It almost seemed as though nothing had happened, but when the effects of the Sun and Moon Divine Seal gradually subsided, the several thousand-metre-tall High-Rank Black Ink Nest crumbled into dust and disappeared.
At the same time, the dozen or so Innate Territory Lords shuddered violently. Black Ink Blood spurted out of their mouths as their auras withered away. Countless fine scars appeared both inside and on the surface of their bodies, causing the Black Ink Strength inside to spew out uncontrollably. The condition of the Territory Lords, who were wounded in the first place, immediately worsened considerably.
A Dragon Roar burst forth moments later as Yang Kai arrived with his spear in hand. A lifelike Dragon Phantom emerged from the Azure Dragon Spear, one that shot forward with unstoppable momentum. The terrified screams and furious howls of Territory Lords echoed across the void.
With Space Principles sealing the local region, the Supreme Limitless Spear Art reigned unchallenged as each thrust, and every sweep of the Azure Dragon Spear reaped the life of a Territory Lord. Yang Kai was like a tiger who descended upon a herd of defenceless sheep, none of the Territory Lords was able to resist more than a handful of attacks before succumbing.
In this situation, an uninformed Human Master would have mistakenly assumed that Yang Kai’s opponents were mere miscellaneous soldiers of the Black Ink Clan Army. Otherwise, it should have been impossible for him to slaughter them so easily. However, the fact was that these were genuine Innate Territory Lords.
If these Territory Lords were at full strength, they would each not be inferior to a veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in terms of combat power. It was a pity that they encountered a killing star like Yang Kai when they were so heavily wounded. The only fate waiting for them under these circumstances was death.
There were some occasional counterattacks, which Yang Kai did his best to either block or avoid. Those that he could not dodge simply bore with his body. His Dragon Form, which was only one step away from becoming a Divine Dragon, was indescribably tough, so the attacks of the Territory Lords who could not exert anywhere near their full strength were well within his ability to withstand.
A mere 30 breaths after the encounter began, the chaotic energy fluctuations subsided and the dust settled. There was a large amount of Black Ink Strength scattered throughout the void, dotted with hashed meat and severed limbs. However, there was no trace of vitality in the void. Even Yang Kai was nowhere to be seen as he had immediately flown off after slaying the last Territory Lord.
While Yang Kai appeared and attacked the Territory Lords, Mo Na Ye was moving towards the depths of the void. He had been on his way to meet the various Territory Lords who were heading to the No-Return Pass when he received a message through the miniature Black Ink Nest in his hand. He then abruptly turned to look in a certain direction.
[Yang Kai is there!]
Just moments ago, he lost contact with a group of Territory Lords in the direction he was currently staring. One of the figures gathered inside the Black Ink Nest Space had also gone missing. It was obvious that something unfortunate had happened to them.
Mo Na Ye did not rush in that direction to provide support, as he knew he would be too late even if he went all out. The fates of those severely wounded Territory Lords were practically sealed when Yang Kai discovered their whereabouts.
What was the point of rushing there now? Was he supposed to collect the corpses of the dead Territory Lords? Instead of wasting time on such pointless things, he might as well spend it considering how he could better help the Territory Lords who were still alive.
The previous arrangements he made had backfired on him. To guard against the possibility that Yang Kai would accidentally discover the whereabouts of the escaped Territory Lords, Mo Na Ye had arranged for them to remain far away from the No-Return Pass. Consequently, they required a considerable amount of time to reach the No-Return Pass now. A long journey was bound to be affected by many unpredictable factors.
Be that as it may, his previous arrangements had been necessary. If Mo Na Ye wanted to conceal such a powerful force, he could not allow Yang Kai to discover their presence.
He never imagined that the perfect plans back then would only herald the current catastrophe.
It would take at least half a year for these Territory Lords to travel back to the No-Return Pass, most likely longer. On the other hand, there were many things that Yang Kai could accomplish in half a year. Yang Kai was proficient in the Dao of Space, allowing him to travel multiple times faster than the injured Territory Lords.
If Mo Na Ye wanted to protect more Territory Lords, then he only had two choices. He could either locate and tie down Yang Kai so that he had no time to hunt down the Territory Lords, or join up with the Territory Lords as soon as possible to protect them in person. The first choice was almost impossible to achieve. Even if he was lucky enough to encounter Yang Kai, he could not restrain him. Therefore, Mo Na Ye could only rely upon the second option.
Almost all the Territory Lords in the No-Return Pass had been mobilised, and even a Pseudo-Royal Lord like him had not remained idle. Unfortunately, they were still lacking in manpower. Besides, any strategy would seem worthless and ineffective before an opponent like Yang Kai, who could travel through the Void without any traces.
Mo Na Ye was filled with great hatred. Nevertheless, he could only proceed with all haste. Everything else would depend entirely on fate!
While the Black Ink Clan was painstakingly trying to figure out a solution so that they could safely meet up with the newly escaped Territory Lords, Yang Kai was faced with the difficulty of locating his targets. The Territory Lords were no longer in hiding, and each group was carrying a half-hatched High-Rank Black Ink Nest with them. However, it was not easy for him to find an enemy in the vast void.
If he knew where Mo Na Ye had placed those Territory Lords, then he could intercept all of them on their way to the No-Return Pass. The problem was that he did not know where these Territory Lords were originally hiding. At the moment, the only thing Yang Kai could do was expand his search area as much as possible. He also considered the progress of these Territory Lords and estimated the possible places where they would appear.
His methods were not completely ineffective. If he was lucky, it would only take a few days for him to encounter a group of Territory Lords heading towards the No-Return Pass. If he was not so lucky, then it could take him 10 days to half a month just to see results.
In this way, Yang Kai managed to annihilate another four groups of Territory Lords over the next two months. The number of Territory Lords who snuck out from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and died at his hands was close to 120 at this point!
Every group of Territory Lords that went missing felt like a knife stabbing into Mo Na Ye’s heart. Those Territory Lords were the hard-to-obtain reinforcements of the Black Ink Clan, but they were now being intercepted and slaughtered before they could play any role in the war. It could be said that their deaths were completely in vain.
By using the position of the Territory Lords who went missing last, Mo Na Ye could roughly calculate Yang Kai’s current position. The results were absolutely horrifying. Leaving aside Yang Kai’s random and untraceable movements, his ability to traverse the void with the help of the Dao of Space made his whereabouts completely unpredictable. He would be in a certain position one time, but then he would appear in a position that was in the completely opposite direction just days later.
Faced with such an enemy, even Mo Na Ye could do nothing. The endless and vast void was simply the best possible stage for Yang Kai to display his skills.
At this moment, Mo Na Ye had managed to meet up with a group of Territory Lords, so while leading them towards the No-Return Pass, he sent a message to all the nearby Territory Lords so that they could gather towards him. Since he had come forward in person, it was only natural that Mo Na Ye tried his best to protect as many Territory Lords as possible until they arrived at the No-Return Pass safely.
Nevertheless, he was secretly filled with bitterness and unwillingness.
The secret at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had been exposed far too soon. If their secret was only exposed after another 100 years, or even 1,000 years, then the Black Ink Clan would have amassed an enormous amount of Innate Territory Lords to form an overwhelming force that could destroy the Human Race.
In addition, the first Innate Territory Lords who escaped the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction would also have had some time to recover from their injuries. If that were the case, then it would have been possible for them to perform the Source Fusion Technique to create a Pseudo-Royal Lord on the spot!
It did not matter how strong Yang Kai was; even he would be powerless against a Pseudo-Royal Lord.
Unfortunately, it was an impossible feat even if Mo Na Ye were to command these Territory Lords to create a Pseudo-Royal Lord right now. They were all too heavily injured, which meant that their strength was greatly reduced as a result. Even if they used the Source Fusion Technique, the only fate waiting for them was death. There was no possibility of success whatsoever. Otherwise, the Black Ink Clan would not be caught in such a troublesome situation. They could instantly produce several dozen Pseudo-Royal Lords with a single command.
At this moment, a group of Innate Territory Lords were fleeing desperately through the void. There was a several thousand-metre-tall Black Ink Nest enveloped in thick Black Ink Strength travelling with them, and one of the Innate Territory Lords was constantly stationed inside of it. The Territory Lord in the Black Ink Nest had the responsibility of communicating and passing information to Mo Na Ye at any time.
They were gradually getting closer to the No-Return Pass; nevertheless, the Territory Lords did not dare to relax their guard. That was because one of the groups near them had been attacked by the Human Race Master just 10 days ago. Since then, all contact with those Territory Lords had been lost. There was no telling whether the entire group had perished in the attack.
All of a sudden, they were struck by a wave of murderous intent coming from the distance. It was immediately followed by the rise of the Great Sun looming over the Territory Lords in glorious majesty.
The Territory Lords turned pale with fright. They had been on guard against danger coming from behind them, so they never expected Yang Kai to intercept them from the front. This Human… was truly elusive!
Coming to his senses, one of the Territory Lords shouted a moment later, “Enemy attack!”
Meanwhile, the Territory Lord inside the Black Ink Nest hastily conveyed the message of Yang Kai’s appearance.
On the other hand, Yang Kai frowned slightly. Encountering and intercepting a group of Territory Lords in this place had been a pleasant surprise; after all, he had been searching the way ahead for a while with no success.
Just as he was about to leave though, he suddenly sensed a powerful aura approaching him from behind. It only took a brief search for him to discover the traces of these Territory Lords. How could he hold back against them? He immediately launched an offence.
However, this group of Territory Lords reacted differently from the other groups that he encountered previously.
Over the past few months, Yang Kai had slaughtered many powerful enemies. Aside from the first group of Territory Lords who had failed to react in time, the others would immediately choose to flee in separate directions as soon as they noticed him. They didn’t even bother about the Black Ink Nest that they had been carrying with them. Unfortunately for the Territory Lords, none of them had managed to escape from Yang Kai.
Although the group of Territory Lords before him had enough time to react and escape in separate directions, they showed no intention of doing so and instead huddled together tightly. What’s more… there was something wrong with their numbers.
Most of the Territory Lords Yang Kai encountered recently had been travelling in groups of 14 or 15. Most likely, that was because Mo Na Ye had considered the most suitable number of Territory Lords needed to create a Pseudo-Royal Lord; however, nearly 20 Territory Lords were standing in front of him at this moment.
Just as Yang Kai was pondering over the situation, four of the Territory Lords suddenly leapt forward and instantly formed the Four Symbols Formation. Their auras became closely interwoven with each other as a result, and their surging Black Ink Strength transformed into a sturdy barrier.
The Great Sun slammed into the barrier and tore it apart. Unfortunately, the power of the Great Sun had been exhausted in the clash, leaving the four Territory Lords unharmed.
[So that’s how it is!] When Yang Kai saw the Four Symbols Formation, he immediately understood. This group of Territory Lords had managed to join up with the Territory Lords who came from the No-Return Pass.
The Territory Lords who snuck out from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction would not be able to form Battle Formations because they did not have the time to practice and train in them. The only Territory Lords who knew how to form Formations were those who had been dealing with the Human Race for many years.
With the help of the Four Symbols Formation, the four Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass successfully defended against Yang Kai’s Golden Crow Casts the Sun as the eyes of their wounded companions brightened in astonishment at the sight before them.
[Are the Battle Formations of the Human Race really so useful?]
They had always been in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, so they did not know much about Battle Formations.
However, the information they heard about most often in recent days was regarding Yang Kai. All the Territory Lords who encountered him went missing without any exceptions; hence, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master known as Yang Kai became a trauma in the hearts of the Territory Lords. Without overcoming this trauma, it would be difficult for them to proceed towards the No-Return Pass.
The power of the Golden Crow Casts the Sun that Yang Kai unleashed when he showed up had greatly frightened the injured Territory Lords. At the same time, they were secretly relieved. If the four Territory Lords who came to protect them had not combined forces to block that attack… If they had been struck directly by such force… What would have happened to them? The answer left them shuddering in fear. If their allies had failed to block the attack earlier, the impact would have significantly worsened their injuries even if they survived. The only fate waiting for them would be death after that.
At this moment, they had a vague realization about the fate that had befallen their comrades who went missing previously and they secretly made a vow to themselves. If they could arrive at the No-Return Pass safely, they would approach several familiar Territory Lords once they fully recovered from their wounds and properly learn the Battle Formations. In case they ever encountered this Human menace in the future, they never wanted to be stuck in such a powerless and vulnerable position again!
“Yang Kai, withdraw!” One of the Territory Lords roared. He had the strongest aura out of the four Territory Lords who formed the Formation earlier. Standing in the void, his burly figure resembled a soaring iron tower. Although his tone was aggressive and firm, the slight tremble in his expression clearly indicated that he was only trying to act strong.
Yang Kai’s name was enough to terrify the Territory Lords several thousand years ago. Now that his battle record included slaughtering a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Di Wu, his name was enough to inundate all the Innate Territory Lords with fear. Even Mo Na Ye had to tolerate him to a certain extent, so how could these Territory Lords dare to act presumptuously in front of him? Unfortunately, the current situation forced them to grit their teeth and confront the killing star head-on.
The burly Territory Lord was filled with great bitterness, [How can I have such bad luck? I can’t believe I encountered Yang Kai here. What will happen to us now?]
Yang Kai seemed unfazed by those words. Without saying a word, he raised his hand and summoned the Azure Dragon Spear. Then, he thrust the spear forward without any fancy moves, causing spear shadows to cover the entire sky in an instant.
The four Territory Lords in the Formation roared in unison, joining forces to defend against the attack; however, they quickly discovered that the spear contained neither form nor power. The burly Territory Lord who spoke earlier immediately shouted, “Not good!”
As soon as the words left his mouth, two short screams rang out behind him and he could tell what was happening without even turning back to look. On the other hand, the figure of Yang Kai stabbing forward with his spear gradually faded from his vision. It was nothing more than an afterimage.
“Attack!” He shouted, taking the lead to charge towards the rear. The other three Territory Lords tacitly cooperated with him. Even though their hearts were filled with trepidation, they quickly moved to maintain the Battle Formation while pushing their speed to the maximum.
Black Ink Strength and World Force surged, and in the next moment, Yang Kai exchanged multiple blows with the four Territory Lords in Formation. The impact practically shattered the surrounding Void.
When Yang Kai finally withdrew and retreated, the Four Symbols Formation established by the four Territory Lords had securely covered the rest of the Territory Lords. They had used the Battle Formation to protect themselves and their companions, but two of the injured Territory Lords had still perished before they arrived.
As for the surviving Innate Territory Lords, they were all horrified.
They had known that this Human was beyond an ordinary Eighth-Order Master, but they had never seen him take action before today. Their understanding of his strength only came from a limited supply of information and their own imagination, so it wasn’t until they personally experienced it that they realised how feeble their imagination had been. This Human’s strength was simply beyond comprehension.
“Withdraw, Yang Kai!” The burly Territory Lord who spoke earlier shouted once more. Despite their efforts, two of the Territory Lords under their protection had already been killed, so they did not dare to act rashly again, lest they give Yang Kai an opening to exploit.
“You court death!” Yang Kai flicked his spear and pointed the tip forward. Although he did not move, the burgeoning force from its sharp blade enveloped the entire void. The Territory Lords stiffened in fear, evidently feeling the great power brewing in the dark. It was an explosive power that could detonate at any time.
Sweat beaded the forehead of the burly Territory Lord as he hurriedly raised his hand, “Wait! Sir Mo Na Ye has a message for you!”
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes and the murderous intent leaking from the slits of his eyes grew stronger. After a long time though, his voice boomed out like thunder, “Speak!”
The burly Territory Lord said, “Sir Mo Na Ye told us to pass this message to you. If Your Excellency withdraws now, he is willing to let bygones be bygones. The cultivation resources offered from the No-Return Pass will also be increased from 30% to 50%!”
50%… That was half of the Black Ink Clan’s mined resources, and the offer indicated just how badly Mo Na Ye had been cornered by Yang Kai.
To save the lives of those Innate Territory Lords, Mo Na Ye hoped to entice Yang Kai into withdrawing with this method. Even the fact that Yang Kai had previously slaughtered so many Territory Lords could be ignored as though it never happened. Those Territory Lords were already dead after all. While the Black Ink Clan yearned to avenge them, they could not achieve such a feat for the time being.
It had to be said that Mo Na Ye was a very decisive individual. Although the offer had been forced by the situation, he refused to give up as long as he could find any means to deter Yang Kai.
Be that as it may, Yang Kai couldn’t accept the offer so easily. Forget 50%, even if Mo Na Ye had offered 80% or 100%, the value of such cultivation resources would never compare to the lives of so many Innate Territory Lords. The top-level combat powers of the Black Ink Clan would increase significantly if he withdrew at this point. There was a high possibility that this would affect the entire balance of the war between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan in the near future.
Yang Kai did not respond. His figure remained motionless, but the void seemed to solidify around them. At the same time, his Spiritual Energy began to surge violently.
The expressions of the four Territory Lords in the Battle Formation immediately changed drastically. They were clearly panicked and horrified to their bones. This couldn’t be helped though as at this moment, a chill flooded them both physically and mentally. They were enveloped by a strong sense of death, giving them the feeling that they might die at any moment.
For a moment, the aura connection established by the Four Symbols Formation between them almost snapped. It was not surprising for them to experience a fluctuation of emotions under the threat of death.
Fortunately, the burly Territory Lord composed his emotions by pure force of will and stabilised the Battle Formation. His prompt actions prevented the Battle Formation from collapsing. Nevertheless, he understood one thing clearly. If Yang Kai was determined to kill them today, it was unlikely that they would walk away alive. If they died here, then the dozen or so Territory Lords protected by their Battle Formation would not survive either.
He had experienced this sensation once before. The familiar fluctuation of Spiritual Energy undoubtedly indicated that Yang Kai was preparing to use his mysterious Soul Secret Technique. Even with the support of the Four Symbols Formation, the four Territory Lords would have trouble defending against Yang Kai’s assault once that Technique was brought out.
The last time they encountered Yang Kai, they had been escorting a team that was transporting cultivation materials back to the No-Return Pass. Yang Kai had threatened them with the same move and forced them to hand over the Space Rings containing the resources. They had given up fairly easily back then as their lives were naturally far more valuable than some cultivation resources. It was for such a reason that Mo Na Ye did not blame them for that incident either.
Unfortunately, the situation was different now. They were not guarding mere cultivation resources, but the lives of more than a dozen of their clansmen. They could not afford to back down!
The burly Territory Lord couldn’t help recalling what Mo Na Ye had told them before they departed from the No-Return Pass, ‘Once you meet up with the clansmen, escort them back to the No-Return Pass immediately. If you encounter Yang Kai, try to entice him first. It would be best if he decides to withdraw. If he stubbornly insists on fighting, then he will definitely unleash his Soul Secret Technique to break the Battle Formation. Even if you have to fight him to the death, you must not concede!’
It would seem that Mo Na Ye was wise and insightful. He had clearly anticipated this possibility and issued the necessary orders to handle the situation. For that reason, the four Territory Lords under the burly Territory Lord’s leadership did not dare to disobey Mo Na Ye’s command despite their fear and sorrow. If they disobeyed the command, they were bound to suffer a terrible ending even if they returned alive.
On the other hand… If they could force Yang Kai to activate his Soul Secret Technique here, then he would also suffer heavy damage as a result. It would be impossible for him to hunt down the rest of their clansmen after that.
That was most likely part of Mo Na Ye’s plans. In the best-case scenario, Yang Kai would willingly withdraw in exchange for 50% of the cultivation resources mined by the Black Ink Clan. In the worst-case scenario, the lives of an entire group of Territory Lords would be sacrificed in exchange for rendering Yang Kai incapable of moving about freely for the next two years. That would be better than if Yang Kai went around slaughtering even more Territory Lords and increasing the losses of the Black Ink Clan.
“If you retreat now, I will pretend I never saw you!”
Yang Kai’s surging Spiritual Energy became even more threatening. At the same time, the Soul Rending Thorns stood at the ready. The four Territory Lords in Formation trembled in fear as they could vaguely feel an invisible blade hanging above their heads, threatening to fall and reap their lives at any time.
Gritting his teeth, the burly Territory Lord shook his head slowly and replied grimly, “Impossible!”
There was a clansman stationed inside the High-Rank Black Ink Nest, reporting everything that was happening here in real time. In other words, Mo Na Ye was monitoring the situation here at all times. He knew everything that happened, so how could they choose to escape with their lives?
“In that case, I will grant your wishes!” Yang Kai shouted through gritted teeth and his Spiritual Energy surged wildly.
Filled with terror, the four Territory Lords in Formation drew upon their full strength to protect their Souls. They initially thought that an explosive force would bombard them in the next moment, but contrary to their expectations, the Spiritual Energy only rose to a certain extent before disappearing abruptly. It was almost as though everything had been nothing more than an illusion.
When they looked around, Yang Kai was no longer anywhere to be seen. Even their Divine Senses could not perceive any traces of his aura.
All the Territory Lords were stunned, but the four in Formation did not dare to relax their guard. After standing frozen in place for a long time, they did not detect any changes whatsoever. Then, numerous Divine Senses began to surge as they swiftly communicated among themselves.
“Where is Yang Kai? Where did he go?”
“I don’t know, but don’t let your guard down. He might be waiting somewhere for an opportunity to strike.”
“There are bound to be traces of his aura if he is hiding in the shadows!”
“Could it be… Did he leave? Was he only trying to intimidate us earlier?”
…..
The last statement seemed to enlighten them. Thinking back to Yang Kai’s various behaviours earlier, they combined the facts with the current situation and finally came to the conclusion that Yang Kai was indeed gone. He had deliberately created a sense of deadly danger among them, but it was all just a ploy to intimidate them. Otherwise, there was no explanation for why they could not perceive his presence now.
The four Territory Lords in Formation headed by the burly Territory Lord were overjoyed. They initially thought that they were going to die here. Who could have known that they would survive the ordeal?
“Let’s go!” The burly Territory Lord shouted.
Nevertheless, he did not dare to dispel the Battle Formation even though it was more or less confirmed that Yang Kai was gone. Who knew whether Yang Kai would wheel around suddenly? Hence, he could only work with the other three Territory Lords to maintain the Four Symbols Formation and protect the dozen or so clansmen with all their might. Then, they flew in the direction of the No-Return Pass.
Meanwhile, the Innate Territory Lord inside the High-Rank Black Ink Nest reported the entire situation to Mo Na Ye who was currently a couple dozen million kilometres away.
Upon learning the situation, Mo Na Ye naturally showered the four Territory Lords with great praise. He also spread the news of their achievement in forcing Yang Kai to retreat so that all the clansmen in charge of protecting the Territory Lords would follow their example with peace of mind.
For a time, the morale among the Territory Lords was boosted significantly! Countless Masters from the No-Return Pass had fought against Yang Kai over the years; however, it was the first time they held the upper hand in the battle. Although two Innate Territory Lords had lost their lives in the fight, their deaths were nothing compared to the results that were obtained.
At the same time, Yang Kai sped off into the distance with the help of his Space Principles. He couldn’t help feeling slightly helpless and frustrated because of the situation.
While he was confident that he could destroy the Battle Formation of the four Territory Lords and slaughter the Territory Lords gathered there if he used his Soul Rending Thorns, he would also have to pay a high price for his actions. Doing that would have forced him to spend the next couple of years concentrating on his recovery, which was simply not worth the possible gains. Therefore, he immediately chose to withdraw without attempting to pressure the four Territory Lords when he saw that they were not intimidated by his threats.
In any case, many Territory Lords were retreating in the direction of the No-Return Pass at the moment. He didn’t need to annihilate any group of Territory Lords in particular. There would always be other opportunities in the future. Rather than desperately using the Soul Rending Thorns and inflicting injuries upon himself, it was better for Yang Kai to find other opportunities to hunt down more Territory Lords.
Yang Kai travelled swiftly through the void, crossing hundreds of thousands of kilometres with every step he took.
After travelling for one month, Yang Kai abruptly stopped at a certain spot in the void and watched a group of Territory Lords rushing towards the No-Return Pass from a distance. This was the third group of Territory Lords that he encountered this month. Unfortunately, every group of Territory Lords was protected by a Battle Formation from the No-Return Pass. The situation left him feeling as though he was unable to take action.
Taking the time into consideration, the Territory Lords who were placed outside by Mo Na Ye so that they could concentrate on their treatment should have all met up with the Territory Lords who came from the No-Return Pass by now. It became unrealistic for him to intercept and slaughter these Territory Lords under these circumstances unless he resolved to unleash the Soul Rending Thorns against their defences. Choosing that option would be a one-shot deal; hence, he was reluctant to choose that option unless it was necessary.
[Are there no other chances?] Yang Kai frowned in deep thought. It did not take long before he turned around and gazed into the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield. [No, I still have other opportunities. Many in fact!]
According to his experiment at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, two or three Innate Territory Lords would successfully sneak out every month. 14 to 15 of these Territory Lords would gather together to form a group before they set off in the direction of the No-Return Pass.
Based on these numbers, there would be a group of Territory Lords travelling from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction every six months. In other words, there would be two groups travelling from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction each year!
The Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction was extremely far from the place where Mo Na Ye had arranged for them. With the travelling speed of these heavily wounded Territory Lords, they would need to spend around 10 years to reach their predetermined location safely.
In other words, many of the Territory Lords who snuck out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction were still en route from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to the region around the former Royal Cities at this moment. They had always been on the road as there was not enough time for them to arrive at the predetermined location Mo Na Ye had assigned for them to hatch the Black Ink Nest.
Previously, Yang Kai would have needed some extra luck to locate the traces of these Territory Lords in the vast Black Ink Battlefield; after all, he did not know where these Territory Lords were hiding. In comparison, he no longer needed to rely on pure luck to intercept these travelling Territory Lords as there was a high chance that he would encounter them if he simply travelled in a straight line towards the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
Naturally, it was impossible for things to progress as smoothly as he had hoped. Each group of travelling Territory Lords would have a Black Ink Nest in their possession, so they could communicate with Mo Na Ye at all times. There was a possibility that Mo Na Ye had already considered their situation and made the necessary arrangements.
[But… it’s worth the risk!] In any case, Yang Kai did not believe he could intercept all of these Territory Lords. However, each group he intercepted represented 14 or 15 Territory Lords!
Having made his decision, Yang Kai determined his direction and took a step forward, his figure vanishing from sight.
Two months later, Yang Kai appeared at a certain spot in the void that was located at the border of the Late Ancient Era battlefield. The battlefield that had been silent for so many years was flooded with murderous intent once more. Having found traces of Innate Territory Lords travelling from the direction of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, Yang Kai immediately attacked them without the slightest trace of politeness. In this battle, he single-handedly defeated the combined efforts of more than a dozen Territory Lords and annihilated the entire group with only minimal injuries to himself.
After some rest, he set off again.
Things were much easier for Yang Kai now that he had found the first group of Territory Lords. He only needed to use his current position to calculate the distance equivalent to half a year’s journey to find traces of the second group of Territory Lords. That was because the Territory Lords who came from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction travelled in half-year cycles.
However, it only took Yang Kai slightly more than 10 days to cover the same distance that had taken these heavily wounded Territory Lords half a year to cross.
Approximately 10 days later, Yang Kai arrived at another spot in the Late Ancient Era battlefield and his Divine Sense surged. He searched his surroundings carefully as his figure travelled around the local area, and it did not take long before he made a discovery.
These Territory Lords had most likely received instructions from Mo Na Ye in advance. They showed no intention to rush on their journey, instead choosing to conceal themselves on a Universe Fragment nearby instead. As they were heavily wounded, their auras were greatly weakened so it was very difficult to find their whereabouts, especially when they were deliberately trying to conceal their presence. If not because Yang Kai had been carefully searching for their traces and his search radius was wide enough, these Territory Lords would have escaped his attention.
When the Territory Lords realised that their whereabouts had been exposed, they knew that there was no hope of escape; hence, they immediately fought back desperately. Still, the result was just another one-sided massacre!
Back at the No-Return Pass, Mo Na Ye had just finished escorting several groups of Territory Lords over. The rest of the groups that were escorted by the Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass were also gradually making their way back, so it would not take long before all of them arrived safely.
Unfortunately, not all of the Territory Lords who snuck out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had received escorts in time. Not counting those who were slain by Yang Kai previously, there were many other groups of Territory Lords still travelling from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction towards the No-Return Pass.
Mo Na Ye had been worrying about these Territory Lords. Knowing Yang Kai was an intelligent and meticulous person, it was always a possibility that he would target these en-route Territory Lords; after all, these Territory Lords had not even had the chance to hatch their Black Ink Nests. Combined with their seriously wounded bodies, they would be completely powerless against an enemy like Yang Kai.
Mo Na Ye’s worries quickly became a reality.
Before he even returned to the No-Return Pass, he abruptly lost contact with a group of Territory Lords who were on their way over. No more than 10 days later, a second group of Territory Lords sent an urgent message stating that a Human Race Master suspected to be Yang Kai had discovered them. By the time Mo Na Ye tried to contact them again, there was no longer any response from the other side!
In the span of a dozen days, Yang Kai not only crossed the distance that would have taken the heavily wounded Territory Lords half a year to travel but also unleashed a swift and explosive assault on them. The speed and brutality of his attack had completely caught the Territory Lords and Mo Na Ye off-guard!
[Bastard!] Mo Na Ye felt a ball of rage burning in his chest and his teeth were practically on the verge of shattering from how hard he gnashed them together.
Yang Kai had already begun his journey to massacre the rest of the travelling Territory Lords. Unfortunately, the distance was too great for the No-Return Pass to provide any kind of support. At this point, the life and death of those Territory Lords depended entirely on their own luck now.
After pondering for a long time, Mo Na Ye immersed his consciousness into the Black Ink Nest and began issuing orders! Many orders were transmitted from the No-Return Pass to the various Great Territories Battlefields immediately after that.
For a time, the battle situation across the various Great Territory Battlefields changed without warning. All the Human Race Masters could sense that the Black Ink Clan’s offensive had grown much more aggressive. Not to mention, the number of Black Ink Clansmen, including Territory Lords, seemed to have increased greatly.
Mo Na Ye even had the urge to send Meng Que to the battlefield. If Yang Kai was openly slaughtering their Territory Lords, then there was no need for him to honour the previous peace agreement at all. If a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Meng Que were to join the battle without warning, his unexpected presence would surely throw the higher-ups in the Human Race into utter chaos!
After pondering long and hard though, Mo Na Ye decided to suppress his urge…
He had always suspected that the Human Race was hiding some Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. The only reason why they had remained in hiding for so many years was that the time to reveal themselves had not yet come. If Meng Que was sent to the battlefield though, Mo Na Ye was certain the hidden Ninth-Order Masters would appear to confront the former.
Worse, a Pseudo-Royal Lord was clearly no match for a true Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. If Mo Na Ye started a war of that scale, the situation would likely spiral out of his control in short order. That was not the outcome he wished to see. At the moment, the Territory Lords needed more time before they could attempt to become Royal Lords, so he could only endure for now…
In the Late Ancient Era battlefield, Yang Kai discovered that it was suddenly much easier for him to search for his targets after he killed the first two groups of Territory Lords.
This couldn’t be helped though as the Territory Lords who were travelling from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had suddenly decided to split up.
Previously, the Territory Lords acted in groups of 14 to 15. Although their numbers were not small, it was very difficult to find them when they were collectively hiding. On the contrary, he currently only needed to rush to the calculated location and investigate his surroundings with his Divine Sense; then, he would easily find traces of several Territory Lords.
Now, Territory Lords were scattered about, some moving quickly in a straight line, some hiding in dark corners, others taking wide detours to avoid encountering Yang Kai as much as possible.
It had to be said that this countermeasure was quite brilliant. If Yang Kai’s guess was correct, this was the solution Mo Na Ye had come up with. Having said that, all the Territory Lords whose whereabouts were discovered by Yang Kai were absolutely powerless to resist being slaughtered. Nonetheless, it was still a better outcome than if the entire group was annihilated completely. A few lucky Territory Lords were bound to escape the slaughter.
Yang Kai was in no mood to search for the Territory Lords who escaped his initial attack as he did not have the time for that either. There were more Territory Lords to slaughter ahead. He had to be willing to sacrifice short-term gains to focus on the bigger situation! In this way, he constantly calculated the distance and possible locations of these Territory Lords; then, he would search the area vigorously, coming up with a significant harvest each time he did so.
This massacre lasted for a whole year, with as many as 200 Innate Territory Lords dying at Yang Kai’s hands during this period! Combined with his previous achievements, he had slaughtered nearly 300 Innate Territory Lords in his recent hunting efforts!
It was a shocking number! Not to mention, those were only the ones whom he managed to slay. Just how many Territory Lords had entered the No-Return Pass? Just how much had the strength of the Black Ink Clan been boosted?
Yang Kai fought his way to the edge of the Late Ancient Era battlefield before he stopped; however, he was not done yet. There were many Territory Lords who escaped his initial attack. Nevertheless, they were all heading in the same direction, so as long as he was fast enough, he could annihilate another round of Territory Lords who escaped his initial attack outside the No-Return Pass!
Yang Kai sliced his way across the entire Late Ancient Era Battlefield, slaughtering more than 200 Territory Lords; then, he immediately returned along the same route he came without pausing to rest. Along his journey, he occasionally encountered some Territory Lords who escaped his initial attack and smoothly annihilated them too.
It only took half a year for him to travel through the Late Ancient Era Battlefield and arrive outside the periphery of the No-Return Pass with the help of the Space Beacons that he scattered during his first journey.
Concealing his figure and aura, he searched for where Sun Zhao was hiding before taking him back into his Small Universe. He was relieved and overjoyed to see that Sun Zhao had managed to remain hidden for so long; otherwise, a mere Emperor Realm Master who had just condensed his Dao Seal would never have survived.
In truth, Mo Na Ye had ordered his men to search for Sun Zhao’s whereabouts. When he used the communication bead to contact Yang Kai previously, he deduced that somebody was impersonating Yang Kai to communicate with him. More importantly, they could not be too far from each other because the communication beads would not have been able to transmit messages across great distances.
Be that as it may, the not-too-far distance still covered a vast area in the spacious void. The Black Ink Clan had searched intensively, but their efforts proved futile in the end. In any case, Mo Na Ye did not pay much attention to this matter. During this time, he had been travelling back and forth to meet the various Territory Lords with all his energy and attention focused on investigating Yang Kai’s movements. How could he be bothered by such a trivial distraction?
There were two reasons for Sun Zhao’s survival. The first reason was pure luck, and the second reason was the difficulty of the situation which prevented the Black Ink Clan from using their full strength.
Yang Kai looked in the direction of the No-Return Pass with a solemn gaze. Despite the distance, he could sense the subtle changes that had taken place.
In the past, only 100 or so Territory Lords were gathered in the No-Return Pass. Some might also have been hidden inside the High-Rank Black Ink Nests to rest or cultivate, but there were never many more than that.
