If the Portal Corridor were to break apart, Yang Kai would not be the only one doomed to die. All the people hiding inside the Universe Cave Heaven would face the same fate; therefore, he had to stabilise this Void Corridor through any means possible.
He could not afford to continue fighting here any longer, so he had to finish this battle as soon as possible. However, there were two Territory Lords and in his current state, it would not be easy for him to deal with them unless he resorted to his Soul Rending Thorns once more.
[Will I be able to bear the burden?] Yang Kai took a moment to check the condition of his Soul.
Half a day ago, he had consecutively unleashed three Soul Rending Thorns, so his Soul had been severely damaged. Fortunately, he did not face any major issues thanks to the protection and nourishment of the Soul Warming Lotus. The condition of his torn Soul had also somewhat stabilized, but he did not know whether he could afford to use the Soul Rendering Thorns again.
If he could bear the burden, then the situation would turn around for him. He only needed to slaughter one of the Territory Lords as quickly as possible, then he could slowly figure out something in regard to the last one. However, if he could not bear the burden… He did not know what he might do in a state when he fell into a state of delirium.
At this moment, using another Soul Rending Thorn would not count as him using this Secret Technique four times in a row because there was a buffer period between the first three uses, but the difference was not great.
[As expected, I’m still too weak. If only my Soul were strong enough… Two Territory Lords would have been nothing. I could simply hit each of them with a Soul Rending Thorn, then lop off their heads.]
While Yang Kai was hesitating, the two Territory Lords began attacking him. They could clearly see his distress; moreover, the turmoil in the Portal Corridor was becoming more and more obvious to them. If they attacked him at this time, they could cause further damage to this space even if they could not kill him. They were hoping that they could escape this place by shattering the Portal Corridor.
The Void Turbulence was becoming more and more ferocious, so when the two Territory Lords made their decision, they released furious roars in unison. Activating their strength, they threw themselves at Yang Kai from both sides.
[Whatever! Let’s just go for it!] Yang Kai steeled himself. There was nothing in this world that was absolute. More importantly, nothing would change if he didn’t take a little risk!
In any case, he was currently much stronger than when he first left the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon. The repeated tearing and repairing of his Soul had also been beneficial to it. There was no denying that his Soul had gotten much stronger than before.
Besides, there was a buffer period of half a day, so he should be fine even if he unleashed a fourth Soul Rending Thorn today.
With such thoughts in mind, Yang Kai looked at the two Territory Lords charging unsteadily towards him and instead of retreating, raised his spear and went forward to meet them head-on.
A golden cross appeared in his left eye, and under the urging of the Demon Eye of Annihilation, one of the Territory Lords saw his own reflection suddenly twist and distort.
The Territory Lord reacted as though he had been struck by lightning and howled at the top of his lungs, inflicted by unimaginable pain.
At the same time, the blood vessels in Yang Kai’s left eye burst and blurred his vision. There was no helping it as he had not completely mastered the Myriad Demons Heaven’s Eye Technique yet. If the Old Ancestor from Myriad Demons Pass had been the one to unleash this Eye Secret Technique at full force, this Territory Lord would have immediately died.
Nevertheless, this was enough. With both sides suffering injuries, Yang Kai ignored the Territory Lord he had just targeted and with a tearing pain in his Soul silently unleashed a Soul Rending Thorn at the other Territory Lord.
In the next moment, the other Territory Lord screamed in agony and terror. The pain in his Soul was far greater than any physical pain he had ever experienced.
In the blink of an eye, both Territory Lords were severely injured.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai had already arrived with his spear in hand! Thrusting out, the Azure Dragon Spear stabbed into the Territory Lord who was struck by the Soul Rending Thorn. Various Dao Strengths wove together at the tip of the spear, causing both time and space to become distorted and disordered at that moment of impact.
The Territory Lord didn’t even have time to react before the Azure Dragon Spear pierced into his head and caused it to explode, his aura swelling up before fading out of existence!
Yang Kai had no time to rejoice as, currently, the world was spinning around him. He felt so dizzy that he feared he might lose consciousness at any moment. Biting the tip of his tongue, he barely managed to maintain a sliver of clarity in his mind.
Despite the half-day buffer period, he had truly reached his limit after using a fourth Soul Rending Thorn today. He couldn’t use a fifth any time soon.
Unfortunately, there was one more Territory Lord!
The surviving Territory Lord was now frightened out of his mind. [What happened to the assurance that Yang Kai would be helpless against us as long as we worked together in pairs? Bullshit! There were two of us in this damned place, yet he still managed to kill one of us so easily!]
At the juncture of life or death, the Territory Lord responded purely on instinct and desperately threw his fist out.
Yang Kai was thrown backwards and slammed into a cluster of Void Turbulence that almost drowned him.
After this Territory Lord threw the punch, the already unstable and turbulent Portal Corridor shattered, tearing open a large hole in the relatively stable stretch of Void.
Three powerful Masters had battled for their lives in the Portal Corridor, and four Territory Lords were trying to shatter this section of Void from the outside. It was only natural that the Portal Corridor had a hard time maintaining stability.
Seeing the hole in the Portal Corridor, the remaining Territory Lord was overjoyed and plunged into it without any hesitation.
Not far away, Yang Kai struggled to climb out of the Void Turbulence with a strange expression on his face. Although he had a splitting headache and trouble focusing, the actions of the Territory Lord had not escaped his notice.
[That Territory Lord… Did he perhaps assume that a hole in the Portal Corridor would be a means of escape?] There was no other explanation for why he would plunge into the hole so quickly. Regardless, that made things easy for Yang Kai.
Yang Kai had no wish to fight the remaining Territory Lord at the moment. The truth was that he could no longer move a single muscle. He had been wondering about what to do for his next move, but it would seem that there was no need for such trouble anymore.
That hole in the Portal Corridor was anything but a means of escape. It was impossible to escape from this place as long as the Portal Corridor was not broken from one of its ends. On the contrary, a hole in its walls would simply lead deeper into the Void. That was why Void Cracks were said to be extremely dangerous as even a Master could be trapped inside forever if they accidentally lost their way.
Yang Kai watched the Territory Lord disappear into the hole and did not bother to give chase. In any case, this Territory Lord would not be able to find his way out within a short time after falling so deep into the Void.
Yang Kai decided to come back and kill him after recuperating for some time. Retrieving the Azure Dragon Spear, he manipulated Space Principles and travelled along the path of the Portal Corridor and quickly emerged inside the Universe Cave Heaven.
“Husband!”
“Young Master!”
“Adoptive Father!”
“Big Brother!”
…
A burst of shouts came from all directions as it seemed like all the people who entered the Universe Cave Heaven earlier rushed forward to greet Yang Kai.
Yang Kai was covered in blood that had yet to dry, and new wounds had been added to his previous ones. After seeing his condition, how could they fail to realise that he had encountered another strong enemy?
He landed on the ground and spat out a mouthful of blood. Waving his hands dismissively, he answered their calls with an ashen complexion, “I’m fine!”
Among the crowd, the soldiers headed by Li Zi Yu and others stared at Yang Kai in shock, [Isn’t that the aura of an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master!? Has Yang Kai advanced to the Eighth Order already!?]
They knew about Yang Kai; after all, they had fought on the Black Ink Battlefield in the past. Yang Kai’s name was famous there, but it was also well-known that he was just a Seventh-Order Master. It was not until meeting him today that they learned he had advanced to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm!
For a time, Li Zi Yu and the others burned with motivation. They had wanted to rush into battle earlier because they were afraid of being blockaded inside the Universe Cave Heaven by the Black Ink Clan again. But now… with two Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters like Yang Kai and Feng Ying leading them, they might just stand a chance against the Black Ink Clan.
The Universe Cave Heaven trembled, and the sky was covered in countless cracks that crisscrossed each other. It was a horrifying sight; moreover, the ground split apart as though the end was upon them. It felt as though the entire Universe Cave Heaven could collapse at any moment.
The four Territory Lords outside were bombarding the Void with all their might. There might even be other Black Ink Clansmen who had joined in to attack the Void. It was impossible for these attacks to not affect the Universe Cave Heaven. If they were left alone to do whatever they wanted, it would only be a matter of time before the Black Ink Clan broke open the portal and rushed inside. In fact, they might even destroy the Universe Cave Heaven entirely, causing it to break apart and drift into the Void.
At that time, the Void Turbulence would wash over everything and everyone inside the Universe Cave Heaven would be swept away. There was no saying how many of them would survive such an ordeal, but even if they did manage to hang onto their lives, they would still be lost inside the Void.
Fortunately, they were not powerless to deal with the current crisis.
At this moment, Zhao Ye Bai, Su Yan, and Liu Yan were urging their powers to stabilize the space around them. These three were not the only ones, as there was also another Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master helping them!
Space Principles surged around these four figures and the trembling of the Void was repeatedly smoothened out, which stabilised the Universe Cave Heaven for now.
There was no need to say anything regarding Zhao Ye Bai as he was taught the Dao of Space by Yang Kai himself, and his attainments in it had reached impressive heights.
Meanwhile, Su Yan had an ancient Ice Phoenix Empress’ Source while Liu Yan had a Fire Phoenix Source. The Phoenix Clan’s Bloodline Talent was the Dao of Space. In the past, these two had failed to reveal their talents in the Dao of Space, primarily because their Bloodline Power was not strong enough at the time.
After cultivating in the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land for many years though, their Bloodline Power had improved vastly. Not to mention, the Phoenix Clan had brought out the Immortal Parasol Tree after the No-Return Pass was destroyed. As a result, Su Yan and Liu Yan had both entered their respective Phoenix Nests and cultivated in retreat for some time.
In terms of attainments in the Dao of Space, Su Yan and Liu Yan were not inferior to the current Zhao Ye Bai, which was the advantage of their Bloodline Talent. The other Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was somebody whom Yang Kai did not know. His strength was inferior compared to the others, but it was naturally better if even one more person was to contribute at this time.
With these four people working to stabilise this space, the Universe Cave Heaven would not be destroyed for some time.
Yang Kai breathed a sigh of relief. The situation could be considered safe for the moment. Nevertheless, it simply resulted in another troublesome matter now that he had entered the Universe Cave Heaven with so many people.
It was exactly what Li Zi Yu had been worried about earlier. After entering the Universe Cave Heaven, they were no different from a turtle hiding in its shell. That was why Yang Kai initially did not want to seek shelter here. It was unfortunate that the Black Ink Clan Army had blockaded all the Territory Gates in Acacia Territory, so he had no choice but to seek temporary shelter here.
Be that as it may, he was happy to see the Territory Lords outside keep up their constant bombardment. Attacking non-stop at such intensity would be a huge drain on their energy. If the Territory Lords exhausted themselves, then he could easily stab them all to death once he recovered his strength!
After considering everything, Yang Kai sent a Divine Sense transmission to Su Yan and the others, “Don’t bother trying to stabilize this place entirely, just keep things from deteriorating to a critical point. It would be best if you can keep the Universe Cave Heaven right on the verge of destruction.”
If he wanted the Territory Lords outside to continue their onslaught, he had to give them some hope. If the results of their attacks were suppressed to the limits and the space in the Universe Cave Heaven was completely stabilised, they might not even bother to continue attacking.
Su Yan and the others immediately understood Yang Kai’s intentions while Zhao Ye Bai was filled with admiration. [Honoured Master has great forethought as usual. Such things would never occur to me naturally.]
Yang Kai then glanced at the Hunters. These people had stepped forward to support him in battle, proving that they were quite courageous. In any case, they were now trapped inside the Universe Cave Heaven with him.
Then, he turned to the other side and was secretly astonished, [Why are there so many Human Race Masters here?]
Looking around, he discovered that there were nearly 10,000 Human Masters gathered inside the Universe Cave Heaven.
The Supreme Headquarters had only received news that some Humans refugees from Acacia Territory had been trapped here, but they did not know the specific numbers. Judging from the current situation, it would seem that those trapped inside the Universe Cave Heaven were not just those from Acacia Territory, but probably others from neighbouring Great Territories as well. Otherwise, there would not have been so many of them.
Yang Kai did not bother to think too deeply about the matter.
Right now, he was in critical condition. Both his physical body and his Soul had sustained grave injuries. Even his left eye was damaged due to the strain of activating his Demon Eye of Annihilation earlier, so he could not even see clearly at the moment.
Besides, he was not the only person who was seriously wounded. Every member of the three Squads assisting him earlier was also covered in injuries with varying degrees of severity. It was a minor miracle that there were no fatalities. Aside from a few members in Dawn whom he did not know very well, the members of all three Squads had very close relations with Yang Kai, so if any of them had suffered a sudden misfortune, it would have been a devastating loss to him indeed.
Yang Kai’s Divine Sense fluctuated as he communicated to Feng Ying. Feng Ying received his message and nodded lightly in response.
While Yang Kai was recuperating, the others also took the time to treat their wounds. Only those cultivating the Dao of Space had no time to rest.
At the same time, outside the portal to the Universe Cave Heaven, the four Territory Lords headed by Mo Na Ye along with many Black Ink Clan Masters were struggling to shatter the Void. Space before them twisted and contorted under the impact of their violent onslaught, causing countless cracks to appear.
Suddenly, the vague image of a portal seemed to appear in front of them. The other end of the portal was connected to another World that was hidden inside the Void. Overjoyed, the Black Ink Clan immediately increased the intensity of their attacks.
As long as they could break open the portal, they could invade the Universe Cave Heaven. At that time, the Humans inside would have nowhere else to run.
The primary target was none other than the Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army, Yang Kai. If they could kill him here, then they would deal a huge blow to the morale of the Human Race, the others were of no importance.
Yang Kai was certainly worthy of his reputation.
When Mo Na Ye received the messages from Profound Nether Territory and the No-Return Pass, he did not dare to underestimate Yang Kai’s strength. For that reason, he even went so far as to specially request five additional Territory Lords as reinforcements.
Combining the five additional Territory Lords with the five original Territory Lords in Acacia Territory would mean a total of 10 Territory Lords were available for this mission. However, there were only four Territory Lords left! 10 Territory Lords had been reduced to four in just half a day!
Yang Kai had killed four Territory Lords earlier and trapped another two inside the portal, and there was no saying whether those two Territory Lords were dead or alive. If they failed to eliminate Yang Kai here, then the Black Ink Clan would have suffered an enormous loss. On top of that, the Black Ink Clan Army of 100,000 initially deployed outside the Universe Cave Heaven had almost been completely wiped out.
Regardless of the costs, Yang Kai had to die here.
One day… Two days… Three days… Under the continuous barrage of the Territory Lords, the portal in the Void seemed to teeter on the verge of destruction, but never actually shattered apart. The Territory Lords were filled with a mixture of rage and helplessness seeing this result.
Following several consecutive days of effort, the strength of each Territory Lord declined considerably. Even an Innate Territory Lord like Mo Na Ye was exhausted.
[What’s wrong with this portal?] Mo Na Ye was very puzzled at first; then, he abruptly recalled something that made his expression sink sharply! Yang Kai was a Master of the Dao of Space; furthermore, things like the portal of a Universe Cave Heaven were strongly correlated to the Dao of Space.
[He must be stabilising the portal on the other side; otherwise, it makes no sense for it to remain intact for so long! Doesn’t that mean all our efforts were for nought!? Should we continue? Should we give up? Even if we continue, we might not be able to destroy the portal with Yang Kai stabilising it from the other side, but, if we give up now…]
Now that things had reached this point, how could he willingly give up? Thus, he made his decision in an instant, [We will continue!]
Seeing how exhausted they were, Mo Na Ye was certain that Yang Kai was not doing any better. Out of the four Territory Lords, only You Gong was slightly injured while the other three were unharmed.
In contrast, Yang Kai was severely wounded. With such injuries, how long could he last while constantly stabilising the Portal Corridor? He was bound to break down sooner or later, and once the portal was destroyed, he would be easy prey for their picking.
[Let’s see how long he can persist!] Mo Na Ye coldly snorted in his heart.
Raising his hand, he actually killed a large number of Black Ink Clansmen nearby in one blow. An abundance of Black Ink Strength immediately gushed out from the bodies of the deceased Black Ink Clansmen which Mo Na Ye grabbed and condensed into a ball that he stuffed into his mouth to replenish his lost strength.
Seeing this, the other three Territory Lords quickly followed suit.
There were some 20,000 Black Ink Clan soldiers outside the portal at this point, but in the blink of an eye, nearly half of them died on the spot. Meanwhile, the surviving troops trembled in fear. [The Territory Lords have gone insane… To think they are using such barbaric means to replenish their strength!]
Unfortunately, they were powerless to defend against the actions of the Territory Lords and didn’t even dare to entertain the thought of running away.
The days thus passed by quietly.
Inside the Universe Cave Heaven, Yang Kai’s injuries healed at an impressive speed.
At this moment, the Human Race Masters inside the Universe Cave Heaven had divided themselves into three distinct groups. The first group was the Human Race Masters under Yang Kai’s command who came here on a rescue mission, the second group consisted of the 1,000 or so Hunters, and the final group was made up of the trapped Human refugees who were headed by Li Zi Yu.
The people Yang Kai brought here and the people under Li Zi Yu were gathered together in their respective groups, while the 1,000 or so Hunters were somewhat spread out. Small groups of Hunters maintained a certain distance from each other, but nobody found the arrangement odd or inappropriate. The existence of Black Ink Disciples required constant vigilance after all.
That was also part of the reason why Hunters generally did not gather together in large groups. There was no saying where a Black Ink Disciple could be hiding. If they did not practice such vigilance, it would only be a matter of time before they met their untimely deaths during their travels.
Li Zi Yu’s group and the Hunters even took the initiative to stay away from Yang Kai’s group to prevent any unnecessary misunderstandings.
Half a month later, Yang Kai slowly opened his eyes. Most of his physical injuries had healed by now, and although he was not fully recovered, his wounds no longer impeded his combat capabilities. The injuries to his Soul needed more time to heal, but the Soul Warming Lotus would take care of that.
When he looked up, Yang Kai immediately saw the deathly pale complexions of Su Yan and others; moreover, they were swaying unsteadily, as though they were about to collapse at any moment.
The struggle over the past half month had pushed them to their limits. Once they reached that limit, there would be nobody else to stabilize the Universe Cave Heaven. If that happened, it would not take long for the Territory Lords outside to break open the portal.
Yang Kai raised his brow in astonishment as he thought to himself, [The Territory Lords outside are truly persistent. It’s been half a month yet they’re still bombarding the Void!]
Nevertheless, this was the outcome he had hoped to see. Feeling secretly triumphant, he manipulated Space Principles and simultaneously sent a transmission to Su Yan and the others.
In the next moment, Su Yan, Yang Xiao, Liu Yan, and the unknown Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master slumped to the ground while stuffing various Spirit Pills for recovery into their mouths. They were so tired that they didn’t even have the strength to speak anymore. The confrontation for the past half a month had truly pushed them to their limits and beyond.
The constant trembling of the Universe Cave Heaven did not stop; however, Yang Kai had already taken over the task of stabilising it. Space Principles fluctuated around him, maintaining a balance with the external shocks and preventing the destruction of the Universe Cave Heaven.
Compared to the focused demeanour that Su Yan and the others had portrayed, Yang Kai’s performance seemed much more relaxed.
He naturally exceeded them by a great degree when it came to mastery of the Dao of Space as it was his foundational Grand Dao. Even his title as ‘Void Great Emperor’ was derived from his attainments in the Dao of Space.
Yang Kai next turned to look at Feng Ying, who slowly shook her head when she met eyes with him.
Half a month ago, he had instructed her to keep watch over the Hunters to see whether there were any abnormalities among them. He was very vigilant towards the existence of the Black Ink Disciples because others couldn’t identify them unless they took the initiative to reveal themselves.
These Hunters had been roaming around the Black Ink Clan’s territory for many years, decades even in some cases; hence, there was no guarantee that none of them had been defeated and captured by the Black Ink Clan. Black Ink Disciples were valuable tools who could be sent back to acquire intelligence on the Human Race or lure other Hunters into various traps. Such practices were common among the current Black Ink Clan.
Feng Ying had not discovered anything after observing them for the past half a month, so there were either no Black Ink Disciples among the Hunters, or they did not dare to act recklessly for fear of her strength as an Eighth-Order Master.
Yang Kai had been too busy to deal with this matter previously, but he had some time to spare now. There were many ways Yang Kai could settle this issue, but he was short on time and patience so he decided to use the most direct method. Activating the Great Sun and Moon Marks without another word, dazzling yellow and blue lights appeared out of nowhere and merged to form a small, pure white sun.
The white sun that leapt out from where Yang Kai stood in the Universe Cave Heaven exploded out and bathed the entire World in pure white light. A few people turned pale at the sight while others tried to escape into the sky, but under a surge of Space Principles, everyone was locked in place and did not move far.
Inside the white light, an energy that resembled Black Ink Strength suddenly leaked out from several individuals and was purified. At the same time, the Human Race Masters with Black Ink Strength pouring out of their body howled in agony, their expressions contorting in extreme pain. Fortunately, they soon returned to a peaceful state.
A short while later, the white light dissipated and vanished. Many people revealed expressions of guilt among the Hunters. Furthermore, countless looks of astonishment came from all directions.
Yang Kai snorted. Although he had guessed that there would be Black Ink Disciples among the Hunters, he had not expected the number to be so high.
Out of 1,000 Hunters, about 60 of them were actually Black Ink Disciples. Moreover, a large number of them were in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. In some cases, only one or two members of a Squad were corrupted by the Black Ink Strength, while in others, the entire group had been converted into Black Ink Disciples.
What stunned Yang Kai was that nobody among the 10,000 Human refugees in Li Zi Yu’s group had been corrupted by Black Ink Strength, but upon further consideration, it was not that surprising. They had been hiding in this Universe Cave Heaven from the start and had not been in contact with the outside world for more than a couple decades now. Since they did not come into contact with the Black Ink Clan, it was only natural that they were not corrupted by Black Ink Strength.
It was simply bad luck that their whereabouts were exposed. After being trapped for so many years, Li Zi Yu and the others naturally wanted to leave this place and return to Human-controlled territory. In the end, their whereabouts were discovered by the Black Ink Clan when they sent scouts to investigate the situation outside and a siege was subsequently built around the Universe Cave Heaven.
“Purifying Light?” Somebody seemed to recognise the pure white light and muttered.
Those who became Hunters generally did not come from the Cave Heavens and Paradises but from the other Sects; hence, they had never participated in the previous wars or fought with the main Human Army. Naturally, they had never seen Purifying Light before.
Some had heard stories about the past where each Human Army was said to have its own Purifying Black Ink Battleship. These Purifying Black Ink Battleships contained Purifying Light, which could dispel and purify Black Ink Strength. Even a Black Ink Disciple could regain their original self after being bathed in Purifying Light.
Unfortunately, the supply of Purifying Light was exhausted after many long wars and crusades. Before Yang Kai’s return, they had been relying solely on Purifying Black Ink Pills to resist the corrosion of Black Ink Strength. Although the effects of Purifying Black Ink Pill were excellent, there was no denying that Purifying Light was better.
These Hunters, who never had the chance to see the Purifying Light, finally witnessed it for the first time today.
“Old Zhou, what happened to you?” One of the Hunters asked.
The Human Race Master called Old Zhou was part of a four-man team, all of whom were Black Ink Disciples. Needless to say, they once fell into the hands of the Black Ink Clan and were converted into Black Ink Disciples.
Old Zhou looked sorrowful, “Don’t mention it. We accidentally ran into a Territory Lord a year ago and failed to escape.”
“You sure were unlucky,” the person who spoke earlier sighed.
Old Zhou’s Squad was small in number and not particularly strong. Consisting of only two Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and two Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, there was no room for resistance when they encountered a Territory Lord. The reason they survived was that the Territory Lord believed that they were more useful if they were corrupted by Black Ink Strength instead.
While speaking, Old Zhou timidly snuck a glance at Yang Kai, only to discover that Yang Kai was not paying attention to them at all.
What was there to be bothered about? Even a fool could have guessed that there were Black Ink Disciples among the Hunters, but there were no means to confirm the identity of these Black Ink Disciples. Fortunately, nothing could be hidden once the Purifying Light enveloped them.
The Black Ink Disciples could no longer be considered such since they regained their true nature after the Purifying Light dispelled the Black Ink Strength from them. Regardless of what they did in the past, they did not act out of their own will; hence, Yang Kai had no intention to blame them for their actions.
Old Zhou and the others realized this and breathed a sigh of relief.
Among the 1,000 or so Hunters, there were around 60 Black Ink Disciples. That was more than 5% of the population here, which was not a small proportion; however, this ratio was likely an aberration. External factors, including the special arrangements of the Black Ink Clan in Acacia Territory, probably played a role which affected the ratio.
Seeing as the Black Ink Clan wanted to use the Humans trapped in Acacia Territory as bait, it was only natural for them to dispatch more Black Ink Disciples to gather intelligence among the Humans. That was why the ratio of Black Ink Disciples was as high as 5%. In reality, the ratio of Black Ink Disciples existing among the Hunters was nowhere near as high.
Ignoring the matter regarding the Black Ink Disciples, Yang Kai turned to look at Li Zi Yu and asked, “Are you the leader here?”
Li Zi Yu stepped forward and cupped his fist, “Red Sun Army’s Li Zi Yu greets Army Commander Yang!”
Over the past half month, Li Zi Yu learned about Yang Kai’s appointment as the Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army and various other matters about the outside world from the members of Dawn. After hiding in the Universe Cave Heaven for several dozen years, the world outside had changed entirely, causing him to feel slightly depressed. Be that as it may, it was touching to know that the Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army would put himself in danger just to rescue them.
In truth, Li Zi Yu disapproved of this decision by the higher-ups as there were too many things that could have gone and still could go wrong.
It was not a big deal if one or two Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Division Commanders were to die in battle; however, the death of an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Army Commander would have a large impact on the entire Army. Even more so when the current Army Commanders held higher statuses than the Army Commanders on the Black Ink Battlefield back then.
Which Army Commander serving on the battlefields spread across the various Great Territories did not have hundreds of thousands, if not millions of soldiers under their command? In contrast, an individual Army only consisted of some 8,000 or so Masters at each Great Pass on the Black Ink Battlefield.
In any case, Li Zi Yu understood the current situation. The news regarding Acacia Territory had spread to the general public. Regardless of how many Humans had been trapped in Acacia Territory, the Supreme Headquarters could not turn a blind eye to the situation. If they ignored these trapped refugees, then the morale among the troops battling on the front lines would drop significantly.
The Black Ink Clan was very cunning indeed. Despite knowing that it was a trap, the Human Race had no choice but to jump right in.
Judging by the current situation, it would seem that the Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army was extremely outstanding. The ability to lead three Squads and slaughter four Innate Territory Lords… That was not something ordinary people could hope to achieve. Unfortunately… it was somewhat embarrassing for him to also be trapped inside this Universe Cave Heaven now.
“Red Sun Army…” Yang Kai seemed slightly stunned, “Do you know Ning Qi Zhi?”
Ning Qi Zhi came from the Red Sun Paradise, so although not all members of the Red Sun Army belonged to Red Sun Paradise, there was still a chance. Yang Kai had experienced various life and death situations with Ning Qi Zhi of Red Sun Paradise, but ultimately the latter died in battle.
Li Zi Yu bowed, “In terms of seniority, he was my Martial Uncle.”
“Red Sun Paradise produces outstanding talents in every generation…” Yang Kai sighed in appreciation.
Li Zi Yu replied, “You’re giving too much credit, Sir.”
Yang Kai waved his hand dismissively, showing no interest in making small talk. Instead, he looked at the 10,000 Human Race Masters here and asked, “These cultivators are not just from Acacia Territory, right?”
“There are also cultivators from a nearby Great Territory. More than 10 years ago, they passed through Acacia Territory during the great evacuation and so we all decided to head towards the designated Great Territory together. Unfortunately, the Black Ink Clan invaded and we had no choice but to hide here until today.”
Yang Kai nodded lightly.
10,000 might seem like a lot, but their strengths varied greatly from individual to individual. There were not many Open Heaven Realm Masters among them, and those that had reached that realm did not have particularly high Orders. In fact, Li Zi Yu and a few of his companions were the only Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters among them. With such a force, nothing good would come from confronting the Black Ink Clan Army.
Although they hid inside the Universe Cave Heaven out of desperation, they at least managed to protect themselves from danger. It was lucky that there was a Universe Cave Heaven in Acacia Territory that was discovered and managed by Acacia Sect many years ago; otherwise, they would not have had a place to hide in the first place.
Seeming to realise what Yang Kai was thinking, Li Zi Yu quickly offered, “Sir, if you wish to charge out, we are willing to be the vanguard!”
The other Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters nodded in agreement, looking resolute.
Yang Kai glanced sideways at Li Zi Yu, “The vanguard? Are you planning to rush right to your deaths? Four Territory Lords are waiting outside.”
Forget the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, even for Yang Kai… He would be beaten close to death if he were to charge out recklessly. When he killed the Territory Lords previously, he had the advantage of numerous favourable conditions. The Soul Rending Thorns were extremely potent tools, but could he fight one against four in a direct confrontation? Two would be difficult enough.
“But…” Li Zi Yu wanted to object. [Why are we not charging out? Are we going to just keep hiding here?]
Yang Kai raised a hand to interrupt Li Zi Yu, “Let’s wait for now.”
Li Zi Yu did not know what Yang Kai was waiting for; however, he had no choice but to back down.
Yang Kai glanced at the portal with a frown on his face. Now that he was trapped inside the Universe Cave Heaven, he could not help feeling uncomfortable. Besides, he could not delay for too long if he wanted to break out of this place. The Territory Lords outside might have called for more reinforcements by now. Although he did not know who was acting as the Commander of the Black Ink Clan here, just by looking at how a total of 10 Territory Lords had been guarding Acacia Territory, Yang Kai could tell that this leader was a cautious person.
If his guess was correct, the other party would have requested more reinforcements by now. Once more Territory Lords arrived, their chances of breaking out of this situation would become even slimmer. If he really wanted to leave, then he had to figure out a solution as soon as possible.
Yang Kai considered his options for a moment as he continued treating his wounds; after all, he had yet to heal completely.
After another half month, Su Yan and the others had gradually recovered from their fatigue. They had not been seriously injured before, but the burden of controlling Space Principles and resisting the impact from the outside world was too great. Half a month was enough time for them to recover.
The Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master came to Yang Kai and bowed, “Wan Le Shan greets Dao Lord.” Then, he turned to Miao Fei Ping beside Yang Kai, “Greetings, Senior Brother Miao.”
Yang Kai opened his eyes and stared at the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, “Are you from the Void Dao Temple?”
Those who would address him as ‘Dao Lord’ could only be disciples from the Void Dao Temple.
Yang Kai had already guessed as much earlier.
This Sixth-Order Master cultivated the Dao of Space, and although his attainments were not very high, he still had considerable skill. It was highly likely that he came from the Void Dao Temple and inherited some of Yang Kai’s Grand Dao.
Many of those who came from the Void Dao Temple were in similar situations, having varying degrees of accomplishments in the Dao of Space, Dao of Time, and the Spear Dao. However, most had inherited Yang Kai’s Spear Dao because it was much easier to comprehend compared to the Dao of Space and the Dao of Time.
That had always been the case.
However, the disciples from the Void Dao Temple began to flourish even more ever since Yang Kai comprehended the myriad Grand Daos in the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon. An increasing number of Grand Daos were cultivated by the Void Dao Temple disciples now.
It could be said that the future Grand Daos of the cultivators from the Void Dao Temple were closely related to Yang Kai. Needless to say, not all of them were related to Yang Kai, even though most of them were.
This Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was quite powerful, and his aptitude was clearly extraordinary.
Seeing as Yang Kai did not recognise him, that could only mean that he came from the last batch of cultivators he released from his Small Universe. It was also the batch that Yang Kai released in Void Land when he returned from the Black Ink Battlefield. There were some 5,000 people in that batch, so it was natural for Yang Kai to not recall all their faces.
Those people had all advanced to the Open Heaven Realm in Void Land at the time, which had shocked Bi Xi, Mo Mei, and all the others. Every one of that batch had advanced to the Sixth or Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, making for an extremely spectacular scene.
Some disciples originated from the Dao Temple that Yang Kai released on the Black Ink Battlefield directly, but their numbers were not high each time. Yang Kai might not be able to remember everybody’s names, but they would at least look familiar to him.
If Wan Le Shan had advanced to the Open Heaven Realm in Void Land, then not much time had passed since his break through. In other words, he had advanced directly to the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Thus, he was expected to reach the Eighth-Order in the future. His aptitude was certainly outstanding.
“Why didn’t you join the Army?” Yang Kai asked.
Wan Le Shan explained respectfully, “We advanced to the Open Heaven Realm in Void Land, then retreated to the Star Boundary with Senior Bi Xi. Most of my Dao Brothers and Sisters joined the various Armies, but some of us followed the Head Manager’s orders and became Hunters. We were tasked with the responsibility of investigating the movements of the Black Ink Clan in the various Great Territories.”
So it was Hua Qing Si’s work!
Yang Kai immediately understood the situation.
Hunters were not just lone wolves who did not fit in with the Army, they were also scouts for the Human Race. Most of the information from the outside was brought back by the Hunters who risked their lives to obtain it. That was necessary; after all, it was impossible to fight the Black Ink Clan on the battlefields across over a dozen Great Territories without knowing anything about what the enemy was up to.
[Hua Qing Si sure is bold.] Talents who advanced directly to the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm were candidates with the hope of advancing to the Eighth-Order in the future. [I can’t believe she sent them out just like that. Nobody would be able to rescue them if something happened outside.]
There were probably many others like Wan Le Shan.
He had the feeling that Hua Qing Si was not the only one doing such things though. The Human Race Supreme Headquarters was bound to have similar arrangements. If nothing else, the news about those trapped in Acacia Territory had been provided by the Hunters.
“Many thanks for your hard work,” Yang Kai nodded lightly.
“Dao Lord is the one who gave us a chance to rise in life, it is only right for this Disciple to live up to such high expectations.” Wan Le Shan lowered his head with a respectful expression.
All the disciples from the Dao Temple had an almost fanatical worship of Yang Kai, the Dao Lord of the Void Dao Temple. That was because almost everything they had came from Yang Kai.
Yang Kai had not known about Hua Qing Si’s arrangements, but he had heard from Su Yan and the others about some 200 Open Heaven Realm Masters who were hidden by Hua Qing Si in High Heaven Palace. These 200 were those who had advanced directly to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm back at Void Land!
Hua Qing Si had not allowed these 200 to participate in the war yet. Their task was to cultivate diligently. There was no fear of insufficient resources, the only fear was that they could not comprehend or cultivate well.
Yang Kai understood Hua Qing Si’s intentions. Those who advanced directly to the Seventh Order were candidates with the hope of advancing to the Ninth Order one day. Nobody would willingly send these candidates to the battlefield; after all, it would be a complete waste if they were slain by a Territory Lord.
It was not expected for all 200 of these candidates to advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, but even if only 5% or 10% of them succeeded, that was already equivalent to 10 or 20 Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters.
Hua Qing Si could not bring herself to place them on the battlefield, and neither could the higher-ups. There were practically no Open Heaven Realm Masters who advanced directly to the Seventh-Order on the battlefields across the various Great Territories now.
Over the years, the Star Boundary had produced numerous talents who advanced directly to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, but these talents had all been hidden away by the Cave Heavens and Paradises because they were the hope and future of the Human Race.
Every single person harboured selfish desires, and although the Human Race was united in a common cause, Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters from other Sects would never compare to Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters from one’s own Sect.
