there were no clear orders to do so, almost everyone had felt that when the Great Army of the Human Race gathered, it would be the time to fight to the death with the Black Ink Clan.
Furthermore, the Human Race had always anticipated this battle.
Six months later, Great Evolution Pass and Wind and Cloud Pass were only ten days apart from each other!
If this was an ordinary stretch of void, Yang Kai would already be able see Wind and Cloud Pass; however, the energy in the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield was too violent and chaotic. There were countless restrictions and dangers all over the place; thus, even though he knew where Wind and Cloud Pass was and how far it was from him, he still could not see it clearly.
He could only vaguely see that there was a huge object off in that direction.
The Great Passes were about to converge!
On this day, Yang Kai was looking towards Wind and Cloud Pass when he suddenly felt something and turned his head to look in that direction.
The next moment, Feng Ying, who was beside him, also sensed something and followed his gaze.
There was nothing as far as the eye could see, but there was definitely something different about the energy fluctuations in the void.
“Is someone fighting?” Feng Ying asked gruffly.
Yang Kai silently perceived for a moment, before shaking his head and saying, “Something must have triggered some massive restriction…”
The shockwaves of a battle would not be this violent. Although he also did not know what happened in that direction, it was certain that the place where the disturbance occurred was extremely far from them, at least two months journey by Warship.
At such a distance, even if a Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master and a Royal Lord fought, they could not possibly create such a huge disturbance.
The only explanation was the triggering of some massive Array. Previously, Great Evolution Pass also accidentally triggered such a huge restriction, and the impact was so intense that the Pass’ shields were almost torn apart.
As they were talking, a surge of power suddenly came from inside Great Evolution Pass, followed by a pillar of light that shot out into the void.
Yang Kai turned his head to look and frowned.
“The Old Ancestor has set out!” Feng Ying shouted.
What just happened was obviously the Old Ancestor teleporting through the Space Array. An Eighth-Order Division Commander would not create such a disturbance during teleportation. Only the teleportation of an Old Ancestor could consume such a huge amount of energy and create such violent Space Principle fluctuations.
[She has gone out!]
Yang Kai did not know where the Old Ancestor went, but since something had alerted her, it was obviously something extraordinary.
When Yang Kai turned his head to look, he vaguely caught a glimpse of a lofty and huge figure, covering the sky and tearing through the void.
The next moment, there was a familiar aura from Wind and Cloud Pass, enveloping Great Evolution Pass.
It was the aura of Wind and Cloud Pass’ Old Ancestor!
Additionally, on the other side, there was also the aura of Azure Void Pass’ Old Ancestor!
The aura of the two Old Ancestors intertwined in the sky above Great Evolution Pass, turning into a protective layer.
Yang Kai immediately understood. Since Great Evolution Pass’ Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao had left, that meant that there was no Old Ancestor in the Pass to ensure its safety. The Pass would not be able to protect itself if it encountered a huge danger; therefore, the Old Ancestors of the Passes to the left and right immediately joined forces to shelter Great Evolution Pass.
This way, if there was any danger, these two Old Ancestors could respond immediately.
In other words, now the two Old Ancestors have joined hands to protect Azure Void Pass, Wind and Cloud Pass, and Great Evolution Pass.
Yang Kai was now clearly concerned…
A short while later, a more violent aftershock came from the direction where the anomaly was first detected.
Yang Kai’s brow twitched.
If it was just a single disturbance, a huge restriction being triggered would make sense, but with repeated fluctuations occurring, it could only be due to a huge fight.
Two top Masters fighting would not create such intense fallout; it would take at least 10 or 20 such powerhouses to create a disturbance of such magnitude.
When Yang Kai thought about how Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao rushed out just now, he immediately understood that there must be several Old Ancestors fighting with some strong enemies in that direction.
The only ones who could compete with the Old Ancestors were the Royal Lords.
It must be the Royal Lords who had escaped from the Theatres several years ago!
A lot of Royal Lords died when the Royal Cities of each Theatre fell, but there were quite a few who escaped as well. It was not that the Old Ancestors did not want to kill them, but rather that they couldn’t as long as the Royal Lords were determined to escape.
Those Royal Lords that fled that day all went towards the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield!
Yang Kai had been thinking about this since he found out that the Great Passes were converging and would eventually meet up at some point.
If the Great Passes converged, then what about the Royal Lords who escaped from the other Theatres?
Would they converge in one place as well?
There wasn’t just one or two Royal Lords, but dozens!
If all those Royal Lords joined forces to target a single Great Pass, that Great Pass would be able to resist. It would soon be destroyed, along with all the human soldiers inside.
He had mentioned this previously with Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao; however, she just told him that preparations had been made. Thus, Yang Kai did not ask any more questions; after all, he was only a Seventh-Order Master and should just focus on what he could do, rather than things he had no ability to interfere with.
Now, it seemed that the Old Ancestors did have an arrangement for such a situation.
From looking at what just happened. When there was movement nearby, Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao was the first to go provide support, while the Old Ancestors of Wind and Cloud Pass and Azure Void Pass, quickly took Great Evolution Pass into their protection.
This was the safest arrangement.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao was definitely not the only Old Ancestor who had set out.
There were dozens of Royal Lords, so many Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters would have to be deployed to face them.
Perhaps some Old Ancestors would fall in this battle, but the Royal Lords would surely suffer even more.
At that moment, a strange fluctuation appeared from another direction.
Yang Kai frowned and quickly looked in that direction.
The Royal Lords… had split up their forces.
They did not all converge in one place, but instead divided into two groups to attack the Human Great Passes in two locations.
However, were their attacks going to be limited to only two locations? After all, with dozens of Royal Lords, they could attack at multiple places at the same time without any difficulty.
If Yang Kai was in the position of the Royal Lords, he would also divide his forces to hit the Humans before the Great Passes fully converged.
What he was concerned about turned out to be reality as the Black Ink Clan did exactly what he feared.
“Brother, I’ll leave this to you,” said the Old Ancestor of Azure Void Pass. The next moment, his aura faded and a pillar of light shot up into the sky from Azure Void Pass.
The Azure Void Pass Old Ancestor also went to support the second Great Pass that was attacked by the Royal Lords.
The void trembled and the sky shook from an ox’s bellow as a Master’s aura approached rapidly.
Yang Kai turned his head and saw the Wind and Cloud Old Ancestor, riding a mighty bull, charging over from the direction of Wind and Cloud Pass.
Great Evolution Pass was in the center, Wind and Cloud Pass on the right, and Azure Void Pass on the left. Now that Old Ancestors of Great Evolution Pass and Azure Void Pass have left, the Old Ancestor of Wind and Cloud Pass had to shelter the three Great Passes all on his own. Thus, it was only natural that he came to Great Evolution Pass so that he could be positioned at the center, and monitor the left and right passes.
“Greetings, Old Ancestor!” Yang Kai and the members of Dawn saluted.
The Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor did not go to Great Evolution Pass directly and instead landed on Dawning Light.
The Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor nodded lightly, smiled at Yang Kai, and said, “Well done.”
He was referring to the battle at the Royal City a few years ago. Yang Kai, as a Seventh-Order Master, killed a Territory Lord and a Ninth-Order Black Ink Disciple. This must have been the only achievement of its kind in the entire history of the Black Ink Battlefield.
Normally, the Old Ancestors did not take much note of those in the Seventh-Order; however, Yang Kai had drawn his attention.
“It was a fluke, Old Ancestor,” Yang Kai said modestly.
The Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor chuckled and said, “With your abilities, if you can reach the Ninth-Order, you should be more useful than us old guys. What a pity…”
Unfortunately, Yang Kai’s advancement to the Open Heaven Realm started at the Fifth-Order, and then he took a Mid-Rank World Fruit, which raised his innate limit, but only to the Eighth-Order.
An Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was strong, but still not comparable to a Ninth-Order Master.
“Of course, if we can find the Universe Furnace, we should be able to help you break through those shackles.”
Yang Kai appeared gloomy as he replied, “This Junior is only a Seventh-Order Master now. It is too early to think about trying to reach the Ninth-Order. Furthermore, if we can completely solve the problem of the Black Ink Clan, then what does it matter if I am an Eighth-Order Master or a Ninth-Order Master in the future?”
The Old Ancestor raised an eyebrow when he heard Yang Kai’s response and remarked, “You’re a sensible one.”
He then raised his eyes, looked to the distance, and said solemnly, “I hope that will be the case!”
If this time, they really could completely eradicate the Black Ink Clan, then whether Yang Kai was a Seventh-Order or Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, it would not matter. Likewise for the others such as the Old Ancestors.
They had been on the Black Ink Battlefield for so many years, but if they really could return to the 3,000 Worlds, they would no longer need to cultivate and could just play with their descendants and enjoy a comfortable life.
The war had lasted far too long, so the Old Ancestors were all eager for such peaceful days.
Following his gaze, Yang Kai asked, “Old Ancestor, is the situation dire?”
Old Ancestor laughed lightly and said, “They’re just courting death.”
On hearing him say that, Yang Kai suddenly felt much better. He then raised his eyebrows and asked, “Had the Old Ancestors anticipated this?”
“Not really, it was just a precaution; after all, so many Royal Lords escaped and such a force could not be taken lightly,” the Old Ancestor casually replied, “We can’t find them if they hide, but since they chose to attack, we must capitalise on the opportunity to kill them. It’s better for us that the enemy is out in the open rather than hiding in the dark.”
