The drawbacks of using the Universe Transference Law were too great, and it had to be performed under extremely stable conditions. Right now, at a critical point between life and death, how could any Squad member still be able to use the Universe Transference Law?
The only thing they could do was make a desperate attempt to resist by relying on their positional advantages under the leadership of the two Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in their Squad.
It was also fortunate that this Squad had two Seventh-Order Masters. If there had been only one of them, then they might not have held on this long.
The Black Ink Clansmen were all hiding themselves in the Black Ink Cloud and using it as a cover as they came in and out to attack occasionally, or they would use Secret Techniques to stir things up for the Human cultivators from within the cloud. As time passed, the circle formed by the Black Ink Cloud was rapidly shrinking, leaving the Human Squad with no place to retreat.
It was at this point that Dawning Light came to their rescue.
The Black Ink Clansmen inside of the Black Ink Cloud had clearly noticed Dawning Light’s arrival. As a certain part of the Black Ink Cloud stirred, a few dozen Black Ink Clansmen emerged, led by one with a ferocious appearance and emitting an aura from top to bottom that clearly belonged to that of a Feudal Lord.
The imposing Feudal Lord, armed with a huge spear, was clearly intent on intercepting Dawning Light.
As they continued drawing closer, Dawning Light’s camouflage suddenly dissipated, revealing its true appearance.
After having suffered so many losses to this unique Warship, the Black Ink Clan forces had naturally become aware of it, and that their forces were frequently wiped out once this powerful Human Squad was encountered.
This Feudal Lord was well-informed and had naturally heard about the rumours concerning Dawn and Dawning Light. He had thought that he would not come across them in this vast warzone, but after seeing Dawning Light with its disguise gone and true face appearing, how could he still not know that he truly did bump into them?
When he thought of the rumours, the Feudal Lord did not dare to confront them and immediately retreated back into the Black Ink Cloud.
The Black Ink Clansmen that had rushed out with him were all relatively weak, so they were slightly slower to react. When they saw their Feudal Lord retreating without a fight, they could not even figure out what happened before Dawning Light’s terrifying attacks struck them.
Each attack was so powerful that it was not something that these High-Rank and Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen could resist. In an instant, many of them were wiped out, but Dawning Light did not stop there. It passed through the mess of gore and broken limbs, crashing straight into the Black Ink Cloud.
The Black Ink Clansmen who were hiding under the cover of the Black Ink Cloud took this opportunity to bombard Dawning Light with their attacks, but Dawn had long been prepared for this and had already activated their defensive array, enveloping Dawning Light with a powerful light barrier.
Wave after violent wave spread across the light shield, causing deep dents to appear on its surface. With the deep pits as the centre, there were even ripples spreading out in all directions.
Dawning Light pushed through the Black Ink Cloud’s blockade while withstanding the Black Ink Clan’s attacks, reaching its centre mere breaths later.
The Squad that had been trapped there for a long time were already in dire straits, but when a Human Warship appeared before them, they understood at once that reinforcements had arrived, and it was the Special Operations Squad, Dawn, to their absolute delight.
“Get on board!” Feng Ying shouted from the deck.
With a change of her hand seal, a gap opened in Dawning Light’s shields.
The eight cultivators were completely exhausted and their auras were weak, so they did not hesitate to leap on board.
By the time they got on board, Yang Kai had already disappeared from the deck. When he reappeared, he was in the middle of the dense Black Ink Cloud.
His left pupil instantly turned into an awe-inspiring vertical golden slit.
The Black Ink Cloud was not only extremely adept at corrupting Human cultivators, but also obstructing their senses, but the Demon Eye of Annihilation, which could see through all illusions, was a perfect fit for such an environment.
Not far away, a Black Ink Clan Feudal Lord was silently approaching. It was the same one who had run away when he saw Dawning Light earlier.
He had just escaped back into the Black Ink Cloud and had yet to settle his nerves when Yang Kai suddenly appeared near him.
He was both shocked and delighted to see this. He was shocked because this seemed to be the rumoured Human Squad Leader who was ridiculously strong, but also delighted that this man would be so arrogant as to invade the Black Ink Cloud of his own volition.
The invasive power of Black Ink Strength towards Humans was inexorable, and he had no idea why this man would proactively run into the Black Ink Cloud, but since he was here, then he better not think about leaving.
Through the rolling cover of the Black Ink Cloud, the Feudal Lord quickly advanced to a distance of 300 meters away from Yang Kai. For a Feudal Lord, this was the perfect distance to launch a sneak attack.
The power in his body poured into the giant spear. There was a fierce glint in the Feudal Lord’s eyes as he raised his weapon, preparing to pierce it into Yang Kai’s unsuspecting back.
But at that moment, Yang Kai, who should have been oblivious to his presence, suddenly turned around and stared at him, the corners of his mouth turning into a cold smile. The golden vertical slit in his eyes seemed to contain unopposable majesty that caught the Feudal Lord off guard for a moment.
The Black Ink Clan Feudal Lord was ashen with shock. He could not figure out how he had been spotted, but a spearhead was rapidly expanding in his vision, ensuring him that he was not imagining things.
The Feudal Lord cried out in terror and raised his spear, attempting to block the incoming attack. As their spears clashed, the Feudal Lord felt a terrifying force erupting in front of him, forcing his large body to reel backwards. Even his hand which held the spear was shaking.
An aura of death lingered around him. Looking up, he saw Yang Kai chasing after him like a shadow after the unsuccessful strike, his spear thrusting forward indomitably. Meanwhile, the strength inside of his body was roiling, leaving him powerless to protect himself.
[I’m dead!]
Despair filled the eyes of the Feudal Lord in that instant. He had heard about how strong this Human Squad Leader was, and it was said that only a Territory Lord could defeat him; however, those were just rumours he had heard, and it was only now that he was facing him head-on that he understood that it was not just empty gossip.
True enough, this level of strength was not something that a Feudal Lord could withstand. At the very least, four or five Feudal Lords would be required to besiege this man to have some chance of beating him.
As the Black Ink Clan Feudal Lord was about to die under the Azure Dragon Spear, Yang Kai’s expression suddenly changed, and as if he were possessed by a ghost, he stopped in place and brandished his spear out in front of himself.
An extremely faint golden light appeared, breaking through the Black Ink Cloud. The attack came from outside and struck the Azure Dragon Spear with a loud bang.
After the strange noise sounded, Yang Kai was pushed back by a huge force and his body retreated hundreds of meters before he could steady himself.
When he was able to check, he saw a tiny scratch on the Azure Dragon Spear which had been left by the attack earlier.
If Yang Kai had not reacted quickly and protected himself with his Azure Dragon Spear, the sneak attack would have gone right through his chest.
[It’s that guy!] Yang Kai’s lit up with a frightening glare.
He had been keeping an eye out for this Black Ink Disciple from Divine Feather Paradise since the last time they met, but unfortunately, his search had not been fruitful.
However, after being ambushed once, Yang Kai made sure to keep a part of his focus on his surroundings during every fight in order to ensure that something like that never happened again.
It wasn’t until just now that the feeling of being watched appeared again, and sure enough, that guy took advantage of the moment when he was fighting with the Feudal Lord to deliver another blow.
If Yang Kai had not been prepared for it, then he might have gotten caught by this attack again. Though it was unlikely to kill him, the injury Yang Kai might sustain from it was definitely not going to be light.
The first time he was attacked, Yang Kai was caught unprepared and allowed his arrow to pierce right through him. Then, when he tried to pursue his attacker, he had completely lost sight of him.
Now that he was prepared, how was he going to let that man get away again?
As soon as he steadied himself though, another golden light struck his way, but this time, the golden light came from the opposite direction compared to before. If that previous sneak attack came from the front, then this one came from the back.
[There’s two of them?]
This second attack was not aimed at him though, but rather at Dawning Light.
Dawning Light had also sustained a lot of attacks when they rushed into the Black Ink Cloud. Even though their light barrier did not break, it had grown noticeably dimmer.
With that one attack, the light barrier surrounding Dawning Light actually shattered to pieces, which showed just how powerful it was.
On the Warship, all three of the cultivators in charge of controlling the defensive array grunted and coughed up blood, their faces turning pale.
The defensive array that they had been in charge of had been broken, resulting in them suffering some of the backlash. What’s more, the array itself was damaged, so it was clear that it could no longer be used.
However, Yang Kai’s attention was not on Dawning Light. There was more than one defensive array installed on Dawning Light, so they could temporarily compensate for the destroyed one.
At the second blow, Yang Kai had already rushed over in a hurry, not even wasting time to kill off that Black Ink Clan Feudal Lord who was in front of him.
Previously, he let the sneak attacker get away because he was unprepared, but if he still let him get away even though he was ready for him this time, then it would be a disservice to the Dao of Space that he had been cultivating for so many years.
There were not two attackers, only one. The second attack was a Secret Technique the attacker used in order to confuse Yang Kai.
It was clear that the attacker was also extremely wary of him and feared that he would chase after him.
As Space Principles surged, Yang Kai disappeared from the battlefield in an instant and arrived at a nearby Universe Fragment.
The place seemed empty when he looked around, but there were obvious traces of a weak aura left behind.
[He just left!]
Just like last time, the attacker left immediately after his attack failed. This guy’s wariness was simply impeccable.
Only, Yang Kai could not figure out what sort of Secret Technique it was that this person used that enabled him to run away so quickly. In front of Space Principles, distance was no obstacle at all, so could it be possible that his opponent was also proficient in Space Principles?
If that were the case, then this would be very troublesome to deal with, and it reinforced Yang Kai’s idea that he had to capture this hidden ambusher no matter what.
Under the view of his Demon Eye of Annihilation, the faint traces that remained in the void that were almost imperceptible were revealed.
These traces were clearly left behind when the attacker left.
Yang Kai was about to move to pursue him when an obscure pattern suddenly lit up at his feet, followed by a shattering noise coming in from all directions that instantly enveloped him.
The many attacks were the power erupting from a Killing Array, converging into the shape of wind blades that were cutting towards Yang Kai’s direction as their centre.
It seemed that the attacker had anticipated that Yang Kai would investigate this place and had set up the Spirit Array here in advance.
*Hong hong hong…*
The attacks erupted with a series of loud noises. Yang Kai was able to escape without much injury, but not without looking like a mess. His face was also livid.
The sneak attacker was an archery master, and although he had some knowledge of the Dao of Spirit Arrays, he was not very proficient, so the Spirit Array that he set up was not very strong. Even if Yang Kai just stood in place, the Killing Arrays would hardly be able to do anything to him.
However, it succeeded in disrupting his pursuit. To be tricked to such an extent by this person also left Yang Kai very annoyed. It felt like his intelligence was being crushed by someone else, and it left him feeling a little defeated.
It could be seen that whether it be in terms of cunning or methods, his attacker was First Class.
But that was not all. After rushing out from the Killing Array, Yang Kai was greeted by three golden lights speeding his way. The golden lights were extremely fast and almost seemed like they could ignore the barrier of space, arriving before his eyes in just an instant.
One aiming for his forehead, one for his chest, and one for his abdomen, the three golden lights came in one straight line. Though it was completely silent, it made Yang Kai’s skin crawl.
At the edge of life or death, Yang Kai brought out his Space Principles to their fullest extent and activated Near Distant Horizon, stretching out the Void in front of him infinitely.
The Void seemed to congeal at that instant, and Yang Kai could clearly see the three golden lights that were shooting his way slowed to a turtle’s crawl under the effects of Near Distant Horizon.
However, the violent power held within the golden light broke through the Secret Technique in the blink of an eye, restoring their mobility and piercing through Yang Kai’s body in unison.
The next moment, Yang Kai’s body disintegrated and disappeared without a trace. It was clearly just an after-image. His true body had already travelled away using Instantaneous Movement.
At that exact moment, on a Universe Fragment 1,000 kilometres away, Yang Kai suddenly appeared and threw a fierce punch.
A violent force erupted, and the fragment no more than several dozen square kilometres in size turned to dust in an instant, revealing a figure behind it.
The figure was wrapped in all black, and even their face was hidden underneath a hood, so it was impossible for Yang Kai to see their true appearance. It was impossible to even tell whether it was a man or a woman. This person did not look very tall, and even the longbow they were holding was longer than their entire body.
When he saw the sudden appearance of the figure, Yang Kai sneered, “Caught you!”
The Black Ink Disciple from Divine Feather Paradise had such terrifyingly powerful archery skills that Yang Kai had already eaten a loss from them twice. Any other Seventh-Order Human would not have been able to withstand such attacks. Perhaps they may not even know who their killer was even after being assassinated by them. If a Master of this calibre was not taken down, they would definitely be a snake in the grass for the Human side.
If this person had immediately fled far away when Yang Kai was pursuing them, then even he may not have been able to find them again after being delayed by the Killing Array.
But this guy truly didn’t fear the Heavens. Leaving the Killing Array behind to trap Yang Kai was not enough for them, they had even hidden themselves and tried to snipe him again, giving Yang Kai the opportunity to pursue them.
The person was clearly surprised at the sudden attack, not expecting Yang Kai to have arrived so quickly.
As soon as the figure was exposed, it used the impact of Yang Kai’s punch to back away. At the same time, it reached out to pull their bowstring, and with a harsh whistle, golden light after golden light rained down on Yang Kai like raindrops.
Yang Kai’s vision was instantly obscured by a field of golden light. After summoning his Azure Dragon Spear and blocking all of the attacks, his attacker was long gone.
Only a golden light remained far off in the void, fading away remarkably quickly.
[So fast!] Yang Kai was secretly speechless, and he was also growing increasingly irritated. Gritting his teeth, he snorted, “I’ll take your surname if I let you run again!”
If Yang Kai, who cultivated the Dao of Space, were to let someone get away from him in such a situation, then he would have cultivated all these years in vain.
In an instant, his figure disappeared.
Yang Kai thought he would be able to catch up to the assailant easily, but even with his Instantaneous Movement, he could not reach them within a short amount of time. He had no idea what sort of movement technique this person was using, but it was so profound it was almost not inferior to his use of Space Principles. Yang Kai kept on chasing after them, but all he could see was a fading golden light in the far distance.
It was unfortunate that he was unable to intercept them using Instantaneous Movement so far away. If he did try, then he could very well lose that person’s tracks.
He had no choice but to follow from behind and wait for his chance.
Their chase ended up going on for a whole day and night, and it was not known how many millions of kilometres they crossed.
Yang Kai was originally worried that his ambusher would escape to the Black Ink Clan’s territory. If that were to happen, then Yang Kai would not dare to follow lest he encounter a Master that he could not beat.
But after a long pursuit, it became apparent that this guy had no intention of escaping at all and was just circling around the wider battlefield with Yang Kai.
Whenever there was the slightest opportunity, that person would sneakily shoot out a thunderous blow at Yang Kai, and their attacks were so powerful that he did not dare to take them lightly. Each counter-attack left him worse for wear.
Yang Kai now had a stomach full of grievances and secretly made up his mind that once he caught this hateful person, he would definitely beat them up to vent his anger.
After a whole day and night passed, Yang Kai had more than a dozen new injuries on his body, all of them from his sneak attacker’s long-range attacks. Even though these injuries were not a threat to his life, any other Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master might not have the strength to keep chasing at this point and would have been forced to find a place to heal.
Yang Kai suddenly understood why this sneak attacker had not escaped to the Black Ink Clan’s hinterland.
This guy obviously had a lot of confidence in their abilities. Yang Kai wanted to take them down, and they wanted to take Yang Kai down as well, and this constant badgering was because they were trying to exhaust Yang Kai before they struck.
[What an arrogant bastard!] Yang Kai judged. A person like this was difficult to deal with. This fact was already proven earlier during the chase, but if he were to take this guy’s personality into account, then they were not that hard to deal with.
With that in mind, an idea sprouted in Yang Kai’s mind.
After another day of chasing, another dozen injuries were added to Yang Kai’s body.
At a certain point, he suddenly stopped and glared resentfully in the direction where his attacker was fleeing before he let out a roar towards the Heavens.
The roar that sounded through the void was mixed with unwillingness and rage.
A short while later, Yang Kai turned around and sped off towards the forward base. When he passed by a certain Universe Fragment though, he dashed straight inside it.
After finding a good spot, Yang Kai set up a barrier and took out some Open Heaven Pills and healing pills before stuffing them into his mouth.
He was in a miserable state right now, covered in dried blood from top to bottom. Even his aura was slightly weak. He was clearly an arrow at the end of its flight.
Even though the chase only went on for two days, Yang Kai had manipulated Space Principles countless times during that period while constantly enduring the sneak attacks of that guy, which had been a tiring experience. The exhaustion that he was showing now was not completely fake. At least half of it was real, and it was indeed time for him to get a good rest to restore his energy.
As time passed, Yang Kai’s aura slowly recovered.
He did not feel any strange sensations, so Yang Kai was wondering whether that person had taken this opportunity to run away. If that were the case, then he would have just wasted a lot of effort for nought.
But on second thought, it should not be the case. That guy was extremely confident in their abilities, something Yang Kai knew well after their silent two-day chase. A person like this would not give up so easily when faced with ‘easy’ prey.
And, Yang Kai himself was currently that prey.
As expected, just as Yang Kai was wondering if that person had truly left, a faint energy wave suddenly appeared, coming from a certain direction.
Yang Kai’s eyes flitted open as he remained seated from cultivating. He forcibly twisted his body in order to avoid getting hit, but in the next instant, he felt a pain in his abdomen. There was no need to look and Yang Kai could tell that his body had been pierced through once again.
Even with his Dragon Vein, he could not resist the force of that attack.
However, as if he did not even feel it, his body suddenly turned into a blur and he disappeared in an instant.
When he reappeared, it was at a Universe Fragment about 1,000 kilometres away.
Summoning his Azure Dragon Spear, Yang Kai displayed his Supreme Limitless Spear Art freely. The area passed through by his spear shadows seemed to be empty, but an object that appeared like a rock suddenly leapt up high and raised its longbow in front of itself to block the attack.
*Hong hong hong…*
A series of bangs sounded and in an instant, two people were engaged in a heated melee.
Yang Kai was still bleeding from his abdomen, but he completely ignored it and faced his hooded attacker with a fierce smile, “Let’s see you run now!”
The attacker was an archery master and at least somewhat proficient in the Dao of Spirit Arrays. Besides that, this person was first class both in concealing their aura and escaping techniques, but everyone had their strengths and weaknesses. It was impossible for one to achieve perfection in all fields.
Yang Kai thought that close combat must be this guy’s weakness; otherwise, there would have been no need for them to keep on running away.
Unexpectedly, when they finally crossed blades, Yang Kai realized that this guy was also quite amazing when it came to close-quarter combat. They did not have too many flashy Secret Techniques and just fought him instinctively with the longbow in their hand, thus began a back-and-forth tussle.
This longbow that he had never heard about was also quite an amazing item, not showing any weakness even when pitted against the Azure Dragon Spear.
Yang Kai was secretly shocked. This guy really had no weaknesses!
But even so, Yang Kai’s Supreme Limitless Spear Art stood at the pinnacle of all Spear Techniques. In just a dozen breaths of time, the Azure Dragon Spear pierced through his ambusher’s shoulder in a moment of carelessness, and at once, blood was flowing uncontrollably.
The stab was followed by a grunt.
From this brief exchange, it became clear what the difference in strength between Yang Kai and themselves were, so they stopped messing around and, with a feint, sped down towards the Universe Fragment below.
Yang Kai followed closely like a shadow.
As the person passed through the Universe Fragment, they threw out an Array Plate.
Seeing this, Yang Kai knew that it was bad news. Sure enough, as soon as the Array Plate was launched, the entire Universe Fragment burst apart, and a violent power burst out in all directions. Yang Kai staggered as the force hit him and the space around him was also disrupted.
By the time Yang Kai emerged from the chaotic cloud of energy, the attacker had already escaped far away, as he had anticipated. Only, they left behind a clear trail this time that was not as indistinct as before.
Yang Kai coldly snorted. That strike from his Azure Dragon Spear was not easy to take. Even if his spear did not give his attacker a severe injury, it would still dampen their performance.
[One arrow for one spear, that makes it even!]
The biggest difference between them was the strength of their physiques. So, when it came to trading wounds like this, Yang Kai had the advantage no matter how one saw it.
Without dallying in place, Yang Kai pursued his attacker in the direction they left.
The fact that he was unable to catch this guy even after the plot he set up earlier showed just how difficult this ambusher was to manage.
Among Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, Yang Kai had never met one of this calibre before. Even if Feng Ying were to face this person, she would not be their opponent if they were facing off at a distance.
But with this, the boiling anger inside Yang Kai finally eased down. The more difficult his opponent was, the calmer he had to be. This was not an enemy he could take down simply, so he had no choice but to be patient. He believed that if he kept on going, then an opportunity would come to him eventually.
While chasing after that person by constant use of Space Principles, Yang Kai gradually shortened the distance between them.
It seemed that his attacker was now much slower after suffering a hit from his Azure Dragon Spear and also having exhausted their strength during this long chase.
They were both similarly in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, and Yang Kai had not advanced into this realm for long, but he had an abnormally strong heritage. So, despite not having broken through for many years, his Small Universe’s stamina was not something that an ordinary Seventh-Order Master could compare with. What was more, he was raising many living beings inside of his body and time flowed differently in his Small Universe, so even if he did not put effort into restoring his World Force, it would recover on its own at a steady rate.
That gave him the advantage when it came to a drawn-out fight.
On the other hand, even if his opponent was a veteran Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, they would still not be able to withstand such intense consumption for such a long period of time, and that was also the reason why his attacker was slowing down.
Just as Yang Kai saw that he was about to catch up with his opponent, a large ship suddenly appeared in his range of vision.
It was a Black Ink Clan ship, which was easily distinguishable on the battlefield due to its strange shape, its large-bodied crew, and the ship’s own bulky size.
Naturally, Yang Kai would have no fear of facing this kind of large ship from the Black Ink Clan. As long as there was no Territory Lord standing by on the ship, then it was impossible for these scattered Black Ink Clansmen to do anything to him. And, even if he did bump into a Territory Lord, he was currently in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. If he could not fight, then he could just run away.
The sudden appearance of a Black Ink Clan ship was a headache for him.
His fleeing attacker was headed straight for the large ship, and in a few moments, joined up with them, boarding the ship and disappearing.
The large ship was heading straight for Yang Kai, with many large Black Ink Clansmen standing on the deck.
His sneak attacker obviously intended to borrow the strength of these Black Ink Clansmen to disrupt his chase.
Even though Yang Kai understood their intentions, he did not slow down at all and instead rushed straight at the ship.
As the distance between them closed rapidly, a couple dozen Black Ink Clansmen suddenly formed up on the deck. This group was led by two Feudal Lords, while the rest were High-Rank Clansmen.
Faced with a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, the two Feudal Lords’ eyes were shining with greed; after all, Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples were still considered a rare sight in the Black Ink Clan. Generally, capturing them was possible only by the Territory Lords themselves. They had been leading this team and wandering around this zone for days and fought a few times with the Humans with wins and losses on both sides, but they had never encountered a lone Human before.
Today, they were able to come across one, and it was a Seventh-Order Human at that.
The two Feudal Lords shared the same thought. They decided that they had to capture this Human alive and convert him into a Black Ink Disciple no matter what. As for who this Human would belong to after his capture, that would have to depend on their respective skills.
Alone, they may be no match for a Human in the Seventh Order as Humans in the equivalent Realm were always slightly stronger than them, and they knew that.
But with two against one, and with so many subordinates for them to use at their disposal, adding on to the fact that this Human seemed to be injured, what was there for them to even be afraid of?
As they watched the Seventh-Order Human continue his charge with undiminished vigour, the Feudal Lord on the left waved his hand, and a dozen High-Rank Black Ink Clans charged out, going straight towards the Human.
Yang Kai’s face was indifferent. His spear was as steady as a mountain, but when it crossed paths with these Black Ink Clansmen, his spear turned into a torrent. His seemingly thin figure passed straight through the many High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen in the next instant.
The dozen High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen froze, as if they had been bound in place, their faces filled with horror before they all exploded into a black-blood mist.
The two Feudal Lords at the back were also in a state of shock. Even though they were not weak, they were not strong enough to see what had happened ahead during that instant.
[Is this guy really in the Seventh Order?]
Both the Feudal Lords were taken aback. If the Human Seventh-Order Masters were all so strong, then how were the Black Ink Clan supposed to continue this war?
When they saw the incoming attacker continuing his mad dash, one of the Feudal Lords finally came back to his senses and roared in anger. As he opened his mouth, a Black Ink Cloud was spat out.
“Get out of my way!” Yang Kai shouted, plunging into the Black Ink Cloud without hesitation and stabbing his spear out.
When his spear struck out, space trembled.
The Feudal Lord clearly did not expect Yang Kai to have so little fear of their Black Ink Strength. He thought that this move would definitely force Yang Kai back, but he never anticipated him rushing in head-first with unwavering murderous intent.
This Feudal Lord shrieked and hastily tried to fight back, but with a great splatter of blood, half of his neck had been sliced through.
Even though it was a severe injury, it was not fatal. Writhing in pain, the Feudal Lord backed away while the other took the opportunity to close in for a counter-attack. Yang Kai swept his spear to the side, sending an immense force out. Yang Kai stumbled slightly after blocking this blow, but the second Feudal Lord was sent flying.
Before Yang Kai could stabilize himself, a golden light shot through the void at him from the large ship. Yang Kai had once again been attacked by that sneak attacker he had been chasing.
His attacker’s grasp for an opening was exceptional. Just as Yang Kai had lost his balance and was powerless to resist, the golden light hit his forehead, throwing his head back and sending him tumbling.
The two Feudal Lords were overjoyed at this sight as both of them tried to flank Yang Kai from the left and right.
One Feudal Lord had his head half cut off by Yang Kai, and the other had a huge gash in his waist, both very serious injuries. It had to be known that these were the injuries resulting from just one exchange of moves with Yang Kai, which clearly showed the great disparity in their strengths.
After sustaining such wounds, both of the Feudal Lords had immediately wanted to flee; however, when they saw that Yang Kai was also badly injured, they couldn’t resist trying to take advantage of this situation.
Unfortunately, before they could even get close, the tumbling Yang Kai regained his footing and stood up straight again.
The Dragon Scales on his forehead had shattered, and at the centre of his forehead was a wound so deep that one could see the bone. Clearly, the last attack had almost pierced through his head.
In fact, if Yang Kai had not used his Dragon Scales at the last moment to protect himself, the sneak attacker could have taken his life.
Golden Blood dripped from his forehead, blurring his vision and making Yang Kai look even more miserable than before.
After their long chase, this was the biggest loss he suffered, and it sent him into a complete rage.
Throwing a cold look at the Feudal Lords trying to pincer him from the left and right, Yang Kai inhaled softly, and a chilling aura surrounded his body.
The two Feudal Lords felt as if they had been thrown into an ice cellar. The Feudal Lord who had half of his neck cut through tried to turn around and run when he sensed that things were going to get bad, but as soon as he turned around, a long spear had already pierced through his back and into his heart before emerging out his chest.
He looked down and his eyes were filled with horror.
A violent energy burst through his body, instantly blasting the Feudal Lord into a blood mist.
Yang Kai did not even care about the second Feudal Lord. He wrapped his body in his spear aura and shot directly at the Black Ink Clan ship.
*Hong…*
The large ship was blasted apart and many of the High-Rank and Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen hiding inside were killed, but Yang Kai saw no sign of the accursed Black Ink Disciple he was hunting.
That person had obviously escaped after the attack earlier.
This made Yang Kai so angry that he could only laugh. It was no longer possible for him to catch that person even if he wanted to now. After that chaotic situation earlier, he could no longer grasp that person’s trail, and with their concealment skills, he would not be able to catch them anyway unless they decide to reappear on their own.
It was a lost cause!
If not for the sudden appearance of the Black Ink Clan’s ship here to spoil his good deed, Yang Kai was confident that he could take that person down within half a day.
When he turned around, the second Feudal Lord who was still alive was fleeing far away. Eyes narrowing coldly, Yang Kai’s body rushed out in pursuit.
Since he failed to catch that Black Ink Disciple, then he had no choice but to kill off this Feudal Lord to vent his anger.
Even though the Feudal Lord ran fast, there was no way he could outrun Yang Kai. Within moments, he was caught and could barely resist for more than a dozen breaths before being executed under Yang Kai’s spear.
After the fierce battle, Yang Kai was able to exterminate a large number of Black Ink Clansmen, but he let his true target escape, much to his dismay.
However, with his past experiences as references, Yang Kai was suspicious about whether or not that person had truly left or not, or whether they were just hiding in the shadows, waiting for the right opportunity to launch another sneak attack.
With that in consideration, Yang Kai did not go too far; instead, he stopped at a Universe Fragment nearby and began to recuperate from his injuries.
The wound he sustained this time around was by no means minor. Even though it was blocked by his Dragon Scales, the violent force behind that attack still penetrated his skull, and Yang Kai was somewhat dizzy even now.
A wound of this level was enough to affect his strength adversely.
The healing pills produced by Blue Sky Pass were quite effective though, and Yang Kai had exchanged his Military Merits for some of them at the Inner Sanctum, so he took them now so that he could recover quickly from his injuries.
However, despite keeping a close eye on his surroundings, he could not sense any movements from his attacker.
It seemed from this that the ambusher had well and truly left, unlike last time when they were still lurking around, waiting for an opportunity to make their move.
It was a shame that he failed to catch that guy, but as long as he was still active around this battle zone, then Yang Kai would see that person again sooner or later.
Having made up his mind, Yang Kai relaxed.
There was little for him to worry about in regards to Dawn. Even though he left chasing after an enemy, there were still 4 Seventh-Order Masters there to watch over Dawn, led by a Master like Feng Ying. As long as they did not bump into an enemy that was too strong, then it should be no problem for them to protect themselves.
Forming several hand seals, Yang Kai tried to activate the Universe Transference Law.
There was a Universe Array arranged inside Dawning Light, and all of Dawn’s members had already left their Imprints inside of it. As long as the distance was not too far away, one could use the Universe Transference Law to return instantly.
Following his attempt to activate the Universal Transference Law, Yang Kai’s face turned solemn.
He had arranged a Universe Array on Dawning Light, and also left behind his Imprint on it. As long as the distance was not too great, then the Universe Transference Law could resonate with Dawning Light, creating a connection between them.
He wasted a lot of time chasing down a powerful foe, but judging from the distance he actually travelled, he should still be well within range to use it.
However, he was completely unable to establish a connection with Dawning Light using the Universe Transference Law, which surprised him. There was only one possibility for such an occurrence, and that was that the Universe Array on Dawning Light had been damaged, rendering the Universe Transference Law ineffective.
The Universe Array was located in the deepest part of Dawning Light. If the defensive arrays and hull were not seriously damaged, then it was simply impossible for the Universe Array to have been affected, yet Dawning Light’s Universe Array was indeed damaged. It was not hard to infer from that that Dawn must have encountered a strong foe and engaged in a fierce battle with them.
[Was it a Territory Lord that they bumped into this time, or just a very large swarm of Black Ink Clansmen?]
Yang Kai frowned. No matter how he thought about it, these were the only two possibilities; otherwise, it was impossible for anything to happen with Dawn Squad’s combat capabilities.
However, he did not have to worry too much. There were 4 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in Dawn, and Feng Ying was also there. Even if they did have to face off against a Territory Lord, they could escape if they could not beat them. Being wiped out was basically impossible.
It was no use worrying about it now since he had no way of rushing back quickly through the Universe Transference Law. The fight on that side should also have long subsided given how long he had been gone for. Right now, there was a great possibility that Dawning Light was returning to the forward base.
After taking out his Universe Chart and checking his position, Yang Kai found his bearings and began making his way back to the forward base as well.
On his way back, he occasionally encountered Black Ink Clan Squads, all of which he eliminated. After chasing that sneak attacker for so long yet still failing to beat them, Yang Kai was nursing a stomach full of grievances. The only thing he could do was vent his annoyance on those unfortunate Black Ink Clansmen.
In just half a day, he encountered two Black Ink Clan Squads. Their numbers were not high, and they were not very strong in general either. They did not even have any Feudal Lords among them. They seemed to be scouting parties.
However, since they bumped into Yang Kai, there was naturally no other fate for them except death.
After advancing for a short amount of time, violent power fluctuations could be felt from the void a distance away. Yang Kai’s thoughts stirred, realising that there had to be Masters fighting up ahead. He immediately focused his eyesight as far as possible on the energy fluctuations.
He could see two figures tangling up with each other in the void. One of the figures was extremely large, while the other was of ordinary size. Both of them attacked with such ferocity that even from a great distance, Yang Kai could feel the terrifying fallout of their clash.
This was a fight between a Territory Lord and an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master!
The battle was too far away, so Yang Kai could not see who this Eighth-Order Master was, much less how they were faring in the fight, but after a moment’s deliberation, Yang Kai hastily concealed his aura and quietly approached them.
Universe Fragments littered the battlefield, meaning there were many good hiding spots nearby.
If this were any other time, then the two Masters would definitely have noticed Yang Kai at this distance; after all, his concealment skills were good, but it was still difficult to hide from a Master an Order above himself.
However, both the Territory Lord and the Eighth-Order Human Master were preoccupied with their fight, so how could they have any time to pay attention to their surroundings?
Yang Kai easily reached a spot 1,000 kilometres away from the battlefield and hid behind a small Universe Fragment. Then, he gathered in his aura as much as he could. If one were not paying attention, then one would miss his existence even if they were looking directly at him.
After a careful glance, Yang Kai quickly looked away again, not daring to stare too long. Masters such as the Territory Lord and the Human Eighth-Order Division Commander were extremely sensitive to the gazes of others, and one could easily reveal their whereabouts if they were not careful.
With that quick glance, Yang Kai realised that he did not recognize who the Eighth-Order Master was.
There were 4 Eighth-Order Division Commanders standing guard in the fourth forward base; of them, Yang Kai had met Cha Hu and also knew Lu An, but he did not know this man, which meant that this was either Xie Xiu Ping or Xu Bo Liang.
Whoever it was, this Division Commander lived up to his name as he had an absolute advantage over the Territory Lord, who could hardly catch his breath under the former’s relentless assault.
Yang Kai was amazed by this fight.
Under the premise that one was in the same Order, due to the difference in accumulation of cultivation experiences, Humans were slightly stronger on average compared to Black Ink Clansmen. However, the higher the Order, the smaller that gap between them became. Upon becoming Old Ancestors and Royal Lords, the gap was almost negligible. Any Black Ink Clan Royal Lords had amassed thousands, if not tens of thousands of years of cultivation, making them no less experienced than any Human Race Old Ancestor.
The gap between Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and Feudal Lords was still quite obvious, but the difference between Eighth-Order Masters and Territory Lords was still noticeable, but not by a significant amount. Back then, when Zhong Liang fought with a Territory Lord around Blue Sky Pass, he still suffered some losses.
However, what Yang Kai saw on this day was an Eighth-Order Human Master holding an absolute advantage over a Territory Lord, who could only defend without any ability to fight back. Not only that, but the Territory Lord’s body was covered in horrific injuries, and ink-black blood was flowing out from all over his figure.
[Is this Eighth-Order Division Commander just that strong? Or is this particular Territory Lord just that weak?]
Yang Kai was now quite glad he snuck over.
Even though the Human Master had the upper hand in this fight, and the Territory Lord seemed to be on the defensive without any means to fight back, a starving camel was still bigger than a horse. That was still a Territory Lord, so although it would be easy for the Eighth-Order Master to injure him, killing him was going to be difficult.
Yang Kai felt that if he could find an opening to help the Human Master, there was a chance he could tip the scales just enough for a kill to be made. However, he would have to wait patiently for such a chance, if one even presented itself.
He was a Seventh-Order Master, so it would be dangerous for him to intervene in a battle of this level. Not even an Eighth-Order Master would easily choose to face the final desperate blow of a Territory Lord.
That was probably the reason why the Eighth-Order Master did not push his enemy too hard and instead focused on wearing down his opponent’s strength while biding his time.
As the battle raged on, Yang Kai only peeked at the two figures from the corner of his eye to judge the progress of the fight.
As time passed, it became clear that the Territory Lord was losing ground and was repeatedly trying to escape, only to be stopped by the Human Master. Every time he was about to grow desperate, the Eighth-Order Master would slow down his attacks, giving the enemy the illusion that he could hold out just a bit longer.
That was how their fight dragged on, seemingly without end.
The Eighth-Order Master was also injured during the fight, but not very seriously. The only thing that kept him at bay was the Black Ink Strength used by the Territory Lord.
Even though Masters in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm had a high resistance to Black Ink Strength, that did not mean that it was impossible to be corrupted by it after long periods of exposure. Once Black Ink Strength entered his Small Universe, then he would have no choice but to return to the forward base to cleanse it with the Purifying Light.
However, this was a rare opportunity, so even though he was powerless to kill this Territory Lord, this Division Commander was determined to hit him hard enough to send him back to a Black Ink Nest to recover for several dozen years.
Time seemed to pass quickly, but also dreadfully slowly. Half a day seemed like a million years as Yang Kai kept on waiting for a chance to strike, but that chance never came.
Just as he was starting to grow impatient, there was a sudden change in the battlefield.
He had no idea what sort of Secret Technique the Territory Lord used, but eight strands of dense Black Ink Strength suddenly gushed out from his body, turning into black chains that suppressed and sealed the surrounding space, trapping the Eighth-Order Human Master almost instantly.
The Eighth-Order Division Commander’s movements were sealed, but with a stern look on his face, he launched Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities in the Territory Lord’s direction.
The Territory Lord’s face changed at once and he clearly wanted to dodge, but he seemed to be restrained by his own Secret Technique, causing him to freeze in place without being able to move a muscle. One by one, the Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities landed solidly on his body, hitting him until he spat blood repeatedly.
Yang Kai was dumbfounded by this sudden turn of events, and so was the Eighth-Order Master. It was hard to understand how this Territory Lord could have made such a foolish move.
It was an amazing Secret Technique that he used, but what use would it be if even his own movements were restricted by it?
Yang Kai’s eyes lit up when he saw this scenario, as the opportunity he had been waiting for had finally arrived.
Just as he was about to rush into the battlefield using his Space Principles to assist the Eighth-Order Master, a brilliant bolt of light suddenly flew over from a Universe Fragment 1,000 kilometres away from the clash.
The bolt of light had an astonishing glow to it and swiftly took on the form of two spread wings. As soon as it appeared, it had already reached the side of the Eighth-Order Human Master.
At that moment, the Eighth-Order Master’s movements were restricted by the Territory Lord’s Secret Technique and he was unable to dodge. Moreover, the attack came so quickly and so stealthily without so much as a warning.
The Eighth-Order Master’s face changed drastically as he pushed his World Force madly to form a shield to protect his body.
However, the bolt of light still struck him hard. The barrier that he hastily raised was instantly shattered and fresh blood splattered out. The Eighth-Order Master’s waist had almost blown into a mess of blood and his aura was rapidly weakening.
He had been fighting with this Territory Lord for a long time, so he was nowhere near his peak condition. He also suffered many wounds himself in the battle, so when a mysterious assailant suddenly ambushed him from a secret location, he ended up taking a bad hit.
Meanwhile, the Territory Lord, who had been suppressed by him all this while, was given the opportunity to withdraw his Sealing Technique and throw a punch forward.
The Eighth-Order Master barely managed to block it, but he still coughed up a mouthful of blood. Not only that, but the Black Ink Strength around him was also pouring into his body like crazy.
Before suffering such a heavy injury, he was just barely able to withstand the corruption of the Black Ink Strength. Now that he was suffering such severe injuries and had taken a direct punch from the Territory Lord, he could no longer resist the Black Ink Strength’s encroachment.
In the past, even an Eighth-Order Master would have to sacrifice a piece of their Small Universe as soon as possible in order to prevent any further corruption in such a situation, incurring great damage to their foundation.
However, there was a Purifying Black Ink Battleship on standby at the forward base now which had Purifying Light sealed in it. As long as he was able to return while keeping his sanity, everything would be fine.
So, rather than break away from the battlefield immediately, the Eighth-Order Master clasped his hands together before slashing his arms down like a sword at the Territory Lord.
The Territory Lord did not expect his enemy to be so brutal as to try and kill him even at the expense of his own foundation. He was planning to ride the wave of victory and advance, but when he saw the Human’s arms come down, he immediately shrieked and turned tail in order to escape.
The force of his arm slash turned into an amazing sword wave that cut into the Black Ink Territory Lord’s back, causing blood to spurt out from his large body through a gash deep enough to see bone.
However, the Territory Lord was able to take the opportunity to escape far away.
The Eighth-Order Master was about to give chase, but then his brow suddenly knitted together into a frown as he felt a throbbed pain in his back. This was the result of being targeted by a strong hostile intent.
The intent was well concealed but clearly a warning that if he really did try and pursue the Territory Lord, he would be met with force.
The Eighth-Order Master’s face turned ugly.
Naturally, he could dismiss this little threat if he were in peak condition. In top form, he would surely try to hunt down that Territory Lord and kill him no matter what; however, after a long fight, he had already exerted a tremendous amount of strength and was also heavily injured after suffering that sneak attack. Not only that, his Small Universe was being corrupted by Black Ink Strength, so if this dragged on, his entire Small Universe might become tainted; then, even as an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he would lose himself and degenerate into a Black Ink Disciple.
That was a result that he could not accept no matter what. He could accept dying in battle, but there was no way he would allow himself to turn into a Black Ink Disciple and become one of the Black Ink Clan’s weapons.
So, even though he understood the sneak attacker’s intentions and also knew that a powerful attack like the one he had been struck with earlier would not show up again, he did not dare to take that gamble.
After a cold stare towards the source of the attack, the Eighth-Order Master’s body finally moved back until he arrived at a safe distance before activating the Universe Transference Law that was connected to the Universe Array on the forward base’s Purifying Black Ink Battleship. A short while later, a whirling pattern of a Grand Array appeared underneath his feet, and as the light rose to the air, the man disappeared.
Yang Kai, who had been hiding in the shadows, felt both a little regretful and pleasantly surprised when the intense battlefield regained its calm.
He felt regretful that the Territory Lord was able to escape. Opportunities to kill a Territory Lord were rare to come by. If that person hiding in the shadows had not interfered, he would only have had to jump out and join forces with the Eighth-Order Master and there would have likely been able to kill that Territory Lord.
As to his pleasant surprise, the target that he had lost earlier had resurfaced again and was now just a short distance away from him.
Yang Kai had no idea when this person arrived here, and he was not even sure whether this person had noticed his existence or not. If not for that sudden attack earlier, Yang Kai would not have known that person was here.
That definitely had to be the Black Ink Disciple from Divine Feather Paradise!
Previously, when this guy ambushed Yang Kai, the attack that they used was basically just reminiscent of a golden light or a golden arrow. However, when this person was ambushing the Eighth-Order Master, their attack took the form of a pair of unfurled wings.
Yang Kai had seen the power behind that attack and guessed that even a Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciple would be unable to use such a powerful attack repeatedly. Using such an attack even once would probably put a huge burden on them.
Moreover, Yang Kai was also able to injure that person while he was chasing after them not long ago, and there was obviously no way those injuries would have healed in such a short amount of time.
From their body already being wounded to then using such an immensely powerful Secret Technique, it was possible that this Black Ink Disciple had little strength left at this moment.
Yang Kai almost could not endure the urge to throw his head back and roar in laughter. This really was the case of the mantis stalking the cicada, but the oriole waits behind.
Rather than rush out immediately, Yang Kai concealed his aura even more cautiously because he wasn’t sure whether his opponent was aware of his presence or not.
He knew how difficult this ambusher was, and if he missed them again, then he would just be repeating the same mistake. There was only one opportunity here, either he did nothing, or if he went all out, he had to make sure he got this right!
In fact, both Yang Kai and the Eighth-Order Master were correct. The Black Ink Disciple who was lurking in the shadows simply had no energy to unleash that kind of attack again. As a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, even though they were ambushing an Eighth-Order Master from the shadows, they still had to use a sacrificial technique that, while dealing 1,000 points of damage to the enemy, dealt 800 to themselves. After using that attack, their entire person was drained.
They would never have used such a Secret Technique easily and did not even use it last time when they were ambushing Yang Kai; however, in order to land a good hit on an Eighth-Order Division Commander, they had no choice but to use such an attack.
However, the ambusher was smart. Despite having little strength left, they still used their hostile intent to ward off the injured Eighth-Order Master.
Only after confirming that the Division Commander had gone far away did they put down their longbow and lay limp on the ground, struggling to stuff some Spirit Pills into their mouth and refine them in order to restore some strength.
They did not stay in place for too long though since the previous attack had already revealed their whereabouts. They could not be sure whether that Eighth-Order Master would suddenly wheel around for a counterattack. If that were to happen, then they would definitely be powerless to resist.
So, when they regained a bit of their energy after a short rest, they stood up and tried to leave.
However, they had just begun to move when their heart suddenly jumped. They had a bad feeling that something terrible was about to happen.
This person reacted with great haste and twisted around to draw their bowstring. The bowstring whizzed and a golden light condensed.
At the same time, their body rose as they leapt backwards.
From the corner of their eye, they saw a figure appearing nearby, seemingly out of nowhere. The golden light struck that person in the chest and sent fresh blood bursting out, but the target did not stop and continued charging towards them. At the same time, a profound power spread out, locking the local space down.
The Black Ink Disciple was shocked.
After being tangled up with Yang Kai for many days, there was no way that they could not recognize his appearance. Only, this Black Ink Disciple could not understand how this guy actually appeared here. From how the current situation was developing, this person had clearly been here for a long time, just waiting for the moment they relaxed to strike.
Having seen his Instantaneous Movement before, there was no way they didn’t know Yang Kai was proficient in the Dao of Space. Now that the space around them had been locked down, it had to be this person’s doing.
In the time it took for them to think through this, Yang Kai had already crashed into them. Instantly, the Black Ink Disciple’s bones cracked as if they had been struck by an entire Universe World. It was not known how many bones broke at that moment, but they were seeing stars and a mist of blood had been spat out from their mouth. In an instant, their aura weakened considerably.
Despite being pursued by Yang Kai for so many days, they had never been this close before, so the Black Ink Disciple knew that life or death was at stake here. At once, they circulated the power of their Small Universe and swung their bow down at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai completely ignored this attack and instead wrapped his arms around the person, holding them tight in his arms and grinning, “Bastard, eat this!”
Saying so, he slammed his head down. Headbutting someone at this distance was the most effective way to deal damage. The reason he did so was that Yang Kai did not want any distance to build up between him and this person at all.
After having seen what this guy was capable of, Yang Kai knew well that if he were to let them escape his grasp, they might escape again.
With a thunderous bang, Yang Kai’s vision went dark, and the Black Ink Disciple’s head was thrown back, revealing the face which had been hidden under the hood the whole time in full view of Yang Kai.
It was shameful to think about it, but even after facing off against this Black Ink Disciple for so long, Yang Kai had not seen their face until now.
As their long hair flew up, a round face came into Yang Kai’s view. It seemed like the face of a young girl, cute with a bit of baby fat remaining.
[A girl?] Yang Kai was taken aback. That was when he noticed the full and elastic feeling which was pressing up against his chest.
However, soon enough, he tossed gender concerns to the wind. So what if she was a woman? There was no differentiation between a man and a woman on the battlefield. Craning his head back, Yang Kai delivered another devastating headbutt.
The Black Ink Disciple’s forehead was all red and tears were flowing out from the corners of her eyes. With Yang Kai’s Dragonkin body, his physical body was incredibly strong, yet the impact was still enough to black out his vision, so nothing need be said about its effect on the Black Ink Disciple.
After two headbutts, her consciousness was shaken and she almost passed out.
Seeing this, Yang Kai quickly activated Purifying Light in order to disperse the Black Ink Strength in her body.
The reason why he rushed forward to grab her like this was because he planned to do this all along. Yang Kai never thought about killing her. All this while, Yang Kai had wanted to capture her alive so that he could cleanse the Black Ink Strength from her body.
After all, if such a powerful Seventh-Order Master could be saved, she would be of great help to the Human Race.
If he merely wanted to kill her, then Yang Kai could have easily killed her from afar by sending a powerful Divine Ability against her.
However, before Yang Kai’s Purifying Light could come out, the Black Ink Disciple in his arms, who looked like she was about to pass out, suddenly bent her knee and slammed it upwards!
With a grunt, Yang Kai’s face went white!
Taking advantage of this opportunity, the Black Ink Disciple freed an arm and sent two fingers right at Yang Kai’s eyes.
In the nick of time, Yang Kai turned his head, but he could still feel her fingers scraping away a layer of skin from his cheek.
The pain caused anger to surge up inside of him, and he squeezed even harder. The Black Ink Disciple yelped as her body creaked with the sounds of bones breaking. There was even blood spilling out from the corner of her mouth. It seemed like it would only take a bit more force from this person in front of her and she would burst apart.
In a moment of fear, her fingers, elbows, even her teeth and head all become weapons that rained down attacks on Yang Kai.
At such a close distance, she attacked Yang Kai completely haphazardly.
A fierce light flashed past Yang Kai’s eyes. He understood that if he did not completely subdue her, then he would simply have no chance to use Purifying Light. So, he restrained her body with both arms and even wrapped his legs around hers to prevent her from targeting his weak spot again.
Following that, Yang Kai used another headbutt.
*Hong Hong Hong…*
Every clash between them was a competition between their Small Universe’s heritages. At first, the Black Ink Disciple was able to put up a little bit of a fight; however, after seven or eight more headbutts, her resistance gradually faded away.
Her close-quarter combat strength wasn’t bad, but everything was relative, not to mention the fact that Yang Kai had practically restrained all of her movements at this moment, stifling her options.
Moreover, she was already exhausted after that sneak attack on the Eighth-Order Human Master. The amount of energy she could restore from her brief respite was limited, while Yang Kai was almost at full strength.
It was obvious who had the advantage in this comparison.
Blood splattered out as Yang Kai’s headbutts turned the Black Ink Disciple’s forehead into a bloody mess. As he watched the Black Ink Disciple’s eyes go white as she fell unconscious, Yang Kai finally stopped.
He shook his head to dispel the dizziness gripping his body before sighing. Yang Kai felt even more exhausted from this than if he were to face an Eighth-Order Master.
Fortunately, the Black Ink Disciple in front of him seemed to have lost all energy to resist and had finally fallen under his capture.
However, this woman had proven herself to be extremely cunning. It was hard to be sure whether she was just feigning unconsciousness or not, so Yang Kai had no intention of letting her go and just silently activated his Purifying Light.
A short while later, his left and right hands glowed in two different colours that merged and fused together into a dazzling white light, completely enveloping the two bodies that were in close contact with each other.
The almost unconscious Black Ink Disciple suddenly looked pained and a hoarse noise escaped from her throat. She instinctively tried to struggle, but with Yang Kai keeping her locked in place, it was useless no matter how much she resisted.
*Ci La La…*
Black Ink Strength could be seen seeping out of her body before disappearing without a trace. The pained look on the Black Ink Disciple’s face also gradually disappeared, and her expression softened.
After a few moments, when no more Black Strength came out, Yang Kai finally let go. Only now was he sure that she had no more energy to resist.
Exhausted, Yang Kai collapsed spread-eagled and gasped hard. Even though the woman next to him was unconscious, her brow was still furrowed, as if she were having a nightmare.
It was only after a few moments that Yang Kai struggled to sit up and stuffed some energy-recovering Spirit Pills into his mouth and silently began refining them.
The woman still showed no signs of waking up. She had sustained several injuries from Yang Kai after being chased down by him for several days. Then, she had hidden in the shadows in order to ambush the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Master, which led to her using a powerful Secret Technique that further aggravated her condition. Finally, she suffered a rough beating from Yang Kai. Even though she had regained her free will, she was still suffering from her overexertion and injuries.
Yang Kai sat cross-legged next to her and stuffed some Spirit Pills into her mouth, helping her swallow them before activating his Towering Evergreen Divine Manifestation, enveloping them both in its rich, soothing vitality.
Fortunately, there were no signs of any Black Ink Clansmen around this area; otherwise, he would surely end up in another battle after making such a ruckus.
The woman ended up sleeping for a whole day. At some point, her long lashes fluttered, then her eyes flitted open suddenly and her small body shot up from the ground. Reaching towards the void, she grabbed her longbow, which was even longer than the length of her body.
The bow was drawn with great familiarity, and a golden light was pointed straight at Yang Kai, ready to strike.
Yang Kai remained seated on the ground without moving, not even trying to defend himself. He just looked up at her with a compassionate expression and comforted, “No need to be nervous.”
The young woman looked steadily at him for a moment, then her expression changed slightly as she finally remembered what happened before she fell unconscious, and she could not help but frown. Lowering her bow, she asked with some surprise, “Senior Brother saved me?”
Yang Kai smiled and nodded.
Even though these were her own experiences that she remembered so vividly, the woman still found it hard to believe, “How was Senior Brother able to save me? What sort of technique did you use?”
Since time immemorial, Humans had no means to restore order from chaos after one was corrupted of Black Ink Strength and degenerated into a Black Ink Disciple. As soon as one was turned, from then on, they would stand on opposing sides from the Human Race. The only thing they could do then was to face them in a life-or-death fight on the battlefield.
Many others had either died at the hands of the Black Ink Disciples or turned into weapons against their own people by the Black Ink Clan. This had been the painful reality for the Human Race since the beginning of the war.
But now, what she experienced was a sure sign that the Human Race possessed some Heaven-defying method that could rescue Black Ink Disciples!
Despite her great mental strength, she still could not hide her shock.
Yang Kai smiled, “I have a Secret Technique that can purify and dispel Black Ink Strength.”
The young woman pondered for a moment, “That white light?”
“Indeed!”
The woman nodded, seemingly having an epiphany, “No wonder!”
“Hm?” Yang Kai looked at her in confusion.
The young woman explained, “During the war ten years ago, one thing that struck the Black Ink Clan as odd was the fact that there were essentially no new Black Ink Clan Disciples who were converted after a certain point in time. The Black Ink Clan suspected that we Humans had obtained some sort of countermeasure against Black Ink Strength, but they were never able to figure out what it was. Obviously, that would be the Secret Technique that Senior Brother wielded.”
Yang Kai nodded, “That is correct.”
The young woman had a solemn look for a moment, then she put away her bow and cupped her fist, “Bai Yi thanks Senior Brother for his life-saving grace.”
Only then did Yang Kai learn her name. He stood up and cupped his fist in return, “Don’t mention it. En, my name is Yang Kai. And also, I’m no Senior Brother. I’ve only just advanced to the Seventh Order not long ago. In terms of seniority, I think you might be my Martial Aunt.”
Bai Yi shook her head, “You are in the Seventh Order, and your abilities surpass mine, so you should be referred to as Senior Brother.” While speaking up to this point, Bai Yi recalled the days when she was fighting with Yang Kai in that deadly chase and asked in disbelief, “Senior Brother has only just advanced to the Seventh Order?”
Yang Kai nodded, “I broke through at the end of the last war between the two races.”
Bai Yi could not help but feel shaken. For him to have almost driven her into a corner despite only having recently advanced into the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, just how strong was his heritage? If Yang Kai had more time to cultivate, then how could she even be his opponent? She was considered a Heaven-sent prodigy, and even though she had the sense to know that she was not that different from other Seventh-Order Masters in terms of pure strength, once she has some distance from her opponent, ordinary Seventh-Order Masters would not even be able to get close to her.
However, after repeated tussles with Yang Kai, she finally understood that there were always people beyond people, Heavens beyond the Heavens.
“Senio… Junior Sister Bai, is your body all right?” Yang Kai asked out of concern. Since she insisted on calling him Senior Brother, so be it.
Only then did Bai Yi take the time to examine herself. After a moment, she responded, “Nothing serious. I overexerted myself a lot and will need to restore my energy. Has Senior Brother helped me recover from my injuries?”
She remembered her wounds well, and even though some of her injuries would recover while she was unconscious, there was no way they would heal so quickly. That meant that someone helped her recover while she was unconscious, and naturally, Yang Kai was the only possible person.
As she spoke, she touched her forehead, feeling a wave of dizziness coming on. Memories of Yang Kai’s world-shattering headbutts were still fresh, as if they had just happened. Even after living for such a long time, it was the first time in her life that she had been treated that way, so it was a novel experience for her.
Yang Kai laughed awkwardly, “As to what happened before, I had no choice but to do it. Please do not blame me for my indiscretion, Junior Sister.”
Bai Yi nodded, “I understand. Senior Brother was merely trying to save me, not to kill me; otherwise, there was no need to go so far. Only, during that time, I… I’ve caused a lot of trouble for Senior Brother. My apologies!”
Saying so, a look of remorse appeared on her face.
Yang Kai sighed, “Once corrupted and transformed by Black Ink Strength, only the Black Ink Clan is supreme; it is not your fault. En, since Junior Sister is fine, let us head back. There is a forward base nearby. Junior Sister should know about it.”
“Yes…” Bai Yi nodded, but she did not move; instead, she had a slightly hesitant look on her face.
Yang Kai looked at her in confusion, “Is Junior Sister feeling unwell?”
Bai Yi shook her head and suddenly looked straight at him, “Senior Brother, do you want to kill a Territory Lord?”
Yang Kai raised a brow, “Junior Sister, what do you mean?”
Bai Yi explained, “Usually, as you and I are both only Seventh-Order, we would definitely be no match for a Territory Lord; however, there is a good opportunity at hand now. If we do this right, then there’s a good chance we’ll be able to pull it off!”
Yang Kai understood what she meant, “Junior Sister is referring to the Territory Lord who escaped earlier?”
Bai Yi nodded, “That was Zhu Feng Territory Lord who served under Men Xie Royal Lord. I used to be his Black Ink Disciple. He and Xu Bo Liang, Division Commander Xu, were engaged in a particularly brutal fight. Though he managed to escape with my help, Zhu Feng’s foundation was severely damaged. He must be back at his Black Ink Nest, recovering from those injuries. If you and I were to ambush him now, there is a good chance that we can take him down.”
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes, but the light in them was bright, “Is Junior Sister sure? If Zhu Feng is healing, then there must be Masters standing guard around him. You and I are only two people, and though our strengths are not bad, how high could the possibility of killing him be?”
Bai Yi shook her head, “Senior Brother may not know, but the Black Ink Clan is not a monolith, and there is a lot of treachery lurking in the dark. If given the opportunity, weaker Black Ink Clansmen can see their strength soaring by devouring the energy of higher-ranking Clansmen. Currently, Zhu Feng has been severely injured, so no matter what, he would not allow this news to reach the ears of other Territory Lords or even most of the Feudal Lords under his command. Otherwise, once this news is leaked, there is no guarantee that the other Territory Lords may not have malicious thoughts about him. Even the Feudal Lords under him might take the risk to attack him. Once they devour his energy, it would be enough for a Feudal Lord to advance and become a Territory Lord.”
Yang Kai nodded at her words, “I have indeed heard of such a thing.”
He had lived in the Black Ink Clan’s territory for two years, so he had naturally heard about this. Back then, Nu Yan had expressed his desire to devour a Feudal Lord more than once in front of him. Unfortunately, he never had any opportunities to do so, so he could only bring Yang Kai around to pick gambling fights and earn Black Ink Coins.
This kind of information was no secret either. The Great Passes of the Human Race all possessed this knowledge.
Bai Yi nodded, “If it were any ordinary injury, then those Feudal Lords naturally wouldn’t have any funny thoughts; however, Zhu Feng’s injuries were severe, so he surely wished to conceal the news. And, the place where he was recovering now was only guarded by a few of his most trusted subordinates.”
“You know where he goes to rest?”
Bai Yi nodded, “Approximately, yes; after all, I was one of the Black Ink Disciples under him and had access to many of his secrets.”
Yang Kai began to ponder.
The temptation of a heavily injured Territory Lord was great. If they could take this opportunity to kill him, then that would be enough to deal a severe blow to the Black Ink Clan’s activities in this region, which would naturally be a great benefit to the Humans.
However, doing this would mean taking on a hefty risk.
After all, that was still a Territory Lord. A starving camel was still bigger than a horse. The desperate measures one could bring out when facing death were not to be underestimated, not to mention the fact that the Territory Lord had his trusted subordinates by his side, protecting him.
Even if they did succeed, there would still be a battle to be had during their escape.
“Senior Brother, this opportunity is not to be missed. If we wait any longer and Zhu Feng manages to make any sort of recovery, it will become impossible to succeed,” Bai Yi quickly tried to persuade Yang Kai when she saw his hesitance.
Yang Kai glanced at her and finally made up his mind, nodding, “Very well. I will join forces with Junior Sister to kill Zhu Feng.”
Seeing him agree, Bai Yi finally smiled, “Senior Brother definitely won’t regret this.”
“However, the two of us still have to recover before we go,” Yang Kai advised.
Personally, his condition was fine; however, Bai Yi’s aura was currently very weak, and it was indeed necessary for her to restore her energy first. Otherwise, where would she find the energy to ambush Zhu Feng?
As such, the two of them settled down to recover their strength.
A sneak attack on a Territory Lord came with very large risks, but if successful, it would become a severe blow to the top powers of the Black Ink Clan in this region of the battlefield, a clear benefit to Blue Sky Pass.
Speed was paramount in war, and Yang Kai had no time to seek help from others either; moreover, something like this was better done with smaller numbers.
A few days later, Yang Kai and Bai Yi, who had almost fully recovered, rose to their feet and headed off under Bai Yi’s lead.
There had been a delay of a few days, but that was unavoidable. However, this amount of time did not matter in the face of their plans as Zhu Feng was severely injured by Division Commander Xu Bo Liang during their fight which had damaged his foundation. A lot of time would be required for Zhu Feng to recover, so a few short days would not make any difference.
During their journey, the two of them discussed their plan, taking care of every detail and finally drew up a general outline of what they were going to do. There were bound to be variables when they finally put their plan into action, but that would be left up to their improvisation abilities then.
For Yang Kai, the reason why he agreed to take this risk with Bai Yi was because it was truly a rare opportunity to come by. Secondly, Bai Yi had been following Zhu Feng for many years and knew his habits well. Third was because of his own proficiency in the Dao of Space that would allow him to find an opening to escape if things did not go to plan.
It should be impossible for a heavily injured Territory Lord to try and stop him if he was determined to flee.
They encountered nothing special along the way as Yang Kai followed Bai Yi forward. They did not even encounter a single squad of Black Ink Clansmen.
The reason for this was not that all of the Black Ink Clan had already withdrawn from this war zone, but that Bai Yi had avoided these Black Ink Clansmen and prevented any encounters with them.
The only target of this trip was Zhu Feng. Naturally, killing a Territory Lord would be far more beneficial to them than killing off some small fry.
Occasionally, Yang Kai observed a strange light flickering in Bai Yi’s eyes, so she had obviously cultivated some sort of profound Eye Secret Technique.
He had his own Eye Techniques, but the two Eye Secret Techniques he inherited from Myriad Demons Heaven were best for seeing through illusions and trapping others, so both lacked the long-range detection and surveillance abilities of Bai Yi’s Eye Technique.
When compared, these Eye Secret Techniques all had their own strengths and weaknesses.
After flying for two days, Bai Yi’s body swayed when they approached a certain Universe Fragment, then she landed on it.
Yang Kai followed closely behind.
“We’re almost there,” Bai Yi said.
Yang Kai nodded, “Then, let’s begin.”
Saying so, he took a deep breath and the Small Universe in his body shook violently. Fresh blood spilled from the corners of Yang Kai’s lips after a grunt. At the same time, his aura was suppressed, turning extremely weak.
In such a state, anyone oblivious to what was going on would surely believe that he was heavily injured. If they were to ambush Zhu Feng, then they had to present themselves as weak in order to numb his sense of danger.
“Please excuse me, Senior Brother,” as she spoke, Bai Yi formed a set of hand seals before hitting Yang Kai with a Secret Technique. In the next moment, golden chains appeared, binding him firmly.
Yang Kai struggled a bit, but found that this sealing technique was quite sturdy. Even with his strength, it would be extremely difficult if he were really caught by such a technique. If he were to be hit by such a technique during a fight, then he would basically just have to wait for death.
“Let’s go,” Yang Kai nodded at Bai Yi, signalling that everything was in order.
Bai Yi nodded and grabbed Yang Kai by the arm before taking to the skies. In this way, it seemed like Bai Yi had captured Yang Kai.
According to Bai Yi, it was absolutely impossible for Zhu Feng to return to his own territory after incurring such severe injuries as it would make it impossible to conceal his current state. If that were to happen, the troops under him would surely become distracted, and there was a great possibility that the ambitious ones among them would start to have thoughts about stirring up trouble.
So, he had no choice but to hide in a secret nest in order to recuperate. Due to having followed him for so many years, and also being one of the Black Ink Disciples under his command, Bai Yi knew the location of his hidden nest like the back of her hand.
However, they could not be sure as to whether Zhu Feng was in that nest. If he was, then they could carry out their plan as they had drawn up. If not, they had no choice but to give up.
There was nothing left to do but leave it up to chance. Bai Yi would not dare to make a guarantee that her guess was right either.
In fact, basically every Territory Lord, even some Feudal Lords, had their own secret Black Ink Nests that they prepared as a place to heal when they became seriously injured.
Zhu Feng’s nest was actually situated inside a Sealed World.
There were countless Sealed Worlds in the Black Ink Battlefield, and no one knew how these Sealed Worlds came to be. Every now and then, the entrance of a Sealed World would be discovered. Whether it be the Humans or the Black Ink Clan, there was much to gain inside these Sealed Worlds.
Bai Yi had no idea when Zhu Feng had settled down in that Sealed World, but she had followed him in and out of it several dozen years ago, so she knew where it was.
Half a day later, Bai Yi stopped at a certain place in the void.
On the surface, there was nothing out of the ordinary here, but Yang Kai could vaguely sense a hint of Space Principles pulsing in the Void.
In other words, this was where the entrance to the Sealed World was located.
Yang Kai was bound by Bai Yi’s Secret Technique, so his perception was not too clear. For that reason, he could not determine where exactly the entrance was.
However, after confirming the location, Bai Yi took out her longbow and lightly strummed the string three times.
There was a whirr, and ripples appeared in the void.
A few moments later, a portal opened up a short distance ahead of them, and from it came the clear aura of World Force.
Once the portal expanded large enough for them to pass through, Bai Yi grabbed Yang Kai’s arm and moved in with haste.
After their vision flickered, the two of them arrived inside the Sealed World.
Before Yang Kai could even take in the sights of this Sealed World though, he felt a huge surge of force coming over from the side. Shocked, he circulated his strength instinctively to resist, but he quickly remembered that he was bound by Bai Yi’s Secret Technique, so how could he still have any strength left to struggle?
Fortunately, Bai Yi’s reaction was also miraculously quick. With a twist of her hand, she moved Yang Kai behind her while quickly sweeping to the side at the same time.
However, their ambushers had caught them off-guard. The attack was so sudden that even though Bai Yi could react in time, they were still hit by the aftershock.
With a grunt, both she and Yang Kai rolled into a heap.
She quickly rose to her feet and knelt down on one knee. Like a cheetah ready to pounce on its prey, she held her longbow in front of herself and kept a wary eye on the tall figures at the front.
Behind her, Yang Kai spat out a mouthful of blood.
During that ambush earlier, Yang Kai was completely unable to defend himself. Though it was merely the aftershock, it was still enough to injure him.
Bai Yi moved slightly, clearly concerned about Yang Kai’s injuries.
Yang Kai reached out secretly to tap her on the waist, indicating that he was fine.
“What is the meaning of this?!” Bai Yi asked in a cold voice as she glared up at a Feudal Lord. Earlier, it was he who ambushed them, causing Yang Kai to sustain damage.
There were two other Feudal Lords standing by the first’s side. Each one of them was tall and imposing, looking Bai Yi up and down with mischief in their eyes.
As he observed the situation, Yang Kai had the feeling that what they encountered was not exactly what they expected.
His initial plan with Bai Yi was to have her offer him up to Zhu Feng; after all, Yang Kai was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Even if Zhu Feng was a Territory Lord, he would surely be moved by this opportunity. He would surely wish to convert Yang Kai with Black Ink Strength then and turn him into one of his Black Ink Disciples.
Once Zhu Feng did so, it would give Yang Kai and Bai Yi the opportunity to stir up trouble. Even if they were unable to kill Zhu Feng, it would surely add to his injuries.
But who knew that once they entered the Sealed World, before they could even see Zhu Feng, they would be ambushed by the Feudal Lords who were watching over his safety.
[Could it be that Bai Yi’s circumstances were revealed?] However, that possibility was slim as both he and Bai Yi were the only ones who knew of the plan. Before using the Purifying Light, Yang Kai had specially checked their surroundings to make sure that nobody would see them.
In that case, there seemed to be some other reason behind this current situation.
The Feudal Lord who was being glared at by Bai Yi suddenly chuckled and spoke up “So it is Bai Yi. I thought that it was some Human who had come to disturb Sir’s recovery. Just an accident, an accident!”
That was clearly just an excuse. The Sealed World’s portal was equipped with a Spirit Array, which made it impossible to open unless the proper technique was used.
The Feudal Lords inside naturally knew Bai Yi’s identity if they were willing to open the portal and let her in, but they still tried to attack her, which made it obvious that they had done it on purpose. There was no such thing as an accident here.
However, the Feudal Lord did have a sense of proportion when he attacked and did not go all out. At the most, Bai Yi would have to suffer a bit of pain. They would not actually kill or severely injure her.
After all, Bai Yi was one of the Black Ink Disciples under Zhu Feng Territory Lord’s command, and she was clearly highly valued by him. They were still counting on Bai Yi’s efforts in order to down their enemies in this war zone. If they really did kill or severely injure her, then they would have no way of explaining it to Zhu Feng.
So, once the first attack failed, the Feudal Lord immediately put on a smiling face.
When he heard this, Yang Kai breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed like Zhu Feng really was hiding in this Sealed World to heal. Bai Yi’s deduction was correct.
Bai Yi glared at the Feudal Lord for a moment before snorting, ‘There will be no next time!’
The Feudal Lord’s smile faded, and he coldly snapped, “A trivial Black Ink Disciple dares speak to me in such a way?”
No matter how strong a Black Ink Disciple was, they would still feel a sense of awe when facing an actual Black Ink Clansman. However, Bai Yi was so highly valued by Zhu Feng that she lost her instinct of respecting the weaker Black Ink Clansmen.
On the battlefield, Bai Yi was even allowed to use Feudal Lords as cover in order to kill Human Masters, killing friend and foe alike with a single arrow!
It was exactly because of that incident that these Feudal Lords became very upset with Bai Yi; after all, nobody was happy to have to watch their backs for attacks from their own allies while they were facing off with an enemy.
After that incident, some of the Feudal Lords went up to Zhu Feng to complain, but rather than punish Bai Yi, Zhu Feng reprimanded them for their poor performance in battle instead.
The unjust ruling of the Territory Lord further intensified the feud between Bai Yi and these Feudal Lords. If it were not for Zhu Feng, then these Feudal Lords would have united to kill Bai Yi already.
A Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciple was rare, but a Black Ink Disciple who was willing to kill even her own allies to fulfil her mission was not desirable.
This time, Zhu Feng was badly injured and had to sleep inside a Black Ink Nest to heal, so there was nobody to stand up for Bai Yi. These Feudal Lords who had long been sour at the state of affairs would naturally want to teach Bai Yi a lesson and make her understand who her betters were.
That was what resulted in the sneak attack earlier, but they did not expect Bai Yi’s reaction to be so quick as to be able to avoid it, leaving her no worse for wear other than getting some dirt on her face.
Bai Yi’s unpleasant tone of voice angered the Feudal Lord who attacked her even more. When he was about to reprimand her again, he suddenly noticed Yang Kai behind her and asked in surprise, “You captured a Human?”
The other two Feudal Lords also had curious looks on their faces as they looked over.
Bai Yi specialized in long-distance attacks after all, so generally, any opponent she targeted would end up dead. She had never brought one back as a captive before, so there was no way that these three Feudal Lords would not think it strange when they saw this today.
The first Feudal Lord frowned, “What cultivation does this guy have?”
Yang Kai’s power was restricted by Bai Yi’s Secret Technique, so the Feudal Lords were completely unable to sense his cultivation.
Bai Yi frowned, but after hesitating for a moment, she revealed, “Seventh Order!”
“Seventh Order!?” The eyes of the three Feudal Lords lit up upon hearing this, and they all looked at Yang Kai with a burning gaze.
A Human in the Seventh Order was the equivalent to a Feudal Lord in the Black Ink Clan. When it came to a one-on-one fight, the Feudal Lords were basically no match for Seventh-Order Humans. Not being defeated by them was already good enough, much less capturing one alive.
Capturing a Seventh-Order Master would count as a great merit for any Feudal Lord, no matter whether they were turning them into their own Black Ink Disciples or offering them up to the Territory Lord they served. Both options would boost the power of the Black Ink Clan in general.
“Where is Master?” Bai Yi asked. Though she was almost certain that Zhu Feng was recovering here, she still had to make sure that everything was in order before she acted.
The Feudal Lord who spoke previously had a glimmer in his eyes as he grinned and said, “Sir returned with severe injuries and is currently resting in the Black Ink Nest. He is not to be disturbed. Bai Yi, hand that Seventh-Order Human you captured over to me. Once Sir is awake, I will present him to Sir.”
Saying so, he tried to reach for Yang Kai.
As he moved though, Bai Yi suddenly drew her bowstring and a faint golden light appeared, aiming straight for the Feudal Lord’s forehead.
The Feudal Lord’s hand froze in mid-air as he glared at Bai Yi, “What is the meaning of this?!”
Bai Yi glared at him and returned the sentiment, “What are your intentions?”
The Feudal Lord said, “I believe I’ve made my point very clear. As for you… Do you intend to kill me? Why don’t you try and make a move? Then we’ll see whether or not Sir will let you off!”
Bai Yi was unmoved, “You’ll already be dead by then. What does it matter to you whether Master decides to spare me or not?”
Her words implied that she was capable of killing this Feudal Lord. The Feudal Lord felt disdained and flew into a rage, “Trivial Black Ink Disciple, how dare you act so impudently?!”
Bai Yi’s voice was cold, “Open your dog eyes and take a good look at the situation. Do you really think you can snatch the credit for my merits?”
Yang Kai, who had been behind Bai Yi this whole time, felt a mixture of both a headache and anxiety piling on in this situation.
They had known that things would definitely not go exactly according to their plans, so they were ready to improvise a bit; however, neither of them expected to be provoked by these Feudal Lords before they could even see Zhu Feng.
The Feudal Lords in front of them were clearly intent on snatching away Bai Yi’s achievement. For a Seventh-Order Human to be captured alive meant that Zhu Feng would have a new Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciple under his command, which was a great merit. Naturally, the Feudal Lords were all eager to take the credit for themselves.
Normally, they would be capable of doing such a thing; however, Zhu Feng was currently asleep in the Black Ink Nest in order to recuperate and was completely oblivious to the world outside. They just had to snatch Yang Kai away and force Bai Yi out of this Sealed World, and the credit would be all theirs.
This gave Yang Kai a headache.
Moreover, the presence of Black Ink Strength inside this Sealed World made him anxious. Even though it was not very dense, it was still Black Ink Strength.
Anyone inside this Sealed World would constantly be exposed to Black Ink Strength.
Yang Kai was fine as he carried a World Spring, so even if Black Ink Strength did encroach into his body, it would be suppressed perfectly, rendering it harmless.
However, Bai Yi was different. Once her Small Universe was corrupted to a certain extent, she would turn back into a Black Ink Disciple.
Yet at this moment, she did not dare to use any of her power to resist the encroachment of the Black Ink Strength either, for if she chose to do so, then it would inevitably arouse the suspicions of the Feudal Lords in front of her.
As she tangled with the Feudal Lords, she could only allow the Black Ink Strength to infiltrate her body.
Yang Kai had no idea how long she could hold out in this situation, but it would not be long. Once Bai Yi became a Black Ink Disciple again, not only would their plans be ruined, he would fall into danger.
It was clear that Bai Yi understood this, too. So, even though she would normally compromise when the Feudal Lords tried to bully and suppress her, she was exceptionally firm today, which made the Feudal Lords very angry.
With just a few words, a storm began gathering.
As she gripped her bow tight, Bai Yi looked up in a certain direction where a huge flower bud-like object stood. The flower bud seemed to have a life of its own, and as it breathed in and out, Black Ink Strength emerged from it, spreading out in all directions.
That flower bud was the source of the Black Ink Strength that filled this Sealed World.
A Black Ink Nest!
Yang Kai had lived in the Black Ink Clan’s territory for two years and followed Nu Yan to many Feudal Lords’ territories. He had seen many Black Ink Nests, so this was not an unfamiliar sight.
Black Ink Nests were where new Black Ink Clansmen were born, as well as the very foundation of their existence, which meant they were critical to the Black Ink Clan. Usually, Black Ink Nests could only be found in large enough territories controlled by powerful masters.
Nu Yan, the High-Rank Black Ink Clansman Yang Kai had followed around, not only did he not have his own territory, but he did not have his own Black Ink Nest. Naturally, one would not have the right to possess such things without the appropriate power and status.
Zhu Feng was a Territory Lord, so it was not difficult for him to get a Black Ink Nest and set it up in this place.
After the shocking battle with Xu Bo Liang, Zhu Feng was severely injured and immediately returned to this place, entering the Black Ink Nest so that he could enter a deep sleep to heal.
This was confirmed through the words of the Feudal Lords.
So, as Bai Yi looked over in that direction, she grabbed Yang Kai and rushed towards the Black Ink Nest, “I will offer the captive myself. You don’t have to concern yourselves with him.”
The three Feudal Lords paled when they saw this and one of them called out in alarm, “Sir is currently recuperating and is not to be disturbed!”
Saying so, he threw a fist out in Bai Yi’s direction in an attempt to stop her.
Bai Yi’s actions were all planned out though. She had long expected such a move from them, so as soon as she saw the attack coming, her body shifted aside, easily avoiding the blow.
And, in a haste to strike, and because of his grudge against Bai Yi, the Feudal Lord had acted rashly. After Bai Yi dodged his strike, it simply continued on towards the Black Ink Nest.
When he saw this, the Feudal Lord felt shocked, as if his soul could leave his body.
The other two Feudal Lords also felt chills run up their spines in that instant.
Everyone watched in horror as the huge power of his punch struck the Black Ink Nest.
*Hong…*
The three Feudal Lords felt like this punch had struck them, rather than the Black Ink Nest. They could feel their hearts clenching and cold sweat was now dripping down their foreheads.
Bai Yi floated in mid-air, a cold smile lingering on her lips as she watched the disgraceful looks of the three Feudal Lords.
The flower bud-like Black Ink Nest’s breathing stopped after being struck, but it was not too badly damaged. Of course, a tidal wave of Black Ink Strength was released after the violent impact.
The dormant aura inside of the Black Ink Nest quickly awoke, followed by a powerful Divine Sense that swept through the entire Sealed World that held a strong sense of alarm and unease.
Zhu Feng was in a state of trepidation at the moment. He was deep asleep and borrowing the Black Ink Nest’s power to recover; however, after being disturbed all of a sudden, his first thought was that the Humans had found him and launched an attack on his nest, so it was unsurprising that he would be so anxious.
In his current state, it would not be good for him if the Human Masters were to appear.
After his Divine Sense swept over the Sealed World though, Zhu Feng realized that things were not as he thought they were.
The three Feudal Lords who were watching over the Sealed World were all on one knee, shaking with pale faces. Meanwhile, his most capable subordinate, the Human Bai Yi, was floating in the air, looking down at the three of them with a sneer on her face.
Looking at the situation and considering the attack that struck his Black Ink Nest earlier, Zhu Feng instantly understood what happened.
If he were at full strength, then he would not have let anyone who disturbed his healing live, but he was still recovering from his injuries right now and had to rely on these loyal subordinates to guard him. So, it was not advisable for him to cause a fuss in case he lost the trust of his men.
After forcing down the anger welling up inside of him, Zhu Feng shouted in a majestic voice, “What is the meaning of this?”
Yang Kai, who was being carried by Bai Yi, raised his brow at that. Though Zhu Feng’s voice sounded extremely imposing, it could not hide the weakness hidden within. It could be seen that Zhu Feng was indeed very badly injured during the fight with Xu Bo Liang, especially when he tried to run away at the end. The might of Xu Bo Liang’s final slash almost cut his entire back open.
That attack from Xu Bo Liang must have damaged Zhu Feng’s foundation.
The three kneeling Feudal Lords remained silent. It was hard for them to explain the situation as there was no way they could say that they tried to cause trouble for Bai Yi and snatch her merit, which ended with them accidentally hitting the Black Ink Nest and disturbing Zhu Feng’s recovery.
If they did tell him that, then there was no need for them to show their faces in front of Zhu Feng anymore in the future.
“Have you all gone mute?” Zhu Feng became even more annoyed when he saw this, so he called one of them up by name, “Bai Yi, speak.”
The faces of the three Feudal Lords turned ashen at once.
Bai Yi said in a crisp voice, “Master, I have captured a Seventh-Order Human, but these three Feudal Lords did not feel assured about him and had intentions of trying to test him. However, they did not expect to accidentally disturb Master’s rest. Please forgive them.”
At these words, the three Feudal Lords kneeling on the ground were all stunned. They thought that Bai Yi would try to add insult to injury here, but here she was trying to stand up for them, which did not make any sense.
But on second thought, even if Bai Yi really did reveal the truth, the Territory Lord would not have done anything to them given his current condition. Instead, it would only make the three of them hate Bai Yi even more.
Rather than do that, she might as well have them owe her a favour instead.
With such thoughts in mind, rather than feel grateful to Bai Yi, the three Feudal Lords became even more resentful towards her.
Because this would only make their Territory Lord think that Bai Yi was being considerate and that they were being petty.
Naturally, Bai Yi would not be so kind. She would happily do anything to borrow Zhu Feng’s hand to make these Feudal Lords suffer, but her plan with Yang Kai was far more important right now. Adding on the fact that Black Ink Strength was constantly encroaching on her Small Universe inside of the Sealed World, she simply could not hold on for long, so she could not be bothered to stir up any trouble.
Now, all that was left was for them to put their plan into action. If they were too slow, then they would never get this chance again.
When Zhu Feng, who was hiding in the Black Ink Nest, heard this, he was silent for a moment before speaking, “In that case, all of you withdraw. Guard this place carefully and do not let anyone else disturb my healing.”
The three Feudal Lords hastily abided by his orders.
Bai Yi, however, spoke up, “Master, I would like to offer you this Human that I have captured.”
Zhu Feng answered flatly, “That is very thoughtful of you. Keep him in captivity for now, we shall wait until I have recovered from my injuries.”
“Master!” Bai Yi cut in again, “This Human is strong and has a high position on the enemy side. He should know what means the Humans have been using in recent years to resist the corruption of Black Ink Strength. If it is convenient for Master, please convert him first and ask him for the answer. In this way, the other Territory Lords will also not be able to take advantage of this opportunity to snatch away your rightful merits.”
Zhu Feng was badly injured and in a hurry to recover, so he was a little annoyed at having Bai Yi object to his orders; however, after hearing her words, he began to ponder.
Bai Yi was right. It was true that the Black Ink Clan had been extremely curious about what mysterious means the Humans had been using to resist the corruption of Black Ink Strength during these recent years. Men Xie himself had personally ordered the Territory Lords under him to figure out the truth of the matter; however, the Black Ink Clan had been unable to capture a single Human recently, thus they were never able to figure anything out.
Since the last war, the Human that Bai Yi captured could be said to be the very first, and he was even in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Indeed, Humans in the Seventh Order held high positions in their race. It was enough for one to become a Squad Leader or even a Battalion Commander. There was a good chance that a Human like this would know something.
If he could squeeze the answer to that mystery out of this Human, then it would be a great merit indeed. Zhu Feng’s injuries were severe, and even with the Black Ink Nest’s help, it would still take him a year and a half just to stabilize himself. By that time, another Territory Lord might have already discovered the answer.
To lay aside merits that were in front of his eyes without taking them and let another Territory Lord profit, Zhu Feng would naturally be unwilling.
There was merely a short pause before Zhu Feng made up his mind, “Bring him inside.”
“Yes!” Bai Yi answered reverently. Then, under the envious and resentful eyes of the three Feudal Lords, she flew straight towards the Black Ink Nest.
The closer she got to the Black Ink Nest, the denser the Black Ink Strength became. Yang Kai, who was dragged along, could faintly sense her situation and felt concerned for her.
He had no idea how much longer Bai Yi could hold out, but it was obviously not much longer. So, this battle had to be a quick one. Only then would they be able to resolve the situation before Bai Yi turned into a Black Ink Disciple again.
Fortunately, though there were changes in their plan, the general progression of it was going smoothly.
Below the huge flower bud-like Black Ink Nest was a rootstalk-like tunnel that was connected to the ground. The root looked like flesh, yet not, and it was exuding an extremely sinister aura.
Bai Yi entered the opening below the Black Ink Nest with Yang Kai in tow and walked up through the rootstalk-like passage.
A short while later, they arrived in a large and spacious area.
Even though Yang Kai had seen Black Ink Nests many times before from a distance, this was the first time he had ever been inside of one, so he observed his surroundings carefully.
The space inside was filled with such rich Black Ink Strength that it was practically liquid. It was tumbling and surging in the space, and seemed to be flowing towards a certain point under an invisible force that was fervently devouring it.
At the source of the pull was a huge figure who was sitting down cross-legged.
The man had a majestic and imposing figure, but there was a weakness enveloping him that could not be concealed. Who else could this figure be if not Zhu Feng, who had escaped with dire injuries?
When the two of them entered, the Black Ink Strength permeating the hall was pouring into Zhu Feng’s large body.
“Master,” Bai Yi walked up to Zhu Feng and knelt down on one knee, bowing her head.
Yang Kai was set down in front of her, lying quietly. As their eyes met, Yang Kai’s chest tightened because he could see a darkness looming in Bai Yi’s pupils.
In less than half a cup of tea’s time since they entered the Sealed World, Bai Yi was nearing her limit. Once the Black Ink Strength fully seized her Small Universe, she would surely transform into a Black Ink Disciple once again.
“So this is the Human that you captured?” Zhu Feng lowered his head and looked down on them, his huge figure exerting intense pressure.
“Yes!” Bai Yi trembled, seemingly intimidated by Zhu Feng’s might; however, Yang Kai knew that it was just her struggling to maintain the clarity of her mind.
“This Human is in the Seventh-Order?” Zhu Feng asked another question.
Yang Kai was about to curse this guy’s mother for blabbering non-stop instead of converting him directly. Hateful!
“There is no doubt about it,” Bai Yi answered.
Zhu Feng naturally did not doubt her. As his Black Ink Disciple, Bai Yi could not hide anything from him, so he was willing to trust what Bai Yi said to be true. Even if he were suspicious of the Feudal Lords under him, he would definitely not doubt his own Black Ink Disciple.
Even though Black Ink Disciples had low status within the Black Ink Clan, they at least had no need to worry about their loyalty.
“You did well,” Zhu Feng praised Bai Yi with a tender look on his face. Previously, it was Bai Yi’s arrow that came out at the key moment that hurt Xu Bo Liang which allowed him to escape from the Division Commander by creating an opening.
“It was merely my duty,” Bai Yi’s head hung low, and the hair in front of her forehead cast a shadow over her face that blocked the light in her eyes.
Zhu Feng nodded lightly. Without further ado, he spat out a mouthful of dense Black Ink Strength in Yang Kai’s direction, which flowed incessantly like a living creature, burrowing into Yang Kai’s seven orifices and pores.
Yang Kai struggled but to no avail. Soon, he became still.
A short while later, Zhu Feng stopped; however, after spitting out that mouthful of Black Ink Strength, his aura had clearly weakened a little. Converting a Seventh-Order Human seemed to have been burdensome on his current state.
Zhu Feng raised his hand slightly and ordered, “Untie him.”
Since he had been converted into a Black Ink Disciple, Yang Kai was on his side now.
Obeying his order, Bai Yi released the sealing Secret Technique around Yang Kai’s body. In fact, she was going to do so even without Zhu Feng’s order.
“Master!” Yang Kai was well versed in disguising himself as a Black Ink Disciple, and he naturally knew how he should present himself at this moment.
“Now tell me, what means are the Humans using in order to resist the corruption of Black Ink Strength? Why is it that our Black Ink Clan has been unable to gain a single Black Ink Disciple after such a long time?” Zhu Feng looked apathetically at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai answered respectfully, “That is the latest Secret Technique researched by the Human Race. This subordinate has also cultivated it. If it is convenient, then this subordinate is willing to demonstrate it for Master to see!”
Zhu Feng was surprised, “Oh? You have cultivated it too?”
“Yes!” Yang Kai responded.
Zhu Feng nodded, “Then demonstrate it for me.”
“As Master wishes!” Yang Kai cupped his fist and spread his hands out. Two seals floated up from the back of his hands, and in the next instant, a dazzling yellow light lit up on his left hand, while his right hand shone a vibrant blue.
When both hands came together, the two lights fused, transforming into a pure white light. All of a sudden, it felt as if a small sun had appeared inside of the Black Ink Nest.
Zhu Feng’s heart clenched tight.
In fact, when Yang Kai activated the seals on both his left and right hands, he instinctively felt a sense of unease; however, it was only when the white light appeared that his unease grew palpable.
Under the envelopment of the white light, Black Ink Strength turned into nothingness. The flesh walls around the Black Ink Nest contracted violently as if they were being eroded by a terrifying heat, emitting a chatter as the entire Black Ink Nest began to shake.
“This is…” Zhu Feng was shocked. That white light was a great threat to him. When his body was exposed to the white light, he was overtaken by a violent pain. The Black Ink Strength in his body melted just like snowflakes under a bright sun.
Before he could work out what was going on, the sun-like white light rapidly grew before his eyes.
“Please observe as closely as you wish, Master!” Following Yang Kai’s shout, the Purifying Light exploded out.
In an instant, Zhu Feng’s roar resounded throughout the Sealed World.
At the same time, Bai Yi, who had been kneeling on the ground, jumped to her feet and pulled the bow in her hands. A golden glow turned into a pillar of light that was blasted straight in Zhu Feng’s direction.
After Yang Kai had finished performing Purifying Light, he summoned his Azure Dragon Spear while using his Golden Crow Casts the Sun Divine Manifestation at the same time. Guiding the great sun with his spear, Yang Kai stabbed it towards Zhu Feng mercilessly.
The combination of both his and Bai Yi’s strength burst out in an instant and contained terrifying killing power.
With an aura of death looming over his head, there was no way that Zhu Feng did not know that he had been tricked. He did not understand how a Human could withstand the corruption of his Black Ink Strength, much less how Bai Yi, who had been following him for so many years, would suddenly betray him; however, at the critical moment between life or death, he still unleashed the terrifying might of a Territory Lord.
His large body moved forcibly while he threw out a fist, and a terrifying power burst forth, causing space to tremble and rupture.
Outside of the Black Ink Nest, the three Feudal Lords stood together with bitter looks on their faces. They were unable to gain any benefits from Bai Yi this time and instead owed her a favour, which was exceptionally displeasing for them.
However, now that Bai Yi had been called into the Black Ink Nest by Zhu Feng, there was nothing the Feudal Lords could do despite their displeasure. Bai Yi was highly valued by the Territory Lord to begin with, and now that she was able to capture a Seventh-Order Human, her status was likely to rise even higher in the coming days. She might even be able to sit on top of their heads from now on.
How could the three Feudal Lords bear to endure having a lowly Human lord over them?
However, they did not know what they could do at this moment. While they were feeling at a loss, a loud bang suddenly came from the Black Ink Nest.
The three Feudal Lords were startled by the commotion and quickly turned their heads over; then, what they saw instantly sent chills down their spines as if they had fallen into an ice cellar.
Following the loud noise, the huge flower bud-like Black Ink Nest shook as if it had received a violent hit, and a strange, dazzling white light seemed to burst out from the gaps inside the flower bud, giving the three Feudal Lords an extremely dangerous feeling.
The white light seemed like their natural enemy. Even from such a long distance away, the Black Ink Strength inside of their bodies was conveying a sense of unease to them.
Immediately following that, they heard the raging roar of their Territory Lord.
As the violent energy exploded, the Black Ink Nest crumbled and several flower petals flew out, wilting and losing all their vitality before they could even reach the ground.
[The Black Ink Nest was destroyed?]
It had to be known just how important a Black Ink Nest was to the Black Ink Clan. The one here had been quietly brought over after much effort and expense from Zhu Feng. Now, its destruction was an immense loss for him.
All three of the Feudal Lords were terrified. They simply had no idea what had happened at their Territory Lord’s side for such a thing to happen.
However, it happened after Bai Yi brought the Human into the Black Ink Nest, so it was obvious that this had something to do with her.
Before they could figure out what happened, two figures flew out from the remains of the Black Ink Nest. While racing towards the Black Ink Nest, the three Feudal Lords looked over and discovered that the two figures were Bai Yi and the Human that she had ‘captured’.
They were both in a terrible state and were tumbling through the air while coughing up blood. It was clear that they were both wounded.
Inside the crumbling Black Ink Nest, Zhu Feng roared in rage, “Traitor! How dare you defy this Lord’s will!”
The roar could be heard all throughout the Sealed World. When a Territory Lord unleashed their anger, Worlds trembled.
Following his roar, a large figure rose from the destroyed Black Ink Nest. It was Zhu Feng. Only, he was clearly in bad shape at this moment. His aura was strong at times but weak at others, a sign that he had been seriously injured.
In fact, he was badly injured by Xu Bo Liang to begin with and had yet to recover since escaping back into this Sealed World before falling for Yang Kai and Bai Yi’s ploy. Suffering Purifying Light, Golden Crow Casts the Sun, and Bai Yi’s arrow technique yet not dying on the spot was already proof enough of how immense this man’s heritage was, but it would still inevitably compound his injuries.
At this moment, Zhu Feng could not even bring out half of his peak strength.
Yang Kai finally understood what the phrase, even a starving camel was larger than a horse, meant. Originally in their plan, if they failed to kill Zhu Feng with their initial attack, it would still at least be able to take half of his life. As long as they could cripple him and leave him half-dead, then with their combined strength, the two of them would have a good chance of winning the subsequent battle.
However, Zhu Feng’s strength was beyond their expectation. Though their surprise attack hit him hard, it did not achieve their desired effect and they had already exposed themselves. They could only charge forward now, as there was no turning back. Either their enemy died here, or they did.
Anger tumbled inside Zhu Feng’s chest. Compared to being attacked by Yang Kai, he was even angrier at Bai Yi’s betrayal. Bai Yi had been following him for many years and had rendered many meritorious deeds for him. Just days ago, if it were not for Bai Yi helping him from the shadows, he would not have been able to escape from Xu Bo Liang’s grasp.
Moreover, Bai Yi was truly very strong and Zhu Feng had treated her very well over the years, valuing her much more than the Feudal Lords under his command.
Back then, when he converted Bai Yi into his Black Ink Disciple, her Small Universe had been incomplete. Generally, every Black Ink Disciple’s Small Universe was damaged as a result of them giving up on parts of it in order to save themselves when Black Ink Strength invaded their bodies once or even several times before they were converted into Black Ink Disciples.
As a result, not only did their strength decrease, and their progress in the Martial Dao stall, but their incomplete Small Universes made them less and less able to resist the encroachment of Black Ink Strength, leaving them much more vulnerable to being converted into Black Ink Disciples.
Bai Yi had sacrificed parts of her Small Universe twice during the war before finally falling into Zhu Feng’s hands and transforming into one of his Black Ink Disciples.
After converting Bai Yi, Zhu Feng realised her potential and had even specifically searched for and obtained a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit for her so that she could repair her damaged Small Universe and regain her full strength.
Profound Yin Spirit Fruits were in great demand not only on the Human side but also among the Black Ink Clan. The Black Ink Clansmen themselves were unable to use Profound Yin Spirit Fruits, but they needed them for the Black Ink Disciples under their command.
As a Territory Lord, it was not difficult for Zhu Feng to find a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit for Bai Yi; however, the price he had to pay for it was still not small.
So, he could not understand why Bai Yi would betray him! Or rather, how she could have done so?!
When he thought of the dazzling and pure white light though, Zhu Feng had the vague feeling that it might be the key to everything. When that white light emerged, the Black Ink Strength in his body squirmed with unease, as if it had met with its nemesis.
That white light had a purifying effect on Black Ink Strength!
That must have been the Human Race’s method for resisting Black Ink Strength, which is also the reason why no Black Ink Disciples had appeared in recent years. When he thought about that, Zhu Feng was shocked. If the Humans had grasped such a technique, then the Black Ink Clan’s advantage would be gone in the future.
If the Humans had such a technique, then how could the Black Ink Clan resist from now on?
As he roared, Zhu Feng raised his hand and pushed his strength wildly.
In that instant, whether it be Yang Kai or Bai Yi, both of them felt a tingle on their skin, a sign of impending danger.
Yang Kai cursed in his heart. How could Zhu Feng still be so powerful even after incurring so much damage? How strong would he be if he were at his peak, and how strong was Xu Bo Liang to be able to hurt him?
But in the next instant, Zhu Feng suddenly coughed up ink-black blood, and the power that had soared up fiercely dissipated again.
His injuries were truly too serious. During that ambush earlier, he had used up all of his strength in a desperate attempt to fight back, and now he was powerless to do anything more.
Yang Kai’s eyes lit up at this. How could he not realize that while the enemy appeared strong on the outside, he was in fact dried up on the inside? What were they waiting for? If they did not kill him now, then when?
The change happened too quickly, and it was only a matter of breaths between the initial ambush and Zhu Feng’s counter-attack.
In an instant, Yang Kai stabilized his tumbling body. He had no time to check on his own injuries and instead raised the Azure Dragon Spear in his hands, stabbing it straight in Zhu Feng’s direction while shouting, “Suffer death!”
All the strength in Yang Kai’s body had been poured into that spear thrust. Even though it was nothing fancy, or blessed with any Secret Technique or Divine Ability, this spear was still Heaven-destroying and Earth-shattering.
The World Force inside of the Small Universe in Yang Kai’s body was pouring like mad into the Azure Dragon Spear. His entire being transformed into a stream of light that charged towards Zhu Feng’s face.
Yang Kai’s spear, which contained such intense power, was blocked by a thick flower petal. However, it shattered the flower petal, and the residual force still struck Zhu Feng, which caused the latter to spit blood once more, but not enough to kill him on the spot.
The thing which blocked his spear was a piece of the Black Ink Nest.
Their initial exchange of blows had severely damaged the Black Ink Nest, but at this moment, Zhu Feng’s body was rapidly sinking into the centre of what remained of it. Following his descent, the damaged Black Ink Nest closed up again, transforming into a bud that wrapped Zhu Feng completely into its centre.
Even without actively inspecting it, Yang Kai could clearly feel the power contained in the Black Ink Nest converging rapidly into Zhu Feng’s body. And, as the power drained away, the Black Ink Nest also rapidly withered while Zhu Feng’s aura rapidly recovered.
Yang Kai had no idea what sort of Secret Technique that was, but it was clear that the Black Ink Nest was healing Zhu Feng. It seemed like Zhu Feng was being pushed to a desperate point and had no choice but to do this.
“Kill them, kill them all!” Zhu Feng bellowed from within the Black Ink Nest.
Following his raging roar, three large figures charged towards Yang Kai and Bai Yi at the same time. It was the three Feudal Lords who had arrived late after hearing the commotion.
In fact, they were not slow. They had already charged over as quickly as they could, but everything happened so suddenly and the initial exchange lasted mere moments, which made it seem as if they had arrived late to the rescue.
Three Feudal Lords rushed over, one charging towards Bai Yi while two charged at Yang Kai with a clear division of labour.
It was not that they were underestimating Bai Yi. On the contrary, they were more afraid of her than Yang Kai because they had worked with each other for so many years and knew what she was capable of better than anyone.
So, it would take the combined power of the three of them in order to take down Bai Yi.
The Feudal Lord who was charging for Bai Yi did not expect to be able to kill her alone. His task was merely to delay her and occupy her attention to prevent her from shooting her arrows, allowing his two clansmen to kill Yang Kai first.
Yang Kai was greatly dismayed to sense the two auras charging over from both sides of him as he and Bai Yi definitely could not allow Zhu Feng the time to recover from his injuries. No matter what Secret Technique Zhu Feng was using, as he was draining the potential of the Black Ink Nest, the healing effect must be extraordinary. Once he was given the time to breathe, then killing him would become difficult.
However, with two Feudal Lords coming at him, he could not just ignore them either.
Thus, Yang Kai turned around hastily and thrust his spear towards the two Feudal Lords.
In the next instant, Yang Kai grunted and could not stop his body from flying back several thousand meters. Even the hand holding his spear was trembling slightly.
Under normal circumstances, Yang Kai would naturally not fear facing two Feudal Lords together; however, whether it be him or Bai Yi, the counter-attack from Zhu Feng during their ambush hurt them, so in this exchange, his injuries were enough to affect his performance.
However, he still did not eat too much of a loss after clashing with the enemy. The two Feudal Lords were similarly sent skidding back a dozen steps, and a long cut could be seen on the waist of one of them.
The wounded Feudal Lord could not help but feel shocked when he looked down at himself.
He thought that two Feudal Lords joining hands would definitely be able to take down their injured opponent, but how could they have anticipated that this opponent’s strength was not below Bai Yi’s. In fact, this man could prove to be even more difficult to deal with than Bai Yi!
If he had not dodged quickly enough just now, that spear would have stabbed right through him.
The wounded Feudal Lord was still gawking at his own injury when his comrade next to him paled and shouted, “He’s coming, don’t get distracted!”
Looking up, the Feudal Lord saw the spear of the Seventh-Order Human who was forced back piercing at them again, suffused with intense killing intent.
The two Feudal Lords immediately separated from each other and began to counter-attack. After just several breaths of time though, they were both secretly wailing inside. This Seventh-Order Human was simply insane, fighting desperately with no regard for his own life as soon as he came at them, as if he meant to take them down even if it meant his own death! Under such a fierce assault, even the two Feudal Lords who had worked together for many years were put into a desperate situation. In just a few moments, all three of them were bruised and battered.
Within the Sealed World, following Zhu Feng’s envelopment by the bud-like Black Ink Nest, the battlefield was split into two, one side being Yang Kai facing off against two Feudal Lords on his own, and the other side being Bai Yi alone with the other Feudal Lord.
The Feudal lord who was holding down Bai Yi knew of the might of her archery skills, so he stuck to her like maggots on rotting bones, not giving her the opportunity to shoot any of her arrows. As long as they were in the same Order, if Bai Yi could put some distance between her and her enemy, then nobody could be her opponent.
At this moment, this Feudal Lord was wailing in anguish inside. Even though he knew all this while that Bai Yi was strong, it was not until he truly faced off with her that he realized that he had underestimated her all this while. Even in close quarters, and with her already being injured from their Territory Lord’s counterattack, he was still a little lacking compared to her.
He was both shocked and enraged by this. If things continued like this, he would not be able to last even half of a cup of tea’s time, and his fate would be in jeopardy.
Suddenly, Bai Yi drew her longbow, and a golden light emerged. Shocked, the Feudal Lord quickly lunged over and threw a fierce punch in her direction.
He had not expected his fist to do anything to Bai Yi, but she seemed unprepared for his punch and it sent her flying, fresh blood spewing from her mouth.
Rather than be pleased with his success, the Feudal Lord was shocked and exclaimed, “Not good!”
As he quickly looked back, a golden light had already broken through the barrier of space and hit one of the other Feudal Lords square in the chest, piercing through to the other side. Following the pained roar from the wounded Feudal Lord, a fierce force exploded a hole in his chest.
Bai Yi’s arrow was not aimed at him, but rather at his companion who was engaged in battle with the other Human!
This Feudal Lord could not understand why Bai Yi would act in such a way, preferring to take a direct hit from him in order to help take pressure off the other Human; however, before he could figure that out, his nerves suddenly clenched, and a great sense of crisis shrouded him.
When he looked up in haste, he was mortified by what he saw. Bai Yi, who had gained distance from him, was aiming her bow at him with a golden light that was pointed straight between his brow.
With a roar, the rich Black Ink Strength inside of the Feudal Lord’s body instantly turned into a Black Ink Cloud that covered his figure.
The golden light shot into the Black Ink Cloud, and then a muffled sound was heard.
At the same time, after receiving assistance from Bai Yi, who had heavily injured one of the Feudal Lords with her arrow, much pressure was alleviated from Yang Kai’s side. Originally, two Feudal Lords joining hands was enough to put up a fight with him, but now that one of them was severely injured, cracks immediately began showing in their defence.
Naturally, Yang Kai would not miss such a good opportunity. The Azure Dragon Spear transformed into a towering spear shadow. As he moved, the spear shadow passed through the centre of the two Feudal Lords’ large bodies.
*Chi…*
Following the sound, the head of the Feudal Lord who had been injured burst open, filling the air with his blood. His headless body swayed a few times before falling to the ground.
The remaining Feudal Lord was also battered and bruised, and when he saw his companion die just like that, he became frightened and tried to flee.
The space around him suddenly turned viscous, making each step excruciatingly difficult. A murderous intent hit him from behind, and he felt a slight pain in his back while his body shook. When he looked down, he saw that a spear had pierced through his body.
Horror filled his eyes and he reached out to grip the tip of the spear, hoping to pull it out of himself; however, in the next moment, a violent shockwave was released from the spear.
In an instant, the Feudal Lord’s five viscera and six organs turned to ash, and his entire body burst apart. Ink-black blood and gore showered down on Yang Kai, covering him in filth.
It was not an easy task, killing a Feudal Lord, especially with two of them joining forces. It was enough for them to put up a fight against Yang Kai. Even if Yang Kai was able to kill them off in the end, it would surely cost him and waste a lot of time.
However, with Bai Yi’s help, Yang Kai was able to kill the first Feudal Lord without much difficulty, and when the other Feudal Lord became timid and tried to flee, it gave him a good opportunity to strike.
Without stopping, Yang Kai pulled back his spear and turned around to see Bai Yi floating pale-faced in the air a short distance away, fresh blood staining the corners of her mouth and her chest. Her longbow was drawn slightly, pointing into the Black Ink Cloud.
There was still the aura of one Feudal Lord inside of the Black Ink Cloud.
The last Feudal Lord was wounded by Bai Yi and did not dare to fight her in the open, so he had no choice but to hide away in the Black Ink Cloud to drag things out. Due to the interference of the Black Ink Cloud, Bai Yi was unable to pinpoint his position exactly, so she merely kept her bow drawn as a deterrent.
Body shifting, Yang Kai dove straight into the Black Ink Cloud.
In the next moment, the Feudal Lord’s howl emanated from the Black Ink Cloud, and the sound of them clashing could be heard from within. World Force and Black Ink Strength collided together like a violent storm.
Another dozen breaths of time passed before the noise subsided.
Yang Kai shot out of the Black Ink Cloud with ink-black blood dripping from his spear. The aura of the Feudal Lord inside of the Black Ink Cloud had been extinguished. It was clear that he had been killed.
In a flash, he appeared next to Bai Yi. Stabbing his spear into the ground, Yang Kai’s left and right hands glowed in two different colors.
“Ignore me, hurry and kill Zhu Feng!” Bai Yi put down her longbow and mustered with difficulty, “It will be too late if we delay any longer.”
Yang Kai ignored her and said indifferently, “I don’t want to have to fight you again.” As his hands joined together, the two coloured lights transformed into a dazzling white light that enveloped Bai Yi.
At this moment, Bai Yi’s pale face was already covered in a layer of Black Ink Strength. Flashes of black even appeared in her eyes occasionally, a clear sign that she had been invaded.
In fact, she had been enduring the corruption of Black Ink Strength since they entered this Sealed World. By the time they were facing Zhu Feng, she had almost reached her limit on the amount of corruption she could endure and was about to turn into a Black Ink Disciple.
She held on desperately to the last shred of clarity in her senses, and only then was she able to keep herself sane.
When Yang Kai activated Purifying Light in front of Zhu Feng, it was able to deal heavy damage to the latter, but at the same time, it also helped Bai Yi to dispel some of the Black Ink Strength inside of her Small Universe, alleviating the pressure on her.
However, the Purifying Light was not directed at her that time, so it was unable to dispel all of the Black Ink Strength.
After that, the two of them were wounded by Zhu Feng’s counterattack and then fought with three Feudal Lords, further worsening her condition. If Yang Kai did not help her cleanse the Black Ink Strength in her Small Universe now, then it would take less than half an incense stick of time before she would turn back into a Black Ink Disciple.
Yang Kai could not let that happen; otherwise, if he were surrounded and attacked by both Bai Yi and Zhu Feng at the same time, even he would have to flee for his life.
As Purifying Light enveloped her, Bai Yi let out a slight grunt as the Black Ink Strength escaped from her body before turning into nothing, and the struggling look on her face gradually disappeared.
Several breaths later, Bai Yi opened her eyes, which had regained their clarity, and nodded lightly at Yang Kai. Her aura was still weak, obviously a sign of how severe her injuries were.
Yang Kai picked up his Azure Dragon Spear once more and turned around to look at the Black Ink Nest, which had closed up tight. Bai Yi stepped forward and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with him.
The two figures, one tall and one short, were both battered and bruised, but their gazes were as determined as ever.
“Kill!” Yang Kai shouted as his body flickered. By the time he reappeared, he was already above the Black Ink Nest.
Descending like a meteor while pouring his strength into the Azure Dragon Spear, a great sun emerged and the sound of a Golden Crow’s cry echoed across the Sealed World.
Not far away where Bai Yi stood, one by one, golden lights like stars fanned out and shot towards the Black Ink Nest in a swarm.
The flower bud-like Black Ink Nest was like a living creature, and after wrapping Zhu Feng into itself, it began to beat like a heart. As the Black Ink Nest pulsed, Zhu Feng’s aura was gradually recovering.
At this moment, when Yang Kai and Bai Yi joined hands to launch their attacks, the Black Ink Nest pulsed even more rapidly, as if it could sense the impending danger.
The entire Black Ink Nest suddenly expelled large amounts of Black Ink Strength that practically dyed the entire area black.
In the darkness where one could not even see their fingers in front of them, the Great Sun shone brightly, dispelling the darkness.
*Hong Hong Hong…*
A series of violent bangs rang out.
The Black Ink Nest shook, and the fierce energy fluctuations caused the entire Sealed World to shake.
Yang Kai thrust his spear thirteen times in a row, each attack containing all of his strength. Supported by Bai Yi’s long-range attacks, the entire Black Ink Nest was blasted into a mess.
Inside of the Black Ink Nest, Zhu Feng’s aura rapidly weakened until it became nought.
Yang Kai retrieved his spear and stood in the void, staring down in amazement below him.
[Is it over?] It was simply unbelievable, but as far as his Divine Sense could tell, Zhu Feng’s aura had indeed become so weak that it was practically a candle in the wind that was about to die out at any moment.
Turning his head to look at Bai Yi, he saw that Bai Yi was similarly astonished, obviously not expecting such a situation.
But on second thought, this was not so strange. Zhu Feng had already suffered a huge loss from Xu Bo Liang that forced him to run all the way here in order to recover. Then, he was also struck by the Purifying Light.
It had to be known that Purifying Light was the natural enemy of Black Ink Strength. To have been hit at such a close distance while being severely injured to begin with, Zhu Feng’s foundation had to be damaged.
Even though Yang Kai had no idea what sort of technique Zhu Feng used to suck up the energy inside of the Black Ink Nest to heal himself, it had barely been half a cup of tea’s time since it began, so it must not have been too effective.
Even Zhu Feng may not have expected his three Feudal Lord subordinates to be killed so quickly by Yang Kai and Bai Yi. He was originally hoping that his three subordinates would be able to buy him some time.
Unexpectedly, the three Feudal Lords barely provided any help and were killed one after another.
With this, he had little time to heal and could not withstand the ferocious attacks of Yang Kai and Bai Yi.
Though extremely weak, Zhu Feng’s aura had not truly perished yet. As Yang Kai was about to make preparations to finish the job, he suddenly heard a soft *dong* from the ruined Black Ink Nest below.
It sounded like the beating of a heart, strong and powerful.
Following that sound, Yang Kai felt his own heart throb uncontrollably, and he was overtaken by dizziness for a moment.
A terrifying aura quickly resurfaced from the Black Ink Nest below.
By the time the aura was restored, Bai Yi’s astonished shout rang out, “Senior Brother, watch out!”
Yang Kai had already released a ferocious spear downwards.
*Hua la…*
A large hand suddenly emerged from the ruined Black Ink Nest and grabbed at Yang Kai.
The Azure Dragon Spear’s sharpness was unparalleled, and with Yang Kai pouring all his strength into it, it appeared even more unstoppable. The might of the spear pierced right through the hand, bringing ink-black blood out of it.
However, the hand did not flinch in the slightest and clenched fiercely.
With nowhere to escape, Yang Kai was shocked to find that he could not avoid the hand. In a moment of distraction, he and his spear were caught.
A terrifying force struck his body and all his bones creaked, forming countless cracks.
He tried his best to shake his spear and pushed all the World Force in his Small Universe, blowing a hole into the palm of the large hand. At the same time, a golden arrow of light flashed over, piercing into the wrist of the hand.
With the combined efforts of both Yang Kai and Bai Yi, the grip on Yang Kai finally loosened slightly, allowing him the chance to quickly break free and back away, putting some distance between him and the Black Ink Nest.
As he struggled to stabilize himself, Yang Kai’s face flashed red and he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. Even though his aura wilted a little, his general situation improved considerably.
Ever since the recovering aura inside the Black Ink Nest began to rise gradually, it surpassed the state that Yang Kai first saw Zhu Feng in, and he was now approaching his peak state.
Both Yang Kai and Bai Yi were shocked.
However, the rising power soon reached a plateau. Though it was powerful, it was not enough to cause them to lose hope.
As they looked over, a pair of large hands emerged from the tattered Black Ink Nest, pushing left and right, tearing it open. Zhu Feng’s giant body reemerged before their eyes.
At this moment, Zhu Feng’s entire body was soaking wet, as if he had just emerged from his mother’s womb as a newborn, and the sticky liquid was dripping down his body, converging into a puddle at his feet.
The ruined Black Ink Nest had already crumbled into dust. Clearly, all the power contained within it had been completely devoured by Zhu Feng.
After being pierced through in the palm by Yang Kai’s Azure Dragon Spear, a large gaping hole had been left; however, the flesh around the wound writhed and began rapidly healing.
Zhu Feng gently clenched his fist before turning his dark eyes in Yang Kai and Bai Yi’s direction. A menacing voice rumbled, “Ants, you have succeeded in angering this Lord! I will let you taste a fate worse than death!”
As he spoke, a fist punched out towards the two of them.
Yang Kai and Bai Yi’s faces paled. One holding a spear and the other a bow, they joined forces to block the attack.
The overwhelming power coming from the front caused the two of them to be violently thrown back. Bai Yi’s petite body tumbled through the air as her bones audibly cracked. Even though Yang Kai had a sturdy physique, he still received the blow badly. It felt like his five viscera and six organs were all knocked out of place as he was blown backwards to a mountain more than a dozen kilometres away, embedding deeply into it and spitting out a mouthful of fresh blood as his face turned as pale as a sheet of paper.
It was merely one punch, but it enlightened Yang Kai to the enormous disparity between Zhu Feng and himself. This guy had used some kind of Secret Technique in order to squeeze out the power of the Black Ink Nest and rapidly heal himself, allowing him to return to almost peak condition.
Even if Yang Kai and Bai Yi were at their peaks, they still may not have been able to resist such an opponent, much less in their current state.
Yang Kai and Bai Yi were already bruised and battered from their previous encounters, greatly reducing their strength. In just a single exchange, the two of them suffered a huge loss.
In such a dangerous situation though, Yang Kai’s fighting spirit soared rather than withered. Even though his face was pale, his eyes were frighteningly bright.
He had no idea what sort of Secret Technique it was that Zhu Feng used to restore his energy, but the stronger the Secret Technique, the greater the backlash. That was common sense!
In other words, there was no way Zhu Feng could maintain this state for long. As long as he and Bai Yi could hold out, when the backlash of Zhu Feng’s technique hit him, his might would crumble on its own.
The two of them understood this in theory, but would they be able to hold on until then? Perhaps the two of them would be killed by Zhu Feng before that.
However, this was a rare opportunity; moreover, Yang Kai had already performed Purifying Light in front of Zhu Feng. Zhong Liang had warned him to never use Purifying Light in front of the Black Ink Clan, but if he did, he had to kill all the witnesses so that word of the technique would not leak out. If the Black Ink Clan knew about Yang Kai and his means to resist Black Ink Strength, he would surely become a target. When that time came, the Humans would no longer allow him to leave Blue Sky Pass for his own safety.
So, no matter the cost, Yang Kai felt that he had to fight. It would be for the best if he could kill Zhu Feng, but if that was truly impossible, then he would have to take Bai Yi with him and escape. As for whether or not they could successfully flee, he could only do his best and leave the rest up to fate.
As these thoughts flashed through his mind, Yang Kai freed himself from the mountain and with a flare of Space Principles, he arrived before Bai Yi in one step.
At the same time, Zhu Feng threw a punch at Bai Yi while she was still shaken and powerless to resist. She was certainly powerful and fought well in her previous exchanges with Yang Kai, making him expend a lot of effort to take her down; however, she did not have Yang Kai’s powerful heritage in the end, much less a World Spring to stabilize and protect her Small Universe.
Not only did Zhu Feng’s punch send her flying, but it also shook her Small Universe badly, leaving her strength in disarray. She was still dizzy, so she was simply unable to defend herself.
Zhu Feng seemed to hate Bai Yi even more for her betrayal, so he planned to take care of her first before going after Yang Kai.
When his fist came out, a figure suddenly appeared. It was Yang Kai, here to save her. Zhu Feng sneered as the might of his fist did not reduce, but instead turned even fiercer. Even if the Universe itself stood in his way, he would still blow it to pieces to exact his revenge.
A flurry of spear shadows came out, but they were no hindrance to the approaching fist.
Yang Kai was forced back again and again, with a mist of blood being beaten from his body with each step back.
After retreating a dozen steps, he hooked his leg up, swinging Bai Yi, who was by his feet, away into the distance. At the same time, he was unable to resist Zhu Feng’s punch any longer and was sent flying like a paper kite. He was seeing stars, and his right arm, which held his spear, had been bent out of shape, clearly a sign that it had been broken.
However, it was fortunate that Bai Yi had already been sent away and was temporarily out of harm’s way. Instead, he was now the one in danger.
“You like saving people, do you? Then I’ll kill you first!” Zhu Feng roared and spread his hand open, bringing it down on Yang Kai’s head.
All light in front of him was shrouded in darkness, and Yang Kai’s eyes were simultaneously covered in blood. At a time when he had no strength left, he was simply incapable of dodging that blow.
As the huge palm was about to slam down on him though, a golden light suddenly shot over from the side. Bai Yi had managed to stabilize herself and fired a series of arrows to save Yang Kai at the crucial moment.
These arrows were filled with her resolve, and their power was without question. If Zhu Feng was intent on killing Yang Kai, then Bai Yi’s attack would surely take advantage of it.
As a noble Territory Lord, Zhu Feng was obviously unwilling to trade lives with Yang Kai; so, without hesitation, he turned around and blocked the golden light.
Boundless Black Ink Strength poured out, and the might of the golden lights that were pushing forward with overwhelming momentum were greatly hindered. Zhu Feng quickly threw out several punches and shattered most of the golden lights, but he caught the last one and threw it back at Bai Yi.
The golden light flew even faster and carried more power than when it came, and it nailed Bai Yi directly in the shoulder, piercing through her body. As fresh blood flew out, Bai Yi grunted. Being carried by a huge force, her body tumbled uncontrollably before she fell heavily.
“Overconfidence!” Zhu Feng coldly snorted; then, from the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the pure white light flashing over. When he turned around, a small white sun burst apart before his eyes.
Zhu Feng was immediately horrified. He had suffered a huge loss from this Secret Technique before and knew how powerful it was. It was simply the natural enemy of Black Ink Strength, so how could he dare to touch it again?
However, in order to attack Yang Kai, he had brought himself too close and was now unable to dodge in time.
As his body retreated, rich Black Ink Strength poured out of his body, forming a protective layer around him.
Zhu Feng’s roar resonated through the clouds as the white light burst open, dazzling the World and melting away the sea of darkness, purifying the rich Black Ink Strength.
Once the burst of Purifying Light dissipated, Yang Kai stood in place, panting heavily as he fought back the pain in his broken arm. Meanwhile, Zhu Feng, who was literally smoking where he stood, had an angry look on his face. His aura also seemed to have weakened slightly.
The Purifying Light had clearly done some damage to him.
Four eyes met as Zhu Feng’s rage almost materialized. There were flames burning in his gaze while Yang Kai gripped his Azure Dragon Spear tightly.
Dozens of kilometres away, Bai Yi’s small body lay motionless on the ground.
Only a short dozen breaths had passed since they began fighting with the recovered Zhu Feng and both Yang Kai and Bai Yi did everything they could, but at this moment, Yang Kai was badly injured, and it was not known whether Bai Yi was even alive, proving just how powerful Zhu Feng was.
This fight was truly a disaster!
During the critical point between life and death, Yang Kai’s mind was surprisingly clear. His eyes, blurred by his own Golden Blood, had only Zhu Feng reflected in them. His grip on the Azure Dragon Spear remained firm as he raised the tip slightly, pointing it forward.
“Fight!”
Zhu Feng was clearly angered by his provocation and shouted through his clenched teeth, “You lowly Humans never know how high the sky or how thick the earth are! Since you wish so much to die, this Lord will grant your wish!”
Taking a big step forward, his palm turned into a blade that chopped straight down.
The entire Sealed World seemed to split apart from that blow, and a huge gap suddenly opened up in the Void in front of Yang Kai. The gap ran from Zhu Feng’s hand blade, going all the way down and through where Yang Kai stood.
The Azure Dragon Spear struck out like a dragon. Whether it be the timing or the angle, this thrust was so perfect that Yang Kai had the illusion that he was the spear, and the spear was him.
As if something was shattering inside of himself, Yang Kai had suddenly gained a burst of enlightenment in the Spear Dao, breaking through to the next stage of comprehension.
Yang Kai actually made a breakthrough in the Spear Dao during this life-or-death moment, which was slightly surprising to him, but at the same time, it somewhat made sense. Fighting with one’s life on the line was really the best way to break through a bottleneck.
His Spear Dao was originally only at the fifth level, Attaining Mastery Through Comprehensive Understanding.
However, he had now broken through to the sixth level, Exceeding the Ordinary to Reach the Extraordinary, the same level he was at in his mastery over the Dao of Time.
Those who could break through to the sixth level of comprehension in any Dao could all be considered a Master of the Dao. It had to be known that Yang Kai was also only at the eighth level in the Dao of Space, Summiting the Peak, and the Dao of Space was something he had been cultivating since he was very weak.
It was a surprise that he was able to make a breakthrough in his Spear Dao at this moment, but Yang Kai had no time to rejoice as Zhu Feng’s fierce attack had completely enveloped him by now, and an aura of death was shrouding him from above.
At this moment, there was neither joy nor sadness in Yang Kai’s eyes.
Boundless Black Ink Strength unleashed itself wantonly while fresh blood spurt out.
Two figures passed each other. The hand which Yang Kai held his spear with was trembling violently and the pain in his chest was almost unbearable. When he looked down, he found a large wound cutting from his shoulder all the way to his waist. His skin was rolled up and he could almost see his organs writhing inside.
In the end, he failed to block or dodge Zhu Feng’s hand blade. Even with his strong Dragonkin physique, he was still almost cut in half by that blow.
But even though he was wounded, Zhu Feng was not completely unscathed either. During that exchange, the Azure Dragon Spear pierced a hole through Zhu Feng’s chest, so it was truly hard to say who came out on top.
Yang Kai did not even bother dealing with his injuries and turned around hastily, pointing his spear at Zhu Feng’s large body as he roared, “Die!”
As he forged ahead, his figure disappeared into the light of his spear. He and the Azure Dragon Spear instantly fused into one, turning into a stream of light that charged in Zhu Feng’s direction.
The battle today would only end when one of them perished!
Zhu Feng’s roar resonated through the clouds as he turned around to meet Yang Kai. Even though he was using only his fists without any artifacts, each blow was terrifyingly powerful.
Both sides instantly engaged in a tangled melee, and horrific wounds surfaced on both their bodies. Meanwhile, rich Black Ink Strength was constantly flowing out of Zhu Feng’s wounds, drilling into Yang Kai’s body.
This Black Ink Strength was just like an extension of Zhu Feng’s body. Not only was it constantly burrowing into Yang Kai’s flesh, it turned into sharp attacks that came one after another, damaging Yang Kai’s five viscera and six organs from the inside.
Yang Kai’s face was covered in blood and his appearance was truly miserable. His aura continued to weaken.
Zhu Feng’s aura was also weakening though. He had used a powerful Secret Technique in order to squeeze the power out of the Black Ink Nest so that he could heal himself. Even though he had obtained some strength to fight for a short amount of time, it was impossible for him to maintain this state for long. As time went on, the drawbacks of the Secret Technique gradually surfaced, hitting him with a severe backlash.
Adding onto the fact that Yang Kai’s attacks had also caused considerable damage to him, the rate at which the backlash came only accelerated.
If he could deal with Yang Kai before the backlash from the Secret Technique came fully, then naturally, everything would be fine. However, if not, he would be done for.
Zhu Feng himself would never have dreamed that a mere Seventh-Order Human could be so difficult to deal with. Even in his current state, no matter what Seventh-Order Human he faced, he was confident in killing them within ten breaths, yet this Human was not only not dead, but was even fighting back and causing serious damage to him.
This was a great humiliation to Zhu Feng’s noble status as a Territory Lord, and his attacks only grew fiercer as a result.
Both sides were weakening, but in comparison, Yang Kai’s situation was worse. If things were to continue this way, then it would not take long for Zhu Feng to kill him. It was clear that Zhu Feng realized this too as he did not give him any room to breathe, continuing this exchange of damage with Yang Kai.
Yang Kai retreated again and again. Blood was churning in his throat as he squeezed out the power of his Small Universe over and over again to put up a desperate fight to the death. However, his resistance was too weak in the face of the enemy’s imposing strength.
The time he spent exchanging blows with Zhu Feng was not long, but it was clear that the World Force inside of his Small Universe was about to dry up.
Such a situation had never happened before since Yang Kai advanced to the Open Heaven Realm. The heritage of his Small Universe was far greater than that of his peers. In fact, if the battle was not too fierce, then no matter what, the power in his Small Universe would never dry up.
However once a Small Universe ran empty, there would be no World Force to use, and his Open Heaven Realm cultivation would become a mere decoration.
Even though Yang Kai still had a trump card up his sleeve, it was his last one. Once he played that card, he had to decide the fight, otherwise, both he and Bai Yi would die here today.
So, without a suitable opportunity, and before he had reached a truly desperate point, Yang Kai would never play his final card.
He had a mind to use Purifying Light again, but with the intensity of their fight, the short delay he would need to condense enough Purifying Light would simply become an opportunity for Zhu Feng to take advantage of.
In the face of Zhu Feng’s frenzied attack, Yang Kai could only struggle to hold on and wait for the right opportunity.
All of a sudden, as he stabbed out with Azure Dragon Spear, it was caught in Zhu Feng’s grasp, causing the latter to grin ferociously and roar, “Die, ant!”
Clenching his other fist, he threw a punch at Yang Kai.
The huge fist rapidly expanded before Yang Kai’s eyes, carrying with it a Heaven-destroying, Earth-shattering power. Yang Kai hurriedly gave up his spear and crossed his arms in front of himself to protect his body.
However, a golden light suddenly came from the side at that moment, appearing between Yang Kai and Zhu Feng. Shining faintly, Bai Yi’s small figure was revealed from inside of the golden light.
This was obviously Bai Yi’s Movement Technique. When Yang Kai was chasing her, he realized that she could change places with the golden light that she shot, similar to his Instantaneous Movement. Such a technique was not exactly the same as Instantaneous Movement, but it was still extremely profound. It was by relying on that amazing Movement Technique that she was able to escape from Yang Kai’s grasp again and again.