However, the number of Innate Territory Lords gathered in the No-Return Pass now was hard to estimate. The best proof of their increased numbers was the High-Rank Black Ink Nests settling inside the No-Return Pass that constantly shuddered and produced extremely dense Black Ink Strength.
The Territory Lords who came from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction were heavily wounded, so they urgently needed to treat their injuries. Black Ink Strength was essential for the healing process; furthermore, these Territory Lords had brought back many High-Rank Black Ink Nests with them. The number of Black Ink Nests in the No-Return Pass had also increased noticeably, bolstering the foundation of the Black Ink Clan.
Yang Kai did not hang around for long. Quickly turning around, he sped into the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield and found a spot to wait in silence.
It would be too difficult for him to search for the scattered Innate Territory Lords as he did not know where they were hiding or coming from. When he returned through the Late Ancient Era Battlefield, he had only managed to encounter several dozen Territory Lords along the way.
In that case, he could only resign himself to waiting for gains without pains. The ultimate destination of these Territory Lords was the No-Return Pass, so he only needed to find a suitable position and wait for them to walk right into his trap by themselves.
Naturally, Yang Kai’s plan would not allow him to intercept many Territory Lords and it would also be very easy for his whereabouts to be exposed. The Territory Lords in the No-Return Pass were not idle either. At this moment, they had formed into teams of four or five to establish Battle Formations in their efforts to receive their clansmen. Nevertheless, Yang Kai was bound to gain something for his efforts!
After waiting in ambush for half a year, Yang Kai’s efforts finally came to fruition. He couldn’t help grumbling to himself about the Territory Lords’ travel speed, but this couldn’t be helped. He could travel back and forth in a very short time thanks to his Space Principles, but others did not have such convenience.
These heavily wounded Territory Lords naturally could not cross the gap between the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and the No-Return Pass without at least 10 years of continuous travel. For that reason, even the Territory Lords who were lucky enough to escape his initial sweep would need a long time to arrive from the Late Ancient Era Battlefield.
From a distance, an aura approached cautiously. This Territory Lord was trying his best to remain hidden, but his efforts were not perfect. He was clearly a cautious person, and the closer he got to the No-Return Pass, the less he dared to relax his guard.
Unfortunately for him, the group of Territory Lords that he had been travelling with previously had long since scattered and the Black Ink Nest was in the possession of another Territory Lord, so he had no means to contact the No-Return Pass and request support.
He had travelled through the Late Ancient Era Battlefield by comparing the surrounding scenery with the map he received before splitting ways with his initial group. When he determined that he was only half a year’s journey from the No-Return Pass, he couldn’t help feeling overjoyed. However, he felt a sharp murderous intent enveloped him before the thought could even form in his head fully.
Turning in that direction, he saw the tip of a spear was rapidly magnifying in his vision. He hastily and desperately condensed his Black Ink Strength in defence, but this layer of protection was as vulnerable as paper before the spear.
Yang Kai retrieved his spear a moment later. Reaching out with his large hand, he stored the Territory Lord’s corpse and the black blood that gushed out of the corpse in his Small Universe to wipe away the traces that were left behind by the battle. Then, he went back into hiding.
The Territory Lords originally travelled in small groups before they split up and went their separate ways; hence, their travel speed should not be very different from each other. It would not be long before more Territory Lords appeared in the wake of the first Territory Lord’s arrival. It had taken Yang Kai half a year to find just one Territory Lord, but he successively killed four more in the following month!
What followed next was another long period of waiting.
As the Territory Lords fled back to the No-Return Pass from different directions, the power of the Black Ink Clan steadily grew stronger. Be that as it may, Mo Na Ye did not feel the slightest sense of joy.
Their losses were simply too great. As many as 400 Innate Territory Lords had been slain by Yang Kai over the years. What’s more, it was obvious that Yang Kai was hiding somewhere nearby to kill more of the approaching Territory Lords. It was a pity that the Black Ink Clan could not pinpoint his location.
The Black Ink Clan had been stepping up their offensive in the battlefields across the various Great Territories, placing greater pressure on the Human Race, but the Black Ink Clan on the Black Ink Battlefield would have no peace until Yang Kai was eliminated.
Even Mo Na Ye was helpless against such an elusive and powerful opponent. The only thing he could do was repeatedly send messages to Yang Kai, but there was never any response. That was because Sun Zhao had destroyed the communication bead on Yang Kai’s order after he responded to Mo Na Ye’s message. It was a countermeasure to prevent Mo Na Ye from figuring out his position. How could Mo Na Ye use the communication bead to contact Yang Kai now?
[I need to figure out a method to locate him…]
Two years later, Yang Kai changed his hiding position and waited quietly for the Territory Lords who snuck out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to come to him. The groups of Territory Lords had split up under Mo Na Ye’s orders, so although they travelled from the direction of the Late Ancient Era Battlefield in general, they would arrive at the No-Return Pass from various directions.
As long as he was not terribly unlucky, Yang Kai would always achieve success no matter where he lay in ambush. Nonetheless, he would change positions at half-year intervals to avoid the Black Ink Clan discovering his whereabouts. The half-year period was only the rough cycle when the Territory Lords would arrive at the No-Return Pass, which meant that he could not stop all the Territory Lords from reaching their destination. He only managed to intercept a small part of the Territory Lords, but there was only so much that he could do at this point.
In any case, he had to reduce the power of the Black Ink Clan as much as possible in hopes of decreasing the pressure on the Human Race in the future.
Half a month later, the aura of a Territory Lord suddenly barged into Yang Kai’s range of perception. Similar situations had already taken place many times over the years, so this had become routine by now. He remained unmoving and simply waited until the Territory Lord had gotten close enough before suddenly launching an attack with his spear.
The Territory Lord was consumed with fear, knowing that he would not survive the encounter. Nevertheless, he neither dodged nor avoided the attack and instead charged towards Yang Kai. Before the spear reached him, the Black Ink Strength in his body surged wildly and his entire body immediately swelled up dangerously.
Yang Kai could clearly see the resolve in the Territory Lord’s eyes, and the sight made him frown. He swiftly condensed his World Force to protect himself and pulled away at the same time; however, he was one step too late. Following a wave of violent energy fluctuations, the local Void collapsed. The vicious impact lifted his body and threw him backwards as the layer of protection he just erected rippled and shattered almost instantly.
After Yang Kai stabilised his figure once more, the Void that had collapsed in front of him remained broken. One could only imagine the power behind the blow. If not for his sturdy Dragon Form, the impact would have seriously injured him.
[I can’t believe a Territory Lord chose to self-destruct!] Yang Kai had never encountered this situation before. In fact, he never even knew that the Territory Lords had such a hidden trump card. Being caught off guard was not a pleasant feeling.
But why did the Territory Lord choose to self-destruct? Even ants would cling hard to their lives, much less a powerful Innate Territory Lord. Even in a desperate situation, a Territory Lord was bound to struggle and resist as much as possible. Although Yang Kai had slain many Territory Lords, he had never encountered a Territory Lord who would immediately choose to self-destruct.
It did not take long before Yang Kai understood the reason why this Territory Lord had chosen to self-destruct though. While he was pondering in confusion, several powerful auras quickly flew over from the distance. It was obvious that they had noticed the commotion that took place here.
That was not all, however, as soon Yang Kai detected even more auras converging around him from various directions. There were at least several dozen of them, and these were only the ones he could perceive. Yang Kai was certain that others were further away that he failed to sense.
It was not as though he had never encountered similar situations in the past. Many Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass had formed Battle Formations and patrolled the surroundings to welcome their clansmen who came from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
On several occasions, Yang Kai had inadvertently exposed himself and attracted the Territory Lords nearby to investigate the situation when he attacked. It was just that he had never bothered to face them in the past; after all, he was helpless against the Territory Lords who formed Battle Formations unless he used his Soul Rending Thorns. His only option currently was to ignore them.
However, there had never been so many Territory Lords before. It was almost as though they had predicted that he would be here. Knowing that he would attack this place, they had laid an ambush nearby and waited for him to reveal his whereabouts before they swarmed him from all sides. However, the Black Ink Clan couldn’t learn his movements in advance. Not to mention, it had not been long since he moved to this location.
In that case, there could only be one explanation. While he was waiting for gains without pains, the Black Ink Clan had been doing the same. The Black Ink Clan had not predicted the location where he would appear; on the contrary, they had simply set up a lot of traps in various locations with the thought that he was bound to turn up sooner or later.
Although Yang Kai did not know how long the Black Ink Clan had laid in ambush here, he had to admit that this brute force method was effective. At the very least, it had caught him this time. But… so what? The Territory Lords rushing over from all directions would not arrive for some time, which gave him plenty of room to escape.
As soon as Yang Kai’s whereabouts were revealed, countless Territory Lords immediately rushed over from all directions to encircle him. He could have escaped immediately, causing the Black Ink Clan’s plans to fail; nevertheless, he remained motionless and quietly perceived his surroundings with a slight frown.
A short while later, he burst into laughter, [Mo Na Ye, oh, Mo Na Ye… You’ve really gone all out this time.]
According to his perception, a large number of Territory Lords were rushing towards him; however, while the auras of these Territory Lords seemed overpowering on the outside, they were unexpectedly weak once he observed them more closely. Clearly, these Territory Lords were heavily injured.
Yang Kai immediately understood the situation. The Territory Lords besieging him were not the Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass who were in perfect condition, but the Territory Lords who came from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
In a confrontation against the veteran Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass, Yang Kai had no effective means to defeat them aside from unleashing the Soul Rending Thorn. That was why all the Territory Lords who died at his hands so far had come from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. Conversely, none of the Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass had been harmed. Even if he occasionally encountered them in the void, Yang Kai would avoid them so as not to waste his energy.
Despite that, the Black Ink Clan had deliberately arranged for the wounded Territory Lords from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to besiege him today, which was clearly a trap meant to entice him.
With such tempting bait in front of him, Yang Kai seriously debated whether he should accept the challenge or not. If he took the bait, he might risk being besieged. On the other hand, how could he just turn a blind eye to so many vulnerable Territory Lords in front of him?
He had been lying in ambush and slaughtering Territory Lords from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction for years now, and although his efforts had produced some results, the gains were not that significant. The Territory Lords had split up from their respective groups, making them harder to catch. For these reasons, the fact that so many Territory Lords were gathered together in one place was a huge temptation to him.
This was an open conspiracy!
Mo Na Ye had laid all his cards on the table, so the next move was completely in Yang Kai’s hands.
It was true that the one who understood a person best was not their best friend, but their worst enemy.
After fighting Yang Kai in numerous battles of wit over the years, Mo Na Ye had gained a thorough understanding of the former’s temperament and character. Based on this bold arrangement, Mo Na Ye must have predicted Yang Kai’s choice in advance. He was confident that Yang Kai would not remain indifferent if he threw out such tempting bait.
Yang Kai had been single-mindedly hunting down Territory Lords over the years, so with so many of them just dangling in front of him like carrots, he would not be able to resist taking the bait.
In truth, the reality was just as Mo Na Ye expected. Yang Kai only hesitated for a moment before he came to a decision. Since Mo Na Ye had dared to throw out such an alluring piece of meat, then he was going to take a gigantic bite without any reservations.
[I have to kill as many Territory Lords as possible before they complete their encirclement to reduce the pressure I have to face later!]
Spreading out his Divine Sense madly, Yang Kai confirmed that Mo Na Ye was not in the vicinity.
A Pseudo-Royal Lord like Mo Na Ye was unable to control their power perfectly, so they couldn’t conceal their auras completely. Yang Kai was bound to detect Mo Na Ye’s presence if he appeared anywhere within his detection range!
Of course, Yang Kai was certain that Mo Na Ye was monitoring the situation and waiting for the perfect opportunity to appear from somewhere nearby!
In the next breath, Yang Kai’s figure flickered. Following the fluctuations of Space Principles, his figure vanished from the spot and instantaneously appeared a million kilometres away. There were several Innate Territory Lords nearby, drawing upon their Black Ink Strength to drive a Black Ink Cloud forward at a high speed.
All of a sudden, a vicious aura enveloped the Black Ink Cloud. Then, a figure came crashing down on them as a Great Sun slammed into the Black Ink Cloud. World Force flared as Black Ink Strength surged wildly. When the Black Ink Cloud dissipated, four figures emerged extremely dishevelled, coughing up Black Ink Blood.
Not far away, Yang Kai appeared with his spear in hand. Not pausing for a moment, Yang Kai charged forward and thrust his spear out, sending an overwhelming number of spear shadows towards the four Territory Lords.
The four Territory Lords roared ferociously. Drawing upon their Black Ink Strength, they unleashed a series of profound Secret Techniques to meet Yang Kai’s attack. They may have been bait, but they were not planning to just sacrifice their lives without fighting back.
These Innate Territory Lords who came from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had not spent much time at the No-Return Pass, not nearly enough to treat their wounds at least. Needless to say, they had barely recovered any of their strength. Even so, they had already begun practising the Battle Formations with the rest of the Territory Lords under Mo Na Ye’s orders.
At this moment, these four Territory Lords had assumed the Four Symbols Formation; unfortunately for them, they hadn’t had much time to practice it, so their auras could not combine perfectly. The Four Symbols Formation that they formed was clearly subpar as a result. That was particularly obvious against a Master like Yang Kai. The unstable Battle Formation only lasted for 10 breaths before shattering.
The four had barely managed to protect themselves with the Four Symbols Formation, so without it, how could these heavily wounded Territory Lords be Yang Kai’s opponent?
When the Battle Formation fell apart, Yang Kai’s spear cleanly sliced through one of the Territory Lords, causing it to explode into blood mist.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai withdrew his spear and swiftly stabbed forward once more. His spear struck another Territory Lord in the head while he simultaneously spread his large hand and manipulated the local Space Principles, causing the surrounding space to instantly solidify. Before the other two surviving Territory Lords could even react, their vision went black and they forever lost consciousness.
In less than two breaths of time, the aura of four Innate Territory Lords withered into nothing. Yang Kai immediately vanished from the spot, charging in another direction without pause.
There were four Territory Lords in each approaching group, enough to assume the Four Symbols Formation. Unfortunately for them, they differed from the Territory Lords from the No-Return Pass. Leaving aside their wounded bodies, they were not familiar enough with the Battle Formation due to lack of time and practice.
Once they were targeted by Yang Kai, they generally suffered the same fate as the first group of Territory Lords. Their Battle Formation would be destroyed within a dozen breaths of time, and what awaited them after was a swift death.
One group… Two groups… Three groups…
Yang Kai’s figure continued to flicker back and forth, smoothly navigating through the void as he engaged in an endless slaughter. At the same time, he did not forget to keep an eye on the movement in his surroundings as he remained vigilant towards the Black Ink Clan’s reaction.
More and more Territory Lords were slain and it was not long before 10 groups of Territory Lords were annihilated. Those 10 groups represented 40 Territory Lords.
Be that as it may, the remaining Territory Lords did not retreat in the slightest. Mo Na Ye had most likely explained the possible situations they might face before they came here; hence, they marched forward boldly and without hesitation or looking back despite knowing the disastrous fate awaiting them. It was not that they did not feel fear; rather, they simply had no other choice. They could not retreat due to the orders from their higher-ups.
The massacre continued, and as time passed, the encirclement formed by the Territory Lords gradually tightened around Yang Kai. After slaughtering a few more groups of Territory Lords, Yang Kai finally found himself besieged by the Territory Lords on all sides.
Yang Kai stood in the void with his spear in hand; meanwhile, the groups of Territory Lords in Battle Formations surrounded him. Nevertheless, it was easy to see the horror and fear in their eyes as they stared at him with shivering terror.
Back in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, they had always considered themselves quite powerful; however, their perspective was also limited by their environment. For that reason, they had harboured great ambitions and confidence when they escaped the Grand Restriction. It was not until they encountered the Human Race Master before them that they suffered a rude awakening. In front of this killing star, they were nothing special at all.
The scene was deadly silent, and the atmosphere was extremely heavy. As long as Yang Kai remained motionless, the Territory Lords did not dare to act rashly either. They simply gathered and strengthened the siege they formed around him.
Their numbers were overwhelming indeed. There were at least 150 Territory Lords gathered in this place, and if the ones Yang Kai killed earlier were included, the Black Ink Clan had clearly dispatched as many as 200 Territory Lords to execute this trap!
[How generous!] Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling secretly impressed. No matter how powerful he was, things would not end well for him if he confronted so many Territory Lords cooperating with each other. There was only one final outcome of this battle: both sides suffering grave injuries.
He would never underestimate these Territory Lords just because they were heavily wounded. Although he could slaughter a group of these Territory Lords even if they formed a Battle Formation with little effort, there were only four Territory Lords per such group. When their numbers accumulated to a certain degree, the situation simply became untenable. What’s more, the destructive power behind the Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities unleashed by these Territory Lords was not insignificant despite their weakened condition.
In the middle of their stalemate, one of the Territory Lords cautiously took a step forward and respectfully held out a miniature Black Ink Nest. Seeming terrified that Yang Kai might misunderstand his intentions, he quickly explained himself, “Yang Kai, Sir Mo Na Ye invites you into the Black Ink Nest for a discussion!”
Yang Kai had slaughtered so many Innate Territory Lords that he was bound to have some Black Ink Nests in his possession. That was something Mo Na Ye could easily guess. He had been trying to communicate with Yang Kai recently, but the messages sent to the communication bead did not receive any response. If he wanted to connect with Yang Kai directly, then he could only rely on the Black Ink Nests now.
However, he could not come forward in person. If he showed up under these circumstances, there was no doubt that Yang Kai would immediately escape. In that case, the several dozen Territory Lords who lost their lives earlier would have died in vain. Those several dozen Territory Lords were nothing more than appetisers. The remaining 150 Territory Lords were the main course!
“Enter the Black Ink Nest for a discussion?” Yang Kai glanced sideways at the Territory Lord and coldly snorted, “Do you take me for a three-year-old child? Tell him to fuck off.”
Leaving aside the fact that his physical body could be attacked from the outside when his mind was immersed in the Black Ink Nest Space, even the space within the Black Ink Nest itself had restrictive abilities.
In the past, he once immersed his consciousness into the Black Ink Nest Space through a captured Mid-Rank Black Ink Nest outside Great Evolution Pass. As a result, he was trapped inside the Black Ink Nest for several years. If he had not forced the Territory Lords to open the Black Ink Nest Void with the help of the Soul Warming Lotus and multiple Soul Rending Thorn, he would not have been able to escape.
[Does Mo Na Ye think I have such a rudimentary knowledge of the mysteries of the Black Ink Nest Space? How can he make such a naïve suggestion?]
Yang Kai was absolutely certain about one thing; even if he found a safe place for his physical body, he would be trapped within the Black Ink Nest the moment he immersed his consciousness into the Black Ink Nest Space. If that were to happen, it would be effortless to annihilate him without any conflict.
[I’m sure Mo Na Ye would laugh his head off with joy.]
The Territory Lord’s Divine Sense fluctuated slightly as though communicating with somebody. A short while later, he spoke again, “It’s fine if you refuse to enter the Black Ink Nest Space, but Sir Mo Na Ye has a message for you.”
“Speak!”
“Sir Mo Na Ye said…” He paused for a moment before he relayed the message word for word, “Brother Yang, the Black Ink Clan has tolerated many of your antics. We even willingly shared 30% of the resources we’ve gathered with you. All we asked for was some peace. Brother Yang, why did you attack and slaughter our Territory Lords?”
Yang Kai snorted with laughter, “The Black Ink Clan and the Human Race cannot coexist under the Heavens in the first place. If the Black Ink Clan was honest, I would not have caused trouble either. What was the Black Ink Clan doing at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction? Sneaking around and gathering your strength… How can I turn a blind eye to your antics? I’m only disappointed that I didn’t kill enough!”
The Territory Lord relayed Yang Kai’s words and received Mo Na Ye’s reply. He continued, “You’re right, Brother Yang. The Black Ink Clan and the Human Race are completely incompatible; however, we have interacted with each other for so many years, and I have come to cherish our friendship. Although this Mo Na Ye would like to be your friend, my wish is nothing more than a faint dream. The both of us… We are only acting for the greater good of our respective sides. We come from different origins, so it is only natural for our circumstances to be different. It is fate. There is nothing that can be done!”
Mo Na Ye’s words were sorrowful, sounding extremely emotional.
Of course, Yang Kai thought to himself, [Who would cherish a friendship with you?]
Nevertheless, looking at the situation from a different perspective, Mo Na Ye had truly done a good job of dealing with the problems Yang Kai caused over the years. If it had been any other Black Ink Clansman who was in charge instead, the results would definitely have been worse.
After delivering Mo Na Ye’s message, the Territory Lords from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction were taken aback. The attitude that the Pseudo-Royal Lord displayed towards this Human was beyond their expectations. Upon further thought though, they could somewhat understand his compromising attitude after considering the strength and abilities displayed by this person.
There was a moment of silence before the Territory Lord began to relay Mo Na Ye’s words again, “Now that things have come to this point, we should settle this matter.”
Yang Kai asked, “How do you want to settle it?”
“The flaw in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction has been repaired, so there won’t be any more Territory Lords coming out. Besides, many of the Territory Lords who snuck out of the Grand Restriction have died at your hands. What I mean is… For this matter, the Black Ink Clan will let bygones be bygones. If you agree to stop hunting down the Territory Lords, the Black Ink Clan will not pursue the previous matters. We will also continue delivering 30% of our resources to you as promised. What do you think, Brother Yang?”
Yang Kai’s expression shifted slightly. He had to admit that Mo Na Ye was being very generous and making a huge concession here. Including the Territory Lords he slaughtered just now, nearly 400 had died at his hands over the past few years.
That was 400 Innate Territory Lords, not Feudal Lords or High-Rank Soldiers. If those 400 Innate Territory Lords were sacrificed to create Pseudo-Royal Lords, they could produce between 20 to 30 with such numbers. After all, there was no shortage of High-Rank Black Ink Nests at the moment.
It was such a terrible loss, yet Mo Na Ye claimed that he could regard the entire matter as though it never happened. That was an impressive show of sincerity indeed.
Looking at the situation from another angle, Mo Na Ye would rather bear such a terrible loss if it made Yang Kai stop. The fact that he had mobilised 200 Territory Lords to besiege Yang Kai indicated that even more than that were on their way to the No-Return Pass. If this issue could not be resolved today, then the Black Ink Clan would end up suffering even heavier losses!
The only method to force one’s enemy into voluntarily enduring a bitter situation was to ensure that an even worse situation was waiting for them.
In a flash of thought, Yang Kai immediately understood everything. He thus chuckled and responded, “Sure. Since you are being so sincere, Mo Na Ye, how can this Yang refuse? So, what happens if I do as you say?”
The Territory Lord quickly replied, “Brother Yang is righteous indeed. In that case, I would like you to stay put for the next 20 years. Please rest assured, Brother Yang. These Territory Lords will be accompanying you, and they will not attack you as long as you do not attack them. Also, I can guarantee that neither Sir Royal Lord nor myself will appear within the range of your perception.”
[I knew Mo Na Ye would definitely have conditions.]
There was no guarantee when it came to verbal promises. Even if Yang Kai was forced to make a vow, Mo Na Ye would never trust Yang Kai so easily. If he wanted to prevent Yang Kai from hunting down the Territory Lords, then the best method was to keep Yang Kai restrained in place. 20 years was enough time for the last batch of Territory Lords to travel from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and arrive at the No-Return Pass safely.
The reason he told Yang Kai that neither he nor Royal Lord Mo Yu would appear within Yang Kai’s range of perception was to give the latter some reassurance and prevent him from worrying about such matters.
Yang Kai smiled, “Mo Na Ye, since I have agreed to your proposal, I will not regret my decision. You have too little trust in me.”
“It’s not that I don’t trust you, Brother Yang. It’s just that there is too much at stake, so I have to be more careful. Please understand.”
Yang Kai nodded in understanding and glanced around his surroundings. The expressions of the Innate Territory Lords turned solemn when they felt his gaze on them and a sense of fear coursed through their bodies.
“If I insist on leaving, these Territory Lords cannot stop me!”
The Territory Lord holding the small Black Ink Nest heaved a long sigh, perfectly and vividly expressing Mo Na Ye’s frustration, “Why must you do this, Brother Yang? I have made enough concessions!”
Even though so many Territory Lords had been killed, the Black Ink Clan was willing to overlook the matter. The Black Ink Clan had relented, compromising again and again. Naturally, their decision was a forced result of the situation. Even if Mo Na Ye wanted to take revenge, he was powerless to do so. Thus, the only thing he could do was choose the second-best option.
Yang Kai lowered his eyes and said indifferently, “There are things that can be negotiated, and there are things that cannot.”
Mo Na Ye fell silent. After a long time, the Territory Lord finally relayed his words, “Brother Yang, are you really willing to leave just like that?”
Yang Kai burst out laughing, “You really know me well, Mo Na Ye! When I advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, I will cut your head off to celebrate my achievement!”
He was definitely not willing to leave just like that. There were 150 Innate Territory Lords here, so how could he possibly leave without massacring them to his heart’s content? Rather than wasting his time and energy waiting in ambush for the scattered Territory Lords to arrive, he might as well go all out and cull all the Territory Lords here.
That was the true ingenuity of Mo Na Ye’s trap. It wasn’t that he could not mobilise the veteran Territory Lords of the No-Return Pass, but that he was not willing to do so. He only mobilised the Territory Lords from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to give Yang Kai an opportunity to exploit and mislead the latter into believing it was possible to massacre all these injured Territory Lords.
The best outcome was for Yang Kai to accept the initial terms. Then, the 150 Territory Lords here would only need to accompany him for the next 20 years. The Territory Lords on their way would also have enough time to arrive at the No-Return Pass. In this way, the strength of the Black Ink Clan was guaranteed to increase in the future.
Even if Yang Kai did not agree to the conditions though, Mo Na Ye knew the former would not escape easily when there was such a tempting target dangling in front of him. A great battle was bound to break out. No matter how many Innate Territory Lords would succumb in battle, it would be impossible for Yang Kai to escape unscathed. Where would he find the time and energy to hunt down the travelling Territory Lords?
Therefore, it did not matter whether Yang Kai agreed to the initial conditions. Both scenarios had been included in Mo Na Ye’s calculations. The only difference was the price that the Black Ink Clan would have to pay!
Before Yang Kai even finished speaking, his figure had already appeared in front of the Territory Lord holding the Black Ink Nest. The Territory Lord had been focused on the Black Ink Nest in his hands to relay Mo Na Ye’s words, and as a result, he could not spare any attention to support the Four Symbols Formation that was maintained between him and his three companions, especially since he was unfamiliar with the Battle Formation in the first place. It was the perfect breakthrough point.
The Territory Lord clearly did not expect Yang Kai to suddenly attack, so before he could react, he saw Yang Kai flashing by him. A long spear pierced into his body at the speed of lightning, and a violent force exploded from his body. He barely had time to grunt in pain before his entire body exploded and filled the void with a cloud of blood mist.
In the next moment, Yang Kai turned his spear to the other three Territory Lords.
An intense battle broke out without any warning. Fortunately, the Territory Lords who came here had been prepared in advance. As soon as Yang Kai made his move, they immediately counterattacked with all their might. Black Ink Strength surged uncontrollably as Black Ink Clouds swirled wildly. Likewise, a few Territory Lords who received different orders beforehand shifted and scattered around the void to prepare their next strategy.
Yang Kai had just finished off the three Territory Lords without the protection of the Battle Formation when countless Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities slammed into him from all directions. His body trembled from the impact, bearing the brunt of unimaginable pressure. Nevertheless, he did not stop his massacre.
With enemies in all directions, Yang Kai swept his spear back and forth without pause. From time to time, a Great Sun would leap into the sky, accompanied by the Golden Crow’s cry.
As the auras of numerous Territory Lords withered and disappeared, Yang Kai suffered numerous wounds. Fighting 150 Innate Territory Lords with the strength of one man alone was an unprecedented feat that had never been seen since ancient times.
If these 150 Innate Territory Lords had been at full strength, even a Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master would not have lasted long against them; much less an Eighth-Order Master like Yang Kai. It was a case where even an elephant would die from enough ant bites.
Fortunately, these Territory Lords were all heavily injured, so their strength had been reduced considerably. In addition, it was difficult for them to move around and coordinate properly with so many of them trying to attack just one highly mobile target.
Yang Kai’s figure flickered about, having no trouble bearing the attacks for the time being. Mo Na Ye had set the stage, and Yang Kai had to pay a certain price if he wanted to participate. It was inevitable.
Territory Lords continually lost their lives, but the encirclement still grew tighter and tighter. Overwhelming auras closed in from all directions like an invisible barrier, pressing down on Yang Kai. The space in which he could move around grew smaller and smaller.
At a certain point, the encirclement reached its limits and it no longer mattered how ferociously Yang Kai fought back. In this situation, two fists simply could not block four strikes. Even though he could forcibly slaughter the Territory Lord in front of him, at least a dozen different attacks would land on him at the same time. These attacks caused his body to tremble violently as he coughed up Golden Blood.
A Dragon Roar suddenly burst out, and an enormous Golden Dragon Head emerged behind Yang Kai before plunging into his figure. Golden light erupted in all directions as Yang Kai’s small humanoid figure abruptly transformed into an enormous Golden Dragon. Covered in Dragon Scales, the Golden Dragon had Dragon Horns on his head and a thick, fluttering Dragon Beard below his jaw.
The violent assault slammed into Yang Kai’s Dragon Form and broke many of his Dragon Scales; however, he remained indifferent. Unleashing a Divine Dragon Tail Sweep, Yang Kai sent numerous Territory Lords around him flying backwards. Then, his enormous Dragon Head abruptly turned to look in a certain direction where four Territory Lords were gathered in secret. His Dragon Maw opened, and a Dragon Roar reverberated through the void, “What do you think you’re doing?”
Mo Na Ye’s plan was not as simple as it appeared on the surface. He seemed to want to take Yang Kai’s life in exchange for the lives of these Territory Lords, but that would not be worth the effort and sacrifice. In reality, he had a larger ambition. He wanted to trap Yang Kai here so that he could eliminate Yang Kai himself!
Faced with an elusive opponent like Yang Kai, it was extremely difficult to trap him in one place. The only method that the Black Ink Clan could use to accomplish this was to set up the Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array. Once the Grand Array was activated, it would have a Heaven Sealing Earth Locking effect, rendering Yang Kai powerless to flee.
These Territory Lords from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had not spent much time at the No-Return Pass, but aside from practising the Four Symbols Formation, they had diligently familiarised themselves with this Spirit Array. Some of these Territory Lords had brought along the necessary Array Plates and Banners and were secretly preparing the Grand Array while their companions were keeping Yang Kai busy.
The moment the Grand Array was completed would be the moment of Mo Na Ye’s dazzling debut. The reason he had not appeared earlier was to not alert Yang Kai to his presence. Once his aura appeared in Yang Kai’s perception, the latter was bound to escape immediately.
However, how could Yang Kai fail to notice Mo Na Ye’s plans? Even if the Territory Lords setting up the Grand Array were extremely secretive, he had been on guard against such tricks from the beginning.
Dragon Scales flew everywhere, bearing the attacks that came from all directions. A series of hideous and terrifying scars appeared on the huge Dragon Form, but the Dragon’s Head soon stretched across the distance and loomed over the four Territory Lords without paying the attackers any mind. Following the fluctuations of Space Principles, the Void froze instantly. At the same time, the Dragon’s Mouth opened wide; then, with a loud cracking noise, Yang Kai actually bit off a piece out of the Void!
As the Dragon Maw closed, a huge piece of the Void seemed to go missing. Even the four Territory Lords who were there previously had disappeared. Then, the sound of chewing came from the mouth of the giant Dragon. Every crunching sound made the hair on the backs of the Territory Lords stand on end. In addition, a large amount of Black Ink Strength and thick black blood leaked out of the corners of his mouth. The gruesome sight terrified all the Territory Lords who witnessed this scene. Nevertheless, a storm of attacks continued to rain down on the Ancient Dragon from all directions.
All of a sudden, the Ancient Dragon turned to look back, his two enormous Dragon Eyes overflowing with unspeakable murderous intent. He opened his large Dragon Maw, releasing a high-pitch Dragon Roar that resounded across the entire universe. Accompanied by the sound of the Dragon Roar, a golden round bead spewed out of his Dragon Mouth.
Because of Yang Kai’s current cultivation and mastery over the Grand Daos of Time and Space, the Sun and Moon Divine Seal was undoubtedly his strongest trump card, but it was closely followed by his Dragon Bead.
The significance of a Dragon Bead to a Dragon Clansman was similar to the significance of a Monster Core to a Monster Beast. It was the crystallisation of their lifetime of cultivation.
The Dragon Clan was known for their thick skin and strong flesh, which gave them incredible resiliency and physical strength. Be that as it may, they rarely summoned their Dragon Bead in a battle against their enemies. The reason was that this method could be very harmful to them. If the Dragon Bead was destroyed by the enemy, then they would lose a large part of their cultivation. In the worst case, their Bloodline might even decline as a result.
Yang Kai himself had only summoned his Dragon Bead a handful of times in his life, and each time he did so, he had achieved remarkable results. At the same time, his actions came with significant risks to himself.
A scorching Sun emerged in the void. The Golden Dragon Bead resembled the Great Sun that instantly pierced through the surrounding darkness. The force contained infinite power, which blasted apart the defensive layer formed through the joint efforts of the Territory Lords and demolished their Battle Formations. It would have been amazing in itself if that were all, but the invisible fluctuations of the Dragon Bead also channelled the rich power of the Grand Dao of Time which washed over the minds of the Territory Lords and blurred their perceptions.
The Dao of Time was the Bloodline Talent of the Dragon Clan, and since a Dragon Bead was the crystallisation of a Dragon Clansman’s cultivation, it was only natural for it to contain the mysteries of the Grand Dao.
With their perceptions warped and their minds disturbed, the Territory Lords were suddenly at a loss for what to do. Everywhere the Dragon Bead passed, powerful Innate Territory Lords suffered death or critical injury, collapsing like flies. Seven auras vanished from existence in an instant.
As Yang Kai unleashed this attack, he was also enduring constant bombardment from his enemies. As the dense barrage of Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities rained down on him, his huge and lumbering Dragon Form abruptly transformed into a golden light and vanished from the spot. Most of the attacks landed in nothing but empty space as a result.
The golden light suddenly appeared a certain distance away, revealing Yang Kai’s figure once more. He was no longer in his Dragon Form, but his Human Form. Having swallowed his Dragon Bead earlier, he immediately summoned the Azure Dragon Spear again. At this moment, various Dao Strengths began interweaving at the tip of the spear before Yang Kai sliced through the nearby enemies with monstrous strength.
Frequently changing between his Human Form and his Dragon Form, Yang Kai exhibited all of his skills, interweaving numerous Dao Strengths to their fullest. A feeling of comprehension filled his heart. Unfortunately, he did not have the time to enjoy the revelation in his heart. The battle had been extremely intense from the beginning, so there was no saying who would win and who would lose.
