It almost seemed as though nothing had happened, but when the effects of the Sun and Moon Divine Seal gradually subsided, the several thousand-metre-tall High-Rank Black Ink Nest crumbled into dust and disappeared.
At the same time, the dozen or so Innate Territory Lords shuddered violently. Black Ink Blood spurted out of their mouths as their auras withered away. Countless fine scars appeared both inside and on the surface of their bodies, causing the Black Ink Strength inside to spew out uncontrollably. The condition of the Territory Lords, who were wounded in the first place, immediately worsened considerably.
A Dragon Roar burst forth moments later as Yang Kai arrived with his spear in hand. A lifelike Dragon Phantom emerged from the Azure Dragon Spear, one that shot forward with unstoppable momentum. The terrified screams and furious howls of Territory Lords echoed across the void.
With Space Principles sealing the local region, the Supreme Limitless Spear Art reigned unchallenged as each thrust, and every sweep of the Azure Dragon Spear reaped the life of a Territory Lord. Yang Kai was like a tiger who descended upon a herd of defenceless sheep, none of the Territory Lords was able to resist more than a handful of attacks before succumbing.
In this situation, an uninformed Human Master would have mistakenly assumed that Yang Kai’s opponents were mere miscellaneous soldiers of the Black Ink Clan Army. Otherwise, it should have been impossible for him to slaughter them so easily. However, the fact was that these were genuine Innate Territory Lords.
If these Territory Lords were at full strength, they would each not be inferior to a veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in terms of combat power. It was a pity that they encountered a killing star like Yang Kai when they were so heavily wounded. The only fate waiting for them under these circumstances was death.
There were some occasional counterattacks, which Yang Kai did his best to either block or avoid. Those that he could not dodge simply bore with his body. His Dragon Form, which was only one step away from becoming a Divine Dragon, was indescribably tough, so the attacks of the Territory Lords who could not exert anywhere near their full strength were well within his ability to withstand.
A mere 30 breaths after the encounter began, the chaotic energy fluctuations subsided and the dust settled. There was a large amount of Black Ink Strength scattered throughout the void, dotted with hashed meat and severed limbs. However, there was no trace of vitality in the void. Even Yang Kai was nowhere to be seen as he had immediately flown off after slaying the last Territory Lord.
While Yang Kai appeared and attacked the Territory Lords, Mo Na Ye was moving towards the depths of the void. He had been on his way to meet the various Territory Lords who were heading to the No-Return Pass when he received a message through the miniature Black Ink Nest in his hand. He then abruptly turned to look in a certain direction.
[Yang Kai is there!]
Just moments ago, he lost contact with a group of Territory Lords in the direction he was currently staring. One of the figures gathered inside the Black Ink Nest Space had also gone missing. It was obvious that something unfortunate had happened to them.
Mo Na Ye did not rush in that direction to provide support, as he knew he would be too late even if he went all out. The fates of those severely wounded Territory Lords were practically sealed when Yang Kai discovered their whereabouts.
What was the point of rushing there now? Was he supposed to collect the corpses of the dead Territory Lords? Instead of wasting time on such pointless things, he might as well spend it considering how he could better help the Territory Lords who were still alive.
The previous arrangements he made had backfired on him. To guard against the possibility that Yang Kai would accidentally discover the whereabouts of the escaped Territory Lords, Mo Na Ye had arranged for them to remain far away from the No-Return Pass. Consequently, they required a considerable amount of time to reach the No-Return Pass now. A long journey was bound to be affected by many unpredictable factors.
Be that as it may, his previous arrangements had been necessary. If Mo Na Ye wanted to conceal such a powerful force, he could not allow Yang Kai to discover their presence.
He never imagined that the perfect plans back then would only herald the current catastrophe.
It would take at least half a year for these Territory Lords to travel back to the No-Return Pass, most likely longer. On the other hand, there were many things that Yang Kai could accomplish in half a year. Yang Kai was proficient in the Dao of Space, allowing him to travel multiple times faster than the injured Territory Lords.
If Mo Na Ye wanted to protect more Territory Lords, then he only had two choices. He could either locate and tie down Yang Kai so that he had no time to hunt down the Territory Lords, or join up with the Territory Lords as soon as possible to protect them in person. The first choice was almost impossible to achieve. Even if he was lucky enough to encounter Yang Kai, he could not restrain him. Therefore, Mo Na Ye could only rely upon the second option.
Almost all the Territory Lords in the No-Return Pass had been mobilised, and even a Pseudo-Royal Lord like him had not remained idle. Unfortunately, they were still lacking in manpower. Besides, any strategy would seem worthless and ineffective before an opponent like Yang Kai, who could travel through the Void without any traces.
Mo Na Ye was filled with great hatred. Nevertheless, he could only proceed with all haste. Everything else would depend entirely on fate!
While the Black Ink Clan was painstakingly trying to figure out a solution so that they could safely meet up with the newly escaped Territory Lords, Yang Kai was faced with the difficulty of locating his targets. The Territory Lords were no longer in hiding, and each group was carrying a half-hatched High-Rank Black Ink Nest with them. However, it was not easy for him to find an enemy in the vast void.
If he knew where Mo Na Ye had placed those Territory Lords, then he could intercept all of them on their way to the No-Return Pass. The problem was that he did not know where these Territory Lords were originally hiding. At the moment, the only thing Yang Kai could do was expand his search area as much as possible. He also considered the progress of these Territory Lords and estimated the possible places where they would appear.
His methods were not completely ineffective. If he was lucky, it would only take a few days for him to encounter a group of Territory Lords heading towards the No-Return Pass. If he was not so lucky, then it could take him 10 days to half a month just to see results.
In this way, Yang Kai managed to annihilate another four groups of Territory Lords over the next two months. The number of Territory Lords who snuck out from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and died at his hands was close to 120 at this point!
Every group of Territory Lords that went missing felt like a knife stabbing into Mo Na Ye’s heart. Those Territory Lords were the hard-to-obtain reinforcements of the Black Ink Clan, but they were now being intercepted and slaughtered before they could play any role in the war. It could be said that their deaths were completely in vain.
By using the position of the Territory Lords who went missing last, Mo Na Ye could roughly calculate Yang Kai’s current position. The results were absolutely horrifying. Leaving aside Yang Kai’s random and untraceable movements, his ability to traverse the void with the help of the Dao of Space made his whereabouts completely unpredictable. He would be in a certain position one time, but then he would appear in a position that was in the completely opposite direction just days later.
Faced with such an enemy, even Mo Na Ye could do nothing. The endless and vast void was simply the best possible stage for Yang Kai to display his skills.
At this moment, Mo Na Ye had managed to meet up with a group of Territory Lords, so while leading them towards the No-Return Pass, he sent a message to all the nearby Territory Lords so that they could gather towards him. Since he had come forward in person, it was only natural that Mo Na Ye tried his best to protect as many Territory Lords as possible until they arrived at the No-Return Pass safely.
Nevertheless, he was secretly filled with bitterness and unwillingness.
The secret at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had been exposed far too soon. If their secret was only exposed after another 100 years, or even 1,000 years, then the Black Ink Clan would have amassed an enormous amount of Innate Territory Lords to form an overwhelming force that could destroy the Human Race.
In addition, the first Innate Territory Lords who escaped the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction would also have had some time to recover from their injuries. If that were the case, then it would have been possible for them to perform the Source Fusion Technique to create a Pseudo-Royal Lord on the spot!
It did not matter how strong Yang Kai was; even he would be powerless against a Pseudo-Royal Lord.
Unfortunately, it was an impossible feat even if Mo Na Ye were to command these Territory Lords to create a Pseudo-Royal Lord right now. They were all too heavily injured, which meant that their strength was greatly reduced as a result. Even if they used the Source Fusion Technique, the only fate waiting for them was death. There was no possibility of success whatsoever. Otherwise, the Black Ink Clan would not be caught in such a troublesome situation. They could instantly produce several dozen Pseudo-Royal Lords with a single command.
At this moment, a group of Innate Territory Lords were fleeing desperately through the void. There was a several thousand-metre-tall Black Ink Nest enveloped in thick Black Ink Strength travelling with them, and one of the Innate Territory Lords was constantly stationed inside of it. The Territory Lord in the Black Ink Nest had the responsibility of communicating and passing information to Mo Na Ye at any time.
They were gradually getting closer to the No-Return Pass; nevertheless, the Territory Lords did not dare to relax their guard. That was because one of the groups near them had been attacked by the Human Race Master just 10 days ago. Since then, all contact with those Territory Lords had been lost. There was no telling whether the entire group had perished in the attack.
All of a sudden, they were struck by a wave of murderous intent coming from the distance. It was immediately followed by the rise of the Great Sun looming over the Territory Lords in glorious majesty.
The Territory Lords turned pale with fright. They had been on guard against danger coming from behind them, so they never expected Yang Kai to intercept them from the front. This Human… was truly elusive!
Coming to his senses, one of the Territory Lords shouted a moment later, “Enemy attack!”
Meanwhile, the Territory Lord inside the Black Ink Nest hastily conveyed the message of Yang Kai’s appearance.
On the other hand, Yang Kai frowned slightly. Encountering and intercepting a group of Territory Lords in this place had been a pleasant surprise; after all, he had been searching the way ahead for a while with no success.
Just as he was about to leave though, he suddenly sensed a powerful aura approaching him from behind. It only took a brief search for him to discover the traces of these Territory Lords. How could he hold back against them? He immediately launched an offence.
However, this group of Territory Lords reacted differently from the other groups that he encountered previously.
Over the past few months, Yang Kai had slaughtered many powerful enemies. Aside from the first group of Territory Lords who had failed to react in time, the others would immediately choose to flee in separate directions as soon as they noticed him. They didn’t even bother about the Black Ink Nest that they had been carrying with them. Unfortunately for the Territory Lords, none of them had managed to escape from Yang Kai.
Although the group of Territory Lords before him had enough time to react and escape in separate directions, they showed no intention of doing so and instead huddled together tightly. What’s more… there was something wrong with their numbers.
Most of the Territory Lords Yang Kai encountered recently had been travelling in groups of 14 or 15. Most likely, that was because Mo Na Ye had considered the most suitable number of Territory Lords needed to create a Pseudo-Royal Lord; however, nearly 20 Territory Lords were standing in front of him at this moment.
Just as Yang Kai was pondering over the situation, four of the Territory Lords suddenly leapt forward and instantly formed the Four Symbols Formation. Their auras became closely interwoven with each other as a result, and their surging Black Ink Strength transformed into a sturdy barrier.
The Great Sun slammed into the barrier and tore it apart. Unfortunately, the power of the Great Sun had been exhausted in the clash, leaving the four Territory Lords unharmed.
[So that’s how it is!] When Yang Kai saw the Four Symbols Formation, he immediately understood. This group of Territory Lords had managed to join up with the Territory Lords who came from the No-Return Pass.
The Territory Lords who snuck out from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction would not be able to form Battle Formations because they did not have the time to practice and train in them. The only Territory Lords who knew how to form Formations were those who had been dealing with the Human Race for many years.
With the help of the Four Symbols Formation, the four Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass successfully defended against Yang Kai’s Golden Crow Casts the Sun as the eyes of their wounded companions brightened in astonishment at the sight before them.
[Are the Battle Formations of the Human Race really so useful?]
They had always been in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, so they did not know much about Battle Formations.
However, the information they heard about most often in recent days was regarding Yang Kai. All the Territory Lords who encountered him went missing without any exceptions; hence, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master known as Yang Kai became a trauma in the hearts of the Territory Lords. Without overcoming this trauma, it would be difficult for them to proceed towards the No-Return Pass.
The power of the Golden Crow Casts the Sun that Yang Kai unleashed when he showed up had greatly frightened the injured Territory Lords. At the same time, they were secretly relieved. If the four Territory Lords who came to protect them had not combined forces to block that attack… If they had been struck directly by such force… What would have happened to them? The answer left them shuddering in fear. If their allies had failed to block the attack earlier, the impact would have significantly worsened their injuries even if they survived. The only fate waiting for them would be death after that.
At this moment, they had a vague realization about the fate that had befallen their comrades who went missing previously and they secretly made a vow to themselves. If they could arrive at the No-Return Pass safely, they would approach several familiar Territory Lords once they fully recovered from their wounds and properly learn the Battle Formations. In case they ever encountered this Human menace in the future, they never wanted to be stuck in such a powerless and vulnerable position again!
“Yang Kai, withdraw!” One of the Territory Lords roared. He had the strongest aura out of the four Territory Lords who formed the Formation earlier. Standing in the void, his burly figure resembled a soaring iron tower. Although his tone was aggressive and firm, the slight tremble in his expression clearly indicated that he was only trying to act strong.
Yang Kai’s name was enough to terrify the Territory Lords several thousand years ago. Now that his battle record included slaughtering a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Di Wu, his name was enough to inundate all the Innate Territory Lords with fear. Even Mo Na Ye had to tolerate him to a certain extent, so how could these Territory Lords dare to act presumptuously in front of him? Unfortunately, the current situation forced them to grit their teeth and confront the killing star head-on.
The burly Territory Lord was filled with great bitterness, [How can I have such bad luck? I can’t believe I encountered Yang Kai here. What will happen to us now?]
Yang Kai seemed unfazed by those words. Without saying a word, he raised his hand and summoned the Azure Dragon Spear. Then, he thrust the spear forward without any fancy moves, causing spear shadows to cover the entire sky in an instant.
The four Territory Lords in the Formation roared in unison, joining forces to defend against the attack; however, they quickly discovered that the spear contained neither form nor power. The burly Territory Lord who spoke earlier immediately shouted, “Not good!”
As soon as the words left his mouth, two short screams rang out behind him and he could tell what was happening without even turning back to look. On the other hand, the figure of Yang Kai stabbing forward with his spear gradually faded from his vision. It was nothing more than an afterimage.
