The entrance the Hu Sisters had come through was not far from Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple, so naturally the latter was the first to lay claim to it. As for the small families and Sects nearby, they could only enviously eye this Void Corridor as none of them dared infringe upon Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple.
Facing the shouting of the Saint Realm cultivator, Yang Kai and others paused. Before determining what the situation was on the other side, Yang Kai did not intend to stir up trouble.
The Saint Realm cultivator slightly nodded, seemingly quite satisfied by their response, crossing his arms as he called out, “Please withdraw, this is my Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple’s territory, if you wish to enter Mysterious Small Worlds to seek for opportunities, I suggest you search elsewhere. I apologize for the inconvenience but that is how it is.”
As he spoke, he paid special attention to use polite language, apparently aware of the great strength Li Rong and the others possessed thus treating them with respect. If not for this, he would have simply shooed them away.
Shi Kun stepped forward and cupped his fists politely, “How may I address this friend?”
Sizing up Shi Kun, the Saint Realm masters frowned and replied somewhat unwillingly, “Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple’s Yu Chun.”
Shi Kun wore a smile and let out a laugh, “So it is Brother Yu, my sincerest greetings.”
Yu Chun gently nodded and asked, “Who are you, why have you come to my Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple’s territory?”
“This one is Nine Heavens Holy Land’s Shi Kun!”
“Nine Heavens Holy Land!?” A burst of exclamations rose from the nearby cultivators, all of them turning their attention towards here as Yu Chun carefully scrutinized Shi Kun once again, trying to determine if he was lying.
Nine Heavens Holy Land’s current reputation was world-shaking so it was difficult for all of them to not care.
When the old Holy Master passed away, a new one soon succeeded him; however, this new Holy Master was little more than a brat who colluded with Demons but before he could be put in his place, a profound Alchemy Grandmaster suddenly emerged from the Holy Land…
All kinds of rumours swirled about raising the Holy Land’s fame to never before seen heights.
Yu Chun suddenly turned his eyes to Yang Kai and asked, “Could this be the new Holy Master of Nine Heavens Holy Land?”
When he saw Shi Kun walking over, the latter had stood behind Yang Kai and his attitude was very respectful, so naturally Yu Chun had some suspicions.
“This is indeed our Holy Master,” Shi Kun nodded.
“So it is Holy Master Yang, no wonder you looked so familiar,” Yu Chun smiled strangely.
“Have we met somewhere?” Yang Kai knit his brow as he stared at him.
“Holy Master Yang is a lofty character so it is only natural you do not remember a minor person like me, but Holy Master Yang should at least remember my Sect’s Temple Master, Wu Zheng, yes?”
“Wu Zheng?” Yang Kai’s brow wrinkled even more, but after thinking about it for a time he suddenly remembered, “That Wu Zheng I saw outside the nine peaks at that time?”
More than a year ago, Yang Kai had brought the Ancient Demon Clan from the endless Snow Mountain Range to Nine Heavens Holy Land. This large group of Demons flying through the Human Territory had attracted a great many Human Race masters, all of whom had gathered together to tail Yang Kai and his group. It was outside the nine peaks that Yang Kai and Li Rong went to negotiate with this group of masters. At that time, there were three people who stepped forward to speak with Yang Kai, one was Chu Yi from Veiled Heaven Palace, another was Mist Lock Tower’s Fang Yue Bai, and the last one was Wu Zheng of Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple.
These three were all Second-Order Saints.
Yang Kai still remembered that when Chu Yi and Fang Yue Bai heard the Ancient Demon Clan swear on Great Demon God’s name to not commit any atrocities, they had quickly left while only Wu Zheng looked unwilling.
Yang Kai naturally had some impression of him.
“Indeed,” Yu Chun nodded, “It seems that although Holy Master Yang is still young, his memory is quite good. I had thought Holy Master Yang would feign ignorance here, but it seems you do still remember my Sect’s Temple Master.”
Listening to him, Shi Kun’s face expression became gloomy.
He didn’t know what happened, but as soon as Yu Chun learned about Yang Kai’s identity, it seemed as though he was intentionally trying to provoke him.
“Of course I remember you,” Yang Kai smiled faintly, “Speaking of which, the Holy Land should thank your Temple Master for his care, even before my Holy Land’s Alchemy Grandmaster became famous we were indebted to your for promoting our reputation.”
“What is Holy Master Yang referring to?” Yu Chun complexion paled for an instant before he composed himself and shook his head, “I don’t understand.”
“Oh? I believe you’re quite clear about what I mean,” Yang Kai smiled coldly.
Some time ago, many cultivators had inexplicably been loitering just outside the Holy Land with the excuse of trying to find artifacts. Obviously someone had been pulling strings to make this happen.
Yang Kai had suspected that it was Wu Zheng who was plotting behind the scenes and seeing Yu Chun’s reaction just now, he immediately affirmed his guess.
However, for such a minor matter, Yang Kai was disinclined to further investigate.
Yu Chun seemed to sense there was no need to continue discussing this issue and immediately changed the subject, “Tell me, Holy Master Yang, why have you brought your Holy Land’s Elder to my Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple’s land? Also, if I am not mistaken, this woman should be a Demon, yes?”
“A Demon?” The cultivators guarding the entrance to the Void Corridor all paled as they turned their attention to Li Rong.
Yu Chun laughed loudly, “Holy Master Yang is quite courageous, daring to collude with evil Demons and even openly associating with them. Do you really look down on my Human Race so?”
As Yu Chun shouted indignantly, the other four Saints present also wore unfriendly expressions.
Humans and Demons could not co-exist, no matter whether they and Li Rong had any personal hatred between them; the simple fact that she was a Demon who appeared in Human Territory was enough for them to wish to condemn her to death.
Yang Kai’s expression became impatient as he declared, “I didn’t come here to embarrass you, I only wish to enter that entrance.”
“So just because you say you want to enter we must let you?” Yu Chun waved his hand dismissively, “Strong dragons don’t press local snakes, do not think my Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple fears your Nine Heavens Holy Land. Don’t you think you’re acting too arrogantly, Holy Master Yang?”
“Whether you fear me or not is none of my concern, I must enter that Void Corridor. If you dare to block my path, I’ll remove you by force,” Yang Kai coldly snorted, taking a big step forward towards the pitch-black entrance.
Yu Chun’s face also grew cold as he shot a glance to the other four Saints on his side. The five masters all stepped forward as we well, lining up in front of Yang Kai, pushing their strength as Yu Chun shouted, “Holy Master Yang, if you dare proceed any further, don’t blame us for…”
Halfway through his words though, Yu Chun’s expression contorted, as if a giant invisible hand was gripping his throat, causing him to be unable to speak. Shuddering in fear, cold sweat began dripping down his forehead.
As his eyes filled with panic, Yu Chun hesitantly glanced over at the nearby Demon Race woman.
Before she took action, Yu Chun only knew that this Demon woman was somewhat strong, but as soon as she began targeting him with her aura, Yu Chun discovered that against her, he was completely incapable of resisting.
Even if he joined hands with his four comrades, they wouldn’t even be capable of laying a finger on her.
This woman was no doubt a top-ranked Third Order Saint!
Realizing this, Yu Chun’s complexion went from blue to white.
Yang Kai continued stepping forward and just as he passed by Yu Chun, he glanced over and flatly said, “If I proceed further, you’ll what?”
Yu Chun couldn’t move or even speak, so how was he supposed to answer?
Hu Jiao Er laughed happily, a smile of satisfaction appearing on her face, quite enjoying the feeling of the fox taking advantage of the tiger. When she and Hu Mei Er wanted to return from here for a few months ago, they had been mercilessly expelled by these Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciples, making her feel quite indignant.
Seeing Yang Kai act so domineering like this now allowed her to dispel a fair bit of suppressed anger.
Powerful men always had a unique appeal to them, causing her eyes to flash subtly.
Not long after, Yang Kai’s group arrived in front of the Void Corridor, the cultivators gathered around barely having the composure to remain standing, much less oppose them.
At that moment though, Yang Kai’s brow furrowed as he stared towards the Void Corridor a few meters up in the air.
The Void Corridor entrance suddenly flashed a bright light and distorted slightly with a number of figures soon emerging from it.
The ones in the lead were disciples of Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple, all of them quickly gathering around near the Void Corridor’s entrance, each of them wearing a delighted expression, seemingly in a very good mood.
A moment later, more people emerged from the entrance one after another.
However, this group of people was clearly distressed and dispirited, their strength obviously having been sealed.
After coming out of the Void Corridor, these prisoners didn’t even bother looking around, dim and helpless expressions on their face, as if they had lost all hope.
“Hurry up, what are just standing around for?” The Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciples who had come through first immediately began shouting and reprimanding them, reaching over and tossing their prisoners to the ground unceremoniously.
*Peng peng peng…*
One by one, these imprisoned cultivators hit the ground and let out screams of pain.
The Hu Sisters covered their mouths and shouted, “They’re Storm Hall’s disciples!”
Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed as his expression quickly became frigid.
“This bitch is quite nice, hahaha,” Another woman walked out from the Void Corridor, her stature petite but her curves quite luscious, drawing the attention of a Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciple who leered at her obscenely.
A young man who was following right after the young woman heard this and quickly stepped out in front of her, glaring back at the laughing Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciple.
“Du Yi Shuang, Fang Zi Ji!” Yang Kai shouted.
The young woman who came out first was actually Storm Hall’s Junior Sister Du.
Back inside the Inheritance Heaven’s Cave, Yang Kai and her had worked together for a time. Naturally, the one protecting her was the first disciple of Storm Hall, Fang Zi Ji.
After so many years, Fang Zi Ji had also reached the Peak Immortal Ascension Boundary; however, such cultivation was still not enough to contend with the disciples of Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple, not to mention his strength was currently still sealed.
Fang Zi Ji’s attitude obviously annoyed the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciple, who quickly reached out and grabbed him before ruthlessly tossing Fang Zi Ji away, causing the latter to tumble several times before slamming into the ground.
“Barbarian disciples, don’t get too cocky!” The Free and Unfettered Spirit Temple disciple acted as if this was all just a trivial matter, turning around in the next instant and rushing over towards Yu Chun and respectfully cupping his fists, “Elder Yu, Religion Master order me to bring this group of prisoners back first and told me to let you arrange their placement. Religion Master said that although these people’s cultivation is poor, they will still make decent slave labourers for digging in the mines and carrying goods. On top of that, there are a lot of beautiful women who can be given to the more outstanding disciples as rewards.”
“Elder Yu?”
The Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciple made his report but soon discovered that Elder Yu wasn’t making responding, or for that matter moving at all, so he couldn’t help feeling something was off; when he looked up though, he saw Elder Yu sweating profusely, appearing quite distressed, causing the disciple to wonder what exactly had happened.
At the entrance of the Void Corridor, the Storm Hall disciples who had been imprisoned and brought through all had dim eyes, each of them feeling intense shame and disgrace.
At the same time, the disciple of Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple stood in front of Yu Chun but found that this Elder showed no reaction at all, causing him quite a bit of confusion.
“Your Religion Master said all that?” Yang Kai narrowed his eyes and stared at this disciple.
“Who are you?” The disciple turned his eyes towards Yang Kai but failing to recognize him wrinkled his brow.
Yang Kai simply grinned, “Who I am doesn’t matter, I asked you, did your Religion Master order you to capture and bring back this group of people?”
“That’s right, is there something wrong with that? This group of barbarians is quite unruly, they even foolishly tried to resist, but after killing some of them they became obedient,” The disciple replied calmly. He saw Yang Kai standing here and simply assumed he was a guest of his Spirit Temple, so naturally he spoke a few words.
“Is that so,” Yang Kai nodded lightly, his eyes filling with sharp, cold light.
“Master…” Seemingly feeling his murderous intent, Li Rong’s expression also became icy as she asked for instructions.
“Kill them all!” Yang Kai shouted.
Li Rong and Han Fei nodded and without a word, pushed their Demonic Qi emerged and shrouded the entire surrounding in pitch black darkness.
Everyone suddenly felt the cold grip of death reach out and grasp them in that instant, their hearts tightening in their chest and nearly stopping all on their own.
There were no sounds of fighting and no one screamed in terror.
Ten breaths later, the darkness which seemed to obscure all light dissipated, returning everyone’s stolen vision but now, all the cultivators associated with Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple stood stiff, their vitality completely gone, each of them staring blankly into space, fear plastered all over their faces as if they had witnessed the most terrifying nightmare just before they died.
The five First Order Saints were far stronger than the rest and managed to survive, winding up being imprisoned by Li Rong.
When he came to his senses again, Yu Chun stared towards Yang Kai and grit his teeth, “You really…”
It seemed as if he had not realized how vicious Yang Kai was until this moment, refusing to exchange any words before decisively ordering all of their deaths.
*Kachacha…*
A cracking sound rang out as the five Saints, one by one, were frozen, instantly transforming into ice sculptures.
Han Fei waved her hand a moment later and the five life-like ice sculptures shattered into millions of tiny pieces that scattered in the wind.
The disciples of Storm Hall who had just come out of the Void Corridor were all terrified by this scene, each of them staring on with pale faces.
They fully understood the power of these cultivators who had captured them; but now, these seemingly irresistible enemies had actually been effortlessly slaughtered by this new group, as if they were mere ants.
How astonishing was the strength of these new people?
In their panic, they all unconsciously turned their gazes towards Yang Kai and his group.
Soon however, many of the Storm Hall disciples eyes flashed with amazement.
“It’s the Hu Family sisters!”
“Then are these people helpers they’ve found?”
“Hey, that young man in the lead, doesn’t he look familiar…”
“En, I also think he’s somewhat familiar, like I’ve seen him somewhere before…”
Whispers began spreading around the Storm Hall disciples as some of them vigorously bowed towards the Hu Sisters, thanking them earnestly while many others stared at Yang Kai suspiciously, some of them even recognizing his identity, causing great storms to rage in their heads and hearts.
Nearby, Du Yi Shuang supported Fang Zi Ji and slowly helped him up.
Yang Kai walked over to the pair with a smile on his face.
After finally seeing his appearance, Junior Sister Du couldn’t help covering her mouth and crying out in shock while Fang Zi Ji stood dumbstruck, his jaw falling slack as he stared straight at Yang Kai like he was seeing a ghost.
“Brother Fang, it’s been a long time,” Yang Kai came up to him and nodded, waving his hand lightly to unlock Fang Zi Ji’s sealed True Qi.
Fang Zi Ji didn’t say anything and simply stared back at Yang Kai for a moment before suddenly whispering, “Shuang’er, pinch me.”
“Why do you want me to pinch you?” Du Yi Shuang asked back in confusion.
“I want to know if I’m dreaming right now!”
Du Yi Shuang didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, “Senior Brother, you’re not dreaming…”
“So what you mean to say is, the person standing in front of me is really Yang Kai?”
“Who else would I be?” Yang Kai happily quipped, his previous gloomy mood instantly being swept away as he let out a hearty laugh.
“Brother Yang, you’ve finally returned!” Fang Zi Ji couldn’t help revealing a relieved expression, as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders, reaching out and firmly grasping Yang Kai’s shoulders in the next instant as he hurriedly said, “You must return back to High Heaven Pavilion quickly! Our three Sects are even now being oppressed.”
Yang Kai nodded as he narrowed his eyes, “That’s exactly why I came. We can talk later, it’s not safe here, you’ll all have to come back with me.”
Fang Zi Ji nodded heavily as he clenched his teeth, “En, I truly must go back!”
Li Rong waved her hand and a gentle force spread out around her, unshackling all the Storm Hall disciples and allowing them to regain the use of their strength.
“Han Fei, you and Elder Shi Kun bring up the rear, Li Rong and I will go on ahead,” Yang Kai said before flying towards the Void Corridor together with Li Rong.
Another Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciple flew out from the Void Corridor but before he could grasp the situation, his vision was filled with a giant palm and in the next instant, he directly burst into a bloody fog.
Bathed in fresh blood, Yang Kai’s murderous intent flared up as he plunged into the Void Corridor.
After feeling the familiar sense of vertigo, a light flashed before their eyes and Yang Kai and Li Rong found themselves above a small mine.
It was Blood Battle Gang’s old Yang Flame Stone mine.
There were many people gathered around, divided into three general groups.
Standing midair, Yang Kai swept his eyes around and immediately confirmed that these three groups were composed of cultivators from the Three Sects.
All of them had their True Qi and Spiritual Energy sealed. The closest ones to the Void Corridor was the cultivators from Storm Hall who were even now being unwillingly corralled towards the black entrance by the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciples.
The cultivators from Blood Battle Gang and High Heaven Pavilion were waiting nearby.
Yang Kai saw many familiar faces among the High Heaven Pavilion group.
The disciples from Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple had very poor attitudes towards the cultivators from the Three Sects. At this moment, several Elders of the High Heaven Pavilion seemed to be loudly shouting towards several Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciples, but the only response they received were spiked whips across their chest and faces.
The several Elders were shielding a young man behind them. The treatment of this young man seemed to be somewhat different from the others. Not only had his strength been sealed, he was also physically tied up and countless wounds covered his body as he sat on the ground. Despite all his cuts and bruises, the young man was glaring back at the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciples, his eyes bloodshot but apparently unable to hit back.
Su Mu!
Yang Kai’s brow furrowed upon seeing him. Although he didn’t know why Su Mu was receiving such harsh treatment, that didn’t stop his blood from boiling as he rapidly condensed his strength into a great spear that he immediately threw out.
*Xiu…*
Before the sound even reached him, the Heaven Punishing Spear had directly impaled one of the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciples who were lashing the High Heaven Pavilion Elders. The violent power of the spear tore this disciple’s body apart, splattered his flesh and blood all over while also sending out a wave of destructive energy.
The other Spirit Temple disciples were unable to react to this sudden and unexpected development and were instantly hit by this shockwave, all of them falling over dead without even knowing how they died
This burst of noise caused everyone in the surroundings to fall silent as all eyes turned upwards.
In the dark of night, a giant full moon hung high up in the sky.
In front of this silver moon stood a tall figure, the cold wind blowing through his clothes while a silent and oppressive pressure radiated from him.
“Who goes there?” Several voices called out as a number of Transcendent Realm cultivators flew up into the sky, soaring towards Yang Kai.
*Pu pu pu…*
A few muffled thuds rang out as the Transcendents who had flown up were knocked down hard to the ground, all of dying instantly.
From the Void Corridor, Fang Zi Ji flew out and immediately stood next to Yang Kai, his True Qi surging up as he shouted, “Yang Kai has come back! Brothers and Sisters, kill these bastards!”
As he shouted, he released his own Martial Skill towards a nearby enemy.
One Storm House cultivator appeared from the Void Corridor behind Fang Zi Ji, each of them like a rampaging wild beast as they launched fierce attacks all around.
“Yang Kai came back?”
The Three Sect’s cultivators were momentarily stunned but were quickly awoken by the sound of fighting erupting all around them, turning burning gazes towards the young man in front of the moon, trying to use their own eyes to confirm whether this person was really the Yang Kai who had disappeared ten years ago.
After a brief moment, cheers resounded as the Three Sect’s cultivators all leapt madly towards the Spirit Temple disciples around them. With their True Qi and Spiritual Energy still sealed, they simply used their fists and feet like ordinary mortals to attack the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple Disciples.
“Li Rong, help them!” Yang Kai shouted before his figure flickered and he condensed his True Qi, rushing into the enemy camp.
The Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple disciples were dumbstruck, none of them able to understand why this crowd of barbarians had suddenly gone berserk after hearing that ‘Yang Kai came back’.
Who was this Yang Kai to them?
There weren’t many cultivators from Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple here, and the only Transcendents among them had been killed in Yang Kai’s opening attack. The rest were nothing but ordinary disciples with insignificant strength.
After less than thirty breaths, before Shi Kun and Han Fei who were bringing up the rear had even arrived, all the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple cultivators had been killed.
Bodies were strewn everywhere and blood flowed like a river but the Three Sect cultivators all wore ecstatic expressions as their eyes darted around the crowd, seemingly looking for someone.
A moment later, everyone’s eyes were cast in one direction. On the other side of their vision was Yang Kai who as walking towards the Elders of High Heaven Pavilion.
Great Elder Wei Xi Tong, Second Elder Su Xuan Wu, Third Elder He Bei Shui, Fifth Elder You Zi Zai. Except for Fourth Elder Zhou Fei, who had been killed by the Demon Lord, all the Elders were present.
Each of the Elders had a look of shock and disbelief on their faces, and it wasn’t until Yang Kai stood right in front of them and greeted them that they came to their senses and nodded strongly.
Wei Xi Tong teared up as he said, “Good, good, since you’ve returned, the Sect can be saved.”
Yang Kai stared at him deeply and replied in a dejected tone, “Disciple has arrived late, forcing several Elders and the Sect to endure much injustice.”
“No no, you’re not too late, not at all. You’re just in time,” Su Xuan Wu wiped his eyes and said gratefully.
In their darkest moment, Yang Kai had crossed worlds and appeared before them, instantly helping them resolve the crisis, just like more than a decade ago. The memory of those events all resurfaced in everyone’s mind, and although much had changed since then, all of them still held absolute confidence in Yang Kai.
It was as if as long as he was here, even if the sky was to fall they wouldn’t need to worry about anything.
“Brother-in-law!” Su Mu, with his hands still bound, stood up unsteadily as he grinned widely towards Yang Kai, obviously a little embarrassed but more excited than anything else.
After slightly more than a decade, Su Mu had actually reached the First Order Transcendent Realm!
Yang Kai’s expression brightened as he patted Su Mu on his shoulder, laughing happily as he nodded, “It’s been too long. It seems your strength has grown well since we last met.”
As Yang Kai said so, he swiftly cut the ropes binding Su Mu and broke the seal on his cultivation.
Su Mu’s growth was even more rapid than Fang Zi Ji’s, probably a result of the benefits he obtained in the Inheritance Heaven’s Cave.
Su Mu also encountered some kind of opportunity in the Inheritance Heaven’s Cave, but no one knew exactly what that opportunity was.
Moreover, Yang Kai had given Su Yan a large quantity of Myriad Drug Liquid so, as her little brother, Su Mu clearly received a portion as well, which helped him improve his physique and aptitude. Given all this, growing to such a height in ten years was not unexpected.
“What about Elder Sister? Did she come back with you?” Su Mu looked around but not discovering Su Yan’s figure among the crowd, he couldn’t help feeling a bit disappointed.
“No, but don’t worry, Su Yan is now in a very safe place,” Yang Kai reassured him.
Hearing this, Su Mu nodded.
As Yang Kai spoke to these old acquaintances, Li Rong and the other Saints lifted the seals from all the Three Sects’ cultivators, restoring their strength. Many people showed looks of pleasant surprise and excitement.
Li Yun Tian and Zhao Hu, who were also familiar with Yang Kai, couldn’t help shouting happily.
Their strength had not risen by much, not even reaching the Immortal Ascension Boundary yet, still lingering around the True Element Boundary; after all, they didn’t obtain the opportunities or possess the aptitude of Su Mu and Yang Kai, so their lifetime prospects were somewhat limited.
“What about Grand Master?” Yang Kai frowned upon noticing that Ling Tai Xu was nowhere to be seen, asking worriedly.
“Former Sect Master went to the Central Capital to request reinforcements a few months ago, but the situation in Central Capital is probably also…” Su Xuan Wu explained.
“Former Sect Master?” Yang Kai raised a brow, “Who is Sect Master now?”
Su Mu laughed and pointed at himself.
Yang Kai looked at him with amazement but soon gently nodded.
With Su Mu’s current strength, he was indeed qualified to become Sect Master of High Heaven Pavilion; after all, none of the other Elders had arrived at the Transcendent Realm yet.
Su Mu said with a bitter face, “You don’t know how troublesome this has been, brother-in-law. Since you left, Sect Master started travelling around the world, not paying any attention to the Sect’s matters, but he suddenly came back a few years ago and passed the position of Sect Master to me without even asking if I agreed or not… haa…”
“No wonder you were tied up and beaten black and blue, your special treatment was a result of your special status,” Yang Kai laughed.
“Don’t you laugh at me, Brother,” Su Mu scratched his head, “How could I even compare with you. Right, Brother-in-law, what is your cultivation level now? Why is it I feel like I can’t completely understand you.”
“Third Order Transcendent.”
“What!?”
Everyone who heard this called out in shock.
Ling Tai Xu was now only a Second-Order Transcendent, a true hidden dragon who showed his tail but never his face. In recent years, the Hu Sisters had actually become known as the world’s first masters, but even they were just First Order Transcendents, yet now Yang Kai had actually arrived at the Third-Order Transcendent Realm.
When he had left the Central Capital ten years ago, he was only an Immortal Ascension Boundary Seventh Stage cultivator. This rate of growth was simply horrifying.
“Then what about my Elder Sister? She shouldn’t be any worse, right?” Su Mu asked excitedly.
“She too should be a Third Order Transcendent,” Yang Kai smiled faintly, “But I haven’t seen her for a number of years so I can’t say for certain.”
After a brief pause, Yang Kai asked, “What is the situation right now in the Sect? Has it been occupied?”
“En,” Su Mu said with a bitter smile, “Not only has High Heaven Pavilion been taken over, the nearby Blood Battle Gang and Storm Hall has also been occupied. There weren’t many people who come, a few hundred at most, but there were a number of extremely powerful masters among them. We couldn’t even put up a resistance…”
Everyone began chaotically explaining the current situation.
Similar to Yang Kai’s guess, the entrance to this world appeared near Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple, so naturally, they had sent people to investigate. When they discovered the vastness and potential wealth of this place, they immediately sent a large number of cultivators, led by a few masters to suppress the nearby forces, capturing all the cultivators of High Heaven Pavilion, Storm Hall, and Blood Battle Gang.
In order to ensure that they could fully swallow this big piece of meat, Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple also invited two or three other forces to help out.
Then, using this place as a beachhead, they began spreading out.
All this occurred more than a month ago, so the Central Capital’s current situation was unknown. The people here had not heard any useful news, but given the strength of these enemies, it was likely the Central Capital would be unable to put up any kind of resistance.
If that was not the case, Ling Tai Xu would have already returned. The most likely scenario was that Ling Tai Xu has also encountered some kind of misfortune.
The Three Sects had revolted several times, but each time they tried to fight back, many of them would be killed as punishment.
“They don’t even see us as human beings, killing or torturing us is all a matter of their mood. Many people were slaughtered by them without any reason at all, like they were butchering pigs or dogs for sport…” Su Mu ground his teeth angrily.
“Many female disciples from Blood Battle Gang were also humiliated by those damn animals!” Hu Man also cursed indignantly. His words immediately caused the Hu Sisters’ mood to turn gloomy.
Fortunately, when the Void Corridor first opened, they had gone in to explore it, otherwise, forget about finding Yang Kai and bringing back reinforcements, it was quite likely they would have suffered such a terrible fate.
“Nephew Yang, what are you planning to do? We’ll follow your lead,” Storm Hall’s Master, Xiao Ruo Han came up to and said to Yang Kai.
“Are they so despicable?” Yang Kai coldly snorted, “Good, I didn’t want to make too big a deal out of this but since they choose to act so inhuman, there’s no need to have any scruples, Li Rong!”
“Master!” Li Rong shouted, feeling a tinge of anger as well listening to everything that had happened, her shoulders rising and falling menacingly.
“You and Han Fei sweep the surrounding area, kill all the enemies in the three nearby forces, and don’t let a single one off.”
“Yes!” Li Rong responded firmly before she and Han Fei shot off, disappearing in the blink of any eye.
The surrounding crowd of people were all dumbfounded and before they could respond Li Rong and Han Fei had already left.
“Nephew Yang, you mustn’t act rashly!” Xiao Ruo Han was shocked and quickly tried to object. He hadn’t expected Yang Kai to be so hot-headed, not even bothering to inquire about the enemy’s strength before directly ordering an attack, “Among those people there are a number of extremely powerful masters.”
“That’s right, they have more than a dozen Transcendents, a many of whom are Second or Third-Order. I even heard that there was a master among them who has reached the Saint Realm, some kind of level beyond even the Transcendent Realm,” Hu Man also advised, “You letting those two young women go out on their own is too rash.”
“Saint Realm?” Yang Kai grinned and shook his head, “Don’t worry, even if there is a Saint Realm master among them, he certainly won’t be a match for those two.”
“What is the cultivation of those two ladies?” Wei Xi Tong trembled as he stared at Yang Kai expectantly.
“Both of them are also Saint Realm cultivators, but they’re significantly stronger than the enemy. Forget about one enemy Saint, even if there were a hundred they wouldn’t necessarily be those two’s opponents.”
Everyone was stunned silent again, each and every one of them staring towards Yang Kai as if he was some kind of monster.
Without even mentioning his own cultivation, which had grown from the Immortal Ascension Boundary Seventh Stage to Third Order Transcendent Realm in just over ten years, a miracle in and of itself, he had actually brought back these two unfathomable women as well.
From how the woman who spoke addressed Yang Kai and from her attitude towards him, it was obviously Yang Kai held an absolutely superior position and was able to order them about at will.
However, not only did neither of them complain, they even obediently followed his commands.
Wasn’t their strength much higher than Yang Kai’s own? Why were they willing to obey his orders like this?
This strange phenomenon confused everyone, leaving them unable to even guess what was happening.
“Clever daughters…” Hu Man quietly came up to the Hu Sisters and whispered, “From the looks of it, you two have a hard path ahead of you.”
“Why’s that?” Hu Mei Er turned a suspicious look towards her father.
Hu Man continued, “Those two ladies are both incredibly strong and beautiful. On top of that, they obey whatever they’re told, there’s no place where you’re comparable to them right now.”
“Why do we need to compare ourselves with them?” Hu Mei Er became more and more confused.
Hu Jiao Er thoughts turned quickly and soon understood, ruthlessly glaring towards Hu Man and she said, “You talk too much.”
Hu Man chuckled and said, “Isn’t it normal for a father to worry about his two daughter’s lifelong happiness? Such a good opportunity shouldn’t be missed, en, Father will support you no matter what, so make sure you find an opening and seize the initiative, you mustn’t act too passive. Men like him never lack women around him!”
Hu Mei Er finally clued in and coyly muttered, “W-what are you talking about?”
Hu Jiao Er wore a smile that didn’t reach her eyes as she flatly said, “If you still want someone to take care of you in your old age, I suggest you shut your mouth.”
“Fine, fine. Pretend I didn’t say anything,” Hu Man immediately sighed and kept silent, wondering how, after all the hard work he and his wives had done, he had only been granted these two daughters. Why couldn’t he have been blessed with a son like Yang Kai too, instead of just these two unfilial daughters?
“Everyone,” Yang Kai finished his reunion with his old acquaintances from High Heaven Pavilion and suddenly called out, “You can all return to your Sect’s now. If you still feel unsafe though, you can come to High Heaven Pavilion temporarily. Su Mu, will there be any problem accommodating the Three Sects’ populations for a while?”
Su Mu thought about it seriously and replied, “It shouldn’t be a problem to squeeze everyone in, but the living conditions may be somewhat bad.”
“That’s fine, Hall Master Xiao, Sect Master Hu, I’ll leave the decision about coming to High Heaven Pavilion up to you. I’ll advance first with the Pavillion’s Elders,” Yang Kai declared before heading towards High Heaven Pavilion.
Hu Man and Xiao Ruo Han exchanged a quick glance before quickly keeping up.
The invasion of Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple had left them traumatized and the only way they could feel at ease right now was to follow Yang Kai.
p.s- anyone who can read Japanese interested to translate Live Dungeon!? please contact me on discord.
All the foreign enemies inside High Heaven Pavilion, Blood Battle Gang, and Storm Hall were swept away.
Facing Li Rong and Han Fei, how could these ordinary Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple cultivators resist? Before they even figured out what was happening, they had been violently killed.
In the face of absolute strength, all resistance was futile.
Just before they died, these cultivators might have been humiliating the disciples of High Heaven Pavilion, Blood Battle Gang, and Storm Hall these past few months.
If they were to face such torture, no path to Heaven or road to Hell, only endless despair and the earnest wish for death to come even a moment sooner.
At this moment, Li Rong and Han Fei stood on an empty field in the middle of High Heaven Pavilion, curiously looking around, wondering if this was really the land where their Master grew up.
They couldn’t see anything special about this place, so it was really a mystery how a monstrosity like Yang Kai emerged from here.
Not all of High Heaven Pavilion’s disciples were taken to the Void Corridor entrance. A large part still remained behind in the Sect. Li Rong and Han Fei struck like lightning and eliminated all the Free And Unfettered Spirit troops, shocking all the remaining disciples, leaving them wondering who these mysterious women who saved and freed them were.
A moment later, a large group of people rushed in from the Sect’s main entrance, and upon seeing the ones in the lead, the remaining High Heaven Pavilion disciples started shouting excitedly, “It’s Sect Master and the Elders!”
“They came back.”
“Hey, isn’t the guy walking next to Sect Master Junior Brother Yang Kai?”
“It really is Junior Brother Yang Kai!”
“…”
Cheers resounded as all the High Heaven Pavilion disciples who had only a moment ago been in the midst of despair rushed over from all directions, tears streaming down their faces as they greeted these people.
Su Mu spoke in a firm yet gentle voice to calm the excitement of his many fellow Brothers and Sisters.
“Brother-in-law… En, Senior Brother Yang has returned, so there’s no need to worry about that pack of animals anymore! Instead it is their turn to fear. Together, we’ll kill them all!”
“Kill them all!” Many disciples echoed Su Mu’s call.
