Chapter 2151

It was Murong Xiao Xiao who was talking. At this moment, she looked up at the sky while pointing her finger upwards, her small mouth opened slightly, with a surprised expression.

Following the direction she was pointing at, everyone looked up, dumbfounded.

They saw a stream of light piercing the sky, like a meteorite falling from the sky, creating gorgeous arcs, falling in a certain direction.

At first, there were only a few streams, but soon, the number of streams increased. At first glance, it looked like a meteor shower.

“Star Seals!” Lan Xun was shocked and screamed, “So many Star Seals?”

“What?” Xiao Chen, hearing this, was taken aback, “Princess, are you sure those are all Star Seals?”

Lan Xun stared at the sky. It was unknown what kind of Secret Technique she was using, but there was a flash of light in her eyes, as she nodded lightly. “There is no mistake, those are all Star Seals!”

Her voice fell, and there was a small *humph* from the side.

Everyone looked around and saw Wu Chang’s entire body turn into a red and white flash of light, flying in the direction where the Star Seals were falling.

He was quick to seize the opportunity. As soon as he heard that the things that fell from the sky were Star Seal, he immediately acted.

Behind him was Luo Yuan.

“Let’s go!” Xiao Bai Yi naturally was not slow to react, as he prompted in a soft but low voice. Thus, he and Murong Xiao Xiao hurried to catch up.

They had been in the Four Seasons Realm for two or three days, and they only encountered a single Star Seal in the Two Seasons Mountain Range. That Star Seal had been Branded on the forehead of a Monster Beast which they had severely injured before it ran away. After they caught up to it, they unexpectedly found all their effort just ended up being an opportunity for Yang Kai to easily pick it up; as though it had been ordered for him. This resulted in Luo Yuan and Wu Chang almost fighting over it.

With so many Star Seals appearing, even if everyone present divided them equally amongst themselves, it would still be enough for each person to receive six or seven Star Seals.

A Star Seal meant a voucher to enter Shattered Star Sea, which was of great significance to any Sect!

How could Xiao Bai Yi and Murong Xiao Xiao dare be negligent?

“Princess…” Seeing everyone fly off as swift as the wind. Xiao Chen suddenly became anxious.

“Let’s go too!” Lan Xun naturally did not wish to miss such an opportunity and replied immediately.

Xiao Chen nodded, then joined with Lan Xun and flew towards the Star Seals as well.

However, as soon as the two set off, a boat-like flight type artifact appeared alongside them.

Lan Xun turned her head and saw Yang Kai calmly standing on the wooden boat, with an emotionless expression, with the wind whipping his black hair back.

Lan Xun could not help but sneer. After all, at this moment, Yang Kai’s image was vastly different from the cowardly and timid persona he gave before, and it seemed that he wanted to attract her attention.

She understood Yang Kai’s approach very well. Basically, few men could maintain their nature in front of her. Those people always tried to vie for her attention as if they could get some satisfaction from it.

“Huh!” Xiao Chen coldly snorted with a displeased expression.

Xiao Chen had long been displeased by Yang Kai, and at this moment, this guy was still shamelessly pretending to be cool, it was simply unbearable!

Yang Kai did not seem to notice what Xiao Chen was thinking. So, he continued to act casual while pretending to be puzzled, and rushed to Lan Xun and asked, “Hey, why would this Friend by your side call you a Princess? Is that your name or something?”

“Whose name would carry the word Princess?” Lan Xun lightly smiled, shook her head before reassuring, “You think too much.”

“Then… I don’t understand,” Yang Kai shook his head. “I think your temperament is extraordinary and elegant. You are obviously from a noble background. However, what does that have to do with ‘Princess’? Hey? Can’t you help me understand?”

Lan Xun frowned and couldn’t help but feel a little embarrassed. She couldn’t tell Yang Kai that she was the daughter of the Bright Moon Great Emperor. That’s why she was called a ‘Princess’. It was a bit braggy to say it though it was true.

She could only ask back. “I came from Star Soul Palace, can’t you make a guess?”

To her it was obvious. As long as someone had a bit of common sense, after hearing this sentence, they should be able to come to a conclusion, so she would avoid the need to answer.

But to her surprise, Yang Kai thought for a while, and solemnly shook his head.

Yang Kai’s ignorance made Xiao Chen on the side roll his eyes. He could not help but coldly snort, “Star Soul Palace is a Sect created by the Bright Moon Great Emperor, and this one in front of you is the jewel of the Great Emperor!”

“Huh?” Yang Kai was shocked and hesitated, “So you… you are the daughter of the Great Emperor?” He looked extremely shocked.

“Who my parents are doesn’t mean anything.” Lan Xun smiled slightly and seemed more approachable.

Meanwhile, Xiao Chen cursed. “Where did this frog come from? To think you’ve never heard of the name of our Princess, but still managed to enter the Four Seasons Realm. You are simply an embarrassment for the people of our generation! Princess, you should avoid interacting with this person!”

Yang Kai, embarrassed, explained, “I used to cultivate deep in the mountains, and I just came out for experience not long ago, so I don’t know much about things of the outside world… Heh heh, I don’t know much, but I have at least heard of the name Bright Moon Great Emperor.”

“So…” Lan Xun did not really know what to believe and expressed the same confusion, “It looks like you are the kind of cultivator who enters long retreats and cultivates really hard. It’s normal if you don’t know much about the outside world.”

“Princess, you are too polite, I’m just ignorant and uninformed.” Yang Kai scratched his cheek and said modestly.

“At least you still have a bit of self-awareness!” Xiao Chen continued.

“By the way, what is your name?” Lan Xun asked.

Xiao Chen immediately cut in. “Princess, why are you asking about this frog’s name? Don’t smear your ears!”

“What’s wrong with just asking?” Lan Xun frowned, apparently not wishing to be so close to Xiao Chen. If it weren’t for the Bright Moon Great Emperor, her father, ordering her, she wouldn’t be with Xiao Chen now. She preferred to act alone. For her, nothing was more joyous than having her own adventure. The excitement and unknown danger continued to stir her desire, making her unable to stop.

“I’m Yang Kai.”

Lan Xun nodded, suddenly showing a smile, “I have something I am uncertain about; I don’t know if Brother Yang would be able to enlighten me?”

Yang Kai’s eyes flickered, and he chuckled. “If the Princess has any questions, please say so. This Yang will do his best to answer!”

Lan Xun warned, “Brother Yang, you can’t speak so frivolously. The question I ask might be related to your secrets…”

[Humph, I just wanted to catch your attention! I’m afraid any man who wants to be with you would be willing to answer anything just to get you to have a good impression of him… after all, this little girl would not settle with just anyone!] Yang Kai thought in his heart, faintly guessing what exactly Lan Xun wanted to ask. So, there he was not afraid of the question. “Princess, if you are asking me something, it means that you are already giving me a lot of face. What can’t I say?”

As soon as this remark came out, Xiao Chen had a bad feeling. Although this little brat named Yang Kai was a wild brat that just recently came out of a forest in the deep mountains, he seemed to be well versed with the heart of women. He had just met the Princess and they hit it off so well! How could this be tolerated? Worst of all, the Princess, who was known to be scornful to men, had been dealing with this frog with a smile on her face!

Xiao Chen felt a sense of crisis in his heart, so he immediately cast a threatening look at Yang Kai, as if to say ‘I dare you to continue speaking to her.’

Due to his position with Lan Xun and the angle, it was impossible for Lan Xun to notice his gaze. Meanwhile, it was well within Yang Kai’s field of vision.

However, Yang Kai did not even spare him a glance. It was as though he was completely fascinated by Lan Xun. His whole view was only on the princess.

Xiao Chen felt a sense of powerlessness as he clenched his fist.

“Those two attacked you earlier. How did you manage to come out unscathed?” Lan Xun asked bluntly.

Indeed, as she said, this question was definitely related to Yang Kai’s secret. A First-Order Dao Source Realm that could come out unscathed under the attack of two Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivators. It must have been a powerful Secret Technique. Such a powerful Secret Technique would normally be kept under wraps, never spoken of casually.

So as soon as Lan Xun asked, Yang Kai immediately showed a look of embarrassment. He smiled and stammered: “That… haha… actually…”

“It’s fine… there is no need to speak of it. Just forget that I asked anything.” Lan Xun said.

Yang Kai sounded off. It was as if he was willing to share, but the stammering meant that it was still something he would rather not do.

If Yang Kai had been completely ‘infatuated’ by Lan Xun at this moment, would he hesitate? How could a man who was thinking with his nether region possibly refuse to answer a question from his beloved? Under those circumstances. Even if the man did not wish to speak, he would still speak.

Yang Kai sighed “It’s not that I can’t say it. But…”

At this point, he suddenly put on a solemn expression. At the same time, he lowered his voice. “Princess, you have to keep it a secret for me. If rumours of this Secret Technique were to spread, it will no longer work. I am afraid I will die next time I encounter this kind of situation.”

While he was talking, he deliberately moved towards Lan Xun and almost pressed his lips to her ear.

A scent of fragrance immediately lingered on the tip of his nose.

The two were too close, Lan Xun did not move to avoid him but her delicate ears suddenly turned red.

“What are you doing?” Seeing this scene, Xiao Chen could not bear it and started shouting aloud. He immediately pointed the sharp sword in his hand at Yang Kai.

Yang Kai was taken aback, and quickly moved away from her, with an innocent look on his face, he asked, “I didn’t do anything! This friend, what is the meaning of this?”

“You just…” Xiao Chen wanted to explain but could not go on. After all, even though Yang Kai was a little closer to Lan Xun, he really did not do anything. If he really wanted to pursue this, he would seem too jealous. So, he could only give a warning. “Just stand there and speak. If you dare to lean in again, I will take your head!”

Yang Kai said in amazement, “This friend is really strange… Okay, then I will stand here and say it. Princess, please understand, my Secret Technique is called Universe Shifting Divine Art. Once it is used, I can borrow my opponent’s strength to defeat him. It’s how we use the weak to defeat the strong.”

“Take advantage of their strength?” Lan Xun looked surprised.

“Yes.” Yang Kai nodded solemnly, and said in a serious tone, “The two guys before both wanted to take my life, which is in line with the key points of Universe Shifting Divine Art, so I just…” Yang Kai grinned meaningfully, reached out and drew a semicircle, “Tweaked it a little bit and let them fight on their own.”

Lan Xun thoughtfully for a moment and asked “So, if only one person attacked you at that time…”

“Then I’d be dead!” Yang Kai shrugged.

Chapter 2152

“There is such a mystical Secret Technique in this world?” Lan Xun asked after listening to Yang Kai’s explanation, which made her incredibly surprised.

She was deeply knowledgeable and well-read. After all, she was the daughter of the Bright Moon Great Emperor and knew various Secret Techniques of the Star Soul Palace. Naturally, she could pick up whatever she wanted, but she had never heard anything like ‘Universe Shifting Divine Art’ before.

However, the effectiveness of this Secret Technique was obvious to all. With the cultivation of First-Order Dao Source Realm, Yang Kai was unharmed under the attack of the two Third-Order Dao Source Realm Masters. This was nothing short of extraordinary.

Naturally, she could not have known that there was no such thing called the ‘Universe Shifting Divine Art’ in this world, and Yang Kai had just used his Nihility Secret Technique at a critical moment to avoid being hit by hiding in the void.

“Princess, this Secret Technique, I’ve shared with you because I am grateful for before. However, you must not spread news of it.” Yang Kai solemnly exhorted, as though asking Lan Xun to make an oath.

“En.” Lan Xun could not help nodding, and at the same time, wondering if she should get this Secret Technique from Yang Kai. Although the conditions to activate the Universe Shifting Divine Art were harsh, it was undeniably powerful. It could definitely save lives at critical moments.

Suddenly, Yang Kai rubbed his hands again with an apologetic face. “Princess, since I’ve answered one of your questions, can you answer one question for me?”

“What do you want to ask?” Before Lan Xun spoke, Xiao Chen immediately cut in with vigilance.

“I just want to ask about the Star Seal, what did you think I wanted to ask?” Yang Kai looked at Xiao Chen innocently, as if he was deterred by his aura.

Lan Xun pursed her lips and smiled. “Brother Xiao Chen, why must you be so aggressive against him?” Then, she turned to look at Yang Kai and asked, “You want to ask about the classifications and grades of Star Seals, right? “

Yang Kai nodded repeatedly. “The Princess is really beautiful and intelligent. It is as though you can see right through my heart.”

Lan Xun smiled. She did not hide anything and with a serious expression, explained. “The Star Seals’ grading, so to speak, is more related to the shape of the Star Seal… The more complex the Star Seal. The higher the grade. For example, the diamond-shaped Star Seal on your hand should be considered a relatively inferior one. Below it is the triangular Star Seal and on top of it is the pentagonal, five-pointed Star Seal. There is also a six-pointed, seven-pointed and even nine-pointed Star Seal!”

“Different Star Seals… other than the number of points they have, what are the differences?” Yang Kai asked sincerely.

The reason why he deliberately got close to Lan Xun was to inquire about the Star Seals. Even if he asked Hua Qing Si about this, he should receive the same answer, but Lan Xun was the daughter of the Great Emperor. She might have had information that others did not know about.

“I don’t know the specific difference.” Lan Xun slowly shook her head. “However, it is said that the higher the grade of the Star Seal, the more benefits one can get from Shattered Star Sea. We can only enter the Shattered Star Sea to find out.”

“I see…” Yang Kai muttered thoughtfully.

It could not be said for certain that Lan Xun had revealed all the information she knew. However, she had answered most of Yang Kai’s doubts, even if it was not a comprehensive explanation. Therefore, it was not good for Yang Kai to press for more answers.

As they were talking, they had already arrived at the location.

Around the area, cultivators were gathered in twos or threes, standing on the treetops of a forest, looking up at the sky, as if silently waiting for something.

Seeing this, Yang Kai immediately jumped to the top of a tree and turned his head to look around.

Wu Chang, Luo Yuan, Xiao Bai Yi, and Murong Xiao Xiao, who set off before him, had all arrived. In addition, there are some other cultivators, who were obviously attracted by the light show just now.

Yang Kai did a rough scan around and found that there were at least a dozen people here. What’s more, ‘swooshing’ sounds could be constantly heard within the depths of the forest. It was obvious that more were coming.

And in the sky, a huge cloud was slowly forming. It had a golden hue, as though the cloud was cast in gold. It was extremely dazzling and mysterious. Especially since Yang Kai could faintly feel strange energy fluctuations from this golden cloud.

“Huh…” As he was observing, he suddenly stopped his gaze and turned his attention to somewhere not too far away.

Over there, a man and a woman were looking at him with a smile on their faces. Once their eyes met, the woman beckoned to Yang Kai.

“How unlucky!” Yang Kai secretly cursed. Unfortunately, he could not pretend that he did not see them. After all, even if he did, they would come to him. In a flash, he jumped down from the treetop and went to where they were.

“Why are the two of you here?” Yang Kai asked the two.

These two were none other than Bian Yu Qing and Kou Wu from Blue Feather Sect.

Although Yang Kai had no grievances with them, their direct superior was none other than Wu Meng Chuan. If possible, Yang Kai wanted to avoid having any contact with them.

“We were here!” Bian Yu Qing replied with a smile, reading between the lines. She was indicating that they were transported to the Two Seasons Mountain Range.

“Oh?” Kou Wu’s eyes lit up, staring at the back of Yang Kai’s hand, “Junior Brother Yang actually managed to get a hold of a Star Seal? We should celebrate!”

The corner of Yang Kai’s mouth twitched as he helplessly exclaimed. “If it is possible, I don’t want this thing!”

“Junior Brother Yang… what you are saying isn’t true, right?” Kou Wu teased.

Yang Kai snorted. “Look around and see how the others react after hearing what you’ve just said. You will know what I mean.”

Kou Wu looked around. His face suddenly sank.

Because he found that the cultivators gathered here, all cast their eyes on the back of Yang Kai’s hand, with several of them having greedy covetous eyes.

Although several dozen Star Seals had appeared in the sky just now, so far, none of the cultivators present has obtained a Star Seal. The Star Seal was related to the credentials to enter the Shattered Star Sea. It was their main goal when entering the Four Seasons Realm. Before they entered, every Sect Elder would have given at least a thousand sermons to their disciples: ‘to your best to compete for the Star Seals while ensuring your own safety.’

Kou Wu did not notice, so his voice was a little loud. This caused Yang Kai to become the focus of everyone’s attention, and he could not help feeling a little guilty and uneasy.

Bian Yu Qing giggled, her beautiful eyes scanned around for a second before staring at the man in front as she spoke in a soft tone. “If you don’t want it, how about leaving it with me?”

“What a beautiful way of thinking!” Yang Kai coldly snorted.

“How merciless…” Bian Yu Qing stared at Yang Kai, biting her red lips. “If I hadn’t taken care of you in the past, do you think you would still be standing here today?”

“Aren’t you embarrassed to talk about what happened during that time?” Yang Kai squinted at her, coldly snorting, “If you didn’t force me to stay in the Blue Feather Sect back then, I wouldn’t have….”

“Wouldn’t  have what?” Bian Yu Qing asked.

“Nothing,” Yang Kai waved his hand. When he remembered that Wu Meng Chuan had taught him the Heaven Devouring Battle Law, he felt uneasy. Fortunately, he did not cultivate the Secret Art and instead gave it to the Embodiment. As such, even if Wu Meng Chuan had some kind of sinister plan, it would not harm him.

“Look at him. Just like I had expected, he has a human’s face but is still a beast at heart. He was acting so conscientious and innocent in front of the Princess, but now, this beast is messing with a seductress!” Not far away, Xiao Chen seized the opportunity and approached Lan Xun. He looked at Yang Kai contemptuously, while trying to discredit him.

“You just have to speak your mind. Why are you getting so close?” Lan Xun flashed further away with disgust.

“I was afraid you won’t be able to hear…” After being avoided like the plague, Xiao Chen had a sullen expression. Meanwhile, his hatred of Yang Kai grew even more. Just now, Yang Kai had also approached the Princess like this, but she did not react in such a manner. On the other hand, she quickly moved aside when it came to him. 

Xiao Chen’s heart was filled with rage.

“I’m not deaf!” Lan Xun coldly snorted, her beautiful eyes looked forward as she spoke with suspicion. “Anyways, what I want to know now… is where all the Star Seals that have fallen have gone.”

Everyone here had been chasing the direction where the Star Seals fell. However, there were no traces of them here. Lan Xun couldn’t help but wonder what was going on.

“Let me ask around.” Xiao Chen immediately spoke up. After he said his piece, his eyes swept around, and finally was fixed on a short man. This man was with two more people. A man and a woman. The three of them dressed similarly. Obviously, they were from the same Sect.

Their cultivation was not low, the highest being the short man Xiao Chen set his eyes on. He was in the Third-Order Dao Source Realm. Meanwhile, the other man and woman were both in the Second-Order Dao Source Realm.

“You! Come here!” Xiao Chen pointed at the short man and shouted.

The little man heard this, and looked around for a while, before pointing at himself suspiciously, “Me?”

“Yes, you!” Xiao Chen said impatiently.

After confirming that Xiao Chen was beckoning him, the short man could not help but have a change of expression. Meanwhile, the man and woman with him became nervous, wondering what Xiao Chen wanted to do with their Senior.

Before entering the Four Seasons Realm, smaller Sects and the Elders of the families had already done a comprehensive investigation. They had already passed the names and portraits of the elites of the major Sects to the hands of their disciples. This way, it was possible to avoid provoking such people.

Therefore, even if the three have never met Xiao Chen himself, they would still know who he was.

Seeing Xiao Chen beckoning him at this moment, the short man’s heartbeat was like a drum. Although he was also in the Third-Order Dao Source Realm, the same as Xiao Chen, he knew that if they were to fight against each other, he would be beheaded by Xiao Chen in an instant.

This was the difference between their cultivation heritage and Secret Techniques.

Despite his extreme reluctance, the short man flew slowly to Xiao Chen and Lan Xun, with an ugly smile on his face, he cupped his fists. “Benevolent Martial Sect’s Jing Li greets Senior Xiao. May I ask what Senior Xiao requests of me? This One here will obey your orders!”

This short man named Jing Li gave a low bow. He was a lot older than Xiao Chen, and his cultivation was the same as Xiao Chen; however, it was more comfortable to address Xiao Chen as ‘Senior.’

Chapter 2153

Seeing him acting so humbly, Xiao Chen’s expression eased and he asked with a smile, “I ask you, how long have you been here?”

Jing Li replied, “We arrived just slightly earlier than Sir…”

“Then did you see those things that fell from the sky before and where they went?”

“It seemed that most of them fell into the golden cloud and disappeared!” Jing Li pointed to the billowing golden cloud up in the sky.

“They fell there?” Xiao Chen raised his head up and frowned.

With his cultivation and Divine Sense, he could naturally detect the unusual energy contained in the golden cloud, but he was unable to determine what kind of mysteries were hidden inside it.

Xiao Chen couldn’t help showing a look of embarrassment as he turned to Lan Xun and said, “Princess…”

Lan Xun frowned slightly and spoke after a moment, “Let’s just observe for now!”

Although dozens of Star Seals had fallen into the golden cloud, rushing into this golden cloud without knowing what it was would be quite dangerous. Even someone like Wu Chang did not dare to act rashly, so it was obvious this was not a situation where the fastest had the advantage.

While Xiao Chen was asking questions, Yang Kai kept his ears open and listened intently, so he heard Jing Li’s answer. At this moment, he turned to Kou Wu with the inquiring gaze, the latter simply nodding lightly, indicating there was nothing wrong with what Jing Li had said.

At this moment, as everyone was standing around waiting, others had already rushed over from all directions. Most of these people had been active nearby and were attracted by the vision of so many Star Seals falling from the sky.

Originally, there were only about a dozen people present, but in short order, that number doubled.

With so many people gathered together, all cultivators naturally became vigilant of one another, causing the atmosphere to become tense and treacherous.

However, this lull did not last long.

After about a cup of tea worth of time, a hum suddenly sounded from the golden cloud tumbling in the sky. This sound was thunderous and seemed to herald the birth of something inside the golden cloud. This caused many cultivators present to focus their gazes in shock and anxiety.

Beams of golden light shot out as the golden cloud tumbled even more fiercely. Soon, a vague, giant shadow emerged within the golden light.

As soon as this huge shadow appeared, everyone felt a solemn atmosphere tumbling down, as if whatever had manifested was about to show its true form.

With the appearance of this shadow, the golden cloud in the sky churned and distorted before it slowly began to dissipate.

Soon after, the outline of the giant shadow finally appeared.

“This is…”

“Is… is that a palace?”

“How could there be a palace here? How could something like that just appear out of thin air!”

“Hahaha, I know what this is! It’s the Flowing Time Temple! You fools, how could you not recognize the legendary Flowing Time Temple!”

“Flowing Time Temple? What’s that?”

Of the people present, not everyone knew the secrets of the Flowing Time Temple. Some cultivators came from small Sects and small families who had never heard of the Flowing Time Temple. Only those who came from great forces that had ancient books passed down from generations ago would know anything about the Flowing Time Temple. Before the disciples of these great forces entered the Four Seasons Realm, their Elders would definitely have explained some confidential information to them so they could be on the lookout for rare opportunities.

Yang Kai even suspected that Xiao Bai Yi and Murong Xiao Xiao had arrived here deliberately, hoping to find traces of the Flowing Time Temple.

Even Wu Chang, Lan Xun, and a few other leaders of the younger generation were present. If they had not known something about this, how could they have gathered here so coincidentally?

Whether the palace which had emerged from the golden cloud was really the legendary Flowing Time Temple or not, no one knew, but Yang Kai was fairly certain it was the real deal.

Because the location marked out on the map Hua Qing Si had ‘given’ him was in this vicinity.

However, Yang Kai had not expected that the Flowing Time Temple was actually hidden in the Void and that it would appear in such a shocking way, even drawing in dozens of Star Seals from all around when it manifested.

As a result of this grand entrance, many more rivals would likely appear.

As such distracting thoughts flashed across Yang Kai’s mind, he suddenly noticed that someone was staring at him and couldn’t help turning towards Bian Yu Qing and asking, “Are there flowers on my face?”

Bian Yu Qing coldly snorted and snapped, “You have some information about this Flowing Time Temple, right?”

Hearing this, Yang Kai curled his lips up sharply.

Bian Yu Qing said, “Tell me, you won’t lose anything by doing so!”

“True I won’t lose anything, but why should I tell you?” Yang Kai looked at her with a sneer.

Bian Yu Qing pouted in dissatisfaction as she argued, “Boy, you think that because you’ve got a bit stronger, your wings are now hard… what are you staring at!” As she spoke, she suddenly shot Yang Kai a bad look as she folded her arms across her chest to cover her peaks, “You’re not thinking about something inappropriate, right?”

“If you had some propriety, we might be able to talk!” Yang Kai glowered at her.

Bian Yu Qing was angered and looked extremely annoyed.

Kou Wu simply smiled, however, and asked, “Junior Brother Yang, if it is convenient, can you tell us about this Flowing Time Temple? Protector Bian and I really don’t know anything about this…”

Yang Kai frowned and said, “Since Senior Brother Kou has asked so politely, I suppose I can tell you about it! However, let me say this first, after I tell you what I know, we no longer owe each other anything and from now on. We shall be as well water not mixing with river water!”

“Why are you so wary of us?” Bian Yu Qing asked angrily. She could feel that from the moment they met again, Yang Kai was constantly on guard against her and Kou Wu, as if he wished to be as far away from them as possible.

“You wouldn’t understand even if I explained!” Yang Kai glanced at her with a solemn expression before continuing, “I don’t know much about this Flowing Time Temple, only that it was once the secluded home of the Flowing Time Great Emperor. You can even say that the Four Seasons Realm was formed because of the Flowing Time Great Emperor…”

“Flowing Time Great Emperor!” Bian Yu Qing’s face changed dramatically when she heard this name. Judging from her reaction, it was obvious that she had at least heard of this Great Emperor.

Yang Kai nodded, organizing his thoughts before continuing. In truth, there was not much he knew either because even if he knew this was the Flowing Time Temple, he had no way of knowing what was hidden inside. Perhaps there were many wondrous opportunities to be had, but there might also be fatal traps…

“So it seems… those Star Seals that disappeared should have fallen into the Flowing Time Temple!” Bian Yu Qing speculated.

“Most likely,” Yang Kai grinned. “Perhaps it was because of the appearance of all the Star Seals that the temple even showed itself!”

“What Junior Brother Yang means is that the falling Star Seals were a separate opportunity… and if it weren’t for them, we would never have found the Flowing Time Temple?” Kou Wu asked.

Yang Kai nodded, his face becoming excited as he said, “But this way, this Flowing Time Temple must still have all its original opportunities and benefits leftover from the Flowing Time Great Emperor, and as for the Star Seals… I doubt anyone would ignore them, right?”

As everyone chatted amongst themselves, the golden cloud in the sky had almost disappeared completely and was replaced by a magnificent temple. Even if it was still a fair distance away, everyone could feel a sense of majesty from this temple, like they were staring at a dormant ancient behemoth that was slowly awakening.

Finally, at a certain moment, the temple fully manifested and the space around it rumbled violently.

*Xiu…*

The sound of something breaking through the air echoed as two figures rushed forward at almost the same time. It was Wu Chang and Luo Yuan, who had both been waiting patiently until this moment. These two had supreme confidence in their own strength, so they didn’t hesitate to lead the charge!

After they saw these two move, other cultivators naturally wouldn’t hold back and everyone began using their Movement Skills to soar up into the sky.

Yang Kai was naturally among these people. Just like what he said, no one knew what opportunities hid inside the Flowing Time Temple, but what was certain was there were dozens of Star Seals waiting to be acquired, which was enough to drive people crazy.

When they were watching from the ground, no one was able to get a sense of just how big this Flowing Time Temple was, but as they approached closer, the majesty of this temple became more and more apparent. Everyone who flew up at full speed still took a full quarter of an hour to arrive before the entrance to the temple.

Around the periphery of the temple was a golden barrier of light, while atop what appeared to be the main entrance was a giant plaque with the words ‘Flowing Time’ emblazoned on it!

These two characters had an imposing and mysterious air about them, causing those who stared at them to feel slightly dizzy, as if time was passing quickly before their eyes.

After Yang Kai stared dumbfounded for a moment, he quickly retracted his gaze and shook his head.

One unfortunate fellow was unable to extricate himself, however.

This man was from some unknown Sect and possessed a Second-Order Dao Source Realm cultivation. He had been fine when he was flying up towards the temple earlier, but now, his gaze had become completely fixed on the two giant characters on the plaque and he seemed unable to turn away.

Suddenly, at a speed visibly to the naked eye, this person’s black hair turned white and began to flow away with the wind until his head was bald. At the same time, his sturdy body rapidly aged, and in less than ten breaths, this vibrant man who looked as if he was in his early thirties, had transformed into an old wrinkled man.

It was as if in that short period of time, a few thousand years had flashed by for this man.

What was most shocking, however, was that this man seemed completely unaware of what was happening to him. Staring at the plaque, this man simply allowed whatever mysterious force it was that was eroding his body and soul to act. He was so lost he even wore a strange, satisfied smile on his face.

Shortly after, the vitality of this man expired and he began to fall from the sky.

Quite some time later, a thud sounded from below…

Everyone’s complexion changed drastically after they witnessed this.

Learning from this unfortunate man’s example, no one dared to stare at the ‘Flowing Time’ characters anymore, lest the same fate befall them. There seemed to be a mighty force left behind by a Great Emperor imbued into these characters, and once a Dao Source Realm cultivator was drawn in by it, they would be helpless to free themselves.

*Hong Hong Hong…*

At that moment, Wu Chang and Luo Yuan, who had set off first, arrived in front of the main hall at the same time, but when they touched the golden halo around the temple, they were blocked from progressing and were unable to enter its interior.

The two tried several times, but soon found that no matter what method they used, they could not get around this golden light, so they quickly changed tactics and began attacking it.

The pair caused a ruckus as they released a storm of violent attacks against the golden barrier, but to their surprise, their attacks were all reflected back at them, forcing Wu Chang and Luo Yuan to retreat steadily with looks of amazement on their faces.

The two of them had even suffered some slight injuries as a result of this unexpected development…

“Haha, what was the point in running up so fast? Weren’t you blocked in the end?” Xiao Chen, who had followed immediately after, laughed when he saw this scene.

Wu Chang shot an angry look at Xiao Chen and snorted, “If you have the ability, show me how you go in.”

Xiao Chen smiled slightly and shook his head and said, “Brother Wu Chang was unable to succeed, so how could this Xiao possibly go in? I’m not in the habit of wasting my strength.”

Chapter 2154

“Then keep your mouth shut!” Wu Chang snapped, unafraid of Xiao Chen in the slightest, despite the latter being an elite disciple from the Southern Territory’s overlord, Star Soul Palace.

To Wu Chang, there were only two kinds of people in this world.

Those who were stronger than him and those who were weaker!

Masters may be able to win his respect, or arouse his fighting spirit, but the weak… he disdained them, regardless of their origins.

Being slapped across the face by Wu Chang like this, Xiao Chen found himself unable to simply back down and said with a gloomy expression, “You should be thankful that this Xiao has a heavy responsibility this time, otherwise, he would have taken your dog life long ago!”

The important task he was referring to was naturally to protect Princess Lan Xun.

