Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Tia

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

“Unlike the bodyguards hired from outside, Blood Warriors can get a certain amount of resources from the Sect every month, so we could be considered part of the Sect. Moreover…” Gao Ming put on a smile at this point, “We can get a lot of good stuff from the Alchemists we follow; therefore, those from the Blood Warrior Hall yearn to be selected by an Alchemist. Whenever an Alchemist comes over to select a Blood Warrior, those little brats all become quite energetic.”

“It’s understandable.” Yang Kai could imagine the sight, then he took a look at Hua Rong, who had been tailing them, “In that case, it seems I was wrong about her.”

Gao Ming said, “That doesn’t matter. You’d better not rashly accept any strangers. If you want a bodyguard, you can select one from the Blood Warrior Hall when we get to the Sect.”

Yang Kai nodded gently, then suddenly recalled something, “Are there Spirit Realm Masters in the Blood Warrior Hall?”

Gao Ming shook his head, “No. Throughout the entire Divine Armament World, Spirit Realm Masters are considered peak experts. Such people naturally wouldn’t stay in the Blood Warrior Hall. However, many of the Blood Warriors grow with their Alchemists; therefore, the bodyguards of the Elders are basically all Spirit Realm Masters. You’ll find out more about it when you arrive at Profound Pill Sect.”

Yang Kai went on to ask more about Profound Pill Sect, and Gao Ming replied to him honestly. The main reason was that Yang Kai didn’t inquire about any secrets, so there was no need to hide anything from him. In any case, given Gao Ming’s position in the Sect, he was unable to get his hands on any top secrets.

Yang Kai stealthily tried to get more information about the person he claimed to be his Master; however, Gao Ming had no idea about this revered but mysterious person. The main reason was that he wasn’t Gao Xin Peng’s bodyguard at that time as he was still in the Blood Warrior Hall, so he had never come across that person.

Since Yang Kai was unable to gather any useful information, he could only give up. Now, he could only play it by ear and try to make sure his lie wouldn’t be exposed. He still hoped to get the pill recipe for the Hundred Revolutions Clear Heart Pill from Profound Pill Sect.

As they moved forward at full speed, they arrived at Heavenly Martial City three days later. They decided to visit Miao Hong and stayed over for one night.

Miao Hong received them in a hospitable manner, and upon learning that Yang Kai was returning to his roots in Profound Pill Sect, he congratulated him.

The next day, they leaped onto different horses and continued their journey.

They never came across any trouble along the way. Gao Ming was at the Peak Heaven Realm, and he was from Profound Pill Sect. Naturally, no one would dare to offend him.

Half a month later, they finally arrived at Profound Pill Sect.

The mountains were huge and the Spirit Peaks were beautiful. As one of the Ten Great Sects in the Divine Armament World, Profound Pill Sect was located in a picturesque mountain range. There was a city at the bottom of a mountain that was named Profound Pill City, which was bustling with noise.

According to Gao Ming, even though the city was the property of Profound Pill Sect, they didn’t really mean to develop it. It was just that the city had developed into such a scale over a long time.

Countless cultivators would come here every year to ask the Alchemists from Profound Pill Sect to refine pills for them. Most people were unable to enter Profound Pill Sect, so they would wait at the bottom of the mountain. There wasn’t a city initially, but as more people gathered together, a city was gradually formed. The city’s scale then increased over time. Now, Profound Pill City was one of the largest cities in the entire Divine Armament World.

In Profound Pill City, there were a lot of herb shops and pill shops. One could find any herbs that existed in the Divine Armament World in this city.

Before Yang Kai even entered the city, he saw many people flying around in the sky, which greatly surprised him.

He was now a Heaven Realm Master, and although he was able to fly, he would have to consume a lot of Spirit Qi to do so. Heaven Realm Masters usually wouldn’t fly unless it was absolutely necessary. People who could fly as they pleased were Spirit Realm Masters.

In other words, the people flying around before his eyes were basically all Spirit Realm Masters.

These were the strongest cultivators in the Divine Armament World and there was no doubt that the Spirit Realm was the goal for all Heaven Realm Masters. At the very least, Yang Kai could see a sense of yearning in Gao Ming’s eyes as he gazed up at the sky.

Gao Ming was now at the peak of the Heaven Realm, so with just one Hundred Revolutions Clear Heart Pill, he would be able to make it to the Spirit Realm.

Unfortunately, Gao Xin Peng wasn’t a Spirit Grade Alchemist yet, so he was unable to refine the pill for him.

Outside Profound Pill City, there was a wide avenue that was paved with stones which led to the nearest Spirit Peak. Gao Ming led Yang Kai to charge forward in that direction and no one stopped them.

However, Yang Kai could see many people walking on both sides of the road. Some of them appeared nervous as they were going up the mountain while some of them appeared dejected or excited as they were going down the mountain.

Although there wasn’t a restriction around the avenue, there seemed to be an invisible power that ensured no one would dare to step on it. While Yang Kai and Gao Ming were moving forward, those people looked at them with envious gazes.

Noticing Yang Kai’s doubt, Gao Ming secretly explained, “This avenue is exclusive to the disciples of Profound Pill Sect. Those who are not our disciples are not allowed to use it. The people you see are the ones who are here to ask for Alchemy services from our Sect.”

“There are so many of them!” Yang Kai was shocked.