Zhao Ye Bai and the others had advanced directly to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm as well, so according to Hua Qing Si’s plans, they were supposed to remain in the Star Boundary and ignore the fighting outside. It was not too late for them to make a name for themselves when they advanced to the Ninth-Order one day. How could she have known that the little ones would sneak out on their own though?
Yang Kai did not agree with the strategy adopted by the higher-ups of the Human Race; after all, cultivating blindly behind closed doors did not necessarily lead to one’s advancement to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
The Cave Heavens and Paradises had several talented candidates who advanced directly to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm over countless years; however, there were not nearly as many Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Old Ancestors, just over 100 in total.
If it were that easy to reach the Ninth-Order, then they would not be Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters anymore. Besides, the real strength of those who simply cultivated in seclusion would be questionable even if they were lucky enough to advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Only those who had experienced life-or-death battles and comprehended the mystery of the Grand Dao amid multiple crises could truly be called strong.
Although Yang Kai disapproved of the arrangement, he knew that their actions stemmed from a sense of helplessness. The battlefield was extremely dangerous, and it would only take the slightest mistake for even an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master to fall in battle.
The Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters had contributed so much for the sake of buying more time for the future generation, but if all those talented candidates were to die in the war before reaching the peak, then the Human Race would no longer have hope of survival. A Race without hope was bound to fall into the abyss of despair, sooner or later.
Dispelling the distracting thoughts in his head, Yang Kai looked towards Su Yan and the three others, “Take over the Universe Cave Heaven. I’ll be right back.”
Su Yan and the others nodded in unison, surging their Space Principles to stabilise the shaking in their surroundings.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai had already opened a portal and plunged into it.
Three Territory Lords had rushed into the Portal Corridor together. One had been kicked out by Yang Kai, one had been killed, and the last one had escaped into the depths of the Void.
Yang Kai had been too injured at the time to hunt down the Territory Lord who escaped, but now was the time to deal with that loose end. Naturally, he could also choose to simply ignore the existence of that Territory Lord as he might never find his way back after plunging into the depths of the Void. It was very difficult for somebody to escape from the Void Crack; however, it was not impossible. If that Territory Lord was lucky enough to escape from the Void Crack, then he would become another powerful enemy for the Human Race.
Therefore, Yang Kai could not give up the opportunity to kill this Territory Lord.
The Black Ink Clan was not alone in wanting to annihilate their enemies once and for all. The Human Race would not let the opportunity to kill a powerful enemy Master slip through their fingers either.
It didn’t take long for Yang Kai to return to the Portal Corridor where Void Turbulence overlapped. The Portal Corridor had become highly unstable because of the previous battle fought here and the four Territory Lords trying to break the Void from the outside.
Yang Kai had not forgotten the spot where the Territory Lord had escaped previously, so wandering through the Void Turbulence alone, he soon arrived at his destination and dove inside the large crack in space that appeared.
It was difficult to search for anybody in a place like this and even Yang Kai did not dare to guarantee that he could find his target. He could only hope that the Territory Lord had not run or drifted too far; otherwise, there was nothing he could do either.
The Territory Lord had indeed not gone far. The Portal Corridor had been torn open by the aftermath of their battle at the time, and he mistakenly assumed that this opening was a means of escape. How could he have known that he would find himself deeper inside the Void Crack after he entered the hole? He was so scared that he did not dare to move around carelessly. Only the fact that Yang Kai had not given chase gave him a slight sense of relief.
During this period, he had remained inside the Void Crack and treated his wounds while searching for an exit. It was a pity that this place was highly abnormal. As he had never cultivated Space Principles before, he found moving around to be extremely difficult. He was constantly caught up in the Void Turbulence, which made him lose his direction. After several attempts, he no longer knew where he was anymore.
Yang Kai spent half a day tracking various traces that were almost imperceptible before he finally found the Territory Lord.
The aura of the Territory Lord was very weak. It was obvious that his efforts to counter the impacts of the Void Turbulence had exhausted him greatly. In addition to the injuries he previously suffered, he could not replenish his strength in this place, so at this point, his strength was far from its peak.
Yang Kai had been prepared to use a Soul Rendering Thorn to end the battle as quickly as possible; however, given the other party’s condition, it seemed he did not have to trouble himself with that.
An hour later, Yang Kai slipped out of the Universe Cave Heaven’s Portal Corridor. There were bloodstains on his body, but he did not seem to be seriously injured.
Fighting to the death with a Territory Lord was never easy. Nevertheless, the already weakened Territory Lord was further suppressed by the countless Void Turbulence surging in the Void Crack, so Yang Kai’s long years of cultivation would have all been in vain if he failed to kill his opponent under these circumstances
Currently, only four Territory Lords remained from the original 10 Territory Lords!
Be that as it may, the enemies in Acacia Territory were not just the four Territory Lords, but also the massive Black Ink Clan Army. So much time had passed since the initial confrontation, so it was likely the Black Ink Clan had mobilised even more troops to surround the portal by now.
Fortunately, Yang Kai’s forces no longer consist of just the three Squads from before. The 1,000 or so Hunters were also an excellent combat force. As for the 10,000 Human refugees trapped inside the Universe Cave Heaven, there were not many among them who could fight the Black Ink Clan as most were too weak. If they fought the Black Ink Clan, they were bound to become corrupted by Black Ink Strength.
“Prepare for battle!” Yang Kai roared.
Everybody responded with great enthusiasm. The three Squads, 1,000 Hunters, Li Zi Yu’s Squad, and the others from the former Red Sun Army burned with passionate murderous intent.
Likewise, Yang Kai began to manipulate Space Principles and stabilize the surroundings. At the same time, he sent a Divine Sense transmission to Su Yan and the others to cooperate with him.
The Black Ink Clan Army of 100,000 that originally stood guard outside the Universe Cave Heaven was gone, decimated by the attack from Yang Kai’s original team or used as resources by Mo Na Ye and the other three Territory Lords to recover their strength. At this point, not many of them remained.
Although the original Black Ink Clan Army of 100,000 was gone, over a million troops had taken their place instead. Mo Na Ye had relocated these troops from the Territory Gates, having each of the five armies dispatch some 300,000 soldiers for a total of 1.5 million troops.
The Black Ink Clan Army spread across the void like a swarm of locusts and surrounded the portal tightly.
A full month had passed since the Human Race Masters fled into the Universe Cave Heaven. During this period, numerous Black Ink Clan Masters had worked diligently and continuously under Mo Na Ye’s lead to shatter the surrounding Void.
Mo Na Ye wanted to break open the portal to the Universe Cave Heaven and invade it. Unfortunately, things did not go as he had planned. Knowing that Yang Kai was proficient in the Dao of Space, he believed that the latter must have done something to the portal; otherwise, there was no explanation for its unusual durability.
Mo Na Ye was not willing to give up, however. Having reached this point, all the Territory Lords who were sacrificed previously would have died in vain if he gave up now. His only option was to continue his assault.
Yang Kai had been heavily wounded. In addition to his injuries, he also had to stabilize the portal of the Universe Cave Heaven. He was bound to collapse from the burden one day, and that moment would be the moment of his death!
However, Mo Na Ye’s belief was beginning to waver at this point. Would Yang Kai really run out of strength?
Despite an entire month of continuous bombardment, there were no visible results to show for their efforts, causing Mo Na Ye to begin to doubt the decision he made back then.
Suddenly, the Void in front of him seemed to change slightly. Mo Na Ye immediately snapped to attention and looked in that direction. For some reason, the faintly perceptible portal seemed much more solid and tangible than before. Then, the portal abruptly shattered and exploded.
When the portal shattered, the Universe Cave Heaven hidden in the Void appeared before the eyes of the Black Ink Clan Masters and a figure soared into the sky while coughing up a mouthful of Golden Blood. At the same time, the Human Race Masters inside the Universe Cave Heaven screamed mournfully.
It was Yang Kai! Even though Mo Na Ye only caught a glimpse of Yang Kai back then, how could he forget the face of this Human Race Master?
[He’s at his limits!]
Reality proved that his previous speculations were correct. The reason why the Universe Cave Heaven held out for so long was due to Yang Kai’s tricks; however, in the end, Yang Kai was just one person. How could he resist the violent bombardment of so many Black Ink Clan Masters forever?
The portal shattered, revealing the Universe Cave Heaven. Meanwhile, the Human Race Masters hiding inside panicked as though the end was upon them.
Mo Na Ye even saw many of them retreating in terror, as though afraid that the Black Ink Clan would charge forward and slaughter them.
Chuckling, Mo Na Ye took a step forward, preparing to enter the Universe Cave Heaven. However, after giving it another thought, he stopped and whirled around sharply, “You Gong, go and finish him off!”
You Gong was furious and cursed vehemently in his heart, [Bastard! Why me? Why don’t you go yourself!? Mo Na Ye, you bastard!]
Mo Na Ye was clearly worried that the Human Race Masters were feigning weakness, which was why he decided to send You Gong to test the waters first.
Unfortunately, Mo Na Ye had the highest authority over the matters in Acacia Territory. Unable to protest, You Gong gloomily muttered, “They have one more Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.”
Although that female Eighth-Order Master was not very strong, she was still in the Eighth-Order. With so many Seventh-Order Masters around, a lone Territory Lord would not be able to guarantee their safety.
Mo Na Ye frowned but still glanced at another Territory Lord and ordered, “Go and help him.”
The Territory Lord nodded.
With no other choice, You Gong raised his arm above his head and roared, “Kill!”
He charged forward with the other Territory Lord whom Mo Na Ye selected while countless Feudal Lords followed behind them. It only took the blink of an eye for the Black Ink Clan Army to charge into the Universe Cave Heaven.
Feng Ying activated her Myriad Swords Dragon and met their charge head on. In response, You Gong yelled to the other Territory Lord, “I will stop her! You go after Yang Kai!”
Ignoring the opinion of the Territory Lord accompanying him, You Gong immediately began exchanging blows with Feng Ying, resulting in intense shockwaves rippling out.
The other Territory Lord coldly snorted, [You Gong, that fool! He has been scared witless by that Human! I can’t believe he doesn’t even dare to attack the enemy even though he is heavily wounded! What a useless good-for-nothing!]
In his opinion, Yang Kai’s battered and miserable appearance did not seem fake, and it was easy to understand why.
Yang Kai was seriously injured to begin with, but even so, he had to stabilize the Universe Cave Heaven and resist the Black Ink Clan outside for an entire month. Where would he find the time to rest? If he had any strength remaining, the portal would not have been destroyed. Not to mention, he probably suffered additional injuries on top of his previous ones when the portal shattered. How much strength could he have left?
Nevertheless, the Territory Lord was still cautious of Yang Kai’s strange methods. After considering everything, he shielded his Soul and charged towards Yang Kai. Along the way, many Seventh-Order Human Masters tried to block his path only to be blown away by him.
The Feudal Lords following behind the Territory Lord also began to launch their offensive. It didn’t take long before they were entangled in battle against the Human Race Masters in the Universe Cave Heaven.
The peace in the Universe Cave Heaven was destroyed in an instant. Everywhere in the Universe Cave Heaven, Humans and Black Ink Clansmen fought desperately.
Yang Kai awkwardly dodged the ferocious attacks of the Territory Lord, spitting blood from time to time. His complexion was as pale as a sheet, and he looked as though he would collapse at any time; however, he was cursing furiously on the inside, [Why are the two Territory Lords outside not coming in? Aren’t you being a little too cautious!? I’m already in such terrible condition! Shouldn’t you join forces to kill me as soon as possible!?]
The current situation was different from his expectations.
Stuck inside the Universe Cave Heaven, it was not easy for them to break free and escape. They could not force their way out with so many Black Ink Clan Masters standing guard outside. If they so much as revealed themselves, they will definitely be swarmed to death. Even Yang Kai was not confident that he could successfully charge out of the portal under the watch of so many Black Ink Clan Masters.
Since they could not leave, they could only lure their enemies into a trap.
The portal had been shattered and the Universe Cave Heaven was revealed; furthermore, Yang Kai appeared to be in an extremely weak condition.
Yang Kai did not believe that the Black Ink Clan could resist the urge to charge forward, and as expected, that was what they did. Unfortunately, the Black Ink Clan did not use their full strength. Out of the four Territory Lords, two had charged into the Universe Cave Heaven but two had remained outside.
Judging by the current situation, it would seem that the Territory Lord in command of Acacia Territory was an extremely cautious individual.
Yang Kai did not dare to push his luck at this point; besides, no battle plan ever survived the first engagement, and there would always be something that would go wrong or turn out unsatisfactory. In any case, two of the four Territory Lords had entered the Universe Cave Heaven’s range, and the enemy siege would essentially dissolve if these two were taken out.
“Kill!” All of a sudden, the battered-looking Yang Kai gave a loud roar.
Following his signal, the Human Race Masters who had been holding back under his instructions stopped hiding their strength. A series of destructive Divine Abilities and Secret Techniques blasted out, throwing the Feudal Lords who were charging forward off their feet.
At the same time, Yang Kai unleashed a Soul Rending Thorn. Although his Soul was not completely healed after just one month of recuperation, he had no trouble wielding the Soul Rending Thorn once.
The Territory Lord engaged in battle with Yang Kai suddenly felt a sense of crisis washing over him, immediately followed by a sharp pain in his Soul, as though it was being dug into by thousands of needles. The pain was so great that his vision blurred and he could not hold in a cry of agony.
Yang Kai thrust his spear at that moment, but only managed to pierce the Territory Lord’s shoulder blade. Nevertheless, that was enough to blow away one of the Territory Lord’s arms.
The Territory Lord had forcibly twisted his body and avoided being struck in a vital spot at the last moment. Turning pale with fright, he finally realised how Yang Kai managed to kill so many Territory Lords with such ease in the past. Although he did not know exactly what method the other party had used, it was just as Mo Na Ye had previously speculated. It was a Secret Technique that specifically targeted the Soul.
If he had not been on constant guard and attentively protected his Soul, he would have died from that brief moment of disorientation earlier. Even taking all those precautions though, he was still severely injured and only narrowly managed to survive. Black blood gushed out of his severed shoulder, and even his Black Ink Strength poured out of the wound.
Before the Territory Lord could breathe a sigh of relief, an overwhelming number of spear shadows shot towards his face. Mustering his courage at the critical moment between life and death, he chose to fight rather than flee. Charging forward with a loud roar, he attacked Yang Kai with reckless abandon.
On the other side, You Gong and Feng Ying were engaged in an intense battle; however, You Gong was clearly stronger, so not only was he steadily pushing Feng Ying back, he could also spare some attention to monitor Yang Kai’s movements.
All of a sudden, he saw Yang Kai making an unexpected comeback and severely injuring his companion. Combined with the flash of Spiritual Energy that appeared for a brief moment, how could he not realise that Yang Kai’s battered appearance was nothing more than an act?
At this moment, he was extremely thankful that he had chosen not to fight Yang Kai. Although he had initially believed that Yang Kai was an arrow at the end of its flight, he had chosen Feng Ying as his opponent just to be safe. It would now seem that his decision had been wise indeed. If he had boldly chosen to face Yang Kai earlier, the one struggling to avoid Yang Kai’s spear right now would have been him instead.
[This is another trap! This Human named Yang Kai is the most cunning man I’ve ever encountered in my life! I’ve never met another Human Race Master as devious as him.]
The black blood of the other Territory Lord gushed out with every thrust of Yang Kai’s spear, and his aura was weakening at a speed that was visible to the naked eye.
Seeing that, You Gong lost his will to fight. Once Yang Kai finished off his companion and became unfettered, he would be Yang Kai’s next target. Black Ink Strength surged violently around him before he threw a punch and sent Feng Ying flying backwards. Immediately after that, he rushed towards the shattered portal without another backward glance. He had already escaped from the Universe Cave Heaven before Feng Ying even realised what was happening.
Outside the portal, Mo Na Ye had an extremely solemn expression on his face. He had been on guard against Yang Kai and even suspected that he had been deliberately acting weak. Even so, he could barely accept the truth when he saw Yang Kai’s abrupt comeback.
[How is that possible?]
Yang Kai had been seriously wounded previously; not to mention, he had been stabilising the Universe Cave Heaven against the bombardment of numerous Territory Lords for the past month. Where did he find the time to treat his wounds? He must have suffered from severe backlash due to the destruction of the portal, and looking at the current situation, he had indeed suffered some injuries. It was just that these injuries had little effect on his combat power.
[Should I charge in?] A huge conflict arose in Mo Na Ye’s heart.
Aside from him, there was another Territory Lord outside. They might stand a chance to defeat Yang Kai if all three of them joined forces, but it was nothing more than a chance. If they failed, then there was a high probability that both he and the other Territory Lord would pay for it with their lives.
However, his internal conflict did not last for long because he saw You Gong rushing out of the Universe Cave Heaven. Mo Na Ye honestly did not know what to say at this point.
You Gong had been hugely traumatised ever since he escaped alive from his first encounter with Yang Kai and was now so scared that he actually fled the battlefield without another word when he saw Yang Kai’s sudden comeback.
[The ship has sailed!] Mo Na Ye heaved a sigh in his heart.
Including You Gong who escaped from the Universe Cave Heaven, there were three Territory Lords and a Black Ink Clan Army of approximately 1 million. Unfortunately, the You Gong who had lost his courage was practically useless.
With just Mo Na Ye and one other Territory Lord alone, it would be difficult for them to keep the Human Race Masters trapped in the Universe Cave Heaven even if they had the support of the Black Ink Clan Army; after all, there were many Human Race Masters and several extremely powerful Warships on the other side. Once the Humans broke through their blockade, the Territory Lords would probably lose their lives here.
[We’ve been careless! If I had known earlier, I would have asked for more Territory Lords as reinforcements!]
It was just… who could have known that the 10 Territory Lords overseeing Acacia Territory would end up in this state?
The main reason was You Gong and his companions. They had just arrived at Acacia Territory, but they started a fight without permission before they even met up with the other Territory Lords. In the end, Yang Kai eventually slaughtered them until only one remained. That had instantly cut the number of effective Territory Lords in half.
Two more Territory Lords had been trapped in the Portal Corridor, and their survival remained a mystery even now; however, Mo Na Ye was fairly certain they too were dead now, otherwise, there was no reason for them to remain hidden for so long.
The remaining four Territory Lords might have stood a fighting chance if they all worked together, but another Territory Lord would soon be dead. Other Territory Lords were rushing to Acacia Territory to provide support right now, but they would not arrive in time.
This situation far exceeded Mo Na Ye’s wildest expectations. In just a month, Yang Kai not only recovered from most of his wounds, but also made preparations to lure them into a deadly trap.
Hence, Mo Na Ye couldn’t help feeling upset. If he had known earlier, he would not have ordered his forces into the Universe Cave Heaven when the portal shattered earlier! The truth was that they only needed to form a blockade outside the portal to prevent any of the Humans from escaping. In fact, they could have gained an absolute advantage if they only waited until the next batch of Territory Lords arrived to provide support.
However, who could have resisted the urge to rush forward after witnessing the scene of Yang Kai coughing up blood when the Universe Cave Heaven appeared? That was definitely the best time to eliminate him once and for all!
Unfortunately, one wrong move had resulted in the entire strategy falling apart! Feeling disheartened, Mo Na Ye curtly instructed, “Barricade the portal. Kill any Human who dares to exit!”
The Black Ink Clan Army of 1 million that he transferred here immediately prepared themselves for battle.
Inside the Universe Cave Heaven, both the Human Masters and the Black Ink Clan soldiers clashed violently. Many of the Black Ink Clansmen charging forward dropped dead like flies, but that was only to be expected. Launching an assault through a narrow corridor was very risky because they could easily be targeted by the Humans.
That was precisely the reason why Yang Kai did not want to charge out of the Universe Cave Heaven. Needless to say, he would launch an attack if it was necessary as he could not remain hunkered down inside the Universe Cave Heaven.
He had 2 million Small Stone Race soldiers as a last resort, and if it came down to that, he could summon that Army. They would be enough to wipe out the Black Ink Clansmen here. It was just that this Small Stone Race Army was the trump card he reserved for his battle against the Royal Lord. Yang Kai had no wish to reveal his trump card unless absolutely necessary.
The Black Ink Clan was at a disadvantage in the first place, and following You Gong’s escape, they became even more vulnerable.
Feng Ying did not chase after You Gong, choosing instead to turn around and target the Feudal Lords. Although she was no match for an Innate Territory Lord, killing some Feudal Lords was a piece of cake with her Divine Manifestation.
In addition, there were the 1,000 or so Hunters and the three Squads, including Dawn. It did not take long before most of the Black Ink Clansmen who charged into the Universe Cave Heaven were eliminated. Only several Feudal Lords reacted quickly enough and escaped back through the portal.
Moments later, the disturbance caused by the death of a Territory Lord spread out. It was Yang Kai’s opponent being slain. The Territory Lord had been struck by a Soul Rending Thorn earlier, so even though he survived the initial attack, his strength had suffered a huge decline. How could he compete with Yang Kai in a one-on-one fight in that condition?
Looking around, Yang Kai confirmed that the battle within the Universe Cave Heaven had been decided; then, he raised his spear and charged towards the portal with a roar, “Li Zi Yu and the others are to remain behind. The rest, follow me into battle!”
“Yes!” Numerous figures transformed into streams of light and followed behind Yang Kai as they sped towards the portal.
Yang Kai charged out of the portal in the blink of an eye, and as he had expected, was immediately greeted with a storm of attacks blasting towards him from all directions. Fortunately, he had prepared himself in advance.
A Dragon Roar reverberated through the void, and a 70,000-metre-long Ancient Dragon manifested before everyone’s eyes, releasing intense Dragon Pressure all around. The Dragon Body curled around the portal to form a defensive barrier in the void.
Countless attacks landed on Yang Kai’s Dragon Body, causing him to tremble from the impact. Dragon Scales flew everywhere as the Black Ink Clan Army of a million had formed a blockade in all directions. Of course, space was limited, so not all of them could attack at once; nevertheless, Yang Kai still endured at least 100,000 attacks at that moment. Even a 70,000 metre long Ancient Dragon could not endure such a barrage for long.
Five breaths! That was the limit of what he could endure! He would not be able to take it any longer than that!
Yang Kai was on high alert against the Territory Lords outside. While he could endure the onslaught of ordinary Black Ink Clansmen for some time, he would not be able to defend against the attacks of several Territory Lords. Unexpectedly, his Divine Sense perception did not detect the aura of any Territory Lords nearby. Even the aura of You Gong, who fled earlier, was nowhere to be seen.
[What’s going on?]
Before Yang Kai could figure out what was happening, Feng Ying slipped out of the portal. She glanced at Yang Kai’s Dragon Form and instantly understood that he was shielding the Human Race Masters behind him. That was why he curled his Dragon Form to form a defensive barrier around the portal. Otherwise, only the two of them could exit the portal safely. If the other Human Race Masters rushed out, they would surely suffer innumerable casualties.
“Kill!” Her voice rang out. Urging the Myriad Swords Dragon to its limits, she produced an overwhelming number of sword waves that fanned out before her. The sword waves swept out, piercing the bodies of the nearby Black Ink Clansmen, reaping countless lives in an instant.
The solution to relieve Yang Kai’s burden was simple, they simply had to annihilate the Black Ink Clan soldiers as quickly as possible. At this moment, Feng Ying attacked at full strength without holding back in the slightest.
Dawning Light and the two Bi Xi Battleships also charged out and immediately dispersed in different directions to take down their enemies.
Following closely behind the three Warships were the 1,000 or so Hunters. These Hunters retained their previous formations and remained in their respective Squads. Scattering in all directions, they rushed towards the Black Ink Clan Army.
Once five breaths of time were up, Yang Kai immediately retracted his Dragon Form. His body was covered in countless wounds, and his complexion was deathly pale.
Even an elephant could be killed by countless ant bites. At this moment, Yang Kai fully understood the meaning behind this saying. No matter how strong a Master was, it was only a matter of time before they cracked if they were targeted by an overwhelming number of enemies, even if those enemies were weak by comparison.
What puzzled him was that he had not felt any attacks from the Territory Lords until now. A thought flashed through his mind, and a vague speculation formed before he let out a roar, “Your Territory Lords have fled! All of you will die here today!”
His furious roar reverberated throughout the void and after that, he raised his spear and slashed his way through the Black Ink Clan Army. Everywhere he passed, he left a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood in his wake.
The Black Ink Clan Army was taken aback. When Mo Na Ye ordered them to eliminate the Human Race Masters rushing out of the Universe Cave Heaven, they obeyed the order without question. Unfortunately, they had failed to stop the wave of Humans. It wasn’t until they heard Yang Kai’s shout that the Feudal Lords discovered the shocking truth. Mo Na Ye and the others were gone!
[Have the Territory Lords really escaped!?]
In the beginning, some of the Black Ink Clansmen refused to believe the truth and continued to confront the Human Race Masters bravely; however, there was no movement from the Territory Lords even though the fight had been ongoing for some time.
In the end, they had no choice but to face reality. The Territory Lords had fled! The morale of the Black Ink Clan Army instantly dropped like a stone, and their tight formation rapidly collapsed.
Even though the strength of the Black Ink Clansmen varied greatly, they held an overwhelming advantage in terms of numbers. If they were determined to put up a fight, they could cause huge casualties among the small number of Humans. Dawning Light and the two Bi Xi Battleships might come out unscathed, but not many among the 1,000 or so Hunters would survive such a battle.
Having said that, the Territory Lords had escaped, so without their pillars, how could the Black Ink Clan Army retain their fighting spirit? The siege fell into tatters after several clashes with the numerous Human Race Masters. That was especially true for the places where Yang Kai and Feng Ying passed through. Wherever Yang Kai and Feng Ying went, swathes of Black Ink Clansmen were cut down like ripe wheat in a field.
Dragon Roars and Phoenix Cries sliced through the air, immediately followed by the emergence of Tai Yue. As thousands of lives disappeared with each breath, the Black Ink Clan Army was filled with absolute terror.
The Black Ink Clansmen in the outermost circle began to retreat. The Territory Lords had already escaped, so were they supposed to hang around and wait for their deaths? Their choice quickly affected the Black Ink Clansmen in the inner circles. Hence, more and more Black Ink Clansmen began to break away from the battle and flee into the distance.
At this moment, the Black Ink Clan Army was a Dragon without a head, so it didn’t take long before the 1 million strong Army became completely vulnerable and fell apart like a handful of loose sand.
There were several Feudal Lords who tried to rally their companions to stand and fight without retreating. They undoubtedly had a clearer picture of the situation, so they knew that they had a chance of survival if they banded together and fought back desperately. On the contrary, they would not stand the slightest chance if they panicked and all escaped in random directions. Without any exceptions, these Feudal Lords would quickly be cut down by Yang Kai.
Yang Kai navigated his way through the Black Ink Clan Army as though there was nobody in his path, heading in the direction where the resistance was fiercest. It was difficult even for him to eliminate such a massive Black Ink Clan Army, and since that was the case, his focus was to force them to retreat.
As time passed, more and more of the Black Ink Clan Army fled the battlefield. When the number of escaped Black Ink Clansmen reached a critical point, the fighting spirit of the Black Ink Clan Army collapsed completely. The three Warships and the Hunters pounced on this opportunity, causing heavy casualties to the Black Ink Clan everywhere they went.
“A hard-pressed enemy should not be pursued too far!” Yang Kai shouted, preventing the Hunters from chasing the enemy into the distance.
Upon hearing his command, everybody quickly ceased their pursuit. Countless Black Ink Clansmen quickly fled in all directions, vanishing into the depths of the void and disappearing out of sight.
The battle ended on an anticlimactic note. After the battle, countless Black Ink Clan remains littered the battlefield. Just a rough estimate indicated that there were at least 300,000 fresh corpses. That number was nothing compared to the Black Ink Clan Army of 1.5 million that was transferred here, 20% of it at most, but the battle had not lasted for very long either. The entire process took no more than an hour from the beginning to the end.
300,000 enemies had been slaughtered in an hour, which was a staggering victory.
Likewise, there were casualties among the Human Race Masters. Many Hunters had lost their lives, and those who survived were covered in wounds. Nevertheless, these casualties could not be avoided to achieve this kind of result.
It was impossible to suffer zero casualties in such a battle, but nobody mourned too much. Ever since choosing to become Hunters, these people had disregarded their concerns over life or death. Nobody knew when they would encounter an accident, so they had long since become indifferent to such matters.
For the first time, the Hunters discovered that large-scale army battles were much more enjoyable than their previous small-scale raids. The main reason they chose to become Hunters was that they could not adapt to the way the Army fought in war. Cultivators generally believed in their own strength rather than the support of others.
However, it might not be unacceptable if all the Army fought in this manner. For a time, many Hunters entertained different ideas in their hearts.
“Keep a lookout in all directions,” Yang Kai breathed a sigh of relief and issued the command before he slipped back into the Universe Cave Heaven again.
Due to the destruction of the portal, the Human Race Masters inside the Universe Cave Heaven could vaguely see the battle taking place outside. It was just that they did not have a very clear view of the situation. The battle had erupted without warning and then ended so quickly that many people could not tell who had won and who had lost. It was not until Yang Kai’s figure appeared again that everybody finally breathed a sigh of relief.
“Sir!” Li Zi Yu came forward to greet Yang Kai, “The situation outside…”
“The Territory Lords have escaped, and the Black Ink Clan Army has been repelled,” Yang Kai briefly explained. The 10,000 Human refugees inside the Universe Cave Heaven immediately burst into cheers, causing the entire World to resonate with joy.
“Can we leave this place now?” Li Zi Yu asked emotionally.
Several dozen years had passed since they were tasked with the responsibility of evacuating the Humans in Acacia Territory and became trapped in this Universe Cave Heaven. It was extremely dull to remain cooped up inside this Universe Cave Heaven. When the Black Ink Clan besieged them after they accidentally exposed their whereabouts, they believed that they would die soon. Who could have known that Human Masters would be dispatched to rescue them?
At this moment, the Black Ink Clan Army standing guard outside had been repelled, so there was nobody to stop them from leaving the Universe Cave Heaven.
Yang Kai nodded lightly. In the next moment, he opened the portal to his Small Universe, “Everybody, please enter my Small Universe!”
Not many among the 10,000 refugees were in the Open Heaven Realm, so it was not difficult for Yang Kai to take them in.
Many Black Ink Clansmen were slaughtered during the previous battle in the Universe Cave Heaven, and Black Ink Strength flooded the World as a result. Although Feng Ying and the others had distributed Purifying Black Ink Pills to the crowd, the weaker Humans here would not be able to resist the Black Ink Strength for long. Therefore, they did not hesitate to rush into the portal of Yang Kai’s Small Universe upon hearing his command.
An hour later, all 10,000 refugees in the Universe Cave Heaven had been taken into Yang Kai’s Small Universe.
“You too!” Yang Kai turned to Li Zi Yu and the others.
“Us, too?” Li Zi Yu was astonished.
He was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Not to mention, he was not the only Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in this place. Although they could enter Yang Kai’s Small Universe… Could Yang Kai really accommodate so many cultivators at once?
Despite feeling suspicious, he did not dare to question Yang Kai’s orders further, so he immediately told the others, “Move.”
The crowd of Open Heaven Realm Masters quickly plunged into the portal. Since Yang Kai wanted them to enter his Small Universe, then he must be confident in his ability.
Li Zi Yu was the last to enter, but before he did, he secretly peeked at Yang Kai’s complexion. Yang Kai was very pale, but that was more likely a result of the injuries he sustained in his previous battle than any strain on his Small Universe.
Hence, Li Zi Yu was secretly astonished, [How large must Sir Yang’s Small Universe be!?]
After accepting all of the Human Race Masters in the Universe Cave Heaven, Yang Kai darted out.
Outside the Universe Cave Heaven, the rest of the Human Race Masters were watching their surroundings under Feng Ying’s command. It was just that none of the Black Ink Clan came attacking. They had only just been forced to retreat, so who would dare to return?
When Yang Kai appeared without anybody else behind him, Feng Ying immediately understood the situation. Those Humans inside had probably been taken into his Small Universe, so she simply asked, “Squad Leader, do we fight our way out?”
Yang Kai shook his head, “All five Territory Gates are guarded by Black Ink Clan Armies, and we don’t know where the three Territory Lords who escaped might be. It’s too risky to charge out of Acacia Territory.”
The reason they managed to defeat the Black Ink Clan Army earlier was pure luck as the three Territory Lords had escaped first. If the scenario unfolded for a second time, they might not be so lucky again. As long as the three Territory Lords were not fools, there was a great chance that they could stop their advance if they joined forces and cooperated with a large Black Ink Clan Army.
“What should we do?”
“I have an idea,” Yang Kai replied, “How many people can you accommodate in your Small Universe if they are in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm and below?”
Feng Ying considered for a moment before she responded, “I’ve never tried, but 200 is probably my limit with Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters as a standard.”
If she took in those in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, then she might only be able to accommodate 20 or 30 at most; after all, the higher their Order, the larger the size of their Small Universe, and the heavier the burden to hold them became.
“Do your best to take in as many as you can. I will deal with the rest,” Yang Kai instructed.
Feng Ying nodded.
Yang Kai swept a glance across his surroundings and spoke in a loud voice, “Everybody, it is true that we won this battle; however, the Territory Gates in Acacia Territory are guarded by large Black Ink Clan Armies. The whereabouts of the Territory Lords also remain unknown, so it will be extremely difficult for us to safely leave Acacia Territory. While I have a method to escape this place safely, I will require your full cooperation.”
His speech was mainly aimed at the Hunters since he was not familiar with them. Furthermore, these Hunters were not part of the Army, so his orders held no weight with them. Discussion and compromise were the only options here.
One of the Hunters shouted, “Sir, please feel free to ask anything of us, we will not refuse.”
Having witnessed Yang Kai’s strength and heroics, these Hunters could be said to hold great admiration for him. Now that the Territory Gates in Acacia Territory had been blockaded, they could only rely upon him if they wanted to leave, so how could they dare to be disrespectful?
Yang Kai nodded, “I would like to ask you to enter my and Senior Sister Feng’s Small Universes!”
As soon as the words left his mouth, he shot a glance at Feng Ying. The two of them opened the portals to their Small Universe in unison.
Ordinary people might not be able to notice any kind of difference; however, for these Masters, as soon as the two portals appeared side by side, the difference in strength between the two Small Universes could be seen at a glance.
The aura radiating from Yang Kai’s Small Universe was undoubtedly more substantial. Even the impression given by the two portals was distinctly contrasting. If the portal to Feng Ying’s Small Universe was akin to a wooden door, then the portal to Yang Kai’s Small Universe was a huge steel gate. There was no comparison between the two at all.
“Those in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm and below will enter Senior Sister Feng’s Small Universe first. Those in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm will come to my side,” Yang Kai continued.
Many of the Hunters rushed over without hesitation and plunged straight into the two portals.
Not long afterwards, Feng Ying’s expression began to twist in discomfort. She persisted for a while longer, but eventually closed her portal with a shake of her head when her aura fluctuations became unsteady, “I can’t take any more.”
Her Small Universe had reached its limits, so it was impossible for her to accommodate any more Open Heaven Realm Masters.
On the other hand, the opened portal to Yang Kai’s Small Universe resembled a bottomless pit that accepted every single person who came forward. Even so, it could be seen that he too was starting to feel the pressure after accommodating so many cultivators in his Small Universe.
When all the Hunters had entered his Small Universe, he turned to look at Yang Xiao and the others, “You too.”
Yang Xiao worriedly said, “Adoptive Father, will you be okay? We don’t need to enter…”
“Enough nonsense, get inside,” Yang Kai snapped irritably. [Do you really think I can’t see through your little schemes?]