The number of Territory Lords reduced steadily, but Yang Kai was also beginning to feel tired. His Small Universe had always been much bigger than others in the same Order. Combined with his cultivation that was at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, Yang Kai generally had no trouble responding calmly to any situation, regardless of the intensity or ferocity of a battle. However, he was confronting too many enemies today, a testament to Mo Na Ye’s determination.
Yang Kai had summoned his Dragon Bead three times in a row, slaughtering innumerable Territory Lords in the process, but at this point, he could no longer afford to summon it, otherwise, he would risk breaking it into pieces.
Inside his Small Universe, the consumption of World Force was also bordering on excessive. Although he had the World Tree Clone to stabilize it, draining too much World Force from his Small Universe might cause some problems for him. Nothing might happen to Yang Kai himself, but it would be a catastrophe for the living beings in his Small Universe if it was completely drained.
The Black Ink Clan had been repeatedly trying to set up the Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array, but the Array always failed to take shape due to Yang Kai’s interference. At this point, they seemed to have completely given up on their plan to restrain Yang Kai with it.
It was not because they were willing to give up on this plan. On the contrary, it was because most of the Territory Lords who brought the Array Boards and Banners with them had been killed by now. As the saying went, ‘Even the cleverest woman could not cook a meal without rice’.
At a certain point, the intense battle suddenly ceased.
Yang Kai stood in the void with his spear in hand. The murderous intent radiating from him was practically tangible, and there was not a single intact spot on his body. Moreover, he was dyed in a mixture of golden and black blood. His tightly bound hair was dishevelled and draped around his shoulders. Although his appearance was bedraggled, he gave off a heroic spirit in his own right.
Even now, over 100 Territory Lords surrounded him and stared at him. In addition, countless overpowering auras wound around him like invisible chains in an attempt to hold him in place.
Yang Kai had slain more than 100 Territory Lords in this battle. The main reason another hundred or so Territory Lords were surrounding him was that more had gradually arrived over time and joined the fight.
At this moment, the gazes watching Yang Kai were filled with absolute horror and fear. They had witnessed how this Human had slain their companions like he was slaughtering chickens and butchering dogs. The only reason they were still alive was not that they were stronger than their dead companions; rather, they were simply lucky enough not to be targeted. None of the Territory Lords targeted by this Human Race Master survived. All of them died.
The battlefield was absolutely silent as severed limbs and broken pieces of bone floated around the void. The atmosphere was extremely tense.
The Territory Lords silently questioned themselves whether the astounding price they paid so far was worth the effort. Be that as it may, the person presiding over this matter was Mo Na Ye. Not only were they simply acting on orders, but they could not disobey their orders either.
Lightly taking a breath and spitting out the blood in his mouth, Yang Kai glanced in the direction of the No-Return Pass. He knew that Mo Na Ye was rushing over from that direction. There was also a possibility that Mo Na Ye was hiding somewhere in the vicinity just beyond the range of his perception.
The only reason Mo Na Ye did not reveal himself was that the time was not yet right. Yang Kai had enough strength in him to continue fighting with no trouble; not to mention, he was proficient at escaping. Mo Na Ye did not have the confidence to stop Yang Kai from fleeing if he showed himself at this moment. Hence, his only option was to wait until Yang Kai was completely exhausted. Only then would he come forward and finish things in one blow!
In any case, Mo Na Ye was certain that Yang Kai would not be willing to leave just like that. That was because the Innate Territory Lords standing in front of him were nothing but meek lambs waiting to be slaughtered. As long as he cared about the future of the Human Race, Yang Kai would not stop fighting until the very last moment.
Yang Kai broke into a grin, and his bloodied appearance made the grin on his face seem even more gruesome. He had to admit that he had fallen completely into Mo Na Ye’s trap. More importantly, he had willingly done so!
[Mo Na Ye is truly the genius of the Black Ink Clan!]
Yang Kai gave a flick of the spear in his hands, and his murderous intent began to surge turbulently as he shouted, “Again!”
Then, his figure transformed into a stream of light and charged towards four Territory Lords in Formation.
After fighting for so long, there was no need for flowery moves at this point. Yang Kai just had to kill as many of the powerful enemies in front of him as he could before he made his escape. On the other hand, the Territory Lords who came here on orders had to put constant pressure on Yang Kai so that he continued to accumulate injuries.
The battle at this point played out differently from the initial flexible context at the beginning. Yang Kai no longer had the strength nor the mood to avoid the incoming attacks. Most of the time, he just took those attacks directly in exchange for reaping the lives of the Territory Lords. His Dragon Form which was only one step away from advancing to the Divine Dragon realm gave him the capital to withstand such abuse.
When the Four Symbols Formation was destroyed, Yang Kai wielded his spear and covered the four Territory Lords in his spear aura. Although the four Territory Lords struggled desperately, how could they escape? A spear light came down, and each Territory Lord stiffened abruptly…
At the same time, a barrage of assaults rained down on Yang Kai. These attacks left him coughing up blood as his figure shuddered violently. Nevertheless, he simply turned around sharply and charged towards the nearest group of four Territory Lords.
The battle was not as intense as earlier; after all, both the Territory Lords and Yang Kai had exhausted themselves. Nonetheless, the brutality was considerably higher than before. The Territory Lords were gutted and beheaded at a constant rate; likewise, Yang Kai’s aura weakened steadily.
About an hour later, Yang Kai’s figure faltered involuntarily when he killed another Territory Lord. His vision also blurred for a moment. He was almost at his limit!
He had not counted how many Territory Lords he slaughtered in this battle, but the Black Ink Clan had invested at least 250 Innate Territory Lords altogether. In contrast, there were only about 70 or 80 surviving Territory Lords at the moment… In this battle alone, Yang Kai had slain some 170 Territory Lords!
That was a terrifying battle record, but it was not something Yang Kai could have achieved on his own strength. If these Territory Lords had not been wounded from the start and Mo Na Ye had ordered them never to retreat, he would not have achieved such a feat so easily.
The outcome of this battle was only possible because one party was willing to fight while the other party was willing to endure. Mo Na Ye was desperate to succeed and Yang Kai was willing to cooperate.
All of a sudden, a powerful aura invaded Yang Kai’s perception from the direction of the No-Return Pass and approached at lightning speed. He turned to look in that direction, coldly snorting in his heart. [Mo Na Ye’s arrival sure is timely. Out of all the times he could choose to come, he had to come just when I was planning to retreat.]
If he was in perfect condition, he would not be scared to encounter Mo Na Ye in the vast, empty void. He had been chased by more than one Royal Lord in the past and had even killed one of them, so what was a mere Pseudo-Royal Lord in comparison?
However, he was heavily wounded at the moment. Yang Kai’s strength was no longer at its peak as both his World Force and Spiritual Energy were basically depleted. If he was targeted by Mo Na Ye in this condition, he was not confident that he could successfully escape.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai did not regret his actions today. Mo Na Ye had taken the initiative to dangle such tempting carrots in front of him. Even if he knew that it was the Black Ink Clan’s trap, Yang Kai could not resist biting. Now was the best time to reduce the strength of the Black Ink Clan. If he did not take this opportunity to kill as many Innate Territory Lords as he could, then many more Humans would die in the future.
Space Principles lingered around his figure as Yang Kai immediately prepared to escape after having sensed Mo Na Ye’s aura approaching.
However, how could the Territory Lords surrounding him allow him to escape so easily? These Territory Lords had been terrified of him earlier, so nobody had dared to confront him recklessly, but at this moment, they seemed bolstered by a newfound sense of courage. Every one of them became as mighty as a dragon and as fierce as a tiger. Their auras locked onto his body, surging violently as they channelled their power. To disrupt his escape, some blasted Secret Techniques at him while others went all out to shake the surrounding Void with their power.
Activating Instantaneous Movement under these circumstances was undoubtedly a fool’s dream. Even Yang Kai could not achieve such a feat. Fortunately, he was not unprepared for such situations. While surging his power to block the storm of attacks, he tried to connect with a Space Beacon.
Over the years, he had placed countless Space Beacons across the Black Ink Battlefield. There was no doubt that performing Space Secret Techniques was much easier and less energy-consuming with the help of these Space Beacons.
It did not take long for Yang Kai to detect the nearest Space Beacon to his current location. Space Principles fluctuated, and his figure began to turn hazy as though he was about to melt into the Void. Before he could vanish completely though, another storm of attacks rained down on him once more. His entire figure shuddered from the force and the space around him became warped, causing his blurry image to solidify again.
Sure enough, it was not feasible for him to escape even with the help of a Space Beacon when so many powerful opponents were surrounding him.
Yang Kai did not hesitate. With a flick of the Azure Dragon Spear, he brazenly charged towards the spot where the defence was the weakest in the Black Ink Clan’s siege. Since he could not escape, he had to break out of the encirclement. That was something he had considered beforehand.
His figure moved with his spear, and thanks to the Supreme Limitless Spear Art, he practically became one with it. He boldly rushed towards the Territory Lords, braving the countless attacks blasting towards him.
The Territory Lords facing him were shocked and frightened, so they instinctively moved to avoid him; however, Mo Na Ye’s furious roar came from the distance at that exact moment, “Stop him!”
After a brief moment of hesitation, the Territory Lords surged their powers in unison and challenged Yang Kai directly.
At the same time that a Battle Formation of four Territory Lords was destroyed, Yang Kai staggered back from the attacks that came from the side. Nevertheless, he threw his head back and roared with laughter, “Who can stop me if I want to leave?”
There was no time for him to exterminate the four Territory Lords whose Battle Formation was broken, but he still rushed out of the encirclement. Unfortunately, a sense of crisis threatened to overcome him before he could activate his Space Principles.
From a distance, Mo Na Ye slammed his palm towards Yang Kai’s direction with a cold snort, “You’re too arrogant, Yang Kai!”
In the brief moment that Yang Kai was delayed just now, Mo Na Ye had arrived in the vicinity!
The long-distance attack made Yang Kai stagger and his Instantaneous Movement Technique that he was about to activate was interrupted halfway. The sound of broken bones also came from his body, causing him to cough up a mouthful of Golden Blood.
A Pseudo-Royal Lord had strength almost equal to a true Royal Lord, the only difference was the amount of power they could display. A Pseudo-Royal Lord could only bring out some 70% to 80% of their full strength, making them far inferior to a true Royal Lord.
There was no doubt that Mo Na Ye was stronger than Di Wu though. If Di Wu could exert 70% of a true Royal Lord’s strength, then Mo Na Ye could exert 80%. Although it was only a difference of 10%, it was still a massive gap in power. That was especially true when Yang Kai was so heavily injured and mentally exhausted. Just a long-distance attack had nearly knocked him unconscious.
Yang Kai bit the tip of his tongue hard, then he took the initiative to trigger the power of the Soul Warming Lotus. Only then did he manage to maintain his consciousness. Not daring to delay any longer, he quickly moved to leave. However, an aura locked onto him from behind and stuck to him firmly.
“Yang Kai, I will spare your life if you surrender without a fight!” Mo Na Ye’s roar reverberated in Yang Kai’s ears as his figure gradually approached.
Without even turning to look back, Yang Kai coughed up blood while making his escape, “Mo Na Ye, you’ve gotten arrogant! Are you not even going to call me ‘Brother Yang’ anymore?”
Mo Na Ye chuckled softly, “You need to be qualified for me to call you that!”
His confidence in his ability to defeat Yang Kai was reflected in his expression, which was so smug it was irritating.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai had to admit that it would be difficult for him to escape Mo Na Ye’s pursuit in his current condition. He couldn’t help feeling relieved that his pursuer was a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Mo Na Ye. If it had been Mo Yu, a true Royal Lord instead, things would have been much worse for him.
Activating the Great Sun and Moon Marks, blue and yellow lights merged and transformed into pure white light. When the pure white light covered Yang Kai, the aura that Mo Na Ye locked onto him was severed in an instant. Then, Yang Kai hurriedly activated Space Principles to leave.
Mo Na Ye coldly snorted. The aura that was severed earlier exploded, like an invisible punch, disrupting the Void around Yang Kai. After fighting Yang Kai for so many years, he had already prepared plans for how to deal with such situations.
If Yang Kai had been at full strength, Mo Na Ye’s approach would not have been effective. It was just that Yang Kai had already fought so many Territory Lords earlier, so he was both physically and mentally exhausted. Although he was not at the point where he was a dry oil lamp, he was practically an arrow at the end of its flight; hence, he was a little powerless in the face of Mo Na Ye’s interference.
Yang Kai’s figure turned hazy and vanished from the spot. Then, he left with the Instantaneous Movement Space Technique. Be that as it may, he did not manage to flee far.
Mo Na Ye found Yang Kai’s location with a sweep of his Divine Sense and his powerful aura stretched out again in that direction, clinging to Yang Kai like leeches.
Having sacrificed so many Innate Territory Lords, how could Mo Na Ye’s plan have no effect on Yang Kai? He had already calculated and anticipated all the possible scenarios that could occur when he came up with this trap. Everything was within his expectations.
The next step was for him to hunt down Yang Kai with all his might! He was not going to rest until Yang Kai was dead! As long as he could annihilate Yang Kai, the deaths of all the Innate Territory Lords earlier would be worth it. If he allowed Yang Kai to carry on hunting down the Territory Lords who escaped from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, the losses suffered by the Black Ink Clan would be even greater.
When Yang Kai reappeared, he staggered. He felt light-headed and dizzy, a feeling that he had not felt in a long time. That was when he knew that he had been too greedy. In order to slaughter as many Innate Territory Lords as possible, he had spent too long in the battle which resulted in heavy injuries and extreme fatigue.
Be that as it may, under those circumstances, how could he bring himself to retreat before the last possible moment? Nobody would be willing to leave when faced with so many Innate Territory Lords who could be killed almost effortlessly. Even now, he could only sigh in appreciation. In this confrontation, he had to admit that Mo Na Ye’s trap was truly superior! It was not an easy feat to acknowledge the strength of one’s enemy.
In this battle, he had known that it was a trap Mo Na Ye had prepared for him. Despite that, he had willingly walked into the trap and allowed himself to fall into such a miserable state. Nevertheless, it was unknown who would have the last laugh in this confrontation. It would all depend entirely on their respective skills.
If he could escape Mo Na Ye’s pursuit, then all the scheming and plotting that Mo Na Ye did would turn into something extremely laughable instead. In fact, Mo Na Ye would become thoroughly humiliated. For that reason alone, Yang Kai had to escape the pursuit of a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Mo Na Ye and survive!
He had to fight alone with no help from external forces, there was a significant difference in their strengths, and his life was on the line… All of these factors were disadvantageous to Yang Kai. Fortunately, he was accustomed to such situations. How many times had he been chased by unimaginably powerful enemies? In the end, he always managed to turn the situation around. How could the ship capsize on calm seas now?
Purifying Light appeared once more, severing the aura wrapped around Yang Kai for a second time. Yang Kai then activated Space Principles to escape. Without any delay, he was struck by Mo Na Ye’s interference just as he was about to escape. The severity of his injuries increased. When he reappeared once more, Mo Na Ye swiftly gave chase.
The same situation kept repeating over and over…
The current situation felt familiar to Yang Kai. He couldn’t help but recall the first time he was hunted down by a Royal Lord during his previous escape from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. The current situation was similar to the situation at the time. He had used the Purifying Light to sever the aura that the enemy had locked on him; then, he activated Space Principles to escape. It was just a pity that his enemies would catch up to him soon after.
He had only been in the peak of the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm at the time, so his strength was a far cry from that of a Royal Lord. Although Yang Kai was now at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he was severely injured, so his situation was not much better than it had been last time.
Back then, he had been hunted by the Royal Lord for many years. It was only with the help of the numerous mysterious Celestial Phenomena scattered in the void that he managed to escape danger on many occasions. In the end, Yang Kai had dived deep into the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon and cultivated hard for thousands of years inside numerous Temporal Rivers. When he advanced to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm and came out of the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon, he managed to slaughter the Royal Lord through a series of coincidences and pure luck.
But what about now? Could Yang Kai borrow the power of the Celestial Phenomenon like before? Regrettably, that was not an option. Leaving aside the various dangers hidden within the mysterious Celestial Phenomena, there was too much distance between him and that part of the Black Ink Battlefield. In his current condition, he did not have the confidence to last until he could reach the nearest Celestial Phenomenon.
Escaping to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction was another option. The Suppressing Black Ink Army and Divine Dragon Fu Guang were there, so if he could lure Mo Na Ye that far, he would not only guarantee his own safety, but Fu Guang could also take the opportunity to rip Mo Na Ye in two. Unfortunately, the distance to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction was even further than the Celestial Phenomena, so Yang Kai quickly dismissed the idea.
The only ones in the vicinity who could help him were the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters secretly watching over the Human cultivators mining resources nearby. However, Yang Kai would only bring disaster to them if he sought their help. Those Eighth-Order Masters might be able to resist Mo Na Ye for some time if they joined forces, but the cultivators who were responsible for mining or harvesting resources did not have high strength. Many would die just from the fallout of such a battle. Moreover, they would inevitably be besieged by the Black Ink Clan once their whereabouts were revealed.
These tens of thousands of cultivators were heroes who had gone behind enemy lines for over 1,000 years, risking their lives to collect resources from the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield. It would not be appropriate for Yang Kai to drag them into danger for his own self-interests; therefore, his only option was to face this battle alone!
He couldn’t help feeling secretly resentful. It could be seen that Mo Na Ye was determined to remove him from the equation altogether. He did not have the slightest breathing space in their pursuit. Otherwise, he could have connected with the World Tree and asked the Old Tree to guide him to the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary so that he could hide there for some time. It was too bad that he needed a few breaths for the World Tree to receive him, long enough for Mo Na Ye to butcher him.
Now that there were no external forces that Yang Kai could rely on, he could only rely on himself.
He silently perceived his condition. His physical wounds were slowly healing thanks to his potent Dragon Vein, and the World Force in his Small Universe was gradually recovering with each passing moment. Likewise, the Soul Warming Lotus was soothing the headache in his mind… As long as nobody interfered with his healing process, he would be fully recovered in 10 to 15 days. His recovery abilities had always been very strong.
Be that as it may, Yang Kai was currently being hunted by Mo Na Ye, and every time he activated Space Principles to escape, he would suffer additional injuries. Hence, his strength and Spiritual Energy were constantly being depleted.
Under such circumstances, Yang Kai would probably need to escape Mo Na Ye for three to five years before he could recover sufficiently to throw off his pursuer.
Yang Kai did not know whether he could persist for three to five years, but he knew that a disastrous fate awaited him if he made a careless mistake and gave Mo Na Ye an opportunity to capture him. Unfortunately, the current situation left him with no other choice. If he wanted to survive, then his only option was to endure and persist!
After considering all his options, Yang Kai calmed down considerably. Since that was the only path ahead, he just had to walk it. Once three to five years had passed and he had the confidence to escape alive from Mo Na Ye’s pursuit, he would thoroughly mock and ridicule him for his failure. He was certain that Mo Na Ye’s expression would be extremely exciting to watch at that point!
Travelling through the void, Yang Kai felt an immense aura rapidly approaching him. The aura of death also loomed from behind him. Mo Na Ye’s deep voice echoed in his ears once more, “Yang Kai, you will never escape!”
He did not respond. In truth, he could not spare the strength to give a response. He was focusing all his attention on fleeing.
Purifying Light fluctuated and severed Mo Na Ye’s aura once more… Both Yang Kai and Mo Na Ye were extremely familiar with this routine by now.
In the next moment, Yang Kai activated Space Principles and prepared to escape; meanwhile, Mo Na Ye’s aura surged and shook the Void around Yang Kai’s figure to interrupt his Instantaneous Movement. Their actions were extremely in sync, almost as though their minds were connected.
Just when Yang Kai activated Space Principles and prepared to leave via Instantaneous Movement this time though, he suddenly felt a wave of turbulence in his Small Universe. He vaguely felt as though there was an invisible hand flicking his Small Universe, causing ripples to spread throughout it. As a result, his World Force abruptly became disordered and chaotic.
Under normal circumstances, such occurrences would not have had much of an impact on him. He would only need to restore his chaotic World Force to reverse the effects; however, he was currently fleeing for his life, so the effects of this sudden turn of events were horrifying.
His hazy figure that was about to vanish suddenly turned solid again because of the chaotic disruption. His expression immediately became solemn as a result.
Mo Na Ye, who was pursuing closely from behind, was also stunned by the unexpected change. It was the first time such a situation had happened throughout their chase.
In previous cases, Yang Kai would already have escaped by the time he made his move. The situation left him feeling helpless despite his immense strength and ability. Aside from forcibly interfering with Yang Kai’s Instantaneous Movement, he had not been able to make a single move up until now. The situation had been weighing heavily on Mo Na Ye as a result.
At this moment, he immediately saw an opportunity to make his move. He took action almost instinctively, raising his fist and punching in the direction of Yang Kai. Dense Black Ink Strength spewed out and formed a pitch-black light that broke through the barriers of space in an instant and slammed heavily into Yang Kai.
Mo Na Ye was overjoyed. Increasing his speed, he rushed forward and roared, “Yang Kai, suffer death!”
He raised his fist once more and blasted out another punch; however, this turned out to be useless. When the pitch-black light dissipated, Yang Kai’s figure was no longer anywhere to be seen.
Mo Na Ye’s Divine Sense spread out like a tidal wave, and he immediately perceived Yang Kai’s whereabouts. At this moment, Yang Kai’s aura had obviously declined considerably. It was clearly the work of his attack earlier.
[Is he running out of strength?] Mo Na Ye recalled the strange incident just now and made a speculation. He did not know what happened for Yang Kai to make a mistake at such a critical moment. In any case, Yang Kai’s mistake, which caused his figure to stop for a moment, had allowed Mo Na Ye to exploit. The incident greatly increased Mo Na Ye’s chances of success in capturing or annihilating Yang Kai.
Not far away, Yang Kai looked as pale as a sheet. He opened his mouth and instantly coughed up a considerable amount of Golden Blood. His heart was filled with fear and fury.
After bearing the brunt of Mo Na Ye’s long-distance attack, his poor condition worsened even more. He originally only needed to escape from Mo Na Ye for three to five years to make a comeback, but now… he had the feeling that he would not be able to endure much longer. The power behind the attack of a Pseudo-Royal Lord was extremely heavy, so it was not easy to bear, especially when he was in such poor condition at the moment.
However, what truly horrified and enraged him was that something seemed to be wrong with his Small Universe. For a moment just now, his Small Universe had been inexplicably afflicted by extreme turbulence. It had caused the World Force in his body to become disordered. If not for that, how could he have made such a mistake?
But, why did his Small Universe experience turmoil? His Small Universe had always been protected and stabilized by the World Tree Clone, so it was essentially flawless and impenetrable to external forces. Even in a difficult battle against Mo Na Ye, he should only suffer a terrible beating due to his inferior strength. There should not have been any effects on his Small Universe.
Unless… he was completely out of strength. If his World Force had been fully depleted, that would shake the very foundation of his Small Universe. However, that was also impossible. It was true that his strength had been significantly depleted after such an intense battle, but there were countless living beings in his Small Universe. His World Force was constantly being replenished at all times, so his World Force couldn’t be depleted.
[Just what went wrong?]
As Yang Kai fled with his severely injured body, he separated out a thread of consciousness to investigate the situation inside his Small Universe.
His entire Small Universe was filled with an uneasy atmosphere. The turmoil earlier had caused great panic throughout the Void World. Earthquakes had shaken the ground, rivers had flowed backwards, mountains had collapsed, and tidal waves swept across the seas. These disasters had resulted in countless casualties.
Fortunately, the disaster passed just as quickly as it came. There was no further serious damage to his Small Universe at this point. Nevertheless, the Masters of the major Sects and the Void Dao Temple were investigating the situation for the cause, without any success of course.
Yang Kai scowled deeply.
His Small Universe was safe and sound. In that case, what was the cause of the disaster earlier? What puzzled him even more was that something seemed to be drawing his attention, almost as if it was calling out to him from somewhere.
He inadvertently raised his head and looked in a certain direction. It was none other than the direction where he had fought hundreds of Innate Territory Lords earlier. Something seemed to be waiting for him there.
[Is it a trap by the Black Ink Clan? Is it another one of Mo Na Ye’s ploys? No, it doesn’t seem like a trap.]
At his cultivation realm, Yang Kai’s mind and will were strongly fortified. It should be impossible for him to be affected by external influences. The force that was guiding him was most likely a form of guidance from something on a much higher level.
Yang Kai quietly observed Mo Na Ye’s expression as the latter rapidly closed the distance between them.
Mo Na Ye was not hiding the murderous intent radiating from his entire being, but more importantly, he seemed oblivious to Yang Kai’s current abnormal state.
Unbeknownst to Yang Kai, when the wave of turbulence struck his Small Universe, the same phenomenon had occurred throughout the entire 3,000 Worlds. As long as it was a place occupied by the Human Race, be it High Heaven Territory, the New Great Territory, the battlefields across the various Great Territories, or the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, all the Human Race Masters at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm and above had experienced the same turbulence in their Small Universe and subsequently felt the same subtle pull.
Fortunately, most of these veterans at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm were not engaged in battle at the time; otherwise, they might have been severely wounded or killed as a result.
…..
In one of the peaceful Universes located in the New Great Territory, although the World’s Grand Dao had been perfected and the vitality was flourishing, the Universe World had yet to produce any living creatures with high sentience.
There was a simple thatched hut on one of the tall mountains inside the Universe World, but there was no telling how long the thatched hut had been there as it was surrounded by various Arrays to protect it from the erosion of time.
After the Human Race Masters at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm experienced the turbulence in their Small Universe, a figure suddenly flew out of the thatched hut. He came to stand in the middle of the sky and looked up at the Heavens solemnly. Then, his expression seemed to change slightly.
If any of the Black Ink Clan higher-ups were here, they would most likely have recognised him. He was the Human Race Master, Xiang Shan! Aside from Yang Kai, he was one of the few Human Race Masters who were a major concern to the Black Ink Clan.
Mo Na Ye had always suspected that a new Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master had already appeared. Among the possible candidates, Xiang Shan and several other veteran Eighth-Order Masters had the highest possibility of breaking through. That was because they had not appeared on any of the Great Territory Battlefields for many centuries.
Nobody knew where these veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were hiding. Although the Black Ink Clan had many Black Ink Disciples acting as spies, such top-secret information could not be obtained no matter what methods were used by these low-level personnel. Even Yang Kai did not know where Xiang Shan was in seclusion, not that he had ever bothered to ask.
Unfortunately, the reality of the matter was that Xiang Shan, whose cultivation had regressed after he sacrificed a large portion of his Small Universe in the past, had not been able to break through to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm even though he had been cultivating in retreat for so long. Even now, he was only at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Nevertheless, there were very few among the veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters with the qualification to advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm in the first place. It could be said that Xiang Shan was one of the few cultivators closest to the Ninth Order.
When the turbulence swept throughout the Universe, Xiang Shan had also been disturbed. The phenomenon had interrupted him in the middle of his retreat, causing nearly 1,000 of hard work to come to nought.
If it were anybody else, they would inevitably have lost their composure. In the worst case, they might even suffer a trace of cultivation dissonance. Luckily, Xiang Shan’s mind was strong and stable thanks to the many ups and downs he suffered in life. Although he was disappointed, he was not too bothered by the loss. He simply pondered for a moment before he vaguely understood what had happened.
Xiang Shan was different from Yang Kai after all. Yang Kai might be famous throughout the known Universe, but he had lived a much shorter life than the true veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. It was only natural that he had experienced much less in life compared to these old monsters.
What Yang Kai did not know; Xiang Shan understood almost instantly. With a vertical movement, his figure transformed into a stream of light and charged out of the Universe World, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
At the same time, various messages began to spread among the Human Race as the Open Heaven Realm Masters who had lived long enough had a vague understanding of what was about to take place.
…..
On the Black Ink Battlefield where Yang Kai had fought hundreds of Innate Territory Lords earlier, after Yang Kai escaped and Mo Na Ye pursued, the surviving Innate Territory Lords seemed to be in no hurry to leave. It was not that they did not want to leave, but rather that they were heavily wounded and their energy reserves had been depleted, so they were having trouble moving about freely.
They might have survived the battle, but too many of them had lost their lives to Yang Kai. Nearly 200 Innate Territory Lords had been slaughtered by Yang Kai in that fight, an outcome that would surely be recorded in the annals of history.
In any case, they were not worried that Yang Kai might return here. Mo Na Ye was personally hunting him down after all. He would be having enough trouble just escaping with his life, so where would he find the energy to wheel around to attack them again?
While they were resting though, none of the Territory Lords noticed that an extremely mysterious force was slowly permeating the nearby void. There were no words to describe the force accurately, but it was no threat to the Territory Lords. On the contrary, it seemed to seamlessly seep into everything without a sound.
As the force began to condense, numerous illusory lines emerged and slowly connected with each other to form a strange image… The illusory phantom covered a huge swath of the void and enveloped the Territory Lords. Strangely enough, none of the Territory Lords noticed anything at all. It was not until a certain Territory Lord suddenly opened his eyes and looked around that he realised something was wrong. He shouted a warning, startling the other Territory Lords from their rest.
Not knowing exactly what was happening, let alone what the illusory phantom that inexplicably appeared was, the Territory Lords did not dare to remain. They quickly summoned their strength to leave this place; however, they soon discovered something strange.
The void within the range of the illusory phantom had twisted and folded upon itself. No matter how they tried to escape, they could not leave the range of the illusory phantom. It was as if they were trapped inside an inexplicable Array, a reality that shocked and horrified them.
These Territory Lords had snuck out from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. After travelling for 10 years and avoiding being hunted by Yang Kai along the way, they finally arrived at the No-Return Pass. Before they could heal from their wounds and recover their strength though, they were used as pawns to besiege Yang Kai under Mo Na Ye’s order.
Many of their clansmen had died in the previous battle, and those who survived initially thought that they would finally be rewarded for all their hardships. Who could have known that such a strange phenomenon would occur? For some reason, they were trapped in the void now with no means of escape.
For a time, many were filled with an inexplicable sense of grief and indignation. How could the outside world be so dangerous? Although life in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had been boring and monotonous, it had at least been safe. Hence, they were starting to miss the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
The region where the Territory Lords were located was not the only place where the peculiar illusory phantom appeared. Many illusory phantoms also emerged out of thin air on the battlefields across the various Great Territories where both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan were fighting. The phenomenon even occurred in the deserted Barren Territory and at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
The illusory phantoms might be scattered across the Universe, but they had the same shape. It was as though a mysterious existence had projected its image at all these different locations. The illusory phantoms loomed over the vast void; however, only the unlucky Innate Territory Lords on the Black Ink Battlefield were trapped within its range. No other living being had been trapped within the illusory phantom; after all, the illusory phantom had emerged very slowly and those with the slightest sense of vigilance had fled at the first sign of its appearance.
The Black Ink Clan was completely bewildered by the phenomenon, but some of the veteran Human Race Masters rejoiced. Some even cheered and praised the Heavens for blessing the Human Race, acting as though the appearance of the illusory phantom was a great blessing to them.
The news quickly spread to the Supreme Headquarters as soon as the illusory phantom manifested in the void, where Mi Jing Lun quickly realized what was happening and also cheered, [What opportune timing!]
For this phenomenon to appear at this point in time… The delicate balance between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan that had been carefully maintained for the past few thousand years was surely about to be broken! The tidal wave, which was destined to sweep across the Universe after accumulating for so many years, was about to come!
Numerous orders were quickly issued and relayed to various parties. Like a sophisticated Grand Array, the entire Human Race began to operate with the Supreme Headquarters as the Core. At the same time, Mi Jing Lun also ordered many different types of ancient books that had been collected by the Cave Heavens and Paradises over the years to be brought to the Supreme Headquarters.
A stream of light soon arrived from the outside and landed in front of the Supreme Headquarters. When the soldiers on duty saw the appearance of the visitor, they immediately allowed him to enter without hindrance.
Mi Jing Lun, who was reviewing the information at the time, looked up with a slight glint of sadness in his eyes. Although he knew that it was unlikely for Xiang Shan to advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he couldn’t help feeling disappointed when the outcome was blatantly displayed in front of him.
Xiang Shan walked straight to the table and glanced at the information in front of Mi Jing Lun; then, he raised his brow and asked, “Is it really the Universe Furnace?”
Mi Jing Lun nodded, “I’m sure you’ve sensed it too.”
Xiang Shan agreed, “I was in retreat when my mind became restless and the turbulence struck my Small Universe. It was rumoured that those at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm would experience a resonance when the Universe Furnace appeared. I guess the rumours were true.” After a pause, he added, “Where is it located?”
Mi Jing Lun massaged his temples with a troubled look, “There seems to be more than one location!”
“What do you mean?” Xiang Shan was stunned.
“Take a look for yourself.” Mi Jing Lun pushed a jade slip towards Xiang Shan.
Xiang Shan took the jade slip and checked the contents; then, he exclaimed in astonishment, “How can this be?”
According to the intelligence received by the Supreme Headquarters, the illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace had appeared on a number of the Great Territory Battlefields. Moreover, these were only the ones detected by the Human Race. There was no saying whether anything had slipped through their investigations.
Mi Jing Lun elaborated, “According to the records in the ancient books of the Cave Heavens and Paradises, it is possible for there to be more than one location when the Universe Furnace emerges. At most there were three locations in the past. There has never been a precedent where there were more than 10 locations at once.”
Xiang Shan reminisced with a fond look on his face, “A long time ago, I heard my Honoured Master talking about the Universe Furnace. The Ancestors speculated that the Universe Furnace always remained hidden beyond our Universe. Nobody has ever seen the true Universe Furnace before. On the contrary, what we see is nothing more than its projection. Although the projection is illusory, it is closely related to the body of the Universe Furnace. More than that, the projection is the entrance to the Universe Furnace.”
Mi Jing Lun nodded, “I’ve heard the Seniors discussing this idea in the past. Moreover, the number of projections seems to be related to the number of deaths and the strength of the deceased in a particular area. According to the records, more projections will appear when more strong beings lose their lives.”
Xiang Shan immediately understood, “Is that why there are projections on every Great Territory Battlefield?”
“That’s probably the reason. Both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan suffered countless casualties on the Great Territory Battlefields, and many of these casualties were Open Heaven Realm Masters. Therefore, it is not surprising for the projection of the Universe Furnace to appear on these Great Territory Battlefields.”
“By that logic, projections should also appear in the Barren Territory and at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.”
Countless beings had died in the wars at both the Barren Territory and the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. In particular, the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors and Royal Lords had practically annihilated each other in these two locations. There was a high possibility that the projections of the Universe Furnace had appeared at those two locations.
The location of the projection was the location of the entrance to the Universe Furnace. In other words, there were more options for a person if they wanted to seize the opportunity to enter the Universe Furnace; however, this was not good news for the Human Race.