“But now that the Royal Lords are splitting their forces between several places, it will be difficult for the Humans to deal with them, no?”
The Old Ancestor slowly shook his head “They divided their troops, but so can we. Didn’t Xiao Yue Ya… your Great Evolution Pass and Azure Void Pass’ Old Ancestors go to support the fight?”
[Xiao Yue Ya?]
Yang Kai raised his brow as he realized that he had heard something unbelievable.
“And… the Black Ink Clan is ultimately different from the Human Race. They are indeed rather strong and have caused problems for us Humans when they defended their respective High-Rank Black Ink Nests; however, they have a very obvious disadvantage. Do you know what it is?”
Yang Kai pondered for a moment and said, “They have to use their Black Ink Nests to heal their wounds?”
The Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor smiled and said, “Correct. That is their biggest flaw, a fatal one if you will! The Black Ink Clan’s very survival is based on their Black Ink Nests, so they are nothing without them. Although these Royal Lords escaped previously, all of them are seriously wounded in the process, and without Black Ink Nests, they would not have been able to recover from their injuries in just a few years.”
Yang Kai’s eyes lit up as he listened and his worries eased significantly.
He had forgotten about this.
The reason why Mo Zhao had not been able to recover from his injuries over the past few hundred years was because Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao had been harassing him. Occasionally, she would use Space Beacons to teleport to the outskirts of the Royal City to threaten him. When that happened, how could Mo Zhao have the time to fall asleep inside his Black Ink Nest to heal?
Mo Zhao had no way to recover, so he had to drag his injuries out until the final battle, when his Black Ink Nest was destroyed and he was killed by Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao.
That was the case for Mo Zhao, and now the other Royal Lords would suffer similar fates.
Although those Royal Lords escaped from the other Theatres with their lives, they did not have Black Ink Nests to enter retreat and heal; therefore, they were like Mo Zhao, unable to recover from their wounds.
“Moreover, they fled all the way to this place, passing by many dangers along the way. If they were lucky extremely, their journey may have been smooth, but you have experienced the hidden dangers in this region of the void. We relied on the protection of the Great Passes to remain safe, but those Royal Lords had to travel alone. Many of them must have suffered additional injuries along the way.” The Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor patted the head of the bull he was riding and joked, “These Royal Lords would be lucky to have 70% of their strength remaining.”
70%! It still seemed like a lot, but it was significantly lower than their peak, and unlike the Royal Lords who had no way to heal, the Old Ancestors were different. When the Old Ancestors were wounded, they might take a few decades of recuperation to heal, but they would eventually recover from their injuries as long as they were given enough time and resources.
“So, if they didn’t reveal themselves, we old folks would have to constantly remain on guard against them. Since they are out attacking us though, it can be considered a good thing. We can kill them now, and it should not be difficult to do so. Now it only depends on how many we can eliminate.” The Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor slightly narrowed his eyes and continued, “However, the fact that they chose to attack us here meant that we are not far from the Source Domain. They certainly don’t want us to get close too, so even if they know that they can’t win, they still have to fight hard.”
Yang Kai asked, “What about those Royal Lords in that Black Ink Nest Space? If they also intervene…”
“It’s possible, but highly unlikely.” Old Ancestor mused, “From all the information we’ve gathered, those Royal Lords in the Black Ink Nest Space should be under some kind of restriction with no way for them to easily move their true bodies. They were able to ambush our Ninth-Order Masters in that Black Ink Nest Space only because they had the help of the Black Ink Nest’s power. However, nothing is certain; after all, we do not know anything about the situation in the Source Domain. Whether those Royal Lords will intervene or not, we will find out soon enough.”
Of course, they would know when the final battle began.
Things would not bode well for the Humans if those Royal Lords that appeared in the Black Ink Nest Space could intervene in this battle.
Thus, the result of this battle would directly verify the Human’s previous speculations.
It was always torturous to have to wait. The after-effects of the fight in the void seemed to be increasingly violent, and even from a long distance, the fallout was clearly transmitted to them.
Yang Kai could not tell who had the upper hand.
Then, a strange fluctuation radiated towards them. The Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor raised his eyebrows, smiled, and said, “There… A Royal Lord has fallen.”
The fluctuation was due to the death of a Royal Lord!
Those aboard Dawn all punched their fists in the air and cheered in celebration. Yang Kai also heaved a long sigh and began to relax.
A Royal Lord had fallen, which meant that the Human Race had the upper hand. It looked like the Royal Lords that appeared in the Black Ink Nest Space really had not moved; otherwise, a Royal Lord could not have been killed so quickly.
After the first Royal Lord fell, the Humans seemed to gain momentum and soon the Royal Lords were killed one after another.
The battle continued, and the energy disturbances became increasingly violent.
The number of fallen Royal Lords was increasing, and the energy fluctuations were getting progressively more intense!
The Royal Lords who had escaped from the Theatres were now fighting to the death!
It was not until several days later that the commotion in the distance suddenly subsided.
Yang Kai and the others all looked at the Wind and Cloud Old Ancestor. Although they already had a guess in their hearts, since the Old Ancestor did not give a conclusive answer, they remained unsure.
The Old Ancestor obviously noticed their gazes and smiled, “This was a huge victory!”
A huge victory!
Cheers erupted aboard Dawning Light.
At the same time, there was also a loud cheer from Great Evolution Pass.
Apparently, the Inner Sanctum had also found out about the results of the battle.
Yang Kai and the others were extremely excited, but there was a hint of doubt in the Wind and Cloud Old Pass Ancestor’s smile.
He had sensed that in the battlefield, all the Royal Lords auras had withered.
In other words, all the Royal Lords he could sense had fallen.
This was not normal.
In the past, when these Royal Lords could not defeat the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, they still had the sense to escape. Why had they not attempted to flee this time? As for whether or not they could escape, they could still at least try.
Although not personally involved in this battle, Wind and Cloud Pass’ Old Ancestor’s investigation found out that all those Royal Lords fought bravely to the bitter end. Not only did none of them try to escape, they went all out right from the beginning, not seeming to care about their own lives. That was why the energy fluctuations were so intense.
These Royal Lords wanted to destroy a Great Pass, but even after noticing the response of the Human Race, they still did not back down.
The Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor sensed that in the two battlefields, a total of 11 Royal Lords fell. Five in one and six at the other.
Under normal circumstances, a Great Pass could not withstand a combined attack from five or six Royal Lords; however, the Human Race was prepared. The moment the battle broke out, the nearby Old Ancestors all raced over to provide support…
At the beginning, there were some losses at the two Great Passes targeted by the Royal Lords; however, when the other Old Ancestors rushed over to provide support, the Royal Lords could no longer attack with impunity.
The Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor could only sense two battlefields, but there could be farther battlefields that even he was unable to detect as there were enough Royal Lords for them to split into more than two groups.
If 11 Royal Lords fell at these two battlefields, then what happened to the Royal Lords at the other battlefields?
Did they succumb as well?
Could they not escape?
Why did they not escape?
The Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor squinted slightly and pondered.
That was when Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao returned.
Now that the distance between the Great Passes had become much shorter than before, even for a Supreme Master like an Old Ancestor, the consumption of resources to use the Space Array had been greatly reduced.
Thus, Wind and Cloud Pass’ Old Ancestor did not stay. Immediately after Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao’s return, he left in style, returning to Wind and Cloud Pass.
Inside the Main Conference Hall, Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao’s aura was slightly weakened. Although she did not suffer serious injuries in the last confrontation, there was always a price to pay for killing several Royal Lords.
It was also fortunate that those Royal Lords were heavily injured to begin with and had greatly diminished strength; otherwise, a winner of this battle might not have been determined so quickly.
Xiang Shan reported gloomily, “A total of four Great Passes were attacked by the Royal Lords. Azure Nether Pass, Purple Jade Pass, Exquisite Pass, and Constellation Pass. A total of 21 Royal Lords were killed in the four battles.”
The Royal Lords’ attacks were launched almost simultaneously.
The two battlefields that the Wind and Cloud Pass Old Ancestor felt before were the ones at Azure Nether Pass and Constellation Pass. Exquisite Pass and Purple Jade Pass were a little further away, so the Old Ancestor was unable to monitor them.
These four Great Passes each encountered an attack by five or six Royal Lords. A total of 21 Royal Lords had fallen in a battle with none escaping in the end.
The results of this battle were more than just significant.
These were 21 Royal Lords! Not Territory Lords nor Feudal Lords.
Previously, the total number of Royal Lords in the entire Black Ink Battlefield numbered slightly more than 100 before the pacification of the major Theatres killed about half of them. Of those survivors, 21 were now dead, which meant that there were not many Royal Lords left alive from the Theatres
However, many were apprehensive about this victory and some were even a little frightened.
Most of the soldiers were unclear about the situation, only thinking that the Old Ancestors were indeed powerful, managing to kill 21 Royal Lords outside the four Great Passes. However, those Old Ancestors who participated in that battle felt differently.
[Those Royal Lords… None of them ever even considered retreating… They seemed to be on a suicide mission…]
When Exquisite Pass was attacked, its Old Ancestor was the first to go out to face the enemy. It was one versus five, so in less than 10 breaths of time, he was nearly killed by those five Royal Lords. Under normal circumstances, even though the Exquisite Pass Old Ancestor was facing five Royal Lords, he would not be at risk of falling that quickly. It was because of this that he went confidently to fight against them.