“Attack!” He shouted, taking the lead to charge towards the rear. The other three Territory Lords tacitly cooperated with him. Even though their hearts were filled with trepidation, they quickly moved to maintain the Battle Formation while pushing their speed to the maximum.
Black Ink Strength and World Force surged, and in the next moment, Yang Kai exchanged multiple blows with the four Territory Lords in Formation. The impact practically shattered the surrounding Void.
When Yang Kai finally withdrew and retreated, the Four Symbols Formation established by the four Territory Lords had securely covered the rest of the Territory Lords. They had used the Battle Formation to protect themselves and their companions, but two of the injured Territory Lords had still perished before they arrived.
As for the surviving Innate Territory Lords, they were all horrified.
They had known that this Human was beyond an ordinary Eighth-Order Master, but they had never seen him take action before today. Their understanding of his strength only came from a limited supply of information and their own imagination, so it wasn’t until they personally experienced it that they realised how feeble their imagination had been. This Human’s strength was simply beyond comprehension.
“Withdraw, Yang Kai!” The burly Territory Lord who spoke earlier shouted once more. Despite their efforts, two of the Territory Lords under their protection had already been killed, so they did not dare to act rashly again, lest they give Yang Kai an opening to exploit.
“You court death!” Yang Kai flicked his spear and pointed the tip forward. Although he did not move, the burgeoning force from its sharp blade enveloped the entire void. The Territory Lords stiffened in fear, evidently feeling the great power brewing in the dark. It was an explosive power that could detonate at any time.
Sweat beaded the forehead of the burly Territory Lord as he hurriedly raised his hand, “Wait! Sir Mo Na Ye has a message for you!”
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes and the murderous intent leaking from the slits of his eyes grew stronger. After a long time though, his voice boomed out like thunder, “Speak!”
The burly Territory Lord said, “Sir Mo Na Ye told us to pass this message to you. If Your Excellency withdraws now, he is willing to let bygones be bygones. The cultivation resources offered from the No-Return Pass will also be increased from 30% to 50%!”
50%… That was half of the Black Ink Clan’s mined resources, and the offer indicated just how badly Mo Na Ye had been cornered by Yang Kai.
To save the lives of those Innate Territory Lords, Mo Na Ye hoped to entice Yang Kai into withdrawing with this method. Even the fact that Yang Kai had previously slaughtered so many Territory Lords could be ignored as though it never happened. Those Territory Lords were already dead after all. While the Black Ink Clan yearned to avenge them, they could not achieve such a feat for the time being.
It had to be said that Mo Na Ye was a very decisive individual. Although the offer had been forced by the situation, he refused to give up as long as he could find any means to deter Yang Kai.
Be that as it may, Yang Kai couldn’t accept the offer so easily. Forget 50%, even if Mo Na Ye had offered 80% or 100%, the value of such cultivation resources would never compare to the lives of so many Innate Territory Lords. The top-level combat powers of the Black Ink Clan would increase significantly if he withdrew at this point. There was a high possibility that this would affect the entire balance of the war between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan in the near future.
Yang Kai did not respond. His figure remained motionless, but the void seemed to solidify around them. At the same time, his Spiritual Energy began to surge violently.
The expressions of the four Territory Lords in the Battle Formation immediately changed drastically. They were clearly panicked and horrified to their bones. This couldn’t be helped though as at this moment, a chill flooded them both physically and mentally. They were enveloped by a strong sense of death, giving them the feeling that they might die at any moment.
For a moment, the aura connection established by the Four Symbols Formation between them almost snapped. It was not surprising for them to experience a fluctuation of emotions under the threat of death.
Fortunately, the burly Territory Lord composed his emotions by pure force of will and stabilised the Battle Formation. His prompt actions prevented the Battle Formation from collapsing. Nevertheless, he understood one thing clearly. If Yang Kai was determined to kill them today, it was unlikely that they would walk away alive. If they died here, then the dozen or so Territory Lords protected by their Battle Formation would not survive either.
He had experienced this sensation once before. The familiar fluctuation of Spiritual Energy undoubtedly indicated that Yang Kai was preparing to use his mysterious Soul Secret Technique. Even with the support of the Four Symbols Formation, the four Territory Lords would have trouble defending against Yang Kai’s assault once that Technique was brought out.
The last time they encountered Yang Kai, they had been escorting a team that was transporting cultivation materials back to the No-Return Pass. Yang Kai had threatened them with the same move and forced them to hand over the Space Rings containing the resources. They had given up fairly easily back then as their lives were naturally far more valuable than some cultivation resources. It was for such a reason that Mo Na Ye did not blame them for that incident either.
Unfortunately, the situation was different now. They were not guarding mere cultivation resources, but the lives of more than a dozen of their clansmen. They could not afford to back down!
The burly Territory Lord couldn’t help recalling what Mo Na Ye had told them before they departed from the No-Return Pass, ‘Once you meet up with the clansmen, escort them back to the No-Return Pass immediately. If you encounter Yang Kai, try to entice him first. It would be best if he decides to withdraw. If he stubbornly insists on fighting, then he will definitely unleash his Soul Secret Technique to break the Battle Formation. Even if you have to fight him to the death, you must not concede!’
It would seem that Mo Na Ye was wise and insightful. He had clearly anticipated this possibility and issued the necessary orders to handle the situation. For that reason, the four Territory Lords under the burly Territory Lord’s leadership did not dare to disobey Mo Na Ye’s command despite their fear and sorrow. If they disobeyed the command, they were bound to suffer a terrible ending even if they returned alive.
On the other hand… If they could force Yang Kai to activate his Soul Secret Technique here, then he would also suffer heavy damage as a result. It would be impossible for him to hunt down the rest of their clansmen after that.
That was most likely part of Mo Na Ye’s plans. In the best-case scenario, Yang Kai would willingly withdraw in exchange for 50% of the cultivation resources mined by the Black Ink Clan. In the worst-case scenario, the lives of an entire group of Territory Lords would be sacrificed in exchange for rendering Yang Kai incapable of moving about freely for the next two years. That would be better than if Yang Kai went around slaughtering even more Territory Lords and increasing the losses of the Black Ink Clan.
“If you retreat now, I will pretend I never saw you!”
Yang Kai’s surging Spiritual Energy became even more threatening. At the same time, the Soul Rending Thorns stood at the ready. The four Territory Lords in Formation trembled in fear as they could vaguely feel an invisible blade hanging above their heads, threatening to fall and reap their lives at any time.
Gritting his teeth, the burly Territory Lord shook his head slowly and replied grimly, “Impossible!”
There was a clansman stationed inside the High-Rank Black Ink Nest, reporting everything that was happening here in real time. In other words, Mo Na Ye was monitoring the situation here at all times. He knew everything that happened, so how could they choose to escape with their lives?
“In that case, I will grant your wishes!” Yang Kai shouted through gritted teeth and his Spiritual Energy surged wildly.
Filled with terror, the four Territory Lords in Formation drew upon their full strength to protect their Souls. They initially thought that an explosive force would bombard them in the next moment, but contrary to their expectations, the Spiritual Energy only rose to a certain extent before disappearing abruptly. It was almost as though everything had been nothing more than an illusion.
When they looked around, Yang Kai was no longer anywhere to be seen. Even their Divine Senses could not perceive any traces of his aura.
All the Territory Lords were stunned, but the four in Formation did not dare to relax their guard. After standing frozen in place for a long time, they did not detect any changes whatsoever. Then, numerous Divine Senses began to surge as they swiftly communicated among themselves.
“Where is Yang Kai? Where did he go?”
“I don’t know, but don’t let your guard down. He might be waiting somewhere for an opportunity to strike.”
“There are bound to be traces of his aura if he is hiding in the shadows!”
“Could it be… Did he leave? Was he only trying to intimidate us earlier?”
…..
The last statement seemed to enlighten them. Thinking back to Yang Kai’s various behaviours earlier, they combined the facts with the current situation and finally came to the conclusion that Yang Kai was indeed gone. He had deliberately created a sense of deadly danger among them, but it was all just a ploy to intimidate them. Otherwise, there was no explanation for why they could not perceive his presence now.
The four Territory Lords in Formation headed by the burly Territory Lord were overjoyed. They initially thought that they were going to die here. Who could have known that they would survive the ordeal?
“Let’s go!” The burly Territory Lord shouted.
Nevertheless, he did not dare to dispel the Battle Formation even though it was more or less confirmed that Yang Kai was gone. Who knew whether Yang Kai would wheel around suddenly? Hence, he could only work with the other three Territory Lords to maintain the Four Symbols Formation and protect the dozen or so clansmen with all their might. Then, they flew in the direction of the No-Return Pass.
Meanwhile, the Innate Territory Lord inside the High-Rank Black Ink Nest reported the entire situation to Mo Na Ye who was currently a couple dozen million kilometres away.
Upon learning the situation, Mo Na Ye naturally showered the four Territory Lords with great praise. He also spread the news of their achievement in forcing Yang Kai to retreat so that all the clansmen in charge of protecting the Territory Lords would follow their example with peace of mind.
For a time, the morale among the Territory Lords was boosted significantly! Countless Masters from the No-Return Pass had fought against Yang Kai over the years; however, it was the first time they held the upper hand in the battle. Although two Innate Territory Lords had lost their lives in the fight, their deaths were nothing compared to the results that were obtained.
At the same time, Yang Kai sped off into the distance with the help of his Space Principles. He couldn’t help feeling slightly helpless and frustrated because of the situation.
While he was confident that he could destroy the Battle Formation of the four Territory Lords and slaughter the Territory Lords gathered there if he used his Soul Rending Thorns, he would also have to pay a high price for his actions. Doing that would have forced him to spend the next couple of years concentrating on his recovery, which was simply not worth the possible gains. Therefore, he immediately chose to withdraw without attempting to pressure the four Territory Lords when he saw that they were not intimidated by his threats.
In any case, many Territory Lords were retreating in the direction of the No-Return Pass at the moment. He didn’t need to annihilate any group of Territory Lords in particular. There would always be other opportunities in the future. Rather than desperately using the Soul Rending Thorns and inflicting injuries upon himself, it was better for Yang Kai to find other opportunities to hunt down more Territory Lords.
Yang Kai travelled swiftly through the void, crossing hundreds of thousands of kilometres with every step he took.
After travelling for one month, Yang Kai abruptly stopped at a certain spot in the void and watched a group of Territory Lords rushing towards the No-Return Pass from a distance. This was the third group of Territory Lords that he encountered this month. Unfortunately, every group of Territory Lords was protected by a Battle Formation from the No-Return Pass. The situation left him feeling as though he was unable to take action.
Taking the time into consideration, the Territory Lords who were placed outside by Mo Na Ye so that they could concentrate on their treatment should have all met up with the Territory Lords who came from the No-Return Pass by now. It became unrealistic for him to intercept and slaughter these Territory Lords under these circumstances unless he resolved to unleash the Soul Rending Thorns against their defences. Choosing that option would be a one-shot deal; hence, he was reluctant to choose that option unless it was necessary.
[Are there no other chances?] Yang Kai frowned in deep thought. It did not take long before he turned around and gazed into the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield. [No, I still have other opportunities. Many in fact!]
According to his experiment at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, two or three Innate Territory Lords would successfully sneak out every month. 14 to 15 of these Territory Lords would gather together to form a group before they set off in the direction of the No-Return Pass.
Based on these numbers, there would be a group of Territory Lords travelling from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction every six months. In other words, there would be two groups travelling from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction each year!
The Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction was extremely far from the place where Mo Na Ye had arranged for them. With the travelling speed of these heavily wounded Territory Lords, they would need to spend around 10 years to reach their predetermined location safely.
In other words, many of the Territory Lords who snuck out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction were still en route from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to the region around the former Royal Cities at this moment. They had always been on the road as there was not enough time for them to arrive at the predetermined location Mo Na Ye had assigned for them to hatch the Black Ink Nest.
Previously, Yang Kai would have needed some extra luck to locate the traces of these Territory Lords in the vast Black Ink Battlefield; after all, he did not know where these Territory Lords were hiding. In comparison, he no longer needed to rely on pure luck to intercept these travelling Territory Lords as there was a high chance that he would encounter them if he simply travelled in a straight line towards the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
Naturally, it was impossible for things to progress as smoothly as he had hoped. Each group of travelling Territory Lords would have a Black Ink Nest in their possession, so they could communicate with Mo Na Ye at all times. There was a possibility that Mo Na Ye had already considered their situation and made the necessary arrangements.
[But… it’s worth the risk!] In any case, Yang Kai did not believe he could intercept all of these Territory Lords. However, each group he intercepted represented 14 or 15 Territory Lords!
Having made his decision, Yang Kai determined his direction and took a step forward, his figure vanishing from sight.
Two months later, Yang Kai appeared at a certain spot in the void that was located at the border of the Late Ancient Era battlefield. The battlefield that had been silent for so many years was flooded with murderous intent once more. Having found traces of Innate Territory Lords travelling from the direction of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, Yang Kai immediately attacked them without the slightest trace of politeness. In this battle, he single-handedly defeated the combined efforts of more than a dozen Territory Lords and annihilated the entire group with only minimal injuries to himself.
After some rest, he set off again.
Things were much easier for Yang Kai now that he had found the first group of Territory Lords. He only needed to use his current position to calculate the distance equivalent to half a year’s journey to find traces of the second group of Territory Lords. That was because the Territory Lords who came from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction travelled in half-year cycles.
However, it only took Yang Kai slightly more than 10 days to cover the same distance that had taken these heavily wounded Territory Lords half a year to cross.
Approximately 10 days later, Yang Kai arrived at another spot in the Late Ancient Era battlefield and his Divine Sense surged. He searched his surroundings carefully as his figure travelled around the local area, and it did not take long before he made a discovery.