If there were only one or two entrances, then the Human Race would definitely go all out to seize control of these locations and prevent the Black Ink Clan from entering. Unfortunately, it was a fool’s dream to hope that they could control all the entrances under these circumstances. The Black Ink Clan would also have the opportunity to enter the Universe Furnace, which would be extremely disadvantageous to the Human Race. The current situation would inevitably lead to a bloody battle that would in turn destroy the current balance.
“When was the last time the Universe Furnace appeared?” Xiang Shan asked.
Mi Jing Lun replied, “Around 200,000 years ago.”
Xiang Shan frowned. Too much time had passed since the last appearance. Even if the ancient books of the Cave Heavens and Paradises contained any records, they would likely not be complete or comprehensive.
Mi Jing Lun was currently reading through the ancient books to find some useful information, so the Human Race Masters were not completely blind when they entered the Universe Furnace.
“Every time the Universe Furnace appeared in the past, the projections mostly only appeared on the Black Ink Battlefield. The projections would occasionally appear in the 3,000 Worlds, but those occurrences were rare; therefore, the records left behind in the 3,000 Worlds do not contain much useful information.”
The number and location of projected entrances to the Universe Furnace was closely linked to the number of powerful living beings who died nearby, that much was certain. There had always been various conflicts in the 3,000 Worlds, but large-scale wars were basically non-existent, so the projections rarely appeared in the 3,000 Worlds. The projections generally only appeared on the Black Ink Battlefield.
Among the Old Ancestors, a number had advanced to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm thanks to the opportunities they obtained in the Universe Furnace. For that reason, the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors should have some knowledge regarding the Universe Furnace. Unfortunately, most of the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors lost their lives during the battles at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and the Barren Territory. Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing were the only two Ninth-Order Old Ancestors who survived.
The problem was that these two were considered rising stars among the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors. Only a few thousand years had passed since Wu Qing advanced to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, and though Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao advanced earlier, it was still just 20,000 years ago. There was a high possibility that she had not experienced the last appearance of the Universe Furnace.
At present, it was an extravagant hope to acquire information regarding the Universe Furnace from the Masters of the previous generation. Even so, Mi Jing Lun immediately sent men to Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing to inquire about the Universe Furnace. After all, these two were still older than the rest and they might have some useful information.
“What about the Divine Spirits?” Xiang Shan asked, “Some of them have probably lived long enough. Shouldn’t they know something about the Universe Furnace?”
Mi Jing Lun replied, “I have sent messengers to the Elders of the Dragon and Phoenix Clans, but we shouldn’t expect too much. The Divine Spirits generally remained at the No-Return Pass without leaving their position. Although they have lived long enough, they did not participate even when the Universe Furnace appeared in the past; hence, they probably do not know much about the Universe Furnace either.” He continued after a pause, “I also sent messages to some of the Elders from the Cave Heavens and Paradises. We’ll see what information we can obtain.”
The Elders from the Cave Heavens and Paradises might not be very strong, but they had lived for a long time. Even if they did not experience the Universe Furnace in person, they might have heard something from their Seniors.
It was quite a sad situation. Although the Universe Furnace was undoubtedly the biggest opportunity for the Human Race, the interval between each appearance was so long that the Human Race did not know much about it. At this moment, their most urgent task was to collect as much information as possible.
“Will there be enough time?” Xiang Shan asked slightly anxiously.
“There is nothing to worry about on that front,” Mi Jing Lun reassured, “According to the records in these ancient books, the appearance of the Universe Furnace’s projections is just the beginning. The entrance will only open once the projections have solidified completely. This process can take a long time, ranging from a few months to five years.”
Xiang Shan nodded lightly, then he suddenly looked at Mi Jing Lun with an apologetic expression, “I want to enter the Universe Furnace!”
Although he had the qualifications to advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he had determined that he could not do so with his own strength alone after cultivating in retreat for the past 1,000 or so years. The damage he suffered when his cultivation regressed might have seemed harmless at the time, but apparently, there had been a profound impact on his foundation after all.
Mi Jing Lun smiled and said, “Brother Xiang, of course, you should be able to enter the Universe Furnace. There’s no need to feel awkward; after all, your advancement to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm will bring greater pressure to the Black Ink Clan.”
Aside from Xiang Shan, the only other person in the Human Race who qualified to coordinate the overall situation and strategize the logistics was Mi Jing Lun. During the years that Xiang Shan had been cultivating in retreat, Mi Jing Lun had basically taken charge of the entire Supreme Headquarters and managed the whole Human Race in an orderly manner.
The Universe Furnace was a great opportunity for both of them, but unfortunately, both of them couldn’t enter it together. One of them had to stay behind to lead the Human Race; otherwise, chaos would surely erupt. In other words, if Xiang Shan were to enter the Universe Furnace, then Mi Jing Lun had to stay behind. That was one of the reasons why Xiang Shan felt slightly guilty.
However, Xiang Shan was not acting solely out of personal interests. It was just as Mi Jing Lun said. Although they were both at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, Xiang Shan was superior in terms of combat power; hence, it would be better for him to enter the Universe Furnace in search of an opportunity to break through.
In this regard, Mi Jing Lun was very understanding. Even if Xiang Shan had not said anything, he would have made the same arrangements.
Xiang Shan said nothing more and changed the topic, “Where is Yang Kai?”
Mi Jing Lun answered solemnly, “We had some problems at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction…”
Mi Jing Lun then gave Xiang Shan a rundown regarding the news that Ou Yang Lie brought back and Yang Kai’s warning. Upon hearing the situation, Xiang Shan frowned deeply and instantly understood the gravity of the problem.
A flaw had appeared in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, and an unknown number of Innate Territory Lords had escaped from inside. The strength of the Black Ink Clan at the No-Return Pass was bound to have increased significantly as a result. With an increase in the number of Innate Territory Lords, the Black Ink Clan would have more flexibility and manoeuvrability in making future decisions and arrangements.
Leaving aside everything else, just the creation of more Pseudo-Royal Lords alone was a huge concern to the Human Race!
In the past, the Black Ink Clan was extremely reluctant to produce Pseudo-Royal Lords because the price was simply too high. More importantly, the birth of a single Pseudo-Royal Lord had little impact on the overall situation between the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race compared to the immense sacrifice required. However, there were many more Innate Territory Lords now. Those Innate Territory Lords also brought many High-Rank Black Ink Nests with them when they escaped from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
At this rate, the Black Ink Clan no longer had any reason to hold back when it came to creating more Pseudo-Royal Lords. Coupled with the fact that the Universe Furnace was about to appear, the Black Ink Clan was bound to obstruct the Human Race in every possible way to prevent them from obtaining new opportunities.
A storm was coming!
A catastrophe would soon loom over the world with the emergence of the Universe Furnace as its herald. It was both an opportunity and a crisis for the Human Race.
In any case, such a huge event would not escape Yang Kai’s perception. Regardless of where he was now, he was bound to enter the Universe Furnace when the entrances were fully formed. The situation might not turn out too badly if he joined forces with Xiang Shan inside the Universe Furnace.
“Profound Nether Army’s Blood Crow requests to meet Supreme Commander Mi!” A roar suddenly came from outside the Grand Hall.
Xiang Shan and Mi Jing Lun exchanged a glance of astonishment.
Xiang Shan had a vague impression of the name ‘Blood Crow’. Not only was Blood Crow’s background somewhat special, but he also used to be a member of Yang Kai’s Dawn Squad. Xiang Shan had paid much attention to Yang Kai’s Dawn Squad back in the Great Evolution Army, so it was only natural for him to know about Blood Crow.
On the other hand, Mi Jing Lun seemed stunned for a moment; then, his eyes lit up in excitement, “I can’t believe I forgot about him!”
While saying so, he jumped to his feet and went to meet Blood Crow without any delay.
A short while later, Mi Jing Lun and Blood Crow entered the Grand Hall together. One person had a peaceful air around them while the other had an extremely flamboyant aura. The Blood Qi around Blood Crow was so thick that it was practically solid, lingering around him to form a layer of crimson Blood Mist that was visible to the naked eye.
Xiang Shan frowned upon seeing this…
Blood Crow’s cultivation gave Xiang Shan a strange feeling. He seemed to be in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm, but also the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Regardless of whether he was in the Seventh Order or the Eighth Order though, he should be able to properly control his cultivation realm aura. However, his appearance seemed to indicate that he could not control his own strength. He was not deliberately being flamboyant with his aura; rather, it was because his power was slightly out of his control.
If Xiang Shan remembered correctly, Blood Crow cultivated a Secret Art known as Grand Evolution Immortal Blood Light Scripture, which was an Evil Technique. Blood Crow had caused great chaos in the Shattered Heaven some millennia ago and many disciples from the Cave Heavens and Paradises had died tragically in his hands during that period. In the end, though, he was captured alive by a Master from Bright King Heaven and thrown into the Black Ink Battlefield to redeem himself.
All kinds of information about Blood Crow quickly flashed through Xiang Shan’s mind, and he eventually labelled Blood Crow as a heretic. He did not have a favourable opinion of this person, and if not for the ongoing struggle between the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race, he would have taken matters into his own hands to ‘deal’ with this problem individual
At this moment though, Mi Jing Lun was enthusiastically welcoming Blood Crow inside.
Seeing Xiang Shan, Blood Crow generously cupped his fists in greeting, “Greetings, Brother Xiang.”
Blood Crow did not address Xiang Shan as ‘Senior Brother’ or by any other respectful title. Fortunately, Xiang Shan was not bothered by such formalities and simply nodded his head lightly to return the greeting. After all, he could not be called ‘Senior Brother’ by Blood Crow if they went strictly by seniority.
After asking Blood Crow to take a seat, Mi Jing Lun finally asked the important question, “Why did you come looking for me today?”
Although he had some speculations in his heart, he couldn’t help feeling overjoyed to hear the actual sentence coming from Blood Crow himself. Then, he heard Blood Crow’s indifferent voice, “I’ve been to the Universe Furnace before!”
…
In the Suppressing Black Ink Fortress outside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, the Suppressing Black Ink Army of 6,000 had finally gained the absolute upper hand in their 1,000-year confrontation against the Black Ink Clan. Moreover, they suffered very few casualties.
In the end, the only purpose of the Black Ink Clan in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction in attacking the Suppressing Black Ink Army was to keep the Humans and Wu Kuang distracted while they searched for another way to escape, a venture they eventually succeeded in, at least temporarily.
At this moment, the void was deathly quiet. The gap in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction remained, but the Black Ink Clan was no longer rushing out to their deaths.
The flaw in the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction that the Black Ink Clan opened with great difficulty had been exposed and patched by Wu Kuang. Now that there was no means for the Black Ink Clan to sneak out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and the enemy was on guard against such attempts, they no longer had a reason to waste their resources by confronting the Humans outside.
Wu Kuang did not bother to close the gap either. Since it had already been opened, he would most likely cause further impact to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction if he tried to close it again. It was better to simply maintain the current state without making any changes.
As a result, the Suppressing Black Ink Army couldn’t help feeling bored now that they had nothing to do. It was fortunate that they could still focus on their own cultivation.
Just as Xiang Shan and Mi Jing Lun guessed, when the projections of the Universe Furnace appeared everywhere in the Universe, one also appeared outside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
All the cultivators whose cultivation had reached the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm were startled by a sense of resonance that welled up at the sight of the phenomenon. Looking at the projection gave them a sense of desire and yearning.
There were several veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in the Suppressing Black Ink Army, so they immediately guessed the situation when they saw the projection.
As news that the Universe Furnace would be emerging soon spread throughout the entire Suppressing Black Ink Army, many Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were shaken by the news.
There were a total of 400 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in the Suppressing Black Ink Army to begin with, and several others had broken through to that realm over the last 1,000 years. However, less than 10% of them had the qualifications to advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Even Yu Ru Meng, Su Yan, and the others had only advanced directly to the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, so their limit was the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
On the contrary, rising stars like Zhao Ye Bai, Zhao Ya, and Xu Yi had ascended to the Seventh Order directly and were expected to reach the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm in the future.
As cultivators, it did not matter whether they were men or women, they all desired to seek greater heights in the Martial Dao. It was their greatest wish to climb beyond the peak in hopes of seeing an even broader and exciting scenery. For that reason, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters of the Suppressing Black Ink Army were riled up when news of the upcoming emergence of the Universe Furnace spread.
Be that as it may, neither the veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters nor the rising stars in the same realm knew much about the Universe Furnace. All they knew was that it produced Innate Open Heaven Pills that could help cultivators break through their natural limits. As for what these Innate Open Heaven Pills looked like or how to obtain them, everything was a complete mystery.
Fortunately, there was a Divine Dragon amongst them. In terms of age and seniority, Fu Guang was undoubtedly leagues above everyone else here. He was well-informed and knowledgeable, so he might know something about the Universe Furnace.
Yang Xiao immediately turned to Fu Guang, who was standing nearby and staring at the projection of the Universe Furnace with a solemn expression, “Senior, is that how the Universe Furnace looks?”
Fu Guang smiled faintly, “How else should it look, if not this?”
Yang Xiao laughed dryly, “I don’t know. In any case, it is different from what I imagined.” After a brief pause, he added another question, “Senior, since the Universe Furnace appeared before us, does that mean we have the advantage of being the closest?”
Fu Guang glanced sideways at Yang Xiao, “You think too much. This is nothing more than a projection of the Universe Furnace. Its true body has always been hidden somewhere beyond the known Universe. Nobody has ever seen it before in history.”
“A projection?” Yang Xiao was stunned. He was not the only one; many of the rising star Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters around him were also stunned.
One of the veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters explained, “It is rumoured that the Universe Furnace will reveal a projection of itself in the vast expanse of the Universe before it appears. Once it completely solidifies, it will transform into an entrance for us to enter the Universe Furnace in search of opportunities.”
Yang Xiao was even more confused by the explanation, “Enter the Universe Furnace in search of opportunities? Does that mean there is a Sealed World inside the Universe Furnace?”
The veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master shook his head, “I don’t know the exact details either. These are just what I heard from my Elders when I was younger.”
Another person stepped up, “There’s a possibility that the projection appeared at more than one location. The appearance of the projection is apparently related to the number of powerful Masters who died in a specific place. Too many living beings have lost their lives in the wars here, so it’s not surprising for a projection to appear here.”
“Are you saying there are projections elsewhere?” Somebody asked curiously.
“Yes, I believe so. There are so many Great Territory Battlefields nowadays, and countless living creatures lost their lives in battle on every one of them. I believe there are projections on most, if not all the various Great Territory Battlefields too.”
“Doesn’t that mean we’re not the only ones with access to the Universe Furnace?”
“Of course. Anywhere with a projection would be connected to the Universe Furnace once they solidify into entrances.”
The veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters reported all the information they knew.
Meanwhile, Yang Xiao listened curiously from the side. Scratching his ears thoughtfully, he leaned over to Yang Xue and murmured, “It’s different from what I imagined.”
Yang Xue nodded in agreement, “En, it’s different from what I imagined too.”
They had always heard that the Universe Furnace contained Innate Open Heaven Pills that could allow a person to break through their shackles. Now that the Universe Furnace was in front of them, they wrongly assumed that they would only need to wait quietly for the mysterious Innate Open Heaven Pills to fly out when the time was right. When that moment came, they would then compete for the Open Heaven Pills.
It was not until this moment that they learned that the Universe Furnace in front of them was nothing more than a projection. Even when the time was right, no Open Heaven Pills would fly out of the Universe Furnace. On the contrary, they would need to enter the Universe Furnace to seek these treasures out.
They held a whispered conversation between themselves for a short time; then, Yang Xiao turned to look at Fu Guang again, “Senior, do you know a lot about the Universe Furnace?”
All the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters abruptly stopped talking and looked at Fu Guang with expectant expressions. They clearly hoped to gain more information from him.
Contrary to expectations, however, Fu Guang just shook his head, “The Divine Spirits do not participate when the Universe Furnace manifests in the world, so all I know is hearsay. However… the Universe Furnace does indeed contain a Sealed World of its own. If you enter the Universe Furnace, you can search for opportunities. If you can obtain one of the legendary Innate Open Heaven Pills, it would not be impossible for you to break through your shackles.”
With just a few words, all the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were beside themselves with excitement.
On the other hand, Yang Xiao could barely stop himself from rushing forward at this very moment, [I might not require one of these Innate Open Heaven Pills since I’m part of the Dragon Clan, but Adoptive Father definitely needs them! He is already so strong; he shouldn’t be stuck in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm. That’s right! Adoptive Father will definitely enter the Universe Furnace in search of opportunities. I’m no longer the little White Dragon who could only take shelter under his wings! It’s only right that I enter the Universe Furnace to help him!]
Seeing Yang Xiao’s eagerness, Zhao Ye Bai immediately stopped him, “Senior Brother, please don’t be rash. The projection might look ordinary, but the space around it is actually highly distorted. I can’t tell how many folds there are. You will definitely be trapped within if you rush in recklessly.”
Although there were many Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters present, not many of them had cultivated the Dao of Space. In terms of attainment in the Dao of Space, Zhao Ye Bai was undoubtedly the best.
Not even Su Yan and Liu Yan, both of whom had Phoenix Clan Sources, could compete with Zhao Ye Bai in this regard. Neither of them was of orthodox Phoenix Clan origin after all. Although they had Phoenix Clan Sources and even cultivated in the Phoenix Nest for some time, their compatibility with the Grand Dao of Space could not compare to Zhao Ye Bai, who was blessed with natural talent and trained from young.
Others might not be able to detect the distortion in the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom with careful observation, but Zhao Ye Bai could perceive the truth at a glance. More importantly, he had made his point clear. There was no reason for Yang Xiao to distrust those words, so he immediately nodded in understanding and adopted a prudent demeanour, “This Senior Brother understands!”
Afterwards, he suddenly heard Fu Guang speaking to the crowd, “The Universe Furnace will soon manifest. It will represent a great opportunity for all of you. Seeing as the Suppressing Black Ink Army is not involved in any fighting at the moment, I will allow 50 of you to enter the Universe Furnace to explore. Once the entrance to the Universe Furnace is fully formed, you may enter immediately. As for how the quota should be distributed, you may discuss and decide among yourselves.”
50 spots out of 400 plus Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters might not seem like much, but it was actually the absolute limit. The Suppressing Black Ink Army might be at peace for now, but nobody could guarantee when the Black Ink Clan might suddenly launch an attack. The overall strength of the Suppressing Black Ink Army would be affected if too many Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters left for the Universe Furnace, which would place them at a disadvantage against the Black Ink Clan’s assault. Therefore, after taking everything into consideration, only 50 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters could be allowed to leave.
As for the exact candidates to be sent into the Universe Furnace, it was not Fu Guang’s place to decide. In the end, the decision could only be left to the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters to discuss and negotiate among themselves. Such an opportunity was something anybody would want to obtain after all. He could only hope that the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters would not ruin their comradery with each other over the competition to obtain this opportunity.
…..
In the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield.
Due to the sudden turmoil all around the Universe, a momentary lapse in strength caused Yang Kai to be struck by Mo Na Ye’s assault. His condition had gotten significantly worse as a result. He did not understand the phenomenon earlier; after all, he had a World Tree Clone sealing and stabilizing his Small Universe. How could he be affected by some inexplicable phenomenon which ultimately resulted in his difficult situation right now?
Despite coughing up blood, Yang Kai swiftly flew through the void. He was tracing the vague feeling in his heart, which steered him back along his original path. Even now, he did not know the cause of that mysterious calling. He had initially suspected that it was part of the Black Ink Clan’s trap, but he quickly realised upon careful consideration.
If the Black Ink Clan had such ability, they would have drawn him out with this method in the first place. They would never have allowed him to intercept and hunt down so many Innate Territory Lords, much less be forced to set an ambush and wait for him to fall into their encirclement. Therefore, this phenomenon was clearly not part of the Black Ink Clan’s machinations.
If it was not part of the Black Ink Clan’s schemes though, what did he feel earlier? At a time when his life was hanging by a thread, Yang Kai normally would not have paid any attention to such an inexplicable phenomenon; however, he had a hunch that he might have found the opportunity he needed to overcome his current crisis! That was why he only hesitated for a moment before he unswervingly headed in the direction he was seemingly being summoned.
During this period, he was struck by Mo Na Ye’s long-distance attacks on several occasions. The impact caused stars to appear in his vision and his figure to stagger unsteadily. He felt as though he was at the end of his rope.
Seeming to realise Yang Kai’s current condition, Mo Na Ye doggedly gave chase. His attacks did not ease up in the slightest and instead became fiercer and fiercer; after all, he was well aware of the principle that ‘a long night brings many dreams’.
Against an opponent like Yang Kai, he could not afford to slip up or provide any opportunities for the former to exploit. Otherwise, his previous efforts might all be for nought. Having gradually driven Yang Kai to a desperate situation, it was only a matter of time before Mo Na Ye caught up with and slaughtered his foe. Nevertheless, he became more and more cautious as the climax slowly approached.
His heart was filled with a sense of anticipation. After confronting each other for so many years, Mo Na Ye had always been forced to bear various humiliations. He had yielded to Yang Kai on countless occasions, which made his reputation plummet among the Black Ink Clan. The Territory Lords constantly criticized and ridiculed him, but he simply ignored them. That was because he knew that the Black Ink Clan would be the one to suffer if he did not surrender to Yang Kai on occasion.
All his efforts had been aimed at gaining more advantages for the Black Ink Clan. Compared to that, what was always being at a disadvantage in a confrontation against Yang Kai? So what if his reputation was terrible? So what if the Territory Lords constantly looked down on him? If he could return to the No-Return Pass with the glory of slaughtering Yang Kai, then all the humiliation he suffered before would be washed away immediately.
In any case, he was extremely relieved that Yang Kai was the only irregularity among the Human Race. He never wanted to encounter such a difficult opponent in his life again.
What delighted him even more was that the Royal Lord had always trusted in him and never interfered with his decision-making. Having such a generous leader was the biggest reason he could force Yang Kai into such a desperate situation today. The deaths of all those Innate Territory Lords would be honoured soon!
Although his heart pounded with excitement, Mo Na Ye did not reduce the intensity of his onslaught against Yang Kai.
Purifying Light covered Yang Kai and severed Mo Na Ye’s aura. Then, Space Principles began to fluctuate…
[Can you even escape?] Mo Na Ye sneered coldly. [It’s just the final and useless struggle of a cornered beast!]
The severed aura immediately exploded and shook the surrounding Void. Although Yang Kai successfully left via Instantaneous Movement, he did not manage to flee very far.
Mo Na Ye could instantly perceive Yang Kai’s position with a sweep of his Divine Sense, but just as he was about to give chase, he sensed something that made him scowl deeply. In addition to Yang Kai’s aura, he also sensed many auras belonging to the Innate Territory Lords up ahead.
[Why are they here?]
It was only at this moment that he abruptly realised Yang Kai had been leading him around in a wide circle. They had returned to the battlefield from before!
[Why are those Territory Lords still here?]
The pursuit had lasted for more than half a month, so it stood to reason that the Territory Lords should have returned to the No-Return Pass by now.
[These guys are heavily wounded! Why are they just loitering around!?] Mo Na Ye couldn’t help feeling extremely annoyed.
On the other side, Yang Kai reappeared from the Void and stared at the Innate Territory Lords in confusion. Not many Innate Territory Lords remained alive after the previous battle, less than 100 in total, all of whom were heavily injured, so he couldn’t help having the same doubts and questions as Mo Na Ye.
[Why are these guys still here?] However, Yang Kai soon figured out the reason. There was an enormous illusory phantom looming over a vast swath of the void. At first glance, the illusory phantom looked like… an Alchemy Furnace.
Be that as it may, the Alchemy Furnace seemed slightly different from the ordinary Alchemy Furnaces. Not only was the Alchemy Furnace gigantic, but the illusory surface was covered in various complicated runes and patterns. It felt as though the deepest and most profound truth of the Universe was contained within these markings.
A sense of insight and enlightenment subconsciously welled up inside Yang Kai when he glanced at the Alchemy Furnace. The patterns on its surface were also not static, but instead in a constant state of flow and flux. Moreover, he could clearly feel that the Alchemy Furnace was becoming increasingly solidified at an extremely slow speed.
[What is that?] Yang Kai frowned in puzzlement.
There had been no illusory phantom of the Alchemy Furnace in this place when he initially made his escape, so how did such a strange thing manage to appear here while he was wandering the void for half a month? Nevertheless, he was certain about one thing. The mysterious feeling in his heart was coming from this Alchemy Furnace! The inexplicable turmoil that shook his Small Universe was also caused by this Alchemy Furnace.
[What kind of Alchemy Furnace would have such a mysterious force?] Staring at the illusory phantom of the Alchemy Furnace in front of him, a flash of understanding swept through his mind as an existence that only appeared in rumours and legends instantly sprang to mind.
The Universe Furnace!
During the Late Ancient Era, 10 Martial Ancestors, including Cang, had used the power of the World Tree to gain enlightenment about the Open Heaven Realm Method. It was only after their success that the Human Race began to prosper. At the same time, they finally had the means to confront the Black Ink Clan. Thanks to the capital that allowed them to compete for supremacy in the world, the Human Race gradually became dominant in the vast Universe.
Unfortunately, the Open Heaven Realm Method was innately flawed. All cultivators who cultivated this method were limited by their inherent shackles, the peak of their Martial Dao set in stone the moment they reached this Realm. Nevertheless, nothing was absolute. There was bound to be a loophole somewhere, and the mysterious Universe Furnace was one of those loopholes.
The Universe Furnace bred Innate Open Heaven Pills. If a cultivator could obtain these Innate Open Heaven Pills, then they could break through their shackles and overcome the disadvantages brought about by the limitations of the Open Heaven Realm Method. Be that as it may, the Universe Furnace was a thing of legend and myth, its whereabouts rarely revealed throughout history.
Yang Kai’s understanding of the Universe Furnace was limited to some rumours he heard in the past. According to the rumours, the Universe Furnace was extremely elusive and impossible to locate. Furthermore, the Innate Open Heaven Pills had miraculous effects that could help a cultivator break through their inherent shackles.
All the information he knew was limited to the information accessible by the general public. The Universe Furnace seemed to be even more mysterious than the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary; therefore, he couldn’t help feeling stunned when he realised that the illusory phantom of the Alchemy Furnace belonged to the legendary Universe Furnace.
[I can’t believe the Universe Furnace appeared at this time and location!]
The first thought that sprang to mind was similar to the concerns that Mi Jing Lun had considered previously. This phenomenon might not be a good thing for the Human Race!
The emergence of the Universe Furnace would surely attract the attention of many Human Race Masters. Accordingly, the Black Ink Clan would resort to any means possible just to prevent the Humans from seizing this opportunity.
Up until now, the power accumulated by the Human Race was far from adequate. In stark contrast, the Black Ink Clan just experienced a huge leap in strength thanks to the influx of Innate Territory Lords and High-Rank Black Ink Nests. If the delicate balance that had been maintained for the past several thousand years was broken, the Human Race might not benefit from the outcome.
The second thought that sprang to mind was… that the Universe Furnace seemed a little different from what he had initially imagined. He had always thought the Universe Furnace as something similar to a Supreme Treasure like the Soul Warming Lotus. It would appear out of nowhere one day and exude a mysterious aura into the surroundings. When the time was right, the Innate Open Heaven Pills would fly out of the Universe Furnace and enter the possession of those who were lucky enough to seize them…
The Universe Furnace in front of him not only had the shape of an Alchemy Furnace, but it also exuded a mysterious aura; however, it was much too large. The Universe Furnace loomed over a massive region. Not to mention, it was obviously just an illusory image that was slowly solidifying over time.
[Could it be that the Universe Furnace will only appear once the illusory phantom completely turns solid? I wonder how long that will take.] There was no time for Yang Kai to ponder the mysteries of the Universe Furnace though as he soon noticed the distortion of the Void around it.
Even Zhao Ye Bai had seen through the strangeness of this phenomenon at a glance, so how could Yang Kai fail to notice it? The space around the Alchemy Furnace’s illusory phantom might seem normal on the surface, but the inside was extremely twisted and warped, constantly shifting and folding onto itself.
Yang Kai immediately became overjoyed. Even though he had been backed into a corner with no escape, a path had appeared before him in the end! His intuition proved correct. The opportunity to escape Mo Na Ye’s pursuit was right in front of him. His misery was caused by the Universe Furnace, but his salvation also came from the Universe Furnace. It was truly an object of both misfortune and joy.
The appearance of this mysterious object had shaken the very foundation of his Small Universe. As a result of the turmoil, he suffered a heavy blow from Mo Na Ye. Now, he was going to use this very object to escape his current crisis. The good and bad were even now.
With a single flash of thought, Yang Kai desperately drew upon his World Force. His Divine Sense surged wildly at the same time. The burst of his full force caused the entire surrounding void to become distorted. Like an Ominous Beast that was backed into a corner, he gritted his teeth and howled, “Mo Na Ye, if you want me dead, then I will slaughter those Territory Lords first!”
While saying so, he boldly rushed in the direction of the Innate Territory Lords and plunged directly into the illusory phantom’s space without the slightest hesitation.
Many Innate Territory Lords were trapped inside the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom. When they suddenly saw Yang Kai approaching them with such fierce momentum, they couldn’t help turning pale with horror and fright. Yang Kai was in absolutely dire condition, and his aura also seemed exceedingly weak; nevertheless, their experience during the fierce battle from before had traumatized them deeply, so they were naturally horrified by his arrival.
It had to be said that these Territory Lords were not in good condition either. They had been severely wounded when they snuck out from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and had almost no chance to heal and recuperate from their wounds at all. After that, they were sent here under Mo Na Ye’s orders to besiege Yang Kai. Although they were lucky enough to survive the previous battle, their injuries had only gotten more severe. If Yang Kai were to attack them now, they would not have much power to fight back at all.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Yang Kai plunged into the illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace. He instantly felt the distortion of Space around him. Just as he had noticed earlier, the Space inside the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom was twisted and folded upon itself. It was impossible to make sense of this Space with common sense. Even if something seemed close at hand, there might be countless layers of space overlapping and folding over each other between them, so that the actual distance was unfathomably large.
The slightest movement inside this chaotic region would cause a person to land in a different layer of space. That was why the Territory Lords could not escape once they were surrounded by the illusory phantom. They were forced to remain here not because they did not want to leave, but because they simply could not.
The mysteries of the Universe Furnace were perfectly illustrated in this scenario!
For the Territory Lords, everything seemed so close yet so far inside the space shrouded within the illusory phantom, and the same was true for Yang Kai. The difference was that Yang Kai manipulated Space Principles as soon as he stepped into the Universe Furnace’s range. As a result, the layers of folded Space instantly became comprehensible and traceable to him.
Yang Kai lightly took a few steps forward. A layer of ripples spread out all over his body, then he abruptly materialised in front of a Territory Lord. Raising his hand, Yang Kai summoned the Azure Dragon Spear and thrust it directly into the heart of the Territory Lord.
On the other hand, the Territory Lord simply had a look of disbelief on his face. His eyes were also filled with complete incomprehension, as though he never imagined that Yang Kai would appear in front of him and stab him with such ease!
One thing had to be said about their current situation. Although these Territory Lords seemed to be gathered together in one spot, they were actually scattered across different layers of Space. After being trapped inside the Universe Furnace, they could neither escape nor rally together at the same spot. No matter how much they struggled, they could only spin around in circles.
It was also for that reason that the Territory Lords were not too worried about their safety even though they had been terrified to hear Yang Kai’s ruthless threat just now. That was because they knew the strangeness of this Space better than anybody else, but their confidence only lasted until this moment!
When one of their companions was run through by Yang Kai’s spear, the Territory Lords finally turned pale with fright. Yang Kai had easily and effortlessly achieved what they had not been able to do despite their best efforts!
At that moment, they promptly recalled the information given to them by Mo Na Ye regarding Yang Kai’s mastery over the Dao of Space! This place might be able to trap the Territory Lords, but Yang Kai could traverse it as though he were walking on flat ground!
With a shake of the spear, the Territory Lord who was stabbed in the chest immediately exploded into pieces. Yang Kai subsequently retrieved his spear and charged towards the nearest Territory Lord.
Having seen what happened to his companion just now, the Territory Lord was filled with absolute horror and shouted at the top of his voice, “Save me, Sir Mo Na Ye!”
Yang Kai smiled wickedly with a sinister expression on his face, “No one can save you now! Die!”
“Yang Kai, you dare?!” Mo Na Ye’s furious roar came from behind. While he was chasing Yang Kai, he had naturally seen the Territory Lords and the Alchemy Furnace’s illusory phantom surrounding them from a distance.
Yang Kai might have figured out that the phenomenon was caused by the emergence of the Universe Furnace, but Mo Na Ye was completely clueless about the situation. It was only natural though as Mo Na Ye was from the Black Ink Clan. Why would he know about the Universe Furnace? Not to mention, the Black Ink Disciples would not mention such things without reason either.
Mo Na Ye was initially vigilant towards the unknown object, but his vigilance was soon overcome by his rage when he saw Yang Kai casually slaughtering the first Innate Territory Lord and aiming for a second. His figure swayed, and he plunged into the illusory phantom after Yang Kai. In the next moment… his expression became blank with shock.
Yang Kai threw his head back as he laughed wildly. Meanwhile, the expressions of the Territory Lords changed drastically.
While laughing, Yang Kai suddenly coughed up a mouthful of Golden Blood. The power that he had forcibly gathered withered like a deflated balloon, and he rapidly collapsed. His entire appearance made him seem like he was about to die on the spot.
He was a dry oil lamp at this point. When he pushed himself just now to butcher a Territory Lord in one blow, his actions had only been to distract and provoke Mo Na Ye as he was worried that the latter would be too vigilant to follow him into the Universe Furnace.
In truth, Yang Kai would have been powerless to kill the second Territory Lord even if Mo Na Ye had not stepped forward to stop him. Fortunately, things had taken a turn for the better. Mo Na Ye had followed him into the Universe Furnace, which swung the situation in Yang Kai’s favour. He could sleep with peace of mind now!
“Mo Na Ye, oh, Mo Na Ye… Even a scheming and treacherous bastard like you can fall into a simple trap! Just wait for me to recover, then I will deal with you!” While saying that, Yang Kai took out a handful of Spirit Pills and stuffed them into his mouth as all the Innate Territory Lords watched. He subsequently took out a set of cultivation materials to refine while completely ignoring all the Territory Lords around him. The recent period had been too difficult on him. After all, he didn’t even have the time to swallow any Spirit Pills when he was being pursued by Mo Na Ye.
On the other hand, Mo Na Ye was livid. Unable to hold back, he threw a punch in Yang Kai’s direction. The power behind the punch could be said to contain his full strength. Be that as it may, the blow failed to cause the slightest disturbance to Yang Kai as all of the force was absorbed and dissipated by the layers of folded Space between them.