These little ones were clearly looking for an opportunity to escape his watch so that they could continue wandering outside; however, the situation here was too dangerous. How could they be so careless? If he had not come to Acacia Territory himself, they would have been in mortal danger by now.
Seeing Yang Kai being so insistent, Yang Xiao and the others had no choice but to obey; thus, they dejectedly took turns entering the portal.
Yang Kai urged his power slightly. Although his World Force which used to flow smoothly felt slightly congested, he had yet to reach his limits. He could probably accommodate a few more people in his Small Universe; thus, he turned to look at the Dawn Squad, “You too. Enter my Small Universe.”
“Yes!” Shen Ao of Dawn quickly received the order; then, the entire Squad plunged into the portal of Yang Kai’s Small Universe.
When all the members of Dawn had entered Yang Kai’s Small Universe, he had the sense that he had almost reached his limits. The strongest indicator was a bloated feeling as though he had eaten too much.
An ordinary person would have trouble moving around if they were bloated. On the other hand, an Open Heaven Realm Master would not only have trouble moving around when bloated, but their ability to exert their full strength would be greatly affected.
Therefore, most High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters generally would not accept others into their Small Universes unless their safety could be guaranteed. No matter how few they accepted, they were bound to face some degree of impact on their strength, and the more they accommodated, the greater the impact.
If a Territory Lord were to appear right now, Yang Kai would not be able to compete against them. He could barely even exert 20% of his full strength at the moment, but his condition was not too bad. When he turned to look at Feng Ying, he saw that her aura was unstable and her expression twisted constantly. She looked like she could explode at any moment.
Yu Ru Meng’s Squad remained, but Feng Ying or Yang Kai couldn’t accommodate any more people.
At this moment, Yang Kai could only pray that everything would go smoothly; otherwise, he did not know how he could bring so many people out of Acacia Territory.
“Stay close to me!” Yang Kai beckoned to the others. Feng Ying and the last Bi Xi Battleship responded immediately and crowded around him.
Exhaling slowly, Yang Kai activated his strength and connected his mind to the World Tree.
The Void trembled and the entire Great Territory rumbled. A kind of ethereal connection in the distance seemed to appear, it could not seem to condense no matter what.
Yang Kai’s expression turned ugly as he knew the reason was that he had too many people with him.
The last time he brought Wu Kuang alone to the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, he had not faced any pressure. The difference this time was that he had many Human Race Masters in his Small Universe. Not to mention, he also had an Eighth-Order Master like Feng Ying and 10 others in Yu Ru Meng’s Squad with him. It was not the same situation as before.
“Old Tree, help!” Yang Kai hurriedly shouted. He couldn’t enter the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary with his strength alone, so he could only ask the Old Tree for help.
When the words left his mouth, something that resembled a tree branch came from somewhere unknown and extended towards him across the vague expanse of space. As the tree branch stretched towards his location, Yang Kai was overjoyed, [Old Tree is reliable after all!]
Then, he quickly shouted, “Go!”
Wrapping his power around Feng Ying and Yu Ru Meng’s Squad, he stepped onto the illusory path that had opened before him and vanished into the Void.
By the time he came back to his senses, Yang Kai had already arrived in front of the majestic and enormous World Tree. Unfortunately, the Void trembled violently even though he had the support of the Old Tree. Feng Ying and Yu Ru Meng’s Squad were knocked off balance as a result.
He stood up shakily and turned back to look in the direction he came. The path leading here was becoming insubstantial, and even the tree branch that the World Tree extended earlier was beginning to shatter.
A chill ran through his heart when he realised that the Old Tree probably had to pay a price to support his trip here. The reason he failed to notice in the past was that he had always been travelling alone. Now that he brought so many people along with him, the price was much more noticeable as a result. In other words, the Old Tree probably had to pay some kind of price every time he came here, it had just never mentioned anything to him before.
“Many thanks, Old Tree.” Yang Kai expressed his gratitude.
The Old Tree did not reveal himself and simply waved his branches lightly in response.
“Is this the World Tree!?” Bi Xi’s Soul Clone suddenly exclaimed.
He was the oldest out of everybody else present by a large margin, so he was also the most knowledgeable. It only took him a glance to see through the Old Tree’s true nature. Nevertheless, even he had only heard of the World Tree but had never seen it before. He never imagined that he would see the World Tree today.
Thinking back to Yang Kai’s actions earlier, he quickly grasped the situation. This place was probably the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary that was mentioned in legends.
“This is the World Tree? Why does it look so withered and wilted?” Yu Ru Meng was extremely taken aback.
At present, the World Tree certainly looked rather wilted. The originally lush leaves had withered away, and a feeble aura permeated its surroundings.
Yang Kai sighed and casually explained, “Old Tree’s existence is related to the Universe Worlds in the 3,000 Worlds. If one suffers, all suffer; if one prospers, all prosper. Now that many of the Great Territories have been occupied by the Black Ink Clan, most Universe Worlds have had their Grand Daos collapse and their World Force drained away. It’s only natural that the Old Tree suffered some backlash.”
“Are those World Fruits?” Su Yan suddenly asked, pointing at the few fruits hanging on the tree.
Yang Kai nodded, “En, they are World Fruits. But, we can’t pick any of them. Most of the surviving World Fruits contain Universe Worlds that have been integrated into them. The rest represent the Universe Worlds that we have managed to preserve so far.”
The 3,000 Worlds used to be extremely prosperous, with countless Universe Worlds in the past, but only around 2,000 or so remained now. Each of these Universe Worlds corresponded to one of the World Fruits hanging on the World Tree. When the Grand Dao of a Universe World collapsed, the most obvious sign reflected by the World Tree was the decomposition of its World Fruit.
If Yang Kai had not travelled across so many Great Territories and refined the Universe Worlds there, the World Tree would probably be bare by now. Yang Kai did not know whether the World Tree could survive in such a condition. The highest probability was that the World Tree would survive, but not much vitality would remain.
Yu Ru Meng and the others were amazed. Although they could not understand how they suddenly travelled to this place from Acacia Territory, they did not inquire further into the matter since it was obviously related to Yang Kai.
“All of you should take some time to recuperate. I will lead you out later,” Yang Kai instructed, and then he sat down cross-legged.
Everybody obeyed his command. Taking out some Spirit Pills, they sat beside the World Tree and began to adjust their breathing. Many of them had sustained injuries during the battle earlier, and Yang Kai suffered the most wounds among them.
While these Humans were quietly focusing on their recovery, the Black Ink Clan Army stood guard around the five Territory Gates in Acacia Territory.
The three Territory Lords who escaped from the battle were gathered at one of the Territory Gates. Their leader, Mo Na Ye, was monitoring the depths of the void with a gloomy look in his eyes. That direction was where the Universe Cave Heaven in Acacia Territory was located.
They did not know the outcome of the battle outside the Universe Cave Heaven. Although Mo Na Ye had ordered the Black Ink Clan Army to lock down the Universe Cave Heaven before they departed, they were not there to oversee the situation themselves. No matter how great the numbers of the Black Ink Clan Army were, it would be difficult for them to succeed in the endeavour without the Territory Lords. On the contrary, the situation would improve significantly if they managed to suppress the enemy.
As Mo Na Ye mulled over the issue, a wave of murderous intent surged in his heart and he glared at You Gong who was standing nearby!
This bastard was the first to flee the battle after rushing out of the Universe Cave Heaven. As a result, Mo Na Ye did not dare to stay for long. If You Gong had not fled back then, Mo Na Ye would not have left so quickly either. The three Territory Lords would have stood a chance against the Humans if they cooperated with the Black Ink Clan Army, but this coward chose to flee without any hesitation! Mo Na Ye did not have the confidence to restrain Yang Kai without You Gong, so he could only choose to leave with him.
Seeming to sense Mo Na Ye’s glare, You Gong turned his head away and silently cursed in his heart, [Bastard Mo Na Ye! He refuses to take action for fear of danger, but has no problems sending others to die in his place!]
The other Territory Lords had not experienced the horror of Yang Kai from up close, but he had. It was fortunate that he had wisely chosen to make that female Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master his opponent and avoided fighting Yang Kai; otherwise, he would not be alive right now! After all, wasn’t that other fool dead?
As for Mo Na Ye’s dissatisfaction with him, he couldn’t care less. They were all Territory Lords, so even if Mo Na Ye was unhappy with him, what could the other party do to him?
All of a sudden, he sensed something. He raised his head and stared into the distance with a sigh, “The battle has probably ended.”
Similarly, Mo Na Ye and the other Territory Lords had noticed the situation. Many Black Ink Clansmen were fleeing towards them in a panic, as though an ominous beast was chasing them from behind.
[We lost!] Mo Na Ye sighed and closed his eyes. The Black Ink Clan Army of one million had failed to stop the Humans from escaping. Who knows how many losses they sustained in this battle?
Not long afterwards, Mo Na Ye learned the specifics of the situation from the fleeing Black Ink Clansmen.
The Black Ink Clan had indeed lost the battle. Without the support of the Territory Lords, the Black Ink Clan Army had fallen apart like loose sand. It only took several attempts for the Human Race Masters to break their formation. Moreover, nobody knew which direction the Humans had fled.
Mo Na Ye then quickly relayed a command to each Territory Gate, ordering the troops to keep a strict watch for any movement by the Human Race Masters. Although the Humans had broken out of the Universe Cave Heaven, the Black Ink Clan was not without a chance of success.
There were over 700,000 troops standing guard at each Territory Gate, so no matter where the Humans tried to attack, there was bound to be a large battle. The Black Ink Clan Army guarding the targeted gate would only need to buy some time for the rest of the Black Ink Clan Army in Acacia Territory to arrive and overwhelm the enemy. With several million soldiers and three Territory Lords, there was still a chance to prevent the Humans from escaping.
However, what puzzled Mo Na Ye was that the situation at each Territory Gate remained peaceful and quiet even though more than 10 days passed. There was no movement from the Human Race Masters at all.
After some time, more Territory Lords arrived from various Great Territories to provide support, allowing Mo Na Ye to finally feel at ease. It was not until a total of nine Territory Lords had gathered here that he finally relayed a new command. The Territory Lords would split into groups of three, and each group would lead a portion of the Black Ink Clan Army to search for the whereabouts of the Human Race Masters in Acacia Territory.
The Humans could not have left Acacia Territory through the Territory Gates, so they must have been hiding somewhere and recovering from their wounds. In that case, it was only a matter of time before they were found.
Contrary to Mo Na Ye’s expectations though, the search lasted for half a year, but revealed nothing. The Humans… seemed to have vanished into thin air!
Inside the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, Yang Kai stood up after several days of rest and said goodbye to the Old Tree. The Old Tree simply waved his branches lightly in response, not even bothering to reveal his face. The effort to help Yang Kai previously must have placed a huge burden on him.
Yang Kai secretly vowed that he would not allow the Old Tree to help him like this again. Although the Old Tree was the manifestation of the 3,000 Worlds, his existence was integrated with all the Universe Worlds in every Great Territory. If the Old Tree exhausted too much energy, it would be harmful to the heritage of each Great Territory in the future.
When Yang Kai arrived, he needed the Old Tree to help him; fortunately, there was no need for that during his return.
Back then, Yang Kai managed to transfer 100 Divine Spirits to the vicinity of the Star Boundary with ease, so naturally, he did not require much effort this time either.
Activating his strength, he wrapped his power around everybody and connected his mind to the Star Boundary. It did not take long for him to locate the World Fruit on the World Tree that corresponded to the Star Boundary as that one was larger and more robust than the others.
In the next moment, Yang Kai charged towards the World Fruit. The World Tree rapidly enlarged in his vision, as though an entire universe was rushing straight at him. The Void turned upside down and space became hazy. Then, they suddenly appeared in the periphery of the Star Boundary.
Even though Yang Kai was in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he couldn’t help feeling slightly overwhelmed when he felt this familiar aura. He was home! After several thousand years, he was finally home!
Nearly a millennium ago, Yang Kai entered the Black Ink Battlefield from Black Territory, where he constantly fought for centuries without rest, and then got stuck in the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon for many years. Only a few decades ago did he finally return from the Black Ink Battlefield.
Even then, he had been travelling about and did not have time to return to the Star Boundary.
When the situation in the 3,000 Worlds stabilized, he had to take Wu Kuang to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. One man could only do so many things.
Even when Yang Kai had sent the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary’s Divine Spirits to the Star Boundary, he still could not spare time to return himself.
It was only today that he finally returned home.
He was a Great Emperor who had been acknowledged by the Star Boundary’s Will, and was bestowed the title ‘Void’. As such, he was inseparable from the Star Boundary. As soon as he returned, an exceptionally strong intimate feeling filled his body, making him feel warm and content, like he had returned to his mother’s womb.
But the next moment, an angry shout interrupted this warm and homely sensation, “Who dares to trespass my Star Boundary?”
Immediately after the shout, a massive figure suddenly appeared from the Star Boundary. This figure was so massive that it blotted the entire void and was radiating quite an intimidating pressure.
Yang Kai felt that even though this pressure had yet not reached the Eighth Order, it was not far from it. Furthermore, as the opposite party was also borrowing the Star Boundary’s might, even an average Eighth-Order Master might not necessarily be his opponent.
Yang Kai smiled at the figure, “A wanderer has returned home, don’t panic, Sir Hong Chen!”
The projection from the Star Boundary belonged to none other than Bustling World Great Emperor, Duan Hong Chen.
Obviously, he was the one holding the fort currently.
Yang Kai had also heard about this from Yu Ru Meng and the others. In the beginning, the Star Boundary’s defences were not very tight, but it had now become the Human Race’s final refuge and primary base where the cultivators from Great Territories all across the 3,000 Worlds were gathered. Most of these refugees were weak and helpless, but there were a fair number of strong ones too. If someday the Black Ink Clan really fought its way to the Star Boundary, that would be the day of the final battle.
Ever since Yang Kai had sent the 100 or so Divine Spirits here, the Star Boundary had raised its level of vigilance significantly. It was not that they were on guard against Yang Kai specifically, it was more that they were concerned that the Black Ink Clan might have someone who could employ similar methods.
As such, a Great Emperor would remain on guard duty at all times.
Iron Blood, Bustling World, Martial Beast, Serene Soul, Flower Shadow, Ice Feather, Wondrous Pill, Heavens Revelation, and Void, these nine were the Star Boundary’s current Great Emperors.
Each of them was an outstanding character; otherwise, they would not have become Great Emperors. In the past, all of them had broken through straight to Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm with Yang Kai’s help, and thanks to the abundant resources available to them, they had smoothly advanced to Seventh-Order over the years.
Even then, their cultivation speed was quite fast, but what surprised Yang Kai today was Duan Hong Chen’s pressure. It was not the pressure of someone who had just recently advanced to the Seventh Order. Even many veteran Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters would not be able to hold a candle to him.
Yang Kai had some speculation in his mind.
Duan Hong Chen was taken aback after hearing Yang Kai’s voice, but joy soon replaced his shock, “Yang Kai?”
The moment he mentioned Yang Kai’s name, the Star Boundary became abuzz with excitement as streaks of light shot up from its surface towards the void.
Yang Kai’s heart could not help but pound with excitement, sensing so many familiar auras.
A moment later, the streaks of light came to a halt and revealed themselves. A few of the figures were familiar to Yang Kai, while a few were not, but all of them radiated quite powerful undulations.
He immediately started heading in a particular direction. Standing in that direction was a middle-aged couple, who were both looking at him with excitement and warmth. The woman was incessantly sobbing, while the middle-aged man maintained a calm look, but he was still unable to conceal his excitement.
When he arrived close to the two, Yang Kai bowed down to kneel, “Your unfilial son, Yang Kai has made Father and Mother worried.”
“Get up!” Yang Ying Feng promptly grabbed him, preventing him from kneeling, “You are now an Army Commander, you represent the face of an entire Army as well as its prestige.”
The nearby Dong Su Zhu could not help but nod in agreement, but most of her attention was focused on Yang Kai’s body, checking if he was hurt in any place or not.
Naturally, the people in the rear received word of everything that had been going on in the frontlines. They had already received the news about Yang Kai being appointed as the Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army, but Yang Kai’s parents were just happy that their Son was alive and well. They were proud that he was now entrusted with such heavy responsibilities by the Supreme Headquarters; still, they were worried that Yang Kai might not be able to shoulder such heavy responsibilities.
Yang Kai smiled, “Who does not have parents? Without parents, how could the current Human Race continue on?”
He then respectfully kneeled down, and kowtowed three times to his parents.
Only then did he stand up, lifted by his parents, before looking towards the figure standing next to his parents, “Thank you, it must have been hard on you…”
Xia Ning Chang’s eyes turned red, but she still shook her head and smiled, “Not at all.”
The moment Yang Kai appeared on the Profound Nether Territory battlefield, the news was instantly transmitted back. Xia Ning Chang had quickly rushed to Profound Nether Territory, but unfortunately, when she arrived, she received the news that Yang Kai had left with some soldiers just a few days prior. Helpless, Xia Ning Chang could only return to the Star Boundary.
She was now one of the most outstanding Alchemists of the Human Race and the soldiers on the frontline required a great deal of pills every day. So, she could not remain absent for too long.
Unexpectedly, Yang Kai had returned so soon, and appeared right outside the Star Boundary.
From Little Senior Sister’s perspective, it had been over 1,000 years since they last met, but her endless longing completely turned into tender feelings after just a glance at Yang Kai.
While they were chatting, more and more people flew over from the Star Boundary, but remained standing at a respectful distance.
Yang Kai spotted Hua Qing Si, Hui Gu, Mo Xiao Qi, Lin Yun’er, and many other acquaintances and unfamiliar figures in the crowd.
Most of them were injured and had probably returned from the front lines to recuperate at the Star Boundary. Once they had recovered, they would probably head back to the battlefield.
After some brief hellos, Yang Kai shouted, “Head Manager!”
Hua Qing Si immediately stepped forward, “Yes!”
“I’ll have to trouble you to take care of these people.” Saying so, he and Feng Ying immediately opened portals to their Small Universes and many cultivators rushed out, soon reaching 10,000 in number with quite a lot of them in the Sixth Order and Seventh Order.
The crowd was dumbfounded at the sight of this. Feng Ying’s side was still acceptable as the number of people she had taken was not high and none of them were in the Seventh Order.
Yang Kai’s side was rather spectacular though; not only did the people coming out of his Small Universe number over 10,000, but there were many in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm.
This left many speechless, wondering just how vast his Small Universe was.
“Palace Master, these are…” Hua Qing Si asked.
Yang Kai explained, “Most of them were rescued from Acacia Territory, while the rest are Hunters who happened to be there and provided us with their aid.”
Hua Qing Si immediately understood after hearing this and stated with a nod, “I understand! Everyone, please follow me.”
There were so many refugees, so it was impossible to settle them all on the Star Boundary. In fact, the Star Boundary could no longer accept any more people. The logistics department had already arranged the cultivators who had come from other Great Territories to other places.
Yang Xiao and the others wanted to slip into the crowd and disappear, but they were caught by Yang Kai, “You’re not going anywhere.”
A look of misery immediately took over Yang Xiao’s face as he shot a glance towards Yang Xue; however, how could Yang Xue dare to raise her voice; her parents were right here, so acting cute to her Big Brother would be useless. As for Zhao Ye Bai and the others, they obediently lowered their heads like baby chicks.
Yang Kai then shouted to the surrounding crowd, “Ladies and gentlemen, this Yang has just returned home from a long journey. I’m sorry, but I won’t be entertaining any of you. I’ll visit you another day.”
A Seventh-Order old man from some Cave Heaven Paradise stated, putting on a smile, “Sir Yang is too polite, you can go about your own business. We are now members of the Star Boundary, so we can catch up later!”
Seniority-wise, he was many generations older than Yang Kai, but Yang Kai was currently in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm and was also an Army Commander. Even the Sect Masters of the Cave Heavens and Paradises dared not put on airs before him. Addressing him as Sir was not inappropriate.
Yang Kai nodded in response before wrapping everyone around him in his World Force and heading to the Star Boundary.
A short while later, an Auspicious Aura basked High Heaven Palace, causing many disciples in retreat to start breaking through in succession. Those who could see fate and fortune saw an obscure, enormous Golden Dragon encompassing High Heaven Palace from afar. They could not help but marvel at this sight, “High Heaven Palace is really something, they are enjoying 30% of the Star Boundary’s fortune.”
It was foreseeable that in the future, Masters would emerge from High Heaven Palace one after another, and would continue to do so for some time.
In the past, the Auspicious Aura around High Heaven Palace was much stronger than other places in the Star Boundary already, but now, with Yang Kai’s return, that Auspicious Aura grew even stronger. It was as if the entire Star Boundary was celebrating his return. Even the World Tree clone towering in the Star Boundary rustled happily.
The area within a range of 100,000 kilometres of the World Tree clone was considered a Holy Land of the entire Human Race. This region was demarcated by High Heaven Palace, and only the most outstanding young generation disciples were allowed to cultivate here because it was easier to comprehend the various Grand Daos in the vicinity of the World Tree. Even healing effects here were much better than anywhere else.
The seriously wounded who had retreated from the front lines would also be sent here to recuperate.
At this moment, on a certain Spirit Peak in High Heaven Palace, where Yang Kai’s parents lived, a group of people suddenly appeared. Yang Kai was back, so were Yu Ru Meng and the others. Even Yang Xiao and the other little ones had been caught and brought back. The Spirit Peak, which was usually deserted, suddenly started bustling with activity.
Looking at the buzzing crowd, Yang Ying Feng and Dong Su Zhu glanced at each other as a smile appeared on their lips. After so many years, this place finally looked like a real home again.
Yu Ru Meng and the others got busy preparing a family banquet, while Yang Kai accompanied his parents, chatting non-stop with them. No one talked about the current situation of the Human Race, nor did Yang Kai’s parents ask about his recent experiences, because they did not need to ask, they knew that their Son must have gone through a lot.
Yang Xiao and others also wanted to help out, but just as they went to do so, they were reprimanded by Yu Ru Meng. Helpless, they had no choice but walk to one side in embarrassment, staring at each other in speechless dismay.
Endless sighs escaped Yang Kai’s lips, watching everyone and making small talk with his parents.
The noise and cruelty of the battlefield seemed so far away at this moment. This rare warmth could make anyone forget oneself and not want to leave.
His parents were both Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters now, but it had been ages since they advanced to the Fifth-Order. After so many years of cultivation, they were on the verge of breaking through to the Sixth Order. Only, his parents’ aptitude was not that great, and the further their cultivation progressed, the harder it became for them to advance. If they want to break through to the Seventh Order, they would need many more years.
Yang Ying Feng and Dong Su Zhu were still very satisfied. They were also among the first generation of people to receive the World Tree’s feedback. In fact, had it not been for the World Tree clone’s feedback, it would have been difficult for them to even advance directly to the Fourth Order with their past aptitude. They would have probably had to settle for reaching the Third-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Currently, they were in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm, Yang Kai was in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, and with high status and weighty responsibilities. Although Yang Xue was in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, she was about to advance to Seventh-Order and had a lot of room for growth. Furthermore, all of their Daughters-in-law were in the Seventh Order. So, what was there to be dissatisfied about? The two had never been insatiably greedy.
The Spirit Peak was overflowing with joy and happiness.
Most of the time, it was Dong Su Zhu who was speaking, Yang Ying Feng did not say much. Their chat included the interesting events that had taken place in the Star Boundary over the years. Like, when two Elders of some Cave Heaven or Paradise fought with each other over a Disciple, only to end up being taken advantage of by others.
This kind of thing had happened before. Only, when Yang Kai was here, the World Tree clone’s feedback had only just appeared, and was not as marvellous as it was now.
Like, when a native disciple of the Star Boundary with outstanding aptitude was acknowledged as Great Emperor a few years ago.
Or how a gorgeous disciple of High Heaven Palace made their Fellow Brothers compete with each other for her favour.
Yang Kai calmly listened with a smile.
High Heaven Territory was the last pure land of the Human Race. Feeling the warmth he had not felt for a very long time, Yang Kai suddenly understood the feelings of the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors who had sacrificed their lives that day.
They wanted to protect this final paradise at any cost, because this was the future hope of the Human Race.
Unfortunately, warm moments were always too short.
Yang Kai did not stay with his parents for long. After attending the family banquet, he left Yu Ru Meng and the others with his parents and departed.
He still had many things to attend to.
Yang Kai was sitting up straight in the Main Conference Hall of High Heaven Palace, listening to Hua Qing Si explain the Star Boundary’s current situation.
The Star Boundary could now be said to be the most important rear base of the Human Race, because of the World Tree clone. The current Star Boundary was truly an Open Heaven Realm Cradle, with a large number of them being born every year, each one extremely talented in their own right.
Most of these people would advance straight to Fifth-Order or Sixth-Order, while occasionally, one or two would advance straight to Seventh-Order! These rare few would be treated as precious treasures by the Cave Heavens and Paradises.
More than 1,000 years ago, the Cave Heavens and Paradises had founded their own Dao Temples on the Star Boundary, laying claim to vast stretches of territory. Over the years, a balance of power in the Star Boundary had been maintained by High Heaven Palace as the leader, and other local Sects and Cave Heavens and Paradises’ Dao Temples acting as supports. This power balance had not changed much for nearly a millennium.
A few decades ago though, when the Human Race suffered defeat on the Barren Territory battlefield, cultivators from various Great Territories all migrated to High Heaven Territory.
It was quite hectic back then as too many people had suddenly arrived, and more kept on coming. Fortunately, the Cave Heavens and Paradises had stepped in to manage the situation, otherwise the Star Boundary would have been in total chaos.
The Star Boundary’s name had spread far and wide long ago, and at that time, all the cultivators who had lost their homes all naturally wanted to settle down in the Star Boundary, but the Star Boundary was only so big and could not accommodate so many people.
In the end, Masters from the various Cave Heavens and Paradises came forward and allowed various forces to set up temporary palaces in the vicinity of the Star Boundary, but all the forces of a Territory were only allowed to set up one such palace.
Since they could not enter the Star Boundary, staying in its periphery was not a bad idea. At the very least, they would be able to benefit from some of the feedback from the World Tree clone.
Furthermore, the forces that had migrated from all over 3,000 Worlds were promised that if their outstanding disciples chose to enter any of the Cave Heavens or Paradises’ Dao Temples to cultivate they would be allowed to do so as long as they passed certain tests.
These tests were neither easy nor difficult, but only true geniuses could pass them.
Over the years, some people had passed these tests and entered the various Dao Temples, but their numbers weren’t that high.
With these kinds of arrangements, the initial chaos was finally settled.
Yang Kai suddenly understood, “No wonder there were so many Universe Fragments in the periphery of the Star Boundary, they were arranged by the combined effort of various forces of the Great Territories!”
When he had returned, Yang Kai noticed numerous Universe Fragments of various sizes floating around the Star Boundary. Furthermore, there were many palaces and buildings erected on these Universe Fragments; obviously, cultivators were living on them. Yang Kai could not understand why there were so many Universe Fragments present, but after listening to Hua Qing Si’s explanation, he finally understood.
The Cave Heavens and Paradises ate the meat, while the forces that had migrated could only settle for the soup. There was no other alternative though. The Dao Temples’ domain had already occupied a large portion of the Star Boundary, and far too many forces had migrated to High Heaven Territory, so the Star Boundary could not accommodate all of them.
Hua Qing Si concurred with a nod as a bitter smile appeared on her face as she continued, “If the Demon Territory’s environment wasn’t so unsuitable, many would have been more than happy to settle there.”
There were not many Universe Worlds suitable for habitation and cultivation in High Heaven Territory. Apart from the Star Boundary, there was the Demon Realm. The latter had been shattered many years ago, and Yang Kai had used his Embodiment to activate the Heaven Devouring Battle Law and re-assemble all those shattered pieces.
In terms of cultivation environment, the Demon Realm was naturally inferior to the Star Boundary; furthermore, the Demon Realm was rich in Demon Qi. Myriad Demons Heaven disciples should like it very much. Likewise, cultivators who cultivated Demon Techniques would not reject it, but for most cultivators, the Demon Realm was simply not suitable to live in.
“The numbers don’t match though, how come there are so few migrated cultivators here?” Yang Kai was a little puzzled. Although there were many palaces in the vicinity of the Star Boundary, those could only house so many cultivators, far fewer than the total number who had migrated here from the other Great Territories.
Hua Qing Si explained, “The number of cultivators living in the palaces in the periphery of the Star Boundary is small because most others were settled in the New Great Territory. There are many more suitable Universe Worlds in the New Great Territory for habitation. Whether it is the World Energy, World Force, or even the Grand Dao or material resources there, they can be well suited for varying forces.”
Yang Kai understood right away.
The Small Stone Race he had was discovered in the New Great Territory. This Great Territory was only accidentally discovered about a millennium ago, and Humans from the other Great Territories had never set foot into it. The void was truly vast, so a Great Territory could remain undiscovered as breaching the Territory Barriers was no simple feat.
Over the past 1,000 years or so, High Heaven Palace had worked hard to develop the New Great Territory and reaped quite a lot of benefits from it. During that time, the New Great Territory had been under High Heaven Palace’s sole control, with the Cave Heavens and Paradises unable to intervene in it. But now, in order to accommodate all the refugees, there was no choice but to open up the New Great Territory.
Be that as it may, if the New Great Territory had any treasures, they had already been snatched up by High Heaven Palace during their 1,000 year development period.
Yang Kai nodded lightly, “Follow me, let’s take a trip to the New Great Territory.”
Huan Qing Si instantly obeyed, “Yes.”
Yang Kai had learned a bit about the Star Boundary from Yu Ru Meng and his other Wives, but that information was mainly obtained during pillow talks. Now that he had personally returned, he naturally had to obtain a better understanding of the Star Boundary’s situation.
“I heard you have 200 disciples hidden here?” Yang Kai suddenly remembered this matter.
Hua Qing Si nodded her affirmation, “Yes, I have reported this to the Supreme Headquarters, and also received their permission.” After saying so, she added, “But not just High Heaven Palace has done so, the Cave Heavens and Paradises’ good seedlings who advanced straight to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm have basically all been sequestered here. Only, their disciples are fewer than ours.”
High Heaven Palace had many disciples because of the tens of thousands of years of accumulation of Yang Kai’s Small Universe. Even if the Cave Heavens and Paradises stashed away some disciples, they did not have such unique conditions to benefit from.
“Does Palace Master think it’s inappropriate?” Huan Qing Si asked.
Yang Kai shook his head in denial, “It’s not about whether it is appropriate or not, but… never mind, we’ll discuss it later, I have my own considerations.”
He had always felt that a diligent cultivator who remained in a greenhouse would never have much potential.
He then turned to look at Bustling World Great Emperor, who was drinking tea by the side, and stated with a smile, “After so many years, your cultivation has become quite profound, Sir Hong Chen.”
Duan Hong Chen glanced at him and refuted, smiling, “Even so, I can’t compare to you. How did you reach the Eighth Order so quickly?”
Yang Kai had broken through to the Open Heaven Realm a little earlier than the other Great Emperors, but they had advanced directly to the Sixth Order, while Yang Kai had advanced to the Fifth Order; there was a difference of an Order between them and Yang Kai at the start.
Over these years, the cultivation of the Star Boundary’s Great Emperors had advanced at an astonishing pace. Each and every one of them had reached the Seventh-Order, and Iron Blood Great Emperor, Zhan Wu Hen had already reached the peak of the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Originally, Duan Hong Chen believed that their cultivation must have surpassed Yang Kai’s; after all, Yang Kai had been fighting on the Black Ink Battlefield. But much to their surprise, Yang Kai had reached the Eighth Order by the time he returned, making him even stronger than the Great Emperors who had been stationed at the Star Boundary.
Duan Hong Chen was very puzzled about this.
“I obtained a certain opportunity,” Yang Kai casually replied. The next moment, his expression turned serious as he asked, “Sir Hong Chen, is the World Tree clone’s feedback useful to you?”
Considering everything, Duan Hong Chen and the others had advanced to the Open Heaven Realm just over 1,000 years ago, but all of them had now reached the Seventh Order. This was a huge improvement. If it was any other Open Heaven Realm Master, it would have been impossible to show so much improvement in such a short time, no matter how outstanding his or her aptitude was.
After giving it a thought, Yang Kai believed that the reason was the World Tree clone’s feedback.
In the past, he had also borrowed the Star Boundary’s power to resist his enemies, because he was a Great Emperor acknowledged by the Star Boundary’s Will. As a result, he greatly improved in a short time with the help of the Star Boundary’s World Force.
Borrowing strength like this consumed the World Force of the Star Boundary, but it also strengthened one’s foundation greatly.
This was equivalent to seizing the Star Boundary’s foundation.
It was quite beneficial to one’s self, and could save a great deal of time in cultivation, but for the Star Boundary, it was akin to killing the goose that laid the golden eggs, the Star Boundary being the goose.
Duan Hong Chen and the others understood this point, and with their sense of righteousness, they would never do something like harming others for the sake of their own benefit. So, their rapid progress must have something to do with the World Tree clone’s feedback.
Duang Hong Chen nodded his agreement, “It’s useful; very useful. I didn’t notice it at first, but with the increase in the World Tree clone’s feedback these past years, we discovered that our heritages increased much more rapidly than average. Furthermore, as Great Emperors, our Small Universes’ World Force should be denser than others. So, we should be stronger than other cultivators in the same realm.”
The World Force became denser with the increase in his cultivation. Suddenly, Yang Kai felt a sense of familiarity.
After giving it a thought, he realized that it was true for him as well.
There was a World Tree clone in his Small Universe, which was why his cultivation was much faster than before. Furthermore, the World Tree clone had the effect of purifying World Force, so it naturally made his World Force denser.
Although Duan Hong Chen and the other Great Emperors did not have World Tree clones in their Small Universes, they were Star Boundary Great Emperors, so the World Tree clone being in the Star Boundary was naturally beneficial to them.
Realization suddenly dawned upon Yang Kai.
No wonder Bustling World Great Emperor’s cultivation had improved so quickly. In the final analysis, it was all thanks to the World Tree clone.
The source of the World Tree clone’s feedback was energy siphoned from other Universe Worlds and then transferred to the Star Boundary, allowing the latter’s fortune and Auspicious Aura to flourish while its Grand Dao was further tempered. This way, both enlightenment and cultivation became easier for the residents of the Star Boundary.
Be that as it may, there was a limit to this kind of extraction, and it was not without restrictions. So, when Yang Kai asked the Old Tree to bestow him with more World Tree clones, the latter had only given him three. If the Old Tree had given him more, not to mention if the Old Tree could sustain them or not, the feedback effect would have also substantially decreased.
Of the three World Tree clones, Yang Kai had given one to Wu Kuang, which left him with two.
Wu Kuang was in quite a precarious position as no one knew when Mo would awaken. The stronger Wu Kuang was, the more he could utilize the power of Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. This was the reason why Yang Kai wanted to send Wu Kuang there as soon as possible. No matter how powerful Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction was, it was an inanimate object which could do nothing if no one was manning it. Only a stronger Wu Kuang could utilize the complete might of the Grand Array and continue to suppress and seal Mo.
The World Tree clone plus the Heaven Devouring Battle Law would ensure that Wu Kuang could grow stronger in the shortest amount of time; otherwise, he would not have boasted that he could advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm in just 3,000 years.
It had to be noted that Wu Kuang was currently just a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.
“Who has been titled in the Star Boundary?” Yang Kai asked again.
Getting a title did not mean advancing to the Open Heaven Realm, it meant being acknowledged by the Star Boundary’s Will, and obtaining a title granted by the World itself. In truth, the person obtaining the title would just be at the peak of the Emperor Realm, but unlike others in that realm, he or she would be a Great Emperor.
Generally speaking, every Universe World had their own Great Emperors.
