Martial Peak
chapter-5472

This news would have shaken the beliefs of someone with a feeble mind, even if he had held fast to them all this while.

However, those present were all Ninth-Order Old Ancestors. Steadfast would not even begin to describe their Will. No matter how dire a situation seemed, they would not waver in their resolve to eliminate the Black Ink Clan and protect the Human Race.

This was the mission of their lives, their very reason for being.

The Old Ancestors were the Human Race’s strongest Masters and their pillar of strength; thus, after a brief moment of silence, one of the Old Ancestors said, “The Black Ink Clan went through all this effort and even sacrificed one of their Royal Lords just so they could corrupt a few Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters with Black Ink Strength and send them out. This proves that even if there’s an opening that connects the Barren Territory to the outside world, it’s unstable and one would probably have to pay a heavy price to get through.”

The others nodded in agreement. If the opening to the outside world was stable, the Black Ink Clan Army would have poured through it by now without having to go through all this trouble.

“Perhaps the opening can only allow a few on the level of Eighth-Order Masters to pass through, or there’s some kind of adverse effect to using the opening that we don’t know about yet.”

For the sake of creating the Barren Territory, the Second Battlefield as it were, the Human ancestors had worked meticulously for millennia. There were originally four Territory Gates, so an enormous amount of time and effort had gone into either sealing off or destroying three of them. It would not be so easy to reopen one.

Even if the Black Ink Strength that spread out after the death of that Black Ink Giant Spirit God was intense and concentrated enough to erode the existing seals on the portal, that was apparently not enough to actually open it.

“The best-case scenario would be if only three Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples left. If that’s the case, then the situation isn’t too dire yet.”

“However, if things are just as Yang Kai suspects, then the Black Ink Giant Spirit God from the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land is going to cause serious trouble for us.”

“Don’t forget about Wind Mist Territory. Since those Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples could enter Wind Mist Territory, they would’ve surely done something there. It would be child’s play for Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples to corrupt others with Black Ink Strength.”

“It should be simple enough to resolve the situation in Wind Mist Territory. Right now, the Black Ink Clan are most likely trying to keep a low profile to avoid their plans being exposed too early. Since Yang Kai found traces of two Eighth-Order Black Ink Disciples in the Shattered Heaven, then it seems that one must have stayed behind in Wind Mist Territory. We should deploy a Division to Wind Mist Territory, along with a Purifying Black Ink Battleship, and have the Phoenix Clan send a few of their Masters as well. They can seal off the Territory Gate linking to Wind Mist Territory. We must keep the threat of the Black Ink Disciples contained within Wind Mist Territory. It must not spread anywhere else!”

“Who will head to the Shattered Heaven then?”

Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao volunteered, “I’ll go. Yang Kai went missing under my watch. I should go and bring him back. However, the Great Evolution Army…”

One of the other Ninth-Order Old Ancestors said, “Go on. I’ll help you keep an eye on the Great Evolution Army. It’s just a couple of Royal Lords. I can handle them!”

Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao gratefully replied, “Many thanks, Senior Brother.”

Though it was extensive, it did not take the Old Ancestors long to finish their discussion. In just a few breaths, they formulated a plan to deal with the crisis. A series of orders were soon passed down and a Division of Human soldiers and three Phoenix Clan Masters withdrew from the Barren Territory battlefield before quickly rushing towards Wind Mist Territory.

Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao then concealed her aura and quietly left.

There were two reasons why she volunteered. The first was as she said earlier, Yang Kai was her subordinate and he was lost under her watch. She had thought that he was bound to have met his death, but since he was still alive, it was only natural that she had to bring him back.

Secondly, she was truly annoyed by Yang Kai’s wives, especially that Yu Ru Meng from the Demon Race, who would scowl at her and demand she compensate them by bringing her Husband back.

Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao could not stand it anymore…

At the same time, she also knew the grave importance of this task.

