Martial Peak
chapter-4930

Along the way, many Black Ink Clansmen continuously gathered nearby with their respective Black Ink Disciples in tow. These were the survivors of the sudden raid launched by the Human Race earlier. Several hundred of them soon gathered together like small streams converging to form a great river. Led by one of the Black Ink Clan Feudal Lords, they charged forward aggressively in a mighty procession. Moreover, the number of troops steadily increased along the way.

Yang Kai secretly grumbled to himself. He originally thought that he would have the chance to meet up with the Human Race Masters, but the circumstances had changed to the point where he didn’t dare to act rashly and could only take one step at a time.

All of a sudden, blinding lights bloomed in the distant void and terrifying energy fluctuations that caused a person to tremble in horror simultaneously spread out from that direction.

Yang Kai looked up only to see the dazzling light contending with an intense pitch-black darkness that could not be scattered. His expression couldn’t help becoming cold and sombre at the sight. He speculated that the Black Ink Royal Lord was currently fighting the Ninth-Order Old Ancestor of the Human Race. Nothing else could have created such a great commotion.

The leading Black Ink Feudal Lord obviously noticed the situation too. Shouting for the procession behind him to speed up, he rushed forward to provide reinforcements.

Yang Kai, B-2, and E-5 followed closely behind Nu Yan, taking up protective positions around the latter, remaining in close proximity at all times.

Their pursuit had persisted for several days at this point. Not only did they come across the occasional corpses of the slain Black Ink Clansmen and Black Ink Disciples, but they also observed the wreckage of the destroyed territories nearby. The Human Masters had invaded deep into the domain of the Black Ink Clan after all, so it was impossible for them to pass through these lands peacefully. All the places where the Black Ink Clan generally gathered together had been obliterated in their wake.

In addition, there were also fragments of countless warship artifacts…

The sight of these warship fragments made Yang Kai’s heart grow heavy. He had personally experienced the strength of such warships in the past. The palace artifact Zuo Quan Hui wielded when he led the Heavenly Sword Union to war against Void Land had greatly troubled Yang Kai and the others at the time.

Mobile Palace Artifacts were not only difficult to refine, but the cost to refine them was also astronomical. In the 3,000 Worlds, ordinary Artifact Refiners were not qualified to refine such artifacts and most great forces would not have the financial strength to own one either.

In the past, Yang Kai had commissioned Grandmaster Ma Fan to create a Mobile Palace Artifact which was now in Void Land’s possession.

A Mobile Palace Artifact was a valuable treasure for laying siege to enemies and a powerful weapon that integrated both offensive and defensive abilities. After the Ninth-Order Old Ancestor attacked several days ago, numerous palace artifact warships had navigated their way across the battlefield and slaughtered countless Black Ink Clansmen and Black Ink Disciples. Be that as it may, many of these powerful warships had been shattered and destroyed here. It could be seen that the battle had been very fierce for the Human Race.

Judging from the current situation, the Black Ink Clan army had caught up to the Human Race army even though the latter had retreated in a timely manner. A battle must have broken out between them. Moreover, it was an extremely fierce battle. The number of casualties remained unknown.

Yang Kai’s group continued to give chase for another two or three days before, all of a sudden, the leading Black Ink Feudal Lord changed direction and led the hundreds behind him to the flank. The Black Ink Clansmen and the Black Ink Disciples quickly followed in his lead.

Yang Kai frowned slightly at the sight. He had hoped to follow the Black Ink Clan army to the front lines of the battlefield and find an opportunity to escape. Who could have expected the Black Ink Feudal Lord to change directions so abruptly?

“Master, are we giving up pursuit?” Yang Kai asked with a glance at Nu Yan.

Nu Yan did not understand what the Black Ink Clan Feudal Lord was trying to do either, but he answered anyway, “Sir Feudal Lord must have his own considerations. We only need to follow him.”

If it were any other Black Ink Disciple, he would not have been so accommodating. It was just that Yang Kai was very useful to him, so he was much more tolerant towards Yang Kai’s behaviour.

It didn’t take long before Yang Kai understood the reason why the Black Ink Clan Feudal Lord had suddenly changed directions.

