Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Raikov

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

"He… Help me!" Li Jiao couldn't break free from Zhu Lie's hold and his neck felt like it was going to be crushed, while the cold murderous intent in Zhu Lie's eyes filled him with overwhelming fear. He could only turn his head towards Yang Kai creakily and beg for help.

Since they came together, Yang Kai's words must carry some weight.

But Yang Kai just shrugged, "I apologize, Brother Li, but there's nothing I can do about this situation."

Li Jiao was gasping and could no longer spit out any words. The group of Fire Dragon Palace Elders were also anxious, all of them watching their Palace Master suffer this humiliation, but none of them daring to go up and help. Not that they could help with their strength even if they tried. It was an extremely awkward situation.

"I forgot to tell you. This Dragon is Zhu Qing's younger brother, he also came from Dragon Island. You still remember Zhu Qing, don't you? She was the female dragon that headed to that place. Speaking of which, Brother Li must also take some responsibility for this matter." Yang Kai made a long sigh, "Zhu Qing has not returned since she set off for that place, so it seems like she has encountered some kind of danger. After that, her younger brother came out from Dragon Island hoping to save his Elder Sister. Tsk tsk, such a touching sibling love, but since learning that Brother Li was the source of the matter, his impression of you hasn't been very good…"

Li Jiao's eyes were almost rolling to the back of his head and only the white of them could be seen.

"Ah, that's right," Yang Kai continued piling wood to the fire, "This Brother also seems to not be very fond of those who are not of pure blood. He sees one, he'll kill one, sees two, he'll kill both. When I mentioned Brother Li's situation to him previously, I'm not sure if he heard me or not, but in any case, this is a matter between Dragon Island and your Fire Dragon Palace. It's really not appropriate for me, an outsider, to interfere."

Only at this moment did Li Jiao understand what Yang Kai meant by crisis.

This was indeed a big crisis for him. He couldn't understand how the Dragon Clan that was hard for normal Masters to see even once in their lives would appear in front of him time after time. And it was always related to this damned High Heaven Palace Palace Master!

More and more, Li Jiao was beginning to see Dragon Island's shadow lurking behind High Heaven Palace, and in the current situation, even if this Dragon really did kill him, he was in no position to argue, much less expect those subordinates of his to avenge him.

He wanted to speak, but no matter how he tried, he couldn't spit out a single word. Left with no other choice, he could only raise his hand and put up three fingers, shaking it constantly.

"Brother Li, what are you trying to say? I can't understand the gesture you're making." Yang Kai had a bewildered look on his face.

Li Jiao continued shaking.

But Yang Kai turned a deaf ear to it.

Three fingers turned into two, and then finally into one.

Only then did Yang Kai say, "I think I understand now. Since Brother Li is so sincere, I think we can negotiate." He turned to Zhu Lie and said, "Let him go for now. If you really kill him, then don't even hope that you can find your Elder Sister anymore."

Zhu Lie coldly snorted and threw Li Jiao out like a loose sack.

With a bang, Li Jiao fell heavily to the side and rolled a few times before he came to a stop. Quickly crawling up, he coughed violently for a while.

It took him a lot of effort before he was able to steady himself, but he didn't even have the courage to glare at Zhu Lie. His eyes were dodging left and right, nerves overwhelmed by fear. If any other Third-Order Emperor Realm Master was placed in front of him, then he wouldn't behave this way, but in front of a Pureblood Dragon, he just couldn't find it in his bones to resist or even feel resentful. He just felt inferior in every way, and that he deserved this mistreatment.

"Brother Li, matters can't be delayed. We should depart now," Yang Kai said to Li Jiao.

Li Jiao nodded helplessly.

Yang Kai responded with a smile, "Don't look so aggrieved. It's not like we really want your life, we just want you to lead the way. What's more, it's not like you're not gaining anything from this. This Palace Master can give you a grace period of one year to repay your debt."

Li Jiao could not stop his face from twitching, feeling so much regret that his stomach was doing flips. If he had known that Yang Kai would bring a True Dragon with him, then he would have agreed to anything he said from the start. How could he have tried to bargain with him? Now, it was done. The original three-year deadline extension had been cut to just one year, and it was by his own request.

Li Jiao turned around and instructed the many Emperor Realm Masters present, "Please take care of the palace. This Li will be out for a while."

The Elders nodded repeatedly and looked at Li Jiao with pity in their eyes. They knew Li Jiao's situation as well, and knew that he was not a fearful man, he simply had no choice in front of his natural enemy.

Frightened to delay any longer, Li Jiao urged Yang Kai to hurry on their way.

After the Flowing Clouds Shuttle was summoned, the three men entered it and shot off towards the north.

Each territory had its own Forbidden Zones and Restricted Areas.

The Southern Territory had the Southern Swamp, the Eastern Territory had the Ancient Wild Lands, the Western Territory had the Western Dessert, while the Northern Territory had the Frozen Earth. These were only the most famous spots, however, as there were countless other dangerous places of varying sizes.

But in terms of the degree of danger and fatality rate, if the Northern Territory's Frozen Earth were placed second, then no other place could be named first.

The Frozen Earth's reputation as the most dangerous place in the entire Star Boundary was recognized by all. Even Great Emperors did not dare to venture casually into this Forbidden Zone. Other places such as Southern Swamp and Ancient Wild Lands contained many different treasures. Though these places were extremely dangerous, they held many hidden opportunities; however, there was nothing beyond cold death in the Frozen Earth.

