Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Tia

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

Along the way, Yang Kai finally learnt an unknown side of Wen Zi Shan. Wen Zi Shan was a chatterbox! He chattered on and on without stopping. Although Yang Kai used to think that Wen Zi Shan was rather unreliable, they had never interacted with each other for long; therefore, he did not know what kind of personality Wen Zi Shan had. It wasn't until now that he finally experienced it for himself.

Wen Zi Shan initially pestered Gao Xue Ting for a bit, but his enthusiasm naturally received a cold reaction. In the whole of Azure Sun Temple, only Gao Xue Ting dared to be so openly disrespectful to him.

After being rebuffed by Gao Xue Ting's attitude, Wen Zi Shan slowed down to keep pace with Yang Kai and the others instead. He began talking about the past and the present with a burst of joy. Luo Chen and Xiao Bai Yi had relatively cold and aloof personalities and were men of few words, so they responded tersely out of respect since Wen Zi Shan was still technically their Temple Master. However, they closed their eyes after a few words as if to meditate and rest. Thus, Yang Kai and Murong Xiao Xiao got the worst of it instead.

Fortunately, Wen Zi Shan did not pester those two for long. Half a day later, he fell behind to join the others at the back, smoothly inserting himself into the group of Dao Source, Origin King, and Origin Returning Realm Juniors, allowing Murong Xiao Xiao to finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Meanwhile, the group of disciples at the back were rather polite and respectful. Wen Zi Shan was so approachable even though he was the Temple Master, so how could his disciples not get along with him? Especially those disciples that were patted on the shoulder and loudly praised by Wen Zi Shan as he declared, "You are the future of the Temple! The Temple's prosperity will depend on you from now on!" They were practically glowing with pride and feeling emotional beyond words, seemingly on the verge of digging out their hearts for him to see how loyal they were to the Temple.

Yang Kai looked back at Wen Zi Shan from time to time, and the expressions on his face were very colourful. [I have to admit that I am pretty unreliable as the Palace Master of High Heaven Palace, but compared to Wen Zi Shan, aren't I like a rock for everyone to lean on?]

The group travelled non-stop, passing by several cities along the way and even using a few Space Arrays to cover vast distances more quickly. When evening rolled around, the group arrived at Orthodoxy Temple. The undulating mountains here were extremely majestic and looked like a large Dragon crawling on the ground. The scenery was beautiful and the weather was pleasant.

Orthodoxy Temple was one of the top Sects in the Southern Territory; therefore, it was only natural that it occupied a Cultivation Paradise. The environment here was no worse than Azure Sun Temple. In addition, it had a beautiful landscape. Looking out into the distance, the clouds and mist rolled off the mountains everywhere the eye could see; moreover, the afterglow of the setting sun dyed the world in a golden light.

There was a crowd of people in front of the main gate of Orthodoxy Temple, making for a lively scene. Since the Martial Gathering was right around the corner, many people had arrived to participate in the event. It was no surprise; the Martial Gathering was a grand event for the entire Southern Territory after all.

Putting aside the generous rewards that made one green with envy, one could also gain the attention of their respective Elders if they performed well during the competition. Moreover, there were many cultivators from humble backgrounds who wanted to create a path for their future in the Martial Gathering. It wasn't as though there was no precedent. The cultivators from humble backgrounds might not be able to join the group events, but if they could deliver a stellar performance in the individual competitions, most of them would be able to successfully join a major Sect or force.

On the other hand, the major Sects were striving for rankings and reputation. The generous rewards came second. Meanwhile, those rewards were very tempting to some of the smaller Sects and clans. It was also a chance to achieve unlimited success. Who would be willing to miss out on this opportunity? Hence, each and every Martial Gathering was extremely popular, and the participants entering the competition were too many to count.

Tomorrow was the day the Martial Gathering officially began, so it appeared Azure Sun Temple had arrived just in the nick of time. It was one of the top Sects in the Southern Territory after all so it was only natural to show off a little. Although Wen Zi Shan was not very reliable, he still understood the importance of such things.

Orthodoxy Temple's Sect Defending Array had been deactivated today and many people were standing outside to welcome the guests.

As soon as the group from Azure Sun Temple landed, an elderly man dressed in black and an elegant looking young man immediately came forward to greet them. Both of these men were in the Emperor Realm with the elderly one being a Second-Order Emperor while the young man was a First-Order.

