Martial Peak

Li Mao Ming had been laughing and joking since he appeared, but after hearing Zi Wu Ji’s words, his expression became extremely serious and his eyes pulsed with cold light.

Being stared at like this, Zi Wu Ji could not help shivering. He did not doubt the authenticity of the other party’s words and knew that Li Mao Ming would really break his hands and feet if he misspoke.

However, Zi Wu Ji also learned from Li Mao Ming’s reaction that his mother held a sacred and inviolable position in his heart, causing him to immediately become overjoyed.

After taking a moment to compose his thoughts, Zi Wu Ji continued, “Please calm your anger, Venerable Li, it was Wu Ji’s fault for being unclear just now. The truth is…”

Zi Wu Ji did not speak the following words out loud but instead stared at Li Mao Ming and moved his lips, apparently sending his message directly to the other party’s ear.

Li Mao Ming, who had always been as tranquil as an ancient well, suddenly showed a look of shock on his face as he exclaimed, “What did you say? Zi Long, he…”

“It’s true.” Zi Wu Ji nodded sternly, “Since she learned of this, my mother refuses to eat or drink and even has trouble sleeping. Venerable Li, Honoured Father, and my mother were all friends in the past so Wu Ji was hoping Venerable Li could find an opportunity to comfort her. Wu Ji fears that if she continues like this, it will begin to affect her health, or worse. If something extreme were to happen…”

Li Mao Ming, who appeared strong and heroic, staggered slightly as an expression of disbelief appeared on his face, his eyes flashing a complicated light as he seemed to be lost in reminiscence, a deep sadness apparent from his whole body. After remaining silent for quite some time, Li Mao Ming chuckled with bitter, wry laughter as he muttered, “Zi Long, you… you really…”

Li Mao Ming was unable to finish his words though as he seemed to choke on them.

“Venerable Li, you should consider what Wu Ji just said. Wu Ji is very worried about his mother’s condition,” Zi Wu Ji said softly.

Li Mao Ming took a deep breath, adjusted his emotions, and glanced over at Zi Wu Ji before saying coldly, “I will visit her, but that has nothing to do with today’s matter. This King will not treat this as a transaction. If you really are filial, you should respect and care for your mother, not use her as a bargaining chip! If you try to do something like this again, I won’t forgive you easily.”

Zi Wu Ji’s complexion changed slightly as he felt a deep annoyance in his heart, but he wore an obedient look on the surface and nodded, “Venerable Li is right, Wu Ji was mistaken.”

[Fool! No wonder he lost to Father in the competition that year. A loser deserves to be a loser for the rest of his life!] Zi Wu Ji cursed in his heart.

During the time these two spoke, Yang Kai and Gong Sun Liang had already exchanged hundreds of moves, and the World Energy around them had grown far more chaotic. No one dared to approach within a thousand metres of this battle. After hundreds of moves with neither side being able to gain an advantage, Yang Kai suddenly spoke audibly, “This King is a Purple Star Venerable. It is a matter of righteousness to defend the peace of Purple Star, why would he need any benefits?”

Gong Sun Liang’s whole face twitched visibly as, even though he knew Yang Kai was spouting nonsense, he could do nothing about it.

With a sullen look, he shouted in a low voice, “If that’s the case, then don’t blame this old master for being ruthless.”

Saying so, he formed a seal with his hands and pushed his Saint Qi madly.

Yang Kai frowned as he thought this old man was going to use some profound Secret Technique. Not daring to underestimate his opponent, Yang Kai hurriedly withdrew to put up a proper defence. Although he did not put Gong Sun Liang in his eyes, the other part was still a Second-Order Origin King, so acting cautiously was not unwarranted.

However, the moment Yang Kai fell back, Gong Sun Liang flashed a smirk and his figure flickered, splitting into two, then four, then eight…

In the blink of an eye, there were hundreds of Gong Sun Lians floating in the sky, each one of them extremely lifelike.

Yang Kai’s eyes flashed!

This was undoubtedly an immensely powerful Secret Technique, and had utility as both a method of attack and escape.

Moreover, even using his Divine Sense, Yang Kai was unable to tell which of these Gong Sun Liangs was the real one as each of them gave off an identical aura.

As soon as this move was executed, not just Yang Kai’s complexion turned solemn, but Li Mao Ming, who had been spectating the battle from a distance, also turned serious. Li Mao Ming’s eyes flashed a lavender light as he swept them over these countless phantom images, as if trying to identify which one was the real one.

Gong Sun Liang’s laughter rang out from all around, “Second Young Master, you have forced this old master’s hand! I hope you can bear the consequences!”

Saying so, all these phantoms no longer paid any attention to Yang Kai and instead shot off into the battlefield.

“Ah…” A scream rang out as a cultivator who was locked in combat was suddenly blasted out by the Great Elder. A fresh palm print appeared on this unfortunate man’s chest which had clearly collapsed in from the impact.

Mid-air, this person bled profusely as bits of his shattered internal organs spewed out from his mouth. This man died even before he hit the ground.

A series of screams came out one after another, each of them belonging to a cultivator who had sided with Zi Wu Ji, all of them Origin Realm masters.

In the battlefield, Gong Sun Liang’s figure was everywhere, with no one able to tell which one was an illusion, and which wasn’t. It was as if all of them were real. After they took action, these phantoms were able to quickly cut down Zi Wu Ji’s people.

In an instant, everyone was in danger as all the cultivators who were approached by Gong Sun Liang panicked and fled.