Previously, when Bai Yi was wounded by Zhu Feng’s attack, she lay several dozen kilometres away, and whether she was alive or dead was unknown. Yang Kai was so focused on fighting Zhu Feng that he did not even have the time to check on her condition.
However, he never would have thought that she would use her special Movement Technique here to come between the two of them.
Yang Kai’s pupils shrank as he called out in alarm, “No!”
He knew how strong Zhu Feng’s attacks were. Relying on his sturdy Dragonkin physique he could still barely resist until now, but if a punch like that were to hit Bai Yi, she would surely die.
Yang Kai had no idea why Bai Yi would appear at this moment, but it was clear that she wanted to use her own body as a shield to absorb the unstoppable blow for him.
He reached out for Bai Yi, but it was too late.
Zhu Feng’s huge fist struck Bai Yi’s small figure so hard that Yang Kai could clearly hear the sounds of bones breaking in quick succession.
In the instant that she was about to be hit though, Bai Yi drew her longbow, and a feathered arrow in the form of a pair of unfurled wings entered Zhu Feng’s chest.
Zhu Feng’s roar and Bai Yi’s muffled grunt rang out at the same time.
In their clash of blows, Zhu Feng stumbled backwards while Bai Yi crashed into Yang Kai’s arms, sending the two of them tumbling through mid-air.
Before the two of them could land, they heard Zhu Feng roar again. The Azure Dragon Spear that he had snatched from Yang Kai turned into a beam of light that was shooting straight for Yang Kai and Bai Yi, reaching them almost instantly.
This attack was so powerful that space was torn apart in its wake. If they were hit by it, then even Yang Kai’s Dragonkin body would be pierced through.
However, at this moment, whether it be Yang Kai or Bai Yi, both of them were basically out of strength, rendering them powerless to resist.
Seeing as the two of them were about to be skewered like a bottle gourd, a dragon roar sounded and a glowing Dragon Head appeared dazzlingly behind Yang Kai.
In a flash, the Golden Dragon Head burrowed into Yang Kai’s body and disappeared from sight.
Following that, there was a crackling sound as a 20,000-metre behemoth appeared out of nowhere within the Sealed World.
Dragon Pressure filled the air!
The Grand Dragon curled up, wrapping Bai Yi in its body. The Azure Dragon Spear plunged directly into the Dragon’s belly and disappeared completely. At the wound, Dragon Scales flew out, and the violent pain that took the Great Dragon caused it to throw back its head and let out a mournful roar.
Yang Kai suffered a terrible wound, but Bai Yi’s life was saved.
The Grand Dragon suddenly turned around, and its giant Dragon Eyes glared in Zhu Feng’s direction. In the next instant, the Dragon swayed and its ferocious Dragon head lunged at Zhu Feng.
At first, Zhu Feng was taken aback when he felt the terrifying Dragon Pressure. Even the pain from the wound that Bai Yi just gave him had been forgotten.
Even though the Black Ink Clan knew of the existence of the Dragon Clan, they had essentially never encountered them on the Black Ink Battlefield. However, they had heard of a Grand Dragon showing itself during their attack on the Humans at Blue Sky Pass.
However, Zhu Feng was not present during that battle, so he was not able to see it for himself.
He did not expect to be able to see it today.
That meant that this Human was no Human, but rather a Grand Dragon that appeared in the Blue Sky Theatre!
Faced with the charge of a Grand Dragon, Zhu Feng roared and faced it head-on.
His figure seemed so large and tall in the eyes of ordinary Humans; however, he was as small as an ant in the face of this Grand Dragon. Still, one’s strength had never been determined by their size alone.
Zhu Feng felt that he was currently strong enough to slaughter this Grand Dragon, so he did not falter.
However, when they clashed, Zhu Feng realized he had underestimated his opponent.
A terrifying force descended upon him, and Zhu Feng lasted merely an instant before he was pinned down on the ground by a huge Dragon Claw.
A massive crater spanning several dozen kilometres appeared in the ground, with many deep cracks expanding out from it.
Zhu Feng was unable to resist his opponent’s fierce power.
Zhu Feng was furious. If he were not wounded, then he would naturally be able to withstand this amount of raw force; however, after the many injuries he suffered during the previous fight, and the peak he had reached by using that sacrificial Secret Technique also dissipating, his strength was rapidly weakening which allowed him to be held down on the ground in disgrace.
He struggled hard, trying to free himself from the confines of the Dragon Claw.
However, the Grand Dragon’s head dropped slightly and it opened its terrifyingly large mouth, spewing out a mouthful of Dragon Breath that enveloped Zhu Feng.
The Dragon Breath cut through Zhu Feng’s body and opened wounds all over his figure like a torrent of blades, causing ink-black blood to splash out.
With a raging roar, Zhu Feng threw his fist out, hitting the giant Dragon with fierce power. In a flash, Dragon Scales were sent flying into the air as a horrible gouge appeared on the giant Dragon that would not recover for a long time.
It was now a competition to see who could outlast the other.
There was a look of pain in the Grand Dragon’s eyes, as well as a small hint of hesitation.
However, those eyes soon turned resolute.
A round bead suddenly appeared in the midst of the Dragon Breath that was constantly being spewed out.
The round bead, wrapped in Dragon Breath, did not move very fast. It could even be described as exceptionally slow as it gradually pressed down on Zhu Feng, who was pinned to the ground.
Zhu Feng, who had not panicked even when he had been pinned to the ground by the Grand Dragon, instinctively felt a sense of fear rise in him the moment he saw the round bead.
The round bead that was pressing down on him gave off an extremely dangerous feeling, one that was no mere illusion, but a real threat to his life.
Without hesitation, Zhu Feng instantly directed his frenzied attacks at the Grand Dragon’s body to the round bead instead.
In the next moment, something happened that shocked Zhu Feng.
No matter what attacks he threw at the round bead, he could not make it budge in the slightest, let alone stop its descent.
It seemed like an instant, but also like millions of years.
When the round bead landed on Zhu Feng, his chest instantly caved in and a spurt of ink-black blood was forced out of his throat uncontrollably. Violent power rampaged through his limbs and bones, weaving through his body and wreaking havoc within.
At the same time, the Grand Dragon also roared in pain. Its 20,000-metre body suddenly shrank and Yang Kai returned to Human Form, drawing back the round bead into his mouth at the same time with a strong suction force.
Without the Dragon Claw to keep him down, Zhu Feng was free again. Enduring the pain ravaging his body, he suddenly threw out a punch.
Yang Kai, who was still dizzy and unable to stabilize himself was unprepared for this punch and was sent flying, spitting out a mouthful of golden blood as he tumbled through the air, his aura becoming extremely weak.
At this moment, Yang Kai was nearing complete exhaustion, not to mention the fact that he had squeezed every last drop of the heritage out of his Small Universe. As for the round bead that he had spat out earlier, that was his own Dragon Bead.
Back then, in the depths of the Shattered Heaven, in the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land, when Yang Kai progressed from a mere Dragonkin into a True Grand Dragon, a Dragon Bead was condensed in his body, crystallized from the Dragon bloodline’s essence and his Divine Dragon Source; it was the symbol of a Grand Dragon. Only Grand Dragons were capable of creating a True Dragon Bead.
This bead was the same as the Monster Cores found in Monster Beasts. A Monster Core was the foundation of a Monster Beast, and the Dragon Bead was the foundation of a Dragon. Nonetheless, a Dragon Bead was more concentrated than a Monster Core in terms of both power and purity.
When a Monster Beast encountered a powerful enemy, it would unleash its Monster Core and use it to attack or defend, as could those from the Dragon Clan.
This was a simple attack, but an immensely powerful one. However, it did have its drawbacks. Once done, the user would be taking a huge risk, whether it be for a Monster Core or a Dragon Bead. If it were destroyed, then it would immediately put one’s life in danger, and in the worst-case scenario, directly result in one’s death.
It was for this reason that Yang Kai would never unleash his Dragon Bead no matter what sort of enemy he faced; after all, he was a Master of the Dao of Space, so if he could not beat an enemy, he could always run away.
This time, however, he was truly forced into a desperate situation. The secret of the Purifying Light had already been exposed to Zhu Feng. If possible, Yang Kai naturally had to kill him here to avoid future problems.
The power inside of his Small Universe had dried up, so now the only power he had left to use was that of his Dragon Vein. Faced with a strong foe like Zhu Feng, unleashing his Dragon Bead was the strongest card Yang Kai could play.
Indeed, the Dragon Bead was able to injure Zhu Feng heavily. Even his chest had been caved in. However, Zhu Feng’s flurry of attacks had also left cracks on Yang Kai’s Dragon Bead and almost broke it apart on the spot. What’s more, that was the final trump card Yang Kai had.
With his Dragon Bead damaged, Yang Kai could not even maintain his Dragon Form.
He had exhausted his options and no longer had the power to fight.
In this match, he and Bai Yi were defeated!
Zhu Feng was heavily injured, but he was still not dead. The only thing Yang Kai could do now was hurry and bring Bai Yi away from here. Only, he had no idea whether he would have that opportunity.
Somehow forcing himself to stand, Yang Kai’s vision was blurry and his head was buzzing incessantly. Even as he stood there, he was shaking too much to maintain his stance.
Bai Yi was laying motionless not far away from him.
He stumbled over to Bai Yi, and when he arrived next to her, he could finally hang on no more and fell head-first on top of her.
The weight of his body caused a large amount of blood to spill from Bai Yi’s mouth, and her aura, which was already weak, became even weaker.
Yang Kai grabbed her arm and flipped her over, putting her on her back before struggling to stand up again. Every step he took left a bloody footprint on the ground. Following the direction in his memories, he made for the exit.
However, before he could even walk a few steps, Zhu Feng’s cold voice came from behind, “Where do you think you’re going?”
Yang Kai ignored the voice and was determined to keep going forward with faltering steps.
“Don’t even think you can…” Zhu Feng shouted in a cold voice as his aura quickly neared Yang Kai. He clearly had the intention to stop him from escaping, but before he could even finish speaking, he began coughing violently as a large amount of ink-black blood spilled from his throat.
As the blood came out, his aura rapidly deflated and became incredibly weak, almost disappearing in the blink of an eye.
The coughing sounds became even fiercer as large mouthfuls of blood poured out continuously.
Yang Kai stopped in his tracks and turned back to look. From his blurred vision, he could faintly see Zhu Feng’s miserable appearance.
At this moment, Zhu Feng was down on one knee not far away from them, ink-black face covering his face, almost pooling like a river at his feat. There were even bloody arrows squirting out from the wounds all throughout his body. It was clear that he could no longer suppress his wounds.
“Hah haa…” Yang Kai wanted to laugh, but the sound that came out of his throat was hoarse like a wheeze. He was truly reaching his limit.
He thought that the only thing left for him to do now was escape, but who knew that the situation could change so unpredictably? The roles of predator and prey swapped almost in an instant.
The backlash from Zhu Feng’s Secret Technique had finally manifested in full! This was the moment Yang Kai had been waiting for since he began the fight with Zhu Feng!
In fact, Zhu Feng’s aura had been constantly weakening all this while; otherwise, there was no way that Yang Kai could have held on for so long. Even so, Yang Kai had still paid an immense price to force this stalemate.
At the very last moment, Yang Kai even unleashed his Dragon Bead, but it was damaged and left him powerless to continue fighting. On the other hand, Zhu Feng still had energy remaining. The victor had already been decided, so if he did not leave, he would only be waiting for death.
In fact, Yang Kai did not have much confidence that he could bring Bai Yi out of here alive. He could only try and leave the rest to fate.
At the critical moment though, the Heavens smiled down on him as Zhu Feng finally fell. Perhaps it was not just luck. Bai Yi’s desperate strike, Yang Kai’s desperate attempt to summon his Dragon Bead, all of those compounded and accelerated the onset of the backlash of Zhu Feng’s Secret Technique.
Zhu Feng’s Secret Technique was very powerful, but now it seemed that the backlash he had to endure was just as terrifying.
At this moment, of the three living beings in this Sealed World, Bai Yi’s aura was the weakest. After taking Zhu Feng’s blow for Yang Kai, she was now in a comatose state.
Zhu Feng’s aura was almost non-existent as well, but it was still just slightly stronger than Bai Yi’s. Clearly, he was unable to bear the backlash of the Secret Technique in his current state.
In the end, it was the hobbling Yang Kai with his strength at the brink of being fully drained that had the strongest aura present. Life was truly filled with twists and turns.
Crouching down and gently laying Bai Yi on the ground, Yang Kai approached Zhu Feng step by step, still hobbling and swaying as he moved, almost as if a gust of wind could send him sprawling.
Halfway there, he summoned the Azure Dragon Spear into his hand. As the spear dragged across the ground, a harsh scraping sound could be heard.
Zhu Feng was still coughing up blood, and it seemed like he was going to vomit every last drop from his body. When he heard the scraping noise and looked up though, horror flashed across his eyes.
He stood up with great difficulty and turned around, moving step by step away from Yang Kai while trying to act strong by shouting, “Don’t come any closer!”
There was no way Yang Kai would listen to him of course. When he saw Zhu Feng in this state, power somehow welled up within him, allowing him to speed up as he shouted, “Stop running you coward! One quick spear thrust and it will all be over!”
[As if I’d listen to you!] Zhu Feng cursed in his heart. If he was caught here, then he would surely die; however, even though he wanted to get away from Yang Kai, his extremely weak condition left him moving even slower than a turtle’s crawl.
A noble Territory Lord like himself, being reduced to this state, Zhu Feng was desperate to cry but unable to shed any tears.
Similarly, Yang Kai didn’t know whether to laugh or cry; after everything that happened today, nobody would have imagined that the battle would end this way.
A Territory Lord and a Seventh-Order Human were now locked in a ridiculous chase that even ordinary Mortals would find slow and awkward. It was simply disgraceful.
At this point in time though, anyone with any achievement in cultivation would be able to kill both of them.
Fueled by his instinct to survive, Zhu Feng dragged his feet along step by step, leaving bloody footprints behind.
Yang Kai was doing the same.
The backlash from Zhu Feng’s Secret Technique was indeed strong, and after a few moments, Zhu Feng stumbled and fell headlong to the ground. Down on his hands and knees, he was now crawling forward little by little.
During his desperate moment, Zhu Feng heard a loud noise from behind him. Turning his head with great difficulty, he saw that Yang Kai, who was coming to kill him, had also fallen to the ground, crawling just like him.
“Why go through this trouble?” Zhu Feng said with a heavy voice, “Why don’t we both rest first then settle this?”
Yang Kai’s voice was weak, but he still snarled, “In your dreams. Once I’m close enough, I’ll stab you to death with my spear!”
Zhu Feng said, “Bai Yi is on her last breath. Why don’t you go and check on her? Don’t regret it when she dies!”
Yang Kai was unmoved, “Rest assured, if she still has a breath left in her, I will be able to bring her back. It will not be too late if I kill you first.”
Zhu Feng coldly snorted, “We are both in the same state now, we don’t know who’s going to die and who’s going to live yet.”
As they spoke, they continued pushing their bodies forward, but they were moving at a similar speed. The distance between them was neither increasing nor decreasing. From how things were, it seemed unrealistic for Yang Kai to catch up with Zhu Feng.
Realizing this, Yang Kai suddenly stopped and stared ahead.
Zhu Feng’s heart clenched. Even though he had no idea what Yang Kai was up to, he had a bad premonition about this, and the speed at which he crawled increased.
A short moment later, Yang Kai grinned, “I win!”
Saying so, the portal of his Small Universe suddenly opened up in front of him, and in the next instant, a figure instantly rushed out.
It was an elderly man holding a sharp blade in his hand. He was dazed when he first emerged, seemingly a bit dizzy, but soon he found his target and charged at Zhu Feng with sword drawn.
Zhu Feng was stunned. Frankly, even after fighting with the Humans for all these years, he had never met such a weak one before. The Humans on the Black Ink Battlefield were all at least in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, but this old man who appeared out of nowhere was not even in the Open Heaven Realm.
[This is… the Emperor Realm?]
As a Territory Lord, Zhu Feng naturally knew much about Humans. He knew that the Open Heaven Realm for the Humans was separated into Nine-Orders, and under the Open Heaven Realm existed many other Realms, the most immediate of them being the Emperor Realm.
Zhu Feng had heard of Emperor Realm Humans, but he had never seen one with his own eyes; after all, an Emperor Realm Human would simply be incapable of staying alive on the Black Ink Battlefield.
Yet he saw one today.
If it were any normal day, a simple glance from Zhu Feng would have been enough to cause such a weak ant to explode and die; however, he was now heavily injured and suffering from severe backlash from his Secret Technique. He was completely devoid of the might that a Territory Lord should have, so much so that even the appearance of an Emperor Realm Human was life-threatening to him. And, it was clear that this Emperor Realm Human had been brought out from Yang Kai’s Small Universe.
The elderly man had clearly received orders from Yang Kai, and as soon as he appeared, he did not hesitate to brandish his sword in Zhu Feng’s direction.
Zhu Feng’s face paled. Barely squeezing out a last breath, he spat out a mouthful of ink-black aura that headed straight for the elderly man.
The aura was extremely thin, and it was quite apparent that Zhu Feng could not muster any more Black Ink Strength from his body.
However, the elderly man did not care. He protected his body with his strength and moved through the ink-black aura, slashing down and unleashing a sword wave.
His sword struck Zhu Feng’s huge neck. There was a deep wound there to begin with, so under the power of the sword, the wound instantly widened, going so deep that one could almost see bone. Fresh blood squirted out from the aggravated wound in an instant.
After that one strike, the elderly man immediately backed away. Forming a hand seal, he tapped his own body a couple of times then, without a word, he fell limp to the ground.
Before passing out, the elderly man looked in Yang Kai’s direction, speaking with difficulty, “Ancestor, I’ve done all I could…”
Yang Kai nodded lightly.
Zhu Feng, however, could not help but laugh loudly, “Even an ant thinks he can kill me? You’ll need more than one for that!”
Even though the elderly man’s sword had inflicted a serious wound on him, it was indeed not enough to kill him. The wound, horrible as it may seem, was merely a flesh wound to a Territory Lord.
The only regretful thing was that after the ant slashed down at him, he had sealed his strength and forced himself unconscious; otherwise, with his Emperor Realm cultivation, he would simply be unable to withstand the corruption of the Black Ink Strength. It would only take a few breaths before he transformed into a Black Ink Disciple, and when that time came, he would become a weapon for Zhu Feng to use against Yang Kai.
However, if Yang Kai dared to bring him out from his Small Universe, he must have realized this possibility and would naturally not allow it to happen.
The elderly man’s self-imposed seal must have been ordered by Yang Kai in advance.
Zhu Feng half wheezed, and half-laughed, but only for a moment because he soon saw Yang Kai looking at him with mockery and pity.
Instantly thinking of something, he drew a breath of cold air and muttered, “You still have more helpers?”
Yang Kai snorted, “I have thousands of them. Just lie down and accept death!”
Saying so, the portal to his Small Universe suddenly opened again, and another person came out of it. Just like the elderly man from before, this man had also only reached the Emperor Realm. In fact, he was not even as powerful as the elderly man from before.
Just like before, as soon as this man appeared, he charged at Zhu Feng and slashed his sword down fiercely right at the wound on his neck, immediately widening the gash, leaving a mark on his collarbone.
After getting one hit in, the man backed away and sealed himself like his predecessor, instantly falling unconscious on the ground.
Then, from the portal of the Small Universe, another man emerged…
Zhu Feng cried out in terror and crawled forward on his hands and knees. He was truly feeling the threat of death now.
One Emperor Realm Human was nothing to him, even two did not matter; however, if they kept coming one after another, sooner or later he would die.
With enough numbers on their side, even ants could kill an elephant. Zhu Feng had always laughed when he heard this saying in the past, but he was now experiencing it for himself. Sadly, he was the elephant that was being bitten to death by these ants.
One by one, Humans poured out from the Small Universe, all of them in the Emperor Realm, and all of them only having one chance to attack, yet all of them struck at the same spot.
Zhu Feng’s wound grew worse with each hit, and his neck was soon almost severed.
When the fifth person emerged from Yang Kai’s Small Universe, Zhu Feng’s head instantly separated from his body when his sword came down, rolling far away.
From the wound on his neck, only a small amount of ink-black blood gushed out. Clearly, the blood in Zhu Feng’s body had almost dried up already.
The last cut that killed Zhu Feng came from a young man in the Third-Order Emperor Realm. He was slightly surprised to have finished the deed in one hit, but he quickly imposed a seal upon himself. Before falling unconscious, he cupped his fist at Yang Kai, “Fortunately, I did not fail my mission!”
With that, he fell headlong to the ground.
Zhu Feng had been beheaded and he could not be any more dead than this, but his eyes still blinked with unwillingness.
To a Territory Lord such as himself, the only worthy opponents in this World were the Eighth-Order or Ninth-Open Humans. Yet, the demise of someone like him came under the combined strength of a few Emperor Realm Humans.
The light in Zhu Feng’s gaze gradually dissipated and eventually, he died with his eyes wide open.
Yang Kai was panting heavily. Rolling on his back, he lay with his limbs spread on the ground.
His victory had come with much difficulty in this battle. Neither he nor Bai Yi could have expected Zhu Feng to have a Secret Technique that would allow him to recover so quickly. They had almost fallen into a desperate situation with one mistake.
Now, Bai Yi was heavily injured and unconscious. He himself was also badly injured, with cracks having formed on his Dragon Bead, which was an unbelievable price to pay for this victory.
Zhu Feng was saved by his Secret Technique, but it also became his demise. Fortunately, the backlash of his Secret Technique broke out in full force at the critical moment; otherwise, Yang Kai felt that he may not have been able to escape with his life. By the end of the battle, he had become a dry oil lamp, completely exhausted.
Yang Kai had learned just how strong the Territory Lords were from this fight. They were not an opponent a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master could take on by themselves. If he were to bump into a Territory Lord at his peak alone, then Yang Kai could only hope to escape with his life.
But no matter how difficult the process was, the outcome was still a happy one. Zhu Feng was finally dead.
On the Black Ink Battlefield, the winner was the King, the loser was the villain. There was nothing more to be said.
After consuming a healing Spirit Pill, Yang Kai silently refined it, and after a full cup of tea’s time, he finally struggled to his feet.
He was still dizzy and his Small Universe was still empty. If one were to look into his Small Universe at this moment, one would see that the world inside had gone grey and dull. Naturally, it was because he had consumed too much of his strength, and that consumption could only be slowly restored later.
Now though, the most important thing was to safely bring everyone back.
Step by step, he walked up to the unconscious Emperor Realm cultivators and took them into his Small Universe.
These Emperor Realm cultivators had all come from the Seven Stars Sect inside of his Small Universe. The first elderly man to emerge was Sect Master Shang Guan Ji. The rest were the Elders of Seven Stars Sect, such as Guan Qian Xing.
Many years ago, Yang Kai entered Seven Stars Sect with his Soul Avatar and became their Ancestor; it was also there that he accepted his two Legacy Disciples, Zhao Ye Bai and Zhao Ya. Later, he even accepted a third Disciple from Seven Stars Sect, Xu Yi.
After sending Zhao Ye Bai, Zhao Ya, and Xu Yi back to the Star Boundary, Yang Kai no longer made an appearance in his Small Universe. This time, if his hand were not forced, then he would not have let these Emperor Realm cultivators take on such a risk.
The corruption of Black Ink Strength was too difficult for even an Open Heaven Realm Master to resist, much less for someone in the Emperor Realm. So, before Yang Kai borrowed their power to deal with Zhu Feng, he had given them repeated warnings that they had only once chance to strike, after which they should seal their bodies and consciousness. Otherwise, the consequences would be unpredictable.
The Emperor Realm cultivators of Seven Stars Sect were very obedient to his word; after all, Yang Kai was too profound an existence for them, and they naturally would not dare to disobey the word of their Ancestor. Each one of them made only one strike after emerging before sealing their bodies and falling unconscious.
This proved to be the right choice.
By now, these Emperor Realm cultivators had already been corrupted by the Black Ink Strength to their cores and transformed into Black Ink Disciples. Only, they were all unconscious; otherwise, they would have attacked Yang Kai.
Soon, Yang Kai arrived at the young man who appeared last. It was this youth who laid down a great achievement delivering the final blow that decapitated Zhu Feng.
The face of this youth looked vaguely familiar to him.
Yang Kai thought for a moment before recognising this guy as Mao Fei Ping.
He was slightly surprised. This was the little one who joined Seven Stars Sect together with Zhao Ye Bai and Zhao Ya back then. Now, he had reached the Third-Order Emperor Realm.
If it had to be said, then Mao Fei Ping’s aptitude was quite good. The Emperor Qi in his body was also carefully cultivated. If not for him living in Yang Kai’s Small Universe all this while, he could have reached the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm by now based on his aptitude.
It was thanks to the help of these Emperor Realm cultivators that came out today that Yang Kai turned failure into a success. Perhaps he could give them some pointers and show them the way to greater heights in the Martial Dao.
After putting Mao Fei Ping back into his Small Universe, Yang Kai hurried over to where Bai Yi was.
Bai Yi was still unconscious, and her aura was extremely faint. Her body was marked with wounds and covered with blood. The wound on her shoulder was especially bad, having blown a significant portion of her chest open.
This wound was inflicted when Zhu Feng caught her feathered arrow and threw it back at her. Then, she sacrificed herself to act as a shield, protecting Yang Kai and sustaining a direct hit from Zhu Feng that broke a great number of the bones in her body.
These wounds were almost fatal, even for a Seventh-Order Master like Bai Yi. If she did not receive help, then she could die here.
She had been unconscious all this while, and she had also long been corrupted by Black Ink Strength. Just like the Emperor Realm cultivators from before, she had turned into a Black Ink Disciple.
Yang Kai first used Purifying Light in order to dispel the Black Ink Strength inside of her Small Universe. Only then did he use his Towering Evergreen Divine Manifestation. The illusory phantom of the Immortal Tree immediately appeared behind Yang Kai’s back, its branches dropping down, forming a half-circle of protection, allowing rich vitality to flow out and envelop Bai Yi.
Yang Kai then took out some Spirit Pills and pried open Bai Yi’s mouth, pouring them in and then using his power to help her refine them.
Even though the Sealed World was filled with Black Ink Strength, it was relatively safe; after all, this was Zhu Feng’s hidden base, so there was no worry about them being disturbed by anyone else.
With a combination of Spirit Pills and Towering Evergreen, Bai Yi gradually recovered her vitality, and the wounds on her body also began to heal.
It was the same for Yang Kai. The rate of his recovery was even greater than Bai Yi’s since he had a Dragon physique, so his restoration abilities had always been stronger than average.
However, while physical wounds were easy to heal, and the World Force of his Small Universe could also be replenished, the damage to his Dragon Bead would surely give him a headache for some time to come.
Yang Kai’s Dragon Bead was hidden under his maw, and when he looked inside now, he could clearly see the tiny cracks covering its surface and its lustre had also dulled.
Unleashing his Dragon Bead did succeed in causing great damage to Zhu Feng, but Zhu Feng’s counter-attack also led to his Dragon Bead being damaged.
This was also the reason why Yang Kai would not dare to simply bring out his Dragon Bead. Once it was brought out, its power was indeed awe-inspiring, but the dangers were equally immense. Once the Dragon Bead was destroyed, his life would immediately be put in danger. It was fortunate that the worst-case scenario did not happen.
However, now that his Dragon Bead had been damaged, Yang Kai had a vague feeling that he would not be able to use his Dragon Transformation anytime soon, much less assume his Grand Dragon Form.
He had spent some time in the Dragon Clan’s Crystal Palace inside the Divine Spirit’s Ancestral Land. During his seclusion there, following the refinement of his Bloodline purity, Yang Kai had also awakened some of his Dragon Clan Inheritance and knew that once a Dragon Bead was damaged, it was extremely difficult to repair.
It had to be gently nurtured with the power of one’s own Dragon Vein, and it was a slow process that could not be rushed.
So, while the problem with his Dragon Bead was not a big one for Yang Kai right now, it was by no means small either. Since he could only rely on his own Dragon Vein’s power to repair it though, there was no point in feeling anxious.
As the Towering Evergreen Divine Manifestation continued to do its job, Yang Kai inhaled a mountain of Open Heaven Pills before taking out a set of resources to silently refine and replenish his depleted World Force.
After two or three days of this, Bai Yi’s lashes suddenly fluttered, and she opened her eyes with a slightly laboured grunt.
“You’re awake?” Noticing her movements, Yang Kai quickly opened his eyes to check on her.
Bai Yi’s injuries were serious, and even though Yang Kai had already helped her recover from some of them, he was only an external aid in the end. It was good news that she had woken up on her own. Now, she could recover much faster if she focused on healing herself.
Bai Yi still looked disoriented, but she soon remembered what happened before she fell unconscious and was startled, “Where is this? Where’s Zhu Feng?”
Yang Kai explained, “We are still in Zhu Feng’s hideout, and he’s dead.” Saying so, he pointed to the side.
Bai Yi turned her head around and saw Zhu Feng’s large body lying on the ground a short distance away, his head separated from it. The eyes on his large head had widened into circles as they stared straight in their direction, almost as if he wanted to stare them down even in death.
Bai Yi could not help but feel shocked that Zhu Feng actually died! Before falling unconscious, Zhu Feng’s power was still close to its peak. Even though he had also been hurt through the combined efforts of Yang Kai and herself, a Territory Lord was still not an entity that two Seventh-Order Masters could hope to compete with.
She thought that she and Yang Kai would not be able to escape death, but who knew that she would wake up to see Zhu Feng’s headless corpse?
She had no idea what happened after she fell unconscious, but she knew that it had to have been an astonishing battle.
“Senior Brother saved me?” Bai Yi asked.
Yang Kai could not help but laugh, “There is no one here besides you and me. Naturally, it was I who saved you.”
Bai Yi had a complicated look in her eyes before she sighed, “There was no need to save me.”
Yang Kai frowned at her words. There was something not quite right with that sentence, but after pausing for a moment, he simply said, “First, heal your injuries. You were badly wounded, so if you don’t focus on recovering, you might suffer from lingering danger in the future.”
Bai Yi nodded slightly and struggled to sit cross-legged, silently circulating her strength.
There was silence inside of the Sealed World for a while as the two healed their wounds and restored their energy. With Towering Evergreen nourishing and shielding them, the lingering Black Ink Strength could not encroach upon their position in the slightest.
Another eight days passed, and Yang Kai had finally made a recovery. The injuries to his physical body were basically healed, and the emptiness inside of his Small Universe was also somewhat replenished. Even though he had not returned to full strength, he was not far from it.
Bai Yi was a little slower to recover than he was, but after noticing Yang Kai’s movements, she opened her eyes and slowly got up, elegantly saluting him, “Many thanks for your life-saving grace, Senior Brother.”
Yang Kai looked at her silently for a moment before speaking, “If you really want to thank me, then live on and kill more Black Ink Clansmen. You are strong, so it would be a great loss to the Human Race if you were to fall here.”
Bai Yi pursed her lips and nodded.
Yang Kai did not notice it previously, but he realized the problem with what Bai Yi said when she woke up now.
Bai Yi clearly had a death wish!
Perhaps she was determined to die when she stood in front of Yang Kai and blocked Zhu Feng’s ferocious blow for him.
Yang Kai had treated many Black Ink Disciples so he had seen this condition before. The hands of these Black Ink Disciples were all stained with the blood of their own people.
To Black Ink Disciples, the Black Ink Clan was supreme, and they would follow any order given to them without question, even if it meant murdering their own people. After being saved by Yang Kai, these events became something of a trauma for them.
It had to be known that those whom they killed used to be the allies whom they fought side-by-side with, so it was likely that these experiences would continue to haunt them for a long, long time.
This was particularly true for Bai Yi. With her incredible archery skills and her powerful Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm cultivation, even Yang Kai suffered three serious losses at her hands, so how could ordinary cultivators even hope to survive when facing her?
Yang Kai had no idea how many Humans had died at Bai Yi’s hands, but he knew that it was far more than just one or two.
It was exactly for that reason that Bai Yi desired to die. She felt ashamed to return to the side of the Humans with her hands dripping in their blood and with their souls lingering behind her.
Her perfunctory reply seemed to suggest that she was not taking his words seriously, so Yang Kai frowned and scolded, “One Zhu Feng is not enough to make up for your sins. If you feel guilty, then for everyone you killed, you must take ten or a hundred from the Black Ink Clan! If you were to die so easily, then those who fell to you would truly have died in vain!”
He hadn’t been planning to be this blunt with her, but Bai Yi was clearly not in the right state of mind at the moment, so he had no choice but to use some sharp words.
The blood suddenly drained from Bai Yi’s face, turning her as pale as snow. Her body trembled and she gritted her teeth, “Senior Brother’s teachings are correct. I will definitely not let Senior Brother down!”
Yang Kai shook his head, “This isn’t about whether you let me down or not. It’s about your own conscience you have to clear.”
After thinking through his words, Bai Yi nodded again.
As Bai Yi steadied herself, Yang Kai followed up, “That’s all I have to say. You think about it on your own. I’m no good at consoling people so I may have spoken a little harshly, but I hope you don’t take it to heart. It would be inconvenient for us to stay here any longer, so let’s get out of here first.”
Bai Yi had no objections.
While helping Bai Yi heal, Yang Kai had used his Divine Sense to look through this Sealed World. It was not a large place, so he could naturally examine its entirety without much trouble. Unfortunately, he did not find anything valuable. The Black Ink Nest would have been an excellent specimen to be studied; however, after Zhu Feng used his Secret Technique, it had already withered completely and broken apart, rendering it useless.
In just a short moment, the two of them arrived at the exit which was blocked by some kind of Secret Technique; however, this was no problem for Yang Kai.
Using Space Principles, he pried open the World Barrier so the two of them could leave.
Once they were back in the void, Yang Kai immediately checked his surroundings, but found nothing unusual.
It had been almost a month since he had been separated from Dawn, so Yang Kai naturally wondered how they were doing.
Back then, Yang Kai had run off chasing Bai Yi; as a result, he ended up on a tumultuous ride that delayed him until now. However, there was no need for Yang Kai to worry too much about Dawn. Even without him, there were still 4 Seventh-Order Masters to take charge. And, Dawning Light was a far stronger Warship than normal. As long as they did not bump into a Territory Lord, they would basically be fine.
However, the last time that Yang Kai tried to use the Universe Transference Law, he was surprisingly unable to connect with the Universe Array on Dawning Light, which left him a bit puzzled.
He had no idea what happened.
Once again, Yang Kai used the Universe Transference Law in the silent void.
This time, the Universe Transference Law was able to resonate with the Universe Array on Dawning Light; in other words, as long as he was willing, he could return that instant.
However, though he could return, Bai Yi couldn’t. So, after confirming that he could connect with Dawning Light, Yang Kai dismissed the technique and turned to her, “Let’s go.”
After saying that, he led the way while Bai Yi followed in a somewhat depressed manner.
Even though neither of them was in peak condition, they were not existences with whom ordinary Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters could compete to begin with, so they did not even bother trying to hide themselves. They had even killed a Territory Lord, so they were eager to meet some Black Ink Clansmen along the way to satisfy their appetites.
Unfortunately, they had an uneventful journey back. It was as if the Black Ink Clansmen in this region had all been ruthlessly killed off.
Not even a single Human was seen either.
Yang Kai found this very strange, as when he was pursuing Bai Yi, he would still occasionally bump into Human or Black Ink Clan Squads.
This was not a safe or peaceful area and soldiers from both sides had been fighting all over the place just a few days ago. Something was clearly not right about the current situation.
It seemed that something big had happened in this region during the time that he and Bai Yi were in Zhu Feng’s nest.
Realising this, Yang Kai increased his speed.
A few days later, the asteroid where the fourth forward base was located came into view, and Yang Kai led Bai Yi straight towards it. There were naturally Human Masters who stopped them in order to question them, only allowing them to pass after Yang Kai identified himself.
Yang Kai flew straight over to Dawn Squad’s camp and a figure rushed out from within one of the huts a moment later. It was Feng Ying.
Feng Ying’s eyes lit up the moment she saw Yang Kai and she breathed a sigh of relief, “Squad Leader, you’ve finally returned.”
They were naturally a bit worried when Yang Kai did not show his face for so long. They had no idea whether something had happened to him. As Yang Kai was a special member of the Human Race, then the loss they would be incurring would be far greater than the loss of an Eighth-Order Master if he were to die.
Yang Kai nodded and looked at her surprised, “Are you hurt?”
Feng Ying’s aura showed some signs of instability, which was a clear sign that she had been injured.
“It’s nothing major,” Feng Ying smiled casually.
Their conversation drew the attention of even more of Dawn’s members. One by one, they all came out of retreat and were all overjoyed to see Yang Kai.
But although all 35 of Dawn’s members were present, most of them were injured, especially the Seventh-Order Masters who seemed to be in serious condition.
Yang Kai was shocked at this sight; wondering what Dawn had encountered in his absence, he could not help but ask, “Was there some kind of great battle with the Black Ink Clan?”
With Dawn Squad’s heritage and the capabilities of the Warship, Dawning Light, they could easily crush any small group of Black Ink Clansmen that they bumped into. However, that the Squad’s members all had injuries proved that they had experienced a fierce battle. Perhaps they had bumped into some big Army from the Black Ink Clan.
Shen Ao answered, “We were unlucky and ran into a Territory Lord.”
[Territory Lord!] Yang Kai frowned slightly, “What happened?”
Shen Ao quickly gave him a rundown of what happened then.
When Yang Kai left to chase after Bai Yi, they stayed behind to clean up the battlefield; then, when they followed the direction Yang Kai left in, they failed to find any traces of him and had to give up.
There was a Universe Array set up on Dawning Light, so Yang Kai need only use the Universe Transference Law to return safely anytime he wished to. And, with Yang Kai himself being exceptionally strong, as well as a master of the Dao of Space, his life should not be in danger even if he were to run into a Territory Lord. So, Dawn didn’t need to worry much about him.
Dawning Light continued to roam the resource zone and hunt down Black Ink Clansmen as they waited for Yang Kai.
Unfortunately, they inadvertently ran into a Territory Lord. Naturally, Dawn was manned with elites, so they had a back-and-forth fight with the Territory Lord for a time and that was how their injuries came about. The battle had also left many of Dawning Light’s arrays damaged.
Even though the Territory Lord was fierce, Dawn was not defenceless, so it was difficult for even a Territory Lord to try to eliminate them.
At the critical moment, Xu Bo Liang appeared and engaged the Territory Lord.
Every one of Dawn’s members were injured, and even Dawning Light had sustained serious damage. Naturally, they couldn’t stay on the battlefield anymore and could only return to the forward base first.
As for the outcome of the battle between Xu Bo Liang and the Territory Lord, they had no idea.
However, within half a day of their retreat back to the forward base, Xu Bo Liang also returned. Now, he had replaced Cha Hu as the one assuming command here.
After Shen Ao finished his recounting, Feng Ying said, “Division Commander Xu must have sustained some injuries. When he returned, his aura was slightly unstable.”
Once he finished hearing everything they had to say, Yang Kai and Bai Yi exchanged glances, their expressions looking a little funny.
“What is it?” Feng Ying was confused.
Yang Kai shook his head, “It’s nothing. Coincidentally, I also met the Territory Lord who attacked you.”
Feng Ying was surprised, “You saw him too? Did you fight?”
Yang Kai nodded, “It was a big fight! I almost didn’t make it back.”
Feng Ying immediately chastised, “Foolishness! Even though that Territory Lord was hurt by Division Commander Xu, he was still a Territory Lord! He’s not someone that one or two Seventh-Order Masters can fight against!”
Yang Kai deeply agreed, “That’s right. Bai Yi and I had to expend a lot of effort in order to kill him.”
“K-Kill… Kill him?” Shen Ao and the others were dumbfounded. Feng Ying’s eyes also widened in surprise. If they had not heard those words from Yang Kai themselves, then they would not even dare to believe it.
“Luckily, I managed to ambush him with a point-blank strike of Purifying Light that greatly damaged his strength. Then, with Junior Sister Bai Yi’s help, it was a difficult fight, but we managed to come out of it with just a scare,” Yang Kai explained simply.
Everyone was shocked.
Feng Ying turned to look at Bai Yi, and Yang Kai hurried over to introduce them.
Feng Ying realized, “So, Junior Sister Bai was the one who left Squad Leader in a mess? Junior Sister Bai is powerful indeed.”
Bai Yi blushed, “I was corrupted by Black Ink Strength and was not in control of myself. I’ve made Senior Sister laugh. Now, with Senior Brother’s help, I’ve regained my senses.”
Feng Ying smiled, “You must have no idea, but besides me, everyone in Dawn was once a Black Ink Disciple that he saved.”
Bai Yi looked up in surprise, “All of them?”
Feng Ying nodded, “All of them!”
Bai Yi looked at each one of their faces and suddenly smiled, “Bai Yi is honoured to greet all my Senior Brothers and Junior Brothers!”
Shen Ao waved his hand and said, “Since you’ve returned, then you should kill more Black Ink Clansmen in the future. We should make them pay for our past frustrations.”
Bai Yi answered with a soft yes.
Yang Kai said, “I’ll bring her to see Division Commander Xu. You should focus on recovering first, we can talk later.”
Nobody had any objections.
Yang Kai then led Bai Yi to see Xu Bo Liang. On the way there, Bai Yi clearly looked nervous. Not to mention anything else, she was the one who hit Xu Bo Liang with her arrow back then and wounded him, even helping Zhu Feng to escape.
Even though Yang Kai noticed this, he did not try to comfort her. Some things had to be faced head-on.
However, after talking with Feng Ying and the others, Yang Kai finally understood what happened that day.
Dawn Squad first encountered Zhu Feng, and then both sides ended up in a large battle where Dawn was defeated, and even Dawning Light was damaged. Obviously, Zhu Feng had also eaten quite a loss from Dawn. Afterwards, Xu Bo Liang appeared and Zhu Feng was heavily injured during their fight. During the critical moment, Bai Yi ambushed him with an arrow which gave Zhu Feng the opportunity to escape.
Following that, Xu Bo Liang retreated, and Yang Kai managed to take down Bai Yi. Under her suggestion, the two of them then headed to Zhu Feng’s hidden nest.
Now, there was no way that Yang Kai did not understand why he failed to connect with the Universe Array on Dawning Light when he used Universe Transference Law that day. It was obviously because of the damage that Dawning Light sustained.
Now that the resonance was back, it meant that the Universe Array had been repaired.
Even though the Array Masters on the Humans’ side could not arrange new Universe Arrays, they could do simple repairs on them. Of course, that was on the premise that the Universe Array was not too damaged to begin with.
Soon, Yang Kai and Bai Yi arrived at where Xu Bo Liang was located and waited outside for a while as they asked someone to pass on the word for them. A while later, someone came to invite them inside.
Yang Kai thanked him and stepped inside with Bai Yi.
At the end of the long table sat a brave and heroic figure with a dignified look on his face. Yang Kai had seen Xu Bo Liang from afar, and though he did not see him too clearly, he could still tell that this face was about a seventy to eighty percent match to the face he saw before. It was Xu Bo Liang, no doubt about it.
Yang Kai quickly cupped his fist, “Dawn’s Yang Kai greets Division Commander Xu!”
Bai Yi also saluted him, “Bai Yi greets Division Commander Xu.”
Xu Bo Liang nodded gently and reached his hand out, and then the two of them were lifted by an invisible force.
He looked at Yang Kai first, then at Bai Yi. The next moment, his brow rose in surprise, “It was you who attacked me that day, right?”
Naturally, he was able to recognize Bai Yi the instant he saw her.
Bai Yi dropped her head, “I was not myself then, please forgive me, Division Commander Xu!”
Xu Bo Liang chuckled, “It doesn’t matter. You were a Black Ink Disciple back then, so it was only natural that you did what you did; however, your archery skills are indeed amazing. I have met many from Divine Feather Paradise, yet there are few who are on par with you. Have you cultivated the Sun Chaser Arrow Heart?”
Bai Yi answered respectfully, “Yes!”
Xu Bo Liang nodded lightly, “I heard that it is extremely difficult to cultivate the Sun Chaser Arrow Heart. Inside Divine Feather Paradise, it is rare to find even one each generation that achieves success with it. For you to have reached this level of mastery in the Seventh Order, you will surely become a great asset when your Order rises in the future!”
Bai Yi was humble, “Division Commander Xu is too polite.”
Yang Kai listened in confusion, but he could guess that the Sun Chaser Arrow Heart must be a type of Secret Technique from Divine Feather Paradise. Just like the Eye Secret Techniques of Myriad Demons Heaven, it was rare to find anyone who could successfully cultivate it.
After a few words of encouragement, Xu Bo Liang turned to Yang Kai, “You are not bad either. Saving a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master is no small merit. On that topic, were you also hiding nearby on that day?”
Yang Kai was a little embarrassed, “Please forgive me, Division Commander Xu. I was so determined to capture Junior Sister Bai that I did not help, worrying that I would disturb the grass and alert the snake.”
Xu Bo Liang nodded lightly, “You made the right decision. It’s good that you have your own considerations, but it was also a shame that Zhu Feng was allowed to escape.”
“We were just about to speak to Division Commander about that.” Yang Kai cupped his fist, “After capturing Junior Sister Bai, this Junior received critical intelligence from her and was able to infiltrate Zhu Feng’s hidden nest. While he was trying to recover, we were able to kill him, as well as three of his subordinated Feudal Lords.”
Xu Bo Liang was surprised, “You were able to kill Zhu Feng?”
He had fought with Zhu Feng and knew just how powerful that guy was. Even though Zhu Feng was heavily injured, he was still not an easy target to take down, much less with three of his subordinated Feudal Lords present.
“Yes!”
Xu Bo Liang looked slightly spirited, “How did you kill him? Tell me in detail.”
Yang Kai pondered for a moment before starting his account from when he and Bai Yi entered the nest, disguised themselves as Black Ink Disciples to get close to Zhu Feng, and then used Purifying Light to deal a heavy blow to him. Then, Zhu Feng used a Secret Technique to recover his strength while his three subordinated Feudal Lords came forward to buy time for him. The fight ended quickly, and after dealing with the three Feudal Lords, they laid down a flurry of attacks on the Black Ink Nest. As a result, Zhu Feng used some kind of sacrificial Secret Technique to rapidly recover. Yang Kai described their desperate fight at the end in great detail.
Xu Bo Liang’s expression kept on changing as he listened.
Even though Yang Kai and Bai Yi now stood before him unharmed, suggesting that the fight was less risky than it let on, he could almost feel just how perilous it had been. If the two of them were less fortunate that day, they would have died there.
When he heard that Zhu Feng was actually killed by the combined efforts of five Emperor Realm cultivators who beheaded him, Xu Bo Liang also didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
For a Territory Lord like Zhu Feng to die in such a manner was truly sad. Nobody would have expected that Emperor Realm cultivators would actually be able to achieve such a great feat on the Black Ink Battlefield.
However, if all had to be said, then Zhu Feng’s death was not only the result of Yang Kai and Bai Yi’s efforts. It had to also be attributed to his fights with Dawn and Xu Bo Liang.
Yang Kai and Bai Yi knew that they had only picked up a bargain at the end.
“So, the Black Ink Clan can actually use Black Ink Nests to recover rapidly. I have never heard of such a thing before. This is a very important piece of information you’ve brought back. This knowledge may be able to reduce unnecessary casualties on our side in the future.”
They had never encountered such a thing before, mainly because of how precious the Black Ink Nests were for the Black Ink Clan. They were all placed in the depths of the Black Ink Clan’s territory, so no Human had even seen a Black Ink Clan Master use one to recover their injuries like this.
Had it not been for a coincidental opportunity, then Yang Kai and Bai Yi would not have learned of this either. They had also paid a steep price because of their ignorance.
“In any case, the two of you have rendered a great service this time,” Xu Bo Liang looked approvingly at them.
Yang Kai smiled, “Division Commander Xu, if we did a great service, then does that mean we can ask for some benefits, too?”
Xu Bo Liang scolded while laughing at him, “Smelly brat, what sort of benefits do you want? Let’s hear it.”
Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Junior Sister Bai has only just rid herself of her Black Ink Disciple Status. This Junior asks that Division Commander please register her and assign her to my Dawn Squad.”
Upon hearing this, Xu Bo Liang nudged him, “Brat, you’ve got quite the appetite. Already coveting your Junior Sister Bai? Do you have any idea how ordinary Squads are assigned and how your Dawn Squad is allocated? Yet, it’s still not enough for you, I see.”
Yang Kai nodded, “This Junior naturally knows. It would be extremely fortunate for a Squad to even have two Seventh-Order Master assuming command. Many Squads only have a single Seventh-Order Squad Leader while my Dawn has five Seventh-Order Masters. This is indeed a lot more than an ordinary Squad would have.”
Xu Bo Liang was brusque, “It’s good that you know.”
Yang Kai cupped his fist, “The Military Merits that Dawn has accumulated until now more than justifies this kind of distribution. If we include the merit of killing Zhu Feng, which happened with the combined efforts of this Junior and Junior Sister Bai, then we have far surpassed what should be required.”
Xu Bo Liang nodded, “That is true.”
Seeing that he did not object to what he said, Yang Kai struck while the iron was hot, “Since its inception, Dawn has been a Special Operations Squad. If those in Blue Sky Pass were to be described as a spear, then Dawn would be the tip of its blade, and the sharper the tip, the easier it would be for us to take down our foes. So, the stronger Dawn is, then the more it would benefit Blue Sky Pass. What does Division Commander think?”
“That’s a crooked argument,” Xu Bo Liang snickered again with laughter.
However, after pondering for a moment, he nodded, “En, so be it. Army Commander Zhong Liang also said in the past that you could recruit anyone under the Eighth Order into Dawn. Now that Bai Yi has caught your eye, then let her be included in your Squad.”
Yang Kai hurriedly cupped his fist, “Many thanks, Division Commander Xu.”
Xu Bo Liang turned to Bai Yi, “Bai Yi, I should still ask you for your opinion on this matter. If you are willing to join Dawn, then I will register you under their name; otherwise, you can also go to a different Squad. With your abilities, you are definitely qualified to become a Squad Leader yourself. There is no need to put yourself under this little brat.”
Bai Yi bowed elegantly to him, “This Junior is willing to be at Senior Brother Yang’s disposal.”
“Very well!” Xu Bo Liang nodded lightly and immediately registered Bai Yi, also noting Yang Kai and her military merits.
A short while later, the two of them left Xu Bo Liang’s office and returned to Dawn’s camp.
When they found out that Bai Yi had joined Dawn, everyone was overjoyed. They had not experienced Bai Yi’s strength for themselves, but anyone who could escape repeatedly while being chased by Yang Kai could not be weak. What was more, Bai Yi was also a disciple of Divine Feather Paradise. Her joining Dawn would bring their long-range fighting capabilities to a new level.
They believed that with her archery skills, they would surely have an even easier time when they encountered the Black Ink Clan in the future.
After arranging a place for Bai Yi to stay, she was told to meditate and recover since her injuries had yet to heal; after all, Zhu Feng’s nest was not exactly suited to proper healing.
As Yang Kai was about to return to his own place of rest, Feng Ying came over.
After allowing her inside, the two of them took their seats and Yang Kai asked, “What is it, Martial Aunt?”
Feng Ying hesitated for a moment before speaking, “You are already in the Seventh Order now. You and I are in the same Order, so there’s no need to call me Martial Aunt anymore.”
Yang Kai laughed, “Then what should I call you? Senior Sister?”
Feng Ying nodded, “That will do! You see, you call Bai Yi, Junior Sister Bai, and I also call her Junior Sister Bai, yet you call me Martial Aunt. It’s a bit confusing.”
Yang Kai was silent. He had also noticed this, and it was indeed a mess.
“For us cultivators, age has never been a criterion for how we address one another, our strength is. If you were from a Cave Heaven or Paradise, then that would be fine, but you are not, so there is no need to stick to the rules of seniority.”
“Then we will do as Senior Sister says,” Yang Kai nodded.
Feng Ying smiled, “That’s more like it.”
“Is that why Senior Sister is here?”
Feng Ying shook her head, “No. I have some other business.”
Yang Kai looked serious, “Please speak, Senior Sister.”
Feng Ying explained, “It’s like this, a new area with rich resources has been discovered near the forward base that used to be occupied by the Black Ink Clan; however, our people have the upper hand now and are pushing the battle line there little by little. The Black Ink Clan seems unwilling to give up that area, so they have gathered a lot of forces to hold the line. Most of the people from this forward base have gathered there already, and some days ago, I heard from Division Commander Xu that both the Black Ink Clan and the Humans intend to settle things there. In that case, it would become the final battle here, and if the Humans were to win, then we would fully occupy the resources in that area.”
Yang Kai finally understood, “No wonder we didn’t see any of our people or any Black Ink Clansmen on the way back. So they have all gathered there, have they?”
Feng Ying nodded, “On top of its strategic importance, it’s also a good place to gain merits. It is only natural that the Division Commanders don’t want to miss it. Even if we do get to seize that area, Blue Sky Pass would only be able to mine it for several dozen years at most before we will have to retreat. However, being able to mine for several dozen years is still enough to provide the Inner Sanctum with a great surplus of cultivation resources.”
“Indeed!” Yang Kai nodded, “Has the fight there started already?”
Feng Ying said, “The skirmishes have never stopped, but the real battle has not begun yet. Still, it will not be long till it happens. What the Division Commanders were afraid of were the several Territory Lords standing guard in this area. The number of Territory Lords and their power is similar to that of our Division Commanders, so neither side can gain an advantage over the other. Now that you and Bai Yi have killed Zhu Feng though, the Black Ink Clan has one less Territory Lord. The Division Commanders will definitely seize this opportunity to deal a serious blow to the Black Ink Clan.”
Yang Kai raised a brow, “What is Dawning Light’s current status?”
Feng Ying told him, “I just went to check. Repairs will require seven or eight more days to fully complete.”
“Seven or eight days…” Yang Kai muttered, “Then we shall wait. During our last battle, Bai Yi and I also used up a lot of our strength. We are in need of time to recover.”
Feng Ying nodded, “Good.”
After sending Feng Ying away, Yang Kai immediately went into retreat to restore his energy. He took a large number of Open Heaven Pills and a set of Sixth-Order materials and began refining them, seeking to quickly restore the heritage of his Small Universe.
He was now in the Seventh-Order, so naturally, the fastest way to recover was to refine Seventh-Order materials; however, Seventh-Order materials were ten times more precious compared to Sixth-Order materials, and with the aid of Open Heaven Pills, Sixth-Order materials were sufficient.
Moreover, the many living beings he was rearing in his Small Universe were constantly providing him with more World Force.
Yang Kai had a lot of resources on hand, but any amount of resources was not easy to come by in this Black Ink Battlefield, so he had to use them sparingly.
After a few days, Yang Kai pushed open the door to his room, feeling refreshed.
Inside Dawn’s camp, Dawning Light hovered quietly in mid-air as Feng Ying led the Squad up and down the deck, examining its condition. When she saw Yang Kai’s reappearance, Feng Ying peered out of the deck and waved at him.
Yang Kai flew over and looked around, “How is it?”
Feng Ying nodded, “All the damaged arrays have been repaired and the Squad has just about recovered. We are ready to sortie.”
Yang Kai nodded and looked down towards Bai Yi’s room. Seeing the door closed, he said, “Call Bai Yi. She can continue restoring herself on the way. I will go and inform Division Commander Xu of our departure.”
Saying so, he sped off towards where Xu Bo Liang was.
A few moments later, he saw Xu Bo Liang and informed him of his plans.
Xu Bo Liang naturally had no intention of stopping him. It could even be said that he wanted Dawn to participate in the final fight there to begin with, it was just that he knew that Dawning Light was in repairs all this while, so he decided to wait for the repairs to complete before calling Yang Kai over and sending him off with the task. Now that Yang Kai had come to him himself with such intentions, naturally, he could ask for nothing better.
“Reports coming in from that side say that there are a lot of Black Ink Clansmen gathered there, at least 20,000 of them. For the Black Ink Clan, it’s enough to make up an entire Army. Even though there are definitely going to be a lot of High-Rank and Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen, one still cannot take the situation too lightly.”
Yang Kai nodded earnestly and asked, “How many people are there on our side?”
“Less than 2,000!” Xu Bo Liang gave a concise answer.
2,000 versus 20,000, that was ten times the difference. These numbers could not be compared at all; however, Yang Kai knew that it was impossible for the Humans to deploy any more troops than this.
In the entirety of Men Xie Royal Lord’s territory, the Humans occupied four resource harvesting areas. If they had to assign 2,000 men in each of these areas, then four areas would require 8,000 soldiers combined. That was an entire Army from Blue Sky Pass.
Naturally, Blue Sky Pass could not send out so many clansmen to capture the resource-harvesting areas as they still needed to retain most of their strength around the Great Pass itself in case something went wrong.
However, all 2,000 of the Humans here were in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm and above, and they could depend on the might of their Warships to further boost their strength. On the other hand, nobody could say how many of the weak Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen there were mixed into the Black Ink Clan’s 20,000-strong army.
So, despite the disparity in numbers, it was difficult to say which side would win in this battle. The only way to know was to fight.
“Dawn is strong, so if you perform well, you can play a decisive role on a battlefield like this; however, I have one order for you.”
Yang Kai said with a serious face, “Please speak, Division Commander Xu!”
“You are not allowed to use Purifying Light on the battlefield!”
Yang Kai nodded, “I understand.”
On a battlefield of such scale, it was impossible to slaughter every last Black Ink Clansman. If he were to use Purifying Light, then it would surely alert the Black Ink Clan. When that time came, there was a high chance that his existence would be exposed.
After a short hesitation, Yang Kai added, “What if there are people that need to be treated?”
Xu Bo Liang said, “We have the Purifying Black Ink Battleship at the forward base, and everyone has already left behind their Imprint. If they cannot hold on, then they can return here by using the Universe Transference Law.”
After bidding farewell to Xu Bo Liang, Yang Kai returned to Dawn’s camp where the Squad had already finished assembling. Bai Yi had also joined them.
On the deck stood the Squad’s 36 soldiers lined up in three lines and ready to go.
Yang Kai looked over at them for a while before waving his hand, “Depart.”
The members in charge of the Arrays immediately spread out and took their posts. A short while later, Dawning Light turned into a stream of light that took to the skies and left in a flash.
The final battlefield was a zone with rich resources, and also the last line of defence for the Black Ink Clan before their established territory. If this final line of defence was broken, then the Humans would be able to occupy this resource-harvesting area for the next several dozen years and mine in peace. Perhaps there would be some occasional harassment from the Black Ink Clan, but the regular patrol Squads could keep such interference at bay.
The two clans had been fighting each other for countless years, so they were already used to such situations.
The location of the final decisive battle was taking place a two or three days’ journey away from the forward base. During this time, other than the ones taking turns controlling Dawning Light’s speed and direction, everyone else was resting and preparing.
Yang Kai stood alone on the deck, keeping a lookout.
Two days later, before Dawning Light had even reached their destination, Yang Kai could already see the lights shining brightly ahead of them in the void. Even from such a great distance, occasional energy fluctuations could be felt coming from there.
[Have they already begun fighting?] Yang Kai’s face turned cold and he hurriedly sounded the alarm.
The cabin door opened and one by one, figures emerged onto the deck like a school of fish, gazing out at the war that was going on in full swing up ahead.
The decisive battle had indeed begun, but as they grew closer to it, Yang Kai realised that it must not have been long since the fight began, because the Black Ink Clan’s Army was still in formation and there were not many casualties.
It seemed like hostilities had broken out about an hour ago.
It could be said that Dawning Light had arrived just in time.
Looking over, they could see Human Warships shuttling through the large battlefield, unleashing powerful bursts of bright light towards the Black Ink Clan’s lines. These were clearly the abilities of the offensive arrays installed on the Warships.
Rarely would a cultivator leave the shelter of a Warship. Only the Seventh-Order Masters who were confident in their abilities would choose to fight exposed; after all, this was not Blue Sky Pass. In the last great battle that happened between the two clans, even if the Humans were to be corrupted by Black Ink Strength, they could quickly retreat to the Inner Sanctum or use the Purifying Light sealed within the Purifying Black Ink Battleships in order to dispel the encroaching Black Ink Strength.
Right now, there were no Purifying Black Ink Battleships here. If they really were invaded by Black Ink Strength, they would have no choice but to return to the forward base using the Universe Transference Law and then travel at least two or three days to return. The battle might even be over after such a period of time.
What was more, the fight had only just begun, so the Humans were trying to preserve their strength as much as possible, capitalizing on the advantage their Warships gave them to kill their enemies.
Opposite the Human battlefront, the tide of Black Ink Clansmen was blasting away at the Warships, causing the defensive arrays to flicker as they were hit.
The Warships of some of the less fortunate Squads had even lost the ability to continue fighting and had no choice but to retreat towards the forward base.
Dawning Light sped over, and as soon as they entered the battlefield, Yang Kai could feel several powerful Divine Senses enveloping them, facing off against each other from a distance. These Divine Senses clearly belonged to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Humans and the Territory Lords.
It was exactly because of the presence of the Eighth-Order Masters that the Territory Lords were deterred from intervening in the battle, and this was also true for the Humans. The ones at the top were all suppressing each other, so the victor of this fight could only be decided by those below the Eighth Order on both sides.
Yang Kai, who was standing on the deck, swept his eyes around and saw a weak point in the Human lines. The Black Ink Clan were attacking that point with such ferocity that even with a dozen Warships supporting each other, they were still in a shaky situation. The defensive array on one of those ships was even starting to fade. It was clear that it could not hold out much longer.
Yang Kai pointed in that direction, “Adjust our course!”
Dawning Light immediately turned and headed in that direction, and within a dozen breaths, it entered the fray.
As soon as they saw reinforcements appear, the Humans were overjoyed. Even though it was just a single Squad-level Warship like theirs, any help would be greatly appreciated at this moment. Perhaps the addition of another Squad would help them resist the Black Ink Clan’s offensive.
On the bow of one of the ships stood a bearded man with two large swords in each hand, looking mighty and imposing. He beckoned his Vice Squad Leader, “Go and greet them and have them coordinate with our movements.”
His Vice Squad Leader was a beautiful woman, and just as she was about to send a message, she saw Dawning Light sweeping past the defensive line formed by the dozen ships and charge straight into the Black Ink Clan Army.
The beautiful woman was dumbfounded, and the bearded man was jumping in rage as he scolded, “Where did this Squad come from? Are they courting death!?”
The combined power of a dozen Squads could barely stop the advance of the Black Ink Clan Army, but this Squad suddenly rushed straight into enemy lines, so how could they possibly survive? They were likely going to be turned into dust by the Black Ink Clan, then even their Squad members would be left without a corpse.
Though he was cursing, he was inwardly feeling pained by this situation. Those were the lives of a dozen Open Heaven Realm Masters. He had no idea which bastard of a Squad Leader was leading them, but if that bastard wanted to court death, he shouldn’t have dragged his entire Squad down with him.
As soon as those words left his mouth though, the bearded man looked shocked as a ripple suddenly formed around the new Squad’s ship and its image distorted greatly. In an instant, a Warship which was over twice as large as an ordinary Squad-level Warship took its place.
The Warship was almost as large as a Battalion-level Warship!
“Dawn!” The bearded man snapped to his senses. Dawn was the only Squad which possessed a Warship wish such features in Blue Sky Pass, and he had also seen Dawning Light in repairs back at the forward base with his own eyes. He deeply coveted the capabilities of this unique Warship.
The beautiful Vice Squad Leader asked curiously, “Are they Dawn?”
The bearded man nodded heavily, “No doubt about it!” With a sudden jolt, he called out, “Quickly, follow them! This is our chance to break the Black Ink Clan’s lines!”
The Vice Squad Leader was a little hesitant, but she still quickly passed the order down, and the Squad’s ship immediately followed after Dawning Light.
At the same time, the dozen or so other Squads who were struggling to maintain their positions made the same choice. All of them turned towards the Black Ink Clan and prepared to meet them in battle.
When Dawning Light swept in, the Black Ink Clan did not think much of it. It was just the arrival of another Human Squad after all. The Humans were completely overwhelmed in terms of numbers and were powerless to resist. However, when the Illusion Array on Dawning Light was lifted and revealed its true face, a commotion built up at the Black Ink Clan’s side.
Dawning Light had recently become famous among the Humans, and it was just as well-known among the Black Ink Clan. Many of the Black Ink Clansmen knew of the existence of this special Human Squad whose Warship and configuration of members were vastly superior to others on the battlefield.
It was unknown just how many Black Ink Clansmen had suffered losses at the hands of this special Squad, and many of their groups had even been completely wiped out by them.
In a battlefield where one’s life was on the line, one’s prestige could often be a powerful deterrent.
An overwhelming barrage of attacks rained down on Dawning Light, trying to halt its advance. A dazzling protective glow sparked up around Dawning Light like a beacon of light, dispelling the darkness and tearing a gaping hole straight through the Black Ink Clan Army.
In the next instant, Dawning Light rumbled and shook again and again as its offensive arrays were activated by the many Fifth and Sixth-Order Squad members on board. Sword waves like white silk, huge spear shadows, and light beams that were strong enough to swallow everything in their path, all of these were blasted towards the densest gatherings of Black Ink Clansmen.
Violent energies swept forth, killing or maiming the Black Ink Clansmen wherever they passed.
Each attack unleashed from the offensive arrays was comparable to the full-powered strike of a Seventh-Order Master, and the area of attack was also extremely wide. Any Low-Rank Black Ink Clanman touched by these attacks would be killed, while the High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen would find it hard to resist.
That was the power of the Humans’ Warships. With the help of powerful arrays and the combined strength of several Fifth and Sixth-Order Masters, they were able to unleash power equivalent to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. And, as long as the Warship they were on was not damaged, they did not have to worry about being corrupted by Black Ink Strength.
With just one salvo, Dawning Light demonstrated power that greatly surpassed ordinary Squad-level Warships. Before the Black Ink Clansmen that survived could even catch their breaths, another dozen Squads sailed over on their ships, following closely behind Dawning Light while different coloured lights blossomed from each of them.
Naturally, the offensive arrays on these large ships were not as rich and varied as those on Dawning Light; after all, their numbers were incomparable to Dawn, so even if they had more arrays installed, there would be no one to power them, which would just be a waste; however, they had the advantage in numbers. Even if each ship carried just two offensive arrays, with a dozen or so ships it would mean almost 30 attacks.
These were the attacks comparable to 30 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters striking at full power.
More of the Black Ink Clan who had yet to catch their breaths were felled, and many of their Feudal Lords were also severely injured by this wave of attacks.
A hole immediately appeared in the Black Ink Clan’s Army that kept on growing in size. Everywhere that Dawning Light went, a clear path was cut into the Black Ink Clan’s defence line like a hot knife through butter.
“Squad Leader, the defensive array team won’t be able to hold up any longer,” Feng Ying suddenly warned.
It was thrilling for Dawning Light to charge into the fight like this, but the defensive needs of such a manoeuvre were too high. Though the defensive array was not damaged, the Squad members in charge of powering it were expending too much energy. They had to maintain the protective shield at all times; otherwise, Dawning Light would be damaged if it were hit directly.
In less than a few dozen breaths, the Squad members in rotation were all pale-faced.
Even without Feng Ying’s warning, Yang Kai had also noticed this as the protective barrier around Dawning Light had dimmed a lot. It was indeed true that they could not hold on for long.
“Swap with me!” Yang Kai appeared at one of the defensive arrays as he spoke and sat cross-legged, taking a deep breath before pouring the energy from his Small Universe into it.
In the next instant, the shield, which had been on the verge of collapse, glowed brightly again, instantly exploding dazzlingly like a rising sun.
Shen Ao and the others were astonished.
The strength of a defensive array was proportional to the depth of heritage of the one presiding over it.
At each defensive array was a defensive artifact acting as the Array Core, and all the one presiding over the array had to do was pour their energy into it and the array would activate, creating a defensive shield.
Normally, each defensive array would require the combined efforts of at least three members to operate; after all, the cultivation of these members were either at the Fifth-Order or the Sixth-Order.
This was the only way they could ensure that their defences remained sturdy.
Now, Yang Kai’s power alone fueled the arrays to greater heights than before. The attacks that came from all directions barely made a ripple on the light barrier before dispersing without a trace.
One could see just how rich Yang Kai’s heritage was from this.
The various arrays laid out on Dawning Light were the most advanced that Blue Sky Pass could produce.
Usually, if the defensive arrays could bring out 70% of their power under the combined efforts of several Squad members, then with Yang Kai personally powering the array, 100% of its effect burst out all at once.
In terms of its protective power, it was naturally different from before. The difference of 30% almost doubled the shield’s strength.
Feng Ying had originally been worried that Dawning Light would not be able to hold on for long, but when she saw the attacks causing only a ripple as they hit the light barrier before becoming completely useless, she swiftly shouted, “Charge through!”
Hearing this, the Squad member in charge of steering the ship manoeuvred Dawning Light so that it could crash straight through the Black Ink Clan Army, moving in whichever direction had the most enemies.
In an instant, Dawning Light cut a swath of destruction wherever it passed. The Black Ink Clansmen who were unable to dodge in time had all their bones shattered when they were hit by the large Warship, while those who reacted quickly enough to dodge were still annihilated by the glowing lights coming from the offensive arrays.
The other dozen or so Warships were following closely behind Dawning Light, and a barrage of powerful attacks was fired from them in all directions.
A deep gash soon appeared in the Black Ink Clan’s line of defence.
Once Dawning Light reached the other end of the enemy army, it quickly turned around and crashed back into it again. With Dawn taking point, the dozen other Squad-level Warships spread out like wings that proceeded into another deadly charge.
After three or four such sweeps, the Black Ink Clan’s troops on the defence line were all either killed or injured, completely collapsing, no longer able to maintain an effective formation.
On the Warship where the bearded man was, the beautiful Vice Squad Leader muttered in awe, “Dawning Light is so powerful!”
The bearded man licked his lips and chuckled, “You have no idea, the arrays on the Dawning Light are all top of the line. The Array Cores are also the top of the top, whether it be the offensive or the defensive artifacts; otherwise, how could they be this powerful? Heh, there even seems to be a Universe Array aboard Dawning Light as well as a stock of Purifying Light.”
The beautiful woman knitted her brow and grumbled, “Aren’t the Army Commanders a bit too biased? What, was Dawn born from the real mother and we were raised by the stepmother?”
The bearded man raised his hand and smacked her on the head, “Don’t talk nonsense!”
The beautiful woman covered her head, aggrieved.
The bearded man told her, “The Army Commanders are in charge of the four Army regiments, and all the soldiers under their command are their lifeblood. They won’t do something like play favourites. All the modifications on Dawning Light were commissioned for Military Merits.”
The beautiful woman was astonished, “How many Military Merits would that cost?”
The bearded man was a little deflated, “I quietly asked the Junior Brother at the Merit Hall last time, and he told me that the Military Merits that Dawn Squad’s Leader obtained on the last battle was…” He casually named a figure before continuing, “After commissioning Dawning Light’s construction, all those Military Merits were spent, and that was just his own. Senior Sister Feng Ying’s Military Merits were also basically exhausted as well.”
The beautiful woman looked even more shocked, “They really are generous, spending so many of their Military Merits on Dawning Light.”
The bearded man grinned, “You have to admire their boldness, but Dawning Light has now become an extraordinary weapon. After this battle, they may not be able to earn back all the Military Merits that they spent, but 30 or 40% shouldn’t be a problem. If they just fight a few more battles like this, then they would definitely be able to earn everything back and more.”
The beautiful woman pouted, “If we had as many Military Merits, then we could do the same.”
“But we don’t!” The bearded man guffawed, “So, we should follow Dawning Light. They eat the meat, but for us to have a share of some of the soup is still very good!”
Then, the bearded man’s face suddenly turned solemn, “The Black Ink Clan’s line of defence has been broken, so we’ll soon be facing their main force head-on. Remember, if you get corrupted by Black Ink Strength, head for Dawning Light, they have Purifying Light!”
The beautiful woman nodded heavily, “I understand!”
“Open the array!” The bearded man shouted. Then, he raised his hand, summoning his large wolf fang mace, a horrible-looking club that was covered in spikes.
A gap was opened in the ship’s shield and both the bearded man and his beautiful subordinate rushed out at once, charging straight for the Black Ink Clan. The wolf fang mace swung down hard and the few Black Ink Clansmen who were unable to dodge it were smashed into a mist of blood at once.
The bearded man laughed heartily, “Hahaha! Black Ink Clan brats, come and have a taste of your Grandfather’s big rod!”
The beautiful woman glared at him in disgust. One after another black flowers bloomed from the tip of her sword as she stabbed towards the Black Ink Clansmen who were fleeing in front of her. As the sword flowers faded, the Black Ink Clansman fell to pieces.
The ship they were from followed closely behind them while the offensive arrays continued unleashing their power. Clearly, this Squad had been together for a long time, allowing the two Seventh-Order Masters and the ship to work in perfect harmony.
This was not the only ship that was doing so; the rest of the dozen ships were also the same. Each one of the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters aboard them had personally come out to join the battle, fighting around their Warships. This way of fighting was undoubtedly safer. Even if they were to encounter a strong enemy, they would still have the chance to return to their Warships so that they could recover; however, the number of Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in each of these Squads was not high. There were basically only two on each ship.
On the other hand, Dawning Light, which was leading the pack, had five Seventh-Order Masters rush out at once. Whether it was Yang Kai or Feng Ying, once they attacked, even Feudal Lords would find it hard to defend themselves.
On the deck of Dawning Light, there was even a small figure standing at the bow while a small gap had been opened up in the barrier in front of her. The figure was holding a powerful bow with its string pulled taut, a golden light at her fingertips.
With a whizz, a bolt of golden light flashed, and every time it did, a Feudal Lord would either be severely injured or would be felled directly.
Bai Yi, who came from Divine Feather Paradise and cultivated the Sun Chaser Arrow Heart, had achieved the eighth level of Mastery in the Archery Dao, so every arrow released from her fingertips was all but unstoppable.
With Dawning Light at the centre, any Feudal Lord who caught her eye within a 100-kilometre radius would either take a severe hit from her or be taken out entirely. There was no third possibility.
The power of such an archer on such a battlefield was simply too great.
Moreover, she never focused on any Black Ink Clansmen below the Feudal Lords, only those above them.
Originally, the Black Ink Clan had a huge advantage in this particular line of defence, pinning down a dozen Human Squads and forcing them back slowly. However, after Dawn’s arrival, the tide was instantly turned. Not only did the Humans gain the ability to fight back, they had successfully thrown the Black Ink Clan’s soldiers into chaos.
In the midst of the intense battle, a bloodied Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master suddenly rushed towards Dawning Light, a flash of unnatural Black Qi lingering about his pale face.
This Seventh-Order Human had obviously been invaded by Black Ink Strength.
Bai Yi immediately pointed her arrow at him and the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was instantly frozen in place, not daring to move.
Fortunately, Bai Yi quickly realized the situation and stepped aside, shouting, “Get in, quickly!”
The Seventh-Order Master cupped his fist, “Thanks are not enough for this kindness.”
In a flash, he dashed through the gap in the protective barrier and entered Dawning Light. At once, a member of Dawn came to lead him to a Space Array on the deck.
As a light flashed, the Seventh-Order Master’s figure disappeared.
A few moments later, the light reappeared, and the man reemerged on the Space Array. Even though he was still looking a little tired, the Black Ink Strength covering his face had disappeared.
The bearded man was not the only one who knew that there was Purifying Light sealed aboard Dawning Light. Previously, while Dawning Light was undergoing repairs at the forward base, the Seventh-Order Squad Leaders had basically all come over to see it, and all of them were in great admiration of its capabilities.
However, this was a Warship that Yang Kai and Feng Ying spent an enormous amount of Military Merits to modify so no one else could emulate it no matter how much they envied it.
It was not that Inner Sanctum was unwilling to do this for others, only that the cost of such a customization was so high that Blue Sky Pass was unable to bear it for every Squad, so they could only use Military Merits as a stopgap measure. What was more, the average Squad’s makeup was also lacking quite a bit when compared to Dawn, so they did not require this level of modification. To put it mildly, even if Dawning Light were given to another Squad, it would be difficult for them to even operate it properly.
Anyone who had visited Dawning Light naturally knew that there was Purifying Light sealed on it.
Now, if anyone were to be corrupted by Black Ink Strength on this battlefield, their best choice was to seek help from Dawning Light; otherwise, they would have to head back to the forward base using the Universe Transference Law.
The Seventh-Order Master cupped his fist again in thanks before rushing out of Dawning Light, going back to slaughtering more enemies.
On the battlefield, even the slightest mishap could trigger a chain reaction of changes.
Here, Black Ink Clan’s defensive line had collapsed with Dawn’s entrance, and this collapse was now rapidly spreading throughout the battlefield.
It had been less than an hour since Dawn entered the fray, but almost all of the Black Ink Clansmen on this defensive line had been annihilated. Those who were still alive were either fleeing or had fled long ago.
Yang Kai did not stop there though, leading the Seventh-Order Masters and Dawning Light under him towards the nearest Black Ink Clan Army.
A dozen Warships followed in their wake.
With Dawning Light at the front, the dozen Warships quickly plunged into the Black Ink Clan’s Army like a sharp blade.
Immediately, another commotion broke out.
In the void above the battlefield, powerful Divine Senses were confronting each other from a distance.
The defeat of the Black Ink Clan Army had angered several Territory Lords. Even though they were in confrontation with the Eighth-Order Humans, they were still paying attention to the battle below.
Undoubtedly, they were disappointed by the performance of their subordinates.
One of the Territory Lords had his gaze fixed on Dawning Light. Murderous intent was surging and he had a mind to completely ignore everything else, enter the battle, and blast that Warship to pieces.
He saw everything clearly. The Black Ink Clan had a slight advantage over the Humans before, but after this Warship appeared on the battlefield, the situation began to spiral out of control.
This Warship was definitely the Humans’ sharpest weapon. If he could slaughter its members, it would be a huge loss for the enemy.
However, as soon as this thought surfaced in his mind, he was caught by the Eighth-Order Masters hiding in the void, and a warning rang out in his ears, “Why don’t you try and see what happens?”
At the sound of the voice, the Territory Lord could finally be sure which Eighth-Order Master it was that had his eyes on him and coldly snorted, “Cha Hu!”
The Blue Sky Theatre corresponded to Men Xie Royal Lord’s territory.
After countless years of fighting, the Masters of the two clans knew each other to some extent, so as soon as the Territory Lord heard that voice, he could ascertain that it was Cha Hu.
Cha Hu answered with no trace of politeness, “What did you call your Grandfather for?”
The Territory Lord raged, “A trivial Human dares act so arrogant!?”
Cha Hu snapped back, “A trivial Black Ink Clansman dares to shamelessly boast?”
The Territory Lord was fuming, “Sooner or later, I will slaughter all the Humans of your Blue Sky Pass, rip your heart out, and make you beg for death!”
Cha Hu sneered, “What are you speaking all this nonsense for? Save it for after our fight!”
As soon as the words left his mouth, he suddenly turned into a stream of light and rushed towards a space in the void, slamming a fist down with such force that it caused space to tremble.
A black shadow emerged, hurriedly retreating; however, he was still struck by the fist and let out a grunt.
The Territory Lord was shocked, not expecting Cha Hu to actually make a move here. In fact, in such battles, Masters like them would basically only act as a deterrent. Rarely would they fight in person because everyone knew that there was nothing they could actually do to each other in battle.
In the same Order, the Humans were generally slightly stronger when compared to the Black Ink Clan, but this difference became less and less pronounced the higher one’s cultivation was. When one reached the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm or became a Territory Lord, that difference became quite limited, and when it came to Royal Lords and Ninth-Order Old Ancestors, they were basically evenly matched.
Moreover, the Territory Lords outnumbered the Eighth-Order Masters by one in this battle, and this advantage in high-level combat power was enough to deter the Eighth-Order Humans from doing anything rash.
Only when the Black Ink Clan Army attacked Blue Sky Pass would the Eighth-Order Humans and the Territory Lords have a chance to face each other directly.
So, there was no way that this Territory Lord could have ever expected Cha Hu to actually make a move.
Not only him, but violent energy fluctuations also suddenly erupted at two other spots in the void. It was apparent that Lu An and Xie Xiu Ping had also joined in, forcing out the Territory Lords in hiding.
“You dare…” The Territory Lord was furious after eating a small loss from Cha Hu’s sudden attack.
Before he could finish speaking though, his words were cut short by Cha Hu, who broke out in laughter, “You’re still waiting for Zhu Feng? I forgot to tell you, but Zhu Feng is dead! I’m afraid he won’t be coming today!”
“What?” The Territory Lord was shocked at his words, but he immediately refuted, “Lies!”
He was instinctively unwilling to believe Cha Hu’s words; after all, Zhu Feng was a Territory Lord just like himself, so how could he possibly die just like that?
After all, he had seen Zhu Feng just a month ago.
He thought that Cha Hu was just trying to shake him with an alarming bluff, but in the next instant, his expression changed as he turned his head to glance at that particular Human Warship.
He had paid attention to the performance of this Human Warship all this while, and it was because of its appearance that the Black Ink Clan’s defence line collapsed, so this Territory Lord was nursing a great hatred for Dawning Light.
It wasn’t the special Warship itself that had his attention at this moment though, but rather the small figure that was standing at the front of its deck, holding a drawn bow. As soon as each golden light flew out, a Black Ink Clansman was bound to suffer.
This Territory Lord focused his eyesight to the fullest in order to see through the heavy clutter of obstructions and was shocked when he finally had a clear look of the small figure’s face.
[That Human woman… Isn’t she Zhu Feng’s prized Black Ink Disciple?]
Even though he had only seen the young Human woman a few times in the past, this Territory Lord remembered her well. It was because this Human woman was extremely strong and was also highly valued by Zhu Feng.
But how could she appear on the Humans’ side and even kill off their Black Ink Clansmen?
For a moment, the Territory Lord’s thoughts were in disarray. He could not figure out how the Black Ink Disciple Bai Yi had returned to the embrace of the Human Race.
However, since she was here, where had Zhu Feng gone? Could he truly be dead?
In fact, he had not been able to feel Zhu Feng’s aura all this while. He thought that Zhu Feng was hiding somewhere, waiting for an opportunity to strike, but he did not see him anywhere even until this moment, so he truly could have met a disastrous fate.
This made him feel a little unsettled. While he was distracted, Cha Hu landed a punch on his shoulder, causing his huge body to stumble, drawing a guttural roar from his lips.
Before he could steady himself, however, a murderous intent locked in on him, causing the Territory Lord to freeze up.
He turned around in a hurry and was shocked to find that a Human had suddenly appeared behind him with two fingers raised, cutting down at him like a sword.
The sword wave at the tip of his fingers swept over in a flash.
The Territory Lord’s body shook wildly, then a huge wound appeared at his shoulder blade, so deep that the organs could vaguely be seen writhing beneath. As ink-black blood and Black Ink Strength spewed out of the wound, he howled, “Xu Bo Liang!”
He was truly both shocked and enraged.
He was shocked that Xu Bo Liang would actually appear here, and enraged because he had been caught unaware by him. A sneak attack from an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was not to be underestimated. The Territory Lord suffered a serious wound, and Sword Qi was still lingering around it, preventing it from healing. At the same time, the silk-like Sword Qi was burrowing into his body and causing damage everywhere.
He was forced to circulate his energy to suppress the Sword Qi wreaking havoc inside, instantly reducing the strength he could put out by 20%.
What puzzled him the most was how Xu Bo Liang could have appeared on this battlefield.
According to the information that the Black Ink Clan received, Xu Bo Liang had been standing guard in the Humans’ forward base this whole time and did not leave. That was also the reason why there was one more Territory Lord than Eighth-Order Human on this battlefront.
There were originally four Black Ink Clan Territory Lords in this resource harvesting area and four Eighth-Order Humans, an equal number to each other.
However, the Humans always kept one Eighth-Order Master at their forward base in case the Black Ink Clan’s Army were to attack. If anything were to happen to the forward base, then it would definitely be a huge loss for the Humans.
For that reason, in terms of top Masters, the Black Ink Clan held an advantage.
Even if Zhu Feng died, it would still be three against three, so the Territory Lords had nothing to fear.
So, this Territory Lord never anticipated that Xu Bo Liang would suddenly appear in this place like a ghost and even launch a sneak attack on him. It was because he had not conceived of this possibility that he was inadvertently hit.
Weren’t the Humans afraid that their forward base would be wiped out by the Black Ink Clan?
However, Xu Bo Liang left as soon as he finished his attack without any intention of pursuing him. He just nodded lightly at Cha Hu before forming a set of hand seals.
Soon, a light appeared below Xu Bo Liang’s feet, and by the time the glow faded, he was already gone.
Naturally, it was the Universe Transference Law that he just performed, allowing him to return to the forward base through the Universe Array of the Purifying Black Ink Battleship that was moored there.
The reason he did not stay behind to fight alongside Cha Hu was that he was worried something might suddenly happen at the forward base, so he had no choice but to maintain his strength and stand guard there.
The sneak attack that heavily injured the Territory Lord should be enough to set the course for the battle, there was no need to ask for more. Even though they could have killed this Territory Lord if Xu Bo Liang stayed behind and joined forces with Cha Hu, nobody could guarantee that the Territory Lord would not bring one of them down with him in a desperate attempt to fight back.
Nearby Dawning Light, Yang Kai held his Azure Dragon Spear and looked in astonishment at the sudden change, “How did Division Commander Xu come out from Dawning Light?”
The Territory Lord had no idea why Xu Bo Liang would suddenly appear on this battlefield, but Yang Kai had seen everything clearly. Just now, Xu Bo Liang had actually walked out from Dawning Light.
Auras flared along with great explosions across the chaotic battlefield, so basically nobody had noticed an extra Eighth-Order Master mixed in among the Humans until it was too late.
Feng Ying slashed her sword down in front of her and took a breathing spell in between, “Some days ago, Division Commander Xu left his Imprint on Dawning Light’s Universe Array.
Yang Kai was surprised at first before grinning, “Old ginger is indeed spicier than young ginger!”
Xu Bo Liang had already left his Imprint in Dawning Light’s Universe Array, so he could naturally use it to reach the battlefield in an instant, make a sneak attack on the Territory Lord, and then return to the forward base through the Universe Array there.
His sneak attack could truly be called a masterstroke. Perhaps even the people at the forward base had no idea that Xu Bo Liang had crossed a distance of a billion kilometres in such a short amount of time and came over here so he could inflict a serious injury on a Territory Lord.
To think the Universe Array could be used like this, Yang Kai felt his horizons broadening.
After composing himself, he looked at the many Black Ink Clansmen in front of him. Then, Yang Kai thrust his spear forward and attacked!
On the high-level battlefield, Lu An and Xie Xiu Ping were each facing a Territory Lord of their own. The difference in strength between them was not obvious though, so they were basically evenly matched in this situation. Neither side could take the other down.
However, Cha Hu was now facing an enemy whose strength had plummeted, allowing him to gain a significant advantage. Under Cha Hu’s flurry of attacks, this Territory Lord could only defend himself without being able to hit back.
The two of them were originally similar in strength, but after incurring a heavy hit from Xu Bo Liang, this Territory Lord was forced to divert some of his strength in order to suppress his injuries, so how could he be a match for Cha Hu?
All sorts of Secret Techniques poured out, but he remained in a poor situation.
Things would only get worse if the fight continued. If Xu Bo Liang were to show up again, then he might truly lose his life here. After realising he was no match for this Human, this Territory Lord immediately had a mind to escape.
Cha Hu could naturally tell what he was thinking and attacked him even more fiercely, as if he wanted to eradicate his existence here and now.
The Territory Lord hissed furiously, “Cha Hu, if you want to die, then I can fulfil your wish for you!”
Cha Hu sneered, “Do you even have that ability?”
His tone was mocking, but the look on his face was one of extreme caution. The final desperate resistance of a Territory Lord was not something that he dared to underestimate. This was also the reason why Xu Bo Liang did not stay behind to fight with him. Even if they were fighting two against one, they might still have to pay a painful price.
It was a price that the Human Race could not afford to pay!
Any Eighth-Order Master was considered an extremely valuable asset for the Humans, and the fall of even one was an unbearable wound.
So, when he received news that Zhu Feng had been killed by Yang Kai and a former Black Ink Disciple called Bai Yi, Cha Hu could hardly believe it.
However, after learning the details, Cha Hu realized that Yang Kai and Bai Yi were only able to kill Zhu Feng because they were both abnormally strong and extremely lucky.
Part of it also had to do with Zhu Feng underestimating them. Of course, Zhu Feng being in a miserable state from his severe injuries was also one of the reasons.
So, even though he held an absolute advantage, Cha Hu did not dare to push his enemy too hard. Every now and then, he would give the Territory Lord a ray of hope, an illusion to make him think he could continue to fight.
For Cha Hu, even if he could not kill this Territory Lord, he would still have to force him to retreat to his Black Ink Nest to recuperate for a hundred years at least.
Time passed as the battle raged on.
The Black Ink Clan Army had been routed.
The Black Ink Clansmen gathering in this area originally numbered some 20,000 strong, but now, their numbers had been reduced to less than half of that. Even though most of the ones who died were the Low-Rank and High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen, and the number of casualties among the Feudal Lords was not that large, the Humans’ victory was already inevitable.
What was even more unbearable to the Black Ink Clan was the fact that they had paid such a terrible price for such lacklustre results.
Not only did they fail to convert any new Black Ink Disciples, but they also failed to kill many of the Human cultivators.
The Warships were far too useful a tool on such a battlefield. All of the Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order Humans were hiding under the protection of their Warships, and the only ones who showed up to fight were the Seventh-Order Masters.
Without destroying those Warships, it was simply impossible for them to kill any of the Humans.
However, the Warships were too well protected; how could it be easy to destroy them?
After less than half a day of fighting, the Black Ink Clan had destroyed more than 30 Human Warships, but with the help of nearby Squads, the ones who lost their Warships were still able to continue fighting. Less than 100 Humans had fallen in total, and they had failed to kill even a single Seventh-Order Human.
This was also the reason why the Black Ink Clan hated and coveted Human Warships so much. If not for the Warships, then the Great Passes of the Humans would have long been conquered by the Black Ink Clan. How else could they have put up a fight with the Black Ink Clan for all these millennia?
It wasn’t that the Black Ink Clan did not wish to refine their own Warships. If the Black Ink Clan had their own Warships, then the Low-Rank and High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen would be able to exert far more strength than they could currently. The Black Ink Clan had been working tirelessly towards this goal for countless years; however, the Humans had always been extremely prudent on matters concerning the refinement of Warships. All of the Artifact Refiners who were involved in the creation of Warships were never allowed on the battlefield, and they were also carefully protected at all times. So, the Black Ink Clan was strong in will but weak in strength even if they did wish to convert a few Artifact Refining Grandmasters into Black Ink Disciples.
To this day, the Black Ink Clan still did not possess Warships of their own. They were able to refine some ordinary flight-type artifacts, but those were only useful for transportation and not for battle.
The Black Ink Clan’s Army was defeated, and the three Territory Lords were not in very good positions either.
Naturally, there was no need to mention Cha Hu’s opponent, who could barely hold out against the former’s assault. Xie Xiu Ping and Lu An’s opponents were able to go back and forth with them, but they were still powerless to turn the situation in their favour and had no choice but to watch as their Army was destroyed.
With Cha Hu leading him on, whether intentionally or not, several large wounds were added to the Black Ink Clan Territory Lord’s body, each one of them deep enough that it exposed bone. Black Ink blood was flowing out of those wounds, and his aura was no longer at its peak.
Seeing that it was only a matter of time until his Army was wiped out, this Territory Lord had no desire to remain any longer. He struck out a fierce blow while forcibly enduring an attack from Cha Hu, forcing him back and giving himself an opening to escape.
However, at that moment, a hostile aura suddenly locked onto him and a blazing light shot towards him like lightning from a certain spot in the void.
The Territory Lord could not help but feel his skin tightening, and as he turned his head in horror, his eyes caught sight of an attack resembling a pair of wings rapidly expanding in front of him.
On Dawning Light’s deck, Bai Yi’s eyes shone with a strange light as the Territory Lord’s figure was reflected in them. She slowly lowered her bow and panted heavily, her face looking as pale as a sheet of paper.
Clearly, she was the one responsible for the sudden attack.
Although she had not left the Warship like Yang Kai and the other Seventh-Order Masters and simply stood at Dawning Light’s bow, supporting them with her skilful archery, there were still at least a dozen Feudal Lords who had died by her hands after half a day of battle. And, with the support of her arrows, Yang Kai and the others were able to slaughter their own opponents without fear.
Bai Yi might have been one person, but her inclusion still increased Dawn’s overall strength by more than 10%.
Prolonged use of archery techniques was a huge drain on Bai Yi’s strength, especially her last attack which was clearly an extremely powerful Secret Technique that was far more exhausting than her previous strikes.
Even Xu Bo Liang was caught unprepared by this attack and was wounded by it, so there was simply no way that the heavily wounded Territory Lord would be able to resist when he was taken off-guard.
The unfurled wings sank into the Territory Lord’s chest in an instant. He howled, his voice containing unconcealable fury as his already weak aura dropped by another 20%.
It was at this moment that he finally understood why Zhu Feng valued this Human Black Ink Disciple so much. Indeed, this woman had abilities that were unlike others and were thus worth looking at in a different light.
Even though he could want nothing more than to slaughter this woman who ambushed him right here and now to vent his anger, the Territory Lord knew that escaping from was more important. So, after he had been hit, he did not slow down and rather sped up as he rapidly fled towards the rear.
Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of him, blocking his path.
From his perception, the Territory Lord discovered that the Human blocking his path was only in the Seventh Order!
He was furious. After being heavily injured by Xu Bo Liang’s sneak attack, he was unable to defeat Cha Hu, then he was ambushed by that Human girl from afar using her archery skills. He could do nothing about all of the previous setbacks, but now, another Seventh-Order Human came to block his way. Truly, did anyone and everyone have the guts to come and provoke him now?
The Territory Lord spread out his palm and rich Black Ink Strength gathered into a huge ink-black hand seal in an instant, which he brought down fiercely at the arrogant man.
Cha Hu, who was giving chase closely behind the Territory Lord, paled and called out in alarm, “Yang Kai, dodge!”
He didn’t expect Yang Kai to run here from the battlefield below during this critical moment either and even blocked the Territory Lord from escaping.
Right now, the Territory Lord was like a feral animal, so even he had to be careful when facing him, much less a Seventh-Order Master like Yang Kai.
If Yang Kai were to be met with some sudden misfortune, then how was Cha Hu going to explain to the Army Commanders and Old Ancestor when he returned?
In a panic, a layer of blood mist burst out from Cha Hu’s body. It was clear that he was burning his Blood Essence to speed himself up, trying to stop the strike of the Territory Lord before it hit Yang Kai.
However, how could he move faster than the Territory Lord’s attack?
Faced with this blow, Yang Kai did not even try to dodge it and just formed a set of hand seals. With a serious expression, he shouted, “Division Commander Cha, allow me to assist!”
Following the formation of the hand seals, a Golden Crow cried and a Great Sun rose into the sky. Following closely behind the Great Sun, a Full Moon rose, bathing the world in its icy moonlight.
As he manipulated Space Principles the Sun and Moon began circling and Time Principles spread out.
A mysterious energy wove together as the Sun and Moon rapidly spun.
When Sun and Moon came together, they transformed into a kind of kaleidoscope that spiralled straight towards the oncoming Territory Lord.
At that moment, whether it was the Territory Lord or Cha Hu behind him, they could feel Time and Space being disrupted, and their minds could not help but freeze for an instant.
Even though it was only a brief moment, both the Territory Lord and Cha Hu still looked shocked.
The next moment, the Sun and Moon Divine Wheel smashed into the Territory Lord’s body. There was no violent burst of energy, but instead, the Territory Lord felt as if he had just experienced the passing of millions of years in an instant. His aura rapidly weakened and fine cracks had even begun forming on his skin. A strange glow could be seen vaguely beneath those cracks, obstructing the healing of his wounds and also causing his blood to flow out ceaselessly.
At the same time, the Territory Lord’s fierce attack made contact with Yang Kai’s body.
The sound of bones breaking could be heard in short succession as Yang Kai was sent tumbling out like an arrow released from a taut bow, unable to stop himself as blood constantly spilled from his mouth.
*Wa…*
The Territory Lord had also spat out a mouthful of ink-black blood as his aura weakened further.
Cha Hu had already appeared like a ghost above his head and pressed his palm down, shouting in a cold voice, “Die!”
The Territory Lord looked terrified. Not even bothering to suppress his wounds, he used everything he had to raise his hand and launched a counterattack.
The fierce power had already been released from Cha Hu’s hand though, and the Territory Lord’s head was blasted open with a loud bang. Rich Black Ink Strength spurted out of his neck mixed together with his ink-black blood. Cha Hu also grunted, his face paling slightly.
He had killed the Territory Lord, but that last desperate strike made before his opponent’s death still caused his vitality to tumble and his Small Universe to be disturbed.
A trace of Black Ink Strength invaded his Small Universe and expanded constantly, nourished by the rich World Force.
If it were in the past, then such a situation would be extremely troublesome for an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. They would have no choice but to sacrifice part of their Small Universe in order to protect themselves; otherwise, they would be at risk of turning into a Black Ink Disciple. However, such a thing was not something for them to be afraid of anymore now that they had Purifying Light. They could simply wait until the battle was over before scattering the Black Ink Strength.
To be honest, neither Cha Hu nor Xu Bo Liang, who had ambushed the Territory Lord earlier, had any intentions of taking the latter’s life when they fought him earlier. Otherwise, Xu Bo Liang would not have returned immediately to the forward base as soon as his sneak attack landed. It would have been completely possible for him to stay behind and join hands with Cha Hu to kill the enemy.
That was because the two of them knew that even if they joined forces, they may not have the chance to kill off this Territory Lord, and even if they did manage to succeed, the price they would have to pay would not be small.
Their best option was to simply deal a heavy blow to him.
However, at the critical moment, Bai Yi and Yang Kai’s actions made it possible to kill this Territory Lord. Whether it be Bai Yi’s arrow or Yang Kai’s Secret Technique, both of them were far more powerful than what Seventh-Order Humans could normally produce, knocking down the Territory Lord’s momentum again and again, further worsening his injuries.
The two Seventh Orders had created such a good opportunity for him that if Cha Hu did not succeed, it would have been a disservice to their efforts.
Even so, he was wounded by the desperate counterattack made before his opponent’s death, which showed just how dangerous fights between Masters at their level could be.
Turning his head, he glanced in Yang Kai’s direction, slightly worried at his condition.
This brat had taken a direct hit from a Territory Lord, but hopefully, nothing too serious had happened to him.
Feng Ying had already rushed over to Yang Kai’s side to support him at this moment and was stuffing healing Spirit Pills into his mouth. Cha Hu appeared in a flash next to the two of them and quickly said, “How is he?”
Feng Ying shook her head with a terrified expression, “Not good. He’s fallen unconscious.”
Cha Hu placed his hand on Yang Kai’s wrist and released his Divine Sense, checking his condition. He also could not help but frown as Yang Kai’s situation was not merely not good, it was simply terrible.
It was not known how many of his bones had been broken, and his five viscera and six organs were also damaged. Even his vitality was extremely weak like a candle in the wind, flickering with uncertainty.
Anyone with such injuries would not be far from death.
Fortunately, Yang Kai bore a World Spring in his body, so his Small Universe was impervious to external shocks. Otherwise, that attack earlier could really have caused some sort of damage to his foundation.
“Take him back and let him recuperate!” Cha Hu commanded.
Obeying his order, Feng Ying carried Yang Kai and returned to Dawning Light, placing him down in a quiet room in the ship’s cabin.
On the other side, the two Territory Lords who were fighting with Xie Xiu Ping and Lu An had similarly seen how their comrade had died at Cha Hu’s hands and were both shocked. How could they dare to linger here any longer? Both of them made a feint and then retreated.
Xie Xiu Ping and Lu An followed closely behind them. Despite knowing that there was no way there was anything they could do if the Territory Lords were fully intent on escaping, they still gave chase.
By the time Cha Hu finished checking Yang Kai’s condition and wanted to head over to provide support for Xiu Xiu Ping and Lu An, the two Eighth-Order Masters and the two Territory Lords were already nowhere to be seen.
Cha Hu coldly snorted before turning his gaze to the chaotic battlefield. Like a bolt of lightning, he charged straight in.
The Black Ink Clan Army was already on the verge of defeat and would not have held on much longer even without Cha Hu’s intervention, but now that an Eighth-Order Division Commander had joined the battle, how could they ever hope to hold on?
A large number of Black Ink Clansmen were killed, but a small number of them scattered when they saw that the odds were against them and escaped. After all, even the Territory Lords ran. Staying behind would only mean death for them.
Cha Hu led a chase after the enemy for half a day, killing some of them before returning.
And so the battle came to an end. On each Warship, the Human soldiers looked around at the severed limbs and remains of the Black Ink Clansmen scattered all over the void. Even though the Humans had sustained a lot of damage to their Warships and even lost over 100 Open Heaven Realm warriors, their casualties were almost negligible when compared to the Black Ink Clan’s losses.
This battle was a great victory for the Humans.
Cheers rang out as the Humans celebrated.
For Blue Sky Pass, this victory meant that Blue Sky Pass had finally secured this resource harvesting area, and for the next several dozen years they would be able to mine it in peace.
This victory had not come easy and many of them had spilled blood in order to achieve this result.
The battlefield was cleared up and the casualties were counted. Then, under the leadership of the Eighth-Order Masters, the Warships all headed back to the forward base.
By the time Yang Kai regained consciousness, several days had passed. When he opened his eyes, he could feel pain intense enough to cause him to sweat all over with just the slightest movement. His five viscera and six organs felt as if they were on fire.
“The Squad Leader is awake, go and inform the Division Commanders,” a voice could be heard saying. When he looked over, a familiar figure was reflected in Yang Kai’s hazy eyes.
When his vision cleared up, Yang Kai realized that it was Feng Ying.
With eyes full of concern and joy, Feng Ying asked anxiously, “Squad Leader, how do you feel?”
Yang Kai made a quick scan of his own condition before his brow furrowed and he asked, “Who are you?”
Feng Ying’s face paled instantly, “Squad Leader, it’s me, Feng Ying. Do you not recognize me?”
Yang Kai stared at her for a moment as if he were looking at a stranger.
Feng Ying was really panicking now. While she was at a loss as to what to do though, Yang Kai suddenly grinned, “I’m kidding, don’t take it too seriously.”
Feng Ying was stunned at first, but then she glared at him menacingly.
It was then that someone opened the door and entered. Cha Hu’s voice rang out, “Has Yang Boy awoken?” He had obviously rushed over as soon as he heard the news.
Yang Kai struggled to get up, but Cha Hu pressed him back down with his hand, “Your injuries are not light so you better lie still. How do you feel?”
Feng Ying snorted before answering in a disgruntled tone, “He should be fine. He even has the strength to joke around with me.”
Puzzled, Cha Hu pressed his hand on Yang Kai’s wrist and scanned his body. After a while, he retracted his hand and said with some surprise, “As expected of someone with a Dragon Vein. Your vitality is as strong as expected.”
In fact, Yang Kai’s vitality had been faint, almost nonexistent, when he received the fierce blow from the Territory Lord that injured him so badly that he fell unconscious. He was in a state that was not far away from death.
If any other Seventh-Order Master were to sustain such injuries, there would have been at least a 70% chance that they would not have survived.
Yet, after just a few days, Yang Kai’s vitality was stronger and he had regained consciousness. Even though his aura was still weak, there was no longer any threat to his life.
Cha Hu had to sigh in admiration that sure enough, the restorative abilities of someone with a potent Dragon Vein were uniquely powerful, thinking to himself that as long as this boy did not suffer any immediately fatal injuries, then he would be able to recover back to health quickly.
“Division Commander Cha, how is the battle going?” Yang Kai asked with concern, his memory having cut off when he was attacking the fleeing Territory Lord. He had no idea what happened after that.
Cha Hu explained, “The Black Ink Clan only had four Territory Lords in this region. Zhu Feng was killed by you and Bai Yi, and on the battlefield several days ago, I killed another with your and Bai Yi’s help, so there were only two Territory Lords left. What other outcome could there be? They all fled after that, and we had almost annihilated all of the Black Ink Clansmen that were left. We won.”
Yang Kai breathed a sigh of relief, “That’s good to hear.”
Even though he had expected this result, it was still heartening to hear it with his own ears.
Cha Hu was silent for a moment before he said, “Yang Kai, I know you’re confident in your strength, but confident people often become conceited and make mistakes. You were lucky this time, but what about the next? Right now, you are a Squad Leader, and your choices affect more than your own personal safety. Oftentimes, you’ll find that your entire Squad’s lives are on the line, too, so do remember to be more careful in the future.”
“I will take that to heart,” Yang Kai accepted his criticism with an open mind.
Cha Hu did not care whether or not Yang Kai really accepted what he said either, he just patted his shoulder, “Rest well. We have already taken the resource harvesting area under our control so there won’t be any more major battles for the next few decades. Build up your strength as soon as possible so that you can kill even more of the Black Ink Clan in the future.”
“Yes!”
As soon as Cha Hu left, a large group of people crowded in from the outside, all of them with smiles on their faces, naturally it was Dawn Squad’s members.
Yang Kai swept a glance over them and discovered that besides him, there were 35 people, no more and no less, packing the relatively small room to the brim, and only then did he feel relieved.
During the previous battle with the Black Ink Clan, he had witnessed the ships of a number of Squads being blown apart. And, once one was without the shelter of their Warship, those under the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm would find it difficult to survive in such a chaotic melee. The Sixth-Order Masters fared slightly better, but if the Fifth-Order Masters did not promptly receive the help of nearby Squads, they would barely be able to hold out for a dozen breaths before dying.
Dawn’s Battleship was different of course. Dawning Light was much more powerful and sturdy than average, so there was no risk of it being destroyed in a battle like that. So, all of the Squad members were still fit and well.
However, it was inevitable that they would still suffer some minor injuries, especially Shen Ao and the other Seventh-Order Masters who went out to fight against the Black Ink Clan, all of whom were in different states of injury.
Dawn had been instrumental in the previous fight, especially during the killing of the Territory Lord at the end. It was Bai Yi and Yang Kai’s two strikes that enabled Cha Hu to deliver the killing blow.
The other Squads were all envious of such an achievement, yet they were unable to emulate it; after all, not every Seventh-Order Master had the same capabilities as those two.
Seeing the concerned eyes of everyone, Yang Kai reassured them, “I’m fine, I just need to rest for some time. Everyone should go and recuperate, too.”
The crowd then dispersed, leaving only Feng Ying behind.
Yang Kai looked at her and asked, “There’s a smile on Senior Sister’s lips. Has something good happened?”
Feng Ying could not help but laugh, “You could tell?”
“So, there is something good?” Yang Kai was stunned.
Feng Ying nodded, “Dawn contributed greatly in the last battle, so the Division Commanders have decided to award us with one of the most resource-rich harvesting points for us to freely mine. We can head there as soon as we finish recuperating.”
Yang Kai understood, “So, that’s how it is.”
The last battle was fought for control over a resource harvesting area, and since the Humans won, this stretch of territory naturally belonged to the Humans.
Now that the battle was over, the only thing left to do was to mine the resources, so it was natural that they had to determine which Squad was going to be mining which area. They could not just wander around randomly and snatch resources from each other.
In this way, the resources harvested by Dawn could also be handed over to Blue Sky Pass to be exchanged for Military Merits.
“The Division Commanders are thoughtful,” Yang Kai said.
“Rest well, Squad Leader. We will depart once you have recovered.”
“En!” Yang Kai had no objection.
After ten days, Yang Kai had mostly recovered, and the other Squad members were also basically done with healing themselves.
Yang Kai first went to Xu Bo Liang who was standing guard over the forward base to report in before leading Dawn towards the area that was allocated to them.
The area allocated to Dawn was about three days away from the forward base. Even though it was slightly far, it was rich in resources. As long as they concentrate on mining, then they would surely be able to accumulate a large batch of materials over the next several dozen years.
Patrols were of course still being made, as even though the Black Ink Clan was defeated in the last battle, there was no guarantee that there weren’t any fish that had slipped past the nets who would come to cause trouble.
Fortunately, their journey was uneventful. After suffering such a devastating defeat, it seemed that the Black Ink Clan really had completely pulled out of this resource-harvesting area.
Two days later, Yang Kai checked their location on the Universe Chart in his hand while standing on the deck, making sure that this was indeed the area allocated to Dawn before ordering Dawning Light to stop.
Standing on the deck, he looked up and saw a few dozen land masses of varying sizes in the void, each one of them a Universe World of their own.
If these Universe Worlds were in the 3,000 Worlds, this would definitely be a bustling place; however, this was the Black Ink Battlefield, and the Black Ink Clan consumed World Force as their food. The World Force of all Universe Worlds had already been sapped dry by the Black Ink Clan, and that was why all of these Universe Worlds were in shambles without a hint of vitality to be seen.
Even though there were no living beings here, and any World Force was also non-existent, the various resources born in these Universe Worlds were preserved after their death.
What the Human cultivators needed to do was to retrieve these resources from these dead Universe Worlds.
It was not only the Humans that were doing this though, but also the Black Ink Clan when they occupied the resource harvesting areas. They needed the resources to provide energy for the Black Ink Nests to breed more clansmen and produce more Black Ink Strength.
“This is an abundant place, as expected!” Yang Kai exclaimed in awe as he looked at the scene ahead.
Several dozen Universe Worlds sat before his eyes, and the resources contained in them would naturally not be few.
Now, what those from Dawn had to do was extract the resources left behind in these Universe Worlds. This was a difficult process as there were only some 30 of them while there were several dozen Universe Worlds in this area. They wouldn’t be able to fully extract the resources in a mere few decades.
Mining everything of use here would take several hundred years.
They wouldn’t be able to shorten the time needed unless Blue Sky Pass could send more people over to help out; however, Blue Sky Pass was of critical importance, so the vast majority of people had to be stationed there to prevent the Black Ink Clan from attacking. It would not be possible for them to send a lot of people over to help extract resources.
They had already reached the limit by mobilising an Army to the four resource harvesting areas.
“Squad Leader, even though we’ve chased the Black Ink Clan out of this area, we can’t guarantee that some of them won’t come back to harass us. I think we’d better stick together rather than scatter everywhere. If anything really happens, we’d be able to support each other as soon as possible.” Feng Ying offered a suggestion, considering that Yang Kai was unfamiliar with these affairs. Such incidents had happened before, though the probability was low; however, once it happened, a lot of their members could die.
“I’ll leave it up to your judgment,” Yang Kai nodded, “Where do you think we should start first?”
After looking around, Feng Ying pointed at the largest Universe World, “We’ll start from there, then. I’ve taken a look and found traces that suggest the Black Ink Clan had been mining there before. In that case, there should be a lot of resources in that Universe World.”
“Let’s take a look at it, then,” Yang Kai waved his hand, after which Dawning Light headed towards that Universe World.
A moment later, Dawning Light landed on a barren mountain. After looking around, Yang Kai realised that this Universe World was desolate and void of any vitality. Not only were there no living creatures, but there was also not even a tiny bit of greenery.
The World Force of the Universe Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield had been sucked dry by the Black Ink Clan. A Universe World without World Force was like a tree without roots or a river without a source. It was expected that they wouldn’t survive.
There were indeed some traces in this place which suggested that the Black Ink Clan had extracted resources here before. A lot of the places appeared shattered in this Universe World.
The sight reminded Yang Kai of the Black Prison.
The Black Prison was also full of materials, but they were all hidden in Ore Stars. Many people were required to mine Black Stones from the Ore Stars and use the World Force to melt the Black Stones in order to extract various materials.
Most of the time, even though a person exerted themselves, there still wouldn’t be a single thing inside a piece of Black Stone. Even if there was a reward, the Order of the material they would get depended on their luck.
Extracting materials in the Black Prison was just like gambling.
If one was lucky, they could easily obtain a Sixth-Order, Seventh-Order, or even Eighth-Order material. If one was unlucky, there wouldn’t be anything for them at all.
Previously, in order to deal with the Royal Lord trapped in the Black Prison, all the Cave Heavens and Paradises joined forces and mobilised a lot of manpower. They spent 100 years mining out all the Ore Stars in Black Territory in order to crack the Super Array’s suppression so that they could have a final battle against the Royal Lord. The materials obtained during that period of time were simply incalculable.
Those materials had all fallen into the hands of those from Void Land and High Heaven Palace. It could be said that the Cave Heavens and Paradises had worked for free for them; otherwise, given Void Land, High Heaven Palace, and Luan Bai Feng’s available manpower, they wouldn’t have been able to fully extract the materials in Black Territory even if they spent thousands of years doing it.
It was a huge boon to Yang Kai’s forces. With that said, Yang Kai was trapped in the core of the Black Prison together with a Royal Lord for 100 years. The materials from Black Territory could be seen as compensation for his efforts from the Cave Heavens and Paradises.
Now, the Universe Worlds in this resource harvesting area were essentially no different from the Ore Stars in Black Territory, aside from the fact that there were no Black Stones. The resources they extracted were what they got, and no luck was needed.
As Yang Kai recalled Black Territory, an idea suddenly sprang to mind. In the past, in order to help Luan Bai Feng’s subordinates mine the Ore Stars with peace of mind, he created an artifact that could move the Ore Stars across vast distances, the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors.
The situation in Black Territory was similar to that which he was facing now.
While Yang Kai was lost in his own thoughts, he heard Feng Yin saying, “Squad Leader, there’s a rule in the Inner Sanctum. Whoever extracts the resources can use them as they please as long as it’s for their own cultivation. Only when there are extra resources should they be handed in to the War Materials Hall. Most importantly, we can’t keep the extra resources to ourselves. There are more members in Dawn than in other Squads, so I reckon that we can extract the resources in small groups. While some people are mining resources, the others can stand guard.”
Yang Kai was absent-minded as he replied, “En, you make the arrangements. I have something I need to look into.”
Upon finishing his words, he shot into the sky.
If his idea was feasible, they wouldn’t have to stay here and extract resources. He just had to move these Universe Worlds to somewhere near Blue Sky Pass, and the resources could be fully extracted in no time; after all, there were more than 20,000 people in Blue Sky Pass, so it would naturally be more efficient to get them to mine these Universe Worlds than just the members of Dawn alone.
All the members were shocked as they had no idea where Yang Kai was going.
Shen Ao even muttered, “Squad Leader is acting so mysterious. What is he going to do this time?”
Feng Ying shook her head, “I have no idea, Squad Leader can be a bit careless at times. Ignore him for now,” After she finished speaking, she divided more than 35 people left into six groups, each of them led by a Seventh-Order Master. They would take turns to stand guard to prevent the Black Ink Clan from launching a sneak attack on them. With one of the groups on patrol, the rest could extract resources with peace of mind.
They would spend decades in this place, so those who kept guard could also cultivate and strengthen themselves so that no time would be wasted.
After Feng Ying was done with the arrangements, they all got to work. She, on the other hand, went to look for Yang Kai in order to find out what he was doing.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai had already arrived at a nearby Universe World.
He had some experience in moving Ore Stars in the Black Prison, so he was pretty skillful at it; however, he wasn’t certain if Void Yin-Yang Mirrors could send one of these Universe Worlds to Blue Sky Pass, which was very far away from this place.
Regardless, he had to give it a try.
The Void Yin-Yang Mirrors consisted of a total of 16 artifacts. They could be divided into Yin and Yang sets with 8 artifacts in each. Yang Kai had personally refined the prototype for these artifacts, and after that, Grandmaster Ma Fan of Great Evolution Paradise helped him enhance them so they were stabler and more powerful.
While he was scanning the surroundings, Yang Kai noticed a ray of light approaching him from a distance. When he turned his head, he saw that Feng Ying was coming over.
After Feng Ying arrived, she asked curiously, “What are you doing here?”
Yang Kai replied, “I have an idea. You’ve come at just the right time. Stay here for a moment.”
Feng Ying nodded.
It was then that Yang Kai fished out 8 artifacts of Void Yang Mirrors and started setting them up.
Two hours later, he was done with arranging the artifacts. Feng Ying’s expression became increasingly solemn as she observed his actions.
Although she had no idea what Yang Kai was doing, the 8 artifacts he scattered around the Universe World seemed to have created some kind of spatial lock around it. It was apparent that something big was about to happen.
The next instant, Yang Kai abruptly appeared in front of her, “Just stand here and monitor the situation. I need to head back to the Inner Sanctum.”
“Huh?” Feng Ying was shocked, “Why are you going back to the Inner Sanctum?”
“For something good!” Yang Kai kept her in suspense, “If this works, we won’t have to stay here to extract resources.”
After he finished speaking, he performed a hand seal and activated the Universe Transference Law.
Just when Feng Yin was ready to ask more questions, the Array had already appeared beneath Yang Kai. He was engulfed in a dazzling light, and when the light dissipated, he was nowhere to be found.
Feng Ying couldn’t help but shake her head as she had no idea what Yang Kai was up to. This was the best chance to mine resources, and any wasted time would result in fewer resources for them. Nevertheless, she knew that Yang Kai wouldn’t act for no reason, so she decided to wait patiently.
However, she didn’t understand why he said they wouldn’t have to mine resources if he succeeded. If they didn’t do anything, would the resources just float into their pockets?
In the meantime, Yang Kai’s figure appeared in the prototype Purifying Black Ink Battleship in Blue Sky Pass.
The other Great Passes only had four Purifying Black Ink Battleships respectively, stationed with their Eastern, Southern, Western, and Northern Armies.
Only Blue Sky Pass had five Battleships. That was because the prototype of the Purifying Black Ink Battleship was created in this place. The Purifying Black Ink Battleships produced later were all modelled on the first.
There were four resource harvesting areas now, and each had a Purifying Black Ink Battleship. The first Purifying Black Ink Battleship stayed in the Inner Sanctum so Yang Kai could use it to move around easily.
After stepping out of the Battleship, Yang Kai headed straight to the Western Army Headquarters.
Zhong Liang was handling work-related affairs when he saw Yang Kai land nearby and asked in shock, “Brat, what are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be in the fourth forward base?”
As he spoke, his expression changed slightly, “Has something happened over there?”
Yang Kai was surprised and asked, “Haven’t you received any information from there, Army Commander?”
Zhong Liang replied, “Of course I have. Last I heard you all successfully occupied that place.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Indeed. They’re extracting resources over there right now.”
Zhong Liang let out a sigh of relief, “You scared me. I thought something had happened. Since you’ve occupied the area, aren’t you supposed to be mining it? Why did you come back?”
Yang Kai replied, “I can’t explain it clearly now. Please accompany me out of the Inner Sanctum, Army Commander. If this matter is successful, it will be of great benefit to us all.”
Zhong Liang arched his brow, “What do you mean?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “It won’t be useful to talk about it if it fails; however, if it succeeds, you’ll be able to observe it in person.”
“How do you even have the nerve to act mysterious in front of me?” Zhong Liang snorted and rose from the chair, “Fine, fine. I’ll go with you.”
If it had been someone else speaking, Zhong Liang would have made him explain everything first. As an Army Commander, he was swamped with work, so he didn’t have any time to waste; however, considering the shocking achievements Yang Kai had made over the years, and the fact that the death of two Territory Lords at the fourth forward base had something to do with him, he decided to be a bit more patient.
Soon, they left Blue Sky Pass and arrived at the void on the outside.
Zhong Liang looked around and frowned, “What do you want me to see? You can show me now.”
“Please give me a moment, Army Commander,” Yang Kai replied, then started setting up the Void Yin Mirrors.
The creation of the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors stemmed from an idea that suddenly sprang into Yang Kai’s head many years ago. It was also a result of his years of cultivation in the Dao of Space.
The Void Yin-Yang Mirrors consisted of two sets. One of them was Yin while the other was Yang. Just like the two sides of a mirror, each one of them was indispensable. Once set up at an appropriate distance, activating them would be akin to flipping a mirror around, swapping the Yin and Yang Mirrors. By doing so, Yang Kai could transfer whatever was bound within the confines of the mirrors to a distant place.
The environment in Black Territory was too hostile, so the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors were tailored to its unique conditions. After all the Ore Stars in Black Territory were fully extracted, Yang Kai thought that there wouldn’t be a need for the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors anymore, and certainly never expected that he would need them again on the Black Ink Battlefield.
This came as a surprise to him.
Since he had set up Void Yang Mirrors on the other side, he naturally had to arrange the Void Yin Mirrors near Blue Sky Pass.
One hour later, he was done with arranging all eight Void Yin Mirrors.
Zhong Liang observed silently and could recognize the abstrusity of the eight artifacts that had been placed at eight different coordinates. While he was pondering on who made these artifacts and what their uses were, he saw Yang Kai withdraw and then form a hand seal. The next moment, Yang Kai shouted, “Invert!”
As soon as he spoke, the eight artifacts lit up and started buzzing. Following that, the Void around these eight artifacts started contorting.
A violent fluctuation of Space Principles burst forth.
Zhong Liang arched his brow as he had a feeling that it was the critical moment, so he focused and observed intently. Soon, he became surprised because he could feel a weak fluctuation coming from a distant place, resonating with the eight artifacts in front of him.
This wasn’t an illusion, for the resonance became increasingly stronger until it could not be more obvious.
Then came the moment when Zhong Liang widened his eyes and stared at the scene in front of him in shock.
The space that had been surrounded by the eight artifacts was initially empty, but at this moment, a faint but gigantic image appeared inside it in an abrupt manner.
He almost thought that he was seeing an illusion, but upon closer inspection, he confirmed that there was indeed a colossal figure in front of him, and it was becoming increasingly solidified.
After ten more breaths, the figure fully materialised. The lights around the eight artifacts went out, and the resonance with the faraway place was cut off.
Zhong Liang widened his eyes as he almost bit his tongue as his jaw flapped open and closed. He had never been more flabbergasted in his life.
As an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he had lived for a long time and dealt with the Black Ink Clan on the Black Ink Battlefield for countless years. He could be considered an experienced and worldly person, but he had never seen anything like what Yang Kai had just achieved before.
The thing that abruptly appeared in front of him was an entire Universe World, one so huge that the massive Blue Sky Pass was less than 10% of its size.
Even though it was dead and devoid of any vitality, it was indeed a Universe World.
*Shua shua shua…*
Several figures approached them rapidly from Blue Sky Pass, all of them Eighth-Order Masters. They must have come over to look into the matter upon realising the anomaly in this place. In an instant, everyone in Blue Sky Pass became alert and were ready to fight.
Eastern Army Commander Ding Yao appeared beside Zhong Liang and asked in a grim voice, “What’s going on?”
Northern Army Commander Shen Tu Mo also asked, “Why is there a Universe World here?”
It was inconceivable that a Universe World had abruptly appeared in front of their place, so they had to find out the reason behind it.
Faced with the inquisitive gazes, Zhong Liang put on a helpless smile, not knowing how to explain it. Moreover, he was also clueless about it. Even though he had some speculations, he couldn’t be certain, so he simply shouted, “Yang Boy, come over and explain it to them!”
“Coming!” Yang Kai replied and flew over. Upon arriving, he saluted these people, “Greetings, Sirs.”
Zhong Liang waved his hand, “Cut to the chase. What has just happened?”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “It’s just like what you all see. Four hours ago, this Universe World was still in the resource harvesting area around the fourth forward base. Now, I’ve used a certain trick and moved it here.” He then sported a solemn expression, “This is what I was thinking. Rather than letting the people at the forward bases take the risk of extracting resources, why don’t we move all the Universe Worlds to somewhere near Blue Sky Pass? This way, everyone here can help with the mining. The efficiency and the safety would be improved significantly.”
Southern Army Commander Liang Yu Long widened his eyes upon hearing that and asked, “You said you moved this Universe World here using some kind of trick, and it only took you four hours to do it?”
Yang Kai replied, “Strictly speaking, it only took me half an hour. The other three and a half hours were for making the arrangements.”
With his eyes brightening, Ding Yao took a step forward, “Are you serious?”
Yang Kai pointed at Zhong Liang, “Sir Zhong witnessed everything.”
All of them turned to look at Zhong Liang, who nodded sincerely, “En, I saw the entire process. Don’t ask me how he did it though, I have no idea what trick this little brat used. I only know that it involved a set of artifacts.”
The next moment, Yang Kai waved his hand as all eight artifacts turned into rays of light and came to him from different directions. They were then displayed in front of everyone.
All of these Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters curiously examined the artifacts.
Yang Kai explained, “These are just half of the artifacts involved. The other half are in the original location of this Universe World. I call it the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors.”
He then explained to them the uses of Void Yin-Yang Mirrors.
The eyes of these Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters lit up as Shen Tu Mo praised him by saying, “Such a wonderful treasure!”
An interested Ding Yao asked, “So, by just using these Void Yin-Yang Mirrors, we can move the Universe Worlds from the resource harvesting area to here. Am I right?”
With a serious expression, Yang Kai nodded, “Yes.”
All of them were astonished. If that was the case, their people no longer had to go out to extract resources. They could just send all the Universe Worlds back to Blue Sky Pass and let the people from the Inner Sanctum mine them freely. Just like Yang Kai had said, the efficiency and safety would be significantly improved by doing so.
Even though this treasure couldn’t be used to deal with enemies directly, it would contribute greatly to the Humans on the Black Ink Battlefield.
Zhong Liang directly landed a slap on the back of Yang Kai’s head as he snapped, “Why didn’t you take these things out sooner?”
A helpless Yang Kai replied, “The idea didn’t come to me until just now.” Up until now, he had been locked in a number of intense battles with the Black Ink Clan, so he hadn’t had time to think about it. It wasn’t until he arrived at the resource harvesting area that he recalled this treasure.
Ding Yao remarked, “Even though this treasure is wonderful, there’s a big potential issue with them.”
Zhong Liang turned to look at him, “What do you mean?”
Ding Yao stared hard at Yang Kai, “Are you the only one who can activate these Void Yin-Yang Mirrors? Or can anyone who is strong enough use them?”
If it was the former, the treasure would still be useful, but only in a limited sense. If it was the latter, it would be wonderful news for all the Humans on the Black Ink Battlefield.
Yang Kai replied hesitantly, “I’m the only one who has used these since they were first created. Although I believe that others can use them as well, we would need to experiment with them.”
Ding Yao immediately turned to gaze to Shen Tu Mo, “The Purifying Black Ink Battleship at the fourth forward base belongs to the Northern Army, right?”
Shen Tu Mo nodded, “Yes. I’ll head over there with Yang Boy and give it a try now.”
Ding Yao nodded, “En, many thanks, Brother Shen Tu.”
Shen Tu Mo waved his hand, “It is the least I can do. It’s not like it’s difficult to go there.” He then turned to Yang Kai, “Brat, get back there and set things up. I’ll come over as soon as everything’s ready.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai cupped his fist, “I’ll be waiting for you, Senior Shen Tu.”
Having said so, Yang Kai stored the eight Void Yang Mirrors and activated the Universe Transference Law, soon disappearing from the spot.
After he was gone, Shen Tu Mo also activated the Universe Transference Law and headed to the Purifying Black Ink Battleship at the fourth forward base.
Zhong Liang took a glance at the Universe World and tutted, “That Brat sure has a lot of weird tricks up his sleeve!”
Certainly, Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters like them could also move such a Universe World back from a faraway place, but they would have to spend a lot of time and effort to do so.
On the other hand, Yang Kai had managed to easily achieve it with that strange treasure of his.
Ding Yao nodded, “Isn’t it wonderful that he has a lot of tricks up his sleeve? It’s good news for the Humans that he has many different skills. Since his arrival at Blue Sky Pass, the status quo has changed for the better for us Humans.”
In the past, Purifying Light, Purifying Black Ink Battleships, and Universe Arrays were unimaginable to the Humans in the Great Passes as they didn’t have access to them; however, Yang Kai managed to bring all those things on his own. If the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors could be popularised as well, the contribution would be far greater than killing one or two Territory Lords.