Wu Chang sneered and didn’t bother speaking with him again.

During these two’s brief conversation, many other cultivators had arrived in front of the temple, each one of them staking out a good spot and looking up at the huge and magnificent building before them, a humbling feeling filling their hearts.

“Friends, what do you think?”

Suddenly, a person stepped out from the crowd and stood before Wu Chang and the others without fear, glanced around, and asked, “How should we go about breaking this golden barrier?”

This man had a dignified appearance and a seemingly mild temperament. He looked as if he was about thirty years old and was dressed in black robes, giving him an aura that made him look capable and refined. The energy fluctuations radiating from his body also indicated he was a Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator.

“Kong Qi? You were here too?” Xiao Chen looked at this person and narrowed his eyes, apparently recognizing him.

The young man named Kong Qi smiled slightly and said, “Why can’t I be here? My Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce has a number of entry quotas to the Four Seasons Realm, does it now? Brother Xiao’s question is quite strange.”

Hearing what he said, Yang Kai immediately understood that this young man named Kong Qi was a rising star of the Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce.

Although Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce and Violet Source Chamber of Commerce focused mainly on business, that did not mean these two great forces lacked strength or Masters. On the contrary, the heritage of these two giant chambers of commerce was no worse than any other top-level Sect.

The world simply had a prejudice in its thinking about these two forces, imagining that they were weak compared to Sects that focused on cultivation.

“From what this Kong can see, this should be a powerful barrier Spirit Array. Is there any friend here who is proficient in Spirit Arrays who can examine it?” Kong Qi suggested.

“In the face of absolute power, any barrier is nothing, we just need to smash it!” A cold snort rang out as Luo Yuan took the initiative. Leaping up into the air, he lifted his arms and summoned a battle-axe into his grip. Pouring his Source Qi madly into his artifact, Luo Yuan condensed the surrounding Principles around his blade, causing the ambient World Energy to tumble fiercely, releasing a coercion that caused many present to pale.

Even someone as strong as Wu Chang wore a slightly solemn expression as he could feel a threat from Luo Yuan’s strike.

“Eight Paths Sect really found itself a true monster!” Lan Xun commented as a pale blue light flickered around her body, offsetting the pressure from the rolling World Energy.

Before now, she was still somewhat doubtful a small Sect that was barely considered middle-class in the Southern Territory could actually cultivate such a talent. Even in Star Soul Palace, such geniuses were rare.

[No wonder he dared to challenge Wu Chang without flinching. With such amazing strength, he indeed has the capital to act arrogant.]

*Kacha…*

In front of everyone’s eyes, Luo Yuan’s arm holding up his battle axe seemed to swell suddenly, his muscles pulsing with a kind of raw and violent force.

Slowly, the glow from his battle-axe increased in intensity as the energy fluctuations radiating from it doubled in frequency.

This channelling occurred five more times, causing the space around Luo Yuan to creak under the terrifying energy fluctuations. Wu Chang and the others who were close to the front even found their footing becoming a bit unstable.

As for the cultivators with slightly lower strength, they had been forced to withdraw as their faces paled.

Everyone was wondering in their hearts what the result would be if such a blow hit them.

Yang Kai’s eyes flickered as he too was shocked by Luo Yuan’s actions, but he also knew that such an attack could not be performed in real combat because it took far too long to accumulate energy and no enemy would give Luo Yuan so much time to prepare himself. What’s more, delivering such an intense attack would no doubt put a heavy load on Luo Yuan and require an immense amount of concentration to execute.

Yang Kai understood this, and there were many others present who did as well, such as Wu Chang, Xiao Chen, Xiao Bai Yi and Lan Xun.

“HA!”

Suddenly, Luo Yuan roared and hurled his battle-axe, sending it out in a stream of light that had a Heaven-destroying and Earth-shattering power contained within it towards the golden barrier.

At that moment, everyone held their breath and watched quietly.

*Hong…*

A brilliant radiance burst forth as the stream of energy impacted the golden barrier, causing it to depress somewhat, but… it also showed no signs of breaking.

In the next instant, the golden barrier bounced back and reflected the battle axe’s attack at an even faster speed than it had been delivered, sending it streaking back Luo Yuan’s side and even managing to cut off several strands of his black hair.

Luo Yuan reached out and touched his cheek, where a finger-length wound had appeared along with fresh blood.

“En, it seems that brute force cannot be used to break this barrier,” Kong Qi said lightly, “It is reasonable considering this is a barrier created by a peak-level Emperor Realm Master!”

He did not taunt Luo Yuan in the slightest. Although Luo Yuan’s behaviour had been reckless, he had also proved with practical actions that this barrier was not breakable through brute force.

“Princess…” Xiao Chen suddenly turned his head to look at Lan Xun and called out inquiringly.

Lan Xun shook her head. “I haven’t seen anything of use yet, so I cannot be certain…”

Xiao Chen nodded lightly and said, “Princess should act with a free hand.”

Lan Xun didn’t reply, her beautiful eyes just staring forward. From her demeanour and posture, it seemed she had some knowledge of Spirit Arrays and was currently looking for a weakness in this barrier.

At that moment, Kong Qi turned and swept his eyes over the crowd, “Friends, is there anyone who is proficient in Spirit Arrays who can come up and examine this barrier? As I’m sure everyone knows by now, this should be the legendary Flowing Time Temple. As long as we can crack this barrier, we shall be able to get inside and explore the wonders of this place while possibly obtaining incredible benefits! If there is someone of high skill here who is capable of assisting us, please do not conceal yourself!”

Of the more than thirty people present, no one stepped forward to answer this call.

The Dao of Spirit Arrays, like the Alchemic Dao, was broad and profound, a profession easy to tread upon, but extremely difficult to master.

Everyone present was a Dao Source Realm cultivator, so each had some knowledge of Spirit Arrays, but who would have the confidence to crack the barrier arranged by an Emperor Realm Master?

Following a brief silence, Kong Qi smiled lightly and turned to a certain individual in the crowd before calling out, “Brother Gong, why don’t you come and try?”

Everyone heard this and quickly cast their eyes towards this man just in time to see him put on a depressed look as he glared towards Kong Qi.

“Surnamed Gong… could he be…”

“He must be someone from the Heavenly River Valley’s Gong Family… So that’s how it is!”

“Ha, it seems there is hope to break this barrier now.”

Numerous cultivators all began to whisper about this man surnamed Gong.

“Who is he?” Yang Kai asked in a low voice, “Why does everyone seem to have such confidence in him?”

Bian Yu Qing smiled at him and quipped, “Are you asking me?”

She assumed the stance of one who had finally caught an opportunity and was clearly planning to blackmail Yang Kai.

“Do as you please!” Yang Kai snorted.

Bian Yu Qing squinted her eyes before muttering, “Little boy, this Protector suddenly discovered that… you’re quite hateful!”

“Hmph, that depends on who I’m talking to.”

Kou Wu punctually interrupted, “The Gong Family is famous throughout the Southern Territory, not for its strength, but for its proficiency in Spirit Arrays. No one who comes from the Gong Family should be underestimated, especially their Old Ancestor who is an Emperor Array Master. Regarding Spirit Arrays, the Gong Family’ Old Ancestor can stand among the top three in the entire Southern Territory… As for this person though, if I remember correctly, he should be the current Young Master of the Gong Family, Gong Wen Shan.”

“En, I understand,” Yang Kai nodded.

Kou Wu was correct. The one who had been caught by the crowd was Young Master Gong Wen Shan of the Gong Family. Although Gong Wen Shan’s cultivation wasn’t too high, only Second-Order Dao Source Realm, when it came to proficiency in the Dao of Spirit Arrays, everyone present put together would probably be inferior to him.

The Gong Family had studied Spirit Arrays for generations.

At this moment, Gong Wen Shan’s face was as wrinkled as a bitter gourd. Stepping forward under everyone’s eyes, he muttered to himself, “Damn it… I obviously just wanted to explore around and have some fun, so why did I have to encounter such a troublesome matter… If I refuse, it will definitely provoke public anger, and the ones here won’t give a shit about my name… Ha… so annoying, Kong Qi that bastard, one day I’ll make him swallow his own shit and then commit suicide!”

Kong Qi stood to the side, his mouth twitching as he said, “Brother Gong… Don’t you think you should act a bit more prudently… everyone can hear what you’re saying…”

Gong Wen Shan wrinkled his bitter melon face further as he snorted towards Kong Qi, “I said it so you could hear it, what of it!”

Kong Qi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, but in this situation, he could only wave his hand and said, “Brother Gong, forgive me, but no one else present is proficient in Spirit Arrays, all our hopes rest with you.”

Gong Wen Shan snorted, “You and I have been acquainted for several dozen years, so you should know my temper!”

Kong Qi nodded repeatedly, “Yes, yes, I know you hate troublesome things the most…”

“Cracking the barrier of an Emperor is the most troublesome thing in this world!” Gong Wen Shan’s face went so cold one could almost see frost coming off of it. As he walked up to the golden light barrier, he glanced back and forth a few times before turning around and declaring, “Good, it’s not impossible for me to crack it, but what benefits can I obtain?”

“Benefits…” Kong Qi’s brow twitched, wondering what other benefits aside from the legendary treasures inside Gong Wen Shan wanted. For a moment, he didn’t know what to say.

“How about keeping your life, is that a big enough benefit?” Wu Chang suddenly interjected.

Gong Wen Shan immediately turned his head and stared at him, a sneer forming on his lips as he asked, “Oh? Are you threatening me?”

Wu Chang snorted, “If you break this barrier, you can live, if you refuse or fail, I’ll make you die here and now!”

From his solemn tone, it was clear Wu Chang wasn’t just making an idle threat.

No one thought he was joking either; after all, it was Wu Chang who was speaking.

“Interesting…” Even when facing Wu Chang, however, Gong Wen Shan didn’t show the slightest fear, instead his eyes just flashing slightly, indicating he was not someone with a weak spine.

Chapter 2155

To the side, Kong Qi was shocked.

He and Gong Wen Shan had indeed known each other for decades, and they also understood each other’s personalities and temperaments. Gong Wen Shan was born to only eat soft food and refused to eat hard food. If one negotiated politely with him, everything could be discussed, but using threats was a big taboo.

And Gong Wen Shan was undoubtedly threatened by Wu Chang just now.

Kong Qi seemed to be able to foresee the scene where Gong Wen Shan unceremoniously walked off.

If Gong Wen Shan were to leave like that, no one would be able to crack the barrier around the Flowing Time Temple.

Considering all this, Kong Qi didn’t care whether he would offend Wu Chang or not and his expression sank as he shouted, “Wu Chang, did you go mad from cultivating too hard? Brother Gong didn’t say he wouldn’t crack the barrier, so why are you making such indiscriminate remarks?”

Wu Chang glanced over at him coldly and snorted, “Who the hell are you? Why should I care what you think?”

Kong Qi was angered and shouted, “Do you think everyone here is a fool you can bluster in front of?”

Although he was not as famous as Wu Chang or Xia Sheng, Kong Qi was still a rising star who possessed extraordinary aptitude from Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce, so how could he not lose his temper when he was so blatantly despised?

“And if I do?” Wu Chang smiled arrogantly, “If you want to be put in my eyes, you need the corresponding strength!”

Something possessed Xiao Chen at that moment, causing him to insert himself into this argument and further exacerbate it, “Brother Wu Chang seems to not put anyone here in his eyes… heh…”

As soon as this statement came out, Luo Yuan frowned and silently stretched out his hand, causing his battle-axe which had bounced off by the golden barrier to fly back to him with a whistling sound.

Although Wu Chang was rampant, he was no fool, so when he heard Xiao Chen’s malicious comment which was clearly meant to direct the crowd’s anger towards him, he couldn’t help sneering at him and shouted, “Brother Xiao, do you have something to say?”

“Not at all!” Xiao Chen smiled lightly. “Brother Wu Chang is already the strongest under the Emperor Realm, how could this Xiao dare offer any advice to him?”

These words were even more provocative than his previous ones, causing even more ire to be directed towards Wu Chang. Even Xiao Bai Yi, who had been standing to the side silently, also began showing some fighting intent.

“Enough senseless bickering! ​​Don’t disturb Brother Gong from cracking the barrier!” Lan Xun suddenly shouted.

When everyone heard these words, they turned back to find that the root of this whole quarrel, Gong Wen Shan, had at some point sat down cross-legged in front of the golden barrier and was continuously sweeping his eyes over it, intently studying the barrier.

“Seems you know your limits!” Wu Chang coldly snorted, secretly thinking that Gong Wen Shan had been frightened by his threat just now.

Not only him, everyone present basically thought so as well; after all, Gong Wen Shan had just been asking for benefits from everyone in order to break this barrier, but after a few intimidating words from Wu Chang, he had actually obediently sat down and complied.

For a moment, many people directed looks of contempt at Gong Wen Shan. Despite needing his ability to enter the Flowing Time Temple, that did not prevent everyone from despising him.

There was only one person present who had some cold sweat leaking from his forehead as he looked at Gong Wen Shan profile thoughtfully, muttering to himself, “Something’s not right… Brother Gong has always had an intractable temper and never gives in to threats, yet now he’s being so cooperative. Just what kind of wicked scheme is he plotting… Haa… now, he’s even wearing that smile… he must be up to something!”

The more Kong Qi observed, the more he felt that Gong Wen Shan’s behaviour was odd and he couldn’t help feeling an ominous premonition in his heart.

Soon after, Gong Wen Shan, who was fixedly observing the barrier, seemed to have gained something and flicked his wrist, taking out an exquisite artifact from his Space Ring which was about the size of a palm. There were countless mysterious runes and patterns engraved on this artifact, giving it a mystical air.

“The Gong Family’s Heaven Disrupting Plate?” Lan Xun’s eyes suddenly brightened as she stared at the plate closely, but soon she showed a disappointed look because what Gong Wen Shan had in his hand was obviously not the real Heaven Disrupting Plate, but an imitation.

Gong Wen Shan formed a series of seals with his hands as he poured his Source Qi into the plate, causing some streams of light to shoot out from it and sink into the barrier like fish leaping into a pond.

Everyone watched intently, but few could discern anything about what was happening.

Yang Kai could only speculate that this artifact was some kind of tool that was used to help determine weaknesses in barriers.

Things were indeed as Yang Kai thought. The Gong Family’s Heaven Disrupting Plate was famed for being able to break any Spirit Array that existed in this world. It supposedly functioned by searching for weaknesses or Array Nodes which could then be exploited to crack a barrier or array. However, the Heaven Disrupting Plate was the supreme treasure of the Gong Family, so even if Gong Wen Shan’s status was not low, he was not qualified to carry it with him.

The artifact which he took out was a lesser imitation of the Heaven Disrupting Plate the Gong Family had refined, but although there was a big gap between it and the real Heaven Disrupting Plate, it could still provide great assistance in this situation.

More and more streams of light leapt off the plate and sank into the barrier as time passed, and after a while, Gong Wen Shan’s eyes brightened and he shouted in a low voice, “I found it… hahaha, seems it was just as I thought…”

He seemed to be talking to himself about something no one else could understand.

As he spoke though, Gong Wen Shan stretched out his hand to collect the imitation Heaven Disrupting Plate.

Next, he took out some array tools from his Space Ring and began flying about, throwing out his tools in a particular arrangement around the barrier.

As time passed, Gong Wen Shan’s expression turned more and more solemn, as if what he was about to do was extremely strenuous and serious.

Those formation flags quickly sank into the Void and disappeared to no one knew where.

Gong Wen continued this process for about a stick of incense worth of time before he came to a stop.

After wiping the sweat from his forehead, he turned around and said to the waiting crowd, “Good!”

“Good?” The cultivators looked stunned as they all stared at the golden barrier which still looked perfectly intact, disbelief written all over their faces.

Gong Wen Shan grinned and said, “I’m finished, so naturally… everything is good!”

His words were filled with confidence.

Having spoken, he clasped his hands together and let out a shout. From the Void, countless rays of light burst out and sank into the golden barrier enveloping the Flowing Time Temple, quickly creating a small gap in it.

“Open!” Gong Wen Shan yelled as he slowly pushed his hands out to the sides, and with his movements, this crack began to expand, like the barrier was really being torn open by his bare hands.

“It really is good!” At this time, many cultivators were shocked.

This barrier had been arranged by the Flowing Time Great Emperor, so even after countless years, it was definitely not something an ordinary cultivator could open, but Gong Wen Shan had managed just that.

“The Gong Family’s reputation is well-deserved!” Even Lan Xun couldn’t help but offer her praise.

She had to admit that in terms of the Dao of Spirit Arrays, Gong Wen Shan had vastly surpassed her. Up until now, she had still yet to find a single weakness in the golden barrier, while Gong Wen Shan had actually gone so far as to break it open.

“Many thanks, Brother Gong, after we return, I will invite you for a drink!” Kong Qi laughed loudly before he rushed into the opening first, his figure disappearing in the next instant.

He instinctively felt that trouble would soon erupt, and the best thing to do right now was to head in first.

With him taking the lead, other people naturally scrambled towards the opening.

Wu Chang, Luo Yuan, Xiao Chen, Lan Xun, and even Xiao Bai Yi and Murong Xiao Xiao all pushed their Source Qi in order to protect themselves from being attacked as well as to guard against any dangers which they might encounter after intruding into the Flowing Time Temple before they too headed to the entrance.

As this group of elites rushed to the forefront, others naturally did not dare to compete with them. With Wu Chang’s explosive temper, if they accidentally annoyed him, it is possible they would die on the spot.

*Xiu xiu xiu…*

The sounds of people breaking through the air sounded as one figure after another disappeared into the opening.

However, at that moment, Gong Wen Shan glanced at Wu Chang deeply and grinned sarcastically.

“What?” Wu Chang frowned as a vague feeling of unpleasantness swept over him. However, he didn’t think too much about it as his focus now was entering the Flowing Time Temple to snatch the Star Seals and whatever opportunities were hidden within.

A shocking scene occurred though when he tried to pass through the opening in the golden barrier. Just as Wu Chang approached the entrance, an invisible force struck him from the front and pushed him back several dozen meters.

Wu Chang’s face changed drastically as he quickly stabilized his figure and turned a gloomy look towards Gong Wen Shan.

Gong Wen Shan just stared back and sneered while pointing his finger and shaking his head, “Everyone else can enter, but you can’t!”

“As I thought!” Wu Chang coldly snorted. How could he not understand that this was Gong Wen Shan’s way of taking revenge?

Wu Chang had threatened Gong Wen Shan’s life just now, but the latter had not reacted too strongly. Now it seemed Gong Wen Shan had been plotting this from the start.

It could be said that this was the perfect method of getting back at Wu Chang.

If everyone was allowed to enter the Flowing Time Temple while only Wu Chang was blocked outside because of his previous threats, how could Wu Chang not be furious?

“This guy has such a black heart!” Yang Kai looked at Gong Wen Shan with a happy smile as he secretly approved.

Just now, he too had thought that Gong Wen Shan agreed to break the barrier because he was afraid of Wu Chang, but now, it turns out he was actually hatching this kind of wicked scheme.

Even as he thought so, Yang Kai did not slow his pace; after all, it was best to enter the Flowing Time Temple as quickly as possible. As for what happened between Wu Chang and Gong Wen Shan after, that had nothing to do with him.

“Do you think you can block me?” Wu Chang asked coldly as he looked down at Gong Wen Shan.

Gong Wen Shan smiled and said, “Now that this barrier is completely under my control, only those I allow can enter. Why wouldn’t I be able to stop you?”

“Good… then I’ll just kill you!” Wu Chang coldly snorted as he held his hands up high, condensing two different kinds of energy onto his palms, one fiery red, one icy white. When these two opposite energies condensed, instead of repelling one another, they surprisingly began to merge together and amplify one another. Forming a giant ball of red and white light, Wu Chang hurled it towards where Gong Wen Shan stood.

Gong Wen Shan remained where he was, not trying to dodge or avoid this attack, simply wearing a light sneer on his face.

From this falling ball of light, a terrifying power could be felt, causing Yang Kai and the others who were about to rush into the barrier to hurriedly withdraw, lest they be caught up in this attack by accident.

Just as the ball of light was about to swallow him, Gong Wen Shan waved his hand lightly and a golden light suddenly separated from the barrier and enveloped him.

In the next instant, a loud explosion rang out as the power of Ice and Flame filled the air.

Chapter 2156

Flames burst out and ice and snow rolled, but after the dust settled, Gong Wen Shan stood unscathed, and the golden barrier surrounding him showed no signs of damage.

Glancing up at Wu Chang sarcastically, he sneered, “I already said this barrier is under my complete control, did you not understand? Idiot!”

Wu Chang’s face twitched as his expression turned gloomy.

After seeing this bizarre scene, the onlooking cultivators who had not yet entered the Flowing Time Temple were all shocked. On the one hand, they admire the courage of Gong Wen Shan who dared to offend a monster like Wu Chang. On the other hand, they were shocked by Wu Chang’s strength.

If the terrifying blow just now had fallen among the crowd, few of them would have survived.

When two Masters clashed, it was the audience that suffered. Realizing this, everyone present quickly composed themselves and used their best Movement Skills to charge into the crack in the Flowing Time Temple’s barrier.

“If I can’t enter, none of you can either!” Wu Chang shouted angrily, apparently not willing to suffer alone here and swiftly acting to ensure just that.

Stretching out his hands, he summoned two Dao Source Grade High-Rank swords, one burning red, one icy white. Slashing out, blades of red and white Sword Qi shot towards the advancing crowd.

“Ah… dodge!”

“Wu Chang’s gone crazy!”

“How… how COULD he do this!”

Everyone was shocked and quickly dispersed.

However, Wu Chang had acted without any warning, and coupled with his immense strength, even if his attack had been dispersed across many people, there were still some who were unable to avoid it and were hit by his strange, opposing attribute attack.

*Hong…*

A huge pit was opened up in front of the temple as blood and shattered limbs were strewn across the ground. Six people had been killed directly while another dozen or so were injured.

Yang Kai had dodged quickly and emerged unscathed, but Bian Yu Qing and Kou Wu had been slightly injured, their faces both showing some shock and fear at this moment.

Even as he witnessed all this, Gong Wen Shan just stood in place, not using the power of the barrier to protect anyone but himself, nor to stop Wu Chang from attacking. However, after Wu Chang launched his attack, Gong Wen Shan actually grinned slightly, as if his conspiracy had succeeded.

“Wu Chang, have you gone crazy! We didn’t provoke you in any way, so what’s the meaning of this?”

“That’s right, Wu Chang, you were born into a great Sect like Heavenly Martial Holy Land, so you should know how to distinguish right from wrong! Just because you cannot go in, do you intend to make trouble for all the rest of us?”

“Wu Chang! Don’t go too far! If you want to vent your anger, do it on the one who refused to let you in, don’t just attack us out of spite!”

Among a group of cultivators who had survived the catastrophe, a few people began shouting with dissatisfaction.

“Good, the two of you also cannot go in,” Gong Wen Shan suddenly pointed at two cultivators who were clamoring for Wu Chang to direct his rage at the ‘evildoer’.

The faces of these two people suddenly collapsed, turning extremely ugly.

“Brother Gong, I didn’t mean that… Brother Gong, please be the bigger man and don’t care about some misspoken words…”

“Yes, Brother Gong, no no, Uncle Gong, please let me in!”

The two immediately backed down and begged for mercy.

Gong Wen Shan simply ignored them.

“Brother Wu Chang…” The cultivator named Jing Li who had arrived here first suddenly cupped his fists and said with a solemn expression, “My Benevolent Martial Sect can be regarded as an attached Sect of Heavenly Martial Holy Land, so even if others can’t enter, I can, right?”

Wu Chang did not respond.

Jing Li nodded, “Many thanks!”

As soon as his words fell, he rushed straight towards the Flowing Time Temple, but just as he was about to reach the crack in the barrier, Wu Chang attacked again, sending a blast of Sword Qi towards Jing Li, nearly slicing his arm off.

“Brother Wu Chang, what are your intentions here?” Jing Li sweat profusely as he raised his head up and asked anxiously.

Wu Chang simply stood mid-air and snorted, shouting in a firm, unbending tone towards the crowd, “I said, since I can’t enter, none of you can either.”

As he spoke, he lifted his swords again, crossed them above his head, condensed his Source Qi, then slashed downwards.

A shocking sword light shot out, seemingly leaping across space as it cut towards a figure which was sneakily trying to approach the entrance down below.

After releasing this blow, Wu Chang stood calmly and said indifferently, “Anyone who dares ignore my words will die!”

The moment he uttered these words though, his expression suddenly changed as a look of amazement filled his face.

In front of the entrance below, Yang Kai had to stop in place because Wu Chang’s attack was too fast. If he didn’t stop, he would definitely be hit.

In desperation, Yang Kai could only spin around, form a fist while using his Dragon Transformation Secret Technique as well as his Five Elements Indestructible Sword Qi, and punch out.

*Hong long long…*

The cross of red and white Sword Qi was struck by the dazzling five-coloured punch, causing space to cave in.

With the assistance of the recoil from this attack, Yang Kai easily made it to the entrance of the Flowing Time Temple. Before crossing the barrier, he did not forget to call out to Gong Wen Shan, “Thanks!”

Gong Wen Shan stared at the place where Yang Kai disappeared, a strange expression covering his face as he muttered to himself, “That guy… he’s strange!”

He clearly felt that Yang Kai only had a First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivation, but right before everyone’s eyes he had taken a blow from Wu Chang head on without any damage.

That was not something an ordinary cultivator could accomplish.

Wu Chang was also quite shocked.

The moment Yang Kai turned around, Wu Chang recognized him as the one who had obtained the diamond-shaped Star Seal. At that time, he had also used some strange Secret Technique to resolve the fatal blow he and Luo Yuan had launched against him.

That Secret Technique was so strange and mysterious that Wu Chang was unable to even determine what it was.

Now, however, this strange guy actually blocked his own blow head-on…

[Was that brat playing the pig to eat a tiger?] This idea came to Wu Chang’s mind involuntarily.

At that moment, he became distracted, giving the cultivators down below an opportunity to rush towards the entrance, many of them passing through the barrier and disappearing in the blink of an eye. When Wu Chang came back to his senses and wanted to stop them again, it was already too late.

He could only watch everyone rush into the Flowing Time Temple, leaving just him and the two other cultivators excluded by Gong Wen Shan.

“Wu Chang, Wu Chang…” Gong Wen Shan laughed, repeating Wu Chang’s name, a sarcastic and teasing expression on his face as he quipped, “Now that everyone else has gone in, what are you going to do?”

Wu Chang didn’t speak as he stared at Gong Wen Shan coldly.

“Trying to kill me with a glare?” Gong Wen Shan grinned, “This is the cost of threatening me! There’s nothing wrong with young people being hot-blooded, but if they become too arrogant…”

As he spoke, he assumed the tone and demeanour of a wizened old sage, but before he could finish what he wanted to say, he saw Wu Chang turn around and fly off, soon disappearing from sight.

“…I didn’t even get a chance to add some insults. Well, he’s decisive, I’ll give him that. If it was me I wouldn’t have been able to give up such a great opportunity so easily… I guess there wasn’t any point in sticking around,” Gong Wen Shan laughed at himself before he turned around and entered the Flowing Time Temple.

As he said, it was meaningless for Wu Chang to stay. Gong Wen Shan had said he would not let him in and had the ability to back up his words, so instead of staying and being smugly derided by Gong Wen Shan, Wu Chang felt it best to leave and search for other opportunities.

Of course, a grudge had been formed already, so if the two of them were to meet again, Wu Chang would definitely not let Gong Wen Shan off so easily.

“Uncle Gong… come back, come back!”

“Brother Gong, don’t ignore us. We’re still out here!”

The two cultivators who had been refused entry by Gong Wen Shan hurriedly shouted, but who was left to give them a response? After waiting for some time outside the temple, the two men could only leave in a depressed manner.

…..

“What’s this?” Inside the Flowing Time Temple, as soon as Yang Kai got in, he was stunned by the scene in front of him.

Here, there was a massive hall that seemed at least a few thousand meters in length and breadth. In front of him, Xiao Chen, Lan Xun, Luo Yuan, Xiao Bai Yi, and Murong Xiao Xiao, who had entered first, were surrounded by a group of countless and densely packed puppets. All of them were engaged in a fierce melee, with metal shards and puppet limbs scattered across the ground. Obviously, before Yang Kai came in, these people had already destroyed many puppets.

Yang Kai was naturally quite familiar with puppets, having encountered them a few times back on Shadowed Star. There was also a family on Shadowed Star which specialized in the Dao of Puppetry and were able to create almost life-like puppets.

There was no doubt that the Star Boundary also had puppets, but Yang Kai had not encountered any yet.

Now, inside the Flowing Time Temple, there were too many to count.

These puppets were of all different shapes and sizes, but they could be roughly divided into three categories. One was human-shaped puppets, all of which were quite tall and burly and held different kinds of weapons, giving them an imposing air. The second type was beast-shaped, with tigers, leopards, wolves, even snakes and insects. These Monster Beast-like puppets behaved similarly to real Monster Beasts and had great lethality to them. As for the third category, they were simply the ones that did not fall into either of the previous two, their images too unique to describe as either man or beast. The number of puppets that belonged to this third category was the smallest, but they also seemed to be the strongest, each one having unique abilities and strengths that were difficult to predict.

The number of puppets in this giant hall was quite large, reaching into the hundreds, and all of them gave off an aura equivalent to a Dao Source Realm cultivator. Even though Xiao Chen and the others were favoured Sons and Daughters of Heaven, two fists couldn’t block four strikes, so when Yang Kai came in, he found these people on the defensive, with almost no leeway to counterattack.

“If I knew it would be so troublesome, I would have waited outside a little longer!” Yang Kai grumbled to himself. He was worried that some of the good opportunities in the Flowing Time Temple would be snatched up by others if he didn’t hurry, so he rushed inside, but seeing the scene before him, he realized it would have been better to take his time. It wouldn’t be too late for him to enter after all these puppets were killed.

“Junior Brother Yang, be careful, these puppets are not easy to deal with!” Murong Xiao Xiao’s voice suddenly entered his ear. She should have spotted Yang Kai come in and found some time while she was defending herself to warn him.

“Although I really want to thank you for your consideration… I wish you could have warned me without exposing my existence!” Yang Kai smiled wryly as, sure enough, the moment Murong Xiao Xiao called out to him, one of the puppets that wasn near her turned and directed its strange red eyes towards him.

Chapter 2157

This puppet had a strange appearance, looking like a large lizard walking upright, with short forelimbs, extreme long hind limbs, and an inexplicable, hideous atmosphere lingering around its body.

As soon as it looked at Yang Kai, it immediately opened its big mouth and sprayed out a bright red light.

“A casual attack has the same strength as a Dao Source Realm’s strike? These puppets… are quite extraordinary!” Yang Kai felt the intensity of the energy of this ray of light and his expression changed slightly as he immediately dodged.

*Sou…*

The beam of light barely missed Yang Kai’s body and hit a cultivator who came in right after him.

This cultivator was lucky, however, because before he came in, he had worn a defensive Artifact Armour.

His original intention was to prevent Wu Chang from suddenly killing him, but now, this Artifact Armour had coincidentally saved him from this attack.

*Hong…* 

The cultivator couldn’t help stumbling back a few steps as his Artifact Armour flashed wildly, a moment later calling out in surprise, “What the hell was that?”

