Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Tia

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

Yang Kai's Divine Sense fluctuated and moved about, and he soon noticed something that could not be seen by the naked eye.

The 10 Primary Demon Strongholds were connected to each other with the Demon Towers serving as the foundation. This allowed the Demon Race army to travel back and forth rapidly. Moreover, the 10 Demon Towers seemed to be closely related to each other. To destroy one Demon Tower, one had to destroy all 10 Demon Towers at the same time for any chance of success. The Demon Towers might be tall, but they were constructed in a mysterious way that made them extremely strong. It was no wonder even the two Dragon Clan Elders were helpless against them.

Now that the strength of the two Dragon Clan Elders had grown significantly, they might be able to destroy the Demon Towers if they were allowed to attack with all their strength. Unfortunately, the three Demon Saints were not dead, so they were bound to rush over to stop them the moment Zhu Yan and Fu Zhu tried.

Upon further investigation, Yang Kai realized that what connected the 10 Primary Demon Strongholds were not just the 10 Demon Towers but also a dense network of nodes. After counting them, there turned out to be 108 in total.

The realisation struck him and the 108 Demon Strongholds in the Star Boundary immediately came to mind. 108 Demon Strongholds had appeared in the Star Boundary in the past. Be that as it may, apart from the 10 Primary Demon Strongholds, the Demon Race armies at the remaining 98 Demon Strongholds were either wiped out by the Star Boundary armies or abandoned. Even so, those Demon Strongholds and the Demon Lands that had been devoured remained until now. It was something even the World Principles of the Star Boundary could not repair.

This number had long made many Masters in the Star Boundary secretly wary. The number '108' just happened to coincide with the number in the Heavenly Orbit after all; thus, they couldn't help wondering if the Demon Race had some sort of secret conspiracy going on. Now it would seem that it was indeed part of a greater plot after all.

Furthermore, the Demon Race had used some sort of unknown method to make these 108 Demon Strongholds into the base of an enormous Spirit Array. They had secretly arranged this inexplicable Heaven Shaking Grand Array, and once it was activated, it rapidly eroded the Star Boundary.

This move was something the Demon Race had planned for from the moment the second Two Worlds Great War broke out, but it wasn't until today that those plans were put into action. It could be said that they had been plotting far ahead from the beginning.

Under Yang Kai's investigation, the 108 Demon Strongholds were now rapidly expanding at an astonishing rate. At every moment, there was a large piece of the Star Boundary being transformed into a Demon Land and the Auspicious Spirit Essence was lost as a result.

There was only one thing he could not understand. The foundation for this Grand Array had been arranged several years ago, so why did the Demon Race wait until today to activate it? What was the Grand Array lacking that made the Demon Race hold back for so long?

Yang Kai extended his Divine Sense to probe even deeper, reaching out into the distance when all of a sudden, a shocking image flashed through his mind for a moment before quickly disappearing.

He abruptly jerked his eyes open in shock and cursed, "Damn it!"

Then, he reached out to grab the Azure Dragon Spear and flew up into the sky without warning. Holding the spear straight, he condensed every last bit of strength he could muster as he charged straight at the Demon Tower.

The Demon Race Half-Saints in the surrounding area jumped in surprise. They never imagined that Yang Kai would suddenly turn violent, and by the time they came back to their senses, all of them turned pale together. The Bone Demon Half-Saint from before was the first to shout, "Stop him!"

As soon as those words rang out, the Half-Saints attacked in unison. Various Demon Artifacts and Secret Techniques blasted in Yang Kai's direction.

Although Yang Kai's body was as big as a small mountain now, he was strangely agile and nimble. He flickered about erratically, avoided several terrifying attacks one after another and arrived in front of the Demon Tower in the blink of an eye.

Under the horrified gazes of those Half-Saints, Yang Kai gathered everything he could into his spear and thrust forward viciously. A huge black ball with a radius of several tens of metres appeared at the tip of the spear, Space Principles rampaging from it. It was filled with chaos and nothingness, similar to the aura of a Void Crack.