In the meantime, Yang Kai stepped out of the cabin of Dawning Light and headed straight to the location where the Void Yin Mirrors were placed.
He soon found Feng Ying.
Presently, Feng Ying was dazedly staring ahead and scanning the surroundings with her Divine Sense, as though she was trying to find something that should have been there.
Upon seeing Yang Kai, she quickly said, “Junior Brother, the Universe World disappeared.”
Just a short time ago, the eight artifacts left behind by Yang Kai lit up and began humming, after which the entire Universe World faded. There came a moment when the Universe World abruptly disappeared from her sight.
That astounded Feng Ying, for such a big Universe World was gone just like that. She thought that she was seeing an illusion, or that Yang Kai had set up some kind of strange Array to hide it from her; however, regardless of how hard she scanned the surroundings, she was unable to find a trace of the Universe World.
It was only then that she confirmed that the Universe World had really disappeared.
Nevertheless, she couldn’t figure out how the Universe World had vanished all of a sudden or where it was now.
Yang Kai nodded, “Don’t worry about it, Senior Sister. I sent that Universe World back to Blue Sky Pass.”
Feng Yin’s jaw dropped and her eyes bulged. Disbelief was written all over her face.
Yang Kai went on to say with a smile, “This is what I told you about earlier. Since it was a success, we no longer have to stay here to mine resources.”
Feng Ying soon understood what was going on, “You just sent the Universe World back to Blue Sky Pass. In that case, the soldiers from the Inner Sanctum only have to extract resources at our doorstep instead of travelling to faraway places. We also no longer have to worry about the Black Ink Clan launching sneak attacks on us.”
“That’s right.” Yang Kai nodded.
“Did you achieve it by using those eight artifacts?”
“En,” Yang Kai nodded, “The Army Commanders from the Inner Sanctum have become aware of it as well. Senior Shen Tu will come over and give it a try soon, so I have to get prepared. Please stand guard for me, Senior Sister.”
Feng Ying nodded, “I’ll go with you.”
Soon, they targeted another Universe World. It took Yang Kai some time to place the eight Void Yang Mirrors in eight spots around the Universe World.
Shen Tu Mo, despite being an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, still hadn’t arrived yet. Certainly, he could make use of the Universe Array to instantly move from Blue Sky Pass to the Purifying Black Ink Battleship in the fourth forward base; however, it would take him some time to come to this location. He should be on his way now.
Meanwhile, Feng Ying was extremely curious about the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors. Faced with her questions, Yang Kai replied to her.
One day later, Yang Kai, who was taking a rest, suddenly opened his eyes. He could see a ray of light rapidly approaching from the direction of the forward base. Upon its arrival, Shen Tu Mo’s burly figure was revealed.
Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Senior Shen Tu.”
After a nod, Shen Tu Mo glanced at the Universe World beside them and asked, “Have you gotten everything ready?”
“Yes.”
“What do you need this Old Master to do?”
Yang Kai replied, “Senior Shen Tu, I need you to memorise the exact distribution of the Void Yang Mirrors and the distances between them. When you return to Blue Sky Pass, you have to accurately set up the Void Yin Mirrors in the same way. Only then would the preparations be considered complete. When you activate them, the Yin Mirrors and Yang Mirrors will resonate with each other and exchange places, transferring the Universe World back to Blue Sky Pass.”
Shen Tu Mo nodded, “Good.”
Harsh conditions had to be met as the distribution of all eight artifacts and the distances between them had to be perfectly accurate. Nevertheless, this wasn’t difficult for an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master like Shen Tu Mo.
It only took him an hour to take a stroll around the eight artifacts and memorise everything perfectly.
When he returned to Yang Kai’s side, he nodded at him to show that he was ready.
Yang Kai gazed at Feng Ying, “You can head back first, Senior Sister. I’ll be returning to the Inner Sanctum again with Senior Shen Tu. If everything goes well, I probably won’t be back anytime soon. You’ll have to take charge of affairs here.”
Feng Ying replied, “Don’t worry about it, Junior Brother. I’ll take care of Dawn.”
It was then Yang Kai turned to Shen Tu Mo, “Senior Shen Tu, whenever you’re ready.”
Without saying anything, Shen Tu Mo directly activated the Universe Transference Law. Soon, a Grand Array lit up beneath his feet and engulfed him.
When his figure vanished, Yang Kai also activated the Universe Transference Law and returned to Blue Sky Pass.
Zhong Liang and the others were still waiting outside the Inner Sanctum. Even though it had taken Shen Tu Mo more than a day to go back and forth between the places, they wouldn’t have minded waiting for an entire month as this matter was that important.
If this worked, it would be extremely beneficial to all the Humans on the Black Ink Battlefield. The waiting time was inconsequential.
“They’re back,” Ding Yao suddenly turned to look in Blue Sky Pass’s direction. Everyone turned their heads and indeed saw two figures flying out of the Inner Sanctum. They were none other than Shen Tu Mo and Yang Kai.
As the Eighth-Order Masters watched the two of them rapidly approaching, they couldn’t help but still be awestruck by the convenience of the Universe Arrays.
It only took them slightly more than a day to go back and forth between Blue Sky Pass and the fourth forward base. Such a feat was inconceivable in the past; however, with the help of Universe Arrays now, they could move between distant places quickly. Such convenience was extremely useful when dealing with the enemies.
The moment Shen Tu Mo stood by their side, Ding Yao hurriedly asked, “How is it?”
Shen Tu Mo replied, “I still have to set things up. We’ll soon find out whether it’s usable or not.”
Yang Kai was just standing behind Shen Tu Mo as he took a glance at the Universe World he had moved to this place. At this moment, it was bustling with noise over there as many figures were flying around the Universe World. It was obvious that they were extracting resources. After barely one day, the Universe World seemed to have shrunk significantly. At this rate, it would only take two or three months before the Universe World was completely mined out. This was the result despite the fact that not a lot of people had been told to come over and extract resources. If Blue Sky Pass had sent more people over, the time needed would have been shortened further.
A shocked Yang Kai asked, “They’ve already started?”
Zhong Liang grinned, “On the Black Ink Battlefield, the resources will only be ours after they’re extracted. Alright, enough nonsense, bring Shen Tu Mo to make the arrangement. We’re still waiting for the result.”
“Yes,” Yang Kai promptly replied.
They then moved to another place and found an open space. Following Yang Kai’s instructions, Shen Tu Mo soon set up all eight Void Yin Mirrors.
It was time to verify the feasibility of their plan. Yang Kai told Shen Tu Mo the method to activate the mirrors and then stepped back.
Before everyone’s eyes, Shen Tu Mo rapidly performed different hand seals and then infused his own power into the eight artifacts.
A faint light was seen flickering on these artifacts, and a buzzing sound rang out. The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters didn’t even blink.
As time passed, the light around the artifacts became brighter and the humming became louder. The Void around these eight artifacts started contorting and a gigantic figure was faintly seen appearing where originally there was nothing.
Zhong Liang arched his brow and nodded, “It’s working.”
He had seen the same sight when Yang Kai activated the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors some time ago. Whatever Shen Tu Mo was doing seemed to be working.
If nothing unexpected happened, the Universe World near the fourth forward base would be moved to this place soon.
However, things didn’t go so smoothly.
The gigantic figure remained faintly discernible but couldn’t seem to materialise. It wasn’t until an entire hour later that the process was completed.
Shen Tu Mo stopped performing hand seals and the light around the eight mirrors faded. At the same time, the resonance with the distant horizon was cut off.
The Eighth-Order Masters appeared elated. What they had witnessed suggested that anyone could use the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors. In that case, they could easily move the Universe Worlds back from the resource-harvesting areas without any restrictions.
On the other hand, Zhong Liang furrowed his brow. That was because he realised that even though Shen Tu Mo was much stronger than Yang Kai, it was far more difficult for him to use this treasure. He wasn’t comparable to Yang Kai at all when it came to the time it took. If everything was properly set up, it would only take Yang Kai a few dozen breaths to move a Universe World back. Nevertheless, it took Shen Tu Mo a whole hour to do so. Moreover, it seemed that he had consumed a lot of energy in the process, much unlike how easy it felt for Yang Kai to achieve.
Upon noticing his doubt, Yang Kai explained, “This treasure was specifically refined for my use, so mastery over the Dao of Space was taken as a given. Therefore, it’s easier for me to use. Although Senior Shen Tu is stronger than me, he has never cultivated the Dao of Space before, so it’s only natural that he has to consume more energy to forcefully activate it.”
Zhong Liang nodded gently, “I see.”
With that said, the outcome was more than satisfactory. They were most worried that only Yang Kai would be able to use the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors.
Upon Shen Tu Mo’s return, they all looked inquisitively at him.
After giving it a thought, he spoke, “An average Seventh-Order Master wouldn’t be able to activate this thing. Only the most powerful Seventh Orders would be barely capable of doing it. Moreover, the consumption of energy when activating this treasure is related to the size of the target and the distance. The larger the size and the longer the distance, the more energy will be consumed. Still, it’s usable.”
“Good!” Ding Yao breathed a sigh of relief.
Liang Yu Long nodded, “Since it’s usable, this matter cannot be delayed. We need to have the Inner Sanctum refine more of them. However, there are sixteen artifacts in total, and each one of them is quite large. A lot of resources will be needed.”
It certainly required a lot of resources to refine a set of Void Yin-Yang Mirrors. Back then, it cost Yang Kai an arm and a leg to make just one set, but the price was worth it considering the rewards he got out of them.
Zhong Liang grinned, “No pain, no gain. It might be a big investment up front, but the payout we’ll get later more than makes up for it. I’d like to see the looks on those Black Ink bastards’ faces when they reoccupy the resource harvesting areas a few dozen years from now and see that there’s nothing left.”
All of them couldn’t help but let their thoughts run wild as they put on wicked grins.
Ding Yao suggested by saying, “I don’t think there’s a need to create a lot of them. Ten sets should do; otherwise, it’ll be a waste of resources.”
The other Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters nodded, “You have a point.”
“Also, the refinement method has to be passed on to other Great Passes. We can’t keep such a good thing all to ourselves.”
“Of course.”
As soon as Purifying Black Ink Battleship and Purifying Light became widely usable, those from Blue Sky Pass immediately informed the other Great Passes about it. The other Great Passes then refined their own Purifying Black Ink Battleships before sending powerful Masters to bring them to Blue Sky Pass as Yang Kai was the only one who could equip them with Universe Arrays and Purifying Light.
Otherwise, the Humans from these Great Passes wouldn’t be willing to use the Hyper Space Arrays to move people around on the Black Ink Battlefield where every resource was incredibly valuable.
Certainly, they had to share the method of making the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors with the others. Since the transfer of cultivators was not involved, only a small amount of resources would be needed.
“Yang Kai, you’ve made a big contribution again. You put Old Masters like us to shame.” Zhong Liang turned to look at Yang Kai with a satisfied and joyful expression. Since Yang Kai’s arrival at Blue Sky Pass, he had brought a lot of pleasant surprises to them. If not for the fact that Zhong Liang didn’t have a daughter, he would have asked Yang Kai to be his Son-in-Law.
Yang Kai replied humbly, “It was just something I created accidentally many years ago. It’s fortunate enough that this treasure is useful here. I don’t deserve your compliment, Army Commander.”
With a serious expression, Zhong Liang said, “The Void Yin-Yang Mirrors is of great help to us. All Humans from the Great Passes, including Blue Sky Pass, have to take the risk to mine resources. In the past, the Black Ink Clan would always come to harass us and some of our members would inevitably die. With the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors, we no longer have to worry about this.”
All of them nodded in agreement; after all, the Black Ink Battlefield was the home turf of the Black Ink Clan. The living conditions here were too harsh for Humans. In the past, they could only rely on the incredible might of the Great Passes to fend off the attacks from the Black Ink Clan. Even so, every generation, the Cave Heavens and Paradises had to send many people over to help hold the line.
Although the situation on the Black Ink Battlefield could be considered stable for the time being, even the most impenetrable defence could fall apart one day. Once the Great Passes on the Black Ink Battlefield that were guarded by the Humans were destroyed, the 3,000 Worlds would fall into a perilous situation.
By then, the Black Ink Clan would swarm into the 3,000 Worlds, kill everyone, and destroy all in their path. Therefore, to the Humans on the Black Ink Battlefield, anything that could change the status quo in their favour would be good news for them, not to mention that with the invention of Purifying Black Ink Battleships, they could now have the hope of launching a true crusade.
If they could do that, they would be able to wipe the Black Ink Clan out and solve the crisis that the Cave Heavens and Paradises had been facing since time immemorial; however, the crusade was a grand plan that had to be carefully planned out.
After the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in Blue Sky Pass were done with their discussion, they decided to tell those from the Inner Sanctum to refine ten sets of the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors to be used to move Universe Worlds back from different resource harvesting areas.
Nevertheless, they would need full cooperation from Yang Kai. After all, he was the one who invented the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors, so no one was more familiar with their refinement method than him.
Yang Kai stored the eight Yang Mirrors and returned to Dawning Light to retrieve the remaining eight Yin Mirrors. After that, he activated the Universe Transference Law and returned to the Inner Sanctum.
Since everything was ready in Blue Sky Pass, they could requisition unlimited resources from the War Materials Hall. With Dong Guo An Ping from Divine Cauldron Cave Heaven as the leader, many Artifact Refining Grandmasters gathered together to wait for Yang Kai’s return so that they could start discussing the next step.
Soon, Yang Kai and the Artifact Refining Grandmasters started working on making more Void Yin-Yang Mirrors. Back then, Yang Kai personally refined the first Void Yin-Yang Mirrors with the help of the Black Prison’s inmates, creating a kind of rough prototype that only somewhat functioned. After that, with the help of Grandmaster Ma Fan to remould them, the Mirrors could then be considered a finished artifact.
Basically, all of the Artifact Refining Grandmasters in Blue Sky Pass had gathered together, and with Yang Kai’s Void Yin-Yang Mirrors as a blueprint, they worked on improving it as they exchanged sophisticated ideas.
With unlimited amounts of resources and manpower being dedicated to the project, a new set of Void Yin-Yang Mirrors was completed barely one month later.
Ding Yao personally brought these new Void Yin-Yang Mirrors and headed to the first forward base to give it a try. The first forward base had already been occupied by the Humans for some time and mining operations were well underway.
Three days later, a Universe World abruptly appeared outside Blue Sky Pass. Apparently, Ding Yao had moved it back from the forward base.
The experiment showed that the new Void Yin-Yang Mirrors created in Blue Sky Pass were indeed usable. A new way of gathering resources had been invented for the Humans in all these Great Passes.
Since the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors were proven to be usable, those from the Inner Sanctum started creating more of them. According to the Army Commanders’ plan, they had to make 10 sets of the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors.
In the meantime, the Hyper Space Array in the Inner Sanctum started running as well. Jade slips that contained the method of creating and activating the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors were sent to the other Great Passes.
Soon, the Humans from the other Great Passes received the news from Blue Sky Pass, and upon learning the abstrusity and uses of the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors, they were elated as they started creating more of them.
While those from Blue Sky Pass were busy making more Void Yin-Yang Mirrors, the members of Dawn had gathered together on the deck of Dawning Light, which was parked beside a Universe World. Feng Ying was standing on the deck as she could see that Yang Kai was swamped with work in the periphery of the Universe World.
Since more Void Yin-Yang Mirrors were being produced, the members of Dawn no longer had to exert themselves to extract resources. After Yang Kai sent all these Universe Worlds back to Blue Sky Pass, those from the Inner Sanctum would mine them.
Therefore, the members of Dawn could relax a little.
With that said, it didn’t mean they didn’t have work to do. Now that Yang Kai had to move the Universe Worlds in this resource harvesting area, the members of Dawn had to follow him closely and protect him in order to prevent any Black Ink Clansmen from disturbing him. Yang Kai was a powerful Master who possessed a World Spring, which was why he wasn’t afraid of Black Ink Strength. If any reckless Black Ink Clansmen really came over to make things difficult for him, they would never be able to return.
However, the artifacts he left behind around the Universe World had to be guarded by some people.
If the Black Ink Clan managed to steal these artifacts, they might be able to uncover the secrets behind the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors. If they could also use these artifacts, it would be terrible news for the Humans. Hence, this scenario had to be prevented from happening.
With the help of the Universe Arrays on the Purifying Black Ink Battleship in Blue Sky Pass and Dawning Light, Yang Kai was able to easily move between the two places, allowing him to rapidly move many Universe Worlds.
Just one month later, the several dozen Universe Worlds that the members of Dawn Squad were given to mine were all gone, sent back to Blue Sky Pass.
Now, almost all 20,000 soldiers had left Blue Sky Pass to extract resources from those Universe Worlds.
More and more Universe Worlds were shattered as the hidden resources were mined out. At the same time, the reserves in the War Materials Hall increased significantly each day.
The entire Blue Sky Pass was brimming with a sense of joy.
The Humans had been living in a hostile environment for too long, and before this, the cultivators from different Great Passes had to rely on the resources sent to them from the 3,000 Worlds to cultivate as well as the meagre amount they could extract after they occupied resource harvesting areas.
However, every time they occupied a resource harvesting area, there wouldn’t be enough time for them to mine materials. They had several dozen to 100 years at most, and they were unable to send a lot of people to do this work either; hence, they couldn’t get their hands on a lot of resources.
On the Black Ink Battlefield, every Human knew how valuable every single resource was. When they used their Military Merits to trade for resources, they would only get what they really needed. It could be said that they had learned to be incredibly thrifty.
Nonetheless, the birth of the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors changed everything.
According to the estimates from the War Materials Hall, the resources extracted by those from the Inner Sanctum in the past month were equivalent to the total resources mined over the past ten years.
Only one month had passed, and they still had a long way ahead of them. As more Void Yin-Yang Mirrors were completed, there would be even more Universe Worlds that would be moved back to the Great Pass, each one containing a staggering amount of resources.
Everyone was naturally pleased with the good news.
With 20,000 soldiers working together, it would mean that they would be able to mine the resources very efficiently.
Most of the time, a Universe World would become shattered remnants barely a few days after it was sent back to Blue Sky Pass.
The several dozen Universe Worlds that Yang Kai had delivered over the past month were all gone for good. A lot of cultivators were now looking longingly at the void, and the moment a Universe World appeared, they would stream towards it.
With more Void Yin-Yang Mirrors being created, there were even more Universe Worlds that were sent back. The number of Universe Worlds could finally satisfy the need for the soldiers in the Inner Sanctum to extract resources.
When all 10 sets of Void Yin-Yang Mirrors were completed, the soldiers in the Inner Sanctum could no longer keep pace with the number of Universe Worlds getting sent to this place.
More and more Universe Worlds of different sizes were sent back to Blue Sky Pass, making for a truly magnificent sight.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai was swamped with work at forward base four.
The several dozen Universe Worlds assigned to the members of Dawn were all sent back; however, there were far more Universe Worlds in other neighbouring areas.
The entire resource harvesting area around forward base four had several hundred Universe Worlds, and that was forward base four alone. The situation was similar in other resource harvesting areas occupied by the other three forward bases.
In other words, if they moved all the Universe Worlds from these four resource harvesting areas back to Blue Sky Pass, they would have a reserve of more than 2,000 Universe Worlds.
That was a staggering figure.
It was something that the soldiers of the Inner Sanctum wouldn’t even dare to imagine in the past. In order to finish extracting a reserve of 2,000 Universe Worlds before now, it would have taken them several thousand years.
But now, they would only need several dozen years or even shorter to achieve that.
The anomaly of Universe Worlds disappearing from these forward bases eventually caught the Black Ink Clan’s attention and many scouts were sent to look into the matter.
Nevertheless, these scouts would all be killed the moment they were discovered.
Although they managed to kill the majority of Black Ink Clan scouts, some inevitably survived and the existence of the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors must have become known to the Black Ink Clan.
This couldn’t be helped though, as using the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors to move Universe Worlds was not exactly a subtle process. They could never hide it.
In fact, those from Blue Sky Pass didn’t intend to hide it anyway. The Black Ink Clan soldiers under Men Xie had suffered a serious setback previously, and the Royal Lord himself was badly injured. Even though the Black Ink Clan had noticed what was going on, they were unable to do anything about it. They wouldn’t be able to launch a major attack before resting and building up their forces for several dozen years first.
While it was a chance for the Black Ink Clan to recuperate, the same was true for those from Blue Sky Pass. They certainly had to seize this chance and get more benefits from the Black Ink Clan.
Two years passed by in the blink of an eye.
The resource harvesting area around forward base four was practically empty now, with all the Universe Worlds that could be moved having been moved.
Besides Yang Kai, who had been working hard, Lu An and Cha Hu had also been helping out with sets of the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors of their own.
Although Shen Tu Mo had given it a try and confirmed that the most powerful Seventh-Order Masters could also use the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors, it was extremely taxing even for them. It was far more efficient for the Eighth-Order Division Commanders to use them.
Hence, Lu An and Cha Hu took over the task. Even though they were in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, which was one Order above Yang Kai, they were far less efficient in moving the Universe Worlds than the latter; after all, Yang Kai was a master of the Dao of Space, so it would be easier for him to operate the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors.
This was a treasure he originally created for himself after all.
One day, Dawning Light landed on the asteroid where forward base four was located.
After disembarking, Yang Kai headed straight to the building where the two Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were stationed. Upon seeing them, he saluted them and said, “Sirs, all the Universe Worlds in this resource harvesting area have been moved back. Is there anything else we should do?”
Lu An smiled and nodded, “There’s nothing else to do here. We’ll be returning to the Inner Sanctum soon.”
Yang Kai was slightly surprised, “Are we going back so soon?”
Cha Hu asked, “What do you want to do?”
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai replied, “All the Universe Worlds in the resource harvesting area in forward base four are indeed gone; however, I can see there are more Universe Worlds that are further away. Should we go there and move more of them back?”
Upon hearing that, Lu An burst into laughter, “How many more do you want to move?”
Yang Kai replied, “The more the better?”
Cha Hu waved his hand, “There’s no need for that. The Universe Worlds collected outside the Inner Sanctum are enough to keep everyone busy for some time. As long as they can fully extract those Universe Worlds, the resources would be enough for consumption in the Inner Sanctum for 1,000 years. Moreover, the further we go, the more likely we’ll come across the Black Ink Clan. Since we’ve taken some advantage, we should be satisfied with the win instead of potentially suffering losses.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai nodded, “I’ll listen to you then, Division Commander Cha.”
Lu An said, “You’ve been working hard these past two years, so it’s time you got some rest. I suppose you haven’t had time to cultivate since you ascended to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Although I haven’t had time to cultivate, the living beings in my Small Universe help increase my heritage at all times, so there’s no risk of my foundation weakening or destabilising.”
Upon hearing that, Lu An nodded, “I’d forgotten about that.”
“Sirs, there’s one more thing I need to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“When I was moving the Universe Worlds, I inadvertently passed by an area in the void and felt some Space Principle fluctuations.”
Lu An was startled for a moment, “Space Principle fluctuations?”
Cha Hu soon realised something, “You mean, that might be a portal to a Sealed World?”
Yang Kai nodded, “In fact, I’m certain that it’s a portal to a Sealed World. However, since I was busy moving Universe Worlds, I didn’t have time to look into it. Now that we’re done with moving the Universe Worlds, I would like to investigate. Perhaps we’ll find some Profound Yin Spirit Fruits there.”
Profound Yin Spirit Fruits were extremely precious to all the Humans in the Great Passes. Yang Kai recalled the list of resources that could be traded for in the War Materials Hall, and the number one resource on the list was Profound Yin Spirit Fruits.
This made sense as in every Great Pass, there were a lot of Human soldiers that had been invaded by Black Ink Strength before and had no choice but to give up a part of their Small Universe, making it incomplete.
This kind of incompleteness could only be repaired by consuming a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit; therefore, the Spirits Fruits were extremely precious to every Great Pass, and they were out of stock most of the time.
On the other hand, only in the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield could Profound Yin Spirit Fruits be found.
Cha Hu’s eyes instantly brightened, “Do you remember where it was?”
Yang Kai replied, “I’ve left a mark on the Universe Chart.”
“Good. This King will call the roll and go with you,” Upon finishing his words, Cha Hu immediately got prepared.
A moment later, more than 100 people gathered together on Dawning Light as Cha Hu took charge of everything. On the other hand, Lu An stayed in the forward base; after all, there was a Purifying Black Ink Battleship here, so an Eighth-Order Master had to personally guard it.
Including the members of Dawn, there were currently more than 100 people on the Warship. In other words, there were about seven or eight Squads worth of people.
The Squad Leaders of these Squads came over and passionately greeted Yang Kai as they engaged in small talk. All of these people had fought alongside Dawn in the previous battle for the resource harvesting area. Even though he wasn’t familiar with all of them, Yang Kai could recognise them, and after some introductions, they could be considered friends.
After they were done with the small talk, Yang Kai took the initiative to approach Cha Hu and asked in puzzlement, “Sir, why have you brought so many people along?”
Although he could confirm that the location where there were fluctuations of Space Principles was a portal to a Sealed World, it was just one Sealed World. He initially intended to lead the members of Dawn to explore it and just bring out the good stuff.
However, he had never expected that Cha Hu would bring seven or eight more Squads with him, and Cha Hu himself would take charge of this mission.
Even if they were wary of the Black Ink Clan, it wasn’t necessary to bring so many people with them. Moreover, no Black Ink Clansmen would move around this area now as all the Universe Worlds had been sent to the periphery of Blue Sky Pass. Since there were no benefits to be gained around here, why would any Black Ink Clansmen come over just to get killed?
Without directly answering his question, Cha Hu asked, “How much do you know about the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “I know little about them. I’m only aware that there might be Profound Yin Spirit Fruits and other rare Spirit Herbs in some of the Sealed Worlds.”
Cultivation resources could be extracted from the dead Universe Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield; however, Spirit Herbs needed for Alchemy had to be sent from the 3,000 Worlds or found in those Sealed Worlds.
Therefore, in comparison, Spirit Pills were even rarer than normal cultivation resources on the Black Ink Battlefield. That was because there were only a limited number of methods that they could get the ingredients needed for refining them.
Yang Kai knew little about the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield. When he passed through the Void Corridor in Black Territory and arrived at the Black Ink Battlefield, he directly appeared in a Sealed World, but that was his only experience in this matter.
However, he had to keep himself safe at that time, so he didn’t have time to explore it.
Cha Hu nodded, “There’s one thing that’s special about the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield. It’s that they are clustered.”
Yang Kai arched his brow, “They’re clustered?”
“Have you ever picked mushrooms before?”
A puzzled Yang Kai shook his head, not knowing why this would be mentioned all of a sudden.
Cha Hu grinned, “When I was young, I would always go to the back hills of Crape-Myrtle Heaven during the rainy season. That was when the mushrooms would sprout. My Senior Sister and I would bring our baskets and pick them up. Since I was younger, I’d be responsible for looking for mushrooms while my Senior Sister would pick them. Whenever I found a mushroom, my Senior Sister would always find even more mushrooms in a nearby place. At that time, I thought that she was amazing because she could always find more mushrooms than I did.”
There was a longing and gentle expression on this Division Commander’s face, so Yang Kai reckoned that the Senior Sister must be a demure woman.
He spurted out, “Where’s your Senior Sister now?”
The light in Cha Hu’s eyes went out, “She was killed on the battlefield.”
Despite his calmness, it must have been the biggest regret in his life.
Yang Kai apologised for that.
Cha Hu waved his hand, “What I mean is that the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield are like mushrooms. Since you’ve found a portal to a Sealed World, there are probably more nearby. This is what I meant when I said they’re clustered.”
Yang Kai was astounded, “Why is that?”
Instead of directly answering his question, Cha Hu asked, “Have you ever thought about how the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield were formed?”
Yang Kai nodded, “I’ve thought about it before, but I’ve never mulled over it. Even though I have a speculation, I’m unable to verify it.”
“Oh?” Cha Hu was surprised, “What’s your speculation?”
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai replied, “When I found out about the Sealed Worlds, I initially thought that they were a unique feature of the Black Ink Battlefield; however, I soon realised that these Sealed Worlds wouldn’t exist for no reason. The Black Ink Clan lives on World Force. Since all the Universe Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield are dead, why are these unique Sealed Worlds still existent? Then, when I was searching for the Universe Cave Heavens and Universe Paradises left behind by our Seniors, it suddenly dawned on me that perhaps those Sealed Worlds are also a kind of Universe Paradise and Universe Cave Heaven.”
Cha Hu gazed at him with surprise, “I didn’t expect that you’d thought about this aspect.”
Yang Kai was shocked, “Is my speculation correct?”
“I cannot say for certain; however, our Seniors have studied the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield for many years, and their conclusion is more or less similar to yours. Fundamentally, the Sealed Worlds are also Universe Paradises and Universe Cave Heavens; nevertheless, they’ve been in existence for far too long as they were left behind in ancient times. Perhaps the way Humans cultivated was different back then, so the Sealed Worlds that were left behind are different from the current Universe Paradises and Universe Cave Heavens.”
With a solemn expression, Yang Kai said, “In that case, there were Humans who fought against the Black Ink Clan in this place in ancient times.”
Cha Hu nodded, “Yes, we’ve only inherited the will of the ancients. After the ancients battled against the Black Ink Clansmen and were killed, the Sealed Worlds were born.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai nodded, “I understand. Most of the time, the ancients would pass away in groups, so the Sealed Worlds they left behind would be clustered, just like what we see outside of Blue Sky Pass.”
“Exactly,” Cha Hu nodded, “However, we can’t be certain about it. Perhaps the Sealed World you’ve found is the only one there. We’ll only find out after taking a look, but there’s no harm in bringing more people with us just in case.”
Yang Kai nodded with a heavy heart.
It wasn’t because of the number of Sealed Worlds; it was because of his speculations about the Sealed Worlds. If his speculations were right, it would mean that there were already Humans fighting the Black Ink Clan on the Black Ink Battlefield in ancient times. The situation was still the same these days, so when would the war ever end? When would those living in the 3,000 Worlds be free from this constant threat?
If his speculations were right, the ancients back then certainly had to give up parts of their Small Universes so that they would be spared from getting invaded by Black Ink Strength. Therefore, they found Profound Yin Spirit Fruits and even planted these fruit trees inside their Small Universes so that they could consume the fruits at any time.
Their efforts yielded wonderful results for the descendants. That was the reason Humans could now find Profound Yin Spirit Fruits in those Sealed Worlds.
It would take them one day to go from the forward base to the location where Yang Kai had felt the Space Principle fluctuations. Previously, he was busy moving Universe Worlds, so even though he had found a portal, he didn’t have time to deal with it. He only memorised the location so that he could explore it later.
At that time, he also didn’t inspect the surroundings.
One day later, Dawning Light stopped in a particular place in the void. After sensing his surroundings, Yang Kai pointed in a particular direction, “Over there, Sir.”
Cha Hu looked in the same direction and tried to investigate; however, he was unable to detect anything. He reckoned that the Space Principle Fluctuations must be extremely weak. That was the reason he was unable to sense it despite being an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
On the other hand, Yang Kai was a master of the Dao of Space, so he could find these faint traces.
With that said, if these portals could be found so easily, they would have fallen into the hands of the Black Ink Clan long ago, leaving nothing behind for the Humans.
It had to be noted that the Black Ink Clan had occupied this area for far longer than the Humans had.
Cha Hu said, “This King will stand guard for you all, so you can make a move with peace of mind.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai took a step forward.
Yang Kai moved towards the fluctuations and manipulated Space Principles. To him, the almost indiscernible traces were as conspicuous as a beacon of light in the darkness.
In front of everyone’s eyes, he extended his hands into the Void, which started melting away.
Space Principles surged as he forcefully separated his hands.
World Force came right at his face as the portal to a Sealed World was opened.
Cha Hu arched his brow at the sight, thinking that the younger man was truly a master in the Dao of Space. He couldn’t even detect the portal to the Sealed World, but Yang Kai was able to easily open it.
The Squad Leaders, who were standing on the deck of Dawning Light, were staring at the portal with fervent gazes. Human soldiers were always keen on exploring Sealed Worlds. First of all, compared to the hostile environment on the Black Ink Battlefield, there usually wouldn’t be any dangers in a Sealed World. Secondly, every Sealed World would have some good stuff inside. Even though they wouldn’t always get Profound Yin Spirit Fruits, there would certainly be a lot of herbs that could be used to make Spirit Pills.
They would also acquire some Military Merits by exploring these Sealed Worlds and harvesting some treasures.
Cha Hu swept a glance over them and asked, “Do any of you want to look into it?”
“Me!”
“I’m willing to explore it!”
At that moment, the place was bustling with noises as the Squad Leaders fought for the chance.
Cha Hu raised his hand, after which everyone fell silent. He then pointed at the Squad Leader nearest to him and said, “You’ll go in with your Squad. However, regardless of what you get, you have to share half of the Military Merits with Dawn.”
Upon hearing that, the Squad Leader nodded, “Alright.”
Yang Kai was the one who opened the portal to the Sealed World. Supposedly, the members of Dawn had discovered this Sealed World, and they had the right to explore it; however, since Cha Hu had given the order, this Squad had the chance to get some benefits. It was totally reasonable to share half of the Military Merits with Dawn.
“If there’s any danger, inform me immediately!” Cha Hu ordered.
The Squad Leader cupped his fists, “Yes.”
Things wouldn’t always go well every time they explored a Sealed World. There might be some unexpected danger.
The Squad Leader gathered his members and then flew into the Sealed World.
The other Squad Leaders stared at them with envious expressions.
Cha Hu turned to Yang Kai, “Try looking for more Sealed Worlds nearby.”
Upon receiving the order, Yang Kai wandered around the area.
After hearing Cha Hu’s explanation about the origin of the Sealed Worlds, Yang Kai was curious whether they really were clustered just like mushrooms.
He happened to discover something when he passed by this place previously, but he had not looked into it carefully. Now that he started exploring the area, he soon found another portal to a Sealed World.
Just like the previous Sealed World, there were only faint Space Principle fluctuations. If he hadn’t intently searched for it, he would have missed it.
Yang Kai made a move again and opened the portal, after which another Squad went inside.
About a cup of tea stick later, he found two more portals to the Sealed Worlds, which were not far away from the second one.
If the speculation that Cha Hu had mentioned was right, it meant that in this region of the void, the ancient Great Experts had clashed with the Black Ink Clan. A lot of powerful cultivators were killed, and the Small Universes that they left behind formed into a cluster of Sealed Worlds as time passed.
It had been less than an hour since Yang Kai arrived at this place, and he had already found four portals. Obviously, there were even more Sealed Worlds that were yet to be discovered.
As he focused on looking for them, he soon found even more Sealed Worlds.
One day later, all eight Squads on Dawning Light had left to explore the Sealed Worlds. Other than the people who had to stand guard, the members of Dawn had also been divided into two teams, which were respectively led by a Seventh-Order Master, and gone to explore two Sealed Worlds.
Four to five days later, Yang Kai returned to Dawning Light and reported to Cha Hu, “Sir, I’ve explored every corner of this area. There are 11 Sealed Worlds in total, and all the portals have been opened.”
Cha Hu praised him by saying, “You’ve done a great job.”
11 Sealed Worlds would mean tremendous benefits to Humans. A lot of useful herbs and Profound Yin Spirit Fruits would be found in this place.
This cluster of Sealed Worlds could be considered quite large. The best record found in Blue Sky Pass was that they had discovered 7 Sealed Worlds in a particular area in the past.
In order to open those portals, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters had to take action personally, unlike how easy it was for Yang Kai.
With an expert in the Dao of Space around, they wouldn’t miss any hidden Sealed Worlds in this place.
An idea flashed through Cha Hu’s mind as he thought about it. Previously, they had found a lot of Sealed Worlds in many areas around Blue Sky Pass, but due to limited means, they hadn’t necessarily uncovered all the hidden Sealed Worlds. Perhaps there were Sealed Worlds that were yet to be discovered in those places. If they brought Yang Kai to where Sealed Worlds had been found in the past, they might get some pleasant surprises.
He decided to deal with this matter after they were done with the work here.
They would take up some of Yang Kai’s time, but this kind of sacrifice was nothing compared to the rewards they would get.
A considerate Cha Hu said, “We’ll stay here for quite some time. Since you’re free, you can cultivate on your own or explore the Sealed Worlds freely. This King will stand guard on Dawning Light, so you don’t have to worry about anything.”
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai replied, “I’ll go explore a Sealed World, then.”
“En.” Cha Hu nodded, then shouted, “Bai Yi!”
“Yes.” Bai Yi took a step forward.
“Follow your Senior Brother Yang so that you two can take care of each other.”
“Yes.”
Yang Kai didn’t object to it as he shot out of Dawning Light with her and led the way. Soon, they arrived at a Sealed World’s portal.
He activated Space Principles to engulf Bai Yi and crashed into the Sealed World.
A sense of dizziness came over them, but they soon recovered from it. What came into their sight was endless greenery.
This kind of greenery was exceptionally rare on the Black Ink Battlefield where the environment was incredibly hostile. All Universe Worlds were shrouded in Death Qi without a hint of greenery, and eerie Black Ink Clouds loomed everywhere in the void.
Therefore, both Bai Yi and Yang Kai felt refreshed the instant they saw such a beautiful sight.
In this kind of environment, there were surely a lot of Spirit Herbs.
That was indeed the case. Yang Kai soon found a red flower the size of a washbasin in a nearby place. There were seven golden dots on the flower petals that formed into an abstruse pattern.
Yang Kai couldn’t recognise the flower. Although he had studied Alchemic Dao for a time, he stopped improving on it after he left the Star Boundary. He couldn’t recognise all of the Spirit Flowers in the 3,000 Worlds, let alone the ones on the Black Ink Battlefield; however, he still instinctively felt that this red flower was a kind of Spirit Herb.
On the other hand, Bai Yi directly told him the flower’s name, “It’s a Seven Stars Red Rain Flower.”
“You can recognise it?” Yang Kai was surprised.
Bai Yi nodded, “It’s the main ingredient for making the Seven Stars Pill. You should have seen it on the list of resources in the War Materials Hall.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai replied, “I’ve exchanged for some Seven Stars Pills before.”
Seven Stars Pills were wonderful healing medicines. When he saw the pills in the War Materials Hall, he decided to obtain some of them. After the battle against Zhu Feng previously, he consumed some of those pills, and they were truly effective. He still had two Seven Stars Pills with him.
“So, you’re an expert in Alchemic Dao,” Admiration was written all over Yang Kai’s face.
Bai Yi burst into laughter, “I’m not an Alchemist of any sort; however, I did have some experience in exploring Sealed Worlds. The Alchemists from the Inner Sanctum have written up a manual that describes the appearances, harvesting techniques, and uses of some herbs. I have read the manual, so I can remember them.”
It required some special techniques when picking certain herbs. If they did it without much thought, they might damage the medicinal efficacies. Taking that into consideration, the Alchemists from the Inner Sanctum decided to create instruction manuals that recorded the herbs found in Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield and distributed them to the soldiers so that they wouldn’t be rough to the good stuff they found.
Yang Kai suggested by saying, “Since you can recognise it, I’ll let you pick it, then.”
Bai Yi nodded and picked the flower. Fortunately, it didn’t require any special skills for picking Seven Stars Red Rain Flowers, so she soon acquired it.
After they obtained the flower, they were looking forward to getting more rewards in this Sealed World.
Following a brief discussion, they decided to split up while ensuring there was only a distance of 50 kilometres between them. At such a distance, if one of them fell into danger, the other could come to the rescue immediately.
Bai Yi also passed Yang Kai the manual that was made by the Alchemist from the Inner Sanctum.
Yang Kai flipped through it and soon remembered its content.
As he passed through the dense forest, he released his Divine Sense so that he could immediately detect any Spirit Herbs nearby.
It seemed the environment in this Sealed World was quite suitable for the growth of herbs, and after just half a day, Yang Kai had acquired more than 100 herbs and kept them inside his Small Universe. When he returned to Blue Sky Pass, he could hand them in for Military Merits.
Unfortunately, he hadn’t found any Profound Yin Spirit Fruits.
With that said, he wasn’t disappointed, for not every Sealed World had Profound Yin Spirit Fruits. He had opened 11 portals, so there must be Profound Yin Spirit Fruits in some of the Sealed Worlds.
While looking for herbs, Yang Kai was also inspecting this Sealed World.
Gradually, he realised that Cha Hu’s speculation about the origin of the Sealed Worlds could very well be right. Fundamentally, these Sealed Worlds were the same as the Universe Paradises and Cave Heavens left behind by Human Masters after their deaths in ancient times.
However, the way the Great Experts cultivated back then might be a little different from the current cultivators, so the Small Universes they had left behind were distinct.
Another half a day later, Yang Kai had acquired a lot of good things.
Presently, he was moving towards a place where there was a lot of World Energy. He could sense that there was some kind of potent Spirit Medicine over there.
He soon found a plant that was half the height of a Human. Some fruits the size of baby fists were seen hanging on the branches.
This plant was similar to a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit Tree at first glance, but upon closer look, one would realise they were not the same. Instead, it was a different kind of Spirit Fruit Tree.
The manual given to Yang Kai by Bai Yi had a detailed comparison between the two fruit trees, so he could instantly tell the difference.
Although the fruits were not Profound Yin Spirit Fruits, they were very rare as well, so he carefully picked the fruits and transferred the tree to the medicine garden in his Small Universe.
Since long ago, Yang Kai had planted a lot of precious Spirit Herbs inside his personal medicine garden. With the help of Mu Zhu and Mu Lu, who were from the Wood Spirit Clan, the Spirit Herbs in the medicine garden flourished.
Additionally, the flow of time in his Small Universe was four times faster than in the outside world, so the Spirit Herbs in the medicine garden matured much more rapidly.
After the fruit tree was moved to his medicine garden, it would not have any trouble surviving with the two Wood Spirits tending to it; however, Yang Kai was not able to determine when the tree would bear fruits again.
As he continued exploring the Sealed World, Yang Kai found even more Spirit Herbs. He would move the plants into his Small Universe if he was able to do so, and for the ones that couldn’t be transplanted, he would carefully pick their fruits or flowers.
A few days later, he had gained quite a harvest.
He believed that Bai Yi had also acquired a large number of valuable items. The environment in this Sealed World seemed quite suitable for the growth of Spirit Herbs. It was difficult to find Sealed Worlds that were so full of precious Spirit Medicines like this one.
When Yang Kai was looking around one day, he suddenly felt World Force undulating in a place that was several dozen kilometres away from him. The next moment, a deafening noise was heard.
His expression changed as he manipulated Space Principles and disappeared from the spot.
When he reappeared, he was already beside Bai Yi.
He immediately released his Divine Sense to inspect the surroundings, but he couldn’t detect any danger. Staring at the young woman, he asked, “What’s going on?”
Bai Yi frowned and pointed at the dense forest in front of her, “As I was exploring this area, I think I triggered some kind of restriction.”
The noise he had heard just now was the result of Bai Yi activating her World Force in order to protect herself.
“A restriction?” Yang Kai was shocked.
It had been a few days since they entered this Sealed World. Not only were they safe, but they had also acquired a lot of valuable Spirit Herbs. While Yang Kai didn’t come across any danger, Bai Yi accidentally triggered a restriction.
A restriction could either be man-made or naturally formed. It wouldn’t have mattered if it was the latter; however, if it was the former, the speculation Cha Hu had about the origin of the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield would basically be confirmed.
Yang Kai quickly looked in the same direction and saw a dense forest. Nevertheless, the sight before his eyes was somewhat surreal as an almost indiscernible ripple spread across the forest.
There was indeed a restriction here! However, the restriction was so ancient that it no longer functioned smoothly. Following Bai Yi’s attack, a weakness in the restriction was revealed.
Yang Kai slowly closed his eyes, and when he reopened them, his left pupil had turned golden. The golden light radiating from his eye was majestic, and it was able to see through all the falsities in the world.
The Demon Eye of Annihilation from Myriad Demons Cave Heaven was most useful in this kind of situation.
With the help of the Demon Eye of Annihilation, the sight before his eyes changed into something else entirely and Yang Kai couldn’t help exclaiming in excitement.
Bai Yi quickly asked, “Have you found anything, Senior Brother?”
Yang Kai nodded gently, “There are dilapidated Illusion and Killing Arrays here. They’re both clearly man-made.”
As he spoke, he extended his hand and World Force billowed from his palm into the forest in a regular pattern.
The person who set up these Arrays was quite skilful at his craft. If the Illusion Array and Killing Array had still been intact, Yang Kai wouldn’t have been able to notice a weakness in them even after using his Demon Eye of Annihilation, let alone have a chance to crack them.
However, the restriction left behind here was too dated. Even though it was still operating, its power had been greatly reduced.
Weaknesses were everywhere as Yang Kai scanned this restriction with the Demon Eye of Annihilation. Once he found these weaknesses, he could easily expand them despite not being an expert in Dao of Spirit Arrays.
Barely a cup of tea later, the dense forest in front of them shattered and disappeared into nothingness.
The sight was replaced by a medicine garden where there were countless rare plants.
They could see more than ten Profound Yin Spirit Fruit Trees at first glance, red Profound Yin Spirit Fruits hanging from their branches.
Yang Kai and Bai Yi were pleasantly surprised.
They exchanged glances as they couldn’t believe what they were seeing.
The herbs in this medicine garden easily numbered ten times what Yang Kai had obtained over the past few days, and that was not even counting the extremely rare Profound Yin Spirit Fruit Trees.
One gigantic tree stood tall in the middle of the medicine garden, making it especially conspicuous. This gigantic tree also gave off a sense of familiarity to Yang Kai for some reason.
“Senior Brother, could this be an Illusion Array as well?” Bai Yi asked in a dazed state.
Yang Kai burst into laughter, “We’ll find out if this is an Illusion Array soon enough.”
They then stepped into the medicine garden. The longer they explored it, the more joyful they became. Certainly, everything in this medicine garden was real, not illusory. All these Spirit Herbs had extremely high medicinal ages which gave them potent medicinal efficacies. Even though most of the herbs had already been recorded in the manual made by the Alchemists from the Inner Sanctum, there were still some that were unknown.
In other words, these herbs had never been found on the Black Ink Battlefield before. Even the Alchemists of Blue Sky Pass were not aware of their existence.
These were the ancient herbs that only existed in this medicine garden and could never be found in the outside world.
After some quick calculations, the pair realised that there were several thousand Spirit Herbs that they could or could not recognise. They had found more than 20 Profound Yin Spirit Fruit Trees alone, each of them having between 3 to 8 ripe fruits.
There were also a number of empty spots in the garden which Yang Kai figured had originally been herbs; however, they had died out after a long period of negligence.
A sense of regret overwhelmed Yang Kai. He had no idea what those dead Spirit Herbs were, but everything in this medicine garden was rare and precious, so it was a shame that they were gone.
Finally, he stood in front of the huge tree in the middle of the medicine garden and looked up in a dazed state.
Bai Yi appeared beside him and said, “Senior Brother, it seems that the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield were really formed from the ancient Great Experts’ Small Universes after their death.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Yes, and this particular Sealed World we’re in was left behind by an Alchemist.”
“How do you know?” Bai Yi was puzzled.
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “Only an Alchemist would spend so much time and energy to grow such a large medicine garden in their Small Universe.”
He came to this conclusion after considering his own experiences. The average cultivator who knew nothing about the Alchemic Dao wouldn’t know how to nurture Spirit Herbs properly. Yang Kai had Mu Zhu and Mu Lu to help him out, and he had studied the Alchemic Dao in the past, which was why he still had a medicine garden in his Small Universe.
The average cultivator would have killed these rare herbs if he really transplanted them to their Small Universe without knowing how to care for them.
Since this Sealed World was left behind by an Alchemist, the environment was naturally suitable for the growth of Spirit Herbs. That was the reason they had gained quite a lot of rewards as they explored this place.
However, their previous gains were nothing compared to the precious herbs in this medicine garden.
This medicine garden was the biggest prize.
“This Alchemist truly treasured his medicine garden. He might have set them up himself or employed someone to arrange powerful Arrays around this medicine garden to protect it; however, since he was an Alchemist, he probably knew little about fighting. After he was killed in a battle, his Small Universe must have collapsed. This medicine garden was saved with the restriction’s protection. We just happened to come across it and gain all the benefits.”
Upon hearing that, Bai Yi nodded, “You have a point, Senior Brother.” She then gazed at the gigantic tree, “Can you recognise this tree?”
She was curious about why Yang Kai had been standing in front of this giant tree for a long time now.
Yang Kai’s face twitched as he nodded, “Yes.”
“What tree is it?”
Yang Kai let out a breath, “You’ve probably heard of it, but you don’t recognise it because you have never seen it before. It’s a World Tree!”
Upon hearing that, Bai Yi was astonished, “The World Tree? Did you just say it’s the World Tree?” She suddenly recalled something, “Wait a moment, Senior Brother. It’s said that the World Tree is hidden in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. There was a Senior from Divine Feather Paradise who entered the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary before and heard stories about the World Tree, but he never saw it in person. Could the rumours be false?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “The World Tree is indeed hidden in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. The rumours that Senior of yours heard weren’t false. I’ve been to the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary and had the chance to see the World Tree.”
“Then, the one in front of us…” Bai Yi was puzzled. The World Tree was a one-of-a-kind existence. Since it was still in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, why would it appear in this place?
Yang Kai patted the thick trunk of the World Tree, “It’s certainly not the Mother tree. It’s just a clone of the World Tree. Obviously, the owner of this Sealed World was lucky enough to have obtained a root from the World Tree and then planted it in his Small Universe. It has grown to such a scale over the years.”
“A clone?”
“Yes, a clone!” Yang Kai nodded repeatedly, “In the past, I had the luck to acquire a root from the World Tree. At that time, my homeland was on the brink of collapse, so I planted the World Tree’s root there to ensure its survival. Moreover, with the existence of the World Tree’s clone, my homeland became the most important Universe World in the 3,000 Worlds. The Cave Heavens and Paradises all send many of their young and talented disciples there to be nurtured by it.”
“Why is that?” Bai Yi was perplexed.
Yang Kai explained, “It’s natural that you don’t know about it, Junior Sister. Although the World Tree in my homeland is just a clone, the people living there can reap immense benefits from the tree’s nourishment. By cultivating in that special environment from a young age, one’s innate talent can be increased and they can more easily condense a firmer Dao Seal. Now, there are a lot of people in my homeland who are capable of directly ascending to the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm. There are even quite a number who can directly make it to the Seventh Order.”
Bai Yi was shocked, “I can’t believe that a World Tree’s clone has such amazing effects.”
“En,” Yang Kai let out a sigh, “When I planted the root back then, I just wanted to save my homeland from falling apart. I didn’t have any clue about the benefits it would bring, and that almost caused a crisis sometime later.”
The World Tree’s clone was immensely beneficial to the Star Boundary as all the living creatures there benefited from its presence; therefore, there were a lot of talented people who appeared in the Star Boundary over the years. Previously rare, Heaven-defying geniuses were now everywhere in the Star Boundary.
Since a clone was already so useful to a Universe World, what would happen if a cultivator planted one in their Small Universe? Fundamentally, a cultivator’s Small Universe could be considered a Universe World as well.
Many people had speculated that one would benefit greatly if he could do so.
The envoys from the Cave Heavens and Paradises who were stationed in the Star Boundary had tried to obtain roots from the World Tree’s clone and plant them inside their Small Universes.
Without fail though, none of these roots survived.
Therefore, the foreign affairs envoys speculated that only a root obtained from the Mother tree could be turned into a clone while the root hairs acquired from a clone could not survive.
Since the World Tree’s clone before their eyes was fully grown, it suggested that the Sealed World’s owner had previously obtained a root from the real World Tree, just like what Yang Kai had done.
However, while Yang Kai planted the root in the Star Boundary, this person planted it in their Small Universe.
Bai Yi looked up and muttered, “If this is the World Tree’s clone, could the fruits on its branches be World Fruits?”
It wasn’t certain how long this World Tree’s clone had lived, but it was full of fragrant Spirit Fruits. They could see that there were countless Spirit Fruits hanging on the branches.
It was just like what Yang Kai saw when he came across the real World Tree in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary.
The question of whether a World Tree’s clone could bear World Fruits had been troubling the Open Heaven Realm Masters of the Cave Heavens and Paradises. Many speculated that it could bear fruits, but they were not certain when it would happen.
Yang Kai had also been looking forward to the day when the World Tree in the Star Boundary would bear fruits; however, it had only been a short time since the World Tree was planted, so it hadn’t shown any signs of bearing fruits.
The one in the Sealed World had verified their speculations.
The clone could also bear World Fruits; a lot of them in fact.
“Yes, they’re World Fruits,” Yang Kai nodded, “But… they’re slightly different from real World Fruits.”
Bai Yi asked curiously, “What’s the difference?”
Yang Kai shook his head as he couldn’t really tell; however, he could see that the World Fruits hanging on this fruit tree were indeed different from the ones he saw in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. The most glaring difference was that the World Fruits here were much smaller.
“This discovery is very important. Junior Sister, you stay here while I inform Division Commander Cha about it so that he can send more people to this place,” Yang Kai said.
“Understood,” Bai Yi nodded.
It was then that Yang Kai pushed his Space Principles and disappeared from the spot.
The next instant, he appeared before the Sealed World’s portal and dashed out of it.
Meanwhile, Cha Hu was standing on the deck of Dawning Light monitoring the surroundings to prevent any Black Ink Clansmen from attacking them. Fortunately, the Black Ink Clan seemed to have given up on this area after the last great battle here. Not even a single Black Ink Clansman had been spotted in this area for some time now.
The moment Yang Kai appeared, Cha Hu turned to look at him.
As the younger man got closer, Cha Hu asked with a frown, “What’s wrong?”
Seeing that Yang Kai had returned alone while Bai Yi was nowhere in sight, he thought that they had encountered some danger in the Sealed World.
“Sir,” Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Junior Sister Bai and I have discovered something critical in the Sealed World we were exploring,” He then recounted what he had seen.
Upon hearing that, Cha Hu became excited, “Are you sure it’s a World Tree’s clone?”
Yang Kai replied, “There’s one in my homeland, so I can recognise it. Additionally, there are a lot of rare Spirit Herbs in the medicine garden. I can’t even recognise some of them, so I don’t dare to rashly harvest them. You’ll have to head over and make a decision, Sir.”
Cha Hu nodded, “In that case, I definitely have to take a look.”
After that, he told two Squads who had just returned to follow him. There were a lot of herbs and a World Tree in an ancient medicine garden, so they would need a lot of time and manpower to harvest them. It was definitely better to bring more people with him.
They soon passed through the portal and streamed into the Sealed World.
Since there wasn’t a need to explore anything, they headed straight to the medicine garden, and an incense stick later they arrived.
Bai Yi stepped forward to salute him but Cha Hu waved his hand to stop her before his gaze fixed on the World Tree’s clone.
The members of the two Squads exclaimed as well. Although they had respectively explored a Sealed World each and acquired some treasures, they had never seen anything as magnificent as this.
The medicine garden was covered in Spirit Medicines, some they could identify, and some they could not, and in the middle of the garden stood a World Tree clone that was full of World Fruits.
They had all heard about the World Tree before, but none of them had ever seen it. All of them grew curious as they examined the World Fruits. This couldn’t be helped, as it was said that World Fruits could allow an Open Heaven Realm Master to directly ascend to the next Order and increase the natural limits of their aptitude.
It was expected that they drooled over such treasures. If an Open Heaven Realm Master, whose upper limit was the Seventh Order, could consume a High-Rank World Fruit, he would instantly make it to the Eighth Order. On the Black Ink Battlefield, an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master would be a Division Commander.
It had to be noted that there were over 20,000 soldiers in Blue Sky Pass, but there were only a few dozen Eighth-Order Division Commanders, and each one was immensely important to the Human race as a whole.
If an Open Heaven Realm Master, whose limit was the Eighth Order, could consume a High-Rank World fruit, they would become an Old Ancestor, a powerhouse that could tilt the entire direction of the war against the Black Ink Clans.
Even a powerful Master like Cha Hu felt his emotions undulating.
However, he soon pulled himself together and ordered the two Squads to begin harvesting the herbs in the medicine garden. They were ordered not to touch the ones they couldn’t recognise as he would find a way to deal with them later.
On the other hand, he led Yang Kai to approach the World Tree’s clone.
A moment later, he said, “I remember that when you arrived at Blue Sky Pass for the first time, you said that you had seen the World Tree in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary and even obtained some World Fruits.”
Yang Kai had indeed told the Eighth-Order Masters about his past experiences, so this wasn’t really a secret among the Army and Division Commanders in the Inner Sanctum.
“Indeed,” Yang Kai nodded, “Back then, I directly ascended to the Fifth Order, then made it to the Sixth Order after consuming a Mid-Rank World Fruit.”
Cha Hu asked, “Since you think this is a World Tree, could the fruits on the tree be World Fruits as well?”
Yang Kai nodded again, “There’s no doubt about it. However, this is not the Mother Tree; it’s just a clone. Although the fruits on this tree are indeed World Fruits, they’re different from the ones I’ve acquired.”
“How are they different?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “I can’t really tell, but I do have some Low-Rank World Fruits with me. Please take a look, Sir.”
Upon finishing his words, Yang Kai fished out a Low-Rank World Fruit and passed it to Cha Hu.
When he was in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary back then, he acquired 3 Mid-Rank and 13 Low-Rank World Fruits. He passed Lu Xue and Yue He a Mid-Rank World Fruit each, and he consumed the remaining one. It could be said that they had been put to good use.
On the other hand, he had given Guo Zi Yan a Low-Rank World Fruit so that the latter could ascend from the Second-Order to the Third-Order Open Heaven Realm directly. He didn’t give out any of the other Low-Rank Word Fruits as they were not really valuable.
That said, Yang Kai had consumed some Low-Rank World Fruits while fighting his enemies before. Although they were useless for raising his Order, they could replenish a large amount of a cultivator’s World Force in short order with no side effects. They were vastly superior to any kind of restorative Spirit Pill in that regard.
Yang Kai still had some Low-Rank World Fruits on him.
After taking the Low-Rank World Fruit, Cha Hu examined it and looked up at the fruits on the tree; then, he furrowed his brows.
The ones on the tree were indeed different as they were much smaller than the World Fruit passed to him by Yang Kai.
“So, do you think the fruits on this tree have the amazing effects that we’ve heard from the rumours?” Cha Hu suddenly asked.
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai shook his head, “I wouldn’t dare to make a speculation. After all, I haven’t consumed one before. Regardless, this is a clone, so the fruits are definitely not comparable to the ones hanging on the Mother Tree.”
Cha Hu nodded gently and passed the Low-Rank World Fruit back to Yang Kai, “Regardless, the fruits must be extremely valuable. We should pick them first and then let the people back in the Inner Sanctum study them.”
He then turned to Yang Kai and asked, “Is there anything I have to take note of when picking these fruits?”
After pondering on it for a moment, Yang Kai replied, “Back then, every time I picked a World Fruit in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, I had to go through a kind of reincarnation. In essence, each fruit contained an entire World with its own Principles; however, that was the case for the Mother tree, I’m not sure if it’s the same for this clone.”
Cha Hu chuckled, “Interesting. Well, we’ll know once we try.”
“Yes,” Yang Kai replied.
They then started picking the fruits.
Yang Kai was initially wary that he would have to go through a reincarnation again just like what happened in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary; however, when he picked the World Fruit nearest to him, he only fell into a dazed state while a mysterious World Force clashed with his Soul in an attempt to pull him in. He only resisted for a bit and became safe; he didn’t really fall into that World.
It seemed that the fruits on the clone tree had also inherited the characteristics of the fruits on the Mother tree, but they were not nearly as profound or abstruse as the ones on the latter.
Perhaps it also had something to do with the fact that Yang Kai had become stronger as well. In the past, he was only an Emperor Realm Master who had just condensed his Dao Seal when he was in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. Now, he was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
When he turned to look at Cha Hu, he realised that the latter wasn’t affected at all. The fruits just instantly disappeared from the tree wherever the older man went.
Yang Kai quickly pulled himself together and continued picking the fruits.
There were more than 1,000 fruits on the tree, but they were soon fully picked. Yang Kai didn’t intend to keep any of them and just passed all the fruits he had picked to Cha Hu.
All the World Fruits were collected within an hour.
Although there were no more fruits left, the World Tree’s clone before their eyes was extremely precious as well; hence, they wouldn’t want to miss it.
However, Cha Hu didn’t immediately put the World Fruits inside his Small Universe, and after giving it a thought, he said, “Yang Kai, take this World Tree.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai was astounded.
Cha Hu went on to say, “Although this King doesn’t know what benefits this thing will bring, I reckon that it wouldn’t cause any harm as it’s a World Tree clone that was planted in an ancient Great Expert’s Small Universe. Even though you’re just a Seventh-Order Master, we have to ensure your safety as you are of critical importance to us. It won’t matter if this thing brings no benefits; however, if there are any benefits, it should help you grow your strength more quickly so that you’ll be able to defend yourself on the Black Ink Battlefield.”
A grateful Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Many thanks, Sir.”
Cha Hu waved his hand, “You are the one who has discovered these 11 Sealed Worlds; without you, we wouldn’t have gained so many benefits in the first place, so you have the right to keep this thing. However, this King has to make one thing clear to you. Even though those from the Inner Sanctum wouldn’t object to it when they find out you’ve acquired this thing, you’ll have to exchange your Military Merits for it. As for how many Military Merits will be needed, that depends on how many benefits you’ll get from this treasure. When we return to the Inner Sanctum, the Army Commanders will ask you about it.”
Yang Kai nodded, “I understand.”
Although he was the one who had discovered the treasures in this Sealed World, the rules were that everything had to be handed in and then exchanged for Military Merits on the Black Ink Battlefield.
“Make a move now. I’ll head over there to have a look around,” Cha Hu said, then shuffled towards the medicine garden. Most of the Spirit Herbs in the medicine garden had been picked, but the unrecognisable ones still remained in place. They wouldn’t dare to pick them lest the medicinal efficacies were damaged.
Standing in front of the World Tree’s clone, Yang Kai activated his Divine Sense and as Space Principles undulated, the Void around him started contorting.
He initially thought that, given his current strength, it wouldn’t be difficult for him to transfer this World Tree clone inside his Small Universe.
Nevertheless, after some investigation, Yang Kai realised that he had been too naïve.
After Cha Hu finished picking the remaining Spirit Herbs in the medicine garden two hours later, he realised that Yang Kai had been standing in front of the World Tree clone without making a move. Besides that, his face was slightly pale, which suggested that he had consumed quite a lot of energy.
With a frown, Cha Hu appeared beside him and waited patiently.
Another two hours later, Yang Kai opened his eyes and let out a breath.
“What happened?” Cha Hu asked. Bai Yi was also looking at Yang Kai with curiosity.
Yang Kai put on a helpless smile, “Sir, this World Tree clone is closely connected to this Sealed World. They’re inseparable.”
Cha Hu was stunned, “Really?”
As he spoke, he released his Divine Sense into the surroundings. He was more powerful than Yang Kai, so it took him a shorter time to inspect everything. Just like what Yang Kai had said, the World Tree’s clone and this Sealed World were inseparable.
This truly surprised him. When he told Yang Kai to take the World Tree, he was doing it for the latter’s own good. Just like he had said, despite not knowing what benefits the World Tree would bring, it wouldn’t cause any harm to take it. If there were really any benefits, Yang Kai would benefit from them and be able to grow more quickly.
Although a Seventh-Order Master could be considered fairly strong, Yang Kai was still too weak to fight against a Territory Lord, and if he came across a Royal Lord, he wouldn’t even stand a chance to survive.
Cha Hu hoped that Yang Kai could quickly ascend to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm so that the latter could make more contributions to the Human race; however, since this World Tree clone was closely connected to this Sealed World, even an Eighth-Order Division Commander like him wouldn’t be able to easily take it, let alone Yang Kai.
“What a shame!” Cha Hu let out a sigh.
Yang Kai frowned, “There’s still a way to collect the tree, but it will take some time.”
Cha Hu was puzzled for a moment, but he soon understood what the other man meant, “You can’t do that. Don’t even think about it.”
“You know what I’m talking about, Sir?”
Cha Hu snorted, “Since this thing and the Sealed World are closely connected, you just have to store the entire Sealed World inside your Small Universe in order to take this tree.”
“Exactly,” Yang Kai nodded, “There’s no other way around it.”
Cha Hu said grimly, “By doing so, the different kinds of Dao Essences in this Sealed World will merge with your Small Universe. It would be fine if those Dao Essences complement your Small Universe; they might even strengthen your power. However, if they clash with your Small Universe, they are no different from impurities to you, and they might even affect your foundation. You have to know that this method is what those wicked cultivators use to increase their power by forcefully refining the World Force of Universe Worlds.”
Fundamentally, this Sealed World was a Small Universe left behind by an ancient Great Expert that contained their accumulated cultivation before their death. The Dao Essences hidden in this Sealed World were not all beneficial to Yang Kai; instead, they were likely harmful to him. That was the reason Cha Hu objected to this idea. He wanted Yang Kai to take the World Tree’s clone because he wanted to help the latter grow. Hence, he wouldn’t want to see the younger man harming his foundation.
Yang Kai nodded, “Of course, I understand that. However, please don’t forget that I have a World Spring that can protect my Small Universe from any external influences. With it, it will only take me some time to expel the incompatible World Force and Dao Essences in this Sealed World. By then, this World Tree’s clone will be in my Small Universe.”
Yang Kai had a similar experience before. In the past, when he led the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters from Void Land to hunt Zuo Quan Hui down in the New Great Territory, the latter, who was about to be defeated, spread out his Small Universe in a final attempt to resist. To counterattack, Yang Kai also manifested his Small Universe. Although he eventually managed to kill Zuo Quan Hui, a lot of the latter’s power was deposited in his Small Universe following the clash between their Small Universes.
It took Yang Kai some effort to get rid of these impurities, but his foundation wasn’t affected one bit.
He didn’t have the World Spring at that time either, so now that he did, he wasn’t worried about anything.
Cha Hu was still hesitant, but Yang Kai struck while the iron was hot by saying, “Sir, even Black Ink Strength can’t invade my Small Universe, so why would I be afraid of this Sealed World’s power? It could be said that I’m the most suitable person to collect this treasure.”
Cha Hu was somewhat convinced after hearing that, “However, it will take you quite some time to get rid of all the impurities. Your efforts will go to waste if there are no benefits to be gained.”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “It will only take some time to give it a try. Even if there are no benefits, I’ll have a World Tree clone in my Small Universe that might bear the World Fruits in the future. Moreover, it’s a clone of the World Tree, there’s no way there wouldn’t be any benefits.”
Cha Hu fell silent for a moment before nodding, “Alright, you can give it a try. This King will stand guard for you. If there’s any anomalies though, you must immediately give it up.”
“Many thanks, Sir.” Yang Kai cupped his fist.
Since it was decided that Yang Kai would put this Sealed World inside his Small Universe, there was no longer a need for any exploration. Cha Hu ordered everyone else to leave.
Soon, Yang Kai and Cha Hu were the only ones left in the Sealed World.
Yang Kai took a deep breath before activating his power to spread out his Small Universe.
The next instant, his Small Universe proliferated at the speed of lightning and engulfed everything.
Cha Hu was hovering in the void and looking around intently. Upon seeing the young man’s Small Universe though, he couldn’t help but arch his brow.
Supposedly, Yang Kai was a newly promoted Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so his foundation shouldn’t be very stable; however, Cha Hu could see that instead of being unsteady, the heritage of Yang Kai’s Small Universe was rich and ample. As the Small Universe spread further, he could also see the living creatures within it. There was also a small spring that provided a steady yet refreshing aura to the entire Small Universe.
When he was shrouded in Yang Kai’s Small Universe, Cha Hu fell into a dazed state for a moment and, for an instant, he felt that his perception of time had been warped.
[Time Principles?] He raised his brow.
Everyone knew that Yang Kai was an expert in the Dao of Space, but no one was aware that he was also skilful in the Dao of Time.
Cha Hu was astounded, wondering how this brat managed to master both the Dao of Space and the Dao of Time at the same time. It had to be noted that it was extremely difficult to learn the basics of either of these Grand Daos, let alone master them. It would be immensely lucky for anyone to be proficient in one of the two esoteric Grand Daos, so it was inconceivable that someone was actually accomplished in both.
While Cha Hu’s emotions undulated, Yang Kai’s Small Universe had already engulfed the entire Sealed World. Seeing that the younger man didn’t feel any discomfort, Cha Hu set his mind at ease.
All of a sudden, Yang Kai turned to him and said, “Please move away from here, Sir.”
After a nod, Cha Hu turned into a ray of light and dashed towards the exit portal.
When Yang Kai was spreading out his Small Universe, there wasn’t a problem with Cha Hu being there; however, now that Yang Kai was about to retrieve his Small Universe, he had to leave. After all, Cha Hu was an Order above Yang Kai, so the capacity of the latter’s Small Universe wasn’t large enough to accommodate him.
After leaving the portal, Cha Hu turned around and felt a tremor coming from the Sealed World. A rumbling sound was heard from time to time, and the location of the portal contorted as though it would break apart at any moment.
This situation lasted for a few days until the portal finally disappeared altogether. The next instant, a figure appeared out of nowhere. It was none other than Yang Kai.
Nonetheless, his face was pale at this moment, and his aura was unstable, as though he had been badly injured.
Bai Yi instantly approached him, but Yang Kai waved his hand to indicate that he was fine.
He looked pale right now because he had forcefully put the Sealed World inside his Small Universe. The Sealed World was a Small Universe left behind by a Great Expert in ancient times. It was expected that Yang Kai would be greatly impacted after taking it in. However, he had no choice but to do so in order to acquire the World Tree.
An average Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master would have seen his Small Universe exploding if he tried to do this. Fortunately, Yang Kai had a World Spring to protect his Small Universe, so although the process was difficult, he wasn’t at risk of losing his life.
However, before Yang Kai could get rid of the impurities from the Sealed World, he wouldn’t be able to fight against anyone.
Fortunately, it had been peaceful in Blue Sky Pass recently. It would take the Black Ink Clan at least a few dozen years to recuperate from their previous losses, so there wasn’t a need for Yang Kai to battle against anyone.
All the Squads had returned from exploring the Sealed Worlds, and they had all obtained a lot of rewards. Following Cha Hu’s order, Dawning Light turned into a ray of light and flew towards Blue Sky Pass.
A few days later, Blue Sky Pass came into their sight.
They could see that there were a lot of Universe Worlds in the void outside of Blue Sky Pass. These Universe Worlds were moved back from the resource harvesting areas by the Masters from the Inner Sanctum in the last two years. Quite a number of cultivators could now be seen extracting resources in those Universe Worlds.
This was a difficult undertaking, and even though thousands of soldiers from the Inner Sanctum were working on it, it would take them at least 20 years before they could fully extract the resources in those Universe Worlds.
When that time came though, the reserve of resources in the Inner Sanctum would be tremendous. Even without any new resources from the 3,000 Worlds, Blue Sky Pass would be able to last for 1,000 years without needing to resupply.
It could be said that the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors that Yang Kai had brought had alleviated the lack of resources in Blue Sky Pass, and it was the same for the other Great Passes.
As they got closer to the Inner Sanctum, Yang Kai’s voice was heard coming from the cabin, “Sir, I’ll remain out here. Please help me find a safe place outside of the Inner Sanctum. I need to cultivate in seclusion for some time.”
Cha Hu instinctively wanted to reject his idea. Yang Kai was important to the Human race. Since he wanted to cultivate in seclusion, he had to do so in an absolutely safe place. His best choice would be entering the Inner Sanctum. Why would he want to cultivate in seclusion outside of it?
Nevertheless, after giving it a thought, he soon realised Yang Kai’s intentions. What Yang Kai was about to do would cause some inconvenience to the Inner Sanctum, so it really would be better for him to stay outside.
Cha Hu then nodded in agreement, “Good, this King will look for a safe place for you.”
He expanded his Divine Sense and soon found a suitable location. It was a Universe fragment that was left behind after a Universe World had been fully mined out.
There were many Universe Worlds that were being mined outside Blue Sky Pass, so it was expected that a lot of Universe fragments would be produced. They were rubbish to Blue Sky Pass that had to be cleaned up. Although some people would deal with it, they had to wait for the Universe fragments to accumulate to a certain scale first in order to be efficient.
This Universe fragment was only several hundred kilometres away from Blue Sky Pass, and its landmass was neither big nor small. Even if Yang Kai came across any danger while cultivating in this place, those from the Inner Sanctum could immediately come to assist. They wouldn’t have to worry about Yang Kai being harmed by the Black Ink Clan.
Dawning Light then flew towards the Universe fragment and landed on it.
A pale Yang Kai, whose aura was clearly unstable, stepped out of the cabin. His unsteady steps made him look as if he was drunk; however, those who were aware of Yang Kai’s condition knew that he wasn’t inebriated, it was just that his Small Universe was filled to bursting.
“Dawn Squad is to remain here and stand guard for their Squad Leader. This King will head back to the Inner Sanctum and tell some Array Masters to come over and set up another layer of protection. The other Squads can return to their own places,” Cha Hu commanded.
Upon receiving the order, these Squads left Dawning Light and flew towards Blue Sky Pass; Cha Hu also turned into a ray of light and disappeared.
Yang Kai directly sat down with his legs crossed on a flat area on the Universe fragment and started cultivating in silence.
He felt terrible after putting the entire Sealed World inside his Small Universe, and if not for the World Spring’s presence, his Small Universe would have been damaged by now.
This made him feel astounded as he was curious about the cultivation of the owner who left behind that Small Universe in ancient times. With that said, he was certain that the ancient Great Expert was more powerful than him. Perhaps he was in the Eighth-Order or even the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm. That was the reason Yang Kai had fallen into such a state even though the Sealed World he absorbed was clearly just a fragment of the original Small Universe.
Fortunately, it wasn’t difficult to resolve this problem. Yang Kai just had to get rid of the impurities that were useless to his Small Universe. By doing so, not only could he ensure his safety, but he could also keep the World Tree’s clone.
That was Yang Kai’s initial plan, but it would take a pretty long time to achieve it.
As he focused on examining his Small Universe, Yang Kai soon detected the presence of various abstruse Dao Essences which must have belonged to the ancient Great Expert.
When he and Bai Yi were exploring the Sealed World, they hadn’t felt anything special despite being inside it, but now that Yang Kai had gobbled up the entire Sealed World and it was sitting in his Small Universe, he started to clearly detect all the abstrusities hidden within.
He could easily sense the tremendous Alchemic Dao Essence in the Sealed World.
It proved that his speculation was right. The owner of this Sealed World was indeed a skilful Alchemist. That was the reason he spent the time and effort to build a medicine garden in his Small Universe.
Alchemy in ancient times must be different from now; however, the 3,000 Grand Daos had never changed one bit since time immemorial.
The Alchemic Dao Essence in this Sealed World was a pleasant surprise to Yang Kai. If he could refine this Dao Essence, his mastery over the Alchemic Dao would be improved.
These days, he no longer sought to improve his Alchemy skills. Nevertheless, some of the herbs they had collected this time were unknown to the Human race, so they might have some amazing medical efficacies. His effort would be worth it if he could seize this chance to figure out the medical efficacies of those new Spirit Herbs.
Yang Kai got to work as he broke the Sealed World into pieces in his Small Universe. He would refine the Alchemic Dao Essence while getting rid of the impurities lest his foundation be affected.
It wasn’t easy to refine someone else’s Dao Essence; after all, it didn’t belong to Yang Kai. Although it was beneficial to him, it couldn’t perfectly fit into his Small Universe.
Inevitably, some of the Dao Essence would be wasted. As Yang Kai refined the Alchemic Dao Essence in the Sealed World, only 10% of it could be kept.
This was the result considering the fact that he had a World Spring. If he didn’t have it, he wouldn’t have been able to achieve nearly this high an assimilation rate.
At this moment, he couldn’t help but recall Wu Kuang. That guy was a monstrous genius whose Heaven Devouring Battle Law could devour anything and everything in the world and convert it to his own power. If he was the one refining these Dao Essences, he would be able to do so with ease.
Yang Kai was fully aware of the advantages of Heaven Devouring Battle Law; nevertheless, due to various concerns, he wouldn’t dare to use it.
Wu Kuang possessed the Flawless Purifying Golden Lotus, so regardless of how he used the Heaven Devouring Battle Law to absorb external forces, his foundation wouldn’t be affected one bit. Yang Kai had no way to replicate this feat.
The two Supreme Lotuses were indeed Supreme Treasures of the Universe. Although both the Soul Warming Lotus and Flawless Purifying Golden Lotus were extremely rare, one of them was useful for the Soul while the other worked on the body. They had different purposes. While Yang Kai was unable to achieve things that Wu Kuang could, Wu Kuang also wouldn’t be able to accomplish things that were effortless for Yang Kai.
Cha Hu had sent a number of Array Masters to come over and set up a protective Grand Array around the Universe fragment so that Yang Kai wouldn’t be disturbed by any external forces.
Dawn was also stationed here and its members took turns to stand guard for Yang Kai.
Nearly 20,000 soldiers were still swamped with work outside Blue Sky Pass, but without the harassment from the Black Ink Clan, the Black Ink Battlefield seemed to be more serene and less dreadful.
The place where Yang Kai cultivated in seclusion was safe. Feng Ying and the others could detect that his aura was unstable, but he wasn’t at risk of losing his life.
Two months later, a Universe fragment suddenly appeared near the place where Yang Kai cultivated. The Universe fragment was filled with greenery and contained ample World Force.
However, the moment this Universe fragment appeared in the void, its World Force dissipated and disappeared. Without the nourishment of World Force, all the plants on it withered instantly.
Feng Ying, who was on duty, was flabbergasted as she thought that something bad had happened. Nonetheless, she soon realised that this Universe fragment was expelled by Yang Kai during the refinement process. It was a part of the Sealed World as proven by the greenery on it.
That was the reason Yang Kai insisted on cultivating in seclusion outside of Blue Sky Pass instead of staying inside.
It was expected that the Sealed World in his body would be cut into countless pieces and some of them would be purged. If he entered Blue Sky Pass, these Universe fragments that appeared out of nowhere would undoubtedly damage the buildings in the Inner Sanctum. However, it was different outside Blue Sky Pass as Yang Kai could simply toss them away without affecting anything.
Upon that realization, Feng Ying dashed forward and put the Universe fragment inside her Small Universe. Then, she moved to a faraway place and discarded it.
The Universe fragment was just a dead land as all the World Force was gone, so Feng Ying wouldn’t keep it.
After that, a Universe fragment of a random size would appear near Yang Kai every 10 to 15 days. They were obviously the Universe fragments that he had discarded.
The members of Dawn would immediately deal with these fragments so that Yang Kai wouldn’t be disturbed.
As time passed, more and more Universe fragments were disposed of and Yang Kai’s aura became increasingly more stable while he no longer appeared pale. It was apparent that things were going well.
This situation lasted for 6 years.
During this period of time, the members of Dawn had always stayed by Yang Kai’s side.
Over the last six years, he had discarded countless Universe fragments.
When the last Universe fragment was gotten rid of one day, there were no longer any impurities inside his Small Universe. The World Tree, which was originally fixed to the Sealed World, had been extracted and simply needed to be planted in his Small Universe.
The instant the gigantic tree landed, Yang Kai’s entire Small Universe trembled. Even the World Spring didn’t seem able to curb the anomaly.
At that moment, Yang Kai was overwhelmed by a sense of dizziness as he almost couldn’t keep himself upright.
An invisible force exuded from the World Tree’s clone. With the World Tree as the centre, countless invisible threads spread out in all directions.
Those indiscernible threads penetrated every corner of Yang Kai’s Small Universe, and within moments, the World Tree merged with the Small Universe and the two became inseparable.
At that instant, Yang Kai felt that his Small Universe had become closely knitted and impenetrable.
He already had a World Spring, one of the Four Universe Pillars, which protected his Small Universe from any external influences. When dealing with powerful enemies, his Small Universe wouldn’t be impacted one bit regardless of the difference between their strength unless the disparity was insurmountable. Now that he possessed the World Tree, his Small Universe became even firmer.
It surprised him to learn that the World Tree had the same effects as the Four Universe Pillars.
Such a notion never crossed his mind before. He had a feeling that even without the World Spring, he still wouldn’t be invaded by Black Ink Strength, for he now had the World Tree inside his Small Universe. This clone was also able to protect and stabilize his Small Universe, possibly to a greater extent than even the World Spring.
In that case, he could let someone else have the World Spring so that there would be one more powerful Master who wouldn’t need to fear Black Ink Strength. If one of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters could acquire the World Spring, he wouldn’t have to worry about anything when dealing with the Black Ink Clan.
Besides that, Yang Kai soon realised another benefit of the World Tree.
The World Tree was now closely connected to every corner of his Small Universe. Like a living creature, every time the tree breathed, it would affect his Small Universe as his World Force would be refined. Although the effects wouldn’t be conspicuous in the short term, his World Force would undoubtedly become purer in the long term.
In other words, Yang Kai would be able to unleash more powerful attacks even though he would be using the same amount of World Force.
There were already innumerable living creatures inside his Small Universe to begin with and the flow of time was four times faster than the outside world. Even if Yang Kai never cultivated, the increase of his heritage would still be on par with any other cultivators; hence, he didn’t have to worry about increasing his heritage.
With the World Tree in his possession now, the quality of his heritage would also be improved.
Quality and quantity of World Force were what determined whether an Open Heaven Realm Master was strong or weak. If both measures of a person could surpass those of the cultivators of the same generation, the achievements he or she would make in the future would be unimaginable.
Other than the conspicuous benefits that Yang Kai would enjoy, the Humans inside his Small Universe would also benefit from the World Tree’s nourishment. In fact, the instant the World Tree became connected to his Small Universe, all the Emperor Realm Masters from the major Sects could feel that a great transformation had taken place in the Void Continent; however, they couldn’t tell what the transformation was despite instinctively looking in the World Tree’s direction.
With the World Tree’s nourishment, countless geniuses started appearing in the Star Boundary generation after generation. Certainly, the same thing would happen to the Humans living inside Yang Kai’s Small Universe. Due to the quicker flow of time, the effects would be seen in just several dozen years.
By then, Yang Kai could select talented people from his Small Universe and let them cultivate in Blue Sky Pass. Even if his Grand Daos were not suitable for these people, there were a lot of powerful Masters from the Cave Heavens and Paradises in Blue Sky Pass that could teach them. When these geniuses ascended to the Open Heaven Realm, they would be a considerable force when dealing with the Black Ink Clan.
In other words, his Small Universe had practically become the second Star Boundary as it was also an Open Heaven Realm Cradle now.
These were the benefits of the World Tree he was currently aware of. However, Yang Kai had a feeling that a wonderful treasure like a World Tree clone would have even more uses. He just hadn’t discovered the other benefits yet. Regardless, he could only take things slowly.
In a joyful mood, Yang Kai examined his Small Universe one more time, and upon making sure that there were no problems, he slowly opened his eyes.
Right then, he saw several burly figures staring at him in silence. They were none other than Zhong Liang and the other Army Commanders.
An astounded Yang Kai quickly got to his feet and saluted them, “Greetings, Sirs!”
He had no idea when they arrived at this place, but it was apparent that they hurriedly came over upon detecting some kind of anomaly.
Zhong Liang raised his hand to hint that there was no need for him to be overly polite with them. He then hurriedly asked, “How is it?”
Yang Kai replied respectfully, “Everything is fine. I’ve fully isolated the World Tree’s clone from the Sealed World and it is now closely integrated with my Small Universe.”
Ding Yao arched his brow, “Are there any benefits so far?”
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai replied, “I’ve detected three benefits so far. First of all, the World Tree’s clone has the same effects as the Four Universe Pillars. It might even be superior to them. With the clone around, my Small Universe has become completely impervious to outside influence.” At this point, he cupped his fist, “Sirs, since I have the World Tree’s clone with me, I no longer need the World Spring. I’m willing to let someone else have it for the greater good of the Human race.”
Upon hearing that, the Army Commanders exchanged glances as they were evidently surprised. They had never expected that the World Tree’s clone had the same effects as the Four Universe Pillars. They wouldn’t have found out about it if Yang Kai never told them.
With a frown, Zhong Liang said, “That’s very generous of you, but are you sure the clone can resist the Black Ink Strength after you lose the World Spring? If you can’t resist the influence of the Black Ink Strength after giving up your World Spring, you’ll never be able to leave Blue Sky Pass again.”
Yang Kai replied, “Although I’m unable to verify it, the clone can indeed protect my Small Universe from any external influences. Its protection feels even sturdier than the World Spring’s. Even if what you’ve said is true, I’ll just stay inside Blue Sky Pass, so that I won’t come into contact with the Black Ink Clan.”
Zhong Liang chuckled, “Good, don’t forget what you’ve said.” He would rather let Yang Kai stay in Blue Sky Pass forever to ensure his safety so that he wouldn’t have to worry about him whenever the latter left the Inner Sanctum.
“In any case, there’s no rush to handle this issue. Even though you’re willing to give up the World Spring, we’ll need to have a discussion on who will take it over. Moreover, after you lose the World Spring, your Small Universe will no longer be complete. By then, you’ll have to consume a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit to repair your Small Universe. All of that takes time.”
“I’ll leave the details up to you, Sirs.”
The issue of giving up the World Spring was set aside for now, so Liang Yu Long asked, “What is the second benefit?”
Yang Kai replied, “The second benefit is that the clone is able to refine my World Force. With the clone in possession, the World Force in my Small Universe will become increasingly pure.”
“That’s a wonderful benefit!” Ding Yao tutted. Given Yang Kai’s current strength, he was already peerless among the cultivators in the same Order. If the heritage in his Small Universe could be further refined, his strength would be significantly enhanced. In time, not only would he be more powerful than all other cultivators in the same Order, but he would also be able to fight against cultivators that were an Order above him.
After pondering on it for a moment, Zhong Liang said, “Even though the benefit is amazing, it won’t have any conspicuous effects in the short term.”
With that said, Open Heaven Realm Masters enjoyed a very long life. As a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, time was on Yang Kai’s side.
“The third benefit has nothing to do with me, but it is still significant. There are many Humans currently living in my Small Universe. With the World Tree’s nourishment, many rare talents and geniuses will start appearing within two or three generations.”
Upon hearing that, Liang Yu Long was surprised and confused, “What kind of talents and geniuses are you talking about?”
Yang Kai explained, “Sir may not be aware of it yet, but there is also a World Tree clone planted in my homeland, the Star Boundary. A few hundred years ago, I planted it there because my homeworld was at risk of collapsing after suffering too much damage in a great war. I only wanted to save my homeworld by planting the World Tree there, but to my surprise, several generations later, the average aptitude of the cultivators living in the Star Boundary had improved dramatically. The Cave Heavens and Paradises have all set up Dao Temples there to take on more disciples and raise some of their own from outside the Star Boundary. Before I came to the Black Ink Battlefield, there were already a lot of talented youths who had the aptitude to directly ascend to the Sixth-Order and even the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm.”
“Directly ascending to the Seventh Order?” All the Army Commanders were astonished.
If a person directly ascended to the Seventh Order, it meant that their upper limit would be the Ninth Order. If such a person wasn’t accidentally killed, they had a chance to become an Old Ancestor.
“And you say there are many such people?” Zhong Liang asked in a solemn tone.
Yang Kai nodded, “There are many who are able to directly ascend to the Sixth Order. Though only a small number of people can directly make it to the Seventh Order, I suppose every Cave Heaven and Paradise will have at least one to two such people every 1,000 years. In the past, there had been some commotion as the Cave Heavens and Paradises tried to take on disciples in my homeworld.”
Even though they were all in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, they couldn’t help but gasp upon hearing that.
A genius who could directly ascend to the Seventh Order was extremely rare and perhaps such a person would only appear every 1,000 years across the entire 3,000 Worlds. It wasn’t that there were no disciples in the Cave Heavens and Paradises who had directly ascended to the Seventh Order in the past as all the Old Ancestors had directly made it to the Seventh Order back then. However, such people were incredibly rare even in the Cave Heavens and Paradises. When such a talent appeared, it would cause a huge commotion, and they would be given all the support available.
Now, every Cave Heaven and Paradise had one to two such geniuses in Yang Kai’s homeland within the same time frame. That was truly inconceivable.
It would suggest that several thousand years later, there would be an additional 100 to 200 Old Ancestors.
When these powerful cultivators arrived on the Black Ink Battlefield, they would send a shockwave across the Black Ink Clan.
These Army Commanders were stunned as they could envision the bright future ahead of them. When the time came, with so many powerful Human cultivators around, they might be able to destroy the Black Ink Clan once and for all.
Yang Kai went on to say, “The population in my Small Universe is not comparable to my homeworld, so there wouldn’t be a lot of geniuses being born right away. With that said, there would still be quite a number of them. I plan to let them ascend to the Emperor Realm in my Small Universe first, then they can continue cultivating in the Inner Sanctum until they make it to the Open Heaven Realm.”
Zhong Liang and the others finally came to their senses and Ding Yao promptly said, “By then, you have to look for a young person with an outstanding aptitude for me. This King will personally teach them.”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “That person will be extremely lucky to have Commander Yao’s personal guidance.”
Zhong Liang coughed, “I’ll reserve one as well.”
Liang Yu Long and Shen Tu Mo exchanged glances, and then expressed that Yang Kai must not be biased. They would have to take on their own Disciples as well.
Certainly, Yang Kai wouldn’t object to it.
All of a sudden, Zhong Liang said in a solemn voice, “Yang Kai, since this is a matter of those living inside your Small Universe, you have to address the issue of the small population. Since the World Tree’s nourishment can enhance the Humans’ aptitude, it’s certainly better to have more Humans inside your Small Universe so that there will be even more talents.”
Shen Tu Mo nodded repeatedly, “That’s right.”
Yang Kai was torn between tears and laughter, “How am I supposed to resolve the issue of a lack of population?”
Zhong Liang said, “Since those Humans are living in your Small Universe, you can just ensure that there’ll always be food on the table for them and that they won’t have to worry about anything when cultivating. Additionally, you can provide some incentives for giving birth. That way, you’ll be able to increase the population.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai nodded, “You have a point. I’ll come up with ways to go about it.”
In fact, the population of Humans living in his Small Universe had increased significantly over the years; after all, his Small Universe was abundant in resources, and there were no major conflicts. Even the commoners living in it wouldn’t have to worry about most basic needs.
Yang Kai had never been concerned about the number of people living in his Small Universe. Being born, growing old, falling ill, and passing away were all parts of the cycle of life, and it was this very cycle that continued to strengthen the heritage of his Small Universe.
Now that there was a World Tree clone in his Small Universe though, Yang Kai had to seriously consider how to increase the Human population.
“You’ve just obtained the World Tree, so it’s not certain whether there are any downsides. You shall stay in the Inner Sanctum for the time being and not go anywhere,” Zhong Liang ordered, “Moreover, it has been peaceful around Blue Sky Pass recently, and we aren’t anticipating any major conflicts for several decades to come. You should seize this chance to cultivate and increase your strength.”
“Yes,” Yang Kai replied, “Sir, I’d like to head to Pill Hall.”
Zhong Liang asked in puzzlement, “Pill Hall? Why are you going there?”
Yang Kai replied, “The owner of the Sealed World that I consumed was a Grandmaster Alchemist. I happened to study the basics of Alchemic Dao in the past and have refined a lot of that ancient Senior’s Alchemic Dao Essence after taking in his Sealed World. Therefore, it could be said that I’ve acquired some of his inheritance.”
Zhong Liang’s brow twitched, “You’re also well-versed in the Alchemic Dao?”
“I only studied a bit of it in the past. My achievements in it aren’t worth mentioning now,” Yang Kai replied humbly.
Ding Yao frowned, “Do you want to continue cultivating the Alchemic Dao? You’ll risk being a jack of all trades but a master of none. Only by focusing on what you’re best at would you have a bright future in the Martial Dao.”
Shen Tu Mo nodded in agreement, “There isn’t a lack of Alchemists on the Black Ink Battlefield. What we lack are ingredients to use in Alchemy. Don’t get distracted because of that.”
Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Sirs have misunderstood. I’m not planning to cultivate the Alchemic Dao. Other than acquiring a part of the Senior’s inheritance, I also discovered a handwritten record he’d left behind in the Sealed World. Although it is tattered and incomplete, some of the information is still useful. I just want to give something I found a test. If I succeed, it will result in pills that will be useful to those in the Inner Sanctum.”
“A handwritten record?” Ding Yao was surprised.
Yang Kai waved his hand and fished out something that was the size of a palm. It was neither made from gold or jade. This item appeared quite dated and was tattered with quite a number of cracks on it.
It was the handwritten record left behind by the Sealed World’s former owner.
If Yang Kai hadn’t swallowed the entire Sealed World, he wouldn’t have found this thing.
The Senior Alchemist passed away a long time ago, and the Small Universe he left behind had gone through a gradual transformation. The land was already different from the past.
The handwritten record was buried deep beneath the ground.
After transferring the Sealed World into his Small Universe, Yang Kai put in great effort to break up the Sealed World and remove the incompatible pieces from his Small Universe.
Doing so, he had practically rummaged through the entire Sealed World and dug up everything that was hidden within it.
This handwritten record was one of the rewards of that effort. Another reward was a number of rare herbs that hadn’t been picked in the Sealed World.
Yang Kai and Bai Yi hadn’t fully explored the Sealed World back then and had simply stopped doing so after discovering the medicine garden. Naturally, there were still a lot of herbs in the Sealed World which were all now transplanted to the medicine garden in his Small Universe.
The information in the handwritten record was messy; after all, this thing was both ancient and damaged. Nevertheless, Yang Kai was aware that this handwritten record contained the Senior’s insights on Alchemy as well as some strange pill recipes.
One of the relatively complete pill recipes especially caught his attention.
After taking the handwritten record from Yang Kai, Zhong Liang infused his Divine Sense into it and went through the information. A moment later, he asked with a frown, “You can understand this?”
As he examined it, he realised that there was indeed some information in the handwritten record; however, the words used were different from the modern language, so it was hard for him to comprehend it. There were also some strange words that were unrecognisable to him. They were apparently some ancient characters that had long ago ceased to be used.
Yang Kai replied honestly, “I can only understand some of it, so I need to verify some things through experimentation.”
After all, he had refined a lot of Alchemic Dao Essence from the Sealed World, so it could be said that he had acquired a part of the Alchemist’s inheritance. Yang Kai was probably the only one in the world who could understand the handwritten record.
After Ding Yao and the others went through the note, they all appeared puzzled. Just like Zhong Liang, they didn’t understand it.
Following a moment of deliberation, Zhong Liang nodded, “You can go to Pill Hall. I’ll inform them about it so that they’ll give you the assistance you need.”
“Many thanks, Sir.”
Zhong Liang waved his hand, “However, you must focus on cultivating and must not waste your time.”
“I’ll not forget your guidance, Sir.”
Zhong Liang and the others soon left the place.
It was then that Yang Kai returned to Dawning Light and met up with the members of Dawn. Dawning Light soon turned into a streak of light that flew towards the Inner Sanctum.
Upon entering Blue Sky Pass, Yang Kai directly headed to the Pill Hall.
The Pill Hall was a complex located in the Northwest sector of Blue Sky Pass. All the Alchemists in Blue Sky Pass gathered together in this place.
It had to be noted that there were over 20,000 soldiers in Blue Sky Pass, so the need for Spirit Pills was insatiable. They wouldn’t require expensive Spirit Pills to cultivate, but when war broke out, the rate at which healing pills and restorative pills were consumed would be astonishing.
Therefore, regardless of whether there was a war going on or not, those in the Pill Hall were always swamped with work. Every Alchemist there had to exert themselves to produce the Spirit Pills that were needed by the soldiers in the Inner Sanctum.
There was also a large medicine garden in the Pill Hall where a lot of rare Spirit Herbs were grown. Those from the Inner Sanctum couldn’t possibly always rely on the people in the 3,000 Worlds to send them herbs, so every Great Pass had its own medicine garden that was well taken care of.
In the medicine garden in Blue Sky Pass, there were actually hundreds of Profound Yin fruit trees.
These Profound Yin fruit trees were found by the Human soldiers in various Sealed Worlds over the years and were all transplanted to this place.
The need for Profound Yin Spirit Fruits was also insatiable. A lot of soldiers in the Inner Sanctum had given up parts of their Small Universe before, so they longed for these fruit trees to bear fruit.
Someone was already waiting for Yang Kai when he arrived at Pill Hall.
The person’s eyes brightened when he saw Yang Kai, and then he shuffled forward and cupped his fist, “You must be Senior Brother Yang.”
Yang Kai saluted him back, “It is this Yang.”
There was a hospitable smile on that person’s face, “I am Tang Qun. The Hall Master has told me to receive you here. He has ordered that any demand you have is to be met.”
“I’m sorry for troubling you, then,” Yang Kai replied gratefully.
“This way, please.” Tang Qun extended his hand.
Yang Kai thanked him again and followed him into the Pill Hall. The moment he stepped inside the main building, he felt a gush of hot air whisking across his face. The Alchemists inside were clearly busy at work.
Both sides of the main hall were lined with secret rooms. Most rooms were closed while only a small number of them were open and empty.
Yang Kai looked around and realised that there was an Alchemy Furnace in every room that was not closed. There was also a Grand Array inside every room that was used to produce a potent Alchemy Flame.
As Tang Qun moved forward, he explained, “There are three kinds of Pill Rooms in the Pill Hall, graded as Heaven, Earth, and Mortal. Every room is equipped with an Alchemy Furnace and a Grand Array that’s used to produce and regulate Alchemy Flames. In total, there are 200 Mortal Rank Pill Rooms, 50 Earth Rank Pill Rooms, and 8 Heaven Rank Pill Rooms. What kind of Spirit Pills are you going to refine and what Pill Room would you like to use, Senior Brother Yang?”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai replied, “I’m not in a rush to make any pills. There’s something I need to ask you about, though.”
Tang Qun replied, “Go ahead. This Tang will tell you everything he can.”
Yang Kai then fished out a strand of Spirit Grass, “How much of this Spirit Grass do you have in the Pill Hall?”
After taking the Spirit Grass, Tang Qun examined it and said, “Obsidian Grass? We have some reserves of it in the Pill Hall, but there’s not a lot. It’s just a supplementary ingredient for refining the Heavenly Pearl Soul Soothing Pills, so there isn’t a huge demand for it. Although we have some of this grass in the medicine garden, it’s not a lot as we’ll only use it infrequently.”
“A medicine garden?” Yang Kai was astounded, “There’s a medicine garden in the Pill Hall?”
Tang Qun replied with a smile, “Of course we have a medicine garden in the Pill Hall. Many of the Spirit Herbs found in the Sealed Worlds have been moved back to this place; after all, a lot of herbs on the Black Ink Battlefield are different from those in the 3,000 Worlds. Sometimes, even the Master Alchemists can’t identify them. We still don’t know what the uses of some of the herbs in the medicine garden are. Regardless, we’ve transplanted them to this place.”
Yang Kai nodded, “I need some of this… Obsidian Grass.”
In the handwritten record left behind by the ancient Alchemist, this Spirit Grass was not a supplementary ingredient for producing Heavenly Pearl Soul Soothing Pills, but the main ingredient for refining another kind of Spirit Pill. In the handwritten record, this Spirit Grass was not named Obsidian Grass; however, since Blue Sky Pass had its own name for it, Yang Kai didn’t find it necessary to correct them.
He just wanted to try out a pill recipe recorded in the handwritten record. It would be fine if he failed; however, if he succeeded, it would be wonderful news for the Human Race.
Yang Kai then listed a few other herbs. Tang Qun took note of them and told some people to send these herbs over.
Then, Tang Qun asked, “Are you going to be refining pills now, Senior Brother? What kind of Pill Room do you want?”
After pondering on it for a moment, Yang Kai replied, “I’ll use a Heaven Rank Pill Room, then.”
Since the Pill Rooms were divided into Heaven, Earth, and Mortal Ranks, he reckoned that the highest Rank Pill Room would be the best. He was pretty skilful at Alchemy back then, but compared to his cultivation now, his mastery of Alchemy left much to be desired. His skills in Alchemy were no longer on par with his cultivation, so he reckoned that he could increase the chance of successfully producing the pill he was trying to by using a better room.
Tang Qun nodded, “There happens to be an empty Heaven Rank Pill Room. Please come with me, Senior Brother.”
Upon finishing his words, Tang Qun led the way.
Soon, Tang Qun led Yang Kai to a Heaven Rank Pill Room. There was an Alchemy Furnace that was as tall as a Human in the Pill Room and the abstruse patterns engraved on it suggested that it was no ordinary artifact.
The Alchemy Furnaces that were placed in these Heaven Rank Pill Rooms were the best of the best in Blue Sky Pass and were personally created by the Artifact Refining Grandmasters from Divine Cauldron Heaven.
Such a high-quality Alchemy Furnace wasn’t the only one in the Heaven Rank Pill Room of course; to the other side of the Pill Room were five other Alchemy Furnaces of different sizes. The smallest one was only the size of a baby’s head while the largest one was as tall as three Humans stacked on top of each other. The one Yang Kai caught sight of upon entering the room was only medium-sized in comparison.
It was apparent that these Alchemy Furnaces were refined with various different situations in mind when it came to refining Spirit Pills.
Tang Qun explained the uses of these Alchemy Furnaces and passed Yang Kai a token, “There is a Grand Array in this Pill Room that is used to produce an Alchemy Flame. You’ll be able to control the Alchemy Flame after refining this token.”
Basically, every Alchemist had their own Alchemy Flame, and using their own Alchemy Flame would allow them to be entirely in their element when refining Spirit Pills. However, refining certain special pills was a time and labour-intensive process, so it would be better to make use of the Alchemy Flames in the Pill Rooms to save some energy.
Yang Kai used his Conflagrated Knowledge Sea when he practised Alchemy in the past. It was the best Alchemy Flame in the Alchemic Dao at that time. Nevertheless, as his cultivation improved and his Divine Sense became more refined, his Conflagrated Knowledge Sea could no longer keep pace with his needs and the Alchemy Flame in the Pill Room would undoubtedly be the best help for him now.
Yang Kai gratefully accepted the token.
Tang Qun went on to say, “You refine this first, Senior Brother. I’ll urge them to hurry up and prepare the herbs you requested.”
“Many thanks,” Yang Kai expressed his gratitude, and after Tang Qun left, he sat down cross-legged and started refining the token.
The token was a simple item, so just an hour later, he was done refining it. With the help of this token, Yang Kai could control the Grand Array in this Pill Room to draw on its Alchemy Flame.
Soon, all the herbs he requested were sent to him by Tang Qun. After a quick examination, Yang Kai confirmed that these herbs were exactly what he needed, and they came in a large quantity too.
“This Tang will stop bothering you then, Senior Brother. Please feel free to call on anyone if you need assistance or other materials.” Tang Qun bid him farewell and took his leave.
After he was gone, Yang Kai selected a suitable Alchemy Furnace in the Pill Room and organised the herbs so that he could use them when needed.
He hadn’t practised Alchemy for a long time. The last time he did so was when he was refining Heavenly Yuan Seal Stabilizing Pills in Void Land. His skills in Alchemy were somewhat rusty now.
Moreover, the pill recipe he obtained from the ancient Senior’s handwritten record was incomplete as the medium it was recorded on had aged and become tattered. There wasn’t a lot of useful information on it, and not a single pill recipe was complete.
In order to complete the pill recipe he was interested in, Yang Kai had to try out many different methods.
However, if his experiment turned out to be successful, the benefits it would bring to the Human Race would be immense. The prerequisite was that the Spirit Pills that were produced based on the pill recipe really had the effect described in the handwritten record.
Yang Kai then emptied his mind and started condensing the medicinal liquid. This step wasn’t difficult for him. With a high-quality Alchemy Furnace and a potent Alchemy Flame that he could make use of, he just had to be cautious. Experienced Alchemists usually wouldn’t make a mistake in this step. Only novices might fail at condensing medicinal liquid.
After he was done with condensing the necessary medicinal liquids, Yang Kai poured them into the Alchemy Furnace. He then focused on controlling the Alchemy Flame and meticulously refined the pills according to the process described in the handwritten record.
One hour later, a strange noise was heard coming from the Alchemy Furnace, then Yang Kai caught a whiff of something burnt. He froze for a bit, knowing that his attempt had failed this time.
With that said, he didn’t appear to be disappointed. He never expected to succeed in producing the pills on his first attempt; after all, the pill recipe was incomplete to begin with. He just wanted to familiarise himself with the medicinal efficacies and the process so that he could complete the pill recipe.
Only with a complete pill recipe would he stand a chance to refine useful pills.
Yang Kai cleaned up the Alchemy Furnace and threw the residue away. After taking a moment to rest and review, he began his second attempt.
As time passed, he became increasingly immersed in the process as he recalled the days when he used to practise Alchemy in the past.
He had not worked on improving his mastery of the Alchemic Dao for centuries, so his skills were indeed a bit rusty; however, he was taught Alchemy by the Heavenly Way itself back then. If he had persevered and moved forward in this Grand Dao, his mastery of Alchemy would have been just as great as the Alchemy Grandmasters in Blue Sky Pass.
Unfortunately, his time and energy were not infinite. The Martial Dao was the most important pursuit in his life, so he was willing to give up other things that would distract him from focusing on it.
As more and more herbs became burnt dregs, Yang Kai gained a better understanding of the pill recipe in the handwritten record. However, there was always a bottleneck he could not break through when trying to refine this pill.
Something essential was missing from the pill recipe in the handwritten record.
Yang Kai reckoned that this key component was some kind of Spirit Herb, though he didn’t know what it was. He could only try out different types of herbs to figure out what was missing. With that said, he wasn’t blindly carrying out experiments.
Since the handwritten record was found in the Senior Alchemist’s Small Universe, the herbs listed in this pill recipe were most likely grown in his medicine garden.
Therefore, the herbs Yang Kai had selected were the ones he could find in the medicine garden in the Sealed World with seemingly appropriate properties. He decided to experiment with all these herbs first, and if he still didn’t succeed, he would then come up with a new plan.
Those from the Pill Hall had given him their full support, so over the next month, Yang Kai had asked for more herbs from Tang Qun eight times. Every time, Tang Qun would always promptly send him what he requested.
However, Yang Qun was astounded at Yang Kai’s need for such a large amount of herbs as he wondered what kind of pills the latter was making. It had to be noted that Spirit Herbs on the Black Ink Battlefield were even more precious than cultivation resources. Although the Army Commanders had ordered them to fully support Yang Kai, they couldn’t possibly let him endlessly consume so many herbs without yielding any results.
One day, an energetic old man, whose hair and beard were grey with age, arrived at the Pill Hall. Wherever he went, the Alchemists would stop and call out, “Grandmaster Zhu Ge.”
This couldn’t be helped, as this old man was one of the top three Alchemy Grandmasters in Blue Sky Pass, Zhu Ge Ming. When it came to the Alchemic Dao, only the Hall Master and another Grandmaster were comparable to him in the entire Pill Hall. It could even be argued that he was the best Alchemist in Blue Sky Pass. Nevertheless, he was a whimsical man who didn’t know how to liaise with others. Otherwise, he would have become the Hall Master of the Pill Hall.
The current Hall Master had even declared that his skills in Alchemy were slightly inferior to those of Zhu Ge Ming.
When Zhu Ge Ming arrived at the Medicine Hall where herbs were managed, he knocked on the table and listed the herbs he needed.
The Deacon, who was in charge of the Medicine Hall, hurriedly invited him to have a seat before personally looking for the herbs the Grandmaster wanted.
A moment later, the Deacon came over and saluted Zhu Ge Ming, “Grandmaster Zhu Ge, the herbs you want are here; however, there’s a lack of Green Feather Rattan at the moment. I’ve asked someone to pick it from the medicine garden. I’m sure he’ll be back soon. Please bear with us.”
Zhu Ge Ming nodded and asked, “Has that old thing Zhou Fang been refining Universe Formulation Pills recently?”
Universe Formulation Pills were very high-grade Spirit Pills, while Zhou Fang was one of the top three Alchemy Grandmasters in the Pill Hall.
Other than the Hall Master, the two of them were the most important figures in the Pill Hall. However, they were considered rivals as they were experts in the same Dao. It had been thousands of years since they arrived at Blue Sky Pass, but they had never stopped competing against each other in the Alchemic Dao. Certainly, they had also never stopped arguing as neither of them was willing to make a concession.
Apart from the Hall Master, only Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang were able to refine Universe Formulation Pills in the entire Blue Sky Pass. Green Feather Rattan was the main ingredient for refining Universe Formulation Pills, and it wasn’t needed for producing other pills. That was the reason Zhu Ge Ming had this speculation.
Upon hearing that, the Deacon shook his head, “Grandmaster Zhou didn’t take it. It was Junior Brother Tang Qun.”
Zhu Ge Ming frowned, “What does that brat Tang Qun need Green Feather Rattan for?”
There was a helpless smile on the Deacon’s face as he replied, “I have no idea. However, he said that it was Yang Kai who wanted those herbs. Moreover, the Army Commanders have ordered us to provide all the support he needs.”
“Yang Kai?” Zhu Ge Ming arched his brow, “That Yang Kai?”
Although the Grandmaster didn’t speak clearly, the Deacon understood him as he nodded, “Yes, that Yang Kai.”
Yang Kai had practically become a household name in the Blue Sky Pass. Even though those from the Pill Hall had not been on the front lines of the fight against the Black Ink Clan, they had all heard that Yang Kai as his arrival had brought a lot of good news to the soldiers in the Inner Sanctum. He had created a way that could help the Humans from the different Great Passes purify Black Ink Strength after all.
“He’s also well-versed in Alchemy?” Zhu Ge Ming was slightly surprised.
The Deacon looked around, and upon making sure that no one else was around, he said, “Perhaps he knows a little about Alchemy, but he’s definitely not an expert. Over the past month, he has used up many rare herbs. I’ve asked Junior Brother Tang Qun about it, but he said that Yang Kai hasn’t even produced a single Spirit Pill. I’m sure you’re aware that Green Feather Rattan is only used to refine Universe Formulation Pills, so we don’t have a lot of it in reserve. He has practically used up all of our stock over the past month, and I haven’t even included the other herbs.”
Upon hearing that, Zhu Ge Ming furrowed his brow, “Isn’t he just causing trouble, then?”
The Deacon nodded repeatedly, “I agree with you. The herbs in the Inner Sanctum are precious, and every herb wasted could have been used to save a soldier at a critical moment; however, since the Army Commanders have given the order, we can only oblige.”
Zhu Ge Ming’s face fell, “Where is Yang Kai?”
The Deacon replied, “Junior Brother Tang Qun has helped him settle down in Heaven Rank Pill Room 3.”
Zhu Ge Ming rose from the chair, “I’ll have a look.”
A shocked Deacon hurriedly dissuaded him from doing that, “Grandmaster, please do not make things difficult for Yang Kai. It was the Army Commanders’ order, after all.”
“So what if they’re the Army Commanders? If they’re so capable, they wouldn’t have to consume the Spirit Pills this Zhu refines when they’re injured,” After finishing his words, he left the place in a fury.
The Deacon was dumbfounded. He felt heartbroken that Yang Kai had wasted so many herbs, so he just wanted to whine about it in front of Zhu Ge Ming a little. It never crossed his mind that he would create such trouble.
He was fully aware of Zhu Ge Ming’s temperament. Things would get ugly if the Grandmaster got into a conflict with Yang Kai.
While the Deacon was anxious, he saw someone sauntering towards him.
Upon seeing the person, he quickly went over, “Grandmaster Zhou!”
The person was none other than one of the top three Alchemists in the Inner Sanctum, Zhou Fang, who was on bad terms with Zhu Ge Ming.
Zhou Fang grunted as he calmly placed his hands behind his back. With a dispassionate expression, he ordered, “Go get some Green Feather Rattan for me. This Old Master is ready to refine some Universe Formulation Pills. A lot of those pills were consumed in the previous war and there aren’t a lot in stock in the War Materials Hall now.”
Universe Formulation Pills could be considered strategic resources, so there would usually be some reserve of it in the War Materials Hall; however, all of those pills would be fully consumed after every major war. After all, there were only three people in the Inner Sanctum who could produce these pills.
Upon hearing this, the Deacon felt his head aching, for he was asked to get Green Feather Rattan again. Although the ingredient was fairly rare, there would usually be some reserve of it in the Medicine Hall as it was only used to make Universe Formulation Pills. However, he was unable to get his hands on it at the moment.
With a helpless smile, he replied, “Please give me a moment, Grandmaster Zhou. Just now, Grandmaster Zhu Ge came over and took all the Green Feather Rattan. I’ve asked someone to collect some from the medicine garden, but it will take some time.”
Zhou Fang frowned at that, “That old fart Zhu Ge took all the Green Feather Rattan? There was still a lot of it when I came here previously.”
The Deacon kept a helpless smile on his face, “There’s none left.”
Zhou Fang snapped, “That old fart Zhu Ge has gone too far! It’s not necessary for him to use such a dirty trick even if he doesn’t want to let me refine Universe Formulation Pills!”
Upon hearing that, the Deacon was flabbergasted, “You’ve got it wrong, Grandmaster Zhou. Grandmaster Zhu Ge only took a small amount of Green Feather Rattan.”
“Stop smoothing things over. Where’s the old fart now? I need to give him a piece of my mind!”
The Deacon was on the brink of breaking into tears as he tried to explain, “It really wasn’t Grandmaster Zhu Ge who used up all the Green Feather Rattan. Before he asked for it, someone else had been consuming the herbs.”
Zhou Fang was surprised, “Is there another person who can refine Universe Formulation Pills now?”
“No…” A helpless Deacon repeated what he had said to Zhu Ge Ming earlier.
A myriad of expressions came over Zhou Fang before he turned around and left, “That’s ridiculous. This Old Master is also going to have a look.”
The moment he arrived at Heaven Rank Pill Room 3, he saw Zhu Ge Ming standing outside. There was a young man who sported a servile smile in front of him and upon closer inspection, he realised that the young man was Tang Qun.
Tang Qun was heard saying, “Grandmaster Zhu Ge, you can’t disturb Senior Brother Yang while he’s in the middle of refining pills. You’re also an Alchemist, so you are surely aware of what will happen if an Alchemist is disturbed in the midst of Alchemy. If the Army Commanders find out about it, I won’t be able to bear the responsibility.”
Zhu Ge Ming glared at him, “No one is telling you to bear the responsibility. Regardless of what happens, I will take all the blame.”
After he finished speaking, he was ready to barge into the room. A terrified Tang Qun quickly stopped him.
Zhu Ge Ming growled, “Stinking brat, do not force me to make a move on you! Although I’m an Alchemist who knows nothing about fighting, I’m still an Eighth-Order Master! It’s not difficult for me to deal with you. That Yang Boy has indeed made some significant contributions to the Inner Sanctum and I’ve heard that he’s even killed a Territory Lord. However, Alchemy and fighting are two different things. All the herbs in the Inner Sanctum are precious, so none of them should be wasted. Why is he here trying to refine pills instead of killing more enemies on the battlefield? He’s just causing trouble for no good reason!”
With a bitter expression, Tang Qun nodded repeatedly, “You have a point, Grandmaster; however, Senior Brother Yang is in the middle of refining pills right now, so you can’t disturb him… Ah! You’re here as well, Grandmaster Zhou. Please help persuade Grandmaster Zhu Ge.”
Upon hearing that, Zhu Ge Ming turned his head. When he saw Zhou Fang ambling towards him, he snorted with disdain.
Zhou Fang stood in front of them and shot Zhu Ge Ming a dismissive look, “Can’t you just admit that you’re old? You’ve lost all your courage, and all you know is how to shout. Highly improper!”
Like a cat whose tail had been stamped upon, Zhu Ge Ming roared, “I’m indeed old, but you’re in no way younger than I am. You said I’ve lost all my courage, what courage do you have, then?”
Zhou Fang scoffed, “Of course I’m more courageous than you are!” Following that, he landed a slap on the back of Tang Qun’s head, “Scram you smelly brat!”
He was also an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so although he rarely fought with anyone, his cultivation was not just for show. Upon impact, Tang Qun directly collapsed to the ground and fell into a dazed state. He wasn’t harmed at all as Zhou Fang only used a bit of force to move him aside.
Zhu Ge Ming was speechless at the sight.
“Open the door,” Zhou Fang snorted at Zhu Ge Ming.
Zhu Ge Ming pressed his lips together, “Why don’t you open the door?”
Zhou Fang replied, “I was in a rush when I left my place, so I didn’t bring my Vice Hall Master token with me.”
Every Pill Room had its exclusive access token and no one could open it without that token. This measure was implemented to protect the Alchemists so that they could focus on refining pills.
However, the tokens held by the Hall Master and the Vice Hall Masters could be used to open all Pill Rooms in case of an emergency. If an Alchemist fell into danger in a Pill Room, the Hall Master or a Vice Hall Master could use their tokens to open the barriers and look into them.
Both Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang were Vice Hall Masters, so they had the right to do so.
Zhu Ge Ming sneered, “Seems like you’re just a coward who is afraid of bearing any responsibility!”
Despite what he had just said, he still fished out his Vice Hall Master token and performed a hand seal before casting a beam of light.
The Pill Room’s door slowly opened as a gush of hot air rushed at them.
Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang stepped into the room at the same time and frowned. That was because this Pill Room was void of any pill fragrance. Instead, it was filled with a burnt, acrid smell.
It suggested that things were not going well in this room as the Alchemist must have failed more than once.
The two Alchemy Grandmasters felt heartbroken. Every failure meant that precious herbs had been wasted. They heard from the Medicine Hall that Yang Kai had stayed here for a month already and taken quite a number of herbs. He must have wasted a lot of good things in that amount of time.
They increasingly felt that Yang Kai was messing around.
Zhu Ge Ming had a straightforward temperament, but just when he was ready to openly chastise the young man, Zhou Fang suddenly stopped him and motioned for him to keep quiet.
Zhu Ge Ming narrowed his eyes before turning them forward.
There was a young man who was seated with his legs crossed in front of an Alchemy Furnace, using his power to control the Alchemy Flame. Although two Grandmasters had barged into the room, he didn’t seem perturbed one bit and remained completely focused.
Zhu Ge Ming’s expression turned milder as he was somewhat surprised. This performance suggested that Yang Kai was a calm and collected individual. An Alchemist was most wary of being distracted when making pills, so Yang Kai maintaining his calm even when intruded upon was a praiseworthy feat.
Upon closer look, Zhu Ge Ming realised that Yang Kai had only started this round of Alchemy as the latter was still condensing medicinal liquids. This was the first step of any pill refining process. Even though it was a simple step, an Alchemist’s foundation could be judged during this process.
As Zhu Ge Ming observed, his expression changed slightly, for he realised that the young man wasn’t just messing around like what he had imagined. It was apparent that the young man’s foundation was solid judging from the way he condensed medicinal liquid. Since he was able to condense different types of medicinal liquid at the same time, it also suggested that he wasn’t someone who knew nothing about the Alchemic Dao.
With that said, he could easily spot mistakes in the young man’s process. Despite that, he was still pleased with what he saw.
As he continued to observe it, he soon became puzzled though.
He could recognise every herb that Yang Kai threw into the Alchemy Furnace. He could also identify their medicinal age and instantly figure out what kinds of pills required these herbs. Additionally, he understood when would be the best time to add the medicinal liquids into the furnace.
Nevertheless, when all of these herbs were combined, he couldn’t figure out what pill was being made.
He thus turned his head and realised that Zhou Fang was also looking attentively with a perplexed expression.
Zhu Ge Ming couldn’t help but ask secretly, “What pill is he making?”
Zhou Fang frowned, “I don’t know. Can’t you tell?”
Zhu Ge Ming refuted, “Why would I have asked you if I could figure it out?”
Zhou Fang replied, “It looks like he’s trying to refine a new kind of Spirit Pill.”
Zhu Ge Ming was shocked, “Are there still any Spirit Pills in this world that we’re not aware of?”
It had been many thousands of years since they began cultivating the Alchemic Dao, and they were versed in essentially every pill recipe in existence. However, Yang Kai’s process puzzled them. There was no doubt that it was a new pill recipe, so they couldn’t help but wonder what Spirit Pill this young man was working on.
They initially wanted to reprimand Yang Kai and tell him to do what he was best at and leave refining pills to the experts. Since he was able to fight against the enemy, he should focus on doing that. However, neither was interested in chiding him anymore as they were absorbed in observing his process and waiting for the result.
Just an hour later, a pop was heard coming from the Alchemy Furnace.
Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang felt their chests tightening as they thought it was such a shame.
The moment a burnt smell exuded from the Alchemy Furnace, Yang Kai let out a sigh and got to his feet.
Tang Qun, who was stunned by Zhou Fang’s slap earlier, had already come to his senses as he stood behind the Grandmasters. Seeing that the two Grandmasters were not disturbing Yang Kai, he naturally wouldn’t dare to say anything as well.
It wasn’t until this moment that he rushed over and said to Yang Kai, “Senior Brother Yang, these are the Vice Hall Masters of the Pill Hall. They’re also two of the best Alchemy Grandmasters here.”
He then introduced him to Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang.
Yang Kai nodded and cupped his fist, “Junior Yang Kai greets Seniors.”
Tang Qun looked apologetically at Yang Kai, “Please forgive me, Senior Brother Yang. The Grandmasters insisted on coming over to have a look upon learning that you’re refining pills here. There’s nothing this Tang could do…”
Yang Kai understood him. Even though he was focused on his Alchemy just now, he was fully aware of what was going on around him. Nevertheless, he couldn’t afford to be distracted at that time, despite knowing that the expressions of Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang at the time suggested that they did not simply want to have a look at what he was doing.
Before Tang Qun could finish his words, Yang Kai waved his hand, “I already intended to seek help from the Pill Hall to begin with. Even if the Grandmasters hadn’t come looking for me, I would still have requested to visit them.”
Yang Kai never expected that he could complete the pill recipe he found in the handwritten record on his own. He initially wanted to familiarise himself with the basics of the process and then seek help from the Pill Hall to complete this task; after all, he was the only one who could understand the handwritten record. Only when he was at least a bit familiar with it could he explain the details to the Alchemists in the Pill Hall.
Even if Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang never looked for him, he would have asked Tang Qun to introduce him to the Alchemy Grandmasters in the Pill Hall soon. It could be said that Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang had arrived at just the right time.
He reckoned that it would be best for the professionals to take over now.
Tang Qun had no idea whether Yang Kai was serious or just consoling him, but he was relieved that the latter showed no intent to blame him.
Zhu Ge Ming was never a patient man, so after waiting for a bit, he hurriedly asked, “Yang Kai, what Spirit Pill were you trying to make?”
Yang Kai replied respectfully, “Grandmaster Zhu Ge, the Spirit Pill I was trying to refine is called the Purifying Black Ink Pill.”
“What?” Zhou Fang raised his voice.
“Purifying Black Ink Pill,” Yang Kai enunciated every word.
Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang exchanged glances. Most of the time, the uses of Spirit Pills would be obvious from their names, and the name of this Spirit Pill was quite thought-provoking indeed.
Zhu Ge Ming frowned, “Could the use of this Purifying Black Ink Pill be…”
Yang Kai nodded, “Grandmaster Zhu Ge, it is as you think, Purifying Black Ink Pills are used to purify Black Ink Strength that has invaded Humans.”
Upon hearing that, Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang gasped at the same time. Tang Qun, who was standing beside them, widened his mouth and sported a look of disbelief.
Yang Kai explained slowly, “In ancient times, there were already Human Masters who fought against the Black Ink Clan on the Black Ink Battlefield. The Seniors of ancient times were truly ingenious and seemed to have developed these Purifying Black Ink Pills that could be used to resist Black Ink Strength. However, this pill recipe had been lost with the passage of time. Recently, I happened to find a tattered handwritten record left behind by a Senior Alchemist in a Sealed World. I found the pill recipe for the Purifying Black Ink Pill in that handwritten record. Unfortunately, the pill recipe is incomplete as the handwritten record was in poor condition. I’ve been trying to complete the pill recipe during this period of time, but I’ve yet to succeed.”
Zhu Ge Ming hurriedly said, “A handwritten record left behind by a Senior Alchemist? Where is it?”
Zhou Fang also looked fervently at Yang Kai.
Although they were already among the best Alchemy Grandmasters alive, there was no end to the pursuit of knowledge in this Grand Dao. They reckoned that the insights and knowledge of a Senior from ancient times could help them improve their skills; therefore, they were deathly curious about the handwritten record that Yang Kai had mentioned. It would be of great help to them if they could have a look at it.
Yang Kai didn’t intend to keep this treasure to himself, so he promptly fished out the record.
An agile Zhu Ge Ming took the handwritten record and infused his Divine Sense into it. Zhou Fang, who didn’t manage to get his hands on it, was clearly anxious and kept glaring at Zhu Ge Ming, as though he was trying to kill the latter with his gaze.
He initially thought that it would take Zhu Ge Ming a long time to read it, but just a moment later, the latter appeared speechless, “I don’t understand it at all.”
“Incapable and ignorant fool!” Zhou Fang snorted as he rudely took the tattered handwritten record from Zhu Ge Ming and infused his Divine Sense into it.
Zhu Ge Ming shot him a glance and snapped, “I’ll write my name backwards from now on if you can understand it!”
Zhou Fang sported a solemn expression as he focused on going through the handwritten record. A while later, he retracted his Divine Sense and appeared dejected, “This Senior’s intelligence is indeed unrivalled…”
Upon hearing that, Zhu Ge Ming snorted. Many of the characters found in this handwritten record were from ancient times and were completely unrecognisable. They could identify some of the words, but they couldn’t understand the meaning behind them when they tried to piece them together. Apparently, the language used in ancient times was different from the present.
Such a handwritten record was definitely invaluable; however, it wouldn’t be of much use if it couldn’t be comprehended.
Ignoring Zhu Ge Ming’s mockery, Zhou Fang turned to Yang Kai and asked, “You can understand it?”
Zhu Ge Ming became energised as well. When he observed Yang Kai practise Alchemy just now, he realised that the latter had made some excellent progress in the early steps, but failed as the process went on. It was obvious that Yang Kai had comprehended the first part of the pill recipe of these Purifying Black Ink Pills.
Yang Kai replied, “I can understand most of it.”
In fact, he was also unable to recognise most of the words in the handwritten record; however, after he refined the Alchemic Dao Essence left behind by the Senior Alchemist, he could intuit the meaning of those words despite not being able to identify them.
Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang were elated upon hearing that with the former saying nervously, “Tell us about the Purifying Black Ink Pill’s recipe. Perhaps we’ll be able to help.”
Zhou Fang nodded repeatedly. The two of them had always been on bad terms as each believed that they were better than the other when it came to their skills in Alchemy. They rarely saw eye to eye, but in order to have a detailed explanation of the pill recipe of the Purifying Black Ink Pill now, they decided to put their grudges aside at least temporarily.
It had always been Yang Kai’s intention to seek help from the Grandmasters in the Pill Hall, so he wasn’t the least bit upset.
He then explained to them everything he knew about the pill recipe in detail while Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang listened attentively.
It took Yang Kai an hour to finish explaining what he knew. After that, he let out a sigh, “The handwritten record has been in existence for far too long, which is why it’s so tattered. The most valuable information in it is the Purifying Black Ink Pill recipe; however, even that is incomplete. I’ve repeatedly tried different methods to complete it. Everything went well in the initial stage, but it wouldn’t be long after that I’d fail. I imagine that one or more key herbs were recorded in the missing part of the pill recipe. If we can figure out the missing part, the pill recipe will be complete once again.”
Zhu Ge Ming nodded, “Your speculation is likely correct; however, we have no idea about what’s missing from the pill recipe… Well, it’s not like we’re completely clueless. The first part and much of the latter section of the pill recipe are complete, we’re only missing a piece from the middle. We can figure out the missing part by making some deductions based on the first and last parts of the recipe.”
There was a solemn expression on Zhou Fang’s face, “Despite that, it won’t be an easy feat. Is it one herb or several herbs that are missing? What is the appropriate amount? When is the best time to add the herbs to the furnace? There are a lot of variables involved. A lot of herbs will be consumed if we want to complete this recipe.”