These Territory Lords had most likely received instructions from Mo Na Ye in advance. They showed no intention to rush on their journey, instead choosing to conceal themselves on a Universe Fragment nearby instead. As they were heavily wounded, their auras were greatly weakened so it was very difficult to find their whereabouts, especially when they were deliberately trying to conceal their presence. If not because Yang Kai had been carefully searching for their traces and his search radius was wide enough, these Territory Lords would have escaped his attention.
When the Territory Lords realised that their whereabouts had been exposed, they knew that there was no hope of escape; hence, they immediately fought back desperately. Still, the result was just another one-sided massacre!
Back at the No-Return Pass, Mo Na Ye had just finished escorting several groups of Territory Lords over. The rest of the groups that were escorted by the Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass were also gradually making their way back, so it would not take long before all of them arrived safely.
Unfortunately, not all of the Territory Lords who snuck out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had received escorts in time. Not counting those who were slain by Yang Kai previously, there were many other groups of Territory Lords still travelling from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction towards the No-Return Pass.
Mo Na Ye had been worrying about these Territory Lords. Knowing Yang Kai was an intelligent and meticulous person, it was always a possibility that he would target these en-route Territory Lords; after all, these Territory Lords had not even had the chance to hatch their Black Ink Nests. Combined with their seriously wounded bodies, they would be completely powerless against an enemy like Yang Kai.
Mo Na Ye’s worries quickly became a reality.
Before he even returned to the No-Return Pass, he abruptly lost contact with a group of Territory Lords who were on their way over. No more than 10 days later, a second group of Territory Lords sent an urgent message stating that a Human Race Master suspected to be Yang Kai had discovered them. By the time Mo Na Ye tried to contact them again, there was no longer any response from the other side!
In the span of a dozen days, Yang Kai not only crossed the distance that would have taken the heavily wounded Territory Lords half a year to travel but also unleashed a swift and explosive assault on them. The speed and brutality of his attack had completely caught the Territory Lords and Mo Na Ye off-guard!
[Bastard!] Mo Na Ye felt a ball of rage burning in his chest and his teeth were practically on the verge of shattering from how hard he gnashed them together.
Yang Kai had already begun his journey to massacre the rest of the travelling Territory Lords. Unfortunately, the distance was too great for the No-Return Pass to provide any kind of support. At this point, the life and death of those Territory Lords depended entirely on their own luck now.
After pondering for a long time, Mo Na Ye immersed his consciousness into the Black Ink Nest and began issuing orders! Many orders were transmitted from the No-Return Pass to the various Great Territories Battlefields immediately after that.
For a time, the battle situation across the various Great Territory Battlefields changed without warning. All the Human Race Masters could sense that the Black Ink Clan’s offensive had grown much more aggressive. Not to mention, the number of Black Ink Clansmen, including Territory Lords, seemed to have increased greatly.
Mo Na Ye even had the urge to send Meng Que to the battlefield. If Yang Kai was openly slaughtering their Territory Lords, then there was no need for him to honour the previous peace agreement at all. If a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Meng Que were to join the battle without warning, his unexpected presence would surely throw the higher-ups in the Human Race into utter chaos!
After pondering long and hard though, Mo Na Ye decided to suppress his urge…
He had always suspected that the Human Race was hiding some Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. The only reason why they had remained in hiding for so many years was that the time to reveal themselves had not yet come. If Meng Que was sent to the battlefield though, Mo Na Ye was certain the hidden Ninth-Order Masters would appear to confront the former.
Worse, a Pseudo-Royal Lord was clearly no match for a true Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. If Mo Na Ye started a war of that scale, the situation would likely spiral out of his control in short order. That was not the outcome he wished to see. At the moment, the Territory Lords needed more time before they could attempt to become Royal Lords, so he could only endure for now…
In the Late Ancient Era battlefield, Yang Kai discovered that it was suddenly much easier for him to search for his targets after he killed the first two groups of Territory Lords.
This couldn’t be helped though as the Territory Lords who were travelling from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had suddenly decided to split up.
Previously, the Territory Lords acted in groups of 14 to 15. Although their numbers were not small, it was very difficult to find them when they were collectively hiding. On the contrary, he currently only needed to rush to the calculated location and investigate his surroundings with his Divine Sense; then, he would easily find traces of several Territory Lords.
Now, Territory Lords were scattered about, some moving quickly in a straight line, some hiding in dark corners, others taking wide detours to avoid encountering Yang Kai as much as possible.
It had to be said that this countermeasure was quite brilliant. If Yang Kai’s guess was correct, this was the solution Mo Na Ye had come up with. Having said that, all the Territory Lords whose whereabouts were discovered by Yang Kai were absolutely powerless to resist being slaughtered. Nonetheless, it was still a better outcome than if the entire group was annihilated completely. A few lucky Territory Lords were bound to escape the slaughter.
Yang Kai was in no mood to search for the Territory Lords who escaped his initial attack as he did not have the time for that either. There were more Territory Lords to slaughter ahead. He had to be willing to sacrifice short-term gains to focus on the bigger situation! In this way, he constantly calculated the distance and possible locations of these Territory Lords; then, he would search the area vigorously, coming up with a significant harvest each time he did so.
This massacre lasted for a whole year, with as many as 200 Innate Territory Lords dying at Yang Kai’s hands during this period! Combined with his previous achievements, he had slaughtered nearly 300 Innate Territory Lords in his recent hunting efforts!
It was a shocking number! Not to mention, those were only the ones whom he managed to slay. Just how many Territory Lords had entered the No-Return Pass? Just how much had the strength of the Black Ink Clan been boosted?
Yang Kai fought his way to the edge of the Late Ancient Era battlefield before he stopped; however, he was not done yet. There were many Territory Lords who escaped his initial attack. Nevertheless, they were all heading in the same direction, so as long as he was fast enough, he could annihilate another round of Territory Lords who escaped his initial attack outside the No-Return Pass!
Yang Kai sliced his way across the entire Late Ancient Era Battlefield, slaughtering more than 200 Territory Lords; then, he immediately returned along the same route he came without pausing to rest. Along his journey, he occasionally encountered some Territory Lords who escaped his initial attack and smoothly annihilated them too.
It only took half a year for him to travel through the Late Ancient Era Battlefield and arrive outside the periphery of the No-Return Pass with the help of the Space Beacons that he scattered during his first journey.
Concealing his figure and aura, he searched for where Sun Zhao was hiding before taking him back into his Small Universe. He was relieved and overjoyed to see that Sun Zhao had managed to remain hidden for so long; otherwise, a mere Emperor Realm Master who had just condensed his Dao Seal would never have survived.
In truth, Mo Na Ye had ordered his men to search for Sun Zhao’s whereabouts. When he used the communication bead to contact Yang Kai previously, he deduced that somebody was impersonating Yang Kai to communicate with him. More importantly, they could not be too far from each other because the communication beads would not have been able to transmit messages across great distances.
Be that as it may, the not-too-far distance still covered a vast area in the spacious void. The Black Ink Clan had searched intensively, but their efforts proved futile in the end. In any case, Mo Na Ye did not pay much attention to this matter. During this time, he had been travelling back and forth to meet the various Territory Lords with all his energy and attention focused on investigating Yang Kai’s movements. How could he be bothered by such a trivial distraction?
There were two reasons for Sun Zhao’s survival. The first reason was pure luck, and the second reason was the difficulty of the situation which prevented the Black Ink Clan from using their full strength.
Yang Kai looked in the direction of the No-Return Pass with a solemn gaze. Despite the distance, he could sense the subtle changes that had taken place.
In the past, only 100 or so Territory Lords were gathered in the No-Return Pass. Some might also have been hidden inside the High-Rank Black Ink Nests to rest or cultivate, but there were never many more than that.
However, the number of Innate Territory Lords gathered in the No-Return Pass now was hard to estimate. The best proof of their increased numbers was the High-Rank Black Ink Nests settling inside the No-Return Pass that constantly shuddered and produced extremely dense Black Ink Strength.
The Territory Lords who came from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction were heavily wounded, so they urgently needed to treat their injuries. Black Ink Strength was essential for the healing process; furthermore, these Territory Lords had brought back many High-Rank Black Ink Nests with them. The number of Black Ink Nests in the No-Return Pass had also increased noticeably, bolstering the foundation of the Black Ink Clan.
Yang Kai did not hang around for long. Quickly turning around, he sped into the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield and found a spot to wait in silence.
It would be too difficult for him to search for the scattered Innate Territory Lords as he did not know where they were hiding or coming from. When he returned through the Late Ancient Era Battlefield, he had only managed to encounter several dozen Territory Lords along the way.
In that case, he could only resign himself to waiting for gains without pains. The ultimate destination of these Territory Lords was the No-Return Pass, so he only needed to find a suitable position and wait for them to walk right into his trap by themselves.
Naturally, Yang Kai’s plan would not allow him to intercept many Territory Lords and it would also be very easy for his whereabouts to be exposed. The Territory Lords in the No-Return Pass were not idle either. At this moment, they had formed into teams of four or five to establish Battle Formations in their efforts to receive their clansmen. Nevertheless, Yang Kai was bound to gain something for his efforts!
After waiting in ambush for half a year, Yang Kai’s efforts finally came to fruition. He couldn’t help grumbling to himself about the Territory Lords’ travel speed, but this couldn’t be helped. He could travel back and forth in a very short time thanks to his Space Principles, but others did not have such convenience.
These heavily wounded Territory Lords naturally could not cross the gap between the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and the No-Return Pass without at least 10 years of continuous travel. For that reason, even the Territory Lords who were lucky enough to escape his initial sweep would need a long time to arrive from the Late Ancient Era Battlefield.
From a distance, an aura approached cautiously. This Territory Lord was trying his best to remain hidden, but his efforts were not perfect. He was clearly a cautious person, and the closer he got to the No-Return Pass, the less he dared to relax his guard.
Unfortunately for him, the group of Territory Lords that he had been travelling with previously had long since scattered and the Black Ink Nest was in the possession of another Territory Lord, so he had no means to contact the No-Return Pass and request support.
He had travelled through the Late Ancient Era Battlefield by comparing the surrounding scenery with the map he received before splitting ways with his initial group. When he determined that he was only half a year’s journey from the No-Return Pass, he couldn’t help feeling overjoyed. However, he felt a sharp murderous intent enveloped him before the thought could even form in his head fully.
Turning in that direction, he saw the tip of a spear was rapidly magnifying in his vision. He hastily and desperately condensed his Black Ink Strength in defence, but this layer of protection was as vulnerable as paper before the spear.
Yang Kai retrieved his spear a moment later. Reaching out with his large hand, he stored the Territory Lord’s corpse and the black blood that gushed out of the corpse in his Small Universe to wipe away the traces that were left behind by the battle. Then, he went back into hiding.
The Territory Lords originally travelled in small groups before they split up and went their separate ways; hence, their travel speed should not be very different from each other. It would not be long before more Territory Lords appeared in the wake of the first Territory Lord’s arrival. It had taken Yang Kai half a year to find just one Territory Lord, but he successively killed four more in the following month!
What followed next was another long period of waiting.
As the Territory Lords fled back to the No-Return Pass from different directions, the power of the Black Ink Clan steadily grew stronger. Be that as it may, Mo Na Ye did not feel the slightest sense of joy.
Their losses were simply too great. As many as 400 Innate Territory Lords had been slain by Yang Kai over the years. What’s more, it was obvious that Yang Kai was hiding somewhere nearby to kill more of the approaching Territory Lords. It was a pity that the Black Ink Clan could not pinpoint his location.
The Black Ink Clan had been stepping up their offensive in the battlefields across the various Great Territories, placing greater pressure on the Human Race, but the Black Ink Clan on the Black Ink Battlefield would have no peace until Yang Kai was eliminated.
Even Mo Na Ye was helpless against such an elusive and powerful opponent. The only thing he could do was repeatedly send messages to Yang Kai, but there was never any response. That was because Sun Zhao had destroyed the communication bead on Yang Kai’s order after he responded to Mo Na Ye’s message. It was a countermeasure to prevent Mo Na Ye from figuring out his position. How could Mo Na Ye use the communication bead to contact Yang Kai now?
[I need to figure out a method to locate him…]
Two years later, Yang Kai changed his hiding position and waited quietly for the Territory Lords who snuck out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to come to him. The groups of Territory Lords had split up under Mo Na Ye’s orders, so although they travelled from the direction of the Late Ancient Era Battlefield in general, they would arrive at the No-Return Pass from various directions.
As long as he was not terribly unlucky, Yang Kai would always achieve success no matter where he lay in ambush. Nonetheless, he would change positions at half-year intervals to avoid the Black Ink Clan discovering his whereabouts. The half-year period was only the rough cycle when the Territory Lords would arrive at the No-Return Pass, which meant that he could not stop all the Territory Lords from reaching their destination. He only managed to intercept a small part of the Territory Lords, but there was only so much that he could do at this point.
In any case, he had to reduce the power of the Black Ink Clan as much as possible in hopes of decreasing the pressure on the Human Race in the future.
Half a month later, the aura of a Territory Lord suddenly barged into Yang Kai’s range of perception. Similar situations had already taken place many times over the years, so this had become routine by now. He remained unmoving and simply waited until the Territory Lord had gotten close enough before suddenly launching an attack with his spear.
The Territory Lord was consumed with fear, knowing that he would not survive the encounter. Nevertheless, he neither dodged nor avoided the attack and instead charged towards Yang Kai. Before the spear reached him, the Black Ink Strength in his body surged wildly and his entire body immediately swelled up dangerously.
Yang Kai could clearly see the resolve in the Territory Lord’s eyes, and the sight made him frown. He swiftly condensed his World Force to protect himself and pulled away at the same time; however, he was one step too late. Following a wave of violent energy fluctuations, the local Void collapsed. The vicious impact lifted his body and threw him backwards as the layer of protection he just erected rippled and shattered almost instantly.
After Yang Kai stabilised his figure once more, the Void that had collapsed in front of him remained broken. One could only imagine the power behind the blow. If not for his sturdy Dragon Form, the impact would have seriously injured him.