"Welcome, Temple Master Wen. It is an honour for Orthodoxy Temple to have you here. Do forgive us for any discourtesy in our hospitality." The elderly man stepped forward and greeted them with a smile.

Wen Zi Shan also put on the appearance of a dignified Temple Master, acting as though that chatterbox during the journey had not been him as he smiled faintly, "Elder Feng, you are too polite. Are you here to greet the guests today?"

The elderly man was none other than Feng Ming, an Elder of Orthodoxy Temple. Yang Kai had met him several times before, so they were not strangers to each other. Besides, Feng Ming had worked together with Gao Xue Ting on many occasions and had also been present at various events, including the Four Seasons Realm, the Demon Qi eruption outside Maplewood City, and the Demon Spirits' revival at the Southern Swamp. It was just that he and Yang Kai did not belong in the same generation, so they rarely interacted with each other. On the other hand, Yang Kai was on rather friendly terms with the young man behind him.

It was clear that the young man had noticed Yang Kai and his eyes lit up as he cupped his fists, "Brother Yang, you came too."

Yang Kai replied, "Brother Zhuang."

This young man was the rising star of Orthodoxy Temple, Zhuang Bu Fan. He had been present at both the Four Seasons Realm and the Shattered Star Sea as he was from the same generation as Yang Kai, Xiao Bai Yi, and Murong Xiao Xiao; therefore, they were not strangers to each other. Now that they had gathered in the same place, it was only expected that they wanted to have a chat together.

As a result, Luo Chen was pushed to the side and forgotten. Fortunately, he had an aloof personality by nature and did not feel embarrassed by the situation. He simply stood there quietly without saying a word.

While they were chatting away, they suddenly heard a sniggering sound coming from afar. Everybody turned to look in the direction and saw a giant longsword rushing in their direction at a high speed from the horizon. The terrifying Sword Intent felt as though it could cause injuries despite the distance between them so no one dared to underestimate it.

Feng Ming smiled, "Holy Master Ma has arrived."

Wen Zi Shan spat disdainfully, already feeling fed up, "He sure knows how to time his arrival."

He seemed to have felt like he had suffered a loss just by arriving a little earlier.

It was well known that Star Soul Palace would send their people over to watch the Southern Territory Martial Gathering, so even Wen Zi Shan had to personally lead his team as a sign of respect. Therefore, it was only to be expected that Heavenly Martial Holy Land, which was also one of the top Sects in the Southern Territory, would not be any less respectful. Holy Master Ma Qing also personally led his Sect's team this time.

Since they were old acquaintances, Wen Zi Shan immediately knew that Ma Qing was here the moment he saw the sword light. The sword light approached from afar and soon arrived, dissipating to reveal several dozen people with the one leading them being a ruddy-faced white-haired old man. His figure was thin but his gaze was as sharp as a sword and he held himself tall and straight, giving off a piercing aura.

[He's Ma Qing?] Yang Kai couldn't help glancing at the man curiously. It was his first time meeting the Holy Master of Heavenly Martial Holy Land so he was surprised to learn that it was an old man. In comparison, Wen Zi Shan was more pleasing to the eye.

Feng Ming apologized and took his leave to give his greetings to Ma Qing.

Ma Qing and the others cupped their fists and returned Feng Ming's greetings. The number of people who came from Heavenly Martial Holy Land was similar to Azure Sun Temple. There were four Emperors, each leading a team of several dozen disciples of various cultivation Realms. They were clearly the elites of the elites.

"Brother Wen," Ma Qing held one hand behind his back and stroked his beard with the other, nodding slightly at Wen Zi Shan.

Wen Zi Shan spoke in a pointed voice, "Brother Ma, you're as punctual as ever." He seemed to be teasing Ma Qing for arriving just in time.

Ma Qing replied calmly, "My disciples were a little absent-minded, so there were some delays on the road."

Wen Zi Shan laughed, "If you knew that they were going to be a little absent-minded, then you should have departed earlier. It's rude of you to make Brother Lei wait."

"You seem to have just arrived yourself, Brother Wen."

"Tsk." He curled his lips into a sneer, "We arrived a long time ago. I was simply chatting with Elder Feng until now."