Among the spirited crowds though, there was one person whose face paled as he quickly tried to hide himself, preparing to sneak away.
Su Mu’s eyes suddenly glanced over at that moment and he shouted, “Senior Brother Xie, where do you want to go?”
The High Heaven Pavilion disciples all fell silent upon hearing these words and turned their eyes in the direction Su Mu was staring, their gazes all landing on Xie Hong Chen.
Looks of despise and revulsion were cast towards Xie Hong Chen, causing his face to fill with shame and embarrassment.
The several Elders of High Heaven Pavilion also shook their heads and sighed, all of them revealing disappointed look.
“Senior Brother Xie?” Yang Kai’s brow rose slightly as he glanced over at Xie Hong Chen.
Senior Brother Xie had originally been the second strongest member of the Sect’s younger generation, only surpassed by Su Yan. He had also had many conflicts with Yang Kai long ago.
However, as Yang Kai grew stronger and stronger, he had gradually forgotten about this person.
Right now though, seeing the looks in the eyes of the Sect Elders, Brothers, and Sisters, Yang Kai faintly understood he had committed some kind of unforgivable sin.
After so many years, Xie Hong Chen had also grown to the Immortal Ascension Boundary Sixth Stage, not too low, nor too high.
“Senior Brother Xie!” Su Mu sneered lightly as he slowly walked towards him, gnashing his teeth audibly, “My High Heaven Pavilion’s Brothers and Sisters are deeply indebted to all the ‘care’ you’ve shown us these past few months!”
“Junior Brother Su, if you’ll let me explain…” Xie Hong Chen retreated step by step as he felt the murderous intent pouring out of Su Mu’s body, wrapping him in a cold chill like the icy grip of death.
“Does trash like you think yourself worthy to call me Junior Brother?” Su Mu shouted.
“Sect Master!” Xie Hong Chen’s legs went soft and he immediately kneeled on the ground, pleading miserably, “Senior Brother has not forgotten where his loyalties lie! I only surrendered to those bastards and agreed to work for them, enduring such great humiliation, to show the enemy weakness while searching for a way to rescue everyone.”
“Endured humiliation?” Su Mu suddenly laughed, “All I saw was Senior Brother Xie obeying the orders of those bastards like a loyal dog, offering up all the Sect’s secrets of your own will while even ruthlessly killing your Junior Brother Wei to prove your loyalty. Junior Brother Sun also died at your hands did he not? Don’t even try to deny it, many people here witnessed your despicable betrayal with their own eyes!”
“I…” Xie Hong Chen was struck speechless and aware of Su Mu’s increasing murderous intent, he began to panic. Quickly turning to the Elders, Xie Hong Chen kowtowed and cried, “Elders, disciple knows his wrong; please spare this disciple’s life.”
In response, the Fourth Elder just stared back at him coldly, with Wei Xi Tong shouting, “Spare your life? I, more than anyone, wish I could cut you into a thousand pieces! Xie Hong Chen, you have disappointed this old master far too much. This old master once regarded you as the Sect’s future hope, but you turned out you’re nothing but a vicious, spineless, ungrateful traitor! This old master was truly blind.”
The other three Elders also began emitting killing intent.
In a sense, the person in front of them was even more hateful than those foreign enemies, he had to die!
“Junior Brother Yang, Junior Brother Yang…” Xie Hong Chen saw none of the Elders take a stand to help him so he decided to pin his last hope on Yang Kai, “I know you have the greatest say here. Please save me! After this, I, Xie Hong Chen, swear to serve you with absolute loyalty in order to repay this grace!”
Yang Kai stared back at him indifferent and lightly said, “Senior Brother Xie… you talk too much.”
Xie Hong Chen’s expression went blank.
“I, Su Mu, as Sect Master of High Heaven Pavilion, formally declare that when the Sect was exposed to danger, disciple Xie Hong Chen, for his own selfish desires, killed his Junior Brothers in order to live on dishonourably, mistaking enemies for friends. The punishment for his crime is death. As Sect Master, I will now personally right the wrongs done to this Sect! Fellow Brothers and Sisters, please take heed of this warning, work hard so that you will not disgrace my High Heaven Pavilion’s name as he has!” Su Mu shouted in a clear and resolute voice as he stared down at Xie Hong Chen, his eyes filled with cold light as he lifted his hand, condensed his True Qi into a great swirl of wind.
The palm strike gradually enlarged in Xie Hong Chen’s eyes and soon the tornado engulfed him.
None of the spectating High Heaven Pavilion disciples showed the slightest hint of sympathy or compassion, many of them instead even wearing happy expressions.
As the powerful winds wrapped around him, Xie Hong Chen was swept up and tossed around, his body soon ripping apart and bursting into a bloody fog.
“Master’s Junior Brother makes a decent Sect Master,” Li Rong pursed her lips and chuckled as she glanced towards Su Mu with some surprise.
Su Mu looked quite young, probably even more so than Yang Kai, but just now he displayed a bearing appropriate for a Sect Master.
Yang Kai also gently nodded.
“Sect Master Su, we’ll let you decide the placement of our two Sects’ disciples,” Hu Man and Xiao Ruo Han walked up to Su Mu and said.
Su Mu nodded, first ordering several Junior Brothers to process Xie Hong Chen’s bones before leaving to discuss with the Elders about how to settle the other Sects disciples.
While everyone was busying themselves, Yang Kai walked around High Heaven Pavilion alone.
High Heaven Pavilion had been destroyed once before when the First Young Lady of the Qiu Family, Qiu Yi Meng brought a number of experts here and fought with Grand Master and the Elders. It was after that incident, when Qiu Yi Meng had gone missing, that the Sect had been burned down.
High Heaven Pavilion was re-built some time later, after the incident was resolved.
However, history had repeated itself.
Yang Kai arrived at the small wooden house he had once called home.
This wooden house carried a lot of his memories, it was the place he had lived when he was still weak and helpless.
He could still vividly remember his days as a Trial Disciple of High Heaven Pavilion, when even filling his belly each day was a challenge.
It was inside this cabin that Yang Kai first opened the Wordless Black Book, drastically altering his destiny.
The wooden house had been refurbished since that time, but the tables and chair were actually the same ones Yang Kai had originally used, but since this place had been left unattended for many years, everything was now covered with a thick layer of dust.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Yang Kai couldn’t help recalling the night when he returned from the outside to discover Little Senior Sister Xia Ning Chang fast asleep on his bed, the gentle moonlight streaming in from the holes in the roof, startling Yang Kai greatly.
It was from that moment on that her beautiful figure had been permanently engraved in his heart.
Every time he remembered that scene, his heart would fill with a tender warmth. It was a precious memory he would never be able to forget.
After sitting inside his wooden house for a while, Yang Kai left to visit Su Yan’s small house.
It was inside this small house that Yang Kai inadvertently saw the scene of Su Yan changing her clothes, the smooth, graceful curve of her back seizing his soul at the time, her charm and beauty robbing him of all ability to even breathe.
At that time, Su Yan was furious and used her frigid True Qi to freeze Yang Kai into a block of ice. It was only a few days later that Yang Kai thawed out after comprehending the profound Martial Skill, Unyielding Will.
Xia Ning Chang and Su Yan, the two most important women in his life, it was here that Yang Kai had met and grown close to them.
As his heartbeat steadied, a flurry of emotions washed over him.
High Heaven Pavilion was filled with so many of Yang Kai’s memories and emotions.
Walking along the familiar paths, it was like he had returned to the time he was a simple High Heaven Pavilion disciple so many years ago, the sights and scenes from that time all coming back to him.
The Contribution Hall was still the same as before, Yang Kai even felt like he could see Treasurer Meng lazily sitting behind the front desk, his eyes darting around, staring lewdly at the beautiful female disciples passing through, commenting on the height of their chests and the fullness of their bottoms.
The Martial Skill Pavilion was also unchanged, still housing the many Secret Arts and Martial Skills of High Heaven Pavilion.
Of course, for the current Yang Kai, these things had no value other than for nostalgia.
Soon, Yang Kai arrived at the Coiling Dragon Stream. Standing at its edge, he could hear the wind whistling as it blew through the seemingly bottomless canyon.
Several fruit trees stood nearby, swaying gently in the wind. These were the fruit trees Yang Kai had planted in the past. Originally they were only slightly taller than him, but now they had grown high enough for their thick leaves to provide shade for those who stood beneath them.
Stepping off the edge, Yang Kai allowed his body to fall into the Coiling Dragon Stream.
Part-way down, Yang Kai came to a halt and stepped into the secluded cave he had worked so hard to carve all those years ago.
Inside this secluded cave, there were a number of plants that Xia Ning Chang had planted as decorations still growing. After the Demonic Qi had been purged from the canyon down below, these plants had flourished and covered the surrounding area in a thick bed of green leaves.
There were even a few delicate flowers next to the cave’s entrance.
The cave even retained a faint trace of Su Yan and Xia Ning Chang’s fragrances.
This secluded cave was the secret place for the three of them. Several times, while Yang Kai and Su Yan were happily flirting with one another, Little Senior Sister would be ‘sleeping’ on the stone bed nearby.
Yang Kai sat cross-legged at the cave’s entrance and closed his eyes, completely relaxing his mind and body. After revisiting all these memories, he suddenly felt as if his soul had received a kind of sublimation. This indescribable feeling gave him an incredible sense of comfort.
A burst of humming sounds rang out as Yang Kai’s physique began to tremble and the True Qi inside his body seemed to burst forward, flowing like a mighty river through his meridians.
Two days later, Yang Kai opened his eyes and a profound light flashed across their depths.
A moment later, a hint of confusion appeared on his face.
He was somewhat puzzled by the current condition.
After returning to High Heaven Pavilion and walking through all its familiar paths, he had suddenly fallen into a strange state. Initially, Yang Kai had thought he was experiencing a breakthrough and had simply allowed nature to take its course, but after waking up, he discovered that he had not advanced to the Saint Realm at all.
He was still a Third Order Transcendent, but the True Qi that was flowing through his body seemed somewhat different from before.
Closing his eyes and examining himself with his Divine Sense, Yang Kai discovered that the True Qi in his meridians had increased in purity and density. If his previous True Qi was akin to water in a river, his current True Qi now showed subtle signs of crystallization.
When it was not in use, it no longer flowed freely, but once Yang Kai pushed it, it was not only stronger, it also contained a greater destructive force with it.
The Yang Liquid stored in his dantian also seemed to be undergoing a change, becoming more akin to dazzling golden jewels rather than drops of molten gold.
Yang Kai was confused and didn’t know what was happening to him.
After thoroughly investigating his physical condition, Yang Kai couldn’t find anything wrong with himself. On the contrary, he felt quite refreshed, as if the strange change in his True Qi not only wasn’t harmful to him but had instead brought him great benefits.
At the very least, Yang Kai instinctually felt he had become stronger.
Sending out a Divine Sense Message, it was not long before Li Rong and Han Fei flew over and entered the secluded cave, both of them saluting politely as they asked, “What is Master’s command?”
These past two days, Li Rong and Han Fei were treated as guests in the High Heaven Pavilion and they occasionally helped with the cleanup effort around the Sect. Both of them noticed that Yang Kai had entered a state of meditative cultivation and naturally did not come to disturb him until Yang Kai took the initiative to summon them over.
“I have some questions to ask you both,” Yang Kai signalled to them to sit down.
The two women smiled, even Han Fei was showing a warm look quite in contrast to her normally ice-cold temperament.
In their impression, Yang Kai seemed almost omnipotent, but this time he had actually called them to ask their advice, surprising them.
The two sat down and Li Rong asked, “Is there anything Master is unclear about regarding his cultivation?”
“En,” Yang Kai nodded, relaxing his defences, “Use your Divine Senses to examine the True Qi in my body to see if there is anything wrong with it.”
“Something wrong with it?” Han Fei was shocked.
“Very well, excuse us,” Li Rong didn’t speak any nonsense and began sweeping Yang Kai with her powerful Divine Sense.
After a moment, her beautiful eyes lit up as she muttered, “True Qi Sanctification?”
Han Fei also showed a pleasant expression as she smiled happily towards Yang Kai and said, “Congratulations Master, with Master’s cultivation speed, I’m afraid it won’t be long before you officially break through to the Saint Realm.”
“En, since you’ve already reached the point of True Qi Sanctification, and considering the pace at which Master’s cultivation advances, I would estimate that within two to three years you will become a Saint. If there are some opportunities or epiphanies along the way, that time will only be shorter.”
“Stop!” Yang Kai reached out his hand and knit his brow, staring blankly at the two women for a moment before asking, “First explain to me, what is this True Qi Sanctification you’re talking about? Why are you so sure that I am not far from reaching the Saint Realm?”
Li Rong and Han Fei shot an astonished glance at each other upon hearing these questions, but soon the two of them burst into laughter, their voices resounding like delicate silver bells in the secluded cave.
Yang Kai instantly felt uncomfortable.
Li Rong’s laughter was extremely carefree while even Han Fei, who always wore an icy expression, was doubled over, the two of them clearly finding this whole situation incredibly funny, and clearly he was the cause.
Yet Yang Kai, as the butt of this joke, actually knew nothing.
“Have the two of you laughed enough yet?” Yang Kai glared at them.
Noticing that Yang Kai seemed to be becoming angry out of shame, Li Rong and Han Fei hurriedly restrained their laughter, but the two of them still couldn’t help covering their mouths with their hands as their shoulders trembled lightly.
Yang Kai could only rub his forehead, feeling quite helpless.
Sometime later, Li Rong and Han Fei finally composed themselves and the former asked, “Master, have you ever received any formal instruction regarding cultivation?”
“Why do you ask?”
“Because if someone had given you formal instruction, you should know what True Qi Sanctification is and understand that it is a checkpoint on the path to the Saint Realm.”
“A checkpoint before reaching the Saint Realm?” Yang Kai suddenly became interested, “Go on.”
Li Rong and Han Fei, one after another, began to explain.
“In this world, there are a lot of Transcendent Realm cultivators, but of these many Transcendents, those who can successfully break through to the Saint Realm probably number less than one percent. Why are there so many Transcendents who fail to grasp the mysteries of the Saint Realm? The main reason is their inability to achieve True Qi Sanctification.”
“A cultivator, from when they first begin to cultivate until they reach the Saint Realm, must walk step by step and experience many breakthroughs, each one more difficult than the last. It can be said that every breaking through to each new Great Realm results in a kind of rebirth where one receives both internal and external baptisms. However, over this entire process of growth, a cultivator will also experience two fundamental changes in their internal strength.”
“One time is when they break through from the Separation and Reunion Boundary to the True Element Boundary, when the Yuan Qi in their meridians is transformed into True Qi. The great difference in power between these two types of Qi, I believe Master is quite well aware of.”
Yang Kai lightly nodded.
Before the Peak Separation and Reunion Boundary, Yuan Qi was what flowed through a cultivator’s meridians, but after they broke through to the True Element Boundary, it was replaced by True Qi.
The two Qis were fundamentally different. Disregarding the change in realm and only examining it from the perspective of pure power, when Yuan Qi transformed into True Qi, a cultivator’s combat potential would dramatically increase.
“The second great change occurs when one breaks through from the Transcendent Realm to the Saint Realm!” Li Rong declared in a spirited tone, “Because the energy which flows through a Saint Realm master’s body is not True Qi.”
“Not True Qi?” Yang Kai’s brow rose, somewhat unable to process what he was hearing.
No one had ever told him anything regarding this matter.
“Yes, what flows through a Saint Realm master’s meridians is Saint Qi, and its strength is incomparable to that of True Qi.”
Yang Kai was shocked and could not speak for a long time.
Han Fei thought about it for a moment before continuing, “For example, a block of Low-Rank Crystal Stone contains significantly less energy a block of Top -Rank Crystal Stone of equivalent volume, but the amount of energy in a block of Saint Crystal is incomparable to a block of Top-Rank Crystal Stone of equal size. Yuan Qi is like Low-Rank Crystal Stone, True Qi like Top-Rank Crystal Stone, and Saint Qi like Saint Crystal.”
Such a basic fact was something Yang Kai actually knew nothing about.
“Because Master has had some kind of opportunity, the True Qi in your body has begun to transform into Saint Qi. When this transformation is complete, Master will only have to fully comprehend the mysteries of the Saint Realm and he will be able to smoothly break through,” Li Rong looked at him with excitement, feeling sincerely happy about his rapid growth.
“Before now, hasn’t anyone ever spoken about this matter to Master?” Han Fei asked in amazement.
The reason they had never mentioned anything about the True Qi Sanctification process to Yang Kai was because they had assumed he was aware of it already, as that was common sense. Never had they anticipate he was actually completely ignorant about it.
“It’s only to be expected that no one has told Master about this,” Li Rong smiled, “Master’s rate of growth is simply too fast! The Elders around him probably did not anticipate he would already be experiencing True Qi Sanctification and were simply planning on mentioning it to him at some point in the future. At the very least, the Holy Land’s Great Elder would have eventually explained about this process to you.”
Yang Kai gently nodded; after learning about his current situation and understanding it was not a misdemeanor, he finally relaxed.
“What should I do now?” Yang Kai asked hesitantly.
“There’s nothing to do, just go about your life as before,” Li Rong smiled and replied.
“Is there any way to speed up the progress of this True Qi Sanctification?” Yang Kai knit his brow, “I remember when it was time to convert my Yuan Qi to True Qi, there were certain medicines that could be used as auxiliaries to improve the purity and refinement rate of my True Qi.”
“That was because your foundation was yet to be fully established, so it was possible to improve and increase the conversation rate, but True Qi Sanctification takes place after one’s foundation has already been established, so there is no way to speed it up. One can only let nature take its course.”
“I understand,” Yang Kai sighed lightly but still felt quite excited in his heart.
After his True Qi was completely converted into Saint Qi, and he fully comprehended the mysteries of the Saint Realm, he would be able to step into that realm.
Yang Kai wasn’t concerned at all about comprehending these mysteries; for others, this might be a difficult task, but for him, it was nothing.
He had absorbed so many Saint Realm cultivators’ perceptions and insights into the Heavenly Way and Martial Dao, transforming them into his own strength, so breaking through to the Saint Realm would not be an issue for him.
Now he just had to wait for the Qi in his body to finish transforming, so the time it would take for him to reach the next Great Realm would probably be much shorter than what Li Rong estimated.
After spending a moment lost in his own thoughts, Yang Kai collected himself and set aside the matter of the Saint Realm, stood up and asked, “What is the situation in High Heaven Pavilion?”
“Things have mostly been settled,” Li Rong replied.
“Good, then we should set out,” Yang Kai said, leaping out of his secluded cave and flying up.
He had planned to travel to the Central Capital immediately after securing High Heaven Pavilion, but this unexpected opportunity had delayed him two days.
High Heaven Pavilion was now fully occupied with the disciples and Elders from all of the Three Sects gathered here. Su Mu was only temporarily place people around the Sect’s grounds, forcing many of them to simply sit outside, taking the sky as their blankets and the ground as their beds.
Inside the main hall, Su Mu and the Pavilion Elders sat around a large table along with Hu Man of Blood Battle Gang, the Hu Sisters, Xiao Ruo Han of Storm Hall and Fang Zi Ji.
When Yang Kai arrived, they seemed to be discussing something.
The moment he entered the room, all eyes landed on Yang Kai, expectant and excited looks upon all their faces.
“Brother-in-law, are you going to the Central Capital?” Su Mu asked.
“En,” Yang Kai nodded.
“Then I wish you a swift victory and triumphant return!” Su Mu declared.
Yang Kai stared at him with a look of surprise.
Su Mu just grinned back at him, “We have self-knowledge. We’d be nothing but a burden to you if we went, but brother-in-law, you have to teach those dogs an unforgettable lesson, you mustn’t show any mercy.”
Yang Kai smiled and nodded sincerely, “Relax, I’ll make sure not a single one of them returns alive!”
Saying so, he turned around and shouted, “Shi Kun!”
“Reporting!” Shi Kun appeared.
“You stay here and help me take care of this place. If anyone dares try to invade, directly report to them the Holy Land’s name. I’d like to see if anyone dares challenge my Holy Land.”
“Yes!”
Central Capital, where north and south could not see one another, the first under Heaven City!
Looking from far away, the gigantic Central Capital City was like an ancient beast slumbering quietly on the ground, giving off an aura of intimidation that made all who saw it tremble in awe.
A streak of blue light came to a halt some twenty-five kilometres away from the Central Capital and the figure of Yang Kai, Li Rong and Han Fei appeared.
“There’s actually such a massive city here?” Li Rong was shocked and exclaimed.
A city the size of the Central Capital, even in Tong Xuan Realm, was rare; Li Rong couldn’t even imagine how many years it had taken for the natives of this world to build it.
“There seems to be some traces of destruction,” Han Fei wrinkled her brow.
“En, more than a decade ago, the Earth Vein below the Central Capital exploded, essentially destroying the entire city. When I left this place, everyone was focused on rebuilding the Central Capital. Although more than a decade has passed, it seems they haven’t finished with the reconstruction yet,” Yang Kai gently nodded.
At this moment, the entire Central Capital seemed a bit too calm, although they were still twenty-five kilometres away, Yang Kai could still make out some people moving about, but far fewer than normal.
A burst of light suddenly appeared above a certain place in the Central Capital, immediately catching Yang Kai’s eyes.
“Master, there seems to be someone fighting there,” Li Rong stated.
“Let’s go take a look!” Yang Kai once again activated the Flying Heavens Shuttle and shot forward.
At the south gate of the Central Capital, a group of Transcendent Realm cultivators wore grim expression as she hurriedly fled.
The Central Capital’s South Gate was for the exclusive use of the Yang Family. When any Yang Family members returned home, they would enter through this gate. When Yang Kai returned to Central Capital to participate in the Inheritance War, he too had walked through this gate.
The Transcendent Realm cultivators who were fleeing right now were almost all masters from the Yang Family’s Blood Warrior Hall.
They were going all out to escape from the Central Capital.
But behind them were two invincible enemies pursuing them.
“You rats can flee but I’d like to see where you can run now!” A single-eyed middle-aged man who was following the Blood Warriors at a seemingly leisurely pace called out called out mockingly, showing no intention of immediately attacking, his eyes filled with scorn, just like a cat toying with a pack of mice, “A trivial group of Transcendent Realm trash dares act presumptuously in front of me? Run, run, keep running! Don’t let yourselves get caught or your fate will be more miserable than you can imagine.”
Everyone who was fleeing felt enraged as their visions were dyed red, but they were well away of how tyrannical these enemies were so they didn’t dare to stop and fight, only using a few Martial Skills every now and then as they ran forward in an attempt to delay the pace of this man.
However, the Martial Skills they used against this one-eyed man were completely ineffective, each of them being blocked by a faint barrier which seemed to surround his body. It was as if their attacks all sunk into an endless sea, disappearing without even a trace.
This reality made the group of escaping Transcendents sink further into despair.
“Chou Xu, stop fooling around. Temple Master Wu is waiting for us to return, just grab them quickly,” From a different direction, a beautiful woman with a luscious figure called out to the middle-aged man lightly.
Chou Xu shot her an annoyed glance and snorted, “You don’t need to remind me.”
Cursing under his breath in the next instant, “Little slut, thinking that after obtaining some favour from Wu Zheng you can order me around like some servant, completely not placing me in your eyes. Fuck, so annoying.”
As he muttered, Chou Xu’s expression became even crueler, shouting a moment later, “Run, run! The first one of you I catch I will make taste the world’s most brutal torture! Seeing that you had a bit of strength and might have some use, we spared your lives, yet you actually dared disregard our mercy and try to escape? You really don’t know the immensity of Heaven and Earth!”
The conversation between the man and woman clearly reached the ears of the fleeing Transcendents, causing their expression to become even uglier.
Among the crowd, one burly man shouted, “Brothers and Sisters, spread out, let destiny decide who lives and who dies. If any of us can escape, you must survive and find Little Lord; tell him about this matter!”
Everyone nodded and shouted, “Good luck!”
The next moment, all of them shot off in different directions.
The man and woman chasing after them saw this scene but showed not the slightest bit of concern, the one-eyed man named Chou Xu grinning viciously as he said, “Seems you’re not complete idiots. I thought at least one of you would stop and fight with me.”
“Don’t make trouble, if we let them run too far it’ll just become more of a hassle. Cut them off while I block their retreat!” The woman shouted, a torrent of power welling up from her body, creating an invisible barrier that blocked off the area behind the fleeing Transcendents, leaving their only option to press on, effectively sealing off their movements.
Seeing that she had already started to act, Chou Xu also no longer delayed, displaying a similar technique that blocked the path ahead of the group of cultivators.
*Peng peng peng…*
The group of Transcendents collided with this invisible barrier that had emerged out of thin air and were all forced back, their expressions turning gloomy.
Two fearful auras engulfed them, forcing them back together, their backs against one another as they glared up at the man and woman standing mid-air above them.
No door to Heaven, or path to Hell, in the face of absolute strength, they could only dance on the palm of the enemy’s hand.
“Xiu Li, if I kill them, will it matter?” Chou Xu turned his one eye to the woman and asked.
Xiu Li frowned and spoke in a dissatisfied tone, “Their strength isn’t high, what’s the point in killing them? The reason Temple Master Wu let them live was to let them submit and work for us. As long as this group of people surrenders, the others will be easier to deal with. The World Energy aura here is not rich and there’s no resources worth exploiting, but there are quite a few people we can bring back to use as slaves and labourers.”
“Of course, I understand Temple Master Wu’s intentions, but… without killing them, I won’t be able to soothe my anger,” Chou Xu slowly shook his head.
Seeing his appearance, Xiu Li felt a deep sense of loathing in her heart, but not wishing to waste any more time arguing with him, she reluctantly nodded, “Fine, but you can only kill one. If you dare to kill more, I’ll report it back to Temple Master Wu.”
“I know you’ve built a ‘good relationship’ with Temple Master Wu, but you don’t keep using his name to suppress me, I am Seeking Heavens Pavilion’s Sect Master, not his subordinate.”
“If you want to kill one then hurry up, stop spouting nonsense,” Xiu Li impatiently shouted.
Chou Xu snorted before turning his one eye to the group down below, glancing around the couple dozen Transcendents while ignoring their angry glares. Suddenly, he pointed to one of them and declared, “Her, I most enjoy killing women, especially beautiful women!”
Saying so, he shot a glance over towards the woman called Xiu Li, the latter snorting disdainfully, knowing what he was implying but refusing to go along with his provocation.
The selected woman paled.
“Yu Xian…” The others called out desperately.
Tang Yu Xian however just smiled miserably, “Let destiny decide who lives and who dies. Don’t try to fight, the place they come from should be the place where Little Lord went, you all have to go there and do everything possible to find Little Lord so he can take revenge for our fallen Brothers and Sisters!”
All of them shook their heads unwillingly.
“Woman, if you have any last words, I’ll give you ten breaths of time to speak them,” Chou Xu stood mid-air and laughed wildly.
“They’ve gone too far, I’ll fight them!” Tu Feng shouted angrily, his Blood Qi madly rising as he tried to display the Blood Warrior’s Mad Tyrant Blood Skill.
“If we must die, then we’ll die together! No matter what, we can’t just stand here and watch as you’re killed!” Ying Jiu’s figure flickered, as he prepared to use his Flickering Shadow Strike.
At that moment though, an invisible pressure descended and completely suppressed all of them, forcefully canceling Tu Feng’s Mad Tyrant Blood Skill while locking Ying Jiu’s shadowy figure in place.
Chou Xu laughed and taunted, “I told you not to act so presumptuous. A group of trash with no self-awareness, how can mere Transcendents possibly fight with a Saint? I’ll let you all see right now the insurmountable gap between us, killing any of you is as simple as crushing an ant.”
Saying so, he stretched out his hand and grasped towards them.
Tang Yu Xian cried out as she found herself bound by an invisible force that slowly pulled her up into the air.
A moment later, she was floating tens of meters above the ground.
The invisible force that shackled her body grew stronger and stronger, making it difficult for Tang Yu Xian to breathe. Her face turned red and her eyes flashed with unwillingness but no matter how much she wished to resist, she was incapable of even struggling.
Sad and shrill cries rang out from down below.
Cracking sounds burst out from Tang Yu Xian’s body as her bones seemed to break under the strain.
Feeling death beckoning to her, Tang Yu Xian’s heart suddenly became calm as she directed a cold glare towards the one-eyed man named Chou Xu, and the indifferent woman Xiu Li.
*Xiu…*
A sword-like attack suddenly flashed and cut through the air between Chou Xu and Tang Yu Xian.
At the same time, the sound of something being cut apart resounded.
Tang Yu Xian, who had just been imprisoned, breathed in a deep breath as the enormous pressure on her body instantly disappeared, freeing her and allowing her to fall back down to the ground.
A blue light flashed and three figures suddenly appeared, seemingly out of thin air, their bodies wrapped in an ice cold aura.
“Who goes there?” Chou Xu and Xiu Li’s expression changed dramatically as they shouted.
The Transcendents down below also turned their eyes towards these newcomers.
All of them froze up.
In the next moment though, shouts of surprise and joy escaped from their lips.
“Little Lord!”
Yang Kai nodded lightly as he swept his gaze down below.
Familiar faces appeared one after another in front of his eyes.
Tu Feng, Tang Yu Xian, Ying Jiu, Ji Li, Xiao Shun, Yan Ling Xing, Wu Ju…
Most of Yang Family Blood Warrior Hall’s masters were present.
“Yu Xian, are you alright?” Yang Kai asked softly.
Tang Yu Xian’s beautiful eyes filled with excitement as she nodded, “Just some minor injuries, Little Lord doesn’t need to worry.”
“That’s good,” Yang Kai let out a sigh of relief.
“Who are you?” Chou Xu frowned as he stood together with Xiu Li and shouted.
Although he didn’t know why, when these three people suddenly appeared, Chou Xu felt a sense of fear grip him, as if their arrival heralded the coming of his death, causing him to shudder unconsciously.
Without standing next to Xiu Li, he simply couldn’t feel a sense of security.
“You just said that Transcendents have no way to fight with Saints didn’t you?” Yang Kai spoke flatly as he stared coldly at Chou Xu.
“En, who might I ask is Your Excellency?” Chou Xu frowned.
“Do I need to announce my name to a dead man?”
“Your Excellency is quite bold. Who are you?” Chou Xu coldly shouted, realizing the situation had become unfavourable and quietly shot Xiu Li a glance, hinting for her to act when she saw an opportunity. In response, she nodded.
Yang Kai didn’t bother responding to him and simply told Li Rong, “You two deal with that woman, I’ll handle him.”
Li Rong nodded, “Be careful.”
She didn’t attempt to stop Yang Kai because she understood just how angry he was. She knew Yang Kai wanted to kill this one-eyed man himself, for the crimes the man had just committed. With her and Han Fei watching nearby, even if Yang Kai ultimately couldn’t win, it was impossible for his life to be in any danger.
Two pairs of beautiful eyes fixed on Xiu Li and an invisible pressure crashed down on her.
The enchanting woman named Xiu Li instantly went stiff, unable to move or even circulate the strength within her body, as if she had been sunk into a mire that completely suppressed her.
Shock filled Xiu Li’s heart as she instantly understood how terrifying these two women who suddenly appear in front of them were, her tender body trembling uncontrollably.
Chou Xu’s expression also paled. The instant Li Rong and Han Fei used their strength, he realized he was severely outmatched. Refusing to even bother with the group of Transcendents he had been chasing, Chou Xu fled towards the centre of the Central Capital.
He needed to find Wu Zheng!
Although he was dissatisfied with the distribution of spoils Wu Zheng had set up, he didn’t doubt that Wu Zheng was the strongest among them, the latter’s Second Order Saint Realm cultivation towering above his own.
Just as he tried to flee though, the figure of the young man who seemed to not know the immensity of Heaven and Earth appeared in front of him and blocked his path.
A Third Order Transcendent!
Chou Xu understood Yang Kai’s real cultivation at a glance and was overjoyed, secretly thinking that the Heavens had not abandoned him yet, shouting loudly as charged forward, “Boy, come here!”
Saying so, he reached out and grabbed towards Yang Kai.
He wanted to capture Yang Kai and use him as a hostage in order to preserve his life.
Yang Kai didn’t try to dodge and just stared back at Chou Xu coldly, his expression completely indifferent. When the big hand reaching towards him landed on his shoulder, before it could even exert any strength, Yang Kai pushed his strength fiercely, sending out a burst of True Qi from his body.
A scorching hot wave of energy erupted, causing Chou Xu to cry out in pain and hastily take back his hand, his face pale and was filled with disbelief.
The young man in front of him was truly just a Third Order Transcendent, but the power he emitted from his body just now was even more potent than his own; despite him being a genuine First Order Saint.
From his palm, the burning True Qi penetrated deep into Chou Xu’s meridians, rushing through his body and infiltrating his five viscera and six organs in an attempt to destroy his vitality.
Not daring to neglect, Chou Xu hurriedly circulated his own Saint Qi to suppress this scalding energy, his body’s temperature rapidly rising as his flesh turned red and began to let off steam as if he was being boiled alive from the inside
Before he could compose himself, a golden spear that gave off a shocking pressure flew through the air towards him, seemingly tearing space itself as it ignored the distance between them and rapidly expanded in his eyes.
Chou Xu was panic-stricken when he felt the destructive force contained within this spear and desperately threw himself to the side to dodge it.
*Xiu…*
The Heaven Punishing Spear just barely missed its mark and flew out of several dozen kilometres before disappearing across in a flash of light.
One Heaven Punishing Spear after another was condensed in Yang Kai’s hand as he stood mid-air and threw them out.