*Hong...*

A wave of vibrations spread out from the Demon Tower as the black ball shrank abruptly. At the same time, both the Heavens and Earth collapsed violently in the direction of the black ball.

*Kacha...* A series of crackling sounds that set one's teeth on edge rang out from the Demon Tower.

Just then, a ferocious attack landed on Yang Kai's shoulder. A powerful force erupted and sent his enormous body flying. Despite being thrown into the air, he continued to glare fiercely at the movements of the Demon Tower.

The huge black ball violently shrank into a small black spot and vanished with a flash. At the same time, a large circular hole appeared where the Demon Tower had been struck. The hole was so large that it practically cut the Demon Tower in half. On the other hand, the Demon Tower became extremely unstable after being subjected to this heavy blow. It swayed slightly several times before falling to the ground with a loud creaking sound.

The Half-Saints were so horrified that both their bodies and souls trembled. They never imagined that Yang Kai's attack would be so powerful that he could cause such damage to the Demon Tower with just a single blow. More importantly, the Demon Tower currently played a key role in the Demon Race's plans. The Demon Saints would never spare their lives if the Demon Tower was destroyed.

Yang Kai frowned, watching the Demon Tower falling to the ground and did not feel the slightest bit of joy in his heart. Rather, a sense of unease bloomed in him. His current strength might be strong, but it should only be comparable to a Half-Saint. It was also true that he had exerted all of his strength when he wielded his spear to attack just now; otherwise, he would not have been unable to dodge the enemy attack.

But… could an attack like that really destroy the Demon Tower? As far as he knew, it wasn't as if the two Dragon Clan Elders had not tried to attack the Demon Towers in the past. They actually carried out several attempts, but even they were unable to cause any damage to the Demon Tower in a short time despite using their Unified Secret Techniques.

Yang Kai knew his own power best and was well aware he was no match for either Zhu Yan or Fu Zhun, so how could he possibly do something that they together couldn't? Even so, there was no denying that the Demon Tower was about to collapse at any moment because of his attack. The slanted Demon Tower only lasted for less than 10 breaths before it collapsed under his gaze. The earth trembled and a haze of dust rose from the impact.

Those Half-Saints felt their limbs going cold and their complexions turned as pale as sheets. Meanwhile, Yang Kai closed his eyes and spread his Divine Sense out again to check the situation in his surroundings, a short while later grinding his teeth in frustration.

The Demon Stronghold's expansion did not stop just because one Demon Tower had been destroyed. The 108 Demon Strongholds remained closely linked. Not a single thing had changed. It would seem that once the inexplicable Grand Array that was arranged by the Demon Race was activated, the existence of the Demon Towers became irrelevant.

It was no wonder he could knock down the Demon Tower in a single blow. It wasn't because he was stronger than the two Dragon Clan Elders, it was simply because the Demon Towers had become an existence that was no longer necessary.

All the pieces that the Demon Race required were already in place, so they only needed to wait for the Demon Land to expand until it completely devoured the Star Boundary. At that time, the Star Boundary would become a paradise for the Demon Race. It would become the second Demon Realm!

On the other hand, the Star Boundary would follow in the footsteps of the Peerless World.

Yang Kai coughed lightly as the sweet taste of blood rose in his throat before he turned his head to the side and spat. Even with his more than 1,000-metre-long Half-Dragon Body, taking a blow from a Half-Saint wasn't something he could just shrug off.

At this moment, the ashen-faced Half-Saints seemed to notice something. Their Divine Senses fluctuated as they communicated between themselves for a moment before their pale faces gradually returned to normal. The expressions on their faces as they looked at Yang Kai also became mocking.

He stared at them coldly, gripped the Azure Dragon Spear tightly, and turned to leave. Having achieved his purpose in coming here, there was no need to stay any longer. He might not be afraid of any Half-Saint in a one-on-one battle, but his strength was lacking if he had to face many of them at once.

Swiftly, he returned to High Heaven Palace. He didn't even take the time to treat his wounds and teleported directly to the Main Conference Hall.

