The Sacred Tree was the foundation of Human Imperial City, and it was the blessing of the Sacred Tree that allowed Human Imperial City to stand tall in this realm for a hundred thousand years. It could be said that for the Imperial Family, nothing was more important than the Sacred Tree.
So when the Fourth Imperial Prince realized that Yang Kai was heading towards the Sacred Tree, how could he not panic? Even though he might not have any idea about what Yang Kai was going to do, it would obviously not be good for the Imperial Family.
The news was immediately passed on to the Human Sovereign, who had been paying attention to the things here from the start. The Human Sovereign’s face turned pale in panic when he heard this and hurried towards the Sacred Tree as well. Naturally, many members of the Imperial Family and Masters from the Imperial Palace accompanied him.
Huffing and puffing, over a hundred figures arrived at the location of the Sacred Tree a moment later.
But they all stopped about three hundred metres away from the Sacred Tree.
Because a stone giant covered in sharp barbs and surrounded by evil fire was blocking the road ahead. The stone giant had sharp spikes and was over a dozen metres tall, making it look extremely ferocious. An overwhelmingly sinister aura was radiating from it, making the crowd of Emperor Realm Masters and the Imperial Family members tremble in fright at the mere sight of it.
Naturally, the Human Sovereign had realized that the stone giant was not to be provoked lightly, but what he couldn’t figure out was where this giant had popped out from? He hadn’t even seen a sign of it before now.
But at this moment, this giant was blocking the road ahead, so obviously it was Yang Kai’s helper, and judging by its expression, it was apparent that it had its own sentience.
The Human Sovereign pondered for a moment, but he didn’t immediately attack the Embodiment. Instead, he raised his head and shouted at the nearby Yang Kai, “Senior Yang, it’s quite late, why have you come to this Restricted Area instead of resting?”
Yang Kai, standing under the Sacred Tree, had his hand on its somewhat feeble-looking trunk and remained completely still, as if he hadn’t heard the Human Sovereign’s shout. Before everyone’s eyes, he seemed to be having some kind of resonance with the Sacred Tree as the Sacred Tree was flickering with a green glow. Even Yang Kai’s halo was brightening and dimming with the flickers.
A mysterious aura was spreading into the surroundings at that moment.
The Human Sovereign’s face sank seeing this and slightly raised his hand before swinging it forward.
Zhou Yu Chuan immediately rushed out of the crowd, his Emperor Qi surging as he sent out a flurry of punches at the Embodiment, blotting out the entire sky, causing the space to quiver and shake.
Deafening rumbles immediately followed, but when Zhou Yu Chuan stopped punching, his pupils shrank as he saw the stone giant before him remain completely unharmed. Rather, it smiled at him as a man-sized palm came swinging at him, smacking at him like it was swatting a fly.
Zhou Yu Chuan’s face turned pale as he crossed his arms in order to defend himself from the oncoming palm.
*Hong…*
A deafening explosion rang out as the sound of bones breaking immediately followed. Zhou Yu Chuan’s figure was sent flying as he spurted blood through his nose and mouth, his aura plummeting from the single terrifying blow.
Everyone immediately turned pale.
In terms of cultivation alone, Zhou Yu Chuan was definitely ranked among the top three in the entire Human Imperial City, with the other two top Masters only being his equal. In essence, Zhou Yu Chuan could be regarded as the top Master of Human Imperial City.
But such a Master couldn’t even take a single palm from this stone giant? How strong was this monstrosity? In fact, what was it?
The Human Sovereign’s countenance changed again as he waved his hand, ordering a dozen or so Emperor Realm Masters to go up at once this time. Apparently, he wanted them to deal with the Embodiment as a group; after all, if even Zhou Yu Chuan wasn’t an opponent of this stone giant, then no one in the entire Human Imperial City would be able to defeat it one on one. If they wanted to take it down, they could only rely on the superior numbers.
But before they could act, Yang Kai, who had been standing with his hand on the Sacred Tree’s trunk, suddenly moved. He heaved a soft sigh before he withdrew his hand and indifferently asserted, “Human Sovereign, I have no intention of going to war with this city, I only want to take you out of this world, that’s all.”
Human Sovereign answered in a heavy voice, “This Sovereign appreciates Senior Yang’s kind intentions, but this Sovereign has no intention of leaving this world. I am afraid I’m unworthy of Senior Yang’s benevolence.”
Yang Kai turned around and declared, looking at him with a smile on his face, “If you didn’t want to leave this world before, this King would not have cared; after all, forcefully picked melons aren’t sweet. It’s your business if you wish to remain here, and it has nothing to do with me, but now… if you want to leave, you may leave, and if you do not want to leave, you still must leave, you have no choice in this matter!”
The Human Sovereign immediately turned angry, “Senior Yang just said that forcefully picked melons aren’t sweet; in that case, why insist!?”
Yang Kai smiled, “Forcefully picked melons may not be sweet, but they can still quench one’s thirst!”
[What nonsense is he spouting?] The Imperial Family members were flabbergasted.
“Senior Yang, what exactly do you mean?” The Human Sovereign furrowed his brow. Yang Kai’s strength was extraordinary, as was the strength of the stone giant, but since these two were so powerful, why did he need the people of Human Imperial City? What was his goal in all this? If it was about Saint Techniques, Yang Kai possessed them already and was in no way inferior to the Imperial Family with them. So, the Human Sovereign couldn’t understand why Yang Kai was doing this.
“You will naturally come to understand when we arrive in the outside world.” Yang Kai indifferently declared.
The Human Sovereign shook his head, “It seems Senior Yang insists on forcing us to leave this world without even telling us the reason. Please forgive this Sovereign for declining your offer. If Senior Yang wants to twist our arms, my Imperial Family isn’t afraid to resist. At worst, both of us will suffer mutual destruction.”
Yang Kai smiled disdainfully, “Mutual destruction? You don’t have the ability. If this King wishes for you to do something, you cannot resist.”
Human Sovereign snapped, “Ants may spend their lives eking out their meagre existence, but that does not mean they will just sit back and wait for death when it comes for them.”
Yang Kai agreed, nodding, “Quite so, which is why this King is willing to give you a chance.”
The Human Sovereign frowned and asked, “I would like to hear the details.”
“This King will make a bet with you. If this King can convince the Sacred Tree to leave with me, then I ask Human Sovereign to order the residents of the city to evacuate from this world.”
As soon as he stated this, the crowd of a hundred or so people gawked.
The Human Sovereign, on the other hand, had a drastic change in his expression, “So your goal is the Sacred Tree!”
He had been thinking about what Yang Kai had been plotting this whole time, and now it became apparent that he was aiming for the Sacred Tree! [Yes, if there is anything in Human Imperial City that can make someone like Yang Kai interested, it would only be the Sacred Tree.]
However, if they allowed him to take away the Sacred Tree, Human Imperial City would completely lose its blessing, at which point would there even be a choice to remain in this world? Anyone who stayed, would soon be corrupted by Demon Qi and degenerate into a Demon!
As these thoughts crossed his mind, the Human Sovereign instantly exploded in rage, “In your dreams! Today, we will fight you to the death! You can forget about taking the Sacred Tree with you!”
Yang Kai indifferently looked at him, “Human Sovereign, I’m afraid you misunderstand me. When I said make the Sacred Tree leave with me, I didn’t mean using force, but to let it make a choice itself. If it refuses, I will never force it.”
“Let it make its own choice!?” The Human Sovereign was stunned. [How can the Sacred Tree make a choice? Although the Sacred Tree’s blessing has allowed Human Imperial City to stand tall all this time and has protected the Imperial Family from harm, it has never communicated with anyone. Although it’s certainly alive, it doesn’t have any sentience, so how is it going to make a choice for itself?]
Yang Kai’s words confounded him.
Whereas Yang Kai turned to look at the Sacred Tree, ignoring him, and solemnly stated, “Senior Qing, the Star Boundary is in danger. The Demon Race is invading once more. Senior, please lend us your assistance once again!”
Just as these words left his mouth, rumblings suddenly came from underground like a grand earthquake.
Sensing this, everyone started to look doubtful and uncertain. They looked around, trying to see where the source of these abnormal movements was.
*Hong long long…*
The ground split apart as roots suddenly shot out from the ground, one after another, quickly gathering toward the location of the Sacred Tree.
“Ah, the Sacred Tree…” Fu Yu let out a frightened cry, covering her red lips with her hand, her pretty eyes filled with shock.
The others were equally dumbfounded.
Much to their surprise, the Sacred Tree was moving! The Sacred Tree, which had stood at the centre of Human Imperial City for over a hundred thousand years, had moved because of the words of an outsider!
One by one, the roots converged towards the Sacred Tree as a green halo shone brilliantly. At that moment, the entire Human Imperial City basked in a rich green glow. The crown of the giant tree swayed left and right for a time, causing its leaves to rustle, and in just half the time it would take to boil a cup of tea, the Sacred Tree actually stood uprooted. Its roots had converged under its trunk, forming something akin to legs. It then walked forward, step by step, quickly arriving before where Yang Kai stood.
“Many thanks for your help, Senior!” Yang Kai bowed.
In this world, he was probably the only one who knew the origin of the Sacred Tree in Human Imperial City. Even the Imperial Family of Human Imperial City were probably not clear about it.
The last time Yang Kai came here, he suspected that the Sacred Tree of Human Imperial City might be related to the Evergreen Divine Tree of the ancient era. Senior Qing was the patron saint of that era, and in the final battle, he sacrificed his own life in order to block the passage between the two worlds. It was a tragic scene that Yang Kai witnessed with his own eyes. The sight of Senior Qing’s righteousness was inspiring and worthy of respect.
Today’s Frozen Earth was very likely the battlefield where the Barbarian Race and Demon Race fought their final battle, but more than a hundred thousand years had passed since then, so Yang Kai couldn’t be certain if it was really the same place.
Perhaps Senior Qing didn’t perish back then, but instead left behind a trace of his existence, that grew up again in the Revolving World, sheltering the residents of Human Imperial City for a hundred thousand years!
The current Sacred Tree was like the continuation of Senior Qing’s will and life.
Senior Qing had been willing to sacrifice himself to seal the passage between the two worlds, so how could the Sacred Tree, who had inherited his will, allow the Demon Race to wreak havoc on the Star Boundary without intervening? Yang Kai had already informed this matter to the Sacred Tree first.
Facts proved that he was right. The Sacred Tree indeed made the choice he had expected.
“The Sacred Tree is sentient!” The Human Sovereign murmured in a daze.
The Imperial Family members and the Emperor Realm Masters were tongue-tied and dumbfounded.
“What do you say now?” Yang Kai looked at the Human Sovereign.
The Human Sovereign seemed to have grown over a hundred years older in a flash. Deep resentment and helplessness could be found in between his eyebrows; he resented Yang Kai for actually trying to take them out of this world. The Imperial Family didn’t want to leave. As Yang Kai had said before, they were the lords and masters here. Even if their cultivations weren’t the best, since they were the Imperial Family, they were the noblest existences in Human Imperial City, but what would the Imperial Family amount to after leaving this world?
What he was helpless about was the fact that the Sacred Tree had made its choice, and with that any choice they might have had, disappeared. Without the shelter of the Sacred Tree, the Imperial Family would no longer be the Imperial Family.
“You will destroy Human Imperial City!” The Human Sovereign glared at Yang Kai, grinding his teeth.
Yang Kai indifferently countered, “Human Sovereign, you’re wrong. I am not destroying Human Imperial City. There is no construction without destruction. This King is simply giving you a chance to be reborn.”
“Does Senior Yang insist on doing this?” The Human Sovereign sadly looked at him.
Yang Kai solemnly stated, “The arrow is already drawn, I have no choice but to fire!” After a pause, he continued, “But Human Sovereign need not be worried, even in the outside world, your Imperial Family will still be treated differently, you don’t need to worry about being pushed aside.” He came to the Revolving World this time mainly for the Imperial Family as all of them were already qualified Shamans, especially the Second Princess and Third Prince who were Shaman Kings. The Human Sovereign naturally was a Shaman King too, and a High-Rank Shaman King at that. With their help, the Star Boundary would have fewer casualties in the upcoming wars against the Demon Race.
So Yang Kai was determined to take the Imperial Family away from here from the start.
The Human Sovereign took a deep breath before sighing and asking, “This Sovereign knows that Senior Yang has the means to freely come and go from this world, but do you know how many people there are in my Human Imperial City?”
Yang Kai replied, “If the Human Sovereign is worried that I can’t take everyone away, then there is no need for concern. Let alone a single Human Imperial City, even if there were ten or a hundred of them, I could bring them all away.”
The Small Sealed World had swallowed several Cultivation Stars from Grand Desolation Star Field, so its territory expanded millions of times over and there were currently tens of billions of Humans living inside it. In comparison, the population of Human Imperial City was trifling.
The Human Sovereign, on the other hand, was greatly taken aback, “Does Senior Yang really have such a profound method?”
There were millions of people residing in Human Imperial City, so he really couldn’t think of what method Yang Kai would use to take so many away all at once and even felt that Yang Kai was simply talking nonsense.
Yang Kai earnestly stated, “Then, I request Human Sovereign to wait and see. Let’s say, if I miss a single person in Human Imperial City when we leave, Human Sovereign can fight it out with me and let the stone and jade burn together.”
(TL note: Stone and jade burn together = mutual destruction.)
After Yang Kai had said this, what could the Human Sovereign even say? He was hesitating only because of his unwillingness to leave this world, that’s all, but now that even the Sacred Tree had made a choice to leave, he had no room left to retreat. Without the Sacred Tree, there would be no Human Imperial City.
As such, he powerlessly asked, “When does Senior Yang plan to depart?”
Seeing him finally compromising, Yang Kai also heaved a sigh of relief. If it wasn’t necessary, he didn’t want to openly offend the Imperial Family; after all, he would have to rely on them outside, so it would be bad if their relationship was too hostile. However, he also knew that if this were the case, the Imperial Family wouldn’t have a good impression of him regardless.
But Yang Kai didn’t need to care too much about this as once they reached the outside world, the Great Emperors could be there to deter them. How would they be disobedient then?
“Naturally, the sooner the better. It would be best if Human Sovereign ordered the residents of the city to begin packing now.”
The Human Sovereign agreed, nodding, “Good, this Sovereign will pass on the order. After three days… we will leave this world with Senior Yang.”
“Many thanks, Human Sovereign!” Yang Kai cupped his fists.
The Human Sovereign then left with the members of the Imperial Family and the Imperial Guards, whereas Yang Kai stayed and communicated with the Sacred Tree for a while before leaving.
He didn’t take the Sacred Tree right away; after all, the residents of Human Imperial City had still not evacuated and required its shelter until they had departed.
Since the previous guest room had been destroyed, Zhou Yu Chuan personally arranged another room for Yang Kai and then left. Although he was injured by the Embodiment before, it wasn’t a big problem and he only needed to recuperate for a few days before he would be completely healed. Furthermore, because the Human Sovereign had agreed to Yang Kai’s proposal, Zhou Yu Chuan was feeling more energetic than before as he looked forward to seeing the outside world.
There were millions of people living in Human Imperial City, so it was impossible for them to immediately pack up and leave. The Human Sovereign needed to coordinate things, and the residents also needed time to gather their belongings. Three days was the bare minimum required.
Free and at leisure, Yang Kai entered the Small Sealed World first and set up a site to accommodate the new guests he would be hosting. After these people had entered the Small Sealed World, Yang Kai didn’t plan on letting them out for the time being; after all, it wasn’t a simple matter to help millions of people find new homes and settle, but the Small Sealed World was different. Yang Kai was in complete control of it and could do as he wished inside. It would be very easy to help them settle down in such a world.
With a flash of Yang Kai’s thoughts, the ground trembled and rose as a city suddenly appeared in the empty wilderness. At first glance, it resembled Human Imperial City greatly, but it also had some of Yang Kai’s own designs.
From time to time, Yang Kai would retreat out of the Small Sealed World and scan Human Imperial City with his Divine Sense, observing the structure and layout of Human Imperial City. Then, he would enter the Small Sealed World again to modify the new city.
In just two days, the new Human Imperial City was basically complete. The city was located on fertile ground and there were other cities nearby as well, which would ensure that the residents of Human Imperial City would not feel lonely after settling here.
One night, while he was constructing the new Human Imperial City, Yang Kai heard a knock at his door.
After checking things with his Divine Sense, a weird look appeared on Yang Kai’s face as he stopped doing what he was doing and called out, “Enter.”
The door was pushed open and a beautiful figure walked in, carrying a tray in her hand with some fragrant delicacies on it. The visitor turned around and closed the door before bowing to Yang Kai and greeting in a gentle voice, “Senior Yang.”
“Princess Yu!” Yang Kai looked at her with a profound gaze, “To what do I owe the pleasure of your company in the middle of night?”
The visitor was none other than the second daughter of the Human Sovereign. In the Imperial Family, her aptitude was outstanding. She was a Shaman King too, albeit a Low-Rank one, as well as a Second-Order Emperor, making her even stronger than the Third Imperial Prince.
Fu Yu seemed to be especially dressed up today. She looked brighter and more appealing than usual. Her light green one-piece completely highlighted her graceful figure, giving her an elegant charm. Her snow-white bosom was also peeking out of her dress a little, and her arms were completely exposed. From the scent wafting from her body, it was apparent she had just taken a shower, her hair still slightly damp, tantalizing the imagination.
Hearing his question, Fu Yu smiled as she approached, carrying the tray, squatted down, and placed it on the table before Yang Kai. While she uncovered the dishes on the tray and served them out one by one, she stated, “Senior, Yu’er noticed that you have not left your room for the past few days and decided to personally cook a meal and deliver it to you. I hope it suits Senior’s taste.”
When she was placing the dishes on the table, her body leaned forward slightly, allowing Yang Kai a peak into the depths of a great mountain valley.
Yang Kai suddenly didn’t know whether to laugh or cry…
[Are you planning to use soft tactics after the hard ones failed?]
He also knew that the Human Sovereign could no longer haggle with him on the matter of leaving this world, but perhaps, the Human Sovereign was still worried about whether he would be harshly treated outside, so he planned on using this method to win Yang Kai over. Otherwise, how could Princess Fu Yu do such a thing, especially considering the relationship between her and Yang Kai prior to this was akin to mortal enemies.
Thinking of this, Yang Kai praised with a smile, “Princess Yu is truly thoughtful, but it is a surprise to learn Princess Yu has such skills.”
Fu Yu looked at him and added as a smile bloomed on her lips, “I’m afraid it won’t suit Senior’s appetite.” While speaking, she raised a jug and filled Yang Kai’s glass before using an inviting gesture as she suggested, “Senior, please have a taste.”
Yang Kai picked up the chopsticks and took a bite of the food before he had a sip of the wine. Naturally, he wasn’t parsimonious in his praises, causing a big smile to appear on Fu Yu’s lips after hearing them. After the initial round, she continued pouring wine and serving the dishes diligently.
After three rounds of wine and five rounds of tasting, the atmosphere in the room became more relaxed and harmonious. When Fu Yu noticed that Yang Kai wasn’t putting on any airs and was actually quite easy to get along with, she boldly asked, “Senior, what is the outside world like? Yu’er has never been outside, so she is a little anxious.”
Yang Kai put down the chopsticks and replied, smiling, “What are you afraid of?”
Fu Yu pursed her lips as an innocent and naïve expression filled her face, “Everyone says that there are many fearsome people outside who will immediately resort to force if one does not agree with them. Yu’er’s cultivation is low and she does not know if she will be able to protect herself after going outside.”
Yang Kai broke into laughter as he explained, “There are indeed many fearsome people outside, and many times, people really do attack if someone doesn’t agree with them.”
Fu Yu’s beautiful face immediately turned pale, “The rumours are true!?”
Yang Kai continued, “But Princess Yu does not need to worry about such things. Your cultivation can still be considered among the upper-middle-class, so you will have enough strength to protect yourself.”
“Upper-middle-class… that’s not very high.” Fu Yu looked worried.
Yang Kai, glancing over and assured her, “Don’t worry, when your Imperial Family reaches the outside world, powerful Masters will accompany you and deal with any kind of threat; they won’t let anything happen to you.”
Fu Yu blinked her big and bright eyes as she asked, “Why?”
Yang Kai slowly shook his head, putting on an air of mystery. Fu Yu felt quite annoyed in her heart seeing this, but she couldn’t force him either, so she resorted to pouring more wine, as if she was just waiting for Yang Kai to get drunk so she could pry some useful information out of him.
But how could it be that easy to get Yang Kai drunk? In the end, he ate up all the side dishes and drank several jugs of potent wine without even a change in expression.
In desperation, Fu Yu could only propose, “It’s getting late, doesn’t Senior Yang want to take a… rest?” When she said this, she lowered her head as if she didn’t dare to directly look into Yang Kai’s eyes.
Yang Kai deeply gazed at her and seeing her becoming fidgety and ill at ease, he finally opened his mouth, “En, it is getting late, Princess Yu should return to her own room and have a rest.”
Fu Yu immediately got up, packed up the dishes, bowed and bid her farewell as if she had received a pardon, “Then Yu’er will take her leave.” She turned around and bolted out of the door.
“Princess Yu!” Yang Kai suddenly called her out.
Fu Yu’s tender figure trembled before she looked back, forcing a shadow of a smile onto her face, “What else can I do for, Senior?”
Yang Kai looked at her with a smile, “I dare not guarantee anything else, but there are countless young geniuses in the outside world. I believe Princess Yu can find one who will treat her well.”
Fu Yu was momentarily taken aback, but Yang Kai’s words had truly kindled her expectations. She responded back with a smile, “Many thanks for your kind words, Senior.” She then exited the room, closed the door, and left right away.
Not long after, outside the bedroom of the Human Sovereign, Fu Yu went to report the development of this trip. Hearing that Yang Kai had no intention of letting Fu Yu sleep with him, the Human Sovereign couldn’t help but sigh.
Naturally, he had asked Fu Yu to go over so late at night with such intentions. He knew nothing about the outside world, so now he could only rely on Yang Kai and naturally thought to tie him to their Imperial Family in some way.
If Fu Yu and Yang Kai had done the deed tonight, then he wouldn’t have to worry about Yang Kai not taking care of his Imperial Family later. Unfortunately, Yang Kai wasn’t tempted, making the Human Sovereign feel rather helpless.
“Imperial Father, I don’t think that Senior Yang is actually such a bad man. He might not have ill intentions for taking us outside.”
The Human Sovereign stated, “He did everything possible to take our Imperial Family out of this world, so he must need something from us, but this Sovereign currently can’t guess his thoughts. I expected you to inquire about one or two things from him, but in the end, we learned nothing.”
“Daughter is incompetent…” Fu Yu bit her cherry red lips.
“Forget it. If it is a blessing, it is not a curse, and if it is a curse, it can’t be avoided. When we have reached the outside, we will know exactly what he wants.” The Human Sovereign heaved a long sigh before he sent her away, waving his hand, “You can leave.”
Three days went by in a flash. In the main square of Human Imperial City, hundreds of thousands of people were gathering from every direction, bringing their families together with them.
At the head of the square, a pitch-black corridor was quietly hovering mid-air, like an invisible beast with its jaws wide open. No matter how many people walked in, it could devour them clean.
The entrance was naturally the entrance to the Sealed World Bead. It was simpler and more convenient for Yang Kai to make a visible entrance for others to walk into rather than him trying to move millions of people by himself into the Small Sealed World.
The Imperial Family members’ scrutinizing gazes kept lingering at the entrance. Obviously, they were trying to know what the Hell it was that could swallow so many people, but Yang Kai hadn’t given them an explanation, and they couldn’t ask him for one either.
Time ticked by, bit by bit.
It took an entire day and night for Yang Kai to move all the residents of Human Imperial City, sending them directly to the new Human Imperial City he had crafted inside the Sealed World Bead.
These few million people would thrive in the Small Sealed World and no longer have to be affected by the strange Principles of the Revolving World.
The Imperial Family and Emperor Realm Masters were also taken in, but Yang Kai had placed them in a separate place as they would still be needed in the Two Worlds Great War. The end of their journey was naturally not limited to the Small Sealed World.
In addition, Yang Kai had transplanted the Sacred Tree to the medicine garden, forming a triangle with the Immortal and Firmament Tree.
Everything was now set and the former city was devoid of a single figure. The Revolving World, which had remained unchanged for over a hundred thousand years, had now completely transformed because of the arrival of Yang Kai.
Yang Kai then rose into the air before flying towards the horizon. Naturally, he was heading towards Demon Fury City and the exit of this world.
After another day, Yang Kai arrived above Demon Fury City and looking down, he summoned the Abyssal Returner with the wave of his hand and let her loose.
Ah Wang’s eyes suddenly lit up as her little figure shot towards the city, leaving a long black streak of light behind her.
After a moment, Demon Fury City fell into chaos. Countless Demon Race members fled in all directions as they screamed in panic. On the other hand, the Abyssal Returner’s mouth opened wide and wherever she went, Demons disappeared; all of them were sucked into her stomach.
Worthy of being the nemesis of the Demon Race, even the strongest Demon Kings were no match for Ah Wang.
When Yang Kai came here last time, he was eager to find an exit and leave this world, so he didn’t bother to pay attention to the Demon Race in Demon Fury City, but this time, he wouldn’t show any mercy. The Demon Race had already invaded the Star Boundary, and if the Demons in this place somehow managed to escape from here and reach the Star Boundary, it was clear who would suffer.
The Abyssal Returner wreaked havoc in the city for a day, reducing the Demon population by a staggering eighty percent. Some fishes had slipped through the net, but Yang Kai couldn’t be bothered to hunt them all down, so he simply grabbed Ah Wang and flew towards the exit.
Just like last time, biting-cold winds that could freeze even the Soul flew from the entrance. Even Yang Kai couldn’t last long in this environment.
However, Ah Wang easily opened the way for Yang Kai, so he did not suffer even slightly.
The oncoming cold wind was completely swallowed up by Ah Wang and disappeared into her belly. Last time, Yang Kai, Zhu Qing, and the others were only able to leave this world with the help of Ah Wang.
After travelling upwind for some unknown period of time, Yang Kai felt Space Principles fluctuations coming from ahead.
After knowing that he had arrived at the exit, he picked up Ah Wang and leapt into the Void Crack without wasting another moment.
Swimming through the Void, Yang Kai retraced his old steps and once again felt the aura of the two Great Worlds, the Star Boundary and the Demon Realm. In other words, the Revolving World was connected to both Great Worlds.
It was just like the Small World where he found Lan Xun and the others.
Suddenly, he remembered that the last time he left the Revolving World, he travelled directly to the Western Territory, and the now-shattered Small World was also located in the Western Territory. Could there be some mysterious relationship between the two?
If that was the case, perhaps the Star Boundary would have to keep watch on the Frozen Earth too; lest the Demon Race invade the Northern Territory though there.
Following the Star Boundary’s aura all the way, Yang Kai tore open the weakened World Barrier and saw a familiar light ahead.
But what he saw next made Yang Kai tightly furrow his brow.
The surroundings were completely bleak and desolate. If it was just that, it would have been all fine and good. The Western Territory was a bit more barren and desolate than the other territories, but what Yang Kai found odd was the fact that the surroundings were actually filled with Demon Qi. This place had already been reduced to a Demon land.
Not far away, there was a team of Demons patrolling the region, the leader of which was a Demon Great General.
The sudden appearance of Yang Kai had undoubtedly alarmed this group and the Demons immediately turned their attention to Yang Kai’s location. The Demon Great General, the team leader, grinned at Yang Kai as his figure surged with a bloody glow as he flew over in a flash.
A nauseating blood aura blew against Yang Kai’s face, one that seemed to be able to affect one’s mental state.
Blood Demon Clan!
This was a common method used by the Blood Demons against their enemies and was usually quite effective. Even if the two sides had equal strength, a Blood Demon’s opponent who was contaminated by this aura would have their vitality disturbed, making it hard for them to exert their full power in combat.
Yang Kai, however, just raised his brow and slowly stretched his hand forward before clasping the air.
The Blood Demon’s fleeting figure suddenly appeared right before Yang Kai, his eyes bulging wide as horror filled his face. The Blood Demon struggled hard, but having been pinched by Yang Kai by his neck, he naturally couldn’t free himself.
A team of Demon soldiers following the Blood Demon Great General abruptly halted their footsteps. Since even the Demon Great General who led them was easily captured by this Human, how could these common soldiers be his opponent? Demons may be brutal and fearless, but they weren’t fools. Every living being instinctively sought fortune and avoided misfortune, so this team of Demons naturally made the wisest choice they could in this situation.
Yang Kai didn’t make any small talk either as he simply exerted a bit of strength, causing the captured Blood Demon to explode into a blood mist. Yang Kai had his entire body protected by Emperor Qi, so not a drop of blood touched him.
When the team of Demons saw this and immediately turned around and fled, not hesitating for even a moment.
Yang Kai coldly snorted as he smacked down a palm, causing a giant palm print to descend from the sky and flatten the fleeing Demons into paste.
Such a group was really nothing in the eyes of the current Yang Kai and he was capable of destroying them at his leisure, but Yang Kai found the current situation a little off.
Instead of using a Space Beacon to immediately rendezvous with his allies, Yang Kai rose into the air and began flying east. He wanted to see what changes had taken place in the Western Territory with his own eyes.
It had only been a short while since he left, a month or two at most, with the majority of his time spent searching for the entrance to the Revolving World, otherwise, he would have returned sooner.
A month or two should have been a very short period of time, but the Star Boundary’s situation had changed far too much. After all, the seven Great Emperors had already stepped in, which should have been enough to stabilize the situation.
The farther he flew, though, the uglier Yang Kai’s expression became. Everywhere he passed by, it was nothing but Demon land, making him feel like he hadn’t returned home to the Star Boundary but had instead dived into the Demon Realm.
How big was the Demon land now? Although the Demon land had covered a vast area before, spanning a couple hundred thousand kilometres, that was all. But now, it seemed far greater in scope.
[Could it be that the Great Emperors weren’t able to prevent the situation from worsening?]
The more he investigated, the more frightened Yang Kai became. The Demon land now spanned over a vast territory, with all the cities and villages he came across having become a paradise for the Demon Race. In some places, the Demon Qi was soaring straight to the sky, making it visible to the naked eye, indicating the presence of many powerful Demons.
After half a day, another city appeared before Yang Kai, but after taking a closer look at it, he finally heaved a sigh of relief. The city wasn’t corrupted by the Demon Qi at all and remained safe and sound. If not for this, Yang Kai would have really thought that he had entered the Demon Realm.
But soon, Yang Kai noticed something else.
Demon Qi was concentrated about a hundred kilometres away from the city. An army of the Demons had clearly set up camp there, one that was densely packed with more Demons than could be quickly counted. With a sweep of his Divine Sense, Yang Kai estimated that there were a few hundred thousand enemy troops now laying siege to the city.
Even if he hadn’t entered the city yet, Yang Kai could feel the panic of the residents already.
Slightly furrowing his brow, he flew straight towards the city.
After a while, Yang Kai arrived at the border of this unfamiliar city and swept a glance across its main gate where he saw two words carved in large characters, ‘Tiger Roar’.
This may be the name of the city. But at this moment, Tiger Roar City was in a state of full alert.
The city walls were patrolled by numerous cultivators and its City Defending Barrier was activated.
Seeing Yang Kai’s figure, the patrollers took a defensive stance, as if they were about to face a terrible foe, but after noticing no trace of Demon Qi radiating from Yang Kai, they couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief and shout, “Who goes there, identify yourself!”
“Yang Kai of the Northern Territory’s High Heaven Palace!” Yang Kai answered back aloud.
Yang Kai was somewhat famous in the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Territories, especially in the South and North as it was almost to the point where everyone had heard of him, but in the Western Territory, not many people knew his name. The cultivator who was shouting was obviously from the Western Territory, so he had no idea who the hell Yang Kai was. However, these days, many cultivators from other Territories had come to the Western Territory to fight the invading Demon Race alongside the natives, and High Heaven Palace had also made great contributions and earned a little fame for itself, to the extent that the shouting cultivator had heard of it as well.
So when Yang Kai reported himself like this, the man didn’t dare to take him lightly. He replied, cupping his hands, “Sir, please give me a moment, we need to confirm your identity.”
Yang Kai nodded in acknowledgement, quietly waiting as he began investigating the Demon Race army a hundred kilometres away.
Within thirty breaths, the man who had previously shouted returned to the city wall and exclaimed, “Open the Array!”
Immediately, a streak of light shot out from an Array Jade held by someone as a gap in the defensive Array of the city appeared, through which Yang Kai promptly entered.
Someone then approached Yang Kai and greeted him, cupped his fists, and bowed, “Greetings, Senior Yang.”
Yang Kai nodded in return.
The man continued, “I request Senior Yang quickly visit the City Lord’s Mansion. The other Seniors are respectfully awaiting your presence to discuss some important affairs.”
Yang Kai asked, furrowing his brow, “Who?”
The man slightly smiled, “This lowly one dares not utter the Seniors’ names, lest I somehow offend them. Senior Yang will know when he arrives.”
Hearing this, Yang Kai didn’t press the issue. In any case, he would understand soon enough, and under the lead of another person, he made his way to the City Lord’s Mansion.
The City Lord’s Mansion was located at the very centre of Tiger Roar City. This city was smaller than Human Imperial City with a permanent population of roughly 200,000 to 300,000.
Yang Kai flew along with the cultivator leading the way, but even before he could reach the City Lord’s Mansion, he felt a few familiar auras there and suddenly understood as a smile appeared on his face.
After entering the City Lord’s Mansion, he unsurprisingly saw several familiar faces standing there.
Li Jiao was the first to welcome him, cupping his fists and greeting, “Brother Yang!”
Gao Xue Ting also lightly nodded to him while Chi Gui pursed his lips into a grin, “Since Brother Yang is here, we can then sit back and relax. We will finally get a good night’s sleep tonight.”
Surprisingly, Emperor Realm Masters from each of the three other territories of the Star Boundary were gathered in this small Tiger Roar City. Apart from these three though, there were another three Emperors present, one in the Second Order while the other two were First Order, but Yang Kai didn’t recognize any of them. Judging by their clothes though, these three should be cultivators of the Western Territory, perhaps the original Masters from Tiger Roar City.
Yang Kai nodded with a smile, greeting his three friends one by one before he turned his attention to the three unfamiliar Emperors, asking, “These are…”
Li Jiao hurriedly pointed to the Second-Order Emperor Realm Master and introduced him, “This is the City Lord of Tiger Roar City, Lin Tong.” Then he pointed to the other two and introduced them, “These are the Vice City Lords of Tiger Roar City, Wu Zi Jin and Ma Yin.”
Then he introduced him to the other three, “This is High Heaven Palace’s Palace Master, Yang Kai, the one this Li has mentioned from time to time.”
The trio’s faces immediately turned respectful as they cupped their fists, “Greetings, Palace Master Yang.”
In the world of the Martial Dao, strength mattered more than anything else. Among everyone present in Tiger Roar City, these three weren’t even the strongest, as that title belonged to Li Jiao, a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master, yet Li Jiao was actually acting extremely polite and respectful towards Yang Kai, so how could they dare be neglectful? Not to mention, they had heard Li Jiao praising Yang Kai not just once over the past month. What’s more, it was a fact that the Demon Race Army was besieging Tiger Roar City, so another Emperor Realm Master increased their chances of protecting themselves.
Of these three, City Lord Lin Tong and Vice City Lord Wu Zi Jin were male, while the other Vice City Lord, Ma Yin was female. She had all the characteristic features of a Western Territory cultivator; a tall nose, big eyes, a tall stature, and long hair tied in a ponytail, which coupled with her martial attire, emphasized her waist and hips. Along with her exotic fashion and the Emperor Realm cultivation, she easily evoked a man’s desire to conquer her.
Yang Kai cupped his fists and greeted the trio before turning to Li Jiao and asking, “Why are you here?”
Li Jiao heaved a sigh after hearing this and muttered, “It’s a long story.”
“What happened?” Yang Kai furrowed his brow, “As I was making my way here, I saw that the Demon land had expanded greatly. Could it be that the Great Emperors failed to contain the situation? What’s the state of the Western Territory now?”
Gao Xue Ting replied, “About half of the Western Territory has been occupied while the Demon Race continued to encroach the remaining half.”
Yang Kai was greatly taken aback and asked in shock, “How is that possible?”
Li Jiao explained, “The Great Emperors have withdrawn, and the Demon Race has been aggressively attacking. The enemy had planned everything out long in advance and made ample preparations, so we weren’t their opponent. We could only put up a resistance as we withdrew our forces.”
Yang Kai was shocked, “Why did the Great Emperors remove themselves?”
Li Jiao replied, shaking his head, “I have no idea either, but I heard that the Great Emperors came to some kind of agreement with the Demon Saints of the Demon Realm that neither side would take any action. Only the Masters below the Great Emperors and Demon Saints would fight, so in this war of two worlds, I’m afraid the Great Emperors will not be able to help us anymore.”
Yang Kai tightly furrowed his brow.
Gao Xue Ting added, “The Great Emperors were forced to do so. If they were to really fight the Demon Saints, the situation would have only gotten worse. Now that the strongest forces of both sides are in check, it is the best possible situation.” Although her cultivation wasn’t as high as Li Jiao’s, she seemed to know more about the situation than he did.
The Great Emperors and the Demon Saints were Masters on the same level, and if they really fought, the fallout alone would immensely damage the Star Boundary. Perhaps the aftermath of their battle would cause countless casualties on both sides.
Besides, if the Demon Saints really decided to run to the depths of the Star Boundary and commit all kinds of outrage, the Great Emperors might not be able to easily stop them.
Now that both sides had come to an agreement that they wouldn’t make a move, it was indeed the best possible scenario, because this was beneficial to the Star Boundary.
After thinking about this, Yang Kai’s expression eased a little and he voiced his thoughts in a grim voice, “It’s not difficult to understand that the Great Emperors made such an agreement, but why would the Demon Saints agree?”
Gao Xue Ting explained, “The Demon Saints aren’t sure that they will be able to defeat the Great Emperors. What’s more, they have already regarded the Star Boundary as their own territory, so they don’t want to wreck it.”
“Greedy bastards!” Yang Kai coldly snorted, pausing for a moment before asking, “So to say, we can only rely on ourselves now?”
“That’s right.” Gao Xue Ting nodded, “Furthermore, because a large part of the Western Territory has already been occupied, the front line has been infinitely stretched, scattering the reinforcements from the three territories far and wide. We were dispatched here to oversee things.”
Yang Kai slowly understood. Previously, he was still wondering why the three of them were here, but now it became apparent that they were assigned to this position. Since the front line was stretched, reinforcements from the three territories naturally had to be split to deal with them. Although gathering everyone at one place would boost their strength, they would be unable to contain the movements of the Demon Race.
After thinking for a while, Yang Kai asked, “When I arrived here, I saw a Demon Race Army stationed a hundred kilometres away. There were at least 300,000 to 400,000 of them. Can Tiger Roar City defend itself?”
Li Jiao replied with a bitter smile, “Relying on the might of the Defense Array, and if we gather the strength of the entire city and the reinforcements brought by the three of us, we have a fifty-fifty chance.”
It wasn’t that Li Jiao was trying to reduce morale and lower his own prestige, rather it was the size of the Demon Race Army was just too big. Tiger Roar City had a population of a few hundred thousand men and women, that’s all, and not everyone could fight against the Demon Race Army. A large part of the populace had no combat power at all so they weren’t even qualified to be fodder.
“How many people can fight here?” Yang Kai asked.
“At the very most, 50,000 can fight.”
50,000 vs 300,000-400,000, it was indeed a massive gap. Although Yang Kai could set up a Space Array, he might be unable to mobilize reinforcements from other places in this situation. If Tiger Roar City was facing this kind of predicament, other places would surely be facing similar crises.
“How many Emperor Realm Masters do we have?” Yang Kai asked again.
Li Jiao replied, “Apart from us, there are four others in the city.”
Yang Kai nodded in acknowledgement. In other words, there were a total of eleven Emperors in the city, so there shouldn’t be that much difference in terms of Masters between the two sides. It might look that the Demon Race had 300,000-400,000 men on their side, but the number of Demon Kings should not be that many. It might not be impossible to hold the line.
In addition, although Yang Kai seemed alone, he in fact had the Masters of Human Imperial City in the Small Sealed World with him.
Right then, Vice City Lord Wu Zi Jin suddenly suggested, “Everyone, Tiger Roar City might not be able to hold on, should we not make other plans in advance?”
Everyone focused their gazes on him, while Yang Kai asked, “Brother Wu, what wonderful plan do you have in mind?”
Wu Zi Jin calmly smiled and explained, “I’m not worthy of such honour. It’s just that there are many on the Demon Race side, while Tiger Roar has fewer on its side. If the city is really breached, this Wu fears that all its citizens will be left with no way to survive. This Wu suggests we find a way for them to leave before the fight, lest they be slaughtered by the Demon Race.”
Li Jiao rebuked, frowning, “Brother Wu, we haven’t even fought yet, and the Demon Race Army is still a hundred kilometres away, how can you assume that we will certainly lose? Previously, our odds were just 50-50, but now that Brother Yang has arrived, our odds of winning are as high as 80-20. Not to mention a few hundred thousand, even if there were a million on the Demon Race side, it would not change anything.”
Li Jiao was angered slightly now. He and the others had come all the way from the other three territories to support the Western Territory, to ease the situation here and halt the Demon Race’s advance. The reinforcements side still hadn’t said anything, but Wu Zi Jin, the Vice City Lord of Tiger Roar City was acting timid before the battle, which naturally annoyed Li Jiao.
If they really followed Wu Zi Yin’s plans, then their defence would definitely be thrown into turmoil. At that time, it would be really troublesome to decide who would remain and who would evacuate. Before the Demon Race even attacked, their side would be bogged down with infighting.
Wu Zi Jin hurriedly corrected, “Senior Li, please calm your anger. This Wu was just speaking thoughtlessly. If Senior Li believes it is inappropriate, please treat this Wu’s words as a joke.”
Li Jiao stated with a cold snort, “It’s better to avoid making this kind of joke.”
Wu Zi Jin looked embarrassed but didn’t say anything anymore.
On the other hand, Ma Yin glanced at Yang Kai with her beautiful sparkling eyes a few times, not having expected Li Jiao to hold Yang Kai in such high esteem! The odds that were 50-50 at best in the beginning had turned into 80-20, and just because of the arrival of a single man. Was that really possible?
Seeing that the atmosphere wasn’t right, City Lord Lin Tong hurriedly stood up and intervened, “While the Demon Race has still not attacked, this Old Master thinks that it’s better to monitor their movements for the time being. If they really move, the sooner we know the more time we will have to mobilize our forces.”
Li Jiao agreed, nodding, “City Lord Lin is right.”
Gao Xue Ting proposed, looking at Yang Kai, “It would be even better if we could bring in some reinforcements. With our current strength, it will still be a little difficult to fight off the Demon Race.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Leave that to me.”
Even if Gao Xue Ting hadn’t proposed this, Yang Kai had also intended to give it a try. It would be best if they could get some reinforcements, but if that wasn’t possible, there was nothing he could do. Furthermore, the Shamans he had brought back had to be assigned as well. Since he had brought them back after so much effort, it was only natural to put them to use right away. There were twenty to thirty members of the Imperial Family, and five of them were Shaman Kings. There was no need to assign all of them in Tiger Roar City as just Yang Kai alone would be enough for now.
After forging another Space Beacon and handing it to Gao Xue Ting, Yang Kai exhorted, “If there is any movement on the Demon Race’s side, let me know as soon as possible.”
“Good.” Gao Xue Ting earnestly nodded as she tied the Space Beacon to her wrist.
The next moment, Yang Kai’s figure flickered and disappeared out of everyone’s sight.
Lin Tong and the others were flabbergasted at the sight of his astonishing methods…
About over a hundred thousand kilometres away, Yang Kai suddenly appeared outside another city, but before he could regain his senses, a wave of fearsome power was already sweeping towards him, immediately causing him to have the feeling of being a duckweed caught in a storm, like he had lost control over his own body.
Yang Kai was stunned. Although this blast of energy wasn’t as strong as a Great Emperor’s blow, it was on par with a Pseudo-Great Emperor’s attack.
Yang Kai hurriedly pushed his Emperor Qi as he thrust his palm backwards.
A deafening bang immediately followed as a fearsome shockwave spread in every direction. Meanwhile, Yang Kai was sent flying a thousand metres before he finally stabilized himself with great difficulty, his palm aching.
As he looked up, he saw a burly figure already swooping down at him, and as expected, it was a tower-like member of the Demon Race. The aura emanating from him was several times stronger than that of a Demon King and he was furiously glaring at Yang Kai with a menacing look on his face.
[A Pseudo-Great Emperor level Demon!?] Yang Kai was left dumbfounded.
Space Principle fluctuations suddenly rose as a figure appeared before Yang Kai, protecting him. The figure punched forward forcing the Pseudo-Great Emperor level Demon back before he turned around and looked at Yang Kai asking, “Are you alright?”
Li Wu Yi!
Yang Kai wasn’t surprised by this man’s presence; after all, he had used the Space Beacon to teleport to Li Wu Yi’s side, but how could he have known that Li Wu Yi would be locked in a heated battle with a Demon Race Master at that exact moment.
“No harm!” Yang Kai slowly shook his head.
Li Wu Yi suggested, “Step aside first, we can talk in a bit.”
After saying that, Li Wu Yi charged at the Demon Race Master again and, in a flash, the two were locked in a raging battle. Li Wu Yi was known as the strongest Master beneath the Great Emperor in the Star Boundary. He was a Master of the Dao of Space and had a Pseudo-Great Emperor Realm cultivation, making his position dignified and aloof. The Demon Race Master was also pretty good, but clearly, he wasn’t Li Wu Yi’s opponent.
However, this Demon should be part of the Strength Demon Clan, so his tall and stalwart body with a thick skin and robust muscles provided him an outstanding defence. Although Li Wu Yi occupied an advantage in the fight, he didn’t have any method to end it in short order.
Not only were these two Masters fighting each other to the death, but nearly a million Star Boundary cultivators and Demon Race members were also locked in battle across a huge battlefield. Someone was losing his or her life every moment while some thirty kilometres away stood a city with a glittering Array shielding it.
Yang Kai knew in his heart that the situation here was almost the same as Tiger Roar City, with a contingent of Star Boundary cultivators facing off against a Demon Race Army, but the war here had already broken out whereas the Demon Race was still just eyeing and waiting for an opportunity on Tiger Roar City’s side.
Understanding the situation, Yang Kai naturally couldn’t stand still. He hurriedly summoned the Myriads Sword and rushed into the enemy lines, cleaving through multiple enemies wherever he passed.
The Demon Race Army here was much bigger than the one outside Tiger Roar City, and it possessed far more Masters as well. There was even a Pseudo-Great Emperor-level existence leading the charge; fortunately, there was only one such Master while the rest were just Demon Kings.
With his current strength, Yang Kai was naturally not afraid of any Demon in the Demon King Realm, so he charged headlong into the enemy lines and went on a killing spree, like an unstoppable rampaging bull no one could block.
After half a day, both sides finally signalled for a withdrawal, leaving countless dead bodies littering the ground. Although the Star Boundary had suffered a huge amount of casualties, the Demon Race’s side didn’t fare any better. Li Wu Yi had no intention of pursuing the enemy; after all, he didn’t have an absolute advantage here, so he simply ordered his forces to return to the city and recuperate.
In the City Lord’s Mansion, Li Wu Yi cleaned himself and wore a new set of clothes before he spoke with Yang Kai.
“Senior Li, what’s the situation with the Great Emperors?” Yang Kai eagerly wanted to know what agreement the Great Emperors and the Demon Saints had come to that removed both sides from the war.
Li Wu Yu replied, “Have you heard about it?”
Yang Kai explained with a nod, “I just came from Tiger Roar City, where I met Li Jiao, Senior Sister Gao, and a few others.”
Li Wu Yi nodded, “Then they must have explained the reason to you. En, it’s probably similar to what they said.”
“Is there another reason?” Yang Kai raised his brow.
Li Wu Yi nodded, “The other reason is Senior Bright Moon.”
“I hope Senior Li can dispel my doubts,” Yang Kai earnestly requested.
Li Wu Yi heaved a sigh, “Senior Bright Moon seems to be trapped somewhere in the Demon Realm, and those Demon Saints said that if the Great Emperors dared to take action, they would turn back to the Demon Realm and eliminate Senior Bright Moon first. Conversely, if the Great Emperors stood back and watched, they too wouldn’t make any rash moves.”
Yang Kai furrowed his brow after hearing this, “So to say, this proposal was made by the Demon Realm first?”
Li Wu Yi replied, “Exactly. The Great Emperors had no choice either. The only reason Senior Bright Moon remained in the Demon Realm was to let the other three Seniors escape. His sense of duty and willingness to sacrifice himself is to be admired and respected. Now that Senior Bright Moon is in a precarious situation, the other Seniors naturally couldn’t just ignore his plight. If they really compelled those Demon Saints to deal with Senior Bright Moon, it would definitely end in tragedy no matter how strong he is; after all, he is trapped in the Demon Realm.”
Yang Kai looked puzzled and asked, “But what would the Demon Saints gain by proposing this? They came here to conquer the Star Boundary, so why would they tie their own hands and feet?” They could gather their entire strength and easily deal with or capture Bright Moon Great Emperor, so what was the advantage of them stalling for time?
Li Wu Yi slowly shook his head, indicating that he didn’t know the entire story either. Although he could get more information than most, his knowledge was still limited.
Yang Kai pondered for a while before asking, “What are the Great Emperors thinking? Did they agree willingly or begrudgingly?”
“They have decided to see how the situation develops for now,” Li Wu Yi replied.
“What if Senior Bright Moon could escape?”
Li Wu Yi slowly shook his head, “It’s far too difficult!”
“What if…” Yang Kai looked at him with a scorching gaze.
Li Wu Yi added, “There is no smoke without fire. Although the proposal made by the Demon Saints seems beneficial to the Star Boundary, it is definitely more beneficial to the Demon Realm somehow. If Senior Bright Moon could really escape, I believe that the Great Emperors would take action again. But now, no one knows just what is going on in the Demon Realm, not even the Great Emperors.”
Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed as he fell into contemplation.
Li Wu Yi then suggested, “Let’s stop talking about this. We can let the Great Emperors worry about Senior Bright Moon. They should have their own plans on how to deal with it. Let’s talk about you. Didn’t you say that you were going to the Frozen Earth? Why did you come back so soon? How did it go?”
Yang Kai pursed his lips into a smile, “Fortunately I didn’t fail in my mission!”
Li Wu Yi’s eyes lit up after hearing this, “Where are they?”
Yang Kai waved his hand as figures appeared in the hall, one after another. In the blink of an eye, more than a hundred more people were standing there.
After the Human Sovereign and others appeared, they looked completely confused. They were at a loss and had no idea what their situation was. On the other hand, Li Wu Yi’s eyes brightened as he swept them over this crowd. He then excitedly asked, “Are all of them…?”
He knew why Yang Kai was going to the Frozen Earth, so when he saw over a hundred men and women standing before him, he thought that they were all Shamans.
Yang Kai failed to stifle his laughter though as he corrected him, “Only the Imperial Family is. There are probably only about twenty of them. The others aren’t.”
The Human Sovereign and the others appeared confused and all turned their heads after hearing the conversation between Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi.
Yang Kai introduced things to them, gazing at them, “Everyone, this is the outside world, but the situation is a little different from what you may have expected. This world is now being invaded by the Demon Race, so we need your strength to repel them, especially those of you from the Imperial Family.”
The corners of the Human Sovereign’s lips twitched after hearing this. He had already known that Yang Kai didn’t have any good intentions for coming to Human Imperial City, but he had never been able to guess what Yang Kai’s intentions were. Now though, realization had dawned upon him.
[So it turns out that the outside world is no different than the Revolving World, being corrupted by the Demon Race! That damned Yang Kai came to Human Imperial City and forcibly took away my Imperial Family for our Sacred Techniques!]
But since his fists were smaller, even if the Human Sovereign was dissatisfied, he didn’t dare to voice his anger; after all, this was no longer Human Imperial City. He thus affirmed with a sullen expression on his face, “Senior Yang, please don’t worry, my Imperial Family will definitely dedicate ourselves to the mission.”
A satisfied smile immediately appeared on Yang Kai’s face. If the Human Sovereign was disobedient, Yang Kai had planned to make him see reason and threaten him a little, but much to his surprise, this old man was quite flexible in his thinking, which saved him a lot of trouble.
“Senior Li, I’ll leave these people to you. You can dispatch them as you wish. I want to check on my High Heaven Palace’s disciples,” Yang Kai spoke and left right away.
In any case, Li Wu Yi was a Pseudo-Great Emperor so he would have a way to subdue the people of Human Imperial City. Yang Kai didn’t worry about this, his only responsibility was to bring them out.
After explaining things, Yang Kai immediately activated the Space Beacon on his wrist and disappeared in a flash.
The Western Territory’s frontline was quite long, and he had no idea about the situation High Heaven Palace’s reinforcements were in, so naturally, he wanted to check on them.
After a while, Yang Kai appeared in another city next to Xue Yue. Xue Yue was pleasantly surprised by the sudden appearance of Yang Kai and immediately summoned Shan Qing Luo and Su Yan.
After inquiring a little, Yang Kai finally understood what was going on here.
As he had expected, the reinforcements sent by High Heaven Palace were dispatched to another city in the Western Territory, joining hands with the local cultivators to fight against the Demon Race Army besieging the city.
However, the situation here was much better than Tiger Roar City or Li Wu Yi’s side, because not only were there six Monster Kings here, but there were also the Masters from Ice Heart Valley.
The six Monster Kings were none other than the six serving at High Heaven Palace. Three were men and three were women, but each of them was a Twelfth-Order High-Rank Monster Race, so with the addition of the Emperor Realm Masters of Ice Heart Valley, the entire lineup here could be described as luxurious.
Moreover, the number of cultivators in the city was quite large, with as many as 100,000 men and women joining the defence force.
The two sides had just fought a battle about half a day ago, and the Star Boundary side had scored a crushing victory, killing hundreds of thousands of Demons while forcing the rest to flee back a few hundred kilometres. However, the Demon Race didn’t fully withdraw, presumably waiting for more reinforcements to make a comeback.
But in this situation, if the Demon Race didn’t send a Pseudo-Great Emperor-level Master, it would definitely be impossible for them to take this city. Six Monster Kings alone were more than enough to deal with a 100,000 man army.
Yang Kai’s heart was finally set at ease after asking about the situation. The High Heaven Palace reinforcements didn’t have to worry about anything for the time being; however, Tiger Roar City’s situation was not so lax. Perhaps there were many other cities like Tiger Roar City, but Yang Kai couldn’t manage so much.
Tiger Roar City was important to him because Li Jiao and Gao Xue Ting were there; otherwise, he would not bother to pay attention to it. The Great Emperors would definitely be managing the deployment of the Star Boundary’s forces as although they couldn’t participate directly in the war effort because of their agreement with the Demon Saints, they could still oversee the general situation and issue commands while devising strategies.
Su Yan and the others seemed to have grown a lot after fighting on the battlefield, their auras much calmer and stabler than before.
While Yang Kai was talking to his three women though, the door of the room was suddenly kicked open as a beautiful figure emanating a chilling aura barged in and coldly glared at Yang Kai with her pretty eyes.
Su Yan and the others looked at her before looking at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai lightly coughed in embarrassment.
Yu Ru Meng suddenly retracted the coldness from her face as she asked with a gentle smile, “Sisters, can you please go out first, Elder Sister wants to talk to him alone.”
Shan Qing Luo took a sidelong glance at her as she indifferently declared, “If you have anything to say, just say it right here, why do you need to speak in private?”
Xue Yue nodded in agreement, “That’s right. We are all one family. Husband won’t hide anything from us, “
The two had a deep hostility towards Yu Ru Meng as they had no idea how or when she had hooked up with Yang Kai. What’s more, she never left Yang Kai’s side, and now that he returned, she actually showed up right away!
If they could, Xue Yue and Shan Qing Luo would definitely have taught her a good lesson, but Yu Ru Meng was in the Emperor Realm, so the two of them were not her opponents. Not to mention, she was the Disciple of Flower Shadow Great Emperor…
[But so what if she is a Great Emperor’s Disciple? It’s not that easy to enter the Yang Family!]
However, Su Yang just calmly stated, “Since Elder Sister Li has something to discuss with Husband, let’s give them a little room.”
Shan Qing Luo and Xue Yue both looked at her in amazement after hearing this, as if they hadn’t expected Su Yan to compromise so easily, but since Su Yan had already spoken, they had no choice but to withdraw along with her, even if they were unwilling.
Of course, Shan Qing Luo glared at Yang Kai with an aggrieved look on her face when she was leaving.
Yang Kai turned his gaze to the ceiling, acting as if he didn’t see anything.
After the three women withdrew, Yu Ru Meng closed the door with a wave of her hand and let out a hollow laugh as he stared at Yang Kai and snapped, “You abandoned me!”
Obviously, she was talking about the fact that Yang Kai had left her behind when he went to the Frozen Earth. At that time, she almost exploded with rage after being thrown aside by Yang Kai, but she was smart enough to know that her best option was to follow Su Yan and the others around, as the moment Yang Kai returned, he might not look for other people, but he would definitely come looking for Su Yan and the others.
As soon as Yu Ru Meng noticed Yang Kai’s aura, she immediately rushed over.
At this moment, although there was a smile on her face, she was burning with fury.
Yang Kai didn’t even try to explain himself; rather, he reached out and poured himself a cup of tea.
Yu Ru Meng took a few steps forward, snatched the teacup, splashed out the tea, then slammed the cup back on the table with a thud.
Yang Kai raised his eyes and stared at her, “What are you doing? Have you gone mad?”
Yu Ru Meng stated, grounding her teeth, “You actually left me!”
Yang Kai rebuffed, “So what? I didn’t agree to take you out with me, you were following me around of your own accord. So I left you, what do you want to do now?”
Yu Ru Meng stated, furrowing her brow, “Do you insist on being cruel to me?”
Yang Kai whiningly stated, “What’s so strange about that, it’s not the first time I was cruel to you.” While speaking, he poured himself another cup of tea.
Yu Ru Meng snatched the teacup again and threw it on the ground.
Yang Kai was completely furious this time as he loudly cursed, “Bitch, would you calm down! I’m warning you, I won’t be so polite if you keep this up!”
Yu Ru Meng sneered, “Then I want to see how you are going to not be polite to me! Are you going to hit me? Come, hit me then!”
She pressed toward him with her arms akimbo, head high, and chest jutted out, even moving her cheek closer to Yang Kai, like she was just tempting him to slap her.
Driven mad, Yang Kai grabbed her arm, turned her over and threw her directly onto his knee with her back towards him. Then, he raised his hand and smacked her perfectly round bottom hard.
*Pa…*
Yu Ru Meng suddenly stiffened. Her slender neck went completely straight and stiff, sending her hair flying. She didn’t come to her senses for a good long while as her mind seemed to be all jumbled up. When she finally regained her senses, she creakily turned her head to stare at Yang Kai with widened eyes, a look of utter disbelief on her face as she muttered, “You dare spank me…”
*Pa…*
Yang Kai slapped down again with a savage look on his face.
Both times, he had spanked her quite hard. Only, the first time Yu Ru Meng was spanked, she was completely caught by surprise; she had never even dreamed that she would get spanked by someone, and by a man too. This time, she finally felt the pain and her eyes became a little watery as she opened her mouth and a painful groan escaped from her lips.
Outside the house, Su Yan raised her head, looking at the bright moon. Shan Qing Luo and Xue Yue, on the other hand, were attentively listening, and after the two smacking sounds rang out, Shan Qing Luo immediately sneered, “Beat her to death, beat this vixen to death!”
Xue Yue also looked excited, “That shameless bitch, she deserves to be beaten to death!”
“Are you still going to make a scene?” Yang Kai, raising his hand and waving it around, asked Yu Ru Meng, staring down at her.
Yu Ru Meng bit her ruby red lips as she struggled hard, but Yang Kai was using both his great physical strength and his comprehension of the Dao of Space to lock her in place, so how could she break free? She was completely tied to Yang Kai’s thigh in an extremely shameful posture.
Suddenly, she fiercely shrieked, “You’d best beat me to death today, or this isn’t over!”
“How dare you talk back!” Yang Kai spanked her again. Yu Ru Meng, who was taking the beating, had her face turned red, then white. It was evident that he was using a great deal of force as he spanked and scolded her, “You Bitch, you made a scene, broke my cup…”
He spoke a word and spanked her, spoke a word, and spanked her…
At first, Yu Ru Meng was clamouring back, wanting to fight with Yang Kai to death, but after being hit again and again, she eventually stopped moving. She lowered her raised head, lying completely still on Yang Kai’s thigh.
*Dida dida …*
The sound of some kind of drops falling on the ground suddenly could be heard.
Yang Kai finally stopped smacking and looked down at her, the next moment not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
He had actually beat Yu Ru Meng to the point of tears…
Suddenly feeling like he had gone too far, his raised hand slumped down again. If she had kept fighting back, he wouldn’t have stopped, but when she started crying, it started to give him a headache.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but scratch his head as all his anger completely vanished. He then lightly poked Yu Ru Meng’s cheek and said, “If you have something to say, just say it, why cry?”
Yu Ru Meng turned her head to the other side, ignoring him, simply sobbing like a child as tears kept dripping on the ground to no end.
“Don’t cry,” Yang Kai comforted her. “I had a good reason for leaving you behind. The place I went to was too dangerous. What if you had an accident if I brought you with me?”
While speaking, he gently caressed her round buttocks with his big hands, using his Emperor Qi to alleviate the pain.
He had just spanked her ass a dozen times or so, and he didn’t hold back either. Perhaps her butt was swollen, so he was now healing her wounds. Yang Kai continued, “And you too, you keep talking back to me at every turn, you keep saying that you want to fight and perish together. How can there be a woman like you in this world? If everyone was like you, how would any man survive?”
“If you have something to say to me, use your words. I’ll go first. I was impulsive and in the wrong about what just happened. I apologize, so don’t take it to heart.”
“If you can talk, just nod. If you are angry, how about I let you hit me all you want in return. I’ll let you do anything you want.”
He kept comforting her, but Yu Ru Meng just kept crying and didn’t respond at all.
Yang Kai eventually lost patience and stopped rubbing her buttocks as he calmly stated, “If you have something to say, speak up. Don’t stay silent.”
Yu Ru Meng remained silent for a while before she suddenly muttered something.
“What?” Yang Kai turned his ear to her side as she really had whispered too quietly.
“Don’t stop!” This time, he heard her loud and clear.
Yang Kai was stunned for a moment, then he finally realized what she meant. At the same time, he really failed to stifle his laughter, so he once again put his hand on her round bottom and started gently caressing it; after all, this request wasn’t that hard to meet either.
[Damn, this vixen’s personality might be terrible, but her body is really first-class. It’s like rubbing a soft, silky pillow.]
As her sobbing slowly stopped, Yu Ru Meng’s body twitched a little, who knows whether because of pain or pleasure. Her breathing also grew short and rapid as her previous pale face slowly turned red.
Suddenly, she asked, “You just said that you left me behind because you were afraid of something happening to me, is that the truth or a lie?”
Yang Kai solemnly replied, “What would I gain by lying to you? The place I went to was one of the Forbidden Zones of the Star Boundary, one that even the Great Emperors are unable to freely traverse. Even a Dragon Clan member perished in that place, proving just how dangerous it is.”
Yu Ru Meng softly asked, “Then why didn’t you just say so instead of just leaving me behind without saying anything?”
Yang Kai sighed, “Would it have been useful if I had told you? You would have definitely ignored my entreaty and insisted on going. So, instead of arguing with you, I thought it would be better to act first, then tell you afterwards.”
Yu Ru Meng remained silent; apparently, accepting his explanation.
Yang Kai’s hand, however, started to become more and more dishonest. While rubbing her lower cheeks with one hand, his other unscrupulously began sneaking into Yu Ru Meng’s collar. Of course, he encountered some symbolic resistance, but it was hardly a forceful defence.
“Does it still hurt?” Yang Kai asked, kneading with his hand as a satisfied look filled his face.
Yu Ru Meng slowly shook his head.
“Is anything else in pain?” Yang Kai asked again.
“No, nowhere else.”
“I can give you a check…” Yang Kai chuckled.
“No need…” Yu Ru Meng moaned as her breathing became extremely heavy.
Outside the house, Shan Qing Luo’s face turned ashen and Xue Yue’s expression wasn’t good either. The good show they were looking forward to didn’t appear; the vixen wasn’t beaten to death. On the contrary, their Husband and the hussy started acting all lovey-dovey, making the two women go a little crazy.
Shan Qing Luo turned to Su Yan and entreated, “Elder Sister, our husband is being seduced by that vixen, don’t you care?”
Su Yan just smiled before suggesting, “We should go.”
Shan Qing Luo and Xue Yue were dumbfounded, but before the duo could react, Su Yan had already walked away. Shan Qing Luo and Xue Yue looked at each other and gnashed their teeth before they raised their arms together and palmed forward hard.
Although the two women hadn’t reached the Emperor Realm yet, they were still in the Dao Source Realm, so their attacks made a big hole in the house’s walls, causing dust to fly everywhere.
Accompanied by Shan Qing Luo’s giggles, the two fled away and disappeared in a flash.
Inside the room, Yang Kai, holding Yu Ru Meng, was jumping around, avoiding the falling wooden boards, his face twitching visibly.
At this moment, a wave of spatial fluctuations suddenly spread as a jade slip suddenly appeared before him. Yang Kai reached out, grabbing it. He then read it with his Divine Sense and a frown started to appear on his face before he stated aloud, “I’m going to Tiger Roar City. Something has happened there and they requested my presence.”
“Safe journey!” Su Yan responded back.
Yang Kai nodded before turning to Yu Ru Meng in his arms and asking, “Are you coming with me?”
Yu Ru Meng meekly nodded.
Yang Kai smiled lightly before pushing his Space Principles. The next moment, the pair disappeared from where they stood.
Tiger Roar City was now in complete turmoil as everyone was feeling extremely restless and anxious.
Yang Kai and Yu Ru Meng appeared beside Gao Xue Ting, but at this moment, Gao Xue Ting was no longer inside the City Lord’s Mansion, but beside a city gate. It was quite noisy here and Gao Xue Ting had a very serious look on her face, one that was quite unsightly.
Sensing Yang Kai’s arrival, Gao Xue Ting glanced at him before looking at Yu Ru Meng in his arms and lightly nodding.
“What’s the situation?” Yang Kai glanced around as he asked, somewhat confused. Much to his surprise, he was greeted by two large crowds confronting each other at the city gate. One group was luxuriously dressed, indicating they had some kind of significant status or background, while the other group was comprised of disciples of Azure Sun Temple.
“The Demon Race is on the march,” Gao Xue Ting replied.
Yang Kai frowned and asked, “If the Demon Race is about to attack, prepare for battle. What are you doing here?”
Gao Xue Ting pointed ahead, “They are trying to escape from the city!”
Yang Kai furrowed his brow, “At this time?”
Yang Kai knew a little about the situation of Tiger Roar City. Although there were quite a few Emperor Realm Masters present, the number of cultivators who could fight was definitely not large. Furthermore, there was only one Third-Order Emperor present, Li Jiao, and barely 50,000 men and women in the city who could be mobilized for its defence. On the other hand, as many as 400,000 Demon Race soldiers were besieging them.
With the odds against them, Tiger Roar City would have to depend on its protective Array to have any hope of victory.
In other words, they couldn’t afford to lose or compromise the City Defending Array.
Yet at this critical juncture, when the Demon Race was about to attack, there were still people who wanted to flee the city! Wasn’t that tantamount to tearing a giant hole in the most important part of Tiger Roar City’s defence? Although the Array could be partially opened and then closed again, in the middle of a fight, who knows what could happen in the brief time the array was lowered?
More importantly, this was the time when the cultivators of Tiger Roar City needed to stand united to defend against the enemy. If a large group of people fled the city now, wouldn’t it throw the entire defence into chaos?
[No wonder Gao Xue Ting mobilized a team of Azure Sun Temple disciples to block these people’s way. Gao Xue Ting clearly knows that the defensive Array cannot be opened at this critical moment.]
“Who the hell are they?” Yang Kai swept over a glance at the group of people with a look of disgust on his face. The number of people wasn’t too large, just a few hundred, but many of them were Dao Source Realm cultivators. Fortunately, there were Emperors among them.
“The Five Great Families of Tiger Roar City. All of them are the members of the Five Great Families!”
“Five Great Families?” Yang Kai coldly snorted. Families like these were innumerable throughout the Star Boundary and generally speaking, they occupied good positions in their respective cities. They were used to doing whatever they wanted and probably had the intention of fleeing the city from the start, it was just that they didn’t make up their mind until the Demon Race started moving aggressively. Obviously, these cowards felt that Tiger Roar City was doomed, so they wanted to escape and save themselves before the battle even began.
“Open the Array!”
“Quickly open the Array and let us leave, otherwise don’t blame us for being impolite!”
“Why are you still trying to reason with them, if they don’t open the Array, just snatch the Array Jade from them!”
The group of people standing under the city wall kept shouting at a Dao Source Realm cultivator atop the city wall. That Dao Source Realm cultivator should be one of the people presiding over the City Defending Array as he was holding an Array Jade which acted as a controller. At this moment, he was looking down from the city wall with a confused look on his face. He kept bowing with his fists cupped in front, “Patriarchs, please don’t make things difficult for this Old Master. If you wish to leave the city, I ask you to go see Sir City Lord. As long as you bring this Old Master Sir City Lord’s decree, this Old Master will immediately open the Array; otherwise, this Old Master’s hands are tied.”
“The Demon Race is attacking, so Sir City Lord is busy dealing with other matters, how would he have the time to take care of us? Stop talking nonsense. This King will give you ten breaths of time to open the Array, otherwise don’t blame us for forgetting our old friendship!”
Just as this man stated this, the hundreds of people showed a covetous gaze, giving the impression that if the old man didn’t open the Array, they would really attack.
The face of the old man presiding over the Array defending the city greatly changed. Although he too was a Dao Source Realm cultivator, how could he fight against so many members of the Five Great Families? If they really attacked, he would perhaps be reduced to ashes in the blink of an eye.
A hint of hesitation flashed on his face, though he had already made up his mind. [If I open the Spirit Array and let them leave, although Sir City Lord will punish me after knowing about it, it’s still better than being killed by them.]
He thus clenched the Array Jade and began to push his Divine Sense, but just as he was about to open the Array, a figure suddenly appeared beside him like a ghost, raising his hand, and patting his shoulder.
The old man was shocked and turned his head to look at this newcomer, seeing a brave and heroic young man standing by his side. Before he could react though, the Array Jade was already in the young man’s hand.
The old man was terrified when he saw this as he realized this young man’s cultivation was vastly superior to his own; otherwise, he would have at least noticed when the Array Jade was snatched by the other party. Nervous now, the old man hurriedly asked, “You are…”
“High Heaven Palace’s Palace Master, Yang Kai.” Yang Kai glanced at him and calmly stated, “Old Sir, you may step back now and allow this King to handle this matter.”
The old man’s eyes lit up after hearing this, feeling like a stone had just been lifted from his heart, allowing him to finally relax.
Yang Kai’s voice wasn’t loud, but it was loud enough for the hundreds of people below the city wall to hear clearly. Seeing the Array Jade fall into Yang Kai’s hands, the hundreds of people down below furrowed their brows. The few leading the group glanced at each other before a middle-aged man with a sallow complexion stepped forward and greeted with cupped fists, “Greetings, Senior Yang.”
Yang Kai lightly nodded but didn’t reply, figuring that this man was one of the Patriarchs of the so-called Five Great Families.
Yang Kai’s unceremonious stance made the hundreds of people down below unhappy, but they all knew he was qualified to act dismissive of them; after all, he was a Palace Master and an Emperor Realm cultivator. As such, they didn’t dare to show the slightest dissatisfaction. Instead, the sallow looking man advocated in an extremely polite manner, “Senior, we, the members of the Five Great Families, wish to leave Tiger Roar City to seek a chance of survival in this chaotic world. I ask Senior Yang to open the way for us.”
Yang Kai, playing with the Array Jade in his hand, indifferently asked back, “You want to leave Tiger Roar City to seek a chance for survival? Do you even know the current situation outside?”
The middle-aged man shook his head and replied, “I don’t know, but I know that Tiger Roar City is in danger. If we don’t leave now, I’m afraid we won’t be able to leave later.”
Yang Kai added, “Since you don’t know, let me tell you. The Demon Race Army has invaded the Star Boundary, occupying more than half of the Western Territory. The frontline now stretches for tens, if not hundreds of millions of kilometres. Countless cities are surrounded by the Demons, and even in the short while we have been talking, fierce battles have been raging in many places. Even if you all leave Tiger Roar City, you might not be able to get very far before falling into the hands of the Demons. At that time, your life will be worse than death. It would be better to stay here and fight against the Demon Race than venture out into the wilderness.”
Everyone’s expression changed after hearing this as they really were ignorant of what was going on outside. The Demon Race had started their invasion less than two months ago, and news travelled even slower than usual in such chaotic times. On the other hand, Yang Kai could freely traverse the world and had visited the cities where Li Wu Yi and the High Heaven Palace’s disciples were stationed, so he was far more knowledgeable about the current state of affairs than the others.
Naturally, everyone would be shocked after hearing that more than half of the Western Territory had been occupied from Yang Kai.
After momentarily losing his wits for a while, the sallow-faced middle-aged man forced a smile and stated, “Senior Yang, there is no need to exaggerate things just to scare others.”
Yang Kai scoffed, “You think this King is speaking nonsense just to scare you? Is that necessary? Every word this Palace Master has spoken is true. Believe it or don’t, it is your choice.”
The middle-aged man remained silent for a while before he stated, “Even so, we still wish to leave Tiger Roar City.”
“Do you still insist on leaving?” Yang Kai grimly gazed at him.
Seeing this look, the middle-aged man’s palms became sweaty but he summoned up his courage and nodded.
“I’m afraid things won’t go according to your wishes,” Yang Kai coldly snorted. “The Demon Race is attacking, and the City Defending Array is of vital importance to the upcoming battle. Before the battle has ended, no one may leave the city. If you want to leave, we can discuss it after the fighting has stopped!”
As soon as he said this, a furious shout immediately came from the group below, “When the battle is over, Tiger Roar City would have already fallen! We won’t even be alive to discuss anything!”
Yang Kai immediately looked up and found that the person shouting was a luxuriously dressed young man sitting on a tall mount that resembled a horse. Who knows which family’s Young Master he was, and Yang Kai didn’t really care, only responding in an icy tone, “The Demon Race is invading the Western Territory, plunging the common people into an abyss of chaos and suffering. We, the cultivators of the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Territory all gathered under the summons of the Great Emperors to aid you in holding back the Demon Race Army. We do not request anything in return, nor do we expect you to repay us, but we are still putting our lives on the line today, yet you, the native cultivators of the Western Territory, don’t even want to make an effort to protect your homes? Good, if that is the extent of your courage and honour, so be it; however, you are now actually trying to flee when the enemy is already upon us? If it was just that, this Palace Master may still have tolerated your actions; after all, everyone is free to choose their own course in life, and it is human nature to cherish life and fear death, but if your cowardice affects the morale of the army and lowers our chances of successfully defending the city, that is truly intolerable! If you dare spout nonsense again, this King will take your dog life!”
The young man shrank his neck but still stubbornly rebuked in the next moment, “When did this Young Master seek to disrupt the morale of the army. And even if he has, do you really believe Tiger Roar City can resist the Demon Race’s army either way?”
“How dare you run your mouth! Do you really think this King won’t kill you?” Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed as he raised his hand and grabbed the young man.
“You dare!” The middle-aged man, who had spoken earlier, immediately flew out, trying to stop Yang Kai. By the looks of it, he and the young man might be related by blood; perhaps they were even father and son.
But the middle-aged man was just a Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator, no different from an ant before Yang Kai. An inexplicable force immediately sent him flying, throwing him to ground as loud panicked shouts rang out.
As the middle-aged man turned to look, his eyes immediately turned red in grief and anger. The young man riding on the tall horse had been reduced to a headless corpse with blood gushing out of his severed neck like a fountain, reaching as high as ten meters into the air. The young man’s headless corpse then swayed left and right before falling from the horse’s back.
A group of pampered Young Masters and Ladies screamed in horror, plunging the area into further chaos.
“How dare you kill my child!” The middle-aged man looked at Yang Kai with a hideous look on his face.
In Yang Kai’s hand was a severed head with bulging eyes. No one knew how this head appeared in his hand when he had clearly not moved an inch from where he stood.
Yang Kai rebuffed in a cold and grim voice after hearing this, “So what?”
The middle-aged man’s expression kept shifting like clouds before he suddenly shouted, “Kill him, attack!”
After having said this, he was the first one to charge at Yang Kai, his anger and hatred seemingly making him lose his sense temporarily. At that moment, he failed to realize just how great the gap between him and Yang Kai was while his impassioned shout and Yang Kai’s tyrannical display inspired the rest of the Five Great Families to action, their eyes turning red as they attacked in a fit of madness.
“Ants courting death,” Yang Kai, standing on the city wall, snorted with a grim expression. When hundreds of people had charged sufficiently close, he simply waved his hand.
One by one, heads flew into the air as headless corpses twitched and fell to the ground, dying the area around the city’s main gate red and filling the air with a nauseating bloody smell.
The onlooking crowd immediately sunk into silence, like cicadas in the middle of winter. They had never seen hundreds of people dying all at once. This hellish scene was enough to make them have nightmares for many days to come.
In the blink of an eye, over a hundred people had lost their lives, with the middle-aged man, who had charged first, being the first to die.
It was only at this moment that the remaining members of the Five Great Families realized the gap in strength between the two sides. The Young Masters and Young Ladies started screaming and shouting in panic while the remaining Dao Source Realm cultivators started begging for mercy.
Yang Kai’s face remained as cold as ice, though, as he turned a deaf ear to everything. He was radiating an intense murderous intent now as he made up his mind to establish his prestige here before the battle truly began.
A bloody aura filled the air as the ground around the city gates became like Hell on earth. Hundreds of corpses were lying everywhere, with their heads all stacked into a hill. The sight of this terrifying scene made the onlookers’ blood run cold as they went completely silent, like the cicadas in winter.
Among them, some may have had the same thoughts as the Five Great Families; they wanted to escape from Tiger Roar City. Otherwise, they would not have gathered here, but the example made of the members of the Five Great Families was enough to make them understand and none dared to have any other ideas now.
[This Palace Master, who hails from the Northern Territory, kills people without even batting an eye! He has no humanity at all!] Everyone looked at Yang Kai with a fearful gaze.
Yang Kai, on the other hand, was completely at ease, still playing with the Array Jade in his hand. Suddenly, he looked up at Gao Xue Ting and stated, “Senior Sister Gao, ask the Temple disciples to remove everyone who is presiding over the Defensive Array and take their place.” While speaking, he threw the Array Jade in his hand to her.
Gao Xue Ting nodded her agreement after hearing this and immediately started arranging things.
With the city being this big, it was natural that the defensive Array wasn’t managed by just a single individual. There were at least several dozen people managing the array, and each of them had a Sub-Array Jade while the City Lord, Lin Tong, should have the Main Jade which controlled the overall Array.
Since even the Five Great Families members were acting like this, precautions had to be taken. If the Temple disciples were managing the Array, this kind of situation could be prevented. For Yang Kai, the cultivators of Tiger Roar City were still outsiders, so he would not feel secure if the supervisors of the defensive Array were not his own people.
The Demon Race Army was at the gates, and to resist the foreign invasion, order must be kept at home first.
Yang Kai took out a communication artifact and contacted Li Jiao, asking about the Demon Race Army’s situation.
Right at this moment, a ripple suddenly spread through the defensive Array of the city as strange fluctuations undulated.
Yang Kai turned his head and asked, frowning, “What happened?”
Gao Xue Ting shook her head, indicating that she had no idea either.
Rather the Dao Source Realm old man, who was managing the Array before, replied, “Someone opened the Array somewhere.”
Yang Kai’s face turned colder when he heard this, “Courting death!”
The reason why he asked Gao Xue Ting to replace Tiger Roar City residents was to prevent a similar situation to the Five Great Families from happening again, but he didn’t expect such a situation to happen even before that plan could be implemented. Someone fleeing just as the battle was about to begin would negatively affect morale, especially when the enemy already seriously outnumbered them. This battle was not going to be easy no matter what, and if morale was low, Tiger Roar City definitely would not be able to hold on. At that time, whether it was the Azure Sun Temple, Fire Dragon Palace disciples, or Ahan Temple disciples, all would suffer.
“Where?” Yang Kai turned his head and asked the old man.
The old man immediately pointed in one direction, “If this Old Master sensed it correctly, it should have been over there.”
The moment the old man pointed, Yang Kai’s figure disappeared from his spot.
At a certain section of the city wall on the east side of Tiger Roar City, Yang Kai suddenly appeared, and as expected, he saw a gap in the defensive Array here; a wide gap through which he could see a figure was swiftly escaping over a dozen kilometres away.
Yang Kai found the figure a little familiar, thinking he had seen it somewhere before.
Meanwhile, on the city wall, Tiger Roar City’s City Lord, Lin Tong’s face was livid, staring in the direction where the figure was fleeing. Sitting next to him in a cross-legged position was Vice City Lord, Ma Yin, who was bleeding from the corner of her mouth. She appeared to be injured, though not too seriously.
“Who was it?” Yang Kai coldly asked.
Lin Tong’s facial muscles twitched as he replied in a heavy voice, “Wu Zi Jin!”
Yang Kai suddenly came to a realization. No wonder the escaping figure looked familiar, it turned out it was one of the Vice City Lords, Wu Zi Jin.
Even a Vice City Lord had fled from the battle! If word got out, how would the native cultivators of Tiger Roar City find any courage to resist the Demon Race?
As a Vice City Lord, Wu Zi Jin should be leading by example, but now he was openly displaying cowardice. If Yang Kai’s guess was right, Wu Zi Jin even attacked Ma Yin in order to facilitate his own escape. Although Yang Kai didn’t ask, he guessed that Ma Yin was taken by surprise.
Yang Kai looked around and found that the cultivators of Tiger Roar City were really flustered. Wu Zi Jin’s escape had obviously left a huge negative impact on them.
Suddenly he recalled that Wu Zi Jin had proposed that everyone make plans to leave Tiger Roar City as quickly as possible. Now, it became apparent that he had been planning this for quite some time.
Yang Kai suddenly felt a little disheartened. Among the native cultivators of Tiger Roar City, the Five Great Families and a Vice City Lord didn’t even have the courage to stay and fight the Demon Race, so what was the point of the reinforcements from the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Territories even coming here?
He turned his head and asked Lin Tong, “What is Sir City Lord’s plan? If you want to leave, it’s not too late to escape now.”
Lin Tong glanced at him before calmly replying, “So long as a single person remains alive here, the city will survive, only when all have fallen will the city truly be destroyed!”
Ma Yin also opened her eyes and looked up at Yang Kai, “This Ma entreats Palace Master Yang to lend his assistance to my Tiger Roar City!”
Yang Kai finally smiled after hearing this, “It seems that not all the people of Tiger Roar City covet life and fear death!”
Ma Yin angrily proclaimed, “We are ashamed of that old dog surnamed Wu. If he doesn’t die today, I swear to take his dog life the next time I see him!”
Yang Kai nodded, “You won’t need to wait for the next time.”
Before Ma Yin could even understand what Yang Kai meant, she heard him speak again, “I’ll be right back. While I am gone, I ask Sir City Lord to repair the breach as quickly as possible.”
Yang Kai’s figure flickered before disappearing from everyone’s sight.
A stunned Ma Yin turned her head and saw a blur rapidly shooting off into the distance before completely disappearing from her sight in the blink of an eye. Only when Yang Kai’s figure had vanished over the horizon did she come to her senses and muttered, “He went after Old Dog Wu?”
[Can he even catch up? Old Dog Wu has quite a head start. Although Palace Master Yang’s cultivation is one Minor Realm higher, Old Dog Wu is fleeing for his life so catching him shouldn’t be easy. Wouldn’t it be a waste of energy to chase after him at this moment? In any case the city is surrounded by the Demon Race, wouldn’t Tiger Roar City lose another high-level combatant this way?]
Lin Tong, however, replied with sparkling eyes, “I heard that Palace Master Yang is proficient in the Dao of Space. After seeing it today, he really lives up to his reputation!”
“A Master of the Dao of Space!” Ma Yin’s slender brow momentarily rose. Finally, she understood why Yang Kai’s speed was so astonishing and why his figure seemed to flicker in and out of existence as it moved, making it difficult for her to even track his position.
It was due to his use of Space Principles!
“Someone’s approaching!” Ma Yin suddenly turned pale as she pointed towards the front. When she had started speaking, there was just a small black dot on the horizon, but by the time she finished, that small black dot had grown to the size of a fist.
In the blink of an eye, a figure was already standing before her.
It was none other than Yang Kai, who had just left!
Ma Yin mouth was agape as she dumbfoundedly stared at Yang Kai.
He said he would be right back, and he really came right back. He couldn’t have been gone for more than ten breaths, yet when Yang Kai returned, he did so with a person in his grasp. When she recovered from her initial shock, Ma Yin immediately became filled with rage as the man Yang Kai was carrying was none other than Old Dog Wu!
In just ten breaths, not only had Yang Kai gone and returned, he even caught Wu Zi Jin, who was going all out to escape, and brought him back. If Ma Yin hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, she wouldn’t have believed such a feat was even possible.
Lin Tong also looked absent-minded, as if he was lost in a dream.
At this moment, Wu Zi Jin, who was being held by Yang Kai, was continuously coughing up blood, his aura weak and unstable, a clear indication he had been seriously injured.
Yang Kai threw the battered man in front of Ma Yin.
Wu Zi Jin crawled back up with great difficulty as he held his chest, glancing at Lin Tong and then at Ma Yin, his expression turning pale.
He definitely didn’t expect that after trying so hard to escape from the city, he would be caught in the blink of an eye and brought back before Ma Yin, whom he had injured with a sneak attack just moments ago. This was a serious embarrassment.
Forcing a smile, Wu Zi Jin asked, “Vice City Lord Ma, how are your injuries?”
Ma Yin slowly stood up and coldly gazed at him, “That’s none of your concern.” While speaking, she summoned a soft whip with the flick of her wrist. The soft whip was forged from some unidentifiable material and was ten meters long, exuding a cold, dark aura.
Wu Zi Jin’s blood ran cold as he stumbled back and said, “Let’s talk this out, this Wu may have acted a little rashly, but he never intended to hurt you.”
Ma Yin turned a deaf ear as her Emperor Qi surged and her soft whip flashed.
Wu Zi Jin turned his head to look at Lin Tong, “Sir City Lord, spare me! If you spare this Wu, this Wu will give his all to fight alongside you! The Demon Race is attacking, this Wu will do his best, he promises!”
Lin Tong looked at him with disgust and spat, “This City Lord wouldn’t dare to fight alongside you!” [Even Ma Yin suffered a sneak attack at this bastard’s hands, who would feel safe trusting their back to him?]
Wu Zi Jin knew that things weren’t going to end well for him today, so a cruel look flashed across his face as he raised his hand, summoning a giant axe and slashing at Ma Yin with all his strength. He didn’t dare to attack Lin Tong as the latter’s cultivation was higher than his, whereas Ma Yin had been injured by his sneak attack, and both of them were in the same realm. Ma Yin was his only chance to make an escape.
But in the next moment, Space Principles fluctuated and an invisible force bound Wu Zi Jin tightly, freezing him in a position where his axe was raised.
The soft whip in Ma Yin’s hand shook before accurately wrapping around Wu Zi Jin’s neck. Then with a slight tug, Wu Zi Jin’s head flew into the air as a fountain of blood erupted.
Ma Yin was a little absent-minded, as if she didn’t expect to kill Wu Zi Jin so easily, but she quickly understood that it was because Yang Kai had silently assisted her, so she turned her head and nodded at him, expressing her gratitude.
Yang Kai then reported, “Just so you know, the members of the Five Great Families of your Tiger Roar City also wanted to flee not too long ago, but I have already killed them all.”
Lin Tong snorted after hearing this, “Good. The Demon Race is attacking, but instead of resisting the enemy, they actually try to escape. Their deaths aren’t worth pitying. Even if Palace Master Yang didn’t do so, this Lin would have acted personally to clean up his house.”
The Five Great Families were his Tiger Roar City residents, and Wu Zi Jin was even a Vice City Lord; this series of events had really made Lin Tong lose face.
Yang Kai proclaimed with brightened eyes, “Since City Lord Lin intends to defend Tiger Roar City and fight the Demon Race to the last, the reinforcements from the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Territories will do everything in their power to assist.”
Lin Tong bowed, cupping his fists, “Many thanks, Palace Master Yang. If it wasn’t for your aid, my Tiger Roar City would be in danger today.”
Yang Kai stated, shaking his head, “Without the lips, the teeth will go cold. The Demon Race is aggressively attacking now and obviously won’t be satisfied with just the Western Territory. After they are done consuming this land, their next target will be the Southern Territory, Northern Territory, and Eastern Territory. We have come here not only to save you, but to protect ourselves as well.”
Lin Tong earnestly praised, “Palace Master Yang is a righteous and far-sighted leader. This Lin has nothing but admiration for Palace Master Yang.”
Ma Yin stated with a sigh, “Unfortunately, our Tiger Roar City’s morale is now at an all-time low.” She looked around, and the cultivators around her all evaded her gaze. It was indeed as she had said, morale had hit rock bottom. Just the fact that the Demon Race Army was attacking had already frightened everyone; and now, after Wu Zi Jin’s act of cowardice, the already low morale had dropped even further.
Yang Kai naturally understood the situation and proposed, “City Lord Lin, extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. I suggest forming a team of Military Enforcers.”
Lin Tong raised his brow and asked with some confusion, “Military Enforcers?”
Yang Kai’s face turned serious as he explained in a serious voice, “The Two Races’ Great War is different from ordinary individual battles between cultivators and requires a clear-cut Martial Law. Anyone who disobeys the law or disrupts order will be subject to severe punishment. Those who flee from the battle are subject to death, anyone who disturbs the army morale may be killed, anyone who does not fight with all their strength dies!” He stared at Lin Tong as his voice turned ice-cold, “Carrying out these punishments is the duty and mission of the Military Enforcers!”
Lin Tong and Ma Yin felt chills run down their backs when they heard this. If they really followed Yang Kai’s suggestion, they would probably have to kill a lot of people even before confronting the Demon Race.
But after giving it a second thought, this was indeed a good way to resolve their current crisis. They were seriously outnumbered, and morale was pitifully low. Tiger Roar City was in imminent danger. If they wanted to defend the city, they had to present a united front. If there was a team of Military Enforcers, it might not improve morale, but it would at least unify the cultivators to defend the city.
Having understood this, Lin Tong stated, “Palace Master Yang is right, but my Tiger Roar City’s cultivators can’t undertake this role.”
Yang Kai proposed, smiling, “City Lord Lin, if you can trust this Palace Master, please leave this to me.”
“I will have to trouble Palace Master Yang then!” Lin Tong nodded in agreement.
Outside the city, the Demon Race was invading in large numbers, and inside the city, people were panicking. A large crowd of cultivators was gathered on the city wall even now, gazing into the distance, many trying to figure out what to do or where to turn to, an air of gloom hovering over all of them.
At that moment, a person flew around the city, announcing in an ice-cold voice with a solemn expression on his face, “The Demon Race is invading, a great battle is imminent! This war is related to the survival of Tiger Roar City, to the life or death of hundreds of thousands of residents of the city. Sir City Lord has thus given the order to implement Martial Law. Defeat is not allowed in this fight. Anyone who violates the Martial Law will be judged guilty and executed for disobedience! Anyone who flees from the battle will be killed, anyone who disturbs the army morale will be killed, anyone who does not fight will be killed!”
The voice was loud enough for everyone below to hear it loud and clear, and as soon as these words were announced, all the listeners turned to look at each other in shock. Many of them were thinking of running away if the situation turned bad, but after they heard this announcement, they couldn’t help furrowing their brows. However, they didn’t take this announcement too seriously either; after all, everyone could clearly see the current situation. Tiger Roar City’s demise was all but certain. At that time, the people who wanted to escape wouldn’t be limited to just one or two, rather there would be many. At that time, laws couldn’t be enforced as there would be many people to punish. How would Sir City Lord have the time to care about such things? Perhaps he would be too busy saving himself!
Most people thought that this was just arbitrary propaganda, a declaration before mobilizing everyone in order to stabilize morale.
But before they could finish such thoughts, they saw a large group of cultivators flying out. This group had about a thousand people in it, and by the looks of their robes, they weren’t locals of Tiger Roar City, but rather the reinforcements from the other territories who had come to provide support. The person leading the group was an extremely conspicuous young man with fiery red hair.
Chi Gui of the Eastern Territory’s Ahan Temple!
Many people recognized him at once. It wasn’t that Chi Gui was that famous, rather his image was just too unique, so it was easy for the people to recognize him even if they had only heard rumours about him. Only Chi Gui had fiery red hair in Tiger Roar City, no one else. Understanding this, it was reasonable to assume that the group of people behind Chi Gui were cultivators of Ahan Temple.
If it was just this though, it wouldn’t have been enough to attract everyone’s attention. What really caught everyone’s attention was that as Chi Gui lead this thousand man force, each of them was emanating a fearsome murderous intent and had fierce looks on their faces. Chi Gui especially was gazing at everyone as if all of them were targets. There was also a group of cultivators following behind him that was holding up a bunch of severed human heads.
There were at least a few hundred of these heads, most of which had died with their eyes wide open. Blood was still dripping from their necks, making for quite the creepy scene.
Many people suddenly found some of these heads a little familiar.
Just as they were about to take a closer look to check whose heads they were though, the previous cultivator who was shouting continued, “The Five Great Families disturbed the morale of the army and have been beheaded. Wu Zi Jin fled from the battle and was executed!”
Such shouts echoed throughout the entire city, leaving everyone rooted to the spot, dumbstruck by what they were hearing.
[No wonder their heads looked familiar, it turns out they’re from the Five Great Families! And the head held in the forefront belongs to none other than Vice City Lord Wu Zi Jin!?]
[Vice City Lord was beheaded, and so were the Five Great Families! The fight hasn’t even begun but so many people on our side had already been killed! Furthermore, all these people are important figures in Tiger Roar City!]
Finally, everyone came to realize that the so-called Martial Law wasn’t there just for appearances, it would really be enforced. Since even the Five Great Families and Vice City Lord were beheaded because of breaking the law, who could possibly escape punishment?
In other words, though Tiger Roar City was in imminent danger, there was now also a group with butcher knives standing behind them all! If they accidentally violate the Martial Law, the butcher’s knife might swing for their necks! Everyone was shocked, but none dared harbour any traitorous thoughts now. They all asked themselves how their lives fared in contrast to the Five Great Families, let alone the Vice City Lord, Wu Zi Jin. Compared to these people, their lives naturally weren’t worth any more.
Above the city wall, Lin Tong was busy with his communication artifact, a nervous look hanging on his face, apparently gathering reports from various parts of the city.
After a while, the nervous look on his face gradually relaxed as he looked up at Yang Kai and praised, “Palace Master Yang’s is a born leader!”
Ma Yin looked at him with gleaming eyes and asked, “How is the situation in the city now?”
Lin Tong replied, smiling, “Although many are still worried, at least morale has stabilized.”
Ma Yin let out a sigh of relief upon hearing this and nodded, “Very good.”
She then turned her head, gratefully looking at Yang Kai and declared, “If Tiger Roar City can hold today, Palace Master Yang will be the biggest contributor.”
Yang Kai denied, shaking his head, “You flatter me. But don’t lower your guard yet. The cultivators in the city are only intimidated by those heads now. If you really want to defend the city, it will all depend on how we fare in the next battle. If we collapse at the first blow, no amount of threats will be able to save the situation.”
Lin Tong laughed and proclaimed, “Although my Tiger Roar City does not have many cultivators, if all of us can work with united spirits, it won’t be so easy to defeat us. We will let those Demon bastards know the might of Tiger Roar City today!”
Yang Kai nodded in appreciation, “It’s good to hear that Sir City Lord has this much confidence.”
While he was speaking, Ma Yin suddenly took out her communication artifact and checked it out before reporting with a solemn look on her face, “The Demon Race seems to be underestimating us a little. They have gathered all of their strength to make a breakthrough from the east!”
“Then we must go greet them!” Lin Tong coldly snorted.
The group then hurried to the east, and soon after, they arrived at the gates. The city wall was already jam-packed, mostly with local cultivators of Tiger Roar City. When Lin Tong and Ma Yin arrived, these people immediately cupped their fists and greeted them, making way for them to come over.
Yang Kai stood on the city wall beside these two, and as he looked up, he saw a black army about ten kilometres away, rushing towards this side in neither a hurried nor slow manner. The Demon Race members leading the army were riding humongous, hideous-looking Demon Beasts, each of them wearing a calm look on their faces, as if they were out for a stroll in their courtyard. It didn’t seem that they were here to invade the city but to play a game. The large army behind them was marching without any specific formation, scattered here and there, but they remained silent and solemn. The sky over the Demon Race Army was shrouded in dark clouds, making it seem like a fearsome storm was rolling towards Tiger Roar City.
The black clouds were bearing down on the city as they wanted to blow it away!
*Gudong…*
Nervous gulps sounded one after another before gazes turned towards Lin Dong one by one, as if they could only find a sense of security from him.
Lin Tong stood at the edge of the city wall, wearing a stoic look on his face. His grey hair was blowing in the wind as a gleam in his eyes flashed sharply like a falcon’s. At this moment, his old figure seemed somewhat taller than normal.
Ten kilometres, eight kilometres, five kilometres…
A tense atmosphere began to spread among the residents of Tiger Roar City. Some people had already summoned their artifacts, clenching them tightly before relaxing their grips, their palms all sweaty. Some people even started saying their final goodbyes to each other, fearing that there was no hope of surviving this battle.
The appearance of the Demon Race had been clearly imprinted in everyone’s eyes. Those fearsome Demon Beasts were also giving people a huge psychological pressure.
About three kilometres away, the leading Demon Race Master suddenly grinned at the crowd standing on the city wall, revealing his white fangs before raising his arm high and then slowly swinging it down.
The next moment, the disorganized army suddenly charged out like they were injected with hot chicken blood. War cries filled with murderous intent resounded throughout the sky as hundreds of thousands of Demons released their Demon Qi and slammed it towards Tiger Roar City as they ran forward.
Many people’s faces turned pale. Some people even involuntarily retreated, shoving others left and right. Before the battle even started, the city wall was already in chaos.
The leading Demon Race members broke into laughter at the sight of this, their laughter loud and resounding like claps of thunder.
*Shua shua shua…*
Cold gleams flickered one after another as several heads flew into the air along with splashes of blood. The next moment, several dozen twitching headless corpses fell to the ground among the bustling crowd. Bright red blood-drenched the faces and heads of the nearby cultivators, the warm and moist sensation causing shudders to run down their spines.
Chi Gui’s cold and cruel voice sounded the next moment, “Anyone who shows cowardice before the enemy will be beheaded!”
He coldly retracted his blade and swept his gaze around. All the cultivators around him evade his eyes. There were several dozen people who had acted just like him, killing the retreating cultivators, each and every one of them radiating a ghastly aura.
In an instant, no one stood within ten metres of these people, avoiding them like they were vipers.
If the announcement of the Martial Law and the display of hundreds of heads seemed distant before, what happened just now had hit far closer to home.
There were really people holding butchers’ knives behind them, ready to cut off their heads at a moment’s notice!
Yang Kai then shouted in a deep voice, “There are 5,000 Military Enforcers in the city supervising the battle, if anyone dares to violate the Martial Law, they will show no mercy. Everyone must fight!”
[5,000 Military Enforcers!] This number shocked everyone…
Although the population of Tiger Roar City was close to 300,000, the number of men and women who could actually fight was closer to 50,000, that’s all. And this was still counting the reinforcements from the three territories. Originally, 50,000 against the Demon Race left Tiger Roar City’s defenders severely outnumbered, but now, 5,000 have been deployed as Military Enforcers.
[Whoever came up with this idea is a madman!]
It must be brought to notice that the duty of a Military Enforcer entailed only internal matters, not external. Furthermore, since they had to monitor and supervise the war, they couldn’t be too weak. Whether it was a Military Enforcer or a scout, they had to be the best among the best. In other words, the 5,000 men deployed as Military Enforcers were all elites.
In other words, Tiger Roar City’s strength against the Demon Race hadn’t just decreased by 10%, but maybe 20% or 30%…
Not to mention, there was also Chi Gui leading them, who was an Emperor!
Everyone who thought about this cursed in their hearts!
But at this moment, there was no time to give it that much thought because the Demon Race Army was already upon them.
Sounds of something whistling through the air rang out as dark beams of light shot out from the Demons, one after another, bombarding the light curtain of the defensive Array of the city, causing ripples to spread in a flash, giving the impression that the shield could collapse at any moment.
The Dao Source Realm cultivators, who were managing the Spirit Array, had already taken out their respective Array Jades and were frantically mobilizing their strength to stabilize its operation.
The battle of Tiger Roar City had begun at that moment.
Lin Tong raised his arm and shouted, “Attack!”
On the city wall, many cultivators activated their artifacts or used their Secret Techniques one after another, shooting long-range attacks off the city wall. The next moment, multi-coloured beams of light shot through the light screen of the Array, bombarding the Demon Race Army. There was no need to aim either, because the Demons had gathered all in one group, so any random attack would hit as long as it was fired in their general direction.
Demons fell one by one, but more stepped forward to fill the gap, the deaths of their clansmen not making them timid and instead arousing their bloodthirsty nature. Every Demon Race member seemed to be unafraid of death.
The corpses below the city wall continued to pile up, gradually forming a hill.
Both sides kept attacking each other, but Tiger Roar City was protected by an Array, so as long as it stood firm, there would be no casualties on the defender’s side. On the contrary, the Demon Race side was suffering heavy casualties.
It was a good start!
The morale of Tiger Roar City’s cultivators was lifted at this sight and they were no longer stingy with their energy, unleashing all their best moves to the fullest of their ability. Owing to this, more and more Demon Race members fell to the ground, dead.
Not even thirty breaths had passed since the battle began, but thousands of Demons had already died.
The countless attacks on the Array, however, made its light dimmer and dimmer and it was now showing signs of cracking in places. Although the Defensive Array of Tiger Roar City wasn’t bad, the Demon Race Army’s strength was simply too great. When this Defensive Array was arranged, no one had expected a Demon Race Army to attack the city someday, so it couldn’t last for too long.
Once the Array was broken, Tiger Roar City’s greatest support would be gone, at which point, the cultivators in the city would not be the opponents of these ravenous Demons in close combat.
Obviously, Lin Tong knew this but he had no choice but to use whatever means he had on hand to quickly reduce the number of enemies as much as possible before the Array was broken.
Right then, a tall figure jumped up high, holding an enormous pitch-black hammer. The hammer was of the size of a door and had Demon Qi lingering about it as it slammed hard onto the Array. At the point where it struck, the light screen of the Array immediately creaked as thin and long cracks spread in all directions.
That Demon was blown away by the rebounding force, but he quickly returned and let out a war cry as he raised his hammer up high and slammed it down again.
Everyone’s eyes widened as they could tell that if the hammer struck again, a gap might really be smashed open in the Array. Although a single gap would not be a big deal in normal times and could be repaired in short order, in the current situation it may be the difference between victory or defeat.
No one needed any orders as everyone nearby fired their attacks on that Demon, one after another, trying to kill him first.
The Demon Race Master, however, just sneered, surprisingly not even trying to dodge, allowing all the attacks to land on his body. A stony glimmer suddenly appeared on the Demon’s body, and he remained safe and sound. He was a Demon King, and a Stone Demon at that, so his innate defence was outstanding.
Lin Tong’s heart sank at the sight of this.
As the hammer came down, countless people immediately wailed in their hearts as if the hammer’s target was not the Defensive Array but their own body.
Right then, a figure suddenly appeared in front of the Demon King, stretching its hand out toward the sky and grabbing the hammer.
Ma Yin’s eyes bulged in shock as she finally realized that the person blocking the Demon King was none other than High Heaven Palace’s Palace Master, Yang Kai, and she instinctually let out a tender cry, “Careful!”
The Demon King’s attack was both powerful and heavy, not to mention that Yang Kai was just a Second-Order Emperor. Even a Third-Order Emperor might be flattened into nothing by this move.
Lin Tong’s heart jumped into his throat as well. In this situation, every Emperor Realm Master added an extra level of security to Tiger Roar City, not to mention the fact that Yang Kai was proficient in the Dao of Space. If Yang Kai died here, it would not be as simple as Tiger Roar City losing an Emperor Realm protector, the army’s morale and spirit which had just stabilized would probably collapse again.
*Hong…*
But before everyone’s shocked gazes, Yang Kai actually remained completely still. Suddenly, a visible shock wave burst out from his back, sending his clothes flapping. The hammer that should have slammed onto the Defensive Array was now firmly gripped in his hand.
[Blocked!? He actually blocked it!?]
Lin Tong simply couldn’t believe his eyes. Was this a feat one could accomplish with physical strength alone? But very soon, he hurriedly ordered, “Quickly repair the Array!”
He didn’t know how long Yang Kai could last, but since he had charged out of the Array despite the danger and blocked the critical attack with his own strength, it had given Tiger Roar City a chance to breathe and restore the damaged Array.
The nearby cultivators, who were managing the Array, finally reacted and hurriedly got to work after hearing Lin Tong’s shout.
“Huh?” The Stone Demon opposite Yang Kai raised his brow, staring blankly at Yang Kai. He looked completely stunned, as if he hadn’t expected this little bug-like man to actually block his hammer.
Another nearby Demon King broke into laughter and taunted, “Zha Sa, you waste, were you sucked so dry by those Charm Demons last night that you were actually stopped by this puny Human?”
The Demon King Zha Sa grew angry out of shame and lashed back, “What nonsense!? This King almost fucked those trivial sluts to death, how could they dream of sucking me dry?”
That previous Demon King asked, “Then what’s this situation?”
Zha Sa gazed at Yang Kai with a solemn look as he replied in a heavy voice, “This little brat is not simple! He’s quite strong.”
The other Demon King coldly snorted, “Hurry up and kill him, they are repairing the Spirit Array already. Don’t slip up at the last step.”
Zha Sa snapped, “You don’t need to tell me!”
Yang Kai just grimed as he joined in the conversation, “Do you guys really have the time to chit-chat? Should I let you continue your conversation a little longer? Speaking of which, I’m also quite interested in those Charm Demons you mentioned! Perhaps we can all sit down and discuss them with each other when we have the opportunity?”
Zha Sa broke into laughter, “You want to play with those Charm Demons with your scrawny body? You’d best not, otherwise, there’ll be nothing left of you in the morning!”
Yang Kai retorted, shrugging his shoulders, “Many thanks for your concern, but I think I’ll be just fine.”
Zha Sa sneered, “It’s a pity that you won’t have that chance.” After saying so, he tried to pull his hammer back, but in the next moment, his face greatly changed, because his hammer was firmly held by the Human before him and he was completely unable to move it.
Zha Sa immediately looked as if he had seen a ghost.
He was a Stone Demon, and although he might be a little weaker than those innately gifted Strength Demons when it came to raw physical power, the difference wasn’t that great.
[My Demon Artifact is being held tight by this freak and I can’t even get it back, what the hell is going on here!? Is this Human actually that strong?]
“This hammer is pretty good,” Yang Kai grinned at him, inexplicably causing a cold chill to shoot up Zha Sa’s spine, but before he could react, his arms suddenly felt lighter and he noticed that his Demon Artifact had actually been snatched by this Human.
Yang Kai weighed the hammer in his hand a little before nodding in appreciation, “Not bad, not bad at all!”
A whistling sound suddenly rang out as the hammer was sent slamming back at the Demon King.
Zha Sa’s face drastically changed as he hurriedly tried to retreat, but just as he was about to move, the surrounding space suddenly became extremely viscous, as if he had fallen into a swamp. The next moment, he felt his head sink in before everything went black.
The riotous battlefield filled with the sounds of explosions and shouting suddenly went silent for a moment, like the entire world had instantly come to a halt.
One after another, gazes focused on Yang Kai as everyone had an extreme sense of incredulity, especially the members of the Demon Race. Almost all of them were dumbfounded while the Demon King who had been mocking Zha Sa before had his eyes bulge so wide they nearly popped out of their sockets.
At that moment, small pieces of flesh rained down from the sky around Yang Kai as the Stone Demon Zha Sa was blown into a mist of blood by his very own hammer. Nothing of him remained. Although the Demon Race had a very tenacious vitality, after suffering this kind of blow, Zha Sa could not be more dead.
“Next!” Yang Kai, wielding Zha Sa’s hammer, stood calmly in the air, coldly glancing over the surroundings. There was a wide gap in the Defensive Array behind him, but at this moment Yang Kai gave off the aura of a giant who could alone hold back the entire enemy army, one man as a mountain.
Cheers immediately broke out on the city wall as Lin Tong was finally able to put down the worry in his heart. Ma Yin’s beautiful eyes flickered with a strange gleam whereas Yu Ru Meng disdainfully spat at the sight of this and moved to block this woman’s line of sight.
“Kill him!” A furious roar resounded as all the Demon Race members in the vicinity charged at Yang Kai without a care for their lives. Although the death of Zha Sa came as a great shock, this did not cause them to cower, and under the Demon King’s orders, no one dared not charge.
In an instant, Yang Kai was completely surrounded.
*Hong Hong Hong…*
Muffled explosions rang one after another as Demons were blown apart into blood mists. In the blink of an eye, Yang Kai’s figure stood tall while all the Demons who had charged at him before were wiped out. Right now, there were no Demons within a dozen metre radius of where he stood.
Yang Kai’s entire figure was dyed in the Demon Race blood and the remnant Demon Qi swirled around his body, making him look more like a Demon than the Demons themselves!
The Demon Race continued charging at Yang Kai though, filling the ranks of the fallen ones without showing even the slightest hesitation, but Yang Kai’s location seemed to have turned into a meat grinder that ground up all Demons who approached, leaving not one alive.
At that moment, Yang Kai was truly the incarnation of a mountain, holding back the tide all on his own.
So long as there were sacrifices, the massacre kept going.
Yang Kai stood alone outside the Defensive Array, but he kept the storming Demon Race Army back like a God of Slaughter. Even though he was only one person, the power he displayed was comparable to an army.
On the city wall, the cultivators of Tiger Roar City were busy repairing the crack in the Array, and soon, they completed their task.
Seeing this, Lin Tong shouted, “Palace Master Yang, you can withdraw now.”
Yang Kai slowly shook his head, “I’m afraid I won’t be able to return.”
Just as he said these words, his figure flickered as he appeared at another location. The Array at that spot had also been cracked by the Demon Race. Thanks to Yang Kai’s quick thinking though, he moved over to cover this opening, otherwise, the swarming Demon Race Army would have really broken into the city.
The same situation repeated as before. The Demon Race Army madly charged at the crack but was stopped by Yang Kai’s hammer alone. Unable to advance, the Demons only left countless corpses behind, ending up with heavy casualties.
And right behind Yang Kai, the few cultivators responsible for patching the Spirit Array rushed over and began working frantically.
Cries and shouts filled the battlefield as the Demon Race’s ferocity was on full display. Since the beginning of the war, it had barely been a quarter of an hour, yet Tiger Roar City’s Defensive Array had been breached twice.
But how many Yang Kai’s were there in this world? Even though there were over ten Emperor Realm Masters in the city, none of them dared to rush out of the city like Yang Kai and take on the Demon Race Army alone. Lin Tong observed the situation of the entire battlefield, sending attacks when he could towards the invading enemies as deep worry could be clearly seen on his face. As the City Lord of Tiger Roar City, he could already see the greatest weakness on his side. If the Demon Race Army changed their strategy, it would be questionable whether Tiger Roar City could hold on today or not.
And his fears soon came true. After their initial attempts, seeing that it was impossible to break through Yang Kai’s location and that the recently opened breach was repaired again, the Demon Race Army suddenly split up and began attacking from several directions.
Lin Ting’s heart pounded at the sight of this. If the Demon Race Army concentrated their offensive at one location, Tiger Roar City still had hopes of defending as Yang Kai’s performance was simply astonishing. With him taking charge of the front lines, it became impossible to breach the Array.
But with the Demon Race Army splitting up, once the Array was breached at multiple locations, it would be impossible to defend all the gaps.
Facts proved that the Demons weren’t fools. They could see what Lin Tong could see and swiftly implemented a plan to maximise their advantage.
After a while, the Demon Race had breached the Array at another location and Yang Kai promptly swooped in to block the invading Demons, but the next moment, he heard a cry of despair not too far away. As he looked over, Yang Kai saw another crack appearing on that side and a swarm of elated Demons who were rushing towards it.
Yang Kai heaved a sigh before raising his hand and summoning the Embodiment out, making him defend the place he was originally guarding while he himself rushed in that direction.
As soon as the Embodiment appeared, he started a massacre. With his several-dozen-metre tall body, he gave everyone a very strong visual impact, especially with the numerous spikes and wicked flames covering his figure. Wielding the Demonic War Hammer, the region around the Embodiment became a zone of death, with every swing of its hammer creating a rain of blood. On top of that, after activating the Heaven Devouring Domain, the Demon Qi of the swarming Demon Race members was soon sucked out and devoured clean.
The Demon Race was stupefied as this newcomer was even more terrifying than the Human man who was blocking their way before! No one knew how this stone giant appeared, or where it came from, but with it guarding the Defensive Array, the recently breached opening was simply impregnable.
With these two guarding the two gaps, the Demon Race Army suffered thousands of casualties, but they were still unable to move forward an inch.
But a third breach very soon appeared, becoming the breakthrough point the Demon Race Army needed.
Lin Tong promptly rushed over without a moment of hesitation. He didn’t dare to rush out of the gap like Yang Kai as he was well aware of his own capabilities. Although he was similarly an Emperor Realm Master, he was only an ordinary Second-Order. If he really rushed out of the breach, he would immediately be overwhelmed by the enemy.
Very wisely, he stayed inside the Array while boldly blocking the third gap with his body. He let out a furious war cry as his thin body swelled up like a balloon, his muscles bulging as he even grew a little taller, ripping apart his upper robes. An intense aura overflowed from his body at that moment as he raised his hand, summoning a broadsword that was taller than the average man that shone with an impressive radiance.
The halo around the broadsword rippled again and again, leaving countless after images and in the next moment, all the swarming Demon Race members were chopped to pieces.
A serious look appeared on the faces of Ma Yin and the other Emperor Realm Masters of Tiger Roar City, who were guarding their respective areas. Their Emperor Qi soared as those closest cooperated with Lin Tong to block the Demon Race Army’s advance, sparing no strength.
Fortunately, the Array wasn’t completely destroyed and the breaches weren’t that big either, so not many Demons could charge in through the gaps. Coupled with the Emperor Realm Masters of Tiger Roar City providing support, they barely held on.
The morale of many cultivators rose when they saw this and fired off their respective Secret Technique more and more fiercely, reducing the strength of the Demon Race as much as possible.
But a fourth gap was soon cracked open.
Li Jiao and Gao Xue Ting, following suit, immediately jumped in to block the Demon Race Army’s advance. Although there were only two of them, they actually had an easier time defending than Lin Tong’s side.
After all, Li Jiao was a Third-Order Emperor and possessed a half-dragon bloodline, so while he wasn’t as strong as a Pseudo-Great Emperor, he was still a little stronger than an ordinary Third-Order Emperor Realm Master.
With him holding the front and Gao Xue Ting supporting and coordinating from behind, no matter how many Demons reached the breach, all of them were killed.
On the city wall, the cultivators responsible for repairing the Spirit Array were run ragged, their feet never stopping. They were running around here and there like a team of firefighters. Wherever the Array was breached, they would rush over to repair the gap, but just as they repaired one gap, another would appear.
Fortunately, the Demon Race Army’s strength had also reached a limit; otherwise, if another or two gaps were opened, Tiger Roar City would really not be able to hold on. Yang Kai and the Embodiment kept switching locations, rushing to new gaps and guarding them one after another.
At every moment, the Array appeared to be on the verge of collapsing but it always somehow held on.
After about an hour, the Demon Race Army had suffered casualties in the tens of thousands, while Tiger Roar City had still not lost a single person. This was simply unimaginable, but everyone knew it was all thanks to the Spirit Array behind which Tiger Roar City’s forces were hiding. As long as the Array wasn’t broken, they would not be in any danger; however, constantly expending their energy for an hour straight had left many people somewhat exhausted. Many people in the city now had to use pills to supplement their energy while some who had reached their limits were forced to withdraw and adjust their breathing.
If the current status quo was maintained and nothing eventful happened, Tiger Roar City might just make it through.
But disaster always strikes unannounced.
Outside the city wall, Yang Kai was radiating a dense and awe-inspiring murderous intent as Space Principles flared around him, slicing apart every enemy that got within ten metres of him. Countless Demons had been ground into blood mists, leaving not even a single piece of bone behind. All that was left was a pile of ground-up flesh near his feet.
Suddenly, Ma Yin’s cry rang in his ear, “City Lord, be careful!” Her voice was mixed with panic and fear.
As Yang Kai turned to take a look, his pupils immediately and involuntarily shrank. He noticed Lin Tong’s pupils widened in surprise as his feet sank into the ground for some reason, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t free himself. Obviously, he had fallen to some plot, and right then, a Blood Demon Demon King surrounded by a bloody halo rushed over from the nearby breach with a ferocious smile on his face.
Lin Tong wasn’t panicked though and displayed the composure of a veteran Second-Order Emperor, fiercely chopping down his broadsword.
The Blood Demon, however, didn’t dodge and simply let the broadsword slash him. In the next moment though, the Blood Demon’s figure transformed into a cloud of blood mist without suffering any damage whatsoever. Right afterwards, the mist of blood completely enveloped Lin Tong and drilled its way into his body through his pores and seven orifices.
Lin Tong’s face changed as a painful groan inevitably escaped from his mouth and his figure faltered.
Ma Yin and the others were all rooted to the spot, stunned and confused, having no idea what to do.
They were fighting against the Demon Race for the first time, so they were naturally unfamiliar with all the various characteristics of the hundred clans. They might have heard some information before, but things completely changed when it came to firsthand experience.
If the Blood Demon had engaged in a fight with Lin Tong, they might be able to provide support, but they had no idea how to deal with this strange situation. While the nearby cultivators were reeling from the shock, a large part of the Demon Race Army charged in through the gap, Demon Qi billowing from their faces as they menacingly pounced.
Lin Tong suddenly turned his head to stare in Yang Kai’s direction. A hint of determination flashed in his eyes, he shouted in a heavy voice, “Palace Master Yang, I leave Tiger Roar City to you!”
Just as he said this, he swung his broadsword down at himself.
Right then, blood splashed everywhere as his legs were severed from below Lin Tong’s knees before he shot off into the sky, his mutilated body enveloped in a bloody halo as he rushed out of the city with a furious roar, plunging straight into the heart of the Demon Race Army.
Fearsome energy fluctuations started undulating right after, causing the Demons in the surroundings to turn pale in shock.
The Blood Demon who had invaded Lin Tong’s body hurriedly tried to withdraw, reforming his physical body as he cursed Lin Tong, “Crazy bastard!”
But how could Lin Tong let him escape? Pushing his Emperor Qi madly, he grabbed hold of the Blood Demon and refused to let go. The Blood Demon wore a look of shock and was struck with panic, struggling hard as he transformed his arms into sharp claws that ripped into Lin Tong’s chest and arms again and again.
But his efforts proved futile as Lin Tong’s body only glowed more and more dazzlingly.
The next moment, a deafening explosion reverberated throughout the sky as everything within 500 meters of Lin Tong completely vanished. Not even the bones of the Blood Demon remained while over ten thousand Demons simply vaporized.
“City Lord!” Ma Yin cried out in grief as the eyes of other Emperor Realm Masters of Tiger Roar City turned red from sorrow and anger. Their blood began to boil as they released bestial war cries, vowing to avenge Lin Tong!
Tiger Roar City had suffered its first casualty of today’s battle, but no one had ever imagined that the first to be martyred would be the City Lord himself.
While everyone was lost in the heat of the moment, a pair of hands silently creeped out from underneath Ma Yin, grabbing towards her.
Earlier, these very hands had caught Lin Tong, rendering him rooted to the spot.
Grief-stricken, Ma Yin failed to notice the approaching danger.
But suddenly, Yang Kai’s figure flickered over and while he pushed Ma Yin away, he stomped towards the ground as Space Principles undulated.
The ground quaked as a muffled sound came below ground, as if something was crushed to pieces.
Ma Yin finally came to her senses and turned a dazed look to Yang Kai.
Yang Kai glanced at her as he stated in a grim voice, “Sand Demons are experts at Earth Escape Techniques. All of you must be careful of them.”
After listening to Yang Kai’s warning, Ma Yin and the others finally understood what happened to Lin Tong just now.
The Sand Demon, who was strong enough to trap the Second-Order Emperor Realm Lin Tong, was surely a Demon King Realm Master, but such a Master was still killed by Yang Kai’s stomp, so just how strong was Yang Kai really?
But there was no time to remain shocked as a large number of Demons were now pouring through the unguarded breach in the Defensive Array.
And in the absence of Yang Kai, Demon Race members were also swarming through the breach he had previously been defending.
More and more Demons poured into the city, engaging the cultivators of Tiger Roar City in close quarters, starting a fight to the death on the city wall! People on both sides continued to fall as, for the first time, the cultivators on the city walls were fighting the Demon Race hand to hand, but how could these exhausted and demoralized cultivators stand against the fearless Demon Race. Many collapsed at the first encounter and were completely routed.
The role of the Military Enforcers finally came into play. Yang Kai was not bluffing when he said that 5,000 enforcers had been deployed. They really existed.
Anyone who took a step back was beheaded by the Military Enforcers the next moment.
With the Demons before them and the Military Enforcers behind, many defenders quickly understood their situation. If they took a step back, they would die without a doubt, but if they stepped forward to fight, they might have a chance to live. At this moment, there was only one choice for them, and coupled with the shocking sight of Lin Tong’s heroic sacrifice, many cultivators’ felt a rush of hot blood as they let out war cries and charged straight at the Demons. Even if they died, they wanted to bite off a chunk of Demon flesh before they fell.
Yang Kai timely raised his sword and shouted, “So long as a single person lives, the city remains standing, the moment everyone dies will be the moment the city is destroyed, attack!”
After a short moment of panic and disorder, Tiger Roar City’s morale finally started rising as they counterattacked the Demon Race in teams. Ma Yin even set an example and charged to the forefront, acting no weaker than any man.
Right then, mysterious and obscure incantations started ringing as a halo enveloped the cultivators of Tiger Roar City. With a wave of Yang Kai’s hand, two Shamanic Spells, the Bloodlust Spell and Life Chains, were activated.
Under the Bloodlust Spell, the timidity of Tiger Roar City cultivators was swept away and replaced with a desire for battle. As for the Life Chains, they connected the vitality of thousands of cultivators, allowing them to withstand more damage without dying.
The line must hold!
Everyone was amazed to find that even after the Defensive Array had been breached by the enemy at multiple locations, Tiger Roar City was actually able to compete with the Demon Race Army despite being outnumbered, preventing the enemy from completely breaching their defences. Only a small part of the enemy army was able to reach the actual city, which boosted the defenders’ confidence. It let them know that the Demon Race was not immortal or invincible, they could be killed just like anyone else.
The locations of the ten or so Emperor Realm Masters turned into forbidden zones. The Demon Race Army was unable to break through their line of defence at all as, no matter how many charged, all of them fell. Obviously, the enemy Demon Kings took notice of this situation and acted accordingly, attacking the Emperor Realm Masters of Tiger Roar City.
This was exactly what Yang Kai wanted though.
If the Demon Kings remained hidden amidst the enemy army, he might not be able to find them in all the chaos; after all, there were just too many people fighting now. But now that the Demon Kings had revealed themselves, it gave Yang Kai a chance to kill them all.
Yang Kai’s figure wandered back and forth across the battlefield, and wherever he passed by, Demons fell in droves. One by one, the Demon Kings were killed by Yang Kai, and without their commands, the Demon Race Army, which had been moving and attacking in an orderly manner, slowly started to become disorganized. However, being brave and fearless of death, the Demons continued charging straight into the Tiger Roar City’s defence line, giving the defending side an opportunity to encircle and eliminate them.
After half a day, the Demon Race Army was still attacking, but the situation had taken a sharp turn. The city walls of Tiger Roar City were completely blanketed by a floor of severed heads, all of them belonging to the cultivators of Tiger Roar City. There was not a single Demon Race member in sight though as all of the Demons who had charged in through breaches in the Defensive Array had been eliminated without any exception.
The Demon Race Army’s size had dropped by more than half.
Finally, some among the Demons realized that something was wrong because there weren’t any signs of Demon Kings on the battlefield, not even a single one. Even the Demon King, who had been giving orders from the rear, had been drawn out and killed by Yang Kai.
The enemy was now a heap of loose sand!
Although the Demon Race wasn’t afraid of death, they would not make meaningless sacrifices. When they saw no hope of victory, they naturally chose to retreat.
And so a slow withdrawal began as the Demon Race Army entered a strategic retreat.
Right at this moment, the creaky Defensive Array was suddenly withdrawn as Yang Kai, leading over 10,000 cultivators, charged out, chasing the retreating Demons, hunting down and killing the enemy for a thousand kilometres, leaving a trail of corpses in their wake.
Only after a thousand-kilometres pursuit did they finally beat the gong and withdrew their troops.
Every Human cultivator was panting for breath, looking in the direction of the Demon Race’s escape. Everyone was dyed red, as if they had just walked out of a sea of blood, but no matter who it was, every one of them was excited.
[We won!]
To everyone’s surprise, Tiger Roar City won the battle even when they were so heavily outnumbered. More importantly, they only paid a small price to achieve this victory, which no one had even imagined before the war started.
All of them thought that they would definitely die today and Tiger Roar City would be added to the Demon land, but reality gave everyone a big pleasant surprise.
And the one who made this reality a possibility was one man!
Everyone’s gaze turned towards the bloodied Yang Kai, one after another. Each and every one of them had a look of reverence on their faces. Had Yang Kai not been acting as a mountain, blocking the breaches in the Defensive Array, Tiger Roar City would not have had the chance to reduce the numbers of the Demon Race Army to the point where they could repel them. Had Yang Kai not dived into the enemy lines and taken out all the Demon Kings alone, the Demon Race Army would not have been reduced to a heap of loose sand that could easily be scattered. Had Yang Kai not used those marvellous Secret Techniques, the cultivators of Tiger Roar City would definitely not have been able to compete with the Demon Race.
At the very end, had Yang Kai not brought the cultivators to rush out and hunt down the fleeing Demon Race, they would not have achieved such a significant victory.
At this moment, whether it was the cultivators of Tiger Roar City or the reinforcements of the three Territories, all had a strong sense of respect and awe towards this young man.
Everyone had the highest praise for him in their heart!
Ma Yin stepped forward and asked, cupping her fists, “City Lord, please give your orders.”
Before sacrificing himself, Lin Tong had entrusted Tiger Roar City to Yang Kai, and coupled with Yang Kai’s astonishing performance in this battle, no one else could be the City Lord of Tiger Roar City; only Yang Kai was eligible for this.
As the Palace Master of the High Heaven Palace, Yang Kai naturally didn’t care about being the City Lord of Tiger Roar City, but at this moment, he didn’t decline it either. He just nodded and gave his order, “We return. The Demon Race will make a comeback, we need to rest and recuperate as well as repair the defences.”
“Yes!” Everyone responded.
After half a day, the army finally returned to the city. Some counted the casualties, while the injured went to be treated. Tiger Roar City’s walls and Defensive Array were also under repair.
It was just that the momentum of the entire Tiger Roar City was completely different. Compared to before, it was like clouds and mud. With the cheers and celebration of victory still ringing in their hearts, many cultivators in Tiger Roar City were full of energy. Even when they were still suffering from the after-effects of the Bloodlust Spell, their zeal hadn’t reduced at all.
Inside the City Lord’s Mansion, Yang Kai was sitting in an open pool with a contemplative look on his face. Yu Ru Meng was sitting by the water, dangling her bare feet as she glanced over at him from time to time.
She was really thick-skinned, seemingly not knowing the meaning of the word ‘shame’. Yang Kai was taking a bath right in front of her, but she didn’t have any intention of removing herself from his company.
“Do you want to stay here and defend this city?” Yu Ru Meng asked, suddenly splashing water at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai indifferently replied, “One has to try his best to do what is entrusted to him by others.”
Yu Ru Meng asked, smiling at him, “The old man was just spouting some wishfully thinking before his death. Did you really take him seriously?”
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes at her, “Without even taking into consideration City Lord Lin’s last request, Tiger Roar City has to be defended!” Just as he had told Lin Tong before, the three territories had come to support the Western Territory not just to rescue them, but to rescue themselves; they couldn’t retreat.