However, the five Royal Lords seemed completely prepared to sacrifice themselves if they could take their enemy down with them. It only took a moment of inattention for the Exquisite Pass Old Ancestor to nearly lose his life. It was only thanks to the timely arrival of the Old Ancestors from the other Passes that he managed to turn the tables around.
A Royal Lord even cast a sacrificial Secret Technique upon his death and almost succeeded in dragging an Old Ancestor down with him.
In that battle, 21 Royal Lords were ruthlessly killed, while many Old Ancestors were injured.
“I’m afraid the Source Domain… is not far away,” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao quickly said, coming to the same conclusion as Wind and Cloud Pass’ Old Ancestor.
It was because the Source Domain was not far away that those Royal Lords fought so hard to stop the Humans Armies from advancing. They also knew that they could not stop every Pass, so they had divided into several groups and attacked at different locations. Their intention was clearly to inflict as much damage as possible.
However, they did not expect that the Humans were prepared or that their response would be so rapid; thus, their plans failed.
Xiang Shan frowned and said, “According to the information we collected before, there were 45 Royal Lords who had managed to escape the initial war. With 21 killed, there are still 24 remaining. There is no way to know where they are hiding or what they are planning to do.”
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao nodded, “Those Royal Lords are a grave hidden danger. No matter what their plans are, we can only stop them when they choose to appear.”
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao also carried this strong sense of unease.
According to the number of Royal Lords who originally escaped, they could have allocated five Royal Lords to attack nine Great Passes at once; however, only 21 Royal Lords showed up to attack four Great Passes. The remaining 24 Royal Lords were nowhere to be seen while those who did appear all died.
Where were those missing Royal Lords? It would be good if they had emerged to fight like the other Royal Lords, but now that they were hiding, it became a huge problem for the Humans.
“No matter where those Royal Lords are hiding, Great Evolution Pass need not feel dispirited about it. Send out orders for the reconnaissance Squads to return.”
The reconnaissance Squads of the four Great Passes that were attacked earlier were all nearly wiped out, so Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao was also afraid that if something like this happened again, the Squads Great Evolution Pass sent to scout the way would not be able to resist and be annihilated.
Xiang Shan was about to issue the orders when a long, sharp whistle suddenly came from outside Great Evolution Pass.
Xiang Shan was stunned and turned his head towards the source of the sound.
This was obviously a signal from a Squad doing reconnaissance.
When he turned around again, Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao had already disappeared, rushing out the moment she heard the sound.
Xiang Shan frowned and hastily tried to catch up with her.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao swiftly appeared aboard Dawning Light but found no trace of the enemy, so she couldn’t help frowning and asking, “What’s going on?”
Yang Kai replied, “Old Ancestor, there is something wrong with the road ahead.”
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao narrowed her eyes slightly and investigated the situation for a moment before her expression changed.
There was indeed something wrong with the road ahead. All this time, the deeper they traveled into the void, the more dangers they encountered. There were Arrays and Divine Abilities left from the ancient era everywhere, along with various Celestial Phenomenon.
However, up ahead, all the dangers seemed to suddenly reduce significantly.
The reduction was very obvious, with there being practically no sense of crisis from anywhere. In fact, even Seventh-Order Open Heaven Masters no longer felt threatened.
Before this, even the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters could not take the dangers in the void lightly.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao frowned, looked into the situation, and found that it was indeed as Yang Kai said.
“When did you first notice?” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao asked. Such an obvious change was really a bit unusual as there might be some different hidden dangers ahead if they went down this path.
Yang Kai replied, “Just now.”
Nothing seemed off when the Old Ancestors and Royal Lords were fighting; however, Yang Kai suddenly noticed a change in the void soon after that battle ended.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao frowned as she was not sure why there was such a change.
She had planned to recall the Squads back to Great Evolution Pass to avoid them being attacked by the hidden Royal Lords; however, now she could not recall them anymore. So, instead of going back to Great Evolution Pass, she remained on Dawning Light to personally monitor the frontline situation. If a Royal Lord did attack, she would be able to immediately protect the scouting Squads from this position.
With a flash of her Divine Sense, she sent a message to Xiang Shan back in Great Evolution Pass instructing him to ask the other Great Passes how their situations were.
Soon, it was reported that almost all the Great Passes had encountered such changes and the dangers of the road ahead had been significantly reduced…
…..
At the same moment.
Deep in the void at an unknown place.
There was a violent surge of Black Ink Strength. The energy rampage involved 24 figures, each possessing a strong aura.
These 24 figures were the surviving Royal Lords who had previously escaped from the Theatres.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao was worried that these unseen Royal Lords were hiding in the shadows, preparing to ambush the Great Passes; however, the truth was they had long returned to this unknown land.
The other 21 who did not come back here were mainly trying to delay the advance of the Human Race.
The original 21 Royal Lords’ strength was strong as even if they were wounded, they were still Royal Lords. They split into four teams and as long as they were fast enough, they had a good chance of destroying a few Great Passes.
They did not need to inflict widespread damage; even if they destroyed one or two Great Passes, the Humans would have their momentum blunted and be forced to delay their follow-up actions while focusing on defense.
However, the Humans were prepared for this possibility, so the Black Ink Clan’s plan failed.
The 21 Royal Lords were all killed, while the Human Race’s crusade was not affected in any way.
Of course, these 24 Royal Lords had no way to perceive the fall of their companions nor any time to worry about them as they had their own mission.
At this moment, these Royal Lords had gathered together in a certain place and were each using their own means and Black Ink Strength to bombard a certain place in the void.
When 24 Royal Lord made a move together, they could unleash a fearsome power that was enough to shake the Heavens and Earth.
At the place where their raging attacks struck, a skinny figure that was basically just dried up flesh and bones sat. This figure had no Aura and to any outside observer was as good as dead. Only his eyes remained bright and full of life.
He was Cang!
His location was not hidden in any way, so anyone who could reach this place would be able to find him as long as they were determined enough.
The 24 Royal Lords were currently attacking him.
However, the fierce attacks, which was enough to tear apart space itself, failed to even injure Cang in the slightest. All the attacks were stopped by an inexplicable energy field just one step away from Cang.
This energy field seemed to be a kind of restriction that resisted all outside interference and simply distributed all impacts out across an enormous area.
Although the Royal Lords had been attacking for a long time, they showed no signs of giving up, but there was also no hint of progress being made.
Meanwhile, surrounding Cang, there was now rich Black Ink Strength that filled the void.
Though the Royal Lords were attacking, Cang did not consider it to be a crisis. It was as if he was certain that these Royal Lords could not do anything to him. Not only did he not try to stop them, he even tried to chat with them.
“Did you guys come back from out there? Look what a mess you are in! Were you beaten up before you came running here?”
“Hmm… Seems to be the case. All of you are quite injured. Must have been a significant defeat. En, en… the current generation have finally made their mark. Looks like this Old Master has not wasted his effort in sitting here for so many years.”
“Can you tell me about the situation outside? I’ve been here for so many years and I don’t know anything about the outside world. What’s more, there’s no one to talk to here. Hey, don’t be like your Great Aunt. She was like a boring bottle gourd or a woman. Even when beaten, she never made a sound.”
“Hey, seriously? What is the situation in the outside world today? You lowlifes have actually been driven back all the way here? Has my Human Race flourished so much that you are no longer their match?”
“There are not many Innate Royal Lords anymore, hm? Most of you are Acquired and have advanced from below. It looks like a lot of those who went out from here died already.”
“Look, don’t waste your energy. Do you think that this Old Master will be easy for you to defeat? Save your energy and take a break. Isn’t it better for us to have a chat? Hello?”
“Hey you, yes, the one with the horns on your head. Yes, you, tell me how things are out there? In exchange, I can give you a gift.”
…..
The Black Ink Strength surged as they madly attacked; however, even with the combined efforts of 24 Royal Lords they couldn’t even scratch Cang.
The more he nagged, the fiercer the Royal Lords attacked. It was as if they were determined to shut him up.
At one point, a voice from the dark depths exclaimed in surprise, “You can control Shi’s power? The power to devour?”
Although Cang’s movements were extremely subtle, they were still detectable so he usually concealed them extremely well. However, this time, he accidentally revealed something.
Cang laughed and said, “Oh, you’ve found out.”
The voice said coldly, “So that’s why! Old thing, no wonder you survived for so many years! You can control Shi’s power!”
Cang sighed and said, “Not like I can help it. This damned place has been turned into a soulless, spiritless land by your underlings, so if this Old Master wants to live, the only way is to secretly steal from you from time to time.”
For countless years, he had relied on the manipulation of Shi’s power to occasionally devour some energy from the darkness in order to survive; otherwise, he would have died many years ago.
The voice in the darkness sneered and said, “You’re really good at hiding. You managed to hide your flaws for so many years that even I was unaware of it.”
“It was unbecoming of me to keep it from you, the Master of this domain. Now that you’ve found out, should I be ashamed of it?”
“I’m afraid that you’ve forgotten how Shi died.”
“I can’t help it. This is the only way if I want to live.”
How could Cang not know how Shi died? It was because Shi had devoured too much Black Ink Strength and was at risk of being corrupted by it that he had to integrate himself into the restriction at the last moment.
Even an existence as powerful as him could not completely resist the corruption of Black Ink Strength.
The voice in the darkness laughed coldly and said, “Very well, you want it, don’t you? If you want it so badly, then I’ll give it to you!”
