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Translator: Silavin & Raikov
Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun
Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys
The Black Ink Clansmen also had some good things with them. If the artifacts that were tailored for the Black Ink Clan’s use were brought back to the Inner Sanctum and entrusted to someone else to be processed, then many useful materials could be extracted. Naturally, these things couldn’t be used for cultivation, but there was no problem with using them to create Human artifacts and to repair Human Warships.
They were also able to collect many Black Ink Coins from the bodies of the dead Black Ink Clansmen. Blue Sky Pass had been able to amass a great amount of Black Ink Coins already. Countless Black Ink Clansmen would die every time there was a battle, and even though the deceased Black Ink Clansmen weren’t very rich, over time, Blue Sky Pass was able to gather a terrifyingly large number of Black Ink Coins.
These coins were a common currency used within the Black Ink Clan. Black Ink Clansmen could use them to buy whatever they wanted, but they had no use at all in the hands of Humans.
The only unfortunate thing was that they did not see any Black Ink Disciples during that battle.
There were actually quite a lot of Black Ink Disciples in the Black Ink Clan’s territory, but many of them were lost after the previous war outside of Blue Sky Pass. Even though Yang Kai was able to save a few of these Black Ink Disciples with the Purifying Light that he possessed, not many had the energy left in them to capture Black Ink Disciples on a battlefield where swords have no eyes.
After being corrupted by Black Ink Strength, the Black Ink Disciples became merciless when it came to attacking their former Human compatriots. Unless there was a large difference in strength, capturing a Black Ink Disciple alive was almost impossible, so Blue Sky Pass had no choice but to kill them.
The fight many years ago shaved down the number of Black Ink Disciples in the Blue Sky Theatre by a large margin. Many Black Ink Clansmen also left behind their own Black Ink Disciples to bring up the rear while they were escaping, which was a possible reason why there were no Black Ink Disciples to be found in this Black Ink Clan group.
“Are you all right?” Feng Ying asked in the cabin as she looked at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai had taken the lead to rush into the enemy lines alone. Despite receiving no injuries, there was a trace of dried blood at the corner of his right eye, which was naturally a backlash of using the Black Purgatory Eye.
His cultivation of this Secret Technique was not yet perfected, so though he achieved great success when using it against one of the Feudal Lords, he also had to pay a small price for it.
“It’s nothing.” Yang Kai waved his hand, “I have gained some insight from this battle, so I will be entering retreat for now. Alert me when we arrive.”
With that said, Yang Kai left for his own cabin.
This was not the first time he was using the Black Purgatory Eye. Previously, he had used it at the Star Boundary, but it felt completely different from when he was using it back then. The power of this Eye Secret Technique had yet to be properly refined, but it had a boundless future ahead of it.
The battlefield was soon cleared and Dawning Light continued on its way.
After this encounter, Dawn Squad’s morale rose to new heights. This was Dawn’s first official battle. They faced several hundred Black Ink Clansmen and three Feudal Lords, but they were able to take them down with hardly any trouble and without any casualties. This was a feat that no ordinary Squad on the Black Ink Battlefield could possibly achieve.
All of Dawn’s members were raring to fight again after such a great start.
After experiencing an ambush, Dawn increased their vigilance; however, no more attackers jumped out to challenge them for the rest of their journey.
Two days later an asteroid appeared in the void. From a distance, they could see a large number of buildings on the bustling asteroid, as well as a constant stream of Squad Warships returning and departing.
This was Blue Sky Pass’s fourth forward base, and the area nearby was also a resource-rich zone.
Initially, this place was occupied by the Black Ink Clan, but several years ago, when the Black Ink Clan Army was driven back, the defences here were weakened enough for Blue Sky Pass to take advantage of the opportunity to seize it.
It had not been long since they took over this base, only several months. So, there were still many things waiting to be done.
When Dawning Light sailed in, it immediately drew the attention of the vigilant cultivators at the forward base. At once, several streams of light took to the air to block their path, all wary of their presence.
The man standing at the front shouted from afar, “Who goes there? Identify yourselves!”
It could be seen from a glance that Dawning Light was a large ship which was far different from a standard model. If this kind of Warship belonged to Humans, then they would naturally be happy; however, if it had been snatched by the Black Ink Clan, then that was not a good thing at all.
Yang Kai, who had already been informed of their arrival by Feng Ying, appeared on the deck in a flash and shouted, “Dawn Squad, here to provide support.”
“Dawn?” The man who shouted earlier raised his brow in surprise. Generally, every Squad had its own affiliation, such as which Army, Division, and Battalion it belonged to. These things were all clearly defined. However, Yang Kai only gave him the name ‘Dawn’, which took him by surprise.
But soon, he seemed to think of something and focused his eyesight over, speaking with pleasant surprise in his voice, “Could you be Brother Yang?”
“Indeed!” Yang Kai nodded.
“Is it truly you, Brother Yang?” Surprised, the man quickly came over to investigate and was overjoyed when he discovered that it really was Yang Kai.
Yang Kai did not recognize him, but this man clearly recognized Yang Kai. Of course, there was basically nobody who did not know about Yang Kai in Blue Sky Pass. During the last battle between the two races, it was with the Purifying Light and the Purifying Black Ink Battleships that the Humans were able to reduce their casualties by an enormous amount. Countless people who had been corrupted by Black Ink Strength were able to be saved, lifting them out of a terrible crisis, and the one behind it all was Yang Kai.
