Martial Peak

Chapter 3263 – Nothing Ventured Nothing Gained

Translator: Silavin & Tia

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

“Run!” Xiao Bai Yi suddenly mustered his strength and shouted. That violent movement affected his injury and the Emperor Qi wrapping around his body immediately collapsed. The boundless Demon Qi poured into his body through his nose, mouth, and open wound. Consequently, he showed signs of demonification within a short period of time.

A roar of pain and rage came out of his mouth as he tried his best to maintain his last shred of clarity. His eyes trembled intensely as they were gradually replaced by a pitch-black darkness. Just before his eyes were filled with black, he suddenly smiled bitterly and desperately called upon his strength. Subsequently, his body swelled and exploded in a loud explosion. Pieces of meat and blood splattered in all directions. It was as though a flower of blood had bloomed under that tall tree.

Yang Kai looked up to the sky and roared. His howl was filled with grief and fury. The Emperor Qi in his body surged fiercely, and his eyes turned red. All of a sudden, the howling stopped abruptly. He looked around coldly and spoke in a sinister voice, “Lei Gu, I swear if I don’t rip your corpse into ten thousand pieces I won’t be surnamed Yang anymore!”

When his words rang out, he heard Lei Gu’s laughter ringing in his ears. He went mad with rage, and the Myriads Sword in his hands shone brightly. Wave after wave of light slashed out, slicing through the darkness before disappearing from sight. As Yang Kai vented his anger through those sword waves, his emotions seemed to become more and more unstable. His eyes also became redder and redder and he looked like a volcano that could erupt at any moment. It was utterly terrifying.

“Senior Brother Yang…” A gentle yet uncertain voice rang out from behind him.

He didn’t even bother looking. Spinning around, he slashed out with his sword, releasing a three-metre long sword wave that broke through the protective layer of Emperor Qi around that person and sliced through them like butter.

Glaring in that direction, he saw Murong Xiao Xiao looking at him in a daze. She was covered in blood, and her beautiful eyes were filled with disbelief. Then, a line of blood appeared from the centre of her brow down to her chin. Her body split into half with a small explosion, her blood and internal organs scattering all over the ground, dying on the spot.

Yang Kai breathed heavily. His blood-coloured eyes froze for a moment, but that was all the reaction he showed. The black Qi around him churned and poured into his body without leaving a trace; however, he didn’t seem to notice it. It didn’t take long before he was filled to the brim with Demon Qi.

Lei Gu’s voice sounded again, “How does it feel to slaughter your own people? How does it feel to succumb to demonification?”

Yang Kai turned a deaf ear to those words, he simply waved the Myriads Sword in his hand around mechanically.

One by one, both familiar and unfamiliar faces appeared around him from all directions, but all of them were mercilessly split in half by him. He single-handedly killed all within a dozen meters of himself. Corpse after corpse quickly piled up on the ground.

Yang Kai did not know how long had passed when he finally leaned against the Myriads Sword breathlessly. His entire body was swirling with black Qi. Even his eyes turned pitch-black. He went on a rampage, venting his emotions wildly, but nevertheless, it was impossible to maintain such an uncontrolled burst of strength for long even if he was a Second-Order Emperor.

Meanwhile, two figures stood tall in the darkness. They were looking in Yang Kai’s direction through the dense layers of Demon Qi. They were none other than Lei Gu and Feng Ming.

“It should be done now, right?” Feng Ming asked.

Lei Gu frowned, seeming a little uncertain. Judging by the situation, there shouldn’t be any major problems. Even so, he shook his head just to be on the safe side, “He bears the blood of the Dragon Clan, which has a natural resistance towards Demon Qi. It is better to be careful and wait for a little longer.”

Feng Ming said, “It’s not as if there has never been a precedent for a member of the Dragon Clan undergoing demonification before. Besides, his bloodline is not pure. If he was in a stable mental state, he might have been able to resist for a bit, but he accidentally killed one of his own and formed a Heart Demon as a result. Trapped in this boundless Demon Qi, it is rare enough that he was able to persist for such a long time despite facing internal and external disturbances. I’m sure he has already completely succumbed to demonification by now.”

Lei Gu nodded, “That may be true, but…”

He still seemed to be hesitating.

Feng Ming took the initiative to suggest, “I’ll go and test him. Someone like him is a rare find. If I can make use of him, it will surely be of great help in the future.”

“En, act carefully!” Lei Gu warned.

Feng Ming nodded and flew over in the direction Yang Kai was located. He did not let his guard down as, although he was almost certain that Yang Kai had been completely demonified, he remained cautious and vigilant. The Demon Qi in his body fluctuated quietly and he was prepared to retreat at any time.

As Feng Ming walked forward, the boundless Demon Qi parted to open a path for him on its own and revealed the scenery shrouded in the darkness. When there were less than thirty metres between him and Yang Kai, he carefully observed the latter’s situation while creeping forward little by little. It didn’t take long for him to arrive one metre in front of Yang Kai. Feng Ming’s hands transformed into claws and he struck at Yang Kai’s chest without any warning. His claws that were rippling with power sliced through the air with an audible sound, looking quite powerful at a glance.

The tip of his claws pierced Yang Kai’s chest a full finger length deep with a slashing sound, and blood instantly splattered all over; even so, Yang Kai remained motionless as though he couldn’t feel any pain at all.

Feng Ming couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight. [It’s certain now. He has completed the Demon Transformation. I said it, didn’t I? He didn’t even hesitate to kill so many people; moreover, those were all his ‘comrades’. How can he resist the Demon Qi’s corruption under the influence of such a great Heart Demon? Judging by external appearances, this little brat is definitely under the influence of Demon Qi. My actions just now were the final test. If he was only pretending to be under the Demon Transformation, he would surely react to a fatal attack. It can only mean that we succeeded since he had no reaction whatsoever.]