At that moment, a large number of people rushed in from the entrance, and even Gong Wen Shan who came in last showed his face.

It could be said that among the cultivators who stayed outside the Flowing Time Temple before, apart from the few who were killed by Wu Chang, only three were excluded from entering.

With more life auras appearing, the puppets that were besieging Xiao Chen and the others in the first group began to disperse to target these new enemies. Xiao Chen and the others were suddenly relieved of some pressure and immediately launched a counterattack, smashing the puppets which had turned their backs on them, causing many to break apart and fall to the ground.

Without exception, each of the crushed bodies of these puppets would contain a crystal about the size of a fist that gave off rich energy fluctuations.

“Spirit Energy Heart!” Someone exclaimed as they stared greedily at the crystal.

Yang Kai’s heart was also moved as he instantly realized what this thing was.

Spirit Energy Hearts were the core component of a puppet, and without them, no matter how well crafted a puppet was, it would simply be a dead object. Only by inserting a Spirit Energy Heart would a puppet be able to operate independently.

However, Spirit Energy Hearts were extremely difficult to refine and required the cooperation of an Artifact Refining Grandmaster as well as a Puppet Master, so their value was extremely high, especially high-grade Spirit Energy Hearts which were almost impossible to find nowadays.

There were several hundred puppets in this hall, and each one was at least Dao Source Grade; in order words, there were hundreds of Spirit Energy Hearts here!

If one could bring all these Spirit Energy Hearts out and find a Puppet Master to refine bodies for them, one could create a Dao Source Realm grade puppet army!

Cultivators such as Xiao Chen, Kong Qi, and Xiao Bai Yi, who were born into peak level forces, may not care too much about the value of these Spirit Energy Hearts, but for those who were born into small Sects and families, it was a different story. Smaller forces often found it hard to cultivate Dao Source Realm Masters, but with these Spirit Energy Hearts, they could create a Dao Source Realm powerhouse.

Faced with such a prospect, how could a competition not begin? Even if their own Sect couldn’t refine a proper puppet body, just selling these Spirit Energy Hearts would net a lot of Source Crystals.

So, after experiencing the initial panic, all the cultivators who rushed in became filled with enthusiasm, summoning their artifacts one after another while attacking the puppets viciously.

Even though the number of puppets was massive, and their strength was not too high, with no one to drive and coordinate them, they were unable to use their full strength or take advantage of their numbers, so the tide of battle quickly turned against them.

The cultivators who rushed in didn’t hold back, the weaker ones forming groups of three to five to besiege their targets while those who were confident in their strength fought single-handedly. It was not long before the number of puppets was halved, and the price the attacking cultivators paid was extremely small, only a few people being seriously injured with not a single person dying.

Yang Kai also took the opportunity to kill a few puppets and harvest some Spirit Energy Hearts which he tossed into his Space Ring.

As time passed, the number of puppets in the hall became less and less; inspiring the cultivators even further, causing the puppets to be cut down even faster than before.

Suddenly…

A dazzling light burst out from somewhere in the crowd, catching everyone’s attention.

Floating mid-air, a star-shaped ray of light flickered slightly before suddenly transforming into a stream of light and sinking into a male cultivator’s arm.

The cultivator didn’t understand what was going on and only felt a burning pain in his arm, causing him to call out in alarm.

“A five-pointed Star Seal!” Lan Xun’s beautiful eyes lit up and she shouted softly.

“These puppets… actually have Star Seals on them?” Xiao Chen swept his eyes across the remaining puppets around him, searching for other Star Seals.

He had already cut down seven puppets, but such a good deed had not fallen to him yet, making Xiao Chen feel a little uncomfortable.

“Ah? This is a Star Seal?” The male cultivator was dumbfounded for a moment after hearing Lan Xun’s tender call, but he soon grinned happily and shouted, “I actually obtained a Star Seal? Hahahaha, it looks like Heaven is truly taking good care of me!”

He was overjoyed and laughed.

Even if some people around him didn’t like his public bragging, they could only envy him.

However, after this scene, everyone’s interest in killing these puppets increased dramatically, and their attacks intensified once more.

In a certain part of the hall, a man and a woman, seemingly fellow Sect disciples, were nervously attacking a leopard-shaped puppet.

This puppet looked almost indistinguishable from a real leopard and was extremely flexible in its movements, but fortunately, this puppet seemed to only be able to perform melee attacks.

So, even if the strength of these two people wasn’t very high, they had a good chance of defeating this puppet.

It was not the strength of this leopard puppet that made them nervous, however, but rather the triangle mark on its forehead!

This mark wasn’t eye-catching, but if before now this pair hadn’t paid much attention to it, after experiencing the scene just now, how could they not guess it was a Star Seal?

Earlier, several dozen Star Seals had fallen into the Flowing Time Temple and were likely hidden throughout it now, so it wasn’t a surprise that among these hundreds of puppets, a few Star Seals would appear.

This Senior Brother and Junior Sister pair weren’t from a big Sect, nor was their strength too great, so they were worried that if they killed this leopard, the Star Seal would reveal itself and draw unwanted attention towards them…

Although the man who just obtained that five-pointed Star Seal was currently ecstatic, there was no doubt he had also become a target who would be attacked as soon as other people had some attention to spare.

Thinking so, this Senior Brother and Junior Sister pair exchanged a glance and nodded to each other. Instead of immediately defeating their target, they began leading the leopard away into the depths of the temple, trying to escape from everyone’s line of sight so they could secretly obtain this Star Seal.

With the chaotic melee occurring in the hall, even if the actions of these two were a bit suspicious, no one would care about them and would likely just assume they weren’t strong enough and were being forced back.

The strategy these two employed was quite successful, but just as they were about to move far enough from the crowd to not draw attention, a figure suddenly fell from the sky and smashed his fist down fiercely.

The hearts of the pair suddenly sank, but it was too late for them to react.

A loud thud followed.

The leopard-shaped puppet was directly smashed to pieces, and at the same time, the triangle mark on its forehead flew out in a burst of light before falling towards the figure which had just appeared.

“Just a triangle Star Seal?” The figure glanced at the back of his hand and muttered in seeming dissatisfaction before turning around and attacking another puppet.

Seeing this, the woman from the Senior Brother Junior Sister pair bit her red lip and opened her mouth to say something.

However, her Senior Brother’s expression changed dramatically as he hurriedly pulled her back and slowly shook his head, explaining in a low voice, “That’s Luo Yuan… we can’t afford to offend him.”

“But that Star Seal…” The woman looked unwilling.

The man gave a helpless smile, “Just treat it as if we never saw it.”

“It was obviously ours though!” The woman pouted in annoyance. If they had known that Luo Yuan would suddenly rush over to steal their prey, they would have just destroyed the leopard instead of allowing it to fall into another’s hands.

After the man soothed his Junior Sister for a while, he somehow managed to persuade her to not find trouble with Luo Yuan.

This man understood that there was no point in trying to discuss this matter with Luo Yuan. If one wanted to say something to him, they had to speak with their fists.

The battle in the hall lasted for roughly an hour, with several dozen Dao Source Realm cultivators from major Sects families in the Southern Territory paying a small price to wipe out these puppets.

Without even mentioning the Spirit Energy Hearts, just the three Star Seals which appeared were a massive gain. In addition to the five-pointed Star Seal and the triangular Star Seal Luo Yuan obtained, another diamond-shaped Star Seal appeared.

This last Star Seal was fortunately obtained by Murong Xiao Xiao, causing her to smile happily because now she was qualified to enter the Shattered Star Sea and seek her own path to the Emperor Realm.

Only now did everyone have an opportunity to examine the hall itself.

This entry hall was massive, and at the moment was covered in puppet fragments; however, there was just one obvious passage leading away from it, which seemed to be the only exit.

There were no puppets guarding this exit, and no trace of any barriers or Spirit Arrays protecting it, so it seemed quite safe.

Despite that, no one approached this exit carelessly. Everyone first found a place to sit down cross-legged to restore themselves while waiting for someone else to take the lead to explore the way forward.

Kong Qi of Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce quietly made his way over to Gong Wen Shan and asked with a pleasant expression, “Brother Gong, what do you think of the situation over there?”

Gong Wen Shan squinted his eyes before turning to him and saying, “Brother Kong, you’re… even more thick-skinned and shameless than the last time we met, asking me about everything here. How should I know? It’s not like I’ve been to this Flowing Time Temple before.”

Kong Qi grinned meaningfully and replied, “Those with great capabilities have greater responsibilities. With Brother Gong’s knowledge of Spirit Arrays, if there was any danger there, you would be the first to notice it.”

“Now you’re even shamelessly flattering me…” Gong Wen Shan snorted before he stood up reluctantly, walked over, and muttered. “Fine then, I’ll take a look.”

Chapter 2158

Gong Wen Shan muttered as he walked over to the entrance.

Kong Qi couldn’t help being stunned on the spot.

His intention really was to get Gong Wen Shan to go up and see if there was some kind of Spirit Array arranged at the entrance, but he never imagined the other party would agree so readily and without any obvious objections.

This was inconsistent with Gong Wen Shan’s usual personality…

Thinking this way, Kong Qi’s expression changed slightly and he hurriedly stepped forward, catching up with Gong Wen Shan and saying, “How could I let Brother Gong take risks alone? This Kong is willing to accompany you as your brother, experiencing joy and sorrow together as one!”

“Are you sure?” Gong Wen Shan tilted his head and looked at him teasingly.

“Uh…” Kong Qi’s heart was filled with anxiety, mainly because the other party’s expression was too unnerving, making him feel anxious in his heart. He didn’t know which answer to give in order to satisfy Gong Wen Shen, but in the end, he trusted his gut, grit his teeth, and nodded, “Yes.”

“Good,” Gong Wen Shan shrugged and continued to move forward, saying, “Follow me closely.”

Hearing this, Kong Qi was overjoyed, knowing that his answer just now was the right one, while on the surface maintaining a calm façade as he said, “Of course, Brother Gong must also be careful.”

As the two people spoke, they arrived in front of the only entrance as everyone else watched.

By now, the cultivators who were meditating and resting in the main hall had turned their attention to Gong Wen Shan’s movements and were closely observing, lest they miss some important clue now. Gong Wen Shan’s ability to crack barriers had been witnessed by everyone earlier, so if there was really a hidden Spirit Array at this entrance, everyone had faith that Gong Wen Shan would find it.

For a moment, everyone held their breath, waiting for the results to appear.

Gong Wen Shan stood at the entrance and carefully observed it for a time, his expression constantly changing, putting everyone else on edge. Only after a long time did he mutter, “As I thought, this entrance is just an ordinary entrance, there’s no danger here!”

Saying so, he stepped forward directly towards the entrance.

Kong Qi hurried to keep up.

The two disappeared from sight the next moment.

“Playing cheap tricks!” Xiao Chen snorted, dissatisfied. Before seeing Gong Wen Shan’s expression change a few times, he too had thought the former had discovered something, but it turned out to be nothing, making Xiao Chen feel like he had been tricked.

Lan Xun smiled slightly and said, “Brother Gong… is a man who takes great pride in his talents!”

“Speaking of which, did anyone notice that…” Xiao Bai Yi suddenly came over to the two of them, looked around for a while, and said with a solemn expression, “Wu Chang is not here!”

Xiao Chen frowned, “What do you mean? What does it matter to us if he is here or not?”

Xiao Bai Yi glanced at him briefly before turning his eyes to Lan Xun.

“What’s the meaning of your look just now, are you disdaining me?” Xiao Chen was immediately unhappy.

Lan Xun frowned, but thinking of something, she muttered, “Brother Xiao Bai means… Wu Chang failed to enter here because of Gong Wen Shan’s machinations?”

Xiao Bai Yi nodded seriously, “I think so. Gong Wen Shan may not have just cracked the barrier around the temple, he might have also taken control of it. Basically, everyone else has come in, but Wu Chang for some reason was excluded. There’s only one explanation for this situation, Gong Wen Shan didn’t let him in!” At this point, Xiao Bai Yi let out a depressed sigh as he looked sincerely at Lan Xun and said, “Princess, this one is Azure Sun Temple’s Xiao Bai Yi, not… Brother Xiao Bai!”

“I know who you are…” Lan Xun smiled, “But you and Xiao Chen have the same surname, so I can’t call you Brother Xiao. I heard Yang Kai call you Xiao Bai before, so I just… figured calling you Brother Xiao Bai was a good idea. Do you not like that name?”

“I don’t!” Xiao Bai Yi denied vehemently, a cold light flashing across his eyes as he muttered, “After we leave this place, I’ll rip that bastard’s mouth off!”

“If we delay any longer, everyone else will leave. We need to move.” Xiao Chen found it hard to intervene in this conversation, so he could only change the subject forcefully.

Lan Xun turned her head and found that most of the cultivators in the hall had already disappeared, with only a few still standing around. Nodding, she agreed, “We should go too.”

Xiao Bai Yi signalled to Murong Xiao Xiao, who nodded in return before the two used their Movement Skills to rush towards the entrance.

…..

“Ah, I fell into a trap!” Yang Kai couldn’t help muttering as soon as he rushed into the entrance.

Because the world in front of him suddenly distorted and transformed into an empty grassland.

This grassland was rich and fertile, with no trace of danger anywhere. In Yang Kai’s field of vision, there were blue skies, white clouds, and the green grass as far as the eye could see, which was obviously not a scene from inside the Flowing Time Temple.

“An Illusion Array?” Yang Kai frowned, stopping in place and not moving.

He was not surprised by the scene in front of him because he had a faint premonition something like this would happen before he entered.

The reason was naturally due to the first person entering this hall being Gong Wen Shan.

Judging from his previous methods and style of dealing with Wu Chang, Gong Wen Shan was definitely not as approachable and carefree as he seemed on the surface. On the contrary, this guy seemed to be untrustworthy and sinister.

After just a few threatening words from Wu Chang, Gong Wen Shan had locked him out of the Wu Chang and made him watch as others entered, tormenting him both physically and mentally. Obviously, Gong Wen Shan was a man who sought revenge for even the slightest grievance.

Kong Qi had asked him to investigate the entrance, and Gong Wen Shan readily agreed, causing Yang Kai to have some suspicions.

Gong Wen Shan was clearly not a noble and selfless character who would do something to solely benefit others.

Of course, this was also human nature.

And sure enough, this entrance was different from what Gong Wen Shan had announced out loud. It had a pleasant surprise waiting for everyone.

The only question was whether Gong Wen Shan had arranged this Illusion Array or it was something native to the Flowing Time Temple.

If it was the former, it would be easy to handle. In such a short time, even if Gong Wen Shan was a Spirit Array Grandmaster, it would be impossible to arrange too profound of an Illusion Array in such a short time. Perhaps Gong Wen Shan had simply set up an Array Plate to slow down those who followed after him.

If that was the case, this Illusion Array could be destroyed quickly; after all, Gong Wen Shan couldn’t have exerted too much strength to arrange it.

However, if this was a feature of the Flowing Time Temple itself, it would be scary.

This was because even Gong Wen Shan hadn’t noticed any clues before and had walked in confidently. If this Illusion Array was so subtle that it was even able to deceive someone like Gong Wen Shan, how could it possibly be simple? Worst case scenario, this Illusion Array was so powerful that all who fell into it would be trapped here for a lifetime.

Thinking so, Yang Kai took a deep breath, calmed his nerves, and tried to comfort himself, “I hope this is just another one of that guy’s tricks…”

Saying so, he slowly closed his eyes before snapping them back open.

His left eye had now turned golden and released a solemn, majestic aura that seemed capable of piercing through the void and seeing through all illusions!

Yang Kai slowly turned his head and looked around, after a short while breathing a sigh of relief while a look of joy filled his face.

Now, he was able to determine that this Illusion Array was not part of the Flowing Time Temple itself, but just a temporary arrangement made by Gong Wen Shan, because under his Demon Eye of Annihilation, Yang Kai was quickly able to see through the weaknesses and distortions in this Illusion Array.

After pondering for a moment, Yang Kai decided against breaking this Spirit Array forcefully and simply walked out along one of its weak points.

At the same time, in almost the same illusion, Lan Xun held a light pearl in her hand. This pearl exuded a soft light and was dispelling the illusory scenes around her, allowing her to see her true surroundings as she walked forward.

Xiao Chen followed her step by step, coldly snorting as he said, “Why does Princess insist on going through all this trouble. It’s just a trivial Illusion Array, allow me to break it directly.”

Lan Xun smiled and said, “One should show proper respect for others’ hard work. Gong Wen Shan did not hesitate to use an Array Plate to place an Illusion Array here just to delay others a little bit. If we were to destroy this Spirit Array, wouldn’t everyone else benefit from our hard work while we gain nothing? I don’t plan on doing charity work here.”

“Your Highness, you…” Xiao Chen stared at Lan Xun’s back in amazement, not having expected that after just a few days in the outside world, this innocent and kind-hearted Princess had been contaminated by such wickedness. In his heart, he felt a great deal of pain!

On the other side, Xiao Bai Yi and Murong Xiao Xiao had both closed their eyes, as if they were blind, and were slowly groping their way through the Illusion Array. The directions they walked seemed random, but in actual fact, they were slowly moving forward. As for how they achieved this, it was unknown.

“An Illusion Array? Ridiculous, in the face of absolute power, nothing else matters!” Luo Yuan had always adhered to the truth that strength was supreme, so even after falling into this Illusion Array, he did not flinch and instead pushed his Source Qi violently to blast his surroundings.

However, those attacks, which should have been strong enough to kill an ordinary Dao Source Realm cultivator, did not even cause a ripple when they landed, like stones sinking into a violent sea.

Although this Illusion Array was hurriedly arranged by Gong Wen Shan using an Array Plate, how could it be violently broken so easily? The Gong Family was famed for its proficiency in Spirit Arrays, and Gong Wen Shan had already taken into account the combat power of Luo Yuan and the others when he set up this Illusion Array to ensure that even if they used brute force to crack it, it would still take them some time.

The reactions of the other Dao Source Realm cultivators were identical to the top Masters after falling into the Illusion Array.

Those who know a little about Spirit Arrays tried to find Array Nodes to quickly crack the array.

Those who didn’t understand Spirit Arrays used violence.

As for those like Yang Kai and Lan Xun, they were able to find weaknesses in this Illusion Array and easily escape with the help of special abilities.

After consuming less than a cup of tea worth of time, Yang Kai had already emerged from the Illusion Array and the scene before his eyes once again distorted and changed, the blue sky, white clouds, and grass fields suddenly disappearing and being replaced by a dark and deep passage.

Yang Kai immediately withdrew his Demon Eye of Annihilation and kicked the ground to rush to the end of this hallway.

Arriving at a certain point, Yang Kai’s brows couldn’t help furrowing as he was forced to stop, “There are so many paths?”

In front of his eyes, there were at least a dozen forks in the hall, each of them too dark to see down and giving off an unsettling aura, as if they were all paths of no return.

Chapter 2159

With so many forks in the road, some would obviously be safe while others would be dangerous, but Yang Kai didn’t know how to determine which was which, so he simply chose one at random and dove in.

At the same time he disappeared, Lan Xun and Xiao Chen also escaped from the Illusion Array just in time to see Yang Kai’s back disappear.

“Huh…” Lan Xun showed a surprised expression, “Someone was faster than me?”

“What?” Xiao Chen was a step behind Lan Xun and did not manage to see anything about the situation ahead.

“It’s nothing,” Lan Xun shook her head before turning back to see that they were only about ten paces from the previous entrance. The surrounding area was empty and there was no trace of anyone else. She knew how powerful the Illusion Array was, but she also didn’t need to worry about the others who were trapped inside and simply said to Xiao Chen, “Let’s go.”

Shortly after, the two arrived at the same forked path where Lan Xun deliberately chose a different path from the one Yang Kai entered.

Although these passages were somewhat gloomy, they weren’t completely dark as luminous stones were fitted into the walls at certain intervals, emitting a soft light.

Yang Kai constantly scanned a twenty-metre radius around himself with his Divine Sense, staying on alert for any possible dangers as he explored.

Yang Kai hadn’t walked far before he suddenly showed a strange look. Perking up his ears, he was able to vaguely hear the sounds of fighting and could even smell a faint bloody aura in the air.

Shocked, he quickly retracted his Divine Sense, concealed his aura, and walked forward slowly.

Soon, Yang Kai arrived outside an empty hall that, while incomparable to the main entrance hall he had come from, was still not small.

The situation inside this hall was clear at a glance. There wasn’t anything strange in it not except for a pool in the middle of the room which looked a few meters in diameter and depth. Right now though, this pool was empty.

On the left side of the hall, there was a long table with two spirit fruits placed atop it.

It was impossible to tell how long these spirit fruits had been placed here, but despite it obviously having been a long time, they still looked fresh and even exuded a strong fragrance. These spirit fruits weren’t very big, about the size of a fist, and their appearance resembled ripe peaches, causing one to salivate at their mere sight.

“Those are… Flowing Time Fruits?” Yang Kai’s eyes lit up as he immediately recognized what these spirit fruits were.

He had previously obtained a jade slip leftover from the Wondrous Pill Great Emperor’s Third Disciple, Gong Sun Mu, from below Yuan Furnace Mountain. That jade slip had detailed innumerable types of rare spirit grasses and medicines of the Star Boundary, as well as the methods to store and refine them.

Yang Kai had already memorized the contents of the jade slip, so there was no reason for him to not recognize these fruits!

“So, Flowing Time Fruits are a product of the Flowing Time Temple!” At that moment, Yang Kai suddenly understood.

Although he knew about Flowing Time Fruits before, Yang Kai hadn’t connected them with the Flowing Time Temple; but now, after seeing the Flowing Time Fruits here, he understood.

Flowing Time Fruits had a very peculiar effect that did not do much for a cultivator’s cultivation.

But even so, that did not decrease their rarity or preciousness.

It was recorded in the jade slip left by Gong Sun Mu that Flowing Time Fruits grew in pairs and each one had a diametrically opposite effect. One was able to rejuvenate people, turning an elderly person youthful in a short period of time, while the other was like a time poison that could turn a young man into an old man in the blink of an eye.

If one didn’t know how to distinguish between the different Flowing Time Fruits, no one would dare to swallow them rashly.

Without mentioning whether the second fruit’s effect was useful or not, just the first effect was definitely enough to make countless cultivators go crazy over, especially female cultivators. What woman didn’t want to remain youthful forever? But no matter how high one’s cultivation was, and no matter how astonishing their beauty was, the ruthless carving knife known as time would still leave some marks on them.

As time passed, these marks would only grow more and more obvious.

But if one had a Flowing Time Fruit that could rejuvenate one’s vitality, it was a different story. Even an old woman could regain her lost beauty in the blink of an eye.

Of course, that was not to say that the Flowing Time Fruit was only useful for women. For those cultivators who were approaching the limits of their lifespans and had no hope of breaking through, a Flowing Time Fruit was undoubtedly among the best medicines to increase one’s lifespan. It could return a cultivator’s body to a state dozens, or even hundreds of years prior to when they swallowed it, which was equivalent to adding dozens or hundreds of years to their lifespan.

To a certain extent, this was even more precious than an Emperor Artifact.

After Yang Kai recognized the Flowing Time Fruit, he immediately became energetic.

If this kind of spirit fruit landed in someone else’s hands, they wouldn’t be able to do much with it, but in Yang Kai’s hands, it could produce amazing effects, because he was an Alchemist and could use the Flowing Time Fruit as the main ingredient to refine a furnace of Flowing Time Pills.

This was an all but extinct Spirit Pill which could be sold for an immense amount of wealth!

Yang Kai gulped hard, trying to hold back his drool, as his eyes began focusing on the ruckus at the centre of the hall.

There, one person and one creature were fighting.

They were also the source of the sounds of battle Yang Kai had heard before.

Impressively, the one who was fighting was Kong Qi of Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce! As for his opponent, it was a blood-red monster that seemed like a giant mass of putrid blood.

This blood monster had a humanoid upper body, a round head, two arms and a flowing amorphous lower body. As it rushed around the hall, whippings its strange appendages about, it released a thick bloody stench into the air.

The light of Source Qi bloomed from Kong Qi’s body as he wore a solemn expression. Kong Qi was mostly dodging while using sharp attacks to hit the blood monster from time to time, seemingly probing it for weaknesses.

Kong Qi seemed to be a cautious person that, after encountering a strong enemy, would not make any aggressive moves unless he was certain they would be effective.

Before Yang Kai arrived, Kong Qi had been dealing with this blood monster in a similar way for quite some time. At this moment, he had basically figured out the opponent’s routines and methods and was now looking for an opportunity to deliver a fatal blow.

“How could I have picked the exact same path as this guy?” Yang Kai hid in the dark and frowned as he mumbled to himself. Just now, there were a dozen or so paths he could have chosen from, but unexpectedly he had picked one someone else had already gone through.

But it was also fortunate that Kong Qi had advanced ahead of him, otherwise, Yang Kai would be the one dealing with the blood monster at this moment.

After scanning the battlefield. Yang Kai turned his gaze to the two Flowing Time Fruits on the long table again and a wicked thought came to his mind, one he could not dismiss after having it, [While that guy has attracted the attention of the blood monster, secretly taking the Flowing Time Fruit away… wouldn’t be too much, right?]

Before now, Yang Kai had no dealings with Kong Qi, so there was no gratitude or grudge between them. As such, when this idea came up, Yang Kai had no qualms about implementing it.

Thinking so, he immediately used his Nihility Secret Technique to conceal his aura completely and began to sneak forward cautiously.

After Nihility was used, Yang Kai merged with the Void and completely isolated his own aura, to the point where others could not spy on his existence with their Divine Sense unless it was powerful enough to probe the Void.

The only weakness of this Secret Technique was that it only blurred his figure, so others could still see him with their eyes!

The hall wasn’t too big, and if Yang Kai moved too hastily, he would reveal his whereabouts; however, Yang Kai had always been a cautious individual, so he only moved swiftly through Kong Qi and the blood monster’s blind spots.

Because there was no need to worry about being detected by their Divine Senses, Yang Kai’s was able to act unscrupulously as long as he wasn’t spotted.

In the blink of an eye, Yang Kai rushed up to the long table and grabbed towards the two Flowing Time Fruits, wanting to stuff them into his Space Ring.

Unexpectedly though, at that moment, a barrier of light appeared around the table when Yang Kai’s hand approached it, blocking him from seizing the fruits.

“Damn it!” Yang Kai cursed as he knew that this movement would expose him.

And sure enough, when the light curtain flickered, Kong Qi and the blood monster, who were busy fighting one another, both noticed and turned their gazes towards him.

Kong Qi stared at Yang Kai with a stunned expression, his eyes bulging as he never expected someone would try to snatch his prize while he was busy dealing with this blood monster!

He couldn’t help but tease, “Friend, your cultivation may not be high, but your courage definitely is!”

“You’re too kind!” Yang Kai answered flippantly as he pushed his Source Qi and punched the light curtain protecting the table.

Now that he had been found out, he could just steal the fruits openly.

This barrier was quite extraordinary, seeing how it was still functional after countless years, but after taking a punch from Yang Kai, it finally broke.

Yang Kai’s hands moved quickly as he snatched up the Flowing Time Fruits and threw them directly into his Space Ring.

“You…” Kong Qi became angered, as anyone would in such a situation.

After he arrived at this hall, he had found the two Flowing Time Fruits, but before he could obtain them, the strange pool of blood in the hall surged up and condensed into a giant blood monster, forcing him into a battle. Faced with such an enemy, Kong Qi could only focus on defeating it as quickly as possible and then gather his spoils after.

Never had he expected that Yang Kai would suddenly appear and snatch what was rightfully his right before his eyes.

*Huo…*

After the Flowing Time Fruit was taken away by Yang Kai, the blood monster, which already seemed like a mass of hostility, roared furiously and rushed over to him, throwing out a huge, bloody fist.

“This blow…” Kong Qi narrowed his eyes as he showed a little amazement.

He had been dealing with this blood monster for quite some time now and had thought he had figured out its strength, but now it was apparent it had not been using its full strength. From the attack the blood monster threw at Yang Kai, Kong Qi realized that it was definitely not as easy to deal with as he had originally thought.

Turning his eyes back to Yang Kai, Kong Qi sneered and muttered to himself, “A First-Order Dao Source Realm… will he be killed instantly?”

According to Kong Qi’s estimates, even if he wanted to defend against this blow, it would not be easy, so wouldn’t a trivial First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator like Yang Kai be pounded into blood mist in the blink of an eye?

Chapter 2160

*Hong…*

A violent bang erupted along with a shockwave of energy from the spot where Yang Kai once stood.

“Courting death…” Kong Qi looked ahead and coldly snorted while at the same time he carefully searched the chaotic area for the Space Ring Yang Kai should have left behind after his death.

But he was unable to find anything.

“Could even his Space Ring have been destroyed?” Kong Qi’s face went slightly pale, not because of the amazing strength the blood monster displayed, but because Yang Kai’s Space Ring and all its contents had been lost. Regardless of whether Yang Kai originally had anything good in his Space Ring, just the two unusual spirit fruits from this room were absolutely extraordinary.

If Yang Kai’s Space Ring had really exploded due to the blood monster’s attack, its contents would have been exiled to the Void and lost forever.

As Kong Qi became somewhat absent-minded from this shock, the blood monster roared wildly again as a bright red light burst from its body, illuminating the surrounding room.

“What now?” Kong Qi frowned as he hurriedly leapt up in the air to avoid the red light.

At the same time, a blood-red light spread across the entire hall, forming a barrier around it that sealed all entrances and exits!

The next moment, at one of the exits, the red light curtain caved in slightly as a figure mysteriously appeared, looking like it had bounced off the barrier.

“It can even do something like this?” Yang Kai was shocked as he raised his fist and punched towards the light curtain.

Unexpectedly though, despite this light curtain looking quite thin, it was extremely tough, so Yang Kai’s fist was only able to leave a dent in it that was rapidly restored.

“You…” Kong Qi who was floating in the air suddenly gasped, as if he was seeing a ghost, pointing at Yang Kai in surprise and muttering, “Didn’t you die?”

A First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator had actually emerged unscathed after taking a blow like that from this strange blood monster, and had even taken advantage of the chaos to flee towards the exit. If it weren’t for the blood monster’s alertness and its strange method of sealing up the exit, this odd boy might have escaped…

At that time, the furious blood monster would naturally vent its anger on Kong Qi. In other words, Yang Kai would have gotten away with all the benefits, leaving Kong Qi to clean up the mess…

“Insidious little brat, you’re too vicious! Are you even human!?” After Kong Qi understood what had happened, he cursed angrily, wishing he could rush down and join forces with the blood monster to beat Yang Kai to a pulp.

“Haha, nice to meet you, Brother Kong. How are you today?” Yang Kai greeted Kong Qi slightly awkwardly. He was indeed planning to escape after faking his death, leaving Kong Qi alone to deal with the blood monster, but unfortunately, his plan had been foiled when the exit was blocked.

“Nice to meet you my ass!” Kong Qi snorted, “However, after you die, I think I’ll be better!”

He and Yang Kai had never met before, but Kong Qi’s first impression of Yang Kai could not possibly have been worse. Kong Qi felt that Yang Kai was a treacherous and vile snake that should be avoided at all costs, so naturally, he did not give him any face.

