Martial Peak

All of Purple Star City shook as countless cultivators looked up into the sky towards the great battle, all of them filled with anxiety.

Ninety-nine percent of the people in the city didn’t know what was happening, only that there were extremely powerful masters engaging in a life or death battle. Everyone knew that when the city gates were on fire, it was the fish in the moat who would be affected first, so none of them wanted to get close, much less be involved.

Swiftly, throngs of people rushed towards the city gate, trying to escape from Purple Star City to avoid being swept up into the chaos.

There were also some courageous cultivators who, instead of running from the battle, ran towards it, hoping to fish in troubled waters.

The more dangerous a place, the greater the opportunity. This was an eternal truth.

Inside Purple Star Palace, Zi Wu Ji grinned silently as a fanatical look appeared on his face.

He never imagined that Yang Kai would be this powerful.

When Li Mao Ming was constrained by the favour he owed Gong Sun Liang and joined forces with him to fight against Yang Kai, Zi Wu Ji had thought that all was lost and his plans had ended in failure, causing him to feel desperate.

But now, his spirits had been lifted once more because, in the confrontation of the three Second-Order Origin Kings, Yang Kai actually had the upper hand against the combined forces of Gong Sun Liang and Li Mao Ming.

Was this Venerable Yang really so amazing? Even his father Zi Long would not be able to compete with such methods, right? Zi Wu Ji could not believe what he was seeing, but that did not stop him from enjoying it. A beautiful picture of his future began to expand once more before him and Zi Wu Ji was so excited he could barely restrain himself shouting out loud for Yang Kai to cut down Gong Sun Liang once and for all.

Up in the air, Yang Kai wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth as he straightened himself up, his eyes gleaming as he stared ahead.

A few kilometres away, Gong Sun Liang and Li Mao Ming both had pale faces as they stared back in shock.

In that head-on confrontation just now, none of them had profited and Yang Kai was certainly injured; however, Li Mao Ming and Gong Sun Liang were not the least bit pleased as it was clear they were still worse off.

This result was unacceptable to both Gong Sun Liang and Li Mao Ming!

Together, the two of them could exert strength almost on par with a Third-Order Origin King, but Yang Kai was able to repel them! Didn’t that mean that he was qualified to compete with a Third-Order Origin King all by himself?

Such a possibility subverted Li Mao Ming and Gong Sun Liang’s entire perception of reality!

Although the Second Order and Third Order only differed by a single Minor Realm, the gap in strength between the two was as wide as the gap between Heaven and Earth. In the Origin King Realm, every step forward represented a massive promotion of strength. What’s more, there wasn’t the slightest sign of fear in the other party’s eyes. Instead, only an endless fighting spirit could be seen, causing both Li Mao Ming and Gong Sun Liang to shiver…

Just what kind of freak was he? The two of them now found that they couldn’t understand Yang Kai in the slightest.

*Keng…*

A crisp sound rang out from above at that moment as the two Origin King Grade artifacts clash seemed to come to an end. The giant dark green dragon transformed back into its Dragon Bone Sword form while the flood dragon restored its short-sword appearance. Both the sword-shaped artifacts flew back to the hands of their respective owners.

The Dragon Bone Sword was still undamaged, its green halo as bright as ever.

On the contrary, Gong Sun Liang’s sword had gone dim and its aura was fluctuating somewhat chaotically!

Looking at his sword, Gong Sun Liang’s heart ached, causing his already tenuous condition to worsen. Coughing up a mouthful of blood, his aura weakened noticeably and became somewhat dispirited.

“Brother Yang, stop!” Li Mao Ming’s expression drooped as he stared towards Yang Kai solemnly. His tone was filled with an imploring tone as he truly did not want to fight anymore. He had only made an appearance today because he was entrusted by ‘that person’ to protect Zi Wu Ji’s safety. Later, he was forced to engage in a confrontation with a cultivator of the same realm, which he was reluctant from the start to do. Now, he found himself facing Yang Kai, a true monster he had never seen the likes of before.

“You say fight and I have to fight, then you say stop and I have to stop? Do I not have any face at all?” Yang Kai grinned grimly.

“What do you want in order for this to end? Just say it! No one is an outsider here so everything is open to discussion!” Li Mao Ming still regarded Yang Kai as one of them, seemingly valuing the Venerable position very highly.

“What I want is simple!” Yang Kai grinned and took a step forward, “A fight to the death! Whether you come at me one on one or both together, I don’t care!”

“You…” Li Mao Ming looked anxiously at Yang Kai and pleaded, “Why are you acting like this?”

He never thought that Yang Kai would make such a ridiculous request. Those at the Origin King Realm generally avoided head-on conflicts because no Origin King was good to provoke. Everyone had trump cards they held in reserve that they would only use under desperate circumstances. Li Mao Ming had never met anyone like Yang Kai who seemed so eager to wage what would normally be considered a self-destructive battle.

“I only broke through to the Second-Order Origin King recently and this is the first time I’ve run into opponents of the same level, so I want to verify where my bottom line is!” Yang Kai grinned ferociously.

“Bullshit!” Before Li Mao Ming spoke, Gong Sun Liang could not help but curse as he glared at Yang Kai angrily, an unforgettable hatred blazing in his eyes as he shouted, “An old monster still wants to pretend he’s young? Have you no shame?”