Yu Ru Meng stated, pouting, “The Demon Race won’t give up. They will return stronger the next time. How long can you hold out?”
Yang Kai calmly replied, “You seem to understand the Demon Race very well.”
Yu Ru Meng responded, “It’s obvious, isn’t it? You know it too. You can rout them once, but what about the second time, or the third time? The Demon Race will keep coming in greater numbers and with more powerful Masters each time!”
Yang Kai grinned, “Then I will beat them till they dare not return!”
Yu Ru Meng couldn’t help but roll her eyes at him, “Your boasting has really reached unprecedented levels!”
Yang Kai looked at her with great interest before ordering, hooking his fingers, “Little temptress, come here!”
Yu Ru Meng furrowed her brow, “What did you call me? Why did you call me little temptress?”
“So what if I called you little temptress, do you have a problem with that?” Yang Kai looked at her in amazement.
Yu Ru Meng shook her head, “I don’t have any problem. It just feels novel to me.”
“Really?” Yang Kai broke out into laughter and the next moment, he reached out and grabbed her. Yu Ru Meng immediately let out a tender cry as she fell into the pool, her hands resting on his chest. Staring at him, she asked with a vigilant look on her face, “What are you doing?”
Yang Kai didn’t speak, he just brought her in close and pressed his lips onto her own.
Immediately after, a sharp cry sounded and at the same time, Yang Kai threw her into the middle of the pool.
Yu Ru Meng stood up with an exasperated look on her face, glaring at Yang Kai’s back, grinding her teeth, her clothes wet and translucent, a drop of blood dying her cherry lips crimson, “You bit me!”
Yang Kai got up and got dressed, pushing his Emperor Qi slightly to dry himself before he walked right out without looking back.
“Why did you bite me!?” Yu Ru Meng yelled from behind, but she didn’t get any response as Yang Kai had already disappeared from her sight.
“Smelly man, I will pay you back sooner or later!” Yu Ru Meng vented her anger for a while before she finally left the pool. She then took off her wet clothes and put on a new dry set.
The city was currently in a flurry of activity. As the new City Lord of Tiger Roar City, Yang Kai was walking around with Ma Yin, checking the current situation. The number of casualties was also presented to him. Although Tiger Roar City had won the previous battle, the losses they had suffered weren’t small. More than 10,000 had fallen, but compared to the results of the battle, such a loss was within the acceptable range.
Many more were injured or invaded by Demon Qi, putting them in danger of losing their sentience and turning into Demons themselves.
Ma Yin ordered all those invaded by Demon Qi to be gathered in one place, placing them under strict supervision. If anyone showed any signs of succumbing, he or she would be immediately killed.
Yang Kai asked her to take him to the place where these people were imprisoned immediately upon learning about the situation and cast the Demon Exorcism Spell to expel the Demon Qi from their bodies. This miraculous technique left Ma Yin in complete amazement once more.
After a busy half a day, Yang Kai finally returned to the City Lord’s Mansion. Everything in the city was taken care of by the other Emperors.
After arranging a Space Array at a suitable location inside the City Lord’s Mansion, Yang Kai directly activated it and returned to High Heaven Palace. He then took out the communication artifact and sent a message before waiting. Nanmen Da Jun hurriedly rushed over a moment later and asked, “Palace Master, what’s the matter?”
“Follow me,” Yang Kai beckoned.
Nanmen Da Jun asked, “Do you need me to arrange a Spirit Array?”
He was an Emperor Array Master and Yang Kai generally didn’t come to him for anything apart from something related to Spirit Arrays, so it wasn’t difficult to guess what the latter wanted now.
And seeing Yang Kai nod, Nanmen Da Jun stated, “Then I must ask Palace Master to wait a moment while I call over some of my little brats to help.”
The so-called little brats were naturally the few new Disciples he had recruited. High Heaven Palace was a massive Sect with over 100,000 disciples, so it was natural for some to have talent in the Dao of Spirit Arrays. Nanmen Da Jun had no intention of leaving High Heaven Palace anymore, so he naturally began to consider the issue of his inheritance.
Not only him, but even Hou Yu had similarly accepted a few talented Disciples to join her in Artifact Refining.
After a short while, five young disciples hurried over, each of them bowing respectfully when they saw their Honoured Master, Nanmen Da Jun.
Yang Kai was delighted after seeing this. Although he didn’t know the names of these young disciples, they were obviously brought over from Heng Luo Star Field by him as all of them looked at him with kind-hearted expressions. Afterwards, the group of six immediately returned to Tiger Roar City using the Space Array.
The last battle made Yang Kai realize that Tiger Roar City’s original Defensive Array couldn’t be used again; it needed to be repaired and reinforced, and Nanmen Da Jun, an Emperor Array Master, was the perfect choice for this job.
As he was shown around the city, Nanmen Da Jun didn’t hesitate to criticize Tiger Roar City Defensive Array as useless, feeling ashamed to even call the others who arranged it fellow Array Masters. He couldn’t wait to dismantle and rearrange the entire Spirit Array.
Yang Kai, however, patted him on the shoulder and shook his head, “There’s not much time. Just augment it as best you can.”
Nanmen Da Jun patted his chest and guaranteed, “Rest assured, Palace Master, I will personally see to it that the Defensive Array here will be ten times stronger than before by the time I am finished.”
Naturally, Yang Kai had complete confidence in him. Among the Array Masters he had come in contact with, only Yang Yan was superior to this old man in the Dao of Spirit Arrays while others were not on par.
Yang Kai didn’t remain in Tiger Roar City after he finished explaining things to Nanmen Da Jun and instead used a Space Beacon to teleport to Li Wu Yi’s side.
As soon as the two met, Yang Kai went straight to the point, without any pleasantries, “Senior, I need more manpower.”
Li Wu Yi looked at him with widened eyes, “And so you came to me?”
Yang Kai replied, blinking at him, “Who else would I go to?”
Li Wu Yi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, “I’m also lacking troops here. If you ask me for more men, who else should I ask?”
Yang Kai was extremely shocked, “Really?”
Li Wu Yi explained with a headache, “You saw it too when you came last time. The Demon Race Army on my side numbers more than a million and is filled with powerful Masters. I have just enough troops to protect this city, so where would I find extra manpower to give you?”
Yang Kai gave it a second thought and reluctantly had to agree. Although Li Wu Yi had more troops compared to Tiger Roar City, they were up against a greater proportion of enemies. Yang Kai had also witnessed the last battle with his own eyes where the Demon Race sent a Pseudo-Great Emperor Realm Master to contend with Li Wu Yi. Yang Kai might really not be able to find anyone free here.
Li Wu Yi asked, “Where are you stationed now? What’s the situation over here?”
Yang Kai heaved a sigh as he replied, “Tiger Roar City, we just finished an initial battle but suffered a lot of casualties and urgently need to replenish our forces.”
“Tiger Roar City…” Li Wu Yi raised his brow and walked over to a Mountains and River Projection to take a look. This Mountains and Rivers Projection should have been refined not long ago and covered the entire Western Territory. However, this projection was clearly refined in a hurry, so it wasn’t all that precise. After searching for a while, Li Wu Yi found the location of Tiger Roar City and lightly nodded, “This is also an important location. If Tiger Roar City falls, the Demon Race Army will be able to breach through our defence line and attack our rear.”
“Senior is absolutely correct, so I must ask Senior to provide me with some support.” Yang Kai immediately struck while the iron was hot.
Li Wu Yi pointed at him in exasperation, wanting to curse, but eventually he just sighed and said, “It’s useless to talk to me. I really can’t send out anyone from my side. What about the members of your High Heaven Palace?”
Yang Kai took a deep breath as he searched on the Mountains and Rivers Projection before pressing a spot and replying, “They are all stationed here.”
“Can’t they provide help?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “I’m afraid it’s not possible either. They too have their own enemies.”
Li Wu Yi sighed, “The Demon Race is too strong and too well prepared. Currently, all the cities of the Western Territories we are defending are outnumbered and fighting against unfavourable odds.”
Yang Kai proposed, furrowing his brow, “If that’s the case, why not pull back and consolidate our forces?”
Li Wu Yi shook his head, “If we do that, it would mean abandoning a swath of territory, and the Demon Race will also be able to gather its forces. The gains outweigh the losses. Although things aren’t looking good right now, as long as we persevere, there is still some hope.” He paused for a moment before adding, “Go to Yang Yan. Currently, she is in charge of the Star Boundary’s logistics and troop deployment. She knows the situation of the major cities in the Western Territory so perhaps she can requisition some people for you from somewhere less burdened. I also sent the Emperor Realm Masters and Shamans you brought last time to her to assign.”
“Yang Yan?” Yang Kai was shocked, “Where do I find her?”
“I’ll send you there,” As he spoke, Li Wu Yi put his hand on Yang Kai’s shoulder and in the next moment, Space Principles fluctuated and, in a flash of blinding light, Yang Kai disappeared.
Before he could even compose himself, Yang Kai heard a loud clamouring of voices.
As Yang Kai focused his gaze to look, he couldn’t help but be stunned.
There were more than a dozen people standing in the hall where he had arrived, and all of them were Third-Order Emperors or Masters of great forces. Each person here was a famous figure that was looked up to and worshipped by the billions of cultivators across the Star Boundary. However, at this moment, all of them were red in the face, shooting steam from their ears and spitting out in rage at each other, as if they all had absolutely irreconcilable grudges between them.
Yang Kai even saw a lot of familiar faces among these people!
Wen Zi Shan and Ma Qing had actually grabbed each other by their collars and looked like they were about to come to blows.
Yang Kai silently and quietly stepped aside, lest he get caught in the scuffle.
The sudden appearance of another person naturally drew everyone’s attention, and when they turned to look, many acquaintances lightly nodded to Yang Kai while Mi Qi came up to him and greeted with cupped fists, “Palace Master Yang!”
Yang Kai responded in kind as he curiously looked around.
“Hey you, boy, why are you also here?” A distressed voice came from the head of the hall. Yang Kai found this voice familiar and when he looked up, he saw that the speaker was none other than Yang Yan.
It was just that there was no joy of reuniting with an acquaintance after a long separation on Yang Yan’s face. Rather it looked like she had a severe headache. She glared at Yang Kai and asked, “Did that bastard Li Wu Yi also send you here?”
The only way Yang Kai could have shown up next to her all of a sudden was through Li Wu Yi’s Space Beacon.
Yang Kai nodded. Then he looked at Wen Zi Shan and Ma Qing in amazement and asked, “What’s going on?”
Why did these two look like they are about to fight…?
Mi Qi came over and whispered, “Palace Master Yang is also here for the reinforcements, right?”
Yang Kai nodded his agreement before asking, looking at him, “You too?”
Mi Qi bitterly smiled, “That’s right.” Then he continued as he motioned toward Wen Zi Shan and Ma Qing subtly, “All of them are as well, but Senior Yang Yan can’t mobilize many people while all of them want as many as possible, so it’s become difficult to allocate the limited resources. Temple Master Wen and Holy Master Ma are both arguing that their side’s situation is more precarious, and they should be given priority in the allocation. One thing led to another and well….”
Yang Kai almost broke out into laughter after hearing this, but soon he became saddened and stated, grimacing, “So we can only go back empty-handed?”
Mi Qi agreed with a sad face, “That seems likely.”
While the two were speaking, Wen Zi Shan and Ma Qing had already started fighting, but it could only be counted as a small scuffle as neither of them dared to use their Emperor Qi here. Instead, they just kicked and punched each other like they were street hoodlums engaging in a back-alley brawl.
It was a rare sight to see Third-Order Emperor Realm Masters fight like local ruffians, so the onlookers couldn’t help but find it novel and entertaining.
Yang Yan soon lost patience, however, and angrily shouted, “Enough!”
A scorching hot aura enveloped the entire hall, causing Wen Zi Shan and Ma Qing to finally back away from each other, but not before they shot the opposite party a ruthless glare. Obviously, they were still deeply dissatisfied.
Yang Yan’s Pseudo-Great Emperor pressure descended from the front of the hall, suppressing everyone as her pretty eyes swept over the crowd before she stated, “Everyone has their own difficulties, but this Queen does not have any additional manpower to allocate to you for the time being. All of you go back.”
Ma Qing immediately shouted, “Madam, didn’t you just say that you can only redeploy 30,000 soldiers. How come there are none now?”
Wen Zi Shan also nodded his agreement, “Yes, why are there none now? I don’t want a lot either, just 10,000 will do.”
Ma Qing cried out, without showing any weakness, “I also want 10,000.”
Ahan Temple’s Temple Master lightly coughed as he joined in, “This King also wants 10,000!”
Others hurriedly shouted, one after another, lest nothing would be left if they were too slow.
Yang Yan responded with a snort, “Each one of you wants 10,000, but where do you want this Queen to find that many men for you? Currently, the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Territories are recruiting people to send here to help. More manpower will only be available a month from now.”
Ma Qing stated, “Madam, let’s leave that matter till after a month has passed. Let’s talk about those 30,000 men…”
Yang Yan coldly looked at him before indifferently stating, “Utter one more word of nonsense and next month there won’t be anyone for you either!”
Ma Qing immediately choked down the words he was about to speak.
At this point, everyone knew that they couldn’t get anything from Yang Yan, so they could only leave in frustration. But fortunately, Yang Yan had informed them that the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Territories were still recruiting reinforcements and there would be more manpower coming after next month. At that time, there would naturally be troops available to assign.
Yang Yan was now in charge of logistics for the Star Boundary’s war efforts, meaning she had the right to allocate troops. Also, she was a Pseudo-Great Emperor Realm Master so naturally, no one dared to offend her. After lingering for a short time, everyone bid their goodbyes and left one after another.
Of course, Yang Kai didn’t leave, and after everyone had left, he looked at Yang Yan smiling.
“I said there were no more troops to allocate, did you understand me or not?” Yang Yan glanced sidelong at Yang Kai and declared.
“I understand, I understand,” Yang Kai kept nodding.
Yang Yan suspiciously looked at him, “Do you really understand?”
Yang Kai assured with a smile, “Don’t worry, I won’t make things difficult for you.”
Everyone who was in charge of the major cities had their own difficulties, and all of their troubles were naturally Yang Yan’s troubles as well. Yang Yan had already stated the situation clearly, so how could Yang Kai insist?
“It’s good that you understand,” Yang Yan heaved a sigh of relief. She was really afraid that Yang Kai would also ask her for more manpower. It would have been fine if it was someone else as she could just directly refuse them, but she would find it difficult to refuse if it was Yang Kai. If he really asked, Yang Yan would really have to think of some way to find manpower.
Yang Yan, after hesitating for a while, asked, “Is the situation critical on your side?”
“It’s not good but it’s not terrible either.” Yang Kai didn’t elaborate so as not to worry her, instead just smiling as he continued, “I will figure out a way to find the necessary manpower. You don’t have to worry about it.”
Yang Yan asked, “Where will you find more manpower now?” Although the Northern, Southern, and Western Territories were being mobilized, this was a matter related to the entire Star Boundary, so even if reinforcements were found, they first had to come to her before being distributed to the front.
Yang Kai replied, smiling, “I can still send out another 5,000 people from my High Heaven Palace. Also… there is another place where I can find another batch of reinforcements.”
“Where?” Yang Yan looked at him in surprise.
Yang Kai put on an inscrutable smile and replied, “I can’t tell you, I can’t tell you. You will know when the time is right. But let me tell you this first, these people won’t fall under your control, so don’t make any decisions on their behalf at the time.”
Yang Yan rolled her eyes at him as she ground her teeth in anger, but there was nothing she could do about him.
After chatting for a while, Yang Kai had some basic understanding of the situation of the major cities in the Western Territory. Every city was being protected by a number of Masters, but none of them could move around freely as there was a Demon Race Army outside each city, eyeing it covetously.
After half a day, Yang Kai bid his goodbyes and left. He activated the Space Spirit Bead and returned to the High Heaven Palace right away. He asked Hua Qing Si to send the remaining 5,000 disciples in High Heaven Palace to Tiger Roar City, then afterward, he stepped on the Space Array alone.
Since he couldn’t rely on Yang Yan, he naturally had to figure out a way to gather manpower himself.
Yang Kai didn’t want to resort to his last trump card, but in the end, if he didn’t use it now, the next time the Demon Race Army returned, Tiger Roar City might not be able to resist with its remaining forces.
All he could do was prepare in advance.
Dragon Island!
The world only knew that the Dragon Clan lived on Dragon Island, but very few people knew that there were also many other Masters who lived there, including numerous Emperors with Half-Dragon bloodlines. The forces inside Half-Dragon City absolutely could not be taken lightly.
If it were others, they wouldn’t even be able to find Dragon Island, let alone bring out the Masters inside Half-Dragon City, but Yang Kai now had a pretty good relationship with Dragon Island so obviously they wouldn’t make things difficult for him.
The only thing that gave him some headache was how he would face Fu Zhun on Dragon Island.
That smelly brat Yang Xiao had entered the Four Seasons Realm with Old Qiong and Yang Kai had yet to receive any news of him even now. If Fu Zhun learned about this, she might blame him for his poor supervision, and if this mother Dragon got angry, things would really turn perilous for him.
But by going to Dragon Island, Yang Kai knew he would have to eventually face her. Yang Kai could only take one step at a time.
In the blink of an eye, a figure appeared on a small island in the East Sea.
Yang Kai walked out of a cave and found his bearings before flying into the air. Soon after, he plunged into the sea.
Being familiar with the road, Yang Kai entered the Sealed World of Dragon Island with ease, and just as he entered, he saw a pleasantly surprised Fu Ling rushing over, “Brother-in-law, I knew it was you, haha, my guess was right.”
Yang Kai raised his hand, maintaining a ten-metre distance from this precious Dragon girl and asked, “You knew it was me?”
Fu Ling replied with a complacent look on her face, carrying her hands behind her back, “Of course. No one besides Brother-In-Law ever comes to Dragon Island. Or rather, no one can come in besides you.” She looked at Yang Kai, blinking strangely and naughtily, “En, did you miss Bis Sister Qing?”
“En, I missed her very much.” Yang Kai casually responded.
“Did you miss me then?” Fu Ling assumed a shy look.
“Miss you my ass!” Yang Kai rolled his eyes at her. He didn’t bother to talk any nonsense with her and ordered, “Stay honest, I’ll take my leave first.”
“Wait, I still have something to tell you.” Fu Ling shouted from behind, but getting no response from him, she angrily glared at his back as she stomped her foot.
Half Moon Island, Yang Kai landed from the sky. Zhu Qing, hearing the movements, came out to check and was pleasantly surprised at his appearance, “You’re here.”
Yang Kai didn’t say a word as he just stepped forward, put his arms around her waist, and kissed her hard. Zhu Qing’s body immediately went limp as her pretty eyes lost focus.
After a long time, Yang Kai finally let go of her and stated, stroking the hair gently, “I’m here on some business, so I’m afraid I won’t be accompanying you for long.”
Zhu Qing asked, “What is it?”
“Follow me to meet the Great Elder, I will tell you along the way.” Yang Kai grabbed her hand and flew towards Azure Tree Island.
Along the way, Yang Kai briefly explained the current situation of the Star Boundary to Zhu Qing, who was dumbfounded after hearing it. Although Dragon Island was a peak level force, it was basically isolated from the outside world. So, although there were a lot of rumours about the Demon Realm invasion outside and almost everyone in the Star Boundary had heard about it by now, Dragon Island remained completely oblivious.
Obviously, Zhu Qing realized the seriousness of the problem and understood that Yang Kai really didn’t have the time to stay here for long.
Not long after, the two landed on Azure Tree Island and met Zhu Yan.
After Yang Kai reiterated everything again, a solemn look appeared on Zhu Yan’s face. Although the Dragon Clan didn’t care about worldly affairs, the Demon Realm invasion was too important for them to ignore. This was a matter related to the survival of the entire Star Boundary. The Dragon Clan couldn’t shrink from their responsibility in this war and would eventually have to send forces out as well.
After pondering for a long time, Zhu Yan asked, “Did you come here to ask my Dragon Clan to come forward?”
Yang Kai shook his head and replied, “It would be best if the Dragon Clan could come forward, but things haven’t reached such a stage yet. The Dragon Clan can remain hidden as one of our biggest trump cards for now. Since the Great Emperors haven’t informed Dragon Island about this matter, my guess is that they are also thinking the same.”
Zhu Yang nodded his agreement after hearing this, “You’re right. If that’s the case, why have you come to Dragon Island?”
“For the residents of Half-Dragon City!” Yang Kai’s eyes brightly lit up, “I’m currently stationed at a city named Tiger Roar City where we just fought the Demon Race a few days ago. We suffered many casualties in that battle so I need to replenish our ranks. But the Star Boundary doesn’t have a lot of manpower to spare at the moment. If Great Elder could let me take those people from Half-Dragon City, it would ease the situation on my side greatly.”
Zhu Yan replied, “You can discuss this matter with Second Elder, that decision is up to her.”
Yang Kai’s brow twitched slightly as he asked, “The residents of Half-Dragon City can’t be considered members of the Dragon Clan. Do I still need to speak with Second Elder about them?”
Zhu Yan replied, smiling, “Even though they can’t be considered members of the Dragon Clan, many of them are the descendants of my Dragon Clan. How can I just let you take them away?”
Yang Kai helplessly sighed, “Alright, then please ask Second Elder to come over.”
Originally, he wanted to quickly take away the people of Half-Dragon City without meeting Fu Zhun, but now it seemed that it wouldn’t be possible.
Zhu Yan immediately summoned Fu Zhun, but while they were waiting, Zhu Yan inevitably asked about Yang Xiao.
Yang Kai found himself in a sticky situation hearing this question, but after hesitating for a long time, he finally decided to tell the truth.
Zhu Yan angrily glared at him after hearing this, “Xiao’er has gone to the Four Seasons Realm with Qiong Qi!?”
Yang Kai summoned up the courage and added, “And with Liu Yan… en, you’ve met her. She is the little girl with the Phoenix Clan bloodline who came with Senior Martial Beast over a decade ago.”
Zhu Yan angrily reprimanded, “What have you been doing!? Can’t you look after one child!? You actually let him run off with that old evil bastard Qiong Qi!? Do you even know what kind of existence Qiong Qi was in ancient times? He was a walking calamity that swallowed men and beasts alive, never spitting out a single bone! You, you, you… you really frustrate this Old Master!”
Yang Kai’s face was covered in saliva spewed by him, but he still had to wear a smile as he tried to calm the situation, “Great Elder, please don’t be angry, calm down. Let’s sit down and talk, no need to be excited.”
“Calm down? How can I calm down!? Xiao’er isn’t your son, so you aren’t worried about him, is that it!?”
Yang Kai immediately became unhappy as he rebuffed, “Why is Xiao’er not my son? Since he calls me father, he is naturally my son, who I care deeply about, but that little brat ran off all on his own, and by the time I learned about it, they were already inside the Four Seasons Realm.”
“If you really cared for him, why couldn’t you look after him properly!?” Zhu Yan was bristling with anger, wishing he could vent his anger by beating Yang Kai black and blue before continuing this talk.
Yang Kai’s face turned earnest as he continued, “Great Elder, Xiao’er might still be a child, but don’t underestimate him. This might not be a bad thing for Xiao’er in fact; rather, this is perhaps a great opportunity.”
Zhu Yan sneered, “I’m listening. Go on, tell me, why is it a great opportunity?”
Yang Kai replied, “Xiao’er may have comprehended the Dao of Time.”
Zhu Yan was instantly taken aback and squinted his eyes at him, “Does this Old Master look like a fool to you?”
Yang Kai didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, “Great Elder, don’t think that I’m just trying to placate you. I’m telling the truth.”
Zhu Yan coldly snorted, “The Dao of Time is extremely profound and mysterious, how could Xiao’er have suddenly comprehended it? Second Elder and I have never…” While speaking, he suddenly furrowed his brow, thoughtfully looking at Yang Kai, “If this Old Master’s memory serves him right, you seem to have a little understanding of the Dao of Time…”
Yang Kai solemnly nodded, “I once entered the Four Seasons Realm in my early years and obtained some opportunities there which allowed me to eventually comprehended the Time Flies Seal of Flowing Time Great Emperor. I suspect that when Xiao’er hatched, he inherited that comprehension from me.”
Zhu Yan’s worries were immediately lifted after hearing this as he asked, “Are you sure Xiao’er has comprehended the Dao of Time?”
Yang Kai replied, smiling, “When I… grabbed Xiao’er’s hand once, I was momentarily dazed and in the next moment, he had actually flown a thousand metres away from me. At that moment, I had a feeling that time had stagnated around me. Furthermore, it wasn’t just me who sensed this disturbance, even Qiong Qi felt it at that time.”
Zhu Yan grew even more excited after hearing this, “Qiong Qi followed the Time Great Emperor for tens of thousands of years and is extremely sensitive to the Time Principles. If he also felt the same, then it must be true.” He clapped his hands and continued, “So to say, Xiao’er has really comprehended the Dao of Time!?”
All his displeasure and anger completely vanished and was instead replaced by joy and excitement. He and Fu Zhun felt guilty because Yang Xiao was born with a congenital defect, but if he really inherited comprehension of the Dao of Time from Yang Kai, then his future achievements would not be low even with an impure bloodline.
Of course, Zhu Yan still didn’t know that Yang Xiao’s bloodline wasn’t impure at all and that the smelly brat had lied about not being able to transform into a True Dragon.
The Dragon Clan was already innately strong, so how strong would a Dragon proficient in the Dao of Time be? It was scary to even think about it.
Yang Kai continued, “A few years ago, I ran into Qiong Qi outside Heavenly Wolf Valley in the Eastern Territory. He was being chased by Senior Li Wu Yi and Jiu Feng. They wanted to take him back to Spirit Beast Island for supervision, but he decided to accept me as his Young Master, and with my identity and status, I was able to get him out of that predicament. I too have heard of the notoriety of Qiong Qi, but Great Elder, do you know why I took him in at that time?”
Zhu Yan replied, “Isn’t it because you cultivate the Time Flies Seal?”
Yang Kai elaborated, smiling, “That’s just one of the reasons. The most important thing was that Qiong Qi claimed that the true inheritance of the Flowing Time Great Emperor is still hidden in the Four Seasons Realm. He promised that if I helped him, he would take me to the Four Seasons Realm to test my luck and see whether I could inherit the mantle of Flowing Time Great Emperor. The achievements of the Flowing Time Great Emperor are unprecedented, surpassing the ancients and amazing the contemporaries. The Dao of Time is also extremely profound, so I had no reason not to be tempted. Naturally, I agreed and asked Spirit Beast Island for a favour to keep him by my side.”
Zhu Yan was shocked, “Flowing Time Great Emperor’s inheritance is still inside the Four Seasons Realm?”
Yang Kai solemnly nodded, “That’s why I said Xiao’er going with Old Qiong to the Four Seasons Realm this time may not be a bad thing, but rather a great opportunity. Although Old Qiong has not cultivated the Dao of Time, he followed the Flowing Time Great Emperor for so many years, and even after the death of the Great Emperor, Old Qiong continued to guard the Flowing Time Temple. It could be said that he has been extremely loyal to the Flowing Time Great Emperor and no one knows better than him about what kind of person is most suited to inheriting the mantle of Flowing Time Great Emperor. Perhaps… in his opinion, Xiao’er is more suited for the opportunity in the Four Seasons Realm than I. Xiao’er has a better chance of obtaining Flowing Time Great Emperor’s inheritance, which is why he took him there.”
Zhu Yan finally showed a smile as he paced back and forth a few steps, muttering, “If what you say is true, then this Old Master and Second Elder will owe Qiong Qi a big favour.”
Yang Kai continued, smilingly looking at him, “As for safety, Great Elder need not worry too much. I don’t dare to vouch for Old Qiong’s character, after all, I have not been in contact with him for too long, but Liu Yan is also with them and she will absolutely protect Xiao’er.”
“Good, good, good!” Zhu Yan rubbed his palms and continued after pondering for a while, “We’ll know when Xiao’er comes out of the Four Seasons Realm.”
Hearing what he said, Yang Kai couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief, thinking that he had finally crossed this hurdle, [But who knows how Second Elder will react. Great Elder is relatively easy to talk to, but Second Elder has always been more difficult to deal with.]
Just as he was thinking about this, a whistling sound rang out as a pretty figure landed next to Yang Kai. It was none other than Fu Zhun, her pair of beautiful eyes looking left and right before showing a disappointed look. She quickly asked, looking at Yang Kai, “Xiao’er didn’t come with you?”
Yang Kai stiffly shook his head.
Fu Zhun continued, sighing, “Ai, why didn’t you bring him here?”
Yang Xiao left Dragon Island with Yang Kai not long after he was born, and in the blink of an eye, almost three years had passed. Fu Zhun was naturally worried. If her appearance would not bring shock and chaos to the world, she would have long run to the Northern Territory’s High Heaven Palace to see him. Why would she restrain herself on Dragon Island? However, she was a Tenth-Order Great Dragon, and the Second Elder of Dragon Island, so it really wasn’t suitable for her to appear in public.
Yang Kai hurriedly turned his gaze to Zhu Yan, begging for help with his eyes.
Zhu Yan immediately understood and hurriedly changed the subject, “It’s like this, Yang Kai came here to take away the Origin King Realm Masters and above from Half-Dragon City as something has happened to the Star Boundary.”
“Then take them,” Fu Zhun casually replied, a little absent-minded.
Stunned, Zhu Yan asked, “You are not going to ask what the matter is?”
Yang Kai was also very surprised as he didn’t expect Fu Zhun to be actually so accommodating. Was she really Fu Zhun, the Dragon Clan’s Second Elder, who was known to have a heart of ice? Could it be that someone was pretending to be her?
Fu Zhun completely ignored Zhu Yan, however, and just turned her attention to Yang Kai, asking, “How has Xiao’er been these past few years? Has he grown taller? Did he miss me?”
Yang Kai broke out into a cold sweat as he really didn’t know how to answer.
Zhu Yan felt that things were quickly going in the wrong direction, so he hurriedly intervened, “I was talking to Yang Kai about Xiao’er just now. Yang Kai said that Xiao’er is doing fine in High Heaven Palace and not to worry, he misses us very much too.”
“Really…” A smile bloomed on Fu Zhun’s face, but the next moment, she grit her teeth and stated, “I don’t know when you will return next and I will get to see him. In any case, there is a Space Array and it’s not too far away…”
Zhu Yan wiped the sweat from his forehead as he stated, “Xiao’er has recently entered a retreat!”
Fu Zhun furrowed her brow, “Xiao’er is so young, why is he entering seclusion?”
Yang Kai immediately justified, “Second Elder, Xiao’er might be young, but he is extremely talented. You will surely be surprised the next time you see him.”
Fu Zhun wasn’t really angry, she just felt sorry for her son, but after hearing what Yang Kai said, a look of anticipation immediately appeared on her face.
Yang Kai added, “To tell you the truth, I have a younger sister, and although she is a few years older than Xiao’er, the two little ones appear to be almost the same age so they often play together, to the point where they’re practically inseparable in High Heaven Palace.”
Fu Zhun pursed her lips into a smile, “It’s good to hear that he has a playmate. It seems it was a stroke of good fortune that you took Xiao’er with you, if he had stayed on Dragon Island, he might have been lonely.”
Zhu Qing asked in a low voice, looking at Yang Kai in shock, “You have a younger sister?” She sounded a little nervous. [He has a younger sister! Wouldn’t that make her my sister-in-law and make me her sister-in-law?] This sudden relationship made her very uneasy.
Yang Kai replied, smiling, “She is only a few years old. She is still young.”
Zhu Qing just stared at her own toes, pondering.
Afterwards, Fu Zhun asked a lot about Yang Xiao while Yang Kai answered with the help of the Great Elder. He hadn’t revealed any flaws, but he was still worried that Fu Zhun might insist on following him back to High Heaven Palace to check up on her son.
Fortunately, Fu Zhun had no intention of doing this and with the Great Elder at the fore, even if Fu Zhun came to know the truth in the future, Yang Kai had a scapegoat so he could just wash his hands clean of this matter.
After chatting for more than an hour, Fu Zhun was still in high spirits and eager to continue, but Zhu Yan interrupted her and advised, “Alright, alright, Yang Kai came here on some important business and can’t spare a lot of time. Let’s let him go.”
Fu Zhun glared at Zhu Yan before exhorting Yang Kai, “The next time you come to Dragon Island, be sure to bring Xiao’er with you, note it down in your mind!”
“I will keep that in mind.” Yang Kai earnestly nodded, deciding in his heart that he would never come to Dragon Island before that smelly brat, Yang Xiao, had come out of the Four Seasons Realm.
Zhu Yan then stated, looking at him, “There is no time to lose. You can go to Half-Dragon City now. Fu Ling will be waiting for you there and will help you handle the rest.”
“Many thanks, Great Elder!” Yang Kai cupped his fists before saluting the Second Elder and bidding goodbye, “This Junior will take his leave first.”
He then turned around, hugged Zhu Qing, and flew off.
After some time, Yang Kai descended from the sky outside Half-Dragon City to where Fu Ling had been waiting for him for a long time. Apparently, she had received the Great Elder’s message and had immediately rushed over. When she saw Yang Kai appear, she happily rushed over and eagerly greeted, “Brother-in-law, Great Elder said that you were taking the people of Half-Dragon City out of Dragon Island, is that true?”
Yang Kai glanced at her before focusing his gaze on her chest, “Go get dressed first and then talk to me.”
Fu Ling pouted before she tightened her shirt, covering her exposed chest. She then asked with a smile, “I heard from the Great Elder that the Demon Race has invaded, is that also true?”
Yang Kai replied, solemnly nodding, “It’s true. The Western Territory’s situation is pretty bad and we are short on manpower, so I came here to find reinforcements.” He suddenly frowned and asked, “Why are you asking so many questions? Hurry up and get to work.”
“En,” Fu Ling responded, sighing a bit before rushing into the air above the city. A moment later, a high-pitched dragon reverberated across the sky. Fu Ling had revealed her true body and allowed her Dragon Pressure to cover the entire city, causing all the Half-Dragons to tremble in fear. Fu Ling’s voice then resounded, “All cultivators at or above the Origin King Realm must gather outside the city immediately.”
The entire city was suddenly thrown into chaos, but very soon, figures flew out of the city, one after another.
The residents of Half-Dragon City were basically all descendants of the Dragon Clan, but some had not inherited the Dragon Clan bloodline or had extremely impure bloodlines. However, no matter what their situation was, they would never dare to offend the majesty of the Dragon Clan.
Because the Dragon Clan was the only Master on Dragon Island, and they were all used to obeying the Dragon Clan.
As such, who would dare to disobey Fu Ling’s order?
Shua shua shua…
Swishing sounds echoed as figures rushed out of the city and soon, a dense crowd had gathered outside its gates.
Yang Kai stood mid-air, gazing down, looking excited after seeing this scene.
He had long known that the strength of Half-Dragon City was immense, but when the entire force was really gathered, he realized that the actual situation was better than his initial estimation. Just the Emperor Realm Masters alone exceeded one hundred, and not all had gathered yet. It was really hard to imagine if all the Emperor Realm Masters were gathered together what their total number would be.
The residents of Half-Dragon City gathered very quickly, only taking an incense stick worth of time since Fu Ling’s announcement to fully assemble.
The crowd below was divided into three distinct groups.
The group to Yang Kai’s left was the smallest, not even reaching two hundred in total, but it was composed entirely of Emperor Realm Masters, many of whom possessed Half-Dragon bloodlines and could thus display better strength compared to their peers in the same realm.
The middle group were naturally made up of Dao Source Realm cultivators and numbered almost 20,000!
This was an extremely terrifying number. In Tiger Roar City, the combined forces of the three territories and Tiger Roar City’s local cultivators only reached 50,000, of which 98% were Origin Kings. Only 2,000 had been in the Dao Source Realm.
By contrast, there were almost 20,000 Dao Source Realm Masters in Half-Dragon City alone, clearly showing just how deep and rich the heritage of Half-Dragon City was.
However, this wasn’t too surprising as the cultivation environment on Dragon Island was superior to most places in the Star Boundary. It was rich in World Energy and there were many natural precious treasures. More importantly, no killing was allowed on Dragon Island, so Half-Dragon City’s cultivators grew rapidly in both strength and number, allowing it to reach such a scale over the years.
The size of the last group was even more terrifying, with as many as 100,000 Origin King Realm cultivators.
[What exactly is the total population of Half-Dragon City?] Although Yang Kai had no idea, it was definitely not in the tens of millions. Presumably, it was a million or two at most, but among this number, 100,000 were Origin Kings. In other words, one in ten, or at most one in twenty were Origin Kings in Half-Dragon City.
Such a terrifying proportion was impossible to find in any city in the Star Boundary. This abnormal phenomenon could only appear on Dragon Island which had been enjoying a long period of peace and stability.
About ten percent of the entire population of Half-Dragon City had come out with just one sentence from Fu Ling, making the city feel noticeably emptier.
Such a scale naturally left Yang Kai extremely satisfied; the only point of complaint he had was the number of Third-Order Emperors. There were roughly two hundred Emperor Realm Masters, but just a handful of them were Third-Order while the rest were First and Second-Order.
Naturally, this was because of the Dragon Blood Flowers. Dragon Island used to cultivate Dragon Blood Flowers by relying on the fresh blood of Half Dragons who lived in Half-Dragon City, especially the more powerful Half-Dragons. If too much Blood Essence was drained from a person though, their strength would naturally be affected. If not, there would definitely be more Third-Order Emperor Realm Masters present.
Even so, Yang Kai wasn’t fussed about it. Pulling out such a huge force was enough to change the direction of the war on a small scale.
Fu Ling reverted back to her human figure and stated, standing beside Yang Kai, “Brother-in-law, everyone is here.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Tell them about their new mission.”
“En,” Fu Ling responded before her pretty eyes swept over the crowd and she shouted, “Hear me now, the one standing beside me is Palace Master Yang Kai of High Heaven Palace of the Star Boundary’s Northern Territory, and also my brother-in-law. The Demon Race has invaded the Star Boundary and is in need of your help. This time, my brother-in-law and I will be taking you all out of Dragon Island to provide support to the Star Boundary and fight against the Demon Race. Once we leave Dragon Island, you will follow my orders. This Queen needs one thing only from you, and that is obedience. If I find anyone disobeying my commands, don’t blame me for being ruthless! Did you hear me?”
She looked very out of place in Yang Kai’s eyes, but she was an awe-inspiring and majestic figure before these Masters of Half-Dragon City. After she was finished speaking, a thunderous response came from below, “We hear and understand!”
Fu Ling nodded in satisfaction before turning to Yang Kai and asking, “Brother-in-law, do you have anything to say?”
Yang Kai squinted his eyes at her, “I only have one problem.”
“Hm?” Fu Ling tilted her head.
“You’re also leaving Dragon Island? Are you coming with me?”
“Yes!” Fu Ling nodded as if it was a matter of course, her eyes flickering with a hint of slyness, like a fox that had stolen a chicken.
Yang Kai chuckled, “Have you asked Great Elder?” She was sentenced to guard the entrance to Dragon Island for a hundred years because of her past crimes, but only about a decade had passed since then, far from the hundredth year. Yang Kai didn’t believe that Great Elder Zhu Yan would let her leave Dragon Island so easily.
“Of course I asked,” Fu Ling, however, didn’t panic at all, winking at Yang Kai as she challenged, “If you don’t believe me, you can just send a message and ask.”
Yang Kai harrumphed and stated, “Of course I will confirm this.”
While speaking, he took out the communication artifact and sent a message to Zhu Qing. After a while, he furrowed his brow and put away the communication artifact, looking at Fu Ling with an incredible look.
“Well?” Fu Ling looked all smug and confident, appearing reassured and emboldened.
Yang Kai nodded and didn’t say anything anymore. Zhu Qing told her that Fu Ling will be leaving Dragon Island with him, and it was indeed Great Elder’s idea; of course, it was also the result of Fu Ling’s petitioning, saying that she wanted to atone for her crimes through good work. But she also had a legitimate reason, and that was the Masters of Half-Dragon City. They had always lived on Dragon Island and had never gone to the outside world. If so many Masters were handed over to Yang Kai all of a sudden, he might not be able to smoothly command them, but if there was a member of the Dragon Clan accompanying him, these people would definitely not dare to make trouble.
Fu Ling’s primary mission was to keep the 100,000 or so Masters of Half-Dragon City in line.
Since she had obtained Great Elder’s approval, Yang Kai couldn’t say anything and simply exhorted Fu Ling, “Don’t make trouble when we are outside, or I’ll send you back right away.”
Fu Ling kept nodding like a chicken pecking rice, “Brother-in-law may rest assured, I will absolutely not cause any trouble. I will do everything you ask me to do, I will show no resistance at all!” The last sentence had other deep implications, causing Yang Kai’s brow to twitch visibly.
Putting the annoyance out of his mind for now, Yang Kai turned around to the 100,000 Masters and shouted, “Fellow cultivators, you might find me a little familiar, and some of you might have even recognized me. That’s right, I came to Dragon Island over a decade ago and visited Half-Dragon City. And now, the Dragon Clan’s Fifth Elder and I are deeply in love and married to one another!”
Everyone was extremely shocked after hearing this, but it was also true that many of them recognized Yang Kai; after all, there were several hundred of them who had been tasked with building the palace for Fu Chi’s wedding where they had met Yang Kai.
Yang Kai had kidnapped the bride before everyone’s eyes on the day of the wedding, but as for what happened later, these people had no idea. Now, when they heard Yang Kai say that the Fifth Elder and he were deeply in love and actually married, everyone was extremely shocked.
“The Star Boundary is currently in a precarious situation. After leaving Dragon Island, you might find yourself in many discomforting situations and have to deal with all kinds of danger, so this King only has one request from you,” He swept his gaze over everyone before emphasizing, “Survive!”
Everyone looked shocked.
“If anyone has any questions, you may ask now, if not, we will depart!”
“May Senior Yang’s order be honoured!” A voice suddenly came from the crowd.
Over 100,000 people shouted in unison, “May Senior Yang’s order be honoured!”
They had been living on Dragon Island and while there might be no fighting or killing here, they were all subordinate to the Dragon Clan while the stronger Half-Dragons were always on edge, wondering whether they would be brought to Dragon Palace to cultivate the Dragon Blood Flowers. Now suddenly, a man had appeared before them and actually subdued a Dragon Girl, furthermore, she was the Fifth Elder of the Dragon Clan. Naturally, these people regarded Yang Kai as their idol, thoroughly admiring him.
With such a mindset, no one had any objections even if they were meeting Yang Kai for the first time, there was only a sense of worship in their hearts.
Yang Kai nodded in satisfaction before shouting aloud, “Since no one has any questions, let’s set off.”
Saying so, Yang Kai raised his hand and pointed ahead, opening an entrance to the Sealed World Bead. The next moment, an oval-shaped Void Crack appeared.
It was quite inconvenient to move more than 100,000 people together, so Yang Kai had no choice but to use the Sealed World Bead.
The Emperor Realm Masters looked at each other with some shock, but soon stepped forward without much hesitation, disappearing into the Void Crack.
With the Emperor Realm Masters taking the lead, the Dao Source Realm and Origin King Realm cultivators naturally followed suit, stepping into the Sealed World Bead one after another.
After half a day, Yang Kai had finally received the 100,000 or so into the Sealed World. He then beckoned to Fu Ling before they flew towards the exit together.
After leaving Dragon Island, they returned to Tiger Roar City through the Space Array on the island.
The city was still buzzing with activity. Since Yang Kai had left Tiger Roar City, it had only been three days, that’s all. The 5,000 reinforcements from High Heavens Palace had already arrived and Nanmen Da Jun, who had brought along his group of Disciples, was now instructing the Array Masters in the city on how to rearrange and repair the Defensive Array. On the city walls and towers, cultivators were also constantly patrolling.
The entire city was shrouded in a tense atmosphere.
Fu Ling had left Dragon Island and come to the outside world for the first time, so she was looking around everywhere. Everything was novel to her and she almost wandered off quite a few times. Yang Kai literally had to grab her by her collar and drag her along at times, constantly needing to pay close attention to her.
Upon arriving, Yang Kai went looking for Gao Xue Ting, Li Jiao, Ma Yin, and the other Emperors. And after asking about the situation, he came to learn that the Demon Race was indeed rallying its forces for a new offensive.
In the main hall, all the Emperor Realm Masters’ faces were dark and gloomy. Although Tiger Roar City had won a great victory a few days ago, killing countless enemies, the Demon Race had already raised a new army in this short time, and this army was even bigger than the last one. Even if they hadn’t reached the million-man mark, it was not far off. And in the case of Tiger Roar City, although 5,000 High Heaven Palace disciples had joined them, only 40,000 others could still fight, and most of them were still recovering from the after-effects of the Bloodlust Spell, making it impossible for them to exert their full strength.
The Defensive Array of Tiger Roar City played a huge role in the victory last time, but after Nanmen Da Jun had arrived, he had basically dismantled the array as he was trying to rearrange it. However, it was simply an impossible task to complete in less than a month.
It could even be said that the current Tiger Roar City was completely defenceless with no Defensive Array to rely on.
And since the Demon Race Army was eyeing it covetously, it made the residents of Tiger Roar City panic. Fortunately, the Military Enforcers led by Chi Gui were still supervising the situation, otherwise, deserters would have already appeared.
However, the situation was so precarious that no one could see any chance of winning. Not to mention winning, they weren’t sure that they could survive the Demon Race’s next attack.
Before Yang Kai returned, Gao Xue Ting and the others were already discussing whether to evacuate Tiger Roar City and converge at another city.
Li Jiao stated, sighing, “Brother Yang, it’s not like we want to bring morale down, but there is just too wide a gap in the sizes of our forces. I’m afraid that Tiger Roar City won’t be able to hold on this time. If we want to withdraw, we have to do so as soon as possible. The Demon Race is just a thousand kilometres away, so it will only take them a few hours to reach the city gates. At that time, it would be too late to retreat.”
Gao Xue Ting agreed, “That’s right, now that you have arranged a Space Array, it’s actually quite easy to evacuate.”
Yang Kai, however, rejected, shaking his head, “There’s no need to withdraw. Last time, we indeed gave the enemy a bloody nose, but this time, we will break their backs.”
Everyone stared at him with widened eyes, wondering where he was getting so much confidence.
Gao Xue Ting’s eyes brightened up as she asked, “Have you found reinforcements?” Only this would make sense. Only then could Yang Kai say something like this; otherwise, where would he be getting his confidence from?
Yang Kai affirmed, smiling, “Senior Sister Gao is both beautiful and intelligent.”
“Have you really found reinforcements?” Li Jiao looked at him, pleasantly surprised, “Where? When are they coming? How many people did you find?”
Yang Kai replied, “Brother Li, don’t be impatient, you will know when the time comes. In any case, I guarantee that the Demon Race will be in for a big surprise this time.”
Wind howled and sand blew, creating a bleak atmosphere.
The Demon Race Army was back again, bigger and stronger than before. The pitch-black army seemed like an indestructible flood of iron and steel that would reduce Tiger Roar City into dust.
All the cultivators in the city were mobilized, but the huge disparity in numbers and the non-functional Defensive Array made everyone restless, panic-stricken, and timid before the battle.
Everyone’s gaze gathered on a single person.
That person was standing at the highest point of the city, facing the Demon Race Army, his clothes flapping in the wind.
He was none other than the very man who turned the tide in the first battle a few days ago, stopping the tide from destroying everything in its wake. At the time, he was the one who took the lead, setting an example by killing countless enemies.
Without this figure, the tens of thousands of cultivators of Tiger Roar City would definitely be devoid of any fighting spirit at the moment; however, even if this figure was standing at the highest point in the city, where everyone could see him clearly, he was still unable to give anyone much sense of security.
All the Emperor Realm Masters were running around and arousing the crowd, trying to maintain the morale that may collapse at any moment.
Rumblings as loud as deafening claps of thunder came from below, shaking everyone’s heart, giving everyone a huge mental pressure. Clearly, the Demon Race Army was approaching Tiger Roar City, their march making the ground tremble.
The cultivators of Tiger Roar City grew more nervous with each passing moment.
The Demon Race Army was just fifty kilometres away. At such a short distance, they could attack the city in just one charge.
Right at that moment, Yang Kai let out a long and deafening roar as his figure soared into the sky before shooting straight toward the Demon Race Army.
Everyone gasped in shock and horror, one after another. All the cultivators of Tiger Roar City stared at his charging figure, dumbstruck, wondering just what he was planning on doing. A war couldn’t be fought alone as no matter how strong an individual was, how could he face about a million enemies? Once he was besieged, getting completely exhausted would be just a matter of time. Only a Pseudo-Great Emperor would be capable of freely coming and going under such circumstances.
And obviously, Yang Kai wasn’t a Pseudo-Great Emperor, he was but a Second-Order Emperor.
Not only were Tiger Roar City’s cultivators sweating, even Li Jiao, Gao Xue Ting, and the others couldn’t help but clench their fists as they secretly worried. Yang Kai had only told them that he had found reinforcements, but they had no idea where these reinforcements were or how many of them there were. Now that Yang Kai had actually charged ahead on his own initiative, they were naturally concerned for his safety.
Yang Kai was akin to the flag for Tiger Roar City. If he fell, Tiger Roar City would immediately collapse. At that time, let alone a million Demons, even if there were only 100,000 Demons, Tiger Roar City would still be completely overrun.
But at this moment, they had no choice but to wait and watch while praying in their hearts.
Yang Kai had flagrantly rushed over, so it was impossible for the Demon Race Army to not have seen him. The next moment, a team of over a thousand flew out of the dense army to attack Yang Kai, the leader being a Demon King.
The Demon King was wearing very revealing clothes, like a tiny corset that barely covered her chest. Although she was wearing a long skirt below, the hem of the skirt was split up to her thigh, causing the scenery beneath to show every now and then. With her exquisite collar bone, flat belly, and slender legs completely exposed, she was nothing less than seductive. Her towering peaks which bounced slightly and the complex black patterns on her snow-white skin gave her a sense of wildness.
At one glance, Yang Kai knew that this Demon King was a Charm Demon!
When the enemy team was just a few kilometres away, the Charm Demon smiled at Yang Kai as she pointed her slender, jade white finger toward him. The next moment, over a thousand Demon Race members swarmed at him.
Space Principle fluctuations rose and fell as Yang Kai’s face turned serious and he fiercely punched forward.
There was no fearsome explosion, nor was there any kind of shockwave, but the moment he punched, a small black spot suddenly appeared in the centre of the thousand Demons.
When the black spot first appeared, it was the size of a sesame seed, but in the blink of an eye, it suddenly grew into a giant black hole a hundred metres across. A terrifying suction force came from the black hole the next moment, catching the Demons off-guard and pulling all in the vicinity straight inside where they disappeared from the face of this world. The remaining Demons were also similarly pulled by a terrifying suction and struggled hard to resist.
It looked as if the whole world was collapsing towards that black hole, giving rise to terror in every onlooker’s heart.
In the blink of an eye, over a thousand Demons had completely disappeared; all of them were swallowed by the black hole. The black hole then disappeared as quickly as it appeared. After all the Demon Race members were exiled, the black hole disappeared in a flash.
Before the Charm Demon could even realize what just happened, all the troops she had brought with her had been completely wiped out.
After a blinding flash, Yang Kai, who was a few kilometres away, suddenly appeared before the Charm Demon, almost standing nose to nose with her. As an aggressive aura blew on her face, the Charm Demon’s pretty face turned pale as she let out a sharp scream.
Her scream was ear-piercing and accompanying it was an invisible Spiritual Energy that transformed into a sharp arrow and shot straight towards Yang Kai’s Knowledge Sea.
Charm Demons were a peculiar clan among the hundred clans. The direct combat power of this clan wasn’t that strong, but their Spiritual Energy always far exceeded those of the same realm from other clans, so they were not to be underestimated just because of their physical strength. A seemingly powerless Charm Demon could deliver the fatal blow if one lowered their guard around them.
The arrow of Spiritual Energy created ripples in the air as it flew straight into Yang Kai’s Knowledge Sea.
The Charm Demon pursed her lips into a sweet smile as she reached out her slender jade wide hand to Yang Kai’s chest. Her sharp fingers were pointed toward him, as if she wanted to dig Yang Kai’s heart out.
Just as she tried to stab her fingers forward though, a frown appeared on the Charm Demon’s face, because she found that this Human’s physique was extremely tough. Unexpectedly, she was unable to even break through his skin!
“How does it feel?” A voice suddenly rang in her ears, causing the Charm Demon’s expression to freeze. When she looked up, she saw Yang Kai playfully looking at her, with no signs of him having taken any damage to his Soul whatsoever.
The Charm Demon immediately gasped in shock, her first reaction being one of disbelief!
[This guy’s cultivation is on par with mine, so how come my attack didn’t affect him at all? It’s impossible for his Soul to not have been affected! But judging by his expression and the look in his eyes, his Soul has really not suffered any damage!]
Her figure jolted as she immediately tried to retreat. Charm Demons weren’t good at close combat, so staying put would only be exposing her biggest weakness. Charm Demons preferred keeping their distance and toying around with their enemies using their greater Soul cultivation.
But the surrounding space seemed to have frozen at that moment, and no matter how hard the Charm Demon tried, she was unable to move even the slightest bit, her ruddy complexion turning pale all of a sudden.
“It’s impolite to not return what one receives,” Yang Kai grinned meaningfully. The next moment, his big hand obscenely grabbed her well-rounded chest and squeezed it hard.
The Charm Demon furrowed her brow, revealing a pitiful look. A strange light flashed in her eyes as she let out a moan before shouting, angrily glaring at Yang Kai, “You are hurting me.”
Her slightest expression, her every move carried its own charm, enough to make any man go crazy over her.
But Yang Kai remained unmoved. On the contrary, he just squeezed harder and harder.
“It hurts!” The Charm Demon looked a little flustered as she tried kicking and punching Yang Kai, but how could she free herself from Yang Kai’s spatial confinement.
From a distance, they looked like two lovers flirting with each other, nothing like mortal enemies from two different races trying to kill one another.
“What is Brother Yang doing?” On the city wall of Tiger Roar City, the corner of Li Jiao’s mouth momentarily twitched, finding the entire situation a bit ridiculous but also felt a little envious at the same time.
“Rogue, pervert!” Gao Xue Ting ground her teeth as her face flushed red.
As for the cultivators on the city wall, most watched on with great interest as the originally tense atmosphere was swept away by this strange scene.
Hearing a different grinding sound, Gao Xue Tinge promptly turned to look and surprisingly found Yu Ru Meng and Fu Ling both clenching their teeth.
“Crisp!” Yang Kai looked at the Charm Demon with an evil smile on his lips, tilting his head, he then suddenly wore a serious look as he coldly declared, “It’s just that your appearance is a little worse than hers.”
A bursting sound echoed in the next moment, as if something had been crushed.
The Charm Demon screamed again and again as she looked below and saw blood crazily gushing out her right chest. Her towering peak was nowhere to be found as blood kept flowing down her abdomen.
She kept screaming as if she had gone mad, a huge question floating in her mind, [Who the Hell is he talking about?]
The next moment, her screams came to an abrupt end as Yang Kai punched out, sending blood raining down from the sky. To everyone’s surprise, Yang Kai had blown apart a Mid-Rank Demon King with a punch, just like that. Even if it was a Charm Demon, who were not known for their physical strength, all those from the Demon Race found it inconceivable.
Yang Kai’s figure emerged from the blood rain and continued approaching the Demon Race Army. Swinging his arms, an immensely large Moon Blade shot out towards the dumbfounded Demons.
The Moon Blade split everyone asunder wherever it passed through, causing all the nearby Demons to retreat.
The Moon Blade flew for over a thousand metres before it gradually lost its power and dissipated into nothing, but before it disappeared, it left a wide path of chopped-up corpses in its wake.
The Demon Race Army was completely enraged as multiple groups pressed toward Yang Kai under the command of a few Demon Kings, completely encircling him.
Yang Kai broke into a riotous laughter as he raised his hand, grasping in the air. By the time his hand clenched, the Myriads Sword was already in his grip. At the same time, the Embodiment also made an appearance on the stage with the wave of his other hand, and the next moment, the pair, one big and one small, charged straight into the Demon Race Army without any prior communication with each other, covering each other’s weaknesses as they reaped the lives before them.
The pair was unstoppable; no one could bar their path! Although there were a million Demons in this army, no one could match Yang Kai and the Embodiment’s combination, nor could they stop their wanton slaughter.
Everyone in Tiger Roar City was quietly watching and couldn’t help but notice that the mighty Demon Race Army of a million men had already stopped advancing. Not too far away from the frontline, the enemy army was in chaos as Yang Kai and the Embodiment rampaged, leaving behind pools of blood and mutilated corpses wherever they went. One after another, the Demons were ground up into paste, this land forever becoming their burial ground. Slowly but surely, the rivers of blood began to flow.
There were far too many Demons swarming everywhere. The cultivators of Tiger Roar City were basically unable to catch sight of Yang Kai and the Embodiment and could only infer their location from the reactions of the Demon Race Army.
However, these two kept charging in and out, slaughtering left and right. Just the two of them had stopped a million Demons from advancing.
Yang Kai had created another miracle, just like a few days ago. When no one could see any hope, when all the light in front of their eyes was completely covered, it was Yang Kai who had torn apart the darkness in a corner of the sky, letting the sunshine in and bringing everyone and everything back to life.
Immediately, cheers rose from Tiger Roar City one after another in great waves.
Ma Yin’s blood boiled as she turned to Li Jiao and proposed, “Senior Li, this Mistress is willing to help the City Lord.”
Li Jiao, who was staring ahead, however, ordered in a heavy voice without even looking back, “Wait!”
Just because Yang Kai and the Embodiment could move through the Demon Race Army like fish in water didn’t mean others could. These two were far from ordinary. Needless to say, the Embodiment was able to fight on par with a Pseudo-Great Emperor and was far stronger than a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master while Yang Kai was even more extraordinary. He was proficient in the Dao of Space and could withdraw at any time he felt that things weren’t looking good for him.
If other people attacked haphazardly though, they would just be seeking their own deaths. Even Li Jiao didn’t have the confidence to charge in and come back alive under such circumstances.
Ma Yin wanting to help was only because of a moment of excitement; how could Li Jiao allow such reckless behaviour?
Yang Kai had already asked them to make a move when they saw an opportunity, but now clearly wasn’t the time.
Several dozen kilometres away, the disturbance in the Demon Race Army continued. Wherever Yang Kai and the Embodiment went, the Demon Race Army fell into chaos. The pair left death and destruction in their wake. Li Jiao and the others could clearly see Yang Kai and the Embodiment moving back and forth through the Demon Race Army a few times before suddenly turning around and making a beeline towards the enemy’s centre.
The army’s chaotic movements suddenly calmed down as the million or so Demons formed a huge encirclement around Yang Kai and the Embodiment with not a single one approaching within a thousand metres of the two.
Every Demon present was staring at them in horror while the Demon Kings were grinding their teeth in hatred, hiding themselves in the army and not daring to easily make a move.
Yang Kai, hefted the Myriads Sword onto his shoulder, standing back to back with the Embodiment as he coldly looked out, a smile appearing on his face as he softly whispered, “It’s time!”
Just as these words escaped his lips, he suddenly raised his hand and snapped his fingers.
*Weng…*
Strange buzzing sound suddenly came from all around the Demon Race Army; like the beating of insect wings, millions of them.
The Demon Race looked around in confusion, but very soon, they realized where this strange sound was coming from.
Swarms of insects suddenly floated up from the ground, forming a dense, pitch-black cloud. The moment these insects appeared, they flew straight toward the Demons around them. The Demon Race was shocked and confused, but many of them hurriedly composed themselves and attacked, trying to stop these unknown insects from approaching. However, much to their shock and dismay, they quickly discovered that these insects were extremely tenacious and even if their attacks could send these insects flying, they didn’t kill them. Many insects fell to the ground for a while, but they would always start flapping their wings and fly up a moment later.
And when these insects came in contact with them, the Demons would miserably scream, falling to the ground in incomparable pain. Very soon, those who fell ceased moving, dying on the spot. What was strange was that there were no scars on the dead Demons, only their Souls had completely vanished.
Soul Devouring Insects!
Yang Kai hadn’t used the Soul Devouring Insects in a long time, but this situation was undoubtedly the best moment for them to showcase their power. They had always been a sharp weapon for such situations.
Previously, when Yang Kai moved through the Demon Race Army with the Embodiment, he had two objectives, one was to stop the enemy from advancing, while the other was to secretly release his Soul Devouring Insects. And now, when the Soul Devouring Insects emerged, the effect was better than even Yang Kai expected. The Demon Race Army was thrown into utter chaos as the weaker Demon Soldiers, Demon Generals, and Great Generals were basically unable to protect themselves from the Soul Devouring Insects. One by one, their Souls were devoured by the Soul Devouring Insects as they lay on the ground, dead. Only Demon Kings did not need to fear these evil insects.
It was a completely chaotic sight as the once well-organized Demon Race Army was no longer coherent. At least one-fifth of the Demon Race Army had been thrown into confusion by this move alone.
Seeing this, Yang Kai took a deep breath and raised his hand. The next moment, figure after figure suddenly appeared around him.
The cultivators of Half-Dragon City made their entrance.
The Emperor Realm Masters were the first ones to appear, then the Dao Source Realm cultivators, and finally the Origin Kings.
It took a lot of time to get them inside the Sealed World Bead, but it only took a few breaths of time to send them all out; after all, Yang Kai controlled everything inside the Sealed World Bead.
At the centre of the Demon Race Army, more than 100,000 people had appeared out of thin air. The Demon Kings, who were paying close attention to Yang Kai’s movements, were completely dumbfounded as an uneasy feeling gripped their hearts.
The next moment, a profound and complex language reverberated through the sky as a halo of light covered these 100,000 or so men and women.
Bloodlust Spell, Life Chains…
Then, a bright red glow emanated from these people, turning their breathing ragged and causing the blood in their bodies to boil.
Finished with the preparations, Yang Kai raised the Myriads Sword high and shouted in a heavy voice, “Kill!”
100,000 Masters immediately scattered in all directions, charging into the Demon Race Army like a flood bursting from a dam with the Emperor Realm Masters taking the lead.
How could the Demon Race Army, which already had its hands full fighting off the Soul Devouring Insects, stop such a vigorous charge? When the two sides clashed, the Demons were utterly routed. Each thousand-man team headed by the Emperor Realm Masters wantonly wreaked havoc on the Demon Race Army, slaughtering to their heart’s content as if they wanted to vent all the grievances they had suffered on Dragon Island over the years.
Both Yang Kai and the Embodiment were followed by a team of thousands of people, completely routing the Demon Race Army which could not even muster up a decent resistance.
In terms of numbers alone, the Demon Race had an absolute advantage, but the direction of the war was never determined by numbers alone. Half-Dragon City’s Emperor Realm Masters far outnumbered the Demon Kings in the Demon Race Army. This gap alone was enough to make up for hundreds of thousands of soldiers, not to mention that the Soul Devouring Insects were still wreaking havoc.
On the walls of Tiger Roar City, everyone looked at this change in amazement and excitement.
Li Jiao saw that the time had come and shouted, “If not now then when!”
Led by Li Jiao, Gao Xue Ting, and the other Emperors, tens of thousands swarmed out of Tiger Roar City, charging at the Demon Race Army.
Just an hour before, they were still worried about whether they would be able to see the sunrise tomorrow. Even in their dreams, they had never expected that they would be taking the initiative to attack; it was simply unimaginable.
Above the wilderness, the two races chaotically fought as figures fell one after another. In the blink of an eye, mountains of corpses and rivers of blood had appeared in the wilderness.
The gap between the numbers of both sides was still huge, but the outcome of the battle was without any suspense.
Fu Ling let out a roar as she charged ahead. She didn’t transform into her True Dragon Form, but her Dragon Roar Secret Technique reverberated across the sky, turning numerous Demons into crystal statues without vitality.
In less than the time it takes to boil a cup of tea, hundreds of thousands of Demons were either dead or dying while most of the Tiger Roar City cultivators were still alive and kicking, pressing the attack step by step.
The Demon Race Army’s formation had already been broken and their morale was at an all-time low, so when the horn for retreat was finally sounded, they all fled in a disorderly fashion.
Naturally, the cultivators of Tiger Roar City and Half-Dragon City gave chase, relentlessly hunting down the retreating Demons, leaving a trail of corpses in their wake.
After leaving only the necessary cultivators to guard the city in case of some kind of surprise, Yang Kai led the others to pursue the Demon Race Army.
They only returned to the city the next day.
It was always busy after a battle, but Tiger Roar City suddenly had more than 100,000 more Masters, of which nearly 200 were Emperors. This made everyone in Tiger Roar City extremely excited. Today, in the entire Western Territory, such a powerful fighting force could only be found in the great cities that were watched over by Pseudo-Great Emperors.
At noon, the statistics of the battle came out.
The enemy had lost more than 300,000 soldiers, while they had only lost less than 10,000. Compared to the casualties in the last battle, the death count was a little unbelievable this time, but the facts were right in front of everyone so they had no choice but to believe it.
The corpses outside the city also needed to be dealt with. If so many dead bodies were left out in the wilderness, they would definitely rot and stink. But Yang Kai didn’t need to worry about these things as Li Jiao organized a team of men to deal with such things.
In just a few days, Tiger Roar City had dealt with two waves of Demon attacks; furthermore, they had gained a complete victory each time. Yang Kai believed that the Demon Race should not have any plans for Tiger Roar City for a short while. After two consecutive defeats, the Demon Race would need time to recuperate and reorganize. However, when the Demon Race struck next time, perhaps things would not be so easy.
Although Tiger Roar City had won overwhelmingly this time, it also exposed its trump cards. When the Demon Race came again, they would definitely come with corresponding means to deal with them and perhaps there would be a real Master leading the next attack.
Inside the City Lord’s Mansion, Yang Kai was reclining on a couch with his head resting on Yu Ru Meng’s slender and shapely thighs, his eyes squinted as a thoughtful look filled his face.
Yu Ru Meng was gently caressing his head like a good wife and mother. It was very hard to believe that someone like her, who was ready to perish together with Yang Kai at every turn, would suddenly act so warm and gentle. The room was completely quiet. Apart from their breathing, nothing could be heard.
Yang Kai suddenly opened his eyes and called out, “Ru Meng.”
“Hm?” Yu Ru Meng responded.
“I remember that you told me before that you were going to take me to a place. Can you tell me exactly where that was?”
“Why did you ask this all of a sudden?” Yu Ru Meng smiled, curiously looking at him.
Yang Kai replied, “Since you even used your Heart Seal Secret Technique to bind me, obviously you have some kind of plan, but I have always wondered what you and the force behind you are plotting. Why have you not made a move yet? Ru Meng, now that the war between the two worlds has started, and I have been entrusted by Lin Tong to protect Tiger Roar City, I don’t want to be distracted by other things; therefore, I think that we should be honest with each other. You should tell me where you want to take me to and what you want me to do. If possible, I will cooperate with everything you ask.”
Yu Ru Meng, however, shook her head, smiling, “Now is not the right time. When it is, I will naturally tell you.”
Yang Kai looked up as an indifferent look flashed across his eyes.
Yu Ru Meng lightly furrowed her brow, feeling like Yang Kai was somehow far, far away from her at that moment.
As expected, the Demon Race remained quiet for a time. One month passed by without anything happening after Tiger Roar City had repelled the million-strong Demon Race Army.
After one month, the Defensive Array of the city was up and running once again, and when the light curtain finally covered the entire city, the cultivators inside felt safe. This Spirit Array was arranged by Nanmen Da Jun personally, so its performance was far better than the original Array of Tiger Roar City. Even if another million Demons came to attack, Tiger Roar City would be able to deal with them with this Spirit Array.
Not only that, but a good piece of news had also come from High Heaven Palace, and that was that the first batch of cultivators who had entered the Thousand Illusions Dreamworld had emerged. Although only one-tenth of them had cultivated Shaman Strength, it was proof in itself that this method was feasible. All they needed to do was continue to feed cultivators into the Thousand Illusions Dreamworld, and sooner or later, the Star Boundary would have enough Shamans to deal with the war between the two worlds.
Anyone who could cultivate Shaman Strength fell directly under Yang Yan’s jurisdiction, but perhaps because she felt guilty because she couldn’t provide Yang Kai with any help last time, she directly assigned two Shaman Grandmasters to Tiger Roar City.
In the current situation, two Shaman Grandmasters could only be regarded as adding flowers to a bouquet. Nonetheless, it was better than nothing. At least they could provide some practical Shamanic Spells to Tiger Roar City’s cultivators, helping Yang Kai save some energy.
Tiger Roar City had maintained contact with other cities of the Western Territory all this time so they knew that the overall situation was far from hopeful. Many small and medium-sized cities had already been occupied and the Star Boundary had suffered many casualties. The surviving cultivators were forced to flee to other cities and converge with their defence forces. Some people had also come to Tiger Roar City; not too many, but not too few either. Tiger Roar City had accepted a few tens of thousands of refugees, bolstering their defences further.
Since the beginning of the war between the two worlds, the Star Boundary’s casualties had already exceeded a few million, but the Demon Race had taken far more losses than that. Nonetheless, the Demon Race continued to pour more soldiers into the fight, as if they would never run out of fresh bodies and such losses meant nothing to them. Everyone was now struggling to deal with the situation.
A few days later, Yang Kai, who was in retreat inside the City Lord’s Mansion, suddenly opened his eyes and took out his communication artifact. After checking it, a frown appeared on his brow as stood up before his figure flickered.
The next moment, Yang Kai appeared on the city wall as a team of Emperor Realm Masters saluted him, one after another.
“What’s going on?” Yang Kai asked, looking into the distance.
Li Jiao replied, “The Demon Race is back.”
“How many?”
“Not too many, only a few hundred thousand.”
Chi Gui sneered, “When we have already repulsed an army of a million soldiers, what could a few hundred thousand achieve?” Last time, when the Defensive Array wasn’t even functional, Tiger Roar City had achieved a stunning victory, so now that they had the support of the Array and Tiger Roar City had gained tens of thousands more Masters, Chi Gui was naturally filled with confidence.
“Don’t be careless!” Yang Kai warned in a grim voice, “Since the Demon Race dared to return, they must be counting on something.”
Suddenly, something clicked as Gao Xue Ting voiced her concern, a little startled, “Do you mean to say…”
Yang Kai replied, “I hope I’m wrong, otherwise it won’t be an easy fight.” He turned to Ma Yin and ordered, “Send some people out to scout if there are other Demon Race Armies in the vicinity.”
Ma Yin responded before quickly descending the city wall and making arrangements.
Not long after, a dozen or so figures rushed out of Tiger Roar City, heading in various directions.
Half an hour later, Ma Yin came to report back, “City Lord, there is no trace of any Demons within a thousand kilometres of Tiger Roar City other than the army before us.”
Yang Kai nodded before shouting aloud, “Relay my order, prepare for battle!”
The war horn was blown as Tiger Roar City started mobilizing at full speed. Nearly 200,000 cultivators performed their respective duties and under the command of the Emperor Realm Masters, everyone stood in square formations, guarding all directions of the city wall, waiting for the Demon Race to approach.
Reports kept coming from the scouts stationed outside that the Demon Race Army was steadily approaching Tiger Roar City, apparently heading straight for them.
The atmosphere on the city wall was solemn as many Emperors were gazing into the distance.
Slowly, the Demon Race Army appeared in everyone’s field of vision. The intelligence was indeed correct as there were less than a million of them, and because it was much less than last time, presumably it was mainly composed of the same army which was routed last time.
But that very army that had suffered such huge casualties against Tiger Roar City was actually advancing with vigour and arrogance, carrying an unprecedented momentum with them, which was quite puzzling to most.
Time slowly trickled by until the Demon Race Army came to a halt fifty kilometres away from Tiger Roar City, whereupon it parted right down the middle and a figure riding a Demon Flame Horse rode out in neither a hurried nor slow manner.
The Demon Flame Horse had wicked flames rising from its hooves, making it look exceptionally fierce. At first glance, it looked a few heads taller than an ordinary horse, giving it a majestic and imposing air.
Riding the horse was a single Demon who swayed left and right slightly, like he was drunk. His eyes were closed as he slowly approached Tiger Roar City along with his mount.
Everyone’s gaze was focused on this Demon Race Master and many people started to furrow their brows as no one was able to gauge the depth of this individual’s strength. At first glance, this Demon Race Master seemed no different than an ordinary man, but why would an ordinary man come here to seek his death at this point?
The only reason that made sense was because the cultivation of this Demon was exceptionally high.
Da da da…
The sound of hooves kicking the ground in a relaxed manner rang out until finally that Demon Race Master, riding his Demon Flame Horse, arrived not too far away from the city walls and stopped.
Finally, the Demon Race Master yawned before he slowly opened his eyes.
Immediately, light flashed across the depths of this man’s eyes, seemingly causing the surrounding world to tremble as a heavy pressure descended from above like an invisible mountain pressing on the chests of the Emperor Realm Masters, making it difficult for them to breathe.
“Pseudo-Great Emperor!” Li Jiao cried in shock.
Gao Xue Ting and the others’ expressions also drastically changed.
Yang Kai became equally gloomy. Although he had expected that the Demon Race would definitely be prepared this time, and might even dispatch a Pseudo-Great Emperor level Master, when one such Master really appeared before his eyes, Yang Kai felt his head ache a little.
Tiger Roar City wasn’t a big city, nor was it located in a strategically important position, so the Demon Race shouldn’t be too concerned about it. However, after suffering such a big loss not once, but twice against Tiger Roar City, losing countless soldiers, perhaps the higher-ups were attracted and they deployed a Pseudo-Great Emperor level Master to deal with it.
As expected, taller trees attract more wind!
“Pseudo-Great Emperor?” Obviously, that Demon Race Master had heard Li Jiao and focused his gaze on him and chuckled. His smile was bright and hearty, and coupled with the air of vicissitudes of life on his face, it carried a charm of its own. He slowly raised his finger and shook it left and right, refuting, “Wrong, wrong, wrong, completely wrong. Pseudo-Great Emperor is what you call us on your side, on our side, Masters like me are called Half-Saints!”
No matter whether it was a Pseudo-Great Emperor or Half-Saint though, it was just a difference in name. In either case, both were just a step away from becoming a Great Emperor or Demon Saint, incomparable to ordinary Emperor Realm Masters.
Yang Kai grit his teeth, cursing Qiong Qi a hundred times in his heart. Had he not taken Yang Xiao and Yang Xue to the Four Seasons Realm on his own initiative, he wouldn’t be lacking high-end Masters right now. By relying on Qiong Qi and Liu Yan, it might not have been that hard to deal with the Half-Saint before him.
[Alright, now that they have dispatched a Half-Saint, my Embodiment and I will have to go all out to deal with him. Even so, the rest of Tiger Roar City will probably suffer heavy casualties to defeat the rest of the Demon Race Army.]
Not to mention it was still difficult to say whether they could win or not. The last two battles were won with such ease mainly because of Yang Kai’s presence on the battlefield. Without him, Tiger Roar City’s combat power would definitely take a dive.
Suddenly, the Half-Saint pointed at Li Jiao and stated, arrogantly laughing, “Old dog, since you talk a lot, you will die first. This Old Master will give you a quick and peaceful death!”
Li Jiao’s face turned ashen after hearing this. [I should die first just because I spoke first!? What kind of reasoning is that?]
Yang Kai calmly stated, “Your Excellency is quite arrogant. Whether it’s a Pseudo-Great Emperor or Half-Saint, if you want us to die, you’ll need to prove you’re capable of killing us first!”
The Half-Saint immediately focused his gaze on Yang Kai after hearing this, his sharp eyes even giving off a piercing light as he gently nodded and proclaimed, “You will be the second one to die…” Then he pointed at the others one by one, “You will be third, you fourth…”
He continued on in such a manner for quite a while, angering many in the process. From the way he spoke, he really sounded like everyone who was pointed at by him should just step out and offer their necks to him.
While he was pointing at the cultivators of Tiger Roar City one by one though, the Demon Race Half-Saint suddenly froze with his hand pointed in a certain direction. A moment later, he nervously gulped as he squinted in the direction of a certain part of the city wall, remaining silent for a long time after.
Everyone on the city wall was confused as they looked in the direction this man was gazing, wondering what he was staring at.
A moment later, the Half-Saint retracted his hand and stated, embarrassingly smiling, “This King suddenly remembered he has something urgent to attend to. En, I will take my leave first!”
Saying so, he really turned his horse around and galloped back the very same way he came, rapidly at that.
[What the Hell?]
Li Jiao and the others were completely dumbfounded, feeling as if this Half-Saint of the Demon Race had some problems with his head! He came so aggressively and arrogantly, listing off the people he would kill right before their eyes, but in the end, it was like a thunderclap with no rain!
Was this idiot really a Half-Saint? Was it just some fool pretending to be one? However, his aura was not inferior to a Pseudo-Great Emperor, and that couldn’t be faked.
The situation was so strange that everyone didn’t know how they should deal with it and all slowly turned to Yang Kai, waiting for his orders.
Yang Kai’s brow furrowed for a moment before a light flickered across his eyes and he made up his mind, “Open the Array! Attack!”
Gao Xue Ting hurriedly exhorted, “Yang Kai, be careful of a trap!”
The Half-Saint’s behaviour just now was too strange, making it difficult to not think he had some plot in mind, like trying to draw everyone out of the city where they would be easier to deal with. It was already extremely difficult to confront a Half-Saint, but if they also lost the protection of the Defensive Array, all the Emperor Realm Masters present still might not be enough to kill him.
It wasn’t only Gao Xue Ting who had such concerns, most others were also worried about this.
Yang Kai, however, turned to Gao Xue Ting and said in a sombre voice, “Trust me!”
Gao Xue Ting hesitated for a moment before nodding and shouting, “Open the Array!”
The Defensive Array around the city then came down with a low rumbling noise.
The next moment, profound and abstruse verses rang out as the Bloodlust Spell and Life Chains bloomed, covering the army in the city.
Although he had to spend some time blessing Tiger Roar City’s cultivators with the Bloodlust Spell and Life Chains, Yang Kai still caught up with that Demon Race Half-Saint in no time. The next moment, much to the horror of Li Jiao and the others, he raised the Myriads Sword and swung it down.
The Demon Race Half-Saint flicked his wrist without even lifting his head, as if he had eyes on the top of his head, knocking back the Myriads Sword with absolute precision.
With a clang, a powerful force struck the Myriads Sword and it almost flew out of Yang Kai’s hand. Yang Kai was secretly shocked by the Demon Race Half-Saint’s strength, but in the next moment, Space Principles burst forth, turning the space around the Half-Saint into an invisible cage.
The Demon Flame Horse abruptly came to a halt, its entire body bursting into flames as it struggled hard, but it still moved as slow as a turtle. Under the space solidification, even a powerful Demon Beast would find it difficult to move about.
A pitch-black Moon Blade flew towards the Demon Race Half-Saint the next moment, who responded by grabbing at it with his hand. Surprisingly, the Moon Blade actually got caught and with a slight exertion of strength, shattered into pieces. The Half-Saint’s figure then rose into the air and soared off, completely free from the constraints of space.
Yang Kai swiftly formed a set of hand seals as he murmured, “Time Flows on Infinitely, Like a Mighty Stream, Like an Unending Dream!”
Time seemed to have come to a stop at that moment as the Time Flies Seal slammed towards the Half-Saint.
A rare look of surprise appeared on the Demon Race Half-Saint’s face. Suddenly, his figure burst into flames as the surrounding temperature shot up, reaching such an intensity that space started to distort from the heat. With a wave of his hand, a ball of flame flew towards the Time Flies Seal and clashed with it mid-air. With a deafening explosion, the two attacks negated each other and disappeared from sight.
A painful wail suddenly sounded as the Demon Flame Horse fell dead from the fallout of the attack.
The Demon Race Half-Saint grit his teeth as he glanced down at his mount; a saddened and pained look had appeared on his face.
Ding…
A clear and distinct chime of a bell suddenly sounded as the small Mountains and Rivers Bells flew out, rotating rapidly as it expanded and slammed down at the Demon-Race Half-Saint with the power to suppress the Heavens and Earth.
“Good artifact!” The Demon Race Half-Saint shouted aloud, his eyes sharpening significantly. He immediately noticed how extraordinary the Mountains and Rivers Bell was, and in the next moment, his figure turned into a huge ball of fire as he flew left and right through the air, dodging the suppressive force coming from it.
Yang Kai’s body flickered as he arrived atop the Half-Saint and stretched his hand down towards him. His hand transformed into a Dragon Claw as he slashed out, but in the end, he caught nothing but air. A Half-Saint was comparable to a Pseudo-Great Emperor, so how could this man be so easy to deal with?
On the other hand, the Demon Race Half-Saint was growing annoyed with Yang Kai’s repeated attacks. In a flash, he arrived on top of the Mountains and Rivers Bell and kicked it with overwhelming force. The Mountains and Rivers Bell flew straight towards the ground and crashed into it, creating a large series of cracks where it landed.
The Demon Race Half-Saint declared, standing proudly in the air and looking at Yang Kai, “Boy, enough is enough. If you attack me again, this King will no longer be polite with you!”
Yang Kai just grinned though as he summoned his Embodiment with a wave of his hand, staring deeply at him, “What are you so worried about?”
Half-Saint broke into laughter, “Why would this King be worried? It’s just that this King has something important to do right now and cannot be bothered to pay attention to you at the moment, that’s all.”
“Since you aren’t worried about anything, let’s fight!” Yang Kai furiously roared, “Dragon Transformation!”
A high-pitched Dragon Roar reverberated through the sky and in the next instant, Yang Kai’s figure swelled up. Short horns grew on his head as dragon scales emerged on his bare skin. His hands completely transformed into Dragon Claws and a long Dragon Tail appeared behind him.
In the blink of an eye, Yang Kai’s body had drastically transformed, turning into a 300-metre-tall colossus with his head high up in the sky while his feet remained on the ground. Hot air blew from his nostrils as Dragon Aura swept out, causing the wind and clouds to blow about randomly.
The Demon Race Half-Saint looked up, putting his hand over his head and creating a shade over his eyes. The next moment, his facial muscles momentarily twitched.
Obscure Dragon Language sounded as Yang Kai opened his mouth and roared. The next moment, a golden ball of light shot straight at the Demon Race Half-Saint.
The golden ball of light was extremely dazzling and almost blotted out the light of the sun in the sky. And when it fell to the ground, it spread out rapidly, blinding all those within its area of influence.
A deafening explosion sounded as the ground quaked non-stop.
After the golden light disappeared, a large pit one thousand metres across had appeared while the Demon Race Half-Saint was nowhere to be found.
However, at that moment, a voice came from the distance, “Remember, this King is Bai Zhuo, and he will return another day to teach you a good lesson!”
Yang Kai looked in the direction of the sound as his face turned gloomier.
[Escaped!]
[That Half-Saint actually escaped!] Immediately, Yang Kai had a sense of powerlessness as if he had just punched a ball of cotton. He really wanted to fight and had even transformed into his 300-metre-tall Half-Dragon Form. Together with his Embodiment, there was a chance they could defeat their opponent.
At the end of the day, he was up against a Half-Saint, so Yang Kai didn’t dare to hide his cards, but what was completely out of his expectation was that the enemy simply retreated without a moment of hesitation, even ignoring the few hundred thousand strong Demon Race Army.
What did this mean?
But this had somewhat confirmed a conjecture in Yang Kai’s heart.
If a Half-Saint wanted to escape, Yang Kai couldn’t do anything even if he had Space Divine Abilities. Having lost the target to vent all his fighting spirit, all Yang Kai could do was turn towards the several-hundred-thousand-strong Demon Race Army.
This Demon Race Army was indeed the very same army that had been beaten black and blue last time. Having been led here by a Demon Race Half-Saint, they came aggressively, wanting to take revenge for their previous defeat, but none of them had expected for that Half-Saint to withdraw first, paying no heed to their life or death.
200,000 cultivators of Tiger Roar City had already rushed over at that moment and the two armies were instantly locked in a heated battle.
History repeated itself. This Demon Race had originally lost at the hands of Tiger Roar City and the only reason they dared to come today was because they had the backing of a Half-Saint, but now that their support had left in such a decisive manner, it was as if the army had lost its backbone. Where would they find the will to fight? The moment the two armies came into contact, they fell like paper cards and were utterly routed.
On the other hand, Tiger Roar City’s imposing manner soared as they pounced like wolves and tigers onto sheep. Under the command of the two hundred Emperor Realm Masters, they ripped into the enemy lines, killing wantonly.
When Yang Kai and Embodiment joined the battlefield, the result was even less suspenseful.
Yang Kai’s 300-metre body was extremely eye-catching even if it was in a battlefield filled with a million people. The Demon Race Army kept retreating, but Yang Kai constantly charged right into the densest crowds, swinging his claws and tail randomly, killing hundreds of Demons with each blow.
After who knows how long, the screams of the tumultuous battlefield finally calmed. The cultivators who were still alive looked around and found no Demons nearby, just themselves covered in blood.
The next moment, deafening cheers resounded throughout the sky.
Yang Kai had already cancelled his Dragon Transformation and returned to his original appearance, standing in the void as he looked around.
From all directions, wisps of inexplicable energy were gathering towards him. A single wisp was insignificant, but when 100,000 to 200,000 wisps gathered, the energy it produced created an extremely terrifying pressure.
A tiger roar resounded as an enormous tiger phantom suddenly appeared behind Yang Kai. It was vivid and lifelike, and had a dark and cold aura.
Yang Kai turned his head as a strange look appeared on his face.
Whether this enormous tiger was tangible or intangible, he couldn’t clearly tell, but he felt as if he could mobilize the giant tiger’s energy for his own use. If he absorbed this enormous tiger at the critical moment, he would definitely make his own strength increase to an astounding height.
Hundreds of thousands of gazes focused on that enormous tiger while many people couldn’t understand how or why this illusory phantom had suddenly appeared; however, all felt that the illusory phantom of the giant tiger was closely connected to themselves.
“War Force!” Li Jiao raised his brow, looking pleasantly surprised.
Yang Kai turned to him and asked, “What is War Force?”
Li Jiao excitedly replied, “The collective force of an army that has united as one. When the hearts of tens of thousands of men come together, only then can such momentum be gathered. I have only seen records of this in ancient books and never expected to see it with my own eyes. Brother Yang, since War Force has appeared, it means that our Tiger Roar City’s army has become one unified whole, a rarer feat than gathering an army of millions under one banner!”
Gao Xue Ting nodded her agreement, “It’s very rare for War Force to appear, only when everyone has absolute confidence in their commander would there be a chance for it to manifest.”
A thoughtful look appeared on Yang Kai’s face as he asked, “I feel like I can use this giant tiger to enhance my strength.”
Li Jiao agreed with a nod, “That’s right. War Force is rare but it is also infinitely useful. Such a large-scale battle hasn’t been fought in the Star Boundary for a very long time, so naturally, War Force has not made an appearance either. Tiger Roar City is very likely to be the first place where War Force has manifested.”
Yang Kai rejoiced, “This is a good thing.”
Li Jiao burst into laughter and stated, “With Brother Yang’s ability and this War Force supporting us, the next time that Half-Saint arrives, our Tiger Roar City will have nothing to fear!”
Yang Kai and the Embodiment’s team was already exceptionally strong, perhaps not as strong as that Half-Saint Bai Zhuo, but they wouldn’t be that far behind, but if the boost from this War Force was added to the mix, they might be slightly superior.
Tiger Roar City had won three battles out of three battles, all of which were overwhelming victories. This made everyone in Tiger Roar City have absolute confidence in Yang Kai, so the appearance of War Force was simply a matter of course. This was tantamount to gaining recognition from hundreds of thousands of people and gathering their collective momentum onto himself, a boost that should not be underestimated.
As Li Jiao stated, for hundreds of thousands of men and women to have this War Force was rarer than gathering a million-strong army. Facts also proved this as the Demon Race had no lack of armies over a million strong, but what happened when they fought? Weren’t they forced to flee when they faced Tiger Roar City?
Last time, Tiger Roar City had killed 300,000 Demons but this time the number was far higher because less than 200,000 Demons had been able to flee with their lives.
After leaving some men to clean the battlefield and count the casualties, Yang Kai headed straight back to the City Lord’s Mansion.
Yu Ru Meng came to greet him, staring at him with her pretty eyes as she asked, “You have a Dragon Clan bloodline?”
Had Yang Kai not transformed into a 300-metre-tall Half-Dragon, she really would have never known this, but with his giant figure sweeping across the battlefield, as long as one wasn’t blind, they would surely notice him, and Yu Ru Meng’s vision was just fine.
Yang Kai pursed his lips into a smile as he reached out, grabbed her sleek chin and lifted it up, asking, “What’s wrong? Are you aroused?”
Yu Ru Meng slapped his hand away and angrily rebuked, “In your dreams!”
Yang Kai swooped in, however, and picked her up before striding inside.
“What do you want to do?” Yu Ru Meng struggled left and right.
“Your Husband has just returned from the battle, naturally, he needs you to clean him and change his clothes.”
Yu Ru Meng couldn’t help but roll her eyes at him, “Who is my Husband, you?”
Yang Kai looked at her, “You don’t want to?”
Yu Ru Meng disdainfully spat.
Yang Kai thus let her down and shouted, “Fu Ling!”
Fu Ling rushed over like a storm, her pretty eyes flickering with a strange glow, “Brother-in-law, what can I do for you?”
Yu Ru Meng hurriedly interjected, “Nothing, he just wants to ask if you were injured.”
Fu Ling smiled, “Many thanks for your concern, brother-in-law. Fu Ling is fine though.”
Yu Ru Meng nodded, “It’s good that you are alright.” After that, she grabbed Yang Kai’s hand and led him to the inner room.
Tiger Roar City’s situation had become a bit strange after this battle, and over the span of the next six months, no Demon Race Army appeared to attack it.
Who knows if it was because of the fear of Tiger Roar City’s strength or for other reasons, but the Demon Race seemed to have forgotten Tiger Roar City. However, the cities in the vicinity of Tiger Roar City were still being attacked frequently.
In the first two months, Yang Kai didn’t dare to act rashly, lest he give the Demon Race a chance to strike.
But as time passed, after confirming that the Demon Race wouldn’t be attacking Tiger Roar City, Yang Kai began leading the army out to launch offensives. Since the Demon Race refused to come to him, he would go to them instead!
Thanks to Tiger Roar City’s 200,000-man army marching back and forth, the nearby cities that were in danger several times survived and even killed countless enemies when timely support arrived. Since Tiger Roar City’s Army had gained War Force, and there were nearly two hundred Emperor Realm Masters in the army, wherever they went, they were simply unstoppable and invincible, causing their fame to spread extensively.
Currently, there were many big cities in the Western Territory that were struggling hard, but if any city was in a spot and unable to defend itself, they would immediately send a request to Tiger Roar City for help. Owing to the Space Array and Sealed World Bead, Yang Kai’s support always came extremely fast and was able to turn the tide of many battles.
Although the Tiger Roar City Army performed quite well under Yang Kai’s leadership, the overall situation for the Star Boundary was far from optimistic.
In just six months, the Western Territory had lost a lot of ground; hundreds of cities had fallen and countless people had been killed in battle. The encroachment of the Demon Race was simply unstoppable. At this rate, the entire Western Territory might fall within five years. By then, the Demon Race would use the Western Territory as the springboard to attack the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Territories, shattering any semblance of peace they now held.
The Great Emperors were nowhere to be found now and no one knew what they were doing, or whether they even knew the situation the Star Boundary was currently in.
A gap slowly opened in the Defensive Array of the Tiger Roar City as the army of 200,000 men triumphantly returned. Although the Tiger Roar City Army had suffered a lot of casualties in the battles over these six months, cultivators from other cities that had fallen had come to join it every day, so its size actually remained the same if not slightly increased.
The residents of the city broke into cheers and jubilation as they heartily and happily welcomed the army’s return.
Yang Kai had led the army to provide support to a nearby city, and this trip could be considered a successful one. They had not only defended the city they went to support, but they had also repelled the attack of a million-strong Demon Race Army.
Ma Yin, who stayed behind to guard Tiger Roar City, came to Yang Kai and whispered something in his ears the moment he returned, causing his eyes to flicker with a little surprise as he gestured to the army behind him to go and rest. Yang Kai then strode into the City Lord’s Mansion.
In the main hall, someone was sitting to the side and only turned his head to look up upon sensing the movements.
As their gazes met, Yang Kai noticed that the opposite party’s eyes were completely white.
“Brother Gao!” Yang Kai smiled as he walked to the main seat in the hall and sat down, whereupon a maid served him tea before respectfully withdrawing.
It was none other than Gao Zhan, who could be considered an acquaintance, if not a close one. Yang Kai found this a little strange though, wondering what he was doing here. Gao Zhan was the Legacy Disciple of Heavens Revelations Great Emperor, so why was he here in Tiger Roar City instead of staying beside the Great Emperor?
“I really don’t deserve such status!” Gao Zhan slightly bowed, “Senior Brother Yang has had so many military achievements. Whenever the Tiger Roar Army moves out, the Demon Race trembles in fear. You have created a grand name for yourself these days.”
Yang Kai responded with a casual wave, “Brother Gao flatters me, but I wonder why Brother Gao is here. Did something happen?”
Gao Zhan replied, “I’m here on Master’s order to ask Senior Brother Yang to come over at once.”
Yang Kai asked, raising his brow, “Senior Heavens Revelations wants to see me?”
“That’s right!”
Yang Kai agreed with a nod, “Alright, give me a moment to prepare.”
Gao Zhan gestured to him to go ahead.
Yang Kai didn’t need to prepare anything much, he simply needed to inform Li Jiao and Gao Xue Ting that he was going out for a bit, and tell them to remain on high alert. The Demon Race Army had not approached Tiger Roar City since the Demon Race Half-Saint had run away after making a scene last time, but being careful never hurt. What if the Demon Race really attacked while he wasn’t here?
After having dealt with everything, Yang Kai left with Gao Zhan, travelling directly to their destination using the Space Array in the city.
After a blinding flash of light, the two had appeared in a mountain valley. The valley was quite rich in World Energy and was extremely beautiful and refreshing, adorned with many pavilions and buildings. Its scenery was quite unique and after having been fighting and killing on the battlefield for so long, Yang Kai felt a little out of sorts after suddenly coming to such a place.
Yang Kai asked, raising his brow, “Is this Heavens Spying Valley?”
He had long heard that Heavens Revelations Great Emperor lived in a place called Heavens Spying Valley, but only a few people knew where exactly Heavens Spying Valley was. Yang Kai didn’t have any idea either and never expected to one day come here.
Gao Zhan confirmed, nodding, “Senior Brother Yang is correct, this is indeed Heavens Spying Valley. Master likes peace and quiet, so it is just Master and I here. I ask Brother Yang to forgive any negligence.”
“Brother Gao is too polite.” Yang Kai stated before he started checking left and right, looking rather curious.
Gao Zhan led the way, crossing the small bridges and creaks, walking straight ahead. Heavens Spring valley was filled with winding paths, and its scenery was continuously changing at every turn. At one place, it might be a spring scenery with blooming flowers everywhere, and at the next step, one might find themselves in a snowfield.
An extremely brilliant Spirit Array was arranged here, which seemed to be able to mimic the atmosphere of the four seasons.
After arriving before a certain pavilion, Gao Zhan finally stopped and stretched his hand out, making an inviting gesture.
Yang Kai looked up and much to his shock found two people sitting inside the pavilion who happened to be looking at him smiling. He might have been checking out the surrounding scenery, but that didn’t mean that he wasn’t keeping track of his surroundings. However, he had not sensed the two sitting inside the pavilion until he had looked up and seen them, which was really strange.
But if these two were Great Emperors, everything would make sense.
One of them was naturally the owner of this place, Heaven’s Revelations Great Emperor, and the other wasn’t a stranger to Yang Kai. He was none other than Martial Beast Great Emperor, Mo Huang.
At this moment, the two were sitting face to face with each other, a stone table between them with a pot of tea boiling on it, filling the air with a unique fragrance.
Yang Kai strode forward and bowed with cupped fists, “Greetings, Seniors!”
Mo Huang stated, smiling, “Forget all the ceremonies and take a seat.”
Yang Kai thanked him before sitting down.
After this, the pavilion returned to silence. Heavens Revelations Great Emperor and Martial Beast Great Emperor remained completely silent, as if they were waiting for the tea before them to boil. Yang Kai didn’t want to disturb the peaceful atmosphere either, but at the end of the day, he was sitting in between two Great Emperors, which left him quite uncomfortable; as such, he kept fidgeting and moving about.
Mo Huang glanced at him and snorted, “Are you a monkey?”
Yang Kai embarrassingly smiled as his head immediately sunk in embarrassment, not daring to move about thereafter.
Chu Tian Ji, however, just chuckled, “It’s quite common for the youngsters to be lively and active. Why is Brother Mo being so harsh on him?”
Mo Huang justified, “Brother Chu, don’t be deceived by this little brat’s appearance, he’s far from a good and honest man.” Because of Mo Xiao Qi’s matter, Mo Huang had a lot of complaints about Yang Kai and didn’t hesitate to take him down a notch whenever he got the chance.
Yang Kai protested, feeling wronged, “Senior Martial Beast, this Junior has never offended you, has he? Back then, when I visited Dragon Island, I even helped you slightly. Last time, I even took Xiao Qi to visit her mother. Why do you say that about me?”
Mo Huang snorted even louder as he picked up the teapot on the table, filled a cup for himself, and drank it in one go.
Chu Tian Ji chuckled as he picked up the teapot and poured a cup for Yang Kai.
Yang Kai was greatly shocked and hurriedly stood up, “How can I allow Senior to do this. Please allow this Junior to serve you.” It was none other than Heaven’s Revelations Great Emperor, who was pouring him tea. Yang Kai couldn’t bear it no matter how arrogant he was.
Chu Tian Ji, on the other hand, ignored him. He only poured himself a cup after he had filled Yang Kai’s before slowly saying, “I have heard a great deal about you from Brother Mo. As expected, talented people are born in every generation, and each new generation surpasses the previous.”
Yang Kai blushed after hearing this and sat back down awkwardly, “Senior Heaven’s Revelations is too polite.”
Yang Kai knew that Mo Huang had some complaints about him so no good words must have come out of his mouth. Who knows what Heaven’s Revelations Great Emperor had really heard about him!
Chu Tian Ji continued, “Extraordinary people must do extraordinary things. At least this Old Master didn’t have as colourful a life when he was your age. Far from it in fact.”
Yang Kai fiercely rebuffed, “I’m not someone extraordinary, I am just young and impulsive. Seniors are the role models of the Star Boundary’s billions of cultivators.”
Chu Tian Ji slowly shook his head, “This Old Master could be considered to have lived for many years and seen all kinds of so-called young geniuses and rising stars, but none have ever been as eye-catching and dazzling as you. The entire world says that this Old Master can peer into the past, see the future, understand the present, and discern the secrets of the Heavens, but this Old Master can’t see through your future.”
Yang Kai asked in shock, “Does Senior mean to say that this Junior’s future is clouded?”
Chu Tian Ji shook his head, but he didn’t explain much, causing Yang Kai to grow a bit anxious; however, what could he do? His fist was smaller than the opposite party so he couldn’t exactly force Chu Tian Ji to explain. In the end, all Yang Kai could do was grab the cup of tea before him and drink it in one gulp.
Mo Huang couldn’t bear it any longer and interjected, “Stop flattering him, just get down to business. Old Chu, you are someone who just likes to be roundabout and drag things out unnecessarily.”
Yang Kai too asked with a solemn look, “Indeed, I wonder why the two Seniors have summoned this Junior. Is something the matter?”
Obviously, a trivial matter would not make the two Great Emperors ask for him to appear before them. Suddenly, Yang Kai realized the meaning of Heaven’s Revelations Great Emperor’s words, ‘Extraordinary people do extraordinary things.’ [It’s because he has a mission for me, and it should be a very dangerous mission at that!]
[Damn, a Great Emperor’s tea isn’t that easy to drink!]
Before Chu Tian Ji could explain, Mo Huang directly got to the point, “Yang Kai, we hope that you can take a trip to the Demon Realm.”
“Enter the Demon Realm!?” Yang Kai was greatly shocked after hearing this, “Why do you want me to enter the Demon Realm?”
Mo Huang replied with a grim look on his face, “Bright Moon is in a little danger. We need you to rescue him.”
Yang Kai was now thoroughly dumbstruck after hearing this. Naturally, he knew about the fall of Bright Moon Great Emperor in the Demon Realm. When the passage between the two worlds had opened, the Great Emperors had entered it to investigate, but they were ambushed by several Demon Saints in the Demon Realm and in the end, Bright Moon Great Emperor had stayed behind to hold off those Demon Saints alone, giving Mo Huang and the others a chance to escape.
Later, Yang Kai had also heard that Bright Moon Great Emperor seemed to be trapped somewhere, but no one knew where he was exactly. That was all Yang Kai had heard until this day.
Now, Mo Huang suddenly asked him to go to the Demon Realm to rescue Bright Moon Great Emperor, confusing Yang Kai greatly.
After hesitating for a while, Yang Kai asked as the corners of his mouth twitched, “Seniors, are you playing a joke on me?”
“Aha… ha…” Yang Kai forced a laugh, “This Junior is not that capable or noble…”
Before he could finish, Mo Huang added, “I also think that it would be a little reckless to ask you to do this, but Old Chu said that you must do this.”
“Why?” Yang Kai furrowed his brow, curiously looking at Chu Tian Ji.
Chu Tian Ji unhurriedly replied, “A few days ago, this Old Master suddenly felt restless and ill at ease. I vaguely felt that something momentous was about to occur and immediately started divining and received a premonition. Little Friend Yang, do you know what the prophecy was?”
Yang Kai thought to himself, [How would I know? If I knew it, then I would be Heaven’s Revelations Great Emperor. What is wrong with you?] He immediately shook his head, revealing a curious look.
Chu Tian Ji turned his head, looking to one side as he replied in neither a hurried nor slow manner, “The Moon is slowly setting, but there is still a glimmer of light left.”
Yang Kai pondered hard but he couldn’t figure out what this prophecy had to do with him and humbly asked, “I understand the part about the moon setting, obviously it is an omen indicating that Senior Bright Moon is in danger, but what does this glimmer of light have to do with me?”
Chu Tian Ji raised his head, pointing, “Look there, what do you see?”
Yang Kai followed along his gaze and immediately saw a thick poplar tree that a human could completely embrace that had dense foliage.
Chu Tian Ji continued, “That day, this Old Master was divining there, and that tree is what resonated with the hexagrams. Look again, in which direction is that poplar tree?”
Yang Kai checked the directions before hesitantly replying, “North…?”
Chu Tian Ji agreed, nodding, “The Moon is slowly setting, but there is still a glimmer of light in the north poplar! So, can my little friend understand?”
Realization immediately dawned upon Yang Kai. [North’s poplar, north’s poplar, north direction, surnamed Yang. Who else could it be pointing to beside me? But is this really reliable?] It wasn’t that he was doubting Heaven’s Revelations Great Emperor’s ability. Since the world gave him the moniker Heaven’s Revelations, and he could peer into the past and see the future, so he had the necessary skills, but what kind of place was the Demon Realm? A team of Great Emperors was forced to leave one of their own behind just to escape from the entrance to that place. What could an insignificant Second-Order Emperor like Yang Kai achieve in such a land? Forget about rescuing Bright Moon Great Emperor, just getting there alive would be a miracle.
(TL note: Poplar in Chinese is Yang(杨), Yang Kai’s surname.)
Yang Kai immediately fell into contemplation. To be honest, although he was a little curious about what the Demon Realm was like, he had never considered going there. It wasn’t that easy to directly refuse two Great Emperors right to their faces though, so all he could say was, “Seniors, even if this Junior wishes to help, I’m afraid he is powerless to do so. This Junior is completely unaware of the Demon Realm’s situation, or where exactly Senior Bright Moon may be, but more importantly, how to safely enter the Demon Realm is already an almost insurmountable obstacle. Although the passage between the two worlds is open, it is impossible for this Junior to openly or covertly make his way through it. If this Junior really tried, the Demon Race would surely tear him to pieces before he even got to the entrance. But apart from the passage, how else can this Junior enter the Demon Realm?”
“You have your own way!” Chu Tian Ji looked at Yang Kai with a smile.
Yang Kai’s brow twitched as he asked, “And what way would that be?”
Chu Tian Ji slowly shook his head, “Although this Old Master is unaware of the details, he knows you have a way to enter the Demon Realm. Furthermore, you will surely meet a tribulation in the Demon Realm, but after you have overcome it, you will soar into the sky in a single leap.”
Yang Kai asked, staring at him, “What tribulation?”
Chu Tian Ji just smiled and didn’t explain.
Mo Huang, on the other hand, was a little shocked as he asked, “Brat, do you really have a way to enter the Demon Realm?”
Yang Kai rebuked, bitterly smiling, “What nonsense!? Unless all the Great Emperors escort me in, there is no way, but if we do that, the Demon Realm would surely know all about it. At that time, even if this Junior somehow safely made it to the Demon Realm, he would not have a moment’s peace. This Junior would more than likely die a brutal death.” His face turned serious as he stated, cupping his fists, “This Junior is really powerless. Seniors, please do not make things difficult.”
Yang Kai really didn’t want to go to the Demon Realm. Even if Heavens Revelations Great Emperor said that the slim chance of Bright Moon Great Emperor making it through if he went, that was just a vague prophecy, that’s all. Even if it was really accurate, what could he do when even Bright Moon Great Emperor was unable to do anything?
Just as he said this though, Yang Kai suddenly noticed a figure walking into the pavilion through the corner of his eyes.
Upon checking who it was, Yang Kai cried out in surprise, “Junior Sister Lan?”
It was none other than Lan Xun. Who knows when she came to Heavens Spying Valley, but during these days Yang Kai hadn’t seen her, Lan Xun had become very haggard and it was clear from her red, puffy eyes that she had been crying frequently.
This wasn’t surprising though as Bright Moon Great Emperor had been trapped in the Demon Realm for so long, and she had not heard any news from him. As a daughter, she must have been extremely worried about her father.
Lan Xun walked up to Yang Kai without speaking a word, and under his dumbstruck gaze, knelt down with a thud and pleaded in a trembling voice while kowtowing, “Please, Senior Brother Yang, I beg you to save my father!”
Yang Kai was shocked and hurriedly jumped up from his chair, trying to pull Lan Xun up by her arm, “Junior Sister Lan, what are you doing? Quickly get up.”
Lan Xun, however, remained in her position, repeating, “I beg Senior Brother Yang to save my father!”
“Get up first. We can talk afterwards.” Yang Kai was truly anxious. Ever since he first met Lan Xun in the Four Seasons Realm, they had been good friends who despite only meeting a few times, had helped one another greatly. When he was weak and unknown, Lan Xun had taken care of him many times. As the daughter of a Great Emperor and the Princess of Star Soul Palace, Lan Xun had never abused her status. Rather, she had always been gentle and courteous when dealing with others.
Yang Kai had a very good impression of Lan Xun. She was so many times better than Yao Lin.
Now though, this friend was actually kneeling in front of him, putting Yang Kai in a serious predicament. A friend should never kneel before his or her friend like this.
He tried pulling her up a few times, but Lan Xun refused to budge. Yang Kai finally lost patience and forcefully yanked her to her feet, but just as he was about to speak a few words to her, he saw her break into tears before him, her pretty eyes full of helplessness and pleading, forcing him to choke down the words that were on the tip of his tongue. Bitterly smiling, he sighed, “Junior Sister, why?”
Lan Xun stated, painfully shaking her head, “I have no other choice.” She immediately added, “I know that I am forcing you to do something you don’t want to, and that the Demon Realm is extremely dangerous. But Uncle Chu said only Senior Brother Yang can save Father. So, Junior Sister has no choice but to brazenly beg you. If Senior Brother agrees, Junior Sister is willing to do anything to repay you, whether it be a maid or a slave. Junior Sister is willing to serve you as you like to repay Senior Brother’s kindness.”
Yang Kai felt a deep, throbbing headache as he sighed, “Junior Sister Lan, please don’t make such a tasteless remark.”
She had gone as far as to declare that she would be his slave, serving him for a lifetime as he liked, so it was clear to Yang Kai that Lan Xun really saw him as her only life-saving straw.
And since she had said as much, it would obviously be reprehensible if Yang Kai still refused. It would have been fine if it was a stranger, or even a casual acquaintance, but Lan Xun had done him many favours and helped him immensely over the years. Yang Kai wasn’t an ungrateful person.
After hesitating and struggling for a long time, Yang Kai finally let out the longest sigh of the day and said, “Junior Sister, don’t worry. As this matter is very important, how about allowing me to think about it for a moment?”
Lan Xun nodded, “Yes! Senior Brother, if you want to refuse, please tell me straight. Junior Sister knows she has been ungraciously rude here.” When she said this, a troubled look appeared on her face. Obviously, she didn’t want Yang Kai to take the risk, but since it was related to her father and since Chu Tian Ji had said that Yang Kai was the only hope, she had no choice but to make a last attempt.
The pavilion sunk into silence for a while as Yang Kai appeared to be contemplating, facing the poplar tree in silence.
After a long while, a long sigh finally escaped his mouth as he turned around.
The three in the pavilion looked at him. Lan Xun looked even more restless; she wanted Yang Kai to agree, but at the same time, didn’t.
Yang Kai smiled, “Junior Sister, I promise. I’ll go to… the Demon Realm!”
Chu Tian Ji and Mo Huang looked at each other plainly, as if everything happened just like they had planned. They knew he would not agree happily, but fortunately, they had the forethought to bring Lan Xun here.
“Thank you, Senior Brother,” Lan Xun lowered her head and added in a low voice. “This trip to the Demon Realm will surely be fraught with peril, so whether or not you can save my father, Junior Sister hopes that Senior Brother can safely return.”
Yang Kai assured her, nodding, “Don’t worry, I will definitely bring Senior Bright Moon back safe and sound.”
Lan Xun stated, “I’ll be waiting for you!” Having said this, she turned around and left.
Yang Kai scratched his head, [It sounded… a little unusual.]
After a while, Yang Kai glanced left and right before sullenly asking, “Are you two satisfied now?”
Mo Huang raised his brow in surprise as he asked, “Kid, you noticed?”
Yang Kai stated, snorting, “How could Junior Sister Lan just happen to be here for no reason? Obviously, this was part of your arrangements. You knew that Junior Sister Lan has shown me great kindness in the past, so I would definitely not be able to refuse her.”
Chu Tian Ji chuckled, “This Old Master had no choice but to resort to such means. Little Friend, please forgive me.”
Yang Kai stated, shaking his head, “Senior Heaven’s Revelations, there is no need to be so serious. This Junior knows that Senior Bright Moon’s safety is very important. If he can be rescued from the Demon Realm, it will certainly help the Star Boundary’s situation. It is just that this is very important and this Junior is a little afraid of failing to live up to your expectations, so I would have preferred to refuse.”
Mo Huang nodded his appreciation, “How very thoughtful of you, but then again, how will you enter the Demon Realm? And how can you ensure that you won’t be corrupted by the Demon Qi and transform into a Demon after?”
Although Yang Kai had been fighting with the Demon Race these days, the Demon Realm was the Demon Race’s backyard. Demon Qi was everywhere there and Yang Kai wasn’t a Great Emperor, so who could guarantee that he would not be demonified?
Yang Kai lightly replied, “Senior doesn’t need to bother about these things, this Junior naturally has his own way.”
Everyone has their own secrets, so after hearing what he said, Mo Huang naturally didn’t ask any more questions, he simply nodded and said, “Is there anything we can do to assist you? If you need something, feel free to ask.”
Yang Kai replied, “After I go, I’m afraid that I won’t be able to return for quite some time. I just hope that Senior can take good care of the people of High Heaven Palace and Tiger Roar City.”
Mo Huang promised, “You can rest assured about this. Although this King cannot guarantee that they won’t be injured, this King can guarantee that they will not die.”
“That’s good then.”
Chu Tian Ji asked, “Do you have any other requests? We will fulfil whatever conditions you may have.”
Yang Kai thought for a while before asking, “I would like to ask you to help me pass a message to Senior Iron Blood.”
Mo Huang raised his brow, wondering what Yang Kai was planning on asking Zhan Wu Hen.
While he was being suspicious, he saw Yang Kai take out a jade slip and fed a message into the Divine Sense.
After a while, he handed the jade slip to Mo Huang.
“That’s it?” Mo Huang looked confused.
“That’s it.” Yang Kai nodded, “For this Junior to safely enter the Demon Realm, I will need Senior Iron Blood’s help.”
Mo Huang became curious, “How can he help?”
Yang Kai grinned at him but didn’t answer.
Mo Huang angrily stated, “Boy, acting all mysterious, what exactly are you planning?”
Yang Kai simply picked up the teacup in front of him and drank it in one gulp before he stood up and said goodbye, “This Junior will take his leave first. The next time we meet, I hope that we will be fighting side by side!”
After returning to Tiger Roar City from Heavens Spying Valley, Yang Kai called Li Jiao over and suddenly declared, “Brother Li, I may have to go into a retreat for a while. You will be in charge of Tiger Roar City’s affairs until I exit.”
Li Jiao confirmed in amazement, “Retreat? At this moment?”
The war between the two worlds was flaring up like wildfire. Although Tiger Roar City had been peaceful for the past six months, no one could guarantee that the Demon Race Army would not attack again. Obviously, it wasn’t a good time to enter the retreat. If by some fluke of bad luck, the Demon Race really attacked, Tiger Roar City’s combat strength would be greatly reduced without Yang Kai leading the army.
Yang Kai quickly justified, “I have recently obtained some inspiration, I have no other choice.”
Li Jiao nodded his understanding after hearing this. He knew that cultivating the Martial Dao wasn’t easy and that sudden enlightenment was a rare opportunity, one that needed to be grasped by entering retreat as soon as possible. Once he lost this opportunity, even a decade or a century of hard work might not be enough to make up for it; as such, he had no choice but to relent, “Good! This Li will do his best to take care of Tiger Roar City. But Brother Yang, what about those members of Half-Dragon City, and Senior Fu Ling…”
“Don’t worry, I will exhort them to listen to your arrangements.”
With Li Jiao’s cultivation and identity, there was basically no problem in commanding Tiger Roar City, but Fu Ling was a problem. She was a Sixth-Order pure-blooded Dragon so Li Jiao may not be able to subdue her. Not to mention that Fu Ling was too unreliable in the first place. When Yang Kai was there, she was honest and obedient, but when he wasn’t, her arrogance knew no bounds. She might not give Li Jiao any face, but since Yang Kai wanted to entrust Tiger Roar City to Li Jiao, he would naturally arrange everything in advance.
After a while, Fu Ling was summoned and Yang Kai told her to obey Li Jiao’s orders in the future or he would send her back to Dragon Island immediately.
Fu Ling didn’t dare disagree and immediately started nodding like a chicken pecking rice. It was extremely difficult for her to leave Dragon Island so naturally she was extremely reluctant to be sent back so soon.
Afterwards, Yang Kai met with the Emperor Realm Masters in the city, notifying them that he was entering a retreat to cultivate and shouldn’t be disturbed unless necessary. Then, he finally entered a secluded room in the City Lord’s Mansion in front of everyone’s eyes and closed the door shut.
Naturally, this retreat was just a pretence. Since he promised Heaven’s Revelations Great Emperor and Martial Beast Great Emperor that he would go to the Demon Realm, he had to make arrangements for Tiger Roar City in advance; otherwise, if that day really came, things would not end well for a leaderless Tiger Roar City. He would be letting Li Jiao become familiar with things so that even after he left, Tiger Roar City would not necessarily be affected greatly.
Inside the secret room, Yang Kai triggered a Space Beacon on his wrist and in the next moment, disappeared from his spot.
When he appeared again, he was already inside a female boudoir.
“Who!?” A tender shout rang out and a cold gleam flickered as a sharp sword was stabbed towards his face.
Yang Kai, however, just flicked his finger and knocked the tip of the sword away. Immediately after, he reached out and grabbed hold of a tender white wrist before pulling it a little as a soft tender body fell into his arms. He then leaned over and stated, smilingly looking at the figure, “Yao’er, what a unique way to welcome someone.”
Ji Yao was stunned, “What are you doing here?”
“I came to see you,” Yang Kai stroked her hair, calmly staring at her.
Being stared at like this, Ji Yao felt a little embarrassed, but she found that Yang Kai’s eyes were very gentle and filled with reluctance to part with her, so she comfortably reclined in his wide arms and averted her gaze.
Yang Kai reached out and grabbed her chin, however, lifting her head.
And before she could react, a masculine aura blew on her face. Before she knew it, their lips were pressed against each other. Slowly, Ji Yao closed her eyes as the longsword in her hand fell to the ground. She then wrapped her arms around Yang Kai’s neck, tightly hugging him.
After kissing fiercely for a while, Yang Kai gently picked her up by her waist and gently placed her on the bed. He then leaned over her and wantonly started savouring her again.
The relationship between the two had progressed a lot since the walls had cracked in Ice Heart Valley’s Cultivation Technique Pavilion, but those walls had yet to completely fall. Ji Yao even seemed to enjoy these occasional thrills and never asked Yang Kai for anything more, let alone reveal their relationship to the world.
Naturally, Yang Kai wouldn’t force her either.
Like raging fire and dry wood, a blend of honey and milk, two fiery bodies tangled and rolled on the big bed, turning the air in the boudoir romantic. Only after a long time did Yang Kai finally let her go. Ji Yao lay powerless on Yang Kai’s body, violently panting.
Suddenly, Yang Kai started speaking, “Yao’er, no matter what you hear in the coming days, don’t believe it or hold grudges against anyone.”
These words were rather baffling. Ji Yao immediately raised her head and asked as if she had a premonition, looking at Yang Kai with her big bright eyes, “What will happen?”
Yang Kai pinched her nose, “Don’t ask too much. You will know when the time comes. Just remember my words.”
Ji Yao didn’t speak; she just looked at him.
Yang Kai confirmed again, “Okay?”
Ji Yao nodded her agreement, “Okay.”
Yang Kai looked at her with relief before rolling over and ravaging her again.
He stayed with Ji Yao for a night before exhorted her about a few things and quietly left.
On Spirit Pill Peak of High Heaven Palace, Yang Kai casually strolled in with a jar of wine.
When the few Alchemy apprentices at the door saw him approaching, they respectfully greeted him right away, but the most Senior among them bravely stepped forward to block the way. Speaking with a troubled look on his face, he said, “Palace Master, Grandmaster Ji and Madam Xiao are currently performing Alchemy. They have ordered that no one is to disturb them.”
“Make way, make way!” Yang Kai pushed that apprentice aside and then barged straight in, shouting as he kept heading deeper, “Little Senior Sister, Little Senior Sister!”
He walked all the way to the underground Pill Room, where he saw the doors suddenly slam open as he saw a dishevelled and dirty Ji Ying charge out. His face was completely black, covered in soot. He grabbed Yang Kai by his collar and fiercely stated, “How many times have I said don’t disturb me when I am performing Alchemy! Don’t think that I won’t dare to beat you just because you’re the Palace Master here!”
Yang Kai grinned as he gently freed his collar from Ji Ying’s hold, “Brother Ji, calm down. It’s just a furnace of pills, right? Just refine it again.”
Judging by his appearance, Yang Kai knew that the pills in the furnace must have exploded; otherwise, Ji Ying’s face would not be covered in soot. He must have been disturbed at a critical moment and be truly angered right now, otherwise, how could an Emperor Alchemist have his furnace explode so easily?
Ji Ying angrily shouted, “Refine it again!? Would I not need to spend more time and energy!? Not to mention, this will put a stain on this Ji’s Alchemy career! Damn it! Why did I ever agree to come and serve as an Alchemist in this place?”
At this moment, Xia Ning Chang walked out from behind the door, clearly trying to hold back her laughter. Although her face was hidden behind the veil, from her crescent-like eyes, it was clear what she was thinking.
“Okay, okay, I brought you a jar of good wine as compensation, look!” Yang Kai moved the wine bottle in his hand into view.
“Trash! I don’t want to drink it. Pay me for my pills!” Ji Ying pushed away the wine bottle.
Yang Kai stated, “This is a bottle of the Western Territory’s Sword Wine, the Highest Rank Sword Wine at that! Brother Ji doesn’t want to try it? It’s very rare nowadays.”
Western Territory’s Sword Wine was very renowned. When Yang Kai and Zhu Qing first met in the past, he said that he would only be her friend if she gave him a bottle of this wine to make things difficult for her. Who knew that Zhu Qing would really fetch him a bottle of Sword Wine.
Now that the Western Territory was under attack by the Demon Race, the villa where the wine was made had also been destroyed, making this bottle even rarer than before.
Ji Ying was stunned after hearing this and hurriedly snatched the wine bottle, muttering as he opened it, “This Ji has also seen and experienced all kinds of things. If you dare to lie to me, you and I will have words!”
Yang Kai earnestly stated, “How dare I lie to Brother Ji? Right, I want Brother Ji’s permission to take Little Senior Sister out. When we will return isn’t guaranteed. I will have to trouble Brother Ji for the matters related to Alchemy.”
“Where are you going?” Ji Ying raised his head and asked, but Yang Kai and Xia Ning Chang were nowhere to be found. To his surprise, Yang Kai had taken Xia Ning Chang away before he could finish speaking. Ji Ying couldn’t help but be stunned, grinding his teeth as he began cursing aloud.
At the Space Array, Yang Kai and Xia Ning Chang appeared, carefree and at leisure.
Little Senior Sister asked, curiously looking at Yang Kai, “How’s the situation in the Western Territory? Why are you back?”
Yang Kai replied, smiling, “Let the people over there be worried about it. As for me, I am back to see you.”
“Have you gone to Elder Sisters?”
“Not yet.” Yang Kai shook his head.
Xia Ning Chang reached out and straightened his clothes. Suddenly, her gaze momentarily paused as she pulled a few strands of longer hair from Yang Kai’s neck and threw them away before warmly speaking, “Go and see Elder Sisters first. I will be waiting for you here. They are fighting the Demon Race so they are definitely not as comfortable as me.”
Yang Kai’s facial muscles twitched as he withdrew his gaze from the strands of long hair dancing in the air and pulled Xia Ning Chang into his arms, kissing her on the forehead, “Little Senior Sister is the most caring of all.”
Xia Ning Chang shyly stated, “I’m not…” She then lightly pounded her fist on his chest, “People are looking.”
Disciples were guarding the Space Array year-round, so everyone could clearly see this scene. However, the Palace Master and his wife were being intimate, so who among them dared to watch? At this moment, each of them was either looking up at the sky or down at the ground, as if they were wondering if it would rain or were admiring the flowers blooming.
At this moment, Space Principles flared and three figures suddenly appeared on the Array.
After glancing at them, a jealous voice rang out, “Well, well, well, did you call us to quickly return to show us such a scene?”
Xia Ning Chang’s face turned redder as she quickly escaped from Yang Kai’s arms, moving over to the three who just appeared and greeting them.
Yang Kai looked back and smilingly stated, “Luo’er, are you even jealous of your Sister?”
Shan Qing Luo disdainfully spat and stated, “Of course, I’m fine if it’s one of my Sisters, but who knows if you had an affair with some foxes outside.”
“There is no such thing,” Yang Kai hurriedly denied.
Shan Qing Luo snorted, “Is that right? Then please explain what’s going on with that Li Shi Qing!”
Yang Kai broke into a cold sweat and turned to Su Yan, a begging look on his face.
As the Eldest Sister, Su Yan was naturally more understanding and promptly changed the topic, “Why did you call us back?”
The three of them had been staying in the same city as the original batch of High Heaven Palace and Ice Heart Valley disciples when they suddenly received a message from Ji Yao. Afterwards, they had promptly returned to High Heaven Palace.
Yang Kai replied, smiling, “It’s nothing, I was just seized by a whim and wanted you to accompany me to enjoy the beauties of nature.”
The four women believed that Yang Kai was just speaking nonsense; after all, the Demon Race hadn’t been eliminated and the Western Territory was in a state of unrest. Who would be in the mood to go sightseeing at this moment? But who knew that he would really do so?
Starting from High Heaven Palace, they directly teleported to the former site of the Southern Territory’s Thousand Leaves Sect. After confirming the directions, Yang Kai led the four around to play.
Although the Demon Race invasion was of much discussion in the Star Boundary and the flames of war had raged across the Western Territory, with the Southern, Northern, and Eastern Territories also mobilizing reinforcements constantly, the war itself was still too far from the Southern Territory so the daily lives of common people weren’t much affected.
Travelling with the four beauties, Yang Kai was living a life of ease and leisure. They crossed countless mountains and rivers, entering every city they chanced upon, which allowed Su Yan and the others to truly appreciate all the wonderful sights of the Star Boundary.
Although Su Yan and the others had been in the Star Boundary for a couple of years, they had constantly been cultivating in retreat at High Heaven Palace. When the war between the two worlds erupted, they finally followed the army to the Western Territory, so strictly speaking, this was the first time they had gone out to travel. Furthermore, they were with Yang Kai so they were all in high spirits. Everything they saw was novel to them. The man was brave and heroic, and the females were beautiful and graceful, each having their own unique charm, so wherever they went, they became the focus of attention.
Every night, Yang Kai would lead the four girls to the Sealed World Bead and sleep together with them.
Little Senior Sister had the thinnest skin, so how could she bear such a shameful thing? Su Yan, taking on the Elder Sister stance, reprimanded Yang Kai several times, but he naturally refused to mend his ways even after repeated warnings. The more strictly Su Yan reprimanded him, the more he desired to do it, and with Shan Qing Luo assisting the tyrant to perform evil, Su Yan didn’t dare to casually speak in the end and had no choice but to let it go.
Going around here and there for half a month, they finally arrived at a certain empty plain.
Seeing Yang Kai carefully exploring this place, as if he was looking for something, Shan Qing Luo curiously asked, “What are you searching for?”
Yang Kai replied, “Back then, the Four Seasons Realm’s entrance appeared here, I am trying to look for a trace of it.”
Su Yan knowingly asked, “Are you worried about Xiao’er and Xue’er?”
Yang Kai replied, sighing, “Although Liu Yan is with them, both of them are still just children. If I could at least have a look at them, I would feel more at ease.”
Among the four girls, apart from Shan Qing Luo, who had never seen Yang Xiao because she had been cultivating in the Ancient Wild Lands, Su Yan, Xue Yue, and Xia Ning Chang had met little fatty and adored him very much. And since he was Yang Kai’s adopted son, they naturally felt quite close to him.
Now that Yang Kai was looking for the two kids, they were more than willing to help him.
The five immediately spread around, meticulously searching the plain.
But in the end, they found nothing.
The Four Seasons Realm could be considered as an independent Small World, and although the entrance had appeared on this plain last time, no one could say for sure that the entrance would definitely appear here the next time too. Not to mention, Qiong Qi was the one who led them in. Perhaps Qiong Qi had some other means to enter the Four Seasons Realm they were unaware of.
Having no result, they had no choice but to leave.
Afterwards, Yang Kai took the four to Azure Sun Temple, where they stayed on his Spirit Sword Peak for a few days before setting off to Maplewood City.
This was the first city Yang Kai entered after he came to the Star Boundary so it had some special meaning to him. It was here he met Mo Xiao Qi and Lan Xun for the first time. The Myriads Sword he used was obtained here as well, and it was also here he met his first Great Emperor, though the latter was playing around among the mortals at the time.
Outside Maplewood City stood Spirit Lake Palace, where countless cultivators were still coming in and out of every day. But since Xia Sheng was no longer here, Yang Kai had no intention to visit it.
However, his old friend Kang Si Ran had been promoted to the Branch President of Maplewood City by his chamber of commerce because of the long-term trade he had established with High Heaven Palace.
When Yang Kai arrived, Kang Si Ran naturally entertained him warmly, treating him to the finest restaurants in Maplewood City where they merrily drank and chatted.
The next day, Yang Kai bid goodbye and led the four women to the old site of the Blue Feather Sect. Today, Blue Feather Sect was completely deserted. The old site of the Sect was completely in ruins. Thinking of the time when he was imprisoned in Blue Feather Sect with Liu Xiao Yun back when he had entered the Star Boundary, Yang Kai felt as if ages had gone by.
At that time, Dao Source Realm Masters were like invincible existences to him, but now he could even fight Pseudo-Great Emperors. Several dozen years had passed, giving him a deep sense of reverie.
Retracing the old road like it was another life made Yang Kai have mixed feelings.
After the Southern Territory was the Eastern Territory, and then the Northern Territory…
After three months, Yang Kai finally began leading Su Yan and the others back home. He was still travelling in neither a hurried nor slow manner, without even using the Space Array network he had arranged.
After these three months of sightseeing, caring nothing about worldly affairs, Su Yan and the others were naturally reluctant to part with Yang Kai. They felt that it would be the best thing if this could go on for the rest of their lives.
At night, after a particularly intense intimate session, slender and graceful limbs were horizontally lying on a giant bed when suddenly, energy fluctuations started rising.
Yang Kai turned his head and cried out in pleasant surprise as he looked at Su Yan, “Senior Sister, you…”
Su Yan promptly sat down cross-legged and stated, taking a deep breath, “I am about to break through.”