But in front of a Second-Order Origin King, how could they escape?

In the blink of an eye, several people were brutally murdered, each of them a pillar among Zi Wu Ji’s supporters.

Blue veins throbbed on Zi Wu Ji’s forehead as he clenched his fists and turned in the direction of Yang Kai to roar, “Venerable Yang, stop him!”

Yang Kai just stroked his chin as he stood mid-air though and shook his head, “Second Young Master is asking for something quite difficult. This King cannot see any flaws in Great Elder’s technique, so how is he supposed to stop him?”

These words were polite but clearly insincere. Yang Kai had been forced into this battle and did not plan on exerting any real effort. It did not matter to him what became of Purple Star, much less the lives of these people.

He just wanted to stall for time.

Once Xiao Xiao rescued Shen Tu and the others, he could leave this place immediately.

However, even just standing still and observing for a while, Yang Kai had already discovered some clues and gained some insight into how Gong Sun Liang’s trick worked. What is more, if he used his Demon Eye of Annihilation, finding the real Gong Sun Liang would be simple.

Hearing Yang Kai’s irresponsible answer, Zi Wu Ji nearly coughed up blood from anger.

If all his people were killed, he wouldn’t need to keep fighting; after all, without any supporters, what point would there be in struggling any further? Glaring at the situation in front of him grimly, Zi Wu Ji eventually roared, “If that’s the case, then I ask Venerable Yang to seek a tooth for a tooth, blood for blood!”

Yang Kai raised his brow when he heard this and showed a smirk, “That’s easy enough.”

Saying so, he stretched out his hand and released several dozen Golden Blood Threads, all of which transformed into sharp flying blades that shot off in all directions like arrows.

*Xiu xiu xiu…*

Wind-splitting sounds echoed through the sky and soon, several screams rang out.

Eight Origin Realm cultivators who were heavily engaged and had lost track of their surroundings were hit by Yang Kai’s Golden Blood Threads and their defensive Saint Qi and artifacts were instantly destroyed. The Golden Blood Threads penetrated their vitals and directly reaped their lives.

With Yang Kai’s current cultivation, how could these Origin Returning Realm cultivators, who were already in the midst of battle, resist his sudden attack?

The Golden Blood Threads flew back and forth again, once again taking a number of lives.

After only ten breaths, Yang Kai had caught up to Gong Sun Liang in terms of kills.

Gong Sun Liang roared in anger. Origin Realm cultivators were the indispensable backbone of any great force; after all, very few could reach the Origin King Realm. Often, the strength of a great force depended not only on the number of Origin Kings it commanded but also on the number of Origin Realm masters it could dispatch.

After today’s war, no matter who won and who lost, Purple Star’s foundation would suffer severe damage.

This was a result that neither Gong Sun Liang nor Zi Wu Ji were willing to see, but it was an unavoidable result.

The end of one era and the arrival of another was always accompanied by much blood and sacrifice.

High up in the sky, all the Origin Realm masters, and even the First-Order Origin Kings were terrified. The situation at this moment was almost as if Yang Kai and Gong Sun Liang were engaged in a competition to see who could kill the most people the quickest, a contest to see who would be unable to bear the cost first and back down…

In front of these two Second-Order Origin Kings, no one was able to put up meaningful resistance.

Standing next to Zi Wu Ji, Li Mao Ming, who seemed to be uninterested in everything in the world, wore a heavy look on his face as he realized that Purple Star would really be finished if he did not make a move.

He never expected that things would develop to this point.

If he made a move now though, it would be akin to dropping a stone on his own foot because of what he had just said.

Just as he was feeling a terrible headache from this internal conflict, Gong Sun Liang suddenly roared, “Li Mao Ming, if you still remember the favour from all those years ago, you will help this old master stop that boy first! You don’t want to see Purple Star suffer such a heavy loss, right?”

Li Mao Ming frowned and hesitated, “This Li does not want to see his brothers and sisters die needlessly, but Second Young Master’s safety…”

“This old master won’t make things difficult for you! This old master swears he won’t move against Second Young Master, and even if this old master ends up controlling Purple Star in the end, he will ensure Second Young Masters safety and prosperity!”

Li Mao Ming’s expression turned to one of struggle.

Zi Wu Ji stared at Li Mao Ming in amazement, “Venerable Li, you wouldn’t…”

“Things have reached this point, so I cannot remain idle,” Li Mao Ming sighed, “You may rest assured. With me, no one in this world can hurt you, mother and child. I will fight with my life on the line to protect you both.”

Saying so, his figure flickered and disappeared from where he stood.

Zi Wu Ji was stunned for a moment before he began cursing angrily, accusing Gong Sun Liang of being sinister and contemptible and Li Mao Ming for failing to keep his word. At this moment, he no longer had any scruples, completely discarding his prior elegant demeanour.

He was truly angered.

Li Mao Ming was constrained by the favour he owed Gong Sun Liang and was forced to fight Yang Kai. As a result, Zi Wu Ji was bound to suffer a complete defeat in today’s battle. Even though Li Mao Ming said he would protect his safety and Gong Sun Liang also promised his safety and prosperity, the leadership of Purple Star, a position which stood above trillions of others, was not something he would ever get a chance to acquire again.

The only hope was if Yang Kai could defeat both Gong Sun Liang and Li Mao Ming!

But how could that be possible? All three of them were Second-Order Origin Kings, so their strengths should be similar. In that situation, one person couldn’t defeat two.

Despair soon filled Zi Wu Ji’s eyes.