Martial Peak

“Why should I tell you about my relationship with him? Elder Cui, aren’t you sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong?” Luo Lan looked at the other party with disgust.

The man surnamed Cui snickered lowly, “If you don’t want to say, don’t. Why get so upset?”

After saying so, he turned to Yang Kai and said in a pointed tone, “Boy, the Severed World is very dangerous. Be careful not to die inside.”

Yang Kai squinted at him, his expression cold, not intending to make a response.

This attitude made the man surnamed Cui quite annoyed. Luo Lan slapping his face in public was one thing; after all, Luo Lan and he were both Sword Union Elders and their strength was even, but Yang Kai was just a trivial Third-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivator, yet he dared act so arrogantly. This man surnamed Cui wanted to find an excuse to attack.

However, before he could even say anything to Yang Kai, a cold snort rang out from nearby, “What a farce, if your Sword Union has internal disputes, just solve them quickly by yourselves. Why put them on display here? Or do you want this old master to referee a fight between you two? The winner stays and the loser can scram!”

The man who spoke wore deep-purple robes and had a sturdy face, his expression calm and composed as an oppressive aura lingered about his body.

The man surnamed Cui and Luo Lan heard this voice and both their faces changed slightly.

Luo Lan let out a peal of light laughter as she said, “We’ve shown Senior Ni something embarrassing. This Mistress did not have such intentions.”

The man surnamed Cui also smiled politely and said, “Senior Ni need not pay it any mind, I was simply making a joke with Elder Luo.”

“Hmph!” Senior Ni coldly snorted, not putting Luo Lan or the man surnamed Cui in his eyes at all as he snapped, “Since that’s the case, then be quiet and don’t disturb this old master!”

Luo Lan and man surnamed Cui both looked embarrassed but didn’t say anything more, the man surnamed Cui simply shooting Yang Kai a cold glare, as if wanting to remember his appearance.

Just after arriving here, he had already become the target of an Origin King Realm for no apparent reason, a fact that caused Yang Kai’s mood to sink.

“That guy’s name is Cui Hong, an Elder of my Sword Union and a life and death friend of Li Ming Hai. Both are members of the Vice Union Master’s faction. When you enter the Severed World, you must be careful not to leave my side. He wouldn’t dare attack me head-on, but he’ll have no qualms about attacking you,” Luo Lan’s voice quietly reached Yang Kai’s ears and explained to him.

Yang Kai nodded imperceptibly before asking quietly, “Who is that Senior Ni? Both of you seemed quite wary of him.”

“His name is Ni Guang and he belongs to Heng Luo Chamber of Commerce,” Luo Lan replied, “He’s a Second-Order Origin King, so why wouldn’t Cui Hong and I fear him?”

“So that’s how it is!” Yang Kai understood and glanced over towards Ni Guang.

When Yang Kai did so though, his eyes happened to meet with those of another person standing next to Ni Guang.

Yang Kai was instantly startled.

The owner of this other pair of eyes was smiling towards him meaningfully, staring at Yang Kai quite enthusiastically.

Yang Kai’s expression filled with bitterness and he almost couldn’t stop himself from cursing, quickly turning his eyes away, lowering his head, half covering his face with his hands while silently chanting to himself, ‘you can’t see me, you can’t see me, you can’t see me…’

This was obviously a pitiful attempt at self-deception…

After he and Luo Lan arrived here, Yang Kai hadn’t paid too much attention to the cultivators who had arrived earlier, and only now did he realize that an old acquaintance of his was next to Ni Guang.

With a face like jade and an all but perfect body, white skin that would make any woman jealous and an enchanting smile that could make any female, and even many males, entranced with just a single glance.

Hold a folding fan in a suave manner, no matter what kind of young talent they were, they would definitely feel inferior in front of him, as if he was born to stand above them all!

Simply synonymous with perfection!

This ‘young man’… if it wasn’t Third Young Master Xue Yue, who would it be?

The last time Yang Kai met Xue Yue was in the Emperor Garden, where they had ended up fighting. Fortunately, with the closure of the Emperor Garden, Yang Kai managed to escape from her entanglement, but he never expected to meet her again outside this Severed World.

However, it actually wasn’t too surprising once Yang Kai thought about it. The Severed World was filled with both opportunity and risk, and although its existence was only known to a few masters, Heng Luo Chamber of Commerce was one of the major forces in the Star Field, so they were obviously aware of it.

This time, a master like Ni Guang had been dispatched, so it was understandable that Xue Yue had also come for life experience.

Instantaneously, all kinds of thoughts flashed through Yang Kai’s mind, allowing him to understand the current situation.

Soon, he let out a sigh, raised his head, and stared directly into Xue Yue’s eyes, grinning at her widely, exhibiting a pose of a dead pig not fearing boiling water.

Xue Yue was stunned, as if never expecting Yang Kai would act so boldly. Even with Ni Guang by her side, this bastard still dared to stare back at her, causing her to be a little annoyed and send Yang Kai a vicious look, showing a variety of enchanting styles.

Showing such a posture when she had the outward appearance of a handsome man, however, seemed a bit improper, and those who didn’t know the truth and saw this would definitely think that there was something ‘special’ about Xue Yue’s preferences. But Yang Kai knew her details quite intimately, so seeing her make such a defeated expression only caused him to smile even more happily.

Yang Kai’s relationship with Xue Yue was complicated, to say the least.