Shan Qing Luo also sat up in shock, “So fast?”
Su Yan was now a Third-Order Dao Source Realm, so another breakthrough would make her enter the Emperor Realm. It had only been a few years since Yang Kai brought her to the Star Boundary, and although they were receiving endless resources from High Heaven Palace, Su Yan’s rate of progress was still quite astonishing. It must be brought to notice that when Su Yan first entered the Star Boundary, she was just a Second-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator. In just a few years, she was crossing a chasm that most cultivators couldn’t cross in their entire lives.
The remaining three were still just First-Order Dao Source Realms now while Xia Ning Chang, because of her Special Constitution and constant refinement of pills, had touched the threshold of the Second-Order.
Xue Yue pursed her lips into a sweet smile as she stated, “Don’t you know that Elder Sister uses her dual cultivation Secret Art constantly? Every night, Elder Sister has been ‘fed’ by husband.”
This was indeed true. Whenever they cultivated using the Yin-Yang Joyous Unification Art, the dragon and phoenix would sing together. Dual cultivation had indeed provided great benefits to Su Yan. Even without Yang Kai, her cultivation progress wasn’t slow, and for the last three months, she and Yang Kai had been dual cultivating every night. This slow accumulation over time would work magic, so breaking through now was just a matter of course.
The bottleneck had already been touched, and the World Baptism was about to descend, so there was no time to delay.
Su Yan glanced at Yang Kai before she immediately got dressed and the others hurriedly tidied things up.
After a short while, Yang Kai and Su Yan appeared outside the Small Sealed World, whereupon Yang Kai promptly used Space Principles to lead Su Yan to a sparsely populated location and set her down before quickly urging her, “Be careful!”
Su Yan nodded before sitting down cross-legged and closing her eyes.
Yang Kai’s figure flickered next and appeared several dozen kilometres away. Next, he let Xue Yue, Shan Qing Luo, and Xia Ning Chang out with a wave of his hand as the four stared ahead together.
Observing and emulating the process of Su Yan breaking through to the Emperor Realm would definitely benefit Shan Qing Luo and the others. When they broke through to Emperor Realm one day, they would have more experience in dealing with it instead of approaching it blindly.
Under their nervous gazes, wind and clouds gathered in the sky as faint claps of thunder boomed.
A soft jade white hand grabbed Yang Kai’s big hand as Xue Yue comforted in a gentle voice, “Husband, don’t worry, Elder Sister is so strong. There won’t be any problem at all.”
Yang Kai also felt that with Su Yan’s ability, there would not be any major problems, but that didn’t stop him from feeling nervous. This might be the so-called the more one cares about someone, the more worried he or she would be for him or her.
Shan Qing Luo added, “Husband, although we don’t know why you have brought us out to sightsee, since this little tryst lasted for so long, we know that you must have to do something important soon. Go ahead and do it. We have each other to rely on, and today, Big Sister is also advancing to the Emperor Realm. You don’t have to worry about anything when you are outside.”
Yang Kai looked at her, and then looked at Xue Yue and Xia Ning Chang, who lightly nodded at him.
Obviously, they had noticed something these days; after all, they shared every moment together, even in bed. Although Yang Kai hadn’t told them outright, how could he hide it from their eyes?
Yang Kai nodded and told them everything, “I won’t hide it from you then. I will be going to the Demon Realm soon.”
Xue Yue’s slender white hand momentarily clenched while Shan Qing Luo and Xia Ning Chang also looked shocked and worried. Although they knew Yang Kai had something to do, they had never expected that he would be going to the Demon Realm.
“And I will be going to the Demon Realm through a rather unorthodox method. All I can say is, whatever you hear at that time, don’t believe it or worry about it.” Yang Kai took a long deep breath, “I don’t know when I will be back, but I can assure you, I will definitely return safe and sound!”
Shan Qing Luo leaned over and gently stated, putting her head on his shoulder, “You are the world for our Sisters, you better come back safe and sound!”
Xia Ning Chang exhorted as her eyes turned red, “Be careful when you get there.”
Yang Kai opened his arms and hugged the three girls together, laughing and assuring them, “Don’t worry, I might not be good at other things, but I’m the best at running away.”
Shan Qing Luo suddenly pinched his waist and gave it a twist as she warned, grinding her teeth, “I hear there are Charm Demons in the Demon Realm, don’t get captivated by them!”
Yang Kai replied, smiling, “It’s not certain who will captivate who.”
Right then, a deafening clap of thunder reverberated along with a bright flash as a bolt of lightning descended from the sky, striking the top of Su Yan’s head.
Everyone couldn’t help but sink into silence as their eyes immediately focused on that side.
Amid the blinding flashes, World Energy gathered around, flooding Su Yan’s location all of a sudden.
After a while, Su Yan’s figure reappeared while all the World Energy had been completely absorbed by her.
*Hong long long…”
Bolts of lightning fell one after another, forming an inescapable net that blotted out the sky in a continuous rain. Shan Qing Luo and the others turned pale at the sight of this and secretly wondered if they could deal with this when their time came.
However, they were only in the First-Order Dao Source Realm now so it was inevitable for them to find this sight extremely terrifying. When they had reached the same cultivation as Su Yan, their mentality might be different.
Heaven and Earth shook. The World Baptism whenever someone broke through a Great Realm would always be shocking. Not to mention, Su Yan was breaking through to the Emperor Realm, so the disturbance naturally spread over a great distance.
There seemed to be a city nearby and the commotion had attracted many people. In the beginning, these people were still observing courtesy, watching from a distance and not trying to get too close.
But as time passed, someone finally flew over, as if they wanted to see things from up close, but how could Yang Kai allow that to happen? He opened his mouth and shouted, “Scram!”
His voice resounded throughout the sky louder than even the World Baptism, causing everyone to flee back in a flurry.
Every Great Realm was a giant chasm for a cultivator; across it was a brand new world, and this was especially true for the Emperor Realm.
One after another, the fearsome bolts of World Energy descended from the sky. Dark clouds swirled as flashes of lightning and reverberating claps of thunder echoed.
It was an extremely terrifying sight.
A clear and melodious phoenix cry rang suddenly, resonating through the highest Heavens. A vague ice-blue phoenix illusory phantom manifested at Su Yan’s location. The Ice Phoenix was incomparably large and had its neck craned, crying aloud towards the sky. The unique aura of a Divine Spirit suddenly spread out, freezing everything within a thousand kilometres of it, shocking all who were watching the show.
Meanwhile, inside Yang Kai’s body, the Golden Divine Dragon Source began making trouble, showing signs of resonating with Su Yan’s Ice Phoenix Source. If he hadn’t suppressed it firmly, he might have transformed into a dragon in an instant.
Yang Kai was a little surprised by this as he hadn’t expected that when Su Yan broke through to the Emperor Realm, he would also have some peculiar resonations. He had no idea if it was because he cultivated the Yin-Yang Joyous Unification Art or some other reason.
As time slowly passed by, the might of Heaven and Earth grew stronger and stronger, but the illusory Ice Phoenix remained strong, its aura only increasing to rival the surrounding power of Heaven and Earth.
Finally, a shockwave visible to the naked eye spread out, sweeping away everything in all directions.
The enormous Ice Phoenix phantom disappeared and the dark clouds in the sky began to dissipate, revealing the light of day once more.
The world returned to peace.
After a long time, the onlooking cultivators finally summoned the courage to come forward and investigate, but there were no traces of the one who had just broken through.
But this entire phenomenon had exceeded the one shown by an ordinary Emperor Realm breakthrough and quickly became the talk of the town among the cultivators in the nearby cities.
As Su Yan had already broken through to the Emperor Realm, and had gained more strength for self-protection, Yang Kai felt a little more at ease.
After another five days, the group of five returned to High Heaven Palace and bid each other goodbye at the Space Array, whereupon the women shed a lot of tears. Yang Kai had a heartache at the sight of their plight.
After sending off Su Yan and the others, he helped Little Senior Sister settle in before returning to the Space Array. However, Yang Kai didn’t teleport to Tiger Roar City but instead went to Orthodoxy Temple in the Southern Territory. After he had crushed the Orthodoxy Temple conspiracy, this land had become a branch of High Heaven Palace in the Southern Territory where 50,000 disciples lived.
Although a group of people were recruited to go to the Western Territory battlefield, only a few of them were sent after all. 95% of the disciples remained here to cultivate and grow stronger.
Yang Kai didn’t disturb anyone with his arrival and instead went straight to the restricted area of Orthodoxy Temple, where the Outer Astral Wind blew.
The last time he came here, he found that the might of the Outer Astral Wind increased the deeper one ventured into the canyon it occupied and there seemed to be some kind of treasure hidden at its source. It was that unknown treasure that was generating the Outer Astral Wind, allowing others to temper their bodies in the canyon.
Since he was going to the Demon Realm, Yang Kai decided to prepare everything he could to improve his strength. Since there was a treasure in his own Branch Sect, Yang Kai would naturally try to collect it. Perhaps it could be of some help in the Demon Realm, and even if he failed to gather it, it wouldn’t be a loss.
Walking into the canyon, Yang Kai found many disciples at the mouth of the canyon, welcoming the Outer Astral Wind’s baptism, tempering their bodies with its assistance, but the cultivation of these disciples wasn’t high, so they naturally stayed in the outermost periphery.
Yang Kai teleported by them, without anyone’s notice.
He then proceeded straight to the depths where a series of caves gradually appeared on the surrounding cliffs, granting places of shelter for those tempering their bodies to recuperate. The might of the Outer Astral Wind grew stronger and stronger, but Yang Kai didn’t fear it. He had a Half-Dragon Body which made his physique quite tyrannical, so this level of Astral Wind couldn’t do anything to him.
After travelling for the time it takes an incense stick to burn, the oncoming astral wind finally began pricking his skin. The invisible wind cut against his flesh like a sharp blade. Owing to this, Yang Kai finally used his Emperor Qi to protect himself, but his footsteps didn’t slow even one bit.
After a while, even his Emperor Qi defence was cut to pieces, failing to provide any protection. The omnipresent Astral Wind cut into his body now, drawing blood that dyed his body and robes golden.
But Yang Kai had no intention of stopping here and continued to move forward in neither a fast nor hurried manner.
Sharp whistles could be heard to no end as the depths of the canyon was like a forbidden area for all life. In the middle regions, those who were strong like Xi Lie could cultivate, but not many dared to venture deeper. Yang Kai’s physique was stronger than Xi Lei’s, but whether he could survive in the deepest depths, he wasn’t confident about.
He decided to do his best and leave the rest to the Heavens!
The deeper Yang Kai went in, the more terrifying the might of the Astral Wind became.
Gradually, countless deep cuts appeared on Yang Kai’s skin, and even with his outstanding restorative abilities, he couldn’t recover from these wounds so quickly. He was bleeding golden blood from his wounds, leaving a set of golden footprints in his wake.
The Astral Wind here was very strange as not only did it cut into his body, it seemed to be affecting his five viscera, six organs, his bones, and even his meridians. In the end, every time Yang Kai took a step forward, his entire body, inside and out, ached.
Left with no choice, all he could do was assume his Half-Dragon Form which made it slightly easier to continue advancing.
The 300-metre-tall Half-Dragon Form had grown slightly, reaching a height of 320 metres now. Presumably, this was due to the dual cultivation with Su Yan over these past few months, helping his Golden Divine Dragon Source further integrate with him.
*Hong Hong Hong…*
Every step Yang Kai took caused the canyon to quake.
Who knows how long he walked for, but when Yang Kai felt that he couldn’t continue any further, he suddenly saw a familiar Void Crack ahead.
He had noticed this Void Crack the last time he came to investigate this place, and knew that it was from this crack that the endless Outer Astral Wind was blowing from. At that time, Yang Kai reckoned that if there was any treasure in this canyon, it would be hidden inside this Void Crack. It was because of the fearsome might of the treasure in the canyon that this Void Crack failed to seal and forever emitted the Outer Astral Wind.
Yang Kai’s eyes momentarily lit up now that this Void Crack was in sight.
Yang Kai, disregarding his own damaged body, strode forward against the Astral Wind, arriving before the Void Crack in a few steps.
*Xiu…*
A gust of wind slashed out from the crack like a sword wave, directly cutting across Yang Kai’s Half-Dragon Body. Yang Kai immediately lowered his head to look and saw a huge gaping wound on his waist which nearly cut through him. It was a disturbing sight to so clearly see his five viscera and six organs, but soon his golden blood began pouring out, covering the wound.
Yang Kai grimaced at the extremely sharp and piercing pain, but also grinned in anticipation towards the treasure hidden in the Void.
[It almost cut my Half-Dragon Body in two, so its power must be beyond my imagination. If I can really obtain such a treasure, it would definitely help me on my trip to the Demon Realm.]
After canceling his Half-Dragon Form, Yang Kai shot straight into the Void Crack as Space Principles flared.
The next moment, Yang Kai found himself inside a chaotic nothingness. The Astral Winds that had been harassing him had also disappeared at this moment, which made Yang Kai feel a little out of sorts.
Covering his wound with his hand, Yang Kai looked around before his eyes were quickly drawn to something floating in the Void.
It was a long vine, a very long vine rooted in the chaos!
Yang Kai was taken aback by this sight as he had gone in and out of the Void countless times where only endless void turbulence and nothingness existed. He had never expected to find a vine in such a place!
But at this moment, the long vine seemed to have withered as its entire body had turned grey and it was lacking in any vitality.
Only a bottle gourd about the size of a palm was growing at the topmost position of the long vine. The small bottle gourd was cyan in colour and there were complex patterns on its surface, which seemed to contain some kind of mystery of the Grand Dao.
Small streaks of Astral Wind flew out of the bottle gourd, blowing into the crack beside it.
The source of the Outer Astral Winds was actually this Cyan Bottle Gourd.
Yang Kai was amazed by this, but very soon he realized that this Cyan Bottle Gourd must be some kind of Supreme Treasure, perhaps not inferior to his Soul Warming Lotus.
[I found a real prize!]
Yang Kai was overjoyed and pushed his Emperor Qi as he gingerly reached out towards the Cyan Bottle Gourd and grabbed it.
Contrary to his expectations though, he wasn’t injured at all. The Astral Winds that were sharp enough to cut right through him didn’t seem to be any threat in this place and he was able to grab the Cyan Bottle Guard as easily as lifting his hand.
Then, with just a simple pull, he plucked the Cyan Bottle Gourd from the long vine.
Before Yang Kai could take a closer look at the gourd though, the long vine that appeared to have been withered for tens of thousands of years, actually shrank back and plunged into the endless chaos, disappearing without a trace.
Yang Kai was momentarily dumbstruck before he angrily patted his thigh.
Had he known that this long vine was so strange, he would have tried to collect it first. If it could bear a treasure such as the Cyan Bottle Gourd, it must be quite extraordinary. If he could have transplanted it into his Small Sealed World, there was a chance it could bear another bottle gourd at some point!
But just as this thought flashed in his mind, Yang Kai quickly denied it, because this was a treasure born from the World itself, a unique type of existence of which there could only be one. After understanding this, Yang Kai’s heart finally settled down.
Wealth lies in contentment. The fact that he could obtain the Cyan Bottle Gourd was already a big opportunity, coveting more would be insatiable.
After clearing up his mood, Yang Kai carefully played with the Cyan Bottle Gourd in his hand.
After being plucked from the long vine, the patterns on the Cyan Bottle Gourd’s surface had disappeared and it wasn’t exuding that profound and mysterious aura either, as if it had become a very ordinary bottle gourd.
But when Yang Kai scanned it with his Divine Sense, he was unable to probe the inside of the bottle gourd and immediately understood that it was ordinary only in appearance. If he wanted to release this Cyan Bottle Gourd’s might though, he would probably need to carefully refine it first.
After putting away the Cyan Bottle Gourd, Yang Kai jumped out of the Void Crack.
Since the source of the Outer Astral Winds had been taken away by him, Orthodoxy Temple Branch’s canyon had lost its Body Tempering facility. Even the Void Crack had closed under the restorative effect of the Star Boundary’s World Principles, disappearing into thin air.
It might be a bit of a loss for High Heaven Palace’s disciples, but Yang Kai could care less about that at the moment. If need be, he could simply put the Cyan Bottle Gourd back when he got back from the Demon Realm. At that time, the canyon would be restored.
Inside Tiger Roar City’s City Lord’s Mansion, Yang Kai nodded quietly from time to time while listening to Li Jiao’s report on the war in recent months.
The situation was better than he thought. Back then when he announced his retreat, the 200,000 troops in Tiger Roar City were temporarily handed over to Li Jiao, and Li Jiao had lived up to his expectations. He led the Tiger Roar City troops to support major cities frequently and had never lost a battle.
Rather than Li Jiao’s capability, it was mainly because of the great number of Emperor Realm Masters within Tiger Roar City’s troops. With an army of the same scale, it was impossible for the Demon Race to beat them; even if they were twice or thrice more, Tiger Roar City would be able to repel them.
Yang Kai was relieved. As long as these 200,000 troops remained united, they would become an invincible banner.
“Brother Yang, are you done with your retreat?” Li Jiao asked after finishing reporting the situation. It had been quite tough for him. Although he was strong, and he was the Palace Master of Fire Dragon Palace, it was tremendous pressure for one person to be responsible for 200,000 lives in the heat of battle. The battlefield was unpredictable, and regardless of Tiger Roar City troops’ winning streak, a single mistake could lead to countless deaths. It was a price Li Jiao could not afford to pay and so he hoped for Yang Kai’s quick return to take over the authority again.
Yang Kai shook his head, “I just came out to take a look at the situation and will soon enter retreat again.”
Disappointment surfaced on Li Jiao’s face.
Yang Kai, however, just looked at him and encouraged, “Brother Li, you don’t need to feel so pressured. You’ve done a good job, just keep going as you have. Even if we lose a battle, it won’t be your fault.”
Li Jiao smiled bitterly, “This Li only feels more pressure when…”
Before he could finish, Yu Ru Meng, wrapped in an icy aura, barged in fiercely with a darkened face.
Yang Kai and Li Jiao looked up together, and Li Jiao cleared his throat, “Brother Yang, this Li will leave first.”
He did not wait for Yang Kai’s response and quickly fled.
After he left, Yu Ru Meng strode over to Yang Kai in a few steps and grabbed Yang Kai’s collar with one hand, her teeth gritted, “Are you finally willing to return?”
Yang Kai feigned calm as he looked at her, “What are you talking about?”
Yu Ru Meng snorted, “You told everyone that you were entering retreat, but in fact, you left Tiger Roar City. Where did you go?”
[Damn it, how does this woman know that I wasn’t in Tiger Roar City? Could it be the Heart Seal Secret Technique allows her to sense my presence?] While pondering about this, Yang Kai maintained a calm face and broke free of her grip. He then replied with a dignified face, “Speak properly, there’s no need to get physical. It’s highly improper!”
Yu Ru Meng narrowed her eyes at him and seethed, “Why didn’t you say anything when you ran off without a word for more than three months?”
Yang Kai slapped the table angrily and exploded, “Just who ran off more than three months ago? Don’t talk nonsense. I have been in retreat and cultivating in the City Lord’s Mansion!”
Yu Ru Meng sneered, “Stop lying! Do you think I can’t sense your aura? You weren’t even in Tiger Roar City these past three months! Tell me the truth, where did you go?”
Yang Kai stood up, “There’s no point talking sense to you, this King needs to continue his retreat. Don’t you dare talk nonsense, or this King will slap your butt again!”
After that, he got up and walked towards the back hall with his hands behind his back and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Yu Ru Meng gnashed her pristine teeth in fury before chasing Yang Kai into the secret room, pestering him madly for a while before Yang Kai finally could not bear it anymore and spanked her so hard that she cried. Afterwards, he threw her out.
The secret room was closed, but Yu Ru Meng’s shrieks could still be heard through the door, sounding just like a berserk vixen!
However, Yu Ru Meng had learned her lesson and stayed by the door of the secret room. Obviously, she did not want to give Yang Kai any opportunities to sneak away again.
Unexpectedly, Yang Kai really did cultivate in retreat within the room and did not leave for more than ten days.
Yang Kai had just obtained the Cyan Bottle Gourd and wanted to refine it as soon as possible. He also knew Yu Ru Meng was guarding the door but did not pay her any attention. He had settled what needed to be settled and done everything that needed to be done. He had no plans to go out again.
More than ten days passed by in peace.
Suddenly, on this day, when Yang Kai was still refining the Cyan Bottle Gourd, he suddenly felt the world shudder and a great pressure descend from the sky. At the same time, an angry voice echoed across the world, “Yang Kai, come out!”
In the secret room, Yang Kai’s eyes suddenly opened, blooming with gleaming light.
[He’s finally here!]
After taking a gentle breath, Yang Kai put the Cyan Bottle Gourd away and got up. After smoothing his clothes slightly, he opened the door of the secret room and walked out.
Outside the door, Yu Ru Meng looked at him suspiciously, “How did you manage to provoke Iron Blood Great Emperor? Why is he here?”
She obviously recognized that the voice just now belonged to Iron Blood Great Emperor, and judging from his words and tone, the latter did not sound like he was here with friendly intent.
Yang Kai could not help rolling his eyes, “How am I supposed to know?”
Yu Ru Meng pointed out, “You always had a good relationship with his Disciple, so why would he be hostile towards you?”
Yang Kai wondered, “Hostile? Is he?”
Yu Ru Meng snarled, “Can’t you feel his hostility?”
Her eyebrows were tightly knitted together when she grabbed Yang Kai’s arm, “Don’t go out first, let me find out what’s going on.”
The corner of Yang Kai’s mouth twitched, and clapped his hand together, “It’s fine. Senior Iron Blood is one of the ten Great Emperors, he won’t do anything extreme even if I accidentally offended him. I’ll just ask him and clarify if there is any misunderstanding.”
Yu Ru Meng thought about it carefully and realized that even if there was a misunderstanding between Iron Blood Great Emperor and Yang Kai, Iron Blood Great Emperor would not lay hands on Yang Kai. Moreover, the war between the two worlds was in full swing right now, and Yang Kai was the representative of Tiger Roar City, the military leader of more than 200,000 elite troops. It was absolutely impossible for an ally to act against Yang Kai during this sensitive period.
Above Tiger Roar City, a burly figure stood boldly in the sky. Everyone looked up, but the sky was so hazy that only a few could see the face of this visitor clearly.
However, Senior Iron Blood’s name quickly spread throughout the city, and many people realized that the visitor was actually one of the ten Great Emperors and immediately stood in awe and gaped in admiration.
A figure flew out of the city and greeted Iron Blood Great Emperor in the next moment. It was Li Jiao.
Li Jiao stopped more than ten meters away and cupped his fists, “Li Jiao of the Northern Territory’s Fire Dragon Palace, greets Senior Iron Blood!”
Zhan Wu Hen glanced at him coldly and lightly nodded.
Although it was just a glance, it contained unsurmountable majesty, causing Li Jiao to break into a cold sweat as he probed cautiously, “We were just wondering how we can help Senior Iron Blood.”
Zhan Wu Hen answered plainly, “Ask Yang Kai to come out and see me.”
Li Jiao stressed, “Replying to Senior, Palace Master Yang has been in retreat recently and has yet to exit. Full authority over Tiger Roar City has been given to this Li. If it is a matter concerning the war between the two worlds, Tiger Roar City will definitely do its best to fulfil Senior’s commands.”
Zhan Wu Hen simply replied, “This matter has nothing to do with the war. It’s just my personal grievance. You can’t help me, so you may leave.”
Li Jiao was stunned by his remark.
Iron Blood Great Emperor’s words revealed a lot of information. Personal grievances? What personal grievance could Yang Kai have with a Great Emperor that would necessitate Iron Blood Great Emperor to come all the way here?
Before Li Jiao could inquire further, Zhan Wu Hen already waved his hand, and Li Jiao involuntarily plummeted to the ground. The force sent him staggering backwards and he was only able to stop himself when a large hand supported his back.
Li Jiao turned back and was surprised, “Brother Yang.”
Yang Kai nodded at him.
Li Jiao warned him hurriedly, “Brother Yang, be careful with your words!”
He did not know Zhan Wu Hen’s intention, but the latter’s tone and attitude were definitely not friendly. There was not much Li Jiao could do in this situation even if he wanted to. How could he oppose a Great Emperor? All he could do was to warn Yang Kai to avoid provoking Zhan Wu Hen.
Yang Kai smiled slightly, stepped forward, looked up, and cupped his fists, “Greetings, Senior. I was unaware that Senior would be gracing us with his presence. Please forgive this Junior for not offering a proper welcome!”
Zhan Wu Hen looked down coldly for a while before starting, “You are indeed guilty!”
When the words fell, the whole city went into an uproar.
Although they were aware that Iron Blood Great Emperor had come with some level of hostility, to say something like this in front of the 200,000 troops and the several million residents of Tiger Roar City, Zhan Wu Hen had essentially given Yang Kai a death sentence, which did not sit well with Tiger Roar City’s forces.
So what if he was a Great Emperor? How could a Great Emperor impose charges indiscriminately? Everyone here had seen what Yang Kai had done these past few months. Without him, Tiger Roar City would have long ago been destroyed. Without him, the Tiger Roar City troops would also be absolutely fragmented if they even existed at all. The 200,000 troops here, united under Yang Kai’s banner, had killed countless Demons and won numerous great victories.
Even though Zhan Wu Hen was a Great Emperor and was the aspiration of billions of cultivators in the Star Boundary, his words still displeased many.
Gao Xue Ting immediately stepped forward and questioned with a solemn face, “Senior, may I know what exact crime Junior Brother Yang has committed?”
Yang Kai smiled slightly and raised his hand to signal her to be quiet before turning back to the figure in the sky, “Senior, this Junior does not understand. Please clarify your accusation!”
Zhan Wu Hen continued, “I will make you understand then. But let this King ask you, is there a Divine Spirit Shi Huo by your side?”
Everyone in Tiger Roar City well knew the existence of the Embodiment; after all, he too had made great contributions in the previous battles and everyone had undeniably witnessed his exceedingly powerful performance.
Yang Kai immediately nodded and admitted, “Indeed there is.”
Zhan Wu Hen demanded, “This King will ask you then, what kind of Secret Art and what kind of Secret Technique does that Shi Huo cultivate?”
Yang Kai replied, “Each Divine Spirit has its own bloodline inheritance. Naturally, he cultivated the Secret Arts and Secret Techniques of his clan.”
“Nonsense!” Zhan Wu Hen thundered, the power of his majestic voice fluctuating so violently that the world seemed about to shake apart.
Yang Kai raised his brow and asked, “Why is Senior acting so aggressively? What this Junior said is only the truth.”
Zhan Wu Hen shook his head and rebuked, “Yang Kai, with your merits of defending this city, this King does not want to embarrass you, but if you continue to be so stubborn, don’t blame this King for not showing restraint. This King will ask one last time so think carefully before you answer. What kind of Secret Art and what kind of Secret Technique does that Shi Huo cultivate?”
The reason Iron Blood Great Emperor came here furiously was just to question the Secret Art cultivated by the Divine Spirit Shi Huo! Everyone was confused and had no idea what Zhan Wu Hen was thinking. What did Shi Huo’s Secret Art have to do with him? Was it that the Divine Spirit Shi Huo secretly learned his Secret Art?
Yang Kai’s face turned ugly at Zhan Wu Hen’s aggressive behaviour and he replied in a deep voice, “Senior, this Junior already said that Shi Huo has his own Source Inheritance. Why do you keep asking me again and again?”
Zhan Wu Hen stared at him deeply with a sharp gaze, as if he was able to look into the depths of his soul and unravel all the secrets in it, “Fool! Since you are not willing to speak the truth, this King will be straightforward. The Secret Art that Shi Huo cultivates is the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, right?”
[Heaven Devouring Battle Law?] Many were dazed, vaguely thinking they had heard this name somewhere before, but most could not remember where.
However, the expressions of Gao Xue Ting, Li Jiao, and a few others changed drastically as they turned to Yang Kai in shock.
The Heaven Devouring Battle Law was the famous Secret Art created by Heaven Devouring Great Emperor and was known as the evilest art in this world!
[Did that Divine Spirit Shi Huo really cultivate the Heaven Devouring Battle Law?] Gao Xue Ting and Li Jiao could not believe it; after all, Heaven Devouring Great Emperor had fallen countless years ago, before either of them were even alive, and the inheritance of his Secret Art was supposed to be lost. How could Shi Huo, who was with Yang Kai, cultivate it? But when they considered it carefully, Iron Blood Great Emperor couldn’t make a false accusation on such a grave matter. Recalling the earlier performance of the Embodiment, it did share some similarities with the Heaven Devouring Battle Law…
Gao Xue Ting’s heart sank. If it was true, it was reasonable for Zhan Wu Chen to behave so aggressively; after all, this matter involved Heaven Devouring Great Emperor, so there was no room for carelessness.
Yang Kai shook his head in front of everyone though and replied, “This Junior does not know where Senior heard such a thing, but it is absolute nonsense. Someone is definitely trying to frame me. Please see the truth, Senior.”
Zhan Wu Hen responded flatly, “This King will know whether you are being framed or not at a glance. You only need to bring that Shi Huo out!”
Yang Kai cupped his fists, “Forgive me, Senior, this Junior cannot accept your request. Shi Huo is currently in retreat and cannot be disturbed.”
“In retreat, is it?” Zhan Wu Hen jeered angrily, “Just now Li Jiao said you were in retreat, and now Shi Huo is also in retreat? How could there be such a coincidence in this world?”
“It is nothing but the truth!” Yang Kai looked into Zhan Wu Hen’s eyes without flinching.
Zhan Wu Hen nodded slightly and let out a long sigh, “Yang Kai, among the younger generation, this King held you in the highest regard. Not only this King, but many others have great expectations for you too. They believe that your future achievements will be unlimited, and may even reach our level one day.”
It did not mean anything if this was a remark from an ordinary person, but it was completely different given that these words came out from the mouth of a Great Emperor. This meant that if Yang Kai obtained the opportunity and the recognition of the world, he would most likely become a Great Emperor.
If this came true, the 200,000 troops of Tiger Roar city would feel infinite honour and glory! However, the situation at this moment was worrying.
Yang Kai grinned, “Many thanks for the compliment, Senior. Junior will put in more effort to not let down everyone’s expectations!”
Zhan Wu Hen continued, “No one knows what will happen in the future, however, and one wrong choice is enough to bring about your downfall!” While speaking, he slowly raised his hand and World Principles began to swirl about him. He locked his solemn eyes on Yang Kai and declared, “Since you’ve stepped onto the path of evil, it is my duty to punish you. However, there is still time for you to turn back. Repent quickly to avoid making more mistakes!”
Yang Kai shook his head, “Senior, you are making an arbitrary accusation. I really don’t know what you are talking about…”
“Still trying to confuse truth and lie?” Before Yang Kai finished his words, Zhan Wu Chen slammed his palm down. For a moment, the world literally shook.
A groan seemingly echoed out from the entire Tiger Roar City as the space where Yang Kai was located shattered. Yang Kai let out a grunt and blood spurted out all over his body. He was drilled into the ground at once, leaving only his head exposed as blood flowed from his seven orifices.
After Zhan Wu Hen landed his palm strike, he strode toward Yang Kai in a domineering manner.
Gao Xue Ting stepped forward at that moment, baring his path and cupping her fists with a pale face, “Senior, please calm yourself!”
“Stand aside!” With a casual wave of his hand, Gao Xue Ting was sent several thousand metres away and locked in place.
An exalted Dragon Roar sounded at that moment as Fu Ling transformed into a 100-metre-long Purple Dragon. The dragon roared toward the sky, “How dare you hit my brother-in-law!? Die!”
Followed by the fierce Dragon Roar, a purple beam of light shrouded Zhan Wu Hen.
The next moment, Fu Ling’s face turned pale and horrified as her Secret Technique had no effect on Zhan Wu Hen. Shockingly, he approached her step by step against the might of her Secret Technique.
“Even the two Great Elders of the Dragon Clan would not dare act presumptuously in front of this King, let alone a Young Dragon like you!” Zhan Wu Hen glanced at her coldly and stretched out his hand to grasp her. The World Energy itself condensed into a large hand and grabbed Fu Ling’s giant Dragon body.
Fu Ling roared and struggled constantly, but how could she break free? Zhan Wu Hen tossed her aside with a swing of his hand, and she instantly disappeared out of everyone’s sight.
The 200,000 troops were completely terror-stricken seeing this. They all knew that the Great Emperors were the strongest in the world, but few had ever witnessed their magnificent might first-hand. Now, they were all witnessing it with their own eyes.
Both Yang Kai and Fu Ling were invincible in the war against the Demon Race, but now, they were just as vulnerable as three-year-old children in front of Zhan Wu Hen.
Zhan Wu Hen had arrived in front of Yang Kai and looked down at him coldly, asking faintly, “Do you know your mistake now?”
Yang Kai’s face was full of blood as he clenched his teeth and retorted, “This Junior doesn’t know what he did wrong!”
Followed by a shout, his entire body soared to the sky, lifting up a large area of soil and stones. Under the chaotic situation, he surged all his strength and swung a punch at Zhan Wu Hen.
Zhan Wu Hen snorted coldly and returned his attack in kind.
A loud explosion rang out as Zhan Wu Hen remained still while Yang Kai flew out like an arrow shot from a bow, spewing blood everywhere before he slammed into a building far away.
Things weren’t over yet, however, as Zhan Wu Hen reached out his hand and grasped it, causing Yang Kai’s body to fly back involuntarily.
On the way though, Space Principles fluctuated as Yang Kai attempted to escape.
But how could Zhan Wu Chen allow him to do as he wished? The surrounding space suddenly shook as his Great Emperor aura surged and he swung out with another punch.
While Yang Kai flew out, got pulled back, then was thrown back again.
“Please be merciful, Senior!” Li Jiao shouted anxiously with red eyes, like a cat jumping on hot bricks. Although Yang Kai had astonishing strength, how could he match a Great Emperor? This was one of the ten most powerful Masters in the world. If things went on like this, Yang Kai would be killed here, today. Li Jiao wanted to help, but he also knew that he was not strong enough to oppose a Great Emperor, so he could only plead.
Zhan Wu Hen turned a deaf ear to everyone else and simply kept drawing Yang Kai back before punching him out again and again, as if he was mocking him. Everyone felt unbearable pain and resentment while watching, for they felt that Zhan Wu Hen was bullying the weak with his unmatched strength, not at all displaying the dignity a Great Emperor should have.
After about seven or eight of these tragic cycles, Yang Kai’s aura had become dreadfully weak, as if he could die at any time.
Li Jiao hurriedly yelled at Yang Kai, “Brother Yang, just admit you’re wrong!”
It was not a shame to bow down in front of a Great Emperor. If Yang Kai insisted on not submitting, he really might lose his life soon.
Over the ruins of a building, Yang Kai was drenched in blood but still staggered to his feet. He was an utter mess as he held his own chest and haltingly said, “I… have committed… no wrong… What is there to admit!?”
“Obstinance!” Zhan Wu Hen seemed to be furious and stretched out his hand again, drawing Yang Kai back to him.
At this time, Yang Kai raised his hand and a stone man full of spikes, covered in evil fire abruptly appeared. Under the suction force, the pair swiftly approached Zhan Wu Hen with the stone man rapidly growing to a 60-metre-tall stone giant.
“Finally willing to show yourself?” Zhan Wu Hen looked at the Embodiment coldly. He tapped his foot on the ground and floated lightly towards the Embodiment. In the blink of an eye, the two figures, one big and one small, met in mid-air and immediately clashed.
Although the scene was intense, anyone who had eyes could see that Embodiment was no match for Zhan Wu Hen at all. It seemed that Iron Blood Great Emperor was trying to force the Embodiment to use his full strength as he slowly increased the power of his moves, without the slightest intention to unleash his own full strength.
A few thousand metres away, Yu Ru Meng suddenly emerged beside Gao Xue Ting, performed a few hand seals, and tapped on Gao Xue Ting to remove her seal, “Go and find Iron Blood’s Disciple!”
Gao Xue Ting’s beautiful eyes lit up at her words and nodded heavily, leaving quickly.
She was afraid that no one could help with the situation now, but perhaps if she could invite Lin Yun’er to intercede, Iron Blood Great Emperor would think twice about his actions.
Fu Ling also finally made her way back, and when she saw Yang Kai beaten so badly, she immediately roared furiously, “What are you looking at? Come with me and kill this shameless man!”
As a member of the Dragon Clan, she did not feel awed by a Great Emperor. She only knew that Yang Kai had been bullied, and she naturally wanted to take revenge.
But she found that no one moved at her words, and even Li Jiao just smiled bitterly.
It was not that they did not want to help, but… It was a Great Emperor in front of them. What could they do even if they went with her? It would only worsen the situation. Without the orders of Yang Kai and Li Jiao, the 200,000 army would not dare act rashly.
Fu Ling was getting increasingly maddened, and she cursed angrily, “Wastes! All of you!”
After saying so, she rushed over by herself, fearlessly.
The outcome was obvious though. Before she could even get close, she was swept away by an inexplicable force and thrown back again, falling heavily on the ground and reverting to her Human Form, apparently passed out on the spot.
“Zhan Wu Hen!” Yang Kai gritted his teeth as he yelled, “Enough!”
As if sensing Yang Kai’s desperation, the Embodiment also went all out.
As soon as he made a move, though, he revealed a clue which led to Zhan Wu Hen to snort coldly, “You really cultivated the Heaven Devouring Battle Law!”
Yang Kai replied with a cold tone, “It is one’s heart that decides whether a Secret Art is good or evil. What’s wrong if it cultivates the Heaven Devouring Battle Law?”
“That means you admit it?” Zhan Wu Hen tapped the Embodiment’s forehead with a finger, and the sixty-metre-tall Embodiment instantly froze in place.
Yang Kai gritted his teeth and glared at him, refuting in a deep voice, “He did cultivate the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, but he’s never used this Secret Art to do any harm. The people he killed were all those who deserve to be killed, none of it was unjust. Why is Senior so obsessed with his cultivation technique?”
Zhan Wu Hen answered, “It would be fine if it’s another type of Secret Art, but the Heaven Devouring Battle Law…”
Shaking his head slowly, he thundered in a low voice, “Yang Kai, do you remember about the close friend this King once told you about? His name was Cyan Lotus, and he was killed by Wu Kuang in the Shattered Star Sea.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Of course, I remember.”
Zhan Wu Hen pressed on, “Then you should also remember that this King had mentioned that this King and Wu Kuang are absolutely irreconcilable, and it’s impossible for the both of us to coexist under the same sky!”
Yang Kai said, “It’s been tens of thousands of years, why is Senior still brooding over it?”
“This King is not brooding over it, but you don’t understand the evil of this Secret Art. Wu Kuang is a true unrivalled genius, even this King admits that he is inferior to him, but because of this Secret Art, Wu Kuang lost his rationality. Although he obtained the position of Great Emperor, his name shall forever be remembered in infamy. You never experienced the horror of the name ‘Heaven Devourer’ in Star Boundary back then, nor did you witness the tragic War of Great Emperors where the Shattered Star Sea now lies, so it’s natural for you to underestimate the wickedness of the Heaven Devouring Battle Law. But now that this King knows about this, he cannot just sit back and not do anything, otherwise, it will be too late!”
Yang Kai asked deeply, “Then what does Senior want?”
Zhan Wu Hen narrowed his eyes slightly at the Embodiment, and said flatly, “Cripple the Secret Art, and abolish his cultivation!”
“Is that really necessary?” Yang Kai’s eyes dropped, his voice dejected, and the hair on his forehead cast a thick shadow over his face, blocking the light in front of him.
“It is imperative!” Zhan Wu Hen turned his head to look at him, “This King will not rebuke you if you choose to blame him, but the Heaven Devouring Battle Law absolutely cannot be allowed to exist in this world!”
As he spoke, a milky white halo shot out from his fingertip. The halo touched the forehead of Embodiment like a dazzling light that dispersed all of the darkness in the world.
A Dragon Roar suddenly shook the sky, and Yang Kai’s figure expanded rapidly. In the blink of an eye, he assumed his massive Half-Dragon Form. Dragon Pressure filled the sky, and the 200,000 troops of Tiger Roar City all trembled.
A Dragon Claw stretched and broke the void, directly grasping at Zhan Wu Hen.
Zhan Wu Hen, who had always been nonchalant, was slightly moved by this unexpected development and raised his other palm to meet the Dragon Claw.
With a loud bang, the Dragon Claw was smashed and Zhan Wu Hen staggered back. At that exact moment, a Dragon Tail swept towards Zhan Wu Hen with a Heaven-destroying and Earth-shattering might, leaving a pitch-black tear in space as it lashed the air.
Zhan Wu Hen snorted coldly before reaching out his hand to intercept the Dragon Tail.
But he seemed to have underestimated its power and was forced back thirty whole metres. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Yang Kai has already retrieved the Embodiment back to his side, and the two huge figures stood side by side, overlooking all living beings around them, their expressions as cold as ice.
“Yang Kai, don’t bring trouble on yourself!” Zhan Wu Hen looked at him drily.
Yang Kai shook his head slowly, “Senior, please leave, it’s still not too late to do so.”
Zhan Wu Hen looked at him, a little sad, “Are you turning a deaf ear to what this King said?”
Yang Kai remained resolute, “Senior, please let this matter go!”
Zhan Wu Hen sighed, “Why? You are no match for this King, and you know this too. It is only you who will suffer in the end.”
“It’s not about winning, it’s about choosing.” Yang Kai turned his head to glance at the Embodiment before continuing, “For Senior, he is not allowed to exist because he cultivated the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, but for this Junior, he is my greatest partner, and no one is allowed to destroy him!”
Zhan Wu Hen nodded lightly, “It seems you’ve chosen the difficult path.”
Yang Kai took a deep breath, “Senior, please don’t force me.”
Zhan Wu Hen guffawed loudly, “As you said, it is about choice, and one must always bear the consequences of his choices. Now, show this King your determination.”
After saying that, he rushed over in a flash.
Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed, and without communication, he and the Embodiment split into two directions. One urged a Dragon Clan Secret Technique, while the other activated the Heaven Devouring Domain, pincering the enemy from left and right.
With two loud bangs, without sensing any movements from Zhan Wu Hen, Yang Kai and the Embodiment felt an overwhelming force smash towards them. The force struck the two huge figures, sending them flying through countless houses and buildings.
Zhan Wu Hen took advantage of this opportunity to advance toward the Embodiment. From the looks of it, he was determined to cripple the Secret Art the Embodiment used and abolish his cultivation.
How could Yang Kai allow such a thing? Still flying backwards from the last impact, Yang Kai raised his hand and the Mountains and Rivers Bell was summoned. The small bell spun rapidly while expanding in the wind before he fell towards Zhan Wu Hen.
Zhan Wu Hen did not even spare it a glance though and simply sent a kick at the Mountains and Rivers Bell. There was a loud bang and the entire Tiger Roar City trembled violently as millions hugged their heads in pain.
Zhan Wu Hen quickly utilized the rebounding force from kicking the Mountains and Rivers Bell to propel himself toward the Embodiment.
The Embodiment roared in anger as the blazing evil fire on its body gathered into a blaze and enveloped Zhan Wu Hen, setting him alight.
Zhan Wu Hen did not evade as the Emperor Qi coating his body kept him unscathed. Again and again, he dashed right in front of the Embodiment, who withdrew again and again. Seeing that he was about to send a palm strike though, the Embodiment knew there was no way to retreat and could only return it with both of his fists.
At the critical moment, Yang Kai flitted over next to him, and with his huge physique standing taller than the Embodiment, they sent out a punch together.
*Hong… *
Two huge figures were thrown back as the combined force of the two was unable to withstand the power of Zhan Wu Hen’s single palm. The strength of a Great Emperor was evident; moreover, since the battlefield was above Tiger Roar City, Zhan Wu Hen was clearly holding back still. If this was not the case, it would be even more unbearable for Yang Kai and the Embodiment.
When retreating, Yang Kai’s eyes suddenly narrowed, because Zhan Wu Hen was chasing after them without any signs of slowing down.
It was his first time facing a Great Emperor head-on, and Yang Kai did not hold anything back, but the gap in strength and cultivation was simply too great, so he could not see the slightest hope of victory at all.
Zhan Wu Hen’s attacks were also extremely simple, he did not use any extravagant Secret Techniques, nonetheless, these basic punches and kicks were akin to the most powerful Divine Abilities in the world. Even a random blow from him contained immense power.
Millions of people in the city watched the battle without blinking, marvelling at the power of a Great Emperor and worrying about Yang Kai simultaneously.
Loud bangs and rumbles echoed endlessly, and countless buildings in the city collapsed. Broken walls and dilapidated structures could be seen everywhere. The battle was a one-sided situation from the beginning. Yang Kai and the Embodiment were absolutely not Zhan Wu Hen’s opponents. The two huge figures did not even have the power to fight back and were beaten around like sandbags instead.
The Embodiment’s cultivation was almost abolished by Zhan Wu Hen several times, but thanks to Yang Kai, who managed to intervene at the critical moment each time, he managed to survive. However, if this continued, defeat was only a matter of time.
The Mountains and Rivers Bell, Dragon Clan Secret Technique, Time Flies Seal, Space Divine Abilities, Yang Kai almost used up all of his means, but these techniques, which had saved him countless times in the past, were all useless against Zhan Wu Hen’s fist.
Yang Kai soon became only focused in the battle, unleashing his strength recklessly, completely ignoring whether it would destroy Tiger Roar City.
With a bang and another loud noise, Yang Kai and Embodiment were knocked into the air once again.
Only this time, Zhan Wu Hen did not give Yang Kai the chance to rescue the Embodiment. He stretched out his large hand and grabbed the massive stone body.
Under the restraint of a Great Emperor’s might, the evil fire on the Embodiment dimmed, and the sixty-metre-tall figure’s struggles turned meaningless.
Visible lines suddenly spread out from the large hand, gradually wrapping themselves around the Embodiment’s entire body like a seal.
Zhan Wu Hen’s voice resounded throughout the world, “Yang Kai, I hope you will learn from this and not go down the path of evil again.”
Yang Kai’s eyes turned red, his fists clenched tightly as he stood up from the ruins, screaming in grief and anger, “I’m not convinced! This is unjust!”
Zhan Wu Hen shook his head slowly and surged his Emperor Qi. The lines on the Embodiment’s body became denser and denser, gradually wrapping up his entire body. Even though no one knew what these lines were, they knew that it was Zhan Wu Hen’s means to abolish the Embodiment’s cultivation.
It was indeed a pity that such a powerful existence was about to be destroyed by a Great Emperor because he cultivated the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, but since this matter was related to Heaven Devouring Great Emperor and the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, no one could say whether Zhan Wu Hen was in the right or wrong.
At this moment, Zhan Wu Hen suddenly frowned and turned to look at Yang Kai.
Upon seeing him, Zhan Wu Hen’s frown was immediately replaced by shock and he exclaimed, “Yang Kai, have you been corrupted by Demon Qi?”
As soon as these words came out, everyone’s complexion changed drastically as they looked toward Yang Kai together.
There, they saw the Half-Dragon, which was Yang Kai, overflowing with black Qi that was filled with malevolence. Not only was everyone familiar with this black Qi after fighting against the Demon Race for so long, but they also had a thorough understanding of Demons too.
At this moment, Demon Qi was undoubtedly bursting from Yang Kai’s physique, and it was extremely pure Demon Qi at that. Even compared to the Demon Qi exuded by the Demon Kings they faced, Yang Kai’s Demon Qi was on a different level whether it was in terms of density or purity.
Li Jiao’s eyes were about to pop out of their sockets as he stared upwards, trying to figure out just when Yang Kai was corroded by Demon Qi.
[Wasn’t he a Shaman King? And doesn’t he have an extremely pure Dragon Clan bloodline? How is that possible that he was corrupted by Demon Qi so easily? There were no signs of it before!]
The 200,000 troops could not believe their eyes either.
Only Yu Ru Meng gazed at Yang Kai with awestruck eyes, and even extended her scarlet tongue to lick her lips, as if she was served with the world’s most delicious delicacy.
“Corroded by Demon Qi?” Yang Kai looked at Zhan Wu Hen coldly, and sneered, “Nonsense!”
Zhan Wu Hen growled with a frown, “There is a Demon inside your heart!”
Yang Kai grinned and cackled wildly, looking very pleased with himself as he roared, “It’s all thanks to Senior!”
Zhan Wu Hen rebuked angrily, “Focus your mind and guard your Soul, otherwise, you will face imminent disaster!”
Yang Kai shook his head slowly, “Senior, you can bully me just because you’re stronger than me. If I was stronger, I could teach Senior to show some proper respect too.”
“You’ve already been demonified!” Zhan Wu Hen looked extremely serious.
“Really?” Yang Kai’s smile curved into a strange grin, “Then… Demon Transformation!”
He raised his right hand slightly and pressed it against his right eye as he chanted in an eerily deep voice, “Black Eye Purgatory, Infinite Darkness!”
*Weng… *
The world trembled as it was abruptly shrouded in darkness. Not even the slightest speck of light could be seen anywhere, the only thing visible was a giant eye high up in the sky that was emitting an inexplicable darkness that seemed capable of sucking in one’s soul. Millions of people in Tiger Roar City grimaced as they looked away, not daring to stare into that eye.
There was tranquillity in this dark world, or rather stillness, as if time had stopped. Most did not notice what happened next as they only felt the whole world flood with Demon Qi, sending chills down their spine.
Only those Second and Third-Order Emperors were able to sense some violent fluctuations of power from time to time.
In this pitch-black world, Yang Kai, the Embodiment, and the Great Emperor were still locked in battle.
After a while, there was a crack in the huge eye in the sky and soon, the cracks spread out like a dense spider web. Followed by a quiet snapping sound, the huge eye shattered.
Light was restored to the world and the darkness receded like the tide, relieving the repressive atmosphere in an instant.
Everyone looked around, wondering what the final outcome of the battle was.
Zhan Wu Hen roared furiously, “Yang Kai, do you know what you’re doing?”
Yang Kai’s voice immediately followed up, but he sounded weak and haggard, “Senior forced me again and again, so I could only do this to protect myself!”
The millions of citizens of Tiger Roar City turned to the source of the voice and were dumbstruck in an instant.
Yang Kai was standing mid-air, completely covered in blood, looking like a complete mess. His huge Half-Dragon Form had reverted to his usual Human Form, but one arm and one leg were twisted at abnormal angles and were clearly broken.
Li Jiao’s eyes narrowed as this was the first time he had seen Yang Kai in such a wretched state. He had never been in such a miserable condition even when he caused a ruckus on Dragon Island. It could be seen that Zhan Wu Hen did not hold back much during their fight. It was to be expected though as no one who made an enemy of a Great Emperor would have a good end.
Li Jiao wasn’t shocked by this though, what really shocked him at this moment was that a young woman had appeared next to Yang Kai at some point, with the latter’s hand gripping her neck, clearly holding her hostage.
Li Jiao recognized this young woman. She was Zhan Wu Hen’s Disciple, a girl named Lin Yun’er, who seemed to have a good relationship with Yang Kai.
But at this moment, Yang Kai had taken her as a hostage and placed his hand on her neck, looking as though he was prepared to kill her.
[Yang Kai has really been demonified!] Li Jiao’s head buzzed in confusion, making him unable to think properly. If Yang Kai had not undergone demonification, how could he have done such a crazy thing? The outbreak of wicked impulses in Yang Kai’s mind must be the reason for him to fail to act reasonably.
Li Jiao was instantly distressed.
Gao Xue Ting also looked at Yang Kai in sorrow.
She was the one who brought Lin Yun’er here. Initially, she wanted Lin Yun’er to persuade Iron Blood Great Emperor not to be too harsh on Yang Kai, but she never expected that when they returned, Tiger Roar City would be shrouded in darkness. When the light finally reappeared, the situation had already turned into this.
She did not even notice Yang Kai seizing Lin Yun’er.
After being stunned for a moment, she quickly shouted, “Junior Brother Yang, let her go! It’s still not too late to turn back!”
Although Yang Kai’s face was covered by Demon Qi and his expression was not visible, Gao Xue Ting clearly felt that he glanced at her, but there was no response. He clearly ignored her!
Gao Xue Ting’s heart sank… Such a situation showed that Yang Kai was completely demonified, and perhaps he could not even recognize himself anymore.
“Uncle Yang…” Lin Yun’er looked down at Yang Kai’s broken arms and legs and her eyes suddenly turned red, tears trickling down her cheeks, “Are you in pain?”
As soon as she asked that though, the Demon Qi shrouding Yang Kai’s face trembled violently as he snapped, “Shut up!”
Her concern was returned with nothing but Yang Kai’s fierce roar.
Lin Yun’er cried even more. It was uncertain if it was due to the heartache from seeing Yang Kai’s injury or whether she felt sad after being yelled at by Yang Kai.
This scene was unbearable to everyone.
The man who turned the tide single-handedly with his own strength, saved Tiger Roar City from disasters numerous times, and led their army of 200,000 to countless victories, the symbol of invincibility they all looked up to and revered, had actually fallen to such a point. To protect himself, he even took a girl hostage and returned her concern with curses.
No one could accept it, but the facts were presented right in front of them. They were all silent, watching Yang Kai, who was enveloped in Demon Qi, with mixed feelings in their eyes, as if they were looking at a stranger.
Strictly speaking, when one was demonified, he or she would really turn into a different person.
“Stop this now, Yang Kai!” Zhan Wu Hen made a step forward, “Given all your contributions so far in this war, this King is willing to spare your life, I simply wish to cripple Shi Huo’s cultivation.”
Lin Yun’er immediately groaned as Yang Kai tightened his grip and a droplet of blood surfaced on her white and slender neck, followed by a cold voice from Yang Kai, “If you dare take another step forward, she’ll become a corpse!”
“You dare!?” Zhan Wu Hen was maddened! It was not easy for him to find a Disciple who he could pass his mantle down to so he cherished Lin Yun’er more than his own life. How could he allow Yang Kai to kill his Disciple?
Yang Kai continued coldly, “Senior is a Great Emperor, and I have to admit my own defeat. I’m afraid that I can’t even escape from Senior, but believe me when I say I can make her die before you kill me!”
Zhan Wu Hen’s face darkened as he stared at Yang Kai, his majestic eyes pulsing with light as he asked faintly, “Tell me your conditions for letting Yun’er go!”
Yang Kai answered, “I’ll leave this place with her, and set her free when we reach an appropriate location; however, if Senior dares to follow me, don’t blame this Junior for being ruthless.”
“That’s all?”
“That’s all!”
“How can I believe you?”
Yang Kai replied, “I’m afraid that Senior has no choice. Either you let me go, or I go to Hell with her!”
Gao Xue Ting stepped forward and offered, “Yang Kai, let her go and I’ll be your hostage.”
Yang Kai glanced at her and remarked harshly, “You’re useless.”
Gao Xue Ting’s face turned pale and she felt like her heart had been severely cut, a soul-wrenching feeling overwhelming her in that instant.
Zhan Wu Hen continued, “Even if this King agrees to your condition, you may escape for a while, but can you avoid us for a lifetime? You may have fallen to the Demon Path, but as far as this King knows, you still have four wives. Have you ever thought about what will happen to them? How are you going to let them face the world in the future!?”
Yang Kai hoarsely laughed, “My own life is at risk now, why should I care whether they live or die!?”
Zhan Wu Hen slowly shook his head, “Yang Kai, you disappoint this King greatly.”
“Cut the crap!” Yang Kai yelled as the Demon Qi shrouding him surged, showing how unstable his mood was. “I have told you about my condition. Senior may take his time to consider it, but I am afraid she won’t last that long!”
Lin Yun’er was still fine with her neck being strangled by Yang Kai, but the Demon Qi he was emitting was spreading towards her like a living creature, attempting to corrupt her body. If they continued to delay, Lin Yun’er might also become demonified.
Zhan Wu Hen knew that he could not hesitate any longer and immediately waved his hand, “Good. This King will promise you, but this King will say this first. If you dare hurt Yun’er, this King will hunt you down till the ends of the world and make you beg for death!”
Yang Kai guffawed, “Many thanks, Senior. I will be leaving now. Senior may rest assured that Yun’er will come back safely.”
Saying so, he beckoned to his side and the Embodiment immediately dashed out of a ruin. Compared to Yang Kai, his Embodiment was in even worse shape. The evil fire around his body had all been extinguished and his spines had all been crushed. It was obvious that he had suffered a great loss in the battle just now, and it would probably take quite some time to fully recover.
Yang Kai put his Embodiment back into the Sealed World Bead before flickering, vanishing from sight.
The entire city fell silent as Zhan Wu Hen looked off in a certain direction thoughtfully.
Gao Xue Ting and Li Jiao exchanged looks of shock as they simply couldn’t believe that such a thing would happen today. They felt as though they were caught in some kind of nightmare and prayed secretly that it was really just a bad dream; that when they woke up, everything would return to its original state.
“You! You did this! You forced my brother-in-law to be like that! I’ll kill you!” Fu Ling screamed as she pounced at Zhan Wu Hen and swung a punch.
*Hong…*
The punch landed on Zhang Wu Hen’s chest.
Fu Ling was dumbfounded, as was everyone else watching.
How was Iron Blood Great Emperor hit, even if it was a straight punch from a member of the Dragon Clan?
“You… Why didn’t you dodge?” Fu Ling looked at Zhan Wu Hen, flabbergasted. Although she did not feel awed by Iron Blood Great Emperor, he was still a Great Emperor so it was natural for her to be a little worried about angering him by punching him like this.
Zhan Wu Hen just looked at her quietly and answered after a while, “He had a Demon in his heart already, I did not force him to turn out like this!”
Fu Ling gritted her teeth, “Who doesn’t have a Demon inside their heart? Who dares to say that one has a clear conscience for all their life? If you hadn’t forced him again and again, how could my brother-in-law… How would he have ended up like this?”
Zhan Wu Hen shook his head slowly, “It’s too late to say this now.”
“Return my brother-in-law to me!” Fu Ling scolded as she smashed her fist on Zhan Wu Hen’s chest.
*Hong hong hong… *
The strength of a member of the Dragon Clan was so great that Zhan Wu Hen was forced back slightly by her attacks, but he did not avoid or resist; instead, he just quietly endured it.
It was evident that today’s events had a great impact on Zhan Wu Hen. He was only here to inquire about the Embodiment’s cultivation of the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, but never expected Yang Kai to completely fall to the Demon path, going from a hero with great meritorious service to the Star Boundary into someone detested by all.
If not, with the power of a Great Emperor, how could Fu Ling possibly get close to him and hit him? After today, Yang Kai would not be allowed to continue to live in the Star Boundary.
After venting viciously for a while, Fu Ling finally stopped. Rubbing her swollen red eyes, she twisted her head and looked around mournfully, “It’s not fun outside at all.”
As she spoke, she shot straight into the sky.
Li Jiao shouted, “Sister Ling, where are you going?”
Fu Ling did not respond at all, however, and soon after, a mournful Dragon Roar echoed from the clouds. A purple light vaguely pierced the sky, then disappeared. Fu Ling felt disheartened that Yang Kai had fallen to the Demon path and decided to return home, but at the moment, even those from Half-Dragon City did not bother to pay attention to her.
A desolate atmosphere enveloped the entire Tiger Roar City, and everyone’s hearts were disturbed by inexplicable emotions that could not be vented.
Zhan Wu Hen stood mid-air, seemingly waiting for something. Meanwhile, Li Jiao, Gao Xue Ting and the others dared not bother him.
…
Space Principles fluctuated as Yang Kai desperately fled.
He did not stop until he reached the Southern Swamp.
After putting down Lin Yun’er, Yang Kai waved his hand and ordered, “You may go.”
Lin Yun’er rubbed her eyes, and suddenly circled around Yang Kai with her hands behind her back, smiling, “Uncle Yang, did I do a good job?”
The Demon Qi wrapping around Yang Kai’s face trembled as he replied in a deep voice, “What are you talking about? Stop your gibberish. I will kill you if you don’t leave now!”
Lin Yun’er pouted, “Master already told me everything. Is Uncle Yang still going to lie to me?”
Yang Kai’s eyes widened, “Senior Iron Blood already told you? What did he tell you?”
Lin Yun’er giggled, “Master told me to visit Tiger Roar City at the right time, and then let you take me hostage so that you could get away.”
Yang Kai’s mouth twitched, “Why didn’t I know about this?”
Lin Yun’er shrugged, “Yun’er doesn’t know.”
“Wasn’t Senior Sister Gao the one who went to find you?” Yang Kai looked at her suspiciously.
Lin Yun’er answered, “En, but that was probably just a coincidence. Sister Gao came to me just as I was about to head to Tiger Roar City and told me that Master was causing trouble for you. She asked me to go and persuade Master. Then I went with her and you captured me… Didn’t Master tell you to do so?”
Yang Kai could not stop his face from twitching as he rolled his eyes, “I just thought it would make more sense to capture you… En, it seems that Senior Iron Blood had the same considerations, just that he didn’t give me the details.”
Lin Yun’er nodded, “Yes, yes. Uncle Yang, what on Earth are you doing this for? Yun’er doesn’t understand.”
Yang Kai smiled bitterly, “If you don’t know, don’t think about it. Never mention our conversation to anyone, just treat it as if it never happened. If someone asks about what happened after being held hostage by me when you go back, just say that I suddenly lost my mind to the corrosion of the Demon Qi and you took the opportunity to escape.”
“En en, no problem.” Lin Yun’er nodded her head repeatedly like a chicken pecking rice before she suddenly stretched out a slender finger to poke at the Demon Qi on Yang Kai’s face, “But Uncle Yang, this disguise is so realistic, is it really Demon Qi?”
“Don’t touch it!” Yang Kai retreated hastily before saying, “Go back, I should be going as well. Tell Senior Iron Blood that I will do my best about what they have entrusted me to do.”
After saying that, and with another flicker, Yang Kai disappeared from the spot.
Lin Yun’er remained standing, staring glumly at where Yang Kai was for a while, not knowing where he had gone. Only after some time did she return the same way she had come, gloomily.
…
The next day, a stream of light from afar soared over Tiger Roar City.
Zhan Wu Hen, who had been standing mid-air, looked up with a sombre expression.
The stream of light landed straight in front of him, revealing Lin Yun’er, whose eyes were red and swollen, as though she had been crying for quite some time. Even now she could not stop choking and sobbing.
Zhan Wu Hen hurriedly asked, “Are you hurt?”
Lin Yun’er shook her head, haltingly replying, “N-No, it’s just that… Uncle Yang… ”
Zhan Wu Hen asked, “Where did he go?”
Lin Yun’er replied, “I don’t know, he suddenly started acting erratically and I took the opportunity to run away. After that, I don’t know where he went.”
Zhan Wu Hen patted her head, “As long as you are fine. Go back and rest.”
Lin Yun’er nodded and walked towards the Space Array somewhat dejectedly.
Below, Gao Xue Ting, Li Jiao, and the others were looking at Zhan Wu Hen, waiting for him to speak.
Zhan Wu Hen did not keep them waiting for long. Soon, a deep voice resounded throughout the Tiger Roar City, “High Heaven Palace’s Palace Master, Yang Kai has experienced demonification and fallen to the Demon path. He is a man of great strength and high cultivation, but from this moment forth, if anyone meets him in the future and has the opportunity, kill him for the safety of the people!”
The Tiger Roar City shook at his words. In just two days, the banner of Tiger Roar City had turned into a Demon sought by everyone to be killed. Such a change made it impossible for everyone to adapt.
Zhan Wu Hen was clearly not finished though as his voice sounded again, “In view of Yang Kai’s terrible crime, all disciples under him will immediately return to High Heaven Palace and will not be allowed to leave without this King’s permission. Anyone who disobeys will be killed without mercy!”
There were five thousand disciples from High Heaven Palace in Tiger Roar City, and at this moment, all of them were enraged as it was an incredible shame for High Heaven Palace to close its gates.
But Yang Kai’s previous actions indeed deserved to be castigated, so these disciples choked back their anger and reluctance. Moreover, who would dare disobey an order from a Great Emperor?
Under Zhan Wu Hen’s supervision, the five thousand High Heaven Palace disciples were split from the rest and sent back to the Northern Territory’s High Heaven Palace via Space Array.
……
“Yang Kai has been demonified!” In a certain city, Bing Yun summoned Su Yan and others, and announced with a solemn expression, “He fell to the Demon path during a battle with Senior Iron Blood, then escaped by holding Lin Yun’er hostage, and has not been seen since.”
Ji Yao just happened to enter the room with a cup of tea at that moment, but upon hearing the news, she temporarily lost her composure and allowed the cup to fall to the ground with a crash.
She was silent for a moment before she bent down to pick up the fragments, but her tender body was still shaking. Her head buzzed with Bing Yun’s words and she could not think straight.
Su Yan and others also looked at Bing Yun in befuddlement.
“Impossible!” Shan Qing Luo was the first to express her disbelief and frowned, “Where did Senior get this news?”
Bing Yun sighed, “This Queen also thinks there is something strange about this situation, but this news was passed on by Iron Blood Great Emperor himself, and it happened just yesterday.”
Blood was drained from the faces of Su Yan and the others while Ji Yao, who was picking up the broken cup fragments, retracted her hand slightly and accidentally slipped a fingertip over a sharp piece of porcelain, causing blood to ooze out of the cut.
With a Second-Order Emperor Realm cultivation, getting cut by a piece of ordinary porcelain showed just how chaotic her mood was right now.
Slowly getting up, Ji Yao questioned, “Honoured Master, has the matter been confirmed?”
Bing Yun glanced at her and sighed, “This Queen has asked Li Jiao, and Li Jiao has confirmed the authenticity of the news. It seems to be true.”
“I don’t believe it!” Shan Qing Luo shouted, positively fuming, “That old fart Li Jiao must be making irresponsible remarks, I’m going to see him this instant!”
She stood up to leave, but Su Yan grabbed her arm.
“Big Sister!” Shan Qing Luo turned to look at Su Yan.
Su Yan slowly shook her head though and sent her a Divine Sense message, “Did you forget what we were told?”
Shan Qing Luo was startled for a moment but quickly recalled what Yang Kai had said a while ago to them. He told them he was going to the Demon Realm, and he would do so through an unconventional method.
[Was this what he meant?]
What could be a better method to go to the Demon Realm other than this? Becoming demonified and falling to the Demon path was indeed an excellent way to get the Demon Race to accept him.
Shan Qing Luo fell deep into thought after hearing Su Yan’s reminder.
Ji Yao, who was watching from the side, suddenly seemed to have realized something as well.
[No matter what you hear or see, don’t believe it.] Something Yang Kai said to her a few months ago surfaced in her mind and Ji Yao turned to look outside, [Were you referring to the current situation?]
There was a depressing silence in the hall that was only broken by Bing Yun sigh, “Yang Kai is currently missing, and Senior Iron Blood has given the order that everyone from High Heaven Palace is to immediately return to the Northern Territory. The Sect’s gates are to be closed and anyone who defies his orders and leaves the palace without permission will be killed without mercy!”
Shan Qing Luo retorted angrily, “We all have to return to High Heaven Palace? He means to put us under house arrest! How can he do such a thing?”
Bing Yun shook her head though and explained, “Calm yourself. What Senior Iron Blood is doing is not to harm High Heaven Palace, but rather a kind of protection in disguise. It seems that Senior Iron Blood is sending you back to the Sect in consideration for Yang Kai’s contributions before.”
Shan Qing Luo sneered, “Should I thank him for it then?”
Whether or not Yang Kai was demonified, his reputation had been completely ruined and it was all because of the battle with Iron Blood Great Emperor, so Shan Qing Luo naturally would have a bias against Zhan Wu Hen.
Su Yan, however, chastised, “Luo’er, watch your words. Honoured Master is right. Senior Iron Blood did indeed do this as a means of protecting High Heaven Palace’s disciples.”
If something like this happened to Yang Kai, any High Heaven Palace disciple still roaming around outside would be suspected and might even be targeted. By then, skirmishes could escalate into a major conflict. If any internal strife occurred, it would only add to the debacle High Heaven Palace was already in. Forcing them all to return to High Heaven Palace and closing the gates was the best strategy at the moment.
Since Su Yan had spoken, Shan Qing Luo did not dare to say more even though she was still angry, but her expression remained irritable.
Bing Yun spoke, “I will inquire more regarding Yang Kai’s situation. Even if he really experienced some kind of cultivation dissonance, there must be a root cause and he may even have the opportunity to set things right. You know how capable he is, so don’t worry too much. For now, gather your High Heaven Palace disciples and prepare to return.”
“Yes!” Su Yan responded and led Xue Yue and Shan Qing Luo out.
“Yao’er…” Bing Yun called.
“Disciple is here,” Ji Yao responded.
“Go to Tiger Roar City and inquire directly from Li Jiao about what happened yesterday.” Bing Yun ordered.
“Yes, I will leave immediately,” Ji Yao planned to go to Tiger Roar City to clarify the situation anyway, so now that she had Bing Yun’s command, she would not delay a moment longer and hurriedly headed over via Space Array.
“Yang Kai has been demonified!”
Wen Zhi Shan shouted as he held a jade slip and used his Divine Sense to read the information within. He could not believe what he had just read. The jade slip was sent from Gao Xue Ting and it was branded with her Divine Sense, so it was certainly real. Moreover, Gao Xue Ting also explained the incident in detail on the jade slip, which made it difficult for Wen Zhi Shan to doubt it.
He was out of sorts for a long time before he ordered Chen Qian to head to Tiger Roar City and inquire from Gao Xue Ting face to face.
…
In another city, Yang Yan also held a jade slip in her hand, and frowned as she muttered, “What’s that fool doing? Why did he suddenly mess with Iron Blood and get himself demonified?”
Below her, a group of Emperor Realm Masters, who came to ask for reinforcements, did not dare to interrupt her after seeing the changes on her face. A moment later, Yang Yan summoned an Emperor Realm Master and asked him to travel to Tiger Roar City to inquire about the situation.
…
“Yang Kai has been demonified. What do you think of this?” In a great hall, Luan Feng asked Fan Wu and Cang Gou in a deep voice.
“When did this happen?” Cang Gou widened his eyes, startled.
“I just received the news,” Luan Feng replied with a solemn expression.
Fan Wu continued, “I, too, just received the news. It seems to have just happened yesterday.”
“Has the brat really fallen to the Demon path?” Cang Gou could hardly believe his ears.
Fan Wu replied, “Word came from Iron Blood Great Emperor himself. I don’t think it’s false.”
Cang Gou was dumbfounded and mumbled, “How could he fall to the Demon path? That’s impossible, are you sure it is not a mistake?”
Luan Feng and Fan Wu shook their heads slowly as the former remarked, “This matter is of great importance and can’t be a simple misunderstanding.”
After hearing it, Cang Gou sighed, “What a waste…”
Although Yang Kai often came to Ancient Wild Lands to trouble them, Cang Gou still admired him. He rarely saw such a talented and amazing Junior; however, now that he was demonified, it meant that Yang Kai would no longer have a future.
Luan Feng pressed on, “Whether he is demonified or not, he is still involved with the descendant of Heavens Order. Though there has still been no news about her ever since she entered the Blood Gate that day, years ago, perhaps she will appear soon. You know how important Yang Kai is to her, so who knows how she will react when she finds out he is in a bad situation?”
Fan Wu nodded solemnly, “What Lady Feng said is true. Then, in Lady Feng’s opinion, how should we deal with this?”
Luan Feng proposed, “Find his whereabouts as soon as possible and send him to the Ancient Wild Lands. By then, even if the descendant of Heaven’s Order returns, she won’t be able to make any complaints.”
Fan Wu nodded, “This is a good idea. Let’s do so.”
Luan Feng continued, “Then, I’ll get Ying Fei to go to Tiger Roar City to inquire about the situation and find out which direction Yang Kai fled.”
“Time is ticking. We need to act immediately!”
…
For a time, many came to Tiger Roar City from all over to inquire about the incident, turning it into quite the lively scene.
At the same time, as if it had wings, the news about Yang Kai’s falling to the Demon path spread all over the major cities in the Western Territory in just a few days. It also rapidly spread to the Southern, Eastern and Northern Territories. When those who knew Yang Kai learnt of the news, their first reaction was to take it as nonsense or just some made-up rumour.
But the rumour was spread in vivid detail like it was real. It also included details that Yang Kai was defeated by Iron Blood Great Emperor, and shamelessly kidnapped Lin Yun’er to get away in the end…
After this rumour was confirmed, the entire Star Boundary went into an uproar. No one expected that such a dazzling rising star would truly fall to the Demon path, or had cultivated the Heaven Devouring Battle Law!
Things often changed or were lost when rumours spread; therefore, as the news continued to proliferate, Yang Kai had gradually become the one who cultivated the Heaven Devouring Battle Law instead of his Embodiment.
Both falling to the Demon path and cultivating the Heaven Devouring Battle Law were intolerable to those of the Star Boundary. Yang Kai’s reputation had been completely tainted. In addition to the words of Iron Blood Great Emperor, many even rolled up their sleeves and secretly looked forward to finding Yang Kai to kill him. Their desire was to carry out a righteous act and eliminate danger while becoming heroes at the same time.
Although Yang Kai did not know the situation of the outside world, he could more or less guess, and he had long been prepared for it.
In the Small Sealed World, Yang Kai sat cross-legged in the medicine garden beside the Firmament Tree with a solemn expression.
Two Wood Spirits hovered in mid-air, hiding several tens metres away, looking at Yang Kai worriedly. They could not help him at the moment and were as anxious as ants on a hot wok.
The gold and silver sealing power of the Firmament Tree poured into Yang Kai’s body slowly under his guidance, and into his dantian to re-seal the Ancient Demon Qi.
Earlier, Yang Kai used the Ancient Demon Qi to feign being demonified and falling to the Demon path in perfect cooperation with Iron Blood Great Emperor. But now, he realized that things had become a little troublesome.
Ever since he absorbed this Ancient Demon Qi outside Maplewood City, Yang Kai did not have a permanent way to deal with it. He could only seal it with the power of the Firmament Tree.
However, after several unsealings, the Ancient Demon Qi had become more and more powerful. It seemed to have become purer and also more and more difficult to control.
The Ancient Demon Qi sealed in his dantian was like a living creature that grew more powerful after every unsealing, which made it more difficult for Yang Kai to seal it back again, requiring more sealing power each time.
Yang Kai discovered this long ago; however, the situation had become much more serious now, and Yang Kai was no longer certain he could seal the Demon Qi.
[Will the false rumours really come true?] Yang Kai did not know whether to laugh or cry. It would be a great loss if he was really demonified like this.
By constraining his mind and getting rid of miscellaneous thoughts, Yang Kai controlled the sealing power of the Firmament Tree to suppress the Ancient Demon Qi, little by little, back into his dantian.
As time passed, the gold and silver light of the Firmament Tree became dimmer and dimmer, almost looking like it would be completely depleted in the next moment; however, the Ancient Demon Qi on Yang Kai’s body still showed no sign of reducing, and was trembling and churning menacingly.
[Not good…]
Yang Kai was worried, but there was nothing he could do.
Not far away, Mu Zhu and Mu Na obviously noticed the terrible situation, and after exchanging looks, they seemed to have made up their mind and flew over to Yang Kai.
Aware of their movements, Yang Kai opened his eyes to look at them, shouting, “Don’t come closer.”
Mu Zhu and Mu Na turned a deaf ear to him though as their small bodies landed on the branches of the Firmament Tree and they both quickly performed a series of complex hand seals. Subsequently, a strange resonance was formed between the two Wood Spirits and the Firmament Tree.
The radiance of the Firmament Tree that was gradually fading earlier suddenly burst into a brilliant halo of gold and silver light, causing its sealing power to become extremely vigorous.
Yang Kai was stunned but wasted no time as he hurriedly guided the sealing power.
The trembling Ancient Demon Qi on the surface of his body was suppressed little by little, and its evil and violent aura gradually disappeared.
After quite some time, there was no longer any Ancient Demon Qi visible as it had all been suppressed into Yang Kai’s dantian, allowing his body to return to its regular state, even feeling more comfortable than ever before.
Mu Zhu and Mu Na were drenched in sweat and panting at this moment. It was obvious that both of them had just performed a Secret Technique of the Wood Spirit Clan, which took a great toll on them.
“Are both of you alright?” Yang Kai opened his eyes and asked.
The two Wood Spirits shook their heads together, and Mu Zhu glanced to the side, “We are fine, but the Firmament Tree…”
Yang Kai followed her gaze and found that the Firmament Tree was on the verge of death. Its branches were drooping and it seemed shrivelled and dying. The gold and silver tints that should have existed were now gone, and all that remained was a withered husk.
Mu Na explained, “We stimulated its vitality forcefully, which caused it great damage.”
Yang Kai frowned, “Will it die?”
Mu Zhu shook her head, “No, the Firmament Tree is extremely tenacious; furthermore, there is an endless stream of vitality from the Immortal Tree here, so it’s impossible for it to die that easily. But we have no idea how long it will take to fully recover. Master, don’t remove the Demon Qi seal in the future. Without the power of the Firmament Tree, you won’t be able to seal it again.”
Yang Kai nodded solemnly, “Noted.”
The price that he paid for this plan was enormous. Not only was his reputation destroyed, but he had also lost one of his most powerful trump cards. Nevertheless, what was done could not be undone, and he could only move forward.
Yang Kai sent the two Wood Spirits to take a rest while he adjusted his breathing for a while to make sure that there was nothing off about his condition. Only after a thorough inspection did Yang Kai exit the Small Sealed World and identify his location before rushing off in a certain direction.
…
In the sky, a figure passed by at an incredibly fast speed. From time to time, it stopped to examine the surroundings before setting off again.
Tracking him, this person was able to follow the trail of Yang Kai’s departure. It was unknown how this person found Yang Kai’s traces as the latter had fled into the Southern Swamp and had spent a few days recovering. Afterwards, he used his Space Divine Ability many times to travel quite a distance. It was extremely difficult to track him down even for a Great Emperor.
But this person was able to track him without any difficulty.
The figure stopped again, and under the hazy moonlight, a graceful and curvy body was revealed, her hair flying in the wind. Surprisingly, it was actually a charming woman.
Yu Ru Meng!
Ever since Yang Kai escaped from Tiger Roar City, she had also disappeared. Gao Xue Ting and the others searched for her for several days but to no avail. No one knew where she had gone off to.
At the moment, Yu Ru Meng’s beautiful eyes were glinting with a quaint divine light, like a beast stalking its prey, full of excitement. From time to time, she stuck out her scarlet tongue and licked her red lips, giving off a wild sense of seduction.
She stood in the sky, her hair flying in the night breeze. Suddenly, she turned around, stared in one direction, giggled, and mumbled to herself, “Husband, I’m coming for you! You can’t run!”
As soon as she finished her sentence, her body turned into a stream of light and disappeared from the sky in the blink of an eye.
There was just dead silence in the wilderness, as even the insects hiding in the soil seemed to be frightened and decided to stay quiet the whole night.
An He City, located on the border of the Southern and Western Territories, was a small town with a population of only a few hundred thousand. There was no decent Master in the city and even the City Lord was only a First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator.
Such a city was almost considered to be insignificant in Star Boundary.
The population in the city was originally bigger, but with the war between the two worlds, and because An He City was located at the border of the Southern Territory, most of the residents in the city have fled to the depths of the Southern Territory in fear that the Demon Race would attack. Currently, the population had already sharply dropped by more than half.
However, whether it was turbulent times or a thriving era, there was one field that would never cease, prostitution.
An He City was not big, but it had its fair share of brothels.
The largest one was Springbreeze Drizzle House. Perhaps exactly because they were in turbulent times, the indulgence in a wanton life had become of even greater importance. So, even though the population of An He City had been reduced by more than half, the business of Springbreeze Drizzle House was better than usual. Pimps and Procuresses kept welcoming and sending customers off, and the makeup-clad girls smiled happily, soliciting benefactors enthusiastically with their alluring voices.
The building was luxuriously decorated, and the vivid murals filled Springbreeze Drizzle House with a seductive aura. The main hall was filled with tables seated with guests who cheered their cups with the company of loosely dressed girls, their hands running up and down their bodies from time to time, causing strings of giggles to ring throughout the room. Meanwhile, bursts of gasps and moans could be heard from behind the doors of the closed wings.
There was a bang and a person suddenly flew out of a room on the second floor. He fell heavily on the first floor, rolled over a few times, and laid motionless.
The noisy hall fell into a weird silence at this moment, and everyone turned their heads in the direction of the source of the commotion.
Lying motionless on the ground was a dirty and drunken young man with a stubbled face. It was possible that he was dead. Fights often happened in the brothels, so the guests here were not surprised and were indifferent to the scene. In fact, they all looked at the young man on the ground with disgust.
There were only a few reasons for this to happen. It was either he was beaten up by someone in a dispute or he had no money to pay after using the services in the brothel. Either reason was not worthy of sympathy.
The guests were indifferent, but Mama Song, who greeted the guests at the door, was infuriated and yelled at a certain man, who wore a black outfit, on the second floor, “Waste! You have to pay for the broken tables and chairs!”
Mama Song was an old procuress in Springbreeze Drizzle House. Her cultivation was not high and she was probably beautiful when she was young. However, age had put her a little out of shape. Although she was still charming in her own way, she could no longer take up guests, and could only be an usher, welcoming and sending off guests.
Seeing Mama Song so upset, the man dressed in black nimble garments who knocked down the youth on the second floor smiled and said, “Calm down, Mama. This boy is the one who’s at fault.”
“What happened?” Mama Song walked to the young man with her hands on her waist and gave him a kick, but there was no reaction. She then blurted in shock, “Don’t tell me he’s dead.”
The man in nimble garments replied, “I don’t think so. He cultivates, and I didn’t exert much of my strength. How could he be dead?”
At this moment, a young woman covered in only a piece of fabric came out of the room. The half translucent fabric barely covered her alluring curves, and the men below could not help giving her a second look.
The woman leaned against the railing and looked down, pouting, “He deserves to be beaten to death.”
She complained to Mama Song coquettishly, “Mama, you have to stand up for your girl. This guy has been drinking with me for several days and doesn’t even have money to pay for it.”
“No money?” Mama Song raised her eyebrows with an angry expression on her face, “How dare he visit a brothel without any money. Who is this bastard?”
“That’s right!” The woman on the second floor also looked disgusted, “He looked like an extraordinary, handsome young man, and I thought he was a rich Young Lord, but how could I have known he was just a poor brat. I have suffered a huge loss.”
Mama Song snorted coldly and waved, “Search him to see if there is anything valuable on him.”
When the words fell, two men dressed like pimps walked over to search the young man.
After a while, both of them looked up and shook their heads, “Nothing.”
“Damn it!” Mama Song gritted her pristine teeth, “Drag him down, then chop him up and turn him into fertilizer.”
The two men did not hesitate at all as they began dragging the young man out.
A guest nearby laughed and commented, “Mama Song, aren’t you too cruel? It’s only a few days’ worth of wine, are you actually going to chop him up for something so small?”
Mama Song answered with a cold face, “Are you going to pay for him? If you are willing to pay for him, I will let him go.”
The customer chuckled, “Forget I said anything.”
Mama Song glared at him, then looked at the young man. After staring for a moment though, she seemed surprised, and raised her hand, “Wait!”
The two men stopped their feet immediately and turned to look at her, not knowing what she was going to do.
Mama Xu stepped forward and fanned her hand in front of her nose with a frown, unable to stand the stench of the alcohol, “Is he really still alive?”
The two looked at each other and one of them touched the young man’s chest, while the other placed a finger under his nose to check for any signs of breathing; and then both of them nodded in unison, “He’s still alive.”
Mama Song raised her brow, circled around the youth, then stopped in front of him. She took out a silk handkerchief and grabbed his chin with it, examining his face for a while before her eyes suddenly lit up, “Take him down and give him a bath, then send him to my room.”
The two men were dumbfounded.
“Hurry up!” Mama Song glared at them.
The two did not dare to hesitate and immediately heeded her commands.
The guest who interjected before laughed and asked, “Don’t tell me Mama has her eyes on that brat.”
Mama Song retorted, “So what? This Madam likes him.”
The crowd was in an instant uproar. They did not expect her to admit it and some were a little surprised, while others made fun of Mama Song for not having any standards, even being attracted to a rotten brat.
Mama Song was obviously used to such a scene and took no effort to handle the situation. She flirted with the guests heartily for a while, but deep down, she was feeling restless. She had been in the brothel for more than a hundred years, welcoming and sending away guests every day, and had developed a keen eye for people. Although the young man was a little sloppy and messy, she could tell with a little grooming, he had the potential to be an extraordinary man. She had no right to choose her clients in her younger days, and she had to serve them with all her heart even when they were old or ugly. Now, as a Mama, she naturally got to do as she pleased.
Tonight was her lucky night!
After entertaining the guests for a while, Mama Song swayed her hips up towards the fourth floor.
The fourth floor was the highest floor of Springbreeze Drizzle Building and there were only a few rooms here, one of which belonged to her.
Pushing the door open, she walked in and turned around to close it. With an expectant smile on her face, Mama Song bit her red lips as she walked towards the bed slowly with lust-filled eyes. As expected, the young man was sleeping soundly on the bed.
Taking a closer look under the soft light, Mama Song broke into a smile.
Her vision was indeed excellent. With just a little freshening and dressing, this young man really appeared to have a noble bearing. Greatly drawn by his appearance, she stretched out a hand and gently caressed the young man’s chest. Her hands trembled at the feel of his steady and sturdy heartbeat, and her legs even squeezed together involuntarily.
Covering her smile with a hand, she got up and went to the side of the table, mixed a bowl of sobering medicine, and returned to the bedside. She lifted the young man up to lean on her and fed the medicine down his throat.
Putting down the bowl, she sat on the side of the bed and waited quietly.
She waited for a long time, but nothing happened.
Mama Song frowned. She knew something was not right, the sobering medicine she used was powerful and it should have worked by now. [Why is this guy still not awake? Did he drink too much the last few days?]
Thinking so, she mixed another bowl of sobering medicine and downed it into the youth.
She waited for a while again, but still, there was no movement.
Mama Song’s face sank, and her good mood got completely ruined. In a rage, she poured the remaining sober medicine into a pot and poured it into the youth’s mouth.
After another hour, there was still no response; the young man on the bed was still snoring like a dead pig.
Mama Song ground her teeth, turned around, and mounted the bed.
She did not care if he was sleeping like a pig or not, it’s not like she hadn’t taken things like this into her own hands before.
She reached out and stripped herself completely naked, revealing her porcelain white body. Although her figure was a little bit loose here and there from age, it could be seen that Mama Song definitely had the right to boast when she was younger. She had snow-white skin, her peaks stood tall and proud, her legs were slender, and her bottom was still perky. The only issue was there was a bit of swell on her belly now.
After she finished, she began to strip the clothes off the young man. There were not many pieces, but it was unexpectedly troublesome because the young man did not cooperate. He would flail his legs and arms from time to time, disrupting her, and it took a long time to take off just his coat.
Mama Song gritted her teeth and decided to drop all reservations.
Who would have known that Yang Kai, who was the one on the bed, was just as desperate!
He had never thought that there would come a day that he would actually be used by a woman, especially by such a woman in a brothel. If he knew this would happen, he would never have come here!
In this situation, it was not a good idea for him to suddenly wake up, so he could only act according to the circumstance.
After a fierce entanglement, Yang Kai was finally stripped naked by Mama Song.
“Oh, finally!” Mama Song was sweaty but knowing that good things were about to happen, she finally let out a sigh of relief. With a hop, she got on top of Yang Kai and lifted her body before sliding down slowly with a look of expectation appearing on her face.
However, at that exact moment, a small, cold hand materialized behind her and grabbed her neck.
Shock instantly etched on Mama Song’s beautiful face as she angrily shouted, “Who!?”
Mama Song had no clue who was standing behind her, but with just a little bit of force from the small, cold hand, her neck cracked and her body limply slumped to the floor, her vitality extinguished in an instant.
Standing beside the bed, Yu Ru Meng took out a silk cloth to wipe her hands and looked at the body on the ground with disgust, “How dare you touch this Queen’s man?”
Tossing the silk cloth that she used to wipe her hands, Yu Ru Meng walked to the bedside and lowered her head to look at Yang Kai, who was lying on the bed, with a livid expression.
Fortunately, she came in time. If she was just a step later, would this shameless couple not have started their business? She knew Yang Kai had several wives, but those women were with him before she met him, so she could not help it. But who was this procuress in the brothel? She was not an innocent girl in any way shape or form and since Yu Ru Meng had already used her Heart Seal Secret Technique on Yang Kai, she could not be separated from him for the rest of her life. As such, she would never allow Yang Kai to be defiled by such a dirty woman.
She fumed at the thought of it and glared at Yang Kai as she bellowed, “Get up!”
Under the surge of her Divine Sense, her voice carried enough power to even damage one’s Soul.
Yang Kai frowned before his eyelids quivered and slowly opened.
When their eyes met, Yu Ru Meng’s boiling anger immediately ceased.
Because she felt something was wrong with the man in front of her. His dusky eyes were filled with despair greater than death, as if all the light in this world had been extinguished.
She had not known Yang Kai for a long time, but this man has always been in high spirits. No matter where he was, he was the centre of the world; however, at this moment, he looked exhausted and haggard like a bird knocked out of the clouds that had fallen into the mud.
The truth was indeed not far from this though. He, who was the brightest star in the Star Boundary, had degraded to a notorious Demon, and one of the Great Emperors had issued an order to kill him on sight. Thus, he had truly fallen to his lowest point.
Yu Ru Meng sighed, “Why?”
Yang Kai did not respond as he just stared at her with dim, dispirited eyes.
Yu Ru Meng lowered herself and sat on the side of the bed, stretched out her jade hand to caress Yang Kai’s cheek, and softly spoke, “Even if everyone abandons you, you still have me.”
A vague light flashed across Yang Kai’s empty eyes as they moved slightly.
Yu Ru Meng revealed a gentle smile. She wanted to imprint the smile into the deepest part of Yang Kai’s heart and turn it into a driving force for him to stay strong.
The next moment, Yang Kai suddenly became wild. He grabbed her and flipped over so she was trapped under his body. He placed his hand on her towering bosoms and kneaded her ruthlessly. He did not intend to be gentle with her and stretched out his other hand to grab her belt, ripping it off directly. He proceeded to kiss Yu Ru Meng’s lips unscrupulously with his mouth which still stank of alcohol.
“Hmm…” Yu Ru Meng moaned and struggled constantly, but how could she shake him off? Her entire body was pressed tight beneath him, making it impossible to move at all.
Feeling that her clothes were being stripped layer by layer, Yu Ru Meng immediately panicked and twisted her head aside, “Stop! You’re hurting me!”
Yang Kai turned a deaf ear to her cries as the expression on his face only became more ferocious and horrifying. Hot steam puffed out of his nostrils. It was as if the person he was pressed against was not Yu Ru Meng but the greatest enemy of his life and he could not wait to devour her bones, drink her blood, and feast on her flesh.
How could Yu Ru Meng allow him to continue to do so though? It was normal for men and women to be intimate in bed when they were deeply in love and had mutual consent, but how would Yu Ru Meng willingly hand over her body in this situation?
Failing to shake him off, Yu Ru Meng raised her hand and slapped Yang Kai.
With a crisp snap, Yang Kai’s head was turned to the side, and his violent and wanton actions came to a sudden halt.
Yu Ru Meng gasped and looked at Yang Kai coldly, “You forced me to do this!”
Yang Kai did not move, as if he was struck by a Binding Secret Technique.
Yu Ru Meng frowned, and reached out to touch Yang Kai’s slapped cheek, and tried her best to speak in a gentle tone, “I didn’t want to slap you, but please wake up. Do you know what you’re doing?”
Yang Kai did not seem to be interested in answering, or maybe he was too lazy to reply to her. He completely ignored her, slowly crawled away from her, wrapped himself with a blanket, and then sat at the table. He picked up a half-finished bottle of wine on the table and poured it into his mouth with his head lifted high.
Behind him, Yu Ru Meng quickly put on a new set of clothes. Once she was dressed, she approached Yang Kai who had already downed several bottles.
Yu Ru Meng sat down quietly, looked at him and whispered, “Stop.”
As expected, Yang Kai still did not respond. After persuading several times in succession, Yu Ru Meng grabbed the bottle from Yang Kai’s hand and retorted with her teeth gritted, “I told you to stop drinking.”
“Give it to me!” Yang Kai turned around and looked at her with a darkened face, his eyes filled with clear murderous intent.
Yu Ru Meng raised her chin, “What? Do you want to kill me? Do it if you want to!”
While saying so, she stretched out her neck to Yang Kai, looking as if she would not resist any actions from him at all.
A hint of struggle could be seen in Yang Kai’s eyes, but in the end, he did not do it. He hugged his head in pain and remarked in an astringent voice, “I just want to get drunk. Why are you trying to stop me?”
“I know you are not willing to continue like this,” Yu Ru Meng smiled. She had no idea what she was delighted about, but she felt a little glad.
“Leave. Don’t get close to me. I don’t know when I will turn back into a Demon.” Yang Kai waved his hand.
Yu Ru Meng did not leave, however, and instead came even closer and snuggled up beside him, pressing her towering chest onto his arm as she whispered, “I won’t leave, you’re my man. I’ll go wherever you go.”
Yang Kai pushed her away and bitterly declared, “You saw what happened in Tiger Roar City. Stop getting close to me. Live well in the future and find someone else good to marry.”
Yu Ru Meng tilted her head and asked with a grin, “What kind of person do you want me to marry?”
“Someone who is not like me,” Yang Kai sneered at himself.
Yu Ru Meng tilted her head, “But the only one I love is you. What should I do?”
Yang Kai looked at her blankly and stated, “You must be blind then.”
Yu Ru Meng was stunned for a moment, then covered her mouth and smiled, trembling in joy for a while.
Suddenly, she got up, took Yang Kai’s hand and pulled him up.
“What are you doing?” Yang Kai questioned weakly, moving just like a walking corpse.
“Didn’t you want to drink? I’ll accompany you.” Yu Ru Meng pushed her Emperor Qi and at the same time, embraced Yang Kai and dashed out.
The hall on the first floor was still lively at that time, but in a flash, Yu Ru Meng and Yang Kai appeared in the centre of the hall. Yu Ru Meng looked around for a moment before she walked straight to the largest table in the centre. When she reached the side of the table, she shouted at the people around the table, “Get out!”
There were seven guests and seven girls at this table, all of them drinking and having fun, so they were stunned when they were suddenly yelled at.
However, when they looked up, the seven guests immediately widened their eyes and gasped at Yu Ru Meng covetously. An He City was just a small place in a remote region. Even though Springbreeze Drizzle House was the largest brothel, the quality and beauty of the girls here were mediocre at best. How could these girls ever be compared to an outstanding beauty like Yu Ru Meng? Whether it was her body shape, face, or temperament, few women in the entire Star Boundary could be compared to Yu Ru Meng.
In comparison, the girls in their arms felt like country hicks while the woman in front of them was a majestic goddess. If they could spend a single evening with her, death would be a small price to pay.
A big-bellied man squinted at Yu Ru Meng in lust and guffawed, “Why didn’t I know that you have such a beautiful girl here?” After saying so, he got up to grab Yu Ru Meng.
By how he behaved, it seemed that he wanted to replace the woman who was accompanying him.
But before he could even half lift his hand, his whole arm abruptly exploded into blood mist.
The man was confused for a moment, but soon the pain reached him and he started to scream shrilly.
Suddenly, his cry stopped, and his entire body exploded.
The faces of the other people at the table changed drastically. They immediately woke up from their drunken state, got up together, and glared at Yu Ru Meng. The few girls screamed, their beautiful faces turned pale in fright.
“How dare you kill someone here!?” A man yelled angrily. Although he did not see how his companion died, it was obviously due to this exceptionally beautiful woman before them. As he shouted, he summoned a sword and raised his hand in an attempt to slash her.
Yu Ru Meng just coldly stared at him as a quaint divine light flashed across her eyes.
The man instantly froze, seemingly in a daze, before the next moment he stabbed the longsword in his hand into his own chest.
*Pu…*
Blood splashed everywhere and the man limply fell to the ground; however, even as he lay there dead, a satisfied smile filled his face.
Such an unbelievable scene was truly terrifying.
The whole hall went silent and the remaining men gulped. It was only then that they realized the woman in front of them had an extremely high cultivation; otherwise, she would not have been able to kill someone without them even realizing how she did it.
“Scram!” Yu Ru Meng gently moved her red lips, but the words she spat out were as cold as ice.
It was as though everyone had been released from their bindings suddenly and quickly turned around to run. Not only did the people at the table run, but even those in the hall had turned to flee. The scene turned into a mess.
Yu Ru Meng continued, “Bring all the wine you have.”
After giving her command, she waved her hand to clean the table and sat down with Yang Kai.
Spring Breeze Drizzle House was now empty of all guests except Yang Kai and Yu Ru Meng who were now sitting opposite to each other. The large table was filled with wine bottles as several men working for Springbreeze Drizzle House had obediently and respectfully emptied the wine cellar for them.
Yang Kai grabbed one bottle after another and kept filling his mouth with wine. It was as though his stomach was a bottomless hole that could hold an unlimited amount of it.
Yu Ru Meng sat opposite to him and watched him quietly. After he emptied a bottle, she would hand him another without saying a word.
Ten bottles, fifty bottles, one hundred, two hundred …
After some time, Yang Kai suddenly let out a long roar and threw the wine bottle out of his hand.
His roar sounded like thunder, making the whole An He City tremble.
The roar only fell silent after a long time while Yang Kai looked at Yu Ru Meng, his lips twitching. With a miserable look on his face, he shouted, “I can’t get drunk!”
“Then just continue drinking. Drink until you get drunk.” Yu Ru Meng threw another bottle of wine at him, but Yang Kai did not catch it, and the wine bottle fell to the ground and broke into pieces.
Yu Ru Meng pondered for a moment and continued, “Wait here.”
After that, she turned around and flew out of the room. Yang Kai did not know what she was going to do.
But soon, a commotion arose in the city, obviously due to Yu Ru Meng.
An hour later, Yu Ru Meng returned to the hall and gave Yang Kai a small smile. She turned around to face the door of the hall and clapped her hands, “Come in.”
Yang Kai looked up and was stunned.
A group of women walked in slowly from the outside. They had various styles of beauty, all of them were quite alluring. They were different from those makeup-clad girls in Springbreeze Drizzle House and it could be seen that they were all women from respectable families.
Fear was etched on each of these women’s faces, and some even had tears streaming down their faces; however, under Yu Ru Meng’s despotic power, they had to be obedient.
Among the thirty to forty women, the youngest looked only about thirteen years old, while the oldest looked about twenty-five or twenty-six. Under the instructions of Yu Ru Meng, they lined up and stood timidly in front of Yang Kai. Some occasionally looked up at him before quickly lowering their heads.
[What the Hell?] Yang Kai was puzzled, but he did not reveal any unusual expressions on his face, keeping his depressed look as though he could not wait for his life to end for good.
Yu Ru Meng smiled at Yang Kai and explained, “These are the most beautiful women in the city. Don’t worry, they are all virgins, innocent and pure. Which one do you like?”
Yang Kai just stood still, like a wooden statue.
Yu Ru Meng walked up to a teenage girl and brought her to Yang Kai, “How about this one? She’s still in early puberty but is already such a beauty at such a young age. Men should like this type very much. If I was a man, I would be tempted. The night would be wonderful when spent with her.”
The girl, who was already frightened after being caught by Yu Ru Meng, was even more terrified and was almost in tears after hearing Yu Ru Meng’s remark.
Seeing that Yang Kai was still not responding, Yu Ru Meng waved her hand to the girl, and let her hurry back to her position. Then, she brought a seventeen-year-old girl closer and promoted her eagerly to Yang Kai.
After several attempts with different girls, Yang Kai still remained silent.
Yu Ru Meng dragged another woman over, this one about twenty-four to twenty-five years old. She was one of the most gorgeous among them and her figure was curvy and enchanting. Her eyes trembled as she was introduced by Yu Ru Meng, “This one is good too. Although she is married, her husband seems to have died from sickness on the wedding day, so she is now a widow, yet still a virgin. Are you interested?”
“Enough!” Yang Kai coldly glared at Yu Ru Meng.
Yu Ru Meng continued, “You can take all of them if you want.”
“I said enough!”
Yu Ru Meng sighed, “You just want to vent your anger by getting drunk, but how can you get drunk with these ordinary drinks? Right now, women should be the same as wine to you. Since you can’t get drunk by drinking, then you should try it through women.”
Yang Kai slowly shook his head ruefully, grabbed a wine bottle on the table, and stumbled out.
Yu Ru Meng turned around and looked at his back. After a moment, she quickly followed him.
In the hall, the several dozen women waited with fright for a long time and only after making sure that the strange man and woman would not come back, they hurriedly ran out. After surviving this disaster, the young women could not bear it anymore and burst into tears.
This night was a nightmare for them. Fortunately, the man did not seem interested in them at all; otherwise, all of them may have been violated.
…
“Why are you following me?” Yang Kai coldly glanced back at Yu Ru Meng, “You won’t get any benefit from following me.”
Yu Ru Meng gently smiled, “I already said, you are my man. I will naturally go wherever you go. You can’t get rid of me.”
“Do you know what my situation is now?”
Yu Ru Meng answered, “You were demonized in that battle at Tiger Roar City. I’m afraid that news of you falling to the Demon path has already spread all over the Star Boundary. Right now, everyone should be hunting you down. You’re a rat scurrying through the streets.”
“Since you already know, why are you still so stubborn? Just remove the Heart Seal Secret Technique and leave. From now on, you and I have no relations, don’t get involved with me.”
“I won’t leave!” Yu Ru Meng came forward and hooked her arms around Yang Kai’s.
“Why?” Yang Kai shook his head.
Yu Ru Meng answered, “A woman follows her man no matter what his lot is. Even if you will need to face immense dangers and difficulties, I will face them with you.”
Yang Kai’s cold eyes instantly softened, as if his mind had been greatly impacted. He looked at her affectionately and stroked her cheek, “Are you sure you won’t regret it?”
Yu Ru Meng firmly shook her head, “I won’t turn back!”
Yang Kai licked his dry lips and pulled Yu Ru Meng into his arms. He hugged so hard as if he was trying to melt her entire body into his own.
“Then I have no regrets in my life!” He deeply sighed.
Yu Ru Meng slightly lifted her head. The corners of her eyes were curved into crescent moons that shone with a proud light. She knew that this was the best timing to win one’s heart, and facts had proven it to be true.
Although she was already inseparable from Yang Kai due to the Heart Seal Secret Technique, it was still just a Secret Technique in the end, how could it be compared to true feelings? With both hands around Yang Kai’s neck, she whispered in his ear, “I already said, even if the whole world abandons you, you still have me!”
Yang Kai suddenly released her from his hug and put both his hands on her shoulders, his eyes beaming in excitement, “Yu Ru Meng, let’s live in seclusion.”
Yu Ru Meng’s brow twitched at Yang Kai’s sudden drastic change in topic, but she asked calmly, “Seclusion?”
Yang Kai gave a deep nod, “Let’s live in seclusion in the mountains somewhere. We don’t have to care about anything in the world; it will just be the two of us. I, as the man, will farm and you as the woman, will weave. We can have a few children and live a carefree life. All the matters of the Star Boundary and Demon Realm have nothing to do with us!”
[Have… a few children?] Yu Ru Meng was stunned as she secretly wailed in her heart. She did not expect that her tenderness did not just move Yang Kai’s heart, but also gave birth to such an idea in his mind. If he really wanted to do so, where would the fun be?
Yu Ru Meng questioned, “What about your other wives?”
Yang Kai’s face darkened as he replied in a deep voice, “I only know that at this moment, you are with me, not them.”
He seemed to not even care about his other wives. It seemed that the incident in Tiger Roar City had caused him an impact so great that it had changed his mentality. Perhaps it could also have something to do with his temporary demonification, which made his thoughts become so extreme.
While she was pondering this, Yang Kai described what their beautiful life would be like after living in seclusion, even the appearance of their residence. He even started to name their future children…
[Aren’t you thinking too far ahead!?] Yu Ru Meng wanted to spit on his face, but she knew that if she refused him at this time, it would only make the situation worse, and all her previous efforts would be wasted.
Finally, Yang Kai clutched her shoulders and concluded passionately, “So, let’s live in seclusion!”
Yu Ru Meng was at her wits’ end, so she could only brace herself and answer, “Good, we will live in seclusion!”
After receiving confirmation, Yang Kai wasted no time, as if his motivation to live had been rekindled. With Yu Ru Meng in his arms, he began to look for a suitable place.
Within a few days, the two settled down in the depths of an unnamed mountain. A brand-new wooden house was built on a flat ground near the peak, and outside the house, Yang Kai opened up a few plots for farming, planted some unknown seeds, and started working happily there with a hoe.
Yu Ru Meng stood at the door of the wooden house, dressed in coarse clothes with a scarf wrapped around her head, looking exactly like a peasant woman.
Such attire did not deduct any of Yu Ru Meng’s beauty and instead added a different kind of charm to her.
It was just that… Yu Ru Meng did not look at a mirror for several days, for fear of being disgusted with herself.
During his work, Yang Kai would look up at her from time to time, and Yu Ru Meng would return his gaze with a forced smile every time. Occasionally, she would send Yang Kai some water and wipe the sweat off his face. She had turned into a demure young woman who was beautiful inside and out, which made Yang Kai feel blessed to the point where he kept praising her constantly.
At night, they would hug each other to sleep, but there was nothing other than that. Yang Kai attempted to cross the line several times, but Yu Ru Meng knew that his current state was unstable, so she did not agree to give herself to him under the circumstances.
Their lives were simple and plain for more than ten days, but Yang Kai enjoyed himself. It seemed that he really loved this life and was willing to continue it until he died.
Yu Ru Meng seemed to be notably cooperative and did not show any unusual reaction, but she actually felt dreadfully helpless in her heart.
One day, Yang Kai was sitting at the door, weaving a basket from bamboo. Yu Ru Meng was keeping him company by chatting and laughing with him when suddenly, Yang Kai stopped his movements and looked up in a certain direction.
Yu Ru Meng asked, “What happened?”
“Shh!” Yang Kai put a finger to his lips with a vigilant look, and quietly spread his Divine Sense.
His actions secretly elated Yu Ru Meng. She did not expect her salvation would arrive just when she was worried that she could not break free from this boring life. She secretly prayed that things would happen as she wished.
A moment later, Yang Kai sighed and put down the semi-finished basket in his hand, clapped his hands together, and stood up with lowered eyes, “Since you’re already here, come out and show yourself.”
Yu Ru Meng was surprised that she did not notice someone’s arrival. In this situation, either Yang Kai’s was wrong, or the other person’s cultivation was higher than her own; otherwise, she would never have been caught unaware.
But Yang Kai couldn’t have sensed wrongly, so the only explanation was that someone had really come.
Space rippled, and a figure emerged slowly.
Yang Kai looked up at him, but his gaze was a little evasive as if he was ashamed. Nevertheless, he finally cupped his fists in respect, “Temple Master Wen.”
The one who appeared before his eyes was the Temple Master of Azure Sun Temple, Wen Zi Shan.
Wen Zi Shan had a sorrowful expression on his face as he sighed, “I heard everything. Are you feeling better now?”
Yang Kai replied, “Many thanks, Temple Master Wen, for your concern, I have fortunately recovered.”
Wen Zi Shan said, “Demonification is an absolute taboo. Senior Iron Blood said that you have a Demon in your heart, and if it is not eliminated, even if it’s not harmful now, it will become a major disaster in the future.”
“Then is Temple Master Wen here to take me back?” Yang Kai’s eyes drooped, and his voice suddenly became extremely calm, but the hostile spirit growing in him was apparent.
Wen Zi Shan answered, “Relax, I don’t want to be your enemy, I just want to talk to you properly.”
Yang Kai said plainly, “This disciple will listen carefully.”
Wen Zi Shan nodded gently and began, “Although you weren’t raised by my Azure Sun Temple, you have forged various connections with my temple ever since you were a mere Dao Source Realm Junior. It would not be wrong to say that this King watched you grow up. You could have also become a disciple of my Azure Sun Temple if you ever requested it. Unfortunately, my temple didn’t have this blessing, and we let slip a great talent.”
Yang Kai laughed in embarrassment, “Temple Master Wen is too polite.”
Wen Zi Shan continued, “Fortunately, you became a High-Rank Guest Elder of my temple. Since you’re an Elder of my temple, matters concerning you will be matters concerning this Wen, and it is also matters concerning the temple. Yang Kai, consider High Heaven Palace, consider your friends and relatives, and consider the ones who care about you. Come back with me.”
Yang Kai raised his eyes, “Temple Master is here to capture me after all.”
Wen Zi Shan frowned, “How can this be the same as capturing you? If this Wen came to capture you, I wouldn’t be speaking to you like this. If you come back with me, this Wen promises that no one will hurt you, but I will need your cooperation to eliminate the Demon in your heart.”
“How can the Demon be eliminated after it is formed?” Yang Kai shook his head slowly.
Wen Zi Shan said deeply, “A strong person wins over others, but true strength comes from conquering oneself. Yang Kai, stop going astray.”
“I went astray?” Yang Kai laughed, his eyes turned cold, “Temple Master, since you have heard ‘everything’, do you know what happened?”
Wen Zi Shan hesitated for a moment, and sighed, “Senior Iron Blood might have crossed the line, but you shouldn’t have disobeyed him.”
Hearing this, Yang Kai’s expression suddenly became ferocious, “Based on what Temple Master said, this Junior should have surrendered Shi Huo willingly to Iron Blood just because he wanted me to, without any resistance?”
Wen Zi Shan persuaded earnestly, “There is always a solution to any conflict.”
Yang Kai sneered, “Shi Huo is one of my most important partners. He has made great contributions to my growth, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he is my family. In the confrontation with the Demon Race, he has killed countless enemies, but he is not allowed to live just because he cultivated the Heaven Devouring Battle Law? Is this world of billions of free cultivators, or the world of Iron Blood? Just his contributions to the war should have been enough to convince Iron Blood to spare him!” After a pause, Yang Kai stared at Wen Zi Shan sharply, “Temple Master will never understand, so this Junior will ask boldly. If Iron Blood wanted to cripple Senior Sister Gao’s cultivation, what would Temple Master do?”
Wen Zi Shan frowned, “You are bringing up irrelevant subjects.”
Yang Kai sneered, “To me, Shi Huo holds equal weight in my heart as Senior Sister Gao does to Temple Master’s.”
Wen Zi Shan fell silent, unable to come up with a response.
Yang Kai let out a long sigh, “Temple Master, I don’t know how you found me, but I have decided to live in seclusion with Qing’er here. From now on, I will shut myself away from the world. I also ask Temple Master to leave now for the sake of our past relationship. From now on, Yang Kai and Li Shi Qing no longer exist in the Star Boundary.”
Wen Zi Shan was shocked, and he looked at Yang Kai in amazement, “You want to live in seclusion here?”
“Yes!” Yang Kai nodded.
Wen Zi Shan started, “Then what about High Heaven Palace… “
“How is that my problem?” Yang Kai interrupted him.
Yang Kai’s words shocked Wen Zi Shan, and he could not speak for a long time. In the end, he smiled wryly, “There is indeed a Demon growing in your heart.”
“Temple Master, do you insist on capturing me?” Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed slightly, exuding a dangerous light.
Wen Zi Shan sighed, “Since you truly have a Demon in your heart, this Temple Master cannot just sit back and watch.”
Yang Kai gritted his teeth, “This is my business, how does it concern you? Why do you have to keep pushing me into a corner? I have contributed greatly to the Star Boundary, can you not just ignore me for the sake of my previous efforts?”
Wen Zi Shan looked at him sadly as he shook his head, “It is precisely because of your contribution to the Star Boundary that I can’t give up on you.”
Yang Kai burst into laughter, “Your glib talk sounds better than singing. Since Temple Master is so stubborn, then this Junior will not be polite either. Get out here, what’s the point of sneaking around?”
When the words fell, Yang Kai looked around with cold eyes.
And followed by this angry outburst, one figure after another appeared around him, each of them a Third-Order Emperor, surrounding Yang Kai tightly from all sides.
Yang Kai looked at them one by one and then sneered, “Good, good, there are many familiar faces here!”
Ma Qing, the Holy Master of Heavenly Martial Holy Land held his sword behind his back with one hand and stroked his beard with the other, “Yang Boy, do you know that you are in a bad situation now? It will be too late if you don’t turn back now. It is already a miracle that you were able to restore your sanity from your demonification once, if it happens again, there will be no turning back!”
Yang Kai did not answer but instead turned to look at Li Jiao, “Does Brother Li have any words to teach me?”
Li Jiao covered his flushed face with his hands, “This Li had no choice but to join this mission. Brother Yang, please forgive me.”
Yang Kai nodded and turned to another person, “How about Temple Master Zhou?”
This man was the Eastern Territory’s Ahan Temple’s Temple Master, Zhou Ye Wang.
Zhou Ye Wang performed hand seals with a single hand and his figure flickered slightly. It obviously had something to do with his cultivation technique. He smiled, “What does Palace Master Yang want me to say?”
Yang Kai said, “No one will force you to say anything if you don’t want to.”
On the other side, Xiao Yu Yang spoke in a deep voice, “Yang Kai, turn back from the endless sea of tribulations, and repent!”
Lei Hong also bellowed, “You are still young, and you have the opportunity to set things right, why must you be so obsessed?”
Yang Kai stood on the spot with his eyes lowered, waiting for them to finish reprimanding him before responding lightly, “Is everyone finished? Then it’s my turn now.”
Wen Zi Shan nodded and said, “We are willing to listen if you have anything to say.”
Yang Kai raised a wicked grin as he sneered, “With the Star Boundary’s terrible situation, it is a great honour for this Junior to have so many Masters sent here to deal with me. However… it is not that this Junior underestimates you all, but do you really believe you can stop me if I want to leave?”
Wen Zi Shan gritted his teeth and shouted, “Yang Kai, wake up!”
Yang Kai spat coldly, “This Junior already decided to shut himself away from the world and live in the mountains and forests with Qing’er, but you all persist in persecuting me again and again. Since that’s the case, this Junior will do as you wish and turn the world upside down! Let’s see who can bear it till the end!”
As he spoke, he flashed and reappeared next to Yu Ru Meng, put his arm around her waist, and let out a low voice, “Go!”
Space Principles fluctuated, and he was about to teleport.
But the next moment, Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed, because the surrounding Space Nodes had all been sealed.
Yang Kai quickly turned his head at once towards a certain direction and growled, “Li Wu Yi!”
A figure in robes as white as snow emerged. It was Li Wu Yi, the only one who could seal the surrounding Space Nodes without anyone realizing it, cutting off Yang Kai’s escape route.
Yu Ru Meng’s face changed slightly as she felt that the situation today was beginning to turn dangerous. With the help of his Space Divine Ability, even if Yang Kai was surrounded by so many Third-Order Emperor Realm Masters, it would be simple for him to escape.
But when Li Wu Yi came out to deal with him in person, the situation changed.
Regarding the attainments in the Dao of Space, Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi were nearly on par with each other. With his greatest card sealed, Yang Kai’s combat power would be greatly reduced.
What could he do now?
When she was still in a panic, she felt a sudden strong force coming from her waist that tossed her aside. At the same time, Yang Kai shouted, “Leave first, I will find you after!”
Yu Ru Meng knew that Yang Kai was desperate and did not want to involve her, so she did not hesitate. With the help of the initial throw, she flitted out of the encirclement, and when she looked back, she saw Emperor Qi rioting violently around Yang Kai as his body was completely entangled in hostility.
Raising his hand, Yang Kai threw a fierce palm toward Xiao Yu Yang.
Space Principles fluctuated, and the space where Xiao Yu Yang stood suddenly collapsed into a black hole that could devour everything around it!
Li Wu Yi’s face changed drastically as he shouted, “Stop!”
The faces of the others paled in shock and quickly rushed to help. Xiao Yu Yang fought hard to resist the force, but this black hole was one of Yang Kai’s Divine Abilities and its effects were almost instantaneous. Xiao Yu Yang had not expected Yang Kai to attack him so suddenly and was caught off guard. There was no time to react at all.
The black hole expanded then contracted rapidly, and by the time it disappeared, the place where Xiao Yu Yang once stood was already empty.
Everyone was dumbfounded.
In the blink of an eye, a Third-Order Emperor was actually killed!
Everyone knew that Yang Kai’s strength could not be judged by his cultivation because his true prowess had always greatly exceeded his realm, but only after a real confrontation with him did they truly discover how terrifying he was.
Cold chills ran up Li Wu Yi’s spine as he turned to Yang Kai with cold eyes and muttered, “You are such a disappointment!”
Yang Kai sneered coldly, “I’ve long wanted to compare notes about the Dao of Space with Senior, but have never been able to do so. It seems today I shall get that opportunity.”
“As you wish!” Li Wu Yi bellowed.
The two pushed their Space Principles wildly, and in the next instant, the surrounding world collapsed as a series of Void Cracks formed. Blood drained from the several Third-Order Emperors present as they all quickly retreated. Countless Void Cracks were now appearing and disappearing randomly, and none of them dared to touch even one.
They looked around and found Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi shuttling back and forth through the Void Cracks, as though they were walking on flat ground, but the battle was so ferocious that it split the sky and cracked the Earth.
Everyone exchanged glances, consciously aware that they were unable to intervene, and could only scatter around and wait for the opportunity to make a move.
The void crumbled and cracked, but Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi shuttled about freely still.
Suddenly, they rushed into a crack one after the other and vanished. Followed by their disappearance, the countless Void Cracks were automatically sealed by the World Principles of the Star Boundary.
Wen Zi Shan and the others exchanged looks solemnly.
Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi had obviously entered the Void Crack and there was now no way for them to intervene. They did not care too much about Yu Ru Meng, who had escaped. Yang Kai definitely could not escape from Li Wu Yi anyway. As for Yu Ru Meng, she was a matter for Flower Shadow Great Emperor to handle.
It was quiet on the top of the mountain. The newly-built wooden house collapsed into ruins, the farmland opened up by Yang Kai was even messier. Although Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi had fought for just a short time, they had thoroughly destroyed this place.
Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi appeared together in the Void Crack, looked at each other, and spoke in unison, “Search separately!”
After that, they split into two different directions and shuttled through the Void Turbulence.
Not long after, Yang Kai found Xiao Yu Yang who had been propelled into the Void by him. Xiao Yu Yang did not look good at this moment as half of his body had been pulled under by a certain Void Turbulence.
If Yang Kai arrived a little later, perhaps he would be lost in the Void Crack forever. By that time, even Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi would not be able to find him again.
Yang Kai quickly made great efforts to pull him out.
Xiao Yu Yang looked at him suspiciously, “What is going on?”
Yang Kai grinned, “Elder Xiao, you better ask Senior Li. He will give you an explanation.”
Xiao Yu Yang frowned. Although he had many doubts, he had no choice but to follow Yang Kai to see Li Wu Yi since he was not telling him anything.
After a short walk, they saw Li Wu Yi coming toward them. As soon as the two parties met and confirmed that Xiao Yu Yang was out of danger, only then did Li Wu Yi nod gently.
Yang Kai immediately complained, “Senior, what took you all so long to get here? I sent you a message eight days ago, why did you only come today?”
Hearing his words, Xiao Yu Yang widened his eyes and questioned, “You let slip your own location?” Before, he already found it weird that Li Wu Yi found Yang Kai’s hiding place and led them to the location so accurately. Only now did he realize that Yang Kai was the one who disclosed this information.
[What the Hell is this?] Xiao Yu Yang was completely bewildered.
Li Wu Yi replied, “I had no choice. I couldn’t leave. I was finally able to cause some damage to the Demon Race Army, and only then gained the spare time to come here. Did I delay your schedule?”
Yang Kai answered, “Not really. I was just worried I’d be exposed if it took you too long.”
Xiao Yu Yang interjected, “Wait a moment. Can one of you please tell me what is going on?”
Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi looked at each other and laughed.
Li Wu Yi replied, “Don’t ask too many questions, and especially don’t tell anyone about today. In short, this is the idea of the Great Emperors.”
Knowing it was a matter related to the Great Emperors, Xiao Yu Yang immediately shut up. Although he did not know what Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi were up to, he could see that this was all some kind of elaborate act, but what he did not understand was who they were putting on this show for? Was it Zhou Ye Wang and the other Emperors?
Li Wu Yi’s face turned solemn, “What are the chances of success after this time?”
Yang Kai answered, “Fairly high.”
Li Wu Yi sighed, “It’s painful to see you bear such disgrace unjustly. By the way, Senior Iron Blood asked me to tell you that he has ordered High Heaven Palace to close its gates, and all High Heaven Palace disciples have been ordered to return.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Please thank Senior Iron Blood for his kindness on my behalf.”
Yang Kai was not a fool and naturally understood that Iron Blood’s move was actually a disguised form of protection rather than a punishment for High Heaven Palace. Since Yang Kai himself had become a great sinner, it was really inconvenient for High Heaven Palace disciples to be showing themselves outside right now.
“Also, the Dragon Girl you brought with you left. She probably returned to Dragon Island.” Li Wu Yi added.
“Fu Ling returned to Dragon Island?” Yang Kai frowned, “That might complicate things.”
After pondering for a while, Yang Kai continued, “Someone from Dragon Island will certainly come to investigate. If Zhu Qing comes, please send her back to High Heaven Palace for me and ask Su Yan and the others to explain things to her. If it is Great Elder or Second Elder though… just ask the Great Emperors to explain things to them.”
Li Wu Yi nodded, “Don’t worry, the Seniors all have their own arrangements. They won’t let any resentment develop with Dragon Island.”
After chatting for a while, Yang Kai sighed, “It’s almost time. I should go now.”
Li Wu Yi urged solemnly, “Be careful!”
“I will.” Yang Kai grinned before he suddenly raised his hand, condensed his Emperor Qi, and struck his chest a few times. He opened his mouth next and coughed up a mouthful of blood, dyeing half of his body golden.
Xiao Yu Yang was taken aback as he never expected Yang Kai to be so cruel to himself!
Yang Kai turned around and tore space, escaping from the Void.
As soon as he showed himself, he was locked onto by a number of powerful Divine Senses. It was Wen Zi Shan and the others who had been guarding the area.
Turning around, Yang Kai looked ferocious as he shouted, “Many thanks for the courtesy you have shown today! This Yang will remember and surely return the favour in the future!”
And with those words, Space Principles flared and Yang Kai vanished from the spot with a flicker.
“Where’s Senior Li?” Zhou Ye Wang’s face turned ugly. Yang Kai and Li Wu Yi both entered the Void Crack together, but Yang Kai came out while Li Wu Yi disappeared. It was natural for him to have a bad premonition.
Just after he asked though, a white-robed figure emerged.
Zhou Ye Wang turned around and was relieved to see Li Wu Yi.
However, Li Wu Yi did not appear alone, but together with Xiao Yu Yang, whose face was genuinely pale.
Lei Hong was overjoyed and asked, “Old Xiao, are you okay?”
Terrified, Xiao Yu Yang answered, “Thanks to Senior Li for finding me in time, otherwise…” Before he finished, he shivered. He was not even putting on an act as he was truly traumatized from almost being devoured by the Void Turbulence in the Void Crack.
Ma Qing pointed to a direction and mentioned, “That boy ran that way. Sir, what should we do now?”
Li Wu Yi’s face darkened, “Follow him. We must bring him back, dead or alive!” After saying so, he took the lead to pursue Yang Kai while the others dared not hesitate either. Whether they were willing or not, they all followed closely behind.
Yang Kai ran for his life and half a day later, a stream of light approached him. It slowly revealed itself as it came close. It was Yu Ru Meng who had left first. She had the Heart Seal Secret Technique, so she could naturally locate Yang Kai’s position.
At the sight of Yang Kai’s bloody body and weak aura, Yu Ru Meng’s beautiful face turned pale, “You’re hurt!”
Yang Kai laughed miserably, “I’m lucky to be still alive. Hurry up before they catch up.”
Hearing what he said, Yu Ru Meng dared not to delay and hurriedly followed after Yang Kai.
…
A month later, on top of a huge mountain, Yang Kai stood on the crown of a big tree, facing the rising sun with a pair of blank eyes.
“What are you thinking?” Yu Ru Meng leaned over wrapped in fragrance.
Yang Kai coughed a few times, and replied with a weak voice, “Ru Meng, this world is truly vast, but it seems there’s no place for me in it anymore.”
He and Yu Ru Meng had been running and escaping for the past month. Li Wu Yi had been pursuing them with a few Third-Order Emperor Realm Masters like maggots on rotting bones, and Yang Kai could not shake them off. He was forced to fight several times, and each time he did, he would be injured and only narrowly escape.
According to his current situation, his statement was not an exaggeration. Although the world was large, there was no place for him to stay as Li Wu Yi was chasing after him without rest.
Yang Kai turned around and continued, “I’m sorry. I wanted to take you to live in seclusion, but now it seems that I must break my promise. Don’t follow me, let’s go our separate ways.”
Yu Ru Meng asked, “Are you going to cast me away again?”
Yang Kai shook his head slowly, “This is not the same as the last time. You’ve witnessed it already. Li Wu Yi is determined to kill me, and I’m not his match. It is pure luck that I have been able to hold on until now, but I won’t last much longer. Maybe it will be the next time, or the time after that, but my end is certain now.”
Yu Ru Meng’s beautiful eyes flashed as she suggested, “I’ve heard someone say that there is always a place at the table if one looks hard enough, and the Star Boundary is not the only world!”
Yang Kai frowned, “The Demon Realm?”
Yu Ru Meng said, “What do you think? If you want to go to the Demon Realm, I will go with you!”
“No!” Yang Kai shook his head, “There’s no way for me to go to the Demon Realm. I fell into such a situation because I got myself involved with Demons. How can I simply abandon myself now and go to the Demon Realm?
Yu Ru Meng replied, “It’s exactly because you are related to the Demons that you can enter the Demon Realm and let the Demon Race accept you!”
“Enough!” Yang Kai spat in annoyance.
Yu Ru Meng flickered in front of him and looked at him with her scorching beautiful eyes, a strange light shining in her pupils as she spoke in a soft voice, “You have made great contributions to the Star Boundary. Most of the Cross-Territory Space Arrays were built by you. You guarded Tiger Roar City and killed millions of Demons, but they still oppressed you and wanted to kill you. Now they are chasing you and not letting you go. Why do you have to remain loyal to such a place?”
Yang Kai listened with a frown, but his breathing became a little heavy. Obviously, her words had triggered him.
Yu Ru Meng continued to persuade him, her voice was like a whisper in his ear, “Don’t you want revenge? Don’t you want to wash away your grievances? Let the people who embarrass you know your strength, and make them regret forcing you like this!”
“Shut your mouth!” Yang Kai roared, veins surfacing on his forehead.
Yu Ru Meng turned a deaf ear, however, and pressed on, “Go to the Demon Realm and seek stronger power. One day, you will be able to return here, and let them know their mistake. Make them kneel in front of you and beg for mercy!”
“Go to the Demon Realm?” Yang Kai turned to Yu Ru Meng with a ferocious look, obviously moved by her proposal.
Yu Ru Meng nodded slowly, “Yes, go to the Demon Realm!”
“Will you come with me?” Yang Kai asked again.
Yu Ru Meng smiled and saluted Yang Kai, “This Mistress will!”
“This matter is very important. Let me think it over.”
Yu Ru Meng pursed her lips, “I can wait for you, but I don’t know how much time Li Wu Yi will give you to think.”
The desert of Western Territory had thoroughly turned into a Demon land. Demon Qi lingered and evil spread as tens of millions of Demon troops gathered here and constantly set out towards the depths of the Star Boundary to attack cities and plunder the land. Death and slaughter happened everywhere one went.
Even the sky above the Demon land had turned grey and dull, as if the world had lost its vitality.
Two streams of light glided through the air one after the other, passing through the sky, attracting the attention of countless Demons who bared their fangs and growled lowly.
Yang Kai did not think too much about this though. After being chased and injured by Li Wu Yi again, he immediately decided to set off for the Demon Realm in anger.
He no longer had a place in the Star Boundary.
To enter the Demon Realm, one needed to pass through the passage between the two worlds in the desert of the Western Territory, which was also the only channel that connected the two Great Worlds.
Along the way, Yang Kai’s expression was constantly changing back and forth from worry to anxiety, but Yu Ru Meng simply chattered and laughed as usual without the slightest fear for the Demon Realm, even looking quite eager to reach their destination.
They were travelling at an incredible speed, but they still attracted the pursuit of many Demon Masters along the way. Initially, there were only a few of them, but by the end of the journey, there were hundreds of Demon Kings following behind them, each of them exuding intense and terrifying Demon Qi.
Yang Kai was feeling frustrated.
Fortunately, they were almost at the entrance to the passage between the two worlds. Yang Kai held Yu Ru Meng’s hand tightly and whispered, “Hold tight to me, I’ll see if we can pass through directly. If it doesn’t work… let’s think of another way.”
Yu Ru Meng held Yang Kai’s big hand and smiled at him, “Don’t worry, just leave the rest to me.”
“Leave the rest to you?” Yang Kai turned around and frowned at her.