Yang Kai didn’t mind though and simply smiled, “Brother Kong need not be so upset; after all, as the saying goes, we rely on our parents at home, and our friends when we go out…”

“Who is your friend?” Kong Qi interrupted him without waiting for him to finish.

“Good…” Yang Kai’s expression turned solemn as his figure flickered to avoid the blood monster’s killer blow. Since he secretly took the two Flowing Time Fruits, the blood monster seemed to only care about him now, treating him as if he had killed his father while completely ignoring Kong Qi.

The blood monster was powerful, but Yang Kai was proficient in the Dao of Space, so it wasn’t difficult for Yang Kai to avoid this opponent, but what kept Yang Kai alert was the strange Blood Qi which was emanating from this monster’s body. This Blood Qi seemed to be highly corrosive and was constantly wearing down his Source Qi, trying to invade his body and cause trouble.

While avoiding the attacks of the blood monster, Yang Kai shouted, “Brother Kong, are you not going to come up and help me kill this blood monster?”

Kong Qi crossed his arms and stared down at him leisurely, sneering as he said, “Why should I help you? What does your life or death have to do with me?”

“Brother Kong is slightly mistaken there!” Yang Kai shook his head, his words coming out slightly intermittently as he continued to rapidly dodge the blood monster’s assault, “You understand that this hall has now been sealed up by this creature. Only if this thing dies will we be able to escape. Is Brother Kong willing to be trapped here permanently?”

Kong Qi smiled and said, “I can just wait to kill it after it kills you!”

Yang Kai snickered in response, “I’ll be frank then. Brother Kong, although your strength isn’t bad, if you want to kill this guy single-handedly, won’t it be a bit difficult?”

Kong Qi’s face twitched slightly as, although he didn’t want to admit it, what Yang Kai said was correct.

Before Yang Kai came here, Kong Qi was still confident he could easily take down this blood monster, but judging from the combat power it was showing at the moment, it was obvious this creature had been hiding its strength before.

Even if Kong Qi used his trump cards, he would have to pay a steep price if he wanted to kill this blood monster on his own.

What’s more, there was no way to tell what other dangers lurked inside this place, so Kong Qi was unwilling to use too much power unless he was forced to.

Realizing this, Kong Qi’s brow furrowed as he stared at Yang Kai and said deeply, “Your Excellency seems to be quite extraordinary!”

It was only now that he suddenly discovered that Yang Kai was still freely chatting with him while dealing with this blood monster! This was definitely not something a First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator could do. Combined with his previous strange methods, Kong Qi can’t help wondering which Sect this guy had come from to have such unusual strength.

“Brother Kong is too polite! This Yang is just a little confident in his Movement Skill,” when Yang Kai spoke, he stopped in mid-air and waited for the attack of the blood monster to arrive in front of his eyes before disappearing suddenly, as if he was showing off deliberately.

“Just your Movement Skill…” Kong Qi murmured to himself as he kept his thoughts on the matter hidden, instead shouting, “It’s not impossible for me to make a move now, but since you took away…”

“You can have one!” Yang Kai seemed to know what he was going to say and immediately replied.

Just after he finished speaking, something flew out from Yang Kai’s hand, causing Kong Qi to frown, reach out, and catch this object, soon discovering that it was one of the spirit fruits which had been placed on the long table before!

[Just like that?]

Yang Kai’s move made Kong Qi quite confused.

“Since Brother Kong and I will be joining forces to kill this enemy, dividing the spoils in half is only fair. You don’t have any problems now, right? You wouldn’t want to monopolize…” Yang Kai’s voice came out again.

Kong Qi carefully checked the spirit fruit in his hand to make sure it was not some kind of fake before solemnly storing it into his Space Ring and saying indifferently, “Although you are a little unpleasant, since you’ve shown enough sincerity, this Kong will cooperate with you!”

Yang Kai grinned, “Brother Kong understands well!”

“Hmph, keep it occupied. It will take a while for this Kong to perform this move.” Saying so, Kong Qi’s Source Qi flared while at the same time he flipped his wrist and a golden coin appeared on the palm of his hand. With a loud shout, Kong Qi then began to madly pour his Source Qi into this coin.

Seeing this, Yang Kai didn’t know what kind of Secret Technique Kong Qi was going to use, only that it apparently needed to be channeled through this strange golden coin artifact. However, judging from Kong Qi’s movements, this move was sure to be extraordinary, so Yang Kai dedicated himself to keeping the blood monster occupied.

Kong Qi acting this way was also because of a strong sense of self-confidence. Although he thought Yang Kai was unusual for a First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator, he didn’t believe Yang Kai was stronger than him. Yang Kai being able to deal with the blood monster for so long was probably because of his outstanding Movement Skill and speed, but if Kong Qi wanted to cause fatal damage to the blood monster, he needed to rely on himself.

As such, he assumed the role of attacker.

Yang Kai did not disappoint him as expected, leading the blood monster around the hall with ease. On the contrary, as the power fluctuations from Kong Qi grew more intense, it was the blood monster that seemed to feel faintly uneasy and become more irritable.

At a certain moment, the blood monster finally gave up chasing Yang Kai and instead turned its odd head towards Kong Qi while revealing a pair of scarlet eyes. Roaring madly, its huge body turned into a blood-red mass of light that shot towards Kong Qi.

Kong Qi narrowed his eyes and almost gave up preparing his Secret Technique to dodge.

At the critical moment though, Yang Kai’s figure flashed in front of him and waving his hands, summoned dozens of Golden Blood Threads. The room filled with golden light as the countless Golden Blood Threads wove together to form a giant golden shield.

*Hong…*

The blood-red light smashed onto the golden blood shield and its massive body was immediately revealed as it was forced backwards several metres. At the same time, the golden shield unravelled and transformed back into Golden Blood Threads.

Yang Kai stretched out his hand to take back his Golden Blood Threads while shouting in a deep voice, “Brother Kong, if you’re ready, do it quickly, I can’t block a second hit!”

“You’re in luck because I’m prepared!” Kong Qi smiled before his face grew solemn and he turned his hand, tossing out the golden coin in front of him while uttering, “Falling Golden Coins!”

*Xiu xiu xiu…*

The single golden coin floating in front of Kong Qi suddenly split into two, then four, then eight…

In the blink of an eye, golden coins filled the air.

Every coin danced lightly through the air as they spun rapidly as some grew larger while others shrank down.

Under the guidance of Kong Qi’s Divine Sense, these countless coins then flew out towards the blood monster.

The blood monster seemed to sense a threat from this attack and hurriedly retreated, but no matter how fast it was, how could it escape from this strange artifact?

In the blink of an eye, the blood monster was overtaken by the first golden coin which on impact began exuding a strange suppressive force, restraining its movements.

Immediately afterwards, the second and third coins fell, inserted themselves into the body of the blood monster, and slowed its movement even further.

As more and more coins fell, the blood monster was quickly suppressed and it was not long before its entire body was covered by innumerable golden coins.

Chapter 2161

Soon, the blood monster was buried under a pile of countless golden coins.

Seeing this scene, Yang Kai vaguely foresaw what Kong Qi’s next move would be and quickly opened up some distance.

As he thought, just as he pulled back, Kong Qi suddenly shouted, “Death!”

As soon as this word fell, a buzzing sound rang out.

The countless golden coins all suddenly transformed into extremely sharp blades and swiftly cut through the body of the blood monster…

A moment later, the golden light dissipated, and the countless golden coins merged back into one again that was taken back by Kong Qi.

As for the blood monster, it had been sliced into innumerable razor-thin pieces, most of its body now just a puddle of liquid that flowed freely across the ground.

The hall quickly filled with a disgusting smell.

“Hmph, nothing much!” Kong Qi landed with dashing style as he coldly snorted, and if it weren’t for his pale face, his bravado would have been quite convincing.

The move just now obviously consumed a lot of his strength.

Yang Kai smiled slightly and was about to open his mouth to say something when suddenly, his brow furrowed and he began looking around intently.

“What now?” Kong Qi frowned when he saw Yang Kai’s actions.

“Brother Kong… haven’t you noticed that the barrier around this room still hasn’t been eliminated?” Yang Kai glanced towards the hall’s exit and asked.

After he mentioned this, Kong Qi also began looking around and soon muttered aloud, “You’re right… but why?”

“There are two possibilities!” Yang Kai’s complexion darkened as his expression became solemn, “The first possibility is that this barrier is somehow related to the room itself and has nothing to do with that blood monster, so even if it died, the barrier wouldn’t necessarily disperse.”

“And the other possibility…” Kong Qi was no idiot and clearly understood what Yang Kai wanted to say, his glancing down as he shouted, “It’s not dead!”

As soon as his words fell, the pool of blood-red pus on the ground began squirming towards the pool in the middle of the room, like a living creature.

“It survived that!?” Kong Qi was shocked.

The blood monster had been hit by his strongest Secret Technique and been cut into innumerable pieces.

“The blood pool is the key!” Yang Kai seemed to realize something and shouted.

As he spoke, the blood monster’s remnants continued to pour into the blood pool and soon began to boil up, as if it was re-constituting itself and about to be reborn.

“So troublesome!” Kong Qi couldn’t help taking a few steps back with a look of fear and anxiety, quickly suggesting, “We’d be better off joining forces and break through this barrier and escape!”

Kong Qi really didn’t want to fight against this peculiar and seemingly indestructible anomaly any further.

Yang Kai, however, just stood in place, turning a deaf ear to Kong Qi’s suggestion.

“Did you hear what I said?” Kong Qi frowned and shouted.

“En…” Yang Kai finally nodded with a grin, “There’s no need for that though. I suddenly have a good idea!”

“What?” Kong Qi asked in amazement.

But Yang Kai didn’t answer and instead flew over the blood pool before assuming a strange stance, stretching out his hands as he shouted, “Ocean Draining Divine Art!”

“What the hell?” Kong Qi’s mouth twitched, really wondering what Yang Kai was up to, because according to his knowledge and experience, there was no such thing as the Ocean Draining Divine Art, which either meant it was some kind of Secret Art Yang Kai made up by himself, or some obscure garbage Secret Art.

The next moment though, Kong Qi’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

The squirming blood in the pool was actually being sucked up into Yang Kai’s hands, continuously flowing into his palm and disappearing without a trace!

The blood in the pool roiled even more fiercely as faint roars of struggle rang out; however, because the blood monster’s body had yet to fully re-form, it was simply powerless to resist and could only be sucked into Yang Kai’s palm.

Yang Kai’s palm was like a bottomless pit at this moment, accepting the blood pool filled with a rich malevolent aura.

Kong Qi was dumbfounded and couldn’t help feeling like a storm was raging inside his heart. Rubbing his eyes constantly, he kept wondering to himself if everything he was seeing was an illusion…

But no matter how he looked at it, the scene before him was entirely real.

At the same time, Yang Kai maintained his strange pose while keeping his Sealed World Bead in a blind spot of Kong Qi’s field of vision. Using his Divine Sense, Yang Kai asked his Embodiment once again, “Are you sure you can refine this thing?”

The Embodiment quickly replied, “There is a huge amount of energy contained in the bloody water, which is of great use to me. There is nothing the Heaven Devouring Battle Law cannot devour, so how could this trivial pool of blood be an exception? I’ve even refined two Dao Source Realm cultivators before!”

“Well, since you’ve said so…” Yang Kai didn’t ask any more questions. If it wasn’t for the Embodiment suddenly sending him a message just now, he would not have used the Sealed World Bead to suck this pool of blood into the Small Sealed World. Pausing for a moment, he warned, “Still, you should be careful to make sure this thing’s wicked aura doesn’t contaminate your Soul!”

“I know.”

Inside the hall, Kong Qi’s expression changed from surprise to shock, then shock to astonishment…

And as time passed, the pool of blood, accompanied by many howls and wails, was drained dry.

The moment the last remnants of the bloody water were drained, the barrier around the room broke.

Finished with the absorption, Yang Kai formed a series of seals with his hands, as if he was completing some kind of profound Secret Art.

Next, he turned around and patted his stomach before letting out a loud burp, as if he had just eaten his fill.

Kong Qi’s face turned green…

“Brother Kong, it’s been good cooperating with you! As expected of an elite from the Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce, that Falling Golden Coins technique you used really opened my eyes. As expected, Brother Kong is worthy of his illustrious reputation, I…” At this point, Yang Kai paused, tilted his head, and looked at Kong Qi curiously, “Why are you making such an expression?”

Kong Qi’s face was twisted and his mouth was twitching slightly, “I just want to ask, is there anything abnormal with your body…?”

“Nope!” Yang Kai replied, walking forward while talking.

Kong Qi stepped back a few steps and raised his hand, “Don’t come over, just stand there and speak.”

If Kong Qi’s attitude towards Yang Kai had previously been disgust and vigilance, it was now pure disgust… He looked at Yang Kai like he was some kind of maggot crawling out of a dung pit, not daring to stare straight at him.

“Brother Kong seems to enjoy clear, clean relationships,” Yang Kai grinned and said with deep meaning.

“This has nothing to do with whether I like being clean or not!” Kong Qi tried to endure the discomfort in his stomach as he replied sharply, closing his mouth firmly after he spoke.

“En, by the way, there is one more thing I should tell Brother Kong. About that spirit fruit, after you go back, you should consult with a senior expert to carefully identify it and its effects. Don’t consume it lightly,” Yang Kai warned.

After all, although the two Flowing Time Fruits looked identical, their effects were completely opposite, and the one that Yang Kai gave to Kong Qi… had a slight issue with it.

If Kong Qi were to suffer from this, Yang Kai would feel a bit responsible.

“You don’t need to remind me of such things,” Kong Qi frowned, secretly feeling that Yang Kai was being intrusive.

“That’s good.” Yang Kai grinned and said, “Now that the matter here has concluded, why don’t you and I…”

Before he could finish speaking though, Kong Qi cupped his fists and said, “Farewell!”

Turning around, Kong Qi flew out of the room.

He didn’t even bother to offer some polite parting words, as if he hoped to never meet Yang Kai again.

“Why so hasty…” Yang Kai looked at the direction where Kong Qi disappeared and muttered to himself, standing there for a moment to ponder before ultimately deciding to follow after Kong Qi.

Although he had accidentally chosen the same path as Kong Qi, it was too late to turn back now. The other cultivators had probably all escaped from the Illusion Array and flooded into the different forks.

Even if Yang Kai backtracked and chose a different path, it was still likely he would have to follow in someone else’s footsteps. Doing so would be a waste of time.

Following along the corridor dotted with light stones, Yang Kai saw a few barriers and restrictions, but all of them had been broken by Kong Qi who had gone on ahead.

As such, Yang Kai was able to proceed quite leisurely.

After walking for about half an hour, Yang Kai suddenly looked up and grinned at a figure standing in front of him, “Brother Kong, were you waiting for me here? Did you encounter some kind of trouble?”

“No.” Seeing him approaching, Kong Qi felt a sense of panic inexplicably and hurriedly stepped back a few steps before asking, “There’s a fork here, which one do you want to go down?”

Yang Kai heard this and looked forward to discover another fork in the corridor; this time, however, there were only two different paths.

As his eyes turned, Yang Kai immediately understood why Kong Qi was waiting here.

This guy obviously didn’t want to go down the same path as him, so he had paused here to confirm that they went their separate ways.

“Which one does Brother Kong want to take?” Yang Kai asked with a smile.

Kong Qi’s brow twitched as he said, “Whichever one you don’t take!”

“Is that so… I still think it would be best if Brother Kong and I…”

“Don’t mention that again!” Kong Qi hurriedly cut in, his face turning serious as he snapped, “Hurry up and choose!”

“Then I’ll go this way,” Yang Kai casually pointed his finger at the fork to the right.

As soon as these words came out, Kong Qi’s figure shot off into the left fork and soon disappeared.

“That guy is quite interesting!” Yang Kai stared in the direction Kong Qi disappeared, grinning wryly before he turned and stepped into the right fork.

In fact, even if Kong Qi didn’t intentionally wait for him here, Yang Kai would have chosen a different direction. Although it was convenient to have someone clear the way for him, if there were no benefits left behind to collect, there was no point.

Travelling forward, things were fairly uneventful. Although there were a few small restrictions here and there, Yang Kai successfully cracked them and moved on.

At a certain moment though, a ray of light suddenly appeared in front of Yang Kai, surprising him. Looking up ahead, he found that there was a doorway at the end of the corridor, one that was emitting a bright light.

Chapter 2162

With a light finally appearing, Yang Kai couldn’t help speeding up.

After a while, he passed through the door.

What appeared before him was a white jade staircase, one that seemed pure and flawless, and went on forever, without a top in sight. Not even Yang Kai’s Divine Sense could see through this staircase.

At the base of the stairs, to Yang Kai’s right, there was a stone stele on which a line of large characters was engraved.

Yang Kai looked down and muttered, “Flowing Time Steps?”

Frowning slightly, Yang Kai wondered what kind of mysteries this white jade staircase concealed and didn’t dare to move forward rashly.

Fortunately, there were no others present, so after thinking about it for a moment, he directly called Hua Qing Si out.

Hua Qing Si was a disciple of Star Soul Palace, and had been preparing for the Four Seasons Realm opening for a long time, so there was no doubt she knew more about this Flowing Time Temple than him.

With a flash of light, Hua Qing Si’s figure appeared.

She looked around blankly at first, not sure where she was.

“This is the Flowing Time Temple!” Yang Kai explained.

“Huh?” Hua Qing Si responded in amazement before immediately exclaiming, “You actually found the Flowing Time Temple?!”

“En, it was more of a coincidence than anything. I’m not even certain why it appeared,” Yang Kai said. “In any case, take a look at this first…”

Saying so, Yang Kai pointed his finger to the white jade staircase in front and the stone tablet beside it.

Hua Qing Si glanced over at the stone stele and her tender body couldn’t help shaking, “The Flowing Time Steps?”

“You really know something…” Yang Kai observed her words and expressions and immediately understood that she knew about these Flowing Time Steps, immediately asking, “Quickly tell me, what is this thing?”

Hua Qing Si took a deep breath to calm the excitement in her heart before quickly explaining, “The Flowing Time Steps are said to contain Flowing Time Great Emperor’s comprehension of Flowing Time Force. Those who successfully mount these stairs can experience the Flowing Time Force for themselves, which is of great benefit to a cultivator!”

Her eyes gleamed as an eagerness filled her expression.

“What if one fails?” Yang Kai frowned.

Hua Qing Si was startled for a moment, but after thinking about it, she muttered, “I don’t know… but the consequences will probably be horrendous.”

Yang Kai nodded lightly. It seemed that Hua Qing Si didn’t know much about the Flowing Time Steps, but she at least knew more than him.

Seeing Yang Kai hesitating, Hua Qing Si pursed her red lips and said, “Whether you want to go up or not, I want to try!”

Yang Kai glanced at her and smiled, “Since this opportunity has appeared before us, naturally I can’t miss it. Hmm… I should call Ruo Xi out too.”

Saying so, he stretched out his hand again and summoned Zhang Ruo Xi.

Explaining the magical effects of the Flowing Time Steps to Zhang Ruo Xi, Yang Kai looked at her seriously and reminded, “You can decide whether to go up or not. Although I don’t know the consequences of failure, it will no doubt be serious; however, you can rest assured that if anything happens, I’ll take you back into the Sealed World Bead.”

“I want to go up!” To Yang Kai’s surprise, after listening to his explanation, Zhang Ruo Xi did not even hesitate and instead seemed quite enthusiastic.

Hua Qing Si smiled and commented, “This little girl isn’t very old, but she’s quite motivated…”

“If that’s the case, we’ll go together,” Yang Kai nodded and sternly said, “Don’t get too far away from me, or I may not have time to take you back into the Small Sealed World if something happens.”

Zhang Ruo Xi nodded nervously, her face flushing slightly because of the excitement. Hua Qing Si smiled when she saw this and said, “Then you should follow Elder Sister closely…”

Yang Kai glanced at her, laughed lightly, and stepped up onto the white jade staircase.

When Hua Qing Si and Zhang Ruo Xi saw this, they both wore solemn expressions as they too stepped up side by side.

Suddenly, a stream of white energy emerged from the white jade stairs, transforming into a cloud of mist that shrouded the feet of the trio, making them feel as if they were walking on clouds.

At the same time, Yang Kai’s body shook. He felt a peculiar power pouring into his body, and like a catalyst, it began washing through his Source Qi and Spiritual Energy, causing both to become purer and more vigorous.

This force was difficult to describe, making Yang Kai feel like many years were passing by and his strength was naturally increasing on its own.

Obviously, all of this happened in just an instant, but to the trio, it felt like a long time had passed.

A strange and indescribably feeling lingered in each of their minds.

Yang Kai glanced around and found that both Zhang Ruo Xi and Hua Qing Si looked safe and sound, and once he was certain they were alright, he took another step forward.

This time, a more intense feeling struck, causing Yang Kai’s spirit to shake. Opening himself up, he allowed the effects of the Flowing Time Force to purify his Source Qi and Divine Sense once again.

At the very beginning, Yang Kai was still able to leisurely observe the situation of Hua Qing Si and Zhang Ruo Xi, lest the two of them could not bear the Flowing Time Force and experienced an accident, but as he continued to climb higher, Yang Kai gradually became immersed in his own experience of seemingly slow but also rapid enhancement of his strength. Soon, it became difficult for him to extricate himself from this feeling.

“Is this Flowing Time Force?” Yang Kai raised his brow slightly as a look of admiration appeared on his face, “Such a mysterious power! Only a short time has passed, but this force can actually make one feel as if a lot of time has gone by… This kind of peculiar power is even more esoteric than the Dao of Space.”

Just as his mind was swirling with such thoughts, Yang Kai suddenly felt an unusual wave of power coming from in front of him.

Yang Kai suddenly awoke from his entranced state and glanced forward to see Zhang Ruo Xi actually walking upwards at a position seven or eight steps ahead of him, her clothes covered in sweat, showing a beautiful outline of her figure.

And as she stepped forward, a halo of energy would burst from her petite body and spread out to the surroundings.

“Is this some kind of joke?” Yang Kai eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

He didn’t know when Zhang Ruo Xi surpassed him, and by so many steps at that, but that wasn’t the problem. The problem was that Zhang Ruo Xi had made a breakthrough just now to the Second-Order Origin Returning Realm!

If he hadn’t seen this with his own eyes, Yang Kai wouldn’t have believed it was true.

After all, Zhang Ruo Xi had just broken through to the Origin Returning Realm a few days ago. Breaking through again in such short order, even if it was just to the next Minor Realm, was incredibly strange.

Although Yang Kai himself had gained a lot from these Flowing Time Steps, clearly it was incomparable to the benefits Zhang Ruo Xi had obtained.

[There’s really something strange about this little girl!] Yang Kai recalled the day when she broke through to the Origin Returning Realm and the giant female phantom had emerged from behind her, leaving him at a complete loss to explain. Yang Kai really wondered what kind of incredible Bloodline she had inherited that allowed Zhang Rou Xi to break through so smoothly and rapidly.

Yang Kai opened his mouth and wanted to call out to Zhang Ruo Xi, lest she get too far ahead of him, but he immediately found that he was unable to speak a single word. Even his Divine Sense couldn’t leave his body, as if it was firmly suppressed within himself.

Glancing back again, Yang Kai saw Hua Qing Si was sweating profusely at a position six steps behind him, her expression filled with obvious struggle.

The difficulty of climbing these Flowing Time Steps did not seem to be related to one’s cultivation at all. If this was a test of one’s cultivation, Hua Qing Si should have been at the forefront rather than Zhang Ruo Xi who had a far lower realm.

Yang Kai pondered for a while and decided to wait for Hua Qing Si to catch up. In his opinion, Hua Qing Si would probably be unable to last much longer, so he had to be ready to take her back into the Sealed World Bead at the right time!

As for Zhang Ruo Xi, Yang Kai could only chase after her afterwards.

The situation turned out just as Yang Kai expected.

Soon after, Hua Qing Si became unable to bear the washout from the Flowing Time Steps. The benefits that could be gained from ascending these steps slowly transformed into a kind of torment, and the erosion of the Flowing Time Force caused her vitality to begin to drain. Flustered, Hua Qing Si quickly raised her head towards Yang Kai and tried to call out for help.

At the critical moment though, she found herself unable to utter a word and she began to grow anxious.

Fortunately, Yang Kai had been paying attention to her movements, and when he discovered this, he quickly reached out and took her back into the Small Sealed World.

Once he finished this, Yang Kai looked up again, only to see a vague outline of Zhang Ruo Xi’s back. In this brief period, this little girl had thrown off Yang Kai by at least several dozen steps and seemed to be completely immersed in the various benefits she was obtaining, unable to extricate herself as she continued climbing without pause.

Seeing this scene, Yang Kai did not dare to neglect and spared no effort to continue climbing, trying to narrow the gap between him and Zhang Ruo Xi.

…..

Somewhere inside the Flowing Time Temple, in a dark and seemingly boundless hall, a vague, low breathing, and strong heartbeat could be heard. There was an inexplicable coercion permeating this hall, and if any ordinary creature were to enter this place, they would likely immediately collapse to the ground from the intense pressure. Even an Emperor Realm Master would tremble when faced with this aura.

At a certain moment, two long and narrow red lights suddenly lit up in the darkness and accompanied by a heavy exhalation, these long and narrow lights suddenly widened into two giant eyes.

This was a pair of ferocious eyes that belonged to a beast and their red and golden hues contained a wild, murderous intent, filled with infinite violence.

“Oh? Some little ones finally found the Flowing Time Temple?” A muffled voice resounded in the dark hall as a dazzling fire erupted in the darkness.

The fire came from a peculiar beast. Even lying down, this beast appeared as tall as a three-story building and resembled a cross between a tiger and an ox. With red flames bursting from its body, two giant wings on its back and its red-scaled armour were majestically illuminated.

“It seems this Sir’s duty is finally about to be completed… after so many years… this Sir is finally going to be free!” The sound of this voice shook the entire hall and as the beast awoke from its slumber, its pupils began to sweep around, as if they could see across space.

While glancing around, the beast muttered, “Let’s see what kind of talent these little ones have.”

With its strength, none of the dozens of cultivators inside the Flowing Time Temple could escape its observation, and while watching, this beast didn’t forget to comment, “En, this guy’s aptitude is not bad, but… haa, it’s not enough to enter this Sir’s eyes. Oh… this girl isn’t bad. Her physique is quite good and her cultivation isn’t too high, but she has an Emperor Artifact on her. She must be the descendant of some Great Emperor, right? En, although she barely complies with the conditions… those Great Emperors aren’t good to deal with!”

Chapter 2163

Inside the Flowing Time Temple, because the routes each person chose were different, the opportunities they encountered were also different.

However, at that moment, no matter where they were, everyone inexplicably felt a terrifying sensation, as if a pair of powerful eyes was spying on them from the darkness…

This caused everyone to feel a chill shoot up their spine.

Fortunately, this sensation came and went quickly, disappearing in the blink of an eye, making everyone feel as if it was just their own imaginations.

Inside the vast, dark hall, the strange beast was still observing its surroundings and commenting from time to time. Many of the elite cultivators had been cast aside by it as trash, but when it turned its gaze to the Flowing Time Steps, it showed a rare look of surprise, “What’s with this little one… one, two, three, four, five! A mere First-Order Dao Source Realm brat actually brought five Emperor Artifacts with him? What kind of background does he have?”

This strange beast had been alive for tens of thousands of years and had seen many great storms, but at this moment, it still couldn’t help feeling shocked by Yang Kai’s heritage, because it discovered that Yang Kai alone had brought five Emperor Artifacts with him!

Even an average Emperor Realm Master wouldn’t have so many Emperor Artifacts.

These five were the Annihilation Thunder Bead, Sealed World Bead, Insect Enslavement Bracelet, Soul Splitting Saber, and Myriads Sword! In this Flowing Time Temple, nothing could escape this strange beast’s perception.

“Is he also a descendent of a Great Emperor?” The strange beast secretly guessed. What other explanation could there be? Or had Emperor Artifacts suddenly become far more abundant?

Even someone as noble in status as Lan Xun only had one Emperor Artifact on her, and that was a defensive Emperor Artifact given to her by Bright Moon Great Emperor to prevent her from encountering any accidents.

“Forget it, although his aptitude and temperament are amongst the best, he smells like trouble, it would be best not to have any contact with him.” The strange beast babbled for a while before turning away from Yang Kai and focusing on Zhang Ruo Xi.

“Huh? This little girl… how could she only be a Second-Order Origin Returning Realm!?” A suspicious light flashed across this beast’s eyes as he muttered, “How could she get here with such a low cultivation? After this Sir fell asleep, it seems many strange things have happened…”

Suddenly though, the beast’s eyes went wide as he stared fixedly at Zhang Ruo Xi and exclaimed, “No, this little girl… she couldn’t be…”

At that moment, it seemed as if the beast had discovered something, its originally arrogant tone giving way to one filled with panic. Even its two giant eyes flashed with fright, as if it was terrified of Zhang Ruo Xi. 

From its massive head, beads of cold sweat began to leak…

Right then, Zhang Ruo Xi seemed to have reached her limit. The top of the Flowing Time Steps was not far ahead of her, but she was unable to lift her feet anymore. Stubbornly staring up, she tried to continue on, but the feeling of exhaustion was so great that she simply couldn’t move her legs.

The Flowing Time Force flooded out of the Flowing Time Steps suddenly and began invading Zhang Ruo Xi’s body, trying to swallow her vitality.

Behind her, Yang Kai, who had been chasing after Zhang Ruo Xi, was still more than a dozen steps away when he clearly saw her glossy black hair rapidly turn grey. Yang Kai was shocked and realized something was wrong. Pushing his Source Qi violently, he strove forward, desperate to shorten the distance between them.

But on these Flowing Time Steps, each step up was extremely difficult, and this short distance of a dozen or so steps was not a distance Yang Kai could cross with just willpower alone.

Immediately, Yang Kai became as anxious as an ant in a hot wok…

The strange beast in the dark hall, however, was even more anxious than Yang Kai. As the guardian of the Flowing Time Temple, the change in Zhang Ruo Xi’s status was naturally seen by it.

At first, it felt a burst of joy, thinking that Zhang Ruo Xi was bound to die, but after a moment of happiness, it realized how dire the situation truly was, because once Zhang Ruo Xi was driven to a dead-end, her slumbering Bloodline would surely manifest, and once it did, it would be a disaster for it.

Thinking so, the strange beast stood up, stretched out a giant paw and shattered the space in front of it. Crossing space, the massive paw reached out and grabbed Zhang Ruo Xi before immediately withdrawing.

As it did this, it muttered to itself, “Oh cruel fate… I hope this is the right choice!”

As soon as these words fell, it slowly opened its paws and placed the now blank-faced Zhang Ruo Xi in front of itself.

Zhang Ruo Xi obviously had no awareness of what just happened. A moment ago, she had felt like time was flashing before her eyes, as if several hundred years had gone by, causing her vitality to rapidly drain and death to approach.

She wanted to turn back and call out to Yang Kai, but she couldn’t even move her body.

And just when she thought that death was inescapable, a giant claw actually fell from the sky, pulled her back from the gates of death, and brought her to this dark hall.

Looking up, she saw a giant burning Monster Beast in front of her, staring at her with a pair of giant eyes.

When an ordinary person saw such a behemoth, they would instinctively feel frightened, possibly even screaming in terror as they turned to flee.