Gao Ming said with a smile, “There are actually not many people today. There are days when more than twice as many people line the streets here.”

It was then that Yang Kai realised why those people sported different expressions. Those who got their pills were excited while those who didn’t were crestfallen.

“The Sect established the Seeking Pill Pavilion where people would go to request for pills. When you have a right to make pills in the future, you can set up a place there and get a medicine boy to be stationed there. If anybody wants you to refine pills, they will pass the necessary ingredients and compensation to your medicine boy.”

Yang Kai’s eyes brightened when he heard that, “That’s interesting.” Then, he turned to look in a different direction, “What are those people doing there? Is that Seeking Pill Pavilion?”

He could see that there was a huge platform where a large group of people, both men and women of different ages, gathered together. After scanning them, Yang Kai realised that many of them were cultivators in the Earth Realm or Heaven Realm. They had occupied the corners as they either looked around vigilantly or cultivated with their legs crossed on the ground. There were several dozen to a hundred of them.

What bothered Yang Kai was that there were traces of blood that had turned crimson on the ground. The traces of blood were a mess, and some of them were multi-layered. Yang Kai had a feeling that many fights had taken place here before.

The place was at the bottom of the mountain where Profound Pill Sect was located, so why would anyone get into a fight there?

Looking over, Gao Ming explained, “That’s not Seeking Pill Pavilion. That’s the Recruitment Stage.”

“Recruitment Stage?” Yang Kai frowned, “What is it for?”

Gao Ming swept a glance over them and suddenly pulled the reins of his horse, “Since we still have some time, you can take a look to find out what the place is for.”

Yang Kai stopped his horse beside Gao Ming and looked curiously at the Recruitment Stage.

Just then, a young man with a blue hat walked down the mountain with his hands behind his back. Despite his young age, he looked pretty arrogant. Yang Kai felt like laughing when he saw him.

However, when the cultivators on the Recruitment Stage saw the blue hat youth, they broke into a commotion as though a stone had been dropped into a still lake, which caused a layer of ripple to form.

The blue hat youth directly shuffled towards the centre of the Recruitment Stage and looked around with a smug expression. Seeing that all of their attention was on him, he coughed lightly and said, “My Master needs to hire two bodyguards. He has total trust in me, so he has entrusted me to handle this matter.”

As soon as he finished speaking, one of them hurriedly asked, “Sir, is your Master in the Heaven Grade or the Earth Grade?”

The blue hat youth glared at the person who spoke as though he was blaming him for saying something unnecessary. A moment later, he reluctantly replied, “He’s an Earth Grade Alchemist for now, but I believe he’ll make it to the Heaven Grade soon.”

Right after he finished his words, the eyes of many of the cultivators on the Recruitment Stage dimmed and soon, many cultivators left. Seeing that, the blue hat youth yelled, “Don’t go! I said that my Master will make it to the Heaven Grade very soon. By then, you’ll be the bodyguards of a Heaven Grade Alchemist! It’s not every day you get such a chance! If you don’t seize it now, you’ll regret it in the future!”

Regardless of what he said, those who were determined to leave had stepped down from the Recruitment Stage. About half of the cultivators were left.

Yang Kai could clearly see that the people who left were all in the Heaven Realm while the ones who stayed were in the Earth Realm.

He had a speculation about the use of the Recruitment Stage, so he gazed at Gao Ming and asked, “Is it a place where Alchemists hire bodyguards?”

Gao Ming nodded, “That’s right. Besides the Blood Warriors assigned to them, Alchemists can also hire their own bodyguards, and there isn’t a limit in number. Of course, the prerequisite is that they have enough money to employ them.”

“Did the Heaven Realm Masters leave because they think an Earth Grade Alchemist wouldn’t have enough money to pay them?”

“That’s one of the reasons. Another thing is these Heaven Realm Masters treasure their dignity, and it’s reasonable that they want to follow at least a Heaven Grade Alchemist. They wouldn’t be able to get over it if they followed Earth Grade Alchemists.”

Yang Kai nodded to mean that he got it.

The blue hat youth was haughty when he came, but at this moment, he appeared dispirited. While standing in the centre of the Recruitment Stage, he let out a sigh.

One of the Earth Realm Masters asked, “Sir, what are your Master’s requirements when selecting bodyguards?”

“Requirements?” The blue hat youth looked up at the sky as though he was bored, then he grinned, “There aren’t really any special requirements. Why don’t all of you fight against each other? I’ll select the people I prefer and bring you to see my Master. Perhaps my Master will hire some of you.”

The demand was boorish, but the Earth Realm Masters seemed to have directly accepted it, so the person who asked the question nodded, “Understood.”

At that instant, the atmosphere around the Recruitment Stage became tense. Everyone, regardless of their age or gender, gazed vigilantly at the people around them. It seemed that a scuffle was about to take place.

It was then Yang Kai realised why there were so many traces of blood on the Recruitment Stage. A scuffle could be ignited when it was just an Earth Grade Alchemist who tried to hire bodyguards, so nothing need be said about a Heaven Grade Alchemist. This situation was clearly quite common in this place.

“Let’s go.” Yang Kai wasn’t in the mood to watch such a farce. He pulled the reins and beckoned to Gao Ming, after which the two of them continued moving forward. Soon, the noises of battle could be heard coming from behind them.