Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Jon

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

At that instant, Old Hong, Zhang Qi, Ji Tian Xing, and the rest were all stunned. No one had expected that the door could be opened so easily.

While the others were in a dazed state, Old Hong dashed into the palace. Upon seeing that, all of them became agitated and without the need for any words, all the Open Heaven Realm Masters charged forward.

"Make way!" A yell was heard coming from the man in black robes, Ji Tian Xing. Like an ancient beast that had gone mad, he rushed out and rammed into whoever came into his way, causing those people to be sent flying away. In the blink of an eye, he reached the door and became the second person to enter the palace.

Following that, the scholar, Zhang Qi, sprinted into the palace as he gently waved his fan.

"Big Sister Lan, let's get going as well." Yuan Xiao Man turned to look at Madam Lan, who nodded in response. After that, they dashed into the palace as well.

After all the Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters entered the palace, the rest scrambled towards the building. Inevitably, they had to trade some moves as their pressures permeated the place.

"Senior Brother, what should we do?" Tao Rong Fang gazed at Wei Que and asked.

"We follow them," Wei Que replied solemnly. Since they had arrived at this place, and the palace door had opened, there was no way they would leave just like this. Even though they had no idea what danger awaited them in the building, they reckoned that they just had to be careful and not snatch stuff from others they couldn't afford to offend. If they could do that much, they wouldn't fall into danger.

However, when they entered the palace, they instantly felt a scorching power coming at them.

After that, they realised that many figures were flying around inside the spacious hall, which made the place look quite bustling. A number of Sun's True Fires could be seen flitting about amongst the crowd, trying to escape from the Open Heaven Realm Masters. The glow of the Sun's True Fires illuminated the hall and mingled with the lights caused by the Open Heaven Realm Masters' methods.

"What…" Tao Rong Fang was stunned as she didn't expect to see such a lively scene upon entering the hall. After a quick count, she realised that there were more than ten Sun's True Fires that were flying around in the hall.

It was rare to see such a magnificent sight, which caused Wei Que and Tao Rong Fang to become fervent as well.

There were many huge columns in the hall, and torches could be seen burning on each of them. Tao Rong Fang didn't pay attention to this at first, but upon closer look, she was shocked to discover that these weren't torches at all. They were all Sun's True Fires that were burning brightly. In other words, the hall was well lit thanks to these Sun's True Fires.

Obviously, these flying Sun's True Fires were supposed to be just like the other torches, but after they were disturbed by the intruders, they began flitting about.

Wei Que and Tao Rong Fang traded glances; then, without the need for any discussion, they dashed forward and pounced on the torches. Before they even arrived, they used their Divine Abilities in an attempt to capture the Sun's True Fires.

The hall was quite spacious, so there were about twenty Sun's True Fires that were used as torches. However, many people had entered the place, and all of them were Open Heaven Realm Masters with a small number of them having reached the Mid-Rank.

After a quarter hour of fighting and snatching, the dust finally settled. The Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters had managed to grab two Sun's True Fires per person, some of them even being Fifth-Order. As for the rest, they were snatched by other people. Wei Que and Tao Rong Fang were pretty lucky. Even though they had come into the palace later than most, they managed to make a move at the right time and had obtained a Fifth-Order Sun's True Fire. They could barely conceal the excitement and joy behind their gazes.

A Fifth-Order material could be traded for ten Fourth-Order materials, which was enough for them to nurture a Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master while still having some materials to spare. It could be said that they had achieved their goal for this trip at this moment.

However, they were reluctant to leave just like this. They had obtained such a treasure not long after they entered the palace, so wouldn't there be more rewards if they kept on exploring?

In fact, many people shared the same thought. Those who had obtained the Sun's True Fires were unwilling to leave, not to mention those who hadn't gotten anything yet. Although there were no more Sun's True Fires left in the hall, no one could be certain that there wasn't more treasure deeper inside. Therefore, they were all began searching around.

Soon, someone discovered that the floor in the hall was paved with Peak-Rank Fire Jade. The revelation was shocking. Even though Fire Jade was not a rare material in the Outer Universe, its value varied depending on its rank. This kind of Peak-Rank Fire Jade was quite valuable.

Furthermore, while the hall was quite spacious, the entire floor was paved with the purest and most exquisite Fire Jade. Even the Second Class great forces would be financially burdened if they wanted to build such a floor. Only the First Class forces had the means to do something like this.

At that instant, everyone almost went mad. Without the need to say anything, all the Open Heaven Realm Masters became moles as clanging sounds were continuously heard in the hall. The Fire Jade was all lifted and then put inside Space Rings.

Even First Inn's Proprietress, Madam Lan, joined in. Nobody would refuse free stuff.

However, the good time didn't last long as someone accidentally triggered a restriction soon after they began. While the crowd was busy harvesting the Fire Jade, a rumbling sound was suddenly heard, and following that, the main door abruptly shut.