Zhang Ruo Xi didn’t think she was a particularly brave person. Her cultivation wasn’t high and her knowledge wasn’t very broad, so it wouldn’t have been a surprise even if she had fainted directly from terror.

But for some unknown reason, when her eyes met with those of this Monster Beast, she didn’t feel the slightest fear. On the contrary, she felt as if this beast was the one who should be afraid of her. This feeling was baseless and extremely absurd, but it seemed to come from the very depths of her soul. It felt as natural as breathing, which made it all the more unbelievable.

Pressing her red lips together, she continued to stare up at the huge Monster Beast, her tiny figure forming a sharp contrast with it.

When the four eyes met, it was the giant Monster Beast’s heart that clenched tightly as fear and panic consumed its thoughts.

“You… Why do you seem afraid of me?” Zhang Ruo Xi suddenly asked.

As soon as she spoke, the giant Monster Beast couldn’t help stepping back two steps and staring at her in fear, a muffled voice then leaking from his wryly upturned maw, “Hehe… Yes, why should I be afraid of you?”

Zhang Ruo Xi did not try to get to the bottom of this question and instead just beckoned to the beast.

Seeing this, the Monster Beast actually obeyed, walking over to Zhang Ruo Xi and lowering its head down, its violent eyes becoming extremely docile at this moment, some faint fear and panic still apparent in its gaze.

“Did you save me?” Zhang Ruo Xi asked.

The Monster Beast thought for a moment before nodding, “Yes!”

“Thank you!” Zhang Ruo Xi smiled sweetly and stretched out her hand, as if she wanted to pet the Monster Beast’s head, but she hesitated for a while before asking, “I won’t hurt you, will I?”

She didn’t know why she would ask such a question, but something in her instincts was telling her that if she touched the Monster Beast in front of her, it would very likely cause some harm.

“The current you… probably won’t!” The Monster Beast replied.

Zhang Ruo Xi put her hand onto its forehead and touched it lightly.

The scorching flames burned around Zhang Ruo Xi’s bare hands, but did not cause her any harm for some reason. As for the Monster Beast itself, it made a purring noise, like a cat would when it was pet by its owner.

[So embarrassing… how could this Sir allow a little girl to touch him like this, simply shameful!] The Monster Beast thought to itself uncomfortably, unable to stop his body from responding honestly.

“What’s your name?” Zhang Ruo Xi suddenly asked again.

“I am Qiong Qi!”

“What a strange name!” Zhang Ruo Xi smiled lightly, some confusion flashing across her beautiful eyes as she said, “I don’t know why, but although I’m sure this is the first time I’ve heard this name, it sounds familiar to me… do you know why?”

“I don’t!” Qiong Qi shook his head like a rattle, thinking to himself that it would be best if she never understood for the rest of her life. [How could this Sir take the initiative to explain? If he did, this Sir’s end would be that much closer!]

“En… okay!” Zhang Ruo Xi withdrew her hand as she nodded before sincerely saying, “Thank you for saving my life just now, but can you please send me back now? I suddenly disappeared, so Sir will be very worried.”

“Sir?” Qiong Qi heard this and asked suspiciously, “Do you mean the young man who was following you?”

“En, can you see him?” Zhang Ruo Xi nodded quickly.

Qiong Qi proudly said, “In this Temple, nothing can escape this S… My observation! I saw you in trouble just now, which was why I brought you here.”

After a pause, Qiong Qi shook his head again and said, “Unexpectedly, even someone as powerful as you must receive protection from others…”

Although he deliberately lowered the volume of his voice, his words were still heard by Zhang Ruo Xi clearly.

Zhang Ruo Xi hurriedly waved her hands and said in an apologetic tone, “What are you talking about! Sir is amazing, how could I possibly be as strong as Sir.”

She only thought Qiong Qi was talking nonsense to appease her.

“One day, you will be strong,” Qiong Qi declared solemnly.

“En, Ruo Xi will work hard,” Zhang Ruo Xi said, full of enthusiasm.

“Good, you and I meeting today can be considered a kind of fate, so I will give you a gift,” Qiong Qi suddenly thought of something and stretched out his paw again, grasping towards the void.

When he took back his hand, an exquisite thin pink dress that exuded a potent Emperor Aura appeared in his palm.

“Your strength is still quite low right now, so this Pink Clouds Phoenix Robe will be of great use to you. As long as you wear it, ordinary people won’t be able to harm you.” Qiong Qi was extremely powerful, so the ‘ordinary people’ he was referring to were likely cultivators below the Emperor Realm.

“How could I possibly accept such a gift?” Although Zhang Ruo Xi was quite taken with this beautiful dress, her humble upbringing and good education made it difficult for her to receive something so precious, so she quickly waved her hands and tried to refuse.

“Don’t have any qualms about wearing this, this is your opportunity. On a cultivators journey, opportunities are part of their strength!” Qiong Qi said aloud while in his heart he was thinking quite differently. [If this Sir wasn’t afraid some blind fool would try to hurt you and cause your Bloodline to awaken in advance, how could he do something so meddlesome? This Sir had best take some precautions and make some plans in advance. En. When this Sir gets out of here, he should go to Dragon Island to find those old lizards and blackmail them with this knowledge… In any case, this Sir isn’t alone in this problem, those old lizards won’t be able to just sit back and ignore this…]

Chapter 2164

At the Flowing Time Steps, Yang Kai anxiously tried to climb upwards.

Zhang Ruo Xi suddenly disappearing in front of him had left him at a loss, not knowing what kind of danger this little girl was facing or whether something tragic had befallen her.

Yang Kai was secretly blaming himself, feeling that if it wasn’t for his whim of wanting Zhang Ruo Xi to climb the Flowing Time Steps, she would not have encountered such peril.

Just as his anxiety was boiling over though, a flash of light occurred and a figure appeared.

Yang Kai was startled, looked up, and was stunned by what he saw.

Zhang Ruo Xi was now standing atop the Flowing Time Steps, looking down at him with a smile, her hair which should have turned white now returned to its original glossy black.

“An illusion?” Yang Kai was a little dazed. He clearly saw Zhang Ruo Xi disappear strangely just as the Flowing Time Force was eroding her body and causing her to age rapidly, but now she had re-appeared before him, safe and sound, like nothing had happened.

Everything seemed too surreal.

Yang Kai quickened his pace once more and after a stick of incense worth of time, he pantingly reached the top of the stairs.

As soon as he reached the top, the Flowing Time Force lingering around his body disappeared. Looking back, the Flowing Time Steps had now become completely ordinary, seemingly lacking any semblance of mystical power.

“What happened just now?” Yang Kai took a breath and asked quickly.

“Ruo Xi was reckless,” Zhang Ruo Xi replied in a low voice that was filled with guilt, “Ruo Xi was immersed in the joy of gaining strength just now and completely forgot Sir’s instructions… By the time Ruo Xi reacted, it was too late.”

“Then how did you…”

“It was a powerful Monster Beast who saved me…” Zhang Ruo Xi replied timidly, carefully choosing her words, worried Yang Kai would become angry with her.

“A powerful Monster Beast?” Yang Kai was stunned, “Is there a Monster Beast in this Flowing Time Temple? What kind of Monster Beast?”

At this moment, Yang Kai was thoroughly shocked. The Flowing Time Temple had not appeared for tens of thousands of years. Even this time, its appearance was something of a strange coincidence. Yang Kai was certain nothing was alive inside this place, but now, according to Zhang Ruo Xi, there was actually a powerful Monster Beast here, one strong enough to instantly rescue her from the Flowing Time Steps. Such a powerful entity was enough to arouse Yang Kai’s wariness.

“I can’t say for certain…” Zhang Ruo Xi thought about it for a while, but didn’t know how to describe what she experienced, soon just smiling and saying, “However… he said he was called Qiong Qi!”

“What?” Yang Kai’s eyes bulged as cold sweat gathered on his forehead, gulping hard as he parroted, “Qiong… Qi?”

“En, that’s what he called himself,” Zhang Ruo Xi nodded and replied. After she finished speaking, she tilted her head and asked, “Sir, what’s wrong? Why is your complexion so pale… Are you uncomfortable somewhere? You’re sweating a lot… “

As she spoke, she took out a silk handkerchief, stood on her tip-toes, and gently wiped Yang Kai’s forehead.

“Ahaha…” The corners of Yang Kai’s mouth twitched as he really didn’t know what to say.

“Sir, are you okay?” Zhang Ruo Xi asked softly.

“Okay?… en, I’m okay,” Yang Kai replied subconsciously before turning to stare at Zhang Ruo Xi and ask, “Are you sure he said he was called Qiong Qi?”

“En, that’s what he said.”

“Did he do anything bad to you?”

Zhang Ruo Xi shook her head blankly, “No!”

After saying so though, she smiled joyfully and added, “He did give me something though.”

“What?”

Zhang Ruo Xi smiled and began condensing her Saint Qi, soon causing a burst of light that could dazzle one’s eyes to radiate from her body.

Yang Kai squinted his eyes to get a better look, only to have his heart shake violently the next moment!

On Zhang Ruo Xi, he now saw a tight-fitting pink garment, one that was both lithe and beautiful. Its appearance was only secondary though as what truly mattered was the rich Emperor Aura that pulsed from it…

[An Emperor Artifact!]

[It’s actually a defensive Emperor Artifact!]

[What’s going on here?] Zhang Ruo Xi had suddenly disappeared from the Flowing Time Steps, and after she came back, she said she had met a Monster Beast named Qiong Qi. Not only did that Monster Beast save her and treat her well, it even gifted her a defensive Emperor Artifact!

Yang Kai was at a complete loss…

After Zhang Ruo Xi activated this defensive Artifact, the Emperor Artifact shone brilliantly, highlighting her budding beauty. Timidly, she asked Yang Kai, “Is it pretty…?”

Yang Kai gave a dry smile and said, “En, very pretty!”

[This is an Emperor Artifact! How could it be described simply as ‘pretty’!?] Yang Kai screamed wildly in his heart. Although he had five Emperor Artifacts on hand, none of them were of a defensive type, which showed just how rare such Emperor Artifacts were.

“Qiong Qi said it’s called the Pink Clouds Phoenix Robe!” Zhang Ruo Xi explained, “I don’t like pink, but since Sir said it looks pretty…”

“En… it seems he gave you this with kind intentions,” Yang Kai tried to calm himself down. “Next time you meet him, be sure to thank him properly.”

“Ruo Xi will remember,” Zhang Ruo Xi nodded respectfully.

“En, put it away for now, and don’t expose it unless you have no other option, otherwise it will likely draw unwanted trouble.”

“Yes.” Zhang Ruo Xi nodded while moving her Divine Sense to take back the Pink Clouds Phoenix Robe.

“By the way, Ruo Xi… did that Qiong Qi say anything else to you?” Yang Kai asked cautiously.

Zhang Ruo Xi thought for a while before saying, “He said to tell Sir that if he has a chance to enter the final room, Sir must choose the thing which seems the most useless.”

“Choose the thing that seems the most useless?” Yang Kai frowned, puzzled, “What does that mean?”

Zhang Ruo Xi shook her head, “I don’t know, he sent me back after saying it.”

After getting along for so long, Yang Kai also understood how pure this little girl’s personality was and knew she couldn’t be hiding something from him. It was even more impossible for her to try to deceive him, so Yang Kai changed the subject to inquiring about the Qiong Qi she met, but he did not obtain much information.

This matter shocked Yang Kai greatly, and in the end, he could only chalk it up to Zhang Ruo Xi gaining a random opportunity. If that wasn’t the case, how could a mere Second-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivator like her return safe and sound after meeting an ominous beast like a Qiong Qi? What’s more, she returned with a gift like the Pink Clouds Phoenix Robe!

Afterwards, Yang Kai let Zhang Ruo Xi return to the Sealed World Bead before he sat alone at the top of Flowing Time Steps, calming his mind a little.

After a long silence, he got up again.

At the top of Flowing Time Steps, there was a single door. Yang Kai had noticed it before and understood that if he wanted to leave this place, this was likely the only way.

Reaching out, Yang Kai slowly pushed the door open…

A dazzling light came from ahead, causing Yang Kai to squint his eyes. Only after releasing his Divine Sense to probe inside and confirm there was no danger did Yang Kai step through.

A feeling of weightlessness came immediately, as if crossing a single step had transported him to a different space.

A living aura suddenly appeared nearby, one Yang Kai was vaguely familiar with, and one that was emitting a strong hostility…

Yang Kai was startled, raised his eyes to look forward, and after seeing the situation ahead, he couldn’t help being startled.

The place where he now stood was a raised circular platform that was roughly a thousand meters in diameter. Around this stage was a dark abyss that one could hear faint howls coming from. It was a disturbing image, like staring into an endless purgatory from which there was no return.

However, when Yang Kai swept his eyes around, he found that the door he had just stepped through was nowhere to be seen.

On this high platform, one person stood holding a sword, waiting quietly.

When Yang Kai appeared, the eyes of this individual flashed like a hawk, fixing on him as they blazed with fighting spirit.

Four eyes soon met and both individuals were taken aback.

Yang Kai grinned and raised his hand to wave at this man, “Brother Xiao Bai, you’re here too, what a coincidence!”

He discovered that the person on this high platform was none other than Xiao Bai Yi from the Azure Sun Temple!

However, Yang Kai didn’t see Murong Xiao Xiao, who had been travelling together with Xiao Bai Yi this whole time.

As he called out, Yang Kai walked over towards Xiao Bai Yi while examining his surrounding environment, but what made him puzzled was that the stage seemed to be an isolated space with no way out.

Yang Kai frowned slightly, not knowing what mysteries were hidden here, but as he was lost in thought, he heard a buzzing sound from up ahead and a flash of light flew towards him at the same time.

Yang Kai paused in place, causing the blade of light to cut a line right in front of his foot, nearly hitting him.

Yang Kai looked up at Xiao Bai Yi, frowned, and asked, “Brother Xiao Bai, what are your intentions?”

“To fight!” Xiao Bai Yi’s long sword flicked and pointed at Yang Kai from far away, a fierce fighting spirit boiling out from his body.

Yang Kai’s brow twitched as he said, “There’s no need for that now… if you want to fight, just wait until we leave the Four Seasons Realm. Fighting here with you … it’s not right!”

Xiao Bai Yi slowly shook his head, his expression as cold as ice as he quickly said, “It is precisely because we are here that we must fight!”

Yang Kai heard this, seemed to think of something, and immediately became gloomy as he asked, “What Brother Xiao Bai means… is that only one of us can leave here?”

Xiao Bai Yi nodded, “It seems that you’re not stupid!” He shouted loudly, “This is a type of trial. Only the winner here will be qualified to move on!”

As he spoke, Yang Kai noticed that above this high platform, three large characters were condensed from pure energy, floating gently in the air, that read ‘One Path Stage’.

In an instant, he understood.

Xiao Bai Yi waiting here, was probably because he was waiting for an opponent! And now it just so happened that his opponent was Yang Kai.

Thinking so, Yang Kai wore a serious expression and said solemnly, “It looks like… we really must fight!”

“Yeah!”

“The winner advances, while the loser… what do you think?” Yang Kai asked.

Xiao Bai Yi shook his head, “I don’t know, normally the loser dies!”

After saying so, he coldly snorted and said, “Why, are you scared?”

Yang Kai smiled bitterly and shook his head, “No, it’s just that… I don’t want to kill you, Brother Xiao Bai! You and I have no grievances, and although you seem to have a bad opinion of me, at any rate, we entered the Four Seasons Realm together, so if I were to really kill you here, how could I explain it to Elder Gao and the others?”

Chapter 2165

“You, kill me?” Xiao Bai Yi sneered fiercely, “Shameless boasting!”

“Brother Xiao Bai…” Yang Kai spoke earnestly and eloquently, “I believe it best to calm down and carefully search for another way out of this damned place…”

“No need, before you came, I searched this place thoroughly. Between you and I… there can only be battle!” Before Yang Kai could finish speaking, Xiao Bai Yi interrupted him coldly, “To be honest, with your strength, being able to defeat Xue Yi and snatch his spot was already quite surprising. You do have the qualifications to enter the Four Seasons Realm… But this Xiao is a disciple of Azure Sun Temple, and Xue Yi’s Senior Brother, so I cannot stand back and watch him be bullied. Junior Brother Xue’s grievance from that day will be avenged today by this Xiao. However, you may rest assured, given the difference in cultivation between you and I, this Xiao will not use his full strength. Sixty percent will be enough, and… if possible, I won’t kill you!”

As soon as these words fell, Xiao Bai Yi slashed his sword towards Yang Kai’s head, sending out a dazzling blast of Ice Attribute Sword Qi.

Yang Kai grinned in response and said, “Since this battle is inevitable, I ask Brother Xiao Bai to not take offence for what happens next!”

Saying so, the place where Yang Kai stood was covered in sword light and his body was pierced through, but oddly, no blood flowed out and the faint smile on his lips remained.

Xiao Bai Yi’s expression changed drastically as he pushed his Source Qi madly, creating a swirling snowstorm around himself while quickly lifting up his sword and condensing a giant sword light onto it, which he slashed out violently.

In the direction he slashed, Yang Kai’s figure appeared strangely, but instantly disappeared once more.

*Hong…*

The giant sword wave stirred up the surrounding aura as Xiao Bai Yi stood in place, his eyes darting around, tracing Yang Kai’s flickering figure.

“As I thought, you’re a little strange, it was no fluke that you beat Xue Yi!” Xiao Bai Yi quickly said.

Yang Kai smiled slightly, “Brother Xiao Bai, was that sixty percent of your power just now? If so, I advise you to use your full strength as soon as possible, otherwise…”

“Don’t worry, that was only thirty percent just now!” Xiao Bai Yi said proudly.

“Thirty percent…” Yang Kai murmured before nodding lightly and saying with some admiration, “As expected of an elite from Azure Sun Temple, you’re vastly different from the Dao Source Realm cultivators I’ve faced before!”

“It’s not too late to admit defeat now!” Xiao Bai Yi exhaled lightly as he lifted his sword once more, gathering sword light onto its blade before stabbing it out towards Yang Kai’s chest.

This thrust was fast, accurate, and ruthless, inspiring Ice Principles around it as it flew forward, causing a thin layer of frost to cover the stage. At the same time, any icy chill filled the air, once that caused all within its range to shiver slightly.

“Ice Principles!” Yang Kai commented as he felt these Principles began to affect his movements. The space around him became solidified, forcing him to release his Five Elements Indestructible Sword Qi to restore his freedom while also summoning the Myriads Sword into his hands.

With a wave of this broadsword, Yang Kai shouted, “Myriad Sword Arts, One Man As A Mountain!”

A thousand blades of Sword Qi fell from the sky like a waterfall, blocking Xiao Bai Yi’s incoming attack.

“That Emperor Artifact again!”

Amidst the clash of sword lights, Xiao Bai Yi coldly snorted as he did not try to dodge the incoming wave and instead pushed his own Sword Qi harder, attempting to smash through this curtain-like defence.

*Chi chi chi chi…*

The wall of sword light from the Myriads Sword was pierced through, leaving Yang Kai exposed.

*Hu…*

Xiao Bai Yi’s figure reappeared suddenly, his eyes flashing a sharp light as an astonishing aura burst from his body and he swung his sword towards Yang Kai.

Yang Kai grinned fiercely and moved his own sword to parry this blow.

With a clang, a fierce shockwave burst out and the space above the battle stage collapsed as tiny blades of Sword Qi splashed out and disappeared in a flash.

Xiao Bai Yi’s figure froze up for a moment, but he quickly escaped from the suppression of the Emperor Artifact, leaving behind an afterimage as he swiftly cut towards Yang Kai’s from a dead angle.

Even now, he had the spare capacity to shout, “Although an Emperor Artifact is strong, just how much of its power can you exert with your cultivation? Xue Yi’s defeat at your hands was due to his own carelessness!”

Yang Kai responded like a fierce dragon, wielding his Myriads to block all assaults as he smiled and said, “Brother Xiao Bai seems to have a lot of opinions about this sword!”

Even as the two talked, their movements did not slow down, the clashing of metal adding a kind of grating music to their conversation…

“Hmph, is relying on the power of an artifact something impressive?”

“If that’s what you think… I can change swords!” As soon as Yang Kai’s voice fell, the Myriads Sword in his hand suddenly disappeared and was replaced by a Dao Source Grade Mid-Rank sword.

Xiao Bai Yi frowned as he withdrew from the engagement, speaking in a cold tone, “Changing your weapon mid-battle, what are you trying to say…”

“It’s nothing really,” Yang Kai tilted his head and looked at him. “I just don’t want you to complain after I win that you only lost because I used my Emperor Artifact!”

“Are you looking down on me?” Xiao Bai Yi was so angered that his white robes began fluttering despite there being no wind. Slowly rising up into the air, he spat coldly, “If you change back now, I will pretend I never say anything, if not, it will be too late to regret it.”

As he spoke, he pointed his sword towards the sky. Suddenly, a swirling blizzard appeared, one that rapidly grew in intensity as it released Heaven destroying energy into the surrounding, overlapping with Xiao Bai Yi’s explosive momentum.

A cold, indifferent voice called out from inside the blizzard as Xiao Bai Yi shouted, “This is sixty percent of my strength. If you can’t block it, you’ll die! I advise you to withdraw!”

Having delivered his warning, he shouted, “Mortal Sword, Swirling Destruction!”

The vortex blizzard suddenly condensed into a swirling Ice Dragon that flew out with unstoppable force towards where Yang Kai stood.

Yang Kai finally straightened his carefree expression upon facing this technique. Feeling the power contained in this killing move, he couldn’t help commenting, “As expected of Azure Sun Temple’s second strongest disciple, Brother Xiao Bai lives up to his name. If this is just sixty percent of your strength, Brother Xiao Bai’s full strength must be even more astonishing…”

Although he was offering praise, Yang Kai’s hands did not remain idle. Lifting his sword, Yang Kai’s expression became solemn as he murmured, “Three Thousand Sword Dao, Flowing Flames Raging Fire!”

Instantly, Yang Kai’s sword turned crimson red, and as he thrust it out, a giant Firebird manifested from it, its figure identical to Liu Yan’s Firebird form. With a piercing cry, the Firebird and Ice Dragon met head-on.

*Hong Hong Hong…*

The Ice Dragon evaporated while the Firebird was annihilated.

Xiao Bai Yi was forced back a few steps as he uttered a low voice, “How is that possible?”

Staring at Yang Kai in a state of shock, he asked in a solemn tone, “What is the relationship between you and Senior Chen Wen Hao of Heavenly Martial Holy Land?”

As an elite disciple of Azure Sun Temple, Xiao Bai Yi naturally knew about Chen Wen Hao. The Three Thousand Sword Dao was a Sword Art that Chen Wen Hao had spent his lifetime comprehending, but now it was being displayed by Yang Kai.

Although the technique Yang Kai executed seemed slightly different, it was still incredibly powerful.

“None really!” Yang Kai flicked the sword in his hand and replied casually, “I just fought him once, and after witnessing his Three Thousand Sword Dao, I thought it was a pretty good technique, so I tried using it.”

Yang Kai was telling the truth…

When he was being corrupted by the Demon Spirit that day, he had really fought Chen Wen Hao. In fact, not only did he fight Chen Wen Hao, he also fought Gao Xue Ting and Feng Ming. Each of those three Emperors had executed their finest techniques, so they were naturally still fresh in Yang Kai’s mind, allowing him to gain some slight comprehension of them.

However, the Three Thousand Sword Dao Yang Kai displayed at this moment took a completely different form from Chen Wen Hao’s due to their different comprehensions. In order to display this technique, Yang Kai had used his Fire Sword Qi from his Five Elements Indestructible Sword Qi and Liu Yan’s form as a basis while the Three Thousand Sword Dao only served as a type of reference to execute the technique.

How could it be that easy to understand an Emperor Realm Master’s Sword Art? Only another Emperor could be able to slowly comprehend and display this Sword Art’s complete prestige.

However, this was more than enough to deal with the current situation. Xiao Bai Yi had only heard about the Three Thousand Sword Dao and had never witnessed it personally, so how could he judge whether Yang Kai’s technique was real or not?

“Enough!” Xiao Bai Yi yelled, enraged, “There should be a limit to shamelessness! Spouting such nonsense, who do you think will believe you? No matter what relationship you have with Senior Chen, nothing can save you today!”

His aura suddenly climbed, seemingly feeling that sixty percent of his strength wasn’t enough to win against Yang Kai. Xiao Bai Yi was now determined to use his full strength.

*Chi chi chi…*

Flashes of lightning suddenly emerged from Xiao Bai Yi’s body, and soon the battle stage was transformed into a terrifying storm of thunder and lightning.

“Even after comprehending Ice Principles, you can also use a Thunder Attribute Secret Technique?” Yang Kai was extremely surprised, “Brother Xiao Bai is really quite extraordinary. In time, you will certainly be an overlord in the Star Boundary!”

“Flattery is useless! Xiao Bai… Xiao Bai… happily shouting that damned name over and over again… Earth Sword, Falling Thunder!”

Lightning gathered at the tip of Xiao Bai Yi’s sword from all around before he slashed down and unleashed a torrent of violent arcs that submerged the place where Yang Kai stood. The power of this Falling Thunder was both sharp and violent, seemingly completely sealing off the surrounding space, leaving no path of escape.

Yang Kai’s heart moved as he shouted loudly, “So that’s how it is… It’s all because being called Brother Xiao Bai makes you feel so uncomfortable…”

As soon as these words fell, Yang Kai was wrapped up in a sea of lightning and a burnt smell soon filled the air.

Xiao Bai Yi blinked as he stared down from above, frowning as he declared, “Remember, my name is Xiao Bai Yi!”

“I just thought… calling you Brother Xiao Bai would be more cordial. Brother Xiao doesn’t need to be so angry, right?” Yang Kai’s voice leisurely responded from below, as if he wasn’t experiencing the slightest hardship.

Xiao Bai Yi’s eyes bulged as he gawked at the sight below him.

Inside the sea of lightning, Yang Kai’s whole figure seemed to have undergone a tremendous change. On the surface of his body, a five-coloured radiance that carried with it an aura of all five primary elements had appeared and was resisting the swirling lightning. At the same time, both his hands were now covered in a layer of golden scales, making them more closely resemble dragon claws.

Even on the exposed parts of Yang Kai’s skin, golden scales which exuded an intimidating aura had appeared.

Chapter 2166

“Dragon Aura…” Xiao Bai Yi exclaimed, feeling the aura of a True Dragon from where Yang Kai stood. Although this aura wasn’t very strong, the majesty it gave off caused one’s heart to tremble.

Before his words even fell, a golden True Dragon phantom suddenly appeared behind Yang Kai and slowly opened its giant pair of eyes to stare at Xiao Bai Yi.

Instantly, Xiao Bai Yi felt cold sweat drop down his face and he unconsciously retreated a few steps.

“Brother Xiao Bai’s strength is profound, so I have to take this seriously as well… defend yourself well!” Yang Kai shouted as he slashed out with his sword. Five Elements Indestructible Sword Qi overflowed from the slash and cut apart the lightning sea, revealing Yang Kai’s stalwart figure.

The Golden Dragon phantom behind Yang Kai roared to the Heavens, causing the world around him to tremble before its aura also poured into Yang Kai’s sword, enhancing the power of his slash.

At that moment, a thousand years seemed to flow by in an instant as the power of a True Dragon smashed the world itself.

Xiao Bai Yi’s forehead was drenched in cold sweat as he faced this seemingly unlimited pressure and was forced back once more; however, he quickly grit his teeth and stomped his feet to stand his ground, pushing his Source Qi violently to protect himself while simultaneously summoning a mirror-like defensive artifact to create a light curtain in front of himself.

*Hong…*

A golden light, containing a tyrannical power, slashed out, causing the entire space to tremble, as if the end of the world was nigh. Turbulent aura fluctuations continued for quite some time before finally subsiding.

Yang Kai’s eyes stared forward coldly.

A hundred meters away, Xiao Bai Yi stood mid-air, pale-faced. The light curtain of his mirror artifact which was protecting his body had already cracked in several places, and a moment after the dust settled, it shattered into countless fragments.

As his hand trembled violently, Xiao Bai Yi was barely able to keep his grip on his sword.

Looking out at the opponent in front of him, Xiao Bai Yi grit his teeth and shouted, “You’re just a First-Order Dao Source Realm… how could you possibly have such strength?”

Yang Kai replied indifferently, “Strength cannot be judged just by one’s cultivation, do you still not understand such a basic truth, Brother Xiao Bai?”

“I refuse to believe it!” Xiao Bai Yi roared as a violent aura suddenly broke out of his body. His Source Qi, which had just now depressed, erupted at this moment as he grabbed his sword with both hands and lifted it up high, “This will be the final clash. If you can take it, you win, if you can’t, you’ll die!”

Listening to him say this. Yang Kai couldn’t help turning serious as it was apparent Xiao Bai Yi was about to use his trump card. The ultimate technique of a Third-Order Dao Source Realm Master could not possibly be simple.

Taking a breath, Yang Kai also began condensing his Source Qi.

With Xiao Bai Yi’s shout, his expression turned solemn as a look of absolute focus appeared on his face. Tightly gripping his sword, Xiao Bai Yi’s entire body began overflowing with radiant light.

An astonishing pressure burst forth as the surrounding space began to shake, like it would shatter at any moment.

The next moment, a low growl came out, “Heaven Sword, Broken Star!”

When these words fell, countless light clusters exploded in the sky before they crashed down, like a great meteor shower, intimidating and unavoidable.

Yang Kai’s eyes flashed a brilliant light seeing this attack, and instead of falling back to defend, he actually stepped in. Abandoning his sword, Yang Kai pushed his hands forward as he began pushing his Space Force to inspire the local Space Principles.

Countless pitch-black Moon Blades flew out to meet the falling lights, and together with a thunderous rumbling, black holes began appearing everywhere, exiling all the violent explosive energy from this clash to the Void, shaking the entire space to the point where it seemed ready to collapse.

Yang Kai’s eyes darted back and forth as this clash continued, searching for Xiao Bai Yi’s figure.

Suddenly, he narrowed his eyes, pushed his Source Qi, and palmed towards a certain spot.

*Pa…*

At the same time as a loud thud and two muffled snorts rang out, Yang Kai’s complexion paled as he was forced backwards a few steps while Xiao Bai Yi pale figure re-appeared up above. Falling to the stage unwillingly, Xiao Bai Yi’s aura and face were incredibly pale.

The sky-covering explosions had disappeared at this moment, leaving only a faint tension in the air after the battle subsided.

Xiao Bai Yi hit the stage heavily, but immediately did his best to stand up. Unfortunately, he was unsteady on his feet and had to use his sword as a crutch to prevent himself from falling over.

His exposed skin was cracked all over and blood was constantly flowing out from his wounds.

There was also a palm print on the chest.

This palm print was the only sign of the damage Yang Kai inflicted on him. As for the other wounds, they had nothing to do with Yang Kai!

Yang Kai stood in the air, looking down at the palm he had just used to attack. At this moment, his palm was dripping with blood from several fresh, painful puncture wounds. There was also a strange Principle Strength lingering around these wounds which was hindering his injuries from recovering.

Flicking the blood from his hand, Yang Kai pushed his Source Qi to disperse the lingering Principle Strength before he said lightly, “Brother Xiao Bai, your Heaven Sword seems to be a bit beyond your ability to control. Was it really necessary to go so far?”