Mo Na Ye’s expression immediately became gloomy. He had sensed that something was wrong as soon as he plunged into this place. The Space inside the illusory phantom was evidently different from the outside world. Combined with Yang Kai’s previous attitude and current reaction, how could Mo Na Ye not know that he had fallen for this rascal’s trick? He could not believe that he was tricked into entering this strange place.
Looking around, he could clearly see the figures of the Territory Lords. The distance between them did not seem very far. Visually, the Territory Lord nearest to him seemed to be only a few steps away; however, the actual distance between them did not reduce whatsoever when he tried to walk over. Mo Na Ye clearly had the perception of moving forward quite a long distance, but he seemed to be walking on the spot without moving forward in the slightest.
“What is this thing?” Mo Na Ye wondered as he quickly realised that the root of the problem was the Alchemy Furnace’s illusory phantom.
Upon hearing Mo Na Ye’s question, the Territory Lords felt a chill running through their hearts. They had been hoping that he could resolve their doubts and bring them out of this place, but it would seem that he was just as clueless as they were.
Staring at the silent Territory Lords around him, Mo Na Ye lost his temper and roared, “Why didn’t any of you warn me about this place!?”
If any of the Territory Lords had warned him in advance, he would not have rashly plunged into this Space and caused himself to be stuck in this trap.
None of the Territory Lords made a sound, but Mo Na Ye knew that his question was unreasonable.
In this case, it was his fault for being too impatient. Yang Kai’s murderous attitude had also given him no time to consider his options. On the other hand, the Territory Lords had been so intimidated by Yang Kai that they were subconsciously expecting Mo Na Ye to protect them. That was how he ended up falling into this trap!
Sure enough, he could not afford to underestimate Yang Kai under any circumstances. Even in such a desperate situation, Yang Kai had actually managed to lure him into a trap. He had to admit that he made the wrong move this time.
Mo Na Ye did not know anything about the Alchemy Furnace’s illusory phantom, much less why the space shrouded by the illusory phantom was so treacherous. The only thing he knew was that he could not give Yang Kai any time to recover. The Black Ink Clan had paid such a large price and sacrificed so many Innate Territory Lords in battle just to push Yang Kai into a corner. He could not give up halfway.
As the saying went, ‘Beat the snake to death in order to avoid future calamity’. If he allowed Yang Kai to walk away alive, then he would be faced with countless troubles in the future. Mo Na Ye had always maintained a certain attitude towards Yang Kai, whereby he tried not to offend the other party as much as possible. Now that their friendly relations were thoroughly destroyed, he needed to ensure that Yang Kai died cleanly.
It was difficult to judge the distance within this strange space, but communicating with each other did not seem to be affected. Mo Na Ye pondered in silence for a moment before he sent a Divine Sense transmission to the Territory Lords around him and prepared a plan.
A short while later, Mo Na Ye and the Territory Lords sprang into action. Every one of them pushed their bodies and tried to move in Yang Kai’s direction. Yang Kai seemed to perceive their movements and opened his eyes to glance at them; however, he quickly ignored them and continued to focus on his recovery.
The Space inside the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom was extremely chaotic and distorted. Unless the Territory Lords had cultivated the Dao of Space and could figure out some of the rules of this place, it was simply a fool’s dream for them to approach Yang Kai by randomly struggling. It was not to say that they had no chance whatsoever as there were always some coincidences, but the chances were infinitesimal.
More importantly, Yang Kai could sense that the Space shrouded by the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom was becoming increasingly complicated as time passed. The Territory Lords could try their hardest to approach him, but even if they were lucky enough to enter his space by some great coincidence, he would only need to take a step in any direction and all their previous efforts would go to waste.
Leaving a thread of consciousness to keep an eye on the situation around him, Yang Kai completely immersed himself in recovering.
On the other side, Mo Na Ye finally realised that this method was futile after trying for some time. Several dozen Territory Lords and himself included had been trying to approach Yang Kai, but their efforts were to no avail. It was difficult for them to achieve any results even if they persisted in their efforts.
Besides, judging by the current condition of the Territory Lords… Even if a Territory Lord managed to reach Yang Kai’s location, the only fate waiting for them was death…
Mo Na Ye sent out Divine Sense transmissions again, telling the Territory Lords to cease their useless efforts. Then, he took out a miniature Black Ink Nest and attempted to contact the No-Return Pass. Regardless of the circumstances, he had to inform the No-Return Pass about his current situation. He also wanted to inquire about the illusory phantom of the Alchemy Furnace, as well as if there was some method to escape this place after getting stuck inside!
It was fortunate that the connection between the Black Ink Nests was not cut off, so Mo Na Ye soon received a response from Meng Que, one filled with cynicism and mockery. It was no secret that he had been locked in a power struggle with Mo Na Ye for a long time now. Now that Mo Na Ye’s plans had not only been thwarted, but also resulted in heavy losses for the Black Ink Clan with even Mo Na Ye himself being trapped in this strange Space, Meng Que probably believed that he was the top dog now.
However, there was still a key piece of information that allowed Mo Na Ye to understand the illusory phantom of the Alchemy Furnace. It was the Universe Furnace!
Although there were many Black Ink Disciples under the Black Ink Clan, most of them had neither high cultivation nor extensive knowledge and experience. That was why they did not know much about the Universe Furnace. Their level of understanding regarding the Universe Furnace was about the same or less than Yang Kai’s, so it was difficult for them to provide any valuable information. However, that was enough to make some guesses.
According to the information from the Black Ink Disciples, the Universe Furnace was the most mysterious treasure in existence. It was generally elusive and impossible to locate, so there was no way to discover its whereabouts unless it appeared on its own. More importantly, the Universe Furnace contained Innate Open Heaven Pills. These Innate Open Heaven Pills had the miraculous effect of helping cultivators break through their innate shackles!
Mo Na Ye was shocked by the information.
If these Innate Open Heaven Pills could help cultivators break through their innate shackles, then the Human Race Masters at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm would be able to advance to the Ninth-Order. It would be bad enough if an ordinary Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master advanced to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, but the strength of one or two additional Ninth-Order Masters would not render the Black Ink Clan helpless.
However, what if Yang Kai was the one who obtained one of these Innate Open Heaven Pills instead?
Over the past several thousand years, most of the obstruction and pressure faced by the Black Ink Clan came from Yang Kai. Whether it was the peace treaty between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan or the matter regarding the surrendering of 30% of their cultivation resources, the Black Ink Clan had been forced to accept those terms due to the existence of the Human Race’s killing star.
That was especially true for the peace discussions between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan. At the time, the Black Ink Clan had considered that they might be able to produce more Royal Lords in the future by accepting the peace deal. That would have greatly reduced the deterrent effect that Yang Kai, an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, had on the Black Ink Clan. Unfortunately, the Universe Furnace had appeared before the Territory Lords could even become Royal Lords.
If Yang Kai could get his hands on an Innate Open Heaven Pill and advance to the Ninth Order, then all the Black Ink Clan’s efforts and compromises over the millennia would be nothing more than a complete farce. With his tyrannical strength and ruthless means, the Black Ink Clan would be no match for Yang Kai once he advanced to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm!
After considering all these factors, Mo Na Ye felt alarm bells blaring in his heart.
[Yang Kai must never be allowed to obtain the Innate Open Heaven Pills no matter the cost! He cannot be allowed to advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm! If he does, the Black Ink Clan will be in mortal danger! Why did the Universe Furnace appear at this point in time!? Is the Human Race really blessed by the Heavens?]
Mo Na Ye’s main concern was stopping Yang Kai from obtaining the Innate Open Heaven Pills, but how was he supposed to achieve that? They were currently trapped inside the illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace with no means of escape. The distance might not seem far visually, but the space was actually extremely distorted and chaotic in reality.
The information from Meng Que indicated that there was more than one illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace as it had appeared on various battlefields across the Great Territories, as well as the Barren Territory…
After compiling all the information, the Black Ink Disciples from the Human Race speculated that the illusory phantoms were not the real body of the Universe Furnace but a mysterious projection. The Universe Furnace itself was hidden somewhere. Nevertheless, the appearance of the projections meant that the Universe Furnace was about to emerge. It might be that the Universe Furnace would finally be revealed when the projections became completely solidified.
These speculations were reasonable. Mo Na Ye pondered in silence for a while before he sent a message to Meng Que. He wanted the Black Ink Clan to search for more information. At the same time, he urgently summoned all the Innate Territory Lords wandering outside to return in preparation for the future.
Not only was Meng Que generally difficult to deal with, but he was also always attempting to take over control from Mo Na Ye. Be that as it may, he had one good point about him: He was self-aware of his shortcomings. He did not object to Mo Na Ye’s requests during such important situations because he knew that he was no match for Mo Na Ye when it came to schemes and tactics. Besides, Mo Na Ye had been appointed by the Royal Lord himself to take command. That was why he quietly did as Mo Na Ye asked.
Putting away the miniature Black Ink Nest, Mo Na Ye frowned and pondered for a long time. He calculated all the possible scenarios that might occur in the future and created countermeasures against these scenarios. After great consideration, he decided that his top priority was to obtain as much information regarding the Universe Furnace as possible.
[Yang Kai might know something…] When the thought crossed his mind, Mo Na Ye immediately glanced over at Yang Kai and offered a ceasefire, “Brother Yang, given the situation, what do you say we have a truce?”
He had called Yang Kai by name during their confrontation, but he was now respectfully calling Yang Kai by the title ‘Brother Yang’ again.
Yang Kai ignored Mo Na Ye. [He pursued me so fiercely earlier that I nearly had no escape, not to mention the curses and death threats that were thrown at me. How dare he propose to call for a truce now? What does he think of me? Does he think that I’m so easy-going?]
Mo Na Ye continued, “Now that you and I are both trapped here, why must you hold a grudge for everything that happened earlier? At the end of the day, the Black Ink Clan suffered the greatest loss. So many Innate Territory Lords died in battle already. Although you are wounded, Brother Yang, you came out alive in the end.”
This time around, Yang Kai failed to stop himself from responding and gave a cold sneer, “Serves you right! It’s your own fault that so many Innate Territory Lords died in battle. If not because you were trying to trap me, then they would not have died in vain. Besides… you might be trapped here, but do you really think this place can trap me?”
Mo Na Ye’s expression suddenly changed with those words. He suddenly realised that he had overlooked a major problem. It was true that both he and the Territory Lords were trapped in this strange space with no means to escape, but what about Yang Kai? This place would not be able to trap Yang Kai. If he really wanted to leave, it would not be difficult for him.
[This is bad…] Mo Na Ye quickly suppressed the distracting thoughts in his mind. Either way, it was a good thing that Yang Kai was willing to speak with him.
He thus casually probed, “Brother Yang, do you know what this illusory phantom shrouding this area is?” After asking that question, he chuckled to himself, “Of course, you’re aware, Brother Yang. This is the legendary Universe Furnace after all. I’m sure the Human Race Masters have heard about the Universe Furnace to a certain extent.”
“Oh?” Yang Kai raised his eyebrows in astonishment, “It seems that the connection between the Black Ink Nests has not been severed. Does that mean you can gather intel from outside of here?”
Mo Na Ye looked proud, “The Black Ink Nest has its own mysterious ways. It seems that you are aware of the Universe Furnace, Brother Yang. In that case, do you have more information regarding the Universe Furnace?”
Yang Kai remained indifferent, “What does it matter if I do? And, what does it matter if I don’t?”
Separating out a thread of consciousness to chat with Mo Na Ye did not impede his healing process. Since Mo Na Ye wanted to discuss the Universe Furnace, Yang Kai was more than happy to fish for some information. Besides, he was honestly feeling quite troubled due to his lack of knowledge on the Universe Furnace. It would be great if he could extract some from the Black Ink Clan.
Mo Na Ye responded seriously, “The Universe Furnace has not been seen for hundreds of thousands of years. Even if you have some knowledge regarding the Universe Furnace, I’m sure your information is not comprehensive. Brother Yang, how about you and I exchange what we know?”
Yang Kai immediately snorted coldly, “The Universe Furnace is a great opportunity for the Human Race. Don’t tell me the Black Ink Clan has their eye on it as well?”
Mo Na Ye replied lightly, “It is precisely because the Universe Furnace is such a great opportunity for the Human Race that the Black Ink Clan will not allow the Human Race to succeed so easily. As you know, Brother Yang, the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race will soon engage in a battle to the death now that the Universe Furnace has emerged.”
Yang Kai fell silent…
Whether he wanted to admit it or not, Mo Na Ye was correct. Over the past several thousand years, the war between the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race had never ceased; however, both sides had been concentrating on accumulating their respective strengths since the peace talks. As a result, both the number of Masters among the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race had increased dramatically. The situation was only maintained thanks to the tacit cooperation between the higher-ups of the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race.
However, the delicate balance was bound to be broken with the sudden emergence of the Universe Furnace. The Human Race was desperate to seize the opportunities inside the Universe Furnace. Likewise, the Black Ink Clan was desperate to stop the Human Race from doing so. Once the war broke out, the bloodshed was bound to sweep across the entire world like a tidal wave.
This battle might be the deciding factor in the entire war; moreover, it would only end when one party was completely annihilated. The Human Race… was not ready, but the Black Ink Clan was not ready either!
Although there were more Innate Territory Lords and High-Rank Black Ink Nests at the No-Return Pass now, none of these newly emerged Innate Territory Lords would be able to recover from their injuries without spending at least 100 to 200 years healing. It was fortunate that the Human Race had some newly-advanced Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters while it seemed the Black Ink Clan had not produced any new Royal Lords so far.
While Yang Kai was silent, he heard Mo Na Ye speaking once more, “Brother Yang, did you know that this is not the true Universe Furnace, but just a projection looming over this piece of the void while there are many others out there?”
Yang Kai calmly went along with the flow of the conversation, “Of course, it is just an illusory phantom. Isn’t it only natural for it to appear in more than one place?”
However, he was actually very confused inside, [What does he mean? Could there be many other manifestations in other places? Mo Na Ye, this bastard! Is he trying to trick me? Or, is he up to something else?]
At the same time, Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling rather annoyed. If he had known this would happen earlier, he would have studied more of the ancient records from the Cave Heavens and Paradises where there was bound to be some information on the Universe Furnace. Now that the Universe Furnace had appeared, Yang Kai was completely stumped by the situation. In fact, he knew even less than Mo Na Ye, who still could ask the Black Ink Clan to gather more intelligence.
Mo Na Ye studied Yang Kai’s expression carefully but failed to detect any clues. Thus, he bluntly said, “Brother Yang, why don’t we exchange information with each other? Although the Universe Furnace is about to emerge, it has yet to truly appear in the world. Gathering more information would not hurt.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help nodding in agreement, “There is some truth to your words. Why don’t you tell me what you know first, then I’ll tell you what I know. You should understand my character. Over the years, I’ve never broken a single promise I’ve made with the Black Ink Clan.”
Mo Na Ye nodded, “Of course.”
Speaking of which, this was true. Although they were mutual enemies who shared an absolutely irreconcilable blood feud, Yang Kai had never violated the agreements he made with the Black Ink Clan.
As such, Mo Na Ye suddenly broke into a smile, “But, you don’t seem to know much about the Universe Furnace, Brother Yang. Let’s forget about exchanging information with each other.”
Yang Kai was stunned, “Who says I don’t know anything about the Universe Furnace?”
Mo Na Ye smiled lightly, “If you knew anything about the Universe Furnace, Brother Yang, then why would you agree to exchange information with the Black Ink Clan? The fact that you agreed to the information exchange shows that you don’t know much either; otherwise, you would not have mentioned your ‘excellent character’.”
Yang Kai was startled before snarling, “You tricked me!”
Mo Na Ye sighed, “As I suspected…”
Yang Kai’s expression immediately darkened at those words. It was only at this moment that he realised the truth. Mo Na Ye had not been sure about how much he knew regarding the Universe Furnace before, but the truth had been confirmed now…
[This bastard…] Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling secretly annoyed at his carelessness. Regardless, it did not matter much. This was just a small loss that did not affect the big picture anyway.
After confirming that Yang Kai did not know much about the Universe Furnace, Mo Na Ye lost interest in talking to him and instead took out the small Black Ink Nest again to maintain constant communication with the outside world.
Yang Kai secretly watched Mo Na Ye’s actions and coldly snorted to himself in his heart. [Once I’ve spent some time healing, I will find a way to make you cough up everything you know. So what if I lost in this verbal confrontation? This strange Space shrouded by the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom is practically my home ground! It will be my victory in the end!]
The emergence of the Universe Furnace’s projection triggered various changes among the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan.
The biggest change was that both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan recalled all their forces. Although there were no large-scale battles in any of the Great Territory Battlefields, there were many small skirmishes throughout the lands; after all, the newly advanced rising stars of the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan were constantly seeking out strong enemies to challenge and improve themselves.
Be that as it may, more than a dozen Great Territory Battlefields instantly became calm and peaceful soon after the Universe Furnace’s projection appeared in the world. Both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan withdrew all their outside forces. Nobody dared to make any rash moves before they figured out the mysteries and details of the Universe Furnace.
At the end of the day, the Human Race had a slightly better understanding of the Universe Furnace. They had various sources such as the records written in the ancient books of the Cave Heavens and Paradises, the stories narrated by the Elders who lived long enough to hear about the previous opening, the teachings from the Elders of the Dragon and Phoenix Clans, and the information obtained from Blood Crow’s personal experience…
On the other hand, the Black Ink Clan did not have such rich sources of information…
Throughout history, the projections of the Universe Furnace would almost always appear on the Black Ink Battlefield whenever it manifested. There were occasional appearances in the 3,000 Worlds, but those incidents were very rare.
In the past, the Black Ink Clan had some understanding of the Universe Furnace too, but the Black Ink Clansmen who were active on the Black Ink Battlefield previously had been annihilated during the Human Race Army’s crusade. Even the Royal Lords had been slaughtered to the last, so how could the information be handed down to the current Black Ink Clan?
The current Black Ink Clan consisted only of members who recently emerged from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, so they had never experienced the emergence of the Universe Furnace before. All they could do was respond according to the small amount of information provided by the Black Ink Disciples and the reactions of the Human Race.
Under Mo Na Ye’s orders, countless Innate Territory Lords across the Great Territory Battlefields were transferred back to the No-Return Pass to await further orders, news that was quickly relayed to the Human Race.
The mobilisation of so many Innate Territory Lords was bound to result in a disparity in the balance of power between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan. In the past, this would have been a good chance for the Human Race to make an aggressive counterattack.
However, the Human Race did not make any moves against the Black Ink Clan and simply focused on preparing for the upcoming emergence of the Universe Furnace. Compared to the gains and losses that could be obtained on the Great Territory Battlefields, the Universe Furnace which represented the greatest opportunity in the world was undoubtedly what the Human Race valued more at the moment.
As time passed, numerous armies led by many Masters travelled to the periphery of the void where the Universe Furnace’s projections were located under the orders of the higher-ups of both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan. Both parties faced off against each other across the void shrouded by the illusory phantoms.
The Black Ink Clan was acting as though they were determined to prevent the Human Race from seizing the opportunities in the Universe Furnace at all costs. Naturally, the Human Race would never back down. Nevertheless, it was foreseeable that a massive war between the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race would break out once the Universe Furnace fully emerged.
There were more than a dozen projections scattered across the Great Territory Battlefields; therefore, the deployment of personnel and the organisation of the Armies were the greatest considerations of the leaders of the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race. Both Mi Jing Lun of the Human Race and Mo Na Ye of the Black Ink Clan had each deployed their troops to counter the other.
A storm was coming!
As the days went by, the atmosphere on the Great Territory Battlefields became increasingly oppressive. Nevertheless, the Armies of both the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race did not dare to make any moves without explicit orders from above, lest they trigger a war in advance.
…..
At this time, there were many High-Rank Black Ink Nests and Innate Territory Lords missing from the No-Return Pass…
Somewhere in the void shrouded by the projection of the Universe Furnace, located in the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield, Yang Kai finally exhaled deeply and opened his eyes. It had been several months since he first entered this place. Now, filled with energy, he slowly stood up and even brazenly gave a lazy stretch.
Several months of recuperation allowed him to recover all of his strength. The last battle with the Innate Territory Lords followed by the intense pursuit by Mo Na Ye had left him severely wounded and exhausted. It was fortunate that his physique was extremely tough, and thanks to his potent Dragon Vein, it was not difficult for him to recover as long as nobody was disturbing him.
As soon as Yang Kai showed movement, the Innate Territory Lords trapped in this place instantly tensed up in response. In stark contrast to the ruddy complexion on Yang Kai’s face, their auras were weak and unstable. There was no helping this as they could not heal as Yang Kai could in this space, so their wounds had not gotten any better even after being trapped in this space for so long.
Watching Yang Kai get to his feet with a lazy stretch, the complexions of the Territory Lords turned ashen. Looking panicked, many of them cast pleading looks at Mo Na Ye in a silent prayer for help.
Although Mo Na Ye had known that this day would come sooner or later, Yang Kai’s recovery speed still shocked him. He did not wait for Yang Kai to make any moves and quickly opened his mouth to speak, “Brother Yang, the Black Ink Clan promises to provide 30% of our cultivation resources as agreed in the past. We will not withhold any resources or delay any of the deliveries!”
Yang Kai turned around, but said nothing as he simply gave Mo Na Ye a silent grin!
Mo Na Ye gritted his teeth and snarled, “50%!”
Yang Kai put his hands behind his back with a leisurely expression on his face, “The war is about to begin. Do you really think we have the time to be bargaining about such trivial matters? 30%? 50%? What does any of that matter? It wouldn’t make a difference even if you offered 100%. I don’t have time to hang around outside the No-Return Pass anymore.”
It was enough that he had been extorting resources from the Black Ink Clan for the past 1,000 years or so, and similar opportunities would not come again in the future. That was why it was impossible for Mo Na Ye to offer those cultivation resources in exchange for the lives of these Innate Territory Lords.
“What do you want then, Brother Yang?” Mo Na Ye asked solemnly. There were dozens of Innate Territory Lords trapped in this space; however, he was helpless to protect them. The situation left him feeling extremely heartbroken and powerless.
Yang Kai casually summoned the Azure Dragon Spear and gave it a little twirl. At the same time, he pushed his Space Principles and walked towards the Territory Lord closest to him. Space rippled in his wake, making it seem as though he was walking on the surface of a calm lake. The mysterious Space that left Mo Na Ye and the Innate Territory Lords completely vulnerable and helpless seemed no different from the flat ground under his feet.
Watching Yang Kai gradually approach him, the Territory Lord tried to flee in terror; unfortunately, his speed was slower than a turtle’s crawl despite his best efforts. By the time Yang Kai reached him, he had only managed to cover a distance of less than a metre. It was not that he had only moved by one metre. On the contrary, he had actually travelled quite far, but with the folded nature of the surrounding space, that distance was equal to one metre.
Yang Kai pointed his spear at the Territory Lord and turned to look at Mo Na Ye, “One piece of information in exchange for the life of a Territory Lord!”
“Information?” Mo Na Ye raised an eyebrow at those words.
“Yes. Information regarding the Universe Furnace that is valuable and unknown to me,” Yang Kai smiled.
A few months ago, he had been tricked by Mo Na Ye on this matter, but so what if he had fallen for that ruse? Now that the lives of these Innate Territory Lords were at risk, how could Mo Na Ye continue to keep the information he possessed a secret?
Mo Na Ye was certainly decisive and immediately inquired, “Does the information I told you earlier count, Brother Yang?”
Naturally, he was referring to the information he disclosed to Yang Kai a few months ago, about how the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom had appeared in more than one place.
Yang Kai frowned and pondered for a while, then he removed his spear, “Fine, I won’t take advantage of you. That one counts.”
Having escaped from death, the Territory Lord had a look of lingering fear on his face, his entire body drenched in a layer of cold sweat.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai strolled over to the next Territory Lord nearby and turned to look at Mo Na Ye again.
Mo Na Ye did not even bother to wait for Yang Kai to speak and promptly offered an answer, “According to the information obtained by the Black Ink Clan, Profound Nether Territory also has a projection of the Universe Furnace!”
[Is there really more than one projection? What does that mean?] Yang Kai frowned deeply. [How can the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom be in two places at once? In that case, where will the Universe Furnace emerge?]
He did not suspect that Mo Na Ye was deceiving him; after all, Mo Na Ye would not dare to do something that reckless in this situation. Nodding lightly, he sidestepped the Territory Lord with the spear pointed at him and came to the third Territory Lord.
Mo Na Ye sounded a little guilty as he muttered, “Azure Sun Territory also has an illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace…”
Yang Kai raised a brow at those words and glared at Mo Na Ye. Nevertheless, he moved on and came to stand in front of the next Territory Lord.
Before Mo Na Ye could speak, Yang Kai interjected, “Don’t tell me… Did the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantoms appear on another Great Territory Battlefield?”
Mo Na Ye smiled awkwardly, “Well, there’s one in Twin Poles Territory too…”
Yang Kai laughed angrily but grudgingly nodded in respect, “Good, count it as my loss. Judging by what you’ve said so far, do all of the Great Territory Battlefields have projections?”
Mo Na Ye kept his mouth shut and considered his answer carefully. Before he could respond, Yang Kai raised a hand to stop him, “I was just talking to myself. You don’t need to answer the question. More importantly, I do not want to hear any more about the other locations of the illusory phantoms.”
Mo Na Ye sighed heavily, “But, Brother Yang, what I’ve told you so far is indeed information that you didn’t know. You’ve always been an honest man. Are you going back on your word now?”
Yang Kai raised his chin with a rebellious expression on his face, “What? Haven’t you heard the phrase ‘People under the eaves have to bow their heads’?”
Mo Na Ye was absolutely annoyed…
Yang Kai muttered under his breath, “Judging by the information so far, does the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom appear in places where a large number of living beings lost their lives? What about the Barren Territory? What about the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction?”
While speaking, Yang Kai studied Mo Na Ye’s reaction carefully. Unfortunately, Mo Na Ye was a cunning man, so how could he slip up at such a moment?
Yang Kai snapped angrily, “Enough. Is there an illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace in the Barren Territory? Tell me honestly. This will count as a piece of information.”
Upon hearing those words, Mo Na Ye finally nodded, “Yes!” Then, he added a casual compliment, “You’re very quick-witted, Brother Yang. The truth is I’ve also speculated that there is an illusory phantom of the Universe Furnace at the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. Unfortunately, we have no means of confirming the situation.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help teasing, “Have you lost contact with the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction?”
Mo Na Ye was expressionless, but he neither confirmed nor denied the statement.
Yang Kai frowned again, “The locations where the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantoms appear are all places where a large number of powerful Masters have lost their lives in battle, including this place… A lot of Innate Territory Lords died here. Does the Black Ink Clan know anything about the relationship between these two factors?”
Mo Na Ye shook his head, “No. The Black Ink Clan doesn’t know much about the Universe Furnace. The Human Race might know something.”
As he spoke, Mo Na Ye secretly thought to himself in his heart, [It looks like Yang Kai is completely clueless about the Universe Furnace. Otherwise, he would not have asked so many superficial questions.]
Yang Kai did not bother wasting his time and energy on threatening another Innate Territory Lord; instead, he stood in place and declared, “What other information do you have? Tell me everything. I am a man who means what he says. A piece of valuable information in exchange for the life of one Territory Lord.”
“That makes five pieces of information from earlier!” Mo Na Ye confirmed.
“I know,” Yang Kai agreed irritably.
Mo Na Ye seemed greatly reassured by those words. After considering his answer for some time, he began talking, “The illusory phantoms of the Universe Furnace are most likely some kind of projection! It’s impossible to tell where the Universe Furnace itself is hiding, but its projection is displayed at various places thanks to its mysterious powers.”
“A projection!” Yang Kai frowned. This was not something he had considered. He only thought that the situation was rather strange.
If the Universe Furnace was about to emerge, then why did more than a dozen or so illusory phantoms appear across the various Great Territory Battlefields? There was even one here. On the other hand, if these illusory phantoms were just projections of the Universe Furnace, then the situation would make much more sense.
“Was this information obtained by the Black Ink Clan?” Yang Kai inquired.
Mo Na Ye shook his head as he replied, “It’s my guess!”
Yang Kai nodded lightly. There was no need to doubt Mo Na Ye’s intentions too much. Based on the information he possessed at the moment, he would probably come to the same conclusion if he had the time to calm down and analyse the situation.
“What else?” Yang Kai probed further.
Mo Na Ye pondered in silence for a moment, “Based on my observations, the projections are slowly solidifying. I’m sure you’ve noticed as well, Brother Yang. It has been several months since the projections first appeared. By my estimation, it will take another two years for the projection to completely materialize. I speculate that the Universe Furnace will only appear in the world once the projections have fully solidified!”
Looking around, Yang Kai examined the degree of projection’s solidification compared to a few months ago and did some estimation, arriving at the same conclusion as Mo Na Ye. At the current rate, it would indeed take two years for the projection to solidify completely.
“Although the time of the Universe Furnace’s emergence can roughly be determined, the location of its emergence remains a mystery. There are more than 10 projections at different locations, so it is difficult to determine the exact location of the Universe Furnace’s emergence. Nevertheless, I believe there are two possibilities.”
“What are the two possibilities?” Yang Kai questioned.
Mo Na Ye glanced at Yang Kai in resentment. After being enemies for so many years, they were very familiar with each other by now. Yang Kai’s actions might seem rash and impulsive, but he only took them after much consideration. With his intelligence and the information he just received, it would not be difficult for him to reach his own conclusions if he bothered to put his mind to work on the matter.
However, he was either too lazy to think for himself or he was trying to figure out just how much information the Black Ink Clan had gathered. That was why he was holding the lives of these Territory Lords hostage in exchange for information. Unfortunately, there was nothing Mo Na Ye could do in retaliation.
“The first possibility is that the Universe Furnace’s true body will randomly appear at one of the locations of the projections, and the rest of the projections are mere illusions.” Mo Na Ye expressed his conjectures, not daring to conceal anything. In any case, he was simply guessing as well so there was no harm in sharing. “The second possibility is… all the projections are closely connected to the true body; hence, the Universe Furnace will appear wherever the projections are located!”
Yang Kai listened seriously and nodded lightly, “That’s a reasonable hypothesis. Indeed, these are the only two possibilities.”
It was not difficult to form these conjectures based on the existing information. Be that as it may, neither Mo Na Ye nor Yang Kai was aware of something crucial. The true body of the Universe Furnace would not be revealed even when these projections solidified. In fact, this Supreme Treasure had never been seen before throughout the long course of history. On the contrary, these projections would simply transform into entrances leading into the Universe Furnace once they were fully solidified. The so-called opportunities were hidden inside the Universe Furnace.
It was not that Mo Na Ye and Yang Kai were dull-witted, just that the information they possessed was too little for them to form an accurate conjecture. Besides, they both had preconceived notions about the Universe Furnace. Since it was called the Universe Furnace, they naturally assumed that it was something akin to a mysterious Alchemy Furnace. How could they have known that this Alchemy Furnace would contain a Sealed World of its own?
Mo Na Ye did not continue speaking. It was not that he didn’t want to, but that he had no other valuable information to share. Hence, he immediately started racking his brains for anything he could think of…
Yang Kai did not pester Mo Na Ye either. Sinking deep into thought, he suddenly recalled something. He honestly did not know much about the Universe Furnace. The only knowledge he had was that the Universe Furnace contained Innate Open Heaven Pills that could help a cultivator break through their inherent shackles.
However, he only heard that the world would be thrown into a storm of bloodshed whenever the Universe Furnace emerged!
At the time, Yang Kai had not known much about the 3,000 Worlds. His cultivation was also quite low, which resulted in a shallow understanding of that statement. He had simply assumed that a Supreme Treasure was something everybody would want to obtain, so the so-called storm of bloodshed would be caused by the infighting between the Masters from the Cave Heavens and Paradises. It would now seem that his assumption had been incorrect.
For countless years since the Late Ancient Era, the Cave Heavens and Paradises had committed their elites to the Black Ink Battlefield to wage a never-ending war against the Black Ink Clan. All Ninth-Order Old Ancestors also resided on the Black Ink Battlefield to guard the Great Passes. There might be many Cave Heavens and Paradises, but they had always been united against their common enemy.
With an external enemy threatening them, how could the Masters of the Cave Heavens and Paradises create a storm of bloodshed over the opportunities that could be found in the Universe Furnace? The Old Ancestors would never allow such foolishness to occur. If the Universe Furnace were to appear, they would step forward to manage the situation themselves. If that were the case, then where would the storm of bloodshed come from?
Yang Kai soon realised something important.
According to the information he received from Mo Na Ye, the projections of the Universe Furnace seemed to appear in places where a large number of living beings had died in battle. When the Universe Furnace appeared in the world recently, the projections had appeared on the various Great Territory Battlefields, the Barren Territory, the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, and even this place. This was the best evidence to support that statement. If this was the case now, then what about the past?
Although there had been conflicts in the 3,000 Worlds in the past, there were all some minor conflicts between various Sects. Even if there were any casualties during these conflicts, the cultivation of these deceased cultivators would not be high.
Unlike the tranquillity in the 3,000 Worlds, the war had never ceased on the Black Ink Battlefield. Every time the Black Ink Clan attacked any of the Great Passes, massive numbers of living beings would lose their lives.
If the number of deaths and the strength of the fall cultivators were related to the criteria for the projections of the Universe Furnace to appear, then the Black Ink Battlefield undoubtedly met these requirements. By that logic, had the projections of the Universe Furnace always appeared on the Black Ink Battlefield whenever the Universe Furnace manifested in the world in the past? In that case, the so-called storm of bloodshed could be explained. It was not caused by the internal struggles among the Human Race, but the confrontation between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan.
Yang Kai suddenly recalled that he had obtained a few Innate Open Heaven Pills from the Blood Monster Divine Palace in the Blood Monster Cave Heaven.
After he left the Blood Monster Cave Heaven, Lan You Ruo had gone into retreat and attempted to advance to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. Yang Kai had given her an Innate Open Heaven Pill to help boost her chances of success, but she ultimately did not need it.
He later took the time to examine those Innate Open Heaven Pills carefully and discovered that the medicinal efficacies were indeed more potent and profound compared to ordinary Open Heaven Pills; however, they did not contain any miraculous effects. He then proceeded to toss them somewhere and forgot about them.
At the time, Yang Kai speculated that those Open Heaven Pills were too old and had not been preserved properly which caused their medicinal efficacies to deteriorate over the millennia. He had felt a slight sense of regret, thinking that Blood Monster Divine Monarch had wasted such precious resources. Looking back now, he realised that the medicinal efficacies of the Innate Open Heaven Pills should not have deteriorated even if they were improperly preserved.
The only explanation was that those Open Heaven Pills themselves were not as miraculous as the rumours proclaimed. In that case, where did the rumours about the Universe Furnace that were passed down from ancient times come from?