As the voice spoke, the calm darkness suddenly rumbled. It was as if there was a violent energy surging in it, boiling from the inner depths and impacting the invisible restriction.
Cang frowned and called out hastily, “Mo, do not be rash. Let’s talk about this!”
The voice in the darkness kept silent and the power rumbled more and more fiercely.
Cang was originally withered to skin and bones, but now, he visibly swelled up. In the blink of an eye, he turned into a plump old man.
This transformation was not done though as his body continued to expand and soon bulged up, like a blown-up ball.
“Stop stop!” Cang shouted, appearing terrified as he yelled, “Mo, stop, if you keep doing this, this Old Master will burst!”
Mo naturally would not stop. He wanted nothing more than to make this noisy old man explode.
The 24 Royal Lords saw this scene from outside the restriction and smiled happily. They felt re-invigorated, and increased the intensity of their attacks.
After a few moments, Cang’s whole body was swollen into a ball. He was so puffed up that no one could see his facial features. He seemed like he could burst at any moment.
He shouted with difficulty, “I can’t, I can’t hold on anymore!”
After he said so, he lifted his chubby palm and thrusted it forward.
The Royal Lords, who were bombarding him indiscriminately, instantly froze as if death itself had enveloped them.
In the darkness, Mo suddenly roared, “Dodge!”
But it was too late.
When Cang thrust his fat palm out, the vast void trembled and the restriction which covered the darkness visibly rippled.
The five closest Royal Lords were swept up by the violent burst of power and instantly exploded into blood mist.
More Royal Lords behind them were hit hard and began to bleed.
The whole world suddenly fell silent with just one blow.
Cang’s swollen body, which was like a round ball, now began to deflate and shrink rapidly. He eventually reverted to an old man, heaved a long sigh of relief, and said, “Ah… much more comfortable.”
The Royal Lords, who were still alive, were all terrified as they stared at Cang with immense fear.
They were Royal Lords, the most powerful in existence in this world. 24 of them joined hands to attack Cang for so long but they couldn’t even hurt him. However, with just one counter-attack, five Royal Lords perished and more than 10 of them were seriously injured. The ones who weren’t further injured were simply lucky to have avoided the blow.
The power of that palm just now had surpassed their understanding.
There should not be such a force in this world.
In the darkness sealed by the restriction, the black ink coloured ocean no longer had ripples on it.
A while later, Mo angrily scolded, “You tricked me!”
Just now, when Cang pleaded for him to stop, he really thought that this old thing was about to burst, so he spared no effort to funnel more power into him. In reality, Cang was borrowing his power to fight! Thus, once Cang unleashed the accumulated power, it violently blasted out, resulting in casualties among the Royal Lords. It could be said that the power of that blow was not his real strength, but his combined with Mo’s.
The Royal Lords were unaware of what happened, but Mo understood. He knew that Cang’s attack was done with the help of his power and also the power of the entire restriction, that was why the damage it inflicted was so terrifying.
It was impossible for Cang to do this with his strength alone.
If he really had such strength, he would not have been trapped here so close to the restriction for so long.
“How dare you lie to me!” Mo roared hysterically, as if he was a jilted woman.
Cang shuddered a little as his body was covered in goosebumps, “Settle down Mo. Don’t make frivolous accusations as if this Old Master has taken advantage of you. Furthermore, isn’t it expected that I would fool you? You’re such an idiot and deserve to be fooled.”
“You lied to me back then too!” Mo hissed, “You led me here, and laid this restriction, imprisoning me for millions of years! You all deserve to die!”
Cang sighed slightly and said, “It really couldn’t be helped, Mo. Your power… is just too overbearing, if you weren’t imprisoned here, the 3,000 Worlds would have been destroyed long ago. Haven’t we old guys been accompanying you? Now, there is only one old man left, while everyone else is dead.”
Mo coldly laughed, “There’s no way for you to live any longer!”
It was a huge restriction that required someone to be here to make sure Mo remained trapped; thus, those Cang mentioned had to remain here at all times.
Unfortunately, Mo’s life and no natural end while those people who guarded this place were not immortals. Regardless of how strong they were, they would eventually pass away.
“So be it, the past is the past, let’s not mention it anymore,” Cang waved his hand with a look of despair and continued, “This Old Master will not last long. When this Old Master dies, you will no longer be trapped. Then whatever you do in this vast universe is none of my concern.”
There was a long silence in the darkness before Mo muttered, “I await that day.”
Cang raised his eyebrows and asked, “Do you want to do it yourself? Just like earlier, perhaps if we do it a few more times, this Old Master will really burst!”
“Hmph!” Mo coldly snorted, fell silent, and ignored him.
Cang looked at the 19 Royal Lords who were still alive, waved to them casually, and asked, “Shall we continue?”
The Royal Lords looked terrified and none of them dared to move.
Since they knew that this man could devour Black Ink Strength and turn it into his own power, why would they still want to fight against him? They just witnessed him vaporise five Royal Lords with a simple thrust of his palm!
If he did it a few more times, they would all die meaninglessly.
The next moment, the Royal Lords seemed to have received some instructions. All of them bowed towards the darkness where Mo was sealed, turned around, and dashed off. Soon, they were nowhere to be seen.
Cang secretly heaved a sigh of relief at this sight.
Although Mo’s intelligence had grown considerably compared to back then, and he was much more mature, making it not as easy to deal with him, he was still rather naive.
If he really pumped up Cang a few more times with his power, Cang was certain that he would not be able to survive.
After all, there were originally 10 guardians of this huge restriction; however, he was now the only one remaining.
He could still make use of the restriction, but he was now all alone.
He sighed in his heart as he looked in the direction of where the Royal Lords departed, “Shi, if you do not return soon, this Old Master really won’t be able to hold up much longer…”
[Will I be able to last until that day?]
He had guarded this place for so many eons, in this barren place with no means of restoring his strength or increasing his lifespan. One by one, his old friends exhausted their powers and died. Before they died, all of them integrated themselves into the restriction to reinforce it.
The last one to leave was Shi.
Before integrating his body into the restriction, Shi told Cang a plan that he would retain a trace of his Soul, which would cross the void, and return to the 3,000 Worlds.
Doing so, he might have a chance to live again.
He wanted to find a complete solution to the problem in his next life.
Needless to say, this was an extremely bold plan, because even Shi, himself, did not know whether it would work.
But there was always hope.
Now, more than 100,000 years had passed yet Shi still had not returned. Cang did not know whether his plan had worked or not.
Perhaps Shi’s Soul never made it back to the 3,000 Worlds.
After all, the road was very dangerous, with plenty of traps. An empty spirituality did not have the slightest self-preservation power and might be destroyed if it encountered any dangers.
Even if Shi managed to return to the 3,000 Worlds, there was very little chance that he could resurrect.
Cang was mentally prepared for this. The reason why he agreed to this plan was also because there was really no other way. A sliver of hope was better than sitting on the sidelines and waiting to die.
However, after waiting for so many years, Shi’s plan must have failed; otherwise, he should have heard something from him in these 100,000 years.
The good thing was, now the descendants of the Human Race had finally struck back. They actually were able to drive back the Royal Lords from the outside, allowing Cang to see a glimmer of hope again.
However, Cang was trapped here and unable to move. There was no way for him to provide any help to the Human Race.
Now, he could only wait!
The 19 Royal Lords who left earlier were obviously moving to intercept the Humans.
In this regard, Cang was not worried. Since the Human Race could drive them back, then they would not have any problems dealing with these remnants.
The real problem now was how to handle Mo!
This was the source of all the problems. Without resolving him, all other efforts were ultimately futile.
When they discovered this problem millions of years ago, they also tried to eliminate Mo. Unfortunately, they failed and could only create a cage here to seal Mo inside.
For millions of years, Mo could not get out of this trap.
It was as much of an imprisonment for them as it was for Mo.
Cang gazed far away, hoping that this generation of Humans could give him a pleasant surprise!
…..
In the void, both Yang Kai and Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao had an ominous feeling as they stood on Dawning Light’s deck.
It had been a month since the Royal Lords attacked and the void ahead had changed dramatically.
The further they went, the fewer dangers they encountered.
Then, at a certain point, Yang Kai suddenly felt as if Dawning Light had entered a different world, one without a trace of energy at all!
So far, although the void had been vast and seemed both silent and empty, the fact was it was still filled with all kinds of energy. It was just a matter of how much.
The most common energy in the void was the various Starlight Strengths.
The Nine Heavenly Layers Grand Array that was placed in Void Land was able to draw in Starlight Strength to replenish itself. Thus, as time passed, the more powerful the Nine Heavenly Layers of Grand Array would become.
The Black Ink Battlefield also had Starlight Strength, as well as many other strange powers in it.
Although these powers could not be absorbed by Humans directly, they were real, and many Mobile Palace Artifacts and Warships had the ability to draw on such energies to power themselves.
This way, the reliance on cultivators to power Warships was reduced.
It could be said that these kinds of chaotic powers filled all of space in the void.
However, this place was a complete vacuum.
There were no restrictions, no residual Divine Abilities, no colourful and diverse Celestial Phenomenon, not even the power of the Void itself!
This was a place where there was literally nothing, only endless space.
Being in such a place, one could not help but feel surreal. Even being in it, Yang Kai could not help but wonder if there really was such a place in this world.
“A Spiritless Land!” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao murmured and frowned slightly.