[I can’t believe a Territory Lord chose to self-destruct!] Yang Kai had never encountered this situation before. In fact, he never even knew that the Territory Lords had such a hidden trump card. Being caught off guard was not a pleasant feeling.
But why did the Territory Lord choose to self-destruct? Even ants would cling hard to their lives, much less a powerful Innate Territory Lord. Even in a desperate situation, a Territory Lord was bound to struggle and resist as much as possible. Although Yang Kai had slain many Territory Lords, he had never encountered a Territory Lord who would immediately choose to self-destruct.
It did not take long before Yang Kai understood the reason why this Territory Lord had chosen to self-destruct though. While he was pondering in confusion, several powerful auras quickly flew over from the distance. It was obvious that they had noticed the commotion that took place here.
That was not all, however, as soon Yang Kai detected even more auras converging around him from various directions. There were at least several dozen of them, and these were only the ones he could perceive. Yang Kai was certain that others were further away that he failed to sense.
It was not as though he had never encountered similar situations in the past. Many Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass had formed Battle Formations and patrolled the surroundings to welcome their clansmen who came from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
On several occasions, Yang Kai had inadvertently exposed himself and attracted the Territory Lords nearby to investigate the situation when he attacked. It was just that he had never bothered to face them in the past; after all, he was helpless against the Territory Lords who formed Battle Formations unless he used his Soul Rending Thorns. His only option currently was to ignore them.
However, there had never been so many Territory Lords before. It was almost as though they had predicted that he would be here. Knowing that he would attack this place, they had laid an ambush nearby and waited for him to reveal his whereabouts before they swarmed him from all sides. However, the Black Ink Clan couldn’t learn his movements in advance. Not to mention, it had not been long since he moved to this location.
In that case, there could only be one explanation. While he was waiting for gains without pains, the Black Ink Clan had been doing the same. The Black Ink Clan had not predicted the location where he would appear; on the contrary, they had simply set up a lot of traps in various locations with the thought that he was bound to turn up sooner or later.
Although Yang Kai did not know how long the Black Ink Clan had laid in ambush here, he had to admit that this brute force method was effective. At the very least, it had caught him this time. But… so what? The Territory Lords rushing over from all directions would not arrive for some time, which gave him plenty of room to escape.
As soon as Yang Kai’s whereabouts were revealed, countless Territory Lords immediately rushed over from all directions to encircle him. He could have escaped immediately, causing the Black Ink Clan’s plans to fail; nevertheless, he remained motionless and quietly perceived his surroundings with a slight frown.
A short while later, he burst into laughter, [Mo Na Ye, oh, Mo Na Ye… You’ve really gone all out this time.]
According to his perception, a large number of Territory Lords were rushing towards him; however, while the auras of these Territory Lords seemed overpowering on the outside, they were unexpectedly weak once he observed them more closely. Clearly, these Territory Lords were heavily injured.
Yang Kai immediately understood the situation. The Territory Lords besieging him were not the Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass who were in perfect condition, but the Territory Lords who came from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
In a confrontation against the veteran Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass, Yang Kai had no effective means to defeat them aside from unleashing the Soul Rending Thorn. That was why all the Territory Lords who died at his hands so far had come from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. Conversely, none of the Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass had been harmed. Even if he occasionally encountered them in the void, Yang Kai would avoid them so as not to waste his energy.
Despite that, the Black Ink Clan had deliberately arranged for the wounded Territory Lords from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to besiege him today, which was clearly a trap meant to entice him.
With such tempting bait in front of him, Yang Kai seriously debated whether he should accept the challenge or not. If he took the bait, he might risk being besieged. On the other hand, how could he just turn a blind eye to so many vulnerable Territory Lords in front of him?
He had been lying in ambush and slaughtering Territory Lords from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction for years now, and although his efforts had produced some results, the gains were not that significant. The Territory Lords had split up from their respective groups, making them harder to catch. For these reasons, the fact that so many Territory Lords were gathered together in one place was a huge temptation to him.
This was an open conspiracy!
Mo Na Ye had laid all his cards on the table, so the next move was completely in Yang Kai’s hands.
It was true that the one who understood a person best was not their best friend, but their worst enemy.
After fighting Yang Kai in numerous battles of wit over the years, Mo Na Ye had gained a thorough understanding of the former’s temperament and character. Based on this bold arrangement, Mo Na Ye must have predicted Yang Kai’s choice in advance. He was confident that Yang Kai would not remain indifferent if he threw out such tempting bait.
Yang Kai had been single-mindedly hunting down Territory Lords over the years, so with so many of them just dangling in front of him like carrots, he would not be able to resist taking the bait.
In truth, the reality was just as Mo Na Ye expected. Yang Kai only hesitated for a moment before he came to a decision. Since Mo Na Ye had dared to throw out such an alluring piece of meat, then he was going to take a gigantic bite without any reservations.
[I have to kill as many Territory Lords as possible before they complete their encirclement to reduce the pressure I have to face later!]
Spreading out his Divine Sense madly, Yang Kai confirmed that Mo Na Ye was not in the vicinity.
A Pseudo-Royal Lord like Mo Na Ye was unable to control their power perfectly, so they couldn’t conceal their auras completely. Yang Kai was bound to detect Mo Na Ye’s presence if he appeared anywhere within his detection range!
Of course, Yang Kai was certain that Mo Na Ye was monitoring the situation and waiting for the perfect opportunity to appear from somewhere nearby!
In the next breath, Yang Kai’s figure flickered. Following the fluctuations of Space Principles, his figure vanished from the spot and instantaneously appeared a million kilometres away. There were several Innate Territory Lords nearby, drawing upon their Black Ink Strength to drive a Black Ink Cloud forward at a high speed.
All of a sudden, a vicious aura enveloped the Black Ink Cloud. Then, a figure came crashing down on them as a Great Sun slammed into the Black Ink Cloud. World Force flared as Black Ink Strength surged wildly. When the Black Ink Cloud dissipated, four figures emerged extremely dishevelled, coughing up Black Ink Blood.
Not far away, Yang Kai appeared with his spear in hand. Not pausing for a moment, Yang Kai charged forward and thrust his spear out, sending an overwhelming number of spear shadows towards the four Territory Lords.
The four Territory Lords roared ferociously. Drawing upon their Black Ink Strength, they unleashed a series of profound Secret Techniques to meet Yang Kai’s attack. They may have been bait, but they were not planning to just sacrifice their lives without fighting back.
These Innate Territory Lords who came from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had not spent much time at the No-Return Pass, not nearly enough to treat their wounds at least. Needless to say, they had barely recovered any of their strength. Even so, they had already begun practising the Battle Formations with the rest of the Territory Lords under Mo Na Ye’s orders.
At this moment, these four Territory Lords had assumed the Four Symbols Formation; unfortunately for them, they hadn’t had much time to practice it, so their auras could not combine perfectly. The Four Symbols Formation that they formed was clearly subpar as a result. That was particularly obvious against a Master like Yang Kai. The unstable Battle Formation only lasted for 10 breaths before shattering.
The four had barely managed to protect themselves with the Four Symbols Formation, so without it, how could these heavily wounded Territory Lords be Yang Kai’s opponent?
When the Battle Formation fell apart, Yang Kai’s spear cleanly sliced through one of the Territory Lords, causing it to explode into blood mist.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai withdrew his spear and swiftly stabbed forward once more. His spear struck another Territory Lord in the head while he simultaneously spread his large hand and manipulated the local Space Principles, causing the surrounding space to instantly solidify. Before the other two surviving Territory Lords could even react, their vision went black and they forever lost consciousness.
In less than two breaths of time, the aura of four Innate Territory Lords withered into nothing. Yang Kai immediately vanished from the spot, charging in another direction without pause.
There were four Territory Lords in each approaching group, enough to assume the Four Symbols Formation. Unfortunately for them, they differed from the Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass. Leaving aside their wounded bodies, they were not familiar enough with the Battle Formation due to lack of time and practice.
Once they were targeted by Yang Kai, they generally suffered the same fate as the first group of Territory Lords. Their Battle Formation would be destroyed within a dozen breaths of time, and what awaited them after was a swift death.
One group… Two groups… Three groups…
Yang Kai’s figure continued to flicker back and forth, smoothly navigating through the void as he engaged in an endless slaughter. At the same time, he did not forget to keep an eye on the movement in his surroundings as he remained vigilant towards the Black Ink Clan’s reaction.
More and more Territory Lords were slain and it was not long before 10 groups of Territory Lords were annihilated. Those 10 groups represented 40 Territory Lords.
Be that as it may, the remaining Territory Lords did not retreat in the slightest. Mo Na Ye had most likely explained the possible situations they might face before they came here; hence, they marched forward boldly and without hesitation or looking back despite knowing the disastrous fate awaiting them. It was not that they did not feel fear; rather, they simply had no other choice. They could not retreat due to the orders from their higher-ups.
The massacre continued, and as time passed, the encirclement formed by the Territory Lords gradually tightened around Yang Kai. After slaughtering a few more groups of Territory Lords, Yang Kai finally found himself besieged by the Territory Lords on all sides.
Yang Kai stood in the void with his spear in hand; meanwhile, the groups of Territory Lords in Battle Formations surrounded him. Nevertheless, it was easy to see the horror and fear in their eyes as they stared at him with shivering terror.
Back in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, they had always considered themselves quite powerful; however, their perspective was also limited by their environment. For that reason, they had harboured great ambitions and confidence when they escaped the Grand Restriction. It was not until they encountered the Human Race Master before them that they suffered a rude awakening. In front of this killing star, they were nothing special at all.
The scene was deadly silent, and the atmosphere was extremely heavy. As long as Yang Kai remained motionless, the Territory Lords did not dare to act rashly either. They simply gathered and strengthened the siege they formed around him.
Their numbers were overwhelming indeed. There were at least 150 Territory Lords gathered in this place, and if the ones Yang Kai killed earlier were included, the Black Ink Clan had clearly dispatched as many as 200 Territory Lords to execute this trap!
[How generous!] Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling secretly impressed. No matter how powerful he was, things would not end well for him if he confronted so many Territory Lords cooperating with each other. There was only one final outcome of this battle: both sides suffering grave injuries.
He would never underestimate these Territory Lords just because they were heavily wounded. Although he could slaughter a group of these Territory Lords even if they formed a Battle Formation with little effort, there were only four Territory Lords per such group. When their numbers accumulated to a certain degree, the situation simply became untenable. What’s more, the destructive power behind the Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities unleashed by these Territory Lords was not insignificant despite their weakened condition.
In the middle of their stalemate, one of the Territory Lords cautiously took a step forward and respectfully held out a miniature Black Ink Nest. Seeming terrified that Yang Kai might misunderstand his intentions, he quickly explained himself, “Yang Kai, Sir Mo Na Ye invites you into the Black Ink Nest for a discussion!”
Yang Kai had slaughtered so many Innate Territory Lords that he was bound to have some Black Ink Nests in his possession. That was something Mo Na Ye could easily guess. He had been trying to communicate with Yang Kai recently, but the messages sent to the communication bead did not receive any response. If he wanted to connect with Yang Kai directly, then he could only rely on the Black Ink Nests now.
However, he could not come forward in person. If he showed up under these circumstances, there was no doubt that Yang Kai would immediately escape. In that case, the several dozen Territory Lords who lost their lives earlier would have died in vain. Those several dozen Territory Lords were nothing more than appetisers. The remaining 150 Territory Lords were the main course!
“Enter the Black Ink Nest for a discussion?” Yang Kai glanced sideways at the Territory Lord and coldly snorted, “Do you take me for a three-year-old child? Tell him to fuck off.”
Leaving aside the fact that his physical body could be attacked from the outside when his mind was immersed in the Black Ink Nest Space, even the space within the Black Ink Nest itself had restrictive abilities.
In the past, he once immersed his consciousness into the Black Ink Nest Space through a captured Mid-Rank Black Ink Nest outside Great Evolution Pass. As a result, he was trapped inside the Black Ink Nest for several years. If he had not forced the Territory Lords to open the Black Ink Nest Void with the help of the Soul Warming Lotus and multiple Soul Rending Thorn, he would not have been able to escape.
[Does Mo Na Ye think I have such a rudimentary knowledge of the mysteries of the Black Ink Nest Space? How can he make such a naïve suggestion?]
Yang Kai was absolutely certain about one thing; even if he found a safe place for his physical body, he would be trapped within the Black Ink Nest the moment he immersed his consciousness into the Black Ink Nest Space. If that were to happen, it would be effortless to annihilate him without any conflict.
[I’m sure Mo Na Ye would laugh his head off with joy.]
The Territory Lord’s Divine Sense fluctuated slightly as though communicating with somebody. A short while later, he spoke again, “It’s fine if you refuse to enter the Black Ink Nest Space, but Sir Mo Na Ye has a message for you.”
“Speak!”
“Sir Mo Na Ye said…” He paused for a moment before he relayed the message word for word, “Brother Yang, the Black Ink Clan has tolerated many of your antics. We even willingly shared 30% of the resources we’ve gathered with you. All we asked for was some peace. Brother Yang, why did you attack and slaughter our Territory Lords?”
Yang Kai snorted with laughter, “The Black Ink Clan and the Human Race cannot coexist under the Heavens in the first place. If the Black Ink Clan was honest, I would not have caused trouble either. What was the Black Ink Clan doing at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction? Sneaking around and gathering your strength… How can I turn a blind eye to your antics? I’m only disappointed that I didn’t kill enough!”
The Territory Lord relayed Yang Kai’s words and received Mo Na Ye’s reply. He continued, “You’re right, Brother Yang. The Black Ink Clan and the Human Race are completely incompatible; however, we have interacted with each other for so many years, and I have come to cherish our friendship. Although this Mo Na Ye would like to be your friend, my wish is nothing more than a faint dream. The both of us… We are only acting for the greater good of our respective sides. We come from different origins, so it is only natural for our circumstances to be different. It is fate. There is nothing that can be done!”
