Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Tia

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

Bing Yun, Yang Yan, Gan Li were all injured as well, but even so, their situation was nothing compared to Yang Kai's. Their injuries were minor and would heal after a short period of recuperation. After checking their bodies to make sure that there was nothing serious, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

Yang Kai searched the battlefield below them for a bit, then he flew back with a gloomy expression.

"What's wrong?" Yang Yan frowned.

He tossed a Space Ring to her and replied, "Another one has fallen."

She took the Space Ring and scanned it with her Divine Sense and a trace of sadness crept across her face. This Space Ring was not an item refined in the Demon Realm. It had come from the Star Boundary. Moreover, all the items within it originated from the Star Boundary. It was obviously not something that used to belong to a Demon Race Half-Saint.

If Yang Kai discovered this object on a Half-Saint, that could only mean that the owner of this item was gone. The culprits were undoubtedly the two Demon Race Half-Saints whom the four of them had just killed in a joint effort.

The truth was that this was neither the first Half-Saint they killed nor the first Space Ring they found that belonged to a Pseudo-Great Emperor from the Star Boundary. Since the day Yang Kai had hidden Yang Yan, Bing Yun, and Gan Li in the Small Sealed World, he had been constantly out fishing in the Profound Heavens Temple. They had engaged in a total of three battles over the past ten or so days, and counting the two Demon Race Half-Saints just now, they had managed to kill a total of four Half-Saints. Unfortunately, they had also found the Space Rings of three Pseudo-Great Emperors from the Star Boundary on the corpses of those four Demon Race Half-Saints.

How could the Pseudo-Great Emperors and the Half-Saints die so easily under normal circumstances? They were invincible existences whenever the Demon Saints and the Great Emperors were not present in the world. They were the tyrants who dominated the Star Boundary and the Demon Realm respectively. It was just that the opening of the Profound Heavens Temple had brought all the tyrants together in one place, so it was inevitable for casualties to occur.

"This aura..." Yang Yan looked pensive as she carefully studied the remaining aura in the Space Ring. A long while later, she slowly let out a sigh, "If I'm not mistaken, this aura probably belongs to Wei Wu Fa of the Fourteenth Army."

Gan Li's expression changed upon hearing those words, "He died too?"

She nodded grimly and put away the Space Ring with a sombre air, "Wei Wu Fa still has surviving Disciples. I will return the Space Ring to them when we get back. I hope they will rise again one day."

"Brother Wei, he... He had an Army Commander Token in his possession. How could he die so easily?" Gan Li looked horrified.

Every Army Commander had an Army Commander Token with a Great Emperor's attack sealed inside. Yang Kai also had one in his possession, it was just that he had used it up during his battle with the Wind Lord in the Flowing Time Temple. Afterwards, the Great Emperors had gone missing so nobody could refine a new one for him.

Among the many tokens belonging to the Army Commanders, some had been used while others remained unused. Wei Wu Fa's Army Commander Token was the latter case.

Logically speaking, Wei Wu Fa only needed to activate his Army Commander Token to turn the situation around in the event that he encountered any kind of danger; however, the fact that his Space Ring was in the hands of a Half-Saint said everything that needed to be said.

Upon hearing those words, Yang Kai said, "There are various invisible restrictions within the Profound Heavens Temple. The power of a Great Emperor probably does not work here."

That was the only reasonable explanation.

Gan Li's expression couldn't help turning pale. He himself had an Army Commander Token in his possession. He originally thought that he had a trump card in his possession, so he could rest easy; however, Wei Wu Fa's death had evidently given him a stark wake-up call. If he were really to rely on the Great Emperor's Divine Ability sealed inside the Army Commander Token, he would have ended up dying without even knowing the reason why.

Moreover, Wei Wu Fa was an old acquaintance of his who was not weak. Gan Li was not confident that he could beat Wei Wu Fa if it came down to a one-on-one fight. Naturally, it was different in a life-or-death situation. Everybody had one or two hidden trump cards after all. There was no telling who would win or who would lose until the battle was over.

Nevertheless, Wei Wu Fa's death had evidently been a huge shock to Gan Li. He had not run into anybody else since entering the Profound Heavens Temple, much less engaged in battle. That was the case until he accidentally fell prey to the Natural Spirit Array. He was rescued by Yang Kai and later stayed inside the Small Sealed World. Working together with Yang Kai, Bing Yun, and Yang Yan to kill their enemies, he participated in three battles and obtained victory in all three. Furthermore, he only paid a negligible price to kill four Half-Saints. It could be said that his journey had been very smooth so far.

Therefore, he never imagined that Wei Wu Fa would die in such an inexplicable manner. He had even sat down with Wei Wu Fa for a drink and a chat on the night before they entered the Profound Heavens Temple, dreaming about the various opportunities that could be found inside. Gan Li suddenly couldn't help feeling a slight chill. If he had not been travelling with Yang Kai and the others, he might have been the next Wei Wu Fa.

Now that he knew his friend was gone, the elation Gan Li felt from killing the two Half-Saints previously faded considerably and he couldn't help feeling sorrowful. The Pseudo-Great Emperors and Half-Saints in the Grand Dao battle were no more than the rungs of a ladder, meant for the others to climb to the peak. [Will I be the one climbing those steps? Or, will I be the stepping stone for others?]

"Not many people can withstand the joint attack of a Blood Demon and a Feather Demon alone." Yang Kai took out something to clean the blood off his body but did not change. The tattered clothes he was wearing made him look extremely terrible.

