Martial Peak
chapter-5241

With Yang Kai’s help, Xiao Xiao set up a funeral in her home. The hunters from the village came over and offered their condolences.

Three days later, there was a new tomb on the mountain.

Xiao Xiao knelt in front of the tomb as she was engulfed in a sense of melancholy. Her parents passed away peacefully. They had been a married couple for a long time, and they were buried in the same tomb. It could be said that they had been happier than most commoners in the world.

Regardless, they were gone.

Right then, an anomaly took place in the sky.

Yang Kai, who had been standing behind Xiao Xiao, looked up. As the owner of this Small Universe, he was acutely aware of all the changes going on in this World.

In front of the tomb, Xiao Xiao pressed her head against the ground three times to bid her parents a final farewell.

When she got to her feet, all the Bustling World Essence in the Small Universe streamed into her from all directions where she fully absorbed it.

In just 10 breaths of time, her aura changed drastically.

Yang Kai felt that his Small Universe was slightly shaking, which prompted his expression to turn solemn.

One had to know that his Small Universe had been spread out; moreover, with the presence of the World Tree’s clone, it was unlikely that his Small Universe would be impacted in any way, unless it was struck by a force that was significantly more powerful than his limits.

Fortunately, the tremor soon subsided.

Yang Kai cupped his fist and said solemnly, “Welcome back, Old Ancestor!”

Xiao Xiao remained unmoving. As she stared fixedly at the tomb, she spoke, “For all my life, it’s been smooth sailing since I started cultivating. I had my Honoured Master’s protection, and my Fellow Sisters and Brothers all took good care of me. My cultivation improved significantly day by day. From no cultivation, I ascended to the Emperor Realm, Open Heaven Realm, and eventually became an Old Ancestor. Others might not attain such achievements for all their lives, but to me, they were easy to come by.”

Yang Kai couldn’t help but think that the Old Ancestor was indeed confident of her abilities.

She went on to say, “However, there has always been a regret in my heart. Before I joined Yin-Yang Cave Heaven, I was an orphan who never knew my parents before. I didn’t know who or where they were, so I never got to spend time with them. This life is an experience I’ve never had before. It’s embarrassing of me to have taken advantage of this situation to live out that dream, but I have to thank you for that.”

Yang Kai promptly said that he didn’t deserve her gratitude.

Nevertheless, it was only then that he realised why the Old Ancestor had instinctively stopped him from concealing her whereabouts even though she had sealed off her memory.

She must have sensed something the moment the hunter approached her.

Her biggest regret was that she never got to spend time with her parents. To experience a life she never had before was clearly of great help to her recuperation and even her cultivation.

Although there was the Marketplace in Yin-Yang Pass where a lot of Open Heaven Realm Masters could help her recover, everyone was aware of her identity; therefore, everything they did was meant to help her heal, and the way they treated her was not natural.

Nevertheless, it was different in Yang Kai’s Small Universe where she had lived for over 100 years.

The hunter and his wife were not aware that the child they had picked up from the log house on the mountain was a Ninth-Order Old Ancestor. They had treated her with care and love. The Old Ancestor, who had sealed off her memory, spent time with the couple just like other children with their parents.

This life made up for the regret she had in her heart.

She was badly injured after the battle against the Royal Lord. It was because she had intended to be mutually wounded with her opponent, so she had not held back at all.

It could be said that it was the most severe injury she had ever suffered in her life. That was why she only awakened after she remained unconscious in the Small Universe for a long time.

Even if she were in the Marketplace in Yin-Yang Pass, it would’ve required several hundred years before she could recover given her injuries.

Yang Kai’s Small Universe could help her recover quicker than if she were to stay in the Marketplace in Yin-Yang Pass, but it still should have taken her 200 years at the very least.

However, barely more than 100 years had passed, but she had fully recovered. It was thanks to the experience in this life that she obtained such benefits.

In other words, she would be able to recover rapidly by experiencing a life she had never gone through before.

Upon that revelation, Yang Kai fell into his thoughts.

“From today forward, my name is Xiao Xiao,” the Old Ancestor announced, “No one has called me by my original name for so long that I’ve almost forgotten it, so it no longer carries any meaning to me.”

Yang Kai was startled for a moment, but he naturally wouldn’t dare to say anything, for she was the Old Ancestor.

By keeping this name that she had been using for 100 years, she did not only show her gratitude to the couple, but it was also a way for her to remember them. The couple had made up for the regret in Xiao Xiao’s heart with their love.

They were just ordinary mortals while Xiao Xiao was a Ninth-Order Old Ancestor; however, these two mortals in Yang Kai’s Small Universe played a key part in Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao’s recovery, thus having an impact on a war that involved countless lives.

Such a thing would never have crossed the simple couple’s minds.

With that said, given their temperaments, they would have just laughed joyfully even if they found out about it. They would be more than happy to know that their Daughter was such an important figure.

While Yang Kai was in a dazed state, he felt a Will penetrating the Small Universe’s barrier and returning to the outside world. It was the Old Ancestor’s Will.

At that moment, the Humans were getting some rest in the forward base.

In fact, they had been doing that since their arrival at this place that was just outside of the Royal City. Other than pretending to attack the Royal City following the leaders’ order, they had never directly clashed with the Black Ink Clan.

Nevertheless, none of them would complain about it. Although the Commander’s tactics were cunning and even a bit shameless, they were effective.

