Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Danny

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

When Yang Kai approached, he looked at the two stone lions squatting on either side of the door. He vaguely felt that these seemingly ordinary stone lion decorations were not as simple as they looked. Then again, if they were ordinary, how could they appear in the void?

Right at that moment, a voice came out of the door, "Where did this little friend come from? Forgive this Old Master for greeting you from afar. Please come in."

The voice was gentle and welcoming, causing a warm feeling to fill Yang Kai's body. Even though the voice appeared abruptly, it did not alarm him, but made him feel comfortable instead.

However, Yang Kai was secretly stunned; after all, right in front of him was just a door. Although there were two stone lions squatting on either side of the door, there was no house behind it, so where was the speaker? Yang Kai peeped behind the door, but found nothing.

By the sound of the voice, the speaker should not be young. After pondering for a while, Yang Kai felt like it was better for him to face things head on and cupped his fists to ask, "Where is Old Sir? How can this Junior get in?"

The old voice laughed, "Just push the door."

Yang Kai furrowed his brow, but still nodded.

He put his hands on the door plates and pushed gently and the door opened, but what came into his view on the other side was not the scenery of a void that he imagined. At the moment of opening the door, a colorful light flashed before him, followed by a powerful suction that drew Yang Kai inside before he could respond.

When he regained his senses, he was standing on an expansive reef. The sound of sea waves echoed around his ears and as he looked up, he could see a blue sky filled with clouds.

Yang Kai blinked, and could not help shouting, "A Small Universe!"

Reaching the Open Heaven Realm required splitting Heaven and Earth apart from within to create an independent world, and this independent world was known as a Small Universe. Only Open Heaven Realm Masters could possess a Small Universe.

Laughter burst out from the side, "Little friend has good vision, this is indeed this Old Master's Small Universe!"

Yang Kai turned to the direction of the voice, and saw an old man with white hair and a beard standing nearby, a kind smile on his face. The old man was a little chubby, and the deep and numerous wrinkles on his face revealed the signs of aging.

The old man was wearing a black, spotless robe and had the demeanor of a Senior Expert. With a round bowl in one hand, the old man's fingers tapped rhythmically.

Strangely, there was no sound following his taps, but Yang Kai could obscurely perceive something from the movement.

Recalling the call that guided him all the way here, a sudden realization dawned on Yang Kai, "Is Old Sir the one who called me?"

The old man smiled lightly, "Indeed, where might I ask did little friend come from?"

Yang Kai answered, "My homeland is not a place worth being mentioned. In fact, I'm not certain what to call it." Although the old man in front of him seemed harmless, he was still a true Open Heaven Realm Master. If he really wanted to make a move on Yang Kai, Yang Kai would probably be powerless to resist, especially inside the former's Small Universe. Yang Kai did not expect that the first person he met in the Outer Universe would be an Open Heaven Realm Master. He had to stay alert against the people here, and it was better not to expose the name of the Star Boundary.

The old man did not mind it, and smiled faintly, "I see." He did not continue asking, which surprised Yang Kai.

"Why did Old Sir call out to me?" Yang Kai was puzzled. If it had not been for this sudden summon, he would not have come here.

The old man replied with a smile, "This Old Master did not just summon you. I have just been picking up various Juniors who manage to free themselves of the shackles of various Universe Worlds." While talking, he stretched out his hand and pointed aside.

Yang Kai looked at the place he pointed, and found that the old man and he were not the only people in this Small Universe. There were other people on the surrounding reefs.

Fear creeped into Yang Kai's heart as he did not notice anything when he came in just now, and he was sure that he had clearly checked his surroundings and saw nobody at all. It meant that if it was not for the permission of the old man, he was afraid that he would not be able to see anything at all in this place.

Four other figures were present, three men and one woman.

A burly man, a dignified woman, a naive boy, and the last one looked like he was from the Monster Race. He had two horns on his forehead, but it was unclear which bloodline he carried.

Each of them sat on a reef nearby, looking at Yang Kai.

Yang Kai swept his eyes across them, and except for the naive looking one who smiled back at Yang Kai, everyone else was expressionless. Although Yang Kai had no idea what kind of Realm these four were, since they could appear here, it meant that each of them was a Master on par with a Great Emperor in their own right, and had condensed their own Dao Seal. Otherwise, they would not be qualified to wander the Outer Universe.

Seeing this, combined with what the old man mentioned just now, Yang Kai asked in amazement, "Were these people summoned by Old Sir too?"

The old man nodded with a smile, "There are many dangers in the Outer Universe. It's not a friendly place for newcomers like you. If you rush around rashly, you are likely to encounter some unpredictable dangers. This Old Master has set up here and used a Secret Technique to spread a summon far and wide. Those who perceive this summon will come here to meet this Old Master, just like little friend and the others."

"Why did Old Sir do this?" Yang Kai was baffled.

"If this Old Master told you that it was to protect newcomers like you, would you believe it?"