Mo Na Ye’s words were sorrowful, sounding extremely emotional.
Of course, Yang Kai thought to himself, [Who would cherish a friendship with you?]
Nevertheless, looking at the situation from a different perspective, Mo Na Ye had truly done a good job of dealing with the problems Yang Kai caused over the years. If it had been any other Black Ink Clansman who was in charge instead, the results would definitely have been worse.
After delivering Mo Na Ye’s message, the Territory Lords from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction were taken aback. The attitude that the Pseudo-Royal Lord displayed towards this Human was beyond their expectations. Upon further thought though, they could somewhat understand his compromising attitude after considering the strength and abilities displayed by this person.
There was a moment of silence before the Territory Lord began to relay Mo Na Ye’s words again, “Now that things have come to this point, we should settle this matter.”
Yang Kai asked, “How do you want to settle it?”
“The flaw in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction has been repaired, so there won’t be any more Territory Lords coming out. Besides, many of the Territory Lords who snuck out of the Grand Restriction have died at your hands. What I mean is… For this matter, the Black Ink Clan will let bygones be bygones. If you agree to stop hunting down the Territory Lords, the Black Ink Clan will not pursue the previous matters. We will also continue delivering 30% of our resources to you as promised. What do you think, Brother Yang?”
Yang Kai’s expression shifted slightly. He had to admit that Mo Na Ye was being very generous and making a huge concession here. Including the Territory Lords he slaughtered just now, nearly 400 had died at his hands over the past few years.
That was 400 Innate Territory Lords, not Feudal Lords or High-Rank Soldiers. If those 400 Innate Territory Lords were sacrificed to create Pseudo-Royal Lords, they could produce between 20 to 30 with such numbers. After all, there was no shortage of High-Rank Black Ink Nests at the moment.
It was such a terrible loss, yet Mo Na Ye claimed that he could regard the entire matter as though it never happened. That was an impressive show of sincerity indeed.
Looking at the situation from another angle, Mo Na Ye would rather bear such a terrible loss if it made Yang Kai stop. The fact that he had mobilised 200 Territory Lords to besiege Yang Kai indicated that even more than that were on their way to the No-Return Pass. If this issue could not be resolved today, then the Black Ink Clan would end up suffering even heavier losses!
The only method to force one’s enemy into voluntarily enduring a bitter situation was to ensure that an even worse situation was waiting for them.
In a flash of thought, Yang Kai immediately understood everything. He thus chuckled and responded, “Sure. Since you are being so sincere, Mo Na Ye, how can this Yang refuse? So, what happens if I do as you say?”
The Territory Lord quickly replied, “Brother Yang is righteous indeed. In that case, I would like you to stay put for the next 20 years. Please rest assured, Brother Yang. These Territory Lords will be accompanying you, and they will not attack you as long as you do not attack them. Also, I can guarantee that neither Sir Royal Lord nor myself will appear within the range of your perception.”
[I knew Mo Na Ye would definitely have conditions.]
There was no guarantee when it came to verbal promises. Even if Yang Kai was forced to make a vow, Mo Na Ye would never trust Yang Kai so easily. If he wanted to prevent Yang Kai from hunting down the Territory Lords, then the best method was to keep Yang Kai restrained in place. 20 years was enough time for the last batch of Territory Lords to travel from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and arrive at the No-Return Pass safely.
The reason he told Yang Kai that neither he nor Royal Lord Mo Yu would appear within Yang Kai’s range of perception was to give the latter some reassurance and prevent him from worrying about such matters.
Yang Kai smiled, “Mo Na Ye, since I have agreed to your proposal, I will not regret my decision. You have too little trust in me.”
“It’s not that I don’t trust you, Brother Yang. It’s just that there is too much at stake, so I have to be more careful. Please understand.”
Yang Kai nodded in understanding and glanced around his surroundings. The expressions of the Innate Territory Lords turned solemn when they felt his gaze on them and a sense of fear coursed through their bodies.
“If I insist on leaving, these Territory Lords cannot stop me!”
The Territory Lord holding the small Black Ink Nest heaved a long sigh, perfectly and vividly expressing Mo Na Ye’s frustration, “Why must you do this, Brother Yang? I have made enough concessions!”
Even though so many Territory Lords had been killed, the Black Ink Clan was willing to overlook the matter. The Black Ink Clan had relented, compromising again and again. Naturally, their decision was a forced result of the situation. Even if Mo Na Ye wanted to take revenge, he was powerless to do so. Thus, the only thing he could do was choose the second-best option.
Yang Kai lowered his eyes and said indifferently, “There are things that can be negotiated, and there are things that cannot.”
Mo Na Ye fell silent. After a long time, the Territory Lord finally relayed his words, “Brother Yang, are you really willing to leave just like that?”
Yang Kai burst out laughing, “You really know me well, Mo Na Ye! When I advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, I will cut your head off to celebrate my achievement!”
He was definitely not willing to leave just like that. There were 150 Innate Territory Lords here, so how could he possibly leave without massacring them to his heart’s content? Rather than wasting his time and energy waiting in ambush for the scattered Territory Lords to arrive, he might as well go all out and cull all the Territory Lords here.
That was the true ingenuity of Mo Na Ye’s trap. It wasn’t that he could not mobilise the veteran Territory Lords of the No-Return Pass, but that he was not willing to do so. He only mobilised the Territory Lords from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to give Yang Kai an opportunity to exploit and mislead the latter into believing it was possible to massacre all these injured Territory Lords.
The best outcome was for Yang Kai to accept the initial terms. Then, the 150 Territory Lords here would only need to accompany him for the next 20 years. The Territory Lords on their way would also have enough time to arrive at the No-Return Pass. In this way, the strength of the Black Ink Clan was guaranteed to increase in the future.
Even if Yang Kai did not agree to the conditions though, Mo Na Ye knew the former would not escape easily when there was such a tempting target dangling in front of him. A great battle was bound to break out. No matter how many Innate Territory Lords would succumb in battle, it would be impossible for Yang Kai to escape unscathed. Where would he find the time and energy to hunt down the travelling Territory Lords?
Therefore, it did not matter whether Yang Kai agreed to the initial conditions. Both scenarios had been included in Mo Na Ye’s calculations. The only difference was the price that the Black Ink Clan would have to pay!
Before Yang Kai even finished speaking, his figure had already appeared in front of the Territory Lord holding the Black Ink Nest. The Territory Lord had been focused on the Black Ink Nest in his hands to relay Mo Na Ye’s words, and as a result, he could not spare any attention to support the Four Symbols Formation that was maintained between him and his three companions, especially since he was unfamiliar with the Battle Formation in the first place. It was the perfect breakthrough point.
The Territory Lord clearly did not expect Yang Kai to suddenly attack, so before he could react, he saw Yang Kai flashing by him. A long spear pierced into his body at the speed of lightning, and a violent force exploded from his body. He barely had time to grunt in pain before his entire body exploded and filled the void with a cloud of blood mist.
In the next moment, Yang Kai turned his spear to the other three Territory Lords.
An intense battle broke out without any warning. Fortunately, the Territory Lords who came here had been prepared in advance. As soon as Yang Kai made his move, they immediately counterattacked with all their might. Black Ink Strength surged uncontrollably as Black Ink Clouds swirled wildly. Likewise, a few Territory Lords who received different orders beforehand shifted and scattered around the void to prepare their next strategy.
Yang Kai had just finished off the three Territory Lords without the protection of the Battle Formation when countless Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities slammed into him from all directions. His body trembled from the impact, bearing the brunt of unimaginable pressure. Nevertheless, he did not stop his massacre.
With enemies in all directions, Yang Kai swept his spear back and forth without pause. From time to time, a Great Sun would leap into the sky, accompanied by the Golden Crow’s cry.
As the auras of numerous Territory Lords withered and disappeared, Yang Kai suffered numerous wounds. Fighting 150 Innate Territory Lords with the strength of one man alone was an unprecedented feat that had never been seen since ancient times.
If these 150 Innate Territory Lords had been at full strength, even a Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master would not have lasted long against them; much less an Eighth-Order Master like Yang Kai. It was a case where even an elephant would die from enough ant bites.
Fortunately, these Territory Lords were all heavily injured, so their strength had been reduced considerably. In addition, it was difficult for them to move around and coordinate properly with so many of them trying to attack just one highly mobile target.
Yang Kai’s figure flickered about, having no trouble bearing the attacks for the time being. Mo Na Ye had set the stage, and Yang Kai had to pay a certain price if he wanted to participate. It was inevitable.
Territory Lords continually lost their lives, but the encirclement still grew tighter and tighter. Overwhelming auras closed in from all directions like an invisible barrier, pressing down on Yang Kai. The space in which he could move around grew smaller and smaller.
At a certain point, the encirclement reached its limits and it no longer mattered how ferociously Yang Kai fought back. In this situation, two fists simply could not block four strikes. Even though he could forcibly slaughter the Territory Lord in front of him, at least a dozen different attacks would land on him at the same time. These attacks caused his body to tremble violently as he coughed up Golden Blood.
A Dragon Roar suddenly burst out, and an enormous Golden Dragon Head emerged behind Yang Kai before plunging into his figure. Golden light erupted in all directions as Yang Kai’s small humanoid figure abruptly transformed into an enormous Golden Dragon. Covered in Dragon Scales, the Golden Dragon had Dragon Horns on his head and a thick, fluttering Dragon Beard below his jaw.
The violent assault slammed into Yang Kai’s Dragon Form and broke many of his Dragon Scales; however, he remained indifferent. Unleashing a Divine Dragon Tail Sweep, Yang Kai sent numerous Territory Lords around him flying backwards. Then, his enormous Dragon Head abruptly turned to look in a certain direction where four Territory Lords were gathered in secret. His Dragon Maw opened, and a Dragon Roar reverberated through the void, “What do you think you’re doing?”
Mo Na Ye’s plan was not as simple as it appeared on the surface. He seemed to want to take Yang Kai’s life in exchange for the lives of these Territory Lords, but that would not be worth the effort and sacrifice. In reality, he had a larger ambition. He wanted to trap Yang Kai here so that he could eliminate Yang Kai himself!
Faced with an elusive opponent like Yang Kai, it was extremely difficult to trap him in one place. The only method that the Black Ink Clan could use to accomplish this was to set up the Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array. Once the Grand Array was activated, it would have a Heaven Sealing Earth Locking effect, rendering Yang Kai powerless to flee.
These Territory Lords from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had not spent much time at the No-Return Pass, but aside from practising the Four Symbols Formation, they had diligently familiarised themselves with this Spirit Array. Some of these Territory Lords had brought along the necessary Array Plates and Banners and were secretly preparing the Grand Array while their companions were keeping Yang Kai busy.
The moment the Grand Array was completed would be the moment of Mo Na Ye’s dazzling debut. The reason he had not appeared earlier was to not alert Yang Kai to his presence. Once his aura appeared in Yang Kai’s perception, the latter was bound to escape immediately.
However, how could Yang Kai fail to notice Mo Na Ye’s plans? Even if the Territory Lords setting up the Grand Array were extremely secretive, he had been on guard against such tricks from the beginning.
Dragon Scales flew everywhere, bearing the attacks that came from all directions. A series of hideous and terrifying scars appeared on the huge Dragon Form, but the Dragon’s Head soon stretched across the distance and loomed over the four Territory Lords without paying the attackers any mind. Following the fluctuations of Space Principles, the Void froze instantly. At the same time, the Dragon’s Mouth opened wide; then, with a loud cracking noise, Yang Kai actually bit off a piece out of the Void!
As the Dragon Maw closed, a huge piece of the Void seemed to go missing. Even the four Territory Lords who were there previously had disappeared. Then, the sound of chewing came from the mouth of the giant Dragon. Every crunching sound made the hair on the backs of the Territory Lords stand on end. In addition, a large amount of Black Ink Strength and thick black blood leaked out of the corners of his mouth. The gruesome sight terrified all the Territory Lords who witnessed this scene. Nevertheless, a storm of attacks continued to rain down on the Ancient Dragon from all directions.
All of a sudden, the Ancient Dragon turned to look back, his two enormous Dragon Eyes overflowing with unspeakable murderous intent. He opened his large Dragon Maw, releasing a high-pitch Dragon Roar that resounded across the entire universe. Accompanied by the sound of the Dragon Roar, a golden round bead spewed out of his Dragon Mouth.
Because of Yang Kai’s current cultivation and mastery over the Grand Daos of Time and Space, the Sun and Moon Divine Seal was undoubtedly his strongest trump card, but it was closely followed by his Dragon Bead.
The significance of a Dragon Bead to a Dragon Clansman was similar to the significance of a Monster Core to a Monster Beast. It was the crystallisation of their lifetime of cultivation.
The Dragon Clan was known for their thick skin and strong flesh, which gave them incredible resiliency and physical strength. Be that as it may, they rarely summoned their Dragon Bead in a battle against their enemies. The reason was that this method could be very harmful to them. If the Dragon Bead was destroyed by the enemy, then they would lose a large part of their cultivation. In the worst case, their Bloodline might even decline as a result.
Yang Kai himself had only summoned his Dragon Bead a handful of times in his life, and each time he did so, he had achieved remarkable results. At the same time, his actions came with significant risks to himself.
A scorching Sun emerged in the void. The Golden Dragon Bead resembled the Great Sun that instantly pierced through the surrounding darkness. The force contained infinite power, which blasted apart the defensive layer formed through the joint efforts of the Territory Lords and demolished their Battle Formations. It would have been amazing in itself if that were all, but the invisible fluctuations of the Dragon Bead also channelled the rich power of the Grand Dao of Time which washed over the minds of the Territory Lords and blurred their perceptions.
The Dao of Time was the Bloodline Talent of the Dragon Clan, and since a Dragon Bead was the crystallisation of a Dragon Clansman’s cultivation, it was only natural for it to contain the mysteries of the Grand Dao.
