Martial Peak

Chapter 5705: Open Conspiracy

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!”