Martial Peak

Chapter 1223, Second Red Sun’s Rising

Translator: Silavin & PewPewLaserGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain

Sure enough, he came from Star Emperor Sect! Since seeing Qu Chang Feng treating this person so carefully back in the stalactite cave, Yang Kai had some suspicions. Only a disciple from Star Emperor Sect could let the arrogant Qu Chang Feng act so humbly. Even after suffering such a great loss, Qu Chang Feng had choked down his anger and dropped the matter, not daring to retaliate.

Dai Yuan seemed to be afraid that Yang Kai didn’t comprehend how powerful Star Emperor Sect was so she continued with a serious tone, “On Shadowed Star, it is publicly known that the three most powerful forces are Star Emperor Sect, Heaven Battling Union, and Thunder Typhoon Sect, but in fact, every great force knows that the difference between Heaven Battling Union and Thunder Typhoon Sect and Star Emperor Sect is enormous. It is said that Star Emperor Mountain has over a hundred Peak Third-Order Origin Returning Realm masters. This is a terrifying number incomparable to Heaven Battling Union and Thunder Typhoon Sect. It’s also said that the Star Emperor Sect has several powerful Origin King Grade artefacts.”

“Are they really so powerful?” Yang Kai was genuinely startled. A Sect that had over a hundred Peak Third-Order Origin Returning Realm masters was something truly astonishing.

“En. Their total number of cultivators though is relatively low as they never openly recruit disciples, which is why despite their shocking reputation they aren’t all that famous.”

“Then how do they ensure their legacy continued to be passed down?” Yang Kai frowned.

“I’m not completely clear about that, but throughout Shadowed Star’s history, there are rumours about some people who possess great fortune and destiny who are met by masters from Star Emperor Mountain and were taken back to be cultivated; however, the number of such cases is quite small,” Dai Yuan explained, smiling slightly as she continued, “Star Emperor Sect’s people rarely leave Star Emperor Mountain, so although they have many masters, as long as one doesn’t try to provoke them, they won’t use their strength to bully others, but if someone does provoke them…”

Yang Kai’s eyes narrowed as he noticed that Dai Yuan’s tender body was shivering slightly.

In his heart, he was stunned, thinking that if someone who really didn’t fear the Heavens provoked such a terrifying existence, their fate must have been extremely miserable.

Dai Yuan lowered her voice even further as she whispered, “In general, every few decades, Star Emperor Sect will have one or two of its young generation’s disciples go out for life experience. These disciples tend to remain very low key and never reveal their status, so there are times when no one even knows their identity until they return to Star Emperor Mountain. However, I have seen in one of Coloured Glass Sect’s ancient records that about two thousand years ago, there was another Sect on Shadowed Star that rivalled Heaven Battling Union and Thunder Typhoon Sect in fame and strength called the Ancient Yang Sect. At that time, a young disciple that had come out from Star Emperor Mountain to wander the world accidentally obtained a rare and precious treasure. Some people from the Ancient Yang Sect learned about this and laid an ambush for him, killed him, and stole that treasure. One month later… the Ancient Yang Sect was exterminated and razed to the ground in a single night!”

Yang Kai paled.

There was no need to even think about it to know that the Ancient Yang Sect was destroyed by Star Emperor Sect. Being able to wipe out an existence equal in strength to Heaven Battling Union or Thunder Typhoon Sect overnight fully explained how much power the Star Emperor Sect commanded.

Dai Yuan smiled lightly as she brushed her hair back and said, “But this is something that happened more than two thousand years ago, no one knows whether it is true or false. The Elders from the Sect also consider this matter a taboo and never mention it and forbid anyone from asking about it. However, there is a place on Shadowed Star called Grand Hidden Valley where not even grass grows for a thousand-kilometre radius. It is a barren wasteland filled with thick Yin Qi. Supposedly though, it was the original location of the Ancient Yang Sect. Many cultivators enter Grand Hidden Valley in search of opportunities as there are rumours about the Ancient Yang Sect having hidden stores containing all their rare and precious treasures along with astonishing wealth, but so far no one has been able to find such riches. Instead, many people have died trying.”

“Have you been?” Yang Kai asked Dai Yuan with a smile. Although she used words like ‘rumour’ and ‘hearsay’, Yang Kai could hear from her tone that she was certain these rumours were true, so it was quite likely she had been to see this Grand Hidden Valley for herself.

“Naturally I have been there,” Dai Yuan nodded gently. “But I didn’t have any gains. Instead, I was invaded by a strange chill and only after returning to Coloured Glass Sect and taking up some time could I purge the Yin Qi from my body. If Junior Brother Yang is interested, you should see it for yourself, just be careful if you do.”

“Good, if there is a chance,” Yang Kai nodded carelessly, but he wasn’t truly planning on going. Even if there were any hidden stores in the Ancient Yang Sect, after two thousand years, he didn’t believe they hadn’t been found. Running over now to search for treasure would be like trying to draw water with a bamboo basket, Yang Kai wasn’t willing to waste time and energy on such a pointless pursuit.