The two seemed to have some grievances between them so they went at each other's throats the moment they met. It wasn't just the respective Temple Master and Holy Master who were acting in this manner, the disciples under them were also behaving in a similar fashion. The disciples of Azure Sun Temple were glaring daggers at the disciples of Heavenly Martial Holy Land while the latter was not backing down from the challenge and glared right back. Both parties got along as well as oil and water.

Yang Kai was amazed by the sight. He might be a High-Rank Guest Elder of Azure Sun Temple, but he didn't know much about Azure Sun Temple's actual situation. He did not know what kind of grudge they had against Heavenly Martial Holy Land for the disciples to get into a silent confrontation with the other party as soon as they met.

The Temple Master and Holy Master standing at the top were not to be trifled with, and the disciples under them were no pushovers either. The same held true for the Emperor Realm Elders of the two forces.

Yang Kai turned his head to see that Murong Xiao Xiao and the others were also glaring at the four Emperor Realm Masters of Heavenly Martial Holy Land, sparks almost flying in the air between them.

[What is with this situation!?] Yang Kai was utterly confused.

Then, a young man walked out from among the four Elders of Heavenly Martial Holy Land. The young man had a wild and rebellious air around him, and the look in his eyes was sharp and cold. He looked like he had a beast that could jump out to attack others at any time lying dormant inside him. That wasn't all; his eyes were very strange too. The left pupil was red and the right was faint blue. The skin and hair of the left side were fiery red, but the right side of the body was snowy white. It was an extremely unsettling sight.

[Wu Chang! He sure lives up to his name!] There was a rising star in every generation among the top Sects of the Southern Territory. The rising star of Azure Sun Temple was Xia Sheng, Orthodoxy Temple had Zhuang Bu Fan, and Heavenly Martial Holy Land had Wu Chang.

Yang Kai had exchanged blows with Wu Chang before in the Four Seasons Realm, so he knew just how difficult an opponent this boy was. Wu Chang seemed to have some sort of Special Constitution which greatly enhanced his combat ability. During the last Southern Territory Martial Gathering, Xia Sheng had apparently been defeated by Wu Chang and placed second in the individual rankings as a result. Although Azure Sun Temple regained its pride by ranking at the top in the group competition, the first person people thought of when talking about the number one among the younger generation in the Southern Territory was Wu Chang, not Xia Sheng.

Not to forget, Lan Xun of Star Soul Palace, who was also an extraordinary talent. Unfortunately, Star Soul Palace did not send any of its disciples to participate in the Martial Gathering, so Lan Xun was not included among the rankings.

Yang Kai secretly made a conjecture in his heart. [Could this animosity between the two Sects be related to the last Southern Territory Martial Gathering?]

Xia Sheng had been overwhelmed by Wu Chang in the individual rankings, which upset Azure Sun Temple. Meanwhile, Heavenly Martial Holy Land had suffered a terrible defeat to Azure Sun Temple in the group rankings, which definitely upset Heavenly Martial Holy Land in return.

Wu Chang swept his gaze over the crowd with his heterochromatic eyes before turning to look at Yang Kai, "Xia Sheng didn't come?" He seemed slightly disappointed.

Yang Kai replied, "Senior Brother Xia is stationed at Spirit Lake Palace and is unable to leave his post."

"Coward!" Wu Chang coldly snorted.

Xiao Bai Yi's lowered eyes lifted abruptly as he glared at Wu Chang with a gaze as sharp as a sword. Likewise, Murong Xiao Xiao also glared at Wu Chang angrily. Wu Chang had insulted one of them the moment they met; moreover, the person he had insulted was none other than Xia Sheng.

Xia Sheng was a leading figure who represented Azure Sun Temple, so how could Azure Sun Temple take this insult lying down?

Feng Ming glanced over in this direction, whether intentionally or unintentionally; however, he did not seem inclined to stop them and just continued chatting and laughing away with Wen Zi Shan.

Wen Zi Shan was also acting as though he had not heard a thing. As the Temple Master, it was not appropriate for him to intervene in the fights between those below him. The same went for Ma Qing.

The top three Sects in the Southern Territory might cooperate on many occasions, but the competition between them was very fierce too. Every one of them wanted to dominate the others. Unfortunately, nobody dared to confront each other openly with Star Soul Palace watching over them from the top. Hence, it did not hurt to let those below them make a little commotion here and there…