Martial Peak

Chapter 5473: A Step Too Late

Cang’s words flashed across Yang Kai’s mind once more. The 10 of them had relied on the power of the World Tree to gain enlightenment on how to reach the Open Heaven Realm before passing on that knowledge to future generations, becoming the Martial Ancestors of the current Martial Dao! This was how the Humans managed to carve out a place for themselves in the harsh, brutal environment of ancient times. It was also the spread of Martial Dao that put a stop to the encroachment of Black Ink Strength.

Cang also said that this was a form of self-preservation. The 10 Martial Ancestors had been chosen, and likewise, Yang Kai was chosen as he had received a World Tree clone.

Since it was a form of self-preservation, who was the one who was trying to save themselves?

Was it the vast universe? Was it some mysterious and inexorable Will that somehow existed?

The World Tree was the key factor in this method of self-preservation as it worked through the World Tree’s power.

One was focused on self-preservation while the other was determined to destroy; thus, it stood to reason that it was impossible for the World Tree and Mo to peacefully coexist.

There were too many mysteries and unanswered questions from the ancient era. Perhaps Cang had some of the answers, but everyone from those ancient times that they could possibly ask had passed on, and it was difficult for even the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in the present era to fathom the circumstances of that distant past.

Yang Kai did not linger on these unanswerable questions and instead turned to Mo and sincerely tried to convince him, “Mo, just give it up now. The Human Race have sacrificed too much throughout all these years in their attempt to fight back against the Black Ink Clan. The 3,000 Worlds is flourishing. Why must you destroy everything?”

Mo eyed Yang Kai with interest, “Will the Humans let me go if I stop now?”

“The Humans can form a truce with you. You can have the Black Ink Battlefield, and as long as you promise to never invade the 3,000 Worlds again, the Human Race won’t interfere with the Black Ink Clan,” Yang Kai replied.

Mo suddenly chuckled, “I thought you were a smart person. Who knew that you’d turn out to be a fool? You’re an Eighth-Order Master. How can you represent the entire Human Race?”

“I can’t, but there will be someone who can,” Yang Kai declared firmly.

Mo slowly shook his head, “It’s impossible. You’re telling me to give it up now because the Humans are at a disadvantage; however, if there comes a time when the Humans have faith that they can overpower me, they will surely try to find a way to get rid of me once and for all. The Humans and the Black Ink Clan have been fighting for countless eons now. The chasm between us that grew out of our blood feud has grown too deep. This bitter resentment will only end when one of us has been completely wiped out. It cannot be resolved with a simple truce.”

“When there’s a will, there’s a way!”

Mo stared at Yang Kai fixedly. All of a sudden, he started looking a little wistful, “Mu used to say that I’m very naive. I didn’t understand what that meant back then, but now I do.”

Yang Kai did not care about Mo’s insult as he continued to try and persuade the latter, “It’ll be an unthinkable catastrophe if Black Ink Strength invades the 3,000 Worlds. You don’t gain anything from doing this, so why do you insist on being so stubborn about it?”

“It was Mu and the others who betrayed me first!” Mo became furious all of a sudden, “I never thought about destroying the 3,000 Worlds. It was them! They were the ones who thought that my very existence was a sin! That’s why they locked me up inside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. I had no way of getting out even after millions of years, but you know what’s ironic? They died just to keep me locked up in there!”

Yang Kai had nothing to say in response.

Even though Yang Kai knew that he would only be wasting his breath, he still had to try, and now that he had tried and failed, there was no reason for him to continue.

Just as Mo had said, a blood feud that lasted countless years could only end when one party was completely wiped out. The truth behind the conflict and being right or wrong no longer mattered in this war between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan. 

Mo slowly rose to its feet. Although its movements were sluggish and somewhat clumsy, every single move it made seemed to give off an explicable pressure that suffocated those around it. As Mo stood up and its feet pressed down on the ground, even the Demon Sealing Land was struggling to bear its massive body.

“You’re so wearisome!” Mo snorted as he reached out to grab Yang Kai.

It felt as if the sky had come crashing down as Yang Kai suddenly felt a heavy pressure descend on him. It was as if something was weighing down on his shoulders, thoroughly immobilising him.

Even so, he did not attempt to flee or hide. He raised his head to stare at Mo’s face, which was nearly out of sight and sighed quietly, “In that case, you’ll just have to join me in exile!”

Space Principles flared as the World Force from Yang Kai’s Small Universe flooded out.

In an instant, a vast swath of the Black Ink Sealing Land turned into a shattered mirror with a myriad of cracks spreading out like a spider web as far as they eye could see.

All the streaks of Void Cracks were incredibly sharp and even High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters would have a hard time defending themselves from them. One false move and they might end up getting sliced in half.

Mo’s large hand continued its motion though. The Void Cracks left streaks of bloodied cuts all along its arm, causing black blood and Black Ink Strength to spew out, but it remained unaffected.

The next breath, the massive mirror that covered the Demon Sealing Land shattered entirely, and the area crumbled apart.

After a brief delay, a huge region of the Demon Sealing Land caved in and started collapsing towards its centre. As space warped, everything inside the Demon Sealing Land, including Yang Kai and Mo’s Soul Clone were all dragged in as well.

Meanwhile, outside Shattered Ruins, Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao charged straight through the Divine Ability Sea, rushing all the way until she arrived at Divine Spirit Ancestral Land; however, as soon as she entered, her pupils shrank as she saw the expansive Void twisted up and teetering unstably. The collapse lasted for a brief moment before an impossibly large black hole appeared, filled with chaotic nothingness. 