Although Yang Kai didn’t know what kind of Secret Technique Xiao Bai Yi had studied, the last sword move he used was obviously not something he could currently withstand. Using this move forcefully would inevitably bring harm to him, and Xiao Bai Yi’s current bloodstained state was the best evidence of that.

“Hahahaha!” Although Xiao Bai Yi looked miserable at this moment, he couldn’t help laughing loudly, his laughter filled with a kind of hearty joy. There was no regret or unwillingness in his voice as he shouted, “Of course it is necessary! When facing an enemy, one should use everything at their disposal to decide who will die, and who will live. To achieve victory, what does some trivial backlash count for!”

Yang Kai nodded lightly, “Brother Xiao Bai has the heart of a Master, this Yang is impressed!”

Xiao Bai Yi shook his head slowly and said, “Unfortunately, I was still no match for you in the end… A First-Order Dao Source Realm… Haha…”

A wry smile on his face, Xiao Bai Yi’s voice was filled with a myriad of extremely complex emotions. Before today, he would never have thought that he would one day be defeated by an opponent at the First-Order Dao Source Realm. He was a genius amongst his peers, a favoured son of Heaven. In this world, there were few who could enter his eyes and be treated as equals.

But today’s battle had made him realize a simple truth. He was just a young man standing in a waist-deep river thinking he had swum across the sea… It was truly laughable.

“Yang Kai!” Xiao Bai Yi shouted, dropping his sword and straightening his back, “Do it!”

Saying so, he lifted his head to expose his neck, showing no intention to fight back.

After all, even his strongest move was easily resolved by Yang Kai, so he had no more will or energy to fight at this moment.

“I didn’t say I wanted to kill you.” Yang Kai chuckled, “Only you kept clamouring for a life or death fight, right?”

Xiao Bai Yi frowned at this and said, “If you want to move forward, you have no other choice, otherwise you and I may be trapped here forever!”

“Not necessarily!” Yang Kai denied his opinion.

What Yang Kai had said at the beginning was true, between him and Xiao Bai Yi there were no grievances nor grudges, so there was no reason for them to kill one another. What’s more… During his fight with Xiao Bai Yi, Yang Kai had never sensed any murderous intent from his opponent, only extreme fighting intent.

It was obvious that Xiao Bai Yi didn’t intend on killing him, his objective from the start had just been to fight Yang Kai!

This was the exact mindset a cultivator who pursued the peak of the Martial Dao should have.

As he spoke, Yang Kai turned his gaze around, trying to find a way out of this space.

However, the only thing here was the floating battle stage, beyond which was nothing but a black, boundless abyss. 

“Could the exit be down there?” Yang Kai came to the edge of the platform and looked down, feeling a strange aura coming from below, one that caused his skin to crawl slightly. It was really uncertain what would happen if he were to jump down.

Yang Kai secretly decided to reserve jumping off as the last resort.

In truth, he had already thought of another way to leave this place.

According to what Xiao Bai Yi said, the exit from this place would only appear after one person died. In that case, as long as he put Xiao Bai Yi into the Sealed World Bead, the exit would probably appear.

However… Doing so would expose the secret of the Sealed World Bead.

Pushing his Space Force, Yang Kai thought about trying to teleport out of this place, but in the next moment, he shook his head.

Space Force could be used to teleport, but only inside of this space.

This place seemed to be a special sealed space, so Yang Kai wasn’t able to cross its boundaries and leave.

“You won’t find anything!” Seeing Yang Kai scurrying around, Xiao Bai Yi couldn’t help shouting, “I told you before, I’ve already searched this place carefully, and there is no exit at all. I’ve already lost, so don’t you think it’s about time to put an end to this?”

Yang Kai turned his head and looked at him, but just as he was about to say something, the whole battle stage began to hum.

Yang Kai’s expression changed dramatically as he quickly released his Divine Sense to survey the surroundings.

Xiao Bai Yi was also obviously taken aback, not sure what was going on.

But soon, a surprising scene occurred.

The three big characters which were floating high up above suddenly transformed into two rays of light, one big, one small. The small one shot towards Xiao Bai Yi and engulfed him before he could react; then, with a flicker, it disappeared.

At the same time, Xiao Bai Yi also disappeared!

The big ray of light transformed into a kind of light path that extended out from the edge of the battle stage into the darkness. At the end of this bridge, a closed door appeared; as for where this door led, it was impossible to tell.

Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling startled and frowned for a moment as he thought. After examining the light bridge for a time, he began to mutter, “This must be the way forward… and Brother Xiao Bai seems to have been sent out, so… the key was to have him admit defeat?”

Judging from the scene just now, it was only after Xiao Bai Yi surrendered that changes occurred, not only teleporting Xiao Bai Yi out but also providing a new path to follow.

Looking at it this way, it was clear what should be done next.

Chapter 2167

In the depths of the Flowing Time Temple, inside a certain room, many powerful people had gathered.

This was the inner sanctum of the temple, and those who were qualified to reach this place were all top Masters of the Southern Territory’s Dao Source Realm cultivators.

Lan Xun, Xiao Chen, Luo Yuan, Kong Qi, Murong Xiao Xiao, Gong Wen Shan, and Bian Yu Qing were all present.

Among these seven, aside from Lan Xun who was in the First-Order Dao Source Realm and Gong Wen Shan who was in Second-Order, the others were all in the Third-Order.

There was no need to comment on Lan Xun, as the prized gem of Bright Moon Great Emperor and the possessor of a Special Constitution, her strength was vastly superior to her cultivation, so she was absolutely qualified to stand here. The same was true for Gong Wen Shan as, although his cultivation was lower than most of the people present by a Minor Realm, as an Array Grandmaster, his methods were profound and his strength could not be measured by his cultivation alone. 

At this moment, besides Xiao Chen who had been guarding Lan Xun and stuck close to her, everyone else had found their own space to sit down cross-legged and restore themselves, seemingly waiting for something.

Murong Xiao Xiao would glance towards a certain spot from time to time, her beautiful eyes containing a trace of anxiety as she waited.

At a certain moment, a hundred meters or so behind where everyone else was waiting, a circular light-gate appeared and a figure slowly walked out.

Everyone noticed this disturbance and turned to look back.

“Finally…” Luo Yuan seemed to have become impatient and couldn’t help snorting coldly.

Murong Xiao Xiao stood up hurriedly, with a smile on her face, and walked towards that side, as if to welcome this newcomer.

The others also showed some interest, wanting to see who had come.

The figure slowly emerged from the light gate and revealed its face.

“Huh?” The smile on Murong Xiao Xiao’s face froze for a moment as she stared at this newcomer in astonishment, her expression extremely complicated as some disappointment and surprise were mixed together.

She never expected that the last one to emerge from this light gate would actually be Yang Kai rather than Xiao Bai Yi!

The faces of the others present also showed some slight differences. Kong Qi’s face twitched and he quickly turned his gaze aside, as if looking at Yang Kai would somehow tarnish his vision.

Bian Yu Qing smiled meaningfully…

“Oh… so many people!” After Yang Kai walked out of the light gate, he saw the silhouettes of seven people in front of him and couldn’t help feeling a bit surprised, “Why are all of you here?”

“We were waiting for you!” Bian Yu Qing smiled enchantingly as she spoke some suggestive words.

Yang Kai scratched his nose and said, “Please don’t joke, this humble one does not command such a big face!”

He thought Bian Yu Qing was cracking a joke.

But what he didn’t know was…

“It’s not a joke, we were really waiting for you!” Gong Wen Shan stood up from where he was sitting and looked at Yang Kai sternly, “But that’s only half right. We weren’t waiting for you specifically, but rather the last person we needed!”

Yang Kai frowned, swept his eyes around, and soon fixed his gaze on something ahead before muttering thoughtfully, “It looks like if you want to break this barrier, you need a specific number of people!”

“Yeah!” Gong Wen Shan nodded.

“Would anyone care to explain to me what the situation is?” Yang Kai smiled and looked around.

Gong Wen Shan snorted, “I don’t want to explain such a troublesome thing twice!”

After saying so, he ignored Yang Kai entirely.

Murong Xiao Xiao pursed her red lips and said, “I’ll explain. Junior Brother Yang, please come here.”

She beckoned to Yang Kai.

Yang Kai nodded and walked over.

Murong Xiao Xiao immediately explained the situation to him.

After listening to her, Yang Kai understood that the entrance to the large hall in front of them was protected by a Spirit Array called the ‘Eight Points Yuan Returning Array’. This Spirit Array was actually not that complicated and cracking it was extremely easy.

Just gather eight people and stand in specific positions to force the Spirit Array to de-activate. There wasn’t even a need for the ones cracking the array to use their strength.

Of course, if there was not someone proficient in Spirit Arrays present, seeing through the intricacies of this Spirit Array would be difficult, but that was not an issue to Gong Wen Shan’s eyes.

“So, you could only wait for the arrival of another person here?” Yang Kai asked after listening.

“En,” Murong Xiao Xiao nodded lightly and smiled, “I didn’t expect Junior Brother Yang to be the last to come.”

Yang Kai glanced at her and whispered in a low voice, “Don’t worry, Brother Xiao Bai is only a bit injured, there’s no need to worry about his life!”

Murong Xiao Xiao heard this and her eyes lit up, “Junior Brother Yang, have you seen Senior Brother Xiao?”

“En,” Yang Kai nodded.

“Then where is he now?” Murong Xiao Xiao asked nervously.

“I don’t know, probably teleported out of the temple, maybe somewhere else inside,” Yang Kai shrugged.

Murong Xiao Xiao seemed to have realized something from Yang Kai’s words and couldn’t help covering her mouth in shock as she asked, “Junior Brother Yang… did you defeat Senior Brother Xiao?”

“Hm?” Yang Kai was stunned, “Does that mean… everyone here had to pass through the same test?”

“En…” Murong Xiao Xiao replied, “I ran into an opponent on that stage and only after winning did I come here.”

“It looks like everyone’s experience was similar…” Yang Kai muttered thoughtfully.

If everyone had to pass the Flowing Time Steps and the battle stage, then, there only being eight people left at this moment would make sense.

It was not easy to pass these two tests, so naturally, many were eliminated.

While they were talking, Yang Kai glanced around at the others present and soon found that some Star Seals had appeared on the backs of their hands. Even Murong Xiao Xiao had one.

It seemed that everyone had their own opportunities inside the Flowing Time Temple. Unfortunately for Yang Kai, he only managed to obtain a Flowing Time Fruit inside the temple while his Star Seal came from when he just entered the Two Seasons Mountain Range, since then he had not seen another.

“Are you done yet? If so then hurry up, I don’t have time to waste here!” Luo Yuan urged impatiently.

If it wasn’t necessary to gather eight people to crack this Spirit Array, how could Luo Yuan have idled here for so long? Instead of waiting, he would have just started a fight and driven out as many others as possible.

Yang Kai glanced at him lightly but didn’t say anything, instead turning to Gong Wen Shan and saying, “Brother Gong, I understand the general situation. What should I do?”

Gong Wen Shan nodded and explained, “If that’s the case, then everyone just needs to follow my instructions and stand where I tell you to. Although this Eight Points Yuan Returning Array is simple to crack, if something goes wrong… heh…”

Although he didn’t finish what he said, everyone understood what he meant.

Xiao Chen smiled and said, “Brother Gong, please give us your advice. I don’t believe anyone here will be ignorant enough to ignore your instructions.”

As he spoke, whether intentionally or unintentionally, he glanced over at Luo Yuan.

“Very good!” Gong Wen Shan heard this and smiled lightly before stretching out his hands and forming a seal.

Ripples of visible Source Qi were sent out from his figure and before Gong Wen Shan, a circular seal appeared on the floor.

Immediately, Gong Wen Shan pointed and instructed, “Friend, stand here!”

He was referring to Luo Yuan.

Luo Yuan didn’t say a word and just stood in the spot that Gong Wen Shan pointed to.

“Madam, please stand there!” Next, he pointed to Bian Yu Qing.

“Calling me madam makes it seem like I’m old…” Bian Yu Qing pouted under her breath as she moved to her spot.

“You stand there!” Gong Wen Shan pointed to Yang Kai next.

Yang Kai nodded and flew over to Bian Yu Qing’s side.

Under Gong Wen Shan’s guidance, everyone stood in a different position.

While they were waiting, Bian Yu Qing turned to Yang Kai and smiled, “Smelly brat, I didn’t expect to see you here!”

“What’s wrong? Are you looking down on me?” Yang Kai raised his brow and coldly snorted, “This one’s power is beyond what Protector Bian can imagine.”

“Is that so…” Bian Yu Qing smiled with interest, “If that’s true, I’d like to take a closer look.”

“There’ll be a chance!” Yang Kai gave her a blank look before asking, “What about Senior Brother Kou? Isn’t he with you?”

Bian Yu Qing heard these words and her expression dimmed.

Yang Kai was surprised and asked, “He couldn’t have…”

Bian Yu Qing composed herself and shook her head, “It’s not what you think, Kou Wu knew his limits and stopped at the Flowing Time Steps!”

“Oh, that’s a pity.” Yang Kai sighed.

Although the Flowing Time Steps were extremely perilous, if one could surmount them, they would gain incredible benefits. Yang Kai’s strength had been greatly tempered even in that short time, and from the looks of it, the other seven people present clearly gained similar benefits from the Flowing Time Steps.

However, what Bian Yu Qing said confirmed Yang Kai’s previous guess that everyone’s chances had basically been the same, especially in the later stage. After passing the Flowing Time Steps, one simply needed to overcome the elimination battle before arriving here.

As the two talked, everyone was placed appropriately, with only Gong Wen Shan left.

Gong Wen Shan stood outside the runic circle and carefully checked to make sure everyone’s position was correct before he flew over to the last spot.

When he landed, he quickly shouted, “No one move, no matter what you sense, no matter how abnormal it might feel. Also, do not circulate your strength, otherwise, you will risk everyone’s life!”

Seeing how he spoke so solemnly, how could those gathered here not listen to his advice? One after another, they withdrew their strength and entered into a kind of meditative state.

Soon, a faint humming was heard.

The surrounding World Energy seemed to be swirling, causing a kind of chain reaction.

As the World Energy movement became more intense, the humming sound grew louder.

Soon, a strange sound, like something crumbling, reached everyone’s ears.

Only now did Gong Wen Shan, who had seemed quite anxious before, let out a sigh of relief. He knew that this Eight Points Yuan Returning Array was collapsing.

*Kacha…*

Along with this sound, a crack began to appear in the array ahead, releasing a bright light. As the crumbling sounds grew louder, the crack also slowly expanded.

Just as the crack became big enough for a single person to pass through, Gong Wen Shan shouted, “Don’t move yet!”

Everyone was taken by surprise by this shout and immediately halted their movements.

However, at that moment, Gong Wen Shan shot out towards the opening like an arrow from a string.

“Damn it, that bastard!” Kong Qi yelled angrily and hurried to catch up.

Chapter 2168

*Xiu xiu xiu…*

At the entrance to the main hall, the remaining seven people all used their own methods to rush forward. As the saying goes, those who arrive first get the best bargains; Gong Wen Shan had already rushed in, so no one remaining wanted to be left far behind.

In the blink of an eye, everyone had already rushed into the hall and were now sweeping their eyes around.

In front of everyone was a brilliant glow that was mixed with a rich aura, a clear sign that precious treasures were present and just waiting to be claimed.

*Hong long long…*

Just after everyone came in, the crack through which they entered made a muffled sound and shut.

Everyone was slightly startled, but soon they adjusted and stopped paying attention to this. Instead, they raised their eyes and swept them around the hall to inspect the situation.

As far as they could see, at the far right of the hall, there is a circular light gate. From this light gate, Space Principle fluctuations could clearly be felt, but where this portal led, no one could tell.

Three hundred metres in front of everyone, at the head of the hall, there was a high platform.

On this high platform, several items of different shapes were quietly sitting.

“This is…” After seeing the few things on the high platform, everyone was shocked and desire began filling their eyes.

There weren’t many things, only five.

A black lacquered oval shield that had dragons and phoenixes embossed on its surface and mysterious runes constantly pulsing around it.

A single cherry-sized droplet that looked like a drop of water…

A seven-coloured glowing mass that seemed like a mix between steam and water…

A pill that looked like a Spirit Pill but was clearly not…

And a fiery red coloured longan sized bead…

There were a total of five treasures, all of them placed atop the high platform and each covered by the semi-circular light curtain.

Everyone’s eyes swept over the five treasures one by one before finally landing on a sixth semicircular light curtain that was… empty. Clearly, something had been here before, but now it was gone.

In other words, there were originally six treasures on this high platform, but at this moment, only five were left. It was a complete mystery where this last treasure had gone.

*Gump…* 

Kong Qi gulped hard as he stared at the dark oval shield and said grimly, “This is a Pseudo-Emperor Artifact, right? I can feel traces of Emperor Pressure from it!”

Everyone was equally stunned to see such treasures hidden in the depths of the Flowing Time Temple. For a moment, everyone’s enthusiasm grew to new heights as they stared at these five treasures, all of them barely able to hold themselves back.

Although all of them wanted to rush up and seize these treasures, no one dared to move.

Because everyone knew that since there were eight people here, and only five treasures, which was clearly not enough for everyone, once someone made the first move, they would likely become everyone’s target. When two fists can’t block four strikes, the first person to stick out would likely be eliminated.

Even someone as strong and arrogant as Luo Yuan had to suppress himself while constantly monitoring the others around him.

“Your Highness, you are very knowledgeable. Do you know what these are?” Gong Wen Shan asked as he turned to Lan Xun suddenly.

Lan Xun’s beautiful eyes filled with a kind of soft brilliance as she smiled and said, “I recognize a few…”

“Please enlighten us, Your Highness!” Gong Wen Shan said sincerely.

Lan Xun lightly nodded before pointing to the dark oval shield and saying, “Brother Kong is right, this is probably a Pseudo-Emperor Artifact.”

“Pseudo-Emperor Artifact, what’s that?” Yang Kai asked without any hesitation.

As soon as he said this, everyone cast him a weird look, seemingly wondering why he didn’t even know something so obvious.

Bian Yu Qing was the only one who understood why Yang Kai was so ignorant and uninformed him; after all, she knew he was from a low-level Star Field, so she took the initiative to kindly explain, “Not all Emperor Artifacts are refined as Emperor Artifacts. You should know this, yes?”

Yang Kai nodded lightly.

Most Emperor Artifacts were not originally refined as Emperor Artifacts and instead were the result of artifacts being nurtured for many years by powerful cultivators. When such a cultivator broke through to the Emperor Realm, they could use their own comprehensions of the Heavenly Way and Martial Dao to infuse Emperor Intent into such an artifact and possibly refine it into an Emperor Artifact.

“Some Emperors are unable to succeed when they temper their own artifacts. There are various reasons for this, but that doesn’t mean that the artifact’s power is completely lost; in fact, most often these artifacts receive a significant increase in power. Artifacts refined under such circumstances are known as Pseudo-Emperor Artifacts, surpassing the level of a Dao Source Grade artifact, but failing to reach the Emperor Grade. They are semi-finished products!” Bian Yu Qing said softly with a solemn expression, “Excellent Pseudo-Emperor Artifacts are not inferior to the ordinary Emperor Artifacts, while some Pseudo-Emperor Artifacts are only slightly better than Dao Source Grade.”

“So that’s how it is!” Yang Kai nodded in understanding.

Bian Yu Qing continued, “But… this is a defensive artifact, so even if it’s only a Pseudo-Emperor Artifact, it is still a rare treasure! This shield’s value is certainly far greater than an ordinary Dao Source Grade High-Rank artifact! If someone can obtain this shield and refine it, most likely no one below the Emperor Realm will be able to break their defences!”

“It really sounds like a treasure!” Yang Kai echoed as his gaze became slightly hotter.

Although Yang Kai already had a large number of Emperor Artifacts, none of them were defensive types. If he could obtain this shield, he could make up for his own shortcomings and when he encountered a strong enemy, he would be able to resist for a while longer.

“Your Highness, please continue!” Kong Qi glared at Yang Kai from the side, seemingly blaming him for his ignorance for interfering with Lan Xun’s explanation.

Lan Xun didn’t mind, however, and simply smiled and pointed to the cherry-sized drop of water, “If I am not mistaken, this should be a drop of the legendary Supreme Divine Water!”

*Si…*

A sharp breath sounded as everyone reacted in shock.

“As I had guessed, it really is the Supreme Divine Water…” Gong Wen Shan’s expression flickered as he seemingly had such a guess before but was uncertain. Hearing Lan Xun’s words, he was able to confirm his speculations.

Murong Xiao Xiao was also shocked as she muttered, “The Supreme Divine Water which allows spirit herbs to rapidly mature with just a single drop?”

“Indeed!” Lan Xun smiled and nodded, possibly showing consideration for Yang Kai again as she took the initiative to explain, “With a drop of Supreme Divine Water, one can increase the maturity of any spirit grass or spirit medicines by thousands, if not ten thousand years in just a single month.”

Yang Kai gulped hard as he asked, “What Princess means to say is that… as long as this drop is sprinkled onto a spirit grass or medicine, that spirit medicine’s medicinal age will reach ten thousand years in just a single month?”

“Exactly!” Lan Xun nodded and said lightly, “Although Supreme Divine Water is not among the Three Great Divine Waters, in terms of efficacy and function, it is sometimes much more precious than them. When I was young, I was fortunate enough to see a few drops of Supreme Divine Water, which is why I can recognize it now.”

If someone else had said that they saw a few drops of Supreme Divine Water when they were a child, others might be sceptical, but coming from Lan Xun, the story was different. With her status and background, she would certainly not tell such a boring lie. If she said she had seen it before, it was basically certain she had.

Yang Kai’s heart rate suddenly accelerated.

With so much Heavy Earth in the medicine garden inside his Sealed World Bead, herbs would mature a hundred times faster than normal. So after one year, herbs planted in it would have medicinal ages of a hundred years.

However, this drop of Supreme Divine Water could actually increase the medicinal age of a spirit medicine to ten thousand years in a month!

The gap was clear and obvious…

If this drop of Supreme Divine Water could be absorbed by the gold and silver tree, wouldn’t its sealing power also increase many times over? With so much sealing power, Yang Kai could lift the seal on his dantian anytime or anywhere to fight powerful enemies without worry.

At that time, he would only need to re-seal the Demon Qi and Demon Spirit with the power of the Firmament Tree.

“Supreme Divine Water is the source of all spirit waters, so its role is not just that. For a cultivator who cultivates Water Attribute Secret Arts or who possesses a Water Attribute Special Constitution, the benefits are incalculable, and… it can also be refined into a Water Attribute artifact. It has endless uses!” Lan Xun continued her explanation.

Gong Wen Shan breathed out slowly as he cupped his fists and said, “Many thanks for sharing your wisdom, Your Highness!”

“Hmph, the Princess is explaining to you out of pure goodwill, there’s no need for you to offer pointless flattery!” Xiao Chen snorted coldly from the side.

No one paid any attention to him…

Lan Xun pointed to the seven coloured flowing light treasure and said, “I don’t believe I need to say anything about this. Doesn’t everyone already recognize it?”

Kong Qi’s brow twitched as he said roughly, “It’s an Emperor Aura…”

“It’s definitely an Emperor Aura!” Gong Wen Shan seemed to also know what it was and said solemnly.

Lan Xun smiled lightly and nodded, “Yes, this is an Emperor Aura! If one possesses it, they can integrate it into their own precious artifact, and there is a good chance an Emperor Artifact will be born with time!”

Emperor Auras were the key to refining Emperor Artifacts. An Emperor only needed to merge this Emperor Aura with their own artifact and if everything went well, they would obtain a new Emperor Artifact. Even if something went wrong, a Pseudo-Emperor Artifact would at least be created!

Generally, when an Emperor Realm Master wanted to refine their artifact into an Emperor Artifact, they would directly pour their own Emperor Intent into it. Emperor Auras, which contained the essence of an Emperor Realm Master’s Emperor Intent, were rarely created.

Emperor Auras could not be condensed into a physical entity outside an Emperor’s body by ordinary Emperor Realm Masters. Even someone as strong as Xiao Chen’s father, the Silver Star Envoy Xiao Yu Yang, did not have such ability.

Only a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master could achieve this!

Condensing an Emperor Aura would result in a great loss to any Emperor Realm Master, one that would take hundreds of years of hard cultivation to make up for. Therefore, under normal circumstances, no Third-Order Emperor would condense an Emperor Aura and place it outside.

But this Flowing Time Temple actually had one such treasure!

There was a fundamental difference between this thing and the pitch-black shield. The black shield was already fully formed, and as a Pseudo-Emperor Artifact, there was no possibility for it to be further refined into an Emperor Artifact. However, this Emperor Aura represented infinite possibilities, all that was required was time, effort, and luck. It was really quite difficult to judge which of these two was more valuable.

If one preferred immediate worth, they would choose the dark shield; after all, a defensive Pseudo-Emperor Artifact was extremely precious and valuable.

If one had the ambition to refine their own Emperor Artifact, however, they would undoubtedly prefer the Emperor Aura.

Chapter 2169

“This is…” Lan Xun cast her gaze onto the fourth treasure, which resembled a pill but was clearly not one, making for a strange scene.

Lan Xun frowned slightly, as if she was a little dazed, but soon her eyes widened as she shouted, “An Emperor Authority Bead!”

“What!?” Luo Yuan, who had yet to speak the whole time suddenly exclaimed, “An Emperor Authority Bead? Are you certain?”

As soon as this remark came out, Xiao Chen couldn’t help coldly snorting, “Pay attention to your words, it is the Princess who is before you!”

Luo Yuan turned his head and glared at him, his two eyes smouldering with fighting intent.

Lan Xun just smiled though and said, “This should be an Emperor Authority Bead. If Brother Luo doesn’t believe me, he can simply break the barrier protecting it later and see for himself.

“I believe you!” Luo Yuan declared, “It’s just… I didn’t expect such a treasure to appear here.”

Lan Xun nodded. “I too did not expect an Emperor Authority Bead to appear… I also have not seen one before. I’ve only heard about them from my father in the past, so I did not recognize it at first, however… An Emperor Realm Master’s full-powered strike is sealed inside an Emperor Authority Bead, so obtaining this thing is tantamount to having a certain kill life-saving card!”

Listening to what she said, Yang Kai immediately understood what this ‘Emperor Authority Bead’ and its function were.

This thing turned out to be a full-powered blow of an Emperor Realm Master! In other words, it was similar to the Star Emperor Tokens from his native Star Field.

The Starry Sky Great Emperor had also sealed her Divine Abilities into those ten tokens!

Everyone here was a Dao Source Realm cultivator, so if they could obtain this Emperor Authority Bead, they would never need to fear facing others in the same realm. Even if they were to encounter an Emperor, they would still be able to fight back!

As Lan Xun said, this thing could be regarded as a trump card, one that would deliver a certain kill blow!

Which cultivator had not experienced several life or death moments? At a critical moment, an Emperor Authority Bead would undoubtedly be a life-saving tool.

Everyone’s breathing became rapid again as their eyes turned hot…

“As for the last item…” Lan Xun frowned again as she examined the longan sized, fiery red bead for some time before she slowly shook her head and said, “Forgive my ignorance, but I don’t recognize it. Does anyone else have any idea what this is?”

Even a character like Lan Xun didn’t recognize the fiery red bead, so the others present could only shake their heads, declaring they didn’t know what it was.

Lan Xun smiled slightly and said, “No matter what it is, since it can be placed here with these other treasures, it is definitely extraordinary.”

Her remarks were not without purpose.

Among the five items placed on the high platform, there was a defensive type Pseudo Emperor Artifact, a drop of Supreme Divine Water, an Emperor Aura, and an Emperor Authority Bead. Which one of these was not a rare and priceless treasure? In terms of value, it really just depended on whose hands these treasures were in, so it made no sense that the fifth item was useless. This fiery red bead was at least on the same level as the other treasures, it’s just that its function was unknown.

“Actually…” Lan Xun’s beautiful eyes narrowed as she fixed them on the centre position of the high platform where an empty barrier remained, “I care more about what… was originally here.”

“What does Princess mean?” Kong Qi asked.

Lan Xun explained, “Within this barrier, there is a strong residual Emperor Pressure. If I’m not mistaken, there should have been an Emperor Artifact here…”

“An Emperor Artifact?”

“Really?”

“No way!”

Everyone present had seen great winds and waves, but they were still shocked that an Emperor Artifact had once been here as that was not a treasure one could obtain casually.

“I’m fairly certain that was the case…” Lan Xun said firmly, “And it was still here not long ago. As for why it suddenly disappeared, I cannot say; however, if it wasn’t here just a short time ago, the remnant Emperor Pressure would not be so apparent.”

“Did someone get here before us?” Gong Wen Shan’s expression sank.

“Damn it, who managed to sneak in here first!” Kong Qi also cursed angrily.

Lan Xun, however, shook her head and said, “That shouldn’t be the case. If someone really got here before us, why would they only take one treasure? The rest of the things here are also rare and precious, so it’s unreasonable for them to simply leave them… not to mention, the barrier here is completely undamaged…”

“En, Your Highness is right, what’s going on?” Kong Qi was confused.

“I don’t know either,” Lan Xun smiled helplessly.

While several others were talking, Yang Kai couldn’t help thinking of the Pink Clouds Phoenix Robe suddenly…

Recalling the Emperor Pressure that Zhang Ruo Xi gave off when she was wearing that Pink Clouds Phoenix Robe before, and then feeling the residual aura on the high platform… Yang Kai immediately coughed and said, “Whether there was an Emperor Artifact here or now, now that it’s missing, there’s no point worrying about it. Why don’t we discuss how to distribute these items instead?”

As soon as he said this, the atmosphere that was still a little harmonious suddenly became tense as everyone present secretly began condensing their Source Qi while vigilantly sweeping their eyes around.

There were five treasures, but eight people, so obviously they could not be evenly distributed and there were bound to be some people who gained nothing.

Everyone here was a favoured son or daughter of Heaven, a genius among their generation, so none of them wanted to come back empty-handed.

“Friends, this Xiao has a suggestion, I don’t know whether you’d be willing to consider it!” Xiao Chen suddenly smiled and said.

Kong Qi had no idea what he was going to say, but since Xiao Chen had already spoken, it wouldn’t be appropriate to refuse outright, so he simply spoke, “If Brother Xiao has any good ideas, please enlighten us!”

The others also turned to look at him.

Xiao Chen smiled heartily when he saw this and continued, “In this Southern Territory, my Star Soul Palace is heralded as a virtuous leader filled with righteous talents. Her Highness is the model example of this and did not hesitate to share her wisdom with all of you, yes? Do you not feel that she deserves some form of thanks in return?”

When he said this, everyone suddenly had an unpleasant premonition.

Sure enough, Xiao Chen proposed, “This Xiao feels that with Her Highness’ status, she should be allowed to take one of these treasures first. What do all of you say?”

Everyone immediately cursed Xiao Chen in their hearts as they really couldn’t curse him out loud; after all, doing so would be akin to slandering Lan Xun as well, an offence none of them wanted to commit. For a moment, everyone felt incredibly gloomy as they held their tongues.

From the start, there were not enough treasures here to divide among them, but now Xiao Chen even suggested that Lan Xun take one away first. This was nothing short of shameless robbery. If someone else had proposed such an outrageous notion, they would have been drowned in other’s spit and curses by now, but with Xiao Chen putting forward Lan Xun’s identity, none dared act presumptuously.