On the other hand, Lei Gu let out a breath of relief when he saw this scene. [With this, I can finally finish my mission here. I was wondering how to report to the higher ups about the failure in the Southern Territory, but this mistake can be completely offset now that we managed to capture Yang Kai. Not only is he a Master in the Dao of Space, but he also seems to have the blood of the Dragon Clan. He will surely be useful in the future.]

Feng Ming withdrew his hand. The blood on Yang Kai’s chest flowed freely, but his expression remained wooden and he seemed oblivious to his circumstances. Feng Ming circled around Yang Kai, carefully examining the latter and nodding repeatedly, “Good, good, good.”

Coming back to stand in front of Yang Kai again, Feng Ming suddenly took out a black box from his pocket. That box was made from unknown materials that were neither gold nor jade. When he opened the box, a seed-like thing inside the box was revealed. The seed was also pitch-black in colour. It was only the size of a mung bean, but there were Spiritual Energy fluctuations coming from it. It was as though this was not a seed but a person.

Feng Ming stretched out a hand to pick up the seed; then, he slowly pressed it against Yang Kai’s brow. The moment the two came into contact, the pitch-black seed stuck to Yang Kai’s forehead. It desperately squeezed itself into his head as though it was alive and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

At the same time, a figure appeared inside Yang Kai’s Knowledge Sea. The figure was wrapped in black Qi and its features were constantly distorting, so much so that one could not make out its facial features clearly.

“Is this how you possess the others?” A voice suddenly rang out.

The black figure was shocked and when it turned its head to look in the direction of the voice, it saw Yang Kai’s Soul Avatar floating quietly above the Knowledge Sea. Yang Kai was holding a long sabre in his hand and looking in this direction with a grin full of ridicule and mockery.

“You weren’t corrupted!?” A hoarse voice rang out. It was difficult to tell whether the voice belonged to a male or a female, but it carried a strong sense of disbelief in it.

How could it not realize that it had been tricked the moment it saw Yang Kai’s Soul Avatar? If Yang Kai had been completely demonified, his Soul Avatar would also reflect it. Under such circumstances, it would only need to consume his Soul Avatar to possess his body.

[How can this be? His physical body has clearly completed the Demon Transformation! It’s not a lie that he was consumed by the Demon Qi, so how is he preserving his consciousness? He even turned it to his advantage by waiting for me here! More than that, he didn’t even react when Feng Ming attacked him just now! How could he be so sure that Feng Ming wouldn’t take his life? He truly is reckless!]

“Nothing ventured, nothing gained.” Yang Kai grinned at the black figure, revealing a mouthful of fangs.

The black figure flickered and transformed into a black mist, intending to escape Yang Kai’s Knowledge Sea. Unfortunately, Yang Kai dominated everything in this space. It was easy to enter, but leaving would require his permission or a stronger force to tear down the defences of his Knowledge Sea. Although the black shadow was powerful, it was ultimately just a Demon Spirit. Without the support of a physical body, it could not exert its full strength, so how could it break through the defences of Yang Kai’s Knowledge Sea? For a moment, it dashed about desperately like a beast trapped in a cage with no hope of escape. It couldn’t even send word to the outside world.

Meanwhile, Yang Kai pointed his Soul Splitting Saber at the black figure from far away with a cold expression. Locked onto like that, the black figure clearly felt a sense of catastrophe looming over it. Even though it did not have a physical body, it felt cold all over. It was rather decisive though, and knowing that it could not escape from Yang Kai’s Knowledge Sea, it decided to turn around and lunge at him instead. It was determined to bring Yang Kai down with it.

“Cut!” A shout rang out, and at the same time, the Soul Splitting Saber shuddered slightly and transformed into a blade of light. Slashing out in front, the light landed on that black figure’s body and a blood-curdling scream rang out as it was split into two and exploded into nothingness.

After Yang Kai got rid of the Demon Spirit that had invaded his Knowledge Sea, his expression became solemn and his Soul Avatar left his Knowledge Sea. Inside the darkness, Yang Kai opened his eyes and moved his pitch-black eyes. A faint expression appeared on his face that had been stiff all this while.

Feng Ming stood in front of Yang Kai with his hand behind his back. He nodded when he saw the changes, “Let’s go.”

Without even the slightest doubt, he turned around and left.

Yang Kai watched Feng Ming’s back. He was extremely tempted to stab Feng Ming to death but resisted the impulse.

Passing through the thick Demon Qi, the two of them soon arrived in front of Lei Gu. Feng Ming smiled and declared, “It’s done.”

Likewise, Lei Gu was smiling brightly. He nodded repeatedly while looking at Yang Kai. Yang Kai cupped his fists and greeted Lei Gu, “Sir.”

At that moment, the smile on Lei Gu’s face froze. Similarly, Feng Ming looked surprised and turned to look at Yang Kai.

Yang Kai felt his heart lurching at the sight as he keenly realized that he had blown his cover. [It was just one word! Is saying ‘Sir’ such a big deal?]

Before Yang Kai could even finish his thought, Lei Gu and Feng Ming suddenly split up in two directions and backed away hurriedly, so Yang Kai acted equally decisively. He immediately manipulated the Space Principles around him and caused the surrounding space to instantly solidify. He simultaneously shot out a Moon Blade at Lei Gu and Feng Ming respectively. Since the attack was made hurriedly though, he failed to bring out his full strength.

Lei Gu proved his strength as a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master as he broke through the spatial blockade, his movements only slightly hindered, and avoided the Moon Blade by a hair’s breadth.