Yang Kai shook his head slowly. After years of cultivation, even though Yang Kai dared not say that he had a clear understanding of Human nature, he did not believe that someone would do such a laborious task for no benefit whatsoever.

The old man guffawed, "It doesn't matter if you believe it or not, but this is indeed one of this Old Master's reasons."

"Does that mean there are other reasons?" Yang Kai questioned.

"Another reason is that the force this Old Master belongs to needs to absorb new blood. There are countless large and small forces in the Outer Universe, and many will perform similar solicitations. It's not uncommon to try to recruit new people who have just jumped out of the Inner Universe to strengthen their own forces. This Old Master is not the only one doing this. Little friend, it seems we share some common destiny, that is why you heard this Old Master's call and came here."

Yang Kai frowned slightly, "May I know what great force Old Sir belongs to?"

The old man replied, "You will know in the future. It's useless to say too much now."

"What if I don't want to join Old Sir's great force?" Yang Kai asked.

As soon as Yang Kai said this, he clearly felt the attention of the other four people on the reefs around him focus on him.

The old man responded, "That is your decision. This Old Master is only responsible for recruiting and guiding. Someone will explain everything to you when we go back. Whether to join or not will be up to you then. Just stay if you're willing to join. If not, no one will force you."

Yang Kai nodded. He had encountered this kind of situation once before when he entered the Ancestral Domain. Many great forces in the Ancestral Domain also sent out Masters to stake out territory and absorb new blood to strengthen their own forces.

But in comparison, the old man's method was undoubtedly superior. Instead of waiting in place, hoping others would pass by, he actively used a technique to summon others to him across great distance.

Yang Kai had nothing to lose in the Outer Universe, and now that he was separated from Zhang Ruo Xi, he did not even know where to go next. He just wanted to go somewhere with many people to get information. Since the old man had already said so much, Yang Kai naturally would not reject.

Of course, Yang Kai did not completely believe the old man's words, but at least for now, he should be safe.

"Old Sir, I have one more question to ask you." Yang Kai cupped his fists.

"You may ask."

"This Junior leapt out of his Universe World with another friend to enter this vast Outer Universe, but we bumped into a monster called the Myriad Facets Insect on out way. After we were swallowed by it, I was brought to another place for some reason…"

At this point, the old man smiled lightly, "Don't worry, your friend should not be in danger."

"Please enlighten this Junior, Old Sir."

"The Myriad Facets Insect is a special being in the Outer Universe. Its movements are unpredictable, but it is generally harmless. When you saw it from a distance, didn't you see there were many holes on its body?"

"Exactly!"

"Those holes are connected to random corners of the vast Outer Universe. When you are swallowed up by a Myriad Facets Insects, you inevitably come out of one of those holes and appear in a completely different place. Your friend's experience is the same as yours, but where they were sent is unknown now."

"Is that so?" Yang Kai was stunned.

Nevertheless, he instinctively felt that the statement of the old man in front of him should not be wrong. As he recalled now, from getting swallowed by the Myriad Facets Insect to escaping out of it, everything happened in just the blink of an eye. But when he got out, Yang Kai noticed obvious Space Principle fluctuations, as if he just experienced ultra long-distance teleportation, which was consistent with the old man's explanation.

In this way, Yang Kai was relieved to confirm that Zhang Ruo Xi was not in danger, but he had no clue where she was teleported to.

"Many thanks, Old Sir. This Junior still wants to ask…"

"You've traveled far, and must be tired. It would be best for little friend to rest first." The old man looked at Yang Kai with a grin, and as he spoke, his fingers gently tapped on the round bowl again.

The doubt in Yang Kai's heart calmed down at once, as if the question he had was something he should not have asked. He immediately looked ashamed and bowed, "Senior is right, then this Junior will not bother Senior any further."

Yang Kai then retreated respectfully.

The old man nodded, closed his eyes, and continued casting his Secret Technique.

Yang Kai looked around, jumped onto an empty reef, sat cross-legged, and silently circulated his Secret Art. In the next moment, rich and pure World Energy poured into every pore of his body, greatly refreshing his spirit.

Although this was the old man's Small Universe, it was also a world with the complete Yin, Yang, Five Elements. The World Energy was also authentic, which could be absorbed to enhance Yang Kai's strength.

Moreover, the World Energy in this Small Universe was far purer and concentrated than in any natural place in the Star Boundary. Yang Kai opened his eyes quietly, and saw that the other four people were devouring the World Energy around them hungrily. Seeing this, Yang Kai simply let go of his concerns, no longer worried about anything, and greedily began cultivating.

However, Yang Kai still used a portion of his Divine Sense to examine himself. When the old man uttered the last sentence, he clearly felt that he was unable to resist his words. In other words, he was completely obedient to the old man at that time, and that was the reason he felt ashamed. Fortunately, when the Soul Warming Lotus reacted, his mental state recovered.