The situation in Wind Mist Territory was no big deal; at most, a few Humans might have been corrupted by Black Ink Strength, and a 500-strong Division was heading over there with a few Phoenix Clan Masters so they could handle that with ease.

The real trouble was happening in Shattered Heaven. If the Black Ink Clan’s plan was a success, then they might truly be able to open the passage between the Barren Territory and the Shattered Heaven.

…..

Just as Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao left the Barren Territory and arrived at the Shattered Heaven, Yang Kai was breathing heavily with the look of someone who was refusing to resign himself to the situation. His hand was trembling violently as he gripped his Azure Dragon Spear inside the Black Ink Sealing Land of the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land.

He had been attacking the Black Ink Giant Spirit God for a full month and now completely understood why the Dragon and Phoenix Clans chose to seal it here instead of destroying him completely.

That was because it was impossible to accomplish that!

Yang Kai never would have thought that a living being’s body could be this strong and unbreakable.

He was by no means weak as he was an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master who was proficient in numerous Dao Strengths, Divine Abilities, and Secret Techniques. He could easily destroy a Universe World in a blink of an eye, but even after a month had passed, he failed to deal any real damage to this Black Ink Giant Spirit God.

This being’s restorative capabilities were simply ludicrous, completely capable of recovering from any and all injuries within a matter of moments.

Of course, this was probably also due to the fact that he and his opponent were worlds apart in terms of true strength.

Although Yang Kai was an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, the Black Ink Giant Spirit God was even stronger than Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master; thus, due to the power differential, his wide repertoire of Divine Abilities and Secret Techniques all amounted to nothing.

It was just as if a First or Second-Order Master was to try to attack him; even if Yang Kai just stood there, the former would not be able to do anything to him either.

It had been a month and the Black Ink Giant Spirit God was nearly fully revived now. The formidable aura was deeply alarming, and the Demon Sealing Land seemed to have a hard time withstanding the pressure as space itself continuously cracked and healed under its weight.

Yang Kai was beginning to lose hope. He was attacking with full force while his opponent did not fight back at all, but even so, he couldn’t even wound him. Just what was he supposed to do to stop this Black Ink Giant Spirit God?

After consuming handfuls of pills, Yang Kai quickly restored his strength. He knew that he did not have much time left. Calamity would befall the entire 3,000 Worlds if this Black Ink Giant Spirit God walked out of the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land.

Feeling he had little to lose, Yang Kai stared at the Black Ink Giant Spirit God and suddenly asked, “Mo, how do you benefit from destroying the 3,000 Worlds?”

This was Yang Kai’s first attempt at communicating with the Black Ink Giant Spirit God throughout this entire month.

All along, the Black Ink Giant Spirit God’s eyes had been closed as he continued to restore his aura. He ignored everything that Yang Kai did, but when he heard this question, his eyes flew open as he stared at Yang Kai in surprise, “How did you know I’m Mo? Even Cang and the others were deceived by me.”

“What’s so shocking about me knowing that you’re Mo?” Yang Kai retorted coolly.

Yang Kai would not have known that the Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods were Mo’s Soul Clones if Lu An had not regained his senses just before his death and informed him about this.

A Soul Clone like this was far too powerful, so much so that no one would even consider the possibility of him being a Soul Clone.

Mo studied Yang Kai solemnly for a while before it abruptly shook its head, “You’re smart. Smart people aren’t good people.”

Yang Kai suddenly felt the urge to curse.

[This guy, the source of all chaos and disasters, and possibly the calamity that would befall the 3,000 Worlds, resulting in the extermination of all life, is saying that I’m not a good person!?]

However, before he could say anything, Mo sighed heavily, “Mu was the smartest, and she wasn’t a good person.”

Mo had been tricked by Mu. That was why it was sealed up inside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and could not escape even after millions of years. Thus, it seemed to have somewhat of an aversion to smart people.