Approximately an hour later, a raging battlefield came into view. There was a warship artifact there, trying to break out from the encirclement formed by the Black Ink Clan army.

Blinding lights constantly blasted out from the warship, each one containing terrifying force. Consequently, any Black Ink Clansman or Black Ink Disciple struck by the beams of light would either perish on the spot or cough up blood from the injuries they sustained.

That was the biggest advantage of a warship artifact. Every single attack unleashed by it was equivalent to the full power of a Seventh-Order Master. Furthermore, these attacks could be fired continuously as long as the warship was functioning properly.

Although the Black Ink Clansmen and the Black Ink Disciples in the surroundings suffered huge casualties, they continued to fight to the death without any hesitation. Countless Secret Techniques blasted towards the warship, but even so, these Secret Techniques were blocked by the warship’s shield and could only create ripples on its surface.

For the Black Ink Clan, the fact that the Humans had invaded their domain and destroyed dozens of their strongholds was a huge humiliation for them. It had to be said that the Humans had been besieged in the various great passes by the Black Ink Clan for countless years, so it was very rare for the Humans to take the initiative to attack.

In any case, their humiliation could only be washed away with fresh blood. For that reason, the Black Ink Clan disregarded their casualties and dedicated themselves to destroying this warship that had fallen behind the main force, regardless of the price they had to pay.

This battle had probably been going on for a while by now as the void was littered with the corpses of the Black Ink Clan and Black Ink Disciples. In fact, there were only a dozen or so survivors at this point!

If nobody hindered them, the Human Masters could likely use their warship to obliterate the remaining Black Ink Clan and flee with ease. However, when the group of several hundred people including Yang Kai rushed over, the Human Masters inside the warship immediately turned pale.

What they feared the most had finally come to pass. This place could still be considered to be within the domain of the Black Ink Clan, so enemy reinforcements could arrive at any time. They had killed the Black Ink Clan surrounding them as quickly as possible in hopes of escaping their predicament even a moment sooner, but who could have known that their efforts would still not be enough?

Similarly, Yang Kai was secretly anxious when he saw this scene after following Nu Yan to this place. He did not know why this warship had been left behind, but the situation on the battlefield was ever-changing so it shouldn’t have been a surprise.

Just as the Humans were in the process of retreating, the Black Ink Royal Lord had led many Masters to pursue them and later engaged the Ninth-Order Old Ancestor in battle. It might be that the powerful fallout from the battles between the two parties had impacted the Human Race army’s formation and caused this ship to fall behind.

Numerous figures stood on the deck of the ship, their World Force surging as they unleashed Secret Techniques indiscriminately in tandem with the attacks of the warship itself. Their assault continued without pause.

A furious roar suddenly rang out, “Kill them!”

Under the command of the leading Black Ink Feudal Lord, hundreds of Black Ink Clansmen and Black Ink Disciples charged towards the warship like the surging tide. It only took an instant for them to surround the ship tightly. That was not all. The leading Black Ink Feudal Lord was brave and fierce. With a shift of his body, he immediately rushed towards the ship. His enormous figure erupted with a horrifying force as he swung his fist out, smashing it into the protective shield.

At that moment, a shocking sword slash swept out. It was extremely brilliant, so much so that it seemed only this sword light remained in the entire world.

Pitch-black blood splattered everywhere as the arm that the Feudal Lord swung earlier was chopped off on the spot. He staggered backward unsteadily, thick pitch-black blood gushing out endlessly from his severed arm. The pain caused his face to twist hideously, but he still glared grimly at the slender figure standing at the bow of the warship.

The figure was dressed in white robes that were untouched by dust and fluttered around her in an ethereal manner. More importantly, she was staring at the Feudal Lord as though she was looking at a dead man.

Yang Kai was astonished. The shocking sword slash earlier had been extremely blinding, so it was only natural that he noticed the attack. At the same time, he also took the opportunity to glance at the Master who unleashed the strike.

The woman standing at the front of the deck turned out to be somebody he recognised. They could not be considered well-acquainted, but they had indeed met several days ago. It was the woman in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm who tried to take his life the other day. If not for the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Old Ancestor’s signal to withdraw, this woman in the Seventh-Order would not have stopped back then.