A familiar figure was waiting for him at the entrance.

Stepping forward, Yang Kai cupped his fists in greeting, "Supreme Commander Li!"

"I heard you went to investigate the situation at the Demon Stronghold. Did you learn anything?" Li Wu Yi asked anxiously. He had rushed over after receiving a report from Hua Qing Si. If there was anybody in the Star Boundary who could get accurate information regarding the Demon Race, it would be Yang Kai; thus, he had come anxiously. Unable to bear waiting for a reply, he decided to come out and ask in person instead.

"A little bit. Let's go in and talk," Yang Kai responded and entered the hall together with Li Wu Yi.

Inside the hall, Hua Qing Si had summoned all the top leaders of the various armies to this place and served them tea while waiting for Yang Kai to return. Be that as it may, who would be in the mood to sip tea when the Star Boundary's survival was on the line? All of them were glancing outside anxiously, and when they saw Yang Kai appear, they quickly stood up.

"Palace Master, are you hurt?" Hua Qing Si noticed the smear of blood at the corner of Yang Kai's mouth and his slightly pale complexion.

"It's nothing," Yang Kai waved his hand dismissively. After asking everybody to return to their seats, he shared all the information he obtained during his investigation.

Everybody inside the hall had ugly expressions on their faces after listening to the information Yang Kai brought back.

The Fifty-Third Army's Army Commander, Fu Ren Jie, spoke through gritted teeth, "I knew there was something strange about those 108 Demon Strongholds, but I never expected this. The Demon Race really played us for fools."

"Devouring the Star Boundary… Their appetite is certainly big." Somebody coldly snorted.

"I just wonder if they can actually succeed!" The Twenty-Seventh Army's Army Commander, Shen Tu Xing, smiled deviously, "Do they really take the Star Boundary's army for decorations!?"

The Nineteenth Army's Army Commander, Pan Geng Nian, frowned at those words, "Now that the Demon Lands are expanding, the Star Boundary will really fall if we don't contain the expansion soon. It wouldn't matter how large or how strong our armies are, once that happens, everything would be useless."

Shen Tu Xing turned to look at Pan Geng Nian, "Brother Pan, why do you have to boost the enemy's prestige and lower our morale?"

Pan Geng Nian shook his head and simply said lightly, "It's the truth."

Shen Tu Xing was about to retort when Yang Kai interrupted the conversation, "Although you might be reluctant to admit it, the Demon Race is truly capable of devouring the Star Boundary whole."

Everybody turned to look at him. Standing up, he swept his gaze over the crowd and spoke in a ringing voice, "Have any of you ever heard of the Great Demon God?"

"Great Demon God?"

"What is that?"

"A Master from the Demon Race? Which Demon is so bold as to use such a title?"

The group of Pseudo-Great Emperor Army Commanders muttered in astonishment. It was obvious that they had never heard of this 'Great Demon God'. Even Li Wu Yi looked at Yang Kai in surprise, making it apparent that he too was unaware.

It could not be said that the Pseudo-Great Emperors in the Star Boundary were ignorant and uninformed. If Yang Kai had not entered the Thousand Illusions Dreamworld by chance and returned to the time when the ancient war between Humans and Demons took place, he would not have known about the Great Demon God either. Not to mention, this existence was a taboo in the Demon Realm. He had tried to learn more about the Great Demon God from Yu Ru Meng when he first entered the Demon Realm, but she had immediately stopped him and avoided the topic as though it was cursed.

It would seem that Yu Ru Meng probably had some knowledge about the Great Demon God. She was a Demon Saint after all. When her strength reached a certain level, she gained access to certain secrets that other Demons did not know about. Be that as it may, she did not seem to know much either; otherwise, she would not have withheld the information from Yang Kai.

They were supposed to be discussing the crisis that the Star Boundary was currently facing, but Yang Kai had brought up this 'Great Demon God' out of nowhere. Everybody was confused, but they were in no hurry to question him. Since he mentioned the Great Demon God at a time like this, then he must be related to the situation at hand.