Martial Peak

Chapter 2781, Going Out to Sea

[It might be a little unrealistic to cultivate an Artifact Refiner on our own. Not only does cultivating an Artifact Refiner consume a lot of resources, but it also requires a lot of time to do so.]

[It may take several dozen years or even several hundred years…]

High Heaven Palace has only just been founded, so there was no time to cultivate an Artifact Refining Grandmaster at the moment. If everything went well in the future, the Sect may be able to cultivate its own Artifact Refiners, but for now…

It seemed as though Hua Qing Si had considered this issue as well and questioned, “Palace Master, shall we recruit an Artifact Refiner? In any case, the Sect is not lacking Source Crystals right now. I’m sure someone will come if we offer an appropriate price.”

“En,” Yang Kai nodded, “I’ll leave this matter to you too.”

“Palace Master, I actually have a recommendation,” Nanmen Da Jun suddenly interjected, “If it were that person, a mere Mountains and Rivers Projection would be nothing at all.”

“Oh? Do you know such an Artifact Refiner?” Yang Kai looked at Nanmen Da Jun in surprise, “If that’s the case, invite them over. If they agree to join us, High Heaven Palace will not treat them unjustly.”

Nanmen Da Jun chuckled dryly and apologetically said, “That person is capable indeed. A Grandmaster in Artifact Refining without any doubt; however, she’s a little troublesome. If I meet her alone… I don’t think I would be able to recruit her successfully.”

“Ho, sounds like this Grandmaster is pretty arrogant,” Yang Kai was extremely astonished. “You are also an Array Master yourself. Who would dare to show you such disrespect?”

Nanmen Da Jun scratched his face and said, “To be honest, compared to her, I’m very approachable…”

Hua Qing Si glanced at him contemptuously in response. They had known each other for some time now, so she knew a little about his true nature. It was only because High Heaven Palace had great financial resources and strength, combined with the precedent of Yang Kai nonchalantly destroying Seeking Passion Sect that he, an Emperor Array Master, was subdued. If it were anybody else or any other Sect, Nanmen Da Jun would have been the prime example of arrogance and would unhesitantly look down on others.

But what Artifact Refiner, Alchemist, or Array Masters of this world who had even a little skill was not haughty? Yang Kai was the only Emperor Alchemist Hua Qing Si knew that liked keeping a low profile, the sole exception to the norm.

“If so, let’s have the Head Manager accompany you,” Yang Kai said with a wave of his hand.

“Good,” Hua Qing Si nodded.

However, Nanmen Da Jun chimed up, “I think it won’t work unless you go personally, Palace Master.”

Yang Kai laughed, “As the Palace Master, I’m busy managing all the day-to-day affairs and other official duties. Do you think I have the time to run around?”

Hua Qing Si also looked angry, “I am the Head Manager of High Heaven Palace! Who dares to look down on me? Could that person be an Emperor Artifact Refiner?”

Nanmen Da Jun’s expression became solemn as he nodded lightly.

Meanwhile, Yang Kai looked shocked before he exclaimed in amazement, “An Emperor Rank Artifact Refiner?”

“That’s right. So, it would be best if you go meet her in person, Palace Master, that’s the only way to express your sincerity.”

Yang Kai stroked his chin and pondered seriously for a moment before nodding, “In that case, it will be worth the trip. Still… Da Jun, in your opinion, will this Emperor Artifact Refiner be willing to join High Heaven Palace?”

Nanmen Da Jun’s expression became strange, “Does that mean you want to recruit her into the Sect, Palace Master?”

“Yes,” Yang Kai nodded as if it was only natural, “From what you said, this Emperor Artifact Refiner is not affiliated with any force at the moment. Coincidentally, High Heaven Palace is currently short of talents in this particular Dao. Since we came across a Grandmaster by sheer luck, we shouldn’t miss the chance to recruit her.”

“Uhh…” Nanmen Da Jun suddenly became a little embarrassed. He hesitated slightly before saying, “Palace Master… That person is a great choice if we are only working together temporarily. For example, asking to cooperate with me to arrange a Mountain and Rivers Projection then kicking her out after we are done, but, if you plan to recruit someone like that into High Heaven Palace, then… I don’t recommend doing it, Palace Master.”