Every time they moved closer to the Royal City, they would successfully distract the Black Ink Clan, and the Universe Worlds would kill a lot of their enemies.

Many Human soldiers hoped that as they kept doing this, they would eventually destroy all 1 million Black Ink Clansmen; however, considering the fact that the dead Black Ink Clansmen would be replaced, such a situation seemed unlikely.

Both parties had been in a confrontation for the past 30 or so years. Other than taking turns to extract resources, the Humans would also spend the rest of their time cultivating; hence, their strength had improved slightly.

With that said, it took a long time for an Open Heaven Realm Master to grow their power, so this minor increase wouldn’t affect the current situation.

Presently, other than the soldiers, the leaders in the Army were also cultivating.

The Purifying Black Ink Battleship was hovering in the void above the forward base as it faced the Royal City’s direction. The people on the battleship could constantly monitor the movements in the Royal City from here.

Although it was unlikely that the Black Ink Clan would launch an attack, they had to remain vigilant.

Inside the Purifying Black Ink Battleship, Xiang Shan, Liu Zhi Ping, and the other Eighth-Order Division Commanders were cultivating in their respective rooms when suddenly, a Will swept across the entire Purifying Black Ink Battleship. All the leaders, who were cultivating, were shocked.

The next instant, they appeared elated. This couldn’t be helped, as this Will clearly belonged to the Old Ancestor.

After the battle against the Royal Lord back then, the Old Ancestor entered Yang Kai’s Small Universe to recover. There hadn’t been any news about her since then. Xiang Shan had asked Yang Kai about the progress in the Old Ancestor’s recuperation, but Yang Kai only told him that everything was going well.

Xiang Shan initially thought that it would take the Old Ancestor at least 40 to 50 years to recuperate, but she left the Small Universe barely less than 30 years later.

[Has the Old Ancestor fully recovered? That’s too quick!]

As the Will swept through the battleship, an order was passed down.

In an instant, the originally quiet Purifying Black Ink Battleship became bustling with noise as the Commanders promptly left their rooms and headed to the conference hall.

Soon, they all gathered together.

Xiang Shan turned to look at an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master and asked, “Junior Brother Zhou, how many Universe Worlds are ready now?”

The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master surnamed Zhou was responsible for mobilising people to move Universe Worlds back from the void and organizing the Array Masters to fortify them.

He had been diligent since he was given such a task and immediately replied, “10 days ago, I was informed that five Universe Worlds are ready to be used. The sixth one is still being prepared.”

Xiang Shan nodded. It had only been four years since they last launched an attack on the Royal City. They were pretty efficient to have found five suitable Universe Worlds and finished setting them up during this period.

According to the plan of Xiang Shan and the others, they should prepare at least 10 to 15 Universe Worlds before they initiated an attack so that it would have a more devastating impact on the enemy; however, that plan had to be modified now.

“The Old Ancestor intends to attack the Royal City, so we’ll need those six Universe Worlds prepared now.”

The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master surnamed Zhou replied, “Six Universe Worlds might not be sufficient to have a meaningful impact. Should we discuss the matter with the Old Ancestor and postpone the attack?”

Xiang Shan shook his head, “Compared to causing a lot of casualties to the Black Ink Clan, disturbing the Royal Lord’s recuperation is more important. Since the Old Ancestor has recovered, she can make a move now. On the other hand, the Royal Lord might not be able to do so. If we don’t do anything now, the Black Ink Clan will only gain a more advantageous position.”

The man surnamed Zhou nodded, “You have a point, Senior Brother Xiang. I was too negligent.”

Liu Zhi Ping said, “Moreover, since the Old Ancestor can make a move now, the number of Universe Worlds we have no longer matters.”

The presence of an Old Ancestor was significantly more intimidating to the Black Ink Clan than a few more Universe Worlds; therefore, the lack of Universe Worlds shouldn’t be a concern.

“In that case, send the teams working on the Universe Worlds a message and tell them to start taking action,” Xiang Shan ordered.

Soon, the man surnamed Zhou left the Purifying Black Ink Battleship and activated the Universe Transference Law. With the help of the Universe Array, he headed to the other Purifying Black Ink Battleship that was about 10 days away from the forward base, where the Humans were setting up Universe Worlds.

As the Universe Worlds were propelled across the Void for 10 days, they would gain horrifying momentum by the time they arrived at the Royal City.

For the ease of communication between both sides, the East-West Army’s second Purifying Black Ink Battleship was anchored there.

As arrangements were being made in the East-West Army, the soldiers were soon mobilised. All of them stopped cultivating and started getting busy.

Inside the Small Universe, Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao stood in front of the simple tomb and stared at it as she talked to Yang Kai.

With her memory unsealed and her injuries fully healed, she was at the peak of her strength; however, she would never forget the fact that she had lived in this village for over 100 years.

The couple in the tomb would always be her parents who had taken care of her for all their lives.

Basically, it was Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao who talked most of the time while Yang Kai simply listened.

All she talked about was her daily life with the couple. It was hard to imagine that a Ninth-Order Old Ancestor could wear such a sincere smile when she recounted such mundane affairs.

Nevertheless, this was truly who Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao was. Yang Kai believed that this one point was where she significantly differed from the other Old Ancestors. She was a vivid, vibrant figure rather than a dispassionate and aloof powerhouse.