Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Jon

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

Since hope was within their grasp, they became even more ferocious. They wanted to get rid of the statues as soon as possible so that they could explore the Golden Crow Divine Palace.

As time passed, the two Golden Crow statues became weaker, and even the Golden Crow's True Fire they spat out became intermittent. It seemed that they were running out of power.

Everyone was elated upon seeing that. Even though the statues were exquisitely crafted, they were nothing special in and of themselves. They were powerful because of their Golden Crow's True Fire, but now that they had seemingly exhausted it, they no longer appeared terrifying.

Just when the Open Heaven Realm Masters were preparing to capture the statues, they were both suddenly engulfed in a shadow. It seemed to be a shadow of a greatly magnified sleeve, which flapped in the air and covered the entire sky.

"Universe in a Sleeve!" Wei Que exclaimed as he could recognise the Divine Ability at first glance.

The magnified sleeve curled up as its immense energy fluctuation swept the Open Heaven Realm Masters away. Following that, the statues were kept inside the sleeve.

A figure flashed across everyone's eyes as an elderly man appeared. His huge sleeves flapped in the air, and his chubby face radiated a pinkish glow. Presently, he was looking smilingly at his right sleeve. Two petite statues could be seen charging around violently in the sleeve, but they couldn't struggle out of the restriction.

Obviously, it was this elderly man who had used his Divine Ability to capture the statues.

All the Open Heaven Realm Masters were startled for a moment before they became incensed as they glared at the elderly man. They had been battling against the statues for a long time now, and just when they were able to exhaust their enemy, someone else swooped in and reaped the fruits of their labour, which was intolerable; after all, the statues had some impressive value as well.

However, upon making out the elderly man's face, they furrowed their brows. Although they were infuriated, they wouldn't dare to rebuke him. Apparently, they were wary of the elderly man's strength and background.

Tao Rong Fang said in a hushed voice, "Someone from Heaven's Border has really arrived."

Wei Que sported a solemn expression as well, "We only see Old Hong now, and we're not sure whether the other two have arrived. If the other two are here as well, it'll be troublesome."

While they were having a chat, a change happened all of a sudden. Just when Old Hong, who was from Heaven's Border, was over the moon, a golden thread shot out from the void and snuck into Old Hong's sleeve. When the golden thread was retracted, a statue inside the sleeve was also drawn out.

Old Hong's expression turned cold as he bellowed, "How dare you snatch this Old Master's prize! Who are you?"

After he finished speaking, he extended his hand towards the statue.

Just then, a fit of giggles could be heard coming from the void. This voice was as pleasant as a silver bell, which made everyone feel refreshed. Following her laugh, a curvy figure was revealed as a slender hand intercepted Old Hong's.

With a loud boom, a violent force spread around. Old Hong shuddered and stepped backwards. Upon impact, the beautiful woman hopped backwards lightly and widened her gap with Old Hong. Then, she looked smilingly at him and said, "Old Hong, why are you so mad?"

The change happened too quickly and it wasn't until this moment that the crowd made out who the woman was. She was a mature beauty with beautiful eyes that seemed so clear it was as if water would drip from them. The charm she exuded seemed able to attract everyone's attention innately.

Initially, Old Hong was infuriated, but upon seeing the woman, his fury disappeared in an instant and with a forced smile, he said, "So it is First Inn's Madam Lan, forgive my disrespect."

In his heart, Old Hong felt frustrated. If anyone else had snatched his things like this, he would never have let them off; however, this woman was from First Inn. Given the fact that he was from Heaven's Border, which was less powerful than First Inn, he was unable to rebuke the woman. He knew that he would never get the statue back. Nevertheless, she had shown him some respect by leaving one statue to him.

The Proprietress kept a smile on her face, "Old Hong, this in an interesting thing. Would you be willing to give one to me?"

[You've already snatched it from me. Can I even get it back?] Old Hong secretly cursed at her, but he still replied with a smile, "Madam Lan, it is this Old Master's honour that you're interested in my… in these things. If you wish, I can give you this one as well." Then, he flapped his sleeve as though he was a generous man.

The Proprietress tucked her hair behind her ear in a charming manner, then she shook her head with a smile, "There's no need for that. I just need one so that I can examine it when I return. Many thanks for your gift. If you need any information in the future, feel free to visit First Inn. I'll give you one piece for free."

Hearing this, Old Hong put on a smile, "Many thanks, Madam Lan. In that case, this Old Master will gladly accept."

A Golden Crow statue for a piece of information. No one could tell whether it was a good or bad deal.

Old Hong turned to look at the ancient palace and asked, "Madam Lan, are you here to explore the palace as well?"

The Proprietress replied, "Since such an important incident has happened, I certainly have to come over to have a look. Isn't it the same case for you, Old Hong?"

Old Hong's brow twitched, "In that case, why don't we join forces? We can help each other this way." He wasn't powerful enough to go against her, but fortunately for him, Madam Lan had always been fair when doing business. If he could join forces with her, he would definitely get a share of the benefits after they entered the palace. At the very least, he wouldn't go home empty-handed.