The number of Great Emperors was dependent on the limit of the Universe World itself.
Just like the Small Universe of an Open Heaven Realm Master had limits, so did real Universe Worlds.
In the entire history of the Star Boundary, only 10 Great Emperors could be born in the Star Boundary. This was the limit of the Star Boundary. There could be no more Great Emperors.
To a Universe World, once every Great Emperor had their own position, there was no additional vacancy. Unless a Great Emperor perished, no other Great Emperor could be born.
Originally, the Star Boundary had nine Great Emperors including Yang Kai, but after returning, Yang Kai could clearly feel that there was another Great Emperor.
When he was chatting with his parents, they had also mentioned this, but they did not mention who it was.
Hua Qing Si replied, “It’s Pastoral Great Emperor!”
Dong Hong Chen added, “Do you remember Shi Da Zhuang?”
Even though Yang Kai’s cultivation was profound and his memory was superb, he didn’t have much of an impression of this name. Nonetheless, he found it a little familiar, so he should have heard of it before.
Pondering for a moment, it suddenly came to him, “The Disciple Elder Yu Chang Dao of Free and Unfettered Paradise took a liking to?”
Duan Hong Chen affirmed, smiling, “That’s right.”
Yang Kai suddenly realized, “So, it’s him,” he happily continued, “So to say, he is also a member of my High Heaven Palace?”
Hua Qing Si added with a smile, “Yes, Palace Masters. Now, our High Heaven Palace is a Sect with two Great Emperors.”
Even though many Great Emperors of the Star Boundary were quite close to High Heaven Palace, everyone had their own backgrounds and none of them were from High Heaven Palace other than Yang Kai.
Pastoral Great Emperor, whose title was so down to earth, was different. He was born in the Star Boundary, and had joined High Heaven Palace. Now, counting Yang Kai, High Heaven Palace genuinely had two Great Emperors.
Yang Kai remembered Shi Dao Zhuang because he was one of the first Disciples to benefit from the World Tree clone’s feedback.
In the past, when word about the World Tree clone’s miraculous benefits spread through the 3,000 Worlds, various Cave Heavens and Paradies had swarmed to the Star Boundary to establish their Dao Temples in search of talented disciples. Free and Unfettered Paradise’s Elder Yu Chang Dao was quite lucky and found Shi Dao Zhuang soon after his arrival and immediately intended to take him under his wing.
Unfortunately, Shi Da Zhuang’s widowed mother, Liu Cai Xia, strictly adhered to her deceased Husband’s final request that Shi Dao Zhuang only join High Heaven Palace.
At that time, it was Yang Kai, leading High Heaven Palace and various Masters of the Star Boundary, who drove off the Demon Race. Some 200 years after Great Demon God Mo Sheng was killed, High Heaven Palace’s prestige was at its peak. The entire Star Boundary had an inexplicable fervor for High Heaven Palace and all cultivators dreamed of joining it.
Shi Da Zhuang’s Father had departed this world before the boy was born. He did not have much talent in cultivation, but before he passed away, he left a will and hoped that Shi Da Zhuang could join High Heaven Palace someday.
Yu Chang Dao wanted to take Shi Da Zhuang as his Disciple, but Liu Cai Xia was reluctant.
This matter had given Yu Chang Dao a big headache at that time. One had to know that he was from Free and Unfettered Paradise, and a Seventh-Order Master. Furthermore, he personally stepped forward to receive this Disciple. If any cultivator had obtained this opportunity, they would be dancing with joy and immediately kowtow to him. Liu Cai Xia, however, failed to appreciate this opportunity and instead wholeheartedly followed her deceased Husband’s will.
In the end, a compromise had to be reached. Yu Chang Dao became a High-Ranking Guest Elder in High Heaven Palace, while Shi Dao Zhuang became Yu Chang Dao’s Disciple after joining High Heaven Palace; everyone was happy.
So to say, Shi Da Zhuang was a High Heaven Palace disciple as well as a Free and Unfettered Paradise disciple.
As it turned out, Yu Chang Dao had quite a discerning eye. Shi Dai Zhuang’s growth had been extremely rapid after he had started cultivating. He advanced to the Emperor Realm in a short span of 200 years, obtained the acknowledgement of the Star Boundary’s Will, and earned the title of Pastoral Great Emperor. After that, he advanced directly to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. His future prospects were simply limitless.
In the past, he was Shi Da Zhuang, and now he was Pastoral Great Emperor, the Star Boundary’s 10th Great Emperor. Duan Hong Chen and the other Great Emperors could enjoy the World Tree clone’s feedback, which increased their cultivation speed, and naturally, so could the Pastoral Great Emperor. Furthermore, his foundations were far better than the current Great Emperors. He had advanced straight to the Seventh Order, which meant he had a chance to reach the Ninth Order one day.
In this regard, even Yang Kai could not hold a candle to Shi Da Zhuang. His limit was the Eighth Order, and although he had yet to reach the peak of his realm, it was next to impossible for Yang Kai to break through to the Ninth Order.
“Wonderful!” Yang Kai rejoiced. No matter what the background of the Pastoral Great Emperor was, so long as he could advance to the Ninth Order, he would become a cornerstone of the Human Race.
Thanks to the invasion of a powerful external enemy, the Human Race no longer had much internal strife.
Even though there were quite a lot of geniuses who had advanced straight to the Seventh Order, their growth would be extremely slow. Shi Da Zhuang was different though. His growth time should be much shorter than others thanks to the World Tree clone in the Star Boundary.
“There’s also something that Iron Blood and I haven’t announced to the public yet. In fact, we haven’t been able to make up our minds about what to do, but since you’re back, we’ll ask for your opinion,” Duan Hong Chen added.
Yang Kai stated, “Senior Hong Chen, please speak.”
Duan Hong Chen replied, “Actually, I don’t think you need me to tell you this, but since you just returned, you probably haven’t noticed yet. The limit of the Star Boundary seems to have increased.”
Yang Kai was momentarily stunned after hearing this before he tried to focus and sense it.
A Universe World’s limit was tangible and fixed, but normal people could not sense it unless they were a Great Emperor like Yang Kai or Duan Hong Chen. No matter how high one’s cultivation was, it was extremely difficult to perceive this as it was related to the acknowledgement of the World itself.
The number of Great Emperors depended on the capacity of the Universe World. The larger the capacity, the more Great Emperors it could give birth to.
The Star Boundary had always had a total of 10 Great Emperors at maximum. Logically speaking, after Shi Da Zhuang became a Great Emperor, the Star Boundary’s capacity should have reached its limit, making it impossible for another Great Emperor to be born.
Despite that, Yang Kai discovered that the Star Boundary still seemed to have some room to accommodate more, which meant the Star Boundary’s capacity had not reached its limit.
“When did it start to change?” Yang Kai was astounded.
“I don’t know,” Dong Hong Chen shook his head, “In the past, the Star Boundary had never been able to give birth to more than 10 Great Emperors. We only had nine for so long we did not pay much attention to it. It was only when Pastoral was titled that we noticed that the Star Boundary had still not hit its limit. Furthermore, it seemed to have continued growing over the years.”
“The World Tree clone?” Yang Kai pondered.
Duan Hong Chen nodded, “Apart from this, I can’t find any other explanation. As you know, a Universe World’s capacity is directly correlated to its Grand Dao. Some Universe Worlds’ Grand Dao is stronger, so their capacity is larger. Correspondingly, the number of Great Emperors they could give birth to is higher. Under normal circumstances, the limit of a Universe World’s Grand Dao is fixed, and that was also true for the Star Boundary. So, the number of Great Emperors was also fixed. But now, after years of the World Tree clone’s nourishment, the Star Boundary’s Grand Dao has become stronger. This should be the reason why the World’s capacity has increased.”
Yang Kai nodded his agreement, “Makes sense.”
Duan Hong Chen continued with a smile, “Right now, only a few people besides the Great Emperors know about this matter. We haven’t publicly announced it…”
Yang Kai knew what was going through their minds. There might not be any strife among Humans right now, but everyone still had their own selfish motives. In the current Star Boundary, the Dao Temples of various Cave Heavens and Paradises had many disciples. Naturally, Duan Hong Chen and the others were more inclined to have the Star Boundary native cultivators become Great Emperors and occupy the final position. As such, the more Star Boundary Great Emperors there were, the stronger their overall strength would be and the greater their position in the Human Race’s hierarchy would become.
“Do you think we should announce it to the public?” Duan Hong Chen asked.
Yang Kai pondered for a moment before agreeing, “Let’s announce it to the public. Presently, the 3,000 Worlds has been invaded by foreign enemies, uniting us all in a common cause. In times like this, it would be quite petty to hide such a fact. Also, announcing it should stimulate competitiveness in the younger generation. Although the Star Boundary’s capacity has increased, it seems to only be able to give birth to one more Great Emperor at most. It might increase in the future, but that remains to be seen. Not to mention, we won’t be able to hide this forever. Someone will eventually rise up to take that Great Emperor position.”
Duan Hong Chen nodded, “Then we’ll follow your lead. Head Manager, find an opportunity to spread the news.”
The nearby Hua Qing Si nodded her acknowledgement, “Leave it to me.”
A Great Emperor might not be much on its own, as it was just another Emperor Realm Master that was a little stronger than normal, after all; but a Great Emperor of the Star Boundary was another thing altogether. Duan Hong Chen, Zhan Wu Hen, and the other Great Emperors’ rapid growth was obvious to other cultivators. Everyone knew that it was thanks to the World Tree clone’s feedback. If they could be titled as a Great Emperor in the Star Boundary, it would definitely save them a great deal of time in the future.
It was quite easy to imagine that once this news was disseminated, it would create a cultivation frenzy among the younger generation. There was only one position, and everyone would compete for it. Whether one could compete or not would depend on one’s potential.
“The Star Boundary is too crowded,” Yang Kai suddenly looked outside and said.
In the past, various Cave Heavens and Paradises came to the Star Boundary to establish Dao Temples, dividing up some of the territory. At that time, it was nothing to worry about. Although High Heaven Palace enjoyed quite a popularity in the Star Boundary, it alone was unable to nurture all the rising talents. So, Yang Kai was more than happy to share the burden with the Cave Heavens and Paradises.
It was a win-win cooperation.
Only, with the migration of cultivators from other Great Territories, in which even Cave Heavens and Paradises lost their millennia of heritage and foundation, a single Star Boundary was unable to meet the needs of the entire Human Race.
The sight of all the remaining forces and elites of the Human Race gathered at one spot might have looked spectacular, but in fact, it was quite detrimental to their development.
Originally, Yang Kai had been hesitant about creating another Star Boundary, but by the looks of it, doing so was imperative.
Not only could it relieve the pressure of the Star Boundary, but it could also resolve some internal issues of the Human Race.
Not to mention, if there was another Star Boundary, there would be more Great Emperors like Duan Hong Chen and Zhan Wu Hen in the future.
Yang Kai was flying through the vast void of the New Great Territory, accompanied by Hua Qing Si.
There was no one else apart from these two.
Since he had decided to create another Star Boundary, Yang Kai naturally would not dawdle. He was now the Commander of the Profound Nether Army, so he could not stay away for an extended period of time.
High Heaven Territory did not have suitable Universe Worlds, so he could only search the New Great Territory.
“The New Great Territory has many Universe Worlds, but only 12 are habitable, and basically, all of them are overcrowded,” Hua Qing Si reported while pointing forward, “That’s Tranquil Blue World, Humans of 100 Great Territories have migrated here.”
Yang Kai looked ahead and saw a faint blue Universe World. In the vast and endless void, this Universe World could not be considered big, but it was quite beautiful.
At first, this Universe World was only habited by living creatures of low sentience, but after the migration of over 100 Great Territories, the entire Tranquil Blue World was bustling with activity and buildings of all shapes and sizes could be seen everywhere.
Humans were quite a tenacious race. Although they had to part with their homeland and settle on this Strange Universe World, the flames of the Human Race’s development had spread throughout the entire Universe World.
Tranquil Blue World’s Grand Dao was not very strong, but it was not that low either. It was not a problem for a cultivator to advance to the Emperor Realm here, and the capacity of this Universe World was enough to support the birth of several Great Emperors.
Yang Kai did not stay here for long though and continued to explore with Hua Qing Si.
As Yang Kai and Hua Qing Si travelled to one Universe World after another, he gradually gained a better understanding of the New Great Territory’s situation. Indeed, as Hua Qing Si had mentioned, there were 12 habitable Universe Worlds in the New Great Territory, and Humans who had migrated from other Great Territories had more or less settled down on all of them. Furthermore, as there were too many Humans, some of these Universe Worlds were as crowded as the Star Boundary.
“Are there any other Universe Worlds?” Yang Kai asked. It was actually quite simple to create a second Star Boundary; he just had to pick one from these 12 Universe Worlds and plant the World Tree clone on it. Then, after a few centuries, it would naturally turn into a second Star Boundary.
In the beginning, the Star Boundary was almost shattered, but after the World Tree clone was planted on it, it became an Open Heaven Realm Cradle. On the other hand, these 12 Universe Worlds were completely intact and even flourishing.
Be that as it may, Yang Kai had his own plans.
“Palace Master, what kind of Universe World are you looking for?” Hua Qing Si did not know what Yang Kai had in mind, “There are three more Universe Worlds besides these 12 habitable Universe Worlds, of which two World’s Grand Daos are incomplete. It would not be a problem for ordinary mortals to migrate to those Worlds, but if cultivators live on them, their cultivation would progress very slowly.”
“What about the third one?” Yang Kai asked.
“There is also a Universe World whose Grand Dao is quite strong, but its environment is a bit special. Great Monsters run rampant there. Furthermore, there are many Great Monsters at the peak of the Emperor Realm, so it would be quite dangerous for Humans to reside on it without any protection from powerful Masters.”
It was not that High Heaven Palace was unable to exterminate these Great Monsters; if a few Open Heaven Realm Masters were deployed, the Monster Race would not be able to mount any resistance. It was just that it was their territory to begin with. If High Heaven Palace really did this, it would be inhumane and go against the Heavens’ Will. So, when they arranged for the Humans to relocate to the New Great Territory, this Universe World was not taken into consideration and simply left alone.”
Yang Kai’s eyes lit up after hearing this, “Let’s go take a look.”
Hua Qing Si quickly led the way.
The two arrived at the periphery of a Universe World half a day later. Hua Qing Si pointed at the giant Universe World and introduced, “This is it. Senior Martial Beast named it the Myriad Monsters World. When we discovered this place, Senior Martial Beast personally entered it to inspect it, and subdued a few Great Monsters. Now, those Great Monsters are subordinates of Senior Martial Beast.”
High Heaven Palace did not try to subdue the Myriad Monsters World, firstly, because it was inhumane and counter to the natural order, and secondly, it was because of Marital Beast Great Emperor.
Martial Beast Great Emperor’s Grand Dao was about controlling and taming Beasts. He was naturally very fond of a place like the Myriad Monsters World.
Yang Kai looked around and immediately understood why Hua Qing Si said that this World’s environment was quite special. This World was filled with an extremely ancient and savage aura. It was no wonder that the Monster Race ran rampant here, and Great Monsters could be found everywhere. This environment was perfectly suitable for the Monster Race.
Yang Kai was overjoyed.
He was unaware that there was such a World in the New Great Territory. It must have been discovered by High Heaven Palace after he entered the Black Ink Battlefield.
“Let’s go down and take a look,” Yang Kai beckoned, leading Hua Qing Si into the Myriad Monsters World.
As soon as Yang Kai and Hua Qing Si entered the Myriad Monsters World, Great Monsters with higher cultivations seemed to have sensed something as they raised their head, looking towards the void. But how could these Great Monsters see him when Yang Kai had deliberately hidden his whereabouts?
Myriad Monsters World was quite large, bigger than any of the other 12 Universe Worlds Yang Kai had investigated before. Covering the entire Myriad Monsters World with his Divine Sense, Yang Kai could indeed detect the aura of many Great Monsters here, every one of them at the peak of the Emperor Realm. With such powerful cultivation and the tyrannical physique of the Monster Race, their strength was quite impressive.
Be that as it may, as these members of the Monster Race had no contact with the outside world, they only relied on their instincts to cultivate. The peak of the Emperor Realm was basically their limit; they could not advance any further.
The current cultivation path of the Human Race was passed down by Cang and other nine Martial Ancestors, which allowed them to open up a Small Universe in their bodies and break through the shackles of their Universe Worlds, allowing them to attain far greater strength.
The Divine Spirits’ cultivation mainly focused on purifying their bloodline. The purer one’s bloodline was, the stronger they would be.
As for the Monster Race, their cultivation method depended mainly on taking Human Form and then using the Human’s Open Heaven Realm cultivation method to break through from their equivalent of the Emperor Realm to the Open Heaven Realm.
The Monster Race of the Myriad Monsters World had never even seen Humans before though, so how would they assume Human Form? Therefore, no matter how profound their cultivation was, they had always maintained their Monster Form. Some of them were incomparably massive and looked quite magnificent from a distance.
In fact, when the Monster Race ruled the Universe in the Early Ancient Era, they had their own cultivation methods that did not involve taking Human Form to constantly improve their strength.
However, the Monster Race’s cultivation method was lost with the destruction of the Early Ancient Era.
Whether it was the Early Ancient Era’s cultivation method, or the Open Heaven Realm method of the Human Race, the Monster Race of the Myriad Monsters World knew nothing about them. Thus, they only maintained their Monster Forms and the peak of the Emperor Realm was their limit. This was the World’s shackles on them, the constraints of this World’s Grand Dao.
The Monster Race on the Myriad Monsters World had quite a huge population. There were quite a lot of Great Monsters here, but none of them were able to break their shackles without a proper cultivation method. This problem had plagued the Great Monsters of the Myriad Monsters World for countless eras. They had tried to solve this problem, but had never been able to.
As Yang Kai continued to investigate the Myriad Monsters World, every Great Monster on it started to become restless. Although they were unable to detect Yang Kai or his aura, they still instinctively felt that a great catastrophe was looming over their heads. The Monster Race’s instincts had always been quite sharp, so the strongest among them could faintly feel that someone had entered this World, someone whom they could not resist.
It was not like this had never happened before though. Several hundred years ago, when Martial Beast Great Emperor had entered the Myriad Monsters World and subdued a few of the strongest Great Monsters, he too had given them a similar feeling.
The surviving Great Monsters had personally witnessed this strange individual’s strength. The strongest of the Great Monsters were unable to fight back against that tiny figure.
That same feeling had once again descended today.
All the Great Monsters began to lie low for fear of being targeted. They were also unaware of what fate befell those Great Monsters who were taken away by that ‘Human’, but they were unwilling to hand their life and death over to others.
The movements of these Great Monsters naturally could not escape Yang Kai’s investigation, who actually found it quite funny, [These Monster Beasts’ instincts are quite sharp.]
Be that as it may, he had not come here to subdue these Great Monsters. Although the Monster Race here was quite amazing, he did not attach any importance to them.
At some point, Yang Kai came to a stop as a smile appeared on his lips. The next moment, his Divine Sense flooded the Myriad Monsters World like a tide, completely enveloping it.
Immediately after, the Great Monsters who were hiding in their lairs heard a loud sound like a bell tolling in their minds.
The sudden intrusion of that sound immediately made the Great Monsters panic, but very soon, they discovered that the sound that had appeared was not lethal or anything of the sort, just rather noisy.
Furthermore… that undulating sound seemed to be subtly guiding them.
Immediately, the intelligent Great Monsters calmed their minds and began carefully comprehending it.
The Great Monsters relied completely on their instincts to cultivate, but those who could cultivate to the peak had naturally opened up a degree of sentience that vastly exceeded that of common Monster Beasts.
After this enlightenment, some Great Monsters went wild with joy, as if they had seen the road ahead in their ever-stagnant cultivation.
After half a day, in a mountain valley filled with flowers, a Great Monster spat out its Monster Core and followed the guidance of the sound in its mind, carefully tempering it.
In another place, on some mountain peak, another Great Monster similarly spat out a vibrant five-coloured Monster Core before its Blood Essence started surging and Monster Qi filled the surroundings.
In the middle of the sea, a giant whale emerged from the water, its Monster Core hovering over its head.
In the middle of a forest, on the plains, on the snowy mountains, Great Monsters spat out their Monster Cores after seeing the light in the darkness, and began cultivating with all their heart.
In an instant, Monster Qi filled the Myriads Monsters World as powerful auras began to suddenly emerge one after another.
Hua Qing Si’s mouth went agape at the sight of this and she immediately turned to Yang Kai and asked, “Palace Master, what did you do?”
She had no idea what Yang Kai had done, all she noticed was his Divine Sense surging, stirring the calm Myriad Monsters World the next moment.
Yang Kai replied with a smile, “I taught them a cultivation method.”
Hua Qing Si was shaken up by this revelation. Yang Kai’s words might be simple, but she knew that this cultivation method was definitely far from ordinary, otherwise, it would have been impossible to see such changes so rapidly in the Myriad Monsters World.
Currently, the Monster Race relied on the Human Race’s Open Heaven Realm cultivation method, but judging by the momentum of Myriad Monsters World’s Great Monsters, they wanted to break through with their Monster Forms alone.
How could such a Secret Art be simple?
This was definitely an extremely profound and ancient method.
In fact, Hua Qing Si’s guess was correct. What Yang Kai had passed down was indeed an ancient cultivation method used by the Monster Race in the Early Ancient Era. This ancient method was long lost with the destruction of the Early Ancient Era.
However, in this Universe, if anyone knew this ancient method, that would be Wu Kuang!
When Yang Kai and Wu Kuang parted ways at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, Wu Kuang had taught him the Monster Race’s ancient cultivation method. It was not that Wu Kuan foresaw the existence of the Myriad Monsters World; rather, if Yang Kai wanted to advance to the Ninth Order, he needed this ancient Monster Race cultivation method.
Inside the Myriad Monsters World, Great Monsters began to cultivate after receiving the ancient cultivation method, causing the entire Universe World’s World Force to thrum.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai found a Spirit Peak and began setting up a Universe Array.
He had left multiple Universe Arrays in the New Great Territory, mainly to facilitate High Heaven Palace disciples’ exploration, but there were none in the vicinity of the Myriad Monsters World.
Although Hua Qing Si did not know Yang Kai’s intentions, she did not ask any questions either. Her Palace Master always had his reasons for doing things, all she needed to do was assist him; there was no need to ask any question.
Half a day later, a new Universe Array was finished. After which, Yang Kai started building a sturdy Universe Temple around it together with Hua Qing Si.
At this moment, the Monster Qi of the first Great Monster to start cultivating using the ancient method suddenly soared. Immediately after, lightning started flashing in the clear sky before a thick purple bolt suddenly emerged out of thin air, striking straight towards the Great Monster. The next moment, a towering wave of flame spread from the location of the Great Monster, burning everything in its path. The flames were so hot that even the local space began to crack.
Immediately, a beastly roar resounded throughout the sky.
Yang Kai looked up, immersed in his thoughts.
By the looks of it, if the Great Monsters wanted to break their shackles, they would also need to go through some suffering, but it was not that it was unexpected. The Human Race’s advancement to the Open Heaven Realm was not a smooth path either. Although Humans did not have to face Heavenly tribulations when they merged Yin, Yang, and the Five Elements into one before splitting Heaven and Earth apart in their bodies, they would face many internal troubles, and the slightest mistake would result in death.
This Lightning and Fire Tribulation was probably a test from the Heavenly Way. If the Great Monsters weathered it, they would have a wider world ahead of them, but if they couldn’t, they would perish on the spot.
Be that as it may, the Great Monsters of the Myriad Monsters World were bound by the shackles of the Grand Dao here, and without a suitable cultivation method, they had tempered their bodies for many, many years after reaching the peak of their current Realm. It should not be difficult for them to overcome this Lightning and Fire Tribulation.
Yang Kai had no intention of lending a hand. In any case, one had to depend on themselves in such matters, outside intervention would ultimately be counter to the natural order.
The Lightning and Fire Tribulation became fiercer and fiercer, and the beastly roars became louder and louder. Finally, after several hours, things slowly calmed down.
Things might have calmed down in the original spot, but there were still many Great Monsters trying to overcome their own Lightning and Fire Tribulation in the Myriad Monsters World.
The Universe Temple was also finished on the Spirit Peak by now. With two powerful Open Heaven Realm Masters working together, it was a simple matter to build a Universe Temple.
Suddenly, a fearsome aura rapidly approached from the horizon. Hua Qing Si and Yang Kai both looked up before Yang Kai proposed with a smile, “Let’s go meet our new friend.”
Walking out of Universe Temple, Yang Kai spotted a big and strong snow-white Tiger. The enormous Tiger was some 70 to 80 metres tall and radiated an intense Monster Qi. Its massive body was giving off quite a huge pressure.
Its eyes alone were as big as a water tank, but because it had just gone through the Lightning and Fire Tribulation, it also looked quite miserable.
The giant Tiger’s eyes flashed with vigilance at the sight of Yang Kai and Hua Qing Si as it instinctively took two steps back.
Yang Kai sized it up from top to bottom before lightly nodding his acknowledgement, “Not bad.”
It had just weathered the Lightning and Fire Tribulation, but it was radiating a pressure comparable to a Third-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Given time, this Great Monster’s achievements would not be too low.
Humans’ Open Heaven Realm cultivation method had its own advantages and disadvantages. The advantage was that those with great aptitude could reach the sky in a single bound. For instance, the seedlings who could advance straight to the Sixth Order or Seventh Order would immediately possess such strength the moment they ascended from the Emperor Realm.
The drawback was that the advancement to the Open Heaven Realm came with an innate shackle. The lower one’s aptitude was, the lower would one’s future limit be. It was for this reason that every Seventh-Order elite was extremely treasured by the Human Race.
On the other hand, Divine Spirits had no such shackles, and neither did the Monster Race.
The Divine Spirits’ advancement depended on their Bloodline Power. The purer one’s bloodline was, the stronger one would be.
The Monster Race’s ancient cultivation method focused on tempering one’s Monster Core. A Monster Beast relied on their Monster Core to improve. The giant Tiger had just broken through, but it was already as strong as a Third-Order Open Heaven Realm Human, but this did not mean that its limit would be the Fifth-Order. As long as it diligently polished and tempered its Monster Core, with ample opportunity and aptitude, advancing to the Sixth-Order, Seventh-Order, Eighth-Order, or even Ninth-Order equivalent was not impossible.
In a sense, the Human Race’s Open Heaven Realm cultivation method could be said to be flawed, or at least incomplete. Yang Kai had only recently understood this. Even if he had noticed it though, he was unable to do anything about it. The Open Heaven Realm cultivation method was passed down by Cang and the other Martial Ancestors from the Late Ancient Era. Millions of years had already gone by since then, and the Human Race had always relied on this cultivation method to grow stronger.
Without the Open Heaven Realm cultivation method, Humans would have been stuck in the Emperor Realm still, never having achieved the greatness they had today.
“Don’t be afraid, this King has no malicious intentions. I just have some matters to discuss with you and the other Great Monsters,” Yang Kai looked at the giant Tiger with an amiable look on his face.
The giant Tiger let out a growl as the vigilance in its eyes became even stronger. Who knew if it understood Yang Kai or not.
Realization suddenly dawned upon Yang Kai as he muttered, “I forgot that you have never communicated with Humans before.”
Saying so, he stepped forward, stretching his hand towards the giant Tiger’s forehead.
The giant Tiger was startled and instinctively tried to dodge, but how could it? It helplessly watched Yang Kai’s fingertip grow closer and closer before touching its forehead. Its fur all stood on end in fright.
But very soon, it realized that Yang Kai had no intention of harming it; instead, many strange things appeared in its mind.
Yang Kai floated back as he spoke to the giant Tiger with a smile on his lips, “Now we can communicate.”
The giant Tiger’s eyes widened in shock. At this moment, it suddenly discovered that it could understand Yang Kai. What’s more, if it wanted to, it could speak with the opposite party.
It tried to open its mouth, asking in somewhat broken Human language, “W-Who… you?”
Yang Kai replied, smiling, “I am the Palace Master of High Heaven Palace, Yang Kai.”
How would the giant Tiger know what this High Heaven Palace was? Quickly assimilating the new language it had been taught, it asked again, “What you do here?”
Yang Kai answered, “Today, I have come to your precious land to teach you a cultivation method and help you escape from the shackles of this Universe World’s Grand Dao. In exchange, I will send a few people here to cultivate. I hope all of you will restrain the other Monster Race members and not harm these Humans.”
The giant Tiger had some difficulty understanding everything that was said, but it ultimately comprehended Yang Kai’s intentions and angrily proclaimed, “This place… is mine!”
The Monster Race was extremely territorial. When it heard that Yang Kai wanted to send Humans to cultivate here, it naturally was not too happy about it.
Yang Kai responded with a smile, “It used to be.”
The giant Tiger was momentarily taken aback before asking, “What about the future?”
“This World is mine from now on!”
The giant Tiger understood Yang Kai’s words and immediately growled, “Why?”
Yang Kai thought for a moment before replying, “Because I’m stronger than you!”
The giant Tiger appeared to have something to say, but it did not know how to put it into words, so it simply chose not to say anything. It leapt up and bit towards Yang Kai, “Die!”
Yang Kai simply flicked his finger towards the giant Tiger’s head, sending it tumbling back. It was immediately hit with a fit of dizziness and shook its head for a long while, but was still unable to stand up. Only now did it realize that the tiny ‘Human’ before him was extremely strong, so strong that it could provoke him.
Yang Kai jumped up and landed on its head before lowering his head and asking, “Is this territory yours, or mine?”
The giant Tiger’s eyes took a moment to focus before it replied, “I… can’t say!”
The giant Tiger’s territory was just a small portion of the vast Myriad Monsters World and there were naturally others who occupied other territories.
Yang Kai immediately understood. The next moment, Space Principles started undulating as he stretched his hand out and clasped it.
What happened next completely horrified the giant Tiger as Great Monsters of all shapes and sizes suddenly appeared out of thin air and were thrown in front of it.
The giant Tiger recognized some of these Great Monsters, while some were unfamiliar, though it seemed to know about most of them at least.
All these Great Monsters were scattered throughout the Myriad Monsters World and were the strongest members of the Monster Race.
But now, all of them have been captured and brought here by Yang Kai.
With the sudden change in their surroundings, all the Great Monsters were a little absent-minded, unable to understand how they suddenly appeared here.
Yang Kai ordered the giant Tiger, “Pass on my words, and see who dares to refuse.”
The giant Tiger was filled with incomparable anguish, but under Yang Kai’s strong-arming, it had no choice but to communicate with the other Great Monsters and convey Yang Kai’s intentions.
While the Great Monsters were conversing, they would look towards Yang Kai with eyes filled with dread.
At this moment, they also came to know who imparted to them the ancient cultivation method. Furthermore, when someone as strong as the giant Tiger was unable to resist the opposite party, how could the other Great Monsters dare to cause trouble?
They simply could not afford to provoke this Human.
The next moment, all the Great Monsters withdrew their auras as if they had reached some consensus.
Yang Kai was satisfied with this.
The giant Tiger suddenly started speaking, “Those two… don’t agree, they want to eat you!”
Saying so, it stretched out its claws, pointing towards two Great Monsters.
The two Great Monsters who were being pointed at, instantly had their hair stand on end and the hedgehog-like Great Monster of the two angrily shouted, “Non, non, non…nonsense! We… agree?”
Originally, the Tiger wanted to bully these two Great Monsters he had a grudge with. Thinking they did not understand Human language, they would be unable to refute, but much to its surprise, they could speak the Human tongue as well.
The giant Tiger realized that when this Human had captured and brought these Great Monsters here, he must have secretly done something.
Yang Kai jumped down from its body and patted its massive head, stating, “Good, since everyone has agreed, this Myriad Monsters World will be this Yang’s territory from now on. In the future, I will send some Humans to cultivate here. I hope that everyone can restrain your subordinates and stop them from attacking those Humans.”
Yang Kai really found the giant Tiger’s antics quite funny. The giant Tiger was quite the schemer, actually trying to murder with a borrowed knife. He wondered what kind of grudge those two Great Monsters had with the giant Tiger.
One of the black-furred Great Monsters, who looked like a jackal, asked, “What happens if… they harmed?”
Yang Kai slightly smiled, “What do you think?”
Although Yang Kai’s tone was quite light, as if he was joking, all the Great Monsters had a chill run down their spine. They realized that this Human was not joking. If such a thing really did happen, the Monster Race member who attacked the Humans would definitely be killed.
Another Great Monster asked, “What if Humans… hurt us?”
Yang Kai assured, “Don’t worry, I will also make it clear to the Humans who are sent here to cultivate that they are not to harm the Monster Beasts of the Myriad Monsters World. Anyone who dares to break this rule will be killed as well!”
The Great Monsters looked at each other before nodding lightly.
It was only fair that both sides were not allowed to harm or kill at will. If the Humans could attack them at will but they could not even retaliate, then they could never agree.
By the looks of it, this Human was quite fair.
“Alright, this matter is settled. Everyone, please return.” Yang Kai waved off. It was not that hard for him to subdue the entire Monster Race of the Myriad Monsters World. Perhaps he could use gentler methods to accomplish this, but Yang Kai did not have the time to do so. When even the Divine Spirits of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary were beaten into submission by him, what would Monster Beasts of the Myriad Monsters World count for?
The Great Monsters left one after another. Very soon, beastly roars could be heard coming from everywhere on the Myriad Monsters World. Obviously, the Great Monsters were passing down Yang Kai’s decree.
Hua Qing Si walked to Yang Kai and asked, confused, “Palace Master, are you sending someone here to cultivate?”
Yang Kai nodded his agreement, “Yes.”
“But the Myriad Monsters World’s Grand Dao is tailored towards the Monster Race’s cultivation, so it might not be suitable for Humans.”
Previously, High Heaven Palace had also considered whether they should arrange for some Humans to settle down on the Myriad Monsters World, but the population of the Monster Race on this world was huge, and if they allowed Humans to settle here, there would definitely be some conflicts every now and then. More importantly though, this World’s Grand Dao was far more suited for the Monster Race. If Humans cultivated here, they would have to work twice as hard for half the results.
However, Yang Kai stated mysteriously, “It might not have been suitable in the past, but that may not be so in the future.”
Saying so, he took out a small sapling and made his way to the utmost top of the Spirit Peak before carefully planting it.
A look of suspicion appeared on Hua Qing Si’s face as she vaguely found this small sapling a little familiar, but at the same time, she failed to recognize it. While she was still mulling over the issue though, she saw the little sapling’s branches sway before it started growing at a speed visible to the naked eye. In the blink of an eye, it had become a towering tree.
But it did not end there. The Myriad Monsters World’s Grand Dao appeared to be fiercely undulating along with the growth of the little sapling and Hua Qing Si could clearly feel the little sapling drawing a vast and seemingly limitless energy from somewhere beyond the Void which then integrated into the Myriad Monsters World.
In less than a dozen or so breaths, the Myriad Monsters World’s Grand Dao had undergone some obvious changes, becoming stabler and clearer.
A look of astonishment blanketed Hua Qing Si’s face as she blurted out, “A World Tree clone!?”
She finally understood why this little sapling was giving her a strange sense of familiarity. Obviously, this was another World Tree clone!
The Star Boundary had such a clone, but it was unbelievably massive now; therefore, she could not relate the two right away.
However, what else could make a Universe World stabler and cause such massive changes to it in such a short period of time besides a World Tree clone?
It never crossed Hua Qing Si’s mind that Yang Kai would actually have another World Tree clone sapling on him.