Zhu Ge Ming countered, “The Humans from all the Great Passes have spent countless herbs trying to create something like this Purifying Black Ink Pill over the years. Now that we already have a half-complete pill recipe though, we just have to figure out the missing part. Why would we shy away from this relatively easier task?”
Zhou Fang nodded, “You have a point.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai couldn’t help but ask, “The Humans from the different Great Passes have tried to refine a Purifying Black Ink Pill before?”
Zhu Ge Ming nodded, “Of course, we’ve all tried making such a pill before. The invasion of Black Ink Strength has been an unsolvable problem for millennia. Once a Human was invaded by Black Ink Strength on the battlefield, they had no choice but to give up a part of their Small Universe, thus putting an end to their Martial Dao. Therefore, Alchemists like us thought that perhaps we could create a kind of Spirit Pill that could resist or purify Black Ink Strength. Coincidentally, we also named such pills ‘Purifying Black Ink Pills’, though they were never successfully created.”
Zhou Fang said, “We spent countless years and resources on this project, but unfortunately, no progress was ever made. Even though a lot of strange pills had been created during the process, they were unable to resist the Black Ink Strength in the end. In fact, before your arrival in Blue Sky Pass, this old fart and I would study how to refine Purifying Black Ink Pills in our spare time. However, after you came to Blue Sky Pass and brought with you Purifying Light, we decided to give up on making such pills.”
Suddenly thinking of something, Zhou Fang said, “By the way, since there’s alright Purifying Light, would Purifying Black Ink Pills still be useful even if they’re created?”
Zhu Ge Ming quickly turned to Yang Kai as he also realised it.
Yang Kai replied solemnly, “They’ll still be useful. Even though Purifying Light is able to cleanse Black Ink Strength, casting it requires valuable resources. There will come a day when these unique resources are depleted. By then, without Purifying Light to rely on, we’ll have to make use of Purifying Black Ink Pills to ensure our safety. On top of that, Purifying Light is currently sealed within the Purifying Black Ink Battleship of each Human Army. On the battlefield, if a Human soldier is invaded by Black Ink Strength, they have to retreat to a Purifying Black Ink Battleship. That is fine if the Battleship is nearby, but what if the vessel is too far away for one to return promptly? In that case, Purifying Black Ink Pills will be more useful than Purifying Light.”
“You have a point.” Zhu Ge Ming nodded, then turned to Zhou Fang, “We’ll do our best, then. If we can really create working Purifying Black Ink Pills, perhaps our names will be remembered by the future generations.”
Zhou Fang was excited at that, “We’ll definitely do our best.”
“I’ll leave it to you then, Seniors.”
Yang Kai had explained most of the Purifying Black Ink Pill recipe to them and he also shared with them his failures during this period of time so that they wouldn’t make the same mistakes again.
Now, he wouldn’t have to worry about the rest of the matter. He would just let those from the Pill Hall figure out the complete pill recipe of the Purifying Black Ink Pills.
In fact, Yang Kai could have passed everything to the Pill Hall right from the start. The reason he had spent a month practising Alchemy was that he wanted to familiarise himself with the recipe and verify its feasibility first.
Even though it was proven that it was possible to create Purifying Black Ink Pills, and the pill recipe was only half-complete, it would still take them a long time to figure out the missing parts.
Before Yang Kai left, he said to Tang Qun, “You should tell those in the medicine garden to begin nurturing large quantities of Obsidian Grass and Green Feather Rattan. If the Grandmasters can really complete the pill recipe, those two ingredients will see a huge increase in demand.”
Tang Qun nodded, “Leave it to me.”
He had listened to the conversation between Yang Kai, Zhu Ge Ming, and Zhou Fang, so he was aware of the importance of this matter. The main ingredients for refining Purifying Black Ink Pills were Obsidian Grass and Green Feather Rattan. If the pills were successfully created, the amount currently grown in the medicine garden wouldn’t be anywhere near sufficient.
After leaving the Pill Hall, Yang Kai wasn’t in a rush to return home; instead, he headed to the War Materials Hall.
Now that it was somewhat peaceful in the Inner Sanctum, and that there was no harassment from the Black Ink Clan, it was the best chance for Yang Kai to get some rest and cultivate. When the Black Ink Clan struck again, he wouldn’t have any free time.
Strictly speaking, he was a new Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so he needed a lot of time to strengthen his cultivation; after all, accumulation was key to the cultivation of an Open Heaven Realm Master.
The War Materials Hall was always bustling with noise as people were constantly coming and going.
Yang Kai stood in front of a counter and held out his Identity Token. Behind the counter was a beautiful woman who took the token. After looking into it, she gazed at Yang Kai in shock, “Are you Yang Kai?”
A lot of people in Blue Sky Pass had met Yang Kai before, but there were even more people who had never seen him. Most of them had only heard of his name, which was why this woman asked this question.
Yang Kai replied, “If there’s not another Yang Kai in the Inner Sanctum, I’m the one.”
The woman smiled, “It’s really you, Senior Brother Yang. Do you need anything?”
“Please help me check how many Military Merits I have,” Yang Kai requested.
“Please give me a moment, Senior Brother,” the woman replied.
The information in the War Materials Hall was shared with the Merit Hall. The transactions of the Military Merits of all Human soldiers were recorded in detail in the Merit Hall; after all, it wasn’t easy for Human soldiers to earn Military Merits on the Black Ink Battlefield, so no negligence could be tolerated.
Soon, the woman reported a figure.
Yang Kai was shocked upon hearing it and blurted out, “Why do I have so few?”
The woman was astounded and asked back, “You call that few?”
According to the information she had found, Yang Kai could be considered wealthy when it came to Military Merits. Most people only had a fraction of his savings.
However, Yang Kai was fully aware of how many contributions he had made recently. When he went to forward base 4 previously, he and the members of Dawn had killed a lot of Black Ink Clansmen. He even managed to save Bai Yi and worked with her to kill Zhu Feng. In the last battle, the two of them even assisted Cha Hu to execute a Territory Lord.
After occupying forward base 4, Yang Kai brought out the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors, which allowed those from Blue Sky Pass to move the Universe Worlds back from different resource harvesting areas. Following that, he opened up eleven portals to ancient Sealed Worlds. All those were contributions he had made.
Just the fact that he and Bai Yi had worked together to kill a Territory Lord would have earned him a lot of Military Merits.
According to his own estimation, he should have at least three times more Military Merits than the figure he had just heard.
“Do you want me to help you check the transactions of your Military Merits?” the woman asked.
“Is it alright for you to do so?” Yang Kai gazed at her.
The woman put on a faint smile, “Our information is shared with the Merit Hall. It’s certainly alright for me to do so.” After she finished speaking, she started looking into the matter.
A moment later, she sported a doubtful expression, “Senior Brother, from what I’ve gathered, you had a transaction last month that cost a lot of Military Merits; however, this piece of information is classified, so I’m unable to access it to find out what you traded for. Do you not know what you traded for?”
Yang Kai was stunned upon hearing that. He had just finished refining the World Tree a month ago, so he hadn’t traded his Military Merits for anything.
The next instant, he suddenly realised that his Military Merits must have been exchanged for the World Tree. Cha Hu had said that the World Tree’s clone could be given to him, and those from the Inner Sanctum wouldn’t object to it. However, Yang Kai would have to exchange his Military Merits for it.
No one could judge how valuable a World Tree clone truly was, for it was one of the rarest and most precious treasures in the universe.
The Army Commanders must have told the people in Merit Hall to deduct Yang Kai’s Military Merits. Although it was a large sum, the figure was nothing compared to the real value of the World Tree clone.
Yang Kai relaxed upon that realization.
On the other hand, the woman behind the counter examined Yang Kai with her alluring eyes as she wondered what he had traded for. This piece of information was so important that it was classified to the point even she couldn’t access it. This had never happened before.
“Is there anything else you need, Senior Brother? We’ve received a lot of good things in the War Materials Hall recently,” the woman asked.
Yang Kai initially intended to trade for some Spirit Pills to increase his cultivation speed, so his interest was piqued when he heard that. Recently, those from the Inner Sanctum had been mining many Universe Worlds, so it wasn’t surprising that some interesting stuff had been found.
“I’ll have a look first,” Yang Kai replied.
“All the tradable resources are here. Please take a look, Senior Brother.” As the woman spoke, she passed him a jade slip.
After taking the jade slip, Yang Kai infused his Divine Sense into it.
Just like what he had seen previously, the jade slip recorded all the purchasable resources. The number one item on the list was still Profound Yin Spirit Fruits, but they were currently out of stock. It was apparent that this item was always hard to come by.
Although they had found a lot of Profound Yin Spirit Fruits in the Sealed World left behind by the Senior Alchemist, the need for such fruits was insatiable in Blue Sky Pass. The moment the Spirit Fruits appeared in the War Materials Hall, they would be snapped up within a few hours.
To the Humans, there could never be enough Profound Yin Spirit Fruits. Only when all of the Open Heaven Realm Masters, who had given up parts of their Small Universes, fully repaired them would such Spirit Fruits lose their value.
As Yang Kai scrolled down, he was shocked by the second item on the list and he couldn’t help but gaze at the woman and ask, “There are World Fruits here?”
The words ‘World Fruit’ were written on the second row of the jade slip. There was a note behind it which said that they were Mid-Rank World Fruits picked from the World Tree’s clone.
World Fruits were also the third item on the list, but these were Low-Rank World Fruits.
Certainly, Yang Kai knew where the World Fruits came from, for he and Cha Hu had personally picked them from the World Tree clone. Nevertheless, he had never expected that they would be listed in the War Materials Hall for others to buy.
The woman nodded, “Yes, but there are only a small number of Mid-Rank World Fruits left. There are still a lot of Low-Rank World Fruits, though.”
Yang Kai was astonished, “There are still some Mid-Rank World Fruits?”
These items should have been snapped up by the soldiers in the Inner Sanctum by now; after all, the effects of World Fruits were simply too amazing. When Yang Kai consumed a World Fruit back then, he directly ascended to the Sixth Order from the Fifth Order. Not only did it help him save lots of cultivation time, but it also extended the limit of his Martial Dao.
It was inconceivable that there were still some of them left. The only reasonable explanation was that these World Fruits were different from the ones he had consumed in the past, so they were less valuable.
As expected, the woman explained, “En. You might not be aware of it yet, Senior Brother, but it is said that these World Fruits were picked from a World Tree’s clone, so they’re not as amazing as the ones in the legends. Even if a person consumes a Mid-Rank World Fruit, it will only help them increase the heritage of their Small Universe a little. It can’t help them directly ascend to the next Order. It also requires a lot of Military Merits to trade for these World Fruits, so most people would rather get more resources and just cultivate slowly.”
Upon hearing her explanation, Yang Kai finally realised the reason behind the current situation. It was expected that the World Fruits produced from the World Tree’s clone were not as incredible as the ones from the Mother tree.
The weakest soldiers in the Inner Sanctum were in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, so Mid-Rank World Fruits should supposedly be quite attractive to them. However, Military Merits were not easy to come by, so no one was willing to squander them.
“What about the Low-Rank World Fruits? What are their uses?”
Even the Low-Rank World Fruits grown on the Mother tree were not very valuable, let alone the ones from a mere clone. In the War Materials Hall, there was a stark difference between the Military Merits needed to trade for these two kinds of World Fruits.
The woman replied, “A Low-Rank World Fruit is able to help rapidly restore one’s World Force. It’s equivalent to a potent Spirit Pill.”
It was not different from what Yang Kai was aware of.
“Senior Brother, you’re in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, so these two kinds of World Fruits are useless to you. You’ll only restore your strength by consuming them. Do you still want to purchase them?”
Yang Kai waved his hand, “No. I was just curious.”
These Mid-Rank and Low-Rank World Fruits were useless to him since their effects were not so incredible. It wasn’t necessary to waste his Military Merits to purchase them.
As Yang Kai continued to scroll down, he realised that there were really a lot of wonderful things that he had never seen before. They must have been extracted from those Universe Worlds.
With that said, Yang Kai didn’t lack cultivation resources. Before he left the 3,000 Worlds to head to the Black Ink Battlefield, he had prepared enough resources to help him ascend to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
In the end, he simply purchased some Spirit Pills that were used for cultivation and left the War Materials Hall.
To this day, Yang Kai had never had his own residence in Blue Sky Pass, so he just lived with Feng Ying. Fortunately, Feng Ying was a Battalion Commander in the past, so she was important enough to have her own courtyard with a lot of rooms.
He soon returned to his residence, and the moment he stepped into the courtyard, Feng Ying came over as she had heard some noises. Upon seeing that Yang Kai had returned, she was surprised and asked, “Are you done with everything?”
Yang Kai let out a sigh, “It’s not so easy. I’ve passed everything to the Pill Hall, so I no longer have to worry about it.”
Feng Ying nodded, “That’s good. You should focus on fortifying your cultivation instead of getting distracted.”
Yang Kai nodded, “I’m going to cultivate in seclusion now, so you have to pay attention to the affairs in the Inner Sanctum. Inform me if there’s any emergency.”
“Good.” Feng Ying nodded, then fished out a square wooden box, “This is for you.”
“What is it?” Yang Kai took it and asked in puzzlement.
Feng Ying shook her head, “Army Commander Zhong Liang told someone to send it here a few days ago. Supposedly it’s a reward for you. I don’t know what it is.”
Yang Kai measured the wooden box’s weight with his hand and realised that it wasn’t heavy. After he opened it, a red Spirit Fruit the size of a baby fist came into his sight. At the same time, he caught a whiff of a pleasant fragrance.
“A World Fruit?” Feng Ying arched her brow.
“A High-Rank World Fruit!” Yang Kai exclaimed.
He and Cha Hu had worked together to pick the World Fruits from the World Tree clone. Even though there were a lot of World Fruits, most of them were Low-Rank while some of them were Mid-Rank. As for High-Rank World Fruits, there had only been six of them.
Even if Cha Hu had also acquired some High-Rank World Fruits, there shouldn’t have been more than a dozen or so.
Mid-rank and Low-Rank World Fruits were placed in the War Materials Hall for the soldiers to get. Yang Kai initially wondered where the High-Rank World Fruits were. It never crossed his mind that he would see one here.
He was now a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so Mid-Rank and Low-Rank World Fruits were useless to him. Only the High-Rank ones were useful to him.
“So, it’s a World Fruit.” Feng Ying wasn’t aware of what was inside the box before opening it. It wasn’t until this moment that she realised it was a World Fruit. Worried that Yang Kai might have some unrealistic expectations, she said, “The Army Commanders have told some people to study these World Fruits. They’ve found that the World Fruits grown on the clone are not as amazing as the ones in the legend. With that said, you can indeed increase the heritage of your Small Universe by consuming this thing, which saves you some cultivation time. It’s best for your current condition. However, it can’t help you directly ascend to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.”
“The Army Commanders are indeed thoughtful.” Yang Kai nodded and stored the wooden box, “I’ll start cultivating now, then. Please keep an eye on the affairs around here, Senior Sister. Call out to me in case of an emergency.”
“Alright.” Feng Ying waved her hand.
Yang Kai bowed his head and returned to his own room. Following that, he activated the restriction around the room and sat down with his legs crossed.
After emptying his mind, Yang Kai opened the wooden box and fished out the High-Rank World Fruit picked from the World Tree’s clone.
The fruit was fragrant and tasty.
In the past, he had consumed a Mid-Rank World Fruit that came from the Mother tree, which allowed him to directly ascend to the Sixth-Order from the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm. He could still clearly remember the sweet taste of that fruit.
After examining the baby-fist-sized fruit for a moment, he placed it into his mouth and bit down on it. The moment the peel broke, his mouth was filled with a refreshingly sweet taste.
A sense of warmth streamed into his stomach. The next instant, a gale blew across his entire Small Universe as a large amount of World Force appeared out of thin air. Even the World Tree in his Small Universe rustled lightly.
This new power was harmless and devoid of any impurities to Yang Kai. It was so indescribably pure that anyone could easily absorb it.
This was the abstrusity of the World Fruits.
Yang Kai quickly pulled himself together and started circulating his Secret Art. Every time his Small Universe undulated, his heritage would be strengthened a little, which allowed the World Force in his Small Universe to become more ample and solid.
The situation lasted for more than 10 days. It wasn’t until half a month later that Yang Kai felt that he had fully refined the medicinal efficacies of the World Fruit.
As he examined his Small Universe now, he couldn’t help feeling moved.
Although he already knew that a High-Rank World Fruit wouldn’t allow him to directly ascend to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm and could only save him some cultivation time by strengthening his heritage, he was still pleasantly surprised at the outcome.
The heritage of his Small Universe had increased by 20%. One must not underestimate a 20% increase in heritage. If he were to cultivate in seclusion, it would have taken him 300 to 500 years to achieve the same result.
In other words, a High-Rank World Fruit from a World Tree’s clone had saved him 300 to 500 years of cultivation time.
This was indeed an incredible benefit.
300 to 500 years of cultivation would allow him to fully consolidate his Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm cultivation and increase his strength significantly.
Because it was very hard for an Open Heaven Realm Master to ascend to the next Order, often taking hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years, some people had proposed that every Order should be divided into early, middle, and late stages. That would allow them to quickly judge the power of an Open Heaven Realm Master.
According to this kind of classification, Yang Kai was still just in the early stage of the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. Even though he was still in the early stage after consuming the World Fruit, his power had been significantly strengthened.
Nevertheless, this kind of classification was too complicated, so it was not universally accepted.
With that said, it explained why there could be such a huge gap in strength between two Open Heaven Realm Masters who were in the same Order.
A newly promoted Seventh-Order Master was only in the early stage while someone like Feng Ying was definitely in the late stage of Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. The difference between them was several thousand years of accumulation, possibly even longer. The huge gap between their heritages meant that they wouldn’t be equally matched if they got into a fight.
A High-Rank World Fruit had saved Yang Kai several hundred years of cultivation time, so what if he consumed even more of the fruits?
He couldn’t help but let his thoughts run wild.
With that said, Yang Kai knew that it was unlikely to happen. There were only a dozen High-Rank World Fruits that were picked from the World Tree’s clone, and the reason he could get one was that he had made some significant contributions in the past. There were other High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters in Blue Sky Pass who must have also made great contributions and these High-Rank World Fruits should be given to them as rewards. Furthermore, even the Eighth-Order Division Commanders and Army Commanders would benefit from consuming these High-Rank World Fruits.
On top of that, the benefits gained from refining the same kind of treasure would always decrease with repeated consumption. One High-Rank World Fruit had saved Yang Kai 300 to 500 years of cultivation time, but the effects of a second would likely yield half that benefit at most. As for a third or fourth fruit, there might be no benefits at all.
It was a characteristic shared by essentially all precious treasures.
Regardless, Yang Kai was already pleased with the increase in strength after having one High-Rank World Fruit.
However, he now needed some time to adjust to the sharp increase in heritage and power.
It wasn’t until a month later that he let out a long breath. Although he still wasn’t fully adapted to his increased strength, it was at least manageable now. Even if he got into a fight with a formidable enemy, he would be able to fully utilize his power.
After getting some rest, he fished out a set of Seventh-Order materials and refined them.
In the past, he would always refine Sixth-Order materials when cultivating; however, since he was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master now, he was able to refine Seventh-Order materials.
Refining materials equivalent to one’s own Order had always been the quickest and most desirable way for Open Heaven Realm Masters to steadily cultivate.
Still, High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters usually wouldn’t squander materials in such a way.
Seventh-Order Yin and Yang Element materials were extremely rare, and they were considered strategic resources in the Cave Heavens and Paradises. They wouldn’t use such resources unless it was absolutely necessary and no one would refine them just to cultivate.
However, Yang Kai was different. Yellow and Blue Crystals had been piled up like mountains in his Small Universe, so he would never be lacking Yin and Yang Element materials.
He had also prepared a lot of Five Element materials that were sufficient for his own cultivation. On the Black Ink Battlefield, he could only ensure his safety by increasing his strength and quickly ascending to the next Order; therefore, he didn’t mind refining Seventh-Order materials to increase his rate of cultivation.
In the past, an Open Heaven Realm Master, who apparently had nothing better to do, had carried out a certain experiment. He refined a set of Fourth-Order materials, then refined Open Heaven Pills equivalent to the cost of a Fourth-Order set of materials. Comparing the two, the increase in power from refining a set of Fourth-Order materials was only half that of the increase in power from refining Open Heaven Pills.
The person obtained the same result after experimenting with Fifth-Order materials.
In other words, the increase in power one would gain from refining a set of materials was only half of what one could gain by refining Open Heaven Pills of the same value.
Therefore, the average Open Heaven Realm Master wouldn’t want to squander their wealth by refining a set of materials.
The Open Heaven Realm Master who carried out the experiments never experimented with Sixth-Order and Seventh-Order materials because he wasn’t strong or wealthy enough; however, the results would most likely be the same. In short, it was a waste of resources to refine Sixth-Order and Seventh-Order materials.
What was wasted wasn’t the power of the materials of course, but the maximum value these materials could bring.
However, Yang Kai’s primary goal was to increase his strength as quickly as possible, and he wasn’t lacking materials, so he didn’t mind trading value for speed. Refining Open Heaven Pills was too slow compared to refining Seventh-Order materials.
As time passed, a set of Seventh-Order materials was absorbed and added to the heritage of his Small Universe.
Even though he was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master now, it still took Yang Kai quite some time to refine a set of Seventh-Order materials.
It wasn’t until half a year later that the power of the Seventh-Order materials became depleted and they crumbled into dust.
Yang Kai opened his eyes as a light flashed across his gaze. His eyes were as bright as two Suns.
The heritage of his Small Universe had increased after he refined that set of Seventh-Order materials.
However, he felt that something was off during the process, but it wasn’t really a bad thing. It was just that the speed at which he refined materials was quicker than what he had expected.
It was the first time he refined a set of Seventh-Order materials, and he had never experienced such an anomaly before, so he wasn’t sure if there was really anything wrong. As such, he didn’t stop refining them.
As he recalled the entire refinement process, Yang Kai realised that such speed was actually outrageously quick. It had to be noted that it would take him roughly the same time to refine a set of Sixth-Order materials when he was in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm in the past. Since he had ascended to the Seventh Order, it was expected that his refinement speed would increase as well, but this was still ridiculously fast. What he had refined was a set of Seventh-Order materials, which were starkly different from Sixth-Order materials.
A set of Sixth-Order materials was worth about 130 million to 150 million Open Heaven Pills. When Yang Kai was in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he could refine more than 100,000 Open Heaven Pills every day. If he traded a set of Sixth-Order materials for Open Heaven Pills, it would thus take him 4 to 5 years to fully consume them.
Nonetheless, it would only take him half a year to refine a set of Sixth-Order materials.
He initially thought that it would take him a few years to refine a set of Seventh-Order materials which were worth approximately 10 times as much as a Sixth-Order set of materials, so he was truly surprised at the outcome.
After giving it a thought with a frown, he fished out a set of Sixth-Order materials and refined them in silence.
While he was refining the materials this time, Yang Kai also paid close attention to what was happening in his Small Universe.
In just one month, the set of Sixth-Order materials lost all its power and became valueless.
Upon opening his eyes, Yang Kai fell into his thoughts.
When he was a Sixth-Order Master, it would take him half a year to refine a set of Sixth-Order materials. Even though his strength had increased as he was now a Seventh-Order Master, it shouldn’t have been so quick and easy for him to refine these materials. He initially estimated it would take him three to four months.
The only explanation was that something was increasing his efficiency when refining the materials, and that assistance must have been provided by the World Tree clone that had merged with his Small Universe.
He had been paying close attention to the World Tree clone when refining the materials, and although there didn’t seem to be anything off about it, Yang Kai was certain his increased rate of refinement had something to do with the tree.
The only major difference between when he was a Sixth-Order Master and a Seventh-Order Master was the World Tree clone’s presence in his Small Universe.
It seemed that the clone was able to significantly increase his speed of refining resources, though he didn’t understand the reason behind it.
Despite that, it was a huge benefit to him as he could refine a set of materials much quicker now. In other words, as long as he was willing to spend time cultivating, Yang Kai would be able to increase his strength at a much faster rate than other cultivators. The effects wouldn’t be conspicuous in the short term; however, ascending to the Eighth Order from the Seventh Order was a long process of accumulation. The benefits of the World Tree clone would make a huge difference in the long term.
When he told the Army Commanders about the three benefits he was aware of after planting the World Tree’s clone in his Small Universe, Yang Kai felt that there might be more hidden benefits, and had said as much, but didn’t go into detail. It wasn’t that he wanted to hide it from them, it was just that he didn’t know them at the time. If he hadn’t decided to cultivate in seclusion this time, he wouldn’t have discovered this benefit at all.
This came as a pleasant surprise to him. It had cost him a lot of Military Merits to get this World Tree Clone; however, the merits were nothing compared to the benefits that this clone had brought him. The clone was as good as free.
Since he was in a jovial mood, Yang Kai even found joy in this kind of supposedly boring method of cultivation. He then fished out another set of Seventh-Order materials and refined them.
If others saw Yang Kai right now, they would surely curse him out as a wastrel for squandering so many materials away.
As time passed, Yang Kai consistently refined a set of Seventh-Order materials every half a year. With that said, he didn’t just cultivate in seclusion all the time.
Cultivating was a monotonous activity, and if one wasn’t composed enough, he would become jittery by remaining in such a state for an extended period of time.
Even though it wouldn’t happen to Yang Kai, he would still try to prevent it from occurring. Every time he finished refining a set of Seventh-Order materials, he would leave his room and take a stroll.
Sometimes, he would walk around for three to five days. When he felt like it, he would travel around for ten days to half a month. After winding down and moving his body, he would cultivate in seclusion again. As he had taken time to get some rest, his efficiency would greatly improve.
When he was free one day, he headed to the War Materials Hall and traded all his Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order materials for Military Merits, which he then exchanged for Seventh-Order Five-Element materials.
He had brought these Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order materials from the 3,000 Worlds for his own cultivation. Now, the best way for him to cultivate was to refine Seventh-Order materials, so these Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order materials were of no value to him. Seventh-Order materials were his best choice.
In fact, the conversion rate for exchanging Seventh-Order Five-Element materials in the Inner Sanctum was quite favourable.
For every two sets of Sixth-Order Five-Element materials, he would gain enough Military Merits to trade for a set of Seventh-Order ones. The conversion rate was just 2 to 1.
It had to be noted that in the 3,000 Worlds, the value of the materials in each Order went up 10 times per Order; however, it was only 2 times greater in Blue Sky Pass.
After all, the higher-ups had to take care of the soldiers who fought against the Black Ink Clan, so they couldn’t possibly measure the value of the materials in each Order according to the conversion rate in the 3,000 Worlds. Secondly, the consumption rate of Seventh-Order materials was extremely low, so as time passed, a lot of Seventh-Order materials had been accumulated in Blue Sky Pass. There were even ample reserves of Eighth-Order materials.
There were quite a number of High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters in the Inner Sanctum, and the number of Eighth-Order Division Commanders alone came up to several dozen. However, none of them would be as wasteful as Yang Kai, who refined Seventh-Order materials directly, when cultivating. The main reason was that High-Order Yin and Yang Element materials were still exceptionally rare. Without Seventh-Order and Eighth-Order Yin and Yang Element materials, they simply couldn’t refine materials to cultivate regardless of how many Five-Element materials they possessed, or else their Small Universes’ would become imbalanced.
As more and more Universe Worlds were strip-mined outside Blue Sky Pass, a lot of Seventh-Order and Eighth-Order materials had been found. Nevertheless, these materials would generally be used for Artifact Refining and arranging Spirit Arrays, not cultivation.
In this situation, Yang Kai was at an advantage.
The materials he possessed now were more than sufficient to help him ascend to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
He also took some time to head to the Pill Hall to find out about the progress of creating Purifying Black Ink Pills. Nonetheless, he didn’t meet the two Alchemy Grandmasters, Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang. He only saw Tang Qun.
According to Tang Qun, after Yang Kai left that day, the two Grandmasters started focusing on completing the Purifying Black Ink Pill recipe. Countless herbs had been consumed so far, but fortunately, they had made some progress.
However, they would still have to work harder in order to create Purifying Black Ink Pills. Those from the medicine garden had started nurturing more Obsidian Grass and Green Feather Rattan as well. Once the Purifying Black Ink Pill recipe was perfected, there would be enough ingredients to be used in their production.
One day, after Yang Kai finished refining a set of Seventh-Order materials, he left his room.
Feng Ying had been waiting for him and the moment she heard the door opening, she turned her head and flashed a smile at him, “You’re indeed disciplined when it comes to cultivating, Junior Brother.”
Over the past two years, Yang Kai would always stop cultivating after half a year. With that as a baseline, Feng Ying speculated that he might emerge sometime soon, which was why she decided to wait for him there.
“It’s boring to just sit and cultivate, so I need to relax and unwind from time to time.” Yang Kai stretched his back, “What’s wrong, Senior Sister?”
Feng Ying must have something to tell him by waiting for him here.
“Martial Uncle Zhong Liang said that you have to look for him as soon as you stop cultivating,” There was a solemn expression on Feng Ying’s face.
Yang Kai straightened his face, “Has something happened in the Inner Sanctum?”
Feng Ying shook her head, “Nothing major has happened in the Inner Sanctum. He revealed to me that it has something to do with the World Spring.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai realised what was going on.
After he refined the World Tree, he told the four Army Commanders of Blue Sky Pass that he was willing to give up the World Spring in his Small Universe; after all, he felt the World Tree’s clone was also able to protect his Small Universe even better than the World Spring. Although Yang Kai wasn’t able to verify this for the time being, he had a feeling that even without the World Spring, he still wouldn’t be affected by Black Ink Strength.
At that time, Zhong Liang and the others said that there was no rush to deal with this issue. Even though he was willing to give up the World Spring, they had to have a discussion about who would take it.
Yang Kai had never expected that it would take two years for a decision to be made. It seemed that the Army Commanders were quite cautious when it came to this matter.
“I’ll head over right now,” Yang Kai replied and shot into the sky as he headed straight to the Headquarters of the Western Army.
Upon his arrival, he told someone to inform Zhong Liang, and a moment later, he was shown inside.
After entering the hall, he saw Zhong Liang assigning some work to a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. It wasn’t until Zhong Liang was done with his affairs and the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master left that Yang Kai took a step forward and cupped his fist, “Greetings, Sir.”
Zhong Liang nodded gently and rose from the chair, “I’m sure Feng Ying has told you why I’ve asked you to see me.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Yes, Senior Sister has informed me about it. Have all of you decided on who will take over the World Spring?”
Zhong Liang replied, “Yes, a decision has been made; however, this King has to remind you that since you’ve decided to give up the World Spring, you’ll have to sacrifice a small part of your Small Universe. Doing so will cause your Small Universe to be incomplete. It’s no big deal as you can repair it by consuming a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit; however, if you lose the ability to resist Black Ink Strength because of that, you have to stay here in the Inner Sanctum and must not go anywhere as you please.”
Yang Kai said obediently, “I understand.”
Zhong Liang looked at him with a gentle and approving gaze, “That’s thoughtful of you.”
Other than Yang Kai, no one knew what the benefits of the World Tree’s clone were at that time. Even if he wasn’t willing to give up the World Spring, no one would say anything; however, as soon as he refined the World Tree’s clone, he brought up this issue, which showed that he was not an ungrateful person. An Eighth-Order Master who possessed one of the Four Universe Pillars would be able to deal a greater blow to the enemy on the battlefield, for they would no longer have to worry about Black Ink Strength invading their body.
“Come with me,” Zhong Liang beckoned to him and shuffled out of the hall.
Yang Kai followed closely.
Soon, they stepped out of Blue Sky Pass and arrived in the void outside.
Someone was already standing there. It was apparent that he had been waiting since receiving a message from Zhong Liang.
Yang Kai was able to recognise the person at first glance and asked, “Sir Ding Yao is going to take over the World Spring?”
The person who had been waiting there was none other than the Army Commander of the Eastern Army, Ding Yao.
Zhong Liang nodded, “That’s right. Other than the Old Ancestors in the Inner Sanctum, this old fart is the strongest, so he’s the most suited to take over the World Spring.”
The corners of Yang Kai’s brow twitched. Zhong Liang could call Ding Yao an old fart, but he wouldn’t dare to be disrespectful.
In any case, he had already expected such an outcome.
Very few Four Universe Pillars had been found so far, and they were all in the hands of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters.
Ninth-Order Old Ancestors didn’t need one of the Four Universe Pillars as they were strong enough that they didn’t have to worry about Black Ink Strength invading their bodies. On the other hand, a Seventh-Order Master might not be able to keep a World Spring safe. That was the reason Zhong Liang wasn’t willing to let Yang Kai outside for missions back then. Yang Kai was vital to the Human Race, but he wasn’t powerful enough at that time. If anything happened to him, Zhong Liang wouldn’t be able to explain himself to the Old Ancestor.
Ninth-Order Old Ancestors didn’t need the World Spring while Seventh-Order Masters weren’t strong enough to keep them safe or make use of them. It would be best for an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master to have it.
Yang Kai already speculated that one of the four Army Commanders would eventually take over the World Spring, and it seemed that his speculation was correct.
The moment Yang Kai got closer, Ding Yao gazed at him and said, “It’ll be useless to regret it once you go ahead with your decision. It’s still not too late for you to back out.”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “Since a decision has been made, I’ll not go back on my word.”
Ding Yao nodded, “I won’t dissuade you, then.”
Zhong Liang said, “You can start now if you’re ready; however, you have to do your best to minimise the damage, Yang Kai.”
“I understand,” Yang Kai nodded and closed his eyes.
The instant he activated his Divine Sense, his World Force undulated around him as a buzzing sound was continuously heard in his Small Universe. Following his move, the originally complete Small Universe started trembling and the next moment, the ground started shaking violently.
Yang Kai widened his eyes and started growling like a beast.
The excruciating pain he was going through caused him to shudder uncontrollably.
Prior to this, he had no idea that it was so painful to give up a piece of his Small Universe. Before he brought the Purifying Light to the Black Ink Battlefield, the Human soldiers here had to give up parts of their Small Universes after they were contaminated with Black Ink Strength in order to survive. While bearing the excruciating pain, they also had to risk their lives to battle against the Black Ink Clansmen. It must have been a cruel experience.
It wasn’t hard to give up a part of his Small Universe as Yang Kai just had to cut it off. The most difficult part was that he had to suppress the World Spring’s aura to that particular territory.
Even though he had done his best, he still had to give up a considerable chunk of his Small Universe.
The moment the portal of his Small Universe opened, a Spirit Province that was more than 40,000 square metres appeared in the void, at the centre of which was a conspicuous spring.
As soon as this territory appeared, the void around the World Spring seemed to have frozen under the influence of its power.
That was the moment Ding Yao had been waiting for. He extended his hand to grab the territory. As he activated his World Force, the territory instantly disappeared into his body.
The next instant, Ding Yao sat down cross-legged to join Yang Kai.
Zhong Liang hurriedly presented to Yang Kai a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit he had prepared, “Quickly consume it now.”
Even though it wouldn’t matter to consume the fruit at a later time, he was worried that Yang Kai’s foundation would be damaged if they didn’t act quickly enough.
Presently, Yang Kai was in so much pain that his forehead was covered with cold sweat. He took the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit from Zhong Liang, but just as he was about to eat it, he frowned and became rooted to the spot.
Upon seeing that, Zhong Liang appeared anxious, “What happened? Is there anything wrong?”
Yang Kai shook his head. Instead of promptly replying to him, he focused on examining his Small Universe.
He could see that the originally complete Small Universe had been damaged after he sacrificed that piece of land.
The problem with giving up a part of one’s Small Universe wasn’t just about incompleteness, but also about a drop in strength.
If Yang Kai had done such a thing not long after he ascended to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, his cultivation would have regressed to the Sixth-Order.
However, he had previously consumed a High-Rank World Fruit and refined several sets of Seventh-Order materials over the past two years. He had accumulated quite a bit of heritage in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, so there was no risk of him falling to the Sixth-Order.
It was apparent to him now that there were two reasons those from Blue Sky Pass rewarded him with a High-Rank World Fruit. First of all, he had indeed made many contributions, but secondly, they had to get him prepared for this moment.
They had surely taken this exact situation into consideration, which was why it wasn’t until two years later that they asked him to give up the World Spring.
What caught Yang Kai’s attention wasn’t the damage to his Small Universe though, but the anomaly happening around the World Tree’s clone.
At this moment, a humming sound was heard coming from the World Tree’s clone as a faintly discernible power exuded from it and streamed towards the damaged part of his Small Universe.
Yang Kai wasn’t in control of this process and he had no idea what was going on, but the instant the abstruse power exuded from the clone, his pain was significantly soothed, as though he had just come across a spring amidst the summer heat.
Besides that, he had a feeling that the anomaly happening to the clone would be beneficial to him.
With that said, it was just a feeling, so he couldn’t make a judgement yet. He didn’t immediately consume the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, but to make sure that Zhong Liang wouldn’t be worried, he said, “Please rest assured, Sir. I’m fine.”
As he spoke, he got to his feet, “I’ll take my leave now. It may take some time for my Small Universe to heal.”
Certainly, Zhong Liang wouldn’t stop him, so he nodded and replied, “Good. You have to promptly consume that Profound Yin Spirit Fruit after you go back.”
“Yes,” Yang Kai nodded with a solemn expression. After saluting him, he returned to the Inner Sanctum and headed to his place.
Hovering in the void, Zhong Liang watched Yang Kai leave, then turned to look at Ding Yao.
Presently, the World Force around Ding Yao undulated and gusted out from his body, assimilating into the void from time to time.
Just like Yang Kai had to refine the World Tree’s clone, he currently had to refine the World Spring as well. In order to do that, he had to get rid of the impurities that belonged to Yang Kai. After all, he had swallowed a part of the younger man’s Small Universe.
This territory contained a part of Yang Kai’s heritage, but instead of being beneficial to Ding Yao, it was harmful to him.
However, he was much stronger than Yang Kai, and the territory that had been cut off wasn’t big, so there weren’t a lot of impurities to begin with.
After just a few days, Ding Yao was done with refining the World Spring. When he opened his eyes, it was apparent that his aura had become more robust.
Upon seeing that, Zhong Liang said, “Congratulations, Brother Ding. Since you have the World Spring now, you’ll stand a chance to reach even greater heights.”
To Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters like them, the highest Order was undoubtedly the Ninth-Order.
There were dozens of Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in Blue Sky Pass, but the reason they decided to let Ding Yao take over the World Spring wasn’t solely because he was the strongest amongst them. The main reason was that in the past he directly ascended to the Seventh Order, so the Eighth Order wasn’t his limit. In his lifetime, he could aim to become a Ninth-Order Old Ancestor.
In comparison, even though Zhong Liang and the others were strong as well, they had exhausted their potential. The Eighth Order was the best they could achieve in their lifetimes.
It had been thousands of years since Ding Yao ascended to the Eighth Order, but even though he had accumulated a lot of heritage in his current Order, he was still pretty far from the Ninth Order.
Since he had a World Spring now though, there was no doubt that it would take him a shorter time to make it to the Ninth Order.
Ding Yao said, “We all know that it will still take me quite some time to reach the highest Order. On the other hand, since I’ve taken over the World Spring now, I’d better give something back to that brat.”
In an instant, Zhong Liang had a bad premonition, “What are you going to do?”
Ding Yao grinned, “Since he has given me the World Spring, I’ll get him a gift.”
Then, he turned into a ray of golden light and disappeared into the distance.
A myriad of expressions came over Zhong Liang as he stayed rooted to the spot. Soon though, he couldn’t help but stomp his foot and snarl, “That reckless fool!”
Despite that, he didn’t intend to chase after him for he knew it was pointless to do so. Since Ding Yao had made a decision, he wouldn’t change his mind. Furthermore, given his strength, he most likely wouldn’t fall into any danger.
In his room, Yang Kai was seated with his legs crossed. As he refined Seventh-Order materials to cultivate, he examined the transformation going on in his Small Universe.
He didn’t consume the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit because he wanted to find out how the clone’s anomaly would influence him.
If he consumed the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit to repair his Small Universe, the clone’s anomaly would probably disappear.
As time passed, the changes in his Small Universe became increasingly conspicuous. The originally damaged part of his Small Universe started repairing itself.
This revelation astounded Yang Kai.
It wasn’t until this moment that he realised the outcome that the clone’s anomaly had produced.
This clone was able to repair damage to his Small Universe! In other words, even though he never consumed the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, there still wouldn’t be any problems.
He couldn’t believe that the World Tree clone was able to do even that.
Including the fact that the clone was able to help increase his cultivation speed, he had discovered 5 benefits that the tree had given him.
After giving it a thought, he realised that the tree wasn’t named the World Tree for no reason. Even though he had only refined a clone, it was still a World Tree. A Small Universe was also a Universe World, and with the clone’s presence, it was expected that any non-fatal damage would eventually heal itself. Back then, after he planted a World Tree clone in the Star Boundary, the tree was even able to stabilise the collapsing Universe World.
Furthermore, the speed of self-repair was just as good as what consuming a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit would achieve.
However, this benefit wasn’t really useful to Yang Kai; after all, he wouldn’t be corrupted by Black Ink Strength, so he wouldn’t have to give up parts of his Small Universe to save himself. In any case, it was wonderful that he didn’t have to consume the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit as this thing had always been in demand in the Inner Sanctum.
He could return the fruit to Zhong Liang at a later time so that it could be placed in the War Materials Hall for someone else to use.
A few months later, a ray of light descended from the sky and landed in the courtyard.
Upon detecting the movement, Feng Ying hurriedly came over. The instant she saw the person, she saluted him, “Greetings, Sir.”
The person was none other than Ding Yao. It wasn’t certain what he had done recently, but he was now engulfed in murderous intent. Feng Ying could also see that he was injured.
With his hands behind his back, Ding Yao nodded and looked around, “Where’s Yang Boy?”
Feng Ying hurriedly replied, “He’s still cultivating in seclusion now. Please give me a moment, Sir. I’ll tell him to come out now.”
Ding Yao waved his hand, “Since he’s cultivating in seclusion, there’s no need to disturb him. I’ll wait for him to come out.”
Upon hearing that, Feng Ying said, “Junior Brother Yang will stop cultivating in seclusion every half a year. I suppose he’ll come out of his room in a few days. I’ll tell him to see you when he emerges.”
However, Ding Yao just adjusted his clothes and took a seat in the corridor, “There’s no rush. This King will wait for him here.”
Feng Ying was astounded as she wondered why Ding Yao insisted on waiting for Yang Kai here. She didn’t think Yang Kai had made any mistakes recently, so why did the Eastern Army Commander come all the way here?
While she was lost in her thoughts, she saw another person descending from the sky. It was none other than Zhong Liang.
She quickly saluted him and shot him an inquisitive look.
Zhong Liang waved his hand as he walked up to Ding Yao and sized him up. He tutted and asked, “What’s the point of doing this? Doesn’t it hurt?”
Ding Yao replied impassively, “Injuries are inevitable, but it was worth it. I had to let those guys know the consequences of invading Blue Sky Pass. Regardless of whether I’m in a good or bad mood, I can just go over and make a fuss so that they’ll have a taste of getting their home invaded.” He grinned.
The corners of Zhong Liang’s mouth twitched. He had already expected that Ding Yao would become more active after taking over the World Spring, and his speculation was right.
To the side, Feng Ying appeared puzzled as she had no idea what these Army Commanders were talking about. Nevertheless, judging from Ding Yao’s words, she reckoned that he had fought against the Black Ink Clan somewhere.
Now, the Black Ink Clan were hiding deep in their own territory. In other words, Ding Yao had launched an attack on the Black Ink Clan’s base. This notion shocked her. With that said, the Humans had invaded the Black Ink Clan’s territory before. With the Old Ancestor leading the way, those from Blue Sky Pass had previously done such a thing more than once. This always resulted in the Black Ink Clan’s Armies counterattacking resulting in a full-scale war.
However, every time they invaded the Black Ink Clan’s base, the Old Ancestor would take the lead to ensure the safety of most people. Even though Ding Yao was an Eighth-Order Master, it was risky for him to barge into the Black Ink Clan’s hinterland without anyone else supporting him.
Even though Feng Ying had no idea why Ding Yao had done such a thing, she wasn’t in any position to ask about it.
Zhong Liang turned to look at her, “Why are you just standing there? Don’t you see that your Martial Uncle Ding sitting here? Get him some tea.”
Feng Ying quickly responded and fished out a tea set. Considering the fact that Ding Yao was injured, she even took out her treasured Spirit Tea to help him recuperate.
After drinking the tea, Ding Yao couldn’t stop praising her.
When Yang Kai left his room a few days later, he instantly saw this awkward sight.
In the corridor of the courtyard, Ding Yao and Zhong Liang were seated across from each other with a table in the middle of them, sipping tea that Feng Ying was quietly preparing for them.
Yang Kai was dumbfounded as he thought that he was seeing things.
Zhong Liang beckoned to him, “Come here and have some tea. You’re in luck because your Senior Sister Feng has fished out some of the Peak-Rank spirit tea that she has always treasured.”
The atmosphere was somewhat awkward. After he was seated, Feng Ying poured him a cup of tea. While sipping the tea, he signalled at Feng Ying with his eyes to ask her what was going on.
Upon seeing that Feng Ying ignored him, leaving him flustered.
He couldn’t really tell what the spirit tea tasted like, but it was indeed beneficial to cultivators. He felt refreshed after drinking a few cups of it.
Ding Yao finally put down the tea cup and struck his own chest. The next instant, he turned his head and spat out a mouthful of clotted blood. Like a blood arrow, the clotted blood formed a hole in the ground.
After that, Ding Yao became evidently energised and he nodded at Feng Ying, “Many thanks, Martial Niece.”
Feng Ying saluted him, “Don’t mention it, Martial Uncle.”
Ding Yao then turned to Yang Kai and tossed a Space Ring at him, “For you.”
A doubtful Yang Kai took it and infused his Divine Sense into it. The next moment, his expression changed drastically as he muttered, “Why are there so many…”
The Space Ring was filled with countless Black Ink Clan corpses.
Although they were dead, the auras exuding from some of them suggested that there were even Feudal Lords among the piles.
A shocked Yang Kai asked, “Has the Black Ink Clan launched another invasion?”
Zhong Liang shook his head, “No.”
“So… why are there so many corpses here?” If they hadn’t been attacked by the Black Ink Clan, why were there so many corpses in this Space Ring?
Zhong Liang glared at Ding Yao, who said impassively, “This King personally went to the Black Ink Clan’s domain and destroyed some of their territories.”
Despite his dispassionate tone, Yang Kai could imagine how much danger the older man must have gone through. Even though Ding Yao was an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, it was still extremely risky for him to barge into the Black Ink Clan hinterland on his own. The injuries on his figure were the best proof.
“I almost killed a Territory Lord, but that guy ran away too quickly,” Ding Yao sounded regretful. Given his strength, it wasn’t hard for him to defeat a Territory Lord, but it wasn’t easy for him to kill one.
That was the reason Yang Kai and Bai Yi gained a lot of Military Merits after they joined forces to kill Zhu Feng.
To the Humans and the Black Ink Clansmen, Eighth-Order Masters and Territory Lords were indispensable assets. Any loss of such figures would be unbearably painful.
Yang Kai was dumbfounded. After hearing what Ding Yao had said, he figured out what a crazy thing this man must have done. Apparently, Ding Yao headed to the Black Ink Clan’s territory and made a scene after acquiring the World Spring.
Perhaps he had always wanted to do that in the past; however, despite being an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he would have to consume a lot of energy in prolonged resistance against Black Ink Strength. Now that he had the World Spring though, he didn’t have to worry about Black Ink Strength harming him. That was why he could barge into the Black Ink Clan’s territory on his own and give them an unpleasant surprise.
The World Spring wouldn’t increase an Open Heaven Realm Master’s strength, but it could offer incredible assistance to a powerful Master like Ding Yao on the Black Ink Battlefield. It could be said that the World Spring was more useful in Ding Yao’s possession than in Yang Kai’s.
It was for this reason that the Four Universe Pillars were usually given to Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters.
“You can bring this ring to the Merit Hall. It should get you a lot of Military Merits,” Ding Yao said impassively.
Yang Kai turned to Zhong Liang, “Is it… alright to do so?”
After all, he wasn’t the one who killed those enemies. These corpses were given to him by Ding Yao. If he really brought the ring to the Merit Hall, it would be akin to taking Military Merits that supposedly belonged to Ding Yao. That was why he felt uneasy about it.
Zhong Liang chuckled upon hearing that, “It’s definitely alright to do so. Just take it. Your Martial Uncle Ding doesn’t like to owe anyone a favour.”
“But… there are too many corpses here.” Yang Kai felt that the ring in his hand was quite heavy. He didn’t count those corpses, but he reckoned that there were several tens of thousands of them in total. Even though most of them were Low-Rank and High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen, there were also quite a number of Feudal Lords. He could get a staggering number of Military Merits by bringing this ring to the Merit Hall.
Ding Yao coughed, “If you feel like you have to give me something in return, I do have a request.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Please ask, Sir.”
Ding Yao went on to say, “If it’s alright for you, I’d like to get some Humans from your Small Universe.”
After a cultivator ascended to the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm, his Small Universe would materialise, thus giving him the ability to raise living beings inside his body. Doing this would allow the living creatures to help increase the heritage in their Small Universe as time passed. It would help the cultivator shorten cultivation time and grow faster.
Ding Yao already had this ability thousands of years ago; however, the situation on the Black Ink Battlefield was perilous, and every time the Black Ink Clan’s Army invaded, he had to personally fight against powerful enemies, which sometimes resulted in his Small Universe being shaken. If there were living creatures in his Small Universe when that happened, many would be killed.
Nevertheless, things were different now. With the World Spring’s presence, his Small Universe was firm and impenetrable. Even if he had to deal with formidable enemies, his Small Universe would be safe and sound.
Ding Yao was still quite some distance away from the Ninth Order, so it was expected that he wanted to raise some living beings in his Small Universe to shorten the time until his next breakthrough.
In the entire Blue Sky Pass, only Yang Kai had living creatures in his Small Universe, so he was the only one who could help Ding Yao.
Yang Kai instantly realised Ding Yao’s intentions when he heard that, “Do you want to raise living creatures in your Small Universe, Sir?”
“Yes,” Ding Yao nodded.
Yang Kai went on to say, “Since you have the World Spring to protect your Small Universe now, you’re indeed able to start raising living creatures safely. However, rather than Humans, I can offer you a better option.”
“A better option?” Ding Yao arched his brow. Zhong Liang also gazed at him with surprise.
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai waved his hand and the portal to his Small Universe opened up. A moment later, a knee-high stony living creature appeared before him.
Presently, the creature appeared puzzled as he had no idea why he’d appeared in this place; however, it was apparent that he was a simple-minded creature with low sentience. He soon ignored the people around him and started strolling around.
“What’s this?” Ding Yao examined him with a frown.
Zhong Liang was also looking at the stone creature with curiosity.
Neither of them had seen such a special creature before, so their interest had been piqued.
“I call them the Small Stone Race. They were discovered in a New Great Territory.”
“A New Great Territory?” Ding Yao was astounded.
Yang Kai nodded, then explained to him the Small Stone Race’s background. Ding Yao and the others were amazed as they had never expected that a New Great Territory had been found in the 3,000 Worlds.
“Compared to Humans, raising these Small Stone Race members can give us more benefits. Assuming that there are equal numbers of Humans and Small Stone Race members, the latter can help increase the heritage of our Small Universe roughly 10 times quicker.”
“10 times quicker?” Zhong Liang exclaimed as a myriad of expressions came over him, “Are you serious?”
“Yes,” Yang Kai nodded.
“Why is that?” Zhong Liang was puzzled.
Yang Kai shook his head, “I have no idea either. Although they’ve been living inside my Small Universe for many years now, I still don’t know the reason behind it. I can only say that these special living creatures are beneficial to the Small Universes of cultivators like us; therefore, if you want to raise living creatures in your Small Universe, I’d recommend these Small Stone Race members. As for Humans, I have the World Tree’s clone in my Small Universe now, and with its nourishment, many geniuses will appear after three to five generations.”
Ding Yao’s eyes brightened, “It’s best to have these Small Stone Race members then. However, how many of them can you give me?”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “You can have as many as you want. In fact, it’s not hard to raise these little guys. They multiply quickly, sharing similar characteristics to ants. As long as there’s a queen ant and enough food, you don’t have to worry about increasing their number. With that said, it takes quite a lot of materials to raise them. It might not have been possible in Blue Sky Pass in the past, but it shouldn’t be an issue now. I suppose those First, Second, and Third-Order materials are basically useless. Small Stone Race members are not picky when it comes to what you feed them.”
Ding Yao exchanged glances with Zhong Liang, then turned to Yang Kai and nodded, “I’ll listen to you, then.”
Certainly, Yang Kai didn’t have any objections. He then started taking some Small Stone Race members out of his Small Universe.
It took him several days to finally fish out a little more than half of the Small Stone Race members from his Small Universe. It was then that Ding Yao was satisfied.
With these Small Stone Race members as a foundation, they would certainly multiply quickly in his Small Universe as long as there were sufficient materials. As time passed, it would save him a lot of cultivation time and help him ascend to the Ninth Order earlier.
Ding Yao soon left. Even though he had killed a lot of Black Ink Clansmen and returned alive, he was injured after all. Moreover, with so many Small Stone Race members in his Small Universe now, he had to spend some time studying them, so he didn’t remain for long.
On the other hand, Zhong Liang wasn’t in a rush to leave. He gazed at Yang Kai and asked caringly, “Are you sure you can resist Black Ink Strength without the World Spring?”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai chuckled, “Have you forgotten about it, Sir? I still have a lot of Black Ink Strength suppressed in my Small Universe. I would have fallen into danger instead of still looking safe and sound if I were unable to resist the Black Ink Strength.”
Zhong Liang was startled as he soon recalled it. Finding it regretful, he couldn’t help but let out a sigh.
In fact, he hoped that the World Tree’s clone wouldn’t have the same effects as the World Spring so that Yang Kai would have to stay in Blue Sky Pass instead of running around everywhere; however, he knew that his wishes wouldn’t always be granted. It had come to a point where there was nothing he could do to change the situation.
“By the way, I should give this back to you.” As Yang Kai spoke, he fished out a box and passed it to Zhong Liang.
A doubtful Zhong Liang took the box, and upon opening it, he asked in shock, “You didn’t consume it?”
The thing inside the box was the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit he had given to Yang Kai some time ago.
Yang Kai nodded, “The World Tree clone is able to repair damage to my Small Universe, so I don’t need to consume this fruit. My Small Universe has almost fully healed now. This fruit is rare in the Inner Sanctum, so it should be given to another fellow Brother or Sister who needs it.”
Zhong Liang was astounded as he muttered, “I didn’t expect the clone to have this effect.”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “I just found out about it not long ago.”
Certainly, Yang Kai wouldn’t joke around about such an issue. Zhong Liang couldn’t help but think that the World Tree was truly amazing. Just a clone could bring so many benefits with it. What surprises would there be if someone could refine the Mother Tree itself?
With that said, he knew that it couldn’t possibly happen; after all, the Mother Tree was hiding in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, where not just anyone could enter. This Sealed World had always been elusive, and no one knew where or when it would appear. Entering was basically a matter of luck.
Eventually, Zhong Liang left with the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit. Yang Kai passed the ring that was full of Black Ink Clan corpses to Feng Ying and told her to bring it to the Merit Hall to exchange for Military Merits. He didn’t intend to keep the Military Merits to himself; instead, he decided to keep it in Dawn Squad’s account. After all, it required some Military Merits every time Dawning Light was repaired, so he had to be prepared for future emergencies.
After Feng Ying left, Yang Kai started cultivating in seclusion again, for his Small Universe hadn’t fully healed yet. However, with the World Tree clone’s presence, repairing his Small Universe wasn’t really an issue.
Another half a year passed before Yang Kai finally felt his Small Universe was complete once more.
After some calculations, Yang Kai realised that it took one year for his Small Universe to fully heal. During this period of time, he could feel that his foundation was slightly unsteady, which resulted in a decrease in his speed of refining materials. He hadn’t fought anyone, but if he had done so, he would’ve realised that his strength had plunged as well.
The Small Universe was the foundation of an Open Heaven Realm Master. Once it was damaged, the cultivator would be affected in many ways.
However, Yang Kai was surprised that the World Tree clone was able to fully repair his Small Universe in just one year, which could be considered rapid. He had asked Feng Ying about the effects of consuming a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit. It was said that after a cultivator consumed a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, while it would immediately patch the damage, it would take one to two years to fully repair a Small Universe. There were even those who spent three to five years or even more than ten years waiting for their Small Universes to fully heal.
It seemed that the clone’s healing ability was greater than that of a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit.
Not only had Yang Kai’s Small Universe been repaired, but his Dragon Bead, which was damaged during the battle against Zhu Feng in the past, had been repaired as well.
Yang Kai had overexerted himself to battle against Zhu Feng Territory Lord. In the end, he was forced to summon his Dragon Bead to deal with the formidable enemy. Even though such a move was powerful, it was also dangerous. The consequences would be dreadful if his Dragon Bead was destroyed.
After the battle, his Dragon Bead was damaged and full of cracks.
Fortunately, the Dragon Bead could be repaired by nourishing it with his Dragon Vein, and as long as he didn’t need to use his Dragon Transformation Secret Art, the problem with the Dragon Bead wouldn’t affect his usual strength.
Over the years, he hadn’t done anything special, but the Dragon Bead became perfect again with the Dragon Vein’s constant nourishment.
In fact, it had become better than in the past. He could clearly feel that the power of his Dragon Vein had improved.
He initially thought that it was just an illusion, but after examining himself, he realised that the power of his Dragon Vein had indeed increased.
The revelation puzzled him.
It was expected that his Dragon Bead would be healed one day, but it came as a complete and pleasant surprise that the power of his Dragon Vein had been strengthened as well.
After examining himself closely, Yang Kai reckoned that his quick recovery and improved strength were thanks to the gift the Burning Light and Serene Glimmer had given him in the past.
Rumour had it that Burning Light and Serene Glimmer were the origins of all Divine Spirits. The Dragon Clan was the leader of all Divine Spirits, so they were supposedly closely related to the Burning Light and Serene Glimmer.
It was for this reason that, when Yang Kai sought help from Big Brother Huang and Big Sister Lan to deal with Black Ink Strength, he was given the two marks that could be used to activate Purifying Light. Not everyone could activate the two marks and draw on the powers of Yellow and Blue Crystals to cast this technique.
If Yang Kai was not attuned to the two marks, he still wouldn’t be able to cast Purifying Light even if he had abundant Yellow and Blue Crystals.
Before he left the Chaotic Dead Territory, Big Brother Huang and Big Sister Lan left a mysterious force in his body.
That force was harmless to Yang Kai and wouldn’t improve his cultivation in any way; however, it could stimulate the power of the Dragon Vein in his body and purify his Dragon Clan bloodline.
It was thanks to the help of these supreme beings that the power of his Dragon Vein had increased significantly. Initially, Yang Kai could only transform into a 10,000-metre Dragon after using Dragon Transformation Secret Art, which allowed him to just barely be regarded as a Grand Dragon. After the incident, he could reach 20,000 metres upon using his Dragon Transformation Secret Art. His figure had expanded by two times.
At that time, Yang Kai had a feeling that the mysterious force left behind by Big Brother Huang and Big Sister Lan in his body hadn’t been depleted and was instead hiding somewhere in his body.
Over the years though, he had never detected the presence of the mysterious force again.
It never crossed his mind that the damage in his Dragon Bead silently triggered it. His Dragon Vein had once again been improved without him noticing.
Yang Kai had no idea how huge his Grand Dragon Form would be after using his Dragon Transformation Secret Art now. Nevertheless, he believed that he would be longer than 20,000 metres.
He decided to use his Dragon Transformation Secret Art and examine the changes he had gone through when he was free one day.
After his Small Universe had healed, Yang Kai could once again refine a set of Seventh-Order materials every half a year, which allowed his heritage to grow rapidly.
Given the speed of his progress, he reckoned that it would take him less than 1,000 years to ascend to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
It was inconceivable that anyone could ascend to the Eighth Order from the Seventh Order in less than 1,000 years. There were a lot of Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in Blue Sky Pass who had been stuck in the same Order for thousands of years. First of all, they were limited by their own aptitude, and secondly, they hadn’t accumulated enough heritage.
Usually, regardless of how talented a cultivator was, it would take them three or four thousand years to ascend to the Eighth Order from the Seventh Order, while 5,000 years was considered average.
As for ascending to the Ninth Order from the Eighth Order, it would take a cultivator more than 10,000 years to do so. Open Heaven Realm Masters lived long enough to go through such a long process though, so most didn’t think too much of it.
It was because of how difficult it was for an Open Heaven Realm Master to grow their strength that there were not a lot of Ninth-Order Old Ancestors in the Cave Heavens and Paradises even though they had lived for countless years. No one could guarantee that it would always be smooth sailing while they were growing their power either. Even if a person had the chance to make it to the Ninth Order, they might lose their future or even their life if an accident happened.
There were three reasons why it would only take Yang Kai 1,000 years to achieve this same feat. First of all, he had been refining Seventh-Order materials, so he could increase his strength more efficiently. Secondly, the World Tree’s clone in his Small Universe helped increase his refining speed by several times. Lastly, the living creatures residing in his Small Universe continuously helped strengthen his heritage.
All these advantages added up and allowed him to grow his power in the shortest time possible.
Achieving a breakthrough in just 1,000 years was only Yang Kai’s estimation, of course. If he was held up by something during this period of time, it would take him longer to achieve his goal.
Just like he had done previously, Yang Kai would go out and unwind after refining a set of materials every half a year.
A few years went by in the blink of an eye.
When Yang Kai left his room one day, he saw Zhong Liang already waiting for him. It seemed that the latter had predicted the time he would stop cultivating.
Yang Kai was disciplined when it came to cultivating, so it wasn’t hard for anyone to know when he would leave his room.
It had been peaceful in Blue Sky Pass in the past few years, so Yang Kai was surprised to see Zhong Liang waiting for him. He quickly went over and saluted him, “Do you need something, Sir?”
Zhong Liang nodded, “Come with me.”
Despite not knowing what was going on, Yang Kai still hurriedly followed him.
Soon, he realised that Zhong Liang was heading to the Pill Hall.
Someone was already waiting for them outside. It was none other than Tang Qun, whom Yang Kai had met before. At that instant, Yang Kai had a speculation about the reason Zhong Liang had brought him to the Pill Hall.
With Tang Qun leading the way, they soon arrived at a Grand Hall.
Three people were already waiting inside the Grand Hall, and Yang Kai had met two of them before. They were Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang. He had no idea who the last person was, but the latter seemed energetic despite his old age. His aura suggested that he was in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Upon seeing Yang Kai, both Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang were excited as they came over.
Yang Kai saluted them. Even though they were excited, they appeared somewhat tired. Both of them had become much thinner than when Yang Kai met them for the first time.
It had to be noted that they were Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, so even though they knew nothing about fighting, they were still fairly powerful. It wasn’t certain what caused them to go through such a transformation over the years.
Zhong Liang introduced the third old man to Yang Kai, “He’s the Hall Master of the Pill Hall, Fu Zhou.”
Yang Kai saluted him again, “So it is Senior Fu.”
Fu Zhou ran his fingers through his beard with a smile, “A talented young man indeed.”
The ever-impatient Zhu Ge Ming said, “Cut to the chase. We’re here for a pill test.”
Zhou Fang nodded repeatedly on the side.
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai realised that his speculation was right. Pleasantly surprised, he asked, “Have you completed the pill recipe for the Purifying Black Ink Pill?”
It had been a few years since he passed the incomplete pill recipe to these two Alchemy Grandmasters, and he would ask about the progress from time to time. Things seemed to be going well in the beginning, but they started facing some difficulties in the later stage. Those from the Pill Hall were unable to complete the pill recipe easily.
However, Zhu Ge Ming’s words suggested that not only had they completed the recipe, but they had also successfully refined some Purifying Black Ink Pills.
Zhou Fang nodded and replied, “We’ve completed the pill recipe and made some Purifying Black Ink Pills; however, we have to give it a test to find out whether it’s effective. We’ve asked you to come here to take part in the pill test.”
Yang Kai nodded as he finally understood why Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang appeared exhausted. They must have continuously exerted themselves to complete the pill recipe while experiencing countless failures. It was no wonder that they were worn out after years of such an endeavour.
Certainly, Yang Kai wouldn’t object to a pill test, for he also wanted Purifying Black Ink Pills to be mass-produced as soon as possible, so he asked, “What do you want me to do?”
Zhong Liang replied, “Since we have to find out the effectiveness of the Purifying Black Ink Pill, we have to let someone become corrupted by Black Ink Strength. Obviously, we don’t keep Black Ink Strength in the Inner Sanctum, but I know you have quite a lot of it in your Small Universe. We need you to use that Black Ink Strength. It will be fine if the experiment is successful; however, if the pill is not effective, we’ll need you to activate Purifying Light to help.”
“Understood.” Yang Kai nodded, then asked, “Who will receive the Black Ink Strength, then?”
Zhu Ge Ming immediately took a step forward, “Me!”
Zhou Fang directly pushed him aside, “Back down old fart. I’ll handle it.”
A furious Zhu Ge Ming snapped, “How dare an old fart like you call me old!? Take a piss and look at your own reflection first!”
Zhou Fang scoffed, “I’m younger than you by 300 years, so you should give a young person like me a chance.”
The corner of Zhu Ge Ming’s mouth twitched, “How do you have the nerve to call yourself a young person?”
Yang Kai was dumbfounded, thinking that they even had to compete against one another over such a trivial matter. It seemed that these Grandmasters were truly on bad terms.
Fu Zhou said with a smile, “I’m sorry for the farce, Little Friend. This matter has something to do with the effectiveness of Purifying Black Ink Pills, so it’ll be helpful to personally go through the experience. However, Junior Brother Zhou has a point. This matter is important, and we should give young people a chance.”
Then, he turned his head to the side, “You do it, Tang Qun.”
Tang Qun had been silently watching the show. Since the two Grandmasters were arguing, he didn’t have the nerve to say anything. In fact, he had remained silent after he led Yang Kai and Zhong Liang to this place. He hadn’t expected that Fu Zhou would call out to him at this point.
After being startled for a moment, he cupped his fist respectfully, “Yes.”
Since Fu Zhou had given the order, Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang wouldn’t dare to have any objection.
Yang Kai then fished out a bit of Black Ink Strength from his Small Universe and gazed at Tang Qun, “Tell me when you’re ready.”
Tang Qun took a deep breath, as though he was ready to sacrifice his life, “You can start now, Senior Brother.”
Yang Kai raised his hand and pushed the Black Ink Strength on him.
Tang Qun instantly opened up his Small Universe and accepted it.
The next instant, he shuddered and appeared to be struggling. Through the Small Universe’s portal, they could clearly see that as the Black Ink Strength seeped through the Small Universe that hadn’t materialised, the darkness spread around quickly. Just moments later, Black Ink Strength started billowing from Tang Qun’s skin, and even his eyes had been dyed black.
As a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he had some resistance against Black Ink Strength, so he wouldn’t be corrupted as soon as he came into contact with it. However, this was just a pill test, so he didn’t intend to resist. Instead, he tried to lead the Black Ink Strength to invade his entire body, which was why he was rapidly corrupted.
With little sanity left, he growled with difficulty, “Sirs… I’m about to lose control!”
As soon as he finished speaking, his eyes became completely black. The next moment, he roared with a ferocious expression and attempted to land a fist on Zhu Ge Ming, who was nearest to him.
Tang Qun was a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so his attack was undoubtedly intimidating; however, he didn’t manage to hurt Zhu Ge Ming one bit, for Zhong Liang abruptly appeared beside him and placed a palm on his shoulder, instantly rendering him completely immovable.
Despite that, Tang Qun kept a hideous expression on his face as he continued to struggle.
This situation was within their expectations. Open Heaven Realm Masters who were corrupted by Black Ink Strength were destined to go against the Human Race; however, Yang Kai hadn’t expected that they would go all out in this pill test.
Even if the Purifying Black Ink Pill was not effective, he still had Purifying Light to save Tang Qun. Nevertheless, this certainly wouldn’t be an enjoyable experience for the latter.
It was no wonder that Fu Zhou refused to allow Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang to give it a try; after all, both of them were in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm. If they were really corrupted by Black Ink Strength, Zhong Liang would probably have to wound them seriously before he could subdue them.
Tang Qun was just a Sixth-Order Master, so they could take control of the situation by letting him become contaminated by Black Ink Strength.
Seeing that Tang Qun was subdued, Fu Zhou quickly took a step forward with a nail-sized Spirit Pill between his fingers and pried the younger man’s mouth open. After stuffing the pill into his mouth, he gently landed his own palm on the younger man’s chest.
Tang Qun was forced to gulp down the pill. Fu Zhou activated his power to help him refine the medicinal efficacies. All of them stared fixedly at Tang Qun as they wanted to find out whether the Purifying Black Ink Pill was effective.
A moment later, Zhu Ge Ming suddenly exclaimed, “It’s useful!”
Zhou Fang was evidently relieved as well.
The Purifying Black Ink Pill was indeed useful. As the medicinal efficacies were refined, they could see that the Black Ink Strength inside Tang Qun’s Small Universe became thinner.
Tang Qun also became less hostile towards them.
They observed him with hopeful gazes; however, the Black Ink Strength then stopped decreasing. When the medicinal efficacies of the Purifying Black Ink Pill were all gone, Tang Qun started growling and struggling again.
Zhu Ge Ming almost went mad as he pulled at his grey hair, muttering under his breath, “How can this be? How is it possible that it doesn’t work?”
Zhou Fang also appeared dejected as he was beside himself.
The two of them had spent several years exerting themselves to complete the Purifying Black Ink Pill recipe. During that period of time, they had experienced countless failures and consumed innumerable herbs. They initially thought that the pill would work, but the outcome turned out to be disappointing.
This had dealt a heavy blow to them.
Zhong Liang frowned and sent a signal to Yang Kai with his eyes.
Upon getting his hint, Yang Kai activated Purifying Light and engulfed Tang Qun with it.
Under the pure light, the Black Ink Strength in Tang Qun’s body rapidly dissipated as he regained his sanity; however, it was apparent that he was exhausted after the incident as his forehead was beaded with sweat.
Zhu Ge Ming and Zhou Fang came to their senses as they quickly asked Tang Qun about his experience just now.
Although Tang Qun had been corrupted by Black Ink Strength, he still remembered everything that happened, so he told them what he had gone through just now.
Upon hearing this, the two Alchemy Grandmasters fell into their thoughts.
A moment later, Zhu Ge Ming said, “Give it one more try. This time, don’t let him get completely corrupted by Black Ink Strength. There’s no problem with the pill recipe of Purifying Black Ink Pill, but the effects might not be the same as what we had imagined.”
Zhou Fang nodded, “That’s right.”
Fu Zhou gazed at Tang Qun, “Can you persevere?”
Tang Qun nodded, “I can make one more attempt.”
Fu Zhou then turned to Yang Kai, “Sorry for troubling you again, Little Friend Yang.”
“Don’t mention it, Hall Master.” As Yang Kai spoke, he stared at Tang Qun and took out a bit of Black Ink Strength again.
Just as he did earlier, Tang Qun opened up his Small Universe and accepted it. This time though, Zhu Ge Ming quickly passed him a Purifying Black Ink Pill. Tang Qun consumed it and refined the medicinal efficacies on his own.
They could see that as the medicinal efficacies of the Purifying Black Ink Pill spread, the Black Ink Strength in Yang Qun’s Small Universe started melting away like the snow under the scorching Sun.
All of them were thrilled upon seeing that.
After Tang Qun got to his feet, they thoroughly examined his Small Universe and confirmed that there was no Black Ink Strength left.
Zhu Ge Ming chuckled, “I told you that there’s no way it wouldn’t work! This must be how the pill should be used.”
Zhou Fang nodded, “You have a point. However, we can only come to a conclusion after carrying out more experiments.”
Zhu Ge Ming replied, “That’s right.”
They spoke in an oblique manner, and although Yang Kai had some speculations, he couldn’t be certain about them. Regardless, he reckoned that Tang Qun would have to suffer in the coming days.
In the days that followed, Yang Kai stayed in the Pill Hall to help with the pill tests. For this purpose, Zhong Liang arranged more than 10 Open Heaven Realm Masters of different Orders to come over and take part in the experiments.
It would be miserable for Tang Qun if he was the only one who had to experience all the hardship.
The experiments over the next few days showed that the Purifying Black Ink Pills were useful, but their effects were limited. After a person was invaded by Black Ink Strength, it would be best for them to consume a Purifying Black Ink Pill as soon as possible; that way, they would stand a greater chance of retaining their sanity.
Once they were completely corrupted by Black Ink Strength, it would be too late for them to consume a Purifying Black Ink Pill.
The reason it turned out to be a failure on the first try was that Tang Qun had been totally corrupted by the Black Ink Strength, so the Purifying Black Ink Pill was unable to help him restore his rationality.
Despite that, it could be considered that they had successfully made Purifying Black Ink Pills. That was wonderful news for the Human Race.
Before Yang Kai’s arrival in the Black Ink Battlefield, the Humans from the Great Passes had no way to deal with Black Ink Strength. Once a person was corrupted, he or she would either be turned into a Black Ink Disciple or have to give up a part of their Small Universe. This resulted in the Humans from different Great Passes seeing their powers plunging or even regressing to a lower Order. There were a lot of people who dropped from the Sixth Order to the Fifth Order as a result, and it wasn’t rare to see people who fell to the Sixth Order from the Seventh Order either.
Then came the day when Yang Kai Purifying Light brought with him, which could even save the people who had been Black Ink Disciples for a long time. The Humans from the Great Passes were heartened as each Great Pass created their own Purifying Black Ink Battleships. The ships were then brought to Blue Sky Pass by the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters so that Yang Kai could infuse Purifying Light into them.
However, only Yang Kai was able to use Purifying Light, it required specific materials to cast the Secret Technique, which they would use up sooner or later.
How were the Humans going to resist Black Ink Strength when that time came?
The rebirth of Purifying Black Ink Pills came at the perfect time. Even though it was not as powerful as Purifying Light, they could be universally used and were easily produced.
Those from Blue Sky Pass could just spread the pill recipe around, and the Alchemists from different Great Passes could begin refining the pills.
With Purifying Black Ink Pills as the most commonly used treatment, Purifying Light could serve as a backup move. When the Humans were corrupted by Black Ink Strength in the future, they wouldn’t be powerless to resist.
Since time immemorial, Black Ink Strength had always been the Black Ink Clan’s biggest advantage. Once this advantage was gone, the Black Ink Clan would be like a tiger without teeth, no longer so intimidating.
The Alchemy Grandmasters in the Pill Hall were ecstatic. While they planned to mass-produce the Purifying Black Ink Pills, they also vowed to improve the pill recipe so that even the Black Ink Disciples could be saved. Only then would the Purifying Black Ink Pills be considered truly complete.
This was an ambitious plan that couldn’t be achieved in a short time; however, the pill recipe was soon spread around and the Alchemy Grandmasters from all the different Great Passes would definitely study it. Perhaps Purifying Black Ink Pills that would be effective on Black Ink Disciples would be successfully developed one day.
The pill tests this time could be considered a success.
Zhong Liang took the pill recipe as he was ready to send it to the Great Passes through the Hyper Space Array. Certainly, those from the Pill Hall had no objection.
On the other hand, a lot of Alchemists in the Pill Hall had gathered together as they were ready to mass-produce Purifying Black Ink Pills. Fortunately, after Yang Kai passed the tattered pill recipe to the Pill Hall back then, he told Tang Qun to start growing more Obsidian Grass and Green Feather Rattan. Now, they were not lacking ingredients for refining the pills. Nevertheless, the demand for those herbs would only grow in the coming years.
As Yang Kai and Zhong Liang left the Pill Hall, they remained silent.
All of a sudden, Zhong Liang let out a laugh. A puzzled Yang Kai asked humbly, “What’s so amusing, Sir?”
With his hands behind his back, Zhong Liang replied, “I just find it exhilarating that we’ll be able to go all out to deal with the Black Ink Clan with Purifying Black Ink Pills in possession one day.”
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai nodded, “That is indeed an exciting prospect.”
Zhong Liang let out a sigh, “Humans have been fighting against the Black Ink Clan for countless years. We are restricted in many ways because it is difficult to deal with Black Ink Strength. Even though you’ve brought Purifying Light to us, and it’s more effective than Purifying Black Ink Pills, these pills are more useful than Purifying Light on the battlefield.”
Yang Kai nodded, “I understand.”
It was just like what happened in the resource harvesting area where forward base 4 was located. In the final battle, the Purifying Black Ink Battleship, which contained Purifying Light, was stationed back at the forward base, a two-day journey away. The cultivators who had been invaded by Black Ink Strength had to look for a chance to use the Universe Transference Law to return to the Purifying Black Ink Battleship in the forward base in order to be treated, taking them off the battlefield for quite some time.
Activating the Universe Transference Law required a few breaths of time, during which the person using it could not be disturbed; otherwise, it would definitely fail.
Even if the person successfully activated the Universe Transference Law and returned to the Purifying Black Ink Battleship in the forward base, it would take them two days to return to the battlefield. The battle would have ended by then; in which case, it was no different from weakening the Human Army.
However, things would be different if every Human soldier who fought against the Black Ink Clan had several Purifying Black Ink Pills with them. Even if they were invaded by Black Ink Strength, they wouldn’t turn into Black Ink Disciples as long as they could quickly consume a Purifying Black Ink Pill, allowing them to stay on the battlefield and continue fighting.
Therefore, Purifying Black Ink Pills would be more useful and convenient than Purifying Light on the battlefield.
“Since your arrival in the Inner Sanctum, Blue Sky Pass has become the centre of attention of all Humans. We’ve been in the limelight,” Zhong Liang let out a laugh again.
A puzzled Yang Kai asked, “What do you mean?”
Zhong Liang replied, “You see, you were the one who brought Purifying Light to us. When the news spread, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters from different Great Passes personally brought their Purifying Black Ink Battleships to Blue Sky Pass. That was the first event. Then, you came up with the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors, and we were the ones who informed the Humans from different Great Passes about their refinement method. That was the second event. Now, we’ve successfully developed Purifying Black Ink Pills. The pill recipe will be sent to the other Great Passes, and once they get it, they will all be over the Moon and grateful to Blue Sky Pass. That’s the reason we’re the centre of attention, and you’re the one who has brought us such glory.”
“It is this Junior’s duty, nothing more.”
Zhong Liang shook his head, “In the past, I’d never expected that one person could single-handedly change the status quo on this vast battlefield. As I grew older and started losing hope, there came a day when you arrived and changed everything.”
“Perhaps I’m just lucky.” Yang Kai put on a smile.
Zhong Liang flashed a smile at him as well, “It’s not just about luck. Perhaps we’ll finally see some changes on this seemingly never-changing battlefield. Never mind, let’s not talk about it. Is everything going well with your cultivation?” He suddenly changed the topic.
Yang Kai replied, “Everything’s fine.”
Zhong Liang nodded, “I can see that your aura has become denser compared to several years ago. It’s apparent that your power has increased significantly; however, the cultivation of an Open Heaven Realm Master is a process of accumulation. Hence, you must not be too proud or impatient. Don’t try to run before you can walk. You just ascended to the Seventh Order several years ago, so there’s no rush for you to try to make it to the Eighth Order. Given your aptitude and heritage, it will naturally happen when the time comes. If it’s not the right time yet, it’s pointless for you to work excessively hard.”
Yang Kai replied respectfully, “I understand.”
Zhong Liang went on to say, “Since you understand, there’s no rush for you to continue cultivating. There’s something I need you to do.”
“What is it?” Yang Kai gazed at him.
Zhong Liang replied, “Several years ago, you opened up 11 portals to Sealed Worlds in the resource harvesting area around forward base 4. Did Cha Hu tell you that the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield tend to be clustered?”
Yang Kai nodded, “He did mention it.”
“Good.” Zhong Liang ran his fingers through his beard, “The thing is, we’ve found quite a number of Sealed Worlds in different places in the Blue Sky Theatre in the past. Most of the time, we could only find one to two Sealed Worlds in any given place, but we suspect that there are still a lot of hidden Sealed Worlds around the places where Sealed Worlds were previously found. It’s just that we didn’t have the means to look for the hidden portals. Hence, we’re unable to extract the resources in those Sealed Worlds.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai said, “Do you want me to go to the places where Sealed Worlds were previously found to look for hidden portals?”
“En,” Zhong Liang nodded, “You’re a Master of the Dao of Space, so it shouldn’t be difficult for you to find more hidden portals. There are a lot of valuable items in those Sealed Worlds, after all. Just getting more Profound Yin Spirit Fruit Trees would be extremely useful to the Inner Sanctum.”
Upon listening to his intention, Yang Kai nodded, “In that case, I’ll get prepared and set off.”
Zhong Liang waved his hand, “There’s no need to get prepared. Just set off now. I’ve informed Dawn Squad about it, and they’re waiting for you outside the Inner Sanctum. You just have to join them. I’ve asked someone to tell Feng Ying about the places where Sealed Worlds were previously found. She’ll lead you there.”
Yang Kai was stunned as he had never expected Zhong Liang to be so well prepared. He had even informed Dawn about it, so it was apparent that he didn’t intend to let Yang Kai continue cultivating; however, since it was his order, Yang Kai naturally wouldn’t disobey. He then cupped his fist and said, “I’ll get going now, then.”
Zhong Liang nodded, “There’s no rush in dealing with this matter. You can come back when you’re done with it. On the other hand, when you’re handling this matter, no one from the Inner Sanctum will contact you. Unless you fall into danger, you won’t have to inform us about whatever you do. Be safe when you’re outside.”
A puzzled Yang Kai responded and left. He had a feeling that Zhong Liang was acting strangely, but he couldn’t really tell what was off.
After he was gone, a figure abruptly appeared beside Zhong Liang. The person was none other than the Eastern Army Commander, Ding Yao.
“Has he left?” Ding Yao asked.
Zhong Liang nodded, “Yes.” Then, he asked, “Where’s that old fart surnamed Tang?”
Ding Yao shrugged, “Shen Tu is dealing with him now.”
Zhong Liang frowned, “What’s that old fart up to, coming all the way here to Blue Sky Pass?”
Ding Yao shook his head, “Tang Qiu never said anything; however, he’s an Eighth-Order Master, so he must have used a lot of resources to be sent to this place from Yin-Yang Pass. He certainly wouldn’t come here for no reason.”
Zhong Liang scowled, “Could it be what we think? He’s here to lure Yang Boy to his side seeing that he created so many wonderful things?”
Ding Yao instantly sported a ferocious expression, “How dare he!”
“Regardless of whether he has the guts to do so, I reckon that it’s indeed his intention. He already expressed such intentions when he visited previously. It’s just that Yang Boy didn’t leave with him. Since he has come all the way here again this time, it’s clear to us what he’s up to. In any case, Yang Boy is considered a member of Yin-Yang Cave Heaven while Tang Qiu is an Eighth-Order Ancestor from Yin-Yang Cave Heaven as well as an Army Commander of Yin-Yang Pass, so it’s expected that he wants to bring Yang Boy back with him.”
“Once a member of Blue Sky Pass, always a member of Blue Sky Pass!” Ding Yao snorted, “If that old fart surnamed Tang really has his eyes on Yang Boy, I’ll definitely beat him up.”
Zhong Liang shot him a glance, “I’ll be looking forward to it, then. Don’t back down when the time comes.”
Ding Yao scoffed in response.
Zhong Liang chuckled, “Let’s go probe that old fart first. It’s been a few days since he arrived, so we can’t possibly keep ignoring him.”
Meanwhile, Shen Tu Mo was accompanying a middle-aged man who was clad in simple clothes. They were having a chat while walking around. Nevertheless, Shen Tu Mo remained impassive and didn’t speak much while the middle-aged man was apparently the more talkative one.
This middle-aged man named Tang Qiu was the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master from Yin-Yang Cave Heaven whom Yang Kai had met before. He was also an Army Commander.
When Tang Qiu brought the Purifying Black Ink Battleships refined by Yin-Yang Pass to Blue Sky Pass back then, he met up with Yang Kai. He had also brought Xu Ling Gong with him.
A moment later, Tang Qiu suddenly stopped in his tracks and put on a bitter smile, “Brother Shen Tu, it seems that I’m not welcome in Blue Sky Pass. I’m truly saddened.”
There was a dispassionate expression on Shen Tu Mo’s face as he replied, “We’ve always been sincere and welcoming to our friends; however, if it’s an enemy, he’ll be greeted by the Secret Techniques of our several ten thousand soldiers.”
The corners of Tang Qiu’s face twitched, “Why is this Tang an enemy of Blue Sky Pass?”
Shen Tu Mo turned around, showing only his profile, “Brother Tang, it’s up to you whether you want to be our friend or foe.”
A speechless Tang Qiu broke into laughter, “I don’t understand, Brother Shen Tu. Please make it clear to me.”
Shen Tu Mo shook his head in silence.
Tang Qiu let out a sigh, “Forget it. Since you don’t welcome me here, I’ll leave now.”
“Farewell!” Shen Tu Mo extended his hand, as though he was eager to see him leave.
Tang Qiu’s chest heaved with fury. He suppressed his anger and said resentfully, “I’ll definitely leave, but there’s one person I have to see before that.”
Shen Tu Mo looked cautiously at him, “Who do you want to see?”
Tang Qiu replied, “Yang Kai!”
“You’ve finally revealed your ulterior motive, Old Fart! I knew you were up to no good coming all the way here to Blue Sky Pass! You’re really here to snatch Yang Kai!” Someone was heard growling. The next moment, two figures descended from the sky. They were none other than Zhong Liang and Ding Yao, who happened to arrive and hear what Tang Qiu had just said.
The moment they landed on the ground, Zhong Liang turned to Ding Yao, “Haven’t you heard what he said, Brother Ding? What are you waiting for?”
Ding Yao balled up his fist and palmed it loudly.
An alerted Tang Qiu yelled, “What are you trying to do?”
It wasn’t until this moment that he realised that three Army Commanders of Blue Sky Pass had surrounded him, causing him to sweat.
Ding Yao grinned in an eerie manner, “Well, it’s our duty to beat up anyone who’s ill-intentioned here.”
Tang Qiu was dumbfounded, “Why do you think this Tang is ill-intentioned?”
Zhong Liang snorted, “You failed in your attempt to get Yang Kai to go to your side previously, so we never expected that you would still have the nerve to come try again! It seems that we’ve been too magnanimous. You probably won’t learn your lesson unless we beat you up!”
Tang Qiu quickly raised his hands, “Wait a moment. That’s not this Tang’s intention! The reason I want to see Yang Kai is that one of the Purifying Black Ink Battleships from Yin-Yang Pass has run out of Purifying Light, so I’d like him to help replenish it.”
“Do you think I’ll believe you?” Zhong Liang sneered and waved his hand, “Kill!”
Three figures instantly shot towards him like they were arrows.
“You…” Tang Qiu was flabbergasted as he hadn’t expected that they would really dare to make a move. He was already surrounded by them, to begin with, and he had missed the best chance to escape. How was he supposed to counterattack at this moment?
He clumsily dodged their attacks, but to no avail.
Fortunately, these four Eighth-Order Army Commanders didn’t forget the fact that they were in the Inner Sanctum, so they made sure that their powers didn’t leak beyond a radius of 10 metres. Despite that, it was still a world-shaking battle.
A moment later, Tang Qiu, whose face was all bruised, found himself literally backed into a corner. Faced with three towering figures, he had no way to flee.
All of them were Eighth-Order Army Commanders, so they would be equally matched if they were in a one-on-one fight. However, how was he supposed to be a match for the three of them on his own?
If he hadn’t given up resisting early on, he would’ve been badly injured by now.
“Tell us what you’re up to by coming all the way here to Blue Sky Pass,” Zhong Liang looked down at him in a condescending manner.
Tang Qiu’s face twitched, “Brother Zhong, I’m really here to ask Yang Kai to replenish the Purifying Light.”
“Stop lying!” Zhong Liang directly cut him off, “If you really wanted to replenish the Purifying Light, you could’ve asked a Seventh-Order Junior to come over. You didn’t have to personally come here. Are there too many resources in Yin-Yang Pass for you to squander? It’s far more costly for an Eighth-Order Master to use the Space Array than a Seventh-Order one.”
At this point, his voice turned grim, “Something major must have happened in Yin-Yang Pass that prompted you to personally come over.”
Ding Yao asked, “What does that have to do with Yang Kai? Why do you insist on seeing him?”
There was a helpless smile on Tang Qiu’s face, “You never believed what I said…”
“Brother Tang!” Zhong Liang’s expression turned solemn, “If you do not want to tell us the truth, you can return now.”
A myriad of expressions came over Tang Qiu but eventually, he let out a sigh, “Fine. Things have come to a point where I have no choice but to tell you the truth. Do you have a quiet place we can talk?”
Zhong Liang and Ding Yao exchanged glances, thinking that the matter Tang Qiu was about to bring up must be serious; otherwise, he wouldn’t be acting so cautious.
“Come with me,” Zhong Liang said and led the way.
Soon, the four of them arrived at a certain hall.
After the door was closed, the restrictions were activated to prevent anyone from eavesdropping.
Zhong Liang gazed at Tang Qiu, “Brother Tang, you can be completely honest with us. Even though we’re from different Great Passes, we’re all Humans. If there’s anything we can help you with, we won’t turn you down.”
Tang Qiu let out a long breath. He then fished out a jade slip and flicked his fingers, “Before we get to the main topic, I want you to have a look at this first.”
He exerted just the right amount of force with his fingers as the jade slip exploded in mid-air and turned into dots of light. Instead of dissipating though, the dots of light kept changing forms and transformed into a scene.
There was no doubt that this was a profound method. He used a Divine Ability to seal the scene that had happened before inside a jade slip, and he could show it to others whenever he wanted.
It wasn’t certain where on the Black Ink Battlefield the place was, but they could see that it was somewhere in the void.
In the scene, arrays were seen flickering on a Warship that belonged to Humans. As the arrays operated, attacks were continuously sent out.
Up ahead, there was another Warship that was fleeing as it counterattacked from time to time.
Nevertheless, this Warship was different from the ones owned by Humans that Zhong Liang and the others were familiar with. It was huge and rough. Even though it couldn’t frequently launch an attack, every strike that came from the vessel was intimidating.
Around the Warships were some Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters who were locked in an intense battle with Feudal Lords.
Zhong Liang and the others stared fixedly at the larger Warship. Even though the image they saw was not very clear, there were apparently some burly Black Ink Clansmen who were moving around on the Warship.
Their expressions became increasingly solemn as they watched the scene.
After the intense battle lasted for a while, the larger ship suddenly started rumbling. The next moment, the Arrays on the warship exploded as they were not stable to begin with. They were all damaged in an instant, and without the Arrays, the larger Warship was like a tiger without teeth, no longer able to attack or defend.
The Warship belonging to the Humans seized the chance to continuously attack the vessel until it exploded, killing countless Black Ink Clansmen who were aboard the vessel.
After defeating the vessel, the Warship belonging to the Humans turned around and assisted the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. The Feudal Lords had no choice but to flee.
The scene ended here as the points of light disappeared.
The hall turned dead silent as the atmosphere grew solemn.
A long time later, Zhong Liang asked, “Was it made by the Black Ink Clan?”
“Yes.” Tang Qiu nodded.
“When did it happen?”
“Three months ago. A Squad from Yin-Yang Pass was patrolling the area and came across it. The Squad Leader realised that it was a serious issue, so he used a Secret Technique to capture the scene. That was what you saw just now.”
Zhong Liang frowned, “Had no one discovered it before that?”
Tang Qiu shook his head, “No. Based on our observations, the Warship made by the Black Ink Clan was not very reliable. That was the reason such an accident happened during the battle, allowing us to destroy it.”
“Even though it’s not reliable, they’re already capable of making such a thing.” Zhong Liang let out a long breath, “There will come a day when the Black Ink Clan might be able to field a Warship that is reliable enough to use in combat. If that happens, our greatest advantage will be gone for good.”
The Humans and the Black Ink Clan had been fighting each other on the Black Ink Battlefield for countless years, and they each had their own advantages. The biggest advantage that the Black Ink Clan had was the Black Ink Strength. Before Yang Kai brought Purifying Light to them, the Humans had suffered great losses because of Black Ink Strength.
On the other hand, the biggest advantage that the Humans had was their Warships.
With the help of these Warships, the Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters could display power on par with the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters on the battlefield; what’s more, as long as the Warship was not damaged, its crew wouldn’t be at risk.
Therefore, regardless of which Great Pass war broke out around, the Humans would always suffer fewer losses than the Black Ink Clan.
Most of the time, in smaller skirmishes, there wouldn’t be any casualties on the Humans’ side. That was because they had Warships, which could be used for defending and attacking.
The Black Ink Clan had always coveted Human Warships, and they had been trying to develop such vessels for a long time; however, due to a lack of talented people, they hadn’t been able to achieve it.
After all, not just any Artifact Refiner could refine a Warship. In the entire Blue Sky Pass, fewer than 10 people were able to build a Warship, and they were always well protected, never being allowed to step onto the battlefield lest they be corrupted by Black Ink Strength.
It was because of this reason that the method of refining Warships had always been kept in the hands of the Humans. There was nothing that the Black Ink Clan could do about it.
Yang Kai had brought Purifying Light and Purifying Black Ink Pills to the Human Race. With these two items in possession, the Humans would have a bright future as the advantage that the Black Ink Clan had relied on for years would be weakened.
However, the news that Tang Qiu had brought with him made Zhong Liang and the others feel their hearts sinking. If the Black Ink Clan could really make their own Warships one day, the advantage that the Humans had would be completely undermined.
More importantly, the Black Ink Clan had a massive population. Every time they launched an attack on the Great Passes, the Low-Rank and High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen would serve as mere cannon fodder in order to exhaust the strength of the Human cultivators. The Black Ink Strength left behind after their deaths would turn into Black Ink Clouds and further restrict the Humans.
However, if they had their own Warships, the innumerable Low-Rank and High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen wouldn’t just be cannon fodder anymore. Just like the Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, they could hide inside Warships and rely on them to exert power far greater than their own.
If the Black Ink Clan had enough Warships and invaded the Great Passes one day, the Humans wouldn’t be able to fend off the enemy anymore.
This notion sent a chill down the spine of anyone who thought about it.
“Do you know who helped them refine it?” Zhong Liang asked in a grim voice.
Tang Qiu replied, “We’ve narrowed it down to about 10 people who could be responsible for creating this vessel, but we’re not sure who it is.”
It was a well-known fact that the Black Ink Clan lacked any aptitude for Artifact Refining. The artifacts they owned were basically all made by Black Ink Disciples. The Warship belonging to the Black Ink Clan that they saw must have been made by a Black Ink Disciple as well.
Since this Black Ink Disciple was somewhat able to refine a Warship, it suggested that they were pretty skilled in the Dao of Artifact Refining.
Usually, such a talent wouldn’t be allowed to step onto the battlefield, but there were always exceptions. Some people might be gifted in the Dao of Artifact Refining, but have never focused on it. Since they wanted to focus on the Martial Dao, they would have to fight against the enemy.
After they were corrupted by the Black Ink Strength, they were ordered by the Black Ink Clan to study Artifact Refining, and as time passed, their skills would improve, allowing them to refine a Warship.
It was with this criteria that those from Yin-Yang Pass had narrowed down the list of possible people to a group of 10 who had been confirmed to be corrupted by Black Ink Strength.
If there was anyone who could help the Black Ink Clan make such a thing, the person must be among these 10.
“What is Yin-Yang Pass’ stance on this?” Ding Yao asked.
Tang Qiu replied, “This matter has far-reaching implications that might change the status quo of the entire battlefield. If the enemy successfully develops Warships, we won’t be able to fend them off in the future. Therefore, the Old Ancestor intends to find the Artifact Refiner responsible for this thing and bring them back before the Black Ink Clan can achieve their goal. If not, we’ll have to kill him to stop the situation from worsening. This matter has to be settled without delay.”
Ding Yao nodded gently. That was indeed the only way to solve the problem.
On the other hand, Zhong Liang’s expression changed, “Brother Tang, have you come all the way here to Blue Sky Pass to ask Yang Kai…”
Tang Qiu said, “Yang Kai had lived among the Black Ink Clan for two years; moreover, he has a World Spring, so he need not fear Black Ink Strength, not to mention he has Purifying Light. He’s the best candidate for the job. We don’t need him to kill the enemy, he just has to find the Artifact Refiner’s identity and whereabouts. Yin-Yang Pass’s Old Ancestor will personally make a move once he accomplishes his task.”
Zhong Liang immediately shook his head, “No. It’s too dangerous. If the enemy were to find out about his identity, he would be doomed.”
Tang Qiu let out a sigh, “I know that it’s a dangerous task; however, he’s the only one who stands a chance to achieve it. You all know that he’s a Master of the Dao of Space, so he’s skilled at escaping. Moreover, he’s a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so even if his identity is exposed, he’ll still have a chance to flee.”
“What if an accident happens?” Zhong Liang shook his head, “We all know how valuable Yang Boy is to the Human Race. If anything happens to him, it will be an immeasurable loss for all of us.”
Tang Qiu let out a sigh, “Certainly, I know how valuable he is; after all, he is also from Yin-Yang Cave Heaven. If possible, I wouldn’t want him to take the risk; however, the Black Ink Clan already have a half-functioning prototype Warship. Perhaps they will be able to perfect the vessels within 100 years. By then, how are we going to push them back? There’s no doubt that Yang Kai is important, but the fact that the Black Ink Clan are developing Warships will affect the entire Human Race. Don’t you see the severity of the matter?”
Zhong Liang said, “Despite that, Yang Kai has great value even beyond the Purifying Light. He’s not just an ordinary Seventh-Order Junior.”
Tang Qiu replied, “Of course I know that. However, if the Black Ink Clan successfully makes a Warship, Yin-Yang Pass will not be the only one that will be affected. Perhaps in just a few years, the Black Ink Clan in Blue Sky Pass will also be equipped with Warships. If they launch an attack on Blue Sky Pass then, how are you all going to repel them? By sacrificing the lives of several tens of thousands of soldiers?”
Zhong Liang fell silent. When that time came, they could only fight the enemy to the death. There was no other way.
Ding Yao refuted in a grim voice, “Those from Yin-Yang Pass have discovered a Warship from the Black Ink Clan, and the only solution you all can think of is to seek help from a brat? Old farts like you have lost your guts.”
A flushing Tang Qiu said resolutely, “Of course not. In fact, before I came to Blue Sky Pass, Brother Wu from Red Clouds Heaven already headed to the Black Ink Clan’s territory to gather more information.”
Ding Yao’s expression changed when he heard that, “Wu Qing from Red Clouds Cave Heaven?”
“Yes.” Tang Qiu nodded.
Wu Qing was the Southern Army Commander of Yin-Yang Pass. Even though he was from the Southern Army, he was the strongest Eighth-Order Master there.
Moreover, he possessed a Profound Fish, one of the Four Universe Pillars, so he was not worried about being corrupted by Black Ink Strength.
Since he had personally made a move, it showed that those from Yin-Yang Pass truly viewed this matter as important. It was because he had one of the Four Universe Pillars that he had the right to sneak into the Black Ink Clan’s hinterland; otherwise, he probably wouldn’t be able to come back despite being an Eighth-Order Master.
Take Ding Yao as an example. Before acquiring the World Spring, he had never barged into the Black Ink Clan’s domain on his own before. Nevertheless, with the World Spring in possession, he directly raised a ruckus in the Black Ink Clan’s backyard. Even though he was injured, he managed to kill a lot of Black Ink Clansmen.
Tang Qiu said in a bitter voice, “Even though Brother Wu has personally made a move, it’s not likely that he’ll succeed. Many Black Ink Clansmen have seen his face before. Simply killing enemies isn’t a problem, but he won’t be able to gather any information.”
This was understandable, as Wu Qing’s image had probably been spread across different territories of the Black Ink Clan. Once he showed up, the Black Ink Clan would instantly besiege him. How was he going to gather any information in such a situation?
Zhong Liang and the others nodded in agreement.
Tang Qiu went on to say, “We’ve thought about letting Brother Wu give up his Profound Fish so that one of the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters could refine it. Just like Yang Kai had done in the past, we would have that person pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple and sneak into the Black Ink Clan’s territory; however, there’s no Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in the world that’s comparable to Yang Kai. If we really do that, not only would that Seventh-Order Master be in an extremely perilous situation, but we might also lose a Profound Fish once this plan is exposed. Therefore, in order to gather information, we need someone who is able to perfectly hide his identity and pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple. He also has to have some ability to preserve his own life. After a long discussion, we believe that Yang Kai is the best person for the job. Brothers, please think about the greater good and help me with this.”
Zhong Liang and the others remained silent.
They knew that Tang Qiu was right. No one was better suited for this task in the entire Black Ink Battlefield than Yang Kai. He had a similar experience before, so it wasn’t difficult for him to pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple. Furthermore, he was a Master of the Dao of Space. Even if his identity was exposed, he would be able to run away. Additionally, he was extremely strong, so the average Black Ink Clansmen wouldn’t be able to harm him.
Regardless, there was a huge risk that was associated with this matter. No one was able to guarantee that Yang Kai would be able to return if he took on this task. If anything happened to him because of that, they would all be ill at ease.
While they were silent, Zhong Liang suddenly frowned, “Wait a moment. The last time you visited this place, Yang Kai was only in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm. How did you find out that he has ascended to the Seventh Order?”
If Yang Kai were still a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, those from Yin-Yang Pass wouldn’t have the confidence to let him take on this task.
Tang Qiu turned to look at Shen Tu Mo, who said in a muffled voice, “This old fart kept sounding me out. I didn’t expect him to have his eyes on Yang Kai.”
Tang Qiu smiled, “I didn’t have any high hopes before I came to this place; however, Yang Kai is indeed exceptionally talented. Not only had he ascended to the Seventh Order in such a short time, but he had also joined forces with a disciple from Divine Feather Paradise to kill an injured Territory Lord. He’s indeed extraordinarily powerful.”
Zhong Liang shot Shen Tu Mo a glare. It was apparent to him that it was Shen Tu Mo who told Tang Qiu all this.
“He’s a powerful Seventh-Order Master who possesses a World Spring, and he’s an expert in the Dao of Space. I cannot think of a better person to carry out the task.” There was a solemn expression on Tang Qiu’s face, “This matter does not only affect Blue Sky Pass, but rather the entire Black Ink Battlefield. It has to be dealt with as soon as possible. Please make a decision quickly.”
Both Zhong Liang and Shen Tu Mo remained silent.
An anxious Tang Qiu said, “Regardless, let me see Yang Kai first. I’ll tell him what has happened. It will be best if he’s willing to volunteer. If he doesn’t want to do it, I’ll not force him. What do you think?”
Zhong Liang shook his head, “He’s not in Blue Sky Pass.”
Tang Qiu was shocked, “Where is he if he’s not in Blue Sky Pass?”
Zhong Liang shrugged, “Well, I don’t know where his exact location is.”
Tang Qiu had the urge to roll his eyes. Zhong Liang was an Army Commander, so how was it possible that he had no idea where his subordinate was? It was obvious that he wasn’t willing to tell him about it.
Ding Yao suddenly said, “He doesn’t have the World Spring anymore.”
Upon hearing that, Tang Qiu was astounded, “What do you mean?”
Ding Yao replied, “Didn’t Brother Shen Tu tell you that he has given up his World Spring? I’ve taken it.”
Tang Qiu widened his mouth in disbelief, “When did that happen?”
He didn’t think Ding Yao would lie to him, for there was no reason for him to do so.
“A few years ago.”
Tang Qiu became startled for a moment, then put on a bitter smile, “Life is full of uncertainties, isn’t it? In that case, there’s no need to let him take the risk. Forget it. I’ll take my leave. We’ll meet again if there’s a chance.”
“I’ll go with you,” Ding Yao suddenly said.
Tang Qiu gazed at him with a frown, “What do you mean, Brother Ding?”
“Most Black Ink Clansmen have seen Wu Qing’s face before, so it’s impossible for him to gather any information. On the other hand, the Black Ink Clan in the Yin-Yang Theatre won’t recognise me. Even though I won’t necessarily be able to gather any useful information, I’ll stand a better chance than Wu Qing.”
Tang Qiu said hesitantly, “However, you’re the Eastern Army Commander of Blue Sky Pass, you can’t be absent from your duties. What if the Black Ink Clan’s Army launches an attack on Blue Sky Pass?”
Ding Yao shook his head, “The Black Ink Clan here is basically half-dead at the moment, they won’t dare to strike again without recuperating for at least another half a century. There won’t be any war in Blue Sky Pass in the short term.”
Zhong Liang nodded in agreement, “Yes, you don’t have to worry about Blue Sky Pass. It’s a good idea to let Brother Ding go with you.”
Tang Qiu cupped his fist, “I’m grateful that you’re willing to do something for the greater good. This matter cannot be delayed, so let us depart now,” He knew that Ding Yao probably wouldn’t be able to gather any useful information, but they had to give it a try regardless.
Gathering intelligence was unlike killing enemies. There was no doubt that Ding Yao and Wu Qing were peerless on the battlefield; however, what they had to do this time was not slaughter enemies but find out the identity and whereabouts of the Artifact Refiner who helped the Black Ink Clan create the new prototype Warship. This was different from simply fighting.
A moment later, a light flashed across the Hyper Space Array as Ding Yao and Tang Qiu disappeared.
Zhong Liang and Shen Tu Mo watched them leave.
A while later, Zhong Liang said, “Brother Shen Tu, Yang Boy will probably have to handle this matter.”
Shen Tu Mo nodded gently, “En, but we’ll be putting him in a dangerous situation by doing so.”
Zhong Liang let out a sigh, “Everyone on the Black Ink Battlefield is ready to sacrifice their life for the cause. When you and I came to this place in the past, we never expected that we would live for such a long time. It will be worth it if the crisis facing the Human Race can be nipped in the bud by sacrificing just one person; however, I’m worried that he’ll be killed without achieving his goal. That would be the biggest loss to us.”
After a moment of silence, Shen Tu Mo sighed, “It has only been a little over 10 years since he joined Blue Sky Pass, and he has made a lot of contributions to the entire Human Race. He’s also exceptionally talented. I’m sure he’ll be one of the most important figures in the Human Race in the future.”
Zhong Liang sighed again, “We’ll play it by ear. I hope that Brother Ding will be able to achieve his goal.”
…..
Presently, Dawning Light was moving across the void at the speed of lightning.
When Yang Kai went over Zhong Liang’s behaviour again in his mind, he felt that something was off.
The Army Commander seemed determined to chase him out of Blue Sky Pass and make sure he stayed out, which was basically the polar opposite of his usual stance. In the past, he would’ve liked nothing more than to keep Yang Kai inside Blue Sky Pass forever.
Even though he had a feeling that something might have happened in the Inner Sanctum, and it had something to do with him, Yang Kai wouldn’t dare to disobey Zhong Liang’s order.
Hence, he could only ask Feng Ying about it.
Unfortunately, Feng Yin had no idea what had happened either. She was cultivating in seclusion when she was suddenly ordered to gather the members of Dawn together and sail Dawning Light out of the Inner Sanctum.
She was told that she and the members of Dawn Squad had to assist Yang Kai in looking for portals to Sealed Worlds that hadn’t been discovered. They also had to extract the resources from those Sealed Worlds.
This task wasn’t dangerous, and they could get a lot of Military Merits from it, so it could be considered an easy job with high rewards.
Just two days later, Dawning Light reached a certain spot in the void.
On the deck, after having a look at the Universe Chart, Feng Ying nodded at Yang Kai, “This is our first destination. Those from the Inner Sanctum had found a Sealed World here before, but it was over 1,000 years ago.”
Yang Kai nodded and leaped out of Dawning Light. As he activated his power, Space Principles undulated around him with his figure as the centre.
A visible ripple was seen spreading out, like a stone dropping into a still lake, illuminating the anomalies in the Void.
Many of the Sealed Worlds on the Black Ink Battlefield were clustered because they originated from the Small Universes left behind by Human Masters after their deaths in ancient times.
The more people passed away on any given battlefield, the more Sealed Worlds would be left behind.
In this area of the void, those from Blue Sky Pass had discovered a Sealed World 1,000 years ago. Even though they speculated that there were more hidden Sealed Worlds around this area, they could only give up as they didn’t have the means to find and open the portals to them.
On the other hand, Yang Kai was a Master in the Dao of Space, so he was the best person to find these Sealed Worlds and open up the portals.
As the ripple of Space Principles spread further, the traces of the Sealed Worlds were revealed. As long as he could find these traces, it wouldn’t be hard for him to pry the portals open.
After an inspection, he found three Sealed Worlds in a radius of several hundred kilometres.
The number wasn’t staggering, but it was impressive enough.
They would always find some good things in these Sealed Worlds. For example, the World Tree’s clone was found in a Sealed World. It was the biggest reward the soldiers from Blue Sky Pass had obtained so far after years of exploring Sealed Worlds.
A moment later, Yang Kai forcefully opened the first portal, whereupon the aura of a Sealed World was felt wafting from it.
Dawning Light then came forward and stopped in front of the portal.
Yang Kai ordered, “All of you, stand guard here. I’ll have a look inside.”
Upon finishing his words, he directly plunged into the portal. Feng Ying didn’t even have time to stop him.
Fortunately, there was no danger in the Sealed World. A dozen breaths of time later, Yang Kai returned and beckoned to the members of Dawn, “Come in.”
Feng Ying asked, “Should we let some people stay outside?” Even though the Black Ink Clan were resting and recuperating, no one could guarantee that some of them wouldn’t come over. By letting some people stay outside, they could monitor their surroundings lest they were later ambushed.
Yang Kai shook his head, “There’s no need for that. There are only a few of us, so we should stick together.”
Since he had said so, Feng Ying naturally wouldn’t have any objections.
Figures started dashing out of Dawning Light and disappeared into the portal. After they all entered the Sealed World, Yang Kai put Dawning Light inside his Small Universe and stepped into the Sealed World. Following that, he used a simple trick to cover up the portal.
There were 36 people in Dawn in total, all of them at or above the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Among them, there were 6 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters; therefore, it wouldn’t take them a long time to explore a Sealed World, though picking herbs would be pretty time-consuming.
They fully explored the Sealed World in half a month, and all the valuable items had been collected. With Yang Kai leading the way, the members of Dawn Squad left this place and headed to the next Sealed World.
Two months later, all 3 Sealed Worlds in this area were fully explored. They had obtained a lot of rare herbs and quite a number of Profound Yin Spirit Fruits, so it could be said to be a fruitful trip.
The members of Dawn were all elated, thinking that this task was easy and rewarding. Certainly, they would love to be given more of these tasks.
With that said, they were aware that it was all thanks to Yang Kai that this task felt easy. If not for the fact that he could find those portals, the members of Dawn couldn’t have collected any Spirit Herbs.
Yang Kai then fished out Dawning Light from his Small Universe. After they boarded the vessel, Feng Ying piloted the ship to their next destination.
In the two years that followed, the members of Dawn continued to navigate through the void. Whenever they arrived at a new area, Yang Kai would manipulate Space Principles to locate hidden portals. They would always be rewarded handsomely for their hard work.
Over the years, the soldiers from Blue Sky Pass had found a lot of Sealed Worlds on the battlefield; however, upon taking Dawn’s safety into consideration, Zhong Liang only wanted Yang Kai to explore the areas within a 10-day journey from Blue Sky Pass. He didn’t provide any information for the areas that were further away.
Therefore, it only took Yang Kai and Dawn Squad 2 years to go through all the places they had to explore. It had been peaceful during this period of time as they never came across any Black Ink Clansmen.
The members of Dawn then returned to Blue Sky Pass aboard Dawning Light.
After that, they returned to their own places to get some rest. Meanwhile, Yang Kai and Feng Ying brought the harvest to the Merit Hall to get their Military Merits.
Before they arrived, a figure descended from the sky and cupped his fist, “The Army Commander would like to see you, Brother Yang.”
Yang Kai instantly recognised that the person was Zhong Liang’s adjutant, so he put on a helpless smile, “The Army Commander is quick to gather the latest information.”
The members of Dawn had just returned to Blue Sky Pass, but Zhong Liang already knew and told someone to summon him. That was truly quick.
Yang Kai then told Feng Ying to head to the Merit Hall on her own. She naturally wouldn’t object to it.
After she was gone, Yang Kai gazed at the adjutant and said, “Please, Senior Brother.”
“This way,” the adjutant replied politely, then led the way for him.
They soon arrived at the Army Headquarters of the Western Army. Yang Kai had visited this place more than once, so he was familiar with the area; however, Zhong Liang didn’t ask Yang Kai to see him in his office. With the adjutant leading the way, they soon arrived at a vast hall in the deepest part of the Headquarters.
The adjutant stopped in his tracks, “The Army Commander is inside, Brother Yang.”
“Many thanks.” Yang Kai nodded and shuffled forward. At the same time, he wondered why Zhong Liang wanted to see him in such a place.
There was a restriction around the hall. Yang Kai flicked the restriction and revealed a portal, after which he stepped inside.
It was luminous and spacious inside the hall and a person standing there with his hands behind his back. He was none other than Zhong Liang. In front of him was a huge object.
Standing in front of this object, Zhong Liang looked up in a dazed state.
Yang Kai went over and saluted him.
Zhong Liang turned to look at him and nodded, “Was it a fruitful trip?”
Yang Kai replied, “It was. We’ve found more than 30 Profound Yin Spirit Fruits.”
Zhong Liang nodded, “With these Spirit Fruits, 30 soldiers from Blue Sky Pass will be able to restore their full strength. You’ve done well.”
Yang Kai replied, “I was only responsible for opening up the portals. I didn’t really do anything else. Is there anything you need to tell me, Sir?”
After a moment of silence, Zhong Liang said, “Look at this thing.” He pointed at the gigantic object in front of him.
Yang Kai already noticed it the instant he entered this place, but he didn’t pay any attention to it. He initially thought that Zhong Liang was just looking at something left behind by some Senior. It wasn’t until this moment that he realised it was more complicated than that.
He then activated his Divine Sense and examined it carefully.
A moment later, Yang Kai frowned and asked, “Is this a Warship?”
The large Mobile Palace Artifact before his eyes didn’t seem like a simple flight-type artifact; instead, it somewhat resembled a Warship. He had also found a lot of Arrays on the artifact, ones that would only be present on a Warship.
“Yes, it’s a Warship,” Zhong Liang nodded.
Yang Kai shot into the air and carefully inspected the ship. A while later, he landed on the ground and shook his head, “This Warship is terrible. Many of the Arrays are faulty. It won’t be useful on the battlefield. If the Arrays are frequently activated, they will fall apart on their own. By then, not only will the vessel be incapable of defending itself, but even the people on the ship will have to be wary of being injured by the explosions of these Arrays. Who made this?”
Even though Yang Kai wasn’t an expert in the Dao of Artifact Refining, he knew a thing or two about it; otherwise, he couldn’t have created the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors.
However, he never spent any time consciously improving his Dao of Artifact Refining.
Despite being an amateur though, Yang Kai was still able to see the flaws in this Warship at first glance. It couldn’t be said that the Artifact Refiner who made this thing was unskillful, just that he wasn’t skilled enough to make a Warship.
“Moreover, this thing is too big. It’s not suitable for Humans to operate.”
Zhong Liang asked dispassionately, “Who do you think this ship is suited for if it’s not for Humans?”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “Given the size of an average Black Ink Clansman, it would be perfect for them to pilot this thing.”
There was a cold expression on Zhong Liang’s face.
Yang Kai’s smile froze as he felt a chill rising from within. He then asked with a frown, “Sir, where did you get this thing from?”
Zhong Liang replied, “Your Martial Uncle Ding captured it from the battlefield.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai was flabbergasted, “Did the Black Ink Clan refine this?”
“Yes.”
A sense of unease overwhelmed Yang Kai as he sported a dark expression, “I was told that the Black Ink Clan couldn’t refine Warships. What is going on?”
After a sigh, Zhong Liang explained, “We’ve been fighting against the Black Ink Clan for countless years. While the Humans are constantly innovating, the Black Ink Clan naturally won’t stay stagnant. Perhaps one of the Black Ink Disciples on their side has been studying how to refine a Warship, and he happened to be gifted in Artifact Refining. That’s how this thing came about.”
Yang Kai felt his heart sinking, “In that case, when that person masters the art of refining Warships, our biggest advantage will be gone for good.”
Zhong Liang nodded, “That’s what we’ve been worried about.”
“However, why didn’t we discover that the Black Ink Clan were using Warships when we were battling against them back then?”
“This thing didn’t come from the Blue Sky Theatre, it was found in the Yin-Yang Theatre.”
“Yin-Yang Theatre…” Yang Kai muttered under his breath upon learning that the vessel was found on the battlefield that those from Yin-Yang Pass were in charge of. After giving it a thought, he asked, “When did Martial Uncle Ding obtain this thing?”
“Half a year ago,” Zhong Liang replied, then added, “It was only a short time ago that those from Yin-Yang Pass found this Warship, roughly two years ago.”
“Two years ago…” Yang Kai fell into his thoughts, “In that case, the Black Ink Clan in the Yin-Yang Theatre have only developed this Warship recently. Since it’s not perfected yet, it hasn’t been widely adopted by the Black Ink Clan in other war zones. It’s no wonder that we didn’t see it in the Blue Sky Theatre.”
Zhong Liang nodded, “It’s not widely adopted yet, but it doesn’t mean it won’t be someday. Once that person manages to build a functioning Warship, the Black Ink Clan will be equipped with such vessels. It will be a disaster for the Human Race.”
“Have those from Yin-Yang Pass come up with a strategy to handle this situation?”
Zhong Liang gazed at him, “If you were in charge, how would you deal with this situation?”
After pondering on it for a moment, Yang Kai replied in a grim voice, “We have to nip the crisis in the bud by finding the Black Ink Disciple who made this Warship. If possible, we’ll bring them back; however, if we can’t achieve that, we have to kill them.”
Upon hearing that, Zhong Liang nodded, “You share the same sentiment as those from Yin-Yang Pass. To be honest with you, it was for this exact reason that your Martial Uncle Ding headed to the Yin-Yang Theatre where he captured this Warship from the Black Ink Clan.”
“What was the outcome of the mission?” Yang Kai asked nervously.
Zhong Liang shook his head with a dejected expression, “He worked with another Eighth-Order Army Commander from Yin-Yang Pass, but they only managed to kill some Black Ink Clansmen and seize this Warship. However, they were unable to find the person who made it.”
There was a solemn expression on Yang Kai’s face. After giving it a thought, he said, “In order to find that Black Ink Disciple’s identity, we have to infiltrate the Black Ink Clan’s territory and then play it by ear. Both Martial Uncles had only alerted the enemies by making a scene there.”
“En,” Zhong Liang let out a sigh, “The Black Ink Clan will certainly treasure this Black Ink Disciple who can make Warships. Their identity must be a top secret within the Black Ink Clan, so the average Black Ink Clansman probably doesn’t know who they are. It’s extremely difficult to find the Black Ink Disciple without alerting the enemies. Is there anyone who can take on this task?”
Yang Kai batted his eyes. Upon realising Zhong Liang’s intention, he broke out into laughter, “Is that the reason you told me to come here, Sir?” After pondering on it for a moment, he said, “I can pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple and sneak into the Black Ink Clan’s hinterland in the Yin-Yang Theatre. As long as I’m cautious enough, I might be able to find that person.”
Since his intentions had been seen through, Zhong Liang decided to stop beating around the bush and just let out a sigh, “I initially didn’t want to drag you into this; however, since your Martial Uncle Ding has failed in his attempt, we have no other choice. There’s no hurry though. You can sleep on it and make a decision at a later time.”
Yang Kai shook his head, “That Black Ink Disciple had already developed this thing 2 years ago. The longer this matter drags on, the more likely he’ll be able to perfect his craft. By then, it will be too late to find him. There’s nothing worth considering. I’ll take on this task.”
Zhong Liang said with a serious expression, “It will be a dangerous mission, and if you’re not cautious enough, you’ll lose your life.”
Yang Kai replied, “Sir, have you forgotten that I’d pretended to be a Black Ink Disciple and spent 2 years with the Black Ink Clan before I came to Blue Sky Pass? No one is more experienced than me when it comes to pretending to be a Black Ink Disciple.”
After a pause, he went on to say, “Even if I fail in my attempt, or if anything unexpected happens, I can still rely on Space Principles to escape. Even if the worst-case scenario where I’ll lose my life does occur, it will still be fine. Now that the Purifying Black Ink Pills have been successfully developed, Humans have a method to deal with Black Ink Strength other than Purifying Light. Taking all that into consideration, I’m the best person for this job.”
At this point, he cupped his fist and said solemnly, “Sir, I’m willing to head to the Yin-Yang Theatre to gather more information. Please allow me to do so.”
There was a conflicted expression on Zhong Liang’s face. After hesitating for a bit, he let out a sigh, “I’m sorry for putting you in such a tight spot.”
Yang Kai shook his head, “Since time immemorial, countless Human Masters have come to the Black Ink Battlefield in order to hold back the enemy and ensure the safety of the 3,000 Worlds. In every battle, all of them exert themselves to kill the enemy even if it means losing their lives. It is my duty to do something for the Human Race, so I will definitely do my best.”
On the first day he arrived at the Black Ink Battlefield, Yang Kai learned a valuable lesson from Meng Qi, who sacrificed his life in order to keep the existence of the Void Corridor a secret. It was because he was worried that he would be corrupted by Black Ink Strength again and reveal the Void Corridor’s existence.
In all the previous battles, innumerable Humans risked their lives in order to drive back the Black Ink Clan. They were just as noble as Meng Qi.
The fact that the Black Ink Clan were close to developing fully functional Warships had far-reaching implications. If the Black Ink Disciple managed to master the art of refining Warships, it would mean that all the sacrifices that the Humans had made over the years would be pointless. By then, the entire 3,000 Worlds would be at risk of being destroyed.
No one would be willing to see such a crisis taking place.
Since Yang Kai had arrived on the Black Ink Battlefield, he was also a part of the Human Army. He didn’t think that there was anyone else who was more suited than him to sneak into the enemies’ territory and gather information.
“Sir, there’s one more thing I’d like to know,” Yang Kai said solemnly.
“Go ahead.”
“Have those from Yin-Yang Pass speculated how long it would take for the Black Ink Clan to successfully develop Warships?”
After giving it a thought, Zhong Liang replied, “Those from Yin-Yang Pass do have a speculation. The Warships that the Black Ink Clan have made so far are not really useful, probably just prototypes used to test out various functions. It is estimated it will take them about 100 years to perfect this thing. If everything goes well, perhaps they’ll achieve it in 50 years, though they might need longer than 100 years as well. After all, the speed at which the Black Ink Disciple improves in their Dao of Artifact Refining is key, and given their current mastery, it won’t be easy for them to improve further.”
“To be on the safe side then, we’ll assume that they’ll be able to do it in 50 years,” Yang Kai muttered under his breath, “There’s still something we can do about it with that much time. Sir, before I carry out this task, I have a request.”
“Just tell me whatever you need. I’ll not turn you down as long as there’s anything I can help you with.”
“I’d like to study Artifact Refining.”
Zhong Liang was startled for a moment, then his eyes brightened, “You mean…”
Yang Kai said with a smile, “I have to get prepared in order to achieve our goal; moreover, I’d have to learn more about Artifact Refining to make it easier for me to gather information regardless.”
Zhong Liang nodded repeatedly, “You’re indeed a clever young man. It never crossed the minds of old men like us to approach the issue from that angle. You can go ahead with that.”
One hour later, Yang Kai arrived at the Refining Hall with the token given to him by Zhong Liang. He found Dong Guo An Ping, who was leading a team of people to refine a Warship. The two of them could be considered friends. It was Yang Kai, Dong Guo An Ping, Fan Xun, and several others who worked together to make the first Purifying Black Ink Battleship; therefore, they didn’t need to be overly polite with each other.
Upon learning the purpose of the young man’s visit, Dong Guo An Ping felt his brow twitching slightly as he asked, “You want to learn Artifact Refining?”
Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Please help me with this, Senior Dong Guo.”
Dong Guo An Ping examined him with a puzzled expression, “Why do you want to learn Artifact Refining all of a sudden?”
Yang Kai replied, “I’ve progressed too quickly, so I need to take a break from just cultivating in seclusion. I told Martial Uncle Zhong about it, and he suggested I come here to study Artifact Refining. He said that the Dao of Artifact Refining might be of help to me.”
Dong Guo An Ping couldn’t help but laugh, “What does the Dao of Artifact Refining have to do with your cultivation? Moreover, I heard that you’re well-versed in the Alchemic Dao. If there’s anything wrong with your cultivation, why did you come to this place instead of the Pill Hall?”
Yang Kai replied respectfully, “It was Martial Uncle Zhong’s order. I don’t really know the reason behind it.”
It was a secret that the Black Ink Clan were able to refine Warships. Other than the Army Commanders and the Old Ancestor, no one else in Blue Sky Pass was aware of this fact, lest morale was affected.
Since Zhong Liang didn’t inform Dong Guo An Ping about it, and Yang Kai naturally wasn’t in any place to reveal this secret; therefore, he just came up with an excuse by saying that it was Zhong Liang’s order.
In that case, there was nothing Dong Guo An Ping could do about it. He passed the token back to Yang Kai and asked, “Did you learn Artifact Refining before?”
“I know a little about it,” Yang Kai replied humbly.
Dong Guo An Ping frowned and beckoned to him, “Come with me.”
Soon, he brought Yang Kai to an Artifact Refining room and pointed at some materials that were stacked up in a messy pile, “Just make whatever you want. I’ll evaluate it.”
After taking a glance at the materials, Yang Kai started working on it.
A patient Dong Guo An Ping stayed on the side and watched him.
A few days later, a sword that was as reflective as a mirror was born. The blade shone brightly and appeared extraordinary.
However, Dong Guo An Ping couldn’t help but roll his eyes. As an Artifact Refining Grandmaster, he could see that other than looking nice, this sword was practically useless. If not for the fact that the materials used were robust, the sword couldn’t even have withstood an attack from an Origin King.
After a few days of observation, Dong Guo An Ping figured out that Yang Kai indeed knew a thing or two about the Dao of Artifact Refining, but he had never studied it in a systematic way. Even though some of his ideas were creative, the way he refined artifacts was overly simplistic.
The Dao of Artifact Refining was as much an art as it was a craft. Yang Kai’s Artifact Refining session could even be described as unpleasant to the eyes of a Grandmaster like Dong Guo An Ping.
“En, give me a moment,” Dong Guo An Ping said, then activated his Divine Sense to communicate with someone.
A moment later, a young man arrived in a hurry and cupped his fist, “Honoured Master!”
Dong Guo An Ping nodded and pointed at Yang Kai, “This is your Junior Brother, Yang Kai.”
That person cupped his fists again, “Junior Brother Yang.”
Dong Guo An Ping then introduced the young man to Yang Kai, “He’s my Sixth Disciple, Chai Hao.”
“Greetings, Senior Brother Chai,” Yang Kai saluted him.
Dong Guo An Ping said, “Chai Hao, your Junior Brother Yang would like to learn Artifact Refining, so you’ll have to give him some guidance from now on.”
Chai Hao was startled upon hearing that, “Junior Brother Yang, you want to study Artifact Refining?”
“Yes.” Yang Kai nodded.
Chai Hao replied with a smile, “Since you’re interested in the Dao of Artifact Refining, I’ll definitely teach you everything I know.”
“Many thanks, Senior Brother,” Yang Kai expressed his gratitude.
Dong Guo An Ping coughed, “Yang Kai, you’ll learn Artifact Refining from Chai Hao from now on. Just ask him if there’s anything you don’t understand. I still have some matters to attend to, so I’ll take my leave now.”
Upon finishing his words, he left the place in a hurry.