"Aren't you going to treat your wounds?" Yang Yan asked.

"I'm afraid there's no time." Yang Kai shook his head slowly, "I have a feeling that the mysteries of the Profound Heavens Temple will reveal themselves soon. The key to becoming a Great Emperor will gradually become clearer and clearer. At that time, it will surely be a fight to the death. It's more important to get rid of as many Demon Race Half-Saints as possible before that happens."

Almost a month had passed since the Profound Heavens Temple opened. Although this short period was nothing to all the Half-Saints and Pseudo-Great Emperors, it was agonizingly long for the Star Boundary as a whole. The Profound Heavens Temple was opened because the World's Will of the Star Boundary had sensed an imminent crisis. It was an instinctual self-defence mechanism. The world was counting on the Profound Heavens Temple to produce a Great Emperor that could save the situation.

Even now, the Demon Essence was constantly devouring the lands of the Star Boundary. If the battle within the Profound Heavens Temple continued for too long, the situation would become irreversible even if a Great Emperor were to be born. For that reason, the Grand Dao battle had to be settled within as short a time as possible, no matter what. As for whether the one having the last laugh would be the Demon Race or the Human Race, it was entirely dependent on their individual abilities.

Yang Yan might have dismissed those words if they came from anybody else; however, Yang Kai had the World's Will, so it might be possible for him to actually sense something, "Let's continue then. Hopefully, more fish will take the bait."

Despite their efforts for the past ten or so days, they only managed to meet three batches of Demon Race Half-Saints. On the other hand, they had not met even a single one of the Pseudo-Great Emperors from the Star Boundary. The Profound Heavens Temple was simply far too vast.

Yang Kai did not know how many Half-Saints they could kill before the key to becoming a Great Emperor revealed itself. Be that as it may, he could only continue with their current efforts. The death of even one Half-Saint was enough to tip the power balance between the Humans and Demons. It might be the deciding factor during a critical moment.

Placing Yang Yan and the others back inside the Small Sealed World again, he continued on his journey all alone. Although his efforts in the subsequent days were in vain, his injuries from the previous battle gradually improved. Nevertheless, he secretly became anxious. His Divine Sense swept across his surroundings at all times, hoping for a pleasant surprise to appear.

Another five days passed just like that when, all of a sudden, Yang Kai abruptly stopped in the middle of his rush and perceived his surroundings with a frown. He felt as though he could faintly sense something, but he found nothing upon careful observation. It wasn't his Divine Sense that was picking up on something. It was another kind of perception.

Therefore, he took a deep breath, closed his eyes, got rid of all the distracting thoughts in his head, and followed his instincts.

An hour went by just like that.

Inside the Small Sealed World, Yang Yan watched the projection in the sky with a frown on her face. Similarly, Bing Yun and Gan Li, who were standing next to her, looked puzzled. The three of them had been staying inside the Small Sealed World as shock troops. However, they were not completely unaware of what was going on in the outside world. Yang Kai kept up a constant projection of his surroundings in the Small Sealed World so that they could monitor the situation. That was why they were aware of what was going on in the outside world.

"What is he doing?" Bing Yun was confused.

"Maybe he sensed something," Yang Yan recalled what Yang Kai mentioned a few days ago.

"Is the key of the Grand Dao battle about to reveal itself?" Gan Li's expression froze. If that truly was the case, then he would have to consider parting ways with Yang Kai and the others. Although it was much safer to work together, it was a risk he had to take for the sake of becoming a Great Emperor.

All of a sudden, Yang Kai abruptly opened his eyes and the corners of his mouth lifted into a smile as he looked in a certain direction, "This way!"

While speaking, he shifted his body and rushed in that direction.

Inside the Small Sealed World, the expressions of three people turned solemn as they paid full attention to the movements of the outside world.

Meanwhile, Yang Kai charged forward. The further he went, the clearer that vague feeling became; thus, he immediately understood that the feeling he got just now was correct. The key to becoming a Great Emperor was in this direction. It was just that it had yet to fully reveal itself. He was relying on the World's Will within him to perceive that vague feeling in the shadows.

Just from this point alone, he already held an advantage. If he could locate that key before anybody else reacted to it, he might just be able to end this Grand Dao battle in advance.

After rushing forward for half a day, however, Yang Kai frowned and turned his head to look in a certain direction. He had not encountered a single Half-Saint or Pseudo-Great Emperor over the past few days, but now two powerful auras barged into his range of perception. Judging by the unique characteristics of their auras, they were two Pseudo-Great Emperors.

Upon a closer inspection, Yang Kai raised his brow and muttered, "It's that guy!"

The aura he recognised belonged to none other than Cang Mo. He did not know who Cang Mo was with at the moment, but the fluctuations of their auras indicated that they were in a dire situation.

A short while later, it became clear that Cang Mo had also noticed Yang Kai's aura as he had turned around and led his companion straight towards him.

At the same time, several hostile auras followed closely behind.

Yang Kai's expression turned grim as he gritted his teeth, "Is he trying to pass the burden to me? Shameless!"

If Yang Kai could recognise Cang Mo's aura, then Cang Mo was definitely no stranger to Yang Kai's aura. Despite knowing that Yang Kai was only a High-Rank Demon King, Cang Mo chose to flee in Yang Kai's direction while being chased by several Demon Race Half-Saints. It was clear that his intentions were malicious.