Martial Peak
chapter-5207

A few days away from Great Evolution Pass, the North-South Army was moving through the void, hurrying to the spot designated for the ambush.

An Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master had scouted the place beforehand and according to him, there was a high chance for the Black Ink Clan to pass through this spot if they were to send their Army. However, there were no guarantees when it came to such things. Their likelihood of success hinged on how lucky they were.

The North-South Army had originally hidden in the direction of Azure Void Pass, so they had to move at lightning speed. From the looks of it, their path took them to a place between Great Evolution Pass and the Black Ink Clan’s territory.

Several days passed by in a flash.

In the conference hall aboard a Purifying Black Ink Battleship, Mi Jing Lun and the few Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, who were in charge, were all silent. It was as if they were waiting for something. Meanwhile, Gong Lian was leaning against a pillar on the side with a blank look in his eyes. His mind was wandering as usual.

Yang Kai was on the other side with a Communication Bead in his hand. He kept pouring his Divine Sense into it, to try and get in touch with Ou Yang Lie.

Previously, when Yang Kai came from beyond Great Evolution Pass and returned to the Purifying Black Ink Battleship, Ou Yang Lie had to stay back to keep an eye on the Black Ink Clan’s movements at Great Evolution Pass. If the Black Ink Clan were to send forth their troops, then the North-South Army and the Black Ink Clan from Great Evolution Pass would inevitably cross paths. The distance between them would decrease as time went on and he would surely be able to get in touch with Ou Yang Lie once more.

“Still no news?” One of the Eighth-Order Division Commanders turned to Yang Kai all of a sudden.

Yang Kai shook his head, “Not yet.”

The Eighth-Order Division Commander frowned, “Judging by how long it’s been, it should be anytime now. We should’ve been able to get in touch with Brother Ou Yang half a day ago.”

It was evident that something must have happened that caused half a day’s delay; however, just as soon as the Division Commander finished his sentence, Yang Kai became excited, “There’s an update.”

Yang Kai immediately began probing into the Communication Bead with his Divine Sense.

Everyone had their eyes on him.

Once Yang Kai got the gist of the message, he informed everyone else, “Senior Ou Yang said that the Black Ink Clan who came out of Great Evolution Pass seemed to have their guards up against the North-South Army. So, they circled around and took a less direct route.”

Mi Jing Lun had a look of realization, “No wonder Brother Ou Yang took so long to get in touch with us.”

Great Evolution Pass’s Black Ink Clan Army did not know much at the moment, only that there were two Human Armies nearby.

The first Army came from the direction of Wind and Cloud Pass. This Army had evaded their detection and then sent tens of thousands of puppets as a distraction while they launched a sneak attack on their territory.

The Black Ink Clan also knew that there was a second group which came over from Azure Void Pass. Numerous Black Ink Clan scouts had mysteriously disappeared, and this proved that a group of Humans were hiding in the vicinity of Great Evolution Pass in the direction of Azure Void Pass. Unfortunately, this Human Army seemed to be continually changing their location and the Black Ink Clan could not gather any information on them.

The Royal Lord had given the command, so 15 or so Territory Lords from Great Evolution Pass had no choice but to lead their Army out and rush towards the Royal City; however, knowing that an unknown number of Human soldiers were hiding nearby, the Territory Lords had a simple discussion and decided to take the longer way around to avoid them.

Naturally, they chose a route in the direction of Wind and Cloud Pass. They were certain this was a safe option, since the Human Army that came from that direction had already launched an attack within their Black Ink Clan territory and exposed their location.

If they had a choice, they would choose to ensure their safety by giving a wide berth and making a huge detour to avoid the hidden Human Army.

However, time was of the essence and they were afraid of causing too great a delay, so they could only take a slightly circuitous path, which would delay them by a day or so.

This was why Ou Lang Lie only managed to get in touch with the North-South Army now.

Under everyone’s watchful gazes, Yang Kai kept using his Divine Sense to stay connected to Ou Yang Lie, allowing both parties to confirm their respective locations.

Still, it was both Yang Kai’s and Ou Yang Lie’s first time in the Great Evolution Theatre and they were unfamiliar with their surroundings. Neither one of them had an accurate Universe Chart of this place, so it was rather troublesome for them to talk about their positions.

Yang Kai could not ascertain where Ou Yang Lie was exactly, and similarly, Ou Yang Lie had no way of confirming where the North-South Army was.

The only thing they both knew was that their distance was within a day’s worth of travel, as this was the Communication Bead’s maximum range.

Amid their exchange, the North-South Army arrived at the designated ambush point.

Initially, based on the deductions by the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master who scouted the place, it was highly likely that the Black Ink Clan would pass through this place if they were to send their Army out from Great Evolution Pass. As long as the North-South Army set up here in advance, they would be able to deal a heavy blow to the Black Ink Clan.

As it was, the North-South Army had arrived, but there was no sign of the Black Ink Clan.

Furthermore, based on the update from Ou Yang Lie, it was unlikely that the Black Ink Clan Army would be passing through this region.

Uncertainty was to be expected on the battlefield, as it was impossible for people to know everything and have a contingency for all possibilities at all times. Things could change at any given moment, and the only way to ensure victory was to be highly adaptable.

Yang Kai carried on communicating with Ou Yang Lie, but he was still unable to pinpoint the latter’s location. Both of them described what the area around them looked like, but it did not ring any bells for either one of them.

Ou Yang Lie had a fiery temper, and since it was impossible to communicate effectively, he decided to cut things short, “Just wait!”

That was the last Yang Kai heard from him, even though he kept trying to reconnect with Ou Yang Lie.