Yang Kai and Chai Hao saw him off together.
After he was gone, Chai Hao said, “Junior Brother, since you’re going to learn Artifact Refining, I’ll need to know how skilful you are in Artifact Refining. Would you…”
Before he could finish his words, Yang Kai held out a sword to him.
“What’s this?” Chai Hao was puzzled.
Yang Kai replied, “Senior Dong Guo told me to make something, and this is the result of my work.”
“I see,” Chai Hao took the sword and examined it. Soon, his face began to twitch as he finally realised why his Honoured Master left in a hurry just now.
He initially thought that Yang Kai was already well-versed in the Dao of Artifact Refining; otherwise, he wouldn’t have directly sought some guidance from a Grandmaster from Divine Cauldron Heaven.
After taking a look at this sword though, he realised that Yang Kai couldn’t even be considered a novice when it came to the Dao of Artifact Refining. There was no doubt that Yang Kai was no match for Dong Guo An Ping in this regard, but even a random disciple from Divine Cauldron Heaven could easily bring him to his knees.
Now that his Honoured Master entrusted Yang Kai to him though, it meant that he would have to teach him everything from scratch.
Chai Hao suddenly felt a huge pressure on his shoulders, thinking that this was going to be a troublesome task.
Chai Hao was a patient teacher. Since he was aware that Yang Kai was just an amateur in Artifact Refining, he decided to modify his approach accordingly and teach him everything from scratch.
On the other hand, Yang Kai was a serious learner.
One was studious while the other one was teaching attentively, so they got along pretty well.
Be it the Martial Dao or Alchemic Dao, Yang Kai had shown exceptional aptitude; however, he wasn’t particularly gifted in the Dao of Artifact Refining.
Fortunately, he was now in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm; moreover, there were many similarities between Alchemy and Artifact Refining. Therefore, even though he lacked aptitude in the Dao of Artifact Refining, his mastery of it was improving by the day.
With that said, given his situation, it was impossible for him to reach the pinnacle of the Dao of Artifact Refining. There would come a point when he would be faced with an insurmountable bottleneck, which would be the limit of his achievements in his lifetime.
In any case, Yang Kai didn’t intend to be an Artifact Refining Grandmaster. He was learning it to make it easier for him to gather information behind enemy lines, so he just needed to be slightly more skilful in Artifact Refining than average.
Chai Hao didn’t understand why Yang Kai was suddenly interested in learning Artifact Refining, but after spending some time with him, he could feel that Yang Kai was greedily learning everything he could. With the effort he had put in, he was able to rapidly improve his skills in Artifact Refining. He was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, after all, so he was able to learn anything quickly.
Time passed by slowly.
Yang Kai basically stayed in the Refining Hall and never stepped out of it. He even neglected his own cultivation just to study Artifact Refining. Fortunately, the living beings in his Small Universe would continuously help increase his heritage, so he didn’t lag behind compared to the other cultivators.
He went on to learn Artifact Refining for the next 10 years. It wasn’t until Chai Hao thought that there was nothing else he could teach that Yang Kai ended this special training.
Chai Hao was no longer able to teach Yang Kai not because the latter had surpassed him when it came to Artifact Refining of course, but because he had taught Yang Kai all the theoretical knowledge he knew about the Dao of Artifact Refining. As for how far Yang Kai could go in this Dao, that would depend on his aptitude and effort.
Although he had an excellent teacher, Yang Kai was responsible for his own achievements. Even if two people learned the same Secret Art, their achievements would be different. It was the same case for the Dao of Artifact Refining.
According to Yang Kai’s own classification of the Dao, he had only reached the beginning of the third level, Taking the Initial Steps, after tirelessly learning all about the Dao of Artifact Refining for 10 years.
An Artifact Refining Great Grandmaster like Dong Guo An Ping was at least on the seventh level, Standing Above All Others Within Sight, when it came to the Dao of Artifact Refining.
Only someone at this level was capable of refining Warships. In the entire Blue Sky Pass, there were only a small number of Artifact Refining Great Grandmasters that were comparable to him.
On the other hand, Chai Hao, who had taught Yang Kai for 10 years, should be at the fifth level, Attaining Mastery Through Comprehensive Understanding, when it came to his Dao of Artifact Refining.
The further one traversed any Dao, the more difficult it was to improve. It was even harder than ascending to the next Order in the Open Heaven Realm.
Yang Kai was 2 levels below Chai Hao and 4 levels below Dong Guo An Ping, which showed the stark differences between them.
If he was able to put enough time and effort into studying the Dao of Artifact Refining, Yang Kai figured he might be able to reach Chai Hao’s current level in this lifetime, but he could never become a Great Grandmaster like Dong Guo An Ping. That was the limit of his aptitude, and there was nothing he could do about it.
The Black Ink Disciple in the Yin-Yang Theatre was already developing prototype Warships, so it was apparent that he was just one step away from becoming a Great Grandmaster in the Dao of Artifact Refining. According to Yang Kai’s estimation, the Black Ink Disciple should be at the sixth level of comprehension, Exceeding the Ordinary to Reach the Extraordinary.
If there had been enough time, Yang Kai would have preferred to keep improving his Dao of Artifact Refining. At the very least, he wanted to reach the fourth level, Traversing a Familiar Path; however, he had spent the last 10 years in the Refining Hall, and during this period of time, Zhong Liang had visited him several times. Even though he didn’t say anything, Yang Kai could feel how anxious he was.
The more time Yang Kai spent in the Refining Hall, the more likely that the Black Ink Clan would be able to successfully create Warships. 10 years was basically the limit.
Zhong Liang was startled for a moment when he saw Yang Kai appearing before him. Nevertheless, he soon came to his senses as he put down a document and asked seriously, “Are you ready?”
“I’m sorry for making you wait, Sir.”
Zhong Liang shook his head, “This is a dangerous task. If you’re not willing to do it, no one can force you to.”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “I’ve been preparing for the past 10 years for this moment, why would I back down now?”
Approval and gratification were written all over Zhong Liang’s face, “If everyone was like you, we wouldn’t have to worry about achieving our ultimate goal. Have you told the members of Dawn about it?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “There’s no need for that. I suppose the secret that the Black Ink Clan is capable of refining pseudo-Warships hasn’t spread yet. I don’t even know when I will come back, and it’s hard for me to explain it to them, so it’s better not to tell them about it at all. Moreover, they’re still able to go to the battlefield without me. They’ll take good care of themselves. This matter cannot be delayed, so I’ll head to Yin-Yang Pass now.”
Zhong Liang nodded gently, “Good. Come with me. Those from Yin-Yang Pass have been urging us, so if you delayed much longer, that old fart Tang Qiu would have come over to curse at us.”
Upon finishing his words, Zhong Liang rose from the chair and led the way.
On the way to their destination, Zhong Liang passed a jade slip to Yang Kai, “There’s some basic information about Yin-Yang Pass and the surrounding theatre. You can have a look when you’re free.”
Yang Kai took it, but instead of immediately going through it, he put it inside his Small Universe.
Zhong Liang kept rambling on along the way, as though he was a Father who was sending his Son to the battlefield. He was worried about what Yang Kai would face in the near future.
While feeling warmth in his heart, Yang Kai also felt slightly helpless.
Soon, they arrived at the Hyper Space Array which was guarded by a few soldiers; however, since Zhong Liang was there, the guards directly let them pass.
Inside a Grand Hall, Yang Kai stood atop the huge Array on his own.
He was surrounded by more than 10 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in different corners of the Grand Array, placing valuable resources into the Array Nodes.
It required a lot of resources to activate the Hyper Space Array, and the more powerful the cultivator who was going to be transferred, the more resources were needed.
That was the reason the Humans from different Great Passes rarely came into contact with each other despite being able to do so. Too many resources had to be consumed to do that.
The last time the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters gathered together in Blue Sky Pass was because of the Purifying Black Ink Battleships. Yang Kai had to personally seal Purifying Light inside those vessels, so they had no choice but to come.
“This is a Faith Token given to you by the Old Ancestor. He has left his Imprint inside it, so if there’s anyone who questions you in Yin-Yang Pass, just take this thing out to prove your identity.” Zhong Liang passed a piece of jade to Yang Kai.
Yang Kai took it with a solemn expression.
“Regardless of the outcome of your mission, you must come back alive!” Zhong Ling ordered seriously, “If it comes down to it, just give up and escape. You’ll only be able to contribute more to the Human Race by staying alive.”
Yang Kai cupped his fist, “I’ll not disappoint you, Sir.”
Zhong Liang nodded and stepped out of the Grand Array. After looking around, he ordered, “Activate the array!”
These Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were well prepared, and upon receiving the order, they immediately activated their powers. The Grand Array started buzzing and shining brightly as the resources on the Array Nodes were sucked dry and turned into dust in just a moment.
Space started contorting as though the world was going to fall apart at any moment.
Barely a breath later though, calm was restored.
The Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters around the Grand Array were pale, and their auras were unsteady. It showed that they had exerted themselves greatly to do this. Meanwhile, Yang Kai was nowhere in sight.
Despite being a Master in the Dao of Space, Yang Kai was still overwhelmed by dizziness as he was being transferred to such a faraway place. As he navigated through the Void, he felt like a leaf on the wind, though he had no idea where he would eventually land. This kind of uncertainty made him feel uncomfortable.
Fortunately, this sensation only lasted a short while.
When Yang Kai came to his senses, he was already standing atop a different Grand Array. The lights around him went out and revealed several figures, who were standing around him.
Those people exchanged glances and communicated with each other using Divine Senses. Soon, one of them stepped forward and cupped his fist, “Yin-Yang Pass Jing An greets this Junior Brother. From where do you come?”
Since Yang Kai was transferred to this place through the Hyper Space Array, he was definitely a Human from one of the Great Passes; however, Open Heaven Realm Masters like them who were responsible for guarding the Grand Array couldn’t identify where Yang Kai came from, so they had to ask him about it.
Yang Kai shook his head to clear up his dizziness. Upon making sure that he was in Yin-Yang Pass, he replied, “Blue Sky Pass’ Yang Kai greets Senior Brother Jing.”
Jing An appeared excited upon hearing that, “You’re from Blue Sky Pass?”
“Yes,” Yang Kai nodded.
Jing An hurriedly said to his companions, “Tell Martial Uncle Tang that the person he’s been waiting for has arrived.”
One of them came to his senses and sent the message.
Jing An gazed at Yang Kai and said with a smile, “You’re finally here, Junior Brother Yang. Martial Uncle Tang has been asking about you. Every month, he sends us a message to ask whether someone from Blue Sky Pass has arrived. Should you have come any later, we would’ve been fired.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help but smile upon hearing that, “What does my arrival have anything to do with you all?”
Jing An put on a helpless smile, “Martial Uncle Tang is not the most reasonable person. He scolded us because you did not come, as though it was our fault. You have no idea how much we’ve been longing for you to arrive. It’s great that you’re finally here.”
The people around him nodded repeatedly to show that Jing An was telling the truth. At the same time, they examined Yang Kai with curiosity as they wondered why Tang Qiu had been waiting for him. They didn’t think there was anything special about Yang Kai. Just like them, he appeared to be just another Seventh-Order Master.
Judging from their reactions, Yang Kai reckoned that the fact that the Purifying Light stemmed from his hands had been kept secret in Yin-Yang Pass. Other than a small number of people who were aware of it, no one knew anything about this matter. That was the reason these people never mentioned Purifying Light when they heard his name.
Yang Kai was famous throughout Blue Sky Pass because he could use Purifying Light to help dispel Black Ink Strength since the beginning, so this matter couldn’t be hidden from them.
On the other hand, it was different in Yin-Yang Pass. Although they knew that there were four Purifying Black Ink Battleships in the Inner Sanctum that were filled with Purifying Light, the Army Commanders never told them where the Purifying Light came from.
A moment later, the cultivator, who sent a message earlier, received a reply. After going through it, he looked up and said, “Martial Uncle Tang is not in the Inner Sanctum, Senior Brother Jing. It seems that he has some matters to attend to. Those from the Army Headquarters told us to help settle him in. Martial Uncle will be back in a few days.”
Upon hearing that, Jing An nodded, “In that case, we’ll just follow orders.”
He then turned to look at Yang Kai, “Please come with me, Junior Brother Yang.”
After he finished speaking, he led the way for him with Yang Kai following behind closely.
A short while later, they arrived at a small courtyard that was quiet and serene. This was supposedly a place where guests stayed. There was a similar place in Blue Sky Pass, but it was usually unused.
Even though the courtyard had been vacant for a long time, it remained clean.
“Please get some rest here for a few days, Junior Brother Yang. I’ll inform you when Martial Uncle Tang returns,” Jing An said.
“Many thanks, Senior Brother Jing.” Yang Kai cupped his fist.
Jing An replied with a smile, “If you get bored, feel free to walk around to kill time.”
After Jing An was gone, Yang Kai stepped into the room and sat down with his legs crossed.
He had received a Faith Token from Zhong Liang that was given by the Old Ancestor. It was to be used when someone asked about his identity; however, there didn’t seem to be a need for that thing.
On the other hand, he was surprised that Tang Qiu wasn’t in the Inner Sanctum. Apparently, something major had happened in Yin-Yang Pass, which was why Tang Qiu had to deal with it personally.
With that said, Yang Kai had other friends in Yin-Yang Pass.
He thus fished out a communications artifact and sent a message.
However, he didn’t receive any reply. It suggested that the person he wanted to contact was either not in Yin-Yang Pass or was cultivating in seclusion, thus cutting off all contact with the outside world.
Regardless, Yang Kai was unable to reach him for the time being.
He had sent a message to Xu Ling Gong, but since he was unable to reach him, Yang Kai decided to contact Qing Kui and Su Ying Xue.
Surprisingly, they also didn’t respond.
Yang Kai furrowed his brows. It seemed likely that they were not in the Inner Sanctum, which was why they didn’t reply to his messages. Su Ying Xue and Qing Kui were Xu Ling Gong’s Disciples after all. It was reasonable that they had headed out together if there was a task to perform. It was also probable that they had followed Tang Qiu.
Since Yang Kai was unable to contact any one of them, he decided to put this matter aside. The reason he was here was to sneak into the Black Ink Clan’s base in the Yin-Yang Theatre to gather information. Reuniting with his friends was a secondary priority.
Suddenly, he thought of the jade slip given to him by Zhong Liang before he departed. Since he had some free time, he decided to go through it.
There was some basic information about Yin-Yang Pass and its Theatre in the jade slip, which was given to Yang Kai to help him quickly grasp the situation in this place.
The powers of all the Great Passes were more or less the same, with even the structures and layouts being similar.
There were also about 30,000 fighters in Yin-Yang Pass. They were the brightest Open Heaven Realm Masters who came from different Cave Heavens and Paradises. This kind of scale was accumulated over many years. Over the aeons, countless people were killed on the battlefield, and more people were sent over from the 3,000 Worlds.
It could be said that 80 to 90% of all the elite Open Heaven Realm Masters of every generation from the Cave Heavens and Paradises were sent to the Black Ink Battlefield. Only a small number of them stayed in the 3,000 Worlds to maintain their operation. That was the reason Yang Kai felt that the Cave Heavens and Paradises didn’t live up to their names in the past.
Since most of the powerful cultivators had been sent to the Black Ink Battlefield, he naturally couldn’t see a lot of them in the 3,000 Worlds.
Just like Blue Sky Pass, there were four Armies in Yin-Yang Pass.
There were four Army Commanders, Tang Qiu, Wu Qing, Liu Zhi Ping, and Fei Yu Shan, who respectively led the Eastern, Southern, Western, and Northern Armies.
Yang Kai was startled for a moment when he saw the name Liu Zhi Ping, for it was clearly a woman’s name. It wasn’t that women were no match for men; however, there were indeed fewer women in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Moreover, the fact that Liu Zhi Ping was an Army Commander suggested that she was extraordinarily powerful, definitely one of the strongest cultivators in the Eighth Order. Perhaps she had even reached the peak of the Eighth Order, but due to the limits of her aptitude, was unable to ascend to the Ninth Order.
Meanwhile, the leader of the Black Ink Clan in the Yin-Yang Theatre was named Mu Guang Royal Lord. It could be said that this entire war zone was his territory.
Similarly, those from Blue Sky Pass had to deal with Men Xie in its Theatre.
There was an Old Ancestor who was in charge of every Theatre to deal with the Black Ink Clan’s Royal Lord.
Mu Guang commanded over 100 Territory Lords, which was a significantly higher number than the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in Yin-Yang Pass, and this was just one Theatre. On the entire Black Ink Battlefield, there were countless formidable beings from the Black Ink Clan, which made things extremely difficult for the Humans.
There wasn’t a lot of information in the jade slip; after all, it was just some basic knowledge, so Yang Kai went through it quickly. Since he had some free time now, he decided to refine a set of Seventh-Order materials.
He stayed in the room for half a month.
During this period of time, no one looked for him, nor did Tang Qiu send anyone to summon him. This made Yang Kai worried as he wondered what had happened to Tang Qiu that the latter had been held up for such a long time. Jing An told him that Tang Qiu would be back in a few days, but half a month had passed since then.
Of course, Tang Qiu was an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so he should be fine.
It wasn’t the best idea for him to keep waiting in seclusion though, so after giving it a thought, Yang Kai decided to walk around and take in the sights of Yin-Yang Pass.
It was serene in Yin-Yang Pass as there were no signs of any war. That was because they had just fended off an invasion from the Black Ink Clan not too long ago. Just like the Black Ink Clan in the Blue Sky Theatre, Mu Guang and his subordinates were still recuperating.
There were not a lot of people that walked around the Inner Sanctum. After all, during a time of peace like this, it was the best chance to cultivate. Many Open Heaven Realm Masters had seized the chance to increase their heritage so that they would be prepared for the next round of war.
The layout of Yin-Yang Pass was similar to that of Blue Sky Pass, so Yang Kai soon lost interest after walking around for a bit; after all, he was not in the 3,000 Worlds where there were a lot of bustling places. Every Great Pass was practically a gigantic Mobile Palace Artifact where the soldiers gathered together.
The several tens of thousands of soldiers staying here, ready to face the Black Ink Clan at any moment.
As Yang Kai strolled around, no one bothered to probe him for his identity. There were thousands of soldiers in Yin-Yang Pass, so it was impossible that there was anyone who could recognise everyone else in this place at a glance. No one would pay attention to a stranger like Yang Kai.
Just when he was ready to go back to his place, Yang Kai’s expression changed as he listened attentively.
A moment later, he moved forward in a particular direction with an awkward expression. After taking a turn, he saw a street that was bustling with activity.
The street wasn’t wide as it could only allow two carriages to pass side by side; however, the street was filled with people who were chatting with each other.
It was also lined with shops on both sides. There were all sorts of products that were on sale, and merchants were heard shouting to attract customers.
Yang Kai even saw someone selling skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits.
Yang Kai was dumbfounded at the sight before his eyes. If not for the fact that he was aware that he was in Yin-Yang Pass, he would have thought that he had returned to a city in the 3,000 Worlds.
Countless people were streaming into and leaving the street like the fish in a river.
Yang Kai looked up and saw that there was a huge plaque above the street. The characters for ‘Marketplace’ were written on it.
The characters ‘Observing the World’ were written on the left stone monument while ‘Experiencing Prosperity’ was written on the right stone monument.
Yang Kai frowned as he had a feeling that this street was a little unusual. At the very least, he had never seen anything like it in Blue Sky Pass.
His curiosity had been piqued as he decided to look into it. After taking a deep breath, he stepped into the street and was instantly greeted with all sorts of noises as people were heard shouting.
“Delicious sugar-coated hawthorn fruits!”
“We have freshly made steamed stuffed buns!”
“It’s the first day of our business. You’ll enjoy a 30% discount on all the dishes. Limited seats. First come, first served.”
…..
Instantly, Yang Kai was overwhelmed by a sense of dizziness, as though he had just been punched by a Territory Lord. Even his Soul had become unstable.
The old man, who was selling sugar-coated hawthorn fruits, happened to be approaching him. The red sugar-coated hawthorn fruits over his shoulder appeared appetising. The hair and beard of the old man were all grey. He was clad in simple clothes, as though he was just an average old man. All of a sudden, he grabbed the collar of a young man who happened to pass by, “Brat, why don’t you get a skewer of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits?”
The young man sported a bitter expression, “Martial Uncle, I just bought some from you two hours ago.”
The old man, who was addressed as Martial Uncle, shook his head, “You bought those two hours ago, so it’s time for you to buy one more. Rest assured. I’m sure you’ll love the sugar-coated hawthorn fruits I’ve personally made.”
The young man appeared crestfallen, “Martial Uncle, can I not buy it?”
The old man extended his hand with a smile, “That will be 10 copper coins.”
Since it was useless to protest, the young man let out a sigh of defeat and fished out 10 copper coins from his clothes before passing the money to him.
The old man took out a skewer of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits and stuffed it into the young man’s hands.
Just when the young man was about to leave, the old man grabbed his collar again, “Why aren’t you eating it now?”
The young man was on the brink of breaking into tears, “Martial Uncle, must I eat it now?”
“Yes, right now; otherwise, it’s no different from looking down on my craft!” The old man glared at him.
The horrified young man took a bite of the sugar-coated hawthorn fruits. A myriad of expressions came over his face, but he still went against his conscience and praised the old man by saying, “You’re truly skilful in making sugar-coated hawthorn fruits, Martial Uncle.”
The old man guffawed, “Of course. Don’t you know who I am?”
Upon finishing his words, he released the young man. Yang Kai could see that as the young man shuffled forward, he kept eating the sugar-coated hawthorn fruits with a smile that was uglier than crying.
Yang Kai felt his face twitching as he couldn’t believe his eyes. If he wasn’t mistaken, the young man who bought the skewer of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits was a Seventh-Order Master, while the old man was an Eighth-Order Master.
[What’s going on?]
“Young man, do you want a skewer of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits? It’s a craft passed down from my ancestors. I’m sure you’ll not be disappointed.”
While Yang Kai was in a dazed state, the old man suddenly stood in front of him and looked smilingly at him.
Yang Kai took a glance at the old man and examined the sugar-coated hawthorn fruits over his shoulder. He reckoned that the sugar-coated hawthorn fruits were probably made from some kind of Spirit Fruit, which was why they could be sold here.
Yang Kai became interested in the sugar-coated hawthorn fruits. As he recalled what he had seen, he asked probingly, “10 copper coins?”
The old man nodded with a smile, “Yes, 10 copper coins for a skewer. It’s fair, isn’t it?”
“I’ll get one skewer, then.” As Yang Kai spoke, he fished out 10 copper coins and passed them to the old man.
As a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he naturally didn’t bring any copper coins with him. Copper, silver, and gold were used by the mortals to buy goods. Most cultivators wouldn’t need such things; however, there were a lot of Humans living in Yang Kai’s Small Universe. Copper, silver, and gold coins were commonly used in the exchange of goods. Therefore, the 10 copper coins he had fished out were taken from his Small Universe.
Surprisingly, the old man glanced at the copper coins but didn’t take them. Instead, he sported a dark expression, “Are you messing with me just because I’m old, you brat?”
A puzzled Yang Kai asked, “What do you mean, Old Sir?”
Upon seeing that the young man appeared sincere, the old man frowned. As he examined Yang Kai, he suddenly realised what was going on, “Oh, I get it. Brat, since you’re new to this place and know nothing, I’ll not settle the score with you. Instead, I’ll teach you something today.”
Yang Kai replied respectfully, “I’m all ears.”
The old man said with a smile, “The copper coins used in this Marketplace are specially made. These ordinary copper coins can’t be used here.”
After he finished speaking, he flicked a copper coin at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai took the coin and carefully examined it. He realised that even though the material used to make the copper coin wasn’t special, it was indeed custom-made. The Yin character was engraved on one side, while the Yang character was on the other side.
There was no kind of restriction on the copper coin, nor was there a unique way of making it. It wouldn’t be hard to make a fake one. At the very least, Yang Kai could easily make many of them if he wanted to.
Nevertheless, it would be inappropriate for him to do so.
Left with no choice, he could only be honest with the old man, “I’m sorry, Old Sir. I don’t have this kind of copper coin.”
The old man chuckled, “I know you don’t. It’s fine. I’m sure you have cultivation resources. You can trade them for copper coins with me.”
“Does it work that way?” Yang Kai was stunned.
“Why would I lie to you?” The old man nodded firmly.
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai fished out a Sixth-Order Yellow Crystal as he couldn’t suppress his curiosity, “How about this thing, Old Sir?”
The old man arched his brow and took the Sixth-Order Yellow Crystal, then he became elated, “It’s a wonderful Sixth-Order Yang Element material. That’s great. I haven’t seen anything as pure as this in a long time.”
Yang Kai quipped to himself that this thing was certainly pure, for it was a result of the crystallisation of the Burning Light’s power. There was no Yang Element material in the world that was purer than this.
“You can trade it for 10 skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits,” the old man said firmly, then was ready to fish out 10 skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits.
“Wait a moment!” An astonished Yang Kai quickly stopped him.
Since a skewer of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits was worth 10 copper coins, 10 skewers would be 100 copper coins. How was it possible that a Sixth-Order Yellow Crystal could only be traded for 10 skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits?
A Sixth-Order Yellow Crystal was worth at least 20 million Open Heaven Pills, and a resource that rare couldn’t really be bought with money. Given the conversion rate, it would mean that 1 copper coin in this Marketplace was worth 200,000 Open Heaven Pills.
Yang Kai was overwhelmed by a sense of unease. He didn’t think the old man was conning him, but this thing was simply too expensive.
It was no wonder that when the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master bought a skewer of hawthorn fruits from this old man earlier, he appeared as if some of his flesh had been shaved off.
That was because a skewer of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits was worth 2 million Open Heaven Pills.
[Why is it so expensive?]
Yang Kai was quick to stop him, but the old man was extremely swift. The moment he started speaking, the old man had taken out 5 skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits.
“Old Sir, even though I’m new to this place, you can’t oppress me like this,” Yang Kai stared at the old man with a solemn expression.
The old man replied with a smile, “I certainly won’t oppress a young man like you. Don’t worry, I’m an honest trader. If you don’t believe me, you can ask around.”
Yang Kai scowled. After pondering on it for a moment though, he said, “I’ll just get one skewer. I can’t have so many.”
The old man shook his head repeatedly, “No no, I’ve taken out 5 skewers already. You have to buy them all.”
A speechless Yang Kai refuted, “Can’t you just put them back in?”
The old man lowered his head and said in a grim voice, “If a person jabs a dagger into your body and takes it out, can you pretend that nothing has happened?”
Yang Kai was dumbfounded, “It’s like comparing oranges with apples.”
The old man shook his head, “It’s all the same to me.”
A furious Yang Kai snapped, “You just said that you’re an honest trader, but here you are compelling me to buy your goods. It’s not fair!”
The old man ignored him and stuffed five skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits in his hands. After passing him 50 copper coins, he said solemnly, “Young man, just take it as me giving you a lesson today. You have to be careful whenever you head out from now on.”
After he finished speaking, he left in a hurry with his skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits.
Yang Kai was left dumbfounded as he clutched the 5 skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits in one hand and 50 copper coins in the other.
He didn’t understand what kind of damned place this Marketplace was. Why was there such a place in Yin-Yang Pass? What was the purpose of building it?
It was apparent that Yang Kai had been conned by the old man, but he still felt somewhat comforted. At the very least, he still had 5 skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits and 50 copper coins.
Since the fruits were so expensive, they might have some amazing effects. Perhaps they could soothe one’s mind or increase the heritage of the Small Universe.
At the thought of this, Yang Kai put away the copper coins and grabbed one skewer of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits before taking a bite.
As he chewed the fruit, he realised that it was refreshingly sweet with a tinge of sourness. The flesh was tender and fresh. More importantly, the fruit pit had been removed, so he didn’t have to spit it out.
After having one of the fruits, he stood still on the same spot for a moment; then, he sported a dark expression.
It was just the most common sugar-coated hawthorn fruit that did nothing to help increase a cultivator’s heritage.
Yang Kai cursed at the dishonest trader and had the urge to chase after the old man and fight him to the death.
With that said, he never put his idea into action, for the other party was an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. If he really ran after the old man, he would be the one to suffer.
After gritting his teeth for a moment, he let out a sigh. As he was having the costly sugar-coated hawthorn fruits, Yang Kai shuffled further into the Marketplace.
The busy street was lined with all sorts of shops.
Yang Kai soon stopped in his tracks in front of an accessories shop. The accessories in the shop were all quite beautiful. They were apparently made by a skilful artisan.
After getting conned by the old man who sold sugar-coated hawthorn fruits though, Yang Kai was far more cautious this time. However, he was shocked to see that there were a lot of cultivators going in and out of the shop, and the accessories were selling fast.
Since business was booming in this shop, it suggested that the accessories here were extraordinary.
Perhaps they were no ordinary accessories and instead, they were artifacts made by some Grandmaster.
At the thought of this, Yang Kai nodded as he believed that his speculation was right.
“Hey, this generous Senior Brother. Are you looking for some accessories?” After seeing off his customer, a shop assistant hurriedly came over to serve Yang Kai.
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai couldn’t help but laugh, “Why do you think I’m generous?”
The shop assistant pointed at the sugar-coated hawthorn fruits in his hands, “If you’re not wealthy, you wouldn’t have bought so many sugar-coated hawthorn fruits. The one who sells sugar-coated hawthorn fruits is famous across this Marketplace.”
It was then Yang Kai realised what was going on, “I see.”
It was no wonder that a lot of people looked at him with awkward expressions when he walked along the street. That was because he had many skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits in his hands.
He didn’t even know that holding a few skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits in one’s hands was a symbol of wealth these days.
Nevertheless, that was indeed the case in this Marketplace.
“What accessories would you like to buy?” The shop assistant asked hospitably.
Yang Kai didn’t have anything specific that he wanted, for he was just wondering whether these accessories were some kind of artifacts. After looking around, he pointed at a red hairpin, “Can I have a look at this?”
The shop assistant promptly took out the hairpin and said with a smile, “This thing is made by the owner. The accessories he makes are the best in this Marketplace. The other accessory shops are not comparable to us. If you give this hairpin to a woman you love, she’ll definitely be pleased.”
The hairpin was placed inside a transparent container. Even though Yang Kai could clearly see the hairpin, he was unable to examine it.
He frowned, “Can you open it?”
The shop assistant put on an apologetic smile, “You can only open the box after buying the hairpin.”
[What kind of rule is this?] Since the hairpin was inside some kind of special container, Yang Kai was unable to determine the Order of the accessory. How was he going to find out whether it was truly valuable or not?
However, he had seen many people buying these accessories in the same way, so he knew that it was impossible for him to have a closer look at it.
Left with no choice, he asked, “How much is it?”
“That will be 50 copper coins,” the shop assistant replied with a smile.
Yang Kai’s face twitched visibly. He couldn’t help but suspect that this shop assistant and the old man who sold sugar-coated hawthorn fruits might be from the same gang; otherwise, how could this shop boy know exactly how much money he was left with?
Still, Yang Kai decided to pass the 50 coins to the shop assistant without hesitation and left with the hairpin.
After stepping out of the shop, he immediately took the hairpin out of the container and examined it.
A moment later, he snarled through clenched teeth, “Another black-hearted conman!”
This was just an ordinary hairpin, not an amazing artifact. First, he was forced to buy five skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits from the old man. Then, he was conned into buying this useless hairpin. He was completely disappointed in this Marketplace.
Everything in this place was a farce; however, he didn’t understand why there was such a place in Yin-Yang Pass. Moreover, a lot of Open Heaven Realm Masters were seen wandering around here.
After such terrible experiences, Yang Kai had lost all interest in shopping here, so he decided to go back to his place.
He initially wanted to toss the hairpin away, but he thought that it was wasteful to throw away something that he had bought with half of a Sixth-Order Yellow Crystal; therefore, he just put it in his Space Ring.
As he was heading towards the exit, he suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned around to ask, “Why are you following me?”
The moment he stepped out of the accessories shop, he already realised that someone was following him. He initially thought that it was just a coincidence, but the person behind him never went away. It was then he confirmed that he had been tailed.
When Yang Kai turned around, he realised that no one was in sight.
He frowned and looked down, only to see a little girl standing in front of him. With her big eyes, she stared fixedly at the sugar-coated hawthorn fruits in his hand.
[A little girl?] Yang Kai was stunned.
Upon closer look, he realised that she was indeed a little girl who was seven or eight years old. Although she was clad in simple clothes, she looked quite adorable. Her eyes were bright, and her jet-black hair hung low at her waist.
[Why is there a little girl in Yin-Yang Pass?] Yang Kai instinctively thought that she was an Open Heaven Realm Master who had cultivated some kind of unique Secret Art. Such Secret Arts did exist in this world. Or maybe an accident happened when she was cultivating, which was why she never grew taller and appeared to be a child.
However, after examining the little girl, he realised that even though she had cultivated before, she wasn’t very strong. She was in the Origin King Realm at most.
With that said, it was inconceivable that she was already an Origin King at her age. Yang Kai still hadn’t started cultivating when he was eight years old, which showed that this little girl had extraordinary aptitude. Her achievements would surely be staggering in the future.
Nevertheless, on the Black Ink Battlefield where everyone was an Open Heaven Realm Master, an Origin King was indeed too weak.
Those from the Cave Heavens and Paradises would only send cultivators who were at least in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm to the Black Ink Battlefield. Those who were below the Sixth Order wouldn’t be asked to come here. What could an Origin King do in such a place? This little girl would probably be turned into a Black Ink Disciple the instant she came into contact with Black Ink Strength.
Yang Kai was greatly puzzled about where this little girl came from.
She was only seven or eight years old, so there was no way she was sent to this place from the 3,000 Worlds by the Cave Heavens and Paradises. The only possibility was that she was born in Yin-Yang Pass.
It wasn’t that there were no couples in the Great Passes. As they had to fight against the Black Ink Clan all year long, they might lose their lives at any moment, so special feelings would naturally develop among people when they were under such immense pressure. In fact, there were a lot of couples in different Great Passes.
However, none of them would rashly make a decision to give birth to children in such a place. That was because no one could guarantee whether they would survive the next battle. It would be the height of irresponsibility to bring a child into the world in this kind of place.
Therefore, it never crossed Yang Kai’s mind that he would come across a little girl who was in the Origin King Realm in the Marketplace in Yin-Yang Pass.
On the other hand, the cultivators in the Marketplace didn’t seem curious about the little girl, which showed that she had been around here for quite some time.
Seeing that she was just a little girl, Yang Kai didn’t intend to probe her, he just asked in a gentle voice, “Where are your parents, little girl?”
Just then, a passing cultivator crashed into a rack with a thud, which caused all the goods on it to fall to the ground. The merchant cursed at him while the cultivator apologised and picked up the goods.
The little girl, who was standing in front of Yang Kai, never moved her eyes away from the sugar-coated hawthorn fruits in his hand. Without replying to his question, she gulped and asked, “Are you going to eat them?”
Yang Kai looked down at his hand and realised why she had been following him. As he broke into laughter, he passed the remaining 4 skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits to her, “You can have them all.”
The little girl beamed at him and took the skewers. After thanking him, she started munching on the fruits and said in a muffled voice, “You’re a good guy. For some reason, the old man who sells sugar-coated fruits is missing today. I still couldn’t find him after looking for him for a long time.”
Yang Kai secretly snorted. The old man must be worried that Yang Kai would settle the score with him after conning the latter into buying 5 skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits, which was why he had left in a hurry.
Seeing that she was enjoying her food though, Yang Kai felt the displeasure in his heart melting away. He felt that the Sixth-Order Yellow Crystal he had spent was finally worth it. He thus patted and stroked the little girl’s head before saying, “Go home after you’re done having your food. Don’t make your parents worry.”
*Dong!*
Right then, the same rack was hit again and the merchant quickly squatted and picked up the goods.
At the same time, Yang Kai furrowed his brows. For some reason, he had a feeling that time was frozen for a moment, as though the entire Marketplace had fallen silent. However, when he looked around, he realised that everything had become normal again.
The little girl, whose head was being stroked, grinned from ear to ear.
Yang Kai nodded at her and turned around to leave.
However, he soon turned his head and gazed at the little girl, who was still tailing him, “Why are you following me? I’ve given you all my sugar-coated hawthorn fruits. There’s none left.”
It only took the little girl a short time to finish having all 4 skewers. It was surprising that she had such a huge appetite. After tossing the skewers away, the little girl put on a faint smile, “Since you’ve given me some sugar-coated hawthorn fruits, I’ll treat you to a meal. How about some steamed stuffed buns?”
Yang Kai smiled helplessly, “There’s no need for that…”
After getting conned into buying the sugar-coated hawthorn fruits and the hairpin, he was certain that all the things being sold in this Marketplace were just ordinary items. There wasn’t a need for him to pay any attention to this place anymore.
Since he had some free time, he’d rather go back and refine materials to strengthen the heritage of his Small Universe.
Nevertheless, before he finished speaking, he sported a helpless expression, “What’s wrong?”
The little girl appeared to be on the brink of breaking into tears, as though she had just suffered from the greatest grievance in the world.
She sobbed and said, “I want to get some steamed stuffed buns! The steamed stuffed buns from Lin’s Steamed Bun Restaurant are the best!” As she spoke, she sucked the drool back into her mouth.
A speechless Yang Kai massaged his temples, “If you want the steamed stuffed buns so badly, you can go ahead and buy them.”
The little girl hung her head low and said in a small voice, “I don’t have any money.”
Yang Kai was torn between tears and laughter, “But you said you’d treat me to a meal.”
“I’ll treat you to a meal, but you’ll have to pay…” There was an embarrassed expression on the little girl’s face.
“That’s ridiculous…” Yang Kai was lost for words. He wanted to tell her that he also didn’t have any money as the copper coins he had traded for the Sixth-Order Yellow Crystal were used up.
However, the little girl walked up to him and took his hand before swaying it, “Please. Steamed stuffed buns are delicious…” She gulped.
Yang Kai was unable to bear the little girl pleading with him in such a way. He thought that her parents were irresponsible by giving birth to her as they never even bothered to give her some allowance. It was simply outrageous.
“Please… I really love their buns…” The little girl was relentless.
Left with no other choice, Yang Kai could only agree to it, “Alright, alright. Stop swinging me. I’m feeling dizzy!”
“So you agree?” The pleasantly surprised little girl asked.
“Yes, I’ll treat you to a proper meal,” Yang Kai nodded. In any case, he could trade materials for some copper coins, so he didn’t have to worry about not being able to foot the bill.
“You really are a good guy!” The little girl was ecstatic.
Yang Kai let out a sigh. He wasn’t aware that being nice meant he had to treat someone to a meal. With that said, the world of a little girl was simple. It wasn’t a bad thing to experience some innocence on this dangerous Black Ink Battlefield.
Lin’s Steamed Bun Restaurant was filled with the aroma of steamed stuffed buns. There were only a few tables, and they were all occupied. A bowl of soup and a small bamboo basket of steamed stuffed buns were all it took for one to wind down and observe the Marketplace.
The owners of the restaurant seemed to be a couple. One of them prepared dough while the other formed the buns. They appeared skilful in their craft. There was also a shop hand to serve the customers.
The instant Yang Kai stepped into the restaurant, hand in hand with the little girl, the shop hand became rooted to the spot as if struck by lightning, staring fixedly at their hands.
The owners, who were preparing dough and steamed stuffed buns, shook a little.
Meanwhile, the customers in the shop, who were eating the steamed stuffed buns and soup, felt their brows twitching.
“Here it is! Lin’s Steamed Bun Restaurant!” The little girl said joyfully.
Yang Kai swept a glance over this place. Despite knowing that there were no ordinary people here, he still felt ill at ease.
The owners of the steamed stuffed bun shop were apparently Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. On the other hand, the shop hand, who was responsible for serving the customers, was a Seventh-Order Master.
Yang Kai had never seen any Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters whose faces were covered in flour as they were preparing dough and steamed stuffed buns. He had the luck to see it in this Marketplace.
“There are a lot of people today,” the little girl took a glance around the shop. Seeing that all the tables were occupied, she turned to Yang Kai, “It seems that we’ll have to wait.”
As soon as she finished speaking though, the customers started stuffing steamed buns into their mouths and gulping down the soup.
“Get me the bill!”
They all started shouting. The shop hand quickly went around to collect money from them. In just a moment, all the customers in the restaurant were gone.
“Oh, there are seats now!” The little girl appeared elated as she pulled Yang Kai into the shop and took a seat at one of the tables. Since the chair was too tall, her feet couldn’t come into contact with the ground as they swayed in the air.
While cleaning up the things on the table, the shop hand asked with a smile, “What would you like to get?”
Yang Kai replied nonchalantly, “Get me 2 baskets of steamed stuffed buns…”
Before he could finish speaking though, the little girl cut him off by shouting, “I’ll have 10 baskets!”
Yang Kai batted his eyes, then said to the shop hand, “We’ll have ten baskets of steamed stuffed buns and two bowls of soup, then.”
“Alright, I’ll be right back,” the shop hand replied and headed to the kitchen.
A moment later, 10 baskets of steamed stuffed buns were served, piled up on the table. The little girl then began wolfing them down as her cheeks bulged.
Yang Kai took a steamed stuffed bun and had a taste. He realised that even though it was delicious, it was just some ordinary food. It was unable to help increase a cultivator’s power. Still, he remained silent and waited for the little girl to finish having her food.
“Why aren’t you having any?” The little girl asked curiously.
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “You can have them all.”
The little glutton smiled happily and continued devouring the buns.
Yang Kai helped her wipe the crumbs off her mouth and said, “Take it slow. No one is going to take them away from you.”
He was curious about what was going on with her parents. Had they never given her enough food? Why did she look like she was starving?
The little girl devoured all ten baskets of steamed stuffed buns and two bowls of soup on her own. Yang Kai couldn’t help but wonder how the petite little girl was able to wolf down so much food. It was no simple feat.
More importantly, her belly didn’t bulge at all. He wondered where all the food went.
“Are you full?” Yang Kai asked.
The little girl nodded, “Yes.”
Yang Kai then shouted, “Get me the bill!”
The shop hand promptly came over and said with a smile, “That will be 100 copper coins for 10 baskets of steamed stuffed buns. The bowls of soup are on the house.”
“Many thanks.” Yang Kai nodded, “But I don’t have any money with me. Can I cover the bill with this?”
Upon finishing his words, Yang Kai fished out a Sixth-Order Blue Crystal.
The shop hand, who was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, took the crystal and examined it, then appeared elated, “It’s enough.”
Yang Kai nodded and beckoned to the little girl before bringing her out of the restaurant. The shop hand said hospitably, “Please come again.”
[I’ll be a fool if I come again!] Yang Kai thought. The things in this Marketplace were ordinary but extremely costly. Sixth-Order Yin and Yang Element materials were worth approximately 40 million Open Heaven Pills, but he squandered them away in barely half a day.
He reckoned that this place should be renamed as ‘Black Market’.
The little girl still followed him closely. Yang Kai turned around to gaze at her and look around. Suddenly thinking of something, he took out the hairpin from his Space Ring and fixed it on her hair.
She was already truly adorable, and even though the hairpin wasn’t an artifact, it was finely made. They perfectly matched each other.
The little girl was evidently startled.
Yang Kai said with a smile, “It’s a gift.”
He then turned around and waved his hand, “I’ll go back now. You should head home early so that your parents won’t have to worry about you.”
This time, the little girl didn’t tail him. While standing in the same spot, she just touched the hairpin and watched him leave.
Yang Kai headed straight to his resting place. When he recalled his experiences in the Marketplace, he couldn’t help but grin wryly. After emptying his mind, he sat down with his legs crossed and started cultivating.
One day later, he suddenly heard a clear voice calling out to him from outside the courtyard, “Yang Kai! Yang Kai!”
Yang Kai frowned and stored the materials he hadn’t fully refined. After opening the courtyard’s door, he saw the little girl that he came across the day before in the Marketplace. She was standing outside his courtyard with a smile. The hairpin that he gave her the day before was still in her hair.
A puzzled Yang Kai asked, “How did you find me?”
There was a smug smile on the little girl’s face, “I asked around. It wasn’t hard to find out where you live.”
It was apparent that she had also found out his name by asking around. Yang Kai couldn’t help but think that this little girl was truly clever.
“What’s wrong?” Yang Kai asked curiously as he had no idea why she had come all the way here to see him.
“Let’s go to the steamed stuffed bun shop!” The little girl said firmly.
Yang Kai rubbed his forehead, “You want me to foot the bill, right?”
“Hehe…” The little girl appeared bashful as her intentions were seen through. However, she soon cast the bashfulness away as the foodie in her got the better of her. She grabbed his hand and pulled him away, “Let’s go. You have nothing to do anyway.”
A speechless Yang Kai refuted, “What do you mean I have nothing to do? I was cultivating when you disturbed me.”
“There’s no hurry to cultivate. I’m hungry.”
Despite her petite figure, she was full of strength; Yang Kai also wouldn’t really dare to resist her so he was gradually pulled towards the Marketplace.
When they arrived at Lin’s Steamed Bun Restaurant, she ordered 10 baskets of steamed stuffed buns, just like she had done the day before. While the little girl wolfed down the food, Yang Kai waited patiently by the side.
The same thing happened every day for the next few days.
Yang Kai felt helpless as he wondered who were the ones who had given birth to such a reckless little girl. He wanted to tell her parents what was going on, but to his dismay, when he asked the little girl to bring him to see her parents, she started sobbing and said that they passed away a long time ago.
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai didn’t dare to keep asking lest her sorrowful memories were stirred up. If the little girl really started bawling her eyes out, he wouldn’t know how to appease her.
This little girl was seven or eight years old, and she was only in the Origin King Realm. She must have been born in Yin-Yang Pass, but her parents passed away a long time ago. How was she going to survive in this place?
Yang Kai consoled himself by thinking that he would just keep her company for the time being as she was truly pitiful.
For the next few days, the little girl would bring Yang Kai to the steamed stuffed bun shop in the Marketplace so that he would pay for her meal. They got along pretty well.
One day, Yang Kai was seated in Lin’s Steamed Bun Restaurant while the little girl scarfed down the food, the same as the past few days. It wouldn’t take the little girl a long time to finish having 10 baskets of steamed stuffed buns. After that, Yang Kai would fish out a Sixth-Order Yellow or Blue Crystal to pay for the meal.
Suddenly, Yang Kai’s expression changed as he turned to look out of the restaurant, where he saw four people shuffling inside.
His eyes brightened as he rose from the chair and greeted them, “Senior Tang!”
The person at the front was none other than Tang Qiu whom Yang Kai had been waiting for. It was apparent that he had just returned from outside and hadn’t even had time to clean himself up. It seemed that he had fought against some formidable enemies, so his aura was a little unstable.
Behind him was Xu Ling Gong, who was followed by Qing Kui and Su Ying Xue. Just like Yang Kai had speculated, the four of them had headed out together, which was why he couldn’t contact any one of them.
Yang Kai then greeted Xu Ling Gong and his two Disciples, who all nodded in response.
Qing Kui and Su Ying Xue were still in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, but their auras had become far deeper. It was obvious that they had grown in strength after fighting against the Black Ink Clan since their arrival in Yin-Yang Pass.
“I came to this place because I was told that you’re here,” Tang Qiu explained.
Yang Kai replied, “I decided to take a stroll since I had nothing to do. Senior, since you’re back, you could have just told someone to summon me. Why did you come all the way here?”
Tang Qiu waved his hand, “I’m sorry for making you wait. I was held up because I came across an accident when I was on my way back.”
“It’s fine. Have a seat, please.” Yang Kai extended his hand.
Tang Qiu nodded, then sat together with Xu Ling Gong.
As soon as they sat down though, they shot out of their chairs as if there were some sharp stick that poked their butts. They stared dazedly at the petite figure behind the baskets of steamed stuffed buns.
Since the little girl was seated behind the baskets that had been piled up, Tang Qiu and Xu Ling Gong hadn’t noticed her presence before.
“S-She…” Tang Qiu stammered.
Yang Kai explained, “I came across this little girl a few days ago. She’s quite pitiful as her parents passed away a long time ago, and there’s no one to take care of her. Since she loves the steamed stuffed buns here, I bring her to this place every day.”
“Ah… er… en! I see!” Tang Qiu came to his senses and sent a signal to Xu Ling Gong with his eyes. Then, he slowly took a seat.
Qing Kui, who was standing behind Xu Ling Gong, coughed, “Honoured Master, I’m going to take a little stroll.”
An absent-minded Xu Ling Gong replied, “En, go ahead.”
“I’ll tag along!” Su Ying Xue quickly said.
After offering an apology, they left the restaurant together.
In the steamed stuffed bun shop, four figures, three adults and one little girl, were seated at the table. Yang Kai looked at Tang Qiu and Xu Ling Gong with a frown, “It seems that both of you are badly injured.”
Yang Kai could feel that there was something wrong with both Tang Qiu and Xu Ling Gong. Their solemn expressions suggested that they were trying to suppress something, as though they were anxious or in pain somehow.
“We’re fine,” Tang Qiu replied casually.
“Yes, we’re fine.” Xu Ling Gong nodded repeatedly.
“That’s good.” Yang Kai nodded, then brought up a serious topic, “What’s going on with the Black Ink Clan?”
“Black Ink Clan?” Tang Qiu appeared perplexed, as though he didn’t hear Yang Kai clearly. Nevertheless, he soon regained his senses, “Oh, the Black Ink Clan… I was about to discuss it with you.”
Yang Kai frowned as he had a feeling that something really was wrong with Tang Qiu. The latter appeared to be completely distracted. He was the one who told Yang Kai to come over to find out who made the Warships for the Black Ink Clan, but he appeared puzzled at this moment when the topic was brought up.
The little girl, who had been eating her steamed stuffed buns in silence, suddenly gazed at Tang Qiu and asked with a smile, “Would you like some buns?”
Tang Qiu was unable to respond immediately as he appeared to have been caught off guard.
Yang Kai directly knocked on the little girl’s head and chastised her by saying, “Don’t interrupt us. We’re having a discussion here!”
“Impudence!” Tang Qiu landed a slap on the table that caused it to collapse. The baskets and the freshly made steamed stuffed buns all fell to the ground.
Yang Kai was stunned.
Tang Qiu was dumbfounded as well.
On the other hand, Xu Ling Gong hung his head low and remained unmoving.
The little girl grabbed a steamed stuffed bun in each hand. Her cheeks were bulging as she soon gulped down the food.
“Senior, you…” Yang Kai scowled at Tang Qiu.
Tang Qiu hesitated for a bit before saying in a muffled voice, “The impudence of the Black Ink Clan!”
Yang Kai broke into laughter, “What happened to you on the way back?”
The shop hand hurriedly came over. While cleaning the things up, he said, “Please calm down, everyone. Do not fight here.”
The little girl glared at Tang Qiu, “Give my steamed stuffed buns back!”
“Right away!” Tang Qiu nodded repeatedly, then said to the shop hand, “Give us more steamed stuffed buns!”
“Alright, please give me a moment,” the shop hand replied.
Since the table was broken, they had to move to another one. Fortunately, there were not a lot of customers in the restaurant right now. Apart from them, there were only a few other diners; hence, there were still some vacant seats.
New steamed stuffed buns were soon served. Yang Kai was waiting for Tang Qiu to talk about what was going on with the Black Ink Clan, but the latter actually started stuffing the buns into his face, even ordering Xu Ling Gong to do the same.
Therefore, apart from Yang Kai, who sported a half-dumbstruck expression, the little girl, Tang Qiu, and Xu Ling Gong were gulping down the food together. While they were enjoying the food, Tang Qiu and Xu Ling Gong kept saying that the steamed stuffed buns were delicious.
Yang Kai was dumbfounded at the scene before him. Those who had no idea what was going on might think that they had been starving for a long time.
The little girl’s appetite seemed to be enhanced as the two men fought over the food. Soon, more and more baskets were piled up. The speed at which the owners made the steamed stuffed buns could no longer keep pace with them as they would finish having the food too quickly.
Unable to take it anymore, Yang Kai said tactfully, “Senior, about the Black Ink Clan…”
“I’ll tell you about the Black Ink Clan at a later time,” Tang Qiu replied in a muffled voice.
Yang Kai looked away as he could no longer bear to keep watching them.
In just half a day, they finished having 100 baskets of steamed stuffed buns and the owners of Lin’s Steamed Bun Restaurant had to close the shop early.
The little girl leaned against the chair and stroked her belly. With a pleased expression, she belched and said, “I’m full!”
Yang Kai couldn’t help but smile, “You’re finally full for once.”
“En, I’m stuffed. I need to head home and get some sleep,” The little girl rose from the chair and skipped out of the shop. It was apparent that she was in a joyful mood.
After she was gone, Tang Qiu got up as well, “I’ll head back now. Yang Kai, look for me tomorrow.”
“Yes,” Yang Kai replied.
Xu Ling Gong patted Yang Kai’s shoulder and gazed at him. After hesitating for a bit, he warned, “Be careful!”
Yang Kai was perplexed upon hearing that, but before he could ask any questions, Xu Ling Gong had left with his hands folded behind his back.
Yang Kai frowned as he watched Xu Ling Gong leave. He had a feeling that there was an insinuation in the latter’s words.
Just then, the shop hand came over and looked smilingly at Yang Kai, “Your bill comes up to 1,000 copper coins. The boss said that since you’re a frequent customer, you don’t have to pay for the broken table.”
Yang Kai’s face fell as he had the urge to curse.
Despite being frustrated, he still fished out a Seventh-Order Yellow Crystal to pay for the meal.
After leaving the Marketplace, he returned to his resting place. Surprisingly, Qing Kui and Su Ying Xue were waiting for him.
Yang Kai’s eyes brightened when he saw them and he quickly called out, “Brother Qing Kui, Senior Sister Su.”
Qing Kui nodded and looked around. Appearing to be stealthy, he said in a small voice, “Let’s go inside first.”
Upon finishing his words, he took Yang Kai’s arm and strode forward. They were followed by Su Ying Xue. After entering the courtyard, Qing Kui quickly told Yang Kai to activate the restriction to prevent anyone from eavesdropping.
Yang Kai was puzzled by their actions. After inviting them to have a seat, he poured some tea for them; then, he sat across from Qing Kui and asked curiously, “What’s going on, Brother Qing Kui?”
Qing Kui and Su Ying Xue acted as though they were wary of someone; however, who could make them act this way inside Yin-Yang Pass?
Without replying to his question, Qing Kui stared fixedly at Yang Kai and said in a grim voice, “You are truly ignorant and reckless!”
A perplexed Yang Kai asked, “What do you mean by that?”
With a solemn expression, Qing Kui went on to say, “Do you know who the little girl was that was with you in the steamed bun shop?”
Yang Kai was surprised, “Isn’t she a little girl whose parents passed away a long time ago?” Seeing that both Qing Kui and Su Ying Xue appeared solemn, Yang Kai was astonished, “Is there anything special about the little girl’s identity?”
Qing Kui grabbed his head and muttered, “Where do I even begin? Why didn’t you just stay here after arriving at Yin-Yang Pass? Why did you come into contact with her?”
There was a serious expression on Yang Kai’s face as he cupped his fist, “Who is the little girl that makes you feel so concerned? Please enlighten me.”
Qing Kui looked around before he leaned close to him and said in a hushed voice, “She’s the Old Ances…”
“The Old Ancestor?” Yang Kai was flabbergasted, then came to his senses, “No, no, no. I initially thought that she was an Open Heaven Realm Master, but I inspected her cultivation and realised that she’s only in the Origin King Realm. How could she be the Old Ancestor?”
On the other hand, Qing Kui was rooted to the spot. His forehead was beaded with sweat, as though he was going through some difficulties. As his brow twitched, he said, “…. the Old Ancestor’s adopted daughter!”
A speechless Yang Kai quickly picked up a teacup and took a sip, “Brother Qing Kui, I was almost frightened to death. You should have finished your sentence quickly.”
Qing Kui nodded, “Yes yes, she’s the Old Ancestor’s adopted daughter. Right, Junior Sister?”
On the side, Su Ying Xue replied obediently, “Yes.”
Upon that revelation, Yang Kai said, “It’s no wonder that she’s already in the Origin King Realm despite her age. So, she’s the Old Ancestor’s adopted daughter.”
There was an impassive expression on Qing Kui’s face as he said, “Yes, fate has been unfair to the little girl. Her parents passed away not long after she was born. She has an outstanding aptitude, and she’s adorable. The Old Ancestor was fond of her the moment she saw her, so she decided to keep her by her side.”
Yang Kai let out a breath, “She’s truly blessed to be personally guided by the Old Ancestor. Given her aptitude, she’ll be an important figure in the future.”
Then, he turned to look at Qing Kui, “By the way, why have you come all the way here?”
Qing Kui gazed at Su Ying Xue, “Junior Sister, what are we here for?”
Su Ying Xue remained unperturbed, “Nothing.”
Qing Kui nodded repeatedly, “Yes, nothing. We’re just here to see you.” He then examined Yang Kai and said, “I’d never expected that you’d ascend to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm before we did.”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “I was just lucky, and the Black Ink Battlefield is filled with adversity that stimulates one’s potential. That’s how I achieved an ascension. I can tell that both of your auras are much more condensed than before. I suppose you’ll achieve a breakthrough soon.”
There was a proud smile on Qing Kui’s face, “It will happen in the next 20 years.”
20 years was a very short period of time to Open Heaven Realm Masters as it would usually take them several thousand to over 10,000 years to achieve a breakthrough. Since Qing Kui had said so though, he must have the confidence to succeed.
Yang Kai promptly congratulated him.
They then asked about Qu Hua Shang. Certainly, Yang Kai wouldn’t hide anything from them.
Two hours later, they left together.
Not long after they stepped out of Yang Kai’s place, they took a turn and became rooted to the spot.
That was because there was a little girl skipping towards them. She seemed to be in a jolly mood. There was an ordinary-looking hairpin on her hair and she was holding a skewer of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits in each hand. One of the skewers was half-finished.
As the little girl approached them, both Qing Kui and Su Ying Xue felt that the entire world was rapidly fading away around them. It was as though they had been tossed into the endless Void.
A moment later, the little girl stood right in front of them. It wasn’t until this moment that the world returned, which made them feel relieved.
At this point, they were already soaked in cold sweat.
The little girl was just standing in front of Qing Kui, looking up at him.
Qing Kui somehow forced out a smile.
The little girl also put on a smile before suddenly jumping up and delivering a light pat to his face.
When Qing Kui came to his senses, the little girl already brushed past him, her clear voice was heard saying, “That’s what you get for having a big mouth!”
Qing Kui was shuddering like a quail without shelter in winter. The two of them turned around and saluted the little girl.
A while later, Qing Kui asked in a small voice, “Is she gone?”
Su Ying Xue nodded, “Yes, she’s gone.”
Qing Kui let out a long breath as he almost collapsed to the ground. He felt that the momentary torture he had just gone through was more taxing than an epic battle against the Black Ink Clan.
All of a sudden, Su Ying Xue exclaimed, “Senior Brother, your mouth…”
Qing Kui turned pale, “What happened to my mouth?”
The little girl flicked him just now, and even though he didn’t detect any anomaly, he reckoned that she must have done something horrible to him.
Su Ying Xue covered her lips and giggled, “It’s nothing.”
“What happened?” Qing Kui asked as he had a bad feeling.
Su Ying Xue whirled around, “It’s really nothing.” Her shaking shoulders suggested that she was trying to stifle her laughter.
The sense of unease in Qing Kui’s heart intensified and he quickly fished out an artifact that looked like a mirror and took a glance at his reflection.
In an instant, he sported a dark expression.
That was because he could see from the reflection that his lips were swollen, both of them incredibly plump, literally giving him a ‘big mouth’.
However, he was unaware of such a drastic transformation just now. If he hadn’t seen his own face through the reflection, he wouldn’t have believed it.
He was on the brink of breaking into tears.
How was he supposed to face anyone with such a ridiculous look?
The little girl obviously wanted to let him know the consequences of being big-mouthed.
When he lifted his head, his eyes were already soaked in tears, “Junior Sister, I’d rather die.”
Su Ying Xue scoffed, “You had it coming.”
…..
The next day, Yang Kai headed to the Eastern Army Headquarters to look for Tang Qiu.
Tang Qiu must have informed everyone in the Army Headquarters about Yang Kai’s visit, so he wasn’t probed by anyone. Soon, someone led him to the conference hall.
Including Tang Qiu, there were four people in the conference hall, all in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Seeing Yang Kai, Tang Qiu quickly rose from his chair and introduced him to the other three people.
They were the other Army Commanders of Yin-Yang Pass.
However, Yang Kai was dumbfounded as he gazed at the Northern Army Commander, Fei Yu Shan, “You…”
Fei Yu Shan put on a grin, “What? Did you like my sugar-coated hawthorn fruits? I made them myself, so they must be delicious.”
This Army Commander of the Northern Army was none other than the old swindler who sold sugar-coated hawthorn fruits in the Marketplace. That revelation astounded Yang Kai.
Besides that, he had also seen the Western Army Commander, Liu Zhi Ping before; in fact, he saw her practically every day these the past few days.
That was because she was the owner of Lin’s Steamed Bun Restaurant!
No one would have believed that the Army Commander of the Western Army in Yin-Yang Pass would prepare dough and steamed stuffed buns in the Marketplace while the Army Commander of the Northern Army would sell sugar-coated hawthorn fruits. Over the past few days, Yang Kai had spent quite a lot of money to buy their wares.
However, he had never seen the Army Commander of the Southern Army Wu Qing before. Wu Qing was burly, and he looked like a reticent man.
Nevertheless, the Marketplace and the Army Headquarters were two different places. Upon Tang Qiu’s introduction, Yang Kai saluted all of them.
As they examined Yang Kai, Wu Qing nodded gently, “You’re indeed a talented young man.”
Yang Kai replied humbly, “Many thanks for your compliment, Senior.”
Wu Qing waved his hand, “I’ve heard a lot about what you’ve done in Blue Sky Pass. You were already able to achieve amazing things when you were in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, and now you are in the Seventh-Order. This Wu is no match for you, and you don’t have to be overly humble. If you weren’t strong enough, we wouldn’t have asked you to come over.”
Tang Qiu nodded, “Yang Kai, I’m sure you’re already aware of the reason we’ve asked you to come here.”
Yang Kai nodded, “I have to sneak into the Black Ink Clan’s territory, then locate and identify the Black Ink Disciple who can refine Warships.”
“That’s right.” Fei Yu Shan ran his fingers through his beard, “This matter has far-reaching implications, so we have to come up with a proper plan; otherwise, we wouldn’t even consider having a Junior like you take on such a risk. Moreover, you have the experience of pretending to be a Black Ink Disciple before, and you’re unmatched when it comes to escaping. After a discussion, we believe that you’re the best suited to carry out this task. That was the reason we transferred you from Blue Sky Pass to this place.”
With a solemn expression, Liu Zhi Ping said, “Since time immemorial, Warships have always been the greatest advantage of our Human Race. If the Black Ink Clan manages to refine their own Warships and deploy them in large-scale wars, our advantage will be gone for good. By then, the foundation passed down to us from our ancestors will be ruined. In that case, how are we going to face our ancestors when we pass away in the future?”
“I understand,” Yang Kai replied solemnly, “That is the reason I requested to come to Yin-Yang Pass.”
“I’m glad that you understand.” Tang Qiu nodded with gratification, “Let’s cut to the chase. Tell us what you’re thinking and what you might need to help with the plan. We’ll satisfy your needs as long as we can.”
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai asked, “How much information have you gathered so far?”
The Army Commanders shook their heads.
Tang Qiu said, “In truth, we’ve only gathered a tiny bit of information. It’s almost negligible. We just found a pseudo-warship that was used by the Black Ink Clan more than 10 years ago. As for who made it or where it was made, we have no idea.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai frowned, “Is there really no useful information at all?”
An embarrassed Tang Qiu shook his head, “The only thing we can give you is a list of a dozen names. As for whether one of them is really the Black Ink Disciple who is able to refine Warships, you’ll have to find out on your own.”
Yang Kai nodded and gently tapped the table.
The information provided by those in Yin-Yang Pass was limited, which was what he had expected. If it was so easy to ascertain the Black Ink Disciple’s identity, they wouldn’t have sought his help.
This was only natural though as the Black Ink Clan would definitely do their best to protect such a valuable talent. Even the ordinary Black Ink Clansman wouldn’t be aware of such inside information, so how could the Humans gather any useful clues?
“Although we can’t give you any concrete information, we speculate that the Black Ink Disciple probably resides in their Royal City.”
“Royal City?” Yang Kai arched his brow.
Tang Qiu nodded, “Yes, the Royal City, where their Royal Lord is located.”
“In that case, this will be a difficult task.” Yang Kai felt his heart sinking. If the Black Ink Disciple really lived in the Royal City, even the Old Ancestor might not be able to capture him alive.
Yang Kai initially thought that as long as he could find out the Black Ink Disciple’s whereabouts, he could try to send a message back to Yin-Yang Pass, and they would handle the rest of the matter, with the Old Ancestor likely making a move at that point; however, if the Black Ink Disciple really resided in the Royal City, it would be useless for the Old Ancestor to make a move, for it wasn’t easy to deal with any Black Ink Clan Royal Lord.
After pondering on it for a moment, Yang Kai said, “Regardless of the risk, I have to find my way into the Black Ink Clan’s territory first. Has there been any skirmishes between Yin-Yang Pass and the Black Ink Clan recently?”
Tang Qiu replied, “Yes. 10 years ago, Wu Qing and Ding Yao joined forces to dive into the Black Ink Clan’s territory and make a scene. The Black Ink Clan retaliated in response. Even though they haven’t marshalled their Army to invade Yin-Yang Pass, there have been small-scale conflicts. They have also never stopped harassing the resource harvesting areas we occupied.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai appeared puzzled, “Are there no Void Yin-Yang Mirrors in Yin-Yang Pass? Why are there still conflicts with the Black Ink Clan in resource harvesting areas?”
The method of refining the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors had been spread across the Great Passes. The Universe Worlds in Blue Sky Pass’ occupied resource harvesting areas had been moved back to Blue Sky Pass, so they could just extract resources at their doorstep. They no longer had to go to faraway places. That way, their safety and efficiency had been improved significantly.
Even if the Black Ink Clan discovered this, there was nothing they could do as they wouldn’t dare to launch an invasion; after all, the Black Ink Clan in the Blue Sky Theatre suffered a big defeat more than 10 years ago, and they were still recuperating.
Tang Qiu explained, “We’ve made some Void Yin-Yang Mirrors, and they’re indeed useful. We’re still in the midst of moving those Universe Worlds back; however, the Black Ink Clan has never stopped harassing us, so some of the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors have been damaged. That’s why our progress lags behind that of Blue Sky Pass.”
Upon hearing his explanation, Yang Kai finally understood.
The Void Yin-Yang Mirrors were artifacts he made for him, so he could easily control them. Nevertheless, it was harder for others to use these artifacts, so they were unable to move the Universe Worlds as quickly and easily as he did.
Moreover, the Black Ink Clan in the Yin-Yang Theatre were almost at full strength, which was why their harassment was more intense than in the Blue Sky Theatre.
As such, the conflicts were still ongoing in the resource harvesting areas in the Yin-Yang Theatre.
“That was the reason I was held up when I was on my way back,” Tang Qiu said.
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes, “Did you come across a Territory Lord?”
Only a Territory Lord would be able to injure Tang Qiu.
Tang Qiu replied, “Yes, there was a Territory Lord.”
Yang Kai let out a breath, “This will be easy, then.”
Upon hearing that, the Army Commanders turned to look at him and a perplexed Fei Yu Shan asked, “What do you mean by that?”
Yang Kai explained, “As you are aware, in the past, I was forced to pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple in the Black Ink Clan’s territory so that I could survive. At that time, I was only in the Sixth Order, and the one who tried to corrupt me with Black Ink Strength was only a High-Rank Black Ink Clansman. Now, I’m in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, so if I want to pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple, a Feudal Lord or Territory Lord will have to make a move. In order to gather more information, I think that I’ll have a greater chance to achieve my goal by following a Territory Lord; hence, I need a Territory Lord to corrupt me with their Black Ink Strength so that I will become his Black Ink Disciple.”
Fei Yu Shan finally realised the younger man’s intention, “You want to join the battle in one of the resource harvesting areas and get captured?”
“Yes.”
“That will be risky.” Tang Qiu frowned, “Since the deployment of Purifying Black Ink Battleships, there hasn’t been a single Human who has been corrupted in the past 20 years. If you’re suddenly corrupted by Black Ink Strength, the Black Ink Clan might grow suspicious. Moreover, if the Territory Lord is determined to kill you, how are you going to resist?”
Yang Kai said, “I have a way to make sure that they won’t grow suspicious. Even though it’s risky, I’ll most likely succeed. On the other hand, as long as I can show them that I’m valuable, the Territory Lord wouldn’t want to kill me.”
A Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciple was precious to a Territory Lord, especially if the Seventh-Order Human was more powerful than the others in the same Order.
That was the reason Zhu Feng Territory Lord treasured Bai Yi back then.
The Army Commanders exchanged glances and nodded.
Seeing that, Yang Kai went on to say, “Since we’re all on the same page, we now have to select a Territory Lord that I’ll submit to so that it will be easier for me to carry out this task. I’ll leave that decision to all of you. Additionally, we have to look for a suitable chance.”
Wu Qing replied, “Don’t worry, we’ll come up with a comprehensive plan so that the risk will be minimised.”
“I shall trouble you all, then.”
Tang Qiu said, “You can go back now. I’ll inform you when the right time comes.”
“Yes, I’ll take my leave now.” Yang Kai cupped his fist.
“By the way, take a stroll around the Marketplace if you have some free time,” Tang Qiu suddenly said.
Yang Kai didn’t directly agree to this request. To be honest, if not for the fact that he was forced by the little girl to head to the Marketplace, he would never want to go to that damned place. He had no idea why Tang Qiu suddenly wanted him to visit the Marketplace.
He soon left the Army Headquarters, but the moment he arrived at his courtyard, he saw a petite figure sitting on the steps in front of the door. Perhaps she had been waiting for too long, so she was now sound asleep with her head resting against the door frame.
Yang Kai walked up to her, but it didn’t seem that she would be waking up anytime soon.
Gazing at the little girl, he couldn’t help but let out a sigh and pat her head.
The little girl awakened slowly and rubbed her eyes. It was obvious that she was still sleepy, “Where were you? I’ve been waiting for you.”
“I went to the Army Headquarters to attend to some matters.”
The little girl didn’t seem to hear what he had just said; instead, she just looked up at him and said, “Yang Kai, I’m hungry.”
“Let’s go. We’ll get some steamed stuffed buns,” Yang Kai replied.
The little girl leaped to her feet and chanted joyfully, “Steamed stuffed buns! Steamed stuffed buns!”
They then headed straight to the Marketplace.
The moment Yang Kai stepped into the restaurant, he saw Liu Zhi Ping, who was clad in simple homespun clothes, working hard to prepare dough. Her face and hair were covered with flour.
Yang Kai’s face twitched at the sight. This highly respected Western Army Commander was in the Army Headquarters of the Eastern Army just moments ago, but here she was acting as the owner of a steamed bun shop now.
Yang Kai felt awkward as he was already aware of her identity.
As usual, the shop hand hospitably welcomed them into the restaurant and 10 baskets of steamed stuffed buns were soon wolfed down.
Usually, Yang Kai could return to his room at this point as even though the little girl was a big eater, she could easily be appeased with this amount of steamed stuffed buns.
However, she wouldn’t let Yang Kai go on this day.
“What else do you want to do?” Yang Kai asked in puzzlement.
The little girl pointed in a particular direction, “There’s a teahouse at the other end of the street. The stories told by Mister Storyteller are interesting.”
Yang Kai asked curiously, “Mister Storyteller? Why haven’t I seen him before?”
He visited this Marketplace almost every day for the past few days, so he was familiar with all the shops here already. He was also aware of the teahouse’s existence, but he had never seen this ‘Mister Storyteller’ there when he passed by the shop.
The little girl giggled, “That’s because Mister Storyteller left town to travel around some time ago. He just returned yesterday.”
[He just returned yesterday?] Yang Kai suddenly had an ominous feeling.
With the little girl leading the way, they soon arrived at the teahouse. The place was filled with people, and there were a lot of tables on the floor. In front of them was a curvy woman, who was clad in a fancy costume, standing on the platform. She was singing a song in a melodious voice. The performance was so excellent that she earned a round of applause from the audience.
Yang Kai took a deep breath at the sight of such hustle and bustle. Despite having visited this Marketplace many times, he still couldn’t get used to it.
It had to be noted that the spectators and the singer were all Open Heaven Realm Masters, with many of them in the Seventh Order and even Eighth Order.
Did those in Yin-Yang Pass have nothing better to do?
“This way,” the little girl seemed to be familiar with the place as she pulled Yang Kai towards an empty table.
A shop hand promptly approached them, “What would you like to order?”
The voice sounded familiar to Yang Kai, and the instant he turned his head, he was dumbfounded, for the shop hand was none other than Qing Kui, though his subservient manner didn’t look anything like his usual self.
“Qing…” Yang Kai called out.
“Qing Luo tea, is it?” Qing Kui cut him off, “Excellent, it’s the best tea we have in this teahouse.”
Yang Kai gazed at him as if the latter was a fool.
Seemingly oblivious to his expression, Qing Kui asked, “What else do you need?”
The little girl said, “Snacks!”
“Good, please give me a moment,” Qing Kui replied hospitably and turned around to leave.
A moment later, a plate of fruits and some nuts were served. There was no doubt that the service here was top-notch.
After the singer was done, she elegantly stepped down from the platform.
The next instant, the elderly Mister Storyteller walked up on stage.
The moment Yang Kai saw this person, he couldn’t help but press his face into his palm.
As expected, Mister Storyteller, who was said to have just returned from travelling around, was none other than Tang Qiu who Yang Kai had seen in the Army Headquarters just a while ago.
Instead of staying in his room to recuperate from his injuries, Tang Qiu had come to the Marketplace to tell some stories. It was all highly improper.
However, Tang Qiu ignored Yang Kai as he swept a glance over them and placed a wooden block on the table before he began telling a story.
More than ten days had passed since Tang Qiu’s return.
As usual, the little girl would bring Yang Kai to the Marketplace every day and spend a long time there.
One day, after she was done having steamed stuffed buns, Yang Kai bought her several skewers of sugar-coated hawthorn fruits. The little girl, who was skipping at the front, suddenly stopped in her tracks and turned around to look at Yang Kai.
“What’s wrong?” Yang Kai was perplexed.
“Close your eyes.”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “What do you want to do? Why are you trying to be mysterious?”
The little girl pouted, “Just close your eyes.”
“Alright, alright,” Yang Kai closed his eyes as he was told.
“Stick out your hand,” the little girl was heard saying.
Yang Kai extended his hand, and following that, he realised that something was placed on his palm. When he opened his eyes, he saw a copper coin.
He broke into laughter, “Why did you give me a copper coin?”
With her head tilted, the little girl said, “You’ve been treating me to meals every day, and you also bought me a hairpin. There’s nothing else I can give you other than this thing.”
[Well, at least she’s grateful!] Yang Kai felt warmth in his heart. Even though it was just a single copper coin, it showed the little girl’s sincerity.
“Thank you for this, then.” Yang Kai put on a smile. Just when he was ready to keep the copper coin, he realised that it was different from the ones circulating in the Marketplace; it was obviously far more ancient.
He asked curiously, “Where did you get this from?” There had never been any money with the little girl, so where did she find this ancient copper coin?
While munching on her sugar-coated hawthorn fruits, the little girl replied in a muffled voice, “I took it from the Old Ancestor.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai was astounded, “You took it from the Old Ancestor?”
“En,” the little girl replied nonchalantly, “You have to keep it in a safe place. If you come across any danger, you might be able to save your life by taking this coin out.”
The ancient coin in Yang Kai’s hand felt much heavier all of a sudden and he quickly said, “No, no, this thing is far too valuable…”
“Just keep it. You’re an adult, don’t be so uptight. En, let’s call it a day. I’m sleepy now, so I’ll go back and get some rest,” Upon finishing her words, the little girl directly skipped off.
Just when Yang Kai was ready to race after her, a figure descended from the sky and stood in the way. It was none other than Xu Ling Gong, and upon seeing Yang Kai, he hurriedly said, “The time is here. Come with me!”
Yang Kai took a look in the direction the little girl was heading and briefly hesitated before leaving with Xu Ling Gong in a hurry. Meanwhile, he carefully put the ancient coin away.
In the Marketplace, the little girl, who was skipping along, suddenly stopped in her tracks and became unmoving.
As she stood still, the entire Marketplace seemed to have frozen in time.
A moment later, a breeze whisked across the street and the flags on both sides started flapping in the air.
In an instant, everyone in the Marketplace turned to look at the little girl.
The little girl, whom Yang Kai thought was an Origin King, saw her aura increasing madly like a tsunami. Soon, it reached the Open Heaven Realm, and it didn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.
As her cultivation increased rapidly, her body seemed to be going through a transformation as well. While engulfed in a faint light, her petite figure grew quickly.
In just a cup of tea, the little girl, whose aura was originally in the Origin King Realm, turned into an alluring woman in her late twenties or early thirties.
The dense aura swirling around her suggested that she was above the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
“Welcome back, Old Ancestor!”
“Welcome back, Old Ancestor!”
“Welcome back, Old Ancestor!”
In the Marketplace, congratulations were heard coming from all directions in a continuous manner.
The young woman opened her eyes and said in a clear voice, “It has been difficult for all of you. Let’s call it a day.”
“Yes, Old Ancestor.”
After they responded to her, the shops started closing rapidly. In just an incense stick, the originally bustling Marketplace fell into silence, and no one was in sight.
The young woman turned her head to look out of the Inner Sanctum with a dispassionate expression. As her clothes flapped in the wind, she disappeared abruptly from the spot the next instant.
In the meantime, Yang Kai and Xu Ling Gong were standing on the deck of a Warship that was hovering in the void outside of the Inner Sanctum.
Xu Ling Gong was a Squad Leader, and including himself, there were 2 Seventh-Order, 8 Sixth-Order, and 3 Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in his Squad for a total of 13.
This was a fairly typical configuration for a Squad in the Great Passes.
Dawn was an outlier that was unlike the others. On the entire Black Ink Battlefield, there were only a small number of Special Operations Squads like Dawn.
Even though there were only 2 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in this Squad, such a roster, along with their Warship, allowed them to exert the strength of 5 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters when dealing with enemies on the battlefield, which greatly enhanced their collective power.
At this moment, Xu Ling Gong was explaining to Yang Kai about the situation they were facing.
“As per your request, the Army Commanders in the Inner Sanctum have had a serious discussion and confirmed that your target will be Hei Yuan Territory Lord. He’s one of the most powerful Territory Lords working for Mu Guang Royal Lord, and he has gained the latter’s favour as well. If you can become his Black Ink Disciple, you’ll have a chance to follow him to the Royal City, which will make it easier for you to gather information; however, some manoeuvres are needed in order to help you become his Black Ink Disciple. With that said, you don’t have to worry about it as the Army Commanders have come up with a comprehensive plan. If everything goes well, we’ll be able to achieve our goal. You just have to play it by ear and act at the right time.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Got it.”
Xu Ling Gong said, “This opportunity was hard to come by, which is why we’re in a hurry. The Army Commanders wanted me to ask you if you’re prepared.”
Yang Kai replied seriously, “I’m ready to carry out our plan.”
“Good,” Xu Ling Gong nodded gently.
“Are we going to look for Hei Yuan now?” Yang Kai asked.
Xu Ling Gong shook his head, “No, we’re not. Hei Yuan is in one of the resource harvesting areas now. Presently, Army Commander Wu Qing is dealing with him. If everything goes well, Hei Yuan will be badly injured and forced to flee.”
A glint flashed through Yang Kai’s eyes as he had somewhat figured out the plan those from Yin-Yang Pass had come up with.
Just like Xu Ling Gong had said, Hei Yuan Territory Lord and Wu Qing were in a fight in the resource harvesting area. Hei Yuan was one of the 5 most powerful Territory Lords working for Mu Guang. On the other hand, Wu Qing was the Southern Army Commander here, and the strongest Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in Yin-Yang Pass.
It was expected that their fight would be intense, with space collapsing all around them as they battled.
Both of them knew each other well as it wasn’t the first time they fought. Despite that, Hei Yuan still felt his heart sinking as Wu Qing was acting far more ferocious than in the past. He seemed determined to kill even if he was wounded in the process. It was apparent that Wu Qing didn’t care if both of them ended up in a horrible state.
Furthermore, Wu Qing possessed one of the Four Universe Pillars, so he wasn’t afraid of Black Ink Strength at all. The biggest advantage of the Black Ink Clan was useless against him.
Meanwhile, Hei Yuan Territory Lord became increasingly discomfited. Even though he did manage to injure Wu Qing, he was unable to kill him. On the other hand, he was also badly wounded.
Other than the two of them, Human soldiers and the Black Ink Clan’s Army were clashing with one another on the battlefield. There were also other locations where the Eighth-Order Humans and Black Ink Territory Lords were locked in intense battles.
Humans were the ones who launched the attack this time, which caught the Black Ink Clan off guard. Hei Yuan didn’t understand why the Humans were acting so aggressively all of a sudden.
However, things had come to a point where he could only clench his teeth and keep fighting.
The Black Ink Clan had suffered immense losses in just half a day, but it wasn’t until this moment that Hei Yuan realised that the Humans had secretly sent reinforcements to this battlefield. Initially, even though the Humans were at an advantage in this particular resource harvesting area, they were not overwhelmingly more powerful than the other party. Now that they had helpers though, how was the Black Ink Clan supposed to resist?
Seeing that they were on the losing side, Hei Yuan wanted to flee; however, Wu Qing seemed to have gone mad as he aimed fixedly at Hei Yuan, which ensured that the latter would not be able to escape.
Two or three days later, the Black Ink Clan had suffered near catastrophic losses while, even though some of the soldiers from Yin-Yang Pass were killed, the number was tolerable.
Amidst the chaotic battle, a column of light suddenly shot into the sky.
It was obviously a signal.
The Black Ink Clan, who had no idea what was going on, were astounded as they wondered what the Humans were up to. Hei Yuan, who was battling against Wu Qing also sported a solemn expression.
All of a sudden, Wu Qing dropped all his defences and went all out to strike at Hei Yuan.
A flabbergasted Hei Yuan instinctively counterattacked.
As their powers clashed, the void around them trembled fiercely. Both of them were sent flying away as they sprayed out a mouthful of blood. Both parties ended up being horribly injured.
Wu Qing had gained the upper hand as he was the one who made a move first, so his injury was less severe than that of Hei Yuan. Therefore, he recovered quickly and tried to follow up with his assault.
Seeing the other party act so madly, Hei Yuan didn’t dare to keep fighting. Moreover, the Humans had just sent a signal, so more reinforcements might be on their way.
At the thought of this, Hei Yuan quickly released a large Black Ink Cloud and concealed himself in it.
Wu Qing charged into the cloud, but Hei Yuan was already nowhere in sight.
Half a day later, the battlefield fell dead silent. The Humans had gained a victory while the Black Ink Clan fled in embarrassment.
All of a sudden, a weakened Tang Qiu appeared beside Wu Qing. He was already injured, to begin with, and before he could recuperate, he came all the way here to fight against a Black Ink Clan Territory Lord, which exacerbated his wounds. As such, it would probably take him several years to recuperate.
“Are you alright?” Tang Qiu asked.
“His injury is more severe than mine,” Wu Qing snorted.
Tang Qiu was rendered speechless as he once again witnessed how much this guy hated suffering a loss. After taking a glance at the battlefield that was in a mess, he let out a sigh, “The stage has been set. I wonder if things will go to plan.”
Wu Qing replied impassively, “There’s only so much we can do, the rest is up to the Heavens.”
“You always tend to look on the bright side.” Tang Qiu put on a smile, and then the light in his eyes went out, “We’ve paid a huge price here; a lot of our people have died. I hope it is worth it.”
“Everyone who lost their life on the Black Ink Battlefield did not die for nothing,” Upon finishing his words, Wu Qing turned around and returned to his ship, leaving Tang Qiu with a dampened expression on his face.
A Warship navigated through the void like an agile fish in water. As the Open Heaven Realm Masters channelled their World Force, the Arrays they were powering activated. The next moment, they launched violent attacks towards their enemies.
Every strike was equivalent to the attack of a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
The Black Ink Clansmen, who were running away, were unable to fend off the attacks and a large number of them were killed instantly, with the survivors scattering randomly.
This Warship was commanded by none other than Xu Ling Gong, who had his Squad members assisting him. They departed from Yin-Yang Pass and arrived at their destination just in time.
Before they could settle in though, they saw some Black Ink Clansmen fleeing in their direction.
Both Yang Kai and Xu Ling Gong knew that these Black Ink Clansmen must have fled from the resource harvesting area. The sight before their eyes suggested that the Humans had gained the upper hand on the battlefield, and they might have even broken the main force of the Black Ink Clan. That was the reason these Black Ink Clansmen were fleeing.
There wasn’t even a single Feudal Lord among this group, so they could be considered insignificant. Yang Kai and the others were not even interested in fighting against them as, by relying on the Warship’s power, they could destroy these Black Ink Clansmen with ease.
Presently, they were stationed on the route the Black Ink Clansmen had to pass through if they wanted to retreat to their territory. It was a plan devised by those from Yin-Yang Pass.
Now, they were waiting for the wounded Hei Yuan to arrive at this place. That would be the key moment when they would execute the plan that those from Yin-Yang Pass had come up with.
In order to make this plan a success, Yin-Yang Pass prematurely launched a comprehensive assault in the resource harvesting area so that Yang Kai could pretend to become a Black Ink Disciple and safely reach the Black Ink Clan’s hinterland. The different parts of this plan were connected in a meticulous way. Those from the Black Ink Clan could never have expected that the Humans would go to such great lengths just to sneak Yang Kai into their territory.
After the Warship navigated through the void for another half a day, they managed to kill a lot of Black Ink Clansmen. Eventually, they came across a group that was worthy of their attention.
There were over 100 Black Ink Clansmen in this group with 2 Feudal Lords leading them; however, both of them were wounded as they had been in a prolonged battle just now. The entire group was obviously dispirited.
The instant the Feudal Lords saw the Warship approaching, they were flabbergasted.
They could not understand why a Warship belonging to the Humans would appear in this kind of place.
It wasn’t the first time the Feudal Lords battled against Humans, so they were aware that this kind of Warship was powerful. Even though there were only a dozen or so people in a Human Squad, there would normally be 2 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters with them. The Squad members, coupled with this Warship, were more than enough to deal with these wounded Black Ink Clansmen.
However, as the Feudal Lords thought of the fact that more of their comrades were on the way to this place, they set their minds at ease.
Regardless of the reason this Warship had appeared in this place, it was their best chance to earn some merits. As long as they could trap this Human Squad here, they could eventually subdue them when more of their clansmen arrived.
They had just suffered a humiliating defeat, so if they could make a contribution here, they might be spared some punishment when they returned.
At the thought of this, the Feudal Lords exchanged glances and nodded. They had come to a consensus without the need for a discussion.
One of the Feudal Lords quickly waved his hand and ordered, “Encircle them here, don’t let them flee!”
Upon finishing his words, he charged forward like a cat that had caught a whiff of fish. It was as though he was worried that he wouldn’t get a reward for not being the first one to make a move; however, what he saw the next instant astonished him.
He initially thought that this Squad, which was alone in this place, would immediately flee upon seeing so many Black Ink Clansmen, but things turned out very different from what he had anticipated. Instead of fleeing, the Squad actually sailed their Warship towards them.
Before the Warship even arrived, its Arrays started flickering.
The Feudal Lord, who was at the front, was dumbstruck as a sense of danger overwhelmed him. He quickly dodged away, and in the next instant, a powerful beam of light shot out and tore through the void.
Even though the Feudal Lord had successfully evaded the attack, he still felt an impact from it. He was already injured to begin with, so if he had been struck just now, he would most likely have lost his life.
When he turned his head, he felt his heart being cut to pieces. A gap had appeared in the middle of the group of over 100 Black Ink Clansmen. More than 20 of his subordinates had lost their lives following the attack.
Energy fluctuations flared again as two more beams of light were shot out from the Warship.
Even though the Black Ink Clansmen tried to dodge, many of them were still killed. After 3 attacks from the Warship, more than half of the Black Ink Clansmen were sent on the road to the Yellow Springs.
It didn’t end there though as all of a sudden, a figure dashed out of the Warship with a spear in his hands. With a simple thrust, the weapon seemed to ignore the distance between them and soon reached the Feudal Lord.
The Feudal Lord was horrified as he had never expected this Human to be so quick and hurriedly surged his Black Ink Strength to form a shield in front of him.
The usually impenetrable shield was unable to withstand this attack. As soon as the spear came into contact with the shield, the solid Black Ink Strength burst apart.
However, this momentary delay allowed the Feudal Lord to shift his figure so that his vitals wouldn’t be hit.
As dark blood spurted out, the spear pierced the Feudal Lord’s shoulder and stuck out the other side. The wounded Feudal Lord was both shocked and furious as he looked up and roared, clenching his fist tight as he punched out.
The attack contained a power that could destroy Heaven and shatter Earth.
However, the Feudal Lord missed his target.
He had no idea how the enemy disappeared, but when he detected the other party’s aura again, he felt a sense of danger coming at him from the side.
When he turned his head, he saw a dispassionate-looking young man and a sharp spear rapidly enlarging before his eyes.
At this life-and-death moment, the Feudal Lord raised his arms in an attempt to blunt the attack. At the same time, he puffed out a Black Ink Cloud from his mouth to engulf the Human in the hopes that the latter would back down.
The spear thrust through the Black Ink Cloud and slid past his arms before striking the Feudal Lord’s head and causing it to burst.
The young man dashed out of the Black Ink Cloud and brushed past the headless Feudal Lord without pause, his entire figure engulfed in murderous intent.
The battlefield fell silent.
The surviving Black Ink Clansmen were astonished, while at the same time, Xu Ling Gong and his Squad aboard the Warship felt their brows twitching.
“So strong…” Qing Kui, who was in charge of one of the arrays, gulped.
Even though he had been operating the array, he could clearly see what happened just now. It only took Yang Kai a couple of breaths to fly out of the Warship and kill a Feudal Lord in less than five moves.
A Feudal Lord was killed just like that.
Even though he was already injured to begin with, he was still a Feudal Lord equivalent to a Seventh-Order Human Master. Despite that, he was still as powerless as a child in front of Yang Kai.
This kind of overwhelming power was simply unheard of. Even though Qing Kui had seen a lot of Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters since coming to the Black Ink Battlefield, none of them was comparable to Yang Kai, not even his Honoured Master Xu Ling Gong.
He recalled that when he first met Yang Kai, both of them were only in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Due to various reasons, Yang Kai took part in the Dao Theory Assembly which was meant to select a Husband for Qu Hua Shang, and he eventually won first place. Since then, Yang Kai had become a famous figure among the Cave Heavens and Paradises.
Many years had passed, and now Yang Kai surpassed Qing Kui by a large margin when it came to strength.
After making some calculations, Qing Kui realised that he was already a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master when the brat was just Emperor Realm Junior. He was still in the Sixth-Order when this boy ascended to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm. When the brat made it to the Sixth Order, he was still a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Now that same Brat was in the Seventh-Order, while he was still in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
At the thought of this, Qing Kui felt dejected, thinking that he had wasted all the years he had lived.
Su Ying Xue, who was in charge of another array, seemed to have detected the change in his emotions, so she said gently, “There are always some people in the World who are extremely blessed with luck and talent, so there’s no point feeling bothered by it, Senior Brother. Since you’re not comparable to them, you should strive to be better by improving yourself each day. The only person you have to surpass is yourself.”
Qing Kui put on a helpless smile, “I understand, but… it’s the first time I realise there’s such a huge gap between someone else and me.”
Xu Ling Gong said in a serious tone, “Since you’re aware of your shortcomings, you can improve yourself. Considering that you’re not as lucky and talented as him, you have to work extra hard. On the road to the peak, nothing is more important than your own efforts.”
“Yes,” Qing Kui replied respectfully.
The Deputy Squad Leader, who was also a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, approached Xu Ling Gong and asked in a hushed voice, “Do we need to give him a hand, Squad Leader?”
Xu Ling Gong shook his head, “There’s no need for that. Just watch.”
Judging from the speed Yang Kai was able to kill a Feudal Lord, he would destroy these Black Ink Clansmen in no time even without any help from them.
As they spoke, the surviving Black Ink Clansmen had descended into chaos. The remaining Feudal Lord was horrified by the fact that his companion was killed in just a couple breaths of time. His strength was on par with that of his companion who was killed, but the latter was easily dispatched by Yang Kai with just two or three moves. He reckoned that he wouldn’t be a match for the young man either.
[Is this Human really a Seventh-Order Master?] The Feudal Lord almost went mad. He reckoned that even an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master couldn’t give him so much pressure. Why would there be such a horrifying Seventh-Order Human in this world?
Therefore, the instant Yang Kai turned to look at the Feudal Lord and locked his senses onto him, the latter directly turned around to flee without the intention to fight.
However, before he could escape any notable distance, he shuddered and became rooted to the spot.
When he lowered his head, he saw that the tip of a spear had stuck out from his chest. Black blood was streaming out of the wound, and it wasn’t until this moment that he was overwhelmed by a sense of excruciating pain.
While feeling despondent, the Feudal Lord wanted to make a final retaliatory strike, but Yang Kai quickly wielded his spear and surged his World Force. Following that, the Feudal Lord exploded into blood mist as his broken limbs scattered around the void.
“What a shame,” Yang Kai muttered under his breath. The first Feudal Lord had the guts to exchange moves with him in order to resist; however, this Feudal Lord just wanted to flee, which only accelerated his demise.
There were initially more than 100 Black Ink Clansmen in this group, but half of them were destroyed by the Warship in the opening salvo. Then, the two Feudal Lords were killed by Yang Kai’s spear. How were the remaining Black Ink Clansmen supposed to be a match for them now?
As the Warship and Yang Kai acted together, all the Black Ink Clansmen were soon killed.
Even though a group of more than 100 Black Ink Clansmen had been destroyed, the battle still hadn’t ended.
More and more groups of Black Ink Clansmen of different numbers were fleeing from the resource harvesting area. These Black Ink Clansmen, who were basically half-dead from taking part in the great battle, could no longer form an effective formation. Not only were they apprehensive while running away, but they were scattered and in disarray. They just wanted to flee from this area and return to a safe place as soon as possible.
Although Yang Kai was the only one who had left the Warship to directly deal with the enemy, the Warship led by Xu Ling Gong would assist him. These dispirited Black Ink Clansmen no longer had the courage to keep fighting, so they were easily killed the moment they clashed with Yang Kai. Coupled with the Arrays on the Warship, they could effortlessly wipe out most of the enemies.
Of course, a small number of the Black Ink Clansmen were lucky enough to successfully flee.
It was a good start for the Humans. The Black Ink Clansmen were easily killed regardless of their numbers. First of all, these Black Ink Clansmen were scattered around. Secondly, there weren’t any truly powerful Masters, so they were unable to resist Yang Kai’s spear. The few Feudal Lords who appeared were all executed as soon as they arrived.
However, as time passed, it became increasingly difficult to deal with the enemies.
An increasing number of Black Ink Clansmen arrived at this place and were astonished upon seeing the intense battle taking place, thinking that the Humans had arranged an ambush here.
Nevertheless, when they had a clearer picture of the battle, they set their minds at ease.
There was indeed an ambush, but it was just a Squad-level Warship. In other words, only one Squad of Human soldiers was trying to ambush them here.
They had no idea why there was a Human Squad in this place, but they reckoned that these Squad members wanted to earn merits by trying to take advantage of them as they were injured, which was why the other party had left the main force of the Humans.
There was nothing to be afraid of since there was only a Squad. Following the Feudal Lords’ orders, countless High-Rank and Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen charged towards the Warship.
Instantly, Yang Kai felt immensely pressured.
Given his current strength, he wasn’t afraid of these High-Rank and Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen. Even if he was unable to kill them all, his only option was to flee. However, his purpose was not to flee, and he couldn’t showcase any of his Space Secret Techniques; therefore, when faced with the tide of Black Ink Clansmen, he could only grit his teeth and fight on.
Right then, two figures shot out of the Warship. They were none other than Xu Ling Gong and the other Seventh-Order Vice Squad Leader, who decided to help.
At that instant, 3 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, who were assisted by a Warship, began a massacre.
There were Black Ink Clansmen who were killed with every breath. Minced meat, dark blood, and Black Ink Strength soon covered the void.
Some of the Feudal Lords would hide among the cannon fodder and secretly approach the 3 of them, waiting for a chance to launch sneak attacks. In such a chaotic battle, even a veteran Seventh-Order Master like Xu Ling Gong was unable to detect such hidden danger.
Fortunately, Yang Kai still had some energy to spare as he continuously monitored their surroundings. Every time a Feudal Lord approached, he could instantly identify them.
After some of these reckless Feudal Lords were killed, the remaining Feudal Lords didn’t dare to move forward. They watched the battle from a distance as they wanted to deplete the energy of these Seventh-Order Humans using the cannon fodder before capturing them.
On the battlefield, Yang Kai sported a calm expression. His hands were steady as he wielded his spear, and every attack could deal critical damage to his enemies. He had rarely experienced a battle with such intensity, but everything was still within his control.
However, Xu Ling Gong and the Vice Squad Leader grew increasingly apprehensive. As they were surrounded by more and more Black Ink Clansmen, they couldn’t help but think that they might not survive this day.
A Squad of a dozen members in theory shouldn’t be able to resist such a large group of Black Ink Clansmen, so both of them were surprised that they had persevered for such a long time. However, they knew that the reason behind it was that Yang Kai had fended off most of the enemies. If not for him, their Squad would have been destroyed.
Rays of light were shot from the Arrays on the Warship into the Black Ink Clansmen, with each strike dealing a heavy blow to the enemies.
Nonetheless, even a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master like Qing Kui was unable to sustain activating the arrays for such a long time. The defensive light around the Warship was also on the brink of collapsing following the relentless attacks from the Black Ink Clansmen.
Once the Warship’s shields failed, the Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters of the Squad would lose the Warship’s protection. When that happened, they would be unable to ward off the Black Ink Strength, thus falling into a perilous situation.
Even though they had been taking turns to operate the Arrays, they couldn’t get enough time to really rest given the battle’s intensity. It was simply impossible for them to persevere for long.
All the Squad members were exhausted after half a day of battle. Even Xu Ling Gong and his Seventh-Order Vice Squad Leader were no longer as ferocious as when they started. Only Yang Kai remained as ruthless and energetic as always.
The strength of an Open Heaven Realm Master’s heritage was manifested in such a battle.
In fact, Xu Ling Gong was supposedly more powerful than Yang Kai when it came to his heritage; after all, he was a veteran Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master while Yang Kai was a newly promoted one. Simply put, his cultivation was ahead of Yang Kai’s by thousands of years.
However, Yang Kai had the World Tree clone in his Small Universe, so he wasn’t afraid of Black Ink Strength at all; hence, there wasn’t a need for him to divert any of his power to resist Black Ink Strength in this battle.
On the other hand, Xu Ling Gong had to continuously spend a part of his World Force to fend off the Black Ink Strength, thus exhausting himself more quickly.
Moreover, the living beings inside Yang Kai’s Small Universe would constantly replenish and increase his heritage and World Force; therefore, his stamina was much greater than that of the average Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
Additionally, every time the World Tree clone breathed, his World Force would be purified. That was the reason he could deal a heavier blow to the enemies than most Seventh-Order Humans.
Countless Black Ink Clansmen had lost their lives, including a number of Feudal Lords. As time passed, an increasing number of Black Ink Clansmen were killed, but this epic battle didn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.
1,000 kilometres away from the battlefield, there was a large ship that was navigating through the void. On the large ship were defeated Black Ink Clansmen. Many of these injured people were lying on the deck and groaning in pain.
It could be said that they had suffered immense losses in the battle that had just ended. For some reason, the Humans had gone mad and mobilised a lot more soldiers than expected, which caught the Black Ink Clan off guard. Even the Territory Lords in charge of the battlefield were all badly wounded. One of the Territory Lords was even killed by two Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters who had joined forces.
It wasn’t easy fleeing from the battlefield as the Humans were still relentlessly pursuing them, seizing every chance they could to kill even more.
It wasn’t until an hour ago that the Humans finally stopped chasing after them, which allowed these Black Ink Clansmen to take a breather. The pursuit also exacerbated the injuries of these Territory Lords.
Other than Hei Yuan, the other Territory Lords had fallen into a state of deep sleep. They had to be immediately sent to Black Ink Nests; otherwise, their rank might drop from their injuries.
They had already lost the battle, so if several Territory Lords saw their rank regress at the same time, Hei Yuan wouldn’t be able to explain himself to Mu Guang; after all, the number of Territory Lords that a Royal Lord commanded was a direct measure of their strength.
Therefore, Hei Yuan had to get back to his territory as soon as possible in order to send these unconscious Territory Lords into Black Ink Nests.
As for Hei Yuan himself, he was worn out as well. He yearned to get some rest inside his Black Ink Nest, but he was the only Territory Lord who was still conscious at this point. As such, he had to persevere to prevent any accidents from happening.
Unfortunately, what he dreaded most still happened. While he was lost in his thoughts, a Feudal Lord came to him quickly and reported, “Sir, there’s a battle going on 1,000 kilometres up ahead. There seems to be an ambush by the Humans!”
A shocked Hei Yuan rose from the large chair and shouted, “An ambush? Where did those Humans come from?”
The Feudal Lord was horrified, and faced with the pressure from his superior, he replied in a trembling voice, “I have no idea.”
“Go find out then!” Hei Yuan snapped.
“Yes!” The Feudal Lord left the place upon receiving the order.
An absent-minded Hei Yuan started pacing back and forth. He wasn’t even sure if he could survive since there was an ambush ahead of them.
Presently, he was in a terrible state. Even though there were other Territory Lords on the ship, they were injured and had all basically fallen into comas. Their foundations would be damaged if they were forcefully awakened, and it was questionable how much help they would be even if they were.
However, he couldn’t figure out why there was an ambush ahead of him.
It had to be noted that even though the Black Ink Clan had suffered tremendous losses in the previous battle, the Humans did not fare much better. Some of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were horribly wounded, and if not for the Human deploying more reinforcements to join the battle, the Black Ink Clan wouldn’t have been humiliated so badly.
Nevertheless, the place in front of him was very close to the Black Ink Clan’s base, but the Humans had arranged an ambush there. Weren’t they worried that the Royal Lord would notice and decide to kill them?
When that happened, it would mean massive losses for the Humans, who were known for their cunning. It was inconceivable that they would do such a reckless thing.
In fact, if there was an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in the battle ahead of him, Hei Yuan would have no choice but to make a detour. Given the state he was in, he wouldn’t dare to directly deal with an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. He certainly had to flee.
Soon, the Feudal Lord returned and reported, “Sir, I’ve gathered some useful information. There’s only one Human Squad ahead of us.”
Upon hearing that, Hei Yuan sported a dumbfounded expression, “One Squad? Are you sure?”
The Feudal Lord nodded, “Yes, there’s only a Squad. I saw it with my eyes. There are only 3 Seventh-Order Humans while the rest aren’t worth our attention.”
“So there’s only one Squad…” Hei Yuan was startled for a moment before moving to the deck to intently observe the battlefield.
As a Territory Lord, he was able to see what was happening 1,000 kilometres away with ease, so soon he took in what was happening on the battlefield.
Just like his subordinate had reported, there was only a standard Human Squad with a Squad-level Warship in front of them. There were 3 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, while the rest were in the Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order.
Hei Yuan’s expression still darkened though as he asked, “How did one Human Squad kill so many of our clansmen?”
He could see that a lot of minced meat and dark blood were scattered around the battlefield, which suggested that they had suffered immense losses.
The sight before Hei Yuan’s eyes made him extremely furious. To begin with, they had already suffered a setback in the previous battle. The treacherous Humans suddenly mobilised a lot of soldiers to come over and help, which caught them off guard. Now, there wasn’t even a single Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in this Squad, but they had managed to kill so many of the Black Ink Clansmen. Certainly, Hei Yuan would never tolerate this.
When did the Black Ink Clan become so weak? He was already in a terrible mood, and now, he was practically fuming.
The Feudal Lord said in a shaking voice, “Sir, one of the Seventh-Order Humans is unbelievably strong.”
Hei Yuan remained silent. In fact, he had already noticed this. The 3 Seventh-Order Humans were the core of this Squad, and while 2 of them were quite normal, displaying what would be expected from Seventh-Order Humans, the spear-holding young man was distinct as he was able to easily wipe out any Black Ink Clansmen that came near him. The extent of his strength was inconceivable.
While gazing at the spear-holding young man with narrowed eyes, Hei Yuan was astounded. It was no wonder that the Humans had the guts to intercept them here, for they had this young man with them.
However, such a young man was still too weak in front of a Territory Lord.
Hei Yuan snorted, “Pass on my orders. Kill them all regardless of what it takes!”
The Feudal Lord replied, “Yes.”
Without stopping, the large ship continued to inch closer to the battlefield. Following Hei Yuan’s order, the already intense battle became even more violent.
Initially, after Yang Kai killed some reckless Feudal Lords, the remaining hidden Feudal Lords didn’t dare to make a rash move again. They remained hidden and waited for better opportunities to strike.
Nevertheless, following Hei Yuan’s order, these Feudal Lords wouldn’t dare to delay despite their fear. They all started moving at once.
In an instant, Yang Kai and the others felt tremendously pressured and Xu Ling Gong and the Seventh-Order Vice Squad Leader were injured by some Feudal Lords in a moment of carelessness.
On such a battlefield, even the slightest injury could be fatal, for the Black Ink Strength permeating this place was highly corrosive. As time passed, even if their injuries didn’t worsen, they would still turn into Black Ink Disciples as they were no longer able to resist the Black Ink Strength.
Presently, Yang Kai’s left eye had turned golden while his right eye was completely black. In the darkness, he saw a Feudal Lord coming at him from the side. The Feudal Lord came at the worst possible moment as Yang Kai had just used a powerful attack and had yet to regain his balance. If nothing unexpected happened, this sneak attack would be successful.
However, the figure that Yang Kai was seeing through his black eye contorted in a weird manner all of a sudden. As if struck by lightning, the ferocious-looking Feudal Lord felt like a blade had cut across his waist. An excruciating pain spread from out, which delayed his sneak attack.
It was because of this momentary delay that he lost his life.
The Azure Dragon Spear bluntly jabbed into the Feudal Lord’s head as easily as if it were tofu.
As World Force surged, the bulky head exploded as dark blood started spurting from the neck of the headless corpse.
Right then, a Golden Crow was heard cawing as a Great Sun leapt into existence and crashed into the Black Ink Clansmen. Wherever the dazzling light covered, the Black Ink Clan instantly lost their lives.
Several Feudal Lords were killed by Yang Kai in just 10 breaths of time; however, there didn’t seem to be an end to this torrent as the Black Ink Clan continued charging towards him. The battle didn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.
On this battlefield, Yang Kai was like a sheep that was surrounded by a pride of lions. Regardless of how hard he tried to resist, he was fated to be eaten alive.
Xu Ling Gong felt his heart sinking. While battling against the enemies, he caught sight of a large ship that had come to a halt not far away from them.
This was a flight-type artifact that the Black Ink Disciples had specifically refined for the Black Ink Clan.
In such an environment, only the Territory Lords had the right to ride such a flight-type artifact.
Their target might very well be on this ship, and Xu Ling Gong could feel that someone strong was paying attention to them with a pair of gloomy eyes.
According to their plan, as long as Yang Kai came across that Territory Lord and got captured, their objective would be achieved.
Unfortunately, the Territory Lord didn’t seem to have the intention of showing up. Judging from the fierce reaction of these Black Ink Clansmen, Xu Ling Gong reckoned that the Territory Lord must have given the order to kill them ruthlessly.
In that case, how were they supposed to achieve their goal? It wasn’t like Yang Kai could simply go ahead and request to be a Black Ink Disciple. That would be a foolish thing to do.
It seemed that this Territory Lord had become bloodthirsty after the previous battle; hence, whenever he saw Humans, he just wanted to kill them all instead of turning them into Black Ink Disciples.
This was giving Xu Ling Gong a headache. However, things had come to such a point where he could only grit his teeth and soldier on.
A moment later, more Feudal Lords were killed.
On the deck, Hei Yuan sported an extremely gloomy expression. This couldn’t be helped, as the Feudal Lord he had sent to pass on his order was killed right in front of him.
The extent of the spear-holding young man’s power was inconceivable, which made Hei Yuan determined to end his life. This young man was only in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm now. When he grew to be powerful enough one day, even Hei Yuan wouldn’t be a match for him.
At the thought of this, he turned to look to the side.
There was an injured Feudal Lord who was just standing beside him, and the instant their eyes met, the Feudal Lord knew that Hei Yuan wanted him to join the battle as well. At that moment, he was terrified.
Presently, he was badly wounded, so he wouldn’t be of much help if he did join the battle. Even if he was still at the peak of his power though, he still wouldn’t be a match for the spear-wielding young man.
It was clear that this Human could chop up a Feudal Lord as easily as one would chop fruits and vegetables.
The Feudal Lord quickly racked his brain to come up with a solution, and before Hei Yuan could say anything, the Feudal Lord cupped his fist, “Sir, this Seventh-Order Human is indeed significantly more powerful than the others in the same Order. If you can capture him, he will be of great service to you.”
Hei Yuan frowned and fell silent when those words were spoken.
In fact, he had thought about turning the Seventh-Order Humans here into Black Ink Disciples; however, he was horribly injured right now, so it was difficult for him to make a move. Certainly, he would be more than happy if these Feudal Lords were able to corrupt them with Black Ink Strength. By then, he could just give an order, and these Feudal Lords wouldn’t dare to keep the Black Ink Disciples to themselves.
Nevertheless, these Feudal Lords were too timid in front of the young man, so they wouldn’t stand a chance to corrupt him. That was the reason he decided to kill the young man.
Still, Hei Yuan became increasingly tempted as the spear-holding young man was indeed an extraordinary cultivator. After corrupting such a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he could start nurturing him, and by the time this Black Ink Disciple ascended to the Eighth-Order or even the Ninth-Order, Hei Yuan would have the right to stand on equal footing with the Royal Lords.
Having said that, it wasn’t easy to corrupt a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master with Black Ink Strength. Most Humans didn’t seem to fear death at all, and there had been countless precedents where the Humans would rather commit suicide than become Black Ink Disciples.
If he decided to make a move, he had to achieve his goal in one swift strike; otherwise, the young man would definitely launch a desperate counterattack.
If he was still at the peak of his power, dealing with a Seventh-Order Human would be a trivial matter; however, since he was wounded now, Hei Yuan had to be more cautious.
Therefore, if he wanted to turn this young man, he had to weaken him first in order to achieve his goal.
Just then, the Feudal Lord exclaimed in a pleasantly surprised tone, “Sir, that Human has been invaded by Black Ink Strength!”
Hei Yuan looked over and saw that the young man’s face was indeed covered in a thin black aura, which was obviously Black Ink Strength. Hei Yuan was naturally familiar with this sight.
After giving it a thought, he realised that it wasn’t surprising. Regardless of how powerful a Seventh-Order Human was, he couldn’t possibly resist Black Ink Strength forever.
If nothing unexpected happened, this young man would have to give up a portion of his Small Universe in order to save himself soon.
This kind of situation was commonly seen on the battlefields. Whenever the Humans were corrupted, they would rather damage their own foundations than degenerate into Black Ink Disciples.
Hei Yuan was already used to this, but he was pleased to see this moment. When the young man’s foundation was damaged, it would be much easier to corrupt him. Humans could give up a small part of their Small Universe once or twice, but they couldn’t possibly keep doing it endlessly.
However, what happened next was vastly different from what Hei Yuan had imagined.
On the battlefield, the young man fished out some kind of Spirit Pill and stuffed it into his mouth.
After a short moment, the dark aura around the young man’s face dissipated.
Hei Yuan widened his eyes in disbelief, “What did he just eat?”
The Feudal Lord was unable to reply to him as he had no idea what had happened either.
“What the Hell did he just eat!?” Hei Yuan roared. The young man had shown signs of being corrupted, but he resolved that crisis by consuming a Spirit Pill. In other words, the Humans had developed a method to resist Black Ink Strength!
In fact, the Black Ink Clan already had some speculations about this. That was because they hadn’t managed to turn any Humans into Black Ink Disciples since more than 10 years ago. However, that remained a speculation that couldn’t be verified.
Now, Hei Yuan saw it with his own eyes.
In that case, the thing that the Humans relied on to deal with Black Ink Strength was a kind of Spirit Pill. What kind of pill would have such an effect? Hei Yuan was deathly curious about this and was determined to get to the bottom of it.
If he could figure out this secret, it would be a huge merit that would more than offset the fact that he had lost the previous battle.
On the battlefield, Xu Ling Gong seized the chance and secretly spoke to Yang Kai via Divine Sense, “Brat, what are you doing?”
He was fully aware of Yang Kai’s situation. This guy had a World Spring, so he could never be corrupted by Black Ink Strength; however, he pretended to be invaded by Black Ink Strength and consumed a Spirit Pill to put on an act.
Since Xu Ling Gong was literally standing beside Yang Kai, he saw that it was just an ordinary Open Heaven Pill, not a Purifying Black Ink Pill.
Yang Kai swept his spear across the Black Ink Clansmen in front of him and killed them all. While catching his breath, he replied, “Since we’re putting on an act, it has to be convincing. This Territory Lord is a patient one, so we have to tempt him to show up.”
A speechless Xu Ling Gong decided to stop talking and focused on killing the enemies.
The Territory Lord hadn’t shown up despite being nearby, which suggested that he was badly injured and was thus acting more cautious in every decision he made.
Xu Ling Gong became a bit more at ease at the thought of this. A wounded Territory Lord would naturally be less intimidating to them.
The intense battle continued, but it wasn’t long before Xu Ling Gong appeared exhausted as he secretly spoke to Yang Kai, “I’m running out of energy.”
A Seventh-Order Master was unable to bear the intensity of such a battle over a long time. Even though half of the pressure was borne by Yang Kai, Xu Ling Gong and his Seventh-Order Vice Squad Leader still found it difficult to deal with these enemies.
It had come to a point where all 3 of them were wounded. Worse, as more Black Ink Clansmen were killed, the Black Ink Strength on the battlefield became increasingly ample. Xu Ling Gong and his Vice Squad Leader were no longer able to keep resisting the Black Ink Strength.
Black Qi had begun appearing around their faces.
“Both of you, retreat to the Warship. We’ll have to fight our way out of here!” Yang Kai shouted.
“We’re going to fight our way out?” Xu Ling Gong was astounded upon hearing that. If they really did that at this point, all their efforts would go to waste; however, he soon realised Yang Kai’s intention. He nodded and sent a signal to the Vice Squad Leader, and then the two of them returned to the Warship.
The current situation was vastly different from their original plan. With that said, it was to be expected. Regardless of how immaculate a plan was, there would be unexpected incidents when they went to carry it out. Only by reacting accordingly would they stand a chance to succeed.
It was the best idea to fight their way out of here at this point. As for how the situation would unfold, that was beyond their control. Even if they couldn’t achieve their goal this time, there was nothing they could do about it. They could only come up with a new plan.
The next moment, Yang Kai turned to look in a different direction and led the way for them. As he was followed by the Warship, they tried to fight their way out of this battlefield that was covered with corpses.
On the Black Ink Clan’s flight-type artifact, Hei Yuan narrowed his eyes and snarled, “Trying to flee? Dream on! Stop them at all costs!”
“Yes,” Upon receiving the order, the Feudal Lord hurriedly left to pass down the order.
The Black Ink Clansmen did their best to stop the Humans from running away, causing the battle to further intensify.
Hei Yuan paid close attention to the battlefield. He could see that the spear-wielding young man had been invaded by Black Ink Strength again, but this time, he didn’t consume any Spirit Pills. Instead, he clenched his teeth and persevered. As time passed, the Black Ink Strength around him became increasingly richer.
It seemed that the Spirit Pills were extremely rare. The young man probably only had one with him.
[Finally, some good news!] Hei Yuan relaxed slightly. If those Spirit Pills were easily made and widely available, every Human could bring several of them with them. In that case, life would become difficult for the Black Ink Clan.
Seeing that the Warship led by the young man was about to break through the siege, Hei Yuan snorted and stomped his foot on the deck.
In an instant, the Territory Lord’s immense pressure reached out, forming into an invisible force and clashed with the young man’s spear.
The next moment, the seemingly unstoppable young man froze for an instant. While he was in a dazed state, a nearby Feudal Lord seized the chance and landed a punch on his chest, which caused him to spray out a mouthful of blood.
“A Territory Lord!?” The young man appeared horrified as he turned to look at the large ship. As their eyes met, one of them sported a solemn expression while mockery was written all over the other one’s face.
The young man appeared surprised, as though he had never expected to come across a Territory Lord here.
The next moment, he yelled, “All of you, leave now! I’ll bring up the rear!”
Aboard the Warship, Xu Ling Gong was finally able to put down his worries. Even though the Territory Lord didn’t show up in person when he made a move, it showed that he was no longer able to sit back and do nothing.
In that case, they had partially achieved their goal, and their task ended here. It then depended on luck whether Yang Kai would succeed; therefore, without hesitation, Xu Ling Gong sported a sorrowful expression and yelled, “Let’s go!”
The Warship started glowing up as the defensive and propulsion arrays were activated to the fullest, sending the Warship charging forward.
Just a moment later, the defensive array on the Warship dimmed. Following that, some of the propulsion arrays stopped working as the Warship slowed down.
With that said, they had finally broken through the siege after paying a hefty price.
Without the defensive array, the Warship had become far less intimidating; after all, the Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters aboard the Warship were unable to resist Black Ink Strength for a long time.
The instant they got out of the encirclement, they launched some attacks from the Warship on the Black Ink Clansmen that were chasing after them. Although many of them were instantly injured or killed, it wouldn’t change the overall situation.
“Go!” Yang Kai roared as he wielded his spear, which turned into innumerable shadows and cut many Black Ink Clansmen to pieces.
On the Warship, Xu Ling Gong appeared mournful. After a short moment of hesitation, he gave the order to withdraw from the battlefield.
Despite being soaked in blood, Yang Kai resolutely stood in the void with his spear in hand. With determination written all over his face, he blocked the Black Ink Clansmen from pursuing the Warship.
Aboard the large ship, Hei Yuan narrowed his eyes, “I really don’t understand. Are the Humans foolish or courageous?”
He had seen on the battlefield many times that a powerful cultivator would bring up the rear so that the weaker ones could flee; therefore, he wasn’t surprised when he saw what was going on as it was within his expectations.
However, regardless of how many times he witnessed it, he still didn’t understand why the Humans would act this way. All the Humans seemed willing to sacrifice themselves, but didn’t they know that a powerful Master was significantly more valuable than a bunch of weaker ones?
Just then, the Feudal Lord beside him asked, “Sir, do we pursue the enemy Warship?”
Hei Yuan took a glance at the fleeing Warship, then shook his head, “There’s no need for that. With this young man around, those useless dregs wouldn’t be able to break through his blockade for some time. Moreover, this person is the most valuable. It would suffice as long as we can capture him.”
Upon hearing that, the Feudal Lord secretly let out a sigh of relief. He was worried that the Territory Lord would tell him to keep pursuing them.
Meanwhile, Xu Ling Gong’s Squad soon arrived at a safe place. When they turned their heads, they realised that there wasn’t even a single Black Ink Clansman in sight.
Presently, all the Squad members were panting for breath. They had to exert themselves as the battle was truly intense. In fact, up until this moment, they still hadn’t figured out how a small Squad like them had managed to persevere for such a long time when facing the tide of Black Ink Clansmen.
They were fully aware of their Squad’s strength. In the past, they would’ve been destroyed after just an hour of such combat.
Nevertheless, not only had they fought against the Black Ink Clansmen for half a day this time, but they had also escaped unscathed. Even though the Warship was tattered, the Squad members didn’t suffer from any serious injuries. As for the damage to the Warship, that could be repaired by spending some Military Merits when they returned to the Inner Sanctum.
All of this was made possible because of Yang Kai.
Qing Kui gazed at Xu Ling Gong and asked in a grim voice, “Honoured Master, are we really leaving Yang Kai behind?”
Although the Squad members were directly involved in this plan, only Xu Ling Gong was aware of the details and objectives. The Seventh-Order Vice Squad Leader had some speculations, but he couldn’t verify them.
Qing Kui had no idea what the plan was; after all, this was top secret, so it would be best to let fewer people know about it.
Presently, Qing Kui felt extremely apprehensive as the Squad had escaped while Yang Kai brought up the rear for them. He had the urge to go back and stand by Yang Kai’s side. Being killed on the battlefield would be much better than waiting here.
“What do you intend to do?” Xu Ling Gong sported a dark expression.
Qing Kui appeared hesitant as he had no idea what to say, but a moment later, he said resolutely, “Honoured Master, please allow me to go back and assist Yang Kai!”
Besides him, the other Squad members sported the same kind of expression.
“You want to go back and get killed?” Xu Ling Gong glared at him, “You’re just a Sixth-Order brat! What can you do even if you go back? You’ll only become a burden to him!”
Qing Kui clenched his teeth. Just when he was ready to speak, Su Ying Xue suddenly pulled his sleeve and said in a small voice, “Senior Brother, stop. Have you forgotten about a particular ability he possesses?”
With a frown, Qing Kui soon realised she was talking about the fact that Yang Kai was a Master of the Dao of Space.
Therefore, Yang Kai was extremely adept at fleeing. Even if he was unable to deal with so many Black Ink Clansmen, he could easily escape. Qing Kui supposed that was the reason Yang Kai decided to bring up the rear.
All of a sudden, the Seventh-Order Vice Squad Leader said, “Qing Kui, do not act on a whim. Your Honoured Master and I are unable to persevere any longer. We have to return to the Inner Sanctum as soon as possible.”
Qing Kui was shocked upon hearing that. It wasn’t until this moment that he realised the faces of his Honoured Master and the Deputy Squad Leader were tinged with some Black Ink Strength. It was apparent that they were being corrupted by it. Despite being Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, they had been contaminated by Black Ink Strength from a protracted battle with the Black Ink Clan. Moreover, there was only one Squad here. Presently, the 2 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters had to divert most of their attention to suppress the Black Ink Strength.
They wouldn’t fall into danger immediately; nevertheless, if this dragged on, their Small Universes would be completely eroded by Black Ink Strength. By then, they would turn into Black Ink Disciples.
Xu Ling Gong ordered in an authoritative tone, “Listen up. Head back to the Inner Sanctum as soon as possible. We must not delay!”
Despite being unresigned, these Open Heaven Realm Masters wouldn’t dare to disobey the Squad Leader’s order.
A moment later, huge arrays started appearing beneath everyone’s feet. As a light flickered, they disappeared at the same time. It was obvious that they had used the Universe Transference Law and returned to Yin-Yang Pass.
After all of the members were gone, the Vice Squad Leader nodded at Xu Ling Gong, “I’ll be waiting for you in the Inner Sanctum, Squad Leader.”
Upon finishing his words, he activated the Universe Transference Law as well.
Xu Ling Gong nodded and watched him leave. Then, he turned to look in the direction where they came from and let out a sigh. After transferring the tattered Warship to his Small Universe, he too activated the Universe Transference Law.
On the battlefield, Yang Kai fell into a perilous state without the Warship’s support and was surrounded by a large number of Black Ink Clansmen once again.
Despite being terrified, the Black Ink Clansmen had no choice but to charge forward following the Territory Lord’s order. Fortunately, Yang Kai didn’t seem able to persevere any longer; otherwise, they wouldn’t have the confidence to keep fighting.
An incense stick after the Warship left the battlefield, an asteroid that looked like a universe fragment abruptly appeared on the battlefield. The asteroid was covered with Black Ink Strength, and the instant it appeared, the World Force around it dissipated.
At the same time, Yang Kai, whose aura was already unstable, significantly weakened.
The Feudal Lord’s eyes brightened when he saw what was going on from the large ship. He said in a pleasantly surprised tone, “Sir, that guy can’t hold on any longer. He’s starting to give up parts of his Small Universe.”
After years of conflict, both Races were fully aware of each other’s patterns of behaviour.
On the battlefield, it wasn’t rare to see an Open Heaven Realm Master giving up a part of his Small Universe after he was invaded by Black Ink Strength; therefore, after every major battle, there would be a lot of asteroids floating around the battlefield. Those were the territories that the Humans had cut off from their Small Universes.
When a Human did this, it suggested that they were already on their last legs. In fact, this action wasn’t really useful. Even though he could spare himself the fate of being invaded by Black Ink Strength, his foundation would be damaged, thus causing his strength to plunge. This way, he would only get killed much quicker on the chaotic battlefield. Or, it would be easier for the Black Ink Clan to corrupt him again.
Yang Kai had showcased an incredible power as countless Black Ink Clansmen were killed by him, so it was apparent that he was no ordinary Seventh-Order Master.
It wasn’t until he gave up a part of his Small Universe that the Black Ink Clansmen were relieved. This Human wasn’t invincible; he could be defeated or even killed.
Back then, when Yang Kai decided to give up his World Spring in Blue Sky Pass, he cut off a small part of his Small Universe to do so. He still clearly remembered the excruciating pain he had gone through as though the incident had happened just yesterday.
At this moment, he wouldn’t have done such a thing if he still had a choice.
However, he had to act like a normal Seventh-Order Human. Regardless of how powerful a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was, he couldn’t possibly resist the Black Ink Strength after fighting against the Black Ink Clansmen for such a long time; therefore, he had to show them that he had to take a Spirit Pill, and presently, he also had to sacrifice a small part of his Small Universe.
He was doing all this because he wanted to carry out his plan without arousing anyone’s suspicion.
Fortunately, he had a World Tree clone with him now. Even though he had sacrificed a small part of his Small Universe, the clone would help him repair the missing part over time. He wouldn’t have to worry about his foundation being permanently damaged.
As he cut off a part of his Small Universe, Yang Kai was overwhelmed by a sense of excruciating pain once again. This caused him to tremble and growl like a beast.
In an instant, countless attacks were directed at him. Upon impact, he almost lost his balance as blood spurted from his wounds.
The missing part of his Small Universe caused his strength to plunge. Earlier, he had showcased a power that was much greater than that of the average Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, but now, he was just like any other cultivator in the same Order.
Given his cultivation, could he save himself in such a hostile environment?
The Black Ink Clansmen around him had undoubtedly noticed this. Emboldened, they started launching violent attacks on him.
At that instant, things could not have been worse for Yang Kai.
One hour later, his face was covered with Black Ink Strength once again, making it seem like his Small Universe was eroded by Black Ink Strength for the second time.
However, as another asteroid was quickly released, his suffering seemed to have been alleviated.
Hei Yuan was watching silently from the ship. At this moment, he couldn’t help but praise, “He’s indeed a resolute person.”
Although he had no idea how much pain a Human had to go through when sacrificing a part of their Small Universe, it definitely wouldn’t be a pleasant experience. A Human could be considered bold and determined when he cut off a part of his Small Universe in order to save himself on the battlefield.
However, this spear-holding young man had done that twice in a short time.
It must have taken him a lot of courage and grit to do so. This Human was not only ruthless to the Black Ink Clan, but also to himself.
“Sir, why don’t I go capture him?” The Feudal Lord, who had not dared to join the battle earlier, suddenly made such a request.
This couldn’t be helped, as Yang Kai’s aura plunged after he gave up a part of his Small Universe twice. He was almost unable to remain in the Seventh Order. If he did that one more time, he would probably regress to the Sixth Order.
The Feudal Lord wouldn’t dare to make a move when he saw how intimidating Yang Kai was just now, but now that Yang Kai was at the end of his rope, the Feudal Lord was certainly not afraid of him.
If he could capture this Human, he would make a big contribution in front of the Territory Lord.