Yang Kai had previously heard of Spiritless Lands; however, this was the first time he had actually seen one.
“Is it manmade or naturally formed?” Yang Kai asked.
The Old Ancestor shook her head, “I don’t know.”
It was fine if it was naturally formed, but if it was artificially created, then it was a big deal.
[Does this place have anything to do with the Black Ink Clan’s Source Domain? Is the Source Domain hidden here? But, if this is a Spiritless Land, why would the Source Domain be hidden here? Was this done by the Great Experts of ancient times for some reason?]
Nothing was known.
At that moment, an energy fluctuation flickered from the depths of the void. Although it was fleeting, both Yang Kai and Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao sensed it.
Yang Kai immediately turned his head to look in that direction while Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao frowned and narrowed her eyes.
Not only did they sense it, all Humans in the Great Passes sensed it. Be it Ninth-Order Old Ancestors or Fifth-Order soldiers, all clearly sensed that energy fluctuation.
In all the Great Passes, all eyes and Divine Senses focused in that direction. Some even rose into the sky hoping to get a better look.
“Strong!” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao exclaimed softly.
Although the place where the fluctuation came from was still incredibly far away, she clearly perceived that whatever caused it was so powerful that she could not hope to replicate it.
In other words, the one who caused this fluctuation was a Master beyond her.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao could not help but feel intimidated.
She was instantly reminded of the jade white hand that she saw in the Black Ink Nest Space previously.
At that time, she sensed that the Master of that hand seemed to be more powerful than a Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. With a single strike, he actually managed to tear apart the Black Ink Nest Space, which had sealed 22 Ninth-Orders Open Heaven Realm Masters and 50 Royal Lords inside of it.
This showed that the jade white hand’s Master and the Mother Nest were very close to each other, and that the Master who attacked had unfathomable strength.
[Was the intense energy fluctuation made by the owner of that jade white hand? If not, who is this Master that is fighting in the depths of the void?]
This crusade was increasingly puzzling and incomprehensible.
After a month passed, the distances between the Great Passes had become extremely close to each other. Wind and Cloud Pass and Azure Void Pass were now just an hour or so away from Great Evolution Pass. In fact, Yang Kai could clearly see the two Great Passes on his left and right.
It could also be said that the Human Race had effectively become a single Army. Any one of the Great Passes could support the other Great Passes in a timely manner.
The power of more than 100 Great Passes had gathered. There were more than 100 Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, thousands of Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, and around 2 million soldiers. Furthermore, they had the accumulated heritages of the Cave Heavens and Paradises, over hundreds of thousands of years.
With such a powerful force, the Human Race had the confidence to deal with the Black Ink Clan, regardless of how strong its hidden forces were!
In this battle, the Black Ink Clan would be eradicated once and for all!
After the energy fluctuation, there was no more movement from the depths of the void and it remained unknown what caused it.
Three days later, while Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao was meditating aboard Dawning Light, she suddenly opened her eyes, gazed ahead momentarily and then dashed out.
A long continuous whistling sound followed.
At the same time, from a number of Great Passes, Ninth-Order Open Heaven Masters flew out like long bolts of lightning towards the depths of the void.
“Enemy attack!” Yang Kai shouted, “Take your stations!”
He clearly perceived that as many as 30 Old Ancestors had rushed out from the Great Passes.
The only enemy who could make so many Old Ancestors move was the Royal Lords.
Last time, 21 Royal Lords divided their four groups to launch an attack which eventually resulted in their annihilation. Not much time had passed since then, but now another wave of Royal Lords was attacking.
These had to be the Royal Lords who did not show themselves previously.
Yang Kai wondered why they did not attack together and instead split into two separate waves. Were they not aware that splitting their forces and attacking at different times would be less effective? That couldn’t be. There had to be some reason why they had to do so; after all, the Royal Lords were not fools.
Shortly after Yang Kai shouted, a battle broke out in the depths of the void ahead, a very fierce battle.
Previously, when Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao went to another Great Pass to support them, the distance was too far for Yang Kai and the others to perceive anything.
However, this time it was different. The location of this battle was not far from Great Evolution Pass, about half a day’s journey by Warship.
Divine Abilities and Secret Techniques began to erupt, and extremely dazzling and gorgeous lights bloomed at that distant location.
Underneath that glorious glow was nothing by violence and death.
The battle was extremely ferocious!
This was the rawest feeling this battle gave to Yang Kai.
There were no probing attacks or measuring of the enemy, just an immediate life-or-death struggle.
“One, two, three…” Yang Kai concentrated on perceiving the battlefield ahead and after a moment, he frowned and mumbled, “The number isn’t right. There are only 19 Royal Lords.”
A total of 45 Royal Lords escaped after the pacification of the Theatres. 21 died in their attack on the Great Passes. Then there should still be 24 Royal Lords remaining. So, why were there only 19 in this battle? Where did the other five go?
Feng Ying also nodded and said, “It’s 19.”
Yang Kai immediately ordered, “Return to Great Evolution Pass!”
There were still five missing Royal Lords, and no one knew where they were hiding. If they attacked Dawn at this moment, they would not be able to resist. The Old Ancestors from Azure Void Pass and Wind and Cloud Pass next to them might not be able to rescue them in time; thus, it was better for them to return to the Great Pass.
Naturally, there was no way for Yang Kai to know this was unnecessary; after all, those five Royal Lords were killed by Cang before this and there were only 19 Royal Lords left.
What’s more, these 19 were far more seriously injured compared to the previous 21 Royal Lords.
Cang may have only killed five Royal Lords, but he seriously injured more than 10 of them as well. As a result, these 19 Royal Lords were in worse condition than the previous 21 who had attacked, with many of them not even able to display 50% of their peak strength.
30 Old Ancestors went out to fight them, outnumbering them almost two to one.
This battle broke out suddenly, and ended very quickly.
Yang Kai was just leading Dawn back to Great Evolution Pass when the battlefield in the distance was filled with the sounds of Royal Lords falling, one after another.
On the city walls, the Human soldiers who sensed the battlefield were dumbfounded.
No one expected the Royal Lords to die so quickly.
The battle was actually over before a stick of incense passed, with the auras of all 19 Royal Lords that had appeared withering as they perished.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao soon returned, without a trace of injury.
Xiang Shan and the others rushed to welcome her.
Not rejoicing in victory, the Old Ancestor wore a frown on her face; after all, the previous battle had given her an extremely odd feeling, even more so than the one before it.
It was as if these Royal Lords did not take their own lives seriously. They appeared as if they could not wait to die and practically did not defend themselves, showing no sense of self preservation and only attacking wildly.
What concerned her more was that the 19 Royal Lords that appeared this time were very seriously injured.
More than 10 of them could not even exert half of their usual strength; otherwise, the Old Ancestors could not have won so easily even if they were numerically superior.
The Royal Lord’s injuries were odd, and she wondered if that immense burst of energy some time ago had something to do with it.
Perhaps that was the case, otherwise it could not be explained.
If so, that would mean that someone had struck those Royal Lords before them.
As the Old Ancestor pondered, a vague ‘guidance’ suddenly came to her from the darkness.
It was not a word, nor a Divine Sense transmission, but a simple ‘guidance’.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao immediately turned her head in the direction where the Royal Lords came from.
In that instance, the eyes of more than 100 Old Ancestors from the various Great Passes also converged in that direction.
Some of their brows rose slightly, some looked surprised, while others appeared relieved…
When that ‘guidance’ came, all the Old Ancestors knew that they were close to reaching the Black Ink Clan’s Source Domain, and would soon be able to clear some of their doubts and questions.
Be it whether the jade white hand that saved them that day belonged to a friend or a foe would be revealed soon.
If they were not mistaken, the vague ‘guidance’ in the darkness came from the owner of that jade white hand.
More than 10 days after the 19 attacking Royal Lords were killed, the Great Passes finally arrived at the source of darkness.
The void deep ahead was enveloped by a huge and dense cloud of Black Ink Strength that appeared like an endless ocean that had existed since time immemorial.
Although everything was calm, everyone felt the dread of what was to come. Even from a distance, it still gave people an extremely ominous feeling.
The evil energy in this Black Ink Ocean seemed to be able to devour one’s heart and Soul just by staring at it.
In the Great Passes, all eyes gazed towards the Black Ink Ocean, and all of them looked grave, even the Old Ancestors.
Was this the Black Ink Clan’s Source Domain?
Although no one told them what it was, when they saw the Black Ink Ocean, they all realized that this was definitely the Source Domain, and that the Mother Nest must be inside.
At the beginning of the crusade, no one thought that the Source Domain was so far away, and no one expected that the Source Domain would look like this.
If too many Black Ink Clansmen died in a certain battlefield, the Black Ink Strength would form thick Black Ink Clouds, and if enough Black Ink Clouds came together, they were sometimes called Black Ink Oceans, but those were a far cry from the sight before them.
This was a real Black Ink Ocean, dense and boundless.
The so-called ‘Black Ink Oceans’ that they had seen previously were at most small ponds by comparison.
Most of the Humans only focused on this vast Black Ink Ocean ahead of them, while the Old Ancestors of the Great Passes vaguely perceived that there seemed to be something else beyond this Black Ink Ocean.
It was something that was hidden extremely well and no one would know it was there unless effort was made to sense it.
In Myriad Demons Pass, the Old Ancestor used his Demon Eye of Annihilation to see through the illusion.
