Martial Peak
chapter-5262

This was a sensible choice. Back then, Blood Crow was captured by Elder Fisherman from Bright King Cave Heaven in the Shattered Heaven and subsequently imprisoned in their Sect. Considering the fact that his cultivation and experience was hard to come by, it would be a shame to kill Blood Crow outright; therefore, he was given a chance to come to the Black Ink Battlefield.

The Black Ink Battlefield was unlike other places; here, the Humans only had one enemy, which was the Black Ink Clan. Grudges from the past would be put aside, and those from Bright King Heaven were not worried that Blood Crow would try to escape or betray them.

Other than doing his best to kill the enemy in order to stay alive, he had no choice.

“Yang Boy, you know that my years of effort all went to waste because of what you did back then, right?” Blow Crow suddenly turned to look at him, as though he was still displeased with the latter over what had happened in the past.

Yang Kai grinned, “If I hadn’t ruined your plan, I wouldn’t have become what I am today.”

Blood Crow slowly shook his head, “I suppose this is simply my fate. In my previous life, the Eighth-Order was my limit. I was unresigned when I was about to reach my predestined time of death, so I spent the rest of my life making special arrangements. If everything went well, I could’ve been reborn as someone with the potential to ascend to the Ninth Order. However, life is indeed full of uncertainties. Who would have thought that a freak like you would show up and wreck everything?”

Yang Kai tutted, “I will never overlook injustice and evil.”

Blood Crow nodded, “Whenever I see you, I have a strong urge to kill you. Likewise, whenever those disciples from the Cave Heavens and Paradises found fault with me, I never went easy on them. Their Blood Essence could help increase my cultivation anyway.”

The Great Evolution Indestructible Blood Light Scripture was a special Secret Art. Even though it bore the name ‘Great Evolution’, it had nothing to do with Great Evolution Paradise. Instead, it worked in similar ways as Wu Kuang’s Heaven Devouring Battle Law.

It could be said that these two Secret Arts were the most amazing ones Yang Kai had ever come across since he began cultivating.

However, in his opinion, the Great Evolution Indestructible Blood Light Scripture was still inferior to the Heaven Devouring Battle Law. Yang Kai had dabbled in both Secret Arts, so no one had a clearer understanding of these two than him in terms of their strengths and differences.

“I’m sure they were aware of my background and the grudges I had with the disciples of the Cave Heavens and Paradises in the past,” Blood Crow continued.

He was obviously talking about the members of his original Squad.

“Some of them gave me the cold shoulder. Some of them secretly dismissed me. There were also those who made things difficult for me and snatched my Military Merits,” Blood Crow spoke in a dispassionate tone. He was talking about his own affairs, but it was as though it had nothing to do with him, “But so what? I have my own ways of doing things, and it has nothing to do with others. If not for the unique environment of the Black Ink Battlefield, I wouldn’t have fought alongside these brats.”

Upon hearing that, the Sixth-Order and Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters beside him glowered.

Unfazed, Blood Crow lowered his gaze and continued, “What’s really laughable though, is that those who dismissed me and found fault with me were also the ones who sacrificed themselves to save my life. I survived, while almost all of them died.”

He turned to look at Yang Kai, “Don’t you think they’re foolish?”

Without waiting for Yang Kai’s response, he continued, saying, “They’re extremely foolish! They all cultivated for so many years to reach where they were. What was the point of all of that if they just threw their lives away in the end?”

Yang Kai replied in a calm manner, “They’re indeed foolish.”

“You think so too?” Blood Crow looked at him in surprise.

Yang Kai nodded, “Weren’t they foolish by sacrificing themselves for others?”

Blood Crow nodded in agreement. After a while, he asked, “Is this what you told me back then? On the battlefield, grudges of the past no longer matter, and we’re all Brothers and Sisters.”

Yang Kai smiled helplessly, “You’re older and more experienced than me. At one point, you were even stronger than me, so why even ask me this question?”

Hearing that, Blood Crow fell silent.

After standing there for a while more, Yang Kai said, “We’ll set off for Great Evolution Pass in 8 days, so get some rest now. We might need to fight the Black Ink Clan again when we arrive.”

Upon finishing his words, he turned around and left.

Meanwhile, aboard the Purifying Black Ink Battleship, Xiang Shan, Liu Zhi Ping, and the others had gathered together. The Old Ancestor was present as well for once.

Although she was wounded during the fight against the Royal Lord, her injuries weren’t severe. Considering the fact that the Army would leave for Great Evolution Pass soon, she didn’t find Yang Kai to spread out his Small Universe for her to recuperate.

One of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters spoke up, “We’ll set off for Great Evolution Pass in 8 days. I suppose the Army will be fully reorganised by then. Excluding the 3,000 Artifact Refiners, Array Masters, and Alchemists, we have 16,000 to 17,000 soldiers remaining. Things are not looking bright on the North-South Army’s side either. In order to stop the Black Ink Clansmen stationed at Great Evolution Pass from heading to the Royal City, they directly clashed with some 500,000 Black Ink Clan soldiers, and many of them died in battle. Although the Black Ink Clan forces over there are significantly weaker now, they still occupy Great Evolution Pass. They have been fortifying Great Evolution Pass for the past 30,000 years, so we must not underestimate them. I’m worried that it will be a tough fight to retake Great Evolution Pass.”

The other Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters nodded with solemn expressions.

Although they already knew that there would be a lot of casualties when the Great Evolution Army was founded, it never crossed their minds that the most difficult and deadly problem would be retaking Great Evolution Pass.

While the Black Ink Clan soldiers from the Royal City were beaten to a half-dead state by the East-West Army, they still had to deal with those from Great Evolution Pass.

Upon hearing that, Liu Zhi Ping put on a smile, “Perhaps we can retrieve Great Evolution Pass without any losses.”