Yang Kai chuckled and said, “It is said that ‘two of a trade never agree’. You are an Array Master while that person is the Artifact Refiner. Since you are both proficient in different fields, there should be no conflicts, right?”

“That’s not the issue. It’s just… haa, Palace Master, you will understand what I mean once you meet her.”

Nanmen Da Jun seemed quite exasperated with this Emperor Artifact Refiner. Unfortunately, he could not explain the reason clearly, so even though Yang Kai asked many questions, he only said Yang Kai had to see the truth for himself, lest his words give a preconceived bias.

Since this Emperor Artifact Refiner lived like a recluse, Yang Kai had no choice but to travel with Nanmen Da Jun to meet her.

Fortunately, there was nothing he was in a rush to do.

“By the way, is there still no news from Zhu Qing?” Before leaving, he suddenly turned to Hua Qing Si and asked.

Hua Qing Si shook her head and replied, “Are you worried about her, Palace Master? If you are worried, I can ask the Monster Kings to search for her.”

“No,” he waved his hand dismissively and casually tossed a jade slip to her. Without even turning his head, he added, “This is Star Soul Palace’s decision regarding your punishment. Have a look at it.”

Hua Qing Si caught the jade slip and shuddered, quickly pouring her Divine Sense into it. After some investigation though, the nervous expression on her face soon disappeared and was replaced by a bright smile.

The decision written in the jade slip regarding her punishment was very simple. Although Hua Qing Si remained a Star Soul Palace disciple, it would not hinder her freedom. In other words, she was free to stay wherever she wanted to be, and it wouldn’t matter if she never returned to Star Soul Palace for the rest of her life.

It was just a simple jade slip, in no way an official document from Star Soul Palace. Even so, the jade slip contained the Soul Imprint of Princess Lan Xun, so with this jade slip in hand, it was equivalent to Hua Qing Si breaking free of Star Soul Palace even though she continued to hold the status of one of its disciples. She no longer needed to worry about this matter again in the future.

This was also part of the results stemming from the discussions between Yang Kai and Lan Xun a few days ago.

Lan Xun was the daughter of the Bright Moon Great Emperor, a position that, for all intents and purposes, placed her below one and above all others in Star Soul Palace. Compared to the Elders, her status was even nobler. Despite that, Hua Qing Si was now an Emperor Realm Master, so even Lan Xun could not expel her at will. Fortunately, Lan Xun was very willing to give Yang Kai leeway in this matter. Since she couldn’t expel Hua Qing Si from Star Soul Palace, she decided to remove all restrictions on Hua Qing Si’s freedom instead, which was comparatively easier.

Outside the gates of High Heaven Palace, Nanmen Da Jun threw something into the air. That item suddenly became bigger mid-air and quickly transformed into a small boat. Then, he smilingly said, “Palace Master, please come aboard!”

Yang Kai glanced at the flying boat and raised his eyebrow in response, “This thing is pretty good.”

It was obviously a flight-type Emperor Artifact, not something that could be described with mere words like ‘pretty good’.

Not many flight-type artifacts of Emperor Grade could be found across the entire Star Boundary, so the value of one was at least tens of millions of High-Rank Source Crystals. For Nanmen Da Jun to have one showed that he had great wealth.

Nanmen Da Jun laughed dryly, “There’s no way I could have afforded this thing, I simply obtained it by winning a bet.”

“That’s incredibly lucky of you,” Yang Kai clicked his tongue in amazement as he flew up to the flying boat.

The flying boat did not look big, only about ten meters long at a glance, enough for five people to fit inside comfortably. However, Nanmen Da Jun suddenly made a gesture the moment Yang Kai moved towards the flying boat.

A hatch opened immediately on the hull of the flying boat.

Yang Kai stepped through the hatch, and the scene before his eyes changed immediately, leaving him stunned for a moment.