Also, the Blood Monster Divine Monarch… Since he managed to obtain Innate Open Heaven Pills, did that mean he had the opportunity to compete for the Universe Furnace? Be that as it may, he had clearly never gone to the Black Ink Battlefield before. Where did he get the opportunity to compete for the Universe Furnace? He was not from the Cave Heavens or Paradises after all. How did he obtain the qualifications for the opportunity?
[Looks like it’s time for me to have a chat with Blood Crow!] Yang Kai silently made up his mind. He was certain he could gain a lot from speaking with Blood Crow, but he had to escape from this place first.
Yang Kai was getting excited when Mo Na Ye finally thought of a topic worth mentioning, “Brother Yang, don’t you think this place is a little strange?”
Yang Kai replied indifferently, “A Supreme Treasure is present. It’s only natural for something strange to happen.”
Mo Na Ye nodded, “That’s true. The Space here is extremely twisted and distorted. Since it comes from the projection of the Universe Furnace’s true body, then there must be a close connection between them. You are proficient in the Dao of Space, Brother Yang. Why don’t you try to trace it back to its source and locate the Universe Furnace’s true body? You might find something if you can do that.”
Yang Kai glanced at Mo Na Ye in surprise. To be honest, he had not considered such a possibility. It was more accurate to say that he had not even considered things from this angle in the first place. Mo Na Ye must have been forced into a desperate situation for him to come up with such a great idea.
Thus, Yang Kai nodded at Mo Na Ye in respect, “Although I know you don’t have the best intentions, just this idea alone is worth three lives!”
Mo Na Ye did not know what expression to make, so he simply squeezed out a forced smile. This thought had indeed been an impromptu idea, but he had to admit he had another purpose. If Yang Kai could use the Dao of Space to determine the location of the Universe Furnace’s true body, then the Black Ink Clan could prepare specific countermeasures in a targeted manner.
Therefore, Mo Na Ye immediately concentrated on the movements around Yang Kai. He watched intently as Yang Kai sat down cross-legged and surged his Space Principles in an attempt to trace the mysterious roots of this place.
Yang Kai initially had little gain from his efforts. The space in this place was extremely warped and distorted. Even if he could use his understanding of the Dao of Space to eliminate the influence of this warped Space on his movements, he had little success in tracing the roots of the strange phenomenon occurring here. Nevertheless, he suddenly recalled his Cow Punch Secret Technique.
The principle of Cow Punch was to track the enemy’s aura back to its source. It was a Secret Technique specifically made to target the Small Universe of his enemies. He even managed to slaughter a Ninth-Order Black Ink Disciple with this Secret Technique!
[If something as ethereal as a Small Universe can be traced back to the roots, what more the true body of the Universe Furnace?] Yang Kai acted as soon as the thought occurred to him. The Space Principles around his body became more and more ethereal, almost as though he was about to melt into the Void. He slowly moved his hands as though plucking at invisible strings, trying to trace everything back to its origin.
While Yang Kai was working hard, the Black Ink Clansmen were secretly communicating with each other through a constant stream of Divine Sense transmissions. Although Mo Na Ye had made an agreement with Yang Kai that the lives of each Territory Lord would be spared in exchange for a piece of information, the information provided was clearly far from enough. There were several dozen Territory Lords trapped in this place. How much information could Mo Na Ye realistically provide?
At best, it would be amazing if Yang Kai could spare the lives of a dozen or so Territory Lords. As for the rest… they would not be able to escape his murderous reach. Hence, they had to come up with a self-protection strategy before Yang Kai started taking action. Otherwise, there was no guarantee whose life would be spared by Yang Kai.
At this time, the best option was to attack Yang Kai while he was distracted. Unfortunately, the Territory Lords were under the effects of the folded Space, so how could they attack him when they couldn’t even approach him?
It was even more impossible for them to escape from this Space. Trapped in this place and affected by the layers of overlapping space, they were no different from flies caught in a spider web. It was truly a pathetic situation. Despite much deliberation, the Black Ink Clan could not figure out a solution to their miserable situation. The realisation filled them with an inexplicable sense of sorrow.
Without warning, the Void suddenly trembled like the surface of a beaten drum. The vibration was so strong that all the trapped Territory Lords could feel the movement clearly. Startled, they looked around in bewilderment and discovered that the source of the trembling seemed to be coming from Yang Kai’s direction.
Yang Kai’s eyes were tightly closed. In the space around him, Space Principles fluctuated and various Dao Strengths danced. When he pointed a finger forward, countless ripples spread out from his position. The ripples continued on endlessly, extending into the inexplicable depths of the Void. As time passed, the number of ripples grew. Even the trembling in the local space became increasingly violent…
Mo Na Ye suddenly had a bad feeling that his suggestion for Yang Kai to track the traces of the Universe Furnace back to their source had been an extremely terrible decision! Just as the thought crossed his mind, he abruptly felt a sense of crisis flooding his heart.
He hastily surged his Black Ink Strength and condensed a layer of defence around himself. In the next moment, he felt an invisible and intangible force slicing across his body, cutting through the Black Ink Strength condensed around his figure, and carving into his flesh.
In spite of his immense strength, Mo Na Ye felt a stabbing pain burst through his body. He quickly shifted his position and looked back. At the spot where he had been standing earlier, a portion of the space slid sideways like a piece of broken mirror before quickly returning to normal. The force that had sliced across his body earlier was a tiny Void Crack!
His expression changed drastically at the sight and he hurriedly shouted, “Brother Yang, please stop!”
The Territory Lords did not know why Mo Na Ye was panicking all of a sudden, so they all turned to look in his direction.
At that moment, one of the Territory Lords abruptly felt an inexplicable sense of pain in his body. His vision seemed to tilt to the side, then turned upside down. What entered his sight was a body that had been cleanly sliced into two at a diagonal angle. The incision at the wound was as smooth as the edges of a mirror, and black blood gushed out from the opening.
[This severed body… looks so familiar…] A strange thought entered his mind, but he quickly came to a realization, [Isn’t that my body!?]
He lowered his head to look and sure enough, his lower half had been severed. Everything was so sudden that he failed to notice any abnormality before. Terrified, he screamed at the top of his lungs, “Sir Mo Na Ye, save me!”
But what could Mo Na Ye do? At this moment, Mo Na Ye looked so gloomy that he was practically oozing depression. He could only watch helplessly as the two parts of the Territory Lord’s body separated. Although the Territory Lord’s blood poured out continuously, his vitality was very strong, so it would take some time before he died…
“The space has become chaotic! Defend yourselves with all your might!” Mo Na Ye called out loudly.
After hearing Mo Na Ye’s warning, the Territory Lord finally came back to their senses and hastily summoned their strength to guard themselves.
Although Mo Na Ye did not know what Yang Kai was doing, his perception was not wrong. The whole Space had gotten extremely chaotic due to Yang Kai’s actions. This was a strange place formed by the distortion of countless layers of Space folded over each other in the first place. These layers of folded Space resembled pieces of a broken mirror that fit well together in the beginning. In short, there were no issues with the original arrangement as things were relatively static, or at least changing at a slow pace. However, the Space where these mirrors used to be pieced together had now become mobile and disordered due to Yang Kai’s actions.
The upper body of the dead Territory Lord had been located in one of the layers of the folded Space, while his lower body had been located in a different one. When the two layers of folded Space abruptly separated due to the distortion, his body had also been sliced apart as a result.
Territory Lords were very strong, and if they had been at their peak strength, it would have been impossible for them to be sliced apart so easily. Unfortunately, the Territory Lords here were all arrows at the end of their flight, on top of being heavily wounded. In this situation, they were completely defenceless against such a strange attack.
Nobody knew whether their position was safe because the layers of folded Space shifted around at random. Screams of agony periodically rang out from among the Territory Lords. It was a pity, but Black Ink Strength condensed around their bodies could hardly stop the sharp Space Principles from slicing them apart.
Within a short span of time, more Territory Lords lost their lives as their bodies were severed into pieces. This situation left Mo Na Ye feeling both horrified and furious, “Brother Yang, please stop quickly!”
At this moment, he deeply regretted his earlier words! [Why did I suggest Yang Kai trace the location of the Universe Furnace’s true body with his mastery over the Dao of Space!?]
Space was an extremely mysterious Dao in the first place, and the Space here was already so peculiar. Nothing good would happen to Black Ink Clan Masters like themselves after Yang Kai began fiddling with it.
Suddenly, there was another scream. Mo Na Ye glanced over only and saw the body of another Territory Lord separating into two parts. The Territory Lord’s eyes were filled with pure terror and resentment. He did not expect to lose his life in such an inexplicable manner after managing to survive so many crises until now.
“Brother Yang!” Mo Na Ye roared angrily.
“Shut up!” Yang Kai did not even bother to open his eyes. Although he was concentrating fully on tracing the location of the Universe Furnace’s true body, he retained some awareness of the surrounding situation.
He had not expected the current situation to occur, but it was quite a stroke of good fortune for him. How could he give up just because Mo Na Ye asked him to stop? In any case, their previous agreement indicated that he only needed to spare the lives of a dozen or so Territory Lords. As for the others, it would be even better for him if all of them died. It would even save him the trouble of killing them himself.
Mo Na Ye gritted his teeth and suppressed the anger in his heart. They were enemies in the first place, not to mention they were engaged in a life-and-death clash just a few months ago. What was the point of begging Yang Kai now? All Mo Na Ye could do was record his loss for today. If he had a chance in the future, he would return the debt a hundredfold!
The Territory Lords were tense and nervous. Although they constantly changed positions while simultaneously activating their power to protect themselves, the attacks caused by the distortion of space came with no warning whatsoever. It was very difficult to defend against these attacks. In the end, those destined for death would lose their lives no matter how hard they tried.
Even Mo Na Ye was inadvertently wounded. Fortunately for him, he was strong and in good condition, so there was no threat to his life for the time being, but it was hard to say what would happen if the situation dragged on…
It was hard to tell how much time had passed. More than a dozen Territory Lords had lost their lives by now and the space within the projection of the Universe Furnace was scattered with severed limbs. The wounds on these severed limbs were extremely smooth, and a large amount of black blood now floated around in the void.
Yang Kai suddenly paused with a slight frown on his face. It was not that he could no longer continue his search or that he had not gained anything from his efforts. The truth was that he had indeed been able to trace the Universe Furnace’s aura, but it was difficult for him to determine its exact location.
More importantly, Yang Kai had a feeling that something beyond his control would happen if he persisted in his attempt. It was difficult to deduce whether the phenomenon would be good or bad, but he had the feeling that it was not very dangerous since he did not detect any warning signals. To be on the safe side though, he decided to stop while he was ahead.
Yang Kai looked up at the dishevelled Mo Na Ye with an almost imperceptible light flashing through his eyes… A group of Territory Lords had tragically lost their lives during the events earlier while even a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Mo Na Ye had been wounded, although the latter’s injuries did not seem serious.
There was no denying that Yang Kai was no match for a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Mo Na Ye in a one-on-one battle, but his proficiency in the Dao of Space meant that Mo Na Ye could not hurt him either when he was at his peak.
Now however, Yang Kai might just have a chance to kill Mo Na Ye in this Space within the projection of the Universe Furnace! If he carried on with his previous exploration, he could cause constant damage to Mo Na Ye; then, he would make his move when Mo Na Ye’s injuries had accumulated to a critical degree…
[Let’s see if he can survive that!]
Mo Na Ye regarded Yang Kai as an enormous threat to the Black Ink Clan; how could Yang Kai not be wary of Mo Na Ye? Mo Na Ye could be considered an anomaly in the Black Ink Clan. If Yang Kai could remove Mo Na Ye from the equation, Royal Lord Mo Yu would lose an exceptionally dependable helper. In the future, the Human Race would also have one less threat to worry about in the final war.
[I have to thank Mo Na Ye for suggesting such a convenient and effective method to me.]
Seeming to sense the malice in Yang Kai’s gaze, Mo Na Ye’s expression changed slightly. They had been enemies for so many years now, so how could he fail to realise what Yang Kai was thinking?
He suddenly felt bitter and resentful. His suggestion not only caused heavy casualties to the Territory Lords, but he might also have doomed himself to a miserable death. The entire situation left a bitter taste in his mouth. At the same time, he couldn’t help feeling as though he had lifted a rock only to smash it onto his foot.
Yang Kai chuckled and slowly climbed to his feet when their gazes met.
Under the watchful gaze of Mo Na Ye and the many Territory Lords, he leisurely walked towards the outside. The distorted and folded space did not hinder his movement. It did not take long before he arrived at the edge of the projection.
“Are you leaving, Brother Yang?” In the end, Mo Na Ye could not stop himself and blurted out the question. It would be wondrous news if Yang Kai were to leave this place, but how could Yang Kai possibly depart so easily? He had clearly seen the malice in Yang Kai’s eyes earlier.
“What? Do you expect me to stay behind and chat with you instead?” Yang Kai replied without much thought. Thanks to his mastery of the Dao of Space, he easily stepped out of the folded Space!
Seeing that scene, Mo Na Ye felt a strange feeling wash over him, [This guy… It turns out that he could have really left at any time.]
Trapped inside this space within the projection, even a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Mo Na Ye was powerless. He couldn’t find a way out, but it was no trouble for Yang Kai at all.
While he did not know the meaning behind Yang Kai’s actions, Yang Kai’s departure was good news for him. At the very least, he would no longer be in danger once Yang Kai was gone. Besides, he had secretly made arrangements in advance. As long as Yang Kai dared to stray far enough, then those arrangements would come in handy.
Mo Na Ye stared after Yang Kai’s back expectantly, hoping that Yang Kai would venture further into the distance; however, Yang Kai only took two steps before he abruptly turned to look in a certain direction and shouted, “Mo Yu, I spared the lives of your Territory Lords, yet you dare try to ambush me?”
As soon as those words rang out, Mo Na Ye’s expression changed drastically. [Were we discovered!? That’s impossible! I even specially warned them not to expose their whereabouts when I asked the Royal Lord to set up an ambush nearby with the Territory Lords!]
Not to mention, he had secretly observed his surroundings and confirmed that the Black Ink Clansmen had hidden themselves very well. It was impossible for them to be discovered so quickly, so how did Yang Kai discover them?
There were indeed reinforcements that Mo Na Ye had arranged beforehand outside the projection!
The greatest difficulty in dealing with an enemy like Yang Kai was his Space Secret Techniques. Even if they were stronger than him, it was meaningless if they could neither capture him nor restrain him. For example, the Black Ink Clan once had an opportunity to annihilate Yang Kai in the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land. Unfortunately, Di Wu had wasted the opportunity back then.
When Mo Na Ye chased Yang Kai into this strange place several months ago, he quickly realised that he had been tricked. At the same time, he was keenly aware that this was a rare opportunity to remove Yang Kai once and for all!
Yang Kai had been severely wounded at the time. Eager to treat his injuries, he had trapped himself inside the projection to recuperate from his wounds. Nevertheless, there was no denying that he could not move around freely for some time.
For that reason, Mo Na Ye had used the miniature Black Ink Nest to contact the No-Return Pass and asked the Royal Lord to set up an ambush nearby with some Black Ink Clan Masters.
Since the Royal Lord took charge of defending the No-Return Pass, he had not left it again. The only exception was when Yang Kai caused a ruckus in the No-Return Pass and the Royal Lord chased after him, resulting in only greater disaster.
After that debacle, the Royal Lord never left the No-Return Pass again, especially when Yang Kai began loitering around nearby as the latter posed a massive threat. Mo Yu subsequently became the most important force which ensured the safety and stability of the No-Return Pass.
Nobody knew when Yang Kai might suddenly cause another ruckus. Under these circumstances, how could Mo Yu dare to leave the No-Return Pass at will? He was practically a hostage to Yang Kai’s whims, unable to move around freely whatsoever.
Be that as it may, Mo Na Ye had mobilised the one and only Royal Lord in the Black Ink Clan in this endeavour to ensure the success of his plans. It could be seen that his determination and courage were unordinary. In addition, there were many Innate Territory Lords who had been transferred here from the front lines. They were hiding in the shadows and waiting for the signal to attack. Everything had been prepared in advance. As long as Yang Kai escaped from this prison, they would unleash an unrestrained assault on him!
There was only one inconvenient factor in these plans, and that was this strange space within the projection. According to Mo Na Ye’s speculations, there was a high probability that Yang Kai could come and go freely from this Space, and was essentially invulnerable once inside of it. If Yang Kai was to detect any danger when he left the confines of this prison, he could simply seek shelter inside again to protect himself! After all, this strange and eerie space within the projection was practically a natural fortress to him.
Therefore, Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu had secretly discussed their plans in advance. They decided to wait until Yang Kai was some distance away from the projection before the Royal Lord made his move to keep Yang Kai as busy as possible for some time. Doing so, the Territory Lords who were carrying the necessary Array Boards and Banners would have enough time to establish the Heaven Sealing Earth Locking Grand Array. Once the Grand Array was activated, Yang Kai would be trapped in place with no hope to escape. At that time, Mo Yu could freely annihilate Yang Kai.
The plan could be said to be foolproof in all aspects. Although there was no guarantee for a 100% success rate, the estimated success rate was in the 70% range. It was enough for the Black Ink Clan to take a gamble and risk the possible dangers. The crux of this entire plan rested on how long Mo Yu could keep Yang Kai distracted. As long as he could delay Yang Kai for long enough, their plans would work perfectly.
Therefore, Mo Na Ye was excited to see Yang Kai leaving the projection even though he did not understand the reason for Yang Kai’s sudden departure. Never did he imagine that his plans would be exposed before the trap could even be implemented, much less that the reason would be Mo Yu’s failure to conceal his aura completely.
[Wait, that can’t be right! It’s impossible for the Royal Lord to be unable to conceal his aura! I’ve warned all of them so many times; not to mention, the Black Ink Clan has repeatedly suffered defeat at Yang Kai’s hands. There is no way the Royal Lord would relax his guard towards Yang Kai… Damn it, Yang Kai tricked us again!]
At that instant, Mo Na Ye realised the truth and opened his mouth to issue a warning; however, he was too late. A majestic aura erupted from somewhere in the void. The emergence of the aura was quickly followed by a black light that flew towards Yang Kai at the speed of lightning.
Mo Na Ye closed his eyes in sorrow…
The sounds of battle between Masters rang out from outside the projection, mixed with Yang Kai’s grunts.
When Mo Na Ye opened his eyes again, he saw that Yang Kai had retreated back into the Space within the projection. Meanwhile, Royal Lord Mo Yu stood quietly outside the projection with a pair of fleshy wings spread out behind his back. Countless bone spurs that resembled fangs protruded from his wings, making him seem absolutely terrifying.
Yang Kai’s arms were trembling uncontrollably, blood dripping profusely from them. He had suffered a direct blow from a true Royal Lord and nearly broke both his arms as a result, but instead of frowning, he was laughing. Furthermore, his laughter sounded extremely mocking.
Royal Lord Mo Yu stood outside the projection with a grim expression and scowled at Yang Kai for a while. Glancing at Mo Na Ye’s dull look, Mo Yu seemed to understand something and snorted coldly.
It was not that he was easily deceived. The truth was the exact opposite. The Black Ink Clan simply had too much vigilance towards Yang Kai. When Yang Kai spoke just now, Mo Yu’s first instinct was that he had been discovered. Everything would be for nought once Yang Kai activated Space Principles and escaped; hence, he believed that he would miss the opportunity to make his move if he did not attack now. It was the reason why he had acted so decisively.
Unfortunately, Yang Kai was only a short distance away from the projection. Although he was struck by the unexpected blow, he had quickly retreated back into the projection.
Numerous figures appeared from their hiding spots and slowly gathered around Mo Yu. These figures were all Innate Territory Lords. They were originally supposed to set up the Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array while the Royal Lord was keeping Yang Kai busy; however, they no longer knew what to do in this situation and could only wait quietly for further orders from the Royal Lord.
Staring at Mo Yu through the projection, Yang Kai swung his arms lightly. Then, he chuckled and turned to look back at Mo Na Ye, “The Black Ink Clan sure is hospitable!”
Mo Na Ye responded calmly, “There was no need for you to test the waters if you already expected an ambush, Brother Yang. You could have just asked me, and I would have given you an honest answer.”
At this moment, Mo Na Ye was certain about one thing. Yang Kai had predicted that he would make various secret arrangements in advance. That was why he had taken the initiative to step out of the projection as an experiment, and the results revealed that his predictions were indeed extremely accurate.
Just as how Mo Na Ye had a deep understanding of Yang Kai’s character, Yang Kai also had a good grasp of Mo Na Ye’s thought process after so many years of rivalry. In fact, it would be strange for the Black Ink Clan to ignore such a great opportunity.
“Who could have known whether you were speaking the truth? There are some things one can only learn after seeing it with their own eyes! Mo Na Ye, you have deeply disappointed me!” Yang Kai shook his head slowly, “I was going to spare the lives of these Territory Lords, but it looks like I cannot afford to be merciful towards the Black Ink Clan!”
Mo Na Ye smiled indifferently, “The Black Ink Clan has already sacrificed so many Innate Territory Lords just to annihilate you, Brother Yang. Losing a few more wouldn’t make a difference.”
His statement made the trapped Territory Lords turn pale with fright…
Meanwhile, he continued talking, “But, Brother Yang… What difference does it make even if you slaughtered all the Territory Lords trapped inside this Space? Will that help you escape? Indeed, there is nothing the Black Ink Clan can do to you at the moment; however, this Space will eventually return to normal once the projection completely solidifies in two years. At that time, the Black Ink Clan will only need to prepare a Grand Array in advance. With the Royal Lord personally leading the attack, you will be nothing more than a turtle hiding in its shell! Brother Yang, this place is where you will meet your doom!”
Mo Yu, who had been standing quietly outside the projection, decisively issued the order when he heard those words, “Set up the formation!”
The Territory Lords standing idly behind him immediately scattered in all directions and surrounded the local region where the projection was located with the Grand Array Banners in their hands. It did not take long before the Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array was formed, sealing this section of the void!
Mo Yu stared at the projection in front of him, eager to charge forward. Although he had heard about the strangeness of this Space from Mo Na Ye, he was tempted to enter the Space anyway…
Nevertheless, he decided to give up on the idea after further consideration. Mo Na Ye was not very different from him in terms of raw strength, the only difference being that the latter could only exert about 80% of his maximum power.
Seeing as the trapped Mo Na Ye was absolutely incapable of attacking Yang Kai inside the Space, Mo Yu realised that he would most likely face the same situation if he were to enter. Hence, he decided not to embarrass himself with futile actions. This strange Space was not something that could be overcome with strength alone.
While the Territory Lords were busy preparing the Grand Array, Yang Kai simply watched quietly without trying to stop them. In any case, there was nothing he could do to stop them even if he wanted to.
It was just as Mo Na Ye had said, the current situation was a death sentence to him. The Heaven Sealing Earth Locking Grand Array had sealed the space around him. Once he lost the protection provided by the Universe Furnace’s projection, he would have to face Mo Yu directly. A situation like that would only lead to a disastrous ending for him.
The projection was slowly becoming solid over time, and at this rate, it would probably fully manifest after two years. When that happened, Yang Kai would become vulnerable to the attacks of the many Black Ink Clan Masters surrounding him.
There had been many opportunities and coincidences inside the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land. Not to mention, the Ancestral Land had been favourable to him. That was how Yang Kai managed to escape the crisis and even kill a Master like Di Wu back then, leaving the Black Ink Clan with nothing to show for its efforts.
Unfortunately, there were no external factors or geographical advantages that he could rely upon here. No matter how strong he was, how could he be stronger than a true Royal Lord?
At this moment, many of the Black Ink Clansmen were certain of their victory even though they were trapped. On the contrary, Yang Kai’s future was bleak even though he seemed as unrestrained as a fish in water.
Be it Yang Kai or the Black Ink Clan, neither party knew that the projection would transform into an entrance to the Universe Furnace after the projection solidified completely. They also did not know that the Universe Furnace contained a Sealed World, and the so-called opportunity had to be obtained inside of it. In other words, the Black Ink Clan’s efforts were futile no matter how well-made their plans were.
Nevertheless, for Yang Kai who lacked this information, he was indeed stuck in a desperate situation. He had no means to escape in the face of absolute power. It could even be said that he had fallen right into the Black Ink Clan’s trap when he decided to plunge into this Space within the projection.
It was a pity that he had no other choice under the circumstances back then. Not only had he been an arrow at the end of its flight, but he was also being pursued by Mo Na Ye. He had urgently needed a place where he could properly treat his wounds, so plunging into the projection had been his only choice.
Narrowing his eyes slightly, he grinned at Mo Na Ye, “I’m guessing you have a suggestion for me!”
Mo Na Ye laughed, “You know me well, Brother Yang!”
“Speak!”
He bluntly said, “Sit quietly, don’t do anything unnecessary, and restrain your aura. You might have a chance of survival in two years if you do that, Brother Yang!”
Yang Kai inquired, “And where would that chance of survival come from?”
Mo Na Ye replied, “That would depend entirely on how Sir Royal Lord plans to deal with you. If Sir Royal Lord considers you a threat, you will probably lose your life. But, if Sir Royal Lord intends to spare your life so that you can contribute to the Black Ink Clan instead, corrupting you with the Black Ink Strength is not a bad idea either.”
Mo Na Ye was undoubtedly an intelligent man. Standing in front of the Royal Lord, he carefully made sure not to mention anything absolute. He always framed his words so that the final decision was up to Mo Yu. The same was true when they set up the Grand Array earlier. Instead of directly issuing the orders to set up the Grand Array himself, Mo Na Ye simply dropped some hints here and there so that Mo Yu would understand immediately. After all, issuing the orders directly would have put him under suspicion of overstepping his boundaries.
It was for this reason that Mo Yu had handed all authority over the Black Ink Clan to Mo Na Ye for so many years without any concern. Mo Na Ye knew his place and limits. In that regard, Meng Que, who was also a Pseudo-Royal Lord, was not nearly as quick-witted.
Outside the projection, Mo Yu announced graciously, “I know you have a treasure in your Small Universe that prevents the corruption of Black Ink Strength. If you sacrifice this treasure and allow me to personally corrupt you with the Black Ink Strength, then I will spare your life!”
Yang Kai laughed at those words. Lifting his slightly swollen arms, he casually cupped his fists, “In that case, allow me to thank you for the great consideration you’ve shown me, Sir Royal Lord!”
For the Black Ink Clan, it would definitely be highly beneficial if they could turn Yang Kai into a Black Ink Disciple.
He was powerful, after all. If he could contribute to the Black Ink Clan, he would be a significant boost in strength for them. Furthermore, he was part of the Human Race’s higher-ups with extensive knowledge of their activities, so he would be able to provide the Black Ink Clan with substantial inside information.
More importantly, he had become a living symbol of hope to the Human Race over the years! Not only was his name practically a legend throughout the various Great Territory Battlefields, but his outstanding achievements were also highly praised and admired by soldiers and civilians alike. In fact, his very existence struck fear into the hearts of all Black Ink Clansmen!
If such a symbol were to switch sides and turn upon his former comrades, it would be a huge blow to the morale of the Human Race.
The Black Ink Clan could not care less about ordinary Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, but they would willingly fight for the chance to corrupt Yang Kai with Black Ink Strength. There was more value in converting a person like Yang Kai into a Black Ink Disciple than killing him directly.
When confronting Yang Kai in the past, Mo Yu had never even dreamt about corrupting him with Black Ink Strength. He did not have that ability, after all. Even his chances of killing Yang Kai were slim to none. Be that as it may, the emergence of the Universe Furnace’s projection had turned the impossible into a possibility. He couldn’t help becoming rather excited about such a prospect.
On the other hand, Mo Na Ye discerned the mocking tone in Yang Kai’s words and gave a heavy sigh, “Brother Yang, why must you be so stubborn?”
Yang Kai answered lightly, “Our paths are different, so it’s impossible for us to truly cooperate with each other!” He turned to look at Mo Na Ye, “In any case, it is no loss for me if I drag a Pseudo-Royal Lord and dozens of Innate Territory Lords into the grave with me. Mo Na Ye, between you and me, let’s see which of us dies first!”
Mo Na Ye’s expression immediately darkened.
In the next moment, Yang Kai began surging his Space Principles along with various Dao Strengths, causing the space within the Universe Furnace’s projection to become chaotic once more.
The expressions of the trapped Territory Lords changed drastically at the sight. After their previous experience, how could they not know what was about to happen to them? They hastily drew upon their strength to protect themselves and became vigilant of their surroundings.
Mo Na Ye shouted, “Yang Kai, the Human Race has these sayings, ‘A wise man will submit to the circumstances,’ and, ‘Where there is life, there is hope’!”
No matter how calm he seemed on the surface or how confident he was of Yang Kai’s eventual defeat, he was the first to panic when Yang Kai showed so little regard for life. He desperately tried to persuade Yang Kai otherwise, hoping to arouse Yang Kai’s desire to live. That was because he knew that the situation would not end well for him if Yang Kai continued in this manner. At this rate, he would not survive to see the end of the war, regardless of Yang Kai’s eventual fate.
It was indeed difficult for Yang Kai to be his opponent in a one-on-one battle, but that was on the premise that both of them were at their peak strength. If Yang Kai utilised the strange effects in this Space to inflict heavy injuries onto him, then attacked once he was considerably weaker, Mo Na Ye did not have the confidence to defend himself. At this moment, his life was tied to Yang Kai’s. If he wanted to live, then he could not let Yang Kai die!
Yang Kai laughed loudly, “There’s another popular saying among us Humans. Have you heard of the saying, ‘It is better to have a piece of broken jade than lose a complete tile?’ I’d rather die a glorious death than live on in dishonour!”
The fluctuations of Space Principles became increasingly violent. Under his efforts to trace the roots of the Universe Furnace, the Space within the projection began to tremble and become disordered. The terrified screams of the Territory Lords rang out endlessly as a result.
Even Mo Na Ye was not spared. Streams of black blood constantly gushed out of his body, and the Black Ink Strength protecting his figure was sliced to pieces by the chaotic Space. He kept moving about and changing position, but that barely slowed the pace of his injuries.
All of a sudden, a Territory Lord screamed in agony. His body had been sliced cleanly in two and black blood gushed out of his wound. After suffering this critical blow, which caused him to lose all ability to protect himself, the two halves of his body were quickly carved into fragmented pieces. His screams gradually weakened, and his aura faded away.
One after another, the Territory Lords were reduced to severed limbs and torn flesh due to the effects of the disordered space. At the same time, their auras gradually withered away into nothing.
Outside the projection, Mo Yu watched the situation in distress, so furious that he was practically spitting fire from his eyes.
Mo Na Ye had previously mobilised hundreds of Innate Territory Lords as bait to besiege Yang Kai. Although many of these Territory Lords had died in battle, their deaths had value. Their sacrifice created an opportunity for Mo Na Ye to remove Yang Kai once and for all. Therefore, Mo Yu had not stopped Mo Na Ye even though the sacrifices distressed him. He had tacitly allowed Mo Na Ye to proceed with the plan.
However, the deaths of those Territory Lords were meaningless now. The reason they went through the immense trouble of sneaking out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and travelling for a dozen years just to arrive at the No-Return Pass was to contribute to the Black Ink Clan’s future prosperity. They had not come here just to die in vain.
As things stood, nothing would change no matter how furious Mo Yu became. Although both parties seemed to be separated by a few steps, it was as though they were living in two different worlds. He could not interfere with anything that was happening inside the projection.
The Space within the projection continued to tremble without end. The layers of folded Space shifted in a chaotic manner, constantly bringing harm to the Black Ink Clan.
Yang Kai had done this before. At the time, he stopped after causing the deaths of a dozen or so Territory Lords. That was because he had the vague feeling that something unpredictable would happen if the Space within the projection remained turbulent for too long.
The reason for the turbulence in the projection was the Secret Technique that he used to trace the location of the Universe Furnace’s true body. The Universe Furnace’s true body was hidden at some unknown location. It was because he was tracking the traces in reverse that the Space within the projection became so disturbed and chaotic. If he wanted the Space within the projection to keep oscillating, then he had to keep tracking the traces of the Universe Furnace’s true body. In this way, some things would be rather difficult to predict.
In reality, the other projections scattered throughout the different places were experiencing the same situation when Yang Kai was causing the Space within the projection to shake and become disordered. The Universe Furnace’s true body itself was being affected, so the feedback was reflected in its projections.
The Masters of both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan who were closely monitoring the movements of the Universe Furnace’s projection could not understand the reason for the strange phenomenon. They did not understand what was happening to the Universe Furnace.
In the Suppressing Black Ink Fortress located outside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, many of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were also at a loss. Yang Xiao asked Fu Guang for guidance, “Senior, what is happening? Why is the Universe Furnace experiencing such a strange development?”
Fu Guang secretly thought to himself, [If you ask me, who am I supposed to ask?]
The Dragon Clan did not know much about the Universe Furnace since there was no need for them to enter it and compete for opportunities. Besides, this was also the first time a projection of the Universe Furnace had appeared in front of him. As for why the Space within the Universe Furnace’s projection was trembling and disordered, it was only natural that he was as baffled as the others. After much deliberation, he could only claim that the Heavens were unpredictable. His statement left the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters extremely confused.
In the Supreme Headquarters of the Human Race, Mi Jing Lun read through the numerous messages that had been sent with a frown on his face. Then, he looked up at Blood Crow, who was sitting beside him with a dense layer of aura lingering around his body, “Is it normal for the Universe Furnace to experience strange developments before the projection becomes completely solidified?”
Blood Crow was puzzled, “What kind of strange developments?
Mi Jing Lun handed the report over. Blood Crow took the report and glanced through the contents briefly before he shook his head, “I’ve never heard of such developments before. I don’t think this happened last time.”
“You don’t think?” Mi Jing Lun stared at Blood Crow fixedly.
Blood Crow looked slightly apologetic. Scratching his lower jaw, he explained himself, “Sir, as you know, I am not from any of the Cave Heavens or Paradises. During the Universe Furnace’s last appearance, an entrance happened to emerge in the 3,000 Worlds. The cultivators in the 3,000 Worlds were lucky enough to receive an opportunity to enter and explore the Universe Furnace, but the Masters of the Cave Heavens and Paradises were naturally the first to enter. Moreover, I was only in the Seventh Order at the time and was placed at the outermost edges, being among the last to enter the Universe Furnace. As far as I can recall though, nothing strange occurred to the Universe Furnace’s projection last time. It remained very stable, from the day it appeared to the day it became completely solidified.”
Mi Jing Lun nodded lightly, but he had a slightly worried look on his face. There had to be a reason for this unexpected situation to have happened. It was a pity that the Human Race had such a poor understanding of the Universe Furnace.
Although Blood Crow had personally experienced the phenomenon in the past, the reality was just as he said. His situation at the time was rather awkward as he was not a disciple of the Cave Heavens and Paradises. Adding to that, he was only in the Seventh-Order at the time. Even though he managed to enter the Universe Furnace, the information he possessed was not comprehensive. Be that as it may, the information that he provided recently had been extremely helpful to the Human Race!
