Martial Peak

Inside the cave, while Yang Kai was healing his injuries, he asked Liu Xian Yun for information about the Star Boundary. She was also frank and explained things simply and straightforwardly without concealing anything, which greatly improved Yang Kai’s impression of her.

“So in summary, the realm above the Origin King Realm is the Dao Source Realm, and above the Dao Source Realm is the Emperor Realm?”

“Yes,” Liu Xian Yun nodded. “Only when a cultivator’s Shi reaches the grand accomplishment stage and touches upon Domain can they break through to the Origin King Realm, and only after fully comprehending Domain to the grand accomplishment stage and touching upon Principle Strength, otherwise called Law Strength, can they break through to the Dao Source Realm and manipulate such power.”

“Principle Strength!” Yang Kai showed a reverent expression.

Liu Xian Yun smiled slightly and said, “Brother Yang should not misunderstand. Even a Dao Source Realm master can only slightly utilize Principle Strength. I have heard that only upon reaching the Emperor Realm can one actually control Principles, allowing their thoughts to be made manifest and command the world with their intention alone!”

“I understand!” Yang Kai nodded.

“Of course, comprehending Principles is only the most basic requirement for breaking through to the Dao Source Realm. The other essential condition is that one needs to transform their Saint Qi into Source Qi!”

“Source Qi?” Yang Kai’s eyes lit up, “Is that the name of this new power in our bodies?”

“Indeed, the stage above Saint Qi is Source Qi. Brother Yang must have felt that this new power is closely related to your own root, your source. Therefore, it is called Source Qi.”

“I did notice that.”

“In the Starlight Corridor, the biggest role of those starlight wisps is to help transform Saint Qi in an Origin King’s body into Source Qi, so the more starlight one can absorb there, the better,” Liu Xian Yun explained patiently.

“So after staying there for five years, were you able to completely transform your strength?” Yang Kai’s expression turned solemn.

Liu Xian Yun smiled bitterly and shook her head, “Brother Yang’s thoughts are too simple. Although we stayed there for five years, the total time we spent absorbing starlight wisps was less than two months, the rest of the time we spent hiding in the Netherworld Darkness Shroud.”

“Netherworld Darkness Shroud?” Yang Kai frowned.

“En, the defensive artifact that Senior Brother Yin used, a Dao Source Grade artifact. I heard it was a treasure that came from the Star Boundary’s Netherworld Sect. This time, it was brought along by Senior Brother Yin. If not for it, we would have long ago been forced out of the Starlight Corridor.”

“Why do you say that?” Yang Kai asked curiously.

“The starlight wisps in the Starlight Corridor can bring massive benefits to cultivators, especially those who travel from low-level Star Fields to the Star Boundary. It can be said that the starlight wisps are the first opportunity we encounter on our path to this world. However, does Brother Yang really think cultivators can remain in the Starlight Corridor at will?” Liu Xian Yun smiled, “That’s impossible. The longest one can stay inside the Starlight Corridor is about two months, once that time is up, they will be rejected by the World Principles of the corridor and forced out.”

Yang Kai showed a look of understanding.

He had his doubts even before now. If cultivators could remain in the Starlight Corridor at will, it would undoubtedly become a disaster for the cultivators from the lower Star Fields.

As long as there was someone like Yin Le Sheng who blocked the Starlight Corridor, no one would be able to pass.

Now, after listening to Liu Xian Yun’s explanation, he realized that this was only possible thanks to that Netherworld Darkness Shroud.

“The starlight wisps in the Starlight Corridor can speed up the conversion of Saint Qi into Source Qi in our body, so the more we can absorb, the better. In this regard, Star Masters have a great advantage thanks to their Star Sources, which increase their affinity with those starlight wisps. The speed at which Star Masters absorb that starlight is much faster than ordinary cultivators,” When Liu Xian Yun said this, she suddenly paused, and her beautiful eyes widened as she swept them over Yang Kai in shock.

“What’s wrong?” Yang Kai frowned.

“Strange!” Liu Xian Yun frowned as she said in surprise, “Brother Yang, aren’t you a Star Master?”

Before, she could clearly see all the surrounding starlight rush into Yang Kai’s body like a whale sucking in water in the Starlight Corridor. That was irrefutable proof he was a Star Master, as Yang Kai’s speed of absorption was even higher than Yin Le Sheng’s.

The other Star Master who was present together with Yang Kai could not even absorb a tenth as much starlight.

“I am a Star Master!” Yang Kai did not deny it as he had already been exposed back in the Starlight Corridor.

“But why don’t you have starlight glow about you?” Liu Xian Yun’s expression became even stranger.

“What do you mean?” Yang Kai looked at her in confusion.

Liu Xian Yun quickly explained, “Let’s put it this way, when a Star Master first enters the Star Boundary, because they have absorbed too much starlight from the Starlight Corridor, they naturally release a faint starlight glow from their bodies. This glow, while not strong, is incredibly obvious and something completely unique to Star Masters, but you…”

Yang Kai looked down at himself and found no trace of excess starlight.

However, when he quickly checked inside his Knowledge Sea, he found it filled with brilliant starlight, especially the area around his Seven Coloured Soul Warming Lotus. The starlight there was so rich it was nearly blinding.