Like bolts of lightning, a storm of golden spears flashed across the sky.
Chou Xu was immediately forced into a difficult situation, only capable of dodging the exquisite Nine Heavens Divine Skill, unable to hit back, his face looking deathly pale.
“Run, run, let’s see how long you can keep this up!” Yang Kai called out in a relaxed tone with an indifferent look upon his face, casually throwing Heaven Punishing Spears from a dominant position, as if he had yet to even use all his strength, taunting Chou Xu in the same way the latter had just been taunting the fleeing Central Capital Transcendents.
Chou Xu couldn’t even shout back as it was taking all his strength and concentration to avoid the storm of attacks coming towards him, causing his expression to become even uglier.
“Aren’t you an all-powerful Saint? Stop acting so pitifully and fight back, or are you saying you’re actually afraid of a mere Transcendent like me? Come, show me everything you’ve got. Today, this Young Master will show you what a Transcendent killing a Saint looks like,” Yang Kai sneered coldly, using his Profound Heavenly Sword and Imprisoning Heaven Chain in addition to his Heaven Punishing Spears, displaying all the Nine Heavens Divine Skills in all their glory.
Down below, Tu Feng and others were dumbstruck and fell into a daze they could not extricate themselves from for a long time.
Thanks to the training and resources Yang Kai granted them in the past, they had all broken through to the Transcendent Realm before the former departed and were able to stand at the top of this world.
During the more than ten years Yang Kai had been away, all of them had been diligently cultivating and now basically every Blood Warrior saw hope of breaking through to the Second-Order Transcendent Realm.
However, a few months ago, a group of enemies they couldn’t match suddenly appeared and quickly subdued the Central Capital’s Eight Great Families.
Just now, even with just the one-eyed man named Chou Xu chasing them, they had been driven into a hopeless situation and were on the verge of witnessing Tang Yu Xian being crushed to death right before their eyes without even being able to fight back.
Suddenly though, their Little Lord had arrived and instantly suppressed the very same Chou Xu they were powerless against to the point where the latter was unable to even talk back.
The Blood Warriors’ spirits rose as a deep sense of pride filled their chests, all of them elated to see the previously domineering and arrogant Chou Xu forced into such a distressed state.
Li Rong and Han Fei’s eyes also lit up as they exchanged a look filled with pleasant surprise.
Although both of them knew that Yang Kai was very strong, since they had begun following him, they had never seen him truly fight with any powerful master, so they didn’t know where his bottom line was.
Just now, the two women had secretly decided that if Yang Kai showed signs of being overwhelmed they would immediately help.
But the situation was actually completely different from what they were worried about. A First Order Saint Realm master actually couldn’t even fight back in front of Yang Kai.
The two of them could even determine that Yang Kai could easily kill the other party if he wanted to.
This is because Yang Kai had yet to use his Demon God Transformation and was still only fighting against the one-eyed man with his raw strength.
At this moment, they finally put down their last worries and, while completely suppressing Xiu Li so she couldn’t interfere, observed Yang Kai’s fight.
“Father will fight with you!” A burst of light flashed as Chou Xu suddenly screamed and summoned a large bell. The bell swung and released a thunderous sound, sending out a powerful shockwave in all directions.
The Heaven Punishing Spear and Profound Heavenly Sword that were flying towards him suddenly weakened.
Down below, the Transcendents all felt like their heads were splitting when they heard the tolling of the bell, looks of pain filling their faces as they felt their blood flow become disturbed, threatening to burst from their bodies at any time.
Li Rong waved her hand and dispelled the pressure surrounding them, allowing the Transcendents to recover, each of them sending her a gratefully look.
Chou Xu’s Spiritual Energy burst out as he controlled his large bell artifact, releasing its full power, using it as a shield to block Yang Kai’s attacks as he charged forward.
Obviously, he wanted to launch a desperate counter-attack in the hopes of creating a mutual loss. If at that moment he could capture Yang Kai, it would be even better.
“A Spirit Grade Top-Rank artifact?!” Yang Kai snorted, ignoring the impact of the sound wave from the bell and not only not retreating, but moving forward to meet it.
True Yang Yuan Qi erupted and like a giant fireball, Yang Kai slammed into the large bell head-on.
A moment later, a loud bang rang out.
The sound of the bell echoed throughout the entire Central Capital, causing everyone’s vitality to uncomfortably tumble.
Chou Xu, who had been hiding behind the large bell, was struck by a terrifying impact and sent flying like a paper kite, blood gushing from his wounds as his face paled and his eyes filled with shock.
Despite feeling it with his own body, he couldn’t believe what had just happened.
The Third-Order Transcendent Realm young had actually used his flesh and blood body to not only block his artifact’s all-out attack but even forcefully repelled it, sending Chou Xu flying.
On the other hand, the young man was only forced back a dozen steps before he stabilized his footing.
Just how tyrannical did one’s flesh have to be to stop an artifact with their body?
It wasn’t until this moment that Chou Xu fully understood how monstrous the combat strength of the young man before him was. Although this youth’s cultivation realm was lower than Chou Xu’s, he was actually the kind of monster that could easily fight above his own level.
Chou Xu’s eyes dimmed as he tumbled through the air, a moment later screaming out, “Wu Zheng!”
Yang Kai grasped the large bell in his hand for a moment before tossing it aside and disappearing, his figure flickering and quickly re-appearing in front of Chou Xu, a ferocious grin forming on his face as he stated, “It doesn’t matter who you call for now, you’re still going to die!”
A blast of pure True Qi crashed into Chou Xu and despite his best efforts he was unable to resist.
Scotching heat flooded Chou Xu’s body, boiling his blood and turning the surface of his skin bright red.
*Hong…*
Chou Xu’s body burst open like a blossoming blood-red flower, his death extremely miserable.
Xiu Li’s tender body trembled fiercely as her heart filled with fear. She had witnessed the entire battle from start to finish but was still unable to understand just how a Saint Realm master was so easily killed by a mere Transcendent Realm youth.
This scene had completely subverted her perception of a cultivator’s strength.
Staring at this terrifying youth’s imposing back, Xiu Li couldn’t help feeling terrified.
“Master, how should we deal with this woman?” Li Rong asked softly.
“Kill her!” Yang Kai responded faintly.
“Understood!” Han Fei nodded, her figure flickering and appearing beside Xiu Li in the next instant before sending out a few light palms.
In the blink of an eye, Xiu Li’s body was covered in a layer of ice, transforming her into an incredibly life-like ice sculpture, the fear on her face perfectly preserved.
This ice sculpture fell down right after and shattered into a million pieces.
Xiu Li had died, leaving not a single trace of her corpse.
“Who dares commit murder here?” A roar echoed from far away and a moment later a red-faced old man leisurely appeared, his face filled with anger as he swept his eyes over the surrounding.
After clearly seeing Yang Kai though, his face paled, “Nine Heavens Holy Land’s Holy Master?”
As Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple’s Temple Master, Wu Zheng naturally recognized Yang Kai; after all, he and Chu Yi of Veiled Heaven Palace as well as Fang Yue Bai of Mist Lock Tower had pursued the Ancient Demon clansmen across half of the Human Territory to the nine peaks.
Wu Zheng also harboured hatred towards this young man who colluded with Demons, as well as a deep sense of envy.
The reason for this was quite simple. Yang Kai was nothing but a young man yet he was already the master of one of the world’s greatest forces and was even able to subdue so many powerful Demon Race masters.
The power he held in his hands was enough to make anyone jealous.
Wu Zheng didn’t know where he was worse than him and why this kind of good deed hadn’t landed in his lap instead.
“Wu Zheng!” Yang Kai grinned as he stared faintly at the old man.
“Holy Master Yang… it’s been a long time,” Wu Zheng looked around and frowned, “Might I ask, why has Holy Master Yang has come to this place? Also, have you seen Chou Xu and Xiu Li? I just heard Chou Xu’s cry a moment ago and sensed the fallout of battle from this place, it couldn’t be that Holy Master Yang…”
“If you’re referring to that one-eyed man and a middle-aged and that beautiful woman, they’re already dead.”
“Dead?” Wu Zheng expression darkened as he stared deeply at Yang Kai, “Could it be they died at Holy Master Yang’s hand?”
“Indeed,” Yang Kai admitted frankly.
Wu Zheng brow furrowed as a cold light flashed across his eyes, “Why did you kill them? What enmity did they have with Holy Master Yang?”
“Can I not kill people without there being enmity between us?” Yang Kai laughed and narrowed his eyes at Wu Zheng, lifting his hand and pointing at him while grinning fiercely, “Not only them, but you too must die today!”
Wu Zheng’s face cramped as he glanced cautiously towards Li Rong and Han Fei, saying with a smile, “What does Holy Master Yang mean by all this? Is there someplace where this Wu has offended you?”
He had just heard Chou Xu’s pitiful scream and immediately realized that something was wrong. When he rushed over, he first saw Yang Kai, but without understanding what the situation was, Wu Zheng didn’t feel much sense of crisis.
After all, Yang Kai was the Holy Master of Nine Heavens Holy Land so it was impossible for him to kill someone for no reason at all, not to mention that Wu Zheng was also the master of a force not too inferior to Yang Kai’s.
He had taken it for granted that they were of equal status and could sit down and talk things out if there was some kind of issue.
Little could he have imagined that Yang Kai had no intention of discussing anything with him and responded to his words with murderous intent.
“How have you offended me?” Yang Kai’s eyes grew ice-cold as he gloomily said, “This place is my home, yet you and your lackeys invaded, humiliating my friends and family…”
Before Yang Kai even finished talking, Wu Zheng understood that the situation was beyond saving.
Whether his words were true or not, it was a fact that Chou Xu and Xiu Li were already dead. Since Yang Kai dared to kill them both, perhaps he would be willing to kill him too.
Wu Zheng was a decisive person, and after hearing just part of Yang Kai’s explanation, he immediately summoned out a shield artifact, transforming it into a light barrier around himself and flew away from the Central Capital as quickly as possible.
Yang Kai’s brow wrinkled as he turned to look in the direction Wu Zheng had fled, waving his hand a moment later.
Without saying a word, Han Fei immediately pursued.
There was no need to speculate about Wu Zheng’s fate, he would die without a doubt!
Once an Ancient Demon Clansmen used their Demon God Transformation, they could fight opponents above their own realm. Li Rong had fought Xue Li to a draw when she was just a Second-Order Saint. The current Han Fei was also a Second-Order Saint, so killing Wu Zheng was just a matter of time.
“Li Rong, sweep the Central Capital, clean up anyone brought here by Wu Zheng.”
“Yes,” Li Rong responded promptly before disappearing, her immense Divine Sense spreading out like a tide in the next instant, covering the entire Central Capital.
Yang Kai then flew down to the ground.
“Little Lord!” The Blood Warriors looked all stared at him with excitement and shouted.
Yang Kai glanced at them and nodded, “Everything’s alright now, let’s go back first before we talk.”
“Good.”
By the time Yang Kai arrived at the Yang Family, Li Rong had already completed the mop-up work and the majority of the people brought over by Wu Zheng had been gathered in the Yang Family to begin with, allowing her to easily take care of them.
After hearing the whole story from Li Rong, many Yang Family members had assembled in anticipation of Yang Kai’s arrival.
The Yang Family Fourth Master husband and wife pair were both waiting eagerly, Dong Su Zhu constantly wiping the tears from her eyes.
A moment later, when Yang Kai and the numerous Blood Warriors appeared in their field of vision, Dong Su Zhu rushed out to Yang Kai despite the Fourth Master trying to hold her back.
“Mother!” Yang Kai shouted happily.
Dong Su Zhu grabbed hold of his shoulders and began looking him over from head to toe, wanting to see if he was in good health. After determining that her son was uninjured, she tightly embraced him.
Yang Kai immediately felt like it had become difficult to breathe.
Li Rong stared strangely at this mother and son reunion. If Yang Kai hadn’t taken the initiative to call out a moment ago, Li Rong would have assumed that this young woman was Yang Kai’s Elder or possibly even Younger Sister. She never would have expected her to actually be her Master’s mother.
“Isn’t that enough, everyone is waiting, why are you hugging Kai’er as if he’ll disappear if you let go?” Yang Ying Feng finally stepped forward to remind her after seeing his wife show no signs of letting their son go.
“Who cares about them… This is my son,” Dong Su Zhu tears continued to pour out, acting like she was suffering some intolerable grievance, as if someone was trying to snatch Yang Kai away from her.
“Father!” Yang Kai grinned and greeted the Yang Family Fourth Master.
“En, good, very good!” Yang Ying Feng nodded heavily, a hint of relief appearing on his face as the corners of his eyes began to water up too.
Yang Kai had been away from home for more than ten years with no news about whether he was even alive or dead, so of course the ones who were most worried were Yang Ying Feng and Dong Su Zhu. Now though, not only were they able to determine their son was safe and sound, Yang Kai had also once again rescued the Central Capital; naturally, a sense of pride rose in the Fourth Master’s heart.
After some time, Dong Su Zhu’s mood gradually calmed down and she reluctantly released Yang Kai.
“Wait until tonight, our family can have a good chat then,” Yang Kai patted her hand and comforted.
“En.”
Yang Kai walked forward and swept his eyes over the faces of the Yang Family Elders as well as his seven brothers, greeting them one by one.
Speaking in a friendly tone with all of them.
“Ninth Brother!” The brothers also greeted him calmly. Yang Kai was the youngest of the nine brothers, but now he was without a doubt the one with the highest achievements. Comparing him with themselves, each of them couldn’t help feeling a bit distraught while at the same time happy for him.
“Second Brother, how is life as the Patriarch?” Yang Kai laughed loudly as he turned to Yang Zhao.
Yang Zhao just let out a long sight, “One doesn’t understand the burdens of being in charge until he finds himself in a position of power. Second Brother was far too naive before, if I was given another chance, I would never have participated in that damn Inheritance War.”
Among the Yang Family’s nine brothers, next to Yang Kai, the most suitable one to become Patriarch was Yang Zhao. Although Eldest Brother Yang Wei had great personal strength, he was obsessed with pursuing the peak of the Martial Dao and cared little for anything else, so the family’s Elders did not feel relieved passing the position to him.
As such, after Yang Kai left, responsibility for the family’s affairs had fallen to Yang Zhao.
After ten years apart, all of the brothers had already established their own families, each of them having gotten married and some of them even fathering children.
“Let’s go inside first. We brothers have not been reunited for a long time,” Yang Zhao said and ushered everyone inside.
Under the insistence of Yang Ying Feng, Yang Kai first stopped by the Yang Family’s Ancestral Burial Hall to burn a stick of incense.
According to the words of the Fourth Master, the reason why they could turn danger into safety was all because of the ancestors’ blessings and had nothing to do with Yang Kai. Yang Kai was just following the fate his ancestors were guiding him towards.
After worshipping his ancestors, Yang Kai walked out of the hall and followed the Fourth Master to the Yang Family’s Elder Hall.
At this moment, the hall was filled with people, and upon noticing Yang Kai enter, all eyes turned to stare at him.
“Grand Master!” Yang Kai spotted Ling Tai Xu amongst the crowd and quickly rushed over.
Ling Tai Xu smiled and nodded, but he seemed to be seriously injured, his face pale as paper as he stood there unsteadily.
Yang Kai’s heart clenched as he asked quickly.
“It’s nothing serious, I just took a palm strike from a man named Wu Zheng. Fortunately, he didn’t have any intention of taking my life or I would not be standing here right now,” Ling Tai Xu comforted.
Yang Kai couldn’t help reaching out and grabbing Ling Tai Xu’s wrist, carefully examining him.
After a while, Yang Kai’s expression slightly relaxed.
The wounds Grand Master had suffered were heavy but there was no risk to his life, such injuries would be easy for Yang Kai to treat with his current means.
“Grand Master, take this pill,” Yang Kai took out a pill and handed it to him.
Ling Tai Xu didn’t hesitate and swallowed the pill directly before patting Yang Kai’s shoulder, “You and the others talk, I’ll first go and refine this pill.”
“Good.”
“Master, let me see you out!” The Yang Family Fourth Master hurried to help Ling Tai Xu.
“Senior Ling was injured trying to save us from that person,” Tu Feng suddenly said, “This time, if not for Ling Tai Xu attracting the attention of those people, we would not have been able to escape from the Yang Family.”
“Unfortunately, we were almost captured, it is only thanks to Little Lord’s punctual arrival that we did not waste Senior Ling’s efforts,” Tang Yu Xian said in low spirits, hanging her head.
“Don’t worry about it, Grand Master acting so was surely because he had carefully considered the situation, and in the end didn’t everything work out” Yang Kai smiled, “Come in and sit down so we can talk.”
Inside the hall, everyone sat down in their own position while those who didn’t have an assigned seat just stood around nearby, all of them turning their eyes to Yang Kai, apparently waiting for him to talk.
“Second Brother, how serious are the family’s losses?” Yang Kai found a random spot to sit down before turning to Yang Zhao and asking.
Hearing his question, everyone’s expression became low-spirited, causing Yang Kai’s heart to sink.
“The biggest losses were from the Blood Warrior Hall,” Yang Zhao sighed heavily, “When those people arrived, we knew nothing about their strength which resulted in Hall Master Feng Sheng and Deputy Hall Master Zhou Feng both dying in battle. The entire Blood Warrior Hall was hit hard.”
The Blood Warrior Hall was filled with the most loyal guardians of the Yang Family, it was the place where the Yang Family specifically raised its protectors.
When danger arrived, naturally they were the first to resist.
Yang Kai had a faint impression of Hall Master Feng Sheng and Deputy Hall Master Zhou Feng; after all, he had also interacted with them before a few times, but he hadn’t expected that both of them would be killed during this invasion.
Tu Feng clenched his fists and his body trembled as he sobbed, “Qu Gao Yi, Ji Li, Xiao Shun, Luo Hai, and Fu Cong… also died.”
Yang Kai shook.
The Blood Warriors that Tu Feng named just now had all followed Yang Kai during the Inheritance War. During the final stages of the Inheritance War, Yang Kai had brought together thirteen Blood Warriors and used various resources to transform them into thirteen Transcendent Realm masters.
In particular, Qu Gao Yi, along with Ying Jiu, was the first to follow Yang Kai; they were the loyalist and most talented members of the Blood Warrior Hall.
Hearing that all these old friends had passed away caused stabbing pain in Yang Kai’s heart.
The Blood Warrior Hall had suffered terrible losses, leaving all the Blood Warriors who survived sad and solemn.
In addition to the casualties from the Blood Warrior Hall, several of the family Elders had also died.
Even Yang Zhen, the Great Elder, had died at the hands of Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple.
It could be said that since this catastrophe struck, half of all the Yang Family’s high-level masters had been killed, making this by far the greatest blow the family had ever experienced.
Not only the Yang Family, but every one of the Central Capital’s Eight Great Families had suffered such a fate.
Fortunately, Wu Zheng hadn’t acted completely ruthlessly as he had absolute confidence in his own strength. He believed that the cultivators from the Central Capital wouldn’t be able to revolt against his subordinate. After the initial slaughter, he had sealed strength of many of the masters of the great families, forcing them to submit and work for him.
Wu Zheng’s goal was the human resources of this world.
Whether it was bringing these people back to Tong Xuan Realm to serve as labourers or to be sold as slaves, they would be a great asset.
For this reason, the Central Capital Eight Great Families had not been completely exterminated.
“Ninth Brother, that Wu Zheng’s strength and methods are earth-shattering, can the people you brought with you really oppose him?” Yang Zhao asked somewhat nervously.
“En, I never thought anyone could possess such terrifying strength,” Some of the other Elders chimed in.
“Is that what you’re worried about? Well, seeing is believing,” Yang Kai chuckled, turning his head in a certain direction and nodding after a moment, “They’re back.”
“Who’s back?” Yang Zhao was confused.
Outside the main hall, a beautiful figure appeared, wrapped in an ice-cold aura; naturally, it was Han Fei.
Holding a bloody head in her hand, she walked straight inside and tossed it onto the ground before bowing to Yang Kai, “Master, fortunately, I have not failed my mission!”
“En, good work,” Yang Kai gently nodded.
Inside the hall, everyone’s eyes turned to the severed head that was slowly rolling on the ground, their eyes bulging in the next breathe with Yang Zhao jumping out of his chair and shouting, “It’s Wu Zheng!”
“He’s really dead?”
“Good good!” Many of the Yang Family member’s eyes lit up as their faces filled with joy.
Turning towards Han Fei, each of them showed her a look filled with respect and gratitude.
Before, when Li Rong had appeared and eliminated the masters brought by Wu Zheng, she had received many thanks, but that was all. From their perspective, the disciples of Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple had all just died inexplicably, none of them had been able to see Li Rong’s methods so they were unable to judge just how tyrannical her strength was.
But now that the saw Wu Zheng’s head being brought in by Han Fei, all of them fully understood how astonishing this cold beauty’s power was.
For a moment, everyone in the hall couldn’t tell if they were dreaming or seeing some kind of illusion, many of them even getting up off their seats to take a closer look at Wu Zheng’s head to confirm if it was real or not.
After confirming it was though, all of them shook with excitement.
“Ninth Brother, this Lady is…” Yang Zhao directed a hesitant and somewhat strange look towards Han Fei.
“We are Master’s subordinates,” Han Fei took the initiative to explain, lest everyone misunderstood.
“Subordinates…” Yang Zhao’s face twitched visibly, for a while not knowing how to respond.
Ninth Brother had been away for more than a decade without the slightest bit of news, yet he had suddenly returned, bringing with him incredibly powerful subordinates, swept away the seemingly invincible enemies that had invaded their homes, and saved the entire Central Capital. In comparison, he, the Patriarch of the Yang Family, was actually helpless to resist while the enemy had killed so many from his family. The gap between the two of them caused Yang Zhao to feel somewhat dejected.
“Very good, with these two madams here, our Yang Family will not have to fear being bullied again.”
“That’s right, Ninth Brother, you’ve come back to stay, right?”
The brothers inquired eagerly.
However, Yang Kai shook his head.
Dong Su Zhu, who was sitting next to Yang Kai, instantly went pale and instinctually grabbed hold of Yang Kai’s hand, tearfully calling out, “Kai’er, are you planning to leave again?”
Yang Kai smiled and said, “I have to leave, but this time I must take all of you with me.”
“You want us to go with you?” Yang Zhao knit his brow.
“Indeed. I hope that everyone can come with me to Tong Xuan Realm.”
The hall suddenly fell silent. The Central Capital was where their roots were, the birthplace of their ancestors. Yang Kai asking them to abandon it inevitably gave them pause.
Yang Kai naturally understood what they were feeling and stood up to speak, “Before, my Yang Family was the strongest amongst the Eight Great Families, one of the greatest powers in this world, but now, the situation is different. This world and Tong Xuan Realm have become connected. This time it was Wu Zheng, the next time it might be someone else, possibly even someone worse. It is no longer safe to remain here in the Central Capital.”
“More people will come?” Many people’s faces went white, none of them having realized how serious the situation was until now.
They had thought that with Wu Zheng dead, they would have nothing else to worry about, but now it appeared that was not the case.
According to Yang Kai’s words, this place had become a piece of meat that many powerhouses and forces would want to take a bite of.
“If that’s the case, naturally we should not sit idly by and wait,” Yang Zhao’s expression became dignified as he sank into contemplation for a moment before suddenly looking at Yang Kai, “Ninth Brother, Second Brother must ask you a few questions.”
Yang Kai nodded.
“If we leave the Central Capital and follow you back to that Tong Xuan Realm, can you guarantee we’ll be able to survive with just our strength? Second Brother doesn’t want to be demeaning, but after this incident, our weakness and short-sightedness has become painfully obvious.”
“I can. On that side, I have a certain amount of influence, and it will be enough to safeguard all of your lives.”
Yang Zhao expression brightened as he continued, “Is there a place for us to stay? Somewhere we can establish a new home?”
“Yes, I’ve already found such a place, you don’t need to worry about that.”
Yang Zhao asked again, “What about materials? Here we can support ourselves, but we are not familiar with how things work on the other side, will there be any issue securing enough cultivation resources?”
Yang Kai smiled meaningfully, “What I most do not lack now is cultivation materials. There are more Crystal Stones than could ever be used up along with an abundance of Spirit Grade and Saint Grade materials, far more than you could even imagine, I guarantee that you will not have any worries about having enough resources on that side.”
Everyone in the hall was dumbfounded.
Tu Feng hesitantly asked, “Little Lord, we have heard of Spirit Grade, but what is this Saint Grade you speak of?”
“The tier above Spirit Grade,” Yang Kai explained.
“What is a Crystal Stone?” Tang Yu Xian also asked.
“This is a Crystal Stone,” Yang Kai said, tossing something over to her. After Yu Xian caught this thumb size object, all the Blood Warriors began crowding around curiously, like a group of country bumpkins who had never seen the world, each of them revealing looks of surprise.
“Heavens! There’s so much pure energy contained inside this thing.”
“And it seems like it can be directly absorbed and transformed into True Qi.”
“If one had such an item, couldn’t they quickly restore themselves in the midst of a battle?”
Exclamations rang out as the Blood Warriors excitedly examined the Crystal Stone.
“En, the World Energy aura here is incomparable to the one over there, any ordinary place in Tong Xuan Realm has richer World Energy than even the best cultivation paradises here, so the rate of cultivation on that side is much faster than here.”
Yang Kai happily described the various aspects of Tong Xuan Realm, causing the Yang Family members’ eyes to flash and fill with expectation.
Denser World Energy, absolute safety, abundant resources, a comfortable living environment… Yang Kai had taken care of everything, all they had to do was follow him.
“Of course, I hope you can all come with me to Tong Xuan Realm, but if there are those of you who wish to remain, I won’t insist,” After speaking, Yang Kai clarified his standpoint, “If anyone wants to stay here, it shouldn’t be too much of an issue. Not everyone is as hateful as Wu Zheng, it’s also possible the powerhouses who come here later won’t abuse their strength to bully you, everything is up to you to decide.”
“My Qiu Family is willing to follow you, I just wonder if Little Lord is willing to bring us?” From outside the hall, a melodious voice called out.
Yang Kai raised his brow and turned his head towards the entrance.
A graceful figure gently landed and walked inside, her beautiful eyes quickly landing on Yang Kai as she pursed her red lips. Although she was doing her best to appear calm, it was obvious to everyone that she was filled with excitement and joy.
“Qiu Family Matriarch, welcome,” Yang Zhao got up and greeted.
“Beauty, long time no see,” Yang Kai also stood up and stared at the young woman who was stepping into the hall.
Qiu Yi Meng!
Similar to how she decisively chose all those years ago, before anyone else made their decision, she was willing to entrust her and her family’s interests to Yang Kai without the slightest hesitation.
“En, it’s been a long time,” Qiu Yi Meng’s lashes fluttered as a look of resentment flashed across her face for a moment, but she quickly composed herself and returned the greeting.
“Miss Luo,” Yang Kai next greeted the woman who was standing behind Qiu Yi Meng.
This woman, with great, towering peaks, was none other than Luo Xiao Man of Purple Fern Valley; Qiu Yi Meng’s closest friend.
Even after more than a decade, Luo Xiao Man’s fear of Yang Kai had not disappeared, returning his greeting with a small nod before she quickly hid behind Qiu Yi Meng.
She didn’t know why, but every time she saw Yang Kai, Luo Xiao Man couldn’t help remember that time back in the Ash-Grey Cloud Evil Land, when that girl named Bi Luo had appeared in front of her, a milky white liquid was dripping from the corner of her mouth…
“My Qiu Family wishes to accompany you, is Little Lord willing to lead us over to that side?” Qiu Yi Meng stared at Yang Kai seriously.
“There’s no need for you to act like an outsider,” Yang Kai grinned, “I never planned to just bring my Yang Family with me this time, since you wish to come too, that would be for the best.”
“Seems like you still have some conscience!” Qiu Yi Meng shot him an angry glare before her expression relaxed and she let out a burst of sweet laughter, instantly brightening the hall.
“I heard that Young Lord Kai is back, is that true?” Another loud voice filled with excitement called out from outside, and as soon as the sound fell, Huo Xing Chen flew inside the hall like a gust of wind, his eyes darting about as he shouted, “Where is Young Lord Kai?”
The next moment, when he saw Yang Kai standing not far away, he ran up and gave him a great bear hug and strongly patted his back, “Brother, it’s good that you’ve come back. Qiu Yi Meng was dying of loneliness without you.”
Qiu Yi Meng pretty face instantly became frigid as she grit her teeth, “Huo Xing Chen, you want me to rip out your tongue?”
The Huo Family Young Lord laughed riotously before releasing Yang Kai, his smiling face filling with happiness, “I’ve also missed you, Brother.”
“Why you, after not seeing you for more than ten years, how have you fallen so far behind?” Yang Kai also smiled upon seeing this familiar face.
During the Inheritance War, everyone who followed Yang Kai obtained great benefits. Little Senior Sister Xia Ning Chang had used the Myriad Drug Liquid and a large number of medicinal herbs to create a pool of medicinal liquid which cleansed their bodies and improved everyone’s aptitude by varying degrees.
Huo Xing Chen, Qiu Yi Meng and other important people obtained even greater benefits than this.
It could be said that their future achievements were guaranteed to not be low; even if they remained in the Central Capital for the rest of their lives, breaking through to the Transcendent Realm was a certainty.
After ten odd years, Qiu Yi Meng had already reached the Peak Immortal Ascension Boundary, but Huo Xing Chen was still stuck at the Sixth Stage, greatly surprising Yang Kai.
He couldn’t understand why Hou Xing Chen’s cultivation had fallen behind so much.
Hearing Yang Kai’s words, many people inside the Yang Family Elder Hall couldn’t help chuckling, revealing knowing looks.
Even Qiu Yi Meng had to cover her mouth in order to stifle her laughter.
Huo Xing Chen’s face instantly became bitter as he helplessly complained, “Young Lord Kai, you don’t know how much misfortune has befallen me…”
Saying so, he began telling his story.
As he silently listened, Yang Kai’s expression became more and more awkward.
The Huo Family was one of the Central Capital’s Eight Great Families, but the previous generation’s Patriarch, Huo Zheng, only had one son, Huo Xing Chen, while on the other hand, he had a great many daughters who he treated as treasures, taking care of them in every possible way.
After Huo Xing Chen assumed the position of Patriarch, the Huo Family Elders, having learned a painful lesson from the previous generation’s Patriarch, immediately began arranging marriages for Huo Xing Chen to ensure he fathered a large number of descendants.
Over the past decade, the Huo Family had added more than a dozen women to Huo Xing Chen’s harem, and under the intimidation of the Elders, Hou Xing Chen had diligently fulfilled his duty to expand the Huo Family.
Having to satisfy so many ‘demands’ had consumed Huo Xing Chen’s time and stamina greatly, so it was only natural his cultivation had not advanced.
“Haa… if I count them all, this Young Lord had a full fifteens concubines and wives,” Huo Xing Chen stared at Yang Kai, his face filled with a look of suffering as he grabbed his shoulders and sobbed, “If some day there is a chance, I’ll introduce them to you. Although each of them is a rare beauty, facing their combined might, this Young Master is really incapable of fighting back.”
Yang Kai looked at him with sympathy but didn’t know what to say, thinking about it for a long time before finally muttering, “My condolences…”
Inside the hall, everyone burst into laughter.
It seemed that the news of Yang Kai’s return had already spread out. Immediately after Qiu Yi Meng and Huo Xing Chen arrived, the other young Patriarchs of the Eight Great Families appeared.
Meng Family Patriarch Meng Shan Yi, Liu Family Patriarch Liu Qing Yao, Kang Family Patriarch Kang Jian, Gao Family Patriarch Gao Ren Xian, Ye Family Patriarch Ye Jing Li…
Of these five people, Yang Kai was only somewhat familiar with Meng Shan Yi and Liu Qing Yao. The other three he had barely even spoken to before.
All of them had come together after hearing that Yang Kai had returned and swept away all the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple invaders, wanting to inquire about what was to happen next.
Upon learning that Yang Kai wanted to bring the Yang Family away from the Central Capital and take them to Tong Xuan Realm, the five young Patriarchs couldn’t immediately make a decision.
Relocating their entire family was not something they could decide at will.
They also had other concerns.
During the Inheritance War, the Huo Family and Qiu Family were by far the closest to Yang Kai, with Qiu Yi Meng and Huo Xing Chen having assisted him directly. Them following Yang Kai was a given, but the other five had mostly fought against Yang Kai in the past. Now that circumstances had changed so dramatically, they weren’t certain how to position themselves.
Yang Kai extended an invitation to them casually, asking them to join him in Tong Xuan Realm.
As for what had transpired between them in the past, Yang Kai had long ago stopped caring about it. These five were also people from his homeland and helping them required very little effort for the current Yang Kai, so he didn’t hesitate to ask.
However, all five young Patriarchs said they needed to go back and negotiate with their family’s Elders before making a decision.
After these five left, before they could have a moment of calm, a steady stream of people began arriving.
All of these visitors were friends of Yang Kai who had participated in the Inheritance War.
Han Xiao Qi, Ye Han, Liu Qing Ru, and Hua Ruo Yin of Ten Thousand Flower Palace.
Feng Qian Hen of Water Moon Hall.
Zuo Fang, Li Xin Yuan of Pure Heart Palace.
Reflecting Moon Sect’s Chen Xue Shu and Su Xiao Yu.
Treasure Instrument Sect Tao Yang and Zhao Rong.
