Martial Peak
chapter-5294

The Humans simply knew too little about the Black Ink Nests, and were ignorant in many ways in regards to them. Take the last time for example. If Yang Kai had not entered the Black Ink Nest Space alone and caused the Territory Lords to suffer huge losses with the help of his Soul Warming Lotus and Soul Rending Thorns, then the Humans would not have known that a higher-rank Black Ink Nest could cut off connection with their lower rank sub-nests.

The Black Ink Nests were the foundation of the Black Ink Clan. If they could uncover all the secrets of the Black Ink Nests, then the Human Race may have less to lose against the Black Ink Clan in the future.

The Mid-Rank Black Ink Nest in the possession of the Great Evolution Army was particularly valuable for that purpose.

Inside of his Small Universe, Yang Kai found a suitable area to plant the Low-Rank sub-nest before using his World Force to seal off a large area around its vicinity, creating a kind of Forbidden Zone.

In this manner, none of the living beings inside of his Small Universe, whether they be part of the Human Race or the Small Stone Race, could possibly get close to the Black Ink Nest, which also prevented it from being damaged unnecessarily.

There was less to worry about with the Human Race as even if they did approach it by accident, it was unlikely for them to raise their hands against this strange thing. However, it was hard to say what the Small Stone Race would do. This was a race with low sentience and acted entirely based on their instinct. Heavens know what reaction they would have if they ever saw the Black Ink Nest.

Incubating the Black Ink Nest was not difficult. Back then, Yang Kai saw how Zha Gu was able to grow his own Black Ink Nest, so he had some idea of what he had to do.

In fact, when he brought the Low-Rank Black Ink Nest into his Small Universe, Yang Kai had already sensed something unusual about it.

From his knowledge of Black Ink Nests accumulated over the years, he could almost conclude that the Black Ink Nests were living things rather than inanimate objects. That was because each Black Ink Nest possessed a consciousness of their own, only that it had no Will.

If it was a living thing, then it should naturally have its own instincts.

The Black Ink Nest’s instinct was to devour all kinds of energy to turn it into nutrients for itself, especially World Force, which for it, was considered the greatest delicacy in the world.

Naturally, there was no lack of World Force inside of Yang Kai’s Small Universe, so it was not strange for the Black Ink Nest to react after arriving at this place.

Yang Kai did not try and suppress it, but rather allowed the nest to devour the energy.

As his madly World Force drained away, the Black Ink Nest, which was not even the size of a palm before, could be seen growing at a visible rate.

And, perhaps due to how pure and rich Yang Kai’s World Force was, the speed at which the Black Ink Nest grew far surpassed that of the growth rate he saw with Zha Gu back then.

After just a few days inside of the Small Universe, the Black Ink Nest had already grown to the height of a man.

A few more days passed, and it was already many metres tall.

More days passed, and it reached as tall as a tall building, and one had to crane their necks to look upon it.

In a month, the small Black Ink Nest had grown to a gigantic size. Even though it could continue to grow, Yang Kai could perceive that no matter what, it couldn’t grow as fast as it did before. At the very most, it would only increase in size a little bit at a time.

Once it reached this point, it was more or less ready.

Controlling his World Force, Yang Kai poured it inside, and the Black Ink Nest resembling a large flower bud expanded and contracted, spreading out rich Black Ink Strength in all directions.

If Yang Kai did not restrict it, then this Black Ink Strength would surely spread out to cover his entire Small Universe, and if that were to happen, all the living beings inside would surely suffer. All of the Humans and the Small Stone Race would likely transform into Black Ink Disciples.

However, as this place was his Small Universe and with the assistance of the World Tree clone, he could control everything with a single thought.

The large area he had previously sealed off with his power was the limit of where the Black Ink Strength could spread. This was also the place where he was going to raise some Black Ink Clansmen, and where they would live.

Only when the entire area became suitable for the survival of the Black Ink Clan did Yang Kai stop and begin using the Black Ink Nest to nurture some Black Ink Clansmen.

Inside of the Small Universe, the current Void Dao Temple was thriving with the elite cultivators from across the entire Void Continent gathered in one place, each of them a rarely seen talent in the outside world. In fact, if their talent was low, then they would not have even been able to enter the Void Dao Temple to begin with.

The Dao Temple had more resources than any Sect in the World and provided cultivators an excellent environment for training. There was also a vast collection of books that were inaccessible to the common man.

The entire Void Dao Temple had already become a self-sustaining entity of his own after being in operation for thousands of years.

The spiritual source of the Dao Temple was, of course, Dao Lord Yang Kai, whose Small Universe was rumoured to be the entire Void Continent, and that everyone was living inside of his Small Universe.

Though they revered him, the Dao Lord was only a legendary figure to them.

The ones in charge of the Dao Temple on the surface were the Temple Master and Deacons, whose aptitudes may not be better than the disciples of the Dao Temple, but they excelled in terms of life experience. All of them were Emperor Realm Masters originating from the top great forces of the Void Continent, so they were mature and stable Seniors, responsible in handling some of the Dao Temple’s administrative matters.

Generally, the Temple Master and the Deacons did not interfere with the cultivation of the Dao Temple’s disciples, and to tell the truth, they were oftentimes unable to even manage them. That was because of the gap present between them whether in terms of talent or current strength.