[No wonder Palace Master insisted on sending people to the Myriad Monsters World to cultivate. With a World Tree clone here, no matter what the Myriad Monsters World’s Grand Dao was like before, it will soon be akin to the Star Boundary’s. All living beings residing in this World will benefit greatly from it!
The Myriad Monsters World would definitely become a second Star Boundary!
If the rest of the Human Race came to know about this, it would surely cause a huge stir!
Currently, the Star Boundary could no longer accept any more outsiders. Even the Cave Heavens and Paradises only had a few quotas while most of the cultivators who had migrated from the various Great Territories could only eye it from a distance, never to step foot on it.
If word of the Myriad Monsters World were to disseminate though, everyone would definitely flock to this place with countless people wanting to settle here.
The Myriad Monsters World would not just ease some of the dissension in the Human refugees however, it would surely lead to some new problems.
In an instant, many thoughts flashed in Hua Qing Si’s mind as she asked, “Palace Master, do we need to classify all information regarding the Myriad Monsters World?”
If need be, she would immediately return to High Heaven Palace to pick a few people and seal off this World to prevent others from noticing anything.
Yang Kai already had a plan in his mind though and refused, shaking his head lightly, “No need! From the start, I planned to open the Myriad Monsters World to all the forces of the Human Race, but not just anyone will be allowed to enter this place. After you return, deploy some men here to guard this World and seal it off. No one is allowed to enter the Myriad Monsters World for now. In addition, send word to all parties that the Myriad Monsters World will open in 50 years, with Humans being allowed to settle on it then. Anyone who wishes to enter the Myriad Monsters World must purchase a spot with Military Merits without exception, including those from High Heaven Palace! As for the Military Merits required to buy a spot… the Supreme Headquarters will announce it in the future!”
The Myriad Monsters World should have stabilized somewhat after 50 years. Since the World Tree clone had just been planted, the effects of its feedback would not be that obvious, but they should become noticeable after 50 years. Furthermore, 50 years would be enough time for the various forces of the Human Race to finish their preparations.
Exchanging settlement quotas for Military Merits was also a due consideration to the Human soldiers who were fighting the Black Ink Clan on the front lines. Similarly, it was a stimulus to push more Masters, who were so far unwilling to take risks, into the war.
Who did not have descendants or Disciples? Who did not want their Juniors to have a brighter future? Although they were unable to enter the Star Boundary, the Myriad Monsters World was open to all. All one needed was enough Military Merits to buy a spot. It was quite likely that the various forces of the Human Race would be more than happy about this arrangement.
The Myriad Monsters World was definitely going to cause a sensation.
Hua Qing Si praised with admiration, “Palace Master has thought everything through!”
Yang Kai did not say anything in return, he just turned around and stated, “Let’s head back to the Star Boundary!”
The World Tree clone had been planted, but the effects of the feedback would not be seen in a short time. Since he was finished with this matter, Yang Kai had no intention of remaining here.
He had left a Universe Temple and Universe Array on the Myriad Monsters World, so it would be easy and convenient for Humans to travel here in the future.
After returning from the New Great Territory, Hua Qing Si hurried to High Heaven Palace and prepared the necessary people to guard the Myriad Monsters World. On the other hand, Yang Kai flew off to the Demon Realm.
In High Heaven Territory, the only world buzzing with activity other than the Star Boundary was the Demon Realm.
There were still a large number of Demon Race survivors on it, and Embodiment had always been stationed here as well.
The Demon Realm was shattered to pieces in the past, but in the end, Yang Kai used his Embodiment and the Heaven Devouring Battle Law to piece it back together. This had the effect of tying Embodiment and the Demon Realm together.
After 1,000 years, the Demon Realm’s shattered Grand Dao had started showing signs of healing, and the Demon Race living on it also slowly regained their vitality. Now, the Demon Realm not only had the Demon Race, but also many Humans who cultivated Demon Techniques.
Myriad Demons Heaven disciples especially liked coming to the Demon Realm because the environment here was particularly suitable for their cultivation.
Yang Kai still had a World Tree clone in his possession. If he planted the clone here, the Demon Realm would definitely prosper in a short time, but he had no plans to do so. The Humans already had the Star Boundary, and would also have the Myriad Monsters World in the future, that was already sufficient. He had other uses for the final clone.
Today, he did not come here to check the Demon Realm, but rather for Embodiment.
Ever since he left it here, his Embodiment had been sleeping in the depths of the Demon Realm while remaining connected to it.
Yang Kai did not need to summon it, as the moment he appeared on a mountain peak in the Demon Realm, the sleeping Embodiment immediately woke up and appeared in front of Yang Kai.
The Embodiment’s true form was a Stone Spirit Clansman. It could be considered Xiao Xiao’s clansmen, but when it was hatching, it failed to gain sentience. Yang Kai didn’t know why at the time, but later found out there could only be a maximum of 10 Stone Spirit Clansmen at any given time, and the maximum had been reached. Yang Kai had placed his Soul Clone in it at that time, turning it into a kind of avatar.
In the past, Embodiment had saved Yang Kai during many crises.
Although they had not seen each other for 1,000 years, Yang Kai did not feel any unfamiliarity; after all, Embodiment was a part of him, only, it was a different existence that carried a piece of Yang Kai’s Soul.
“As expected, I’ve become quite strong,” the Embodiment marvelled, looking Yang Kai up and down.
Yang Kai grinned, “There are no outsiders here, there is no need to toot your own horn.”
Compared to the true body, Embodiment was far weaker. Yang Kai felt that it was only as strong as a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, which was nothing before the current Yang Kai who had killed many Feudal Lords and Territory Lords.
Because it was one with the Demon Realm, it was impossible for Embodiment to actively cultivate and grow stronger. Instead, the more perfect the Demon Realm’s Grand Dao was, the stronger it would become, and vice versa.
The strength Embodiment could show was basically equivalent to the strength of the Demon Realm’s Grand Dao.
In other words, the combined World Force of the Demon Realm was equivalent to that of a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master’s Small Universe.
Compared to the Star Boundary, the gap was simply enormous.
Furthermore, the Embodiment also had another huge limitation. Ever since it had used the Heaven Devouring Battle Law to rebuild the Demon Realm, it couldn’t go far from it.
It could be said that the current Embodiment was not much help to Yang Kai anymore.
Yang Kai stretched out his finger, laying it on Embodiment’s forehead. The next moment, a variety of information was instantaneously transferred to the Embodiment’s mind.
When Yang Kai withdrew his finger, the Embodiment nodded his understanding, “So that’s how it is, this technique is indeed quite profound.”
Yang Kai added, sighing, “Shi is truly amazing to have created this Secret Art, but no one has ever attempted to cultivate it before, so it’s hard to say if it will succeed.”
“At the end of the day, it represents hope. Even if it doesn’t succeed, we won’t suffer much of a loss.”
Yang Kai refuted, shaking his head, “If we’re not careful, it might backfire on me.”
Embodiment asked with a smile, “Do we have a choice?”
Helplessness immediately took over Yang Kai’s face as he shook his head, “I’m afraid not.”
Embodiment continued, “Then what is there to hesitate about? We can’t wait for the Universe Furnace to just show itself, right? Who knows how long that will take.”
Saying so, Embodiment approached Yang Kai, “Today, you and I will become one once more. We’ll advance to the Ninth Order and vanquish Mo!”
As Embodiment approached, his figure became more illusory and transparent before merging into Yang Kai’s body.
Yang Kai’s body trembled slightly as lightning appeared in the sky above his Small Universe. At this moment, the World Force became richer and denser. Embodiment’s energy was Yang Kai’s energy, so now that the two were rejoined, all its strength became Yang Kai’s strength, increasing his cultivation.
Be that as it may, as Embodiment was not that strong, this increase was not that obvious.
When Embodiment merged with Yang Kai, nearly 1,000 years of his memories also integrated with Yang Kai’s mind, but as Embodiment had been asleep this whole time, those memories were quite simple.
By the time Yang Kai came to his senses, Embodiment’s figure was no longer before him, only a gust of wind blowing up some loose sand.
At this moment, all the living creatures on the Demon Realm looked towards the sky one after another. They could vaguely feel that the Demon Realm had changed somehow, but they were unable to tell how.
Another gust of wind blew up as Yang Kai disappeared from his spot.
More than a month later, a piece of news spread from High Heaven Palace. High Heaven Palace’s Palace Master, Yang Kai, had created three Sealed Worlds in the vicinity of the Star Boundary using his own strength. These Sealed Worlds were known as Space Dao Sealed World, Time Dao Sealed World, and Spear Dao Sealed World. These three Sealed Worlds contained the profundities of these three Grand Daos, and anyone could enter them to comprehend these Grand Daos after passing a few tests.
As soon as this news was disseminated, the entire Human Race became abuzz with activity. Countless young geniuses scrambled to enter these Sealed Worlds, and in a flash, the surrounding void of these three Sealed Worlds was constantly crowded with people.
The Spear Dao was one thing, but the Dao of Time and Dao of Space had always been the most abstruse and esoteric of Grand Daos. Since ancient times, very few cultivators had been able to cultivate them. Only the Dragon and Phoenix Clans could dabble in these two Grand Daos relying on their Bloodline Talents.
Yang Kai’s strength was obvious to all. Although he was also an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, others in the Eighth-Order would find it difficult to fight against a single Innate Territory Lord. On the other hand, the number of Innate Territory Lords who had died at Yang Kai’s hands needed more than two hands to count. He even managed to escape from the pursuit of Royal Lords. It was all thanks to his mastery over these two Grand Daos.
Now, he had created three Sealed Worlds using his Grand Daos as the basis. It was a given that people would flock to them.
Putting everything else aside, so long as they could inherit some of Yang Kai’s legacy, they could enjoy endless benefits.
In a flash, countless cultivators flocked towards the vicinity of the Star Boundary to explore the three Sealed Worlds. Unfortunately, only a few of them had any real gains. The Dao of Time and Dao of Space were indeed too obscure and difficult to understand. Even if many people believed themselves to be quite talented, they still found it extremely hard to comprehend the mysteries of these two Grand Daos.
On the other hand, the Spear Dao Sealed World benefited many people. Compared to Dao of Time or the Dao of Space, the Spear Dao was undoubtedly more common and easier to comprehend.
Everyone believed that Yang Kai had left these Sealed Worlds for the betterment of the Human Race, but only a few knew that he had actually created them for the disciples who had come out of the Void Dao Temple. If others could gain anything from these Sealed Worlds, it was naturally better, but it was also fine for them to obtain nothing.
There were quite a lot of disciples who had come out from the Void Dao Temple. As they were born and raised in Yang Kai’s Small Universe, many of them had inherited his talent in one or two of his primary Grand Daos. For instance, Wan Le Shan, whom Yang Kai encountered in Acacia Territory was proficient in the Dao of Space.
There should be many disciples like Wan Le Shan, many of whom Yang Kai did not even know the names of.
Although these disciples had inherited some talent in Yang Kai’s three Grand Daos, their attainments were generally not that high. Without anyone guiding them, their future cultivation would be thorny and they would have to take many detours.
There were many disciples like this, and there might be even more in the future; how could Yang Kai have the time to guide them one by one? After thinking about it for a while, he decided to leave three Sealed Worlds for them to comprehend on their own.
The three Sealed Worlds were built using Yang Kai’s comprehension and life experience in the three Grand Daos. So long as one was not too dull, they would be able to gain some benefits from them.
Even Yang Xiao, Yang Xue, as well as Zhao Ye Bai, Zhao Ya, and the others were thrown into the three Sealed Worlds to cultivate.
The three Sealed Worlds caused quite a stir, but that was nothing compared to what came next, for the Human Race Supreme Headquarters soon after released a piece of sensational news.
50 years from now, a second Universe World with a World Tree clone would open. At that time, anyone who wanted to send their descendants or disciples to this new Universe World to cultivate could purchase a spot with Military Merits.
This news not only created a buzz among the Human’s refugees, but even made the soldiers on the frontline feverish.
Currently, the Star Boundary was the most important base of the Human Race. It was also the only Open Heaven Realm Cradle in existence. The Star Boundary had given birth to countless elites and geniuses over the last 1,000 years, producing geniuses who advanced straight to the Sixth Order and even Seventh Order in massive quantities, but why was this?
It was all thanks to the World Tree clone’s feedback!
The Star Boundary itself was nothing out of the ordinary; in fact, there were many Universe Worlds like or even better than the Star Boundary in the past. All of its glory and prosperity was thanks to the World Tree clone.
It could be said that the Star Boundary had become an Open Heaven Realm Cradle in the current age because of the World Tree clone.
Who would not want to reside in the Star Boundary? Who would not want to send their disciples and descendants to cultivate in this miraculous Universe World?
A disciple, who only had the aptitude to advance to the Fourth-Order, might be able to break through directly to the Fifth-Order or Sixth-Order after cultivating in the Star Boundary. It was just a gap of one Order, but it would set one’s future achievements worlds apart.
Be that as it may, the Star Boundary was overcrowded already and it was very difficult for ordinary people to enter and settle down there. Even the Cave Heavens and Paradies had few quotas every year, so it was even more impossible for other forces to set foot there.
But now, the Supreme Headquarters had announced that a second Universe World with a World Tree Clone would be open for settlement 50 years from now!
What did this mean? It meant that a second Star Boundary would be born, meaning that more Humans could benefit from the World Tree’s feedback. It meant that those who had been yearning to enter the Star Boundary but were unable to do so would have a chance to fulfil this dream!
This news immediately created a huge sensation throughout the Human Race. Many people tried to check how reliable this news was, but with the announcement coming straight from the Supreme Headquarters, how could it be false?
As for why 50 years later, the Supreme Headquarters also answered this question.
The World Tree clone was provided by Yang Kai and had just been planted in a certain Universe World. The feedback would only begin to take noticeable effect in 50 years. As for which Universe World it was, the Supreme Headquarters did not disclose.
It was Yang Kai again!
Yang Kai’s name was almost present in all the major events that had happened in the Human Race over the past few years. All the Human cultivators, whether they were weak or strong, had heard his name at least once. At present, Yang Kai was the most famous person in the entire Human Race.
In any event, the Supreme Headquarters’ answer reassured the Humans who still had doubts. The World Tree clone’s feedback indeed needed time to take effect, something that had been confirmed in the Star Boundary many years ago.
50 years was more than half a lifetime to ordinary mortals who had never cultivated, but to Human Masters who had achieved higher cultivation, it was like a snap of a finger.
They could afford to wait!
As for the condition of exchanging settlement quotas with Military Merits, it also caused the Human Race to cheer.
Currently, the Star Boundary’s territory was carved up by the Cave Heavens and Paradises, and the local forces. It had already been years since this balance was established, so it was almost impossible for the other forces to interfere.
However, the second Star Boundary that would open 50 years from now was different. It was a Universe World untouched by Human hands, which would give many people a chance.
Buying a spot using Military Merits was undoubtedly a fair and reasonable proposal.
Some people inquired about how many Military Merits would be required to buy a spot, but the Supreme Headquarters only said that it had not been decided yet and that they would set a number when the Universe World opened.
Although this answer was unsatisfactory to many, no one pestered the Supreme Headquarters again. Was it difficult to obtain Military Merits? For those who were too afraid to enter the battlefield, it was indeed difficult. As for the soldiers who were fighting the Black Ink Clan on the frontlines, every Black Ink Clan member was a living, breathing Military Merit to be reaped.
All one needed to do to gather sufficient Military Merits to buy a spot was make a few trips to the battlefield.
Not everyone dared to enter the battlefield and fight the Black Ink Clan. There were always some who gave all kinds of excuses to stay behind.
Currently, the Human Race Army was composed of the surviving soldiers of the Black Ink Battlefield’s various Great Passes as the framework, with the disciples of Cave Heavens and Paradises as the main body and with conscripts from various Second Class Great Forces making up the rest of the numbers.
Depending on the size and strength of a Sect, different numbers of people were conscripted from them. Naturally, some people at the Supreme Headquarters had planned this.
Every time there were some serious casualties on the battlefield, they would conscript further reinforcements.
This kind of recruitment was a bit forceful, but since the enemy had already invaded, if they were defeated on the frontlines, the Human Race would likely be wiped from existence. So, it made no difference whether it was forceful or not, stabilizing the frontlines was the priority.
In addition, the casualty rate on the frontline was quite high. This caused many people to try to avoid joining the war. Although some were quite strong in their own right, they would rather hide in the rear where it was safe.
Some were afraid and avoided the battle, while some were eager to join the fight.
The Supreme Headquarters had set up a Recruitment Hall in the Star Boundary’s Star City, and anyone who wished to join the war effort could register there before being deployed to various battlefronts to fight the enemy.
Nonetheless, few had come knocking on the door of the Recruitment Hall in the last few decades; after all, there were not many people who were willing to enter the battlefield. Even those who did wish to fight normally preferred to work as Hunters as they were not used to the strict military discipline.
Now, however, the Recruitment Hall was bustling with activity as countless Open Heaven Realm cultivators, who had received the news, rushed over to enlist in the Army.
This sudden turn of events made the head of the staff of the Recruitment Hall grin from ear to ear. They had put in a great deal of effort to enlist more cultivators over the years, making appeals to various minor and major Sects of the Human Race. If it were not for the higher-ups not sanctioning it, they would have likely used even more forceful or even coercive means to gather recruits.
Unfortunately, it was to no avail; after all, only a small number of cultivators were willing to fight while most were more than happy to let others stand on the frontline and risk their lives.
Who would have thought that news of the second Star Boundary opening in 50 years would bring such a change?
This was especially so for some of the older Open Heaven Realm cultivators, who felt that their days were numbered and wanted to create a better cultivation environment for their disciples and descendants before their death. All of them came forward to enlist, causing the people working at the Recruitment Hall to dance with joy.
In less than a month, more than 100,000 Open Heaven Realm cultivators had come to enlist. Although most of them did not have high cultivation, their numbers made up for that. On the battlefield, higher cultivation was naturally better, but that did not mean having a low cultivation made one useless.
The survival of the entire race was hanging on this war, so every little contribution would bring some subtle change to the course of the war.
Yang Kai was completely oblivious to the buzz in the Human Race’s rear for the time being. After returning from the Demon Realm and creating the three Sealed Worlds, he led Dawn and Yu Ru Meng’s Squad on a journey back to Profound Nether Territory, arriving half a month later.
When Wei Jun Yang received the news, he hurriedly rushed over to investigate.
Wei Jun Yang and the others had been on edge for the last half a year, unable to eat or sleep in peace. Yang Kai led two Squads to Acacia Territory to rescue some refugees trapped there. The Black Ink Clan obviously would not leave them alone. They had no way of obtaining any news from Acacia Territory, but some Hunters had relayed a message to the Supreme Headquarters that they had noticed signs of the Black Ink Clan mobilizing a massive amount of troops. A rough estimate put some three to four million additional Black Ink Clan soldiers and several Territory Lords heading to Acacia Territory.
Millions of Black Ink Clansmen and several Territory Lords was anything but a weak force.
Although Yang Kai brought two Squads with him, he and Feng Ying were the only Eighth-Order Masters, so things were really not in their favour. It was hard to predict what the outcome of this conflict would be.
If the Black Ink Clan sealed the entire territory with millions of soldiers, and the Territory Lords attacked Yang Kai and his team together, the latter would surely be in grave danger.
If something happened to Yang Kai, it would be a great loss to the Human Race. Before, it would not have shaken the roots of the Human Race; however, it was different now. As Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army, if anything happened to Yang Kai, the entire Profound Nether Territory would fall into chaos and the damage might be irreversible.
Acacia Territory had millions of Black Ink Clansmen, as well as a large number of Territory Lords. Such a lineup was definitely not for setting up a trap for the Hunters. Wei Jun Yang and the others reckoned that the Black Ink Clan had predicted Yang Kai would travel to Acacia Territory, and that was why they had made such arrangements.
The entire Acacia Territory was like a Dragon’s den.
But by the time the Human Race received this news, it was already too late, Yang Kai should have already entered Acacia Territory. There was no way to even send a warning anymore.
Wei Jun Yang and the others were on tenterhooks, afraid that some misfortune would befall Yang Kai in Acacia Territory.
The Supreme Headquarters had no way of obtaining accurate news from Acacia Territory either. Some Hunters tried to enter Acacia Territory through the Territory Gates to investigate things, but they never returned. Obviously, the Black Ink Clan was using its Army to seal off the gate. Even the Hunters who had entered Acacia Territory to investigate things must have encountered some kind of accident.
Not only that, but the peace in Profound Nether Territory was also broken.
The reason why Profound Nether Territory had been able to remain peaceful was because the Territory Lords were afraid of Yang Kai’s unpredictable killing methods. They did not dare to make a rash move with him around, but now that they had received accurate reports that the Profound Nether Army Commander, Yang Kai, was trapped in Acacia Territory, why would they need to be afraid?
Wei Jun Yang, Ou Yang Lie, and the others were strong, but the Territory Lords could still deal with them; Yang Kai was the one who gave them a splitting headache.
The Black Ink Clan immediately mobilized their troops and began attacking the Human Race on all fronts. Both sides seemed to have returned to the old days where they fought constantly.
So, when the news spread that Yang Kai had returned to the Star Boundary, Wei Jun Yang and the others found it very hard to believe. They thought of it as nothing but unfounded rumours.
Even if Yang Kai had mastered the Dao of Space and managed to escape from Acacia Territory, he couldn’t return to the Star Boundary, as he would first have to pass through at least one of the Great Territory battlefields.
While they were still investigating where the rumours had come from though, someone reported that the Army Commander had returned.
Wei Jun Yang, who happened to be fighting on the front lines, quickly rushed back to the main camp to check the validity of this report. Surprisingly, he was greeted by Yang Kai when he arrived.
Wei Jun Yang was dumbfounded.
Not only Wei Jun Yang was dumbstruck, but even Kong Cheng De, who was currently in charge of the overall situation in Profound Nether Territory, had a look of disbelief on his face. When Yang Kai appeared, Kong Chen De almost thought that he was hallucinating.
Strength-wise, Wei Jun Yang and Ou Yang Lie were undoubtedly the strongest among the Eighth-Order Masters in Profound Nether Territory, but both of them were more fond of fighting on the front lines than sitting in the rear. If they were asked to devise a strategy in the tent to win the war from a million kilometres away, they would be a little hard-pressed.
On the other hand, Kong Cheng De of Nine Stars Paradise was a far better strategist than the other Eighth-Order Masters present. He had been the brains behind all the major Human deployments in Profound Nether Territory all these years. He was the one who formulated the battle plans against the Black Ink Clan, assisted by the other Eighth-Order cultivators and a dozen or so Seventh-Order staff.
“Sir!” Wei Jun Yang stepped forward, staring blankly at Yang Kai, “Wasn’t Sir trapped in Acacia Territory? We received news that millions of Black Ink Clan soldiers and a dozen or so Territory Lords were deployed to Acacia Territory by the Black Ink Clan. How did Sir return?”
Yang Kai affirmed with a nod, “That’s indeed true, but I have my own means of escaping.”
He did not say that he could use the World Tree to instantly arrive in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary or to any still living Universe World. It was best if fewer people knew about this ability because of the existence of Black Ink Disciples. If one day someone who knew about this ability was turned into a Black Ink Disciple, his secret would be exposed.
Wei Jun Yang breathed a sigh of relief.
He was really afraid that Yang Kai would fall in Acacia Territory, so it was naturally great news that he managed to escape safely. Better yet, the Black Ink Clan in Acacia Territory were unaware of this fact, so they should still be searching for him.
If not, the Black Ink Clan in Profound Nether Territory would not have started another war so easily.
Considering all this, Wei Jun Yang suddenly felt some pity for the Black Ink Clan, who were going through so much trouble for someone who was no longer there.
Very soon though, his eyes lit up, “Sir, you’re right on time. The Black Ink Clan doesn’t know anything about this, so you can take this opportunity to kill a few more Territory Lords and raise our Army’s prestige.”
The Black Ink Clan still believed that Yang Kai was trapped in Acacia Territory, so they had started a grand war in Profound Nether Territory. Since Yang Kai was already back though, he could conceal himself and secretly hunt a few Territory Lords.
Yang Kai nodded and agreed, “I had the same idea and was about to discuss it with Senior Brother Kong.”
As soon as he returned, Yang Kai discovered that another battle had broken out in Profound Nether Territory. He vaguely understood what the Black Ink Clan was thinking, so he did not reveal himself immediately. Instead, he went to the frontline camp and looked for Kong Cheng De, who was in command of this place, to ask for his opinion.
Yang Kai wanted to ask where the resident strategist felt it would be best for him to act.
Last time, when Yang Kai had killed three Territory Lords, it had forced the Black Ink Clan into a complete retreat from the main front. This was a rare opportunity, and might be the last.
So long as he was in Profound Nether Territory, the Black Ink Clan would be on guard against him.
Soul Rending Thorns were not flawless. The experiences in Acacia Territory made Yang Kai realize that if the Territory Lords guarded their Souls diligently, the effect of the Soul Rending Thorn’s might would be greatly reduced. If two Territory Lords acted together and were on guard against him, it would be difficult for him to eliminate them in one blow.
If he was unable to kill the Territory Lords in a single surprise attack, his current strength made it almost pointless to simply fight it out with them instead.
In the tent, the entire Void Map of Profound Nether Territory was laid before Yang Kai and the others. This map was jointly created by Artifact Refiners and Array Masters in the Army and gave a detailed overview of the entire Profound Nether Territory. It was extremely intuitive to use and clear to understand.
There were three Territory Gates on the map. The Human Race and Black Ink Clan occupied one each, and the last one was ownerless. The two sides had been fighting for control of this final Territory Gate, but neither of them was able to occupy it for long so it had changed hands multiple times over the past few decades.
Yang Kai was appointed the Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army in a rather rushed manner, and immediately after, he had left for Acacia Territory to save the Humans trapped there. So, he was not too knowledgeable about Profound Nether Territory’s current situation.
It would not have mattered if he was just an ordinary Eighth-Order Master as all he would have to do was follow orders. But now, he was the Army Commander in charge of overseeing the entire Profound Nether Territory. It would be improper and a dereliction of duty for him to be ignorant of even the basic situation.
After listening to Kong Cheng De’s presentation, Yang Kai had a first grasp of the strength of the Profound Nether Army, the number of High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters available for deployment, and the distribution of the Eighth-Order Masters.
The Profound Nether Army might have anecdotally been called a million-strong force, but that could not be farther from the truth. Perhaps, they might have had that many soldiers in the past, but after several decades of constant war, the Army had suffered massive casualties. Now, the entire the Profound Nether Army only totalled some 650,000 soldiers.
As for the main battlefield, almost half of the Army was deployed there as it was the primary focus of the Black Ink Clan. So long as they could defeat the Humans on the main battlefield, they would have a chance to occupy the Territory Gate that was currently being controlled by the enemy, and then they could continue to mop up the rest in the Profound Nether Territory.
The main battlefield had the most soldiers and almost half of the Eighth-Order Masters were deployed there, guarding against the various Territory Lords.
Apart from the main battlefield, there were four auxiliary fronts, one of which was the battlefront for determining the owner of the third Territory Gate. About 100,000 soldiers were deployed there, along with several Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters.
The entire Profound Nether Army had about 50 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters.
That was not an insignificant number, and the other Great Territory battlefields all had a similar number of Eighth-Order Masters overseeing them.
Be that as it may, when Yang Kai heard this number, his heart became a little heavy. It could not be helped either, as compared to the hundreds of thousands of years of accumulation by the Cave Heavens and Paradises, 50 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters per battlefield was quite low!
The Cave Heavens and Paradises had existed for millennia, and even if Eighth-Order Masters were rare, after so many years of accumulation, each Cave Heaven and Paradise should have produced over 1,000 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters at least.
Unfortunately, the upper echelons of the Human Race had suffered massive casualties in the never-ending war against the Black Ink Clan. Not to mention those in the Eighth-Order, one or two of the original 100 plus Ninth-Order Masters remained today.
In comparison, the number of Territory Lords was much higher.
Almost all of the Human Race’s available forces were concentrated on a dozen or so battlefields, but what about the Black Ink Clan? They had many Territory Lords on the primary battlefields, as well as a fair number patrolling the various occupied Great Territories. There were also many Territory Lords stationed at the No-Return Pass.
The reason why the Human Race had been able to hold on for so long was mainly because they were willing to fight to the death!
If a Territory Lord was heavily injured, they would need to fall dormant in a Black Ink Nest to recover. The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, on the other hand, did not need such a cumbersome healing process. As such, even if there were far more Territory Lords than Eighth-Order Masters, the Humans could barely hold on. Of course, this kind of status quo was extremely tenuous and the Human Race was at a disadvantage on most fronts.
The Human Race needed the younger generation to mature in order to produce more Masters, only then could they fill the gap between top combatants.
“The Territory Lord Commander of the Black Ink Clan in Profound Nether Territory is called Six Arms, yes?” Yang Kai suddenly asked. He still had some impression of Six Arms as last time, when he had borrowed the Territory Gate occupied by the Black Ink Can, it was Six Arms who had come forward to discuss it with him.
Wei Jun Yang nodded before quickly realizing Yang Kai’s intention, “Sir, do you want to set up prestige by taking out Six Arms?”
Yang Kai did not deny it, “If I can kill Six Arms, the Black Ink Clan should be docile for a while.”
Wei Jun Jang, however, rejected this suggestion, shaking his head, “Six Arms won’t be easy to kill. He is a very cautious foe. Once, I and Ou Yang Lie had tried to take him out, but we failed in the end. Furthermore, he rarely comes out to fight personally and usually acts as a rear guard only.”
Yang Kai furrowed his brow, “He’s actually so cautious?”
He could not understand why, but he had a feeling that most of the Territory Lords were very afraid of death. You Gong, the one he had run into in Acacia Territory, was also like this.
These Innate Territory Lords were directly created by Mo, so logically speaking, they should be the most zealous among the Black Ink Clan.
[Could it be that Mo also fears death greatly, and these Territory Lords were affected by it unconsciously?]
Yang Kai shook his head, collecting his thoughts.
“Furthermore, even if we kill Six Arms, it won’t have a fatal impact on the Black Ink Clan. There is not much difference in strength between Territory Lords, so even if Six Arms dies, the Black Ink Clan would soon elect another Commander,” Kong Cheng De added.
Yang Kai looked at him, “Then Senior Brother Kong, where do you think I should start?”
Kong Cheng De smiled and pointed towards a certain spot, “Here!”
Yang Kai raised his brow slightly, “Why here?”
The location Kong Chen De pointed at was one of the auxiliary fronts, which surprised Yang Kai a little, as his original idea was to create some chaos on the main battlefield.
Kong Cheng De quickly explained, “Five Territory Lords are overseeing this front. With Sir’s lightning speed, you should be able to quickly kill one or two Territory Lords, and if you cooperate with the Eighth-Order Masters there, we may be able to kill all five of them.”
“This is a rare opportunity. Since Sir wants to launch a sneak attack, you should naturally choose the best method to kill as many Territory Lords as possible.” Kong Cheng De pointed towards the main battlefield, “There might be many Territory Lords on the main battlefield, but each of them is coordinating with the others from a distance. Once Sir makes a move, the other Territory Lords will definitely be on guard. By then, it will be difficult to achieve anything significant.”
Yang Kai pondered for a moment before nodding and agreeing, “You’re right.”
The main battlefield was undoubtedly the most important, but the war in Profound Nether Territory was not something that could be ended in one or two battles. The Human Race could not hope to defeat the Black Ink Clan in a short period of time either. This was a war that was destined to last decades, if not centuries.
Just as Kong Cheng De had stated, Yang Kai might really be able to kill a Territory Lord in a flash with his elusive methods, but it would be difficult for him to gain any more kills after that on the main front.
The auxiliary fronts were different as there were not that many Territory Lords overseeing each of them. Even if Yang Kai was exposed, it would be extremely difficult for the Territory Lords to escape as they would first have to fight off the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters standing in their way. At that time, so long as the Eighth-Order Masters kept them pinned down somehow, Yang Kai would be able to break the balance of the battlefield, and turn the tide in their favour.
“Then it’s decided,” Yang Kai pointed towards that defensive line before he turned around and left, his voice echoing in Kong Cheng De’s ears, “I’ll have to trouble Senior Brother Kong to send a message to the Division Commanders to make preparations.”
Kong Cheng De cupped his fist and replied, “Yes Sir!”
The nearby Wei Jun Yang breathed a light sigh, looking at Yang Kai’s departing figure, “I really want to see him advance to the Ninth Order. That would really be something.”
As someone who had killed many Innate Territory Lords as an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, if Yang Kai could break through to the Ninth-Order, he would naturally be able to suppress the Royal Lords. In that case, the pressure on the Human Race would be significantly reduced.
At present, the top forces of both Races were keeping each other in check. The Human Race had two Ninth-Order Masters and a Giant Spirit God, while the Black Ink Clan had two Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods and a Royal Lord. This status quo could be said to have been deliberately created by the Human Race, while the Black Ink Clan went along with it.
This situation was advantageous to the Black Ink Clan, because whether it was the number of Territory Lords or the size of the Army, they held an edge over the Humans.
The Human Race was barely able to maintain the current situation by stubbornly holding on to a dozen or so Great Territory Battlefields. What they were waiting for was a chance, a chance for the younger generation to grow.
Currently, many good seedlings had advanced straight to the Sixth and Seventh Orders, and someday, they would be able to rise to the Eighth Order and Ninth Order.
But as the Human Race would grow, so too would the Black Ink Clan.
If a new Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master was born in the Human Race, why wouldn’t a new Royal Lord appear in the Black Ink Clan? At that time, the Human Race would not be able to do anything if they didn’t already have some kind of advantage in the war.
As such, a Master whose strength far exceeded his peers was of paramount importance. If such a Master was born, he or she would serve as a great deterrence to the Black Ink Clan.
In the entire Human Race, Yang Kai was the only one who could assume that role. When he was a Seventh-Order, he could kill Feudal Lords like they were fish on a chopping board, and now when he was an Eighth-Order Master, he could kill Territory Lords all on his own. If he really managed to break through to the Ninth Order, he would definitely be able to kill a Royal Lord just as easily.
Unfortunately, things never went exactly as one wished. The Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm was far out of Yang Kai’s reach.
Wei Jun Yang strode out of the tent, “I’ll go confront the enemy.”
Things were quite tense on the main battlefield, and he had only returned after hearing the news of Yang Kai’s arrival. Now that the battle plan had already been devised, how could he remain here? The number of Territory Lords were far more than Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. If he was not there, the Eighth-Order Masters on the main battlefield would be under a great deal of pressure.
After he left, Kong Chen De turned to a nearby Seventh-Order Master and ordered, “Inform Chen Yuan that the Army Commander will be arriving soon, and they need to cooperate with him to kill the Territory Lords.”
“Yes, Sir!” Accepting the order, the Seventh-Order Master immediately took out a Communication Bead as his Divine Sense started surging.
Somewhere in Profound Nether Territory, the Black Ink Clan Army was attacking at full swing. On the other side, the Human Army of tens of thousands of soldiers had split up into various groups as they surrounded an enormous Universe Fragment and guarded it tightly.
Warships flew about, providing cover to the exposed soldiers. All kinds of offensive and defensive Arrays and artifacts had long been set up on this Universe Fragments, which greatly contributed to the battle. The dark and endless void was lit up with dazzling flashes of lights as Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities were fired here and there.
This was one of the several auxiliary fronts in Profound Nether Territory. The Human forces tasked to defend this place were not that big, just 50,000 soldiers strong. In addition, there were four Eighth-Order Masters permanently stationed here.
Nearly 100,000 soldiers had sacrificed their lives on this auxiliary front alone in the last few decades, and even an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master had fallen here.