Nevertheless, Hei Yuan snorted, “Who do you think you are to do that?”
The horrified Feudal Lord instantly fell silent. Even though he had no idea what the Territory Lord’s intention was, he reckoned that the latter was interested in this Human. The Territory Lord would most likely turn this Human into a Black Ink Disciple; otherwise, he wouldn’t have stopped and waited here for so long.
On the battlefield, Yang Kai was battered and his hair hung loose over his shoulders.
This wasn’t an act; he really was running out of energy. Despite having the World Tree’s clone, he suffered tremendous damage after giving up a part of his Small Universe twice. The prolonged fight also exacerbated his wounds. Presently, the World Force in his Small Universe was almost completely depleted.
However, the Black Ink Clansman he had been waiting for still hadn’t shown up.
Even though he had no idea who the Territory Lord on the large ship was, he knew that the latter was paying close attention to the battlefield. Nevertheless, the Territory Lord still didn’t seem to have the intention of making a move.
The fact that he was so cautious suggested that he was badly injured. He wouldn’t rashly make a move unless he was confident that he could achieve his goal with one strike.
In that case, Yang Kai had no choice but to lend him a hand.
Upon making up his mind, Yang Kai fiercely swept his spear across the Black Ink Clansmen around him to drive them back. While he was holding his spear, his aura started rising rapidly.
He was imposing as he glared at the enemies around him.
Not knowing what was going on, these Black Ink Clansmen wouldn’t dare to move forward.
Disdain was written all over Yang Kai’s face as he sneered, “How dare you trash violate my Human Race’s dignity!”
Then, he shouted, “Long live the Humans!”
Even though his aura had already reached its former peak, it continued to rise. With a resolute expression, he seemed determined to die.
When the Feudal Lord, who was standing beside Hei Yuan on the large ship, saw that, his expression changed as he shouted, “Sir, he’s going to kill himself!”
On the battlefield, it was common for Human cultivators to kill themselves in order to avoid being turned into Black Ink Disciples. There were always such people in every major battle; therefore, the moment the Feudal Lord saw what Yang Kai was doing, he realised his intentions.
The self-destruction of an Open Heaven Realm Master would create a terrifying explosion as all the World Force in his Small Universe would burst forth at once. This move would be more violent than any other attack the Human could muster. This was the final move that the Humans would never want to resort to unless it was absolutely necessary to do so.
The spear-holding young man was trapped in a dead end. He had given up a part of his Small Universe twice, so he was at risk of falling back into the Sixth Order. Moreover, surrounded by a sea of Black Ink Clansmen, he would never be able to flee. Other than killing himself, there was nothing he could do.
As soon as the Feudal Lord finished speaking, he turned to look at Hei Yuan, but the latter was already nowhere in sight.
He had no idea when the Territory Lord disappeared.
The Feudal Lord quickly looked back at the battlefield, where he saw the Territory Lord’s figure.
Hei Yuan had abruptly appeared in front of the young man as he hovered his hand above the latter’s head.
At this moment, Yang Kai’s aura had already reached an unstable state, and the illusory phantom of his Small Universe faintly appeared behind him. The moment he detected the Territory Lord’s aura, a glint flashed through his eyes as he thrust out his Azure Dragon Spear.
Hei Yuan effortlessly slapped the spear aside and the hand he extended first firmly came into contact with Yang Kai’s head.
Upon impact, Yang Kai was overwhelmed with a sense of dizziness.
Hei Yuan was indeed badly injured, but Yang Kai was not in any better shape.
The aura he had just accumulated dissipated following the blow to his head.
The next instant, a torrent of Black Ink Strength streamed out of Hei Yuan’s hand as it turned into a Black Ink Cloud that engulfed the two of them.
The Black Ink Clansmen were unable to see what was going on, but they could hear the Human growling furiously, “In your dreams!”
Following a brief exchange of moves, the place fell into silence.
When the Black Ink Cloud dissipated a moment later, the figures of Yang Kai and Hei Yuan were revealed.
Hei Yuan’s aura was slightly unstable while Yang Kai was soaked in blood, looking all battered, his spear still pointing forward.
Soon though, he put the spear away and cupped his fist before calling out in a respectful manner, “Master!”
Upon hearing that, the Black Ink Clansmen around them were evidently relieved. There was no doubt that the Territory Lord had successfully turned this Human into a Black Ink Disciple. From now on, he wasn’t just a Human but also the Territory Lord’s servant.
Hei Yuan nodded gently and examined Yang Kai. He was apparently pleased to be able to subdue him.
“Come with me,” Hei Yuan said, then flew towards the large ship. Yang Kai coughed before following him.
Upon boarding the large ship, he saw a Feudal Lord coming over, “Congratulations on subduing this Human, Sir. I’m sure he’ll be a capable aide to you in the future.”
Hei Yuan ordered impassively, “I’ll get some rest. Take care of him and make sure that no one oppresses him.”
Upon hearing that, the Feudal Lord was surprised, thinking that the Territory Lord truly treasured this Human; otherwise, he wouldn’t have given such an order. After all, Black Ink Disciples were the lowest of beings among the Black Ink Clan.
However, Hei Yuan had a good reason for valuing him, for this Human had showcased incredible power. This person was no ordinary Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
After Hei Yuan finished speaking, he strode into the cabin. Meanwhile, the Feudal Lord looked smilingly at Yang Kai.
With a dispassionate expression, Yang Kai looked around.
There were quite a number of Feudal Lords on the ship; however, they were all looking at him with hostile expressions. Just now, they had seen Yang Kai slaughtering their clansmen. Although they didn’t intend to avenge their deaths, they were instinctively resentful of Humans as the blood feud between the two Races had been ongoing for countless years. Despite the fact that Yang Kai had turned into a Black Ink Disciple, they were still displeased.
Nevertheless, having just heard Hei Yuan’s orders, none of these Feudal Lords would dare to make things difficult for him.
Other than these Feudal Lords, there were also a lot of injured High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen who were recuperating on the deck.
Yang Kai even detected the auras of other Territory Lords from the inner part of the ship, which made him feel flabbergasted.
Fortunately, even though there had been some hitches, he had eventually achieved his goal. He had sacrificed a lot by giving up a part of his Small Universe twice, but he had successfully become the Black Ink Disciple of a Territory Lord.
However, there was something he had to ascertain first.
Was the Territory Lord who had stopped him from committing suicide and corrupted him with Black Ink Strength the Hei Yuan that those from Yin-Yang Pass had chosen for him?
Those from Yin-Yang Pass had selected Hei Yuan because he was highly valued by Mu Guang Royal Lord, and he was also one of the most powerful Territory Lords. More importantly, he would frequently visit the Royal City, so it would be easier for Yang Kai to gather information; however, Yang Kai had no idea what Hei Yuan looked like, nor was he aware of what those from Yin-Yang Pass would do to make sure that it would be Hei Yuan who would turn him.
To find out about it, he had no choice but to ask around.
At the thought of this, he turned to look at the Feudal Lord beside him and cupped his fist, “How should I address you, Sir?”
The Feudal Lord was injured when he was in the resource harvesting area previously, but upon hearing that, he replied with a smile, “My name is Zha Gu. Just call me Zha Gu.”
Yang Kai nodded gently, “So, it is Sir Zha Gu.”
Zha Gu was evidently pleased with the honorary title as he put on a brighter smile. He patted Yang Kai’s shoulder with his big hand in a passionate manner, “Don’t be overly polite with me. Since both of us are working for Sir, you can just tell me if you need help in the future.”
“Many thanks.” Yang Kai expressed his gratitude, then brought up the main topic, “What is our Sir’s name?”
With a solemn expression, Zha Gu replied, “Sir is named Hei Yuan in the clan. He’s one of the top 5 Territory Lords working for the Royal Lord. So, consider yourself lucky that you’ve submitted to Sir.”
[It’s really Hei Yuan!] Yang Kai set his mind at ease. It seemed that everything was going to plan.
Zha Gu let out a sigh and turned to look at the cabin, “Other than Sir Hei Yuan, the other Sirs who are in charge of this region have been knocked out by the Humans. When we return, Sir Hei Yuan will most likely be reprimanded by the Royal Lord.” Then, he placated Yang Kai by saying, “Having said that, our Sir has always been valued by the Royal Lord, so the punishment wouldn’t be severe. He will be stripped of some of his territories at most. Forget it. Let’s not talk about it. It seems that you can’t hold on any longer. Find yourself a place and get some rest.”
Yang Kai thanked him again and sat down with his legs crossed on the deck. Then, he stuffed some Spirit Pills into his mouth and adjusted his breathing.
He managed to figure out many things through his brief conversation with Zha Gu. At the very least, he finally realised how those from Yin-Yang Pass made sure that it would be Hei Yuan who would corrupt him.
Other than Hei Yuan, the other Territory Lords were all ‘knocked out’ by the Human cultivators; hence, only Hei Yuan was able to make a move.
However, the Humans must have paid a hefty price in order to achieve this result. To severely injure so many Territory Lords, the Eighth-Order Division Commanders must have suffered serious injuries themselves. To the Black Ink Clan, the best way to recuperate was to fall into a state of deep sleep, and they would recover quicker if they were able to rest inside a Black Ink Nest.
Presently, there were several Territory Lords on this large ship, and apart from the wounded Hei Yuan, the other Territory Lords were sound asleep. Yang Kai couldn’t help but have the urge to secretly kill those Territory Lords.
If he could destroy these Territory Lords here, the pressure they faced in the Yin-Yang Theatre would lessen.
Having said that, he had a more important task at hand, so he suppressed this urge.
With Hei Yuan’s large ship leading the way, the battered Black Ink Clansmen headed to the Black Ink Clan’s territory.
About one day later, a figure suddenly appeared in the previous battlefield as he scanned the surroundings. This place was left with the traces of the epic war, and there were countless Black Ink Clan corpses hovering in the void.
The outcome showed that the war was truly bloody.
After wandering around the battlefield for a while, this person stopped in his tracks and looked towards the depths of the void.
A moment later, a ray of light approached him from a distance and landed beside him.
Wu Qing, who had arrived at this place first to investigate, asked, “How is it? Is there any news from the Inner Sanctum?”
Tang Qiu, who came later, replied, “En, I’ve just received some news. Yang Kai didn’t return to the Inner Sanctum. Have you found anything here?”
“The situation is just like what Xu Ling Gong and his Squad reported, but there’s a notable discrepancy.”
“What do you mean?” Tang Qiu asked with a frown.
“Look over there,” Wu Qing suddenly pointed in a particular direction.
Tang Qiu looked intently in the same direction, then his expression changed, “Those look like universe fragments… That brat gave up parts of his Small Universe?”
Wu Qing nodded, “Xu Ling Gong and his Squad told us that Yang Kai fell into a perilous situation, but they had no idea what happened next. Apparently, Yang Kai sacrificed some parts of his Small Universe after they were gone, which was why they didn’t see it.”
With a solemn expression, Tang Qiu said, “His foundation must have been damaged after he gave up some parts of his Small Universe; however, those from Blue Sky Pass told us that he has obtained a World Tree clone which replaced the World Spring he owned. With the clone’s presence, not only is he immune to the corruption of Black Ink Strength, but it can also apparently repair the missing parts of his Small Universe. Obviously, he did that in order to fool the Black Ink Clan, so it could be considered a clever move. Now, it seems that everything was well under his control. If he were in danger, he wouldn’t have sacrificed parts of his Small Universe to weaken himself.”
Wu Qing nodded, “We can only hope that he has been subdued by Hei Yuan and become his Black Ink Disciple. I was initially worried about this part of the plan as it had the most uncertainty, but his actions seem to have made up for it.”
Even though Wu Qing didn’t point out what the cause of the uncertainty was, Tang Qiu was fully aware of it. In fact, the cause was glaring when they were devising the plan. However, there was nothing they could do about it, so they could only hope that Yang Kai would be lucky enough.
“Yes, I was worried about it as well. Even if he has successfully pretended to be corrupted, his secret will be exposed if Hei Yuan decides to examine his Small Universe.”
Yang Kai was only in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm when he pretended to be a Black Ink Disciple previously, and the person who corrupted him was just a High-Rank Black Ink Clansman, so it never crossed the latter’s mind that Yang Kai had retained his sanity, so he never thought to examine his Small Universe.
Moreover, the Black Ink Clansmen had always believed that the Small Universe of a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master hadn’t materialised, so there was no need to inspect it.
Nevertheless, things were different now as Yang Kai was in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm.
If Hei Yuan suddenly had the urge to ask Yang Kai to open up his Small Universe to him, would the latter agree to it or would he be forced to flee? As soon as the Small Universe was opened, his secret would be exposed.
With that said, there was only a slim chance that this might happen; after all, a Territory Lord had personally made a move on a Seventh-Order Human, so he probably wouldn’t doubt whether he had succeeded. However, accidents happened when one least expected them to.
Now though, during the intense battle, Yang Kai had even given up some parts of his Small Universe, which could effectively fool the Black Ink Clan; after all, no Human would want to go through the pain of cutting off parts of their Small Universe if there was any other choice.
It could be said that Yang Kai’s action landed him in a safer situation.
Moreover, as far as the Black Ink Clan was concerned, the Four Universe Pillars had always been in the possession of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. Seventh-Order Humans didn’t have the right to own these treasures that could ward off Black Ink Strength.
If nothing unexpected happened, Hei Yuan most likely wouldn’t try to examine Yang Kai’s Small Universe.
“Given his capabilities, even if something had gone wrong, he could have fled from Hei Yuan. Since he never returned to the Inner Sanctum, it means that he must have followed Hei Yuan to the Black Ink Clan’s territory.” Tang Qiu let out a sigh, “The only thing we can do now is go back and recuperate. As soon as he finds some useful information, there will be an epic battle to fight.”
Wu Qing nodded, “Let’s go.”
The next moment, they activated the Universe Transference Law and two Grand Arrays appeared beneath their feet.
As a light flickered, they disappeared from the spots and returned to Yin-Yang Pass.
The Black Ink Clan had successfully retreated. Along the way, some teams left the larger group and returned to their own places, but the large ship led by Hei Yuan was still heading towards the depths of the void. It wasn’t certain where the ship was going.
On the deck, Yang Kai silently adjusted his breathing and recuperated. He had exerted himself and even given up parts of his Small Universe in the previous battle. These losses couldn’t be made up for in short order.
It could be said that the heritage he had accumulated over the years was almost wiped out due to his actions. If he hadn’t consumed a High-Rank World Fruit picked from the World Tree clone, his heritage would have plunged to when he just ascended to the Seventh Order.
Even so, he had lost a few hundred years’ worth of cultivation by giving up a part of his Small Universe twice.
Black Ink Clansmen were seen recuperating on the deck. The ones who had the right to stay here were all Feudal Lords, so it was expected that they were not friendly to Yang Kai; however, considering the fact that Hei Yuan truly treasured Yang Kai, they wouldn’t dare to make things difficult for him despite feeling displeased.
Moreover, Zha Gu was also seated beside Yang Kai as he was treating his wounds.
A few days later, all of Yang Kai’s flesh wounds had almost completely healed. However, the losses to his Small Universe couldn’t be made up in a short time, especially the missing pieces. Even though he had the World Tree clone to help repair it, it would take him several years to fully recover.
When Yang Kai was meditating one day, he suddenly heard Hei Yuan calling out to him. He quickly got to his feet and headed to the third floor of the large ship.
As he followed the voice, he soon found Hei Yuan in a luxurious room.
Although Hei Yuan still appeared pale, he had clearly restored some of his power. At that moment, he was seated on a large chair with his chin resting on his palm. He seemed to be lost in thought.
“Master!” Yang Kai called out in a subservient manner.
Hei Yuan didn’t respond to him as he was still thinking about something. A while later, he took a deep breath and straightened up, “What’s your name?”
Yang Kai reported his name.
Hei Yuan nodded gently, “Human names are so strange. In any case, I’ve asked you to come here because I have some questions for you.”
“Please go ahead, Master.” Yang Kai remained respectful, which was expected of a Black Ink Disciple.
“You must be an important figure on the Humans’ side, right?”
“I was just the Squad Leader of a Squad.”
“You’re just a Squad Leader?” Hei Yuan was surprised, “Given your strength, you could’ve held a more important position. According to the classification of the Humans, you should be good enough to be the Battalion Commander.”
With a proud expression, Yang Kai replied, “There are no other Seventh-Order Masters who are a match for me; however, I’m not well-versed in commanding soldiers. In previous battles, my conduct was somewhat reckless, so they only let me become a Squad Leader.”
Upon hearing his explanation, Hei Yuan said, “I see. It’s no wonder that you had the guts to ambush so many Black Ink Clansmen when you only had one Squad with you. You were eager to earn merits, weren’t you?”
Yang Kai immediately played along by saying, “Please forgive me, Master.”
Yang Kai was just replying to Hei Yuan’s questions in a perfunctory manner, but it happened to cause the latter to have some misunderstandings. Certainly, he wouldn’t try to correct him.
“I saw you consuming a Spirit Pill in the previous battle to dispel the Black Ink Strength.”
“Yes!” Yang Kai nodded.
Hei Yuan leaned forward, “What kind of Spirit Pill is that? Show me.”
Yang Kai appeared to be in a dilemma, “Master, the pill is called the Purifying Black Ink Pill, which was newly invented by the Humans. Due to the difficulty in producing them though, I was only given one pill. I consumed it on the battlefield, so there are none left.”
“Purifying Black Ink Pill!” Hei Yuan felt his brow twitching, “When was it invented?”
After appearing to give it a thought, Yang Kai replied, “About 20 years ago.”
Hei Yuan gritted his teeth, “It must be thanks to these Purifying Black Ink Pills that the Humans have repeatedly fended off Black Ink Strength. Is that why there have not been any new Black Ink Disciples recently?”
“Yes.”
“Damn!” Hei Yuan was furious as he finally realised why there were no new Black Ink Disciples over the past 20 years. They had speculated that the Humans must have invented a way to defend against Black Ink Strength, but they had no idea what it was. If he hadn’t subdued this Human named Yang Kai by chance, they still wouldn’t have found out about it.
After blowing his top for a moment, he asked, “How difficult is it to make these Purifying Black Ink Pills?”
Since this was an important matter, Hei Yuan had to find out all the details possible and report them to the Royal Lord at a later time.
Yang Kai replied respectfully, “I know nothing about Alchemy, but I’ve heard some rumours that it is difficult to refine Purifying Black Ink Pills. Even the Alchemy Grandmasters wouldn’t always succeed in producing them, so the success rate is fairly low. Usually, a Squad would only be given one pill.”
Hei Yuan’s expression turned milder. Yang Kai’s statement verified what he had seen on the battlefield. There were a total of 3 Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in that Squad; however, other than Yang Kai, who consumed a Purifying Black Ink Pill to dispel the Black Ink Strength, the other Seventh-Order Humans didn’t take such pills even though they had been affected by Black Ink Strength as well.
After, they fled from the battlefield and disappeared.
This was good news for the Black Ink Clan as every Squad was only given a single Purifying Black Ink Pill. Hei Yuan was most worried that it would be easy to refine these pills and that all Humans would be given several of them. If that were to happen, the Black Ink Clan would suffer a huge setback if they were caught unprepared.
As he set his mind at ease, he went on to ask, “Has the Old Ancestor from Yin-Yang Pass recovered from her injuries?”
Yang Kai was startled for a moment. He wouldn’t have known that the Old Ancestor in Yin-Yang Pass was injured if Hei Yuan hadn’t asked, so how was he supposed to know the Old Ancestor’s condition?
He thus tried to recollect the situation in Blue Sky Pass. Even though he had no idea what had happened, Yang Kai reckoned that the Old Ancestor in Yin-Yang Pass must have exchanged moves with Mu Guang before, so her injuries must have something to do with the latter.
Since the Old Ancestor was wounded, there was no way Mu Guang was in a better state. Yang Kai wondered when the two of them had fought against each other.
After pondering on it for a moment, he replied, “My cultivation is weak, so I haven’t gained the Old Ancestor’s favour. Moreover, her place is heavily guarded, so I was unable to go anywhere near it. However, she has been recuperating for quite some time now, so I would guess she has almost recovered.”
Hei Yuan nodded, “It has been about 100 years since the last great war. Regardless of how badly wounded she was, she must have recovered by now. I’m worried that another large battle will break out again soon.”
It wasn’t until this moment that Yang Kai found out it had been 100 years since the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass was wounded. In other words, there was a grand battle in the Yin-Yang Theatre 100 years ago. Even the Old Ancestor and the Royal Lord had exchanged moves at that time.
100 years had passed in the blink of an eye, and both Races had had enough time to recuperate, so war was now imminent.
However, the big battle in the resource harvesting area just recently would probably delay the all-out war by several years; after all, several powerhouses from both the Humans and Black Ink Clan were injured. It would take them some time to restore their strength.
Just then, a Feudal Lord entered the room. It was none other than Zha Gu who cupped his fist and said, “Sir Territory Lord, we’re about to arrive.”
Hei Yuan nodded and waved his hand at Yang Kai, “You can go back now.”
Yang Kai responded respectfully and left the cabin.
Upon returning to the deck, he looked into the distance and saw a huge universe fragment. It was so large that it was comparable to a whole Universe World.
The universe fragment was covered with a layer of darkness, which went to show that Black Ink Strength was abundant. By living in such an environment, the Black Ink Clansmen would see their powers rising quickly.
Yang Kai had lived in the Black Ink Clan’s domain for 2 years and followed the High-Rank Black Ink Clansman he belonged to into many different areas.
However, none of those places was comparable to this universe fragment.
Yang Kai soon realised that this universe fragment was directly owned by Hei Yuan, and the areas occupied by his subordinate Feudal Lords would form the Territory Lord’s territory.
The large ship continued heading towards the universe fragment. As the ship passed through the clouds of Black Ink Strength, it soon hovered above a large city.
The city was so vast that there was no end in sight. In the centre of the city was a gigantic Black Ink Nest that looked like a flower bud that was about to blossom. The Black Ink Nest seemed to be a living creature and every time it breathed, a lot of Black Ink Strength would be released.
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes. Although he had seen a lot of Black Ink Nests before, the one before his eyes was undoubtedly the largest. Given enough resources, such a Black Ink Nest would be able to produce many Black Ink Clan soldiers in no time.
Black Ink Nests had always been the foundation that the Black Ink Clan relied on to survive. Black Ink Clansmen were born from the Black Ink Nests, and they also had to achieve breakthroughs inside the Black Ink Nests. If the Black Ink Nests were gone for good, the Black Ink Clan would be like a tree without roots or a river without a source.
For this reason, the Humans always tried to destroy Black Ink Nests so that they could cut the enemy off at its source.
Nevertheless, it wasn’t easy to carry out such plans. There was basically a Black Ink Nest in every Black Ink Clansman’s territory. Zhu Feng even had a small Black Ink Nest in his temporary hiding place.
There wouldn’t be enough Humans to destroy all of these Black Ink Nests, and it wouldn’t be useful if they only destroyed a few of them, for the Black Ink Clan could easily create new Black Ink Nests.
So far, the Humans still hadn’t figured out how the Black Ink Nests were born. Some people speculated that they were built by the Black Ink Clan, but this speculation was not logical because everyone who had seen a Black Ink Nest knew that this thing seemed to have a life of its own. Nothing the Humans had ever built was comparable to these Black Ink Nests.
There were also some people who speculated that the birth of Black Ink Nests was just like growing flowers. With a seed planted in the ground, it would grow into a new Black Ink Nest when it was well taken care of.
If this speculation was right though, what kind of seed was that? Where did it come from?
In the past, in order to study these Black Ink Nests, an Old Ancestor barged into the Black Ink Clan’s territory and stormed a Feudal Lord’s estate. After killing all the Black Ink Clansmen in that area, he snatched the Black Ink Nest; however, not long after the Black Ink Nest was taken away by the Old Ancestor, it started withering just like a plucked flower.
Obviously, no study could be conducted. Even the Old Ancestors were unable to figure out the secrets behind the Black Ink Nests; therefore, the Humans cast this idea away. Whenever they came across any Black Ink Nests, they would just destroy them.
Regardless, demolishing Black Ink Nests would mean immense losses for the Black Ink Clan.
The large ship directly landed in front of the gigantic Black Ink Nest. Some Black Ink Clansmen were already waiting for them. It was apparent that they had learned about Hei Yuan’s return just now.
Following Zha Gu’s lead, Yang Kai leapt off the deck and stood to the side.
The unfamiliar Human attracted the attention of many Black Ink Clansmen; however, there were already some Black Ink Disciples who resided in this place. Although many Black Ink Clansmen were curious, they soon looked away.
Hei Yuan’s figure appeared on the deck, but instead of leaving the ship, he waved his hand. As Black Ink Strength undulated, he shouted, “Wake up!”
Following his shout, powerful beings inside the large ship’s cabin started awakening.
Yang Kai’s expression changed as he realised that they were the Territory Lords who had been sound asleep in the large ship. Even though these auras were powerful, Yang Kai could feel that they were somewhat frail. It was obvious that they were all severely wounded.
These Territory Lords hadn’t recovered one bit following a long time of deep sleep; therefore, Hei Yuan directly brought them to the Black Ink Nest so that they could make use of its power to recuperate.
A moment later, some burly figures stepped out of the cabin and stood on the deck.
The Black Ink Clansmen below saluted them respectfully.
Yang Kai stole a glance and realised that these Territory Lords were all injured as they were soaked in blood. The most severely wounded one had half of his neck cut. Yang Kai wondered who the Army Commander was that had made such a ruthless move. Black blood was still leaking out of the wound on his neck and there was a mysterious force around the wound that was stopping it from healing.
This Territory Lord was especially unstable and seemed to be muddle-headed. It was as though he would soon lose his life if he wasn’t given immediate treatment.
Including Hei Yuan, there were a total of 6 Territory Lords on the large ship. The 5 Territory Lords who had just awakened nodded at Hei Yuan and silently dashed towards the Black Ink Nest, soon disappearing.
After they were gone, Hei Yuan swept a glance over the rest, “While I am recuperating, all the affairs in the territory will be handled by Gui Liao.”
One of the Feudal Lords, who had been waiting for Hei Yuan’s return just now, bowed, “Yes.”
There was no doubt that this Feudal Lord was Gui Liao.
Hei Yuan then shuffled towards the Black Ink Nest, but he soon stopped in his tracks and turned his head to speak to Gui Liao, “He’s the new Black Ink Disciple I’ve taken on. Get him a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit later.”
A hint of surprise flashed through Gui Liao’s eyes as he turned to look at Yang Kai.
In fact, he had caught sight of Yang Kai the moment the latter leapt off the deck, but he didn’t pay much attention to him; after all, it wasn’t rare for them to capture Black Ink Disciples on the battlefields.
However, what the Territory Lord had said suggested that he valued this Black Ink Disciple highly. That was why Gui Liao was surprised.
It had to be noted that most of the Black Ink Disciples had suffered some damage in their Small Universes, so Profound Yin Spirit Fruits were needed in order to repair them.
Even though the Black Ink Clan had some reserves of Profound Yin Spirit Fruits, they were not rewards that could be given out easily.
Only the Black Ink Disciples who had made immense contributions on the battlefield and proved their worth had a chance to be rewarded with a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit by the Black Ink Clan to repair their damaged Small Universes; however, Yang Kai had received this kind of treatment when he was just a newcomer, which was why Feudal Lords like Gui Liao were surprised.
With that said, since Hei Yuan had given the order, Gui Liao naturally wouldn’t object to it and bowed respectfully.
Hei Yuan then stepped into the Black Ink Nest. As he disappeared, the Black Ink Nest automatically closed.
Since the Territory Lords had to recuperate here, the Black Ink Nest wouldn’t reopen for a few years. In fact, the Black Ink Clansmen previously cultivating in the Black Ink Nest were all chased out in advance to make way for the Territory Lords so that they could derive enough energy to recuperate.
After the Territory Lords entered the Black Ink Nest, the Feudal Lords, who had returned alongside the large ship, dispersed. Soon, only Gui Liao, Zha Gu, and Yang Kai were left standing in front of the Black Ink Nest.
Gui Liao shot a meaningful glance at Yang Kai and asked, “What’s your name?”
Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Yang Kai greets Sir Gui Liao.”
Gui Liao nodded gently, “Come with me.” He then turned to Zha Gu, “You too.”
Upon finishing his words, he led the way for them.
Yang Kai followed him closely. Despite not knowing what was going on, Zha Gu had no choice but to follow them as it was Gui Liao’s order.
Soon, they arrived at an exotic-looking castle that was in a prime location. It should be Hei Yuan’s castle.
There were many Black Ink Clansmen who resided in this castle. Following Gui Liao, Yang Kai stepped inside and looked around curiously.
Gui Liao called out to a Black Ink Clansman and ordered, “He’s the new Black Ink Disciple that Sir Territory Lord has taken on. Help him settle in.”
The person was just a High-Rank Black Ink Clansman, and his weak aura suggested that he was only equivalent to a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. This kind of Black Ink Clansmen only served as cannon fodder to exhaust the Human cultivators on the battlefield, and they were not in a prestigious position within the Black Ink Clan. Having said that, they were good enough to be servants in such a castle.
Upon hearing that, the High-Rank Black Ink Clansman bent his back, “Yes.” He then turned to look at Yang Kai, “Come with me.”
Yang Kai cupped his fist at Gui Liao, then left the place with the High-Rank Black Ink Clansman.
Gui Liao watched him leave in silence. It wasn’t until Yang Kai was out of sight that he continued moving forward.
A moment later, Gui Liao sat down on a large chair in a side hall. Then, he fished out a World Sphere, which was full of World Force, from his Space Ring and sniffed at it. In an instant, he felt rejuvenated.
Zha Gu simply stood in front of him.
Even though both of them were Feudal Lords, one obviously had higher status than the other. This couldn’t be helped though as Gui Liao was Hei Yuan’s confidant; otherwise, Hei Yuan wouldn’t have said that Gui Liao would manage all the affairs while he was recuperating.
In fact, whenever Hei Yuan went to war, Gui Liao would be the one handling the affairs in his territory. Every Territory Lord had their own confidant; moreover, Gui Liao would most likely ascend to become a Territory Lord within 100 years. By then, he would no longer be in the same calibre as Zha Gu.
Therefore, even though Zha Gu was standing in front of him while he was still wounded, he wouldn’t dare to appear displeased.
Gui Liao breathed in the World Force from the World Sphere before asking slowly, “Tell me. What’s so special about that Yang Kai that Sir Territory Lord regards him so highly?”
[I knew he was going to ask about it!]
In fact, Zha Gu already had a speculation when Gui Liao told him to tag along, and it seemed that his speculation was right.
After giving it a thought, he replied with a solemn expression, “He’s very strong.”
Gui Liao narrowed his eyes, “Very strong? How strong?”
Zha Gu went on to say, “After the Sirs were ambushed by the Human Army in the resource harvesting area, they were defeated and forced to retreat. That Yang Kai led a single Human Squad around the battlefield to ambush our clansmen as they were escaping. He single-handedly killed several thousand of our clansmen, including more than 10 Feudal Lords.”
Gui Liao initially appeared nonchalant, but his expression turned solemn when he heard that, “He killed several thousand, including more than 10 Feudal Lords? Are you sure?”
Zha Gu put on a helpless smile, “Sir Territory Lord was standing beside me as we watched it happen. It’s because that person was so powerful that Sir Territory Lord wanted to subdue him despite the fact that he was badly injured.”
Gui Liao fell into a dazed state for a moment before saying, “Tell me everything you know in detail.”
Certainly, Zha Gu wouldn’t dare to hide anything as he vividly narrated the battle on that day. Gui Liao could instantly imagine an epic fight unfolding before his eyes.
“That guy gave up a part of his Small Universe twice. In order to let his companions escape, he took the initiative to stay behind and halt our forces. In the end, when he realised that he was unable to escape, he decided to kill himself. Sir Territory Lord promptly made a move and captured him,” Zha Gu felt the emotions in his heart undulating when he recalled what happened that day. He had a feeling that if Yang Kai hadn’t intended to protect his allies, he could’ve easily fled, and the wounded Hei Yuan wouldn’t have been able to turn him.
At that time, Hei Yuan was worried that the Human Masters were still pursuing him, so he wouldn’t have taken the risk of chasing after Yang Kai if the latter was determined to flee.
“The Humans are still as foolish as ever.” Gui Liao couldn’t help but snort upon hearing that. Then, he asked, “Who do you think will be the winner if he and I fight?”
Zha Gu hurriedly replied, “Sir Gui Liao, you’ll soon ascend to become a Territory Lord. Regardless of how powerful Yang Kai is, he wouldn’t be a match for you.”
Gui Liao snorted as he was somewhat displeased at Zha Gu’s prompt reply. Even though Zha Gu replied to him without hesitation, he didn’t seem sincere.
Nevertheless, Gui Liao didn’t intend to harp on this issue. He tossed the World Sphere, which was only left with half the original World Force, at him and said, “Good, I can see that you’re badly wounded. Go back and recuperate.”
After taking the World Sphere, Zha Gu replied joyfully, “Many thanks, Sir.”
Since the Black Ink Nest was closed due to the Territory Lords having to recuperate there, it would be hard for Zha Gu to treat his wounds as he was unable to make use of this territory’s power. It would probably take him a longer time to recover. However, with the World Force inside the World Sphere, it would significantly reduce his recovery time. Although he could afford a World Sphere as well, this thing was still expensive.
After Zha Gu was gone, Gui Liao narrowed his eyes and tapped on the armrest. Following a moment of silence, he called out, “Liu Zi An.”
A figure emerged from the darkness and replied, “Master.”
Gui Liao lifted his head, “There’s a newcomer in the castle. He’s the Black Ink Disciple that Sir Territory Lord has taken in. Since both of you are of the same Race, you should approach him when there’s a chance.”
Upon receiving the order, Liu Zi An replied, “Yes.”
After bringing Yang Kai to a side hall in the castle and helping him settle in, the High-Rank Black Ink Clansman left.
This side hall was built according to the Black Ink Clan’s average size, so the ceiling was pretty high. This place appeared too spacious when a Human lived here. In any case, Yang Kai didn’t really mind. After looking around, he was satisfied.
He then sat down with his legs crossed, though he wasn’t in a rush to cultivate. Now that his Small Universe had been damaged, it was less efficient for him to cultivate. Even though the World Tree clone would help him repair the damage done, it would take several years to fully recover.
Fortunately, before Hei Yuan entered the Black Ink Nest, he told Gui Liao to get Yang Kai a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, which solved the pressing issue for him.
He had planned on obtaining a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit upon arriving at the Black Ink Clan’s domain so that the secret in his Small Universe wouldn’t be exposed.
If his Small Universe fully recovered without a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit several years later, it would undoubtedly arouse Hei Yuan’s suspicion.
Moreover, there was one thing that concerned Yang Kai. After Hei Yuan and the other Territory Lords entered the Black Ink Nest, the entire territory was closed off.
Yang Kai had no idea how long it would take Hei Yuan to recover, but the latter obviously wouldn’t come out of the Black Ink Nest in short order. In other words, he probably wouldn’t see Hei Yuan for the next few years.
There was both a good and bad to this situation. The good was that Yang Kai could gather information on his own without any restraints. The bad thing was that he wouldn’t be able to head to the Royal City without Hei Yuan. He might not even be able to leave this universe fragment.
There was a Black Ink Disciple, who was approaching the Great Grandmaster level in Artifact Refining, developing Warships in the depths of the Black Ink Clan’s domain. Yang Kai had to ascertain this individual’s identity and location, so if he was unable to leave this universe fragment, his means of gathering information would be limited.
The difficulty of the task made him feel anxious.
While this was giving him a headache, Yang Kai suddenly felt an unfamiliar aura approaching him. After becoming startled for a brief moment, he quickly tried to examine it.
He realised that it was a Human who was coming over.
Soon, Yang Kai heard someone knocking on the door.
He hurriedly got to his feet and opened the door, only to see a burly man standing outside his room.
There was no doubt that the Humans residing in this place were all Black Ink Disciples. Yang Kai had seen some Black Ink Disciples when he followed Gui Liao back to the castle though, so he wasn’t surprised.
However, the Black Ink Disciple in front of his eyes was overly towering as a Human. Standing in front of this man, Yang Kai only came up to his chest.
It had to be noted that even though Yang Kai wasn’t a particularly tall man, he wasn’t short by any means. This went to show how burly the man before his eyes was.
What bothered Yang Kai wasn’t this man’s height though, but his aura.
The energy fluctuations around this man suggested that he was in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, but his aura was tinged with a conspicuous sense of ferocity. Black Ink Strength could be seen wafting from his body, which made it look like he was covered in a layer of dark fog.
What concerned Yang Kai even further was the anomalies on his figure. There was a sarcoma on this person’s neck, and his hunched back really had a large hump in it.
The moment Yang Kai saw this person, he felt a sense of danger.
This kind of danger didn’t come from the threat this person might pose, but rather the other party’s own condition.
In other words, this person was constantly in a perilous state.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but recall what Luan Bai Feng, who was corrupted by Black Ink Strength at that time, had shown him in the Black Prison.
Back then, Yang Kai witnessed several people with similar conditions to this man.
One of the primary reasons the Cave Heavens and Paradises had been hiding the existence of Black Ink Strength from the general public was that this Strength was too dangerous, so a panic might be caused if this news was spread. Moreover, they were worried that some people couldn’t resist the allure of Black Ink Strength and would proactively seek to become corrupted.
Human growth was limited, especially in the Open Heaven Realm.
How high a cultivator could eventually push their Martial Dao was decided the moment they ascended to the Open Heaven Realm.
Usually, after a person ascended to the Open Heaven Realm, they could only increase their Order by 2 regardless of how hard they cultivated.
This was the reason the Cave Heavens and Paradises spent lots of time and resources nurturing the brightest disciples from a young age. Only the disciples who directly ascended to the Fifth Order and above had the right to become High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters one day.
If a person directly ascended to the Fourth Order, the limit in their lifetime would be the Sixth Order.
However, after an Open Heaven Realm Master was corrupted by Black Ink Strength, they could break through this limitation and keep ascending to higher Orders.
This was an allure that many Open Heaven Realm Masters could not resist.
That was certainly the case for the Vice Sect Master of Lang Ya Paradise, Yuan Du. Despite his lofty status, he was still unable to resist this temptation, so he proactively sought to become corrupted and turn into a Black Ink Disciple. Ever since then, he became the source of disturbance in Lang Ya Paradise.
It was imaginable that once this news was spread, it would send a shockwave across the entire 3,000 Worlds; after all, Yuan Du wasn’t the only one who was unable to keep moving forward in the Martial Dao due to their innate limits.
However, most were not aware of the hidden dangers that came with this method. While Black Ink Strength could help an Open Heaven Realm Master achieve a breakthrough beyond their initial limitations, there was a price to pay, one that most people wouldn’t be able to bear.
Back in the Black Prison, Yang Kai had seen several Open Heaven Realm Masters who achieved a breakthrough with the help of Black Ink Strength.
Nevertheless, they all ended up in a horrible state.
The breakthrough beyond their limits and the sharp increase in their power could cause them to explode then and there, and those that did survive had their figures radically transformed, developing mishappen features and horrible tumours. In addition, their mental state deteriorated significantly, becoming far more aggressive and irrational.
The Black Ink Disciple in front of Yang Kai undoubtedly suffered such side effects.
The sarcoma on his neck, the hump on his back, and his unusually large build were all the result of the Black Ink Strength’s corruption.
In other words, this person wasn’t supposed to have ascended to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. He broke through the limit by leveraging the Black Ink Strength. Even though he had successfully reached the next Order, his figure had also been transformed.
Yang Kai could clearly feel that even though the aura of this Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was dangerous, his foundation was unstable. Like an insect-infected building, it would fall apart when someone gently pushed it.
If this person kept cultivating to increase his strength, he would most likely explode as his body was no longer able to bear a power that was too great for him.
Someone like him could never be saved even if his Black Ink Strength was dispelled with Purifying Light. The limit of his Small Universe was the Sixth Order, so the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm power had far exceeded what he could sustain. Once he lost the Black Ink Strength’s support, he would undoubtedly lose his life.
Countless thoughts flashed across Yang Kai’s mind as he secretly sighed. He then asked, “You are…?”
The person cupped his fist and grinned, “I’m Liu Zi An, a Black Ink Disciple under Sir Gui Liao.”
“So, it is Brother Liu,” Yang Kai nodded gently, “Is there anything I can help you with?”
Liu Zi An put on a big smile, “I heard that Sir Territory Lord personally took on a Black Ink Disciple, so I came here to have a look out of curiosity. Sir Territory Lord is powerful, so he’s usually not interested in ordinary Black Ink Disciples. I’ve not seen him taking one over the years. You’re the first one, Brother Yang.”
“I’m truly honoured, then,” Yang Kai replied humbly. He reckoned that Liu Zi An must have a reason for visiting him, so he stepped aside, “Please come in, Brother Liu.”
Without being overly polite, Liu Zi An stepped into the room.
Yang Kai then closed the door. This side hall was basically empty, so it must have been vacant for quite a long time. He hadn’t prepared anything since he had just gotten here; therefore, he fished out a table and some chairs from his Small Universe and invited the other party to have a seat.
Liu Zi An directly sat down on a chair.
After Yang Kai was seated as well, he asked, “Brother Liu, you said you’re a Black Ink Disciple under Sir Gui Liao?”
“Yes.” Liu Zi An nodded.
“How long have you been living here?” Yang Kai asked.
Liu Zi An smacked his lips and sighed, “It’s been 1,000 years. Not a short time, is it?”
“It’s indeed a very long time.” Yang Kai nodded, “I’m new to this place, so I know nothing about the Black Ink Clan. You’ll have to give me some guidance in the future, Brother Liu.”
Liu Zi An guffawed, “Of course, of course. Since we’re both working for Sir Territory Lord, you can just tell me if you need any help. Although we’re Black Ink Disciples, we’re of the same Race, after all. Let’s meet up more often whenever there’s a chance.”
“You’re right.” Yang Kai agreed with him, “Which Cave Heaven or Paradise did you come from?”
Liu Zi An waved his hand, “Since we’re Black Ink Disciples now, the past no longer has anything to do with us. There’s no need to talk about where we came from. Since you’re now within the Black Ink Clan’s territory, you should quickly try to understand your place.”
“Understood,” Yang Kai replied humbly.
Liu Zi An went on to say, “To be honest, I wasn’t used to it when I first came here; however, after coming into contact with more people, I’ve realised that the Black Ink Clan aren’t any different from Humans. You just have to get along with everyone else. If you want anyone to help you with something, or if you want to be regarded highly, you have to be on good terms with others. If you do that, you’ll be fine.”
A glint flashed through Yang Kai’s eyes when he heard that, “You have a point, Brother Liu.”
Since this guy had made it clear, Yang Kai was naturally aware of his intentions. He then rummaged through his clothes and fished out a Space Ring before pushing it towards him, “Since we’re friends now, I’d like to give you a small gift. I’ll definitely need your guidance in the future.”
Liu Zi An arched his brow and guffawed, “Well, you shouldn’t have. There’s actually no need for that.”
Despite saying that, he directly picked up the Space Ring and scanned it with his Divine Sense. The next moment, his smile froze.
There were only a few hundred thousand Open Heaven Pills in the Space Ring.
This number of Open Heaven Pills could only last him for half a month. Even though he was a Black Ink Disciple, he was still a Human; hence, the cultivation resources he needed were the same as what Humans would use.
He directly shot Yang Kai a glance and made it clear that he was displeased, “That’s not very generous of you, Brother Yang.”
An unfazed Yang Kai explained, “This is already half of all my current assets, Brother Liu. You should know that when Human soldiers go to war, they don’t bring a lot of resources with them.”
The same rule applied to all the Great Passes as they were worried that once a cultivator lost his or her life on the battlefield, their resources would be lost as well. Therefore, the cultivators who went out to fight would leave almost all their assets in their residences. That way, even if they were killed, their fellow clansmen could still take the resources and make use of them.
Yang Kai was aware of this rule, but those from Blue Sky Pass had never restrained him with it; therefore, all his wealth was still in his Small Universe.
Liu Zi An frowned upon hearing that as he was unable to refute Yang Kai since what he said was indeed the truth. The Black Ink Clan had obtained a lot of Space Rings from the Humans on the battlefields in the past, but there weren’t really any valuable items in those rings.
After giving it a thought, he said, “Forget it. It’s the thought that counts.”
“Many thanks for your understanding, Brother Liu.” Yang Kai cupped his fist, then said,” Since you’re Sir Gui Liao’s Black Ink Disciple, can you help me with something?”
Even though Liu Zi An had accepted the gift, he didn’t seem ready to lend him a hand; instead, he asked vigilantly, “What help do you need?”
Yang Kai replied, “Before Sir Hei Yuan entered the Black Ink Nest, he had told Sir Gui Liao to obtain a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit for me. Since you are Sir Gui Liao’s Black Ink Disciple, can you help me ask him when he’ll give me the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit?”
Upon hearing that, Liu Zi An was startled, “Sir Territory Lord ordered a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit be given to you?”
“Yes.” Yang Kai nodded, then asked curiously, “What’s wrong with that?”
Liu Zi An sized him up and shook his head, “Nothing.”
Then, he rose from the chair, “I can help you ask Sir Gui Liao about it, but it’s not up to me to influence his decision.”
“Regardless, I thank you for helping me.”
“En,” Liu Zi An nodded impassively, “I’ll inform you when there’s any news.”
Yang Kai got up and saw him off, “See you around, Brother Liu.”
Liu Zi An left the place and waved his hand without turning his head.
Yang Kai sported a dispassionate expression as he watched him leave. Even though both of them were Humans, he didn’t think Liu Zi An genuinely wanted to get closer to him after their conversation.
This was different from his previous experience.
When he pretended to be a Black Ink Disciple and worked for Nu Yan back then, Yang Kai had been on good terms with B-2, D-4, and E-5. Even though they had different temperaments, they sincerely wanted to get along with him. Perhaps it was because they were all Humans.
However, Liu Zi An was different as he didn’t even seem to regard Yang Kai as someone from the same Race. Perhaps the Black Ink Strength had fully warped his temperament. Even though all Black Ink Disciples would have their thinking changed so they were completely loyal to the Black Ink Clan, the impact of Black Ink Strength was obviously more severe on Liu Zi An.
This must have something to do with the fact that Black Ink Strength had helped him achieve a breakthrough.
Yang Kai had no idea whether it was Liu Zi An’s own intention to visit him or if it was Gui Liao’s order.
It would be interesting if it was the latter. Why did Gui Liao want to probe him? He was Hei Yuan’s Black Ink Disciple on paper while Gui Liao was the designated person to handle the affairs in Hei Yuan’s territory. They basically had nothing to do with each other as they had never met prior to this, nor were there any grudges between them.
Since he was unable to figure it out, Yang Kai decided to put the matter aside. He then returned to his room and refined some Open Heaven Pills.
He wouldn’t dare to refine any resources to cultivate; after all, he had just told Liu Zi An that he was broke. It wouldn’t be sensible if he was suddenly able to fish out a set of Seventh-Order resources.
Moreover, there wasn’t any restriction around his room that could block Divine Senses. Any energy fluctuations in this place could easily be detected by anyone else.
At the same time, in a Grand Hall that was in the deepest part of the castle, Liu Zi An was standing in front of Gui Liao and reporting to him about his conversation with Yang Kai.
Gui Liao listened to it with an unenthusiastic expression.
After Liu Zi An was done with the report, he stole a glance at Gui Liao. Upon seeing that the latter was expressionless, he summoned his courage and asked, “Master, Yang Kai said that Sir Territory Lord had promised to give him a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit.”
Gui Liao grunted, “Yes, that’s true.”
Liu Zi An frowned, “Why does Sir Territory Lord treasure him so much? He’s a newcomer who hasn’t made any contributions. If he’s given such a reward right away, he’ll most likely become arrogant.”
Gui Liao shot him a glance, “What’s wrong? Are you not happy with it?”
Liu Zi An quickly said he wouldn’t dare to, but he was evidently unresigned.
In the past, he had done everything he could to defend the Humans. After he was corrupted by Black Ink Strength on the battlefield, he sacrificed a part of his Small Universe; therefore, when he became a Black Ink Disciple, his Small Universe was incomplete.
Then, it took him 300 years to gain enough contributions on the battlefield before Gui Liao gave him a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit to repair his Small Universe.
The treatment he had received was totally not comparable to what Yang Kai could enjoy now, which was why he was unresigned; however, he wouldn’t dare to express his true feelings in front of Gui Liao now.
Upon seeing his expression, Gui Liao snorted, “You heard what Zha Gu said earlier. That guy is strong. That’s why Sir Territory Lord regards him highly. How are you comparable to him?”
A sense of haughtiness flashed across Liu Zi An’s face, “We’ll only find out about it after he and I fight.”
Gui Liao said impassively, “He’s Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple. If you really dare to do anything to him, Sir Territory Lord will not let you off when he’s done recuperating.”
Liu Zi An grinned, “Don’t worry, Master. I’ll only teach him a lesson when there’s a chance. It’s not like I’ll kill him. I won’t make things difficult for you.”
Gui Liao nodded, “Good, just don’t go too far.” After giving it a thought, he shook his head, “Actually, you’d better not complicate the matter. Even though Sir Territory Lord is recuperating in the Black Ink Nest, he’ll come out one day.”
Liu Zi An frowned, “Do we give him a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit just like this?”
Gui Liao sneered, “Sir Territory Lord only ordered me to get him a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit. As for when I’ll find one, that’s up to me. I’ll also see if he’s tactful enough before I’ll decide whether I’ll give it to him.” He tapped on the table, “I guess he’ll look for you again. I’m sure you know what to do then.”
“I get it, Master. Don’t worry about it,” Liu Zi An replied respectfully.
“You may leave now,” Gui Liao waved his hand, then Liu Zi An left the place.
Yang Kai cultivated silently in his room. More than 10 days later, the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit was still nowhere in sight.
Logically, there should be all sorts of resources in the Territory Lord’s territory. When he came to this place with Hei Yuan, he witnessed the prosperity firsthand. Even though Profound Yin Spirit Fruits were rare, the demand for them among the Black Ink Clan should be far smaller than that among the Humans, so there should be a reserve of them in the castle.
Moreover, Hei Yuan had given the order in public, and Yang Kai had asked Liu Zi An to help him ask Gui Liao about it; hence, Gui Liao should’ve sent a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit to him by now.
Yang Kai felt that something was off as he still hadn’t got his hands on a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit up until now.
Furthermore, it was truly inefficient to cultivate by refining Open Heaven Pills as it was much slower than what he could achieve in the past. Given his situation, he couldn’t possibly fish out a set of Seventh-Order materials and refine them though. He also couldn’t set up a restriction around this room.
After giving it a thought, he decided to look for Gui Liao and ask about it.
The moment he left the side hall, he saw a Black Ink Clansman who appeared to be in a hurry. This Black Ink Clansman was weak as he was only equivalent to a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
Yang Kai directly stopped him and asked, “Excuse me, where is Sir Gui Liao?”
The Black Ink Clansman was startled for a moment as he swept a glance over Yang Kai with surprise. It had to be noted that Black Ink Disciples were lowly slaves in the Black Ink Clan’s territory and had to be subservient whenever they saw any Black Ink Clansmen. It was the first time this Black Ink Clansman came across a Black Ink Disciple who dared to stop him like this.
However, he soon recalled that this Black Ink Disciple was personally corrupted by Sir Territory Lord, so he was unlike the other Black Ink Disciples. He supposed that was the reason this Black Ink Disciple was this audacious.
While suppressing his fury, he shook his head, “I have no idea.”
Upon finishing his words, he stopped responding to Yang Kai and left.
With no other choice, Yang Kai went on to ask several Black Ink Clansmen about it, but none of them knew where Gui Liao was. Perhaps they were aware of Gui Liao’s whereabouts, but they just were not willing to tell him.
This made Yang Kai furrow his brow.
Since he was unable to find Gui Liao, how was he supposed to ask about the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit?
After giving it a thought, he decided to release his Divine Sense to scan the entire castle.
The powerful Divine Sense swept across the castle like a tide, which prompted everyone in the place to react.
There were many Feudal Lords in the castle, so it was only natural that they were furious at Yang Kai who had the gall to scan the place with his Divine Sense.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai retracted his Divine Sense a brief moment later. Before the Feudal Lords could counterattack, his Divine Sense had returned to him.
During the momentary inspection, he was unable to detect Gui Liao’s aura. It seemed that those Black Ink Clansmen were not lying when they said they didn’t know where Gui Liao was.
After pondering on it for a moment, he headed in a particular direction.
A moment later, he arrived at a courtyard where there was a restriction set up. He directly flicked at the restriction and caused a layer of ripples to spread.
Soon, the restriction was turned off. After the door was opened, Liu Zi An’s furious-looking face came into Yang Kai’s sight.
It wasn’t because of luck that he found Liu Zi An’s residence. When he scanned the castle with his Divine Sense just now, the restriction in this place was triggered. For a brief moment, Liu Zi An revealed his aura to ascertain what was going on. That was how Yang Kai found out his whereabouts.
“Brother Liu!” Yang Kai took a step back and cupped his fist.
Fury was written all over Liu Zi An’s face. Upon seeing Yang Kai, he snapped, “It’s you! I was wondering who had the gall to do such a thing.”
Yang Kai chuckled, “I’m sorry, but I had no other choice.”
“What’s wrong?” Liu Zi An asked in a grim voice.
Yang Kai nodded, “There’s something I need to ask you about.”
Liu Zi An frowned and stepped aside, “Come in first.”
After thanking him, Yang Kai entered the courtyard with him.
As he looked around, he arched his brow. This courtyard was definitely much better than the room assigned to him by Gui Liao as it was more suitable for Humans to live in. It was apparently because Gui Liao regarded Liu Zi An highly.
On the other hand, even though Yang Kai was Hei Yuan’s Black Ink Disciple, he wasn’t close to Gui Liao. That was the reason Gui Liao didn’t give him the same treatment and settled him down in a random room.
Even if Hei Yuan found out about it, he wouldn’t be displeased; however, it showed how little Gui Liao cared about Yang Kai.
There was only a table and a chair in the courtyard. Liu Zi An directly took a seat.
Yang Kai stood in front of him and looked around. He felt as if he was here to report to him regarding work-related matters.
“Whatever you have to say, just say it,” Liu Zi An said impatiently.
With a smile, Yang Kai fished out a chair from his Small Universe and took a seat across from Liu Zi An before replying, “Brother Liu, I’m here to ask you about the matter I had mentioned previously. Is there any update?”
Liu Zi An shot him a glance, “What matter are you talking about?”
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes, “Are you playing dumb, Brother Liu? I had only mentioned one thing.”
He felt frustrated in his heart. The last time they met, he already realised that Liu Zi An was haughty and aggressive, but there wasn’t much hostility between them. However, this time, he could feel that Liu Zi An was hostile towards him. He wondered what had happened as Liu Zi An also spoke in a weird tone.
In any case, both of them were Black Ink Disciples, so what was the point of him acting standoffish? Moreover, he had previously asked him to inquire about the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, but the latter played dumb now.
Although he didn’t need the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, Yang Kai had to get his hands on it to cover up the secrets in his Small Universe; hence, he was determined to obtain the fruit.
An unfazed Liu Zi An remained seated and said impassively, “Are you talking about the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit?”
Yang Kai nodded, “You finally recalled it.”
Liu Zi An replied, “I asked Sir Gui Liao about it on your behalf, but he didn’t say anything. It’s not up to me to influence Sir’s decision.”
Yang Kai knitted his brows together, “Where is Sir Gui Liao, then?”
Liu Zi An snorted, “This Liu is a Black Ink Disciple under Sir Gui Liao. Since he’s the Master, it’s not like he has to tell me where he’d go whenever he heads out. How am I supposed to know where he is?”
Yang Kai was rendered speechless as he had the urge to summon Azure Dragon Spear and kill him.
Upon noticing the gloomy expression on the other man’s face, Liu Zi An changed the topic by saying, “Brother Yang, do you remember what I told you previously?”
Yang Kai replied, “You told me many things at that time. Which one do you mean exactly?”
Liu Zi An grinned, “Since you’ve forgotten about it, this Liu will tell you one more time. The Black Ink Clan and the Human Race are not so different. You just have to get along with everyone. If you need someone’s help, you can obtain it by being on good terms with them.”
Instantly, Yang Kai appeared to be in a dilemma, “Brother Liu, I only have a small number of Open Heaven Pills. I gave you half of them, so I’m left with very few now.”
Liu Zi An snorted, “No one is coveting your pathetic number of Open Heaven Pills.”
A puzzled Yang Kai asked, “What do you want then, Brother Liu?”
Liu Zi An replied impassively, “It’s not what I want. I have no say when it comes to the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit.”
Upon realising his meaning, Yang Kai leaned closer and asked in a small voice, “What does Sir Gui Liao want, then?”
This guy had been beating around the bush in order to make Yang Kai understand that he had to gain Gui Liao’s favour. It was up to Gui Liao to make a decision regarding the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, and Liu Zi An was Gui Liao’s Black Ink Disciple. Yang Kai was certain that Liu Zi An must have gotten Gui Liao’s permission to do all this.
[So, he’s waiting for me to take the initiative to contact him.]
Yang Kai finally understood why Gui Liao didn’t immediately give him the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit even though it was Hei Yuan’s order. He hadn’t expected that there was such a practice in Black Ink Clan.
He thought that it was a terrible inconvenience.
Then, he went on to say, “Brother Liu, I’m sure you’re aware that I have nothing valuable with me. I’m worried that I can’t give Sir Gui Liao anything he would want.”
Liu Zi An put on a meaningful grin, “Don’t worry, you have plenty of what Sir Gui Liao likes the most.”
Upon finishing his words, he started sizing Yang Kai up. Yang Kai’s expression slowly turned cold as he narrowed his eyes, “Please make it clear to me, Brother Liu.”
It had come to a point where there was no longer a need to beat around the bush.
Liu Zi An said, “I’m sure you know that Black Ink Clansmen are able to consume World Force. This doesn’t just help increase their power, but it’s also a kind of hobby for them. Sir Gui Liao’s hobby is slightly different from others, though I suppose it’s not accurate to say that. Perhaps many Black Ink Clansmen have this hobby. They love consuming fresh World Force.”
Yang Kai was startled upon hearing that. It was the first time he heard someone describe World Force as ‘fresh’. World Force was the foundation of an Open Heaven Realm Master’s power, not a living creature. Was there such a thing as stale World Force, then?
Feeling puzzled, he asked, “What do you mean by fresh World Force?”
Liu Zi An replied with a smile, “Have you heard of the World Sphere before, Brother Yang?”
Yang Kai nodded, “Yes.”
Liu Zi An explained, “Strictly speaking, World Spheres are a kind of artifact invented by the Black Ink Clan. It’s used to absorb the World Force that leaks out after Open Heaven Realm Masters are killed on the battlefield. World Spheres are sold in every Black Ink Clan’s territory, and they’re quite expensive. By buying a World Sphere, a Black Ink Clansmen can consume the World Force inside it to cultivate. The World Force in Sealed Worlds could be consumed by the Black Ink Clan as well; however, that kind of World Force is like a tree without roots or a river without a source. It’s dead. To the Black Ink Clan, this kind of World Force is not fresh enough. It’s like stale food for Humans.”
He paused for a moment and went on to say, “On the other hand, Open Heaven Realm Masters like us have very fresh World Force in our Small Universes. Sir Gui Liao is pretty picky, so he prefers to consume this kind of World Force.”
Then, he looked fervently at Yang Kai, “So, it’s easy for you to gain Sir Gui Liao’s favour. You just have to open your Small Universe and let him consume your World Force to his heart’s content. After that, he’ll grant your wish.”
Yang Kai lowered his gaze and said impassively, “Is this how you please Sir Gui Liao?”
Liu Zi An directly nodded, “Yes. However, according to Sir Gui Liao, the World Force of every Open Heaven Realm Master tastes different. This Liu has been Sir Gui Liao’s servant for a long time. In the past, he loved to consume my World Force, but he hasn’t done so for a long time now. I suppose he’s already sick of it. Since you’re a newcomer, you can let Sir Gui Liao have a taste of a different kind of World Force. He said that the more powerful a Human is, the more delicious his World Force will be, and you’re a powerful cultivator. If you’re willing to do this, I’m sure Sir Gui Liao will see you in a different light. It’ll be much easier for you to get things done as well.”
“Is this the condition?” Yang Kai lifted his head and asked.
Liu Zi An shook his head, “It’s not a condition. It’s just my suggestion. Brother Yang, a wise man will adapt to the circumstances. This is the Black Ink Clan’s territory, and we’re Black Ink Disciples.”
“I’m Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple, not Gui Liao’s.”
Liu Zi An’s expression changed, “Stop being obstinate, Brother Yang! You’ll only lose a bit of your World Force. If you can get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, you’ll be able to repair the damaged part of your Small Universe. By then, you can slowly cultivate and make up for the losses.”
Yang Kai shot him a piercing glance, “Before Sir Territory Lord entered the Black Ink Nest, he ordered Gui Liao to get me a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit. Is he going to disobey Sir Territory Lord?”
Liu Zi An chuckled, “No one has the guts to disobey Sir Territory Lord’s orders. In fact, Sir Gui Liao has left the place to look for a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit for you; however, I’m sure you know that it’s a very rare item. As for when he’ll find it, or whether he’ll be able to find it at all, that is up to the Heavens.”
[Up to the Heavens?] Yang Kai secretly cursed. It was apparent that Gui Liao wanted to force him to make a concession in such a way. He had never expected that Gui Liao had a hobby of consuming fresh World Force from Humans.
Even though the one whose World Force was getting absorbed would suffer some losses, they would be fine as long as not too much of their World Force was sucked and their foundation was undamaged. The lost World Force could be replenished easily enough.
However, there was no way Yang Kai would agree to such a demand.
First of all, there wasn’t a reason for him to agree to Gui Liao’s request. Secondly, if he really opened up his Small Universe in front of Gui Liao, his secret would be exposed.
Previously, he gave up a part of his Small Universe twice on the battlefield because he had no other choice. Additionally, he was doing that to fool the Black Ink Clansmen so that they wouldn’t examine his Small Universe.
Fortunately, everything had gone well. Why would he expose his secret at this point?
Liu Zi An leaned against the seat and said calmly, “Why don’t you go back and sleep on it? Everything I’ve said to you is sincere.”
“There’s no need to sleep on it,” Yang Kai shook his head.
Liu Zi An stared fixedly at him, “You mean…”
Yang Kai snorted, “This Yang is Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple, not Gui Liao’s. Regardless of what Sir Territory Lord tells me to do, I’ll not hesitate to do it for him. As for Gui Liao’s ridiculous demand, I’ll tell Sir Territory Lord about it when he comes out of the Black Ink Nest.”
Liu Zi An’s expression changed drastically as he landed a slap on the table, “Don’t go too far, you little bastard! It’ll take Sir Territory Lord several years to recuperate. During this period of time, you’ll have to work for Sir Gui Liao.”
“What’s wrong?” Yang Kai shot him a glance, “Is he going to kill me?”
“You’re just a Black Ink Disciple. If you make a mistake, why wouldn’t Sir Gui Liao kill you?” Liu Zi An appeared ferocious.
Yang Kai sneered, “Let’s see if he has the guts to do so!”
Liu Zi An fell into a dazed state. After staring at him for a long time, he shook his head, “You’re insane! Insane!”
He couldn’t sense any respect for Gui Liao from Yang Kai, which was inconceivable. As a Black Ink Disciple, how did Yang Kai have the guts to dismiss a Feudal Lord like Gui Liao? It seemed that he didn’t know his place.
Was he confident because he was the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple? Liu Zi An couldn’t help but feel bitter.
All of a sudden, Yang Kai extended his hand, “Give them back.”
“What?” Liu Zi An was startled.
“The Open Heaven Pills I gave you the other day,” Yang Kai pulled a long face.
Initially, even though Liu Zi An was deplorable, Yang Kai didn’t intend to be on bad terms with him; after all, he was new to this place, so he didn’t want to complicate things. However, what had happened totally disappointed him.
Gui Liao wanted to consume his World Force, and he even told Liu Zi An to con him into accepting.
Yang Kai would never agree to such a demand; however, he needed a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit to cover up the secrets in his Small Universe. After taking everything into consideration, he decided to make a huge fuss so that Gui Liao had to take notice.
In this castle, Liu Zi An was the best breakthrough he could make use of to achieve his goal.
Liu Zi An couldn’t believe his ears. A person must be extremely thick-skinned to have the nerve to take back what he had given out.
Honestly speaking, several hundred thousand Open Heaven Pills didn’t matter to Liu Zi An; however, he could never give them back to Yang Kai given the latter’s attitude. If he really did so, it would be the same as admitting he was afraid of Yang Kai.
After a moment of silence, Liu Zi An sneered, “What Open Heaven Pills? I’ve consumed them all.”
Yang Kai balled up his fists as cracking sounds were heard. His aura was rising rapidly, “Since you’ve consumed my Open Heaven Pills, I just have to make you spit them back out!”
Liu Zi An was astonished as he gazed at Yang Kai in disbelief, “You want to fight with me?”
He couldn’t help but have the urge to laugh.
Previously, he had suggested giving Yang Kai a lesson in front of Gui Liao. At that time, he was just displeased with the different treatments he and Yang Kai received. This brat surnamed Yang could immediately get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit upon arrival while it wasn’t until 300 years after he became a Black Ink Disciple that he got the fruit. Moreover, he only obtained it because he had made many contributions.
Nevertheless, Gui Liao told him not to complicate things, so he cast the idea aside.
Now that he was provoked by Yang Kai though, he could seize the chance to teach him a lesson. Certainly, he wouldn’t dare to disobey Gui Liao’s order; however, there was nothing to worry about now since it was Yang Kai who made the first move. This way, he could explain himself to Gui Liao.
When Zha Gu reported to Gui Liao about the battle that Yang Kai had taken part in, Liu Zi An, who was hiding in the darkness, could hear it clearly as well. He knew that this new Black Ink Disciple that the Territory Lord had taken on was powerful as Yang Kai was able to lead a Squad to kill several thousand Black Ink Clansmen, including more than 10 Feudal Lords.
Liu Zi An didn’t think he was capable of doing that.
However, that was what Yang Kai could achieve when he was at his peak.
During that battle, Yang Kai sacrificed pieces of his Small Universe twice. Now, his Small Universe was incomplete, and his foundation had been damaged. There was no doubt that his power had plunged.
In that case, why would Liu Zi An need to fear him?
He was instantly infuriated by Yang Kai’s provocation and his Seventh-Order aura flared sharply. His entire figure was engulfed in a dark fog as he pushed his power, his figure seemingly expanding as well. The sarcoma on his neck throbbed against his skin like a beating heart.
He slowly rose from the chair and looked condescendingly at Yang Kai. With a grin, he snickered, “Brat, do you know the consequences of provoking me?”
Even though he appeared to be giving Yang Kai a warning, he was actually eager to see him make a move.
Yang Kai scoffed, “Anyone ever tell you, you talk too much?”
Upon finishing his words, he threw out his fist.
Liu Zi An almost had the urge to cheer for Yang Kai. He had never expected this person surnamed Yang to be so impetuous that he would make a move on a whim. It was unlike how polite Yang Kai had appeared to be up until now.
This was exactly the outcome Liu Zi An wanted.
The moment he saw Yang Kai making a move, he also pushed out his fist without hesitation. He was a burly man, so his fist was also significantly larger than that of Yang Kai.
When their fists came into contact, it was as though two Universe Worlds had clashed. As the World Force surged, Liu Zi An abruptly stopped appearing haughty as his huge figure was sent flying away like an arrow. He directly crashed into a wall and formed a pit in the ground.
On the other hand, Yang Kai was forced to back several steps before he managed to stabilise himself.
His surging aura made his clothes flap in the wind.
Shaking his head, Yang Kai stepped forward. He wasn’t used to the condition he was in.
If he were still at the peak of his power, he could’ve severely wounded someone like Liu Zi An with one punch and killed him in three.
However, his strength really had plunged as a result of the damage to his Small Universe, leaving him far weaker than before.
Fortunately, his opponent was Liu Zi An.
Even though Liu Zi An was also a Seventh-Order Master, he reached this Order by using the Black Ink Strength to break through his natural limit, the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Liu Zi An’s foundation was unstable, so he was unable to fully utilise the power of the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm.
After an exchange of moves, Yang Kai had a better judgement of Liu Zi An’s true power. He was indeed a Seventh-Order Master, as manifested by his ample World Force; however, he was unable to fully utilise that power. His cultivation was nothing more than a castle built from sand.
On the other hand, even though Yang Kai had sacrificed a part of his Small Universe twice, which caused his foundation to be damaged, he still had the World Tree clone to continuously purify his World Force; therefore, while he was no match for the other party when it came to strength output, the quality of his power allowed him to overpower his opponent. That was the reason he gained the upper hand following the exchange of moves.
An increasingly ferocious aura billowed from the ruins. A burly figure stepped out of the demolished building. For every step Liu Zi An took, the entire ground seemed to be shaking. Black Ink Strength was seen swirling around him, and even his eyes had turned completely black. He glared at Yang Kai and said through clenched teeth, “Boy, you court death!”
As soon as he finished speaking, he charged towards Yang Kai at the speed of lightning.
While in mid-air, he turned his fists into innumerable phantoms and engulfed Yang Kai with them.
Yang Kai had already intended to make a fuss, so he naturally wouldn’t back down at this point. He charged right at Liu Zi An and engaged him in a brutal melee.
The noise of the battle soon alerted everyone in the castle.
The Feudal Lords, who resided in different places, subsequently appeared and watched them from a distance. When they realised it was a battle between Gui Liao’s Black Ink Disciple and the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple, they were astounded. They had no idea what had happened that caused these two Humans to get into a life-and-death fight.
Nevertheless, these Feudal Lords didn’t have the intention of interfering or stopping them. To them, even though these Humans had been corrupted by Black Ink Strength, they were not the same as Black Ink Clansmen like them, who had a noble bloodline. Naturally, they wouldn’t care whether one of them was injured or even killed. In fact, they had fun watching the battle and chatted among themselves.
The battle in the courtyard between Yang Kai and Liu Zi An was intense. As time passed, Yang Kai realised that this guy indeed had a problem mobilizing his strength.
Sometimes, his attacks would be so forceful that even Yang Kai found it hard to fend off, but sometimes, his strikes would be so powerless that Yang Kai could easily find openings and land direct hits on his figure, which caused him to groan in pain.
It meant that Liu Zi An was unable to use his power flexibly; instead, his utilisation of his World Force was unstable. Sometimes, he could showcase his real power, but sometimes, he would be strong in will while weak in strength.
Any Open Heaven Realm Master with a solid foundation wouldn’t face such a problem. One must be fully at ease with using their power in order to ascend to the Open Heaven Realm, so they wouldn’t have to deal with such a situation. The reason Liu Zi An was unable to effortlessly use his strength was that he didn’t deserve to be in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm in the first place.
Given his condition, he would be killed soon after he stepped onto the battlefield. Once his weaknesses were detected by the opponent, he would lose his life.
In fact, it wasn’t hard for Yang Kai to kill him now, but he didn’t have the intention of doing so. It was no longer possible to save Liu Zi An. Even if the Black Ink Strength inside his body was dispelled using Purifying Light, his Small Universe would shatter as it was unable to bear Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm power. Nevertheless, he was Gui Liao’s Black Ink Disciple, so if he was killed here, Gui Liao would definitely avenge his death.
Liu Zi An was right to say that it would take Hei Yuan several years to recuperate, and Gui Liao was tasked with handling the affairs in the territory until then. Yang Kai would have a hard time here if he offended him too seriously.
It wasn’t long before Liu Zi An fell into a complete disadvantage.
This made him increasingly infuriated. He initially thought that Yang Kai wouldn’t be a match for him as the latter’s foundation had been damaged, but after the battle started, he realised that things were different from what he had imagined. Yang Kai was still powerful even though his Small Universe was incomplete. It was no wonder that when he was at the peak of his power, he was able to kill so many Feudal Lords and Black Ink Clansmen.
At this moment, Liu Zi An found himself in a dilemma. He could only madly push his power in an attempt to suppress Yang Kai while at the same time, he prayed that the latter wouldn’t be able to persevere due to his weakened foundation.
The more he exerted his strength, the thicker the Black Ink Strength around him became while the aura wafting from his body became increasingly unstable.
However, Liu Zi An seemed oblivious to all of that while Yang Kai had faintly detected it.
By activating the power he was unable to control, Liu Zi An would soon suffer a backlash. When that happened, he would be crippled even if he didn’t lose his life.
Just then, Yang Kai detected something as he slowed down his attack.
Liu Zi An was elated upon seeing that, but just as he was preparing to push his advantage, a voice was heard snapping, “Both of you, stop right there!”
In the next instant, a figure descended from the sky and landed between Yang Kai and Liu Zi An.
An agile Yang Kai promptly leapt backwards. On the other hand, Liu Zi An, who was blinded by wrath, forcefully pushed out his fist and attacked the person in front of him; however, the instant he made out the person’s face, he was flabbergasted as he quickly retracted his fist.
Forcefully withdrawing his strike caused Liu Zi An’s Small Universe to shake and his World Force to descend into chaos.
The next moment, he was heard spraying out a mouthful of blood. His aura had withered as he was unable to bear the consequences of this impact.
While trying to support his own weight, he cupped his fists, “Master!”
Gui Liao shot him an impassive glance, which caused his back to be covered with cold sweat and his legs to tremble. A Black Ink Disciple could never go against his Master, and this time, he seemed to have screwed things up. That was why he was apprehensive.
“Sir Gui Liao!” Yang Kai cupped his fist while secretly scoffing at the fact that Gui Liao was finally alerted.
Judging from the direction he came from, he was indeed not in the castle moments ago; however, the repercussions of the battle between two Seventh-Order Masters could spread across half this universe fragment. As long as he wasn’t too far away, Gui Liao could definitely sense it.
Upon hearing that, Gui Liao turned around and glared at Yang Kai.
While the Territory Lord was still recuperating, two Black Ink Disciples got into a fight and caused a large part of the castle to be damaged. Regardless of the cause of the fight, Gui Liao would be held responsible for not managing the situation properly.
When the Territory Lord returned from the Black Ink Nest and asked about it, Gui Liao would probably be reprimanded. Although it wasn’t a big issue, he was still displeased.
“Can anyone tell me what’s going on?” Gui Liao asked in a grim voice.
Liu Zi An wouldn’t dare to say anything. It wasn’t like he could say Yang Kai had turned him down and wanted to get back the Open Heaven Pills given to him, which was why they got into a fight.
While Liu Zi An was timid, Yang Kai was confident as he cupped his fist, “Sir Gui Liao, I’d like to file a complaint against Liu Zi An for oppressing a newcomer like me who doesn’t know the customs in the Black Ink Clan’s base. He has demanded a lot of benefits from me using your name.”
Right after Yang Kai finished speaking, Gui Liao felt his heart sinking as he regretted asking such a foolish question.
He didn’t give it any serious consideration as he was furious earlier, but now that he thought about it, he should’ve brought these two Humans to a quiet place so that there wouldn’t be so many Feudal Lords watching them.
“Is that true?” Gui Liao narrowed his eyes and glanced at Liu Zi An.
Liu Zi An’s face was covered with cold sweat, “No.”
Yang Kai glowered at him, “Do you have the gall to say that you didn’t take my Open Heaven Pills on the first day of my arrival?”
Liu Zi An snapped, “I didn’t make such a demand. You gave them to me!”
Yang Kai snorted, “If you hadn’t asked for them, why would I give anything to you? Indeed, you didn’t make it clear, but you implied that I should give you some benefits if I wanted to live a better life here. I’m not a fool, so it’s expected that I would be able to read between the lines. I’m a newcomer, so I wouldn’t dare to say no. I could only make a sacrifice.” He then turned to Gui Liao and cupped his fist, “Please stand up for me, Sir Gui Liao. I only had a small number of Open Heaven Pills, but I still gave him half of everything I had, thinking that I could befriend him. To my surprise, this guy was greedy as he thought that my gift was not valuable enough. He even used your name and tried to demand more from me today.”
“Stop spouting nonsense!” Liu Zi An roared as he was worried that Yang Kai would break the secret to everyone.
The Black Ink Clansmen in the castle were aware of Gui Liao’s hobby; in fact, many of them enjoyed doing it as well. However, knowing was one thing, but making it public was another.
It would be fine to do some things in private, but it would be ugly when they were talked about publicly. It was especially true as Yang Kai’s identity was special; he was the Black Ink Disciple personally corrupted by Hei Yuan Territory Lord.
It would’ve been fine if Yang Kai wasn’t Hei Yuan’s Black Ink Disciple; however, this relationship was truly significant. Since Gui Liao had his eyes on his Black Ink Disciple, it would suggest that he had no regard for Hei Yuan at all. This issue could be small or big. It might not be worth mentioning as Yang Kai’s life was not at stake; nevertheless, if Hei Yuan felt insulted, it would mean that Gui Liao had crossed the line by offending his superior.
Gui Liao wouldn’t be able to bear the wrath if the Territory Lord blamed him.
It would’ve been alright if Gui Liao could secretly settle the matter. From his standpoint, he believed that a newcomer like Yang Kai wouldn’t dare to resist as it wouldn’t matter to lose a bit of World Force; however, he hadn’t expected the other party to be so obstinate and defiant.
While remaining silent, Gui Liao felt his brow twitching.
Yang Kai asked, “Sir, don’t you want to know how he tarnishes your reputation?”
It had come to a point where Gui Liao had to get to the bottom of it in front of everyone; otherwise, he would only appear guilty, so he replied with a nod, “Speak.”
Despite his casual look, Gui Liao’s eyes were filled with murderous intent.
Seemingly oblivious to this, Yang Kai proclaimed loudly, “Before Sir Territory Lord entered the Black Ink Nest, he had told you to get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit for me. I’ve been waiting for days, but there hasn’t been any news about it. I initially wanted to ask you about this; however, since you were not around, I could only look for Liu Zi An. By leveraging his position as your Black Ink Disciple, this guy demanded a lot of resources from me. He said that as long as I could satisfy his demands, he would put in a good word for me in front of you so that I could get the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit sooner. He even said that…”
At this point, he seemed hesitant to continue.
“What else did he say?” Gui Liao gritted his teeth.
Yang Kai went on to say, “He even said that those demands were not for himself but for you, Sir Gui Liao. It was Sir Territory Lord who told you to get me a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, so I’m sure that you wouldn’t be negligent about it. Why would I need his help to begin with? Moreover, it’s not like a Black Ink Disciple like him can affect what you do. After I exposed his lies, he became furious out of shame and started a fight with me. Please stand up for me, Sir!”
A dumbfounded Liu Zi An gazed at Yang Kai with widened eyes.
Liu Zi An hadn’t expected Yang Kai to spout such nonsense, and his upright attitude made it look like it was really what had happened, so he quickly refuted, “That’s not true!”
A calm Yang Kai turned to look at him, “It’s not true? Why don’t you tell everyone why we fought then, Brother Liu? It’s not like a newcomer like me would ask for trouble by offending you for no reason.”
Liu Zi An snapped, “It’s because…”
Yang Kai stared fixedly at him, “Go on.”
Liu Zi An was rendered speechless. The demand he had mentioned to Yang Kai on this day couldn’t be exposed in public; after all, this was just his speculation of Gui Liao’s intention. If it was exposed, Gui Liao would be humiliated. As his Black Ink Disciple, Liu Zi An wouldn’t dare to bring trouble to his Master.
Yang Kai promptly said, “See? He can’t say anything! Sir Gui Liao, the truth is right before our eyes. It’s not that I wanted to get into a conflict with him; instead, he was the one who went too far. Please stand up for me, Sir!”
Gui Liao stared fixedly at him for a moment, then turned to glare at Liu Zi An, “Waste!”
Liu Zi An was unable to say anything despite feeling aggrieved. He felt apprehensive and terrified as Gui Liao reprimanded him. It all happened because of Yang Kai, but he could only keep the resentment in his heart for the time being and try to get his revenge in the future.
“Regardless of the cause of the conflict, you two, as Black Ink Disciples, shouldn’t have gotten into a fight in Sir Territory Lord’s castle and caused so much damage. Both of you have to be punished. Liu Zi An!”
Liu Zi An replied in a shaking voice, “Yes.”
“That will be 3 World Spheres from you.”
Liu Zi An’s face instantly turned pale as he pleaded with Gui Liao, “Sir…”
“If you dare to say anything more, it will be 5 World Spheres!” Gui Liao snorted.
Liu Zi An instantly kept his mouth shut, but his expression was evidently furious and aggrieved.
“As for you…” Gui Liao gave Yang Kai a dispassionate look, “It will be 1 World Sphere.”
Even though Yang Kai had no idea what the punishment was, he knew that it was definitely terrible. That was the reason Liu Zi An turned pale upon hearing it. Yang Kai then cupped his fist, “Sir Gui Liao, I’m the victim.”
“You’re the victim?” Gui Liao sneered, “There’s a saying you Humans like to use, it takes two hands to clap. Both of you are in the wrong for what has happened today. I’m sure Sir Territory Lord will be fine with how I handle this matter. What’s wrong? Are you unwilling?”
[Of course I’m unwilling!] Yang Kai gritted his teeth for a moment before saying, “I’ll accept this punishment, then.”
Gui Liao stared at him for a while before nodding, “You’re quite good.”
“Many thanks for the compliment, Sir,” Yang Kai replied unenthusiastically.
“Enough, enough, go back to your own places.” Gui Liao waved his hand and chastised the Feudal Lords around him. It was then that the Feudal Lords left.
Seeing that Gui Liao was about to leave, Yang Kai called out to him, “Sir, when will you give me the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit as promised by Sir Territory Lord?”
Without turning his head, Gui Liao replied, “Just wait. I’ll give it to you when I find one.”
He soon disappeared, but he never said when he would find the fruit. Yang Kai reckoned that after he kicked up a fuss this time, he wouldn’t be able to get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit in short order. Nevertheless, he didn’t regret his decision. There was no way he would agree to opening up his Small Universe and letting Gui Liao feed on his World Force.
With that said, he had to get his hands on a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit quickly; otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to explain himself when his Small Universe was fully repaired by the World Tree clone.
When he felt a resentful glare on him, Yang Kai turned around and saw Liu Zi An glowering at him. He sneered before striding off. Liu Zi An was so enraged that he almost spat out a mouthful of blood.
After the battle, not only was he defeated by his opponent, but he was also punished by Gui Liao. Besides that, his residence was also destroyed. It could be said that he had suffered immense losses.
On the other hand, Yang Kai had received a much lighter punishment. There was no way Liu Zi An could tolerate this.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai wasn’t interested in responding to him. This Black Ink Disciple could never be saved, but he didn’t feel like killing him either, so he could only let him perish on his own.
Not long after Yang Kai returned to his room, a High-Rank Black Ink Clansman came over and passed him a World Sphere. After saying that it was Gui Liao’s order, he left.
Certainly, Yang Kai had seen World Spheres before. When he was Nu Yan’s subordinate in the past, that guy would bring him to different territories to fight against other Black Ink Disciples. The Black Ink Coins he earned would be used to buy World Spheres so that he could cultivate.
Nu Yan had a dream, which was to earn enough Black Ink Coins and head to Black Ink Nest to ascend to become a Feudal Lord.
However, before he could realise his dream, he was killed by Feng Ying.
To Black Ink Clansmen, World Spheres were cultivation resources, and every piece was costly. The average clansman couldn’t afford one.
If not for the fact that Yang Kai was powerful enough to win every life-and-death gambling match he entered, Nu Yan wouldn’t have earned enough Black Ink Coins to keep buying World Spheres.
Another Black Ink Disciple of Nu Yan’s, D-4, once told Yang Kai that the World Force in the World Spheres was basically collected from the battlefield. After Open Heaven Realm Masters passed away, their Small Universes would collapse, and their World Force would dissipate. World Spheres could be used to capture that leaking World Force.
However, Yang Kai felt that the explanation was unreasonable. Even though a lot of Open Heaven Realm Masters were killed on the battlefield, there shouldn’t be enough World Force that could fill World Spheres to be sold to so many Black Ink Clansmen.
After asking about this, D-4 told him that Black Ink Disciples could also infuse their World Force into the World Spheres, which was actually the most common way for the Black Ink Clansmen to create World Spheres.
Therefore, every Black Ink Disciple was a valuable asset to their Master. Black Ink Disciples were loyal and would never betray their Master, and they could tag along when the Master went to war. During their free time, Black Ink Disciples could even make World Spheres for the Masters to cultivate with. As long as the Black Ink Disciples were not killed, the Masters would have an unlimited supply of World Spheres.
Back then, Nu Yan had bought several empty World Spheres and told D-4 and the others to infuse their World Force into them; however, Yang Kai was Nu Yan’s money tree, so he was spared from this task. He just had to continuously win battles in different arenas.
When Yang Kai heard the punishment announced by Gui Liao, he didn’t understand what that meant; however, when he saw this empty World Sphere, he finally comprehended Gui Liao’s intention.
It was apparent that he was required to fill this World Sphere with his World Force.
It took a long time to completely fill a World Sphere, at least a few months given Yang Kai’s Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm strength. Not only was this time-consuming, but it would also exhaust his heritage.
Certainly, Yang Kai wasn’t willing to do such a thing. Why would he make a World Sphere for Gui Liao when the latter wasn’t even willing to give him a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit?
Nevertheless, since he had offended Gui Liao, life would be hard for him in the future. At the very least, before Hei Yuan left the Black Ink Nest years later, he had to be cautious so that Gui Liao wouldn’t have a reason to punish him.
Moreover, he had to come up with a way to complete his true objective, which was to find out the Artifact Refining Grandmaster’s identity and whereabouts.
Having said that, the most pressing issue for him was to obtain a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit. Since he couldn’t pin his hopes on Gui Liao, he had to look for a different way to achieve his goal.
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai rose from the chair and left his room.
It was business as usual inside the castle. The passing Black Ink Clansmen would look curiously at him; after all, they had never seen a new Black Ink Disciple who had the guts to get into a fight in the castle.
Yang Kai randomly caught a Black Ink Clansman and asked, “Do you know where Zha Gu lives?”
The Black Ink Clansman was puzzled, “Who is that?”
Even though Zha Gu was a Feudal Lord, there were many Feudal Lords in Hei Yuan’s territory. Naturally, the Black Ink Clansmen in the castle couldn’t possibly know all the Feudal Lords.
Yang Kai didn’t give up though and kept asking around. After asking more than a dozen Black Ink Clansmen the same question, he finally got some clues. He found a Black Ink Clansman who knew a little about Zha Gu, he had no idea where he lived exactly, but he told Yang Kai to look for him in a particular area in the territory. A Feudal Lord like Zha Gu would generally look for a place outside of the city to establish their own home.
This was permitted by Hei Yuan and the other Territory Lords.
However, if one was incapable of acquiring a Black Ink Nest, he wouldn’t really have a territory to his name.
After thanking him, Yang Kai shuffled in that direction. No one stopped him along the way. It seemed that after the incident earlier, Gui Liao wasn’t ready to complicate the matter.
The universe fragment that was as large as a Universe World was directly owned by Hei Yuan, and the surrounding region occupied by his subordinate Feudal Lords was also considered his territory.
The location of the Black Ink Nest and the castle were the centre of the universe fragment. It could be considered the most prosperous place in the universe fragment.
Flying was not prohibited in the city, so after leaving the castle, Yang Kai directly shot into the sky where he met a lot of passing Black Ink Clansmen.
When the Black Ink Clansmen detected his Human, they looked curiously at him; however, no one made things difficult for him or had their eyes on him.
After all, he was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so not just any Black Ink Clansman could capture him.
Soon, Yang Kai left this big city.
After flying a few hundred kilometres, he saw a manor below him. He speculated that it was a Feudal Lord’s territory.
Without hesitation, he descended towards the manor, not hiding his aura.
Before he even landed, a burly figure shot out from somewhere of the manor and came to him.
He soon stopped in front of Yang Kai and examined him. With a surprised expression, he asked, “A Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciple?”
There were only a small number of Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples on this universe fragment, and he had met most of them before, but he wasn’t aware of Yang Kai’s existence, which made him feel curious.
“I’m sorry for disturbing you,” Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Sir, do you know where Sir Zha Gu lives?”
Instead of answering his question, the Feudal Lord asked, “Whose Black Ink Disciple are you? Why are you here?”
Yang Kai replied politely, “I’m Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple. Sir Gui Liao told me to look for Zha Gu as there’s a matter he has to discuss with him.”
Upon learning about his identity, the Feudal Lord said, “So, you’re the new Black Ink Disciple that Sir Territory Lord has taken on. It’s no wonder I had never seen you before.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai asked curiously, “Does everyone know about it now?”
The Feudal Lord chuckled, “It’s only natural to pay attention to Sir Territory Lord’s affairs.”
Upon hearing the reason behind it, Yang Kai nodded, “I see.”
The Feudal Lord’s expression turned milder after he found out that Yang Kai was Hei Yuan’s Black Ink Disciple and he replied, “If you’re looking for Zha Gu, just head in that direction. According to Human measurements, he lives in a place that is 3,000 kilometres away from here.”
After looking in the same direction, Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Many thanks.”
He then bid the Feudal Lord farewell and shot in that direction. It took him a short moment to move across 3,000 kilometres.
From afar, Yang Kai could see a castle that was similar to Hei Yuan’s that was built on an island. There were no traces of other Black Ink Clan estates within a 100-kilometre radius. If he wasn’t mistaken, this should be Zha Gu’s residence.
Yang Kai landed in front of the castle and activated his Divine Sense. There were a lot of Black Ink Clansmen inside, but they were all insignificant Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen with High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen being quite rare.
There was an aura that Yang Kai was familiar with in the deepest part of the castle; Zha Gu.
Upon confirming that the other party really resided here, Yang Kai called out, “Brother Zha Gu!”
In an instant, all the Black Ink Clansmen in the castle were shocked as they looked in the same direction. Zha Gu, who was recuperating, was alerted as he opened his eyes and stared out.
A moment later, the gates were opened as Zha Gu stepped out of the castle and looked at Yang Kai with surprise, “Why are you here?”
Yang Kai cupped his fist and smiled, “I’ve come all the way here to visit you, Brother Zha Gu. I hope I haven’t bothered you.”
Zha Gu nodded, “Come in first.”
After entering the castle, they arrived at a room and took seats.
“Has Sir Territory Lord issued any orders?” Zha Gu asked. He reckoned that a Black Ink Disciple usually wouldn’t dare to come all the way here on his own. Yang Kai probably had received a secret order from the Territory Lord.
However, Yang Kai shook his head, “Sir Territory Lord has not shown up since he entered the Black Ink Nest. I heard that it would take him several years to recuperate.”
Zha Gu was evidently relieved upon learning that it wasn’t Hei Yuan who told Yang Kai to look for him.
“The reason I’ve come here to visit you is that I need your help,” Yang Kai expressed his purpose for the visit.
Zha Gu frowned, “What can I help you with?”
Although Yang Kai was a Black Ink Disciple treasured by Hei Yuan, he was still a Black Ink Disciple. Zha Gu was willing to be on good terms with him, but he wouldn’t fawn over him, so he would of course find out what help Yang Kai needed before he would make a decision.
Yang Kai let out a sigh and went on to say, “I’d like to ask you if there is a way I can earn money in Black Ink Clan’s territory.”
“Earn money?” Zha Gu was surprised.
“Indeed,” Yang Kai coughed, “You know, when Human soldiers go to war, we don’t bring a lot of resources with us. I was enlightened by Sir Territory Lord not long ago, so I only have a few resources with me. Now that my Small Universe is damaged, I need a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit to repair it, and I need resources to cultivate as well; however, since Sir Territory Lord is recuperating in the Black Ink Nest, I have no means to purchase anything. I can neither repair my Small Universe nor cultivate in this state.”
A puzzled Zha Gu asked, “Profound Yin Spirit Fruit? Before Sir Territory Lord started recuperating, he told Sir Gui Liao to get one for you. Given Sir Gui Liao’s status, it shouldn’t be hard for him to get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit.”
“Perhaps,” Yang Kai nodded, “However, I’ve offended Sir Gui Liao, so he doesn’t seem willing to give it to me now.”
Zha Gu was shocked upon hearing that, “You offended Sir Gui Liao? What happened?”
A helpless Yang Kai told Zha Gu about what had happened between Liu Zi An and him.
Zha Gu gazed at him with a weird expression, “You offended Sir Gui Liao just because of that?” He seemed to think that it was fine to agree to Gui Liao’s demand, so he didn’t understand why Yang Kai turned him down.
Yang Kai spread his palms, “You’re also aware that I sacrificed a part of my Small Universe twice in the recent battle. My strength has plunged because of the damage to my foundation, so if I still let Sir Gui Liao feed on my Small Universe, my Order might drop. When that happens, I will become useless to Sir Territory Lord. By then, I will most likely be discarded.”
“You have a point,” Zha Gu nodded.
“So, I had no choice but to disappoint Sir Gui Liao; however, since that is the case, I can’t hope to get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit from him.”
Zha Gu frowned, “I don’t think so. He wouldn’t dare to disobey Sir Territory Lord’s order, but you might need to wait a little longer.”
Yang Kai internally cried that he couldn’t possibly wait. The World Tree clone was continuously repairing his Small Universe, so if he couldn’t obtain a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit to cover up this process, he would be exposed.
Zha Gu placated him by saying, “Don’t worry. Before Sir Territory Lord leaves the Black Ink Nest, Sir Gui Liao will get you a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit.”
Yang Kai shook his head, “I’d rather come up with a way to get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit myself. I suppose the fruits are for sale in the city.”
Zha Gu replied, “Yes, but they’ve always been expensive. They cost a lot of Black Ink Coins.”
“That’s why I’ve come here to ask for a way to make money. Can you enlighten me, Brother Zha Gu?” Yang Kai looked humbly at him.
Zha Gu fell into a dilemma.
Since such an incident had happened, he would offend Gui Liao by lending Yang Kai a hand, and this was obviously not worth it just to help a mere Black Ink Disciple. Moreover, he didn’t know any way he could make money. Even if he did, he wouldn’t want to share it with Yang Kai.
As Yang Kai observed his expression, he said, “Don’t worry, Brother Zha Gu. If there’s a proper way that allows me to earn Black Ink Coins, I’ll not forget your assistance and properly compensate you.”
Zha Gu appeared tempted at the prospect of making a profit, so after giving it a thought, he said, “Given your situation, there’s indeed a way.”
Yang Kai’s eyes brightened, “Oh? What is it?”
Zha Gu said, “Do you know World Spheres? I can give you some money to buy some empty World Spheres, then you can infuse your World Force into them and sell them. Each World Sphere will earn you a lot of Black Ink Coins. Just by selling 10 World Spheres, you’ll have enough money to buy a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit.”
Yang Kai’s brow twitched as he hadn’t expected Zha Gu to mention this method, so he shook his head, “Please stop pulling my leg, Brother Zha Gu. I can’t even cultivate now, so how am I supposed to infuse my World Force into the World Spheres? If I do that, I’ll definitely see my Order regress.”
“You have a point. I suppose this is what your Humans call ‘killing the goose that lays the golden eggs’.”
Yang Kai thought that this guy had misused the idiom, but he didn’t bother to correct him and simply said, “I heard that there’s a Blood Arena in the city.”
“You want to engage in a life-or-death fight with others?” Zha Gu instantly realised his intention.
Yang Kai nodded, “However, I’ll need a Black Ink Clansman to bring me there. Taking everything into consideration, I think that you’re the most suitable person to help me with it. If you can go there and bet against the others, I’ll not disappoint you. When the time comes, I’ll share half the profit with you.”
Zha Gu shook his head, “That’s indeed a good way, but it won’t work for you.”
“Why not?” Yang Kai was perplexed.
Zha Gu explained, “Since it’s a life-or-death fight, both parties have to be equally matched. You are a Seventh-Order Master, so there are no suitable opponents for you in the Blood Arena. The Black Ink Disciples there are all below the Seventh-Order.”
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai realised that he really hadn’t seen any Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters fighting in the Blood Arenas when he followed Nu Yan around. He soon realised the reasons behind this. First of all, the battle between two Seventh-Order Masters would be too destructive. Secondly, there were only a small number of Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples. Since they were rare, the Black Ink Clansmen wouldn’t let them go to the Blood Arena and put their lives at risk.
Even though Yang Kai’s idea was not feasible, he was well prepared. He then let out a sigh, “It seems that I have no choice but to make use of my hobby.”
Zha Gu asked curiously, “Hobby? What do you mean?”
Yang Kai explained, “I realised this some time ago on the battlefield. It seems that Black Ink Clansmen rarely use artifacts to fight. Even Feudal Lords don’t use artifacts, let alone the High-Rank and Low-Rank Clansmen. It seems that you all are used to fighting with Humans using only Black Ink Strength and Secret Techniques.”
Zha Gu nodded, “To us, Black Ink Strength is the source of our powers, just like World Force is to Humans. Although we’re physically stronger than Humans, we know nothing about the Dao of Artifact Refining. The artifacts we have were all snatched from Humans or refined by Black Ink Disciples, so they’re quite rare. However, most artifacts we snatch from the Humans are not suitable for us to use.”
Yang Kai asked, “Do you have your own artifact, Brother Zha Gu?”
Zha Gu shook his head, “I once used a sword I obtained from a Human, but that thing’s Grade was too low, and it didn’t suit me. I threw it away after using it a couple times.”
After pondering on it for a moment, Yang Kai reckoned that given Zha Gu’s size, it would be akin to holding a knife for him when he grabbed a Human sword. The weapon wouldn’t be useful for him on the battlefield.
With his brow arched, Yang Kai asked, “What if I refined an artifact that was tailored to you?”
Zha Gu was startled for a moment, “You know how to make artifacts?”
“I know a thing or two.”
“You really know how to refine artifacts?” Zha Gu was astounded, “Are you what the Humans call an Artifact Refiner?”
Yang Kai put on a faint smile, “I supposed I could be considered an Artifact Refiner.”
Zha Gu sized him up while feeling doubtful, “Is that what you mean when you said you wanted to monetise your hobby?”
“Yes.” Yang Kai frowned, “Don’t you believe me, Brother Zha Gu?”
Zha Gu shook his head, “It’s not that I don’t believe you. I’m just… surprised that you’re an Artifact Refiner. Humans are always highly protective of their Artifact Refiners. Why did you appear on the battlefield?”
Yang Kai explained, “Artifact Refining really is just a hobby for me, so I haven’t spent a lot of time practising it. In fact, not many Humans are aware that I’m an Artifact Refiner as I haven’t made anything since I ascended to the Open Heaven Realm. However, I should still be able to make some simple artifacts.” He then leaned forward and spoke in a tempting voice, “Do you want to give it a try, Brother Zha Gu? With a suitable artifact, you’ll be more powerful on the battlefield.”
Certainly, Zha Gu couldn’t resist such a temptation so he rose from the chair and declared, “Come with me.”
Yang Kai followed Zha Gu to the deepest part of the castle. After they descended nearly three kilometres, they arrived at a huge cave where hot air blew right at their faces.
As Yang Kai lifted his head and was surprised by what he saw. That was because there was natural Earth Fire in his underground cave. The omnipresent hot air billowed from that Earth Fire.
In this cave, there were some traces of restrictions set up by Humans and the entire cave was covered with a Grand Array.
The centre of the Grand Array was where the Earth Fire gathered.
There were also some miscellaneous materials strewn around the cave. It seemed that many of the materials had been used here before.
Yang Kai frowned with a puzzled expression.
Zha Gu shuffled towards the centre of the Grand Array. His aura seemed to have triggered the Grand Array’s power and the Earth Fire, which was hot enough to melt metal, came right at him. Ignoring it, Zha Gu covered his hand with Black Ink Strength and extended it into the Earth Fire.
When he retracted his hand from the Earth Fire, he was holding something.
He walked away from the centre of the Grand Array and passed the thing to Yang Kai, “Look at this.”
Yang Kai took it with both hands and instantly felt a hefty weight. Even with his strength, his arms still sank slightly, which went to show how heavy this thing was.
It was a giant halberd that was about 15 metres in length and as thick as a Human leg. This giant halberd looked awkward in Yang Kai’s hands, but it did suit Zha Gu’s size quite well.
“This…” Yang Kai examined the giant halberd in shock. As he scanned it with his Divine Sense, he soon realised something, “Was this created by a Human Artifact Refiner?”
He then turned to look at Zha Gu in astonishment, “Where did you get it?”
Given his eyesight, he could see that even though this giant halberd was made by a Human Artifact Refiner, it wasn’t fully refined. It was more like a half-finished prototype. This kind of weapon wouldn’t be useful on the battlefield as any Open Heaven Realm Master could easily destroy it.
“I used to have a Black Ink Disciple who knew a little about Artifact Refining. He spent a lot of time and resources creating this thing for me.”
Yang Kai was stunned as he hadn’t expected that to be the story behind it.
“It was because of his suggestion that I decided to build my estate here. This place has an Earth Fire he needed for Artifact Refining so that he could make full use of his skills. Unfortunately, before he could finish refining this thing, he… Before that, he left behind a set-up and told me to nurture this thing in the Earth Fire. He said that perhaps it would be usable after 100 years or so.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai shook his head, “It’s useless. Since the foundation isn’t solid, it’s pointless to keep nourishing it.”
Zha Gu arched his brow, “What do you mean?”
Yang Kai explained, “I have no idea what kind of achievements your former Black Ink Disciple had in the Dao of Artifact Refining, but this thing looks mediocre to me. The foundation of this artifact has been set, so even if it is nurtured for 100 years, you will only obtain a Low-Rank artifact.”
Zha Gu’s eyes brightened, “Are you saying that you’re more skilful than he was in Artifact Refining?”
Yang Kai put on a proud smile, “Indeed.”
An agitated Zha Gu asked, “If you were to refine it, what do you think you can make out of it?”
After a moment of deliberation, Yang Kai replied, “The artifacts used by Humans are categorised into Low, Mid, and High, which correspond to the Ranks of the Open Heaven Realm. People who can make High-Rank artifacts are called Artifact Refining Grandmasters. My Artifact Refining skills are average, so I’m far from being a Grandmaster. Nevertheless, it won’t be hard for me to make Mid-Rank artifacts.”
Yang Kai had spent 10 years learning Artifact Refining, and the one who taught him was Chai Hao, who came from Divine Cauldron Cave Heaven.
Chai Gao was the Sixth Disciple of Dong Guo An Ping, and even though he wasn’t as skilful as a Great Grandmaster like Dong Guo An Ping, he was still a Grandmaster. With such a person as a teacher, anyone would grow a lot regardless of how terrible their aptitude was.
Moreover, there were many similarities between Artifact Refining and the Alchemic Dao. Additionally, Yang Kai was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master with outstanding strength and aptitude. During the 10 years he had spent learning Artifact Refining from Chai Hao, his skills improved greatly.
Now, his Dao of Artifact Refining had reached the third level of comprehension, Taking the Initial Steps.
However, due to the limit of his aptitude in this Dao, it was destined that Yang Kai wouldn’t achieve great things in Artifact Refining. Perhaps he would be able to refine High-Rank artifacts one day if he kept improving his skills, which would make him a Grandmaster. Nevertheless, that would be the limit he could never break through in his lifetime. He could never become a Great Grandmaster like Dong Guo An Ping.
As Yang Kai had learned from a Grandmaster from Divine Cauldron Cave Heaven, regardless of his level of Artifact Refining now, his vision was much sharper than that of the average Artifact Refiner. He could clearly see the weaknesses in this giant halberd.
He hadn’t expected that Zha Gu had a subordinate who was an Artifact Refiner in the past; nevertheless, judging from the way this giant halberd was made, it was safe to assume that the Artifact Refiner who refined it was not very accomplished in this Dao, and since he wasn’t around, he had probably lost his life on the battlefield. Fortunately, the Artifact Refiner had at least built a set-up to allow the giant halberd to be nourished in the Earth Fire, so it was possible that Zha Gu could obtain a Low-Rank artifact in 100 years.
Nonetheless, as a Feudal Lord, it would be of no help to him to use a Low-Rank artifact in combat.
Meanwhile, Zha Gu became increasingly excited, “You must not lie to me.”
Yang Kai tiled his head and asked, “Why would I lie to you?”
“Prove it to me, then. Make me an artifact based on this one here. I’ll provide all the materials you need. If you succeed, I’ll give you a reward.”
“Fair enough.” Yang Kai directly agreed to it. This was the reason he had come all the way here in the first place, but he hadn’t expected that things would go so smoothly.
Moreover, there was already an environment that an Artifact Refiner needed. It could be said that Yang Kai had acquired the inheritance left behind by Zha Gu’s former Black Ink Disciple.
As he felt the giant halberd with his hands and examined it, Yang Kai commented, “It would be wasteful to create an entirely new weapon. Although this thing is a bit shoddy, and its form has been finalised, the materials used are precious. I just need to enhance it.”
“What do you need? I’ll prepare them for you.” Zha Gu asked, high-spirited.
Yang Kai replied, “Just get me some cultivation materials.”
“You only need those things?” Zha Gu was surprised.
Yang Kai nodded.
This wasn’t difficult. Zha Gu fished out a Space Ring and passed it to Yang Kai, “Do you think these are enough?”
After taking it, Yang Kai realised that there were a lot of Open Heaven Pills and several sets of Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order materials.
The origins of these Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order materials were untraceable; however, only Humans could refine Open Heaven Pills, and they were only useful to Humans. It was apparent that Zha Gu had acquired these pills from the battlefield.
Judging from the number of Open Heaven Pills in this ring, Yang Kai reckoned that Zha Gu had killed quite a lot of Human soldiers.
While forcing himself to remain calm, Yang Kai put away the Space Ring and examined the Grand Array in this cave. He then turned to Zha Gu, “Where’s the Array Plate that’s used to control this Grand Array?”
Zha Gu landed a slap on his own forehead, “Right.”
Upon finishing his words, he tossed an Array Plate at Yang Kai, who took it and started refining it.
It wasn’t difficult to refine this thing, so it only took Yang Kai a dozen breaths to finish. With this token in possession, he had full control over the Grand Array in this place.
With the help of the Earth Fire in this place, he would achieve twice the results with only half the effort.
When everything was prepared, Yang Kai extended his hand and summoned out a glittering silver hammer.
This nameless hammer was given to him by Chai Hao. It was used by Chai Hao when he was younger, but it fell into disuse after his skills improved and he acquired a better one. If not for the fact that Yang Kai was somewhat talented in the Dao of Artifact Refining, and that he was eager to learn, Chai Hao wouldn’t have given this sentimental hammer to him.
Although this thing was no longer useful to Chai Hao, it was a symbol of his growth that carried special meaning with it.
While it was useless to Chai Hao, it was precious to Yang Kai, and given his level of Artifact Refining, he could only utilise a small part of its full potential. It was also pointless for him to use better tools as he couldn’t bring out their strength with his low comprehension.
Yang Kai gently jabbed the hefty giant halberd into the ground so that it stood straight.
Zha Gu could see that Yang Kai raised the hammer in his hands and forcefully struck the giant halberd.
The moment the hammer was lifted, the Earth Fire in the cave madly streamed into the hammer, making the tool glow red.
A deafening clang was then heard.
A strike of such intensity should have destroyed the entire cave, but what was strange was that all the force stayed within the giant halberd without any of it escaping from the weapon. This was apparently because Yang Kai had full control over his strength, allowing him to put all of it to use.
Zha Gu arched his brow at the sight. For all intents and purposes, a Feudal Lord was equivalent to a Seventh-Order Human Master. However, Zha Gu reckoned that he didn’t have such precise control over his strength.
This went to show the vast difference in power between Yang Kai and himself, and he reckoned that it was no wonder Yang Kai was able to kill so many Black Ink Clansmen on his own.
However, what he saw made him feel puzzled.
In the past, he had observed from the side when his Black Ink Disciple created some artifacts. Although he knew nothing about the Dao of Artifact Refining, he could see that the way his Black Ink Disciple refined artifacts had a certain beauty and abstrusity to it. On the other hand, Yang Kai’s approach was brutal and blunt. It was as though he was just striking with all his might.
While Zha Gu was perplexed, he heard another clang the next instant.
A series of clangs were continuously heard and each time Yang Kai wielded the hammer, he seemed to be using all of his strength. The intervals between the strikes were precise, and every time he lifted the hammer, the Earth Fire in the Grand Array would be drawn into it, causing it to burn.
There were 81 strikes in total as Yang Kai hammered the giant halberd from the tip of its blade to the butt of his shaft.
Initially, Zha Gu hadn’t noticed anything, but as time passed, he could feel that the prototypical giant halberd was going through a kind of transformation. However, the transformation was so vague that he wasn’t even sure if he was seeing an illusion.
After 81 strikes, Yang Kai’s aura had become a bit unstable.
He then stored the hammer and sat down with his legs crossed before stuffing a handful of Open Heaven Pills into his mouth.
Zha Gu knew that Yang Kai’s strength had plummeted as a result of the damage to his Small Universe, so he didn’t dare to disturb him as the latter must be exhausted from all the hammering.
It wasn’t until a few days later that Yang Kai’s aura stabilised and he opened his eyes.
Zha Gu took a step forward and imitated the Humans by cupping his fist, “Many thanks, Brother Yang.”
Yang Kai put on a smile, “Don’t mention it, Brother Zha Gu. Since you trusted me, I naturally wouldn’t disappoint you.”
A puzzled Zha Gu asked, “I watched my Black Ink Disciple refine artifacts before, but the way he did so was different from you. Why is that?”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “There are many methods of Artifact Refining in the Human world, and each Sect has their own distinct Artifact Refining techniques. I have no idea which Sect your Black Ink Disciple belonged to, but my method is named Thousand Tempering Art. It’s from a very ancient Sect in the Human world and it’s a time-tested method.”
Upon hearing his explanation, Zha Gu nodded, “I see.”
Yang Kai wasn’t just talking nonsense. The method he used to enhance the giant halberd was indeed named Thousand Tempering Art. This kind of technique was especially suitable for refining offensive and defensive artifacts. Even in Divine Cauldron Cave Heaven, only people who held important positions had the right to cultivate it.
Yang Kai learned Artifact Refining from Chai Hao, and with Dong Guo An Ping and Zhong Liang giving the order, Chai Hao naturally wouldn’t hide anything from him.
Yang Kai followed up by saying, “Don’t worry about it, Brother Zha Gu. You’ll understand the result when the weapon is fully refined.”
Zha Gu nodded repeatedly, “I certainly trust you, Brother Yang.”
“I’ll continue, then,” Yang Kai said, then got to his feet and lifted the hammer. As he activated his power to draw on the Earth Fire, he repeatedly struck the giant halberd with all his might.
What Zha Gu saw was only the surface. Every time Yang Kai struck the giant halberd, he not only activated his power to draw on the Earth Fire, but also refined the weapon’s internal structure. Yang Kai was imbuing the giant halberd with his own strength each time his hammer struck, purifying and tempering it from the inside out.
Day after day, deafening clangs were continuously heard coming from the cave.
Yang Kai’s movements alternated between fast and slow. Sometimes, he would be gentle with the strikes, as though he was just tapping on the weapon, but sometimes, he would strike it rapidly and loudly as a series of clangs were heard in quick succession.
He also had to rest from time to time.
Initially, Zha Gu watched from the side with excitement, but he soon lost patience as time passed. Furthermore, he was injured in the previous battle and hadn’t recovered, so he needed time to recuperate.
Hence, he would only come over and have a look at the giant halberd every half a month. Each time he did so, he would realise that the weapon had gone through a conspicuous transformation.
Three months later, when Zha Gu came over again, he saw that Yang Kai was seated on the ground with his legs crossed, a shiny giant halberd standing straight in front of him.
This giant halberd was already much thinner than the original one, though the length remained the same. However, Zha Gu could feel that this weapon radiated an imposing aura.
If the initial giant halberd was like a pearl that was covered in dust, then this one radiated a dazzling glow after the dust was removed.
Zha Gu’s breathing became rapid.
As he stepped forward, he grabbed the giant halberd and lifted it off the ground. After holding it in his grip, he realised that the weight, length, and thickness of the weapon perfectly matched his build and strength. It was as though the weapon was custom-made for him.
There were some abstruse patterns on the shaft of the weapon, and as he infused Black Ink Strength into it, the giant halberd started humming and growling like an awakened beast. The complicated patterns were able to amplify the power of his Black Ink Strength.
He couldn’t help but put on a bright smile.
Even though the Black Ink Clan had Black Ink Strength to rely on, and they were physically more robust than the Humans, they were incapable of studying Artifact Refining. They had suffered immense losses during the battles because of the artifacts used by the Humans. Humans had all sorts of artifacts that could strike them in the most unexpected ways. As the two Races clashed, a lot of Black Ink Clansmen were killed by the artifacts that the Humans used.
If the Black Ink Clan were able to make artifacts, the Humans would have been destroyed by now; however, even a Feudal Lord like him found it hard to get an artifact that was useful to him. This couldn’t be helped, as the artifacts snatched from the Humans were not suitable for him. Although he had a Black Ink Disciple who knew a thing or two about Artifact Refining in the past, that Disciple’s skills were mediocre.
It never crossed his mind that he would obtain such a weapon on this day.
With this artifact in his hands, Zha Gu could feel that his combat power had increased by 20%. The increase might not be much, but it might save his life and turn a battle around at a critical moment. Furthermore, with such a giant halberd in his possession, he could easily deal a heavy blow to his enemies even without activating his power.
He could already imagine how imposing he would be when he next went to war.
“It seems that you’re pleased with this artifact, Brother Zha Gu,” Yang Kai was suddenly heard saying.
When Zha Gu turned his head, he saw that Yang Kai had opened his eyes and was smiling at him.
“Yes, I couldn’t be happier with it,” Zha Gu guffawed, “Is this thing fully refined?”
Yang Kai replied, “It was your Black Ink Disciple who created this thing, all I did was enhance it. This is already the best I can do with my skills.”
“Is this considered a Mid-Rank artifact?” Zha Gu asked.
“Yes,” Yang Kai nodded. Given his eyesight, he reckoned that this giant halberd could be considered a Mid-Rank artifact. It was still far from being a High-Rank artifact; however, it was already a wonderful weapon for Zha Gu, which was why he was elated.
“You have some incredible skills in Artifact Refining, Brother Yang,” Zha Gu praised him liberally. The outcome of the Artifact Refining sessions suggested that Yang Kai was significantly more skilful than his former Black Ink Disciple. After all, his Black Ink Disciple had spent many years and resources, but he only managed to create a rough prototype.
“Many thanks for your compliment,” Yang Kai replied humbly.
After examining the giant halberd in his hands, Zha Gu carefully stored it and glanced at Yang Kai, “I said that if you’re able to fulfil my demand, I would give you a reward. Why don’t you tell me what you want? I’ll get it for you as long as I’m able to.”
Yang Kai broke into laughter, “Don’t you know what I want, Brother Zha Gu?”
Zha Gu was startled upon hearing that, but he soon realised what the other man meant, “Got it; however, a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit is quite costly. Even if I sell all of my assets, I might not be able to afford one.”
Yang Kai said, “If you can help me buy a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, I’ll refine an Artifact Armour for you. The quality will be just as good as this giant halberd.”
Zha Gu fell silent for a moment. He couldn’t help feeling tempted when he envisioned himself wearing an Artifact Armour and holding the giant halberd on the battlefield, so he soon nodded, “Deal!”
Yang Kai added, “You’ll have to provide all the materials for making the Artifact Armour, though.”
“Of course.”
“When will I get the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit?”
“I’ll get it for you within three days.” Upon finishing his words, Zha Gu turned around and left. It was apparent that he was trying to come up with a way to buy a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit.
Even though he was just a Feudal Lord, he had accumulated some funds over the years, so in truth, it wouldn’t be hard for him to purchase a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit.
After he was gone, Yang Kai let out a breath. His most pressing problem had been solved as he had secured a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit. After he was done making artifacts for Zha Gu, he hoped to spread the news that he was skilful in Artifact Refining. That way, he would be able to move on to the next stage of his plan when Hei Yuan was done recuperating.
Zha Gu was indeed a man of his word, and just three days later, he returned to the cave and passed a wooden box to Yang Kai.
After taking the box, Yang Kai opened it and saw a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit inside.
“Many thanks, Brother Zha Gu.” Yang Kai cupped his fist.
Zha Gu waved his hand, “There’s no need to thank me for fulfilling a deal. You should quickly refine this Profound Yin Spirit Fruit and repair your Small Universe.”
“That’s what I thought as well.”
“I’ll not disturb you for now. Just notify me when you’re ready.”
Yang Kai nodded.
Zha Gu then turned around and left the place.
It wasn’t until Zha Gu was out of sight that Yang Kai fished out the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit. Even though the World Tree clone was continuously repairing his Small Universe, and there were already some results, the progress was quite slow.
He didn’t have so much time to spare, and with the help of this Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, he reckoned that his Small Universe would recover much more quickly.
Without hesitation, he stuffed the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit into his mouth and started refining it.
Soon, a warm stream of energy rose from his stomach and penetrated his Small Universe. As the medicinal efficacies of the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit circulated, the damaged part in his Small Universe was being repaired at an incredible pace.
The average cultivator wouldn’t experience such a rapid result after ingesting this Spirit Fruit. The reason Yang Kai’s Small Universe could heal quickly was that he also had the help of the World Tree’s clone.
Even so, it still took him three months to finish. The moment his Small Universe became complete again, Yang Kai felt his aura surging. He was overwhelmed with a sense of ecstasy.
The damage to his Small Universe made him feel as if something was missing. Be it activating his power or cultivating, he had been greatly affected. Now that his Small Universe was complete again, the sense of discomfort had faded away.
In the battle against Liu Zi An previously, even though he managed to gain the upper hand, it took him quite some time and effort to defeat the other party. If he were to fight against Liu Zi An now, Yang Kai had the confidence to subdue him in just a few moves.
Although the damage to his Small Universe had been repaired, the loss of heritage from sacrificing pieces of his Small Universe had to be made up slowly. There was no rush to do so though as the cultivation of an Open Heaven Realm Master was all about accumulation over the long term.
Yang Kai’s speed of refining materials was already much greater than that of an average Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, and the living beings in his Small Universe continuously strengthened his heritage, so he would still be able to ascend to the Eighth-Order at an unimaginable speed.
Only by ascending to the Eighth Order would he be considered an important piece on the Black Ink Battlefield. Meanwhile, the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were the pillars of strength in their respective Great Passes.
After examining himself and confirming that there was no problem, Yang Kai activated his Divine Sense.
Soon, Zha Gu’s burly figure came into sight as he gazed at him in shock, “You’ve recovered?”
He could feel that Yang Kai was different now. In the past, he always had a feeling that Yang Kai was somehow incomplete, but that feeling was now gone. It suggested his Small Universe had been fully repaired.
“Many thanks for your assistance, Brother Zha Gu!” Yang Kai cupped his fist.
Zha Gu waved his hand, “Don’t mention it, Brother Yang. You deserved that Spirit Fruit.”
Yang Kai said, “Now that my Small Universe is fully repaired, I can start refining an Artifact Armour for you. Are you ready?”
Zha Gu replied, “I’ve prepared some materials, but I’m not sure if they’re enough. Have a look.”
Upon finishing his words, he fished out a Space Ring. After taking it, Yang Kai looked into it with his Divine Sense and realised that there were many precious items inside, mainly rare resources and ores.
“Is it enough? I can get more materials if you want,” Zha Gu asked fervently.
“It’s enough.” Yang Kai put away the Space Ring, “I’ll start refining the Artifact Armour for you immediately. While I’m working, I would prefer not to be disturbed. I’ll inform you when it’s complete.”
After agreeing, Zha Gu left.
When Yang Kai was learning the Dao of Artifact Refining in Blue Sky Pass, he had made some Artifact Armours; however, they were sub-par items in Chai Hao’s opinion; after all, they were not refined well enough for combat use. They would be putting the Human soldiers’ lives at risk by letting them wear such Artifact Armour and going to war.
Although such artifacts were not good enough for Humans, they would be invaluable to the Black Ink Clan.
Therefore, Yang Kai didn’t have to produce a high-quality artifact, he just had to make sure that the Artifact Armour was as good as the giant halberd. Given his mastery in Artifact Refining now, he had the confidence to achieve this.
It took him three months to enhance the giant halberd; however, it only took him two months to create an Artifact Armour from scratch.
There were two reasons why it took him a shorter time. First of all, his Small Universe had been fully repaired, so he had better control over his own power. Secondly, during the process of Artifact Refining, his skills had also improved significantly.
Although he had spent 10 years studying Artifact Refining in Blue Sky Pass, it wasn’t enough time for Yang Kai to really hone his skills. It required a much longer period of work and experience for anyone to become a Master in Artifact Refining.
During the 10 years of training, Chai Hao had taught Yang Kai everything he knew about the Dao of Artifact Refining until there was nothing else he could teach him.
Of course, this did not mean that Yang Kai was already on par with Chai Hao when it came to his mastery of Artifact Refining. It would take a person hundreds, if not thousands of years of studying and practising Artifact Refining in order to become a Grandmaster like Chai Hao.
However, Chai Hao was no longer able to teach him anything else, for Yang Kai had already grasped all the theoretical knowledge that was passed down to him. As for how far he would go in the Dao of Artifact Refining, that would depend on his own efforts and opportunities.
Growth could only be achieved by continuously practising Artifact Refining.
Therefore, when Yang Kai got around to refining this Artifact Armour, his mastery of Artifact Refining was already much better than before, and after he was done, his skills improved again.
The quality of the Artifact Armour he had made was obviously higher than that of the giant halberd, and the glow radiating from the armour suggested that the artifact was quite extraordinary.
He then released his Divine Sense to inform Zha Gu about it. Upon his arrival, Zha Gu eagerly put on the Artifact Armour and realised that it perfectly fit him. The Artifact Armour covered his vital parts like the chest, abdomen, and back very well. More importantly, it made him look even more imposing than normal.
He was evidently elated.
With the Artifact Armour and the giant halberd in possession, Zha Gu felt that his combat capabilities had increased by 30 to 40%.
When he was in a one-on-one fight against a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in the past, he wouldn’t be a match for them; however, with these two artifacts in possession, he believed that he could easily defeat any average Seventh-Order Human now.
It was the first time he realised that the artifacts made by Humans could increase a person’s strength so tremendously and his emotions undulated. On the battlefield, the Humans were able to activate the powers of artifacts while the Black Ink Clan could only fight with their fists. It was no wonder that the Black Ink Clan would always suffer huge losses in each battle, even those that they eventually won. It was because they didn’t have any artifacts with them while practically all Humans had one or two artifacts on them.
If the Black Ink Clan could be equipped with these artifacts, they would be able to destroy the Human Race with ease.
“Are you satisfied with it, Brother Zha Gu?” Yang Kai suddenly asked.
“I couldn’t be happier,” Zha Gu nodded repeatedly, grinning from ear to ear.
“I’m glad that I haven’t disappointed you.” Yang Kai got to his feet, “Since I have finished it, I’ll take my leave.”
Zha Gu was astounded, “Where are you going?”
Yang Kai replied, “Well, I’m going back to Sir Territory Lord’s castle. It’s been quite some time since I left the castle. I came all the way here to get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit, and since my goal has been achieved, and I’ve helped you make two artifacts, it’s time I went back.”
“There’s no hurry to leave!” Zha Gu quickly stopped him.
A puzzled Yang Kai gazed at him and asked, “Is there anything else, Brother Zha Gu?”
After hesitating for a moment, Zha Gu replied, “Brother Yang, just some time ago, you asked me how you could make money. I’ve given it a thought, and I think there’s a good opportunity now.”
Yang Kai broke into laughter, “Are you going to tell me that I can earn money by helping other Black Ink Clansmen refine artifacts?”
“Yes.” Zha Gu nodded with a solemn expression, “There’s no doubt that you’re skilled in Artifact Refining, and if you refine artifacts for other Black Ink Clansmen, you’ll be able to earn a lot of Black Ink Coins. Wasn’t that your initial intention?”
Yang Kai waved his hand, “The reason I helped you make artifacts was that I wanted to get a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit. Now that my Small Universe is complete, there’s no reason for me to keep doing it. It takes a lot of time and energy to refine artifacts, and I would prefer to focus on the Martial Dao so that I’ll be useful to Sir Territory Lord when I go to battle with him.”
Zha Gu shook his head, “That’s not right, Brother Yang. By cultivating, you’re just increasing your own power; however, if you can make artifacts for the Black Ink Clan, you’ll help lots of people grow stronger, and that will help Sir Territory Lord as well. I’m sure he’d be more than willing to see you refine artifacts for the Black Ink Clan.”
“You have a point, but…”
“Brother Yang, you need resources to cultivate, right? However, do you have any of such resources with you now?”
Yang Kai parted his lips as he seemed to be lost for words. A moment later, he replied dejectedly, “I don’t.”
“See?” Zha Gu appeared sincere, “Humans always say that one must sharpen their tools before they get to work. In order to cultivate, you need to buy a lot of resources, but what can you do without any Black Ink Coins? By refining artifacts for others, you’ll be rewarded handsomely.”
The corner of Yang Kai’s mouth twitched, “You’re indeed knowledgeable, Brother Zha Gu. You seem familiar with many sayings Humans use.”
Zha Gu replied with a smile, “I learned those sayings from my previous Black Ink Disciple. In any case, I’ve been sincere with you, and I don’t intend to harm you in any way.”
“I know…” Yang Kai scowled and fell into his thoughts.
Zha Gu said, “What’s there to consider? If you’re willing to refine artifacts for others, I’ll do all the heavy lifting for you. I’m friends with a lot of Feudal Lords, so I’m sure they’re interested in getting their own artifacts.”
Yang Kai replied hesitantly, “It’s been a long time since I left the castle. If I don’t go back, I’m worried that Sir Gui Liao will punish me.”
Zha Gu said, “You’re Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple. Since he’s not around, no one else can boss you around, including Sir Gui Liao.”
“Well…” Yang Kai appeared tempted, “If I listen to you and help those Feudal Lords make artifacts while they provide all the materials, how much should I charge them?”
Zha Gu instantly replied, “You’ll be able to charge 10,000 Black Ink Coins for each artifact.” His prompt reply suggested that he had been pondering on this issue for quite some time.
Yang Kai was secretly shocked by Zha Gu’s greed. Zha Gu might think that he didn’t know the purchasing power of Black Ink Coins, but when he stayed by Nu Yan’s side in the past, he already gained some understanding of the value of Black Ink Coins. According to his estimation, if there was a conversation rate between Black Ink Coins and Open Heaven Pills, 1 Black Ink Coin would be worth 10,000 Open Heaven Pills.
In other words, 10,000 Black Ink Coins would be worth 100 million Open Heaven Pills, which was about enough to purchase a full set of Sixth-Order materials.
Of course, this was only a rough estimate as no one had ever used Black Ink Coins to trade for Open Heaven Pills before, but the conversion rate should be around there.
A set of Sixth-Order materials obviously didn’t matter to Yang Kai, but it was a lot of money for a Feudal Lord who didn’t own his own estate.
Despite knowing this full well, Yang Kai pretended to know nothing and asked, “What can I buy with 10,000 Black Ink Coins?”
Zha Gu replied in a serious tone, “A set of Sixth-Order materials!”
Yang Kai gasped as he appeared astonished.
Zha Gu persuaded him by saying, “It’s a great business idea. You just have to make a few artifacts for others, and you won’t have to worry about getting resources anymore.”
Yang Kai instantly made a decision, “It’s indeed a viable business.”
Upon successfully persuading the other man, Zha Gu guffawed, “Have you agreed to it, then?”
Yang Kai nodded, “Why wouldn’t I agree to such a great business idea? However, in order to refine artifacts, I’ll need to use the Earth Fire here. Also, Brother Zha Gu will have to help me contact those Feudal Lords. It wouldn’t be appropriate for a Black Ink Disciple like me to directly contact them.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll handle everything for you,” Zha Gu appeared ready to make this business a success.
Yang Kai was certainly aware of the other man’s intentions, so he nodded, “Good, we can split the profits evenly from selling the artifacts.”