While they could be loosely classified as enemies, it hadn’t reached the point where they wanted each other dead. Rather, it was Yang Kai who had learned Xue Yue’s greatest secret and Xue Yue who wanted to eliminate him to remove that threat.

However, Xue Yue never truly tried to silence the witness to the crime, and even if she dispatched some people to chase Yang Kai on Rainfall Star, she hadn’t acted ruthlessly, only sending two cultivators she knew Yang Kai would be able to kill.

In another sense, they could be considered friends, but there was a barrier between their hearts that made it all but impossible for them to truly weather wind and rain together.

Xue Yue essentially felt that Yang Kai had taken advantage of her many times and was so angry she wanted to teach him a harsh lesson so he would be obedient to her, but Yang Kai had also risked his life to save hers, earning her gratitude. The two opposing feelings in her heart left Xue Yue in quite an awkward and frustrating dilemma.

Yang Kai was equally confused about how to deal with his relationship with Xue Yue.

If she was just an ordinary woman, that would be one thing, but she was actually the successor that Heng Luo Chamber of Commerce’s President Ai Ou had set his hopes on. Perhaps Xue Yue would become President of Heng Luo Chamber of Commerce in the future, but if her identity as a woman was exposed, that would make it almost impossible for her to assume that position!

This was a secret she had to hide at all costs!

This obvious eye contact was naturally not missed by the Origin Kings nearby, with Luo Lan turning an amazed look to Yang Kai and asking quietly, “Do you know that young man? Do you know who he is?”

“I know, of course I know,” Yang Kai nodded.

Luo Lan said in astonishment, “You actually have such a wide range of contacts?”

Luo Lan had also only heard of the famous Third Young Master Xue Yue, but never seen him. Being able to recognize Xue Yue at a glance was entirely because of Ni Guang’s seemingly humble attitude towards Xue Yue.

In Heng Luo Chamber of Commerce, Ni Guang was a Senior who had almost unlimited authority, so what other Third-Order Origin Returning Realm besides Xue Yue could he possibly act respectfully towards?

Ordinary Origin Returning Realm masters didn’t even have the qualifications to meet Ni Guang in person, much less stand beside him as an equal.

Moreover, Xue Yue’s appearance was exactly as the rumours had stated, stunning enough to fascinate any sentient being, man, woman, old, or young! Even a master like Luo Lan couldn’t help stealing a few more glances at ‘him’ after seeing Xue Yue.

“Are you friends?” Luo Lan asked again.

“Ahaha…” Yang Kai didn’t know how to answer this question, so he hesitated for a moment before saying. “I have some entanglements with him.”

“Entanglements…” Luo Lan’s heart sank, subconsciously thinking that there might be some hatred between Yang Kai and Xue Yue. If that was the case, his situation was certainly not good.

While the two were whispering here, Ni Guang and Xue Yue seemed to be talking about something as well, and after communicating for a moment, Ni Guang turned an interested look towards Yang Kai.

Yang Kai had a bitter taste in his mouth, not knowing what Xue Yue had said to Ni Guang. If she had spoken some malicious remarks about him behind his back, there was a chance Ni Guang might act against him.

Thinking so, Yang Kai secretly told Luo Lan to immediately flee as soon as she saw something was wrong and give up on the Severed World.

How could Luo Lan dare disagree? At this moment she deeply regretted dragging Yang Kai here. If she had come alone, although the risk she faced later would definitely have greatly increased, at least she wouldn’t have to worry about just entering. She didn’t fear Cui Hong, but Ni Guang was different, as his Second-Order Origin King cultivation was enough for Luo Lan to withdraw voluntarily.

The conversation between Ni Guang and Xue Yue also seemed to come to an end, and the Second-Order Origin King Realm master was now staring at Yang Kai with piercing eyes, as if he wanted to see through him and into his thoughts.

Yang Kai felt immense pressure but continued to stare at Xue Yue without speaking.

Xue Yue just smiled innocently, opened her folding fan and waved it gently, completely acting the part of an elegant Young Lord.

During her many confrontations with Yang Kai, it was rare that she was able to see his defeated expression, so, even if she was borrowing Ni Guang’s might in order to suppress him, Xue Yue couldn’t help feeling happy!

“Young man, do you want to travel together with this old master?” Ni Guang suddenly asked.

As soon as this statement came out, the scattered Origin Kings nearby all wore startled looks and stared towards Yang Kai with strange and scrutinizing expressions.

None of them knew why Ni Guang would suddenly invite a mere Third-Order Origin Returning Realm cultivator to join him, and one that had come here with Luo Lan from Sword Union at that.

This blatant act of poaching caused everyone to feel some confusion.

If Yang Kai was comparable to Ni Guang in strength, it would be understandable for him to want to form an alliance to explore the Severed World together.

But Yang Kai was nothing more than a Third-Order Origin Returning Realm boy, so what could Ni Guang possibly see in him that is worthy of his attention?

Yang Kai didn’t expect things to develop like this, thinking that the most likely scenario was Xue Yue bad-mouthing him to Ni Guang so that the latter would teach him a lesson. When Ni Guang sent out this invitation though, Yang Kai was not just taken aback, he was also quite suspicious, glancing over at Xue Yue and wondering what she was up to.

Xue Yue smiled triumphantly, still waving her fan as if she was simply enjoying the scenery, the expression on her face completely unreadable.

[Hateful woman!] Yang Kai cursed secretly in his heart.