Yang Kai never imagined that he would encounter her here, so he could only marvel at how unpredictable fate could be.

Her current situation was clearly a little less than optimistic though. The warship she was on was very powerful, and the Human Race also had a number of people on their side. Nonetheless, the Black Ink Clan had received hundreds of reinforcements out of the blue. As long as the Black Ink Clan could delay things here for a short while, even more reinforcements were bound to arrive. The people aboard the ship would not be able to escape if that were to happen.

Although the warship was large, it moved as smoothly as the wind under the control of the Human Masters. Relying on its unparalleled and unmatched defences, it shuttled back and forth among the Black Ink Clansmen and Black Ink Disciples. At the same time, horrifying lights blasted out from all directions of the large ship.

From time to time, the Black Ink Clansmen and Black Ink Disciples would be struck by those beams of lights and lose their lives on the spot. Naturally, the Black Ink Clan did not sit around and do nothing as they unleashed their respective means in retaliation.

For a time, both sides attacked furiously, making the scene extremely chaotic.

Likewise, Yang Kai randomly unleashed various Secret Techniques, but did not dare to exert his full strength. How could he actually attack his comrades? It was enough if he just put on a show.

At the moment, he was currently wondering whether he should take the opportunity to fight his way over to the Human Race, prove his identity to them, and join their ranks; however, the idea only flashed through his mind for a moment before he dismissed it.

He had already suffered a loss previously. When he first encountered the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm woman, he had wanted to prove his identity, but who could have known that the other party would not give him the chance to explain himself?

Standing in the other party’s shoes, Yang Kai could understand the reason behind her actions.

The Black Ink Disciples looked no different from ordinary Humans in terms of external appearances. For the Humans who invaded the Black Ink Clan’s domain, they could not afford to hesitate in the slightest when facing either the Black Ink Clan or the Black Ink Disciples. On a battlefield like this, the slightest hint of hesitation could lead to their deaths; therefore, as long as the other party was not one of their own, they should kill first and ask questions later. In any case, the chances of making a mistake were basically zero.

Throughout history, nobody had ever been as bold as Yang Kai. He had disguised himself as a Black Ink Disciple, remained by the side of a Black Ink Clansman, and involved himself in various gambling arenas for years now.

At this moment, he could only suppress the impulse in his heart and quietly wait for his opportunity. Unfortunately, he soon realised that something was wrong.

The warship belonging to the Human Race might be extremely powerful, but it could not withstand a sustained barrage forever. The light shield that covered the warship was clearly dimming now.

The Black Ink Clan clearly noticed this fact too and their attacks became more and more ruthless, adamant to bring down the warship.

During this short period, over 100 Black Ink Clansmen and Black Ink Disciples had perished in the battle. Even Nu Yan had been hit by one of the light beams, which seriously injured him to the point where he coughed up blood.

Yang Kai secretly glanced sideways at Nu Yan and cursed in his heart, [this bastard sure is lucky. Why won’t he just die?]

The heavily wounded Nu Yan no longer dared to step forward in battle. Leading Yang Kai and the others, he constantly avoided any confrontation with the ship.

Suddenly, Yang Kai noticed something happening on the ship. The Human Masters seemed to be arguing among themselves. The woman in the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm standing at the bow said something, which caused the expressions of the people around her to change drastically. They hurriedly tried to persuade her with agitated expressions; however, she slowly shook her head with a firm expression.

Yang Kai immediately felt a sense of foreboding wash over him.

Sure enough, a short while later, the white-robed woman leaped off the ship. With her sword in hand, she crossed the distance and stood between the warship and the Black Ink Clan. Then, she held her sword in front of her chest and slid her finger along the blade with a solemn expression. Following a violent surging of her World Force, thousands of sword waves abruptly appeared behind her back.

The sword waves trembled slightly, humming with a sound that resembled sad weeping. It was the sorrowful lament of her sword. At the same time, a desolate and chilling atmosphere filled the void and for an instant, it felt as though time had frozen.