Yu Ru Meng insisted, “Trust me!”
Yang Kai pondered for a while, then gritted his teeth, “Good, I’ll leave it to you.”
Yu Ru Meng giggled and took a step forward in front of Yang Kai, pulling him with her as she flew ahead, arriving before the passage in the blink of an eye.
The entrance to the passage was of great importance, and was heavily guarded by Demons. There were several dozen Demon Kings posted around the entrance alone, with several Half-Saints guarding the area against any Masters from the Star Boundary who might come to destroy this corridor.
The Demon Kings and Half-Saints guarding this place looked up when they noticed Yang Kai and Yu Ru Meng’s auras, and many of them immediately revealed hideous smiles.
However, Yu Ru Meng continued leading Yang Kai and descended, landing right in front of the entrance of the passage, looking right and left with a pair of beautiful gleaming eyes.
Yang Kai stood beside her at the peak of vigilance, keeping his eyes sharp and his Emperor Qi flowing, preparing himself for a battle at any moment.
The hundreds of Demon Kings who were pursuing them finally arrived and landed one after another, surrounding them tightly. Lustful gazes lingered on Yu Ru Meng’s graceful body.
Opposite them, a huge Demon King carrying a giant axe walked forward. Every step caused the ground to tremble before he stopped just ten paces away. He pointed the axe that was larger than an average human forward and grinned sinisterly, “Humans, are you courting death?”
The aura of this Demon King was extremely powerful and although his movements were a little clumsy, he was definitely a powerful Master, probably among the strongest Demon Kings present. The other Demon Kings around sniggered at his words.
Ever since the opening of the passage between two worlds and the beginning of the invasion, no Human had ever come here; therefore, the arrival of Yang Kai and Yu Ru Meng caused the group of Demon Masters to wonder if these two people were mentally ill.
Yu Ru Meng, however, just smiled, raised her hand, and sent a stream of light toward the Demon King.
The Demon King stretched out his hand and caught whatever it was she tossed and glanced at Yu Ru Meng with a frown before looking at the object.
With a single glance, the expression on the Demon King’s face immediately changed to disbelief. He then looked up at Yu Ru Meng with his jaw hanging open.
Yu Ru Meng remained calm and smiled.
The attitude of the Demon King standing opposite them changed completely. He even became a little frightened and a lot more friendly. He nodded and bowed in a soft tone, “Please wait for a moment, let me consult Sir Half-Saint for instructions.”
Yu Ru Meng waved her hand to indicate her agreement.
Then the Demon King hurriedly turned around and headed in a certain direction. It seemed that he really went to consult with the Demon Half-Saints who were guarding this place.
This weird scene confused the Demon Kings and all of them looked around, seeing the doubt in each other’s eyes.
Yang Kai too, was confused, and quietly approached Yu Ru Meng, “Ru Meng, what did you show him? Why did he suddenly become like a dog?”
Yu Ru Meng giggled, “He has always been a dog!”
Yang Kai could not help rolling his eyes. If such a powerful Demon King was a dog, what would she be?
Yu Ru Meng interrupted his doubts, “Alright, stop asking, you’ll get your answers shortly.”
Yang Kai nodded and tilted his head, “It seems you’ve been hiding a big secret.”
Yu Ru Meng winked at him playfully, “Beautiful women all have secrets. Do you want to know what this one is?”
Yang Kai replied, “I will listen if you want to tell me.”
Yu Ru Meng patted Yang Kai’s hand, “You’ll know later.”
While the two were talking, the Demon King who had left earlier returned with a solemn expression. He quickly approached Yu Ru Meng, bowed, and held up something in both hands respectfully to her.
Yang Kai glanced at it and found that the Demon King was holding a token as big as a palm that was made from some unknown material. It was bright scarlet, as if fresh blood was just poured over it, and a twisted phantom-like pattern resembling a tortured soul howling in pain was engraved on it.
It had a soul-capturing effect at first glance, and a burst of dreary cries and screams echoed in his mind when he observed it closely.
This should be the object Yu Ru Meng passed to the Demon King before. It was a token!
Yu Ru Meng lifted her hand and took the token back, asking plainly, “Can we pass through?”
The Demon King nodded repeatedly, “Yes, of course.” After speaking, he turned sideways and beckoned, “Please, please!”
Yu Ru Meng kept her eyes straight and walked past the Demon King without sparing him a second glance while Yang Kai was at a complete loss and just followed behind her closely, his eyes darting between Yu Ru Meng to the Demon King in utter confusion.
However, when their eyes met, the Demon King had a look of admiration on his face and even gave Yang Kai a thumbs up.
The corners of Yang Kai’s mouth twitched at the mere sight.
Soon, Yang Kai and Yu Ru Meng entered the two worlds’ passage and disappeared.
At that moment, the hulking Demon King let out a long breath of relief as if he had just narrowly escaped death, wiping the sweat on his forehead as his face scrunched up in agony for a long while after they left.
However, the hundreds of Demon Kings who chased the pair all the way here were confused about the situation, and opened their mouths to ask how the passageway, which was such an important place, could have been opened to two humans?
The hulking Demon King, however, just snorted coldly, “This is an order from the Lord Half-Saints, do you have an opinion?”
This sentence silenced the hundreds of Demon Kings. Since it was the order of the Half-Saints, they naturally did not dare to have any objections, but this matter was extremely weird and became quite a mystery.
In the Void Corridor, Yang Kai and Yu Ru Meng flew forward, their hands intertwined.
From a distance, a twinkle of light seemed to be serving as a guide for the two of them. The light seemed to be quite close, but the actual distance was unknown. It was the passage between two worlds after all, and it was definitely not a journey that could be completed in just a few breaths.
Suddenly, a powerful Divine Sense swept across Yang Kai, causing him to tense up, instinctively sensing the coming of a crisis.
The strength of this Divine Sense definitely exceeded the Divine Sense of an ordinary Demon King, or even a Half-Saint.
Demon Saint!
No, it felt like a Demon Saint, but it was actually more like the Divine Sense of a Great Emperor.
After a moment of pondering, Yang Kai suddenly figured out whose Divine Sense it was.
Night Shadow Great Emperor!
Yang Kai had long heard that this mysterious figure had been guarding the two worlds’ passage, but he did not expect the Great Emperor to still be here. Martial Beast Great Emperor once mentioned that Night Shadow Great Emperor was a descendant of the Demon Race, and the two worlds’ passage was opened because of him, plunging all beings in the Star Boundary into misery and suffering.
In addition to the fact that he was once targeted for assassination by someone from Shadow Killer Palace, Yang Kai naturally did not have a good impression of Night Shadow Great Emperor.
Yang Kai swept his eyes across the deep darkness, but could not sense the whereabouts of Night Shadow Great Emperor. The Great Emperor’s Divine Sense was retracted a moment later, and there were no traces left behind.
Yu Ru Meng obviously also noticed this Divine Sense, but she paid no attention to it, and just continued to fly forward.
The light up ahead was getting closer and closer, and after some time, a suction force came from the front, and Yang Kai and Yu Ru Meng were involuntarily drawn forward. It was evidently the pull of a Great World.
Their visions blurred for a moment, and they had suddenly appeared in another space.
Before Yang Kai could even take a breath though, a variety of powerful and unmatched Divine Senses swept over them from all directions, including the Divine Senses of Demon Kings, Half-Saints, and even Demon Saints!
Yang Kai looked stern, his entire body extremely tense as his vigilance had never been higher. When he swept his gaze around, his face only grew more solemn.
What he saw was the assembling of countless Demon troops with dark, inky heads, preparing to travel through the passage, delivering support to the war in the Star Boundary. Further away, there were even more Demons constantly heading towards the entrance.
The Divine Senses that enveloped the two quickly dispersed as the Demon Masters did not seem to care about the arrival of the two, as if they had already expected it. Except for a few interested Demon Saints, whose Divine Senses lingered on Yang Kai for a tad longer, all were withdrawn immediately after they appeared.
“Let’s go!” Yu Ru Meng beckoned, and the two of them flew up into the sky side by side.
This was the moment when Yang Kai finally had the chance to investigate the situation in the Demon Realm.
This Great World was different from the Star Boundary. The World Principles here seemed to be a bit chaotic. A sun hung in the sky, but it was hazy and blurry, as if it was obscured by a layer of haze. The ground was barren with little vegetation and huge ravines ran across the ground in all directions, like the ugly, intricate patterns on the back of a tortoise.
The Demon Realm was actually such a barren land! By the look of it, this place was worse than even the Western Territory which was famed for its harsh environment. How could such a world give birth to so many powerful Demons?
The World Energy here was satisfactory, but it was only suitable for the Demon Race. The living beings of the Star Boundary couldn’t use the World Energy here for cultivation because it was filled with Demon Qi. If one really absorbed the World Energy here into their body, perhaps they would turn into a Demon within a short time.
Yang Kai looked down again after an hour of flying and could not help but be stunned, muttering, “Is the Demon Realm… really this small?”
He did not notice it before, but when he looked down from a notably high place, he found that below him was just an irregularly shaped continent, and he could see the border of the land at a glance. If the vast starry sky was described as a sea, the continent below was just a lone island in that sea.
This island was probably only several tens of thousands of kilometres across, surrounded by endless void. Strictly speaking, several tens of thousands of kilometres was not small, but the Demon Realm was supposed to be a Great World.
How could this be called a Great World? It was simply incomparable to the Star Boundary!
But if so, how could there be so many people in the Demon Realm? It even gave rise to powerful existences like Demon Saints!
As if noticing Yang Kai’s doubts, Yu Ru Meng explained, “This is just a corner of the Demon Realm. The entire Demon Realm is like a broken mirror. What you see now is just a fragment of it.”
“Broken mirror?” Yang Kai looked at her in amazement, but her description was quite vivid and Yang Kai was able to form a rudimentary picture of the Demon Realm in his mind.
Yu Ru Meng nodded, “Each and every fragment you see in front of you form the entire Demon Realm. These fragments come in various sizes and each piece is both a continent and a Small World. They are independent yet closely connected with each other. Isn’t it strange?”
Yang Kai replied solemnly, “I’ve never heard of anything like it.” This was truly an eye-opener for him.
Yu Ru Meng giggled, “This is the Demon Realm! You can’t experience how incredible it is without taking a look at it yourself.”
“Why is it like this?” Yang Kai asked with a frown. No wonder he felt that the World Energy here was a little chaotic. The entire world was composed of fragments and each fragment was equivalent to an independent Small World. It would be strange if the World Energy and Principles here weren’t in a mess.
Yu Ru Meng answered, “I’m afraid it’s sick.”
Yang Kai raised his eyebrows, “Can a world get sick?”
Yu Ru Meng turned to him, “Even a world can die, and the Demon Realm… is reaching its end.”
Yang Kai nodded and asked, “How do you connect these fragmented lands?” The armies of the Demon Race must not be from the current continent. They were definitely drawn from countless small fragmented lands. Since they could gather in one place, there must be a way for the fragmented lands to connect with each other.
“Through the Territory Gates!” Yu Ru Meng explained. At the same time, she stretched out her hand and pointed up, “Look over there, that’s a Territory Gate!”
Yang Kai looked in the direction she pointed and found a dark, oval corridor laid horizontally like a black hole in the void, leading to the unknown.
“Each fragment of land has one or more Territory Gates, which connect it to the nearby continents. Through the Territory Gates, we can go back and forth to meet with each other.”
“I see!” Yang Kai was enlightened, then he asked further in surprise, “Are there also people who are proficient in the Dao of Space in the Demon Realm?”
Yu Ru Meng smiled, “Nope. These Territory Gates weren’t created by anyone, but were naturally generated.”
“The workings of nature are profound!” Yang Kai exclaimed, suddenly thinking of a question, “But won’t such Territory Gates disappear eventually?”
“They would!” Yu Ru Meng blinked her eyes, “If all the Territory Gates of a continent disappear, it completely loses contact with the Demon Realm, and there will be one less Small World to inhabit.”
“Has this happened before?” Yang frowned.
Yu Ru Meng smiled, “It’s happened many times.”
While talking, the pair arrived before the Territory Gate. From a distance, the Territory Gate did not seem to be large, but when they came closer, it was clearly incredibly huge, easily able to accommodate a thousand people entering at once.
Before they could get close, a strong attraction came out from the Territory Gate. It was so strong that Yang Kai felt that his body was being drawn towards it involuntarily.
Yu Ru Meng shouted, “Protect yourself and don’t get hurt.”
When Yang Kai heard her, he immediately pushed his Emperor Qi. The next moment, he and Yu Ru Meng were sucked into the Territory Gate, away from the fragmented continent and into another fragmented continent.
The surroundings were quiet, and the sun was dazzlingly bright. Yang Kai narrowed his eyes and looked behind him, revealing a look of surprise, “Why is there no Territory Gate here?”
Yu Ru Meng explained, “Most of the Territory Gates are not two-way. After you enter a Territory Gate, it will randomly send you to a place in the fragmented continent it is connected to, so it’s normal for you to not see the Territory Gate here.”
Yang Kai nodded gently and remained silent for a while. Then, he looked up at Yu Ru Meng and questioned in a deep voice, “Ru Meng, who are you?”
Yu Ru Meng pressed her lips together into a smile, “Finally can’t help asking?”
Yang Kai shook his head slowly, “You know so much about the Demon Realm, so obviously you’re not someone from the Star Boundary. Even the Great Emperors don’t know much about the Demon Realm, let alone others. If I’m right, you’re a member of the Demon Race, right?”
“Indeed!” Yu Ru Meng looked at him playfully, “You seem to have a deep understanding of the Demon Race. Try guessing again. Which Clan do I come from?”
Yang Kai laughed, “You’re making things difficult for me. Although I know a bit about the Demon Race, I’m not a member of it. How would I know?” He paused a while before he continued, “There are a hundred Clans in the Demon Realm, each with their own Innate Divine Abilities. If I had to guess, I would say that you’re from the Charm Demon Clan!”
Yu Ru Meng covered her chest and jumped in joy, “You really know the Demon Race well.”
Yang Kai looked at her astonishingly, “So, are you really a Charm Demon?” Nevertheless, Yang Kai had known about it deep down in his heart a long time ago. Only Charm Demons would be so seductive.
Yu Ru Meng took a deep breath and looked at him with her head tilted, “You suspected me a long time ago, didn’t you?” Otherwise, Yang Kai would not keep asking her sensitive questions at odd times.
Yang Kai answered calmly, “I only suspected, but I had no proof. However, I wonder how a Charm Demon can disguise herself as Li Shi Qing so flawlessly that even Flower Shadow Great Emperor could not tell you apart?”
“Because…” Yu Ru Meng smiled faintly, and her aura suddenly exploded. A terrifying power fluctuated in her tender body and the surrounding Demon Qi gushed over and poured into her figure. She, who had been a Second-Order Emperor, saw her cultivation rise in the blink of an eye.
Third-Order Emperor Realm, Peak of the Third-Order Emperor Realm, Pseudo-Great Emperor, Great Emperor!
“I’m a Demon Saint!” Demon Qi silhouetted Yu Ru Meng’s body and her face became blurred, to the point where Yang Kai was unable to see her clearly. However, this haziness released a strong sense of seduction that could plant in anyone a desire to remove the fog that covered her appearance and see her true face.
Her aura alone seemed like it was about to collapse the surrounding space at any time.
Yang Kai’s jaw dropped! He was completely dumbfounded.
He had guessed that Yu Ru Meng was a Demon a long time ago; after all, he had been with her for so long and it was natural for her to let slip her identity. It was precisely because he guessed that Yu Ru Meng was a Demon that Yang Kai put on such a show with Iron Blood Great Emperor. He even asked Li Wu Yi to chase him down, cornering him to the point where he could no longer stay in the Star Boundary, thus tempting Yu Ru Meng to bring him to the Demon Realm.
Yu Ru Meng had other plans for him, which she had mentioned when she first met him.
After much effort, he finally achieved his wish and entered the Demon Realm.
But Yang Kai never imagined that Yu Ru Meng was a Demon Saint!
A Demon Saint! That was an existence comparable to a Great Emperor.
Everything made sense now. No wonder in front of Tiger Roar City, the Half-Saint Bai Zhuo retreated without a fight. Thinking about it now, Bai Zhuo must have recognized Yu Ru Meng’s identity when he saw her at that time. That was why he retreated, resulting in hundreds of thousands of casualties in the Demon Race Army.
No wonder in front of the two worlds passage, that bulky Demon King abruptly changed his attitude after receiving the scarlet token and let them pass through the entrance without any obstruction.
The token of a Demon Saint was equal to the presence of a Demon Saint. How would a mere Demon King dare to disobey?
With a Demon Saint escorting Yang Kai into the Demon Realm, no one would stop him.
Yu Ru Meng was a genuine Demon Saint!
Yang Kai almost thought he was dreaming. He could not regain his senses for a long time. He had calculated everything, yet he did not expect this.
Just when he was lost in his shock, Yu Ru Meng suddenly bellowed, “Human ant, how dare you not kneel before this Saint!?”
The pressure of a Demon Saint filled the air, causing Yang Kai’s bones to creak. His body seemed to be crushed by several mountains, and his knees bent involuntarily.
Yang Kai raised his eyes and looked at Yu Ru Meng with a scorching gaze. Followed by the sound of a Dragon Roar, Yang Kai covered his whole body in golden light and stood against the oppressive aura of a Demon Saint with his Dragon Pressure. He gritted his teeth as he shouted, “Kneel down my ass! Believe it or not, I’ll beat you if you dare to shame me again!”
Yu Ru Meng smiled and looked at him quietly. After a while, the great pressure dissipated without a trace.
The tremendous pressure vanished all of a sudden, but Yang Kai’s face turned red and almost spewed out a mouthful of blood.
Yu Ru Meng poked her head towards him and asked with a cute smile, “Is it fun?”
“Go away!” Yang Kai’s face darkened and he pushed her face aside. So what if she was a Demon Saint? He had groped her, kissed her, and even spanked her more than once. Yu Ru Meng already did not have any dignity in front of him. However, the aura of a Demon Saint that was released by her was indeed real. If she fully released her power, Yang Kai would have a hard time bearing it.
“It was just a little joke…” Yu Ru Meng was reluctant to let go and leaned her head towards him again.
Yang Kai replied with a face as cold as ice, “It wasn’t funny at all.”
“Okay, okay, don’t get angry, it’s bad for your body. I apologize, okay?”
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes at her, “I don’t see the slightest sincerity in your apology.”
Yu Ru Meng asked, “Then what kind of sincerity do you want?”
Yang Kai curled his finger to beckon her. Yu Ru Meng leaned her ear over and Yang Kai whispered in her ear.
Yu Ru Meng gave him a quick glance, and nodded, “Sure.”
“A real woman never goes back on her word. You promised!” Yang Kai suddenly beamed in joy.
“I promise.” Yu Ru Meng nodded happily, “As long as you can make me, you can do as you like!”
Yang Kai was a little dumbfounded, [Make you? You’re a Demon Saint! How is that possible?!] Understanding this, he burst out, “You’re screwing with me!”
Yu Ru Meng giggled as her tender body flickered and turned into a stream of light that shot forward. Mid-flight, she turned back and taunted him, “Chase after me. I’ll give you a treat if you can catch me.”
“You’re a naughty one!” Yang Kai grinned as Space Principles fluctuated and his figure flashed and disappeared, hurriedly chasing after her.
The two figures, one in front and one behind, passed through the air at an incredible speed. Although Yang Kai worked hard to push his Space Principles, Yu Ru Meng’s cultivation was just too outstanding, making it impossible to catch up with her, leaving Yang Kai feeling extremely helpless.
After an hour, Yu Ru Meng stopped suddenly. She raised her head slightly, opened her arms as if to embrace the whole world and took in a deep breath.
Yang Kai hurried over from behind, looking pleased with himself.
“I’m finally back,” Yu Ru Meng let out a long sigh, with a satisfied expression on her face.
Yang Kai looked at her from the side, then looked down at the fragmented continent below, and started, “When you said you wanted to take me somewhere, was it the Demon Realm?”
Yu Ru Meng nodded and admitted, “Yes.”
“A dignified Demon Saint did not hesitate to use her Heart Seal Secret Technique on me. It seems like the Demon Realm is very interested in my ability to manipulate Space Principles.” Yang Kai grinned meaningfully.
Yu Ru Meng smiled and explained, “Space Principles are indeed a very peculiar power. Although there are many who live in the Demon Realm, no one is proficient in the Dao of Space, while in the Star Boundary, only you and Li Wu Yi have notable accomplishments in it. Since Li Wu Yi is a Pseudo-Great Emperor, it’s not easy to make a move on him, so you became the only option.”
Yang Kai snorted coldly, “So you’ve targeted the weaker one.”
Yu Ru Meng tilted her head at him, “I even sacrificed myself for you, why are you still upset?”
Yang Kai answered, “I’m not upset. It is my honour to be so valued by a mighty Demon Saint, but I still don’t understand. Since you’re a Demon Saint, you could have just captured me, why bother spending so much time and effort?”
“Do you think that I didn’t want to?” Yu Ru Meng sighed helplessly, “But I changed my appearance using a Secret Technique, and could only exert the power of a Second-Order Emperor Realm Master in the Star Boundary. I wasn’t your opponent in that state, so I couldn’t bring you to the Demon Realm unless you were willing to come.”
“I see,” Yang Kai suddenly realized, secretly rejoicing in his heart that his plan somewhat coincided with Yu Ru Meng’s plan, otherwise he would not have entered the Demon Realm with such ease.
He pondered for a while before questioning again, “Then what do you want from me? Do you want me to set up Space Arrays to help you more quickly mobilize the Demon Race’s troops?”
“Could you do that?” Yu Ru Meng looked at him in surprise.
Yang Kai shook his head slowly, “It can’t be done. My Space Arrays only function within the same world, and the Demon Realm is clearly a special case. Since each of the fragmented continents here make up independent worlds, Space Arrays can’t be used to connect them. So if you have brought me here for this reason, I’m afraid I will have to disappoint you. If I had a deeper comprehension of the Dao of Space, I might be able to find a way to cross World Barriers, but at the moment that’s impossible.”
Yu Ru Meng smiled lightly, “I already expected as much. Don’t worry, we’re not expecting you to arrange Space Arrays for us. With the Territory Gates, the requisition of the Demon troops is fairly convenient, though it does take a bit more time.”
“Then what am I expected to do?” Yang Kai frowned.
“I’ll tell you when the time comes.”
Seeing Yang Kai’s less than pleased expression, Yu Ru Meng quickly changed the topic, “Do you want to see my true face?”
She had changed her appearance and disguised herself as Li Shi Qing, and although her appearance was restored after returning to the Demon Realm, her face was constantly covered by a strange, hazy power that blurred her features. Only one with a power stronger than hers could break through that layer of power.
But she had told Yang Kai before that her actual face would not be worse than Li Shi Qing’s.
Having said that, she was a Charm Demon, and a Demon Saint at that, so it was only natural that her appearance would not be bad.
“I don’t want to!” Contrary to Yu Ru Meng’s expectation, Yang Kai actually raised his hand and refused.
Yu Ru Meng was taken aback for a moment, “Why? Are you afraid I’m too ugly?”
Yang Kai remained nonchalant, “Even if you were as ugly as a pig, you’d still be precious to me. So, your true appearance doesn’t matter.”
“You’re such a sweet talker, aren’t you? No wonder you managed to capture so many women.” Yu Ru Meng snorted before she stretched out her hand to pinch Yang Kai’s chin, just like how Yang Kai did to her in the Star Boundary and forced him to face her, “I want you to see me even if you don’t want to.”
Saying so, the layer of haze on her face faded gradually, revealing an exquisite and stunning countenance.
She had the appearance as pure as a snow fairy, and her beauty was unparalleled. Her features were as youthful and lively as a spring in the mountains, without the slightest impurities. There was even a sense of sacredness and holiness to her.
Yang Kai had originally planned to provoke her, but at this moment, he was completely starstruck.
[Is she really a Charm Demon?] On the battlefield, he had met and killed plenty of Charm Demons, and each and every one of them could be described as seductive and alluring. Their attire was as revealing as possible, and they seemed to be in heat all the time, desperate to strip naked right then and there and seduce anyone they came upon.
But Yu Ru Meng completely subverted Yang Kai’s impression of Charm Demons. She looked so pure that it was unbearable to even think of tainting her. Thinking of what he had done to Yu Ru Meng before, Yang Kai unexpectedly felt a sense of guilt.
Secretly surprised, he quickly focused his mind and returned to his senses.
This woman’s charms were simply unfathomable. She must have cultivated her innate charm to such an extreme that she did not even need to do anything anymore to fascinate others. Her face was enough to enchant her targets, making them feel that she was the most beautiful existence in the world and doing anything to her would be unforgivable.
The corners of Yu Ru Meng’s eyes curved up like crescents, very satisfied with Yang Kai’s response as she softly whispered, “Am I pretty?”
Yang Kai bobbed his head like a chicken pecking rice, then instinctively put his arm around Yu Ru Meng’s soft waist, and moved his lips towards hers involuntarily.
A slender jade finger pressed against Yang Kai’s lips, however, as Yu Ru Meng looked at him teasingly, “It’s not that easy to take advantage of me in the Demon Realm.”
Yang Kai bullied her terribly when they were in the Star Boundary. She was a Demon Saint, but she was forced into near-death situations with Yang Kai at every turn and was even flipped over on his lap and was spanked without any power to resist. Now that they were in her territory though, how could she let slip an opportunity for payback?
Yang Kai wrapped his lips around her finger though, trying his best to tease her as he muttered, “Ru Meng, I think it’s time for us to consummate our relationship. You know what I want, and I came to the Demon Realm knowing it was impossible to go back. Can you bear to see me suffer?”
Yu Ru Meng laughed sweetly, “I told you, as long as you can make me, you can do whatever you want.”
“Who knows how long that will take?” Yang Kai complained with a bitter face, “You’re presenting me with the grandest of feasts without letting me eat it.”
“I don’t care, let go.” Yu Ru Meng shook her head slowly.
Yang Kai rolled his tongue around her finger and shook his head, “Nope.”
Yu Ru Meng was mad but wanted to laugh at the same time, “If you don’t let go, I won’t be polite to you.”
“How impolite will you be?” Yang Kai smiled cheekily.
Yu Ru Meng had no choice. She raised her other hand and lightly flicked her middle finger at Yang Kai’s forehead at lightning speed.
With a bang, Yang Kai was sent tumbling a thousand metres before he could stabilize himself. The world was currently spinning around him and it was only with great difficulty that he managed to recover from the shock and yell angrily at Yu Ru Meng, “Are you trying to kill me!?”
Yu Ru Meng just snickered, “I’m simply teaching you a lesson, I’ll do the same thing again the next time you pester me this way.”
Yang Kai’s eyes were threatening to pop out of their sockets. He was fuming. They were truly merciless, the wheels of fate, if he had known it when they were still in the Star Boundary, he would have taken her without hesitation to avoid the mess he was currently in.
[Fine, I can’t beat her, so I’ll just bear with it!]
Resentment clearly displayed on his face as he complained silently in his heart.
Yu Ru Meng stretched out her hand, and Yang Kai was drawn back towards her by a huge force involuntarily. Yu Ru Meng reached out and grabbed Yang Kai’s collar again, pulled him close, tiptoed, and planted a gentle kiss on his forehead.
Yang Kai stretched out his hand and wiped his forehead, and snickered, “What’s this? Trying to make me feel better after that with just a small kiss? Am I a three-year-old?”
“Think what you’d like. Good, let’s stop this. I will take you somewhere first.”
Saying so, she surged her Demon Qi, which wrapped itself around Yang Kai, and the two of them rushed towards a nearby Territory Gate.
Yang Kai was sulking silently, but Yu Ru Meng did not care. With the restoration of her cultivation, this woman seemed to become more confident. She no longer followed Yang Kai desperately as she did in the Star Boundary, giving him a strange sense of loss.
The two sped all the way, passing through Territory Gate after Territory Gate, going through continent after continent.
As Yu Ru Meng said before, these fragmented continents were all very different. The big ones, which could be several hundred thousand kilometres in radius, were so large that their borders could not be seen, while the small ones were just as small as the fragmented continent where the two worlds passage was located. As long as one looked from a little higher, the outline of the entire continent could be seen.
Moreover, the environment of these fragmented continents varied greatly. Some continents were abundant in World Energy and vitality, while others were dead, and had scarce World Energy.
Yang Kai observed in amazement all the way along.
But without exception, these fragmented continents were rich in Demon Qi, and non-Demon Realm creatures absolutely would not be able to survive safely here…
After more than a day, Yang Kai started losing patience.
He had a purpose for coming to the Demon Realm; however, Yu Ru Meng thought that he was forced into a desperate situation in the Star Boundary, and had no choice but to take refuge here. She did not know his true intentions, and also had no idea that he had transferred the Heart Seal Secret Technique to his Soul Warming Lotus. Yu Ru Meng did not hesitate to sacrifice herself to implant the Secret Technique on Yang Kai, but it did not result in much restraint on him; instead, she was the one who was being restricted.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Yang Kai naturally had to extract more information.
Therefore, Yang Kai also stopped being mad at Yu Ru Meng, and started to chat with her.
As they eased into their conversation, when Yang Kai felt that it was the right timing, he asked nonchalantly, “By the way, Ru Meng, how many Demon Saints are there in the Demon Realm?”
This was definitely something that even the Great Emperors were clueless about. If he could find this out, it would be of great help to the future situation, as there was a saying ‘know yourself and know your enemy, and you will always be victorious’.
“There are a total of twelve Demon Saints in the Demon Realm.” Yu Ru Meng did not suspect anything, not to mention that this was not some great secret. Since Yang Kai came to the Demon Realm, he could easily find anyone to inquire about such matters. “Each Demon Saint has a different number of Half-Saints under them who are in charge of a different number of fragmented continents.”
“Twelve!” Yang Kai whistled, “That’s two more than the Star boundary.”
Yu Ru Meng smiled, “It’s thirteen now, while there are only nine left in the Star Boundary!”
“True.” Yang Kai nodded. Night Shadow Great Emperor had betrayed them, so as soon as he switched sides, the Star Boundary had four Great Emperors less than the Demon Realm, and this included the imprisoned Bright Moon Great Emperor. It was still unknown if he was dead or alive. If the Bright Moon Great Emperor was taken out of the equation, the high-end combat power of the Star Boundary would be even weaker.
The theory of the capacity of the world should also be the same in the Demon Realm. Yang Kai believed that the reason why the number of Demon Saints in the Demon Realm was greater than that of the Great Emperors in the Star Boundary could be due to the larger capacity of the Demon Realm, hence there were twelve Demon Saints.
This did not bode well for the Star Boundary! Yang Kai was worried that the twelve Demon Saints alone were not easy to deal with. If these Masters rushed into the Star Boundary together, he could not imagine how much destruction they would bring. Perhaps, the whole Star Boundary would be shattered.
“Are the Demon Saints the most powerful beings in the Demon Realm?” Yang Kai questioned again, “I vaguely recall hearing something about a Great Demon God in the Demon Realm.”
Yu Ru Meng’s feet instantly halted as her entire body stopped in place.
Yang Kai was slow to react and had already flown a long way ahead before he quickly turned around and flew back.
“What’s wrong?” Yang Kai was puzzled.
Yu Ru Meng looked at Yang Kai solemnly, “Where did you hear that?”
Yang Kai shrugged, “I don’t remember. Perhaps someone mentioned it to me casually, or I read it from some ancient book.” He knew something was not right by the look of Yu Ru Meng, which made him feel a little nervous and uneasy.
After pondering for a while, Yu Ru Meng warned, “Don’t ever mention those words in the future.” Although she did not point out which words, Yang Kai was not a fool, and he understood what she was referring to.
“Why?” Yang Kai frowned.
“Just listen to me!” Yu Ru Meng emphasized with a solemn face, “Never mention it again; otherwise, even I won’t be able to save you if something happens.”
[Is it that serious?] Yang Kai was taken aback. [Given that there could be a situation that Ru Meng could not protect him from as a Demon Saint, did that mean that Great Demon God truly existed? There was actually an existence above the Demon Saints?]
During the final battle in the Thousand Illusions Dreamworld back then, the Evergreen Divine Tree sacrificed himself to block the two worlds’ passage with his own body. As that was happening though, from the other side of the passage, a huge hand that covered the whole sky had struck. Despite being a strike across worlds, the power of that palm was truly incredible, and Senior Qing’s mission nearly failed as a result.
That was indeed beyond the power of a Demon Saint, and the people in the Demon Realm seemed to refer to the one who made that strike as the Great Demon God!
Everything that happened in the Thousand Illusions Dreamworld was based on real historical events. In other words, there had been a Great Demon God in the ancient past, but Yang Kai was confused why Yu Ru Meng so seriously warned not to mention him even now.
Yang Kai did not know what the three words ‘Great Demon God’ meant in the Demon Realm, but he vaguely felt their weight now.
“Noted,” Yang Kai nodded solemnly. “I’ll never mention it again.”
Yu Ru Meng showed obvious signs of relief as she nodded, “That would be best.”
Yang Kai then changed the subject casually, “What about Bright Moon Great Emperor? I heard that he was held somewhere in the Demon Realm. What’s the situation now?”
“Why do you ask?” Yu Ru Meng frowned slightly.
Yang Kai sneered, “The people of the Star Boundary tormented and forced me into a corner, but now I can take revenge. If I can kill one of their Great Emperors, it will be quite a bit of interest in advance.”
Yu Ru Meng laughed, “Revenge is not something to be rushed. You still have room for growth, so it won’t be too late to make plans after you are strong enough one day. Besides, you can’t kill Bright Moon Great Emperor.”
“It’s true that I’m no match for him, but aren’t you here with me?” Yang Kai winked at her.
Yu Ru Meng shook her head, “I don’t want to get involved in matters related to a Great Emperor; furthermore, I’m not responsible for this. I’ve been in the Star Boundary all this time, so I don’t know where Bright Moon Great Emperor is imprisoned.”
Yang Kai found this reasonable. Since Yu Ru Meng had been in the Star Boundary before, how would she know about current events in the Demon Realm? It was useless to inquire about Bright Moon Great Emperor from her; as such, he immediately avoided the subject to ensure he didn’t slip up and expose himself.
It seemed that he could only start this investigation after settling down here. He at least had to figure out the location of Bright Moon Great Emperor now, and whether he was dead or alive.
Yu Ru Meng was naturally familiar with the way and led Yang Kai through one Territory Gate after another until half a day later, they passed through a certain Territory Gate and suddenly arrived in a vibrantly coloured world.
“Home sweet home,” Yu Ru Meng turned to Yang Kai and smiled.
“This is your continent?” Yang Kai turned and looked around. The whole continent was filled with bright, radiant light. When he looked closely, he realized that those bright colourful lights were actually emitted from countless exotic flowers. Almost half of the entire continent was covered in this flora and under the sunlight, it became as beautiful as a portrait.
Moreover, this continent was quite vast. From where he stood, Yang Kai could not see the end of it.
Yang Kai was amazed! He had never thought that such a wonderful world could exist.
“One of them,” Yu Ru Meng beamed slightly.
Yang Kai understood. Before, Yu Ru Meng had already stated that there were twelve Demon Saints in the Demon Realm, and each of them had a different number of Half-Saints serving them who were in charge of a different number of fragmented continents. This land that he was stepping on was obviously one of the continents she ruled.
It seemed that after returning home, Yu Ru Meng had become more and more joyful. She led Yang Kai forward for a while more before arriving at a huge palace.
The palace was encircled by hundreds of millions of flowers so even the air was thick with their fascinating fragrance.
Before they could get closer to the gates though, a scarlet stream of light came out from the palace in front of them. It travelled incredibly fast, and reached them in the blink of an eye. A man with an extraordinary appearance appeared. He was a heroic and handsome young man that was dressed in a blood-red cloak which was flapping majestically behind him in the wind. He had an outstanding demeanour equipped with shining armour.
As soon as he appeared, he cupped his hand, “Madam!”
Blood Demon! Yang Kai was able to identify his Clan as soon as he laid eyes on this man because of the faint blood stench on him. This man was a Blood Demon Half-Saint and seemed to be a capable subordinate under Yu Ru Meng, otherwise, he would not be working in her palace.
Yu Ru Meng nodded noncommittally and asked, “Did anything happen recently?”
The Blood Demon Half-Saint replied, “Nothing, but I received the order to send many people out from Madam’s territory.” As he reported, he looked at Yu Ru Meng with scorching eyes, his possessive desire not hidden in the slightest.
Yang Kai could not help raising his brow as he thought, [How dare this Blood Demon Half-Saint! Isn’t he afraid of provoking Yu Ru Meng by showing this kind of look in front of her?]
After stealing a glance at Yu Ru Meng, Yang Kai became even more upset though because she did not respond, as if this was all very normal to her.
[This bitch!] Yang Kai cursed in his heart furiously. Although he passed on the Heart Seal Secret Technique with the power of Soul Warming Lotus, which greatly reduced the impact on himself, these days, he and Yu Ru Meng’s relationship had progressed all the way to the last step of intimacy. Naturally, he regarded her as his own woman.
Now, having his woman ogled at by another man, and seeing her indifferent about it, was enough to put Yang Kai in a foul mood,
On the other side, Yu Ru Meng nodded, “I see.”
In the battle between the two worlds, the Star Boundary was not the only one that needed to recruit more soldiers, it was the same for the Demon Realm too. Each fragmented continent mobilized much manpower, and the continents controlled by Yu Ru Meng were no exception.
While talking, the Blood Demon Half-Saint suddenly turned to look at Yang Kai and questioned doubtfully “Madam, what is up with this Human?”
Humans and Demons were sworn enemies. Yu Ru Meng suddenly returned with a Human, but he did not look like a slave. The Blood Demon Half-Saint could not help feeling irritated seeing this man standing beside Yu Ru Meng. Even he had to keep a certain distance behind Yu Ru Meng when he followed her, so how dare this Human be so bold!
When he thought about this, a murderous intent was born within him, and his Half-Saint pressure began to permeate the air.
Yang Kai grinned at the Half-Saint, however, and quickly took a step closer to Yu Ru Meng. He also put his hand around Yu Ru Meng’s waist and announced lightly, “I’m Ru Meng’s husband!”
[Husband?] The Blood Demon Half-Saint’s eyes widened, and he immediately turned his gaze to Yu Ru Meng. To his shock though, Yu Ru Meng actually looked indifferent at this statement. The Blood Demon Half-Saint’s heart clenched tightly as he panicked, [Don’t tell me it’s true? Otherwise, why didn’t Madam have any intention of resisting when this bastard put his arm around her? If she really wanted to, she could have easily crushed this Human brat into dust!]
With the sudden rush of information in his head, the Demon Half-Saint suddenly shouted, “How dare you profane Madam Saint! You court death!”
Raising the palm of his hand, a Blood Qi wave was shot at Yang Kai. The Blood Qi palm seemed unremarkable, but in fact, it was incredibly fast and powerful; after all, it was a move made in anger from a Half-Saint. How could it be underestimated?
Yang Kai’s expression, however, remained indifferent and he did not even try to evade.
When the Blood Qi palm was about to hit him, a jade white hand suddenly appeared out of thin air, accurately grasping it, and shattering it with a light pinch.
Yu Ru Meng then shouted, “Yue Sang, don’t be rude!”
The Demon Half-Saint, Yue Sang, suddenly widened his eyes and said in disbelief, “Madam…”
If he was only suspecting before, Yu Ru Meng’s attitude now was enough for him to confirm the Human’s statement earlier. [Does Madam really have an extraordinary relationship with this lowly Human? How can this be? How can this Human be favoured by a Demon Saint?]
Yue Sang’s heart was filled with rage and he was barely suppressing the urge to rip Yang Kai into ten thousand pieces. However, under Yu Ru Meng’s watch, he did not have this chance at all.
Yu Ru Meng did not even bother to explain herself as she simply raised her chin slightly and shouted in an authoritative tone, “Get out!”
Yue Sang’s face turned hideous as he glared at Yang Kai fiercely for a while before lowering his head, cupping his fists, and leaving.
Staring at his back, Yang Kai narrowed his eyes slightly. [Damn, I just got here and I already have a love rival. This is not a good sign. It would still be fine if he was just an ordinary Demon King, but it’s not going to be easy to deal with a Half-Saint.]
It seemed like Yang Kai would have to be more aware of this guy from now on.
Yu Ru Meng turned to Yang Kai, “The Demon Realm is not the same as the Star Boundary. Demons are straightforward and frank, we don’t try to conceal our intentions or use subtlety like you Humans. Don’t meet him when I’m not by your side in the future.”
“Would he dare to kill me?” Yang Kai asked in surprise.
“Didn’t you see it just now?”
Yang Kai felt even more strange, “Why would he? Isn’t he afraid that you might punish him? Isn’t he one of your subordinates?”
Yu Ru Meng chuckled, “The Demon Realm advocates strength above all else. Whoever is stronger is right, and whoever is weaker is wrong in everything they do. If he kills you, I have no standing to punish him. At most, I could only avenge you in secret.”
Yang Kai rolled his eyes, “Then what if I kill him?”
“As long as you have the ability, you can kill whoever you want.”
Yang Kai nodded lightly, his eyes beaming, “The law of the jungle, survival of the fittest. The Demon Realm indeed is really a good place.” The fierce environment gave birth to a fierce race, and Yang Kai began to understand how the Demons cultivated their death-defying resilience and spirit.
“Let’s go, let’s get you settled first.”
After saying this, she led Yang Kai toward the palace.
The palace was huge, and the interior decoration was luxurious. Along the way, maidservants and guards constantly bowed and saluted them while simultaneously casting curious eyes at Yang Kai.
It could only come as a surprise when a Human suddenly appeared in the Demon Realm, and moreover, in the palace of a Demon Saint; however, nothing like the unpleasant scene before happened again.
Yang Kai deliberately walked side by side with Yu Ru Meng, putting up an air of arrogance.
After some twists and turns, the pair came to a garden where Yu Ru Meng turned around to look at Yang Kai, “What do you think of this place?”
Yang Kai circled around with a hand on his back with a calm expression. The environment was good and the area was quite large, he naturally did not have any opinions, so he turned around and asked Yu Ru Meng, “Are you living here too?”
Yu Ru Meng smiled lightly, “Do you want me to live here?”
Yang Kai stepped forward and took her hand, feigning shyness, “If you are not by my side, what if Yue Sang comes to make trouble again? I’m no match for him.”
Yu Ru Meng watched him and smiled, “Don’t worry. He doesn’t have the guts to cause any trouble in the palace, yet.”
“It’s always best to play it safe.” Yang Kai winked at her.
Yu Ru Meng poked his head with her finger in annoyance, shook her hand from his grip, and turned around, “You can stay without any worries, and I will see you when I am settled.”
“Don’t go, you!” Yang Kai yelled at her graceful back, “Why are you leaving when we haven’t finished talking?”
But Yu Ru Meng had already vanished. Yang Kai touched his chin and smacked his lips, inwardly rejoicing in her departure. It would be really inconvenient to follow Yu Ru Meng around all the time.
Turning around, he walked into a large hall, feeling refreshed, and asked a maidservant for some information, then found a room and went in.
After entering the Demon Realm, he discovered that the World Principles here were slightly different from those of the Star Boundary. It was still a Great World after all though, so there was no issue with strength suppression.
However, if he wanted to unleash his full power, he would need to familiarize himself with the local World Principles; otherwise, he would be at a loss when he really had to fight with others here.
Yang Kai stayed in his room with the door shut tightly for a few days, trying hard to coordinate his cultivation with the Demon Realm’s World Principles.
Days passed peacefully. Yu Ru Meng was nowhere to be seen, and no one knew what she was doing. Yue Sang did not come to make trouble either; it was just as Yu Ru Meng said, he did not have the guts to cause trouble in this palace.
A few days later, Yang Kai walked out of the room.
The few days of hard work had eliminated the adverse effects of the Demon Realm’s World Principles on him, and now it was time for him to get to work.
He did not come to the Demon Realm for sightseeing, nor did he come to enjoy himself. The Great Emperors had sent him here to rescue Bright Moon Great Emperor. Heaven’s Revelations had also said that Yang Kai would have to overcome a tribulation in the Demon Realm, and he would be able to soar into the skies if he succeeded. It would be simple to brush this off as nonsense if it was said by others, but it was a different story if it came from Heaven’s Revelations Great Emperor.
Yang Kai did not know what kind of trial he would be facing, but now he could only take one step at a time.
After pondering for a while, Yang Kai decided to start with the geography of the Demon Realm. The Demon Realm was like a broken mirror, comprised of countless fragmented continents. He had to, at the very least, understand the arrangement of these fragments and which continents were connected to each other, otherwise, even if he could locate Bright Moon Great Emperor, he would not know how to go forward from there.
Settling his thoughts, Yang Kai came to the main hall and took a seat on a chair big enough to lie down in. The chair seemed to be made up of bones, with several hideous skulls decorating it, giving the chair a wild and ferocious look.
As he sat on the chair boldly, he stretched out his hand to pat the armrest. [Not too bad. Maybe I should get one just like this when I return to High Heaven Palace. It would definitely boost my supremacy.]
Clearing his throat lightly, Yang Kai opened his mouth and shouted, “Come in!”
There was a bustle of whispers outside the door, then five maidservants entered, all with their heads bowed down. They stopped several tens of meters away and knelt down on the ground.
“All of you get up,” Yang Kai raised his hand a little irritably. He did not like to practice such customs in High Heaven Palace, and his feeling did not change even when he came to the Demon Realm.
The several maidservants hesitated for a moment before they stood up shakily, their heads still lowered, not daring to look up.
Yang Kai saw this and couldn’t help laughing, “What are you afraid of? I don’t eat people, so just raise your head.”
The few maidservants continued to tremble while dawdling, causing Yang Kai to slap the armrest, “Are you all deaf?”
Seeing that he was angry, the maidservants finally raised their heads carefully.
Chills ran up Yang Kai’s spine with just a single glance, and he almost slipped off his chair. His stomach churned sickly as he watched the few people in front of him.
His adverse reaction was not caused by shock, but by disgust.
The maidservants were all hideous, and on top of that, they had strange features. One had lips split up to the roots of her ears, revealing jagged fangs, another one had eyeballs so protruded it looked like they would pop out at any time. Another one had tiny, densely packed holes all over her face like a honeycomb.
The only one with a relatively normal appearance had hideous earthworm-like scars all over her face.
[What a weird group of maidservants!]
Yang Kai knew that countless Clans inhabited the Demon Realm, each of which had its own characteristics, but he never thought that there were such ugly female Demons in this world.
Sensing Yang Kai’s less than pleasant expression, the several maidservants quickly lowered their heads again.
Yang Kai gave a dry cough as the corners of his mouth twitched, “Which one of you is the one in charge here?”
The maidservant with the hideous scars on her face stepped forward, answering in a small voice, “Replying to Sir, this maidservant is currently in charge of the palace’s affairs.”
[Oh good, it’s the most normal one.]
If it was one of the other women, Yang Kai would have lost all motivation to talk. He was not one to judge others based on their appearance, but these female Demons were just too strange. No one would have the courage to converse with them.
Clearing his throat, Yang Kai stated in a deep voice, “I don’t seem to recall seeing you when I arrived the other day.”
When he arrived with Yu Ru Meng just a few days ago, all the maidservants he met were beautiful and charming, so why were they so different now?
The maidservant answered, “This maid is not clear. This maid was only been transferred here a few days ago.”
Yang Kai frowned, “Were they transferred here a few days ago too?”
“Yes.”
[Damn, Yu Ru Meng did this!] Yang Kai finally understood. These maidservants were probably transferred by that bitch to serve Yang Kai, while the other maidservants with good figures and faces must have been transferred away.
[What kind of person do you think I am!?] Yang Kai was furious. Yu Ru Meng was obviously trying to prevent him from fooling around, so she deliberately transferred all the weird-looking women here because no one would be interested in such women.
However, Yang Kai had always been anxious and lustful towards Yu Ru Meng, and she had never let him succeed in getting what he wanted, so it was inevitable for her to be so defensive.
Fortunately, Yang Kai didn’t have such intentions in the first place, so he just steadied himself after taking a deep breath, “What’s your name?”
The maidservant answered obediently, “This maid is Xiao Wu!”
“What happened to your face?” Yang Kai asked next.
Xiao Wu answered in a small voice, “I was punished for doing wrong.”
[Those scars were a form of punishment?] Yang Kai initially thought a fight caused it. It could be seen that behind these scars, Xiao Wu had pleasant features, but they were completely disfigured now. This was undoubtedly a very cruel punishment for a woman.
Since it was none of his business, Yang Kai did not ask her about what she did wrong. After exchanging a few words, he changed the topic, “Good, this King is a newcomer, and not familiar with the places in the Demon Realm. Where can I get a map?”
“A map?” Xiao Wu thought for a while, “If Sir wants a map, you can ask the Holy Venerable. She must have one.”
The Holy Venerable that she mentioned probably meant Yu Ru Meng.
Yang Kai twitched his lip and waved his hand, “There’s no need to bother the Holy Venerable with such a trivial matter.”
He did not want Yu Ru Meng to know what he was doing to avoid her being suspicious. Although the possibility was small, he wanted to be as safe as he could.
Xiao Wu thought for a moment before nodding and continuing, “Then Sir can try to look for one in the Holy City. I believe they should be for sale.”
“Oh?” Yang Kai raised his eyebrows, “Can it be purchased outside?”
Xiao Wu replied, “The Holy City has everything available.”
Yang Kai smiled, revealing his bared teeth, “Very good. Take me out.”
“Does Sir want to go out?” Xiao Wu looked up at Yang Kai in surprise, and quickly lowered her head again.
Yang Kai asked, “Why? Can I not go out? Did the Holy Venerable tell you not to let me out?”
“No…” Xiao Wu hesitated for a moment, “But if Sir wants to go out, let me ask the Holy Venerable for permission.”
“Ask for permission!?” Yang Kai stood up from his chair and strode towards the outside, “If the sky falls, I will hold it up. Follow me.”
Xiao Wu could not help being anxious when she saw Yang Kai’s determination and persistence; however, she could not stop him either, so she could only order the other maidservants to inform the Holy Venerable about Yang Kai’s plans while she hurriedly chased after him.
The two went out one after another, shuttling back and forth in the palace.
Although Yang Kai was not familiar with this place, he memorized the way when he came in with Yu Ru Meng the last time, so he quickly left the palace in the same manner. The maidservants and bodyguards along the way looked at him in surprise, and quickly exchanged whispers with each other after he walked a good distance away, but he did not encounter any obstacles.
Outside the palace was a wide road that could allow more than ten carriages to pass side by side that led straight to a prosperous city more than ten kilometres away. By the look of the city from a distance, it was no worse than the biggest cities in the Star Boundary, and in fact, looked even better in some ways.
The city had eight main gates, two in each cardinal direction. The gates were magnificent and the city wall was colossal.
Yang Kai led the way while the maidservant, Xiao Wu followed closely behind. They travelled more than ten kilometres and soon reached the nearest gate.
Yang Kai was worried that he would encounter some trouble when entering the city, for he was a Human and this was the Demon Realm. The Demon Race was naturally not friendly to Humans, and not every Demon was aware that he was brought here by Yu Ru Meng.
But when he arrived at the gate, he found that he had worried too much. Even if he was a Human and had no characteristics of the Demon Race, as long as he did not use his strength, most Demons were clueless about him.
They had never seen Humans before, so how would they know what Humans looked like? The Demons who had seen Humans were all in the Star Boundary now.
The reason why those Demons in the palace were astonished to see him was not due to his identity as a Human, but because he was a man brought back by the Holy Venerable!
Several ferocious-looking Demons guarded the city gate, and everyone who passed through had to pay something called Demon Crystals to enter.
The role of Demon Crystals in the Demon Realm was equivalent to that of Source Crystals in the Star Boundary. They were hard currency for transactions.
Of course, Yang Kai did not have any Demon Crystals, but he did not need to pay.
When several Demon guards approached them, Xiao Wu took out a token and showed it to them. After seeing this token, the Demons immediately made way for them respectfully.
After all, anyone who was from the palace of the Holy Venerable did not need to pay any fees.
Yang Kai was amazed by the lively atmosphere as he entered the city. The Demon Race was warlike and bloodthirsty, so he thought that life here would be primitive and brutal, but he now realized that whatever they had in the Star Boundary, the Demon Realm had too. For example, in this Holy City, there were many straight and spacious streets connecting the north and south, and there were a variety of shops lining the roadways, which bustled with people, shouting and bargaining with one another.
If it were not for the weird appearances of the Demons on the streets, Yang Kai would have thought he had returned to the Star Boundary.
“Sir!” Seeing him standing still, Xiao Wu called softly behind him.
“En,” Yang Kai answered casually, and immediately strode forward, looking around with great interest as he walked.
However, after walking just a few steps, a low cry came from Xiao Wu behind. When he turned around, he saw that Xiao Wu was on the ground, her hands covering her shoulders in pain.
Not far behind him, a burly Demon was seen striding on the street, swaying left and right, and the crowd in front of him was forced to make way for him.
Yang Kai was stunned for a moment but immediately understood what was going on. With a single step, he arrived behind the burly Demon and patted him on his shoulder.
Yang Kai’s pat sent the Demon’s back bending. Infuriated, he immediately turned his head around, but he saw no one behind him…
“Over here,” Yang Kai looked up at him with a darkened face while thinking, [What the Hell? This guy is so tall!]
The Demon followed the voice and saw Yang Kai, who was two heads shorter than him. He slowly turned his body around, breathed out hot air from his nostrils, and looked down at Yang Kai, “What are you doing!?”
Yang Kai raised his thumb and pointed at his back, “You knocked my companion down.”
The Demon looked up, saw Xiao Wu slowly getting up from the ground, and sneered with a toothy grin, “So what?”
“Apologize!” Yang Kai returned with a smile.
The Demon was stunned for a moment before he suddenly burst out laughing. His laughter sounded like thunder, and his huge body was shaking violently, as if he had heard the best joke in the world.
Xiao Wu hurried over and remarked in fear, “Sir, I’m fine.”
She was clueless about Yang Kai’s strength and only knew that they should not provoke the Demon in front of them. If Yang Kai was injured in a conflict with him, she would be punished. Naturally, she wanted to end the matter peacefully.
“Even if you’re fine, he should still apologize for knocking you over.” Yang Kai waved to her and signalled her to stand aside.
Xiao Wu pursed her lips and was speechless, her face full of anxiety.
Hearing what Yang Kai said, the burly Demon snorted coldly, “What if I don’t want to apologize?”
Yang Kai nodded gently, “If we can’t settle this with words, we can settle it with fists.”
The Demon stared at Yang Kai in shock, “You want to fight me?”
“Only if you don’t apologize…”
The Demon guffawed again, but this time, not only was he laughing, but he also spoke to the Demons passing by, “This little brat wants to fight me!”
As soon as those surrounding Demons heard this, they all became excited and came closer one after another to watch the show, some even began cheering, “Fight!”
“Break his bones and pull out his guts!”
“This guy has delicate skin and tender meat. His blood must be delicious!”
…..
A group of Demons clamoured as the burly Demon retracted his smile and replaced it with a ferocious look. Glaring at Yang Kai, he challenged “If you want to fight, I’ll fight!”
When the words fell, he clasped his fists together and held them up high before slamming them down at Yang Kai with a force as powerful as a thunderbolt. With such a burly figure and his advantageous height, the blow was as ferocious as a meteor and actually caused an air-ripping sound as it fell.
As soon as the burly Demon took action, the spectators became exhilarated, as if they found something fun and could not turn their eyes away.
Only Xiao Wu exclaimed, “Be careful, Sir!”
Yang Kai found all this to be incredibly funny of course. Although the Demon looked huge and muscular, he was actually just a Demon Great General, which was equivalent to a Human Dao Source Realm cultivator. What’s more, the Demon was a Mid-Rank Great General at best, yet he still dared to attack Yang Kai without realizing the difference between them.
But since the other party had already made a move, it was impossible for Yang Kai to just receive the blow.
Yang Kai raised his hand gently and held the fists that smashed down at him. His figure did not move an inch, but the floor under his feet cracked. He then slightly tightened his grip and sent a kick directly at the Demon’s ankle.
Before the burly Demon could react, his tall body had already fallen to the ground involuntarily with a bang, and the impact sent dust flying.
Yang Kai slowly squatted in front of the Demon, who was still in a daze, grabbed him by his collar with one hand and punched him as quick as wind with another hand.
*Hong Hong Hong…*
In the blink of an eye, the burly Demon’s face was badly battered, and he was seeing stars spin above his head.
Behind him, Xiao Wu covered her red lips and looked at Yang Kai in shock.
Those Demon onlookers were also stunned as the initial clamour suddenly ceased, but soon, they called out with even exciting shouts, “Kill him! Kill him!”
“Smash his head and beat his brains out!”
“Dig out his Demon Heart, it must be delicious!”
……
Yang Kai raised his eyes and looked around with a weird face.
In his mind, he suddenly recalled something Yu Ru Meng mentioned before. [In the Demon Realm, whoever is stronger is right, whoever is weaker is wrong in everything they do.]
The experience that he had at this moment was the best portrayal and interpretation of this sentence.
If this were the Star Boundary, this kind of fight would never happen. Even if the onlookers came to watch the show, they would never shout such violent words and show such excited looks.
The burly Demon passed out after receiving several tens of punches from Yang Kai, and even if Yang Kai did not use his full strength, the burly Demon was already half dead.
Losing interest, Yang Kai got up and kicked the Demon out of the way before he beckoned to Xiao Wu, “Let’s go!”
As soon as their eyes met, Yang Kai’s brow twitched slightly as he found that Xiao Wu was looking at him in awe. Not only she, the surrounding Demons who joined in the party too, revealed a look of respect, and many even smiled kindly at him.
This was the Demon Realm!
The more Yang Kai wandered around, the more he enjoyed the Demon Realm’s interesting customs and many novel sights that surprised him. However, some things, although good, were of no use to the cultivators of the Star Boundary, and were only useful for those from the Demon Realm, so he had no intention of buying these things. Besides, he did not have any Demon Crystals.
After walking around for a long time, he came to a shop. According to Xiao Wu, there should be maps for sale here.
There was no shop clerk outside the door, but many Demons still came and went.
Upon entering the shop, Yang Kai’s gaze was immediately attracted by the exquisite and small items on the counters on both sides. Those items looked like chariots, but each was only the size of a palm.
A Demon on the side seemed to be very interested in them too. He examined the goods, while a shop clerk beside him introduced the properties of the goods enthusiastically, showering the products in the shop with endless praise.
Yang Kai listened for a while and confirmed that these things were really War Chariots.
The Demon selected one of the War Chariots, and the shop clerk immediately took it with one hand, poured Demon Qi into it, and then threw it in front of them. With a swish, the War Chariot expanded into an object about six meters in length, with a hideous shape and sharp edges and spikes. On top of the War Chariot was a terrifying-looking, lifelike tiger head with its jaws opened widely.
The Demon customer circled the War Chariot a few times, reached out and touched it multiple times, and even sat on it to test it out, before finally revealing a satisfied expression. Then he began bargaining with the shop clerk and finally sealed the deal.
After sending the customer off, the shop clerk turned to Yang Kai and smiled, “What does Sir want to buy?”
Yang Kai motioned at the door and replied, “Bring me one of those things that guy was looking at just now.”
He was a little interested in this War Chariot. Such things were uncommon in the Star Boundary, but were often encountered when he was in the Star Field.
The shop clerk immediately took out the same model and enthusiastically introduced, “This customer has a good eye. This Tiger Head Chariot is a new model launched by the shop this year. Compared with the old model, its performance is much improved, and the speed is also greatly increased. Customers can go wherever they want with this at speed and in luxury.”
This was no different from what he said to the Demon just now, and Yang Kai was too lazy to listen to the whole pitch again, so he took the so-called Tiger Head Chariot into his own hand, poured his Emperor Qi into it, and threw it in front of them, just like how the shop clerk did.
The War Chariot immediately enlarged in front of them.
Yang Kai was startled. He merely gave it a try just now and did not expect that his Emperor Qi would actually have an effect on it. It seemed that both Humans and Demons could activate this thing.
Yang Kai immediately withdrew his power and the shop clerk did not perceive anything out of the ordinary and continued enthusiastically, “This customer may give it a try, if you are unsatisfied, we can offer you something else.”
Yang Kai had the same intention. Immediately sitting on it, he found that the interior design of this War Chariot was quite user-friendly, and it was very comfortable as well. The only drawback was the space, which could only accommodate two to three people, or a single person if they were someone burlier.
After testing it for a while, Yang Kai got up nodding, “How is its defence?”
The shop clerk laughed, “Rest assured, it’s made by Twelfth-Order Demon Iron, and its defensive power is enough to pass through the Territory Gates unaffected. It can even withstand the full-powered blow of a Demon King.”
Yang Kai had no clue what Twelfth-Order Demon Iron was, but since it could withstand a strike from a Demon King, the defence was obviously not bad. He continued questioning, “What about its attack power? Why don’t I see any parts that can be used offensively? Could a special Spirit Array have been inscribed?”
As soon as he said this, the shop clerk’s expression suddenly became weird, and he looked at Yang Kai suspiciously.
Behind him, Xiao Wu walked up awkwardly, and whispered in Yang Kai’s ear, “Sir, this thing is not used for fighting. It’s used for travelling. There are countless fragmented continents in the Demon Realm, and not every Demon knows the routes leading to and from those fragmented continents. This War Chariot is inscribed with the locations of the Territory Gates between the continents and the routes leading to them. You only need to enter your destination in advance to travel without any trouble.”
[So it’s a flight-type artifact!] Yang Kai realized suddenly why the shop clerk was looking at him with a strange expression…
Reaching out and patting the shop clerk’s shoulder, he spoke solemnly, “Just kidding.”
“Haha…” the shop clerk returned with a slightly stiff smile.
Yang Kai turned his head and looked around, clearing his throat, “Do you have maps for sale in your store?”
“Maps?” The shop clerk frowned, “What kind of map does Sir want to buy?”
“What kind of maps do you have to offer?” Yang Kai asked rhetorically.
The shop clerk answered, “We have all the maps of the territories of every Holy Venerable. There are twelve in total. Which Holy Venerable’s territory would you like?”
[Even the maps are split among the twelve Demon Saints in the Demon Realm?]
Yang Kai inquired, “Isn’t there a map that includes all continents?”
“There is, but the price…” The shop clerk smiled at Yang Kai. After the previous incident, he was very suspicious of this customer’s purchasing power. He entered this place without even understanding the purpose of a War Chariot. Obviously, he was not sincere in purchasing anything.
“Price is not a problem.” Yang Kai remained calm.
The shop clerk hesitated for a while before nodding, “Please wait a moment, I’ll get it for you.”
While speaking, he turned and walked into the inner hall.
After he left, Xiao Wu leaned in and asked him cautiously, “Sir, this maid forgot to ask you, how many Demon Crystals do you have?”
“I don’t have any,” Yang Kai glanced at her.
Xiao Wu was stunned when she heard the words, but quickly took off the ring from her hand, “I have some Demon Crystals here, but I don’t know if it’s enough. Sir, take these first.”
Yang Kai smiled and stretched out his hand to push the ring back to her, “Don’t worry, I have my own plans.” Since he dared to come, he naturally had a way around this minor issue.
Seeing his confidence, Xiao Wu did not persist but secretly prayed that nothing bad would happen today, otherwise she would definitely not be able to escape punishment.
After a short wait, the shop clerk returned, holding a round black ball in his hand supported by a stand underneath.
The shop clerk approached them, “Dear customer, this is the best map our shop has. Please take a look and check if this is what you need.”
Yang Kai reached out to take the black ball and began observing it. The object was about the size of a fist and was considerably heavy, made up of an unknown material. Although it was his first time coming into contact with this object, it was obviously similar to the Mountains and Rivers Projections in the Star Boundary, so he immediately poured his Divine Sense into it.
With a swoosh, a continent appeared in his mind, and an inconspicuous little black dot hovered over a certain spot on this continent. Yang Kai guessed that the little black dot represented his position, and the continent that appeared in his Knowledge Sea should be the land he was standing on.
Enchantment Continent!
The name of each continent was also marked on this map.
Yang Kai only knew now that the continent he was on was actually called Enchantment Continent, which was obviously named that way because Yu Ru Meng was a Charm Demon.
There were seven red dots hovering around the continent, which Yang Kai knew at a glance represented the locations of the Territory Gate. A thin white line also connected each red dot into the distance.
Yang Kai immersed his Divine Sense and followed one of the thin white lines to its other end, quickly reaching another red dot in a different continent.
After experimenting a bit, Yang Kai figured out how to utilize the map.
This was a good product, and it was exactly what he needed right now. With this map, he could grasp how to get to enter and exit the fragmented continents in the Demon Realm. Without this map, it would be extremely difficult to travel from one continent to another.
The shop clerk continued, somewhat hesitantly, “This customer should try to silently recite the names of two continents in your mind.”
Yang Kai raised his eyes at him but heeded decisively, muttering Enchantment Continent and Black Earth Continent in his heart.
He had heard about Black Earth Continent when he was exploring earlier. Apparently, it was far away from Enchantment Continent, separated by several fragmented continents.
But at that moment, starting from a certain red dot on Enchantment Continent, the connected white lines suddenly burst with bright light and lit up a path that spread all the way from one red dot to another, entering the adjacent continent, and through the Territory Gate of that continent into another continent…
In the blink of an eye, the fastest route from Enchantment Continent to Black Earth Continent was outlined clearly before him. If Yang Kai really needed to go to Black Earth Continent, he would only need to follow this route and pass through a few Territory Gates.
“Good, good, good!” Yang Kai praised readily. The person who refined this map was definitely a genius. It was particularly useful for a newcomer like him.
“How many Demon Crystals is this?” Yang Kai held onto the ball tightly, and turned to look at the shop clerk.
[Does he really want to buy it?] The shop clerk was a little surprised. He initially thought that Yang Kai had little purchasing power, but who would have thought that he was actually a big customer. He immediately smiled and said, “It will be five million High-Rank Demon Crystals!”
Demon Crystals were also graded into Low, Mid, and High-Rank, and had the same conversion ratio as Source Crystals, ten to one from one grade to the next.
However, Yang Kai had no concept of the value of five million High-Rank Demon Crystals. He just estimated that it was not much different from five million High-Rank Source Crystals.
Five million High-Rank Source Crystals were not much for him, so he nodded and added, “What about that Tiger Head Chariot?”
The shop clerk was gleeful, “This would only be one million High-Rank Demon Crystals.”
The total was six million.
Yang Kai nodded, but Xiao Wu’s face turned pale, “It’s too expensive.”
The shop clerk persuaded, “Good quality products would naturally be priced highly. This customer can inquire anywhere in the Holy City. If there is a store that sells better quality War Chariots and maps than we do, we will gift you these two items for free.”
“I want them,” Yang Kai did not even try to bargain. Since these things were useful to him, he naturally wanted to buy them.
The shop clerk lit up at once.
“But I don’t have any Demon Crystals.” Yang Kai continued.
The shop clerk’s smile stiffened on his face, and he looked at Yang Kai with a look that said ‘are you kidding me?’.
Yang Kai swiftly took out a bottle gourd half the height of a man that was pulsing with Demon Qi. The shop clerk was taken aback, for he thought that he was about to get robbed, but then he heard Yang Kai saying, “Would you accept this instead?”
Only then did the shop clerk understand Yang Kai’s intention. He wiped the cold sweat on his forehead, and replied awkwardly, “This shop doesn’t accept this kind of bartering, but your Demon Artifact seems to be of good grade, so I can ask the Shopkeeper for you.”
“Good,” Yang Kai replied and the clerk turned around and walked towards the counter.
There was no one at the counter, but the shop clerk went there and stayed for a while. After that, he quickly came back and looked at Yang Kai with a smile, “The shopkeeper wants to meet you.”
Yang Kai glanced at him curiously before following him to the counter where the shop clerk pointed below and stated, “This is our shopkeeper.”
Yang Kai followed and finger and found a dwarf behind the counter. He was only half the average height of a Human and was completely blocked by the big counter, making it obvious why Yang Kai hadn’t seen him just now. It was unknown which Clan this dwarf came from. He had a funny appearance, with a big head and short stature, but also with a pair of shrewd eyes. He eyed Yang Kai up and down and asked, “I heard that you wanted to leverage your Demon Artifact in exchange for the map and War Chariot?”
Yang Kai put the bottle gourd on the counter and nodded, “Yes, have a look at this. How much is this worth?”
The dwarf reached out and touched the gourd before releasing his Divine Sense to examine it slightly. Immediately after, he raised his brow and uttered, “King Grade Demon Artifact!”
The so-called King Grade Demon Artifact was probably the Demon Artifact that could only be used by Demon Kings. Yang Kai had many of them, all of which he had plundered from the many Demon Kings he had killed a while back.
The cultivators in the Star Boundary could not use the artifacts of the Demon Race, but they would collect a lot of them after each battle in Tiger Roar City, as did Yang Kai.
Now that he thought of it, he should have looted a lot of Demon Crystals too, but those things were full of Demon Qi and were useless for him, so he did not keep them. If he had known he would end up in this situation, Yang Kai would have kept those Demon Crystals and saved some trouble like this.
The dwarf carefully checked the quality and grade of the bottle gourd, and nodded gently, “This shop usually doesn’t accept these things, but since it is a King Grade Demon Artifact, we can make an exception for it. However, this thing is only worth a million High-Rank Demon Crystals, which is far from enough. Do you have other things that can be leveraged?”
If it were not for the sake of this King Grade Demon Artifact, the shopkeeper would not bother to pay attention to Yang Kai; however, if Yang Kai could offer this thing up so casually, he would certainly have other good things. If the shopkeeper could trade and resell them, he would make a fortune.
“One million?” Yang Kai turned to look at Xiao Wu questioningly. He really did not know the market here in the Demon Realm, so he could only ask this maid for advice.
Xiao Wu transmitted him a message quickly, “It’s a little low. Sir can try to raise the price a bit.”
If it was just a little low, then it was still acceptable.
Yang Kai nodded and waved his hand. Immediately, a few clanking sounds rang out as five Demon Artifacts of different shapes and sizes were presented in front of him. Turning to the dwarf, Yang Kai asked plainly, “Are these enough?”
The dwarf shopkeeper and the shop clerk were dumbfounded. The several newly presented Demon Artifacts were rich in Demon Qi, not inferior to, and in some cases even better, than the bottle gourd from just now.
In other words, these were all King Grade Demon Artifacts!
A King Grade Demon Artifact could only be used by a Demon King, so seeing this unknown man take out so many of them at once could only mean that they weren’t all his. In other words, this unassuming young man must have killed and robbed others to get them.
If each Demon Artifact here represented a Demon King…
For a moment, the way the dwarf shopkeeper and the shop clerk looked at Yang Kai changed, as they felt a gloomy, bloody aura was enveloping them.
The dwarf shopkeeper did not dare to delay and hurriedly said, “Wait a moment, Sir. Let me have a look at them first.”
After some inspection, the dwarf was sure that these were all King Grade Demon Artifacts, and each of them was worth at least a million High-Rank Demon Crystals. Perhaps, he knew that Yang Kai was not a person that could be offended, so he even took the initiative to raise the price of three of the Demon Artifacts.
In the end, the six Demon Artifacts were valued at 6.9 million High-Rank Demon Crystals, more than enough to leverage for the map and Tiger Head Chariot.
A short time later, Yang Kai came out of the shop with Xiao Wu. He stored the map and the Tiger Head Chariot into his Space Ring while at the same time holding another Space Ring in his hand which contained the extra 900,000 High-Rank Demon Crystals.
His purpose of this trip was mainly for the map, so now his goal has been achieved, Yang Kai had nothing else to buy.
While strolling with Xiao Wu, he took out the map and probed it with his Divine Sense to get familiar with the geography in the Demon Realm. His Divine Sense shuttled through the map, and the names of one continent after another appeared before him. Yang Kai memorized this information silently, thinking it was time to inquire about the whereabouts of Bright Moon Great Emperor.
Since Heavens Revelations Great Emperor and the others wanted him to rescue Bright Moon Great Emperor, he needed to find out the latter’s location first before he began making other plans.
Just as he was deep in thought, Yang Kai suddenly heard a roar of cheers which drew his attention.
As Yang Kai looked up, he saw a huge dome-like building not far away near the centre of the Holy City. This place’s doors were guarded by several powerful Demons, and the previous sound was clearly coming from within, making it seem quite lively.
“What is that?” Yang Kai asked while pointing to the dome. The buildings that he had seen before were not that large, but this one actually covered a vast plot of land and obviously had some great backing.
“The Blood Arena.” Xiao Wu pursed her lips and glanced over to that side, a hint of fear in her eyes, as if she was quite afraid of that place.
“What is it for?” Yang Kai asked curiously.
Xiao Wu explained, “Replying to Sir, it is a place for battles. Many powerful Masters enter to compete, and the winner obtains prizes provided by the Blood Arena, while those who lose may lose everything, even their lives.”
“There are prizes to take?” Yang Kai was amazed.
Xiao Wu nodded, “En, and many times the prizes are very grand. One can also enter purely to bet and gamble. Some got rich overnight, while some became completely broke!”
“You can bet too!” Yang Kai’s eyes suddenly lit up. He spent 6 million on the map and Tiger Head Chariot just now while his several Demon Artifacts were leveraged for 6.9 million High-Rank Demon Crystals. Now, he had only 900,000 left. He would certainly have to stay in the Demon Realm for a long time, and it would not be easy for him to move about without Demon Crystals. He was thinking of a way to get more Demon Crystals just now, but he did not expect a solution to present itself in front of him.
“Let’s have a look inside.” Yang Kai immediately led Xiao Wu to the Blood Arena with great interest.
There was a guard at the door and one had to pay the fee to even enter the Blood Arena. There were exciting and fierce fights inside, so it was impossible for people to watch them for free day and night. This entrance fee was one of the sources of income of the Blood Arena.
Ten thousand High-Rank Demon Crystals were charged for each person, a number that ordinary people couldn’t afford.
Fortunately, Yang Kai had some Demon Crystals on him now; otherwise, he would have had to sponge off of Xiao Wu.
After paying the fee, Yang Kai received two entry tokens and went straight inside.
It was Xiao Wu’s first time actually entering this place, so she was a little nervous and followed closely behind Yang Kai.
Through a long corridor, the two quickly came to an extremely large internal space. It was a circular arena covering a few dozen acres of land. Snowflakes fluttered in the sky, coating the ground with thick snow, and to Yang Kai’s surprise, there were a few towering and rugged mountains inside the arena.
The surrounding auditorium was arranged in a trapezoid manner, rising step by step. It could roughly accommodate forty to fifty thousand audience members to watch the battle at once.
At this moment, although it was not full, roughly eighty percent of the seats were occupied.
Everyone had to pay an entrance fee of ten thousand High-Rank Demon Crystals, and with eighty percent of the seats filled, it meant the Blood Arena collected hundreds of millions in fees alone from those present.
Before, Yang Kai was wondering what kind of grand prizes the Blood Arena would be able to provide, and how they would make a profit from this business. But now, he understood this was definitely a ‘no lose’ business.
Not only this, but what surprised Yang Kai more was that the space inside the Blood Arena was obviously different because the scene inside the arena was more than ten times smaller than it should have been. In other words, the Blood Arena’s several tens of acres stage before him was actually hundreds, if not thousands of acres in size, just shrunk down manyfold using some special method.
[Space Folding?]
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes. [Didn’t Yu Ru Meng say that none of the Demons in the Demon Realm was proficient in the Dao of Space? If so, who compressed the space of the Blood Arena here?]
He turned around and asked Xiao Wu, only then did he find out that it was not like what he thought.
The space in the Blood Arena was originally a small fragmented continent, which was moved here by Yu Ru Meng using her powerful Divine Abilities then integrated into the arena by powerful Array Masters to achieve this effect.
[I knew this Blood Arena had a serious backer.] It turned out that this was Yu Ru Meng’s private enterprise. She was the ruler of Enchantment Continent, so it was not surprising for her to do such a thing.
Xiao Wu continued, “This maid is also here for the first time, but she has heard that there are several tens of choices of environments and terrains in this Blood Arena which can be transformed by activating various Spirit Arrays.”
“Oh?” Yang Kai raised his brow. [Does she mean that the snowy scenery in front could actually be changed to another environment and venue?]
If so, the variety of fields the Blood Arena could sport would be truly great. Fighters might be of equal strength, but one might have the upper hand if a certain environment or terrain was favourable to them.
While they were talking, another roar erupted from the surrounding audience. It seemed that the result of the battle in the Blood Arena had been decided.
The majority of the battles in the Blood Arena would end up with the death of one side. At this moment, the winning Demon was holding a blood-drenched severed head up high and a beating Demon Heart in his hand on a mountain peak, turning around to show the audiences his triumph. The Demons seemed to love this bloody and cruel scene, and they cheered loudly.
After a long time, the winning Demon stuffed the beating Demon Heart into his mouth and chewed on it with a delighted look on his face, as if he was eating the most delicious delicacy, all while blood seeped out of the corners of his lips…
The field in the center suddenly went pitch-black, and nothing could be seen. The cheers from all around gradually subsided at this moment, but no one was surprised. Yang Kai followed the crowds, and watched quietly for a moment before he and Xiao Wu found their seats and sat down.
While waiting, some women who were dressed in revealing clothing went through the audience seats with a tray. There were cups on the tray, which were filled with scarlet liquid. He had no idea what this liquid was; however, Yang Kai saw that many Demons holler at those women, bought this beverage in exchange for some Demon Crystals and drank it with great relish.
Out of curiosity, Yang Kai also bought a cup for a thousand High-Rank Demon Crystals.
Yang Kai took a sip of the drink and found it tasted a bit like blood, so he turned to Xiao Wu and asked, “What is this?”
Xiao Wu answered with a pale face, “When certain women make… mistakes, they are imprisoned and are fed with some special types of food. After a few years, their blood will undergo certain changes, then their fresh blood will be drawn out and after some modifications…”
She did not dare to go on, but Yang Kai already understood it.
“What an eye-opener.” He nodded slightly.
After saying so, he gulped down the liquid in one go and revealed a face looking like he still wanted more.
Xiao Wu was flabbergasted! [Isn’t he a Human? Why is he as bloodthirsty just like us Demons?]
After waiting quietly for a moment, the field in the centre below suddenly lit up again, but this time it was no longer a world of ice and snow, but a field covered with yellow sand. Sure enough, as Xiao Wu mentioned before, a Spirit Array was arranged in the Blood Arena, and the field could be changed freely by activating it.
A Demon King soared into the air and shouted excitedly, “The next battle is between Du Feng and Kuang Mang. If Du Feng wins this battle, it will be ten consecutive victories for him and he will win the rich prizes provided by the Blood Arena! Du Feng is experienced and cunning; however, although Kuang Mang has only fought three times in the Blood Arena, he cannot be underestimated, for he has crushed each of his opponents in the past three battles! Let us watch and witness which of them is stronger in this battle!”
When the voice fell, two Demons came out from opposite sides of the Blood Arena respectively.
Both Demons were Demon Kings and from the fluctuations of their Demon Qi, it was apparent they had almost the same cultivation. One was thin and small in size, while the other was burly and tall, forming a very sharp contrast between them.
The entire environment of the desert could be seen, and the two Demon Kings looked at each other from across the sand with cold, murderous eyes. Neither of them moved, seemingly waiting for something quietly.
Many audience members started getting busy, taking out their entry tokens and sending their Divine Senses into them.
Yang Kai looked at this curiously, and Xiao Wu explained, “They are betting. If Sir wants to bet, just pour your Divine Sense into the entry token. After everyone is done placing their bets, the battle should begin.”
[I see!] Yang Kai immediately immersed his Divine Sense into the entry token and sure enough, he found that there were some changes in the information inside. Betting options were added; however, by the look of the odds, the Blood Arena was obviously biased towards Du Feng, because the compensation was one to one for him, while the compensation for Kuang Mang were two to one.
Other than that, there was Yang Kai’s personal betting information, but everything was zero at the moment.
Yang Kai only had 900,000 Demon Crystals on hand and he was a newcomer who had never seen these two fighters before, so he was not ready to bet. Therefore, he planned to just spectate for now.
He at least had to understand the rules here before taking action.
After a short while, the Demons in the audience seats finished placing their bets and there was no need to further delay.
The gong sounded twice, and the battle began.
The two Demon Kings quickly soared towards the centre of the desert and came into contact with each other in just ten breaths of time. Just like the Demon emcee said, Du Feng was more experienced in battle. His moves were extremely tricky, and coupled with his dexterity, he suppressed the burly Kuang Mang as soon as the fight began.
However, Kuang Mang was probably a Stone Demon and with his copper skin and a strong physique, his defence was excellent. Although he was always on the defensive and did not attack, the scattered attacks of Du Feng had no effect on him.
For a time, the two were locked in a heated battle in the centre of the desert.
The battle between the two Demon Kings was naturally extremely electrifying. Their Demon Qi surged and trembled, which kicked up dust and sand into a storm.
However, after watching for a while, Yang Kai already had an answer. He knew that although Kuang Mang had good defence, his opponent was too flexible and agile, so he could not effectively retaliate. On the contrary, his opponent was constantly pushing him to consume his energy and Demon Qi. If he did not have some kind of superb method to reverse the situation, the outcome would be worrying.
The battle lasted half an hour, and seeing Kuang Mang exhausted, Du Feng rushed in rashly with a dagger in hand, ready to land the fatal blow. However, against expectations, Kuang Mang’s body burst out a golden light, covering an area of a thousand meters in an instant.
Du Feng’s body suddenly stiffened, exposing an opening.
Kuang Mang grinned, strode forward, and smashed a heavy round Demon Artifact in his hand onto Du Feng’s head, with a look of victory on his face.
Du Feng, however, laughed too as just when the Demon Artifact was about to land on his head, his body suddenly split into two, then four, then eight, surrounding Kuang Mang.
The eight cloned figures flashed towards the centre and merged together again.
The scene seemed to have frozen at this moment, and Du Feng’s figure was revealed again with his back facing Kuang Mang, his hand slowly playing with the dagger in his grip.
Kuang Mang remained in his attacking stance, but his body was petrified in place. The smile on his face was still frozen there, but his eyes were filled with disbelief.
Followed by a cracking noise… The burly body collapsed onto the ground, sending the sand flying everywhere. There was no wound on him, but neither was there any vitality coming from his body!
A burst of cheers came out from the audience. The Demons who won their bet were naturally elated, while the faces of the Demons who lost their Demon Crystals turned ugly as they started cursing. If Kuang Mang had not died, perhaps they would charge up and rip him into ten thousand pieces to vent their frustration.
The central field darkened again, and the preparation for a new round of combat began.
The participants of both sides of each battle always had almost equal strength. At least, they were in the same Great Realm; after all, if there was a wide gap in their strength, the show would be boring. Countless Demons bet each round, but the Blood Arena was there to adjust the odds too. Naturally, the Blood Arena would be the biggest winner in the end.
[This place is really a money tree!] Yang Kai admired Yu Ru Meng secretly, wondering how rich this woman was.
After watching several rounds of battles, Yang Kai became familiar with the rules here, so he was done with waiting. He also bet several times in the next few battles. He thought that he had good insight, and he did not expect to stumble this time.
He initially was counting on the several hundreds of thousands of Demon Crystals to earn him a pot full of money, but it turned out that he had lost them all in just a few bets.
Seeing this, he almost cursed out of anger.
If he could sense the condition of the two sides, Yang Kai believed that he would not have lost so badly. It was mainly because of the isolation of the Spirit Array that he could not properly analyse the capability of the two fighters each time and he could only observe them with his naked eyes. After a mistake or two, there was nothing for him to bet any more.
His plan to earn Demon Crystals failed, and Yang Kai did not want to stay anymore, so he called Xiao Wu to get ready to leave.
Xiao Wu did not seem to like it here either, so seeing that Yang Kai wanted to leave, she naturally was delighted and quickly followed him.
Although he had been betting before, no one came to collect the Demon Crystals of the bet from him, because when each guest left the Blood Arena, their entry token would be taken back. The entry token recorded all their betting information, and the result of winning or losing would be clear at a glance. If he lost, he just needed to compensate the Demon Crystals to the Blood Arena before leaving. It was the same for winning.
No one dared to repudiate a debt in the Blood Arena, unless they were eager to die.
Yang Kai had 880,000 Demon Crystals left in hand, and the debt in his entry token was just about equal to that.
However, Yang Kai only took two steps towards the exit before the central field lit up again. At this time, the surrounding audiences let out sounds of surprise, as if they saw something incredible.
Yang Kai turned back to look casually, but his eyes suddenly widened and he stopped his feet as he stared at the centre of the stage for a moment.
Xiao Wu, who was following behind him, did not pay attention for a moment and crashed into his back directly. She immediately apologized in fear.
Yang Kai just waved his hand, indicating that it was fine as he took a closer look at a figure in the central stage.
[That’s Yu Ru Meng over there!]
[No, no, that’s not Yu Ru Meng, that’s…]
[Li Shi Qing!]
Yu Ru Meng had been using Li Shi Qing’s face in the Star Boundary, so this face was naturally familiar to Yang Kai. For a moment, he thought that it was Yu Ru Meng when he suddenly saw this face in the central stage, but he quickly realized that it was actually Li Shi Qing.
Yang Kai had tried to probe Yu Ru Meng about Li Shi Qing’s whereabouts before, but she had never disclosed anything to him. Only now did Yang Kai realize that this young woman had been brought to the Demon Realm, the Blood Arena of Enchantment Continent to be specific.
He and the real Li Shi Qing had never been in contact, and neither of them knew the other, but this woman was the Disciple of Flower Shadow Great Emperor. Since Yang Kai encountered her in the Demon Realm, he naturally could not just ignore her.
[But what does this scene mean? Don’t tell me the Demon Race is letting Li Shi Qing participate in battles in the Blood Arena?]
Yu Ru Meng was a Second-Order Emperor Realm Master when she impersonated Li Shi Qing, so the real Li Shi Qing certainly had the same cultivation; otherwise, how could Yu Ru Meng have fooled Flower Shadow Great Emperor and the others? Such cultivation was not bad at all, but this was the Demon Realm, and Li Shi Qing did not possess Yang Kai’s ability to ignore the erosion of Demon Qi, so how could she fight against Demon Kings in the Blood Arena?
Li Shi Qing was standing quietly beside the announcer Demon King. Her cultivation did not seem to be sealed, and she did not seem to be restricted in any way, but she remained unmoved with her eyes closed. The shimmering Emperor Qi on the surface of her body made it evident that she was resisting the intrusion of Demon Qi.
If she did not do this, she most probably would have devolved into a Demon in a short time. It was not clear how long she had persisted in this state, but she did look weary at the moment.
In the central field, the Demon King who brought Li Shi Qing out announced with a faint smile, “I believe everyone here has noticed that this woman looks different from others. That’s right, she is indeed different, because… this woman is a Human from the Star Boundary!”
As soon as the remark was made, the crowd went into an uproar. Many Demon Kings already guessed it when they noticed that Li Shi Qing had been resisting Demon Qi with her Emperor Qi, but they were unsure until this moment.
The Demon King confirmed their suspicions of her being a Human, a rare being to them. Due to the World Principles and the omnipresent Demon Qi in the Demon Realm, it was naturally not safe for any Human to come here. They would most likely fall into the Demon path in short order; however, by the look of Li Shi Qing’s appearance, even though she was tired, she obviously had not lost her mind. In addition, Li Shi Qing’s appearance and figure were incredibly charming, which naturally attracted many Demons.
“I was told that this woman has the cultivation of the Second-Order Emperor Realm in the Star Boundary, which is equivalent to a Mid-Rank Demon King here!” The Demon King paused for a moment, then suddenly raised his voice, “The prize for the next Blood Fight is this woman. Whoever wins the next Blood Fight can take this woman home with him. Heh heh heh, even this King hasn’t experienced the taste of a Master from the Human Race before, how truly envious!”
Li Shi Qing’s brow twitched as sadness filled her face. She could not believe that as a Disciple of Flower Shadow Great Emperor, she had actually fallen to become a prize in the Blood Arena for the Demon Race. She never thought that there would be one day like this and secretly planned that if things went beyond her control, she would immediately end her own life so that she would not embarrass her Honoured Master even in death.
The audiences were quiet for a moment, before it suddenly burst into unimaginable enthusiasm and cheers.
Similar to the announcer Demon King, no one present had tasted a Master from the Human Race. Li Shi Qing had an outstanding appearance and figure, and her cultivation was high too. It would be a great honour if one could really obtain her.
For a moment, the Demons were exhilarated and horrifying howls came up from the audience.
The Demon King then continued, “This Blood Fight has no rules. It will be a free for all. Anyone who signs up can participate, and the only task they have is to survive until the end! Preparation time is a stick worth of incense. What are you waiting for?”
After saying this, he pulled Li Shi Qing’s arm and brought her back down, disappearing without a trace.
As soon as he left, many Demons got up from the audience seats and rushed in the same direction. They were all Demon Kings. Anyone who had cultivation lower than the Demon King Realm was not qualified to participate in such a Blood Fight. This Blood Fight was different from the previous Blood Fight which arranged opponents with similar cultivation. With Li Shi Qing as the prize this time, anyone with low cultivation would only end up being slaughtered in the field, but since it was a free for all, there would still be a chance for them to slip through, so it really depended on their performance later.
Yang Kai turned to Xiao Wu and asked, “Where do I sign up?”
Surprised, Xiao Wu reached out and pointed in a certain direction, “It should be over there.”
Yang Kai looked in that direction and found a group of Demon Kings gathered. Without hesitation, he hurriedly rushed over.
When he first saw Li Shi Qing, Yang Kai immediately began trying to figure out a way to save her, but unexpectedly, the Blood Arena offered him this opportunity. As long as he won, he could bring the beauty home. This was a ready-made solution given to him.
The registration place was crowded, noisy, and chaotic. The Demon Kings with higher cultivation tried hard to push in, while those with weaker cultivation could only back away for now. Fortunately, they were not allowed to start a brawl on their own in the Blood Arena, otherwise, it would probably cause a big mess here.
Yang Kai spent enormous effort to squeeze his way to the front, and slammed on the table at the registration place, “I want to sign up!”
The Demon King in charge of registration looked up at him with a strange look in his eyes, then he nodded, “A hundred thousand Demon Crystals!”
Yang Kai ground his teeth and took out a hundred thousand Demon Crystals from his Space Ring to pay for the registration fee. He was not the only one who had to pay for it, as Yang Kai had noticed that the Demon Kings who signed up before him had done the same; therefore, he was naturally prepared for this.
However, he had bet all his Demon Crystals earlier, so if he spent a hundred thousand Demon Crystals now, he definitely could not settle his debt. He was not sure whether he could bet again later, but if he could, he would bet on himself and try to get some Demon Crystals back.
The Demon received the Demon Crystals, recorded Yang Kai’s entry token number and cultivation, and completed the registration process.
When he left, the Demon in charge of registration looked up at his back again, took out an object, and pinched it in his hand.
Deep in the Blood Arena, a Demon with a profound aura sat on a chair in a room with slightly narrowed eyes. A female Demon knelt beside him, serving him wholeheartedly, while on the other side, a High-Rank Demon King listened carefully to a message of some sort, then turned around to report, “Sir, that guy signed up.”
The Demon seated on the chair nodded gently, showing no other expression.
The High-Rank Demon King hesitated for a while before he questioned, “Why does Sir pay so much attention to this person? What’s special about him?”
Originally, there was no free-for-all planned for the Blood Arena today, let alone with a female Human prize. It was this Sir who suddenly arrived with the female Human to tell him to hold such an event, and also instructed him to pay attention to a certain strange-looking man.
[Now it seems that Sir deliberately used that female Human as bait to attract that guy to sign up for the fight.]
[But how was Sir certain that this man would participate?]
The Demon seated on the chair looked up at him and the heart of the High-Rank Demon King clenched. Quickly, he lowered his head for fear that he had said something wrong. As he was trembling in fright, the Demon seated on the chair suddenly got up and strode outside, disappearing in the blink of an eye, but not before his voice drifted over, “Find ways to kill him!”
The Demon King was stunned for a moment, then replied respectfully, “Yes Sir!”
…..
“Sir, do you know that woman?” Xiao Wu asked while looking at Yang Kai. If this was not the case, why would he suddenly sign up for such a battle? Since both of them were Humans, it seemed likely they knew each other.
“In a sense,” Yang Kai did not explain much.
“Sir, you shouldn’t have signed up.” Xiao Wu was a little anxious, “Those Demon Kings are very cruel. What if something happens to you?”
Yang Kai smiled at her, “It is they who should be worried, not me!”
Xiao Wu persisted though, “Why don’t we leave now? Otherwise, Holy Venerable will put the blame on this maidservant when she finds out about this, and this maid will die miserably.”
Yang Kai shook his head, “I can’t leave. I just paid the registration fee of a hundred thousand Demon Crystals and can’t clear my debt now, so we can’t leave this Blood Arena.”
Xiao Wu’s face turned green when she heard this. Although she had some Demon Crystals on her, it was far from a hundred thousand. Even if she took them out, she could not fill the debt.
Yang Kai further added, “We should be able to bet again though, so you can just bet on me.”
Xiao Wu was appalled, “Why are we still betting? We don’t have any Demon Crystals!”
Yang Kai reached out his hand and gave a knock on her head, “Silly girl. It will be fine as long as we settle the accounts before we leave. Who will know if you don’t have Demon Crystals now? As long as we win, we just need to collect our prize and no one will demand Demon Crystals from us.”
Xiao Wu wanted to tell Yang Kai that it was not like no other Demon has done this before, but they usually had a miserable ending. However, since Yang Kai had already paid, there was no turning back. Now, they could only go all out and place all their hopes on the next bet.
After hesitating for a while, Xiao Wu asked, “Do you want to bet on yourself?”
Yang Kai answered confidently, “Of course, otherwise who else can I bet on?”
“How much?”
“A hundred thousand… No, no, no, bet a hundred million Demon Crystals!”
“One… One hundred million?” Xiao Wu was dumbfounded, looking a little silly with her jaw slightly dropped.
At this time, the central field lit up again. The Demon who had appeared before emerged again, and shouted loudly, “The time has come, all applicants please enter the stage now. Those who have not entered by the time the Spirit Array is opened will automatically forfeit.”
When the voice fell, many figures shot out from the audience seats, and landed on the central field.
Yang Kai urged Xiao Wu, “Remember to bet!”
He straightened his back, flew into the sky, rushed through a light curtain in the blink of an eye, and landed on an open field.
Yang Kai only realized how vast the internal space of this field was after entering it, and he could no longer see the outside scene from the inside. Right now, he was standing on hilly land, surrounded by rubble and weeds.
Before he could check the terrain in detail, five figures suddenly appeared and landed not far from him.
Yang Kai frowned. He was not sure whether he was being paranoid, but he felt hostility towards him from these five Demons, and from the way they arranged themselves, it looked as if they had come here specifically to besiege him.
Looking around, some people dodged eye contact while others grinned menacingly, even directly drawing lines on their necks with their fingers as they stared at Yang Kai.
[Are they thinking I’m some easy target?] Yang Kai chuckled softly and slowly gave them a thumb up, then turned his wrist and pointed his thumb to the ground.
All the Demons around him were maddened as the hostility in their eyes intensified.
In the audience seats, Xiao Wu covered her eyes with her hands, and dared not watch anymore. She really did not understand what her Sir was doing. Such a free for all battle was already dreadfully dangerous in the first place as there were absolutely no rules. Yet, he still provoked so many people just when he entered the field. Did he want to die so badly?
Despite being worried, Xiao Wu remembered Yang Kai’s previous orders clearly. Quickly taking out her entry token and pushing her Divine Sense into it, she saw the betting information for this free-for-all battle in the entry token.
The betting system was different from the previous ones. The previous bets only had two options, but this time, there were as many as seventy or eighty choices. In other words, there were at least seventy Demon Masters in the Blood Arena at the moment, and they were basically all Demon Kings.
Each Demon participating in the fight had their own identity number listed in rows and columns, followed by a simple introduction of their cultivation. Some famous ones even had their own nicknames. Du Feng, who won the Blood Fight before, was impressively listed.
Yang Kai naturally did not have any nicknames. Xiao Wu browsed column by column and quickly found Yang Kai’s number. She glanced at the odds at the back and was startled, thinking she must have read it wrongly.
She took a closer look and confirmed that she did not misread. Yang Kai’s odds were ten to one!
She felt a little odd because the odds are a bit too skewed and seemed very abnormal. Looking at the odds of other Demons, they were all within a normal range. There were a few others whose odds were also ten to one, but those Demons were all Demon Great Generals so it was basically impossible for them to survive to the end.
However, the odds for Demon Kings basically fluctuated in the range of one to one, to two to one at worst.
But the information marked beside Yang Kai’s name listed him as a Mid-Rank Demon King! What was happening? With such unreasonable odds, it was as if the Blood Arena was sure that Yang Kai was bound to die and deliberately decreased the odds to scare off betters.
Xiao Wu didn’t understand it, but she could not afford to contemplate too much at this point. If she delayed any further, the time for betting would end.
She gritted her teeth and closed her eyes, then followed Yang Kai’s instructions and bet one hundred million on him!
After doing all of this, Xiao Wu fell limp, as if all her strength had escaped from her body. She had never felt this much pressure in her life.
On the other hand, in the Blood Arena, Yang Kai stood calmly, gazing at the Demon Kings gathered around him. He swept his Divine Sense over them, getting a full view of their details. There were four Low-Ranks and one Mid-Rank…
Converting their cultivation to Human standards, it was equivalent to four First-Order and one Second-Order Emperor.
[What gave them the confidence to surround me here?]
He intertwined his fingers, stretched his arms downwards, shook his neck, and loosened his shoulders, seemingly stretching before a big fight. The several Demon Kings looked at him with a grin, as if they were looking at a dead man.
With two loud bangs, the free-for-all battle had officially begun!
A Low-Rank Demon King on the left, who seemed to be angered by Yang Kai’s provocation earlier, immediately launched at Yang Kai, wanting to teach him the cost of being so rampant. He grinned cunningly as he approached Yang Kai in just two steps, thickly coated in Demon Qi, as if he could not wait a moment longer. He drew his fist, and threw a punch with a dark ball condensed in front of it towards Yang Kai’s chest.
The destructive aura spread out suddenly, and the Demon King smiled triumphantly.
At the same time, Yang Kai threw out a punch, but there was no flutter of power or fancy display of light, it was just a simple punch.
*Hong… *
The smile on the Demon King’s face instantly stiffened, and a look of disbelief surfaced in his eyes. An unimaginable sense of crisis enveloped him as time seemed to freeze at that moment.
Inexplicably, he felt that everything around him became extremely slow, and he could even clearly see his opponent’s punch smashing his fist into a mist of blood. The violent power did not stop there though as it travelled up his arm, crushing it as easily as dry weeds and rotten wood until it reached his chest.
In an explosion of blood mist, the Demon King vaporized. The Low-Rank Demon King was instantly blasted into nothing by Yang Kai.
Everyone was slow to react.
The other four Demon Kings who were standing nearby, planning to get a better understanding of Yang Kai’s capabilities before making their next move, failed to even come to their senses before Yang Kai, wrapped in a cold murderous intent, charged through that cloud of blood mist and rushed towards another Low-Rank Demon King.
He threw another casual punch, then without taking a second look, turned and flew towards a third Low-Rank Demon King.
When the force of his punch landed on the second Demon King, he too exploded into a blood mist.
The remaining Demon Kings’ faces turned pale in horror as they could hardly believe their eyes. In a brief moment of hesitation, the third Demon King who was punched by Yang Kai had already followed the footsteps of their previous two companions.
[Run!]
The last two Demon Kings instinctively wanted to distance themselves from Yang Kai, but before they could, Yang Kai glanced back suddenly, and grinned at the two of them, sending chills up their spines.
Stretching out his hand, Yang Kai grasped towards these two and with a flicker of Space Principles, the retreating figures were immediately frozen in place, as if they were bound by some invisible shackles. Not only could they not move, but the two Demon Kings were also quickly drawn towards Yang Kai by a strong, irresistible force. Their eyes darting around in panic, the two Demon Kings struggled violently, but only got even more desperate when they watched themselves getting closer and closer to the murderous monster.
Yang Kai leaned back slightly and withdrew his arms. He looked like a stretched bow, and released his fists when he was stretched to the limit.
With two loud bangs, and almost simultaneously, two fists hit the two remaining Demon Kings. The Mid-Rank Demon King and Low-Rank Demon King were almost indistinguishable at this moment as their bodies burst into raining chunks of flesh and blood, dying the ground around them blood red.
In the audience, many Demons witnessed this shocking scene and applauded madly with wild excitement. The abnormality of the situation attracted the attention of others, and more and more Demons began paying attention to Yang Kai’s situation.
Even though most of these Demons did not see the scene where Yang Kai crushed and killed five enemies alone, the condition of the battlefield showed that a bloody battle had broken out here a moment ago, and it did not look like a solo fight, because the battle traces left behind definitely were not left by the death of a single person.
The one who was still alive was undoubtedly the only survivor, which surprised many Demons; after all, the free-for-all battle had only begun three breaths ago. How did so many Demon Kings die so quickly?
After a little inquiry, these Demons learned about the situation, and their curiosity turned into amazement. They paid extra attention to Yang Kai, wanting to see if this guy was really that strong that he could kill five Demon Kings by himself in the blink of an eye.
Some Demons even started investigating Yang Kai on their entry tokens. After discovering the horrible ten-to-one odds, they instantly became upset. Had they known that this guy was so powerful, they would not have hesitated to place their bets on him. Who knows, they just might have gotten rich overnight!
In the corner of the auditorium, Xiao Wu covered her eyes with trembling hands. She did not dare to watch the scene in the Blood Arena. If Yang Kai died here today, she would be doomed. The best she could hope for was a swift execution, but her most likely fate was having her Soul extracted and tortured day and night in excruciating agony for a thousand years!
She did not dare to remove her hands even when cheers erupted all around her, lest she was shown the scene that she dreaded most.
A hand suddenly patted her shoulder gently as a Demon sitting behind her told her kindly, “Hey, your Sir isn’t dead.”
“Not dead?” Xiao Wu was stunned, and slowly removed her hands from her face. She opened one eye anxiously and glanced into the Blood Arena. Yang Kai stood there safe and sound, but the Demon Kings who had gathered around him before had disappeared.
[Where are those Demon Kings?] Before the free-for-all started, there were clearly several Demon Kings near Yang Kai, so Xiao Wu could not help feeling a little confused.
As if seeing through her doubts, the Demon behind her explained, “They were all killed by your Sir.”
Xiao Wu was even more surprised now. Those were five Demon Kings! How were they killed by her Sir so quickly? She then turned around to look at the Demon behind her with a look of shock. She really could not believe it and did not dare to believe it.
The Demon behind her was just a Demon Great General, and when he saw the hideous scars on Xiao Wu’s face, he was taken aback for a moment but quickly returned a smile, “Where did your Sir come from? He looks quite strong.”
Xiao Wu shook his head slowly, she obviously would not answer this question.
That Demon seemed to be unusually chummy so he just asked a different question, “Do you think he will win till the end?”
“I don’t know.”
“I hope he can hold on to the end.” The Demon Great General stared at Yang Kai with bright eyes, his expression exuberant, “If he can live till the end, it will be my lucky day.”
Xiao Wu frowned, “What does it matter to you?”
The Demon Great General gave a low sneaky laugh, “Because I bet two million Demon Crystals on him!”
[So that’s why.] Xiao Wu was speechless for a moment. No wonder this guy cared so much about her Sir, it was because he was betting on him! On second thought, maybe he overheard their conversation before and decided to take a chance; otherwise, with such fishy-looking betting odds, which Demon Great General would be willing to bet on Yang Kai, and with many Demon Crystals at that?
If this man really won his bet, he would be getting twenty million out of his two million bet, which would be enough to purchase many King Rank Demon Artifacts! For a Demon Great General, this was a huge windfall.
Xiao Wu’s guess was accurate. The Demon Great General indeed had overheard the dialogue between Yang Kai and Xiao Wu, which was why he bet on Yang Kai. In his opinion, since Yang Kai dared to wager a hundred million on himself, he must have been very confident about winning. As such, the Demon Great General took decisive action to put all the Demon Crystals he could afford at stake.
Originally, he was still a little worried and felt that he had been too impulsive just now. The odds of ten to one were never seen here in the Blood Arena for a true competitor, so since the Blood Arena dared to offer such odds, it was almost assured that Yang Kai would not survive till the end.
But as soon as he saw Yang Kai’s terrifying power displayed right at the beginning of the battle, this Demon Great General burst into laughter.
With such strength, no regular Demon King would be a match for Yang Kai!
In the Blood Arena, Yang Kai blew a whistle and looked down at his feet. A big withered hand with Demon Qi condensed in its palm appeared out of nowhere around his ankles, attempting to catch him off guard; however, the owner of the big withered hand seemed to have noticed something wrong as his hand was frozen under Yang Kai’s feet and could not move an inch.
When Yang Kai looked toward it, the big hand immediately retracted back into the ground and vanished without a trace.
Yang Kai grinned and stomped his foot on the ground.
*Kacha…*
The ground where his foot landed immediately split apart with a huge crack that spread forward like a spirit snake coming out of its hole, swaying its head and tail at a rapid speed.
A dull grunt was heard from the ground, and a skinny figure soared into the sky from the tip of the crack, covered with sand and dust that concealed his appearance.
It was a Sand Demon, and it was unknown when it started to hide under Yang Kai’s feet. It seemed that this Demon King was waiting for an opportunity to ambush Yang Kai and give him a fatal blow, but the previous five Demon Kings died so fast that they failed to create a suitable chance for him. At the moment, since he was forced to expose himself, the Sand Demon had lost his biggest advantage.
The Sand Demon dashed frantically in one direction as soon as he was exposed. The sand spinning around him shook violently. Wrapped by the trembling Demon Qi, the gravel cast over the entire sky and ground shrouded Yang Kai. Each gravel stone was the product of countless years of cultivated Demon Qi, and their lethality was as powerful as the full blow of a Demon Great General at his peak.
Countless gravel stones bombarded together, forcing even the Demon Kings to retreat.
*Chi Chi Chi… *
A persistent noise filled the air as the Sand Demon turned back to look in a fluster. However, he soon frowned because there was no one behind him, and all his effort struck only air.
Just when he was lost in confusion, a grim aura suddenly appeared in front of him, blocking his way.
The Sand Demon was taken aback and quickly turned his head back towards the front, only to see Yang Kai, who should have been behind him, had now appeared just ten metres in front of him, looking at him mockingly.
[Since when?]
There was no time for him to think about it as he reacted instinctually. Followed by a shake, the Sand Demon came to a halt before trying to sweep past Yang Kai from the side.
Yang Kai lightly stretched out his hand and gently grabbed at the fleeing Demon King, as if he was catching a fly.
The next moment, the Sand Demon felt that his neck was being held by a big hand, his breathing completely obstructed. He hovered high above the ground and was drawn involuntarily towards Yang Kai.
He struggled hard, but he lost his strength to resist the moment a violent Emperor Qi poured into his body.
“You…” Only now did the Sand Demon realize the true extent of Yang Kai’s overwhelming power. What poured into his body was not Demon Qi at all, but rather the Emperor Qi of the Human Race. At this moment, the Sand Demon could not help staring at Yang Kai with his eyes widened in bewilderment.
[Is this guy really a Human?]
Before he could finish his thought, the power that poured into his body began to roil, destroying his flesh, bones, and internal organs. A painful look filled the Sand Demon’s face before a few breaths later he burst into pieces.
Within this short moment, six Demon Kings had died at Yang Kai’s hands.
As if he sensed something, Yang Kai suddenly turned his head to the side and looked into the distance.
A graceful figure stood quietly on the top of a mountain far away, watching him from a distance.
Yang Kai was confused.
[What the Hell? Isn’t the final prize of this fight Li Shi Qing? How come there is a female Demon King contesting for her? Does this female Demon King have some special interests? It could be… After all, the world is so big and anything is possible.]
They exchanged looks across a distance and Yang Kai instantly recognized the female Demon King to be a Feather Demon, because she carried a pair of delicate wings behind her. He grinned at her, but the female Demon King just turned around and left, with a hint of fear flashing across her eyes.
She obviously witnessed Yang Kai’s actions in crushing the Demon Kings just now, and listed Yang Kai as her one of the strongest enemies here, otherwise, she would never have retreated so quickly.
In the audience seats, Xiao Wu covered her red lips with her hands and looked at Yang Kai with a blank mind.
She did not see the scene of Yang Kai killing the previous five Demon Kings, but now she clearly saw how he finished off the Sand Demon. The Sand Demon was also a Demon King, but he was just as vulnerable as a three-year-old child in Yang Kai’s hands.
Her confidence in Yang Kai rose as she suddenly felt that it was not impossible for him to live to the end, so she immediately began paying close attention to his movements. As for the Demon Great General behind her, he remarked with a hearty chuckle, “See, your Sir is really strong. I didn’t bet wrongly this time!”
…..
It seemed that in order to accommodate this large-scale free-for-all battle, the space inside the Blood Arena had become much larger than before. After Yang Kai killed the six Demon Kings, he started to roam around curiously.
To him, the ultimate goal was to win Li Shi Qing, so he treated all the Demons in the Blood Arena as enemies and planned to kill all of them.
Perhaps due to his harmless appearance, in contrast to the vicious looks of the other Demon Kings, he came off as an easy target. Nevertheless, all the Demons who challenged him were killed miserably without exception.
Yang Kai was unstoppable. Besides the achievements of the first six Demon Kings, Yang Kai also killed an additional eight Demon Kings in the following hour.
In other words, more than a dozen Demon Kings had died at his hands in the Blood Arena.
This was an extremely horrifying score. The total number of people participating in this chaotic battle was only between seventy and eighty, so Yang Kai’s actions attracted the attention of countless Demons in the audience seats. All of them kept asking where this guy came from and why they had never seen him before.
Many Demons rooted for Yang Kai with excitement, hoping he could kill more and more and survive to the end.
These were naturally the people who bet on Yang Kai. The Demon Great General behind Xiao Wu was not the only one who bet on Yang Kai. Many Demons wished to become rich overnight too. In the previous betting information, only Yang Kai and several foolish Demon Great Generals had ten to one odds of winning. Those Demon Great Generals definitely could not be relied on, but Yang Kai seemed like a possible winner.
At least a thousand among the tens of thousands in the audience in the Blood Arena had bet on Yang Kai, so at this moment, these thousand people were watching Yang Kai closely, praying he would not die.
After two hours, the chaos in the Blood Arena gradually subsided as less than half of the eighty or so participants were still alive, while the rest were dead.
Nevertheless, those who could live up to now basically had their own life-protecting skills, or were simply far more powerful than the others.
“Eh, what are those guys doing?” The Demon Great General behind Xiao Wu looked at a certain place in surprise as if he suddenly noticed something.
After hearing it, Xiao Wu looked around the Blood Arena, and soon, she found something wrong too.
She had been paying attention to Yang Kai before and did not see the movements of the others at all. Now that her attention was attracted by the Demon Great General though, she suddenly saw many Demon Kings had gathered together in a serious discussion.
[What is this? Is such a scene really happening in the Blood Arena?]
Xiao Wu was astonished. This was her first time coming to the Blood Arena, so she did not understand the rules and norms of this place. She could only turn around and ask the Demon Great General, “Are they teaming up? Are they allowed to do so?”
The Demon Great General smiled, “This fight is a free-for-all and there are no rules. As long as you can survive until the end, nothing is forbidden. It’s just that…”
“Just what?”
“There are too many of them,” The Demon Great General frowned. There was no precedence for such a sight. It was normal for a few people to form temporary alliances in a free-for-all battle, advancing and retreating together, and then decide the victor at the last moment.
But usually, only two or three people would work together while even four would be considered too many; after all, there were more uncertainties in a large group of people and no one could guarantee that the others had no ill intentions. What if they were betrayed by their own ‘allies’ at a critical moment?
However, there were not just three or four Demons gathering together now, but seven or eight of them.
“Someone else is going that way!” Xiao Wu pointed to that place.
The Demon Great General looked in that direction and found that it was true. A Demon King was speeding towards the place where those people gathered. After a while, he arrived at the place and joined them while the initial Demon Kings over there just glanced at him and accepted his presence.
[What are they doing?] The Demon Great General was puzzled. [Even if they wanted to team up, there is no need to gather so many people, right? Moreover, who is the one who managed to bring them all together and make them seek common ground?]
Vaguely, he could feel a conspiracy brewing, and then looked at Yang Kai with a frown.
No matter who these people ultimately wanted to deal with, it would be difficult for Yang Kai. If he wanted to survive until the end, Yang Kai had to break the joined force of these people. Although Yang Kai had killed more than a dozen Demon Kings already with his outstanding skills, it was unclear whether he could pass through this obstacle.
At this time, the group of Demon Kings seemed to have come to an agreement. They all straightened up and flew off in one direction, reaching a certain mountain peak in just a short while. They then executed their own Divine Abilities one after another and hid in different parts of the mountain peak, leaving only one Demon King standing mid-air.
“Are they planning an ambush?” The Demon Great General gaped at them with a dumbstruck look.
They were already almost invincible given that so many Demon Kings had teamed up, yet they were still setting up an ambush? Who deserved so much of their attention?
When everyone was done hiding, the remaining Demon King suddenly flew out into the distance with a flicker.
“Ah?” The Demon Great General behind Xiao Wu suddenly shouted, his face ashen, as he cried with a sad face, “It’s over, it’s over!”
Xiao Wu was startled by his excessive reaction and could not help turning back to glare at him.
The Demon Great General smacked his mouth and looked at Xiao Wu sympathetically, “My condolences!”
“What are you talking about!?” Xiao Wu was extremely infuriated. At this time, she was dreadfully worried for Yang Kai, but this guy behind her was making it worse by talking nonsense. He was cursing her Sir!
“Can’t you see?” The Demon Great General pulled a long face. He looked so depressed and distressed as if someone had shaved a few pounds of flesh off him.
“See what?” Xiao Wu frowned even harder.
The Demon Great General kneaded his forehead in frustration, [It’s so obvious, how can she not see it? This woman is really stupid.]
Still, he immediately explained, “Those guys are targeting your Sir!”
“What?” Xiao Wu was shocked when she heard the words. She quickly fixed her stare at the field and sure enough, something was not right. The Demon King who flew out from that mountain peak made a beeline towards Yang Kai, and it was only a matter of time before they met each other.
She clearly saw the setup made by this group of Demon Kings. A group of malicious Demons set up an ambush on the top of a mountain, but only one of them rushed out. It was obviously bait to lure someone into the trap.
Now that she received a hint from the Demon Great General behind her, Xiao Wu finally understood.
Yang Kai was their prey!
It could be accidental, or it may be intentional. If it was just a coincidence, it could only be said that Yang Kai was out of luck, but in the case it was intentional, it meant that Yang Kai’s previous record of killing more than a dozen Demon Kings had stirred up fear in the Demon Kings who participated in the free for all battle, leading to so many of them teaming up to deal with him.
Nevertheless, her Sir was in a dangerous situation now, so Xiao Wu could not help clenching her fists and screaming silently inside, hoping that Yang Kai would change direction or see through the enemy’s trap in advance.
Unfortunately, she got the opposite of what she hoped for as it was impossible for Yang Kai to perceive the trap ahead.
The Demon King who rushed out came to face Yang Kai after a bit more than ten breaths. Xiao Wu watched the Demon King initiate the first round of attacks without saying a word. Yang Kai easily resolved these attacks, and the Demon King immediately turned around and transformed into a blood beam, escaping at an extremely fast speed. It seemed like he had no intention to fight Yang Kai to the death, and was obviously just trying to lead him into the encirclement.
This was a Mid-Rank Demon King, and he was a Blood Demon!
In the Blood Arena, Yang Kai chased after this Demon with a grin. He did not want to show his hand up until the last moment, so he never used his Space Divine Abilities in any obvious manner. Even so, his speed was much faster than the Blood Demon’s, and it did not take long for him to reach a distance close enough for him to throw a killing move.
However, at that exact moment, a stream of light whizzed towards Yang Kai from the side with an ear-piercing sound.
Yang immediately came to a sudden stop as a strong wind swept across his cheek.
After another deep thud, an arrow was shot right next to Yang Kai’s feet. It was four metres long and as thick as a child’s arm, like an indestructible spear. The tail trembled slightly as the Demon Qi arrow buried itself almost a metre into the ground, radiating a heart-palpitating power, demonstrating the extraordinary strength of the shooter.
Yang Kai turned his head to look around coldly, and sure enough, a few kilometres away stood a graceful figure clothed in a tight black suit with a large bow in her hand, its bowstring vibrating slightly.
Due to the sudden change, the fleeing Blood Demon stopped as well and turned back to look with a frown on his face.
His purpose this time was to lure Yang Kai into the trap that has been set up, but an unexpected variable had suddenly sprung up, leading to a hiccup in the original plan. This naturally put him in a foul mood.
Taking a closer look at the Feather Demon who shot the arrow, the Blood Demon seemed to recognize her and instantly felt a headache coming on.
It was a problem to stay here; after all, his role was to bait Yang Kai into the trap and stopping to look for too long would only cause the latter to become suspicious, so after a brief hesitation, the Blood Demon turned around and flew away again.
There would always be a next time if the plan failed this time, but it would all be ruined if Yang Kai found out about their machinations.
Yang Kai did not continue his pursuit of the Blood Demon. It did not matter to him who it was, everyone in this Blood Arena was ultimately going to die, it was just a matter of time.
At this moment, he recognized the person who shot at him with an arrow in the distance. It was the same Feather Demon that he saw from a distance when he first came in.
A female Demon King, and a Feather Demon too. Who else could it be besides her?
Reaching out to grab the tail of the arrow at his feet, Yang Kai pulled it out with slight effort, dispersing the Demon Qi around it, revealing a normal-sized arrow. Weighing this arrow in his hand, Yang Kai raised his head and smiled at the Feather Demon who was a few thousand metres away.
In the next moment, he pulled back his arm and hurled the arrow in that direction.
*Xiu… *
The tip of the arrow flashed into a sharp ray of light and seemed to leap across space as it blasted towards the Feather Demon with a Heaven-destroying and Earth-shattering power.
In the blink of an eye, the arrow was right in front of the Feather Demon.
However, she remained unmoved and calm. With the bow in her hand raised up in front of her, she twirled it slightly and brushed against the oncoming arrow. With a pull, the bowstring was pulled taught in an instant and with another twirl, the arrow was nocked on her bow once more.
At this moment, Yang Kai was already only three hundred metres away from the Feather Demon, having advanced towards her at the same time he hurled that feather arrow.
Yang Kai’s eyes lit up in surprise and silently admired her skill.
The fluctuation of Demon Qi coming from the Feather Demon indicated that she only had a Mid-Rank Demon King cultivation, but her reflexes and her ability to respond quickly to situations was by no means something an ordinary Mid-Rank Demon King could possess.
The power of his hurl was immense, but she only used a slight twirl of her bow to nullify most of his strength. Such a superb skill executed so boldly in the heat of battle proved that this Feather Demon was outstanding and a rare talent.
Yang Kai even felt that he might have underestimated this female Demon King.
No sooner had the arrow been nocked on the bowstring again did it fire. Yang Kai did not back down, however, and just tilted his head slightly, evading the arrow by a hair as he charged towards the Feather Demon at lightning speed.
As an excellent archer, the Feather Demon naturally knew what her greatest advantage was and she did not give Yang Kai a chance to close in further. With minimum movement, her figure floated up and retreated. Tightening all five of her slender fingers, the bowstring was pulled taut again, releasing arrow after arrow in a constant barrage.
In an instant, more than ten sharp arrows were released, breaking through the barrier of space, piercing fiercely towards Yang Kai.
Yang Kai evaded the first few shots but was unable to dodge the latter ones. His opponent’s archery was better than he expected and with no other choice, he stretched out his hand and grabbed in front of him. Space Principles fluctuated and a dark black hole suddenly appeared.
Although he also used Space Principles when he killed off some Demons earlier, he always did so inconspicuously so as not to be noticed by others.
But the appearance of this black hole would no doubt expose the cards in his hands.
However, this was not a big deal as he had many tricks up his sleeves, so exposing a few of them would not cause major damage.
The black hole devoured everything, and even the next few arrows were sucked into it and disappeared.
Yang Kai looked up and saw the Feather Demon show a trace of amazement on her face. She obviously did not expect Yang Kai to resolve her killing moves so easily, but she regained her composure a moment later and drew her bow again, releasing another arrow.
This time was different though as after three breaths, the released arrow released a dazzling light as it whizzed towards Yang Kai.
Yang Kai was unmoved by the sudden development and once again extended his hand, summoning the same black hole again.
However, when the black hole was just about to swallow the arrow, a slight pop was heard and the four-metre-long arrow exploded into a rain of black arrows that covered a wide area.
This move caught Yang Kai off guard as he stared at the scene in a daze.
*Ding Ding Dang Dang… *
Countless crisp sounds echoed, but while the number of arrows increased greatly, the power behind each one was proportionally decreased, so Yang Kai was able to defend against all of them with his Emperor Qi alone.
As the clinking sounds gradually faded, Yang Kai broke through the rain of arrows wrapped in a chilly aura, his face grimacing in pain before he disappeared from that place with a flicker.
The Feather Demon was admiring her own masterpiece with a smile, but her complexion changed slightly at this odd scene and she hurriedly flipped her bow behind her back.
At the same time, Yang Kai’s figure had reappeared behind her, throwing a punch with all his strength, but the blow landed on the opponent’s bow instead of her head
The bow groaned hard and bent severely, but it successfully nullified most of the blow’s strength. The Feather Demon flipped up and around, taking advantage of the force of Yang Kai’s blow as she tightly gripped her bow and pulled hard, drawing her bowstring towards his neck, gracefully arching herself to increase the speed to its maximum.
Yang Kai’s eyes widened as he quickly lifted his hand to protect the front of his throat.
With a twang, Yang Kai felt a sharp pain on his palm from the cut of the bowstring.
Even though he knew that the cut was not lethal, Yang Kai still broke out into a cold sweat. The instincts and reflexes of this female Demon King… were simply superb. He initially thought that all Feather Demons would be easy to kill in close quarters, but this particular Feather Demon seemed like an exception. Whether it was in long-range or close quarters, her combat prowess was outstanding and her flexible use of her own strength led Yang Kai into trouble just now.
With a push of his palm, Yang Kai knocked the bowstring away and clenched his free hand into a hammer fist that he swung backwards with full force.
The punch smashed nothing but air as the female Demon King swiftly released one hand from her bow, executed a half spin, and leaned back greatly in order to dodge.
Yang Kai glanced over his shoulder and saw the female Demon King’s towering chest facing towards the sky as she arched her back, while his fist brushed across the tip of her nose. Even from this angle, he could clearly see the fair white valley between her proud peaks.
In no position to appreciate this glorious sight though, Yang Kai sent out a spin kick towards his opponent.
The female Demon King kicked off of Yang Kai and rebounded upwards, flipping up her bow and tightening her grip around her bowstring again. Another arrow manifested and was pulled taut, but this time it was only one metre long. It was obviously made especially for close combat, and the tip of the arrow was green, probably laced with poison. The bowstring shook as the tip of the arrow pressed up against Yang Kai’s temple and the female Demon King looked at Yang Kai provocatively and mockingly, “You’re dead!”
Yang Kai faced her sideways, with the same provocative expression and grin, “We’ll see who dies first!”
As soon as his words fell, the female Demon King frowned and looked down at her chest. Yang Kai’s hand, that was bent into a claw, just touched onto her left peak, his fingertips flickering with a dangerous light.
“Tsk…” The female Demon King spat in frustration as Yang Kai had managed to gain the upper hand because of her carelessness.
However, realization dawned on her when she felt the fluctuation of Yang Kai’s power in close proximity. She looked at Yang Kai curiously with a slight frown, “Are you the Human who was brought back from the Star Boundary by the Holy Venerable?”
Yang Kai raised his brow and asked, “Do you know me?”
The female Demon King giggled, “It is rumoured that a Master from the Human Race had fallen to the Demon path, had no place to stay in the Star Boundary, and had to follow the Holy Venerable to Enchantment Continent. Looks like it’s you.”
“News spreads fast,” Yang Kai looked disgruntled, as if something he wanted to keep a secret was exposed, and a hint of murderous intent flashed across his eyes, like he was about to silence all witnesses to his crime.
The female Demon King sensed his intent, but remained unafraid and even pressed on faintly, “There’s no use in killing me alone. Many in the Holy City already knew about you; after all, you are the one who the Holy Venerable brought back herself.” After a pause, she continued, “Furthermore, if you really want to kill me, who knows who will die first.”
Yang Kai’s eyes flickered ferociously in hesitation and struggle, but behind his act he was actually wondering who was the one who spread this news.
[I just arrived in the Demon Realm a few days ago, and it’s impossible that Yu Ru Meng publicized such a matter recklessly, so it could only have been done by someone else, but for what purpose?]
“Hey, you should let go now.” While Yang Kai was still immersed in his thoughts, the female Demon King called out to him.
Yang Kai snorted and quickly retrieved his hand. No matter the circumstances, it was inappropriate for a man to lay his hand on a woman’s chest in public. A hint of surprise flashed across the other party’s eyes, but at the same time, she retracted her arrow too.
This strange scene confused the tens of thousands of audience members in the Blood Arena. The two were fighting with the intent to kill each other just now, so how was it that they were now coexisting peacefully all of a sudden?
Nevertheless, Xiao Wu and the Demon Great General behind her were relieved at the same time. When they saw Yang Kai with a sharp, poisoned arrow pressed against his head, they almost forgot how to breathe, for they were afraid of seeing the scene that they did not wish to see happen next. With the heavy stone lifted from their hearts, they sat down on the seats limply together. It was truly thrilling just now.
Inside the Blood Arena, Yang Kai looked sideways at the female Demon King with a complicated look.
The reason why he stopped his actions just now so readily was not out of compassion for women, but because he noticed something in her previous series of attacks. Although each one seemed sharp and vicious, there was no murderous intent behind any of them, as if she was probing him just now; or rather, she was testing him.
Besides, he also wanted to find out what this female Demon King was trying to achieve.
“Why didn’t you stay in the Holy Venerable’s palace and instead come out to this Blood Arena?” The female Demon King asked as she looked Yang Kai up and down a few times. After questioning, she suddenly was enlightened, “Oh, I see. Are you here for the prize?” She leaned closely in excitement, “How did you know there would be such a prize in the Blood Arena? Do you have any inside information? Can you let me in on the secret?”
[Inside information my ass!] Yang Kai cursed in his heart and replied impatiently, “If you want to say something, just spit it out!”
The female Demon King was obviously annoyed by his rude attitude and clicked her tongue, but as she played with the bow in her hand, she raised her eyes and remarked softly, “You owe me your life, shouldn’t you say thanks first?”
Yang Kai stared at her with a trace of pity appearing in his eyes, “Insane woman!” He muttered before turning away and leaving.
The female Demon King was stunned momentarily, but after she regained her wits, with a flicker, she blocked Yang Kai’s path and glared at him fiercely, “Did you just curse me?”
“Go away!” Yang Kai threatened her with a huge fist and a ferocious look, “I don’t like beating women, but it doesn’t mean I won’t. If you dare pester me endlessly, I’ll immediately take your life!”
He did not mind killing this unknown female Demon King here and now; after all, there would be one less enemy for Star Boundary to face if he did.
The female Demon King looked like she had choked and her big eyes widened. So angry she had to laugh, she snapped, “Do you think I’m playing with you? Do you know if I hadn’t stopped you just now, you would already be a dead man?”
“Oh?” Yang Kai was surprised, but he maintained a calm composure, and asked as he looked at her coldly, “Do you mind telling me how I would have died then?”
The female Demon King snickered, “You were being led into a trap where more than ten Demon Kings were waiting to ambush you, including three High-Rank Demon Kings. Do you still think that you could have kept your life?”
Yang Kai frowned, gazing thoughtfully in the direction that the Blood Demon had fled towards before, and then looked back at the Feather Demon, “How did you know?”
It would truly put him in trouble if he was besieged by more than ten Demon Kings, with several High-Rank Demon Kings among them. Even if he could break out of such a siege, he would certainly need to expose many of his cards to do so.
Yang Kai really did not want this situation to happen in front of everyone’s eyes. He came to the Demon Realm for a purpose, and while Yu Ru Meng knew about his skills already, others did not know yet. Yu Ru Meng was not so bored she would go around exposing his information; therefore, it was better to keep his abilities unrevealed for his own convenience in the future.
The Feather Demon sneered, “Are you afraid now?”
“Afraid?” Yang Kai guffawed, “This King betrayed the Star Boundary and escaped from the grip of a Great Emperor. He has also fought with and escaped from a Pseudo-Great Emperor, so there is nothing in this world I need fear.”
The Feather Demon was stunned. Although she was a Demon, she knew about the Great Emperors and Pseudo-Great Emperors. They were existences on par with the Holy Venerables and Half-Saints of the Demon Realm. To her, Yang Kai must be an extremely audacious guy who dared to betray the Star Boundary and fight against a Great Emperor and Pseudo-Great Emperor.