The Proprietress fiddled with the hair in front of her chest and replied with a smile, "Join forces? Let's not. I'm used to acting independently. If you need allies, why don't you ask whether they're interested?" As she spoke, she deliberately took a look in a particular direction.

"They?" Old Hong frowned, then he immediately understood what she meant and swung his sleeve widely, "Come out!"

A violent force swept across the void, forcing three figures to reveal themselves. One of them was a gentle-looking scholar with a fan in his hand. There was also a burly man with a deep gaze in tight fitting black robes. The last person was a cheeky young girl in a green dress.

It wasn't certain what technique they had used that they were able to conceal themselves for such a long time to the point that Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters, and even a Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master like Old Hong weren't aware of their existence. If it weren't because the Proprietress from First Inn pointed it out, Old Hong wouldn't have known they were even here.

At that instant, Old Hong realised that Madam Lan was indeed more powerful than he was. At the same time, he was mad at these people for their viciousness. Apparently, they had been hiding in the dark because they wanted to take advantage of him.

"So it is you who had been hiding there. What's wrong? Are you trying to reap the benefits without putting in any effort?" Old Hong snorted as he could recognise these three.

The arrogant-looking man in black robes scoffed, then he turned around and cupped his fists at the Proprietress. The scholar also cupped his fists at her with a bitter smile, "Madam Lan, you indeed have an acute vision."

The young girl stomped her foot and pouted, "Big Sister Lan, why did you expose us?"

Despite the fact that they had been exposed by the Proprietress, they wouldn't dare to rebuke her, which went to show how influential First Inn truly was.

Madam Lan covered her mouth and laughed, "It has nothing to do with me. It was Old Hong who found out about your existence."

She was completely insincere, but no one dared to refute her.

On the ground, Wei Que, whose expression was bitter, gazed at the three people who had just appeared, and he said in a hushed voice, "They're Zhang Qi from Righteous Land, Ji Tian Xing from Blood Dragon Altar, and Yuan Xiao Man from Mirror Flowers Water Moon… Things are getting interesting now."

Even though many Open Heaven Realm Masters had arrived at this place earlier, they were all in the Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm with only minor differences between their strengths and backgrounds. However, the people who had just appeared were all Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters. Heaven's Border, Righteous Land, Blood Dragon Altar, and Mirror Flowers Water Moon were all Second Class great forces; furthermore, the Proprietress of First Inn, Madam Lan, had also come to this place.

"I've met Ji Tian Xing and Yuan Xiao Man before. So, the scholarly looking one is Zhang Qi from Righteous Land, right?" Tao Rong Fang asked.

Wei Que nodded, "Although he appears harmless, he's actually extremely ruthless. If you come across him in the future, you must take care."

"En." Tao Rong Fang nodded discretely.

While they were speaking, Zhang Qi suddenly turned to look at them. Tao Rong Fang's expression changed as she knew that he must have realised what they were talking about, thus she quickly hung her head low.

Although she was a Third-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, she was much weaker than Zhang Qi in the end. The difference between Low-Rank and Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters was enormous. If Zhang Qi targeted her, she would surely end up miserable.

Fortunately, Zhang Qi soon retracted his gaze. Since the Golden Crow Divine Palace was right in front of him, he didn't have the time to care about minor matters.

Although the Golden Crow statues were gone, these Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters still wouldn't dare to make any rash moves. The Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters had appeared, so they might offend them if they were not careful; moreover, they had come across danger before they even entered the palace, so they wondered what else awaited them inside. Naturally, they wanted the stronger cultivators to lead the way.

Old Hong and the others seemed to have realised their intentions as they shot a look at the weaker cultivators with Zhang Qi saying, "It's pointless to keep waiting here. Why don't we get in to have a look?"

The man in black robes, Ji Tian Xing, nodded, "Of course we have to get in."

Old Hong looked around, "Who will enter first?"

Yuan Xiao Man ignored him and walked up to Madam Lan. Then, she wrapped her arm around the latter's spoke to her with a smile. Madam Lan pinched her nose, which caused the young girl to pout.

After a moment of deadlock, Old Hong said, "Why don't we take turns to make a move? It seems that this door will be difficult to open. Whoever manages to open the door will go in first."

The first one to enter the palace was taking great risks, but would also stand a chance to get the best treasures. While the weak wanted to pick up the crumbs, the top cultivators were naturally willing to take some chances to reap bigger gains.

Zhang Qi and Ji Tian Xing were fine with this arrangement, so Old Hong turned to look at the Proprietress to ask, "Madam Lan, why don't you make a move first?"

Madam Lan replied with a smile, "There's no need for that. I want to talk to Xiao Man now. Go ahead."

Seeing that, Old Hong nodded, "Then this Old Master will go first."

Upon finishing his words, he leaped towards the door and examined it carefully before pressing his hands against it. Everyone immediately stared fixedly at his moves.

Then, with a loud creak, the door slowly opened.