Martial Peak

Chapter 5681: Selfishness

Apart from the thousands who were responsible for mining or sourcing resources, nine Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were standing among them. These were the veterans from the Cave Heavens and Paradises, all of whom had participated in the battles on the Black Ink Battlefield. 

Yang Kai respectfully greeted these Elders, acknowledging their vital role in protecting the ones tasked with mining the dangerous Black Ink Battlefield. While nine Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters might not seem like enough, the nature of this mission required a discrete approach. 

Their presence was only a precaution for any unforeseen circumstances, not to start a conflict with the Black Ink Clan. Too large and powerful a force would draw unwanted attention, and it would also affect the deployment of the Human Race Army on the various other battlefields.

“Junior Brother Yang, we’re counting on you,” Mi Jing Lun nonchalantly instructed.

“Senior Brother may rest assured.” 

With a nod, Mi Jing Lun turned to address the thousands of Low-Rank cultivators. They knew their mission and even though they had never set foot on the Black Ink Battlefield before, they had heard of it and understood that it was a place where the blood of their ancestors had been shed in defence of their people. While this was not a crusade, how successful they were in amassing resources would play a big role in determining the fate of the Human Race. Thus, there was no killing intent, but there was still a heavy solemnity in the air. 

In a sense, going to the Black Ink Battlefield to gather resources was another kind of battle, and the stakes were just as high.

Soon enough, Yang Kai and the nine Eighth-Order veterans opened their Small Universes, allowing the thousands of cultivators to enter in an orderly fashion. 

As the preparations were finalised, Mi Jing Lun quietly informed Yang Kai of a separate mission, “Junior Brother, Brother Ou Yang has already gone ahead to the Black Prison. When you meet him there, you don’t have to say too much, just take him to Black Ink Battlefield and the others will explain the situation to him.”

Yang Kai was taken aback as he commented, “I thought Senior Brother Ou Yang had already gone to Azure Sun Territory…”

He hadn’t seen Ou Yang Lie in the square just now, but it seemed his guess from before was wrong. Mi Jing Lun had obviously arranged for Ou Yang Lie to be part of this operation without giving the latter any prior information. Of course, if Ou Yang Lie knew about the mission beforehand, he probably would have refused. He had left the Profound Nether Army because he was tired of the dull and boring days and he craved excitement and battle.

Guarding Profound Nether Territory was not fundamentally different from watching over the teams extracting resources on the Black Ink Battlefield. The former was influenced by the agreement between the two Races, which forbade the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Masters from interfering in battles except in six Great Territory Battlefields. As for the latter, success depended highly on stealth and evading detection from the Black Ink Clan. Comparing the two, life would possibly be even harder for Ou Yang Lie on the Black Ink Battlefield than in Profound Nether Territory…

Mi Jing Lun let out a sigh, “I know what his thoughts are, but… after thousands of life and death battles, he has accumulated too many dark injuries that can’t be healed. If he could advance to the Ninth Order, it would be alright, but he has no hope of doing so in this lifetime. Those hidden wounds are constantly sapping away his vitality, so he shouldn’t participate in fights against the Masters of the Black Ink Clan anymore.”

Yang Kai fell silent for a moment before saying, “Senior Brother Ou Yang will definitely blame you later.”

In response, Mi Jing Lun smiled wryly, “Let him blame me all he wants. It’s just my own selfishness. So many of our old friends are gone forever, with more leaving us every day. Someone needs to stay alive to witness the day when the Human Race triumphs.”

Yang Kai said, “Rest assured, Senior Brother Mi. The younger generation has risen to the challenge and can take over the banner from the Seniors to resist the Black Ink Clan. As for that day… it will come sooner or later.” He turned around and bowed, continuing, “Take care, Senior Brother Mi. I hope you and Senior Brother Ou Yang can witness that glorious moment together.”

“Good!” Mi Jing Lun smiled.

“Farewell!” Yang Kai cupped his fist, turned around, and flew away, followed closely by the nine Eighth-Order Masters.

Under Yang Kai’s guidance, they passed through various Great Territories, each using their own Secret Techniques to conceal their auras.

This time, they were going to the Black Ink Battlefield to mine resources, unlike the last time when they went to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. There were too many Eighth-Order Masters on that occasion, nearly 400, so Yang Kai couldn’t protect them all when travelling through the hidden Void Corridor. As a result, they had to transit through the No-Return Pass and could not conceal their movements.

However, this time they had to be as stealthy as possible; otherwise, if the Black Ink Clan discovered their movements, it was highly likely that something unexpected might occur.

On the way, they encountered some Black Ink Clansmen, but there were no elite combatants around guarding them, making it impossible for the enemy to detect Yang Kai and the others’ movements.

They hurried all the way to Black Territory!

Currently, apart from High Heaven Territory controlled by the Human Race, the New Great Territory, and the Great Territory where the Supreme Headquarters was located, there were Black Ink Clansmen in essentially every other Great Territory in the 3,000 Worlds. 

However, there were two exceptions, one of which was the Chaotic Dead Territory. After the Black Ink Clan suffered a huge loss at the hands of the Burning Light and Serene Glimmer, they declared the Chaotic Dead Territory as a Forbidden Zone, where even the Royal Lord dared not venture.