“Hehe,” Dai Yuan also saw that Yang Kai was just being perfunctory and didn’t bother continuing to talk about this topic, instead saying, “Those who come out from Star Emperor Sect are generally not noticed, but this time things are different thanks to the Flowing Flame Sand Field having opened. Before coming here, my Master told me to be careful about cultivators who are all alone and have unfamiliar faces, because they might just be disciples from Star Emperor Sect. To be honest, when I first met Junior Brother Yang, I thought you were from Star Emperor Sect…”

Yang Kai was stunned, not having expected that she would have such a misunderstanding. However, it was quite reasonable. Yang Kai wasn’t from Shadowed Star so naturally not many knew his face, and since he was able to reach the third layer with just a First-Order Saint King cultivation, he definitely possessed some powerful methods, so Dai Yuan having such a misunderstanding was all but inevitable.

Considering this, Yang Kai suddenly realized that at that time, Meng Hong Liang from Imperial City Sect and Huang Xi from Extreme Path Sect seemed had probably misunderstood his identity after he showed off some of his means. They obviously suspected that he was from Star Emperor Mountain, which caused Meng Hong Liang to become cautious about acting lest innocents be hurt.

Dai Yuan also had a similar misunderstanding, but after learning that Yang Kai and Wei Gu Chang had ties, she immediately denied this conjecture, because Star Emperor Sect’s people would never try to associate with others.

After arriving here, when she saw this stern-faced man, she instantly knew that he was the real disciple from Star Emperor Sect.

After talking for a while, with nothing else to discuss, both closed their eyes and continued to meditate.

The glowing red sun continued rising higher and higher until it seemingly reached the top of the sky.

The fruit scent in the air became more and more intense over time and the perceptions and insights which could be obtained from inhaling it also became more and more profound, causing each of the cultivators here to be delighted.

Suddenly, the earth seemed to shake, and a shocking energy fluctuation appeared.

Such a change naturally caused all the cultivators present to pale, wake from their deep meditation, and stare towards the mountain valley in shock.

A layer of red mist suddenly began filling the mountain valley, one that seemed to contain a terrifying power.

The appearance of this red mist was completely unexpected as there were no signs of it a moment ago, but when the cultivators looked, it had already welled up and within the blink of an eye had filled the entire mountain valley.

Immediately, an astonishing wave of heat burst forth, creating a hot wind which swept across every corner of the Flowing Flame Sand Field’s third layer.

This kind of scene had been experienced by everyone already, so witnessing it again at this moment, their anxiety quickly faded as they knew that although this wave of heat looked terrifying, it didn’t bring any harm with it.

Sure enough, when the hot wind swept across everyone’s bodies and spread farther away, no one was injured.

In the very centre of the mountain valley, another red sun was born, and it slowly began rising up into the sky!

This red sun didn’t appear very big, only about as large as a plate, but despite being able to see it with their eyes, none of the cultivators present could probe it with their Divine Sense. On top of that, if they stared at it for too long, they would begin to feel dizzy.

A more intense fruity fragrance burst forth, causing the hearts in each cultivator’s chest to pound.

The second red sun had appeared.

This also meant that the Red Candle Fruit was one step closer to true maturity. The disciples from the great forces present who had learned the truth from Medicine Pill Sect’s Li You Nan suddenly grew restless and the atmosphere became filled with tension and hostility. Around the mountain valley, everyone was looking at everyone else as if they were irreconcilable enemies they couldn’t wait to rush over and kill.

The cultivators from Sects who still didn’t know the truth about the mature Red Candle Fruit’s miraculous effects were still affected by this atmosphere. Unwilling to let go of any clues, while carefully watching other people’s movements, they sent some people to forces they were friendly with to inquire about the situation.

Soon, all kinds of secrets about the Red Candle Fruit spread out, causing every cultivator present to understand what was happening and allowing the tense atmosphere to once again calm down.

Since there would be a Three Suns Grand Risings Phenomenon, and only two red suns had appeared so far, there was no need to act hastily; let alone, before it truly matured, the Red Candle Fruit wouldn’t appear before their eyes, so even if someone wanted to try to steal it, they wouldn’t be able to.

After the appearance of the second red sun, there was only a brief moment of commotion around the mountain valley before everyone fell silent again and continued to absorb the fruity aroma, realize its mysteries, and enhance their own cultivation.

Yang Kai also immersed himself in this scent, feeling like his comprehension of Saint Qi control had risen to another level and some vague concepts and ideas began filling his head. But although he had caught a glimpse of something, he was still unable to understand it completely.

This situation was like he was itchy all over but unable to scratch himself, causing Yang Kai to become somewhat restless as he focused even more of his attention on this vague concept, wanting to take advantage of this opportunity before the Red Candle Fruit fully matured. If he could comprehend these new insights, Yang Kai didn’t doubt his combat power would increase significantly.

Time passed by slowly, but just as everyone was immersed in their own meditation, an angry roar suddenly rang out, “Bastard, you dare try to secretly arrange a Spirit Array?!”

This roar awakened a lot of cultivators who were meditating and comprehending, all of them looking over towards the origin of this shout, their eyes landing on a man from Heaven Battling Union waving a huge fan angrily. This fan gave off a potent energy fluctuation and at first glance, which was obviously a high-grade artefact.