At the very least, the Human Race far surpassed the Black Ink Clan in terms of understanding of the internal environment of the Universe Furnace and the opportunities waiting for them inside. This information was invaluable to their current planning.
Meanwhile, the Innate Territory Lords died one after another inside the projection located outside the No-Return Pass. Only half of them remained alive right now, and under Yang Kai’s constant influence, the vibration and the disorder in the Space continued to intensify.
The lives of the Territory Lords were hanging by a thread. Those who survived were not stronger than those who died earlier, they were just luckier than the rest. At this point, nobody knew when they might be the next unlucky one to meet their demise.
The movement of the chaotic space came and went without warning. No matter how hard they struggled, they could not discern any clues whatsoever. All they could do was protect themselves as best as they could. Even so, their efforts were to no avail. Their condition was poor in the first place. Combined with the distortion of the chaotic space, they could not defend themselves from the injuries caused by the shifting of the folding space.
Among the Territory Lords who survived by luck, many were missing arms and legs. They were as miserable as they could possibly be. In the beginning, they cried out for Mo Na Ye to save them, but they no longer shouted anymore, having realised that it was useless.
Mo Na Ye couldn’t even protect himself at the moment. It was only thanks to his immense cultivation that he was not in danger yet. Nevertheless, he was covered in wounds. Even his aura, which had initially been at its peak, had reduced considerably. If this were to continue, he would soon be facing the threat of death.
After becoming a Pseudo-Royal Lord more than 1,000 years ago, Mo Na Ye never imagined that he would be in such dire straits one day. The reason he tried so hard was that he wanted to gain the capital to influence the future of the war between the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race. That was why he even risked his life to perform the Source Fusion Technique and became a Pseudo-Royal Lord.
As a Pseudo-Royal Lord, it was impossible for his life to be threatened unless he encountered a Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Therefore, he had faced Yang Kai over the years from the standpoint of somebody who was superior in strength. The worst outcome for his schemes and calculations was failure. As long as the Royal Lord continued to trust in him, he would not be implicated in any danger.
To his horror, Mo Na Ye abruptly realised something crucial at this moment. Even though he was a Pseudo-Royal Lord, he could barely protect himself in a confrontation against Yang Kai! Di Wu’s death back then was not a fluke!
Yang Kai had always been capable of creating unimaginable miracles when he was caught in a desperate situation. Take this incident for example. There was nothing wrong with Mo Na Ye’s schemes and everything had gone smoothly at the start. However, the Universe Furnace’s projection just had to appear nearby and the space within the projection just had to be so strange. Worst of all, Yang Kai could even take advantage of the characteristics of this location to effortlessly slaughter the Territory Lords and threaten the life of a Pseudo-Royal Lord like Mo Na Ye.
“Brother Yang, tell me, what is it that you want? Please speak freely. This Mo Na Ye will not refuse any request that can be satisfied. Why must we kill each other?” At the critical moment between life and death, Mo Na Ye finally broke down. If he did not figure out a method to break this stalemate, he would die first regardless of whether or not Yang Kai eventually survived.
Space Principles along with various Dao Strengths fluctuated wildly around Yang Kai as he coldly snorted, “You can’t give me what I want.”
Mo Na Ye calmed down upon hearing those words. He had been worried that Yang Kai would ignore him and refuse to speak to him. Since Yang Kai was talking to him, that could only mean that Yang Kai had a request to make. The crisis today might not be unresolvable!
He immediately raised his voice and said, “Sir Royal Lord is right here. Even if this Mo Na Ye is unable to satisfy your request, are you saying Sir Royal Lord would not be able to? But… Brother Yang, I hope you don’t make any unrealistic demands.”
His greatest fear was that Yang Kai would demand that the Royal Lord commit suicide on the spot. If such words came out of Yang Kai’s words, then communication between them would break down immediately.
No matter how highly the Royal Lord valued Mo Na Ye, it was impossible for him to value him more than himself. He would never harm himself just for Mo Na Ye’s sake.
As soon as the words left Mo Na Ye’s mouth, Mo Yu, who was standing outside, hesitated for a moment before he agreed, “Negotiation is permissible!”
Mo Yu could tell that Mo Na Ye was in a precarious situation, and it would be bad to lose such a capable subordinate.
Throughout the years, the management of the Black Ink Clan had been well-organised under Mo Na Ye. The only exception was this plan to besiege Yang Kai, which had resulted in heavy losses. Even so, there was nothing wrong with the plan itself. It was simply a huge coincidence for the projection of the Universe Furnace to appear at this time and place, which unfortunately gave Yang Kai a chance to catch his breath.
In short, Mo Na Ye was extremely capable and loyal. If there was a way to save Mo Na Ye, then Mo Yu certainly would not mind taking a shot.
When Yang Kai heard those words, the movements of his hands gradually slowed down. The Territory Lords, who were exhausted from running around, were secretly relieved to witness the sight.
A short while later, Yang Kai quickly said, “Remove the surrounding Grand Array. I want to leave this place safely!”
Mo Na Ye turned to glance at Mo Yu. The latter pondered for some time before he finally nodded in agreement, “Good. I can remove the Grand Array. I can even lead all the Territory Lords away. Just stop what you’re doing!”
Yang Kai shook his head, “I don’t trust you. Even if you leave this place, who can guarantee that you will not sneak back here in secret? I have experienced the strength of a Royal Lord in the past. How am I supposed to defend myself if you attack me after I leave this place? In that situation, you will only need to keep me busy for a short time until the Grand Array is formed again!”
Mo Yu quickly said, “I will not go back on my word!”
Yang Kai snorted in disdain. Mo Yu had agreed so readily, so it was obvious he was plotting against him. There was one thing Yang Kai knew for sure, if he left the space within the projection, the other party would definitely attack. It would be troublesome if his enemies cut off his escape routes and then concentrate on fighting him.
Mo Yu snapped impatiently, “What do you want? How are you going to leave if you want to leave but refuse to leave?”
Mo Na Ye persuaded, “Brother Yang, the Royal Lord is being quite sincere.”
Yang Kai replied, “Since he is being sincere, then he should do as I say; otherwise, all negotiations are off the table.”
Mo Yu suppressed his rage and spoke in a cold voice, “Let’s hear it.”
Yang Kai already had a plan in mind and immediately quipped, “I want the Black Ink Clan to contact the front lines and pass a messenger Black Ink Nest to the Supreme Headquarters. As for the rest, the Black Ink Clan does not need to worry themselves with such matters.”
Under the current circumstances, he would require the escort of a Human Race Master if he wanted to leave this place safely. However, he had no means to contact the Human Race at the moment. Borrowing a Black Ink Nest for communication was the best solution in his situation. In this way, he could contact the Human Race directly and explain the situation here clearly.
There was no need for many escorts. A single Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master would be enough!
Although his actions would expose the fact that there was a hidden Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master among the Human Race, now that the Universe Furnace was about to emerge, that would soon happen anyways.
In any case, the Black Ink Clan had always guessed that there was a hidden Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master among the Human Race, it was just that they did not have concrete proof to support their suspicions.
After listening to Yang Kai’s demand, Mo Yu fell silent and Mo Na Ye frowned deeply. They had to admit that Yang Kai’s request was exceptionally simple. Be that as it may, the request was also extremely meticulous. There was no room for the Black Ink Clan to secretly interfere.
Mo Na Ye couldn’t help but sigh helplessly. He knew that the Royal Lord would never accept Yang Kai’s demand. The reason the Royal Lord had been willing to remove the Grand Array and leave with the Territory Lords was that the resulting situation would have remained within his control. There had been a possibility of ambushing Yang Kai again…
On the other hand, all their previous efforts would go to waste if they agreed to Yang Kai’s demand and allowed him to contact the Human Race. More importantly, the Territory Lords would have died in vain.
Yang Kai studied Mo Yu’s expression and sneered, “Mo Na Ye, it looks like the Royal Lord doesn’t value you very much!”
Mo Na Ye sighed lightly, “Now that things have reached this point, why bother trying to provoke discord, Brother Yang?” With a solemn expression, he turned and bowed respectfully in Mo Yu’s direction, his voice steady and sonorous, “Sir Royal Lord, this plan has already cost the Black Ink Clan hundreds of Innate Territory Lords. You must not allow our previous efforts to go to waste just because of this subordinate; otherwise, even more Territory Lords will lose their lives in the future.”
“Yang Kai is a great talent of the Human Race. It is necessary to annihilate him now, more than ever, especially since the Universe Furnace is about to appear in the world. If he were to obtain an opportunity from the Universe Furnace, he would surely become a catastrophe for the Black Ink Clan in the future. Sir Royal Lord, regardless of whether this subordinate lives or dies today, you must not let the efforts of our many clansmen be in vain.
“I, Mo Na Ye, am willing to sacrifice my life in exchange for the life of the Human Race Master, Yang Kai!”
His words were extremely sincere, and his voice resounded throughout the void. Mo Yu and the many Innate Territory Lords outside the projection were deeply moved by his speech. There were very few people among the Black Ink Clan who could disregard life and death for the greater good. Combined with his profound sense of righteousness, the Black Ink Clansmen could not help feeling a sense of admiration towards him.
Originally, many of these Innate Territory Lords had held negative opinions towards Mo Na Ye. They were all Innate Territory Lords after all, so none of them should have stood above anybody else. Many felt Mo Na Ye was simply lucky in that he succeeded in using the Source Fusion Technique and took the last spot available for the position. After he became a Pseudo-Royal Lord, he showed some measure of wit and intelligence that the Royal Lord appreciated, which was why he was put in charge of all matters regarding the Black Ink Clan.
However, over the years, he did not seem to gain anything from the war between the Human Race and his confrontation against Yang Kai. On the contrary, he caused heavy losses to the Black Ink Clan. Anybody could have done that in his place…
Nonetheless, many of these Territory Lords could not help but change their opinion of Mo Na Ye after listening to his speech. Leaving everything else aside, they could never bring themselves to speak such profound and righteous words or show such willingness to sacrifice themselves for the greater good!
Mo Yu glanced at Mo Na Ye, a hint of apology flashing through his eyes as his slight dissatisfaction towards Mo Na Ye over the heavy casualties among the Territory Lords dissipated into nothing. He had been hesitating, wondering whether he should follow Yang Kai’s demand and allow the latter to contact the Human Race. Although that would allow a tiger to return to the mountain, he would be able to rescue his capable subordinate, Mo Na Ye.
Nevertheless, Mo Yu made up his mind after listening to Mo Na Ye’s little speech.
Mo Na Ye was correct. Yang Kai was already a great threat to the Black Ink Clan even though he was only in the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Now that the Universe Furnace was about to appear, the consequences would be unimaginably dire if he were to escape and obtain an opportunity from the Universe Furnace!
[No matter what, no matter how great the price, Yang Kai must die here today!] Mo Yu closed his eyes slightly. When he opened them again, his eyes were filled with murderous intent, “Yang Kai, if you stop now, I promise that I will only corrupt you with Black Ink Strength. But, if you dare harm another one of our Masters, I swear I will rip your corpse into 10,000 pieces when the time comes!”
“Were you… referring to this?”
While speaking, Yang Kai took a step forward. Nobody could see his movements clearly under the effects of the chaotic folding space. When he reappeared again, he was grasping a heavily wounded Territory Lord by the head in his large hand.
The Territory Lord had been flustered from concentrating on defending against the attacks of the disordered space. As a result, he was caught completely off-guard by Yang Kai. At this moment, he was fully immobilised and at Yang Kai’s mercy.
Yang Kai turned and stared into Mo Yu’s eyes with a fierce look on his face; then, he put some strength into his hand and the Territory Lord’s head shattered in his grip.
He had remained in one spot without moving, simply urging Space Principles to trace the location of the Universe Furnace’s true body. However, he was actively making his move now. Mo Yu’s ruthless threat was nothing but wind in his ears to him.
“Or, did you mean this?” He asked once more. At the same time, he abruptly appeared behind another Territory Lord. He summoned the Azure Dragon Spear and pierced it through the Territory Lord’s body. With a flick of his spear, World Force erupted and the Territory Lord exploded into blood mist!
After killing seven or eight Territory Lords in a row, Yang Kai finally stopped and glanced at Mo Yu mockingly.
Mo Yu was so furious that his entire body trembled with rage as he roared explosively, “Good, very good! You will regret this!”
After saying that, he closed his eyes. What the eyes did not see, the heart did not grieve.
Yang Kai could not be bothered to argue with Mo Yu and simply continued to manipulate Space Principles. At the same time, he turned to look at Mo Na Ye and smiled slightly, “How cunning!”
He was not sure whether Mo Na Ye’s speech earlier had been truly sincere or merely a show for the public. It might have been a mixture of both. Nonetheless, there was no denying that Mo Na Ye had driven both himself and Yang Kai into a corner.
In any case, this was the crisis that Yang Kai would eventually have had to face. It became impossible for him to leave the moment Mo Na Ye secretly arranged for the Royal Lord and the Innate Territory Lords to ambush him here. That being the case, he might as well slaughter all the Black Ink Clansmen trapped inside the space within the projection first. After two years, his survival would be decided by the Heavens in that decisive battle!
There were less than 20 surviving Innate Territory Lords trapped inside the space within the projection at this moment. If Yang Kai wanted to obliterate them, he could have killed them easily. Only Mo Na Ye posed some trouble for him. He needed to reduce Mo Na Ye’s strength and let the latter’s injuries slowly accumulate over time. Then, he would make his move when the time was right.
The Dao Strengths and Space principles became more and more chaotic. Inside the projection, the random movements of the folded Space increased in frequency. There were too many dangers lurking around with no warning signs. One by one, the Territory Lords who survived by luck eventually died over time.
On the other hand, black blood continuously gushed out of Mo Na Ye’s body as the number of injuries on his body gradually increased. Nevertheless, he was unwilling to wait for his death without doing anything even though he was stuck in such a desperate situation. He constantly changed positions and summoned his strength to protect himself. Although he had valiantly offered to sacrifice himself for the greater good earlier, it was only natural for him to struggle to survive in the face of death.
As time passed, the Innate Territory Lords trapped in the space within the projection gradually lost their lives until not a single one remained. The void was filled with the remains of these Territory Lords after their tragic deaths. It was a bloody and miserable scene.
The only survivors of the massacre were Yang Kai, who was not affected by the effects of this space, and Mo Na Ye, who was struggling to survive. Their situation could not be more different. Yang Kai was casually pushing his Space Principles to their limits. On the other hand, Mo Na Ye was in a terrible state. Their situations were in stark contrast to each other.
Inside the space within the Universe Furnace’s projection, Mo Na Ye had been driven to a desperate situation. There was no regularity to the constant movement and shifting of the folded space. Every movement was like an invisible and intangible millstone grinding away at everything in the void, which caused the severity of his injuries to increase over time.
Nevertheless, Mo Na Ye simply gritted his teeth and persevered without complaint.
Outside the projection, Royal Lord Mo Yu kept his eyes tightly shut. Nonetheless, the bursts of aura fluctuating around his figure revealed the unrest in his heart. He had done everything he could. If Mo Na Ye was destined to succumb here, then there was nothing he could do to prevent it. It was just that such a capable subordinate was difficult to find, so Mo Yu couldn’t help feeling a slight twinge of regret.
There was no saying how much time had passed when all of a sudden, Yang Kai stepped forward. His figure slipped through the layers of folded Space like a ghost, and appeared behind Mo Na Ye without any warning and ruthlessly thrust his spear.
Although Mo Na Ye had been struggling to stay alive, he had not forgotten to remain vigilant towards Yang Kai; hence, he immediately took precautions when he noticed the latter’s movements and abruptly spun around at the same time that the Azure Dragon Spear stabbed at him. Frantically drawing upon his Black Ink Strength, he punched out with all his might.
Thanks to the punch he threw with all his strength, Mo Na Ye managed to block the elusive blow coming from behind him. For a moment, space collapsed violently at the spot where the two forces met.
Yang Kai pulled back slightly.
On the other hand, Mo Na Ye lowered his hand. black blood trickled from his knuckles. He had managed to block Yang Kai’s attack but inevitably suffered some light injuries.
“Heh…” Yang Kai snickered. He continued to connect with the Universe Furnace’s true body, causing the space within the projection to shake. The vibrations and disorder became increasingly violent, but his expression remained relaxed, as though he was in no hurry.
After repeated attacks, Mo Na Ye’s injuries continued to accumulate. Even though the Pseudo-Royal Lord would like nothing more than to find Yang Kai’s location, he was powerless in this treacherous environment. He could only maintain a passive defence in the face of Yang Kai’s repeated assaults. The saying, ‘Using a blunt knife to carve meat’ was the best description for this situation.
Inside the Space within the projection, Mo Na Ye was powerless even though he was stronger than Yang Kai. He could only wait for Yang Kai to shave away at his life, little by little. When he finally reached his limit, he was certain that Yang Kai would finish him off with a killing blow. Although Mo Na Ye was well aware of this harsh reality, there was nothing he could do to change the situation. He could only stubbornly persist with his efforts while feeling humiliated and helpless in his heart.
At a certain moment, Yang Kai suddenly frowned deeply. He had been pushing his Space Principles all this while, but the fluctuations in the Space inadvertently slowed down due to his momentary pause.
That vague feeling from before filled his heart once again. If he continued in this manner, there was a high likelihood that something beyond his control would occur here… Following the emergence of this feeling, Yang Kai clearly noticed that the connection between himself and the Universe Furnace’s true body had strengthened considerably.
What allowed Yang Kai to cause the space within the projection to oscillate endlessly was his comprehension of the Cow Punch Secret Technique. He was using this Secret Technique’s first half to track the traces of the Universe Furnace back to their roots. The stronger the vibration in this Space, the more precisely he could locate the Universe Furnace’s true body. The reverse was also true. The closer the connection between him and the Universe Furnace’s true body, the easier it became for him to make this Space tremble. They seemed to be closely related to each other.
As for whether something beyond his control would occur, Yang Kai did not know for certain. In any case, it should not be a bad thing for him to build a close connection with the Universe Furnace. He might even be able to use this connection to determine the hiding place of the Universe Furnace.
In addition, Mo Na Ye was seriously injured at the moment. Yang Kai only needed a final push before seizing the chance to annihilate Mo Na Ye once and for all!
Although he felt that his actions were slightly risky, he did not stop his movements. In fact, he urged his Space Principles more violently after a brief moment of hesitation. Sure enough, not only did his connection with the Universe Furnace grow stronger, but the trembling throughout the Space also became considerably more violent as a result.
Mo Na Ye’s expression changed slightly. He obviously felt the changes around him, but he was powerless to do anything about it. Facing the chaotic grinding of the folded Space, he could only dodge as much as possible…
All of a sudden, the folded Space reacted violently in a manner that resembled boiling water. The layers of Space completely shifted apart from each other. From the outside, the space inside the projection had suddenly become extremely distorted. It was as though broken pieces of the mirror which originally made up this scene had now been haphazardly scattered.
In the eyes of the Black Ink Clan Masters outside the projection, Mo Na Ye’s figure inside the projection was no longer whole. His head was at one spot, his body was at another spot, his arms were in a third spot…
The Territory Lords did not know whether they were looking at the effects of the disordered space or reality. It would be great if the effects of the warping caused this scene, but if they were looking at reality, then Mo Na Ye was already dead.
Fortunately, Mo Na Ye was not the only person in this condition. When the Black Ink Clansmen looked over at Yang Kai, they saw the same phenomenon affecting him! Yang Kai’s figure was separated into dozens of pieces, scattered throughout the folded Space. It was such a bizarre scene that the Territory Lords could not help exclaiming in astonishment.
Inside the projection, Mo Na Ye felt as though he had been struck by lightning and a mouthful of black blood spewed out of his mouth. He did not know how many additional wounds had appeared on his body in that instant, but it felt as though he was about to be ripped apart.
The scene seen by the Territory Lords outside was just a visual deception; nevertheless, the extremely distorted Space Principles were truly being imposed upon Mo Na Ye inside the projection. If he did not resist with all his might, his body would be divided into countless pieces and scattered across the layers of folded space like what the Territory Lords were seeing at the moment.
[My destined end has come!] Mo Na Ye roared in his heart. Flooded with the immense fear of death, he abruptly regretted the righteous statement he made earlier. At the time, he believed that Yang Kai might not see things through to the end; otherwise, he would not be able to survive this ordeal either. Unfortunately, it would now seem that Yang Kai was determined to finish him off once and for all.
Looking back on his life, Mo Na Ye realised that he had not achieved anything extraordinary. Be that as it may, his life had not been dull either. Especially the years he spent as rivals with Yang Kai. That period could be said to be rather exciting…
While Mo Na Ye was being emotional in his moment of death, Yang Kai had a stunned expression on his face. He vaguely realised that the phenomenon which was beyond his control had already occurred.
Using the mysterious effects of Cow Punch, he deliberately traced the Universe Furnace’s aura back to its true location. At the same time, he caused disorder in the distorted and folded Space within the projection to cause constant damage to Mo Na Ye so that he could create an opportunity to kill the latter.
Everything was going well, and it would not take long before Mo Na Ye lost the strength to fight back. Moreover, Yang Kai clearly felt an extremely mysterious connection form between himself and the Universe Furnace’s true body just now. It felt as though an invisible shackle had bound him directly to the Universe Furnace.
He was overjoyed. With this connection, he could track the traces back to the location of the Universe Furnace itself!
At present, the Universe Furnace’s projection existed at more than a dozen locations, so no one knew where it would eventually appear. If Yang Kai could determine the location of the Universe Furnace in advance, then he might just be able to learn something…
As for how to report his discovery to the Human Race, he did not have the time or energy to consider such matters. He did not even stop to wonder whether he could escape this place alive.
When the connection was first established between him and the Universe Furnace though, an unexpected turn of events occurred before Yang Kai could trace its location. The connection seemed to wrap around him like an invisible rope, immediately followed by an invincible force that came from the other end.
At this moment, Yang Kai felt the Universe becoming chaotic and the Void became ever-shifting.
At the same time, the Black Ink Clansmen outside the projection watched as the bodies of Mo Na Ye and Yang Kai were scattered around the void as though they had been cut into countless pieces while simultaneously, all the other projections became equally distorted and turbulent.
Countless pairs of eyes watched the projection from different locations in shock.
The constant oscillation and distortion of the space within the projection had attracted the attention of both the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race. Nobody knew what was happening. Even Blood Crow who entered the Universe Furnace once in the past could not explain the phenomenon. Although the Supreme Headquarters was working hard to obtain information from various sources, they did not gain much from their efforts; therefore, they could only increase their surveillance.
At the Suppressing Black Ink Fortress outside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, a group of Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were staring at the projection in confusion. Yang Xiao asked Fu Guan again, “Senior, the Universe Furnace’s projection looks rather dangerous. Are we really going to enter the Universe Furnace from here?”
The space inside the projection was so distorted and disordered now that not many people would survive if they tried to enter it.
Fu Guang frowned with a puzzled look on his face, “I’ve never heard of such a thing happening before the Universe Furnace appeared in the world…”
The Dragon Clan did not know much regarding the internal situation of the Universe Furnace, but they had some basic information. Whenever the Universe Furnace’s projection emerged in the world in the past, everything had progressed smoothly and steadily. The projection would become increasingly solid, and then transform into the entrance of the Universe Furnace. There had never been a precedent where such strange phenomena occurred.
Yang Xiao then glanced towards Zhao Ye Bai, “Junior Brother, with your attainments in the Dao of Space, how much confidence do you have to come out safely if you were to enter the projection now?”
Zhao Ye Bai considered the question seriously before he answered, “Around 60%!”
“Even you only have 60% confidence!?” Yang Xiao was very shocked. He knew how great Zhao Ye Bai’s attainments in the Dao of Space were. If Zhao Ye Bai only had a 60% chance of success, then everybody else who entered the Universe Furnace would probably die!
Zhao Ye Bai looked ashamed and apologetic, “My aptitude is poor, which brings shame to the teachings of Honoured Master. If Honoured Master were here…” His eyes suddenly widened in surprise. He stared at the originally empty, but extremely turbulent projection and blurted out, “Honoured Master?”
He could barely believe his eyes. A tremendously large figure had appeared and filled the entire space inside the projection at that moment; moreover, the figure had the appearance of his Honoured Master!
The Human Race Masters at the Suppressing Black Ink Fortress were incredibly shocked. After hearing the numerous exclamations of astonishment ringing throughout the crowd, Zhao Ye Bai confirmed that he was not hallucinating. His Honoured Master had appeared within the projection!
There were many of Yang Kai’s family and friends stationed in the Suppressing Black Ink Army, so they looked extremely emotional at this moment.
Fu Guang shouted, “What you see is not real! Be wary of deception!”
He could tell at a glance that the figure of Yang Kai, which suddenly appeared inside the projection, was not the real Yang Kai. It was some sort of illusory image, which explained why he was so large that he filled the entire space.
What puzzled Fu Guang greatly was why Yang Kai’s illusory phantom had appeared inside the Space within the Universe Furnace’s projection! [What did that brat do to cause such a bizarre phenomenon?]
Likewise, the Masters of both the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race on the various Great Territory Battlefields were absolutely perplexed by the situation.
Yang Kai’s illusory phantom had not just appeared in the Universe Furnace’s projection outside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, but in all the locations where the Universe Furnace’s projection existed. The fact that his illusory phantom had appeared everywhere at the same time could be said to be a spectacular miracle!
The Black Ink Clan Army and the Human Race Army stood in formation outside the Universe Furnace’s projection in Twin Poles Territory, facing each other silently.
Both the Black Ink Clan and the Human Race had been recalling their forces during this period, so there had been no conflict between them for some time. The Universe Furnace was about to emerge in the world, and the situation was unclear; therefore, both parties were being extremely cautious to prevent the other from obtaining an opportunity.
Their current silent confrontation was in preparation for the upcoming fight over the control of the entrance to the Universe Furnace.
The Universe Furnace was a tremendous blessing and opportunity. The Human Race was planning to fight for this opportunity, and the Black Ink Clan could not allow them to obtain what they wanted. The present calm was simply a sign of the turbulent storm that was about to come.
Although there were many Universe Furnace projections, it was foreseeable that a war would inevitably break out between both parties once these projections transformed into entrances. When the time came, the party who had control over more entrances would be able to send more Masters inside.
At this moment, two Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were standing side by side in Twin Poles Territory, monitoring the movements of the Territory Lords on the opposite side when Yang Kai’s illusory phantom suddenly appeared out of nowhere. While there were many other Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters like themselves among their ranks, the number of Territory Lords among the Black Ink Clan was not few either.
One of them suddenly called out in alarm, “Junior Brother Fang, it’s the Dao Lord! The Dao Lord!”
The only ones who would address Yang Kai as ‘Dao Lord’ were the disciples who originated from the Void Dao Temple. The person who spoke earlier was none other than the good friend whom Fang Tian Ci met in the Void Dao Temple all those years ago, Liu Jing Shan.
After leaving the Void Dao Temple, Liu Jing Shan advanced directly to the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm outside of the Star Boundary. He later went through thousands of years of cultivation and eventually reached the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Even with his astounding achievements, he could not conceal his admiration and respect for the Dao Lord. In fact, almost all the cultivators from the Void Dao Temple held blind faith in their Dao Lord, Yang Kai. That sense of admiration in their hearts never faded or changed with the increase in their cultivation.
Needless to say, the person standing beside Liu Jing Shan was Fang Tian Ci, who nodded at those words, “But, it’s just an illusory phantom!”
When the Suppressing Black Ink Army was established, Yang Xiao’s Squad was formally transferred to the Suppressing Black Ink Army. However, Fang Tian Ci, who was originally a member of Yang Xiao’s Squad, had applied to stay behind instead. Needless to say, there was no reason for Mi Jing Lun, who was in charge of this matter, to make things difficult for him.
Over the years, Fang Tian Ci remained active in Twin Poles Territory and joined forces with Liu Jing Shan to defeat their enemies. As many of the Divine Abilities, he cultivated and his habits when dealing with enemies were somewhat similar to Yang Kai, he was often compared to the latter. He eventually gained the nickname ‘Little Yang Kai’ and became quite famous. The Black Ink Clan had since repeatedly tried to target him out of fear that he might grow to Yang Kai’s level. Fortunately, he had always managed to escape and survive their attempts; after all, his attainments in the Dao of Space were not low. It was difficult for the Black Ink Clan to succeed, regardless of their attempts to target him.
Fang Tian Ci frowned at the illusory phantom, feeling extremely puzzled… [Why would his image appear inside the space within the Universe Furnace’s projection?]
Thinking about it again, Yang Kai had always been unconstrained in his actions. He generally made unexpected moves that nobody else could even imagine, so… it did not seem too strange for his illusory phantom to appear here.
Fang Tian Ci smiled at the thought and did not think too deeply about the matter.
Meanwhile, Thunder Shadow, who was in Azure Sun Territory, had the same question as Fang Tian Ci.
When this Monster Race Master advanced to the Monster Emperor Realm in the Myriad Monsters World, he had only been a Fifth-Order Monster Emperor, which corresponded to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Nevertheless, he attracted many congratulatory wishes from everyone at the time. Even the Human Race Masters overseeing the Myriad Monsters World had not dared to take him lightly. That was because Thunder Shadow was not a mere Monster Emperor, but also a Monster Race Great Emperor who the Myriad Monsters World’s Will recognized!
Thunder Shadow had spent most of his time cultivating hard in the Myriad Monsters World over the recent years, and thanks to the blessing of the World Tree Clone, his cultivation had advanced by leaps and bounds. He grew from the Fifth Order to the Seventh Order in just a short 2,000 years, and then 300 years ago, he became an Eighth-Order Monster Emperor after which he came out of retreat. He had brazenly caused a bloodbath in Azure Sun Territory by relying on his brutality and the innate might of the Monster Race. No less than five Territory Lords had died to his claws, which gave him an impressive reputation!
Most of the Monster Race who came from the Myriad Monsters World had been taken in by Human Masters as mounts. By relying on the protection of these Human Masters, Monster Emperors could often improve their cultivation at great speed. At the same time, they could tacitly increase their cooperation with the Human Race Masters to bring down their enemies more efficiently.
However, there was no Human Race Master who would even dare to think about taking Thunder Shadow as a mount. He was an individual who received the recognition of the Myriad Monsters World after all. As a Great Emperor who cultivated the Primal Art, Thunder Shadow naturally had great prospects for the future. Nearly 99% of the Human Race would not be able to match up to his strength. In that case, who would be qualified to subdue him?
However, it was rumoured that he had a very close relationship with a small Great Force known as Great Feather Pavilion. That was because he received great care from a Great Feather Pavilion disciple when he was young and weak.
At this moment, a Monster Leopard with lightning all over its body was quietly watching the projection in Azure Sun Territory. He did not take Human Form. It was not because he didn’t want to, but that he couldn’t.
The Monster Race who cultivated the Primal Art mainly focused on polishing their Monster Cores as their foundation. The stronger their Monster Core, the stronger their strength as a Monster Race member, and the harder it became for them to assume Human Form. That was especially true for a Monster Race Master like Thunder Shadow. It was practically impossible for him to assume Human Form at this point.
There was a man and a woman next to him. They were none other than Qin Xue and her husband who came from Great Feather Pavilion. The couple were both in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. Their cultivation was nothing special in Azure Sun Territory, but their safety was guaranteed thanks to the protection of Thunder Shadow. In fact, they often worked with Thunder Shadow to eliminate many powerful foes over the years.
“That’s the Master of the Star Boundary, right?” Qin Xue studied the illusory phantom for a moment and quickly recognised the identity of the figure.
Beside her, Hou Qing Hai nodded lightly, “There’s no doubt it’s him. I saw his statue in the square when I visited High Heaven Palace in the Star Boundary in the past.”
He thought back to the scene he witnessed back then. Seeing thousands of High Heaven Palace disciples showing such great reverence to their Palace Master had fascinated him greatly. Every time he thought about that scene, he couldn’t help thinking that that was how a real man should be. Unfortunately, both he and his Wife were limited by their aptitude. The Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm was their inherent limit, so it was difficult for them to make any further progress.
“A Hero indeed,” Qin Xue sighed, “It’s only thanks to him that the Human Race managed to persevere until now. But, why did his figure appear here?”
Hou Qing Hai shook his head to express his ignorance.
On the other hand, Thunder Shadow growled softly, “It’s probably related to the Universe Furnace’s projection!”
Qin Xue tilted her head to the side with a puzzled expression, but did not bother to think deeper into the matter. She simply asked in a worried voice, “Thunder Shadow, are you really going to enter the Universe Furnace?”
He did not respond.
Hou Qing Hai tried to persuade Thunder Shadow otherwise, “Thunder Shadow, you are part of Monster Race. Not to mention, you are a Great Emperor recognized by the Myriad Monsters World and cultivate the Primal Art. Even without entering the Universe Furnace, you have great prospects waiting for you in the future. Why must you put yourself in needless danger? I might not know the internal situation in the Universe Furnace, but I’m certain about something, there will be a horrific bloodbath when the time comes!”
Qin Xue nodded repeatedly in agreement and stared at Thunder Shadow expectantly, hoping that the latter would change his mind.
The couple could not understand the reason why Thunder Shadow, who was born as part of Monster Race and cultivated the Primal Art, would want to compete in the bloody battle to enter the Universe Furnace. There was no reason for him to go after all.
In response, Thunder Shadow simply said, “I have my reasons for going, so please stop trying to persuade me otherwise. The entrance to the Universe Furnace will soon open. Please be extremely cautious when I’m not around and don’t try to be brave or reckless. Qing Hai, please take good care of your Wife!”
Hou Qing Hai sighed heavily, “Please don’t worry about us.”
…
Everywhere outside the Universe Furnace’s projections at each location, the Masters of both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan were communicating with each other through voice transmission. Every one of them had their own intentions, but there were no exceptions about one thing, they were confused by the image that suddenly appeared.
At the same time, Yang Kai’s gaze wandered around the Universe Furnace’s projection on the Black Ink Battlefield as though he could see across space.
He could see the astonished expressions of his Wives and several Disciples at the Suppressing Black Ink Fortress outside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. He also saw Fang Tian Ci in Twin Poles Territory. When their gazes met, they nodded lightly at each other. Everything was conveyed without any spoken words. Then, he saw Thunder Shadow, Qin Xue, and her Husband standing side by side in Azure Sun Territory. The tense atmosphere between the Human Race Army and the Black Ink Clan Army, as they stood in formation outside the Universe Furnace’s projections, did not escape his notice either…
The barriers of space suddenly became meaningless at this moment. With the help of the mysterious connection between him and the Universe Furnace’s true body, Yang Kai could see everything at all the locations where the Universe Furnace’s projection had appeared.
A realisation suddenly welled up in his heart, and he burst out cursing! He was starting to understand the reason behind this phenomenon. It was the defence mechanism of the Universe Furnace itself!