Zha Gu was shocked upon hearing that, “No no, that’s too much. You’re the one doing all the hard work, and the Earth Fire is practically inexhaustible. I don’t deserve 50% of the profit. I’ll just take 30% of it.”
Yang Kai was startled as it was the first time he saw someone not wanting to earn more when it was offered to them; nevertheless, he wouldn’t waste time persuading him, so he nodded and said, “In that case, do we have an agreement?”
“We do,” Zha Gu nodded firmly.
They smiled at each other as they were ready to make a lot of money.
Since an agreement had been reached, Zha Gu immediately got to work. After telling Yang Kai to get some rest in the castle, he ordered his subordinates to spread out in various different directions.
Three days later, while Yang Kai was cultivating, he felt the aura of a Feudal Lord approaching. The person soon arrived and landed in front of Zha Gu’s castle. Then, Zha Gu’s subordinate led him inside.
The arrival of this Feudal Lord was just the beginning. In the following half a month, more and more Feudal Lords came over. Yang Kai did some calculations and realised there were more than 10 Feudal Lords present now.
It seemed that Zha Gu was on good terms with quite a number of Feudal Lords.
More than 10 Feudal Lords were led to the reception hall in the castle and were seated. Zha Gu took the head seat and had some small talk with all of them.
The Feudal Lords here were all familiar with each other; after all, they lived in Hei Yuan’s territory, so they had come into contact with one another before.
They were naturally curious about why Zha Gu suddenly invited them to this place, and even after a brief chat, no one knew of the reason. When Zha Gu was asked about it, he just acted mysterious by smiling in silence.
It wasn’t until the last Feudal Lord arrived and took his seat in the Grand Hall that Zha Gu gently clapped his hands to attract everyone’s attention. Then, he rose from the chair and said with a smile, “I’m sure you’re all curious about why I’ve invited you over. It’s simple. I want to show you two items.”
A Feudal Lord, whose figure was especially burly, asked impatiently, “What items are you talking about?”
Another Feudal Lord, who had wings on his back, said, “Zha Gu, stop stalling and get on with it. We have no time to waste.”
Upon hearing that, Zha Gu put on a smile, “See for yourselves.”
As he spoke, he stepped forward. By the time he finished speaking, he was already standing in the centre of the Grand Hall. In front of everyone’s eyes, he extended his hand into the void and pulled out a giant halberd that was 15 metres long. At the same time, he took off his shirt and revealed an Artifact Armour that covered the upper half of his body.
The Artifact Armour and the giant halberd radiated a dazzling glow, which went to show that they were no ordinary artifacts.
More importantly, the Artifact Armour and the giant halberd seemed to be custom-made for Zha Gu as they fit him perfectly.
Clad in a piece of armour and holding a halberd, Zha Gu looked quite imposing. He appeared especially outstanding among these Feudal Lords.
They were all instantly attracted to him with shocked expressions.
Given these Feudal Lord’s eyesight, they could see that both the giant halberd and the Artifact Armour were no ordinary artifacts. They were undoubtedly made by a skilled Human Artifact Refiner.
While remaining on the spot, Zha Gu looked around and was pleased with their reactions.
In fact, if he hadn’t known the background of these two artifacts, he would’ve sported the same expression if he saw a Feudal Lord who possessed them.
The burly Feudal Lord, who spoke earlier, was so shocked that he stood straight up and walked up to Zha Gu. After examining the artifacts, he knocked on the Artifact Armour and nodded lightly, “Astounding. This thing can withstand an all-out attack from me.”
Zha Gu flashed a smile at him, “This is truly a life-saving treasure if it can take an all-out strike from someone whose power is equivalent to a Feudal Lord.”
Since it could bear an all-out strike from a Feudal Lord, it could also save the wearer from a Seventh-Order Human’s all-out attack.
The Feudal Lord said in a bitter tone, “You’re so lucky to acquire these things. It seemed that you got quite some benefits from following Sir Territory Lord to the battlefield previously.”
Zha Gu said, “Do you think I obtained these things from the battlefield?”
The Feudal Lord asked with surprise, “Didn’t you?”
Zha Gu put on a faint smile, “You’re fully aware of the average size of Humans, aren’t you? How could I have possibly gotten these things from them?”
The burly Feudal Lord was startled for a moment, but after giving it a thought, he realised that Zha Gu was right. Even though there were some slight differences between the Humans when it came to their sizes, they were all petite in the Black Ink Clan’s eyes. Both the giant halberd and the Artifact Armour obviously didn’t belong to Humans. They must have been custom-made for Zha Gu. Even if another Black Ink Clansman got his hands on these two artifacts, he would have a hard time using them if his size was too different from Zha Gu’s.
Another Feudal Lord thought of something as he asked excitedly, “Zha Gu, where did you get these artifacts from?”
He had hit the nail on the head. Zha Gu turned to look at the Feudal Lord and decided to stop keeping them on tenterhooks. He said with a smile, “I asked someone to specifically refine these artifacts for me.”
“What?”
“You asked someone to make these artifacts for you?”
“A Human Artifact Refiner?”
All of them were flabbergasted.
The Feudal Lord with wings gave it a thought and said, “Previously, the Royal Lord gave an order that all Black Ink Disciples who were proficient in Artifact Refining were to be brought to the Royal City. Where did you find a Human Artifact Refiner to help you make these artifacts?”
“That’s right. Moreover, these artifacts appear quite extraordinary. The Human Artifact Refiner who is able to make these things must be a Great Master. Such a Black Ink Disciple should’ve headed to the Royal City long ago. Did you visit the Royal City?”
Zha Gu shook his head, “I certainly didn’t go to the Royal City, and even if I did, I couldn’t possibly interfere with the Royal Lord’s plan. The Royal Lord had indeed summoned all the Black Ink Disciples who were skillful in Artifact Refining, but what if this Human Artifact Refiner arrived at a later time?”
“What do you mean?”
Zha Gu went on to say, “The Black Ink Disciple that Sir Territory Lord recently brought back is an Artifact Refiner.”
“Him?”
“I heard that this Black Ink Disciple was pretty bold. Just because he’s a Black Ink Disciple serving Sir Territory Lord, he offended Sir Gui Liao back at the main castle. He left after that, and no one knows where he went.”
Zha Gu said with a smile, “I was beside Sir Territory Lord when he corrupted that Human. On our way back, I had a chat with that Black Ink Disciple, so it could be said that we’re on good terms. That Human came to my place after leaving the castle. As for his grudges with Sir Gui Liao, I’m sure all of you are aware of Sir Gui Liao’s hobby. That Human’s Small Universe was damaged seriously in the last battle, so if he gave in to Sir Gui Liao’s demand, his Order would have regressed. That was why he left in fury and came to my place.”
The Feudal Lords nodded. They were aware of Gui Liao’s hobby; in fact, some of them had this hobby as well, so they could relate to Gui Liao.
A Feudal Lord asked, “He’s an Artifact Refiner?”
“The halberd I hold and the Artifact Armour I wear were refined by him. He’s indeed an Artifact Refiner, and a good one at that.”
“Where is he?” Another Feudal Lord asked agitatedly. The giant halberd and Artifact Armour in Zha Gu’s possession were indeed extraordinary. They certainly wanted something similar.
Zha Gu replied with a smile, “He’s still in my place.”
“Tell him to see us. I want him to make artifacts for me.”
The other Feudal Lords agreed with him.
Zha Gu grinned, “The reason I’ve invited all of you to come here is to help you get the artifacts you want. Be it a weapon or an Artifact Armour, you can place any order; however…”
“Go on.”
Zha Gu went on to say, “That Black Ink Disciple is a newcomer with no valuable items or resources on him. He certainly doesn’t have Black Ink Coins to purchase resources either. Therefore, he can help you refine artifacts, but you have to pay him a reasonable fee.”
The Feudal Lord with wings snapped, “He should be honoured that we’re here to tell him to make artifacts for us. How dare he demand a fee from us!”
A glint flashed through the burly Feudal Lord’s eyes, “Zha Gu, I guess it’s you who wants the fee, not that Human.”
Zha Gu replied solemnly, “He’ll be the one making the artifacts, while I’m just acting as a middleman. The money will be given to him; however, since he’s promised to share a part of the profit with me, I naturally wouldn’t turn him down.”
A Feudal Lord snorted, “I knew that a Black Ink Disciple wouldn’t be so audacious!”
Zha Gu refuted impassively, “That Black Ink Disciple was personally corrupted by Sir Territory Lord, so he’s different from the other Black Ink Disciples. He doesn’t even have any regard for Sir Gui Liao. Does any one of you think you’re more powerful than Sir Gui Liao?”
They had heard about what happened in the castle; after all, the battle between Yang Kai and Liu Zi An raised such a fuss that it couldn’t be hidden.
Upon hearing Zha Gu’s words, these Feudal Lords were unable to refute him.
In fact, he was right to say that since the Black Ink Disciple didn’t even have any regard for Gui Liao, it would be useless for them to try to force him to refine artifacts for them; after all, he was the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple, so they wouldn’t dare to cross the line. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to explain themselves when Hei Yuan was done recuperating.
“Brothers, with such artifacts in your possession, your attack and defence capabilities would be greatly enhanced. They could potentially save your life on the battlefield. Such treasures are hard to come by, so what’s there to hesitate over when you’re able to get them now? What are a few Black Ink Coins compared to your life? Many Feudal Lords die on the battlefield, and once they do, their Black Ink Coins become useless. To be honest with you, I spent my entire fortune in order to refine these artifacts.”
He wasn’t lying, for he had indeed spent all of his money. Nevertheless, the cost included the Black Ink Coins he had spent to get Yang Kai a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit.
A Feudal Lord suddenly said, “It’s no wonder that you borrowed some money from me recently.”
Zha Gu turned to look at that Feudal Lord, “If you want an artifact, I’ll give you a 20% discount, and your order will be prioritised.”
The Feudal Lord nodded lightly.
Zha Gu’s sales tactics were effective. Just like he had said, it was hard for them to get their hands on useful artifacts. Now that there was a chance, they wouldn’t want to miss it. The reason they were furious was that a Black Ink Disciple had the guts to charge them a fee for his services.
However, any fee would be worth it if they could earn greater merits and preserve their life on the battlefield.
Another Feudal Lord asked, “How much will that Black Ink Disciple charge?”
Zha Gu directly replied, “You have to provide all the materials, and each artifact costs 20,000 Black Ink Coins.”
“What?” 20,000 Black Ink Coins?”
“Why don’t you just rob us instead!?”
“Are you messing with us, Zha Gu?”
…
These Feudal Lords were infuriated. It had to be noted that 20,000 Black Ink Coins was a huge sum to them. Even though most of them were able to fork out 20,000 Black Ink Coins, that could only buy them one artifact. If they wanted two, that would cost 40,000.
These Feudal Lords served Hei Yuan Territory Lord, which meant they were not powerful enough to have their own independent territories and were thus not very wealthy.
By forking out 40,000 Black Ink Coins and paying for all the materials, all their savings would be gone.
Faced with their wrath, Zha Gu just smiled in silence.
He knew that regardless of how furious these Feudal Lords were, they would ultimately agree, for there were no Black Ink Disciples who could help them refine artifacts. Even if there were such Black Ink Disciples in the past, these Feudal Lords didn’t have the right to get artifacts from those Human Artifact Refiners.
Zha Gu told Yang Kai that they would charge 10,000 Black Ink Coins for every artifact, which was a hefty price in the latter’s opinion; however, Zha Gu directly doubled the price in front of these Feudal Lords.
His intentions were obvious; otherwise, he wouldn’t have tried so hard to make it happen. He naturally wasn’t willing to do anything that wouldn’t bring him any benefits.
This way, for every artifact that was crafted, he only had to give Yang Kai 7,000 Black Ink Coins according to their agreement. On the other hand, he would be able to pocket 13,000 Black Ink Coins. He would earn more than Yang Kai, who was the one actually making the artifacts.
He already realised that it was a great business opportunity when Yang Kai made the artifacts for him. As a Feudal Lord, he naturally yearned for his own territory; however, that would require a lot of Black Ink Coins. Although he had taken part in countless life-and-death fights on the battlefield before, he still hadn’t accumulated enough wealth. If he could make good use of this opportunity, his dream would come true.
A Feudal Lord with his own territory was totally different from those that had no territories.
The boisterous Feudal Lords in the Grand Hall were furious at the fact that Zha Gu demanded such an unbearably high price, but an unfazed Zha Gu shuffled towards his own seat and said calmly, “Each of you is only allowed to get one artifact.”
Upon hearing that, all of them fell silent.
A Feudal Lord frowned, “What do you mean by that, Zha Gu?”
Zha Gu replied with a smile, “Just as I said.”
The Feudal Lords exchanged glances as they had no idea why Zha Gu came up with such a restriction. Every artifact would earn him 20,000 Black Ink Coins, so he should be more than happy to get more orders for making more artifacts. Why would he limit how much he could earn?
Zha Gu swept a glance over them with a solemn expression, “Do all of you think he can keep on making artifacts for you forever?”
The Feudal Lord with wings on his back thought of something as his expression changed, “You mean…” He then pointed towards the ceiling.
Zha Gu nodded gently, “More than 10 years ago, the Royal Lord suddenly summoned all the Human Artifact Refiners to the Royal City. All the Black Ink Disciples who know anything about Artifact Refining have been gathered up. I’m sure you’re aware that I used to have a Black Ink Disciple who was an Artifact Refiner, though he was not very skilful. Despite his lack of aptitude, even he was summoned. We have all heard rumours about what is going on in the Royal City, that it is a project that will secure the Black Ink Clan’s future, so not even the slightest negligence is allowed. Black Ink Disciples who know a little about Artifact Refining have all been summoned, so how could Yang Kai, who is an expert in Artifact Refining, be exempted? The reason he’s still free now is that the news hasn’t spread. Moreover, Sir Territory Lord is still recuperating. If my speculation is correct, when Sir Territory Lord is done recovering and finds out that Yang Kai is an Artifact Refiner, he will send him to the Royal City to take part in that project. When that time comes, no one will be able to help you make artifacts no matter how many Black Ink Coins you have.”
Everything he had said was reasonable and well-known, so the Feudal Lords nodded in agreement.
Upon realising the situation they were faced with, those who were not willing to pay 20,000 Black Ink Coins were caught in a dilemma.
If Yang Kai was sent to the Royal City, there would no longer be an Artifact Refiner who could make artifacts for them.
Just then, a Feudal Lord asked, “Zha Gu, how long does it take for him to make an artifact.”
“About two to three months,” Zha Gu replied and swept a glance over them, “There are more than 10 of you here; in other words, we can ensure that every one of you will get an artifact before Sir Territory Lord is done recuperating. That’s why I’ve come up with this restriction. Certainly, no one knows for sure when Sir Territory Lord will leave the Black Ink Nest. If he comes out sooner than expected, some of you might not get your artifacts.”
Upon hearing that, an impetuous Feudal Lord shouted, “I’ll pay 20,000 then! I want an artifact!”
Following that, another Feudal Lord said, “I’ll buy one as well.”
In an instant, the Feudal Lords in the Grand Hall scrambled to place an order. Zha Gu slowly dealt with them with a smile.
After everything was settled, he told these Feudal Lords to start preparing materials and Black Ink Coins; then, he personally saw them off.
He was pleased to see them leaving in a hurry.
Barely two hours later, a Feudal Lord returned and brought with him sufficient materials and 20,000 Black Ink Coins. After taking the materials and Black Ink Coins, Zha Gu headed to the cave and told Yang Kai about the Feudal Lord’s size and requests.
Yang Kai memorised them, and after Zha Gu left, he started making the artifact.
Over the following days, Yang Kai stayed in the cave and focused on refining artifacts. He didn’t have to worry about cultivation resources as Zha Gu would prepare everything for him. He just had to craft the artifacts according to the Feudal Lords’ demands.
For every artifact made, Zha Gu would give him 7,000 Black Ink Coins.
As Yang Kai refined artifacts day after day, his skills in Artifact Refining improved rapidly.
At first, it took him two months to make an Artifact Armour for Zha Gu, but two years later, it would only take him 45 days to create such an artifact, and its quality would be higher as well.
However, he had only been making huge offensive artifacts. No one ordered an Artifact Armour. It seemed that Black Ink Clansmen were fond of offensive artifacts but not interested in Artifact Armours that could potentially save their lives.
Over the past two years, Yang Kai managed to craft about 20 artifacts.
As time passed, more and more Feudal Lords found out about Yang Kai’s ability to refine artifacts through word of mouth. An increasing number of Feudal Lords came over to place an order, and the fee for refining an artifact rose to 30,000 Black Ink Coins per piece.
It wasn’t until this moment that the first batch of Feudal Lords invited to Zha Gu’s castle got over the bitter feeling. They even thought that they had picked up a bargain for their own artifact.
As for the actual fee, Yang Kai knew nothing as he focused on refining artifacts in the cave. Even if he found out about it, he wouldn’t be bothered. Everything he was doing was to better position himself to carry out his mission. Since more and more Feudal Lords asked him to create artifacts for them, it suggested that more people were becoming aware of his ability. That would allow him to have a higher chance of achieving his goal.
His skills in Artifact Refining had improved significantly compared to two years ago, and even though he was far from being a Grandmaster, he could be considered a Great Master.
Great Master, Grandmaster, and Great Grandmaster were the different Ranks of Artifact Refining. Although there wasn’t a systematic classification, such Ranks were universally acknowledged.
Only those who were able to make High-Rank artifacts could be regarded as Grandmasters.
Now, Yang Kai could only create Mid-Rank artifacts, so he was just a Great Master.
He was now just waiting for Hei Yuan to leave the Black Ink Nest. After making some calculations, he reckoned that this would probably happen in a few years.
Inside Hei Yuan’s castle, a Feudal Lord respectfully left the main hall while Gui Liao sported a solemn expression.
He summoned this Feudal Lord because he had some routine business with him, but he was surprised to learn a piece of shocking news.
The Black Ink Disciple named Yang Kai was actually an Artifact Refiner, and a skilful one at that.
Gui Liao was truly astonished. After the battle between Yang Kai and Liu Zi An, he respectively punished them. He thought that by using the Profound Yin Spirit Fruit as a threat, Yang Kai would soon make a concession; however, that guy simply went missing for the past two years.
This matter didn’t really bother Gui Liao. As the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple, Yang Kai couldn’t possibly have gone far and must be hiding somewhere on the universe fragment and recuperating.
Perhaps he was waiting for the Territory Lord to come out of the Black Ink Nest to stand up for him.
That was what Gui Liao originally thought, so he never expected that Yang Kai had gone to Zha Gu’s place and started refining artifacts for the Feudal Lords. He was shocked when he learned this. The other Feudal Lords might not be aware of how valuable a Human Artifact Refiner was; however, as Hei Yuan’s confidant, Gui Liao was.
The Royal Lord was carrying out a grand plan that would affect the entire Black Ink Clan’s future, and it had something to do with Human Artifact Refiners. It could be said that every Artifact Refiner was an invaluable asset to the Royal Lord and were thus regarded quite highly.
A Human Artifact Refiner was no longer just any ordinary Black Ink Disciple.
In that case, despite Gui Liao’s noble identity, he couldn’t possibly oppress Yang Kai; otherwise, Hei Yuan would punish him when he exited the Black Ink Nest.
However, Gui Liao couldn’t apologize. As a noble Feudal Lord, he wouldn’t give in to a Black Ink Disciple no matter what.
After giving it a thought, he called out, “Liu Zi An!”
Liu Zi An stepped out from the darkness, “Master.”
“Go to Zha Gu’s place and tell him to come over.”
“Yes,” Liu Zi An replied.
Barely four hours later, Zha Gu appeared before Gui Liao and saluted him. Then, he asked respectfully, “Is there something you want me to do for you, Sir Gui Liao?”
Gui Liao stared fixedly at him, “Zha Gu, I heard that you’ve earned quite a lot of Black Ink Coins recently.”
Zha Gu was startled for a moment, but he soon pulled himself together and put on a fawning smile, “You’ve found out about it, Sir Gui Liao?”
He knew that this matter couldn’t be hidden from Gui Liao, and he had already expected it to get out at some point.
Gui Liao snorted, “Before Sir Territory Lord entered the Black Ink Nest, he told me to manage the affairs in his territory. Since such an incident has happened, how could I possibly not be aware of it? How dare you, Zha Gu! Since that Black Ink Disciple is an Artifact Refiner, why didn’t you inform me immediately and instead hid him away in your place to make artifacts for others!?”
Zha Gu slightly bent his back, “Sir Gui Liao, that Human is Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple after all. Since he wants to stay in my place, I can’t possibly chase him away.”
Gui Liao sneered, “You just aren’t willing to let him go, are you? You’re charging 30,000 Black Ink Coins for an artifact. It would take you dozens, if not hundreds of years to earn that much money.”
Zha Gu forced a smile, “Please understand my situation, Sir Gui Liao.”
“How much do you give that Human?” Gui Liao asked.
After hesitating for a while, Zha Gu replied, “I told him that we’ll charge 10,000 Black Ink Coins per artifact, and I would get 30%.”
“You’re really something,” Gui Liao mocked, “He’s the one doing all the work, but he only gets 7,000 Black Ink Coins for each piece while you get 20 to 30 thousand. You’ve been treating him well, haven’t you? Aren’t you worried that when he finds out about it, he’ll file a complaint against you in front of Sir Territory Lord?”
Zha Gu turned pale, “I suppose Sir Territory Lord won’t bother dealing with such a small matter.”
Gui Liao replied calmly, “Who knows? After all, Sir Territory Lord regards him quite highly.”
Zha Gu instantly became apprehensive upon hearing Gui Liao’s words. Over the past two years, the amount of Black Ink Coins he had earned off of Yang Kai was significantly more than what he could possibly make in his lifetime. With so much wealth in his possession now, he naturally wouldn’t want to give it up; however, just like what Gui Liao had said, if Yang Kai found out about it and filed a complaint with the Territory Lord after the latter left the Black Ink Nest, Zha Gu would be doomed.
Although he believed that the Territory Lord wouldn’t care about such a trivial matter, Yang Kai’s identity was special after all. Not only was he a Human Artifact Refiner, he had also gained the Territory Lord’s favour. What if the Territory Lord was willing to stand up for him?
An anxious Zha Gu gazed at Gui Liao, “Sir Gui Liao… do you think I should give all the money back to him?”
Gui Liao sneered. Without directly answering his question, he asked, “Zha Gu, how long have you been a Feudal Lord?”
Even though Zha Gu had no idea why the other man suddenly asked about it, he still replied honestly, “I’ve been a Feudal Lord for 3,000 years.”
“You’ve been stuck as a Feudal Lord for 3,000. Have you ever thought about ascending to become a Territory Lord?”
Zha Gu said solemnly, “It is every Feudal Lord’s dream to become a Territory Lord one day; however, there’s never been an opportunity for me.”
Just like Open Heaven Realm Masters, accumulation was key to a Black Ink Clansman’s cultivation. However, Humans could refine all sorts of cultivation materials while that wasn’t possible for the Black Ink Clan. There were two ways Black Ink Clansmen could grow their strength. First, they could absorb World Force and convert it into their own Black Ink Strength. Secondly, they could directly absorb Black Ink Strength produced in Black Ink Nests to enhance their powers.
The omnipresent Black Ink Strength in Hei Yuan’s territory was born from the Black Ink Nest, and every Black Ink Clansman could absorb it freely. Black Ink Strength in this place was like World Energy in the 3,000 Worlds.
However, there were innumerable Black Ink Clansmen living in this territory, and everyone was absorbing and refining the ambient Black Ink Strength. With so many people sharing the Black Ink Strength, Zha Gu wouldn’t be able to absorb a lot of it to strengthen himself regardless of how hard he tried.
“An opportunity, huh…” Gui Liao smiled, “Sir Territory Lord once said that we shouldn’t wait for opportunities to come to us, we have to create them for ourselves.”
Suddenly realising something, Zha Gu looked fervently at him, “Sir Gui Liao, you mean…”
Gui Liao stared fixedly at him and changed the topic by saying, “Do you want your own Fief?”
Upon hearing that, Zha Gu felt his breathing becoming hurried. He instantly nodded, “Of course I do. The reason I’ve been trying so hard to earn Black Ink Coins is that I want to buy a sub-nest from Sir Territory Lord; however, he’s recuperating now, and the Black Ink Nest has been shut. Moreover, I don’t have enough Black Ink Coins.”
Although he had earned a lot of money by relying on Yang Kai to make artifacts, he had only amassed 300,000 Black Ink Coins. This was a considerable sum of wealth for a Feudal Lord as 300,000 Black Ink Coins were worth about 3 billion Open Heaven Pills.
A Feudal Lord was equivalent to a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, and there were rarely any Seventh-Order Humans who possessed so much wealth. It was the same case for the Black Ink Clan.
In order to own a Fief, not only did a Black Ink Clansman have to become a Feudal Lord, but they also had to possess a Black Ink Nest of their own, only then would he have a right to apply for a Fief from the Territory Lord.
Nevertheless, the lowest Rank Black Ink Nest cost 500,000 Black Ink Coins.
The average Black Ink Clansman would never be able to amass so much wealth in his lifetime. This was the reason there were so many Feudal Lords but only a small number of them had their own Fiefs. Although they were powerful enough, they didn’t have sufficient finances to purchase a Black Ink Nest.
Once a Feudal Lord possessed his own Black Ink Nest, it would be far more convenient for him to cultivate or recuperate when he was injured. For example, after Zha Gu returned from the battlefield, even though he was wounded, he was unable to enter the Black Ink Nest to recuperate as the Territory Lord had shut it. He could only go back to his own castle and wait for his wounds to heal slowly. However, if he had his own Black Ink Nest, he would recover far more quickly.
By owning his own Black Ink Nest, he could also cultivate inside it and increase his strength rapidly so that he would stand a much better chance of becoming a Territory Lord.
There were many benefits to owning a Black Ink Nest. One such benefit was that he would have his own Fief, which could attract a lot of lower-rank Black Ink Clansmen to settle in his territory. If High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen wanted to ascend to become Feudal Lords, they would have to get the help of his Black Ink Nest’s power. By doing so, they would have to pay him a fee. That would bring him a steady source of income.
Besides that, he would also have the right to conscript the Black Ink Clansmen living in his Fief when war broke out. By then, he could establish his own Army to fight against the Humans. If he made a contribution on the battlefield, he would be rewarded handsomely.
Feudal Lords with their own Fiefs were very different from those who didn’t have their own Fiefs. It was Zha Gu’s dream to have his own Black Ink Nest and Fief, and he had been working hard to achieve it.
When Gui Liao asked him such a question all of a sudden, he couldn’t help but fall into his wild thoughts as he secretly anticipated what the other man would say next.
As expected, Gui Liao said with a smile, “It’s not hard for you to get your own Fief. In fact, I can help you with that.”
Zha Gu felt his throat tightening as he asked agitatedly, “How are you going to help me, Sir Gui Liao?”
Gui Liao replied, “You’re strong enough, but you’ll need 500,000 Black Ink Coins to buy a sub-nest. How much money do you have now?”
After hesitating for a moment, Zha Gu said meekly, “300,000.”
Gui Liao nodded gently, “You need another 200,000, then. It’s fine. I can lend that much to you and you can pay me back when you have the money in the future.”
Zha Gu said, “Even if there’s enough Black Ink Coins, the Black Ink Nest is shut now. How am I supposed to get a sub-nest? I’ll have to wait for the Territory Lords to come out.”
The Black Ink Nests owned by the Feudal Lords were bred from the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest. The relationship between them was like that of a Mother and her children. That was why the Black Ink Nests owned by the Feudal Lords were called sub-nests.
On the other hand, the Black Ink Nests owned by the Territory Lords were bred from the Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nest. Similarly, they were the sub-nests of the Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nest.
It required a lot of energy to breed a sub-nest from a Black Ink Nest, so every sub-nest cost a substantial amount of Black Ink Coins. It wouldn’t be given to a Feudal Lord for free, with the exception of if he had made a massive contribution.
Therefore, even though Gui Liao was willing to lend Zha Gu some money, even the cleverest woman could not cook a meal without rice.
Right then, Gui Liao said, “I happen to have a sub-nest with me. I prepared it for myself back then; however, Sir Territory Lord has ordered me to help manage his territory and never lets me go. That’s why the sub-nest is still unused. Now that I’m about to ascend to become a Territory Lord, the sub-nest is useless to me. I can sell it to you.”
[What a coincidence!] Zha Gu was both shocked and pleasantly surprised.
Over the past two years, he had been exploiting Yang Kai just to get enough money to purchase a sub-nest, but he hadn’t managed to earn enough Black Ink Coins even now.
It never crossed his mind that not only was Gui Liao willing to lend him some money, but he would also sell his sub-nest to him.
Given his understanding of Gui Liao, Zha Gu knew that the other man wasn’t a kind-hearted person; hence, while he was excited, he asked cautiously, “Is there a condition attached to this deal, Sir Gui Liao?”
Gui Liao started chuckling, “I’ve always known that you’re clever, Zha Gu. It seems that I was right about you. There’s indeed a condition, but it won’t harm you in any way.”
“Please make it clear to me, Sir Gui Liao.”
With a solemn expression, Gui Liao said, “When you have your own Fief, I want you to bring Yang Kai to that place and make him continue refining artifacts. I can introduce some wealthy Feudal Lords to you who are much richer than your friends. Also, I will take half of the profit from the sale of these artifacts. Additionally, I want him to refine two artifacts for me first. One offensive artifact and one defensive artifact.”
Zha Gu thought that the other man was indeed greedy by demanding half of the profit. With that said, they could command a higher price from wealthier Feudal Lords; after all, just like him, the customers he introduced to Yang Kai were Feudal Lords who didn’t have their own Fiefs. Feudal Lords who relied on the Territory Lord to survive naturally were not affluent.
As for making two artifacts for Gui Liao first, that wasn’t really an issue.
After giving it a thought, Zha Gu asked, “Sir Gui Liao, how much do you think we should charge our new customers for artifacts?”
Instead of answering his question, Gui Liao asked, “What do you think?”
Zha Gu thought that the other man was a bit ridiculous for just throwing the question back at him, but despite what he thought, he still replied, “I’m currently charging my existing customers 30,000 Black Ink Coins per piece. As for the Feudal Lords that you know, why don’t we charge them 50,000 per artifact?”
If they charged 50,000 per artifact, other than the 7,000 Black Ink Coins that had to be given to Yang Kai, the remaining money would be equally split between Gui Liao and him. That way, he would still get 21,500 Black Ink Coins. It was only slightly less than the 23,000 he was receiving now, which was the amount of money he could get by exploiting Yang Kai on his own.
Furthermore, the deal would be worth it since he was able to get a Fief and a Black Ink Nest.
50,000 was a huge sum in his eyes; after all, when he demanded 30,000, many Feudal Lords were unwilling to pay for it. They would cross the line by asking for a higher price.
“100,000,” Gui Liao said coldly.
“What?” Zha Gu thought that he had misheard him as he gazed at him in shock.
“100,000. It’s decided.”
“Sir Gui Liao!” Zha Gu couldn’t help but call out, “Isn’t this price somewhat exorbitant? Will those Feudal Lords be willing to pay such a price to get an artifact?”
Gui Liao sneered, “Do not compare the Feudal Lords you know to my associates. They are all Feudal Lords who have their own Fiefs. Do you think Feudal Lords who can afford to buy sub-nests are not wealthy enough? They’re all eager to obtain artifacts made by Human Artifact Refiners; however, since all the Artifact Refiners have been sent to the Royal City, they aren’t able to get their hands on them even if they want to. If there’s someone who can refine artifacts for them, they’ll even agree to paying more than 100,000; after all, they only have one life, and they can always earn more Black Ink Coins.”
After a pause, he went on to say, “Moreover, when Sir Territory Lord leaves the Black Ink Nest, this business will naturally have to stop. He’ll definitely send Yang Kai to the Royal City, so if we don’t seize this opportunity to earn more money now, there won’t be such a chance again in the future. Don’t worry. You just have to bring Yang Kai to your Fief, and I’ll introduce some customers to you. You just have to serve them.”
Since Gui Liao had said so, there was nothing Zha Gu could do about it other than nod in agreement.
Gui Liao then asked, “Do you have any specific demands when it comes to your Fief?”
After giving it a thought, Zha Gu replied, “I don’t have any specific demands really, but it seems that Yang Kai needs to rely on an external aid like Earth-Fire to refine artifacts. Do you have a recommendation for that, Sir Gui Liao?”
Upon hearing that, Gui Liao started going through his Universe Chart and a moment later, he left a mark somewhere and passed it to Zha Gu, “There was originally a Great Sun in this area. Although the Sun is dead now, it still has a great amount of residual power. Let’s just make this place your Fief. The power of the Great Sun is still much greater than an Earth Fire.”
In the meantime, Zha Gu was glancing at the Universe Chart. Upon locating the dead Great Sun, he nodded, “Good.”
Gui Liao then waved his hand, after which Liu Zi An stepped out of the darkness with a unique-looking box in his hands. It wasn’t certain what the box was made from as it didn’t look like metal nor jade. It also wasn’t certain what was inside the box.
However, the moment Zha Gu saw the box, he became agitated and could not peel his eyes away.
Gui Liao said with a smile, “You have to keep this sub-nest in a safe place. I only have one sub-nest, so if you lose it, it will be gone for good.”
An excited Zha Gu took the box and thanked him repeatedly. This was the key to becoming a Feudal Lord with a Fief, and it was also the thing he had always dreamed of getting. It never crossed his mind that he could easily obtain it on this day.
“Do you need me to teach you how to hatch it?” Gui Liao asked.
“There’s no need for that,” Zha Gu shook his head. Suddenly recalling something, he said hesitantly, “Sir, it requires a lot of resources or World Force to hatch a Black Ink Nest. I…”
A generous Gui Liao waved his hand, “Just buy the resources with the 300,000 Black Ink Coins you have. It should be enough to hatch a Black Ink Nest. As for the 500,000 Black Ink Coins required to buy this Black Ink Nest, you can pay me back later.”
“Many thanks, Sir Gui Liao!” Zha Gu was grateful.
Although he now owed Gui Liao 500,000 Black Ink Coins, it was worth it for a Feudal Lord like him.
He secretly made some calculations and realised that if what Gui Liao said could be achieved, he would get 46,500 Black Ink Coins for every artifact. After making Yang Kai craft more than 11 artifacts, he would be able to pay off his debt.
He couldn’t help but think that it was easy to make money with a Human Artifact Refiner with him. He also felt fortunate that Yang Kai and Gui Liao were on bad terms; otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to earn so much cash. Gui Liao would have taken full control over this matter.
Now, Gui Liao only assisted him in secret instead of taking matters into his own hands. He must be worried that the Territory Lord would investigate certain matters when he was done recuperating; therefore, even though Zha Gu would earn even more money, he would also have to take some risks.
Despite knowing all of that, Zha Gu still happily obliged.
After leaving the castle, Zha Gu was still in a dazed state. He still couldn’t believe that his dream had finally come true.
The box that contained the sub-nest couldn’t be kept inside a Space Ring. To the Black Ink Clan, a Black Ink Nest was also a living creature; therefore, Zha Gu returned to his castle and carefully put the box in a safe place before touring around Hei Yuan’s territory. He then spent his wealth by buying a lot of World Spheres and materials of different Orders.
300,000 Black Ink Coins were soon used up. Despite that, the substantial amount of resources in his Space Ring made him feel at ease.
While Zha Gu had gotten everything ready, Yang Kai was completing another artifact.
After telling Yang Kai to get some rest, Zha Gu started dealing with the Feudal Lords who were there to have their artifacts crafted.
Since he had come to an agreement with Gui Liao, he wasn’t willing to keep wasting time here; after all, he could only charge these Feudal Lords 30,000 for one artifact while Gui Liao promised that they would be able to charge 100,000 per artifact. Since there was a huge difference between the prices, Zha Gu naturally knew which one to choose.
Certainly, the Feudal Lords were not pleased with this; however, Zha Gu said that Gui Liao had summoned Yang Kai back to the castle. With this being the case, there was nothing these Feudal Lords could do about it.
After all, Yang Kai was the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple, so it wasn’t appropriate for him to keep staying in Zha Gu’s abode.
When everything was prepared, Zha Gu gathered all his subordinates together and led Yang Kai to navigate across the void.
On the way to their destination, Yang Kai said worriedly, “Brother Zha Gu, it’s inappropriate that I’m suddenly leaving without informing Sir Gui Liao about it.”
Zha Gu replied with a smile, “Don’t worry about it, Brother Yang. I’ve informed Sir Gui Liao already, and he’s aware that you’ve been staying in my place for the past two years.”
“Did he say anything?”
Zha Gu shook his head, “Sir Gui Liao is busy dealing with the affairs in the territory. He can’t be bothered to handle such a trivial matter.”
Yang Kai nodded gently, “That’s good.” Then, he asked in puzzlement, “Where are we going?”
An energetic Zha Gu replied, “We’re going to my Fief!”
Yang Kai nodded.
Upon seeing the other man’s lukewarm reaction, Zha Gu said with a smile, “Brother Yang, since you’re a Human, I suppose you have no idea how important a Fief is to a Black Ink Clansman.”
Yang Kai really had no idea about it. Although he had been staying by Nu Yan’s side for two years in the Black Ink Clan’s hinterland in the past, the latter was just a High-Rank Clansman who was equivalent to a Sixth-Order Human. Moreover, Nu Tan simply went from one Blood Arena to the next to earn Black Ink Coins.
Basically, Yang Kai knew little about the internal affairs of the Black Ink Clan. In fact, even though the two Races had been fighting against each other for millennia, the Humans still didn’t know much about the Black Ink Clan.
Yang Kai played along by saying, “Please enlighten me.”
There was a sense of pride on Zha Gu’s face as he spoke, “Let me put it this way, Brother Yang. Only with a Fief in possession will a Feudal Lord be considered a real Feudal Lord. The Feudal Lords who don’t have a Fief are like tigers without teeth.”
A puzzled Yang Kai said, “I don’t get it.”
Zha Gu chuckled, “Since you’re a Human, it’s expected that you don’t get it. Do you know why there are so many Feudal Lords but only a small number of them have their own Fiefs?”
“Is it because there isn’t enough land?” Yang Kai gave a random answer. In fact, he had pondered on this issue before, but he couldn’t figure out the reason behind it. Since Zha Gu mentioned it all of a sudden, he reckoned that his doubt would be solved on this day.
Upon hearing that, Zha Gu was startled for a moment before breaking into laughter, “That’s indeed one of the reasons. Sir Territory Lord has dozens of Feudal Lords working for him. If every Feudal Lord had their own Fief, there wouldn’t be enough land. Nevertheless, the main reason is the limited number of Black Ink Nests.”
“Black Ink Nests?” Yang Kai arched his brow with surprise, “What does it have to do with the Black Ink Nests?”
Zha Gu explained, “Although the Humans have fought against the Black Ink Clan for countless years, I guess you all still don’t know that there are different Ranks of Black Ink Nests. You’ve seen Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest. Don’t you think it’s enormous and imposing?”
“Yes.” Yang Kai bowed his head.
“The Black Ink Nests are the foundation of the Black Ink Clan, and there are three Ranks in total, which the Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nests, the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nests, and the Feudal Lord’s Black Ink Nests. In the Human’s terms, these Black Ink Nests could be categorised into High-Rank, Mid-Rank, and Low-Rank. Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest is Mid-Rank. You might think that it’s splendid, but if you have the chance to see a Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nest, you’ll realise that the one owned by Sir Territory Lord is quite petite.”
Yang Kai’s expression changed as it was the first time he heard about this. He reckoned that the Humans had no idea about such a categorisation as well. With his brow raised, he asked, “So, a Feudal Lord’s Black Ink Nest would be considered Low-Rank?”
“Yes.” Zha Gu nodded, “Every Black Ink Nest is dependent on the higher Rank one.”
“What do you mean by that?” Yang Kai frowned.
Zha Gu explained with a smile, “A Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest must be bred from the Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nest, while a Feudal Lord’s Black Ink Nest is always bred from a Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest. Therefore, the Feudal Lord’s Black Ink Nest is a sub-nest of the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest while a Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest is a sub-nest of the Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nest.”
“There’s such a relationship between the Black Ink Nests?” Yang Kai was astonished, thinking that he had learned a great secret of the Black Ink Clan today. In the past, the Humans had some speculations about how the Black Ink Nests were born, but they were never able to discern the truth. It wasn’t until Yang Kai heard about it from Zha Gu that he realised a lower Rank Black Ink Nest was separated from a higher Rank Black Ink Nest.
With a solemn expression, Zha Gu went on to say, “It requires a lot of energy for a sub-nest to be born, so each one is extremely precious. We won’t be able to get it with ease.” As he spoke, he patted the box in his arms, “I bought this sub-nest with 500,000 Black Ink Coins.”
Yang Kai was flabbergasted, “That’s a sub-nest?”
Zha Gu had been carrying this box while on their way to their destination. Yang Kai could certainly see it. Although he was curious, he never asked what was inside the box. It wasn’t until this moment that he realised it was a sub-nest.
“Yes, it’s a sub-nest.” Zha Gu nodded seriously, “However, it hasn’t been hatched. After it’s hatched, it will be a real Black Ink Nest. With that said, it will naturally be much smaller than Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest; after all, it’s just a Feudal Lord Black Ink Nest. With this Black Ink Nest though, I’ll become a real Feudal Lord.”
As he spoke, he started envisioning the bright future ahead of him, “With my own Black Ink Nest, I’ll be able to attract more Black Ink Clansmen to settle down in my Fief. If those High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen want to ascend to become Feudal Lords, they’ll have to rely on my Black Ink Nest’s power, and I can charge them a fee just to use it. When there are enough residents in the Fief, I can form my own Army and follow Sir Territory Lord to fight against the Humans.”
Yang Kai was practically beside himself as it was the first time he found out that a Black Ink Nest had to be hatched. Was it really a living creature? How was it hatched? He had seen a lot of Feudal Lord Black Ink Nests, but they were all gigantic. Although a Feudal Lord Black Ink Nest was not comparable to the one owned by a Territory Lord, it couldn’t possibly be stuffed into a box.
While feeling doubtful, he asked cautiously, “Brother Zha Gu, you said that if those High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen want to ascend to become a Feudal Lord, they would have to rely on your Black Ink Nest. What if you want to ascend to become a Territory Lord?”
Zha Gu replied, “I’ll have to rely on the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest, which is the one owned by Sir Territory Lord. This Black Ink Nest is not powerful enough to support my ascension.”
Yang Kai nodded upon hearing his explanation. In other words, a Low-Rank Black Ink Nest could help a Black Ink Clansman ascend to become a Feudal Lord while a Mid-Rank Black Ink Nest could help a Feudal Lord become a Territory Lord. However, only the High-Rank Black Ink Nest could help a Territory Lord ascend to become a Royal Lord.
The different Ranks of Black Ink Nests were owned by Black Ink Clansmen of varying statuses. It was a clear and simple system.
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai asked, “Can a sub-nest be born from a Feudal Lord Black Ink Nest?”
Zha Gu shook his head with a smile, “The Feudal Lord Black Ink Nest is the lowest Rank. How can a sub-nest be separated from it?”
“Then, whose sub-nest is the Royal Lord Black Ink Nests from?”
The question startled Zha Gu, “The Royal Lord Black Ink Nest is already the highest Rank.”
Yang Kai frowned, “However, according to you, every Black Ink Nest is separated from a higher Rank Black Ink Nest. In that case, there should be a source where all the Black Ink Nests come from. What is this source?”
A dazed Zha Gu gazed at Yang Kai for a moment before putting on a smile, “It beats me, Brother Yang. I have no idea what or where the source is; however, as far as I know, the Royal Lord Black Ink Nest is indeed the highest Rank. There isn’t a higher Rank Black Ink Nest. Perhaps the Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nest is the source.”
Yang Kai nodded as he could only acknowledge this statement to be true for now.
He decided not to delve into this topic further; instead, he grew curious about the box in Zha Gu’s hands, “Brother Zha Gu, how are you going to hatch it so that it’ll become a real Black Ink Nest?”
Zha Gu chuckled, “You’ll find out soon.”
As they spoke, they kept moving forward. A few days later, Zha Gu suddenly stopped and fished out a Universe Chart.
Universe Charts were initially invented by Humans; however, as the two Races fought against one another for countless years, many of the Humans’ inventions had been acquired by the Black Ink Clan. Some of the examples were flight-type artifacts and Universe Charts.
“It’s here.” Upon determining their exact location, Zha Gu became energetic, “With this place as the centre, a half-day’s journey radius will now be considered my Fief.”
Yang Kai was stunned, “Your Fief is pretty vast, then.”
It had to be noted that Zha Gu was a Feudal Lord, so he could cross quite a distance by flying for half a day. In other words, his Fief would be massive.
Zha Gu chuckled, “It’s just luck.”
Then, he looked around the area.
Initially, the entire Black Ink Battlefield was supposed to be a flourishing place; however, due to the Black Ink Clan’s characteristics, the Black Ink Battlefield was only filled with dead Universe Worlds now.
Now, all they could see nearby were Universe Worlds and universe fragments that were full of Death Qi.
Zha Gu soon found a suitable place and flew towards a Universe World that was neither small nor big, landing soon after.
The entire World was filled with Death Qi and there wasn’t even a tinge of vitality. Yang Kai couldn’t even feel a bit of World Force around here. With that said, he wasn’t surprised as this was only to be expected.
“I’ll choose this place, then.” Zha Gu looked around, evidently pleased with this area.
As he spoke, he carefully put down the box that he had been carrying in his arms. Although this square box was small, it seemed to be weighty. Yang Kai didn’t realise it when the box was in Zha Gu’s arms, but the moment he put it down, the entire ground shook a little. Even the area around the box sunk somewhat.
With a solemn expression, Zha Gu gazed at the box and said in an equally solemn tone, “Brother Yang, don’t you want to know how a Black Ink Nest is hatched? You should watch attentively, then.”
Yang Kai nodded gently and stared fixedly at the box.
Just then, Black Ink Strength started billowing from Zha Gu’s hand as he placed his palm on the box. It wasn’t certain what he had done, but the box cracked and split. In an instant, a flower bud that was yet to blossom came into Yang Kai’s sight.
This thing was similar to the Black Ink Nests he had seen before, only far, far smaller.
However, he could feel extremely rich Black Ink Strength streaming around this immature Black Ink Nest.
Just like all the Black Ink Nests he had seen before, this thing was like a living creature. Every time it breathed, Black Ink Strength would billow from it.
At this moment, Zha Gu’s subordinates stepped forward. Although no order was given, they all fell on their knees and pressed their heads against the ground in the Black Ink Nest’s direction in a sincere manner. They started chanting something as though they were performing a ritual.
Zha Gu was evidently agitated; then, all of a sudden, he stabbed a finger into his chest.
Yang Kai was stunned at the sight, thinking that Zha Gu was trying to kill himself.
Nevertheless, he soon realised that it wasn’t the case. Although Zha Gu had stabbed a finger into his chest, he wasn’t trying to end his own life. When he pulled out his hand, there was a drop of black blood on his finger.
Black Ink Clansmen were born in Black Ink Nests, so they had no need for sexual reproduction like Humans. With that said, they were not different from the Humans when it came to their anatomy.
Therefore, the moment Yang Kai saw the black blood, he knew that it was a drop of blood from Zha Gu’s heart. It was probably the equivalent of a Human’s Blood Essence. If it was lost, it would destabilise the Black Ink Clansman’s aura and even cause their strength to plunge.
As expected, after Zha Gu extracted a drop of blood from his heart, his aura became noticeably weaker.
Then, he dropped the blood onto the Black Ink Nest, which quickly absorbed it.
The next moment, a connection was formed between the Black Ink Nest and Zha Gu.
Yang Kai watched from the side as he thought that this was similar to how some Humans claimed the ownership of some artifacts by dropping their blood onto them. After absorbing Zha Gu’s blood, the Black Ink Nest was left with his Brand. From now on, this Black Ink Nest was Zha Gu’s property, and other Black Ink Clansmen could never snatch it from him, though it wasn’t clear how the Black Ink Nest would be impacted upon Zha Gu’s death.
Yang Kai reckoned that nothing would change though; after all, he had never heard of any incidents where the artifacts would shatter after their owners passed away. There would simply be a new owner after the original owner lost his life.
Although Zha Gu’s aura had weakened after he finished this, he was clearly high-spirited.
He then fished out something from his Space Ring. Yang Kai could see that it was a World Sphere that was filled with World Force. He wondered where Zha Gu got it from.
Without hesitation, Zha Gu threw the World Sphere into the middle of the flower bud.
The next instant, the Black Ink Nest started shaking and throbbing like a heart. The World Force inside the World Sphere was soon swallowed by the Black Ink Nest.
As this happened, the entire Black Ink Nest started squirming violently as something that looked like flesh grew out of it. The initially petite Black Ink Nest started expanding rapidly.
Just moments later, the originally small Black Ink Nest had expanded by several times, and its growth didn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.
Zha Gu continuously threw more World Spheres, which were filled with World Force, into the Black Ink Nest, which never stopped growing.
A few days later, a 1,000-metre-tall Feudal Lord’s Black Ink Nest that occupied a large area was born. Yang Kai was shaken to the core as he watched the entire process.
It wasn’t until this moment that he figured out how the Black Ink Nests came about. In fact, he was probably the first Human to ever witness how a Black Ink Nest was hatched.
Perhaps some Black Ink Disciples had seen it in the past, but such information had never been collected by the Humans.
“It’s almost done,” Zha Gu was pleased as he gazed at the huge Black Ink Nest.
His subordinates had been repeatedly performing the same ritual in a sincere manner, and they didn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.
“Is this its final form?” Yang Kai asked. He had seen a lot of Black Ink Nests owned by the Feudal Lords before, but they were all much larger than this. That was why he was curious.
Zha Gu shook his head, “This Black Ink Nest can still keep growing, but I don’t have a lot of resources with me now. I need to use them for other matters. I’ll only be able to keep growing this Black Ink Nest when I have some spare money.”
“I see,” Yang Kai bowed his head.
“Let’s take a look inside,” Zha Gu was in a jolly mood and he couldn’t wait to share his joy with others. Nevertheless, other than his subordinates, Yang Kai was the only Black Ink Disciple there; hence, he could only invite Yang Kai to go in.
Certainly, Yang Kai wouldn’t turn him down.
In fact, he was curious about what the inside of a Black Ink Nest looked like. Although he had entered Zhu Feng’s Mid-Rank Black Ink Nest before, that one was specifically used for recuperating. Moreover, all his focus was on killing Zhu Feng back then, so he didn’t pay attention to anything else at that time.
After the Black Ink Nest took shape, it looked like a huge flower bud sitting on the ground.
Over the past few days when the Black Ink Nest was growing, Yang Kai could clearly feel that a profound force seemed to have expanded from beneath the Black Ink Nest and turned into roots, which connected the Black Ink Nest to this Universe World.
Zha Gu didn’t seem to have made a move, but the moment he stood in front of the Black Ink Nest, a gap appeared at the bottom and revealed a dark passageway.
He had used a drop of blood from his heart to refine this Black Ink Nest, so as he was now connected to it, he could easily control it.
After Zha Gu stepped inside, Yang Kai followed him closely.
They walked across the long passageway and arrived at an empty room. Yang Kai could see that the walls of this room seemed to be made from flesh. The entire Black Ink Nest was filled with Black Ink Strength and an indescribably evil aura.
Zha Gu said, “With this Black Ink Nest, it will be easier for me to cultivate. There even a chance for me to ascend to become a Territory Lord.”
“I’ll congratulate you in advance then, Brother Zha Gu,” Yang Kai cupped his fist, then asked curiously, “I saw you using up a lot of World Spheres earlier. So, it requires the World Force to hatch a Black Ink Nest?”
Zha Gu replied with a smile, “Yes, it requires the World Fore to hatch a Black Ink Nest. Of course, cultivation resources used by Humans would work as well. Let me put it this way, a Black Ink Nest can absorb anything that contains energy and transform it into Black Ink Strength.”
Upon hearing his explanation, Yang Kai thought that it was no wonder wherever the Black Ink Clansmen went, the Universe Worlds would be filled with Death Qi. The Black Ink Clan was the natural enemy of the 3,000 Worlds. If they were allowed to invade the 3,000 Worlds, all life would be purged.
Since time immemorial, the Masters of every generation from the Cave Heavens and Paradises had been trying to destroy the Black Ink Clan on the Black Ink Battlefield to stop them from threatening the 3,000 Worlds. For this reason, countless people lost their lives.
However, other than the cultivators from the Cave Heavens and Paradises, there was barely anyone in the entire 3,000 Worlds who was aware of what was going on. It was a tragedy for all these sacrifices to be made yet never recognized.
Since it was a new Black Ink Nest, there was nothing interesting inside it; however, Yang Kai was shocked upon hearing Zha Gu’s explanation. This Black Ink Nest would swallow just about anything that contained energy and use it as food.
This characteristic reminded him of the Heaven-Devouring Great Emperor, Wu Kuang.
That guy cultivated the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, and he claimed to be able to swallow anything in the world. Moreover, he possessed the Flawless Purifying Golden Lotus, which perfectly complemented the Heaven Devouring Battle Law.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but think about what would happen if Wu Kuang came to the Black Ink Battlefield. Would he be corrupted by Black Ink Strength? Would he be able to use Heaven Devouring Battle Law and turn Black Ink Strength into something he could utilise?
However, that guy couldn’t really show up in public now. He went missing after Yang Kai sent him to the Shattered Heaven previously, and it wasn’t certain whether he was dead or alive now.
Having said that, Yang Kai reckoned that Wu Kuang must be alive and kicking. It was said that good people didn’t live long while a scourge would never die.
After casting this strange idea away, Yang Kai slightly opened the portal of his Small Universe, whereupon his World Force streamed out of his body. The next moment, an anomaly took place.
Like a cat that had caught a whiff of a fishy smell, the flesh walls in the Black Ink Nest started drawing the World Force towards them and absorbing it.
An astounded Yang Kai instinctually wanted to close the portal of his Small Universe; after all, he would suffer a loss by letting the Black Ink Nest devour his World Force. However, before he could close the portal, he came into contact with a strange Will.
The reason this Will felt strange was that it gave off a stiff feeling, as though it didn’t have sentience of its own, or wasn’t fully conscious.
This revelation astonished Yang Kai as he gazed at Zha Gu.
Zha Gu only looked smilingly at him, as though he had already expected this.
Seeing that the other man didn’t have the intention of stopping him, Yang Kai set his mind at ease and started exploring this Will.
Just like what he initially felt, the Will wasn’t an illusion, it was just that it didn’t have a consciousness of its own. After some exploration, a surprised Yang Kai asked, “Brother Zha Gu, does this Black Ink Nest have its own consciousness?”
He came to realise that the source of the Will was the Black Ink Nest itself.
Zha Gu replied with a smile, “Of course, this Black Ink Nest has its own consciousness. In fact, all Black Ink Nests have their own consciousnesses, but this consciousness is just a medium. It won’t express any of its feelings.”
“A medium?” Yang Kai was puzzled, “What do you mean?”
Zha Gu said, “Since you’re able to connect to this Black Ink Nest’s consciousness, why don’t you just explore it to find the answers yourself?”
[Find the answers myself?]
There seemed to be an insinuation in Zha Gu’s words. He seemed to suggest that there was a secret behind the Black Ink Nest’s consciousness, so a curious Yang Kai began probing around.
This was the best chance for him to explore some of the Black Ink Clan’s secrets, so he didn’t want to miss it. Furthermore, Zha Gu needed him to refine more artifacts, so he probably wouldn’t harm him.
At the thought of this, Yang Kai became at ease.
Initially, when he detected the Will’s presence, he wanted to ward it off as he was worried that it would harm him in some way. Upon making sure that the Will didn’t have a consciousness or mind of its own, he was able to relax.
As he opened his portal, the power of his Small Universe was continuously swallowed by the Black Ink Nest. As his World Force left his body, Yang Kai realised that his mind was slowly connected to the Black Ink Nest’s consciousness.
This was a special experience. Yang Kai couldn’t help but think that he and the Black Ink Nest were going to merge. Nevertheless, he knew that it was just an illusion. He was being influenced by the fact that his mind and the Black Ink Nest’s consciousness were mingling.
Just a moment later, Yang Kai’s mind fully merged with the Black Ink Nest’s consciousness. This startled him as the merging process was incredibly smooth, as though the consciousness had been waiting to accept him.
Certainly, he knew this wasn’t the truth. The Black Ink Nest didn’t have any sentience, so he reckoned that as long as certain conditions were met, anyone’s mind could perfectly merge with the consciousness.
The moment he and the Black Ink Nest’s consciousness became one, Yang Kai seemed to have plunged into a different world.
There was no light or substance in this world; in fact, there wasn’t even any physical presence here. In this world, there were only consciousnesses that moved around and communicated with each other.
Yang Kai was flabbergasted.
He could feel that there were two consciousnesses in a similar state as his that were communicating with one another. They seemed to be talking about a business deal that involved a lot of rare resources and Black Ink Clan servants.
Then, he realised that he could also detect the communication between some other consciousnesses; however, some consciousnesses had blocked out the others as any eavesdropper would be met with hostility.
Yang Kai’s consciousness navigated through this amazing world and ‘saw’ the existence of different consciousnesses.
Some of these consciousnesses were wandering about just like him. Some of them remained on the same spot as they absorbed as much information as they could. There were also some that were communicating others.
Soon, Yang Kai realised something that concerned him.
All these consciousnesses seemed to be moving around in a huge medium, which itself was a consciousness that didn’t have a mind of its own. This mindless consciousness was much larger than the consciousness of Zha Gu’s Black Ink Nest.
“Oh, there’s a new aura here.” While Yang Kai was in his thoughts, a wandering consciousness detected his presence and approached him to ask, “Who are you? Why have I never met you before?”
Yang Kai was startled, not knowing how to respond to him. It wasn’t like he could tell him he was a Black Ink Disciple.
The disturbance soon attracted the attention of the nearby consciousnesses. Yang Kai realised that the Black Ink Nest’s consciousness that carried his mind was now being gazed upon by countless pairs of eyes.
He quickly retracted himself from this strange world and cut off his connection with the Black Ink Nest’s Will.
Zha Gu was just standing beside him and watching in silence. Upon seeing that Yang Kai started moving again, he asked with a smile, “Was it fun?”
With a solemn expression, Yang Kai asked, “Brother Zha Gu, the consciousnesses I came across…”
Knowing what the other man was trying to ask, Zha Gu cut him off by saying, “Just like me, they’re the Feudal Lords with their own Fiefs. Just like what you did earlier, they merged their minds with their Black Ink Nests’ consciousnesses and entered the domain of the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest.”
“The domain of the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest?” Yang Kai was stunned as he recalled the much larger consciousness that he came across earlier.
“En.” Zha Gu nodded, “The Black Ink Nests of the Feudal Lords are separated from Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest, so they’re the sub-nests of Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest. Regardless of the distance, as long as these sub-nests are not separated across Worlds, they can communicate with each other. Of course, this requires the support of the domain of the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest, so you can regard this domain as a platform for communication.”
Despite Zha Gu’s convoluted explanation, Yang Kai understood the abstrusity of it following his experience earlier.
To put it simply, the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest had its own consciousness that was without a mind. This consciousness could turn into a Domain and allow the consciousnesses of the sub-nests to enter. The Feudal Lords who had their own Fiefs could merge their minds with the consciousnesses of the sub-nests in order to enter this domain.
Yang Kai soon understood the crux of the matter. With a serious expression, he said, “In that case, a Territory Lord can find out what’s going on with the Feudal Lords who are working for him immediately. Similarly, the Feudal Lords can promptly inform the Territory Lord about anomalies taking place in their Fiefs.”
“Indeed. It’s one of the basic uses of the Black Ink Nests.”
Yang Kai fell silent.
It wasn’t until this moment that he obtained an answer to a question he had pondered for a long time.
When he pretended to be a Black Ink Disciple and stayed by Nu Yan’s side in the past, the Old Ancestor from Blue Sky Pass had led his subordinates to launch a raid on the Black Ink Clan’s territory. However, the Royal Lord reacted very swiftly to it, limiting the amount of damage that could be done.
Yang Kai had always been curious how the Royal Lord received the news and made a move so quickly given the vast distances between the Royal City and the outer borders of the Black Ink Clan’s territory. Moreover, all the Black Ink Clansmen in the entire Blue Sky Theatre were mobilised alongside him.
In fact, the Humans had never been able to figure it out. They speculated that the Black Ink Clan had a special method of communicating with each other. Perhaps something similar to a Space Array.
Now, it seemed that the method of communication between the Black Ink Clan was far more profound than mere Space Arrays.
The Black Ink Nests that were scattered around the void formed into a huge information network for the Black Ink Clan. Whenever anything happened in the areas occupied by these Black Ink Nests, the Black Ink Clan would instantly find out about it and spread it to others.
When the Humans invaded the Black Ink Clan’s territory back then, the news must have been spread around through the Black Ink Nests instantaneously. That was the reason that the Royal Lord could counterattack so swiftly by gathering all Black Ink Clansmen under his command together.
It was no wonder that the Black Ink Nests were touted as the foundation of the Black Ink Clan. This communication function alone was invaluable.
“So, the Black Ink Nest’s consciousness can carry a Human’s mind as well…” Zha Gu suddenly tutted. Apparently, he had no idea that Yang Kai could successfully enter the domain of the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest prior to that.
“I was just giving it a try. I hope I haven’t caused any damage to your Black Ink Nest, Brother Zha Gu,” Yang Kai came to his senses and apologised to him.
He just wanted to find out whether the World Force coming from his Small Universe would be absorbed by the Black Ink Nest; he hadn’t expected that he would easily come into contact with the Black Ink Nest’s mindless Will, which led to the discovery later. This was all just a coincidence.
Zha Gu replied with a smile, “It’s fine. The consciousness of any Black Ink Nest is just a medium, so no damage would be caused to it. In fact, most Feudal Lords have a lot of things to deal with, so they wouldn’t stay inside the domain of the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Nest all the time. The consciousnesses you came across are likely the trusted aides of those Feudal Lords. I’ll also get one of my subordinates to stay here to gather information eventually.”
“I see,” Yang Kai nodded lightly.
By pretending to be a Black Ink Disciple this time, Yang Kai managed to find out a lot of secrets about the Black Ink Nests. These secrets alone were worth his efforts; after all, these were the secrets that the Humans had been trying to uncover forever, but to no avail.
As for who would be appointed by Zha Gu to stay in this Black Ink Nest and gather information, Yang Kai couldn’t care less. Zha Gu had several dozen Black Ink Clansmen working for him, but they were generally weak. There were only a small number of High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen who were equivalent to Sixth-Order Humans.
The person responsible for gathering information would be one of those High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen.
“Let’s continue,” Zha Gu said, then led the way for Yang Kai.
Soon, they went further inside and arrived at a room that was so large that it occupied half of the Black Ink Nest’s internal space. Flesh walls were seen squirming around the room, and in the centre was something that looked like a pool. The diameter of the pool was several dozen metres across and it was filled with Black Ink Strength.
Zha Gu approached the pool as he stared at it while speaking solemnly, “The Black Ink Pool can be said to be the origin of life to all Black Ink Clansmen.”
[Black Ink Pool!]
Yang Kai arched his brow as he gazed at the pool and fell into a state of contemplation. He couldn’t figure out the abstrusity of this thing, nor could he understand what Zha Gu meant when the latter said it was the origin of life.
However, he soon realised what he meant.
Zha Gu suddenly fished out a lot of resources from his Space Ring and dumped them into the Black Ink Pool without hesitation. The resources were of varying Orders and were the same ones Human cultivators could use to increase the heritage of their Small Universes.
The moment the resources came into contact with the Black Ink Pool, the Black Ink Strength which was originally as calm as a still lake started roiling. It was like water being dropped into boiling oil.
Besides that, the entire Black Ink Pool seemed to have turned into a hideous beast as a series of chattering sounds were heard, like were invisible teeth that were crunching on those resources.
The various resources were crushed as their powers were absorbed.
Following that, beneath the ground around the Black Ink Pool, energies could be seen moving in all directions.
Yang Kai stared at those moving energies in shock. As they streamed into the flesh walls around the room, bulges started forming on those rough walls. They looked just like tumours.
Life auras were being nurtured in those tumours.
Yang Kai fell into a dazed state.
More and more tumours were formed, and within an hour, by the time Zha Gu finished throwing all the resources into the Black Ink Pool, there were several hundred tumours on the walls. Every tumour contained a new life aura.
Yang Kai felt a crawling sensation on his scalp, but he forced himself to calm down and asked, “Brother Zha Gu, these…”
Zha Gu replied with a smile, “In one or two months, they’ll become residents of my territory!”
[I knew it!] Despite knowing that Black Ink Clansmen were born in Black Ink Nests, Yang Kai was still shaken to the core when he saw it happen before his eyes.
That was how Black Ink Clansmen were born. The auras in those tumours were all new Black Ink Clansmen.
Zha Gu’s words suggested that it would only take one or two months for these Black Ink Clansmen to be born. The speed was truly horrifying.
Moreover, Zha Gu’s Black Ink Nest hadn’t fully grown yet. He said that he didn’t have enough resources with him now, for the resources were needed for other matters. When he had more resources in the future, he would continue growing the Black Ink Nest.
Although the Black Ink Nest wasn’t fully grown, it could still nurture several hundred Black Ink Clansmen at once. According to Yang Kai’s estimation, if the Feudal Lord’s Black Ink Nest was fully grown, and given enough resources, it could nurture more than 1,000 Black Ink Clansmen at a given time.
More than 1,000 Black Ink Clansmen being born every month or two would translate to 7,000 to 8,000 a year. Further down the road, there would be 70,000 to 80,000 new Black Ink Clansmen in 10 years and several hundred thousand in 100 years.
Certainly, a Feudal Lord wouldn’t have an infinite supply of resources to squander on such things, but despite that, it was still a terrifying figure.
It was no wonder that they were unable to kill all of the Black Ink Clansmen. The Humans from different Great Passes would always defeat the Black Ink Clan and kill many of them in every major battle; however, after resting for at most 100 years, the Black Ink Clan would strike again without any discernable decrease in number.
The way Black Ink Nests nurtured new Black Ink Clansmen was the fundamental reason behind this.
Upon that realisation, Yang Kai felt his heart sinking. He asked solemnly, “Brother Zha Gu, how powerful will these Black Ink Clansmen be after they’re born?”
Zha Gu replied, “New Black Ink Clansmen are naturally weak and useless. It will take them several dozen years to grow to be Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen. 200 to 300 years after that, a small number of them will grow to be High-Rank Clansmen. As for how far they can go following that, it will depend on their own fates.”
Yang Kai nodded gently. It seemed that even though it would take a shorter time for the Black Ink Clansmen to grow up than the Humans, it wasn’t intolerable. It would take them several dozen years to grow to be Low-Rank Clansmen, which were equivalent to Low-Rank Open Heaven Masters. Such Black Ink Clansmen were essentially useless on the battlefield and would only serve as cannon fodder to deplete the Humans’ energy.
“A competent Feudal Lord should be able to enlist 3,000 Black Ink Clansmen who are able to fight when Sir Territory Lord goes to war. It’s still in the early phase for me, so it will be several hundred to 1,000 years before I can do that.”
Out of the 3,000 Black Ink Clansmen who were able to fight, at least half of them had to be High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen who were equivalent to the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth-Order Humans; otherwise, they would only be giving the Humans free Military Merits.
According to the life cycle of the Black Ink Clansmen, it would indeed take Zha Gu several hundred to 1,000 years to meet this requirement; otherwise, there wouldn’t be enough time for his subordinates to grow.
Yang Kai made some calculations in silence. A Feudal Lord with a Fief could conscript 3,000 Black Ink Clansmen when war broke out. There were dozens of Feudal Lords working for Hei Yuan, but only a small number of them had their own Fiefs. In other words, Hei Yuan alone would be able to mobilise about 30,000 to 40,000 Black Ink Clansmen. That was the number of Black Ink Clansmen that a Territory Lord could use.
On the other hand, every Royal Lord had several dozen Territory Lords. Once a Royal Lord called for war, several hundred thousand to a million soldiers could be brought together in every Theatre before they would storm the Great Passes controlled by the Humans.
The Humans from different Great Passes had spent countless years fending off such a large number of Black Ink Clansmen.
The Black Ink Clan were at an advantage because of their larger numbers. On the other hand, the Humans heavily relied on Warships, which were their unique advantage. If this advantage was taken away by the Black Ink Clan, the Humans wouldn’t be able to defend the Great Passes.
At that instant, Yang Kai felt a hefty weight on his shoulders.
Upon learning the abstrusity of the Black Ink Nest’s consciousness and witnessing the process of breeding Black Ink Clansmen through the Black Ink Pool, Yang Kai finally understood the secrets behind the Black Ink Nests.
Next, Zha Gu led him to explore other places in the Black Ink Nest.
Half a day later, they left the together.
Zha Gu was still evidently excited; after all, his dream had finally come true, so it was expected that he was in a joyful mood. That was the reason he led Yang Kai to take a stroll around the Black Ink Nest. He wanted to share his joy with others, but Yang Kai was the only outsider by his side.
“By the way, you can continue refining artifacts over there, Brother Yang.” Zha Gu finally recalled what he was supposed to do. After all, the reason he was able to get this Fief had something to do with Yang Kai’s skills in Artifact Refining.
Upon finishing his words, he pointed in a particular direction.
Yang Kai looked in the same direction and saw a huge Star in the Void.
“It was originally a giant Sun Star, but it’s dead now. However, there still should be a great amount of heat beneath the surface, which will be useful to you when you make artifacts,” Zha Gu explained.
The reason he decided to hatch his Black Ink Nest in this Universe World was that this place was not far from the Sun Star, so he could move back and forth between the two places with ease.
“A Sun Star?” Yang Kai arched his brow. There was no doubt that a Sun Star, even a dead one, would contain the power of the Great Sun.
“En,” Zha Gu nodded, “I know nothing about Artifact Refining, so you can go over and look for a place that is suitable. I’ll not keep you company as the Black Ink Nest in this Fief has just been hatched, so I need to take care of it.”
“It’s fine. I’ll be fine on my own,” Yang Kai nodded.
“Take this. These are the materials for making artifacts provided by a customer. There’s also a list of demands he has come up with. You just have to follow the specifications. When I settle things here, I’ll look for you,” As Zha Gu spoke, he passed him a Space Ring.
After taking the ring, Yang Kai scanned it with his Divine Sense and realised that there were indeed materials for making artifacts inside it. The number of materials suggested that he would have to make more than one artifact, and there was also a jade slip that supposedly contained the customer’s demands.
After bidding Zha Gu farewell, he directly flew towards the Great Sun Star.
In just two hours, Yang Kai arrived at his destination.
When he arrived in the 3,000 Worlds for the first time, Yang Kai came across a dying Sun Star where he obtained the Golden Crow’s True Fire that would be used to condense his Fire Element in his Dao Seal. For that reason, he became tangled up with the Proprietress. All of those memories flashed through his head. Many years had passed in the blink of an eye.
At that time, the Sun Star he saw was dying, but the one before his eyes now died a long time ago.
Although the Great Sun had lost all its vitality, some heat could still be felt coming from the surface. The entire Star was filled with solidified magma, and a pungent smell permeated the place.
There was no doubt that this environment was hostile and the average person wouldn’t be able to survive here for long. With that said, Yang Kai was now a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so he was able to put up with this kind of environment.
In fact, with the power of the Golden Crow’s True Fire in possession, he didn’t need to rely on any external forces when making artifacts. It was just that by using an external aid he would be able to achieve twice the result with half the effort; therefore, a lot of Artifact Refiners loved using great sources of fire when making artifacts. It was the same case for Alchemists.
After circling around the Great Sun for a bit, Yang Kai soon found a suitable location that looked like the caldera of a volcano that led to the depths beneath the ground. He directly plunged inside, but he was soon blocked by some solidified magma.
He summoned his Azure Dragon Spear and began digging deeper into the ground.
The further he went, the more scorching the air felt. Soon, he directly plunged into an ocean of burning magma.
It went to show that even though the Great Sun died a long time ago, its power still hadn’t fully dissipated.
This kind of power was suitable for refining artifacts.
After breaking through the magma, Yang Kai arrived at the Sun’s core. It was then he activated his power and formed an empty space.
This was the deepest part of the Great Sun where he could use its power with ease. Looking around, he was pleased with this place.
Over the following half a month, Yang Kai spent a fair amount of time setting up a simple array so that he could make use of the Great Sun’s power to craft artifacts. Additionally, the Array stabilized the space he had opened up at the centre of the Sun.
After he was done with all of that, he got some rest for a few days to restore his energy. It was only then that he started refining artifacts.
He fished out the jade slip given to him by Zha Gu and realised that he had to make two artifacts this time. One of them was offensive while the other one was defensive. He wondered who this Black Ink Clansman was.
Regardless, it was none of his business, he just had to craft the artifacts according to the demands.
With the help of the Great Sun’s power, he had indeed become more efficient in refining artifacts; furthermore, his skills in Artifact Refining had been improving day by day.
In just three months, he was done crafting these two artifacts.
There was already a Black Ink Clansman waiting for him outside of the Array he set up. In fact, this Black Ink Clansman had been there for half a month. Yang Kai was aware of this, but his focus was on refining the artifacts, so he decided to ignore him.
Now that he was done, Yang Kai opened up the restrictions and let this person in.
The Black Ink Clansman, who had never dared to disturb Yang Kai, instantly noticed and dashed forward before cupping his fist, “Sir Yang!”
Perhaps the only Black Ink Disciples who could be addressed as ‘Sirs’ by the Black Ink Clansmen were Artifact Refiners.
Yang Kai glanced at him and realised that this Black Ink Clansman was a High-Rank Black Ink Clansman who worked for Zha Gu. He had also followed Zha Gu to come all the way here to this Fief.
After a nod, Yang Kai asked, “Has Brother Zha Gu sent you here to tell me something?”
The High-Rank Black Ink Clansman stepped forward and held out a Space Ring, “Sir Zha Gu said this is the next artifact you have to make. The materials, demands, and payment are all inside. Additionally, he wants me to retrieve the artifacts you’ve refined.”
Yang Kai took the Space Ring and realised that just like what the Black Ink Clansman had said, there were a lot of materials for Artifact Refining, a jade slip with the specifications recorded in it, and 7,000 Black Ink Coins inside the ring.
Upon confirmation, Yang Kai passed him the two artifacts he had recently made and put on a bitter smile, “Your Sir doesn’t even give me some rest time.”
The High-Rank Black Ink Clansman put on a fawning smile, “Sir Zha Gu said that your skills in Artifact Refining are exceptional. Many Feudal Lords have heard about you, so they want you to make artifacts for them.”
“It’s fine. I’m earning Black Ink Coins to buy some cultivation resources anyway. Just tell your Sir that he can accept all the orders. I’m fine with it.”
“Yes,” the High-Rank Black Ink Clansman replied, then asked, “When should I come again?”
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai said, “For each artifact, you can come again after two months.”
He then watched the High-Rank Black Ink Clansman leave and reactivated the restriction. Instead of starting right away, Yang Kai fished out a set of Seventh-Order materials from his Small Universe and began refining them.
During this period of time, he had been busy refining artifacts for the Feudal Lords. In Zha Gu’s previous territory, it wasn’t convenient for him to refine Seventh-Order materials; after all, Zha Gu might come over at any moment. It would be hard for Yang Kai to explain himself if Zha Gu saw him refining such expensive materials.
Now that he was inside a Great Sun though, and with the Arrays he had set up, he didn’t have to worry about privacy.
On the other hand, since he had helped so many Feudal Lords craft artifacts, his skill in the Dao of Artifact Refining must be well known by now. That was exactly what he had hoped to see, and the High-Rank Black Ink Clansman’s statement just now proved this point.
Everything was going according to plan, and Yang Kai just had to wait for Hei Yuan to leave the Black Ink Nest.
The days went by slowly.
Zha Gu would send someone to pass Yang Kai materials for Artifact Refining and payment for his services every two months. Most of the time, it would be the same High-Rank Black Ink Clansman who looked for Yang Kai. Zha Gu had just obtained his own Fief, so he seemed to be swamped with work and would only visit Yang Kai sporadically.
Nevertheless, the High-Rank Clansman wouldn’t stay for a long time. After passing Yang Kai the Space Ring that contained the materials and money, he would take the artifact that had been made and leave.
Five years passed by in the blink of an eye.
Including the amount of time Yang Kai had spent in Zha Gu’s previous castle, he had now been refining artifacts for the Black Ink Feudal Lords for seven or eight years. During this period of time, he had produced dozens of artifacts that were all high-quality.
Given his near complete focus on Artifact Refining, Yang Kai’s comprehension of the Dao of Artifact Refining had improved significantly; however, he didn’t feel one bit pleased about it.
That was because he knew that every artifact he refined would be of great help to the Black Ink Clan on the battlefield. Those artifacts might injure or even kill Human soldiers.
He had thought about pulling some tricks by designing the artifacts in a way that they would collapse when the Black Ink Clansmen clashed with the Humans; however, even though he could be considered a Great Master when it came to his mastery of Artifact Refining, he was not able to do such a thing without anyone discovering it. If he really tried, the Feudal Lords would realise it very quickly and that would only destroy the reputation he had built up and derail his following plan.
Hence, he decided to give up on the idea.
Although Yang Kai had spent most of his time refining artifacts over the past few years, he would still take some time off to cultivate after crafting each item. As time passed, he managed to make up for some of the losses in his heritage due to the fact that he had sacrificed a part of his Small Universe in the past.
He had been waiting for Hei Yuan to summon him, but his wish was still not granted.
Supposedly, Hei Yuan should have left the Black Ink Nest by now; although he was badly injured, his speed of recovery shouldn’t be so slow with the help of the Black Ink Nest. Yang Kai wondered what was going on.
One day, Zha Gu came over as usual.
After getting the artifact from Yang Kai and passing him the next set of materials, Zha Gu thanked him and was preparing to leave.
“Wait a moment, Brother Zha Gu,” Yang Kai said.
Zha Gu turned around and asked with a smile, “What’s wrong, Brother Yang?”
Over the years, he had earned a huge fortune through Yang Kai’s skills in Artifact Refining. Gui Liao did indeed have wealthy friends who willingly paid 100,000 Black Ink Coins for a single artifact without blinking an eye. Besides that, those Feudal Lords were eager to get their hands on the artifacts made by Yang Kai. According to Gui Liao, there were still more than 10 Feudal Lords who were waiting to order their artifacts.
They would charge 100,000 coins for an artifact, and other than the 7,000 given to Yang Kai, Zha Gu and Gui Liao would respectively split the rest. Hence, Zha Gu gained 46,500 Black Ink Coins for every artifact.
100,000 was just the amount that Gui Liao told him though, and Zha Gu even suspected that Gui Liao would charge his customers a higher fee. Nevertheless, he wasn’t in any place to demand more.
Over the past five years, Yang Kai had produced more than 30 artifacts, so not only had Zha Gu paid back the Black Ink Coins he owed Gui Liao, but there was a lot of surplus. Now, he focused on managing his own Fief, so all the Black Ink Coins he earned would be used to build up his territory.
Now, his Fief was really beginning to take shape. Not only had Zha Gu nurtured several tens of thousands of Black Ink Clansmen through the Black Ink Nest, but he had also attracted many Black Ink Clansmen from other places to settle down in his territory.
It could be said that he owed his success to Yang Kai, so he was naturally quite friendly with him.
Without beating around the bush, Yang Kai asked, “Do you know what’s going on with Sir Territory Lord? Has he left the Black Ink Nest?”
Upon hearing that, Zha Gu shook his head, “I don’t think Sir Territory Lord has left the Black Ink Nest. I suppose he’s still recuperating.”
Yang Kai frowned, “Why is it taking Sir so long to recover? It’s been nearly eight years since he returned. Supposedly, he should’ve left the Black Ink Nest a long time ago.”
Zha Gu nodded, “Usually, it wouldn’t take Sir such a long time; three to four years at most. However, you’re also aware that Sir Territory Lord wasn’t the only one who entered the Black Ink Nest to recuperate. There were several other Territory Lords as well, and their injuries were even more severe than Sir Territory Lord’s. Although the Black Ink Nest can help Sir recuperate, there are several Territory Lords who need to share that power; hence, it’s not as effective as when he’s on his own. That’s the reason it’s taking him a longer time to recuperate.”
This was the information Zha Gu obtained from Gui Liao; after all, he and Gui Liao knew that once Hei Yuan left the Black Ink Nest, Yang Kai, as his Black Ink Disciple, would be summoned no matter what. By then, their business of selling artifacts would come to a halt. Certainly, Zha Gu wanted this business to last as long as possible.
Therefore, he asked Gui Liao about Hei Yuan’s condition. What he told Yang Kai just now was the information he had obtained from Gui Liao.
Upon hearing his explanation, Yang Kai replied, “I see. Do you know when Sir Territory Lord will leave the Black Ink Nest, then?”
“It will happen within a year or two,” as Zha Gu spoke, he patted the other man’s shoulder, “Don’t worry about it. Sir Territory Lord is powerful, so he’ll be fine; however, after he leaves the Black Ink Nest, you, as his Black Ink Disciple, will have to go back to him. You won’t stay here and keep making artifacts, so during this period of time, you have to work harder in order to earn more money to purchase cultivation resources.”
He thought that Yang Kai was worried about Hei Yuan, so he decided to placate him. Nevertheless, he still reminded Yang Kai to work harder to create more artifacts.
Yang Kai nodded gently, “You have a point, Brother Zha Gu.”
Upon learning that the reason Hei Yuan hadn’t left the Black Ink Nest after such a long time was that he was sharing its power with other Territory Lords, Yang Kai set his mind at ease.
He was most worried that an accident might have happened to Hei Yuan. If Hei Yuan lost his life due to his severe injuries, things would become complicated. Yang Kai definitely didn’t want to see that happen.
After seeing Zha Gu off, he continued refining artifacts.
Several months later, on the universe fragment belonging to Hei Yuan, the Black Ink Nest, which had remained shut since the return of Hei Yuan and the other Territory Lords, shook a little. Following that, a portal opened up at the bottom of the Black Ink Nest.
Several burly figures stepped out from the portal, all of their auras thick and intimidating.
The moment the Black Ink Clansmen, who were guarding the Black Ink Nest, saw these figures, they saluted them in a solemn manner. This couldn’t be helped, as they were all Territory Lords. The person at the front was none other than the owner of this place, Hei Yuan.
Of these Territory Lords, Hei Yuan looked perfectly healthy while the auras of the other Territory Lords were still a little unstable. It seemed that they hadn’t fully recovered.
That was indeed the case. After about eight years of recuperation, their injuries had mostly healed, but they were still some distance away from full recovery.
The only one who had fully recovered was Hei Yuan.
Even though he was indeed a little stronger than the others, that had nothing to do with the speed of recovery. The main reason was that he was the owner of this Black Ink Nest. By having full control over the Black Ink Nest, he could direct most of its power to heal his injuries while the rest would be shared among the other Territory Lords.
Hei Yuan would naturally recover much quicker than the other Territory Lords under such circumstances. It wasn’t that he wanted to suppress the other Territory Lords, just that anyone would’ve done the same thing if they were in his position.
In fact, if possible, Hei Yuan would rather have sent these Territory Lords back to their respective territories upon their return from the battlefield so that he wouldn’t have to share the power of his Black Ink Nest; however, those Territory Lords were horribly injured at that time as they had all fallen into a state of deep sleep, so he couldn’t possibly toss them out. Left with no other choice, he brought them back to his own Black Ink Nest and they recuperated together. That way, they could take care of each other.
Despite all this, the Territory Lords were still grateful to Hei Yuan and not dissatisfied one bit. It was true that they hadn’t fully recovered, but they were now able to protect themselves at the very least. They just had to return to their territories and get some more rest in their own Black Ink Nests so that they would recover as time passed.
The entire process would only take them a few more years.
After stepping out of the Black Ink Nest, the Territory Lords thanked Hei Yuan before shooting into the sky to leave in a hurry. This was Hei Yuan’s territory after all, so it wasn’t appropriate for them to linger here. They naturally had to go back to their territories.
Hei Yuan watched them leave.
Not long after the Territory Lords left, Gui Liao, who had received the news, led a group of Black Ink Clansmen and arrived at this place in a rush to welcome Hei Yuan.
Soon, they returned to the castle. After Hei Yuan was seated on his throne, Gui Liao stood in front of him and reported to him about what had happened in the territory over the years in a respectful manner.
Hei Yuan listened to him in silence.
No major events had taken place over the past few years. The Humans were recuperating, and there hadn’t been any serious conflicts between the two Races; hence, Gui Liao was done with his report soon.
Hei Yuan nodded and praised him by saying, “You’ve done a great job.”
Gui Liao replied humbly, “It is all thanks to Sir’s excellent management of the territory. I am just taking care of it on your behalf, so I wouldn’t dare to take the credit.”
Hei Yuan didn’t comment on it. Suddenly, he asked, “The new Black Ink Disciple named Yang Kai that I’ve taken on is an Artifact Refiner?”
There wasn’t a hint of surprise on Gui Liao’s face as he replied respectfully, “Yes, he has refined a lot of artifacts for the Feudal Lords over the years.”
Hei Yuan had been recuperating in the Black Ink Nest since his return, and he had never come into contact with anyone else. Despite that, he was still aware of all this information thanks to the Black Ink Nest.
The realm built on the Black Ink Nest’s consciousness was where the Feudal Lords would communicate with each other. Certainly, these exchanges couldn’t be hidden from the primary Black Ink Nest’s owner. In other words, as long as Hei Yuan wanted to, he could monitor all the conversations that took place within that domain while he was recuperating inside his Black Ink Nest.
Many Feudal Lords were aware that Yang Kai was an Artifact Refiner, so they would certainly talk about it. It was expected that Hei Yuan would become aware of this fact.
Furthermore, Gui Liao knew that this fact couldn’t be hidden from Hei Yuan, so he never attempted to do so.
“The Feudal Lords seem to be pleased with the artifacts he’s made. What do you think about his skills in Artifact Refining?” Hei Yuan asked.
Gui Liao replied, “I have no idea how the Humans classify the skills of an Artifact Refiner, but I think that he’s fairly talented in Artifact Refining. The artifacts made by him are just as good as the ones owned by the Humans. With those artifacts in possession, the Feudal Lords have enjoyed varying degrees of increase in their strengths. This will help them tremendously when they go to war.”
Hei Yuan nodded lightly, “Since you’ve said as much, it must mean he’s truly skilful in Artifact Refining.”
He couldn’t help but be surprised. It never crossed his mind that the Black Ink Disciple he had taken on was a valuable Artifact Refiner. The reason he decided to personally corrupt Yang Kai was that the latter had showcased exceptional combat strength back then.
Other than being powerful, Yang Kai was also an expert in Artifact Refining. It seemed that Hei Yuan had accidentally picked up a treasure.
A few years ago, he lost the resource harvesting area to the enemy, and many of his soldiers were killed during the war, so the Royal Lord would definitely punish him. As a Territory Lord, Hei Yuan wouldn’t be slapped with a serious punishment; a part of his territory would be taken from him at most. However, he wouldn’t want to see that happen.
Nevertheless, he could probably make up for the losses by presenting a skilled Artifact Refiner to the Royal Lord.
Certainly, he would feel heartbroken letting such a talented person go, but since Yang Kai was an Artifact Refiner, he would have to take part in that plan. Regardless of whether Hei Yuan wanted to make up for his losses or not, he couldn’t keep Yang Kai by his side; otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to bear the Royal Lord’s wrath.
“Where is he now?” Hei Yuan asked all of a sudden.
Gui Liao replied honestly, “He’s in Zha Gu’s place. There’s a dead Great Sun Star that is useful for him to refine artifacts with.”
“Tell him to come over and see me now.”
“Yes.”
Four hours later, Yang Kai, who was refining an artifact, realised that the restriction was touched, which caused him to frown. Over the years, Zha Gu’s subordinate would always wait outside of the restriction instead of triggering it, so this behaviour was a little unusual.
Moreover, he could sense that the person triggering the restriction was none other than Zha Gu himself.
Yang Kai initially decided to ignore him; after all, he was in the final stage of refining the artifact he was working on and it would be completed in just three to five days.
Zha Gu waited for a bit, but upon seeing that the restriction was not open, he directly broke it and entered.
The restriction Yang Kai had set up was a simple one, not something powerful, so it was easy for a Feudal Lord like Zha Gu to break it.
This caused Yang Kai to be disturbed and the artifact in his hands that was about to take shape became contorted.
After taking a glance at it, Zha Gu knew that the artifact must have been ruined because of what he had done; however, that was the least of his concerns now as he promptly said, “Sir Territory Lord has left the Black Ink Nest, Brother Yang. He wants to see you now.”
“Sir has left the Black Ink Nest?” Yang Kai was surprised. Previously, Zha Gu told him that it would only happen after a year or two, but only half a year had passed since then.
However, since Hei Yuan wanted to see him, there was no way Yang Kai could tarry; after all, he was technically Hei Yuan’s Black Ink Disciple.
“I’ll set off immediately then. What about this artifact?” Yang Kai turned to look at the warped artifact.
Zha Gu replied, “It’s fine. I’ll pay for the loss. Don’t worry about it.”
“Sorry for the trouble then, Brother Zha Gu.” Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Since I’m going back to Sir Territory Lord’s side, I guess I won’t have a chance to work with you and refine artifacts again. Please take care of yourself. We’ll definitely meet again if there’s a chance. Farewell!”
“I’ll see you off,” Zha Gu said.
A moment later, they dashed out of the Great Sun Star together. After flying alongside Yang Kai for a while, Zha Gu stopped in his tracks and fished out a Space Ring, “Many thanks for your hard work, Brother Yang. It’s been a pleasure cooperating with you over the years. Please take this little gift that I’ve prepared.”
“There’s no need for this…” Yang Kai was ready to turn him down.
Nevertheless, Zha Gu directly stuffed the ring into his hands, “I’ve earned quite a few Black Ink Coins over the years thanks to your skills. You’re the one who has been working hard, and there’s nothing much I can help you with. This is what you deserve, so don’t turn me down.”
“Since you’ve said so much, I’ll accept it. Many thanks.”
“Farewell,” Zha Gu waved his hand. It seemed that he wasn’t willing to part with him.
Yang Kai cupped his fist and left the place.
As Zha Gu watched him leave, he let out a long sigh. Over the years, he had earned about 1.5 million Black Ink Coins thanks to Yang Kai. That was the amount of money he made in less than 10 years. A Human Artifact Refiner like Yang Kai was simply a money tree to him.
Certainly, he wasn’t willing to let him go.
However, he wouldn’t dare to disobey the Territory Lord’s order. He probably would never have a chance to make easy money like this again.
It was expected that he was heartbroken and disappointed.
A long time after Yang Kai’s figure was out of sight, Zha Gu forced himself to turn around and return to his territory. Fortunately, his Fief was on the right track now, and the Black Ink Nest was fully hatched. He had the capital to gain a footing, which was unlike in the past when he had the title and power of a Feudal Lord, but not the wealth and influence to match it.
After leaving Zha Gu’s place, Yang Kai looked into the Space Ring given to him and realised that there were only 10,000 Black Ink Coins in it.
He couldn’t help but break into laughter, thinking that Zha Gu was truly stingy.
Although he wasn’t aware of the exact amount Zha Gu charged the other Feudal Lords as he had been focused on refining artifacts over the years, he at least knew that Zha Gu wasn’t being honest with him.
When he started refining artifacts for Zha Gu back then, the latter was broke, so how did Zha Gu get 500,000 Black Ink Coins to buy a sub-nest in just three years and even purchase a lot of resources to hatch it?
Yang Kai was clearly the one who helped him earn that money. In other words, the price Zha Gu told him was a bald-faced lie. He must have been charging far more than 10,000 Black Ink Coins per artifact.
Despite knowing all of that, Yang Kai didn’t intend to settle accounts with him. Black Ink Coins were useless to him. He just wanted to make himself known as a competent Artifact Refiner.
Fortunately, everything was going according to plan. Yang Kai was glad that after accepting this task in Blue Sky Pass back then, he spent the next 10 years studying the Dao of Artifact Refining; otherwise, he wouldn’t know where to start after arriving in the Black Ink Clan’s domain.
Since Hei Yuan had left the Black Ink Nest, Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling apprehensive as it was now the most critical moment.
One day later, Yang Kai arrived at the castle on the universe fragment and soon, he was granted an audience with Hei Yuan.
Inside the Grand Hall, Yang Kai finally saw Hei Yuan again after eight years.
After saluting him, Yang Kai stood respectfully in front of him. He could feel that Hei Yuan was examining him. On the other hand, Gui Liao was just standing beside Hei Yuan in a subservient manner, no longer displaying any haughtiness.
“Your Small Universe has fully healed?” Hei Yuan suddenly asked.
Gui Liao, who had been standing there in silence, suddenly lifted his gaze and glanced at Yang Kai. He had never expected this to be the first question Hei Yuan asked Yang Kai.
In fact, this matter had something to do with him. He could do whatever he wanted when Hei Yuan wasn’t around; however, since Hei Yuan was here, he was worried that Yang Kai would say something that would put him in an unfavourable position.
Yang Kai happened to look at him as well, and as their eyes met, Gui Liao felt his chest tightening.
He suddenly had a bad premonition!
Just as expected, Yang Kai grinned at him and cupped his fist, “Master, I asked Zha Gu to help me buy a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit previously. After acquiring it, I managed to heal my Small Universe.”
Upon hearing that, Hei Yuan frowned, “Why did you ask Zha Gu to help you buy a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit? Didn’t I tell Gui Liao to get you one before entering the Black Ink Nest?”
Yang Kai replied impassively, “You’ll have to ask Sir Gui Liao about that.”
Hei Yuan instantly turned to look at Gui Liao.
Gui Liao turned around and saluted Hei Yuan before explaining, “Sir, as you know, it is difficult to acquire Profound Yin Spirit Fruits. After you started recuperating, I did my best to look for one, but was regretfully unsuccessful in short order. Because of that, Yang Kai might have misunderstood my intentions. After asking for the Spirit Fruit several times but to no avail, he got into a conflict with my Black Ink Disciple, Liu Zi An. I punished them respectively. After that, Yang Kai became furious and left the castle. It wasn’t until you summoned him that he returned.”
“Is that the case?” Hei Yuan frowned.
Yang Kai replied dispassionately, “I’m not sure if Sir Gui Liao had done his best to look for the Spirit Fruit; however, after I went to Zha Gu’s place and promised that I would refine two artifacts for him, he obtained a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit for me within three days.”
Gui Liao explained, “That was when the Profound Yin Spirit Fruits became available in the territory. I seized the chance and bought one, thinking that I’d give it to you when you came back, but you didn’t seem to have the intention of returning.”
Upon finishing his words, he fished out a box from his Space Ring and opened it. There was a Profound Yin Spirit Fruit sitting inside it.
Yang Kai widened his eyes and secretly cursed at him, thinking that Gui Liao must have prepared it beforehand.
Gui Liao sighed, “You never showed up, and I didn’t know where you were. It wasn’t until a long time later that I found out you had been refining artifacts in Zha Gu’s place, and your Small Universe had fully recovered.”
At that instant, Yang Kai was lost for words despite feeling aggrieved. He initially wanted to expose Gui Liao to Hei Yuan, but he hadn’t expected that this guy had already come up with an immaculate explanation. Now, he was in a dilemma.
After pulling himself together, Yang Kai adjusted and said, “In that case, I must have misunderstood you, Sir Gui Liao. Please accept my apology.”
“It’s fine. You are Sir Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple. Since it was his order, I would definitely do my best to execute it.” Gui Liao emphasized his loyalty to Hei Yuan.
Hei Yuan wasn’t willing to waste his time dealing with such a minor issue, so he waved his hand and said, “Since it’s a misunderstanding, let’s end this matter here. Now that your Small Universe is complete, you won’t face any issues when cultivating.”
Gazing at Yang Kai, he changed the topic by saying, “You’re an expert in Artifact Refining?”
Yang Kai replied respectfully, “I wouldn’t dare to say that I’m an expert in Artifact Refining; I simply know a thing or two about it.”
Hei Yuan nodded lightly and extended his hand towards Gui Liao, who got the hint and hurriedly fished out a lance from his Space Ring before shuffling towards Yang.
“Did you make this artifact?” Hei Yuan asked.
After taking the lance, Yang Kai examined it and recognised that it was an artifact he made. Furthermore, if he wasn’t mistaken, it was the first artifact he crafted after he followed Zha Gu to his new Fief.
Although he had crafted quite a number of artifacts over the years, there wasn’t an overwhelming number of them; therefore, he could remember every piece distinctly. This lance was one of the artifacts he was tasked to refine at that time, together with an Artifact Armour that could cover the upper half of the body.
As he recalled the customer’s demands and the specifications of the Artifact Armour, Yang Kai instantly realised that Gui Liao was the patron who wanted him to make the lance and Artifact Armour.
It seemed that Gui Liao had already come into contact with Zha Gu at that point in time. The reason Zha Gu could obtain his new Fief might even have something to do with Gui Liao.
Yang Kai stopped pondering on it and nodded, “I was the one who made it.”
Upon hearing that, Hei Yuan became energised, “How long did it take you to make it?”
Yang Kai replied, “About two months.”
Hei Yuan’s eyes brightened, “It only took you two months to make such an artifact. It seems that you really are skilful in Artifact Refining.”
“Many thanks for your praise, Master. According to Human standards, I am barely qualified to be called a Great Master when it comes to my skills in Artifact Refining. This is already the best I can make.”
“It’s already incredible that you’re able to refine such artifacts. I’m sure you’re aware that due to the Black Ink Clan’s unique powers, we’re not proficient in Artifact Refining. Therefore, it’s difficult for us to get artifacts that suit us. That’s why Human Artifact Refiners are valued highly among the Black Ink Clan.”
To the side, Gui Liao smiled and nodded, “You’re right, Sir. Great Master Artifact Refiners like Yang Kai are even rarer. Given enough time to grow, he’ll be able to create even better artifacts.”
Hei Yuan looked fervently at Yang Kai, “If I want you to focus on crafting artifacts, how much do you think you can improve on your Artifact Refining skills?”
“Focus on crafting artifacts?” Yang Kai appeared bewildered, “Master, please understand that the Dao of Artifact Refining is just a hobby of mine. I hope that I can focus on Martial Dao so that I will be able to assist you out on the battlefield.”
A gratified Hei Yuan nodded, “That’s very thoughtful of you; however, what if I insist that you focus on the Dao of Artifact Refining?”
Without hesitation, Yang Kai replied, “Since it is your order, Master, I will definitely obey it. However…”
“Go on,” Hei Yuan said.
“I do not have an exceptional aptitude in the Dao of Artifact Refining. Regardless of how hard I try, at best I will become a Grandmaster in the future. There is no possibility I can become a Great Grandmaster.”
“You have a chance to become a Grandmaster?” Hei Yuan’s eyes lit up as he laughed, “Wonderful!”
A hesitant Yang Kai asked, “Do you need me to make any artifacts for you, Master? If that is the case, I shall do my best not to disappoint you.”
“I do need you to refine an artifact for me, but…” Hei Yuan caught himself and paused for a moment, “Go back and get some rest first. You will accompany me somewhere in a few days.”
Despite appearing puzzled, Yang Kai saluted him and left the hall.
After he was gone, Gui Liao asked, “Are you bringing him to the Royal City, Sir?”
An excited Hei Yuan nodded, “Yes. The Royal Lord has already given the order that whenever we find Human Artifact Refiners in our territories, we have to send them to the Royal City. I’ve told you the reason behind it, so I’m sure you still remember it.”
“Yes,” Gui Liao replied respectfully, “How is the Royal Lord’s plan progressing, Sir?”
At the mention of this, Hei Yuan appeared worried, “It’s not going well. Although some prototypes have been made, they’re weak and unreliable, totally incomparable to the Warships owned by the Humans. That’s why they desperately need skilled Artifact Refiners. Yang Kai is a Great Master now, and he might grow to become a Grandmaster one day. Perhaps he won’t be able to take charge of the plan, but he can surely help out in some important parts. Someone like him is exactly what the Royal Lord needs.”
Hei Yuan then let out a sigh, “It’s a shame. He was quite strong after all.”
The reason he personally corrupted Yang Kai back then was that the latter had showcased exceptional combat power; however, compared to Yang Kai’s strength, the Royal Lord’s plan was definitely more important. Hei Yuan had no choice but to let him go.
Yang Kai was told to wait for a few days before leaving with Hei Yuan. Although he pretended to be perplexed, he knew that his plans were progressing smoothly.
He reckoned that Hei Yuan was bringing him to see the Royal Lord.
This made him feel both excited and anxious. He was excited because everything was going according to plan. If nothing unexpected happened, he would soon figure out who were the Human Artifact Refiners were that made artifacts for the Black Ink Clan as well as their whereabouts.
On the other hand, he was anxious because it wasn’t easy to deal with a Royal Lord, who was as powerful as a Ninth-Order Old Ancestor. Faced with such a being, he wouldn’t dare to say that he wouldn’t be exposed.
When he was in the Royal City on his own, once his identity was exposed, he wouldn’t be able to bear the consequences.
Instead of idling in the castle, Yang Kai headed to the city.
Over the years, the main reason he worked with Zha Gu to refine artifacts was that he wanted to make himself known as an expert in Artifact Refining and attract Hei Yuan’s attention. At the same time, he had also accumulated quite a lot of Black Ink Coins.
For every artifact he made, he received 7,000 Black Ink Coins. Over the past seven to eight years, he had made about 50 artifacts and had thus earned more than 300,000 Black Ink Coins.
In fact, the purchasing power of Black Ink Coins was incredible. Based on the conversion rate, 300,000 Black Ink Coins would be equivalent to 3 billion Open Heaven Pills. Although Black Ink Coins were useless to Yang Kai, he could use them to purchase cultivation resources.
This was the first time he brought so much money with him and bought things in the city, so he was curious about everything. There were quite a number of Black Ink Disciples in the city, but they all followed behind their Masters. He was the only Black Ink Disciple who was on his own, which was why he caught the attention of many Black Ink Clansmen.
Although they were curious, they wouldn’t dare to do anything to him upon detecting his Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm cultivation.
The person who could corrupt a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master had to be a Territory Lord at the very least; furthermore, they heard that the ruling Territory Lord here had taken on a Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciple recently. Perhaps this Human was that Black Ink Disciple. Certainly, no one would dare to have their eyes on the Territory Lord’s Black Ink Disciple.
There were a lot of shops in the city, and after visiting several of them, Yang Kai realised that the Black Ink Clan possessed a truly massive amount of cultivation resources.
After giving it a thought though, he realised that this wasn’t surprising. The Black Ink Battlefield was vast, and the Black Ink Clan occupied most of it. There were countless Universe Worlds in those territories that could be mined; hence, they were not lacking cultivation resources.
This was starkly different from the situation that the Humans were in. They would only be able to snatch some resource-harvesting areas and extract the resources there for a short period of time after defeating the Black Ink Clan’s Army. After the Black Ink Clan was done recuperating, the Humans would have to give up those resource-harvesting areas.
This kind of cycle never ended.
With that said, the Black Ink Clan were unable to directly refine these resources to cultivate; instead, they had to throw them into the Black Ink Nests, which would produce Black Ink Strength. It was only then that the Black Ink Clansmen could make use of Black Ink Strength.
The resources that the Human cultivators yearned for couldn’t be directly used by the Black Ink Clansmen; therefore, these resources were surprisingly affordable in this Black Ink Clan city.
The 300,000 Black Ink Coins that Yang Kai had were worth 3 billion Open Heaven Pills. If he were in a city run by the Humans, he would use up all the money purchasing two or three sets of Seventh-Order materials.
Nevertheless, in this city, he managed to buy more than 10 sets of Seventh-Order materials with his Black Ink Coins. The difference between the purchasing powers of these two currencies was astonishing.
Yang Kai suddenly felt regretful, thinking that he should have gotten some Black Ink Coins from Zhong Liang and the others when he was in Blue Sky Pass back then.
The Humans from the various Great Passes had amassed a staggering amount of Black Ink Coins over the years, all of which were collected from the battlefield after they defeated the Black Ink Clan over the years.
They would pick up Black Ink Coins from the dead Black Ink Clansmen, but the money was useless to them, so they would just pile them up.
Over the years, Blue Sky Pass had probably amassed trillions of Black Ink Coins. If Yang Kai had brought those Black Ink Coins with him, he could’ve snapped up all the resources in Hei Yuan’s territory.
Certainly, it would cause a commotion if Yang Kai really did so. He just regretted that he hadn’t brought a few million Black Ink Coins with him; otherwise, he could’ve purchased a fair amount of resources without being noticed.
More than 10 sets of Seventh-Order material were nothing compared to his total wealth, but he could refine them without worrying about getting caught.
This was the reason he left the castle to purchase resources; otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to explain himself when Hei Yuan saw him refining resources.
Without staying for a long time, he used up his Black Ink Coins and returned to the castle to start cultivating.
A few days later, Hei Yuan finally summoned him.
Above an empty square in the middle of the castle, a large ship was hovering in mid-air. More than 100 Black Ink Clansmen were ready to board the ship with Hei Yuan, including Yang Kai.
This large ship wasn’t a Warship; it was just a flight-type artifact. Given Yang Kai’s mastery of Artifact Refining, it would only take him some time to craft a similar ship; however, it would take him a longer time and more energy to build one than make an ordinary artifact.
Over the years, none of the Feudal Lords that were his customers had asked him to make a flight-type artifact. To the Feudal Lords, artifacts that could save their lives or kill the enemies were far more important than flight-type artifacts. Furthermore, the materials used to build a flight-type artifact were more expensive than the ones used for making an ordinary artifact.
“I will return from the Royal City soon. After I’m gone, you will manage the affairs in the territory,” Hei Yuan said to Gui Liao.
“Don’t worry, Sir. I’ll handle everything well,” Gui Liao replied respectfully.
Hei Yuan went on to say, “When I come back, I’ll let you enter the Black Ink Nest so that you can become a Territory Lord. You’ve accumulated enough over the years to do so.”
In an instant, Gui Liao became agitated, “Many thanks, Sir Territory Lord! I’ll not disappoint you!”
Hei Yuan nodded lightly, then said to the Black Ink Clansman who was responsible for controlling the large ship, “Let’s go.”
Following his order, the ship hummed and rose into the sky. After turning in a different direction, it transformed into a ray of light and left the place at the speed of lightning.
On the deck, Hei Yuan stared out at the void and fell into his thoughts.
Yang Kai just stood silently behind him in a subservient manner.
“I rarely turn Humans. The last time I did so was 2,000 years ago. The Black Ink Disciple I corrupted at that time was just like you. He was strong,” Hei Yuan suddenly said.
Yang Kai had no idea what the other man was trying to say. Although it seemed like a small talk, he didn’t think a Territory Lord would waste his time in such a way. Hence, he decided to remain silent so that he wouldn’t say anything wrong.
“He had followed me for 1,000 years and made a lot of contributions. Unfortunately… he was killed on the battlefield in the end.” Hei Yuan sighed, “Theoretically, a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master is equivalent to a Feudal Lord; however, a Seventh-Order Human will always be stronger than ordinary Feudal Lords. The strongest ones are even able to wound newly promoted Territory Lords.”
Yang Kai explained, “The cultivation of Humans is all about accumulation. Even if two people are both in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, there might be a difference of several thousand years of cultivation between them; hence, there is a huge gap in power between them.”
Hei Yuan nodded, “It’s all about accumulation for the Humans, and it’s the same case for the Black Ink Clan; however, in general, it takes a shorter time for the Black Ink Clan to mature than the Humans. Moreover, all our ascensions rely on the Black Ink Nests. Perhaps that is the reason the individual power of the Black Ink Clan is weaker than that of the Humans.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai was startled, “I’ve never thought about it before.”
Without turning his head, Hei Yuan said with a smile, “The Humans rely on themselves to break through while the Black Ink Clan have to make use of external aids to do so. That’s the difference between us. However, Humans are not comparable to us when it comes to population. We have an infinite supply of soldiers while there’s only a limited number of Human cultivators in each Great Pass. Despite that, rarely has any Great Pass been conquered over the years. Sometimes, I can’t help but admire the Humans’ determination and perseverance.”
Yang Kai sensitively caught a piece of important information in Hei Yuan’s words, “Sir, you said rarely any Great Pass has been conquered before. Does that mean it has happened before?”
Hei Yuan turned to look at him and asked curiously, “Don’t you know about it?”
[It really happened before?] Yang Kai felt his heart sinking. While remaining calm, he shook his head, “I’ve never heard about it. In fact, it’s only been a short time since I arrived at this battlefield.”
Hei Yuan nodded gently, “It indeed happened a long time ago. The Humans must be ashamed of this incident, so they naturally wouldn’t spread it. Perhaps they’ve erased all records of it.”
“Which of the Great Passes had been conquered before?” Yang Kai knew that as a Black Ink Disciple, he shouldn’t have asked so many questions. Nevertheless, he couldn’t suppress his curiosity.
“It happened so long ago that I can no longer remember it. Let me think… I believe it was called the Great Evolution Pass. Yes, it was the Great Evolution Pass.”
[Great Evolution Pass… Great Evolution Paradise!]
Yang Kai was shaken to the core.
The Great Passes were basically named after the Cave Heavens and Paradises. At the mention of the Great Evolution Pass, Yang Kai could only think of Great Evolution Paradise.
That was the Paradise where Grandmaster Ma Fan came from. The Good Fortune Divine Furnace that could be used to derive higher-order materials from lower-order ones was one of Great Evolution Paradise’s core inheritances.
Back then, in order to fight for the right to use the Good Fortune Divine Furnace, the Cave Heavens and Paradises haggled with Yang Kai for quite some time.
Great Evolution Paradise was removed from the 72 Paradises, and Grandmaster Ma Fan was just a remnant of Great Evolution Paradise.
Yang Kai had always been curious about what kind of crisis such a Paradise faced to cause its downfall.
Now, it seemed that it had something to do with the fact that the Great Evolution Pass was conquered on the Black Ink Battlefield. However, other than the Old Ancestors, no one else seemed aware of what had happened in the past. Even Grandmaster Ma Fan himself seemed unaware of the details. After all, he had never come to the Black Ink Battlefield as he had always been living in the 3,000 Worlds.
“That is the only Great Pass we managed to conquer.” There was a hint of displeasure in Hei Yuan’s tone, “Although we had many chances of conquering other Great Passes in the past, we’d always fail in our attempts in the end. The resilience and persistence of the Humans is inconceivable. You are a Human as well as a Black Ink Disciple, so you surely understand Humans and the Black Ink Clan better than most. Do you know the strengths and weaknesses of the two Races?”
Yang Kai was caught off guard as he was suddenly asked such a question, but after giving it a thought, he replied, “Just like what Master has said, the Black Ink Clan have an unlimited supply of soldiers while there is a limited number of Human cultivators. That’s the advantage of the Black Ink Clan. Also, Black Ink Strength is a tricky problem for the Humans. In the past, once they were invaded by Black Ink Strength, they either had to sacrifice a part of their Small Universes or kill themselves on the spot; otherwise, they would be turned into Black Ink Disciples. However, since the Humans invented Purifying Black Ink Pills, the threat of Black Ink Strength has greatly diminished.”
“Indeed.” Hei Yuan snorted, “Purifying Black Ink Pills are being used by the Humans to suppress Black Ink Strength now. If we lose this advantage, it will be useless regardless of how many soldiers we have. The Humans also have Warships. That is their biggest advantage! A Warship is the greatest weapon for both offence and defence. With only a small number of Humans controlling the vessel, it can cause severe casualties on the battlefield. If the Humans never had Warships, they would’ve been destroyed by now.”
Yang Kai played along by saying, “If the Black Ink Clan also had Warships, the Humans wouldn’t be a match for us. Unfortunately, it’s extremely difficult to refine a Warship. Only Great Grandmasters are able to do that. Although I know a thing or two about Artifact Refining, I’ll never be able to make a Warship in my lifetime regardless of how hard I try.”
Hei Yuan turned to look at him and smiled, “While you can’t do it, that doesn’t mean no one else can make it.”
Yang Kai said curiously, “Master, you mean…”
Hei Yuan went on to say, “You’re not the only one who has thought of this idea. In fact, the Royal Lord has been working towards this goal for a long time now. The Black Ink Clan has been trying to create a Warship, and we’ve achieved some success so far.”
Yang Kai instantly appeared shocked, “There’s a Great Grandmaster Artifact Refiner in the Black Ink Clan?”
Hei Yuan shook his head, “I have no idea whether he’s a Great Grandmaster. Perhaps he’s still some distance away from that rank, but he’s certainly approaching it. As time passes, he’ll be able to refine a Warship. That’s the reason I’m bringing you to the Royal City.”
Upon learning his intentions, Yang Kai said, “Master, you want me to help create a Warship?”
Hei Yuan nodded, “You’re a Great Master in Artifact Refining, so you should be able to help out; after all, there are not a lot of Artifact Refiners as capable as you in the Black Ink Clan.”
Upon hearing that, Yang Kai said, “Since it is your order, this servant will do his utmost to comply.”
Hei Yuan was apparently pleased with his response, “Just do your best when you’re there, and don’t cause trouble. If other Territory Lords have their eyes on you, just tell them you’re my Black Ink Disciple. When you manage to make a name for yourself, you’ll be a great contributor to the Black Ink Clan. I’ll reward you handsomely when the time comes.”
“You flatter me, Master. I will do my best to help.”
While facing away from him, Hei Yuan waved his hand, “We’ll reach the Royal City in a few days. You don’t have to stay here. Go get some rest.”
“Then I will retire to my room,” Yang Kai cupped his fist and stepped backwards before turning around to leave.
After he entered the room assigned to him, Yang Kai sat down with his legs crossed and fished out a set of Seventh-Order materials to cultivate.
Although he already had a speculation about Hei Yuan’s intentions, he hadn’t expected the latter to make them so clear to him while they were on their way to the destination.
After giving it a thought though, he realised that Hei Yuan must have decided to inform him about it in advance so that he wouldn’t be perplexed when they arrived at the Royal City.
Nevertheless, it never crossed Hei Yuan’s mind that it was exactly Yang Kai’s intention to sneak into the core of the Black Ink Clan’s territory.
Everything was going well, and if nothing unexpected happened, after they arrived at the Royal City, Hei Yuan would recommend Yang Kai to take part in the Warship refining project. By then, it would be easy for Yang Kai to gather information.
Having said that, there was one thing that troubled him.
How was he going to relay the information he had gathered back to Yin-Yang Pass?
It wasn’t that those from Yin-Yang Pass had neglected this issue per se, but while he could pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple and sneak into this place, sending information back remained a difficult problem. Those from Yin-Yang Pass were simply unable to solve this problem. They only told Yang Kai to come up with a way to send the information to them.
Yang Kai had been racking his brain for a long time, but he still couldn’t come up with a solution, and it was now giving him a headache.
A few days later, Yang Kai was cultivating when he felt the large ship shaking a little and decelerating.
Following that, a Black Ink Clansman was heard shouting from the deck, “Get ready! We’re about to reach the Royal City!”
Yang Kai put away his resources and dashed towards the deck. As he looked in the direction where the large ship was headed, a gigantic universe fragment came into his sight.
Hei Yuan’s territory was also a large universe fragment, but it paled compared to the one before his eyes. The universe fragment where the Royal City was located was ten times larger than Hei Yuan’s territory.
At the sight of it, Yang Kai was astonished.
It had to be noted that a universe fragment was basically the result of a Universe World breaking apart. Just by looking at the size of this universe fragment, Yang Kai could imagine how colossal the Universe World must have been when it was whole.
This must have originally been a flourishing World, but now, there was only a universe fragment left, and it was engulfed in thick Black Ink Strength all year long.
As the large ship drew nearer, a massive Black Ink Nest came into view. Despite the fact that the universe fragment was covered in dense Black Ink Strength, it still couldn’t conceal the magnificent nest. Looking at the unimaginably large object, Yang Kai was flabbergasted.
Zha Gu had told him about the different ranks of Black Ink Nests, so he was aware that this was supposed to be the Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nest, which was a High-Rank Nest.
On the other hand, Zha Gu’s was just a Low-Rank Black Ink Nest. Despite being the lowest rank Black Ink Nest, it could produce more than 1,000 Black Ink Clansmen at any given time as long as enough resources were provided to it.
The Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nest in front of them was several dozen times larger than Zha Gu’s Black Ink Nest. Sitting on the universe fragment, the Black Ink Nest looked like an insurmountable mountain.
Given enough resources, such a Black Ink Nest would undoubtedly be able to produce several tens of thousands of Black Ink Clansmen at once.
Black Ink Nests were the foundation of the Black Ink Clan, and this one was also the centre of the entire Royal City.
With the Black Ink Nest as the centre, the vast area surrounding it made up the Royal City.
Before the large ship even got closer to the universe fragment where the Royal City was located, Yang Kai detected a powerful aura that examined them. The person was obviously a Territory Lord who was responsible for keeping the Royal City safe.
Hei Yuan was just standing on the bow as he revealed a bit of his aura.
Soon, the other aura retracted as the person verified Hei Yuan’s identity.
Without the need for any instructions, the large ship flew in a particular direction towards the Royal City. They soon arrived at a square where more than 100 ships of different sizes were anchored. All of them were much larger than the ships owned by the Humans.
Nevertheless, these large ships were apparently made by Human Artifact Refiners. Yang Kai was a fairly skilled Artifact Refiner now, so he could easily figure this out. These large ships were specifically made for the Black Ink Clan by the Human Artifact Refiners.
“All of you, stay here. I’ll see the Royal Lord now,” Hei Yuan said to his subordinates and left the ship.
While standing on the deck, Yang Kai fell into a dazed state.
He initially thought that Hei Yuan would bring him to see the Royal Lord, so he had been apprehensive all along; after all, he wasn’t sure if the Royal Lord had any special skills that would allow him to see through his deception. If that was the case, he would lose his life before achieving his goal.
However, Hei Yuan apparently didn’t have the intention of bringing him to see the Royal Lord. This allowed Yang Kai to feel relieved.
After giving it a thought, he realised that even though he could be considered a treasure as he was a Great Master Artifact Refiner, he still wasn’t important enough to see the Royal Lord directly. It was expected that Hei Yuan wouldn’t bring him along.
Since Yang Kai didn’t have to face the Royal Lord just yet, he set his mind at ease.
Hei Yuan headed towards the giant Black Ink Nest, and he was soon out of sight. Yang Kai looked around and realised that the Black Ink Clansmen who had tagged along all sported solemn expressions. While standing upright, they stared at the Black Ink Nest in a respectful manner.
Besides them, the Black Ink Clansmen staying on the other large ships were in a similar state.
It seemed that the Black Ink Clansmen especially revered the Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nest.
According to Zha Gu, the Black Ink Nest in the Royal City was the source of all Black Ink Nests in the Yin-Yang Theatre. All the Territory Lords’ Black Ink Nests were bred from this one, and the many Low-Rank Black Ink Nests were then bred from those Territory Lord Black Ink Nests.
Innumerable Black Ink Clansmen were born from the Black Ink Nests of different ranks. Basically, the Black Ink Nest in the Royal City was the source of their lives. That was why they revered this particular Black Ink Nest while they were here.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but fall into his thoughts, [Where is the source of the Royal Lord Black Ink Nests? It is not likely for them to have appeared out of thin air. I asked Zha Gu about it, but he was unable to answer my question.]
All Zha Gu knew was that a Royal Lord’s Black Ink Nest was the highest rank one; however, Yang Kai didn’t think that was true. Perhaps there were some secrets that even many of the Black Ink Clansmen were unaware of.
It wasn’t certain how long the meeting between Hei Yuan and the Royal Lord would last, and since Yang Kai was bored, he thought about taking a stroll around the Royal City. However, he wasn’t familiar with this place, so he was worried that he might invite some trouble; after all, his identity as a Human was conspicuous. Furthermore, he had used up all his Black Ink Coins. Even if he came across any good things, he wouldn’t have the money to buy them; therefore, he decided to give up on the idea.
He thus shuffled into the cabin and fished out his resources to continue cultivating.
This went on for a few days.
Finally, there came a moment when he felt Hei Yuan’s aura descending on the deck, so he hurriedly left the cabin.
Hei Yuan was indeed standing on the deck; however, though he was on his own when he left the ship, when he returned, he had another Black Ink Clansman with him.
The Black Ink Clansman was a Feudal Lord, but his aura was more ample than any Feudal Lord Yang Kai had seen before.
Yang Kai saluted Hei Yuan respectfully, “Master.”
“Him?” The unfamiliar Black Ink Clansman looked down at Yang Kai and examined him.
Hei Yuan replied, “Yes, it’s him.”
The Black Ink Clansman nodded, “I’ll take him from here, then. I hope he’s as skilful in Artifact Refining as you’ve described him to be, Sir Hei Yuan.”
Hei Yuan said, “Why would I lie to the Royal Lord?”
Then, he beckoned to Yang Kai, “Yang Kai!”
“Master,” Yang Kai stepped forward.
Like a Senior to him, Hei Yuan instructed, “You will follow him. Remember what I told you before? Don’t tarnish my reputation while you are here.”
Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Don’t worry, Master. I will do my utmost to serve you.”
A satisfied Hei Yuan nodded and turned to look at the Feudal Lord, “You can take him away now.”
The Black Ink Clansman then activated his Black Ink Strength and engulfed Yang Kai with it. After turning into a cloud of black fog, he shot into the sky. He didn’t even bid Hei Yuan farewell before he left.
Nevertheless, Hei Yuan didn’t mind it. Although he was a Territory Lord, the other person was a personal guard of the Royal Lord. There was no doubt that he was weaker than Hei Yuan now, but he would be on an equal footing in the future.
Everything was going well; initially, after he was defeated in the previous battle and lost the resource harvesting area to the Humans a few years ago, Hei Yuan was supposed to be punished. However, after he recommended Yang Kai to the Royal Lord, the latter didn’t even reprimand him, just like he had expected. The Royal Lord only gave him a warning and told the personal guard to come to this place with Hei Yuan and take Yang Kai away.
Since the matter had been settled, Hei Yuan decided to leave. He then told the person controlling the large ship to set off and return to his territory.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai was engulfed in thick Black Ink Strength and dragged along by the Black Ink Clansman at the speed of lightning.
As he was covered in the Black Ink Strength, it was hard for him to identify the exact direction they were travelling, though he had a general idea. As time passed, Yang Kai realised that they were actually moving further away from the universe fragment where the Royal City was located.
This astounded him.
They were trying to build a Warship, and this task couldn’t be carried out by only one person, so there must be a lot of Human Artifact Refiners that had been gathered together. Since this was an important matter, the Black Ink Clan must have set up a secure place to conduct research and experiments.
Yang Kai initially thought that such a place must be in the Royal City. That was the speculation of those from Yin-Yang Pass as well. That was why they decided to let him become Hei Yuan’s Black Ink Disciple so that he could move around the Royal City and gather information freely.
Now, it seemed that the place where the Warship was being developed wasn’t in the Royal City.
The revelation made Yang Kai feel elated.
Since the research centre wasn’t in the Royal City, it meant that he didn’t have to directly face the Royal Lord. This was good news to him; after all, the Royal Lord was too powerful.
While they were on the way to their destination, Yang Kai asked probingly, “Where are we going, Sir?”
The Black Ink Clansman apparently didn’t have the intention of answering his question and simply ordered impassively, “Shut up!”
Yang Kai directly kept his mouth shut.
It seemed that it was difficult to deal with this Feudal Lord, for even Hei Yuan had to be polite to him. It was apparent that his identity was special. If Yang Kai was oppressed by him, he wouldn’t have a way to get his revenge.
Just one hour later, the Feudal Lord suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked around, as though he was trying to find something.
Yang Kai scanned the surroundings and soon detected an anomaly somewhere in the Void.
Although that place didn’t look different from the area around it, there was a weak fluctuation of Space Principles. Yang Kai arched his brow; if he wasn’t mistaken, there was a portal over there.
He soon realised what was going on.
The place where the Warship was being developed wasn’t in the Royal City; instead, it was in a Sealed World that would take a person an hour to reach from the Royal City. This was indeed a good arrangement.
As expected, after looking around for a while, the Feudal Lord stared fixedly at the hidden portal. Following that, he fished out a token and infused his power into it before casting a light at that place.
A ripple spread across the void as the light penetrated a barrier and disappeared into another World.
Yang Kai felt his brow twitching. It was apparent to him that this was a Human’s creation. The people who set up a restriction around here and made this access token were definitely Human cultivators.
After the Feudal Lord was done with all that, he waited patiently.
A moment later, a ripple spread across the void as the portal to the Sealed World opened up. Supposedly, someone from the inside had opened it.
When the portal was large enough, the Feudal Lord grasped Yang Kai’s collar and dashed inside.
The view around Yang Kai changed and he realised that he was now inside a Sealed World.
Just like the Sealed Worlds that had been explored before, this one was full of greenery. It was beautiful and refreshing like a spring day.
The portal that led to the outside world was just behind him; however, he felt his skin tightening at that instant. This couldn’t be helped, as he realised that several dozen auras had locked onto him, one of them being particularly fierce.
Looking up, Yang Kai saw that there was a place that looked like a camp in front of him where several dozen Black Ink Clansmen were looking in their direction. The one standing at the front had two horns on his forehead and his burly figure made him look like some kind of two-legged Ox Demon.
Those several dozen auras apparently came from this group. Surprisingly, they were mostly Feudal Lords while the Black Ink Clansman who looked like an Ox Demon was a Territory Lord.
There were many powerful Black Ink Clansmen guarding the portal of this Sealed World, and their leader was a Territory Lord. It went to show how important the Black Ink Clan considered this place.
The Feudal Lord, who led Yang Kai to this place, gazed at the Territory Lord and cupped his fist, “Sir Mei Qiong.”
The Territory Lord named Mei Qiong nodded lightly. Just by taking a glance at Yang Kai, he figured out the latter’s identity, “Found a new Artifact Refiner?”
The Feudal Lord replied, “It was Sir Hei Yuan who found him.”
“Hei Yuan…” Mei Qiong snorted. Perhaps he had some grudges against Hei Yuan. Yang Kai could see a hint of disdain flashing through his face at the mention of Hei Yuan, “What’s his rank?”
The Feudal Lord replied, “According to Sir Hei Yuan, he’s a Great Master Artifact Refiner.”
“A Great Master? Hei Yuan is pretty lucky!” Mei Qiong was surprised; after all, since this plan had been started years ago, all the Black Ink Disciples who knew even a thing or two about Artifact Refining had been gathered here. It was hard to find a Great Master Artifact Refiner in the outside world.
Even in this place, there were only a small number of Great Masters.
“I’ll leave him to you, Sir Mei Qiong. I still have to go back and report the matter to the Royal Lord.”
Mei Qiong nodded, “Good. Just leave him here. You can go back now.”
The Feudal Lord went on to say, “The Royal Lord wants me to tell you and Sir Qing Lei to work harder and complete this task as soon as possible.”
In an instant, Mei Qiong appeared annoyed, “It’s not like Qing Lei and I can accelerate the process in any way. The Human Artifact Refiners are the ones developing it.”
The Feudal Lord asked impassively, “Do you want me to pass on your words to the Royal Lord, Sir?”
Mei Qiong felt his brow twitching. Feeling vexed, he uttered, “Qing Lei and I will work harder to supervise them. Tell the Royal Lord to rest assured.”
It was only then that the Feudal Lord bowed his head and flew towards the portal.
After the portal closed, Mei Qiong turned to look at Yang Kai and sneered, “You’re pretty bold. I hope your skills in Artifact Refining are just as great as your audacity.”
Yang Kai put on a fawning smile as he wouldn’t dare to say anything in front of this overbearing man.
Mei Qiong beckoned to a subordinate and ordered, “Bring him to see Qing Lei.”
“Yes,” Upon receiving the order, the Feudal Lord directly pushed his Black Ink Strength and engulfed Yang Kai with it before flying further into the Sealed World.
Just a moment later, they arrived at a huge valley where there was a Grand Hall in the middle of the mountain wall. There were a lot of Black Ink Clansmen moving around the Grand Hall. The Feudal Lord turned his head and ordered, “Come with me.”