Leng Shan, Chen Yi, and Chen Ying of Ghost King Valley…
These people had all been helping to rebuild the Central Capital after Yang Kai left, causing the Yang Family to feel quite grateful and fostering close ties with each of their respective Sects. Each of them had mutually taken care of the others these past ten years and eventually, the young leaders who had been among the first ones to support Yang Kai were chosen as representatives of their respective Sects to the Yang Family and thus remained in the Central Capital all this time.
Fortunately, during the most recent disaster, none of them had suffered tragedy, all of them managing to survive.
With so many old friends meeting, the atmosphere became jubilant, the four Ten Thousand Flower Palace girls had even matured into great beauties, adding a layer of colour to the scene.
After enthusiastically exchanging greetings, Yang Kai told them about his future plans, all of them saying they would immediately return to their Sects to inform their Elders.
After they left, Yang Kai said, “Second Brother, you discuss with the Elders whether you plan to follow me or not. Please give me a reply as soon as possible though as I won’t be able to stay here for too long.”
“There’s no need to discuss anything, Ninth Brother. Since you’ve already arranged everything, the Yang Family will naturally follow you,” Yang Zhao readily agreed.
Everyone else also nodded, not a single objection being raised, the Blood Warriors all showing excited looks, openly displaying their happiness that they would be able to follow their Little Lord once more.
“Good, then have everyone pack their things, tell them to only take with them their most precious possessions. As for any cultivation materials or resources, you can leave them behind, they won’t be worth anything in Tong Xuan Realm,” Yang Kai urged them before turning his eyes to Qiu Yi Meng and Huo Xing Chen.
The Huo Family Young Lord quickly stated, “Whatever Qiu Yi Meng decides to do I will follow along with, her vision is far better than mine.”
“I must bring the Qiu Family to Tong Xuan Realm,” Qiu Yi Meng stated decisively as she shot him a glance.
Huo Xing Chen shrugged his shoulders, “Then I’ll go back and inform my old man and let our people hurry up and pack.”
Saying so, he quickly left.
“We will also get to work,” Yang Zhao stood up and ordered to the rest of the Yang Family members in the hall, “Just as Ninth Brother said, only take with you what you cannot bear to part with, the rest can be left behind.”
“Yes!” Numerous people shouted and dispersed.
Inside the hall, only Yang Kai, Li Rong, Han Fei, Qiu Yi Meng, and Luo Xiao Man remained.
“Master, we’ll be waiting outside if you need us,” Li Rong pursed her lips and smiled before walking out with Han Fei. With her eyesight, how could she have not seen the way the young girl named Qiu Yi Meng looked at Yang Kai?
It was the look of a maiden that could not hide her longing and infatuation.
Her deliberately staying behind was obviously in order to see Yang Kai alone.
“Elder Sister Qiu, I’ll also go on ahead,” Luo Xiao Man whispered before quickly following after Li Rong and Han Fei.
Inside the Elder Hall, silence fell and the atmosphere became a bit tense as Qiu Yi Meng just stared at Yang Kai without saying a word.
Yang Kai finally broke the silence in a slightly embarrassed tone, “Seeing your current appearance, you don’t seem to have gotten married yet. You’re not young anymore.”
“I was waiting for you,” Qiu Yi Meng raised her eyes, revealing her long, slender white neck.
“Don’t joke with me,” Yang Kai let out a hollow laugh.
“Do you think I’m joking?” Qiu Yi Meng coldly snorted, suddenly grinding her teeth, “I know that there are other women in your heart, and I don’t expect you to like me back… Even I know that the current gap between us is too big. I have some self-awareness!”
Yang Kai could only stare back at her helplessly.
“But you rarely come back, so I need to clearly express myself. You said to me before… You will not speak about love to me but having fun is alright!”
“I really said such feral words?” Yang Kai was stunned.
“You did!” Qiu Yi Meng angrily bit her lip as she glared at him, “You realize now what an animal you were? I thought you were still ignorant!”
“Ah… er… That was all in the past, I was young and frivolous…”
“It doesn’t matter anymore. Since you want to play, then let’s play! I don’t expect to wait for you forever, I know that’s not realistic, I don’t want to spend every day suffering like this, I just hope that I can turn your head at least once.”
“Eh…” Yang Kai was dumbstruck by Qiu Yi Meng’s bold words, unable to even answer back.
“I don’t care what you think about me, but just you wait, after we arrive in Tong Xuan Realm and everything has calmed down, I’ll let you know how fierce I can be!” Saying so, Qiu Yi Meng’s tender body flashed, appearing right in front of Yang Kai and completely disregarding whether he was willing or not, stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against his.
In the next instant, Yang Kai let out a pitiful yelp as he stumbled back feeling a burning pain from his lips.
Qiu Yi Meng turned around gracefully and gradually drifted away, her silver bell-like laughter ringing through the air, “That’s just a little bit of interest, when we get to the other side I’ll find an opportunity to get the rest of it from you as well as the capital you owe me.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help staring dumbly.
After an incense stick worth of time, Yang Kai walked out of the hall with a blank expression.
Li Rong and Han Fei, who were waiting outside, glanced over at him, then quickly turned their eyes away, their shoulders trembling lightly as they desperately tried to stifle their laughter.
“Go on, laugh, haven’t you seen a woman bite before?” Yang Kai touched his lip helplessly, feeling he had no face left at all.
“That young lady is actually quite good,” Li Rong said in a serious manner, “If she had been born in Tong Xuan Realm, her cultivation would be much higher.”
“En, this world has fettered their development!” Han Fei also agreed.
“That’s why I want to take them away from here, so they can see a wider world;” Yang Kai said profoundly, “This world is too small. Although there are more dangers over there, the conditions are still far better.”
Both women nodded in agreement.
A moment later, Yang Kai ordered, “You two temporarily remain here in the Yang Family to guard this place in order to avoid any unexpected situations.”
Li Rong was startled, “Is Master going somewhere?”
“There are still two places I need to visit.”
“Then allow either Han Fei or myself to accompany you.”
“No need, I’ll be fine on my own, with the Flying Heavens Shuttle, I’ll be perfectly safe. No one can catch up with me, especially not in this world.”
Li Rong thought about it for a moment and didn’t insist on it, only saying, “Then Master must be careful.”
“Tell my parents that after I finish my errands I’ll have lots of time to accompany them,” Yang Kai said before summoning the Flying Heavens Shuttle and soaring off in a blue flash of light, disappearing across the horizon in the blink of an eye.
After gazing in the direction of his disappearance for a moment, Li Rong and Han Fei’s figures flickered and also disappeared, the two of them flying over to the Fourth Master’s house to accompany Yang Kai parents in his place.
Medicine King’s Valley, Hidden Cloud Peak, in a flash of light, Yang Kai appeared.
He didn’t fly in directly, but stopped just below the peak and walked up.
This was the holy land in the hearts of this world’s Alchemists, where the first under Heaven Alchemy Grandmaster Xiao Fu Sheng lived. All who came here would pay special attention to etiquette as they ascended the mountain.
In the past, Yang Kai had spent some time in Medicine King’s Valley, and although he never studied the Alchemic Way under Grandmaster Xiao, the old man had taught Yang Kai many valuable lessons.
On the path that Yang Kai trod, these lessons had helped him many times.
Yang Kai genuinely respected the kind Grandmaster and the two beautiful women who served him; they had provided the best resources and support for him without the slightest reservation.
Yang Kai was extremely grateful for their generosity and the assistance they freely gave him.
This time, Yang Kai was preparing to bring the three of them to Tong Xuan Realm.
Xiao Fu Sheng’s lifelong aspiration was to refine a Spirit Grade pill, but he was shackled by this world, unable to achieve this simple wish.
However, as long as he travelled to Tong Xuan Realm, it would not be difficult to refine such a pill given Xiao Fu Sheng’s means.
Yang Kai began to walk slowly towards the summit of Hidden Cloud Peak, glancing around at the herbs which were growing beside the path, recalling the two months that he had lived there.
Reminiscing, he couldn’t help smiling.
Medicine King’s Valley had not changed much since he was last here. Wu Zheng had led his group from High Heaven Pavilion to the Central Capital, committing all kinds of outrage along the way, but it seems he had yet to reach this place.
A moment later, Yang Kai reached the peak.
As always, there were only a few simple huts scattered around.
Two mature beauties were sweeping the leaves and dust in front of one of the huts, their hair wrapped in silk scarves lest they be dirtied while they worked.
Upon hearing Yang Kai’s footsteps, the two women raised their heads and wiped the thin trace of sweat from their foreheads as they stared at him suspiciously.
“Aunt Xiang, Aunt Lan!” Yang Kai smiled widely and shouted.
“You’re…” Aunt Xiang gawked for an instant before her beautiful eyes filled with pleasant surprise, gently putting down the broom in her hands and hurriedly asked, “Yang Kai?”
“En, it’s me.”
Aunt Lan also hurried over and gently nodded as she looked him over, pursing her lips and smiling, “After so many years, I could hardly recognize you.”
“En, you look much stronger than before. You used to be just skin and bones,” Aunt Xiang greeted warmly, “Come in and sit down.”
“En.”
Inside the hut, at a simple table, Yang Kai, Aunt Xiang, and Aunt Lan sat down with three cups of light tea set before them.
Aunt Lan said, “We don’t have much to entertain with, but make yourself at home.”
“Aunt Lan is too polite,” Yang Kai drank the tea in front of him and smiled, “Although I haven’t seen you two for many years, Aunt Lan and Aunt Xiang haven’t changed at all; you’re both as young as ever.”
The two women looked at each other and smiled.
“On the other hand, your tongue has grown slick and learned to sweet talk others,” Aunt Xiang directed a teasing look towards him, “Have you cheated many young misses with it?”
“How could that be?” Yang Kai waved his hand.
“I heard that you left the Central Capital more than ten years ago for unknown lands. Did you just return?”
“En, I came back a few days ago.”
“It’s good that you’ve safely returned. Before, Grandmaster would often mention you, saying you were a rare Alchemy talent yet you clearly didn’t know anything about the Alchemic Way. All those years ago, when you first arrived, it was like you had cheated him.”
“At that time… I really didn’t understand anything. Why haven’t I seen Grandmaster? Is he in retreat underground performing Alchemy?” Yang Kai asked.
The faces of Aunt Xiang and Aunt Lan suddenly became gloomy as the smiles on their faces converged.
Yang Kai’s heart sank as a bad feeling rose within it.
“Grandmaster, he… he passed away five years ago,” Aunt Xiang spoke haltingly, her eyes becoming slightly wet as she whispered.
Yang Kai was startled and froze up, the discomfort in his heart increasing notably.
It was only at that moment that he recalled that the reason Grandmaster Xiao had suddenly decided to recruit disciples was because he realized that he did not have many years left, causing him to act so anxiously.
Even so, it was a shock to Yang Kai that he had already departed from this world five years ago.
“Grandmaster…” Yang Kai opened his mouth.
“He achieved his wish!” Aunt Xiang resisted her sadness and gently took out a jade box from her pocket, “Seven days before he passed on, he consumed the last of his vitality to successfully refine a Spirit Grade Pill. This was the last work he had left behind.”
Yang Kai accepted the jade box, feeling as if he was holding a great weight in his hands, like it was not a pill but a newborn life instead.
When he opened it, he saw a pristine Spirit Grade Pill with a rich fragrance and a potent medicinal efficacy. Even an excellent Spirit Grade Alchemist may not be able to produce such a good pill.
“Grandmaster’s departure was very serene,” Aunt Xiang wiped the cover of her eyes and somehow squeezed out a smile, “Therefore we don’t need to feel sad for him. Before he passed on though, Grandmaster said that Spirit Grade was not the peak of Alchemy, and that there must be a grade above Spirit Grade.”
Yang Kai’s body shook as he was secretly surprised by Xiao Fu Sheng’s astonishing vision.
At this moment, Yang Kai seemed to understand why Xiao Fu Sheng was so determined to refine a Spirit Grade Pill. His goal wasn’t to increase his own Alchemy skills, but rather to break through the shackles of this world with his own power.
And he had succeeded.
A Spirit Grade pill, which had never been seen in this world, had been refined by him.
“Where is Grandmaster buried?” Yang Kai looked up and asked.
Aunt Xiang got up and said, “Come with me.”
In a secluded area of Hidden Cloud Peak, not far from the summit, stood a small mound of earth.
It was hard to believe that such a simple grave was actually the burial place of this world’s greatest Alchemist.
“Everything was done in accordance with Grandmaster’s wishes. Grandmaster’s bones are not here, instead he was cremated and his ashes scattered across the nearby rivers and lakes, returning him to nature. There are only a few of his memorabilia buried here.”
Yang Kai knelt in worship as Aunt Xiang stood behind him and explained.
“Grandmaster would certainly be very happy if he knew you, his in-name disciple, had come here,” Aunt Xiang covered her mouth and spoke through the tears she could no longer hold back, Aunt Lan also sobbing nearby.
“This is what I should do,” Yang Kai nodded gently.
……
Half a day later, atop Hidden Cloud Peak, Yang Kai said goodbye to Aunt Xiang and Aunt Lan.
“Will the two of you really not consider it? From now on it may not be peaceful here anymore. This world has already been connected to a place called Tong Xuan Realm. In the future, there may be many masters with strength beyond anything you can imagine arriving here,” Yang Kai made one last attempt to persuade.
He wanted to bring these two women who had taken such good care of him in the past back to the Central Capital and then on to Tong Xuan Realm, but they had actually refused his kindness and insisted on staying here.
“No, we have lived here all our lives and don’t wish to move anywhere else… Grandmaster is here too, we should remain here to accompany him. If we were to leave, he would be all alone.”
“You thinking so much of us is more than enough.”
Yang Kai could only sigh helplessly.
The determination of these two was firm, Yang Kai could tell. He knew that it was useless to try to persuade them anymore so he simply said, “Then in the future, when I have time, I’ll certainly come back here to visit you. Right, if someone dares to come here looking for trouble, report my name to them, perhaps it will be useful.”
“En, we know,” Aunt Xiang smiled and nodded.
“Then do take care!” Yang Kai sincerely cupped his fists and bowed before turning and descending the mountain.
“You too must act carefully. Don’t become overconfidence,” Aunt Xiang and Aunt Lan waved to him from the top of the peak.
Below Hidden Cloud Peak, Yang Kai carefully placed the jade box containing the Spirit Grade Pill refined by Xiao Fu Sheng inside the Black Book space before summoning the Flying Heavens Shuttle and flying off towards the west.
His next destination was the Ash-Grey Cloud Evil Land.
He had left the Central Capital this time mainly to visit two places, one was Medicine King’s Valley and the other was the Ash-Grey Cloud Evil Land.
He was going to see Shan Qing Luo.
This bewitching woman had always been very good to Yang Kai, and during the final battle with the Demon Lord, she had provided him much assistance.
The most important point though was that Yang Kai had engraved himself on her heart, forging a bond between them that could not be erased.
Since he had finally come back, naturally Yang Kai wanted to bring her to Tong Xuan Realm, lest she be bullied here.
As for what she wanted to do once they reached Tong Xuan Realm, Yang Kai did not plan on restraining her.
Two hours later, Yang Kai arrived outside Fragrance City.
This city was arguably the most prosperous place in the entire Ash-Grey Cloud Evil Land and was the territory under Shan Qing Luo’s direct jurisdiction.
When the Demon Lord and most of the six Great Evil Kings died, the entire Ash-Grey Cloud Evil Land had been plunged into chaos; only Fragrance City was not affected because the Beguiling Demon Queen returned.
The stability of this city stood in stark contrast to the rest of the Ash-Grey Cloud Evil Land which was filled with slaughter and death.
Many cultivators who didn’t want to spend all their time fighting or running would come to Fragrance City to seek a different way of life, creating great prosperity which in turn attracted more people to come.
Upon arriving here, Yang Kai began to drag his feet as he pondered about what kind of attitude to use when he saw this enchantress again.
This seductress was simply too alluring. If she behaved affectionately and spoiled him, Yang Kai wasn’t certain he would be able to endure. If he couldn’t resist her charms, his ‘innocence’ would be at great risk.
Moreover, Yang Kai knew she would not hesitate to act this way.
After a short delay, Yang Kai arrived in front of Shan Qing Luo’s palace in Fragrance City.
At the entrance to the palace, there was a ragged beggar who was leaning against the wall, clasping his hands in front of him as he closed his eyes. His image was quite awkward, his hair was messy and his beard unkept, as if he had not groomed himself for many years.
Everyone who passed by pretended to not see him, clearly feeling it would troublesome to get involved with him.
Yang Kai glanced at him casually before his mouth curled into a strange smile. Slowly walking over while ignoring his stench, Yang Kai soon arrived in front of him.
When the noon sunlight was obscured by Yang Kai’s figure, the beggar opened his eyes slightly and looked up for a moment before soon closing them again and ignoring him.
It was as if he didn’t even see Yang Kai or was just pretending he didn’t exist.
Yang Kai however just grinned and lightly spoke, “Hello, Shadow King!”
The beggar’s body trembled as his eyes shot open, a trace of profound light flashing across the depths of his pupils. It seemed like it wasn’t until this moment that he recognized Yang Kai, his expression changing greatly and lightning surging up from his skinny body. In the next instant, his figure flickered and disappeared.
Yang Kai didn’t react excessively, simply turning his gaze in the direction the beggar disappeared, lightly sneering before shooting off in pursuit.
In the sky above Fragrance City, the beggar rapidly sped along, turning his head back anxiously in the direction of the palace but failing to find any trace of the young man. While desperately looking around for a trace of the youth, he suddenly noticed another person flying right beside him, his eyes bulging in shock.
“You…” The beggar stared dumbfounded, his face going completely pale as if he had just seen a ghost. He couldn’t believe that someone could actually surpass his speed.
He was proudest of his instant acceleration and rapid speed and truly thought that no one in the world could match him. Even the Demon Lord, Yang Bai, who was acknowledged as the strongest cultivator in this world, had nothing but praise for his speed.
However, this young man, even after giving him a head start, had instantly caught up with him, and from the looks of it, he wasn’t even using his full strength.
How could he not be shocked?
“Shadow King, don’t waste your energy, it’s impossible for you to escape!” Yang Kai coldly snorted as a burning power erupted from his body and surged out like an invisible punch, slamming into the beggar’s body, sending the latter miserably tumbling through the air.
After managing to stabilize himself, the Shadow King stood mid-air, his expression fluctuation as he stared at Yang Kai with dread, a deep sense of unwillingness flashing across his face.
He hadn’t expected that not only would he be inferior to the other side in terms of speed, but also in terms of strength. The casual blow just now had made him painfully aware of the huge gap between them, causing his will to escape to dampen significantly.
It was just like the other party had said, in the face of absolute power, any resistance was futile.
The energy fluctuations that spread out alarmed all of Fragrance City’s cultivators down below, each of them raising their heads to see what was happening.
After catching sight of the two figures floating high up in the sky, many people called out in surprise.
“Hey, isn’t that the beggar who is always in front of the Demon Queen’s palace?”
“Yeah, he sits there in front of the door all day; I don’t know how Lady Demon Queen endures him.”
“If it was me, I would have driven him away long ago.”
“Looking at him now though, it’s obvious he’s no simple beggar… How could someone so powerful have fallen into such a destitute state?”
“Rather, who is that young man with him. Doesn’t he seem even more powerful?”
“…”
The exclamations continued as Fragrance City’s cultivators moved closer to the pair, wanting to see more clearly, and soon, the streets below and the nearby roofs were full of people. There were even some more courageous cultivators who flew up into the air and gathered around, hoping there would be a good show to watch.
Yang Kai turned a blind eye to this, the strength of these Fragrance City cultivators was nothing to him.
“Yang Family little brat, do you really insist on ruthlessly killing to the last?” The beggars face filled with grief and indignation as he sorrowfully shouted.
“It’s not that I want to act ruthlessly,” Yang Kai slowly shook his head, “I’m just curious why the Lightning Flash Shadow King, one of the six Great Evil Kings, is actually dressed up as a beggar and loitering around Fragrance City.”
“Lightning Flash Shadow King?” Many of the spectators called out in shock upon hearing this name.
“It couldn’t be, right?”
“That beggar is actually Lightning Flash Shadow King?”
“Now that I look at him, he does bear some resemblance…”
“It really is Lightning Flash Shadow King that disappeared more than ten years ago! We all thought he was dead but it turns out he’s alive and living in Fragrance City!”
“Oh shit, when I passed by him a few days ago, I actually spat on him… Isn’t that no different from killing myself?” One man shouted, paling with fright.
“I also kicked his foot once… Do you think Lord Shadow King will find me to settle accounts?” Someone else stuttered.
The nearby cultivators all cast these people sympathetic looks, as if they were paying tribute to the dead, causing those who had just spoken to become even more terrified.
“Fortunately, when I passed by him last time, I tossed him some money! It seems my charitable heart has finally won me some good fortune, hahaha!” While some people were panicking when the beggar’s true identity was revealed, others were actually celebrating, the peoples’ moods varying greatly among the crowd.
Lightning Flash Shadow King, together with Thunderbolt Beast King, Annihilating Poison King, Profound Yin Ghost King, Tyrannical Force King, and Beguiling Demon Queen were known as the Six Great Evil Kings.
Before the appearance of the Demon Lord, the entire Ash-Grey Cloud Evil Land had been ruled by the six of them, with the Central Capital as their common enemy.
During the Central Capital’s catastrophe a decade ago, the six Great Evil Kings, led by Demon Lord Yang Bai, had turned out in full force to crusade against the Eight Great Families.
However, at the end of the battle, Yang Bai died and the Six Great Evil Kings suffered heavy losses. Besides Shan Qing Luo who managed to escape without a scratch, the other five Evil Kings suffered terrible losses, four of them dying while only Lightning Flash Shadow King managed to flee.
Since then, no one had heard anything about him.
Many people said that he had died from his wounds, while others thought he had secluded himself in some remote mountain to hide.
After all, the Central Capital had many powerful masters left, if he dared to show up, he would no doubt be targeted.
No one could have imagined that he had actually disguised himself as a beggar and hidden inside Fragrance City, enduring humiliation every day in order to live on dishonourably.
If Yang Kai had not come to Fragrance City today to find Shan Qing Luo, it was quite possible his identity would never have been exposed.
He might have been able to deceive others, but there was no way he could conceal himself from Yang Kai’s senses.
A Second-Order Transcendent was already the highest level of master in this world; it would have been strange for Yang Kai to not notice him.
“Yang Family little brat, I am already no longer the Lightning Flash Shadow King and am no longer an enemy of your Central Capital Eight Great Families. I only want to live out the rest of my life in peace, why must you act so aggressive towards me?” Shadow King shouted.
“If that’s true, why are you disguising yourself while sitting outside Shan Qing Luo’s palace? What exactly are you plotting against her?” Yang Kai coldly snorted.
“Plotting against her?” Shadow King gawked before grumbling, “Aren’t you misunderstanding things? The reason I can stay in front of her palace is because I reached an agreement with her. Why else do you think I would be sitting here?”
“She agreed to let you stay here?” Yang Kai frowned before waving his hand, sending out a golden rope that directly tied up the Shadow King, “Whether or not that’s true, we’ll soon see. If it turns out you’re lying to me, today you will die without a doubt.”
Shadow King tried to struggle, but quickly discovered that this True Qi rope was not something he could break; on top of that, his own True Qi was being sealed, causing him a great deal of panic, as if he hadn’t imagined that Yang Kai’s strength had already reached such a frightening height.
Realizing this, he urgently called out, “You won’t find her here, she’s no longer in Fragrance City.”
“Not here?” Yang Kai’s brow furrowed even deeper as he released his Divine Sense across the entire city, soon discovering there really was no trace of Shan Qing Luo’s aura, a hint of loneliness welling up in his heart.
“Where did she go?”
“There are still a few people inside the palace, you can ask them,” Lightning Flash Shadow King grumbled unhappily.
“Good!” Yang Kai nodded, pulling the Shadow King along as he flew into Shan Qing Luo’s palace.
Fragrance City’s cultivators were left dumbfounded by everything they had just witnessed and were unable to calm down for quite some time.
The Evil Kings were the greatest powerhouses of the Ash-Grey Cloud Evil Land, each one of them synonymous with ‘supreme’; but now, some unknown youth that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere had actually defeated and captured one of those Evil Kings.
What’s more, he had accomplished this feat as easily as if he were pinching a turtle.
This made all of them feel as if they were dreaming, many cultivators rubbing their eyes or even pinching themselves to determine if all of this had been some kind of dream or illusion.
However, all they saw the gradually disappearing Yang Kai and Lightning Flash Shadow King.
Inside the palace, several of the maids had overheard the ruckus outside and rushed out just in time to see Yang Kai enter.
When they saw who this intruder was, all of them called out in shock.
The mature beauty Yun Li and the maid sisters Ruo Yu and Ruo Qing, the three Shan Qing Luo had sent to attend to Yang Kai, were the ones who had come out.
“Young Master Yang?” Yun Li covered her mouth and cried out.
Yang Kai smiled and nodded.
“Senior Shadow King… how did you…” Yun Li looked over at the distressed Lightning Flash Shadow King with a confused expression.
“I’ll have to trouble you to explain to this Yang Family little brat that it was your Mistress who agreed to to let me stay in Fragrance City,” Lightning Flash Shadow King grumbled unhappily.
Yang Kai turned to Yun Li and said, “You don’t need to fear him, just speak the truth.”
Yun Li smiled helplessly and nodded, “Young Master Yang, it was indeed Demon Queen who agreed to him staying here on the condition that he guarded the palace. Since Mistress left all those years ago, Senior Shadow King has been secretly guarding all of Fragrance City ensuring that no turmoil occurs. Outsiders don’t even know that Mistress Demon Queen is gone, all of them believe she is just in secluded retreat.”
Yang Kai was somewhat surprised and knit his brow, but since Yun Li had said so, it meant that Shadow King had not lied to him. Releasing the Imprisoning Heaven Chain casually, Yang Kai continued, “You said a moment ago that Shan Qing Luo left Fragrance City a long time ago, yes? Where did she go?”
Yun Li, Ruo Yu, and Ruo Qing all shook their heads, “We don’t know where Mistress went, but before she left, she seemed to mention something to Senior Shadow King, so he should have some idea.”
Yang Kai glanced over at Lightning Flash Shadow King indifferently.
Shadow King seemed to mutter a few curses under his breath before angrily reporting, “Shan Qing Luo said that she was going to look for you. As for what her exact destination was, she didn’t say.”
“Looking for me? She should have known I wasn’t in the Central Capital anymore, how did she intend to find me?”
“She didn’t go to the Central Capital to find you. Before she left she spoke some strange words, something about a higher level world, similar to what Yang Bai said in the past.”
Yang Kai trembled, suddenly remembering that when he had left he had told some things to Shan Qing Luo.
“When did she leave?”
“Two years after you disappeared. She said that you still had her Soul Seeking Seal on you, so as long as she could arrive in the world you had gone to, she would be able to easily find you.”
Yang Kai nodded, confirming that what Shadow King was saying was true.
Shan Qing Luo placing her Soul Seeking Seal on him was something only the two of them knew about, so the only way Shadow King could have learned about it was if Shan Qing Luo had mentioned it to him.
“What about Bi Luo?”
“She also left with Mistress.”
Yang Kai sighed helplessly.
He hadn’t anticipated that this seductress would actually leave the Ash-Grey Cloud Evil Land in order to search for him, even seeking a way into the higher world.
He didn’t know if she succeeded either. If she did, that would mean she was also in Tong Xuan Realm; but if that was the case, why hadn’t she come to see him after so long?
Yang Kai had completely lost any clues about her.
Understanding the depths of this devilish woman’s emotional entanglement with him, Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling somewhat moved. At first, when she was constantly pestering him, Yang Kai couldn’t wait to shove her away, but now that he was actually unable to see her, he actually felt somewhat desolate.
At that same time, Yang Kai felt a sense of guilt towards her.
“There, I’ve told you everything I know. If you’re going to kill me, just get it over with,” Shadow King coldly snorted, seemingly resigned to his fate.
Inside the Beguiling Demon Queen’s palace, Lightning Flash Shadow King proudly stood with an unyielding look filling his face.
Glancing over at him, Yang Kai simply waved his hand and said, “Go, I have no interest in killing you.”
Shadow King was stunned by this and stared towards Yang Kai, seemingly not having imagined he would let him go.
Over the past decade, he had constantly been disguising himself as a lowly beggar because he was afraid that the masters from the Central Capital would seek him out. Now that he had accidentally fallen into Yang Kai’s hands, did he really have a chance to survive?
“Haven’t left yet?” Yang Kai snorted.
Shadow King grit his teeth as the veins on his forehead throbbed. He was once a supreme ruler, the Lightning Flash Shadow King who struck fear into the hearts of this entire world’s common people, yet now he was actually so despised by the young man in front of him, deemed not even worth the effort to kill. Never before had he felt so humiliated.
In his heart, the idea of going all out with Yang Kai began to rise.
But in the end, he endured it and coldly snapped, “Shang Qing Luo went to the Spider Mother’s den before leaving, apparently she found something of interest there. If you’re planning to search for her, you might find some clues there.”
After saying so, Shadow King shot off like lightning and disappeared.
“The Spider Mother’s Den…” Yang Kai muttered to himself. Naturally, he remembered this place. It was where the Seventh-Order Monster Beast, the Spider Mother lived.
The Spider Mother was the only Seventh-Order Monster Beast in this entire world.
Shan Qing Luo’s Poison Widow Body special constitution originated from her, as did the life threatening toxin which plagued her lineage. The only cure to this poison was the Spider Mother’s monster core.
“Young Master Yang…” Yun Li called out, “Are you going to find Mistress Demon Queen?”
“I’ll go take a look. She’s not necessarily there, en, she should be long gone in fact.”
“En, then Young Master Yang must take care along the way,” Yun Li, Ruo Yu, and Ruo Qing nodded lightly, not making any attempt to dissuade him.
Yang Kai swept his eyes over them and suddenly asked, “Your Mistress is no longer here, so why do you remain?”
Yun Li smiled mirthlessly, “Where can we go? As long as we stay here at least we don’t have to worry about having a place to sleep, but if we were to leave, with our appearances and strength, Young Master Yang should be clear of the consequences.”
This mature woman and two young girls were all quite beautiful and their strength wasn’t very high, if they left the safety of this palace and travelled outside, they would no doubt degenerate into playthings for unscrupulous men.
“If I offered to take you away, would you accept?” Yang Kai asked on the spur of the moment.
Yun Li eyes brightened as she exchanged a quick glance with Ruo Yu and Ruo Qing before all three of them nodded, “Yes, we would happily accept Young Master Yang’s offer. If we travel with you, perhaps one day we may reunite with Mistress and continue to serve her.”
“Then go tidy up your affairs and pack, I’ll return as soon as possible to pick you up. Right, if I recall correctly, there should be other maids besides you three, yes? Ask them if they wish to come as well,” Yang Kai instructed before departing.
Half an hour later, above the Spider Mother’s Den.
Yang Kai stood high up in the air and overlooked the giant spider statue down below.
He had never thought about it before, but staring at it now, more than a decade later, he couldn’t help wondering how this giant spider statue came to exist, suddenly feeling like something was unusual about it.
There used to be countless giant spiders here as well as the Spider Mother herself, but in the end, they were just Monster Beasts, so it was impossible for them to have built such a statue.
Moreover, this statue seemed to be quite ancient, staring at its weather worn traces, Yang Kai estimated that it was at least ten thousand years old.
At this moment, there were no signs of activity inside the Spider Mother’s lair. After the death of the Spider Mother, the giant spiders who lived here had apparently scattered, so when Yang Kai arrived, he did not see any traces of life at all.
Landing, Yang Kai walked up to the front of the statue and entered into its giant maw.
Inside the statue, there was a huge space, covered in spider webs with a thick layer of dust spread across its floor. Obviously no one had come here for many years.
Yang Kai was looking around when something suddenly caught his eye. Turning towards a certain location, he saw a kind of altar with a strange chart or formation carved onto its surface. In addition, there were some dark stains in various places atop the alter.
Yang Kai instantly recognized the dark stains as dried up old blood.
This altar was not very big, at most large enough to accommodate two or three people standing on top of it. Yang Kai examined it carefully and quickly discovered two distinct sets of footprints that, because of the dried bloodstains had not been erased by time.
Were these two sets of footprints left behind by Shan Qing Luo and Bi Luo?
Yang Kai couldn’t be certain about these footprints, but he was certain that there were traces of Void Energy lingering about this alter.
The altar had been damaged, with many cracks running across it. When Yang Kai reached out and touched it, even though he didn’t use any strength at all, the alter actually crumbled to pieces.
Staring blankly at the scene in front of him, Yang Kai heart pounded.
From the strange chart engraved onto it and the remnant Void Energy aura, it was not difficult for Yang Kai to conclude that this was once the entrance to a Void Corridor.
If the two pairs of blood-stained footprints were really left behind by Shan Qing Luo and Bi Luo, they must have left this world through that Void Corridor.
But where did they go?
When he last separated from this devilish woman, she was only a First-Order Transcendent! That kind of strength was nothing in Tong Xuan Realm.
After inspecting it for a while, yet not discovering any other useful clues, Yang Kai left the giant spider statue and flew up into the air, lifting his palm towards the sky.
Heaven Covering Hand!
A huge palm descended from the sky and landed on the spider statue, shattering the rocks and collapsing it entirely, dust flying as it was buried underground forever.
Yang Kai’s mood was quite complicated
When he left the Central Capital earlier today, he had planned to visit two places and bring the people there back with him to Tong Xuan Realm, but Xiao Fu Sheng of Medicine King’s Valley had passed away and Aunt Xiang and Aunt Lan were unwilling to leave him, while Shan Qing Luo had actually left Fragrance City long ago and was nowhere to be found.
