Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Tia

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

It was then Wei Cheng sported a dark expression and narrated what had happened in the Divine Flame Cave. According to him, everything was going well initially, but at the most critical moment when he was about to capture the Heaven Flame, it seemed to have been disturbed. After pulsating for a moment, it disappeared.

“Besides that, did you happen to see anything else?” Yang Kai asked probingly.

Wei Cheng was startled for a moment, “What do you mean? Did you see anything else?”

“No, I was just asking,” Yang Kai replied in a perfunctory manner.

Based on what Wei Cheng had said, he didn’t see the sight of the white flame engulfing the Heaven Flame inside the cave. In his perception, the Heaven Flame disappeared abruptly and he didn’t even see the Alchemy Flames of different colours gathering together. If he had, he would’ve exposed it.

[That’s strange…] Yang Kai thought.

“I’m sorry that your attempt to capture a Heaven Flame has failed, but I really know nothing about it, nor is there a reason for me to interfere in your plans.” Yang Kai stared at him in a frank manner.

“Even if you didn’t mean to, this matter must have something to do with you,” Wei Cheng said through clenched teeth. It was obvious that he was infuriated; after all, he had been preparing for this moment for two years, and his attempt failed at the last moment. It was expected that he couldn’t get over it.

An impatient Yang Kai gazed at him, “What do you want, then? To fight me?” Although Wei Cheng’s failure did have something to do with him, he didn’t mean to do it. Moreover, he couldn’t really admit anything, so Yang Kai could only deny it.

Surprisingly, Wei Cheng’s eyes brightened when he heard that, “Good, you’re the one who said it. This Wei will fight with you.” He then gazed at Wu Zheng Qi, “Please be the witness for us, Vice Hall Master Wu.”

Wu Zheng Qi appeared hesitant, as though he was trying to say something, but he eventually let out a sigh, “Since both of you want to settle the matter in such a way, this Wu will act as witness. However, I hope that both of you won’t go overboard as you’re from the same Sect.”

Wei Cheng cupped his fist, “Many thanks, Vice Hall Master Wu.”

He then glared at Yang Kai, “I’ll see you at the Martial Methods Stage in three days!”

Upon finishing his words, he waved his hand and left with his Blood Warriors.

Yang Kai had just placed his hand on the hilt of True Void Sword when his aura dissipated instantly. Shocked, he gazed at Wei Cheng’s leaving figure and asked in puzzlement, “Why is he leaving?”

Wu Zheng Qi explained, “Since an agreement has been reached, he naturally has to go back and get prepared.”

A helpless Yang Kai asked, “What’s there to prepare when we’re just going to have a fight?”

An astounded Wu Zheng Qi stared at him, “Are you going to fight with Alchemist Wei just like this?”

“What else should I do?”

Wu Zheng Qi gaped at him for a moment before landing a slap on his own forehead, “I’ve forgotten that you’re new to the Sect, so you’re not familiar with our rules yet. The thing is, Alchemists are important treasures of Profound Pill Sect, so the fights between Alchemists are different from those of other cultivators.”

Yang Kai frowned, “Please enlighten me, Vice Hall Master Wu.”

Wu Zheng Qi explained, “Usually, a fight between Alchemists is divided into three rounds. The who wins two rounds will be the winner. Nevertheless, the first two rounds have nothing to do with the Alchemists as only their bodyguards would go on stage. They’ll fight in the first two rounds, and it will be best if there’s a winner. If there is a draw, the Alchemists will then go on stage; however, the competition between Alchemists will be all about Alchemy, not a battle. That way, the safety of the Alchemists can be ensured. Even if one of them loses, he wouldn’t be injured.”

Upon hearing his explanation, Yang Kai replied, “I see.”

It was no wonder that Wei Cheng said they would meet again at the Martial Methods Stage after three days. Yang Kai initially thought that they would just fight right away, and he had even considered using a bit of his true strength.

“You don’t have any Blood Warriors yet, right?” Wu Zheng Qi gazed at him in an awkward manner.

In response, Yang Kai shook his head.

Wu Zheng Qi burst into laughter, “It seems that you’ll have to head to the Blood Warrior Hall, but… En, I’ll stop here. You’ll find out about it when you reach the Blood Warrior Hall later.”

Yang Kai felt helpless as he returned from the Divine Flame Hall.

His trip to the cave ended up in him getting a Mortal Flame and offending Wei Cheng. It also never crossed his mind that he would agree to fighting with him. Life was truly unpredictable.

However, that didn’t bother Yang Kai one bit as he was most concerned about the kind of Mortal Flame he had obtained. Why was it able to engulf a Heaven Flame?

While he was in his thoughts, he walked down the mountain and soon arrived at Seeking Pill Pavilion. After looking around for a while, he still couldn’t find the person he wanted to see.

He thought that woman’s stubbornness was her only good point. She had said she would be waiting for him, but she had disappeared barely a few days later.

However, on his way back to the peak, he suddenly heard Hua Rong calling out to him in a passionate manner, “Alchemist Yang!”

Yang Kai turned his head and saw the woman at the Recruitment Stage. As she yelled, she dashed forward and soon reached Yang Kai. With a fervent gaze, she asked, “Are you here to look for me?”