At Divine Feather Pass, the Divine Feather Old Ancestor activated his True Vision Eye to pierce the veil of the void.
It was the same for the Old Ancestors of other Great Passes. With their Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm cultivation, they more or less all practiced some form of Eye Secret Technique, though their attainments varied quite a bit.
At this moment, when the various Eye Secret Techniques were activated, the hidden objects beyond the darkness were instantly perceived by the Old Ancestors, and what they saw left all of them pale with shock.
They saw a restriction at the outer edge of the darkness, which was like a cage that enveloped the entire Black Ink Ocean.
It was because of this seal, which imprisoned the Black Ink Ocean, that it did not spread outward.
It was not hard to imagine that without this seal, the Black Ink Ocean would have been so enormous that perhaps the whole void would have been filled with it, leaving no place for the Human Race to exist.
It was a huge revelation!
Such a seal was definitely not a natural formation and had to be man-made, but even the Old Ancestors had never heard of anything like it.
From the traces left by the passage of time, it was obvious that this seal was ancient. In fact, it was so old that even the Old Ancestors could not figure out when it was even formed.
However, the Old Ancestors did not need to investigate for long as suddenly, something in the void attracted their attention.
There was an old man with a white beard, sitting on the restriction, looking at them with a smile.
All the Old Ancestors gasped.
Initially, they did not even notice this man’s presence. This old man seemed to suddenly appear out of nowhere.
With more than 100 Old Ancestors scanning the area, it was naturally impossible that he could be missed; however, the old man could not possibly had just appeared there. He had always been there, but they did not know what technique he used such that even they, the Old Ancestors, could not detect him.
In other words, if he did not want to be found, none of the Humans here could find him.
This old man… was very strong. So strong that even the Old Ancestors were shaken.
He just sat there with a smile on his face, yet the Old Ancestors all felt that he was facing them individually.
This was a strange feeling, but also a sign of his supreme strength and control.
They did not detect any energy fluctuations from the old man, yet, many Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters had a clear understanding of the situation.
It was clear to them that he had no ill will towards the Human Race.
Additionally, the old man was obviously Human.
Without coordinating, each of the Old Ancestors stepped out from the Great Passes and converged towards the old man’s location.
Although they were fairly certain this old man helped some of them escape from the Black Ink Nest Space, they remained cautious as they still had not confirmed his origins or intentions.
With more than 100 Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters acting together, the old man would have to consider carefully if he had any malicious intent.
When the old man detected the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters’ thoughts, his smile only widened.
Then suddenly, the old man appeared disappointed and frowned.
As the Old Ancestors approached from the Great Passes, he clearly saw Duan’s handiwork from the Great Passes.
Back then, one of his comrades, Duan, was supremely talented in Artifact Refining, second to none in it.
In fact, the cage where Mo was imprisoned was created by Duan with the help of the nine others.
Of course, Duan died after he created this cage, along with all the others except him.
It was naturally impossible for Duan to have personally built these Great Passes; however, Cang remembered that Duan had taken a few Disciples during his life and passed down his knowledge to them.
Thus, it seemed that the Great Pass was created by Duan’s Disciples.
But rather than that, what Cang was disappointed about was that he could not find the familiar aura he was searching for among these people.
That could only mean that Shi’s plan had failed!
He must have failed to cross the void and return to the 3,000 Worlds; otherwise, he surely would have come here today.
Aboard all of the Great Passes, all were confused when they saw the Old Ancestors walking towards the darkness.
The Old Ancestors were able to see Cang’s figure only because Cang willingly allowed them to see him, but not the others.
Only Yang Kai stood on the walls of Great Evolution Pass and stared at them with wide eyes. He appeared shocked as if he had seen a ghost in the daytime.
[There’s someone here! There’s actually someone in this accursed place!]
He had heard from Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao that there was a force fighting against the Black Ink Clan and she even speculated that the force was near the Mother Nest; however, he still could not believe it until he really saw this old man.
This was a Spiritless Land, at the deepest part of the Black Ink Battlefield. It was where the Source Domain of Black Ink Clan!
As far as Yang Kai knew, for the past several hundred thousand years, no Human had ever set foot in this place, but there was actually someone here!
Did this mean that this person had been here for at least hundreds of thousands of years?
In the absence of the presence of any energy, how did he survive?
Even if this old man was extremely strong, he must have depleted all his reserves after so many years.
Could it be that this old man’s Small Universe was like his own? One that could raise living beings, allowing him to be self-sufficient?
While Yang Kai was stunned, so was Cang.
After noticing another gaze upon him, Cang turned to look towards the source and found a little Seventh-Order Junior staring at him.
Those in the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm could see him because he took the initiative to reveal himself to them, but he did not allow anyone else to see him.
Even the top Eighth-Order Masters at the Great Passes were confused as they did not know where all the Old Ancestors were going, so what was so special about this Seventh-Order boy?
Cang’s eyes flashed.
Yang Kai immediately shuddered as he felt like he was being examined from the inside out. It was a very uncomfortable feeling that sent chills down his spine.
Yang Kai frowned as he cursed to himself. Regardless of who this old man was, he should not pry into other’s secrets. He felt that this old man was up to no good.
On the other hand, Cang now understood why Yang Kai could see him.
When he peered into Yang Kai’s Small Universe, he saw a World Tree clone.
Strictly speaking, Cang had a close relationship with the World Tree, and it was with the power of the World Tree clone that Yang Kai was able to sense the old man’s existence even before the Old Ancestors.
Cang did not bother with Yang Kai and just smiled at the Ninth-Order Masters who came to him and gathered in a semicircle. Unconcerned about their vigilance, he said with a mellow tone, “You’ve finally come. I’ve been waiting for this day for more than a million years!”
..…
On the wall, Yang Kai became curious and restless. Although he resented the old man for prying into his personal details, what was happening was clearly an opportunity to learn the secrets of the ages.
The old man, who had lived here for hundreds of thousands of years, was a character from an era so ancient there were no records of it. He must know more about Black Ink Clan than any of the Humans today.
He could be revealing something about the secrets of the Black Ink Clan right now; thus, Yang Kai also wanted to hear about it.
However, he was not strong enough and he was unqualified to participate in such a discussion.
Seemingly noticing something, Xiang Shan frowned and asked, “Brat, what’s the situation over there? You look like an ant on a hot metal wok. What’s happening?”
Yang Kai said, “Sir, if you don’t know what’s going on, then how could I know what’s happening over there?” He then continued, “Sir, why don’t we utilize our Divine Sense to hear what the Old Ancestors are saying to that Old Sir?”
When he said this, Xiang Shan, Mi Jing Lun, and all the others looked strangely at him.
“What Old Sir?”
There was no such thing as an Old Sir over there!
They only saw the Old Ancestors of all the Great Passes leaving the Passes in unison and converging in one place.
Without orders from the Old Ancestors, they did not dare to do anything rash.
None of them saw any Old Sir!
Yang Kai said, “It’s that Old Senior…”
He pointed his hand to where the Old Ancestors were gathered.
Xiang Shan stared over there, but still could not see anything. He then slapped the back of Yang Kai’s head and snarled, “What nonsense? How can there be anyone there other than the Old Ancestors?”
Yang Kai fumed, [Why did he have to slap my head? Could he not have just used his words?]
However, after seeing Mi Jing Lun and others’ expressions, Yang Kai suddenly understood, “None of you can see him?”
Xiang Shan growled, “If you keep talking nonsense, I will split your head in two.”
Yang Kai turned his head to look at Feng Ying and asked, “Senior Sister, you also cannot see that Old Sir?”
Feng Ying shook her head, “No, there is no Old Sir over there.”
Yang Kai did not know what to say.
Why could he see the old man, when the others could not?
The Old Ancestors all converged in that direction. So obviously the Old Ancestors had seen him as well.
Xiang Shan and the others now realized that Yang Kai did not look like he was joking. They also did not understand why the Old Ancestors had suddenly left.
“There really is an old man over there?” Xiang Shan asked with a deep voice.
“Yes!” Yang Kai nodded confidently.
Mi Jing Lun and the others frowned.
“Could it be the one with the white jade hand?” Xiang Shan remarked as he thought of what Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao had said the other day.
“I don’t know if it’s the man with the white jade hand, but he seems Human,” Yang Kai replied casually.
Mi Jing Lun said solemnly, “If there is someone there, yet we can’t detect him, then his strength is simply unfathomable.”
Mi Jing Lun glanced at Xiang Shan before suddenly smiling as they both patted Yang Kai’s shoulder, “You want to know what he is telling the Old Ancestors?”
Earlier on, Mi Jing Lun did not know why Yang Kai looked so frustrated and curious, but now he understood.
How could Yang Kai be the only one who was curious? Although the Old Ancestors would certainly reveal some key information to them later, they might not necessarily tell them everything.
It was certainly better if they could hear it for themselves.
However, none of them dared to do anything rash. Since the Old Ancestors did not call for them, who would dare to go forward on their own? None of them was able to shoulder the responsibility if something went wrong.
Yang Kai had learnt long ago not to get involved in Big Head Mi’s schemes and shook his head decisively, “No!”
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao once commented that Mi Jing Lun was quite petty and vindictive; thus, Yang Kai knew he should not try to best him in an argument. In fact, if Yang Kai had the necessary strength, he would have resorted to fists first and asked questions later; after all, the best way to deal with anyone petty was to beat them into submission.
