Martial Peak

Chapter 4439 – A Pleasant Surprise

Translator: Silavin & Jon

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

A figure could faintly be seen in the ray of light.

Yang Kai looked up, but before he could make out the person’s face, the other party bellowed, “Where do you think you’re going, boy!?”

Right after the person finished speaking, he pushed out his fist with an immense force. World Force undulated, even the void trembled slightly.

A puzzled Yang Kai had a feeling that the person must have mistaken him for someone else; however, since the other party was about to strike, he was unable to explain himself as he quickly extended his palm to meet the attack.

Booming sounds were heard, as the other party acted violently while Yang Kai responded in kind. They exchanged more than ten moves in just several breaths of time.

“Huh?” The person exclaimed, as though he had discovered something strange. Following that, he exerted more force with his hands.

If the power he showcased earlier was on par with the Fifth-Order, he was now using Sixth-Order strength.

Yang Kai had never expected that he would randomly come across a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master as soon as he left Void Territory, and for some reason, the other party initially hid his true strength. It wasn’t until he sensed Yang Kai’s power that he stopped holding back.

As a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master himself, Yang Kai certainly wasn’t afraid of this stranger, so he surged the power of his Small Universe as the battle intensified.

A moment later, the attacker used a feint before widening the gap between them before raising his hand, “Wait!”

Yang Kai abruptly stopped in his tracks and stared coldly at him.

It wasn’t until this moment that he was able to make out the person’s appearance. The other party was a burly man with long dreadlocks, which made him look a bit eccentric. However, judging from the fluctuations of his energy just now, Yang Kai confirmed that he was indeed a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.

As their eyes met, the burly man examined Yang Kai and asked, “Are you Liu Pei Yuan?”

“No, and I don’t know him either.” Yang Kai shook his head.

“Ah…” The man landed a slap on his own forehead, then looked apologetically at Yang Kai and cupped his fist, “I’m so sorry for mistaking you for someone else. This is all a big misunderstanding. Please forgive me!”

Yang Kai furrowed his brow with displeasure as the other party directly attacked him without verifying his identity first. Although the man didn’t have any murderous intent, Yang Kai was still upset. Fortunately, both of them had only made some probing moves, so no one was hurt; otherwise, the misunderstanding would have turned into something serious.

Since Yang Kai was in a rush, he wasn’t willing to waste any more time on this man, so he simply nodded and declared, “Since it’s a misunderstanding, let’s forget it. Farewell.”

Then, he turned around and left.

The man shouted from behind, “Farewell, friend!”

It wasn’t until Yang Kai was out of his sight that the man stroked his chin with an amused look, “Interesting.”

While remaining on the same spot, he fished out a Communication Bead and sent a message. A moment later, a ray of light came over from afar and stopped beside him. The person was none other than Su Ying Xue.

“Did you test him?” She asked.

The man nodded, “En.”

“How was it?”

“Your information is wrong, Junior Sister.” The man scratched his head and looked in the direction Yang Kai had left, “You said that guy ascended to the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm.”

“Is he not in the Fifth-Order?” Su Ying Xue frowned. Qu Hua Shang had seen Yang Kai break through in person, and the fact was verified by the Elders from Yin-Yang Cave Heaven. After all, besides Qu Hua Shang, there were also four High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters who had witnessed the incident, so there was no way the information was wrong.

“Heh, he’s not in the Fifth-Order.” The man grinned, “That guy is in the Sixth-Order!”

“No way!” Su Ying Xue shot him a glare, “Did you intercept the wrong guy?”

The man shook his head, “You sent his image to me, so there was no way I was mistaken. I was shocked when I traded moves with him just now. I almost suffered a loss at his hands. The power he had showcased was definitely not in the Fifth-Order. Although I didn’t use my full strength, he was still able to force a draw. That could only mean that he’s in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm.”

“How is that possible?” Su Ying Xue was astounded.

According to the information she had obtained, Yang Kai was supposed to be in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm. It had only been two years since he achieved his ascension, so there was no way he could go from the Fifth-Order to the Sixth-Order in such a short time. No one in the world could achieve that.

The only possibility was that he had ascended to the Sixth-Order instead of the Fifth-Order at that time.

However, that was also impossible. Qu Hua Shang might conceal the truth for Yang Kai, but there was no way the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters at the scene were mistaken.

“Isn’t this for the best?” The man grinned, “Although there’s only a difference of one Order, the gap in real strength is enormous. I was initially worried that he would suffer a setback in the Dao Theory Assembly, but now it seems that he has a chance to come out the winner. Although a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master is fairly powerful, such a person is too weak compared to the people who are going to join the Dao Theory Assembly.”

After giving it a thought, Su Ying Xue realised that he was right and nodded gently, “It’s indeed a pleasant surprise.”

“Since we’ve given him a test, we should return to the Sect now. Let’s go,” the man said and charged forward, followed by Su Ying Xue.

Yin-Yang Cave Heaven was going to hold a Dao Theory Assembly to select a Husband for the Core Disciple Qu Hua Shang, and they had sent out invitations to many great forces across the 3,000 Worlds. Since the event was just around the corner, many flight type artifacts could be seen heading to Yin-Yang Territory from different Great Territories.

