Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

Hua Qing Si did not move, and Yang Kai did not counterattack, just standing there and waiting.

It was only after a while that Hua Qing Si sighed and looked up, towards Yang Kai.

She still had cards to play and she had only used half of her strength in that attack just now.

It was just a test, and she knew in her heart that Yang Kai hadn’t used his full strength.

Even if she could try her best to defeat this man as he is right now, how could she beat him in his demonized form?

Last time, she was subdued by this demon in a single move. This scene was still fresh in her mind and made Hua Qing Si shudder whenever she thought of it. Naturally, it was the type of absolute strength that crushes her, without a single way to resist.

Therefore, Hua Qing Si had no desire to carry on. The other party was a First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator, yet he was calm and relaxed in the face of her attacks. This was enough to illustrate how powerful and how Heaven-defying his aptitude was.

Furthermore, he was proficient in the Dao of Space and had an Emperor Artifact like the Sealed World Bead in his hand!

“Have you resigned to your fate?” Yang Kai smiled faintly after reading the haziness in her eyes.

Hua Qing Si pursed her red lips and did not say a word.

“There is no need to show such a condescending expression, it makes me feel like I’m evil!” Yang Kai laughed and continued, “You can be assured that in a few years, you will look back on today, knowing the wise decision you’ve made! If you miss this opportunity, I will never take you in even if you cry out to join me in the future.”

“Shameless boasting! That’s the only thing you are first-class at!” Hua Qing Si replied.

“Let’s just wait and see.” Yang Kai smiled, “Come, don’t waste time. I still have work to do; just be obedient and offer your Soul Imprint!”

Hua Qing Si sighed, sat down cross-legged, closed her beautiful eyes, and silently started manipulating her Divine Senses.

Seeing her in position, Yang Kai’s expression became solemn as he floated down. When he landed, he was just a few steps in front of her.

A short while later, Hua Qing Si’s body suddenly trembled and her features turned grim, as if she was suffering from a great deal of pain.

Her Soul Imprint suddenly burst out from within her Knowledge Sea and shot straight towards Yang Kai.

Sensing this, Yang Kai hastily opened her Knowledge Sea defences to receive it.

He closed his eyes and a Soul Avatar manifested in his Knowledge Sea. What he found there was an unfamiliar soul fluctuation inside his Knowledge Sea, which lingered in the shape of a brand, hovering quietly in mid-air.

Contained within this brand was Hua Qing Si’s Soul!

Yang Kai’s Soul Avatar formed different shapes. Following each of his moves, his Knowledge Sea tumbled. It gathered into a huge wave, which opened its mouth and devoured the Brand like a ferocious beast.

—

Deeper underground, Hua Qing Si suddenly shivered.

She opened her beautiful eyes and found Yang Kai looking at her with a smile on his face, so she asked, “What are you looking at?”

Yang Kai said, “You have quite the temper.”

“Hmph!” Hua Qing Si coldly snorted with discontent and spoke with an uncomfortable face, “It feels weird.”

It was the first time she offered her Soul Imprint to someone, and although doing this had little to no effect on her, there was still a subconscious feeling of discomfort.

It was as if something precious to her had been taken away.

“You just need to get used to it. Now that we are considered a group, then we are no longer outsiders. I do hope we can get along well in the future!”

“Don’t think for a second that saying that makes me have a better impression of you. I’m just being oppressed and enslaved by you,” Hua Qing Si coldly snapped.

“Think what you like,” Yang Kai shrugged his shoulders.

“I was just going to ask…” Hua Qing Si digressed and looked around, “What is this place? Why is it covered in a Spirit Qi Sea?”

“Seems like you are aware of Spirit Qi Seas.” Yang Kai smiled faintly.

“Although it is rare to encounter a Spirit Qi Sea, there are still some in Star Boundary. There is one located in my Star Soul Palace.” Hua Qing Si gave Yang Kai a contemptuous look.

“We are in the Four Seasons Realm!”

Hua Qing Si was stunned, then called out in alarm. “Huh? Did you just say Four Seasons Realm?”

“Of course!”

Hua Qing Si frowned, but soon, as if she thought of something, she concluded, “Yes, by this date, the Four Seasons Realm should indeed be open! But… how is it that you managed to gain the qualification to enter this place? If I remember correctly, Maplewood City didn’t have a spot.”

“I was lucky with the opportunity. I came in with the Azure Sun Temple.” Yang Kai replied.

“Why would someone from Azure Sun Temple bring you in?” Hua Qing Si got more puzzled, “Every single slot is extremely valuable.”

“I don’t really want to go into too much detail. Anyways, just know that I took one of their spots.” Yang Kai waved his hand.

“Stole…” Hua Qing Si’s expression seemed to have turned strange.

While they were talking, a fork appeared, Yang Kai signalled them to stop, “Let’s split up. The chances of precious treasures being born here are pretty good, it would be a pity to miss them.”

“Then let me say this first. If I find…” Hua Qing Si was quick to adapt. After the initial state of depression, she was now able to bargain with Yang Kai.