After relaying this to the Eighth-Order Division Commanders, they all wore helpless, exasperated expressions.

However, soon enough, Ou Yang Lie’s burly figure came striding in while grumbling, “It’s so troublesome without a Universe Chart.”

It would have been a lot easier for them to communicate if both of them had a Universe Chart as it would have allowed them to confirm their locations and the distance from each other.

Nevertheless, Great Evolution Pass had been lost for 30,000 years, and the Humans who were stationed here in the past had been annihilated. Thus, the Universe Chart of that time was no longer usable.

If they wanted a Universe Chart now, they needed to make one themselves.

Meanwhile, Ou Yang Lie managed to get back quickly thanks to the Purifying Black Ink Battleship’s Universe Array.

“Brother Ou Yang, where are the Black Ink Clan reinforcements now?” Mi Jing Lun quickly asked.

“I don’t know, but I left behind a bit of my aura before I left. Let me check where it is and I’ll know where the Black Ink Clan Army is,” Ou Yang Lie replied.

Saying so, his hands started rapidly forming seals.

A few breaths later, a burst of red light shot out from his fingertip and pointed in the direction of the aura he had left behind.

Mi Jing Lun took note of the location and nodded, “We are about a day’s travel away from there. Taking into account the difference between our travel direction and the Black Ink Clan Army’s, the North-South Army should adjust our position so that we can encounter them within a day or two.”

Ou Yang Lie nodded, “Good.”

The two of them talked for a bit and soon decided on where they should reposition the North-South Army.

The order went down and the fleet, which had only just arrived at the ambush location, set off again without even having time to do anything.

All the Eighth-Order Division Commanders cupped their fists, “We should go and prepare.”

If everything went smoothly, then in a day or two, the North-South Army would engage in a huge battle with the Black Ink Clan from Great Evolution Pass. Naturally, it was best to start preparing as soon as possible.

Mi Jing Lun nodded.

“I’ll be off too, Honoured Master,” Gong Lian bowed.

Ou Yang Lie waved him off casually in response.

Mi Jing Lun finally addressed Yang Kai, “Martial Nephew, what’s your plan now? Are you going to join us here or head off to find the East-West Army?”

“Since there’s going to be a battle here, it’s best if I remain to help,” Yang Kai said.

He could have left now if there were no battle, but since the fight was imminent, it would not be right for him to leave just like that. Furthermore, taking part in the upcoming battle was a good way for him to gather more information about the situation here. That way, he would be able to inform Xiang Shan and the others about what was happening here when he reunited with the East-West Army.

“Good,” Mi Jing Lun said, “Since you’re staying, you can choose a Squad or a Battalion to join.”

“This Junior would like to act alone. Would that be alright?” Yang Kai asked.

He was unfamiliar with the people here in the North-South Army, and it may not be a good thing for him to join a Squad so abruptly; hence, he preferred acting alone without having any ties to anyone.

Mi Jing Lun eyed him with a smile, “Since you’re so confident, Martial Nephew, I won’t stop you, but do be careful on the battlefield.”

“Understood!” Yang Kai cupped his fist and bowed before leaving.

Once he left, Ou Yang Lie piped up, “That Brat sure is confident to want to act alone, and you even gave him your permission. That’s not at all like you.”

Mi Jing Lun chuckled, “I don’t know if you’ve heard much about him, Brother Ou Yang. If any other Seventh-Order Junior made the same request, I would’ve rejected them immediately; but if it’s him, it’s fine for me to make an exception just this once.”

Ou Yang Lie nodded, “I’ve heard quite a lot about him, so you can’t take advantage of me being ignorant and uninformed, Brother Mi. Now that we’re on the subject, it’s quite unbelievable that a Seventh-Order brat had the guts to disguise himself as a Black Ink Disciple to infiltrate the Black Ink Clan. He even managed to destroy the Warship that the Black Ink Clan was building and come back alive. It’s practically a miracle.”

“That’s right. Although the Old Ancestor went out to receive him in person, before that, he managed to kill a Territory Lord while he was in the Blue Sky Theatre, which is quite the feat even if the Territory Lord was badly wounded at the time,” Mi Jing Lun said.

“New talents rise up with every generation. We’re getting old now!” Ou Yang Lie lamented.

Mi Jing Lun smiled at him, “It’s rare for you to pay such a high compliment to someone of the younger generation, Brother Ou Yang. What’s the matter? Are you regretting the fact that you didn’t encounter him sooner to take him as your Disciple?”

“Hah!” Ou Yang Lie snorted loudly, “Why would I regret that? I have a Disciple now! Even though my Disciple isn’t the same as him, he’s not worse off in any way! In fact, my Disciple has more potential than him.”

Mi Jing Lun sighed, “Things never go the way you want them to in life! Yang Kai is a peerless talent, but it’s a pity he will not enter the Ninth Order. If he could make it to the Ninth Order, he would make a huge difference for the entire Human Race.”

“Nothing’s perfect in life,” Ou Yang Lie remarked, “Speaking of which, we’re partly to blame for his current situation since it’s the unfortunate result of the Cave Heavens and Paradises interfering with him.”

If it had not been for those Cave Heavens and Paradises working together to suppress Yang Kai, he would have directly advanced to the Seventh Order and would have stood a chance to become a Ninth-Order Old Ancestor.

Mi Jing Lun shook his head, “They were doing it to prevent uncertainty in the future, and there’s historical precedent for their actions. All along, the Cave Heavens and Paradises have maintained the same attitude towards all those who had the possibility of directly advancing to the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm. Based on their perspective, they didn’t do anything wrong at the time, but looking back now, they’ve made a monumental mistake.”