At once, he felt relieved as he understood that this starlight had simply not integrated into his body yet and had been instead gathered into his Knowledge Sea.

Liu Xian Yun’s information was not wrong, it was just that Yang Kai was a unique case, and since this matter was related to his Seven Coloured Soul Warming Lotus, Yang Kai naturally didn’t explain.

“Does this have something to do with the Starlight Corridor shattering?” Liu Xian Yun frowned, trying to come up with a possible explanation.

“Perhaps!” Yang Kai immediately hit the snake with a stick.

Liu Xian Yun glanced at him faintly but did not dwell on the issue anymore, simply smiling instead and saying, “It’s better this way anyway. Without that starlight glow, Brother Yang would be much safer.”

“Why do you say that?” Yang Kai asked.

“Because of the Star Source,” Liu Xian Yun explained. “Why did Senior Brother Yin target you? It was because he wanted to rob you of your Star Source. In the Star Boundary, Star Sources are rare treasures as a cultivator with a Star Source can more easily sense World Principles and more easily break through to the Dao Source Realm and Emperor Realm, which is why everyone covets Star Sources. If you still had that starlight around your body, wouldn’t that be a sign that you are a Star Master who just came out of the Starlight Corridor? Wouldn’t that draw people’s greed? You should know that there is more than one Secret Technique to extract a Star Source from someone in the Star Boundary. This Mistress will advise you now, don’t let others know that you are a Star Master, otherwise, you will likely be killed.”

“Damn it!” Yang Kai’s expression suddenly changed.

Liu Xian Yun was taken aback by his sudden reaction and asked, “What happened?”

“My companion!” Yang Kai thought of Ai Ou, who was also a Star Master, and his face suddenly sank.

Ai Ou did not know anything about the Star Boundary and had also absorbed a lot of starlight in the Starlight Corridor. Right now, it would be obvious to anyone from the Star Boundary that Ai Ou was a Star Master.

If what Liu Xian Yun said was true, Ai Ou may be in a bad situation right now.

Liu Xian Yun soon also understood, thought for a moment, then said, “The Starlight Corridor collapsed, causing everyone to be swallowed up by Void Cracks, so there’s nothing you can do for now other than pray your friend has good luck. There are both pros and cons to this situation. Although Star Master cultivators are easily aimed at, if he encounters a powerful master with noble character, perhaps this will be his opportunity.”

Seeing Yang Kai looking towards her questioningly, Liu Xian Yun took the initiative to explain, “If your friend encounters a righteous master, there’s a good chance he will be recruited as a disciple. Star Masters from the lower Star Fields are all highly valued and have great potential, so the bigger Sects do their best to recruit people like you and your companions as disciples to train.”

“Is that true?” Yang Kai was surprised.

“Of course,” Liu Xian Yun nodded sincerely. “There are ten peak Emperors in the Star Boundary, and it is rumoured that six of them came from low-level Star Fields. Each of them a Star Master.”

“Ten peak Emperors?” Yang Kai’s eyes lit up when he heard it, “Who are they?”

He suddenly thought of Yang Yan and wondered if she was qualified to be among these ten masters.

Liu Xian Yun chuckled, “I don’t know. Everything I know about the Star Boundary is from Senior Brother Yin. His Netherworld Sect’s main headquarters is in the Star Boundary, so they know more than us. What I do know is that the ten peak Emperors are all characters who can shake the world and possess strength we can only look up to… En, Brother Yang may one day reach such a height. As for this Mistress, it will be enough to cultivate to the Emperor Realm someday.”

Saying so, Liu Xian Yun smiled bitterly.

Yang Kai said lightly, “Don’t be too modest, no one knows what the future will bring. Perhaps you will soar from the branches into the sky one day.”

Liu Xian Yun smiled, “Then I’ll borrow Brother Yang’s auspicious words.”

Yang Kai nodded, and although he was anxious for Ai Ou deep in his heart, he understood he was currently helpless to do anything about the situation. He could only hope that Ai Ou would notice something and conceal himself well to refine the starlight before emerging. Yang Kai believed that Ai Ou would definitely not act rashly; he was an experienced veteran, after all.

After their chat, Yang Kai and Liu Xian Yun felt much more cordial and there was no longer a sharp, tense atmosphere like when they first met.

Yang Kai also gained a certain understanding of Liu Xian Yun’s character and realized that she was truly helpless when they attacked his group.

In the Starlight Corridor before, she had been forced to obey Yin Le Sheng, so there was no point blaming her.

Yang Kai was not too anxious to recover his strength and instead prioritised his talk with Liu Xian Yun to gain more information while he slowly restored.

Unfortunately, Liu Xian Yun did not know much about the Star Boundary, so she had told him everything she knew after only a short time.

Afterwards, the two of them chatted about their respective Star Fields.

Although it was just a casual discussion, Yang Kai soon discovered that her Grand Desolation Star Field was quite similar to his home Star Field in almost every respect.

The biggest difference was Yin Le Sheng’s presence in the Grand Desolation Star Field, a sole hegemon who stood above all others, while in Yang Kai’s Star Field, three peak powers shared the distinction of ‘strongest’.