Likewise, this same reasoning applied to Xiang Shan.
Unfortunately for him, the two Big Heads were too similar in their thinking.
Yang Kai was alerted as soon as Mi Jing Lun spoke, but it was too late.
“No, you certainly want to!” Mi Jing Lun said firmly, taking out a tea set and shoving it directly into Yang Kai’s hand before ‘casually’ suggesting, “That Old Senior must have grown lonely after so many years and long forgotten the taste of tea. Go and brew the Old Senior a pot of tea!”
Upon saying so, both Mi Jing Lun and Xiang Shan directly used their hands, which were still on Yang Kai’s shoulders, to throw him out.
Yang Kai was shocked and wanted to resist, but was unable to do so.
In a flash, Yang Kai was hurled out towards where the Old Ancestors had gathered.
“Damn you Big Head Xiang! Big Head Mi!” Yang Kai cursed as he flew across the void. Those two Big Heads were such bullies.
“Is this… appropriate?” Liu Zhi Ping appeared confused when she saw Yang Kai flying towards where the Old Ancestors gathered. In fact, she was slightly worried.
She could not see where the so-called Old Sir was; however, she could clearly see that the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Masters had their guards up as they surrounded ‘something’.
Anyone or anything that could cause over 100 Old Ancestors to act so cautiously must be very powerful.
Now that Yang Kai was thrust into their midst, how would he sort out any misunderstanding?
“It’s fine,” Mi Jing Lun said with a smile, “The Old Ancestors are all gathered there, so if something really happens, they can also protect him. Moreover, he is only in the Seventh Order, so the Old Ancestors and that Old Senior should not care if a Junior like him barges into their gathering.”
If possible, Mi Jing Lun wanted to go personally; however, as a peak Eighth-Order Master, it was less appropriate or believable for him to act like a naïve Junior rather than a real youngster like Yang Kai.
“But… but…”
“Look, we can’t see that Old Sir, but Yang Kai can. Maybe there is something unique about him?” Xiang Shan continued along with Mi Jing Lun’s reasoning, “Since he is unique, he should receive preferential treatment as well.”
After saying that, Mi Jing Lun and Xiang Shan looked at each other and grinned.
Ou Yang Lie’s face twitched repeatedly as he stared at these two with narrowed eyes.
[They managed to think up so much sophistry in so little time? How can they live with themselves if they do this every day, all day long?] Ou Yang Lie cursed in his heart and then walked away, feeling ashamed just standing with them.
Yang Kai also cursed and swore at the two Big Heads; however, they just smiled back at him encouragingly, which irked him even more.
He had already been thrown towards the Old Ancestors, and was halfway there before he managed to steady himself, so it was far too late to turn back as that would only be more embarrassing.
Thus, he emboldened himself to hold the tea set with both hands, keep his head up, and strode forward.
The Old Ancestors obviously saw him and appeared puzzled at his sudden intrusion.
With a bull-headed boldness he had cultivated his whole life, Yang Kai ignored them outright and directly flew to the Old Sir and said with a smile, “Old Sir, you must be thirsty. Please have some tea.”
Upon saying this, regardless of whether he caused the Old Ancestors to be upset, Yang Kai placed the tea set on the old man’s side and got busy.
Yang Kai naturally broke out into a cold sweat as Cang curiously observed him.
He came to serve tea and was only in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, so regardless of whether this Old Sir was a friend or foe, he would not make a move against a Junior thousands of times younger than him, right?
Soon, Cang did not bother about this interesting Junior and turned to look at one of the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, “Let’s continue.”
Yang Kai did not know which Old Ancestor spoke, but a voice from behind followed, “According to the ancient records, the Cave Heavens and Paradises seemed to have appeared overnight in the 3,000 Worlds. Then a wide range of disciples began to train the next generation to prepare them for the Black Ink Battlefields for each of the Great Passes…”
Yang Kai listened for a while and understood that the Old Ancestor was talking about the founding of the Cave Heavens and Paradises, which happened so long ago that rather than records, it was more like legends and myths that the current Old Ancestors only somewhat knew of.
After all, there was not much written about it in the ancient books.
Some time later, the same Old Ancestor also briefly spoke about the many years of struggles between the Human Race and Black Ink Clan. It was not until the last few hundred years that the Human Race gradually achieved the upper hand. Eventually, they decided to launch a crusade and advanced to this location.
The Old Ancestor did not say much in detail and just broadly described the events of history. He did not mention anything sensitive such as the Purifying Light or the Evil Purging Divine Spears.
They still had no way to determine whether this old man in front of them was a friend or foe. Though the possibility of him being an ally was very high, it was always good to be cautious.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai’s had finished his work. He brewed the tea from Mi Jing Lun’s treasured tea leaves collection and respectfully presented it, “Old Sir, have a cup of tea.”
Cang answered with a smile, “You’re quite thoughtful, little one.”
The Old Ancestor who spoke just now glanced at Yang Kai with a frown. He was the one who spoke all the while instead of Cang, who barely spoke a few words. If anyone needed a cup of tea, it was him.
Cang drank the tea and Yang Kai took back the cup and refilled it.
Yang Kai ignored the glare of the many Old Ancestors. There were more than 100 of them here, so surely, they did not expect him to serve every one of them, right? How could he serve so much tea?
It was better for him to serve one person. After drinking three cups in a row, Cang smacked his lips and exclaimed, “I haven’t tasted this for years. I’ve almost forgotten what tea tasted like.”
The Myriad Demons Heaven Old Ancestor softly said, “If Senior wants to drink tea, this brat can stay here to serve Senior as long as you like.”
Yang Kai suddenly shot a glare towards him.
[What is the meaning of this? Why are you so quick to abandon me? Are you all in agreement to isolate me? Don’t think that you can do whatever you want just because you taught me some Eye Secret Techniques!] He thought.
Unfortunately for Yang Kai, he soon realized that none of these Old Ancestors who had lived for so long cared about niceties with a mere Junior. The Myriad Demons Old Ancestor did not even glance at Yang Kai as he continued, “Senior, while drinking tea is a small matter, we have many doubts and hope that Senior can answer them.”
Cang nodded and said, “This Old Master knows, but there is so much to cover. I don’t even know where to start. How about this? Ask me what you want to know and I will answer accordingly.”
The Old Ancestors were surprised that he was so quick to offer up his knowledge.
The Old Ancestors exchanged glances for a moment before one of them asked, “How should we address Senior?”
In fact, since they arrived, they had been telling him about the history of the 3,000 Worlds and had not asked him anything.
The old man said with a smile, “Cang!”
“Cang? As in the Cang from the sky(苍天)?” The Old Ancestor raised his eyebrows slightly.
Cang slowly shook his head, “The Cang(苍) from common people (苍生)”
Although the words were nearly the same, they had very different meanings.
The Old Ancestors were noticeably less wary.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao then asked, “A few years ago, when I and several others were trapped in the Black Ink Nest Space, was it Senior who rescued us?”
Cang nodded and replied, “En, it was me.”
Although they had speculated that it was him, this was not confirmed until now.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao immediately cupped her fists, “Many thanks, Senior.”
If Cang had not broken the Black Ink Nest Space trap from the outside, the Old Ancestors would have died inside. He was their saviour.
“No need to thank me. It could be considered as you having saved yourselves. If not for the leaking of the aura from your battle, I would not have thought to strike at that moment.”
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao pondered for a moment before understanding what Cang meant.
On that day, the Bright King Cave Heaven Old Ancestor detonated his Soul at the border of the Black Ink Nest Space, opening a crack in it in an attempt to open a way out for other Old Ancestors.
It was the Bright King Old Ancestor’s efforts that allowed the aura of that great battle to leak out; otherwise, even if the battle was intense in that enclosed space, how could Cang have noticed it? How then could he have saved them in time?
“Regardless, I will never forget this life-saving kindness. If I don’t die in the battle ahead, I will certainly do whatever is within my ability to assist Senior when you require it.”
Cang smiled and replied, “We can discuss the future in the future.”
In truth, regardless of the result of the war, Cang did not expect to live much longer. It was already pushing the limits of his endurance to live till today, and he was missing his old friends and felt he should reunite with them soon.
His old friends must have been waiting impatiently for him.
Another Old Ancestor asked, “So, is the Black Ink Clan’s Mother Nest really here?”
As he spoke, he looked towards the vast darkness before them.
When the Old Ancestors broke out of the Black Ink Nest Space with the help of an outside force, they had determined that the person who had aided them must be very close to the Mother Nest. Otherwise, there should have been no way to break through the Black Ink Nest Space from the outside.
“Mother Nest…” Cang laughed heartily, “Is that what you call it? Well, that’s apt. Yes, the Mother Nest is indeed here, in the darkness, within this restriction.”
“And this is where Black Ink Clan originated from?”
“Yes!”
Blue Sky Pass’ Old Ancestor pondered for a moment before asking, “What does Senior call the Mother Nest?”
Mother Nest was a term that was introduced by the Humans of today, but it seemed like it had another name from Cang’s reaction.
“Mo,” Cang replied, “It calls itself Mo, the Black Ink itself!”
Many Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters frowned when they heard Cang’s answer. Even Yang Kai, who was still brewing tea, looked at Cang in surprise.
There was nothing wrong with calling the Black Ink Clan’s Mother Nest, ‘Mo’, what was disturbing was the way Cang phrased his statement.