Not willing to be entangled in this matter any further, she curled her lip and said, “You don’t need to care about how I know about it. Anyways, in this current situation, some people have begun to work together to stop you from getting the final victory.”
Yang Kai stroked the stubble on his chin and nodded lightly, “If things are really as you said, this King owes you a favour. If you get into trouble in the future, look for me in the Holy Venerable’s Palace and this King will not refuse to help you if he can.”
He did not doubt what this Feather Demon stated because it was meaningless to deceive him in such a place. Moreover, the Feather Demon had excellent eyesight and archery skills. Some powerful Feather Demons could even cultivate an amazing Pupil Technique that allowed them to see many things that others could not see.
Of course, everything would be pointless if she could not survive this battle. Even if Yang Kai was not killing her now, it did not mean that he would not attack her at the end of this battle. If he really had to, he would not hesitate at all.
“Why would I still need your favour if you die?” The Feather Demon sneered.
“Then, what do you want?” Yang Kai glanced sideways at her, for he believed she did not stop him from falling into the trap after noticing some situation out of the goodness of her heart. She must have other intentions.
“Let’s team up,” Although the Feather Demon was a woman, she was notably straightforward and disclosed her purpose directly.
“You? Team up with me?” Yang Kai blinked his eyes, pointing his finger at her, then back to himself. The corners of his mouth slowly curved into a smile.
The Feather Demon’s face darkened, and she jumped like thunder, “Bastard, how dare you look down on me!?” After saying so, she pulled back the arrow nocked on the bowstring of her weapon, preparing to teach Yang Kai a lesson.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Yang Kai raised his hands, indicating to her not to make any impulsive move, “I didn’t mean anything like that.”
“Then what did you mean?” The Feather Demon gnashed her teeth, for she surely saw a trace of disdain in the bastard’s smile.
“I’m a Human, while you’re a Demon. It’s strange for us to work together…” Yang Kai simply made an excuse. However, thinking about it carefully, having such a helper would save him a lot of effort and perhaps he would not have to expose too many of his abilities later.
“Really?” The Feather Demon looked sideways at Yang Kai, with her bright eyes full of distrust.
Yang Kai raised his three fingers to the sky and shouted seriously, “I swear!”
The Feather Demon then put away the arrow and snorted, “You better not be lying to me, otherwise, your end won’t be pretty.” After a pause, she continued, “What do the Human Race and the Demon Race have to do with this? You’ve already been demonified and betrayed the Star Boundary anyway. Although you’re not a pure Demon, you have the attributes of a Demon. Sooner or later, you’ll be a member of our Demon Race! Besides, so what if you’re still a Human? This Lady wants to team up with you and I’ll beat whoever can’t accept this!”
“Good!” Yang Kai gave her a thumbs-up, and touched his head, “I have another question.”
“Speak!”
“If you and I really work together to defeat our enemies, what should we do in the end?”
The Feather Demon pursed her lips and replied with a cruel, cold smile, “Of course, whoever manages to live to the end gets the prize.”
“Oh!” Yang Kai put on a face as if realization just dawned on him and he snapped his fingers, “That means there will be a fight between you and me in the end.”
The Feather Demon looked at him cheekily, “You can kill yourself too, since you are no match for me!”
Yang Kai cackled, “Keep up that confidence, it will be your downfall!”
An upset look etched on the Feather Demon’s face…
Yang Kai suddenly stretched out his hand to her, and introduced himself solemnly, “Yang Kai!”
The Feather Demon frowned, and it took her a while to react to the situation, but she, too, stretched out her hand to shake his a moment later, “Bo Ya!”
The palm of her hand was suddenly scratched. Feeling itchy, Bo Ya immediately castigated Yang Kai, “Bastard, are you taking advantage of me?”
After saying so, she quickly retracted her hand out of Yang Kai’s palm, wiping it on her clothes, shivering like she was disgusted to the core…
Yang Kai stared at Bo Ya dumbfounded and asked, “Are you only fond of women?”
At the first sight of this woman, Yang Kai already wondered why a female Demon King would sign up for this battle, so he was curious if she had any other ‘special’ interest.
Now, after such a test, he found that it was really like what he thought. This enchanting and beautiful female Demon King in front of him, who had an ample and alluring figure, actually had a different type of fetish.
“It’s none of your damn business who this Lady likes!” Bo Ya scolded, completely unashamed by Yang Kai’s exposure of such private information.
Yang Kai grumbled in his heart, but was too lazy to be bothered by her bad attitude. He thus turned his head and looked in the direction where the Blood Demon had fled, and asked, “Since you have seen through their plot, you obviously have a way to deal with it, right? Let’s hear it, how can you and I work together?”
The corner of Bo Ya’s mouth twitched as she looked at Yang Kai mockingly, “Of course you will be the one charging forward and attracting their attention while I ambush from behind and shoot them down one by one!”
This was the most straightforward solution. It had zero guarantees of safety for Yang Kai; after all, no one could guarantee whether Bo Ya was in on this conspiracy, and there was no guarantee that she would not shoot Yang Kai from behind as well. She thought Yang Kai would refuse her, and then try to come up with a better plan together, but he simply nodded after a brief moment of contemplation, “Good idea, let’s do that.”
Astonishment flashed across Bo Ya’s eyes as Yang Kai’s reaction was quite different from what she had expected, [Is he that confident?]
In the next moment, Bo Ya felt a tap on her shoulder, but was shocked to realize that Yang Kai was staring at her solemnly, “Let’s join hands and wreak havoc!”
Bo Ya’s back was suddenly covered in a layer of cold sweat as she did not even notice when Yang Kai had gotten so close to her. In other words, if this man in front of her wanted to kill her, she would have died just now…
[Is this a warning?] Bo Ya frowned before she suddenly laughed. The stronger Yang Kai was, the higher the chances of success were if she teamed up with him. Right now, she was only afraid that Yang Kai was not strong enough.
…..
Above the mountain, the blood-red beam flew down and stopped at the summit, revealing the figure of the Blood Demon who had fled before, his face full of helplessness.
All the hidden Demon Kings came out when they saw him, gathered around, and whispered together. Several Demon Kings suddenly revealed resentful expressions.
No one knew what they were discussing, but the Demons in the audience could pretty much guess the content of their conversation. It could only be about the failed plan to lure the enemy into their trap, and about what they would do next…
At this moment, there was an uproar from the audience as everyone fixed their eyes at Yang Kai and Bo Ya in a daze.
The man and the woman seemed to have sealed their deal to team up and were now heading towards the direction where the Blood Demon had fled.
Xiao Wu covered her red lips with a look of disbelief on her face.
The Demon Great General behind her was pulling his hair out as his face scrunched up in pain as he wailed, “What is he doing? Isn’t he walking right into their trap? Crazy, this is crazy. My poor Demon Crystals!”
Initially, he naively thought Yang Kai was very lucky that the Feather Demon’s sudden appearance stopped him at a critical moment, but how could he have known that this Feather Demon was also an idiot and followed Yang Kai to walk into the trap together?
[Were these two bored of living?] The Demon Great General could not bear watching anymore for fear that he would have a nervous breakdown.
Inside the Blood Arena, Yang Kai flew forward unimpeded, with no sign of Bo Ya next to him. The woman had already concealed her aura and was trailing Yang Kai by about ten kilometres, keeping a constant distance between them.
It was almost impossible to detect her presence unless she made a move.
They travelled several kilometres and reached their destination in short order.
Yang Kai arrived at the foot of the mountain and looked up at the lush and verdant forests. A breeze swept through the dense trees, giving Yang Kai a sense of danger and hostility. Based on his Divine Sense, there were more than ten Demons Kings of all rankings hiding within the luscious greenery, including a few High-Rank Demon Kings. The situation corresponded to the information provided by Bo Ya.
He stood calmly and watched for a while. Xiao Wu, on the other hand, almost passed out in her seat, silently screaming inside, [Don’t go in, don’t go in, it’s a trap!]
The Demon Great General behind her was also holding his breath, his eyes glued to Yang Kai’s figure, praying that he could sense something abnormal and then leave that place.
In the next moment, in front of everyone’s eyes, Yang Kai cupped his hands around his mouth, sucked in his breath and shouted, “Anyone home…”
The sound waves converged and swayed the trees left and right as if thunder had struck, and the leaves rustled noisily.
The Demon Great General slumped on his chair, looking close to collapsing.
Several kilometres away, Bo Ya, who was slowly approaching in concealment, was also annoyed. She could not help slapping her forehead as she grumbled, [This guy… What the Hell is wrong with him? All the enemies would know that you’re here when you’re shouting like that. How are we going to ambush them now?]
Suddenly, the decision of teaming up with Yang Kai felt like not such a good idea after all. She even had the urge to just turn around and leave, since she didn’t really care if Yang Kai lived or died.
On the mountain peak, the more than ten Demon Kings were still gathered together. It seemed that there was a dispute among them and they were still deep in discussion, but at this moment, they all turned their heads and looked down at the foot of the mountain with expressions of pleasant surprise on their faces.
They initially thought that since the plan to lure the enemy into an ambush had failed, they would have to come up with another one, but now that the prey had taken the initiative to send himself to their doorstep, it was their lucky day.
More than ten pairs of eyes quickly exchanged glances before one of the Demon Kings rose into the sky and flew straight to the foot of the mountain, Meanwhile, the others quickly concealed their presence.
The Demon King this time was a different one, after all, the Blood Demon earlier was ‘repelled’ by Yang Kai once, so his reappearance would cause some suspicion. As such, another Demon King took over the task of baiting the enemy!
This was a savage-looking Bone Demon. There was no flesh on his frame and every inch of his skeleton was inky black, except for the two flickering lights in the eye sockets.
Like the Blood Demon, this Bone Demon was a Mid-Rank Demon King; after all, according to the news these Demon Kings received, Yang Kai had killed a lot of Demon Kings in this Blood Arena already, so sending a Low-Rank Demon King to confront him would only be courting death while sending a High-Rank Demon King might risk frightening Yang Kai away. A Mid-Rank Demon King was the only choice.
It only took a few breaths of time to reach the foot of the mountain from its peak. Then Bone Demon’s glowing eyes were locked onto Yang Kai as he pointed downward, and a sharp bone spur wrapped in dark Demon Qi shot out, reaching right in front of Yang Kai as soon as it appeared, as if it had completely ignored the barrier of space.
With a sneer, Yang Kai stood in place with his head slightly hung, the bone spur nowhere to be seen.
[Did I hit him?] Then Bone Demon was also surprised. [Didn’t they say that this guy was very strong and killed a lot of Demon Kings along the way? How could he be so vulnerable?]
He wanted to laugh. If Yang Kai had really died at his hands, he would have made a huge contribution.
At this point, there was no need to consider how to lure the enemy into their trap. If Yang Kai could be killed here, why would they need to go through the trouble of baiting and ambushing him? The idea of getting all the credit to himself was far more tempting than having to share it with more than ten others.
As such, the Bone Demon dived down with a flicker and pulled out a pitch-black rib bone from his abdomen. The bone glowed, looking like a sword sharpened to the extreme. It was actually a high-quality Demon Artifact, one refined from the bones of the Bone Demon himself.
All Bone Demons liked to do this. They would pick the hardest piece of bone in their body and refine it into a Demon Artifact, using it to enhance their strength when confronting an enemy.
With the bone sword in hand, the Bone Demon’s murderous intent soared as he seemed intent on finishing off Yang Kai in one go.
Suddenly, Yang Kai’s drooped head rose, revealing a grin on his face to the approaching Bone Demon.
This smile frightened the Bone Demon out of his wits because the bone spur that he thought had hit Yang Kai was actually clenched tightly between this strange man’s teeth, having done no harm at all.
[It was a trap!] The Bone Demon reacted immediately, but because of his greed, he advanced rashly and now he was only a hundred metres away from Yang Kai. It was too late for him to retreat, so he made a decisive move and swung the bone sword in his hand down fiercely.
Yang Kai spat out the bone spur, grabbed it in his hand, and flipped his wrist up to meet the Bone Demon head-on.
The bone spur collided with the bone sword with a resounding clang. An extremely ear-piercing sound rang out as sparks flew in all directions.
Yang Kai did not move, while the Bone Demon felt a huge and incomparable force knock against him. The bone sword in his hand almost flew out of his hand and his entire skeletal body tumbled backwards several times from the impact.
When his vision was no longer spinning, the Bone Demon saw Yang Kai rushing toward him like a bolt of lightning with the bone spur still in hand.
An indescribable sense of dread rose from the Bone Demon’s heart as a sense of crisis shrouded him. The Bone Demon’s eyes flickered madly as an impossible thought flashed across his mind, [I will undoubtedly die if he gets close!]
He was a Mid-Rank Demon King in the end though, so although he accidentally put himself at a disadvantage, it was not a fatal error.
He raised his hand fiercely, and the bones of his five fingers flew out and expanded in the air, suddenly transforming into five Bone Golems that were several tens of metres tall and advanced towards Yang Kai in a row. These Demon-Qi-coated skeletons held a blade, sword, shield, axe and hammer respectively.
The five skeletons transformed by the Bone Demon’s hand exuded aura fluctuations on par with a Low-Rank Demon King, and they were closely coordinated like an arm and its fingers.
The Bone Golem that held a shield rushed forward, providing the most powerful protection to the other Bone Golems that were now flanking Yang Kai from other directions, their jaws chattering with clicking sounds.
Completely ignoring them though, as if he had not seen the five Bone Golems, Yang Kai advanced and directly collided with the huge shield.
The Bone Golem that was holding the shield could not withstand the violent impact and its huge several-dozen-metre-tall body was knocked back like a meteor, all while the other four Bone Golems swung their weapons and hit nothing but vague afterimages.
The Bone Demon lost track of Yang Kai at that moment, The two faint lights in his eyes became much brighter, and his Divine Senses expanded like a tide to scan his surroundings.
Yang Kai was neither at his left, nor right, nor rear.
The Bone Demon stared at the shield-holding Bone Golem who was advancing towards him and seemed to peer through it. With a hand seal, the shield-holding Bone Golem burst into pieces and turned into a rain of bones, pouring down in a dome shape that covered a wide region without any path of escape.
Unfortunately, there was no one behind the shield-holding Bone Golem as the Bone Demon expected.
The Bone Demon’s heart sank and he quickly looked up as a faint light immediately flashed in his eyes. Finally, he found a trace of his enemy.
From high above, Yang Kai dove head down towards the Bone Demon rapidly.
The bones of Bone Demon cracked under the mountain-like pressure of Yang Kai’s surging Emperor Qi and he desperately pushed his Demon Qi to resist, but the sensational pressure was crushing and immobilizing him.
[This guy is actually so powerful!]
Although he had long known that Yang Kai had killed many Demon Kings on the way, including some Mid-Rank Demon Kings, the Bone Demon had not realized how terrifying he was until he really faced him.
This was not the strength someone should have at such a cultivation. He… was unstoppable!
*Hong…*
A pressure wave spread out as the ground shook for a moment. Even though there was a powerful Spirit Array that isolated the inside from the outside, all the audience members in the Blood Arena still felt this impact. Shocked by this terrifying palm strike, the same thought came to all their minds, [Where did this guy come from? Why haven’t I heard of him before?]
There was a moment of calmness as Yang Kai hovered one metre above the ground, looking down lightly.
In close proximity, the Bone Demon had been pummeled into the dirt, leaving only his head above ground. The faint light in his eyes flickered unsteadily as he was obviously dazed by Yang Kai’s strike.
His Soul was unstable, and the several Bone Golems under his control danced around groggily, as if they were drunk.
Just when the Bone Demon regained his senses after much effort, he felt that the light above him was obscured by a tall shadow. As he looked up, he saw that Yang Kai had squatted in front of him and stretched out his hand to pat his skull, even brushing it lightly like he was painting a picture. Yang Kai’s Emperor Qi had broken through the defences of the Bone Demon, poured into his body, and sealed his cultivation, making him lose the ability to resist.
Their eyes met, and the Bone Demon saw a hint of ridicule in Yang Kai’s gaze. The faint light in his eyes could not help flickering as he felt a sense of disaster was about to befall him.
“If you tell me who ordered you to do this, this King will give you a quick death!” Yang Kai whispered softly to him.
More than ten Demon Kings in this Blood Arena free for all had gathered to ambush him. Yang Kai did not believe such a huge incident was just a coincidence. There must be a mastermind behind this. He had not offended anyone since he arrived at Demon Realm a few days ago, except for one possibility…
The Bone Demon remained silent. He knew that Yang Kai was going to kill him anyway, so he naturally would not let Yang Kai achieve his wish. As there was a saying, ‘silence is golden’.
Yang Kai smiled with his teeth bared, “Even if you don’t say it, I have a pretty good guess… It was Yue Sang, right?”
Yue Sang showed open hostility and murderous intent when they met for the first time, and as a Half-Saint, Yue Sang would also have the ability to influence the events in the Blood Arena.
There was no need for the Bone Demon to respond as when Yang Kai mentioned the name, he clearly felt the Bone Demon’s Soul tremble, which made him more certain of his guess.
“One more question.” Yang Kai looked at him with a grin, “Is a female Demon King named Bo Ya part of your scheme?”
Although Bo Ya’s previous behaviour was not suspicious, Yang Kai could not just trust her completely. It would be best if he could find out something about her from this Bone Demon’s mouth. It did not matter to him if he could not get anything in the end, but it would not cost him any effort or time to simply ask.
“Just kill me.” The Bone Demon’s jaws chattered, emitting a metallic screeching sound with its movement, “Why talk so much nonsense? Do you think this King will tell you anything?”
He had no idea what Yang Kai’s intentions were to inquire about this, but it was useless to say anything now. He only hated himself for taking the enemy too lightly and rushing ahead rashly. He could only hope that the others in his group learned a lesson from this and avenged him.
Yang Kai nodded as the Emperor Qi in his hand suddenly surged and poured it into the Bone Demon’s body.
*Kacha…*
A series of cracking noises rang out as every bone in the Bone Demon’s skeleton shattered and the two faint lights in his eye sockets went out.
After getting rid of the Bone Demon, Yang Kai immediately looked up and charged towards the mountain peak at lightning speed without any hesitation.
Just halfway up the mountain, fierce attacks suddenly blasted at Yang Kai from the top of the mountain. A burning fireball as large as a washbasin, a bolt of lightning as thick as a child’s arm, an ice cone, a wind blade…
As if dancing on the scythe of the reaper of death, Yang Kai dodged up and down, swaying his body from side to side, managed to evade all these deadly attacks at the critical juncture and reach the top of the mountain unscathed.
Without any warning, he suddenly slammed his fist out and shook the surrounding space.
A phantom-like figure appeared staggeringly with a ghostly cry of surprise. It was actually a Shadow Demon.
The Shadow Demon’s body was dimly discernible, but his eyes revealed a light of surprise, as if he did not expect that his concealment would be seen through.
Yang Kai guffawed and remarked in a deep voice, “Die!”
When the voice fell, he leapt in front of the Shadow Demon and stretched out his hand to grab him. Under the fluctuation of Space Principles, a dark black hole instantly appeared behind the Shadow Demon.
The Shadow Demon had an exceptionally fast reaction and with a flicker, he turned into a thousand black crows that flapped their wings and fled frantically in all directions.
The black hole started to devour and swallowed many of the black crows, but it failed to capture all of them and allowed a few to escape.
The escaped black crows merged together a short distance away, revealing the Shadow Demon again; however, at this moment, the Shadow Demon seemed to have been severely injured and his aura was unstable.
Although he had used a profound Secret Technique to flee, many of the black crows that were condensed with his essence and strength were swallowed into the Void, which naturally damaged his foundation. He stared at Yang Kai with a fearful look for a moment but dared not approach any closer.
At this moment, an extremely vicious and strong blood-red beam struck from the side, attacking Yang Kai by surprise. It was a Blood Demon Demon King, though Yang Kai could not be sure if this Blood Demon was the one who attempted to lure him into the trap before.
The timing of the Blood Demon’s attack was perfect. He struck when Yang Kai and the Shadow Demon had just finished exchanging blows, and sure enough, the attack was effective, allowing the strong blood-red beam to engulf Yang Kai.
In the next moment, the malevolent aura of the blood-red beam surged and a hissing sound came from inside it. Obviously, this attack had a potent corrosive power and was attempting to melt Yang Kai.
Yang Kai had already vanished, completely enveloped by a scarlet blood ball in the air. A face appeared on the surface of the blood ball, which should be the face of the Blood Demon, grinning ferociously as he radiated murderous intent.
The Demons in the surroundings appeared one by one, staring at the blood ball indifferently, waiting quietly for the moment when Yang Kai was completely melted down.
But soon, these Demon Kings started to reveal suspicious looks, because the face on the surface of the blood ball suddenly filled with shock. Then, the round blood ball began to expand unevenly, with many big boils emerging one after another. Although these boils recovered quickly under the suppression of the Blood Demon, it showed that the man inside was struggling.
The rate of formation of these bulges grew faster and faster, and the range became larger and larger, while the expression of the face on the surface of the blood ball turned more and more horrified.
A powerful aura permeated through the blood-red ball, like a sleeping giant dragon awakening from its slumber.
All the faces of the surrounding Demon Kings turned solemn.
All of a sudden, the face on the surface of the blood ball shouted, “I can’t hold him any longer!”
At this point, the blood ball burst to pieces, and a Human figure rushed out like lightning. It was a furious-looking Yang Kai who seemed to be disgruntled about being trapped for so long, his whole face looking ferocious and terrifying to the extreme.
The moment he got out, Yang Kai reached out his hand and grabbed a mass of wriggling blood that was hovering mid-air.
After the blood ball was snatched by him, the fresh blood floating nearby began to struggle, but the mass of blood that Yang Kai captured seemed to be its core.
The cloud of fresh blood gathered together in Yang Kai’s hand and condensed into the figure of the Blood Demon a moment later.
The Blood Demon looked like he wanted to cry… He had no idea how Yang Kai found his weakness so precisely. He could not move an inch with his neck grasped tightly by Yang Kai.
“Heh …” Yang Kai snickered and grinned as he drew the Blood Demon close to him and stared into his eyes. Then, he opened his mouth and breathed out a raging fire
Fire Dragon Breath!
He had mastered various Secret Techniques of the Dragon Clan, and with his Golden Divine Dragon Source, Yang Kai was currently capable of executing most of the Dragon Clan’s Secret Techniques. The number of Dragon Clan Secret Techniques Yang Kai now owned surpassed even those of Great Elder Zhu Yan and Second Elder Fu Zhun.
After all, his Source did not have traditional limits, while the Great Elder and Second Elder had attribute restrictions.
A shrill scream resounded, as if someone was suffering the most terrible torture in the world. The Blood Demon in Yang Kai’s hand struggled hard but to no avail. Under the continuous scorching of the Dragon Fire, his Blood Qi evaporated wildly.
In less than three breaths of time, the Blood Demon had turned into a charred corpse.
Yang Kai dumped the lump of coal aside and turned to stare at the Shadow Demon who had been badly wounded by him previously.
Instead of facing everyone all at once, it was better to eliminate them one by one. Shadow Demons were good at concealment and assassination, so if Yang Kai did not work hard to eliminate this Shadow Demon now, he would definitely be a great hindrance in the coming battle.
The Shadow Demon knew that something was wrong when Yang Kai’s gaze swept over him. He was hit hard by Yang Kai even when he was in peak form, so it was now even more impossible to fight against Yang Kai after being seriously injured. As such, he decided to pull back as soon as he noticed Yang Kai’s murderous intent.
But when they locked eyes, the Shadow Demon suddenly noticed a majestic and awe-inspiring golden vertical slit in Yang Kai’s left eye that both fascinated and terrified him at the same time.
Demon Eye of Annihilation!
The short moment of hesitation had ruined the Shadow Demon’s best chance of escaping.
A silent blade of light suddenly blasted out from Yang Kai’s left eye and directly tore through the Shadow Demon’s Knowledge Sea defences.
The combination of the Demon Eye of Annihilation and the Soul Splitting Saber was a perfect combo. Yang Kai had used this kind of combo to deal with powerful enemies countless times before when he was not as strong, and it had always achieved amazing results. It was now child’s play using it against the wounded Shadow Demon.
The Heaven Severing Slash Secret Technique combined with the Soul Splitting Saber was so powerful that Shadow Demon screamed in excruciating pain as his Knowledge Sea was sent into complete turmoil.
Enduring the piercing pain, he barely steadied his trembling Soul, only to hear several cries in his ear, “Be careful!”
“Retreat quickly!”
Looking up, Yang Kai was already right in front of him with the Myriads Sword in one hand, slashing down at him.
The Shadow Demon was petrified in place.
Like a building collapsing in ruins, the Shadow Demon’s body was smashed to pieces and his vitality quickly dissipated.
In the blink of an eye, two Mid-Rank Demon Kings had fallen.
Atop the mountain, the remaining Demon Kings were horror-stricken. They had never seen someone with such a cultivation be so overwhelming. It really was frightening.
Yang Kai held the Myriads Sword obliquely, his aggressive gaze sweeping over every Demon King, and the corners of his mouth rising excitedly, “Killing makes people happy, I hope you can give this King some enjoyment!”
*Deng deng deng… *
Several Low-Rank Demon Kings subconsciously took a few steps back, their faces white as sheets, thinking, [This guy is completely insane!]
A Flame Demon, however, took a step forward, his body blazing furiously as he spat coldly, “Wastes! Why are you so afraid of him? There’s only one of him and a dozen of us!”
This Flame Demon was one of the three High-Rank Demon Kings present and was confident that he could do what Yang Kai did earlier if he used his full strength, so he naturally had no fear. How could a trivial loner not be taken down by the joint forces of so many Demon Kings? This boy was just a pompous fool.
Another High-Rank Demon King took a step forward too, the Blood Qi boiling richly around him which showed that he was also a Blood Demon, “Let’s finish this!”
As soon as he spoke, a cloud of dust suddenly rolled up from the ground, and that dust formed a terrifying storm that spiralled upwards within a very short time. It looked like it was planning to engulf Yang Kai and strangle him to death.
The last High-Rank Demon King, who was a Sand Demon, had made his move!
The sandstorm rose, and every grain of sand was filled with lethal Demon Qi.
Yang Kai could have avoided this, but he did not move at all and allowed the sandstorm to wrap him up with a smile on the corner of his lips. It was as if he was waiting for something.
A stream of light suddenly shot out at lightning speed from a dozen kilometres away. Everyone was caught off guard as this shot flew straight through the sandstorm. Not only that, the stream of light accurately pierced the head of a Low-Rank Demon King and exploded it to pieces.
“You finally made a move!” Yang Kai turned his head and glanced in the direction of the source of the stream of light, the doubts in his heart completely vanished.
At this time, if Bo Ya still did not make a move, it meant that she was part of the same group in front of him, and he would have an extra enemy to deal with. It was not fun being eyed by a Mid-Rank Feather Demon King from a long distance.
Fortunately, Bo Ya did not let him down.
As for the reason why this woman had been delaying her support and had not made a sound until now was probably because she was evaluating his capability. If Yang Kai could not even hold out for a few exchanges, Bo Ya would definitely have run away immediately and not shown up at all.
After witnessing him killing two Mid-Rank Demon Kings in the blink of an eye though, Bo Ya became confident that Yang Kai had the capital to cooperate with her.
Yang Kai could not help laughing heartily.
It was not a pleasant experience to be the target of a Mid-Rank Feather Demon King, but having a Feather Demon as an ally made life much easier.
At that moment, a roar suddenly erupted from the raging sandstorm, like the wail of a wounded beast.
The High-Rank Sand Demon King wanted to kill Yang Kai with his sandstorm, but was ambushed by Bo Ya. Even if his life was not in danger, he was definitely not enjoying himself right now. The shifting sandstorm was proof of the pain and anger he was in.
The Low-Rank Demon King’s sudden death surprised everyone, so they naturally turned their heads in the direction of the source of the stream of light.
Only then did they realize that Yang Kai was not fighting alone, but actually had an accomplice! And it was a troublesome Feather Demon.
[How is that possible? He had an accomplice? Wasn’t he a Human brought back by Holy Venerable? He has only been in the Holy City for a few days, so when did he make such an ally?]
“It should be that bitch Bo Ya!” Someone suddenly realized the identity of the Feather Demon in the distance.
Even though there was no trace of Bo Ya, Feather Demons were fairly rare, and a Mid-Rank Feather Demon King was even rarer. Bo Ya was the only one participating in this chaotic battle.
“Damn it! She must be tired of living!”
“She actually dared to show up in the Holy City and participated in this Blood Fight? What are the people in the Blood Arena doing?”
The bunch of Demon Kings went into an uproar. Apparently, they knew Bo Ya’s name and her reputation very well. The Low-Rank and Mid-Rank Demon Kings subconsciously moved closer to each other in search of security, while even the two High-Rank Demon Kings showed some anxiety.
Although Bo Ya was only a Mid-Rank Demon King, as long as she kept a good distance, she would be a threat even to a High-Rank Demon King. In an environment like the Blood Arena, this was naturally quite troublesome.
Just when the group of Demon Kings fell into chaos, another stream of light made its way towards them ferociously, and once again penetrated through the sandstorm, causing the Sand Demon to roar maddeningly.
With the lessons learned from the previous accident, all of the Demon Kings were highly vigilant and as expected, after the stream of light passed through the sandstorm, it continued towards another Low-Rank Demon King. Fortunately for this Low-Rank Demon King, he was prepared and hurriedly dodged; otherwise, he would have followed in the footsteps of the other Low-Rank Demon King from before.
However, although he avoided the arrow, the stream of light suddenly changed course and flew towards another Low-Rank Demon King when everyone had just lowered their guard.
*Shua…*
The stream of light penetrated the Low-Rank Demon King’s forehead, directly shattering his skull, but the headless body did not fall down immediately. The flesh around the wound wriggled vigorously as if another head was about to grow.
As long as the Demon Heart remained unscathed, the Demon would not die!
The vital point of this Low-Rank Demon King was not his head; however, it would take some time and a lot of Demon and Blood Qi to regrow his head again. Even if Bo Ya’s arrow did not kill him, it was enough to cripple his ability to fight.
“Cheap slut!”
The High-Rank Blood Demon King looked in Bo Ya’s direction in hatred, rushing out immediately towards her. As long as he could track down Bo Ya and kill her, their initial ambush plan would undoubtedly still succeed.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Yang Kai grinned. With the help of the two arrows from Bo Ya, Yang Kai had managed to escape from the sandstorm and block the Blood Demon’s path.
The Blood Demon did not even spare Yang Kai a glance though and instead turned into a stream of blood-red light and shot away.
Yang Kai naturally would not allow this Blood Demon to do as he pleased, but before he could stop him, the Demon King Flame Demon had already pounced on him with a pair of flaming wings spread wide on his back and flames wrapped around his fists, and smashed down with a ferocious punch, roaring, “Where do you think you’re going!?”
Yang Kai frowned and raised his Myriads Sword to meet the Flame Demon’s attack.
With a bang, both of them took a dozen steps back, but the Blood Demon took advantage of the momentary opportunity to escape, and it was now too late to stop him.
Yang Kai snorted as he glanced back, hoping that Bo Ya could handle things. It wouldn’t be too bad if she could not though as they were not really close to begin with…
Just when he was still thinking that to himself, Bo Ya took action. Three streams of light pierced through the void.
At this moment, the Sand Demon, whose sandstorm ability had been pierced by the two arrows already, finally could not hold his dispersed form any longer and retracted his Divine Ability, revealing his presence.
The three arrows came just at the right timing when the Sand Demon appeared, as if they were fired intentionally for this moment.
The Sand Demon’s eyes widened but he did not have the time to hesitate, so he immediately dispersed his body into a mass of loose sand in an attempt to evade Bo Ya’s attack.
Unexpectedly though, the three arrows exploded at that moment, sending a hail of Demon-Qi-infused light splinters into the cloud of sand.
The loose sand, together with the splinters, reassembled into the Sand Demon’s full form again, but he was now petrified in place and glared into the distance, roaring, “Bitch!”
Yang Kai watched with joy as although he had no idea what was hidden in Bo Ya’s three arrows, he knew that this woman must have used some insidious method to cause great suffering to this High-Rank Sand Demon King.
And this was indeed the case. After reassembling his body again, the Sand Demon had no intention to remain any longer. He turned around and dashed away in a stagger, as if he was poisoned, and disappeared in the blink of an eye. He needed to find a refuge quickly to expel the foreign substances in his body; otherwise, his life would be in danger.
A High-Rank Demon King was chased off by Bo Ya. Although it was not a kill, such methods were enough to demonstrate this woman’s terrifying skill and strength.
Yang Kai wanted to keep this Sand Demon here forever, but the Flame Demon was pestering him persistently, tying him down, so he could only sigh and let Sand Demon flee.
The loud explosions never ceased as the World Energy in the Blood Arena became disordered with dust and sand flying all around the mountain peak. After each attack, the mountain would collapse by several tens of meters.
The High-Rank Flame Demon King held a fire spear in his grip, its blazing flames burning high into the sky, releasing a powerful spear aura, seemingly able to ignite the whole world.
Yang Kai swung the Myriads Sword in his hand against the Flame Demon’s attacks, looking full of valour, but he actually fell into a disadvantage in a notably short time because he did not want to expose too much of his true strength.
The two clashed fiercely, but the other Demon Kings could not intervene at all, nor they did not dare to intervene. Bo Ya was eyeing them from a distance, so they dared not to make a move easily. They could only wait for the Blood Demon who left earlier to locate Bo Ya and get rid of the threat before making further plans.
All of a sudden, an Earth-shaking sound came from the distance, and when they looked over, a mushroom cloud could be seen rising into the air.
The Demon Kings were overjoyed as they recognized this location as the spot Bo Ya launched her sneak attack from. Such an event must indicate that the Blood Demon had found Bo Ya, fought with her, and then killed her.
The Flame Demon who was fighting against Yang Kai relaxed and grinned, “You will die without a burial today!”
When Bo Ya was supporting Yang Kai from behind, the Flame Demon dared not to use his full strength lest he leave himself exposed; however, now that the biggest threat was eliminated, he had no scruples anymore. The fire around his body and his dark Demon Qi suddenly burst out together and spread towards Yang Kai.
But at that moment, an air-piercing sound rapidly struck from the opposite direction as a five-coloured light stream leapt across space and blasted in front of him in an instant.
The Flame Demon was stunned.
He did not expect that a sneak attack would come from such a place at such a time. These fluctuations and arrow techniques clearly belonged to Bo Ya, but what was the giant explosion from before then?
The Flame Demon could not afford much time to ponder though and instinctually attempted to dodge.
Even though he was a High-Rank Demon King, he dared not take Bo Ya’s arrow head-on.
But how could Yang Kai allow him to do as he wished? When the arrow suddenly flew over, not only was the Flame Demon shocked, but Yang Kai was also surprised for a moment. But soon, Yang Kai realized that this should be Bo Ya’s plan to lure an enemy away from the group. Although he had no idea what kind of means Bo Ya used to move from one place to another, since she had this kind of ability, he did not need to worry too much anymore.
With a surge of Space Principles, the space around the Flame Demon was solidified and the Flame Demon’s face instantly turned dreadfully horrified.
*Chi… *
The five-coloured stream of light penetrated through the Flame Demon’s chest with great accuracy, piercing cleanly from back to front, spilling a large amount of fresh boiling, magma-like blood.
The Flame Demon roared in pain as the blazing flames on his body burned more and more wildly in response to the rage he felt.
The Demon Kings, who thought Bo Ya had been taken care of and were preparing to join the fray, gasped and stopped their steps one by one. Chills ran down their spines, and all of them secretly rejoiced at their stroke of luck.
*Chi Chi Chi…*
Three arrows were released again.
Without any warning, the two Demon Kings who were watching from the side had their heads blown to pieces, while the remaining arrow was shot directly at the Flame Demon who was still battling with Yang Kai.
After suffering such a big loss, the Flame Demon was already on guard though and saw the incoming arrow clearly. Even if he was injured at the moment, it was not difficult for him to evade it.
Just when he was about to dodge, he saw Yang Kai smiling strangely as he bellowed, “Bind!”
The familiar feeling of his body trapped in a mire and the compression of the surrounding space appeared again, and the more he struggled, the more stuck he felt.
The Flame Demon’s eyes widened as he tried his best to push his Demon Qi in order to break free from the invisible confinement; however, before he could achieve his wish, Bo Ya’s second arrow had arrived. The arrow pierced through his abdomen, spilling a large amount of fresh blood that scorched the ground again.
Both shots were critical hits and the tens of thousands of Demons in the audience shouted in amazement. They did not know what exactly happened in the Blood Arena, but they saw that these arrows were extremely accurate and terrifying, strong and fast enough that even a High-Rank Demon King failed to avoid them and was badly injured.
If the Flame Demon continued to be shot like this, he would die very soon.
Before everyone could finish their thoughts though, the third arrow had been shot. The stream of light flew across the air and its sharp tip pointed directly at the Flame Demon’s head.
Bo Ya clearly understood the situation. With the help of Yang Kai, she did not have to worry about her shots missing. As such, she just continued to focus on firing her arrows.
Seeing that the stream of light was getting closer and closer to him and he could not move at all, the Flame Demon finally panicked. Despite his life not being at risk from the previous two arrows, if he took the third to his head, it would not end well for him.
His pupils condensed to dots as thin as needle tips and a wall of hot flame formed in front of him as a barrier.
The arrow pierced into the wall of fire and into the Flame Demon’s face with a thud, but it only entered a finger-length into his skull and did not crack open his head. The flame that was the condensation from the full strength of the Flame Demon’s fire reduced the power of this arrow by more than half.
The violent force pushed the Flame Demon’s head backwards though, and before he could regain his posture, Yang Kai had already raised his Myriads Sword and slashed through his protective Demon Qi around his neck.
With angry, glaring eyes, the Flame Demon’s head flew up, and his scorching blood shot out like a volcano eruption from his severed neck.
Surprisingly, the headless body actually quickly retreated with a flicker.
Yang Kai chased after him with a cold face as his Myriads Sword flashed, sending out a barrage of sword waves that enveloped the Flame Demon’s body.
When Yang Kai withdrew his sword, the Flame Demon’s body had been thoroughly chopped up and scattered all over the sky.
*Pa… *
At that moment, the severed head fell on the ground, its eyes glaring at Yang Kai, its mouth twitching a few times as if he wanted to say something, but to no avail. He gaped at Yang Kai as his vitality dissipated, and died with everlasting regret!
Tens of thousands of Demons in the audience seats fell silent as everyone was in a chaotic state of mind, gaping at the Blood Arena incredulously.
Both Yang Kai and Bo Ya only had Mid-Rank Demon King cultivations, but the two of them had defeated the combined force of more than ten Demon Kings. The battle had only lasted a stick of incense worth of time, with two Mid-Rank and four Low-Rank Demon Kings having been easily killed, and one High-Rank Demon King retreating while another just died…
Such unbelievable achievements had never appeared in the long history of the Blood Arena.
In the eyes of those who had no clue about the truth, they thought that eighty percent of the credit belonged to Bo Ya. It was her tricky arrows that killed and repelled the Demon Kings. As for Yang Kai, except for his domineering actions at the beginning, he was just playing the role of decoy.
Only Bo Ya herself knew that without Yang Kai, she would never have hit the Flame Demon so easily. The Sand Demon earlier was overconfident and courted death himself, giving her an opportunity to force him back, but that was nothing compared to Yang Kai’s efforts in this fight.
Among the three High-Rank Demon Kings, one retreated and one died, while the Blood Demon, who was the last High-Rank Demon King, had been led elsewhere. Given such a situation, how could the remaining Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings still have the spirit to continue fighting?
When the Flame Demon was crushed, the rest of the Demon Kings knew that the situation had gone bad and after exchanging looks, they immediately scattered in all directions.
Streams of light reappeared at that moment.
This time, even without Yang Kai’s help, the several Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings could not avoid Bo Ya’s arrows.
One collapsed after another as they burst into mists of blood, with not even their bones remaining.
Only two Low-Rank Demon Kings who were enveloped in white flashes of light managed to escape. It was unknown what kind of skill they used to flee from this place, causing Yang Kai to frown because even his Divine Sense failed to perceive them.
In the distance, a blood beam flew over.
It was from the Blood Demon who had left earlier. He wanted to kill Bo Ya initially, but he was surprised to find only a kind of Soul Clone when he rushed over, realizing it was all a trap in the next moment.
After returning in a hurry, he was shocked to find that the battle here had been settled. More than ten Demon Kings had vanished, leaving the ground full of fragments of corpses…
The Blood Demon’s pupil contracted as he almost thought that he was dreaming! After all, he had not left for long, so what could have happened in such a short time that led to such a disaster?
Below, Yang Kai looked up with a hint of mockery in his eyes while the Blood Demon’s expression grew notably heavy and a sense of crisis flared in his heart.
The Blood Demon’s eyes changed slightly as he suddenly looked up in a certain direction and shouted in a deep voice, “Bo Ya, you will die miserably for spoiling our plan!”
The response that he got in return was a sharp arrow.
Yang Kai immediately surged his Space Principle to trap the Blood Demon.
But to his surprise, the Blood Demon did not struggle or attempt to dodge at all. He just stared at him coldly before summoning some item into his hand and crushing it. The next moment, his body turned into a white light and he disappeared from the spot.
Yang Kai could not help looking at the scene in disbelief, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets.
Previously, the two Low-Rank Demon Kings also vanished in a similar manner. He thought that those two had mastered some miraculous escaping technique, but now it seemed that was not the case.
They definitely disappeared using some other method, but no matter how Yang Kai thought about it he had no idea how they accomplished this!
When he was still immersed in his thoughts though, Yang Kai suddenly noticed a sharp aura locking onto him from the horizon.
[Is she going to burn the bridge after crossing it?] Yang Kai smiled with his teeth bared.
Bo Ya was indeed a decisive woman. The time had come, and one of them had to die.
He slowly turned around, facing Bo Ya’s hiding place with a deep gaze that seemed like it could penetrate space.
The aura was only locked, but no shot had been fired, only becoming sharper and sharper as Yang Kai stared back.
Yang Kai stood boldly in a completely exposed stance, which made Xiao Wu, who was watching from the audience seats, turn pale. She had witnessed Bo Ya’s marksmanship just now and obviously felt Yang Kai was courting death by doing this.
But even after waiting for a long time, there was no movement from Bo Ya, which made Xiao Wu anxious to the extreme.
Inside the Blood Arena, Yang Kai felt Bo Ya’s aura rising gradually, and it soon reached its peak. The invisible tension brought a sense of excitement to him, and he immediately realized that he had still underestimated this woman. Even if he had Space Divine Abilities, he was not sure if he could completely dodge this arrow.
As long as Bo Ya shot, there was a high probability he would be wounded.
The Feather Demons indeed lived up to their reputation of being outstanding archers, especially Bo Ya. As a Mid-Rank Demon King, as long as she kept a sufficient distance, she would even be able to take down a High-Rank Demon King.
The mountains went quiet. A light breeze swept through the woods, swaying and rustling the trees.
Suddenly, the fierce aura that locked onto Yang Kai from afar dissipated. Yang Kai squinted his eyes, showing a look of surprise, but he did not let his guard down, for he had no idea whether this was part of Bo Ya’s plan.
Only when Bo Ya flew over slowly did Yang Kai reveal a meaningful smile.
Bo Ya stopped a thousand metres in front of Yang Kai. This gap was for her own safety and was enough for her to buy time to counter any of Yang Kai’s assaults. She tilted her head up and swept her eyes over Yang Kai, remarking, “You are… a little weird.”
“Weird how?” Yang Kai laughed.
Bo Ya shook her head slowly and remained silent.
It was not because they teamed up that she did not release that arrow. Since this was a free-for-all battle, everyone was her enemy. She chose to join hands with Yang Kai only because it was the most convenient way to eliminate the biggest threat, and the results proved that she was right. She initially thought that it would be a tough battle, but to her surprise, with Yang Kai’s cooperation, those dozen or so Demon Kings became completely vulnerable.
The reason why she withdrew her arrow just now was because her instincts told her that if she let it fly, while she could wound Yang Kai, his counterattack would kill her.
This man was definitely still hiding his strength! Considering his previous performance, Bo Ya was increasingly assured of her instincts; therefore, she withdrew her arrow decisively, so as not to put herself in unneeded trouble.
“Let’s negotiate,” Bo Ya declared to Yang Kai.
“Negotiate what?” Yang Kai looked at her with a frown. He did not understand what else they could negotiate at this point. The only way out was to go all out and fight each other, with the strongest coming out the winner.
“How many Demon Crystals did you bet on yourself?” Bo Ya suddenly asked a seemingly irrelevant question.
Yang Kai pondered for a while, then disclosed without any hiding anything, “A hundred million!”
Bo Ya’s eyes lit up, pursed her red lips attractively, and whistled, looking playfully frivolous, “That’s a lot!”
“It’s none of your business!” Yang Kai snorted. [What’s wrong with this woman? Don’t tell me she’s eying my Demon Crystals before I’ve even collected them?]
Bo Ya continued with a giggle, “Give me half of it.”
“You don’t deserve it!” Yang Kai hissed.
“Thirty percent!”
“Scram!” Although he did not really care about the Demon Crystals, Yang Kai would not allow others to covet them. What belonged to him was his own.
“How about ten percent? You give me ten percent and I’ll forfeit right now!” Bo Ya did not mind his rudeness and continued to smile, “I really don’t want to be enemies with you, but it’s a pity if I just quit now. Just consider ten percent as a fee for my hard work. Don’t be a stingy man.”
“I’m stingy, it’s simply not for you to decide…” But before Yang Kai finished, a sudden realization dawned on him and he looked at her in a daze, “Can you choose to leave here?”
He remembered the previous two Low-Rank Demon Kings and the last High-Rank Demon King disappearing in flashes of white light just now and finally understood what had happened!
Bo Ya answered, “It seems that you really don’t know anything. Of course you can choose to leave the Blood Arena.” She took out an item as she said so.
Yang Kai fixed his eyes on it, and found that it was her entry token. He also had one with him.
Bo Ya waved her entry token in front of him, “It’s settled. I’ll leave first, and you’ll give me ten percent of your winnings later!”
When the words fell, Bo Ya turned into a white light and instantly vanished from the spot.
“No one agreed with you!” Yang Kai snapped. He did not promise her anything at all. This woman was just speaking to herself, and quit on her own. In any case, her departure favoured him as he really did not want to fight against Bo Ya unless it was necessary because her marksmanship was so outstanding that it would certainly cause him some headache.
However, thanks to her reminder, Yang Kai hurriedly checked his entry token and found that there was indeed an option to forfeit inside. He believed that as long as he touched this option, he could immediately be teleported out of the Blood Arena.
He put away the entry token and turned to look around.
He had killed many Demon Kings in this battle, but unfortunately, their Space Rings had disappeared. He had encountered this situation before; whenever someone died here, his Space Ring would immediately vanish.
Now that he thought about it, the Blood Arena was probably the one that plundered them.
[This is robbery!] Yang Kai cursed in his heart. Countless Demons died here every year, and all their wealth flowed into the Blood Arena just like that. How could this damned place not be rich?
Yang Kai was essentially broke after coming to the Demon Realm; therefore, he could only count on the hundred million Demon Crystals bet he made, otherwise he would not be able to purchase anything in the future.
…..
There was not much suspense in the following battles. Although a lot of Demon Kings signed up for this free-for-all, there were only a total of five High-Rank Demon Kings. Among those five, one was killed by Yang Kai and Bo Ya, one was forced to leave, and the last one, the Sand Demon, was injured and had probably quit as well. As for the remaining two High-Rank Demon Kings, they were nowhere to be seen so Yang Kai had no clue if they were already killed earlier or quit.
As for those Low-Rank and Mid-Rank Demon Kings, Yang Kai did not put them in his eyes. If he encountered them, he could easily eliminate them. Those who reacted fast enough would immediately quit to protect their lives, while those who were a little slow would stay here forever.
Half a day later, when Yang Kai finished off his last opponent, the surrounding space suddenly distorted. The mountains and trees rapidly disappeared, and the empty field appeared in front of him again.
The audiences were boiling in exhilaration and Xiao Wu was so excited that she was jumping up and down with a totally flushed face.
[Sir won, he really won!] Yang Kai had survived until the end in such a chaotic battle involving almost eighty Demon Kings. This felt like a dream and it was not until now that the rock on her heart was lifted.
Behind her, the Demon Great General who bet everything on Yang Kai laughed and cackled insanely.
He bet two million Demon Crystals, and the odds were ten to one, which meant that he won twenty million! Such a number was a great fortune for a Demon Great General! It was enough to support his cultivation to the Demon King Realm with enough leftover to buy a good set of equipment to arm himself.
He had heard that quite a number of people had gotten rich overnight in the Blood Arena before, but now it was his turn to feel such a sense of euphoria.
The emcee Demon King of the Blood Arena went up to the stage again, made a casual speech and congratulated Yang Kai on his victory…
Yang Kai was keenly aware that the Demon King’s expression was a little gloomy but this man was doing a good job hiding it.
Yang Kai could not help snorting coldly in his heart. Perhaps, the Blood Arena had something to do with the scheme plotted by those dozen Demon Kings or was even the one behind the whole plot.
Although Yang Kai believed that Yue Sang was the mastermind behind the scenes, Yue Sang was a Half-Saint in the end so it was inconvenient for him to execute such a plan in-person in this Blood Arena. Therefore, Yue Sang had probably used others to carry out this plot. Now that most of the Demon Kings involved were dead while Yang Kai was still alive and kicking, how could those responsible feel good about it?
After a short while, Yang Kai was led to a VIP room of the Blood Arena and was served the best blood wine.
Xiao Wu, who was standing by his side, glanced at him from time to time with her face filled with awe and worship.
This battle took Yang Kai quite some effort, and now it was the time for him to collect his prize. The thought of getting a hundred million High-Rank Demon Crystals and having Li Shi Qing by his side put Yang Kai in a good mood.
Now, Flower Shadow Great Emperor owed him a favour. If he asked her for anything in the future, she probably would not refuse him.
However, Yang Kai was annoyed because he had already been waiting for a long time but no one actually came to greet him.
[There’s no way the Blood Arena would go back on their word, right?] Given that this place in the Holy City was under Yu Ru Meng’s jurisdiction, it should be impossible for them to do something to sabotage her reputation; however, since the Blood Arena had participated in a plot against Yang Kai, they might not really let him obtain what he wanted.
Yang Kai snorted coldly in his heart. If that really happened, he would turn the entire Blood Arena upside down. When that happened, Yu Ru Meng would inevitably be alarmed, and someone would stand up for him. He wondered whether those guys could bear Yu Ru Meng’s anger. It would be best if he could take this opportunity to drag Yue Sang into this and let Yu Ru Meng deal with him.
After having this thought, he actually hoped that the Blood Arena would renege and give him an excuse to make a fuss.
Yang Kai waited for two hours, and only then did the door to the VIP room open. The middle-aged emcee Demon King from the Blood Arena entered the room with a smile, and greeted Yang Kai with cupped fists, “Greetings, Brother Yang.”
“Do you know who I am?”
Yang Kai looked at him meaningfully.
The middle-aged Demon King beamed, “I didn’t know before, but I do now. Please forgive me for not giving Brother Yang a proper welcome.”
Yang Kai raised his hand, “Cut the courtesy. I’m here for my prize. Where is it? Why don’t I see it?”
The middle-aged Demon King explained, “Brother Yang, the female Human will be brought over soon.” He could be mistaken, but the middle-aged Demon King thought that he spotted a hint of disappointment in Yang Kai’s eyes. He could not help showing a trace of surprise in his eyes, wondering what Yang Kai was disappointed about.
After a short pause, he continued, “Before that, let’s settle another matter first.”
“What is it?” Yang Kai looked up at him.
The middle-aged Demon King glanced at Xiao Wu as he asked, “Is this woman Brother Yang’s maidservant?”
“Yes!” Yang Kai nodded.
The middle-aged Demon King smiled faintly, “Congratulations to Brother Yang. According to our records, this woman bet one hundred million Demon Crystals on Brother Yang before you participated in the fight. Based on the odds offered by the Blood Arena, Brother Yang will be paid one billion Demon Crystals for obtaining the final victory.” While speaking, he took out a Space Ring and shook it as he grinned, “I have the Demon Crystals here.”
Xiao Wu’s eyes were instantly stuck to the Space Ring, her breath quickening.
One billion Demon Crystals. It was an unimaginable number. Although she did not make much effort this time, she felt glorious seeing Yang Kai suddenly winning such tremendous wealth.
Yang Kai raised his brow, “The Blood Arena is indeed wealthy! Now that it’s here, this King will take it.”
Still smiling, the middle-aged Demon King continued, “Brother Yang, please give me your Space Ring, and let this King examine it.”
“You want to examine my Space Ring? Why?” Yang Kai looked at him as his face darkened. [What does this guy mean? How can anyone allow others to check their Space Ring casually? Is he looking for faults?]
The middle-aged Demon King was taken aback for a while, and then he laughed, “It seems like Brother Yang is not very familiar with the rules of the Blood Arena.”
“What rules?” Yang Kai suddenly sensed that something was wrong, and looked towards the door.
The middle-aged Demon King explained, “It’s like this. To make it easier for everyone to bet in the Blood Arena, it has always been a rule that one must put the bet down before the payment of the winnings is given. If one wins the bet, the Blood Arena will naturally have to check if the bettor has sufficient Demon Crystals for the bet. Brother Yang is new here, so you may not know much about it. There used to be many people who wanted to take advantage of the opportunity and bet even when they didn’t have enough Demon Crystals to pay up, causing significant losses to the Blood Arena. That’s why, since long ago, the hosts of the Blood Arena set rules for this inspection. As long as Brother Yang has the hundred million Demon Crystals used for the bet, this King will immediately pay you in full.”
The blood drained from Xiao Wu’s face as soon as this statement came out.
She was clearly aware of Yang Kai’s condition. Not to mention a hundred million, Yang Kai didn’t even have one million Demon Crystals on him. He had nothing in his pockets to take out for this inspection.
She secretly blamed herself. If she knew this would happen, she would have found out more information about the Blood Arena. She was not familiar with the rules; after all, she had never been here, and everything she knew about the Blood Arena was from rumours. She did not expect such a rule was in place when she told Yang Kai about the Blood Arena.
If he failed to pass this inspection, it would mean that he broke the rules of the Blood Arena, and it would be a dream to get that one billion Demon Crystals.
“Is there such a rule?” Yang Kai’s face twitched as he narrowed his eyes at Xiao Wu. By the look on her face, it was either she had no clue about such a rule, or the Blood Arena was targeting him.
“There has always been such a rule,” The middle-aged Demon King nodded gently with a smile on his face, “Could it be that Brother Yang is unable to provide a hundred million Demon Crystals?”
Yang Kai snorted, “What is a trivial hundred million Demon Crystals to me? It’s such a waste of time to inspect here and there, can’t Your Excellency be accommodating?”
The smile never fading from his face, the middle-aged Demon King shook his head, “The rules of the Blood Arena are unbreakable. This King is just doing his job. Please forgive me, Brother Yang.”
Yang Kai looked at him coldly, and the other party looked back without showing any weakness. There was even a hint of aggressiveness in his eyes, and Yang Kai immediately understood that it did not matter whether the Blood Arena had this rule or not, they were deliberating making things difficult for him.
As such, he curled his lip and spat, “In that case, this King no longer wants those Demon Crystals. Just bring this King the prize.”
The middle-aged Demon King rubbed his forehead at his words as if he got a headache, “Brother Yang is making things difficult for this King. According to the rules, if you cannot take out the hundred million Demon Crystals used for the bet, it means that you have broken the rules of the Blood Arena, and if the rules of the Blood Arena are broken, everything before that would not be accountable, and the so-called prize is…”
Yang Kai burst out laughing. He initially was wondering why he had to cause such a hassle about the Demon Crystals, but now he understood what it was about. It seemed that the Blood Arena never intended to hand over Li Shi Qing at all.
“Do you insist on doing this?” Yang Kai looked at him lightly with a look of eagerness in his eyes. If the other party dared to utter a word, he would immediately raise a ruckus here.
He could let go of the one billion Demon Crystals, but he must take away Li Shi Qing today. He absolutely would not compromise on this point.
It had clearly been a while since that woman was brought to the Demon Realm, and from the look of her condition, she was not doing well. Although Li Shi Qing had been using some Secret Technique to resist the invasion of Demon Qi, who knows how long she would be able to hold out. There would absolutely be no way to save her if it was too late.
The middle-aged Demon King smiled humorously. He was about to speak, but was interrupted by Xiao Wu, who suddenly took a step forward looking as pale as a sheet, and stuttered shakily, “T-the b-bet… The bet was entered by this maid, and has nothing to do with… Sir!”
Yang Kai and the middle-aged Demon King looked at her together. The former looked bemused, not knowing whether he should laugh or cry, while the latter’s face went dark and sunken.
From Xiao Wu’s point of view, as long as she took the blame for the bet, Yang Kai would not have broken the rules of the Blood Arena, and they would naturally not seize the prize that belonged to him. However, doing this would place her in a great disaster. The Blood Arena would punish her severely even if she was a maidservant in Yu Ru Meng’s palace. In all likelihood, she would end up dead.
As for Yang Kai, this was not the outcome he wanted! He was actually hoping that the other party would give him an excuse to make trouble. If Xiao Wu took all the blame, he would have no legitimate excuse to run wild.
“Do you know what you’re saying?” The middle-aged Demon King looked at Xiao Wu viciously, and the remaining colour in her already pale face vanished, accentuating the hideous scars on her countenance.
Yang Kai moved swiftly and stood in front of Xiao Wu, his eyes looking sharp, “Your Excellency is majestic indeed!”
The middle-aged Demon King glanced at Yang Kai slightly, a little surprised by his reaction; after all, Xiao Wu was only a trivial maidservant, was she worth defending? He sneered, “Brother Yang is a man of character too it seems.”
Yang Kai did not bother to pay him any attention, he simply glanced at Xiao Wu and commanded, “This has nothing to do with you, stand back.”
“But…” Xiao Wu raised her head to say something but swallowed the words when her eyes met Yang Kai’s.
Standing in front of her, Yang Kai cracked his neck and narrowed his eyes at the middle-aged Demon King coldly, “There’s no need to play games at this point. This King wants his prize, and this King is not going to give up those one billion Demon Crystals either. I’ll give you a stick of incense to prepare everything; otherwise, don’t blame this King for being rude.”
When the conversation was no longer agreeable, to say another word was a waste of a breath. It was better to speak with actions.
The middle-aged Demon King chuckled, “Where did Brother Yang get the confidence to cause trouble in the Blood Arena?”
Yang Kai replied indifferently, “Seventeen. Tsk tsk, Your Excellency really thinks highly of me.”
While these words were inexplicable to Xiao Wu, who did not understand them at all, the expression on the middle-aged Demon King’s face changed slightly, because seventeen was the exact number of Demon Kings hiding outside the room, waiting in ambush. The Blood Arena did not intend to allow Yang Kai to do as he pleased, and the repeated persecution here was simply to provoke Yang Kai into action. As soon as he dared to make a move here, the seventeen Demon Kings outside would storm inside.
During the free for all, Yang Kai had Bo Ya’s help killing the enemy, but he was alone now. It was impossible to escape when surrounded by a large number of Demon Kings. Even if the Holy Venerable found out about it later, she would not be able to blame anyone since it was Yang Kai who dared to make trouble first.
It was just that… This guy’s senses were a little too sharp. The Demon Kings outside had concealed their presence very well, but he was still able to sense them.
Laughing lightly, the middle-aged Demon King feigned ignorance, “What does Brother Yang mean?”
Yang Kai glanced at him contemptuously, and answered lightly, “Time waits for no one. A stick of incense is very short. Your Excellency should finish the preparations immediately.”
The middle-aged Demon King laughed lightly again, “This King doesn’t need to prepare anything, but you, Brother Yang, should learn to restrain yourself.”
Right after he finished, the atmosphere in the guest room suddenly became very tense. Xiao Wu nervously waited and watched, knowing that something bad was about to happen. She was confused too. She was just taking Yang Kai out for a stroll around the Holy City, so how did things escalate to this?
Just when the tension in the room was about to reach a breaking point, the sound of footsteps approached them from the outside, and at the same time, an aura that made Yang Kai feel uneasy quickly shrouded over him.
The aura of a Half-Saint!
And… it was a familiar aura.
This was not Yue Sang’s aura, however. Even though Yang Kai and Yue Sang only met once, he remembered that person’s aura vividly, so who was this Half-Saint? Where had he seen such a person before?
Yang Kai inadvertently raised his head and almost burst out laughing, because the face of the middle-aged Demon King, who was previously looking at him as if he was ready to jump at his throat, was scrunched up in misery, as if he was extremely fearful of the incoming person.
“Greetings, Sir!” The sound of many voices came from outside, obviously from the Demon Kings who were set to ambush Yang Kai.
With a creak, the door was pushed open, and a tall figure stepped in. The visitor was dressed in white, and carried a valiant and heroic manner. The smile on his delicate and beautiful face, and a pair of piercing eyes had a sense of allure and captivation, which was particularly attractive to women.
Yang Kai was stunned, and pointed his finger at him, “You…”
The middle-aged Demon King hurriedly bowed and saluted, “Greetings, Sir!”
The newcomer ignored and walked past the middle-aged Demon King though and stopped ten meters in front of Yang Kai, the corner of his mouth curved into a smile as he spoke, “I told you, we would meet again.”
“Bai Zhuo!” Yang Kai finally remembered this man’s name.
No wonder that aura felt familiar. It was him.
Yang Kai had killed countless enemies while defending Tiger Roar City, so the Demon Race also seemed to recognize the horror of Tiger Roar City and invited a Half-Saint to settle the matter. How could they have anticipated that the Half-Saint who was sent would just make a few remarks before fleeing? Before leaving, this Half-Saint even told Yang Kai that they would meet again.
That Half-Saint introduced himself as Bai Zhuo!
Later, when he learned that Yu Ru Meng was one of the Twelve Demon Saints, Yang Kai realized why Bai Zhuo retreated that day. Other Demons might not recognize Yu Ru Meng, but he must have, so he left decisively.
But Yang Kai did not expect to see Bai Zhuo again in the Blood Arena of the Holy City.
“How dare a mere Human address Sir directly by his name!?” The middle-aged Demon King immediately raised his head to yell at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes at him, and replied contemptuously, “He hasn’t even said anything about it, so what are you barking for?”
The middle-aged Demon King was furious and raised his eyes to look at Bai Zhuo, but only saw a smile on the latter’s face, clearly not angry at Yang Kai’s rudeness. The middle-aged Demon King’s heart suddenly clenched as he had a bad feeling in his heart.
It seemed that Sir Bai Zhuo and this Human… were on good terms.
“Why are you here?” Yang Kai looked at Bai Zhuo in astonishment. [Shouldn’t this guy be in the Star Boundary? Why did he show up here for no reason?]
Bai Zhuo turned around and sat on a chair proudly before the middle-aged Demon King immediately walked over and poured him a glass of blood wine respectfully.
Bai Zhuo gently shook the transparent wine glass. The red wine looked like fresh blood as it sloshed around, emitting a fascinating aroma, “I’m one of the supervisors of the Blood Arena. Why can’t I be here?”
Yang Kai’s jaw dropped, utterly dumbfounded, “You’re one of Yu Ru Meng’s subordinates!”
Previously Yu Ru Meng told him that the whole Demon Realm was like a broken mirror. There were countless shattered continents and each of the twelve Demon Saints controlled a different number of them, as well as a different number of Half-Saints.
Now Yang Kai knew that Bai Zhuo was one of the Half-Saints under Yu Ru Meng. No wonder he recognized her at the city wall that day.
Listening to his words, the middle-aged Demon King’s brow could not help twitching, thinking, [This Human is truly audacious. He did not just call Bai Zhuo’s name directly, but even dared to address the Holy Venerable by her given name directly. I’m afraid that there will be a good show next! Sir Bai Zhuo may not care about what this Human said earlier, but given that he dared profane the Holy Venerable, Sir Bai Zhuo will definitely peel the skin off this Human even if he doesn’t kill him.]
However, to his disappointment, Bai Zhuo made no response at all, as if he had not heard Yang Kai’s blasphemy against the Holy Venerable.
“Good!” Bai Zhuo nodded with a smile, “This Bai is one of the many Half-Saints under the Holy Venerable.”
“I see.” Yang Kai looked enlightened. He sat down on a chair opposite Bai Zhuo with no trace of politeness and looked at him with a grin, “Did you just say that you are one of the supervisors of the Blood Arena?”
Bai Zhuo smiled lightly and nodded.
“Then this will be simple.” Yang Kai raised his hand, and pointed at the middle-aged Demon King, “This guy owes me a billion Demon Crystals, but he doesn’t want to pay up. Not just that, he wants to deny me my prize. Tell me, what are you going to do about this?”
Yang Kai was confident and fearless now. Most of the Demons here did not know the relationship between him and Yu Ru Meng, and they only knew that he was a Human brought back by the Holy Venerable from the Star Boundary, so they did not really fear him. But Bai Zhuo was different. He came back from the Star Boundary, so he must know how much Yu Ru Meng values him. In that case, there was no problem for Yang Kai to use Bai Zhuo’s prestige to settle this little squabble.
Moreover, since Bai Zhuo appeared at this time, he must have known about the incident today, so Yang Kai did not need to explain too much to him.
Sure enough, Bai Zhuo put down the wine glass after hearing Yang Kai’s words before turning to the middle-aged Demon King faintly and asking, “Is that true?”
The middle-aged Demon King immediately answered, “Absolutely not. Sir, please ignore this man’s nonsense.”
Yang Kai slammed the table and stood up, “Bastard, how dare you lie so blatantly!?”
The middle-aged Demon King glanced sideways at Yang Kai, “This King just acts according to the rules.” Then, he turned to Bai Zhuo with his fists cupped, “Sir, the issue is like this. Brother Yang participated in a free for all battle and bet one hundred million Demon Crystals on himself. Although he won in the end, according to the investigation of this subordinate, Brother Yang did not have one hundred million Demon Crystals to begin with. According to the rules of the Blood Arena, this subordinate does not need to pay him the one billion Demon Crystals, and his prize will be forfeited too.”
Bai Zhuo nodded as he heard his explanation, “You’re right.”
Yang Kai glared at Bai Zhuo, thinking, [Are you here just to watch the show?]
The middle-aged Demon King was overjoyed, and he cupped his fists again, “Sir, this man is cunning and intends to break the rules of our Blood Arena. If he is not severely punished, this subordinate fears that the reputation of the Blood Arena will be ruined. Please allow this subordinate to make an example of this man in order to maintain the prestige of the Blood Arena and Holy Venerable!”
Yang Kai was stunned by this man’s speech. He thought to himself that this guy was really a sharp-tongued person. He managed to shift the issue of a gambling fight to an issue that involved Yu Ru Meng’s face. Furthermore, Yang Kai truly had no way to talk back about it.
“It’s not that serious,” Bai Zhuo ignored the suggestion of the Demon King and asked, “Have you checked his Space Ring to make sure that he doesn’t have one hundred million Demon Crystals?”
The middle-aged Demon King replied, “Not yet, because he refused to cooperate. I think it’s obvious that he doesn’t have so many Demon Crystals.”
Bai Zhuo nodded when he heard the speech, “It seems that the problem lies in the one hundred million Demon Crystals.” He turned to Yang Kai and continued, “Do you have one hundred million Demon Crystals? If so, just take them out and let them check it for you.”
Yang Kai really wanted to spit on Bai Zhuo’s face, thinking, [How can I have one hundred million Demon Crystals? If I had them, I would have taken them out long ago! Isn’t that a stupid question?]
Just as he was about to erupt though, Yang Kai saw Bai Zhuo wink at him before turning his eyes towards his own hand, then slowly picking up his glass to sip his blood wine, deliberately displaying his Space Ring to Yang Kai. This gentlemanly manner, combined with the handsome face, had fully attracted Xiao Wu’s eyes.
Yang Kai frowned for a moment before he suddenly beamed and stretched out his hand to Bai Zhuo, “I remember now. Brother Bai, you should return the one hundred million Demon Crystals that you borrowed from me last time.”
Bai Zhuo almost spewed out the wine from his mouth as he looked at Yang Kai in shock and wanted to ask him, [Since when did I borrow one hundred million Demon Crystals from you!?]
His original intention was to lend Yang Kai one hundred million Demon Crystal and then have him return it when he got his prize, but how could he have anticipated Yang Kai not following his plan at all and coming up with such an approach. ‘Borrowing’ and ‘repaying’ were two completely different terms.
The middle-aged Demon King also gawked at Yang Kai with his eyes widened, then looked at Bai Zhuo, thinking that it was impossible.
“Ha ha…” Bai Zhou forced out a smile, put down his glass, clenched his fist and cleared his throat. He then glanced sideways at Yang Kai and wanted to get up and just leave, staying out of Yang Kai’s affairs forever, for he had never met such a thick-faced person in his life. But since things had reached this point, he could only play along with Yang Kai and nod, “En, I should pay you back now.”
After saying so, he really took out another Space Ring and fiddled with it.
The middle-aged Demon King was speechless. How could he not see through such bad acting? But he just could not understand why Bai Zhuo was willing to cooperate with this Human. He wanted to remind and dissuade Bai Zhuo, but he did not have the courage to speak up.
He had no way to stop Bai Zhuo if he really wanted to protect this person and would only offend Bai Zhuo if he opened his mouth. What’s more, Yue Sang had left long ago; otherwise, he would not need to go through such pains.
After a short while, Bai Zhuo threw a Space Ring to Yang Kai along with an angry glare.
Yang Kai pretended not to see anything and without checking the Space Ring at all, tossed it directly to the middle-aged Demon King opposite to him and put up an arrogant face, “Check it!”
The middle-aged Demon King held the Space Ring as if he were holding a hot rock, replying with a long face, “There’s no need for inspection.”
The Space Ring was given by Bai Zhuo, so even if there were no Demon Crystals in it, he still had to treat it as if there were a hundred million Demon Crystals in it. If so, why did he even need to check?
“In that case, shouldn’t the prize and the Demon Crystals I won be handed over?” Yang Kai snorted coldly.
The middle-aged Demon King did not look at Yang Kai and instead turned to Bai Zhuo with a helpless face, “There’s no problem with paying the Demon Crystals, but the prize…”
As far as he knew, the female Human brought by Yue Sang was just to show her face, she was then taken away by someone else. She was not in the Blood Arena at the moment so how could he give her to Yang Kai?
“What happened to my prize?” Yang Kai’s face darkened. He took part in the fight mainly for Li Shi Qing, while the one billion Demon Crystals were not his top priority. Now he had a bad feeling when he saw the Demon King’s speech faltering.
Cold sweat beaded on the middle-aged Demon King’s forehead as he continued to look at the Bai Zhuo with a helpless face.
However, Bai Zhuo simply smiled and gestured towards Yang Kai gently, “Calm down.”
As soon as he said this, a knock on the door came from the outside. Then, the door was pushed open and a burly Demon strode in. By the look of the Demon’s aura, he was a High-Rank Demon King.
Not only that, he was accompanied by a woman with a beautiful appearance and tall figure. It was none other than Li Shi Qing
Appalled, the middle-aged Demon King looked at Li Shi Qing with a pale face. [Wasn’t this woman taken away? Why was she brought back now?] Then, he turned to the burly High-Rank Demon King and a sudden realization dawned on him. Everyone knew that Bai Zhuo and Yue Sang were at odds with one another, so perhaps this entire series of events was a secret competition between them, with Bai Zhuo seemingly gaining the upper hand in the end!
His back was drenched in a cold sweat now as he truly did not want to be involved in a competition between Half-Saints. It was better for him to get out of this as soon as possible.
After the burly Demon came in with Li Shi Qing, he cupped his fists towards Bai Zhuo, then turned and left without saying a word.
Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed as he vaguely understood something.
On the other hand, Li Shi Qing looked around anxiously after she was brought in. For her, she knew that she had been in danger since she was brought to the Demon Realm. Her efforts in keeping herself from being eroded by the Demon Qi now were actually just a futile struggle, because in the end, she would still eventually be demonized.
Therefore, she had not the slightest liking for the Demon Race.
She looked around, and her eyes found Yang Kai in a daze, and a trace of disbelief flashed across her face.
She did not know Yang Kai, but she could see that he was different from the other Demons, seemingly like a Human.
[How can there be a Human who is not affected by the Demon Qi in the Demon Realm?]
[Is this man being kept as captive too? But it doesn’t look like it.]
Just when she was lost in thought, Yang Kai walked towards her step by step and stopped a few steps in front of her.
“You…” Before Li Shi Qing could finish her sentence though, Yang Kai suddenly slapped her face.
*Pa*
The slap sent Li Shi Qing spinning a few times before she fell directly onto the ground, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.
Xiao Wu’s jaw dropped, and the middle-aged Demon King was stunned too, while Bai Zhuo blinked a few times before he raised his wine glass again as if no one else was there, sipping the blood wine with a smile…
Li Shi Qing was stunned.
Although she was taken captive and brought to the Demon Realm, she was never abused. Stars danced before her eyes now though and she was left completely baffled. The Demons were a little bit violent with her verbally, but she did not expect to be slapped by someone who looked like a Human today.
[Who is he? Why did he hit me?]
Before she could think of anything else, Li Shi Qing felt a tightness pinch her chest. She raised her eyes and saw the same man who slapped her was now standing above her, leaning down slightly with one foot on her chest. He looked down at her condescendingly with a hideous look on his face and sneered darkly, “Do you know who I am?”
Li Shi Qing shook her head in panic, crystal tears overflowing from her eyes.
Yang Kai was taken aback for a moment wondering [Why was it so easy to toss this woman around? She’s a Second-Order Emperor Realm Master! Also, what’s with those teary eyes?] He did not really want to hit Li Shi Qing, but to everyone else, he was chased out of the Star Boundary because he had fallen to the Demon path, which was an intolerable crime. At this time, it was only reasonable that he showed some anger and resentment, but how could he have known a simple slap would cause Li Shi Qing to burst into tears.
Without thinking too much about it though, he continued to maintain that hideous face and barked at Li Shi Qing, “Look clearly, this King is Yang Kai!”
Li Shi Qing seemed to be greatly shaken by this statement and stared at him incredulously.
She obviously knew of Yang Kai, but the person in front of her was completely different from what she had heard. The Yang Kai she had heard about was the brightest rising star in the Star Boundary, but the man in front of her was like a vicious gambler who lost everything he had.
Yang Kai continued to smirk, “From now on, you’re my slave. You will do whatever I tell you whenever I tell you to. Your fate will be worse than death if I hear a word of objection! Do you understand?”
Li Shi Qing looked like she was in a trance. It wasn’t until Yang Kai repeated his question and a severe pain struck her chest that she nodded in a hurry, big fat tears sliding down the corner of her eyes, making her look absolutely miserable.
Yang Kai snorted, looking like he was bored of her, then lifted his foot before turning around and stretching out his hand to the middle-aged Demon King, “What about my Demon Crystals?”
The middle-aged Demon King immediately handed over the Space Ring he had prepared, looking like he was struggling with himself internally. [This must be why Holy Venerable brought this person back to the Demon Realm, his nature is pure evil.]
Yang Kai took the Space Ring and scanned it with Divine Sense to check its contents. After confirming everything was there, he grinned at Bai Zhuo and declared, “Brother Bai, since the matter is settled, I’ll take my leave.”
Bai Zhuo smiled lightly and got up, “Let’s go, I also happen to be going to the Holy Venerable’s palace.”
Yang Kai naturally did not have any objections and just ordered Xiao Wu to bring Li Shi Qing out of the room.
The two chatted all the way, and Yang Kai soon discovered that Bai Zhuo seemed to be interested in befriending him, which confused him slightly, [Perhaps he’s doing this because of my relationship with Yu Ru Meng?]
Bai Zhuo did not mention the one hundred million Demon Crystals, and Yang Kai did not plan to return them either. For a Half-Saint, a hundred million Demon Crystals meant nothing.
After a short while, they found someone standing in front of them, blocking their way. There was no one else within a thousand meters of where that person was standing and his aggressive aura seemed to permeate the air, causing many Demons to retreat.
Yue Sang!
He probably received news from the Blood Arena and hurried over. Yang Kai glanced at Bai Zhuo thoughtfully and secretly guessed that he might have already expected this, which was why he chose to accompany Yang Kai back to the palace.
Yang Kai would probably be in deep trouble if he was caught alone outside by Yue Sang.
At this moment, Yue Sang’s eyes were blazing, his blood boiling furiously all over him. The murderous intent was apparent as he glanced at Yang Kai and Li Shi Qing. He then fixed his gaze on Bai Zhuo and declared coldly, “You seem intent on interfering with this King’s business.”
Bai Zhuo chuckled, “Since I have nothing to do, I came here to have some fun.”
Yue Sang snorted again and raised his finger at Yang Kai, “Thirty Myriad Demon Pills for him.”
[Myriad Demon Pills?] Yang Kai’s eyes flashed. [What the Hell is that?] However, from Yue Sang’s tone, he obviously wanted to exchange thirty of these Myriad Demon Pills in order for Bai Zhuo to stop interfering in this matter. In this place and at this time, as long as Bai Zhuo withdrew, Yue Sang could do whatever he wanted. Although this place was under Yu Ru Meng’s jurisdiction, as long as Yue Sang was fast enough, there would be nothing to object about later.
Yang Kai glanced at Bai Zhuo and saw his face change slightly, which made him realize that these so-called Myriad Demon Pills were something incredibly valuable.
However, Bai Zhuo slowly shook his head, “I’m afraid I can’t give you what you want.”
“Fifty!”
Bai Zhuo rubbed his forehead, and replied with a wry smile, “It really is a tempting bargain, but…”
“Eighty!” Yue Sang raised his voice, with a painful look on his face as if a few kilograms of meat were shaved off him, “This is the most this King can offer.”
Bai Zhuo turned his head and looked at Yang Kai, then at Li Shi Qing, causing Yang Kai’s heart to tighten. Fortunately, Bai Zhuo still did not agree and simply said, “How about a slight change? I’ll give you back this woman.”
He stretched out his hand and pointed at Li Shi Qing.
“Don’t even think about it!” Yang Kai was furious and stared at him, “She’s my property now!”
Bai Zhuo shrugged at Yue Sang upon Yang Kai’s words, “Then that’s too bad.”
Yue Sang’s face darkened as his voice turned as cold as ice, “Are you sure you won’t regret this? You should know that irritating this King will not do you any good.”
Bai Zhuo smiled slightly, “Don’t be such an alarmist. This King is perfectly aware of how capable you, Yue Sang, are. However, if I were you, I would worry about myself. Do you think Holy Venerable is going to let this incident slide?”
Yue Sang could not reply as the aggressive aura around him was threatening to explode, causing Yang Kai to become vigilant.
Bai Zhuo, on the other hand, stroked his chin lightly before saying, “If you’re not going to make a move, we’ll be leaving.”
As he said that, he gestured to Yang Kai and the others to follow him. He led the group of people past the Half-Saint, whose aura just felt like a breeze sweeping by them, unhindered.
As the few of them walked past Yue Sang, Yang Kai turned to glance at him, whose face was contorted to the extreme, his fists clenched tightly as if he was trying his best to suppress his urge to pounce at them.
Yue Sang knew that if he really engaged Bai Zhuo here, on top of his uncertain chance of winning, the thought of Yu Ru Meng’s wrath descending on him was unimaginable, so all he could do was watch Yang Kai and the others leave.
When they pulled a good distance away from Yue Sang, Yang Kai let out a breath softly in relief as he squinted at Bai Zhuo, “Did you really want to trade me to him just now?”
Bai Zhuo laughed, “How can that be? If I really did that, Holy Venerable would kill me.” While speaking, he glanced at the teary-eyed Li Shi Qing, “But eighty Myriad Demon Pills would be a good deal in exchange for this woman.”
“What are Myriad Demon Pills?” Yang Kai took the opportunity to ask.
Bai Zhuo replied mysteriously, “It’s useless to ask this now. You will know in the future.”
Since he did not want to answer, Yang Kai just changed the subject.
Not long after, they arrived at the palace where Bai Zhuo, who wanted to meet Yu Ru Meng, parted ways with Yang Kai.
Returning to his residence again, Yang Kai asked Xiao Wu to arrange a room for Li Shi Qing, while he took out the map he bought and studied it in his quarters.
In the Demon Realm, he could not count on anyone, and it was not practical to just inquire about the whereabouts of Bright Moon Great Emperor, so he could only work hard on his own.
After a while of careful study, Yang Kai discovered that the Demon Realm was truly vast. There were no fewer than five hundred fragmented continents, and although there were large and small ones, their combined area was definitely much larger than the Star Boundary’s.
To track down Bright Moon Great Emperor in so many fragmented continents was like looking for a needle in a haystack!
Yang Kai could not help feeling powerless as he did not find a single clue.
While he was at a loss, he suddenly remembered Li Shi Qing. This woman had been in the Demon Realm for a long time now, so although her situation had been less than pleasant, there was a chance she might know something.
He stored the map, opened the door, and walked out.
Summoning Xiao Wu, he found where Li Shi Qing was and headed there straight away.
The place Xiao Wu arranged for Li Shi Qing was not far from Yang Kai’s room, so it took just a short time to arrive.
Pushing the door of the room open impolitely, Yang Kai strode in and glanced left and right. He found Li Shi Qing curled up in the corner, arms around her legs and chin on knees, her eyes still wet, looking absolutely pitiful.
Hearing the movement, Li Shi Qing looked up and shuddered at the sight of Yang Kai. She obviously remembered the treatment Yang Kai had shown her before so she could not help wanting to retreat; unfortunately for her, there was a wall behind her.
Yang Kai snickered, which escalated her anxiety.
With a wave of his hand, the door slammed shut and Yang Kai walked toward her.
Li Shi Qing was completely petrified as her breath caught in her chest, watching the menacing figure that obscured the light above her head with her beautiful wide eyes.
Yang Kai looked down at her condescendingly while feeling a little odd; after all, Yu Ru Meng had disguised herself using this face for a long time so he was quite familiar with it, though it never looked like this.
Raising his hand slightly and a chair flew over.
Unexpectedly, Li Shi Qing suddenly hugged her head with her arms, and whispered, “Don’t hit me, please don’t hit me…”
Yang Kai didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. [Is this woman really the only Legacy Disciple of Flower Shadow Great Emperor? She’s so timid! How did she even become a Second-Order Emperor? Could it be that the Flower Shadow Great Emperor sheltered her too much, causing her to develop such a weak character?]
Sitting on the chair, Yang Kai raised his hand and knocked on her head with his knuckle.
In the next instant, Li Shi Qing fell limp and collapsed on the ground with her eyes shut.
Yang Kai blinked dumbly for a moment before he stretched out his hand to check her breathing as a weird expression filled his face. He then examined her with his Divine Sense and confirmed that Li Shi Qing had fainted.
[What the… I didn’t even say a word…] He initially wanted to ask her something, but it was impossible now.
In irritation, Yang Kai could only wait.
After about five to six hours, Li Shi Qing finally woke up. Her eyelashes quivered, her eyes opened, and the first thing she saw was Yang Kai sitting in front of her.
She could not wait to pass out again!
Before she was able to close her eyes and pretend to faint again as Yang Kai shouted with an annoyed face, “Sit properly!”
Li Shi Qing’s body trembled and it was obvious that she was dreadfully afraid of him. She gently bit her red lips as her gaze drifted away for a while before she slowly knelt down in front of Yang Kai with her head bowed down humbly, as if she were an ill-treated daughter-in-law.
Yang Kai found her pathetic, but he maintained his stern expression, asking, “Are you Li Shi Qing?”
She nodded.
Yang Kai rubbed his temples, “Is Flower Shadow Great Emperor your Honoured Master?”
She nodded again.
“Are you a mute?”
She nodded again, then quickly shook her head, and answered as she looked up at Yang Kai in fear, “No.”
Yang Kai snorted coldly, “Since you’re not, then answer when this King asks you a question. Lie, and you will suffer the consequences.”
“Yes, yes…” Li Shi Qing held her head with her hands, as if Yang Kai’s voice was too loud and it overwhelmed her.
Yang Kai suddenly pitied Flower Shadow Great Emperor. How did she raise such a weak-willed Disciple?
After pondering for a while, Yang Kai continued, “Judging from your previous reaction, you must have heard of me, right?”
“Yes!”
“Ha!” Yang Kai sneered, “This King doesn’t care what you heard before, but listen well to what this King is about to tell you. This King has betrayed the Star Boundary. We cannot coexist now, we are absolutely irreconcilable! Sooner or later, this King will trample that damned place flat and show those fools my strength.”
Initially, Yang Kai wanted to explain the truth to Li Shi Qing so that she could cooperate with him, but seeing her condition now, it was better for him not to disclose anything, lest she let slip his secret. At this moment, he could not trust this woman.
Li Shi Qing raised her head, looking at him seriously and blinking.
Yang Kai pressed on fiercely, “Do you hear me clearly?”
“Yes!”
“Good.” Yang Kai nodded with satisfaction, “Let’s begin. How did you get here?”
Li Shi Qing shook her head, “I’m not sure. I was knocked out, and I was already here when I woke up.”
[That should be Yu Ru Meng’s work, Bai Zhuo probably helped too.]
Yang Kai suddenly changed the topic, “It was said that Bright Moon fell into the Demon Realm. Do you know where he is now?”
“You mean… Senior Bright Moon?” Li Shi Qing almost could not react to it.
“Who else could it be?” Yang Kai replied as he stared at her.
“Is Senior Bright Moon here?” Li Shi Qing was shocked.
Yang Kai sighed in his heart, showing a look of disappointment. By the look of her reaction, she probably did not know the whereabouts of Bright Moon Great Emperor, so Yang Kai immediately lost his interest in talking, because it was pointless for him to ask anymore.
Yang Kai went silent, and Li Shi Qing did not dare to make a sound, so for a moment, the room fell into dead silence.
After a long time, Yang Kai pronounced, “I see that you’ve been resisting the erosion of Demon Qi, but how long can you keep that up?” He had no idea how long she had been holding on like this; however, Yang Kai could feel that the power in her body had almost completely depleted. If Yang Kai had not protected her when she passed out just now, perhaps she would already have been contaminated by the Demon Qi. The Demon Qi would have some impact on her more or less if it invaded her body, and would ultimately demonify her if left unchecked.
Speaking of this, Li Shi Qing looked a little pitiful. She shook her head slowly as she answered, “Ten days at most… My Space Ring was taken from me, and I don’t have any recovery items.”
Yang Kai had long noticed this as Li Shi Qing did not have a Space Ring with her. If she had sufficient resources, she would not be in such a pathetic state.
Yang Kai casually flickered a Space Ring to her, and snorted coldly, “Live well. This King has no use for you if you become a Demon.” After saying so, he got up and went outside.
Behind him, Li Shi Qing picked up the Space Ring and did a brief inspection. Joy immediately crept onto her face as there were Source Crystals and various Spirit Pills that she needed the most at this time inside. With these things, she could restore her strength and continue to resist the erosion of the Demon Qi.
…
When Yang Kai walked out of Li Shi Qing’s room, he saw Yu Ru Meng standing outside in the flower garden with a meaningful smile on her face.
Yang Kai was taken aback as he had not noticed her aura at all. He secretly rejoiced. Fortunately, he did not reveal anything when chatting with Li Shi Qing just now, otherwise, his end would probably have been dreadful.
“Why are you here?” Yang Kai approached and held Yu Ru Meng’s soft waist without showing any trace of politeness.
Yu Ru Meng looked down at his big hands, and revealed a faint smile, “Am I interrupting you?”
Yang Kai curled his lip, “There’s nothing to be interrupted.”
Yu Ru Meng nudged her chin towards the room and continued, “Given that you’re willing to go through all that trouble to bring her back from the Blood Arena, don’t tell me that you’re interested in her?”
Yang Kai retorted angrily, “Speaking of this, I need to ask you. What’s the matter with the maidservants here? Why do all of them look like this? Did you do it on purpose?”
Yu Ru Meng giggled, “So what? Who knows if you will cheat behind my back. I can’t watch over you all the time, so I have to take some precautions.”
Yang Kai bared his teeth, and replied painfully, “You don’t trust me.”
Yu Ru Meng glanced sideways at him, “You have to be trustworthy first.” As soon as she turned around and got rid of Yang Kai’s arms, she went to the flower garden, picked one, turned around, and went to place it on Yang Kai’s head.
Yang Kai stared at her, alarmed, “What are you doing!?”
“Don’t move!”
“Don’t even think about it!” As a man, Yang Kai found it to be embarrassing to have a flower in his hair. He quickly dodged her, but unexpectedly, Yu Ru Meng caught up like a shadow and landed the flower with a gentle motion, then quickly floated backwards. She looked at Yang Kai with her head tilted, then burst into laughter.
Yang Kai’s face went as black as the bottom of a pot and raised his hand to pull the flower out of his hair before throwing it to the ground and trampling on it, “Just you wait! You’ll regret this sooner or later.” After a fierce statement, he turned around to leave.
However, his arm was grabbed by Yu Ru Meng.
“What else do you want?” Yang Kai was full of frustration. In the Star Boundary, Yu Ru Meng only had a Second-Order Emperor Realm cultivation, so he could do anything he wanted to her, but here, when this woman restored her cultivation, he stood no chance when competing with a Demon Saint.
Yang Kai suspected that she was now taking revenge for everything he put her through.
“Are you angry?” Yu Ru Meng leaned her head close to him.
Yang Kai turned his head away, answering sarcastically, “I wouldn’t dare.”
“Good, then let me get down to business.” Yu Ru Meng turned solemn. Seeing that Yang Kai was still unresponsive and had no intention to listen, she immediately smiled and grabbed Yang Kai’s big hand and put it on her chest.
Feeling an amazing elasticity, Yang Kai instantly beamed and started kneading and playing with it, nodding, “Go ahead, go ahead, I’m listening.”
Yu Ru Meng stared at him, irritated, but still pressed on, “I need you to go to Cloud Shadow Continent.”
“Cloud Shadow Continent?” Yang Kai frowned, and quickly recalled the location of Cloud Shadow Continent. Fortunately, he had studied the new map diligently, otherwise, he might still be clueless at this moment.
Cloud Shadow Continent was not far from Enchantment Continent, but it was not close either. One would need to go through several Territory Gates before reaching there. Based on his current mobility and with the aid of the Tiger Head Chariot he purchased, it would take him about half a day to arrive.
“What for?” Yang Kai was puzzled.
“It’s where your help is needed of course, which is also the reason why I brought you here to the Demon Realm. As for what to do, someone will explain the situation to you there.”
Yang Kai fell into contemplation. He always wondered why Yu Ru Meng did not hesitate to use her Heart Seal Secret Technique to tie them together just to bring him to the Demon Realm. She certainly was up to something, but this was actually a good opportunity for him to probe her intentions as well.
Furthermore, he could not find out the whereabouts of Bright Moon Great Emperor here. If he went somewhere else, he may have a chance to inquire about it.
As soon as he thought about this, he had already made a decision in his heart, but he pretended to be reluctant and asked, “Can I not go?”
“Just help me with this.” Yu Ru Meng winked at him.
Yang Kai could not bring himself to say no. This woman was not only a Demon Saint, but also a Charm Demon, so she simply exuded seduction. Even just a little wink was enough to pull out the soul of any man.
“What benefit would I get from this?” Yang Kai snorted.
Yu Ru Meng chuckled, stared at Yang Kai, then glanced at the room, “You can do whatever you want with that woman inside, and I won’t stop you.”
“What kind of benefit is that!?” Yang Kai pouted.
“What do you want then?” Yu Ru Meng looked at him playfully.
Yang Kai’s eyes quivered, and then he whispered into her ear. Yu Ru Meng could not help rolling her eyes as she stretched out her hand to pull his ear over, whispered back, and tapped on her own red lips.
Yang Kai could not help gulping, and stared at her shimmery red lips, “Splendid!”
Provoked, Yu Ru Meng pinched his waist furiously.
Yang Kai grimaced in pain, “Anyway, I’m fine with you sending me to Cloud Shadow Continent, but what about Yue Sang? I’m afraid he’ll stop me halfway. You know he treats me like an arch-enemy, and with my current strength, I won’t end well facing him.”
Yu Ru Meng reassured, “You don’t have to worry about this. I have punished him for taking Li Shi Qing out on his own and using her to lure you to participate in the Blood Arena battle this time.”
“Did you kill him?” Yang Kai was overjoyed.
“He is a Half-Saint, so how could I just kill him?” Yu Ru Meng could not help laughing. If she really killed a Half-Saint for something so small, she would lose face, and it would be bad if the other Half-Saints under her became distrustful of her. Instead, she explained, “Bai Zhuo just came back, so I sent Yue Sang to the battlefield, and told him not to return without orders; therefore, you don’t have to worry that he will give you trouble.”
“Very good.” Yang Kai sneered, “I’ll let him live for now. When I get stronger, I will take his dog life!”
“We’ll see.” Yu Ru Meng smiled lightly.
But the next moment, Yang Kai hugged her waist and carried her up, flirting with his head lowered, “I’ve heard for a long time that Charm Demons are unrivalled when it comes to seducing people and stealing hearts, but this King doesn’t believe it. Let’s find out today!”
Yu Ru Meng stretched out her hand to hug Yang Kai’s neck, giggling, “Be careful of what you wish for.”
Early morning the next day.
Yang Kai felt refreshed as he walked along the main road of the Holy City, his lips slightly curved upwards as he recalled the ecstasy of last night.
Yu Ru Meng truly lived up to her name as a Charm Demon. Her skills were almost unbearable for him even with his Half-Dragon Body. With just her sweet, little mouth alone, the things she did… If not for his strong physique, Yang Kai probably would have begged for mercy.
Even an enchantress like Shan Qing Luo was a novice compared to her.
The only flaw in the perfect scenario was that he failed to seize the ultimate prize. The last line of defence was held firm by Yu Ru Meng, leaving Yang Kai helpless.
According to Yu Ru Meng, it was not because she was unwilling, but because the Primordial Yin of a Demon Saint’s body was simply too potent, and there would be damage to Yang Kai’s foundation if he insisted. She could only ask him to work hard on his cultivation; as soon as he reached the Half-Saint Realm, he would finally be able to have his way with her.
Yang Kai was greatly looking forward to it.
As he reached the main city gate, a person’s voice suddenly came from up ahead, “Brother Yang, you look simply radiant, and there’s a certain sparkle in your eyes. Looks like you had a happy night.”
Yang Kai looked up in surprise, “Brother Bai, why are you here?”
It was Bai Zhuo, whom he met yesterday, and from the looks of it… Yang Kai could not help wondering, “Brother Bai, were you waiting for me?”
Bai Zhuo beamed lightly, “Brother Yang, don’t tell me you thought that Holy Venerable would really let you go to Cloud Shadow Continent alone.”
Yang Kai suddenly realized, “Is Brother Bai coming with me?”
Bai Zhuo replied, “I’m only responsible for escorting you and also then handing things over to the Demon Kings over there. Brother Yang will have to rely on himself for the rest. The battle between the two worlds is raging right now, so I can’t stay in the Demon Realm for too long.”
Yang Kai wanted to inquire about the situation of the battlefield, but was also afraid that he would expose himself if he asked too much, so he just nodded, “Then I shall have to trouble you, Brother Bai!”
“Brother Yang, please!” Bai Zhuo stretched out his hand in a gesture so polite that made Yang Kai wonder if he had any other intentions. This guy was a Half-Saint, so even if it was for the sake of Yu Ru Meng, was it necessary for him to be so polite? Yesterday was the same.
He could not understand, nor did he think he could get an answer if he asked, so Yang Kai decided not to think about it for now.
Outside the city gate, when Bai Zhuo was about to take off and head towards the Cloud Shadow Continent, Yang Kai stretched out his hand to stop him and summoned his newly bought Tiger Head Chariot.
In any case, he was not in a hurry for this trip, and he did not even understand the purpose of going to Cloud Shadow Continent. Since there was no need to hurry, Yang Kai took this opportunity to try his new flight-type artifact.
After some effort, the route was set up and Yang Kai boarded the War Chariot together with Bai Zhuo, Li Shi Qing, and Xiao Wu. The internal space of the War Chariot was not big, so four people was its limit.
He had to bring Li Shi Qing with him for the convenience of guarding her. He would have sent her into the Small Sealed World a long time ago if he did not have to consider raising any suspicions as that would save him a lot of trouble.
On the other hand, Xiao Wu was ordered by Yu Ru Meng to serve Yang Kai personally.
Yang Kai highly suspected the reason Yu Ru Meng arranged for Xiao Wu to stay by his side was to keep an eye on him. He had no objection to it though, for she was just a maidservant. Although her appearance was less than pleasant, Yang Kai had become fond of Xiao Wu after spending some time together. It was at least better than getting a new maidservant on the other side.
With a slight urging of his Emperor Qi, the Tiger Head Chariot immediately turned into a stream of light that soared straight into the sky, heading towards the nearest Territory Gate.
Yang Kai very soon discovered the benefit of this artifact. No control was needed as long as the route was set in advance, and as long as there was enough power, the Tiger Head Chariot would speed all the way towards its destination. Even if it could not be compared to Bai Zhuo’s flight speed, it definitely was not slow.
Emperor Qi, Demon Qi, or even Demon Crystals that had been inserted could be used as fuel to drive the War Chariot. Yang Kai spent some time playing around with it in fascination.
When he finally settled down, Yang Kai turned to look at Bai Zhuo, who was sitting next to him, and asked, “Brother Bai, do you know why Holy Venerable is sending me to Cloud Shadow Continent?”
Bai Zhuo answered questioningly, “Holy Venerable didn’t tell you?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “She only told me that someone there will explain the situation to me.”
When Bai Zhuo heard the words, he nodded, “Since that’s what Holy Venerable said, she must have…” He failed to stifle his laughter when he saw Yang Kai rolling his eyes, “Good, then I will reveal a little bit.”
“I’m eager to hear the details!” Yang Kai raised his eyebrows.
“Cloud Shadow Continent is about to vanish.”
Bai Zhuo looked at Yang Kai with scorching eyes, “I’m afraid that only you can prevent this from happening.”
“It’s going to disappear?” Yang Kai was astonished, “What happened? How can a continent just disappear all of a sudden?”
Bai Zhuo explained, “It’s not disappearing in the sense of it being destroyed. Strictly speaking, Cloud Shadow Continent will still exist, but the Territory Gates that connect to Cloud Shadow Continent are about to vanish. Originally, there were five Territory Gates that led to five different continents connected with Cloud Shadow Continent, but four of them have disappeared during the previous thousand years. Right now, there is only one left and it seems to be extremely unstable. Once the last Territory Gate disappears, Cloud Shadow Continent will be completely cut off from the Demon Realm, and we will lose another piece of territory. Brother Yang should understand what I mean.”
Yang Kai was startled for a while but soon nodded.
Each of the fragmented continents in the Demon Realm was equivalent to a Small World. These Small Worlds were not independent but were connected to each other by Territory Gates. If the Territory Gates of a fragmented continent disappear, then they would be completely cut off from the outside world, becoming completely isolated. To the Demon Realm, it was equivalent to a continent disappearing.
Yang Kai pondered for a moment before asking, “So Holy Venerable wants me here in the Demon Realm just for Cloud Shadow Continent?”
Bai Zhuo smiled wryly and shook his head, “It’s not just for Cloud Shadow Continent. Brother Yang may not know, but over the past few tens of thousands of years, many continents in the Demon Realm have disappeared. Cloud Shadow Continent is just the latest example, and it certainly won’t be the last.”
Yang Kai was shocked, “This has happened to many continents?”
Bai Zhuo answered solemnly, “This more or less happens to every Holy Venerable’s territory. In the past ten thousand years alone, the Demon Realm has lost more than ten continents, and it is more than likely that number will only grow as more time passes.”
“The entire world is unstable!” Yang Kai’s face turned pensive as he suddenly reached an epiphany. When he first came to the Demon Realm, despite being blown away by the wonders of the Demon Realm, he still faintly felt something was off.
The Demon Realm was like a shattered mirror, its pieces once part of a whole but unable to maintain long-term stability after it was shattered. The disappearance of Territory Gates and continents were definitely related to this.
Bai Zhuo nodded, “Brother Yang is correct, only those who are proficient in the Dao of Space can possibly solve this problem. This is also why Holy Venerable values you so much.”
Yang Kai nodded firmly, “I see now, to keep Cloud Shadow Continent, we must stabilize the last Territory Gate at the very least, right?”
“Indeed!” Bai Zhuo laughed slightly, “Brother Yang, you must know that in the Demon Realm, the strength of a Holy Venerables and Half-Saints like me is closely related to the size of the territories under their command. The more continents we control, the stronger we are.”
“What’s the reason for this?” Yang Kai was stunned, as he had never heard of such a thing.
Bai Zhuo laughed without saying a word, acting mysteriously.
Yang Kai gritted his teeth and gave up questioning. He just contemplated on his own with a frown on his face. As Bai Zhuo said, if the strength of the Holy Venerable was closely related to the size of the territory under his or her management, then Cloud Shadow Continent may be just the beginning. If he could stabilize the last Territory Gate and salvage the Cloud Shadow Continent, Yu Ru Meng may want him to stabilize other places and even search for the disappeared continents.
This was not nonsense. Based on his expertise in the Dao of Space, a continent lost to the Void was not actually lost, just difficult to reach. As long as the location of the previous Territory Gates could be found, it may not be impossible to recover those lost continents.
Once the lost continents were retrieved and the Territory Gates were rebuilt, Yu Ru Meng’s strength would also increase.
“Hm?”
Bai Zhuo let out a sound when Yang Kai was still deep in thought.
Yang Kai raised his head abruptly, manipulating his Emperor Qi to bring the speeding Tiger Head Chariot to a stop.
With a swoosh, a stream of light flew past them.
Someone was secretly ambushing them, but this person had no malicious intentions as the previous blow was only intended to stop the Tiger Head Chariot.
Yang Kai looked up, and found a slim figure standing a thousand meters ahead, with a pair of white wings behind her. She waved over at him vigorously with a strong bow in her hand and a smug smile on her face.
“Bo Ya!” The corner of Yang Kai’s mouth twitched. He was still wondering who wanted to ambush him, but he did not expect it to be this woman.
Previously, this woman left the Blood Arena abruptly without giving Yang Kai any time to react, but today she took the initiative to approach him.
[Could she be here for ten percent of the winnings? Then she is going to be disappointed!]
“It’s this girl…” Bai Zhuo obviously recognized Bo Ya, and smiled slightly, “Brother Yang, if possible, it would be good to subdue her. She may be of use to you when you’re in Cloud Shadow Continent.”
Yang Kai snorted coldly, “She’s fairly strong, but there’s nothing worth complimenting about when it comes to her character.” The sole fact that she liked women was enough to unsettle Yang Kai. This woman entered the free for all battle in the Blood Arena for Li Shi Qing, and it was uncertain what she would do if he kept her by his side.
Bai Zhuo did not say much after hearing Yang Kai’s response.
As the two continued talking, Bo Ya flew over with a grin, and greeted Yang Kai enthusiastically, “Hello!”
She then suddenly noticed Bai Zhuo, and was slightly taken aback, but she hurriedly composed herself and cupped her fists, “Greetings, Sir!”
Bai Zhuo smiled, “Are you in trouble again?”
An unnatural smile appeared on Bo Ya’s face, and she replied shyly, “Sir, since when did I ever get into trouble?”
Not giving Bai Zhuo a chance to speak again, she turned her head and looked at Yang Kai with a solemn expression, and immediately got down on one knee and cupped her hands, “Feather Demon Bo Ya is here to serve under Sir. Please take me in!”
Yang Kai was dumbfounded as he stared at Bo Ya in confusion, wondering, [What is this woman up to now?]
They only cooperated once in the Blood Arena, so Yang Kai was not familiar with Bo Ya. Furthermore, she did not seem to be an obedient person at that time; in other words, this woman wasn’t the type to submit meekly or obey orders easily.
Yang Kai instinctively thought that she was joking, but soon his face changed again. He turned to look in one direction, sneered, and then turned back to Bo Ya. She looked embarrassed, the corner of her lips twisting into a faint smile.
More than a dozen kilometres away, many powerful auras were approaching. There were many High-Rank Demon Kings among them whose figures could even be seen from a distance, and they were all eyeing this place.
Although Yang Kai just swept his eyes over them, he recognized one among them; he was the middle-aged Demon King who he had met in the Blood Arena that day.
It was impossible that the Demons were coming for him, so there was only one explanation for this, they came for Bo Ya.
The submission of this woman was an act she had to carry out in order to seek protection; however, Yang Kai had no idea why she was being chased and hunted by the people from the Blood Arena.
Without any hesitation though, Yang Kai waved his hand, “Make way, or don’t blame this King for being rude!”
Bo Ya pleaded with a pitiful face, “Sir, please don’t stand by and watch me die! It’s all thanks to you that this Bo Ya fell into such a situation.”
Yang Kai snorted, “It’s none of my business that you offended others.”
Bo Ya explained, “It’s because of what happened in the Blood Arena yesterday! They seem to think that my intervention sabotaged their plans, so they have been chasing after me since then. Bo Ya has no where to go now and could only ask Sir to accept her. Sir has seen Bo Ya’s abilities; she will surely not disappoint you.”
Yang Kai sneered, “The Demon Realm is a vast, wide world. You can go anywhere you want, why come to me? Stop being ridiculous.”
As soon as these words came out, Bo Ya dropped her head in despair, “If I had another choice, I wouldn’t have come to you. All the Territory Gates have been blocked by them, so where else can I go?”
Yang Kai looked at her faintly, “I wonder if you’ve heard a particular saying we have among my Human Race?”
“What is it?” Bo Ya looked at him curiously.
Yang Kai’s mouth curved into a smile, “If a natural disaster happens to someone, he can be forgiven; but if it’s of one’s own making, he deserves the punishment!” Although he knew that he was a part of the reason Bo Ya was being chased and hunted down by those from the Blood Arena, Yang Kai truly did not want to be involved with this woman. As such, he simply waved his hand and demanded, “Make way!”
Bo Ya threw herself onto the Tiger Head Chariot and begged pitifully, “If Sir doesn’t want to take me in, can you just escort me out? Just help me to pass through the Territory Gate.” After a pause, she continued, “Right, you don’t need to pay me my ten percent either. I don’t want it anymore.”
“There was never ten percent for you! Cease your nonsense,” Yang Kai hissed.
Bai Zhuo suddenly interrupted, “Brother Yang, it’d be good to take her with you. This girl’s ability is more powerful than an ordinary High-Rank Demon King. She really could be of great use to you.”
Hearing what Bai Zhuo said, Bo Ya quickly nodded like a chicken pecking rice, “Yes, yes, Sir, just take me with you. I’ll serve you well!”
Yang Kai glared furiously at Bai Zhuo as he had no idea why Bai Zhuo was so interested in this matter. He shook his head slowly and remarked, “I don’t feel secure about this.” He did not know Bo Ya well, so how could he simply keep her with him?
Bai Zhuo laughed gently, “If that’s the case, I can do you a favour.”
After saying so, he suddenly reached out and grabbed Bo Ya. Bo Ya was taken aback, and instinctively attempted to retreat, but she was no match for Bai Zhuo despite her strength. Bai Zhuo’s big hand was directly inserted into Bo Ya’s head, but no blood gushed out of it. Bai Zhuo then pulled his hand out after a while. Bo Ya’s body went stiff before it shivered, as if she had suffered some severe damage, gasping for air with a horrified face.
At this moment, Bai Zhuo had caught hold of something like a twisted and erratic cloud in his hand. He then took out something like a puppet with another hand, and placed it in front of his chest. Followed by some chanting and a hand seal, he threw the cloud into the puppet, and then applied several seals. After that, he tossed the puppet to Yang Kai with a smile, “Now you can rest assured using her.”
On the other side, Bo Ya’s face turned pale as she retreated a few steps back, looking at the puppet in Yang Kai’s hand in horror, “Soul Puppet!”
Bai Zhuo smiled at her, “Since you recognize this thing, you should behave yourself in the future.”
Bo Ya was immediately distressed, “Sir Bai Zhuo, how can you do this to me? When did Bo Ya offend you?”
Bai Zhuo replied curiously, “Isn’t this King helping you achieve your wish? You should be grateful.”
Bo Ya was so infuriated that her teeth rattled, but she dared not rebuke.
Yang Kai pinched the doll as he questioned, “What’s the use of this thing?”
Bai Zhuo beamed lightly, “To control her life and death. With this thing, she won’t betray you.”
“Really?” Yang Kai raised his eyebrows.
“Not at all!” Bo Ya yelled, and attempted to snatch the puppet, “Give it to me, and I’ll leave now.”
Of course, Yang Kai would not let her get what she wanted and turned aside to avoid her snatch. He then gently flicked the puppet’s forehead, and in the next moment, a thump was heard, followed by Bo Ya’s scream. She seemed to have been hit hard, and spun several times in the air before she stabilized her body.
When she finally came to a stop, a feeling of dizziness struck her. She covered her forehead with her hands and looked at Yang Kai with a depressed face. A red mark could be seen on her forehead, as if she had been punched.
She regretted it. Initially, she just wanted to pass through the Territory Gate with Yang Kai’s help, and then she would flee far away and never return to Enchantment Continent again; however, she did not expect Bai Zhuo to make a move without any warning and seal her Soul Brand into a Soul Puppet. From now on, she would not be free anymore…
On the other hand, Yang Kai became interested. He pulled the arm of the puppet upwards, and Bo Ya could not help lifting her arm. When he poked the puppet, Bo Ya immediately fell back in a stagger.
Everything that he did to the puppet would be reflected on Bo Ya. In other words, if the puppet was destroyed, perhaps Bo Ya would die without a chance for burial.
Yang Kai grinned. He did not have to worry about anything if he had this thing. He then turned to Bai Zhuo and asked, “Do you still have more of these things? Give me some if you do.”
Bai Zhuo returned with a smile, “It’s not easy to refine this thing, and it needs the corresponding Secret Technique to use. Even if I give you another, what’s the use of it if you don’t know how to use it?”
Yang Kai grinned, “Then just teach me that Secret Technique.”
Bai Zhuo shook his finger at Yang Kai, “Be contented.” He was obviously unwilling to teach Yang Kai the Secret Technique.
Seeing this, Yang Kai could only give up on that thought. He put the Soul Puppet into his Space Ring and then looked up at Bo Ya with great interest. To be honest, aside from her character, Yang Kai truly admired her outstanding ability, for he had witnessed it when he teamed up with her yesterday.
Now, with the restriction of the Soul Puppet, it would be harmless for him to take her around; therefore, he announced firmly, “Since you have come under me, you should obey my orders in the future. You will be rewarded if you have meritorious deeds and will be punished if you make mistakes. If you dare to have any thoughts of betrayal, you will die!”
The corner of Bo Ya’s mouth twitched, she lowered her head, “Can I say no?”
Yang Kai replied, “It’s up to you. If you are unwilling to, I’ll give you the Soul Puppet now, and we’ll have nothing to do with each other.”
Bo Ya looked at him dumbfounded, as if she did not seemingly expect that he would be so easily convinced; even Bai Zhuo was a little surprised. Although Bo Ya’s reputation was not good by any means, her strength was recognized by everyone. Many Half-Saints wanted to recruit her, but she did not want to be constrained by others in her early years. Later on, her reputation grew worse, so now no one wanted to recruit her anymore.
Unexpectedly though, when she came to Yang Kai, she was treated as an existence that could be abandoned, which discouraged Bo Ya.
However, she was quite interested in Yang Kai’s suggestion. She hesitated for a while, but after looking at the crowd from the Blood Arena she rubbed her hair ruthlessly, finally declaring with a resolute face, “I can work for you, as long as you don’t do anything strange to me.”
The corner of Yang Kai’s mouth curved, “You think too much.”
Bo Ya turned her head away while cupping her fists, “May I know where Sir is going? Bo Ya is willing to open the way ahead.”
Yang Kai nodded with satisfaction, “Cloud Shadow Continent!”
Bo Ya accepted the task. As soon as she turned around, she took a deep breath, held her five fingers together, and a sharp arrow appeared at her fingertips. Without showing her movement, the bowstring of the great bow in her hand had been pulled and the arrow had been nocked. Everything was performed smoothly and swiftly.
The arrow turned into a stream of light, and was released towards a spot a dozen kilometres away.
Bo Ya guffawed wildly, “Eat this Lady’s arrow, you bunch of dogs!”
More than ten kilometres away, the faces of the Demon Kings turned pale one after another as they hurriedly dodged the arrow. With a bang, the colour of the entire world seemed to change. When everything returned to its initial state, the group of Demon Kings retreated another dozen kilometres away.
Bo Ya ignored those guys and led the way ahead arrogantly. The Demon Kings in the distance watched her leave with dark faces, but none dared to come forward to confront her.
They dared not be presumptuous in the presence of Bai Zhuo, even knowing that if they missed this opportunity today, it would be impossible to trap Bo Ya again in the future.
After a while, a Territory Gate appeared in the sky ahead, leading to an adjacent continent. As Bo Ya mentioned, there were Masters guarding the Territory Gate, and they were obviously people from the Blood Arena.
However, Bo Ya did not approach immediately and instead watched from a distance, waiting for the arrival of Yang Kai and the others. Once they regrouped, Bai Zhuo led the way through the Territory Gate, and the Masters standing guard there could not do anything but sigh.
One needed to pass through five Territory Gates and four different continents in order to travel from Enchantment Continent to Cloud Shadow Continent, but after the initial incident with Bo Ya, everything went smoothly.
They took only half a day to arrive at Cloud Shadow Continent.
After passing through the last Territory Gate, Yang Kai looked around and frowned.
He found that the Territory Gate here was indeed unstable, just as Bai Zhuo stated before. A normal Territory Gate would stand firm and remain unchanged for tens of thousands of years, but the Territory Gate of Cloud Shadow Continent was now fluctuating slightly from time to time, like a bubble that was warping and might collapse at any time.
According to Yang Kai’s prediction, within a hundred years, the Territory Gate here would collapse. By that time, Cloud Shadow Continent may be completely isolated and lose contact with the Demon Realm.
Moreover, the Territory Gate would be more and more unsafe with the passage of time. Perhaps one would accidentally be exiled to the Void when passing through it. The Territory Gate was similar to a Void Corridor, and this unstable Territory Gate was undoubtedly of great benefit to Yang Kai, because he could use it to study the Dao of Space.
But obviously, now was not the right time. Now that he had come to Cloud Shadow Continent, he needed to meet the Masters in this place; after all, he might still have to work with these people in the future.
Looking down from a high altitude, Cloud Shadow Continent covered a large area, and its border could not be seen at a glance. From the map that Yang Kai obtained yesterday, he learnt that among the continents in the Demon Realm, the size of Cloud Shadow Continent was above average, but because of the problem with the Territory Gates, this place’s strength wasn’t great. There were only ten High-Rank Demon Kings guarding this continent, while Demon Kings beneath High-Rank were not more than three hundred.
This couldn’t be helped though as no one knew when the final Territory Gate of this continent would disappear. Once the gate disappeared, Cloud Shadow Continent would be completely cut off from the outside world, trapping everyone here and dooming them. Therefore, some Masters, who had connections or were worried about the dangers of this continent, had long left and gone to work in other places. What remained here was either those who had other plans, or had no better way out.
In addition, with the war with the Star Boundary raging, many Demon troops were transferred out of Cloud Shadow Continent, leaving only four High-Rank Demon Kings behind and less than one hundred other Demon Kings.
This information was revealed casually by Bai Zhuo during their conversation.
There was a huge city at the centre of Cloud Shadow Continent. The buildings in the city were well-arranged in rows, with millions of Demons living within its perimetre. Cloud Shadow City was not only the most prosperous place on Cloud Shadow Continent, but also the hub of the whole Cloud Shadow Continent.
Clearly having received advanced notification, there were more than thirty Demon Kings waiting when the Tiger Head Chariot passed through the clouds and landed in front of a huge building in the middle of the city. Three people were standing in front, while the rest stood behind. After Bai Zhuo and the others got off the War Chariot, they cupped their fists, “Greetings, Sir!”
Bai Zhuo nodded faintly, swept his eyes across them, then raised his brow slightly as he asked, “Why are there only three of you? Where is Lie Kuang?”
There were supposed to be four High-Rank Demon Kings in Cloud Shadow Continent, but only three of them were here, and the last guy named Lie Kuang was missing.
The High-Rank Demon Kings in the middle immediately replied, “Lie Kuang reported that there was some matter that delayed his journey, and it will take some time for him to get here.”
Bai Zhuo remained nonchalant.
When he was asking the question, Yang Kai observed the three High-Rank Demon Kings; two men and one woman. The woman was a Shadow Demon and her figure was erratic with her face covered by black Qi. The High-Rank Demon King who spoke was a little elderly and showed signs of decline in vitality. As for the last one, he was a tall, pale, middle-aged man, who seemed to be malnourished and a little emaciated.
The corner of Yang Kai’s mouth curved, showing a faint smile.
Yu Ru Meng gave him the task to prevent the collapse of the Territory Gate in Cloud Shadow Continent; however, while he was here, Cloud Shadow Continent would be his territory. Everyone here had to listen to his orders. In other words, these Demon Kings were all his subordinates now.
Yang Kai did not really care about this task, but he wondered if he could somehow use it to his advantage. It would be best if he could stir up a big mess among the Demons. Even if that was impossible, he should at least create a distraction for the Demon Race on this side to reduce their momentum in the war.
Bai Zhuo introduced the names and responsibilities of the three High-Rank Demon Kings to Yang Kai one by one, and Yang Kai just memorized them casually.
Among these three Demon Kings, the old Demon King was the one who had been guarding Cloud Shadow City, while the other two actually came from the other places far away. They all had their own territories to guard, and it was the same for Lie Kuang, who had not revealed himself.
After introductions were finished, Bai Zhuo waved his hand, “Let’s talk inside.”
Everyone agreed.
The crowd followed Bai Zhuo into a magnificent hall where sixteen pillars so thick it would take several people to wrap around them stood, carved with remarkable-looking Dragons and Phoenixes.
More than thirty Demon Kings lined up in several rows below while Yang Kai flicked his robe and sat at the head of the hall, glancing around casually.
Bo Ya stood ten metres in front and to his left with a valiant and heroic demeanour like a loyal guard, while Xiao Wu and Li Shi Qing stood on the left and right behind him.
The Demon Kings were dumbstruck by the scene and all of them turned to look at Bai Zhuo, before looking back at Yang Kai.
Given that Bai Zhuo was here, how could Yang Kai be so daring to take this seat without showing any courtesy? But at the same time, Bai Zhuo did not look mad at all, which made them even more confused.
Bai Zhuo beamed lightly, “Holy Venerable has an edict. She has appointed Yang Kai as Great King, and he will be in charge of all matters of Cloud Shadow Continent. All of you need to make great efforts to cooperate with him and demonstrate your loyalty to your duties. Those who dare act negligent will die!”
As soon as he announced this, all the Demon Kings became unsettled. They looked up at Bai Zhuo incredulously one after another, to confirm whether they had heard wrong. The female High-Rank Shadow Demon King even trembled violently, and it was obvious that she was greatly impacted by the news.
Although Bai Zhuo introduced Yang Kai in a friendly tone and let them know that this unknown man was special, they never thought it would be to such an extent.
There had never been any ‘Great King’ in the Demon Realm before; therefore, the Demon Kings had no clue about the meaning of this title, but by the look of the Holy Venerable’s edict and Bai Zhuo’s attitude, not to mention Yang Kai’s strength, he should at least have a status equivalent to a Half-Saint.
[Who the Hell is this guy? Why does Holy Venerable value him so much and entrust the authority of Cloud Shadow Continent to him?]
But since this message was conveyed by Bai Zhuo personally, it should not be wrong. After a little hesitation, the three High-Rank Demon Kings bowed together and saluted, “Subordinate greets Great King!”
The other Demon Kings behind them imitated them.
The corner of Yang Kai’s mouth twitched at being addressed as Great King, for he somehow felt like he had become some kind of bandit king… The title sounded pathetic, but he did not bother to correct them and simply waved his hand, “There’s no need for such ceremony. In the future, this King will be relying on you all in Cloud Shadow Continent. I hope we can cooperate with each other wholeheartedly.”
The old Demon King in the middle responded, “We shall not disappoint Great King’s trust!”
Yang Kai nodded with satisfaction.
Bai Zhuo remarked as he looked at Yang Kai, “Since it’s done, I’ll take my leave now. If you have any problems, you can contact Holy Venerable directly.”
Yang Kai straightened up, “It has been a tiring journey. Doesn’t Brother Bai want to rest for a few days before leaving?”
Bai Zhuo smiled and shook his head, “No need.” For him, a half day’s journey was nothing. Given that the two worlds’ war was currently in full swing, he did not have time to linger here. Although he would not return to the Star Boundary for some time, he still had tasks in the following days, such as mobilizing reinforcements from various continents to support the front line.
The dialogue between the two reached the ears of the Demon Kings, which further confirmed their guess. The new Great King was really comparable in status to a Half-Saint; otherwise, how could he be brothers with Bai Zhuo? All of them turned solemn, secretly worrying that they would soon be very busy.
“Have a safe trip, Brother Bai!” Yang Kai cupped his fists.
Bai Zhuo turned around and left. When he reached the gate, he suddenly turned back and grinned at Yang Kai, “Oh right, I forgot to tell you that the Blue Plains Continent that connects to Cloud Shadow Continent is Yue Sang’s territory!” After that, he winked at Yang Kai, and then turned into a stream of light that soared straight into the sky.
Yang Kai knit his brow as he stared off into the distance, as if deep in thought.
Bai Zhuo was clearly trying to warn Yang Kai to watch out for the activity of Blue Plains Continent before he left, but Yang Kai wasn’t worried since Yue Sang had been transferred to the front lines of the war by Yu Ru Meng. Even if Blue Plains Continent really came looking for trouble, Yang Kai would definitely make sure that they paid for it with their lives.
With a light sneer, Yang Kai put aside such thoughts and saw that the Demon Kings below were staring at him. He coughed lightly and declared, “By the order of Holy Venerable, this King is here to maintain the Territory Gate of Cloud Shadow Continent and to protect Cloud Shadow Continent. This matter is very important and no carelessness will be tolerated. So do your best to cooperate with me in the future.”
“Maintain the Territory Gate?”
The Demon Kings were shocked. They finally knew the reason the Holy Venerable sent Yang Kai here. This was great news to them, for these people had no ability and no chance to leave Cloud Shadow Continent. Once the Territory Gate vanished, they would be buried along with Cloud Shadow Continent. They initially thought that there was no hope for the future, but now they suddenly caught a glimpse of light in that endless darkness.
The old Demon King was exhilarated and asked, “Is Great King being serious?”
The other two High-Rank Demon Kings also looked at Yang Kai with scorching eyes that were filled with expectation.
Yang Kai could not hold his laughter and nodded, “Of course. There is no reason for this King to lie to you.”
The female Shadow Demon pressed on, “If Great King can really maintain the last Territory Gate, it would be a great grace to the whole continent. This subordinate will follow Sir through fire and water without hesitation!”
The voice of the female Demon King was surprisingly pleasant and refreshing to the ears.
Yang Kai looked at her in amazement as he did not expect she would have such a big reaction to his words. Thinking about what Bai Zhuo told him before though, he somewhat understood this woman’s thought. Keeping Cloud Shadow Continent connected was equivalent to saving their lives and futures. How could they not pay attention to it?
However, the pale middle-aged Demon King frowned and spoke, “Great King, please forgive this subordinate for asking, but in order to maintain the Territory Gate, one must be proficient in the Dao of Space, but as far as this subordinate knows, no one in our Demon Realm possesses such capabilities. How can Great King be so confident?”
Yang Kai smiled and replied faintly, “Indeed, no one in your Demon Realm is proficient in the Dao of Space, but that doesn’t mean this King is not. I forgot to mention this to you all, but this King… is Human!” As he finished his sentence, he stretched out his hand and slammed at the space in front of him.
Ten metres away, a dark black crack instantly appeared, one that emitted a fierce suction that seemed capable of devouring the whole world.
The black hole persisted for ten breaths before it disappeared with a slight grip of Yang Kai’s hand.
However, at this moment, the Demon Kings were still shocked to their core. For one, this newcomer Great King was truly proficient in the Dao of Space; he was able to shatter space with just a simple wave of his hand, creating a black hole that led to the chaotic Void. This demonstrated his profound control of Space Principles. On top of that, this Great King was actually a Human…
[With the Great War still raging, why did Holy Venerable appoint a Human as Great King and put him in charge of Cloud Shadow Continent?]
Yang Kai noticed their expressions, and sneered slightly, “Although this King is a Human, he has already become enemies with the Star Boundary. There’s no place for this King there. Holy Venerable personally recruited me to the Demon Realm, so you need not worry about where my loyalties lie.”
The reason why he revealed his origin so readily was that he could not hide it; after all, he would have to stay here in the future and as long as he used his strength even slightly, his identity as a Human would definitely be exposed. Instead of creating suspicion and vigilance in the future, it was best to just be frank in the beginning.
Without giving these guys a chance to speak again, Yang Kai spoke sharply, “Bo Ya!”
Bo Ya froze for a moment, but quickly reacted, turned around, taking two steps forward, and cupping her fists, “Yes, Great King.”
Yang Kai looked at her solemnly, “I shall appoint you as Cloud Shadow City’s Vice Commander to assist Lao Ke in managing the affairs within the city. Cooperate fully with him.”
Bo Ya’s beautiful eyes flashed, and quickly replied, “As you command!”
Lao Ke was the old Demon King, who was the Commander of Cloud Shadow City before Yang Kai arrived. This city was the hub of the entire continent and played an important role in all functions. Before this, Lao Ke alone could make all the calls, but now, there was Bo Ya, an extra Vice Commander.
Bo Ya was not a fool either. She knew Yang Kai appointed her as Vice Commander to intervene in the matters in Cloud Shadow City; after all, controlling this place was equivalent to controlling everything in Cloud Shadow Continent. It would make it very convenient to execute any plans he had in the future only after establishing a firm foothold.
Lao Ke and the others were his subordinates, but in name only. Even if the order was from Yu Ru Meng, it was still not as convenient as having someone truly loyal to him in place.
Yang Kai did not have a choice either as he had no better option; Bo Ya was the only choice. Fortunately, with the restriction of the Soul Puppet, Bo Ya would not betray him.
If Bo Ya could really gain a foothold in Cloud Shadow City, it would definitely benefit Yang Kai in the future.
The three High-Rank Demon Kings frowned at this arrangement. Lao Ke was old and was in the waning years of his life, but he was actually the fastest to recover his composure while it was clear that the female Shadow Demon and the other High-Rank Demon King looked worried, fearing that Yang Kai would also intervene in their turf. If this was the case, they would be very unwilling.
Fortunately, Yang Kai had no intention of doing so, and only gave a few words of encouragement to Lao Ke, such as asking him to help Bo Ya adjust so that she would become familiar with Cloud Shadow City as soon as possible.
Lao Ke responded respectfully, but who knew if he was feeling the same way on the inside or not.
Since he had only just arrived here, Yang Kai had nothing much to say so he simply led Xiao Wu and Li Shi Qing into the inner hall, leaving Bo Ya alone to discuss the day-to-day matters with Lao Ke.
The best room was prepared here for him, and there were wing rooms on the left and right sides, which he assigned to Xiao Wu and Li Shi Qing. After ordering Xiao Wu to get someone to fetch a detailed map of the entire Cloud Shadow Continent and a record of the forces under each Demon King, Yang Kai secluded himself in his room and began his investigation.
Since Yu Ru Meng had given him this opportunity, he naturally had to make good use of it.
He would try his best to maintain the Territory Gate, though it did not matter to him even if he failed. Yang Kai was more interested in seizing control of Cloud Shadow Continent. At that time, whether it was for self-protection or to silently ambush the Demon Race, he would need to utilize the power here.
After two days of research, Yang Kai figured out the general condition of Cloud Shadow Continent.
Just when he was putting down the various objects of study, there was a knock on the door.
Yang Kai raised his hand to open the door, and Bo Ya walked in. At this moment, the woman had lost all the respect she showed before, and her tone became much more casual. She scanned him up and down with a smile before quipping, “Should I call you Sir or Great King?”
“It’s up to you!” Yang Kai glanced at her and asked lightly, “What’s the matter?”
Bo Ya said, “I’m here to report to you some of the information I learned over the past two days. Do you want to hear it? If you don’t want to, I’ll leave.”
Yang Kai chuckled and squinted at her, saying, “It seems that you don’t understand your situation.” While talking, he took out the Soul Puppet from the Space Ring, flexing his fingers in a playful gesture!
Bo Ya could not help backing up a few steps, her beautiful face turning pale as she immediately covered her forehead with her hands and yelled, “Don’t be impulsive, let’s be civilized about this.”
“I’m very calm right now. As for whether I am impulsive, that will depend on how you perform,” Yang Kai looked at her with a smile.
Bo Ya snorted and spat disdainfully, “Cloud Shadow Continent has four High-Rank Demon Kings. The three you met are fine, but I’m afraid you need to be more careful with Lie Kuang.”