He had failed to achieve anything he had set out to do.
Helpless to do anything about all this, Yang Kai returned to Fragrance City just as Yun Li and the other maids finished their preparations. In addition to Ruo Yu, and Ruo Qing, there were indeed two other maids staying in the palace, all of whom Yang Kai brought back with him to the Central Capital.
After half a day, he once again returned to the Yang Family.
Seeing Yang Kai bring back five beauties, the expressions of Li Rong and Han Fei suddenly became strange.
Yang Kai was too lazy to explain to them and simply asked his father to make arrangements for Yun Li and the others. Before finding Shan Qing Luo again, these five women would serve as Yang Family maids.
Yang Ying Feng easily agreed.
“Yang Kai!”
“Cousin!”
Two voices suddenly called out and when Yang Kai turned around to see who it was, he found Dong Qing Han and Dong Qing Yan running over towards him.
Fatty Dong wasn’t fat anymore; having lost what seemed to be several dozen kilograms, leaving behind a tall and imposing figure.
Dong Qing Yan on the other hand had matured into a woman. What should be big was big, and what should be small was small, making for quite a pretty picture.
Yang Kai’s mood instantly brightened as he smiled warmly.
When he came back a few days ago, he had met many old friends, but he had not actually seen anyone from the Dong Family. It wasn’t until today that his two cousins had appeared in front of him.
Dong Qing Yan rushed over, her beautiful eyes looking Yang Kai over as she smiled, “Cousin, after ten years of not seeing you, you’ve become more handsome.”
“And your mouth has become quite sweet,” Yang Kai nodded with satisfaction, but how could he have imagined that Dong Qing Yan would grin mischievously and stretch out her hand towards him, “So what kind of gift does cousin have for me to commemorate our reunion?”
Yang Kai was stunned.
Fatty Dong just laughed as he stared at Yang Kai, clearly taking pleasure in his misfortune.
“I’ll give you this,” Yang Kai took out a single piece of Crystal Stone and handed it over to Dong Qing Yan, saying in a serious tone, “This is a rare and precious treasure. It contains a lot of pure energy that can be directly absorbed and transformed into True Qi, it is extremely beneficial whether it is used to restore oneself or to cultivate.”
Dong Qing Yan’s eyes lit up as she tightly gripped the piece of Crystal Stone and praised liberally, “This thing is so pretty, just like a huge gem. Is cousin really giving this to me?”
“Do you think cousin will try to take back the gifts he sends out?”
“Thank you, cousin!” Dong Qing Yan cried out happily, carefully storing the Crystal Stone into her purse, a look of satisfaction on her face.
Seeing this, Li Rong and Han Fei, who were standing nearby, didn’t have the heart to see this young girl deceived by Yang Kai and quickly explained to her that Crystal Stones were just ordinary items, slowly shaking their heads as they laughed lightly.
“Little sister, go outside the play for a bit, I have something to discuss with Yang Kai,” Dong Qing Han shot Dong Qing Yan a meaningful glance.
“Hmph, trying to be mysterious, obviously you’re not going to discuss anything good,” Dong Qing Yan snorted and quickly dashed off.
When it was just the two cousins, Dong Qing Han’s expression became serious as he stared at Yang Kai and asked, “I heard that you want to bring the entire Yang Family to a place called Tong Xuan Realm.”
“En, what does your Dong Family intend to do? My mother should have passed on the relevant information to you, yes?”
“After receiving Aunt and Uncle’s message, I hurried over. The rest of the Dong Family is currently packing up and preparing to accompany your Yang Family,” Dong Qing Han asked solemnly, “Is this information really reliable?”
“Do you believe I’d let my entire family go with me if it weren’t? I’m not one to play such distasteful pranks,” Yang Kai raised his brow.
“Naturally I understand that, it’s just… Suddenly having to leave our homes and travel to some unknown place is really somewhat nerve-wracking.”
“You’ll slowly get used to it,” Yang Kai comforted, “When I first arrived on the other side, I also felt quite lost, but there were many more wonderful things and opportunities over there for us young people.”
“Haha!” Dong Qing Han laughed, “I was just asking casually. Since Qiu Yi Meng decided to go with you, there shouldn’t be an issue. Frankly speaking, I believe in the Qiu Family’s First Young Lady’s vision more than cousin’s words.”
Yang Kai was dumbstruck.
“When does your Yang Family plan to depart?”
“As soon as possible, the journey will be quite long. From here to our destination, it will be at least three to four months. If there are delays on the road, it could take even longer.”
“So long?” Dong Qing Han gawked.
“The vastness of Tong Xuan Realm is far beyond your imagination. Since that’s the case, there’s no need for your Dong Family to meet up with the Yang Family in the Central Capital; it would be best if you sent them a letter telling them to head to High Heaven Pavilion after they finish packing. I will be bringing the Yang Family people there as well.”
“Good.” Dong Qing Han nodded firmly, “I’ll go arrange it.”
The Central Capital quickly became busy, with the Yang Family, Qiu Family, and Huo Family all packing their things in preparation to depart. Although Yang Kai had told him to pack lightly, the simple act of trying to organize so many people was quite time-consuming.
Yang Kai waited for ten days in the Central Capital before everyone was ready to set out.
With one order, three great families, nearly a thousand people, marched out of the Central Capital towards High Heaven Pavilion.
Of course, there were more than these three families consisted of more than a thousand people, but there were naturally some who were unwilling to leave the Central Capital and others who volunteered to stay behind. The Yang Family had the most departing, with approximately ninety percent of the family following Yang Kai. Only some of the elders and their families who weren’t willing to travel such long distances remained.
As for the Huo Family and Qiu Family, only about half of each decided to leave, only the younger generation and those who were willing to follow Huo Xing Chen and Qiu Yi Meng joined the caravan.
Yang Kai’s close friends were also part of this team. They had already sent word back to their Sects. As for how their forces would decide to act, that was up to their respective leaders and Elders.
Yang Kai had told them that anyone who was willing to follow him back to Tong Xuan Realm could go directly to High Heaven Pavilion. He was planning on waiting in High Heaven Pavilion for a while so there was no great rush.
Outside the Central Capital, a long stretch of people streamed out of the gates, with many people gathering around, watching them leave, complex looks upon their faces.
Most of these people were members of the other five great families in the Central Capital.
“Brother Meng, was it really the correct choice for us to stay?” The Kang Family Patriarch, Kang Jian asked, a hesitant and slightly envious look upon his face as he watched the thousand-person convoy gradually drift away.
These people were headed to a higher world, where they would surely achieve greater things, yet they chose to stay behind in the Central Capital and not get involved.
The Meng Family Patriarch, Meng Shan Yi shook his head and sighed, “I don’t know if staying here is the correct choice or not, it’s just… We don’t have much friendship with Yang Kai. Following him to the other side might not be any better than us remaining here. If he has access to good resources and treasures, he will definitely give priority to the Yang, Qiu, and Huo Families while perhaps not minding about our five families at all. There’s even a chance he might intentionally exclude or forcefully annex us.”
“What Brother Meng said is right,” The Ye Family Patriarch, Ye Jing nodded, “It was because we had such concerns that we refused his invitation, I believe he understands this too, which is why he did not insist.”
“Could it be that we’re just thinking too much? Since that place is a higher-level world, couldn’t it be that our strength and resources now mean nothing to Yang Kai?” Kang Jian hesitated, “Perhaps he invited us this time simply because it didn’t matter to him whether we accepted or not.”
“What use is wondering about such things? We’ve already rejected his offer, or what, do you want to chase after him now?”
“Brother Liu, what do you think?” The Gao Family Patriarch, Gao Rang Xian turned his eyes to Liu Qing Yao and asked.
Liu Qing Yao had once been the strongest master among their generation in the Central Capital, so his opinion still carried some weight.
“I have no opinion,” Liu Qing Yao slowly shook his head, refusing to say any more.
…..
Ten kilometres outside the Central Capital, Yang Kai, Huo Xing Chen, and Qiu Yi Meng were walking side by side.
Huo Xing Chen suddenly glanced back and asked, “Young Lord Kai, are you just going to ignore those people?”
“What do you want me to do? If they don’t want to follow me, am I supposed to force them? People have their own paths; just let them do as they please.”
“En, this is their choice, why take it to heart?” Qiu Yi Meng shot a glance over at Huo Xing Chen.
Huo Xing Chen let out a hollow laugh, “I just had their best interests at heart. All of us lived together for so many years, yet now we’re suddenly separating, I guess I was feeling a bit reluctant is all… En, anyways, enough about them, Young Lord Kai, let me introduce you to my fifteen wives and concubines. All of them are quite interested in meeting you and have been asking me to introduce them.”
Yang Kai’s face went black, “That’s all right.”
Meeting more than a dozen young ladies was nothing but a hassle for him, and if they were expected him to deliver gifts on first meeting…
“How could you say that? If you don’t greet them, they’ll definitely find me tonight to settle accounts!” Huo Xing Chen shouted.
Helpless, Yang Kai prepared to handle this mess when suddenly, his brow furrowed and he turned his eyes towards a certain direction, his expression gradually becoming dignified.
“Master!” Li Rong called out solemnly.
“I know,” Yang Kai nodded before hurriedly saying, “Brother Huo, Qiu Yi Meng, you two continue leading the group forward, I’ll be right back!”
Saying so, his figure flickered and disappeared.
Li Rong and Han Fei exchanged a glance before quickly keeping up.
Qiu Yi Meng and Huo Xing Chen were both startled and remained in place, not knowing why Yang Kai had suddenly run off.
“Where did Kai’er go?” Dong Su Zhu walked up and asked.
“I don’t know, it was as if he suddenly discovered something,” Qiu Yi Meng replied pensively.
“Could it be some kind of danger?” Dong Su Zhu asked worriedly.
“Please relax Aunty, Yang Kai has those two masters with him. Although I’m not entirely clear on those two’s strength, they should both be very powerful,” Qiu Yi Meng smiled and comforted.
Listening to her, Dong Su Zhu also relaxed slightly.
Yang Ying Feng laughed and nodded, “Our son is a grown man now, will you always keep worrying about him? Whatever it is he left to do, Kai’er has his own sense of discretion.”
The convoy continued moving forward, and besides the few people who were nearby who saw Yang Kai leave, no one else realized anything had happened.
A hundred kilometres away.
A blood-red light and a black light were rapidly approaching the caravan.
The speed of these two lights was extremely high, and it was obvious their strength was not low. As they sped along, they unscrupulously exuded a shocking malevolent aura, causing the vegetation beneath them to wilt, as if they had experienced long years of decay, their vitality rapidly draining.
All those who perceived the horrifying Demonic Qi from this pair froze up in fear, their wills nearly collapsing just from their mere presence.
Such terrible Demonic Qi was not something this world’s cultivators could withstand.
“Oh…” An exclamation came out and immediately after the black shadow came to a halt, revealing a tall and sturdily built man that gave off an imposing aura like that of a great mountain.
The blood-red shadow also came to a halt beside him, revealing a graceful woman.
“Did someone beat us here?” The grand man frowned, showing a curious expression, “Moreover, it seems to be someone from my Demon Race, could it be Gou Che?”
The woman shook her head, “Unlikely, if Gou Che wanted to come here, he would definitely have moved together with us, how could he act alone?”
“It’s not Gou Che? Then who else among my Demon Race has such a cultivation?” The man showed a confused look, but soon after his brow furrowed, “No, that’s not all, there’s also a human approaching… But this human’s aura, why do I feel like it’s somewhat familiar?”
Muttering to himself, the man sunk into thought but couldn’t remember where he had met this human before.
Just as he was beginning to doubt himself, the expression of the graceful figured woman beside him changed greatly, “I know who’s coming.”
“Who?”
The woman sneered softly, “The road of life is truly narrow… it turns out to be her.”
“Explain clearly!” The man shouted impatiently.
The woman glanced over at him coldly and snorted, “Do you still remember the incident two or three years ago where I was injured?”
The man’s lips curled into a sneer, clearly taking pleasure in the woman’s misfortune, “You mean when you ran off to the Human Territory without authorization and were injured by one of those Human Race masters? Naturally, I remember, but so what? What does that have to do with the person approaching?”
The woman gnashed her teeth, “How is it related? The person who I was fighting with at that time was her! Clearly, she belongs to my Demon Race yet she actually pledged allegiance to a mere human boy, it’s an utter disgrace!”
The man’s brow rose as he grinned fiendishly, “Looks like today you’ll have a chance for revenge!”
The woman’s tone dropped as she bluntly stated, “She’s not weak. At the time, she was only a Second-Order Saint yet she was able to fight evenly with me.”
“How can that be? Were you sleepwalking at the time or something?” The man’s expression changed greatly, “You are a Demon General, how could you possibly be matched by an opponent an entire Minor Realm below you?”
“That woman is different from other people. If I’m not mistaken, she should be a member of ‘that’ clan.”
“Which clan?”
The woman glanced at him faintly and solemnly said, “The clan which directly served under the Great Demon God!”
The man paled as a look of hesitation appeared on his face; it seemed the mere mention of that clan was enough to illicit dread, “Are you sure she belongs to that clan?”
“You think after fighting her I wouldn’t be able to tell? The Divine Ability she used was definitely the Demon God Transformation that Great Demon God passed to that clan!”
“This is really strange, does that clan’s bloodline actually still exist?” The expression of the man is gradually brightened, as if he had just discovered a rare treasure, his eyes filling with greed.
“Meng Ge, are you interested in her?” The woman shot him a glance and asked seemingly casually.
“I have no interest in her, but I am interested in that Demon God Transformation!” The man named Meng Ge smiled lowly.
“I also have some interest in it,” The woman chuckled, “How about this, you and I will collaborate. There are three people coming, two of them belong to that clan while the last one is a human boy, the two of us can each take one of those two, as for the human…”
“You’re also interested in that human?” Meng Ge was looking at her with surprise before suddenly becoming vigilant, “Xue Li, what kind of wicked scheme are you up to? What is it about that human that makes him worthy of your attention?”
With his understanding of this snake woman, if this human didn’t have something special about him, it was impossible for her to even bother with him. This human was only a Third Order Transcendent, in front of two Demon Generals, he was no different from an ant, someone that could be casually slaughtered at will.
Xue Li laughed pleasantly, “Meng Ge, you’re thinking too much. Actually, that human was the one who escaped from my Sand City that year, causing this Queen to lose a great deal of face, I want to take him back with me and torture him well to sooth the hate in my heart.”
Meng Ge was startled by her response but soon recalled such an incident.
In the past, a human boy had actually managed to escape from Sand City which was governed by Xue Li. This matter had made noise around the Demon Land for a while, causing Xue Li to become a laughing stock amongst the other Demon Generals. Every time they met, they would taunt her about it, annoying her to no end.
“Do as you like,” Meng Ge waved impatiently, “As long as you don’t harm my interests, I don’t care what you do. If you do though, don’t blame me for being impolite.”
Xue Li nodded with satisfaction, a cunning light subtly flashing across the depths of her beautiful eyes.
While it was true that Xue Li was annoyed over the fact that this human brat had escaped from Sand City, her real objective was the Demon God Golden Blood in his body! This secret was one Xue Li had not told anyone.
As long as she could catch him and absorb the Demon God Golden Blood in his veins, Xue Li had confidence she could defeat the current Demon Commander and become the ruler of the Demon Land, the first female ruler of the whole Demon Land.
How glorious would that be?!
When she thought about this bright future, Xue Li’s blood began to boil.
“They’re coming right to us, it seems their courage isn’t small,” Meng Ge lightly sneered, standing mid-air in a relaxed stance, not showing any intent to escape.
With two Demon Generals here, they had nothing to fear.
“It’s Xue Li!” Yang Kai muttered as the distance between the two groups shrank and he determined the identity of one of the unknown masters, his brow slightly wrinkling in the next moment, “But the other master… His aura is somewhat familiar, where have I seen it before?”
Both he and Meng Ge simultaneously felt a sense of deja vu upon sensing one another.
“Master, when we reach them, you must act carefully.”
“En,” Yang Kai nodded, his thoughts turning quickly. Earlier, Yang Kai had noticed a pair of powerful masters rapidly approaching their group, causing him some concern, so he had left with Li Rong and Han Fei to investigate.
After confirming that one of the approaching masters was actually Xue Li, Yang Kai’s heart couldn’t help sinking.
This world was not small, so there was definitely more than one passage connecting it to Tong Xuan Realm, he had come here from High Heaven Pavilion, but where had Xue Li come from?
A moment later, Yang Kai’s group of three arrived in the two Demon Generals’ fields of vision.
Coming to a stop, the two groups stared at each other across a thousand-meter distance.
“Little human brat, I didn’t expect to see you again in such a place, enemies truly meet often along narrow roads,” Xue Li’s pair of beautiful eyes seemed ablaze with anger, as if she couldn’t wait to burn down the entire world as she sneered gloomily.
“Enemies do often meet along the narrow road. Last time you managed to run away, but this time you won’t be so lucky,” Yang Kai coldly snorted.
“Your tone is not small!” Meng Ge laughed happily as he sized up Yang Kai with great interest, frowning a moment later, “Boy, have we met before somewhere? Why do you look somewhat familiar?”
“Who are you?” Yang Kai frowned, also feeling like this man’s face was familiar.
He had absolutely met him somewhere before.
“This King is Demon Commander’s subordinate, Demon General Meng Ge!” Meng Ge replied proudly.
“Meng Ge?” Yang Kai was startled, his expression becoming strange as he snickered, “No wonder you seemed so familiar, it turns out it’s you!”
Meng Ge looked at him suspiciously.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you remember me?” Yang Kai said dismissively as he laughed, “Perhaps you recall who it was that killed your Soul Clone in the past?”
Meng Ge expression changed greatly as he carefully stared at Yang Kai’s face, finally recalling where he had seen it before, shouting loudly, “So it’s you! You really wear out iron shoes while seeking one’s feet, what a stroke of good fortune!”
Meng Ge had once transferred his Soul Clone to the Evil Cavern of the Ash-Grey Cloud Evil Land. At that time his Soul Clone’s strength was great but it had actually been destroyed by Yang Kai with the help of the Demon Sealing Chain.
This was an event from many years ago, so not only had Yang Kai’s impression of it faded, so had Meng Ge’s, leading to the two of them to only feel the other was somewhat familiar when they finally met face to face again.
With Yang Kai’s reminder though, Meng Ge’s anger suddenly erupted as he grinned ferociously, “I’ve been looking for you for a long time, but I never expected you’d deliver yourself to me today! Good, today I will exact my revenge for that past slight and finally relieve the hatred in my heart!”
As he spoke, his murderous intent condensed so much it almost materialized and struck towards Yang Kai.
Xue Li’s complexion changed greatly and with a wave of her hand, sent out a blood-red light to block Meng Ge’s strike, shouting as she did, “Meng Ge, you and I had an agreement, this human brat belongs to me! If you dare to kill him, you’ll have to answer to me!”
Meng Ge didn’t care at all about her threat and simply sneered, “Today, he must die, no one can stop me! Xue Li, if you dare to interfere, don’t blame me for ignoring our years of friendship.”
What had happened to his Soul Clone was an incredible humiliation to Meng Ge, one which had been like a bone stuck in his throat for many years. Now that he had finally come across the culprit responsible for it, how could he allow him to leave alive? Meng Ge couldn’t wait to flay Yang Kai living before reducing his corpse to ash.
That Soul Clone had taken him an enormous amount of time and effort to cultivate, yet the moment it had been born, it was destroyed, and even after so many years, Meng Ge had been unable to cultivate a second one.
Yang Kai’s past actions had made him suffer a huge loss!
“If you want to kill him, you’ll have to get past me first!” Xue Li refused to back down and openly displayed her determination.
Yang Kai just snickered as he watched the two Demon Generals fight amongst themselves and even Li Rong and Han Fei could only shake their heads in amazement.
They hadn’t even begun to fight yet the two Demon General had already had a big falling out, it was really quite laughable.
Xue Li and Meng Ge stared at each other, neither of them willing to give in, but suddenly, after they seemingly reached some kind of agreement, their anger disappeared.
Meng Ge nodded, “We can decide what to do with this human after we first deal with these two women.”
“That was my intention too,” Xue Li nodded lightly and turned her eyes towards Li Rong and Han Fei.
The two Ancient Demon Clan Great Commanders stared back at them, not showing the slightest fear.
“Go, there’s no need to show any mercy,” Yang Kai lightly ordered.
Li Rong and Han Fei both nodded.
Meng Ge laughed loudly, “Boy, your courage is simply enormous. You actually dare not put we Demon Generals in your eyes? Do you really think these two women can defeat us?”
“The last we met, I acted too hasty and was unable to ask for some proper advice, this time we’ll have to compare notes carefully,” Xue Li coldly declared as she stared towards Li Rong, calling her out directly.
“Good!” Li Rong gently nodded, her tender body suddenly disappearing, leaving behind a trail of afterimages and reappearing right beside Xue Li, her palm gently patting towards the latter’s chest.
The relaxed look on Xue Li pretty face rapidly distorted and she hurriedly sent out a powerful burst of Blood Qi from her body.
Demon Crests appeared on Li Rong’s face at the same time and the force behind her exquisite palm multiplied, easily smashing through Xue Li’s Blood Qi defence and landing directly on her chest.
Calling out in alarm, Xue Li managed to avoid taking a critical hit as she retreated back a thousand meters.
Li Rong didn’t pursue Xue Li, instead choosing to just silently stand in place and indifferently stare towards her.
“Your cultivation…” Xue Li’s expression sank, a thick sense of disbelief apparent in her tone.
Last time, only after Li Rong used her Demon God Transformation and went all out could she fight Xue Li to a standstill, but this time, a single palm strike from Li Rong was enough to cause Xue Li to feel great pressure.
This kind of pressure was something only the Demon Commander could give her.
This left Xue Li somewhat dumbfounded.
She couldn’t help giving birth to the idea that if the two of them were to fight again, the only possible result would be her death.
As this thought flashed across her mind, Xue Li’s tender body shivered as she shouted, “Did you break through to the Third Order?”
Li Rong nodded, “Yes!”
The blood drained from Xue Li’s face and she turned pale.
As a Demon General, she understood better than anyone the great strength of the clan that directly served Great Demon God. With the Demon God Transformation they received from Great Demon God, each of them was capable of fighting opponents above their own realm.
When she was a Second-Order Saint, this woman named Li Rong was able to fight her to a draw. Now that she had reached the Third Order, Xue Li simply had no hope of victory.
Xue Li hurriedly glanced over towards Meng Ge, but what she saw caused her to suck in a cold breath, almost not daring to believe what she was witnessing.
During her and Li Rong’s exchange, the other woman had engaged Meng Ge, creating an icy domain that covered a dozen kilometre radius where everything, even the earth and sky, seemed to be freeze over as seemingly delicate snowflakes gently drifted down, blanketing the ground in pure white.
Against this kind of frigid cold, even the two Demon Generals had to fully push their Saint Qi in order to resist.
The previously arrogant Meng Ge was now in a state of confusion, thick Demonic Qi constantly emerging from his body only to be frozen by the surrounding environment, traces of frost appearing on him, hampering his movements as he fought against this female, quickly becoming frustrated.
Even if the strength of this woman was inferior to Meng Ge’s, the difference wasn’t great.
Meng Ge wanting to capture or even kill her was all but impossible.
Xue Li’s heart clenched as she immediately realized that obtaining victory here was nothing but a dream. She and Meng Ge had completely underestimated the other side’s combat effectiveness, causing them to lose the initiative and fall into a disadvantage.
The other party daring to come here so unscrupulously was not because of arrogance but rather because of confidence
“Xue Li, we need to withdraw,” Meng Ge also realized this point as he stared bitterly and angrily towards Han Fei.
“Let’s go!” Xue Li acted decisively, shouting as she surrounded herself in bloody light and soared off towards the distance.
Meng Ge also wrapped himself in a black cloud and like a malevolent ghost, followed after Xue Li.
The two Demon Generals arrived like a great thunderstorm but failed to deliver any rain, fighting for less than ten breaths before deciding to retreat.
“There’s no need to pursue,” Yang Kai shouted, causing Li Rong and Han Fei to come to a halt and withdraw their Demon God Transformations, restoring their original appearances.
The other two were top-level Third-Order Saints. If they escaped wholeheartedly, there was no way Li Rong and Han Fei could stop them.
Returning to Yang Kai’s side, all three of them stared off in the direction the two Demon Generals had disappeared.
“There should be a place called the Great Yan Dynasty in that direction,” Yang Kai frowned as he pondered.
In this world, he was only familiar with the Great Han Dynasty as well as the nearby Tian Lang Dynasty, he had never been to the Great Yan Dynasty.
“Master, two Demon Generals showing up here, could it be…” Li Rong asked worriedly.
“They shouldn’t have come from High Heaven Pavilion, there are definitely other passages in this world that lead to Tong Xuan Realm; moreover, one of them actually leads to the Demon Land… Knowing the methods of the Demon Race people, I’m afraid that side has already suffered terrible losses.”
“What should we do now?”
“Nothing. Them coming here at this time was probably to explore the Central Capital, but they unexpectedly ran into us halfway. After suffering such a loss, I doubt they’ll try to approach this place again,” Yang Kai took a breath, “Let’s head back. This world is big, everyone has their own lives, and I only have enough ability to take care of my own loved ones and friends. Bringing them back to Nine Heavens Holy Land is the priority.”
“En, it is as Master says,” Li Rong gently nodded, agreeing with him.
A short time later, the group of three returned to the caravan where Yang Ying Feng asked him a few simple questions, all of which Yang Kai skillfully dodged.
After a month’s long journey, the thousand-person convoy finally arrived at the High Heaven Pavilion where they met up with the people from the Three Sects.
After returning to High Heaven Pavilion, Yang Kai did not rush to leave and instead waited as he had agreed too.
A few days later, the Dong Family rushed over.
A few days after that, a group of beautiful Ten Thousand Flower Palace women also arrived, dazzling the surrounding people with their charm and allure.
A few days after that, Treasure Instrument Sect came…
Almost every two or three days, a group of people would arrive from different places and joined the migration to Tong Xuan Realm. Yang Kai did not refuse any of them. As long as they were from the same Sects as his friends, he would accept them enthusiastically.
This made all these newcomers very grateful.
The world was in chaos, the Central Capital has fallen, and suddenly there were now masters at something called the Saint Realm appearing. This news had spread like the wind across the entire Great Han Dynasty.
Just when these Sects didn’t know what to do, Yang Kai had shown them a path forward.
So after receiving the news from their disciples who were in the Central Capital, none of these Sects hesitated, all of them quickly packing up their things and rushing over to High Heaven Pavilion to join Yang Kai.
The crowd grew day by day, and soon the original thousand person team snowballed into a massive four or five thousand person crowd.
While waiting, Yang Kai didn’t remain idle, letting Li Rong, Han Fei, and Shi Kun direct everyone’s cultivation while he refined and distributed some simple pills, doing everything possible to help his friends and family improve their strength.
Everyone was ecstatic, Li Rong, Han Fei, and Shi Kun sat in front of countless cultivators day and night, teaching these good students about their own comprehensions of the Heavenly Way and Martial Dao.
The three Saint Realm masters who followed Yang Kai spoke each day until their mouths went dry, but when they looked out and saw the yearning in the eyes of the crowd, so they couldn’t bear to disappoint them.
And so they braced themselves and continued their cultivation lectures.
Among the eager students, the Yang Family Blood Warriors and the Hu Sisters’ growth was the most noticeable. In just a few days, each of them seemed to have experienced subtle changes in their True Qi and cultivation.
Under the shackles of this world, even if they had reached the Transcendent Realm, what they could comprehend of the Heavenly Way was limited.
But after being enlightened by Li Rong and the other Saints, their eyes were immediately opened.
Outside the crowd, Qiu Yi Meng stared at the Transcendent Realm cultivators with some envy before examining her own cultivation and sighing.
These days, she had spoken a lot with Yang Kai and learned about the many wonders of Tong Xuan Realm. She knew that Transcendents were abundant on that side and that such cultivation wasn’t enough to be considered a true master.
On the contrary, as a Peak Immortal Ascension Boundary cultivator, she was already a top-level master here, but on the other side, that really wouldn’t be enough to look at.
Immortal Ascension Boundary cultivators on that side were as common as hairs on an ox.
In her heart, she was secretly anxious.
“Are you envious of their cultivation?” Yang Kai suddenly appeared beside her and asked.
“What use is envy? It just means my aptitude is only such,” Qiu Yi Meng smiled, “Moreover, I am a woman, later in life, I will have to focus on tending the household and raising children, what point will there be in having such high cultivation then?”
“Were you always a woman who could be so easily satisfied?” Yang Kai glanced over at her curiously.
Qiu Yi Meng wore a forced smile, “I’m very easy to satisfy, it’s just that you refuse to.”
“Stop, enough of that crazy talk,” Yang Kai really couldn’t endure it.
Qiu Yi Meng glanced at him faintly before sighing helplessly, “Fine, I envy them, but so what? Why can’t I envy them? Especially those Hu Sisters. You know that in the past, their cultivation was even lower than mine, but since you left, they experienced an astonishing growth period and their strength soared all the way up to the Transcendent Realm, causing everyone’s eyes to go red with envy. Look, can’t you see the red in my eyes too?”
Saying so, she pushed her tender body provocatively onto Yang Kai before ruthlessly pinching his waist, grumbling through clenched teeth, “Tell me honestly, did you give them something good but didn’t give it to me?”
“How could that be?” Yang Kai truly felt wronged, “Didn’t I give you a lot of Myriad Drug Liquid right from the beginning? That spirit liquid should have been enough to greatly improve your aptitude.”
“Then why are they so much fiercer?”
“They have their own opportunities,” Yang Kai didn’t know how to explain.
“Then what about your wife’s little brother?” Qiu Yi Meng looked at him pitifully, “He was even further behind than those two sisters when you left!”
“He also has his own opportunities…” Yang Kai could only brace himself as he repeated.
However, from what Qiu Yi Meng had just said, Yang Kai suddenly discovered that of the younger generation here, only those few people who had obtained benefits from the Inheritance Heaven’s Cave stood out from the crowd. Others, even those on Qiu Yi Meng’s level, had not yet broken through to the Transcendent Realm.
It was clear from this how massively advantageous the benefits from the Inheritance Heaven’s Cave were.
“I believe you!” Qiu Yi Meng saw Yang Kai’s embarrassed appearance and no longer interrogated him, complacently saying, “You’ve always consider those on your side as one family, I know that you wouldn’t treat me poorly.”
Yang Kai nodded, sweeping her with his Divine Sense secretively, suddenly smiling in the next instant, “Just wait until we reach Tong Xuan Realm and I’ll deliver you a pleasant surprise.”
“What kind of surprise?” Qiu Yi Meng’s beautiful eyes brightened.
“When we get to that side, you’ll know. Don’t ask anything more for now, just focus on your cultivation.”
Qiu Yi Meng spat disdainfully, “Playing cheap tricks, what kind of wicked scheme are you up to now?”
Yang Kai just smiled and said nothing more, acting mysterious in the same way Qiu Yi Meng had always hated, causing her to be at her wit’s end yet helpless to change anything.
Qiu Yi Meng’s greatest strength was that she didn’t regard herself as an outsider. Even though she and Yang Kai now had a huge disparity in strength and status, she still dared maintain the same level of intimacy in their relationship and didn’t deliberately humble or alienate herself.
This was something Yang Kai greatly appreciated.
The same was true of Huo Xing Chen.
On the contrary, there are the four girls from Ten Thousand Flower Palace, Chen Xue Shu, and many of the others now acted somewhat restrained when they were facing Yang Kai, no longer interacting as freely as they used to.
The gap in strength and status was something they were conscious of.
As he was happily chatting with Qiu Yi Meng, Yang Kai’s face dramatically changed as he turned his eyes towards the distant horizon.
“Master!” Li Rong and Han Fei, who were even now lecturing others about their cultivation experiences, called out simultaneously.
“Damn!” Yang Kai couldn’t help but swear, his expression becoming incredibly dark and gloomy.
He would rarely swear in front of others, only doing so when his mood was greatly disturbed.
“What happened?” Qiu Yi Meng hurriedly asked, realizing something was terribly wrong from Yang Kai’s unusually stern expression and harsh language; it seemed that there was some kind of huge danger approaching, causing her face to pale slightly.
“Stay alert. If you sense the fallout from a battle from that direction, begin evacuating the people here through the Void Corridor immediately, don’t wait for us!” Yang Kai solemnly replied.
“What exactly is going on?” Qiu Yi Meng anxiously stomped her foot.
“Powerful enemies are coming, several of them,” Yang Kai explained haphazardly before no longer wasting time, signalling to Li Rong and Han Fei, preparing to take them to intercept these newcomers.
He didn’t even need to guess about the identity of the ones approaching, from the shocking Demonic Qi they gave off, it was obvious it was Demon General Meng Ge and Xue Li.
More than a month ago, Yang Kai had driven them away from the Central Capital City and at the time concluded that they would not return to disgrace themselves again, but unexpectedly they had really come back.
On top of that, there was the aura of another master with them this time, and this master was clearly far stronger than Meng Ge or Xue Li, their aura as vast as the sea.
[Another Demon General?]
Facing three Demon Generals, even if Li Rong and Han Fei teamed up, they wouldn’t be able to defeat them quickly nor would they be able to guarantee the safety of the thousands of people here.
Yang Kai planned to seize the initiative and not allow the enemy to approach this place.