Nonetheless, no matter how grim the battle was, the Humans had been able to hold on. Just like on the Black Ink Battlefield, the Human Race Army was specialized in fighting while being significantly outnumbered. The Human Race’s Warships provided the Army with great mobility and defense, and if one did not count the very top Masters, the Human Race’s overall strength here was higher than that of the Black Ink Clan. This was the reason the Humans had been able to hold their ground.
Such a battle had been raging for decades now, and seemed like it would continue for some time.
The lengthy battle had left everyone exhausted. Before Yang Kai returned, whether it was Profound Nether Territory or the other Great Territory Battlefields, the Human Race’s defensive lines were all in imminent danger.
Yang Kai’s return had greatly eased this crisis though as he had brought a fresh supply of Purifying Light with him.
Thanks to the Purifying Light, the Humans were able to fight with the Black Ink Clan without fear of being corrupted by Black Ink Strength. In the past, after the Purifying Light was exhausted, the Human Race always had to act with caution. It was as if their arms and legs were tied, making things extremely difficult.
Now, they no longer had to worry about this.
Yang Kai had distributed 10 sets of Great Sun and Moon Marks, and also given out a massive amount of Yellow and Blue Crystals. There was no shortage of Purifying Light on the various battlefields of the Human Race and every Purifying Black Ink Battleship had a large amount of Purifying Light sealed in it. Anyone contaminated by Black Ink Strength just had to enter a Purifying Black Ink Battleship and he or she would be totally safe and sound.
With ample Purifying Light, the Evil Purging Divine Spears that had once shone brilliantly during the Human Race’s crusade were also resurrected!
This was a weapon created by the combined efforts of Grandmaster Ma Fan and Yang Kai and was extremely effective against the Black Ink Clan. Once the Purifying Light sealed inside an Evil Purging Divine Spear erupted inside a Black Ink Clansman’s body, their Black Ink Strength would be greatly reduced, and in worst scenarios, they might even die on spot.
Be that as it may, there were not many Evil Purging Divine Spears in each Army due to the short timeframe. As such, the available Evil Purging Divine Spears were all in the hands of the strongest Human Race Masters for emergency use only.
Nevertheless, large quantities of this mighty artifact would definitely be disseminated to the various Armies soon. At that time, it would become the Black Ink Clan’s nightmare. Perhaps, the Humans might be able to offset the disadvantage of top combatants using this sharp tool.
A Seventh-Order Open Heaven Master was moving to and fro around the Universe Fragment, observing the entire battlefield carefully. Suddenly, he felt something and quickly took out a Communication Bead. After receiving the message, a look of joy brightened his face as he immediately shouted to a nearby companion, “Senior Brother Lu, hold on for a moment, I’ll be right back.”
Saying so, he ordered a dozen people to follow him and boarded a Warship, flying away the next moment, leaving Senior Brother Lu dumbfounded at the whole ordeal.
The ship flew out of the Universe Fragment that they were defending as a large number of Black Ink Clansmen swarmed towards it. Nonetheless, the Warship paid no heed to the oncoming assault and sailed heading towards the most intense battle at full speed.
The destination of the ship was the battlefield between the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and the Territory Lords.
The Warship blazed its way through all manner of obstacles and finally managed to break through the Black Ink Clan’s encirclement, entering into the fierce battlefield.
On the other end of the void, four Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and five Territory Lords were locked in a heated battle. All of them were old rivals by now who had fought each other countless times over the last few decades.
In the past, the four Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters had always been at a disadvantage when facing these five Territory Lords. There had even been quite a few instances where an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master would come this close to dying; after all, they were one man short of their opponent. Moreover, their enemies were all Innate Territory Lords.
But the situation this time was a little different. The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were able to put up a good fight even in a four vs five situation. The aura of one of the Territory Lords was quite weak, making it obvious he was heavily injured. He didn’t dare to confront the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters head-on and could only roam around the periphery, looking for opportunities to strike.
Division Commander Chen Yuan was a little annoyed. If he had taken advantage of the situation just now, he might have been able to kill the Territory Lord; unfortunately, the situation was pressing, and he did not have the room to pay attention to everything, which made him miss this opportunity.
Now, the Territory Lords were on guard and it would be difficult for them to find another chance.
As the battle raged on, Chen Yuan noticed a Warship rapidly approaching, and a familiar figure standing on its deck.
Chen Yuan recognized this man. He was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master who was responsible for communication with the main battlefield.
Chen Yuan knew that his appearance must be related to a message from the front lines of the main battlefield, and as expected, a message was quickly sent to his ears!
Chen Yuan’s heart skipped a beat in joy, but he did not let it show on his face. He simply nodded imperceptibly to indicate that he understood.
After passing the message from afar, the Seventh-Order Master on the deck let out a sigh of relief, [Fortunately, I did not fail my mission. Since the Eighth-Order Division Commanders know about the Army Commander’s situation, the situation in this battle should change a little.]
“Sir, a lot of Black Ink Clansmen are chasing us, are we going back?” Someone suddenly asked.
The Seventh-Order looked back, and when he saw a large group of Black Ink Clansmen chasing after them, his expression immediately changed, “Run, run!”
After breaking out of the encirclement, almost all of their defensive Arrays were on the verge of failing. If he ordered them to return, it would be tantamount to committing suicide. Although he wasn’t afraid of death, his death should at least be a meaningful one.
Furthermore, he wanted to see how many of the Territory Lords here would survive after the Army Commander took action.
As a result, the Eighth Order and Territory Lords witnessed an extremely strange sight. While they were engaged in an earth-shattering battle, a Human Warship was fleeing in a wide circle around them with a large group of Black Ink Clansmen hot on its tail.
Although the Warship was temporarily safe, anyone with a discerning eye could see that it would be destroyed sooner or later if it kept fleeing like this.
The Territory Lords paid no attention to this matter as their enemies were the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters only. Killing these opponents was far more important than one Human Warship, and even if one of their Territory Lords was seriously injured, they still held the advantage so they intended to press it.
At one point, Chen Yuan suddenly summoned something.
It was a spear-like artifact, but it did not look like anything special. The Human Race’s Secret Techniques and Artifacts were varied, but after decades of war, the Black Ink Clan had seen most of them by now.
However, when Chen Yuan took out this artifact, the Territory Lords stared at him with solemn expressions, as if they were facing a formidable enemy. They even slowed down their attacks and focused more on defence.
It was an Evil Purging Divine Spear!
The Evil Purging Divine Spear had once shone its brilliance in the war outside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. In that war, many Territory Lords and even Royal Lords who had emerged from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had suffered losses.
The Black Ink Clansmen, who were originally evenly matched with their opponents, were suddenly struck by an Evil Purging Divine Spear and their strength had taken a serious hit. Even if they didn’t die, they would lose all combat effectiveness.
Against an artifact that could suppress their Black Ink Strength, the Black Ink Clan couldn’t help but be wary.
That war was too horrifying. The Black Ink Clan suffered massive casualties, and so did the Human Race. Even the Evil Purging Divine Spears were completely exhausted in that battle.
Refining Evil Purging Divine Spears themselves wasn’t difficult, but just refining them wasn’t of any use as they still needed to have Purifying Light sealed into them to pose any real threat to the Black Ink Clan.
The Human Race Army fought several wars over the next few centuries, even exhausting almost all of the Purifying Light sealed in the Purifying Black Ink Battleships. So, how could they even create new Evil Purging Divine Spears? Furthermore, Yang Kai, the only person who could create Purifying Light, had disappeared after the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction war, pushing the Human Race into a difficult situation.
The Evil Purging Divine Spear was basically never used after the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction War. This was also the reason why the No-Return Pass was quickly overrun. At that time, the No-Return Pass might not have been lost if they had a supply of Evil Purging Divine Spears; after all, there were a lot of powerful Divine Spirits stationed there, led by Dragons and Phoenixes. Even if they lost, they would have at least been able to hold on for longer.
The Human Race was currently in a state of decline with more than 90% of the 3,000 Worlds being occupied by the Black Ink Clan. All they could do was gather all of their remaining forces and tightly defend a dozen or so Great Territory Battlefields. Facing the constant attacks of the Black Ink Clan Armies, the Human Race Armies defending various Great Territory Battlefields were thoroughly exhausted. They were walking on the edge of life and death where even the slightest mistake could send them tumbling to their doom.
After decades of gruesome battles, the Black Ink Clan witnessed the tenacity of the Human Race and also all kinds of bizarre methods employed by them. The Black Ink Clan originally thought that they already knew the Human Race’s limits.
Until Chen Yuan took out an Evil Purging Divine Spear.
Hundreds of years ago, the Evil Purging Divine Spears had struck terror into the hearts of the Black Ink Clan in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction War. Today, its brilliance shone once more as it severely wounded one of the five Territory Lords with just one strike.
The Territory Lords fighting the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters turned pale with fright as they instantly recognized this spear as the artifact that turned the tides at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
All the Territory Lords were struck with terror.
Fortunately, the Human Race no longer showed any intention of using the Evil Purging Divine Spears in the ensuing battle. The Territory Lords guessed that the Human Race didn’t have many such weapons, otherwise, they would not have been so sparing in using them.
In fact, the current number of Evil Purging Divine Spears was indeed not high; after all, it had only been less than a year since Yang Kai had returned. So, even if the Human Race refined Evil Purging Divine Spears as quickly as possible, they could only produce so many.
Of course, the main reason they did not use another spear was because the Territory Lords were already on guard. Chen Yuan and the others didn’t have any confidence in succeeding, which was why they had been exercising more patience.
Sometimes, trump cards didn’t necessarily need to be used to intimidate others.
At the very least, after a Territory Lord was injured in the initial strike, the remaining Territory Lords were no longer as aggressive as before, giving the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters a lot more room to breathe.
After receiving the message from the Seventh-Order communications officer though, Chen Yuan immediately summoned his own Evil Purging Divine Spear. His World Force started surging as the Evil Purging Divine Spear before him started slightly trembling. It was ready to shoot at any moment.
The Territory Lords started to have a headache, especially the Territory Lord who was facing Chen Yuan. His eyes were glued onto the Evil Purging Divine Spear hovering in front of Chen Yuan as he pushed his strength to the limit, ready to resist at any moment.
After witnessing the fate of his companion, this Territory Lord knew that if he couldn’t block this artifact’s attack, he would be seriously injured if not dead.
His entire attention was focused on dealing with the incoming attack.
The Warship that had come to deliver the message was fleeing around in the vicinity, with countless Black Ink Clansmen in close pursuit. By the looks of it, the Warship would meet a tragic end in a short while.
At some point, the Warship had started flying randomly while paying no heed to where it was, panicking and even rushing straight towards the battlefield of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and Territory Lords.
The Territory Lords were enraged when they noticed this. If this was any other time, just a casual blow from them would have been enough to send this Warship and everyone aboard it to eternal damnation, but with the threat of the Evil Purging Divine Spear looming over their heads, none of them dared to be distracted.
The Evil Purging Divine Spear hovering before Chen Yuan started vibrating even more violently, giving the impression that it would shoot off at any moment.
The tattered Warship was now very close to the Territory Lords and the fear and panic on the faces of the dozen or so soldiers aboard it was apparent as the threat of impending death gripped their hearts.
Right then, a powerful Spiritual Energy fluctuation suddenly flared, distracting the Territory Lord who was fighting Chen Yuan. The next moment, he felt a sharp force tear through his Soul. The sudden excruciating pain caused him to instantly falter and lose concentration.
The Territory Lord was horrified as, although he didn’t know what just happened, how could he not understand that he was ambushed?
[Who? Who could manage to do this?]
He had been keeping a close eye on Chen Yuan’s movements and the other Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters had also been pinned down by his companions, while the Territory Lord had not noticed any signs of another Human approaching.
The Territory Lord was unable to fathom how he could be ambushed under these circumstances.
Regardless of how it happened, he did not have any time to give it much thought as the instant that burst of Spiritual Energy appeared, the Evil Purging Divine Spear hovering before Chen Yuan was also activated and shot towards his chest, leaving a dazzling trail of light behind it.
The Evil Purging Divine Spear might be effective against the Black Ink Clan, but it also had its drawbacks; after all, it was just an artifact in the end. If the Black Ink Clansmen were on guard against it, it might not necessarily be effective.
That was why Chan Yuan had not made a move after summoning the Evil Purging Divine Spear, he was waiting for the right opportunity.
Chen Yuan’s patience was rewarded at this moment.
The Territory Lord was already in a state of shock and was unable to defend against Chen Yuan’s attack at all.
The Evil Purging Divine Spear exploded after it pierced into the Territory Lord’s chest. In an instant, a small pure white Sun suddenly appeared in the void and enveloped the Territory Lord, melting away the Black Ink Strength in his body.
The Territory Lord was unable to endure the twin attacks on his Soul and body and let out a miserable cry.
Chen Yuan, on the other hand, didn’t pause for even a moment. After launching the Evil Purging Divine Spear, he charged towards the Territory Lord, brandishing his sword.
A cold gleam flickered across the long sword in his hand as it cut across the Territory Lord’s thick neck.
A frigid look blanketed Chen Yuan’s face as they passed each other. The next moment, the Territory Lord’s head shot into the sky behind him as a fountain of black blood gushed out from the severed neck. The long sword was so sharp and cut so swiftly that the wound on the Territory Lord’s neck was as smooth as a mirror.
A Territory Lord had fallen.
Only at the moment of his death did the Territory Lord vaguely catch sight of an elusive figure flying out from the shadow of the tattered Warship, one he had not noticed the figure before now.
He finally understood where this sneak attack had come from, but unfortunately, he no longer had the strength to warn his companions. The pair of eyes on his massive head remained open, angrily glaring in some direction. It gave the impression that he had been unresigned in his death.
Compared to the Territory Lord’s anguish, Chen Yuan was feeling quite satisfied.
He was also a veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master with impressive strength. Although he was not as extraordinary as Xiang Shan, he was almost on par with Ou Yang Lie. In fact, in the past, he too was an Army Commander.
Be that as it may, even a veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master like him felt powerless in the current war against the Black Ink Clan.
In the past, the battles on the Black Ink Battlefield were slightly easier. Although the Territory Lords were still greater in number, most of them were weaker than the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, not to mention veterans like him.
He had also killed some Territory Lords in the past.
Things changed after the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction War. Before then, all the ordinary Territory Lords were wiped out, while the newly appeared Territory Lords were all Innate Territory Lords who came directly from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. Each and every one of them was far stronger than the Territory Lords of the past.
After hundreds of years of fighting, Chen Yuan had only managed to kill three Territory Lords. Moreover, each time he had to team up with others to score a kill. Each battle was extremely arduous and he had put his life on the line several times to achieve such results.
Today, he finally managed to vent all the frustrations in his heart. He finally got to enjoy the feel of killing a Territory Lord with a single slash of his sword.
Even though the success of his attack was not entirely due to his own efforts and more so because of Yang Kai’s sneak attack, he was the one to take the Territory Lord’s head. That was more than enough for him.
While he was still immersed in his flurry of emotions, the other four Territory Lords’ expressions changed drastically.
The originally tense situation suddenly turned into a battle where life and death could be decided at any moment, making the Territory Lords shocked and apprehensive. They could not understand what just happened.
Not just them, but even the other Eighth-Order Human Masters were confused as to why Chen Yuan suddenly became so fierce.
But soon, they understood the root of everything, Yang Kai had arrived!
After shooting a Soul Rending Thorn, Yang Kai could not hide his tracks any longer. As such, he simply chose to come out from the bottom of the Warship and fire another Soul Rending Thorn, targeting another Territory Lord.
After firing the first Soul Rending Thorn, Yang Kai did not pay any attention to Chen Yuan’s opponent. If Chen Yuan was unable to finish his opponent even with the help of a Soul Rending Thorn and an Evil Purging Divine Spear, his years of arduous cultivation would be a waste.
What Yang Kai needed to do now was to kill as many of these Territory Lords as quickly as possible. If he hesitated for even a moment, these Territory Lords might escape.
This was a rare opportunity as the Black Ink Clan in Profound Nether Territory was under the impression that he was still trapped in Acacia Territory, and thus, had wantonly launched an assault on the Human Race. They had no idea that Yang Kai had already escaped. This was a huge oversight.
Nonetheless, it could not be blamed on the Black Ink Clansmen in Acacia Territory; after all, how could they have known that Yang Kai could freely use the World Tree to travel to the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary and then to other Universe Worlds?
Only a small number of Humans knew about this secret.
A war was not just about differences in strength, information also played a crucial role in determining the course of battle.
While the members of both races were still reeling from shock, Yang Kai had already fired a second Soul Rending Thorn, making a defenceless Territory Lord cry in pain as he staggered unsteadily.
Yang Kai didn’t stop there and immediately fired a third Soul Rending Thorn at the next closest Territory Lord.
The Soul Rending Thorns carried impressive destructive might, but they were also quite simple to defend against. As long as one shielded their Soul diligently, it would greatly weaken the Soul Rending Thorn’s effectiveness. Yang Kai could not give these Territory Lords any chance to mount a defence.
With another set of miserable screams, two Territory Lords were heavily injured by the Soul Rending Thorns and staggered as their auras started fluctuating wildly.
There were five Territory Lords here, of which one was seriously injured while the other four were completely unharmed. They had the absolute upper hand against the four Eighth-Order Human Masters presiding over this front.
But the tides had turned in an instant. One Territory Lord was decapitated in a single stroke, and another two were injured and had their auras plummet. So, including the one who was already seriously injured, only one Territory Lord was currently left unscathed.
From the moment Yang Kai had hidden himself under the Warship and used it to approach the battlefield, to when Chen Yuan beheaded the Territory Lord in one attack and Yang Kai’s successive Soul Rending Thorns, only three breaths had elapsed, that’s all.
This sudden turn of events caught both the Territory Lords and Eighth-Order Masters off guard.
Nevertheless, the Eighth-Order Masters came to their senses the next moment and hurriedly summoned their own Evil Purging Divine Spears before hurling them at their opponents.
The two Territory Lords who had been injured by the Soul Rending Thorns were completely unprepared.
It was not because their responses were slow, but because they were on the verge of losing consciousness. The Soul Rending Thorn was too insidious, able to heavily injure both stealthily and soundlessly, causing not just extreme pain, but also dizziness and disorientation.
Only Yang Kai, who had experienced this kind of pain many times, was now a little accustomed to it. Any enemy hit by a Soul Rending Thorn would be in so much agony that they would temporarily be dazed.
Deafening explosions rang out one after another as small pure white Suns manifested in the void, their pure light roasting the Territory Lords alive. Immediately, the Territory Lords started howling as their auras plunged.
Having been presented with such a great opportunity, the Eighth-Order Masters went all out, using their strongest Divine Abilities or even their Divine Manifestations as they charged at their respective opponents.
Their fates were already set in stone.
Meanwhile, the unharmed Territory Lord, having barely regained his composure, promptly dodged the oncoming Evil Purging Divine Spear.
There were a total of five Territory Lords on this auxiliary front, out of which one was grievously injured from the start. Yang Kai had incapacitated three others using three Soul Rending Thorns, but he was unable to do anything about the last one.
This last Territory Lord was quite decisive, so when he witnessed one of his companions being killed and two others being ambushed, he immediately turned into a Black Ink Cloud and fled towards the horizon.
At that moment, Chen Yuan had just decapitated his opponent and was still relishing in the aftermath. When he saw the Territory Lord flee though, how could he let him go? He flicked his sword before giving chase.
“Help kill them, I’ll stop him!” Yang Kai suddenly shouted as he summoned his spear and stepped in front of the Black Ink Cloud, enduring the excruciating pain in his Soul as he unleashed a flurry of spear shadows.
Even though Chen Yuan was quite strong, it would be difficult for him to stop a Territory Lord who was determined to escape. He would most likely return empty-handed.
Since Yang Kai had decided to attack this front, how could he allow any of the Territory Lords here to escape from right under his nose? He wanted to eliminate all of them today!
A flurry of spears filled the void, distorting the local space and causing the Territory Lord to be unable to tell up from down for a moment. Helpless, he had no choice but to reveal himself and fight Yang Kai.
On the other side, Chen Yuan and the other three Eighth-Order Masters were currently facing three injured Territory Lords, two of whom had critical injuries to both their bodies and Souls.
The die was cast.
When the four Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters surrounded the three Territory Lords, the latter knew that they would not be able to escape today.
However, as the saying went, a beast is most dangerous when cornered. The desperate situation brought out the innate savagery and viciousness of the Territory Lords who let out loud war cries and all attacked in one direction together. So long as they could create an opening, they might still have a chance to escape.
But the next thing they saw left them in despair. Each of the four Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters had summoned another Evil Purging Divine Spear and hurled them out without a moment of hesitation.
Previously, Chen Yuan and the others had not done so because they didn’t have many Evil Purging Divine Spears on hand. They were not willing to waste these valuable tools unless necessary. In addition, the Territory Lords had been on guard against them, so even if they used them earlier, they would not do much damage.
The current situation was different. They could not hold back against these trapped Territory Lords, as the enemy would surely struggle with reckless abandon. As for whether it would be wasteful or not…
Once they won the battle, would they still need to worry about the lack of Evil Purging Divine Spears with Yang Kai here?
If they were parsimonious with external tools, and that allowed the Territory Lords to break out of their encirclement and escape, or if they lost an Eighth-Order Master to a final life-or-death struggle, it would be a far greater loss that would be impossible to rectify.
The Eighth-Order Masters could easily evaluate the situation and make appropriate decisions.
One after another, small Suns exploded again, bathing the void in pure white light. It did not matter whether or not the Evil Purging Divine Spear hit the Territory Lords directly as just the radiant Purifying Light would be enough to give them a hard time. The pure light would constantly melt away their strength, weakening and injuring them further.
The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters did not drop their guard though. Even if they had the absolute advantage, they didn’t try to force a quick end to the battle with the Territory Lords, instead choosing to seal off all escape routes before slowly chipping away at the enemy’s strength.
In less than the time it takes one to boil a cup of tea, another Territory Lord had fallen.
A moment later, another!
And then another!
After finishing the three Territory Lords, Chen Yuan immediately ordered, “Jing An, Zhou Heng, you go take care of the leftover trash. Dao Hong, come with me to assist the Army Commander!”
The sudden change in the highest-level battlefield had a massive impact on the Armies of the two races. Originally, the Humans could only passively defend against the continuous attacks of the Black Ink Clan Army. This kind of defense had lasted for several decades and the soldiers had already grown accustomed to it.
But today, when the first Territory Lord fell and the three heavily injured Territory Lords were surrounded by Chen Yuan and the others, the Black Ink Clan Army was thrown into confusion.
Every member of the Black Ink Clan Army knew that even if they held a great advantage over the Human Race in terms of numbers, once the Territory Lords were all defeated, they would be mercilessly slaughtered by the unencumbered Human Masters next.
Thus, many Feudal Lords instantly led their subordinates to try to rescue the trapped Territory Lords, but unfortunately, these Black Ink Clan reinforcements did not even manage to get close to the battlefield. The rich Purifying Light blocked most of the Black Ink Clansmen’s advance, and even if some of the Feudal Lords still tried to rush in fearlessly, they were easily taken out by Chen Yuan and the others.
The Eighth-Order Masters might struggle against the Innate Territory Lords, but slaughtering Feudal Lords was a simple matter for them.
As a result, the pressure on the Human Race’s defensive line was greatly reduced. When Territory Lords fell one by one, the Black Ink Clan Army besieging the Human base knew that the tides of war had turned against them, so how could they dare to remain here? They immediately fled in a helter-skelter.
On the other hand, the morale of the Human Race Army soared as they charged out. Assisted by two Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, Jiang An and Zhou Heng, countless Black Ink Clansmen’s corpses were left floating across the void as the Humans hunted down the routed enemies.
By now, Chen Yuan and Dai Hong had already converged with Yang Kai and the three of them were attacking the fleeing Territory Lord together.
To be honest, this Territory Lord was quite shrewd. When he saw that the situation wasn’t looking good, he immediately tried to escape, and he would have gotten away had Yang Kai not been here.
Trying to escape from a Master of the Dao of Space was nothing more than a futile dream.
In the entire Universe, if Yang Kai declared he was second when it came to escaping, no one would dare claim to be first. Throughout his life, he had been chased by countless powerful enemies and faced innumerable near-death situations, but he had managed to escape all of them by relying on his Space Secret Techniques.
The Territory Lord wanted to escape from right under Yang Kai’s nose, but his skill was lacking to achieve such a feat.
Quickly realizing he couldn’t escape, he could only fight with his life on the line. This Territory Lord was originally quite wary of Yang Kai; after all, when the latter appeared in Profound Nether Territory a few months ago, he had taken out three Territory Lords on his own in a single battle. Furthermore, it was reported that multiple Territory Lords had also died under his spear at the No-Return Pass.
But after fighting with Yang Kai for real, he discovered that although Yang Kai was strong, he was not strong enough to crush a Territory Lord head-on. At the very least, he could still handle him.
Suddenly, he remembered the information he had received from the No-Return Pass. The Royal Lord had speculated that the Human named Yang Kai had the means to severely wound his enemies’ Souls, because every time a Territory Lord died at his hand at the No-Return Pass, their deaths were preceded by a flash of Spiritual Energy. Ordinary Black Ink Clansmen were unable to sense this, but everything was clear to the Royal Lord.
It was through this method that this Human was able to kill Territory Lords so easily.
Since this means of attack was so strong though, it seemed to put a great burden on the Human. In other words, he wouldn’t be able to use it too many times in quick succession.
Remembering the Royal Lord’s speculation, the Territory Lord had been extremely wary of this method, but after fighting for a while, Yang Kai did not seem to have any intention of using it. How could the Territory Lord not realize that the Royal Lord’s guess was correct?
[This Human should not be able to use that strange method for the time being.]
Nonetheless, he was still having a hard time dealing with Yang Kai. He had fought many Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, but those that were as strong as the one before him were extremely rare. All of Yang Kai’s methods were extremely bizarre, and his spear skills were superb, making it all but impossible to guard against.
After a short exchange, both sides had suffered heavy losses. The Territory Lord was in a sorry state, but the same went for Yang Kai. Both their bodies were covered in blood.
Strictly speaking, the injury Yang Kai had received to his Soul from using the Soul Rending Thorns in Acacia Territory had not fully healed yet; after all, only a few months had passed since then. Even if he had spent some time resting in the Star Boundary, the Soul Warming Lotus was still unable to completely repair his Soul in such a short time.
After using three Soul Rending Thorn just now, Yang Kai felt like he had hit his limit and could lose consciousness at any moment.
Even so, he had to stop this Territory Lord from escaping.
Fortunately, Chen Yuan quickly rushed over with Dai Hong to assist Yang Kai, attacking the Territory Lords from all sides.
The situation had been decided!
Four of the five Territory Lords had been killed on this auxiliary front, and the last one remaining was besieged by three Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, so it was certain he would also die sooner or later.
Whether it was Chen Yuan or Dai Hong, both of them felt extremely satisfied.
They had been posted to this front for several decades now and had fought with the Black Ink Clan Army countless times, but every time they clashed, they would be forced to passively defend themselves. The few times they had taken the initiative to attack they were quickly repelled.
They had killed a lot of Black Ink Clansmen, but not a single Territory Lord had fallen in this decades-long war. This left these Eighth-Order Masters very discouraged. They had been painstakingly cultivating for thousands of years, but they felt powerless in the face of the current situation.
Today, however, four Territory Lords had died at their hands in less than an incense stick worth of time, and the fifth one would join his comrades on the journey to the Yellow Springs soon!
All of this was thanks to Army Commander Yang Kai.
Originally, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were apprehensive when they heard about Yang Kai being appointed as the Army Commander from the Supreme Headquarters. After all, Yang Kai was far inferior to the other Eighth-Order Masters both in terms of age and seniority. Yang Kai’s personal strength might be great, but strength alone was not enough to lead an entire Army, one must also have the skills to break the deadlock and show the Army a path towards victory.
Previously, when Yang Kai left with two Warships through the Black Ink Clan’s Territory Gate under the watchful eyes of many of the Territory Lords by himself, many Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters admired him, but some felt he was being impetuous and reckless. If the Territory Lords were to suddenly attack him at that time, it would lead to terrible consequences. Taking such risks as the Army Commander was truly unwise.
Fortunately, Yang Kai had returned safely.
Now, when Yang Kai led these Eighth-Order Masters to kill several Territory Lords in succession with unstoppable force, Chen Yuan could not say anything about others, but he and his comrades were totally convinced.
No matter whether this newly appointed Army Commander was young and impetuous, just his overwhelming personal strength alone put him ahead above the other Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters.
They had never fought side by side with Yang Kai before, so although they knew he was strong, they didn’t know how strong exactly.
Until today.
Although the last surviving Territory Lord was going all out, he was still suppressed by Yang Kai to the point where he could not even catch a breath. Chen Yuan and Dai Hong basically did not need to put their guard up, all they had to do was keep attacking the Territory Lord with their strongest methods. They found this battle quite cathartic.
With someone so powerful overseeing Profound Nether Territory, everyone’s future would be much brighter.
On the auxiliary front, the Black Ink Clan Army collapsed like loose sand following the fall of the Territory Lords. The Black Ink Clan soldiers panicked and fled, allowing the tens of thousands of Human soldiers to relentlessly chase after them.
The situation on the main battlefield was originally extremely tense; furthermore, the Black Ink Clan held the upper hand. However, when the first Territory Lord fell in the distant void, the hearts of all the Territory Lords on the main battlefield skipped a beat. No one had any idea what happened, but a Territory Lord undoubtedly died.
Although it was quite far away, and the disturbance was very faint, all the Territory Lords had sharp senses and naturally, the death of another Territory Lord did not go unnoticed by them.
It had to be known that not many Territory Lords had fallen in Profound Nether Territory, only five over several decades, three of which were killed by Yang Kai last time. If these three were excluded, the Profound Nether Army had only managed to kill two Territory Lords in several decades.
Innate Territory Lords were not easy to kill, especially when the Black Ink Clan had the overall advantage in terms of numbers.
The Human Race had paid a great price just for this.
But today, another Territory Lord was killed.
Six Arms, who was overseeing this place, stared into the distance as a deep furrow appeared on his brow, seemingly wanting to see through the void and determine what was happening.
Unfortunately, the distance was too great and he had no idea what was going on. All he could do was ask a subordinate Feudal Lord to send a message to inquire about it. There was a Black Ink Nest on the auxiliary front, and although it was only Low-Rank, it was enough for the Black Ink Clan to quickly gather information.
The death of a single Territory Lord was not a critical blow to their Army, but it was not a small matter either. Just as Wei Jun Yang had said, however, Six Arms was an extremely cautious Territory Lord, so he immediately wanted to inquire about the situation of the auxiliary front.
While waiting for the report, Six Arms looked towards the raging battlefield as his gaze swept over the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters one by one, like a poisonous snake staring at its prey.
If any of the Eighth-Order Masters showed any signs of weakness, he would make a move.
He had done this multiple times over the past few decades, and many Eighth-Order Masters had fallen victim to his ploys. So, all the Eighth-Order Masters in Profound Nether Territory were extremely wary of him.
It would not have been a big deal if he really fought with the Eighth-Order Masters head-on, the problem was that not only was Six Arms powerful, he was also cunning and insidious.
Therefore, every time he appeared on the battlefield, the Eighth-Order Masters would have to divert part of their attention to guard against him. As a result, he alone was able to restrain many Eighth-Order Masters.
This was an open scheme and Six Arms did not attempt to conceal himself as he kept a hawk eye from the edge of the battlefield. The Human Race Army was helpless about this though, as the Eighth-Order Masters were fewer in number than the Territory Lords so they could not spare one to especially guard against Six Arms.
One time, Ou Yang Lie had taken a risk to act as bait, feigning injury to make it appear he was no match for his opponent, enticing Six Arms into attacking him. In the end though, he was almost beaten to death by Six Arms, leaving Ou Yang Lie fuming in anger. He had sworn that he would tear Six Arms to pieces to soothe his rage.
As the battle continued, Six Arms patiently waited for an opportunity.
At a certain moment, his eyes lit up as he spotted an Eighth-Order Master being besieged by two Territory Lords. Just as he was about to make his move though, his head suddenly swivelled as he stared off into the void.
Spreading from that direction were the undulations of another Territory Lord’s fall.
[Another one?]
Six Arm’s expression now became solemn.
The death of a single Territory Lord was not that big of a deal. The situation on the battlefield was constantly changing, and if a Territory Lord showed the slightest neglect, the Eighth-Order Human Masters would seize the opportunity to kill. But now, two Territory Lords had fallen in quick succession, which was highly abnormal.
[Did a Human Race Master come to help!?]
In the direction he was staring was one of Profound Nether Territory’s auxiliary fronts. According to the intelligence Six Arms had gathered, four Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were stationed on that front, while the Black Ink Clan had five Territory Lords. The Territory Lords had always maintained an upper hand all these years, so the known Eighth-Order Humans couldn’t kill a Territory Lord.
[Why has the situation changed so suddenly today? Could Xiang Shan have come?]
A possibility crossed Six Arms’s mind. If there was any Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master he feared, it was Xiang Shan. Xiang Shan had been moving between the various Great Territory battlefields, his whereabouts always elusive. He would suddenly appear and attack a Territory Lord while the battle was raging before slipping away, only to reappear on a distant battlefield sometime later.
Quite a lot of Territory Lords had fallen at the hands of Xiang Shan over these past years, and many more were injured.
Be that as it may, even if a Territory Lord had fallen victim to Xiang Shan’s ambush, another couldn’t fall! The Territory Lords were not stupid and would promptly raise their guard or even flee upon noticing that the tides were not in their favour.
Six Arms suddenly felt uneasy.
He had always been a cautious individual and could not tolerate any surprise or situation which he had no control over, so having no information on what was going on at that auxiliary front was giving him a headache.
The deaths of two Territory Lords did not go unnoticed by the other Territory Lords either.
This left every Territory Lord confused and even a bit nervous. Even their suppression over the Eighth-Order Masters had weakened, allowing the Human Masters to catch their breath.
Many Territory Lords who were engaged in fierce battles shot a questioning glance at Six Arms, who slowly shook his head in response. He was completely oblivious to what was happening on the auxiliary front, the only thing he was certain of was that something highly unexpected had happened there for the things to have changed so suddenly.
The Feudal Lord, who was responsible for relaying intelligence, had yet to report back, causing Six Arms to grow even more restless. Originally, his entire focus was on finding a flaw in the Eighth-Order Masters’ defences, waiting for an opportunity to strike. But now, he was in no mood to do so.
When he sensed the demise of the third Territory Lord, Six Arms’ face turned ashen.
[Xiang Shan! It’s definitely Xiang Shan!]
Xiang Shan was the strongest of the Eighth-Order Human Masters, and he appeared and disappeared mysteriously. The Humans couldn’t kill three powerful Innate Territory Lords in a short time without his help. However, Xiang Shan alone could not achieve such a feat. The Humans must have deployed more reinforcements to the auxiliary front!
Before Six Arms could finish speculating though, he felt the passing of a third Territory Lord followed soon after by the fourth. The two deaths happened so close together they practically occurred at the same time.
[The auxiliary front has been lost!]
The interval between the Territory Lords’ deaths became shorter and shorter, indicating that the Human Race’s advantage was getting bigger.
Nonetheless, what Six Arms failed to understand was how all five Territory Lords could be so stupid. Even if the Humans had received powerful reinforcements, why did the Territory Lords not run when they could not defeat them? Innate Territory Lords were quite strong, and if they were determined to flee, no Eighth-Order Master could stop them.
Unless the Humans had somehow sealed the entire battlefield.
But how could the Human Race have such ability? If they wanted to seal off the entire battlefield, they would need many, many Eighth-Order Masters, a force that they simply did not possess.