“Why do you say so?” Yang Kai frowned.
Bo Ya answered, “Have you not realized that Lie Kuang has still not come to greet you? Two days have passed, Ke Sen’s and He Yin’s territories aren’t nearby, they managed to rush here two days ago, while Lie Kuang has not shown himself even today.”
Ke Sen was the pale middle-aged Demon King, while the female Shadow Demon was the one with the peculiar name, He Yin.
These three, together with the Cloud Shadow City Commander Lao Ke, were the only four remaining High-Rank Demon Kings on Cloud Shadow Continent.
Yang Kai did not notice anything until Bo Ya mentioned this, but now that he thought about it, there indeed was something abnormal with Lie Kuang. Yang Kai had been named the Great King and was put in charge of Cloud Shadow Continent, so by right, Lie Kuang should have rushed over to at least show his face to his new boss, but Lie Kuang still had not shown up.
The other day, Lao Ke said that Lie Kuang had sent them a message that he was going to be delayed, but no matter what it was, it was impossible for him to be delayed for two days. What could have delayed a High-Rank Demon King in this Cloud Shadow Continent for so long?
“Is he trying to challenge my authority because I’m new here?” Yang Kai raised his brow.
Bo Ya sneered, “Seem like you’re not stupid.”
The corner of her mouth twitched when Yang Kai raised the Soul Puppet again though and she hurriedly continued, “I’ve asked around. Before you came, these four High-Rank Demon Kings held complete authority over their own territories with absolutely no restriction. You suddenly came here to become their Great King though, and from now on, they will have to listen to your orders. I’m afraid that none of them are happy with the situation. If you were really a Half-Saint, it would be fine, but your cultivation is only equivalent to a Mid-Rank Demon King. How can they allow you to command them?”
Yang Kai pondered, “That makes sense. What else did you find out?”
Bo Ya continued, “As I said before, Lao Ke is old and frail. Although he’s a High-Rank Demon King, there’s no need to fear him. He has been cooperating with me these few days and I now have almost half the power over Cloud Shadow City. He Yin and Ke Sen probably intend to test out your capability; after all, although they are looking forward to you stabilizing the Territory Gate and keeping Cloud Shadow Content connected with the rest of the Demon Realm, they don’t know what your skills are. Naturally, they wouldn’t trust you too much, but they won’t be causing you any trouble for now. The two of them can be ignored for the time being. As for Lie Kuang, you have to be careful about him. I heard that his strength is also the greatest of the four, and he is just one step from being promoted to Half-Saint. He is also on good terms with Blue Plains Continent. By the way, his territory is where the Territory Gate is.”
Yang Kai looked thoughtful, “How convenient.”
Cloud Shadow Continent only had one Territory Gate, which was connected to Blue Plains Continent. Since Lie Kuang’s territory was where the Territory Gate was, it was indeed convenient for Blue Plains Continent.
Bo Ya seemed to be indulging in his misfortune as she snickered, “So if you want to maintain the Territory Gate, you have to go to Lie Kuang’s territory, and if you can’t win him over, how can you get his cooperation?”
Yang Kai looked at her steadily, making Bo Ya feel uncomfortable, “What are you looking at? I warn you, don’t even think of doing anything strange to me, not even a single thought; otherwise, don’t blame me if we have a fallout.” She crossed her arms on her chest defensively as she spoke.
Yang Kai laughed lightly, “I just thought you were pretty capable.”
Two days ago, he named Bo Ya Vice Commander of Cloud Shadow City. Yang Kai originally intended to use that as a message to the Demon Kings that he had the final say on everything here, but he did not expect Bo Ya to be able to help him with anything. Who would have thought that Bo Ya could actually gather so much information in just two days, and also take charge of half of Cloud Shadow City’s power?
Hearing this, Bo Ya smiled complacently, “Feather Demons are not only good at shooting, we are also good at gathering information.”
Yang Kai crossed his arms, rested his chin on his hand, and gazed at her with scorching eyes, remarking, “If this is the case, you must know where Lie Kuang is now.”
Bo Ya did not say a word but just pointed at her feet.
Brow raised, Yang Kai asked, “He’s in the city?”
Bo Ya nodded and replied, “He entered the city a day ago, but he’s in his own mansion now.”
“Very good!” A sneer crept onto Yang Kai’s face as he ordered, “Go, summon Lao Ke and the others over.”
Bo Ya could not help having a bad feeling as she frowned, “What are you going to do?”
Yang Kai stood up, and turned to look out the window, “Naturally, I’m going to demonstrate my authority. One must whip a disobedient dog lest others begin to underestimate him.”
Bo Ya gaped at him and objected, “Are you crazy? If you fight Lie Kuang at this time, Lao Ke and the rest won’t help you.”
“I don’t expect them to help me.”
Bo Ya pointed at herself and asked incredulously, “Don’t tell me you want to depend on me? This is not the Blood Arena. I can’t help you too much. And Lie Kuang is not alone; he brought a lot of Demon Kings into the city this time with him!”
She would not be afraid if Lie Kuang was alone. As long as Yang Kai could pin down the opponent, her shooting skills would be enough to make Lie Kuang suffer; however, according to the information she obtained, Lie Kuang brought almost all of the Demon Kings loyal to him into the city this time. He was clearly prepared.
“That’s even better,” Yang Kai gave her a faint look.
Bo Ya shuddered and was about to open her mouth to persuade again, but she saw the impatience in Yang Kai’s eyes and knowing that she would probably be punished if she raised any more objections, she finally voiced out in a resigned tone, “Since you insist on doing this, I will just obey it. If something happens, don’t blame me for not warning you.”
On the field of the city hall, more than forty Demon Kings assembled, led by Lao Ke, Ke Sen, and He Yin, standing at attention and facing forward.
Behind these Demon Kings, there were thousands of Demon Great Generals of varying strengths as well as tens of thousands of Demon Generals.
Although there was a large number of people, the field was dead silent, and the atmosphere was heavy and tense.
The three High-Rank Demon Kings exchanged doubtful looks. They had no idea why the Great King summoned them here this time, but they all had a premonition that something serious was about to happen.
Yang Kai stood in front of the Demon Kings, and swept his eyes across them lightly before he spoke, “This King has only been here for two days, but my Hallowed Treasure has been stolen! It proves the incompetence of the security of Cloud Shadow City. This King is truly disappointed!”
Lao Ke, who was standing in the centre of the front row, had his brow jump when he heard this speech. He was the Commander of Cloud Shadow City, who was in charge of everything in the city. If something had really been stolen from Yang Kai, he would not be able to avoid responsibility. Moreover, given that Yang Kai was making a big scene out of this, it seemed that the lost object was truly valuable. Lao Ke suddenly felt a little uneasy, and he was afraid that he would face disaster if he could not handle things well today.
He immediately stepped out from the line, and asked, “Great King, may I ask what exactly it was you lost and when it disappeared? This subordinate is willing to lead the team personally to investigate this matter and give Great King a satisfactory response.”
Yang Kai raised his hand, “That won’t be necessary. Vice Commander has already discovered the whereabouts of the thief, but this thief is powerful and has much manpower at his disposal. Today, the reason this King summoned you is to catch the thief and restore the reputation of our Cloud Shadow City.”
When Lao Ke heard the speech, he could not help glancing at Bo Ya. The woman’s head was hung low; her eyes pointed at her nose, while her nose pointed at her heart. The uneasiness in Lao Ke’s heart only grew more and more intense seeing this.
He knew that the new Vice Commander was trying every means to fight for power with him these two days, but he was not as ambitious as he was in his younger years. In addition, Bo Ya’s actions had all been within a reasonable limit, so he had just allowed her to do as she pleased. However, he only shared half of his authority with her, and the other half was still firmly held in his own hands. Even if he had lost his ambition, it did not mean that he did not have the intention to protect himself.
However… When did this Vice Commander inquire about this kind of news? How come he had not heard anything about it?
Not only did Lao Ke have doubts in his mind, but even Bo Ya was secretly cursing Yang Kai’s mother. She certainly knew what Yang Kai was up to. Capturing the Hallowed Treasure thief was indeed a good excuse, but even though there were many people and Masters here, could they really be of any help to him? She suddenly found that Yang Kai was too naive. He really thought that he could do anything with the little bit of authority given to him, and she was afraid that he might suffer a great loss if he did not handle the matter well tonight.
She secretly made up her mind that if the situation really turned bad, she would not care for Yang Kai’s life at all. She would find a chance to snatch the Soul Puppet, and then run away from here.
On the other hand, Yang Kai simply continued, “This King will lead this operation personally and expects all of you to obey his orders. Where is the Vice Commander?”
The corner of Bo Ya’s mouth twitched but she still stepped out of the line and answered, “Subordinate is here.”
“Watch over them carefully. If anyone dares to disobey orders or disrespect this King, execute them on the spot!” Yang Kai scanned his eyes across the Demons in front of him coldly.
“Yes!” Bo Ya had no option but to accept the order.
“Very good.” Yang Kai nodded with satisfaction, and waved his big hand, “Depart!”
When the words fell, he was the first one to soar into the sky, with Bo Ya following closely behind. The three High-Rank Demon Kings exchanged looks, then hurriedly ordered their men to keep up with them. For a time, tens of thousands of figures filled the sky over the city hall.
Although it was late, Cloud Shadow City was still noisy and lively, so with the cover of night, this large group of people was able to depart without anyone being the wiser.
At the front, Yang Kai looked indifferent and calm, but Bo Ya was clearly uneasy. Her eyes drifted from side to side, as if she were looking for a way to retreat later.
Behind them, the three High-Rank Demon Kings quietly released their Divine Senses, obviously communicating with each other about something.
Yang Kai noticed it, but he did not bother to stop them. By the look of it, these three were trying to figure out his intentions, but he believed that they would understand soon enough.
And facts proved Yang Kai correct. Not long after, He Yin suddenly sent a Divine Sense transmission, “Is the Great King actually planning to deal with Lie Kuang?”
Both Lao Ke and Ke Sen were taken aback before they turned to look at her together and Ke Sen asked, “Did you notice something?”
Yang Kai’s so-called mission to capture the thief who stole his Hallowed Treasure was definitely a cover. They were not fools, so how could they not see at least that much? Given that such treasures were usually stored in one’s Space Ring, how could it be stolen for no reason? Previously, Lao Ke and the others thought that Yang Kai was making up some story to pressure or punish them, but now, they knew that it was not the case.
Nevertheless, he definitely was up to something for making such a scene.
He Yin sneered, “Don’t tell me that you didn’t know about Lie Kuang entering the city yesterday.”
Lie Kuang did not hide when he entered the city; rather, he came in swaggeringly and even contacted the three of them to inquire about the so-called Great King. As such, how could they not know about his presence?
Then, He Yin pointed to the front, “Lie Kuang’s residence is up ahead!”
When she mentioned this, both the faces of Ke Sen and Lao Ke turned solemn. They suddenly believed that the Great King was truly going to find trouble with Lie Kuang; otherwise, why would he use his ‘stolen Hallowed Treasure’ as an excuse to act like this in the middle of the night?
Ke Sen frowned, “If so, what should we do?”
In principle, they had to obey Yang Kai’s orders, but they were not close to this Great King yet nor were they convinced of his strength or leadership yet. If Yang Kai asked them to fight it out with Lie Kuang, they would surely be unwilling to act.
Lie Kuang was indeed unruly and disrespectful, but he was strong. If he was cornered, he could bring at least one of the three of them down with him, and none of them was willing to be a sacrifice.
He Yin frowned, feeling like Yang Kai had given them a big problem. At the same time, she was extremely infuriated too, because this guy thought that he could just do whatever he wanted with the support of the Holy Venerable. It seemed he was nothing more than an arrogant fool. Although the Holy Venerable appointed him as ‘Great King’ and gave him control of Cloud Shadow Continent, who would be willing to obey a person who had insufficient strength? Furthermore, the Territory Gate of Cloud Shadow Continent was about to disappear, and the whole continent would be completely isolated within a hundred years. The ones residing here were the kind of people that were not favoured by the higher-ups, so death was just waiting for them. If Yang Kai really tried to force Lie Kuang’s hand, he would be the one who would suffer losses.
After pondering for a while, He Yin spoke again, “Let’s observe the situation first.”
No matter what, she would not raise her hand against Lie Kuang. Although Yang Kai had given her some hope when he first introduced himself, that hope was so faint that it was not enough for her to risk her life working for him.
She hoped that the matter tonight would end peacefully; however, if things got out of control, she would not stand on Yang Kai’s side. At most, she would just betray Cloud Shadow Continent and take refuge under a different Holy Venerable.
A High-Rank Demon King would be accepted anywhere, though she might need to bear the name of a traitor and would certainly have a harder time in the future.
Ke Sen and Lao Ke obviously had the same idea and agreed with her with a nod.
While the three were secretly communicating, their group arrived above a huge mansion. Yang Kai, who was the leader, suddenly stopped, looked down at the bright lights below, and the corners of his mouth curved into a bantering smile.
Lao Ke, and the other two looked at each other, and realized that it was just as they thought! This Great King was really so reckless that he dared to provoke Lie Kuang!
Yang Kai pointed below, and ordered, “The thief who stole this King’s treasure is hidden here. You three, capture him for this King!”
He darted his gaze to the three High-Rank Demon Kings, but they just looked back at him quietly, not moving an inch
To the side, Bo Ya gave herself a facepalm. It was so embarrassing that she dared not to look. Awkwardness filled the air… she could not help feeling utterly ashamed about it.
Yang Kai, however, did not seem to sense anything off and just smiled faintly, waving his hand as he bellowed, “Surround this place!”
Lao Ke and the others frowned at this new order. It was not difficult to carry out this task, but it was just that it was unexpected. They thought that Yang Kai would force them to attack directly, which they were unwilling to do, but if it was just forming a perimeter, they could still cooperate with him.
As long as they did not have a direct conflict with Lie Kuang, then it would not count as really offending him.
Therefore, after a moment of pondering, Lao Ke nodded at Ke Sen and He Yin, and followed the order. Leading more than forty Demon Kings, thousands of Demon Great Generals and tens of thousands of Demon Generals, they immediately spread out and surrounded the mansion below. At the same time, they secretly gave orders to their subordinates not to attack without their explicit command.
In the meantime, in the main hall in the middle of the mansion below, lights were bright, cups went gaily round, and the atmosphere was filled with songs and dances.
A fierce and slovenly-looking Demon King with big arms and a robust chest was sitting at the head of the hall. He was clothed in black, with hair so rumpled he resembled a madman, and he had a woman in both of his arms. At the bottom of the seat, more than twenty Demon Kings were seated in lines on either side. Their tables were filled with exotic wine and delicacies.
In the centre of the hall, a group of young women were singing and dancing, and music filled the air.
From his seat, Lie Kuang looked down with a smile, looking extremely elated. The two women in his arms were particularly good at flattery and flirting, and they served him wholeheartedly.
Suddenly, a Demon King got up from the banquet, and cupped his fists as he questioned, “Sir, when shall we meet the Great King?”
As soon as he asked, the noise in the surroundings suddenly quieted down, and all the Demon Kings stared at the guy who spoke. Lie Kuang too, shifted his sharp eyes from his women to the speaker. His gaze was piercing cold, causing the Demon King’s back to be drenched in a cold sweat, thinking, [Did I say something wrong? Isn’t Sir here at Cloud Shadow City this time to meet the new Great King?]
While he was still wondering this, he saw Lie Kuang grab a wine jug in front of him and tossed it at him.
*Hong…*
The Demon King who spoke had his head smashed back. He could have dodged this blow, but he dared not do so. He did not even dare to use his Demon Qi to protect his body; therefore, even though he had a strong physique, his head was bleeding from this impact.
The pain in his head was not important though as he was more frightened by the reaction of Lie Kuang. Surely, he had said something wrong.
“Is this your first day following this King?” Lie Kuang looked at him coldly.
The Demon King was terrified and hurriedly half knelt on the ground with his head bowed, “Sir, please calm your anger. This subordinate knows his mistake.”
“What is your mistake?” Lie Kuang snorted coldly.
Cold sweat was trickling down the Demon King’s forehead. He knew that Lie Kuang was on the verge of erupting into a rage. If he could not handle it well, he would certainly have to suffer, but if he really knew what his mistake was, he would not have offended Lie Kuang with his words. At this time, he racked his brains, but he still could not think of an answer. Fortunately, someone on the side reminded him, and he hurriedly answered, “It should be that guy who comes to greet Sir, not the other way around.”
Only then did Lie Kuang’s face become a little calmer, shooting a glare at the Demon King who spoke first before ignoring him.
He definitely would punish him if he was someone else, but this particular subordinate had an accident while cultivating a Secret Art in his early years, resulting in him being a bit mentally dim; therefore, it was meaningless to argue with him.
Seeing this, the Demon King smiled awkwardly before sitting back down.
However, as soon the topic was brought up, the other Demon Kings could not sit still anymore. Someone immediately stated, “Sir, I heard that the so-called Great King seems to be weak.”
“Not only is he weak, but he’s also a Human!”
They had connections in Cloud Shadow City, and they used those connections to inquire about Yang Kai after entering the city yesterday. Since Yang Kai admitted in public that he was a Human, it was not a secret.
However, there was still a person who heard this for the first time, and he immediately exclaimed, “Human? How could it be a Human? Is the news confirmed to be true?”
“It’s true, he’s indeed a Human. I heard that this guy had committed some kind of crime in the Star Boundary, was demonified, and fell to the Demon path, causing him to be hunted by the Great Emperors and Pseudo-Great Emperors over there. He seems to have come to the Demon Realm as a last resort. Somehow, he won the favour of the Holy Venerable and was entrusted with an important task!”
“Is Holy Venerable blind? Our Sir should be the one who takes charge of Cloud Shadow Continent. Why did she send a Human over here? It’s ridiculous!”
“It would be fine if he was strong enough, but his cultivation is only equivalent to a Mid-Rank Demon King. Alas, Holy Venerable has erred this time.”
“The Human Race is cunning and treacherous. Who knows what kind of lies and deception he used to persuade Holy Venerable; after all, she is a woman.”
The group of people started gossiping, all looking like they were defending Lie Kuang against injustice, implying that Yu Ru Meng had been deceived somehow.
“Bastards!” Lie Kuang suddenly bellowed, putting a stop to all the conversations of the Demon Kings below. He looked around with his dignified eyes and growled, “Holy Venerable has her own reasons. How can you speak so casually about her commands? If a single word of this were to spread out, none of you would be able to bear the consequences!”
It was indeed wrong to speak ill of the Holy Venerable behind her back. If the Holy Venerable learned of this slight, she would definitely punish Lie Kuang heavily, even if she did not kill him.
After stating that, he snorted coldly, “I’m still fine with Lao Ke, for he was in charge of guarding Cloud Shadow City and was thus already here, but Ke Sen and He Yin, those two fools, rushing over to greet some Human as soon as they received the news, it’s shameful to our Demon Race! However, I, Lie Kuang, will not put him in my eyes. Does he really think that he can take charge of Cloud Shadow Continent with just an order from Holy Venerable? In his dreams!”
“That’s right, we don’t need him here in our Demon Realm. Strength is all that matters here, if he is not capable, how can he sit in that position?” A loud voice echoed from below.
Lie Kuang sneered again, “I’m afraid that you all don’t know about this. This little brat offended Sir Yue Sang in the Holy City a few days ago. Sir Yue Sang ordered this King to eliminate this person. As long as this task is completed, Sir Yue Sang guaranteed that this King will take charge of Cloud Shadow Continent. After assuming command, with the resources available, it will be possible for this King to break through to the Half-Saint Realm!”
The Demon Kings were overjoyed as soon as they heard his statement. They looked up at Lie Kuang and congratulated him, “With the trust of Sir Yue Sang, Sir definitely can control Cloud Shadow Continent, and be promoted to Half-Saint in no time.”
“Hahaha!” Lie Kuang could not help laughing. It seemed that he had seen the scene of his promotion to Half-Saint already and raised his hand and continued, “It’s too early to say this now. We need to finish Sir Yue Sang’s task as soon as poss… Huh?”
Before he finished, Lie Kuang suddenly frowned, looked up into the sky, and pounded the table angrily, shouting, “How dare you!?”
The table was smashed apart and the food and drink splashed everywhere while Lie Kuang soared into the sky.
There was a loud explosion as Lie Kuang opened up a hole in the roof of the hall while the other Demon Kings present only now noticed something was wrong. There seemed to be a lot of auras outside, surrounding the mansion.
Without further ado, more than twenty Demon Kings flew into the air together, flying out through the newly-opened exit.
At this moment, tens of thousands of Demons were scattered around the mansion in an orderly manner, surrounding a large area.
Lie Kuang flew up with a darkened face. He swept his eyes across them, then immediately fixed his gaze on Yang Kai, an obvious murderous intent flashing across his cloudy eyes.
*Shua Shua Shua…*
Many figures flew out and appeared behind Lie Kuang. They were all his subordinates.
Looking at each other, Yang Kai smiled lightly and looked at the High-Rank Demon King in front of him. He was indeed outstanding, with an intense vitality pulsing from his large body. This Lie Kuang was undoubtedly stronger than Lao Ke and the others. It seemed that Bo Ya’s information was right, this guy was only one step away from becoming a Half-Saint.
Lie Kuang, who was opposite Yang Kai, was stunned for a moment; however, after seeing Lao Ke and the others behind Yang Kai, he immediately understood Yang Kai’s identity. [Is this the Human Great King? We were still talking about him just now, but I didn’t expect to see him so soon. Especially not under such circumstances.]
It seemed that he was aware that Yang Kai was teasing him from his eyes, and he could see that this guy was not simple. He pretended that he did not know anything though, stretched out his hand and pointed at the front, yelling furiously, “Who are you? Report your name!”
With a faint smile, Yang Kai replied, “This King is the Great King who was appointed by Holy Venerable to command Cloud Shadow Continent. Who are you?”
“Great King? Since when has there been a Great King?” Lie Kuang’s eyes flashed fiercely as he bared his teeth and grinned, “This King has never heard of something so ridiculous. As for me… This King is Lie Kuang!” Since the other party did not come with good intentions, the matter today probably would not end peacefully. Lie Kuang planned to take this opportunity to kill this bastard. Even if Holy Venerable investigated later, he could just blame it on Yang Kai for picking a fight with him.
Yang Kai tilted his head, “Lie Kuang? Oh, I remember. This King has a subordinate named Lie Kuang, but I haven’t seen him yet. How can you prove that you are him?”
Lie Kuang sneered, “What proof do you want?”
The group of Demon Kings behind him burst into laughter, with a hint of mockery in their eyes. They thought, [Is this Human out of his mind? Why did he actually ask Sir to prove his identity? Isn’t his High-Rank Demon King cultivation the best evidence? Or is this Human just giving himself a way out?]
Yang Kai nodded, “It seems that you have no proof.” Then, he suddenly bellowed, “Vice Commander!”
Bo Ya really wanted to just ignore Yang Kai as she knew that things were going from bad to worse as soon as Lie Kuang came out. This guy was stronger than any Demon King she had seen before; moreover, it was said that he was a Stone Demon with incredible innate defence. Her archery might not be strong enough to stop him.
But Yang Kai yelled so loudly that she could not turn a deaf ear, for the Soul Puppet was still in the bastard’s hands, so she immediately braced herself and responded, “Yes Sir!”
“Take a closer look at this savage. Is he the one who stole this King’s treasure?” Yang Kai pointed at Lie Kuang.
Lie Kuang could not help frowning, [Who stole your treasure? What the Hell is this about?]
Bo Ya did not even look at Lie Kuang and she just followed up Yang Kai’s sentence, “He does… look like him… a bit,” She did not dare to answer too clearly, so that she would not gain hatred from Lie Kuang because of this.
“So it’s you,” Yang Kai nodded before charging toward Lie Kuang like a ghost right after he finished speaking.
Lie Kuang was taken aback. He did not notice how Yang Kai moved at all, and suddenly their faces were about to crash into each other. Acting on instinct, he surged his Demon Qi and his body instantly took on a stone lustre. There was no doubt that he was a Stone Demon now, born with thick skin and tough flesh.
At the same time, Lie Kuang swung a fierce punch forward.
Since the other party acted first, he would not return with a weak response. In any case, he was going to kill this person tonight, so he showed no mercy when he punched.
However, as soon as he made a move, he suddenly saw a golden vertical pupil appear in Yang Kai’s left eye. The vertical pupil radiated a strange power, which almost sent him into a trance, but that was all. Lie Kuang was a peak High-Rank Demon King, and his Soul was naturally quite powerful; therefore, even the Demon Eye of Annihilation could not affect him too greatly.
Nevertheless, what Yang Kai wanted was just this short moment.
The Soul Splitting Saber was used once not long ago, so Yang Kai had not condensed enough power to use his Heaven Severing Slash again. Instead, he executed his Blossoming Lotus Secret Technique.
For a moment, Lie Kuang’s vision was covered by a budding lotus, blinding him to everything else.
The lotus rooted strangely in his mind, and absorbed his Spiritual Energy crazily as the petals bloomed gently. Unimaginable pain struck Lie Kuang and he could not help letting out a pained grunt.
At the same time, his fist hit Yang Kai’s left shoulder.
Everyone was stunned. Even Lao Ke, Ke Sen, He Yin, and Bo Ya were all dumbstruck and did not regain their senses until this moment.
They initially thought that Yang Kai wanted to borrow the strength of the tens of thousands of troops under them to deal with Lie Kuang, so all of them had secretly been making their own plans, but how could they have anticipated that Yang Kai had no such intentions at all and would start a fight with Lie Kuang all on his own without hesitation.
[Does he not know how to write the word ‘death’?]
Even though Lie Kuang was a Stone Demon and his strength was inferior to a Strength Demon, could a Mid-Rank Demon King take his punch head-on?
Seeing that punch hit Yang Kai on the shoulder, everyone’s eyes flashed as they subconsciously thought that Yang Kai would die without a doubt. Bo Ya even readied herself to pounce, preparing to snatch Yang Kai’s Space Ring as fast as possible and then flee as far as possible.
But what she saw at the next moment made her jaw drop.
Lie Kuang’s punch indeed hit Yang Kai, but Yang Kai was not blown up or even away. His body only sank slightly as he stubbornly withstood the strength of the fist.
Immediately after, Yang Kai opened his mouth, and a deafening Dragon Roar resounded, sending a visible blast of air towards Lie Kuang in the shape of an awl.
Lie Kuang was already tormented by the Blossoming Lotus Secret Technique, and was even more stunned when he was hit by the Dragon Roar Secret Technique directly. His Soul was shaken and dazed while the Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings behind him looked horrified, their footing becoming unstable as their formation was instantly disrupted.
Taking advantage of this good opportunity, Yang Kai raised his hand and the Mountains and Rivers Bell was summoned, grew rapidly as it spun, and then covered Lie Kuang and himself directly.
With a bang, the Mountains and Rivers Bell fell over Yang Kai and Lie Kuang, who both disappeared and were confined together inside.
Lao Ke and Ke Sen were completely dumbfounded. When Lie Kuang’s subordinates finally stabilized themselves, frowning at the Mountains and Rivers Bell with strange looks.
[Judging from this situation, does the Human want to… fight Sir Lie Kuang alone? Otherwise, why would he use this artifact in such a way?]
[Where does he get such confidence from?] Although Lie Kuang was a High-Rank Demon King, he was only one step away from becoming a Half-Saint. It could be said that as long as he had the right opportunity and sufficient time, he would definitely break through.
Even Lao Ke and the others, all of whom were High-Rank Demon Kings, knew that they were no match for Le Kuang; but a trivial Human equivalent to a Mid-Rank Demon King was recklessly challenging Lie Kuang. Did he court death?
The Demon Kings could predict the following situation – the Human would be beheaded by Sir Lie Kuang on the spot. There was absolutely no second possibility.
One of the Mid-Rank Demon Kings glanced at Lao Ke and the others indifferently and waved his hand. Twenty-odd subordinates under Lie Kuang immediately swarmed and spread out around the Mountains and Rivers Bell. It was obvious that they did not want Lie Kuang to be disturbed before the battle ended.
The faces of Lao Ke and the others darkened slightly. They were not worrying about Yang Kai as there was nothing they could do if Yang Kai wanted to dig his own grave, but the disrespectful attitude of these Mid-Rank Demon Kings was annoying.
But that was all, they did not take any action. Lao Ke glanced at Ke Sen and He Yin, and could not help but sigh. This was going to be difficult to explain to the Holy Venerable, why the Human Great King was killed by Lie Kuang only a few days after arrival. Moreover, they were actually more worried about whether Lie Kuang would trouble them later.
They were suddenly overwhelmed with worry. Yang Kai had really burdened them this time.
…..
Inside the Mountains and Rivers Bell, there was only a space of about sixty metres across. Yang Kai and Lie Kuang stood opposite each other, the former cracking his neck and stretching his muscles and joints, while the latter had fires blazing in his eyes as he glared at Yang Kai furiously.
He had fallen into a disadvantage. Although he was not in any life-threatening danger, it was enough to send Lie Kuang to the verge of eruption so his expression was absolutely hideous.
Despite his anger though, Le Kuang’s mind was still clear. He turned his head to look around and spread out his Divine Sense to feel the surroundings before quickly comprehending his own situation. Understanding this, he could not help but sneer, “Human, you are indeed courageous to act like this!”
To be honest, what Yang Kai just did was beyond his expectations.
Yang Kai replied lightly, “You’re quite brave yourself. This King was ordered to take charge of Cloud Shadow Continent. Since you entered the city, why did you not come to greet me immediately?”
“What makes you think you’re qualified to be greeted by this King?” Lie Kuang sneered before he cracked his knuckles and shouted, “Do you think you can survive after crossing Sir Yue Sang?”
Yang Kai chuckled, “Yue Sang has been assigned by Holy Venerable to the front lines of the war. Didn’t you know?”
At that moment, Yang Kai confirmed that Lie Kuang had close connections to Blue Plains Continent, and just as Bai Zhuo had mentioned before, Blue Plains Continent was Yue Sang’s territory.
Lie Kuang was stunned when he heard these words and his face went blank.
Yang Kai sneered, “It looks like you really didn’t know.”
Lie Kuang definitely would not react this way if he was not clueless about it.
Lie Kuang waved his hand angrily however and growled, “Don’t talk nonsense, Sir Yue Sang has won the trust of Holy Venerable, and is regarded as her right arm. How could Holy Venerable send him to the front lines of the war so suddenly? You, however… If you are willing to submit to this King, I may spare your life today.”
“I’ll return those words to you!” Yang Kai looked at him with a grin, “This King is a newcomer with a shallow foundation in this place, so I am eager to gather as much force as possible. Your cultivation is passible so it would be a pity to kill you. If you open your Knowledge Sea and allow this King to mark you with his Soul Imprint, you will be saved from death today!”
Lie Kuang burst out laughing, “What shameless boasting!” Looking around, he then asked, “Are you relying on this artifact? En, this artifact indeed is quite good. Although this King hasn’t experienced it, I can tell. It may not be easy to break through it, but your mistake is that you shouldn’t have confined yourself in here with this King. In this small space, if this King wants to kill you, where can you hide?”
Yang Kai slowly shook his head and smiled mockingly, “Last chance, surrender, or die!”
Lie Kuang’s face became cold as he exploded, “Die!”
When the voice fell, he pounced at Yang Kai with his Demon Qi flaring, like an unleashed dog that no one could stop.
As if he had not realized the danger at all, Yang Kai just stood still and smiled at Lie Kuang.
Lie Kuang frowned, wondering what Yang Kai was up to when he showed no sign of resistance. Lie Kuang instinctually felt something was wrong, but at this moment, the arrow had already flown from the string, so all he could do was go all out with his attack.
In the next instant, he saw Yang Kai suddenly raise his hand, and a tall figure strangely appeared in front of him, blocking the way.
Before Lie Kuang could see exactly what this figure was, a fist with the size of a door appeared right in front of his face. Lie Kuang felt the force behind this punch before it even came in contact with him and suddenly had the impression that a mountain was falling towards him!
Responding as quickly as lightning, Lie Kuang crossed his arms across his chest, and at the same time hurriedly activated his Innate Divine Ability. The surface of his body glowed in a golden sheen that radiated solidity.
There was a bang and under Lie Kuang’s shocked gaze, his whole body was blasted away by a powerful force. The golden light on his body flashed wildly as he slammed into the Mountains and Rivers Bell.
Every organ in his body shifted violently, roiling his vitality. With great difficulty, Lie Kuang got up, spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, and looked up in horror. Only then did he see exactly what had punched him.
It was a thirty-metre-tall stone giant covered in evil fire and sharp spines. A terrifying aura exuded from within the evil fire.
Divine Spirit!
There were also Divine Spirits in the Demon Realm, and even Half-Saints had no choice but to give way before the stronger ones. Although Lie Kuang did not recognize the origin of this Divine Spirit, he knew that he was not its match!
There was severe pain in both of his arms. The enemy’s punch had broken his limbs and even the bones in his chest were broken. If he was not protected by his Innate Divine Ability as a Stone Demon, that punch alone would have smashed him to paste.
What terrifying power!
Lie Kuang’s brow twitched and his heart filled with anxiety. Rather than being intimidated by the strength displayed by this Divine Spirit, he was even more at a loss as to how it appeared here! It was obvious that he and Yang Kai were the only ones in here just now, and this space had been thoroughly sealed off by the strange artifact, so where did this Divine Spirit come from?
Just as Lie Kuang’s mind was spinning, the Embodiment shook his head and mumbled in a rumbling voice, “It’s a bit awkward in here…”
Although the Embodiment could change his size easily, he felt quite restricted inside these sixty metres of space.
Yang Kai walked out slowly from behind the Embodiment with a smile on his face, “Don’t complain, just do it!”
With Yang Kai’s current skills, dealing with Lie Kuang was naturally not a problem, but if he really fought on his own, it would cost him some time and effort. His main purpose tonight was to subdue the group of Demons in Cloud Shadow Continent, so the faster and more decisively he finished this battle the better. If he was delayed for too long, something unexpected could happen outside.
When the Embodiment heard these words, he took a big step towards Lie Kuang while Yang Kai’s flickering figure followed after him.
Lie Kuang’s heart clenched tight, knowing that he could not overcome this challenge today. This would undoubtedly be his burial place if he could not escape. Without any hesitation, Lie Kuang reached out and summoned a six-metre-long spear into the palm of his hand. Resisting the pain he felt, he roared as he surged his Demon Qi and hurled it towards the back. That toss contained all the strength Lie Kuang could muster, which was so immense that it could shatter worlds, and a fist-sized pitch-black ball appeared at its tip.
As long as he could break this artifact, he could get the support of his subordinates outside, and the situation could be reversed. At worst, he could just escape. This was undoubtedly his only option now.
With a bang, the Mountains and Rivers Bell trembled but remained completely unscathed.
On the contrary, Lie Kuang was forced back by the shockwave and a sense of disbelief flashed in his eyes. He had greatly underestimated the grade of this artifact. It would not budge even if he attacked with full strength. This was undoubtedly a Saint Grade Artifact.
This Human was only comparable to a Mid-Rank Demon King, so how could he possibly deserve such a divine artifact? Even though his life was on the line, Lie Kuang could not help feeling jealous.
At that moment, the Embodiment suddenly raised his hand and pressed downward.
In an instant, an inexplicable force enveloped Lie Kuang, causing him to feel extremely heavy, turning his movements sluggish. Not only that, strands of red aura escaped uncontrollably from his limbs and pores towards the Embodiment’s hand.
[What kind of evil Secret Technique is this!?] Lie Kuang was shocked, clearly aware that his strength was being absorbed by the opponent, albeit the speed was not very fast. However, given enough time, his foundation would be damaged. He would not even need to consider breaking through again because it would be a great fortune to even be able to retain his High-Rank Demon King cultivation.
Lie Kuang was horrified and quickly retrieved his long spear. He wanted to forcefully break the Embodiment’s Secret Technique.
Yang Kai suddenly launched an attack. His hands had turned into Dragon Claws, with Dragon Pressure pulsing from his body.
Fear filled Lie Kuang’s heart as he realized now that he had severely underestimated this Human as well.
He looked over and saw the phantom image of a Great Dragon behind Yang Kai, falling into a stupefied daze as Yang Kai’s claw broke through his proud defence.
In normal times, such an injury could only be regarded as a minor wound, but under the influence of the stone giant’s strange Secret Technique, fresh blood poured out of the claw print like a river.
Even though Lie Kuang was quick to react to this situation by instantly sealing the wound with Demon Qi, his aura had plummeted greatly in that short moment.
As the central city of the whole continent, Cloud Shadow City had always been bustling and lively, but tonight, the city was strangely quiet.
The news about more than forty Demon Kings, thousands of Demon Great Generals, and tens of thousands of Demon Generals besieging a mansion had spread widely. Many Demons had no idea what was happening but had come to watch silently in the dark.
However, some Demons knew that this was Lie Kuang’s mansion and that he had just entered the city a day ago. The question was, why had the city hall sent so many people out to surround this mansion, were they going to kill Lie Kuang? Since when had Lao Ke been so daring?
Or was it the order of the new Great King?
In any case, there would be an interesting show tonight. Even those weaker Demons could feel that the entire Cloud Shadow City was shrouded in an inexplicable atmosphere, and a storm was brewing.
The Mountains and Rivers Bell covered a large area inside Lie Kuang’s mansion, and while Lao Ke and the others were watching from far away, the twenty or so Demon Kings under Lie Kuang were frowning, hesitating about what they should do next.
It had been almost half a cup of tea’s time since the artifact isolated the Human and Sir Lie Kuang from them, and none of them had any idea what was going on inside. All they knew was that muffled rumbling sounds were constantly echoing from inside.
It was beyond any of their expectations that the Human could last so long under Sir Lie Kuang’s assault. To them, with Lie Kuang’s cultivation, it was obvious that the arrogant Human would die quickly and everything would be over, but in fact, the activity inside actually showed the high intensity of the battle.
The more than twenty Demon Kings had lost their initial calmness as a trace of worry surfaced on their faces. Was Sir Lie Kuang having trouble inside? This artifact was owned by the Human, but they had not noticed it displaying its power yet. It seemed that the use of the bell was just for isolation.
Trying to calm their worries, they firmly believed that it was impossible that Sir Lie Kuang would fail to deal with a mere Human, so they continued to wait quietly.
In the meantime, inside the Mountains and Rivers Bell, Lie Kuang was running like a stray dog with maddened eyes, but where could he escape within less than sixty meters of space?
He never thought that he would fail miserably at such an easy task. He did not put the Human in his eyes previously, but when they really began to fight, only then did he realize that Yang Kai’s strength was not inferior to his own. With the aid of the Divine Spirit, Lie Kuang was completely outmatched.
His original burly body has shrivelled up, as if he was turning into a dried fish. All thanks to the Divine Spirit, his vitality and strength had been drained enormously. He had no clue what evil skill the Divine Spirit had cultivated, which allowed it to devour his blood and energy, but with every new wound on his body, a large amount of vitality would flow out to be devoured and refined by the Divine Spirit.
It was fine if it occurred just once or twice, but even Lie Kuang could not bear it when it happened over and over again.
At this moment, he felt that his foundation had been severely damaged. His High-Rank Demon King cultivation had dropped to Mid-Rank, and it was impossible to recover from that…
His heart was filled with grief and anger. There was no light at the end of the tunnel for him, and all he could see was darkness.
Seeing Yang Kai blocking his way and stretching his sharp claws at him again, Lie Kuang hurriedly half-knelt on the ground and shouted, “I surrender, please forgive me. Lie Kuang is willing to follow and serve Sir with all his heart!”
He would undoubtedly die if he delayed any longer. At this time, integrity or reputation was not important anymore; keeping his own life was the top priority.
Yang Kai’s Dragon Claw stopped in front of Lie Kuang’s neck as he tilted his head slightly, but upon noticing the reluctance in Lie Kuang’s eyes, Yang Kai simply grinned, “It’s too late to surrender now… What do I still need you for?”
Yang Kai was interested in subduing Lie Kuang when he was still at the peak of the High-Rank Demon King Realm, but now, much of Lie Kuang’s vitality had been extracted by the Embodiment’s Heaven Devouring Battle Law, and his strength has dropped sharply. It was impossible for Lie Kuang to recover his peak state now, so it was meaningless to subdue him anymore.
He had given Lie Kuang a chance, but he did not know how to cherish it. Now that he was being cornered, Lie Kuang simply wanted to compromise to save himself; there was no deal that good in the world.
When the words fell, Yang Kai slashed out.
…..
Lights flickered, and the Mountains and Rivers Bell spun and shrank rapidly.
All the Demons who were watching lit up, and Lie Kuang’s twenty subordinates also put on excited faces.
Bo Ya’s brow jumped as she really did not dare to watch for fear of seeing a scene she did not wish to see. She was still fine with the Soul Puppet in Yang Kai’s hands, because at least Yang Kai did not embarrass her much these past few days, let alone force her to do anything she did not want to do.
But if the Soul Puppet fell into Lie Kuang’s hands, Bo Ya was sure that her life in the future would be no better than death.
Therefore, although she did not have high hopes, she still secretly prayed that Yang Kai could pull off a miracle and appear before her eyes alive.
When the Mountains and Rivers Bell floated up into the air, the space within was finally revealed to everyone’s eyes.
Lao Ke and the others narrowed their eyes in shock, while Lie Kuang’s subordinate Demon Kings who were full of expectation could not believe the scene that they saw. A chill instantly ran down their spines to the bottom of their feet.
Bo Ya was stunned too. She wiped her eyes vigorously, as if to confirm whether she was seeing wrongly.
Yang Kai survived. Not only was he alive, but there were no injuries on his body at all. He stood there majestically, holding a long spear in his hand, and a shrivelled body limply hanging at the spear’s tip.
The body looked as if it had been dead for countless years. It was so dry that it had lost its original shape, but the face and figure were still recognizable. As for the dark eyes which were wide open, they clearly showed that this man died with incredible unwillingness and hatred.
The long spear was obviously the Demon Artifact of Lie Kuang.
[Lie Kuang… Is he dead?]
Feeling as though their hearts were hammered hard, everyone’s emotions were agitated violently, as if they were in a bad dream.
How did Lie Kuang die? How did it end like this?
Lie Kuang was the most powerful High-Rank Demon King among the four in Cloud Shadow Continent. He would not be in trouble even if he encountered another High-Rank Demon King. On the other hand, Yang Kai’s cultivation was just equivalent to Mid-Rank Demon King, a Second-Order Emperor Realm Master according to Human Race standards. It was completely unreasonable for him to kill Lie Kuang without taking any damage.
[Is it because of the bell-like artifact?] Although the big bell did not seem to release its power earlier, no one knew what kind of strange ability it had. Perhaps, Yang Kai could achieve such a victory all thanks to the big bell.
What terrified these Demons even more was the Secret Art cultivated by Yang Kai which was able to turn Lie Kuang into a shrivelled-up corpse. They could imagine that Lie Kuang must have suffered extreme torture before he died as all of his Blood and Spiritual Essence seemed to have been sucked out. This kind of Secret Art would undoubtedly be called an evil technique by the Human Race.
[No wonder this guy was exiled from the Star Boundary. Given that he cultivated this kind of wicked technique, how could the Star Boundary allow him to remain?]
Yang Kai was carrying Lie Kuang’s corpse with the spear as he looked around coldly with sharp and searing eyes. Perceiving the vicious aura, the twenty or so Demon Kings who were gathered closest to him took a few steps back together, terror-stricken.
“Lie Kuang dared to steal my treasure, damage Cloud Shadow Continent’s reputation, disobey direct orders, and offend his superior with evil intentions! This King has executed him, to serve as a warning today!” Yang Kai shouted loudly while pushing his Emperor Qi so his voice spread far and wide, allowing all the Demons in Cloud Shadow City to hear him clearly. After making this declaration, Yang Kai hurled the spear together with Lie Kuang’s corpse and pinned him to the top of the tallest building nearby.
The corpse swung with the strong wind, and his wide, unclosing eyes truly terrorized the surrounding Demons.
Things hadn’t ended yet though as Yang Kai suddenly turned his head and looked at the more than twenty Demon Kings around him, yelling, “Lie Kuang’s subordinates showed grave disrespect for their superior and assisted a tyrant to do evil! All of you should be executed for this crime, but this King believes that you were all put under pressure to follow unreasonable orders, as such, you will not be executed for the time being. Your fates will be decided after a thorough investigation is completed.”
With a wave of his hand, Yang Kai looked at Lao Ke, Ke Sen, He Yin, and the others with a sharp glare, “Take them away. If anyone dares to rebel, execute them on the spot!”
Lao Ke and the others could not help shivering as the mild-mannered impression that Yang Kai gave them when they first met two days ago was totally overturned. They thought that this Human was a sheep putting up a strong act, but he turned out to be a ravenous wolf. Tonight, he revealed his true colours.
With Lie Kuang being an example, Lao Ke and the others naturally didn’t dare to neglect Yang Kai’s orders. Even Lie Kuang was killed by Yang Kai alone in just the time it would take to boil a cup of tea, so how could they be his opponents? If they really offended him, they definitely would not live well in the future, if they lived at all.
So as soon as the order was passed down, Lao Ke and the others immediately waved their hands and ordered, “Begin!”
All of a sudden, more than forty Demon Kings rushed out together and pounced at Lie Kuang’s subordinates.
Lie Kuang’s subordinates were still in a daze and had not recovered from the shock of their leader’s death, so when they heard Yang Kai’s ferocious order, they were all flustered. Although the twenty of them were still a potent fighting force, the other side outnumbered them two to one, and there were three High-Rank Demon Kings taking charge; therefore, most Demon Kings just surrendered with a gloomy face, allowing themselves to be arrested.
Not knowing whether they panicked or remained loyal to Lie Kuang though, three Demon Kings actually rebelled violently, breaking through the siege in anger. One after another, they performed their own Secret Techniques and fled outside in streams of light.
Fortunately, thousands of Demon Great Generals and tens of thousands of Demon Generals surrounded the periphery, so with the slight hindrance of these Demons, three shooting star-like arrows pierced through the air and hit the three fugitive Demon Kings precisely, killing them on the spot.
Yang Kai turned toward a certain direction just in time to see Bo Ya storing away her bow.
Soon after, the dust settled.
All the people in Lie Kuang’s mansion were captured or killed without any omission. Perhaps they wanted to make up for their previous cold shoulder, so Lao Ke, Ke Sen, and He Yin cooperated with Yang Kai quite well this time, following his orders without any hesitation.
After half a stick worth of incense, Lao Ke came to Yang Kai and cupped his fists, “Great King, all twenty-two Demon Kings under Lie Kuang have been dealt with. Nineteen were captured alive and three were killed. Besides them, 348 others were also arrested.”
Yang Kai nodded lightly and replied calmly, “Take all of them back.”
Lao Ke received the order and left.
He Yin strolled forward, and handed over a bunch of jingling rings, “Great King, these are the spoils of this battle.”
The Space Rings of the group of captured Demon Kings were naturally confiscated. There were exactly twenty-two of them, all belonging to the Demon Kings under Lie Kuang. As for Lie Kuang’s own Space Ring, Yang Kai had already taken it earlier.
Yang Kai glanced at her, and waved his hand, “It has been a difficult night for everyone. Divide these things amongst yourselves, consider it as a small gift from this King.”
The resources of the Demon Race were not useful for Yang Kai, and he was satisfied with just collecting Lie Kuang’s Space Ring. As such, he might as well put these things to use to win over his new subordinates. Killing Lie Kuang was enough to deter Lao Ke and the others, so now it was time to reward them.
He Yin was silent for a while before she cupped her fists without saying much, “Many thanks for your reward, Great King.”
Although there were many good things in the twenty-two Demon Kings’ Space Rings, it was not enough to share with everyone since Yang Kai had gathered many forces tonight; however, the sign given by Yang Kai made her feel at ease, for she knew that he still had to rely on them, and would not blame them for their previous indifference.
After a moment, everything was sorted out so Yang Kai waved his hand and led the Demons back to the city.
Lao Ke looked back at the corpse nailed to the tallest building and could not help sighing. Although he had never gotten along with Lie Kuang, he never expected this guy’s death to be so tragic.
Lie Kuang’s death did not matter to him, but after tonight, it was clear a true ruler had risen in Cloud Shadow Continent.
The next day, inside his room, as soon as Yang Kai came out of the Sealed World Bead, he noticed several auras waiting outside. It was Lao Ke and the others, but he had no idea how long they had been waiting.
With a swing of his hand, the door was opened and the trio entered in turn, all of them approaching close before cupping their fists, “Greetings, Great King!”
“What is it?” Yang Kai began to pour himself a cup of water from a nearby jug and looked up at them while he could not help sneering in his heart. These three did not care so much about him the first few days of his arrival, and they did not even bother to pay him a visit; however, they actually approached him together early this morning. It seemed that the incident of last night had a great impact on them.
Lao Ke announced, “Reporting to Great King. We have interrogated Lie Kuang’s subordinates overnight as ordered. This is what we discovered.” While speaking, he handed over a jade slip.
Yang Kai took the jade slip and sent his Divine Sense into it to examine its content.
It was nothing else other than all kinds of information regarding the nineteen captured Demon Kings, including their Clans, origin, and even cultivation, as well as their relationship with Lie Kuang, their level of loyalty, and so on.
Among them, five were highlighted.
Lao Ke further explained, “The highlighted five have been followers of Lie Kuang for a very long time, with the shortest having been under him for over a thousand years. May I know what Great King wants to do with them?”
These five people were undoubtedly Lie Kuang’s confidants, similar to the three people who were executed by Bo Ya last night. Since they were Lie Kuang’s confidants, they should not be kept alive. In any case, Yang Kai did not care about the lives of the Demons here; therefore, he looked up at the three in front of him, and asked, “What do you think?”
Lao Ke pondered for a moment before he answered, “This subordinate thinks that it’s better not to keep them around, so as to avoid any trouble in the future.”
He Yin and Ke Sen nodded in agreement.
Yang Kai responded plainly, “Since all three of you agree, do as you see fit.”
The corner of Lao Ke’s mouth twitched when he heard Yang Kai’s words because it sounded like he was the one who sentenced the five Demon Kings to death. Lao Ke felt that these five Demon Kings were just following orders too, but he dared not to express opposition here. After a short pause, he continued, “The other fourteen people don’t seem problematic and are unlikely to seek revenge for Lie Kuang.”
“Then break them up and assign them to work under the three of you.”
“Yes!”
Yang Kai sipped some tea. Seeing that they had no intention of leaving, he could not help laughing, “What else do you have to say?”
Lao Ke and the others exchanged glances, but in the end, it was still Lao Ke who took the courage to speak, “Great King mentioned that the purpose of you coming to Cloud Shadow Continent was to maintain the Territory Gate and protect Cloud Shadow Continent. Now that Lie Kuang has fallen and Cloud Shadow Continent is totally under Great King’s control, we can start to make arrangements as soon as possible. May I know when Great King wishes to begin?”
This was a constant worry in their hearts, so they wished to settle the issue as soon as possible; therefore, even if they felt like they were in no position to urge Yang Kai, they still could not help asking about it.
Yang Kai chuckled, “I shall begin shortly, but before I do, I have something for you to do.”
“We await your orders, Great King.”
“Find me all the information about the Cloud Shadow Continent’s Territory Gates, including those that have already vanished. I need as much as you can gather.”
Although they had no clue what Yang Kai wanted with this information, it was a simple task so Lao Ke and the others readily accepted the order.
Yang Kai pondered for a moment, then reached out his hand and took out a delicate jade box, “On a different note, I want to ask you about one thing.”
Lao Ke and the others immediately responded humbly.
Yang Kai opened the jade box and took out a pill-like object the size of a pigeon egg. It was black all over and looked just like an unimpressive black pill; however, this black pill had no medicinal fragrance. All Yang Kai knew was that when he probed it with his Divine Sense, he found that this black pill contained a horrifying amount of energy.
However, this kind of energy could not be absorbed just by anyone. The energy contained in it was chaotic and malevolent. If a Human consumed this thing, he would be demonified in an instant. On the contrary, if a Demon took it, it would surely be of great benefit to their cultivation.
He found this object in Lie Kuang’s Space Ring, three of them in fact. Each one was put in a jade box and was placed in the deepest place of the Space Ring, so it was obviously very valuable.
Yang Kai knew nothing about this thing, but he believed that Lao Ke and the others should know about it.
To his surprise, when he took out the black pill, the three Demon Kings gaped at it with scorching eyes and even some light panting.
Yang Kai raised his brow at them and asked, “What is this?”
Lao Ke gulped and cupped his fists. “It’s reasonable that Great King doesn’t know about this since you’re a Human. But to the Demon Race, it is a supreme tonic, especially for we Demon Kings. This is a Myriad Demon Pill!”
“Myriad Demon Pill?” Yang Kai was shocked, “This thing is a Myriad Demon Pill?”
Yin replied, “Has Great King heard about the Myriad Demon Pill before?”
Yang Kai put on a weird look, “I heard someone mentioned it a few days ago.”
Previously, when Yue Sang attempted to stop Bai Zhuo, he offered eighty Myriad Demon Pills to him in exchange for Yang Kai’s life. Although Yang Kai asked Bai Zhuo about the Myriad Demon Pill that day, Bai Zhuo just smiled without saying anything, leaving him clueless.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai did not expect to obtain such a thing so soon.
No wonder the Half-Saints used these to barter with. It was indeed extraordinary. The internal energy was enormous to the extreme, comparable to a Pill Cloud enveloped Emperor Pill that had been nourished for thousands of years.
Yang Kai estimated that a Low-Rank Demon King would only need to consume a few dozen of these pills to break through to the Mid-Rank Demon King Realm. Of course, this would depend on if said Low-Rank Demon King had sufficient time to digest the energy.
As for the Mid-Rank Demon King, they would probably need four to five hundred pills to break through to the High-Rank. However, this was only his own estimations as he did not really know the facts about this thing.
“Who refined this?” Yang Kai was an alchemist himself, so he understood that it would definitely not be easy to refine such a thing. The energy was too massive, so those who were not powerful enough would not be able to condense such energy in the first place. He was truly interested in whoever refined this pill as such a marvellous Alchemy technique was probably comparable to those of Wondrous Pill Great Emperor’s.
He did not expect that there was such a Grandmaster in the Demon Realm.
He Yin could not help laughing as she heard this and explained, “Great King is likely unaware, but Myriad Demon Pills are not refined by people, they are generated by the World itself.”
“Generated by the world?” Yang Kai was stunned.
“These are indeed natural products!” Lao Ke nodded solemnly and explained, “There are hundreds of continents that make up the Demon Realm, and eighty percent of them have a Myriad Demon Cave. After a set number of years, a Myriad Demon Cave will produce a batch of Myriad Demon Pills. These pills will contribute to a Demon King’s cultivation after consumption and shorten our cultivation time. We have all taken Myriad Demon Pills at least once.”
Flabbergasted, Yang Kai asked, “Eighty percent of the continents have Myriad Demon Caves?” He froze for a while, then proceeded to ask, “What about our Cloud Shadow Continent?”
“It has one.” Lao Ke nodded. “Similar to the Territory Gate, it is located in Lie Kuang’s territory. Every time the Myriad Demon Pills ripen, he would be the one who collected them and offered them to Holy Venerable.”
“You’re not involved?” Yang Kai looked at the three in front of him, puzzled. Since the pills were so useful to them, and given that they were the top Demon Kings in Cloud Shadow Continent, they must also have the right to participate in the harvest. But according to Lao Ke’s words, it seemed that Lie Kuang was doing it all by himself.
A look of embarrassment suddenly appeared on the faces of Lao Ke and the others.
Ke Sen disclosed, “Great King, in the past, the task was given to all our High-Rank Demon Kings, but ever since Lie Kuang took refuge under Sir Yue Sang, we… have been excluded.”
“Having a strong backer is certainly a good thing,” Yang Kai sneered and wanted to ask them why they did not take refuge under Yue Sang too; however, after he thought about it carefully, he believed that they might not have the choice, because Yue Sang probably would not want to accept them either. After collecting the Myriad Demon Pills, Yue Sang definitely had to share some profits with the collectors as a reward. If he accepted more collectors, he would have to give out more of his profits too. As such, why should he accept others when he already had Lie Kuang working for him?
“How did the Myriad Demon Caves come into being? Why do eighty percent of the continents have one?” Yang Kai questioned curiously.
This was a difficult question for Lao Ke and the others as they had no idea how the Myriad Demon Caves were formed. Ever since ancient times, it had been the case in all continents of the Demon Realm. They were simply used to it now as it was normal for them to collect Myriad Demon Pills in the Myriad Demon Caves. If they wanted to know the truth behind all of this, they would probably have to ask those older Half-Saints or the Holy Venerables.
Seeing that they were clueless about it, Yang Kai did not make things difficult for them. He further inquired about the Myriad Demon Pills, and learnt that the collection frequency and quantity of the Myriad Demon Pills were different in each continent.
On Cloud Shadow Continent, they were basically collected every ten years, and there were typically several dozen to a hundred Myriad Demon Pills each time. The quantity varied widely. There could be many during one harvest, and then only a few in the next.
The matter regarding the Myriad Demon Pills bothered Yang Kai a little. No wonder Demon Kings in the Demon Realm were far more numerous than Emperors in the Star Boundary. It was because of the existence of these pills.
According to his previous estimation, several tens of Myriad Demon Pills could promote a Low-Rank Demon King to a Mid-Rank one. In other words, Cloud Shadow Continent alone could promote a Low-Rank Demon King every ten years, and still have extra pills.
If this situation continued over thousands of years, how could there not be many Demon Kings?
Of course, although this calculation method was too idealized, with these Myriad Demon Pills, it would be much easier to cultivate Masters in the Demon Realm, and their growth time would be shorter than that in the Star Boundary.
Why did the Star Boundary not have such benefits? And how did Myriad Demon Caves appear? Why did they produce Myriad Demon Pills?
Maybe Yu Ru Meng knew the answers to these questions, but he could not ask her right now.
At this moment, He Yin smiled, “Speaking of which, Great King came at just the right time. The next Myriad Demon Pill harvest is not far away. Within six months, Great King will be able to see it with his own eyes.”
Hearing this, Yang Kai’s expression suddenly changed, “Since the Myriad Demon Cave is located in Lie Kuang’s territory, he must have sent someone to guard it.”
“Indeed!” Lao Ke nodded.
Yang Kai glanced at him and continued, “But as far as I know, Lie Kuang brought all the Demon Kings under his command to Cloud Shadow City. Who is guarding the cave now?”
Lao Ke was stunned when he heard these words and suddenly seemed to have realized something. Cupping his fists hurriedly, he declared, “Subordinate will go to the Myriad Demon Cave to investigate.”
The Myriad Demon Cave was the most important place on every continent and must not be left unguarded. Since Lie Kuang had brought all the Demon Kings under his command here, it was very likely that no Master was defending the cave, or others were guarding it on behalf of Lie Kuang. Since Lie Kuang had taken refuge under Yue Sang, it was not difficult to guess who was guarding the cave now.
Cloud Shadow Continent was Yang Kai’s territory, and the Myriad Demon Pills collected from Myriad Demon Cave would naturally belong to Yang Kai, so how could he allow another to seize what was his?
“Bring more people, Ke Sen will accompany you.” Yang Kai waved his hand.
Ke Sen responded, “Yes!”
The two of them did not hesitate and left immediately to avoid trouble caused by undue delay.
The only one left was He Yin, the unrecognizable Demon King shrouded in black Qi, “If Great King has no other instructions, this subordinate will take her leave.”
“Bring me those five Demon Kings!” Yang Kai ordered and closed his eyes.
He Yin glanced at him curiously, wondering what his plans for the five Demon Kings were, but she did not ask any questions and simply left to carry out his order.
After a short while, five Demon Kings with sealed cultivations were brought into the room. They looked defeated after a night of torture, but as they walked into the room and saw Yang Kai, their eyes were filled with anger and a few arrogant ones even spat unpleasant curses at him.
They knew that they were most likely going to have miserable deaths, and they were completely helpless against Yang Kai, so they figured they might as well just run their mouths to let out some of their resentment. It would be best if they managed to provoke Yang Kai into slaughtering them as a quick death was better than a long, drawn-out one.
The soldiers were dismissed, the doors were shut, and a barrier was opened. Yang Kai glanced at the five people indifferently, then grabbed at them with his hand.
In the next instant, Space Principles fluctuated, and all five of the Demon Kings vanished.
Immediately afterwards, Yang Kai too flickered, and vanished from the room.
Inside the Small Sealed World, the Embodiment sat down cross-legged in an empty land, his sixty-metre-tall body looking like a towering hill as he stared down at the five Demon Kings who Yang Kai brought in with great interest.
Yang Kai appeared, and without delay, he raised his hand, “Let’s start.”
The Embodiment nodded, placing his hands together as he assumed a strange posture. A moment later, an invisible force fluctuated, enveloping the five immobilized Demon Kings. The initially confused looks of the Demon Kings turned into panic due to the sudden change as their vitality, Demon Qi, and even Spiritual Energy began flowing out of their bodies uncontrollably.
Yang Kai watched as an aura that resembled blood gushed out of the five Demon Kings and converged towards the Embodiment, who consumed all of it into his abdomen with every breath he took.
In just a few breaths of time, the initially extremely strong scarlet aura dwindled drastically as the physiques of the five Demon Kings shrivelled up at a visible rate.
Yang Kai shuddered at the sight.
The Heaven Devouring Battle Law was indeed overbearing and evil, and it was reasonable that the Star Boundary tried to purge it from existence.
Although the Embodiment had the body of a Stone Spirit and was not afraid of the many side effects of the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, Yang Kai tried his best to avoid allowing the Embodiment to use this Secret Arts inherited from the Heaven Devouring Great Emperor when he was in the Star Boundary to avoid suspicions.
In the past, the Embodiment had consumed the essence of enemies but had always stopped just before it became obvious what had happened.
But he did not even have to think twice here in the Demon Realm.
In the battle with Lie Kuang last night, the Heaven Devouring Battle Law executed by the Embodiment tormented Lie Kuang endlessly, and according to the Embodiment, one could grow stronger from the Heaven Devouring Battle Law even when fighting against another. When devouring the essence of, and weakening the strength of others, one could bolster himself. As long as one did not suffer from a one-time fatal injury, he was almost invincible.
The Heaven Devouring Great Emperor slaughtered many Great Emperors by himself in the Great Emperor War all thanks to the Heaven Devouring Battle Law.
Yang Kai was going to let the Embodiment freely cultivate the Heaven Devouring Battle Law in the Demon Realm and increase his strength as fast as possible.
Even though these five Demon Kings were only Mid-Rank or lower, their essences could not be wasted. It was just perfect to be used to feed the Embodiment. As long as sufficient energy was available for him to devour, the Embodiment would become powerful very quickly.
In the Demon Realm, Yang Kai only had Embodiment as an auxiliary force so he wanted him to be as strong as possible.
The five Demon Kings were no longer cursing and shouting as all of their strength was put into struggling violently, but how could they resist the devouring power of the Heaven Devouring Battle Law when their cultivations were sealed?
After only a few dozen breaths, all life had left the five Demon Kings. What remained was only dried and withered corpses. The Embodiment kept the same posture as his aura swelled and his flames trembled. As his body suddenly shook, a jet-black aura permeated from within him; it was purified Demon Qi digested from the essence absorbed from the five Demon Kings.
It was apparent that the Embodiment had favourable conditions to cultivate the Heaven Devouring Battle Law. The innate ability of the Stone Spirit Clan to expel all kinds of negative and unfavourable energies was put on full display here. If anyone else with a normal physique cultivated this Secret Art, even if they had a method to resolve most of the negative energies and impurities, they would be bound to suffer some negative effects; and in the long run, one’s temperament would inevitably be affected.
“I also have gotten clarification about this,” Yang Kai raised the three jade boxes in his hands and tossed them over while passing the information he had learned to the Embodiment.
The Embodiment caught the three jade boxes, raised an eyebrow, and muttered, “Myriad Demon Pills? En, this is a good thing.”
After that, with a thought, he opened the jade boxes, directly downed the three Myriad Demon Pills, and then immediately urged the Heaven Devouring Battle Law to begin refining them, all while Yang Kai watched with his eyes widened.
Myriad Demon Pills were generated by the world itself and contained a huge amount of energy. Demon Kings needed to be fully prepared before consuming one, and then spend a lot of time refining it. It was not something that could be done overnight.
However, the pills were just like candies to the Embodiment, who swallowed three pills in one go. This would baffle any Demon King if they really witnessed it.
Even High-Rank Demon Kings did not have the courage to act so recklessly!
Visible to the naked eye, the aura around the Embodiment’s body trembled. There was a steady stream of dark aura escaping from his body, which was on a much larger scale than when the essence of the five Demon Kings was consumed.
Only after a stick of incense worth of time did the Embodiment slowly open his eyes, flames flickering in their depths.
Yang Kai knew exactly what he was thinking and pressed his lips together, “You need about three thousand pills to reach the next stage. That’s quite a lot.”
Cloud Shadow Continent only harvested these pills once every ten or so years, and each harvest only yielded a few dozen to a hundred Myriad Demon Pills. It would require the entire Cloud Shadow Continent hundreds to a thousand years to produce three thousand pills.
But if these things could really allow the Embodiment to reach the next level, it would be worth it.
The Embodiment currently possessed the Divine Spirit Shi Huo’s Source, and had the body of a Stone Spirit as a foundation, leaving nearly unlimited room for him to grow. Already, the Embodiment was stronger than an ordinary Third-Stage Emperor. Compared to a Half-Saint, he was slightly inferior, but if he managed to reach the next realm, he would be able to compete with a Half-Saint all on his own.
Yang Kai could only try to collect more Myriad Demon Pills. If these things could greatly shorten the Embodiment’s development time, it was worth investing in doing so.
Suddenly, he regretted being so generous last night. He did not know if there were more Myriad Demon Pills in those Demon Kings’ Space Rings; however, seeing how Lie Kuang only had a surplus of three, it was unlikely that the other Demon Kings had any. Even if they had a chance to obtain one, those Demon Kings would have likely consumed it immediately to strengthen themselves.
In addition, Yang Kai could also capture more Demon Kings and throw them into the Sealed World Bead to feed the Embodiment. Although the effect was not as good as taking Myriad Demon Pills, it was not bad either.
After leaving the Small Sealed World, Yang Kai waited in the room for a while before He Yin brought back a large amount of information about the Territory Gates.
Yang Kai spent an hour reading these materials and pondered a while before getting up and walking out.
“Sir!” Xiao Wu, who was waiting outside the door, hurriedly saluted, her eyes twinkling with admiration.
Yang Kai nodded lightly, but just as he was about to speak, he suddenly turned his head to look at the room in the corner with a weird expression, and asked, “How long has she been in there?”
“What?” Xiao Wu did not know what he meant.
“Bo Ya.” Yang Kai glanced at her.
Finally understanding his question, Xiao Wu replied, “Since she came back last night.”
The corners of Yang Kai’s mouth twitched as he quickly walked over to the room and pushed the door open.
This was Li Shi Qing’s room. In order to take care of her, Yang Kai deliberately arranged for her to live next to his room. Over the past few days, Li Shi Qing had been very well behaved. She was probably too afraid of Yang Kai, so she had been locking himself in her room.
She did not come out, but someone had now gone in.
At this moment, Bo Ya was in her room, sitting side by side with Li Shi Qing, holding her hand and speaking to her.
Chills ran down Yang Kai’s spine as he saw a trace of lust in Bo Ya’s eyes.
[This woman! She’s hopeless!]
Hearing the movement, the two women in the room both turned their heads to look. Li Shi Qing shivered instinctively and shrank to hide behind Bo Ya. She was really scared of Yang Kai to the extreme.
Bo Ya on the other hand let out a dissatisfied grunt, looking resentful, as if her good deed had gone bad.
After fiercely reprimanding Bo Ya and yelling at her to get out, Yang Kai turned to look at Li Shi Qing who was now curled up on the inner corner of the bed, holding her knees in her hands, the blood drained from her face, looking dreadfully afraid.
Yang Kai was speechless and eased up his face a little before advising, “Don’t get too close with that female Demon in the future. She’s not a good person!”
Li Shi Qing further curled her body, and nodded weakly.
Seeing her like this, Yang Kai knew she did not take his words to heart. He was probably the biggest villain in the world to her at this point, but he could not say anything more to convince her otherwise, so he could only stop here for now.
After pondering for a while, he flickered a Space Beacon and instructed, “In case of danger, activate the seal on that bead to protect yourself.”
He couldn’t take care of Li Shi Qing all the time, especially when he still had many things to deal with, but since he went through all that trouble to get her out of the Blood Arena, he naturally could not let her fall into any danger.
A Space Beacon was sufficient to protect her safety. As long as she was not too slow in reacting, she could be teleported to Yang Kai through this bead when she encountered unmanageable danger. Of course, the premise was that she had to be on the same continent with Yang Kai.
However, given that Yang Kai was fully in charge of Cloud Shadow Continent, he believed that she would not have the need to use the bead here. None of the Demon Kings under him would dare to disobey his orders now, so it was unlikely anyone would dare to lay their hands on his people.
After a brief explanation, he strode out without caring what reaction Li Shi Qing had.
Behind him, Li Shi Qing looked up at Yang Kai with mixed feelings and hesitated for a long time before keeping the bead with her.
At this moment, Yang Kai was already with He Yin, flying in the Tiger Head Chariot towards a certain place on Cloud Shadow Continent.
Half a day later, the Tiger Head Chariot stopped in the wilderness at a high altitude. Yang Kai and He Yin got off the chariot, and he asked as he looked around, “Are you sure it’s here?”
He Yin also turned around to look for a while, seemingly trying to confirm her position, but after a short while, she flew up slightly and declared, “It’s where I am standing now.”
Yang Kai nodded slightly and the Space Principle around him fluctuated as he closed his eyes and quietly perceived his surroundings.
He Yin stared at him curiously, but she did not dare to disturb him and just waited quietly.
After half an hour, Yang Kai opened his eyes, shook his head slowly, and looked at He Yin, “When did this Territory Gate vanish, and where did it connect to?’
Earlier, he checked the data about the Territory Gates of Cloud Shadow Continent and confirmed that Bai Zhuo’s previous statement was correct. There were once five Territory Gates, each connecting to a different continent; however, over the past millennium, four Territory Gates had disappeared one after another, with the last remaining gate being connected to the Blue Plains Continent. Cloud Shadow Continent was almost isolated because of this.
A woodcutter must sharpen his axe if he was to do his work well. If Yang Kai wanted to stabilize and repair the last Territory Gate, he would first take a look at the four disappeared Territory Gates. At least, he must examine the situation and it would be best if he could understand the reasons for their disappearance. Even if he could not understand it, he must at least find some clues.
But although he had done his best just now, Yang Kai did not obtain anything. Nothing was unusual here. If it was not confirmed by He Yin, and also the data he collected that proved there was a Territory Gate here before, Yang Kai probably would think that he was in the wrong place.
He Yin disclosed, “This Territory Gate was the first to vanish. It happened about a thousand years ago. Before it disappeared, it had symptoms similar to the last Territory Gate now, showing the signs of instability. Previously, this Territory Gate led to Blood Flame Continent.’
After a pause, she pressed on, “Did Great King discover anything?” She did not have much hope looking at Yang Kai’s expression, but she still could not help asking.
To her disappointment, Yang Kai shook his head, “I didn’t find anything. Let’s go to the next place.”
He raised his hand and summoned the Tiger Head Chariot. He Yin naturally had no opinion about it, got on the chariot with Yang Kai, and guided the direction to the next place.
Half a day later, they arrived in the sky over a vast sea with endless waves rolling and crashing.
Just like before, Yang Kai closed his eyes and felt the surroundings, while He Yin waited patiently beside him.
A moment later, Yang Kai raised his brow, revealing a look of surprise. The Space Principles around him turned more and more turbulent. He Yin, who had been watching him, could not help but perk up, realizing that Yang Kai probably found something.
The next instant, Yang Kai suddenly opened his eyes and stared toward a certain spot with a solemn look on his face. Following the faint traces of Space Principle fluctuations, he stretched out his hand to probe the area before him.
He pushed both his hands forward at an extremely slow speed, as if fighting against great resistance. What astonished He Yin though was that after Yang Kai pushed out about a hand’s length, Yang Kai’s fingers began to disappear, as if they were sinking into another space.
He Yin’s face turned solemn.
Then she heard Yang Kai shouting, “Open!”
Following his voice, Yang Kai suddenly spread his arms widely to both sides. Space seemed to be torn at that moment and a crack opened in front of him. The crack was filled with chaotic nothingness which not only devoured up her sight, but also drowned her Divine Sense into it.
Exhilarated, He Yin squealed, “Great King!”
Yang Kai ignored her as he applied more force with his hands. His clothes were flapping and flying without any wind while the crack in front of him got bigger and bigger.
Soon, there was enough space for the two to pass through, so Yang Kai immediately reached out his hand, grabbed He Yin’s arm, and rushed into the crack together with her.
All of a sudden, the two vanished.
The world spun, and He Yin’s vision went blank. When she regained her senses, she had arrived in another world. She gathered her wits and looked down startled. After seeing a familiar scenery, she shouted in excitement, “Thunder Heaven Continent!”
The Territory Gate that disappeared was originally connected to Thunder Heaven Continent. He Yin had lived in Cloud Shadow Continent for thousands of years, and before these Territory Gates vanished, she often came to Thunder Heaven Continent for business, so she was familiar with the scenery. However, she had not been here since the Territory Gate disappeared.
She never expected that she could still have the chance to see this scenery again.
She instantly became fully confident in Yang Kai and realized that it was reasonable for the Holy Venerable to send him to Cloud Shadow Continent to maintain the Territory Gate. With such means, Yang Kai had proven that he could really open the vanished Territory Gates again, meaning Cloud Shadow Continent would no longer be isolated.
“Don’t get too excited.” Yang Kai suddenly said, immediately dampening He Yin’s excitement, “Look behind you.”
He Yin was stunned for a moment, and quickly turned back to look; however, the Void Crack that they had passed through was closing at a rapid pace and would probably disappear in less than ten breaths of time.
The exhilaration and expectation that filled He Yin just now instantly deflated as she asked in shock, “How can this be?”
Yang Kai laughed and explained, “I just followed the traces of the previous Territory Gate and forcibly broke through the Void to arrive here. The two continents have their own World Principles, so they will repair the interference of external forces to restore things to their original states.”
“Then the Territory Gate…”
Yang Kai continued, “It’s too early to be sure, but it’s not hopeless yet. Since the connection has not been severed, there should still be a way to re-establish it. Let’s go back first.” Then he turned around and tore open the crack that was about to be closed before returning the same way with He Yin.
After a moment, they returned to Cloud Shadow Continent.
Looking at the rapidly closing crack, He Yin sighed in her heart; however, after such an experience, she finally saw hope.
After that, they visited the other two lost Territory Gates and examined them carefully.
It took two days for this inspection and He Yin felt better after seeing the results, because the next two places were similar to the vanished Territory Gate that connected to Thunder Heaven Continent. There were still some traces remaining, which was enough for Yang Kai to tear through space and arrive at the other continents.
Yang Kai was only helpless regarding the first Territory Gate leading to Blood Flame Continent. In other words, three of the four vanished Territory Gates still had hope to reappear, but the first one was completely hopeless.
Yang Kai was a little puzzled about this. In theory, the four lost Territory Gates were no different from one another and should all have the same condition, but the place where they first investigated turned out to be somewhat different.
“He Yin, try to remember carefully, what are the differences between the four Territory Gates? Especially the difference between the Territory Gate connecting Blood Flame Continent and the other three.” Yang Kai could not figure it out; after all, he was a newcomer to this world, so he could only ask He Yin. This was also the reason he brought her with him.
“Perhaps it is about when they each vanished?” He Yin pondered for a moment and put forward a hypothesis, “The first Territory Gate was lost much longer ago. Could that be the reason why?”
“It’s only a thousand years versus several hundred, but we can’t rule out this possibility. What else?” Yang Kai frowned.
He Yin continued to recall. After a while, she looked up at Yang Kai and disclosed, “Oh right, Blood Flame Continent has completely disappeared. The Territory Gate of Cloud Shadow Continent that connected to it was the last Territory Gate it had.”
Yang Kai’s brow twitched as he showed a wry smile, “Why didn’t you tell this King such an important detail earlier?”
If there was no mistake, this was the reason that the traces of the Territory Gate had completely vanished. Given that even Blood Flame Continent had disappeared, how could the traces of the Territory Gate remain?
He Yin replied embarrassingly, “I had forgotten…”
Yang Kai shook his head, but he did not blame her. Since he had figured out the reason, what happened next would be simpler. If he wanted to maintain the Territory Gate, Yang Kai had to figure out why they could persist for so long. Logically, this kind of tear should have been repaired by the local World Principles, but in fact, there were still more or less Territory Gates in many continents of the Demon Realm, ranging from one or two, to more than ten. This phenomenon was very odd to him.
Therefore, in any case, he had to pay a visit to the only remaining Territory Gate. Not only could he examine and explore it, but he could also try to study the Space Principles involved in their formation and maintenance. It would be best if he could improve his comprehension of the Dao of Space in this way…
After making the decision, Yang Kai immediately rushed to the only remaining gate with He Yin without any delay.
When he first travelled to Cloud Shadow Continent, he and Bai Zhuo came through this Territory Gate, but he had no idea that the place was Lie Kuang’s territory at that time. Now that Lie Kuang was dead and the Demon Kings under Lie Kuang’s command had been broken up, this place had become ownerless. However, Lao Ke and the other High-Rank Demon Kings dared not to occupy this place without Yang Kai’s authorization; therefore, they just waited for him to make a decision about it.
Lao Ke and Ke Sen were nearby.
A few days ago, Yang Kai instructed them to investigate the situation of the Myriad Demon Cave, so now they probably must have come out with a result.
On the way, He Yin sent them a message.
When Yang Kai arrived near the Territory Gate, Lao Ke and Ke Sen were waiting respectfully with a group of Demon Kings. Before Yang Kai landed, they quickly saluted and welcomed him courteously.
“What’s the situation?” Yang Kai asked as he looked at Lao Ke.
Lao Ke replied with his fists cupped, “As Great King expected, Lie Kuang colluded with Blue Plains Continent. When he came to Cloud Shadow City, the Myriad Demon Cave was guarded by Tu Qia Luo!”
Seeing Yang Kai’s confused look, He Yin explained in a low voice, “Tu Qia Luo is a Demon King from Blue Plains Continent who serves under Yue Sang. He’s quite strong.”
Given that He Yin evaluated him as such, this Tu Qia Luo must be a High-Rank Demon King.
Yang Kai nodded, “Where is Tu Qia Luo now?”
Lao Ke and Ke Sen could not help revealing embarrassed looks.
Noticing this, Yang Kai knew that they had let him escape; however, this was still acceptable. Although it was Blue Plains Continent’s fault for interfering in Cloud Shadow Continent and laying their hands on the Myriad Demon Cave and the Myriad Demon Pills, they had a Half-Saint backing them, very much unlike Lao Ke and the others, who were unfavoured people and were placed in an awkward situation here. Even though Yang Kai had given them a little confidence by killing Lie Kuang, they still did not dare to really stand against Yue Sang. It actually would not take much to kill Tu Qia Luo with the forces Lao Ke and Ke Sen brought, but trouble would surely follow after. If Yue Sang wanted to settle accounts in the future, they would all die miserably.
Therefore, they snatched the Myriad Demon Cave back under Yang Kai’s order, but as for Tu Qia Luo, they decided just to let him go.
As such, they felt embarrassed being questioned by Yang Kai at this moment.
Fortunately, Yang Kai did not mean to look into the matter and just stared into their eyes, curling his lips into a sarcastic grin as he waved, “Since the problem of Cloud Shadow Continent has been settled and we’ve regained control of the Myriad Demon Cave, from now on, this King will start his inspection of this Territory Gate and find a way to maintain this last passage. All of you need to cooperate with me. Henceforth, this gate is to be temporarily closed, and without this King’s orders, no one is allowed to pass through it.”
In order to study the Territory Gate and understand the principles governing its existence, Yang Kai required a quiet and undisturbed environment; therefore, the Territory Gate naturally had to be closed and people had to be stopped from going in and out.
Fortunately, they had a lot of manpower here, so it should be enough to cordon off the surroundings.
“Yes!” Lao Ke and the others responded respectfully. Their good days were indeed over. The coming of a new owner of Cloud Shadow Continent meant that they would not be free anymore; however, if Yang Kai truly could stabilize the gate and ensure that it would not vanish, it would also be of great benefit to them. At least, they would not have to worry about their backup plans in the near future.
Yang Kai continued, “Lao Ke.”
“Reporting,” Lao Ke stepped out.
“Go back to Cloud Shadow City and bring me Bo Ya.”
Although he had warned Li Shi Qing to be careful of Bo Ya before, who knew if Bo Ya would do anything to Li Shi Qing after he left; therefore, it was better to have her here. Moreover, if he wanted to comprehend the secrets of the Territory Gate, he could not afford to be distracted. He did not trust Lao Ke and the others much, so only Bo Ya could help him in guarding this place. With the Soul Puppet in his hand, Bo Ya would not dare to betray him.
Lao Ke left after receiving the order.
Yang Kai pondered for a moment, then turned to Ke Sen and He Yin, “I’ve been meaning to ask you, are Myriad Demon Pills purchasable?”
Myriad Demon Pills were incredibly useful to the Embodiment, but the quantity that he needed was way too high. It would be much easier if they could be bought. Since he was now in charge of Cloud Shadow Continent, it could be said that everything here was under his control. According to the current situation of Cloud Shadow Continent, financial resources were not a problem if he wanted to buy some Myriad Demon Pills.
“Yes, but they’re difficult to find.” Ke Sen frowned, “Every Demon King needs them, so one would immediately refine and consume them as soon as they obtained one.”
He Yin continued, “In the past, every time we collected Myriad Demon Pills, we could get one or two each, but we quickly used them instead of saving them.” After a pause, she proceeded, “Great King, are you thinking of buying Myriad Demon Pills?”
Yang Kai nodded, “En, I’m considering it.”
He Yin replied, “Then I shall advise Great King not to do so. Each one is ridiculously expensive.”
“How expensive exactly?” Yang Kai looked at her curiously.
He Yin answered, “One pill would cost about fifty to eighty million High-Rank Demon Crystals. They’re always overpriced yet usually not for sale.”
Yang Kai could not stop his brow from twitching when he heard her statement. He initially thought that since he had won a billion Demon Crystals from the Blood Arena he would be rich enough to purchase anything he wanted, but according to He Yin, he could at most buy ten or so Myriad Demon Pills with his current wealth, and that was only if he found someone willing to sell them.
At such a price, perhaps the Embodiment might achieve a better result by simply refining the one billion Demon Crystals directly.
This was terrible news! Yang Kai instantly lost interest in buying Myriad Demon Pills. Even if he could mobilize the resources of the entire Cloud Shadow Continent, he could not buy many.
After the conversation was over, Yang Kai waved his hand to dismiss the two. With a flicker, he flew towards the Territory Gate and examined it carefully, the look of amazement hardly concealed on his face.
This gate was like a massive Void Corridor and the chaotic aura of nothingness fluctuating from it seemed pretty hazardous. With his current attainments in the Dao of Space, Yang Kai couldn’t create such a thing, but he might still have ways to stabilize it.
He took a soft breath, closed his eyes, and began using his Divine Sense to thoroughly examine the Territory Gate…
Below, Ke Sen and He Yin began to deploy their subordinates within a radius of thirty kilometres from the Territory Gate. All commoners were strictly prohibited from approaching the Territory Gate, so as not to interfere with Yang Kai.
Before Yang Kai cracked the secrets of the Territory Gate, the Demons of Cloud Shadow Continent were not allowed to leave through the Territory Gate. Even if this restriction would annoy some Demons, their complaints would be ignored as this matter was related to the future of the whole Cloud Shadow Continent.
Up in the sky, Yang Kai scanned through every inch of the Territory Gate with his Divine Sense, comprehending the mysterious Space Principles that maintained it with a thoughtful look on his face. As he expected, studying this Territory Gate was greatly beneficial to his understanding of the Dao of Space. After all, such a huge Void Corridor did not exist anywhere in the Star Boundary, so he had never experienced such a mysterious thing before.
Just when he vaguely felt that he had gained some insights, a rush of Space Principles came from the Territory Gate.
This made Yang Kai raise his brow as he thought that it was the unstable fluctuations of the Territory Gate itself. But the next moment, a Demon suddenly appeared in front of him.
The cultivation of the Demon was not too high, only a Demon Great General. He bumped into Yang Kai as soon as he appeared and was also taken aback, for he thought that someone was ambushing him here so he immediately flickered aside with his Demon Qi condensed.
After steadying himself, he saw Yang Kai looking at him coldly.
What’s more, there seemed to be countless eyes glaring at him right now.
Frowning, the Demon Great General immediately looked around and was instantly drenched in cold sweat …
As many as ten Demon Kings were eying him nearby, and there were even more Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals surrounding the area within a radius of thirty kilometres, which made him feel like he was a sheep who had broken into a wolves’ den by mistake. He was horrified, and forced a smile at Yang Kai as he asked in an awkward tone, “Sir, what’s the matter?”
“Scram!” Yang Kai waved his hand to him in a rather foul mood.
The Demon Great General quickly turned around and flew far away from here, only feeling relieved after escaping a great distance.
Yang Kai then shouted down to the people below, “Ke Sen!”
Ke Sen hurriedly flew up and cupped his fists, “Great King!”
“Take some people to the other side of the Territory Gate and seal it off. Do not allow anyone to pass through.” The previous Demon Great General must have travelled from Blue Plains Continent and just happened to have teleported to the Territory Gate here.
Even if he did not teleport near here, once someone passed through the gate, it would cause some interference which would disturb Yang Kai. How could he comprehend the secrets of the gate under such circumstances?
Hearing this order, Ke Sen seemed like he was in a tough position as he hesitated, “Isn’t this… not good? It is Sir Yue Sang’s territory over there, and we have no right to interfere.” Furthermore, they just drove Tu Qia Luo away a few days ago. If they brought people over there to block the Territory Gate at this time, Blue Plains Continent would definitely not sit idly. One mistake would trigger a confrontation between the two continents.
Yang Kai sneered, “What are you afraid of? Yue Sang has been sent to the front lines by Holy Venerable.”
Ke Sen replied awkwardly, “Even if Sir Yue Sang is not here, there are still ten High-Rank Demon Kings on Blue Plains Continent. We are by no means a match for them.” With Yue Sang looking after Blue Plains Continent, there were naturally more Demon Kings there than on Cloud Shadow Continent, even if some had been transferred to the battlefield. If a fight was started, Cloud Shadow Continent would definitely suffer a great loss.
Yang Kai squinted at him, “If they have any opinion, let them come and talk to this King.”
Ke Sen felt helpless as he knew that Yang Kai insisted on blocking the other side of the Territory Gate, so it was useless to say more and he could only accept the order and leave.
After selecting some Demon Kings to follow him, Ke Sen travelled to Blue Plains Continent through the Territory Gate, only then did Yang Kai continue to probe the gate with his eyes closed.
The next two days were peaceful as no one dared to disturb Cloud Shadow Continent. All those who wanted to pass through the Territory Gate were intercepted, as was the case on Blue Plains Continent. It seemed that Ke Sen did his job well.
Bo Ya had already arrived and was glaring at Yang Kai ferociously not far away, with so much hatred like she could not wait to drink his blood and eat his flesh.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai ignored her, or perhaps he did not notice her gaze at all as he was fully immersed in studying the Territory Gate.
Of course, it was impossible for Yang Kai to completely rely on Bo Ya for his own safety, so inside the Sealed World Bead, the Embodiment was carefully monitoring the situation. If anyone attempted to hurt Yang Kai, the Embodiment would immediately rush out of the Sealed World Bead to secure his safety.
Everything was calm and peaceful the next few days. Yang Kai was still standing still before the Territory Gate with his eyes closed while Space Principles from his body were fluctuating the whole time, resonating with the Territory Gate.
Below, Lao Ke, He Yin, and the others watch in astonishment. They were all anticipating what would come next. The situation now showed that Yang Kai was studying the secrets of the Territory Gate, and if he was able to thoroughly comprehend them, he just might be able to stabilize the gate.
In truth, Yang Kai had gained a lot over the past few days. His comprehension of Space Principles had grown by leaps and bounds, especially when the Territory Gate fluctuated unstably. He was able to peer through secrets that he normally could not see, all of which enhanced his own knowledge and reinforced his experiences. Every breath was a huge harvest for him.
This was indeed an excellent place to cultivate the Dao of Space. If it was an intact Territory Gate, he would not have gained so much. Only this unstable Territory Gate could help him.
Yang Kai did not even think about how to stabilize the Territory Gate but was immersed in the joy of comprehending and prying into the mysteries of the Dao of Space, taking in the nutrients that would strengthen him.
A few days later, even though Yang Kai did not spend a single moment pondering how to stabilize the Territory Gate, he had some vague ideas about how to maintain it now. Of course, it was still too early to put these ideas into practice as he still had to pry into the secrets of the Territory Gate to be more certain.
At a certain moment, another trace of abnormal fluctuations came from the Territory Gate in front of him, interrupting the state Yang Kai had been in for many days, awakening him from a condition similar to meditation.
With a scowl on his face, Yang Kai growled, “Bastards!”
Lao Ke’s and He Yin’s faces changed slightly as they quickly flew upwards together.
Yang Kai turned his head to look at the two of them, his eyes dark as he barked at them, “Go see what the Hell Ke Sen is doing! Why does this King even need him if he can’t accomplish such a simple task?”
The situation just now was obviously because someone shuttled through the Territory Gate on the Blue Plains Continent side, otherwise, it would be impossible for the sudden ripples on the Territory Gate.
Lao Ke and He Yin took the lead, flew down quickly, and selected some people to go through the Territory Gate to the Blue Plains Continent. On the other hand, Bo Ya was taking pleasure in Yang Kai’s misfortune and watched him gleefully. She had been boiling in anger since Yang Kai’s summon.
However, before Lao Ke and He Yin could make a move, a Demon King flew over from nearby and shouted, “Great King, Sir Ke Sen is in danger, please help him!”
When the last word fell, he had already reached right in front of Yang Kai.
Yang Kai looked and could not help narrowing his eyes. It was a Mid-Rank Demon King who was covered in blood and had many bone-deep wounds on his body. Obviously, he had experienced a fierce battle. This Demon King was one of Ke Sen’s subordinates who he had taken to Blue Plains Continent.
The movement of the Territory Gate just now should be caused by this man who travelled back here.
Lao Ke, He Yin, and the others looked over when they heard those words with the former asking anxiously, “What happened?”
The Mid-Rank Demon King was panting as he replied hurriedly, “By the order of the Great King, we went to Blue Plains Continent to seal off the Territory Gate. The past few days were fine, but today, all of a sudden, six High-Rank Demon Kings and a thousand of their subordinates came to besiege us. This subordinate was protected by Sir Ke Sen just so I could shuttle back through the Territory Gate to deliver a message. I hope that Great King and Sirs will help rescue Sir Ke Sen. He was already severely injured before this subordinate returned and I’m afraid he won’t last much longer.”
“How dare they!?” Lao Ke was furious and raised his head to look at Yang Kai, his face filled with righteous indignation.
Although he was old and lacked the fighting spirit of his youth, it did not mean that he would just accept being bullied without any resistance. Ke Sen was a Demon King of Cloud Shadow Continent and was regarded as his colleague. They had been working with each other for so many years and even developed a friendship. Now that Ke Sen was seriously injured, Lao Ke was naturally incensed. In addition, Lao Ke had existing resentment towards Blue Plains Continent for many years for intervening in the harvests of Myriad Demon Pills in Cloud Shadow Continent’s Myriad Demon Cave.
Now that Yue Sang was exiled to the battlefield, and Cloud Shadow Continent had the backing of Yang Kai, the Great King, who presided over the overall situation, if they still allowed the other side to walk all over them, Lao Ke could no longer call himself a Demon. He immediately cupped his fists, “Great King, nothing can happen to Ke Sen. We don’t have many High-Rank Demon Kings in Cloud Shadow Continent now so each one is precious.”
Originally there were only four High-Rank Demon Kings left here. Lie Kuang was killed a few days ago so now there were three. If Ke Sen died, who else could watch over Cloud Shadow Continent?
When his voice fell, Yang Kai had already sneered, “All of you come over when you’ve martialed our forces, this King and Bo Ya will head there first.”
There was a problem travelling through the Territory Gate; the location of arrival was random, and unless a method was used to bind everyone together, in which case everyone would appear in the same place after the shuttle, everyone would be scattered. So Yang Kai did not plan to wait for Lao Ke and the others. It would take some time for them to gather their people while Ke Sen’s situation was unknown, so he naturally had to go on ahead.
“Yes!” Lao Ke and He Yin responded in unison, thinking that their Great King was indeed a fearless leader. Originally, they were a little worried that Yang Kai would become timid when they heard that six High-Rank Demon Kings were causing trouble, so they certainly did not expect him to be so decisive.
But on second thought, this man killed Lie Kuang just a few days after arriving at Cloud Shadow Continent. If he was really a coward, how could he behave like this?
They did not expect anything else and simply hoped to rescue Ke Sen and as many of his subordinates as possible. In this way, they could reduce the damage to Cloud Shadow Continent’s foundation to a minimum.
Bo Ya obviously also realized the seriousness of the problem and completely set aside her frustration with Yang Kai for now, quickly flying over after hearing his orders.
Yang Kai’s Emperor Qi wrapped around her and the two of them plunged into the Territory Gate.
By doing this, while he could not control where the Territory Gate would send them, he could guarantee that he and Bo Ya would not be separated.
After a moment of blurriness, the pair arrived on Blue Plains Continent. Yang Kai then waved his hand and summoned the Tiger Head Chariot, boarding it together with Bo Ya.
The place where Ke Sen and the others were being besieged was obviously the Territory Gate between Blue Plains Continent and Cloud Shadow Continent, and while Yang Kai did not know how to get there, thanks to the Tiger Head Chariot, in which the route was already set, he only needed to let the War Chariot navigate for them.
Their destination was not too far away from where the Territory Gate was.
After passing through the Territory Gate, although they would be randomly transported, in general, they would appear within a thousand kilometres of the other end of the Territory Gate. Only rarely would one be transported to a place beyond a thousand kilometres.
No one knew the reason for this, but at this time it was convenient for Yang Kai’s rescue efforts; after all, if they were transported too far away from the Territory Gate, Ke Sen’s bones would probably have turned cold by the time they arrived.
Bo Ya could not help shivering when she felt the murderous intent exuding from Yang Kai’s body. She glanced at him but suddenly saw a faint grin form on his lips, so she asked dumbly, “What are you laughing at, Sir?”
Ke Sen’s situation was worrying, and if he died, there would only be two High-Rank Demon Kings left on Cloud Shadow Continent.
Yang Kai scoffed, “I’m laughing at how Blue Plains Continent has finally made a move.”
Bo Ya was startled, “Did you expect this?”
Yang Kai looked at her and explained, “Yue Sang has a grudge against me, and although he was assigned to the two worlds’ battlefield by Holy Venerable, he would still try every means to take my life. Lie Kuang was acting on Yue Sang’s orders before, and if that was the case, what more needs to be said about Blue Plains Continent? The Demon Kings on Blue Plains Continent must have received similar orders from Yue Sang. They would be a bunch of pig brains if they didn’t grab hold of the opportunity that I gave them.”
The meaning in this sentence was simple and clear, but Bo Ya was still confused. She thought for a while, then inquired, “Did you send Ke Sen to block the Territory Gate on Blue Plains Continent just to anger them?”
Ke Sen was a Demon King of Cloud Shadow Continent, but he interfered in the matter of the Territory Gate in Blue Plains Continent. If she was a Demon King of Blue Plains Continent, she would not sit back and watch either. Who could tolerate another crossing over into their territory and imposing their will arbitrarily?
Yang Kai shook his head slowly, “Angering them wasn’t the primary reason, this King really does need to seal off the Territory Gate to keep it from fluctuating. However, it was expected that they would not cooperate, and once they made a move, this King would have an excuse to attack them and take this opportunity to completely subdue Blue Plains Continent. Without taking control, it will basically be impossible for this King to study the Territory Gate with peace of mind in the future.”
Bo Ya pressed on with a confused face, “Didn’t you hear the report from that Demon King? Blue Plains Continent dispatched six High-Rank Demon Kings and a thousand soldiers. Where are you getting your confidence from to provoke them?”
Cloud Shadow Continent’s high-end combat power was vastly inferior to the other side, but when she thought of Lie Kuang’s death again that night, could the big bell be Yang Kai’s secret ace?
Until now, Bo Ya still did not know how Yang Kai killed Lie Kuang. The only thing that she could suspect at the time was the big bell. Lie Kuang, a peak High-Rank Demon King, died in a matter of moments under that bell, so many people suspected he died so quickly because of the artifact’s power.
During the days she was ‘bonding’ with Li Shi Qing, Bo Ya acquired some information about Yang Kai and learnt that this man was renowned throughout the Star Boundary. He had always prevailed over opponents who were stronger than him, but Li Shi Qing did not know many details about Yang Kai. Most of her information was from rumours she heard, and she had no idea how Yang Kai killed Lie Kuang that day.
Looking up, Yang Kai appeared to have no interest in talking anymore, but the smile on his face was turning more and more unreadable. This made Bo Ya very annoyed. The Human Race was indeed as treacherous, insidious, and untrustworthy as rumoured. They were a Race that should have been wiped out long ago.
Yang Kai’s following behaviour was even stranger though. It was clear that the Territory Gate was already in sight, just several tens of kilometres away, and many figures over there were engaged in battle. Obviously, it was Ke Sen and his subordinates fighting hard, but Yang Kai did not show any intention to rescue them and instead flew around the area in a wide circle.
At first, Bo Ya did not know what Yang Kai’s intentions were, but she soon began to understand.
Within a hundred kilometres, there were three places where ambushes were laid, each with a High-Rank Demon King assuming command! Although she was only a Mid-Rank Demon King and her Divine Sense was far weaker than Yang Kai’s, as a Feather Demon, she had cultivated a wondrous Eye Technique and could see some traces that others could not, allowing her to figure some things out.
This was obviously Blue Plains Continent’s plan. Bo Ya’s face turned solemn while thinking about it as she suddenly seemed to understand something. When she turned her attention to the Territory Gate, she saw Ke Sen leading a group of Demons to battle Blue Plains Continent’s forces in a seemingly intense melee.
Although Ke Sen was strong too, he had no chance to resist against six High-Rank Demon Kings on his own and win. Besides, a large number of other Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings were surrounding his group too, with someone being killed from time to time.
Logically, it was impossible for Ke Sen to have held out until now, but under Bo Ya’s observation, she found that the Blue Plains Continent forces did not seem intent on killing Ke Sen. Instead, they seemed to be toying with him. They just besieged Ke Sen without giving him a fatal blow, putting Ke Sen’s life at risk, but not in immediate deadly danger.
[Are they besieging a stronghold to annihilate the enemy reinforcement?]
A realization dawned on Bo Ya.
It seemed that Blue Plains Continent was truly aiming for Yang Kai. First, they trapped Ke Sen here with overwhelming power, and they were now trying to lure out reinforcements from Cloud Shadow Continent.
Once Yang Kai, Lao Ke, and the others entered the encirclement, they would be sealing their own fate.
Bo Ya was immediately drenched in a cold sweat.
All of a sudden, her level of admiration for Yang Kai increased significantly. She had no idea how Yang Kai found the three ambushes, but judging by the calm way he was reacting, it was obvious he had anticipated all of this from the start.
However, Cloud Shadow Continent was still at a huge disadvantage in this battle. The gap between the two sides was too great. Whether it was in terms of High-Rank, Mid-Rank, or even Low-Rank Demon Kings, the odds were against Cloud Shadow Continent. Even if Lao Ke and He Yin arrived immediately, they would not be of much help to the current situation.
It seemed everything would depend on Yang Kai’s methods now. Bo Ya did not have high expectations of him, but she could not simply persuade him to escape, so she could only wait and act accordingly.
As they circled the battlefield, Bo Ya suddenly saw Yang Kai flicking something out of his hand. Before she could see it properly, the Tiger Head Chariot had sped up and flew straight in a certain direction.
In that direction, a group of Demons of Blue Plains Continent were hiding in ambush.
In just a few breaths of time, the Tiger Head Chariot had flown over ten kilometres. Yang Kai suddenly grinned at Bo Ya, revealing a mouthful of pristine teeth as he remarked meaningfully, “Don’t disappoint this King!”
Just when the last word came out of his mouth, Yang Kai flickered and disappeared from the War Chariot, reappearing a few kilometres away. Emperor Qi surged around him and a brilliant flash erupted, like a small sun rising, illuminating the surroundings as he charged straight into the ambush.
The corner of Bo Ya’s mouth could not help twitching. She initially thought that Yang Kai had some clever plan in mind, but who knew this guy would just charge in recklessly while making such a sensational entrance.
[Is he afraid that the enemy won’t spot him or something? How can there be such a stupid person in this world?]
Since they had figured out the enemy was aiming to lure them in then annihilate them, they should have taken this opportunity to resolve the ambush from the outside. With her marksmanship and Yang Kai’s abilities, as long as they acted carefully, they should have been able to silently achieve that much.
However, now that Yang Kai has exposed himself, a sneak attack would no longer work.
But soon, Bo Ya frowned as she vaguely felt that perhaps Yang Kai was doing this on purpose. She immediately focused her mind and a faint blue light appeared in her beautiful eyes. With the help of her Eye Technique, everything within a hundred kilometres was captured in her eyes.
“Who is that?”
At the same time, a dozen or so kilometres away, a High-Rank Demon King stared at the small charging sun and questioned. Another Demon King beside him glanced at it and answered, “It must be the Human!”
The incoming aura was strange, and the energy fluctuations were only equivalent to those of a Mid-Rank Demon King. Given that the aura was different from a Demon’s, it was obviously Yang Kai.
“He’s the so-called Great King?” Eyebrows rose while the High-Rank Demon King guffawed with both hands on his waist, “Everyone says that the Human Race is cunning and insidious, but it seems that they’re just a bunch of fools. This King is happy to accept such easy prey today! Who will take that man down for this King?”
The main purpose of trapping Ke Sen this time was to bait Yang Kai to come to the rescue; however, these Demon Kings were not sure whether Yang Kai would come. If he didn’t, Ke Sen’s death would definitely be a heavy blow to Cloud Shadow Continent, which would be enough to affect Yang Kai’s power and ability to rule over Cloud Shadow Continent. If Yang Kai did come though, it would be the best case as their Blue Plains Continent’s army was enough to ensure that he would never go back.
Before that, they estimated that the probability of Yang Kai coming to the rescue was no more than thirty percent.
But facts proved them wrong. It was not long after the news of Ke Sen spread that the Human appeared and rushed directly towards them. The High-Rank Demon King was delighted, as he thought that pie had fallen from the sky. He never expected that he could have such a good opportunity.
Naturally, he did not want to miss the chance in front of his eyes. As long as he could take the Human down, Sir Yue Sang would certainly reward him. Even though Yang Kai approached with impressive momentum, his cultivation was only equal to a Mid-Rank Demon King, so how strong could he be? Even the High-Rank Demon King lost his interest in capturing Yang Kai on his own.
“This subordinate is willing to go!” Four or five Mid-Rank Demon Kings immediately volunteered. Sure enough, they would not let go of this opportunity to win honour and merit.
The High-Rank Demon King casually picked three Mid-Rank Demons and ordered them to bring Yang Kai back, dead or alive.
The three chosen Demon Kings accepted the order gratefully, while those who were not selected were dejected and glared at the backs of the three with jealousy in their eyes.
Yang Kai and the three Mid-Rank Demon Kings were swiftly approaching each other, and they would clash within three breaths of time.
A loud explosion rang out, and space itself shook, causing the surrounding world to tremble. A dazzling light rushed out from the centre of the chaos, continuing to charge toward the Demons with unstoppable momentum. Inside the light, Yang Kai was completely unscathed, his expression unchanged, and even his clothes unwrinkled.
Behind him, a shower of blood rained down from the sky.
The smile on the High-Rank Demon King’s face immediately stiffened as he gawked toward the front absent-mindedly. As for the Demons beside him, they gasped in disbelief.
Three Mid-Rank Demon Kings were killed off without complete corpses in a single exchange while the Human was completely unscathed.
Those Demons who were feeling envious just now suddenly felt fortunate that they were not chosen, otherwise they would not have had good ends.
In that short moment of shock, Yang Kai had already crashed into the ambush point with unstoppable force, his power frightening the wits out of all the Demons.
“Courting death!”
The High-Rank Demon King, who was guarding that area, finally regained his wits and summoned a thick copper-coloured staff into his hands. Pushing his Demon Qi, he swung the copper staff, whipping up a torrent of wind as he smashed towards Yang Kai’s head.
His blow was not fancy at all. Instead, it looked extremely ordinary.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai’s turned slightly pale seeing the power of the staff blow and dared not take it head-on. He had no idea what Clan this High-Rank Demon King belonged to earlier, but the movement of this staff was enough to reveal his origins. This High-Rank Demon King was a Strength Demon, born with innate great strength. The High-Rank Strength Demon King possessed physical prowess on par with a True Dragon of equal cultivation, and that strength was only magnified by the rage this Demon King was feeling right now. If Yang Kai took the blow, he would spew at least three litres of blood even though he had his own Half-Dragon physique.
Yang Kai tried to dodge but found that he could not avoid this blow at all. The movement of this staff seemed simple, but it actually confined the surrounding space, making it impossible to evade.
At the critical moment, Yang Kai had no choice but to surge his Space Principles and execute his Nihility Secret Technique.
His figure turned ethereal as he merged himself into the Void.
The staff struck and passed through Yang Kai’s body. The violent force exploded and shattered the Void, which forced Yang Kai’s figure to reappear, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
Although he used his own Secret Technique to avoid most of the power of this blow, the fallout was still enough to shake space and send his vitality tumbling, causing Yang Kai to fall short of breath.
He did not feel well at the moment, but the Strength Demon did not seem to look good either. He thought that Yang Kai would not be able to escape from his fatal blow, but to his surprise, it was as if his staff had struck cotton, resulting in him losing his balance and footing.
Just when he looked up at Yang Kai in shock, wondering how this Human had managed to dodge his blow, Yang Kai stretched out his hand at him and roared as Space Principles surged, “Bind!”
The surrounding space turned into an invisible mire which bound the Strength Demon’s body in place without him being able to move an inch.
Eyes widened, the Strength Demon released a powerful blast out of his body, shaking the space around him and forming small cracks in the force binding him in place.
If he kept this up, it would not take more than three breaths of time for the Strength Demon to escape from this entanglement.
But Yang Kai looked at him with the corners of his mouth slightly curved upwards, like he was staring at a dead man.
The Strength Demon vaguely had a bad feeling as a chill shot up his spine, sensing an unprecedented aura of death.
When he looked up, a streamer of light was shot from over ten kilometres away. Inside the light, a giant arrow was flying towards him, one that emitted a piercing aura so sharp he felt it on his skin even from a distance.
*Du…*
Following a thunking sound, the stream of light penetrated the Strength Demon’s body and accurately pierced through one of his Demon Hearts, which caused it to explode violently.
*Du du du… *
Eight arrows were fired in a row and travelled through the air in a seemingly uncoordinated manner; however, each arrow accurately pierced the Strength Demon’s body, turning him into a hedgehog. Each arrow that struck, hit a vital point, destroying the few Demon Hearts in his body as well as a number of vital organs.
The Strength Demon stiffened in place as he stared at a spot ten kilometres away, where a beautiful figure was floating mid-air. His mouth twitched, as if he tried to say something, but he could not utter a word in the end. The copper staff-like Demon Artifact slipped out of his hand silently, and his vitality quickly dissipated.
A dozen kilometres away, Bo Ya’s face was pale, and her chest heaved up and down violently as she panted while the hand holding her great-bow was trembling slightly.
She used her Innate Divine Ability to launch that barrage of arrows just now. Otherwise, she could not achieve such an effect. The price she paid was thirty percent of her Demon Qi. In other words, even at her peak, she could only perform this skill three times before she was exhausted.
She paid a huge cost, but the outcome was quite satisfactory.
The High-Rank Demon King over there had died. Although there were still a lot of people remaining, they could not do anything in front of Yang Kai. He had breached an opening in the encirclement here, opening up paths of attack and retreat for Cloud Shadow Continent.
Suddenly, Bo Ya found that it was a good choice to be under Yang Kai’s command. With this guy’s Space Divine Abilities and her exquisite marksmanship, they could slay all the High-Rank Demon Kings who were caught off guard. This was similar to the events back in the Blood Arena, and the cooperation between them had even improved today.
After taking a deep breath, Bo Ya put away her bow and held a High-Rank Demon Crystal in each hand, restoring her consumed strength as much as possible. Although they had surprisingly neutralized an ambush site of Blue Plains Continent, there were still two remaining, not to mention the other six High-Rank Demon Kings guarding the gate. A fierce battle was inevitable today, and she did not want to miss any opportunities to recover her strength.
At this time, she suddenly heard a violent movement from the other side, and her eyes turned to it suspiciously.
There seemed to be a startling battle occurring hundreds of kilometres away, with light flickering fiercely as figures zoomed back and forth across the sky.
That was the location of another ambush site of Blue Plains Continent. [Have Lao Ke and He Yin arrived? They’re quite fast. With their help and the forces of Cloud Shadow Continent, the problem there can be solved easily.]
Subconsciously, she used her Eye Technique to peer at the situation on the other side, but what she saw stunned her greatly.
Because the scene over there was different from what she had imagined. There was no trace of Lao Ke, He Yin or even the forces of Cloud Shadow Continent. On the contrary, there was a stone giant over 100 metres tall rampaging about. The stone giant was covered in malevolent fire and sharp spines. Bo Ya had no idea what Divine Ability this Stone Giant was using, but under the observation of her Eye Technique, an invisible field had expanded some dozen or so kilometres with the Stone Giant as its centre.
The Demons, who were shrouded in this domain, could not control their own vitality as a blood-red aura was drawn out from their pores, converging towards the stone giant. This domain seemed to have the ability to devour all things within it.
The stone giant was undoubtedly a powerful and terrifying existence. Bo Ya witnessed him crushing a Mid-Rank Demon King into paste with her own eyes before sucking up all the vitality which escaped from his corpse, only leaving behind some dust on the ground.
Another High-Rank Demon King was guarding that position, but he was obviously no match for the stone giant. After a few breaths of time, he completely fell to a disadvantage. Fortunately, he was protected by his subordinates so he was able to hold on a while longer.
[Where did this guy come from? Why is he fighting the Demons of Blue Plains Continent at this time?]
Bo Ya vaguely felt that the stone giant should have something to do with Yang Kai, but she could not understand how he appeared silently. He actually appeared around the same time when Yang Kai launched his attack, resulting in two ambush sites being completely destroyed.
The next scene confirmed her guess that the Stone Giant was unleashed by Yang Kai, because the bodies of the Demons below the rank of Demon King over there rapidly shrivelled. It started with some Demon Generals, their bodies rapidly drying out, followed by the Demon Great Generals, all of which were devoured by the invisible domain.
Bo Ya was reminded of Lie Kuang’s corpse that was still hanging above his mansion, which was so similar to what she saw at the moment.
[So that’s how it is!]
That night, it was to the stone giant’s credit that Yang Kai could kill Lie Kuang in such a short time by sucking out all his Blood Essence and turning him into a dried-up husk, making him die with everlasting regret.
Bo Ya’s eyes lit up. With this kind of helper, Yang Kai would be invincible in facing the Demons below the rank of Half-Saint. No wonder he was so fearless.
While Bo Ya was paying attention to the battle on the Embodiment’s side, Yang Kai was engaging in a great slaughter.
The Strength Demon who commanded the ambush point Yang Kai struck had died, leaving only Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings as well as subordinate Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals. None of these Demons could even slow Yang Kai down, so within ten breaths, the entire force which consisted of roughly a thousand Demons was practically annihilated. Most of the Demon Kings had fallen, while the Demon Great Generals and the Demon Generals also suffered great casualties.
Seeing how hopeless the situation was, the remaining Demons dared not to remain and fled in horror, running in separate directions like a stampede one after another.
Yang Kai casually killed a few more Demons who attempted to escape, but he did not hunt them down to the last. While gathering the bodies of those killed Demons and preparing them to be devoured by the Embodiment, he turned to look into the distance a hundred kilometres away.
Given that the Embodiment had made a move, it was undoubtedly overwhelming the other side. If five High-Rank Demon Kings worked together, they might be able to tie down the Embodiment, but with only one High-Rank Demon King assuming command over there, there was no way to stop the Embodiment.
Yang Kai had secretly let his Embodiment out while he was circling the perimeter in his Tiger Head Chariot; otherwise, with Bo Ya’s ability, it would be impossible for him to go unnoticed by her.
Moreover, the Embodiment’s body was that of a Stone Spirit that was naturally proficient at Earth Escape Techniques. As such, he approached the ambush site silently beneath the ground, and successfully launched a sneak attack on them.
Followed by a light sneer, Yang Kai took a glance at the Territory Gate. Sure enough, the Demons over there were in a mess now. It was impossible for them to not be aware of the movements of the two battlefields, and it was obvious that what they saw that made them react this way.
He did not really care much about Ke Sen’s safety as, to Yang Kai, the more Demons that died, the better; however, since Ke Sen was his subordinate now, it was better to keep him alive, but it still would not hurt him if he died, so he was not worried that Blue Plains Continent would get desperate and kill Ke Sen to vent their anger.
With a single thought, Yang Kai surged his Space Principles, disappeared from his location, and reappeared next to Bo Ya with a flash.
Exchanging looks, Yang Kai noticed the way Bo Ya looked at him was different from before. Instead of being frivolous, her eyes showed a hint of solemnity. He immediately figured that she had spotted the movement of the Embodiment over there.
After pondering for a while, Bo Ya asked, “What should we do now? Go straight to the enemy’s den or head for the last ambush site?”
If Yang Kai wanted to go straight to the enemy’s den, they had to go to the Territory Gate to fight with Blue Plains Continent’s forces, but there were only two of them now since Lao Ke and He Yin had not arrived yet. Bo Ya did not think their chances were good in such an uneven battle, so she preferred the latter option.
But now that they had made such a grand entrance, it was impossible for them to launch a sneak attack again, and the High-Rank Demon King at the last ambush site would certainly be on high alert now.
Yang Kai smiled faintly, “They made the choice for us.”
Bo Ya was slightly stunned and looked around, soon seeing that a group of Demons had suddenly broken off from the Territory Gate and were rushing towards them under the lead of three High-Rank Demon Kings. Moreover, the Demons at the last ambush site were also charging toward them. Both groups of Demons soon assembled together in an overbearing manner.
Bo Ya’s face turned slightly pale as she suggested, “I think it’s better to avoid fighting for the time being and make plans when Lao Ke and He Yin arrive.”
Four High-Rank Demon Kings joining forces together with a few dozen Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings. Even if Yang Kai’s performance was outstanding before, he was certainly no match against such odds. They would be in trouble if they stayed here; therefore, in order to secure the final victory, they should leave first and meet up with Lao Ke and He Yin.
“Wait,” Yang Kai replied faintly.
[Wait? What are you waiting for?] Bo Ya looked confused. Seeing the incoming Demon army, her heart could not help jumping to her throat.
Even though there was still a hundred kilometres between them, she could feel the anger of the Demons in front of her. Thinking about it, their behaviour was not surprising. Initially, Blue Plains Continent had the upper hand. They had every advantage, and they intended to crush Cloud Shadow Continent in one fell swoop; however, they did not expect one of their ambush sites to be destroyed just when they encountered each other. More than ten Demon Kings were killed or severely injured, including a High-Rank Strength Demon King.
Another ambush site seemed to be under attack at the moment and was unable to support them.
If Bo Ya were a Demon King from Blue Plains Continent, she would be completely embarrassed and want nothing more than to make her enemy pay.
One hundred kilometres seemed like a long distance, but for Demon Kings it wasn’t far at all, so the enemy forces would only take ten breaths of time to reach them.
Seeing the other party getting closer and closer, Bo Ya’s brow twitched, “Can you just tell me what you want to do? I don’t want to die here.”
Yang Kai turned a deaf ear to her and just stared quietly ahead.
Seventy kilometres, fifty kilometres, thirty kilometres…
When there were only twenty kilometres left between the two parties, and Bo Ya could even see their infuriated faces without using her Eye Technique, only then did Yang Kai suddenly stretch out his hand and grab her arm, yelling, “Don’t resist!”
Bo Ya was taken aback, but she reluctantly gave up resistance.
It was mainly because the Soul Puppet was still in this guy’s hand, and it would be useless even if she did try to put up a struggle.
In the next moment, Bo Ya felt space warping around her and for a moment, the world spun.
When she regained her senses, she was no longer in the same place, but appeared in another location. Yang Kai was nowhere to be seen though, leaving only a bead at her feet which gave off some residual energy fluctuations.
The bead looked quite familiar to Bo Ya and soon she recognized it. Li Shi Qing had one in her possession too, which seemed to have been given to her by Yang Kai a few days ago. He mentioned before that if one activated the seal in the bead in case of danger, they would be safe and sound.
[Does my appearance here have anything to do with this bead?]
Suddenly, she recalled that Yang Kai had thrown something out from the Tiger Head Chariot when they were passing by this place. She did not see it clearly at that time, but now that she thought about it, it probably should be this bead.
Bo Ya looked up thoughtfully, and her eyes lit up.
Several kilometres ahead, the Demon army led by the four High-Rank Demon Kings was charging furiously like tigers descending the mountain.
But the funny thing was that she was actually facing their backs at the moment!
Bo Ya could not help laughing. How dare an enemy allow a Feather Demon who was proficient in archery to take their back? It was akin to suicide!
She immediately understood Yang Kai’s intention and why he told her to wait just now. He was preparing for this moment. At the same time, she felt horrified, for this guy was so terrifyingly precise in his calculations. It was going to be Hell for Blue Plains Continent today.
The Demons were clearly baffled by Bo Ya’s sudden disappearance. Although something felt off, they could not afford to investigate because at the same time when Bo Ya vanished, Yang Kai lunged forward, Sword Qi bursting from the Myriads Sword in his hand as he unleashed a wide slash at them.
The world-splitting, void-shattering power of the massive sword wave advanced towards the forces of the Blue Plains Continent.
The Demons’ faces turned pale at the sensation of the power behind this sword wave and they quickly split into two groups to evade.
With a loud bang, a thousand-metre-long crack was split open on the ground while some unfortunate Demons who failed to avoid the rampaging Sword Intent were instantly turned into dust.
The Demon Kings watched with solemn expressions. Although this attack was powerful and would be lethal if it hit, the casualties were just some Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals. All the Demon Kings managed to avoid it without suffering any injuries.
But in the next moment, several streams of light pierced through the air and flew towards them from a dozen or so kilometres away.
With Yang Kai making such a flashy opening move, how could Bo Ya not take advantage of the situation? It was impossible to resist shooting a bunch of idiots who exposed their backs to her.
These arrows were not as powerful as the nine arrows she used to shoot the High-Rank Demon Kings earlier. Obviously, Bo Ya did not use the extremely consuming Secret Technique, but even her regular arrows were not to be underestimated.
One arrow pierced more than ten Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals before flying straight at a High-Rank Demon King with a dark complexion and a rotund belly.
The black-faced Demon King never expected an attack from behind, and with all his focus being on Yang Kai’s movements, he failed to notice until the arrow was less than a thousand metres away. His complexion changed drastically as he roared and wildly pushed his Demon Qi. A pair of truncheons appeared in his hands as he hurriedly raised his arms, turned around, and braced himself.
There was a moment of commotion as sparks flew everywhere. The arrow was accurately blocked, but the black-faced Demon King was forced back almost a hundred metres by the impact.
Looking up, he saw Bo Ya sneering at him from a dozen kilometres away, drawing a finger across her neck in mockery.
The Demon King’s already black face turned much blacker, but he did not have another moment to spare because there was another fierce attack flying towards him from behind, one that was perfectly timed to when his vitality and Demon Qi were unstable and could not be condensed to defend himself properly.
At the juncture of life and death, the black-faced Demon King trembled as a raging Demon Qi burst out from him, transforming into a visible pressure wave that attempted to repel the attacking enemy.
A thrilling light flashed from the corner of his eyes as his vision was suddenly turned upside down. For a moment, the Demon King saw a headless corpse standing mid-air, not far away, with a pair of truncheons held in its hands. Fresh blood spurted into the sky from its neck, closely followed by a rain of swords pouring over the headless body, turning it into dust.
Never had this Demon King thought he would die in a place like this, and after just one round of blows…
As his head fell, the light in his eyes slowly dimmed.
On the other side, after taking advantage of the good opportunity provided by Bo Ya, Yang Kai did not even blink before slashing with his sword at another High-Rank Demon King.
The Demon King had seen the tragedy that befell his black-faced companion and wanted to rescue him, but he was a step too late and could only watch Yang Kai chop up the other Demon King’s corpse into ten thousand pieces, leaving him infuriated and horrified at the same time.
He suddenly realised that he and the others had all underestimated this Human. The Feather Demon in the distance was indeed tricky to handle, but this Human whose cultivation was only comparable to a Mid-Rank Demon King was the true terror here.
This Demon King had learned a cruel lesson from the black-faced Demon King’s death and was now extra vigilant. Not daring to meet Yang Kai’s sword head-on, he chose to retreat; however, he realised he had fallen into his enemy’s trap the next moment. The Human’s sword did not release any power at all, it was nothing but a feint.
On the contrary, at the same time the sword slashed out, a cyan bottle gourd appeared in Yang Kai’s free hand. The Demon King had no idea what artifact this was, but an inexplicable fear gripped his heart the moment he laid eyes upon it.
Yang Kai pointed the opening of the bottle gourd at the place where the crowd was the densest and poured in Emperor Qi. Blades of wind visible to the naked eye shot out of the bottle gourd, instantly covering the surrounding area.
There was an endless sound of slashing as fresh blood splashed everywhere and many Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals collapsed like wheat in a squall. Groups of them fell as their bodies were cut into countless pieces.
In just an instant, more than half of the thousand Demon army were killed. Not only the Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals, but even some Low-Rank Demon Kings could not resist the rampaging power of bottle gourd and perished along with three Mid-Rank Demon Kings.
The remaining Demons who survived were all horrified and stared at the Wind Gourd in Yang Kai’s hand fearfully.
Yang Kai grinned, evidently satisfied with the power of this artifact.
The Wind Gourd was taken from the depths of the Restricted Area of Orthodoxy Temple before coming to the Demon Realm. The Outer Astral Wind of Orthodoxy Temple was formed by this Wind Gourd and was part of the Sect’s foundation, allowing its disciples to temper their bodies and forge stronger physiques. However, until Yang Kai, no one had ever reached the deepest parts of the gorge where the Outer Astral Wind originated from.
Yang Kai had been nourishing the Wind Gourd with his Emperor Qi and Spiritual Essence all this time and tested it in battle for the first time today. It proved to be impressive, and even if it was not as good as the Mountains and Rivers Bell, it was not too far off.
The only drawback was its consumption; it required a huge amount of Emperor Qi to activate this treasure, but the results were worth the cost. This Wind Gourd was especially suitable for wide-area attacks, which was something the Mountains and Rivers Bell did not specialize in.
Just when many Demons were shocked by the power of Wind Gourd, the Nine Arrows Secret Technique fired again from the distance.
Although Bo Ya had a lousy character, her combat instincts and ability were outstanding. At the moment the Wind Gourd drew everyone’s attention, Bo Ya used her Nine Arrows Technique to attack the High-Rank Demon King who was just repelled by Yang Kai.
The nine arrows turned into a string that travelled at lightning speed and instantly reached the High-Rank Demon King.
The High-Rank Demon King only reacted at the last moment, letting out a roar as he hurriedly tried to dodge.
But Yang Kai naturally wouldn’t allow him to do as he wished and acted the moment Bo Ya released her arrows, using the local Space Principles to bind the High-Rank Demon King firmly in place.
*Du du du…*
Just like the previous High-Rank Strength Demon King, the Nine Arrows pierced through him, each arrow striking a vital point, completely destroying the Demon Hearts in his body!
In the blink of an eye, the Demons of Blue Plains Continent had suffered major casualties. Not to mention the Demon Great Generals and the Demon Generals, even many Demon Kings had fallen, including two High-Rank Demon Kings, whilst those responsible were just two people who were supposedly equivalent to Mid-Rank Demon Kings!
The Demons felt utterly embarrassed, but whether it was Bo Ya’s exceptional archery or Yang Kai’s Wind Gourd, they had no choice but to become extra cautious with their actions. These two could not be stopped even when there were so many of them just now, so how were they going to deal with them now that their numbers had been halved?
So after just a moment of hesitation, the remaining Demons fled, their formation completely collapsing.
Yang Kai sneered lightly, intending to stop the two High-Rank Demon Kings, but when he slightly surged his Divine Sense, he only blocked one of them, and the other slipped past.
However, the High-Rank Demon King did not run far, because very soon, a group of a thousand troops intercepted him from all directions. It was Lao Ke and He Yin, who arrived late.
They received orders from Yang Kai to martial their forces before coming, but assembling so many people had caused a delay. They hurriedly followed after Yang Kai, in fear that he might have had some kind of accident, but they received a shock instead.
Rather than anything untoward happening to Yang Kai, it was Blue Plains Continent’s forces that were broken and scattered.
[What… what happened?]
Lao Ke and He Yin looked at each other in shock. They never thought that the situation would turn out to be like this, but they could not afford to think too much right now. Seeing Blue Plains Continent’s forces scattered, they ordered their subordinates to finish off the retreating Demons while the two of them set their sights on the escaping High-Rank Demon King.
Although Blue Plains Continent now had a disadvantage in numbers, they were not weak, so under normal circumstances, they should have been able to put up quite a fight. However, with their morale greatly shaken, they no longer had the will to resist. On the contrary, the reinforcements from Cloud Shadow Continent had soaring morale and slaughtered anyone in their way, causing major casualties to the forces from Blue Plains Continent. Not to mention the Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals, who were killed off in a clean sweep, even the High-Rank Demon King intercepted by Lao Ke and He Yin did not have the slightest strength to fight back. An extra wound dripping with blood would be added to him after every few rounds of battle.
Coupled with Bo Ya’s accurately timed attacks, even if the entire army of Blue Plains Continent was not wiped out, barely any managed to escape.
At the same time, Yang Kai was locked in combat with a lone High-Rank Demon King.
It was because he was aware of the arrival of Lao Ke and He Yin that he let the other High-Rank Demon King leave and focused on the one in front of him.
This Demon King was quite strong, at least he was stronger than Lao Ke and the others, but he was still limited. The Demon King had been pleasantly surprised when Yang Kai wanted to fight him alone, thinking that it was indeed his lucky day.
From his point of view, no matter how impressive Yang Kai’s previous performance was, he was only equivalent to a Mid-Rank Demon King, so if he gave it his all, he may be able to kill Yang Kai then escape, and as long as he could survive this ordeal, he could even help Yue Sang conquer the entire Cloud Shadow Continent.
But after just a few exchanges, this Demon King realised he was gravely mistaken. The cultivation of this Human in front of him was no doubt equivalent to a Mid-Rank Demon King’s, but his combat power was superior to any High-Rank Demon King, so he was at a disadvantage even going all out.
This Human’s strength was definitely greater than his own in all aspects, especially with regards to raw physical power, causing every clash to numb his hands and arms.
[How can this be? How could a trivial Human be so powerful? Such power is impossible even for the direct Disciples of Holy Venerables to possess!] Just when he was distracted by his own thoughts, the situation became more and more unbearable. Yang Kai had already opened several cuts on this Demon King’s body, leaving the latter completely covered in blood, but what truly terrified him was that Yang Kai did not even seem like he was using his full strength yet.
After a while, the condition of Blue Plains Continent’s forces became progressively more miserable. Except for the High-Rank Demon King who was besieged by Lao Ke and He Yin, the rest had either fled, were killed by Bo Ya, or were intercepted by the reinforcements from Cloud Shadow Continent.
The High-Rank Demon King who was fighting with Yang Kai was also faltering. He was nearly killed by Yang Kai several times, and blood now coated his body.
He was aware of his dire situation. Not to mention that he was no match for Yang Kai, even Bo Ya would soon be eyeing him. Once he was targeted by this woman, he would have no chance to leave here alive. As soon as he thought of this, he quickly released his Divine Sense and silently sent a transmission to Yang Kai, “Sir, please be merciful! Tu Qia Luo is willing to submit to you and serve you faithfully!”
Yang Kai raised his brow, but he did not slow down his attacks and continued to send one killing blow after another with a smile, “You are Tu Qia Luo?”
According to Lao Ke’s earlier report, when Lie Kuang took his people to Cloud Shadow City, the Myriad Demon Cave was guarded by this Tu Qia Luo. However, when Lao Ke and He Yin brought their subordinates over to retake the Myriad Demon Cave, he had run away.
[So he’s that guy. What a coincidence.]