But who would have thought that before he could act, from above the thick layer of clouds, a voice would suddenly call out, “This Senior has arrived unsolicited in order to discuss an important matter with Holy Master Yang. I hope Holy Master Yang will not take offence!”
The owner of this voice was still around a hundred kilometres away, but the sound of their voice seemed to resound right beside Yang Kai’s ear, crisp and clear.
The several thousand people gathered nearby all turned and looked up into the sky, quickly seeing the originally bright sun covered in a thick black cloud, blanketing the world around them in darkness. At the same time, this dark cloud seemed to press down upon them, causing everyone present to feel very uncomfortable.
Yang Kai’s brow furrowed and he remained in place.
Li Rong and Han Fei looked to him for instructions, but Yang Kai just slowly shook his head, signaling them to standby.
Before the other party had even arrived, he had taken the initiative to send a message, as if trying to show courtesy. This alone made Yang Kai quite confused, wondering who this individual was and what objective he had.
From the horizon, a pitch-black light swept across the world and rapidly approached, like the herald of disaster, making everyone who saw it pale with fear.
Yang Kai coldly snorted and shouted, “Could Your Excellency withdraw your Demonic Qi? You’re frightening my friends.”
Yang Kai’s voice shot out like an arrow, piercing through the dark clouds of black light, opening a hole in them and allowing the rays of the sun to once again shine down on High Heaven Pavilion.
The oppressive pressure stagnated, allowing everyone to gasp for breath.
Soon, an apologetic voice called out, “Excuse me, Holy Master Yang, this Senior is used to acting freely and had not expected so many people to be present!”
As he spoke, the dark clouds high up in the sky, as if they were brushed aside by a great hand, were scattered and soon melted away.
The world was quickly restored to its former brightness.
Yang Kai’s eyes revealed a deep sense of wariness and even Li Rong’s expression became quite dignified.
They quickly became aware of the tyrannical strength of the man who had come!
Soon, the three figures appeared before the eyes of the crowd, quietly suspended mid-air, as if they had been standing there from the very beginning.
Among the three, the first one was a middle-aged man with a plain appearance, wearing a regal yet somewhat gaudy robe embroidered with images of dragons and phoenixes.
Standing behind this middle-aged man was Demon General Xue Li and Meng Ge, both of them holding their backs up straight with solemn looks upon their faces, a mix of fear and respect flashing across their eyes as whenever they glanced towards the middle-aged man’s back.
Seeing this, Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed as a storm began raging in the depths of his heart.
Before seeing this scene, Yang Kai had thought that Xue Li and Meng Ge were unwilling to let this insult pass and had called another Demon General to assist them, but now could immediately determine that this plain-looking middle-aged man was no Demon General.
Although his heart was calling out in alarm, Yang Kai maintained his tranquil look as he stared deeply at this middle-aged man, dread flashing across the depths of his pupils.
This middle-aged man’s way of dressing was eccentric but his eyes were incredibly sharp, radiating a fierce, piercing light, making others not dare to stare into them. His aura was also vast and immeasurably deep.
Cocking his head to the side, the middle-aged man’s eyes swept over the crowd down below before fixing on Yang Kai and revealing a light smile, “Holy Master Yang?”
This man had never met Yang Kai before, but amongst the thousands of people in front of him, he was able to determine who Yang Kai was at a glance, making it clear how sharp his eyes really were.
Yang Kai gently nodded, responding in a solemn tone, “Demon Commander?”
The middle-aged man raised his brow and laughed loudly, liberally praising, “Holy Master Yang’s vision is quite good, instantly seeing through this Senior’s identity. En, admirable!”
He hadn’t expected Yang Kai to be so perceptive, but what was more impressive to him was the show of indifference on this young boy’s face even after recognizing his true identity. Anyone who recognized him would inevitably reveal a panic-stricken look and either try to escape or immediately launch an attack.
Yang Kai, however, was different; although there was wariness in his eyes, there were no signs of panic, only a kind of tranquillity.
His admiration was genuine.
Yang Kai lightly snorted. Him being able to recognize the identity of this man was because of Xue Li and Meng Ge’s attitudes. These two were Demon Generals, the only one who they would willingly stand behind and show deference towards was the current Demon Commander.
Yang Kai had imagined countless times what kind of person the current Demon Commander was.
Perhaps he was a giant man with overbearing strength.
Perhaps he was a sinister snake that radiated cunning.
Perhaps he was a wanderer, free and unfettered.
But never had Yang Kai thought that the current Demon Commander was actually extremely ordinary. If it weren’t for the gaudy robes he was wearing, this man would be able to perfectly blend into a crowd and disappear from everyone’s vision.
Ordinary people who saw him would only take notice of his strange taste in clothes while completely ignoring the man himself.
[This is the Demon Commander that sealed Meng Wu Ya’s strength?] Yang Kai couldn’t help finding it difficult to believe.
“Holy Master Yang does not need to doubt, this Senior is truly the current Demon Commander, Zhang Yuan! En, this point Xue Li and Meng Ge can attest to for me,” Demon Commander still smiled indifferently as he genially said.
“I don’t doubt you,” Yang Kai gently took a breath, “I just don’t understand. Instead of sitting comfortably in the Demon Land, you actually decided to travel tens of thousands of kilometres to the middle of nowhere. Is there something here that is really worth you visiting in person?”
Perceiving the hostility and rejection of Yang Kai, Zhang Yuan rubbed his nose and grinned, “This Senior already said, I have come here to discuss a certain matter with Holy Master Yang.”
“Is there anything for us to discuss?” Yang Kai frowned.
“There is,” Zhang Yuan insisted, glancing around before asking, “This isn’t an ideal place for this. Can Holy Master Yang arrange a quiet place for us to sit down and talk?”
Saying so, he simply stared at Yang Kai with a smile.
“Master!” Li Rong stood close to Yang Kai and stared fixedly at Zhang Yuan, solemnly whispering, “Be careful not to be deceived by him.”
“Don’t agree with his request!” Han Fei also objected.
Yang Kai knit his brow deeply for a moment before shaking his head, “I’ll speak with him. From the looks of things, he doesn’t appear to have come here looking for trouble; rather, it seems there’s something he really wants to talk about.”
If he was here to find fault or seek revenge for Meng Ge and Xue Li, with Zhang Yuan’s strength, there would be no need to speak so much nonsense.
Although he might not have a way to kill or capture Yang Kai, if top-level Third-Order Saint Realm masters were to fight here, the thousands of people gathered at High Heaven Pavilion would definitely suffer.
This would be the best way to retaliate against Yang Kai.
“This way, please!” Yang Kai shouted before gesturing towards the inside of High Heaven Pavilion.
“Thank you for your hospitality,” Zhang Yuan gently nodded before following behind Yang Kai with Meng Ge and Xue Li.
After the six figures gradually disappeared, the several thousand cultivators present finally took a gasp of air; the near tangible pressure just now had made it difficult for them to even breathe.
“Who was that man just now, he seemed to be very powerful.”
“Senior Brother Yang called him Demon Commander… What is a Demon Commander?”
“Senior Shi Kun, how much do you know about this matter?” Ling Tai Xu, Yang Ying Feng, and several other leaders went over to Shi Kun to ask as their understanding of Tong Xuan Realm was simply too shallow.
Shi Kun’s face was deathly pale as he heard the many whispers of the people around him, unable to hold back a bitter laugh, “Ignorance is bliss.”
Demon Commander… Even he had never seen this great figure before, but the people here were casually discussing what a Demon Commander was…
Shi Kun firmly believed that if this title was reported to anyone in Tong Xuan Realm, it would immediately cause great unrest, but here, it has only elicited people’s curiosity.
“The Demon Commander can be said to be one of the strongest masters in all of Tong Xuan Realm. As for how strong he is exactly… En, let’s make an analogy. Do you think I am strong?”
The group of people gathered around Shi Kun nodded.
Half a year ago they didn’t even know about the existence of the Saint Realm, but after having fought against them a few times now, the Blood Warriors of the Yang Family had personally experienced the massive difference in strength between a Saint and a Transcendent.
In front of them, a Saint was an earth-shattering master with unfathomable means, none of which they could resist.
Shi Kun smiled bitterly, “In your eyes, I am truly fierce, but even if there were a hundred of me, the Demon Commander would still be able to crush us like ants.”
Everyone present paled, finally understanding how tyrannical this Demon Commander was.
“Isn’t Kai’er in danger then?” Dong Su Zhu cried out.
Shi Kun scratched his head, “Not necessarily. The Demon Commander didn’t seem to have come here for a fight this time. Moreover, the lady named Li Rong next to Holy Master is also quite fierce. With her by his side, the Demon Commander won’t be able to harm the Holy Master.”
“You mean to say that lady’s strength is on par with that Demon Commander?” The crowd was astonished, only now understanding the depths of Li Rong’s strength.
“I’m also not clear,” Shi Kun shrugged his shoulders, unable to give a definitive answer. For the life of him, he couldn’t understand why the Demon Commander would come to this place and directly ask to speak with the Holy Master.
The two of them had clearly never met before, what matter could they possibly have to discuss?
Inside the main hall of High Heaven Pavilion, Yang Kai and the Demon Commander were seated with Li Rong and Han Fei standing behind Yang Kai, and Xue Li and Meng Ge standing behind the Demon Commander, seemingly staring each other down.
The atmosphere inside the hall was bleak and the air was heavy.
Yang Kai was filled with doubts and didn’t speak, simply staring straight at the Demon Commander, refusing to miss any of his actions.
The Demon Commander, on the other hand, was like a tourist, glancing around at the rather simple hall and commenting, “This is truly a miraculous place, actually able to produce a character like Holy Master Yang. This Senior really wishes he had been born a thousand years later so he could grow up alongside Holy Master Yang as fellow brothers, enjoying wine and travelling the world together!”
Inside the hall, everyone else’s expressions became awkward, none of them understanding what Zhang Yuan was doing.
Hearing such blatant praise and flattery after just sitting down instead made Zhang Yuan seem even more untrustworthy.
“Demon Commander, if you have something to say please speak frankly, this place does not welcome you,” Yang Kai said solemnly, his expression somewhat impatient.
With such a master sitting right in front of himself, even Yang Kai felt a great deal of pressure.
He wasn’t worried about his own safety of course. If a fight broke out, even though he knew he was no match for the Demon Commander, Yang Kai could simply tear space and escape, after which he could summon the Flying Heavens Shuttle and flee. With the Flying Heavens Shuttle’s speed, even the Demon Commander wouldn’t be able to do anything but eat dust behind his butt, unable to catch up for a lifetime.
No, what Yang Kai was worried about was the safety of the thousands of people gathered here; they were his friends, his Sect Brothers and Sisters, his clansmen, his parents and brothers…
He had too many concerns here.
“Impudence!” Meng Ge shouted, “Boy, don’t get too full of yourself, Demon Commander travelling to this place to see you is your honour!”
“He is the one who arrived here unsolicited whereas I am the master of this place, could it be I can’t expel someone from my own house?” Yang Kai sneered.
“Meng Ge, be silent!” Zhang Yuan shouted lowly, forcing Meng Ge to immediately lower his head.
Although both were Third Order Saints, the Demon Commander was far more powerful than any of the Demon Generals, which was why he could sit in his current position.
Zhang Yuan looked back at Yang Kai and said with a smile, “Holy Master Yang seems to be quiet wary of this Senior. Very well, this Senior won’t waste any of your time and get straight to the point.”
Maintaining a friendly expression his face, Zhang Yuan continued, “Actually, Holy Master Yang doesn’t have to be like this, the strength you grasp in your hands currently is not inferior to this Senior’s. The lady behind you may not be as strong as this Senior, but the difference is not great. This Senior has four Demon Generals as subordinates, all of whom are Third Order Saints, but the subordinates of Holy Master Yang are not weak either, if the two of us really have a falling out, neither of us will come out unscathed, correct?”
Yang Kai frowned, his face sullen, refusing to respond.
He didn’t understand why the Demon Commander wanted to point out their respective strengths.
However, the most logical conclusion would be that the Demon Commander really didn’t want to start a fight with Yang Kai. With the strength of both sides almost equal and no one possessing a decisive advantage, it wasn’t an exaggeration to say their respective statuses were also equal.
Zhang Yuan sighed and said, “This Senior has heard that these two short-sighted subordinates of mine have offended Holy Master Yang in the past, so naturally it is the responsibility of this Senior to punish them accordingly. Good, you two, apologize to Holy Master Yang, let us make big things small and make small things nothing so that in the future there are no grudges between our two sides.”
As soon as this statement came out, Meng Ge and Xue Li’s eyes both bulged as they stared dumbfounded at Zhang Yuan.
They had never dreamed they would hear such words from his mouth.
Even Yang Kai’s expression became strange.
If all Zhang Yuan wanted to do was show him some goodwill, this was too much; moreover, with his status, why would he need to show Yang Kai goodwill in the first place?
Yang Kai felt even more strongly that this Zhang Yuan had some kind of hidden intentions; otherwise, he absolutely would not humiliate his own subordinates in such a manner.
Thinking so, Yang Kai’s expression relaxed as he calmly stared at Zhang Yuan, a grin slowly creeping onto his face.
He wanted to see what the current Demon Commander was up to and what exactly it was he wanted from himself.
As long as Zhang Yuan wanted something from him, the initiative lay in Yang Kai’s hands, allowing him to put down most of his worries.
Inside the hall, Yang Kai smiled lightly, as did Demon Commander Zhang Yuan.
Xue Li and Meng Ge standing behind Zhang Yuan, on the other hand, were wide eyed, trembling with shock, a look of disbelief plastered all over their faces.
Did their Demon Commander really just order them to apologize to this abominable human brat?
The two of them could hardly believe their ears and stared at Zhang Yuan questioningly, seemingly wanting to confirm they had heard right but not daring to ask.
Zhang Yuan snorted with displeasure, “What’s wrong? Are the two of you deaf, or mute? Did you not just hear this Senior’s words? Or perhaps you want this Senior to apologize in your stead?”
“We wouldn’t dare!” Meng Ge and Xue Li’s body shivered, noticing the anger in Zhang Yuan’s tone, no longer daring to hesitate, hurriedly cupping their fists and through gritted teeth shouting, “For our many previous offences, we ask Holy Master Yang to be broad-minded!”
This was yet another insult to them; although they apologized to Yang Kai under the pressure of Zhang Yuan, anyone could see that the next time they found an opportunity, they would surely find a way to seek revenge.
The command of Zhang Yuan not only failed to resolve the grievances between the two sides but instead deepened the hatred in the two Demon Generals’ hearts.
Yang Kai remained indifferent, still not saying anything.
Zhang Yuan, however, laughed happily and smiled, “Very good, if one makes a mistake, naturally they have to apologize. En, from now on we should avoid any hostility between us, I also want to become friends with Holy Master Yang.”
“I don’t,” Yang Kai snickered.
Zhang Yuan’s face turned bitter, “Not even giving a hint of face, Holy Master Yang is too unreasonable.”
Although the two were seemingly speaking casually with one another, without the slightest hint of aggression towards one another, the four who were standing between them were completely on edge, fearing that at any moment there would be a falling out and a battle would begin.
However, if an outsider were here, all they would see was two people sitting and smiling at one another, bantering back and forth harmoniously.
The mood of Meng Ge and Xue Li had plunged, an unpleasant taste filling their mouths.
Previously, Xue Li had snuck into Human Territory arbitrarily and had been injured by Chu Ling Xiao, forcing her to flee back to the Demon Land. She hadn’t told anyone about the details of that incident though.
Then, half a month ago, she and Meng Ge had encountered Yang Kai, fought briefly, and then been forced to flee once again.
Originally, she had wanted to conceal things again, but Meng Ge was different from her and was completely loyal to the Demon Commander, so after they returned to the Demon Land, he had report what had transpired in full. When Demon Commander Zhang Yuan heard this report, he had immediately set off from the Demon Capital and rushed to this place saying he wanted to personally meet this Holy Master Yang.
With things having reached this point, Xue Li was also helpless and could only lead the way with Meng Ge.
The two of them had thought that with the Demon Commander setting out personally was all in order to rectify the situation and seek redress for the insult they had suffered. As such, on the road here, the two Demon Generals were secretly quite excited, imagining all the ways they would torment that insufferable human brat once he fell into their hands.
They had never guessed that their solemn Demon Commander would actually display such a genial attitude towards this human boy.
The two Demon Generals suddenly felt like they had been forced to swallow the bitterest of medicines.
“Zhang Yuan, enough nonsense. What is it you’re really after?” Yang Kai smiled faintly, finally asking about the biggest doubt in his heart.
Trying to fight a war of words with this level of master would inevitably end with his loss so Yang Kai decided to go straight to the point.
Zhang Yuan sighed and showed a helpless expression, “It looks like Holy Master Yang has also guessed that this Senior has another purpose in coming here. Good, I indeed have something I wanted to confirm.”
“Oh? And what would that be?” Yang Kai narrowed his eyes and stared at him.
Zhang Yuan maintained his light smile and asked, “I want to know if Holy Master Yang… is Great Demon God’s successor!”
When this statement came out, everyone was startled, with Li Rong and Han Fei’s eyes suddenly becoming icy cold as they locked their gazes onto Zhang Yuan.
Meng Ge and Xue Li’s jaws also dropped with a hint of panic flashing across their faces.
The name Great Demon God carried an unparalleled impact on anyone of the Demon Race.
“Holy Master Yang does not need to deny it,” Before Yang Kai could reply, Zhang Yuan raised his hand and interrupted him, “This Senior had his suspicions and only rushed here to confirm them. After all, if you leave this place and return back to Nine Heavens Holy Land, even this Senior would have no way to infiltrate so far into the Human Territory. But now that I have seen you, it appears Holy Master Yang truly is Great Demon God’s successor. En, there’s no doubt about it.”
Looking at his confident expression, Yang Kai showed neither approval nor disapproval, curling his lips as he asked, “How can you be so certain?”
“Because of the loyalty of the two ladies behind you!” Zhang Yuan turned his eyes towards Li Rong and Han Fei, a faint look of envy flashing across his eyes as he said, “I have many ancient books in my possession which have recorded a number of secrets only this Senior knows. One of these ancient books contains records about the clan that served Great Demon God.”
“They call themselves the Ancient Demon Clan and are close confidants of Great Demon God who had sworn a blood oath that they and their descendants would forever give loyalty to only Great Demon God. But unfortunately, before Great Demon God fell, their clan actually disappeared. The world’s common people speculated that they had been exterminated because they held too much power, saying Great Demon God feared that after he passed away none would be able to control them and thus destroyed them himself.”
“However, I know that those rumours were fake and that Great Demon God actually sealed them away in order to leave this power to his successor! The two ladies behind you are from the Ancient Demon Clan, yet they are willing to pledge loyalty to you, so Holy Master Yang’s identity is apparent at a glance, because it is impossible for members of the Ancient Demon Clan to serve anyone else. Even this Senior is unworthy in their eyes.”
As Demon Commander Zhang Yuan presented his case, Yang Kai just listened quietly and didn’t interrupt.
After he finished, Yang Kai just nodded lightly, “It looks like Senior Demon Commander knows a great many secrets that others do not.”
With such irrefutable evidence, even if Yang Kai tried to deny it, it was useless.
“Indeed,” Zhang Yuan nodded proudly, “I also know why the Great Demon God insisted on sealing away the Ancient Demon Clan in order to leave their power for his successor. Great Demon God left behind a number of clues regarding this and many other issues.”
“Oh, why?” Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling curious, but the moment this question left his lips he realized he had actually fallen into a trap that Zhang Yuan had dug for him, causing him to lose the initiative. This discovery made Yang Kai want to vomit blood in frustration.
Yang Kai had wanted to feign indifference but he had actually be led on by this old ox, making him realize again his own immaturity.
Zhang Yuan laughed lowly and said, “For the coming catastrophe!”
“Catastrophe?” Yang Kai was stunned.
“Indeed, as for what this catastrophe is, I don’t know, but Holy Master Yang can surely unravel it!” Zhang Yuan quickly said.
“How am I supposed to figure out something even you don’t know?” Yang Kai shook his head slowly.
Zhang Yuan’s expression finally turned serious as he said, “In my Demon Capital, there is a secret room left behind by Great Demon God and sealed with a powerful formation. Several generations of Demon Commanders have wanted to unlock it and discover the mysteries inside, but unfortunately, no one has been able to open it.”
“You can’t break the formation?”
Zhang Yuan shook his head as a look of longing appeared on his face, “The means of Great Demon God are simply Heaven defying, not something I can compare to. I’ve always felt that his cultivation had exceeded the Saint Realm and arrived at a higher plane.”
Yang Kai’s body shook, surprised at how consistent his and Zhang Yuan’s thoughts were.
Before, when he and the two Monster Race Great Seniors entered the strange Mysterious Small World and witnessed the various means of Great Demon God, Yang Kai had also had such a conjecture, but somewhat couldn’t bring himself to believe it.
Surprisingly, Zhang Yuan also thought so.
“I can’t open it, but Holy Master Yang should be able to,” Zhang Yuan continued, “I don’t know why Holy Master Yang was selected as Great Demon God’s successor, but since you are, you should have the Demon Mystic Tome in your hands, yes?”
“Demon Mystic Tome?” Meng Ge and Xue Li exclaimed in unison, a frantic and nearly fanatical look appearing on their faces.
It seemed that these three words were enough to make their blood boil.
“Great Demon God somehow managed to obtain a massive piece of soulstone and with it managed to craft the Demon Mystic Tome inside which he hid many of his Divine Abilities and secrets. Whoever could open the Demon Mystic Tome would become his successor. Since Holy Master Yang is said successor, you should have obtained the Demon Mystic Tome, which is the key to unlocking the Spirit Array inside the Demon Capital.”
Yang Kai knit his brow, thinking about it for a moment before summoning the Black Book into his hand, “Are you talking about this?”
All eyes inside the room fixed on the Wordless Black Book, with Meng Ge and Xue Li’s gazes filling with greed. Even Demon Commander Zhang Yuan couldn’t stop his pulse from racing.
Guessing was one thing, but seeing was another matter altogether.
But soon, Zhang Yuan’s look returned to normal, gently inhaling a breath before nodding, “Yes, this is the Demon Mystic Tome. It seems everything is exactly how I had guessed, but the Heavens truly must not have eyes, actually allowing the Demon Mystic Tome to fall into the hands of a human…”
Zhang Yuan wore a look of regret and distress without any disguise, revealing his true feelings.
This was a matter of course though, the inheritor of Great Demon God’s legacy was supposed to be a member of their Demon Race, but the one who ultimately obtained the Demon Mystic Tome was Yang Kai.
This made Zhang Yuan give birth to a feeling of grief and indignation.
“So it’s called the Demon Mystic Tome? I didn’t know, I’ve always just called it the Wordless Black Book,” Yang Kai said lightly before storing the Wordless Black Book back into his body.
Having the object of their desire suddenly disappear, Meng Ge and Xue Li couldn’t help staring towards Yang Kai sharply, seemingly wanting to see where he had hidden the Demon Mystic Tome.
Without even mentioning all the Divine Abilities and secrets of Great Demon God that were hidden inside of it, simply the giant piece of soulstone itself was an immeasurable treasure.
Anyone who saw it would feel tempted.
“I will speak frankly,” Zhang Yuan strived to maintain a stable state of mind as he stared right at Yang Kai, “This Senior coming here personally was to show my sincerity. In truth, the mere status of Great Demon God’s successor is enough to take charge of the entire Demon Land; after all, the Demon Land was created by Great Demon God. This Senior also believes that as long as Holy Master Yang is given enough time, you will grow to the same height as Great Demon God, a height even this Senior could not hope to achieve.”
As soon as these words came out, Meng Ge and Xue Li swallowed hard, a hint of dread flashing across their eyes. Noticing the dangerous glint which appeared in the two Demon Generals’ eyes, Li Rong and Han Fei both began to quietly condense their strength, preparing to take action at a moment’s notice.
Inside the hall, because of Zhang Yuan’s words, the atmosphere suddenly became tense.
As long as there was enough time, Yang Kai could grow to the same height as Great Demon God; the very idea made Meng Ge and Xue Li feel a sense of crisis. Even the Demon Commander admitted that this was a level he couldn’t hope to reach, so what would happen if they allowed Yang Kai to fully mature?
Since Great Demon God was able to sweep away the world’s experts and reign unchallenged, Yang Kai would eventually be able to as well.
At that time, he would be able to decide who lived and who died.
The two Demon General involuntarily gave birth to the thought of killing Yang Kai here and now, lest such a day really come to pass.
“Do not be impolite!” Zhang Yuan snorted, “I said that I wish to become friends with Holy Master Yang, which is why I chose not to conceal anything and speak openly with him. If you two dare release that murderous intent again, this Senior will be the first to cripple you!”
Meng Ge and Xue Li were dismayed, never imaging that Zhang Yuan would again reprimand them for Yang Kai. This made it clear how resolute the Demon Commander’s attitude was, he wasn’t just paying lip service. Realizing this, the two of them quickly admitted their mistake and lowered their heads.
Zhang Yuan nodded in approval before turning back to face Yang Kai, “While I’ve said all this, Holy Master Yang should not expect too much. The Demon Land is currently in the hands of this Senior and it is impossible for me to simply hand it over to a human, regardless of his identity.”
“I have no interest in the Demon Land.”
“That’s for the best,” Zhang Yuan nodded and chuckled, “Actually, the safest method for this Senior would be to kill you and snatch your Demon Mystic Tome, but this Senior knows that even if I were to kill you, I would be unable to obtain Great Demon God’s inheritance; that is something unique and irreplaceable. Since Great Demon God has chosen you, he must certainly have his reasons. All members of the Demon Race are descendants of Great Demon God, so this Senior can only hope that Holy Master Yang will not treat us as enemies in the future. I swear in the name of Great Demon God, I will not act disadvantageously towards you in the future, what does Holy Master Yang say?”
Yang Kai’s expression changed greatly upon hearing these words.
No Demon would dare to swear an oath in the name of Great Demon God lightly, such was the immensity of this name in the hearts of the entire Demon Race, even if it was the current Demon Commander, this still remained true.
Yang Kai profoundly recognized the sincerity of Zhang Yuan at this point, wearing a serious expression on his face as he nodded, “Good!”
Zhang Yuan laughed, a look of satisfaction spreading on his face, “Then that’s settled. Holy Master Yang may be young but is also decisive, very much to this Senior’s liking. Dealing with people like you is enjoyable.”
“You are also quite refreshing to deal with!”
“Then we are friends?” Zhang Yuan looked at Yang Kai with a smile.
“At least we’re not enemies,” Yang Kai smiled back.
“Good enough,” Zhang Yuan stood up, “Since I have said everything I came here today to say, I shall take my leave. When Holy Master Yang has free time, please pay a visit to my Demon Capital and allow this Senior to offer you his hospitality. This Senior is quite interested in the secrets left behind by Sir Great Demon God and hopes to use the Demon Mystic Tome to unlock them. I wonder if Holy Master Yang is willing to cooperate?”
“En, I will go.”
“Many thanks! En, if Holy Master Yang intends to come to my Demon Capital, please do send a notice in advance, that way this Senior can arrange safe passage through the Demon Land for you,” Zhang Yuan nodded lightly before immediately turning around and heading for the exit.
“Li Rong, see them out!” Yang Kai commanded.
Li Rong immediately set out to escort Zhang Yuan and the two Demon Generals out of the hall.
After a while, she returned leisurely and walked over to where Yang Kai and Han Fei were waiting.
“Master, do you really believe what Zhang Yuan just said?”
“What do you think?” Yang Kai answered her question with one of his own.
Li Rong thought about it carefully before replying, “He seems sincere, but we are not familiar with him at all, so it is difficult to believe him completely.”
“I think so too,” Han Fei nodded.
“I think he’s actually honest,” Yang Kai grinned, causing the two women to wear startled expressions.
Yang Kai wasn’t a child, if Zhang Yuan could mislead him with just a few words, he wouldn’t still be alive today. Yang Kai obviously had his own thoughts on Zhang Yuan’s actions and attitude.
“Do you plan on going to the Demon Capital?”
“Naturally I must go,” Yang Kai nodded.
However, this decision was by no means because of Zhang Yuan’s invitation, but rather because he was curious about what secrets Great Demon God had hidden there. If he was right, the secrets left in the Demon Capital were definitely related to the words Great Demon God’s Soul Clone had spoken about in that strange space.
When he rescued Meng Wu Ya and Little Senior Sister, Great Demon God’s Soul Clone had also told Yang Kai that if he had a chance, he should go to the Demon Capital as he would be able to understand everything once he did.
Yang Kai had not had much hope of doing this any time soon, but with Zhang Yuan’s invitation, and opportunity had presented itself.
Because he had destroyed that place, all the world’s Mysterious Small Worlds had opened. On top of that, Great Demon God’s Soul Clone had said that that place was the keystone of the entire world. What hidden secrets were related to that place, Yang Kai completely did not understand, causing him many sleepless nights.
As he was contemplating all this, a group of people came in from outside the main hall, headed by Ling Tai Xu. They rushed over and asked what the Demon Commander had wanted and if there was any danger.
Yang Kai laughed wryly and shook his head as he comforted them repeatedly.
High up in the sky, a few dozen kilometers away from High Heaven Pavilion, Zhang Yuan, Meng Ge, and Xue Li hurried along.
The two Demon General followed behind their Demon Commander while exchanging confused looks. For the life of them, they couldn’t understand why their Demon Commander had not taken the opportunity to kill that despicable human brat but instead gone all out to befriend him.
Such a terrifying person should be strangled early lest he grow up and become a disaster to the entire Demon Land.
Seemingly understanding the doubts in their hearts, Zhang Yuan, while not even looking back, lightly said, “You can’t kill him, don’t even bother trying.”
Meng Ge and Xue Li trembled.
Zhang Yuan continued, “As the chosen successor of Great Demon God, how could that Yang Kai be ordinary? Don’t think of him as just another Third-Order Transcendent youth, if he were to really fight, my guess would be that his strength can rival that of a Second-Order Saint.”
“How is that possible?” Meng Ge and Xue Li exclaimed.
“Why can’t it be possible?” Zhang Yuan laughed, “Sir Great Demon God was famous for being able to fight enemies far above his own realm, with many records telling of his victories against enemies supposedly far stronger than himself. You two are Demon Generals, surely you know this as well.”
Meng Ge and Xue Li were struck speechless; naturally, they were clear about this information, but they had not associated it with Yang Kai.
“That is purely his own strength though; perhaps he has also comprehended some of Great Demon God’s Divine Abilities. We can’t kill him, and attempting to will only cause more hatred between us. If that happens, in the future, when he really grows up, my Demon Land will be finished. That is not a risk worth taking!”
“Furthermore, that woman of the Ancient Demon Clan who is always by his side… This Senior can’t defeat her. As long as she is with Yang Kai, no one in this world can threaten his life.”
The two Demon Generals felt distraught. Although they had personally experienced Li Rong’s terrifying strength and had thought it comparable to the Demon Commander’s, Zhang Yuan personally admitting that he couldn’t beat her still brought great shock to them.
“Then what Senior said today…” Meng Ge started to speak but hesitated.
“I didn’t lie, I really do want to make friends with him. En, if you want to become friends with a person, you must do it while they are still weak, once they’ve become strong, it will be too late. Heed my words, no matter what kind of grudges you had with him before, consider them settled. Do not make any moves against him from now on; I don’t want to see the fragile relationship I worked so hard to establish just now being undermined by you.”
Meng Ge and Xue Li felt a complicated mix of emotions in their hearts and didn’t know what to say, so for now all they could do was nod.
……
Five days later, under the command of Yang Kai, thousands of people began migrating to Tong Xuan Realm through the Void Corridor.
After waiting for so many days, the people who were going to come should have already come while those who hadn’t likely wouldn’t ever, so there was no need to wait any longer.
What made Yang Kai feel gratified was that almost all of the friends he had made in this world were willing to entrust their lives to him and follow him to Tong Xuan Realm.
They all had great confidence in Yang Kai.
Yang Kai had stepped through the Void Corridor in advance together with Li Rong, Han Fei and Shi Kun to clean up the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple cultivators who were still lingering the cultivator that lingering nearby, sweeping clear essentially everyone within a fifty kilometer radius.
Shi Kun looked at Yang Kai with incomprehension and asked, “Holy Master, doing this will definitely bring about a lot of criticism. So long as we vacate a ten kilometer radius of the Void Corridor it should be more than sufficient.”
He didn’t quite understand why Yang Kai insisted on clearing such a large space.
“You’ll understand soon enough,” Yang Kai chuckled, staring at the nearby Void Corridor.
A group of people suddenly began emerging one after another. Naturally the first to come through were the people from the Yang Family, each of them staring around curiously, just like they had arrived in a new world, filled with excitement.
When they realized the richness of World Energy around them, all of them became ecstatic as they greedily breathed in the air, an expression on ecstasy appearing on their faces.
Under the guidance of Yang Kai, these first arriving Yang Family members flew up into the air and looked for an empty spot to wait while the rest of their fellow migrants came through.
A pretty figure was mixed in with the Yang Family and after walking out of the Void Corridor and looking around, she flew straight over to Yang Kai, a big smile upon her face as she landed in front of him.
“Your Qiu Family was supposed to be in the fourth group, how come you, their Matriarch, came here all on your own?” Yang Kai stared blankly at Qiu Yi Meng.
Qiu Yi Meng extended a hand to Yang Kai and bluntly stated, “I came for my gift.”
“What gift?”