Six Arms didn’t consider the possibility of a Ninth-Order Master appearing, because the only two Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were pinned down in Wind Mist Territory. They couldn’t leave.
Of the five Territory Lords on the auxiliary front, four were already dead.
Six Arms blew his top as he silently cursed those Territory Lords for being foolish and useless.
Gloom filled his eyes as he stared into the depths of the void with regret, but ultimately, he could only raise his hand and shout, “Retreat!”
Originally, they planned to make the best of the absence of the Profound Nether Army Commander, who was trapped in Acacia Territory, but unbeknownst to them, the Humans seemed to have already made arrangements. Not only had they failed to achieve their original objective, but they had also lost four Territory Lords, forcing Six Arms to withdraw their forces.
The auxiliary front had collapsed, and the Human Race’s reinforcements would surely be arriving soon. Before that happened, the Black Ink Clan had to withdraw before they were flanked and overwhelmed.
The Black Ink Clan Army slowly started retreating under Six Arm’s command. The Territory Lords who were fighting against the Eighth-Order Masters also gradually left the battlefield.
The Human Race had no intention of pursuing them as the situation on the main battlefield was different compared to the auxiliary front. The Territory Lords on the auxiliary front had been defeated and the enemy army routed, so it was only natural for the Humans to give chase. On the contrary, the Black Ink Clan here was retreating on their own initiative, in an orderly manner, so chasing them was risky.
The Eighth-Order Masters gradually gathered around. Everyone’s body was riddled with wounds, but fortunately, most of them weren’t seriously injured. They would recover after some rest. Some of the injuries were serious, but they were not fatal. Only, they all had grim looks on their faces.
This was the greatest advantage the Humans had over the Black Ink Clan.
When a Human was injured, they could take healing pills to recover from their injuries. Whereas if Black Ink Clansmen were injured, and the injuries were not light, they would need to enter a Black Ink Nest to recover.
That was why there were so many Territory Lords hibernating in the Black Ink Nests at the No-Return Pass. It could even be said that the only reason the Humans had been able to hold on for so long was because of this advantage. If the Black Ink Clan could use Spirit Pills to heal themselves, the Humans would have been facing at least 30% more Territory Lords on every battlefield. That kind of pressure was definitely not something the Human Race could bear.
Although the Territory Lords were greater in number than the Eighth-Order Masters, the Human Race was still able to barely hold their ground because the Eighth-Order Masters were willing to exchange injuries with injuries during their battles. As long as a Territory Lord was seriously injured, they would have to go to the No-Return Pass to rest for several years if not decades.
Ou Yang Lie was drenched in blood, and his face was pale.
He was a valiant man who fought with all his might in every battle, so his injuries were not light at all. Be that as it may, he would go all out again in the next battle, no matter how serious his injuries were.
The Territory Lords in Profound Nether Territory found Ou Yang Lie to be a pain to deal with. Although Ou Yang Lie had not killed any Innate Territory Lords over the last few decades, he had forced at least seven of them back to the No-Return Pass.
So now, every time the Black Ink Clan fought, two Territory Lords would join forces to pin him down, making Ou Yang Lie feel helpless and angry.
He felt like he was being targeted.
Gazing in the direction the Black Ink Clan Army was retreating, Ou Yang Lie asked, frowning, “What’s going on at the auxiliary front? How did four Territory Lords die? Has Big Head Xiang come?”
His questions were naturally directed at Wei Jun Yang.
In Ou Yang Lie’s opinion, this sudden unforeseen change on the auxiliary front was most likely related to Xiang Shan. It wasn’t as if this had never happened before. Xiang Shan had a few times snuck into a Great Territory Battlefield and then suddenly attacked, beheading a Territory Lord and turning the tide in the Human Race’s favour.
There were several peak Eighth-Order Masters like Xiang Shan attached to the Supreme Headquarters. They were not deployed to any particular Great Territory Battlefield, but they could suddenly appear anywhere, knocking the Black Ink Clan’s advances on their head.
It was partly thanks to these peak Eighth-Order Masters that the Humans had been able to maintain the frontlines in various Great Territories at critical moments over the years.
Without their assistance, the Humans would have at least lost two or three Great Territory Battlefields.
But soon, Ou Yang Lie shook his head, “That’s not right, even Big Head Xiang wouldn’t be able to do something like this.”
The deaths of four Territory Lords had not gone unnoticed by any of the Masters here. There were only a total of five Territory Lords on that auxiliary front, and by the looks of it, they were about to catch all of them in one net.
Ou Yang Lie had worked with Xiang Shan for many years and was well aware of what the latter was and wasn’t capable of. He didn’t believe that Xiang Shan had the strength to kill four Territory Lords in a row. Even if he was helped by other Eighth-Order Masters, that was simply an impossible feat.
As soon as he finished speaking, Ou Yang Lie sensed the death of the fifth Territory Lord.
Ou Yang Lie was stunned for a moment before grinning ear to ear, [Good, now that all the Territory Lord there have been wiped out, the Profound Nether Army detachment should be able to completely occupy that auxiliary front!]
“Has the Army Commander returned?” Fei Yong Ze suddenly glanced at Wei Jun Yang and asked.
Xiang Shan might not be able to accomplish this, but that didn’t mean that no one in this world could. In fact, among all the Eighth-Order Masters alive today, there was only one person who could make this impossible feat possible!
Profound Nether Army Commander, Yang Kai!
The last time he appeared in Profound Nether Territory, Yang Kai managed to kill three Territory Lords all by himself, so it would not be impossible for him to kill five with the help of four other Eighth-Order Masters.
The other Eighth-Order Masters were astounded after hearing this.
[The Army Commander is back? Wasn’t the Army Commander trapped in Acacia Territory? How did he return?]
The Territory Gates in Acacia Territory had been blockaded by millions of Black Ink Clan soldiers and at least a dozen Territory Lords had also been deployed there. No matter how strong Yang Kai was, he probably would not be able to break out of such an encirclement.
Immediately, someone anxiously asked, “Senior Brother Wei, has the Army Commander really returned?”
Wei Jun Yang slightly nodded in agreement, “Yes, the Army Commander is back. He also took charge of that auxiliary front.”
“No wonder!” Realization suddenly dawned on everyone. They had at first thought that it was Xiang Shan’s handiwork, but apparently, it was Yang Kai’s doing.
“How did he return? Did he kill his way out in Acacia Territory?” Ou Yang Lie looked confused. He had been quite worried when he heard that Yang Kai had been trapped in Acacia Territory; after all, the Black Ink Clan had deployed a massive force to keep him trapped. Yang Kai was responsible for rescuing the Human refugees trapped in Acacia Territory, so he was surely encumbered by a huge burden. Ou Yang Lie was afraid that Yang Kai wouldn’t be capable of taking the ruthless path and instead decided to live and die together with the trapped cultivators. That would be incredibly foolish. However, who would have thought that Yang Kai had already returned?
It was too strange.
Moreover, the war broke out in Profound Nether Territory because the news of Yang Kai being trapped in Acacia Territory had spread, allowing the Black Ink Clan to act fearlessly.
Did the Black Ink Clan not know that Yang Kai had escaped?
Ou Yang Lie was confused, and it wasn’t not just him; all the other Eighth-Order Masters had similar doubts.
Wei Jun Yang replied, shaking his head, “I don’t know how the Army Commander managed to escape, you can try asking him yourselves if you’re curious.”
Saying so, he stared into the depths of the void. The deadlock at the auxiliary front had been broken with the fall of the five Territory Lords stationed there. The Human Army should be able to eradicate the Black Ink Clan Army before long.
This was a huge win for Profound Nether Territory, enough to set everyone’s heart aflame.
The Human Race was currently lacking such victories. After continuously fighting for decades, everyone, from the higher-ups to the lowest-level soldiers, was mentally and physically exhausted, and with so little good news coming from the various battlefields, everyone had started to lose hope.
But now, perhaps there would be a new light!
At the same time, the Territory Lords were also looking in the direction of the auxiliary front. When they sensed the passing of the fifth Territory Lord, resentment took over the Territory Lords’ faces.
The Black Ink Clan had held the superior position on the Profound Nether Territory Battlefield for years and had not suffered any significant losses during that entire time, but ever since Yang Kai came, they had suffered two consecutive defeats.
The first time, he had killed three Territory Lords, and this time, five had perished. Furthermore, the Black Ink Clan still had no clear idea what happened at the auxiliary front.
“Sir Territory Lord!” A Feudal Lord hurriedly rushed over and saluted him, panic clearly visible on his face. It was the very same Feudal Lord who was sent by Six Arms to inquire about the auxiliary front’s situation. The Black Ink Clan could quickly gather information throughout the entire Profound Nether Territory with the help of their Black Ink Nest network.
The Feudal Lord hurried over to Six Arms, who asked him in a deep voice, “What happened at the auxiliary front? Is Xiang Shan here?”
A look of fear covered the Feudal Lord’s face as he shook his head and reported, “It’s not Xiang Shan, it’s that Human named Yang Kai! Some Feudal Lords witnessed him suddenly appear and kill the Territory Lords one by one!”
“What!?” The Territory Lords were greatly taken aback.
Six Arms also had a serious look on his face, “Yang Kai!? Are you certain?”
The Feudal Lord replied, “That is what the reports said.”
“Impossible!” One of the Territory Lords firmly shook his head, “Mo Na Ye in Acacia Territory sent word that Yang Kai was still trapped and there hasn’t been any movement on that side, so how could he appear here?”
The other Territory Lords also felt that it was impossible. Even if Yang Kai was somehow able to kill his way out of Acacia Territory, he would not have been able to return to Profound Nether Territory in such a short time. Everyone felt that the information from the auxiliary front was wrong.
“Check it again! Also, send a message to Mo Na Ye in Acacia Territory to ask about the situation over there,” even though Six Arms himself didn’t believe it, this was a critical matter, so he had no choice but to be prudent.
The Feudal Lord received the order and hurriedly flew towards the Black Ink Clan’s base camp. There was a Mid-Rank Black Ink Nest at the camp that could communicate with all the other Black Ink Nests in Profound Nether Territory.
“Sir, how about I go take a look personally?” One of the Territory Lords asked.
Six Arms pondered for a moment before refusing, shaking his head, “There’s no need, that front… has already fallen into enemy hands. It’s pointless to go there now. On the contrary, you might fall victim to the Human Race’s ambush. Go back and rest.”
He looked around and noticed that two Territory Lords’ auras were in disorder. Obviously, they were seriously injured. He could not help but lightly sigh in his heart. These two probably wouldn’t be able to participate in the war for quite some time as they would need to return to the No-Return Pass to heal their wounds.
He didn’t know if the No-Return Pass would be able to transfer more Territory Lords here as recently, the Territory Lords in Profound Nether Territory had suffered quite a few casualties. If there were any more losses among the top ranks, the Black Ink Clan might not be able to maintain pressure on the Human Race.
At the same time, a sense of unease gripped Six Arm’s heart, [Has Yang Kai really returned and made an appearance at the auxiliary front? But that shouldn’t be possible…]
Meanwhile, Yang Kai, leading four Eighth-Order Masters and tens of thousands of soldiers, was chasing after the Black Ink Clan. Chen Yuan and the others were on a rampage.
It had been a few decades, no, several centuries since they had been able to kill Black Ink Clansmen so easily and freely after the great crusade.
For the past few hundred years, every time they fought, their opponents would be the powerful Innate Territory Lords.
But now, with all five Territory Lords in the vicinity dead, there were no more Black Ink Clansmen who could match them. Once they started the bloodbath, none among the Black Ink Clan here could stop them. Even the Feudal Lords were being taken down in one attack.
A million-strong Black Ink Clan Army lost countless soldiers under this pursuit and the Human Race Army soon killed their way to the enemy’s camp, a Universe World where dozens of Low-Rank Black Ink Nests had been planted.
In just the time it took to burn a stick of incense, these dozens of Black Ink Nests were completely destroyed and ransacked. Although the quality of resources looted from these Black Ink Nests was not that great, they won out in quantity.
Half a day later, the battle came to an end. The Black Ink Clan were wiped from this Universe World and the Human Race Army that had chased them all the way here let out a thunderous cheer.
After several decades, the Black Ink Clan at this auxiliary front had finally been purged. This also meant the Human Race would no longer need to deploy significant forces here in the future and could instead send more troops to the main battlefield.
Now that the battle was over, everyone started cleaning up the battlefield and collecting the corpses of the fallen soldiers. Everything proceeded in an orderly fashion.
Yang Kai did not immediately leave and instead lay in ambush on the Universe World with Chen Yuan and the other Eighth-Order Masters. He was not sure if the Black Ink Clan would send someone to check up on the situation here, so he was just taking a chance.
If a Territory Lord came to investigate this place, it would be an unexpected bonus.
Unfortunately, there was still no movement even after waiting for several days. Yang Kai did not want to waste his time waiting here any longer so he immediately ordered the troops to return to camp.
Leaving the aftermath to Chen Yuan and the others, Yang Kai flew alone to the frontline camp.
The Eighth-Order Masters were waiting for him, and when they saw him, they all cupped their fists in greeting. Yang Kai returned the gesture to everyone one by one. When he saw that most of them were injured, especially Ou Yang Lie and several other Eighth-Order Masters, who were seriously wounded, he couldn’t help but ask, “Why aren’t you all healing?”
Ou Yang Lie explained, grinning, “Old Wei said you’re back, but we could not believe him. We wanted to see it for ourselves.”
It wasn’t that they didn’t trust Wei Jun Yang, but this matter was simply too bizarre.
The Black Ink Clan started a war in Profound Nether Territory because they wanted to take advantage of Yang Kai being trapped in Acacia Territory and inflict heavy casualties on the Profound Nether Army. Unexpectedly, the information was wrong, and the Profound Nether Army took advantage of the situation to deal a heavy blow to the Black Ink Clan.
Yang Kai stated with a smile, “You’ve all fought hard, please go and heal your injuries.”
Everyone quickly dispersed.
Yang Kai also wanted to leave, but was stopped by Wei Jun Yang, “Sir, hold on a moment.”
“What’s the matter?” Yang Kai curiously asked.
Wei Jun Yang stated, “Although we have won, our Profound Nether Army has also suffered some casualties. Sir, as the Commander of the Profound Nether Army, it is only right for you to coordinate the entire army and have a grasp of the Profound Nether Army’s information so that you can deal with the next battle.”
Yang Kai immediately felt a headache coming on, “There’s no need for that, you and Senior Brother Kong can take care of it.”
Wei Jun Yang shook his head in response, “Brother Kong and I are just assisting Sir; after all, the Profound Nether Army is still under Sir’s command.”
Yang Kai sincerely stated, “I trust my two Senior Brothers.”
“This isn’t about trust…”
Before Wei Jun Yang could say anything else, Yang Kai raised his hand and prevented him, “Senior Brother Wei, my injuries are serious and I urgently need to recuperate. I’ll have to trouble you and Senior Brother Kong to manage the Army.”
Wei Jun Yang sized up Yang Kai from head to toe as a look of ridicule appeared on his face.
Yang Kai earnestly added, “It’s an internal injury. My Soul is currently unstable, I feel like I’m about to pass out.”
After much persuasion, Yang Kai finally managed to get rid of Wei Jun Yang.
He knew that what Wei Jun Yang said was true, but the military affairs of an Army were too cumbersome, and he did not want to interfere in it either. The Profound Nether Army had been functioning fine without him, so there was no reason for him to be the one in charge of it now.
Strictly speaking, asking him to be the Army Commander was like asking a donkey to dance. Deep down, he would rather be like Ou Yang Lie, a fierce general who charges into battle.
Shouldering the hopes and lives of millions of soldiers was a heavy responsibility.
As he walked outside the palace, Yang Kai saw a large group of people waiting in the distance, all of them covered in blood and radiating intense murderous intent. By the looks of it, they had just withdrawn from the battlefield. After seeing who these people were, Yang Kai immediately understood why they were waiting here.
Seeing him arrive, the leader, Zhu Jian, quickly approached him and cupped his fists, “Sir.”
The other Divine Spirits also bowed, wearing complicated expressions.
They had been waiting in Profound Nether Territory these past few days, but when the war broke out, they had no choice but to join the battle as well and had contributed a lot to the effort. In any case, there were several dozen Divine Spirits here, so they were a force to be reckoned with in any place.
The deaths of five Territory Lords in succession on the auxiliary front had also been noticed by all of them. Originally, none of them had a clear idea about the situation, but after learning that it was connected to Yang Kai, all of them were relieved.
The scene of the unruly Tao Wu being killed in one blow a few months ago was still vivid in their minds.
“What’s the matter?” Yang Kai looked at them, not having expected these Divine Spirits to be waiting here.
Zhu Jian explained, “Sir, you told us to kill two Territory Lords within three months to make up for our mistakes. We fought numerous bloody battles, and fortunately, we did not fail in our mission. We are here to report our success.”
Saying so, Zhu Jian took out two corpses from his Space Ring.
These were the corpses of two Territory Lords, mangled beyond recognition. Clearly, they had experienced a brutal battle before their deaths.
In fact, these Divine Spirits had arrived in Profound Nether Territory long ago, but Yang Kai had already left by the time they came, so they had no choice but to wait here for his return.
Yang Kai did a quick check before slightly nodding, “Good work. Don’t make the same mistake again.”
Yang Kai brought these Divine Spirits out from the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, but they had not been very obedient because he was not around. After making a show of force by killing Tao Wu, and with their Bloodline Oath as a constraint, Yang Kai was sure that these Divine Spirits would not dare act rashly in the future.
In any case, these Divine Spirits were indispensable to the Human Race. Yang Kai could kill one to set up his prestige, but he didn’t want their relationship to become too strained so he refrained from further killing.
Hearing this, Zhu Jian and the others breathed a sigh of relief.
“Does Sir have any other instructions?” Zhu Jian cautiously asked.
“Go back to the Supreme Headquarters and listen to their deployment orders,” Yang Kai simply waved them away.
Since he was overseeing Profound Nether Territory, the Black Ink Clan probably wouldn’t dare act up here. On the other hand, the situation was quite tense in other Great Territories, so these Divine Spirits would be of great use there.
The Divine Spirits felt like they had been granted amnesty as they quickly bid farewell and left.
Divine Spirits had been arrogant since ancient times, not taking any other being seriously. This was especially so with the Divine Spirits from the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary as they rarely had the opportunity to interact with the outside world. This was why they had been disregarding the Supreme Headquarters’ orders before Yang Kai’s return.
They could ignore the other Human Masters, but they couldn’t ignore Yang Kai as he had proven he was willing to kill in a heartbeat. Tao Wu was a good example for this.
Moreover, Yang Kai was not a Human anymore, but a member of the Dragon Clan. All Divine Spirits revered the Dragons and Phoenixes as their leaders. Their pitiful pride was nothing in front of a Pureblood Dragon.
Yu Ru Meng’s Squad also returned soon after. Although the 10 of them were dishevelled, none of them were seriously injured.
Few Human Squads had survived so many battles without losing a single member. Even when Yang Kai was leading Dawn, he had lost Ning Qi Zhi and Qi Tai Chu in battle.
One of the reasons why Yu Ru Meng’s Squad was able to achieve this feat was because their individual strength was extraordinary. Not only were all of them in the Seventh Order, there were also Dragon Clan and Phoenix Clan members among them. Even if they were to encounter a Territory Lord, they would still be able to put up a fight.
Everyone in the Squad was a Seventh-Order Master or equivalent. In all the battlefields, this was the only Squad to have such a luxurious lineup. Generally, there would only be one or two Seventh-Order Masters in a Squad, but the higher-ups of the Profound Nether Army knew that they were Yang Kai’s Wives or close associates, so they made an exception and allowed them to do as they pleased. Otherwise, how could a single Squad have such a grand lineup?
Secondly, their Warship was transformed from Bi Xi’s Soul Clone, so its defence was much stronger than ordinary. It could even be said that if one wanted to kill them, they would have to first destroy Bi Xi’s Clone.
But how could Bi Xi’s Soul Clone be so easy to kill?
The Black Ink Clan would have to send two Territory Lords to deal with such a Squad, which would clearly be a waste of manpower, so up until now, Yu Ru Meng’s Squad had been able to rampage about freely.
Everyone had suffered varying degrees of injuries and all of them required rest and recovery, especially Yang Kai. The pain of his Soul being torn apart was simply unbearable.
After speaking to Yu Ru Meng briefly, Yang Kai immediately went into retreat.
Both the Humans and Black Ink Clan had suffered great losses in Profound Nether Territory recently, but the Black Ink Clan’s casualties were far more substantial than the Human’s. Not only did they lose five Territory Lords, but they even lost the battle for one of the auxiliary fronts they had been contesting for several decades. This sent Six Arms, who had been overseeing this place, flying into a rage as a cold and grim look permanently covered his face.
From the information he had received, the loss of the Territory Lords and the auxiliary base was likely related to the Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army’s unexpected return.
Only, Six Arms was unable to determine the authenticity of this news. There were indeed many Feudal Lords who claimed that they had seen Yang Kai, but how was that possible?
The Black Ink Clansmen in Acacia Territory had sent word that Yang Kai was now just a turtle hiding in its shell.
Deep down, Six Arms was actually willing to believe that Yang Kai had returned. A single Human Master like Yang Kai was enough to give the Black Ink Clan a serious headache, but if there was another who had abilities on par with his, able to slay multiple Territory Lords at once, how was the Black Ink Clan supposed to survive?
But if that was the case, what was Mo Na Ye doing? Acacia Territory had been thoroughly sealed off, so how could Yang Kai have escaped?
Unable to understand, Six Arms sent out scouts to the Human Race’s side to investigate, while at the same time, he waited for news from Acacia Territory.
Half a month later, Acacia Territory sent a message.
Six Arms checked it at once.
The five Territory Gates in Acacia Territory had been completely cordoned off and not a single Human had breached their defences. All the Hunters who tried to enter Acacia Territory to gather information had been either captured or killed by the Black Ink Clan Army.
Be that as it may, according to the Black Ink Clan’s investigation, the Universe Cave Heaven in Acacia Territory where the Human Race cultivators were originally hiding was now empty…
Reading this report, Six Arms’ face sank as he cursed, [That idiot Mo Na Ye has caused us a lot of harm.]
He was almost certain that Yang Kai had already left Acacia Territory, and the previous loss in Profound Nether Territory was definitely because of him.
The Feudal Lords who managed to escape that slaughter were indeed not mistaken!
Cursing inwardly, Six Arms continued reading the report.
In the message, Mo Na Ye also swore that Yang Kai was still trapped in Acacia Territory, but he had no idea where he was hiding. He planned on having the Black Ink Clan Army sweep the entire Great Territory and swore that he would find Yang Kai sooner or later.
[Find him my ass!]
Six Arms couldn’t be bothered to read any further. Yang Kai was already back in Profound Nether Territory, so who the Hell was Mo Na Ye going to look for?
If it weren’t for the unforeseen incident in Profound Nether Territory, Six Arms would have firmly believed Mo Na Ye’s report; after all, how could such a large group of Humans escape when all the Territory Gates were sealed?
But all hopes and speculations were false in the face of facts.
Yang Kai had long since disappeared without a trace. It was laughable that that idiot Mo Na Ye was still wasting his time in Acacia Territory.
However, what shocked Six Arms even more was that the Black Ink Clan in Acacia Territory had also suffered incredible losses. To his shock and dismay, Yang Kai had managed to kill seven Territory Lords with the help of a mere three Squads!
Six Arms was horrified.
Three at the No-Return Pass, a total of eight in Profound Nether Territory, and seven in Acacia Territory…
In total, the number of Territory Lords who had died due to Yang Kai directly or indirectly had reached 18!
This was all the information he could gather, but there were still some things he had yet to grasp.
[What is this Human?] Holding the jade slip from Acacia Territory in his hand, Six Arms felt that Yang Kai was definitely the Black Ink Clan’s greatest, and most dangerous enemy!
What was laughable was that although Yang Kai had killed so many Territory Lords, the Black Ink Clan did not actually have much information on him. All the Black Ink Clan knew that he used some kind of strange method to attack Souls, and finished off his opponent in one blow after his initial sneak attack. He could not use this Soul attack method too frequently in a short period, but apart from this, the Black Ink Clan knew nothing else.
[I guess… I’ve to collect some information about this person.]
Six Arms began making plans.
After the most recent battle, Profound Nether Territory once again welcomed a rare period of peace. The Human Race and Black Ink Clan Armies stood on opposite sides of the void, glaring at each other. Although there were some small skirmishes, both the Human Race and Black Ink Clan were restraining themselves, as if they were afraid that another war would embroil the entire territory.
For the Humans, this period of peace was extremely precious. Many of the soldiers had suffered injuries in the last battle and needed to recuperate, but how could the Black Ink Clan fare any better?
Not only did the Black Ink Clan need to recuperate, they also needed to call in more troops. Below the Territory Lord level, their individual strength was inferior to the Human Race’s so they could only rely on numbers to win.
Two years passed by in a flash.
From a certain palace, Yang Kai finally emerged from his retreat.
This time, it took him quite a long time to heal, mainly because he had used the Soul Rending Thorns too frequently. While he had still not recovered from the injuries his Soul had sustained in Acacia Territory, he had used more Soul Rending Thorns as soon as he returned to Profound Nether Territory. The damage had simply become too much at that point.
Fortunately, Yang Kai’s Soul had stabilized after recuperating for such a long period thanks to the Soul Warming Lotus. Furthermore, he could feel that his Soul cultivation had progressed a little further.
In the past, he discovered that every time his Soul recovered after using a Soul Rending Thorn, his Spiritual Energy would become slightly more refined. This was also in line with the principle of ‘there is no construction without destruction.’
Perhaps one day, he would be able use Soul Rending Thorns four, or even five times in a row without much stress. At that time, it would be even easier for him to kill his opponents.
Walking out of the palace, Yang Kai immediately sent a message to Wei Jun Yang and the others.
A short while later, all the Eighth-Order Masters were gathered in the Main Conference Hall.
Ou Yang Lie looked at Yang Kai in excitement and asked, “Are we going to fight?”
He was quite a belligerent fellow. Even though he had not yet recovered from his injuries, he had been crying for war all the time. Unfortunately for him, Yang Kai was in a retreat, so the Profound Nether Army could not make a rash move. Now that Yang Kai had finally come out of his seclusion, how could Ou Yang Lie restrain himself?
Yang Kai nodded slightly, “We can’t just keep resting forever. It’s been two years since the last major battle, and although everyone has yet to fully recover, I don’t think the Black Ink Clan is in any better shape. No one will have the upper hand right now.”
Ou Yang Lie immediately became excited, “This Old Master requests to serve as the vanguard!”
Wei Jun Yang, on the other hand, was a little hesitant, “Sir, Profound Nether Territory has been in a constant state of war for decades, and it’s rare for us to have peace for even a few days. If we start another war now, I’m afraid the soldiers won’t be able to hold on.”
If a Black Ink Clansmen got seriously injured, they could get back on their feet after slumbering in a Black Ink Nest for a while. On the other hand, if Humans got injured, although they were not bogged down by so many nuisances, it was not that easy to heal either.
For example, Ou Yang Lie had still not recovered from his injuries even after two years of rest.
Ou Yang Lie shot a glance at him, “What’s there to be afraid of? Yang Boy is right, we might not be in top shape, but the Black Ink Clan isn’t faring any better. As such, no one will have the advantage. What’s more, things are different now. We have more Evil Purging Divine Spears than before.”
The Artifact Refiners in the Profound Nether Army had been constantly refining Evil Purging Divine Spears over these past two years, and although they had not refined many of them, it was enough for a single large-scale battle. With the Evil Purging Divine Spears, the Human Masters would surely have it easier.
Wei Jun Yang shook his head, stating, “It’s not that I’m afraid, it’s just…” He looked at Yang Kai, “Sir, what is your idea?”
He wasn’t convinced that in their current position the Humans should be the ones to initiate a war, but he still decided to listen to Yang Kai’s plan.
Yang Kai explained, “The Black Ink Clan has a stronger and bigger Army, while our Human Race Army is weaker and fewer in number. In all these years, it has always been the Black Ink Clan on the offence, while we Humans are forced to passively hold our ground, which is understandable. I want to launch an attack, but not because I want to end the battle in Profound Nether Territory in one fell swoop. We Humans don’t currently have that kind of strength.”
Kong Cheng De pondered for a moment before asking, “Sir, you mean…”
Yang Kai added, “I want the Profound Nether Army’s main force to launch a campaign to divert the attention of the Black Ink Clan Army.” He raised his hand and pointed towards a certain spot on the Void Chart, “I will head here and assist the Eighth-Order Division Commanders in taking down the Territory Lords here, allowing us to occupy this front.”
Ou Yang Lie happily smiled, “Just like last time?”
Yang Kai nodded his agreement.
Yang Kai’s last ambush had brought about stellar results. Not only did he kill five Territory Lords, but the Black Ink Clan Army at one of the auxiliary fronts was utterly routed and had suffered massive casualties.
The auxiliary fronts in Profound Nether Territory were not just limited to one area. There were several of them, and they were now Yang Kai’s targets.
Kong Cheng De and Wei Jun Yang glanced at each other before the former smiled wryly and explained, “Sir, you’ve been in a retreat for the past two years, so I’m afraid you don’t know about the situation in Profound Nether Territory. It’s my fault for forgetting to report it to you.”
“What’s wrong?” Yang Kai looked at him in confusion.
Kong Cheng De answered, “The Black Ink Clan suffered such immense losses the last time you struck that they have completely given up on all the auxiliary fronts. All the Black Ink Clan Armies have retreated and they’ve even moved their Black Ink Nests away.”
Yang Kai was at a total loss.
He had been planning on attacking the other auxiliary fronts one after another, but it never occurred to him that the Black Ink Clan would withdraw completely after just a single defeat.
[What the Hell?]
“Six Arms is quite decisive!” Yang Kai lightly nodded his acknowledgement.
This really came as a surprise to him. If Yang Kai really targeted the other auxiliary fronts, the Black Ink Clan would not be able to defend themselves and would be forced to retreat sooner or later, but it seemed Six Arms understood this and simply decided to cut their losses and retreat preemptively. This was a frustrating development for Yang Kai.
Nonetheless, this was also quite beneficial for the Human Race. Since the Black Ink Clan was no longer attacking the auxiliary fronts, the Profound Nether Army could concentrate all of its forces to guard the main battlefield and did not have to divert manpower elsewhere.
Kong Cheng De pondered for a moment before asking, “Sir, were you planning to kill more Territory Lords?”
Yang Kai nodded his agreement, “The Territory Lords are much higher in number than our Eighth-Order Masters. Although we’ve killed a number of them here, that hasn’t really closed the gap in high-level combat strength between our two races. In fact, this gap may never be closed, but where there is a will, there is a way. We can only reduce the pressure on our Human Race by killing more Territory Lords. I want all those Territory Lords to tremble in fear in the future!”
The Eighth-Order Masters looked at each other, sighing at the hot-bloodedness of this young man. Although these old Eighth-Order Masters weren’t afraid of dying in battle against the Black Ink Clan, they were still lacking in vigour compared to Yang Kai.
Perhaps this was also the reason why the Supreme Headquarters had appointed Yang Kai as the Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army. Yang Kai’s fearsome strength was a critical factor, but the other reason was that the Supreme Headquarters wanted to bring some changes to the war situation. The other Army Commanders were all old and serious people, but that also meant that they acted more conservatively and cautiously.
Kong Cheng De stated, “Sir, if that’s what you want, there is no need to hesitate then. The Army will press forward and draw the Black Ink Clan into a battle. The Eighth-Order Division Commanders will be tasked with keeping the Territory Lords occupied, so you just need to find an opportunity to kill them.”
Someone worriedly stated, “The Profound Nether Army prioritized defence mainly because there was a gap in strength, so we’ve been relying on various tricks and traps to defend against the enemy. If we were to rashly launch an attack without any support, we might land ourselves in trouble.”
The Human Race had also been primarily focused on defence on the Black Ink Battlefield because the Human Race had the Great Passes. The same was true for the Profound Nether Army. Although there weren’t any impregnable Passes they could use here, being able to decide the battlefield allowed them to set up numerous defensive emplacements that bolstered their combat strength.
These arrangements could greatly make up for the difference in combat strength between the Humans and Black Ink Clan.
Kong Cheng De interjected, “That’s not a big problem! While launching an offensive does have its fair share of drawbacks, we can compensate for them with the Evil Purging Divine Spears. If we disregard consumption, the Black Ink Clan may not be able to gain any advantage for a short time. Of course, the more drawn out the battle, the harder it will become for our side.”
Yang Kai asked, “Senior Brother Kong, by your estimation, how long can the Profound Nether Army persist if we utilize every Evil Purging Divine Spear we have?”
Kong Cheng De pondered for a moment before replying, “Half a day!”
After two years of continuous refining, they would only be able to hold strong for half a day at most, which was understandable as it was quite difficult to refine the Evil Purging Divine Spears en masse, but using them was extremely simple. It all depended on the right timing.
Yang Kai understood and ordered, “In that case, our troops must withdraw within half a day after the start of the battle, or else we will suffer excessive casualties.”
Yang Kai then focused his attention on the Void Chart, remaining silent.
The Eighth-Order Masters patiently waited for Yang Kai to finish contemplating, whereas Ou Yang Lie kept signalling Yang Kai with his eyes. His face filled with encouragement, as if he wanted this little brat to let him do as he pleased.
After a long time, Yang Kai suddenly looked up and shouted, “Relay my orders, unless a war breaks out at the frontline, all forces are to return to the main camp. We will attack in three days with each Division acting as an independent unit, forcing the Black Ink Clan’s Army to come out and fight. We will engage the Black Ink Clan Army for 12 hours and then retreat. Every Eighth-Order Division Commander will find an opportunity to join the battle and draw out the Territory Lords. You don’t need to kill them, your task is simply to fully occupy their attention!”
“Yes, Sir!” The Eighth-Order Masters received their orders. Some were excited, some were worried, and some wore a stoic look.
After the military order was given, the Profound Nether Army’s main force could be said to have completely mobilized. Something like this had never happened in the last few decades. It was quite a risky move, and if the Black Ink Clan came to learn of it in advance, it would have disastrous consequences.
All the Black Ink Clan needed to do was divide their forces and cut off the Profound Nether Army’s retreat to inflict heavy damage.
It wasn’t that Yang Kai didn’t understand this point, but how could he kill Territory Lords without taking some risks? He needed to defeat the Black Ink Clan in Profound Nether Territory in the shortest time possible to imbue a sense of terror of him into them.
These weren’t just empty words, this was his real objective.
Yang Kai then turned to Kong Cheng De and stated, “Senior Brother Kong, I’ll leave the rear to you to coordinate the overall situation.”
Kong Cheng De nodded in response, “Rest assured, Sir, this Kong will do his best.”
“Prepare yourselves!” Yang Kai waved everyone away.
The Eighth-Order Masters quickly dispersed.
Ou Yang Lie, on the other hand, followed Yang Kai out of the hall. Yang Kai turned around and asked, “Senior Ou Yang, do you need something?”
Ou Yang Lie glanced around before pulling Yang Kai to a remote corner by his arm.
Yang Kai didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. If someone who didn’t know what was going on saw them acting sneaky, who knows what they would think?
“Sir Ou Yang, if you have something to say, just say it.” Yang Kai was planning to return to his temporary palace to warn Yu Ru Meng and the others on some matters, so he didn’t have the time to chat with him.
Ou Yang Lie beamed with a broad smile, “Junior Brother, we’ve known each other for many years, how did your Senior Brother treat you?”
