Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Jon

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

The dozens of Open Heaven Realm Masters, including Madam Lan, who had rushed into the hall, were rooted to the spot. Although there were many people in the hall, the place was completely silent. The imposing pressure felt like an entire world was pressing down on their bodies, making it difficult for them to breathe and causing their vitality to churn.

Only after a long silence did someone finally say in a hoarse and shaking voice, "Golden Crow!"

It was rumoured that a mature Golden Crow was able to kill High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters like they were ants. No one wasn't terrified of such a ferocious existence. Furthermore, forget High-Rank Open Heaven Masters, there were only a small number of Mid-Rank Open Heaven Masters among these people.

They had practically barged into the Golden Crow's nesting chamber without its permission. If they infuriated the beast, no one would be able to survive. At this life or death moment, many of them regretted coming to this place and wished for nothing more than to immediately leave. However, as they were engulfed in the beast's pressure, no one dared to move a muscle.

"What are you afraid of?" A person suddenly bellowed, "The Golden Crow is already dead!"

Although his voice was loud, it seemed that he was just trying to rally his courage rather than state a fact.

Upon his reminder, all of them turned to look at the Golden Crow and examined it. As expected, the beast was just standing there. Although its eyes still appeared vigorous, it remained unmoving all this time. It didn't even react to the fact that so many people had entered its room.

"The Golden Crow is indeed dead." Madam Lan nodded as she couldn't detect any vitality from the beast. She was stumped when she entered the room just now. Her mind had turned blank when such a horrifying being came into her view all of a sudden, but upon calming down a bit, she took a proper look at the beast and then set her mind at ease.

Before coming to this place, they had already hypothesized that the reason the Sun Star was going out was that the Golden Crow was dying.

Now that the Sun's fire had been put out, it also meant that the Golden Crow had passed away; however, judging from the carcass's appearance, it seemed that it hadn't been a long time since it perished.

Of all the people at the scene, Madam Lan was the most powerful by far. Since she had said so, the others also set themselves at ease as the sounds of their breathing and pounding hearts reverberated around the hall.

Yang Kai, who had been hiding beneath the Shadowless Veil in the rear corner, licked his dry lips. There was an admiring look on his face as he gazed at the carcass, which was engulfed in a crimson light barrier.

Just its corpse was able to give off such an immense pressure, so it was unimaginable how mighty the Golden Crow was when it was still alive. What about the Dragon Clan then that was ranked higher than the Golden Crow? Now, it seemed that his Dragon Source still had immense untapped potential. Yang Kai figured at this moment he hadn't even unlocked ten percent of his Source's full power.

Moreover, upon reaching this place, he could clearly feel that his Dao Seal had become restless, as though something had caught its attention, something it was craving.

Following his instincts, Yang Kai gazed at a platform at the head of the hall and realised that there were four red crystals arranged at its corners.

"Sun's True Gold!"

Yang Kai wasn't the only one who had noticed this. Since their lives were no longer at risk, they had the time to examine their surroundings and the red crystals on the platform immediately caught their attention.

They had never seen Sun's True Gold before, but when the forearm length red crystals came into their sight, they were certain that these were the legendary Sun's True Gold.

It had been a few days since the Open Heaven Realm Masters started exploring the Sun Star, but they hadn't come across any Sun's True Gold during that time. They had all obtained some Sun's True Fires, but their value wasn't comparable to that of the Sun's True Gold, which was a Sixth-Order material at minimum. There could even be Seventh-Order or Eighth-Order Sun's True Gold.

At that instant, all eyes turned bloodshot. One figure dashed forward and pounced at one corner of the platform. Seeing that, over ten figures followed suit and headed towards different corners.

Yuan Xiao Man, who had been sticking close to Madam Lan, snorted, "What a bunch of fools."

Madam Lan sighed, "Men die for wealth just as birds die for food."

Soon, a shocking shriek was heard. An Open Heaven Realm Master, who was the first one to dash towards the platform, was sent flying backwards as his right hand was engulfed in flames. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't put out the fire and the nauseating smell of his burned flesh soon permeated the hall.

Following that, the fire soon expanded and reached his arm. A myriad of expressions came over that man before he resolutely drew out his sword and slashed down.

A sword light flashed across everyone's eyes as blood spurted out of the fresh wound. Following a grunt, an arm fell to the ground with a thud. Right in front of everyone's eyes, the fire soon turned the arm into ashes, making their faces turn pale.

Upon seeing that this man had suffered such a loss, the others, who were eager to make a move just now, didn't dare to go forward again. Two of the more than ten people who had dashed forward earlier suffered from the same fate as they were forced to cut off their arms to save their own lives.

A solemn Yuan Xiao Man said, "It's the Golden Crow's True Fire."

Madam Lan nodded her head as she gazed at the red light barrier, "It seems that the Golden Crow cast a barrier around its treasure before its death. If we don't break the barrier, we'll never be able to get the Sun's True Gold."

"Big Sister Lan, do you have a solution?" Yuan Xiao Man asked.

Madam Lan frowned and gave it a thought, "I can give it a try, but I can't do it on my own."