“Didn’t you say it yourself? A couple days ago, you said that after we crossed over to this side, you’d deliver me a special present!” As she spoke, her beautiful eyes began to dim as she faintly said, “What’s wrong? You didn’t forget did you?”
“Oh, that gift!” Yang Kai suddenly comprehended, slapping his forehead before nodding, “Naturally I remember, I’ve already prepared it for you.”
Qiu Yi Meng’s mood immediately improved as she excitedly said, “Then give it to me quickly, if whatever it is doesn’t satisfy me though, I’ll make you regret it.”
“You’ll definitely be satisfied,” Yang Kai smiled and casually tapped Qiu Yi Meng’s shoulder.
“What are you doing?” Qiu Yi Meng looked at Yang Kai suspiciously before glancing over at the spot he had tapped, failing to notice anything out of the ordinary.
“I just consumed a great deal of my energy to help you break through your current realm,” Yang Kai said to her seriously, “Carefully examine yourself. Don’t you feel anything special?”
Qiu Yi Meng stared at him only half convinced, apparently quite wary of his words, but when she began examining herself, a stunned look appeared on her pretty face as she muttered, “Oh… It really seems like I’m about to break through.”
“Go and find a place to comprehend the mysteries of the next realm. The surrounding fifty-kilometre region has been cleared up and is perfectly safe,” Yang Kai waved his hand.
Qiu Yi Meng didn’t dare to delay and quickly flew off.
“Too easy,” Yang Kai sighed softly.
Li Rong and Han Fei both giggled nearby.
It took a full three days of work but finally, everyone arrived safely through the Void Corridor in Tong Xuan Realm.
Within a radius of fifty kilometres, many cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty had found suitable places, sat down cross-legged, and immersed themselves in the Heavenly Law and Martial Dao, shaking off the shackles which had chained them and breaking through to the next realm.
Because of the differences between the World Principles, all the cultivators arriving in Tong Xuan Realm were able to obtain a certain promotion in their strength.
The cultivators who were on the verge of a breakthrough could naturally take advantage of this opportunity to advance in one fell swoop.
This was also the case when Yang Kai first set foot in this world.
When the Ancient Demon Clan was brought out of the Mysterious Small World by Yang Kai, they too had experienced such a phenomenon.
Now, it was the turn of these cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty. Yang Kai was well aware that this would happen so he had cleared out the surrounding fifty-kilometre radius to ensure all his friends and family would have a safe environment to break through.
Of the several thousand people who had come to Tong Xuan Realm, at least one-third of them immediately achieved a breakthrough, and while the others weren’t as lucky as them, they were still quite satisfied as their own cultivation having experienced some improvements, scattering themselves about to stand guard for their companions who were in the midst of their breakthroughs.
Qiu Yi Meng flew over from a spot about ten kilometers away, grinding her teeth as she muttered under her breath, seemingly cursing something or someone.
Quickly arriving in front of Yang Kai, she leaned in and stared deeply at him, “Is this the ‘big present’ you prepared for me?”
“Not satisfied?” Yang Kai grinned.
“I’ve very satisfied with it, but what does it have to do with you? Open your eyes and look around for yourself. So many people are breaking through…” Qiu Yi Meng swept her hand around at the countless cultivators sitting cross-legged on the ground and inhaling the rich World Energy.
“Since you’re satisfied then you shouldn’t have anything to complain about, right?”
“Mark my words, I’ll make you regret disappointing this woman!” Qiu Yi Meng stamped her foot bitterly and no longer had enough patience to deal with Yang Kai, stomping off to where the Qiu Family had gathered.
Yang Kai scratched his head and wore a helpless look.
“Holy Master!” At that time, Shi Kun suddenly appeared and hurriedly said, “There is a large group of people approaching here and their demeanor is quite imposing.”
“Who are they?” Yang Kai frowned.
“Subordinate has not had enough time to investigate, but the other party is led by a Saint Realm master.”
“I’ll take a look,” Yang Kai said in a disgruntled tone. The only big force nearby was Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple, but after losing so many masters here, Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple seemed to have vanished. Before beginning the migration, Yang Kai had even let Li Rong go to the Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple to survey the situation, but upon her return, she actually reported that the Sect was deserted.
Yang Kai couldn’t help wondering which group of ignorant people had now decided to run over.
Before he could go far, Yang Kai spotted some small black spots on the horizon that were rapidly approaching. As time passed, the figures among this group became clearer and clearer.
Sweeping this group of newcomers with his Divine Sense, Yang Kai’s expression suddenly became strange.
Among these people, he found that there was only a single First Order Saint Realm expert, the rest were just Transcendents and Immortal Ascension Boundary cultivators.
What he found strange though was not the strength of these people, but that there were many familiar auras among them.
After carefully examining them, Yang Kai suddenly burst into wry laughter.
The group of cultivators who were approaching had obviously also determined the situation here and stopped a kilometre or so out, their leader calling out, “May I ask, are several friends members of Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple? This humble one is Dragon Phoenix Palace’s Palace Master, Chen Zhou. I would like to consult with you about a certain matter.”
“Dragon Phoenix Palace?” Li Rong, who stood behind Yang Kai, wrinkled her brow, not having any impression of this Sect.
“They’re our own people,” Yang Kai said casually before shouting back, “Is Sun Yu with you?”
As soon as this question came out, the Dragon Phoenix Palace cultivators all frowned deeply and Palace Master Chen Zhou swiftly moved his body to cover a young man inside the crowd, preventing Yang Kai from seeing him.
“Disciple, someone is calling for you. Do you have a friend in Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple?” Ling Jian turned a suspicious look towards Sun Yu who was being protected on all sides.
As his master, Ling Jian knew best the life experiences of this disciple of his.
Sun Yu had been picked up by Ling Jian at a very young age and brought to the Dragon Phoenix Palace to cultivate. In all these years, Sun Yu had never left Dragon Phoenix Palace, in fact, if he had not strongly insisted on coming here now, how could Ling Jian dare bring him out so easily?
Now, Sun Yu was the hope of all of Dragon Phoenix Palace, he absolutely couldn’t have any accidents.
As a young man who had never left Dragon Phoenix Palace, how could Sun Yu have made an acquaintance in Free And Unfettered Spirit Temple? Ling Jian was genuinely confused.
Palace Master Chen Zhou also turned his attention to Sun Yu and asked, “Do you know the person who just shouted?”
Sun Yu, however, was so ecstatic he didn’t even respond to his Master or Palace Master Chen and instead stepped out from the crowd with a look of awe on his face and shouted, “Is that you, Senior Yang?”
Yang Kai smiled and nodded, “Yes!”
“It really is Senior Yang!” Sun Yu was overjoyed and couldn’t help rushing forward, leaving his fellow disciples and Elders behind as he flew over towards Yang Kai.
The masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace were shocked by this sudden development and quickly chased after him.
“Elder Ling, what background does this Senior Yang Sun Yu speaks of posses? Why does he seem so enthusiastic to meet him?” As they sped along, Chen Zhou asked curiously.
“This old master doesn’t know either,” Ling Jian was also confused.
As the spoke, everyone arrived in front of Yang Kai, Sun Yu looking more excited with every breath, respectfully cupping his fists, “Greetings Senior Yang. It turns out you already arrived here.”
Yang Kai nodded lightly, lifting his eyes from Sun Yu and staring at the crowd behind him.
Almost every master from Dragon Phoenix Palace had come out and were even now carefully guarding Sun Yu, directing vigilant looks all around in case someone here was harbouring ill intentions.
“Right, let me introduce you,” Sun Yu said spiritedly as he pointed to Yang Kai, “This is Senior Yang.”
He then pointed to the people from Dragon Phoenix Palace and said, “This is our Palace Master, Chen Zhou, this is my Master, Ling Jian, this is Elder Xiao Ling, this is…
As he introduced everyone one by one, Yang Kai nodded and said hello.
“What qualifications does this young man have to be called Senior?” Chen Zhou asked somewhat unhappily.
Sun Yu was now the Dragon Emperor of his Dragon Phoenix Palace, his true status far more important than even his own as Palace Master, yet now, meeting this youth, Sun Yu had actually enthusiastically called him Senior, making Chen Zhou feel very uncomfortable, as if doing so was a disgrace to Sun Yu’s identity as Dragon Emperor.
If Yang Kai had been a middle-aged man, Chen Zhou wouldn’t have paid it much mind, but the young man in front of him was clearly less than thirty years old.
“Palace Master, Senior Yang has a great graciousness to me, you must not speak disrespectfully to him,” Sun Yu snorted.
Chen Zhou stunned, his face becoming somewhat awkward as he cupped his fists and said, “I hope this friend will not take offence, this Chen’s mouth is simply a bit frank, I meant no disrespect.”
“Palace Master Chen is too serious,” Yang Kai didn’t care. Seeing Chen Zhou immediately compromise because of a few words from Sun Yu, Yang Kai fully comprehended how much importance Chen Zhou attached to him.
Nearby, Dragon Phoenix Palace’s Elder Xiao Ling was starring at Shi Kun and after hesitating for a moment, asked, “Dare I ask if Your Excellency is Elder Shi Kun of Nine Heavens Holy Land?”
“It is this Shi, have we met before?” Shi Kun looked at him curiously.
Xiao Ling smiled widely and called out in a fluster, “No wonder Your Excellency looked familiar. Six months ago, this Xiao once travelled to Nine Heavens Holy Land to seek the assistance of your Sect’s honoured Alchemy Grandmaster. At that time, Elder Shi Kun was sitting outside the nine peaks inside the stone pavilion so this Xiao had seen your face, but Elder Shi Kun probably does not have any impression of me.”
“Is that so…” Shi Kun nodded, every time he was on duty outside the nine peaks, he would see and greet dozens of people, how could remember all of them?
“Your Dragon Phoenix Palace came to request Alchemy services?” Yang Kai turned to Sun Yu and asked.
“En, Elder Xiao came back and said that there were many people waiting in line so he had to wait for a month before it was his turn,” Sun Yu laughed foolishly.
“Later if you need pills just ask me directly, you don’t have to wait in line,” Yang Kai declared.
In an instant, the look all the Dragon Phoenix Palace masters were directing at Yang Kai changed greatly.
Chen Zhou stammered as he hesitantly asked, “May I ask what relationship you have with Yang Kai, the Holy Master of Nine Heavens Holy Land?”
With the Holy Land Elder Shi Kun standing respectfully behind Yang Kai, it was clear who had the higher status.
Sun Yu had also called him Senior Yang.
Chen Zhou had a sharp mind and was quickly able to put together these clues, arriving at a certain possibility.
“This is my Holy Land’s Holy Master!” Shi Kun solemn replied.
Everyone from Dragon Phoenix Palace was shocked as they stared at Yang Kai in disbelief.
Chen Zhou’s expression became quite awkward as he cupped his fists and bowed, “So it is Holy Master Yang, a moment ago this Chen acted impolitely and offensively, I humbly request Holy Master Yang forgive my indiscretion.”
When he first saw him, Chen Zhou was unaware of Yang Kai’s identity and had even questioned him; how could he have known that this young man was actually one of the most prominent figures in the world?
The gulf in strength between Dragon Phoenix Palace and Nine Heavens Holy Land was enormous, if his boorish actions just now really angered Yang Kai, Dragon Phoenix Palace would definitely suffer a terrible end.
Realizing this, Chen Zhou couldn’t help feeling afraid as a chill shot up his spine.
“Palace Master Chen does not need to worry, I am a friends with Sun Yu, naturally I won’t care about such trivial things,” Yang Kai smiled faintly.
“Friends…” The masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace were all dumbfounded once again, each and every one of them showing an excited look, as if being friends with Yang Kai was a great honour.
Turning their gazes back to Sun Yu, their eyes filled with even greater worship.
Each of them was thinking in their hearts that the Dragon Emperor really was worthy of his title, even able to make friends with this grade of character.
He was still so young and weak yet he had won the favour of Nine Heavens Holy Land’s Holy Master. It also seemed like this Holy Master Yang was a man of great vision and had seen through Sun Yu’s extraordinariness.
As the masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace indulged in their flights of fancy and smiled happily to themselves, Yang Kai looked to Sun Yu and asked, “How come you are here?”
Sun Yu scratched his head, “Previously, Senior Yang asked me to inquire about a certain piece of news so when the Sect finally got word of a Mysterious Small World that seemed related to Senior Yang’s request, I requested to come investigate it personally. I didn’t think that Senior Yang would also be here though.”
“En, I also heard about it recently and came to investigate.”
“Then these people are…” Sun Yu swept his eyes around and soon discovered that there were some four or five thousand people gathered nearby, astonishing him greatly.
The strength of these several thousand cultivators was not high, only the couple dozen or so who had reached the Transcendent Realm were worthy of a little attention, while the rest were only at the Immortal Ascension and True Element Boundary.
This caused Sun Yu and the masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace to be quite curious, wondering where all these people had come from and what kind of relationship they had with Yang Kai.
“They’re all my friends and family,” Yang Kai explained casually before his expression turned serious, “In any case; I must offer you my thanks for this time.”
Because of a few words from Yang Kai, Sun Yu had actually done his best to have Dragon Phoenix Palace seek out news of his homeland and after obtaining a lead, had personally led a team of masters here.
This alone made Yang Kai very grateful.
At that time, Yang Kai had exhausted all his personal connections in the faint hope that they would discover something.
Yang Kai could just imagine what it was like when Sun Yu insisted on going out this time. The masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace must have vehemently objected but he still had not hesitated to come.
This young man had a character of gold!
“Shi Kun, after we return, speak with Great Elder and let him announce that from now on, our Holy Land will be close friends with Dragon Phoenix Palace,” Yang Kai said seemingly thoughtlessly.
“Yes!” Shi Kun quickly responded.
“This…” Chen Zhou wrung his hands nervously as a smile blossomed on his face, at somewhat of a loss for words, finally managing to stammer out, “I don’t know what to say.”
Dragon Phoenix Palace was not at all formidable now yet Nine Heavens Holy Land’s was among the most powerful and famous Sects in the world and had a profound and mysterious Alchemy Grandmaster within its ranks; which Sect did not want to establish ties with Nine Heavens Holy Land? Once they were able to forge such a relationship, the benefits they would receive would be enormous, at the very least; they would never have to worry about obtaining Saint Pills in the future.
Chen Zhou had never expected that this Holy Master Yang would be so congenial, causing his heart to shake and his thoughts to spin.
His face blushing bright red with excitement, Chen Zhou hastily said, “This Chen sincerely thanks Holy Master Yang for his kind intentions, just as you said, Dragon Phoenix Palace will advance and retreat together with Nine Heavens Holy Land in the future!”
Chen Zhou was not an inexperienced character and had seen his fair share of great storms, but his heart was still thrown into chaos because of these few words from Yang Kai.
“Palace Master Chen is too polite. Right, since you’ve come, I have a favour to ask of you,” Yang Kai suddenly thought of something.
“Please speak it, Holy Master Yang,” Chen Zhou replied sincerely.
“As Palace Master Chen has surely seen, the cultivations of my friends and family are not very high and the distance from here to Nine Heavens Holy Land is quite far. Perhaps there will be accidents on the road like this. If it is convenient, could I request Chen Palace Master to help me escort them home?” Yang Kai smiled and said, “Of course, when we arrive at the Holy Land, I will provide a generous reward.”
Hearing these last words, the eyes of all the Dragon Phoenix Palace masters lit up.
Sun Yu quickly waved his hand, “Senior Yang need not be so polite with us, whatever matter it is you need our assistance with, please feel free to speak it and we will surely comply. As for a reward, there is no need for such a thing.”
Chen Zhou hurriedly composed himself and nodded, “Indeed, Holy Master Yang does not need to treat my Dragon Phoenix Palace as outsiders.”
Yang Kai gently nodded, “Then… I’ll have to trouble you all for a time.”
Sun Yu smiled happily, “Very good, it seems I’ll have another chance to learn from Senior Yang.”
The people from Dragon Phoenix Palace immediately dispersed under the arrangements of Chen Zhou to patrol the surrounding area.
They hadn’t brought a lot of people here, only about thirty or forty in total, but most of them were Transcendent, so with such a group of masters joining them, the caravan would definitely be safer. After all, these masters were natives of Tong Xuan Realm and were very familiar with how things worked here, unlike the Great Han Dynasty cultivators who essentially knew nothing about this place.
Ling Jian quietly pulled Sun Yu aside and whispered, “Little disciple, when did you become acquainted with Holy Master Yang? From how you spoke just now, it was almost as if you had studied with him for a time? Why don’t I, your Master, know anything about that?”
Sun Yu didn’t dare speak the truth so he just left Ling Jian guessing.
Two days later, everything was ready and the several thousand people convey set out for Nine Heavens Holy Land.
These cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty were filled with excitement, all of them staring around curiously, pointing out various new and interesting things from time to time, gathering together in small groups and whispering amongst themselves.
The people from Dragon Phoenix Palace had also become incredibly popular with each of them constantly being surrounded by countless cultivators, all of them asking questions about Tong Xuan Realm.
The Dragon Phoenix Palace’s masters did not dare to neglect these relatives and friends of Yang Kai, answering anything they were asked all day long, their moods somewhat confused, not knowing whether to laugh or cry about this group of country bumpkins.
They had found that these people were ignorant of even the most basic common sense things.
Many of them were curious what kind of backwater Mysterious Small World these people used to line in.
At the back of the caravan, Yang Kai and Sun Yu walked side by side. Sun Yu would ask questions about the Martial Dao from time to time, and Yang Kai would happily teach him.
Not far away, Dragon Phoenix Palace’s Palace Master Chen Zhou actually had his gaze fixed on two pretty figures who were walking slightly ahead of him, a pensive look upon his face.
Perceiving this, a thought came to Yang Kai and he took the initiative to ask, “Has Palace Master Chen discovered something interesting?”
Chen Zhou smiled and said, “It’s not a big deal, I just found it strange how similar those two girls in front are. Not only do they share identical appearances, but even their life auras and True Qi fluctuations are exactly the same. The only difference between them is their temperaments. If Holy Master Yang had not said they had just come to Tong Xuan Realm, I would have thought they came from a certain Sect.”
Yang Kai raised his brow and shouted, “Jiao’er, Mei’er!”
The Hu Sisters, who were walking not far ahead, heard this shouts and hurriedly turned around. After approaching Yang Kai, Hu Jiao’er asked, “What is it?”
Yang Kai ignored her and instead turned to look at Chen Zhou, “Which Sect did Palace Master Chen think they came from?”
Chen Zhou stared at them for a moment before replying, “Twin Spirit Pavilion, I don’t know if Holy Master Yang has heard of it.”
[Just as I thought.]
Yang Kai nodded, “Naturally I have heard of it, I also heard that this Twin Spirit Pavilion and your honoured Sect have been on good terms for a long time.”
“En, the relationship between our two Sects truly is quite good, but there are many complicated reasons for that,” Chen Zhou smiled bitterly and said.
These two Sects had been close for many generations going back thousands of years.
Just as Yang Kai had suspected, Dragon Phoenix Palace and Twin Spirit Pavilion had both once been extremely powerful Sects, standing at the peak of the Human Territory, comparable to today’s Nine Heavens Holy Land.
But for some unknown reason, the top masters of Twin Spirit Pavilion had at some point disappeared along with the Dragon Emperor and Phoenix Empress, causing their core inheritances to become lost and their Sects to decline.
The two Sects had originally been close, and after suffering similar hardships, had only grown more intimate over the years.
“Our Dragon Phoenix Palace is still better off though thanks to Sun Yu successfully obtaining the Dragon Emperor’s inheritance. Now, so long as he can find an appropriate Phoenix Empress candidate, my Dragon Phoenix Palace will surely be able to reproduce the glory of its past. But Twin Spirit Pavilion… haa… there is still no word on the location of their core inheritance,” Chen Zhou said with a complicated expression, somewhat happy yet somewhat sad.
Sun Yu, who was nearby, lowered his head, not daring to say anything.
“Twin Spirit Pavilion?” Hu Jiao Er, who had been listening up until now, suddenly showed some reaction, a slightly excited look appearing on her face as she asked, “What kind of Sect is this Twin Spirit Pavilion?”
Chen Zhou chuckled, “It is a very special Sect because they only recruit twin brothers or sisters. As such, all this force’s disciples form pairs, en, actually this point is quite similar to our Dragon Phoenix Palace, but they cultivate a shared life Secret Art while we specialize in a life partner dual cultivation art.”
“A force that only recruits twins?” The Hu Sisters’ beautiful eyes lit up.
“Yes, on top of that, all their disciple pairs give off a feeling that they are the same person, quite similar to the two of you. After cultivating their Secret Art, each pair of twin brothers or sisters have their True Qi fluctuations and life auras gradually become the same, allowing the two to join forces and multiply their respective strengths; however, the two of you seem to be even fiercer than them. I have also travelled to the Twin Spirit Pavilion many times and met many of their disciples, but none of them were comparable to you two.”
“Senior, do you know what the name of the Secret Art they cultivate is?” Hu Jiao Er hurriedly asked, a look of expectation flashing across her beautiful eyes.
Yang Kai glanced over at her, knowing what she was suspecting.
“Their Secret Art seems to be called the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art… but it is now incomplete. Although after so many generations the section which was lost has been made up, somewhat through their own efforts, they have still been unable to reproduce the glory of their ancestors,” Chen Zhou said casually; a Sect’s cultivation technique should not be leaked out, but having its name be known wasn’t a big deal.
“It really is!” Hu Jiao’er’s tender body trembled as her beautiful eyes practically glittered with brilliance.
“Elder Sister…” Hu Mei’er also covered her mouth and whispered incredulously, “Isn’t that the name of the Secret Art we obtained?”
“You managed to obtain it?” Chen Zhou called out in alarm as he stared at the Hu Sisters with great shock.
Hu Jiao’er sincerely nodded, “The name of our two sisters’ cultivation technique is the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art, and it could be related to Twin Spirit Pavilion?”
“How could it not be related?” Chen Zhou said excitedly, “Surely that was the lost inheritance of Twin Spirit Pavilion. I never expected it would be obtained by you two; no wonder your auras are so consistent!”
Saying so, Chen Zhou suddenly burst into laughter, “If Wu Fa and Wu Tian learned of this matter, I’m afraid they would be too excited to even sleep.”
“Wu Fa and Wu Tian?” Yang Kai asked.
“En, the two Sect Masters of Twin Spirit Pavilion are called Wu Fa and Wu Tian, they are twin brothers,” Chen Zhou explained quickly.
“Such names… Yang Kai was secretly amazed and couldn’t help chuckling to himself. These two names were far too arrogant and could easily provoke hatred. If some short-tempered master was to bump into them and they announced themselves, it would surely lead to a fight.
“Originally that Secret Art came from that Twin Spirit Pavilion,” Hu Jiao’er wore a complicated look.
Since she and her sister obtained the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art, their destiny had undergone a great change. The rate at which the two of them improved their strengths was now many times greater than an average cultivator, allowing them in just over a decade to break through to the Transcendent Realm, becoming some of the strongest masters in the entire Great Han Dynasty.
The two of them were naturally very grateful to this profound Secret Art and to the Senior who had left it behind for them to discover.
Now that they knew the source of this Secret Art, both of them couldn’t help thinking about paying Twin Spirit Pavilion a visit to take a look at the Sect from which it originated as well as to see other twin brothers and sisters who cultivated the same Secret Art as them.
Yang Kai naturally did not miss what the Hu Sisters were thinking.
Moreover, Yang Kai had long ago planned for such a possibility.
Just because they mistakenly believed Sun Yu was the Dragon Emperor, Chen Zhou and the other masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace treated him like the most precious of treasures. If the Hu Sisters were to return the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art to Twin Spirit Pavilion, they would obviously receive similar treatment.
They would surely become the rising stars and future hope of the Twin Spirit Pavilion!
Because what they had obtained was the most orthodox version of the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art, not one that had been cobbled together by Twin Spirit Pavilion’s descendants.
What was of even more importance though was that Twin Spirit Pavilion might have information the Hu Sisters needed. Over the years, the two sisters had been struggling all on their own, and although their cultivations had reached the Transcendent Realm, such strength was insignificant in Tong Xuan Realm.
The cultivators of Twin Spirit Pavilion who had immersed themselves in the study of the Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art for centuries undoubtedly had a deeper understanding of it than them and would be able to teach them their insight and experiences, greatly increasing the rate of the Hu Sisters’ progress.
“Yang Kai, we’d like to…” Hu Jiao’er turned to Yang Kai hesitantly, but he simply lifted his hand to interrupt her next words.
“Palace Master Chen, what is the temperament of Twin Spirit Pavilion’s Sect Masters?” Yang Kai asked. He understood the Hu Sisters’ thoughts, but that alone was not enough for him to feel relieved sending them to Twin Spirit Pavilion.
“Regarding their demeanour, Holy Master Yang may feel at ease. I have been dealing with them for many years and they are upright people. Twin Spirit Pavilion has very few disciples, only about a thousand people in total, so they always act prudently and never do anything that would bring disrepute upon themselves. Although there are only about a thousand of them, the position of the Twin Spirit Pavilion in Tong Xuan Realm is not worse than that of my Dragon Phoenix Palace. Both Wu Fa and Wu Tian are First Order Saints, the same as this Chen, but when they collaborate, they are capable of defeating most Second-Order Saints,” Chen Zhou explained happily.
“Then there should be no issues,” Yang Kai nodded.
Chen Zhou’s eyes flashed, “If these two young ladies can bring the complete Twin Qi Shared Spirit Divine Art to Twin Spirit Pavilion, Wu Fa and Wu Tian will certainly be ecstatic!”
“There’s no rush, Jiao’er and Mei’er will first return back to Nine Heavens Holy Land with me. It won’t be too late for them to make a decision once we arrive,” Yang Kai chuckled.
“En,” The Hu Sisters did not hesitate to agree.
“Then… can this Chen send a message to Wu Fa and Wu Tian to inform them of the good news?” Chen Zhou asked cautiously as he observed Yang Kai’s expression.
“En, I shall trouble Palace Master Chen to do so,” Yang Kai nodded.
“Many thanks,” Chen Zhou replied gratefully before quickly summoning over Elder Xiao Ling of Dragon Phoenix Palace and letting him quickly travel to Twin Spirit Pavilion to convey the word of the Hu Sisters to Wu Fa and Wu Tian.
Dragon Phoenix Palace and Twin Spirit Pavilion had always had a good relationship, and Chen Zhou, Wu Fa and Wu Tian were also on good terms. When Sun Yu had obtained the Dragon Emperor’s Inheritance, allowing the Dragon Emperor’s prestige to reappear after thousands of years, Chen Zhou had felt somewhat regretful for Twin Spirit Pavilion even though he was happy for his own sect. Now that Chen Zhou saw hope in the Hu Sisters, he wanted to let his two friends know as soon as possible so they too could rejoice.
Yang Kai soon left to join the rest of the caravan, walking alongside and chatting with Ling Tai Xu.
It was difficult for Hu Jiao’er and Hu Mei’er to hide their excitement, each of them taking a spot next to Chen Zhou and constantly asking him about Twin Spirit Pavilion’s current situation.
Chen Zhou did not conceal anything and happily answered the two you girls’ questions.
“Holy Master Yang is quite considerate of you two,” Chen Zhou suddenly smiled mysteriously.
“What does Senior mean?” Hu Jiao’er asked, confused.
Chen Zhou explained, “Holy Master Yang insisted that you two first go to Nine Heavens Holy Land with him while allowing me to send a message to Twin Spirit Pavilion. Now, if Wu Fa and Wu Tian wish to meet with you, they must first travel to Nine Heavens Holy Land! Knowing you have a close relationship with Holy Master Yang, Wu Fa and Wu Tian will certainly not mistreat you in the future. On the contrary, they will regard you as their Sect’s future hope. If both of you had instead gone directly to Twin Spirit Pavilion, the situation may not be the same.”
Hu Jiao’er thought about it for a moment and felt that this was reasonable, her beautiful eyes glancing over towards Yang Kai who was walking in front of them and pouting slightly, “He’s always up to something.”
“He acted so for your own well being,” Chen Zhou nodded with an ambiguous smile, seemingly having noticed something.
……
After three long months of travelling, the several thousand person caravan was finally approaching their destination. When this news spread out, everyone felt very excited.
After so long, these cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty were all thoroughly exhausted, their initially vibrant curiosity giving way to the desire to find a quiet place and quickly begin enjoying the rich World Energy aura of Tong Xuan Realm.
This world was many times better in terms of cultivation environment compared to the Great Han Dynasty, causing all of these cultivators to secretly anticipate what kind of development they would achieve in the future.
From Nine Heavens Holy Land a few hundred kilometres away, a group of figures flew out.
Upon arriving, each of these people cupped their fists and greeted, “Holy Master!”
All of the Holy Land’s Elders had rushed out to welcome this caravan, their eyes curiously sweeping over these several thousand people.
Yang Kai gently nodded and asked, “Is everything ready?”
Great Elder Xu Hui nodded, “Everything has been prepared. When Elder Shi Kun arrived a few days ago, we immediately began tidying up War Spirit Temple’s old site. Although there are still some places in need of repair, we can begin moving people in at any time.”
“Not a problem,” Yang Kai nodded and expressed his satisfaction.
There were roughly three thousand disciples of Nine Heavens Holy Land, and now Yang Kai had brought back four or five thousand people with him. The nine peaks did not have enough space to comfortably place all of these people, and even if they squished everyone in, the supply of World Energy wouldn’t be sufficient to supply so many cultivators.
Therefore, Yang Kai had long ago decided to place his friends and family in a different location.
The old sites of Shattering Mystical Palace and War Spirit Temple were both good choices.
These two Sects had originally been set up in locations with rich World Energy and beautiful scenery, so they were quite suitable for long-term residence. The most important thing was that there were many buildings already in place.
However, Shattering Mystical Palace now had a constantly open entrance to the Starry Sky, so Yang Kai didn’t feel comfortable settling the Great Han Dynasty cultivators there and decided to use War Spirit Temple’s site instead.
Yang Kai had sent Shi Kun ahead a month ago to convey his instructions to Nine Heavens Holy Land.
Now it appeared that all the arrangements on that side had been completed.
All that was left was for the people brought over by Yang Kai to move in.
War Spirit Temple was not far from Nine Heavens Holy Land and was actually located right between the Holy Land and Netherworld Sect, so if anyone ever wanted to act against them, they would first have to pass through Nine Heavens Holy Land or Netherworld. Sect.
This was the strongest guarantee of the Great Han Dynasty cultivators’ safety.
Yang Kai had informed everyone about these things on their way here and the various leaders like Yang Zhao, Qiu Yi Meng, and Huo Xing Chen had said that there were no problems with his arrangements.
Living in the former site of War Spirit Temple would be convenient for them if they ever needed to look for Yang Kai or visit Nine Heavens Holy Land in the future as the two were only half an hour apart.
As the huge caravan walked forward, Yang Kai introduced the Elders of the Holy Land to the various leaders of the forces from the Great Han Dynasty, allowing them to mingle with each other.
Towards these people brought by Yang Kai, Xu Hui and others showed great humbleness, causing many of the young leaders to feel quite flattered.
All of them were quite clear that with their pitiful cultivation, if they were not close friends of Yang Kai, these Saint Realm masters may not even deem them worthy to look at.
But now, all these powerful masters who had lived for hundreds of years treated them with politeness and courtesy.
For a moment, these leaders felt a subtle sense of excitement and were once again profoundly taught about how extraordinary Yang Kai’s status in this world was.
“Holy Master Yang, since we have arrived, we shall take our leave,” Chen Zhou suddenly came up to Yang Kai and said.
They had been away from Dragon Phoenix Palace for several months now so it was high time for them to go back.
“Palace Master Chen must be tired after such a long journey, please stay in my Holy Land for a few days and allow me to offer you my hospitality,” Yang Kai sincerely said. Along the road, there were indeed many incidents they had helped to resolve.
With thousands of people slowly walking together, there were always a few fellows without eyes who came to stir up trouble, and if they had not been handled properly by the masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace, Yang Kai might have killed them all.
Chen Zhou and the others had escorted them all the way to the doorsteps of the Holy Land so Yang Kai was not about to just let them leave like this.
“This…” Chen Zhou hesitated.
“Since Senior Yang has invited us, we should not refuse,” Sun Yu interjected.
Chen Zhou smiled bitterly, “You kid…”
Relenting, Chen Zhou nodded and cupped his fists, “Then we shall be imposing on you.”
Yang Kai smiled with satisfaction.
Sun Yu quietly arrived beside Yang Kai and whispered, “Senior Yang, when can I tell Palace Master and the others the truth of this matter? Every time I see them acting so respectful towards me, I feel a deep sense of guilt.”
“After this time’s matter has been processed, I will go find someone and then bring them to your Dragon Phoenix Palace to explain everything.”
“Really?” Sun Yu asked excitedly.
“En.”
“Is the one Senior Yang is going to look for the Phoenix Empress?” Sun Yu casually guessed.
But to his surprise, Yang Kai readily admitted, “Yes!”
It was about time for him to seek out Su Yan and bring her back. She had been in Ice Sect for more than a decade now and it had been seven years since Yang Kai had last met with her. Now that everyone from High Heaven Pavilion had come to Tong Xuan Realm, he should allow her to return home.
After bringing her back and allowing her to obtain the Phoenix Empress’ Inheritance, presumably her cultivation would soar upwards!
Yang Kai was quite looking forward to it.
After an hour, the huge convoy passed by the nine peaks and, under the orders of Yang Kai, Xu Hui invited the group of masters from Dragon Phoenix Palace into Nine Heavens Holy Land and personally entertained them.