This Supreme Treasure had remained hidden beyond the bounds of this Universe for all time. Nobody had ever figured out its exact location, much less seen its true body before.
On the other hand, it was different for Yang Kai who was proficient in the Dao of Space. He had utilised the mysterious effects of his Cow Punch Secret Technique to trace the Universe Furnace’s aura back to its roots to determine its true location. At this point, he was only one step away from success.
Unfortunately, the Universe Furnace could not allow him to determine the location of its true body. That was why the connection that formed between him and the Universe Furnace had turned into an invisible rope, and an immense pulling force drew him in from the other end of the connection. The Universe Furnace was trying to pull him into itself so that he could not investigate its location any further!
Whenever the Universe Furnace emerged in the world, it had always been customary to wait for the entrance to appear in order to enter it. Be that as it may, Yang Kai had been given permission to enter the Universe Furnace early, and it was not an invitation that he could refuse.
It was also because of the connection between him and the Universe Furnace’s true body that his image appeared in all the projections. The strange Spaces scattered everywhere were originally projections of the Universe Furnace’s true body. Now that Yang Kai had a close connection with the Universe Furnace and was being drawn into it, his figure was also being projected everywhere.
A series of coincidences and opportunities had all led to this outcome. Yang Kai’s original intention was to trace the location of the Universe Furnace’s true body and simultaneously annihilate those surrounding him. He never expected his actions to cause such an unexpected turn of events; therefore, he couldn’t help feeling slightly panicked. Would he be refined by the Universe Furnace if he entered it? It would be a huge tragedy if that were the case! Instead of increasing his cultivation, he would end up as part of the legendary Innate Open Heaven Pills!
Yang Kai did not know how the Open Heaven Pills that could help cultivators break through their innate shackles were formed, but the Universe Furnace was bound to contain various mysteries. Things would not end well for him if he was dragged into the Universe Furnace just like that.
After realising the precarious situation looming over him, he immediately began drawing upon his strength in desperation to break free from the connection between himself and the Universe Furnace. Nevertheless, his efforts were in vain. The invisible and intangible rope bound him tightly. The force that came from the other end of the rope was so overpowering that even a Master at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm like him was powerless to resist.
Space Principles flared, causing the Void to become extremely distorted, but to his astonishment, he discovered that a vortex had appeared at the place where he was standing. Immediately after that, his figure was rapidly swallowed up and vanished out of sight!
At the last moment, only one thought flashed through his mind… [I haven’t killed Mo Na Ye yet!]
A wave of sorrow flooded his heart. He had persevered with so much effort, and if nothing unexpected had occurred, Mo Na Ye would not have survived. Unfortunately, Mo Na Ye was saved because his own future had become uncertain due to the Universe Furnace.
A great sense of resentment and reluctance filled Yang Kai’s heart. He would have been much more accepting if he had been dragged into the Universe Furnace after he succeeded in killing Mo Na Ye.
[Forget it. Even though I failed to kill Mo Na Ye, I did manage to eliminate many Innate Territory Lords. I’ve done my best.] Yang Kai felt much better after comforting himself with such words.
The unexpected turn of events inside the Universe Furnace’s projection occurred extremely fast. In the blink of an eye, Yang Kai vanished without warning. The bloodstained and dishevelled Mo Na Ye was desperately shifting his body to avoid the attacks caused by the layers of folded Space when the chaotic and oscillating Space suddenly calmed down. Even the ubiquitous murderous intent around him disappeared in an instant.
Mo Na Ye was stunned for a moment; then, he turned to look in Yang Kai’s direction only to find that the latter was gone. Be that as it may, he did not dare to relax his guard and remained cautious of his surroundings.
Nothing abnormal occurred even though a long time had passed though, so he couldn’t help sending out an inquiry via Divine Sense, “Sir Royal Lord, where is Yang Kai?”
Mo Yu frowned and briefly explained the events that took place just now. The truth was that he had not understood the reason behind Yang Kai’s disappearance either, he only saw a vortex inexplicably appearing where Yang Kai was standing. Immediately after that, Yang Kai was swallowed by the vortex and vanished without a trace.
Mo Na Ye was astonished, [Yang Kai was swallowed by a vortex that appeared out of nowhere? Is it some sort of trickery? If that’s the case, then he must be hiding somewhere in this Space. It’s just that nobody in the Black Ink Clan can detect his whereabouts.]
But, what was the point of doing that? The Space within the projection was sealed by a Heaven Sealing Earth Locking Grand Array, so Yang Kai couldn’t leave this place and his whereabouts would be revealed once the Universe Furnace’s illusory phantom completely solidified.
Besides, Yang Kai clearly looked determined to kill him and was on the verge of success. So, there’s no reason for Yang Kai to create further disturbances at a time like this.
Inside this weird space within the projection, there was nothing Mo Na Ye could do to defend against Yang Kai’s attacks. As long as Yang Kai persisted for a little longer, Mo Na Ye would have died without a doubt. By that logic, it made more sense that something happened which caused Yang Kai to be swallowed by that strange vortex rather than him voluntarily giving up on all his accumulated efforts.
Mo Na Ye racked his brains but could not fathom the reason behind Yang Kai’s actions. The Black Ink Clan’s understanding of the Universe Furnace was far too shallow, so much so that he couldn’t even be certain whether Yang Kai was still hiding inside the projection at this moment.
After pondering in silence for some time, he finally spoke once more, “Sir, the Universe Furnace is about to truly emerge. The real war between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan is imminent. You need to return so that you can protect the No-Return Pass and coordinate the movements of the Black Ink Clan!”
Mo Yu nodded lightly, “What about you…”
Mo Na Ye gave a light smile, “Please don’t worry. If Yang Kai wanted to kill me, he would not have given up just now. Since he stopped halfway, he must have other plans. This subordinate will act accordingly, but just to be on the safe side, we should maintain the Grand Array around the perimeter lest he try to escape. It will also give this subordinate more capital to negotiate with him if he reappears.”
Mo Yu had no objections to Mo Na Ye’s suggestions, so he instructed the Territory Lords in charge of maintaining the Grand Array to remain behind and heed Mo Na Ye’s orders. Then, he studied the projection intently for a moment before he transformed into a streak of black light that sped off in the direction of the No-Return Pass.
The No-Return Pass was the Black Ink Clan’s largest base, and all the High-Rank Black Ink Nests were currently sheltered there. Although Royal Lord Mo Yu had personally come to deal with Yang Kai during this incident, he could not afford to stay away for too long lest the Human Race Masters took advantage of his absence.
Watching the Royal Lord disappearing into the distance, Mo Na Ye sat down cross-legged and glanced around him, “Brother Yang, the Royal Lord has left. Can you show yourself so that we can have a good talk? Now that things have come to this, there’s no point in hiding anymore, right?”
He had the feeling that Yang Kai was no longer here, but he could not be certain. Nevertheless, he could not understand the situation. Where could Yang Kai have gone if he wasn’t here? What was the vortex that swallowed him?
In any case, Mo Na Ye had to consider all the possible scenarios. Assuming that Yang Kai was hiding somewhere, then he had to try and make contact.
Naturally, he couldn’t receive a response…
Meanwhile, Yang Kai’s illusory phantom that filled the entire void at each projection appeared for no more than two or three breaths of time before vanishing without warning and the abnormal situation was swiftly reported to the Supreme Headquarters.
Mi Jing Lun, Xiang Shan, and Blood Crow gathered together to discuss the situation in hopes of figuring out what happened. After ruling out the various possibilities, only one answer remained before them: Yang Kai had made contact with the Universe Furnace’s true body!
All the projections originated from the Universe Furnace’s true body, which meant that the Universe Furnace’s true body was the source of everything. Seeing as Yang Kai’s illusory phantom had appeared at each projection at the same time, then the phenomenon was definitely related to the Universe Furnace’s true body.
If Thunder Shadow Great Emperor in Azure Sun Territory could figure this out, then it was only natural for Mi Jing Lun and the others to reach the same conclusion.
For a time, they looked exuberant. Throughout history, nobody had ever learned the location of the Universe Furnace’s true body or even seen it before. At present, it had not been long since the Universe Furnace’s projection appeared. Both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan were waiting for the projections to solidify and transform into entrances, yet Yang Kai seemed to have gotten into contact with the Universe Furnace already. That was exciting news! If that were truly the case, then they would have a massive advantage!
As irreverent as Blood Crow was, he couldn’t help feeling a sense of admiration for Yang Kai. Having been a member of Dawn who fought beside Yang Kai for many years, he had quite a good understanding of Yang Kai’s abilities. Nevertheless, he had never held much respect for Yang Kai due to the sense of arrogance in his heart and the long-standing grievances between them. At most, he only felt a subtle sense of competitiveness towards him. They were both Open Heaven Realm Masters, after all, so there was no reason he could not do what Yang Kai could.
Be that as it may, he was completely convinced at this moment. The Universe Furnace was the most profound and mysterious treasure in existence, yet Yang Kai had managed to make contact with its true body. That was something he could never achieve.
He suddenly wondered curiously, “Was Yang Kai trying to use that opportunity to convey a message to us? For example… informing us about the whereabouts of the Universe Furnace’s true body?”
Mi Jing Lun and Xiang Shan glanced at each other. Both of them were feeling rather excited all of a sudden! If that were truly the case, then the information was extremely important. If they could discover the location of the Universe Furnace’s true body, then they could enter the Universe Furnace and obtain the opportunity in advance. Once the entrances were formed, they could then ambush the Black Ink Clan from within the Universe Furnace World and catch the Black Ink Clan unprepared.
After carefully comparing the information he received from various locations though, Mi Jing Lun shook his head and said, “I don’t think he was trying to convey any information to us. Yang Kai’s figure only appeared for a very short time, and judging from the reports gathered from various parties, he seemed to have been caught off-guard. It is written here that Yang Kai looked astonished when he first appeared… This fact undoubtedly indicates that he had not expected this phenomenon.”
Xiang Shan abruptly added, “According to the information that we received earlier, he should have been hunting down the Territory Lords who escaped from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction when all of this happened. Could the Universe Furnace’s true body be located in the Black Ink Battlefield?”
Mi Jing Lun stroked his beard, nodding thoughtfully, “It’s not impossible. Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do even if we know that the Universe Furnace’s true body is located on the Black Ink Battlefield. The entrances will manifest within a year or so, so it’s too late to dispatch our forces to the Black Ink Battlefield. Besides, how will we enter the Black Ink Battlefield without Yang Kai’s protection? We can’t just boldly swagger through the No-Return Pass like he can.”
Xiang Shan lamented, “In that case, we can only wait for the entrances to open!”
“It’s our only option!” Mi Jing Lun sighed slightly, “Fortunately, the Black Ink Clan does not have much information on the Universe Furnace. We still have a slight advantage over them in that regard.”
Among other things, the Black Ink Clan most likely did not know that there was a Sealed World inside the Universe Furnace. Moreover, the projections would transform into entrances that led into the Universe Furnace once they solidified completely. They might have Black Ink Disciples providing them with some rumours and hearsay, but the cultivation of those Black Ink Disciples was not high so such secret information would not be leaked easily.
At the moment, the Black Ink Clan had only moved their Armies to the various locations to confront the Human Race Armies outside the projections. They were simply taking countermeasures against the large-scale movements of the Human Race, not planning for an area control battle. Be that as it may, this secret could only be hidden for a short time as, once the projections solidified and the entrances appeared, the Black Ink Clan would immediately understand.
The advantage that the Human Race held in terms of intelligence would only allow them to make various arrangements in advance. Hopefully, those arrangements would give them a slight advantage when competing for the opportunity inside the Universe Furnace.
Although the guesses of Mi Jing Lun and the others at the Supreme Headquarters were not entirely accurate, they had gotten at least two points correct. The first was that Yang Kai had truly gotten in contact with the Universe Furnace’s true body, and the second was that this incident had indeed happened purely by accident. Yang Kai had not been prepared in advance.
What they did not know was that the accident had caused Yang Kai to be dragged into the Universe Furnace. If they knew the truth, they would have been much more amazed by the situation.
At this moment, Yang Kai was overflowing with worry. When he was dragged into the Universe Furnace, aside from the twinge of regret he felt about failing to kill Mo Na Ye, he had also been concerned about his own fate.
The Universe Furnace contained Innate Open Heaven Pills, but as for how these Open Heaven Pills were produced, nobody knew the truth. Regardless of their method of production, the Universe Furnace was ultimately an Alchemy Furnace though. Things might not end well for him if he were dragged into the Universe Furnace. His greatest fear was being refined by the Universe Furnace. If that were to happen, he would definitely die with many regrets.
After a period of extreme anxiety, Yang Kai discovered that he was showing no signs of being refined. Still, the environment around him seemed to be rather strange. He could not quite describe his surroundings at the moment. It felt as though he had slipped into the Void, with bits of fluorescent lights scattered around like stars twinkling in the sky. Distance had become an extremely vague concept in this place, causing the flickering fluorescent lights to seem both extremely far away yet simultaneously close at hand.
More importantly, Yang Kai could keenly feel that he was either being immobilised by something which prevented him from moving a single muscle or he was wrapped in a mysterious force that shackled him in place. He couldn’t help feeling rather depressed by his circumstances.
[Am I inside the Universe Furnace?] He couldn’t help sinking deep into thought.
The various indications proved that he had indeed been dragged into the Universe Furnace, so there was no doubt about that. Nevertheless… It seemed rather bizarre. It was hard to believe that there was a vast World inside the Universe Furnace! That was something that never crossed his mind before.
In his imagination, the Universe Furnace was nothing more than an Alchemy Furnace which produced the mysterious Innate Open Heaven Pills. Although the projection of the Alchemy Furnace he saw previously was larger than he expected, he had not been overly surprised since the size difference was within the limits of his imagination. On the other hand, the fact that the Universe Furnace contained an independent World was truly astonishing.
Upon further consideration, it did not seem out of the ordinary for the Universe Furnace to contain a Sealed World. The Universe Furnace was the most mysterious Supreme Treasure in existence. Furthermore, it was capable of producing Innate Open Heaven Pills which could overcome the limitations of the established Heavenly Way.
Collecting his thoughts, Yang Kai decided not to spend too much time deliberating over such trivial matters. His biggest concern at the moment was how he could protect himself. He was dragged into the Universe Furnace because his actions had touched upon the essence of this Supreme Treasure. Although there were no signs to indicate that he was being refined at the moment, it was necessary to have countermeasures in place.
[First, I need to figure out a way to break free from these bindings…]
Yang Kai immediately began to draw upon his power to escape this place; however, he discovered that he couldn’t even move a single finger no matter how hard he struggled. The mysterious force holding him in place did not give off a sense of strength, but it was extremely resilient. The more power he exerted against the force, the stronger the force became in response. Thus, he was kept completely immobilised.
Not feeling discouraged, Yang Kai began to push his Space Principles and attempted to leave this place via Instantaneous Movement. Unexpectedly, the omnipotent Dao of Space was completely ineffective here. The Space around him seemed to have frozen solid, creating an unbreakable prison.
Urging Time Principles next, Yang Kai tried to wither whatever it was holding him in place, but it proved futile. He then tried urging Spear Principles, but his efforts remained ineffective.
There was no saying how much time had passed by the time he finished cycling through all the Dao Strengths of the Grand Daos he mastered so far, but none of them helped with his situation whatsoever. The same held true even when he simultaneously activated Time Principles and Space Principles and then merged them together to form the mysterious Space-Time Strength.
His heart was flooded with a sense of frustration. At this point, he was certain about one thing, he could not move a single muscle. Like a prisoner, he was trapped in this inexplicable cage with no means of escape.
[What a disaster!] Yang Kai never imagined that he would suffer such treatment just because he touched upon the essence of the Universe Furnace. Moreover, he not only failed to discover the hiding spot of the Universe Furnace’s true body, but he also failed to take the opportunity to finish off Mo Na Ye!
There were no signs that the Universe Furnace was attempting to refine him, so judging by the situation, he had no reason to worry about his safety at the moment. The Universe Furnace might not necessarily even be for refining foreign objects. Naturally, just to be on the safe side, it was better if he remained vigilant of any unexpected occurrences.
[I might be safe for now, but how am I supposed to leave this place?]
Composing himself, Yang Kai put away the slight sense of anxiety brewing in his heart and carefully began to perceive his surroundings. If he wanted to leave this place, then he had to break free of the force restraining him. Only by comprehending this force could he take the necessary measures to break free from his shackles.
When his Divine Sense spread out like a tidal wave, Yang Kai instantly noticed something that was out of the ordinary. There was a large amount of Dao Essence contained within the Universe Furnace! The abundance of the invisible and intangible Dao Essence that interweaved and accumulated inside the Universe Furnace was almost impossible to imagine. There were no exceptions anywhere his mind extended.
He couldn’t help feeling overwhelmed by the discovery. For some reason, it felt as though he had accidentally fallen into a treasure trove.
The most intuitive manifestation of a cultivator’s Grand Dao was the amount of Dao Essence they possessed. Needless to say, that was not something that could be quantified precisely as it was nothing more than a vague concept.
Take Yang Kai for example. His highest attainments were in the Grand Dao of Space, so the Space Dao Essence was the most abundant in his Small Universe. That was how there were Dao Temple disciples who could inherit his blessings and cultivate the Dao of Space.
The Dao of Time came next; however, thanks to the improvement of the Dragon Vein in his body, Yang Kai’s Dao of Time was now equal in level to the Dao of Space. Naturally, the Spear Dao came third…
There were many other Grand Daos as well. Apart from the Alchemic Dao and the Dao of Artifact Refining that he spent time and effort cultivating, the rest were the results of his harvest from the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon.
When he was being hunted by the Royal Lord, Yang Kai had been forced to flee for over a decade. In the end, he dove into the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon and encountered an inconceivable harvest. He only managed to gain so much in the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon because of the Grand Dao Rivers that were found inside; after all, flowing in those rivers were countless Dao Essences that had been refined and absorbed by him.
Yang Kai never expected to discover so many Dao Essences inside the Universe Furnace. Not to mention, they were many times richer than the Dao Essences found in the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon!
[Is this the carrot after the stick treatment?]
The Universe Furnace had dragged him here and ruined his plans to kill Mo Na Ye, but it turned out that such benefits were waiting for him. It truly was as the saying went, ‘Good fortune came after a catastrophe’.
In any case, there was indeed an amazing opportunity in front of him. Yang Kai immediately calmed down and opened his Small Universe to absorb and refine the Dao Essence, but a short while later, he frowned deeply. Opening his Small Universe once more, he sensed something flowing out of his Small Universe. The something that he sensed flowing out of his Small Universe was none other than the Dao Essence that he had just absorbed.
After a quick try, Yang Kai discovered that the Dao Essence permeating the entire Universe Furnace could not be refined or absorbed whatsoever. This discovery immediately made his wonderful mood sink to the bottom of the abyss. Nevertheless, he refused to accept this reality and tried to absorb the Dao Essence into his Small Universe once more. Following several failed attempts, he finally confirmed that the Dao Essence inside the Universe Furnace could not be refined. He also vaguely grasped the reason that prevented him from doing so.
If it was said that the Dao Essence flowing in the Grand Dao Rivers of the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon he encountered back then could be classified as an orderly form of Dao Essence, the Dao Essence found here could be classified as disordered and chaotic. It was the most primitive form of Dao Essence… Forcibly refining this kind of Dao Essence would not be beneficial for him.
The most superficial explanation was the difference between uncooked rice and cooked rice. The Dao Essence here was uncooked; on the other hand, the Dao Essence flowing in the Grand Dao Rivers of the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon was cooked. Yang Kai would only need to consume and digest the cooked rice to transform it into the foundation of his strength. Conversely, he could not do that with pure uncooked rice. If he forcibly tried to consume the uncooked rice, he might even cause harm to his body.
The realisation left him slightly dumbfounded. In his perception, the amount of Dao Essence accumulated inside the Universe Furnace was rich beyond comprehension. Be that as it may, he could not benefit from the Dao Essence in front of him. There was nothing more tortuous in this world than staring at something he wanted but could not have.
[Why is the Dao Essence inside the Universe Furnace so strange?] Yang Kai frowned pensively.
Thinking about it carefully, the answer became obvious. The Sealed World inside the Universe Furnace was probably in its most primitive form. That would explain the chaos and disorder of the Dao Essence in this place. The world here was not like the world outside, which had undergone countless years of evolution and development. It was only natural for the Dao Essence in this place to remain in its most primitive state.
[Maybe… this is the reason why the Open Heaven Pills produced by the Universe Furnace can help cultivators break through their limitations?]
It was like 99% of the Grand Dao had been integrated into the Universe, leaving out the final 1%. As a result, the Open Heaven Realm Method that the 10 Martial Ancestors gained enlightenment about based on the formation of the Universe itself was naturally incomplete. The final missing piece could only be found in a place that preserved the most primitive environment from before the formation of the Universe, the Universe Furnace! Perfection could only be obtained when both were combined!
Following that thought, Yang Kai suddenly had a realization, [The Universe Furnace itself might be the Human Race’s biggest shackle!]
At this moment, the fluorescent lights around him suddenly began to flicker wildly. His attention was immediately drawn towards them, and he quietly observed his surroundings. The fluorescent lights were innumerable, and Yang Kai did not know what these wisps were, but they looked like countless fireflies at first glance. Moreover, he couldn’t even judge how far these fluorescent lights were from him under the unique environment inside the Universe Furnace.
When the countless lights started flickering, the extremely abundant but disordered and chaotic Dao Essence began to be absorbed by them.
Yang Kai was stunned by the sight. He had tried refining the irregular and chaotic Dao Essence earlier, but it proved impossible for him. In comparison, these fluorescent lights were easily absorbing the Dao Essence here.
[What are these lights?]
Over time, the Dao Essence absorbed by the fluorescent lights increased steadily. Then, nine distinct fluorescent lights among the sea of fluorescent lights gradually began to grow larger and glow brighter than the rest. The amount of Dao Essence they absorbed also increased sharply in response.
Yang Kai’s attention was attracted by these nine distinct fluorescent lights. During the brief interval between flashes, he vaguely noticed that these fluorescent lights seemed to display the outlines of Spirit Pills…
[Innate Open Heaven Pills!] The realisation came to him abruptly. These twinkling fluorescent lights were the Innate Open Heaven Pills produced by the Universe Furnace! They were the legendary Spirit Pills that could allow a cultivator to break free of their innate limitations just by consuming one!
[Are there nine such Pills?]
It made sense; after all, nine was the limit. For the Universe Furnace to produce nine of these Heaven-defying Spirit Pills was an amazing feat in itself. It was not a small number, to say the least. If all of them could be obtained by the Human Race, they could immediately produce nine new Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. That would definitely be extremely beneficial to the upcoming war with the Black Ink Clan!
But… If those nine fluorescent lights that glowed brighter than the rest were the legendary Innate Open Heaven Pills, then what were these countless bits of fluorescent light around them? They were also absorbing the disordered and chaotic Dao Essence inside the Universe Furnace, so apart from the amount of Dao Essence being absorbed and the intensity of their brightness, there was not much difference between them and the nine brightest lights.
Yang Kai couldn’t help recalling the Innate Open Heaven Pills that he obtained from the Blood Monster Cave Heaven and the doubts he harboured in the past… [Could it be that the Innate Open Heaven Pills inside the Universe Furnace had different Grades?]
Inside the Universe Furnace, Yang Kai couldn’t help feeling very confused, [Are there different Grades to the Open Heaven Pills in the Universe Furnace? I’ve never heard anything like that before.]
At the same time, many Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were gathered at the Supreme Headquarters. These were the candidates chosen from among the Human Race to enter the Universe Furnace and compete for opportunities. Many were veteran Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, but some were rising stars. Nonetheless, without exception, all of them were Open Heaven Realm Masters whose Martial Dao ended at the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm.
Having advanced directly to the Sixth Order, the Eighth Order was their limit. If they wanted to increase their cultivation any further, then their only option was to compete for the opportunity inside the Universe Furnace.
Once the entrances to the Universe Furnace took form, a great war was bound to break out between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan. At that time, their duty was to charge into the Universe Furnace as quickly as possible to search for opportunities and advance to the Ninth Order!
As for the rest, there was no need for them to worry. The other Human Race Masters would be in charge of blocking the Black Ink Clan’s attempts at interference.
At this moment, these Eighth-Order Masters were sitting on the ground and studying hard like students in a lecture hall. Meanwhile, standing in front of them was a cultivator wrapped in a layer of Blood Qi. His aura was very showy, but his cultivation was hard to determine. It was Blood Crow!
Blood Crow had personally experienced the emergence of the Universe Furnace last time. Having entered the Universe Furnace once before, his understanding of it was unmatched by anybody else. Therefore, Mi Jing Lun had specially asked him to teach these Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters about the internal situation of the Universe Furnace so that they could prepare themselves in advance.
Blood Crow was no great scholar or teacher, so he simply said what came to mind. Still, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were careful to record everything he said; after all, nobody knew whether the things he told them would become the key that would allow them to preserve their lives or grab hold of the opportunity at a critical moment.
“Let’s talk about the Open Heaven Pills produced by the Universe Furnace. Most people only know that these Open Heaven Pills can help cultivators overcome their innate limitations, but what you should know first is that even the Open Heaven Pills inside the Universe Furnace have different Grades.”
The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters sitting below immediately fell into an uproar. In regards to this matter, not only had nobody ever told them, but they had never even heard rumours about it.
To the side, Mi Jing Lun and Xiang Shan exchanged a glance and smiled wryly. They, too, had been very shocked when they first heard this bit of information from Blood Crow. It turned out that the Open Heaven Pills inside the Universe Furnace had different Grades!
Blood Crow did not play any games and continued, “I don’t know how the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters of the Cave Heavens and Paradises categorise them; after all, I don’t come from any of the Cave Heavens or Paradises. I can only divide the Open Heaven Pills in the Universe Furnace into two types. The first type is the Supreme-Grade Open Heaven Pills, which everybody knows as the Innate Open Heaven Pills that can help Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters like yourselves advance to the Ninth-Order. Unfortunately, the other type does not have such a potent effect, so we can think of them as Ordinary-Grade Open Heaven Pills!”
Classifying these Innate Open Heaven Pills into Supreme-Grade and Ordinary-Grade was a very rough method of categorisation.
One of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters was confused, “I understand the situation with the Supreme-Grade Open Heaven Pills, but Junior Brother Blood Crow, why does the Universe Furnace produce these Ordinary-Grade Open Heaven Pills? What are their uses?”
Blood Crow replied, “I don’t know why the Universe Furnace produces these Ordinary-Grade Open Heaven Pills either, but they are by no means useless. While their medicinal efficacies are not as profound as the Supreme-Grade Open Heaven Pills, they are enough to help a cultivator overcome their bottlenecks.”
The ability to overcome one’s bottleneck, but not one’s limitations… Having heard that, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters seemed to gain a vague understanding of the situation.
The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master who spoke earlier said, “So, that’s how it is. By that logic, the Ordinary-Grade Open Heaven Pills are rare treasures too.”
A cultivator’s Martial Dao was not always smooth sailing.
Take Lan You Ruo for example. She had advanced directly to the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm, so her limit should have been the Eighth-Order. Nevertheless, it had taken her some 250 years of cultivating in retreat to finally advance to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm during her brief period in Void Land.
The same was true for Feng Ying of Dawn Squad. It had taken her more than 200 years to advance from the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm to the Eighth-Order.
Several hundred years was not a long time for Open Heaven Realm Masters who could live for tens of thousands of years; however, they would not need to waste all that precious time if they could obtain one of these Ordinary Grade Open Heaven Pills.
There were many High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters, but many of them were stuck at a bottleneck in their cultivation and had trouble progressing forward. They were not at the point where they needed the Supreme-Grade Open Heaven Pills. Be that as it may, they would easily advance to the next Order if they had the support of some Ordinary-Grade Open Heaven Pills. One or two Open Heaven Realm Masters might not make a difference, but the strength of the Human Race would surely grow sharply when their numbers increase!
It was not as though the Human Race did not have any kind of Spirit Pills that could help a cultivator overcome their bottlenecks, but the efficacies of such Spirit Pills were not that great. In comparison, the Ordinary-Grade Open Heaven Pills were different. They were the best Spirit Pills to help a cultivator overcome their bottlenecks!
In Xiang Shan’s case, he had originally planned to enter the Universe Furnace for the Supreme-Grade Open Heaven Pills, but it would now seem that he might not necessarily need to obtain one. The Ordinary-Grade Open Heaven Pills might be enough to help him overcome his current bottleneck.
“Junior Brother Blood Crow, how many Supreme-Grade Open Heaven Pills are there? And, how many Ordinary-Grade?” Another Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master raised the question he really wanted to know.
Blood Crow glanced at the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master and replied, “I’m not certain how many Supreme-Grade Open Heaven Pills there are. The last time I entered the Universe Furnace, I was only in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm and I didn’t dare to carelessly move around, much less dare to compete with the Masters for that peak opportunity. Although I don’t know the exact numbers, I’m certain that there weren’t many such Heaven-defying Spirit Pills.”
After a brief pause, he continued his explanation, “As for the Ordinary-Grade Open Heaven Pills… There are many of those. Even I managed to obtain a few. It was thanks to consuming those Ordinary-Grade Open Heaven Pills that I smoothly advanced to the Eighth Order back then.”
As the topic deepened, the atmosphere in the Grand Hall became more and more heated. The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Masters consecutively asked the questions they were curious about, and Blood Crow did his best to answer. Whenever he encountered a question he could not answer, he did not make any unfounded speculations to prevent misleading others.
…..
Inside the Universe Furnace, Yang Kai was naturally unaware that Blood Crow had differentiated the Open Heaven Pills into Supreme Grade and Ordinary Grade. Nevertheless, he quickly came to an unbelievable conclusion under such close observation. The Open Heaven Pills from the Universe Furnace could be separated into two distinct Grades. The nine brightest lights were clearly the Open Heaven Pills that he had always heard about. Now that he was so close to them, he couldn’t help feeling tempted to grab them.
The Universe Furnace’s projection had appeared in all the various Great Territory Battlefields, which affected numerous Masters from the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan. All of them were waiting to obtain the opportunity within the Universe Furnace. If Yang Kai could snatch these nine Open Heaven Pills in advance, then the Human Race would be the greatest winners no matter what arrangements the Black Ink Clan made. They could use these nine Open Heaven Pills to produce nine Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. That would be enough to form a crushing advantage against the Black Ink Clan.
Unfortunately, he could neither move a muscle nor freely exert his strength at this moment. The greatest opportunity in the 3,000 Worlds was literally right in front of him, but he was powerless to seize it…
[How annoying! Hateful!]
He couldn’t help cursing at the Universe Furnace. It was bad enough that he was dragged into this place, but he was also completely immobilised and then shown such a wondrous opportunity, yet he was unable to seize it.
[What is this torture!?]
At this moment, Yang Kai had long forgotten his earlier worries of being refined by the Universe Furnace. If the Universe Furnace wanted to refine him, the process would have taken place by now. Seeing as there were no movements in that regard, he was most probably safe for the time being. Now that he was safe, it was only natural for him to become greedy when such an opportunity was right in front of him.
Yang Kai stubbornly began to struggle once more, but it was all to no avail; thus, he became even more annoyed and depressed.
As the nine lights devoured the chaotic and primitive Dao Essence at an increasingly fierce rate, they began to glow brighter and brighter as a result.
A rough estimate of the time indicated that there were only a few more months before the Universe Furnace emerged in the world. Yang Kai did not know the exact location where this Supreme Treasure would appear, but he could practically imagine the scene at the time.
The Masters of both sides had gathered outside the Universe Furnace’s projections. When the Universe Furnace opened under the illumination of the dense and multi-coloured lights, the nine Open Heaven Pills and their companions would fly out of the Universe Furnace. Subsequently, the Masters of both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan would plunge into a frenzied battle…
He would be freed of his shackles at that time and might even fly out of the Universe Furnace with the Open Heaven Pills. Although he could easily obtain several of them with his abilities, this method was rather risky; after all, all nine of the best Open Heaven Pills needed to be obtained by the Human Race!
[I need to figure out a way so that it will be easier for me to seize the opportunity once I am free. Since the Universe Furnace dragged me here and allowed me to witness the creation of these Open Heaven Pills, then I ought to benefit from this opportunity.]
After pondering for some time, Yang Kai came up with an idea. He immediately attempted to use his Spiritual Energy to place an Imprint on these Open Heaven Pills. If he succeeded, then he would be able to obtain them with a simple flash of his thoughts!
In the next moment, he gave a deep groan and his complexion went pale from his efforts.
At this moment, the nine Open Heaven Pills were indiscriminately devouring the surrounding Dao Essence. When his Divine Sense penetrated the Open Heaven Pills, his Divine Sense was refined and absorbed in an instant…
His Divine Sense was damaged as a consequence, but Yang Kai was not very concerned about this injury; after all, his Soul would be torn apart every time he unleashed a Soul Rending Thorn. This amount of injury was nothing to him. Besides, the Soul Warming Lotus would quickly repair his damaged Divine Sense.
[Spiritual Energy is ineffective, but what about World Force?]
Yang Kai made another attempt, only for the Open Heaven Pills to refine and absorb his World Force perfectly. It would seem that the Open Heaven Pills were not particular about what kind of energy approached them, greedily refining and absorbing anything they could.
Unfortunately, that was not good news for Yang Kai. As things stood, how was he supposed to leave his mark on the nine Spirit Pills so that he could easily make his move when the time came?
He activated the various Dao Strengths he mastered in hopes that he could leave some kind of mark on the Open Heaven Pills, but his efforts remained futile. Even the mysterious Space-Time Strength was ineffective. These Innate Open Heaven Pills were like starving wolves, swallowing anything and everything that was placed before them.
Yang Kai couldn’t help frowning with a troubled expression, [Spiritual Energy, World Force, and even Dao Strengths have proven to be ineffective. What else is there that I can try?]
All of a sudden, he seemed to recall something and silently activated the Great Sun and Moon Marks. His own strength had been ineffective against the Open Heaven Pills. In that case, the only power that did not belong to him was the two Marks that he received from Big Brother Huang and Big Sister Lan. If that was also ineffective, then he had no other methods to try.
He normally borrowed the power of the two Marks to condense Purifying Light; however, he was now attempting to leave a mark on the nine Open Heaven Pills with their power instead.
It was not a difficult feat to perform. The Mysterious Power of the Great Sun and Great Moon sept out from the backs of his hands. Under his careful control, they slowly extended towards one of the Open Heaven Pills. It did not take long before the Power of the Great Sun and Great Moon was influenced by the pull of the Open Heaven Pills and swiftly absorbed into it.
Yang Kai could clearly feel the Power of the Great Sun and the Great Moon gradually being shaved away and becoming weaker. Be that as it may, he was overjoyed in the next moment. That was because a slight trace remained of the Power of the Great Sun and the Great Moon! They had not completely disappeared!