“It’s yours, I won’t steal it from you.” Yang Kai readily replied.

“Those were the words I was waiting for.” Hua Qing Si smiled and took the left fork.

“Two days. In two days, we come back and meet here!” Yang Kai shouted as she moved even deeper, unsure if she heard him.

But that did not matter. After all, now that he had control of Hua Qing Si’s Soul Imprint, Yang Kai could sense her location as long as they were not too far apart.

Soon, she was completely out of sight and Yang Kai took a step into the right fork.

This was far from where Zhang Ruo Xi was located, but the World Energy here was still condensed to the point it became foggy. However, it was clearing up at a considerable rate thanks to the Sealed World Bead.

[A place that produces a Spirit Qi Sea has a high probability of producing precious treasures.]

Yang Kai had only recently entered the right fork when he found a Vampire Orchid growing on the stone wall. Although this Spirit Grass was only at Dao Source Grade Mid-Rank grade, it was still an extremely rare Spirit Grass. It could be used as the main ingredient to refining many different types of Spirit Pills, so it was worth quite a lot.

Yang Kai carefully harvested them and placed them into a jade box. This was to preserve them, ready to transplant them to the medicine garden of Small Sealed World when he returned.

This was the only way the medicinal properties of the Vampire Orchid could be preserved. Once he planted them into his medicine garden, there was a good chance the efficacies of the Orchid would improve.

Over the next few hours, he made a lot of more discoveries. With how abundant the World Energy was, there were many rare Spirit Grass ready to be harvested. This was essentially a treasure trove for an Alchemist like Yang Kai.

In such a short time, he managed to obtain seven or eight different types of herbs. Each of different grades, which could be considered a bountiful harvest.

However, he felt a tinge of disappointment as he had not found any precious Spirit Grasses of the Emperor Grade, only Dao Source Grade.

Dao Source Grade and Emperor Grade Spirit Grasses were only one grade apart, but their potency was worlds apart. Each Emperor Grade Spirit Grass contained World Principles. Even if consumed directly, it allowed cultivators to understand the power of Principles, which made it extremely useful for cultivators.

The canyon seemed to be endless. Yang Kai was not in a rush because he was prioritising his search for treasures, but after a few hours of travel, which was a few hundred kilometres, there was still no end in sight.

Just when he was ready to continue to go deeper, he felt a sudden wave of uneasiness. His heart raced, without knowing why.

He frowned, looked back in the direction from whence he came and the next moment, his face changed. He let out a low bellow, “You are courting death!”

After his words fell, he summoned out his ship artifact. He went inside and quickly sped back.

At the same time, somewhere inside the canyon, Zhang Ruo Xi sat cross-legged as the World Energy around her constantly rushed into her body, her Qi increasing at a rapid pace. She was previously only a Second-Order Saint King but during this very short period, she had managed to become Third-Order Saint King and there was no sign of stopping! Her strength would continue to climb, and would soon approach the threshold of Origin Returning Realm.

Not far from her, Liu Yan was holding the Sealed World Bead as she looked ahead with a cold expression.

Several tens of metres away, three men were standing. They were all dressed similarly. Those that knew of the different Southern Territory Sects could tell by the pattern on their vest, that these three were from a Sect called Evil Moon Valley.

Evil Moon Valley and Blue Feather Sect were similar. Both could be considered to be great forces within the Southern Territory. So, when the Four Seasons Realm opened, these sects had also got three slots.

These three were selected to enter Four Seasons Realm, and they happened to land near the canyon.

Among the three, there was an elderly man and two middle-aged men. The elderly man was in the Third-Order Dao Source Realm, while the two were in the Second-Order Dao Source Realm.

They had no intention to explore the canyon, after all, from above, the canyon seemed completely void of anything, too dark to see what was inside. They were also unaware of any potential danger that lurked here. Though the three cultivators were far from weak, their strength was still slightly lacking when compared to disciples from the bigger Sects.

Since they were aware of their own strength, they did not want to actively take risks.

However, as they were flying by, the canyon gave off some unusual energy fluctuations.

Since the Sealed World Bead was absorbing the Spirit Qi Sea’s World Energy at a maddening pace, it definitely caused obvious energy fluctuations.

Curious, the three placed their fears aside and flew down, deeper into the canyon. They wanted to find the source of this disturbance. After all, opportunities were hard to come by and who knew? This might lead them to a treasure that would change their lives.

But after finding out that there were two women at the bottom of the canyon, the three of them were terrified.

Liu Yan was alright. Although she seemed like a flesh and blood being, she still had a First-Order Dao Source Realm cultivation level. That would align with those that could enter the Four Seasons Realm.

But the other girl was simply outrageous.

She was just a trivial Third-Order Saint King! No one would have thought that someone of her level would actually appear in the Four Seasons Realm! Even if they had seen her with their own eyes, the three were afraid that they were caught in a dream.

Furthermore, on closer inspection, this little girl seemed to be using the rich World Energy here to cultivate!

[What is going on?] The three men blinked multiple times, obviously confused.