[That old man Cang was right. Mo is quite dumb, or rather naïve to be more accurate. It’s a pity he eventually grew smarter.] Yang Kai swallowed the words that were right on the tip of his tongue as his brow furrowed slightly. Mo was behaving rather childishly, which reminded him a lot of what Cang had said about Mo in the past.

Mo was an ancient entity that formed out of nothingness. It was the darkness of the first Primordial Light and was not a true sentient being; therefore, even though it had been alive for many millions of years, its sentience was still on the level of that of a child.

Back then, when it used Black Ink Strength to corrupt all those Great Territories, it did so because it was its natural born power, not due to any malicious intent.

“That’s right,” Yang Kai agreed decisively, “Smart people are despicable. Dumb people like me often get tricked. If only all the smart people ceased to exist.”

Mo felt a tinge of kinship, “Do you feel the same way too?”

“En,” Yang Kai nodded repeatedly.

Mo quickly extended an invitation, “Why don’t you let me enlighten you with Black Ink Strength? Join me. We can kill off all the smart people that exist. That way, we can become the smart ones.”

Yang Kai remained silent and stared at Mo for a while before chuckling all of a sudden, “You’re already smart, to begin with. Why do you need to kill off everyone else?”

Perhaps Mo was a little childish in its thoughts, but that did not mean it was foolish.

However, Mo seemed to have missed what Yang Kai said as it stared at Yang Kai curiously, “Do you have a World Tree clone? Are you like Cang and the others? Why can’t my Black Ink Strength corrupt you?”

The Black Ink Sealing Land was now, ironically, filled with Black Ink Strength, but Yang Kai was not affected by it at all, which meant that he could stave off the effects of Black Ink Strength.

“You know about the World Tree clones?” Yang Kai asked.

“Of course,” Mo replied, “That Old Tree isn’t a good thing either. I haven’t seen him in so long now, so I don’t know how he’s doing.” Then, Mo shook its head, “How annoying. You might not be able to withstand it if my true body was here. It’s a shame that I’m just a Soul Clone right now and can’t corrupt you with Black Ink Strength.”

A thought flashed across Yang Kai’s mind as he recalled what Cang said to him back then. He said that Yang Kai should not feel at ease simply because he had a World Tree clone inside his Small Universe, which helped to seal and protect it. Even that was not infallible against Black Ink Strength.

From the looks of it now, the strength of Mo’s true body was most likely able to break through the World Tree clone’s protection. Perhaps the only thing that could stop the encroachment of the strength of Mo’s true body was the World Tree itself.

However, if even the World Tree clones were not enough to withstand the strength of Mo’s true body, then how did Cang and the others avoid getting corrupted by Black Ink Strength?

Perhaps if Mo wanted to use Black Ink Strength to corrupt Cang and the other Martial Ancestors, it would have to pay a heavy price, similar to how the Royal Lords would suffer when they use their Royal Lord Secret Technique!

Setting aside such thoughts, Yang Kai asked a question that he was more concerned about, “Since you know that Old Tree, do you know where to find it?”

The World Tree was within the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, but no one knew where the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary was. One could only enter if one chanced upon it. Throughout all these ages, there was no record of anyone being able to find the entrance to the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary on purpose.

Yang Kai was now an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master and had basically reached the peak of his Martial Dao. At most, he could hit the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, but he couldn’t become a Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.

However, he could resolve this issue if he had a High-Rank World Fruit.

“You want to look for him?” Mo asked instead of answering the question.

“Do enlighten me,” Yang Kai got up and bowed.

Mo shook his head, “I can’t find him. He’s hiding from me.”

Yang Kai was astonished, “He’s hiding from you? Why is he hiding from you?”

Mo chuckled and said nothing.

Yang Kai frowned. He could not understand at all. Mo and World Tree were two of the oldest entities in existence. What kind of history and resentment was there between them, that the World Tree actually had to hide from Mo?