“Huh?” All the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were surprised to hear what she had said.

The person who spoke earlier asked anxiously, “What do you mean by that, Senior Sister Liu? Will the Black Ink Clansmen return Great Evolution Pass to us without a fight?”

Upon finishing his words, he became startled for a moment and fell into his thoughts.

Realising something, another Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master said, “That might be possible.”

The Humans were already aware that the Black Ink Clan could instantly relay information through their Black Ink Nests, so those stationed at Great Evolution Pass must already know what had happened here at the Royal City.

The Royal Lord was badly injured and was almost killed by the Old Ancestor. Countless Black Ink Clan soldiers were either killed or injured, so they were no longer able to engage the Humans away from the Royal City.

If the East-West Army swaggered towards Great Evolution Pass now, and this piece of news was sent from the Royal City to Great Evolution Pass through the Black Ink Nests, the Black Ink Clansmen over there would certainly be flustered; after all, the East-West Army had an Old Ancestor with them.

Although the Black Ink Clan had occupied Great Evolution Pass for 30,000 years, garrisoned a large Army there, and built up a lot of defences, there was no way to tell if that would be enough to resist a Human Army with an Old Ancestor assuming command.

When Great Evolution Pass was conquered, all the Black Ink Clansmen there would surely be executed.

From the Black Ink Clan’s perspective, if they found out about this news, they would certainly abandon Great Evolution Pass and run for their lives. It was no different from waiting for death by staying in Great Evolution Pass.

Upon that realisation, the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters became excited. Now, it seemed that the battle outside the Royal City was indeed the last of this war. It wouldn’t be hard for them to retrieve Great Evolution Pass, they just had to put on an act.

One of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters suddenly thought of something and exclaimed, “Damn!”

Liu Zhi Ping looked smilingly at him, “What’s wrong, Junior Brother Fang?”

Junior Brother Fang explained, “The Black Ink Clansmen at Great Evolution Pass can find out about what happened in the Royal City through the Black Ink Nests, but the North-South Army don’t have access to such information. If the Black Ink Clan abandons Great Evolution Pass and tries to run away, will the North-South Army think that they’re desperately trying to rescue the Royal City? When that happens, the North-South Army will certainly try to stop them. Given the North-South Army’s current situation, casualties will be inevitable if they clash with the Black Ink Clan.”

Another Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master nodded, “You have a point. We have to inform the North-South Army about this as soon as possible. Where’s Yang Kai? Tell him to come over now. Since he’s a Master of the Dao of Space, he should be able to reach Great Evolution Pass in 8 days if he goes all out.”

Even Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters like them wouldn’t dare to say that they could arrive at Great Evolution Pass in 8 days from the Royal City. Other than Yang Kai, who was an expert in the Dao of Space, only the Old Ancestor could achieve that.

Although the Old Ancestor wasn’t badly injured, they certainly wouldn’t dare to ask her to be a messenger; therefore, this Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master instantly thought of Yang Kai.

There were a lot of Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in the East-West Army, but only a small number of them were worth the attention of these Eighth-Order Division Commanders, and Yang Kai was undoubtedly the most outstanding among them.

However, Liu Zhi Ping just replied with a smile, “Don’t worry about it. In fact, before the battle even started, Senior Brother Xiang had sent Li Xing to head to Great Evolution Pass to inform the North-South Army about it. I suppose he should be with the North-South Army by now.”

Li Xing was Xiang Shan’s adjutant as well as a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. He was the best choice to inform the North-South Army about this piece of news.

The Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were startled for a moment before turning to look at Xiang Shan.

In response, Xiang Shan nodded lightly to show that it was indeed the case.

Admiration was written all over Junior Brother Fang’s face, “You’re indeed far-sighted, Senior Brother Xiang. You’ve already expected this outcome while we’ve only thought about it now. We’re no match for you when it comes to military strategy.”

Xiang Shan waved his hand, “Please don’t be overly humble, Junior Brother Fang. You didn’t think about it because you’re not in my role. If you were the Army Commander, you would’ve expected the outcome as well.”

With a helpless smile, Junior Brother Fang shook his head, “I can never assume your role. There are so many Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters here, but none of us have enough authority to be the Army Commander. You’re the only one we can depend on.”

The other Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters nodded.

Initially, Xiang Shan’s authority came from the fact that he was appointed to be the Army Commander by the Old Ancestors; but now, he had earned their respect by proving his worth.

There were four Army Commanders in every Great Pass, so there were more than 400 Army Commanders in over 100 Great Passes in total; however, only a small number of them were a match for Xiang Shan when it came to their capabilities.

…..

Meanwhile, a visitor arrived at a new universe fragment where the North-South Army had re-established their forward base.

Upon getting permission, Li Xing strode into the Purifying Black Ink Battleship and saw an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, who was clad in scholar’s robes with a feather fan in his hand.

Knowing that this person was the Army Commander of the Northern Army, Mi Jing Lun, Li Xing saluted him.

Although he had never met Mi Jing Lun before, he had heard a lot about him. As he had always been by Xiang Shan’s side, the latter had repeatedly mentioned Mi Jing Lun over the years, saying that Mi Jing Lun was on par with, if not slightly better than him when it came to devising strategies.

Certainly, Li Xing wouldn’t believe it. Over the years, he had witnessed the arrangements that Xiang Shan had made on the battlefield, and his strategies were all top-notch. To him, Xiang Shan’s resourcefulness and foresight were practically peerless, so how was it possible that there was someone in the world who was more talented than he was?

Li Xing believed that Xiang Shan was just being humble when the latter complimented Mi Jing Lun in such a way.

Other than Mi Jing Lun, there was another Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master in the hall. His hair was fiery red, but his face was as pale as a piece of white paper.