With their perceptions warped and their minds disturbed, the Territory Lords were suddenly at a loss for what to do. Everywhere the Dragon Bead passed, powerful Innate Territory Lords suffered death or critical injury, collapsing like flies. Seven auras vanished from existence in an instant.
As Yang Kai unleashed this attack, he was also enduring constant bombardment from his enemies. As the dense barrage of Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities rained down on him, his huge and lumbering Dragon Form abruptly transformed into a golden light and vanished from the spot. Most of the attacks landed in nothing but empty space as a result.
The golden light suddenly appeared a certain distance away, revealing Yang Kai’s figure once more. He was no longer in his Dragon Form, but his Human Form. Having swallowed his Dragon Bead earlier, he immediately summoned the Azure Dragon Spear again. At this moment, various Dao Strengths began interweaving at the tip of the spear before Yang Kai sliced through the nearby enemies with monstrous strength.
Frequently changing between his Human Form and his Dragon Form, Yang Kai exhibited all of his skills, interweaving numerous Dao Strengths to their fullest. A feeling of comprehension filled his heart. Unfortunately, he did not have the time to enjoy the revelation in his heart. The battle had been extremely intense from the beginning, so there was no saying who would win and who would lose.
The number of Territory Lords reduced steadily, but Yang Kai was also beginning to feel tired. His Small Universe had always been much bigger than others in the same Order. Combined with his cultivation that was at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, Yang Kai generally had no trouble responding calmly to any situation, regardless of the intensity or ferocity of a battle. However, he was confronting too many enemies today, a testament to Mo Na Ye’s determination.
Yang Kai had summoned his Dragon Bead three times in a row, slaughtering innumerable Territory Lords in the process, but at this point, he could no longer afford to summon it, otherwise, he would risk breaking it into pieces.
Inside his Small Universe, the consumption of World Force was also bordering on excessive. Although he had the World Tree Clone to stabilize it, draining too much World Force from his Small Universe might cause some problems for him. Nothing might happen to Yang Kai himself, but it would be a catastrophe for the living beings in his Small Universe if it was completely drained.
The Black Ink Clan had been repeatedly trying to set up the Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array, but the Array always failed to take shape due to Yang Kai’s interference. At this point, they seemed to have completely given up on their plan to restrain Yang Kai with it.
It was not because they were willing to give up on this plan. On the contrary, it was because most of the Territory Lords who brought the Array Boards and Banners with them had been killed by now. As the saying went, ‘Even the cleverest woman could not cook a meal without rice’.
At a certain point, the intense battle suddenly ceased.
Yang Kai stood in the void with his spear in hand. The murderous intent radiating from him was practically tangible, and there was not a single intact spot on his body. Moreover, he was dyed in a mixture of golden and black blood. His tightly bound hair was dishevelled and draped around his shoulders. Although his appearance was bedraggled, he gave off a heroic spirit in his own right.
Even now, over 100 Territory Lords surrounded him and stared at him. In addition, countless overpowering auras wound around him like invisible chains in an attempt to hold him in place.
Yang Kai had slain more than 100 Territory Lords in this battle. The main reason another hundred or so Territory Lords were surrounding him was that more had gradually arrived over time and joined the fight.
At this moment, the gazes watching Yang Kai were filled with absolute horror and fear. They had witnessed how this Human had slain their companions like he was slaughtering chickens and butchering dogs. The only reason they were still alive was not that they were stronger than their dead companions; rather, they were simply lucky enough not to be targeted. None of the Territory Lords targeted by this Human Race Master survived. All of them died.
The battlefield was absolutely silent as severed limbs and broken pieces of bone floated around the void. The atmosphere was extremely tense.
The Territory Lords silently questioned themselves whether the astounding price they paid so far was worth the effort. Be that as it may, the person presiding over this matter was Mo Na Ye. Not only were they simply acting on orders, but they could not disobey their orders either.
Lightly taking a breath and spitting out the blood in his mouth, Yang Kai glanced in the direction of the No-Return Pass. He knew that Mo Na Ye was rushing over from that direction. There was also a possibility that Mo Na Ye was hiding somewhere in the vicinity just beyond the range of his perception.
The only reason Mo Na Ye did not reveal himself was that the time was not yet right. Yang Kai had enough strength in him to continue fighting with no trouble; not to mention, he was proficient at escaping. Mo Na Ye did not have the confidence to stop Yang Kai from fleeing if he showed himself at this moment. Hence, his only option was to wait until Yang Kai was completely exhausted. Only then would he come forward and finish things in one blow!
In any case, Mo Na Ye was certain that Yang Kai would not be willing to leave just like that. That was because the Innate Territory Lords standing in front of him were nothing but meek lambs waiting to be slaughtered. As long as he cared about the future of the Human Race, Yang Kai would not stop fighting until the very last moment.
Yang Kai broke into a grin, and his bloodied appearance made the grin on his face seem even more gruesome. He had to admit that he had fallen completely into Mo Na Ye’s trap. More importantly, he had willingly done so!
[Mo Na Ye is truly the genius of the Black Ink Clan!]
Yang Kai gave a flick of the spear in his hands, and his murderous intent began to surge turbulently as he shouted, “Again!”
Then, his figure transformed into a stream of light and charged towards four Territory Lords in Formation.
After fighting for so long, there was no need for flowery moves at this point. Yang Kai just had to kill as many of the powerful enemies in front of him as he could before he made his escape. On the other hand, the Territory Lords who came here on orders had to put constant pressure on Yang Kai so that he continued to accumulate injuries.
The battle at this point played out differently from the initial flexible context at the beginning. Yang Kai no longer had the strength nor the mood to avoid the incoming attacks. Most of the time, he just took those attacks directly in exchange for reaping the lives of the Territory Lords. His Dragon Form which was only one step away from advancing to the Divine Dragon realm gave him the capital to withstand such abuse.
When the Four Symbols Formation was destroyed, Yang Kai wielded his spear and covered the four Territory Lords in his spear aura. Although the four Territory Lords struggled desperately, how could they escape? A spear light came down, and each Territory Lord stiffened abruptly…
At the same time, a barrage of assaults rained down on Yang Kai. These attacks left him coughing up blood as his figure shuddered violently. Nevertheless, he simply turned around sharply and charged towards the nearest group of four Territory Lords.
The battle was not as intense as earlier; after all, both the Territory Lords and Yang Kai had exhausted themselves. Nonetheless, the brutality was considerably higher than before. The Territory Lords were gutted and beheaded at a constant rate; likewise, Yang Kai’s aura weakened steadily.
About an hour later, Yang Kai’s figure faltered involuntarily when he killed another Territory Lord. His vision also blurred for a moment. He was almost at his limit!
He had not counted how many Territory Lords he slaughtered in this battle, but the Black Ink Clan had invested at least 250 Innate Territory Lords altogether. In contrast, there were only about 70 or 80 surviving Territory Lords at the moment… In this battle alone, Yang Kai had slain some 170 Territory Lords!
That was a terrifying battle record, but it was not something Yang Kai could have achieved on his own strength. If these Territory Lords had not been wounded from the start and Mo Na Ye had ordered them never to retreat, he would not have achieved such a feat so easily.
The outcome of this battle was only possible because one party was willing to fight while the other party was willing to endure. Mo Na Ye was desperate to succeed and Yang Kai was willing to cooperate.
All of a sudden, a powerful aura invaded Yang Kai’s perception from the direction of the No-Return Pass and approached at lightning speed. He turned to look in that direction, coldly snorting in his heart. [Mo Na Ye’s arrival sure is timely. Out of all the times he could choose to come, he had to come just when I was planning to retreat.]
If he was in perfect condition, he would not be scared to encounter Mo Na Ye in the vast, empty void. He had been chased by more than one Royal Lord in the past and had even killed one of them, so what was a mere Pseudo-Royal Lord in comparison?
However, he was heavily wounded at the moment. Yang Kai’s strength was no longer at its peak as both his World Force and Spiritual Energy were basically depleted. If he was targeted by Mo Na Ye in this condition, he was not confident that he could successfully escape.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai did not regret his actions today. Mo Na Ye had taken the initiative to dangle such tempting carrots in front of him. Even if he knew that it was the Black Ink Clan’s trap, Yang Kai could not resist biting. Now was the best time to reduce the strength of the Black Ink Clan. If he did not take this opportunity to kill as many Innate Territory Lords as he could, then many more Humans would die in the future.
Space Principles lingered around his figure as Yang Kai immediately prepared to escape after having sensed Mo Na Ye’s aura approaching.
However, how could the Territory Lords surrounding him allow him to escape so easily? These Territory Lords had been terrified of him earlier, so nobody had dared to confront him recklessly, but at this moment, they seemed bolstered by a newfound sense of courage. Every one of them became as mighty as a dragon and as fierce as a tiger. Their auras locked onto his body, surging violently as they channelled their power. To disrupt his escape, some blasted Secret Techniques at him while others went all out to shake the surrounding Void with their power.
Activating Instantaneous Movement under these circumstances was undoubtedly a fool’s dream. Even Yang Kai could not achieve such a feat. Fortunately, he was not unprepared for such situations. While surging his power to block the storm of attacks, he tried to connect with a Space Beacon.
Over the years, he had placed countless Space Beacons across the Black Ink Battlefield. There was no doubt that performing Space Secret Techniques was much easier and less energy-consuming with the help of these Space Beacons.
It did not take long for Yang Kai to detect the nearest Space Beacon to his current location. Space Principles fluctuated, and his figure began to turn hazy as though he was about to melt into the Void. Before he could vanish completely though, another storm of attacks rained down on him once more. His entire figure shuddered from the force and the space around him became warped, causing his blurry image to solidify again.
Sure enough, it was not feasible for him to escape even with the help of a Space Beacon when so many powerful opponents were surrounding him.
Yang Kai did not hesitate. With a flick of the Azure Dragon Spear, he brazenly charged towards the spot where the defence was the weakest in the Black Ink Clan’s siege. Since he could not escape, he had to break out of the encirclement. That was something he had considered beforehand.
His figure moved with his spear, and thanks to the Supreme Limitless Spear Art, he practically became one with it. He boldly rushed towards the Territory Lords, braving the countless attacks blasting towards him.
The Territory Lords facing him were shocked and frightened, so they instinctively moved to avoid him; however, Mo Na Ye’s furious roar came from the distance at that exact moment, “Stop him!”
After a brief moment of hesitation, the Territory Lords surged their powers in unison and challenged Yang Kai directly.
At the same time that a Battle Formation of four Territory Lords was destroyed, Yang Kai staggered back from the attacks that came from the side. Nevertheless, he threw his head back and roared with laughter, “Who can stop me if I want to leave?”
There was no time for him to exterminate the four Territory Lords whose Battle Formation was broken, but he still rushed out of the encirclement. Unfortunately, a sense of crisis threatened to overcome him before he could activate his Space Principles.
From a distance, Mo Na Ye slammed his palm towards Yang Kai’s direction with a cold snort, “You’re too arrogant, Yang Kai!”
In the brief moment that Yang Kai was delayed just now, Mo Na Ye had arrived in the vicinity!
The long-distance attack made Yang Kai stagger and his Instantaneous Movement Technique that he was about to activate was interrupted halfway. The sound of broken bones also came from his body, causing him to cough up a mouthful of Golden Blood.
A Pseudo-Royal Lord had strength almost equal to a true Royal Lord, the only difference was the amount of power they could display. A Pseudo-Royal Lord could only bring out some 70% to 80% of their full strength, making them far inferior to a true Royal Lord.
There was no doubt that Mo Na Ye was stronger than Di Wu though. If Di Wu could exert 70% of a true Royal Lord’s strength, then Mo Na Ye could exert 80%. Although it was only a difference of 10%, it was still a massive gap in power. That was especially true when Yang Kai was so heavily injured and mentally exhausted. Just a long-distance attack had nearly knocked him unconscious.
Yang Kai bit the tip of his tongue hard, then he took the initiative to trigger the power of the Soul Warming Lotus. Only then did he manage to maintain his consciousness. Not daring to delay any longer, he quickly moved to leave. However, an aura locked onto him from behind and stuck to him firmly.
“Yang Kai, I will spare your life if you surrender without a fight!” Mo Na Ye’s roar reverberated in Yang Kai’s ears as his figure gradually approached.
Without even turning to look back, Yang Kai coughed up blood while making his escape, “Mo Na Ye, you’ve gotten arrogant! Are you not even going to call me ‘Brother Yang’ anymore?”
Mo Na Ye chuckled softly, “You need to be qualified for me to call you that!”
His confidence in his ability to defeat Yang Kai was reflected in his expression, which was so smug it was irritating.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai had to admit that it would be difficult for him to escape Mo Na Ye’s pursuit in his current condition. He couldn’t help feeling relieved that his pursuer was a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Mo Na Ye. If it had been Mo Yu, a true Royal Lord instead, things would have been much worse for him.
Activating the Great Sun and Moon Marks, blue and yellow lights merged and transformed into pure white light. When the pure white light covered Yang Kai, the aura that Mo Na Ye locked onto him was severed in an instant. Then, Yang Kai hurriedly activated Space Principles to leave.
Mo Na Ye coldly snorted. The aura that was severed earlier exploded, like an invisible punch, disrupting the Void around Yang Kai. After fighting Yang Kai for so many years, he had already prepared plans for how to deal with such situations.
If Yang Kai had been at full strength, Mo Na Ye’s approach would not have been effective. It was just that Yang Kai had already fought so many Territory Lords earlier, so he was both physically and mentally exhausted. Although he was not at the point where he was a dry oil lamp, he was practically an arrow at the end of its flight; hence, he was a little powerless in the face of Mo Na Ye’s interference.
Yang Kai’s figure turned hazy and vanished from the spot. Then, he left with the Instantaneous Movement Space Technique. Be that as it may, he did not manage to flee far.