No one knew what the Frozen Earth looked like inside because everyone who entered its depths, died.

The first reason Li Jiao was able to come out of the Frozen Earth alive was because of luck, and the second was because he did not delve too deep. The place that he went back then was but the outer periphery.

That was several hundreds of years ago, when Li Jiao had just advanced to the Third-Order Emperor Realm. He was in vigorous spirits and reckless, feeling that there was nowhere in this vast world he could not go.

On a whim, he took a trip to the Frozen Earth.

After narrowly escaping death on that trip, Li Jiao swore that he would never go to the Frozen Earth again. It was also during that time that Li Jiao brought the Dragon Blood Flower back to Fire Dragon Palace.

He never thought that he would have to go there again several hundred years later.

Despite it being such a long time ago, Li Jiao still remembered his experience vividly. On the way, he revealed a lot of information about the Frozen Earth to Yang Kai and Zhu Lie, and even though it was not much, it was still useful.

According to Li Jiao, the Frozen Earth's greatest feature was its frigid temperature. The cold there was not ordinary by any measure and could extinguish all vitality. It was a kind of cold that could not be described, nor could it be resisted.

That damned place seemed to have a natural restraint on all life, and any existence with vitality would not be able to survive there for long.

Very soon, they were able to confirm that information.

The further north they went on the Flowing Clouds Shuttle, the colder the temperature got outside. There was a blanket of white as far as the eye could see, making it impossible to distinguish between the four directions.

Snowflakes the size of goose feathers were constantly floating around the sky, and the entire world seemed to be frozen. Besides white, there was simply no other colour to be seen.

Despite hiding in the Flowing Clouds Shuttle, the three of them could still feel some chill. Even though it was weak, this was still extremely rare.

The Flowing Clouds Shuttle may be a flight type artifact, but it was still an Emperor Artifact after all, one refined by Hou Yu's hands personally, having many defensive features equipped. If even an Emperor Artifact like this could not withstand the severe cold, it was not hard to imagine how harsh the environment was outside.

Li Jiao's face grew more and more terrible, and if not for Zhu Lie standing nearby as a deterrent, he would probably have fled and ran back.

Ten days after their departure from Fire Dragon Palace, the three men barely reached the edge of the Frozen Earth.

Li Jiao had a vivid memory of the location where he found the Dragon Blood Flower, so he was constantly leading the way forward.

And so, after another two days passed, Li Jiao suddenly said with excitement, "Over there! See that three-peaked mountain? That's where I found the Dragon Blood Flower back then."

Yang Kai glanced at Zhu Lie, whose brows knitted slightly and he slowly shook his head.

He and Zhu Qing were brother and sister, and they were both Red Dragons, so there was more or less some connection between them. If Zhu Qing were still there, he would have been able to sense it.

But at this moment, he could not feel any of Zhu Qing's aura at all.

Regardless, Yang Kai steered the Flowing Clouds Shuttle towards the three-peaked mountain. At the depressions between the peaks, the Flowing Clouds Shuttle landed, and the three came out in turn.

As soon as they left the Flowing Clouds Shuttle's protection, a cold that penetrated deep into the depths of both their bones and their Souls came over them from all directions, causing them to be unable to help themselves from shuddering and circulating their strength to resist it.

This was only the edge of the Frozen Earth, and it was already so cold that an ordinary First-Order Emperor Realm Master probably couldn't last more than a day or so. It was hard to imagine how things were like in the deeper areas of the Frozen Earth.

Zhu Lie's Dragon Aura seemed to have some subduing effect on this type of cold though, so when Li Jiao saw this, he couldn't help but lean closer. But when he was met with Zhu Lie's cold stare, he chuckled embarrassedly and backed two steps away.

Yang Kai swept out his Divine Sense and scanned through a hundred-kilometre radius, only to retract it after a short while and shiver slightly.

In that short amount of time, it felt like his Divine Sense was going to freeze completely. If he did not retract it then, he would have suffered damage to his Soul.

"This is where you pointed Zhu Qing to that day?" Y ang Kai turned to ask Li Jiao.

Li Jiao hurriedly responded, "Yes, I'm sure of it. I remember this place. Unless there exists another location in the Frozen Earth that is exactly the same as this one…"

The three-peaked mountain was a good landmark, so even though it happened several hundreds of years ago, Ji Liao's memory wouldn't be wrong.

While speaking, he beckoned them, "I remember it was in this direction that I found the Dragon Blood Flower back then."

Yang Kai and Zhu Lie followed behind him, and soon, Li Jiao stopped at a certain spot. Looking up at the direction of the three-peaked mountain, he silently calculated and verified it for a long time before nodding, "This is the place, it has to be."

Zhu Lie also said, "I can feel a weak Dragon Aura here."

As he spoke, he raised his hand and a flame erupted on his palm, turning into a vivid Fire Dragon that crashed straight onto the snow on the ground.

The hot fire melted the snow and very soon, a deep depression of several hundreds of meters quickly appeared, revealing the dirt hidden underneath the ice.

The dirt was frozen solid, and was even stiffer than steel; however, there was a very obvious trace of what appeared to be a huge claw mark on top of it.

Li Jiao said excitedly, "See? I was right! This is where that Great Dragon died."

The huge claw marks were clearly left behind by the claws of a Dragon. Even after hundreds of years, it was perfectly preserved under the cover of the snow.