Her silhouette flickered and she immediately arrived outside the black hole, staring at it as she ground her teeth.

[I was a step too late!]

She knew that everything she saw in front of her right now was a result of Yang Kai’s use of Space Principles. While she did not know what the situation was like now, she knew that it could not be good if Yang Kai was forced to this extent.

Even though she was a Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, she was unwilling to charge into this black hole because, once inside, she was not certain she could find her way out again. After thinking in silence for a moment, she turned around and flew off.

What she now knew for sure was that the opening in the Barren Territory battlefield was connected to Wind Mist Territory, so if the Black Ink Clan did awaken the Black Ink Giant Spirit God in the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land, it would surely head for Wind Mist Territory.

All she needed to do was wait there and she would be able to stand in her opponent’s path.

Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao was in a rush, so she pushed herself as quickly as she could and soon, she left the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land.

However, she did not get far when she sensed a massive outburst of energy emanating from behind her. Turning around to see the source, she witnessed space itself being ripped apart as a massive hand the size of a mountain emerged from within.

The black hand was pulsating with extreme amounts of Black Ink Strength as it ripped the Void apart in a flash. A large silhouette appeared and roared, “Do you think this is enough to trap me?!”

“The Black Ink Giant Spirit God!” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao shook. Immediately after, she spotted the tiny silhouette beside the huge figure.

“Yang Kai!”

Before she could rush over, Yang Kai used Space Principles once more to invert Space and drag both him and the Black Ink Giant Spirit God back inside the Void Crack.

Inside the Void Crack, Yang Kai was extremely distressed.

The Black Ink Giant Spirit God was too humongous and his power was too immense. At first, Yang Kai figured that since he could not kill the Black Ink Giant Spirit God, he could at least exile Mo’s Soul Clone and leave it lost inside the Void Crack. Mo’s Soul Clone would never be able to escape, and thus, the Human Race’s present crisis could be resolved.

However, he never expected that Mo could easily find its way out of the Void Crack.

There were no traces of Mo using Space Principles, and Yang Kai had never heard of Mo being proficient in the Dao of Space, and yet, the Void Crack which frightened even Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters and Royal Lords seemed to pose no threat to Mo at all. It was as if it was walking on normal ground.

Mo could seemingly tear apart space with its bare hands. After easily finding a weakness to exploit, it ripped through space and escaped through the opening.

Initially, Yang Kai thought it was just a coincidence, but after Mo escaped from the Void Crack a second time, he then knew that it was not a coincidence. Mo could not be trapped within the Void!

Mo noticed the confused and disbelieving look on Yang Kai’s face and sneered, “I was born from the chaos of nothingness and existed inside of it for countless millions of years, it was my birthplace and home since before time itself, do you really think this would be enough to trap me?”

Yang Kai was struck with realization. He finally understood why Mo could easily escape from the Void Crack.

Mo was the Primordial Darkness born alongside the Primordial Light when the universe first formed, and just as Mo had said, it had lived inside that chaotic nihility all that time. The Void Crack might be an inescapable prison to all others, but to Mo, it was just the warm bed that once nursed it.

How could such a place serve as a trap for it?

Yang Kai felt chills down his spine. He no longer had anything else up his sleeve; after all, he was only an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. That being said, he did not stop trying to drag Mo back into the Void Crack to delay it.

All of a sudden, he heard a cry and sensed a familiar aura rushing over to him. He turned around and saw a flash of light shooting over.

When the light came close and formed a silhouette, Yang Kai exclaimed in surprise, “Old Ancestor!”

It was Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao who came. Originally, she wanted to head over to Wind Mist Territory and make preparations for an ambush, but upon noticing the aura of the Black Ink Giant Spirit God, she immediately changed course and rushed over.

Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao did not have any time to spare in greeting as two different coloured lights swam around her figure and she struck heavily at Mo.

Mo’s blood spurted out and rained down as it roared in pain, raising its hand to swat at Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao.

A grunt was heard as the two-coloured lights shattered and Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao’s silhouette reappeared. Blood was dripping out the corner of her lips and it was clear she had suffered an injury. She then shot over to Yang Kai in a flash and dragged him away with her.

Mo showed no intention of going after them. Although it was a lot more powerful than Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao, it would not be easy for it to kill her if she was determined to flee, so instead of wasting time here, it was better for it to start heading for its next destination.

This was also the reason why it did not bother killing Yang Kai earlier. Although Yang Kai was a fairly weak Human, he was proficient in the Dao of Space and would not be easily killed.

Moments later, somewhere in the void several million kilometres away from the Demon Sealing Land, Yang Kai and Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao’s figures came to a stop.

“How are your injuries?” Yang Kai asked in concern.

Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao wiped the blood from the corner of her lips and shook her head, “I’m alright.”

“Did Brother Ji of the Dragon Clan deliver my message?” Yang Kai asked.

“Yes, but alas, I arrived a little too late.”

Yang Kai could not help but feel a little dejected as well. He had also been a little too late. If he had managed to stop Lu An and Ye Ming before they entered the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land, perhaps things would not have been as dire as they were now.

Now that the Black Ink Giant Spirit God in the Ancestral Land had been revived, the situation was not something Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao could handle by herself.

Who would have thought that the Black Ink Clan would come up with such a plan?