Mo Na Ye found Yang Kai’s location with a sweep of his Divine Sense and his powerful aura stretched out again in that direction, clinging to Yang Kai like leeches.
Having sacrificed so many Innate Territory Lords, how could Mo Na Ye’s plan have no effect on Yang Kai? He had already calculated and anticipated all the possible scenarios that could occur when he came up with this trap. Everything was within his expectations.
The next step was for him to hunt down Yang Kai with all his might! He was not going to rest until Yang Kai was dead! As long as he could annihilate Yang Kai, the deaths of all the Innate Territory Lords earlier would be worth it. If he allowed Yang Kai to carry on hunting down the Territory Lords who escaped from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, the losses suffered by the Black Ink Clan would be even greater.
When Yang Kai reappeared, he staggered. He felt light-headed and dizzy, a feeling that he had not felt in a long time. That was when he knew that he had been too greedy. In order to slaughter as many Innate Territory Lords as possible, he had spent too long in the battle which resulted in heavy injuries and extreme fatigue.
Be that as it may, under those circumstances, how could he bring himself to retreat before the last possible moment? Nobody would be willing to leave when faced with so many Innate Territory Lords who could be killed almost effortlessly. Even now, he could only sigh in appreciation. In this confrontation, he had to admit that Mo Na Ye’s trap was truly superior! It was not an easy feat to acknowledge the strength of one’s enemy.
In this battle, he had known that it was a trap Mo Na Ye had prepared for him. Despite that, he had willingly walked into the trap and allowed himself to fall into such a miserable state. Nevertheless, it was unknown who would have the last laugh in this confrontation. It would all depend entirely on their respective skills.
If he could escape Mo Na Ye’s pursuit, then all the scheming and plotting that Mo Na Ye did would turn into something extremely laughable instead. In fact, Mo Na Ye would become thoroughly humiliated. For that reason alone, Yang Kai had to escape the pursuit of a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Mo Na Ye and survive!
He had to fight alone with no help from external forces, there was a significant difference in their strengths, and his life was on the line… All of these factors were disadvantageous to Yang Kai. Fortunately, he was accustomed to such situations. How many times had he been chased by unimaginably powerful enemies? In the end, he always managed to turn the situation around. How could the ship capsize on calm seas now?
Purifying Light appeared once more, severing the aura wrapped around Yang Kai for a second time. Yang Kai then activated Space Principles to escape. Without any delay, he was struck by Mo Na Ye’s interference just as he was about to escape. The severity of his injuries increased. When he reappeared once more, Mo Na Ye swiftly gave chase.
The same situation kept repeating over and over…
The current situation felt familiar to Yang Kai. He couldn’t help but recall the first time he was hunted down by a Royal Lord during his previous escape from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. The current situation was similar to the situation at the time. He had used the Purifying Light to sever the aura that the enemy had locked on him; then, he activated Space Principles to escape. It was just a pity that his enemies would catch up to him soon after.
He had only been in the peak of the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm at the time, so his strength was a far cry from that of a Royal Lord. Although Yang Kai was now at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he was severely injured, so his situation was not much better than it had been last time.
Back then, he had been hunted by the Royal Lord for many years. It was only with the help of the numerous mysterious Celestial Phenomena scattered in the void that he managed to escape danger on many occasions. In the end, Yang Kai had dived deep into the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon and cultivated hard for thousands of years inside numerous Temporal Rivers. When he advanced to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm and came out of the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon, he managed to slaughter the Royal Lord through a series of coincidences and pure luck.
But what about now? Could Yang Kai borrow the power of the Celestial Phenomenon like before? Regrettably, that was not an option. Leaving aside the various dangers hidden within the mysterious Celestial Phenomena, there was too much distance between him and that part of the Black Ink Battlefield. In his current condition, he did not have the confidence to last until he could reach the nearest Celestial Phenomenon.
Escaping to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction was another option. The Suppressing Black Ink Army and Divine Dragon Fu Guang were there, so if he could lure Mo Na Ye that far, he would not only guarantee his own safety, but Fu Guang could also take the opportunity to rip Mo Na Ye in two. Unfortunately, the distance to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction was even further than the Celestial Phenomena, so Yang Kai quickly dismissed the idea.
The only ones in the vicinity who could help him were the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters secretly watching over the Human cultivators mining resources nearby. However, Yang Kai would only bring disaster to them if he sought their help. Those Eighth-Order Masters might be able to resist Mo Na Ye for some time if they joined forces, but the cultivators who were responsible for mining or harvesting resources did not have high strength. Many would die just from the fallout of such a battle. Moreover, they would inevitably be besieged by the Black Ink Clan once their whereabouts were revealed.
These tens of thousands of cultivators were heroes who had gone behind enemy lines for over 1,000 years, risking their lives to collect resources from the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield. It would not be appropriate for Yang Kai to drag them into danger for his own self-interests; therefore, his only option was to face this battle alone!
He couldn’t help feeling secretly resentful. It could be seen that Mo Na Ye was determined to remove him from the equation altogether. He did not have the slightest breathing space in their pursuit. Otherwise, he could have connected with the World Tree and asked the Old Tree to guide him to the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary so that he could hide there for some time. It was too bad that he needed a few breaths for the World Tree to receive him, long enough for Mo Na Ye to butcher him.
Now that there were no external forces that Yang Kai could rely on, he could only rely on himself.
He silently perceived his condition. His physical wounds were slowly healing thanks to his potent Dragon Vein, and the World Force in his Small Universe was gradually recovering with each passing moment. Likewise, the Soul Warming Lotus was soothing the headache in his mind… As long as nobody interfered with his healing process, he would be fully recovered in 10 to 15 days. His recovery abilities had always been very strong.
Be that as it may, Yang Kai was currently being hunted by Mo Na Ye, and every time he activated Space Principles to escape, he would suffer additional injuries. Hence, his strength and Spiritual Energy were constantly being depleted.
Under such circumstances, Yang Kai would probably need to escape Mo Na Ye for three to five years before he could recover sufficiently to throw off his pursuer.
Yang Kai did not know whether he could persist for three to five years, but he knew that a disastrous fate awaited him if he made a careless mistake and gave Mo Na Ye an opportunity to capture him. Unfortunately, the current situation left him with no other choice. If he wanted to survive, then his only option was to endure and persist!
After considering all his options, Yang Kai calmed down considerably. Since that was the only path ahead, he just had to walk it. Once three to five years had passed and he had the confidence to escape alive from Mo Na Ye’s pursuit, he would thoroughly mock and ridicule him for his failure. He was certain that Mo Na Ye’s expression would be extremely exciting to watch at that point!
Travelling through the void, Yang Kai felt an immense aura rapidly approaching him. The aura of death also loomed from behind him. Mo Na Ye’s deep voice echoed in his ears once more, “Yang Kai, you will never escape!”
He did not respond. In truth, he could not spare the strength to give a response. He was focusing all his attention on fleeing.
Purifying Light fluctuated and severed Mo Na Ye’s aura once more… Both Yang Kai and Mo Na Ye were extremely familiar with this routine by now.
In the next moment, Yang Kai activated Space Principles and prepared to escape; meanwhile, Mo Na Ye’s aura surged and shook the Void around Yang Kai’s figure to interrupt his Instantaneous Movement. Their actions were extremely in sync, almost as though their minds were connected.
Just when Yang Kai activated Space Principles and prepared to leave via Instantaneous Movement this time though, he suddenly felt a wave of turbulence in his Small Universe. He vaguely felt as though there was an invisible hand flicking his Small Universe, causing ripples to spread throughout it. As a result, his World Force abruptly became disordered and chaotic.
Under normal circumstances, such occurrences would not have had much of an impact on him. He would only need to restore his chaotic World Force to reverse the effects; however, he was currently fleeing for his life, so the effects of this sudden turn of events were horrifying.
His hazy figure that was about to vanish suddenly turned solid again because of the chaotic disruption. His expression immediately became solemn as a result.
Mo Na Ye, who was pursuing closely from behind, was also stunned by the unexpected change. It was the first time such a situation had happened throughout their chase.
In previous cases, Yang Kai would already have escaped by the time he made his move. The situation left him feeling helpless despite his immense strength and ability. Aside from forcibly interfering with Yang Kai’s Instantaneous Movement, he had not been able to make a single move up until now. The situation had been weighing heavily on Mo Na Ye as a result.
At this moment, he immediately saw an opportunity to make his move. He took action almost instinctively, raising his fist and punching in the direction of Yang Kai. Dense Black Ink Strength spewed out and formed a pitch-black light that broke through the barriers of space in an instant and slammed heavily into Yang Kai.
Mo Na Ye was overjoyed. Increasing his speed, he rushed forward and roared, “Yang Kai, suffer death!”
He raised his fist once more and blasted out another punch; however, this turned out to be useless. When the pitch-black light dissipated, Yang Kai’s figure was no longer anywhere to be seen.
Mo Na Ye’s Divine Sense spread out like a tidal wave, and he immediately perceived Yang Kai’s whereabouts. At this moment, Yang Kai’s aura had obviously declined considerably. It was clearly the work of his attack earlier.
[Is he running out of strength?] Mo Na Ye recalled the strange incident just now and made a speculation. He did not know what happened for Yang Kai to make a mistake at such a critical moment. In any case, Yang Kai’s mistake, which caused his figure to stop for a moment, had allowed Mo Na Ye to exploit. The incident greatly increased Mo Na Ye’s chances of success in capturing or annihilating Yang Kai.
Not far away, Yang Kai looked as pale as a sheet. He opened his mouth and instantly coughed up a considerable amount of Golden Blood. His heart was filled with fear and fury.
After bearing the brunt of Mo Na Ye’s long-distance attack, his poor condition worsened even more. He originally only needed to escape from Mo Na Ye for three to five years to make a comeback, but now… he had the feeling that he would not be able to endure much longer. The power behind the attack of a Pseudo-Royal Lord was extremely heavy, so it was not easy to bear, especially when he was in such poor condition at the moment.
However, what truly horrified and enraged him was that something seemed to be wrong with his Small Universe. For a moment just now, his Small Universe had been inexplicably afflicted by extreme turbulence. It had caused the World Force in his body to become disordered. If not for that, how could he have made such a mistake?
But, why did his Small Universe experience turmoil? His Small Universe had always been protected and stabilized by the World Tree Clone, so it was essentially flawless and impenetrable to external forces. Even in a difficult battle against Mo Na Ye, he should only suffer a terrible beating due to his inferior strength. There should not have been any effects on his Small Universe.
Unless… he was completely out of strength. If his World Force had been fully depleted, that would shake the very foundation of his Small Universe. However, that was also impossible. It was true that his strength had been significantly depleted after such an intense battle, but there were countless living beings in his Small Universe. His World Force was constantly being replenished at all times, so his World Force couldn’t be depleted.
[Just what went wrong?]
As Yang Kai fled with his severely injured body, he separated out a thread of consciousness to investigate the situation inside his Small Universe.
His entire Small Universe was filled with an uneasy atmosphere. The turmoil earlier had caused great panic throughout the Void World. Earthquakes had shaken the ground, rivers had flowed backwards, mountains had collapsed, and tidal waves swept across the seas. These disasters had resulted in countless casualties.
Fortunately, the disaster passed just as quickly as it came. There was no further serious damage to his Small Universe at this point. Nevertheless, the Masters of the major Sects and the Void Dao Temple were investigating the situation for the cause, without any success of course.
Yang Kai scowled deeply.
His Small Universe was safe and sound. In that case, what was the cause of the disaster earlier? What puzzled him even more was that something seemed to be drawing his attention, almost as if it was calling out to him from somewhere.
He inadvertently raised his head and looked in a certain direction. It was none other than the direction where he had fought hundreds of Innate Territory Lords earlier. Something seemed to be waiting for him there.
[Is it a trap by the Black Ink Clan? Is it another one of Mo Na Ye’s ploys? No, it doesn’t seem like a trap.]
At his cultivation realm, Yang Kai’s mind and will were strongly fortified. It should be impossible for him to be affected by external influences. The force that was guiding him was most likely a form of guidance from something on a much higher level.
Yang Kai quietly observed Mo Na Ye’s expression as the latter rapidly closed the distance between them.
Mo Na Ye was not hiding the murderous intent radiating from his entire being, but more importantly, he seemed oblivious to Yang Kai’s current abnormal state.
Unbeknownst to Yang Kai, when the wave of turbulence struck his Small Universe, the same phenomenon had occurred throughout the entire 3,000 Worlds. As long as it was a place occupied by the Human Race, be it High Heaven Territory, the New Great Territory, the battlefields across the various Great Territories, or the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, all the Human Race Masters at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm and above had experienced the same turbulence in their Small Universe and subsequently felt the same subtle pull.
Fortunately, most of these veterans at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm were not engaged in battle at the time; otherwise, they might have been severely wounded or killed as a result.
…..
In one of the peaceful Universes located in the New Great Territory, although the World’s Grand Dao had been perfected and the vitality was flourishing, the Universe World had yet to produce any living creatures with high sentience.
There was a simple thatched hut on one of the tall mountains inside the Universe World, but there was no telling how long the thatched hut had been there as it was surrounded by various Arrays to protect it from the erosion of time.
After the Human Race Masters at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm experienced the turbulence in their Small Universe, a figure suddenly flew out of the thatched hut. He came to stand in the middle of the sky and looked up at the Heavens solemnly. Then, his expression seemed to change slightly.
If any of the Black Ink Clan higher-ups were here, they would most likely have recognised him. He was the Human Race Master, Xiang Shan! Aside from Yang Kai, he was one of the few Human Race Masters who were a major concern to the Black Ink Clan.
Mo Na Ye had always suspected that a new Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master had already appeared. Among the possible candidates, Xiang Shan and several other veteran Eighth-Order Masters had the highest possibility of breaking through. That was because they had not appeared on any of the Great Territory Battlefields for many centuries.