What entered his vision was not a simple interior, but instead a spacious cabin. Right now, Yang Kai was standing facing a large hall that could fit several dozen people without difficulty. Sweeping his Divine Sense around, Yang Kai even discovered several extravagantly decorated private rooms further inside.

There was even a First Stage staircase winding upward in a spiral by the side.

[I can’t believe this flying boat contains an independent space! This is equivalent to a large ship with several decks!]

A moment later, Nanmen Da Jun appeared beside Yang Kai.

Yang Kai turned his head and glanced at Nanmen Da Jun as he asked incredulously, “Did you really win this in a bet?”

Previously, Yang Kai thought that this was just a simple flying boat artifact, so he evaluated it to be worth to be around ten million High-Rank Source Crystals; however, from what he could see right now, this item was probably worth a hundred million High-Rank Source Crystals at the very least.

“It was just luck, just luck,” Nanmen Da Jun laughed wryly, his expression a little unnatural, making it clear he did not want to continue discussing this matter. Stretching out his hands, he gestured, “Palace Master, please find a place to rest at will. The place we are heading towards is neither far nor near. It will take around three days for us to arrive.”

“Good. Many thanks in advance for your hard work,” Yang Kai nodded before walking up the stairs to the second floor and randomly choosing one of the private rooms. Pushing the door open, he swept his glance across the interior and found that it was luxuriously and exquisitely decorated. A monkey head sculpture stood to one side, seemingly shading its eyes with its hand and glancing into the distance. It was a very lifelike sculpture.

Frowning slightly, Yang Kai couldn’t help thinking that the monkey head looked rather familiar.

At that moment, the flying boat hummed slightly and rapidly started flying. The speed went from slow to fast in the blink of an eye, soon reaching a speed no slower than a Third-Order Emperor Realm Master’s maximum pace.

That made Yang Kai sigh in amazement at the grandness of this artifact once more.

After that, Yang Kai walked over to the bed, sat down cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began adjusting his breathing.

The journey was very smooth, to the point where one couldn’t even feel the slightest vibration. Moreover, there was nobody stupid enough to dare to block their path or try to rob them.

But then again, the speed of this flying boat was so fast that only a Third-Order Emperors could manage to stop them.

And so, three days passed by in a flash.

The speed of the flying boat decreased significantly all of a sudden. Following that, there was a loud humming sound as the boat came to a stop.

Yang Kai opened his eyes just as a knock on the door sounded from the outside. Standing up, he opened the door and saw Nanmen Da Jun standing outside. Nanmen Da Jun said, “We’re almost there, Palace Master. We need to fly the rest of the way.”

“Is there a barrier restricting the movement of the flying boat?” Yang Kai asked.

“That’s not it,” Nanmen Da Jun smirked before explaining, “It’s just that I can’t let others see this flying boat. Otherwise, things will get a little troublesome.”

He only gave a vague explanation, but Yang Kai did not bother to question him further. Then, the two of them got off the boat together.

The sound of waves falling and rising entered Yang Kai’s ears immediately, accompanied by a slight fishy smell carried over by the sea breeze. It made one feel relaxed and happy. Lifting his head, Yang Kai saw the blue sky stretching out into the vast distance, with not a cloud in the sky for ten thousand kilometres.

[I can’t believe our travels brought us to the sea.]

“Is this Grandmaster living on an island somewhere?” Yang Kai asked in surprise.

“That’s right,” Nanmen Da Jun nodded, leading the way. “This way, please.”

They immediately flew off in a certain direction. Although Nanmen Da Jun had the cultivation of an Emperor Realm Master, he was not good at fighting and his Emperor Qi wasn’t very pure, so his speed was not that great.

Meanwhile, Yang Kai leisurely followed behind Nanmen Da Jun. Looking down at the endless sea stretching out below him, he occasionally caught a glimpse of a sea creature revealing itself, making for some interesting scenery.

An hour later, Yang Kai suddenly heard the cry of seabirds in the distance and immediately understood that they were nearing their destination. Somewhere up ahead in this vast sea there had to be an island, for that was the only way for these ordinary birds to appear here.