Everyone was shocked as they straightened up and raised their guard, but before they could figure out what was going on, they all felt dizzy at the same time as the world started spinning around them. When they came to their senses, they realised that they were inside a huge cave.

The hall and the floor that was paved with Fire Jade was gone, so they didn't have to continue their stripping work. After such a sudden change, the people who were familiar with one another hurriedly gathered together as they looked around in a vigilant manner to prevent falling into danger. Some of them had even used their Secret Techniques to conceal themselves.

The Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters were astounded as well, with Yuan Xiao Man walking up to Madam Lan and sticking close to her, as though she could only find a sense of security by doing so.

All of a sudden, Old Hong turned to look at Zhang Qi and said, "Brother Zhang, you're an expert in Spirit Arrays. What do you think has happened?"

Zhang Qi waved his fan and gave it a thought before replying, "It should be a type of Space Array. Judging from what this Zhang felt, I reckon that we haven't been shifted to a faraway place though. We should still be somewhere on the Sun Star."

Old Hong nodded, "This Old Master agrees. In other words, we're still inside the Golden Crow Divine Palace?"

"We'll find out."

"Good." Old Hong nodded.

All of them felt insecure at abruptly appearing in such a place, so before things become clearer, all of them silently agreed to work together. The Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters were not fools, so without the need for any discussion, they started carefully probing their surroundings.

Soon, they discovered something. The cave wasn't closed as there were eight exits. They were arrayed in the form of the Eight Paths of Divination, so it was apparent that they were not simple exits.

Upon that realisation, the Open Heaven Realm Masters furrowed their brows. Certainly, top cultivators like them knew a thing or two about the Eight Paths of Divination; however, no one could tell which path they should take in this particular case. Fortunately, the Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters were around, so the Low-Rank ones would just have to watch what decision Madam Lan and the others made. They would rather follow them than try out the paths on their own.

"Madam Lan, which path should we choose?" Old Hong turned to look at Madam Lan and asked. Her cultivation was the strongest at the scene, so her opinion also carried the most weight.

The Proprietress looked around and replied with a smile, "Since there's a Path of Life, I'll certainly choose that; otherwise, should we choose the Path of Death?"

"The Path of Life?" Old Hong frowned, "But we can't be certain that it isn't meant to mislead us."

"You choose the Path of Death, then. Maybe you'll reach the other end of the passage alive."

At that, Old Hong was rendered speechless.

"I'll be leaving first, then." After Madam Lan finished speaking, she really shuffled towards the Path of Life and disappeared.

Everyone was dumbfounded as they hadn't expected that she would make a decision so quickly. Was she confident in her luck? Or had she discovered something but didn't tell them?

Yuan Xiao Man hesitated for a moment before shouting, "Big Sister Lan, wait for me…"

Then, she also followed Madam Lan and entered the Path of Life. After they were gone, half of the Open Heaven Realm Masters dashed towards the Path of Life as well; after all, they knew that she was from First Inn, which had a powerful background. Therefore, her decision should be the right one.

Wei Que and Tao Rong Fang also left with them.

Those who hadn't left were either doubtful or thought that Old Hong was right. If they could get out alive simply by choosing the Path of Life, what was the point of arranging the Eight Paths of Divination?

"What should we do?" Old Hong turned to look at Zhang Qi and Ji Tian Xing.

Ji Tian Xing snorted, "I don't care what you all do. I'll leave right this instant." After he finished speaking, he directly shuffled towards the Path of Death, causing Old Hong's face to twitch. It seemed that Ji Tian Xing was determined to choose the worst possible path, and it wasn't certain whether he would be able to reach the other end of the passage alive.

Zhang Qi shook his head, "Brother Tian Xing is such a resolute man. I'm no match for him in this regard."

Upon finishing his words, he ambled towards the Path of Healing. After those two left, some Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters followed them. At that instant, only a dozen or so people were left in the cave. Apart from Old Hong, the rest were all in the Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm as they stared fixedly at him.

A frustrated Old Hong fished out an ancient copper coin and cupped his hands before shaking it. Then, he spread his palms to have a look and muttered something, upon which he looked in a particular direction.

After keeping the copper coin, he turned into a beam of light and shot towards the path it pointed to and was soon followed by the remaining people.

Meanwhile, inside the long hallway, Yang Kai heaved a sigh as he lifted the Peak-Rank Fire Jade tiles from the floor and put them inside his Space Ring.

He didn't notice it at first, but after realizing that he was unable to get out of this place currently, Yang Kai decided to probe around. It was then he discovered that the floor was paved with such treasures. Apart from the fact that the floor was made of Fire Jade, he had also realised that the torches on the walls were actually all Sun's True Fires.

In total, there were eight torches in the hallway, which meant that there were eight Sun's True Fires. Including the one he had collected previously, he had nine Sun's True Fires in possession now, three of which were Fifth-Order.