With Lan Xun’s status, who would dare have any opinions about her actions? Did they not want to live in the Southern Territory in the future?

Even someone as strong and arrogant as Luo Yuan could only glare gloomily at that moment, unable to say a word.

Even though he didn’t flinch when facing Wu Chang, he also knew that some people in this world could not be offended no matter what, and Lan Xun was one of them…

“What’s wrong? Do you think this Xiao’s proposal is unfair?” Xiao Chen continued pressing his advantage. Seeing that everyone did not say anything, he coldly snorted and said, “Or… are you looking down on my Star Soul Palace?”

When such an unfair charge was levelled, Kong Qi immediately glared at Xiao Chen as if he was his parent’s murderer, cursing his eighteen generations of ancestors in his heart…

“Well…” Murong Xiao Xiao was too kind-hearted for her own good, and seeing the atmosphere becoming so charged she wanted to speak up, but not knowing how to calm things down, her face flushed with anxiety.

The others also remained silent, unable to say anything.

Yang Kai observed carefully and quickly saw that Lan Xun’s brow was slightly furrowed, obviously displeased with the current mess. Clearly this was something Xiao Chen had decided to do on his own without consulting her, allowing Yang Kai to nod secretly to himself.

His impression of Lan Xun was still quite good. If Lan Xun really wanted to take advantage of her father, Bright Moon Great Emperor, and Star Soul Palace’s prestige to snatch these treasures, likely no one would be able to object, only her public image and reputation would take a hit.

On the other hand, these items, while extremely precious, given Lan Xun’s identity, might really not be of much interest to her.

The pitch-black shield was useless to her because there was no doubt she had a defensive Emperor Artifact bestowed to her by the Great Emperor.

The drop of Supreme Divine Water was also useless to her as there was no spirit grass or herb that Star Soul Palace didn’t possess or could easily acquire. 

As for the Emperor Aura, she was just a First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator now, so it was completely useless to her.

As for the Emperor Authority Bead…

If she really wanted one, all she’d need to do is beg her father, Bright Moon Great Emperor, a little and the Great Emperor would definitely give her one. In any case, with the Great Emperor’s strength and skill, consuming a few hundred years of strength was not even worth mentioning.

Just as the tension was becoming unbearable, Lan Xun suddenly smiled and said, “Since no one has any objections, then Xiao Chen and I will take one.”

“Huh?” Gong Wen Shan heard this and couldn’t help raising his brow and staring at Lan Xun in amazement, as if he couldn’t believe what he just heard, but soon, a knowing grin formed on his face.

After frowning, Kong Qi also understood the meaning of Lan Xun’s words and nodded happily, “If Her Highness wants to take one first, this Kong naturally has no objections.”

“Neither do I!” Bian Yu Qing agreed immediately.

Everyone present was a sharp individual, and although Lan Xun’s words sounded similar to Xiao Chen’s, how could they not understand that their true meaning was completely different?

“What about you?” Lan Xun turned to look at Luo Yuan and the others.

“Your Highness should act freely. This Luo does not trust others here, but Your Highness is still trustworthy.”

Lan Xun gently nodded, “Many thanks, Brother Luo, for your trust.”

With Luo Yuan not expressing any disagreement, the remaining Yang Kai and Murong Xiao Xiao naturally had no objections.

When everyone nodded in agreement, Xiao Chen turned anxious as he whispered to Lan Xun, “Princess…”

The light smile on Lan Xun’s face receded as she turned a cold stare to him and declared, “Brother Xiao Chen, since everyone has agreed, I will have to bother you to…”

At this point, her beautiful eyes swept over the high platform briefly before she pointed and said, “Retrieve that Pseudo Emperor Artifact!”

The value of these five treasures really couldn’t be judged because everyone’s needs were different and these five things had vastly different functions…

But for Lan Xun, among the five things here, the least valuable was definitely the shield Pseudo Emperor Artifact.

Because this thing was completely useless to her! Even the flaming red bead that she couldn’t identify would have had slightly more value to her.

But she still chose the Pseudo Emperor Artifact!

Chapter 2170

Lan Xun’s choice undoubtedly gave a distinct message…

Although she did not want to bully others using her status, she also wasn’t willing to just return empty-handed. Regardless of whether these things were useful or useless to her, she deserved a trophy since she was able to arrive here using her own ability, and with her and Xiao Chen’s strength, they were also absolutely qualified to snatch at least one of these treasures. 

However, Lan Xun also wanted to avoid conflict with others, especially if it would be a fight over something useless to her, so she simply chose the least useful treasure for herself.

This way, she could directly show what her stance on this issue was!

“Princess!” Xiao Chen shouted in a low voice, as if he wanted to persuade her otherwise.

Lan Xun’s face remained indifferent as she calmly said, “Brother Xiao Chen, do you want me to get it myself?”

Seeing her sharp gaze, Xiao Chen’s heart sank as he realized that if he tried to press this issue any further, he would only anger Lan Xun. Immediately gritting his teeth, he squeezed out an ugly smile and said, “Your Highness… please wait a moment, I’ll be right back…”

Saying so, he leapt up to the high platform.

With someone stepping forward to test whether there were any dangers on the high platform, everyone else paid close attention.

Fortunately, apart from the barriers covering the different treasures, there didn’t seem to be any other traps or hazards present.

Xiao Chen stood in front of the Pseudo Emperor Artifact shield, and although there was a hint of unwillingness on his face, he could only summon his sword, push his Source Qi, and cut towards the barrier.

Even if he didn’t use his full strength, he used at least half of his power in this blow, as well as the accumulated anger he felt, so the power he displayed was extraordinary.

In the next instant, the light from his sword fell fiercely on the light curtain.

But the light curtain was far stronger than it appeared and the only result of Xiao Chen’s slash was the barrier bending slightly before bouncing back, completely unscathed…

“Oh?” Seeing this scene, everyone was shocked as they also quickly examined the strength of the barrier and calculated just how much force would be needed to smash it to snatch the treasures.

Xiao Chen’s first attempt having no effect embarrassed him greatly, so he wasted no time in lifting his sword up again and chanting, “Plum Flower Sword, Showering Blossom Sword!”

Releasing this Secret Technique, a storm of plum blossoms seemed to fill the air.

This move was both elegant and dignified.

A fresh fragrance seemed to fill the air and linger at the tip of everyone’s nose before the plum blossoms suddenly transformed into countless points of light and fiercely bombarded the light curtain.

A violent shaking took place as the light curtain flashed wildly.

Although the radiance of the barrier was constantly dimming, there was still no sign of it breaking.

Xiao Chen’s expression became enraged as he turned his sword and activated another Secret Technique, “Waning Moon Pierces The Mirror Heavens!”

Another dazzling sword skill was displayed as a violent power struck the light curtain…

*Kacha…*

A crack finally appeared in the light curtain, and seeing this situation, Xiao Chen pushed his Source Qi violently and thrust his sword forward.

With a loud bang, the barrier completely broke and Xiao Chen grabbed the Pseudo Emperor Artifact shield before leaping off to land next to Lan Xun’s side, “Your Highness, I’ve retrieved the item.”

“En,” Lan Xun nodded lightly, not even sparing the Pseudo Emperor Artifact shield a glance and instead smiling to the others, “Then… Lan Xun will take her leave. Everyone… good luck!”

After that, she turned and walked towards the light gate standing on the right side of the hall.

Although Xiao Chen was unwilling, his duty was to follow Lan Xun, so he had no choice but to follow her as he shot the others in the room a fierce look, as if to say that they were lucky this time…

A moment later, the two Star Soul Palace disciples disappeared through the light gate.

“The Princess… is quite commendable!” After a short silence, Kong Qi suddenly said.

“En,” Gong Wen Shan nodded in agreement. “The daughter of the Great Emperor has temperament beyond compare, it makes this Gong embarrassed…”

“You should be ashamed!” Kong Qi grimaced at him.

At that moment, a burst of laughter rang out as Bian Yu Qing glanced around elegantly, “Her Highness and her escort are gone now, but with those who remain and the remaining treasures… it seems that there’s still not quite enough!”

Atop the high platform, there were originally five treasures, but now the Pseudo Emperor Artifact shield had been taken away, leaving four treasures to split among six people…

“I claim one of them!” Luo Yuan suddenly declared.

Gong Wen Shan cast his gaze over, and said, “Why should we agree?”

Kong Qi chimed in, “If you want to win these treasures, it should naturally be done with your own strength. I have no opinion about Her Highness claiming one, but if you want to claim one first, I’ll have to object.”

Luo Yuan’s Eight Paths Sect was only a second-class Sect in the Southern Territory while Kong Qi was from Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce, the difference in their backgrounds was profound, so how could Kong Qi possibly be afraid of Luo Yuan here?

Luo Yuan smiled proudly as his eyes swept across the crowd, “If anyone refuses to accept, they’re welcome to object!”

Kong Qi couldn’t help showing a cold look on his face as he slowly nodded and said, “This friend’s attitude makes this Kong quite uncomfortable, so this Kong intends to teach Friend a small lesson, I just don’t know… hm? Bastard, what are you doing!?”

Before Kong Qi finished what he was trying to say, his face suddenly changed and he couldn’t help roaring furiously.

The next moment, everyone else’s anger also flared up.

Because while all of them were talking, Yang Kai had secretly slipped away and landed on the high platform. Reaching out, he palmed towards one of the barriers.

“Bold! Who gave you the courage to do this!?” Luo Yuan roared as he leapt out.

When the others saw this, all their hesitation vanished and they swiftly used their Movement Skills to catch up, lest they fall behind.

However… It seemed that when Lan Xun asked Xiao Chen to take the Pseudo Emperor Artifact shield, everyone else had already decided what treasure they would target; after all, the remaining four treasures had different functions and everyone had their own preference.

So when the six people rushed to the high platform, the targets they chose were also completely different.

Yang Kai’s goal was the flaming red bead that even Lan Xun couldn’t recognize or identify.

He chose this not because he recognized what this bead was, but because of what Zhang Ruo Xi had said before.

She told Yang Kai that Qiong Qi said that if he had the chance to enter the final room, he should choose the most useless thing!

Among the remaining four treasures, whether it was the Emperor Aura, Emperor Authority Bead, or Supreme Divine Water, none of these treasures were useless; however, the fiery red bead that no one could identify was, on the surface, the most useless.

Qiong Qi was an Ancient Divine Spirit and had also given Zhang Ruo Xi the Pink Clouds Phoenix Robe, so it made no sense for it to deceive him by saying such things.

So, Yang Kai’s goal was this fiery red bead from the beginning!

What’s more, by choosing this bead, Yang Kai also avoided all competition as no one else present wanted it. Although many thought that this bead had some extraordinary use or purpose, without knowing its specific role, trying to snatch it while giving up on the other treasures present simply wasn’t worth the risk. 

Therefore, the remaining five people set their goals on the other three treasures.

Among them, Luo Yuan and Kong Qi focused on the Emperor Authority Bead! Their thinking was quite simple. The Emperor Authority Bead had a full-powered blow from an Emperor Realm Master sealed inside of it, which was an overwhelming trump card that could save one’s life in a critical situation! As long as one still had their life, there was hope for everything else.

What Bian Yu Qing and Gong Wen Shan chose was the Emperor Aura! This thing was the source of an Emperor Artifact, so its value was simply incalculable.

Murong Xiao Xiao had wanted to grab the Emperor Authority Bead too, but seeing Luo Yuan targeting it as well, she grit her teeth and immediately changed direction, rushing to the Supreme Divine Water drop that no one was paying attention to and began breaking its barrier.

Xiao Bai Yi had once told her when they were alone that she should avoid any conflict with Luo Yuan because he was incredibly dangerous. Xiao Bai Yi even went so far as to say he wasn’t confident he could defeat Luo Yuan!

Murong Xiao Xiao trusted Xiao Bai Yi so she seriously followed his advice.

The six people were immediately divided into several areas where Yang Kai and Murong Xiao Xiao focused on breaking the barriers to the treasures they wanted while the other four engaged in heated battles of two.

Among them, the battle between Kong Qi and Luo Yuan was particularly fierce, with neither side backing down in the slightest while simultaneously using their own methods to try to break the barrier. Their struggle caused chaos and destruction around them.

As for Bian Yu Qing and Gong Wen Shan…

It should be said that Gong Wen Shan was worthy of his title as a Spirit Array Grandmaster. After he landed on the high platform, he directly summoned an Array Plate that caused a ripple to spread out and directly envelop Bian Yu Qing in a layer of fog.

No one could see what happened inside this mist.

However… Having fallen into the opponent’s Array Plate, Yang Kai estimated that Bian Yu Qing was probably powerless and could only silently pay tribute to her in his heart.

The scene of Xiao Chen cracking the barrier before was still fresh in people’s minds, so they all understood that this light curtain was extremely tough and could not be broken at will. As such, no one held back.

Yang Kai directly used his Dragon Transformation Secret Technique and condensed his Five Elements Indestructible Sword Qi onto his claw before he smashed his fist onto the barrier fiercely.

Without anyone interfering with him, Yang Kai used five strikes to break the barrier.

As soon as the light curtain shattered, Yang Kai stuffed the fiery red bead into his Space Ring.

He then turned his head and saw that Luo Yuan and Kong Qi were still locked in a fierce melee, both of them pushing their Source Qi wildly to suppress the other while using other methods to smash the barrier protecting the Emperor Authority Bead.

The light of the barrier faded at a speed visible to the naked eye and seemed to be on the verge of breaking.

Nearby, Bian Yu Qing and Gong Wen Shan were still surrounded by a layer of fog, with neither of their figures anywhere to be seen. There wasn’t even any sound coming from this fog bank.

On the farthest side, Murong Xiao Xiao was anxiously using her Heavenly Feather Ring artifact to bombard the barrier protecting the Supreme Divine Water.

Although she was trying her best, she still needed at least a few breaths if she wanted to crack this barrier.

Yang Kai’s figure flickered when he saw this and arrived directly next to Murong Xiao Xiao.

“Junior Brother Yang…” Murong Xiao Xiao pursed her lips lightly as she wore a complex expression.

Yang Kai didn’t say anything and simply urged his Five Elements Indestructible Sword Qi wrapped dragon claws to match the timing Murong Xiao Xiao’s Heavenly Feather Ring impacted the light curtain.

Combining the power of the two blows, the barrier buckled and broke apart.

Yang Kai’s hand flashed rapidly as he took out a jade bottle, stored the drop of Supreme Divine Water into it, then immediately threw it to Murong Xiao Xiao as he shouted, “Go!”

Chapter 2171

Yang Kai wasn’t a man who didn’t know how to be satisfied. At this moment, after grabbing a treasure for himself and helping Murong Xiao Xiao obtain the Supreme Divine Water, the best choice would be to withdraw rather than fight for more.

When Murong Xiao Xiao heard this, she raised no objections, immediately catching the jade bottle and taking back her Heavenly Feather Ring before following Yang Kai into the light gate and disappearing.

Just after the pair left, on the high platform, accompanied by Luo Yuan’s furious shout, a burst of Source Qi exploded forth and Kong Qi’s complexion changed greatly as he exclaimed, “You…”

Just as his words fell, he coughed up a mouthful of blood and flew out.

When he landed, shock filled his face.

He didn’t expect that Luo Yuan’s strength was far greater than his own. Despite the two of them both being Third-Order Dao Source Realm Masters, Luo Yuan was able to force him back in a Source Qi competition at the last moment.

Kong Qi was also a favoured son of Heaven and the rising star of Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce. Compared with Luo Yuan, the gap between them should not have been small and should obviously favour Kong Qi.

“Hmph, you were too overconfident!” After Luo Yuan forced Kong Qi back, he made no attempt to finish him off and instead palmed towards the light barrier, smashing it to pieces and obtaining the Emperor Authority Bead which sealed the full-powered blow of an Emperor Realm Master!

Next, he cast his gaze towards the fog bank before letting out a low roar and charging forward.

But at that moment, the billowing fog suddenly exploded outwards, and by the time Luo Yuan rushed over, the thick mist disappeared as if it had just been an illusion.

Only Bian Yu Qing stood there alone, looking around blankly, grinding her teeth!

A figure flashed out at that moment and rushed into the light gate, quickly disappearing.

“The Emperor Aura…” despite some guesses, Luo Yuan still asked Bian Yu Qing in a deep tone.

Bian Yu Qing wore an aggrieved expression and snapped, “I don’t know… I was trapped in that smoke and couldn’t see anything…”

“Waste!” Luo Yuan cursed before turning around and rushing towards the light gate. The figure which just disappeared was no doubt Gong Wen Shan, so the Emperor Aura was definitely on him now.

“How is this my fault!?” Bian Yu Qing snarled.

In the blink of an eye, there were only two people left in the hall, Kong Qi with his pale face and bleeding mouth, and a gloomy Bian Yu Qing.

The latter soon turned to the former, smiled and called out, “Little Brother…”

Kong Qi glanced at her and smiled miserably, “Don’t call out so affectionately. I don’t have anything, so it’s useless to try to talk to me!”

Bian Yu Qing pouted angrily and snapped, “A bunch of bastards bullying this Mistress, hateful!”

Of the rare treasures here, one went to Lan Xun and Xiao Chen who left the field before the battle began, while the rest were divided up amongst the others while she and Kong Qi received nothing. This annoyed Bian Yu Qing to no end.

In terms of cultivation, she wasn’t the lowest amongst those present, and in terms of strength, she also didn’t believe she was the weakest, but she wound up with nothing in the end. Losing such an incredible opportunity was of course unacceptable to her.

…..

Somewhere outside the Flowing Time Temple,, Yang Kai and Murong Xiao Xiao appeared at the same time in a flash of light.

Yang Kai immediately released his Divine Sense, but after checking and confirming there was no danger in the surroundings, he relaxed.

There were no signs of other people appearing nearby, possibly because they were all teleported to other places, but the light gate was indeed a passage to leave the Flowing Time Temple, there was no doubt about that.

Even after waiting for a while, there was still no trace of other people appearing.

Yang Kai immediately understood that unless they passed through the light gate at the same time, the place they appeared in would be different.

Next, Yang Kai turned to Murong Xiao Xiao, who was looking at him gratefully because he had helped her acquire the Supreme Divine Water at the last moment and did not take the opportunity to snatch it from her.

At that time, Yang Kai could have easily snatched the drop of Supreme Divine Water for himself.

Murong Xiao Xiao opened her mouth and was about to say something when suddenly a dramatic change occurred.

Up in the sky, a thunderous rumbling resounded, one that was so loud that cultivators within a hundred kilometres could hear it clearly.

At the same time as the sound rang out, the Flowing Time Temple which was floating up in the sky actually emitted a dazzling light that blinded all who looked at it.

An astonishing pressure suddenly descended in the next moment and rapidly spread out…

*Hong long long…*

The rumblings only grew louder.

“Junior Brother Yang…” Murong Xiao Xiao shouted solemnly.

Yang Kai did not answer and instead just squinted his eyes to observe the changing situation, a short time later sighing as he muttered, “This Temple seems to be concealing itself again. I don’t know what kind of opportunity is needed for its next appearance, let alone when that will be.”

Just as he said, after the dazzling light dissipated, the Flowing Time Temple in the sky really vanished, as if it had never even existed.

However…

In the place where the temple once stood, a small black figure had appeared.

“That’s…” Yang Kai stared intently for a moment before his eyes shrank fiercely.

Up in the sky, an ominous beast had appeared, one that was covered in flames and looked like a tiger and an ox with a pair of giant wings and thick scaled armour, a majestic and terrifying creature to behold.

Its nostrils spewed out flames that seemed capable of melting space and when it stamped its legs, the world itself seemed to shake.

“Qiong Qi!” Yang Kai exclaimed in shock.

Murong Xiao Xiao couldn’t help covering her mouth with her small hands, her beautiful eyes trembling violently.

Having been born in Azure Sun Temple, and as an elite disciple of the Sect, she had naturally heard of the beast, ‘Qiong Qi’.

It was synonymous with extreme wickedness, slaughter, and despair!

Even in ancient times, the Divine Spirit Qiong Qi was a notorious ominous beast and countless creatures had died to its flames. Few Masters could even resist its phenomenal might.

At this moment, it was just standing quietly mid-air, but the cruel and fierce aura it released made it difficult for every living creature within a hundred kilometres to even breathe as they trembled in fright.

Within a hundred-kilometre radius, every cultivator who felt this fierce pressure sank, like a ten thousand ton mountain was pressing down on their shoulders, making them feel like death was imminent and inevitable…

*Huo…*

Qiong Qi roared to the Heavens, its voice containing an extremely complex mix of emotions, like joy, excitement, and sorrow.

Immediately after, it squinted its eyes and glanced around, its burning gaze seemingly piercing through space before it stretched out its claw and directly pierced the Void, opening a crack in space before dove in and disappeared.

Outside the Four Seasons Realm, in the unnamed mountain valley.

This place was no longer filled with World Energy and instead had become extremely barren. The only thing worth noting was the large oval light gate that gently floated just above the ground.

The many cultivators that originally gathered here had also flooded into the Four Seasons Realm a few days ago, so now, only a few Emperor Realm Masters who had been responsible for leading their Sects’ disciples here remained.

Silver Star Envoy Xiao Yu Yang of Star Soul Palace, Gao Xue Ting of Azure Sun Temple, Chen Wen Hao of Heavenly Martial Holy Land, Feng Ming of Orthodoxy Temple, Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce Ceng Yuan, Violet Source Chamber of Commerce Lou Chi…

These Masters had all remained here on the one hand to observe the changes in the entrance of the Four Seasons Realm, so as to avoid any irreparable accidents, and on the other hand to wait for their elite disciples to return.

Since the various Dao Source Realm Juniors had the Four Seasons Realm, these Emperors had each found a place to sit in meditation.

For Masters like them, waiting for thirty-three days was nothing. Perhaps this was enough time to slightly comprehend a Secret Art they were cultivating, or to slightly refine an Emperor Artifact they possessed, so for these thirty-three days, none of them felt bored.

Suddenly, Xiao Yu Yang opened his eyes as he vaguely sensed something amiss, but soon that vague sensation turned into one of pure shock and horror.

In the next moment, all the Emperor Realm Masters present stood up and turned their eyes in the same direction.

There, a Void Crack suddenly appeared, and from it, a terrifying being erupted.

Before everyone’s eyes, a fiery-red flaming beast emerged from the Void.

“Hahahaha… This Sir is finally free!” As soon as this ominous beast appeared, it uttered this roar and laughed wildly, like a prisoner who had been in captivity for countless years that had finally escaped.

“The Divine Spirit… Qiong Qi!” After Xiao Yu Yang observed the strange beast for a moment, he couldn’t help exclaiming and condensing his Qi.

The other Emperors present also trembled as they swiftly flew over to Xiao Yu Yang without any need for explanation.

The Emperors present were well aware of how terrifying Qiong Qi’s strength was, but none of them had ever imagined that in this nameless mountain valley, a Divine Spirit would suddenly appear, and one famed for its cruelty and wickedness at that…

Seven Glories Chamber of Commerce Vice President Ceng Yuan couldn’t stop his legs from trembling as his face turned extremely pale.

“Oh…” Qiong Qi swept his pair of beast pupils down and muttered in a clear voice, “It seems that a delicious snack was just waiting for this Sir to come out…”

As it spoke, a clear line of drool appeared at the corner of its mouth, as if it had been starving for a long time and finally saw a good meal.

*Guulp…*

The gulping sounds that echoed next did not come from Qiong Qi, but rather from the Emperor Realm Masters gathered below.

All of them had been shocked by Qiong Qi’s remarks, and this seemingly light comment was by no means an exaggeration by this Divine Spirit. Any mature Divine Spirit would not be much weaker than a Great Emperor, so if it really wanted to treat the Emperor Realm Masters present like food, not many of them would be able to escape, much less resist.

At the critical moment, Xiao Yu Yang was the first to recover, cupped his fists, and called out, “Star Soul Palace’s Silver Star Envoy, Xiao Yu Yang, greets Sir Qiong Qi! Might I ask what Sir’s…”

“Star Soul Palace?” Qiong Qi heard this and a trace of disdain flashed across its eyes as it snorted, “Never heard of it.”

It did not even know of the Southern Territory’s overlord Sect.

Xiao Yu Yang couldn’t help feeling his heart sink as he realized the situation was turning dire. This was likely a Divine Spirit who had been slumbering for countless years, so it had never even heard of Star Soul Palace before. This meant that using Bright Moon Great Emperor’s name to deter it was also not a valid plan.

Chapter 2172

“It is an honour for you to become this Sir’s meal. Who shall come up first?” Qiong Qi looked down and asked in a deep voice.

No one dared to answer as each Emperor went pale and trembled, an extreme sense of depression filling their hearts.

“No one wants to volunteer…” Qiong Qi sneered, “If no one steps forward, this Sir will choose one at random. There is no escape, so the only difference is who shall be first and who shall be last. Don’t be afraid…”

“Senior Xiao!” Violet Source Chamber of Commerce’s Vice President Lou Chi couldn’t help calling out to Xiao Yu Yang, seemingly pinning all his hopes on him.

Xiao Yu Yang’s complexion darkened as he realized that if he didn’t act now, it would be too late. Summoning a small mirror-like object into his hand, Xiao Yu Yang snapped it, causing it to burst into tiny specs of light.

As these specs of light flew out, a gentle but solemn pressure descended from the sky and a stalwart figure slowly manifested.

Everyone immediately turned their heads to look at this figure and their expressions couldn’t help filling with respect and worship.

This man wore a crown of gold and jade and seemed to stand as tall as a mountain while releasing a profound aura.

This figure, however, was illusory and ethereal, so obviously it was not a true physical entity but rather a kind of projection. Nonetheless, at this moment, this figure gaze seemed to penetrate space as it stared directly at Qiong Qi.

Even a beast as strong as Qiong Qi couldn’t help becoming slightly more serious as he snorted coldly, “A Great Emperor’s Soul Manifestation?”

From this phantom, he could feel the aura that only a Great Emperor could possess, so he understood who it was that stood before him.

This was clearly the image of an overlord of this world, the Bright Moon Great Emperor!

Just like the two most dazzling lights in the darkness, as Qiong Qi focused all its attention on the Great Emperor, the Great Emperor was also paying close attention to Qiong Qi.

“This King did not know Qiong Qi was still among us on this plane!” Bright Moon suddenly said.

“Hmph,” Qiong Qi coldly snorted, not showing the slightest weakness, “This Sir roamed the world freely before you were even born. How dare you posture in front of this Sir!” Qiong Qi narrowed its giant eyes and sneered disdainfully, “Or what, do you think a trivial Soul Manifestation is enough to subdue this Sir?”

One man and one beast confronted one another across space, causing the surrounding world to shudder. The mere existence of these two caused space to warp and even led to tiny Void Cracks flitting about. Instantly, the nameless mountain valley seemed to teeter on the brink of collapse.

Xiao Yu Yang and others did not dare to say a word, all of them just standing aside with solemn expressions, silently circulating their Qi to resist the horrifying pressure engulfing them.

“Sir Qiong Qi jests,” As one of the few masters of this world, Bright Moon didn’t mind Qiong Qi’s arrogant attitude and instead smiled lightly, “Bright Moon simply wanted to congratulate you on finally achieving your long-awaited freedom!”

Qiong Qi’s eyes darkened as he shouted, “What do you know?”

Bright Moon replied, “When I was young, I once heard that Sir Flowing Time had a playmate, a Divine Spirit, Qiong Qi. Unfortunately, after Sir Flowing Time disappeared, his companion also went missing. That was tens of thousands of years ago, but I wonder if Sir Qiong Qi still remembers those times fondly?”

“Flowing Time…” Qiong Qi seemed to be stimulated by Bright Moon’s words and the arrogant and violent aura around his body gradually faded, his eyes filling with a kind of fond remembrance.

Bright Moon stood there quietly, not meaning to interrupt, while Xiao Yu Yang and the other Emperors did not dare to move.

After a long time, Bright Moon continued, “I wonder if Sir Qiong Qi would like to come to my Star Soul Palace as a guest. This King has a relic of Sir Flowing Time in his possession that should be transferred to Sir!”

“Hmph, it’s useless trying to bribe this Sir!” Qiong Qi shook his head and snorted, “This Sir is hungry.”

Bright Moon smiled and said, “Then I shall prepare a feast for Sir!”

“So be it!” Qiong Qi said loudly, “Since you have invited this Sir so sincerely, this Sir will give you some face and accept!”

“Bright Moon shall eagerly await Sir’s arrival. This is the location of my Star Soul Palace!” Bright Moon said as he stretched out a finger and sent a ball of white light out to Qiong Qi.

Qiong Qi paused for a moment to contemplate before he turned into a fiery stream of light and disappeared across the horizon.

After Qiong Qi left, Xiao Yu Yang and the others finally breathed a sigh of relief as a gentle breeze blew past them, leaving them with a slight chill on their backs.

The Bright Moon Great Emperor’s projection turned around and glanced at them briefly, then without saying anything, flickered and dissipated.

“Many thanks, Sir!” All the Emperor Realm Masters bowed.

After a while, the six Emperors slowly straightened back up and began exchanging glances, all of them seeing the fear in each other’s eyes. Each of them was a powerful Master who since reaching the Emperor Realm had not experienced such a close brush with death!

“Many thanks for Senior Xiao’s timely intervention, otherwise today…” Cheng Yuan said with some lingering fear on his face.

“En, if it weren’t for Senior Xiao, I’m afraid we would all have been buried here today,” Lou Chi nodded in agreement.

Xiao Yu Yang’s face twitched slightly as he said with a wry smile, “It was Sir Great Emperor who saved us… it had nothing to do with this Xiao. However… Qiong Qi’s suddenly appearing here does not bode well for the Southern Territory’s future stability.”

When everyone heard him say this, their hearts sank.

Qiong Qi was an ominous beast that was literally a living disaster. Its mere presence would definitely set off some unpredictable and extremely vicious incidents. All the Emperors present immediately determined it was necessary to warn their respective Sects as soon as they returned so that precautions could be taken early.

…..

Inside the Four Seasons Realm, Yang Kai flew forward alone, crossing the Two Seasons Mountain Range as he headed towards the Realm of Winter.

Not long ago, when he and Murong Xiao Xiao were standing inside the Two Seasons Mountain Range waiting, the latter had contacted Xiao Bai Yi through the communication artifact Azure Sun Temple disciples all carried and agreed to meet with each other. After their rendezvous, Xiao Bai Yi did not happily greet Yang Kai.

After all, on the battle stage at that time, even though Yang Kai defeated Xiao Bai Yi in an upright manner, it also denied Xiao Bai Yi the opportunity to gain more benefits!

If not for that defeat, Xiao Bai Yi would have occupied at least one spot in the final competition where he would have a chance to snatch up an extraordinary treasure.

Yang Kai knew that Xiao Bai Yi had some resentment in his heart so he did not linger for long, only saying a few words to the pair before heading off to the Realm of Winter alone.

Halfway there, Yang Kai took out the fiery red bead to study it, but whether it was his Divine Sense or Source Qi that he poured into this bead, it produced no response.

Helpless, Yang Kai could only store it into his Space Ring temporarily.

The Two Seasons Mountain Range at this moment was incredibly calm.