Most of the time, the only thing they could do was provide care in their daily lives and also logistical assistance.

From a certain point on, a new tradition was born in the Dao Temple. At the end of every year, the disciples of the Dao Temple would burn incense and pray to the Dao Lord Yang Kai’s statue under the leadership of the Temple Master and the Deacons for the good fortune of the disciples of the Dao Temple in the coming year.

The huge and majestic statue which stood at the centre of the square inside of the Void Dao Temple was said to be crafted by the hands of the first Temple Master.

It was because the Temple Master of that generation had seen the Dao Lord with his own eyes.

That day of every year was also the one filled with most excitement in the Dao Temple. As long as one did not have important matters to attend to or was in secluded retreat, they would generally be present.

It was a day of both incense burning and worship.

Thousands of disciples, led by the Temple Master and Deacons, burned incense and bowed down to pray in order.

The disciples were all looking forward to the exciting days to come after this. That was because the day after prayer day was always a time for the disciples to step onto the field and spar with each other, testing the results of what they had learnt during the year. Especially for those who had not been inducted into the Dao Temple for long and whose abilities were still not very strong, they needed to make good use of these few days as it was a time when they could seek out their Seniors to ask for advice on cultivation.

Usually, these powerful Seniors were all in retreat, so they couldn’t be found even if they wanted to seek them out.

At the same time, the Dao Temple’s shopping district would also be open for the disciples to pick up anything they fancied.

Burning incense and praying had now become a major festival in the Void Dao Temple, affecting the entire Void Continent along with it. On this day, the sound of gongs and drums reverberated through the sky with great festivity.

As was always the case in previous years, everything progressed without a hitch; however, just as the ritual was coming to a close, an unnatural wave of energy suddenly spread out.

Everyone in the square looked up in shock as if they had been drawn in by something, all looking up at the statue.

What they saw shook their hearts.

This couldn’t be helped, as the eyes of the statue, which was supposed to be inanimate, were now glowing and filled with spirituality. It was as if the entire statue had come to life.

Everyone felt as if they were being watched silently as the statue’s gaze swept over them.

A commotion broke out instantly among the crowd.

[Is the Dao Lord making an appearance?]

Not to mention the ordinary disciples of the Dao Temple, even the Temple Master and Deacons themselves had no idea what was happening.

In the midst of the confusion, a powerful Divine Sense exploded in everyone’s minds, transmitting a message to them.

“Void Continent, the Black Ink Clan has invaded. If left alone, life will perish and the World will collapse. Disciples of the Dao Temple must set an example. It is your inescapable duty to slay the Black Ink Clan and destroy evil.”

The same words were repeated three times. When the crowd came back to their senses, the statue returned to normal.

After a few moments of silence, the disciples broke out into an uproar, discussing in groups with Divine Senses passing to and fro.

Many of the Dao Temple’s disciples were in the Emperor Realm so they could naturally guess that the Dao Lord must have transmitted a message to them through the statue. This could almost be said to be the Dao Lord’s guidance.

However, Black Ink Clan in the Void Continent?

The Dao Temple had some knowledge of the Black Ink Clan and knew that the Dao Lord was currently in the midst of a great war with the Black Ink Clan, and the cultivators who walked out of this Void Continent would also join the battle alongside the Dao Lord while facing the risk of losing their lives at any moment. Anyone without that awareness was in no position to make that step.

However, they never imagined that the enemy would one day appear in this Void World.

Could their Dao Lord have fallen into an unfavourable position in his fight outside, thus causing his Small Universe to be infested by the Black Ink Clan?

No one knew the answer, but the message from the Dao Lord was still clearly guiding them, pointing in a certain direction.

The Dao Temple’s Temple Master and Deacons briefly conferred with each other and decided to follow the lead to see what was going on.

A few moments later, three figures took to the skies, heading in the direction where the Dao Lord had pointed them in while the rest of the Deacons stayed behind to pacify the many disciples.

Some days later, the three figures who set off from the Dao Temple stopped and gazed at the murky void in the distance. That place seemed as if it had been stained with ink with an immensely evil power surging inside of it. The oldest of them, the Temple Master, muttered, “The peaceful days of the Void Continent are over.”

Even from such a great distance, the malevolence of the black power there could be felt, so what would it be like if they were to face it personally?

The Deacon on the left was thoughtful, “The Void Continent has been peaceful since the advent of the Dao Temple, and the disciples are lacking in hardship during their training. This may be an opportunity to change that.”

Before the advent of the Void Dao Temple, battle was quite common on the Continent, with each major Sect vying for territory, talents, and resources. Large fights would often break out and even the eradication of an entire Sect was a common occurrence.

One can say that though the average realm of the cultivators on the Void Continent back then was low and gifted people were rare, many heroes fought bravely and fiercely.

However, since the emergence of the Void Dao Temple, all of the cultivators on the continent put their focus on the Dao Temple and were most proud that their disciples could be chosen by it. Who would care about other trivial matters?

It was good that there were no large-scale wars since that meant fewer people suffered and died.

However, this was not an entirely good thing either since the cultivators raised in such an environment would lack the insight and honing of trials of life and death. No matter how high their cultivations became, if they did not encounter any great difficulties along the way, then it would also be hard to entrust them with serious and dangerous missions.