Nobody knew where these veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were hiding. Although the Black Ink Clan had many Black Ink Disciples acting as spies, such top-secret information could not be obtained no matter what methods were used by these low-level personnel. Even Yang Kai did not know where Xiang Shan was in seclusion, not that he had ever bothered to ask.
Unfortunately, the reality of the matter was that Xiang Shan, whose cultivation had regressed after he sacrificed a large portion of his Small Universe in the past, had not been able to break through to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm even though he had been cultivating in retreat for so long. Even now, he was only at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Nevertheless, there were very few among the veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters with the qualification to advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm in the first place. It could be said that Xiang Shan was one of the few cultivators closest to the Ninth Order.
When the turbulence swept throughout the Universe, Xiang Shan had also been disturbed. The phenomenon had interrupted him in the middle of his retreat, causing nearly 1,000 of hard work to come to nought.
If it were anybody else, they would inevitably have lost their composure. In the worst case, they might even suffer a trace of cultivation dissonance. Luckily, Xiang Shan’s mind was strong and stable thanks to the many ups and downs he suffered in life. Although he was disappointed, he was not too bothered by the loss. He simply pondered for a moment before he vaguely understood what had happened.
Xiang Shan was different from Yang Kai after all. Yang Kai might be famous throughout the known Universe, but he had lived a much shorter life than the true veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. It was only natural that he had experienced much less in life compared to these old monsters.
What Yang Kai did not know; Xiang Shan understood almost instantly. With a vertical movement, his figure transformed into a stream of light and charged out of the Universe World, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
At the same time, various messages began to spread among the Human Race as the Open Heaven Realm Masters who had lived long enough had a vague understanding of what was about to take place.
…..
On the Black Ink Battlefield where Yang Kai had fought hundreds of Innate Territory Lords earlier, after Yang Kai escaped and Mo Na Ye pursued, the surviving Innate Territory Lords seemed to be in no hurry to leave. It was not that they did not want to leave, but rather that they were heavily wounded and their energy reserves had been depleted, so they were having trouble moving about freely.
They might have survived the battle, but too many of them had lost their lives to Yang Kai. Nearly 200 Innate Territory Lords had been slaughtered by Yang Kai in that fight, an outcome that would surely be recorded in the annals of history.
In any case, they were not worried that Yang Kai might return here. Mo Na Ye was personally hunting him down after all. He would be having enough trouble just escaping with his life, so where would he find the energy to wheel around to attack them again?
While they were resting though, none of the Territory Lords noticed that an extremely mysterious force was slowly permeating the nearby void. There were no words to describe the force accurately, but it was no threat to the Territory Lords. On the contrary, it seemed to seamlessly seep into everything without a sound.
As the force began to condense, numerous illusory lines emerged and slowly connected with each other to form a strange image… The illusory phantom covered a huge swath of the void and enveloped the Territory Lords. Strangely enough, none of the Territory Lords noticed anything at all. It was not until a certain Territory Lord suddenly opened his eyes and looked around that he realised something was wrong. He shouted a warning, startling the other Territory Lords from their rest.
Not knowing exactly what was happening, let alone what the illusory phantom that inexplicably appeared was, the Territory Lords did not dare to remain. They quickly summoned their strength to leave this place; however, they soon discovered something strange.
The void within the range of the illusory phantom had twisted and folded upon itself. No matter how they tried to escape, they could not leave the range of the illusory phantom. It was as if they were trapped inside an inexplicable Array, a reality that shocked and horrified them.
These Territory Lords had snuck out from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. After travelling for 10 years and avoiding being hunted by Yang Kai along the way, they finally arrived at the No-Return Pass. Before they could heal from their wounds and recover their strength though, they were used as pawns to besiege Yang Kai under Mo Na Ye’s order.
Many of their clansmen had died in the previous battle, and those who survived initially thought that they would finally be rewarded for all their hardships. Who could have known that such a strange phenomenon would occur? For some reason, they were trapped in the void now with no means of escape.
For a time, many were filled with an inexplicable sense of grief and indignation. How could the outside world be so dangerous? Although life in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had been boring and monotonous, it had at least been safe. Hence, they were starting to miss the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
The region where the Territory Lords were located was not the only place where the peculiar illusory phantom appeared. Many illusory phantoms also emerged out of thin air on the battlefields across the various Great Territories where both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan were fighting. The phenomenon even occurred in the deserted Barren Territory and at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
The illusory phantoms might be scattered across the Universe, but they had the same shape. It was as though a mysterious existence had projected its image at all these different locations. The illusory phantoms loomed over the vast void; however, only the unlucky Innate Territory Lords on the Black Ink Battlefield were trapped within its range. No other living being had been trapped within the illusory phantom; after all, the illusory phantom had emerged very slowly and those with the slightest sense of vigilance had fled at the first sign of its appearance.
The Black Ink Clan was completely bewildered by the phenomenon, but some of the veteran Human Race Masters rejoiced. Some even cheered and praised the Heavens for blessing the Human Race, acting as though the appearance of the illusory phantom was a great blessing to them.
The news quickly spread to the Supreme Headquarters as soon as the illusory phantom manifested in the void, where Mi Jing Lun quickly realized what was happening and also cheered, [What opportune timing!]
For this phenomenon to appear at this point in time… The delicate balance between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan that had been carefully maintained for the past few thousand years was surely about to be broken! The tidal wave, which was destined to sweep across the Universe after accumulating for so many years, was about to come!
Numerous orders were quickly issued and relayed to various parties. Like a sophisticated Grand Array, the entire Human Race began to operate with the Supreme Headquarters as the Core. At the same time, Mi Jing Lun also ordered many different types of ancient books that had been collected by the Cave Heavens and Paradises over the years to be brought to the Supreme Headquarters.
A stream of light soon arrived from the outside and landed in front of the Supreme Headquarters. When the soldiers on duty saw the appearance of the visitor, they immediately allowed him to enter without hindrance.
Mi Jing Lun, who was reviewing the information at the time, looked up with a slight glint of sadness in his eyes. Although he knew that it was unlikely for Xiang Shan to advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he couldn’t help feeling disappointed when the outcome was blatantly displayed in front of him.
Xiang Shan walked straight to the table and glanced at the information in front of Mi Jing Lun; then, he raised his brow and asked, “Is it really the Universe Furnace?”
Mi Jing Lun nodded, “I’m sure you’ve sensed it too.”
Xiang Shan agreed, “I was in retreat when my mind became restless and the turbulence struck my Small Universe. It was rumoured that those at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm would experience a resonance when the Universe Furnace appeared. I guess the rumours were true.” After a pause, he added, “Where is it located?”
Mi Jing Lun massaged his temples with a troubled look, “There seems to be more than one location!”
“What do you mean?” Xiang Shan was stunned.
“Take a look for yourself.” Mi Jing Lun pushed a jade slip towards Xiang Shan.
Xiang Shan took the jade slip and checked the contents; then, he exclaimed in astonishment, “How can this be?”
According to the intelligence received by the Supreme Headquarters, the illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace had appeared on a number of the Great Territory Battlefields. Moreover, these were only the ones detected by the Human Race. There was no saying whether anything had slipped through their investigations.
Mi Jing Lun elaborated, “According to the records in the ancient books of the Cave Heavens and Paradises, it is possible for there to be more than one location when the Universe Furnace emerges. At most there were three locations in the past. There has never been a precedent where there were more than 10 locations at once.”
Xiang Shan reminisced with a fond look on his face, “A long time ago, I heard my Honoured Master talking about the Universe Furnace. The Ancestors speculated that the Universe Furnace always remained hidden beyond our Universe. Nobody has ever seen the true Universe Furnace before. On the contrary, what we see is nothing more than its projection. Although the projection is illusory, it is closely related to the body of the Universe Furnace. More than that, the projection is the entrance to the Universe Furnace.”
Mi Jing Lun nodded, “I’ve heard the Seniors discussing this idea in the past. Moreover, the number of projections seems to be related to the number of deaths and the strength of the deceased in a particular area. According to the records, more projections will appear when more strong beings lose their lives.”
Xiang Shan immediately understood, “Is that why there are projections on every Great Territory Battlefield?”
“That’s probably the reason. Both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan suffered countless casualties on the Great Territory Battlefields, and many of these casualties were Open Heaven Realm Masters. Therefore, it is not surprising for the projection of the Universe Furnace to appear on these Great Territory Battlefields.”
“By that logic, projections should also appear in the Barren Territory and at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.”
Countless beings had died in the wars at both the Barren Territory and the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. In particular, the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors and Royal Lords had practically annihilated each other in these two locations. There was a high possibility that the projections of the Universe Furnace had appeared at those two locations.
The location of the projection was the location of the entrance to the Universe Furnace. In other words, there were more options for a person if they wanted to seize the opportunity to enter the Universe Furnace; however, this was not good news for the Human Race.
If there were only one or two entrances, then the Human Race would definitely go all out to seize control of these locations and prevent the Black Ink Clan from entering. Unfortunately, it was a fool’s dream to hope that they could control all the entrances under these circumstances. The Black Ink Clan would also have the opportunity to enter the Universe Furnace, which would be extremely disadvantageous to the Human Race. The current situation would inevitably lead to a bloody battle that would in turn destroy the current balance.
“When was the last time the Universe Furnace appeared?” Xiang Shan asked.
Mi Jing Lun replied, “Around 200,000 years ago.”
Xiang Shan frowned. Too much time had passed since the last appearance. Even if the ancient books of the Cave Heavens and Paradises contained any records, they would likely not be complete or comprehensive.
Mi Jing Lun was currently reading through the ancient books to find some useful information, so the Human Race Masters were not completely blind when they entered the Universe Furnace.
“Every time the Universe Furnace appeared in the past, the projections mostly only appeared on the Black Ink Battlefield. The projections would occasionally appear in the 3,000 Worlds, but those occurrences were rare; therefore, the records left behind in the 3,000 Worlds do not contain much useful information.”
The number and location of projected entrances to the Universe Furnace was closely linked to the number of powerful living beings who died nearby, that much was certain. There had always been various conflicts in the 3,000 Worlds, but large-scale wars were basically non-existent, so the projections rarely appeared in the 3,000 Worlds. The projections generally only appeared on the Black Ink Battlefield.
Among the Old Ancestors, a number had advanced to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm thanks to the opportunities they obtained in the Universe Furnace. For that reason, the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors should have some knowledge regarding the Universe Furnace. Unfortunately, most of the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors lost their lives during the battles at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and the Barren Territory. Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing were the only two Ninth-Order Old Ancestors who survived.
The problem was that these two were considered rising stars among the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors. Only a few thousand years had passed since Wu Qing advanced to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, and though Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao advanced earlier, it was still just 20,000 years ago. There was a high possibility that she had not experienced the last appearance of the Universe Furnace.
At present, it was an extravagant hope to acquire information regarding the Universe Furnace from the Masters of the previous generation. Even so, Mi Jing Lun immediately sent men to Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing to inquire about the Universe Furnace. After all, these two were still older than the rest and they might have some useful information.
“What about the Divine Spirits?” Xiang Shan asked, “Some of them have probably lived long enough. Shouldn’t they know something about the Universe Furnace?”
Mi Jing Lun replied, “I have sent messengers to the Elders of the Dragon and Phoenix Clans, but we shouldn’t expect too much. The Divine Spirits generally remained at the No-Return Pass without leaving their position. Although they have lived long enough, they did not participate even when the Universe Furnace appeared in the past; hence, they probably do not know much about the Universe Furnace either.” He continued after a pause, “I also sent messages to some of the Elders from the Cave Heavens and Paradises. We’ll see what information we can obtain.”
The Elders from the Cave Heavens and Paradises might not be very strong, but they had lived for a long time. Even if they did not experience the Universe Furnace in person, they might have heard something from their Seniors.
It was quite a sad situation. Although the Universe Furnace was undoubtedly the biggest opportunity for the Human Race, the interval between each appearance was so long that the Human Race did not know much about it. At this moment, their most urgent task was to collect as much information as possible.
“Will there be enough time?” Xiang Shan asked slightly anxiously.
“There is nothing to worry about on that front,” Mi Jing Lun reassured, “According to the records in these ancient books, the appearance of the Universe Furnace’s projections is just the beginning. The entrance will only open once the projections have solidified completely. This process can take a long time, ranging from a few months to five years.”
Xiang Shan nodded lightly, then he suddenly looked at Mi Jing Lun with an apologetic expression, “I want to enter the Universe Furnace!”
Although he had the qualifications to advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he had determined that he could not do so with his own strength alone after cultivating in retreat for the past 1,000 or so years. The damage he suffered when his cultivation regressed might have seemed harmless at the time, but apparently, there had been a profound impact on his foundation after all.
Mi Jing Lun smiled and said, “Brother Xiang, of course, you should be able to enter the Universe Furnace. There’s no need to feel awkward; after all, your advancement to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm will bring greater pressure to the Black Ink Clan.”
Aside from Xiang Shan, the only other person in the Human Race who qualified to coordinate the overall situation and strategize the logistics was Mi Jing Lun. During the years that Xiang Shan had been cultivating in retreat, Mi Jing Lun had basically taken charge of the entire Supreme Headquarters and managed the whole Human Race in an orderly manner.
The Universe Furnace was a great opportunity for both of them, but unfortunately, both of them couldn’t enter it together. One of them had to stay behind to lead the Human Race; otherwise, chaos would surely erupt. In other words, if Xiang Shan were to enter the Universe Furnace, then Mi Jing Lun had to stay behind. That was one of the reasons why Xiang Shan felt slightly guilty.
However, Xiang Shan was not acting solely out of personal interests. It was just as Mi Jing Lun said. Although they were both at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, Xiang Shan was superior in terms of combat power; hence, it would be better for him to enter the Universe Furnace in search of an opportunity to break through.
In this regard, Mi Jing Lun was very understanding. Even if Xiang Shan had not said anything, he would have made the same arrangements.