Possibly because of the appearance of the Flowing Time Temple not long ago, or because of the appearance of Qiong Qi, as Yang Kai walked along the way, he didn’t encounter a single Monster Beast.

Two days later, he successfully crossed the Two Seasons Mountain Range.

There was a completely different world ahead.

As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but silver and white, heavy snow flying through the air, only a ground that was completely covered in thick ice.

A single step into this place was all it took for the ubiquitous cold to envelop one’s body and for the Ice Energy to flow into one’s pores, chilling blood and Soul alike.

Yang Kai braved the wind and snow as he began exploring this white world.

In the Four Seasons Realm, the natural environment of each realm was completely different. In the Realm of Summer, the sun was scorching and the temperature soared, but in the Realm of Winter, it was the exact opposite.

The Tribulation Fruit only grew in extremely cold environments, so the Realm of Winter was the perfect place for such a spirit fruit to appear.

Yang Kai’s hopes rose, but he also realised just how difficult it was to explore this domain.

As he walked along the way, crossing frozen mountains and rivers in the Realm of Winter, although he occasionally reaped some gains, those gains had only been some somewhat rare herbs and fruits, while no sign of the Tribulation Fruit was to be seen.

The omnipresent cold caused the Source Qi in his body to flow at least twenty percent slower than usual.

With no other resort, Yang Kai could only call out Liu Yan to walk with him.

Liu Yan was a Fire Attribute Artifact Spirit who had swallowed all kinds of strange and unusual flames, so she didn’t fear some trivial cold and was easily able to ward off the cold as she walked beside Yang Kai.

Liu Yan had to stick very close to Yang Kai’s side though and was constantly using her own warmth to dissipate the cold surrounding them.

Unlike in other domains, the Realm of Winter was seldom explored, and even if a cultivator was transported to this place when they first entered the Four Seasons Realm, their first thought was almost always to quickly find a way to leave here.

Unless one had a special purpose like Yang Kai, none would explore the Realm of Winter for any extended length of time.

As such, even after Yang Kai wandered around for several days, he didn’t see even a trace of another person. It was as if he was the only one alive in the entire Realm of Winter.

Three days later, somewhere in the Realm of Winter, Yang Kai looked around with a blank expression.

He was completely lost in this silvery world and couldn’t even figure out which direction to walk.

It was basically impossible for a Master like him to encounter such a situation, but the environment of the Realm of Winter was really too harsh and unique, making it so that even Yang Kai couldn’t walk around here freely while maintaining his sense of bearing.

When he looked back, he also saw that his footprints had been swiftly covered by the snow.

“What happened?” Liu Yan asked with concern.

“Well, it seems I’m lost,” Yang Kai replied calmly.

Liu Yan smiled, “So, such a thing can happen…”

“It’s fine, at worst I can just pick a direction and fly straight to leave here,” Yang Kai couldn’t help but sigh, “But continuing such an aimless search will probably not yield any good results!”

“It’s a pity… I can’t help you.” Liu Yan replied sadly.

Yang Kai grinned, “Staying by my side is the greatest help.”

Liu Yan smiled lightly but in the next moment, she let out a note of surprise.

Yang Kai noticed this and quickly looked towards her.

Liu Yan stood there, her eyes staring in a certain direction, her expression constantly changing until after a long time, she said, “Master, it seems I’ve found something very interesting!”

“Oh? What?” Yang Kai asked.

“Wait a moment, I’ll be right back!” Saying so, Liu Yan transformed into a flame and shot forward, soon after diving into a snowy peak ahead and disappearing.

Chapter 2173

Amidst the wind and snow, Yang Kai stood in place and waited for three hours before Liu Yan returned from the icy peak.

Seeing her mysterious look, Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling curious and asked, “What did you go there for?”

Liu Yan didn’t answer directly and instead called out, “Come out, don’t be afraid!”

The place she was looking at was empty, however.

Yang Kai was stunned, but he also knew that Liu Yan wouldn’t tease him pointlessly, so he watched carefully in anticipation.

Unfortunately, nothing happened, causing Liu Yan to helplessly sigh, “Master, please wait a moment, it seems to be a little timid, let me talk to it.”

After that, Liu Yan squatted down in the snow and pushed her Divine Sense, as if she was trying to communicate with someone or something.

After a long time without any response, Liu Yan became a little annoyed and her expression sank as she snapped coldly, “If you don’t come out, I’ll melt you!”

When these words fell, a small mound of snow puffed up, as if something was emerging from below.

Yang Kai couldn’t help staring in surprise.

A moment later, in a puff of flying snow, something suddenly shot out from the ground, turning into a stream of light, and began dancing about mid-air.

Although this thing was fast, Yang Kai could still see it clearly.

It actually turned out to be a palm-sized snowflake!

However, this snowflake was completely different from ordinary snowflakes. It seemed to have a certain spirituality and consciousness and it also gave off a kind of faint flame-like glow that disturbed the surrounding air.

“What is this?” Yang Kai’s eyes almost bulged as he asked in shock.

Liu Yan replied, “I can’t really explain it clearly, but it should be something similar to myself!”

As she spoke, she beckoned lightly to the snowflake, causing it to fly over and float gently in front of her, seemingly not daring to get too close.

Yang Kai looked at this snowflake with interest and soon discovered that there were some traces of facial features at its centre. These traces were blurry and undefined, but they were definitely present.

“An Innate World Spirit Treasure?” Yang Kai muttered in a low voice.

This snowflake was probably a kind of strange living creature that had evolved in the Realm of Winter over countless years. With its unique constitution, it was likely that no one else even knew it existed.

“En,” Liu Yan nodded, “But it is also a kind of ice flame! If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have been able to feel its existence.”

Hearing what she said, Yang Kai immediately understood.

Liu Yan herself was an Artifact Spirit who had devoured and refined numerous types of strange flames. This little snowflake seemed to be a type of strange flame itself, so there was a kind of resonance between it and Liu Yan…

However, because of their opposing hot and cold attributes, the little snowflake didn’t dare get too close to Liu Yan and even seemed extremely afraid of her.

“You brought it here… what for?” Yang Kai asked strangely.

Logically speaking, Liu Yan could just swallow this ice flame and be done with it. Although it was clearly an Ice Attribute flame, since its sentience had already formed, it would still have a good effect on Liu Yan’s growth.

However, she didn’t show any intention of swallowing it and instead brought it over to Yang Kai, which meant she didn’t plan on using it to improve her strength.

“It’s very familiar with this place, so it can help us find things!” Liu Yan smiled slightly.

“Oh! Great idea!” Yang Kai’s eyes lit up.

Liu Yan soon frowned, though, and said, “But… its sentience is quite limited and it takes a lot of effort to communicate with it, so I don’t know if it will be much help.”

“It’s better than searching aimlessly like before,” Yang Kai grinned, “As for the effect, we’ll just have to try to know.”

Saying so, he turned a soft gaze to the little snowflake and gently asked, “Is there any good thing here? Can you take me to find it?”

The little snowflake seemed to not hear him and just floated quietly mid-air.

Yang Kai wore a slightly embarrassed look as he turned to ask Liu Yan, “Does it not understand?”

Liu Yan smiled lightly and said, “It has never met any other living creature, so how could it understand human words? You can only rely on Divine Sense to communicate with it.”

Saying so, Liu Yan pushed her Divine Sense towards the little snowflake.

The next moment, the other party seemed to understand something and with a flicker, it took off in a certain direction.

Yang Kai and Liu Yan exchanged a glance before they immediately followed.

Soon after, under the guidance of the little snowflake, Yang Kai and Liu Yan came to a mountain valley. The little snowflake stopped at a certain spot and began circling around.

“There should be something good here!” Liu Yan said.

“I’ll take a look.” Yang Kai already began moving, using his Source Qi to dig up the ice and snow.

After a stick of incense’ time, a huge pit appeared in front of Yang Kai and he jumped inside to search.

A moment later, he jumped out with a joyful smile on his face with a kind of jade-like spirit grass in his hand.

“Excellent!” Yang Kai smiled as he looked at the little snowflake approvingly, “This is really much better than blindly searching.”

As if understanding Yang Kai’s praise, the little snowflake flew around Yang Kai a few times quickly before landing on his shoulder, its fuzzy facial features showing a happy expression.

Seeing this situation, Yang Kai immediately understood that the other party’s thinking should be very simple; after all, being born in this Realm of Winter, it had very limited interactions with other creatures. In other words, it was a pure blank slate that had very limited experiences. If this wasn’t the case, how could it possibly be so happy with just a small compliment?

“Work hard, otherwise I’ll melt you!” Liu Yan added a threat at just the right time, her pretty face as cold as ice as she sent out an obvious murderous intent, causing the little snowflake to shiver in fright and hide behind Yang Kai, clinging to him as it only partially exposed itself to stare at Liu Yan timidly.

Yang Kai couldn’t help glancing over at Liu Yan, who spat out her little tongue at him, their eyes meeting as they silently communicated with each other.

After a while, Yang Kai rolled his eyes and said, “Let it help me find the most precious thing here, and if there are any good treasures along the way, inform us about them as well.”

Liu Yan nodded and used her Divine Sense to convey Yang Kai’s meaning.

The little snowflake received this order and rushed out immediately, leading the way.

With this kind of Innate World Spirit Treasure leading the way, Yang Kai really saved a lot of time and obtained many treasures. Now he didn’t need to search this frozen land blindly as in this snowy domain, no precious treasure could escape the detection of the little snowflake. As long as the little snowflake stopped somewhere, Yang Kai knew there was something good buried beneath the snow.

Along the way, Yang Kai added many Ice Attribute spirit grasses and medicines to his Space Ring, most of them Dao Source Grade with a few even reaching the Emperor Grade.

The special environment of the Realm of Winter provided excellent growth conditions for such spirit grasses and medicines, and also kept them concealed all these years until the little snowflake helped Yang Kai find them.

No matter what kind of herb it was that Yang Kai found, it had a medicinal age of at least ten thousand years!

Yang Kai benefited greatly!

And with more and more contact along the way, the little snowflake seemed to have gradually become familiar with Yang Kai and no longer acted as timid as it did in the beginning. It was like a newborn child, full of strong curiosity for creatures like Yang Kai, flying around him from time to time, observing him from every possible angle.

However… because Liu Yan continued to play the menacing character along the way, threatening it from time to time, the little snowflake naturally behaved itself and didn’t dare to approach within ten paces of her.

As a result, Yang Kai and Liu Yan had to separate a certain distance.

Although he had many gains, Yang Kai was a little disappointed that he did not obtain the Tribulation Fruit!

He had actually obtained several things rarer and more precious than the Tribulation Fruit, but he still lacked what he wanted most.

He also knew that this kind of thing couldn’t be rushed and he could only calm himself and continued the search.

A few days later, Yang Kai was greeted by a surprising scene.

Not far in front of him, there was a shimmering lake. This lake was only a couple of kilometres or so in diameter and was surrounded by high mountains, making it an extremely beautiful sight to behold.

What surprised him though was that this lake showed no signs of freezing.

Heavy snow, like goose feathers, still fell from the sky, but they all melted as soon as they touched the surface of the lake, as if the lake had some magical power that ensured it would never freeze over.

The surface of the water was so clear that Yang Kai even saw some strange fish swimming in the water below.

Judging from their big mouths and fangs alone, it seemed these fish weren’t good to provoke.

But once they arrived here, the little snowflake no longer advanced and instead kept flying around Yang Kai, seemingly trying to convey something to him.

After being together for so long, Yang Kai has also become able to interpret the little snowflake’s behaviour, so when he saw this, he asked thoughtfully, “You want to say, the most precious thing here is at the bottom of this lake?”

As soon as Yang Kai spoke these words, the little snowflake floated up and down, as if nodding.

Yang Kai nodded back and declared, “Then I’ll go take a look!”

“Master, be careful!” Liu Yan warned with concern.

Yang Kai nodded before flying up, arriving at the centre of the lake, glancing left and right, then diving into the water.

A cultivator like Yang Kai didn’t have to worry about his clothes getting wet from the lake water, just by pushing his Source Qi slightly, he could protect himself from both the water and the cold.

As the aura of a Dao Source Realm Master spread out, the fish scattered frantically.

Although the fish at the bottom of the lake looked quite terrifying, they didn’t have much real strength, so they didn’t dare to come close.

The little snowflake didn’t follow him, so Yang Kai could only explore on his own to find this so-called ‘most precious treasure’, starting with the centre of the lake before working his way outwards.

On the shore, Liu Yan watched quietly, her beautiful eyes fixed on Yang Kai, ready to support him at the slightest sign of trouble. As for the little snowflake, it floated a dozen meters away from Liu Yan as it too watched Yang Kai, some worry apparent on its fuzzy face as it flitted about uneasily from time to time.

Chapter 2174

The lake water was cold, but still within a tolerable range, and Yang Kai didn’t face any surprises or danger as he dove down. In fact, the only sound around him was the sound of his own heartbeat.

Suddenly, Yang Kai seemed to sense something and turned in a certain direction.

Over there, the water seemed to move differently.

Peering forward, Yang Kai saw an incredible scene.

At the very centre of the lake, there was a woman who seemed to be bathing. This woman had soft black hair, picturesque eyebrows, a delicate face, and elegant shoulders. The heat from her body seemed to react with the surrounding cold water, creating a faint mist that obscured her figure and gave her an ethereal quality.

The clear water of the lake allowed light from the surface to clearly reflect off this woman, highlighting her features and provoking much thought.

At this moment, the woman was gently washing her pure white skin, seemingly unaware of Yang Kai’s arrival.

However… After Yang Kai cast his gaze towards her, the other party apparently sensed his presence and quickly turned her head to look over.

A pair of beautiful eyes, like shimmering stars that exuded an inviting light that seemed to draw in all who saw them appeared.

When their four eyes suddenly met, Yang Kai’s expression turned blank while the woman only smiled even more enchantingly.

A faint halo that was barely visible to the naked eye pulsed from the woman’s figure and covered Yang Kai.

Yang Kai’s expression became even more sluggish…

The woman grinned seeing this before her smile suddenly turned hideous. Opening her mouth, her delicate lips rapidly expanded into a giant maw that bit towards Yang Kai.

Even from a distance of more than a few dozen metres, this giant mouth was able to swallow Yang Kai whole.

As soon as this huge mouth closed, the image of the bathing woman rapidly distorted. No longer was there any sign of a beautiful woman, and instead all that remained was a strange beast with a peculiarly shaped body that appeared to be chewing something.

This strange beast was indescribable. Spherical in shape, it was at least a couple dozen metres in diameter, had eight or so long tentacles that danced about freely around it, and over a hundred strange eyes dotted across its skin. 

On the shore, Liu Yan, who had been watching Yang Kai closely, saw this scene and her pretty face sank, but she didn’t show much worry because she could feel that Yang Kai was fine.

On the contrary, the little snowflake was taken aback and flew out rapidly, as if it wanted to rescue Yang Kai.

“Haha… a Monster Beast proficient in Soul attacks is quite rare!” Yang Kai’s voice suddenly rang out and his figure appeared standing above the strange beast’s head in the next moment, looking completely unscathed.

As soon as the scene of a woman bathing appeared in his vision, Yang Kai knew something was wrong.

In this accursed place, which Sect’s female disciple would suddenly decide to take a bath? The Dao Source Realm cultivators who entered the Four Seasons Realm had no time for such leisure.

At first, he thought that this woman was some kind of Monster Beast, but after being attacked, he suddenly realized that everything was just an illusion created by a Soul attack. 

However, this illusion was too realistic, so even Yang Kai wasn’t able to break free from it instantly.

Still, Yang Kai quickly regained his senses and teleported away before the real fatal attack arrived.

As soon as Yang Kai’s voice fell off, the strange beast stopped chewing abruptly and its hundred eyes all turned towards him. Opening its giant mouth, it spat out a jet of water while also releasing an angry howl.

The shockwave from this howl caused visible ripples in the lake that spread out in all directions.

On the surface of Yang Kai’s body, a layer of Source Qi emerged to resist this strange attack.

“Second-Order Dao Source Realm…” Yang Kai Divine Sense swept out and he instantly estimated the strength of this Monster Beast.

As for the strange beast, seeing that its sound attack was actually ineffective, it became enraged and a flash of light shot out from its hundred eyes.

Yang Kai raised his brow seeing this as he muttered, “Soul strength comparable to a peak Dao Source Master!”

His expression turning dignified, Yang Kai pushed his own Spiritual Energy and sent out a pulse of Divine Sense to meet the invisible attack directed at him.

*Hong…*

With a loud bang, Yang Kai’s figure shook and he couldn’t help falling back a few steps as he felt severe pain in his mind.

The strange beast didn’t feel any better though as its chubby body violently convulsed and trembled, its tentacles flailing about as it wailed loudly.

The collision between two Divine Senses was one of the most dangerous and unpredictable kinds of battles. This strange beast had relied on its proficiency in Soul attacks to not put Yang Kai in his eyes, so Yang Kai wasn’t going to show any weakness before the enemy.

He had the unparalleled Soul Warming Lotus, so he was not afraid of a clash of Souls!

In this confrontation, neither man nor beast came out on top.

But Yang Kai had the Soul Warming Lotus to resolve the damage to his Divine Sense, so it only took a moment for him to recover while, on the contrary, the strange beast could only struggle unceasingly, seemingly having suffered great damage in the brief confrontation just now.

When Yang Kai saw this, how could he miss this opportunity? Summoning the Myriads Sword into his hand, Emperor Pressure radiated as he soared forward and slashed out.

*Chi chi chi chi…*

The sword flashed out as thousands of sword lights rained down like a storm onto the strange beast.

Blood splashed out and began dying the lake’s pristine waters red.

Feeling the sharp pain of being cut, the strange beast screamed miserably and its hundred eyes flashed with fear. Immediately, it lashed out with its eight tentacles, intercepting the sword lights.

Unexpectedly, Yang Kai failed to kill it with this blow!

Obviously, this strange Monster Beast only had strength equivalent to a Second-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator, but its Divine Sense was comparable to a peak Dao Source Master. Given that it had such a powerful Soul, its physical body should have been much weaker.

However, this monster’s fat body was actually extremely elastic, so when the many Sword Qi blades hit it, they didn’t manage to penetrate far and only caused superficial damage.

However, its eight dancing tentacles weren’t so fortunate, and facing the constant barrage of Sword Qi blades, they were quickly cut into countless pieces.

At this time, the strange beast looked even more ugly than before, essentially becoming a bloody blob filled with numerous eyes…

As if aware of the crisis it was facing, the strange beast no longer tried to fight with Yang Kai and instead tried to dive into the depths of the lake to escape.

“Hmph!” Yang Kai coldly snorted and dove down after it, bolstered by absolute confidence in his own strength.

A trail of blood was left behind in the clear lake water, so Yang Kai had no trouble chasing after the beast.

Surprisingly, the lake was quite deep and the further down one dove, the less light there was; however, given Yang Kai’s powerful eyesight, he didn’t need to worry about being able to see at all.

After a stick of incense worth of time, Yang Kai followed the trail of blood to the very bottom of the lake, but when he looked around, he couldn’t help raising his brow.

The strange beast was now quietly floating next to a strange altar that was set up at the bottom of the lake, and atop this altar, there was something interesting enshrined.

It was a bead!

This bead was longan-sized and emitted a soft, green light.

When Yang Kai saw this bead, he couldn’t help feeling some suspicions.

Because this bead was indistinguishable from the bead he snatched in the Flowing Time Temple, except this one was green.

“Could it be…”

Suddenly, Yang Kai had a vague guess in his mind, but he was unable to confirm it.

At this moment, the strange beast was floating there quietly, bathing in the green light of the bead. Strangely, under the influence of this green light, the wounds Yang Kai had inflicted on it were rapidly healing, and it wasn’t long before the beast stopped leaking blood altogether.

Of course, the tentacles it had lost had not re-grown, as no matter how strong the vitality of this strange beast was, rapid regeneration of lost limbs was definitely not possible.

“This should be the most precious treasure in the Realm of Winter,” Yang Kai looked at the green beads and muttered to himself.

The little snowflake had brought him here, and in this lake, besides the strange beast, there was only this small bead placed on the altar, and obviously the strange beast was not the most precious treasure in the Realm of Winter.

As such, the only possibility was that this green bead was the treasure Yang Kai sought.

Yang Kai’s arrival also seemed to have alarmed the strange beast that was trying to heal its wounds.

It didn’t need to turn its head as some of its hundred eyes had already discovered Yang Kai’s appearance. It opened its giant mouth and sent out constant threatening roars, but unfortunately for it, having lost its tentacles, it was unable to actually launch any kind of effective physical attack.

It could only focus the power of its Soul again and send out a shockwave towards Yang Kai from its hundred eyes!

“Courting death!” Yang Kai’s complexion darkened as he summoned his Demon Eye of Annihilation. From the golden pupil, a lotus bud appeared and shot out towards its target in a flash.

The next moment, the strange beast froze in place, as if it had been suddenly paralysed.

In the strange beast’s eyes, all it could see now was a blossoming lotus that was rapidly draining away its Spiritual Energy…

Although its Soul was powerful, it had already suffered an injury from its clash with Yang Kai before, so now that it was struck by his Blossoming Lotus Secret Technique, its fate was sealed.

A short while later, with a faint bang, all one hundred of the strange beast’s eyes popped, as if a great pressure inside of them had suddenly erupted.

Yang Kai wielded his Myriads Sword as his figure flickered and he disappeared from where he stood.

When he reappeared, he was already standing behind the beast.

A huge hole now appeared in the round body of the beast, exposing its five viscera and six organs.

Yang Kai palmed backwards as he moved the surrounding Space Principles and shouted, “Exile!”

The pitch-black hole appeared and swallowed up the remnants of the strange beast like a giant mouth. When the black hole disappeared a moment later, only Yang Kai remained.

Opening his palm, there was a dark red Monster Core in his hand!

Chapter 2175

This was a Second-Order Dao Source Realm Monster Beast Monster Core, and it belonged to a Monster Beast with an extremely powerful Soul, so it was the best raw material to refine a Spirit Pill for enhancing Soul cultivation. 

Yang Kai stuffed it into his Space Ring before swimming over to the altar.

Above the altar, there was no trace of any barrier or Spirit Array, only the green bead placed on top of it.

Yang Kai spent some time confirming there were no hidden traps before he reached out carefully and snatched the bead, everything going unexpectedly smoothly.

After using both his Divine Sense and Source Qi to probe and stimulate the bead, Yang Kai observed no reaction at all, exactly like the red bead he acquired earlier!

He really didn’t understand how the strange beast managed to draw energy from this green bead to heal itself.

Immediately afterwards, Yang Kai took out the fiery red bead to compare the two side by side, quickly determining that aside from their different colours, these two beads were identical.

After observing for a long time, he slowly shook his head.

He couldn’t infer the purpose of these two beads at all, so he had no choice but to put them away for now.

Just after Yang Kai stored the green bead into his Space Ring though, a sudden change occurred.

Although the lake was cold before, there were no sign of it freezing, but now, a kind of crackling sound came from all directions and a piercing chill began to fill the water as it began to condense into ice.

Yang Kai’s face changed as he quickly flew upwards.

Bursting through the surface of the lake, Yang Kai came to a halt a couple dozen metres up and turned back just in time to see the entire lake freeze over, blending in with the rest of the silvery white scenery perfectly.

“It seems that it was all thanks to the green bead that this lake was able to avoid freezing,” Yang Kai muttered to himself, wondering just what kind of secret power the green bead held that could actually hold back such an intrusive and severe cold.

After pondering for a moment, Yang Kai turned and flew towards the shore.

Upon his return, Liu Yan just rushed to him and nodded lightly, not saying much, while the little snowflake seemed extremely happy and danced around Yang Kai non-stop.

“Let’s move on,” Yang Kai said to the little snowflake, and the other party seemed to understand his meaning and flew off in a certain direction.

Over the next few days. Yang Kai toured around the Realm of Winter.

With the guidance of the little snowflake, as long as there was any precious treasure nearby, it would smoothly enter Yang Kai’s Space Ring.

Yang Kai’s thinking was quite simple. Since the Bustling World Great Emperor specified that Qin Zhao Yang should come to the Four Seasons Realm to find the Tribulation Fruit, it should not be a pointless endeavour. In other words, this Four Seasons Realm definitely had this special spirit fruit, it was just that he had yet to find it.

However, as long as Yang Kai persevered, he would eventually find what he was looking for, especially now that he had the assistance of the little snowflake, which had a unique advantage in this environment.

Thinking so, Yang Kai made up his mind to not leave the Realm of Winter unless he found the Tribulation Fruit, otherwise, once he left the Four Seasons Realm, he would have no way to explain himself to Qin Zhao Yang.

What disappointed Yang Kai though was that despite gaining many rare and precious Ice Attribute herbs, there was no sign of the Tribulation Fruit anywhere. What’s more, Yang Kai had killed a large number of Monster Beasts during this time, but aside from some Monster Cores, he didn’t obtain another Star Seal.

As time passed, Yang Kai couldn’t help secretly becoming anxious.

On this day, atop an ice glacier, Yang Kai stood with an ugly expression on his face as he stared at a crystal-like fruit tree in front of him.

This fruit tree was only about two metres tall and its leaves seemed to be formed from pure ice that exuded a frigid chill.

On this fruit tree, there was nothing of value; however, at a certain spot on one of its branches, there was a clear trace of something being plucked.

“What a miscalculation, I was a step too late!” Yang Kai muttered in annoyance.

This fruit tree was none other than the Tribulation Fruit Tree. Under the leadership of little snowflake, a ten day exhaustive search had led Yang Kai to this Tribulation Fruit Tree.

However, the Tribulation Fruit which should have existed here had clearly been taken away!

Judging from the traces left on the tree, the fruit should have been harvested only a few days ago.

“Master, you did your best. There’s no need to blame yourself…” Liu Yan quickly comforted when she saw Yang Kai’s expression turn sour.

“I just want to know… who actually took the spirit fruit,” Yang Kai frowned.

Although the Tribulation Fruit was precious and rare, it was not a widely known product, and even if it was taken away, there were very few uses for it. If Yang Kai could figure out who took this spirit fruit, he could likely exchange it for a correspondingly valuable treasure.

As long as the other party wasn’t too unreasonable, they should be happy to make such a transaction, and it wasn’t a big deal for Yang Kai to offer up something in exchange.

But the current situation was that Yang Kai had no idea who this Tribulation Fruit had been obtained by! As such, it was impossible for him to implement this method.

“Is there another fruit tree like this in the Realm of Winter?” Yang Kai turned his head and asked the little snowflake expectantly.

The little snowflake’s fuzzy facial features appeared to furrow before it shook itself side to side.

Yang Kai’s last hope was shattered.

Sighing lightly, Yang Kai grumbled unhappily to himself.

After the Four Seasons Realm opened, the cultivators that entered could only remain inside for thirty-three days. When the time limit came, they would have to already be at a specific location in order to leave the Four Seasons Realm, otherwise they would be trapped inside until the next opening.

Counting the days, it had been about twenty days since Yang Kai entered the Four Seasons Realm, and he had spent more than half that time in the Realm of Winter.

Starting from here, it would take him a few days to rush to the location of the exit, so there was not much time left.

What’s more, he had almost explored the entire Realm of Winter and most of the spirit grasses and medicines that grew here had entered his Space Ring. Now that the Tribulation Fruit had been picked by someone else, there was no point in continuing to remain here.

It would be better to first rush to the exit, then wait for the return of the disciples from the major Sects so he could find a chance to inquire about the whereabouts of the Tribulation Fruit. There was still a chance for success!

Thinking so, Yang Kai made a decision and turned his head to the little snowflake, “Show us the way out!”

“Is Master planning on leaving?” Liu Yan asked as her beautiful eyes flashed.

“En,” Yang Kai nodded.

Liu Yan naturally had no objections, but the little snowflake seemed to be a little sad. These past few days this lonely little creature had experienced so much fun that now it was a little reluctant to be left behind.

Yang Kai grinned and said, “If you want, you can come with me!”

Hearing this, the little snowflake’s wrinkled facial features suddenly unfolded and it beamed with joy, but soon, it once again slumped and shook its head helplessly.

Liu Yan whispered, “It can’t leave the Realm of Winter… It is different from me. This land was where it was born, and its source is here, if it leaves, it will soon wither and die.”

“How can that be?” Yang Kai was stunned.

Liu Yan sighed, “If it leaves here, it would be similar to me abandoning my vessel… rootless wood and sourceless water cannot be sustained for long, unless…”

“Unless what?” Yang Kai asked.

“Unless there was a similar environment in the Sealed World Bead, then it could continue to survive,” Liu Yan replied.

Yang Kai heard this and immediately understood that his recruitment plan was hopeless. He originally thought he could take the little snowflake into his Small Sealed World, but apparently he was too naive.

Understanding this, Yang Kai stretched out his hand, held up the little snowflake, and placed it on his shoulder as he smiled and said, “Don’t be so sad, if there’s a chance, I’ll return here to see you! Just wait for me, next time, I’ll be sure to find a way to take you away!”

Though he said so, Yang Kai also knew that the chances of this were basically next to none, as it would be several hundred years before the Four Seasons Realm opened again at the earliest, and by then, he would likely not be able to enter.

After all, by then, he should have reached the Emperor Realm…

However, the little snowflake was too innocent to understand this, so this simple coddling immediately allowed its mood to improve and become joyful again.

Watching it dance about happily, Yang Kai felt quite some pain in his heart…

Starting from the glacier, it took a full four days before Yang Kai reached the Two Seasons Mountain Range, and although there were some gains along the way, there weren’t many.

At this point, the little snowflake didn’t move forward anymore.

Yang Kai and Liu Yan bid farewell to it here before flying off.

Once he passed through the Two Seasons Mountain Range, Yang Kai flew straight towards the exit.

Before entering the Four Seasons Realm, each Sect Elder had informed the disciples of their Sect that they must arrive at the exit before the closure date.

As for the location of this exit, it was at the centre of the Four Seasons Realm!

As such, Yang Kai didn’t need to worry about going in the wrong direction.

After three days of travel, Yang Kai arrived at a flat plain and soon spotted the exit of the Four Seasons Realm on the horizon.

The exit, like the entrance in the unnamed mountain valley, was a giant oval light door that quietly floated mid-air.

Cultivators who entered the Four Seasons Realm could leave the Four Seasons Realm at any time through this light gate.

However, the time limit had not been reached yet, so obviously no cultivator would leave early.

The situation here was just as Yang Kai had expected, empty, with no one else around.

Counting the days, there were still five or six days until the time limit was reached.

Yang Kai didn’t intend to explore the Four Seasons Realm anymore and just planned to wait here; after all, there was no guarantee that the person who obtained the Tribulation Fruit wouldn’t arrive here early and leave.

While waiting, Yang Kai began to think about what he would exchange with others if he really found the one who obtained the Tribulation Fruit.

There were countless valuables in his hands, but many of them could not be brought out to trade, such as his five Emperor Artifacts.

He had a few Dao Source Pills left over from his recent breakthrough, but these were only useful for peak Origin Kings. Most Dao Source Realm cultivators wouldn’t be interested in these.

He also had a lot of gains in the Four Seasons Realm that he could bring out, but whether the one who had the Tribulation Fruit would be interested in any of these items was uncertain.

After thinking it over, Yang Kai decided that his best bet was to offer up the drop of Immortal Source Liquid he still had, as it was a chip that no one would refuse.