Whenever he needed something, he would address Yang Kai as Junior Brother, if not, he would call him Yang Boy.
Yang Kai thought for a moment before replying, “I saved Senior Brother’s life!”
Ou Yang Lie’s expression froze. Yang Kai had not said a single lie. Back then, Ou Yang Lie was separated from the Human Race Army and got stranded beyond the No-Return Pass with a group of remnant soldiers. It was Yang Kai who had led him and the other Humans to the Barren Territory from the No-Return Pass.
In truth, Yang Kai had saved his life.
Ou Yang Lie agreed, nodding, “That’s right, in other words, we have a life-and-death-friendship.”
[How did he come to that conclusion?]
Yang Kai couldn’t be bothered to refute him.
Ou Yang Lie happily smiled, “Since that’s the case, Junior Brother must take good care of your Senior Brother.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help but shoot a glance at him, “I didn’t expect Senior Brother to be so afraid of death!”
Ou Yang Lie was stunned for a moment before cursing, “What nonsense! This Old Master has fought on the battlefield for so many centuries, but when have I ever feared death?”
“Then what does Senior Brother mean?”
Ou Yang Lie cursed, “Chen Yuan that bastard, ever since he had returned from the auxiliary front, he’s been bragging that he beheaded an Innate Territory Lord with a single stroke of his sword! Others may not have any idea about that bastard’s strength, but I’m well aware. In a one-on-one fight, this Old Master can beat him with just one hand to the point that not even his Disciples would recognize him. He was only able to kill a Territory Lord thanks to you, Junior Brother.”
At this point, Ou Yang Lie put on a meaningful grin and continued, “Junior Brother, you can’t let your fertile water into another’s land. Speaking of which, we’re also one family, and we both have served in the Great Evolution Army. When you were injured, Gong Lian and I even took care of you. You want to kill Territory Lords, right? Then, this Senior Brother will find a Territory Lord and try my best to keep him occupied. Then, you can sneak over and give him a blow to the head. Do… you understand?”
Yang Kai didn’t know whether to laugh or cry and quickly nodded, “I understand, I understand.”
Ou Yang Lie was overjoyed, “So, we have a deal?”
Yang Kai earnestly stated, “Senior Brother, I can only promise to do my best. Senior Brother also knows that the situation on the battlefield is constantly changing, and I can’t attack too many times either…”
Without waiting for him to finish, Ou Yang Lie cut him off, “I understand, your Senior Brother understands. Then, I’ll leave everything to you!”
After smacking Yang Kai’s shoulder a few times, he turned around and flew away.
Yang Kai stared at his back, thinking, [What do you understand?]
A heavy and murderous aura pervaded the Universe Fragment where the front line’s main camp was located. Although no direct order had been issued yet, the soldiers could feel the oppressive pressure of the calm before a storm.
Having fought the Black Ink Clan for years, most of the soldiers had developed a keen perception of an impending war, and there were clear signs everywhere that a battle was about to break out.
The Human Race Army on the Universe Fragment at the main front all began preparing for the war.
Inside a certain palace, Yang Kai watched as Yu Ru Meng’s Squad took off, heading towards the gathering point of their Division.
He did not give them too much advice as there was nothing for him to worry about. All of the women in this Squad were Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and they had a customized Warship built around Bi Xi’s Soul Clone. In terms of safety, they were far better off than other soldiers.
Since a foreign enemy had invaded the 3,000 Worlds, every Human capable of contributing their strength had to do so. So, even if Yu Ru Meng and the others were his family, they couldn’t shrink from this.
Especially now when Yang Kai was the Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army, he could not show any kind of favouritism. Quite the contrary, he had to set an example.
Watching Yu Ru Meng and the others gradually disappear into the distance, Yang Kai’s figure also flickered as he disappeared from the spot. The entire main Army was just a distraction, while his actions were the key to this operation. Yang Kai hoped that he could return with a full harvest this time.
The Human Race troops began to gather in the void, with each Division acting as a unit and Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters patrolling back and forth. The Army looked quite imposing.
Soon, the void was filled with densely packed Warships, forming a massive fleet.
Ou Yang Lie was standing on the deck of a huge Purifying Black Ink Battleship, staring into the void. His expression was cold and his fighting spirit was soaring. After receiving the go from the central command, Ou Yang Lie pointed ahead and shouted, “Set off!”
There was a specially made battle drum on the Purifying Black Ink Battleship. As Ou Yang Lie’s only Disciple, Gong Lian was holding the drum sticks and personally struck it.
Even in the vast void, when Gong Lian started beating the drum, sonorous inspiring beats resounded out one after another, lifting the Army’s morale.
The vanguard set off!
Ou Yang Lie loved fighting, so almost every time the Profound Nether Army took action, he would be at the head of the charge.
Right behind the vanguard forces were the various Divisions, which began to move out one after another, fanning out to the left and right while Kong Chen De remained behind at the command centre, coordinating the entire battle.
The original boisterous Universe Fragment was now completely empty, leaving only a few non-combatants or cultivators who were still too injured to participate seeing the Army off.
The Black Ink Clan quickly noticed the Human Race Army’s movements.
Nothing could be done about this though as the size of the Profound Nether Army’s main force this time was 400,000 strong, and if the Small Stone Race members were included, the size of the Army would easily reach the million mark. If the Black Ink Clan did not notice the movement of such a massive Army, they would simply be blind.
The Black Ink Clan scouts who were monitoring the situation were all taken aback and quickly reported back to the main camp.
Unlike the Human Race frontline camp that was located on a Universe Fragment, the Black Ink Clan main camp consisted of several Universe Worlds, one of which was originally located here, while the others had been moved over by the Black Ink Clan’s Masters.
Black Ink Nests were indispensable for the Black Ink Clan, and so were these Universe Worlds. All these Universe Worlds had many Black Ink Nests planted on them, some of them even Mid-Rank, which towered over the others.
Currently, Black Ink Clansmen were healing in and around these Black Ink Nests.
Reports from the frontline scouts came one after another, and soon were in Six Arms’ hands. When he learned that the Human Race’s main Army was advancing, Six Arms was shocked.
This had never happened before. Ever since he had taken command of the Black Ink Clan’s war in Profound Nether Territory, the Human Race had been on the defence. Of course, there were some occasional attacks, but nothing even close to this level.
[What is the Human Race planning?]
Six Arms was unable to understand, which made him a little depressed.
In fact, Six Arms had been feeling quite frustrated because of Yang Kai for the past two years.
Even if he shrugged off the fact that eight Territory Lords had died in Profound Nether Territory because of him, the thing that was giving Six Arms the biggest headache was the fact that the Black Ink Clan’s actions were being completely restrained because of Yang Kai’s presence.
In the past, the Black Ink Clan held the initiative, able to fight and retreat whenever and wherever they pleased while the Human Race was helpless against them.
The Territory Lords also outnumbered the Eighth-Order Masters, which was a source of great confidence for the Black Ink Clan.
But now?
So what if there were more Territory Lords than Eighth-Order Humans? Six Arms didn’t dare act rashly, afraid that Yang Kai would suddenly appear from somewhere and butcher them. Even he did not have the confidence to resist Yang Kai’s insidious means. If he accidentally fell into Yang Kai’s hands, he would be severely injured in the best-case scenario, and at worst, he would die.
Because of this, Six Arms cursed Mo Na Ye an uncountable number of times these past two years. Had Mo Na Ye not sent out false information, leading him to think that Yang Kai was still trapped in Acacia Territory, how could he have lost five Territory Lords two years ago?
On the other hand, Mo Na Ye’s reply was only that Yang Kai was definitely in Acacia Territory and could not have escaped.
But what was the end result?
Millions of Black Ink Clansmen and nine Territory Lords searched through the entire Acacia Territory, but didn’t find any trace of Yang Kai. They were unable to figure out when or even how he had left Acacia Territory.
If it weren’t for the Royal Lord’s orders, Mo Na Ye would still be wasting his time combing through Acacia Territory.
Thinking of this, Six Arms couldn’t wait to skin Mo Na Ye alive. Information played a decisive factor on the battlefield, and one mistake could lead to the destruction of a million soldiers and the death of several Territory Lords.
Just as he was thinking this, Mo Na Ye rushed into the hall, shouting, “Sir Six Arms, the Human Race Army is advancing.”
Obviously, he had also obtained some information.
Six Arms glanced at him coldly and indifferently stated, “I know.”
The loss in Acacia Territory had pushed Mo Na Ye’s hatred for Yang Kai to a whole new level. After confirming that Yang Kai had indeed left Acacia Territory, he immediately sent a message to the Royal Lord, requesting permission to transfer to Profound Nether Territory, vowing to kill Yang Kai to redeem himself.
The Territory Lords in Profound Nether Territory had suffered a massive loss and needed to be replenished anyways, so the Royal Lord naturally agreed.
As such, Mo Na Ye led a few other Territory Lords and some Black Ink Clan troops to Profound Nether Territory a year ago as reinforcements.
For the past year, Mo Na Ye had repeatedly requested to launch a war, but he had always been suppressed by Six Arms, making Mo Na Ye dissatisfied with him.
However, Six Arms was the one in charge of Profound Nether Territory, so even if Mo Na Ye was dissatisfied, he could do nothing about it.
Today, after learning that the Human Race Army had actually taken the initiative to attack, Mo Na Ye was extremely excited and felt that he finally had a chance to take revenge.
Yang Kai was indeed strong, Mo Na Ye acknowledged that much. Seven Territory Lords in Acacia Territory had died because of Yang Kai’s actions, and because of this, Mo Na Ye regarded Yang Kai as the greatest enemy of the Black Ink Clan. As long as he could kill Yang Kai though, they would not need to fear any other Eighth-Order Masters in the future.
Moreover, Mo Na Ye felt that he had found a way to deal with Yang Kai.
“Since the Human Race Army is attacking, Yang Kai will definitely appear. This is a good opportunity to kill him,” Mo Na Ye excitedly stated.
Six Arms coldly snorted, “That Human is quite strong, his movements elusive, and his methods bizarre. Do you think you can kill him?”
Mo Na Ye shook his head in response, “I alone won’t be able to, I’ll need help.”
Six Arms was surprised at this admission. He was dissatisfied with Mo Na Ye because Territory Lords under his command had suffered heavy casualties as a result of the misinformation, but judging by Mo Na Ye’s words, it seemed he was willing to cooperate to deal with Yang Kai, which was good news.
On another note, Mo Na Ye was even more incensed than Six Arms. If he did not want to wash away his shame, he would have never have come to Profound Nether Territory where he would be forced to listen to Six Arms’ orders. He was more than capable of being in charge over one of the other Great Territory Battlefields.
After a moment of silence, Six Arms lowered his tone and asked, “Do you have any ideas?”
Mo Na Ye replied, “There is a way, but it will depend on whether or not Sir Six Arms is willing to sacrifice a pound of flesh.”
“Let’s hear it,” Six Arms asked. The biggest problem in Profound Nether Territory was Yang Kai. If they could really deal with him, it would solve essentially all of their problems.
Mo Na Ye explained, “I’m sure Sir Six Arms also knows that Yang Kai has some kind of strange method to target his opponent’s Soul. This method is so powerful that even Innate Territory Lords like us find it difficult to guard against. Since the Human Race Army is attacking us, Yang Kai will definitely be hiding and waiting for an opportunity to strike. As such, our Territory Lords will all be on edge, and if they are worried about something else during their fights, it will be difficult for them to display their full strength.”
“Indeed!” Six Arms nodded his agreement. When he received the news of the Human Army’s advance just now, what he was most worried about was Yang Kai. He didn’t even bother sending anyone to investigate as he knew that they definitely wouldn’t be able to find Yang Kai’s whereabouts. Just as Mo Na Ye had said, this Human would definitely be hiding in the shadows and waiting for an opportunity to kill!
With someone like him on the Human Race’s side, every Territory Lord would be worried. It could be said that Yang Kai alone was enough to suppress the combat strength all the Black Ink Clan’s top Masters in Profound Nether Territory.
“However, his methods aren’t without cost. According to what I’ve gathered, he can only use that strange Soul attack three times in quick succession. Furthermore, it’s quite possible that doing so comes at a heavy cost, such as injuries to his own Soul. The Human Race has a saying; the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Since he wants to secretly attack our Territory Lords, all we need to do is give him a chance to do so, and he will definitely take advantage of it! However, once he makes a move, he won’t be able to hide himself anymore. At that time, I will lead several Territory Lords to attack him. At that point, what does it matter how strong he is?”
Six Arms’ eyes lit up when he heard this and glanced over at Mo Na Ye, “If Yang Kai is the mantis, then are you the oriole?”
Mo Na Ye nodded, “Only then will we have a chance to kill him.”
“Then who will be the cicada?”
“That will have to depend on Sir Six Arms’ arrangements.”
Six Arms pondered for a moment. He had no choice but to admit that Mo Na Ye was quite smart. This was indeed an excellent way to deal with Yang Kai, but if he really went with this plan, he should be mentally prepared to sacrifice a Territory Lord, because once Yang Kai struck, the Territory Lord who was targeted would most likely die.
No wonder Mo Na Ye had said he would need to be willing to give up a pound of flesh to succeed.
However, what was there to hesitate about? As long as they could kill Yang Kai, it did not matter if a Territory Lord was lost; after all, almost 20 Territory Lords had died because of Yang Kai already.
If he could sacrifice a Territory Lord in exchange for eliminating Yang Kai, Six Arms would more than welcome it.
Seemingly seeing through his thoughts, Mo Na Ye continued in a grave tone, “Sir Six Arms, one cicada won’t be enough to act as bait.”
Six Arms asked, “How many do you want?”
Mo Na Ye replied, “Since Yang Kai can attack three times, at least three. It would be best if there were five.”
Six Arms couldn’t help but furrow his brow, hesitantly asking, “You want that many?”
Mo Na Ye explained, slowly shaking his head, “Sir, from what I can tell, Yang Kai is an extremely cautious person, despite his actions seeming so bold and bombastic. If he doesn’t have absolute confidence in succeeding, he won’t act rashly. What’s more, he is now the Army Commander of the Profound Nether Army, so he will be more cautious than ever. Even a fool will get suspicious if there is just one vulnerable target. Yang Kai won’t take such obvious bait. We need to dispel his suspicions. Of course, we can’t use too many as too much vulnerability will also be suspicious.”
Six Arms pondered for a moment. Although he had some resentment towards Mo Na Ye, he had to admit that what the latter said made sense.
Seeing him hesitate, Mo Na Ye added, “Sir, this Yang Kai is already so strong when he is just an Eighth-Order Master. Has Sir thought about what would happen if he were to break through to the Ninth Order someday?”
Six Arms had not considered this before, but after giving it a thought, he couldn’t help but shiver.
[That’s right, Yang Kai is already so powerful in the Eighth Order, what would happen if he broke through to the Ninth Order? At that time, even Royal Lords would not be his opponent!]
Without any more hesitation, Six Arms declared, “Go get ready. I have arrangements to make on my side.”
Although he didn’t obtain the answer he wanted, Mo Na Ye knew that Six Arms was tempted, and since he was tempted, he would definitely act according to his plan. Without further ado, Mo Na Ye nodded and left.
A short while later, the Black Ink Clan Army also began to mobilize under a series of Six Arms’ orders, preparing to deal with the assault of the Human Race. The Black Ink Clansmen who were healing in the Black Ink Nests also emerged one after another.
The battle was about to begin.
The scouts of both sides constantly shuttled back and forth, passing information they had obtained from the frontline back to their respective command centres. Half a day later, the two Armies drew closer to each other; they looked like two swarms of locusts.
Seventh-Order cultivators were shuttling around the fleets, passing orders for the Squads to check their armaments and prepare for battle.
This was the first time the Profound Nether Army had launched such a large-scale attack on their own initiative and it was quite a significant move. As a result, the morale and fighting spirit of the soldiers had risen to a whole new level.
Soon, when the distance between the two Armies had reached a critical point, the beats of war drums started reverberating across the battlefield from the vanguard one after another.
Under the leadership of Ou Yang Lie and the other Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, the Human Race Army began their attack.
The battle broke out in an instant, and the moment the two Armies clashed, the entire Profound Nether Territory appeared to shudder. The brilliance of Secret Techniques and artifacts filled the entire void, brightly illuminating the previously dark Profound Nether Territory.
Warships shuttled here and there, coordinating with each other as they bombarded the approaching Black Ink Clan troops.
Every time a war broke out, the Human Race would always hold the advantage in the opening moments as they killed countless enemies at long range. This was not because the Human Race Army was stronger per se, but rather because the Black Ink Clan always sent out weak cannon fodder first as a means of exhausting the Humans.
The Black Ink Clan could spawn as much cannon fodder as they wanted, so no matter how many of them died, so long as they had Black Ink Nests and ample resources, the ranks could be refilled.
It was completely different for the Human Race. The current Human Armies might not hold a candle to the elites who fought back on the Black Ink Battlefield, but they were still plenty stronger on average than the Black Ink Clan cannon fodder. Not to mention the Humans still had their Warships to bolster their strength.
Most of the Black Ink Clan cannon fodder charging at the forefront had been killed in less than an hour, while the main force of the Black Ink Clan Army took action soon after. The main Black Ink Clan Army mainly consisted of Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen, equivalent to Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Human Masters.
The Black Ink Clan’s casualties continued to rise, but the Human Race’s momentum had been blunted quite dramatically; after all, the Human Race was at a huge disadvantage in terms of numbers.
Six Arms in the rear failed to understand the Human Race’s plan, nor could he understand where the Human Race was getting its confidence from. Even if they could kill some useless cannon fodder, they still wouldn’t be able to resist the main Army of the Black Ink Clan.
It might look like the Black Ink Clan had taken quite huge losses, but their casualties were still within a tolerable range. On the other hand, if the Humans tired themselves out too quickly and got themselves surrounded by the Black Ink Clan Army, their losses would be devastating.
Since he couldn’t figure it out though, Six Arms did not brood too much over it. Right now, his entire focus was on finding Yang Kai’s whereabouts.
Unsurprisingly, Yang Kai was nowhere to be seen. He must be hiding somewhere and waiting for an opportunity to strike.
Intentionally or unintentionally, Six Arms’ gaze swept across a few particular locations on the battlefield. Those were the locations where he had set the bait. If Yang Kai really made a move, he would definitely target those Territory Lords.
Mo Na Ye was nowhere to be seen either, and would not make an appearance unless Yang Kai did.
Six Arms furrowed his brow and looked behind him towards where the main camp of the Black Ink Clan was situated. There were many Black Ink Nests there, which could be considered the foundation of Profound Nether Territory’s Black Ink Clan. Could Yang Kai be planning to invade their main camp?
Six Arms was a little suspicious, but it did not matter even if Yang Kai really went to the main camp as 10 Territory Lords were still standing guard there. Yang Kai would not be able to raise any waves, even if he tried to sneak in.
The Territory Lords were far greater in number than the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, which was why Six Arms had made such arrangements.
The battle had been raging intensely from the very start. It was like the Human Race Army had lost their minds as they were going all out right from the start, as if they wanted to vent all the resentment they had accumulated over the years in this one battle.
Nonetheless, the Human Race’s offence was stopped soon after when the Black Ink Clan main Army launched a counterattack and quickly put them into a disadvantageous position.
[Yang Kai has still not been sighted. It seems he’s quite patient.]
Just as Six Arms was thinking so, a sun-like brilliance suddenly flashed somewhere on the battlefield!
This sun-like flash appeared to be some kind of a signal as small white suns erupted all over the battlefield, one after another, illuminating the entire void.
Even though the suns had erupted quite a distance away from him, the pure rays of white light blaring one after another made Six Arms feel extremely uncomfortable.
Six Arms had seen this light before and knew that it was the power of some artifact. The Human Race also used these artifacts in the war two years ago.
Six Arms had no idea about this artifact’s name, but Black Ink Clan survivors of that battle had reported that it had an extremely suppressive effect on Black Ink Strength. The rays originating from what seemed to be spears could actually vaporize Black Ink Strength.
Back then, much to the Black Ink Clan’s dismay, a Territory Lord hit by this artifact was instantly injured and had he not quickly escaped, he would have been killed by an Eighth-Order Human Master.
When these flashes of light reappeared, a despondent look appeared on Six Arms’ face.
They had been fighting the Profound Nether Army for several decades now, but the Human Race had not used this artifact before. It was used for the first time two years ago, but at that time, the Humans did not possess many of these artifacts, so the Black Ink Clan did not suffer too many casualties from them.
However, the current situation was different. That pure white brilliance was erupting all across the battlefield one after another, and it covered a vast expanse of space every time.
[How could the Human Race have so many such artifacts? Why didn’t they use them before?]
Although he was unable to understand, Six Arms knew it was this Human Race trump card that gave them the confidence to launch an attack. He reached this conclusion because the Human Race Army, which was at a disadvantage just a moment ago, instantly became as fierce as a Tiger and mighty as a Dragon after the appearance of these brilliances, overwhelming the Black Ink Clan Army to the point that they were unable to mount any counterattack.
Some Territory Lords were injured, and numerous Feudal Lords died at the hand of this artifact.
Six Arms would not even bat an eye at the deaths of Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen, regardless of how many of them died, but the deaths of Feudal Lords were different. The birth of each Feudal Lord was not easy, and the Black Ink Clan was counting on these Feudal Lords to become Territory Lords and then Royal Lords in the future. Their annihilation would set the Black Ink Clan towards a bleak future.
Fortunately, the Black Ink Clan Army quickly stabilized the situation and maintained their formation after a short period of panic and loss. Now though, they didn’t try to kill their opponents and instead focused on defending themselves.
For a time, the situation on the battlefield reached a stalemate.
The Black Ink Clan had the absolute advantage in terms of numbers, but thanks to the Evil Purging Divine Spears, the Human Race would not be at a disadvantage for a short time.
Be that as it may, the Evil Purging Divine Spears would eventually be exhausted, and once that happened, if the Humans had not yet retreated, what awaited them then would be a merciless slaughter.
Somewhere on the battlefield, Ou Yang Lie was bathed in blood as he engaged in a life-and-death battle.
Since the start of the battle, he had been caught in a one versus two situation. It had been a difficult fight, but fortunately, he had been through this very situation multiple times, so even though he had fallen into a disadvantageous position, his life was not in immediate danger.
On top of that, Ou Yang Lie was also keenly aware that his two opponents were not using their full strength as they were obviously on guard against something.
Regarding this, Ou Yang Lie was well aware that these people were worried about Yang Kai sneak attacking them. Although this situation would make it difficult for Yang Kai to launch a sneak attack here, it did make Ou Yang Lie’s situation a little more bearable.
Pitifully, he had just asked Yang Kai to give him a helping hand in killing a Territory Lord so he could brag about it, but by the looks of things, it was highly unlikely to happen this time. Since two Territory Lords were targeting him, it would not be the best choice for Yang Kai to attack here.
In the void, Mo Na Ye and four other Territory Lords were hiding inside a Black Ink Cloud, concealing their auras as they observed the battlefield.
Black Ink Clouds were everywhere on the battlefield, and the Human Race would not venture inside to investigate them if they could avoid doing so, so it was the best place to hide without worrying about being exposed.
Through the Black Ink Cloud, Mo Na Ye’s sharp eyes were scanning the surroundings. He was certain that Yang Kai was hiding somewhere, waiting for an opportunity to attack.
[Perhaps… Yang Kai was also hiding in a Black Ink Cloud?]
Mo Na Ye looked towards the various Black Ink Clouds, having no clue. Suddenly, he muttered, “You Gong, if you dare to escape again, I will not forgive you.”
Beside him, You Gong’s face flushed red as he muttered, “Don’t worry, I also want to kill that Yang Kai. If he dares to show his face, he will definitely die!”
Mo Na Ye glanced at him coldly and snorted, stating, “That’s for the best.”
Last time, in Acacia Territory, You Gong was scared witless by Yang Kai, which Mo Na Ye still felt indignant about. If it weren’t for You Gong’s cowardice back then, they would not be in this trouble today.
Five Territory Lords had set up an ambush for Yang Kai this time. Mo Na Ye was confident that so long as Yang Kai dared to show himself, he could hold him down.
While they were talking, a burst of Spiritual Energy fluctuation suddenly surged somewhere on the battlefield before disappearing in a flash.
All kinds of energy fluctuations were surging across the chaotic battlefield, so if one was not deliberately paying attention, it would be difficult to detect these specific fluctuations. But since Mo Na Ye had been constantly monitoring the surroundings, how could he miss this sign?
A bright gleam flashed across his eyes, [Yang Kai made his move!]
These Spiritual Energy fluctuations were extremely familiar. In Acacia Territory, every time Yang Kai launched a sneak attack, such fluctuations would appear.
Mo Na Ye immediately looked towards the source of the Spiritual Energy fluctuations and instantly spotted Yang Kai rushing out from a Black Ink Cloud!
[As expected, he was hiding inside a Black Ink Cloud,] Mo Na Ye had been keeping an eye on the various Black Ink Clouds, but he had no idea when Yang Kai had snuck inside of this particular one. Helpless, he could not help but secretly sigh at Yang Kai’s elusiveness.
The other four Territory Lords also caught sight of Yang Kai and were about to rush out, but Mo Na Ye raised his hand and stopped them, “Wait!”
The Territory Lords were puzzled. They were hiding to ambush Yang Kai, but now that Yang Kai had appeared on the battlefield, they could not understand what they were waiting for.
Mo Na Ye had no intention of speaking further, but he still patiently explained, “He can use that attack three times!”
He did not elaborate after that, but the Territory Lords instantly understood. Mo Na Ye… was quite insidious. He was waiting for Yang Kai to exhaust his trump card on the other Territory Lords. Once Yang Kai had used up his unique method, he would be no different than an ordinary Eighth-Order Master. At that time, what did this team of five Territory Lords have to fear?
However, one of the Territory Lords hesitatingly asked, “If we don’t act now, how would we explain it to Sir Six Arms?”
If a Territory Lord died because of their delay, Six Arms would definitely blame them.
Mo Na Ye indifferently stated, “Killing Yang Kai is the best explanation.”
The Territory Lords looked at each other in dismay as a chill gripped their hearts. Apparently, Mo Na Ye had gone somewhat insane after the defeat in Acacia Territory. He was now even willing to sacrifice a few Territory Lords just to kill Yang Kai.
Doing so might be cruel and unacceptable, but it could still significantly increase their own safety. After all, they were reluctant to face Yang Kai when he still could use his ultimate move; thus, no one had any objections.
By the time they looked in that direction once more, the battle had already ended on that part of the battlefield as they sensed the fall of a Territory Lord.
The Territory Lord’s opponent was none other than Chen Yuan, who knew right away that Yang Kai was making his move the moment he sensed the unique Spiritual Energy fluctuations.
Having experienced the same thing two years ago, why would Chen Yuan hesitate? He immediately unleashed his strongest Divine Ability, splitting his sword into 3,000 beams of light that rained down on the Territory Lord.
Two years ago, when Yang Kai had launched a sneak attack, Chen Yuan had beheaded a Territory Lord in one attack. It could be said that everything had gone very smoothly.
But this time, the Territory Lords were obviously on guard so Chen Yuan failed to kill the opposite party in one move, only managing to severely injure him. Fortunately, Yang Kai timely attacked with his spear, piercing it straight through the Territory Lord’s heart.
Chen Yuan swung his sword once more, beheading the Territory Lord!
The Territory Lord seemed to have cursed something or someone before his death, his eyes filled with indignation, but Chen Yuan could not be bothered with the cries of the defeated. He raised his head to look around, but Yang Kai was nowhere in sight. He had already gone back into hiding who knows where.
Chen Yuan lifted up his sword, turned around, and flew towards another battlefield where another Eighth-Order Master and Territory Lords were locked in a heated battle to provide assistance! The Eighth-Order Master was besieged by two Territory Lords, so, even if he used an Evil Purging Divine Spear, he would still be in danger.
What he did not know was that the Territory Lord had cursed Mo Na Ye before his death. According to what he had heard from Six Arms, Mo Na Ye would immediately come to assist him once Yang Kai appeared.
He also knew that he was a bait arranged by Six Arms to lure Yang Kai out, so he had always been on guard and had been defending his Soul zealously. This was the reason why the Soul Rending Thorn failed to completely incapacitate him and Chen Yuan failed to kill him in one attack. If Mo Na Ye had timely come to his aid, he might not have lost his life, but Mo Na Ye did not show up, so how could he not curse the latter?
The death of a Territory Lord affected the entire battlefield.
From the get go, the Territory Lords had always been on guard against Yang Kai’s sneak attack. They had not been using their full strength against the Eighth-Open Heaven Realm Masters, worried that Yang Kai would suddenly appear out of thin air and attack them, but even after all of their preparations, a Territory Lord had still died.
All the Territory Lords started to feel insecure after the first of them fell, especially the Territory Lords who had been arranged to act as bait by Six Arms. They could not wait to turn tail and flee.
Mo Na Ye, who was hiding in the Black Ink Cloud, was also feeling nervous now.
Mo Na Ye believed that as long as Yang Kai’s whereabouts were exposed, he would be unable to hide once more. It was for this reason he had decided to wait until Yang Kai had exhausted all his special Soul attacks before taking him down.
Mo Na Ye’s plan was quite good, but he had never expected that Yang Kai would be able to vanish without leaving any trace after swiftly taking down his target.
It was as if he had simply disappeared into thin air.
The problem was that Yang Kai had finished his assault too quickly. In less than three breaths after making an entrance, he had chewed up and spat out the bait with the assistance of another Eighth-Order Master. Mo Na Ye was simply powerless to track him.
Mo Na Ye’s expression suddenly became extremely unsightly as he came to realize that he had still been too naïve. The situation had developed completely differently from his calculations. How was he supposed to track Yang Kai if the latter could just up and vanish?
Right then, another burst of Spiritual Energy fluctuations flared up. Mo Na Ye immediately looked towards its source, where he saw Yang Kai reappear in a distant location.
Mo Na Ye could not sit still anymore and fiercely shouted, “Let’s go!”
Having said so, he flew straight towards that location. You Gong and the other Territory Lords were momentarily taken aback, but quickly chased after him.
At this moment, Yang Kai was wantonly attacking a Territory Lord with another Eighth-Open Heaven Realm Master. His Azure Dragon Spear moved back and forth, leaving gaping wounds on the Territory Lord’s body.
It was a simple matter to defend against the Soul Rending Thorns. Once the Territory Lords decided to heavily shield their Souls, the Soul Rending Thorn’s might was greatly reduced, but so what?
In a life-and-death battle between Masters, even a momentary flaw could lead to a disastrous end. No Eighth-Order Master was to be trifled with, so once they saw an opportunity, they would seize upon it with all their might.
The moment a Territory Lord was struck by a Soul Rending Thorn, whether they were on guard or not, they would be momentarily distracted, which was a huge flaw.
Yang Kai promptly followed up with a deadly attack!
In this world, how could a Territory Lord resist the combined might of him and another Eighth-Order Master?
Killing the second Territory Lord took a bit longer, about 10 breaths from start to finish, but the moment this Territory Lord fell, Yang Kai felt a few fierce aura lock onto him from a distance.
Looking up, he saw five Territory Lords rushing over, three of whom… looked a little familiar.
[Didn’t I encounter them in Acacia Territory? He’s… You Gong if I recall correctly.]
[Five Territory Lords, they really think highly of me.]
Yang Kai sneered in his heart as he realized that these five Territory Lords were specifically targeting him; otherwise, they had no reason to rush straight towards him.
Obviously, the Eighth-Order Master had also noticed them and promptly proposed with a stern look on his face, “Sir, please leave first, I’ll block them!”
Yang Kai snapped, “Block them my ass. You go help the others!”
Anyone who stood in the way of these five Territory Lords would be killed right then and there. Even Yang Kai himself did not dare to confront them head-on.
Hearing this, the Eighth-Order Master didn’t hesitate and headed straight towards a nearby battlefield, like Chen Yuan. Yang Kai didn’t escape using Space Principles like before, but rather glanced provocatively at the five Territory Lords charging towards him before shooting off in another direction.
In that direction was another bait arranged by Six Arms.
Since it was bait specially prepared for him, it naturally attracted Yang Kai’s attention. Just like the two Territory Lords who had been killed before, this Territory Lord was also fighting an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master one-on-one in a remote part of the battlefield. Only by doing so could he be considered bait.
Heeding Mo Na Ye’s advice, Six Arms had arranged a total of five such bait on the entire battlefield.
Whereas other battles between Eighth-Order Masters and Territory Lords were group battles, like with Ou Yang Lie, one against two, or two against three. In short, the Human Race was at a disadvantage almost everywhere.
Fortunately, the Territory Lords were preserving their strength to defend against sneak attacks; furthermore, the Human Race Masters had Evil Purging Divine Spears to defend themselves, so things were not that bad for the moment.
Otherwise, the Humans would have suffered heavy losses as they were the ones to initiate the attack and had no additional Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters for backup.
All the Territory Lords on the entire battlefield were wary of Yang Kai’s movements, and the death of two of their comrades in such a short time had struck terror into their hearts.
When the nearest bait noticed Yang Kai charging straight at him with murderous intent, the Territory Lord immediately discarded any notion of continuing his battle and focused his entire strength on fleeing.
Although the Human Race Eighth-Order Masters tried their best to stop him, he was unable to. Innate Territory Lords were powerful to begin with, so if they were determined to flee, even Eighth-Order Masters were powerless to stop them.
Witnessing the Territory Lord transforming into a streak of black light, trying to flee, Yang Kai sped up and surged his Space Principles, solidifying the nearby space. At the same time, he launched a Soul Rending Thorn.
The Black Ink Cloud that was about to leave the battlefield momentarily froze before suddenly scattering, reverting back to the Territory Lord’s figure. However, the Territory Lord was howling in pain at this moment, his face distorted in pain. His cry was so sharp that even the Eighth-Order Master who was fighting him felt his heart clench.
In fact, Yang Kai’s use of Soul Rending Thorns to assassinate the enemy was no secret among the higher-ups of the Profound Nether Army; after all, Ou Yang Lie knew about the Soul Rending Thorn and was not one to hold his tongue when asked.
They also knew that every time Yang Kai used a Soul Rending Thorn, he would need to sacrifice a piece of his own Soul; however, very few people had personally experienced such heart-wrenching pain so they could not understand just what sort of agony this technique produced.
Although the Eighth-Order Master had never tasted such pain, he could imagine how much it would hurt from the reaction of the Territory Lord after he was hit by the Soul Rending Thorn.
The Soul Rending Thorn was a sacrificial technique, and once used, both the user and its target would suffer intense pain.
The Territory Lord was in so much agony that he would rather die, but even though Yang Kai’s face had gone completely pale from the pain, he did not utter a single cry. The Eighth-Order Master was awe-inspired after seeing Yang Kai’s endurance and perseverance.
Yang Kai had paid such a huge price, so if he were to let the enemy escape now, that would truly be a joke.
This Eighth-Order Master’s face immediately darkened as he promptly summoned his Divine Manifestation, preparing to go all out!
Unlike Yang Kai’s Golden Crow Casts the Sun, and Feng Ying’s Myriad Sword Dragons Venerable, this Eighth-Order Master’s Divine Ability Manifestation was even more majestic and brilliant. Impressively, it conjured up a dazzling golden humanoid phantom that was exuding a fearsome and overwhelming aura, giving the impression as if an ancient god had descended.
The humanoid phantom stood behind the Eighth-Order Master, holding a long sword just like him, but the sword was bigger and thicker.
The next moment, the Eighth-Order Master raised his sword and swung it hard as the phantom behind him mirrored his actions. Immediately after, the Void was cut apart and Black Ink Strength started dissipating. Right then, a slit spread across the Territory Lord before his body separated into two.