He also thought that Yang Kai was not very old at first; after all he still retained a youthful look, but after fighting with him, he immediately concluded that Yang Kai was a cultivator that had lived for a thousand or more years, otherwise it would be impossible for him to have such strength.

If he really did just break through to the Second-Order and could already suppress both him and Li Mao Ming, then Gong Sun Liang might as well just commit suicide and be done with it.

“Believe what you like, there is no other way to settle this matter today.” Yang Kai snorted coldly.

Seeing him act so aggressive, Gong Sun Liang’s eyes flashed with anger and he opened his mouth to say something, but couldn’t find any words in the end.

He was deeply regretting his actions now.

If he had just settled for emerging victorious in the power struggle today, none of this would have happened, but because he was greedy and wanted to snatch the Origin Essence Crystal from Yang Kai’s hands, he had instead brought great trouble upon himself.

Already, his Domain had been damaged, his artifact had lost a great deal of spirituality, and his body had been injured…

If he wanted to completely recover, at least a century of secluded retreat would be necessary.

It was useless to regret now though, so Gong Sun Liang forcefully suppressed the bitterness in his heart.

“If the two of you won’t make the first move, I will!” Yang Kai declared as he began to condense his Saint Qi.

At that moment though, he suddenly frowned and looked in a certain direction.

At the same time, Gong Sun Liang, Li Mao Ming, and even the Origin King Elders of Purple Star had their faces changed slightly as they all looked in the same direction.

Over there, a figure had appeared on the horizon and seemed to be casually strolling towards them. At first, this figure seemed quite far away, but he appeared in the centre of the battlefield in the blink of an eye.

The newcomer was an old man with snow-white hair and a long beard that matched his linen robes. His appearance, while spotlessly clean, was also incredibly plain, making him look no different from an ordinary old man.

But Yang Kai’s expression was extremely solemn as he stared at this old man because he felt an incredible pressure radiating from him!

After arriving in the middle of the battlefield, this old man swept his eyes around with a gloomy expression on his face.

Everyone who came under his gaze could not help turning aside their eyes and lowering their heads.

The vast area fell silent suddenly as everyone even suppressed the sound of their breathing, lest they draw this old man’s attention.

“Hmph!”

After a long time, the old man snorted softly.

This sound seemed common, but it was laced with some kind of mysterious force that made it hit everyone’s chest like a drum, causing their bodies to shake and their blood to roil.

Yang Kai’s eyes widened as a brilliant light flashed across them.

Third-Order Origin King!

Since the old man showed up, he had his suspicions, but it was only now that he was able to determine that the other party was a genuine Third-Order Origin King!

This old man was a supreme existence whose equals in the entire Star Field could be counted on a single hand.

A name quickly popped into Yang Kai’s mind.

[Kuang Shi Zong!]

Zi Dong had once told him about the cultivation and quantity of Purple Star’s masters, so Yang Kai knew that Purple Star had a Third-Order Origin King supporting it, and that person was Kuang Shi Zong.

The seniority of this old man was terrifying, and even Zi Long had to address him as Martial Uncle when he saw him!

However, no one knew where this person was, as no one on Purple Star had seen him for two hundred years. Some people said he had long ago passed away, while others speculated he had travelled to some dangerous place in the Star Field to seek a higher Martial Dao. There were even some who thought he had shattered space and left the Star Field altogether…

No one had thought he had secluded himself in Purple Star City though and would appear at such a time.

Gong Sun Liang, Li Mao Ming, and all the Origin King Realm Elders finally recovered at this moment and respectfully bowed in the direction of Kuang Shi Zong, “Greetings, Martial Ancestor!”

Many of the Origin Returning Realm cultivators also knew who this old man was and did not dare show any negligence, each and every one of them bowing their heads in reverence.

“You still put this Martial Ancestor in your eyes?” Kuang Shi Zong looked at everyone coldly, causing cold sweat to leak from their foreheads. Even Gong Sun Liang and Li Mao Ming had their heads lowered at this moment, like children who had been caught after making a great mistake, not daring to speak.

“It seems you’ve all made great progress these past two hundred years,” Kuang Shi Zong sneered sarcastically, “Reducing Purple Star City to such a state, you think you are worthy of the foundation passed down to you by my Purple Star’s ancestors?!”

Facing this question, everyone shivered in place as more cold sweat poured down their faces.

“If this old master didn’t appear, were you planning to completely demolish Purple Star Palace?”

“We wouldn’t dare!” Gong Sun Liang replied with trepidation.

“Why wouldn’t you dare? Don’t all of you have the courage? Or do you only have the courage to act but not the courage to admit?”

“Disciples have been unfilial, please forgive us, Martial Ancestor!” Gong Sun Liang cried out loudly.

“Disciples have been unfilial, please forgive us, Martial Ancestor!” Countless people shouted in unison from down below.

“What is this matter all about?” Kuang Shi Zong roared, his white hair blowing despite there being no wind, his face filled with anger, “Explain now!”

Gong Sun Liang’s body trembled but he did not dare to conceal anything, quickly explaining the cause and effect of today’s events.