It could be said that there was one person in almost every single Blue Sky Pass Battalion who had been saved by Yang Kai either directly or indirectly.
After that battle, Yang Kai’s name soared in Blue Sky Pass, and there was not a single person who did not know about him.
It was rumoured that in recognition of his service, the Army Commanders jointly promoted him to Squad Leader, forming a new Squad called Dawn that was not affiliated with any Army or Division and only reported directly to the Army Commanders themselves.
There were many who wished to join Dawn, but Feng Ying was the one who chose all the members, recruiting only a few dozen of those who followed them back from the Black Ink Clan’s hinterland back then. Not a single person outside of that group was accepted.
They would never have expected that Dawn Squad would come all the way here, or that Yang Kai would personally lead his Squad over.
After ascertaining that it was in fact Yang Kai and Dawn, there was no need for them to check further. The cultivator who spoke earlier immediately gave Dawn permission to land at the forward base situated on the asteroid and even helped settle them in.
“Was it by the Army Commanders’ orders that Brother Yang came here?” The Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Master who welcomed them asked.
Yang Kai shook his head, “I came of my own volition. I heard that there was a lot of fighting going on here, so I thought I would come and earn some Merits.”
The Seventh-Order Master laughed at his words, “Can it be any easier for Brother Yang to obtain Military Merits? What need is there for Brother Yang to join the fight personally?” As he spoke, he noticed the battle traces left on Dawn’s hull and asked in shock, “Were you already attacked?”
Yang Kai nodded, “Two days ago, we encountered an ambush from the Black Ink Clan.”
The Seventh-Order Master was shocked to hear that, “The Black Ink Clan actually circumvented our base to set up an ambush? How many enemies were there, and how strong were they?”
Yang Kai gave him a basic rundown on the Black Ink Clan ambushers that they encountered.
The Seventh-Order Master narrowed his eyes, “That is a serious matter that must be reported to the Commanders overseeing the base. We must deal with it quickly; otherwise, another Squad may be ambushed on their way here from the Pass.”
Feng Ying cut in, “No need. The Black Ink Clan ambushers have been wiped out, and they should be the only ones. We did not encounter any other enemies on our way here.”
The Seventh-Order Master’s jaw dropped open, “Wiped out? All of them?”
To say that all of them were wiped out meant that not a single enemy had been able to escape. He could not help but look back at the light damage incurred by Dawn’s Warship, and at Yang Kai and the others, who were completely unharmed. He wondered what price Dawn had to pay in order to have wiped out an ambushing force of such a proportion.
With the configuration of Dawn’s Squad, those ambushers would have been unlucky to encounter them and would surely be no match for them, but looking at Dawn’s members, they all seemed utterly unscathed after that battle, which left him in a bit of a mystery.
However, when considering how strong Feng Ying was, he soon relaxed.
Even though Feng Ying was a Seventh-Order Master like him, her name was well known across Blue Sky Pass. With her overseeing the Squad, those Black Ink Clan ambushers should not have been a match for them.
Feng Ying did not dwell on the matter. Either way, the War Materials Hall would get all the information after they reported their Military Merits. She instead asked, “Which Sirs are currently overseeing this base?”
The Seventh-Order Master composed himself and replied, “There are four Eighth-Order Masters currently overseeing this forward base: Eastern Army Division Commander Xie Xiu Ping, Southern Army’s Division Commander Cha Hu, Western Army Division Commander Lu An, and Northern Army Division Commander Xu Bo Liang. However, other than Division Commander Cha, the others are not currently present.”
If they were not in the forward base, that meant they must have gone to the resource collection area. The Black Ink Clan’s remnants had not fully given up this area yet and were still locked in a struggle with the Humans, so there were still Territory Lords around.
If they were to deal with a Territory Lord, then an Eighth-Order Human Master had to be mobilized. This was also the reason why the three Eighth-Order Division Commanders were currently away from the forward base.
Yang Kai nodded, “In that case, bring us to Division Commander Cha.”
Once one arrived at a forward base, registrations had to be made. While they were stationed here, they had to obey the orders of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters overseeing the base.
The Seventh-Order Master was about to nod when a Warship suddenly flew in from the distance. From the meandering and crooked path that it was flying in, it was clear that its propulsion array was damaged, and the glow of its shield was also extremely faint.
Even though the Warship was not close, the eyesight of everyone present was so profound that they were able to see the battle scars all over its hull. From these marks alone, they could deduce just how fierce a fight it had been in.
Even though the hull of the Warship was still intact, practically all of the arrays had been smashed and would have to be repaired before it could rejoin the battlefield.
Despite the Warship swaying left and right, it was still charging towards the forward base at a tremendous speed without any intention of slowing down even as it approached. On the deck, a cultivator was shouting for them to make way. It seemed that the damage to the Warship’s propulsion array was greater than usual, so much so that it could not even stop on its own.
As the Warship was about to crash on the ground, a figure leapt from its deck and stopped in front of it. With a roar, he circulated his energy and used his own body to cushion the impact.
There was a grunt, and the man’s body shook as he was forced to step back.
Fortunately, many people from the forward base rushed over to help, eventually halting the Warship.
As soon as the Warship landed, many Artifact Refiners and Array Masters who had been waiting on standby rushed over and began the repair work.
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