Meanwhile, the others moved on towards the old site of War Spirit Temple.
Yang Kai has already instructed Xu Hui to deliver some pills to Dragon Phoenix Palace as thanks for their efforts. Xu Hui would have no trouble handling this.
Another hour later, everyone finally arrived at the former site of War Spirit Temple.
From far away, Wu Jie of Netherworld Sect flew over, cupped his fists and bowed, “Holy Master Yang, long time no see.”
“Sect Master Wu, why are you here?” Yang Kai was surprised.
Wu Jie chuckled lightly, “Things have been quiet in the Sect lately so I brought some of my disciples here to lend a helping hand. Are these the people from Holy Master Yang’s hometown? There are a lot of them.”
As he spoke, Wu Jie glanced behind Yang Kai and was secretly surprised.
“En, they will live here from now on and will be neighbours to your Netherworld Sect, so I will have to trouble Sect Master Wu to look after them every now and then.”
“Rest assured, as long as my Netherworld Sect exists, no one will cross its defences and trouble this place,” Wu Jie struck his chest proudly and promised.
Inside the former site of War Spirit Temple, the various cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty began settling in and after ten days of discussion, each force had its own place.
War Spirit Temple originally had several thousand disciples, so even though there were many cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty, it was not a problem to fit them all in.
With new homes in a new environment, everyone felt a sense of prosperity.
Yang Kai summoned the leaders of the various forces and warned them about several things, especially the passage to the Starry Sky gate inside Shattering Mystical Palace, making sure none of them allowed their people to enter it at will.
That was a place where even if Saints went in, they were almost guaranteed to die, let alone this group of people from the Great Han Dynasty.
“This world is very different from the Great Han Dynasty, here you cannot act the same as before. All of you must regard one another as one whole family. Although you may need years, or even tens of years to fully integrate into this world, and the road ahead will be challenging, the room for development here is also far greater compared to the other side,” Yang Kai said as he looked out across the crowd.
The leaders of the various forces all nodded. Since they were willing to follow Yang Kai here, they were naturally prepared for all this.
If they wanted to develop and thrive here, they would need to put aside their differences and band together, abandoning their previous Sect and Family identities to become one cohesive force.
There was no need for Yang Kai to mention such matters, this was something they all understood.
Fortunately, at present, the leaders of each force basically came from the younger generation, so their mindsets were more flexible.
The Holy Land sent over a large number of cultivation materials and evenly distributed them to everyone here, so the Great Han Dynasty cultivators had no need to worry about securing resources and could instead focus on improving their own cultivation realms.
The Holy Land could now easily collect this amount of cultivation materials as the five Grandmasters and Xia Ning Chang were constantly receiving requests for Alchemy services. With the storm of the Mysterious Small Worlds dying down, the number of people coming to the Holy Land for pills was gradually increasing again.
The Holy Land’s daily income was now enough to support ten Holy Lands, so naturally there was no issue supplying resources to the Great Han cultivators.
During these ten days, Xia Ning Chang had also come over and stayed awhile, spending time greeting everyone from High Heaven Pavilion, but because there were so many people requesting Alchemy services from the Holy Land, after a few days she had to return.
Another ten days passed by and everything had finally settled down.
In a corner of the former War Spirit Temple grounds, Yang Kai came across Ling Tai Xu standing atop of mountain peak, quietly gazing out across the world, and called out, “Grand Master!”
Ling Tai Xu looked back and nodded with a smile, “Have you grow tired after all these days of hard work?”
“Not at all,” Yang Kai smiled, “It was my greatest wish since I first came to this world to bring my family and friends here.”
Ling Tai Xu revealed a look of approval as he nodded, “This time, you have splendidly dealt with all possible issues, I believe everyone who has come here is deeply thankful to you.”
Yang Kai gently inhaled, revealing a worried look, “The only thing I worry about now is if there will be any contradictions in the future.”
Ling Tai Xu however just laughed, “There will definitely be contradiction; after all, the people who came here come from far too many forces, but you don’t have to worry about that, no one here is unreasonable, so even if contradictions arise, they will be able to find solutions on their own. As long as they have the heart to come together, after one or two generations have passed, they will truly become one family. Everything is just a matter of time.”
“I hope so,” Yang Kai nodded.
He had done what he should do, the rest would be up to the efforts of the cultivators from the Great Han Dynasty.
“Kai’er, that Soaring Heaven Sect you mentioned on the way here… Ling Tai Xu suddenly changed the subject, “Is it true that the Ancestral Founder for my High Heaven Pavilion is there?”
“En,” Yang Kai nodded sincerely, “It’s absolutely true. When disciple first came to this world, I received much care from the Ancestral Founder as well as my Martial Uncles and Martial Aunt.”
On the journey to the Holy Land, Yang Kai had spoken about the relationship between High Heaven Pavilion and Soaring Heaven Sect. At that time, the Ling Tai Xu was very interested and excited; now that he was suddenly bringing it up again, it was obvious what he was planning.
“Ancestral Founder is still alive…” Ling Tai Xu’s face showed a fascinated look, “His strength is probably quite profound, yes?”
“Among the highest level in this world!” Yang Kai quickly said.
Ling Tai Xu took a deep breath, “I wish to greet him!”
He was the former Sect Master of High Heaven Pavilion, but compared with Chu Ling Xiao, he was still several generations lower. Now that Ling Tai Xu knew that the Sect’s Ancestral Founder was still alive, naturally he wanted to meet him.
“I’ll take you,” Yang Kai said immediately.
“There’s no need for that, you have many things to attend to, just find someone who knows the way there and have them show me the way,” Ling Tai Xu waved his hand.
Yang Kai smiled meaningfully, “If I let someone else take Grand Master there, it will be at least a four-month round trip, but if disciple takes you, it will only take a few days to go back and forth.”
“Oh?” Ling Tai Xu’s brow rose, “Do you have the means to travel so quickly?”
“Grand Master will have to experience it to understand,” Yang Kai chuckled, thinking for a moment before saying, “Let’s also bring Su Mu along.”
Ling Tai Xu pondered for a bit before nodding, “Good, regardless of anything else, he is now the Sect Master of High Heaven Pavilion. Coming with me to meet Ancestral Founder is only appropriate.”
Yang Kai immediately released his Divine Sense to search for Su Mu.
An incense stick worth of time later, Su Mu rushed over, “Brother-in-law, Former Sect Master, why did you suddenly summon me?”
“To lead you to see the Sect’s Ancestral Founder!” Yang Kai grinned and summoned the Flying Heavens Shuttle, leaping aboard before beckoning to Su Mu and Ling Tai Xu.
After the two also boarded, the Flying Heavens Shuttle immediately transformed into a blue streak of light and disappeared.
Feeling the terrifying speed of the Flying Heavens Shuttle, Ling Tai Xu and Su Mu both paled.
Su Mu exclaimed, “Brother-in-law, what is this artifact? Isn’t its speed too incredible?”
He was also now a Transcendent, yet when he released his Divine Sense into the surroundings, he was unable to capture the flow of scenery around him, which meant that the Flying Heavens Shuttle could fly at least several times faster than he could expand his Divine Sense.
“It’s called the Flying Heavens Shuttle, a flight type artifact,” Yang Kai explained casually.
“This thing is amazing. At such a speed, if I ever wanted to visit Nine Heavens Holy Land in the future, I’m afraid the trip would only take the blink of an eye,” Su Mu shouted excitedly, “Brother-in-law, make one for me too!”
Yang Kai’s face went black.
Ling Tai Xu saw this and smiled, “You should give up such wishful thinking, I’m afraid this artifact is not easy to acquire.”
“En, in all the world, this is the only one,” Yang Kai nodded.
Su Mu was inevitably disappointed upon realizing just how precious and rare the Flying Heavens Shuttle was, “Brother-in-law, you being able to obtain a unique treasure like this is really the good fortunes of Heaven… Right, a moment ago you mentioned something about bringing me to see the Ancestral Founder? What Ancestral Founder?”
Yang Kai quickly explained about Chu Ling Xiao and Soaring Heaven Sect.
After listening to him, Su Mu couldn’t help looking forward to this meeting.
Along the way, Yang Kai took advantage of this opportunity to teach some knowledge about Tong Xuan Realm to Su Mu and Ling Tai Xu.
Two days later, they arrived at Soaring Heaven Sect.
Yang Kai rushed directly into Serene Resplendent Peak.
Before he could enter the mountain cave though, a tender shout reached his ears, “Little Martial Nephew!”
Turning his head towards the source of the voice, Yang Kai saw his Martial Aunt Fei Yu standing not far away, apparently having already noticed his arrival. Beside her was Cang Yan, Li Wan and Fei Jian.
Yang Kai smiled happily and rushed over with Ling Tai Xu and Su Mu.
“I was just wondering which blind bastard dared to break into my Serene Resplendent Peak, but it turns out it’s just you returning,” Fei Yu said full of enthusiasm, her beautiful eyes sweeping over Yang Kai as she angrily said, “You never send word in advance and always just appear and disappear so mysteriously.”
“I just arrived,” Yang Kai laughed, “In any case, it’s not like we’re strangers.”
“The only one who dares to come and go freely from my Serene Resplendent Peak is you. If Li Wan or the rest dared to do this, I would knock all their teeth out without question,” Fei Yu snorted.
Li Wan made a pitiful face as he complained, “Why are you pulling me into this? I’ve never come in and out of this place without letting you know.”
“These two are…” Cang Yan cast his eyes curiously towards Ling Tai Xu and Su Mu, not knowing why Yang Kai would bring these two people to Soaring Heaven Sect.
“This is my Grand Master Ling Tai Xu that I mentioned to you before, and this is my Junior Brother Su Mu, en, he is now the Sect Master of the High Heaven Pavilion.”
“High Heaven Pavilion!” The four of them were quite shocked as they asked, “The Sect Martial Ancestor created in that other world?”
“En.”
“High Heaven Pavilion’s Ling Tai Xu greets Senior Brothers and Senior Sister!” Ling Tai Xu is a cupped his fists and politely bowed. Although his appearance made him look much older than Cang Yan and the others, Ling Tai Xu knew that in terms of true age each of the four before him was much older than himself, so it was only a matter of course to call them Senior Brothers and Senior Sister.
“Su Mu greets Martial Uncles and Martial Aunt!” Su Mu also hurriedly saluted.
“Good good good!” Cang Yan laughed as he and the other three returned the courtesy, “So Junior Brother and Martial Nephew are here to recognize your ancestors and return to your homeland. Good, Martial Ancestor will be very happy when he learns of this.”
“What about the others from High Heaven Pavilion?” Fei Yu kindly inquired.
“I have settled them in a place near Nine Heavens Holy Land. The journey from there to here is too far and they have only just arrived in Tong Xuan Realm so I have not led them here today.”
“That’s fine, if there is a chance in the future, you can bring them here,” Cang Yan nodded, “Come, let me take you to see Martial Ancestor. We just so happen to have something to discuss with him as well.”
“Then I’ll trouble Senior Brother to lead the way,” Ling Tai Xu’s heart pounded with excitement.
Inside Chu Ling Xiao’s secluded room, the group of people looked for a place and sat down cross-legged; after learning about Ling Tai Xu and Su Mu’s origins, Chu Ling Xiao also felt some rising emotions.
After a moment of silence, Chu Ling Xiao said, “In the past, I founded High Heaven Pavilion as a temporary plan. I could not remain forever to watch over that Demon General’s body so I casually found some disciples and taught them a few things, but I hadn’t thought that after leaving, those few disciples would continue to carry forward High Heaven Pavilion for so long. En, I was somewhat negligent in my responsibilities. If I had known things would turn out this way, I would have left some better Secret Arts and Martial Skills there. These years must have been hard for you.”
“Ancestral Founder is too serious,” Ling Tai Xu hurriedly said, “It was all thanks to Ancestral Founder that disciple can have today’s achievements. Disciple now being able to greet Ancestral Founder in this lifetime is already the greatest blessing of High Heaven Pavilion’s ancestors. If they were to learn of this in the afterlife, I’m sure they would smile happily.”
“Good,” Chu Ling Xiao gently nodded, a look of gratitude appearing on his face.
Chu Ling Xiao was quite concerned about the current situation of High Heaven Pavilion and Ling Tai Xu also had many things he wished to talk about with the Ancestral Founder. Seeing that they would not be finished any time soon, Fei Yu beckoned to Yang Kai while quietly withdrawing.
Yang Kai excused himself and followed after her.
Outside the secret room, following Yang Kai, Cang Yan and the others also came out.
They had come here to report something to Chu Ling Xiao, but seeing him immersed in his discussion with Ling Tai Xu, they decided their matter could wait.
“Little Martial Nephew, I heard that your Nine Heavens Holy Land is developing quite well, yes?” Fei Yu asked Yang Kai with a smile.
“Things are alright,” Yang Kai chuckled.
“I also heard that your Nine Heavens Holy Land Saintesses are completely obedient to the Holy Master. Is that really the case? Little Martial Nephew, have you found a few Saintesses already?” Li Wan’s eyes glanced around, a false look of concern appearing on his face as he said, “Although you’re still young and strong, everything should be done in moderation lest you hurt yourself.”
Yang Kai’s face cramped up, not knowing how he should respond, instead choosing to forcefully change the subject, “Martial Uncles, Martial Aunt, did you all just come back from the outside?”
“En,” Cang Yan nodded, “We were out investigating the Snow Mountain Range’s situation.”
“Oh? Why? What happened?” Yang Kai asked curiously.
The four looked at each other, with Fei Yu eventually saying, “Little Martial Nephew is not an outsider, is there any need to conceal things?”
Cang Yan nodded, “We should discuss it, it will also be good to inform Little Martial Nephew so he can let Nine Heavens Holy Land pay attention.”
Seeing their expression become dignified, Yang Kai immediately realized that the situation was more complicated than he anticipated, otherwise how could four Saint Realm masters treat it so seriously?
“Come with us,” Fei Yu waved her hand and led Yang Kai together with the other three towards a certain direction.
“About half a year ago, the world’s Mysterious Small World all opened on their own, Little Martial Nephew should know about this, yes?” Cang Yan asked as they walked.
“Naturally,” Yang Kai gently nodded. Not only did he know about it, but he was also quite suspicious about whether these Mysterious Small Worlds opening on their own had something to do with him destroying the space which was guarded by Great Demon God’s Soul Clone.
Although he had no definitive evidence, the timing was quite consistent, with all the entrances to the various Mysterious Small Worlds appearing just after he destroyed that space.
“We don’t know if the two situations are related to one another, but after the entrances to all the Mysterious Small Worlds opened, an incident inside the Snow Mountain Range occurred.”
“What kind of incident?” Yang Kai asked.
“A top-level master strangely appeared,” Cang Yan replied in a low tone.
“Top-level master?”
“A Third Order Saint!”
Yang Kai wore a look of shock.
There were only a handful of Third Order Saints across the world, with the total number among all three races adding up to no more than twenty.
Yang Kai knew that there were only five such masters amongst the Demon Race. Besides the Demon Commander Zhang Yuan, there were the four Demon General.
On the Monster Race’s side, only the three Great Seniors had arrived at such a cultivation, namely Scarlet Flame Thunder Dragon, Divine Ox, and Ice Jade Python.
The number amongst the Human Race was slightly more, but not by a wide margin.
Such a master inexplicably appearing in the Snow Mountain Range was naturally an incident worthy of note.
“What race is he from?” Yang Kai hurriedly asked.
When he did so though, the expressions of his four Martial Seniors suddenly became strange, Cang Yan only responding after a brief silence, “It was because we were uncertain of what race he belonged to that we were concerned. When we get to the place, you will understand.”
Yang Kai was stunned and no longer asked any questions and simply followed along.
Listening to what they had just said though, it seemed like this Third Order Saint was actually imprisoned somewhere inside Soaring Heaven Sect at the moment, making Yang Kai feel quite confused.
Wanting to capture a Third Order Saint was no simple matter.
Although he was curious about how they accomplished this, Yang Kai refrained from asking.
Following the four through Soaring Heaven Sect, it took a moment before they arrived at a certain mountain peak at the bottom of which was a hidden entrance that led down into its depths.
Along the downward ramp were bright torches that gave off a thick Yin Qi.
Feeling a certain pressure on his body, Yang Kai’s expression grew serious.
Fei Yu took the initiative to explain, “There is a powerful Spirit Array set up here that has the effect of suppressing one’s strength. This place is where my Soaring Heaven Sect imprisons powerful enemies, but it has been empty for quite some time, that is, until a few months ago.”
“That unknown master is being held here?”
“En, the situation is very strange, we don’t know how to explain it, it’s best if you see it with your own eyes,” Cang Yan nodded.
As they descended, Yang Kai felt that the pressure fettering him seemed to be growing stronger and stronger, giving him the illusion that the entire mountain was pressing down on him, making it difficult to breathe.
This was obviously the overflow effect of the Spirit Array. Although it was not specifically targeting Yang Kai, it still gave him great pressure. If they were to be the focus of this suppression, Yang Kai didn’t know what kind of master would be able to withstand it.
After descending around three thousand meters or so, the group finally arrived at a dimly lit stone room. Inside this stone room, there were a number of faintly glowing lines that were arranged in a complicated pattern. At the centre of this pattern was a bound human figure.
Chu Ling Xiao’s Demon Sealing Chain was firmly wrapped around this humanoid form, constantly releasing a scalding hot aura that was burning this figure while its hands and feet were also bound by a series of artifacts Yang Kai had never seen before.
Even so, a shocking malevolent aura still filled this room.
“That’s him,” Cang Yan pointed to the front, “Little Martial Nephew, look carefully, if your Nine Heavens Holy Land encounters such a creature in the future, you must act prudently, we are still unable to determine which race he belongs to.”
As Yang Kai looked towards the human form, his eyes suddenly filled with shock as he called out unconsciously, “Bone Race?”
“What?” His four Martial Seniors simultaneously stared towards him.
Yang Kai frowned deeply and quickly walked towards the human form, carefully examining it and confirming his initial suspicions.
The one tied up here was actually a Bone Race!
“Little Martial Nephew, do you know this race?” Cang Yan asked urgently.
“I’ve seen one before!” Yang Kai nodded solemnly.
“Where?”
“Seven or eight years ago, when I went to find my Senior Sister, in a place at the northern edge of the endless sea covered in glaciers,” Yang Kai explained quickly.
When he had gone to find Su Yan, he had blended Souls with her inside Ice Sect, allowing their Souls to assume the forms of a Golden Dragon and Ice Phoenix. In that form, the two of them flew across the glacial word and inadvertently destroyed a certain iceberg. Inside that iceberg was where Yang Kai had found a frozen skeleton.
That frozen skeleton was exactly the same as the humanoid one in front them, without any flesh and blood, only consisting of bones and meridians, a frightening sight to behold.
At the time, Yang Kai didn’t know what it was and thought it was perhaps the remains of an Ice Sect disciple that had accidentally died, so out of good-will he brought it back.
Ice Sect’s Master, Qing Ya, along with Ice Sect’s Elders, however, knew who this skeleton was and informed Yang Kai about him.
They said that a long time ago, a strange race which called themselves the Bone Race had mysterious appeared in Tong Xuan Realm. They appeared as nothing but skeletons, but each one of them was extremely powerful and long-lived.
The decline of Ice Sect was deeply tied to the appearance of the Bone Race.
Qing Ya finally instructed Yang Kai to incinerate the skeleton, and during that process, the frozen bones which he had thought was nothing more than a corpse, actually revealed a powerful life aura.
This frightening incident had left a great impression on Yang Kai.
Now seeing this shackled skeleton, Yang Kai naturally recognized its origins at first glance.
After listening to Yang Kai’s explanation, his Martial Uncles and Martial Aunt all wore extremely solemn expressions.
“You mean… he has lived for several thousand years?” Cang Yan asked somewhat incredulously.
“Most likely,” Yang Kai nodded.
“Martial Ancestor also said that this person seemed to have no vitality but was somehow still alive… However, it seemed like he had only just awoken from a very long sleep, so his strength was nowhere near its peak, allowing Martial Ancestor to easily capture him and bring him back to the Sect.”
“This Bone Race member was captured by Ancestral Founder?” Yang Kai turned to look at the four.
“En, on the same day that the Mysterious Small World entrances all opened, Martial Ancestor suddenly detected an unusual aura deep inside the Snow Mountain Range. Unable to feel relieved, he went to investigate and a few days later, brought this skeleton back… we all thought he was already dead.”
“Fortunately, Martial Ancestor had the foresight to imprison him here!” Li Wan said fearfully.
This Bone Race master’s energy fluctuations revealed to be a Third Order Saint Realm, and although it was faint, there was no doubt about his strength. If they had allowed him to recover, even Chu Ling Xiao may not have been able to defeat him.
“Wait, when we came here a few days ago, his meridians were all dried up but now they seem to be quite full, the life aura from his body has also become stronger,” Fei Yu noticed something and quickly reminded them.
“He’s restoring himself?!” Cang Yan’s expression dropped.
Did he really possess such amazing vitality? After being frozen in the Snow Mountain Range for thousands of years, he was still able to awaken and restore himself, the very concept was shocking.
“Why have we never heard of such a race before?” The four Saints all glanced around at each other in confusion.
“The world is big and filled with many unknowns. There’s nothing strange about there being things we know nothing about. Li Wan, go inform Martial Ancestor, we should let him decide what we do next,” Cang Yan declared.
“Good,” Li Wan immediately disappeared.
They had originally brought Yang Kai here to warn him about this strange entity, but instead they had actually gained information about it from Yang Kai, information that was of great concern to Cang Yan and the others.
A moment later, Chu Ling Xiao swiftly appeared.
“I’ve heard about the situation from Li Wan. Yang Kai, how much do you know about this Bone Race?” Chu Ling Xiao asked seriously.
“Not much,” Yang Kai shook his head, “I only know that if you want to completely destroy him, burning his skeleton to ash is the best way, otherwise once he fully recovers, he will be difficult to deal with.”
“Such a strange race… This old master has never heard of it before, but I know a bit about the Ice Sect. I hadn’t expected that their lineage was still continuing,” Chu Ling Xiao took a deep breath.
“Martial Ancestor knows about Ice Sect?” Yang Kai was quite surprised.
“Naturally, this endless Snow Mountain Range was once the exclusive domain of Ice Sect.”
Yang Kai was stunned.
However, that would also explain why a Bone Race master would appear here. If the fall of Ice Sect was inextricably linked to the Bone Race, they must have fought here a long time ago, ultimately losing and being chased out by the Bone Race, forced to retreat to that glacial world where they remained even now.
Soaring Heaven Sect, deep inside the depths of the prison mountain, Yang Kai pushed his True Yang Yuan Qi fiercely and engulfed the Bone Race skeleton in it, burning it down.
Chu Ling Xiao and the others all stood by close and watched quietly.
Yang Kai’s True Yang Yuan Qi was not an ordinary flame, it was the crystallization of his cultivation, an incredibly pure and dense form of energy, there was nothing it could not incinerate.
The Bone Race master, bound by the Demon Sealing Chain and various artifacts, seemed to be dead.
But the malevolent aura which emanated from his body was actually becoming more and more intense.
*Chi chi chi…*
Inside the dimly lit room, a harsh, grating sound resounded as cracks spread throughout the Bone Race’s skeleton, his meridians and bones slowly reducing to ash.
Suddenly, the two deep green lights appeared in the eye sockets of the Bone Race master, just like a pair of gloomy eyes which flickered erratically.
The malevolent aura suddenly exploded out.
*Hou…* An angry roar suddenly burst forth from the Bone Race’s head, his Spiritual Energy penetrating into the Knowledge Seas of everyone nearby, allowing them to clearly sense his violent unwillingness. This scream also contained a potent yet mysterious Divine Sense attack which caused the Souls of everyone except Chu Ling Xiao to tremble.
Everyone paled at this sight and Yang Kai hastily increased the output of his True Qi.
*Kacha…*
Under the intense heat, the skeleton gradually disintegrated.
The green glowing eyes of the Bone Race master also quickly dimmed and eventually lost all light.
After the time it would take to burn a stick on incense, only a black powder remained.
Everyone stared at this sight for a moment, unable to speak.
“He really hadn’t died… such tenacious vitality!” Fei Yu wore a frightened look.
“All that was left was his skeleton, how could he have survived?” Cang Yan also couldn’t understand.
“Perhaps, he was originally just a skeleton, with no flesh or blood at all, or perhaps his skeleton was the core of his life essence…” Yang Kai spoke thoughtfully.
“What Little Martial Nephew means to say is that as long as his skeleton remains, he won’t die?”
“En,” Yang Kai nodded, “In any case, this race is completely different from the others in this world, and is extremely dangerous. If any of us encounter them again in the future, we mustn’t take them lightly.”
“Rest assured, if I ever bump into these creatures again, I’ll definitely smash their bones,” Li Wan said firmly.
“Is there really such a strange race in this world?” Chu Ling Xiao’s brow wrinkled. Even with all his knowledge and experience, if Yang Kai hadn’t arrived today, he wouldn’t have been able to figure out the identity of the Bone Race master he had captured.
When he had entered the Snow Mountain Range to investigate all those months ago, following the shocking evil aura he had sensed, all Chu Ling Xiao had found was a skeleton buried a thousand meters beneath the ice. It was only because he realized there was something strange about it that he brought it back.
Fortunately, he had the foresight to seal and suppress it.
“For some time now, this old master has felt that this world has become subtly different,” Chu Ling Xiao solemnly said.
“The meaning of Ancestral Founder is…” Yang Kai turned a curious look towards him.
Chu Ling Xiao hesitated for a moment before finally saying, “Your realm is not high enough, so you probably have not noticed yet, but I believe that all the Third Order Saints around the world have the same feeling as this old master. This world seems to have somehow been released from something, and the stars in the night sky are also much clearer and more numerous than before.”
Yang Kai’s look changed.
“This old master doesn’t know why, but it’s as if some great change is approaching,” Chu Ling Xiao sighed.
The four other Saints present shivered, finally understand why since the day he had brought back the Bone Race skeleton, their Martial Ancestor had often left his cultivation room at night to stare up at the night sky.
They didn’t know why their Marital Ancestor had suddenly begun taking such a strange action, they had only thought that Chu Ling Xiao had obtained some kind of enlightenment, but listening to his words just now, they now know that he had actually discovered something unusual.
After spending two days in Soaring Heaven Sect, Yang Kai returned to Nine Heavens Holy Land with Ling Tai Xu and Su Mu.
When they left, Chu Ling Xiao had sternly cautioned them and repeated insisted that if they encountered another Bone Race master again, they must let him know.
Yang Kai readily agreed.
Along the way, Yang Kai remained silent, lost in thought.
Ling Tai Xu did not miss his absent-mindedness and asked, “Is there something wrong?”
Yang Kai nodded and told him about the Bone Race matter, causing Ling Tai Xu to pale slightly. Unfortunately, there was nothing Ling Tai Xu could contribute to the discussion; after all, he had just arrived in Tong Xuan Realm and was unfamiliar with even the common sense of this world, let alone something as out of the ordinary as the Bone Race.
In the past, back in the Great Han Dynasty, he hadn’t even known about the existence of the Demon and Monster Races.
He had thought that under the Heavens, the only race capable of rational thought was the Human Race.
It was only after arriving in Tong Xuan Realm that Ling Tai Xu realized his own naivety.
“Grand Master doesn’t need to worry about this matter, if the sky collapses, the world’s giants will be there to hold it up,” Yang Kai laughed, relaxing his expression greatly before turning to look at Su Mu and asking with a smile, “What good things did you obtain that you can’t stop grinning?”
Su Mu chuckled and took out a Universe Bag, “Look, this is a gift from Ancestral Founder.”
“A Universe Bag!” Yang Kai nodded, “Do you know how to use it?”
“Of course I do, the Ancestral Founder, Martial Uncles, and Martial Aunt all gave me many artifacts, Martial Skills, Secret Arts, ancient books, and other treasures,” Su Mu held the Universe Bag to his chest and gently patted it.
“You must make good use of all the treasures you received, do not disappoint the expectations of Ancestral Founder and your Martial Seniors,” Ling Tai Xu said sincerely.
“Disciple knows,” Su Mu nodded before suddenly asking, “Brother-in-law, when are you going to bring Elder Sister back? Our entire Sect has migrated here, I think it’s a good time for her to return.”
“En, after sending the two of you back, I plan to go look for Su Yan,” Yang Kai responded.
Even if Su Mu did not remind him, Yang Kai had been planning to do so. After nearly eight years apart, Yang Kai had grown quite anxious to see his beloved again.
Now that Xia Ning Chang was also in Nine Heavens Holy Land, he only needed to find Su Yan so that they could all reunite.
Yang Kai very much yearned for such a day!
Two days later, the three returned to the old War Spirit Temple site.
Just after returning to this place, Xu Hui, who heard the news, flew over and reported, “Holy Master, two guests arrived at the Holy Land two days ago and requested to see you.”
“Who are they?” Yang Kai asked.
“They announced themselves as the Sect Masters of Twin Spirit Pavilion, Wu Fa and Wu Tian!” Xu Hui reported with a wry smile, unable to stop himself, apparently thinking that their names were far too rampant.
“Oh? They came personally?” Yang Kai raised his brow.
On the way to the Nine Heavens Holy Land with the Great Han Dynasty cultivators, Palace Master Chen Zhou of Dragon Phoenix Palace had sent Xiao Ling, one of his Sect’s Elders, to Twin Spirit Pavilion to deliver a message. Now, only a few months later, Twin Spirit Pavilion had taken swift action.
The two Sect Masters travelling all this way to seek an audience with Yang Kai explained just how much importance they placed on the Hu Sisters.
This made Yang Kai very satisfied; at least they had shown enough sincerity.
“Holy Master, do you wish to see them?” Xu Hui asked.
“Of course I must see them. Where are they now?”
“They are waiting inside the Holy Land!”
“Good, continue to entertain them and tell them I will return shortly.”
Xu Hui acknowledged the command and quickly departed.
After he left, Yang Kai spread out his Divine Sense to search the former War Spirit Temple site, soon finding the location of the Hu Sisters and rushing over to see them.
War Spirit Temple’s grounds covered a large area and the Blood Battle Gang was situated in the northwest corner where a number of splendid residences had previously been constructed.
The Hu Sisters and Sect Master Hu Man were currently working with the gang’s disciples to repair these broken houses and clean up the surrounding area, keeping themselves occupied.
Seeing Yang Kai appear, Hu Man smiled and walked over, cupping his fists as he said, “Nephew Yang, you’ve come.”
The Hu Sisters’ beautiful eyes brightened as well as they smiled happily.
Yang Kai nodded slightly and asked, “How are things here, is there anything you’re unsatisfied with?”
Hu Man quickly waved his hand, “How could there be anything we’re unsatisfied with? Nephew Yang has already arranged everything and provided so many cultivation resources, all we need to do is cultivate diligently. As for the environment, we weren’t picky in the first place so we couldn’t be happier.”
“That’s good. En, if you have anything you need, just inform my Holy Land’s Elders and they will do everything they can to accommodate you.”
“We have no additional needs,” Hu Man laughed before smoothly changing the subject, “The only request I could think of would be for Nephew Yang to find some free time to help teach my two daughters. If you could, this Hu would be most grateful. En, personal guidance at night would be the best, it would greatly ease this Hu’s worries, heh heh heh!”
“Father, if you continue speaking, someday, you might turn mute!” Hu Jiao’er turned red and glared at her father.
Since coming here, Hu Man had constantly been mentioning how much he appreciated Yang Kai to his two daughters. What their father was thinking, the sisters knew, but now that he was all but spelling it out to them, what’s more right in front of Yang Kai, Hu Jiao’er suddenly couldn’t take it anymore.
What this so called father of theirs’ plan was, was clearly written on his face.
“I’ll leave you three to talk!” Hu Man let out a hollow laugh and quickly slipped away.
“Don’t pay any attention to him,” Hu Jiao’er quickly walked over to Yang Kai, the blush on her face still not faded as she faintly whispered, “He’s just spouting nonsense.”
“Why did you suddenly come to see us?” Hu Mei’er asked.
“Guests from Twin Spirit Pavilion have come,” Yang Kai replied frankly.
The two Hu Sisters trembled lightly as they directed glowing gazes towards Yang Kai.
“The ones who have come are the two Sect Masters of Twin Spirit Pavilion, their purpose is obvious and they’ve displayed their sincerity. All that’s left is for you two to decide how you want to proceed.”
The two sisters exchanged a glance, seemingly a bit hesitant about what choice to make. After a brief silence, Hu Jiao’er said, “Whatever you decide, we’ll go along with.”
They entrusted the decision to Yang Kai.
“Do you want to go?” Yang Kai asked with a smile.
The sisters nodded simultaneously, Hu Jiao’er saying, “Naturally, I want to see what kind of Sect it is.”
Yang Kai could understand their mood because he was the same. When Yang Kai discovered that Dragon Phoenix Palace had some relation with the inheritance he and Su Yan obtained, his first thought was also to check this Sect out.
Of course, right now, it was partially because it was a huge opportunity for Sun Yu that Yang Kai had striven to build a good relationship with Dragon Phoenix Palace.
“Since you want to go, then let’s go! Perhaps you’ll be able to find others with valuable experiences you can study; on top of that, there will certainly be gains if you go.”
Chen Zhou had guaranteed the character of Wu Fa and Wu Tian, and with the additional layer of protection their status as Yang Kai’s friends provided, the Hu Sisters would not be mistreated if they went to Twin Spirit Pavilion.
On the contrary, Wu Fa and Wu Tian would regard them as precious treasures and treat them as such.