He then shuffled into the Grand Hall; naturally, no one stopped him.
Yang Kai followed him closely.
Soon, they moved across the Grand Hall and arrived at an open-air platform on the other end. There was a well-built figure standing on the platform. Looking down from this position, one could watch over the entire valley.
The Feudal Lord, who led Yang Kai to this place, saluted the well-built figure, “Sir Qing Lei.”
Without turning his head, Qing Lei asked in a deep voice, “The portal of the Sealed World was opened just now?”
Although he was responsible for guarding this place, he was a Territory Lord after all. He certainly could detect that the portal was opened earlier.
The Feudal Lord replied respectfully, “An Artifact Refiner has been sent over from the Royal City.”
Qing Lei turned around and examined Yang Kai before nodding, “What’s his rank?”
“It’s said that he’s a Great Master Artifact Refiner.”
Qing Lei said impassively, “Not bad. Leave him to me.”
“Yes,” the Feudal Lord replied, then left the place respectfully.
Yang Kai stood there silently and waited for Qing Lei to speak to him; however, Qing Lei didn’t seem to have the intention of saying anything to Yang Kai as he remained unmoving.
Yang Kai had no idea what the other man was waiting for. Despite that, he had figured out some important information not long after he arrived in this Sealed World.
There was no doubt that Mu Guang Royal Lord treasured this Sealed World highly. Not only did it require a special token to open the portal, but there were also two Territory Lords guarding this place. One of them was Mei Qiong, who was responsible for guarding the portal, and the other was Qing Lei.
Yang Kai had no idea how many Feudal Lords there were in this place, but he was certain there were a lot of them.
The number of powerful Black Ink Clansmen here showed how cautious Mu Guang was. Although Yang Kai always knew this would be a difficult task, he still felt frustrated at this moment.
He could ignore the Feudal Lords, but it wasn’t easy to do anything without alerting the Territory Lords.
As Yang Kai followed Qing Lei’s gaze, he saw a huge Warship hovering in the middle of the mountain valley.
The size of this Warship was similar to the one he saw in Blue Sky Pass in the past. It was much larger than a typical Warship owned by a Human Squad, similar to the size of a Warship used by a Battalion. The appearance of the Warship was imposing.
Since Yang Kai was unable to get closer, he couldn’t ascertain the capabilities of this Warship; however, it had been 20 years since those from Yin-Yang Pass discovered the first prototype Black Ink Clan Warship, so the newer one must have been improved at least a little.
At this moment, there were a lot of Human Artifact Refiners that had gathered together in this mountain valley. Nevertheless, not every Artifact Refiner had the right to refine this kind of Warship. Most of the Artifact Refiners could be ignored. The most pressing issue for Yang Kai was to find out who was the Artifact Refiner that was in charge of developing the Warship. Only by doing so could he come up with a solution.
All of a sudden, a figure shot into the sky, which caught Yang Kai’s attention.
As he looked intently, he realised that the person was a Human, not a Black Ink Clansman.
The person was an elderly man who was in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm; however, he appeared exhausted, as though he hadn’t taken a break from work for a long time.
The elderly man walked up to Qing Lei and saluted him, “What’s wrong, Sir Qing Lei?”
Qing Lei shot him a dispassionate glance, “Here’s a new Artifact Refiner. Help him settle in.”
It was then that the elderly man noticed Yang Kai, who was behind Qing Lei. Elated, and replied, “Understood!”
Upon finishing his words, he beckoned to Yang Kai, “Come with me.”
Yang Kai nodded and flew towards the mountain valley alongside the elderly man.
Before they landed, the elderly man turned to look at Yang Kai and asked, “What’s your name?”
Yang Kai cupped his fist, “Yang Kai.”
The elderly man nodded, “So it is Little Brother Yang. You’re already so strong at such a young age. You do have a promising future. By the way, I’m Wu Xing He.”
[Wu Xing He!]
Yang Kai turned serious the moment he heard this name.
Before he left Yin-Yang Pass, Tang Qiu had given him a list of a dozen people who had gone missing on the battlefield. Those from Yin-Yang Pass speculated that they had been corrupted by the Black Ink Clan and turned into Black Ink Disciples. These dozen people had studied Artifact Refining before and shown some talent for it. Of course, when they went missing, they could only be considered novices in Artifact Refining.
However, if they fell into the hands of the Black Ink Clan and started focusing on studying the Dao of Artifact Refining, they would have a chance to grow. Those from Yin-Yang Pass speculated that the person in charge of developing the Warship was one of those people.
Tang Qiu told Yang Kai to pay more attention to the information regarding the people on the list when the latter arrived in the Black Ink Clan’s domain.
Yang Kai had never expected that not long after he entered this Sealed World, he would meet one of the people on the list.
Could this person be the one who was in charge of developing the Warship? Yang Kai was uncertain about it. From the looks of it, even if Wu Xing He wasn’t the most important figure in this project, he wouldn’t be insignificant; otherwise, Qing Lei wouldn’t have told him to help Yang Kai settle in.
Suppressing the emotions in his heart, Yang Kai cupped his fist, “So, it is Senior Wu.”
Wu Xing He glanced at him and chuckled, “We’re both in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, so you don’t have to call me a Senior. Moreover, we’re in the Black Ink Clan now, so we don’t have to comply with the etiquette of the Humans.”
Yang Kai was already used to Human etiquette, and although he was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he could only be considered a rising Star compared to the other much older veteran Seventh-Order Masters.
Upon hearing Wu Xing He’s words though, Yang Kai stopped being overly polite and addressed the older man in a different way, saying, “Senior Brother Wu.”
Wu Xing He replied with a smile, “What’s your rank in Artifact Refining?”
Yang Kai replied honestly, “Great Master.”
“What field are you particularly well-versed in?”
“Personally, I’m good at refining offensive and defensive artifacts. I can build flight-type artifacts as well, but that will take a longer time.”
Upon hearing that, Wu Xing He nodded, “In that case, you shall work with me. I happen to need more people on my side.”
“I shall trouble you from now on then, Senior Brother Wu.”
“No worries.”
By the time they finished speaking, they arrived at the bottom of the mountain valley. Yang Kai looked down and saw many Artifact Refiners working on the Warship. There were also some Feudal Lords walking around that seemed to be supervising them.
Wu Xing He directly led Yang Kai to the edge of the mountain valley where there were a lot of houses. Wu Xing He pointed at those houses and said, “This is where we can get some rest and cultivate. The three houses on the left are empty, so you can choose one of them. Although Black Ink Disciples are considered lowly in the Black Ink Clan, Artifact Refiners like us are treated fairly well. If you need resources to cultivate, you can go over there and get some.”
Then, he pointed at the hall on the side, “Not only are there materials of different Orders, but there are also a lot of Spirit Pills. They’re for us to use.”
Yang Kai was astounded, “It seems that everything is provided for us.”
Wu Xing He replied with a smile, “They’ve prepared everything for us so that we can work harder. It requires a lot of energy to refine artifacts. If we can restore ourselves quickly, we can put more effort into making artifacts. The Black Ink Clan is aware of that.”
Yang Kai nodded to show that he understood what the other man was saying.
“The Black Ink Clan has a lot of resources that are hard to come by on the Humans’ side. In this place, you can get a set of Seventh-Order materials from the Black Ink Clan to cultivate with ease. Of course, you can only get one set at a time, and you can only get another set after refining the ones you have.”
“Since you’re a newcomer, you can get used to the environment first. Look for me tomorrow,” Wu Xing He said, then turned around to leave.
Yang Kai then watched him leave.
After the older man was gone, he shuffled towards the three houses on the left. Wu Xing He said that these three houses were vacant, so Yang Kai could choose one of them at random. He didn’t have any specific demands, so he just chose the one furthest away from him. Upon pushing the door open, he realised that the facilities were quite simple. There was only a table, chair, and bed.
There was also a token on the table. After picking it up, he realised that this was the token that could control the restriction around this house.
He spent some time refining the token, then activated the barrier. This restriction couldn’t be considered powerful as it could only prevent others from eavesdropping or disturbing the one getting some rest in the house. It should be the same for the other houses. Nonetheless, this was enough for the Artifact Refiners here.
Just like Wu Xing He had said, it required a lot of energy to refine artifacts. When they were exhausted, they needed such a place to restore their energy with peace of mind.
After Yang Kai was done with all that, he took a stroll around the mountain valley; then, he found the hall where he could get some resources and entered.
The Black Ink Clansman responsible for managing the resources was a Feudal Lord. Faced with Yang Kai’s request, he didn’t even question him. He directly fished out a set of Seventh-Order materials and passed them to him.
This made Yang Kai feel rueful. It had to be noted that in the Great Passes, it was rare for anyone to refine Seventh-Order materials to cultivate, for there was an acute shortage of resources on the Black Ink Battlefield. Most of the time, even the Eighth-Order Division Commanders couldn’t refine Seventh-Order materials to cultivate.
Of course, the shortage had been alleviated since the introduction of the Void Yin-Yang Mirrors.
Yang Kai had no idea about the circumstances in other Great Passes, but in Blue Sky Pass at least, the Human cultivators could use the best possible resources to cultivate now, provided that they had enough Military Merits.
The structures around the mountain valley were so simple that one could see everything clearly at a glance. Apart from the Warship in the middle of the mountain valley, Yang Kai didn’t find anything that was worth his attention.
After getting what he requested, he returned to his house and cultivated in silence.
He didn’t forget to keep track of the time of course, and the next day, he headed to the Warship following Wu Xing He’s order.
From afar, he could see many people working on the Warship. Fluctuations of energy were seen coming from every corner.
At least 100 people were trying to build this Warship, all of them Artifact Refiners.
Yang Kai had seen Artifact Refiners repairing Warships in Blue Sky Pass, and it was equally bustling at those times; therefore, he wasn’t surprised one bit.
However, that was in the Inner Sanctum, after all. It must have been difficult for the Black Ink Clan to have found so many Artifact Refiners.
Furthermore, there must be more Artifact Refiners who were currently not working on the Warship and were resting.
Upon Yang Kai’s arrival, some Artifact Refiners shot him curious glances, but they soon stopped paying attention to him. He soon found Wu Xing He, who was busy working on the Warship somewhere.
Wu Xing He was apparently refining an offensive artifact with full attention. A flame was seen flickering from his hands. The flame was scorching hot, and Yang Kai couldn’t immediately identify was it was.
All the artifacts on the Warship had to be custom-made and were quite different from the artifacts used by cultivators; after all, the Warship was huge, so the artifacts that had to be installed on the vessel wouldn’t be small. That way, when the artifact, as an Array Node of an offensive array, was activated, it would be powerful and lethal to the enemies on the battlefield.
Yang Kai appeared beside Wu Xing He and greeted him.
Wu Xing He was swamped with work as his forehead was beaded with sweat, so he just nodded and glanced to the side, “You came at the right time. Help me refine these materials. If there’s anything you don’t understand, you can ask Junior Brother Sun Jiu over there.”
Yang Kai turned his head and saw a lot of materials that had been piled up beside Wu Xing He. All of them were precious as they were the materials needed for refining the artifact.
It wasn’t difficult for Yang Kai to refine these materials; therefore, he could be considered Wu Xing He’s assistant now.
He knew that he still wasn’t skilful enough to be directly involved in developing the Warship despite being a Great Master, so it was appropriate that he became Wu Xing He’s assistant. This kind of task was not simple, but it wasn’t critical either. It suited his current rank in the Dao of Artifact Refining.
In fact, he wasn’t the only assistant of Wu Xing He. Before his arrival, there was already a young man who was doing this task. He should be the person named Sun Jiu that Wu Xing He had mentioned. Certainly, Yang Kai already noticed him.
The fluctuations of energy coming from Sun Jiu suggested that he was in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm. It wasn’t certain which Cave Heaven or Paradise he was from.
Yang Kai cupped his fist at him, “Junior Brother Sun.”
Sun Jiu flashed a smile at him, “You must be Senior Brother Yang.” Apparently, he had heard about Yang Kai from Wu Xing He.
Yang Kai nodded.
While Sun Jiu never stopped working, he asked, “Have you ever taken part in developing a Warship before?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “No. In fact, Artifact Refining was just a hobby of mine and I rarely made any artifacts when I was on the Humans’ side.”
Upon hearing that, Sun Jiu nodded, “I see. Why don’t you refine this Seventh-Order Metal Element material first? This task is suitable for you given your cultivation. We’ll need it at a later time.”
Certainly, Yang Kai wouldn’t disagree. He then sat down with his legs crossed and picked up the Seventh-Order Metal Element material. Following that, he fished out his hammer and circulated his power before striking the material with his own technique.
Sun Jiu arched his brow with surprise, “Thousand Tempering Art! Are you from Divine Cauldron Cave Heaven?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “I’m from Yin-Yang Cave Heaven. I learned this Artifact Refining technique from a Senior Brother from Divine Cauldron Cave Heaven.”
Sun Jiu commented, “You’ve fully mastered this technique. That’s why I thought that you’re from Divine Cauldron Cave Heaven.”
“Many thanks for your compliment, but compared to you, I’m still not skilful enough,” Yang Kai replied humbly.
Sun Jiu shook his head with a smile, “I have simply practised a lot. I started focusing on refining artifacts since I came to the Black Ink Clan. It’s been several hundred years since then.”
Yang Kai was surprised. Sun Jiu’s words suggested that he started focusing on refining artifacts after he became a Black Ink Disciple, probably on the Black Ink Clan’s orders.
Therefore, it seemed that the Black Ink Clan had already started preparing to build a Warship several hundred years ago, or perhaps even longer. Otherwise, these Black Ink Disciples couldn’t have achieved so much.
Although Sun Jiu was one Order below Yang Kai, he was also a Great Master Artifact Refiner; furthermore, he was more skilful than him when it came to his mastery of Artifact Refining. This was proven from his way of refining these materials.
According to Yang Kai’s observation, Wu Xing He, who was focused on refining the offensive artifact now, was a Grandmaster Artifact Refiner.
An Artifact Refiner like Wu Xing He was already able to refine High-Rank artifacts. In fact, the one he was crafting was a kind of High-Rank artifact, though it wasn’t certain if he could successfully complete it; after all, it was more difficult to refine an artifact specifically for a Warship than an average High-Rank artifact. It took a talented and experienced Artifact Refiner to achieve this.
Therefore, even a Grandmaster Artifact Refiner might fail in his attempt to craft such an artifact.
Over the following days, Yang Kai continued to assist Wu Xing He, and nothing major happened. Sun Jiu, who worked with him, was a talkative person, so Yang Kai managed to gather a lot of useful information through his conversations with him.
According to Sun Jiu, there were about 300 Artifact Refiners that had gathered together in this mountain valley, with the three of them being Grandmasters.
There were two more Grandmasters apart from Wu Xing He, Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning. Below them, there were 30 Great Master Artifact Refiners. Although the rest of the Artifact Refiners were not talented in Artifact Refining, they were good enough to handle some miscellaneous tasks.
It was this large team that was building a Warship for the Black Ink Clan.
Just like Wu Xing He, Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning were on the list which was given to Yang Kai by Tang Qiu. They were the targets he had to investigate.
During this period of time, Yang Kai came to know more about the capabilities of this Warship.
Compared to the one he saw in Blue Sky Pass, the one before his eyes was indeed a significantly better version. It seemed that the Artifact Refiners here were working hard to improve their skills.
This was terrible news for the Humans.
Fortunately, even though the capabilities of this Warship had been enhanced, it still couldn’t meet the Black Ink Clan’s needs on the battlefield. In other words, this Warship was not good enough, and certainly not comparable to the Warships used by the Humans. Even if it was deployed on the battlefield, its usefulness would be quite limited.
The Warship had been greatly improved in just 20 years though, so if their progress went unhindered, a lot of Warships owned by the Black Ink Clan would appear on the battlefield in the near future. By then, the Humans would be doomed.
Now, Yang Kai had successfully snuck into this place, so he had to come up with a solution to settle the issue here.
In fact, it wasn’t hard to deal with this issue. He could simply kill all three Grandmaster Artifact Refiners like Wu Xing He.
Without these Grandmasters, the development of the Warship would come to a halt. Although the other Artifact Refiners still had room for growth, they couldn’t possibly become Grandmasters. Over the years, the Black Ink Clan had filtered a lot of Black Ink Disciples and only found 300 Artifact Refiners. Most of the Artifact Refiners were not gifted in this Dao, so even if they were allowed to grow, they wouldn’t become Grandmasters.
Killing Wu Xing He and the others could be said to be the simplest way to destroy their plan once and for all. By then, no one could be in charge of developing the Warship, and the threat facing the Humans would be resolved.
However, if Yang Kai did so, his identity would instantly be exposed. There were also two Territory Lords who were monitoring this place, so once he was exposed, he didn’t have the confidence to escape.
Furthermore, Grandmaster Artifact Refiners like Wu Xing He were extremely valuable assets to the Humans too. They only worked for the Black Ink Clan because they had been corrupted by Black Ink Strength. It would be much better to purify them and bring them back rather than kill them.
For the time being, Yang Kai couldn’t think of a perfect solution, nor did he have any idea how he could flee from this place once his identity was exposed; therefore, he could only wait patiently and play it by ear.
Fortunately, the Warship in this place was still not usable, so he had time to come up with a plan.
In the blink of an eye, three years had passed since Yang Kai arrived at this Sealed World.
During this period of time, the Warship was continuously improved. On the other hand, Yang Kai’s skills in Artifact Refining also grew day by day. When he was a newcomer back then, his skills in Artifact Refining were inferior to those of Sun Jiu; however, three years later, he was now a much better Artifact Refiner than the latter.
Although he still wasn’t a Grandmaster, he had grown to be a more accomplished Artifact Refiner than before.
Even though it had something to do with his aptitude and hard work, his conversations with the other Artifact Refiners had helped him grow rapidly as well.
Wu Xing He’s attentive guidance was especially important in this regard.
It should be noted that before Yang Kai left Blue Sky Pass, he had spent 10 years studying Artifact Refining, and his teacher was an Artifact Refining Grandmaster like Chai Hao. During that period of time, Chai Hao selflessly taught Yang Kai all of the Divine Cauldron Cave Heaven’s Secret Techniques in Artifact Refining.
Yang Kai’s knowledge of Artifact Refining was just as great as that of any Grandmaster, what he lacked were practice and experience.
After he arrived at the Black Ink Clan’s domain, he spent 8 years refining artifacts for Feudal Lords. As a result, his skills in Artifact Refining improved tremendously.
Now, he was sent to this Sealed World as he spent his days with a Grandmaster like Wu Xing He and a Great Master like Sun Jiu. It was expected that he would reach greater heights in the Dao of Artifact Refining.
Over the years, Wu Xing He realised Yang Kai’s talent in Artifact Refining and witnessed his growth, so he spent even more time giving him guidance. Even Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning now saw Yang Kai in a different light after observing his performance. Whenever Yang Kai had any questions regarding Artifact Refining, these two Grandmasters would teach him everything they knew.
As Yang Kai intentionally got closer to them, he formed a strong bond with these three Grandmasters over the past three years.
After three years of observation and planning, Yang Kai already had a vague plan in mind. If this plan could be carried out successfully, not only would he be able to crush the Black Ink Clan’s dream of building Warships, he could also escape unscathed.
However, it was difficult to execute this plan, for there were a lot of factors that were beyond his control. A slight problem could completely derail his plan; therefore, even though he already had a plan, he was still waiting for a suitable opportunity.
One day, Yang Kai, who was swamped with work, suddenly looked up and saw a figure flashing across the sky above the mountain valley. The figure was heading towards the Sealed World’s portal.
That figure was none other than Qing Lei, who was responsible for guarding this place.
There were a total of two Territory Lords and about 100 Feudal Lords here, with a large number of High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen accompanying them. One of the Territory Lords, Mei Qiong, was responsible for guarding the portal while Qing Lei was tasked with monitoring the Artifact Refiners who were developing the Warship in the mountain valley.
Basically, Mei Qiong would never leave the portal. On the other hand, even though Qing Lei stayed in the palace above the mountain valley most of the time, he would leave this Sealed World every six months.
Yang Kai had asked Wu Xing He about it, and according to the latter, Mu Guang regarded the development of the Warship extremely highly, so the Royal Lord wanted Qing Lei to head to the Royal City to make a progress report to her every six months.
Every time Qing Lei returned from the Royal City, he would take Wu Xing He and the other Grandmasters to task and urge them to finish perfecting the Warship as quickly as possible. He had probably been reprimanded by the Royal Lord, which led to him venting his anger on these Human Artifact Refiners.
Nevertheless, perfecting a Warship was highly dependent on their skills in Artifact Refining. Although Wu Xing He and the others were Artifact Refining Grandmasters, they were unable to create something as great as the Warships owned by the Humans; therefore, the same scene would repeat itself every six months.
The reason Qing Lei suddenly left his Grand Hall must be that he had to head to the Royal City to report on the progress as usual.
As expected, a moment later, Yang Kai felt a faint fluctuation of Space Principles coming from the portal which soon disappeared.
It must be the movement from opening and closing the portal. The duration was short, so the average Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters might not be able to detect it; however, to a Master in the Dao of Space like Yang Kai, he could easily sense such a fluctuation.
Yang Kai waited for a bit to make sure that Qing Lei was gone before he put down what was in his hands and said to Sun Jiu, “Junior Brother Sun, I’m exhausted. I’m going to rest for a bit.”
Looking up, Sun Jiu saw that Yang Kai’s face was pale, and his aura was weak; therefore, he nodded and replied, “Sure thing, Senior Brother Yang. Just leave it to me.”
Artifact Refiners were treated well in this place; nevertheless, it required a lot of energy to refine artifacts, so the Artifact Refiners would frequently use up their energy and need to rest. Yang Kai’s request wasn’t unusual, so Sun Jiu wasn’t surprised one bit.
“Many thanks, Junior Brother,” Yang Kai said, then leaped off the Warship and flew towards the place where the Artifact Refiners resided.
Instead of returning to his place though, he headed straight to a certain three-storey building.
This was where Wu Xing He resided. As one of the three Artifact Refining Grandmasters, the treatment he received was naturally better than the other Artifact Refiners.
Yang Kai visited this place frequently because he would ask Wu Xing He questions about Artifact Refining from time to time. Half a day ago, Wu Xing He had returned to his home to get some rest as he was exhausted. Now, he should be inside this building.
Despite seeing all this from afar, the Black Ink Clansmen, who were patrolling around the area, didn’t come over and question Yang Kai; instead, they just walked on by.
Yang Kai knocked on the restriction and called out, “Senior Brother Wu!”
Moments later, the restriction around the building was deactivated and Yang Kai pushed the door open and entered.
When he reached the second floor, he saw that Wu Xing He was seated with his legs crossed on his bed. There was a set of Seventh-Order materials around him and the energy fluctuations around him suggested that he was refining those resources.
“Senior Brother Wu!” Yang Kai cupped his fist at him.
Despite being disturbed while getting some rest, Wu Xing He was not annoyed; instead, he looked curiously at Yang Kai and asked, “What’s wrong, Junior Brother Yang?”
Yang Kai replied, “I faced a problem when I was refining a certain material earlier. I wanted to ask you about it.”
Wu Xing He asked, “What kind of problem did you face?”
“The thing is, when I was refining an Eighth-Order Fire Stone, I used the Landslide Technique that you taught me; however, I realised that it slightly damaged the integrity of the Fire Stone. Why is that?”
As he spoke, he shuffled towards Wu Xing He. Seeing that the older man was deep in thought, Yang Kai swiftly manipulated the local Space Principles.
In an instant, space was frozen solid.
Wu Xing He was pondering on Yang Kai’s question when the turn of events took place, so he hadn’t been able to react at all. When he looked up, he saw that Yang Kai had clapped his hands together as a dazzling light came right at him.
A dumbstruck Wu Xing He had never expected that Yang Kai would launch a sneak attack on him and instinctually wanted to resist.
However, he had been resting here because he was exhausted from artifact refining, so he didn’t have much energy to begin with. Furthermore, since he became a Black Ink Disciple, he had been focusing on improving his Artifact Refining skills following the Black Ink Clan’s orders and had not fought with anyone for the past 1,000 years. Therefore, despite being a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, he was unable to fully utilise his power.
On the other hand, Yang Kai was an experienced fighter whose strength significantly surpassed the other cultivators in the same Order; hence, it was expected that Wu Xing He was unable to counterattack or even resist.
Before Wu Xing He could even condense his World Force, his forehead was slapped by Yang Kai. A horrifying power penetrated his Small Universe and caused him to fall into a dazed state. Following that, the dazzling and pure light completely engulfed him.
A strange sound was then heard. While Wu Xing He was engulfed in the white light, something like a dark fog began leaking from his body and was purified into nothingness.
He appeared to be in pain, but his expression soon became tranquil.
A moment later, Yang Kai retracted his hands and vigilantly paid attention to the surroundings.
After letting Yang Kai in earlier, Wu Xing He reactivated the restriction to prevent anyone from disturbing them; however, Yang Kai was still worried that his actions would attract the Black Ink Clan’s attention.
That was the reason he had to wait for Qing Lei to leave before making a move. Qing Lei was a Territory Lord after all, so if he noticed the anomaly, Yang Kai wouldn’t be a match for him.
Fortunately, Yang Kai acted swiftly and decisively. Only a few breaths of time had passed since he activated Purifying Light; furthermore, he deliberately sealed the surrounding space and made sure that Wu Xing He was unable to resist. Hence, the restriction around the building was not triggered.
[Everything is going well!] Upon making sure that the Black Ink Clan were not alerted, Yang Kai let out a breath.
“Forgive my disrespect, Senior Brother Wu!” Yang Kai apologised to him and sat down cross-legged in front of him.
Presently, Wu Xing He’s face was pale; after all, Yang Kai’s palms did not only contain the Purifying Light, but also his own power, which penetrated Wu Xing He’s Small Universe and caused it to shake. That was how he suppressed Wu Xing He and made sure the latter couldn’t resist.
When Wu Xing He heard the other man’s voice, his vision refocused. While staring fixedly at his face, he said doubtfully, “You…”
With a solemn expression, Yang Kai said, “Senior Brother Wu, what I’m about to tell you might sound inconceivable, but you have to believe that what I’m going to say is true. We don’t have much time left, so I’ll be blunt; first of all, you should know that I was never corrupted by Black Ink Strength, nor am I a Black Ink Disciple. I’m simply pretending to be one.”
“I knew it!” Although Wu Xing He appeared shocked, he was also relieved.
The Black Ink Strength in his Small Universe had been rapidly purified, so the moment he regained his senses as a Human, he suspected that Yang Kai had never been corrupted by Black Ink Strength.
After all, Yang Kai was able to dispel the Black Ink Strength in his body, so there was no way he would be corrupted.
Now, it indeed seemed to be the case. Yang Kai had been pretending to be a Black Ink Disciple, and he had managed to fool the Black Ink Clan.
“What kind of technique was that?” Wu Xing He asked curiously.
“It’s called Purifying Light,” Yang Kai explained, “It could be said to be the nemesis of Black Ink Strength. It’s something that the Humans mastered a few dozen years ago.”
Upon hearing his explanation, Wu Xing He muttered, “It’s no wonder the Black Ink Clan have been talking about there being no new Black Ink Disciples recently. So, that’s the reason.” He paused for a moment and asked, “Can the Purifying Light prevent me from being corrupted again?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “No. If you come into contact with Black Ink Strength again, you’ll still be corrupted. Fortunately, there’s no Black Ink Nest in this Sealed World, nor is it filled with Black Ink Strength, so as long as you’re careful enough, you won’t be corrupted by Black Ink Strength.”
Yang Kai was relieved at the fact that the Black Ink Clan had set up their Warship development site in this Sealed World. This gave him room to carry out his plan.
Just like he had said, there was no Black Ink Nest in this Sealed World, nor was it flooded with Black Ink Strength; therefore, as long as Wu Xing He was careful enough, he wouldn’t risk getting corrupted again.
It wouldn’t have been possible in any other Black Ink Clan territory as they were all practically filled with Black Ink Strength. Even if Yang Kai helped dispel the Black Ink Strength in Wu Xing He’s body using Purifying Light, the latter would soon be corrupted again. When that happened, Yang Kai’s identity would be exposed. How could he carry out his plans in such an environment?
“Senior Brother Wu, I’m from Yin-Yang Pass. On the Army Commanders’ orders, I’ve come here to look for Artifact Refiners like you all who are developing the Warship for the Black Ink Clan and make sure that this project fails. On the other hand, you’re the first breakthrough point I’ve selected. I’ll need you to work with me for the following plan. Qing Lei has just left the Sealed World. Based on past experiences, I believe he’ll return in half a day. That’s the amount of time we have.”
There was a solemn expression on Wu Xing He’s face as he asked, “What’s your plan? What do you want me to do?”
Yang Kai replied, “First of all, I need you to lure Senior Brother Wang and Senior Brother Guan to this place. I’ll make a move and purify the Black Ink Strength in their bodies so that they will regain their senses as Humans. Although they’re Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, they’ve been completely focused on Artifact Refining for centuries now so their fighting instincts have grown dull. If we work together and launch a sneak attack on them, there shouldn’t be a problem. Then, I want the three of you to gather all the Artifact Refiners together. I’ll dispel the Black Ink Strength in their bodies at once so that they can recover their true selves.”
Of all the Artifact Refiners, Wu Xing He and the other two were not only Artifact Refining Grandmasters but also Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. The other Artifact Refiners were much weaker. Other than the fact that they were less competent than the three of them when it came to Artifact Refining, they were mostly in the Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm; therefore, as long as Yang Kai could settle Wu Xing He and the other two, the rest of the Artifact Refiners wouldn’t be an issue.
Wu Xing He nodded gently, “And then? Assuming that everything goes to plan and the Black Ink Clan are not alerted, how are you going to leave this Sealed World? Although Qing Lei is not around, Mei Qiong would never leave the portal. If you can’t defeat him, you’ll never be able to leave this Sealed World. Moreover, you have to bring so many of us with you.”
Yang Kai replied, “Other than the three of you, I can keep the rest of the Artifact Refiners inside my Small Universe. It’s not a problem to bring them with me. However, the three of you are in the same Order as me, so I can’t keep you inside my Small Universe. Therefore, I need you three to sacrifice a part of your Small Universes so you regress to the Sixth Order.”
Upon hearing that, Wu Xing He was astounded, “You want to escape this place on your own?”
With a serious expression, Yang Kai replied, “Other than me, all of you are not able to resist Black Ink Strength. Only by staying inside my Small Universe would you be safe.”
Wu Xing He frowned, “But that will be a huge burden on you.”
These 300 Artifact Refiners were all Open Heaven Realm Masters. If they all entered his Small Universe, it would be a tremendous burden on Yang Kai. As a result, his strength would undoubtedly be affected.
Yang Kai was already less powerful than Mei Qiong to begin with, so if his abilities were further weakened, he wouldn’t have any chance of escaping from Mei Qiong.
Yang Kai said, “I can deal with 300 people staying inside my Small Universe. There will be some negative impact, but it won’t be an issue. On the other hand, it’s indeed difficult to deal with Mei Qiong as he would never leave the portal. There are no other ways apart from trying to force my way out of this Sealed World. Certainly, it would be wonderful if I can fool him into opening the portal for me; however, as soon as I make a move here, the Black Ink Clansmen around us will notice. There’s no way we can do it secretly.”
Wu Xing He nodded, “So, your plan is to bring us all away so that the Black Ink Clan will never be able to finish this Warship.”
“It’s indeed a simple plan, but it’s also the best way to crush their ambitions once and for all.” Yang Kai let out a breath, “Is there a problem with this plan?”
Wu Xing He stared fixedly at him and replied, “There’s a big problem with this plan.”
Certainly, Yang Kai knew that there were all sorts of problems with his plan. Nevertheless, he was on his own in this Sealed World where he was surrounded by enemies. Even the Artifact Refiners could be considered the Black Ink Clan’s allies, so any negligence would cause his plan to be exposed earlier than he had hoped. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a better solution.
Therefore, he wasn’t surprised when Wu Xing He said there was a problem with his plan and he simply asked humbly, “What is it?”
Wu Xing He replied, “Even if you successfully bring all of us away, you still can’t stop the Black Ink Clan from developing a Warship.”
Yang Kai furrowed his brow and asked, “Why is that?”
Wu Xing He explained, “That’s because we’re not the ones leading the development of the Warship. Although Wang Si Bo, Guan Ning, and I are contributing to this project, we’re just assistants. There’s someone else who is in charge of this project.”
Yang Kai was flabbergasted, “Really? Who is it? I thought the three of you are the only Artifact Refining Grandmasters here.”
Wu Xing He let out a sigh, “A person named Nie An. He’s more talented than Wang Si Bo, Guan Ning, and me when it comes to Artifact Refining, and he’s just one step away from becoming a Great Grandmaster.”
Yang Kai was dumbfounded, “Nie An… Why have you all never mentioned him before?”
It had been three years since he arrived at this Sealed World. Although Yang Kai had tried to gather information through his conversations with other Black Ink Disciples, he had never heard of this Nie An before. That led him to believe that Wu Xing He and the other two Grandmasters were the ones who were in charge of this project. If the person in charge of developing the Warship was someone else, Yang Kai’s plan naturally wouldn’t work.
Just like Wu Xing He had said, even if he managed to bring all of the Artifact Refiners here away, he still couldn’t stop the Black Ink Clan from developing a Warship. That was because the key person behind this project was someone he had never met before.
In fact, if Yang Kai hadn’t prepared to carry out his plan on this day, he would never have found out about it.
“He’s not in this Sealed World, so no one would talk about him in front of you.”
Yang Kai’s plan was thoroughly derailed now, but he soon composed himself. That was because he knew that there would always be factors that were beyond his control, so he had to play it by ear. It was just that a variable like Nie An had appeared now.
“What’s his background?” Yang Kai asked curiously.
Wu Xing He, Wang Si Bo, and Guan Ning were on the list given to him by Tang Qiu, but Nie An was not. Where did he come from?
“I know little about his background,” Wu Xing He shook his head, “Although we’ve spent many years together, we don’t really talk to each other. Other than the discussions on Artifact Refining, we rarely come into contact with one another. Moreover, he’s an arrogant person because of his talent in Artifact Refining. He doesn’t even have any regard for me. More importantly, it’s said that he’s the one who initiated the plan to build a Warship for the Black Ink Clan.”
“He was?” Yang Kai said through clenched teeth. However, as a Black Ink Disciple, Nie An was loyal to the Black Ink Clan. Since they were on different sides, it couldn’t be said that Nie An had betrayed the Humans.
“Rumour has it that he doesn’t have an outstanding aptitude. When he was corrupted by Black Ink Strength and became a Black Ink Disciple, he was not valued by the Black Ink Clan at all. He almost lost his life on several occasions when he was brought to the battlefield. Before he became a Black Ink Disciple, he had never come into contact with the Dao of Artifact Refining. When he saw that the Artifact Refiners were valued by the Black Ink Clan, he decided to study the Dao of Artifact Refining. That was when his life changed. Although his aptitude in cultivation is average, he’s extremely gifted in the Dao of Artifact Refining. In a short time, he significantly improved his skills in Artifact Refining and became a Grandmaster. Then, he launched the project of building a Warship, which gained the support of the Black Ink Clan. However, despite being a Grandmaster, he’s still struggling to build a Warship. As you can see, the Warship in the mountain valley is not comparable to true Warships.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Since he’s the one who has proposed building a Warship, where is he? Why have I not seen him over the past three years?”
Wu Xing He replied, “He’s trying to achieve a breakthrough right now. Given his aptitude in Artifact Refining, he could grow to be a Great Grandmaster; however, you’re also aware that it requires both skill in Artifact Refining and powerful cultivation to become a Great Grandmaster. A person has to be in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm to become a Great Grandmaster.”
“He’s trying to break through to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm?” Yang Kai was astonished.
Wu Xing He nodded solemnly, “Indeed. I don’t know whether he’ll succeed. In fact, one year before your arrival, he was already taken away by the Black Ink Clan to prepare to break through to the Eighth Order.”
Although the environment in this Sealed World was terrific, it was still a Sealed World after all. As Nie An wanted to ascend to the Eighth Order, this place was naturally not suitable. That was the reason he had left this place many years ago. This led Yang Kai to believe that Wu Xing He and the other two Grandmasters were the ones in charge of this project.
This kind of misunderstanding could have led to severe consequences had he acted rashly.
It couldn’t be helped though, as no one had mentioned Nie An to Yang Kai before, so how was he supposed to know that this guy was the key person behind this project?
“Senior Brother Wu, you said that Nie An’s aptitude in cultivation wasn’t high?” Yang Kai suddenly thought of something.
“Yes. He was already a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master when he left; however, even that was because he had the help of Black Ink Strength. His original limit was the Sixth Order,” Wu Xing He replied.
Yang Kai was dumbfounded.
Nie An’s original limit was the Sixth-Order. In other words, he had originally broken through to the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm. This kind of aptitude was indeed average among the Cave Heavens and Paradises.
However, Black Ink Strength could help an Open Heaven Realm Master break through their limits. Nie An, whose limit was the Sixth Order, was already a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master when he left this Sealed World and he was now going to attempt breaking through to the Eighth Order.
It was no wonder Wu Xing He said that this guy was an arrogant person. As far as Yang Kai knew, Open Heaven Realm Masters who managed to break through their natural limits with the help of Black Ink Strength would have their temperaments changed drastically, just like Liu Zi An, who was Gui Liao’s Black Ink Disciple.
Moreover, when Black Ink Disciples tried breaking through their limits, they had to face a huge risk and any negligence would cause them to self-destruct.
Yang Kai had witnessed such an incident in the Black Prison many years ago.
Nie An was already lucky enough to have ascended to the Seventh Order, and he was now trying to make it to the Eighth Order. This was no different from committing suicide.
“The Royal Lord takes this matter extremely seriously. Since Nie An is trying to achieve a breakthrough, I believe the Royal Lord will give him all the support he needs. The Royal Lord might even personally assist him. If the Royal Lord makes a move, Nie An might be able to succeed.”
The success of Nie An’s breakthrough was related to the Black Ink Clan’s future, so it was expected that Mu Guang wouldn’t sit on the sidelines.
Yang Kai initially thought that Nie An wouldn’t succeed in ascending to the Eighth Order; however, he wasn’t so sure now if Mu Guang decided to help. No one knew what methods the Royal Lord had.
Regardless, this matter had to be dealt with accordingly; otherwise, even if Yang Kai managed to take all of the Artifact Refiners away from this Sealed World, he still couldn’t stop the Black Ink Clan from carrying out their plan.
This made him fall into a dilemma. He initially intended to execute his plan today, but a variable like Nie An came out of nowhere all of a sudden.
Fortunately, there was still room for manoeuvre. At this moment, Yang Kai was relieved that this Sealed World was not filled with Black Ink Strength; otherwise, his plan would have come to a halt at this point.
Presently, he had to make some changes.
After giving it a thought, he said, “Senior Brother Wu, we have to confirm whether Nie An is dead or alive. It would be great if he lost his life during his breakthrough; however, if he returns safely, that’ll mean he’s successfully become a Great Grandmaster. By then, the Warship will be perfected.”
“What do you want to do?” Wu Xing He asked.
Yang Kai shook his head, “I don’t have a solution right now, we can only wait. After all, it’s not like we can ask the Black Ink Clan about it. During this period of time, you have to be cautious to avoid coming into direct contact with the Black Ink Clan. There’s no ambient Black Ink Strength in this Sealed World, so as long as you don’t get too close to the Black Ink Clansmen, you won’t be corrupted. If you happen to be invaded by Black Ink Strength, you have to immediately inform me and I will purify it for you.”
“Got it.” Wu Xing He nodded, then said, “As for Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning, do you want to dispel their Black Ink Strength only when you’re in the final stages of the plan, or do you want to act in advance?”
Yang Kai asked, “What do you think?”
After pondering on it for a moment, Wu Xing He replied, “The risk will be increased if we act now; after all, even if they regain their Human nature, they’ll still be at risk of getting corrupted again. However, they’re Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and Artifact Refining Grandmasters; what’s more, they frequently come into contact with me. Guan Ning is especially sensitive, so I’m worried that I’ll accidentally expose myself…”
“We’ll act in advance, then.” Yang Kai directly made a decision, “I’ll need you to work closely with me.”
“Got it. I’ll inform you when everything is prepared,” Wu Xing He nodded.
“Also, I want to take control of this Sealed World’s portal; that way, it’ll be easier for us to flee when executing the plan.”
Upon hearing that, Wu Xing He shook his head, “That won’t be easy. Mei Qiong has never left the portal over the years. How are you going to take control of it?”
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “I have my own methods; however, I’ll have to pass through the portal.”
“Does that mean you have to leave this Sealed World once?” Wu Xing He asked.
Yang Kai nodded, “En. Do you have any idea how we can do it?”
After a moment of deliberation, Wu Xing He replied, “I can have you head to the Royal City to buy some materials for me. I believe the Black Ink Clan won’t turn me down.”
“That sounds good.”
“However, there will be a Black Ink Clansman who will follow you. The two Territory Lords will never leave this Sealed World, so the person who will go with you will most likely be a Feudal Lord.”
“That’s fine. I’ll make sure that the Feudal Lord won’t notice whatever I do.”
Since the other man was so confident, Wu Xing He stopped trying to dissuade him.
After they discussed the matter for a while longer, Yang Kai left and returned to his own house to get some rest.
A few days later, Qing Lei was seated on the platform that was above the mountain valley. As he looked down, he was able to monitor everything that was going on in the mountain valley from his position. No anomalies could be hidden from him.
With that said, nothing major had happened since the day he started guarding this place and the Human Artifact Refiners had always been working hard to perfect the Warship.
Unfortunately, many years had passed, but the thing they created was still not usable.
Just then, a figure shot up from the valley and landed in front of him.
Qing Lei lifted his gaze and realised that this person was one of the Artifact Refining Grandmasters, Wu Xing He.
Wu Xing He saluted him respectfully, “Sir Qing Lei.”
“What’s wrong?” Qing Lei asked impassively.
Wu Xing He replied, “I need some materials that we are running low on in this Sealed World. Will you please allow me to go to the Royal City to buy them?”
Upon hearing that, Qing Lei furrowed his brows, “What materials do you need that have to be purchased in the Royal City?”
Wu Xing He randomly mentioned some materials, which were all quite precious.
Qing Lei replied, “Got it. I’ll tell someone to send them to you.” Although those materials were valuable, there was never a lack of resources in the Black Ink Clan; moreover, this project was related to the Black Ink Clan’s future, so the Royal Lord was fully supportive of it. Regardless of what materials they needed, they just had to make a request, and someone from the Royal City would send them over.
Wu Xing He seemed to have expected this kind of response, so he said, “Sir, the quality of these materials is critical. Someone who is not proficient in Artifact Refining might not be able to fight the appropriate ones. As such, I have to personally head to the Royal City.”
“You want to personally go there?” Qing Lei was surprised. In the past, Wu Xing He had asked for more materials on several occasions, but he only came over and told him what he needed, and the materials would be sent to him. He had never requested to personally head to the Royal City.
Wu Xing He nodded, “I have to go there to make sure that all the materials are up to standard so that the progress won’t be held up. Some of the materials they sent us previously were substandard and could not be used.”
Qing Lei became fidgety, “You and the other two Grandmasters are in charge of this project now. If you’re gone, who will continue developing the Warship?”
After giving it a thought, Wu Xing He suggested by saying, “Why don’t I tell someone to go over there on my behalf?”
Qing Lei asked, “Who is it?”
Wu Xing He replied, “The newcomer, Yang Kai. His aptitude in Artifact Refining is just as good as mine, so he’ll definitely grow to be a Grandmaster one day.”
Qing Lei didn’t understand what aptitude in Artifact Refining had to do with the purchase of materials; however, since Wu Xing He had recommended this person, he decided to stop questioning him. He thus nodded, “He’ll be the one, then. I’ll tell someone to accompany him.”
Saying so, he waved his hand.
The next moment, a Feudal Lord behind him stepped forward.
Qing Lei ordered, “Bring that Human to the Royal City and come back quickly.” Then, he passed a token to the Feudal Lord.
After taking the token, the Feudal Lord flew towards the mountain valley alongside Wu Xing He.
A moment later, Wu Xing He called out to Yang Kai, who was getting some rest in his place. As Yang Kai was told what to do, he nodded.
“You have to come back quickly,” Wu Xing He ordered with a solemn expression.
Yang Kai stared fixedly at him and nodded, “Don’t worry, Senior Brother Wu. I’ll come back as soon as possible.”
He then said to the Feudal Lord on the side, “Please.”
Without saying anything, the Feudal Lord led Yang Kai to fly towards the portal.
When they arrived at the portal, the Feudal Lord passed the token to Mei Qiong, who was guarding this place. Since the token was authentic, they were allowed to leave.
The moment the portal was opened, Yang Kai and the Feudal Lord subsequently dashed out of it.
In the blink of an eye, the Feudal Lord passed through the portal and arrived in the outside void. When he turned his head though, he realised that Yang Kai was nowhere in sight.
This startled him for a moment, for it had never happened before. Supposedly, since they entered the portal at the same time, they should reappear together. Nevertheless, he was the only one there at the moment while Yang Kai was missing.
While he was puzzled, the portal before his eyes contorted slightly. Following that, Yang Kai’s figure came into his sight.
Although he found the incident strange, he didn’t read too much into it and just beckoned to Yang Kai, “Let’s go.”
He then flew towards the Royal City.
The Sealed World wasn’t far away from the Royal City. When Yang Kai was led to the Sealed World from the Royal City back then, it only took them an hour to arrive.
Therefore, one hour later, Yang Kai and the Feudal Lord came to the Royal City. With the Feudal Lord leading the way, they soon reached a street where all sorts of resources were sold.
It took Yang Kai another hour to purchase all the materials that Wu Xing He wanted.
Yang Kai didn’t intend to stay in the Royal City for long, and the Feudal Lord apparently wanted to go back as soon as possible; hence, they soon left the Royal City.
One hour later, before they arrived at the Sealed World’s portal, Yang Kai felt that something was coming from behind. When he turned his head, he saw a large ship charging forward in their direction. In the blink of an eye, the large ship got very close to them.
Yang Kai and the Feudal Lord certainly noticed it. Seeing that the large ship wasn’t going to stop, they quickly moved to the side.
Even so, Yang Kai was almost hit by the large ship.
Upon stabilising himself, he lifted his gaze and saw that the large ship had moved across several hundred kilometres ahead. He frowned at the sight.
Although the large ship had brushed past him quickly, he clearly detected two powerful auras from the vessel. One of them was a Territory Lord while the other was an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
Putting the Territory Lord aside, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master gave off a violent and dangerous aura, as though he would explode at any moment.
Yang Kai was astonished. He had pretended to be a Black Ink Disciple and snuck into the Black Ink Clan’s territory twice, but he had never come across an Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciple before.
Usually, an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master wouldn’t be corrupted by Black Ink Strength unless a Royal Lord personally made a move. However, in every major battle, the Royal Lord would have to deal with an Old Ancestor from the Humans’ side, so they wouldn’t have any spare energy to use their Secret Technique to corrupt Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. If they did so, they would be giving the Old Ancestor a chance to injure them.
Hence, there were some Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciples, but Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples were extremely rare.
The direction the large ship was heading suggested that it was going to the Sealed World.
A strange idea suddenly sprang into Yang Kai’s mind.
[Would it be so coincidental?]
The Feudal Lord turned to look at Yang Kai, and upon making sure that the latter was fine, he continued moving forward without saying a word. Yang Kai quickly followed him.
A short while later, they arrived at the Sealed World’s portal. At this moment, a large ship was parked in the void as it was waiting for the portal to open. The large ship was the one that Yang Kai had seen earlier.
By the time Yang Kai and the Feudal Lord reached this place, the Sealed World’s portal was slowly opening.
The two figures on the deck noticed them and turned their heads.
One of them was a Territory Lord while the other was the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master that Yang Kai had detected. Upon closer look, he realised that the Eighth-Order Master had a bloated figure, which made him look like a ball. His head was right above his figure, as though his neck didn’t exist.
Sarcomas could be seen all over his skin, looking like horrible abscesses.
Just by standing there, this bloated person exuded a violent and dangerous aura. Even the Territory Lord beside him wasn’t willing to stand close to him.
The moment Yang Kai saw this person’s appearance, he realised his identity.
This person was none other than the Nie An that Wu Xing He had mentioned.
Although Yang Kai had never seen him before, this person’s appearance suggested that he had broken through his limit with the help of Black Ink Strength and achieved something that couldn’t be achieved through ordinary means; however, his life was also at risk now due to the hidden dangers in his Small Universe.
Nie An only made it to the Fourth Order when he ascended to the Open Heaven Realm, so the Sixth Order was his natural limit. He was already lucky enough to have ascended to the Seventh Order with the help of the Black Ink Strength. Now, he even managed to make it to the Eighth Order, which was simply inconceivable. The Royal Lord must have taken action personally; otherwise, Nie An couldn’t have achieved this.
It could be said that Nie An was in a perilous situation, for he gave off a feeling that he might explode at any moment. However, he was still safe and sound. Perhaps Mu Guang had used an incredible technique to ensure his safety when he ascended to the Eighth Order.
In that case, he would most likely become a Great Grandmaster.
A Great Grandmaster would definitely be able to refine a Warship. Perhaps the Black Ink Clan would have their own Warships in no time and sail them across the battlefield. It wouldn’t be like in the past when their Warships were practically useless.
At that instant, Yang Kai felt a sense of urgency.
Back then, when he heard about the existence of Nie An from Wu Xing He, he had no choice but to change his plans; still, it never crossed his mind that Nie An could break through his limit and ascend to the Eighth Order so soon.
Fortunately, he was certain that Nie An was alive at the very least, and he could act accordingly.
While Yang Kai was in his thoughts, Nie An suddenly asked, “Are you a newcomer?”
Yang Kai promptly cupped his fist, “Greetings, Sir. I’ve been here for three years.”
Upon hearing that, Nie An asked, “Are you the one who was sent here by Hei Yuan?”
“Yes,” Yang Kai had no idea how the other man found out he was Hei Yuan’s Black Ink Disciple. Nevertheless, it went to show that Nie An was able to get his hands on the sensitive information that only the most important Black Ink Clansmen knew. In other words, the Royal Lord truly treasured him.
“Where were you?” Nie An asked.
Yang Kai honestly reported to him. Fortunately, the materials that Wu Xing He asked him to buy were indeed precious. Qing Lei could be easily fooled because he knew nothing about Artifact Refining, but the same trick couldn’t be used on Nie An.
Luckily, Nie An didn’t intend to probe him further and just nodded gently before he stopped talking.
As the portal was opened, the Territory Lord and Nie An dashed inside while the ship remained anchored outside. After they entered, Yang Kai and the Feudal Lord also flew into the Sealed World.
Presently, Mei Qiong was busy handling the Territory Lord and Nie An, so he couldn’t pay a lot of attention to Yang Kai. After asking some questions, he simply let Yang Kai pass.
After leading Yang Kai to the mountain valley, the Feudal Lord left, for he had to report to Qing Lei on the completion of this mission.
Yang Kai sauntered towards Wu Xing He’s residence and gently triggered the restriction. A moment later, a gap appeared in the middle of the restriction, then Yang Kai walked inside.
On the second floor, Wu Xing He was seated with his legs crossed. There was some faint Black Ink Strength lingering around his figure. Presently, he was continuously circulating the power of his Small Universe to resist the Black Ink Strength.
Yang Kai wasn’t surprised at the sight. He walked up to Wu Xing He and clapped his hands. The next instant, a pure and dazzling light engulfed Wu Xing He.
A sizzling noise was heard as the Black Ink Strength inside Wu Xing He’s body soon disintegrated.
Wu Xing He’s clothes were already soaked in sweat as he let out a breath, “You came back pretty quick, Junior Brother.”
Yang Kai replied, “I wouldn’t let you be at risk.”
Before he left the place some time ago, he already realised that Wu Xing He had been invaded by Black Ink Strength. That was the reason he had to come back in a hurry. If he returned any later, Wu Xing He would have been corrupted and become a Black Ink Disciple. When that happened, Yang Kai’s identity would have been exposed.
Of course, Yang Kai reckoned that Wu Xing He would kill himself at the most critical moment to ensure that the secret remained safe.
On the Black Ink Battlefield, Human soldiers had always been willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the greater good.
Wu Xing He was corrupted by Black Ink Strength when he came into contact with Qing Lei. This Sealed World was not filled with Black Ink Strength, so he didn’t have to worry about anything as long as he was cautious enough; however, Wu Xing He was standing too close to Qing Lei at that time. As a Territory Lord, Qing Lei naturally released Black Ink Strength around him. On the other hand, Wu Xing He wouldn’t dare to resist lest his secret was exposed. That was how he was corrupted.
Fortunately, he was only stained with a small amount of Black Ink Strength; otherwise, he would’ve become a Black Ink Disciple again before Yang Kai returned.
“Is everything prepared?” Wu Xing He asked with concern.
Yang Kai nodded, “Yes.”
Wu Xing He had no idea what move Yang Kai had used to fool the Feudal Lord that had tagged along with him; however, since he had said as much, it meant that the matter was indeed settled.
“Nie An has returned, Senior Brother Wu,” Yang Kai said.
“He’s back?” Wu Xing He was startled.
With a solemn expression, Yang Kai nodded, “I came across him on my way back. He’s now an Eighth-Order Master!”
Upon hearing that, Wu Xing He sported an anxious expression, “That’s terrible news for us.”
What he and Yang Kai hoped was for Nie An to explode and pass away when trying to achieve an ascension so that no one would be able to help the Black Ink Clan finish their Warship. Now that Nie An had returned safely though, it was bad news for them.
After giving it a thought, Wu Xing He asked, “Can Nie An be saved?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “No. His limit is the Sixth-Order, so his Small Universe can only bear the power of the Sixth-Order. The reason he’s alive right now is because of the Black Ink Strength. The moment I dispel the Black Ink Strength in his body, his Small Universe will explode.”
The light in Wu Xing He’s eyes went out, “What a shame.”
If Nie An could be saved, it would be good news for the Humans. After all, Artifact Refining Great Grandmasters were rare. However, Yang Kai made it clear that Nie An could not be saved, which was why Wu Xing He found it to be a shame.
“Yes, it is indeed a shame, but Nie An has to die!” Yang Kai said grimly.
As long as Nie An was killed, the Black Ink Clan’s plan to build a Warship would come to a halt.
Perhaps they would still be able to nurture some Artifact Refiners in the distant future, but those Black Ink Disciples would never grow to be Great Grandmasters.
Now, Humans from different Great Passes had Purifying Light, and Purifying Black Ink Pills had been successfully developed. In other words, no Human soldiers would be corrupted by Black Ink Strength again. How was the Black Ink Clan supposed to nurture Artifact Refiners without any new Black Ink Disciples?
The moment they broke through their limits with Black Ink Strength, people like Nie An and Liu Zi An lost all hope to be saved.
“It’s not easy to kill an Eighth-Order Master. Moreover, there are two Territory Lords in this Sealed World. What’s your plan?”
Yang Kai replied, “I’m certainly no match for a normal Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master; however, Nie An is different. He won’t be able to fully utilise his Eighth-Order might. Furthermore, I don’t have to fight with him directly. I just have to get a chance to dispel the Black Ink Strength in his body. By then, his Small Universe will come apart, and he’ll detonate. As for the two Territory Lords… Mei Qiong has never left the portal over the years, so I don’t have a good solution for him. Nevertheless, Qing Lei will leave this Sealed World every six months. We can make use of that.”
Upon hearing that, Wu Xing He nodded, “Qing Lei only left this Sealed World some time ago, so it will be another six months before he leaves again.”
“We’ll make a move in six months, then.” Yang Kai was determined, “I hope that everything will go well by then; however, before that, I will need you to deal with Senior Brother Wang and Senior Brother Guan.”
Wu Xing He nodded, “I’ll inform you at an opportune time.”
As they spoke, the restriction around the building was triggered. A thought flashed through Wu Xing He’s mind as the restriction was deactivated. A moment later, a Black Ink Disciple walked up the stairs and cupped his fist at them, “Senior Brother Nie wants to see you, Senior Brothers.”
A puzzled Wu Xing He asked, “What happened?”
The Black Ink Disciple shook his head, “I have no idea, but Senior Brother Nie wants everybody to gather together.”
Upon finishing his words, he turned around and left.
After exchanging glances, Yang Kai and Wu Xing He frowned. They had no idea why Nie An wanted them to come together not long after he returned.
“Let’s see what he’s up to,” Wu Xing He said, then left the place with the other man.
A moment later, several hundred Artifact Refiners gathered together in front of the Warship in the mountain valley. Standing in front of them was the bloated Nie An.
Many people were whispering among themselves as they had no idea why Nie An gathered everyone.
When all of the Artifact Refiners were present, Nie An gazed at the huge Warship with narrowed eyes and waved his hand, “Dismantle it.”
Upon hearing that, all of them were astounded.
Guan Ning, who was at the front, stepped forward and said, “Senior Brother Nie, this Warship is about to be completed. Why do you want to dismantle it?”
Nie An replied dispassionately, “What’s the point of keeping this rubbish? Dismantle it.”
“But…”
Just when Guan Ning wanted to continue speaking, Nie An suddenly turned his head and glared at him, “What else do you want to say?”
As he spoke, his Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm pressure swept across the place.
Guan Ning gulped and spoke no further.
Wu Xing He, who was standing beside Yang Kai, frowned. Although Nie An was haughty back then, he had never been so overbearing. It seemed that his temperament had changed after he forcefully ascended to the Eighth Order.
The Artifact Refiners worked together to dismantle the Warship, which was yet to be completed.
Then, Nie An directly gave the order and divided the hundreds of Artifact Refiners into a dozen groups. Each group was given specific tasks according to the fields they were proficient in.
A massive amount of resources were sent to this place by the Black Ink Clan, after which the Artifact Refiners started building a new Warship.
While working hard, Yang Kai secretly observed Nie An and realised that the latter was indeed an Artifact Refining Great Grandmaster now. He had no idea how skilful Nie An was in Artifact Refining before his recent ascension, but from the looks of it, the latter was indeed a more accomplished Artifact Refiner than Wu Xing He and the others.
Perhaps he was still not comparable to Dong Guo An Ping, who was a Great Grandmaster in Blue Sky Pass; however, Dong Guo An Ping had been a Great Grandmaster for thousands of years. As a new Great Grandmaster, Nie An was naturally less experienced; however, as time passed, his achievements might be just as great as those of Dong Guo An Ping.
This person was indeed gifted when it came to Artifact Refining. It was no wonder he could transform into an influential figure from a little-known person.
Although he still wasn’t skilful enough, he was already capable of refining a functional Warship.
As Yang Kai observed with concern as the Warship in the mountain valley started taking shape after just three months. It was not different from the previously dismantled Warship when it came to its appearance, but all the Artifact Refiners in the mountain valley clearly felt that its capabilities were much greater than those of the previous version. Once it was completed, it would be good enough to be deployed on the battlefield.
The Artifact Refiners were elated at the imminent success of the project, so they spent longer hours taking part in the development of the Warship, which further accelerated the refinement process.
Yang Kai remained as Wu Xing He’s assistant.
During this period of time, with Wu Xing He’s cooperation, Yang Kai managed to dispel the Black Ink Strength within Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning.
Although these three Grandmasters were doing their best to delay the process of perfecting the Warship, they had to be cautious to prevent exposing themselves.
Day after day, with the enormous amount of resources pouring in and hundreds of Artifact Refiners working diligently, the Warship was nearing perfection.
It was also closer to the deadline Yang Kai had set almost six months ago.
One day, Yang Kai was helping Wu Xing He as usual to refine an offensive artifact to be installed on the Warship. It had only been six months since Nie An returned, but under his leadership, the hundreds of Artifact Refiners here worked together to perfect the Warship. The Warship was almost complete, but there were still some defects that had to be rectified.
As for the capabilities of this Warship, these Artifact Refiners had their own judgements; however, those could only be verified by deploying the Warship on the battlefield.
Somewhere near the Warship, Nie An was having a chat with Qing Lei, who was responsible for guarding this place.
Qing Lei had always acted aloof and arrogant in front of Wu Xing He and the others, but he was polite to Nie An. He totally regarded him as an equal, which just went to show how important Nie An was to the Black Ink Clan.
This was to be expected though as Nie An was an Eighth-Order Master as well as an Artifact Refining Great Grandmaster. Regardless of whose Black Ink Disciple he previously was, he was now working directly under Mu Guang.
Naturally, the treatment that the Royal Lord’s Black Ink Disciple received was different.
They didn’t seem to have the intention of keeping their conversation secret, so Yang Kai could hear them clearly.
Qing Lei asked, “Brother Nie, is this Warship usable now?”
With his hands behind his back, Nie An replied proudly, “Yes. After a bit of troubleshooting, it can be deployed on the battlefield.”
Upon hearing that, Qing Lei was ecstatic, “You’re indeed incredible.”
Nie An replied impassively, “This Nie certainly wouldn’t disappoint the Royal Lord.”
Qing Lei went on to ask, “How capable is this thing compared to those owned by the Humans?”
Nie An said, “It’s likely slightly inferior; however, this is a prototype. As we refine more Warships, everyone will become familiar with the process. In time, the capabilities of our Warships will improve. Soon, we’ll be able to make ones that are on par with the ones owned by the Humans. With that said, even though this Warship is less capable, it’s also much larger than the ones owned by the Humans as it’s specifically made for the Black Ink Clan. With enough people on board, this Warship will be able to deal a heavy blow to the enemy.”
Qing Lei nodded gently, “I’ll report what you’ve said to the Royal Lord.”
“Please tell the Royal Lord that one Warship will not be useful on the battlefield. It would be better to make a number of them first so that we can catch the Humans off guard.”
Qing Lei grinned, “With you working for the Royal Lord, it’s as great as owning an entire army.”
“Many thanks for your compliment, Brother Qing Lei.”
Qing Lei decided to end their conversation here, “I’ll head to the Royal City now and tell the Royal Lord about this piece of good news. I’m sure the Royal Lord will be pleased. I’ll leave affairs here to you.”
“It’s my duty,” Nie An nodded lightly.
The next instant, Qing Lei shot into the sky and headed towards the portal.
As Yang Kai and Wu Xing He exchanged glances, a glint flashed through their eyes.
A moment later, a faint fluctuation of Space Principles was felt coming from the portal. Apparently, Qing Lei had left this Sealed World.
Upon that confirmation, Yang Kai nodded at Wu Xing He and got up before shuffling forward in a different direction.
When he passed by Wang Si Bo, he secretly said, “The time has come.”
Wang Si Bo halted what he was doing and nodded almost imperceptibly.
Then, Yang Kai brushed past Guan Ning and told him the same thing.
A moment later, Wu Xing He suddenly got up and called out, “Senior Brother Nie!”
Nie An was in a nearby place. Upon hearing that, he turned his head and frowned, “What’s wrong?”
Wu Xing He said, “There’s a slight problem here. I need you to have a look at it.”
Despite being bloated, the unsuspecting Nie An appeared in front of him the next instant, “What’s the problem?”
Wu Xing He pointed at the offensive artifact he was refining, “There seems to be a problem with this artifact. Should I refine a new one?”
Nie An turned to look at the artifact and picked it up before examining it. A moment later, he snapped with a dark expression, “Waste! You’ve basically ruined this artifact! How do you have the nerve to call yourself an Artifact Refining Grandmaster?”
To the side, Wu Xing He didn’t dare to say anything, but in the next instant he caught a glimpse of Yang Kai appearing behind Nie An like a phantom. Yellow and blue light appeared on his palms as energy fluctuated. The moment he clapped his hands, those lights turned into a pure white light and engulfed Nie An.
Seeing that, Wu Xing He did not hesitate to execute the original plan as he dashed towards the defensive array and infused his power into it.
In the meantime, in two different places around the Warship, Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning acted according to Yang Kai’s instructions. The instant they detected the surge of energy, they promptly infused their powers into the defensive arrays.
Three defensive arrays were simultaneously activated by three Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and a huge light barrier instantly covered the entire Warship.
The sudden change happening on the Warship instantly caught the attention of the Black Ink Clansmen nearby. As they turned their heads to look, however, they realised they were unable to see anything clearly as the Warship was engulfed in a solid light barrier which looked like a membrane that prevented anyone from peering through it.
This made all the Black Ink Clansmen feel shocked and doubtful. Having no idea what was going on with the Warship, they began to gather around.
None of them could have expected that a plan that was a long time in the making was unfolding right before their eyes.
While the Black Ink Clansmen were caught off guard, Nie An also hadn’t expected that someone would launch a sneak attack on him.
The moment Yang Kai engulfed him with the Purifying Light, Nie An turned around and felt an instinctive disgust towards the white light. He quickly snapped, “You court death!”
As his Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm power burst forth, he threw out his fist.
A grunt was heard as someone was sent flying away; however, the white light had already covered Nie An completely. In an instant, he wailed in pain as the Black Ink Strength in his body gushed out of his body, as though it was facing its nemesis. The Black Ink Strength was soon dispersed and purified.
Nie An’s expression was transformed by fear and horror. The violent aura around him became even more dangerous and the sarcomas on his skin started bulging as black pus spewed out of them.
Just moments later, all the Black Ink Strength in his Small Universe was dispelled by the Purifying Light, and without its support, he was unable to bear his own Eighth-Order cultivation.
He widened his eyes as the veins on his forehead throbbed. While he looked horrible, his already bloated figure started expanding rapidly like a balloon.
He shook a little as he extended his hands in an attempt to grab something, but he was unable to do anything in the end.
Following a loud boom, he exploded and turned into hashed meat and blood.
Just like Yang Kai had said to Wu Xing He before, he didn’t need to directly deal with Nie An in order to kill him. Nie An acquired his Eighth-Order cultivation through the help of Black Ink Strength; hence, without the Black Ink Strength’s support, his own cultivation would kill him.
Yang Kai didn’t even need to fight with him; just by activating Purifying Light to dispel the Black Ink Strength in his body, he could easily dispatch Nie An.
Having said that, Nie An was still an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. If they really got into a fight, Yang Kai might not be a match for him.
The moment the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master detonated, a violent force spread across the Warship and caused the people on the deck to fall to the ground. The Artifact Refiners closest to Nie An had all collapsed while the bow of the Warship was destroyed upon impact. Even the light barrier around the Warship bulged.
As Yang Kai coughed, he struggled out of the wreckage with a flushing face.
Nie An’s last desperate strike managed to hurt him, but that was inevitable, for they were basically at arm’s length from each other at that time. Despite being a Master in the Dao of Space, Yang Kai couldn’t dodge the final strike of an Eighth-Order Master before his death.
Fortunately, everything was going according to plan.
Since Nie An was dead, the Black Ink Clan’s plan would come to a halt. Other than this new Great Grandmaster, no one else could help them build Warships that would be used against the Humans.
It could be said that Yang Kai had completed half of his task just by killing Nie An. Even if he was unable to escape now, he would die with no regrets.
Strictly speaking, Yang Kai’s plan was a crude one with many factors that were beyond his control. For example, he wasn’t certain whether Qing Lei would leave at the appropriate time. And, how was he going to escape from the Sealed World when a Territory Lord was guarding the portal? Even if he managed to flee from the Sealed World, how would he shake off the Black Ink Clan’s pursuit?
He didn’t have time to ponder on all these issues though, nor was it useful for him to do so.
Since the plan was crude, it meant that there were too many variables he could not account for. The only thing he could do was to launch a sneak attack and kill Nie An.
Under Nie An’s leadership, the Warship was about to be completed, and Qing Lei had left at this point. Regardless of how crude the plan was, it had to be executed immediately.
Since Nie An was dead, the Black Ink Clan’s plan would come to a halt. As for whether Yang Kai could bring the other Artifact Refiners to flee from this Sealed World, and how he would get rid of the Black Ink Clan’s pursuit after that, he could only leave it up to the Heavens.
Upon confirming that Nie An was dead, Yang Kai was relieved. Then, he madly absorbed the powers of Yellow and Blue Crystals in his Small Universe and activated Purifying Light.
There were several hundred Artifact Refiners on the Warship now. Over the past six months, under Nie An’s leadership, everyone was constantly building the Warship, so no one had time to rest. All of them had gathered together, which gave Yang Kai a chance to deal with them all at once.
Other than Wu Xing He and the other two Grandmasters, whose Black Ink Strength had been dispelled some time ago, these hundreds of Artifact Refiners were still Black Ink Disciples.
In order to make these Black Ink Disciples work with him, Yang Kai had to restore their true natures first.
With Yang Kai as the centre, Purifying Light exploded outwards and soon engulfed the entire Warship as well as all the Artifact Refiners.
Sizzling noises were heard coming from everywhere as Black Ink Strength leaked from these Artifact Refiners before fading into nothingness under the intense white light.
Just a moment later, all the Artifact Refiners regained their senses as Humans. The turn of events startled them as they had no idea what was going on.
With that said, they still remembered what had happened over the years and instantly felt ashamed and vexed that they had actually built a Warship for the Black Ink Clan.
With no time to waste, Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning quickly told them what was going on in loud voices and calmed them down.
Following a temporary commotion and puzzlement, these Artifact Refiners followed the instructions of Wang Si Bo and Guan Ning as they took charge of the arrays and infused their powers into them.
Outside of the Warship, the Black Ink Clansmen were perplexed as they had no idea what was going on within the light barrier. They reckoned that something had gone wrong and many of the Feudal Lords were now shouting. Some of them even started attacking the light barrier in order to find out what was going on inside.
Right then, a humming sound was heard as the Warship rose into the air. Following that, violent attacks were shot from its weapons.
Many of the unprepared Black Ink Clansmen suffered injuries or were killed in this initial bombardment. Even some of the Feudal Lords were badly injured.
Although Nie An’s return was terrible news to Yang Kai, the Warship built under his leadership was of great help now.
The capabilities of this Warship were not comparable to those of the Warships owned by the Humans, but it was already good enough to be deployed in battle. Moreover, with hundreds of Artifact Refiners present, they were able to unleash the Warship’s full power; after all, they were the ones who built it, so they were the ones most familiar with its capabilities.
Nothing was more enjoyable in the world than using the Warship they had crafted to deal with the Black Ink Clan. These Artifact Refiners madly channelled their World Force to vent out their grievances of becoming the Black Ink Clan’s lackeys.
As the Warship roared to life, all the offensive arrays were fully activated. The consumption of energy did not bother the people on the vessel. Faced with this barrage of attacks, the surrounding Black Ink Clansmen had no choice but to flee.
The Black Ink Clansmen would counterattack from time to time, but they wouldn’t dare to use all of their powers, and the light barrier around the Warship could easily fend off such tepid attacks.
Before the Black Ink Clansmen were certain what was going on with the Warship, they wouldn’t dare to destroy it. They had been staying in this Sealed World for a long time, so they knew that these Artifact Refiners were valuable assets as well as talented people that the Royal Lord had high hopes for. Hence, no one would dare to deal a lethal blow to them. If they accidentally killed some of these precious Artifact Refiners, they would surely be executed as well.
Since they were concerned about accidentally killing the Artifact Refiners, the Warship only became more unstoppable.
One of the Feudal Lords came to his senses soon and shouted, “Inform Sir Mei Qiong about this, now!”
In fact, Mei Qiong was already gazing in their direction while feeling shocked and doubtful, a solemn expression on his face.
The energy fluctuations coming from the Warship were violent, and as a Territory Lord, he had certainly detected them. However, he was tasked with guarding the portal, so he couldn’t leave as he pleased. Therefore, despite realising the anomaly, he didn’t immediately go over and look into the matter right away.
After all, he had felt energy fluctuations coming from the Warship in the past when the Artifact Refiners were experimenting with its offensive and defensive artifacts.
Nevertheless, this time seemed to be different. After hesitating for a bit, Mei Qiong said to one of his subordinates, “Go over there and find out what’s going on.”
Upon receiving the order, the Feudal Lord quickly left to investigate.
At this moment, Yang Kai was moving around the Warship. Although the Humans managed to gain the upper hand by leveraging the Warship’s power and making a move first, the Black Ink Clansmen would soon react accordingly.
Although Qing Lei was not around, it was not easy to deal with Mei Qiong. Once the Territory Lord arrived, the Humans wouldn’t be able to fight against him despite having the Warship; after all, this vessel was not complete to begin with, and many of the arrays were damaged after Nie An exploded.
Yang Kai had to transfer these Artifact Refiners inside his Small Universe before Mei Qiong realised what was going on so that they would stand a better chance of fleeing; otherwise, with so many people around, they couldn’t possibly flee.
Other than Wu Xing He and the two Grandmasters, the rest of the 300 or so Artifact Refiners were below the Seventh Order; therefore, Yang Kai could easily keep them inside his Small Universe.
Wherever he went, the Artifact Refiners would disappear as they were stuffed into his Small Universe.
Without these Artifact Refiners powering it, the Warship was weakening rapidly.
After just 10 breaths of time, only Yang Kai and the three Grandmasters were left on the Warship. The Warship instantly became powerless, which startled the Black Ink Clansmen around it.
Yang Kai quickly shouted, “Please cut your cultivations, Senior Brothers!”
Wu Xing He and the others were in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, which was the same Order as Yang Kai. Usually, Yang Kai wouldn’t be able to keep them inside his Small Universe; however, if they were willing to give up a part of their Small Universes and force their Order to regress, there wouldn’t be a problem.
This was part of Yang Kai’s plan, so Wu Xing He and the others were aware of it.
Therefore, at this moment, they did not hesitate to sacrifice parts of their Small Universes. In order to save time, they ferociously sliced off large chunks of their Small Universe to quickly weaken themselves.
Just moments later, their Orders all fell from the Seventh Order to the Sixth Order. Their faces were pale, and the Soul-wrenching pain caused them to tremble uncontrollably.
Yang Kai had gone through the pain of sacrificing a part of his Small Universe before, so he understood how they felt; however, their Orders regressing was a small price to pay to escape with their lives. After all, when they returned to the Humans’ side safely, they could consume Profound Yin Spirit Fruits to repair their Small Universes. If they lost their lives, nothing else would matter.
Soon, Wu Xing He and the others were also put inside Yang Kai’s Small Universe.
Any other Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master wouldn’t be able to keep these 300 Open Heaven Realm Masters in their Small Universes; after all, there was a limit to the capacity of a Seventh-Order Master’s Small Universe. By keeping too many Open Heaven Realm Masters, they would find it hard to utilise their World Force, and their strength would plunge.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai wasn’t affected one bit. He wasn’t certain if it was because his heritage was ample or for some other reason.
With that said, this was undoubtedly good news to him.
However, without Wu Xing He and the other Grandmasters taking charge, the light barrier around the Warship instantly disappeared. It wasn’t until this moment that the Black Ink Clansmen saw what was going on.
The sight before their eyes astounded them.
Presently, the several hundred Artifact Refiners had gone missing from the Warship, leaving only one person behind. Besides that, the Warship seemed to have been impacted by a violent explosion and many places were evidently damaged.
[What happened?]
All the Black Ink Clansmen were perplexed.
Standing on the deck, Yang Kai ignored the clamour coming from the Black Ink Clansmen and instead stared intently at the portal.
He could sense that Mei Qiong’s aura was approaching quickly, obviously having detected the abnormal situation over here.
After letting out a breath, Yang Kai channelled as much strength as he could into the defensive array beneath his feet. The next moment, the light barrier reappeared around the Warship. However, this time, it could only serve as a shield and could no longer prevent others from looking through it.
Following that, he turned the Warship in a different direction and drove it towards the portal.
From afar, he could see a dark light approaching the vessel. It was none other than Mei Qiong, who was responsible for guarding the portal, followed by a large number of Feudal Lords.
At this moment, Mei Qiong was both shocked and furious.
Although he had already detected the anomaly taking place in the mountain valley earlier, he didn’t immediately come over to have a look considering that the Humans had been experimenting with the powers of the artifacts recently. Therefore, he only told a subordinate to look into the matter; however, he was astonished by the news he received.
For some reason, the Warship started attacking the Black Ink Clansmen in the mountain valley and caused a lot of casualties.
This was simply intolerable!
Were the Human Artifact Refiners out of their minds? How did they have the guts to make a move on the Black Ink Clan? What prompted them to do so?
Before Qing Lei left, he told Mei Qiong that the Warship was almost complete, so he had to head to the Royal City and share this good news with the Royal Lord.
Nevertheless, such an incident happened not long after he left. As the only Territory Lord in this place now, how was Mei Qiong supposed to take responsibility? If the Royal Lord blamed this debacle on him, he would be severely punished despite being a Territory Lord.
Like a rumbling volcano, the fury in Mei Qiong’s chest was about to erupt.
From afar, he saw that the Warship built by the Human Artifact Refiners was coming at him at full speed, and standing on the deck was one person whose expression was cold and indifferent.
He was the Artifact Refiner sent to this place by Hei Yuan!
[Why is he the only one here? Where are the others?]
Seeing that the Warship was coming at him at full speed without showing signs of decelerating, Mei Qiong barked, “Stop!”
Yang Kai, who was standing on the deck, curved his lips into a smile. Instead of stopping, he infused even more energy into the Warship’s arrays, which caused the Warship to accelerate further.
[Something is wrong with him. He’s not a Black Ink Disciple!] An idea flashed through Mei Qiong’s mind.
If he was really a Black Ink Disciple, regardless of who his Master was, he wouldn’t dare to be impudent in front of a Territory Lord; however, instead of obeying Mei Qiong’s order, this person became even more brazen.
Mei Qiong didn’t have time to ponder on this issue though as the Warship was about to hit him. Roaring, he surged his rich Black Ink Strength, which turned into a huge Black Ink Cloud and engulfed the Warship. At the same time, he pushed out his palms.
The giant Warship hummed as every part of it creaked upon impact. Mei Qiong was forced to move backwards, but he soon stabilised himself after more than ten steps. He successfully stopped the Warship.
Given his power as a Territory Lord, such a Warship with only a single person in charge couldn’t cause any damage to him. If he wanted, he could have destroyed this Warship.
However, this was the treasure that the Royal Lord had high hopes of. They had spent countless amounts of time, resources, and manpower to build it. This ship was the key to securing the Black Ink Clan’s future. That was why he wouldn’t dare to destroy it.
Left with no other choice, he could only stop the Warship in such a way. By stopping the vessel so easily, it went to show how powerful he truly was.
Separated by only a light barrier, Yang Kai and Mei Qiong stared at one another. One of them was unfazed while the other was infuriated.
Mei Qiong said through clenched teeth, “Bastard, you’re dead!”
Yang Kai grinned at him as he madly channelled his power into the Warship like a torrent.
The next instant, a dangerous aura could be felt coming from every part of the Warship.
With widened eyes, Mei Qiong roared, “You dare?!”
As he spoke, he extended his hand towards Yang Kai. The thin light barrier around the Warship couldn’t possibly fend off the powerful attack from a Territory Lord and lasted for only one breath before it shattered.
As he was about to capture Yang Kai though, a dazzling light suddenly exploded from the Warship. A horrifying force spread out as the entire Warship was engulfed in a ball of raging flames.
Mei Qiong missed his target and failed in his attempt to capture the insolent Human. At the most critical moment, the Human seemed to have vanished into thin air.
On the other hand, the Warship’s explosion caused his arm to be injured and he was also forced to move backwards upon impact.
The Warship was destroyed!
Mei Qiong stared at the burning Warship. Despite the heat, he felt as though a basin of cold water had been poured onto his heart.
He could almost envision how infuriated the Royal Lord would be upon learning what had happened. He probably would have to bear all the responsibility. Despite being a Territory Lord, he wouldn’t be able to bear what was to come.
Up until this moment, he still had no idea what was going on. How did things go so wrong all of a sudden? After all, not long ago, Qing Lei told him that the Warship was almost completed, so he had to head to the Royal City and inform the Royal Lord about it.
Mei Qiong thought that he would not have to stay here much longer. In the future, he could stand on a Warship and look down condescendingly at his enemies on the battlefield.
Barely two hours later, his dream burst like a bubble. It was expected that he was enraged.
[That Human!]
As long as he could capture that Human, he would find out the truth.
He suddenly turned his head and gazed at the portal before yelling, “Cordon off the portal! Make sure no one can leave this place!”
Although the Human disappeared as the Warship exploded, Mei Qiong didn’t think he was dead. The Human must have pulled a trick and avoided his detection by using the explosion to cover his tracks.
In that case, the Human’s target would undoubtedly be the portal, for he had to leave this Sealed World as quickly as possible.
Upon giving the order, Mei Qiong turned around to return to the portal.
As soon as he started moving though, he heard the sound of battle coming from the portal. Following that, the portal in mid-air opened rapidly.
The Human that had escaped from Mei Qiong had really headed to the portal. The instant the portal was opened, he dashed past it and disappeared.
After that, the portal closed abruptly and vanished.
A furious Mei Qiong turned into a dark streak of light and reached the portal in just a few breaths’ time. Lifting his gaze, he realised that seven or eight Feudal Lords had collapsed, all badly injured. The most severely wounded one had a large hole in his figure as his body was penetrated by some kind of weapon earlier. Black blood was splattered all over the place.
[That Human is so strong!] Mei Qiong was startled.
As far as he knew, the Black Ink Disciple sent to this place by Hei Yuan was just a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Usually, a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was more powerful than a Feudal Lord, but even if one Feudal Lord was no match for him, how was it possible that so many Feudal Lords were defeated at the same time?
Moreover, only a few breaths of time had passed since the Human escaped from Mei Qiong. How did he disable seven or eight Feudal Lords in such a short time?
Mei Qiong didn’t have time to ponder on this issue. While gritting his teeth, he ordered, “Open the portal!”
Since the Human had fled, he naturally had to chase after him. Only by capturing the Human could he make up for his mistake and find out what had happened.
It wasn’t necessary for Mei Qiong to give the order. In fact, after Yang Kai fled, a Feudal Lord, who was usually responsible for opening the portal, had been trying his best to do just that; however, the portal that could be opened with ease normally showed no reaction on this day.
After several attempts, he still got the same outcome.
The Feudal Lord’s forehead was covered with sweat, possibly because of pain, anxiety, or both. Still, he turned to look at Mei Qiong and reported, “Sir, I can’t open it!”
“Waste!” Mei Qiong directly kicked the Feudal Lord away and snatched the token. He then infused his power into the token and waved it at the portal.
As usual, a dark light shot into the Void, but no reaction was seen. The portal, which should’ve been opened by now, was nowhere in sight.
Mei Qiong widened his eyes and made one more attempt, but the outcome was the same.
A Feudal Lord came over and said in a hushed voice, “Sir, the portal’s restriction was set up by the Black Ink Disciples. They must have tampered with it somehow.”
Certainly, Mei Qiong realised this as well; otherwise, he couldn’t explain what was going on. He directly exerted more force with his hand and turned the token into dust before demanding, “Break it open!”
As he spoke, he made a move first by launching an attack on the portal. Seeing that, the Feudal Lords followed suit.
In the void, Yang Kai manipulated Space Principles and repeatedly used Instantaneous Movement. He was trying to get as far away from the Royal City as possible.
Previously, when he was led to the Royal City to purchase materials, he left behind a trick in the Sealed World’s portal. Given his mastery in the Dao of Space, no one else could possibly notice it. Now that he had to flee from this Sealed World, he activated the trick.
However, he knew that this little measure couldn’t hold Mei Qiong up for long. Mei Qiong just had to forcefully break through the portal, which would take no more than a cup of tea’s time. After that, a large number of Black Ink Clansmen would relentlessly pursue him.
Therefore, he only had a cup of tea’s time to flee. Given such a short time, regardless of how proficient he was at the Dao of Space, Yang Kai couldn’t possibly escape from the Black Ink Clan; therefore, he could only get as far away from the Royal City as possible.
Given his strength, he might be able to escape from a Territory Lord; however, if the Royal Lord made a move, there was nothing else he could do but to wait for death.
Nie An was dead, and the only completed Warship was destroyed. It could be said that the Black Ink Clan’s plan was as good as dead.
Everything would be perfect if Yang Kai could bring the remaining 300 Artifact Refiners in his Small Universe back to the Humans’ side.
Nevertheless, the road ahead of him was paved with danger. He wasn’t certain if he could get away. Presently, he could only do his best to run for his life. If he succeeded, everything would be fine. If he failed, he had more than 300 friends to accompany him on the road to the Yellow Springs, so he wouldn’t feel lonely.
As he fully activated Space Principles, his figure flickered like a phantom.
Fortunately, Yang Kai didn’t run into any real danger while navigating through the void.
Even though he would sometimes come across some Black Ink Clansmen who were heading to the Royal City, he would disappear from their sight the next instant. Many of the Black Ink Clansmen even thought that they saw an illusion.
Suddenly, there came a moment when Yang Kai felt all his hair standing on end. There seemed to be a pair of eyes that were opening and staring at him from a faraway place behind him.
Mu Guang Royal Lord!
After making some calculations, Yang Kai realised that Mei Qiong should have broken through the portal and informed the Royal Lord about what had happened in the Sealed World by now.
Even from such a great distance, the Royal Lord could still accurately locate him, astonishing Yang Kai.
One had to know that he had never stopped using Instantaneous Movement since he left the Sealed World and presently, he was very far away from the Royal City.
The Royal Lords were really astounding, and their powers were beyond Yang Kai’s imagination.
He wasn’t certain whether Mu Guang could really find his exact whereabouts, but he wouldn’t dare to stop fleeing. However, after he was targeted by that gaze, he felt that something had been wrapped around his figure, which made him feel a constant sense of discomfort and left him slightly muddle-headed.
It was obviously because of the Royal Lord’s aura that had locked onto him.
With a solemn expression, Yang Kai continued charging forward without worrying about his consumption of energy. Regardless of whether Mu Guang had really discovered his whereabouts, he still had a chance to flee; after all, Mu Guang was still far away from him, so it wouldn’t be easy for the Royal Lord to catch up.
Half a day after Yang Kai escaped from the Sealed World, he finally came across a Black Ink Clan army that was there to stop him.
It wasn’t appropriate to call them an army really, as their scale suggested that they were just a Feudal Lord’s private force. There were only a small number of Feudal Lords, and the rest were High-Rank and Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen, numbering about 300 people.
This private force was right in front of Yang Kai, as though they had been waiting for him for a long time. The moment Yang Kai’s figure appeared, the Feudal Lord at the front shouted, “He’s that Human! Capture him and the Royal Lord will reward you handsomely!”
Yang Kai wasn’t surprised at the fact that this Black Ink Clan Army could quickly find out what was going on and even intercept him here. In fact, he had already expected it.
Compared to the Humans, the transmission of information between the Black Ink Clansmen was far quicker.
In Zha Gu’s territory, Yang Kai learned about some of the Black Ink Nest’s secrets. With the Black Ink Nests of different sizes as the foundation, a colossal information network could be built. Through the information network, everything that happened in the Black Ink Clan’s territory could spread around quickly.
Since Mu Guang had found out about what had happened in the Sealed World, the Royal Lord could make use of the Black Ink Nests and spread the word across the entire Yin-Yang Theatre, allowing the Black Ink Clan to promptly respond.
Certainly, given Yang Kai’s current strength, he wouldn’t have any regard for a mere Feudal Lords’ force. If he wanted, he could easily kill these mixed soldiers with only a few Feudal Lords in charge.
However, he didn’t have the intention of fighting with them. Mu Guang’s aura had locked onto him from afar, so he wouldn’t dare to waste any time or energy. If possible, he wouldn’t want to battle against any Black Ink Clansmen so that he would have a better chance of fleeing.
Hence, before the private force could even approach him, he manipulated Space Principles and disappeared.
Several hundred Black Ink Clansmen were left dumbfounded.
However, this was just the beginning. In the following half a day, Yang Kai would come across a number of private forces trying to block his path. Nevertheless, he was determined not to deal with those Black Ink Clansmen, and since he was bent on fleeing, those Black Ink Clansmen couldn’t do anything to him either.
They couldn’t capture him unless they could cordon off a stretch of space and seal it. Unfortunately for them, the void was expansive, so even if they knew where he was heading, they couldn’t set up a trap in advance.
It was a thrilling escape.
In fact, Yang Kai was familiar with this kind of escape as, throughout the years, he had been in this exact situation a number of times. He managed to get away every time with the help of his mastery of Space Principles.
He couldn’t remember when the last time such an incident took place, but every time he ran into this kind of situation, he was facing an opponent he couldn’t hope to defeat.
As time passed, all the Black Ink Clansmen in Mu Guang’s territory seemed to have been mobilised. After experiencing several setbacks, the Black Ink Clansmen began using a different tactic. Instead of gathering together, they separated into small teams and scattered around the void as they awaited Yang Kai’s appearance.
That way, regardless of how reluctant Yang Kai was, he inevitably had to fight at least some of the Black Ink Clansman he happened to bump into. After all, when manipulating Space Principles, he couldn’t be certain whether there would be a Black Ink Clansman waiting for him in his next location.
Fortunately, he never came across a lot of Black Ink Clansmen, and most of his enemies were weak, so it took him little effort to kill them all.
This kind of delay wouldn’t ordinarily pose a problem, but it was lethal at this moment as he was being pursued by a Royal Lord.
As time passed, he could feel that Mu Guang was getting closer. Although he had no idea about Mu Guang’s exact location, Yang Kai realised that the aura that had locked onto him became heavier. He felt a kind of pressure, as though he was held down by something, making it more difficult to manipulate Space Principles. The entire Void felt viscous to him.
Despite his calm expression, Yang Kai felt helpless in his heart.
As expected, he was unable to escape from a being like a Royal Lord. The huge gap between their powers couldn’t be made up for with Space Principles alone.
While fleeing, he turned his hand around as an ancient coin appeared in his palm.
This coin was given to him by the little girl who wandered around the Marketplace in Yin-Yang Pass all the time. According to her, she acquired this thing from the Old Ancestor and it might save his life if he cast it out at the critical moment.
Certainly, Yang Kai wouldn’t expect the little girl, who knew nothing but how to eat all the time, to help him in any way; however, this thing came from the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass, so it must have some special power.
As the Old Ancestor, she must be fully aware of everything that was going on in Yin-Yang Pass. Yang Kai didn’t think a little girl, who had never cultivated before, could steal anything from the Old Ancestor.
In other words, the Old Ancestor must be aware that the little girl had given this ancient coin to him. Perhaps she had even instructed the little girl to do so.
Why would the Old Ancestor give him this ancient coin, though? After giving it a thought, Yang Kai reckoned this coin was some kind of life-saving tool; after all, he was asked to come to this place by those from Yin-Yang Pass. Moreover, he could be considered a half-disciple of Yin-Yang Cave Heaven, so it was expected that the Old Ancestor in Yin-Yang Pass would give him something to protect himself.
Otherwise, it wouldn’t explain why the Old Ancestor had never shown up even though he had been staying in Yin-Yang Pass for quite some time. The fact that the Black Ink Clan were building a Warship was a critical matter, so it was impossible that the Old Ancestor wasn’t concerned about it. The reason she never showed up was that she must have made a special arrangement.
This ancient coin could very well be the Old Ancestor’s arrangement.
Yang Kai had inspected this ancient coin before, but couldn’t find out the secrets inside it.
Given the situation he was in, he could only pin his hope on this ancient coin. He secretly prayed that this thing had better be useful; otherwise, he and 300 Artifact Refiners would perish today.
The aura behind him was getting closer and Yang Kai could feel the grand Will that was unique to Royal Lords. It wasn’t the first time he sensed this kind of Will. He had the same experience in the Black Prison and outside of Blue Sky Pass.
However, those experiences were not as profound as what he was going through at this moment.
After all, the Royal Lord in the Black Prison had been sealed off since ancient times, so she was already weak and frail. On the other hand, the one outside of Blue Sky Pass was badly injured and not really paying much attention to him.
However, Mu Guang, who was behind him, was at full strength and was completely focused on him, which was different from the two Royal Lords he had encountered before.
The pressure coming from this Will alone had almost devastated him. Yang Kai felt as if he was carrying a huge mountain on his back, which made it extremely difficult for him to take even a step forward and he could no longer manipulate Space Principles with ease.
After fleeing with difficulty for a bit, he suddenly froze on the spot and became immovable.
First of all, he had consumed too much energy by madly manipulating Space Principles for a prolonged time. Secondly, a pressure had engulfed the entire Void and cordoned off the space around him.
He didn’t even have the strength to turn around.
In the void, a figure slowly stepped out of the darkness.
Lifting his gaze, Yang Kai saw that there was an elegant-looking, curvy woman standing in the void in front of him. The woman was in an imperial dress, which was a form of clothing commonly worn by Humans. The imperial dress perfectly outlined her hourglass figure.
Yang Kai almost thought that he was having a hallucination.
Upon closer look though, he realised that the person indeed looked perfectly Human; however, her grand Will, indescribably authoritative demeanour, and overwhelming Black Ink Strength, suggested that she wasn’t just any Black Ink Clansman. She was the Royal Lord!
Mu Guang!
Yang Kai had heard of the Royal Lord’s name on several occasions from the mouths of the Humans in Yin-Yang Pass as well as the Black Ink Clansmen; however, it wasn’t until this moment that he realised this was what Mu Guang looked like.
It was the first time he came across a Black Ink Clansman that looked entirely Human. Most of the Black Ink Clansmen were burly, and came in various different forms. Yang Kai had been living in the Black Ink Clan’s territory for quite a long time, and he had seen all sorts of Black Ink Clansmen, but he had never seen someone like her before.
This was an eye-opener.
If Mu Guang never revealed her Black Ink Strength, no one would have thought that she was a Black Ink Clansman.
Although the woman was stepping forward in a leisurely manner, her expression was as cold as a frigid winter’s day and she spoke dispassionately, “Despite being weak, you’re pretty audacious.”
Apparently, she had heard from Mei Qiong about what happened in the Sealed World. She knew that not only had all the Artifact Refiners gone missing at the same time, but the Warship that was almost completed had also been destroyed.
It could be said that her centuries-long plan, which could potentially change the status quo and secure the Black Ink Clan’s ultimate victory, was ruined right before it succeeded.
It was expected that she wasn’t pleased with what had happened.
Yang Kai’s figure was stiff as he remained silent. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to retort, but rather that he didn’t even have the strength to speak in front of Mu Guang.
Mu Guang stopped in a place that was just 100 metres away from Yang Kai and asked grimly, “Where is Nie An?”
To her, Nie An was key to the success of her plan. They could build a new Warship and nurture a new batch of Artifact Refiners, but there was only one Nie An. Without this Great Grandmaster, they would never be able to construct a functional Warship.
It had to be noted that the Black Ink Clansmen had been waiting for countless years before they finally had a Great Grandmaster like Nie An. That was the result they had achieved with the Royal Lord’s full support; otherwise, Nie An couldn’t have safely ascended to the Eighth Order on his own, let alone become a Great Grandmaster.
As she spoke, Mu Guang slightly retracted her pressure.
Yang Kai was finally able to speak; still, his voice was hoarse, as though he hadn’t drunk anything for several days, “Nie An is dead!”
“Impudence!” Mu Guang roared. Impacted by the invisible pressure, Yang Kai sprayed out a mouthful of blood, and he instantly looked dispirited.
Her eyes were burning with fury as she glowered at Yang Kai, “I’ll give you one more chance. Tell me where Nie An is, and I’ll spare your life!”
Yang Kai guffawed, “Nie An’s natural limit was only the Sixth Order, so he couldn’t bear his Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm cultivation. Why would I lie to you about him being dead? Moreover, he exploded right in front of me. What? Are you going to kill me to avenge his death?”
Mu Guang was enraged, but she soon thought of something and calmed herself down. She sneered, “You want to die? It won’t be so easy. I heard that you’re pretty talented in Artifact Refining. With proper training, you might be the next Nie An.”
After she finished speaking, her eyes filled with an endless darkness all of a sudden.
Yang Kai felt a force trying to break into his Small Universe, but it soon dissipated. Upon coming to his senses, he exclaimed, “Royal Lord Secret Technique!”
When he was in the Black Prison back then, some of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters who fought alongside him were struck by the Royal Lord’s Secret Technique and instantly became Black Ink Disciples. Yang Kai still vividly recalled the incident, and coupled with his own experience, he came to realise what the woman before his eyes had done just now.
Apparently, Mu Guang had used her Royal Lord Secret Technique on Yang Kai.
The Royal Lord Secret Technique was a technique that was, naturally, unique to Royal Lords, and they wouldn’t use it unless it was absolutely necessary. That was because even though this Secret Technique was powerful, as even Eighth-Order Masters were powerless to resist it and easily transformed into Black Ink Disciples, it would take the Royal Lord a lot of strength to cast it.
Therefore, on the battlefield, with a Human Old Ancestor around, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters didn’t have to worry about getting struck by the Royal Lord Secret Technique and becoming Black Ink Disciples. If the Royal Lord really did so, it would give the Old Ancestor a chance to land a heavy blow on them. However, without the Old Ancestor’s deterrence, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters could only rely on themselves if they came across a Royal Lord.
As expected, after using the Royal Lord Secret Technique, Mu Guang flushed slightly. The pressure that made it difficult for Yang Kai to breathe since her appearance had also weakened.
Despite that, the woman before Yang Kai’s eyes was still a powerful being he could not hope to defeat.
“You indeed have one of the Four Universe Pillars. That smelly girl in Yin-Yang Pass is pretty generous.” Seeing that Yang Kai was still fine, the woman wasn’t one bit surprised. Instead, she seemed to have expected this outcome.
After all, there had to be an explanation for why a Black Ink Disciple had suddenly betrayed them. Only a Human who possessed one of the Four Universe Pillars wouldn’t have to worry about Black Ink Strength or the Royal Lord Secret Technique. It also enabled them to pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple and sneak into the Black Ink Clan to kick up a storm.
However, the cultivators who possessed the Four Universe Pillars that they had come across before were all Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters; none of them was a Seventh-Order Master. Moreover, when Hei Yuan corrupted this Human, he saw him giving up a part of his Small Universe twice. The Human even appeared powerless to turn things around and was determined to sacrifice his life to avoid capture.
Both Hei Yuan and the Royal Lord were fooled. They had never expected that the Humans would be audacious enough to let a Seventh-Order Master own one of the Four Universe Pillars and pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple. Furthermore, he almost succeeded.
Yang Kai had no idea who the ‘smelly girl from Yin-Yang Pass’ that the Royal Lord had mentioned was, but before he could ponder on it, he felt his entire figure stiffen on the spot.
The woman extended her slender hand and said impassively, “Do you think I have no way to deal with you just because you have one of the Four Universe Pillars? Since Nie An is dead, you’ll replace him from now on!”
As soon as she finished speaking, she pushed out her palm.
Endless darkness shaded his vision, and a great sense of danger engulfed his entire figure; however, Yang Kai was powerless to resist. Faced with the Royal Lord’s attack, he was unable to even move.
Right then, he felt a warm stream of energy gathering in his forehead. Following that, something broke out from his figure. At that instant, he broke free from the horrifying pressure and regained his freedom.
On the other hand, Mu Guang let out a cry of surprise.
As a dazzling light expanded, Yang Kai could see a wisp flying out of his forehead and shooting towards Mu Guang. The wisp of light soon turned into a Human form.
It was an old man whose hair and beard were grey with age. Clad in an ordinary robe, he stood there barefooted. His entire figure was covered in a gentle white light, which made him look a bit ethereal and immaterial.
Yang Kai was flabbergasted and unconsciously muttered, “Old Ancestor?”
The old man, who looked surreal as he was engulfed in a white halo, was the Old Ancestor from Blue Sky Pass.
Yang Kai wouldn’t be mistaken, for he had met the Old Ancestor once when he was in Blue Sky Pass.
[Why is Old Ancestor here?] Yang Kai was puzzled.
But soon, he realised that it wasn’t the Old Ancestor’s true form. It was more like a projection or an Avatar.
That was because the figure that was engulfed in the white light didn’t look like it had a physical body.
In an instant, Yang Kai figured out everything. Previously, he was asked to see the Blue Sky Old Ancestor. Just when he was ready to leave after the meeting ended, the Old Ancestor told him that both the dead and the living were contributors to the Human race. After that, he poked a finger on Yang Kai’s forehead and told him to leave.
Yang Kai had no idea why the Old Ancestor did that. He had even inspected himself but did not find anything of note.
He reckoned that the Old Ancestor must have given him something to help save himself; after all, he possessed the Purifying Light, which was important to the Human race. Therefore, it was expected that the Old Ancestor would treat him differently. The technique was hidden most of the time, but it would be triggered when Yang Kai’s life was at stake.
However, when he and Bai Yi snuck into Zhu Feng’s hideout and fought with the latter, Yang Kai almost lost his life on several occasions. At the most critical moment, he even spat out his own Dragon Bead and engaged in a life-and-death clash with Zhu Feng. Yang Kai eventually managed to kill Zhu Feng. He was in a perilous situation at that time, but the Old Ancestor’s technique didn’t activate.
Hence, Yang Kai thought that his speculation was wrong. The Old Ancestor’s technique was probably not a way to save his life; instead, it might have other uses. It just wasn’t triggered because the right time hadn’t come yet.
As time passed, Yang Kai almost forgot about that incident, but just when he was in danger this time, the technique was triggered and the Old Ancestor’s Avatar appeared!
Yang Kai was elated. It seemed that his speculation was right. The Old Ancestor had really given him a life-saving charm, but that technique would only be triggered when he was facing a Royal Lord and not on lesser occasions.
After a moment of thought, Yang Kai figured out everything. As the Old Ancestor’s Avatar was facing off against Mu Guang, Yang Kai heard him say, “I can only delay her temporarily. Run!”
The next instant, the Old Ancestor’s Avatar clashed with Mu Guang and blocked her violent attack. As their ferocious powers clashed, a ring of light expanded. Space trembled, and the entire universe seemed to be cracking apart.
Struck by the fallout, Yang Kai was sent tumbling away.
With determination written all over his face, he forcefully cast out the ancient coin in his hand. Usually, the ancient coin looked just like any other coin, but at that moment, it spun rapidly and enlarged. Despite being a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master as well as a Grand Dragon, Yang Kai was still dumbstruck after the two powerful Masters clashed. However, the ancient coin wasn’t affected one bit.
In the blink of an eye, the ancient coin expanded to the size of a house. There was a square hole in the middle of the ancient coin and at this moment, violent Space Principle fluctuations could be felt coming from it, causing the local space to ripple and warp.
A slender figure stepped out from the hole in the coin in the next instant. She looked like she was a young woman in her early twenties. With a smile on her face, she called out to Yang Kai and asked, “Are you alright?”
A dumbfounded Yang Kai gazed at her and replied, “You…”
Although he hoped that the ancient coin could save him, he hadn’t expected to see such a sight. He initially thought that the ancient coin was a powerful artifact that could be used to injure the Royal Lord, but it turned out that the ancient coin was actually a kind of artifact that could be used to build a Void Corridor that led to somewhere.
This woman apparently stepped out of the other end of the Void Corridor.
For some reason, Yang Kai found this young woman familiar, as though he had seen her before. Nevertheless, he was certain he had never come across her in his life.
That was because the aura exuding from this woman suggested that she was an Old Ancestor.
The woman waved her hand in front of Yang Kai’s and with a frown, she asked worriedly, “Did you injure your head or something?”
An anxious Yang Kai quickly cupped his fist, “Junior Yang Kai greets Old Ancestor!”
He had certainly figured out the woman’s identity by now. She was none other than the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass. He was somewhat surprised at the fact that the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass was a woman, and such a young and beautiful one at that.
However, the age of an Old Ancestor would naturally not show on her face. Despite looking like she was in her early twenties, she must be an old monster that had lived for at least 10,000 years.
The woman laughed happily, “You don’t have to be overly polite with me.”
Then, she turned her head and said, “Didn’t I tell you to use that ancient coin when you were in mortal danger? Fortunately, that old man left a Secret Technique in your body; otherwise, you wouldn’t have even had a chance to use the ancient coin.”
A sheepish Yang Kai lowered his head, but he was secretly cursing in his heart. He couldn’t help thinking that the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass was somewhat unreliable. Since the ancient coin was so important, she should have explained its uses clearly to him. Instead, she actually had a little girl pass it to him, which made him think that those from Yin-Yang Pass never provided any help for him. He even thought that if he couldn’t turn things around, he would perish today along with 300 Artifact Refiners.
As they spoke, the fight between the Old Ancestor’s Avatar from Blue Sky Pass and Mu Guang was already in its final stage; after all, it was just an Avatar. Although it had the power of an Old Ancestor, it couldn’t last for long.
As the violent forces dissipated, the two figures separated. Mu Guang stared fixedly at the woman and said through clenched teeth, “It’s you, little bitch!”
The woman refuted, “Mind your language, old hag, or I’ll skin you alive!”
She then gazed at the Old Ancestor’s Avatar from Blue Sky Pass. Presently, the Avatar was dim and flickering, as though it would disappear at any moment.
Noticing the woman’s gaze, the Avatar turned his head and nodded gently, “I’ll leave the rest to you.”
With a solemn expression, the woman replied, “Rest in peace, old man. I’ll certainly avenge you.”
Yang Kai’s brow twitched as he found the whole conversation awkward. The Old Ancestor’s Avatar was indeed going to disappear, but it wasn’t like he was really dying.
With that said, even though it was just an Avatar, its destruction would undoubtedly cause a serious loss to the Old Ancestor. If not for the fact that Yang Kai had made a huge contribution to the Human Race and was of incredible importance, the Old Ancestor wouldn’t have left an Avatar with him.
The Avatar took a glance at Yang Kai, then turned into countless motes of light and dissipated.
“I’ll hold her here!” The Yin-Yang Pass Old Ancestor suddenly yelled. Yang Kai turned his head and saw that she had deliberately folded her arms, as though she was gripping something. With her left hand remaining still, she extended her right hand, like she was drawing out an invisible sword.
As she did that, she really unsheathed a sharp-looking sword!
Mu Guang’s expression turned solemn as the Black Ink Strength around her surged.
“Yang Boy, head in the direction of Yin-Yang Pass. The Army has sortied from the Inner Sanctum. Join up with them!” The Old Ancestor ordered as she raised her sword.
“Yes!” Yang Kai replied and turned around to leave.
Mu Guang couldn’t help looking in that direction.
“What are you looking at, old hag?” The woman yelled. Only half of her sword was unsheathed at this point, but the next instant, she forcefully drew it and disappeared from the spot. When she reappeared, she was right above Mu Guang as she slashed down with her weapon.
Mu Guang roared and lifted both of her hands, blocking the attack with her rich Black Ink Strength.
Yang Kai couldn’t possibly intervene in the battle between the Old Ancestor and the Royal Lord. What’s more, both of them had been fighting against each other for many years. Be it the Old Ancestor from Yin-Yang Pass or Mu Guang Royal Lord, the two of them knew practically everything about their opponent, so the outcome of the battle was basically predetermined.
It would either come to a draw or be a mutual loss. There wasn’t a third possibility.
Mu Guang had the advantage in that this was her territory, but it wouldn’t be realistic for her to think that she could make the Old Ancestor of Yin-Yang Pass stay behind.
If the Old Ancestor was bent on fleeing, the Royal Lord wouldn’t have a way to stop her. It was just like what happened outside of Blue Sky Pass back then. When the badly injured Royal Lord wanted to flee, the Old Ancestor from Blue Sky Pass was unable to stop him.
The repercussions of the battle spread across the void, and even though Yang Kai had immediately manipulated Space Principles to escape the battlefield, he could still feel the violent impacts behind him.
A sense of longing overwhelmed him as he wondered when he would be able to make it to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
With that said, he knew that he was far from that goal; after all, he only directly ascended to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm back then. Although he had consumed a Mid-Rank World Fruit and made it to the Sixth Order, his limit would be the Eighth Order. In order to ascend to the Ninth Order, he would have to find the Innate Open Heaven Pills formed in the Universe Furnace.
That wouldn’t be easy, for the Universe Furnace was elusive and mysterious. No one knew when it would appear.
Casting his wild thoughts away, Yang Kai dashed toward Yin-Yang Pass.
The Old Ancestor said that the Army had deployed. If he wanted to survive, he had to join up with them and fight against the Black Ink Clan alongside them. However, the road ahead would surely be paved with danger, so Yang Kai wasn’t sure if he would successfully join the Yin-Yang Pass’ Army.
Fortunately, the Old Ancestor was there to deal with Mu Guang. Without the Royal Lord pursuing him, he stood a greater chance of fleeing.
He fished out some Spirit Pills from his Small Universe and stuffed them into his mouth. As he moved forward, he tried to restore his strength.
As he repeatedly manipulated Space Principles, his figure kept flickering across the void.
Whenever he bumped into Black Ink Clansmen, he wouldn’t deal with them. Only when he was left with no choice would he fight.
By doing so, he moved across billions of kilometres in one day. Presently, he was soaked in blood. The blood was his own as well as the Black Ink Clan’s. After escaping for such a long time, he was quite battered, but he was still far from Yin-Yang Pass.
After all, his starting point was basically the Royal City. Even though he had the help of Space Principles, it would still take him a long time to return to Yin-Yang Pass.
Despite being exhausted, Yang Kai didn’t dare to stop and rest. Wherever he went, there would be Black Ink Clansmen waiting for him. With the help of the Black Ink Nests, the Black Ink Clan was able to relay information rapidly. Whatever happened in any given place, the news would be soon spread to all the Black Ink Nests in the region.
Fortunately, he didn’t come across any Territory Lords while escaping, which gave him some room for manoeuvre. If he really bumped into a Territory Lord, he wouldn’t be able to shake them off given the state he was in.
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai realised that this wasn’t so surprising. Just like Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, Territory Lords were rare. Furthermore, the Army had left Yin-Yang Pass, so the Territory Lords had to deal with the enemy. They wouldn’t have time to hunt him down.
Half a day later, Yang Kai flickered and appeared somewhere in the void; however, before he could stabilise himself to scan the surroundings, he felt a gust of wind coming at him as several auras locked onto him.
A shocked Yang Kai knew that he was unlucky as he happened to bump into Black Ink Clansmen who were lying in wait for him here.
Nevertheless, he had encountered similar incidents during his escape, so he wasn’t flustered. He easily dodged the initial attacks and took some distance from his opponent.
Lifting his gaze, Yang Kai realised there were indeed a lot of Black Ink Clansmen who had surrounded him. Many of them looked pleasantly surprised or perplexed. Apparently, his sudden appearance startled them.
Yang Kai silently cursed and thought that he had run out of luck as he was surrounded by so many enemies. He reckoned that he had to fight his way out of here.
“I knew there was something wrong with you from the start, and now it seems I was right!” A stern voice, which sounded familiar to Yang Kai, was heard speaking from the side.
Yang Kai turned his head and saw a Black Ink Disciple with a hunched back who was glowering at him. This person was the one who launched a sneak attack on him just now.
“Liu Zi An!” Yang Kai arched his brow with surprise.
He had never expected to bump into Liu Zi An here. Initially, he thought that after leaving Hei Yuan’s territory, he would never see Liu Zi An again. Who would have thought they would see each other again? After scanning his surroundings, Yang Kai couldn’t help but stare at the Feudal Lord who was apparently in charge. As expected, wherever Liu Zi An was, Gui Liao would also be there; after all, Liu Zi An was Gui Liao’s Black Ink Disciple.
Of the other Black Ink Clansmen, Yang Kai also found another Feudal Lord he was familiar with. It seemed that he had seen him before.
These were obviously the Black Ink Clansmen who were Hei Yuan’s subordinates.
Yang Kai soon figured out what was going on. While he was fleeing in Yin-Yang Pass’ direction, he unknowingly returned to Hei Yuan’s territory.
Hei Yuan wasn’t around as Yang Kai couldn’t detect his aura, which made him feel relieved.
“Surrender now. You can’t escape!” Liu Zi An barked.
Ignoring him, Yang Kai extended his hand and summoned his Azure Dragon Spear.
Liu Zi An snapped, “Since you refuse a toast, you must drink a loss!”
As he spoke, he summoned a sabre and surged his strength. A glint flashed across the blade as he took a step forward and wielded the weapon at Yang Kai.
Gui Liao, who was not far away from them, ordered, “Don’t kill him! We have to capture him alive!”
Upon finishing his words, he circulated his Black Ink Strength and charged towards Yang Kai. At the same time, the Black Ink Clansmen around Yang Kai dashed towards him.
Liu Zi An grinned, “Don’t worry, Master. He’s strong, so I might not be a match for him.”
As soon as he brought his weapon down, he cut Yang Kai in half. However, he didn’t feel ecstatic for killing his opponent; instead, his expression changed drastically. That was because he didn’t feel he had hacked into blood and flesh. It was apparently an afterimage.
He promptly whirled around and brandished his sabre. Although he seemed to have hit something, a horrifying impulse was felt coming at him through the blade, one that forced him to step backwards.
Before he could stabilise himself, the tip of a spear rapidly magnified before his eyes as he was engulfed in a great sense of danger.
A flabbergasted Liu Zi An madly pushed his strength in an attempt to dodge, but the spear seemed to have affected the space around him, which made it impossible for him to evade the attack.
“Master! Save…” Liu Zi An exclaimed in horror, but before he could finish his words, the Azure Dragon Spear pierced right into his eye. The violent force from the spear exploded and turned his head into mist.
Liu Zi An was fully aware of his inferiority. He had fought with Yang Kai back then when the latter’s Small Universe was damaged, and he was defeated in the end. Certainly, he wouldn’t be a match for Yang Kai now as the latter’s Small Universe had healed, and his power had increased.
Therefore, he knew that he couldn’t defeat Yang Kai, nor did he hope that he would deal a heavy blow to him; however, they were in a one-on-one fight back then, but he had many Black Ink Clansmen with him now. Liu Zi An thought that regardless of how powerful Yang Kai was, there had to be a limit; after all, Yang Kai was just a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, so he couldn’t possibly defeat so many Black Ink Clansmen on his own.
Nevertheless, it never crossed Liu Zi An’s mind that he would lose his life after just two exchanges.
His demise astounded the Black Ink Clansmen around him. They couldn’t even clearly see what was going on when the Seventh-Order Black Ink Disciple was killed by the enemy.
They had a feeling that Liu Zi An hadn’t stood a chance to even resist in front of Yang Kai.
It wasn’t until this moment that Gui Liao reached Yang Kai and tried to attack him. Liu Zi An’s death shocked him as well, so he was affected despite being determined to capture the opponent. This led to him uncontrollably retracting half of his force to defend himself.
When he summoned Zha Gu back then, the latter told him about what happened before Yang Kai was eventually captured by Hei Yuan. Zha Gu’s descriptions of Yang Kai’s capabilities were vivid, but Gui Liao had a feeling that he was exaggerating.
It wasn’t like he had never dealt with Seventh-Order Humans before, and they were nothing special in his opinion. Although Yang Kai was indeed unusually powerful, he couldn’t possibly be as invincible as Zha Gu described him to be.
Gui Liao figured Zha Gu must have suffered a loss at Yang Kai’s hands, who was then personally corrupted by the Territory Lord and became his Black Ink Disciple. That was the reason Zha Gu overstated Yang Kai’s strength.
Upon seeing that Yang Kai easily killed Liu Zi An though, Gui Liao realised that perhaps Zha Gu wasn’t exaggerating. Yang Kai was just as powerful as Zha Gu’s descriptions of him.
It was no wonder that the Territory Lord decided to personally corrupt him; he was indeed significantly stronger than other Seventh-Order Humans. It was expected that Hei Yuan would be tempted.
Gui Liao could feel that Yang Kai wasn’t at his peak and he seemed to be injured, which wasn’t a surprise since he must have gotten into quite a number of fights as he fled from the Royal City to here.
Despite that, he was still able to showcase such terrifying strength. How formidable would he be if he was in top condition?
Nevertheless, this realisation came too late.
After killing Liu Zi An, an overbearing Yang Kai turned his Azure Dragon Spear into countless phantoms and engulfed Gui Liao with them.
In an instant, Gui Liao felt immensely pressured. He madly pushed his Black Ink Strength and cast several Secret Techniques in an attempt to save his own life.
The Black Ink Clan no longer hesitated to launch their attacks on Yang Kai. As a result, Yang Kai staggered while his blood spurted out of his wounds, but he remained unperturbed.
Gui Liao was feeling both helpless and frustrated at the moment.
He had no idea why Yang Kai only targeted him even though there were many Black Ink Clansmen around. In fact, there were Black Ink Clansmen who were closer to him, but Yang Kai ignored them and seemed determined to kill Gui Liao.
Could it be that Yang Kai still hadn’t gotten over the unfair treatment he had received in the castle? If that was really the case, Gui Liao felt that he was being unfairly blamed.
However, he had no idea that the reason Yang Kai only targeted him was that he was the most powerful and authoritative figure among the Black Ink Clansmen at the scene.
Gui Liao was Hei Yuan’s confidant, so killing Gui Liao would be akin to weakening Hei Yuan’s power. Besides that, Gui Liao was indeed more powerful than other Feudal Lords. As far as Yang Kai was concerned, it wouldn’t be long before Gui Liao would ascend to become a Territory Lord.
When that happened, the Humans would have a new formidable opponent on the battlefield. It would be like nipping a potential problem in the bud by killing Gui Liao here.
With that consideration in mind, and as the chance was rare, it was expected that Yang Kai wouldn’t let Gui Liao off.
Faced with the aggressive onslaught, Gui Liao was forced back repeatedly. On the other hand, Yang Kai thrust out his spear in rapid succession. Gui Liao realised that he could only ward off the opponent’s attacks, but not counterattack.
This made him feel shocked and infuriated.
He had never expected that such a Seventh-Order Human existed in this world. Over the years, he had frequently followed Hei Yuan to the battlefield and fought with many Seventh-Order Masters; however, none had ever made him feel that he couldn’t defeat them.
At this moment, a sense of despair overwhelmed him as he was dealing with Yang Kai.
Gui Liao used all the Secret Techniques he knew, but every strike Yang Kai made was overwhelming. In every exchange of blows, his Black Ink Strength would be blasted apart on impact. Furthermore, Yang Kai’s mobility was simply astonishing. Although the surrounding Black Ink Clansmen managed to hit him from time to time, they were unable to seriously injure him. They only managed to cause some flesh wounds, which wouldn’t change anything.
[I’ll die!] That was the thought that flashed through Gui Liao’s mind as a sense of anxiety gripped him. He had never expected that such a feeling would rise within him when he was facing a Human in the same relative Realm. This made him feel both ashamed and unresigned.
He still had a bright future ahead of him, and he was about to attempt to ascend to become a Territory Lord. That was why he wasn’t willing to lose his life here.
Before Hei Yuan sent Yang Kai to the Royal City, he told Gui Liao that he would let him enter the main Black Ink Nest and make a breakthrough to the Territory Lord Realm upon his return. Gui Liao had been looking forward to it.
However, several Territory Lords had recuperated in the Black Ink Nest recently, so it was running low on energy; therefore, Hei Yuan didn’t immediately let Gui Liao enter the Black Ink Nest upon his return. Instead, he spent a massive amount of resources trying to replenish the Black Ink Nest’s spent energy.
Over the past few years, the Black Ink Nest had almost restored all its energy and it would only take another six months before Gui Liao could attempt a breakthrough. When he succeeded, he would be a new Territory Lord, which would put him on par with Hei Yuan.
Nevertheless, before his dream could become a reality, it was crushed by Yang Kai’s spear.
Presently, Gui Liao was soaked in blood, and facing the Azure Dragon Spear, he felt his aura weakening by the breath.
Regardless of how hard he tried, he was unable to resist Yang Kai’s bombardment. The attacks were both sharp and unpredictable, with the spear always coming at him from the most unexpected angle, making it impossible to counterattack. Every strike also brought with it a strange power that sealed off the space around him. Just a short while later, Gui Liao was left with more than ten serious wounds on his figure. The most severe injury was on his abdomen, which now had a hole the size of a fist in it.
Just when Gui Liao felt he was about to lose his life, a formidable aura suddenly appeared in the distance.
Yang Kai and Gui Liao, who were locked in battle, detected this familiar aura at the same time. The former turned solemn while the latter was elated.
This couldn’t be helped, as the newcomer was none other than Hei Yuan.
This place was Hei Yuan’s territory, and his Feudal Lords had scattered around to intercept Yang Kai. The moment Gui Liao and the Black Ink Clansmen got into a fight with Yang Kai, Hei Yuan naturally detected it and hurriedly came over.
Hei Yuan could move swiftly, so not long after Yang Kai detected his aura, he caught a glimpse of Hei Yuan approaching.
Gui Liao promptly exclaimed, “Sir Territory Lord, save me!”
Yang Kai fell into a dilemma as he hesitated between fleeing immediately and killing Gui Liao. The next moment though, he summoned all of his strength and thrust out his spear.
At the same time, Gui Liao’s figure was reflected in Yang Kai’s right eye. The reflection slightly contorted, and at that instant, Gui Liao, who was attentively resisting Yang Kai’s attack, seemed to be struck by an immense pressure. There seemed to be a mysterious force that was contorting his body. His figure stiffened while he was overwhelmed by an excruciating pain.
This moment of sluggishness cost him dearly. The Azure Dragon Spear directly pierced through his chest, and as the violent force exploded, his figure split in half. Black blood and Black Ink Strength scattered across the void.
A hint of disbelief flashed through Gui Liao’s eyes. Although he hadn’t lost his life yet, his death was inevitable given his injuries.
Yang Kai couldn’t help but close his right eye as blood dripped down from it.
Myriad Demons Heaven’s Eye Secret Techniques were indeed incredible; however, Yang Kai had yet to fully master them, and he had already consumed a lot of energy prior to this battle. Forcefully activating this Eye Secret Technique caused a huge burden on him.
Fortunately, he managed to kill Gui Liao with the help of this Eye Secret Technique, cutting off a potential crisis for the Human race. It could be said that his efforts were worth it.
Since Hei Yuan was about to reach him, Yang Kai naturally wouldn’t want to stay here and he quickly pushed his Space Principles in an attempt to flee.
Nevertheless, the Black Ink Clan’s bombardment of attacks caused the surrounding Void to become unstable, so he was unable to leave immediately. On the other hand, Gui Liao, who was cut in two, turned ferocious as his half-figure came right at Yang Kai. He spread his arms in an attempt to detain Yang Kai as he yelled, “Don’t even think about escaping!”
Yang Kai hadn’t expected this guy to be so savage. Just when he was almost captured by Gui Liao, Yang Kai hurriedly pushed out his spear and turned Gui Liao’s top half into mist.
Unfortunately, thanks to this moment of delay, Hei Yuan finally reached him.
Black Ink Strength surged around Hei Yuan as he sported a furious expression and he directly extended his hand towards Yang Kai.
At this critical moment, Yang Kai wouldn’t dare to be negligent. All of a sudden, a gigantic ancient tree appeared behind him. The tree crown seemed able to cover the entire sky. Its low-hanging branches turned into the strongest defence for Yang Kai.
Hei Yuan struck the tree crown with all his might.
The branches rustled upon impact as points of green light flew out everywhere. Towering Evergreen was instantly broken through, and as if struck by a huge hammer, Yang Kai was sent flying away while he sprayed out a mouthful of blood.
It was expected that Yang Kai couldn’t resist a Territory Lord’s all-out attack. If not for his Towering Evergreen’s fantastic defensive power, he would have lost his life then and there.
It could be said that Hei Yuan was completely enraged; after all, he was the one who turned Yang Kai into a Black Ink Disciple and recommended him to the Royal Lord to take part in the plan. In the end, the Black Ink Clan’s grand plan was destroyed because of Yang Kai, and even the critical person in charge of the project, Nie An, was dead.
This was a huge failure that even a Territory Lord like him couldn’t bear.
It was imaginable that the Royal Lord was mad with rage, and her fury would surely be vented out on him. All of this was Yang Kai’s fault, so it was expected that Hei Yuan would be furious.
Honestly speaking, when he received the news from the Royal City, Hei Yuan couldn’t believe what he was hearing and suspected that the other side was mistaken.
After all, before he captured Yang Kai back then, he saw the latter going all out to resist and even give up a part of his Small Universe twice, which almost caused his Order to regress. Since he was unable to turn things around, he even decided to commit suicide. It was only then that Hei Yuan made a move and corrupted him.
Was everything he saw that day nothing more than an act? Were those the lengths this Human was willing to go to in order to sneak into the Black Ink Clan’s territory? If that was true, he was truly a cunning and devious person.
Despite knowing that the Humans were sly, Hei Yuan hadn’t expected them to be so deceitful. He regretted not examining Yang Kai’s Small Universe after capturing him back then. If he had done so, none of this would have happened.
At that time, he firmly believed that he had successfully corrupted Yang Kai. In his defence, the Humans never granted one of the Four Universe Pillars to Seventh-Order Masters, so it never crossed Hei Yuan’s mind that Yang Kai would be capable of resisting his Black Ink Strength. The Human was even audacious enough to pretend to be a Black Ink Disciple and follow him to his territory.
After several inquiries, Hei Yuan finally confirmed that the news from the Royal City was true.
It was only then that he realised he had been played by the Humans all along. While he was recuperating, Yang Kai tactfully revealed his talent in Artifact Refining, which must have been part of the Humans’ plans from the beginning.
Everything that had happened made Hei Yuan feel humiliated. As a result, he was burning with endless fury, which ensured that he did not hold back when sending out his last strike.
However, he regretted it the instant he made a move, because the Royal Lord had ordered that Yang Kai be captured alive!
It seemed that the Royal Lord had the intention of replacing Nie An with Yang Kai, who would be tasked to continue building Warships.
Fortunately, Yang Kai was unusually strong and had used some kind of Secret Technique to save himself. Seeing that Yang Kai was still alive, Hei Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.
If he had accidentally killed Yang Kai, he wouldn’t be able to explain himself to the Royal Lord. Now, he could still make up for his mistake.
Presently, Yang Kai was overwhelmed by a great sense of discomfort.
He had already suffered a setback in front of Mu Guang, and then he consumed a lot of energy and became injured while escaping. Now that he was struck by Hei Yuan’s attack, it was expected that he would be in a terrible state.
It had to be noted that Hei Yuan was one of the top five Territory Lords who served Mu Guang, meaning he was significantly stronger than the average Territory Lord.
If not for the great defensive power of his Towering Evergreen Divine Manifestation, and that Yang Kai had thick skin and strong flesh due to his Dragon Vein, he would’ve lost his life after being struck.
Even so, he was still feeling dizzy and seeing stars at this moment. Many of his bones were also fractured.
Steadying himself with difficulty and lifting his gaze, Yang Kai saw Hei Yuan standing not far away from him, while he was surrounded by a lot of Black Ink Clansmen.
As their eyes met, Hei Yuan suppressed his fury and said grimly, “You’re really something.”
Yang Kai spat out a mouthful of blood and grinned, “Many thanks for your compliment, Sir. I never expected that I’d come across you again. It seems that we share some common destiny, don’t we?”
Hei Yuan replied impassively, “Since it all started because of me, I’m sure the Royal Lord will be pleased if this matter is ended by me. Surrender without a fight. You’re important to the Royal Lord, so I don’t want to keep damaging you.”
Upon realising what the other party meant, Yang Kai arched his brow, “Does the Royal Lord want you to capture me alive?”
“An Artifact Refiner is only valuable if he’s alive.”
Yang Kai replied, “It seems that Mu Guang intends to keep building Warships.”
Hei Yuan looked sympathetically at him, “It’s pointless to stall for time. Your Old Ancestor is still in a fight with the Royal Lord while the Human Army is far away from here. You don’t stand a chance to flee. The Humans have a saying, do not refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit. Resisting will only make you suffer.”
“Who says I’m going to flee?” Yang Kai lifted his Azure Dragon Spear and pointed it at Hei Yuan. With his chin raised, he appeared condescending, “It’s not like I’ve never killed a Territory Lord before. I don’t mind killing one more.”
Hei Yuan was slightly surprised, “You’ve killed a Territory Lord before?” However, he soon cast the doubt away as he strode towards Yang Kai, “Whatever. I can explain myself to the Royal Lord as long as you’re not killed.”
As he stepped closer, his Territory Lord’s pressure swept over Yang Kai.