After taking a few steps back, Yang Kai nodded, “Yes.”

An elated Hua Rong asked, “Have you changed your mind and decided to take me on as your bodyguard?”

The woman’s jovial expressions surprised Yang Kai as he wondered why she was so ecstatic. After measuring his words, he replied, “I can take you on as a bodyguard, but I must give you a test first.”

“Tell me. As long as it’s achievable, I’ll do it for you!” Hua Rong nodded repeatedly.

Yang Kai examined her as he doubted her ability to carry out the task; however, there wasn’t a better person to do this job at this point. He initially wanted to borrow Gao Ming from Gao Xin Peng, but the latter wasn’t even in Profound Pill Sect now, so how was he supposed to borrow his bodyguard?

“I want you to head to Void Spirit Sword Sect and escort three people to this place.”

Hua Rong was all ears as she listened to him, then she asked, “That’s it?”

Yang Kai nodded, “Can you do it?”

Hua Rong replied with a smile, “Don’t underestimate me, Alchemist Yang. I can even escort everyone from Void Spirit Sword Sect to this place, not to mention three people.”

“Good, I’ll leave it to you, then. When you return… I’ll take you on as a bodyguard,” Yang Kai said through clenched teeth. He had to settle the issue of getting his medicine boy as soon as possible since those from Profound Pill Sect had only given him one month. After that, he would have to start providing Alchemy services at Seeking Pill Pavilion. If he didn’t have a medicine boy to help him out by then, he would be swamped with work. That was why he rushed over to look for Hua Rong first instead of heading to the Blood Warrior Hall.

“After I come back with those people, how am I going to look for you?” Hua Rong darted her gaze around, “I can’t enter Profound Pill Sect without an Identity Token.”

That was indeed a problem. Just when Yang Kai was ready to say he would ask someone to wait at this place every day, Hua Rong suggested by saying, “Why don’t you bring me to make a registration and get the Identity Token for a bodyguard first? That way, I can directly enter Profound Pill Sect when I come back.”

Seeing that Yang Kai appeared hesitant, she said, “Please trust me, Alchemist Yang. I’ll definitely complete your task. If anything goes wrong, you can kill me.”

Since she had said so much, Yang Kai gave it a thought and agreed to it.

It didn’t take him a long time to bring Hua Rong to make a registration; however, a bodyguard hired from outside like Hua Rong would have to go through the examination and verification of Profound Pill Sect to have her background checked. This was to ensure that she wouldn’t pose a threat to the Alchemist she followed or to the Sect as a whole. She would only be acknowledged as a bodyguard after everything was done.

Yang Kai didn’t have to be concerned about it anyway as Profound Pill Sect had an intelligence department to deal with such matters.

When he saw Hua Rong off, she already had a temporary Identity Token with her. With this token, she was able to visit most places in Profound Pill Sect except for the most important areas.

After she was gone, Yang Kai headed to the Blood Warrior Hall to select two Blood Warriors.

Since they were trained in Profound Pill Sect, their loyalty was guaranteed. Yang Kai also didn’t have to pay anything to get them.

He initially thought that there were countless powerful cultivators in the Blood Warrior Hall and he could easily get two Eighth-Step or Ninth-Step Heaven Realm Masters, but after arriving at this place, he realised that he was too naive.

There were indeed some Heaven Realm Masters in the Blood Warrior Hall, but the strongest ones were only in the Third-Step or the Fourth-Step Heaven Realm. They were even weaker than Hua Rong, which was why he was disappointed.

It was then he realised why Wu Zheng Qi appeared hesitant at the mention of the Blood Warrior Hall.

After giving it a thought, Yang Kai realised that it wasn’t so surprising. Profound Pill Sect was a powerful great force, and it wasn’t difficult for them to nurture Heaven Realm Masters; however, it took time for Heaven Realm Masters to grow, and the ones in higher Steps had all been selected by the other Heaven Grade Alchemists. The Blood Warriors that were left were naturally the weaker ones.

How was Yang Kai supposed to fight with Wei Cheng with these Blood Warriors? Although he had no idea about the cultivation of Wei Cheng’s Blood Warriors, they were clearly not in the Third or Fourth-Step Heaven Realm.

Yang Kai initially intended to select two Blood Warriors, but he had now lost interest.

Nevertheless, the Blood Warriors looked fervently at him, as though they were willing to do anything for him upon receiving his order. It would be inappropriate if he didn’t even choose one.

In the end, he only brought back one Blood Warrior.

One hour later, Yang Kai was seated on a chair in his cave mansion. There was a man who knelt on one knee in front of him. His bald head appeared pretty shiny even in the cave mansion.

This guy was the only one Yang Kai had brought back from the Blood Warrior Hall as he looked a bit special. He was truly burly, and about two full heads taller than Yang Kai when he was standing. His facial features looked fierce and he was quite conspicuous even among the Masters in the Blood Warrior Hall.

However, this person wasn’t the strongest as he was only in the Second-Step Heaven Realm. According to the person in charge of the Blood Warrior Hall, his aptitude was low as well and he had remained in the Hall for a long time. The other Blood Warriors from the same batch were now in the Sixth-Step or Seventh-Step, and they had already been selected by other Heaven Grade Alchemists. He was the only one left in the Hall from the same batch.