The second exception was Black Territory, which was once abundant with Ore Stars, each containing rich cultivation materials. However, to break the Early Ancient Era’s Super Array and kill the Royal Lord that was suppressed and sealed there, the Masters of the Cave Heavens and Paradises, along with their countless disciples, joined forces and mine out the entire Black Territory, harvesting all the resources there and simultaneously breaking the Grand Array. 

Now, Black Territory was empty, with nothing left but broken rubble. Although the Black Ink Clan had explored the area before, they found nothing but a barren land, thus they did not bother deploying any forces here.

But this worked out well for Yang Kai and his companions. Once they entered Black Territory, they no longer needed to hide. Under Yang Kai’s lead, they rushed towards the entrance of the secret passage.

Finally, after a couple of days, they arrived at their destination.

Yang Kai scanned his surroundings with his Divine Sense and spotted an asteroid floating nearby before calling out, “Senior Brother Ou Yang!”

Ou Yang Lie leaped out from behind the asteroid and approached Yang Kai with a grin, “You’ve got sharp eyes, Brat. I thought I had hidden well, but you still found me.”

He was clearly in a good mood. Ever since he left Profound Nether Territory with his transfer order in hand, he had been feeling quite content. 

When he noticed the nine Eighth-Order Masters behind Yang Kai, Ou Yang Lie’s eyes lit up as he greeted them warmly. They were all old acquaintances who had fought alongside each other on the Black Ink Battlefield against the Black Ink Clan. Their friendship stretched back to the days when they were cultivating in their respective Sects.

After some heartfelt conversation, Ou Yang Lie eagerly asked Yang Kai, “Junior Brother, why are we going to the Black Ink Battlefield this time? Are we going to attack the No-Return Pass?”

Having arrived here at Mi Jing Lun’s instruction and seeing Yang Kai lead nine veteran Eighth-Order Masters over, Ou Yang Lie guessed they were up to something big. This stirred up his battle instincts that had been dormant for over 2,000 years.

“I have no issue if we were to attack the No-Return Pass, but it seems like we are short on manpower.” Ou Yang Lie began to worry. A Royal Lord was guarding at the No-Return Pass, along with a Pseudo-Royal Lord and many Territory Lords. It was going to be difficult for them to make any headway with just these few people.

However, considering Yang Kai’s many achievements in the past, the situation suddenly became clear to him, “I know! We’re going to launch a quick raid to destroy those Black Ink Nests!”

He was obviously excited and had a lot to say.

Yang Kai did not know how to explain the situation to Ou Yang Lie, but luckily, an old veteran who had a close relationship with Ou Yang Lie pulled him aside and said, “Ou Yang, don’t ask too much. You’ll know when we get there.”

Ou Yang Lie nodded vigorously like a chicken pecking rice, “Good, good. Let’s go!” 

Yang Kai nodded and looked around, “Please connect your auras to mine for this journey. I will do my best to protect all of you; however, this Void Corridor is highly turbulent. If we get separated, please don’t panic, Senior Brothers. Just hold your ground and wait for me to find you while ensuring your own safety.”

All the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters nodded.

“Good!” Yang Kai shouted and Space Principles surged out, causing ripples to spread in front of them like a calm lake that had been disturbed by a stone.

Everyone was amazed as they watched. All of them were Eighth-Order Open Heaven Masters and were capable of breaking the Void when they exerted all their might, but none of them could manipulate it skillfully like Yang Kai did. This was the ability of someone who was proficient in the Dao of Space. 

As the ripples spread, a noticeable difference in the Void appeared ahead. With Yang Kai’s continuous manipulation of Space Principles, a certain spot ahead of them slowly revealed the illusory phantom of a portal.

Looking up, the portal looked like an abyss, chaotic and terrifying.

“Stay close to me!” Yang Kai urged while taking the lead to step into the portal. Following him were the 10 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, steadily connecting their auras with Yang Kai’s.

In the passageway ahead, Yang Kai broke through the barrier he had set during his previous transit while also forming a new one behind the last person of their group.

If he was alone, or even with two or three people, it wouldn’t have been very difficult for Yang Kai to accomplish this; however, with 10 people at once, it was a bit taxing. Fortunately, everything was still within his limits, though it was much more time-consuming than previous trips through this Void Corridor.

Ou Yang Lie and the others all had high cultivation and extensive experience, but walking through this kind of Void Corridor was a first for them. Still, they didn’t dare to look around carelessly for fear of triggering any unnecessary accidents. By sensing their surroundings, they only perceived the chaotic Void Turbulence and the surging power of chaos filling the surroundings of this mysterious and unpredictable place. Even for Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters like themselves, getting lost in such a place would likely not have a good outcome.

If they were lucky, they might one day find a way out, but if luck wasn’t on their side, they could be trapped here for the rest of their lives. That was why they became increasingly cautious as they proceeded forward. In this peculiar environment, both time and space seemed to blur, and they lost track of how long they had been wandering until a sudden flash of light appeared in front of them. It was only now that they realized they arrived at their destination.