“‘It’ calls itself?” The Blue Sky Old Ancestor looked grim as he asked, “Senior, what do you mean by that? Is it possible that the Mother Nest… is sentient?”
So far, the Human Race had destroyed many Low-Rank to High-Rank Black Ink Nests; thus, the Human Race now had some understanding of Black Ink Nests.
Each Black Ink Nest had its own consciousness, and the Black Ink Clan used the Black Ink Nests’ consciousnesses as carriers to establish Black Ink Nest Spaces. These Black Ink Nest Spaces were in turn created by the Black Ink Nests which bred them. It was a space which transcended distance and could be used to quickly transmit information.
However, whether it was the Low-Rank, Mid-Rank or High-Rank Black Ink Nests, their consciousnesses were all blank. Simply put, they had consciousnesses but weren’t sentient.
From what Cang just said, the Mother Nest seemed to be different from the other Black Ink Nests.
Cang nodded and said, “It naturally has sentience. In the early years, this Old Master would chat with it when I was bored, but as time passed… it became angry with this Old Master and disliked how noisy I was, so it stopped responding.”
The Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were horrified that the Mother Nest was actually a Black Ink Nest with its own sentience! This was truly shocking.
Previously, they had speculated that the Black Ink Nest, having its own consciousness, might one day develop its own sentience, thus becoming a true living being.
However, the Black Ink Nests on the Black Ink Battlefield had existed for at least a few hundreds of thousands of years with no precedent of any of them becoming sentient. That led them to believe that the Black Ink Nest could never become fully self-aware.
Now, they knew that the Black Ink Nest was truly capable of independent thought, but only the Mother Nest.
However, on second thought, this was the source of the Black Ink Clan, so it was not strange that it was sentient.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao then asked, “If it has a Will, then why didn’t it attack us when we were trapped in its Black Ink Nest Space?”
As the source of the Black Ink Clan, Mo’s Will was definitely extraordinarily powerful. If it had attacked the trapped Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters at that time, they would surely have suffered heavy losses.
After asking the question, Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao herself also said, “Is it wary of Senior?”
Cang smiled faintly and said, “In a sense, yes, it is. If it secretly makes some small moves, this Old Master wouldn’t notice; however, once it makes a big move, I will surely notice and make it suffer.”
Previously, when the Bright King Cave Heaven Old Ancestor self-destructed and ruptured the Black Ink Nest Space, it enabled some aura of the great battle inside to leak out. That was when Cang took action to tear open the Black Ink Nest Space.
If Mo took the initiative to attack, it would only have been exposed sooner.
It wanted to silently finish off the Ninth-Order Masters, which was why it did not take the initiative and only had 50 Royal Lords under its command ambush them in the Black Ink Nest Space.
“What cultivation realm is Senior at now? Have you surpassed the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm? Is there a higher realm above the Ninth Order?” An Old Ancestor finally asked one of the questions that everyone really wanted to know.
From the aura revealed by the jade white hand alone, it was inferred that the strike had exceeded the power that a Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master could exert. If not, there would have been no way to tear the Black Ink Nest Space open from the outside.
The Bright King Cave Heaven Old Ancestor had to detonate his Soul to simply crack open the space slightly.
The Ninth-Order Masters speculated that the person with the jade white hand might have exceeded the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Hearing this, Cang smiled, shook his head, and said, “The Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm is not so easily transcended. Strictly speaking, this Old Master’s cultivation realm is still in the Ninth Order, just a little further along than you. As for whether there is a higher realm above the Ninth Order… maybe there is, maybe not. Who would know until one reached that point?”
So, Cang was also a Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master!
This was beyond everyone’s expectations. Even though he said that he was in the Ninth Order but a little further along than the others, that was not enough to explain the immense power of his last strike.
Cang seemed to notice the crowd’s doubts and explained, “The strike you sensed was not done by me alone. This Old Master did it with the help of the restriction here.”
This was the condensation of the power of his other nine old friends. Each of them was as powerful as he was, and when the restriction, which contained their strength, was guided by him, even if Cang could not exert all their might, it was still enough to tear open the Black Ink Nest Space.
“Restriction…”
Cang had more than once mentioned the restriction here. In fact, the Old Ancestors were all aware of this enormous restriction. It was the cage that kept the ocean of darkness sealed up.
It was hard to imagine what would happen if the Mother Nest was not shackled by this restriction.
Setting all other issues aside, there must be numerous Royal Lords here in the Mother Nest. Going on the incident in the Black Ink Nest Space alone, there should be at least 50 Royal Lords here, and who could guarantee that there were not multiple times more Royal Lords?
Once an army of Royal Lords escaped from this restriction, they could have struck any Theatre at will, and the Human Race would not have been able to resist.
Cang had been here, imprisoning Mo for millions of years. All the people in the 3,000 Worlds owed him their thanks for his sacrifice.
“Did Senior set up this restriction?”
Cang laughed and shook his head, “I just played a hand in it. This restriction to seal Mo was actually set up by this Old Master and my nine old friends.”
“Then what happened to the other nine Seniors…”
“They have long since passed away, leaving this Old Master alone to guard this place,” Cang sighed.
“Senior, please have some tea.” Yang Kai offered another cup of freshly brewed tea.
He did not know how many years this Senior had been guarding this place, but from the various inferences he could draw, Yang Kai speculated Cang had been here for at least 2 or 3 million years, perhaps longer.
Over such a vast length of time, the Human Race had lost all knowledge of what had happened here.
It was impossible to imagine the loneliness that Cang had endured, all so the Human Race could live on.
He imprisoned Mo, but had to become a prisoner himself.
Yang Kai admired him for his righteousness and sacrifice.
This alone was enough to explain Cang’s position on the Human Race.
At this point in the conversation, the Old Ancestors’ vigilance against Cang was reduced significantly.
After finishing his cup of tea, Cang smacked his lips again as if he was savouring it.
When Yang Kai saw this, he suddenly put away the tea set in front of him and instead took out a bottle of wine before handing it over, “Senior, it looks like tea is not enough to quench your thirst. How about drinking some wine?”
Normally, people would sip on tea, but Cang drank it in gulps. From his mannerisms, it looked like he was more used to draining bottles of wine and feasting.
When Cang saw the wine battle, his expression lit up and he laughed heartily, “That’s more like it, kid!”
He snatched up the wine bottle, popped open the cork, and drank wildly.
After draining 10 bottles, Cang wiped his mouth and laughed, “I’m an uncouth fellow, but I figured I had to act a bit sage-like in front of you Juniors. Damn it, you’re all killing me here!”
The Ninth-Order Old Ancestors were amused to see this kind of reaction.
It turned out that the old man’s stately and wise behaviour was all just a pretence.
Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao smiled, reached out, and with a flick of her hand, hundreds of bottles and jars of wine flew towards Cang as she said, “Since Senior likes wine, these are some of the spirits this Junior has brewed over the years. Please have them if you don’t mind.”
Cang laughed, guided the wine with his hand, and stacked them beside him.
Another Old Ancestor followed up, “I also have some good wine here, please accept it.”
As he said so, he took out a type of gourd bottle and threw it towards Cang. Although the gourd bottle was small, it was obviously a kind of storage artifact with a vast internal space. This one gourd bottle seemed to contain an endless amount of wine.
Many of the Old Ancestors were connoisseurs of wine themselves, and like Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao had home-brewed wine or had wine collections that they could not bear to drink. But now, all of them took them out to offer to Cang.
This was not just to please Cang though, it was more-so them empathising with his plight. He had been alone, standing guard here over the Source Domain for uncountable years. This wine was just a token of their appreciation for all he had done.
“How can you drink wine without meat?” One Old Ancestor laughed, reaching out and taking out a large piece of Monster Beast meat, which had been his treasure for many years. It still looked extremely fresh and dripping with blood. The Monster Qi was also quite compelling, so it was obviously not from any ordinary Monster Beast.
Yang Kai even felt a hint of Dragon Aura from it.
This Monster Beast had Dragon Blood in it. Perhaps it was a Flood Dragon or other Dragon Descendant.
Another Old Ancestor said, “Now we have wine and meat, some fruit is a necessity.”
He reached out a hand, and a plate of crystal-clear Spirit Fruits appeared.
One by one, the Old Ancestors took out their collections which they had accumulated over the millennia, and within a few moments, Cang had all kinds of delicious delicacies set out in front of him. Even in the void, the aroma was overflowing and the atmosphere was joyous.
Cang laughed continuously.
All the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters from every Great Pass were shocked to see that the place where the Old Ancestors gathered had somehow turned into a banquet. They remained dumbfounded and completely did not understand what had happened.
Yang Kai was also dumbfounded that his simple swapping of tea for alcohol had triggered this change.
Unfortunately for him, everyone here was in a Ninth-Order Old Ancestor, while he was the only Seventh-Order Junior. Thus, it was only expected that he did the hard work of pouring wine for each Old Ancestor, serving fruit plates, and roasting the beast meat.
At this point, Yang Kai was cursing Big Head Mi and Big Head Xiang non-stop in his heart.
After three rounds of wine and food, Cang shouted loudly, “In the Primordial Era, Chaos reigned. When the First Primordial Light was born into this world, the Heavens and Earth opened up and the Universe was born. It was naturally a glorious and magnificent sight. At that time, the Universe was simple, pure, and without many disturbances. Although the environment was extremely harsh, all living creatures’ focus was simply to survive. Even if there was fighting and killing, it was only in furtherance of that one goal, survival.”