"Why don't we join forces, then? After that, you can take seventy percent while I'll get thirty." Yuan Xiao Man appeared excited. Even though there were not many Sun's True Golds on the platform, there were still eight pieces in total. Even if she only got thirty percent, she would still get two or three. Just one piece of such a treasure would make her rich beyond her wildest dreams, not to mention if she could get two or even three.

However, Madam Lan shook her head, "We're not strong enough. Let's wait for the others. We'll only stand a chance if we all make a move together."

"You mean Old Hong and the others?" Yuan Xiao Man was shocked, "They've gone in different directions, so it's not certain whether they're still alive."

They had chosen the Path of Life and hadn't come across any danger along the way. Nevertheless, the others might not be as lucky as they were.

Just then, the voice of Old Hong could be heard from behind, "This Old Master is a fortunate man. Of course I'm still alive!"

Yuan Xiao Man turned around and saw Old Hong strolling towards them. He was followed by a few Open Heaven Realm Masters; however, they all appeared to be in a terrible state as they had varying degrees of injuries. Some of their robes had even been dyed crimson.

Although Yuan Xiao Man had no idea which path Old Hong had chosen, it seemed that it wasn't as safe as the Path of Life. They must have come across a lot of danger, and some of them had lost their lives.

"Madam Lan indeed has deep wisdom and acute vision. This Old Master should have followed you to enter the Path of Life." Old Hong said with a bitter smile.

"I was just lucky." Madam Lan smiled, "Didn't Brother Zhang and Brother Ji go with you?"

Old Hong shook his head, "They both chose different paths." Then, he caught a glimpse of the Golden Crow corpse on the platform as his eyes turned fervent, "What's the situation here?"

Before Madam Lan could explain it to him, a loud boom was heard coming from another side of the hall. Following that, a blood-soaked figure that was surrounded by a malevolent aura entered. It was none other than Ji Tian Xing from Blood Dragon Altar.

It wasn't certain what he had encountered to make him appear so battered. Furthermore, he was the only person who had stepped out of the path. Right after he appeared, his attention was attracted by the Golden Crow carcass and exclaimed, "Golden Crow?"

After taking a look at Madam Lan and others, he quickly came over.

Old Hong examined him and grinned. Although he had come across some trouble, he still turned out fine in the end. On the other hand, Ji Tian Xing must have gone through terrible experiences.

Madam Lan nodded gently, "Only Brother Zhang is left, then."

A displeased Yuan Xiao Man asked, "Must we wait for him?"

Madam La replied, "More people means more power. Furthermore, there is enough Sun's True Gold for all of us."

In response, Yuan Xiao Man pouted, and they went on to wait for a few more hours. During this period of time, Old Hong and the others, who had come at a later time, learned what had happened here and began to strategize. The Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters were trying to come up with a way to break the barrier, but they didn't have any practical solution.

Even though the barrier appeared simple, it was arranged by a mature Golden Crow; therefore, even the simplest barrier would undoubtedly be difficult to break, unless they had enough strength.

A few hours later, Zhang Qi from Righteous Land finally appeared. Although it had taken him a longer time to arrive at this place, he appeared to be in a much better state than Old Hong and Ji Tian Xing. At the very least, there were no visible injuries on his body and many Open Heaven Realm Masters were accompanying him.

It seemed that all eight paths in the cave led to this hall, but the time needed to reach this place and the danger contained in each one varied greatly.

Upon meeting the others and getting the necessary information, Zhang Qi nodded gently, "Good. I'm fine with anything."

While waiting for Zhang Qi, Madam Lan and the others had come up with a method to break the barrier.

Old Hong moved and shot into the air before shouting, "Friends, please be silent for a moment. This Old Master has something to say."

Hearing that, the Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters who were chatting among themselves looked up at him.

A satisfied Old Hong nodded and grinned, "The reason you've come to this place is that you want to get some benefits. Now, the benefits are right in front of you, so it now depends on whether you're capable of seizing them. However, the treasures are protected by a powerful barrier. If we don't break the barrier, no one can ever get anything. We have had a discussion and determined that if we want to break the barrier, we need all of you to help us. So, please put aside your differences for now and cooperate with one another so that we can destroy the barrier together."

Upon hearing that, the Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters traded glances while most sneered, thinking Old Hong was spouting nonsense.

These Open Heaven Realm Masters had their own plans. They wouldn't mind helping to break the barrier, but what would happen after that? There was no way they could snatch anything from the Mid-Rank Open Heaven Masters. By then, all the treasures would fall into the hands of Old Hong and the others. The rest of them could only watch angrily from the side. No one was willing to lend a hand for free, which was why they had fallen silent.

Old Hong seemed to have seen through their thoughts, so he went on to say with a smile, "Of course, we won't ask you to help us for free. We've examined things carefully and confirmed that there are eight Sun's True Golds on the platform before us. Before the barrier is broken, no one can tell what Order these Sun's True Golds are.

Once the barrier is broken, we Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters will each receive one piece respectively, while the remaining three pieces will go to you. The most capable will obtain the prize. What do you think?"