Tu Qia Luo was obviously begging for mercy as he felt powerless against Yang Kai. If he did not submit now, death would be his fate.
Looking at him faintly, Yang Kai smiled, “Give me a reason to keep you alive.”
While struggling to resist the incoming attacks, Tu Qia Luo sent another transmission, “After this battle, Blue Plains Continent will be unable to resist Sir’s majesty. Blue Plains Continent will certainly be controlled by Sir. However, as far as I know, Sir has only three High-Rank Demon Kings at his disposal. With two continents under your command, how could three High-Rank Demon Kings be enough to supervise them? Although this Tu Qia Luo is not talented, he is willing to share Sir’s burden.”
Yang Kai chuckled, “Sounds reasonable.”
Tu Qia Luo was delighted as he thought that Yang Kai was about to take his offer, but instead, Yang Kai just stared at him coldly and teased, “Aren’t you afraid that Yue Sang will seek revenge against you in the future? No one will forgive a traitor.”
Tu Qia Luo’s face turned pale. Yang Kai pointed out exactly what he was most worried about. It was no problem for him to beg Yang Kai for mercy at this moment, but Yue Sang would certainly settle accounts with him after once he learnt about this. If Yue Sang, a Half-Saint, was truly determined to take his life, he was afraid that even Yang Kai would be unable to shelter him.
Nevertheless, Tu Qia Luo had obviously considered this point already and immediately responded solemnly, “Sir Yue Sang has been assigned to the front lines of the two worlds’ battlefield, so he has certainly done something to offend Holy Venerable. It’s unknown whether he will return alive, and even if he does, who knows when that will be? Furthermore, since Sir is anointed as Great King, it is obvious that Holy Venerable thinks highly of Sir. To serve Sir is equivalent to serving Holy Venerable. Sir Yue Sang would not dare to act recklessly.”
After a pause, he continued with a wry smile, “More importantly, if Sir doesn’t forgive me today, this will be this Tu Qia Luo’s burial place; therefore, please show mercy! Tu Qia Luo will follow Sir’s orders with all his heart in the future!”
Yang Kai’s eyes flashed and snorted coldly, “Seems you’re an expert at seizing opportunities.”
This guy showed his sincerity, and what he said was the truth too. If he could not convince Yang Kai to have mercy on him today, he would surely die. It was important to keep his life first rather than worrying about whether Yue Sang would settle accounts with him later.
Moreover, Yang Kai did not intend to kill all the Demons here. Although he wished all Demons on this side would die, as Tu Qia Luo mentioned, after today, Blue Plains Continent would fall under his control. However, he only had three High-Rank Demon Kings. How could those three guard two vast continents? Therefore, taking Tu Qia Luo in could make up for some shortage of manpower.
This was also the reason why Yang Kai did not kill him yet; otherwise, given that Tu Qia Luo was just a High-Rank Demon King, Yang Kai would have taken his life long ago.
After pondering for a moment, Yang Kai pressed on, “This King can let you live, but you need to open your Knowledge Sea and allow this King to implant a Soul Imprint on it.”
Tu Qia Luo did not have a clean background like Lao Ke, Ke Sen, and He Yin, whom Yang Kai did not need to worry about because they obeyed the order from Yu Ru Meng to serve him. On the other hand, Tu Qia Luo was under Yue Sang, so how could Yang Kai not worry that he would betray him without implanting a Soul Imprint?
Once he implanted the Soul Imprint, Tu Qia Luo would essentially be handing his life over to Yang Kai. He would not be able to resist Yang Kai’s orders from now on, which would be worse than Bo Ya being restricted by the Soul Puppet.
Therefore, Tu Qia Luo’s face changed drastically as soon as he heard this. Bitterly, he assured, “Sir, it’s not necessary to implant a Soul Imprint in me. I swear in the name of Great Demon God that I will serve only Sir in the future.”
“Tsk, if oaths were useful, why would we still need to cultivate? You can think about it, I’m not in a hurry.”
Tu Qia Luo’s face twitched, thinking, [You’re not in a hurry, but I am!] At this moment, the Feather Demon a dozen kilometres away had already notched an arrow, drawn her bow, and aimed at him. She could release this fatal arrow at any moment. Even from a dozen kilometres away, Tu Qia Luo could clearly perceive the threat of death pointing at him.
He wanted to dodge, but Yang Kai suppressed him to the point where he could not escape.
While he was hesitating, the aura a dozen kilometres away became even sharper, as if the arrow would be released shortly.
Knowing that he could not afford to hesitate any longer, Tu Qia Luo declared through gritted teeth, “Good, I will do as Sir commands. This subordinate will only follow Sir from now on, and hopes that Sir will treat me well in return.”
“You will know this King’s conduct in the future!” Yang Kai cackled before shifting his position, intentionally blocking Bo Ya’s line of fire. Only then did Tu Qia Luo relax. He looked at Yang Kai steadily and sighed as he opened his Knowledge Sea defences.
Yang Kai was quick to act and immediately pushed his Divine Sense, engraving a Soul Imprint in Tu Qia Luo’s Knowledge Sea.
The two reached an agreement secretly, but they did not stop exchanging blows. They were still fighting, mainly because they were afraid that the Demons by the Territory Gate would notice what they were doing.
After the Soul Imprint was implanted, a faint hint of depression flashed across Tu Qia Luo’s face, but he soon restrained his emotions and asked, “Sir, this subordinate can help you to subdue two more people. What do you think?”
“Why only two?” Yang Kai questioned suspiciously. There were still three High-Rank Demon Kings left around the Territory Gate. At this time, they were watching them while holding Ke Sen and his group hostage.
Ke Sen and the others were no match for them in the first place and it was only because they wanted to use them as bait that they were still alive. Seeing the situation turn dire though, the Demon Kings who remained at the Territory Gate immediately used their full strength and captured Ke Sen’s group.
They obviously wanted to negotiate with Yang Kai by using Ke Sen as a bargaining chip.
Tu Qia Luo explained, “One of them is Yue Sang’s confidant, so I’m afraid it won’t be easy to subdue him. It would be better to kill him directly than try to control him.”
Yang Kai chuckled and looked at Tu Qia Luo meaningfully.
Subduing a person was not difficult through implanting a Soul Imprint. Even if the Demon King over there was loyal to Yue Sang, as long as Yang Kai could control whether he lived or died, he would become Yang Kai’s subordinate too.
As for Tu Qia Luo’s proposal, Yang Kai believed that he had other intentions. Perhaps there were grudges between him and this Demon King, and he wanted to eliminate him through Yang Kai’s hand this time.
However, Yang Kai did not bother to solve this puzzle. Even if Tu Qia Luo really had the intention of borrowing his strength to commit evil, it would still be better for Yang Kai to get rid of Yue Sang’s confidants as soon as possible, to avoid any troubles in the future.
As their eyes met, a hint of panic indeed flashed across Tu Qia Luo’s, which confirmed Yang Kai’s guess.
Yang Kai then smiled faintly and asked, “Do you have any life-saving methods or tools?”
Tu Qia Luo was stunned but soon understood Yang Kai’s intentions and hurriedly answered, “Yes.”
“Then show me.” Yang Kai nodded gently, “But be careful not to be shot dead by Bo Ya.”
Tu Qia Luo’s face twitched and thought that it would be too unreasonable if he really died like that; however, he knew that Yang Kai had no way to inform Bo Ya about what was going to happen. If he wanted to live, he had to rely on himself.
With a loud roar, blood mist sprayed out of the pores of Tu Qia Luo’s whole body and he transformed into a stream of red light and escaped towards the Territory Gate.
Immediately after, two streams of light were shot out from a dozen kilometres away. Sure enough, as Yang Kai expected, Bo Ya had released her arrows.
The power of these two streams of light was exceptional and they travelled at extremely high speed. Tu Qia Luo managed to narrowly dodge one arrow with his life-saving Secret Technique, but the other arrow shot through his thigh, directly piercing a bloody hole through his leg, causing a rain of red.
However, such an injury should be nothing to Tu Qia Luo and would only require him to rest for a few days to fully recover. As for Bo Ya, after she ‘missed’ this time, she lost the opportunity to kill him again.
“Sir!” Not far away, Lao Ke and He Yin led the elites from Cloud Shadow Continent over together and cupped their fists. They carefully examined Yang Kai’s condition and confirmed that he had no injuries, only then letting out sighs of relief.
As for the High-Rank Demon King they had intercepted, Bo Ya had already assassinated him with her arrow.
“En!” Yang Kai nodded slightly before he turned to the Territory Gate and saw that Tu Qia Luo had gathered together with the Demons over there and was stirring up an uproar.
After a chuckle, Yang Kai glanced in the direction of the Embodiment. The activity there had subsided and none of the Demons at that ambush site had escaped. It was a complete annihilation of the army. Under the Heaven Devouring Domain, all the Demons had turned into dry corpses.
Right now, the Embodiment was hiding underground, approaching the Territory Gate quietly.
After a few more breaths of time, Bo Ya flew over bravely, looking up and down at Yang Kai, as if she just met him for the first time, “Did that guy submit to you?” She questioned.
Yang Kai glanced at her, “You noticed?”
Bo Ya sneered, “Otherwise, why would you deliberately block my shot?”
She was not a fool, so she had seen some clues. Moreover, she had long noticed the surge of Divine Senses between Yang Kai and Tu Qia Luo, and realized they were secretly communicating. In addition to all the signs that they showed so far, it was not difficult for her to deduce the truth.
A sudden realization dawned on Yang Kai, “So you did it deliberately.”
Since Bo Ya could see through Tu Qia Luo’s intention of changing his allegiance, the two arrows previously must have been an act, not that she really missed. However, this allowed Yang Kai to have a deeper understanding of her superb archery, especially when she could still accurately shoot through Tu Qia Luo’s leg even when he used a life-saving Secret Technique.
Bo Ya snorted, “It was convincing, wasn’t it?”
Yang Kai did not reply, but just paused for a while before stepping forward with a smile, “Let’s go greet them.”
Thousands of troops followed closely behind, their morale sky-high.
At the Territory Gate, the Blue Plains Continent Demons looked bitter and resentful, especially their leader, a High-Rank Demon King whose face was so scrunched up that he looked particularly savage. He initially thought this ambush could subdue all of Cloud Shadow Continent in one fell swoop, but never did he expect that they would be wiped out by the opponent instead. In the battle today, whether it was the initial planning and deployment, or the confrontation in the later stage, there were no mistakes made. In terms of number and strength, Blue Plains Continent vastly exceeded Cloud Shadow Continent by several times. No matter how one looked at it, Blue Plains Continent had the advantage.
But ultimately, Cloud Shadow Continent achieved a great victory, while Blue Plains Continent was left in shambles.
Of the nine High-Rank Demon Kings who came, only four were still alive now. As for Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings, dozens had died while countless Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals had fallen. This result was truly shameful for Blue Plains Continent, and the culprits responsible for all this were one Human and one Feather Demon!
Blue Plains Continent had already lost the upper hand, and now the opposing army was converging on them with unstoppable momentum. It was quite possible that their whole army would be wiped out here.
Fortunately, Blue Plains Continent had a valuable hostage, so there was still hope to make a comeback.
The people at the Territory Gate became increasingly restless as they watched Yang Kai advancing toward them with the Cloud Shadow Continent’s army. The High-Rank Demon King, who was their leader, roared loudly to bring his people back to their senses. They still had four High-Rank Demon Kings; they still had the power to fight. As long as they could force Yang Kai and the others to retreat, Blue Plains Continent could be saved, and when Sir Yue Sang returned from the two worlds’ battlefield, they could get their revenge.
As for whether Yue Sang would punish them for what happened today, that was something to be considered later, because a little suffering would be better than certain death here.
After a short while, Yang Kai, leading the Cloud Shadow Continent Demons, stopped a thousand metres away from the Territory Gate. A group of Cloud Shadow Continent elites lined up neatly behind him, throwing fierce gazes at the enemy!
The pressure of the silence was almost unbearable for the Demons of Blue Plains Continent. They could not help but clench the weapons in their hands as their faces turned ugly. It was a great shame and disgrace for the tables to turn on them like this.
This confrontation lasted for only a few breaths before the Demons of Blue Plains Continent could no longer bear the tension. The High-Rank Demon King leader held Ke Sen by the head and condensed his Demon Qi in his palm, threatening to take his life at any moment. Staring at Yang Kai with a gloomy expression, he growled, “Human, this King thinks we should sit down and discuss this matter.”
Yang Kai could not help sneering as he looked at him sarcastically, “Discuss? What do you want to discuss? What right do you have to discuss terms with this King?”
The High-Rank Demon King snorted coldly and pushed the Demon Qi in his hand. Ke Sen’s face immediately contorted in pain while the Demon King threatened, “I have his life in my hands, how about that?”
Yang Kai shook his head slowly and refused just as coldly, “Not interested!”
A look of despair suddenly appeared in Ke Sen’s eyes.
The High-Rank Demon King was not surprised at all but sneered, “You don’t care about his life at all? He is your subordinate.”
Yang Kai snorted, “A subordinate of this King should be ready to sacrifice his life for this King! What use would this King have for a subordinate without even that much loyalty?” He turned to Ke Sen and declared, “Fear not, this King will kill them all to avenge you, not a single one will escape!”
As soon as these words came out, the Blue Plains Continent Demons shivered as panic filled their faces.
The corners of the High-Rank Demon King’s mouth twitched. He thought Yang Kai was just putting up a front before, but it seemed that he was serious and suddenly became hesitant. He would have no trouble killing Ke Sen, but that would mean losing the only bargaining chip he had, which would mean they could only settle matters today with strength. Once that happened, most of the Demons on his side would die, including him.
He gritted his teeth, and declared grimly, “If that is the case, be prepared to dirty your hands, for this King will bring all of you down with him if you dare to start anything!”
At this point, he could only retreat by pretending to advance, hoping that Yang Kai would compromise in the face of difficulty, giving him a chance to make peace.
Unexpectedly, Yang Kai just scoffed, “Bring all of us down with you? You’re not qualified.” His face darkened and shouted, “Kill!”
As soon as the order was given, the High-Rank Demon King’s heart jumped and his complexion changed drastically. The Human in front of him really didn’t care about the life of his subordinates at all, and it was clear that he would not allow any of them to survive today.
Ke Sen closed his eyes and prepared himself for death.
*Chi*
Bo Ya, who had been concealing herself in the dark, took the lead to shoot an arrow, targeting the High-Rank Demon King, who immediately felt the aura of death rapidly approaching.
He instinctively stretched out his hand and moved Ke Sen into the path of the arrow, hoping to use him as a shield.
However, the moment he took action, violent Demon Qi surged behind him and a terrible force sunk into his organs, causing him to stagger forward while blood oozed out of the corners of his mouth and nose.
Understanding what just happened, he immediately gritted his teeth and roared, “Tu Qia Luo!”
Even though he did not look back, he knew who had hit him from behind. After associating with each other for so many years, he was naturally familiar with Tu Qia Luo’s Demon Qi fluctuations.
A thought flashed across his mind at that moment, and he realised that Tu Qia Luo turned rogue, otherwise, why would he attack him at this moment? Escaping back here with a special Secret Technique with an arrow in his body was all just a ruse, one designed to lower his guard…
The hatred in his heart could never be washed away.
Tu Qia Luo quickly pulled back after unleashing this palm strike. At the same time, he hurriedly sent a Divine Sense transmission to the two other High-Rank Demon Kings who were still lost in a daze, “Don’t make a move, Blue Plains Continent is doomed, this is the only method we have to survive!”
The two were at a loss at what happened in front of them, but after listening to Tu Qia Luo’s words, they immediately understood the situation. After a moment of hesitation, they dispersed their Demon Qi and withdrew and retreated just like Tu Qia Luo did to display their sincerity. Of course, they could not help sighing as their expressions turned complicated.
At the same time, Bo Ya’s arrow had almost reached its mark and was just about to hit Ke Sen; however, the arrow strangely swerved and narrowly missed Ke Sen’s neck at the last moment and instead struck the shoulder of the High-Rank Demon King behind him.
Flesh and blood blasted everywhere as half of the High-Rank Demon King’s shoulder disappeared.
The violent power pushed his body back slightly, and before he could react, Yang Kai had already leapt over, stretched out his hand to snatch Ke Sen back, and tossed the latter back to safety without another glance. At the same time, Yang Kai placed both hands together and sent out a double palm strike.
Time Flows on Infinitely, like a Mighty Stream, like an Unending Dream!
Time seemed to stagnate for a fraction of a breath, and when everyone came back to their senses, the High-Rank Demon King had already been struck by Yang Kai, spurting fresh blood everywhere, and his aura was rapidly dissipating.
*Chi chi chi… *
Bo Ya shot three arrows at that moment which accurately pierced into the enemy’s body, sending even more blood spurting into the sky.
The sudden change of situation shocked everyone, whether it was the Demons from Blue Plains Continent or from Cloud Shadow Content, all were stunned except the few who had been prepared beforehand.
Yang Kai did not do anything after using his Time Flies Seal. He just waited indifferently. He knew that he did not need to do anything more as someone wanted this guy dead more than him.
Sure enough, after Bo Ya’s three arrows severely wounded the High-Rank Demon King, Tu Qia Luo immediately bellowed, “Now!”
Ignoring the backlash of the Secret Technique he used to escape earlier, Tu Qia Luo desperately surged his Demon Qi and struck the wounded High-Rank Demon King. At the same time, the other two High-Rank Demon Kings, who had been standing idly by before, followed suit, sending out attacks at the same time, besieging their former colleague.
Lao Ke and He Yin were watching dumbfounded and suddenly realised that they no longer needed to do anything.
First, this Demon King was attacked by Tu Qia Luo from behind, then he received a hit by Yang Kai’s Divine Ability, followed by three of Bo Ya’s arrows. The High-Rank Demon King was already heavily injured, so how could he stand a chance of winning against the joint forces of Tu Qia Luo and the other two High-Rank Demon Kings?
This man knew that he was bound to die, but he did not mean to beg for mercy. Instead, he decided to just give it his all to bring at least one other down with him.
However, Tu Qia Luo and the others did not give him the opportunity. They dealt with him extremely cautiously, without taking any unnecessary risks.
After a cup of tea worth of time, the dust settled.
Tu Qia Luo was out of breath, his face pale, and fear still etched on his expression; however, he cupped his fists forcibly and reported, “Sir, fortunately, I did not fail my mission!”
Yang Kai looked at him with a faint smile and gently nodded, “Good.”
Turning his head again, Yang Kai looked at the other two High-Rank Demon Kings lightly.
These two had teamed up with Tu Qia Luo in this desperate situation, and at this moment, they naturally knew what to say so they declared in unison, “We are willing to submit to Sir, and hope that Sir will ignore the past demurs and give us a chance to redeem ourselves.”
Yang Kai replied faintly, “That will depend on your sincerity.”
The two High-Rank Demon Kings exchanged confused glances as they thought they had already shown their sincerity. They had killed Yue Sang’s henchman together with Tu Qia Luo, where else could they go besides surrendering to Yang Kai?
Embarrassment surfaced on Tu Qia Luo’s face as he awkwardly cleared his throat and sent them a Divine Sense transmission.
When the two Demon Kings heard it, their expressions twitched. They looked at Tu Qia Luo incredulously, as if this was the first time they had really known him.
Tu Qia Luo blushed slightly while sending another voice transmission.
After a moment, the two Demon Kings cupped their fists bitterly and reported, “We are willing to allow Sir to put a Soul Imprint on us. From now on, wherever Sir wants us is where we will be!”
At the same time, they were cursing to themselves. They have fallen into a trap! If they had known this would happen earlier, they would have fought back for the slim chance of coming out ahead.
But since things had come to this, saying anything more would be useless. If they wanted to live, they had to offer up their loyalty. They could only blame Tu Qia Luo in their hearts for not making matters clear in the beginning. If he’d been clear about the situation from the start, then they may not have defected so hastily.
Instructing the two High-Rank Demon Kings to open up their Knowledge Seas, Yang Kai planted Soul Imprints on them. Now, the cold look on his face was no longer to be seen, and had instead turned cordial. Since they were his own people, there was no need for him to worry about anything anymore.
Lao Ke, Ke Sen, and He Yin also came over to offer their congratulations. Even though Yang Kai was conferred the title of Great King and seemed to be highly valued by the Holy Venerable, she had only ordered him to come to the Cloud Shadow Continent in order to stabilize the Territory Gate. Now though, this Human had even brought down Blue Plains and brought them along to kill off so many Demon King level Masters. Who knows whether the Holy Venerable would blame them if she were to learn of this?
It had to be known that the Demon Saints may compete against each other in the Demon Realm, which resulted in the continents under the Demon Saints being hostile towards one another, but what happened just now could only be considered infighting. Whether it was Cloud Shadow or Blue Plains, they were both Yu Ru Meng’s territories.
Moreover, with a war raging between the Demon Realm and the Star Boundary, it was time to set aside internal squabbles and focus on the eternal threat.
Finally, even if the Holy Venerable didn’t blame Yang Kai, what about Yue Sang?
It was true that Yue Sang was banished to the two worlds’ battlefield for now, but Blue Plains Continent was still Yue Sang’s territory. If, one day, Yue Sang was allowed to return, there was no way he wouldn’t seek to settle accounts.
Lao Ke and the other two were filled with worry, but there was nothing they could say at this time. Even though Yang Kai was only partly responsible for what happened today, ordering Ke Sen to block Blue Plain’s Territory Gate was overstepping his authority. However, Blue Plains had also gone overboard with their response; otherwise, how could the current situation have been created?
But since matters had come to this, they could only take things one step at a time.
With Yue Sang’s trusted subordinate eliminated, and the remaining ones, Tu Qia Luo and the other two High-Rank Demon Kings, subdued, the others would naturally lose their desire to resist. Either way, the foremost rafter was always the first one to break. With Tu Qia Luo and the other Demon Kings already submitting, the leftovers lacked the course to refuse. In the end, the battle resulted in Blue Plains Continent falling into Yang Kai’s hand. This may be something that the ones from Blue Plains never even dreamed would happen.
Yang Kai was not planning to interfere too much in Blue Plains’ affairs, so he simply ordered Tu Qia Luo and the two to carry on as usual, all he wanted was peace while he was studying the Territory Gate.
Yang Kai also ordered someone to collect the bodies of the Demon Kings who had died in the war and throw them into the Small Sealed World for the Embodiment to devour.
Even though these Demon Kings were dead, there was still a lot of power remaining inside of their bodies, so they were useful for the Embodiment’s growth.
As for the loot, Yang Kai took a few things he wanted and left the rest to Lao Ke to distribute, which instantly made the group of Demons feel grateful for their Great King’s generosity.
After taking care of everything, Yang Kai returned with his group to Cloud Shadow Continent in order to continue his task.
During this period of time, Yang Kai had been gaining enlightenment at the Territory Gate. Both Blue Plains and Cloud Shadow were now under control, and both sides of the Territory Gate were sealed off. Naturally, there was no one to disturb him now. Two months of study brought Yang Kai many gains in his comprehension of the Dao of Space. On the other hand, he didn’t make much progress in terms of stabilizing the Territory Gate, but he didn’t care too much about it.
As for Yang Kai’s seizure of Blue Plains Continent, it had caused a big storm in the Holy City.
Bai Zhuo said in the past that the strength of a Holy Venerable and the Half-Saints beneath them was directly related to the number of continents they occupied, not only because these continents were able to provide some kind of intangible fated fortune to the Demon Saint and Half-Saints, but mainly thanks to the Myriad Demon Pills produced by each one.
The more territory one occupied, the more Myriad Demon Pills one could naturally obtain, and thus the more Masters they could raise.
Blue Plains Continent was originally Yue Sang’s territory, but now Yang Kai had taken it by force while he was gone, which could be considered improper. The fact that he killed six High-Rank Demon Kings and several dozen Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings also greatly damaged Blue Plains’ strength, which led to many of the Half-Saints who were staying in the Demon Realm becoming unhappy with him. Yu Ru Meng had received more than one formal complaint from those Half-Saints, asking her to give Yang Kai a proper punishment to serve as a warning.
But of course, Yu Ru Meng had no interest in doing so. However, with so many Half-Saints complaining, she couldn’t just do nothing or it would affect her reputation negatively.
A month after Yang Kai seized Blue Plains Continent, Yu Ru Meng sent someone over to reprimand Yang Kai, saying that Blue Plains Continent was not his territory and that he shouldn’t have acted in such a manner. They also told him that now that the forces of Blue Plains Continent were greatly damaged and there was no suitable person to take charge of things for the time being, Yang Kai had to manage it until Yue Sang returned from the battlefield, at which point he would have to return it to its rightful owner.
When this news came out, those Half-Saints found it hard to believe. They wondered whether the Holy Venerable was being so partial towards this Human. While she had declared that Blue Plains Continent would be returned to Yue Sang once he returned, who knows when or even if that would happen?
The war going on in the Star Boundary was fierce to the point that even a Half-Saint falling was possible.
But since Yu Ru Meng had already made concessions, they couldn’t force the matter too much, so they simply allowed things to drift off. They were not able to make an example out of Yang Kai, but set his occupation of Blue Plains in stone instead, forcing the many Half-Saints to re-evaluate this Human called Yang Kai.
Yang Kai himself did not pay too much attention to this matter. During the past two months, besides cultivating at the Territory Gate, he also ordered people to travel to all the other continents to obtain information.
Now, he had the forces of two continents that he was able to dispatch, so he sent out tens of thousands of scouts to get a better grasp of the Demon Realm’s situation
His main mission here was to bring back Bright Moon Great Emperor, but there was no progress made so far. Last time, Yang Kai did ask Yu Ru Meng about Bright Moon, but she wasn’t too clear on the situation. Even if she did know of Bright Moon Great Emperor’s whereabouts, Yang Kai couldn’t ask for it in case he made her suspicious.
Since he couldn’t ask others, he had to rely on himself for this matter.
Yang Kai had his scouts go out to find out about the unusual situations happening in each continent during these recent years, especially around the time Bright Moon fell into the Demon Realm, hoping to be able to find out his location using these clues.
One day, while Yang Kai was gaining insight into the Dao of Space at the Territory Gate, He Yin suddenly flew over in a hurry from afar and exchanged a glance with Ke Sen who was staying nearby. Divine Sense surging, they communicated silently for a moment.
“What happened?” Yang Kai opened his eyes and asked. He had already noticed that He Yin had arrived, but he didn’t pay much attention to her. However, noticing the looks of both her and Ke Sen’s face, Yang Kai realized that something big must have happened.
“Great King.” He Yin cupped her fists at him and spoke with great spirit, “There have been some movements in the Myriad Demon Cave. Demon Qi is surging so it is likely the Myriad Demon Pills are about to form.”
“Oh?” Yang Kai raised his brow, revealing a look of excitement, “Are you certain?”
He Yin smiled, “Yes. Usually, once these movements are detected, the Myriad Demon Pills can be collected within a month.”
“Very good, let’s go take a look.” Yang Kai was excited to hear of this matter. He had been to the Myriad Demon Cave once, but it was just a dark set of caves with nothing special about it. Based on what Lao Ke and the others told him, that was what the Myriad Demon Cave was usually like. Only when the Myriad Demon Pills were about to form would there be any changes.
Yang Kai was greatly concerned about the Myriad Demon Pills. Though these things were useless to him, they were of great benefit to the Embodiment. The Embodiment required a large amount of them, and the Myriad Demon Pills could only be collected once every hundred years with Cloud Shadow Continent producing several dozen to a hundred pills at most each time. With just this number of Myriad Demon Pills, the Embodiment fell far short of his requirements. It would take at least 3,000 pills to allow the Embodiment to achieve a breakthrough.
But even a mosquito was still meat. With whatever Myriad Demon Pills were produced this time, the time it took for the Embodiment to grow would also be shortened.
When Yang Kai first came to Cloud Shadow Continent, Lao Ke and the others told him that the Myriad Demon Pills would be ready for harvesting within half a year. Now, counting the day, it was just about the right time.
When Yang Kai brought Ke Sen and He Yin to the Myriad Demon Cave, sure enough, the Demon Qi here was overflowing. A black demonic cloud tumbled below and the cave system, which was originally plain and unremarkable, now seemed to have a life of its own.
Lao Ke stood a short distance from the Myriad Demon Cave, looking both excited and anticipant.
How many years had it been? Since Lie Kuang submitted to Yue Sang, Lao Ke and the others had lost the right to participate in the collection of the Myriad Demon Pills. Each time a harvest was ready, it was always someone from Blue Plains Continent that came to collect them before they were all sent directly to Yue Sang. Yue Sang would then hand most of them over to the Holy Venerable.
Normally, each time a harvest occurred, they would at most receive one or two pills each while the rest would be offered up to the Holy Venerable. But in recent years, the Myriad Demon Pills that belonged to them all entered Yue Sang’s pocket instead, which made them feel both bitter and helpless.
Upon seeing Yang Kai arrive, Lao Ke immediately came over to cup his fists and greet him, “Great King!”
“What’s the situation?” Yang Kai gazed over at the Myriad Demon Cave which seemed to be breathing, drawing in large amounts of World Energy, kicking up a noticeable whirlwind and racket.
Yang Kai couldn’t help raising a brow in wonder. When last he came here, there were no such abnormalities at all, so he had no idea how the Myriad Demon Cave ended up in such a situation, or why one existed in basically every single continent above a certain size.
Yang Kai had searched for information and learned that the Myriad Demon Caves did not exist at the very beginning of the Demon Realm; rather, they were formed later, and there were many different stories about when exactly this occurred.
The most popular theory was that the Myriad Demon Caves suddenly appeared a thousand years after the Demon Realm shattered into fragmented continents, but it was not known what sort of link these Myriad Demon Caves had with the collapse of the Demon Realm.
“From the looks of this situation, the harvest this time should not be small. We should be able to obtain at least 70 to 80 pills. Possibly even 100.” Lao Ke responded with a smile, appearing like an old farmer who had been working the land year-round and was finally about to harvest his crop.
But he could not be blamed for his excitement. After getting to know Yang Kai during the past few months, he realized that this Human was a rather generous master. This time, he would surely share some of the Myriad Demon Pills with them after the harvest. Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings aside, they, the High-Rank Demon Kings, should at least be able to get one pill each as a reward.
Yang Kai glanced at him and smiled, “You’re able to tell how big the harvest will be?”
Lao Ke said, “Once one has seen the process enough times, they will naturally be able to make certain judgements.”
Yang Kai gently nodded before looking around and noticing many Demons sitting cross-legged on the ground, cultivating. He asked thoughtfully, “Does cultivating in this area bring your kind any benefits?”
He Yin nodded, “It is as Great King says. Whenever the Myriad Demon Cave undergoes this change, the World Energy of the continent converges here. So, cultivating nearby during this period will increase one’s cultivation efficiency several times higher than usual. Naturally, no one would want to waste such an opportunity.”
After hearing He Yin’s explanation, Yang Kai nodded lightly. Right now, it was as if the Myriad Demon Cave was inhaling all of the World Energy from the entire Cloud Shadow Continent, naturally turning it into a cultivation paradise.
During the next few days, the phenomenon became more and more obvious. The World Energy that was gathered from all directions became stronger and stronger each day. Within a ten-kilometre radius of the Myriad Demon Cave, countless Demons were sitting cross-legged, quietly cultivating, eager to improve their strength.
Lao Ke, He Yin, and Ke Sen took turns on guard duty. While one person looked after the Myriad Demon Cave, the other two would search for a good place to sit down and cultivate.
Yang Kai, on the other hand, had nothing to do. Even though the cultivation conditions were good here, the World Energy in the Demon Realm wasn’t suitable for him. After watching for a few days, he still didn’t see any Myriad Demon Pills take shape. His initial surprise disappeared, and soon, things became boring. If things were like this, he might as well return to the Territory Gate to continue cultivating the Dao of Space.
But if he left now, he would need to come back again very soon after, so he could only be patient and wait.
Gazing at the Myriad Demon Cave which was gulping in the energy from all four directions, Yang Kai wondered whether he would be able to get a decent amount of benefits by throwing the Embodiment inside. As the efficacy of cultivating here was increased several times for the Demon Race, the effect for the Embodiment, who had the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, would likely be even greater.
Yang Kai could hardly hold himself back once the thought came to mind, which made him eager to throw the Embodiment out to test the results.
Looking around, he could see Lao Ke staying guard a short distance away, while the other Demons who were watching the surrounding area were all scattered about. None of them were paying attention to him, so with a flicker, his body disappeared from its place.
So as not to be seen, Yang Kai went to a place a hundred kilometres away, found himself a deserted area, and released the Embodiment.
As soon as his Divine Sense moved, the Embodiment understood his intentions and his huge body sank silently into the earth to approach the Myriad Demon Cave from underground.
A short while later, Yang Kai returned to the Myriad Demon Cave. Lao Ke gave him a curious look, but he didn’t dare to ask any questions.
Yang Kai put on a bored look and sat down, appearing as if he were resting his eyes, but he was in fact monitoring the Embodiment’s movements closely.
A thousand metres underground, the Embodiment swiftly swam forward. The dirt and gravel simply could not obstruct his movements, and in a short time, he approached the Myriad Demon Cave. After a short pause, he was able to break through the final layer of protection and enter the cave directly.
As the Embodiment entered, Yang Kai’s expression couldn’t help but twitch. The Embodiment was Yang Kai’s Soul Clone inside the body of a Stone Spirit, so he could feel everything the Embodiment could.
At this moment, this Myriad Demon cave that used to be plain and inconspicuous was filled with colour. The entire cave seemed to have turned into a restless living being that could swallow an ocean of World Energy with each breath.
But in addition to that, Yang Kai could also vaguely sense that something else was being swallowed up into the Myriad Demon Cave. However, he couldn’t distinguish what it was since he had to feel it through the Embodiment.
Fortunately, the Embodiment did not cause any abnormalities after entering the Myriad Demon Cave, otherwise, he would have been exposed.
After standing around for a short while, the Embodiment began moving deeper into the Myriad Demon Cave, and the further he went in, the more unbelievable the energy stored inside became. There were tuber-like existences on the walls of the cave that were about the size of fists. As the Myriad Demon Cave pulsed, so too would these orbs, like beating hearts.
These fist-sized tubers were neither flesh nor stone and looked very odd; however, Yang Kai could very clearly feel the terrifying energy that was contained within each one of them.
As it had no idea what those tuber-like things were, the Embodiment didn’t dare to touch them either.
After a short while, the Embodiment finally arrived at the deepest depths of the Myriad Demon Cave. This place had a wide-open cavern where an unimaginable amount of World Energy had gathered. The World Energy here was so dense it had become tangible. There was even condensed World Energy lining the walls that resembled water droplets.
After searching for a spot, the Embodiment sat down cross-legged and activated his Heaven Devouring Battle Law. His huge body suddenly turned into a bottomless pit that began swallowing up the energy in this place.
A few moments later, Yang Kai, who was outside ‘resting his eyes’ suddenly smiled. Just as he expected, cultivating inside of the Myriad Demon Cave at this time produced extraordinary results. If the speed at which Lao Ke and the others cultivated was several times higher than usual, then cultivating inside the depths of the Myriad Demon Cave increased that rate to several dozen, or even a hundred times the efficiency.
Perhaps only the Embodiment could achieve such a terrifying rate of absorption though as anyone else would not be able to devour so much World Energy even in the same conditions without the help of the Heaven Devouring Battle Law. This opportunity would only be wasted on others.
Time passed, but the World Energy accumulated in the Myriad Demon Cave did not decrease at all; however, the rate at which it increased was slowed considerably. After all, the speed at which Embodiment devoured World Energy was clearly not slow.
Through the Embodiment, Yang Kai had been observing the situation inside the Myriad Demon Cave the whole time in hopes of figuring out the secrets of this place.
He had no idea how long had passed, but Yang Kai suddenly noticed something, and he couldn’t help but make a light exclamation, causing Lao Ke, who was on guard nearby, to turn his head to look at him. After watching Yang Kai for a long time though and seeing no other movements, he looked away again.
Yang Kai didn’t notice Lao Ke’s gaze at all as he was absorbed in investigating the situation inside of the Myriad Demon Cave.
Since the Embodiment entered, Yang Kai had sensed that something else was being swallowed up by the Myriad Demon Cave besides the enormous amount of World Energy, and that feeling was growing more and more obvious.
But despite his careful observations, Yang Kai couldn’t figure anything out. It puzzled him and made him wonder whether he had been mistaken.
Just now though, the Myriad Demon Cave began pulsing again, so Yang Kai quickly paid close attention to it through the Embodiment, and this time, he finally discovered a clue, which surprised him.
In order to make sure that his observations were correct, Yang Kai spent the next few days observing the Myriad Demon Cave with full attention each time it throbbed.
A few days later, an odd look appeared on Yang Kai’s face.
Through his observations over the past few days, he finally understood why the Myriad Demon Pills were so powerful. It was not because the Myriad Demon Cave formed them by devouring vast amounts of World Energy, which was only one of its reasons. The biggest reason was that the Myriad Demon Cave was absorbing the power of all living beings on the continent at every moment.
This siphoning of energy was almost imperceptible, and even Yang Kai could not discover anything unusual before. If he had not been able to perceive the deepest part of the Myriad Demon Cave through the Embodiment, he might never have noticed this truth.
The Demons living on Cloud Shadow Continent numbered in the hundreds of millions, and the Myriad Demon Cave was absorbing a tiny fraction of their strength at every moment. If this went on for an extended period of time though, how terrifying would the amount it collected be? But just as Yang Kai observed, the devouring was almost imperceptible and would not damage one’s foundation, so even Demon Kings were not aware it was happening.
The amount of energy collected from each living being was insignificant, but if all this power was brought to one place, then it could be condensed into Myriad Demon Pills with astonishing power. The Demons themselves were the roots of the Myriad Demon Pills while the World Energy that was pouring in at the moment was simply water to help the flowers blossom. That was the fundamental reason the Myriad Demon Pills were able to condense such a huge amount of energy.
It was possible that the Twelve Demon Saints knew about this but never made the knowledge public. Even those Half-Saints might be aware of the truth.
This discovery felt a little unbelievable to Yang Kai. According to the current situation, the Myriad Demon Cave seemed to have a life of its own, bringing together the power of countless living beings like rivers running into the sea to form Myriad Demon Pills, and in turn creating an endless number of Demon Race Masters.
While Yang Kai was mulling over his thoughts though, another change happened on the Embodiment’s side.
For some reason, an incredibly faint link suddenly appeared between the Embodiment and the Myriad Demon Cave, which gave Yang Kai the feeling that the entire Cloud Shadow Continent was under his control.
Examining this link further, Yang Kai was stunned as he clearly noticed that a white light had appeared inside the Myriad Demon Cave, one that was constantly dancing around the Embodiment. It was the existence of that very light that gave the Embodiment that strange connection with the Myriad Demon Cave.
After careful probing, Yang Kai realized that he could see the image of a continent that had been shrunk countless times down inside that white light, one that looked exactly like Cloud Shadow Continent. Yang Kai also noticed almost imperceptible threads of Principle Strength flowing and crossing each other inside this light.
[A Source?] Yang Kai could not help but be stunned. Even though this was his first time seeing it, it gave off a feeling that was very similar to a Star Source. He had refined Star Sources before back in the Star Field, and also refined a Star Field Source, so naturally, such things were not unfamiliar to him.
[Could this thing be Cloud Shadow Continent’s Source? There’s actually a Source even for this fragmented continent in the Demon Realm!]
This came as quite a surprise to Yang Kai. Since the Demon Realm had been broken into countless pieces, even if once had a source, it should have been annihilated long ago; however, what Yang Kai saw before him overturned his preconceived knowledge.
The Source of a continent was obviously its foundation, and as long as the Source could be refined, he could really become the master of this place.
Yang Kai had no idea why this Source would suddenly appear, but he knew that this was a Heaven-sent opportunity. If the Embodiment was truly able to refine this source, then from then on, he would really become Cloud Shadow Continent’s master, not just some figurehead appointed by Yu Ru Meng.
The Embodiment was obviously aware of the opportunity before him and began trying to refine the Source even without the need for any communication with Yang Kai.
The Source showed no signs of rejecting the Embodiment at all. Since it appeared on its own, it was clearly attracted here by something.
Yang Kai guessed that it must be the Heaven Devouring Battle Law that the Embodiment was using.
The Heaven Devouring Battle Law was called an evil art in the Star Boundary and its existence was not tolerated in the world; however, it seemed to suit the tastes of the Demon Realm. If Heaven Devouring Great Emperor could have been born in the Demon Realm, he would have been able to achieve great things.
So, without much effort, the Embodiment accepted the Source, swallowed it into his belly, and began refining it. All of a sudden, Yang Kai felt the connection between the Embodiment and the entire Cloud Shadow Continent become much stronger.
And, this close connection also confirmed his previous observations.
The Myriad Demon Cave really was devouring the power of billions of living creatures across the continent, transforming it into Myriad Demon Pills.
No other surprises followed this as, while devouring the World Energy gathered inside of the Myriad Demon Cave, the Embodiment continued refining Cloud Shadow Continent’s Source.
As for Yang Kai, he watched for a while before collecting his thoughts.
No longer needing to pay as much attention to the Embodiment, Yang Kai opened his eyes and found that the guard in charge had now been changed to He Yin. So, he beckoned her over to ask her about the Demon Realm’s Continent Source.
Surprisingly, Yang Kai realized that this was no secret at all, making him feel like he had made a fuss over nothing.
According to He Yin, the reason why those Half-Saints could surpass other Demon Kings was that they had refined a continent’s Source, so it could be said that every Half-Saint was a true Master of a continent.
For example, the Blue Plains Continent’s Source had long been refined by Yue Sang, and the same was true for the other continents with Masters. But since the Continent Sources weren’t very tolerant, even Half-Saints were only able to refine one Source each.
Back then, when Lie Kuang joined Yue Sang’s side, he was promised by Yue Sang that he would be able to refine Cloud Shadow Continent’s source, and once Lie Kuang succeeded, he would have a good chance of becoming a Half-Saint.
This was good news for Yang Kai, who had experienced the convenience of being a Star Master and a Star Field Master. Now that the Embodiment had become the true Master of Cloud Shadow Continent, he would also receive this continent’s recognition and shelter. It could be said that the road to becoming a Half-Saint had already been paved for him. As long as enough power was accumulated, the Embodiment could become a Half-Saint.
During this trip to the Demon Realm, even though Yang Kai hadn’t accomplished his primary mission yet, or obtained many benefits, he was at least able to open up a future for the Embodiment, which was still considered a great fortune to stumble upon.
Faced with Yang Kai’s questions, He Yin seemed to misunderstand something and hesitated for a moment before saying, “Since Great King is a Human, and Great King’s power is also different from ours, so I’m afraid refining the Source will be difficult. What’s more, Lie Kuang had already been searching for Cloud Shadow’s Source for many years, but he still hadn’t found anything. If Great King truly does receive the continent’s favour, it may still be impossible to refine its Source.”
Yang Kai chuckled, “I was just asking.”
Sceptical, He Yin excused herself.
During the time after that, everything was peaceful. It wasn’t until eight days later that more changes came to the Myriad Demon Cave. The entire Myriad Demon Cave seemed to grow restless as the World Energy that it had been devouring was now being spat out uncontrollably, sending tides of energy straight to the horizon and clouds. Soon, it almost seemed to be raining World Energy within a hundred-kilometre radius around the cave.
Lao Ke and the others were also roused from their cultivation and gathered around Yang Kai, excited.
This was a sign that the Myriad Demon Pills were about to take shape.
As expected, when everything settled down half a day later, there were no more movements in the Myriad Demon Cave.
Lao Ke cupped his fists, “Great King, the Myriad Demon Pills have been formed. I request Great King to please collect them.”
Yang Kai gently nodded before leading Lao Ke and the two others over. The Embodiment had also quietly disappeared before they entered the Myriad Demon Cave. The Cloud Shadow Source had already been refined by it, so it was now the true Master of this continent. With just a thought, it could go anywhere, so it naturally revealed no traces.
It wasn’t the first time Yang Kai was entering the Myriad Demon Cave either. Previously, he was constantly monitoring the Embodiment when he entered, so Yang Kai was naturally familiar with the way.
In just a short while, he arrived at a wall with a tuber-like object, which was exactly the things that the Embodiment saw before.
Lao Ke pointed to the flesh-like lump and said, “Great King, the Myriad Demon Pills are inside. You can take them out just by plucking them lightly.” He knew that Yang Kai wasn’t familiar with this, so that’s why he explained it to him.
Only then did Yang Kai understand what these strange lumps were. Turns out the Myriad Demon Pills were growing inside of them.
Without hesitation, he reached out to touch one, and when his hand made contact with the lump, it actually opened up like a flower while a longan-sized Myriad Demon Pill fell to the ground after.
Yang Kai reached out to catch the pill in the palm of his hand, but taking a closer look, he immediately frowned.
Three pairs of fervent eyes looked over from around him.
Lao Ke suddenly exclaimed with confusion, “Why does it feel like this time’s Myriad Demon Pills look smaller than normal?”
In fact, it wasn’t just a bit smaller, it was smaller by a sizable amount. It was so obvious that the other Demon Kings naturally noticed as well and instantly revealed looks of suspicion. They had collected Myriad Demon Pills many times before, and even though the sizes differed each time, the average size was basically the same. They had never encountered such an obvious reduction of size as this time.
Yang Kai knew what went wrong as soon as he heard this. It must be because the Embodiment had swallowed up too much of the World Energy previously, causing the formation of the Myriad Demon Pills to be affected. If that were the case, then this may not be the only pill that shrunk in size.
He didn’t comment about it since Lao Ke and the others didn’t know the reason either and simply said, “Go and harvest all the Myriad Demon Pills.”
He was just trying it out for its novelty, so he naturally wouldn’t actually be picking each and every one of the Myriad Demon Pills.
After receiving the order, Lao Ke and the others immediately headed deeper into the Myriad Demon Cave.
It was less than an hour later when Lao Ke and the rest returned, and they all had uncertain expressions on their faces. They handed a Space Ring to Yang Kai and said, “Great King, we were only able to collect 67 Myriad Demon Pills this time…”
“67?” Yang Kai looked at him in feigned surprise.
Sweat laced Lao Ke’s forehead as he explained nervously, “I don’t know what happened, but the output this time doesn’t seem right. Not only is the number much less than what I predicted before, the size is also smaller.”
Ke Sen and He Yin both nodded at the side.
When he saw Yang Kai looking at him, Lao Ke immediately said, “Great King, this subordinate swears in the name of Great Demon God that he did not embezzle any for himself. All of the Myriad Demon Pills collected this time are right here.” He thought that Yang Kai was suspecting him of theft so he anxiously tried to explain himself.
Even though Yang Kai knew the reason and also knew it was impossible for him to lie, he still glanced at Ke Sen and He Yin with a grim face, causing the two of them to quickly swear in the name of Great Demon God as well in case Yang Kai should misunderstand them.
Only then did Yang Kai nod, “It seems like something unexpected really has happened. Can any of you guess the reason?”
Lao Ke and the others looked at each other, but they all shook their heads. They were also very confused in their hearts. From the behaviour of the Myriad Demon Cave this time, the harvest should have been at least 70 to 80 pills, possibly up to 100; however, the fact of the matter was, the number they collected was far less than anticipated.
“No matter,” Yang Kai waved his hand in a pretentious act of generosity, “If it’s 67, then it’s 67.”
After a pause, he asked, “When you collected the Myriad Demon Pills in the past, how did you distribute them?”
Lao Ke responded, “When we were in charge of collecting the pills in the past, we always offered the full amount to Holy Venerable, and Holy Venerable would grant us a few pills as a reward. We High-Rank Demon Kings would generally receive one to two pills each. As for the Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings, they were generally rewarded with some Demon Crystals according to their level of cultivation. After Lie Kuang began collecting them, these pills no longer had anything to do with us.”
Yang Kai nodded, taking out six Myriad Demon Pills from the Space Ring directly and giving each of them two, “The rewards for the others are up to you to decide.”
Lao Ke and the others were overjoyed. They thought that they would not be able to get a share of the Myriad Demon Pills this time because of the poor harvest, but they never expected that Yang Kai would actually reward them with two pills each right away, which was simply an astounding level of generosity. They quickly offered their thanks to him, each of them feeling overjoyed.
Ke Sen then said, “Great King, the Myriad Demon Pills of Cloud Shadow Continent have already been collected, but those of Blue Plains Continent should be just about ready as well. Should this subordinate go and take a look?”
Yang Kai pondered for a moment and nodded, “Good. Once it’s time, send the collected Myriad Demon Pills over to me.” Even though he had already planted his Soul Imprint on Tu Qia Luo and the others and controlled their life or death, who knew whether they would pocket some of the pills in private or not?
It was one thing to hand out rewards, and another to embezzle. With Ke Sen watching over them, he figured that Tu Qia Luo and the others wouldn’t dare to try anything even if they wanted to.
As for offering the rest to the Holy Venerable, Yang Kai straight up ignored it. Obviously, Yu Ru Meng wouldn’t mind either.
“Yes,” Ke Sen cupped his fists.
With the Myriad Demon Pills collected, Yang Kai was naturally going to return to the Territory Gate.
After such a long time, he only had a vague idea of how to stabilize the Territory Gate, but made no substantial progress towards that end.
But after returning this time, he progressed at a stunning rate.
That was mainly because the Embodiment was able to refine Cloud Shadow Continent’s Source, thus becoming the Master of this place. With the Embodiment’s support, Yang Kai could easily sense the reason for the Territory Gate’s instability, which turned out to be the encroachment of the continent’s World Principles!
Just as how Void Cracks would disappear without a trace soon after Yang Kai tore space, the World Principles would naturally try to repair any tears or cracks in the world, restoring everything to its original state. The Territory Gate was no exception.
Only, the Territory Gate was so massive that it would not be easy for the World Principles to repair it even if they wanted to. Naturally, this situation would not appear if the Territory Gate was completely stable, but once any problem occurred, within a limited number of years, it would be broken down by the World Principles and completely sealed.
Now that Yang Kai had found the cause of the problem though, it wasn’t difficult to fix.
Yang Kai pondered for a long time before finding a safe solution. By using his ability to manipulate Space Principles, he slowly isolated the Territory Gate from the encroaching World Principles and then stabilized it again.
But Yang Kai guessed that this method would only treat the symptoms and not the root cause of the problem, even if the Territory Gate remained stable for some time, it would not be for long. The Territory Gate would have problems again after another thousand years. If the problem was to be dealt with completely, then his attainments in the Dao of Space would have to be further improved.
But what happened a thousand years later wasn’t something Yang Kai needed to concern himself with. If not for the fact that the Embodiment had refined this continent’s Source, he would not have even paid this matter this much attention to begin with.
After the Territory Gate was stabilized, Yang Kai did not remain idle. Since he had already succeeded once, he felt he may as well restore the other lost Territory Gates. Not only would doing this help him comprehend more about the Dao of Space, it would also provide more options to him if Yue Sang really returned from the battlefield. It would be bad to have only one way out of Cloud Shadow Continent in such a future.
As long as the other Territory Gates were restored, Yang Kai would still be able to escape to other continents even if Yue Sang returned.
The other Territory Gates had already disappeared a long time ago, so restoring them would be no easy task. Fortunately, Yang Kai had some experience now, so even though it was going to be a little more difficult, the process shouldn’t be much different.
This time, he did not need to block the Territory Gate anymore. Even Lao Ke and the others were sent back before he headed to the places where the other Territory Gates disappeared by himself.
After a month quickly went by, Yang Kai finally re-opened the second Territory Gate, which was connected to Thunder Heaven Continent, the same continent he visited with He Yin previously by tearing space.
The main reason it took so long was that the Territory Gate had disappeared long ago. Even though some traces were left, it still took a lot of effort to restore it. This time, Yang Kai didn’t get the Embodiment to help him and instead completed the entire process himself. With this experience, it wouldn’t be as difficult for him to restore the other Territory Gates.
But he didn’t plan to restore any other Territory Gates just yet. The reason he restored this one was mainly as a precaution against Yue Sang. Now that he had an escape route though, why would he still have to restore the others? That would just benefit the Demon Race and not him in any way. In any case, there were two Territory Gates now, which was enough to ensure that Cloud Shadow Continent would not disappear any time soon, so the Embodiment did not have to worry about anything as the Master of the continent.
After adjusting his breathing and recovering for half a day, Yang Kai returned to Cloud Shadow City.
Halfway there, he suddenly paused again and turned his head to look in a certain direction, a pensive expression on his face.
A few moments later, he seemed to have made up his mind and sped off in that direction.
Above the wilderness, Yang Kai floated in the void, shutting his eyes and sensing his surroundings.
This was the place where the Territory Gate connecting to Blood Flame Continent was originally located. It was also the first of the five Cloud Shadow Continent Territory Gates to disappear. When Yang Kai was exploring the Territory Gate with He Yin last time, this was the only place where they found nothing, while the rest still had some traces left behind, which was enough for him to determine the location to tear space.
The reason he came here was also just on a whim.
Now that he could repair the Territory Gates that only had small traces of them left, Yang Kai had no idea whether he could do anything here. Naturally, he wanted to give it a try. If he could restore even this Territory Gate, then he could find the Blood Flame Continent again, and even find all of the continents that the Demon Realm had lost.
Of course, he would not be so kind to the Demon Race. Even if he managed to accomplish this, he would not announce it to them. At best, he would quietly explore the lost continents to find some treasures. Besides that, he still had to take precautions in case he was exposed in the future and this could become a bargaining chip to negotiate with the Demon Race with. He might even be able to use this ability in trade for Bright Moon Great Emperor’s life.
For the Demon Race, the return of all its lost continents would definitely be of greater value to them than killing a single Great Emperor from the Star Boundary.
Unfortunately, Yang Kai was disappointed to discover that even though he had succeeded in restoring Territory Gates twice, and also deepened his comprehension of the Dao of Space, he still couldn’t sense anything here.
He could not detect any trace that the Territory Gate used to exist at all.
Helpless, Yang Kai mentally connected with the Embodiment inside the Small Sealed World, opened a channel for him, and used his power to investigate the space, but still found nothing.
It seemed like there was really nothing he could do, but Yang Kai wasn’t disappointed. He had come here on a whim to try his luck and didn’t have high hopes to begin with. Having no luck here, he could just return.
Just as he was about to leave though, the Embodiment suddenly transmitted a thought over, which caused Yang Kai’s brow to knit. He quickly checked his Small Sealed World and couldn’t help but raise his brow.
At this moment, the Abyssal Returner was jumping up and down next to the Embodiment, its black eyes staring at the opening in the Small Sealed World as if it could see the world outside. With eyes shining brightly, it looked exhilarated and even her big tongue was hanging out, dripping with saliva.
When Yang Kai was preparing to come to the Demon Realm, he had specifically gone back to High Heaven Palace to bring the Abyssal Returner with him, but he had left her in the Small Sealed World the whole time and didn’t pay her any attention. He never thought that she would behave too strangely at this moment.
The Abyssal Returner was an ancient beast from the Demon Realm to begin with, and it lived by devouring both the Demon Race and Demon Qi. Now that she was behaving so strangely, could it be that she discovered something?
Yang Kai’s expression changed and he quickly brought her out.
As soon as she appeared, Ah Wang sprinted far away in excitement and disappeared in the blink of an eye. A few breaths later, she sped back from the distance. This behaviour repeated many times, but her excitement never reduced, as if she were a wanderer who had been away from home for many years and finally returned today. Running around like mad was just a way to vent the excitement in her heart.
Yang Kai failed to stifle his laughter at this sight. He originally thought that the Abyssal Returner might have noticed something, but who knew that she just detected the Demon Realm’s aura and became excited…
But Yang Kai did not stop her. Even though Ah Wang only had a faint trace of the Abyssal Returner’s bloodline in her and could not technically be considered a true Abyssal Returner, in a way, the Demon Realm was still her hometown.
After Ah Wang fooled around for a while, she finally calmed down and returned to Yang Kai’s side, running circles around his legs. At a certain point though, she suddenly stopped, sniffed the air lightly, then opened her gigantic mouth and bit down on the Void abruptly.
Yang Kai could clearly hear a crunching sound, and a black cavity was literally bitten out of the nearby space.
All of a sudden, Yang Kai’s eyes widened in surprise as he stared dumbly at the hole, then down at Ah Wang by his feet, unable to compose himself for a long time.
He had long known about the many strange abilities the Abyssal Returner had. Even though this little girl was cute, she was in fact a terrifying beast, especially to the Demon Race. Ah Wang could even be considered the nemesis of all Demons as she was able to swallow up Demon King-level Masters in one bite while Emperor Realm Masters still proved to be troublesome for her. Back then, when Feng Ming was only a Second-Order Emperor, he was able to survive and ultimately escape despite being swallowed by Ah Wang.
But Yang Kai never would have expected that Ah Wang would actually be able to even take a bite out of the Void.
Through his perception, Yang Kai could clearly tell that the space that had been bit off was devoid of World Principles. Even with the power of this world acting on it continuously from the outside, it would take some time to repair this crack, at least a day or so.
Ah Wang had never done anything like this back in the Star Boundary!
Was it because this was the Demon Realm?
The Abyssal Returner had the power to restrain all kinds of the Demon Qi, so it may also be able to restrain the Demon Realm’s Principles.
But things hadn’t ended yet. After a few more bites, more and more cracks appeared in front of Yang Kai.
Yang Kai didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at this sight. If he had known this would happen, then why would he have wasted his effort restoring those Territory Gates? He could have just tossed Ah Wang out and let her chew on the Territory Gates. Her bite was strong enough to shatter the local World Principles and keep them from restoring themselves for a long time, forming another Territory Gate that existed in a different state.
As he was about to reprimand Ah Wang and take her back though, the Embodiment suddenly made a curious exclamation and quickly stopped him, “Don’t stop her.”
Yang Kai frowned and asked doubtfully, “What happened?”
Embodiment muttered, “I think I feel the aura of another continent coming from beyond the crack.”
Yang Kai was visibly shocked to hear this statement. This place was where the Territory Gate connecting Cloud Shadow Continent and Blood Flame Continent existed long ago. Only, the Territory Gate had been gone for over a thousand years and all traces of it had supposedly been lost. Blood Flame Continent had even disappeared from the Demon Realm’s map.
If the Embodiment truly was able to detect the aura of another continent, that proved that they had more hints to trace back to their source, which was undoubtedly Blood Flame Continent.
Just as Yang Kai was feeling lost, the dense willow trees and bright flowers lead him to another village! With a solemn countenance, Yang Kai quickly focused his senses, but he couldn’t sense the other continent’s aura as the Embodiment claimed. But that was not a surprise considering the Embodiment was currently the Master of Cloud Shadow Continent. Naturally, its perception of this place was countless times stronger than Yang Kai’s own.
In any case, Yang Kai also began looking around excitedly. Lifting his head, he summoned the Embodiment out of the Small Sealed World, and with a thought, the Embodiment immediately used its power as the Master of the continent to completely isolate the surrounding thousand-kilometre region.
This way, no one would be able to enter this area, so even if they discovered any secrets here, they would not be exposed.
The sound of constant crunching could be heard as Ah Wang chewed on the Void ahead. Soon, a black hole about a meter in diameter appeared.
Yang Kai still did not notice anything, but the aura that the Embodiment perceived became more and more obvious. There was in fact the aura of another continent coming through vaguely, which formed a subtle impact on this continent.
[We really found Blood Flame Continent!] Yang Kai couldn’t help but sigh.
He recalled some information he read before, as well as what He Yin had told him. Blood Flame Continent’s last Territory Gate disappeared a thousand years ago, but before it did, all the Demon King level Masters had been evacuated. Even some of the Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals escaped from Blood Flame Continent. It can be said that not a single Demon King level Master existed on Blood Flame continent now, so Yang Kai wasn’t worried about facing any dangers as he prepared to explore.
However, the population of a continent was so large that even though the Demon Kings and a large part of the Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals had already left, a large number of Demons must have been left behind. Yang Kai had no idea how they lived during the past thousand years, or whether the disappearance of the Territory Gate and closure of the continent had any effect on them.
Besides that, the wealth of Blood Flame Continent was essentially withdrawn by the Demon Race Masters in advance, but they couldn’t take away an entire continent’s resources. Once Yang Kai found Blood Flame Continent, it would be equivalent to unearthing the natural resources of an entire continent. The resources of the Demon Race may be of no use to him, but the Embodiment would not turn them down. Especially as the Embodiment had now become the Master of Cloud Shadow Continent and was being influenced by Cloud Shadow’s Source, its huge body had become filled with Demon Qi, turning it into a living, breathing Demon.
Yang Kai could even silently subdue all of Blood Flame Continent and use its forces to stir up the Demon Realm, diverting attention from the Star Boundary.
What’s more, if he were able to find the Blood Flame Continent, it would mean he could find even more lost continents. If he could amass the power of dozens of continents in his hands, he may even be able to challenge a Demon Saint.
In an instant, many thoughts flashed through Yang Kai’s mind.
And, at that moment, he finally felt an aura coming from the Void that did not belong to Cloud Shadow Continent. Just as the Embodiment said, it was the aura of another continent that was leaking across space.
Even Yang Kai could sense it now, meaning that the walls between the two continents had become extremely weak and could be broken with a little more effort.
In fact, that was exactly what happened. After the Abyssal Returner worked through a few more bites, a huge suction force suddenly emerged from the Void in front of Yang Kai, as if an invisible barrier was broken through, causing the vigorous aura of a Sealed World to surge out.
By accident, the Abyssal Returner was sucked in directly, her face showing fear and anxiety.
Yang Kai and the Embodiment exchanged glances before they also stepped through the Void Crack and disappeared in the next instant.
The vision before Yang Kai’s eyes changed, and by the time he came back to his senses, he was in a different world.
As he looked around, Yang Kai couldn’t help but frown.
This was indeed another continent, and it was quite obviously the Blood Flame Continent which was adjacent to Cloud Shadow. Only, the scene here was not quite what he had expected; the entire continent had a dead and dreary feeling with seemingly no life at all.
There were barren lands as far as the eyes could see, and no signs of living beings. Not even simple grass or plants.
Yellow sand covered the ground while strong winds whistled constantly, kicking up dust devils that gave off eerie, blood-curdling sounds. Just from what he could see with his vision, there were hundreds of these tornadoes rampaging madly and destroying everything in their way.
[So Blood Flame Continent’s environment is this harsh?]
Despite knowing the fact that each continent had a different environment in the Demon Realm, most of them were still mild enough that they could sustain life; however, if the Blood Flame Continent resembled this everywhere, then even the Demon Race would not have been able to survive here.
The Embodiment obviously realized this as well and they both looked at each other. Both of them were surprised and had no idea whether Blood Flame Continent looked like this to begin with, or whether something happened to cause this change.
But since they were here, they naturally had to check things out.
Yang Kai brought Ah Wang back and placed her on his shoulder before walking forward with the Embodiment side by side. Though the tornadoes along the way made terrifying sounds, they posed no threat to them.
Not long after, a huge ruin appeared in front of them that covered an area of a thousand square kilometres. From a distance, the outline resembled a city, but when they got close, Yang Kai realized that this city had long been deserted. The entire city was covered by sand and not one living being could be found within.
Sweeping through the ruins with his Divine Sense, Yang Kai frowned and his body flashed over to a certain place. Reaching down, he grabbed an object out from under the swirling sand.
It was the corpse of a Demon Race member. Yang Kai had no idea what Clan this Demon was from, but it seemed to be a female corpse that died a miserable death. Though there were no external injuries, she seemed to have suffered great torture before her death as all the essence in her body had been sucked out, leaving no trace behind. Just like with Lie Kuang’s death, the body was a dry corpse that was only preserved thanks to being buried under the sand for many years.
Soon after Yang Kai fished it out, the body turned into dust that was blown away by the wind, leaving not a single bone behind.
Nearby, the Embodiment picked up several other corpses from the ground, but just like the corpse of the Demon Race female, they were all dried up.
There was no need to investigate further. The Demons of this entire city likely died in the same way.
Moreover, since a city existed here, it proved that the original environment was not so harsh; otherwise, how could the Demon Race survive here? The sand and the tornadoes must have appeared later.
[Are there Demons who have cultivated Secret Arts similar to the Heaven Devouring Battle Law?] Yang Kai frowned slightly. If not, it would be difficult to explain the situation here, for what else could explain this environment and these corpses?
For a while, he couldn’t figure it out. So, he could only go on with the Embodiment and poke around along the way.
After a whole day of wandering, the scenery in front of Yang Kai’s group had hardly changed. However, he did find several ruined cities of varying sizes, all of which were filled with shrivelled-up dead Demons.
Yang Kai had a vague feeling that something wasn’t right. Even if a Demon cultivated a Secret Art similar to the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, it would be impossible for them to achieve this level of destruction. Before the last Territory Gate of Blood Flame Continent disappeared, all Demon Kings had withdrawn, so the strongest ones left behind were just Demon Great Generals. With such a cultivation, it would be impossible to massacre an entire city, much less a continent.
At the very least, one would have to be a High-Rank Demon King to achieve such a feat, but how could there be any High-Rank Demon Kings here?
As Yang Kai was immersed in his thoughts, he suddenly heard the Embodiment shout, “Watch out!”
Brought to his senses, Yang Kai looked up and his pupils couldn’t help but constrict. The space in front of him had been cut open, and a huge Void Crack which spread out horizontally in front of him had manifested. A Heaven-destroying and Earth-shattering energy filled this hundreds-of-kilometres-long gorge, across which there seemed to be another continent.
Had he and the Embodiment actually reached the edge of Blood Flame Continent?
But that didn’t seem right. Blood Flame Continent was considered quite small, but it was impossible for it to only be this big. He and the Embodiment had only been here for a day and had been travelling at quite a leisurely pace while inspecting their surroundings, so how could they possibly have flown to the edge already?
Then, looking at the continent in front of him, Yang Kai realized it was actually the same continent they were standing on.
Yang Kai suddenly had a realization, “Blood Flame Continent is breaking apart!”
The land in front of him was clearly a fragment of the Blood Flame Continent, just like the fragment they were standing on right now. Only, what sort of power could actually have shattered a whole continent into countless pieces like this?
But remembering that the entire Demon Realm was in a similar state, Yang Kai felt more at ease.
In a sense, Blood Flame Continent was a microcosm of the current Demon Realm. Only, there was no vitality here. Could it have been caused by Blood Flame’s separation from the Demon Realm after the disappearance of the last Territory Gate?
That was a possibility, and if that was truly the reason, then it would explain the harsh environment here today.
If the Demon Realm was compared to a person, then each continent was an organ of that person’s body. Blood Flame Continent was just like an organ that was separated from the Demon Realm after the Territory Gate disappeared, causing it to collapse and devolve into what it was now. If a person’s hand was cut off, then it would also just rot away, which was the best reflection of Blood Flame Continent right now.
When he thought about this, Yang Kai felt shocked again.
If this speculation was true, then the future of the entire Demon Realm was in jeopardy.
A person could live after losing a hand. Even without any limbs, a person could survive; however, if even their five viscera and six organs were to be lost…
The disappearance of each continent was equivalent to one of the Demon Realm’s organs, and once enough of them disappeared, it would surely affect the survival of the entire Demon Realm! Could the Demon Race’s invasion of the Star Boundary be related to this?
With the Demon Realm gone, the Demon Race would have nowhere to go, so they naturally had to find a new home, and the Star Boundary was their target.
Yang Kai’s face paled at that thought. If his suspicions were proven true, then the Demon Realm would not stop at just a simple invasion, they would not rest until one side or the other had been wiped out! The Star Boundary could only accommodate a limited number of people, and the Demon Race’s population was so large that even the entire Star Boundary may not be enough to accommodate them, let alone leave space behind for the residents of Star Boundary.
No wonder those Demon Saints so easily agreed to the Great Emperor’s proposal to prevent all Great Emperor level Masters from intervening in the Two Worlds Great War.
They were afraid that such a violent clash would destroy the stability of the Star Boundary, and they also had the intention to whittle down the Demon Race’s population.
Yang Kai’s face constantly changed as all sorts of thoughts came to his mind.
The Embodiment, however, did not remain idle. He had already led the way through the Void Crack and brought them to the new continent fragment.
Only when they landed did Yang Kai collect his thoughts. There was no point thinking about these things now. Even if he was right, what then? He would still have no way of stopping the Demon Realm’s invasion, so it was better to figure out the situation on Blood Flame Continent first.
He had expected to gain some benefits from this place, but now it seemed that the continent had started withering since it was separated from the Demon Realm, so there was probably nothing of worth left here.
After exploring for another day, Yang Kai found that the situation was exactly the same. This continent fragment was just as desolate as the last.
Yang Kai was distracted by other thoughts, but the Embodiment seemed to have thought of something. He looked over at Yang Kai and lightly spat out three words, “Myriad Demon Cave!”
Yang Kai was stunned, but then his eyes suddenly lit up. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that what the Embodiment was saying made sense.
If it weren’t for his previous discovery in Cloud Shadow Continent’s Myriad Demon Cave, then he would not have had this thought, but because of the secrets that he learned previously, and then thinking back to all the dried and miserable corpses, Yang Kai believed that the culprit for the death of all these Demons could possibly be the Myriad Demon Cave and not some Demon Race Master who had cultivated a Secret Art like Heaven Devouring Battle Law.
Myriad Demon Caves absorbed the essence of all Demons on the continent at every moment, just at an imperceptible rate that would not affect a member of the Demon Race, which was why almost all Demons were completely unaware this process was occurring. However, what if this suction suddenly burst out with extreme power all at once?
Then that would be the same as executing the Heaven Devouring Battle Law on the entire continent. The consequences of it would be terrifying, and it would also result in the deaths of all these Demons.
“Find it!” Yang Kai spat out two words and immediately split up with the Embodiment in search of the Myriad Demon Cave of Blood Flame Continent.
If they could find anything in the Myriad Demon Cave, then that would prove their speculations correct.
Only, Blood Flame Continent had now broken into many pieces and Yang Kai had no idea where the Myriad Demon Cave was supposed to be. Even if he had, he would still have to do some searching for it.
If he had known this would happen, then he would have asked Lao Ke and the others to collect information about Blood Flame Continent for him. Having some information would at least be better than going around blind.
Right now, he could only hope that the Myriad Demon Cave on the Blood Flame Continent had not been destroyed by the changes in the world.
Their search across the fragments lasted three whole days before Yang Kai found the Myriad Demon Cave.
In fact, it was all thanks to the Abyssal Returner for her keen sense of smell and sensitivity towards all things Demon Qi-related. If not for her guidance, then Yang Kai would never have been able to find the Myriad Demon Cave that was buried several hundreds of metres below ground.
Opening up a hole in the earth, Yang Kai immediately found an opening in front of him. However, the opening was covered by yellow sand and it took him some effort to clear a passage before entering the depths of the cave.
After a few turns, there were finally no more obstructions inside.
The Myriad Demon Cave here was similar to the one on Cloud Shadow Continent, but even though it was dim inside, that didn’t bother Yang Kai.
After a short walk, Yang Kai discovered some tuber-like growths on the walls that were neither flesh nor stone, as if the fruit was growing inside…
Naturally, the growths contained Myriad Demon Pills. Yang Kai was sure of this.
Only, what surprised him was the fact that the entire wall was covered in these tubers. They were densely packed, and he could roughly estimate there to be several dozen here at least.
Why were there so many?
Even though the Myriad Demon Cave on Cloud Shadow Continent looked similar to this, the number of growths was obviously much smaller. Only one growth could be seen after some distance. There would never be such dense clusters.
But before Yang Kai could figure it out, the Abyssal Returner, who had been resting on his shoulder, leapt out with great enthusiasm and pounced onto the wall. With a big curl of its tongue, half of the growths disappeared. Yang Kai heard an audible gulp, then an obvious bulge appeared on Ah Wang’s throat before rolling down into her abdomen.
The big tongue lashed out again, and the rest of the growths disappeared…
Yang Kai’s face instantly went black. He was still hoping to get more Myriad Demon Pills here for the Embodiment so that it could break through to the Half-Saint Realm as soon as possible and become his greatest source of support, but unexpectedly, Ah Wang swallowed up the crops instead.
Abyssal Returners fed on Demons and Demon Qi, and these Myriad Demon Pills were made from the vitality of Demons and Demon Qi. Naturally, Ah Wang wouldn’t reject such a delicacy.
But that was several dozen Myriad Demon Pills! And they were all gone, just like that. Yang Kai felt much heartache for the loss and quickly grabbed hold of Ah Wang, tossing her directly into the Small Sealed World despite her protests. Finally, peace returned to his ears.
Turning his head around to look at the empty wall, Yang Kai’s face twitched. He only hoped that there would be more Myriad Demon Pills in this Myriad Demon Cave, and that not all of them had grown in this outer spot.
Collecting his thoughts, Yang Kai went deeper inside, and after just a short walk, his eyes widened in joy again.
Sure enough, there were more Myriad Demon Pills inside. Just like the ones he saw earlier, they were grown in dense clusters, and there seemed to be another several dozen of them.
After having experienced the Myriad Demon Pill harvest before, Yang Kai reached out to touch the tubers, which instantly peeled back like the petals of a flower, and a round Myriad Demon Pill fell out from it, which he quickly caught.
As he was about to stuff it into his Space Ring, Yang Kai seemed to have discovered something. Bringing up the Myriad Demon Pill and examining it closely, what he saw caused his brow to rise in pleasant surprise.
The Myriad Demon Pills here were bigger than the ones he had previously gotten his hands on, and their quality also seemed to be higher.
Yang Kai was unsure why this was the case, but he had no intentions of finding out. In any case, the better the Myriad Demon Pills were, the better their effects would be on the Embodiment.
As he moved into the depths, the harvest could be described as a great joy to Yang Kai as the scene inside the Myriad Demon Cave went beyond his expectations. Almost every three paces, he would find a whole cluster of Myriad Demon Pills. The smaller clusters contained about 20 to 30 pills, while the bigger ones had up to 50. It was simply not an amount that the harvest on Cloud Shadow could compare to.
It took a whole hour before Yang Kai arrived at the deepest depths of the Myriad Demon Cave, which was already the end of the trail. There were no paths forward, and he had already collected all the Myriad Demon Pills he passed along the way.
At the very end, when he took out the pills from his Space Ring for counting, Yang Kai found he actually harvested more than 1,400 Myriad Demon Pills in total! If he counted the ones that were eaten by the Abyssal Returner at the very beginning, then this Myriad Demon Cave alone had produced almost 1,500 Myriad Demon Pills.
This number shocked Yang Kai. Despite having expected it from the beginning, he was still astonished by the amount of Myriad Demon Pills harvested.
If he were to calculate it in its normal state, then Blood Flame Continent had disappeared for about a thousand years. Even if Myriad Demon Pills could be generated every hundred years, then only ten batches could be produced in a thousand years, which would yield several dozen pills each batch. Ten batches only amounted to several hundred, far less than the 1,500 pills he harvested today.
But Yang Kai knew that the Myriad Demon Pills here were not produced under normal circumstances, but were rather the result of the dramatic changes on Blood Flame Continent. These were the results of the Myriad Demon Cave suddenly erupting with immense suction power and wiping out the continent’s inhabitants with its devouring abilities.
But of course, if the essence of the Demon Race of the whole Blood Flame Continent were to be converted into Myriad Demon Pills, it would surely be far more than just 1,500, 15,000, or even 150,000. However, this continent was a dying part of the Demon Realm to begin with, so it was possible that the Myriad Demon Cave did not function properly. The fact that it was able to produce 1,500 high-quality pills in the Myriad Demon Cave was already an opportunity born out of fortune. Asking for more would be too greedy.
When Yang Kai came out from the Myriad Demon Cave, the Embodiment was still nowhere to be seen. But there was no need to look for it either as there was a subtle connection between them. If he did not find him in the cave, then the latter would definitely look for him on his own later.
On the other hand, this continent they were on…
Yang Kai pondered for a long time before making up his mind. Summoning the Sealed World Bead, under the stimulation of his techniques, a cloud of smoke burst out from it and it transformed into a humongous creature that resembled a fat tadpole. Only, it was nothing more than an outline without any features other than a gigantic mouth that looked big enough to swallow the Heavens and devour the Earth.
Opening its big red mouth, it bit down on the continent beneath it and with a crack, a large chunk of the continent went missing.
An unexpected change happened to the Sealed World Bead back then when Yang Kai returned to Heng Luo Star Field. Through various coincidences, it gained the ability to transform into this huge creature that could even devour planets. Gun-Gun, as Yang Kai named him, had already devoured several Cultivation Stars in Grand Desolation Star Field, causing the space inside the Sealed World Bead to become extremely vast. Now, all the living beings from those Cultivation Stars were existing peacefully inside the Small Sealed World.
Since no life was left on Blood Flame Continent, and the continent itself turned into barren land, it was suitable to become fodder for the Sealed World Bead.
After all, the Demon Realm’s World Principles still existed in this place, which would be very useful for perfecting the internal space of the Sealed World Bead. Since Blood Flame Continent could no longer return to the Demon Realm’s territory, Yang Kai naturally wouldn’t let such a huge resource go to waste.
After a few bites, the continent fragment Yang Kai was standing on quickly became smaller, leaving a haunting mass of nothingness where it used to exist.
In just a matter of days, the fragment was completely devoured by Gun-Gun, leaving no traces behind. Under Yang Kai’s control, Gun-Gun aimed at its next target, the neighbouring continent fragment.
The Embodiment finally returned at that point. He had obviously noticed the movements from this side and understood as soon as he saw Gun-Gun. Accepting the Space Ring that Yang Kai tossed over, he swept over it with his Divine Sense and instantly exclaimed, “So many!”
He was clearly surprised by the huge number of Myriad Demon Pills as well.
According to Yang Kai’s estimation, 3,000 Myriad Demon Pills would be enough for the Embodiment to break through to the Half-Saint Realm, which meant the goal was already half done. If they could find another place similar to the Blood Flame Continent, then they would be able to gather enough cultivation resources for the Embodiment to enter the Half-Saint Realm.
The Demon Realm had lost many continents over the years, with Blood Flame being just one of them. Now, with the help of Ah Wang, finding other lost continents couldn’t be simpler.
Yang Kai had already made the decision to search for other lost continents as soon as they were done here, so he could gather more Myriad Demon Pills. Once the Embodiment broke through to the Half-Saint Realm, his work in the Demon Realm would become much easier.
Wasn’t this just a perfect opportunity for him?
Before coming here, Heavens Revelations Great Emperor, Chu Tian Ji told Yang Kai that an opportunity was waiting for him in the Demon Realm, as well as a disaster. Yang Kai had a certain degree of trust in Heavens Revelations Great Emperor’s words as there was naturally a reason he was given the venerable title of Heavens Revelations. Only, if this was the opportunity, what was the disaster?
Could it be that his intentions were going to be exposed, and he was going to have a falling out with Yu Ru Meng?
Going against a Demon Saint in the Demon Realm would truly be a great disaster!
Gun-Gun needed time in order to devour all of Blood Flame Continent’s fragments so Yang Kai decided to oversee it himself while the Embodiment returned to the Small Sealed World to begin devouring and refining the Myriad Demon Pills.
The Myriad Demon Pills they obtained on Cloud Shadow Continent had all been swallowed up already but this time, the over 1,400 pills were obtained on Blood Flame Continent, which was no small number. Even with the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, the Embodiment would still require two months to completely refine this number.
Even though the Heaven Devouring Battle Law was powerful, it was not omnipotent. It was bound to have its own tolerances and limits. If too many Myriad Demon Pills were taken at a time, the Embodiment would need time to digest their essence so the effects could be maximized.
In the blink of an eye, more than 20 days passed. Gun-Gun finally managed to devour the entirety of Blood Flame Continent’s remnants. Not only had the space within the Sealed World Bead grown once again, it even adopted some of the Demon Realm’s World Principles.
The passageway that they came in from before had long disappeared, most likely because it was repaired by Cloud Shadow Continent’s World Principles.
Fortunately, Yang Kai had the Abyssal Returner, so he released her and had her search for traces before biting open a passage. Only then was Yang Kai able to return to Cloud Shadow Continent.
After gaining his bearings, Yang Kai made his way back to Cloud Shadow City.
When he entered the city and returned to the palace, the Demon Race guards all saluted him respectfully.
Lie Kuang was easily killed as soon as Yang Kai assumed his position, and the former’s dried-up corpse was still hanging from the highest spot on his former residence. No one dared to take it down.
Then, Yang Kai led his forces to fight against Blue Plains Continent, securing victory against a supposedly far stronger foe and killing six High-Rank Demon Kings, completely subduing Blue Plains Continent before he stabilized the last remaining Territory Gate with his own strength…
The events that took place in just a short few months were so shocking that even if they did not participate in them personally, the Demons at the palace still heard of them, so they had no reason to be disrespectful.
For the Demon Race, having a powerful boss made them feel proud.
Yang Kai didn’t see Lao Ke and the others, and had no idea what they were busy with, but he didn’t not intend to look for them.
He summoned Xiao Wu and told her to prepare some warm water so he could bathe and change his clothes.
Having been out the past few days, Yang Kai had naturally been covered in dust, so now was a good opportunity for him to relax and properly think about his next plan.
After a while, a huge pool of water with a comfortable temperature had been prepared along with flower petals sprinkled on its surface to give it a pleasant fragrance. Leaning against the sides of the pool, Yang Kai immersed his body in the water. With one hand draped over the edge, he casually picked up some jade slips from the side and looked through them.
These jade slips had been handed to him by Xiao Wu earlier. He was told that they were the information that the scouts from the two continents he sent out to hunt for news had brought back. All of these slips had been collected by her as Yang Kai wasn’t around.
Yang Kai did not specify what sort of information he wanted the scouts to obtain, only instructing them to report on all matters whether big or small. After all, he was searching for news related to Bright Moon Great Emperor, so Yang Kai didn’t dare to act overtly. He only hoped to be able to find any spider’s threads or horse tracks that led to Bright Moon Great Emperor’s location through this myriad of information…
Looking through each jade slip, most of them seemed to consist of trivial matters. Occasionally, there would be anecdotes that Yang Kai couldn’t even be bothered to pay attention to, but through the information gathered in these jade slips, he was able to gain some understanding of the unrest among the Demon Race.
The Demon Race had never been a quiet and peaceful race. Even as they were at war with the Star Boundary, internal struggles did not cease. Rather, the flames of war never settled. This day, the Demon King of this continent would enter into a conflict with the Demon King of that continent, and the next day, the Demon King of that continent would find helpers to get revenge. In short, many places were in utter chaos.
This convinced Yang Kai even more that the Demon Saints intended to thin the Demon Race population through the help of various means; otherwise, all they had to do was toss all these Demons onto the two worlds’ battlefields.
However, one of the jade slips revealed information that made Yang Kai a little concerned. The matter recorded on the jade slip was that regarding a place called Eternal Sky Continent. This continent originally had six Territory Gates that were connected to six different continents. But more than a year ago, four of the Territory Gates suddenly disappeared. Not only that, but the remaining two Territory Gates were heavily guarded. No one was allowed to enter or leave.
Nothing seemed strange about this information at first glance as, for nearly 10,000 years, Territory Gates had been disappearing all over the Demon Realm, and many continents had even disappeared completely. To the uninformed, Eternal Sky Continent seemed to be following in the footsteps of the various vanished continents.
Yang Kai’s eyes lit up at this information though.
Even though the time recorded on the information was not too clear, it was consistent with the outbreak of the Two Worlds Great War. In other words, Bright Moon Great Emperor had also fallen into the Demon Realm during that period.
And, the disappearance of four Territory Gates was too abnormal. The Territory Gates that were lost previously all showed abnormal activity before slowly vanishing, but four Territory Gates of Eternal Sky Continent seemed to have closed up bizarrely overnight, disappearing without a trace.
Such a situation could only mean that external forces were interfering with the four Territory Gates, or some great eruption of power caused the collapse of the four Territory Gates.
None but the Demon Saints could wield such vast power.
In other words, there was a high possibility that the Demon Saints did something on Eternal Sky Continent, and the only ones that could match the Demon Saints in a fight would be the Great Emperors!
In a flash, a full grasp on the situation seemed to have formed in Yang Kai’s mind. When the four Great Emperors ventured into the Demon Realm to investigate, they were ambushed by the Demon Saints, and Bright Moon Great Emperor sacrificed himself to delay the many Demon Saints, allowing Iron Blood and the others to escape back to the Star Boundary. Then, Bright Moon Great Emperor was pushed back all the way to Eternal Sky Continent before finally engaging the Demon Saints in a fight to the death. The fallout from that battle then destroyed those Territory Gates!
If this speculation was true, then Bright Moon Great Emperor must be on Eternal Sky Continent, but whether he was dead or alive was unknown. However, Bright Moon was a Great Emperor who had gained the Star Boundary’s recognition. If he truly met with sudden misfortune, there would definitely be signs in the Star Boundary. And, as Heavens Revelations Great Emperor had said, Bright Moon Great Emperor still retained a shred of vitality. For that reason, Yang Kai believed that Bright Moon Great Emperor was alive and was simply trapped somewhere.
[Eternal Sky Continent…] Yang Kai gripped the jade slip tightly, a look of excitement on his face.
He had finally found a clue after staying in the Demon Realm for such a long time, so his efforts had not been in vain. He quickly took out the map that he bought and investigated it. Once he had a clear look at Eternal Sky Continent’s location, Yang Kai couldn’t help but frown.
This Eternal Sky Continent was not in Yu Ru Meng’s territory, which made things a bit difficult for him.
If Eternal Sky Continent was one of Yu Ru Meng’s territories, then with his reputation as Great King, sneaking in would not be too difficult. But since Eternal Sky Continent was in the territory of another Demon Saint, things weren’t as simple.
After all, he was a Human. Yu Ru Meng attached great importance to him, even going so far as to use her Heart Seal Secret Technique in order to bring him back to the Demon Realm, but that did not mean that the other Demon Saints would necessarily think so highly of him. If he rashly ran into someone else’s territory, it would be laughable if he were to be caught and casually crushed to death.
But no matter what, he had to go to Eternal Sky Continent. At the very least, he needed to figure out whether Bright Moon Great Emperor was truly there or not. If he was, then Yang Kai would find a way to save him; if not, he had to continue seeking information.
But before that, it would be best if he had the Embodiment break through to the Half-Saint Realm. That would give him some security.
As Yang Kai was lost in thought, the sound of footsteps suddenly emerged from behind him. Frowning, Yang Kai put away the jade slips and map somewhat discontentedly, wondering to himself how Xiao Wu could be so thoughtless. He had clearly ordered her not to let anyone in.
Turning his head around though, Yang Kai was stunned for a moment.
The visitor was not Xiao Wu, but rather a woman with an enchanting figure, a charming face, and beautiful red lips. This woman seemed to be a Snow Demon, with long pale silver hair that cascaded down her face, outlining her skin which was as fair as snow. Wearing a white dress, she gave off a pure sense of holiness rather than anything demonic.
Such a reserved way of dressing formed a strong visual conflict with her alluring looks, giving one a sense of amazement at what neither seemed to be pure nor seductive.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but stare for a moment, secretly wondering to himself if there was such a person in the palace? How come he’d never met her before?
But, this woman seemed to be just a maidservant. She approached holding a tray carrying a cup of vibrant red Blood Wine, as well as a bunch of spirit fruits resembling grapes.
As their eyes met, the woman smiled, causing the world to instantly lose its colour. This mere smile was enough to cause the downfall of cities and actually put Yang Kai’s mind into a trance as well.
Fortunately, a cool sensation seeped out from the Soul Warming Lotus and abruptly brought him back to his senses.
In a flash, alarm bells began ringing in his heart. Yang Kai’s face darkened and he suddenly slapped a palm down at the pool of water. Emperor Qi surged as the water turned into countless tiny droplets and splashed towards the Snow Demon. Each one of the droplets was infused with Yang Kai’s Emperor Qi, causing them to carry immense force.
A trace of surprise flashed across the Snow Demon’s eyes as she clearly did not expect Yang Kai to regain his senses so quickly and react so nimbly and decisively, even launching an attack directly at her. Seeing the countless water droplets approaching though, she smiled elegantly and waved her hand. The tens of thousands of water droplets filled with Yang Kai’s Emperor Qi were suspended in front of her, as if they had been frozen.
When she looked back at Yang Kai, he had already taken advantage of the moment when her sleeves blocked her vision to rise up into the air. With a ferocious aura filled with destructive force, he threw a palm strike down without mercy.
The Snow Demon’s brow knit slightly as Yang Kai’s actions undoubtedly caused her some anger. Raising a fair jade hand, she met his attack head-on.
With a bang, a wave of pressure swept out. The tables in the room clattered whilst the water in the pool splashed out. Yang Kai showed a look of surprise when he discovered that he had greatly underestimated this woman. Though he did not use his full strength in that blow, it was not something any ordinary Demon King could casually take on. For the other party to be able to block his attack in such a calm and relaxed manner, she had to be at least a High-Rank Demon King, or even possibly… a Half-Saint!
If this were a month ago, then Yang Kai may still have felt worried. He was unable to withstand the might of a Half-Saint before, but now that the Embodiment had become the Master of Cloud Shadow Continent, enjoying its blessings, even if his opponent truly was a Half-Saint, he still wouldn’t be afraid. If he were provoked, he could just let the Embodiment out and guarantee that this woman would be beaten so badly that she wouldn’t even be able to recognize herself in the mirror. When that time came, he would show her what he was capable of.
When he landed, Yang Kai summoned his Myriads Sword. Pointing the tip of the blade at the Snow Demon, he raised his nostrils to the sky with insufferable arrogance and shouted, “Cheap slut, who are you!”
The Snow Demon’s already unhappy expression instantly turned icy cold, and the tray that she had been holding the whole while shook faintly. She was obviously extremely enraged and glared sharply at Yang Kai with her beautiful eyes.
“What did you say?” Her lips slightly curved, appearing like a smile, but it was clear from her eyes that she was not smiling at all.
“You heard me. Quickly announce your name and I may spare you your life!” Yang Kai coldly snorted. Only then did he have the time to take out a set of clothes from his Space Ring and casually wrap them around his waist to protect his vital area. He was completely naked before, but he couldn’t help it. This woman’s visit was too sudden, so much so that he didn’t even have the time to get dressed.
Regardless of the other party’s intentions, an uninvited entry alone was enough to make Yang Kai hostile towards her. He did not remember having a Demon King like her among his subordinates, and his opponent was clearly not weak. She was obviously not from Cloud Shadow Continent, nor from Blue Plains Continent. Even more ridiculously, this slut actually dressed up as a maidservant to approach him, only making him more and more confused and alert.
“Your courage isn’t small. How dare you speak to this Queen like that.” The Snow Demon was clearly on the verge of exploding, but inexplicably, she just smiled again.
“You’re the one whose courage is great, daring to barge in even while a man is bathing. A single woman being in the room with a single man, aren’t you afraid that something will happen?” While speaking, he even deliberately ran his eyes over her body, as if he was eager to profane it with his gaze.
The Snow Demon answered indifferently, “And what is it that you wish to happen?”
Yang Kai laughed, “When the mood strikes, whatever can happen will happen when the spear points at its mark.”
The Snow Demon’s expression became odd as she looked at him, but then she suddenly covered her mouth and laughed like a trembling flower branch. Though she appeared pure and holy, it did not mean that she did not understand Yang Kai’s words. However, the way she laughed made her seem seductive and charming.
“What’re you laughing at! You think this is funny? I’ll knock your teeth out if you dare laugh again,” Yang Kai cursed her out loud and in his heart, still flaring his nostrils at her. How could women in this world be so bold and outrageous? Yu Ru Meng was like this, now this Snow Demon was also like this. Even though he was practically naked at the moment, that did nothing to deter her.
It was a long while before the Snow Demon put away her smile and slowly shook her head, the hair behind her back dancing along to her movements like a silver spirit, “I was planning to give you a severe punishment, but seeing how amusing and interesting you are, I’ll let you off with just a light one.” After a pause, she tilted her head and looked at Yang Kai, “But then again, if Yu Ru Meng were to know how you teased this Queen, what do you think she would do to you?”
Yang Kai frowned, “It’s still not clear who will do what to whom here yet.”
Yang Kai’s arrogant stance stunned the Snow Demon for a moment, as if she did not expect him to show no regard for even Yu Ru Meng. As her beautiful eyes carefully examined Yang Kai, she slowly revealed a look of surprise, “How extravagant of her that she’d actually be willing to spend so much on you.”
Yang Kai was puzzled by her words, but before he could inquire further, Xiao Wu, who was outside, stumbled in alongside Li Shi Qing who lived next door. They had clearly heard the commotion, so they ran over to investigate.
But when she saw Yang Kai’s almost naked body, Li Shi Qing immediately covered her eyes and turned around.
*Hua la la…*
Two rows of soldiers also rushed in from outside with Lao Ke in the lead, filling up the room in an instant. Though the previous exchange between Yang Kai and the Snow Demon was short, they did make a great deal of noise. If even that were not enough to attract Lao Ke’s attention, then that would’ve been a dereliction of duty; after all, he was the city palace’s Commander.
“Great King, what happened!” Lao Ke asked in an alarmed voice.
Yang Kai immediately cursed, “You group of wastes! If you can’t even realize when someone sneaks inside, what does this King need you for?” Even though the Snow Demon was a Half-Saint, and not someone Lao Ke could compete with, it was still very inappropriate to allow her to barge into his room. At the very least, he should’ve been aware of it.
Only then did Lao Ke see the silver-haired woman with the alluring figure in the room, and a layer of sweat instantly built up on his forehead. Swiftly, he cupped his fists and pleaded, “Please calm your anger, Great King!”
Looking up once more, his eyes that were looking at the Snow Demon’s back were filled with an outpour of rage.
Yang Kai waved his hand impatiently, “What are you still standing around for? Take her down!”
He had been unable to test this woman’s depth earlier, but now he could use Lao Ke’s hand to probe her.
Lao Ke immediately accepted the order and while holding in his building anger, his Demon Qi surged and sent a palm towards the Snow Demon’s shoulder, changing into a claw mid-strike. He clearly intended to capture her before considering anything else.
Lao Ke’s anger-fueled strike was no joke. Despite his advanced age, Lao Ke was still a High-Rank Demon King after all.
But the Snow Demon remained nonchalant, staying calm as she stood there unmoving. Then, her body suddenly turned to her side and her beautiful eyes looked askance at Lao Ke, a light smile hanging on her lips.
Four eyes suddenly met, and Lao Ke’s pupils shrank to the size of a needlepoint. The burgeoning aura of a High-Rank Demon King disappeared into nothingness like a snowflake under the blazing sun. The claw that was less than a meter away from the Snow Demon’s slender shoulder stopped abruptly, and the mad winds it stirred up simply blew past the Snow Demon’s silvery hair.
Time seemed to freeze.
More and more sweat gathered on Lao Ke’s forehead, which converged into beads the size of beans before sliding down his face, his body trembling uncontrollably…
Xiao Wu also could not help but cover her mouth as she looked shocked at the Snow Demon’s profile.
Seeing this situation, Yang Kai frowned. He glanced at Xiao Wu, then at Lao Ke. All of a sudden, things seemed to become a bit complicated as he could clearly see the fear in Lao Ke’s eyes…
Did Lao Ke recognize this woman? What were her origins, to be able to cause so much fear in a High-Rank Demon King. Sure enough, she was a Half-Saint, wasn’t she?
But just as he was lost in thought, Lao Ke quickly withdrew his hand and fell to his knees, bowing his head low and shouting in a trembling voice, “Lao Ke greets Holy Venerable!”
*Hua la la…*
The Demons who were all originally watching the Snow Demon vigilantly also fell to their knees.
Yang Kai’s eyes bulged so much they practically popped out of their sockets as he stared at the Snow Demon in front of him with utter confusion and shock.
[Holy Venerable?] He heard what Lao Ke called this woman just now. Only the twelve Demons who stood at the top of the world were qualified to possess the title of Holy Venerable. Even the Half-Saints under them were not qualified to be called so.
[This woman is actually a Demon Saint!?]
Yang Kai was instantly drenched in cold sweat as things were really not looking good!
He originally thought that the intruder was merely a Half-Saint and that if he joined hands with the Embodiment, with the convenience of them occupying Cloud Shadow Continent, they wouldn’t have to fear a Half-Saint too much. But if they were facing off against a Demon Saint, the situation was very different.
Even with Cloud Shadow Continent’s blessings, Yang Kai and the Embodiment would probably still be easily pinched to death by this opponent.
Yang Kai was now cursing incessantly in his heart, [If you’re a Demon Saint, then make it clear from the beginning! What are you doing sneaking in dressed as a maidservant?]
It was no wonder why Lao Ke and the others did not notice anything. For a Demon Saint, sneaking in unnoticed by a bunch of Demon Kings was as simple as taking a stroll in their backyard.
But regardless of the situation, it was probably going to be hard to wrap things up peacefully now. Yang Kai had no idea what this Demon Saint came to Cloud Shadow Continent for, but she was clearly after him. If not, she wouldn’t have sneakily approached him. Fortunately, he had the Soul Warming Lotus; otherwise, he would have completely fallen under her influence just now.
This was a worrying situation. After Lao Ke called out the words ‘Holy Venerable’ Yang Kai’s eyes began drifting from side to side, searching for an escape route.
With things having reached this point, Yang Kai took decisive action and pushed his Space Principles with the intention of escaping from here. No matter what his opponent’s intentions were, a Demon Saint wasn’t someone he could possibly fight against now. If he were truly to fall into her hands, then even death would be an extravagant hope.
Unlike Yu Ru Meng who was restrained by the Heart Seal Secret Technique and would not harm him no matter how he treated her, this woman was completely free of such worries. Who knows whether she had any sort of torture session prepared for him…
The moment Yang Kai tried to push his Space Principles though, the Snow Demon suddenly turned her head around and smiled, “Where do you think you’re going?”
Saying so, she raised her hand gently and flicked a finger toward Yang Kai’s direction.
A prison formed around him, sealing off this section of the world. Yang Kai’s body, which was just beginning to flicker, was knocked back from the Void. Then, he heard a thud and a pain in his head. Suddenly, he saw stars in his eyes while his surroundings turned upside down. Affected by an impact force, he flew out backwards and smashed into a wall before falling to the ground.
When Yang Kai regained his footing, he grimaced in pain for quite a while, reaching a hand up to stroke his forehead, feeling a large bump on it…
Looking up, he saw the Snow Demon looking at him with an amused expression. A mischievous look on her face, her lotus feet gently stepping towards him.
Yang Kai quickly raised a hand, “Let’s have a proper conversation. Cultured people like us should use our words rather than our fists, right?”
The Snow Demon revealed a light but charming smile, but Yang Kai only felt that her smile was more vicious than any reaper’s blade. He laughed bitterly in his heart that his luck was truly bad. He was just minding his own business in the main palace when a Demon Saint suddenly snuck in.
Now, the only one who could save him was Yu Ru Meng, but that woman was still back on Enchantment Continent, which was over a hundred thousand kilometres from here. By the time she received the news, his corpse would probably have gone cold.
“Use our words rather than our fists?” The Snow Demon pursed her lips into a smile, causing her red lips to look even more glistening, “So you’re actually a gentleman? Did you have fun scolding me earlier?” By the end of the sentence, her voice had already grown slightly cold. Calling her ‘cheap slut’ really did ignite a flame of anger in her; after all, when had anyone insulted her, one of the Twelve Demon Saints, so blatantly before?
Even Yu Ru Meng would pester Yang Kai for quite a while if he were to curse her like that, much less a different Demon Saint he had just met.
Yang Kai said solemnly, “What happened earlier was just a misunderstanding, please don’t take it personally, Holy Venerable. Let me put it this way, if someone were to enter uninvited like Holy Venerable while you were enjoying a bath, how would Holy Venerable react?”
When Lao Ke, who was half-kneeling on the ground, heard this, his back immediately turned wet with sweat, thinking to himself that this Great King really dared to say whatever he wanted. The Holy Venerable was a woman, but he actually dared to mention bathing in front of her…
The Snow Demon replied indifferently, “Naturally I would destroy their body, then pull out their Soul, and torture it for all eternity. But how can you compare with this Saint? Rest assured, this Saint won’t kill you. At the very most, I’ll just rip out your tongue.”
Yang Kai grinned wryly. Seeing that his opponent’s murderous intent did not fall and instead rose as she approached him, he knew that there was no way to escape some suffering today.
At that moment, his will to resist swelled, fueled by his anger and indignation, “This King may not be as strong as you, but I’m afraid ripping out my tongue won’t be that easy! If Holy Venerable insists on this course of action, then this King will have no choice but to resist to his death.” Raising the Myriads Sword horizontally in front of him, his expression instantly became tranquil as an ancient well.
The Snow Demon giggled, “Now things are getting interesting. If you don’t struggle, then this Saint won’t be able to have fun either…”
[Fun your mother’s head!] Yang Kai cursed in his heart. Today’s incident was purely an unwarranted disaster. If the other party had not snuck into this place, then he wouldn’t have been dragged into all these troublesome things. Watching the woman approach him step by step, Yang Kai quickly focused his thoughts, not daring to show the slightest carelessness.
The world hummed as everyone in the room felt like a mountain was pressing down on their chests, making them short of breath. The ones with lower cultivation, such as the Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals, were even bleeding miserably from their nose and their ears.
Ten paces, five paces, three…
As the Snow Demon came closer and closer to Yang Kai, her aura also reached a peak. Then, all of a sudden, a snort came from behind together with a certain voice, “Bei Li Mo, have you messed around enough yet?”
As soon as the words came out, the Snow Demon, who had arrived right in front of Yang Kai, finally stopped. Turning her head back, she smiled, “So you’re finally willing to show yourself? Are you afraid I’ll really rip out your man’s tongue?”
The voice answered icily, “You can try.”
Yang Kai looked stunned as his eyes travelled across the gap between the Snow Demon’s neck. The one speaking earlier was none other than Xiao Wu, who had followed him all the way from Enchantment Continent to Cloud Shadow Continent.
But at this moment, the maidservant, Xiao Wu, who was always subservient to Yang Kai, suddenly had a large change in her demeanour. Even though the crisscross of scars on her face remained, a terrifying aura now surged from her body and her bearing suddenly became extremely imposing. Her eyes were filled with anger, as if they were overlooking the masses from above the clouds.
[Yu Ru Meng?]
The aura emanating from Xiao Wu’s body at the moment clearly belonged to Yu Ru Meng. A thought flashed in Yang Kai’s mind and he immediately understood what happened.
[Soul Descent!]
Long ago, he had encountered the same situation with one of Yao Lin’s guards. Traversing across space, Serene Soul Great Emperor’s Soul descended to save his daughter.
At this moment, Xiao Wu’s situation was exactly the same as that of Yao Lin’s guard. Yu Ru Meng’s Soul had clearly manifested in her body.
Only then did he understand why Yu Ru Meng was so calm and composed with him coming alone to Cloud Shadow Continent and had Xiao Wu follow him back then.
Yang Kai thought that Yu Ru Meng had Xiao Wu serve him closely in order to keep an eye on him and stop him from fooling around, but now it seemed that Xiao Wu was the carrier she prepared to receive her Soul Descent today!
Soul Descend was not an easy technique to use, and certainly wasn’t usable on just anyone with the necessary strength. A variety of Secret Techniques needed to be in place to support it.
If this Snow Demon called Bei Li Mo had not come today and pressured him step after step, Yu Ru Meng obviously wouldn’t have shown up. Yang Kai was even suspecting that Bei Li Mo had acted this way on purpose; otherwise, with her ability, she wouldn’t have needed to go through such trouble just to teach him a lesson.
Her true target was Yu Ru Meng, and bullying Yang Kai was just a means to an end.
Only, if she wanted to look for Yu Ru Meng, she could have gone straight to the Enchantment Continent’s Holy City. Why did she come around here to bully him? Yang Kai couldn’t help but complain silently.
Bei Li Mo chuckled, “Not to mention a mere Soul Descend, even if you were to show up with your real body, do you think this Saint would be afraid of you?” They were both Demon Saints, so Bei Li Mo really didn’t fear Yu Ru Meng. Turning around, she looked at Yang Kai again with a slight smile, “I’ll rip out his tongue and break his teeth right now!”
“You dare?!” Yu Ru Meng bellowed, “Touch a single one of his hairs and this Saint will make sure not even a dog or chicken remains on your Soaring Snow Continent!”
As soon as those words came out, Bei Li Mo turned back to look at Yu Ru Meng in a daze, seemingly in disbelief for a while before suddenly covering her mouth and laughing. She was laughing so hard that tears were almost spilling from her eyes.
Yu Ru Meng looked coldly at her, then spared a worried glance at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai simply shrugged. He only felt that something wasn’t quite right with this Bei Li Mo’s head. She was a Demon Saint after all, how could her mood swings be so violent?
It was a while before Bei Li Mo’s laughter subsided and she looked Yang Kai up and down with interest, “It was just a suspicion before, but I didn’t think it was actually true. Did you really use that sort of Secret Technique on him?”
“None of your damn business!” Yu Ru Meng coldly snorted.
Bei Li Mo seemed to lament, “The Heart Seal Secret Technique can only be performed once in your life. Is it really worth it for you to invest so much in this boy?”
Yu Ru Meng still repeated, “None of your damn business!”
Bei Li Mo slowly shook her head without the least bit of concern. She even reached out her jade white hand to lift up Yang Kai’s chin lightly.
Yang Kai looked annoyed, but since the other party’s fist was bigger, he could not blow up at her and could do nothing more than turn his head over to rid himself of her teasing. He had a confused look on his face, feeling as if the roles had been switched. Shouldn’t he be the one teasing her as the man? Bei Li Mo hummed lightly, “He has quite a temper. Don’t think that Yu Ru Meng can save you right now. Only a wisp of her Soul is here, so there’s nothing she can do to this Saint.”
Yang Kai sighed, “If you two have business, then you can talk it out yourselves. Just leave me out of it.”
Bei Li Mo hummed, “But I deliberately want to drag you in!”
Saying so, her jade white hand moved, hooking around Yang Kai’s neck. Shocked, Yang Kai instinctively wanted to resist, but a force he could not resist passed through her jade white hand that instantly made him unable to move.
In the next moment, the jade white hand pressed down. Yang Kai’s head lowered, and his entire face was buried into a very soft and sweet position. Opening his eyes wide to look, he could still see a deep, infinite valley through the dim light.
[Damn, what is this situation!] Yang Kai was utterly bewildered.
He instinctively drew in a breath, and a sweet, intoxicating fragrance filled his nostrils. He couldn’t help but lose himself in indulgence as his blood began to boil.
“You court death!” A low roar passed through Yu Ru Meng’s gritted teeth. Even without looking, Yang Kai could imagine her angry face. She could tolerate Yang Kai messing around with Su Yan and the others, and even tolerate him indulging himself in debauchery with wine and women, but she simply could not tolerate Bei Li Mo taking advantage of Yang Kai.
This woman was her natural rival and the two had been hostile towards each other for over ten thousand years. They were constantly embroiled in a messy conflict and had been fighting for many years without a clear victor. Now, for her to tease Yang Kai with no holds barred, Bei Li Mo was clearly just acting to piss her off. Otherwise, how could an honourable Demon Saint act in such an uncouth manner?
Bei Li Mo ignored her and just lightly breathed into Yang Kai’s ear, “Boy, what Yu Ru Meng can give you, this Saint can also give you. This Saint can offer you even more than her, so why don’t you come with me instead?”
Yang Kai mustered a muffled response, “Never. Ru Meng and I are deeply in love with one another. Both Heaven and Earth can lay witness to that fact and my loyalty can never be swayed. It’s not something a woman like you can pry apart with just a few words.”
Bei Li Mo snickered, “Deeply in love with one another? I doubt that. Do you know what Secret Technique she used on you? She’s a Charm Demon, and all the feelings you’re experiencing now are fabricated thanks to that Secret Technique. If you come with me, I can help you dissolve that Heart Seal.”
Yang Kai rolled his eyes to himself as this was a truth he understood long ago; what’s more, he had already dealt with that damned Secret Technique himself, so would he still need her to come beat on a dead horse? As such, he didn’t hesitate to reject her, “No need, we’re doing fine. We’re fine now, and we’ll be fine in the future. Ru Meng and I will love each other life after life, till the seas dry up and the mountains collapse, that will never change.”
When the infuriated Yu Ru Meng heard those words, half of her anger dissipated at once. Her eyes looked tender enough as if they could melt away the world.
Bei Li Mo snorted, but she also knew that both Yang Kai and Yu Ru Meng would see each other as the most important person in each other’s lives under the effects of the Heart Seal Secret Technique, so it was impossible to move him with just a few simple words. Only, it was a rare chance for her to be able to catch hold of Yu Ru Meng’s tail, so she was a little reluctant to let it go just like that.
Yang Kai added, “You, on the other hand, I’d advise you to leave now, otherwise please don’t blame me for being impolite!” Sure enough, this was an amazing position to be in, but it was really a blow to his face. Being pressed to this woman’s chest and unable to move, even if the other party was a Demon Saint, he would still become a laughingstock if word were to get out of this happening.
“Oh?” Bei Li Mo, who had already lost the intention to tease him, was about to let go, but she wasn’t in such a hurry anymore after hearing those words. Cheerfully she said, “What are you planning to do to this… mm…”
After a strange muffled moan, Bei Li Mo quickly backed up, a blush surfacing on her fair face as she stared angrily at the front.
At that moment, this man had actually bit her mercilessly. Even though it was not in a vital position, he had still profaned her sacred peaks with his foul mouth.
“I warned you!” Yang Kai sneered at her.
Bei Li Mo’s face turned frosty as she snarled grimly, “You court death!” Murderous intent surged, causing her hair to flutter despite there being no wind.
Behind her though, Yu Ru Meng said indifferently, “I forgot to mention, this Saint has already begun making her way towards Soaring Snow Continent. If you don’t want this Saint to shatter your precious home, you better start behaving.”
Bei Li Mo may not be too concerned if it were any other continent, but Soaring Snow Continent was very important to her. It was where she was born, raised, and rose to fame. This time, it was also because of Soaring Snow Continent that she came looking for Yang Kai. If Yu Ru Meng really shattered her main continent, then it would have a huge impact on her.
Bei Li Mo knew that with Yu Ru Meng impeding her, there was no way she could do anything to Yang Kai, unless she was ready to completely fall out with her. As such, she couldn’t help but snort coldly and grit her teeth, glaring at Yang Kai, “This Queen will settle accounts with you next time.”
After withdrawing her murderous intent, she turned around and looked at Yu Ru Meng, “Let’s talk.”
“What do you want to talk about?” Yu Ru Meng asked her.
Bei Li Mo smiled, then Divine Sense surged as she began discussing something with Yu Ru Meng.
No one knew about the contents of the two Demon Saints’ conversation. Only, from the changes in the two’s expressions, it was clear that there was an argument before a compromise was finally reached.
It was only after some time that Bei Li Mo declared, “It’s settled, then.”
Turning around to look at Yang Kai, she smirked, “This Saint will be waiting for you.”
With that, she flicked her sleeve and left.
“Crazy bitch!” Yang Kai muttered before reaching up to rub his forehead. He had his forehead flicked by her earlier, and now a large bulge had swollen up on his head that did not ease even now. That woman was also heavy-handed. If she had flicked anyone else this hard, half of their life would probably have been lost.
“All of you, withdraw!” Yu Ru Meng waved her hand and ordered.
Lao Ke and the others quickly accepted the order and retreated.
Once the door was shut, Yu Ru Meng turned to Yang Kai and asked with concern, “Are you alright?”
With fear lingering on his face, Yang Kai slowly nodded his head, “I’m fine. But what’s the situation with that woman?”
Yu Ru Meng sighed, “She came to seek you out for help.”
Yang Kai sneered, “Then I don’t see the least bit of sincerity from her.” After a moment of silence, he simply asked, “Territory Gates?”
If there was anything he could help the Demon Saints with right now, it would be to repair and maintain their failing Territory Gates. There was no way his actions on Cloud Shadow could be hidden from the watchful gaze of others. Right now, Cloud Shadow Continent had two functioning Territory Gates, one of which was stabilized by Yang Kai while the other had been restored by him.
Yu Ru Meng had also mentioned in the past that strange things had been happening to the Territory Gates of many continents. What was true of Yu Ru Meng’s territory was naturally true of the territories of other Demon Saints. Since Yang Kai had the ability to repair these gates, it was only natural that these Demon Saints would have their eyes on him.
Only, Bei Li Mo’s territory was very close to here. Since she was neighbours with Yu Ru Meng, she had been the first to rush over.
In other words, even if Bei Li Mo did not come today, there would still be a Nan Li Mo and a Dong Li Mo looking for him in the future.
(Note: Bei = North, Nan = South, Dong = East)
Yu Ru Meng nodded, “It is exactly for that reason. She wants you to go to her territory and restore her lost Territory Gates, as well as stabilize the ones that are failing.”
“Did you agree to it?” Yang Kai frowned.
Yu Ru Meng sighed, “What else could I do? These things will have to happen sooner or later.”
Even though she had Xiao Wu follow Yang Kai in preparation for encounters like this, she herself was clear that he would eventually attract the attention of other Demon Saints with his abilities, so she might as well take a proactive approach rather than allow those Demon Saints to band together and pressure her. What’s more, with such abilities to back Yang Kai up, no one would dare to take his life in the Demon Realm.
“What price did she have to pay?” Yang Kai asked.
“5,000 Myriad Demon Pills.”
“Huo, that’s a lot!” Yang Kai raised his brow and said with no trace of politeness, “I want half!”
Yu Ru Meng was amused, “What do you need Myriad Demon Pills for?” Even though Yang Kai experienced cultivation dissonance in the Star Boundary and possessed Demon Essence, Myriad Demon Pills should still be useless to him. It would only cause him harm to refine them.
“Why do you care? Just tell me whether it’s a yes or a no.” Yu Ru Meng was aware of the Embodiment’s existence, but he didn’t intend to tell her about the details at this time either, lest she think too much. But then again, Cloud Shadow Continent was Yu Ru Meng’s territory. Now that the Embodiment had refined Cloud Shadow’s Source and become the Master of this continent, if Yu Ru Meng were to personally visit, she would definitely find a few clues.
After all, it wasn’t easy to deceive a Demon Saint. But right now, only a wisp of her Soul was visiting across space, so Yang Kai wasn’t afraid of exposing anything.
“Fine, fine. I’ll give it all to you, alright?” Even though 5,000 Myriad Demon Pills was a huge sum, equivalent to the harvest of several dozens to a hundred continents added together, it still wasn’t enough to enter Yu Ru Meng’s eyes. She had been a Demon Saint for many years, so the Myriad Demon Pills she had on hand were countless.
Following these words, Yu Ru Meng shot Yang Kai a glance that caused him to shiver and avert his gaze.
If it were Yu Ru Meng in her own body, then this would’ve been a pleasing sight to behold that would arouse one’s heart, but the key point was that her Soul Descend target was Xiao Wu. Even though this girl’s figure was not bad, the crisscrossed centipede-like scars on her face were a little revolting, so how could Yang Kai dare to look at it more?
But unexpectedly, Yu Ru Meng wouldn’t relent. She walked right to him and grabbed his collar with one hand. Looking up at him, she gritted her teeth, “Why aren’t you looking at me? Is it because you think I’m very ugly right now?”
Yang Kai shot a quick glance at her before averting his gaze again, “This is Xiao Wu’s face, not yours. What does it have to do with you whether it’s ugly or not?”
Yu Ru Meng was angry, “Good, all you smelly men are the same. You can’t take your eyes off beautiful women, but you wouldn’t even spare an ugly one a glance! If I were to become ugly one day, would you not even be willing to look at me anymore?”
[She even wants to argue about that?] Yang Kai really had no idea what she was thinking and had no idea whether to laugh or cry, “Stop joking, you’re a Demon Saint. Who could possibly ruin your appearance?”
Yu Ru Meng gritted her teeth, “I’ll disfigure my face and come to you right now! I’d like to see what sort of reaction you’ll have.”
Yang Kai wasn’t going to pay her any attention since this woman was obviously just being nonsensical, but when he thought about her actually doing it if he were to ignore her, then things would only get harder to deal with. Sighing in his heart, he lowered his head and looked in front of him, his eyes instantly becoming filled with tender love as he said in a deep voice, “Ru Meng, no matter what you look like, my feelings for you will never change. What I said was not for Bei Li Mo to hear, but words from the bottom of my heart.”
While saying that, Yang Kai caught her hand and placed it on his chest as if to allow her to feel his sincerity. After saying that, he leaned down slowly and firmly, moving closer and looking at her with an unmoving gaze.
Yu Ru Meng was stunned in place, but the quivering of her eye and lashes revealed the fluctuations in her emotions. Just as Yang Kai was about to place his lips on hers, Yu Ru Meng suddenly twisted her body and stepped back away from him. Biting her red lips, she said, “You’ll even kiss Xiao Wu? You really have no bottom line!”
Yang Kai smiled. At that moment, he felt a warm feeling inside him, “Since you’ve already manifested in her, then the one standing in front of me is not Xiao Wu, but the one who lingers in my soul and dreams.”
Of course, inside Yang Kai was breathing a sigh of relief. He almost had to go through with the act he’d put up. Fortunately, he was certain Yu Ru Meng wouldn’t allow him to have intimate contact with other women; otherwise, he would not have dared to act like that. Sure enough, it was worth taking risks sometimes.
But the last sentence undoubtedly broke through Yu Ru Meng’s final psychological line of defence. Despite being a mighty Demon Saint, she was acting shy just like a young, innocent girl. Both angry and happy, she muttered, “At least you still have some conscience. Seeing how well you performed, I’ll let you go on the matter earlier.”
Yang Kai was confused, “What matter earlier?”
Yu Ru Meng glared at him, “Shouldn’t you know what matter it is?”
Only then did Yang Kai realize that she meant Bei Li Mo pinning him to her chest, and immediately retorted, “But I can’t be blamed for that! She’s a Demon Saint. If she really did mean to do anything to me, then I wouldn’t have the power to resist her…”
“Hmph!” Yu Ru Meng spat disdainfully before eyeing him sidelong, “Did you enjoy yourself?”
A warm colour surfaced on Yang Kai’s face, “That matter was a shame on this King’s life. I’ll make sure she pays for it one day!” He made it sound convincing, but in fact, he really did enjoy himself…
“Forget it, if I say I’ll let it go, then I’ll let it go. You, on the other hand, best be careful with that cheap thing. I may have promised to have you visit her territory in order to repair the Territory Gates, but she definitely won’t give up so easily. I’ve always been at odds with her, so don’t fall for her tricks.”
Yang Kai frowned and asked, “Can I not go?”
He had just gotten clues about Bright Moon Great Emperor and intended to head to Eternal Sky Continent to investigate as soon as possible, but he didn’t expect something like this to happen. He had no idea whether Eternal Sky Continent was in Bei Li Mo’s territory or not, but if it was, then he wouldn’t mind; otherwise, it would be a waste of time.
Bei Li Mo’s territory bordered Yu Ru Meng’s, and from the distance between here and Eternal Sky Continent from the map, Yang Kai estimated that there was little hope that it was part of her territory.
Yu Ru Meng smiled bitterly, “You won’t be able to hide from this one. The reason why I took the trouble of bringing you back to the Demon Realm was for the Territory Gates. If the other Demon Saints know you have this ability, then how could they just leave you alone? You’ll have to work hard for a while. For a long time to come in the future, you may end up running around each and every continent in the Demon Realm. As for your safety, you don’t have to worry too much about that. They won’t put a finger on you with me around.”
Speaking up to this point, Yang Kai knew that he wouldn’t be able to refuse; however, the latter part of Yu Ru Meng’s sentence made him brighten up. It was as she said, the other Demon Saints also valued his ability to repair the Territory Gates, so he would be able to enter Eternal Sky Continent sooner or later.
But it was still better to do this sooner rather than later. If he delayed for too long, then it would not be good if Bright Moon were to meet with any accidents.
After a sigh, Yang Kai asked, “Then, when should I head over to Bei Li Mo’s territory?”
Yu Ru Meng answered, “After some time. Deal with the Territory Gates in my territory first. By the way, since you can even reactivate Territory Gates that have disappeared before, what are the chances you can find those lost continents?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “Those lost Territory Gates can be repaired because the link between the two continents still exists and some traces can still be found. However, I’m helpless with the lost continents.” This wasn’t a lie. With his own abilities, it was in fact impossible for him to find those lost continents. With the Abyssal Returner’s help, however, things were different.
Only he knew about the situation in Blood Flame Continent. Maybe even Yu Ru Meng and the other Demon Saints had no idea that once a continent disappeared, it would become barren, lifeless, and slowly collapse. Even if they could be found, there would be no meaning to it.
But Yang Kai did not make things too definite, “Perhaps I can do something about it if I can gain deeper comprehension in the Dao of Space.”
Yu Ru Meng wasn’t too disappointed about this and just told Yang Kai to try his best, not asking anything more.
After that, Yang Kai asked her about matters relating to the Two Worlds Great War and got to know that the battle had escalated over on that side. Half-Saint and Pseudo-Great Emperors often appeared on the battlefield and fought to the death, causing casualties on both sides.
This fact stunned Yang Kai. It hadn’t been that long since the outbreak of war yet the fighting had already become so intense? If this lasted for a few more years, then he had no idea whether the Star Boundary could hold on. Before coming to the Demon Realm, he wasn’t too sure about the Demon Realm’s background and strength, but after arriving here he discovered that the number of top Masters in the Demon Realm was truly abundant compared to the Star Boundary. Even if they were to fight a mutually destructive battle, the Demon Realm wouldn’t suffer a loss.
Once the Demon Saints and the Great Emperors entered the battlefield, it would be the final showdown.
Time. In the end, it was all about time! Yang Kai was worried and had no idea what he could do here in the Demon Realm to help the Star Boundary. Even if he could shake up the Demon Realm with Cloud Shadow Continent’s power, that measly bit of disturbance would not be able to shake the Demon Realm’s foundation.
Yu Ru Meng left soon after, so Yang Kai picked up an unconscious Xiao Wu and carried her back to her room.
A Soul Descent did not come without side effects on Xiao Wu’s body. Even though Yu Ru Meng had already greatly restrained her power, the Soul of a Demon Saint was still not something that Xiao Wu could withstand. So, after Yu Ru Meng left her body, Xiao Wu collapsed limply.
Yang Kai had no doubt that if Yu Ru Meng were to really fight with Bei Li Mo, then no matter who won, Xiao Wu would surely lose her life.
After settling Xiao Wu down, he left the room just to see Li Shi Qing standing timidly in the doorway. Four eyes suddenly met, and Li Shi Qing had a somewhat complex yet fearful expression on her face.
“Is there anything you need?” Yang Kai tilted his head at her.
Li Shi Qing pursed her red lips and seemed to want to talk, but paused again. Even after struggling for a while, she still did not make a sound.
Impatient, Yang Kai turned around to leave, but he didn’t expect her to grab onto his sleeve to stop him.
Yang Kai sighed, “Just speak if there’s something you want to say. Don’t pester me if you don’t need anything. I’ve dealt with enough for the day.”
Li Shi Qing braced herself and said, “Can I follow you…”
“Follow me? Where?” It was impossible that she had heard anything from his conversation with Yu Ru Meng just now, so what did these words mean?
“I mean, can you take me with you whenever you leave in the future?” Li Shi Qing looked up and shot him a quick glance before quickly dropping her head again.
Yang Kai frowned, wondering to himself, [what am I going to do with a punching bag like you?] It was for that reason that he left her behind at the palace. Just as he was about to refuse, his heart suddenly clenched and he turned his eyes towards a corner of the corridor.
There, Bo Ya quickly retracted her head.
Yang Kai shot a thoughtful glance at Li Shi Qing and suddenly understood why she would make this request. It was because she couldn’t stand being harassed by Bo Ya any longer!
“Get over here!” Yang Kai yelled towards the corner, “What are you sneaking around for? Do you think I’m blind?”
Having been called out by Yang Kai, Bo Ya had no choice but to walk over reluctantly and squeeze out a smile, “What a coincidence, you’re both here?”
Yang Kai shot her a firm look and pointed at Li Shi Qing, “Stay away from her in the future. If you dare disturb her again, I’ll break your legs!”
Bo Ya’s face turned white before she fumed, “Don’t go too far! This is my freedom, who are you to control me!?”
Yang Kai sneered, but instead of retorting, he calmly took out the Soul Puppet and curved his finger, pointing it at the Soul Puppet’s forehead as if he were going to flick it…
Bo Ya immediately reached up to cover her forehead and took several steps back, a look of fear in her eyes, “Don’t be impulsive! We can talk about this!”
“Do you remember what I said?” Yang Kai asked sternly.
Bo Ya looked reluctant, but she could only nod.
Only then did Yang Kai turn back to Li Shi Qing, “Come to me in the future if you have any problems.”
Li Shi Qing answered with an ‘okay’ and shot him a grateful look.
Yang Kai waved his hand and left, leaving Bo Ya to stare at Li Shi Qing. The look in her eyes was sorrowful and she almost seemed like she was going to cry, only to receive an apologetic smile in response.
Once he returned to his room, Yang Kai studied the Demon Realm’s map again, focusing on where the Territory Gates of Eternal Sky Continent connected to. He also called Lao Ke over to ask some questions before he could get a lead.
The next day, he set off alone.
Since he had already agreed with Yu Ru Meng that he would deal with the Territory Gates in her territory, Yang Kai naturally wouldn’t delay things. The Two World Great War had already escalated, and the battle between the two races could turn cataclysmic at any time. There was not much time left for him and Bright Moon Great Emperor.
Yu Ru Meng controlled roughly 50 continents, nearly half of which had Half-Saints overseeing them. In other words, the number of Half-Saints among Yu Ru Meng’s subordinates alone was 23. Bai Zhuo and Yue Sang were only two of them. The rest of the 11 Demon Saints were also not too different from Yu Ru Meng in this regard, so there were nearly 300 Half-Saint level Masters in the entire Demon Realm, which was a terrifying number.
Yang Kai had no idea how many Pseudo-Great Emperors there were in the Star Boundary, but it was obviously impossible for it to reach such a number. Even half of that number would have been an unexpected boon to them.
And each one of these Half-Saints was the master of one continent. But of course, among the many continents, masterless continents like Cloud Shadow also existed, making up more than half of the numbers.
But there would always be a chance for new Half-Saints to be born in these masterless continents. That was why Bai Zhuo said back then that the number of continents a Demon Saint controlled was directly related to their strength, not just because more Myriad Demon Pills could be harvested with a larger territory, but partly because of the comparison of Half-Saint subordinates one would have.
Yang Kai finally understood why Bai Zhuo was so friendly to him back then, even going as far as to keep him safe even at the cost of confronting Yue Sang.
This was due to his relationship with Yu Ru Meng, and also due to his sour relationship with Yue Sang to begin with. But mostly, because he needed Yang Kai’s help. As a Half-Saint, Bai Zhuo had his own continent as well, and the situation of his continent was not too far from Cloud Shadow’s. Most of its Territory Gates have already disappeared, leaving only two behind, and one of them was extremely unstable. For the past hundred years, no one had dared to pass through that Territory Gate.
Since he needed Yang Kai’s help, he naturally had no choice but to view Yang Kai in a positive light.
Cloud Shadow was a masterless continent, that was why Yu Ru Meng asked Yang Kai to come here as his first stop. She definitely had the intention to test Yang Kai using this place. If Yang Kai really was able to repair the Territory Gates, then there could be no better result than that. If he were unable to repair them, or even caused the last one to collapse, it wouldn’t be too big of a loss. In any case, Cloud Shadow Continent’s final Territory Gate was going to disappear within a hundred years, so it didn’t make a difference whether it happened sooner or later.
Now that Yang Kai had shown such an amazing performance on Cloud Shadow Continent, not only maintaining the stability of the final Territory Gate, but even repairing one of the lost ones, Yu Ru Meng could rest assured allowing him to do this job.
Of the several dozen continents under her jurisdiction, nearly one-fifth of them had Territory Gates that had issues. The serious ones suffered the loss of Territory Gates, while the less severe cases simply had unstable Territory Gates. Regardless, all of them needed Yang Kai’s assistance.
Yu Ru Meng told him about the location and names of these continents before leaving, and also told him that she would have each continent cooperate with him to the best of their abilities and meet any of his needs.
So, Yang Kai’s trip went very smoothly. He received warm hospitality in each continent that he visited, and even met a good many Half-Saints.
Since they needed his help, these Half-Saints naturally wouldn’t put on airs like Yue Sang, much less since Yu Ru Meng seemed to favour Yang Kai quite heavily. Yue Sang had only been in a small conflict with Yang Kai before being sent off to the battlefield by Yu Ru Meng, and he was not allowed to return without direct orders. With Yue Sang as the example, how could any of these Half-Saints dare to be careless?
They even speculated whether this Human who was well versed in the Dao of Space was the Holy Venerable’s little white face!
Though their Holy Venerable was a Charm Demon, she had a pristine reputation. None had ever heard any strange rumours about her and the opposite sex, so it was no guarantee that others would not overthink the situation when she was suddenly favouring a Human man so much.
But in this way, it made things convenient for Yang Kai to do his work.
Everywhere he went, his requests would immediately be met. Many Half-Saints even called him Brother, so how could the Demon Kings from the continents without Half-Saints dare to neglect him? They were practically treating him as their grandfather.