As Yang Kai flew forward, he could see flight type artifacts of different shapes and sizes rushing towards Yin-Yang Territory.

It was the first time Yang Kai was visiting the Headquarters of a Cave Heaven, and he was extremely curious about it. He wanted to see the heritage of one of the top great forces in the 3,000 Worlds for himself, so he could understand the difference between Void Land and them.

One month later, he arrived at a place that was two Great Territories away from Yin-Yang Territory. He could also see more flight type artifacts as he continued moving forward.

Yin-Yang Cave Heaven was one of the 36 Cave Heavens, which was why it was famous. Since the disciples from those Second Class great forces wanted to marry a beautiful lady and form a relationship with Yin-Yang Cave Heaven, it would be worthwhile even if there were some sacrifices. Therefore, many of the people on the ships were in the Fourth-Order, the Fifth-Order, and even the Sixth-Order.

After all, weaker cultivators had no right to take part in the Assembly.

Two figures had been tailing Yang Kai. They were Su Ying Xue and the burly man, who were both from Yin-Yang Cave Heaven.

At this moment, Su Ying Xue finally believed her partner’s words. Yang Kai must have been in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm; after all, given their cultivation, they still hadn’t managed to close the gap with Yang Kai despite chasing him at full speed for an entire month. A Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master could never fly as fast as he did.

Both of them attempted to surpass Yang Kai, but rather than getting ahead of him, he actually got further away from them instead. They initially could see his figure from afar, but now he was already out of their sight.

Just when they were about to enter Yin-Yang Territory, Su Ying Xue’s expression changed as she fished out a Communication Bead and had a look. Then, she stopped in her tracks and said through clenched teeth, “Despicable!”

“What happened?” The man was perplexed as he stopped and looked at her.

“See for yourself.” Su Ying Xue passed the Communication Bead to the man, who took it and had a look.

Soon, he sported a dark expression as he said, “They dare do such a thing?”

Su Ying Xue snorted, “They’re not willing to let any of their Sixth-Order disciples marry into our Sect, so they’re using dirty tricks to filter out any potential opponents. Shameless!”

“Has the Sect Master said anything?” The man asked in a grim voice.

“I have no idea. Let’s find out more details first.” Su Ying Xue shook her head, then took back the Communication Bead and sent out a message before the pair waited on the spot for a response.

A while later, two figures rushed towards them from afar and landed in front of them. As they cupped their fists, they saluted, “Greetings, Martial Uncle, Martial Aunt!”

There were one man and one woman who were both in the Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm. They appeared intimate, so they were obviously a couple. It was the norm in Yin-Yang Cave Heaven. Once they found suitable partners and got married, they would go everywhere together.

“How’s the situation now?” Su Ying Xue cut to the chase and asked.

The Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm man replied, “All the Territory Gates leading to Yin-Yang Territory have been cordoned off, and all the ships have to be inspected before they’re allowed to pass. Whenever they discover a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, they immediately challenge him.”

“What great forces are participating in this blockade?” Su Ying Xue asked.

The man then listed more than ten Cave Heavens and Paradises, after which he said, “Those are the great forces that have sent their disciples to take part in the Dao Theory Assembly.”

Su Ying Xue snorted, “Seems they’ve thoroughly thought this out.”

The Dao Theory Assembly was meant to select a Husband for Qu Hua Shang, with its winner being able to marry her. No High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master would take part in such an assembly, and the Fourth-Order was just the threshold. Supposedly, only a Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master would stand a chance to be the winner.

Regardless of who the person was, he wouldn’t have a right to fight for the first place if he wasn’t in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm.

Nevertheless, even Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were valuable to those Cave Heavens and Paradises, so they were not willing to let a disciple marry into Yin-Yang Cave Heaven. They would only allow Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters to do that.

As such, in order to prevent their own disciples from confronting any Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in the Dao Theory Assembly, these dozen or so Cave Heavens and Paradises joined forces and cordoned off the Territory Gates around Yin-Yang Territory. Once they discovered any foreign Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, they would chase them away.

By doing so, they could ensure that the most powerful cultivators who could participate in the Dao Theory Assembly were only in the Fifth-Order, which would ease the burden of their own disciples when they joined the competition. Regardless of who the winner would be, their great force would only lose one Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master.

“Has the Sect Master said anything?” Su Ying Xue asked with a solemn expression.

The disciple replied, “Sect Master has had a discussion with the representatives of those great forces; however, they haven’t really crossed any line as they never killed anyone or forced any participants away. Instead, they’d send Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters to exchange moves with the other party so that those people would admit defeat and leave. Since that is the case, Sect Master can’t really say anything.”

Su Ying Xue said through clenched teeth, “Exchange moves? How could outside Sixth-Order Masters be comparable to their own? Why don’t they chase the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters away as well? By then, only Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters will take part in the assembly, which is even better for them!”

The disciple remarked meekly, “Perhaps they want to protect their reputations?”

“They have already humiliated themselves, so why bother!” Su Ying Xue was infuriated.

The burly man hunched his back as the situation was giving him a headache. If only Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters were going to take part in the Dao Theory Assembly, it would turn into one big joke. Would they really have to allow Qu Hua Shang to marry a mere Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master?