Great King Yang Kai’s name also began to spread widely in Yu Ru Meng’s territory. All the Demons of any degree of status had heard of him.
It took a full month’s time before Yang Kai could repair the Territory Gates of a dozen continents. During this time, he had also secretly found two other lost continents. Together with Blood Flame that he found before, that made three continents that were devoured by the Sealed World Bead.
There were more than just three continents that had disappeared in Yu Ru Meng’s territory of course. From the information that Yang Kai received, there were six in total, but the other three required entry from other continents without issues with their Territory Gates. Yang Kai couldn’t just enter them freely, lest he draw suspicion.
After devouring two more continents, the Sealed World Bead expanded again, and the World Principles of the Demon Realm region inside became far more consolidated, making Yang Kai wonder whether another Demon Realm could possibly form inside the Sealed World Bead if it devoured a few more continent fragments.
The only thing that made Yang Kai feel pity was that he was unable to extract any Myriad Demon Pills from these two continents. These two continents had disappeared so long ago that even the Myriad Demon Caves had been devoured by the Void. Naturally, he could not get any Myriad Demon Pills from them. Yang Kai was a little disappointed since he thought he could gather enough Myriad Demon Pills for the Embodiment to advance to the Half-Saint Realm.
One day, Yang Kai had just returned from a lost continent, but before he could get his bearings and move on, he saw a stream of light rapidly approaching him.
The light was just like a bolt of lightning, shooting over at an incredible speed. Before it even got close, a terrifying pressure had already shrouded him.
Yang Kai’s face changed as he looked back at the Void Crack that was bitten open by the Abyssal Returner and cursed under his breath.
Since he was searching for the lost continents, Yang Kai had the Demon Kings of this continent scatter a hundred kilometres away in order to cordon off this place, giving them the excuse that he did not want to be disturbed while investigating the lost Territory Gate here.
These Demon Kings wouldn’t know what he had been doing here either way, and in just a few days, the gap that was bitten open by the Abyssal Returner would restore itself, leaving no trace behind.
But how could Yang Kai have anticipated that someone would actually come here at this exact moment, and from the aura, it seemed to be a Half-Saint!
[Wasn’t this continent’s Half-Saint fighting on the battlefield right now? They couldn’t have coincidentally returned right this moment, right?] However, hiding all traces right now would be too difficult and the other party might have already figured out what was going on here.
As his thoughts turned, Yang Kai made a quick decision. Pushing his Space Principles wildly, he sent a punch out towards the Void Crack. World Principles tumbled and the Void Crack became even more chaotic. Even though this couldn’t hide the traces completely, it would make it hard for one to investigate it clearly.
*Shua…*
The stream of light stopped 10 meters from Yang Kai a moment later, revealing a tall figure that was looking curiously at the churning Void Crack. Only after observing this phenomenon for a while did he turn his eyes to observe Yang Kai and cup his fists, “Are you Brother Yang Kai?”
Yang Kai was used to being called ‘Brother’ by the Half-Saints already, so he didn’t show much reaction to being addressed so politely and just nodded proudly, “It is this Yang. May I ask who Your Excellence is?”
As soon as he revealed himself, Yang Kai knew that this Half-Saint wasn’t the Master of this continent.
Based on his understanding, the master of this continent was a female Half-Saint, while the visitor was clearly a man.
[Who is this guy? Why’d he come here?] Yang Kai’s mind was full of suspicions.
The Demon smiled, “As expected, it’s Brother Yang. Seems like I have the right person. I am subordinate of Holy Venerable Bei Li Mo, Half-Saint Bai Ya. I was ordered by the Holy Venerable to lead Brother Yang to Soaring Snow Continent.”
Yang Kai’s face twitched at this. Turns out this was a subordinate of that Bei Li Mo woman. Yang Kai didn’t have a good impression of her. Even though the woman was a Demon Saint, her behaviour was a little absurd. If Yu Ru Meng had not used her Soul Descend last time, there was no telling what kind of loss Yang Kai might have eaten at Bei Li Mo’s hands.
But since the other party was being so polite, Yang Kai couldn’t greet him with a grimace and had no choice but to cup his fists politely, “So it is Brother Bai Ya.” After a pause, he couldn’t help but laugh, “Holy Venerable Bei Li Mo seems to be the anxious type.”
Yu Ru Meng had already discussed with her and promised that Yang Kai would go to her territory once things were settled on her side, but Bei Li Mo actually sent a Half-Saint over to fetch him. To put it nicely, Bai Ya was here to welcome him, but in reality, he was acting as an escort, which left an unpleasant feeling in Yang Kai’s gut.
Bai Ya could not understand the meaning behind his words and smiled instead, “Since Brother Yang is capable of repairing the Territory Gates, it is only natural for Holy Venerable to regard you highly. I’m hoping Brother Yang can excuse that.” After a pause, he added, “Not only Holy Venerable, we Brothers and Sisters are also looking forward to Brother Yang’s appearance.” The Brothers and Sisters that he mentioned were naturally the other Half-Saints like him.
A flowery palanquin requires more than one to lift. Since even a Half-Saint was being so polite with him, there was nothing Yang Kai could say but to smile, “Brother Ya is too polite. Since the two Holy Venerables have already come to an agreement, this Yang will naturally do his best.”
Bai Ya then glanced back at the churning Void Crack and frowned, “Has Brother Yang finished with everything here?”
“Almost. I will still be a few more days.” He would have to wait for the gap to close completely before he left; otherwise, there was no guarantee something would not go wrong…
“A few days won’t be a problem.” Bai Ya smiled and turned his eyes back to the twisting Void Crack, “I have long heard of Brother Yang’s profound attainments in the Dao of Space, and it seems the rumours are true…”
As he said that, his face suddenly turned stern. After seriously identifying his location, he looked astonished and asked, “If I remember correctly, the continent this Territory Gate connects to has long disappeared. Could it be possible that Brother Yang is able to connect with it?”
The Space Principles around the crack seemed to be surging abnormally and leading towards a distant, obscure place. Even though Bai Ya was not proficient in the Dao of Space, he could still figure out some clues with his Half-Saint cultivation. He thought to himself that it was no wonder the Holy Venerable regarded this Human so highly, even to the point of sending a Half-Saint like him to greet him personally. Bai Ya was greatly dissatisfied when he received this task, thinking that he, a dignified Half-Saint, would actually have to travel hundreds of thousands of kilometres in order to meet a mere Human. Regardless of how capable this Human may be, Bai Ya couldn’t help but wonder whether the Holy Venerable was regarding him too highly; however, he could not ignore Bei Li Mo’s orders and had no choice but to rush over unwillingly.
But now, it seemed like this Human did have some noteworthy skill. If Yang Kai could really find and retrieve the lost continents, then what would it matter if he had to suffer a small grievance?
Yang Kai smiled at his words and shook his head, “Not yet. I’ve only been making attempts under Holy Venerable’s orders. Even though I’ve found some clues, I am still unable to determine the Void Coordinates of the continent on the other side.”
“Void Coordinates?” Bai Ya had a suspicious expression.
Yang Kai explained with a smile, “Even though the continent has been lost, it must exist somewhere out in the Void, the difficult part is reaching it. If its location in the Void can be determined, then there may be an opportunity to open a corridor to it. Before building such a corridor though, it is essential to determine the exact Void Coordinates of the continent.”
Bai Ya nodded sceptically. Even though he was a Half-Saint, he did not understand the Dao of Space very well, so he had no way of confirming if the words Yang Kai had just spouted off so seriously were true or false, as such, he gently nodded and said, “Brother Yang’s methods are profound!”
If the words he said to him before were just perfunctory, then at this moment, there was an added sincerity in his praise. Just the opportunity of finding those lost continents was astounding in itself. If Yang Kai could really pull this off, then he would have done an outstanding service to the entire Demon Realm. Perhaps… he could even gain the approval of ‘that’ person. If that came to pass, even though he was just a Human, he still wouldn’t be someone that could be taken lightly.
Bai Ya had already quietly made up his mind that even if he couldn’t befriend Yang Kai, he should at least not treat him disrespectfully.
“If there’s nothing else Brother Bai Ya needs, then why don’t you go on ahead to Cloud Shadow Continent first? I will return there in a few days, we can leave together then.”
Bai Ya was slightly taken aback, but since Yang Kai had already said so, he naturally couldn’t be thick-skinned and stay, so he smiled and nodded, “A good idea. Then I’ll be awaiting Brother Yang’s return.”
“Please!” Yang Kai gestured with his hand.
Only after seeing Bai Ya leave was Yang Kai able to breathe a soft sigh of relief. It had been a tense moment just now. If Bai Ya had been a little more suspicious and insisted on entering the Void Crack to investigate, then his attempt to conceal the truth would’ve been exposed. Fortunately, this guy wasn’t too willing to offend him, allowing Yang Kai to get through the matter for now.
But with this, Yang Kai realized a problem.
In Yu Ru Meng’s territory, he could mobilize all the resources he wanted to in order to conceal what he was doing, but if he went to Bei Li Mo’s territory he wouldn’t have any security at all.
That was also the reason why he had the bright idea to have Bai Ya wait for him at Cloud Shadow Continent. He had to make a return trip to Cloud Shadow Continent and bring along some of his own men to make his work more convenient.
Yang Kai waited there for a few days until the Demon Realm’s World Principles finished repairing the corridor before moving back to Cloud Shadow Continent.
After riding the Tiger Head Chariot through several Territory Gates, Yang Kai made it back to Cloud Shadow City.
Without delay, he summoned He Yin and gave her a few instructions. Accepting his orders, she swiftly left to carry them out.
Bai Ya had already been here for a few days and was received by Lao Ke with great care. When he saw Yang Kai return, Bai Ya quickly came out to greet him. They chatted for a while, but the urgency in his voice amused Yang Kai.
Fortunately, there was no need for Yang Kai to dally. Even if Bai Ya wasn’t there to urge him, he was also in a hurry to head to Bei Li Mo’s territory, so as soon as He Yin returned and whispered a few words to Yang Kai, he nodded and proposed, “Let us depart.”
After walking out of the city palace, there were already a few thousand Demons gathered outside, 50 of which were Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings while the rest were Demon Great Generals and Demon Generals.
Bai Ya looked curiously at Yang Kai, wondering what his intentions were in gathering so many soldiers at this moment. Could it be that he wanted to bring them to Soaring Snow Continent? Yang Kai had clearly also keyed in on his doubts and smiled, “Please don’t mind, Brother Bai Ya. It’s not that this King does not trust Holy Venerable Bei Li Mo, it’s just that I need some assistants to help facilitate the repair of the Territory Gates, and these people are already used to working with this King, so it is more convenient if they accompany me. I’m afraid replacing them with others will delay progress.”
Bai Ya said with an odd expression, “I’ll leave that up to you then, Brother Yang. Obviously, Holy Venerable won’t refuse either.”
[He claims that it’s not because he doesn’t trust Holy Venerable, but he’s clearly being distrustful of her. Only, since you’re already going to Soaring Snow Continent yourself, do you really need to bring this trash too? If Holy Venerable really does have any ill will towards you, don’t mention a few thousand men, even tens of thousands wouldn’t be of any help.] Bai Ya really couldn’t figure out what this man was thinking.
But he didn’t want to say much on this matter either and simply gave in to Yang Kai’s wishes.
Yang Kai then turned to Lao Ke and Ke Sen, “During the period when this King is away, make sure you take care of things properly in Cloud Shadow. If anyone dares to try anything untoward, inform this King immediately!”
Yang Kai wasn’t really worried, but the thought of Yue Sang suddenly returning from the Two Worlds Great War concerned him. Even though the possibility was low, it was still necessary to take precautions.
Naturally, Lao Ke and Ke Sen received his order respectfully.
Only then did Yang Kai wave his hand and shout, “Let’s go!”
After speaking, he gave a slight nod to Bai Ya and the two flew off side by side, followed by He Yin and the many Mid-Rank and Low-Rank Demon Kings, then the Demon Great Generals after them.
*Hua la la…*
They formed a long line like a dragon, causing many of the Demons in Cloud Shadow City to stop and watch, wondering what was going on at the city palace.
Not long into their flight, a Demon Great General suddenly rushed up to them using a Secret Technique and stopped beside He Yin, transmitting a few words to her using his Divine Sense.
He Yin gently nodded and dismissed him with a wave.
“What is it?” Yang Kai turned his head to look at her.
He Yin responded, “Great King will know if he looks behind.”
Yang Kai looked back, only to see a white light tailing them from more than a dozen kilometres away, neither too slowly nor hurried. Inside the light, a delicate figure could vaguely be seen.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but feel his brow twitch at this sight, wondering to himself what this silly girl was up to and why she was chasing after him. But no matter what, since she was already following them, he couldn’t just ignore her either. So, he stopped and said to Bai Ya, “Brother Bai Ya, please wait for a moment. I’ll be right back.”
Bai Ya had clearly also noticed the situation at the rear and smiled meaningfully at him, “No rush, Brother Yang. Please.”
[If there’s no rush, then what were you rushing for just now!] Yang Kai complained in his heart as he turned around and flew backwards.
Once he stopped, the few thousand Demons also stopped mid-air, and the one who was following the group from behind also had to stop.
Arriving at the other side, Yang Kai stared at Li Shi Qing and asked, “What are you following for?”
Li Shi Qing dropped her head and muttered, “I… I don’t want to stay there alone.”
No matter how badly Yang Kai treated her, he was still a Human, the only one besides her in the Demon Realm. Compared to the Demon Race, she would naturally much rather stay with Yang Kai.
Seeing her like this, Yang Kai didn’t know whether to feel annoyed or amused. After sighing for a moment, he said, “Forget it. Since you’re already here, then we can go together.”
The main point was that he also brought Xiao Wu with him this time since he really couldn’t feel assured with Bei Li Mo. With Xiao Wu by his side, it didn’t matter how dangerous it was, Yu Ru Meng could still arrive at any time using Soul Descend.
During the days prior, Li Shi Qing and Xiao Wu would also communicate with each other occasionally. Even though they weren’t that close with each other, they at least were not strangers. If even Xiao Wu left, then there would not be even a single person Li Shi Qing could talk to left in Cloud Shadow City.
For someone in her situation, staying in Cloud Shadow City would undoubtedly feel like torture for her. Even though Lao Ke and the others dared not be rude toward her, she would still constantly be fearful of them.
Seemingly not expecting that Yang Kai would agree so easily, Li Shi Qing’s beautiful eyes couldn’t help but bloom with vibrant joy. Looking fixedly at him, there was even a hint of gratitude within.
Yang Kai added, “But you have to be obedient. Otherwise, don’t blame my subordinates for being merciless!” Following that, he put on a fierce look which scared Li Shi Qing so much that she quickly nodded her head like a chicken pecking rice.
Yang Kai sighed in his heart. Looking her up and down, he said, “Won’t it have any effects on you if you use your strength so rashly?”
This was the Demon Realm, after all. The Demon Qi in the surrounding World Energy was constantly eroding the Emperor Qi protecting her body. Once too much of her power was consumed, she was bound to suffer some ill effects. If her body really was invaded by Demon Qi, then it wouldn’t be just a small problem.
Li Shi Qing answered quietly, “I’ll be careful.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Do you still have Source Crystals and pills?”
“Yes, you gave me a lot, and I only consumed a few of them so far.” Li Shi Qing raised her head and gathered up the courage to smile at him, but it looked incredibly stiff.
“Remember to see me before you run out.” After giving her a reminder, Yang Kai then wrapped his Emperor Qi around her and brought her along as he flew forward.
Li Shi Qing felt flattered by this treatment and suddenly realized that Yang Kai wasn’t as fierce as she imagined.
When Bai Ya saw Yang Kai return, he smiled, seemingly admiring his fortune in love.
Yang Kai couldn’t be bothered to pay him any attention. After passing him together with Li Shi Qing, he brought along Xiao Wu as well, which left Bai Ya to grit his teeth at the back, red lips wriggling a few times. Even though no sound came out of his lips, there was no doubt from the shape of his mouth that he was cursing him.
Naturally, it was impossible for the speed of a few thousand people marching to be quick, so it took a full day of travelling before they could distantly see a Territory Gate.
Bai Ya showed a puzzled look and shot forward to catch up with Yang Kai suddenly, “Brother Yang, why are you going this way? The distance to Soaring Snow Continent will be further on this route. We should pass through another Territory Gate instead.”
Yang Kai laughed, “Indeed, it’s closer if we take another Territory Gate, but this King has some other business to attend to on the way, so I’m hoping Brother Bai Ya won’t be impatient.”
When he heard him say that, Bai Ya could only gently nod in response. In any case, his mission was only to bring Yang Kai to Soaring Snow Continent, so a little delay or taking a detour wouldn’t matter too much.
The army of a few thousand people had just passed through the Territory Gate and entered Blue Plains Continent, when a group of mounted Demons came over from the distance with the two at the front possessing towering Demon Qi. They were both clearly High-Rank Demon Kings. The number of Demon Race Masters following them were nearly identical to their side, and were all rushing towards them.
As soon as both sides met, the two men heading the group cupped their fists in unison, “Greetings Great King!”
Then, they glanced at Bai Ya before their faces turned serious and they bowed, “Greetings, Sir Bai Ya!”
They were confused and had no idea how Yang Kai came to associate with Bai Ya. Naturally, they knew of Bai Ya as he was one of the Half-Saints under Holy Venerable Bei Li Mo, and his relationship with Yue Sang was neither good nor bad. They couldn’t be described as friends, but they did occasionally interact with each other.
The two who came here were naturally High-Rank Demon Kings of Blue Plains Continent. One of them was Tu Qia Luo, and the other was called Ba Zha. They had already received a communication from Cloud Shadow Continent, so they gathered their men in a hurry and rushed over to rendezvous with Yang Kai. They had no idea what Yang Kai intended to do, but when they saw Bai Ya and the elite Demons behind Yang Kai, their doubts were more or less cleared. Thinking their Great King intended to attack a different continent, they couldn’t help but feel as if pressure as heavy as a mountain was pressing down on them.
Bai Ya gently nodded but did not say much. Even though High-Rank Demon Kings were not considered bad by any standards, he really didn’t need to care much about them as a Half-Saint.
Yang Kai didn’t say much either and just waved his hand, “Form rank!” Without stopping, the Demon Beasts filed in and galloped forward.
The army of several thousand swelled to over ten thousand in an instant. Just the number of Demon Kings alone went up to over a hundred, while the High-Rank Demon Kings were lesser in numbers, but there were still three of them. Under Tu Qia Luo and Ba Zha’s command, the Demons from Blue Plains quickly joined with those from Cloud Shadow Continent while the two of them moved next to He Yin and privately had a few words with her.
After finding out that Yang Kai had received Holy Venerable Bei Li Mo’s regards thanks to his ability to repair Territory Gates, Tu Qia Luo and Ba Zha couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief that their trip was merely to deal with the Territory Gates on that side.
They really thought that they were about to start a war with some continent, but it turned out they were just going to repair Territory Gates. However, didn’t it seem like the situation was blown out of proportion? Was there really a need to travel with such a large entourage?
But the two of them weren’t the only two who were unable to understand the situation. Bai Ya had a hard time understanding it as well. Looking back at the army numbering around ten thousand troops, if he hadn’t known what was going on, then he would’ve thought that Yang Kai was sending his army to battle with Soaring Snow Continent with ill intent towards the Holy Venerable. Realizing that this was the matter Yang Kai said he had to deal with earlier, he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry for a moment.
After passing through the Territory Gate, they went through one continent after another. Even though an army of ten thousand was not considered large, it definitely wasn’t small either.
Two days later, when Yang Kai passed through a certain Territory Gate, a cold aura hit him head-on.
Looking around, he couldn’t help but feel dumbfounded.
The continent in front of him was a world of ice and snow. The silvery landscape was pure white without any trace of a stray colour. Snowflakes the size of goose feathers were constantly descending from the sky, and the hot breath exhaled from one’s nose and mouth was clearly discernible.
In the distance, the up and down ridges of several mountains looked just like a dancing White Dragon. Clouds tussled between the mountains, making for a magnificent view.
After coming to this place, it was as if one’s body and mind had been purified.
Without Bai Ya needing to explain anything, Yang Kai knew that they had arrived at Soaring Snow Continent. Bei Li Mo was a Snow Demon and loved this kind of icy environment the most, which was somewhat similar to the Dragon Clan’s Second Elder Fu Zhun. Her icy island was just like this spectacle in front of him, but naturally, a single island wouldn’t have the beauty and majesty of an entire continent.
The ten thousand soldiers following behind arrived one after another through the Territory Gate, and the ones who were here for the first time all seemed lost in thought.
Xiao Wu was full of praise, “What a beautiful place!”
Li Shi Qing nodded hard beside her.
Bai Ya smiled at Yang Kai, “Brother Yang, what do you think of this place?”
“It’s well-endowed with spirituality and its beauty is more than one can absorb. No wonder Holy Venerable Bei Li Mo rose to prominence in this place.”
Bai Ya smiled, “Brother Yang is right. Soaring Snow Continent’s presence intermingles with the Holy Venerable, that’s why this Bai would like to ask Brother Yang to help Holy Venerable with her problems!”
“This King is duty-bound!” Yang Kai responded readily, but he was less enthusiastic in his heart. If he hadn’t wanted to secretly visit Eternal Sky Continent, then how could he be willing to come to a place like this? If he could, he would have wanted to lay this continent to waste in hopes he could shake that cheap slut Bei Li Mo’s foundation.
However, Yang Kai had been investigating things a little on the way. Even though Eternal Sky Continent was not in Bei Li Mo’s territory, the chance of visiting it wasn’t null. One of Eternal Sky Continent’s Territory Gates was linked to one of the continents under Bei Li Mo’s jurisdiction. If he could use that continent as a springboard, he could definitely sneak into Eternal Sky Continent.
But he had no idea whether there were any issues with the Territory Gates of that continent. If there were, then it would be convenient for him.
Bai Ya naturally had no idea what he was planning, but seeing how readily he agreed, his impression of Yang Kai couldn’t help but improve. He beamed as he spoke, “Then I shall trouble you, Brother Yang. Please, follow me.” As he said that, he led the way forward.
Everyone followed along.
Soaring Snow Continent’s size was not small. Generally, the continents where Demon Saints resided would not be too small, and the World Energy there would also be very dense. If the Demon Realm’s continents were split into three classes, then Soaring Snow Continent and Enchantment Continent would belong to the top of the upper class. Cloud Shadow Continent on the other hand would be middle-class, while the Blue Plains Continent was considered upper-middle-class.
It wasn’t until a day later that a majestic building finally appeared in the distance. Before Yang Kai’s group had even gotten close, they were greeted by a majestic aura and as sunlight reflected off the building, it even emitted a beautifully colourful light.
Yang Kai was amazed and focused his gaze on it. Only then did he discover that it turned out to be a gigantic Ice Palace. The entire structure seemed to be carved from a single block of ice, and the colourful light was all refracted by the sunlight that shone into its walls, making the Ice Palace resemble an immortal realm.
Bai Ya pointed ahead and explained, “That is Holy Venerable’s Soaring Snow Ice Palace. Holy Venerable has already been waiting for some time now, so please follow me to meet her, Brother Yang.”
“Then I’ll have to trouble you, Brother Bai Ya!”
After a short while, the group arrived ten kilometres away from the Ice Palace. Bai Ya stopped his pace and looked at Yang Kai somewhat suddenly, “Holy Venerable does not like to be disturbed by too many people. So, Brother Yang, your subordinates…”
Yang Kai turned around and shouted, “All of you stay here and rest!” Even without Bai Ya telling him so, Yang Kai did not intend to bring everyone into the Ice Palace. Even though he didn’t like that woman Bei Li Mo, he still knew how to show the minimum of etiquette. And, now that he was in someone else’s territory, it would be better for him to behave himself in case she were to find fault with him. Since she needed his help, then she wouldn’t really do anything to him, but she could always play tricks and tease him at will.
After He Yin and the group answered his command, Bai Ya led Yang Kai forward.
After entering the Ice Palace, Yang Kai was slightly surprised to find how scarce the servants inside were. Or at least, compared to the size of the palace, the number of people inside was far fewer than expected. Other than the necessary guards stationed around, there were hardly any maids. However, the scenery inside the Ice Palace was still very beautiful. The surrounding walls and the floor under Yang Kai’s feet were all made of crystalline ice without the slightest flaw, which made him wonder whether it was Bei Li Mo who hollowed out this place personally to create this Ice Palace.
White ice flowers also sprouted on the ice walls, spreading a faint fragrance throughout the entire Ice Palace. Not only did it smell refreshing, occasional flashes of strange colours also shone through the transparent ice walls from time to time, making one feel as if they were lost in a dreamland.
Yang Kai looked left and right constantly. Even though he had already passed the age of being surprised by novelties, he still could hardly fight the urge to praise the Ice Palace for how amazing it was. He thought to himself, [As expected of women! Whether it be a Demon Saint or not, they are particularly fond of beautiful things. Even their living spaces are so sophisticated…]
But then again, even though this was an Ice Palace, it didn’t feel cold at all, but instead gave him a warm feeling. He had no idea why that was.
As he looked around, Bai Ya who was leading the way remained austere. He quietly sealed his pores and even his breathing stalled temporarily.
After walking for a short while, Bai Ya suddenly stopped in front of a door and cupped his fists, “As ordered, Bai Ya has led Yang Kai to greet Holy Venerable!”
Only then did Yang Kai realize that they had arrived, and immediately stood in a well-behaved manner.
The door was not closed shut and instead had a gap the width of several fingers. There was a faint noise coming from the inside, but Yang Kai couldn’t hear it too clearly.
After Bai Ya finished speaking, a woman’s voice came from inside, “Bai Ya, you’re back? En, bring him inside.”
The only person who dared call Bai Ya by name in the entire Soaring Snow Continent was Bei Li Mo. Only, this woman’s voice now sounded extremely lazy, without the brightness of when they met last time. The laziness gave one an indescribable feeling and hearing it, Yang Kai felt as if there was a small hand gently brushing his heart, causing it to jump abruptly.
[Damn it, I knew this woman was up to no good!] Last time, she had suffered a loss at his hands… or rather his mouth. This time, she was definitely planning to get her revenge. Yang Kai sneered in his heart as he raised his vigilance even higher.
Bai Ya turned around and gestured to Yang Kai, “Brother Yang, please!”
Yang Kai didn’t stand on ceremony. He pushed open the door and entered in a large stride. He glared his eyes, wanting to see what Bei Li Mo had set in store for him, but as soon as he looked over, he was disappointed. That was because there was no one in front of him. There was actually a curtain leading further inside behind which Bei Li Mo should be.
Without delay, and without the need for Bai Ya to invite him, he lifted his head and opened the curtain, entering head-first.
Behind him, Bai Ya looked at him with a pitying gaze.
“Yang Kai greets… Uh…” Originally intending to err on the side of caution, Yang Kai tried to cup his fists as soon as he entered so as to not give Bei Li Mo the opportunity to find any fault in him, but halfway through his words, he could continue no longer. His already wide eyes widened even further as he stared blankly in front of him.
What caught his gaze was a delicate body lying lazily on her side on the daybed in front of him, dressed in a thin fabric where the beautiful figure inside could vaguely be seen. Though described as a thin fabric, it was in fact just sheer silk that was barely able to cover the vital parts. However, the magnificent scenery in front of her chest was greatly exposed. Almost half of her snow-covered peaks were laid out with her delicate collarbone and slender neck unhindered from view. The sight of the two fair and beautiful legs below was enough to dazzle a man’s eyes, and a slit ran practically all the way up to her full moon. One was seemingly able to enjoy the beautiful scenery within, but it was just out of view, causing one’s heart to feel itchy with unrest.
When he heard the lazy yet slightly seductive voice earlier, Yang Kai had already prepared himself psychologically. He knew that Bei Li Mo would definitely tease him, and if a woman wanted to tease a man, then her body would be the best capital to do so. Supplement that with her supreme status as one of the Twelve Demon Saints, then she could definitely stir up a man’s strong desire to conquer, swelling their veins with blood and making them unable to help themselves.
But when he laid eyes on this scene, Yang Kai was still slightly taken aback.
[This woman is really too generous with her assets! You’re still a Demon Saint at the very least, is it really fine for you to dress so immodestly? Even if you want to dress like this, do it secretly…] Both he and Bai Ya were men, after all.
Even the Charm Demon Yu Ru Meng didn’t dress like this. If Bei Li Mo was a contradiction of purity and charm blended perfectly within one body the last time he saw her, then she was anything but holy at this moment. Each and every part of her delicate body was the very peak of seduction.
This gave Yang Kai some doubts. Was this really that Bei Li Mo he saw last time in that white dress, who looked pure and flawless no matter how he looked at her?!
She alone would’ve been enough, but this woman was actually surrounded by five other women, all top-tier beauties. Each woman had a face that could charm a city and were all dressed similarly to Bei Li Mo in the same thin fabric that barely covered half their bodies.
At this moment, Bei Li Mo was resting her head atop a woman’s slender thighs. The woman’s head was lowered, and from her mouth, a faint aura was gently being exhaled that swept through Bei Li Mo’s ear and neck inch by inch, inciting a soft giggle from Bei Li Mo with her narrowed eyes.
Only then did Yang Kai understand what that faint noise he heard was earlier. Turns out it was this.
On the other side of the daybed was another woman, hands gently massaging Bei Li Mo’s legs as if she were fondling the most exquisite piece of artwork in this world. Her movements were both careful and joyous. Yang Kai even saw with his own eyes how her hand ventured between Bei Li Mo’s inner thighs…
The three remaining women were gathered to her left and right, either caressing her sensitive parts or licking her earlobes, doing their best in order to please this Demon Saint whose each and every move, complimented by the faint sounds in the room, was almost the very peak of seduction.
Despite having prepared himself mentally, the sight before his eyes still felt like lightning to Yang Kai, which stunned him out of his senses. His throat went dry in that instant as he thought to himself, [Damn it, you reincarnated into the wrong body, didn’t you? You should be the Charm Demon! Compared to you, Yu Ru Meng is like a young disciple rather than an old Master! It’s simply a disgrace to the words Charm Demon… If you have the guts, then bring a few men in here! What’s the meaning of playing phoenix summits the dragon here with just women!?]
He turned his head around to glance at Bai Ya, only to see this guy with his head down, eyes staring at his nose which was pointed to his chest like an old monk in meditation. Yang Kai snickered in his heart as he knew that this guy didn’t have the guts to stare at these things.
But he understood Bei Li Mo’s intention in his heart. So, no matter how impactful the scene before him was, Yang Kai quickly came back to his senses and lightly coughed before raising his voice once more, “Yang Kai greets Holy Venerable!”
Bei Li Mo ignored his words. It was not known whether she was trying to put on airs in front of Yang Kai or deliberately leaving him hanging, but she continued giggling under the service of the women.
Yang Kai shouted again, this time deliberately pushing his Emperor Qi, the loudness of his voice shaking the surrounding ice walls.
This move caused the women to turn their angry gazes at him together while Bai Ya’s forehead became covered in sweat. He even reached out to clutch his robes silently.
Yang Kai laughed, “Since Holy Venerable is busy, I shall disturb you no longer. This King can come back to visit whenever Holy Venerable is less occupied!” After saying that, he turned to leave without any hesitation.
It was this woman who asked for his help to begin with, and even ran all the way to Cloud Shadow Continent to set him up, forcing Yu Ru Meng to use her Soul Descent to negotiate with her. This time, he had come over to do her a favour, but since she still held ill intentions towards him. Yang Kai couldn’t be bothered to deal with her.
If not for the fact that he was weaker than her, then Yang Kai would long have flipped the Ice Palace upside down.
“Leaving already?” Bei Li Mo finally opened her eyes, but there was no helping it. It would be a slap in the face if she really allowed Yang Kai to just walk out.
Yang Kai paused in his steps and turned back around, “It seems like Holy Venerable is quite busy. This Yang truly can not bring himself to disturb you, so what else can I do but leave?”
Bei Li Mo coldly snorted, “Such a hot temper. Didn’t Yu Ru Meng teach you the rules of the Demon Realm?”
Yang Kai rolled his eyes at her and raised his nostrils to the air, “That’s just how I am. If Holy Venerable finds me distasteful, then please allow me to excuse myself.”
“Impudence!” Bei Li Mo didn’t speak this time. It was one of the women by her side who scolded him. Her Demon Qi was boiling, and only then did Yang Kai discover that this woman was actually a High-Rank Demon King!
Yang Kai glanced at her, but did not pay her any mind. He just kept his eyes on Bei Li Mo, “You have to understand that I’m not the one who wants to be here. You invited me here, but now, Holy Venerable won’t even show me the bare minimum of hospitality. Why should this King stay here and be humiliated? Please, allow me to return to Cloud Shadow Continent!”
Even more sweat coated Bai Ya’s forehead as he whispered, “Brother Yang, Holy Venerable does not mean to slight you. Only, every day at this hour, Holy Venerable will…”
Bei Li Mo waved her hand, “No need to explain. What he said was right. It was indeed this Saint who neglected him.”
Saying so, she shot a look at the woman by her side.
When the Demon King who scolded Yang Kai earlier saw this, she quickly moved a chair from the side and placed it in the opposite corner of the daybed.
Bei Li Mo did not move her body, but instead motioned at Yang Kai with her lips, “Sit.”
Yang Kai weighed his options but still decided to walk back without resistance and sat down boldly. The main point was that he wouldn’t be able to run from here, and if he continued pushing the matter he would only provoke Bei Li Mo. When that time came, he would have nowhere to back down to.
Bai Ya couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief at the situation. Only then did he cup his fists, “Holy Venerable, since Brother Yang has already been brought before you, this subordinate will excuse himself.”
“Go,” Bei Li Mo shut her eyes again and answered indifferently.
Only then did Bai Ya lower his head and back out of the inner room before turning around and leaving in a large stride.
A short while later, he was out of the Ice Palace. Body swaying, he turned into a stream of light that sped towards a certain direction, seemingly with urgency.
He Yin noticed him coming out but did not see any traces of Yang Kai. She immediately shot forward to stop him and cupped her fists, “Sir Bai Ya, may I ask about our Great King…”
“Stand aside!” Bai Ya waved his hand and swept He Yin away with a powerful force, flashing off like lightning without the slightest pause.
He Yin was shocked. Only then did she start to feel a sense of fear after the fact. Though she had no idea why Bai Ya was angry, there was something wrong with his demeanour just now. His eyes were actually crimson red, and the way he looked at her had a trace of visible lust.
She didn’t know Bai Ya very well, but she also knew that with Bai Ya’s powerful cultivation, he wouldn’t have shown it in such an obvious way even if he was truly feeling lust towards a woman. And, there was definitely no shortage of women by Bai Ya’s side either, so there was definitely no need for him to reveal such a look to her.
[What happened?] He Yin was completely dumbfounded.
A hundred kilometres from the Ice Palace was a huge city. Just like Enchantment Continent’s Holy City, this was Soaring Snow Continent’s Holy City. It only took several breaths of time before Bai Ya arrived at this place after which he went straight to his own mansion. Sweeping through it with his Divine Sense, he flew straight into the residence of his favourite concubine and kicked open the door with a bang.
The concubine was dressing and primping herself in front of her mirror, admiring her own reflection, so when she heard the sudden commotion, her expression turned angry. But when she saw who it was, her expression immediately turned to joy as she got up and asked, “Sir, how come you’re here…”
But before she could finish, she was lifted up by Bai Ya at the waist and thrown onto the bed, causing her to yelp in surprise. The next instant, she felt a pair of large hands roam around her body and tear off her dress.
A few moments later, delicate and gentle coos spilled incessantly from the room…
An hour later, the concubine had already fallen asleep limply, but even more women entered the room. On the bed, it was as if Bai Ya had lost his mind. He showed not the slightest pity for the fairer sex and displayed his manly virility to its utmost. His desire spurred on as he enjoyed the dozen concubines in the mansion to his pleasure, truly sharing rain and dew impartially among the women.
It wasn’t until a full day later that Bai Ya felt the heat gradually disappear from his body. Turning around to look at the bed, a dozen tender bodies laid beside him, each one more or less covered with bruises and marks, all of which were undoubtedly his own work.
With a soft sigh, Bai Ya rose from the bed, lifting up the sheets and covering the spring scenery with a flick of his hand before moving to the window. Looking towards the direction of the Ice Palace, faint palpitations remained in his heart. Even a Half-Saint like himself was unable to withstand it, so who knows what situation that guy, Yang Kai, was in right now. He may already be lying dead atop that woman’s belly…
Back at the Ice Palace, just after Bai Ya left, Yang Kai suddenly felt a cool sensation flood his mind.
He couldn’t help but blink at this before becoming furious.
Though he had no idea what exactly happened, he knew that he must have fallen prey to Bei Li Mo’s tricks. Perhaps it was a Secret Technique or a drug, but it was clearly something related to the Soul. Only then would it have triggered the Soul Warming Lotus’s purifying effect.
A Secret Technique or drug which could trigger the purifying effects of his Soul Warming Lotus without him noticing it at all was definitely no trivial thing. Thinking about the subtle feeling he felt earlier, Yang Kai could almost be sure that it was some kind of Charm Technique or an aphrodisiac, and its effect was no doubt to invite his arousal! And, looking at the situation in front of him, Yang Kai began to understand Bei Li Mo’s play!
Yang Kai couldn’t help but feel irritated at this. This cheap slut was dressed so outrageously and acted so intimately with those women in order to tease him, and actually used an aphrodisiac on him as well. Wasn’t she trying to push him over the edge? It was simply too shameless!
But Yang Kai could also vaguely guess her reasons for doing this.
One of them was because of the time when he bit her more than a month ago in Cloud Shadow City. Yu Ru Meng was present then, and it was she who took the initiative to flirt with him, so she really couldn’t do anything to him. But still, how could she so easily let the matter rest after being slighted by someone else as an honourable Demon Saint? She didn’t blow up back then but waited for him here instead. Secondly, he was Yu Ru Meng’s man in name and the two of them had the Heart Seal Secret Technique active between them. Bei Li Mo had a sour relationship with Yu Ru Meng, so she naturally wanted to humiliate her through him. If she truly was able to humiliate him here, then Yu Ru Meng would also lose face if word of what happened here were to spread outside.
At that thought, Yang Kai sneered in his heart, [If you want to play this game don’t blame me for being unjust. You asked for this!]
Faint sounds of decadence could be heard intimately. The women serving Bei Li Mo were undoubtedly unable to help themselves from their arousal. Their breathing was quick and their faces were flushed. It was not known whether they were also being affected by that unknown aphrodisiac, but they were all looking at Bei Li Mo with strange looks in their eyes.
After Yang Kai sat down, Bei Li Mo did not have any intention to speak either. She just treated him as air.
At first, Yang Kai was sitting with his back straight and hands on his knees without moving his eyes away.
But as time passed, he would occasionally look up at the wondrous parts of the women’s bodies, and lingered mostly on Bei Li Mo’s body in particular. His breathing also quickened gradually and his eyes were becoming bloodshot.
Even though his movements were extremely subtle to the point where they were almost imperceptible, how could he hide from Bei Li Mo’s observation? Even with her eyes closed, none of Yang Kai’s movements could escape her senses. Lips curving up slightly, she couldn’t help but reveal a concealed smile.
As it seemed that no one was paying him any attention, Yang Kai’s boldness also grew. After another while passed, he was now blatantly staring forward with wide eyes, and his throat would bob occasionally, gulping.
He had to say that the scene in front of him really was easy on the eyes. Even though Yang Kai knew of Bei Li Mo’s intentions and had also eliminated the influence of that aphrodisiac with the help of the Soul Warming Lotus, he still couldn’t help but feel as if his mouth was getting a little dry after watching up to this point which was enough to prove the reality of his reactions and state of mind.
Suddenly, Bei Li Mo let out a soft moan and slowly opened her eyes. Her beautiful eyes were as bright and dazzling as the stars in the sky. Stretching her tender lotus root arms, she twisted her waist and changed to another position before continuing to lie down. Facing Yang Kai directly, her current position caused the pair of jade peaks on her chest to look even more majestic. She glanced at Yang Kai with a smile as if she’d just remembered that someone like him was in the room, “Let’s not neglect our guest.”
As she spoke, she lightly waved her hand.
As soon as those words came out, the woman who scolded Yang Kai earlier walked out from Bei Li Mo’s side in light lotus steps, and with a twist of her body, sat down on Yang Kai’s lap, wrapping both arms around his neck and looking smilingly at him with a delicate gaze.
Warm and fragrant soft jade entered his arms, and a shocking suppleness graced his thighs. There was even a light fragrance lingering around the tip of his nose that made it difficult for one to stay reserved. Yang Kai gulped down hard and felt a little at a loss as to what to do. Looking at Bei Li Mo, he asked hesitantly, “Holy Venerable, this… This isn’t appropriate, is it?”
Bei Li Mo looked up and said lazily, “What’s not appropriate?”
Yang Kai looked awkward, “Why ask if Holy Venerable already knows the answer? Yu Ru Meng and I, we, we… Heh heh, you know how it is.”
“Are you scared of her?” Bei Li Mo shot a teasing gaze at him.
Yang Kai snickered at once, “This King is a grown man, why should he fear a woman! Furthermore, it’s not a matter of being afraid or not, but the feeling of doing something like this with a woman behind her back…” Looking at the woman in his arms, this Demon King had undoubtedly been affected by the aphrodisiac. Her breathing was hot and she was wriggling her tender body restlessly while sitting in his arms. She even took the initiative to grab one of Yang Kai’s big hands and bring it over to her chest as she bit her red lips and moaned like a song. Yang Kai gulped hard again and continued what he was saying earlier, “I’d be letting her down!”
Despite saying that, his big hand was rubbing hard and immediately caused the female Demon King to fall limp in his arms.
Bei Li Mo chuckled, “In the end, you’re still afraid of her! But rest assured, they won’t expose what happens here today. This Saint also won’t run her mouth outside, so news of this won’t reach her ears. There’s no need for you to be so reserved either. What man doesn’t have three wives and four concubines, hm? This Saint asked you to come to help me restore the Territory Gates, so this Saint naturally won’t neglect you.”
Yang Kai licked his lips, seemingly hesitating for a moment before nodding, “Then many thanks, Holy Venerable, for your kindness.” Lowering his head and surveying the Demon King in his arms, he allowed his hand to freely roam up and down her body, causing her to gasp incessantly. With eyes like wolves and tigers, Yang Kai casually said, “But I have to say, Holy Venerable must not think that this King is scared of Ru Meng just because her cultivation is beyond mine. This King really isn’t afraid of her. It’s not like I’ve never beaten her when she was being disobedient!”
When Bei Li Mo, who was playfully watching the good show, heard what he said, her eyes couldn’t help but light up in surprise, “You’ve beaten her?”
Yang Kai said proudly, “More than once!” The boasting look on his face made it look as if he had done something amazing.
Bei Li Mo forcefully suppressed her laughter, “How did you beat her?” This was interesting news. To think one of the Twelve Demon Saints of the Demon Realm would actually be beaten by a Human who was only equivalent to a Mid-Rank Demon King… [Yu Ru Meng, Yu Ru Meng, so this day comes for you as well?]
In an instant, Bei Li Mo felt that her hard work today had paid off, to actually be able to get ahold of secret information like this… She would have to probe him carefully so that she could tease Yu Ru Meng with this the next time she saw her and see whether she still had the confidence to defy her.
Sneering, Yang Kai landed a big slap on the plump bottom of the Demon King in his arms, giving off a loud *Pa* and causing her flesh to ripple, as well as drawing a cry of surprise from her lips.
Bei Li Mo’s eyes were even brighter now. Resisting the urge to throw her head back in laughter, she lifted her upper body slightly, “Tell me more!”
Yang Kai blinked his eyes before looking around the room, “No can do, there are many eyes here…”
Bei Li Mo fumed, “If I tell you to say it, then say it!”
Yang Kai thought about it before suddenly reaching his hands out and throwing the Demon King out of his arms. Standing up, he dragged away another Demon King that was serving at Bei Li Mo’s feet before lifting up his own robes and sitting boldly by Bei Li Mo’s feet.
Bei Li Mo looked coldly at him, but she did not have any intention to stop him. However, there was an intrigued smile on her lips.
Yang Kai lowered his head to look at Bei Li Mo’s jade feet, then moved all the way up between the two legs and her chest before stopping, the final destination of his hot gaze being Bei Li Mo’s eyes, “Since Holy Venerable wishes to know, then this King will tell you quietly.”
Bei Li Mo pursed her lips into a smile, “Good. So, how are you going to tell this Saint quietly?”
Yang Kai smiled, slowly leaned over, and moved his head towards her as if to whisper, but his hands had already taken advantage of this opportunity to catch Bei Li Mo’s ankles, kneading and playing with them. In any case, in this woman’s mind, he had already been affected by her aphrodisiac and had his consciousness fogged by lust, so taking advantage of her like this would also be natural.
Bei Li Mo’s body stiffened slightly, but the look of intrigue in her eyes deepened.
The smooth feeling of her skin, which was as pure as jade, was just like the most exquisite work of art in the world, so much so that Yang Kai had to lament that this cheap slut really was a Demon Saint in the end. Indeed, such a fine piece of work was qualified to compare with Yu Ru Meng. As he caressed her skin, his big hands had already reached up her calf, climbing all the way up and moving straight towards her inner thighs.
Not only did the Demon Kings by their side not feel anything wrong with his bold actions, they instead showed eager expressions and hot gazes. Under the effects of the aphrodisiac, their reason was already starting to fog. Otherwise, how could they allow Yang Kai to profane their Holy Saint in such a way? Normally, if Yang Kai even dared to come within ten steps of Bei Li Mo, he would definitely be attacked by them.
Yang Kai felt a little as if he were riding a tiger at the moment, and he no longer knew what to do next.
He originally thought that Bei Li Mo would stop him, or even drive him away the moment he tried to sit next to her. With that, he would be able to leave with ease.
Yang Kai really did not wish to stay a moment longer with Bei Li Mo, and he felt completely devoid of security.
He never would have expected that not only did this woman have no intention to drive him away, but also made no comment when he tried to take advantage of her.
[What is this situation!]
At this moment, Bei Li Mo was still lazily reclining on the daybed with her head resting on top of a Demon King’s thighs. Yang Kai was holding her calf with one hand while the other explored the bottom of her translucent dress. If he moved up just a bit more, then he might be able to touch that most sensitive place. The atmosphere and the position they were in could be described as being at the peak of ambiguity.
The Soul Warming Lotus’s abnormal reaction warned him that something was wrong here, and also made it clear what Bei Li Mo’s plans were. However, this woman was a true Demon Saint, so if he went overboard, he would undoubtedly provoke her rage. But he hesitated only for a moment. Perhaps because of Yu Ru Meng, Yang Kai did not have much respect for Bei Li Mo, so since she wasn’t stopping him, then it would mean she was tacitly approving of this…
[Anyways, it’s not like I’m the one who’s eating a loss here!] Bracing himself, Yang Kai’s paused hand suddenly moved towards the depths.
Right at that moment, a jade foot suddenly appeared in front of him out of nowhere, kicking him away.
Despite Yang Kai’s astonishing reflexes, he was still unable to dodge the blow. The kick landed straight on his chest and it felt as if he was struck by a meteor. His chest throbbed and his blood surged as he flew out and landed heavily on the ice wall.
Grimacing in pain, Yang Kai held his chest with his hand when he landed and coughed violently a few times before looking up with difficulty, “Holy Venerable, what is the meaning of this?”
With icy eyes, Bei Li Mo stood up and smoothed down the skirt which was lifted by Yang Kai before coldly snorting, “Smelly brat, you put up quite a convincing act!”
Hand over his chest, Yang Kai could hardly steady his breath. Yang Kai’s eyes drifted and there was an awkward look on his face. He was silent for a while before laughing embarrassedly, “So you noticed?”
Since Bei Li Mo had already said so, she must have already concluded that he was acting. Playing dumb now would be meaningless. In that case, it was better to just open the windows and air out the truth.
Bei Li Mo coldly snorted and just looked at him with cold eyes.
If Yang Kai was acting so wantonly towards her thanks to the aphrodisiac, then it would have been pardonable. That was exactly what she was after today. If she could make Yang Kai lose control of himself and do something with those several Demon Kings, then that would be the best-case scenario.
Yang Kai was that cheap slut Yu Ru Meng’s man, one she had even tied up with her Heart Seal Secret Technique. Unless that Secret Technique was dealt with, then the relationship between the two of them could not be broken. If Bei Li Mo could get these Demon Kings to do something illicit with Yang Kai though, she would definitely be able to disgust Yu Ru Meng.
But to think that Yang Kai was in fact just pretending the whole time, Bei Li Mo found it hard to accept. Out of nowhere, she was taken advantage of by this little brat instead, which caused her to grit her teeth. If she didn’t have to care about Yu Ru Meng, and if she didn’t still have use for Yang Kai, she probably would have slapped him to death at that moment.
“How did you find out?” Yang Kai asked, thinking that it didn’t make sense. His performance was already very realistic, so there was no reason for him to expose any flaws.
“You can’t fake the truth, so naturally, falsehood can’t be made true either.” Bei Li Mo eyed him from the corner of her eye. To be honest, she didn’t notice anything unusual at first, mainly because she was supremely confident in her own methods. She thought that with Yang Kai’s level of cultivation, he simply wouldn’t have been able to resist, and the many reactions Yang Kai showed were also in line with her predictions. It wasn’t until Yang Kai’s hand paused in the midst of creeping up her skirt that she noticed a slight hint.
The subtle pause was only for an instant, but how could Bei Li Mo not notice it as a Demon Saint? A pause represented hesitation, but if he were truly under the effects of the aphrodisiac, then it was impossible for him to have any hesitation!
That was why she decisively presented him with a kick.
“Ai!” Yang Kai sighed. He went back to the chair and sat back down again, looking at Bei Li Mo with an earnest gaze, “Why do this? If there’s a grudge between you and Ru Meng, then you can settle it between yourselves. Why involve me? I’m innocent!”
Bei Li Mo looked at him both angrily and amusedly, “You think you’re innocent?”
Yang Kai looked dejected, “Am I not?”
Even though he knew that it was impossible for her to actually do anything to him, he too had business to settle during this trip to her territory, so Yang Kai didn’t want to stiffen their relationship too much.
Bei Li Mo sneered, “If you weren’t Yu Ru Meng’s man, then this Saint wouldn’t have even put you in her eyes. But who asked you to be that cheap slut’s man?”
Yang Kai’s expression turned sour, “Holy Venerable is still one of the top existences of the Demon Realm in the end, must your speech be so uncultured?”
Bei Li Mo raised a brow at him, “What, am I not even allowed to scold her? You seem quite protective of her.”
Yang Kai asserted, “Holy Venerable is also a woman. If someone were to insult Holy Venerable in such a manner, how would Holy Venerable feel?”
Bei Li Mo snickered, “You think that cheap slut has never cursed me behind my back?”
“I don’t care whether Ru Meng has scolded you behind your back or not, but I’ll have to ask Holy Venerable to please conduct yourself with dignity in front of me!”
Bei Li Mo was taken aback for a moment, seemingly not expecting that Yang Kai would actually dare to speak to her in such a manner, but when she thought back to how he tried to molest her just now, she realized that this Human’s boldness had already broken through the Heavens. What is it worth now for him to say such words? She instantly responded with a cold snort, “So I want to scold her, what can you do about it?”
Yang Kai stood up abruptly and flicked his sleeve, “If we can’t come to common ground, then even half a sentence is too much. Please forgive this King for being powerless in regards to the Territory Gates. Holy Venerable should find another able person instead!”
With that, he turned and left in a huge stride.
“If you dare move one muscle, then this Saint will cripple your legs! This Saint always means what she says!” Bei Li Mo glared icily at Yang Kai’s back.
Yang Kai instantly froze in place with one foot in mid-air. He really didn’t move at all, but he also couldn’t endure cursing Bei Li Mo terribly in his heart. He had clearly been invited by her in order to repair her Territory Gates, so how did things come to this once he was here? This woman was really too unreasonable.
But Yang Kai knew that even though he couldn’t reason with her, his fist was also not as big as hers…
Bei Li Mo lay down again and watched his back amusedly, “Not bad. You’re a sensible young man.”
“What do you want? Spit it out already. This King submits.” Yang Kai cocked his head to the side, face filled with grief and anger. If he had known this would happen, he never would have come to this damned Soaring Snow Continent. Even if he wanted to visit Eternal Sky Continent, he didn’t have to go through Bei Li Mo’s territory. It was the same going there through another Demon Saint’s territory.
“It’s not about what I want, you’re the one at fault here. Do you think you can just walk away?”
Yang Kai sighed heavily, “It was my fault for being brusque just now. I hope that Holy Venerable can be generous. I won’t do it again.”
“You think there’ll still be a next time?” Bei Li Mo coldly snorted, “Besides, I don’t hear the slightest sincerity in your apology.”
“Then what sincerity do you want?” Yang Kai turned to face her.
Bei Li Mo looked at him for a moment, then she nudged her lips in front of her.
Yang Kai blinked his eyes, looking doubtful. Only when she nudged her lips again did he head over reluctantly, lowering his body, and moving his ear closer.
Bei Li Mo gritted her teeth, “What are you doing?”
Yang Kai looked up at her and answered seriously, “Weren’t you going to whisper to me?”
Bei Li Mo was almost laughing from anger. If she really wanted to whisper to him, then transmitting a message using Divine Sense would be enough. Would they need to go through this trouble? Gritting her teeth, she snarled, “Kneel in front of this Saint and apologize, and this Saint will let you off this once!”
Yang Kai’s face chilled in an instant. He slowly straightened his back and looked condescendingly down at her from above, eyes icy, “I’ll pretend I never heard that, Holy Venerable!”
Then, he cupped his fists, “Yang Kai will take his leave now!”
That this woman would actually make such an excessive request, Yang Kai didn’t think there was any need to continue the discussion. This time, he was dead set on leaving Soaring Snow Continent, even if he had to completely turn against Bei Li Mo.
Indeed, there was no way for him to resist against a Demon Saint’s might. Even with the use of Space Divine Abilities, it would still be difficult to keep one shred of vitality, but even if he died here and now, that would still be better than having to kneel in submission!
After saying that, he turned around and began walking out. As for whether or not Bei Li Mo would continue threatening him, he could care less. If worse came to worst, he would just fight it out.
He moved decisively, and it wasn’t until he was almost out the door that Bei Li Mo came to her senses and shouted in a cold voice, “You court death!”
Yang Kai ignored her, leaving her with the back of his head as he reached out to open the curtain.
But in just that one moment, a gust of powerful Demon Qi suddenly attacked from behind. Yang Kai turned around as quickly as thunder and circulated his Emperor Qi furiously, crossing his arms in front of him to protect his body. Then, face changing, he was sent flying while the sound of bones breaking could be heard from his arms. A violent force was transmitted from his arms through each and every part of his body, shaking his five viscera and causing his six organs to turn. Blood was pouring out from his seven orifices.
In mid-air, Yang Kai’s consciousness quickly blurred. He could vaguely see Bei Li Mo’s slightly raised palm and the dumbfounded look in her eyes.
The moment he fell to the ground, his vision went dark. Only one thought passed through his mind before he fell unconscious: One palm!
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t one move because Bei Li Mo hardly used her full power just now. In fact, she didn’t even use half her strength and had simply reacted out of momentary fury. Yang Kai knew that the gap between him and a Demon Saint was huge, but he didn’t expect it to be this big!
On the other side, Bei Li Mo quickly climbed up from the daybed and looked fixedly at where Yang Kai fainted, beautiful eyes blinking and showing a rare hint of nervousness.
It wasn’t that she cared about Yang Kai; however, if she really did beat him to death, Yu Ru Meng definitely wouldn’t let the matter rest. With the Heart Seal Secret Technique in place, Yu Ru Meng would definitely be able to sense it if Yang Kai were to die, and there was a possibility that she would come straight here.
When that happened, the fight between her and Yu Ru Meng would not end until one of them died.
What’s more, she didn’t have any intention to kill Yang Kai, she was just thoroughly angered by him. How could she not know that there was gold in a man’s knees? She had already prepared herself to be rejected when she made such a harsh request of Yang Kai to apologize, and she planned to bargain again after he refused, but how could she have anticipated that this brat would actually leave just as he said he would, not putting her in his eyes in the slightest.
After becoming angry out of shame, she threw out a palm at him.
She didn’t use her full power, and that was at most twenty percent of her full strength, but she had no idea whether he could withstand such a blow or not…
After being stunned for a few breaths, Bei Li Mo caused a cold aura in the room to ripple out with a flick of her raised hand, and the Demon Kings who had been in a confused state immediately shuddered and sobered up in unison.
“Go see if he’s dead,” Bei Li Mo commanded.
It was still the same High-Rank Demon King who scolded Yang Kai earlier who went over to his side to test his breath with her hand. Then, she checked his pulse for a moment before raising her head and declaring, “He’s still alive!”
Only then did Bei Li Mo breathe a sigh of relief and nod, “That’s good.”
After a pause, she added, “How are his injuries?”
The Demon King answered, “Several bones from his arms and his chest are broken. His five viscera and six organs are slightly shifted, but otherwise, nothing serious.”
“Nothing serious?” Bei Li Mo was astonished. The fact that Yang Kai was able to survive twenty percent of her power alone was enough to shock her, but now even his injuries were nothing serious? Even though she did break several of his bones, she wasn’t without elixirs here. As long as he took some pills, he would be able to recover after recuperating for a few days.
But… How could this be?
Even if it were a High-Rank Demon King who received her palm just now, they would probably have died on the spot, yet despite the fact that this boy’s cultivation was only equivalent to a Mid-Rank Demon King, how could he be so resilient?
“Hm…” The Demon King who was checking Yang Kai’s body suddenly exclaimed in surprise, her beautiful eyes flashing with a strange colour.
“What’s wrong?” Bei Li Mo looked up.
“This man’s body… is very strong!” As she said so, the Demon King actually began squeezing and pinching Yang Kai’s chest, as if she were going to give him a thorough examination.
Seeing this, Bei Li Mo also went forward and placed her hand on Yang Kai’s chest before probing with her Demon Qi. A moment later, she revealed an astonished look, but she also finally understood how Yang Kai was able to take a slap from her and not perish.
Just as the Demon King said, this young man’s body was unbelievably strong. His muscles were solid, and his bones were also incomparably firm. Such a body alone was already comparable to a top-quality Demon Artifact. Moreover, there was golden blood full of vitality and vigour flowing through his veins, which granted him very powerful regenerative abilities.
But what shocked Bei Li Mo even more was the fact that she could actually sense an indescribable sense of divinity from the blood in Yang Kai’s body. Her beautiful eyes focused on Yang Kai’s face, seemingly having thought of something. Then, pinching one of Yang Kai’s fingers, she made a small cut at the tip. At once, a drop of golden fresh blood oozed out.
Bei Li Mo drew a drop of the fresh blood with her hand and sucked it into her mouth, face revealing a look of surprise, “Divine Spirit Blood!”
[This little brat actually has a Divine Spirit’s bloodline? And, judging from the taste of the blood and the energy contained within, this is an extremely high-level Divine Spirit. It might even be from a Dragon or a Phoenix!]
Bei Li Mo couldn’t help but click her tongue in surprise. But with that, she felt relieved. Since the blood flowing in Yang Kai’s body contained such strong vitality and recuperative power, that proved that receiving this injury was in fact no threat to him, not to mention there being no need to take any elixirs. It wouldn’t take him long to be able to fully recover all on his own.
“Holy Venerable, this man is too impudent. Should this subordinate kill him?” The Demon King looked up at Bei Li Mo and asked solemnly.
Bei Li Mo glanced at her, “Do you want to kill him? Sure, but he’s Yu Ru Meng’s man. If you kill him, then even this Saint won’t be able to protect you.”
When the Demon King heard this, her face couldn’t help but change. She looked at Yang Kai with a puzzled expression. This man actually turned out to be Yu Ru Meng’s man? If she had not heard these words from Bei Li Mo’s mouth, then she definitely wouldn’t believe it.
The other Demon Kings were also taken aback as if they had heard some extremely shocking news.
Bei Li Mo was silent for a moment before suddenly turning around, “Throw him into the Ice Prison and keep him under close supervision. Tell him this Saint will let him out when he’s ready to apologize properly.”
Even though she injured Yang Kai and knocked him out, in the end, he was the one who put her in such a humiliating situation. She really couldn’t swallow this down unless Yang Kai could come sincerely to her and apologized.
When they heard the words ‘Ice Prison’, the Demon Kings paled in unison. It was apparent that the Ice Prison wasn’t a good place. Not only that, but Bei Li Mo even tapped a few spots on Yang Kai’s body as she gave the order.
This caused the eyes of the Demon Kings watching to fill with pity for Yang Kai. This guy could have provoked anyone, but he ended up provoking their Holy Venerable. Now, he would have his fill of suffering.
Bei Li Mo waved her hand, and only then did the Demon Kings grab Yang Kai by the neck and drag him out.
Ten kilometres away from Soaring Snow Ice Palace, He Yin, Tu Qia Luo, and Ba Zha were all looking in the direction of the Ice Palace. The scene they caught earlier of Bai Ya leaving in a hurry and running off at the speed of lightning perturbed them. They had no idea what Yang Kai had encountered in the Ice Palace, but they were powerless to do anything. Even though ten thousand people was no small number, none of them had the guts to forcibly march into Soaring Snow Ice Palace to demand answers.
Yang Kai had now been inside for 3 or 4 hours but had still not returned. However, they could be certain of the fact that his life was not in danger; otherwise, Tu Qia Luo and Ba Zha would certainly be dead. After all, their life or death was now tied to Yang Kai’s. If anything were to happen to Yang Kai, then they wouldn’t be able to escape either.
In comparison, despite how worried He Yin was, she was still relatively calm.
At that moment, they discovered a large number of people coming out from the Ice Palace before raging forth towards this side. The female Demon Kings at the forefront had already reached High-Rank, and were each riding Demon Beasts of different shapes with bodies protected by distinctive armour. It was an awe-inspiring sight.
And, there were also several thousand Demons following behind these Demon Kings.
This scene unnerved Yang Kai’s subordinates. Even He Yin, Tu Qia Luo, and Ba Zha’s faces changed. Even though they did not work under Bei Li Mo’s subordinates, they knew that there was a group of elites among them called the Soaring Snow Ice Guard. Each member was chosen from the elites of the Demon Race and possessed extremely good equipment, cultivated very special Secret Arts, and with their full strength, defeating three or five foes of the same cultivation alone was not uncommon. If they moved out in formation, then they would be able to sweep enemies ten times their numbers.
The Demons that rushed out from the Ice Palace were clearly the legendary Soaring Snow Ice Guard, so even though they were outnumbered, the momentum still overwhelmed the combined troops of Cloud Shadow and Blue Plains Continent completely, sending the crowd into a panic.
The group of Soaring Snow Ice Guards quickly approached them and stopped in unison, as neatly as if they were one whole. Each one of the Demons was looking arrogantly at them with a face of mocking.
The Demon King at the front waved her hand and shouted, “Surround them!”
With that command, several thousand men scattered and in less than a dozen breaths, they had ten thousand men surrounded.
Facing a life or death crisis, He Yin and the others couldn’t help but feel tense. Without the need for their orders, the over ten thousand Demons had already turned to face their besiegers, faces grave, as if a calamitous battle could break out at any moment.
Tu Qia Luo and the other Demon Kings couldn’t help but gulp at the situation, knowing that if a battle were to break out, then their members of over ten thousand would all most likely be buried here. What had their Great King done inside the Ice Palace? Why were the Soaring Snow Ice Guards mobilized?
Unfortunately, the Soaring Snow Ice Guards had them completely surrounded without so much as a gap; fortunately, it seemed they did not have any intention to attack and only intended to detain them here.
After a while, Tu Qia Luo finally felt a little relieved to see that they still had no intention to attack them. He knew that though Yang Kai must have done something to offend Bei Li Mo, there was still room for compromise.
After pondering for a while, he pushed aside the subordinate in front of him and stepped out. Squeezing a smile onto his face, he cupped his fists, “Good day, Sirs. I am Blue Plains’…”
Just as he said a few words, a whip shadow suddenly came down on him from overhead. The incomparable swiftness of the whip even caused the faint sound of thunder to break out behind it.
Tu Qia Luo’s face changed. He instinctively circulated his Demon Qi to resist the attack, but gritting his teeth, he still failed to put up any resistance.
With a light crack, the soft whip cut across his cheek, drawing a bloody mark.
The Demon King riding her mount at the front looked down condescendingly at him and said coldly, “Nobody wants to know who you are, just be obedient and stand where you are. If you dare to speak again, you will be killed without mercy!”
Tu Qia Luo’s face instantly turned blue and white. Clenching his fists, he thought to himself that he was still a High-Rank Demon King, so when had he ever suffered such great humiliation before? But the other side was part of the Soaring Snow Ice Guard, so there wasn’t anything he could really do to her. Just receiving one whip was already considered a good result; after all, losing one’s face was better than losing one’s life.
But with that, he was able to confirm that the Soaring Snow Ice Guard did not have any intention to make a move on them just yet, and what was happening was definitely related to Yang Kai. Were they perhaps trapping them here in order to stop news from spreading?
Tu Qia Luo frowned, unsure what to make of things.
He Yin, on the other hand, couldn’t help but look at Xiao Wu. If anyone could help them out of this crisis, then it could only be Yu Ru Meng. Last time, Yu Ru Meng manifested in Xiao Wu’s body, then this time, she could naturally come through Soul Descend as well. If that happened, even if it may be just a wisp of Yu Ru Meng’s Soul, these Soaring Snow Ice Guards still wouldn’t dare to make any moves.
Seemingly having sensed her gaze, Xiao Wu also looked towards her, but she slowly shook her head.
He Yin’s eyes couldn’t help but dim. She knew in her heart that even if Ru Meng was a Holy Venerable, she couldn’t use Soul Descent so casually. Last time, she had only manifested under Bei Li Mo’s provocation. Since they were not in any danger at the moment, there was no need for her to go as far as to use Soul Descend.
…
Below the Soaring Snow Ice Palace lay the 18-level Frozen Nether Ice Prison. The environment of each layer was harsher as one descended, and the deepest 18th level was so harsh that even a Demon King level Master would not be able to survive there for long. The frigid energy in the air alone was enough to freeze one’s Soul and send them unto death’s embrace.
Many Demons who had committed great sins were kept within the Ice Prison. Generally, one could enter but never leave. The only end for the captives here was to freeze to death.
When the female Demon King arrived here at the Ice Prison while carrying Yang Kai under Bei Li Mo’s orders, there was immediately someone who went over to greet her respectfully. This person was also a Demon King, and even a High-Rank Demon King. From the stony lustre of his face, he should be a Stone Demon; however, it was clear that his status could not be compared to the one carrying Yang Kai. He came over to greet her as soon as he saw her, and the two casually exchanged pleasantries before the Stone Demon turned a curious gaze at Yang Kai, “Another one? What is this one in for?”
“Offending the Holy Venerable!” The female Demon King held Yang Kai up for display.
The Stone Demon grinned, “He’s got guts…” Taking a good look at Yang Kai, he was instantly surprised, “This guy…”
“He’s Human,” Naturally, the female Demon King knew what he wanted to ask.
“An actual Human!” The Stone Demon raised his brows in a surprised manner. He had never seen what Humans looked like before, so he was naturally feeling very curious at the moment. After observing the man for a while though, he discovered that Humans were not much. They didn’t have extra eyes or arms compared to the Demon Race. Immediately, he lost interest and asked, “What are the Holy Venerable’s plans for him? Does she want a quick death or a slow one?”
If it were to be a quick death, then he would just be thrown directly to the lower levels of the Ice Prison where he would freeze to death in less than a day. But if it were a slow and tormenting death, then he would be tossed down to the middle levels where he would be able to live on for a little while longer.
“This one definitely can’t die!” The female Demon King shook her head, “The Holy Venerable has a great use for him!”
The Stone Demon was taken aback at those words. Many Demons had been thrown down into the Ice Prison, yet none of them ever survived, yet this Human in front of him wasn’t allowed to perish? But since it was an order from the Holy Venerable, then he would naturally obey, “What level is his cultivation?”
“Mid-Rank Demon King. His body is incredibly strong, but his cultivation has been sealed off by Holy Venerable.”
“Sealed cultivation, is it…” The Stone Demon looked at Yang Kai with sympathy, wondering how in the world he aggravated the Holy Venerable to the point of being thrown into the Frozen Nether Ice Prison with his cultivation sealed. After a moment of contemplation, he said, “The 7th floor it is, then. With his current condition, any lower and he may not be able to survive.”
“I’ll leave it to you to decide!” After passing Yang Kai over, the female Demon King instructed, “Holy Venerable said to tell him once he wakes up that whenever he’s seriously repented his wrongs, Holy Venerable will release him.”
A cold feeling washed over from all directions. Yang Kai awoke and was dazed for a while before suddenly remembering what happened before he fell unconscious. He quickly jumped up and assumed a defensive posture before exploring his surroundings vigilantly.
He couldn’t help but be stunned by the sight he saw. This was no longer the room that Bei Li Mo was in, but rather what seemed to be an ice room with crystal clear ice walls on all sides that were smooth enough to reflect oneself. With an area of around several tens of meters, it seemed like a cell! The cold chill that was seeping into his bones gave him goosebumps.
Yang Kai frowned. What sort of damned place was this? His memories stopped at the moment when Bei Li Mo’s palm slapped him unconscious. As for what happened afterwards, he really wasn’t sure. Thinking about it now, he still had some lingering fear of the might of a Demon Saint. It truly wasn’t something he could resist at his current level.
“Heh heh heh, you’re awake?” A sinister laugh suddenly erupted behind him.
Shocked, Yang Kai quickly turned around to look. At the same time, he found it a little hard to believe because of how close the voice sounded. If the other party had not said anything, then he never would have noticed them. It was only now that he realized the problem with his body. As soon as he examined himself, his face turned dark in an instant.
There actually turned out to be several restrictions placed on his body. His Emperor Qi was sealed and completely unusable. From the energy traces on the seals, it was quite obvious that Bei Li Mo had applied these seals personally.
It was no wonder why he felt cold. Without Emperor Qi to protect his body, and with such a harsh environment, it would be strange if he didn’t feel cold.
But compared to this, Yang Kai was more concerned about where this place was, and what Bei Li Mo was trying to do.
The one who made that sinister laugh earlier was a Stone Demon with a round waist and seemingly high cultivation. He was standing a couple dozen meters away and watching Yang Kai gloatingly. The two were separated by a door, which had only a small window. It was only through that window that Yang Kai was able to see some things outside.
[This really is a prison cell!] Yang Kai’s face turned even darker. He moved to the small window and took a look at the Stone Demon before quickly asking, “Who are you? Where’s Bei Li Mo?”
The Stone Demon showed a look of surprise, “You dare call Holy Venerable by name? Sure enough, you truly don’t fear the Heavens. It’s no wonder why you’d be thrown in here.”
“I’m asking you a question, are you deaf?” Yang Kai had an impatient look.
The Stone Demon smiled, “Holy Venerable has decreed that you will be released when you sincerely repent. You’d better behave if you know what’s good for you, little brat.” After staring meaningfully at Yang Kai for a moment, he turned and left.
Yang Kai wasn’t happy about this at all and cursed, “You want this King to repent to her? Tell her to go eat shit!” He had clearly been invited here to restore the Territory Gates, and now he was actually shut into this damned place by Bei Li Mo. There was no way Yang Kai’s anger could be pacified in this situation. Coupled with the fact that he was knocked unconscious by that woman before, it was clear that he had already eaten a big loss, and yet Bei Li Mo was still making things difficult for him. With new grudges pouring in with the old, he didn’t care whether she was a Demon Saint or not, he had to curse her first.
The Stone Demon stumbled and almost fell to the ground. Turning back to look at the Ice Prison cell that Yang Kai was in, his eyes were almost bulging out of their sockets.
[What’s the deal with this Human? How dare he insult Holy Venerable like that? Is he tired of living? What does he think will happen to him if Holy Venerable were to catch wind of what he said?] If any of the Demons confined here dared to speak such reckless words, then he would definitely have killed them directly. However, according to that female Demon King, Yang Kai could not be killed. This guy was of great use to Holy Venerable and throwing him in here was simply a way to grind down his arrogance.
Shaking his head, the Stone Demon said, “Little brat, you better shut your mouth quickly if you don’t want to die. I’m sure you should know that a loose tongue spells trouble.”
Yang Kai was just casually cursing her, but hearing him say that only served to arouse his anger. He immediately shouted, “I cursed her, so what?” Then, he bellowed word by word, “Bei Li Mo is a cheap slut!”
Since he couldn’t beat her in strength, then he could only curse her to relieve some of the anger in his chest. If he could draw Bei Li Mo out by cursing her, then that would be the best-case scenario. He wanted that woman to spit out what her problem was.
Such vulgar words caused the Stone Demon’s eye to twitch and his fists clenched as his face was covered in a malevolent aura. Yang Kai insulting Bei Li Mo was the same as insulting the rest of her Demon Race subordinates. It was fine if he never heard it, but since he did, how could this Stone Demon not do anything about it?
He wanted to teach Yang Kai a lesson, but after giving it a second thought, he resisted the impulse. He was worried that he would accidentally beat Yang Kai to death; after all, this Human’s cultivation was sealed by the Holy Venerable. Yang Kai may not be able to withstand a few punches from him, so the Stone Demon just sneered, “Go ahead and yell if you want to, I hope you’ll still have the energy to keep yelling in a while!”
As expected, Yang Kai cursed his heart out in an amazingly loud voice that was full of energy. Vulgar and insulting words flowed from his lips incessantly and echoed through the 7th floor of the Ice Prison.
He was not the only one confined here on the 7th floor. There were at least a hundred other Demons here. When they heard someone cursing Bei Li Mo, all of them showed looks of horror. Each of them lay against their cell windows and peered in Yang Kai’s direction, seemingly curious to see who it was that truly didn’t fear the Heavens. Even though they were confined here and knew that there was no chance of survival for them, none of them ever dared to insult Bei Li Mo in such a way.
If anyone dared do such a thing, then the matter wouldn’t be settled with just their lives. There were many ways to make a person prefer death over life in this world.
Even though the Stone Demon left, he was still constantly paying attention to Yang Kai’s movements. The veins on his forehead were also jumping at Yang Kai’s torrent of unceasing insults. Bei Li Mo had not been cursed more in her life than she has in this day alone, and it was completely without repetition. The Stone Demon really had his eyes opened to the world. How could someone curse another with such vulgar words and righteous indignation?
The Human yelled for a whole hour before finally stopping. The Stone Demon’s patience was also almost running out and it was only when he heard Yang Kai go quiet that he was able to breathe a heavy sigh of relief. He thought to himself that Yang Kai probably couldn’t hold on any longer.
After all, he had his cultivation sealed. Even though the 7th floor was not too deep, one with their cultivation sealed still would not last long there. It was amazing enough that he had the energy to yell for up to an hour. Compared to Yang Kai’s cursing skills, the Stone Demon admired his stamina even more, but now that Yang Kai had finally reached his limit, his ears finally had peace.
But in fact, things weren’t as the Stone Demon had hoped. Just after an incense stick of time, Yang Kai began cursing again. This time, the curses escalated and became even more unpleasant than before.
The veins on the Stone Demon’s temple could not help but throb again…
The reason why Yang Kai stopped for an incense stick of time was merely that he was checking his body’s condition. The injuries he sustained from Bei Li Mo were not considered too severe, just a few broken bones. Even though his cultivation was sealed, his body’s ability to recover did not disappear. If he rested for a few days, he should be able to recover completely. The only problem for him now was his inability to use his Emperor Qi.
Yang Kai tried just now to see whether he could break out of the cell, but under the premise of him being unable to use his Emperor Qi, his physical power alone wasn’t enough to break these walls.
It was true that this damned place was freezing cold, and the intense coldness was also not something that an ordinary person could bear. However, Yang Kai’s physical body was incredibly strong, so he didn’t have to fear the cold here too much. Bei Li Mo wanted to use this method to make him lower himself and admit his wrong, but unfortunately, she miscalculated.
The Frozen Nether Ice Prison was a grim and quiet place to begin with where the only end awaiting the Demons confined here was death. So, silence was normal. Many of the prisoners here just sat quietly as they waited for death.
But as soon as Yang Kai arrived, the place became as lively as a crowded food market.
If he was tired of cursing, then he would take a break. Once he had regained his energy, he could continue cursing. Several times, the Stone Demon wondered whether Yang Kai was finally unable to hold on, and yet in just a while, that Human brat would become lively again. This went on for two whole days.
This made the Stone Demon realize a problem. It seemed he had underestimated the strength of this Human’s physique. The 7th floor definitely wasn’t the right place for him!
Previously, the female Demon King had only told him that Yang Kai’s body was very strong, that was why he placed him down on the 7th floor. But now, it seemed that he would have to send him to the lower levels to shut him up.
With that in mind, he quickly transmitted a message to the female Demon King briefly explaining the situation here.
On the top floor of Soaring Snow Palace, under a transparent ice dome, Bei Li Mo was dressed in a light and elegant dress, looking over the railing, overlooking the beautiful scenery of Soaring Snow Continent.
Suddenly, Bei Li Mo turned her head and asked, “Can that boy finally not hold out anymore?”
The female Demon King looked at Bei Li Mo with hesitation, an awkward look on her face as if she did not know what to say.
Bei Li Mo said indifferently, “Just speak. What’s his situation now? Just teach him a small lesson, don’t actually kill him.”
Only then did the female Demon King begin in a small voice, “Please don’t worry, Holy Venerable. That Human is… doing well right now.”
“Well?” Bei Li Mo looked at her in surprise. She frowned, “How well do you mean?”
The female Demon King dawdled for a while, not wanting to explain too much. But under Bei Li Mo’s imposing gaze, she still spoke, “The 7th floor does not hinder him in the slightest. As soon as he woke up, he’d been… shouting, and it has already gone on for two days.”
Bei Li Mo scoffed, “So he still has the strength to shout? Seems like he’s really doing quite well.” After a pause, she asked, “So, what has he been shouting about?”
The female Demon King originally breathed a sigh of relief, but when she heard Bei Li Mo’s question, she knew that she couldn’t hide it from her any longer. Gritting her teeth, she said, “He has been… insulting Holy Venerable.”
Bei Li Mo’s expression cooled at that as she snapped, “He’s actually cursing me!”
The female Demon King was terrified, “Please calm your anger, Holy Venerable. I will go and wash out his mouth right now.”
Bei Li Mo raised a hand, “No need. It’s not as if I’ll lose anything from him cursing me a bit. But what has he been saying?”
As things had already come to this, the female Demon King could only transmit a message to the Stone Demon to ask. A moment later, she apprehensively repeated Yang Kai’s words of abuse, of which ‘bitch’ or ‘cheap slut’ could be considered cute. As for the real insults, things such as ‘rotten meat that even a wild dog would turn its nose away from’ and far worse continued to ring out.
Bei Li Mo only listened for a moment yet she was already shaking from rage. Gnashing her teeth, she snapped with a cold look in her eyes, “Throw him into the 13th floor! I want to see whether he still has the energy to curse me then!”
The 18 floors of the Frozen Nether Ice Prison got colder and colder as one went further down, with a great leap in intensity at every sixth floor. For example, the degree of cold between the 6th and the 7th floor definitely could not be described in the same words, as was the case for the 12th floor and the 13th floor!
Bei Li Mo was clearly angered by Yang Kai’s vicious words; otherwise, she would never have thrown him into the 13th floor. Previously, she had only meant to teach him a small lesson by tossing him into the 7th floor, but now, tossing him into the 13th floor would be a real punishment. For him to resort to cursing when he couldn’t beat her fairly, wasn’t this man a little too petty?
And in just a dozen breaths after the order was given, the Stone Demon arrived at Yang Kai’s cell and looked at him with a pitying gaze through the window.
Yang Kai wiped the spittle away from his mouth and pointed his nostrils at him, “What!”
The Stone Demon shook his head and sighed. Having no intention to say anything more to this lunatic, he simply took out a token and opened the cell’s seal; then, after opening the door, he cocked his head at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai grinned, “That bitch wants to see me? Tell her to get her ass over here herself.”
“You think too highly of yourself!” The Stone Demon coldly snorted before reaching out to grab him.
Yang Kai instinctively tried to dodge, but he was helpless due to the seal that Bei Li Mo put on his body. Even though his physique was still as sturdy as before, about eighty percent of his strength was gone so he was still grabbed by the Stone Demon with ease.
Following that, the Stone Demon dragged him deep underground.
Yang Kai had a bad feeling about this, but that only served to infuriate him. It was simply impossible for him to bow his head, so he twisted and struggled as he shouted, “Let me go, this King will just follow you! But you better tell Bei Li Mo that unless she comes to apologize herself, then this King definitely won’t forgive her, and will never give her what she wants either.”
The Stone Demon let out a laugh, completely ignoring him.
Soon after, a straight tunnel down appeared before them. Following the stairs, they reached the next floor, but they didn’t stop. Instead, they kept going down…
Only then did Yang Kai realize that this Ice Prison did not consist of just a single floor, but it was rather made up of many, and each level down had a harsher environment. He knew that the reason why he was being moved deeper down was because his insults to Bei Li Mo had been passed to the ears of its target, but that was no surprise. Since Bei Li Mo wanted him to restore the Territory Gates, then she would definitely keep a close eye on his movements. She wouldn’t want him to actually die, either.
After moving six floors down, the Stone Demon finally threw Yang Kai into another cell. Then, locking up the door, he turned and left.
Yang Kai was shivering from the freezing cold. The place was much colder than where he was previously. Even though it was cold in the previous cell, he could still easily resist it with his tough body, making him feel just a slight chill, but he was feeling the cold quite strongly on this layer. In just a moment, Yang Kai could feel the blood flow in his body slow down considerably. The omnipresent chill in his surroundings was just like an invisible toxin that was constantly encroaching his body, seeping through his pores into his five viscera and six organs.
He jumped in place for a while, but it didn’t help to reduce the cold in the slightest.
Yang Kai flew into a rage and rushed over to the window, unleashing another round of curses. He would only get colder and colder if he just sat around like a fool, while he could freshen his spirits a little by cursing. Maybe it might even warm him up…
The Stone Demon who watched over the Ice Prison was also speechless when he saw this, thinking to himself that this Human was really quite amazing. Even the 13th floor wasn’t enough to shut him up. What sort of grudge was there between him and the Holy Venerable? The Stone Demon had no idea how long this Human could hold on for. The coldness on the 13th floor was on a whole different level compared to the 7th floor. The Stone Demon guessed that Yang Kai would last at most two days before becoming exhausted, then he naturally wouldn’t have the energy to curse anymore.
But in fact, Yang Kai’s resilience and perseverance exceeded his imagination. Or rather, the Holy Venerable had seriously underestimated the strength of this Human’s body. A full three days later, Yang Kai was still cursing. Even though he would rest a while in between tirades, it was still unbelievable for him to have lasted such a long time.
During these three days, the Holy Venerable would ask about the Human’s situation almost every day, and the Stone Demon didn’t dare to hide anything so he could only report the truth as it was. It was likely the Holy Venerable’s anger wasn’t light either. He was able to feel it from the tone of the female Demon King’s voice transmission alone.
On the third day, Yang Kai had just opened his mouth to curse again when a heavy sigh suddenly emerged in the cell next to him, “Little brat, you’ve been yelling for days and it’s the same old pattern each and every day. This King’s ears are almost calloused from hearing it. Don’t you have any new material?”
Yang Kai was more or less surprised to hear someone speaking to him.
He had observed the situation on this floor when he was being dragged in, and there seemed to be other Demons imprisoned here. Everyone on this level was a Demon King. Yang Kai had no idea what they had done, but their numbers weren’t great. He had only seen less than ten of them, but these guys were indifferent to anyone who entered this place. They just sat cross-legged in their own cells and tried their best to resist the freezing cold.
No one paid them any attention, leaving them to fend for themselves. Once the Demon Qi in their bodies was fully consumed, then it would be their time to die.
The Demon speaking to him should be the one staying diagonally across from him. Yang Kai looked through the window, but did not see anyone. He guessed that he was sitting deep inside his cell.
Laughing, Yang Kai nodded, “This Brother may have a point. Why don’t you say a few words and see whether you can come up with anything new?”
There was silence from that side for a while before the Demon continued, “I don’t have the guts to be as bold as you.”
In fact, he actually wondered how Yang Kai had the courage to insult Bei Li Mo. What confused him even more was how Bei Li Mo did not rip out his tongue for daring to curse a Holy Venerable like her. This was something that hadn’t happened for many years.
“Anything you do leads to death regardless, so what courage do you need to curse someone?” Yang Kai snorted.
The Demon King said, “There are many different kinds of deaths. I don’t want to be tortured to death.”
Another Demon King’s voice suddenly emerged from the other side, “Hey, you there, stop disturbing him. Let him continue cursing.”
“Yeah, that’s right! It’s rare for this damned place to be so lively. Who cares whether he’s got fresh ideas? It’s a pleasure to listen to regardless.”
“Little brat, ignore him. Keep cursing!”
…
A cacophony of noise came in from all directions which stunned Yang Kai for a moment. He didn’t expect to gather an audience from his cursing, and he had no idea whether to laugh or cry at this. If one were to ask the Demon Kings imprisoned here to insult Bei Li Mo, then it was true they did not have the courage to do so; however, just listening wouldn’t hurt anything.
“Little brat, don’t stop. Being able to hear you curse before my death would at least soothe my heart a bit!” Someone else urged him.
Yang Kai stroked his chin and smiled, “Since you’re all so supportive, then let’s try something new.” After organizing his words, Yang Kai lightly coughed and began, “There once was a poor couple in Demon Realm’s Soaring Snow Continent. Bearing a daughter, they named her Bei Li Mo. Since young this Bei Li Mo had been an intelligent child. At a young age, she already had the makings of a beauty…”
…
Still under the transparent ice dome, Bei Li Mo was dressed in light translucent robes and resting her plump and beautiful buttocks on the windowsill. Her snow-white legs swayed off the edge of the cliff as the wind whistled by, blowing up her hair. She leaned against the window, seeming as if she could be blown away by the breeze at any moment while her misty gaze overlooked the snow-white world before her.
She lifted a glass of crimson Blood Wine in her jade white hand and took a light sip from it. Her lustrous red lips like gemstones were stained with a hint of crimson, adding to her enchanting charm. Turning her head slightly, she asked, “How’s that boy doing now?”
When the female Demon King who brought Yang Kai to the Ice Prison heard this, her eye twitched. She answered in a soft voice, “Well!”
Bei Li Mo frowned, “Still well?” That was the same answer she got last time.
The female Demon King said, “It seems like this Subordinate has still underestimated the sturdiness of his body. The report from that side details that even though he wasn’t as relaxed as before, his life should not be in any danger in the short-term.”
“Is he still cursing me?” Bei Li Mo asked in a calm tone.
The female Demon King hurriedly shook her head, “No!”
Bei Li Mo was surprised, “No? Has he run out of energy, or has he really stopped?” After a pause, she added, “Honestly, there’s no need for this Saint to lower herself to that crazy dog’s level!” When she first heard that Yang Kai was cursing her, she was indeed quite angry, but after thinking about it for a time, there was really no need for her to be upset. She was only getting cursed a few times and just as she said previously, it wasn’t as if she would lose anything from that, so it was no big deal for her to just properly deal with him after.
“He really did stop…” The female Demon King had an awkward look on her face, “But recently, he began telling a story…”
Bei Li Mo laughed, “A story? What story? Who is he telling it to?” She simply could not imagine it. What sort of damn story could he tell in the Ice Prison? What an interesting man.
“It’s a story he made up himself. It’s best if Holy Venerable doesn’t listen lest it stains her ears!”
Bei Li Mo’s heart was like a clairvoyant mirror as she coldly snorted, “It’s about this Saint, isn’t it? Let’s hear it. What exactly did he make this Saint do in his story?”
The female Demon King sighed in her heart. Even though she didn’t want to relay, she could only answer.
Yang Kai’s story was simple and crude, but quite dramatic and descriptive. A poor girl fell in love with a wealthy young lord and was smitten like a moth to the flame. But unexpectedly, she was tossed aside like a used rag after the wealthy young lord got his hands on her. Heartbroken, the girl fell to the bustling world where she was forced to make a living in a brothel, receiving customers. Despite the earlier details being brushed over, the parts about her receiving customers were incomparably detailed.
While the female Demon King relayed the story, this young lady called Bei Li Mo had already received more than a hundred customers, and her price had fallen to the cheapest in the brothel. The guests she received were also from all sorts of backgrounds. Even a beggar on the street was lucky enough to have his way with her.
In the beginning, Bei Li Mo was still listening with a calm face; however, when she heard the part where ‘Bei Li Mo’ fell from grace and became a prostitute, she crushed the glass in her hand in an instant.
When the old beggar appeared, Bei Li Mo’s face was already cold to the extreme. Even though she knew that Yang Kai was just making up a story to disgust her, she simply could not tolerate it!
She had never seen such an abominable man before!
Turning around, she came down from the windowsill and the look in her eyes was cold to the bone, “Enough!”
The female Demon King fell to her knees and said in fear, “Please calm your anger, Holy Venerable. This Subordinate will go and rip out his tongue!”
Bei Li Mo sneered, “Wouldn’t that be too cheap for him? Throw him into the 18th floor! I want him to experience a life worse than death!”
The female Demon King suddenly raised her head, “But Holy Venerable Ru Meng…”
“Hm?” Bei Li Mo turned her cold gaze over, instantly causing her subordinate to swallow her next words.
After staying on the 13th floor for about a week, the Stone Demon appeared at Yang Kai’s window again.
Yang Kai was just getting to the good part, but he wasn’t surprised to see this man and merely sneered, “Going down again?”
The Stone Demon looked him up and down, then raised a hand to give him a thumbs up with a look filled with admiration. No matter what, this boy before him was definitely a talent. No one had ever made the Holy Venerable change her order so many times, and to increase the punishment more and more at that. In a way, this Human had set a precedent.
Only, the 18th floor… Even one as strong as this Stone Demon could not help but shudder.
As usual, he took out his token to open the cell’s seal. He didn’t even need to grab Yang Kai and just motioned to him. Yang Kai would take the initiative to walk out by himself.
Unfamiliar and haggard faces now appeared on the windows of the cells around him. All of them had been Yang Kai’s loyal listeners during the past few days. Even though they had no idea what Yang Kai would encounter upon leaving this time, they all knew that this guy’s end could only be disastrous.
There wasn’t any friendship between them. They had only been listening to Yang Kai’s stories for a few days, allowing them some fun in their silent torment of waiting for death. So, with a slight nod, they passed each other by.
Deeper and deeper they went, and the environment became colder and colder.
Yang Kai silently noted the numbers and inquired on the way, “Which floor was I on before?”
The Stone Demon seemed to think that there was no need to hide it since Yang Kai was bound for death anyway, “This time, we’re sending you to the 18th floor!”
Yang Kai raised a brow, “Then, how many floors are there in total?”
“18 is the lowest floor!” The Stone Demon glanced at him.
Yang Kai grinned, “Your Holy Venerable really thinks highly of me.”
The Stone Demon shook his head and sighed, “If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve just shut you in there to begin with. Let me give you some advice. When we get there, find a place to sit down and don’t do anything else, much less resist. That way, things will be over faster. Oh, that’s right. Your cultivation has already been sealed, so there’s not much you can do to resist anyways.”
Yang Kai glanced at him from the corner of his eye, “You think I’m going to die for sure?”
The Stone Demon laughed, neither admitting nor denying it. That was the 18th floor of the Frozen Nether Ice Prison after all. If he could still be lively down there, then that would truly be going against the Heavens.
Having guessed what the Stone Demon was thinking, Yang Kai didn’t really mind either. He figured that Bei Li Mo only meant to play a small trick on him rather than actually wanting his life, but there was no need to say anything more to others. Instead, he asked, “Is there anyone else on the 18th floor?”
“There are!” The Stone Demon nodded, “They’re all dead!”
Yang Kai’s mouth twitched, speechless.
He had no idea how long they’d walked, but they finally arrived at the entrance to the 18th floor. The Stone Demon didn’t even have the intention of sending Yang Kai in, merely opening the entrance with his token before turning and saying, “Go in yourself.”
Yang Kai glanced at the entrance. Even before going in, he could already feel a bone-chilling cold assaulting his senses. He had no idea how long he could last if he went inside. He weighed his chances of killing the Stone Demon with his current abilities but came to a disappointing result. With his cultivation sealed, he definitely wasn’t this Stone Demon’s opponent. But of course, if he had his Embodiment come out of the Sealed World Bead, then dealing with this Stone Demon would be easy enough. Even though Yang Kai’s cultivation was sealed, making it impossible for him to even open his own Space Ring, the Embodiment could exit the Sealed World Bead himself.
But Yang Kai was not prepared to reveal his Embodiment’s existence under Bei Li Mo’s watchful gaze so soon.
An arm cannot be thicker than a thigh, so he had no choice but to head in face-first.
After Yang Kai stepped onto the 18th floor, the Stone Demon quickly sealed the entrance and left in a hurry, as if he didn’t want to stay for even a moment longer.
The 18th floor. It was a little different from what Yang Kai expected. The previous 17 floors were all segregated cells, but there were no individual cells here, it was just a white world.
As soon as he stepped into this place, Yang Kai could feel his entire body stiffen as a layer of frost began to cover his face. This layer of frost was growing at a speed visible to the naked eye. The ever-present cold invaded his body through his pores and caused Yang Kai to feel a stinging pain similar to being stabbed by a million needles. In just several breaths of time, Yang Kai’s face was already beginning to pale, and his lips turned purple.
He quickly moved his body in order to break apart the frost covering his figure to prevent himself from really being frozen solid.
But as soon as he moved, his face couldn’t help but change. That was because even his thoughts seemed to be affected by this damned place, his ability to think slowing down, and even the commands he sent to his limbs seemingly taking longer than they should to reach their destination.
Yang Kai became serious when he realized the cold on this 18th floor could even affect his Soul. Fortunately, he had the Soul Warming Lotus so he wasn’t worried about his Soul actually becoming frozen. A cool feeling spread forth from his mind, fighting the icy coldness that was invading his Knowledge Sea, finally allowing his thoughts to flow again.
It was only at this time that he finally had the leisure to observe his surroundings though frankly, there was nothing to see. There was no hint of life here, and not a single person either. The only thing that entered Yang Kai’s vision was white. There seemed to be something far in the distance, but he couldn’t see too clearly.
Yang Kai made his way over to that side, and it wasn’t until he got closer and had a better look that he realized it was an ice sculpture. It was not an ice sculpture that was carved by someone, however, but rather a real dead body encased in ice.
This was undoubtedly a Demon. Yang Kai had no idea which clan he was from, but their expression before death was a peaceful one. It seemed that he did not experience any pain, but Yang Kai knew clearly that it was only natural that this guy couldn’t feel any pain, because his Soul was already frozen.
And, for a Demon who could be put down here on the 18th floor, Yang Kai guessed that he must at least be a High-Rank Demon King. He really couldn’t figure out what this guy did that he would actually end up here, dead.
Looking around his surroundings, Yang Kai was shocked to see more ice sculptures a distance away in all directions, all of them encasing a dead body. There were young and old Demons, male and female… Counting them roughly, there were about forty that he could see within his view, not counting the ones that were even further away.
“This insane woman!” Yang Kai bared his teeth. It was no wonder why the Stone Demon told him that everyone here was dead. It was indeed true that they were dead to the point where they couldn’t be more dead. Even their Souls were frozen, so how could they possibly still survive?
Bei Li Mo wouldn’t really let him die down here, right? Yang Kai’s heart was drumming a little. Even though she was a Demon Saint, she was still a woman and Yang Kai was well aware that when a woman became enraged she could be completely unreasonable. He made a decision in his heart at that moment. If he really did reach the point where he could no longer resist, then he would have the Embodiment exit the Sealed World Bead and drag him inside.
Then, with the Sealed World Bead’s World Force, Yang Kai was confident he could break the seal that Bei Li Mo planted in him.
But if he did that, then the Sealed World Bead was bound to be revealed to Bei Li Mo, and if she were to take that away from him, then everything would be over.
This lonely white world was dead silent. Yang Kai could even hear his heartbeats and his breathing. There was no audience here to hear his stories either. While moving his body to break the frost, he walked around to investigate his surroundings.
At one point, Yang Kai’s expression suddenly changed.
He had no idea whether it was just an illusion or not, but he actually felt as if there were a pair of eyes watching him from the void. He wasn’t too sure whether it was real in the beginning, but as time went on, the feeling became more and more obvious.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but sneer in his heart. It seemed like Bei Li Mo really didn’t have the intention to kill him off.
Even that Stone Demon who looked after the Ice Prison was unwilling to come into this damned place. So, other than Bei Li Mo, no one else could silently spy on him here. As a Demon Saint, she should at least have this ability.
After getting this point straight, Yang Kai suddenly felt emboldened, and his previous worries immediately disappeared.
Looking around him, Yang Kai took a deep breath and only felt his lungs throbbing in pain from the invasion of the cold aura, almost as if it were going to freeze him from the inside. But at this moment, he began to curse loudly without regard for anything else.
Just as vulgar and unpleasant as before, his words just as vile and malicious.
Even though Yang Kai had cursed her previously, that was just him scratching an itch. Now that Bei Li Mo was watching him, he would give her the harshest verbal assault he could to see just how long she could bear with it.
Though Yang Kai’s other skills did not improve during these days, his cursing abilities had grown quite considerably. Even he felt a little disappointed in himself; after all, a man cursing a woman just because he couldn’t defeat her was really nothing worth being proud about…
He cursed for half a day, but still saw no reactions from Bei Li Mo.
Instead, it was Yang Kai himself who was finding it difficult to hold up. Sure enough, this was the 18th floor. It definitely wasn’t something the 13th floor he was on before could compare to. Despite how strong his physique was, many parts of Yang Kai’s body were frozen stiff after half a day.
But what surprised Yang Kai even more was the fact that he couldn’t even sense Bei Li Mo getting angry.
His curses gradually grew weak, and he was even feeling a little exhausted. Frost covered Yang Kai’s eyes to the point where he could no longer open them. Leaning against an ice sculpture, he howled in his heart. If that bitch Bei Li Mo didn’t come out, then things might really become disastrous for him, and he would have no choice but to get his Embodiment to do something.
He secretly warned the Embodiment to pull him into the Small Sealed World as soon as things started to look bad. Then, Yang Kai strengthened his will and carried on cursing for a while.
His consciousness was blurring and his eyes were constantly opening and closing. Even though his mouth was moving, no sound came out of it any longer. His body was already covered in ice crystals and he seemed to be on his way to becoming an ice sculpture.
But the moment before his consciousness blurred completely, a cold power suddenly fluctuated from a certain place that swept over Yang Kai’s body.
The frost that was covering his figure melted at a speed that was visible to the naked eye, and there was also an invisible power that now shielded him, preventing the Ice Principles and Energy of this place from invading him again.
Yang Kai suddenly opened his eyes and let out a chuckle, “I knew you wouldn’t do anything to this King!”
Slowly getting up, he stretched his muscles for a bit. With the protection of that blessing’s power, the cold here impacted him much less. Squinting at his surroundings, he called out coldly, “Show yourself. Is there any point in sneaking around?”
After waiting for a long time but still seeing no reaction from his surroundings, Yang Kai sighed, “What you’re doing is meaningless. I knew you wouldn’t try anything with my life. Since this King offended you, then I will not complain about this, but since you can’t kill me now either, we might as well sit down and talk things out if we can. Otherwise, we can go our separate ways. Is tormenting someone who can’t resist fun for you?”
After saying so, Yang Kai looked around him, seemingly trying to find where Bei Li Mo was hiding.
But at that moment, a weak and melodious voice suddenly entered his ears, “I’m guessing you’re speaking to me?”
Yang Kai was surprised as he turned his head to look around him, “Who!”
This voice definitely did not belong to Bei Li Mo as even though it sounded weak, it was filled with warmth. Even the tone was very different from Bei Li Mo’s. Yang Kai wouldn’t confuse something so simple. But this surprised him. There was actually someone else on the 18th floor? He checked this damned place previously and even though the area was not considered small, it definitely wasn’t big either. There was no vitality, but he did find many Demon Race corpses.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but be surprised to suddenly hear someone speaking to him.
“Come here!” The voice appeared again to lead the way for Yang Kai.
Yang Kai took a moment to identify the direction. Focusing his eyes on a certain spot, he hesitated for a while before moving over. He was also curious to know who it was he was talking to and why he hadn’t noticed them before.
Walking past several frozen ice sculptures, Yang Kai crossed a dozen metres or so before finally stopping in front of a certain ice figure. Gazing ahead, his eyes revealed a hint of surprise.
There was also a Demon encased in this ice sculpture, and she seemed to be a Snow Demon like Bei Li Mo. She had delicate crystal clear skin with soft lustrous black hair, a slender and graceful body, as well as perfect and exquisite features that were slightly more plump than thin. Yang Kai had seen many beautiful women in his life, and his own wives were all Heaven-defying ones, but of course, in the confines of power and vision, as well as temperament, none can be compared to Yu Ru Meng and Bei Li Mo. However, this one in front of him definitely wouldn’t lose to those two Demon Saints.
This ice sculpture was different from the other ones. The Demon corpses in the other ice sculptures all sat cross-legged without exception, but she was the only one standing with both hands folded before her, seemingly sleeping peacefully. She didn’t look old either, only around 16 or so. She seemed to be a young girl who had yet to grow into adulthood.
Yang Kai did not feel any vitality from this ice sculpture, but with his cultivation sealed, even if there was any, he wouldn’t be able to sense it.
After looking around, Yang Kai turned back to the girl inside the ice sculpture in front of him and asked uncertainly, “Are you the one speaking?”
A few breaths later, the warm voice appeared once more, “Yes, it’s me. I’m sorry, I’ve been trapped in here for too long so it’s affected my Soul. That’s why my reactions are a little slow. Please forgive me.”
Yang Kai almost burst out in laughter. The way this girl spoke gave off a charmingly naive impression… But once he remembered what happened to the other party, he couldn’t laugh any longer. He thought to himself that this Bei Li Mo was truly a piece of work. Even though he had no idea what this girl’s nature was, she didn’t seem to be a bad person. Still, Bei Li Mo actually tossed her into the 18th floor of the Ice Prison, and from her appearance, who knows how many years she had been shut in here for.
At that thought, Yang Kai was horrified. Even he himself could not last long in this damned place and almost fell unconscious from the cold earlier, yet this girl actually remained awake in some sense of the word, which was enough to prove her strength.
Seemingly figuring out what Yang Kai was thinking, the girl explained, “I cultivate Ice Principles as well, so even though the environment here is harsh, it affects me far less than others.”
In principle, it was not impossible for one who cultivated Ice Principles to persist in such an environment, and the harsh cold in this place may even become a boon to their cultivation. But if a stronger opponent were to play a few tricks, then the situation would be different.
Since Bei Li Mo shut her in here, she definitely made arrangements.
But Ice Principles… Yang Kai asked, “Were you the one who saved me?”
When he almost fainted earlier, it was an icy cold force that swept through his body. He had thought it was Bei Li Mo who had done it, but it seemed like it wasn’t that woman to begin with, but the girl in front of him now.
“I can save you for a moment, but not for life. So many have been thrown in here over the years, but you’ve already seen the result. None of them managed to leave this place alive.” This was undoubtedly an admission.
Yang Kai chuckled, “No matter what, I must thank this young miss for saving my life.” Even though he wasn’t without a backup plan, it was still true that she saved him. After a pause, he asked, “May I ask for this young miss’ name?”
It was another few breaths later before the girl answered, “My name… Even I myself have forgotten it. You may call me whatever you please.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help but sweat. How many years must she have been locked in here to even forget her name? Perhaps it had something to do with her Soul being damaged? Touching his chin, he snapped his fingers, “Then, I shall call you Young Lady Bing!”
“Young Lady Bing, is it… Hehe, if it pleases you.” The young girl didn’t mind. She was curious, “How did you come to be thrown in here by Honoured Master?”
“Honoured Master?” Yang Kai blinked his eyes, “Is the Honoured Master you speak of… Bei Li Mo? You two are Master and Disciple?”
Young Lady Bing explained, “From what I can remember, we are in fact Master and Disciple!”
Now Yang Kai was well and truly shocked. He originally thought that this Young Lady Bing had committed some crime like himself to be thrown here into the 18th floor to receive punishment. He thought that she was Bei Li Mo’s subordinate, but who knew that these two were actually Master and Disciple!
Yang Kai couldn’t help but sweat. Through their previous interactions, Yang Kai didn’t like that woman Bei Li Mo very much, but he also didn’t expect her to be so ruthless to even be able to bear punishing her own Disciple in such a way. Throwing one into the Ice Prison was tantamount to taking their life! She was her Disciple after all, so even if she did make some kind of mistake, there was no need to go so far. But Yang Kai also did not know the cause and effect, so he did not say too much about it.
Bei Li Mo was a Demon Saint, however, so her Disciple should at least be a Half-Saint, right?
No wonder this Young Lady Bing could hold up this long in this Ice Prison…
Young Lady Bing said, “You haven’t answered my question. How did you offend Honoured Master?”
Yang Kai sweated and scratched his face, “Ahem, it was an accident that I provoked her.” He couldn’t tell her that she tried to molest her Honoured Master by turning her own tricks against her and was seen through before being beaten by her. That would be far too embarrassing so he quickly changed the topic, “What about you? Why are you imprisoned here?”
Young Lady Bing was silent for a long time before she spoke, “I shouldn’t tell you this, but it’s been so long and you’re the first one who has spoken so much with me. The reason that I’m imprisoned here seems to be because of a man…”
Yang Kai recoiled in shock, “You two Master and Disciple had your eyes on the same man?”
Young Lady Bing laughed, “No such thing. It was just me, but Honoured Master wouldn’t agree to it. When I refused to separate from him, she brutally tortured that man to death in front of me. I remember Honoured Master asked him to humiliate me and curse me, but he would rather die than to say a single bad word about me…”
“That bitch!” Yang Kai fumed, but coming back to his senses, he quickly added, “I’m not talking about you, I’m talking about that villain Bei Li Mo!”
Young Lady Bing said, “Don’t curse my Honoured Master.” Even though her tone was light, Yang Kai could hear the displeasure in her voice and couldn’t help but feel embarrassed, so he probed, “What happened after that? If she killed that man, then why did she have to go this far with you?”
“Because I attacked her out of anger, disappointing her greatly. That is how things came to this.”
Yang Kai sighed at her story, not knowing what he should say. If this was all true, then this Young Lady Bing was undoubtedly the most tragic victim in this matter. The man she loved was humiliated and killed before her eyes by her Honoured Master, then her Honoured Master broke all ties with her and locked her up in this place, sealed in ice to live a life worse than death. What else could be more tragic in this world than this?
It must have been hard for her to persevere until now. If it were anyone else, their Soul would probably have collapsed long ago.
“By the way, I heard you say that Honoured Master won’t kill you? Why are you so confident?”
Yang Kai grinned at that, “Because your Honoured Master still has something she needs from me.”
“Oh?” Young Lady Bing was surprised, “What does Honoured Master need from you?”
Yang Kai did not answer; instead, his eyes flashed slightly as he smiled, “I’ve made up my mind. When your Honoured Master comes to save me, I’ll have her release you from here as repayment for saving my life.”
Young Lady Bing, “No need!”
Yang Kai frowned, “You don’t want to go out?”
“It’s not that…” Young Lady Bing’s voice was bitter, “It’s just that my body has long become necrose, leaving behind only a broken Soul. I can still survive for a while longer if I’m frozen here, but if I leave, then I’m afraid I will die even faster.”
That made things difficult. Right now, there was no way for Yang Kai to check her body’s condition either; otherwise, there was no saying whether he might be able to think of an idea or not.
While he was pondering, Young Lady Bing said, “Are you sure you can leave this place? It’s not that I don’t believe you, it’s just that not a single person has been able to leave this place alive.”
Yang Kai smiled, “Just wait and see.”
“Is that so…” Young Lady Bing sighed, “Seems like this is really fate…”
“What fate?” Yang Kai frowned.
Young Lady Bing said, “You thanked me for saving your life and said you wish to repay me, but are you sincere?”
Yang Kai answered solemnly, “Naturally so. If Young Lady Bing wishes to leave, then I can really put in a few words for you to your Honoured Master. I don’t dare guarantee that she would definitely agree, but I still have eighty percent confidence.”
Young Lady Bing quickly stopped him, “Please, you mustn’t. And if you do manage to get out, then you should never mention me in front of Honoured Master lest you not be able to save even your own life!”
[Was it that serious?] Yang Kai was doubtful. Wasn’t it just a bit of narrow-mindedness between Master and Disciple? Yet he couldn’t even mention her name, even though he had no idea what this girl’s true name really was.
“Young Lady Bing means to say…” Yang Kai looked doubtfully at her.
“I want to ask a favour from you,” Young Lady Bing responded.
Yang Kai smiled, “You saved my life, so if there’s anything I can do to help, just say the word.”
Young Lady Bing answered, “Don’t be so quick to agree just yet. It’s not too late to think about it after you let me finish. Though it’s not a difficult matter, if you really do this, then it would most likely anger Honoured Master. And, it might even make her think of killing you. Would you still be willing to accept if that were so?”
Yang Kai raised a brow, “Can you tell me more?”
He could be confident that Bei Li Mo really wouldn’t kill him; after all, he was needed to restore the Demon Realm’s Territory Gates. No matter how angry she was, she would still need the approval of the other Demon Saints in the Demon Realm if she wanted to take his life. But he had already offended Bei Li Mo once, so if possible, Yang Kai didn’t want their relationship to sour even further. It wasn’t a good idea to have a Demon Saint bear a grudge against him.
Inside the ice sculpture, Young Lady Bing was silent for a while, seemingly deliberating. In the end, she still said, “I have an object that contains a Forbidden Art that I cultivated myself. It is extremely powerful, and I want you to use it on my Honoured Master.”
Yang Kai’s pupils shrank at those words, “You want to kill her?”
He couldn’t help but feel perturbed. From her words earlier, Young Lady Bing showed quite a lot of respect for Bei Li Mo. Even though the man she loved was tortured to death, and she was thrown into the 18th floor of the Ice Prison, never to see daylight again, she didn’t speak the slightest word of discontent and even showed some displeasure when Yang Kai cursed Bei Li Mo, speaking out in defence of her. So, for Young Lady Bing to suddenly make such a request baffled him.
Young Lady Bing laughed, “Honoured Master is a Demon Saint. How could I possibly kill her? Not to mention my lack of ability, even if I were strong enough, it would be impossible for me to do such a thing.”
“Then why…” Yang Kai couldn’t understand.
Young Lady Bing sighed, “It’s to make it up to him. Back then, when that man was tortured to death by Honoured Master, I didn’t make a single plea for him, even though I lost my mind afterwards and lashed out against Honoured Master, it was already too late. Perhaps Honoured Master could have let him off in view of the Master and Disciple relationship we shared for so many years had I begged her… Even though I have been frozen between life or death here for so many years, my heart could never rest at ease. Now, my predestined time of death is near, and I’m afraid it won’t be long before I must journey to join him in the next life. This is my account to him. When we meet again in the underworld, I can also tell him that I took revenge for him. It’s just, my strength is limited…”
Even though Young Lady Bing’s voice was steady while she spoke, Yang Kai could understand the sorrow and grief she felt within, and could also understand what she was trying to say, so he couldn’t help but stay silent.
Young Lady Bing continued, “The might of the Frozen Nether Ice Prison’s 18th floor is almost Earth-destroying. After so many years, not a single one who came in walked out alive. I thought that this Forbidden Art would never see the light of day, but I didn’t expect to meet you here at the final moment. Tell me, is this not fate? Since the Heavens intended so, then I can also take this opportunity to fulfil my wish. But rest assured, while this Forbidden Art’s power is not small, it definitely won’t do much to Honoured Master. She is a Demon Saint in the end. She will certainly look into it after the matter is done, but you only have to tell her what I said today and she won’t make things difficult for you.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help but feel a little troubled by this matter. If Young Lady Bing asked him for anything else, then he may be able to consider it, but wasn’t it a little too frivolous to use something sealed with a powerful Forbidden Art against Bei Li Mo? Even if Bei Li Mo was unlikely to make things difficult for him afterwards, who knew how that crazy woman would react in the moment? If she really flew into a range, who was going to save him then?
But since he had already said such big words, it would make him seem cowardly and ungrateful to back out now, so after pondering for a moment, Yang Kai told her, “Frankly, I’m not a member of the Demon Race. I am a Human and have not cultivated Ice Attribute Secret Arts or Secret Techniques. Thanks to Young Lady’s inheritance and origins as a Snow Demon, it’s obvious that what you cultivate are Ice Principles. Is this Forbidden Art even something I can use?”
Young Lady Bing replied, “It doesn’t matter. You only need to activate it and the Forbidden Art will be released. I know this request is a little difficult, so if you’re unwilling, just forget it.”
Yang Kai raised his hand to stop her, “Young Lady Bing is also imprisoned and unable to protect herself, but since you were willing to save me, how can I possibly refuse such a small request?” He had also made up his mind. Since he couldn’t refuse, he could only agree. In any case, he was just taking a risk in front of Bei Li Mo. If worse comes to worst, he could just drag Yu Ru Meng in, and then Bei Li Mo wouldn’t be able to do anything to him.
“Then I must offer you my sincerest thanks. With this, I can die in peace.” Young Lady Bing thanked him happily and at the same time she spoke, Yang Kai saw a warm glow suddenly blossom at her chest which grew bigger and bigger, as if something was going to break out.
In the next moment, light flashed and a hole appeared on the ice sculpture. A long crystal clear needle that was only a palm length long and looked as if it were carved out of the purest ice appeared in front of Yang Kai, floating gently.
Young Lady Bing’s voice then sounded, “This Profound Darkness Needle has my Forbidden Art sealed inside of it. I’m not too sure how strong it is because I created it after being sealed in here, so I’ve never tested it out before, but it definitely won’t be weak. Seeing as your relationship with Honoured Master is not too good, you can keep this for the time being. If one day she strikes at you, then you can also use this to hinder her for a moment…”
This was a good proposal that caused Yang Kai’s eyes to light up. This was equivalent to having another trick up his sleeve. Even though this was a one-time-use object, he couldn’t ask too much from something he got for nothing and asked, “How long can it stop her for?”
“Ten breaths at most. Perhaps as few as three!” Young Lady Bing quickly responded.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed, but remembering that Bei Li Mo was a genuine Demon Saint, it was impossible to ask for more. Just as he was about to put the Profound Darkness Needle away, he remembered the seal that Bei Li Mo planted on him. He couldn’t even open his own Space Ring, so he awkwardly asked, “Where should I put this?”
Young Lady Bing laughed, “I’ve been negligent.” After pondering for a moment, she suggested, “How about this? I’ll plant it in your hand so it will be convenient for you when you need to use it. I’m just not sure whether you can trust me or not.”
Yang Kai readily extended a hand, “Please, do what you need to, Young Lady.”
It wasn’t that he was easily trusting. Even though he had a good impression of this Young Lady Bing and was also grateful for her help, he didn’t trust her to the extent that he could lay bare his heart to her. The only reason he agreed so quickly was that even if she did have any ill intentions, nothing much would happen to him.
It was true that he had Bei Li Mo’s seal planted in him that restricted his Emperor Qi, but he had the Soul Warming Lotus to protect his Soul which was as strong as iron. His body’s foundation did not disappear either, so even if this Young Lady Bing tried anything on him, after being frozen for so many years, she still wouldn’t be able to do much.
Young Lady Bing clearly did not expect Yang Kai to agree so easily, so she was stunned for a moment before saying, “Please bear with it a little. It might hurt.”
Yang Kai nodded, motioning for her to go ahead. He wasn’t afraid of pain.
In the next instant, the Profound Darkness Needle that was floating in front of Yang Kai twitched slightly. Then, in a flash, it penetrated Yang Kai’s wrist as quick as lightning.
Pain erupted as a cool aura lurked within his wrist, but it quickly disappeared. Yang Kai sensed it carefully and could clearly feel something foreign embedded in his wrist, but since it didn’t have any effect on him, his mind was put at ease.
When he looked down again, he discovered that there wasn’t even a single injury on his wrist. He couldn’t help but admire Young Lady Bing’s skills. At that moment, he was unable to clearly identify how strong Young Lady Bing’s energy fluctuation was, but he guessed that she was definitely a Half-Saint.
Shaking his hand, he found no discomfort. Yang Kai asked, “Is that all?”
“Yes.” Young Lady Bing replied, “Now that my wish has been fulfilled, I fear only that we may never see each other again in the future, so please take care of yourself, and…”
Speaking up to that point, Young Lady Bing suddenly stopped. Then, a soft energy emerged from the ice sculpture that expelled Yang Kai a dozen metres away. At the same time, the protective force enveloping Yang Kai’s body also disappeared and Ice Principles flooded towards him from all directions again, making it so Yang Kai couldn’t help but shiver as his face and hair were quickly covered by frost.
This all happened so quickly that Yang Kai completely failed to process what had happened. By the time he recovered, he was already a dozen metres away, shivering involuntarily.
But very quickly, he knew why Young Lady Bing reacted so violently, because a strong aura quickly appeared above.
Even though his cultivation was now sealed, Yang Kai could still feel Bei Li Mo’s aura.
This woman actually ran down here personally.
As expected, in just a few moments, a snow-white figure emerged on the 18th floor.
Yang Kai had also retreated cooperatively to a corner of the wall. His entire person was covered in frost, shivering with a pale face and purple lips.
Sweeping her beautiful eyes over, Bei Li Mo saw Yang Kai, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly, revealing a mocking smile. Waist swaying, she slowly came before Yang Kai in light lotus steps and touched his calf with her jade foot, “Are you dead yet?”
Yang Kai shrunk into a ball. When he heard her words, he raised his head with difficulty and squinted at her, “Fuck you. Even if you die… I’ll never die!”
Bei Li Mo sneered, “So you still have the strength to curse at others? Seems like you’re still far from death. Stay here, then. Tell me when you’re about to die and I’ll come to collect your body.”
After she finished speaking, she turned and left, ruthless and unforgiving.
But she was unable to leave because Yang Kai had found strength left in him to grab her ankle. His expression was one of grief and anger. He knew that this woman had deliberately come here to laugh at him, and perhaps holding hopes that he would lower himself to her and apologize. But the situation was bigger than him and his fists weren’t as big as the other party’s. No matter how unhappy Yang Kai was inside, he had to consider a way to get back.
If he continued fighting with this crazy woman, the only one eating a loss would be him.
Bei Li Mo turned around and looked down at him, corners of her lips lifting smugly, “What’s wrong? Can’t you speak properly if you have something to say? Must you take advantage of people?” She glanced at Yang Kai’s sneaky hand, “Take your filthy paw off me or I’ll break it.”
Yang Kai quickly retracted his hand. There was no other way. This woman may not actually kill him, but torture was definitely something she would be happy to see, so he didn’t dare to give her the opportunity to pressure him. He said in a trembling voice, “Don’t you… go too far. Kill a man, but humiliate him not! If you insult me again like this, do you believe I won’t die for you to see? I would rather perish than suffer humiliation.”
Bei Li Mo laughed and slowly crouched down in front of Yang Kai, reaching out her jade white hand and lightly lifting his chin with a finger, smiling, “It’s only been a little while and you’re already getting desperate? Weren’t you having a good time cursing me just a few days before? Why aren’t you continuing anymore? Oh, that’s right. You even told a very wonderful story. Why don’t you recite it for this Saint to listen to? This Saint is very interested to hear your story, too.”
Yang Kai turned his head away in disdain, but he was pulled right back and forced to look her in the eye. Those beautiful eyes were filled with laughter and amusement, but he had no idea what she was being so happy about.
He gritted his teeth, “What do you want?”
Bei Li Mo narrowed her eyes, red lips opening faintly, “Am I beautiful?”
Yang Kai blinked his eyes and recovered a little from his shock. The change in topic was too great. He was just about to say that she was as ugly as a pig, only to hear Bei Li Mo say, “You’d better tell me the truth. Otherwise… Heh heh…”
The threat in her voice was evident, and a cold light was overflowing from her narrow eyes.
“Beautiful! Overwhelmingly beautiful!” Yang Kai shouted indignantly. Even though it was the truth, it still felt very vexing to say. He cursed in his heart, [You little bitch, you better not fall into my hands or I’ll show you what you’ve got coming to you! I’ll definitely catch you and ask you ten thousand times whether I’m handsome or not! Of course, saying I’m not handsome is definitely not an option. If you do say I’m handsome, I’ll have you tell me why I’m handsome.]
“Then… between Yu Ru Meng and I, who’s more beautiful?” Bei Li Mo then asked.
“Hey, don’t reach out for a yard after taking an inch. What kind of question is this? Are you trying to set me up?” Yang Kai glared at her.
“Tell me honestly first…” While speaking, Bei Li Mo brushed a finger softly over Yang Kai’s lower lip.
Even though his body was cold all over, Yang Kai felt as if his throat was on fire and he gulped, “You’re both beautiful!”
Bei Li Mo obviously wasn’t satisfied with that answer. She glared at him charmingly, “Answer me properly. Don’t try to play me.”
Yang Kai hung his head in frustration, “Is there any point in dwelling over this matter with me? My relationship with Ru Meng is completely different than with you. In my heart, Ru Meng is the most beautiful woman in the world. No other woman can ever compare with her. But if you look at it from a man’s point of view, you and her are like a spring orchid and an autumn chrysanthemum. Each of you has your merits. There’s no way to compare a woman’s beauty, only the difference in a man’s preference. As they say, whether it be turnips or greens, each is favoured by different people. If you ask Brother Bai Ya this question, he will definitely say that you’re the more beautiful one. En, I don’t know whether he has the guts to answer the question at all though.”
“You cunning thing!” Bei Li Mo snorted.
But from her tone and attitude, Yang Kai knew that though she wasn’t very satisfied with the answer, she could barely accept it. After all, what he said was right.
“Then… If I ask you to abandon Yu Ru Meng and commit yourself to this Saint, how would you choose?”
“Just kill me!” Yang Kai gave a firm answer.
Bei Li Mo gave him a knock on the head that sounded with a soft thud, “Won’t you even consider it? At the very least I’m not that different compared to Yu Ru Meng.”
“Yang Kai is honoured to receive Holy Venerable’s regard. It is truly as prosperous as green smoke rising from my ancestor’s graves. Only, there’s nothing to consider in this matter, so you’d better kill me and get it over with.”
Bei Li Mo chuckled, “Fine, I won’t make things hard for you any longer. I can’t blame you either. With that bitch’s Heart Seal Secret Technique, I’m afraid you won’t be able to get rid of her influence on you so easily. Speaking of which, did you know that she used the Innate Divine Ability of the Charm Demon Clan on you? Everything you feel for her is because of the effects of that Secret Technique, and not because of your own thoughts.”
“Ru Meng told me that on the first day, but I believe even without the Secret Technique, nothing would change.”
Bei Li Mo just smiled, not denying it. She rose and looked down at Yang Kai again from above, “Little boy, it’s best you stop thinking so highly of yourself and believing that Yu Ru Meng is really interested in you. She is one of the Demon Realm’s Twelve Demon Saints. Your qualities may not be bad, but it’s still not enough to enter our eyes. If not for your relationship with Yu Ru Meng, then this Saint also wouldn’t even bother with your existence. Let me give you a piece of advice. When the day comes that you’ve lost all value to Yu Ru Meng, you’d better flee quickly if you want to keep your life!”
Upon hearing this, Yang Kai could tell there was more to what she was saying than pure sowing of discord, so he frowned and asked, “What does Holy Venerable mean by this?”
Bei Li Mo sneered, “Did Yu Ru Meng tell you that once the Heart Seal Secret Technique is performed, then it is absolutely unbreakable?”
Yang Kai nodded, “She did say that.”
Hearing this, Bei Li Mo broke out in a fit of laughter, but her eyes were full of pity as she looked at Yang Kai, as if she had great sympathy for him.
Yang Kai thoughtfully said, “Could it be that it’s possible to break the Secret Technique?”
Bei Li Mo’s laughter subsided, “It’s true that a normal Charm Demon can’t break it, but Yu Ru Meng is a Demon Saint. If she’s willing to pay a certain price, then why wouldn’t she be able to break it? She can break the Heart Seal Secret Technique’s grip on her at any moment. Let me put it this way. As long as she can steel herself to kill you, that Heart Seal Secret Technique will break all by itself! Sadness lasts only a fleeting moment, but it can be exchanged for a lifetime of freedom. If it were this Saint, then do you think you would still be able to keep your life once your value has dried up? A proper Demon Saint entangled in an unclear relationship with a Human is simply unbecoming.”
Yang Kai’s face paled at those words. He had no idea whether Bei Li Mo was telling him the truth or not, or if she was just trying to cause a rift between them on purpose. But undeniably, Bei Li Mo’s words successfully planted a thorn in his heart.
It wasn’t that he valued Yu Ru Meng’s feelings for him, but rather that the Heart Seal Secret Technique had long been transferred to the Soul Warming Lotus, so it had essentially no binding effect on him. However, it had a huge hold on Yu Ru Meng. Even though he couldn’t see Yu Ru Meng as a stranger anymore after being with her for such a long amount of time, if Yu Ru Meng really did have ill intentions toward him, then he definitely wouldn’t stand still and just wait for the end.
What made Yang Kai wary was whether Yu Ru Meng was doing just as Bei Li Mo said, waiting for the right moment to cut off the Heart Seal Secret Technique’s hold…
If such a day really came, then he needed to make preparations in advance. Otherwise, if a Demon Saint really had it out for his life, then he wouldn’t be able to escape no matter how hard he tried.
However, his expression changed as he saw the smile on Bei Li Mo’s face as soon as he lifted his head and shouted, “Nonsense!”
Bei Li Mo sneered lightly, “Whether what I said is nonsense or not, don’t you know it in your own heart? There’s no need to deceive yourself and the others around you.”
Yang Kai shook his head, “It’s useless no matter what you say to try and frighten me, so don’t waste your time. My relationship with Ru Meng can’t be shaken with just a few words from you.”
Bei Li Mo could not tell the insincerity of his words and answered coldly, “In that case, let me ask you a question.”
“What?”
“Have you taken her yet?”
Yang Kai was stunned for a moment. He never would have expected this woman to ask such a question, and he couldn’t help but frown, “Is this related to what you said earlier?”
Bei Li Mo smiled, “Why not? It has a lot to do with it. En, let me guess. Since you’re a man, then you’ve obviously had such thoughts before. Only, I’m sure she probably rejected you, but she doesn’t reject acting intimately with you, correct?”
“So what?” Yang Kai looked coldly at her though it was indeed as she said. Even though he and Yu Ru Meng acted intimately with each other, there was no substantial breakthrough. For one, Yang Kai had his own reservations; after all, he was of a different race from her, and also had ulterior motives for following her to the Demon Realm. If they really come to that step, then things would also get troublesome in the future. Secondly, Yu Ru Meng didn’t seem to have such intentions either.
Bei Li Mo smiled, “She’s not giving herself to you because she wants to leave a way out for herself; after all, if she really does lose her purity to you, then there will be no way for her to turn back. Women are different from men. Whether it be me or her, we may be honourable Demon Saints, but we are still women in our bones. How could we bear to kill our own man?”
Yang Kai’s face darkened at her words. He did not speak, but his expression was slightly hideous.
Seeing that, Bei Li Mo continued, “So, if I were you, I’d definitely hurry up and find the opportunity to do her. Only then will you be able to rest easily; otherwise, if you really wait until that day comes, then you’ll definitely regret it.”
Yang Kai’s face turned more and more hideous as he listened. He clenched his fists as if he might go on a rampage at any moment before he raised his head and glared at Bei Li Mo, “Are you trying to trick me?”
Bei Li Mo stared indifferently at him, “Whether I’m trying to trick you or not, you will know one day. When that time comes, don’t regret not heeding my warning today. If that day really does come and you’re lucky enough to escape from her, then you can come to this Saint. This Saint will keep you safe!”
Yang Kai snickered in his heart. While Bei Li Mo was making things sound so pleasant now, if such a day really did come, it would be absolutely impossible for her to take him in. Indeed, she had grievances with Yu Ru Meng, but she wouldn’t go as far as to enter into a real fight with her for his sake. He estimated that she would try to exchange some benefits with Yu Ru Meng at the very most. The mind of a Demon Saint couldn’t be so simple. She had undoubtedly spoken too much today, so even though Yang Kai couldn’t ascertain what her motives were, they definitely weren’t good.
Even saying what she did about women being unable to bear killing their own man, even one’s own flesh and blood could be cut down in the pursuit of the Grand Dao, so what need be said of love between men and women?
Yang Kai did not forget that they were all part of the Demon Race!
Though he thought so in his heart, he still answered, “Then I must thank Holy Venerable for her kind intentions in advance. But I believe such a day will never come. If Ru Meng truly does want to kill me, then this King will just give his life without resistance!”
“Fool!” Bei Li Mo looked at him with contempt.